JP2004259919A - Vacuum transfer device and vacuum processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vacuum transfer device and a vacuum processing device capable of continuous processing at a high speed. <P>SOLUTION: The vacuum transfer device is provided with a vacuum transfer chamber 20 connected to a depositing chamber 30. First and second substrate retaining units 21A, 21B, constituted so as to be turned synchronously, are provided in the vacuum transfer chamber 20. The first and the second substrate retaining units 21A, 21B are provided with first and second electromagnets 212, 213 for attracting a substrate holder 11. A transfer chamber 4 connected to the vacuum transfer chamber 20 is provided with a substrate loading/unloading unit 40 for effecting the loading/unloading of the substrate 10 between the first and the second substrate retaining units 21A, 21B while the vacuum transfer chamber 20 is kept in air-tight. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vacuum film forming apparatus, and more particularly to a vacuum film forming apparatus for forming a large amount of film on a large substrate such as an organic EL element.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, when film formation is performed in this type of vacuum film formation apparatus, an unprocessed substrate is carried into the film formation chamber using a robot provided in a transfer chamber, and a processed substrate is transferred from the film formation chamber. I am trying to carry it out.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, such a conventional technique has a problem in that it takes time to open and close a gate valve when a substrate is carried in and out by a robot, so that processing such as film formation cannot be continuously performed at high speed. .
[0004]
The present invention has been made to solve such problems of the conventional technology, and has as its object to provide a vacuum transfer device and a vacuum processing device that can perform high-speed and continuous processing.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vacuum chamber for loading and unloading a predetermined substrate, and a plurality of substrate holders configured to rotate synchronously in the vacuum chamber. And a substrate carrying-in / out section provided in an airtight space outside the vacuum chamber and for carrying a substrate in and out of the substrate holding section while the vacuum chamber is kept airtight.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the substrate holding section has an adsorbing section for adsorbing the substrate.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the invention, the attracting portion is formed of an electromagnet.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the substrate carrying-in / out portion has a plurality of substrate supporting portions configured to rotate synchronously.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the vacuum transfer device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, and a substrate transfer unit that is connected to the vacuum tank and transfers a substrate to and from the substrate holding unit. It is a vacuum processing apparatus provided with a vacuum processing tank.
[0006]
In the case of the present invention, a plurality of substrate holding units configured to rotate in synchronization with each other are provided in a vacuum tank, and the substrate is kept airtight by a substrate loading / unloading unit provided in an airtight space outside the vacuum tank. Since the substrate is carried in and out of the holding unit, it is possible to omit the time for opening and closing the gate valve when carrying out the substrate in and out by using a robot as in the related art, and it is possible to operate at high speed. Continuous loading and unloading and processing of substrates can be performed.
Further, in the present invention, if the substrate holding portion has an attraction portion formed of, for example, an electromagnet, the configuration can be simplified.
[0007]
On the other hand, in the present invention, if the substrate carrying-in / out section has a plurality of substrate supporting sections configured to rotate in synchronization with each other, it becomes possible to carry out and carry out the substrate carrying-in and processing at a higher speed.
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an entire embodiment of a vacuum processing apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of a vacuum transfer apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the principal part of a form.
[0009]
As shown in FIG. 1, a vacuum processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is for forming, for example, an organic film of an organic EL element, and includes a vacuum transfer device 2 and a film forming device connected to the vacuum transfer device. And 3.
[0010]
As shown in FIG. 2, the vacuum transfer device 2 of the present embodiment is provided adjacent to a transfer chamber 4 connected to a vacuum exhaust system (not shown).
[0011]
Here, the transfer chamber 4 is configured to mount a vacuum cassette 15 in which the substrate 10 is stored, and configured to transfer the substrate 10 in and out by the transfer robots 5 and 6 provided in the transfer chamber 4. I have.
