Development of an electrolyte jet type apparatus for manufacturing electroplated diamond wires

Multi-wire sawing with a fixed diamond wire is widely used for the mass production of wafers. In this study, a novel electrolyte jet type electroplating method was devised to improve the productivity of these wires. The method is based on increasing the limiting current density (LCD) in the electroplating unit. First, an electrolyte jet type electroplating unit was designed, and the plating characteristics were investigated. To increase the LCD during plating process, the method of decreasing the depletion layer of nickel ions around the core wire was approached. The experimental results indicated that the LCD can be increased by increasing the flow rate of the electrolyte. Next, the influences of composite plating conditions on the state of abrasive distribution and density of the diamond wires were experimentally verified, and the process of selecting the optimal fabricating conditions was clarified. Lastly, the cutting performance of the prototype diamond wires was verified by slicing a polycrystalline silicon ingot. The relationship between the surface roughness of the sliced wafers and the abrasive density of the diamond wires was studied.