JP2009229638A - Transfer container for semiconductor member - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve a component support structure in a transfer container in a semiconductor processing process. <P>SOLUTION: The transfer container includes a base 50, and a lid 60, and composes a support part of reticle 70 in a U-shape on two conflict bases 52 and a conflict component 58 on the base. The transfer container includes hard support components 55 mutually facing both ends of the inside of the conflict base respectively. Each support component includes a first high projection piece and a second low projection piece having differences of height respectively. Their apex is made an arch form to make a point contact of a support contact face. The two support components on the same conflict base arrange the second low projection piece relatively inside, and even when the reticle is displaced, and slides down from the first projection piece, the second projection piece is received. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technology of a supporting article inside a transfer container for transferring an article such as a semiconductor reticle or a wafer between processes in the process of manufacturing a semiconductor, and in particular, a supporting contact area is reduced and two places are provided. The support structure of the transfer container having the support points reduces the dust phenomenon caused by friction between the article and the support structure, and further prevents the article from sliding or being damaged by impact.

  In recent years, electronic products are constantly being developed with features such as being thin, short and small, having a short wavelength and high frequency, and it is necessary to further miniaturize and enhance the performance of chips that are the core of electronic products. For this purpose, if the integrated circuit line width on the chip is reduced, more integrated circuit conductors and components can be installed. Since the existing integrated circuit line width has already been reduced from the early 0.25 micrometer to the present 90-45 nanometer, the key to success in reducing the chip integrated circuit line width is mainly photolithography manufacturing in the semiconductor manufacturing process In process technology. Since these equipment use a scanner and a reticle, dust or moisture on the surface of an optical lithography manufacturing article, for example, a reticle or wafer, has a direct and severe influence on the yield rate of manufacturing. Therefore, the photolithography manufacturing process needs to be performed in a very high dust-free chamber. In order to solve these problems, US Patent Application No. US 4,532,970 and US Patent Application No. US 4,534,389 have developed a system for transferring wafers and reticles in a sealed environment, and are able to remove dust and moisture from the surrounding environment. Alternatively, something was invented to ensure that harmful substances do not enter the environment of the reticle and wafer.

  However, looking at an example of a conventional reticle box, as shown in FIG. 1, the reticle box (10) has a frame (11), a base (12), a lid (13), several guide arms (14 ) And several push arms (15). The base (12) is fitted to a frame (11) connected to the lid (13), and the base (12) is attached to the lower surface of the reticle (20) via several support blocks (16). The support block (16) has a horizontal support surface (160) on which the reticle (20) is placed.

  The base (12) of the above-mentioned reticle box (10) has a structure in which the support block (16) having the support surface (160) supports the reticle (20) has the structure of the support surface (160) and the reticle (20). Since the contact area is large, the hardness is low, and it cannot withstand friction, dust is likely to be generated due to friction, and the resist layer of the wiring pattern on the bottom surface of the reticle (20) is likely to be damaged. Since these dusts affect the reticle exposure, they produce defective products and directly affect production efficiency. Therefore, when the dust reaches a certain amount, the reticle box (10) and reticle (20) must be cleaned, the protective film of the new reticle (20) must be replaced, or a new reticle (20) figure must be produced. The operational cost will increase, and the competitiveness and economic profit of the factory will be lowered.

  The known “reticle support device” of Taiwanese patent application proposal TWI224719 mainly supports a reticle with a protruding block made of polyetheretherketone (PEEK) in a reticle box. An arch-shaped holding portion inclined in the center is formed on the top surface of the protruding block. The design of the proposed patent application overcomes the problem of conventional dust generation, but the contact area is still too wide and the connection with the base is not the best, so in an environment with expansion and contraction due to temperature difference Is difficult to use because it will loosen and come off easily.

Furthermore, the reticle box of the prior art or the above-mentioned patent application proposal is obstructed when the reticle (20) is manually placed on the support block (16) or the protruding block of the base (12) during the use process, Alternatively, when the position is displaced, if a large error occurs in the position where the reticle (16) is placed, one side of the reticle (16) falls from the top of one support block (16) or the protruding block, and the reticle Since the bottom surface of (20) directly hits the surface of the base (12) and the bottom surface of the reticle (20) was damaged, further improvement was necessary.
JP 2002-299430 A

A first object of the present invention is to provide a structure that prevents a supporting article from sliding down directly and is applied to a transfer container that protects the article and a support structure for the transfer container.
A second object of the present invention is to provide a transfer container that reduces the friction area and the generation of dust and prevents articles from being damaged, and a structure applied to a transfer container support structure.

