JP2005277291A - Transferring method of semiconductor substrate and transfer device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress the adhesion of foreign matters to a semiconductor substrate in an accommodation container when the lid of the semiconductor substrate accommodation container is opened/closed to suppress a decrease in yield of manufacture. <P>SOLUTION: In a load port of an EFEM41 side where a FFU42 is loaded on the upper section thereof, after an FOUP for accommodating the semiconductor substrate 21 is loaded on a slide stage 33 on a load port rack 32, an FOUP shell 11 is fixed from the lower side and is moved to a load port door 31, and an FOUP door 12 is pressed against the shell. The locking of the FOUP door 12 is released and the FOUP shell is pulled inside the EFEM 41 by means of the latch key mechanism of the load port door 31. In this case, a highly pure gas in the EFEM 41 is branched and is supplied to the surrounding area of the FOUP door 12, and the purity of the air (gas) in the surrounding area is maintained at a high level, the involution of the foreign matter in the surrounding area at the time of door opening is suppressed as much as possible, thereby the adhesion of the foreign matter to the semiconductor substrate 21 is also suppressed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a semiconductor substrate transfer method and transfer apparatus that realize mini-environment that increases the level of cleanliness in a semiconductor factory.

  The method for transporting the semiconductor substrate is defined by, for example, SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International) standard E47.1 (machine specification of a box / pod used for transporting and storing a 300 mm wafer) containing the semiconductor substrate. Containers such as FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod) are generally specified in SEMI standard E15.1 (specification for 300mm equipment load port) and SEMI standard E62 (specification of 300mm (FIMS) front opening mechanical interface). The door is opened and closed and the semiconductor substrate is automatically transferred via a door opening / closing mechanism unit called a load port and the semiconductor substrate transfer device, and the semiconductor substrate is loaded into the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.

  A conventional semiconductor substrate transfer method and transfer apparatus will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a conventional semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus. A load port is attached to the side surface of an EFEM (Equipment Front End Module) 41 having a unit called FFU (Fan Filter Unit) 42 in which a filter and a blower are integrated. After the FOUP is placed on the slide stage 33 on the load port base 32 in the load port, the FOUP shell 11 is moved 70 mm toward the load port door 31 while being fixed from the lower surface, and as shown in FIG. The door 12 and the load port door 31 are brought into close contact with each other. Thereafter, a mechanism called a latch key attached to the load port door 31 unlocks the FOUP door 12 to open the door, pulls the FOUP door 12 into the EFEM 41 and descends, and the transfer robot 43 carries the semiconductor substrate.

  These devices are also called mini-environments. As described in Patent Document 1, when the semiconductor substrate is stored in a sealed container, the semiconductor substrate is contaminated even if the surrounding environment is about class 1,000. However, when it is taken out from the storage container, a high cleanliness of about class 1 is required. For this reason, Patent Document 1 describes a method of increasing the cleanliness of the surroundings by operating the peripheral FFU only when the wafer at the time of opening and closing the closed container is exposed.

However, in factories that use FOUP, in order to reduce the initial investment amount and running cost of air conditioning equipment, the entire factory is transported as an environment with poor cleanliness of class 1,000, and the semiconductor substrate is exposed as in EFEM. FEUP door around the outside of the EFEM by sending a Class 1 gas from the FFU at a rate of 0.3 to 0.5 m / sec to maintain a high level of cleanliness and setting the differential pressure of the EFEM to be several Pa higher. In order to improve the cleanliness of the air, it was operated so that air in a bad environment would not easily flow into the FOUP when the FOUP door was opened or closed.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-231782

  Here, the gas flow when the FOUP door 12 is opened will be described with reference to FIG. The FOUP door 12 is gripped by the load port door 31 and pulled into the EFEM 41, and the volume of gas of the FOUP door 12 flows from the surroundings. However, not only the gas from the inside of the EFEM 41 having a high cleanliness but also the cleanness around the FOUP door 12 It flows into the external gas (air) at a low temperature at the same time. Therefore, the adhesion of the foreign material 22 on the semiconductor substrate 21 is inevitable.

  The differential pressure of the EFEM 41 is set to be high so that high expectation of cleanliness from the inside of the EFEM 41 flows around the FOUP door 12 and the cleanliness of the gas around the FOUP door 12 is increased, or the opening and closing speed of the FOUP door 12 is slowed down. However, the inflow of foreign matter into the FOUP is completely unavoidable, and the foreign matter 22 adheres to the semiconductor substrate 21 in the FOUP. There is a tendency that the adhesion of the foreign matter 22 at the position near the door of the semiconductor substrate 21 located on the upper stage of the FOUP shell 11 becomes remarkable.

  The present invention is directed to solving the problems of the prior art, and supplies clean gas to the periphery of the lid (FOUP door) of the semiconductor substrate storage container (FOUP) so that the interior of the storage container is opened when the lid is opened and closed. An object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor substrate transport method and transport device that can suppress the adhesion of foreign matters to the semiconductor substrate and suppress the yield reduction by making the purity of the gas entrained in the surrounding environment higher.

