JP2009099996A - Vertical heat treatment system and method of transferring workpieces - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To transfer five workpieces at a time to a holder having ring-shaped support plates at a narrow pitch and to improve throughput. <P>SOLUTION: A transfer mechanism having five substrate support devices 20 at prescribed intervals includes a gripping mechanism 28 for gripping the workpiece under the substrate support devices. The gripping mechanism 28 includes a fixed engagement part 30 provided on a distal end of the substrate support device to be engaged with a front edge of the workpiece, a movable engagement part 31 provided on the rear end of the substrate support device to be detachably engaged with a rear edge of the workpiece, and a receiving part provided on the fixed engagement part and the movable engagement part and having an inclined surface for a lower surface inclined so as to support the lower surface peripheral edge part of the workpiece and an inclined surface for an upper surface inclined so as to receive the upper surface front and rear peripheral edge part of the workpiece so as to have the absolute minimum gap capable of preventing the upper surface of the workpiece from being scratched and damaged by the lower surface of the substrate support device between the lower surface of the substrate support device and the upper surface of the workpiece. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vertical heat treatment apparatus and a method for transferring an object to be processed, and more particularly, an improved vertical structure in which a plurality of objects to be processed can be transferred to a holder having a ring-shaped support plate. The present invention relates to a mold heat treatment apparatus and an object transfer method.

  In the manufacture of semiconductor devices, there are processes for subjecting an object to be processed, such as a semiconductor wafer, to various heat treatments such as oxidation, diffusion, CVD, annealing, etc. A vertical heat treatment apparatus capable of heat treating a wafer at a time is used.

  This vertical heat treatment apparatus includes a heat treatment furnace having a furnace port at the bottom, a lid for sealing the furnace port, and a plurality of wafers provided on the lid in a vertical direction via a ring-shaped support plate. A holding tool (also called a wafer boat) that holds at intervals, an elevating mechanism that raises and lowers the lid and carries the holding tool into and out of the heat treatment furnace, and a storage container (carrier, cassette) that stores a plurality of wafers at predetermined intervals And a transfer mechanism having a plurality of substrate supports (also referred to as forks) for transferring the wafer between the holder and the holder. The ring-shaped support plate is used as a measure for suppressing or preventing slip (crystal defects) generated at the peripheral edge of the wafer during high-temperature heat treatment.

  As the transfer mechanism, as shown in FIG. 12, a push-up type transfer mechanism (referred to as transfer mechanism A) provided with a transfer substrate support 50 and a push-up substrate support 51 is used. (See, for example, JP-A-5-13547). The transfer substrate support 50 is formed of a plate-like body having an upper surface that contacts the lower surface of the wafer w, and the push-up substrate support 51 includes a plate having three support pins 52 that contact the lower surface of the wafer w on the upper surface. It consists of a body.

  When transferring a wafer to a holder, first, a transfer substrate support 50 that supports the wafer w is inserted above a predetermined ring-shaped support plate 15 in the holder 9 and a push-up substrate support 51 is inserted. It is inserted below the ring-shaped support plate 15 [(a) of FIG. 12]. Next, the push-up substrate support 51 is raised to lift the wafer w from the transfer substrate support 50, and in this state, the transfer substrate support 50 is withdrawn from the holder 9 [(b of FIG. )]]. Next, the push-up substrate support 51 is moved down to support the wafer w on the ring-shaped support plate 15, and then the push-up substrate support 51 is moved away from the holder 9 to transfer one wafer. The operation is completed [(c) of FIG. 12].

  The transfer mechanism includes a plurality of locking members that are locked to the lower surface of the peripheral edge of the wafer and support the wafer in a suspended state, and each locking member supports the wafer in a suspended state. It is configured to be able to reciprocate between the support position and the wafer release position that moves to the outside of the outer peripheral edge of the wafer and releases the support state of the wafer, and each locking member is connected to the wafer support position and the wafer release position. A device that is reciprocally driven by an actuator within a range of positions (referred to as a transfer mechanism B) is known (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-338531).

