JP2010174267A - Apparatus for forming deposition film and method for forming deposition film - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus for forming a deposition film, which can form a deposition film having superior film characteristics with high productivity, and to provide a method for forming the deposition film. <P>SOLUTION: The apparatus for forming the deposition film comprises a reaction vessel part 101 which can reduce its pressure and set a substrate 102 in its inner part, and a gate valve part 130 which has a valve body that opens and closes a space between the reaction vessel part 101 and the gate valve part 130: and opens the space between the reaction vessel part 101 and the gate valve part 130 with the valve body, transports the substrate 102 into the reaction vessel part 101, and forms the deposition film thereon. The gate valve part can select whether the valve body is rubbed against a rubbing member or not, when the rubbing member which can rub the valve body and the valve body move from a position of closing a space between the reaction vessel part 101 and the gate valve part 130 to a position of opening the space; and has a rubbing mechanism which removes a foreign matter having deposited on the valve body, by making the rubbing member rub against the valve body when making the rubbing member rub, and can drop the removed foreign matter into the reaction vessel part 101. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a deposited film forming apparatus and a deposited film forming method, such as a semiconductor device, an electrophotographic photoreceptor, an image input line sensor, a photographing device, and a photovoltaic device.

  When the substrate is installed in the reaction vessel, or when the deposited substrate is formed or etched in the reaction vessel, the cleanliness of the atmosphere in the reaction vessel determines the quality and performance of the product. May have a significant impact. For example, in the formation of a deposited film, the quality of the deposited film is deteriorated by the abnormal growth of the deposited film with dust attached to the processing surface of the substrate serving as a nucleus. Further, in the etching process, it may be impossible to etch an appropriate portion due to dust adhering to the processing surface of the substrate. For this reason, when the substrate is placed in the reaction vessel, and when the deposited film is formed or etched on the substrate, unnecessary substances such as dust in the reaction vessel are generally removed. ing.

As one of the dust generation locations, there is a gate valve portion having a valve body that opens and closes the opening portion provided in an opening portion for carrying out and carrying in the substrate into the reaction container. Therefore, it is common practice to reduce the generation of dust from the gate valve.
By using two cylinders, it is possible to install a valve body on a valve seat without providing a stopper, and a gate valve is disclosed in which the occurrence of metal powder is eliminated by eliminating the collision point between metals. (See Patent Document 1).
In addition, a roller is provided on the gate flange so that the operation when the gate flange is pressed can be performed smoothly.

Further, a gate chamber is provided so that the gate valve can be removed from the gate chamber, and the processing chamber can be maintained without moving from the gate chamber, thereby simplifying the maintenance. (See Patent Document 2)
Further, a method of forming a deposited film is disclosed in which clean air is blown to the operating part side of the gate valve to reduce dust generation from the gate valve. (See Patent Document 3).
Special registration No. 2839025 specification JP-A-5-87258 JP 2006-70299 A

With the above conventional technology, it is possible to reduce the generation of dust from the gate valve, and it has become possible to produce a product with improved quality.
However, for example, in an amorphous silicon photoconductor for an electrophotographic apparatus, with the digitization and full color of the electrophotographic apparatus, the charging system, the optical exposure system, the developing system, etc. in the electrophotographic apparatus have been improved. Along with this, improvement in image characteristics more than ever has been demanded for photoreceptors.

  As a result, there has been a demand for reduction of white spot-like and black-spot-like image defects, commonly referred to as “pochi”, in particular, reduction of “pochi” of a minute size that has not been a problem in the past. Most of the “pochi” is caused by “spherical projections” which are abnormal growth of the deposited film with the dust adhering to the surface of the substrate as a nucleus. Therefore, it is required to further reduce the number of dust attached to the surface of the base.

Furthermore, regarding the maintenance of the gate valve, it is necessary to return the reaction vessel to atmospheric pressure or further remove it. In this case, the apparatus stops and the operating rate decreases.
Accordingly, there has been a demand for early realization of a deposited film forming apparatus or deposited film forming method capable of further preventing dust from adhering to the surface of the substrate and at the same time further improving production efficiency.
Accordingly, the present invention aims to solve the above problems. That is, an object of the present invention is to provide a deposited film forming apparatus and a deposited film forming method having improved productivity while improving the deposited film characteristics by efficiently reducing dust.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the deposited film forming apparatus according to the present invention has a reaction container part that can be decompressed and in which a substrate can be installed, and an opening between the reaction container part. And a gate valve portion having a valve body for closing, opening the space between the reaction vessel portion and the gate valve portion by moving the valve body, and carrying the substrate into the reaction vessel portion, In a deposited film forming apparatus for forming a deposited film on the surface of the substrate,
The gate valve portion is
A rubbing member capable of rubbing the valve body;
When the valve body moves from the closed position between the reaction vessel portion and the gate valve portion to the open position, the valve body and the rubbing member are rubbed or rubbed. It is possible to select whether or not to rub, and when the rubbing is selected, the rubbing member rubs the valve body to remove foreign matter attached to the valve body, and further remove And a rubbing mechanism capable of dropping the foreign matter into the reaction container portion.

Furthermore, the rubbing mechanism is a mechanism capable of changing the position of the valve body in a direction perpendicular to the opening surface between the gate valve portion and the reaction vessel portion.
Furthermore, the rubbing mechanism is a mechanism capable of changing the position of the rubbing member in a direction perpendicular to the opening surface between the gate valve portion and the reaction vessel portion. .
Further, the valve body protrudes toward the opening side from the seal surface provided on the valve body side at a portion corresponding to the opening part between the gate valve part and the reaction vessel part. When the opening is closed, the protrusion is inserted into the opening, and the valve body is opened from a position where the space between the reaction vessel portion and the gate valve portion is closed. When moving to the position, the rubbing member rubs the surface of the projecting portion to remove foreign matter adhering to the surface of the projecting portion.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, the method for forming a deposited film according to the present invention includes a reaction vessel part that can be decompressed and in which a substrate can be installed, and the reaction vessel part. After forming a deposited film on the surface of the substrate using a deposited film forming apparatus having a gate valve portion having a valve body that opens and closes the valve body, the valve body is placed between the gate valve portion and the reaction vessel portion. When moving from the closed position to the open position, the valve body and the rubbing member are moved while rubbing. Otherwise, the valve body and the rubbing member are rubbed. The valve body is moved without causing it to move.