  In order to achieve this object, a semiconductor substrate transfer method according to the present invention includes an open / close means for opening and closing a lid of a hermetic storage container containing a semiconductor substrate, and supplying clean gas to the transfer area of the semiconductor substrate by downflow. A semiconductor substrate transport method in a transport device comprising a supply means for supplying a clean gas from a supply means in a divided manner around the lid of the hermetic storage container outside the opening / closing means. The supply means supplies the clean gas around the lid of the sealed storage container on the outside by downflow, and the clean gas of a different system from the clean gas of the supply means around the lid of the closed storage container outside the opening / closing means. The gas is supplied by downflow.

  Further, a semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus includes: an opening / closing unit that opens and closes a lid of a hermetic storage container that stores a semiconductor substrate; and a supply unit that supplies clean gas to the transfer region of the semiconductor substrate by downflow. A conveying device provided with a means for supplying a clean gas from the supply means to the periphery of the lid of the sealed storage container outside the opening / closing means, and around the lid of the sealed storage container outside the opening / closing means. The supply means is provided with means for supplying clean gas by downflow, and the clean gas of a different system from the clean gas of the supply means is provided by downflow around the lid of the hermetic storage container outside the opening / closing means. A supply means is provided.

  According to the method and apparatus for transporting a semiconductor substrate described above, clean gas is supplied to the periphery of the lid of the semiconductor substrate storage container, and the cleanliness of the gas trapped in the storage container when the lid is opened and closed is made higher than the surrounding environment. Thus, it is possible to suppress the adhesion of foreign matter to the semiconductor substrate and suppress the yield reduction.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to suppress the adhesion of foreign matters to the semiconductor substrate and the yield reduction, and to keep the cleanliness of the entire clean room as low as class 1,000 or 10,000, It is effective to greatly reduce the initial investment amount and running cost of the factory.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Here, components having equivalent functions corresponding to the components described in FIG. 5 showing the conventional example are given the same reference numerals, and the same applies to the following drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the load port is attached to the side surface of the EFEM 41 on which the FFU 42 is placed, and the FOUP containing the semiconductor substrate 21 is placed on the slide stage 33 on the load port mount 32. Thereafter, the slide stage 33 moves toward the load port door 31 while the FOUP shell 11 is fixed from the lower surface, and presses the FOUP door 12 against the load port door 31.

  The latch key mechanism incorporated in the load port door 31 unlocks the FOUP door 12 and pulls the FOUP door 12 into the EFEM 41. At this time, not only the high cleanliness gas in the EFEM 41 but also the gas around the FOUP door 12 is drawn into the FOUP, but the air guide 44 provided at the upper part of the load port side of the EFEM 41 causes the clean gas in the EFEM 41 to be clean. The current is divided and supplied to the peripheral portion of the FOUP door 12. As a result, the cleanliness of the air (gas) in the peripheral portion is maintained at a high level, so that the inclusion of the peripheral foreign matter when the door is opened is suppressed as much as possible, and the foreign matter adhesion to the semiconductor substrate 21 is also suppressed.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, an FFU 42 ′ larger than the FFU 42 shown in FIG. The load port is attached to the side surface of the EFEM 41 mounted on the FOEM 41, and the FOUP containing the semiconductor substrate 21 is mounted on the slide stage 33 on the load port frame 32. Thereafter, the slide stage 33 moves toward the load port door 31 while the FOUP shell 11 is fixed from the lower surface, and presses the FOUP door 12 against the load port door 31.

  The latch key mechanism incorporated in the load port door 31 unlocks the FOUP door 12 and pulls the FOUP door 12 into the EFEM 41. At this time, not only the highly clean gas in the EFEM 41 but also the gas around the FOUP door 12 is drawn into the FOUP, but the FFU 42 ′ placed on the top of the EFEM 41 has a shape protruding from the upper part on the load port side. The gas with high cleanliness inside is supplied as it is to the peripheral part of the FOUP door 12. As a result, the cleanliness of the air (gas) in the peripheral portion is maintained at a high level, so that the inclusion of the peripheral foreign matter when the door is opened is suppressed as much as possible, and the foreign matter adhesion to the semiconductor substrate 21 is also suppressed.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, a load port is attached to the side surface of the EFEM 41 on which the FFU 42 is placed. The FOUP containing 21 is placed on the slide stage 33 on the load port base 32. Thereafter, the slide stage 33 moves toward the load port door 31 while the FOUP shell 11 is fixed from the lower surface, and presses the FOUP door 12 against the load port door 31.

  The latch key mechanism incorporated in the load port door 31 unlocks the FOUP door 12 and pulls the FOUP door 12 into the EFEM 41. At this time, not only the gas with high cleanliness in the EFEM 41 but also the gas around the FOUP door 12 is drawn into the FOUP, but the gas with high cleanliness is fed from the thin FFU 45 placed on the upper side of the load port side of the EFEM 41. Supplied to the peripheral part. As a result, the cleanliness of the air (gas) in the peripheral portion is maintained at a high level, so that the inclusion of the peripheral foreign matter when the door is opened is suppressed as much as possible, and the foreign matter adhesion to the semiconductor substrate 21 is also suppressed.