[0012]
As shown in FIG. 3, the vacuum transfer device 2 of the present embodiment has a vacuum transfer chamber (vacuum tank) 20 provided above the transfer chamber 4 for replacing substrates.
[0013]
In the vacuum transfer chamber 20, a plurality of (two in the present embodiment) rotatable first and second substrate holders 21 (21A, 21B) are provided.
[0014]
In the case of the present embodiment, there is provided a rod-shaped revolving member 22 that can revolve around a shaft portion 22a extending in the vertical direction. Substrate holding portions 21A and 21B are attached to lower portions of both ends of the revolving member 22. I have.
[0015]
Here, the substrate holders 21A and 21B include lids 210 and 211 each having a substantially cap shape, and first and second electromagnets (adsorption parts) 212 and 213 attached to the lower portions of the lids 210 and 211, respectively. Have.
[0016]
On the other hand, the turning member 22 is configured such that the shaft portion 22a is rotationally driven by a predetermined angle (every 180 ° in the present embodiment) by the driving force of the servomotor 23.
[0017]
Further, the swiveling member 22 is configured to move up and down along the shaft portion 22a by the driving force of a lifting / lowering cylinder 24 of a compressed air type provided at an upper part of the vacuum transfer chamber 20.
[0018]
On the other hand, below the vacuum transfer chamber 20, first and second carry-in / out holes 20a and 20b for carrying in / out the substrate 10 are provided. These first and second carry-in / out holes 20a, 20b are arranged at positions corresponding to the first and second substrate holding parts 21A, 21B.
[0019]
Here, the first carry-in / out hole 20 a is communicated with the transfer chamber 4. Further, the second carry-in / out hole 20 b is communicated with the film forming chamber 30 of the vacuum processing device 3.
[0020]
The first and second carry-in / out holes 20a and 20b are configured to be closed by seal members 214 and 215 provided on the lid portions 210 and 211 of the first and second substrate holding portions 21A and 21B. I have.
[0021]
In the vicinity of the vacuum transfer chamber 20 in the transfer chamber 4, a substrate loading / unloading section 40 for loading / unloading the substrate 10 and the substrate holder 11 is provided.
[0022]
In the case of the present embodiment, the substrate carrying-in / out portion 40 has first and second substrate supporting portions 41 (41A, 41B) for supporting the substrate 10 and the substrate holder 11.
[0023]
Here, the first and second substrate support portions 41A and 41B are disposed at both ends of a revolving arm member 42 that can revolve around a shaft portion 41a extending in the vertical direction, whereby the first and second substrate support portions 41A and 41B are provided. The substrate supporting portions 41A and 41B are configured to rotate synchronously in the transfer chamber 4.
[0024]
These first and second substrate support portions 41A and 41B are connected to support portion main bodies 43a and 43b disposed at a position passing immediately below the first loading / unloading hole 20a on the transfer chamber 4 side of the vacuum transfer chamber 20. Have.
[0025]
Further, the support portion main bodies 43a and 43b are configured to move up and down by, for example, lift cylinders 45a and 45b of a compressed air system.
[0026]
The first and second substrate support portions 41A and 41B are mounted with the respective support portion main bodies 43a and 43b at the lower part of the vacuum transfer chamber 20, and the first and second substrate support portions 41A and 41B are sealed by the seal members 47 provided on the respective support portion main bodies 43a and 43b. Is configured to close the carry-in / out hole 20a.
[0027]
As shown in FIG. 3, in the present embodiment, for example, the lid 210 of the first substrate holding unit 21A in the vacuum transfer chamber 20 and the support unit of the first substrate support 41A in the transfer chamber 4 A sealed space 50 for transferring the substrate 10 is formed in a state where the substrate 10 is closed from above and below by the main body 43a.
[0028]
The space 50 is connected to a vacuum evacuation system (not shown) so that the pressure in the space 50 becomes a predetermined pressure when the substrate 10 is transferred.