Foreign matter adhering to the valve body after the formation of the deposited film is removed by a rubbing member capable of rubbing against the valve body, and the removed foreign matter is dropped into the reaction container portion, thereby entering the gate chamber. Reduces the introduction of foreign objects. Thereby, generation of dust from the gate valve portion can be significantly suppressed. Furthermore, since the contamination of the gate valve portion is suppressed as described above, the maintenance frequency of the gate valve portion is greatly reduced. Thereby, the operation rate of the deposited film forming apparatus is improved.
Therefore, a deposited film having excellent film characteristics can be formed with high productivity.

(First embodiment)
Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 shows RF (Radio Frequency) -CVD (Chemical Vapor).
It is the figure which showed typically an example of the deposited film formation apparatus 100 and the base material conveyance mechanism 180 for manufacturing the electrophotographic photoreceptor by the Deposition method.
The deposited film forming apparatus 100 is an apparatus that forms a deposited film on the cylindrical substrate 102 by plasma processing. The cylindrical cathode electrode 103, the insulator 110, the upper wall 109, and the bottom wall 112 form a reaction vessel portion 101 that can be depressurized.
The gate valve unit 170 is composed of the gate valve 130.

  The reaction vessel 101 can be depressurized and a substrate can be installed in the inside thereof. The gate valve unit 170 has a valve body that opens and closes between the reaction vessel unit 101. The deposited film forming apparatus 100 opens the space between the reaction vessel portion 101 and the gate valve portion 170 by moving the valve body, carries the substrate into the reaction vessel portion 101, and deposits the deposited film on the surface of the substrate. Form.

A substrate holder holding means 123 that holds a substrate holder 107 to which a cylindrical substrate 102 and a cap 108 are attached is provided below the reaction vessel 101. Since the substrate holder holding means 123 is entirely composed of a conductive member, the substrate holder 107 is electrically connected to the bottom wall 112 and grounded.
The cylindrical base 102 only needs to have a material corresponding to the purpose of use. As the material of the cylindrical substrate 102, for example, copper, aluminum, gold, silver, platinum, lead, nickel, cobalt, iron, chromium, molybdenum, titanium, and stainless steel are preferable because of their good electrical conductivity. . Among these, aluminum is optimal in consideration of workability and manufacturing cost. In this case, as the aluminum forming the cylindrical substrate 102, for example, either an Al—Mg alloy or an Al—Mn alloy is preferably used.

A heater 111 for heating is provided inside the reaction vessel unit 101. Any heater 111 may be used as long as it can be used in a vacuum. Specifically, heat-exchanging heaters such as sheathed heaters, plate heaters, ceramic heaters, and carbon heaters, heat radiation lamps such as halogen lamps and infrared lamps, and heat exchange using liquid or gas as a heat medium Means are listed as targets.
In addition, a raw material gas introduction pipe (raw material gas introduction means) 104 for introducing a raw material gas into the reaction container portion 101 is provided in the reaction container portion 101. The source gas introduction pipe 104 extends in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical base 102 to be held. The source gas introduction pipe 104 is connected via a connection pipe 127 to a gas supply system including a mixing device 116 having a mass flow controller (not shown) for adjusting the flow rate of the source gas, and a source gas inflow valve 117. ing.

In the exhaust system provided in the deposited film forming apparatus 100, a vacuum pump unit (not shown) as exhaust means is connected to an exhaust port 118 of the bottom wall 112 through an exhaust pipe 121. An exhaust main valve 119 is provided in the exhaust pipe 121. In addition, a vacuum gauge 120 for measuring the internal pressure is attached to the reaction vessel unit 101. By using these, the inside of the reaction vessel portion 101 can be maintained at a predetermined pressure suitable for each process. As the vacuum pump unit, for example, a rotary pump or a mechanical booster pump can be used.
A high-frequency power source (applying means) 106 is electrically connected to the cylindrical cathode electrode 103 via a matching box 105 having a matching circuit. The upper and lower sides of the cylindrical cathode electrode 103 are insulated from the upper wall 109 and the bottom wall 112 by an insulator 110 made of ceramics.

A gate valve 130 is installed on the upper wall 109. As a result, the substrate holder 107 that holds the cylindrical substrate 102 can be carried in, carried out, and installed in the reaction vessel unit 101 by the substrate conveyance mechanism 180.
When the substrate holder 107 is carried into and out of the reaction container unit 101, the holding unit 114 of the substrate holder 107 is held by the substrate transfer mechanism 180. Next, the substrate holder 107 is installed in the reaction vessel 101, that is, placed on the substrate holder holding means 123.

Next, the substrate transport mechanism 180 will be described with reference to the drawings.
The substrate transport mechanism 180 has a transport container 181 that can be vacuum-tight and has a vertical mechanism for connection to the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Further, the transfer container 181 has a vertically movable arm 184 having a gate valve 182 at the bottom and a holding portion 183 for holding the base holder 107 inside. Further, the transport container 181 can move on the rail 185 in the horizontal direction. By this substrate transport mechanism 180, the substrate holder 107 on which the cylindrical substrate 102 is mounted can be loaded, installed, and unloaded while the reaction vessel 101 is in a vacuum state.

An example of a procedure for forming a deposited film using the deposited film forming apparatus 100 configured as described above will be described.
First, the substrate holder 107 to which the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 are attached is carried into the reaction vessel 101 by the substrate transport mechanism 180.

  How to carry in and install will be explained. The holding portion 114 of the base holder 107 is held in advance by the holding portion 183 of the transfer container 181 so that the base holder 107 to which the cylindrical base 102 and the cap 108 are attached is stored, and the transfer container in which the inside is evacuated. 181 moves onto the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Next, the transfer container 181 is lowered, and the gate valve 182 of the transfer container 181 is connected to the gate valve 130. After the connection, the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 of the transfer container 181 is evacuated by an exhaust device (not shown). The gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are opened when the pressure in the transfer container 181, between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130, and in the reaction container 101 is substantially equal.

The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the gate valve 130 as the gate valve unit 170.
An upper flange 132 connected to the gate valve 182 is provided on the upper side of the gate chamber 131, and an opening 133 on the transport container 181 side is formed. On the lower side, there is a lower flange 134 connected to the upper wall 109 of the reaction vessel 101, and an opening 135 on the reaction vessel 101 side is formed. In the gate chamber 131, a surface 179 having the opening 135 is defined as an opening surface 179.

The valve body 136 is provided with a roller 137, a protruding portion 138, a brush storage portion 139, a stopper 140, and an O-ring 141. The valve body 136 is supported by the gate base 143 through the link mechanism 142. The surface 156 is a surface of the valve body 136 on the substrate transport mechanism 180 side.
The gate base 143 is attached to the rod 144. The rod 144 passes through the first vacuum bellows 146 connecting the base plate 145 and the gate chamber 131 and is connected to the base plate 145.

