CN100407373C - Fluid Control Devices and Heat Treatment Devices - Google Patents

Abstract

A fluid controller (13g) is provided on one gas line (13), and a pressure control system area (14) is provided upstream of the flow controller (13g) of the gas line (13). An extension part (15) extending from the upstream side of the gas pipeline (13) along the direction perpendicular to the gas pipeline (13) is provided, and the supply sources of the different types of processing gases (A), (B), and (C) are connected to the extension part (15).

Description

Fluid Control Devices and Heat Treatment Devices

technical field

The present invention relates to a fluid control device and a heat treatment device having the fluid control device.

Background technique

In the film formation process of the semiconductor manufacturing process, a combination of various gases is used to form a film on a semiconductor wafer. In the film forming process, it is often necessary to switch to use multiple gases (for example, H ₂ , O ₂ , SiH ₄ , N _{2 ,} etc.), or to use the same gas at different flow rates.

FIG. 10 is a system diagram of a conventional gas supply system for supplying a plurality of gases into a reaction processing furnace of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. The gas supply system is composed of a plurality of processing gas lines a to d for supplying different gases, respectively, and a purge gas line p for supplying purge gas.

A flow controller 1 such as a mass flow controller is installed in each of the processing gas lines a to d. Upstream of the flow controller 1 are provided a reversing valve 2, a filter 3, a pressure regulator 4, a pressure sensor 5 and a control valve 2a. Also, a branch line p' branched from the purge gas line p is connected to the initial side of the flow controller 1.

In the gas supply system shown in FIG. 10, one gas line is provided for one gas, and one flow controller is provided on one gas line. That is, in order to supply a plurality of gases, the number of gas lines and flow controllers corresponding to the number of types of gases are used. This causes problems such as an increase in the cost of the gas supply system and an increase in the floor space.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2000-323464 discloses a gas supply system in which one flow controller 1 is shared among multiple gas pipelines a, b, c, as shown in FIG. 11 .

The gas supply system shown in FIG. 11 is composed of a plurality of processing gas lines a to d for supplying different gases, respectively, and a purge gas line p for supplying purge gas p. A reversing valve 7 , a filter 8 , a pressure regulator 10 and a pressure sensor 9 are arranged on each of the gas pipelines a to d. A flow controller 6 such as a mass flow controller common to the gas lines a to c is provided on the gas line a. A dedicated flow controller 6 is provided on the gas pipeline d. A pipe p' branched from the purge gas pipe p is connected to the initial side of each flow controller 6 .

With the structure shown in FIG. 11 , since the gas pipelines a to c share the flow controller 6 , the cost of the gas supply system can be reduced by a corresponding amount, and miniaturization can be achieved. However, in the gas supply system shown in FIG. 11, since each gas line ac has a reversing valve 7, a filter 8, a pressure regulator 10, and a pressure sensor 9, the system cannot be sufficiently miniaturized.

Contents of the invention

An object of the present invention is to reduce the size and cost of a device for controlling and supplying a plurality of gases (ie, a fluid control device). In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide a fluid control device that can easily respond to increases and decreases in gas types. Another object of the present invention is to provide a heat treatment device having the above-mentioned fluid control device.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a fluid control device, which has:

a gas line having a first region configured with a flow control mechanism, and a second region upstream of the first region and configured with at least one of a pressure regulating mechanism and a pressure monitoring mechanism; and

a plurality of connection mechanisms arranged upstream of the second region of the gas pipeline and respectively connectable to fluid supply sources,

The connecting mechanism is composed of a plurality of three-way valves arranged on the gas pipeline; each of the three-way valves has first, second and third holes; the first holes of the three-way valves are respectively connected to The fluid supply source is connected; the second hole of the upstream three-way valve among the adjacent three-way valves is connected with the third hole of the downstream three-way valve; the third hole of the most downstream three-way valve is connected with all The second area of the gas pipeline is connected; the cleaning gas is supplied to the second hole of the most upstream three-way valve.

Preferably, the gas pipeline has a first portion including the first and second regions, and a second portion extending from upstream of the first portion in a direction perpendicular to the first portion, the plurality of The connecting mechanism is arranged on the second part.

