JP2001044267A - Vacuum vessel load lock device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate restrictions from being imposed on the form of works and to enable arbitrarily setting of loading direction of the works so as to effectively utilize the space of a vacuum vessel load lock device. SOLUTION: This device is a vacuum vessel load lock device, constituted in such a way as to provide at the gateway for works of a vacuum container for performing a process treatment. Work mount pedestals provided in load lock chambers 200 for housing the works are supported rotatably by a rotor 220, and the directions of the mounted works are set to be changeable according to the removing direction of a transfer chamber 210 for carrying the works to a process treatment part. The chambers 200 are arranged vertically in a multistage structure, a work mounting unit provided in each load lock chamber 200 is supported rotatably by he rotor 220, and the chambers 200 are provided in a plurality on the periphery of the chamber 210.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vacuum load lock device, and more particularly to a vacuum load lock device provided at a work entrance and exit in a vacuum vessel for irradiating a semiconductor wafer, a glass substrate, or the like with an ion beam to perform a process. The present invention relates to a vacuum load lock device for delivery.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a thin film is formed on a work such as a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate, or when a process such as etching is performed, there are few contaminants such as particles and the scattering of an ion beam can be prevented. Usually, the processing is performed in a vacuum vessel. Conventionally, after loading one by one into a vacuum lock chamber via a work accommodating cassette into a load lock chamber, the chamber is evacuated, and the transfer machine transfers the load lock chamber to the process processing chamber. I have.

In a conventional system, a load lock chamber, a transfer chamber, and a process chamber are arranged in a straight line, a work is carried one by one into the load lock chamber, and processing is performed by moving the work linearly. Had become. However, in recent years, the size of the work has increased, and a large space is required to move the work in the horizontal direction. There is also proposed a structure for processing.

[0004]

However, vacuum processing of a large, thin, rectangular work such as a glass substrate has a certain limitation in the transport direction due to its shape. In fact, the actual processing is also performed on a sheet-by-sheet basis. For this reason, there is a problem that the processing efficiency is very poor. Also,
Vacuum is drawn after work loading, but at this time, there is a problem that the loaded substrate vibrates in the vacuum container due to the movement of air due to the negative suction pressure, so that the substrate flaps on the mounting base or the mounting position shifts. In particular, since negative pressure suction cannot be performed in the vacuum vessel, the carried-in work cannot be fixed, and therefore, it is not possible to take measures such as increasing the suction speed in order to increase the processing speed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object to provide a vacuum load lock device which is not restricted by the shape of a work.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a vacuum load lock device capable of arbitrarily setting a loading direction of a work, effectively utilizing a space, and simultaneously processing a plurality of works. Furthermore,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum load lock device that can hold a work when evacuating and has a structure that does not cause a problem such as displacement of the work due to fluttering.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, a vacuum load lock device according to the present invention is a vacuum load lock device provided at a work inlet / outlet of a vacuum vessel for performing a process. The work mounting pedestal provided in the load lock chamber in which the work is stored is rotatably supported by the rotor, and the orientation of the mounted work can be changed according to the removal direction of the transfer chamber transported to the processing unit. And

In the above configuration, the load lock chambers may be arranged vertically in multiple stages, and the work mounting pedestals provided in each load lock chamber may be rotatably supported by the rotor. Further, a plurality of the load lock chambers may be provided around the transfer chamber. Further, the load lock chamber may be provided with vibration suppressing means for gripping the mounted work around the work mounting base. The vibration suppressing means may be configured to also serve as a centering means for positioning the mounted work by pressing the side end surface at the point symmetric position of the mounted work.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, specific embodiments of a vacuum load lock device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of the overall configuration of an ion implantation system including the vacuum load lock device according to the embodiment. This system performs a process of irradiating a glass substrate W as a workpiece with an ion beam B. The system includes a load lock chamber LC serving as a loading / unloading unit of the glass substrate W, and a vertical type serving as a chamber for performing the actual process. And a transfer chamber TC for transferring a glass substrate between them, and these are configured as a vacuum container. In this embodiment, the load lock chamber LC has two stages, upper and lower, and is arranged side by side. The glass substrate W is loaded into the chamber and evacuated, and the process chamber PC is evacuated.
After a vacuum transfer to the chamber, a series of operations for carrying out a vacuum transfer after the completion of the process processing, returning to another chamber, purging with an inert gas, and carrying out to the atmosphere are continuously performed by setting a rotation. Like that.

