JP2019062191A - Substrate processing apparatus and semiconductor device manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a substrate processing apparatus which prevents adherence of a particle on a wafer at the time of opening/closing a pod lid.SOLUTION: A substrate processing apparatus 100 comprises: a placement part where a substrate container 110 housing a substrate is placed; a guide part 121 which composes a lid opening/closing space where a lid 120 of the substrate container is opened/closed; a gate part for separating the lid opening/closing space from a transfer chamber for transferring the substrate between the substrate container and a substrate holding tool 217 for holding the substrate; a lid opening/closing mechanism provided in the lid opening/closing space, for opening and closing the lid of the substrate container; a gas introduction mechanism for introducing the gas to the substrate container placed on the placement part; a monitoring part for causing the gas introduction mechanism to introduce the gas to the substrate container to replace a gas in the substrate container and control pressure in the substrate container; and a control part for causing the monitoring part to open the lid of the substrate container while maintaining pressure in the substrate container at a higher level than pressure in the lid opening/closing space.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device.

  In the past, efforts have already been made to supply an inert gas into a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod) (hereinafter referred to as a pod). For example, according to Patent Document 1, a configuration for supplying an inert gas in a pod is described, and according to Patent Document 2, a configuration for supplying an inert gas into a pod, and An arrangement for monitoring the flow rate of the active gas is described.

  Then, the atmosphere inside the pod was replaced by the supply of inert gas to prevent adhesion of a natural oxide film and outgassing. However, it has not been possible to prevent the particles generated during the operation of the pod opening / closing mechanism from adhering to the substrate (wafer).

JP 2000-340641 JP, 2015-029057, A

  An object of the present invention is to provide a configuration that prevents particles from adhering to the wafer when the pod lid is opened and closed.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, the mounting portion for mounting the substrate container in which the substrate is stored, the guide portion constituting the lid opening / closing space in which the lid of the substrate container is opened, and the lid opening / closing space A gate unit for separating the substrate from the transfer chamber for transporting the substrate between the container and the substrate holder, a lid opening / closing mechanism provided in the lid opening / closing space for opening / closing the lid of the substrate container, A gas introducing mechanism for introducing a gas into a substrate container placed in a mounting unit, and a monitoring unit for causing the gas introducing mechanism to introduce a gas into the substrate container and replacing the gas in the substrate container and adjusting the pressure And a control unit configured to cause the lid opening / closing mechanism to open the lid of the substrate container while causing the monitoring unit to maintain the pressure in the substrate container higher than the pressure of the lid opening / closing space. A configuration is provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent particles from adhering to the wafer accommodated inside the pod when the lid of the pod is opened and closed.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus suitably used in an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side perspective view of a substrate processing device suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the processing furnace of the substrate processing apparatus suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a controller block diagram of the substrate processing apparatus suitably used for one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the gas introduction mechanism suitably used for one Embodiment of this invention. It is seal part detail drawing of the gas introduction mechanism suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is seal part detail drawing of the gas introduction mechanism suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining operation of a lid opening and closing system suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining operation of a lid opening and closing system suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining operation of a lid opening and closing system suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining operation of a lid opening and closing system suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining operation of a lid opening and closing system suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining operation of a lid opening and closing system suitably used for one embodiment of the present invention.

<One embodiment of the present invention>
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

(1) Configuration of Substrate Processing Apparatus Subsequently, the configuration of the substrate processing apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

  As shown to FIG. 1, FIG. 2, the substrate processing apparatus 100 which concerns on this embodiment is equipped with the housing | casing 111 comprised as a pressure-resistant container. At the front of the front wall 111a of the housing 111, an opening 103 is provided which can be maintained. The opening 103 is provided with a pair of front maintenance doors 104 as an access mechanism for opening and closing the opening 103. A pod 110 as a substrate container containing a wafer (substrate) 200 such as silicon is used as a carrier for transferring the wafer 200 into and out of the housing 111.

  A pod loading / unloading port 112 is opened in the front wall 111 a of the housing 111 so as to communicate the inside and the outside of the housing 111. The pod loading / unloading port 112 is opened and closed by the front shutter 113. A load port 114 is installed on the front front side of the pod loading / unloading port 112. The pod 110 is configured to be placed and aligned on the load port 114.

  A rotatable pod shelf 105 is installed at an upper portion of a substantially central portion in the front-rear direction in the housing 111. A plurality of pods 110 are configured to be stored on the rotatable pod shelf 105. The rotatable pod shelf 105 is vertically erected and intermittently rotated in a horizontal plane, and a plurality of shelf plates 117 radially supported at upper, middle, and lower positions on the column 116; Have. The plurality of shelf boards 117 are configured to hold the plurality of pods 110 in a state in which the plurality of pods 110 are placed.

  A pod transfer device 118 as a first transfer device is installed between the load port 114 and the rotatable pod shelf 105 in the housing 111. The pod transfer device 118 is configured of a pod elevator 118a that can move up and down while holding the pod 110, and a pod transfer mechanism 118b. The pod transfer device 118 transfers the pods 110 to and from the load port 114, the rotatable pod shelf 105, and the mounting unit 122 as a mounting table by the continuous operation of the pod elevator 118a and the pod transfer mechanism 118b. Is configured as.