In addition, the present invention also provides a fluid control device, which includes: a plurality of gas pipelines, the multiple gas pipelines extend parallel to each other along the first direction at least on the first plane, and each of the multiple gas pipelines having: a first region configured with a flow control mechanism; and a second region upstream of the first region and configured with at least one of a pressure regulating mechanism and a pressure monitoring mechanism; and, a plurality of connecting mechanisms, the plurality of A connection mechanism is arranged on at least one gas pipeline among the plurality of gas pipelines, and can be respectively connected to a fluid supply source,

The at least one gas pipeline has: a first portion including the first region and the second region and extending along the first direction on the first plane; a second portion extending along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction on a second plane perpendicular to the first plane,

The plurality of connecting mechanisms are arranged on the second part,

The connecting mechanism is composed of a plurality of three-way valves arranged on the gas pipeline. At this time, each of the three-way valves has first, second and third holes; the first holes of the three-way valves are respectively connected to the fluid supply source; the upstream three-way of the three-way valves adjacent to each other The second hole of the valve is connected with the third hole of the downstream three-way valve; the third hole of the most downstream three-way valve is connected with the second area of the gas pipeline; the cleaning gas is supplied to the most downstream upstream of the second port of the 3-way valve.

Furthermore, the present invention also provides a heat treatment device comprising: the fluid control device having the above-mentioned structure; and a reaction treatment furnace supplied with fluid through the above-mentioned fluid control device.

Description of drawings

FIG. 1 is a system diagram showing an embodiment of a fluid control device of the present invention.

2 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of a gas line connected to a plurality of gas supply sources in the fluid control device shown in FIG. 1 , showing a state in which process gas passes through the gas line.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the gas pipeline shown in Fig. 2 viewed from the direction of arrow III.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view similar to Fig. 2, showing a state in which purge gas passes through a gas line.

Fig. 5 is a front view of the gas pipeline shown in Fig. 4 viewed from the arrow V direction.

FIG. 6 is a view showing another form of the gas line shown in FIG. 2 , showing a state in which process gas passes through the gas line.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a VII-VII cross section in FIG. 6 .

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view similar to Fig. 6, showing a state in which purge gas passes through the gas line.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a section taken along line IX-IX of FIG. 8 .

Fig. 10 is a system schematic diagram showing a conventional gas supply system.

Fig. 11 is a system schematic diagram showing another conventional gas supply system.

Detailed ways

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a system diagram showing an embodiment of a heat treatment apparatus having a fluid control device according to the present invention. The heat treatment device has a gas supply system including a fluid control device 11 and a reaction treatment furnace 32 . The reaction treatment furnace 32 accommodates a substrate and performs heat treatment such as oxidation treatment or CVD on the substrate, and a well-known suitable furnace can be used.

The fluid control device 11 includes a plurality of gas lines 12 , 13 , 23 arranged at equal intervals for supplying gas to the reaction treatment furnace 32 . Each gas line extends in a first vertical plane extending approximately vertically.

The pipeline 12 at the left end in FIG. 1 is a purge gas pipeline for supplying purge gas P such as N ₂ . A gas supply port 12a, a manual valve 12b, a filter 12c, a pressure regulator 12d, a pressure sensor 12e, a control valve 12f, a flow controller 12g, and a filter 12h are provided in the purge gas line 12 in order from upstream.

The gas pipeline 13 is a processing gas pipeline for supplying various processing gases (such as H ₂ , O ₂ , N ₂ , SiH ₄ , etc.). As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 , the process gas pipeline 13 has a flow control system area (first area) provided with a flow controller 13g and a pressure control system area 14 (second area) located upstream of the flow controller. . In the pressure control system area 14, a manual valve 13b, a filter 13c, a pressure regulator 13d, a pressure sensor 13e, a control valve 13f, a filter 13h, and a control valve 13i are provided.

A plurality of gas supply sources A, B, and C are connected to the upstream end of the gas line 13 . As shown in FIG. 2 , the gas line 13 extending in the vertical direction changes its direction by approximately 90° at the lower end portion which is the upstream end portion, and extends in a direction perpendicular to the above-mentioned first vertical plane. Hereinafter, the horizontally extended portion of the gas line 13 is referred to as the extension 15 of the gas line 13 . In addition, the vertically extending portion of the gas line 13 and the extension portion 15 are located in a second vertical plane extending in the vertical direction while being perpendicular to the above-mentioned first vertical plane.