JP-A-5-13547 JP 2003-338531 A

  However, in the conventional vertical heat treatment apparatus, any of the transfer mechanisms A and B can transfer only one wafer at a time. Also, due to the structure of the transfer mechanism, the pitch between the ring-shaped support plates of the holder is required to be large (about 16 mm), and the maximum number of wafers (number of processed sheets) that can be mounted on the holder is about 50. Was forced to reduce the throughput. In particular, in the case of the transfer mechanism B, since the locking members arranged on the front end side and the rear end side of the fork (substrate support) are both movable, the structure is complicated and the wall thickness is increased. It is difficult to reduce the pitch between the ring-shaped support plates of the holder.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and can transfer the objects to be processed to each of the holders having a ring-shaped support plate at a narrow pitch by five, thereby improving the processing capability. An object of the present invention is to provide a vertical heat treatment apparatus and a method for transferring an object to be processed.

  Among the present inventions, the invention of claim 1 is a heat treatment furnace having a furnace port at the bottom, a lid for sealing the furnace port, and a large number of objects to be processed provided on the lid. A holding tool that holds the holding body up and down at predetermined intervals, a lifting mechanism that moves the holding tool into and out of the heat treatment furnace, and a storage container that stores a plurality of objects to be processed at predetermined intervals. And a transfer mechanism having five substrate support members for transferring the object to be processed with the holder at predetermined intervals, and the transfer mechanism is provided on a liftable arm that can be moved up and down. A box-shaped base, a first moving body capable of moving a single substrate support along the longitudinal direction of the base, and a total of four substrate supports other than the center. The second movable body that can move and the substrate support other than the center on the basis of the center substrate support are picked up in a stepless manner in the vertical direction. An upper gripping mechanism for gripping an object to be processed under each substrate support, and the upper gripping mechanism is provided at a front end of the substrate support. A fixed locking portion that locks the edge portion, a movable locking portion that is provided on the rear end side of the substrate support and detachably locks the rear edge portion of the object to be processed, and the fixed locking portion and the movable locking portion. An inclined surface for the lower surface provided to the stop and inclined to support the lower peripheral edge of the object to be processed, and the lower surface of the substrate support between the lower surface of the substrate support and the upper surface of the object to be processed. A receiving portion having an inclined surface for the upper surface inclined to receive the front and rear peripheral edges of the upper surface of the workpiece so as to have a minimum gap capable of preventing the upper surface from being scratched and scratched. To do.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, the longitudinal support plate according to the first aspect is characterized in that the ring-shaped support plate is provided with a notch for avoiding interference with the fixed locking portion and the movable locking portion. Mold heat treatment equipment.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, a mapping sensor for detecting a position of an object to be detected by moving a substrate holder so as to block a light beam stretched between both sides is provided at a tip portion of the substrate support. It is characterized by being.

  The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that the fixed locking portion, the movable locking portion, and the receiving portion are made of a heat resistant resin material.

  The invention according to claim 5 is a heat treatment furnace having a furnace port at the bottom, a lid for sealing the furnace port, and a plurality of objects to be processed provided on the lid through the ring-shaped support plate in the vertical direction. A holding tool for holding a plurality of objects to be processed at a predetermined interval, a lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the lid to carry the holding tool into and out of a heat treatment furnace, and a holding container for storing a plurality of objects to be processed at a predetermined interval. A transfer mechanism having a plurality of substrate supports for transferring the object to be processed at predetermined intervals, and the transfer mechanism is a box provided on a liftable arm that can be raised and lowered horizontally A mold base, a first movable body capable of moving a single substrate support along the longitudinal direction of the base, and a total of four substrate supports other than the center can be moved back and forth. Pitch conversion of the second moving body and the substrate support other than the center in the vertical direction with respect to the center substrate support in a stepless manner. An upper gripping mechanism for gripping the object to be processed under each substrate support, and the upper gripping mechanism is provided at the front end of the substrate support and is provided at the front edge of the object to be processed. A fixed locking portion that locks the portion, a movable locking portion that is provided on the rear end side of the substrate support and detachably locks the rear edge portion of the object to be processed, and the fixed locking portion and the movable locking portion An upper surface of the object to be processed between the lower surface of the substrate support and the lower surface of the substrate support between the lower surface of the substrate support and the upper surface of the object to be processed. In a vertical heat treatment apparatus comprising a receiving portion having an inclined surface for an upper surface inclined so as to receive the front and rear peripheral portions of the upper surface of the workpiece so as to have a minimum gap capable of preventing scratching and scratching A method for transferring an object to be processed, comprising: an upper gripping mechanism provided under each substrate support of the transfer mechanism; Ri and gripping on the object to be processed and performs the transfer.

