Enhanced Sop #53
Revised: March/April 1999
Last Revised: February 2000

Title: Micro Automation Programmable Dicing Saw, Model 1006

Purpose
Operational and procedural instructions used to separate individual die on a silicon wafer or glass substrate.
Precautions
(1)	Edges of the diamond-and-epoxy resin blades are very sharp and can very easily cut through the skin during regular handling.
(2)	There is high risk of damage to the delicate blades during handling. Handle the blades with extreme care, as they break very easily. Never touch the cutting edge of a blade, as even the slightest touch can bend, deform, and/or break a blade. Do not flex or bend these thin blades!
(3)	The spindle should never be turned on without the clear plastic guard tightly in place.
(4)	You are strongly encouraged to wear hearing protection, as the spindle is agonizingly loud when it is running.
(5)	Due to the age and unpredictability of this machine, do not leave it running unattended. For example, it is not uncommon for the spindle to slow down, jam, or halt suddenly, causing one or more internal fuses to blow inside the machine, disabling the saw. If the spindle is damaged or destroyed, it may cost at least $20,000 to replace! If you are nearby watching or listening for these problems while operating the dicing saw, you should immediately push the STANDBY key to stop the spindle, if it seems to be slowing down, jamming, or operating unstably (which you can easily detect by a dramatic change in pitch of the loud noise it emits when running).
(6)	The red pushbutton switch, labelled STOP , is used to turn the saw's main power on and off. To turn the saw on, turn the button to the right. To turn it off, push the button in. Although this button may be used to immediately stop the saw in a crisis situation, do not turn off the main power when the spindle is running (instead, press the STANDBY key to stop the spindle).
(7)	The operating controls are clustered into two groups of pressure/touch-sensitive switches on either side of the spindle. Operate them by pressing on the switch area with your finger. You will hear a beep when you press these buttons. Due to the age of this machine, you may experience problems in " double-pressing" these switches when you touch them. If this occurs, simply touch the button again, so that it is pressed only once (and then press the enter key, if applicable). You can damage these switches by pushing them with metal tools.
(8)	IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are dicing silicon wafers or other samples with delicate or suspended microstructures, you are strongly encouraged to spin on photoresist to protect your sample from saw blade and vibration damage before you begin cutting your sample.

Procedure: Please read this entire document before operating the saw.
I.		PRELIMINARIES
1.		Obtain a copy of and fill out the "SAW PROGRAM " sheet (see section II., below)
2.		Check the water level in the Vacuum Water Trap. This trap is located on top of the saw table to the right of the saw.
	a.	If the water level is above the tape on the side of the flask, empty the flask. To empty it, carefully remove the stopper (leave the two tubes in the stopper), leave the flask in the wooden base, and remove both. Hold the neck of the flask and tilt the base into a sink. Slowly pour water out into the sink.
3.		Check the water level in the Air Line Filter. This filter is located at the right, rear of the saw, at the table level. This Filter is also a regulator. This device may be labeled Saw Air Utility Filter/Regulator. Remember the location of this filter, as it will be mentioned later.
	a.	If the water level is above the tape, empty the filter. To empty it, turn the bottom plastic screw clockwise.
4.		Check the four drain holes at the corners on top of the machine (in the water basin area) for visible obstructions. Ideally, these holes should all be covered with a wire mesh to keep large pieces of debris from clogging the drains. Once operating the dicing saw, if you find that water is spilling over the top water basin area, you may need to either unclog one or more of the drain tubes or reduce the flow rate (flow rates around 50 - 55 GPH for the vacuum-chuck-and-diamond-cutting-blade cooling water will not cause water to spill over the top basin, if all four drain holes are unclogged!).
5.		Check to insure that all of the water drain tubes are properly situated/mounted to drain into a nearby sink or water drain. There should be two large (one-half-inch diameter) tubes for draining chuck and cutting blade cooling water out of the top water basin, and two smaller tubes (one to drain spindle cooling water and another to drain the bottom steal pan in which the dicing saw is sitting).