On the extension 15 of the gas line 13 three-way valves 17 , 18 , 19 with actuators are arranged in series. The first holes 17a, 18a, 19a of the three-way valves 17, 18, 19 are connected to the gas supply pipes 16a, 16b, 16c connected to the gas supply sources A, B, and C, respectively. The second and third holes 18b, 18c of the three-way valve 18 are connected to the third hole 17c of the three-way valve 17 and the second hole 19b of the three-way valve 19, respectively. The second port 17b of the three-way valve 17 is connected to a pipeline 22 for supplying cleaning gas P through a two-way valve 20 and a one-way valve 21 with an actuator. The third hole 19c of the three-way valve 19 communicates with the vertically extending portion of the gas line 13 .

The second and third holes 17b, 17c, 18b, 18c, 19b, 19c of the three-way valves 17, 18, 19 communicate normally. The actuators of the three-way valves 17, 18, and 19 drive the valve body in the form of a diaphragm built in the three-way valve, and the state of communicating with the first hole with the second and third holes and the state of cutting off the communication are controlled. switch.

Referring again to FIG. 1 , the gas line 23 is disposed adjacent to the gas line 13 . Gas is supplied from a gas supply source D to the gas line 23 . Like the gas line 13, the gas supply line 23 is provided with a gas supply port 23a, a manual valve 23b, a filter 23c, a pressure regulator 23d, a pressure sensor 23e, a control valve 23f, and a flow controller 23g.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4 , the above-mentioned pipeline 22 is branched from the cleaning gas pipeline 12 , and the pipeline 22 is connected to the second hole 17 b of the three-way valve 17 through the two-way valve 20 .

In addition, the branch line 25 branches off from the purge gas line 12 . The branch line 25 is connected to the initial side of the flow controller 13 g of the gas line 13 , in other words, downstream of the pressure control system area 14 . On the branch line 25, a control valve 25a and a check valve 25b are provided. When the same gas is supplied from the gas pipeline 13 to the reaction treatment furnace 32 multiple times, etc., when it is not necessary to clean the pressure control system area 14, the cleaning gas can be sent from the branch pipeline 25 in the state of closing the control valve 13f. Into the gas pipeline 13, only the downstream of the pressure control system area 14 of the gas pipeline 13 can be cleaned. In addition, the branch line 25 may be further branched on the way, and connected to the initial side of the flow controller 23g of the gas line 23 .

The fluid control device 11 described above is constructed as a single integral structural component 26 . The integrated structural component 26 has a substrate 27 extending along the above-mentioned first vertical plane, and a substrate 28 extending along the above-mentioned second vertical plane. The width of the substrate 28 is equal to the width of the gas line 13 . A plurality of joint blocks 26 a are mounted on the substrates 27 , 28 . Flow controllers 12g, 13g, 23g, manual valves 12b, 13b, 23b, filters 12c, 13c, 23c, pressure regulators 12d, 13d, 23d, three-way valves 17, 18, 19 and two-way valve 20 and other functional components , placed on a block (eg valve block 26b). The blocks for these functional components are airtightly connected to each other by joint blocks 26a.

The function is explained below.

When the processing gas B is supplied to the reaction processing furnace 32, the three-way valve 18 is opened with the two-way valve 20 closed. The processing gas B is introduced into the gas pipeline 13 from the extension part 15, and when passing through the pressure control system area 14 of the gas pipeline 13, it is controlled to a predetermined pressure, and is controlled to a predetermined flow rate by the flow controller 13, and finally introduced In the processing reaction furnace 32 (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 3).

