JP2001284426A - Wafer lifting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wafer lifting apparatus that can keep a sufficient clean environment and can reduce the adhesion of particles to the wafer in the wafer lifting apparatus for supplying the wafer in an apparatus installed in an enclosure that keeps the clean environment. SOLUTION: A blast means 14 by which a clean air in the enclosure 20 adjacent to the wafer lifting apparatus 10 can be taken and the clean air is permitted to flow into the whole inside of the wafer lifting apparatus 10 is provided.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wafer elevating apparatus for supplying a wafer to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and an inspection apparatus installed in an enclosure (mini-clean room) maintained in a clean environment, and more particularly to an elevating apparatus. The present invention relates to a wafer lifting / lowering apparatus capable of maintaining a clean environment even inside the apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the process of manufacturing and inspecting semiconductors,
In order to prevent particles (dust) from adhering to the wafer, it is necessary to keep the working environment in a clean state, and a clean room for keeping the whole work room in a clean air state is often used. However, in order to keep the whole room clean, equipment for that purpose becomes large and it costs too much. A mini clean room called is used. In this case, it is necessary to maintain a favorable environment in the process of carrying the wafer to be worked into each related device in the enclosure.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional apparatus showing an example of an inspection apparatus installed in an enclosure and peripheral devices thereof. As indicated by arrows in the figure, a plurality of (for example, 25) wafers 1 stored in the cassette 2 are placed in the closed pot 3 and then moved downward by the elevating device 10 to be installed in the enclosure 20. The sheet is taken out one by one by the carried out device 4 and supplied to the inspection device 5.

[0004] Here, the closed pot 3 is called a SMIF pot, and has a structure in which the whole cassette 2 is covered with a cover to prevent dust from entering from outside. The elevating device 10 is a device for sequentially moving the cassette 2 to a position suitable for the transfer device 4 to extract the wafers 1 one by one. The surroundings are covered and shut off from the outside air similarly to the closed type pot 3. ing. The transfer device 4 is a device that extracts the wafer 1 from the elevating device 10 and passes it to the inspection device 5, and uses a robot arm or the like. Although the apparatus shown in the figure is an apparatus intended for inspection in the inspection apparatus 5, the wafer 1
In the apparatus for the other work for the object, the apparatus up to the transfer apparatus 4 is generally constituted by the same apparatus.

[0005] An enclosure 20 surrounding the transport device 4 and the inspection device 5 has a fan 22 and a filter 21 on its ceiling.
And the outside air from the ceiling is blown into the inside as clean air (a in FIG. 3). Therefore, the environment around the transport device 4 and the inspection device 5 is always kept in a good state.

FIG. 4 is a structural view of the conventional closed pot 3 and the lifting device 10 shown in FIG. (A) of the figure shows a side view, and (b) shows a front view. In addition, illustration of the outer enclosure of the elevating device 10 is omitted. As shown in the figure, the closed type pot 3 has a cover that covers the cassette 2 in which the wafers 1 are stored, and has a structure in which the bottom is opened and the cassette 2 is pulled down.

The elevating device 10 is composed of a bottom plate 11 for supporting the cassette 2 and a moving mechanism for moving the cassette up and down, and the like. 2 is sequentially moved to a predetermined position. Further, a device for circulating the air inside the lifting device 10 is provided, and as indicated by an arrow A in the figure,
The air containing dust is sucked from the inside of the support 12 and the filter 1
3 and returned to the inside of the lifting device 10 as clean air. This prevents dust generated by the moving mechanism of the bottom plate 11 from adhering to the wafer 1.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the flow of air inside the enclosure 20 and inside the elevating device 10 in the conventional device shown in FIG. (A) of the figure is a top view, (b) is
FIG. In the enclosure 20, as described above, clean air (A in the figure) flows from the top through the filter 21 and passes through the gaps and holes of the device to the floor of the device. Inside the elevating device 10, a part of the flow (B in the figure) flows and there is a flow (C in the figure) due to the circulation of the air.