[0029]
On the other hand, a substrate transfer part 32 having a plate-shaped substrate support part 32a which is moved up and down by a lift cylinder 31 of, for example, a compressed air type is provided below the second carry-in / out hole 20b in the film forming chamber 30. I have.
[0030]
An electromagnet 33 for holding the substrate 10 is attached to the substrate support 32a. The electromagnet 33 is configured to adsorb the substrate holder 11 held by the second electromagnet 213 described above.
[0031]
The substrate support 32a is configured so that the transfer tray 34 is transferred by a transfer robot (not shown) in the film forming chamber 30. Further, the substrate holder 11 attracted by the electromagnet 33 is placed on the substrate support 32a, and the substrate holder 11 placed on the transport tray 34 is attracted and transferred to the second electromagnet 213. I have.
[0032]
FIGS. 4A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 6E, 6F, 7G, and 7H are explanatory diagrams showing the operation of the present embodiment.
[0033]
In the following description, the substrate holder 11 holding the unprocessed substrate 10 is referred to as “unprocessed substrate holder 11Z”, and the substrate holder 11 holding the processed substrate 10 is referred to as “processed substrate holder 11A”.
[0034]
4A, in the vacuum transfer chamber 20, the processed substrate holder 11A is held by the second substrate holding unit 21B located on the film forming chamber 30 side, and the unprocessed substrate holder 11Z is set in the transfer chamber. It is held by the first substrate holding portion 21A located on the fourth side.
[0035]
In the substrate support 41 of the transfer chamber 4, the unprocessed substrate holder 11Z is supported by the second substrate support 41B.
Note that the substrate support 32a in the film forming chamber 30 is at a lowered position.
[0036]
Next, as shown in FIG. 4B, the turning arm member 22 is rotated by 180 ° to move the unprocessed substrate holder 11Z to the film forming chamber 30 side and move the processed substrate holder 11A to the transfer chamber 4 side. Let it.
[0037]
Then, as shown in FIG. 5C, the turning arm member 22 in the vacuum transfer chamber 20 is lowered, and the substrate support portion 32a in the film forming chamber 30 is raised. The first and second carry-in / out holes 20a and 20b are closed by the second substrate holding units 21A and 21B, and the unprocessed substrate holder 11Z is sucked by the electromagnet 33 in the film forming chamber 30.
[0038]
In this state, the processed substrate holder 11A is disposed in the space 50 for delivering the substrate 10 described above.
[0039]
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5D, the substrate support 32a is lowered in the film forming chamber 30, the unprocessed substrate holder 11Z is placed on the transfer tray 34, and the processing is performed using a transfer robot (not shown). Exchange with the used substrate holder 11A is performed.
[0040]
On the other hand, the electromagnet 213 of the second substrate holder 21B is turned off, and the first and second substrate supports 41A and 41B of the transfer chamber 4 are lowered. As a result, the processed substrate holder 11A is arranged in the support portion main body 43a of the second substrate holding portion 41B.
[0041]
Further, as shown in FIG. 6E, the support arm member 42 of the substrate support section 40 in the transfer chamber 4 is rotated by 180 ° to move the processed substrate holder 11A to the transfer robot 5 side.
[0042]
Next, as shown in FIG. 6F, the first substrate support portion 41A is raised, and in this state, the processed substrate holder 11A and the unprocessed substrate holder 11Z are replaced.
[0043]
On the other hand, the second substrate support portion 41B is raised and mounted on the lower part of the vacuum transfer chamber 20, and the unprocessed substrate holder 11Z is attracted to the electromagnet 213 of the second substrate holding portion 21B.
[0044]
Further, the substrate support 32a in the film forming chamber 30 is raised, and the processed substrate holder 11A is attracted to the electromagnet 212 of the first substrate holder 21A.
[0045]
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 7G, the substrate turning member 22 in the vacuum transfer chamber 20 is raised, and the substrate support in the film forming chamber 30 is lowered.