  In order to solve the above-described object, the present invention provides a transfer container and a support structure for the transfer container, and the transfer container is used for mounting an article such as a semiconductor reticle or a wafer, And a lid. Support parts for supporting articles are provided at both ends on both sides of the top of the base, and the support parts on both sides of both ends are arranged on the same straight line. A first projecting piece and a second projecting piece are provided at the top edge of each support component, and the first projecting piece and the second projecting piece form a distance between each other. And a 1st protrusion piece is higher than a 2nd protrusion piece, and the lower 2nd protrusion piece is located in the inner side which opposes by the support component of the same side. The lid can cover or separate the aforementioned base.

  By providing the first and second projecting pieces, when the article is supported, when the position of the article is displaced from the relatively high first projecting piece, the second projecting piece can also be supported, thereby forming a secondary protection. The product can be prevented from sliding down directly, and the friction area between the product and the supporting parts can be reduced, reducing the generation of dust and the phenomenon of damage, thereby increasing the overall production quality rate. By increasing the added value, competitiveness and economic benefits can be improved.

  The present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings in order to clearly show a support structure of a transfer container for an article such as a reticle or a wafer in a semiconductor manufacturing process. As shown in FIG. 2, the transfer container (5) that houses the reticle (70) includes a base (50) and a lid (60). The reticle (70) is placed on the base (50), and the lid (60) covers and joins the base (50) to constitute the transfer container (5).

  2 and 3 show that a groove (51) for connecting a plurality of lids (60) is formed around the base (50), and two phases correspond to each other on the base (50). In addition, the counter blocks (52) arranged in parallel are provided, and a plurality of protruding pieces (53) are respectively provided on the outer edges of the two counter blocks (52). Each protruding piece (53) is provided with an inverted L-shaped piece (54) on the inner side and sandwiches the reticle (70). Further, a contact part (58) is provided at the edge of the base (50) between the two contact parts (52), and a plurality of reticles (70) protruding upward are formed on the outer edge of the contact part (58). A projecting piece (59) is provided. Therefore, the reticle (70) is fixed to the base (50) by the conflicting base (52) and the conflicting part (58). Further, the two counters (52) are provided with support parts (55) at both ends of the opposite inner edges, so that the reticle (70) is reliably supported.

  FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 show the details of the support component (55), which is made of a material having high hardness and resistance to friction such as polyether ether ketone (PEEK) or vespel (VESPEL). The support component (55) includes a first projecting piece (551) and a second projecting piece (553) at the top edge, and the first projecting piece (551) and the second projecting piece (553) form a space between each other. . Further, the first protruding piece (551) is higher than the second protruding piece (553), and the support parts (55) at both ends of the same baffle (52) are provided with the second protruding piece (553) having a low height. Even if one side of the reticle (70) falls off from the contact table (52) due to the configuration in which the first projecting piece (551) and the second projecting piece (553) are stepped, they are disposed relatively inside, Therefore, it is possible to prevent the reticle (70) from falling directly on the surface of the collision table (52) of the base (50) (see FIG. 9). Further, by forming the top ends of the first and second projecting pieces (551) and (553) in an arched shape (552) and (554), the contact area for supporting the reticle (70) is reduced. Further, a fixing block (56) is formed on the rear side of the support component (55), a neck (560) is formed at a position in contact with the back surface of the support component (55) of the fixing block (56), and the support component (55 ) Is firmly fixed to the contact block (52) when it is injection-molded integrally with the contact table (52) to prevent the support part (55) from loosening and coming off, and extending the service life. Can do.

  The lid (60) is constituted by a plastic outer case (61) and a metal inner mold (65). On the bottom edge inside the outer case (61) having the handle (62), there is a fitting part (63) corresponding to the groove (51) of the base (50), and the lid (60) is a fitting part. (63) is fitted or separated from the base (50). A holding part (66) for pressing and supporting a plurality of reticles (70) is provided inside the inner mold (65). Further, the holding part (66) provided at the position of the inner mold corresponding to the opposite side of the contact part (58) of the base (50) is provided with a push piece (68), and between the push-pop part and the contact part. Then, position the reticle (70) correctly on the contact block (52) and the contact part (58) of the base (50), and the cover (60) is placed on the base (50) by the hold part (66). At this time, the position of the reticle (70) is corrected to prevent the reticle (70) from slipping and shifting its position.

  With the above configuration, a support structure for a transfer container having a small support contact area and a double protection function is completed.