An embodiment of a vacuum load lock device is shown in FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional plan view of the apparatus, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same, FIG. 3 is a side view of the same, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an upper work mounting base built in the apparatus.
As shown in FIG. 5, this load lock device is provided with four load lock chambers LC, UL, LL, UR, L
R is formed. 1-4, the four load lock chambers are numbered 200 (200 UL, 200 LL,
(200 UR, 200 LR).

Although the chamber 200 is shut off from the outside by a vacuum chamber case 202, each load lock chamber 200 has an external entrance 206 partitioned by an opening / closing door 204 in order to carry the glass substrate W in and out of the atmosphere. The exterior entrance 206 is set to be on the same plane (the right end face in FIG. 1), and the atmosphere transfer machine 208 moves left, right, up and down,
The glass substrate W stored in the cassette is aligned with each load lock chamber 200, and the transfer arm 209 is moved in and out of the chamber so that the work can be carried in.

On the other hand, each load lock chamber 200
Transfer chamber 210 under vacuum
(TC in FIG. 5), the glass substrate W is transferred through the internal entrance 212. The vacuum transfer machine 214 located at the center of the transfer chamber 210
00L (200UL, 200LL), 200R (200
UR, 200 LR), and the transfer arm 216 is inserted to transfer the glass substrate W. For this reason, the opening surfaces of the left and right internal ports 212 face the vacuum transfer machine 214 at an angle of 90 degrees to each other.

Since the glass substrate W carried in from the external entrance 206 is rectangular, the atmospheric transport mode and the vacuum transport mode are different. Therefore, each load lock chamber 2
00, a work mounting unit 230 is built in, rotatably supported by a rotor, and the orientation of the mounting glass substrate W is adjusted in accordance with the removal direction of the transfer chamber 210 that transports the loaded glass substrate W to the processing section. Can be changed. This structure will be described with reference to the upper work mounting unit 230U shown in FIG.

The rotor 220 is mounted on the top plate of the vacuum chamber case 202, and the rotation shaft 226 protrudes into the chamber via the coupling 222 and the magnetic fluid seal 224. At the lower end of the rotating shaft 226, a seat plate 232 is connected via a gate-shaped hanging frame 228 to the rotating shaft 226.
Is supported so that it can rotate horizontally. Seat plate 2
32 mounts and supports the glass substrate W on the board surface, and the mounting unit 230 is fixed to this mounting surface, and the glass substrate W is mounted on the upper surface of the unit. The mounting unit 230 has a pair of bars 234 and 234 on the upper surface of the seat plate 232.
Are placed in parallel, a small plate 236 is arranged between them, and a total of eight glass receivers 238 are provided on the upper surface of the small plates 236 so that the glass substrate W is placed thereon. Then, on the lower surface of the placed glass substrate W, a transfer machine 208,
A gap is formed so that a U-shaped hand provided at the tip of the transfer arms 209 and 216 in 214 can be inserted from the front and rear, respectively.

Such an upper work mounting unit 230
U is the upper load lock chamber 200UL, 200U
R is equipped with each. Lower load lock chamber 2
Similar work mounting unit 2 for 00LL and 200LR
In the lower work mounting unit 230L, a mechanism from the rotor 220 to the rotating shaft 226 is mounted on the bottom surface of the chamber, and is directly rotatably supported by the rotating shaft 26 protruding into the chamber. ing. That is, the gate-type hanging frame 228 is not interposed. Other configurations are the same as those of the upper work mounting unit 230U.

With such a configuration, in the four load lock chambers 200, the work mounting unit 230 on which the loaded glass substrate W is mounted is rotated by 45 degrees so that the glass is transferred in the transfer direction of the vacuum transfer machine 214. The direction of the substrate W can be adjusted.

By the way, after the glass substrate W is carried into each load lock chamber 200, the inside of the chamber is evacuated. The outside entrance 206 can be closed and opened by the opening / closing door 204, and at the same time, the inside entrance 212 is also opened by the shutter 240. It can be closed and closed. In addition, the left and right load lock chambers 200L and 200L are used for evacuation.
A duct means 242 for vacuum suction is provided at an intermediate portion of R.