[0046]
In addition, the support arm member 42 of the substrate support in the transfer chamber 4 is rotated by 180 °, and the empty support body 43a of the first substrate support 41A is attached to the lower part of the vacuum transfer chamber 20.
[0047]
Further, as shown in FIG. 7H, the substrate turning member in the vacuum transfer chamber 20 is rotated by 180 °, and thereafter, the above-described operation is repeated.
[0048]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the first and second substrate holders 21A and 21B configured to be swiveled by the swiveling member 22 that can move up and down are provided in the vacuum transfer chamber 20, and the transfer chamber 4, the substrate holder 11 is carried in and out of the substrate holders 21A and 21B while the vacuum transfer chamber 20 is kept airtight by the substrate carry-in / out part 40 provided in the robot 4. The time for opening and closing the gate valve when loading and unloading a substrate by using the method can be omitted, and high-speed continuous loading and unloading and processing of the substrate can be performed.
[0049]
Further, in the present embodiment, since the substrate holders 21A and 21B attract the substrate holder 11 by the electromagnets 212 and 213, a simple configuration can be achieved.
[0050]
On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since the substrate carrying-in / out portion 40 has the first and second substrate supporting portions 41A and 41B configured to rotate by the vertically movable rotating member 42, the substrate can be moved at a higher speed. 10 can be carried in and out and processed.
[0051]
Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various changes can be made.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, two substrate holders are provided in the vacuum transfer chamber. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and three or more substrate holders can be provided.
[0052]
Further, although two substrate supporting portions are provided at the substrate carrying-in / out portion, the present invention is not limited to this, and three or more substrate supporting portions can be provided.
[0053]
Furthermore, the vacuum processing apparatus of the present invention can be applied to an apparatus that performs various processes as well as film formation. However, the present invention is most effective when applied to an apparatus for forming an organic film of an organic EL element as in the above embodiment.
[0054]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vacuum transfer device and a vacuum processing device capable of high-speed continuous processing.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an entire embodiment of a vacuum processing apparatus according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of a vacuum transfer apparatus according to the present invention; FIG. FIGS. 4A and 4B are explanatory diagrams showing the operation of the embodiment (part 1).
FIGS. 5C and 5D are explanatory diagrams showing the operation of the embodiment (part 2);
FIGS. 6 (e) and 6 (f) are explanatory views showing the operation of the embodiment (part 3).
FIGS. 7G and 7H are explanatory diagrams showing the operation of the embodiment (part 4).
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vacuum processing apparatus 2 ... Vacuum transfer apparatus 3 ... Film forming apparatus 4 ... Transfer chamber 10 ... Substrate 11 ... Substrate holder 20 ... Vacuum transfer chamber (vacuum tank) 21A ... 1st substrate holding part 21B ... 2nd substrate holding Unit 212: First electromagnet (adsorbing unit) 213: Second electromagnet (adsorbing unit) 22: Revolving member Film forming chamber 30 32: Substrate transfer unit 32a: Substrate support unit 33: Electromagnet 34: Transport tray 40: Substrate Loading / unloading section 41 (41A, 41B): first and second substrate support sections

Claims (5)

A vacuum chamber for loading and unloading a predetermined substrate,
A plurality of substrate holders configured to rotate synchronously in the vacuum chamber,
A vacuum transfer device provided in a hermetically sealed space outside the vacuum chamber, and having a substrate loading / unloading section for loading / unloading a substrate with / from the substrate holding section while the vacuum chamber is kept airtight. The vacuum transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the substrate holding unit has a suction unit that suctions the substrate. 3. The vacuum transfer device according to claim 2, wherein the suction unit is formed of an electromagnet. 4. The vacuum transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the substrate loading / unloading unit includes a plurality of substrate supports configured to rotate synchronously. 5. A vacuum transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising: a vacuum processing tank connected to the vacuum chamber and having a substrate transfer section for transferring a substrate to and from the substrate holding section.

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