JPH0430515A - Semiconductor processing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the flow rate check of a mass flow controller and the hermeticalness check of a reaction chamber by providing a door shutter which always closes the reaction chamber end during treatment standby and can relieve pressure inside the reaction chamber as necessary. CONSTITUTION:There provided in a door shutter 12 which can relieve pressure inside the reaction chamber as necessary under the condition that the reaction chamber end is always closed. During treatment standby an end cap 4 is lowered to keep the reaction chamber end always closed by this door shutter 12. Therefore, the flow rate check of a mass flow controller 9 and the hermeticalness check of the reaction chamber are facilitated as necessary. During treatment a substrate boat 1 is mounted on an insulation cylinder 8 and housed into the reaction chamber by opening the door shutter 12. Recovery of the substrate boar 1 is achieved by the reverse action.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to semiconductor manufacturing equipment.

[Conventional technology]

4 to 87 are cross-sectional views showing each process of a conventional semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. In the figure, (1) is a reaction tube (a substrate boat carrying a plurality of substrates), (2) is a reaction tube that accommodates a substrate boat (l) and serves as a reaction chamber in which a reaction is carried out, and (3) is a reaction tube (a ) is installed on the outer periphery of the heater for subsequent heating (4)
accommodates and recovers the substrate boat 11) in the reaction chamber,
This is an end cap that can reduce the pressure in the reaction chamber.

(5) is a column that opens and closes the reaction end by raising and lowering the end cap (4); (6) is a substrate boat (11);
When storing and recovering the reaction chamber, the end cap (4)
This is a door shutter that temporarily closes the end of the reaction chamber when it is opened. (7) is a support that opens and closes the end of the reaction chamber by rotating and raising and lowering the door shutter (6). (8) is a heat insulating cylinder in which the substrate boat (1) is located in the center of the reaction chamber for processing, and <9) tl; is used to control the flow rate of semiconductor material gas (hereinafter referred to as gas) that forms a thin film on the substrate. A gas flow controller (hereinafter referred to as a mass flow controller), Ql) is a gas introduction pipe that introduces gas into the reaction chamber, and αυ is a cover that is housed in the gas introduction pipe □I'.

Next, the manufacturing process of the semiconductor manufacturing device will be explained.

First, accommodation of the substrate boat C1) will be explained.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the end camp (4) is opened and the door shutter (6) is temporarily closed.

Next, as shown in Figure 6, the substrate boat (1) is placed in the heat insulation tube (
8). Next, the substrate boat (1) is placed in the reaction chamber, and then the door shutter (6) is opened. Next, as shown in Figure 7, close the end camp (4) and close the substrate boat 1.
1) is placed in a reaction chamber.

Next, processing of the substrate will be explained.

First, the pressure inside the reaction chamber is reduced in the state shown in Fig. 7.

Gas is flowed into the reaction chamber and processing (thin film formation) is performed.

After the treatment, the gas is exhausted and the pressure inside the reaction chamber is returned to normal pressure.

Next, the operation opposite to that for housing the substrate boat m is performed to recover the substrate board (1).

Here, in forming a thin film on a substrate, very strict requirements are placed on gas flow rate accuracy and pressure reduction accuracy within the reaction chamber.

Therefore, when newly introducing semiconductor manufacturing equipment or replacing the mass flow controller (9), it is necessary to check the flow rate of the mass flow controller (9) and the airtightness inside the reaction chamber. When checking the flow rate of the mass flow controller (9), open the end cap (4) and
Close the door shutter (6). Next, remove the cover ring in which the gas introduction pipe α1 is housed. Next, the gas introduction pipe (I
Remove G and install a mass flow controller (9) in that part.
) Install a thin film flow meter to check the flow rate. Next, check the flow rate of the mass flow controller (9). Next, the gas introduction pipe αl is reattached to the semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and the cover is attached. Next, the door shutter (6
) and close the end cap (4) to return to the processing standby state. Next, the pressure inside the reaction chamber is reduced to perform an airtightness check.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Since conventional semiconductor manufacturing equipment was constructed as described above, there was a problem in that the flow rate of the mass flow controller and the airtightness inside the reaction chamber could not be checked unless the series of operations described above were performed.

This invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and by providing a door shutter that can reduce the pressure inside the reaction chamber and keeping it closed at all times except during processing, the flow rate check of the mass flow controller and the inside of the reaction chamber can be checked. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that can easily perform an airtight check.

[Means to solve the problem]

The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention is equipped with a door shunter that can keep the end of the reaction chamber closed at all times during standby for processing and reduce the pressure inside the reaction chamber as needed. At this time, the end camp (4) is lowered, and the door shunter that can reduce the pressure in the reaction chamber closes the end of the reaction chamber. Then, the cover in which the gas introduction pipe is housed can be easily removed and attached, and therefore the flow rate of the mass flow controller and the airtightness inside the reaction chamber can be easily checked.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings. Figs. 1 to 3 are cross-sectional views showing each process of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention, and the reference numerals (1) to +51 in the figures are
, (7) to aυ are the same as those of the prior art, so their explanation will be omitted. In the figure, (2) is a door shutter that can reduce the pressure inside the reaction chamber.

In the semiconductor Yazo apparatus constructed as described above, the end camp (4) is lowered during standby for processing, and the door shunter (6) capable of reducing the pressure inside the reaction chamber is closed at the end of the reaction chamber. Therefore, it is possible to easily check the flow rate of the mass flow controller (9) and the airtightness inside the reaction chamber as needed.

Next, the operation will be explained. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a substrate boat (1) is placed on a heat insulating tube.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3, a substrate boat 11) is accommodated in the reaction chamber. Retrieval of the substrate boat (1) is performed by a reverse operation to that described above.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, since a door shutter is provided that can reduce the pressure inside the reaction chamber as necessary with the end of the reaction chamber always closed during processing standby, it is possible to check the flow rate of the mass flow controller and the airtightness inside the reaction chamber. This can be easily carried out, and since the end cap is lowered while waiting for processing, the time required to accommodate and retrieve the substrate boat into the reaction chamber is shortened, thereby providing a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that can shorten processing time. 0 has the effect of being

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIGS. 1 to 3 are cross-sectional views showing each process of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 4 to 7 are cross-sectional views showing each process of a conventional semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. . In the figure, O proverb is a door shutter that can reduce the pressure inside the reaction chamber. In Figure 1, the same symbols indicate the same parts.

Claims (1)

[Claims] We installed a door shaft at the end of the reaction chamber that can be temporarily closed when storing and recovering semiconductor substrates in the reaction chamber, and by keeping the end of the reaction chamber closed while waiting for processing, we were able to reduce the pressure in the reaction chamber as needed. Features of semiconductor manufacturing equipment.