The base plate 145 is attached to the first shaft 148 of the first air cylinder 147.
The second shaft 150 of the second air cylinder 149 passes through the second vacuum bellows 151 connecting the gate chamber 131 and the second air cylinder 149 and is attached to the valve body stopper 152.
The rubbing member 153 is a rubbing member capable of rubbing against the valve body 136, and, as an example, a plate-like Viton rubber is installed.
FIG. 2 shows a state in which the valve body 136 closes the opening 135 on the reaction vessel portion 101 side.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 3, first, the first air cylinder 147 moves the base plate 145 closer to the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in the figure). The moving direction at this time is hereinafter defined as the Y direction as shown in FIG. As the base plate 145 moves, the first shaft 144 and the second shaft 150 attached to the base plate 145 move in the same direction. Then, the link mechanism 142 moves the valve body 136 substantially linearly in the direction away from the reaction vessel 101 by the elastic force of the spring 155. The moving direction at this time is hereinafter defined as the X direction as shown in FIG.

When the tip of the valve body stopper 152 reaches the surface 156 of the valve body 136 on the substrate transport mechanism 180 side, the movement of the valve body 136 stops. In the X direction, the valve body 136 can no longer move in the direction away from the reaction vessel portion 101, and is located farthest from the opening 135 in the gate chamber 131.
In this state, the valve body 136 is adjusted so that the rubbing member 153 and the valve body 136 do not rub when moving in the direction of approaching the first air cylinder 147 in the Y direction.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the base plate 145 continues to move toward the first air cylinder 147 in the Y direction while the valve body 136 maintains the position in the X direction shown in FIG. And white arrow). The valve body 136 moves without rubbing against the rubbing member 153. Furthermore, it moves to the drive end of the first air cylinder 147 and the so-called gate valve 130 is opened.

  Next, in FIG. 1, the arm 184 that holds the substrate holder 107 to which the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 are attached descends from the inside of the transport container 181. Then, the substrate holder 107 to which the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 are attached is placed on the substrate holder holding means 123. Thereafter, the holding portion 183 is in a non-holding state, and the base holder 107 to which the cylindrical base 102 and the cap 108 are attached is installed. After installation, the arm 184 is raised and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.

The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 5, the base plate 145 is moved in the Y direction in the direction away from the first air cylinder 147 by the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in the figure). As the base plate 145 moves, the first shaft 144 and the second shaft 150 attached to the base plate 145 move in the same direction. Then, the roller 137 hits the end surface 157 of the gate chamber 131.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the base plate 145 is further moved away from the first air cylinder 147 in the Y direction. Then, the valve body 136 linearly moves in the direction approaching the reaction container portion 101 in the X direction by the link mechanism 142 and the roller 137 and is pressed against the gate chamber 131. As a result, the O-ring 141 is pressed against the seal surface (not shown) of the gate chamber 131. Further, the protrusion 138 is inserted into the opening 135. This state is the so-called gate valve 130 being closed.

After the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 in FIG. 1 are closed, the pressure between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 is returned to atmospheric pressure. Thereafter, the transport container 181 rises and is separated from the reaction container unit 101, and the carry-in and installation are completed.
Thereafter, for example, Ar or He gas necessary for heating the cylindrical substrate 102 is introduced into the reaction vessel section 101 through the mixing device 116, the raw material gas inflow valve 117, the connection pipe 127, and the raw material gas introduction pipe 104. To do. And the exhaust speed of a vacuum pump unit (not shown) is adjusted, confirming the vacuum gauge 120 so that the inside of the reaction container part 101 may become a predetermined pressure. This adjustment can be performed, for example, by adjusting the rotation frequency of a mechanical booster pump of a vacuum pump unit (not shown).
Next, after reaching a predetermined pressure, the temperature of the cylindrical substrate 102 is set to a desired temperature of 200 [° C.] to 450 [° C.], more preferably 250 [° C.] to 350 [° C.] by the heater 111 for heating. Control.

After the preparation for forming the deposited film is completed by the above procedure, the deposited film is formed on the surface of the cylindrical substrate 102.
For this purpose, first, a main source gas, a dilution gas, and a characteristic improving gas are mixed as a source gas for forming a deposited film through a mixing device 116, and the reactor vessel 101 is supplied through a source gas introduction pipe 104. Introduce into.
At that time, the pumping speed of the vacuum pump unit (not shown) is adjusted while checking the vacuum gauge 120 so that the reaction vessel 101 has a desired pressure of 13.3 [mPa] to 1330 [Pa]. . This adjustment can be performed, for example, by adjusting the rotation frequency of a mechanical booster pump of a vacuum pump unit (not shown).

The main source gas used as the main source gas used when forming the deposited film includes silane (SiH ₄ ), disilane (Si ₂ H ₆ ), silicon tetrafluoride (SiF ₄ ), and disilicon hexafluoride (Si ₂ F). _{As in 6} ), a raw material gas for forming amorphous silicon or a mixed gas thereof can be used. As a dilution gas, hydrogen (H ₂ ), argon (Ar), or helium (He) can be used. Further, as the characteristic improving gas, those containing nitrogen atoms, those containing oxygen atoms, those containing carbon atoms, those containing fluorine atoms, or a mixed gas thereof may be used in combination. As those containing nitrogen atoms for use in this, nitrogen _(N 2), ammonia (NH ₃₎ can be mentioned. Oxygen (O ₂ ), nitrogen monoxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO ₂ ), dinitrogen oxide (N ₂ O), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ) are included as oxygen atoms. Is mentioned. As those containing carbon atoms, methane _(CH 4), ethane _{(C 2 H} 6), ethylene _{(C 2 H} 4), acetylene _{(C 2 H} 2), include propane _(C 3 _{H 8).} Examples of those containing fluorine atoms include germanium tetrafluoride (GeF ₄ ) and nitrogen fluoride (NF ₃ ). Further, diborane _{(B 2 H} 6), boron fluoride _(BF 3), it may be introduced at the same time the discharge space such properties improved gas phosphine (PH _3).

