HOLDER OF WAFER OR THE LIKE

PURPOSE:To hold and convey a wafer without contacting its whole surface except the outer periphery of the circular semiconductor wafer by contacting and holding only the polishing surface formed on the outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer. CONSTITUTION:When gas is blown into a gas blowing nozzle 10 provided on the base 2 of a wafer holder main body 1 by an air pump, the gas hits a gas outflow direction control section 9, passes a small through hole 8, flows along the inner wall surface of a suction cone 4 in the arrow A direction, and flows to the outside. In this case, when a semiconductor wafer 7 is brought near the suction cone 4, the gas in a space 11 is made to flow tot he outside through a gas 12, and the inner pressure P in the space 11 is decreased as compared with a pressure Po. When the differential pressure DELTAP between the atmospheric pressure P0 and the pressure P in the space 11 becomes larger than the weight mg per unit area of the wafer 7, the wafer 7 is absorbed in the arrow B direction. In this case, the chamfered polishing surface 7C of the wafer 7 is held by a wafer contact surface 5.