6.		Decide how you will mount the sample to be cut or diced (e.g. with or without tape or blue film under the sample). Discuss mounting your sample with Dr. Walsh. Your sample to be diced or cut with any mount underneath (if applicable) will be hereafter referred to as the SPECIMEN .
7.		Check to see if there is a blade sheet present on top of or near the saw. This document describes the blade which is currently mounted on the saw (grit, cutting depth, and thickness).
	a.	Visually inspect the blade to make sure it is not damaged or broken.
	b.	If you need to change the blade, refer to and follow instructions provided in the Saw Blade Changing SOP ( SOP #55)
8.		If the dicing saw itself is not already plugged in, plug it in. If you do not see any LED's on the front panels lit, rotate the red STOP button to turn on the saw. If the saw is still not on, check to make sure the top-cover interlock switch in the back of the unit is pushed down and latched (it can be latched down, even if the top cover is not on the saw).	Location of the top-cover interlock switch.

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II.		PROGRAM
1.		These are the left-panel program and data-entry keys you will use.
	a.
	b.	These are the right-panel program and chuck movement keys.
2.	a.	You must first store a program before you can initialize and use the saw. First, press the PROGRAM key: .
	b.	General Program Rules and Notes i. Once you have begun to program the saw, you must finish (a value must be entered for each cutting parameter). ii. A non-zero number must be entered for each parameter (except CUT COUNT). iii. When the red LED next to the PROGRAM key is lit, the saw is in program mode. The saw cannot be operated unless the PROGRAM LED is not lit (i.e. all sufficient program parameters have been entered). iv. If the saw is started up from the standby condition, the program stored and used in the last operation will be used. v. If during programming, you hear a beep and receive a flashing error code, refer to the error code list in Section V (below). Typically these can be cleared by pressing CLEAR , re-entering the number or parameter, then pressing ENTER . Because the program-entry keys are very sensitive to touch, a key may register multiple touches or presses, generating an error. Carefully re-entering the number or parameter usually corrects this problem. vi. The numbers entered and displayed (on the red 7-segment LED display) are either in mils (0.001 in.) or mm., depending on the state of the ENG/METRIC switch. vii. If you accidently enter a wrong number, press CLEAR, change the number, then press ENTER.
3.	a.	Press the MODE key: , enter a mode number (see below) on the numeric keypad, and press ENTER. VALUE (MODE): _____________________________
	b.	Mode Number Description 10 For round specimens, with alignment required for each pass. 11 For round specimens with no alignment required for the second pass. (Blank wafers) 20 For round specimens, hexagonal die, where alignment is required for each pass (Triple alignment option). 21 For round specimens, hexagonal die, with no alignment required for the last two passes. (Blank wafers) 22 For round specimens, hexagonal die, with no alignment required for the second pass. The third pass alignment is made to an intersection of cuts made during the first and second passes. (Blank wafers) 30 For rectangular specimens, with alignment required for each pass. 31 For rectangular specimens, where no alignment is required for the second pass. (Blank wafers) 60 Progressive depth cuts for round specimens, with alignment required for each pass. 61 Progressive depth cuts for round specimens, with no alignment required for the second pass. (Blank wafers) 70 Progressive depth cuts for rectangular specimens, with alignment required for each pass. 71 Progressive depth cuts for rectangular specimens, where no alignment is required for the second pass. (Blank wafers)
4.		Select which base units system you will use when entering cut parameters. Press the ENG/METRIC key to toggle between mils (0.001 inch) and millimeters (mm). The LED indicator to the left of this key will indicate which base units the saw is currently configured to use.