Next, after the pressure in the reaction vessel portion 101 is stabilized, the high-frequency power source 106 is set to a desired power, and the high-frequency power is supplied to the cylindrical cathode electrode 103 via the high-frequency matching box 105 to thereby react. A high frequency glow discharge is generated in the container part 101. The supplied power can be, for example, an RF band, particularly a frequency of 13.56 [MHz]. By this discharge energy, the deposited film forming gas introduced into the reaction vessel 101 is excited to generate excited species, that is, decomposed so that desired silicon atoms are mainly contained on the surface of the cylindrical substrate 102. A deposited film is formed.
As described above, a deposited film is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical substrate 102.

After the deposition film is formed, the supply of the deposition gas forming source gas, the high-frequency power and the heating of the substrate are stopped, and the inside of the reaction vessel 101 is evacuated. Thereafter, the inside of the reaction vessel 101 and the source gas introduction pipe 104 is purged using a purge gas, for example, an inert gas such as Ar, He, or N ₂ .
After the purge process is completed, the process proceeds to a step of carrying out the substrate holder 107 on which the cylindrical substrate 102 is mounted from the reaction vessel unit 101 using the substrate transport mechanism 180.

  The carry-out method will be described. The transfer container 181 whose inside is evacuated in advance moves to the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Next, the transfer container 181 is lowered, and the gate valve 182 of the transfer container 181 is connected to the gate valve 130. After the connection, the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 of the transfer container 181 is evacuated by an exhaust device (not shown). The gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are opened when the pressure in the transfer container 181, between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130, and in the reaction container 101 is substantially equal.

  FIG. 7 shows a state after the deposited film is formed and after the purge process is completed. The valve body 136 is in a state in which the opening 135 on the reaction vessel 101 side is closed. That is, it is pressed against the gate chamber 131 by the link mechanism 142. A powdery by-product 154 called polysilane is deposited on the surface of the protruding portion 138 of the valve body 136 on the reaction vessel portion 101 side during the formation of the deposited film. By-products are also deposited on the lower flange 134 of the opening 135, but are omitted in the figure.

  First, as shown in FIG. 8, the second air cylinder 149 drives the second shaft 150 in the Y direction in the direction approaching the second air cylinder 149 (white arrow in the figure), and the valve body stopper 152 is moved. Move.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 9, the base plate 145 is moved in the Y direction in the direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 by the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in the figure). As the base plate 145 moves, the first shaft 144 and the second shaft 150 attached to the base plate 145 move in the same direction. Then, the link mechanism 142 moves the valve body 136 in the direction away from the reaction container portion 101 in the X direction by the elastic force of the spring 155. At this time, the valve body stopper 152 moves on the surface of the stopper 140 and finally stops at the end of the stopper 140. The valve body stopper 152 and the stopper 140 prevent the valve body 136 from moving further in the direction away from the reaction vessel 101 in the X direction.

  The position of the valve body 136 at this time is such that, when the valve body 136 moves in the Y direction in the direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 in the Y direction, the sliding member 153 and the protrusion 138 of the valve body 136 are subordinate to each other. The valve body stopper 152 and the stopper 140 are adjusted in advance to a position where the surface on which the product 154 is accumulated is rubbed. At the same time, adjustments are made so as not to rub against parts other than those described above, for example, the O-ring 141 provided on the valve body 136 and the surface on which the O-ring 141 is installed.

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 10, the base plate 145 continues to move in the Y direction in the direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 while the valve body 136 maintains the position shown in FIG. 9 in the X direction ( The white arrow in the figure). As a result, the rubbing member 153 and the surface of the protruding portion 138 of the valve body 136 are rubbed, and a part of the by-product 154 is removed from the valve body 136. At this time, by installing the rubbing member 153 in the immediate vicinity of the opening 135, the removed by-product 154 is dropped into the reaction vessel 101.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 11, the base plate 145 continues to move in the Y direction to the driving end of the first air cylinder 147 while the valve body 136 maintains the position in the X direction shown in FIG. 10.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 12, the second air cylinder 149 drives the second shaft 150 away from the second air cylinder 149 in the Y direction (white arrow in the figure), and the valve body stopper 152 Move. As the valve body stopper 152 moves on the surface of the stopper 140, the link mechanism 142 moves the valve body 136 away from the reaction vessel 101 in the X direction by the elastic force of the spring 155. When the tip of the valve body stopper 152 reaches the surface 156 of the valve body 136 on the substrate transport mechanism 180 side, the movement of the valve body 136 stops. This state is the gate valve 130 opened.

Next, in FIG. 1, the arm 184 descends from the inside of the transport container 181, and the holding unit 183 holds the holding unit 114 of the substrate holder 107 to which the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 are attached. After the holding, the arm 184 is raised to store the base holder 107 in the transfer container 181 and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

Thus, the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed, and the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 is returned to atmospheric pressure. Thereafter, the transport container 181 rises and is separated from the reaction container unit 101, and unloading is completed.
Thereafter, as necessary, the deposited film and powdery by-products deposited in the reaction vessel 101 are cleaned. As a procedure, first, instead of the cylindrical substrate 102, a substrate holder 107 equipped with a cleaning dummy substrate having substantially the same shape is carried into the reaction container unit 101 using the substrate transport mechanism 180 and installed.

The carrying-in method will be described. The transfer container 181 in which the inside is evacuated in advance and the substrate holder 107 mounted with the cleaning dummy substrate is stored moves onto the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Next, the transfer container 181 is lowered, and the gate valve 182 of the transfer container 181 is connected to the gate valve 130. After the connection, the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 of the transfer container 181 is evacuated by an exhaust device (not shown). The gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are opened when the pressure in the transfer container 181, between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130, and in the reaction container 101 is substantially equal.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

Next, the arm 184 that holds the substrate holder 107 on which the cleaning dummy substrate is mounted is lowered from the inside of the transport container 181. Then, the substrate holder 107 mounted with the cleaning dummy substrate is placed on the substrate holder holding means 123, the holding portion 183 is brought into a non-holding state, and the substrate holder 107 mounted with the cleaning dummy substrate is installed. After installation, the arm 184 is raised and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS. Next, the pressure between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 is returned to atmospheric pressure. Thereafter, the transport container 181 rises and is separated from the reaction container unit 101, and the carry-in and installation are completed.

Subsequently, a cleaning gas necessary for the cleaning process is introduced into the reaction vessel 101 through the mixing device 116 and the raw material gas introduction pipe 104. And the exhaust speed of a vacuum pump unit (not shown) is adjusted, confirming the vacuum gauge 120 so that the inside of the reaction container part 101 may become a predetermined pressure. This adjustment can be performed, for example, by adjusting the rotation frequency of a mechanical booster pump of a vacuum pump unit (not shown).
Examples of the cleaning gas used in the cleaning process include CF ₄ , a mixed gas of CF ₄ and O ₂ , SF ₆ , NF ₃ , and ClF ₃ (chlorine trifluoride). In this embodiment, the cleaning time is used. ClF ₃ which is effective in terms of shortening the length is used. In the present embodiment, it is effective to use an inert gas for dilution in order to adjust the concentration of the cleaning gas. Examples of the inert gas include He, Ne, and Ar. Among them, it is preferable to use Ar.