  According to the invention of claim 1 of the present invention, the object to be processed is gripped with a minimum gap under each substrate support so as not to damage the upper surface which is the surface to be processed. Since the pitch of the five objects to be processed can be changed in the upper gripped state, the five objects to be processed are collectively transferred at a narrow pitch of 11 mm with respect to the holder having the ring-shaped support plate. This makes it possible to increase the number of objects to be processed of the holders (boats) to 1.5 times that of the prior art while maintaining the same height as the conventional one, thereby improving the processing capacity.

  According to the invention of claim 2, since the ring-shaped support plate is provided with a notch for avoiding interference with the fixed locking portion and the movable locking portion, the upper gripping mechanism is the ring-shaped support plate. It is possible to reliably grasp the object to be processed without interfering with the object.

  According to the invention of claim 3, the tip of the substrate support is provided with a mapping sensor for detecting the position of the object to be processed by moving the substrate support so as to block the light beam stretched between both sides thereof. Therefore, the presence / absence of the object to be processed in the holder can be detected by scanning in the vertical direction along the object to be processed held in multiple stages in the holder, and can be recorded (mapped) as position information. In addition, it is possible to prevent an accident such as breakage of the object to be processed by detecting the presence or absence of the object to be processed before and after the process.

  According to invention of Claim 4, since the said fixed latching | locking part, a movable latching | locking part, and a receiving part consist of a heat resistant resin material, while improving durability, it does not become a contamination source of a to-be-processed object.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to hold the object to be processed so as not to damage the upper surface, which is the surface to be processed, with a minimum gap below each substrate support. Since the pitch between five adjacent substrate supports can be changed in the gripping state, it is possible to transfer 5 workpieces at a time with a narrow pitch of 11 mm to a holder having a ring-shaped support plate. Thus, while the height is the same as that of the prior art, the number of processing objects mounted on the holder (boat) can be increased 1.5 times that of the prior art, and the processing capacity can be improved.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing a vertical heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a view showing a transfer mechanism, and FIG. 3 is a view of the transfer mechanism of FIG. 2 from one side. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a main part of the transfer mechanism, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a ring-shaped support plate.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the vertical heat treatment apparatus 1 has a housing 2 that forms an outer shell, and an object to be processed (also referred to as a substrate to be processed), such as a thin disk-shaped semiconductor, is disposed above the housing 2. A vertical heat treatment furnace 3 for accommodating the wafer w and performing a predetermined process such as a CVD process is provided. The heat treatment furnace 3 includes a vertically long processing vessel having a lower portion opened as a furnace port 4, for example, a reaction tube 5 made of quartz, a lid 6 that can be moved up and down to open and close the furnace port 4 of the reaction tube 5, and the reaction tube. 5, and mainly includes a heater (heating mechanism) 7 capable of controlling the inside of the reaction tube 5 to be heated to a predetermined temperature, for example, 300 to 1200 ° C.

  In the housing 2, for example, a base plate 8 made of SUS for installing the reaction tube 5 and the heater 7 constituting the heat treatment furnace 3 is provided horizontally. The base plate 8 is formed with an opening (not shown) for inserting the reaction tube 5 from below to above.