  In addition, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the load port door 31 draws the FOUP door 12 into the EFEM 41 in a state where the atmosphere around the FOUP door 12 is sufficiently filled with clean gas, so the cleanliness of the gas flowing into the FOUP Can be maintained at a high level, and foreign matter 22 adhering to the semiconductor substrate 21 can be suppressed. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, by providing a vent hole 34 near the load port door 31 of the load port base 32, it becomes possible to keep the air current in a laminar flow even immediately above the load port base 32. It becomes possible to efficiently remove foreign matters floating or adhering around the door 12.

  In the configuration of each of the embodiments described above, the shape protrudes outward from the load port mounting surface, but this protrusion size is measured using an OHT (Overhead Hoist Transfer) or AGV (Automatic) commonly used in 300 mm automatic transfer equipment. By suppressing the interference area with Guided Vehicle (RGV) and RGV (Rail Guided Vehicle) to a size that does not hinder, coexistence with OHT, AGV, and RGV becomes possible. Further, if the line does not have or does not have an automatic conveyance mechanism, the projecting dimension can be sufficiently secured, and since there are no unreasonable restrictions on design, a sufficient air volume and wind speed can be secured.

  Moreover, in the structure demonstrated by each embodiment, although the clean gas is supplied from EFEM or independent FFU, you may make it the structure supplied directly from the drive equipment of a factory using a duct.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The semiconductor substrate transfer method and transfer apparatus according to the present invention are useful for realizing mini-environment that increases the level of cleanliness only in a necessary area in a semiconductor factory.

The figure which shows the structure of the conveying apparatus of the semiconductor substrate in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The figure which shows the structure of the conveying apparatus of the semiconductor substrate in Embodiment 2 of this invention. The figure which shows the structure of the conveying apparatus of the semiconductor substrate in Embodiment 3 of this invention. The figure which shows the airflow around the conveyance apparatus of the semiconductor substrate of this invention The figure which shows the structure of the transfer apparatus of the conventional semiconductor substrate The figure which shows the contact | adherence state of the FOUP door and load port door of the conventional semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus The figure which shows the air current around the conveyance device of the conventional semiconductor substrate

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 FOUP shell 12 FOUP door 21 Semiconductor substrate 22 Foreign material 31 Load port door 32 Load port mount 33 Slide stage 34 Open hole 41 EFEM
42, 42 'FFU
43 Transfer Robot 44 Air Guide 45 Thin FFU

Claims (6)

A method of transporting a semiconductor substrate in a transport device comprising an opening / closing means for opening and closing a lid of a sealed storage container storing a semiconductor substrate, and a supply means for supplying clean gas to the transport region of the semiconductor substrate by downflow,
2. A method for transporting a semiconductor substrate, comprising: supplying a clean gas from the supply unit in a divided manner around the lid of the hermetic storage container outside the opening / closing unit. A method of transporting a semiconductor substrate in a transport device comprising an opening / closing means for opening and closing a lid of a sealed storage container storing a semiconductor substrate, and a supply means for supplying clean gas to the transport region of the semiconductor substrate by downflow,
A method for transporting a semiconductor substrate, characterized in that the supply means supplies clean gas by downflow around the lid of the hermetic storage container outside the opening / closing means. A method of transporting a semiconductor substrate in a transport device comprising an opening / closing means for opening and closing a lid of a sealed storage container storing a semiconductor substrate, and a supply means for supplying clean gas to the transport region of the semiconductor substrate by downflow,
A method of transporting a semiconductor substrate, comprising supplying a clean gas of a system different from the clean gas of the supply means by downflow around the lid of the hermetic storage container outside the opening / closing means. A semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus comprising an opening / closing means for opening and closing a lid of a sealed storage container storing a semiconductor substrate, and a supply means for supplying clean gas to the transfer area of the semiconductor substrate by downflow,
2. A semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for dividing and supplying clean gas from the supply means around the lid of the hermetically sealed container outside the opening / closing means. A semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus comprising an opening / closing means for opening and closing a lid of a sealed storage container storing a semiconductor substrate, and a supply means for supplying clean gas to the transfer area of the semiconductor substrate by downflow,
2. A semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said supply means supplies means for supplying clean gas by downflow around the lid of said hermetic storage container outside said opening / closing means. A semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus comprising an opening / closing means for opening and closing a lid of a sealed storage container storing a semiconductor substrate, and a supply means for supplying clean gas to the transfer area of the semiconductor substrate by downflow,
A semiconductor substrate transfer apparatus, comprising means for supplying a clean gas of a system different from the clean gas of the supply means by a down flow around the lid of the hermetic storage container outside the opening / closing means.

Images