After the pressure in the reaction vessel portion 101 is stabilized, the high frequency power supply 106 is set to a desired power, and the high frequency power is supplied to the cylindrical cathode electrode 103 via the high frequency matching box 105, whereby the reaction vessel portion 101 A high-frequency glow discharge is caused in the inside. This discharge energy decomposes the cleaning gas introduced into the reaction vessel 101, reacts with the deposited film and by-products, exhausts the reaction gas, and cleans the reaction vessel 101.
Next, after the cleaning process, the supply of high-frequency power is stopped, and the reaction vessel 101 is evacuated. Thereafter, the reaction vessel 101 and the source gas introduction pipe 104 are purged using a purge gas, for example, an inert gas such as Ar, He, or N ₂ . After the purge process is completed, the substrate holder 107 on which the dummy substrate for cleaning is mounted is carried out from the reaction container unit 101.

Here, the carrying-out method will be described. The transfer container 181 whose inside is evacuated in advance moves to the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Next, the transfer container 181 is lowered, and the gate valve 182 of the transfer container 181 is connected to the gate valve 130. After the connection, the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 of the transfer container 181 is evacuated by an exhaust device (not shown). The gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are opened when the pressure in the transfer container 181, between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130, and in the reaction container 101 is substantially equal.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

Next, the arm 184 descends from the inside of the transport container 181, and the holding unit 183 holds the substrate holder 107 on which a dummy substrate for cleaning is mounted. After the holding, the arm 184 is raised to store the base holder 107 in the transfer container 181 and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 2, by driving the second air cylinder 149 as described above, the position of the valve body 136 is changed in a direction perpendicular to the opening surface 179 between the gate valve portion 170 and the reaction vessel portion 101. . As a result, it is possible to select whether the rubbing member 153 and the valve body 136 are rubbed or not rubbed.

As described above, the gate valve unit 170 includes the rubbing member 153 capable of rubbing the valve body 136 and the rubbing mechanism. The rubbing mechanism rubs the valve body 136 and the rubbing member 153 when the valve body 136 moves from the closed position between the reaction vessel portion 101 and the gate valve portion 170 to the open position. It is possible to select whether or not to rub. When the rubbing member 153 is selected, the rubbing member 153 rubs the valve body 136 to remove the foreign matter adhering to the valve body 136, and further remove the removed foreign matter into the reaction vessel portion 101. Drop it.
The rubbing mechanism of the first embodiment can change the position of the valve body 136 in the direction perpendicular to the opening surface between the gate valve portion 170 and the reaction vessel portion 101.
The valve body 136 is located at a portion corresponding to the opening 135 between the gate valve section 170 and the reaction vessel section 101 rather than a seal surface (not shown) provided on the valve body 136 side. It has the protrusion part 138 which protrudes to the side. When closing the opening 135, the protrusion 138 is inserted into the opening 135.
When the valve body 136 moves from the closed position between the reaction vessel portion 101 and the gate valve portion 170 to the open position, the rubbing member 153 rubs the surface of the protruding portion 138. The foreign matter adhering to the surface of the protrusion 138 is removed.
After the deposited film is formed on the surface of the substrate 102 using the deposited film forming apparatus 100, the valve body 136 is moved from the position where the gate valve unit 170 and the reaction vessel unit 101 are closed to the opened position. When it is made to move, the valve body 136 and the rubbing member 153 are moved while being rubbed. However, except for that time, the valve body 136 is moved without rubbing the valve body 136 and the rubbing member 153.

(Second Embodiment)
Furthermore, another specific embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 13 is a diagram schematically showing another example of the gate valve 130 as the gate valve unit 170.
13, the same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG.
The rubbing mechanism of the second embodiment can change the position of the rubbing member 153 in a direction perpendicular to the opening surface between the gate valve unit 170 and the reaction vessel unit 101.
In FIG. 13, it is selected whether or not the rubbing member 153 and the valve body 136 are rubbed or not rubbed by changing the position of the rubbing member 153 (in FIG. 13, the state accommodated in the flange 134). It shows the mechanism that can.
The valve body 136 is provided with a roller 137, a protrusion 138, and an O-ring 141. The third air cylinder 158 drives the third shaft 159.
First, a method for carrying the substrate holder 107 with the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 attached thereto into the reaction container unit 101 by the substrate transport mechanism 180 will be described.
FIG. 13 shows a state in which the valve body 136 closes the opening 135 on the reaction vessel portion 101 side.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 14, first, by driving the first air cylinder 147, the gate base 143 is moved in the Y direction in a direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in the figure). . Then, due to the elastic force of the spring 155, the link mechanism 142 moves the valve body 136 substantially linearly in the direction away from the reaction vessel 101 in the X direction. When the surface of the valve body 136 on the substrate transport mechanism 180 side reaches the gate base 143, the movement of the valve body 136 stops. The valve body 136 cannot move further in the direction away from the reaction vessel 101 in the X direction.

Further, as shown in FIG. 15, the valve body 136 moves to the drive end of the first air cylinder 147, and the so-called gate valve 130 is opened.
Next, in FIG. 1, the arm 184 that holds the substrate holder 107 to which the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 are attached descends from the inside of the transport container 181. Then, the substrate holder 107 with the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 mounted thereon is placed on the substrate holder holding means 123, the holding portion 183 is in a non-holding state, and the cylindrical substrate 102 and the cap 108 are mounted. A substrate holder 107 is installed. After installation, the arm 184 is raised and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 16, the gate base 143 is moved in the Y direction in the direction away from the first air cylinder 147 by the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in the figure). Then, the roller 137 hits the end surface 157 of the gate chamber 131.

As shown in FIG. 17, by further moving the gate base 143, the valve body 136 moves linearly in the direction approaching the reaction vessel portion 101 in the X direction by the link mechanism 142 and the roller 137, and is pressed against the gate chamber 131. It is done. As a result, the O-ring 141 is pressed against the seal surface (not shown) of the gate chamber 131. Further, the protrusion 138 is inserted into the opening 135. This state is the so-called gate valve 130 being closed.
After the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed, the pressure between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 is returned to atmospheric pressure. Thereafter, the transport container 181 rises and is separated from the reaction container unit 101, and the carry-in and installation are completed.
Thereafter, a deposited film is formed by the same method as described above.