  An outward flange portion is formed at the lower end of the reaction tube 5, and this flange portion is held on the base plate 8 by a flange holding member, whereby the reaction tube 5 is inserted through the opening of the base plate 8 from below to above. Installed. The reaction tube 5 can be removed downward from the base plate 8 for cleaning or the like. Connected to the reaction tube 5 are a plurality of gas introduction tubes for introducing a processing gas and an inert gas for purge into the reaction tube 5 and an exhaust pipe having a vacuum pump, a pressure control valve and the like capable of reducing the pressure in the reaction tube 5. (Not shown).

  Below the base plate 8 in the housing 2, a holder (boat) 9 provided on the lid body 6 is loaded into the heat treatment furnace 3 (that is, the reaction tube 5), or from the heat treatment furnace 3. A work area (loading area) 10 for carrying out (unloading) or transferring the wafer w to the holder 9 is provided. The work area 10 is provided with an elevating mechanism 11 for elevating and lowering the lid 6 so that the boat 9 can be carried in and out. The lid body 6 is configured to abut against the open end of the furnace port 4 and seal the furnace port 4. A rotation mechanism (not shown) for rotating the holder is provided at the lower part of the lid body 6.

  The holder 9 in the illustrated example is made of, for example, quartz, and is multi-staged at a predetermined interval, for example, 11 mm pitch in the vertical direction in a horizontal state via a ring-shaped support plate 15 in a large number, for example, about 75 wafers w having a large diameter, for example, 300 mm. And a leg portion 9b for supporting the main body portion 9a, and the leg portion 9b is connected to the rotation shaft of the rotation mechanism. A lower heating mechanism (not shown) is provided between the main body portion 9 a and the lid body 6 to prevent a temperature drop due to heat radiation from the furnace port 4. In addition, as the holder 9, it may have only the main-body part 9a, may not be provided with the leg part 9b, and may be mounted on the cover body 6 via a heat insulation cylinder. The holder 9 is engaged with a plurality of support columns 12, top plates 13 and bottom plates 14 provided at the upper and lower ends of the support columns 12, and recesses or protrusions provided at predetermined intervals on the support columns 12. And a ring-shaped support plate 15 disposed on the surface. The ring-shaped support plate 15 is made of, for example, quartz or ceramic, has a thickness of about 2 to 3 mm, and has an outer diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the wafer w.

  A storage container (also referred to as a carrier or a cassette) 16 that stores a plurality of, for example, about 25 wafers at a predetermined interval is placed on the front portion of the housing 2 for loading / unloading into / from the housing 2. A stand (load port) 17 is installed. The storage container 16 is a sealed storage container having a lid (not shown) detachably provided on the front surface. A door mechanism 18 for removing the lid of the storage container 16 and opening the storage container to communicate with the work area 10 is provided before and after the work area 10. The work area 10 is provided between the storage container 16 and the holder 9. A transfer mechanism 21 having a plurality of substrate supports (forks) 20 for transferring the wafer w at a predetermined interval is provided.

  On the front upper side outside the work area 10, a storage shelf 22 for stocking the storage container 16 and a storage shelf 16 for transporting the storage container 16 from the mounting table 17 to the storage shelf 22 or vice versa are not shown. And a transport mechanism. In addition, the furnace port 4 is covered above the work area 10 in order to suppress or prevent the high-temperature furnace heat from being released from the furnace port 4 to the work area 10 below when the lid 6 is opened ( A shutter mechanism 23 is provided.

  The transfer mechanism 21 includes a plurality of, for example, five substrate supports (support plates) 20 (20a to 20e) that support a plurality of, for example, five wafers w at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction. In this case, the central substrate support 20a can be moved forward and backward independently, and the substrate supports (first, second, fourth, and fifth) other than the center 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e. The pitch conversion mechanism (not shown) provided inside the second moving body 27 can be steplessly converted in the vertical direction with respect to the central substrate support 20a as a reference. This is because the wafer storage pitch in the storage container 16 and the wafer mounting pitch in the holder 9 may be different, and even in that case, a plurality of wafers w are provided between the storage container 16 and the holder 9. This is because it can be transferred one by one.