Next, when a processing gas different from the processing gas B, eg, processing gas A, is supplied to the reaction processing furnace 32 , prior to that, the inside of the gas line 13 and its extension 15 is cleaned with the cleaning gas P. In this case, when the three-way valves 17, 18, and 19 are closed and the two-way valve 20 is opened, the cleaning gas P is supplied to the gas pipeline 13 and its extension 15, thereby cleaning the entire gas pipeline 13 And its extension 15. At this time, there is no dead (dead) area (the area where the processing gas B used in the front remains and precipitates) that cannot be supplied with the cleaning gas, and the processing gas B will not remain in the gas pipeline 13 and its extension 15 (see FIGS. 4 and 15 ). Figure 5). After cleaning, close the two-way valve 20 and open the three-way valve 17. Thus, the processing gas A is supplied to the reaction processing furnace 32 .

As described above, in the above embodiment, the flow rate control area and the pressure control system area are provided on one (one system) gas line, and the one gas supply line can be shared in order to supply multiple gases. Therefore, the cost of the fluid control device can be greatly reduced. In addition, the number of pipelines is reduced, making the fluid control device compact. Specifically, the size of the fluid control device can be reduced by the width X shown in FIG. 1 compared to the prior art devices shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 . In addition, it is extremely easy to add gas types. In order to share the gas pipeline, the following conditions must be met: (1) Even if the gases are mixed with each other, there is no reaction in the gas pipeline; (2) The gas cannot be supplied to the reaction treatment furnace at the same time; (3) The flow range of various gases is close to . For example, the combination of processing gases A, B, and C can be a combination of SiH ₄ gas, Si ₂ H ₂ Cl gas, and Si ₂ Cl ₆ gas, or a combination of NH ₃ gas, N ₂ H ₄ gas, and N _X H _Y gas .

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the multiple gas supply source is connected to only one gas line 13 , but the multiple gas supply source may be connected to a plurality of gas lines, respectively. In this case, for example, the SiH ₄ gas supply source, the Si ₂ H ₂ Cl gas supply source, and the Si ₂ Cl ₆ gas supply source can be connected to the first gas line 13, and the NH ₃ gas supply source, N ₂ H ₄ The gas supply source and the N _X H _Y gas supply source are connected to the second gas line having the same structure as the first gas line 13. The cleaning gas line 22 may also be connected to the second gas line similarly to the first gas line 13 .

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, both the pressure regulator 13d as the pressure regulator and the pressure sensor 13e as the pressure monitoring device are provided in the pressure control system area, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, when the processing gas is a low vapor pressure gas, it may not be necessary to actively adjust the pressure. In this case, the pressure regulator 13d may not be provided.

In the above-described embodiment, mass flow controllers were used as the flow controllers 12g, 13g, and 23g, but not limited thereto, pressure-type flow controllers may also be used.

In addition, it is preferable to use a digital mass flow controller as the flow controllers 12g, 13g, and 23g. In this way, even if the supply flow rates required for various gases are somewhat different, it is possible to cope with them. In the digital MFC (mass flow controller), only the flow control characteristic curve corresponding to the reference gas and the reference flow is loaded. In the case of controlling different gases to have different flow rates, a reference gas and its conversion coefficient with respect to the reference flow rate are obtained experimentally in advance. Moreover, when different gases are controlled to be different, an approximate compensation value can be calculated based on the actual gas flow measurement value and the above-mentioned conversion coefficient, and then based on the compensation value, the flow control characteristic curve can be corrected to perform gas flow control. Therefore, it can correspond to a variety of different gases and a wide flow range. Of course, the same control can also be performed when the same gas is controlled to have different flow rates.

6 to 9 show another embodiment of the fluid control device. In these figures, the same components as those described in FIGS. 1 to 5 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated explanations are omitted. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 , a flow controller 13 g (not shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 ) such as a mass flow controller is provided on one gas line 13 . The same applies to the point that the pressure control system area 14 is provided upstream of the flow rate controller 13g. In the embodiment shown in Figures 6 to 9, the gas pipeline 13 extending on the above-mentioned first vertical plane changes its direction by about 90° at the lower end as its upstream end, and continues on the above-mentioned first vertical plane. extending horizontally. Hereinafter, the horizontally extended portion of the gas line 13 is referred to as an extended portion 30 .

