JP2000178712A - Film forming device and method of cathode maintenance - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the time for which the inside of a reaction chamber vacuum tank is exposed to the air in the maintenance of a cathode, a sticking preventive board or the like and to reduce the time till reproduction after the maintenance of the cathode, sticking preventive board or the like. SOLUTION: In a film forming device in which the inside of a reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 having gas feeding and exhausting functions is provided with a substrate 7 installed to a substrate supporting stand 8 and a target 4 opposited to the substrate 7 and also disposed on the side of a cathode 1, and a film is formed in a state in which the substrate 7 is made stationary to the target 4, it is provided with an opening and shuttering cover 9 for the entrance and exit of cathodes, a cathode 1 and a sticking preventive board 3 installed to the opening and shuttering cover 9 for the entrance and exit of cathodes, a means of opening and shuttering the opening and shuttering cover for the entrance and exit of cathodes which opens, shutters and withdraws the opening and shuttering cover 9 for the entrance and exit of cathodes and a cover 14 for maintenance shuttering the opening and shuttering part for the entrance and exit of cathodes in the maintenance of the cathode.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a film forming apparatus and a cathode maintenance method in which a target and a substrate are arranged in a vacuum chamber so as to face each other, and a thin film is formed on the surface of the substrate by sputter particles emitted from the target. is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 4 shows the structure of a conventional film forming apparatus. In FIG. 4, 1 is a cathode, 2 is a vacuum chamber of a reaction chamber,
Reference numeral 3 denotes an adhesion-preventing plate for preventing a film from adhering to the vacuum chamber 2 of the reaction chamber, and reference numeral 4 denotes a backing plate 5 below the cathode 1.
A ground shield for preventing abnormal discharge during film formation; 7 a substrate as a film-forming object disposed inside the lower end of the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 so as to face the target 4; Reference numeral 8 denotes a substrate support for receiving the substrate 7, reference numeral 9 denotes a cathode access opening / closing lid to which the cathode 1 is attached, reference numeral 10 denotes a gas supply port formed in the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2, and reference numeral 11 denotes the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2. It is a vacuum exhaust port formed at the bottom.

[0003] In the above configuration, the vacuum exhaust port 11 is supplied while a gas, for example, argon gas is supplied from the gas supply port 10.
Then, the inside of the reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2 is adjusted to a predetermined pressure, and the cathode 4 and the backing plate 5 are
A current is applied from a power supply (not shown) through the substrate 7, and the substrate 7 is formed into a film. If the target 4 is used for a certain period, the target 4 needs to be replaced. When the cathode access opening / closing lid 9 on which the cathode 1 is attached is lifted and retracted to replace the target 4, the atmosphere enters the reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2 and during maintenance, the reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2 Inside is exposed to the atmosphere. In addition, the deposition plate 3
In addition, if the earth shield 6 is used for a certain period of time, maintenance such as cleaning is required, and during the maintenance, the inside of the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 is exposed to the atmosphere.

[0004]

Generally, in a film forming apparatus, it is required to reduce the time required for reproduction after maintenance work such as replacement of a target. However, when the target is replaced, the inside of the reaction chamber vacuum tank is exposed to the atmosphere, and atmospheric components such as water contaminate the inside of the reaction chamber vacuum tank. Therefore, the contamination in the vacuum chamber of the reaction chamber is removed after the maintenance work, which causes a problem of prolonging the time until the reproduction.

An object of the present invention is to shorten the time during which the inside of the vacuum chamber of the reaction chamber is exposed to the atmosphere during maintenance of the cathode and the protection plate, and to shorten the time until re-production after maintenance of the cathode and the protection plate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a film forming apparatus and a cathode maintenance method capable of performing the above.

[0006]

A film forming apparatus and a cathode maintenance method according to the present invention include a maintenance lid for closing a cathode access opening / closing unit during cathode maintenance, and evacuate the reaction chamber vacuum chamber during cathode maintenance. At the end of the cathode maintenance, a maintenance lid is taken off, and the cathode access opening / closing section is closed by the cathode access opening / closing lid.

According to the present invention, the time during which the inside of the vacuum chamber of the reaction chamber is exposed to the atmosphere during maintenance of the cathode and the deposition plate is shortened, and the time until the reproduction of the cathode and the deposition plate after the maintenance is shortened. be able to.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A film forming apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a substrate installed on a substrate support in a vacuum chamber of a reaction chamber having gas supply and exhaust functions. In a film forming apparatus having an installed target and forming a film while the substrate is stationary with respect to the target,
A cathode access opening / closing lid, a cathode and a protection plate installed on the cathode access opening / closing lid, a cathode access opening / closing lid opening / closing means for opening / closing and retracting the cathode access opening / closing lid, and a cathode access opening / closing during cathode maintenance A maintenance lid for closing the part is provided.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a cathode access opening / closing cover is opened at the time of cathode maintenance, the cathode access opening / closing portion is closed with the maintenance cover, and the inside of the reaction chamber vacuum chamber is evacuated during the cathode maintenance. Then, at the end of the cathode maintenance, the maintenance lid is removed, and the cathode entrance opening / closing section is closed by the cathode entrance opening / closing lid.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIG. Note that the same reference numerals as those in the conventional example denote the same members. The reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2 has a gas supply port 10 for introducing a reaction gas into the reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2 while accommodating a substrate 7 which is a film formation object on a substrate support 8. A vacuum exhaust port 11 for exhausting the inside of the tank 2 to a vacuum state is connected, and an upper opening (cathode access opening / closing section) 12 has a cathode access opening / closing cover 9 that holds the cathode 1 underneath and also serves as a lid. Can be opened and closed. Attached to the cathode 1 is a deposition-preventing plate 3 for preventing the inner surface of the reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2 from being formed into a film. Reference numeral 5 denotes a backing plate to which the target 4 is fixed. Reference numeral 6 denotes an earth shield which prevents abnormal discharge during film formation.