  The transfer mechanism 21 includes an elevating arm 24 that can be raised and lowered, and a box-shaped base 25 that is provided on the elevating arm 24 so as to be horizontally pivotable. The first movable body 26 that allows the support 20a to move forward, and the total of four substrate supports 20b to 20e that are arranged two above and below across the central substrate support 20a can be moved forward. The second moving body 27 is provided so as to be capable of moving forward and backward along the longitudinal direction of the base 25. As a result, a single wafer transfer is performed by moving the first moving body 26 alone, and a plurality of, for example, five wafers are transferred by the combined movement of the first and second moving bodies 26 and 27. It is possible to selectively perform batch transfer that is simultaneously transferred. In order to move the first and second moving bodies 26 and 27, a moving mechanism (not shown) is provided inside the base 25. As this moving mechanism and the pitch converting mechanism, for example, those described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-44260 are used.

  The substrate support 20 is formed in a vertically long thin plate shape by alumina ceramic, for example. It is preferable that the board | substrate support tool 20 is formed in the plane substantially U shape by which the front-end | tip branched into two forks (refer FIG.4, FIG.6, FIG.7). The transfer mechanism 21 includes an upper gripping mechanism 28 that can grip the wafers w one by one under each substrate support 20. As shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the upper gripping mechanism 28 is provided at a front end portion of the substrate support 20, a fixed locking portion 30 that locks the front edge portion of the wafer w, and the rear of the substrate support 20. A movable locking portion 31 provided on the end side and detachably locking the rear edge portion of the wafer w is provided, and a drive unit for driving the movable locking portion 31, for example, an air cylinder 32 is provided.

  By moving the movable locking portion 31 forward with the air cylinder 32, the wafer w can be sandwiched (gripped) from the front and rear with the fixed locking portion 30, and the wafer w is released by moving the movable locking portion 31 backward. Can be done. It is preferable that a notch 33 for avoiding interference with the movable locking portion 31 is provided at the base end portion of the substrate support 20.

  The fixed locking portion 30 and the movable locking portion 31 preferably have lower surface inclined surfaces 30a and 31a in order to support the lower surface periphery of the wafer w so as not to be detached by its own weight. Further, the substrate support 20 has a minimum that can prevent the lower surface of the substrate support 20 from rubbing and scratching the upper surface of the wafer w between the lower surface of the substrate support 20 and the upper surface of the wafer w. It is preferable that receiving portions 34 and 35 as spacers for receiving the front and rear peripheral edges of the wafer w are provided so as to leave the gap g. In the case of the illustrated example, a front receiving part 34 and a rear receiving part 35 are provided on the left and right sides. The receiving portions 34, 35 have upper surface inclined surfaces 34 a, 35 a that receive the upper surface periphery of the wafer w in a state where the upper surface of the wafer w is close to the lower surface of the substrate support 20. In addition, the front receiving portion 34 and the fixed locking portion 30 are integrally formed to achieve compactness. As the material of the fixed locking portion 30, the movable locking portion 31, and the receiving portions 34 and 35, a heat-resistant resin material such as PEEK (Poly Ether Ether Ketone) material can improve durability and does not become a contamination source of the wafer. preferable.

  When the outer diameter of the ring-shaped support plate 15 is larger than that of the wafer w, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 5, the fixed locking portion 30 and the movable locking portion 31, and in some cases, the receiving on the base side. It is preferable that notches 36 and 37 for avoiding interference with the portion 35 are provided. The ring-shaped support plate 15 does not necessarily need to be provided with the notches 36 and 37 when the outer diameter is smaller than that of the wafer w.

  Thickness between the upper surface of the substrate support 20 and the lower surface of the front fixed locking portion 30 so that one substrate support 20 can be inserted into the gap between the upper and lower ring-shaped support plates 15, 15. The dimension h is smaller than a gap dimension k (about 7.7 mm) between the lower surface of the upper ring-shaped support plate 15 and the upper surface of the wafer w on the lower ring-shaped support plate 15, for example, about 5.95 mm. Preferably it is formed. Note that a mapping sensor 40 for performing mapping at the time of teaching work of the transfer mechanism 21, for example, is provided at the front end portion of the substrate support 20a capable of transferring a sheet.