When the load lock chamber 200 is evacuated, the glass substrate W carried therein may flap on the work mounting unit 230 due to rapid pressure fluctuation. In order to prevent this, each load lock chamber 200 is provided with a vibration suppressing means 244 for gripping the mounting glass substrate W around the work mounting base 218. This also serves as a centering means for positioning the mounting glass substrate W by pressing the side end surface of the mounting glass substrate W at a point symmetrical position.

FIG. 1 shows the arrangement of the vibration suppressing means 244, and FIGS. As shown in the figure, a pair of end surface position adjusting means 246 and 246 for positioning by pressing the side end surfaces at the point symmetric positions of the mounting glass substrate W on the work mounting unit 230 are arranged in each load lock chamber 200. These constitute the vibration suppression means 244. Each end face position adjusting means 246 is arranged outside each corner portion located on a diagonal line of the glass substrate W mounted on the work mounting unit 230. Each end surface position adjusting means 246 has a rotating column 248 protruding into the chamber from the top plate and the bottom plate of the vacuum chamber case 202. This rotating support 24
8, a horizontal arm 250 is attached to the tip,
The horizontal arm 250 can be horizontally rotated to move to the upper surface of the corner of the glass substrate W, and is configured to stop by being rotated to an angle of 45 degrees with respect to each edge of the rectangular glass substrate W. ing. A pair of pressing rollers 252, 252 are attached to the upper surface of the horizontal arm 250, and are arranged so as to be in contact with the side end surfaces of the glass substrate W sandwiching the corner. Therefore, the rotating support 248
Is rotated to cause the horizontal arm 250 to rotate, and the horizontal arm 250 is stopped at a position at 45 degrees to the side of the glass substrate W. Thus, even if the mounting glass substrate W is misaligned, the pressing rollers 252, With 252, the corner position is adjusted to the normal mounting position. Each end face position adjusting means 2
The 46 horizontal arms 250 are provided in a pair on the diagonal line of the mounting glass substrate W, so that the mounting glass substrate W is centered on the work mounting unit 230 by the action of both. This centering is carried out in the state of being carried in from the atmosphere side. Each end face position adjusting means 246
Is a horizontal arm 2 provided outside the chamber case 202.
50 is operated in the positioning direction via the magnetic fluid seal 254 by pushing out the air cylinder 256, and after positioning, the arm 250
Returns in the opposite direction. By simultaneously operating the air cylinders 256, synchronization can be easily achieved. By continuously operating the pair of end surface position adjusting means 246, when the load lock chamber 200 is evacuated, the glass substrate W is in a fixed holding state, and the glass substrate W is fluttered or displaced due to a change in suction negative pressure. Is prevented.

The above-described vacuum transfer machine 214 has a two-tiered structure in which the upper and lower load lock chambers 200 UL and 200 UR are transferred to and from the lower load lock chamber 20.
The delivery of the workpiece to 0LL and 200LR is performed by the lower machine.

The operation of the thus constituted load lock device is as follows. As a processing step of the glass substrate W alone, evacuation after loading into the load lock chamber 200, subsequent transfer to the process chamber by vacuum transfer, process processing, and return movement from the process chamber to the load lock chamber are performed. A series of flows such as vacuum transfer, purge of the load lock chamber 200 with nitrogen gas, and atmospheric transfer. Specifically, the shutter 240 of the internal entrance 212 of the load lock chamber 200 is closed to shut off the transfer chamber 210,
The glass substrate W is carried in by opening the door 204 of the external entrance 206. Thereafter, the door 204 is closed, and the vibration suppressing means 244 is closed.
Is operated to perform centering of the glass substrate W, and at the same time, evacuate while fixing and holding at that position. After the inside of the load lock chamber 200 reaches a vacuum state, the vibration suppressing means 244 is opened, and the shutter 240
At the same time, the rotor 220 is operated to rotate the work mounting unit 230 by 45 degrees, and the direction of the glass substrate W is directed to the delivery direction of the vacuum transfer machine 214. In response to this, the vacuum transfer machine 214 inserts the transfer arm 216 into the load lock chamber 200, lifts and pulls out the glass substrate W, rotates and changes the direction to the process chamber PC side. Thereafter, as can be understood from FIG. 5, the glass substrate W is placed on the platen provided in the process chamber PC, and the glass substrate W is gripped here. Vertical movement for processing. After the completion of this processing, the vacuum transfer machine 214 receives the glass substrate W from above the platen, turns the glass substrate W in the direction of the load lock chamber 200, and places the glass substrate W on the work mounting unit 230 inside the chamber. The load lock chamber 200 that has received the glass substrate W closes the shutter 240, purges with nitrogen gas, opens the external entrance 206, and stores the processed glass substrate W in a cassette by the atmospheric transfer machine 208.