Gas supply pipes 29 a , 29 b , and 29 c respectively connected to processing gas supply sources A, B, and C are connected to the extension portion 30 . The cleaning gas supply pipe 31 connected to the cleaning gas supply source P is connected to the most upstream of the extension part 30 . Two-way valves 32 (on-off valves) are provided on the respective gas supply pipes 29a, 29b, 29c, and 31, respectively.

In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 , a dead area V (area where gas remains and settles) is generated between the downstream of the two-way valve of the gas supply pipes 29a, 29b, and 29c and the extension portion 30 of the gas pipeline. , so the gas remains (see Figure 6 and Figure 7). In this case, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 , when the cleaning gas is supplied, the gas remaining in the dead area V cannot be cleaned.

In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 , since one (one system) gas pipeline can be used to supply different types of gases, the same as the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 , the cost of the fluid control device can be reduced. cost. However, in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 , since the extension portion 30 of the gas pipeline extends in the lateral direction, although there is an effect of reducing the number of pipelines, the reduction in the number of pipelines reduces the flow control device. The effect of miniaturization is inferior to that of the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 . In addition, the embodiments shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 are inferior to the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 in that the dead region V is inevitably generated.

Claims (10)

1. A fluid control device, characterized in that: comprising: a gas pipeline having a first region configured with a flow control mechanism, and a second region located upstream of the first region and configured with at least one of a pressure regulating mechanism and a pressure monitoring mechanism; and a plurality of connection mechanisms arranged upstream of the second region of the gas pipeline and respectively connectable to fluid supply sources, The connection mechanism is composed of a plurality of three-way valves arranged on the gas pipeline; Each of the three-way valves has first, second and third holes; The first holes of each of the three-way valves are respectively connected to a fluid supply source; The second hole of the upstream three-way valve among the adjacent three-way valves is connected with the third hole of the downstream three-way valve; The third hole of the most downstream three-way valve is connected with the second area of the gas pipeline; The purge gas is supplied to the second port of the most upstream three-way valve. 2. The fluid control device according to claim 1, wherein the flow control mechanism is a mass flow controller or a pressure flow controller. 3. The fluid control device of claim 1, wherein: The pressure adjustment mechanism is a pressure regulator, The pressure monitoring mechanism is a pressure sensor. 4. The fluid control device of claim 1, wherein: said gas line has a first portion including said first and second regions, and a second portion extending from upstream of said first portion in a direction perpendicular to said first portion, The plurality of connecting mechanisms are disposed on the second part. 5. The fluid control device of claim 1, wherein the fluid control device is formed as an integral structural component. 6. A fluid control device, characterized in that: It includes: a plurality of gas pipelines, the plurality of gas pipelines extend parallel to each other along a first direction at least on a first plane, and each of these multiple gas pipelines has: a first area configured with a flow control mechanism; a second region upstream of the first region and configured with at least one of a pressure regulating mechanism and a pressure monitoring mechanism; and A plurality of connection mechanisms, the plurality of connection mechanisms are arranged on at least one gas pipeline among the plurality of gas pipelines, and can be respectively connected to fluid supply sources, The at least one gas pipeline has: a first portion including the first region and the second region and extending along the first direction on the first plane; a second portion extending along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction on a second plane perpendicular to the first plane, The plurality of connecting mechanisms are arranged on the second part, The connection mechanism is composed of a plurality of three-way valves arranged on the at least one gas pipeline; Each of the three-way valves has first, second and third holes; The first holes of each of the three-way valves are respectively connected to a fluid supply source; The second hole of the upstream three-way valve among the adjacent three-way valves is connected with the third hole of the downstream three-way valve; The third hole of the most downstream three-way valve is connected with the second area of the gas pipeline; The purge gas is supplied to the second port of the most upstream three-way valve. 7. The fluid control device according to claim 6, wherein the flow control mechanism is a mass flow controller or a pressure flow controller. 8. The fluid control device of claim 6, wherein: The pressure adjustment mechanism is a pressure regulator, The pressure monitoring means are pressure sensors. 9. The fluid control device of claim 6, wherein the flow control mechanism and the pressure adjustment mechanism are formed as an integrated structural component. 10. A heat treatment device, characterized in that: comprising: The fluid control device of claim 1 or 6; and A reaction treatment furnace to which a fluid is supplied through the fluid control device.

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