[0009]

However, the conventional elevating device 10 has a box-like shape having an opening for supplying the wafer 1 to the enclosure 20 side. The clean air (A in FIG. 5) does not easily flow in, and even if a part of the air flows (B in FIG. 5), the air does not flow smoothly through the entire elevating device 10 without stagnation. Stagnation occurs.
Therefore, since the clean air does not always flow into the entire wafer 1 moved into the elevating device 10, there is a problem that particles easily adhere to the wafer 1.

Further, an opening to the outside as shown in FIG. 5D can be provided in order to improve the flow of air in the elevating device 10, but a great effect cannot be obtained. On the other hand, the above-described circulating air flow (C in FIG. 5)
However, since the airflow is blocked by the bottom plate 11, this airflow also cannot keep the wafer 1 in a sufficiently clean environment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a wafer elevating apparatus for supplying a wafer to an apparatus installed in an enclosure maintained in a clean environment, and to maintain the inside of the apparatus in a sufficiently clean environment. Another object of the present invention is to provide a wafer elevating device capable of reducing the adhesion of particles to a wafer.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention is to provide a wafer elevating device which takes clean air inside an enclosure adjacent to the wafer elevating device and raises and lowers the clean air. An air blowing means capable of flowing over the entire inside of the apparatus is provided. Therefore, according to the present invention, there is no stagnation of air inside the elevating device, and clean air always flows to the wafer in the elevating device, so that adhesion of particles to the wafer can be reduced.

In order to achieve the above object, another aspect of the present invention is to provide a sealed pot for supplying wafers to a transfer means provided in a closed area where air is kept clean. A vertically moving device for vertically moving a wafer placed in the wafer, the device being provided adjacent to the closed area,
It is characterized by having a blowing means for taking clean air in the closed area into the lifting device.

Further, in the above-mentioned invention, a preferable mode is that the blowing means is provided so that the clean air taken into the elevating device flows through the entire inside of the elevating device. Features.

Further, in the above invention, another aspect is as follows.
The air blower is a blower fan provided on the side of the lifting and lowering device that is closer to the closed region and for blowing clean air in the closed region into the lifting and lowering device.

Further, in the above invention, another aspect is as follows.
The air blowing means is an exhaust fan provided on a side of the elevating device opposite to the closed area for sucking air inside the elevating device and discharging the air to the outside of the elevating device.

Further objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the embodiments of the present invention described below.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, such embodiments do not limit the technical scope of the present invention.
In the drawings, the same or similar components are denoted by the same reference numerals or reference symbols.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a first embodiment of a wafer elevating apparatus to which the present invention is applied. (A) of the figure shows a top view, and (b) shows a side view. As shown in the figure, the lifting device 10 is installed adjacent to the enclosure 20 and moves the wafer 1 in the closed pot 3 downward similarly to the conventional device described with reference to FIG.
It is used to supply the wafer 1 to the device in the enclosure 20. In the enclosure 20 in the figure, a transport device and an inspection device (not shown) are installed, and the like.
The wafers 1 are extracted one by one from the elevating device 10 and subjected to a predetermined process. The enclosure 20 is provided with a fan 22 and a filter 21 on its ceiling, as in the conventional apparatus, and supplies clean air to the inside of the enclosure 20 to keep the inside of the enclosure always clean.

The lifting device 10 according to the present embodiment is
As with the conventional apparatus described with reference to FIG. 4, in addition to having a bottom plate 11 that moves up and down for moving the cassette 2 containing the wafer 1 downward and a mechanism for moving the bottom plate 11, as shown in FIG. A blower fan 14 and an exhaust hole 15 are provided. The blower fan 14 is a rotary fan having substantially the same height as the opening of the lifting device 10 on the enclosure 20 side, and is installed on both sides of the opening. Also, the exhaust hole 15
Is an exhaust hole provided on a wall (enclosure) on the opposite side of the opening of the elevating device 10, and is provided in a slit shape over the entire height range where the wafer 1 is located. In addition,
The exhaust hole 15 can have other shapes.