  In the illustrated example, a sensor head 40a of the mapping sensor 40 capable of entering and exiting infrared rays is provided at one tip of the substrate support 20, and light is emitted from the sensor head 40a of the mapping sensor 40 at the other tip. The reflecting mirror 41 is provided to reflect the infrared rays and enter the sensor head 40a of the mapping sensor 40, and when the transfer mechanism 21 is teaching moved, the infrared rays are blocked by the object to be detected. The position of the detected object can be detected. The mapping sensor 40 in the illustrated example is configured by connecting a sensor head 40 a and a light emitting element and a light receiving element on the detection mechanism side (not shown) through an optical fiber 42. As shown in FIG. 5, the transfer mechanism 21 holds the mapping sensor 40 by scanning in the vertical direction (perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 5) along the wafers w held in multiple stages in the holder 9. The presence / absence of the wafer w in each stage in the tool 9 can be detected and recorded (mapped) as position information, and the state of the wafer w before and after processing (for example, the presence / absence of protrusion) can be detected.

  A mapping sensor head 40 capable of emitting and receiving infrared rays is provided at one tip of the substrate support 20, and the infrared rays emitted from the mapping sensor head 40 are reflected at the other tip. A reflecting mirror 41 for entering the mapping sensor head 40 is provided, and the position of the detected object can be detected by blocking the infrared ray by the detected object when the transfer mechanism 21 is teaching. ing. A light emitting element and a light receiving element on the detection mechanism side (not shown) are connected to the mapping sensor head 40 via an optical fiber 42.

  The movement or transfer method of the transfer mechanism 21 in the vertical heat treatment apparatus 1 having the above configuration will be described. First, the substrate support 20 is inserted into the storage container, and the upper gripping mechanism 28 under the substrate support 20 is fixed. By closing the movable locking portion 31 with respect to the locking portion 30, the wafer w is grasped and taken out from the storage container, and the substrate support 20 is inserted above the ring-shaped support plate 15 in this state [(( a)]. Next, by opening the movable locking portion 31 with respect to the fixed locking portion 30 of the upper gripping mechanism 28, the wafer w is released and placed on the ring-shaped support plate 15 ((b) of FIG. 11). Next, the substrate support 20 may be raised in this state, and the substrate support 20 may be further withdrawn from the holder 9 [(c) of FIG. 11].

  As described above, according to the vertical heat treatment apparatus 1, the transfer mechanism 21 having a plurality of, for example, five substrate supports 20 (20 a to 20 e) holds the wafer w under the substrate supports 20. Since the gripping mechanism 28 is provided, a plurality of, for example, five wafers w can be transferred to the holder 9 having the ring-shaped support plate 15, and the transfer time can be greatly shortened. In particular, an upper gripping mechanism 28 is provided at the front end portion of the substrate support 20 and a fixed locking portion 30 for locking the front edge of the wafer w, and the rear end side of the substrate support 20 is provided on the rear side of the wafer 2. It is composed of a movable locking portion 31 that detachably locks the edge portion, and the locking portion at the front end portion of the substrate support 20 is fixed, so that it is disposed on the front end side and the rear end side of the fork (substrate support tool). The structure of the substrate support 20 can be simplified and thinned as compared with the conventional transfer mechanism B in which any of the locking members is movable, so that the pitch between the ring-shaped support plates 15 of the holder 9 can be reduced. The number of processed sheets can be reduced from about 16 mm to about 11 mm, and the number of processed sheets can be increased from about 50 sheets to about 75 times, which is 1.5 times that of the conventional apparatus, thereby improving throughput.