In the embodiment, the load lock chamber 20
Since there are four chambers 0, the above-described process is performed continuously by setting a rotation. Assuming that one processing of one glass substrate W requires about 4 minutes, an average of 1 minute / takt time is obtained by continuous processing. It can be processed with. Specifically, in a process in which four glass substrates W are operated at the same time and the first substrate is loaded into the load lock chamber 200UL and evacuated, for example, the glass substrate W is loaded into the load lock chamber 200LL and supplied. The second sheet is the lower vacuum transfer machine 214
After the transfer from the process chamber PC to the load lock chamber 200LL is performed, the nitrogen gas purge and the substrate replacement operation are performed. The third sheet loaded and supplied to the load lock chamber 200UR is subjected to the process processing and thereafter. The upper stage vacuum transfer machine 214 sets the return transfer process. The fourth sheet supplied through the load lock chamber 200LR is set by the lower vacuum transfer machine 214 so as to be in the process of supplying the process chamber to the platen mounting process. FIG. 8 shows the entire processing steps. Strictly speaking, the time of each step shown is not the same, so a waiting time is included. However, by performing this continuous processing, the tact time can be greatly reduced.

[0022]

As described above, the present invention relates to a vacuum load lock device provided at a work entrance / exit of a vacuum vessel for performing a process, wherein the vacuum lock device is provided in a load lock chamber for accommodating the work. The work mounting unit is rotatably supported by the rotor, and the direction of the mounted work can be changed according to the take-out direction of the transfer chamber to be transported to the process processing unit. The direction can be set arbitrarily, and the space can be effectively used. Furthermore, a configuration in which the load lock chambers are arranged in multiple stages vertically, the work mounting unit provided in each load lock chamber is rotatably supported by a rotor, and a plurality of load lock chambers are provided around the transfer chamber. By doing so, a plurality of workpieces can be processed at the same time, and the tact time can be reduced.
Vibration suppression means for gripping the mounted work is provided around the work mounting unit, and this is configured as a centering means that also presses the side end surface at the point symmetrical position of the mounted work to position the mounted work. In addition, a vacuum load lock device having a structure that can hold a work when vacuuming and does not cause problems such as displacement of the work due to fluttering can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan sectional view of a vacuum load lock device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same device.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the same device.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an upper work mounting base in the apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an overall configuration of an ion implantation system including the vacuum load lock device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the vibration suppressing unit.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a vibration suppressing unit.

FIG. 8 is a work process diagram by the vacuum load lock device according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 200 Load lock chamber 202 Vacuum chamber case 204 Opening / closing door 206 External entrance 208 Atmospheric transfer machine 209 Delivery arm 210 Transfer chamber 212 Internal entrance / exit 214 Vacuum transfer machine 216 Delivery arm 220 Rotor 222 Coupling 224 Magnetic fluid seal 226 Rotating shaft 228 Hanging frame 230 Mounting unit 232 Seat plate 234 Bar 236 Small plate 238 Glass receiver 240 Shutter 242 Vacuum duct means 244 Vibration suppression means 246 End face position adjustment means 248 Rotating support 250 Horizontal arm 252 Holding roller 254 Magnetic fluid seal 256 Air cylinder

Claims (5)

[Claims] In a vacuum load lock device provided at a work entrance / exit of a vacuum vessel for performing a process, a work mounting base provided in a load lock chamber for accommodating the work is rotatably supported by a rotor. A vacuum vessel load lock device characterized in that the orientation of the mounted work can be changed according to the direction in which the transfer chamber to be transported to the process section is taken out. 2. The vacuum according to claim 1, wherein said load lock chambers are vertically arranged in multiple stages, and said work mounting pedestals provided in each load lock chamber are rotatably supported by a rotor. Container load lock device. 3. The vacuum load lock device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the load lock chambers are provided around the transfer chamber. 4. The vacuum load lock device according to claim 1, wherein said load lock chamber is provided with a vibration suppressing means for gripping the mounted work around said work mounting base. . 5. The vacuum load according to claim 4, wherein said vibration suppressing means also serves as a centering means for pressing a side end face at a point symmetrical position of the mounted work to position the mounted work. Locking device.