5.		Press the SCR/DICE, , button (if needed) to toggle the red LED to the DICE mode.
6.		Press the 1ST INDEX key, enter the street-to-street distance for the first cut pass, then press ENTER. The range of possible street widths is 0.125 mils - 4,000 mils, or 0.0032 mm. - 101.6 mm. VALUE (1ST INDEX): _____________________________
7.		Press the THICKNESS key, enter your specimen's total (maximum) thickness, then press ENTER. Thickness is programmable from 0.25 mils - 511 mils, or 0.0064 mm. - 13 mm. WARNING: Make sure you know, accurately, your specimen's maximum thickness (measure it with a micrometer) to avoid cutting into the vacuum chuck. VALUE (THICKNESS): _____________________________
8.		Press the HEIGHT key, enter the amount of the specimen you want left after the cut, then press ENTER. The depth of the cut equals the THICKNESS of the specimen minus this programmed HEIGHT parameter. The height range is 0.25 mils - 511 mils, or 0.0064 mm. - 13 mm. VALUE (HEIGHT): _____________________________
9.		Press the ANGLE key, enter the theta-axis angle the vacuum chuck will rotate between cut passes, then press ENTER. The normal range is 1° to 121° (except in 'Hex" cutting mode where the largest angle is 60.1°). VALUE (ANGLE): _____________________________
10.		Next, you will enter parameters to specify whether your specimen is round or r ectangular .
	a.	For round specimens, press the DIA key, enter the specimen diameter, then press ENTER. The range of possible values is 0.25 mils - 6000 mils (6 inches), or 0.0064 mm. - 152 mm. VALUE (ROUND): _____________________________
	b.	For rectangular specimens, press the DIA key, enter the specimen's width dimensi on, then press ENTER. VALUE (RECT): _____________________________ Then press the * key, enter the specimen's length dimension, then press ENTER. VALUE (RECT): _____________________________ The range is 0.25 mils - 6000 mils (6 inches), or 0.0064 mm. - 152 mm.
11.		Press the 2ND INDEX key, enter the street-to-street dimension for the second cut pass (which is the pass that occurs after your programmed theta-axis ANGLE rotation of the vacuum chuck), then press ENTER. The range of possible street width values is 0.125 mils - 4,000 mils, or 0.0032 mm. - 101.6 mm. VALUE (2ND INDEX): _____________________________
12.		Press the SPEED key, enter the speed of X-axis travel (i.e. the wafer cutting speed), then press ENTER. The best cutting SPEED is largely determined by the specimen material's hardness. Speed is programmable from 50 mils/sec. - 19,999 mils/sec, or 1.27 mm./sec. - 508 mm./sec. NOTE: A recommended starting speed through silicon samples is 50 mils/sec. VALUE (SPEED): _____________________________
13.		If you want to use progressive-depth cuts, press the 0 (zero) key, enter the desired incremental depth cut distance, then press ENTER. This is only used if you have already programmed MODE number 60, 61, 70, or 71. The incremental-depth cut range is 1 mil - 15 mil, or 0.025 mm. - 0.381 mm. VALUE (PROGRESSIVE DEPTH CUT DISTANCE): _____________________________
	a.	Progressive depth cuts are used the thickness of your specimen is too thick to be effectively, cleanly cut all at once. In this cutting mode, the saw will make a series of progressively deeper cuts on the same street before moving to the next street.
	b.	An example of using progressive depth cuts, is to cut through a thick glass specimen to reduce blade wear.
14.		Press the PROGRAM key to indicate that you have entered all cut parameters for your specimen.
15.		Press the RESET key, .

III.		OPERATION
1.		Turn ON the TV monitor, that is located beside the saw, by rotating the right-most knob (below the monitor screen) clockwise.
2.		Turn on the lab air (compressed air) valve by rotating the knob COUNTER-CLOCKWISE.
3.		If needed, turn on the Saw Air Utility Filter/Regulator. Typically this regulator valve has already been opened to the correct PSI setting. Turn the top yellow knob CLOCKWISE until the regulator gauge reads 90 PSI (as of March 1999). The nominal PSI range over which the saw has been operated is 65 - 75 PSI. (The previous operating pressure setting was 70 PSI.)
4.		Turn on the vacuum pump (which is typically on the floor to the right of the saw table), by plugging it into an electrical outlet.
5.		Turn the cold water faucet ON (turn the cold knob counter-clockwise). This is the cooling water for the spindle and rotating blade. Later, once the spindle is running you will check the flow-rate meters under the saw table to verify correct cooling water flow rates.