  Specifically, the receiving portions 34 and 35 are the minimum capable of preventing the lower surface of the substrate support 20 from rubbing and scratching the upper surface of the wafer between the lower surface of the substrate support 20 and the upper surface of the wafer. Since the upper surface has inclined surfaces 34a and 35a inclined so as to receive the front and rear peripheral portions of the upper surface of the wafer w so as to have a limited gap g, the wafer w is prevented from falling off when the upper surface of the wafer w is gripped. The upper surface of the wafer w can be formed on the lower surface of the substrate support 20 so as not to damage the upper surface of the wafer w in combination with the inclined surfaces 30a and 31a for the lower surface of the fixed locking portion 30 and the movable locking portion 31. The wafer w can be held as close as possible, so that the wafer w can be held at a narrow pitch. In other words, in conjunction with the thinning of the substrate support 20, the wafer w is placed under the substrate support 20 with the wafer w as close as possible so as not to damage the upper surface (surface to be processed). Since the wafer can be held by gripping, and the pitch of the five wafers w can be changed by the pitch conversion mechanism in the state of holding the upper grip, it is possible to transfer five wafers at a time with a narrow pitch of 11 mm. The number of wafers mounted on the holder (boat) can be increased 1.5 times as compared with the conventional case, and the processing capacity can be improved.

  Further, the upper gripping mechanism 28 can easily grip the wafer w. Further, the substrate support 20 is provided with receiving portions 34 and 35 for receiving the front and rear peripheral portions of the wafer w so that there is a gap g between the lower surface of the substrate support 20 and the upper surface of the wafer w. It is possible to prevent the upper surface of the wafer w from being rubbed and damaged by the lower surface of the substrate support 20 when the wafer w is gripped. Further, since the ring-shaped support plate 15 is provided with notches 36 and 37 for avoiding interference with the fixed locking portion 30 and the movable locking portion 31, the upper gripping mechanism 28 is connected to the ring-shaped support plate. The wafer w can be securely gripped without interfering with the wafer 15.

  Since the tip of the substrate support 20 is provided with a mapping sensor 40 that detects the position of the object to be processed w by moving the substrate support 20 so as to block the light beam stretched between both sides thereof. By scanning in the vertical direction along the workpieces w held in multiple stages in the holder 9, the presence or absence of the workpiece w in the holder 9 can be detected and recorded (mapped) as position information. At the same time, it is possible to prevent an accident such as breakage of the object to be processed w by detecting the presence or absence of the protrusion of the object to be processed w before and after processing. In addition, although the fixed locking portion 30 is provided at the front end portion of the substrate support 20, the mapping sensor 40 can be easily provided without interfering with each other because it is not a movable structure. Will not increase.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment thru | or example of this invention has been explained in full detail with drawing, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment thru | or example, Various in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention. Design changes can be made.

1 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing a vertical heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows a transfer mechanism. It is the figure which looked at the transfer mechanism of FIG. 2 from the one side. It is a figure which shows the principal part of a transfer mechanism. It is a figure which shows an example of a ring-shaped support plate. It is a bottom view which shows an example of a board | substrate support tool. It is a bottom view which shows the other example of a board | substrate support tool. It is a schematic side view which shows the fixed latching | locking part and receiving part of a board | substrate support tool front-end | tip part. It is a schematic side view which shows the movable latching | locking part and receiving part of a board | substrate support tool base end side. It is a schematic side view which shows the movable latching | locking part and drive part of a board | substrate support tool base end side. It is a figure explaining the effect | action of a transfer mechanism. It is a figure explaining an example of the transfer mechanism in the conventional vertical heat processing apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

1 Vertical heat treatment equipment w Semiconductor wafer (object to be processed)
g Clearance 3 Heat treatment furnace 4 Furnace port 6 Lid 9 Holding tool 11 Lifting mechanism 15 Ring-shaped support plate 16 Storage container 20 Substrate support 21 Transfer mechanism 24 Lifting arm 25 Base 26 First moving body 27 Second movement Body 28 Upper gripping mechanism 30 Fixed locking portion 31 Movable locking portion 30a, 31a Inclined surface for lower surface 34, 35 Receiving portion 34a, 35a Inclined surface for upper surface 36, 37 Notch 40 Mapping sensor