The cathode access opening / closing lid 9 is used to hold the attachment-preventing plate 3, backing plate 5,
The target 4 and the earth shield 6 can be raised and retracted by the cathode opening / closing lid opening / closing means 13 shown in FIG. A current from a power supply (not shown) is applied to the target 4 through the cathode 1 and the backing plate 5. Reference numeral 14 denotes a maintenance lid for closing the cathode access opening / closing section during cathode maintenance, and is provided so as to close the opening 12 instead of the cathode access opening / closing lid 9 during cathode maintenance. FIG. 2 shows the cathode opening / closing lid 9.
3 shows a state where the cathode access opening / closing lid 9 is opened and the maintenance lid 14 is closed. 2 and 3, reference numeral 15 denotes a reaction chamber vacuum tank 2.
Reference numeral 16 denotes a main body stand.

Next, a cathode maintenance method in the film forming apparatus having the above configuration will be described. When maintenance such as replacement of the target 4 in the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 and cleaning of the deposition-preventing plate 3 becomes necessary, first, the cathode access opening / closing lid 9 is raised and retracted (see FIG. 3). As a result, the cathode 1 fixed to the cathode opening / closing lid 9, the deposition-preventing plate 3, the packing plate 5 fixed to the cathode 1, the earth shield 6, and the target 4 fixed to the backing plate 5 all react simultaneously. It is taken out from the chamber vacuum layer 2. Next, the maintenance lid 1
The opening 12 is closed by 4 and the inside of the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 is evacuated through the evacuation port 11. While the evacuation of the reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2 is being performed, maintenance such as replacement of the target 4 and cleaning of the cathode 1, the earth shield 6, and the deposition preventing plate 3 are performed outside the reaction chamber vacuum chamber 2. As soon as the maintenance work is completed, the maintenance lid 14 is removed from the opening 12, and the opening 12 is closed by the cathode access opening / closing lid 9 (see FIG. 2). As a result, the cathode 1, the deposition-preventing plate 3, the packing plate 5 fixed to the cathode 1, the earth shield 6, and the target 4 fixed to the backing plate 5, all of which have undergone the maintenance work, are all in the reaction chamber vacuum layer 2 at the same time. At a predetermined position.

By employing such a method, the time during which the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 is exposed to atmospheric components during maintenance work such as replacement of the target 4 and cleaning of the deposition-preventing plate 3 in the film forming apparatus can be shortened. . Table 1 shows the relationship between the time for opening the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 to the atmosphere and the time until reproduction during maintenance work. As can be seen from Table 1, the time for opening the reaction chamber vacuum tank 2 to the atmosphere can be shortened. Thus, the effect of shortening the time until the reproduction after the maintenance work such as the replacement of the target 4 and the cleaning of the protection plate 3 can be obtained.

[0014]

[Table 1]

[0015]

As described above, according to the present invention, the time during which the inside of the vacuum chamber of the reaction chamber is exposed to the atmosphere during maintenance of the cathode and the attachment plate is shortened, and the maintenance time of the cathode and the attachment plate is reduced. The time to production can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a film forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the cathode access opening / closing lid is closed.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state where the cathode access opening / closing lid is opened.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional film forming apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cathode 2 Vacuum tank of reaction chamber 3 Prevention plate 4 Target 5 Backing plate 6 Earth shield 7 Substrate 8 Substrate support 9 Cathode opening / closing lid 10 Gas supply port 11 Vacuum exhaust port 12 Opening 13 Cathode entering / closing lid opening / closing means 14 Lid for maintenance 15 Bottom plate of vacuum chamber of reaction chamber 16 Main frame

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Hatsuhiko Shibasaki 1006 Kazuma Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 4K029 CA05 DA02 DA04 DA10 DC00 DC20 DC22 DC01 JA01

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A reaction chamber having a gas supply and exhaust function, a reaction chamber having a substrate, a substrate provided on a substrate support, and a target provided on the cathode side opposite to the substrate. A cathode opening / closing lid, a cathode and an attachment plate installed on the cathode entrance / exit lid, and a cathode for opening / closing the cathode entrance / exit lid A film forming apparatus comprising: an access opening / closing lid opening / closing means; and a maintenance lid for closing a cathode access opening / closing section during cathode maintenance. 2. A cathode access opening / closing cover is opened at the time of cathode maintenance, the cathode access opening / closing section is closed with the maintenance cover, and the inside of the reaction chamber vacuum chamber is evacuated during the cathode maintenance. A cathode maintenance method comprising removing a lid and closing the cathode access opening / closing section with the cathode access opening / closing cover.