After the deposition film is formed, the supply of the deposition film forming raw material gas, the high-frequency power, and the heating of the substrate are stopped, and the reaction vessel 101 is evacuated. Thereafter, the inside of the reaction vessel 101 and the source gas introduction pipe 104 is purged using a purge gas, for example, an inert gas such as Ar, He, or N ₂ .
After the purge process is completed, the process proceeds to a step of carrying out the substrate holder 107 on which the cylindrical substrate 102 is mounted from the reaction vessel unit 101 using the substrate transport mechanism 180.

  The carry-out method will be described. The transfer container 181 whose inside is evacuated in advance moves to the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Next, the transfer container 181 is lowered, and the gate valve 182 of the transfer container 181 is connected to the gate valve 130. After the connection, the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 of the transfer container 181 is evacuated by an exhaust device (not shown). The gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are opened when the pressure in the transfer container 181, between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130, and in the reaction container 101 is substantially equal.

  FIG. 18 shows a state after the formation of the deposited film and the purge process are completed. The valve body 136 is in a state in which the opening 135 on the reaction vessel 101 side is closed. That is, it is pressed against the gate chamber 131 by the link mechanism 142. A powdery by-product 154 called polysilane is deposited on the surface of the protruding portion 138 of the valve body 136 on the reaction vessel portion 101 side during the formation of the deposited film. By-products are also deposited on the lower flange 134 of the opening 135, but are omitted in the figure.

Next, as shown in FIG. 19, the first air cylinder 147 moves the first shaft 144 in the Y direction in a direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in FIG. 19 is upward). Then, the link mechanism 142 moves the valve body 136 in the direction away from the reaction container portion 101 in the X direction by the elastic force of the spring 155. When the surface 156 of the valve body 136 on the substrate transport mechanism 180 side reaches the gate base 143, the movement of the valve body 136 stops. The valve body 136 cannot move further in the direction away from the reaction vessel 101 in the X direction. Simultaneously with the driving of the first air cylinder 147, the third air cylinder 158 moves the third shaft 159 away from the third air cylinder 158 in the Y direction (downward white arrow in the figure). Thereby, the rubbing member 153 stored in the flange 134 protrudes from the flange 134 as shown in the figure.
The position of the rubbing member 153 at this time is such that when the valve body 136 moves in the Y direction in the direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 in this state, the rubbing member 153 and the protruding portion 138 of the valve body 136 are moved. The surface on which the by-product 154 is deposited is adjusted in advance to a position where it rubs. At the same time, adjustments are made so as not to rub against parts other than those described above, for example, the O-ring 141 provided on the valve body 136 and the surface on which the O-ring 141 is installed.

A mechanism for changing the position of the rubbing member 153 will be described with reference to FIG.
23, the same components as those in FIG. 13 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG.
The base 160 is fixed to the third shaft 159. The base 161 has a rubbing member 153 attached to the end.
FIG. 23A shows a state in which the rubbing member 153 is accommodated in the flange 134. Here, when the third shaft 159 is moved downward in the Y direction (the direction of the white arrow in FIG. 23A), the base 160 is also moved in the same direction. As a result, the pedestal 161 moves in the X direction along the slope of the base 160, and the rubbing member 153 attached to the pedestal 161 moves to the valve body (not shown) side. This state is shown in FIG.
Further, the rubbing member 153 can be accommodated in the flange 134 by moving the third shaft 159 upward in the Y direction (in the direction of the white arrow in FIG. 23B) on the same principle.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the first shaft 144 continues to move in the Y direction in a direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in the figure). As a result, the rubbing member 153 and the surface of the protruding portion 138 of the valve body 136 are rubbed, and a part of the by-product 154 is removed from the valve body 136. At this time, by installing the rubbing member 153 in the immediate vicinity of the opening 135, the removed by-product 154 is dropped into the reaction vessel 101.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 21, the first shaft 144 continues to move in the Y direction (upward as indicated by the white arrow in the figure) to the drive end of the first air cylinder 147.
Next, as shown in FIG. 21, the third shaft 159 is driven in the Y direction by the third air cylinder 158 in the direction approaching the first air cylinder 147 (the white arrow in the drawing), and the rubbing member 153 is driven. Is stored in the flange 134. This state is the open state of the gate valve 130.

Next, the arm 184 is lowered from the inside of the transport container 181, and the holding unit 183 holds the base holder 107 to which the cylindrical base 102 and the cap 108 are attached. After the holding, the arm 184 is raised to store the base holder 107 in the transfer container 181 and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

Thus, the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed, and the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 is returned to atmospheric pressure. Thereafter, the transport container 181 rises and is separated from the reaction container unit 101, and unloading is completed.
Thereafter, as necessary, the deposited film and powdery by-products deposited in the reaction vessel 101 are cleaned. As a procedure, first, instead of the cylindrical substrate 102, a substrate holder 107 equipped with a cleaning dummy substrate having substantially the same shape is carried into the reaction container unit 101 using the substrate transport mechanism 180 and installed.

The carrying-in method will be described. The transfer container 181 in which the inside is evacuated in advance and the substrate holder 107 mounted with the cleaning dummy substrate is stored moves onto the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Next, the transfer container 181 is lowered, and the gate valve 182 of the transfer container 181 is connected to the gate valve 130. After the connection, the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 of the transfer container 181 is evacuated by an exhaust device (not shown). The gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are opened when the pressure in the transfer container 181, between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130, and in the reaction container 101 is substantially equal.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

Next, the arm 184 that holds the substrate holder 107 on which the cleaning dummy substrate is mounted is lowered from the inside of the transport container 181. Then, the substrate holder 107 mounted with the cleaning dummy substrate is placed on the substrate holder holding means 123, the holding portion 183 is brought into a non-holding state, and the substrate holder 107 mounted with the cleaning dummy substrate is installed. After installation, the arm 184 is raised and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.
Next, the pressure between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 is returned to atmospheric pressure. Thereafter, the transport container 181 rises and is separated from the reaction container unit 101, and the carry-in and installation are completed.
Thereafter, as described above, the inside of the reaction vessel 101 is cleaned.