6.		Press the SPINDLE key, , on the right-panel keypad.
	a.	After pressing the SPINDLE key, carefully watch the blade assembly through the clear plastic cover and verify that the spindle begins to rotate. WARNING: If the spindle fails to start rotating within a few seconds, immediately press the STANDBY key to abort start-up. Failure to do this may damage the expensive spindle motor assembly. NOTE: If the lab air or cooling water is not already turned on, the spindle may not start-up.
	b.	Cooling water should begin flowing to the spindle once it is started. Verify that the right GPH flow meter (for spindle cooling water) is reading approx. 26 GPH. The flow meter has a black mark on it to indicate where the flow rate should be. If needed, adjust the flow rate by turning the black knobs at the bottom of each meter as needed.
7.		Next you need to "zero" the saw blade with respect to the vacuum chuck.
	a.	First, locate the round metal gauge disk, which should be stored near the saw on top of the saw table, or on top of the nearby black filing cabinet. This metal disk is about 4 inches in diameter and about 1/8th of an inch thick.		The Gauge Disk
	b.	Make sure that the gauge disk and vacuum chuck assembly are dry. NOTE: Make sure the gauge disk and vacuum chuck assembly are dry. Also make sure the water spray tube (which protrudes out over the vacuum chuck assembly) is not dripping water onto the chuck. During chuck zero calibration (step 7.g., below), the vacuum chuck and gauge disk are slowly elevated until the gauge disk is brought into brief contact with the saw blade, closing an electrical circuit. Thus, if the gauge disk is wet, erroneous chuck zero calibration will result, because the water will conduct current causing the saw to calibrate for a chuck that is thicker than it really is.		The Vacuum Chuck
	c.	Center the gauge disk and gently drop it onto the chuck
	d.	If you need to move the gauge disk around on the chuck, since the vacuum pump should already be running, press the UNLOCK button.
	e.	Due to the age of the saw, the lock/unlock solenoid usually does not function properly. If you cannot move the gauge disk around after pressing the UNLOCK key, unplug the vacuum hose from where it attaches to the vacuum chuck to remove vacuum from the chuck. Then move the gauge disk into place and reconnect the hose to re-establish vacuum adhesion.		The vacuum hose attachment point
	f.	Press LOCK to activate the chuck vacuum (even if the lock/unlock solenoid is not working properly, you cannot proceed to the next step until this is done).
	g.	Press the CHUCK ZERO key to "zero" the vacuum chuck assembly. The chuck should slowly raise the gauge disk up under the rotating saw blade until it actually comes into brief contact with the blade, and then the chuck should lower and reset. NOTE: If you receive error codes when trying to "zero" the chuck, refer to Section V,below to identify and clear them. A common error often occurs when the saw does not register that the gauge disk has been locked onto the vacuum chuck assembly. Try repeatedly pressing the LOCK, UNLOCK, LOCK, then CHUCK ZERO keys.
	h.	After the vacuum chuck assembly has finished "zeroizing," press the UNLOCK key, remove the gauge disk, and re-store it next to the saw. Also, it may be necessary to unplug the vacuum hose from the vacuum chuck to release the vacuum (leave the hose disconnected until you have placed your specimen onto the chuck).
8.	a.	There are a series of "set" screws in the vacuum grooves of the top surface of the vacuum chuck which can be removed as desired to enlarge the diameter of vacuum suction for the specimen. Depending upon the size of your specimen, you may need to remove additional set screws.		The vacuum chuck set screws
	b.	If you remove any set screws, they should be stored along the side edge of the vacuum chuck in threaded holes specially designed for that purpose.		Set screw storage locations
	c.	Now, center and gently place your specimen onto the vacuum chuck.