  With the above-described structure, when the present invention is specifically carried out, as shown in FIGS. 6, 7 and 9, when placing the reticle (70) on the transfer container (5) of the present invention, either manually or by machine The reticle (70) is placed on the support part (55) of the base (50) of the base (50) by using the arm of the support part (55). The lower surface of the reticle (70) is placed on the relatively high first protruding piece (551), and the reticle (70) is connected to the push piece (67) of the holding part (66) of the lid (60). The reticle (70) is horizontally supported and prevented from being displaced by being positioned between the protruding pieces (59) of the conflicting parts (58) on the base (50). At the same time that the reticle (70) is placed in the transfer container (5) of the present invention, an adjustment function is provided in which the reticle (70) is placed in an appropriate position.

  Compared with the prior art reticle box of FIG. 1, when the support part (55) of the counter stand (52) in the base (50) of the present invention supports the reticle (70), the relatively high first protruding piece (551) only, and since the top edge of the first protruding piece (551) is arched (552), it contacts the reticle (70) at a point, and the contact area can be greatly reduced. . Therefore, dust due to friction is reduced, and at the same time, the reticle (70) can be prevented from being damaged, and the yield rate of manufacturing can be increased. Further, even when the reticle (70) is displaced to one side by a different element and falls, the relatively low second protruding piece (553) of the support component (55) supports the reticle (70) by supporting the reticle (70). By forming the next protection and preventing the bottom surface of the reticle (70) from directly hitting the surface of the base (50) or the contact table (52), the bottom surface of the reticle (70) is surely hit. It has a function to prevent damage.

Furthermore, the support part (55) of the present invention has a fixing block (56), and when the support part (55) is injection-molded to the block (52), the fixing block (56) of the support part (55) is provided. ), The coupling force between the support part (55) and the contact block (52) is greatly increased, and the service life is extended without the support part (55) becoming loose due to temperature differences in the manufacturing process. .

2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an assembly of a prior art reticle box. 1 is a schematic diagram of a three-dimensional decomposition of the present invention. It is a base three-dimensional exploded schematic diagram of the present invention. It is a base local part expansion schematic of this invention. It is a support component local expansion schematic of this invention. It is plane sectional drawing before the lid | cover and base of this invention couple | bond together. It is the plane schematic diagram which looked at the state where the support component of the present invention supports the reticle from the front. It is the plane top view which looked at the state in which the support component of this invention supports a reticle from the side. It is sectional drawing after the reticle of this invention displaces and slides down, It is the description which prevents that a reticle directly collides with a conflicting component.

Explanation of symbols

10 reticle box
11 frames
12 bases
13 lids
14 guide arm
15 push arm
16 support blocks
160 support surface
20 reticle
5 Transfer container
50 units
51 grooves
52 contact table
53 protruding piece
54 reverse L-shaped piece
55 Supporting parts
551 1st protruding piece
552 arch
553 Second protruding piece
554 Arch
56 fixed blocks
560 neck
58 Conflicting parts
59 protruding piece
60 lids
61 outer case
62 handle
63 mating parts
65 Inner type
66 Hold parts
67 push pieces
70 reticle

Claims (6)

Consists of a base and lid,
The base is provided with support parts for the articles at both ends on both sides of the upper surface, and each support part is arranged at an interval according to the support position on each side, and the first protrusions are spaced apart from each other on the support parts. The first projecting piece is higher than the height of the second projecting piece and the second projecting piece having a lower height is disposed on the opposite side of the support component on the same side;
A lid is a container for transferring an article such as a semiconductor reticle or a wafer, wherein the lid covers the base and is separable.   2. The transfer container according to claim 1, wherein the lid is constituted by a plastic outer shell having a handle and a metal inner mold. Two contact blocks arranged in parallel with each other are provided on the base, and the support parts are provided at both ends of the two contact tables, respectively, and at the outer edges of the contact tables, respectively, at both side edges of the article. It has an inverted L-shaped piece to be applied, and a conflicting part for applying an article is arranged on the side edge between the two conflicting tables on the base,
The lid is provided with a holding part that presses and supports the part inside, and a push piece is provided on the opposite side of the above-mentioned conflicting part,
2. The transfer container according to claim 1, wherein the push piece guides the component so that the component is correctly positioned on the base block and the block.   2. The transfer container according to claim 1, wherein the top and top ends of the first and second projecting pieces of the support part are formed in an arch shape to reduce a contact area for supporting the part.   A fixing block is formed on the rear side of the supporting part, and necks are formed on both sides of the fixing block so that the supporting part is firmly fixed to the conflicting base at the time of integral injection molding together with the contact base. 2. The transfer container according to claim 1.   6. The support component according to claim 1, wherein the support component is made of a material having a high hardness and being resistant to wear, such as polyether ether ketone (PEEK) or VESPEL. Transfer container.

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