Next, after the cleaning process, the supply of high-frequency power is stopped, and the reaction vessel 101 is evacuated. Thereafter, the reaction vessel 101 and the source gas introduction pipe 104 are purged using a purge gas, for example, an inert gas such as Ar, He, or N ₂ . After the purge process is completed, the substrate holder 107 on which the dummy substrate for cleaning is mounted is carried out from the reaction container unit 101.
Here, the carrying-out method will be described. The transfer container 181 whose inside is evacuated in advance moves to the deposited film forming apparatus 100. Next, the transfer container 181 is lowered, and the gate valve 182 of the transfer container 181 is connected to the gate valve 130. After the connection, the space between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 of the transfer container 181 is evacuated by an exhaust device (not shown). The gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are opened when the pressure in the transfer container 181, between the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130, and in the reaction container 101 is substantially equal.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

Next, the arm 184 descends from the inside of the transport container 181, and the holding unit 183 holds the substrate holder 107 on which a dummy substrate for cleaning is mounted. After the holding, the arm 184 is raised to store the base holder 107 in the transfer container 181 and the gate valve 182 and the gate valve 130 are closed.
The operation of the gate valve 130 at this time is the same as that described with reference to FIGS.

In the present invention, FIG. 2 shows a mechanism using the valve body stopper 152 and the stopper 140 as a mechanism for selecting whether the rubbing member 153 and the valve body 136 are rubbed or not rubbed. It is not limited to. There is no particular limitation as long as the mechanism can change the position of the valve body 136 in the direction perpendicular to the opening surface 179 between the gate valve portion 170 and the reaction vessel portion 101.
In addition, as a mechanism for selecting whether or not the rubbing member 153 and the valve body 136 are rubbed, a mechanism for changing the position of the rubbing member 153 by an air cylinder as shown in FIG. 23 is shown. It is not limited to this. As long as the mechanism can change the position of the rubbing member 153, for example, the position of the rubbing member 153 may be changed manually, and an electric motor may be used as a drive source, and there is no particular limitation. .

  The rubbing member 153 is not particularly limited as long as the rubbing member 153 can be rubbed with the valve body 136 and the by-product 154 attached to the valve body 136 can be removed. For example, a plate-like form and a brush-like form are mentioned. The material is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include synthetic rubbers such as silicone rubber and fluororubber, metals such as aluminum, nickel and stainless steel, and synthetic resins such as PTFE (Polytetrafluorethylene).

The installation position of the rubbing member 153 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 24 is a schematic view when the rubbing member 153 is viewed from the substrate transport mechanism 180 side. As shown in FIG. 24 (a), it is sufficient that the rubbing member 153 is provided on the half of the first air cylinder 147 side, which is concentric with the circle forming the opening 135. ), A rubbing member 153 may be provided on the entire circumference.
The by-product 154 adhering to the valve body 136 after the deposited film is formed is removed by the rubbing member 153 capable of rubbing against the valve body 136, and the removed by-product 154 is dropped into the reaction vessel 101. As a result, it is possible to reduce dust adhering to the surface of the cylindrical substrate 102 before the deposited film forming process.

The reason is presumed as follows. As described above, when the deposited film forming process is performed, the by-product 154 is deposited on the surface of the valve body 136 facing the reaction container portion 101. Then, in order to take out the substrate 102 after the deposition film forming process from the reaction vessel portion 101, it is necessary to move the valve body 136 and open the opening 135. At this time, the by-product 154 deposited on the surface of the valve body 136 is stored in the gate chamber 131 together with the valve body 136.
Since the by-product 154 is in the form of powder as described above, it has a property that it is relatively easily detached from the valve body 136. For this reason, the valve body is affected by mechanical vibrations when the valve body 136 is housed as described above, or by an impact caused by an air flow generated by the differential pressure between the reaction container unit 101 and the transport container 181 when the valve body 136 is operated. In some cases, the by-product 154 may be partly detached from the 136 and brought into the gate chamber 131.

Even if the inside of the reaction vessel portion 101 is cleaned in the cleaning process, the by-product 154 released by the opening / closing operation of the gate valve 130 for the subsequent removal of the dummy substrate and the introduction of the cylindrical substrate 102 becomes the reaction vessel portion 101. In some cases, and they adhere to the cylindrical substrate 102.
The present invention performs a step of removing the by-product 154 deposited on the valve body 136 when the cylindrical substrate 102 is unloaded after the deposition film formation is completed. Therefore, the introduction of the by-product 154 into the gate chamber 131 is significantly reduced.

Removal of the by-product 154 does not need to be completely removed, and an effect can be obtained by removing it to some extent. By removing to some extent, the volume of the by-product 154 deposited on the surface of the valve body 136 is reduced. This is thought to be due to the fact that the desorption effect due to its own weight is greatly reduced. That is, as described above, a sufficient effect can be obtained by using a mechanism in which the rubbing member 153 and the valve body 136 are rubbed.
In addition, according to the present invention, as described above, the introduction of the by-product 154 into the gate chamber 131 is significantly reduced, and contamination of the gate valve portion is suppressed. Is greatly reduced. Thereby, the operation rate of the deposited film forming apparatus is improved.
Therefore, a deposited film having excellent film characteristics can be formed with high productivity.

EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although an Example demonstrates this invention further in detail, this invention is not limited at all by these. In the following description, the same portions as those shown in the above-described embodiment will be described using the same reference numerals.
25 using the deposited film forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 on the surface of a cylindrical substrate 102 made of aluminum having a diameter of 80 mm, a length of 358 mm, and a thickness of 3 mm under the conditions shown in Table 1 A silicon deposited film (hereinafter abbreviated as electrophotographic photosensitive member) was produced by the method described above.
FIG. 25 shows a component 2501, a lower blocking layer (first layer) 2502, a photoconductive layer (second layer) 2503, and a surface layer (third layer) 2504 of the cylindrical substrate 102.

In this embodiment, the gate valve shown in FIGS. 2 to 12 is used as the gate valve 130 used in the gate valve unit 170. Further, as the rubbing member 153, a plate-like form made of fluororubber (Viton) in the shape of FIG.
First, after disassembling the gate valve 130, the components were cleaned. Thereafter, the gate valve 130 was assembled and attached to the reaction vessel 101.
And the electrophotographic photoreceptor was produced 20 times continuously. Thereafter, an electrophotographic photoreceptor was further prepared 20 times in that state. And the following evaluation was performed.