9.		Re-connect the chuck vacuum hose (if you had to disconnect it to release the vacuum) and press the LOCK key.
10.		Next you need to optically align the saw blade with respect to the specimen on the vacuum chuck.
	a.	Press the ALIGN key to allow you to align the saw's first cut on your specimen.
	b.	The TV monitor shows a split-field image of your specimen. The image on the right side of the screen (and right side of your specimen) may be obscured by the cooling-water outlet tube. Thus, you may have to gently push or bend the cooling-water outlet tube towards the center of the vacuum chuck (i.e. to the left) in order to see your specimen clearly on the TV monitor during this alignment sequence (especially as you scroll to the left and right across your specimen to check the alignment).
	c.	You should see two white, horizontal "reticle" lines on the black- and-white TV monitor. Use the red buttons on the right side of the camera assembly (positioned above the vacuum chuck area) to position a reticle line just above, and another reticle line just below where your specimen's streets (or other horizontal features to use for alignment) are visible on the monitor. Use the top two red buttons to move BOTH reticle lines up or down on the screen, and use the bottom two red buttons to move the reticle lines closer together or farther apart on the monitor. NOTE: These reticle lines are actually used to evaluate where the saw blade will cut into your specimen. To precisely determine where the blade will cut your specimen, you may wish to first make a single cut into a "test wafer" or specimen. After making a single-pass cut, scroll across the specimen to see exactly where the blade cut into it. Then, use the red reticle-position and spacing keys to move the horizontal reticle lines to the outer edges of the cut trench. After you remove the test specimen, replace it with the actual specimen, and follow this alignment routine (10 a.-e.), you can then use the position of the reticle lines to see where cuts will actually be made.
	d.	Align the streets to the plane of the cutting blade. Press-and-hold the LEFT, RIGHT, BACK, FWD, CW (clockwise), or CCW (counter-clockwise) keys on the right panel keypad to align your specimen. The LEFT and RIGHT keys move the specimen rapidly along the horizontal X-axis, while the BACK and FWD keys move the specimen along the vertical Y-axis. The CW (clockwise) and CCW (counter- clockwise) keys rotate the specimen. By default, pressing-and-holding the BACK , FWD, CW, or CCW key moves the specimen very slowly for fine alignments. For faster, coarse alignment, first press the FAST key, followed by pressing-and-holding the BACK, FWD, CW, or CCW key (the FAST key only works for the next key pressed). You should attempt to align horizontal features (such as streets) on your specimen to the horizontal reticle lines. This is done by horizontally moving across your specimen to see if your horizontal features or streets are parallel to the reticle lines. If not, rotate the wafer (by pressing-and-holding the CW or CCW key) and continue moving across the wafer until X-axis features or streets are parallel to the reticle lines.
	e.	You can move to every street on your specimen by first pressing the INDEX key followed by the FWD or BACK key. You should see your specimen step to the next (or previous) cutting street (through a distance specified by the 1ST INDEX program parameter). By first pressing the INDEX key followed by the CW or CCW key, the saw will rotate the vacuum chuck assembly an angular distance specified by the ANGLE program parameter to prepare your specimen for the 2nd cutting pass. Thereafter, pressing the INDEX key followed by the FWD or BACK key, should move your specimen to the next (or previous) cutting street, through a distance specified by the 2ND INDEX program parameter. NOTE: If you press the FAST key before pressing the INDEX key, the Y-axis will continue to step the programmed vertical distance as long as the INDEX button is held down, or until the end of the wafer is reached.
11.		Next, decide how you will dice your specimen.
	a.	To execute only a single pass and cut through only the current street visible on the monitor (in either INDEX or ALIGN modes), press the SINGLE CUT key. Water should immediately begin to flow onto the vacuum chuck assembly. Make sure the blade-and-chuck cooling water is draining properly into the sink drain basin. Position the large, clear Lexan® plastic shield (stored on the floor near the saw table) in front of the saw to avoid splashing water onto the floor.