Claims (5)

  A heat treatment furnace having a furnace port at the bottom, a lid for sealing the furnace port, and holding a plurality of workpieces provided on the lid in a vertical direction at predetermined intervals via a ring-shaped support plate A workpiece, an elevating mechanism that raises and lowers the lid, and loads and unloads the holder into a heat treatment furnace, and a transfer container between the holder and a storage container that stores a plurality of objects to be processed at predetermined intervals. A transfer mechanism having five substrate supports to be mounted at a predetermined interval, and the transfer mechanism includes a box-shaped base that is provided on a liftable arm that can be moved up and down, and a base that can be horizontally rotated, and the base A first movable body capable of moving forward and backward the central substrate support tool along the longitudinal direction, a second movable body capable of moving forward and backward a total of four substrate support tools other than the center, With a pitch conversion mechanism that allows stepless pitch conversion of substrate supports other than the center in the vertical direction with the substrate support as a reference. An upper gripping mechanism for gripping the object to be processed is provided under each substrate support, and the upper gripping mechanism is provided at the tip of the substrate support and is a fixed locking portion for locking the front edge of the object to be processed. A movable locking portion that is provided on the rear end side of the substrate support and detachably locks the rear edge of the object to be processed, and a lower surface of the processing object that is provided on the fixed locking portion and the movable locking portion. Preventing the upper surface of the object to be rubbed and damaged by the lower surface of the substrate support between the lower surface of the substrate support and the upper surface of the object to be processed, and an inclined surface for the lower surface inclined to support the peripheral edge A vertical heat treatment apparatus comprising: a receiving portion having an inclined surface for an upper surface inclined so as to receive a front and rear peripheral edge portion of the upper surface of the object to be processed so as to have a minimum gap that can be formed.   The vertical heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ring-shaped support plate is provided with a notch for avoiding interference with the fixed locking portion and the movable locking portion.   A mapping sensor for detecting a position of an object to be detected by moving a substrate holder so as to block a light beam stretched between both sides thereof is provided at a tip portion of the substrate support. Item 2. The vertical heat treatment apparatus according to Item 1.   2. The vertical heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the fixed locking portion, the movable locking portion, and the receiving portion are made of a heat resistant resin material.   A heat treatment furnace having a furnace port at the bottom, a lid for sealing the furnace port, and holding a plurality of workpieces provided on the lid in a vertical direction at predetermined intervals via a ring-shaped support plate A workpiece, an elevating mechanism that raises and lowers the lid, and loads and unloads the holder into a heat treatment furnace, and a transfer container between the holder and a storage container that stores a plurality of objects to be processed at predetermined intervals. A transfer mechanism having a plurality of substrate supports for loading at predetermined intervals, the transfer mechanism comprising a box-shaped base provided on a liftable arm that can be moved up and down, and a box-shaped base. A first movable body capable of moving forward and backward a single substrate support tool along the longitudinal direction of the base; a second movable body capable of moving forward and backward a total of four substrate support tools other than the center; Pitch converter capable of stepless pitch conversion of substrate supports other than the center in the vertical direction based on the center substrate support And an upper gripping mechanism for gripping the object to be processed is provided under each substrate support, and the upper gripping mechanism is provided at the tip of the substrate support and locks the front edge of the object to be processed. A fixed locking portion; an inclined surface for a lower surface which is provided on the fixed locking portion and the movable locking portion and is inclined to support a peripheral surface of the lower surface of the object to be processed; and a lower surface of the substrate support and an upper surface of the object to be processed For the upper surface inclined so as to receive the front and rear peripheral portions of the upper surface of the target object so that there is a minimum gap that can prevent scratching and scratching the upper surface of the target object with the lower surface of the substrate support A method of transferring an object to be processed in a vertical heat treatment apparatus having a receiving portion having an inclined surface, wherein the object to be processed is held by an upper holding mechanism provided under each substrate support of the transfer mechanism. Then, the object is transferred.

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