"White potty average"
Twenty drums produced in Example 1 were sequentially mounted on an evaluation machine and evaluated. Using an Canon iR5000 copying machine as an evaluation machine, an image obtained by copying a black A3 size original was observed, and the diameter of the electrophotographic photosensitive member per circle was 0.10 mm or more. The number of white spots (image defect portions) was counted.
And the first five times average of the first 20 times of the first 20 consecutive times, the fifth average of the 16th time to the 20th time, and the average of 5 times of the first 20 times of the next continuous time, The average evaluation of 5 times from the 20th time was performed.
Evaluation was carried out by relative evaluation when the average result of 5 times of the first to fifth times of the first 20 consecutive times obtained in Comparative Example 1 was taken as 100. In other words, the smaller the number, the better the evaluation result.
Furthermore, the evaluation results were ranked according to the following criteria.
A ... less than 70 B ... 70 or more and less than 80 C ... 80 or more and less than 90 D ... more than 90 Table 2 shows the evaluation results.

25 using the deposited film forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 on the surface of a cylindrical substrate 102 made of aluminum having a diameter of 80 mm, a length of 358 mm, and a thickness of 3 mm, as in Example 1, under the conditions shown in Table 1. An electrophotographic photosensitive member having the layer structure shown in FIG.
In this embodiment, the gate valve shown in FIGS. 13 to 22 is used as the gate valve 130 used in the gate valve unit 170. Further, as the rubbing member 153, a plate-like form made of fluororubber (Viton) in the shape of FIG. And evaluation similar to Example 1 was performed. The evaluation results are shown in Table 2.

(Comparative Example 1)
25 using the deposited film forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 on the surface of a cylindrical substrate 102 made of aluminum having a diameter of 80 mm, a length of 358 mm, and a thickness of 3 mm, as in Example 1, under the conditions shown in Table 1. An electrophotographic photosensitive member having the layer structure shown in FIG.
In this comparative example, the gate valve 2630 shown in FIG. 26 was used as the gate valve 130 used in the gate valve unit 170. The gate valve 2630 shown in FIG. 26 does not have the rubbing member 153 capable of rubbing the valve body 136. For this reason, after the formation of the deposited film is completed, the valve body 136 is moved into the gate chamber 131 without removing the by-product 154 attached to the valve body 136 so that the opening 136 is opened.
First, after disassembling the gate valve 2630, the components were cleaned. Thereafter, the gate valve 2630 was assembled and attached to the reaction vessel 101.
And the electrophotographic photoreceptor was produced 20 times continuously.
Thereafter, the gate valve 2630 was again maintained (disassembled, cleaned, assembled), attached to the reaction vessel 101, and an electrophotographic photosensitive member was continuously produced 20 times.
Then, the number of white spots is counted in the same manner as in Example 1, and the average of 5 times from the first time to the 5th time, the average of 5 times from the 16th time to the 20th time, and the first time to the 5th time after cleaning the gate valve 2630 again. The average of 5 times and the average of 5 times from the 16th time to the 20th time were evaluated. The evaluation results are shown in Table 2.

As shown in Table 2, in Comparative Example 1, the number of white spots in both “first 16-20 times average” and “next 16-20 times average” is significantly higher than “first 1-5 times average”. It has increased. On the other hand, in Examples 1 and 2, the number of white spots for both the “first 16-20 average” and the “next 16-20 average” slightly increased compared to the “first 1-5 average”. Not.
From this, it was found that a deposited film with few image defects can be formed stably by the present invention. Further, according to the present invention, the maintenance frequency of the gate valve 130 is greatly reduced, and the operating rate of the deposited film forming apparatus is improved.
As described above, according to the present invention, a deposited film having excellent film characteristics can be formed with good reproducibility and high productivity.

It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the deposited film formation apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the gate valve used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the mechanism which changes the position of the rubbing member used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the positional relationship of the opening part used for the 1st, 2nd embodiment of this invention, and a rubbing member. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the layer structure of an electrophotographic photoreceptor. 6 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a gate valve used in Comparative Example 1. FIG.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 Reaction container part 102 Cylindrical base | substrate 103 Cylindrical cathode electrode 104 Raw material gas introduction pipe 105 High frequency power supply 107 Base | substrate holder 108 Cap 123 Base | substrate holding means 130, 730 Gate valve 131 Gate chamber 132, 134 Flange 133, 135 Opening 136 Valve body 137 Roller 138 Protruding portion 139 Storage portion 140 Stopper 141 O-ring 142 Link mechanism 143 Gate base 144 Rod 145 Base plate 146 First vacuum bellows 147 First air cylinder 148 First shaft 149 Second air cylinder 150 Second shaft 151 Second vacuum bellows 153 Rub member 179 Opening surface 180 Substrate transport mechanism 181 Transport container 183 Holding unit 184 Arm 183 Holding unit 185 Rail

Claims (5)

It consists of a reaction vessel part that can be depressurized and in which a substrate can be placed, and a gate valve part that has a valve body that opens and closes between the reaction vessel part, and moves the valve body In the deposited film forming apparatus that opens between the reaction container part and the gate valve part by carrying the substrate into the reaction container part and forms a deposited film on the surface of the substrate,
The gate valve portion is
A rubbing member capable of rubbing the valve body;
When the valve body moves from the closed position between the reaction vessel portion and the gate valve portion to the open position, the valve body and the rubbing member are rubbed or rubbed. It is possible to select whether or not to rub, and when the rubbing is selected, the rubbing member rubs the valve body to remove foreign matter attached to the valve body, and further remove And a rubbing mechanism capable of dropping the foreign matter into the reaction vessel.   The said rubbing mechanism can change the position of the said valve body in the orthogonal | vertical direction with respect to the opening surface between the said gate valve part and the said reaction container part. Deposited film forming apparatus.   The rubbing mechanism is capable of changing the position of the rubbing member in a direction perpendicular to an opening surface between the gate valve portion and the reaction vessel portion. 2. The deposited film forming apparatus according to 2. The valve body has a protruding portion that protrudes closer to the opening portion than a seal surface provided on the valve body side at a portion corresponding to the opening portion between the gate valve portion and the reaction vessel portion. Have
When closing the opening, the protrusion is inserted into the opening,
When the valve body moves from a position where the space between the reaction vessel portion and the gate valve portion is closed to an open position, the rubbing member rubs the surface of the protruding portion, The deposited film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein foreign matter adhering to a surface of the protruding portion is removed. Using a deposited film forming apparatus comprising a reaction vessel part that can be decompressed and in which a substrate can be placed, and a gate valve part that has a valve body that opens and closes between the reaction vessel part After the deposited film is formed on the surface of the base, the valve body is moved from the closed position to the open position between the gate valve section and the reaction container section. And moving the rubbing member while rubbing,
Except for that time, the valve body is moved without rubbing the valve body and the rubbing member.

Images