	b.	To cut through all streets in the X-axis (horizontal) dimension (and possibly the Y-axis streets on the second pass, depending on the programmed MODE number) of your specimen, press the AUTO CUT key. If the saw is in ALIGN mode when AUTO CUT is pressed, it will begin cutting in the first street. If the saw is in INDEX mode when AUTO CUT is pressed, it will begin cutting in the next street. Water should immediately begin to flow onto the vacuum chuck assembly once AUTO CUT is pressed. Make sure the blade-and-chuck cooling water is draining properly into the sink drain basin. Position the large, clear Lexan® plastic shield (stored on the floor near the saw table) in front of the saw to avoid splashing water onto the floor. i. If the saw has been programmed in MODE 10, 30, 60, or 70, you have aligned the streets to the blade along only the X-axis (for the first pass), and you have pressed AUTO CUT, the saw will make all cuts for the first pass, rotate the specimen through the programmed ANGLE , return the specimen to the align position, and beep to tell you that you can re-align your specimen prior to the 2nd cutting pass. You can then align for the 2nd pass, then press AUTO CUT again to cut all of the specimen's streets in the 2nd pass. ii. If the saw has been programmed in MODE 10, 30, 60, or 70, you have aligned your specimen for the first pass, then rotated the specimen, aligned the streets for the 2nd cutting pass, and you have pressed AUTO CUT , the saw will make all cuts for the first pass, rotate the specimen through the programmed ANGLE, and make all cuts for the second pass without operator intervention. A beep will sound when the saw has finished all dicing. iii. If the saw has been programmed in MODE 11, 31, 61, or 71, the specimen and chuck will rotate through the programmed ANGLE after cutting through the first pass and then make the second pass without pausing for operator alignment. There is no provision for alignment on the second pass (the center of the chuck is used for an alignment reference)
	c.	After pressing SINGLE CUT or AUTO CUT, verify that the left GPH flow meter (for vacuum chuck and diamond cutting blade cooling water) is reading approximately 58-60 GPH and the right GPH flow meter (for spindle cooling water) is reading 26 GPH. The meters each have a black mark on them to indicate where the flow rate should be. Adjust the flow rates by turning the black knobs at the bottom of each meter as needed. NOTE: If you find that water is spilling over the top basin when the dicing saw is running, you may need to unclog one or more of the four drain tube holes at each corner of the basin, or you may solve the problem by reducing the vacuum chuck and diamond cutting blade cooling water flow rate to 50 - 55 GPH).
12.		To dry off your specimen and verify proper alignment after cutting, an air-dry button is accessible under the saw. Reach your hand under the bottom left side corner of the saw, feel for, and press a pushbutton switch to release the air.

IV.		SHUTDOWN
1.		After your specimen has been diced, press the STANDBY key to stop the rotating spindle and saw blade and to return the chuck to its original position. The saw will go through a homing sequence to return to standby status. The chuck zero will be lost, but your working file program will remain stored. NOTE: Other methods of stopping the saw or for stopping the saw to make alignments during a cut are described in the table below.
	a.	Alternate Precedures for Stopping the Dicing Saw During Cuts i. PANIC STOP Press the red EMERGENCY OFF pushbutton switch located below the left-side programming panel to immediately shut down everything. ii. RESET Press the RESET key to enter a mode similar to STANDBY, except that the spindle will continue to run, the blade will remain spinning, and chuck zero will not be lost. iii. INDEX Press the INDEX key, and the saw will finish the current cut it is making, t hen return to the Index position. When AUTO CUT is pressed, cutting will start at the next street. Chuck zero is retained. iv. ALIGN Press the ALIGN key, and the saw will finish the current cut and then stop in the Align position. However, when AUTO CUT is pressed, sawing will begin at the front of the wafer. Chuck zero is retained. v. CLEAR In SINGLE CUT mode, when the saw is within the second pass ("PASS 2" is displayed on the LED display), pressing CLEAR at any time will reverse the vacuum chuck and specimen by the programmed ANGLE to return to the first pass orientation and halt.
2.		Turn the water faucet OFF [rotate the knob(s) CLOCKWISE].
3.		Turn the lab compressed air OFF by rotating the knob CLOCKWISE.
	a.	Optional: Turn off the Air Filter/Regulator (behind the saw) by rotating the yellow knob counter-clockwise.
4.		Wipe off the vacuum chuck area with a clean, dry cloth.
5.		If the saw will be unattended and unused for a prolonged period, unplug it.

¹Note: Details on how to store and retrieve programs and a complete list of error and fault codes are provided in the "1006 Dicing Saw Operation Manual" stored near the dicing saw table.

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