As shown in FIG. 1, the blower fan 14
Takes the clean air (A in the figure) in the enclosure 20 and sends it into the elevating device 10, and the clean air is exhausted to the outside from the exhaust hole 15 through the space between the wafers 1 or the like. At this time, as described above, the height of the blower fan 14 is almost the same as the opening, and the exhaust hole 15 is present over the entire area where the wafer 1 is located.
The clean air in the enclosure 20 can flow to all the wafers 1 located in the lifting device 10. Also,
Since the blower fans 14 are located on both sides of the opening, there is no problem when the wafer 1 is taken into the enclosure 20.

As described above, the lifting device 10 according to this embodiment is
By providing a blower fan 14 and an exhaust hole 15 for taking in clean air in the enclosure 20 and flowing it through the entire inside of the elevating device 10, clean air is always sent to the wafer 1 in the elevating device 10, Since there is no stagnation of air inside the elevating device 10, the adhesion of particles to the wafer 1 can be reduced. In the above description, the number of the blower fans 14 is two, but another number may be used.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing a second embodiment of a wafer elevating apparatus to which the present invention is applied. (A) of the figure shows a top view, and (b) shows a side view. The lifting device according to the present embodiment is different from the device according to the first embodiment only in that an exhaust fan 16 is provided instead of the blower fan 14.

As shown in FIG. 2, the lifting device 10 according to the present embodiment is different from the conventional device in that an exhaust fan 16 and an exhaust hole 1 are provided.
5 is provided. As shown in the figure, an exhaust fan 16 is installed outside the opening on the enclosure 20 side so as to suck air from the entire area where the wafer 1 is located. In addition, the exhaust hole 15 is provided in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

The exhaust fan 16 sucks clean air (A in FIG. 2) in the enclosure 20 from the opening of the lifting device 10 into the lifting device 10, and the air passes between the wafers 1 and the like. , Exhaust hole 15, exhaust fan 16
Is discharged to the outside. At this time, as in the case of the first embodiment, since the clean air flows throughout the inside of the elevating device 10, the clean air can be supplied to all the wafers 1. Further, since no fan is provided on the enclosure 20 side, there is no hindrance to handling of the wafer 1. As described above, the apparatus according to the second embodiment can also maintain the inside of the elevating device 10 in a clean environment, and can obtain the same effects as those of the apparatus according to the first embodiment. .

As described above, by using the lifting device according to the first and second embodiments, the clean air in the enclosure is always sent to the wafer in the lifting device, and the inside of the lifting device is also Since a clean environment can be maintained, particle adhesion to the wafer can be reduced.

The scope of protection of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but extends to the inventions described in the claims and their equivalents.

[0028]

As described above, according to the present invention, clean air in the enclosure is always blown by the air blowing means provided in the elevating device throughout the entire elevating device. Therefore, there is no stagnation of air inside the lifting device,
Since clean air always flows to the wafer in the elevating device, a clean environment can be maintained even in the elevating device, and there is an effect that adhesion of particles to the wafer can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a first embodiment of a wafer elevating apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing a second embodiment of a wafer elevating apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional apparatus showing an example of an inspection apparatus installed in an enclosure and peripheral devices thereof.

FIG. 4 is a structural view of a conventional closed pot 3 and a lifting device 10.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the flow of air inside an enclosure 20 and inside a lifting device 10 in a conventional device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wafer 2 Cassette 3 Sealed pot 4 Transfer device 5 Inspection device 10 Elevating device 11 Bottom plate 12 Support 13 Filter 14 Blow fan 15 Exhaust hole 16 Exhaust fan 20 Enclosure 21 Filter 22 Fan

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. The closed area, wherein the wafer placed in a closed pot is moved up and down to supply the wafer to a transfer means provided in the closed area where the air is kept clean. A wafer raising / lowering device provided adjacent to the device, comprising blowing means for taking clean air in the closed area into the lifting / lowering device. 2. The wafer processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said air blowing means is provided to flow clean air taken into said elevating device over the entire inside of said elevating device. lift device. 3. The air blower according to claim 1, wherein the blower is a blower fan provided on the closed area side of the elevating device and for blowing clean air in the closed area into the elevating device. A wafer elevating device. 4. The elevating device according to claim 1, wherein the air blowing means sucks air inside the elevating device provided on a side opposite to the closed area of the elevating device and discharges the air to the outside of the elevating device. A wafer elevating device, which is an exhaust fan.