  At a lower portion in the housing 111, a sub housing 119 is provided from a substantially central portion in the front-rear direction in the housing 111 to a rear end. On the front wall 119 a of the sub casing 119, placing portions 122 for placing the pods 110 for transporting the wafer 200 into and out of the sub casing 119 are respectively installed at the top and the bottom. In the sub housing 119, a transfer chamber 124 separated from the transfer space in which the pod transfer device 118, the rotatable pod shelf 105, and the like are installed is formed.

  The lid opening / closing system described later includes a partition portion (hereinafter also referred to as a guide portion) 121 that separates the transfer chamber 124 from a lid opening / closing space 124 a, a placement portion 122 on which the pod 110 is placed, and a cap of the pod 110 And at least a cap attaching / detaching mechanism (lid opening / closing mechanism) 123 as a pod opener for attaching / detaching the lid 120. Furthermore, the lid opening / closing system is provided with a panel 121a as a gate unit described later.

  Here, the placement unit 122 is provided with the gas introduction mechanism 1 as a mechanism for spouting the inert gas into the inside of the pod 110, but the gas introduction mechanism 1 will be described later. Further, an exhaust mechanism VENT described later is provided in the vicinity of the pod 110 on the front wall 119a from which the lid 120 is removed by the lid open / close mechanism 123, and configured to exhaust the atmosphere of the lid open / close space 124a described later There is. The gas introduction mechanism 1 and the exhaust mechanism VENT may be included in the lid opening / closing system.

  In the front area of the transfer chamber 124, a wafer transfer mechanism 125 as a transfer device is installed. The wafer transfer mechanism 125 includes a wafer transfer device 125a capable of rotating or linearly moving the wafer 200 in the horizontal direction, and a wafer transfer device elevator 125b for moving the wafer transfer device 125a up and down. The wafer transfer device elevator 125 b is installed between the front region right end of the transfer chamber 124 of the sub case 119 and the end on the right side of the case 111. The wafer transfer device 125 a includes a tweezer (substrate holder) 125 c as a holder of the wafer 200. The wafer transfer mechanism 125 loads (charges) the wafer 200 from the pod 110 to the boat 217 serving as a substrate holder by the continuous operation of the wafer transfer device elevator 125 b and the wafer transfer device 125 a. The boat 217 can be dismounted (discharged). The charging and discharging of the wafer 200 will be described later.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a processing furnace 202 is provided above the standby unit 126 that accommodates and holds the boat 217 in the rear region of the transfer chamber 124. The lower end portion of the processing furnace 202 is configured to be opened and closed by a furnace port shutter 147.

  In the transfer chamber 124, a boat elevator 115 for raising and lowering the boat 217 is installed. An arm 128 is connected to a lift of the boat elevator 115. A seal cap 219 is horizontally mounted on the arm 128. The seal cap 219 vertically supports the boat 217 and is configured to be able to close the lower end of the processing furnace 202.

  The transfer mechanism according to the present embodiment is mainly configured by the rotary pod shelf 105, the boat elevator 115, the pod transfer device 118, the wafer transfer mechanism 125, the boat 217, and the lid opening / closing mechanism 123. The rotary pod shelf 105, the boat elevator 115, the pod transfer device 118, the wafer transfer mechanism 125, the boat 217, and the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 are electrically connected to a transfer control unit 27 described later. Hereinafter, the conveyance control unit 27 may be referred to as a conveyance controller.

  The boat 217 is provided with a plurality of holding members. The boat 217 is configured to horizontally hold the plurality of wafers 200 with their centers aligned and vertically aligned.

(2) Configuration of Processing Furnace Subsequently, the configuration of the processing furnace 202 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the processing furnace 202 includes a process tube 203 as a reaction tube. The process tube 203 includes an inner tube 204 as an inner reaction tube and an outer tube 205 as an outer reaction tube provided outside the inner tube 204. The inner reaction tube 204 is formed in a cylindrical shape whose upper and lower ends are open. A processing chamber 201 for processing a wafer 200 as a substrate is formed in a hollow cylindrical portion in the inner reaction tube 204. The processing chamber 201 is configured to be able to accommodate a boat 217 described later. The outer reaction tube 205 is provided concentrically with the inner reaction tube 204. The outer reaction tube 205 is formed in a cylindrical shape whose inner diameter is larger than the outer diameter of the inner reaction tube 204 and whose upper end is closed and whose lower end is open.

  A heater 206 as a heating mechanism is provided outside the process tube 203 so as to surround the side wall surface of the process tube 203. The heater 206 is configured in a cylindrical shape. The heater 206 is vertically installed by being supported by a heater base 251 as a holding plate.

  Below the outer reaction tube 205, a manifold 209 is disposed concentrically with the outer reaction tube 205. Further, the manifold 209 is formed in a cylindrical shape in which the upper end and the lower end are open. The manifold 209 is provided to support the lower end of the inner reaction tube 204 and the lower end of the outer reaction tube 205, and is engaged with the lower end of the inner reaction tube 204 and the lower end of the outer reaction tube 205. There is. An O-ring 220 a is provided between the manifold 209 and the outer reaction tube 205. By supporting the manifold 209 on the heater base 251, the process tube 203 is installed vertically. The process tube 203 and the manifold 209 form a reaction vessel.

  A process gas nozzle 230 a and a purge gas nozzle 230 b are connected to a seal cap 219 described later so as to communicate with the process chamber 201. A processing gas supply pipe 232a is connected to the processing gas nozzle 230a. A processing gas supply source (not shown) is provided upstream of the processing gas supply pipe 232a (opposite to the connection side with the processing gas nozzle 230a) via a mass flow controller (hereinafter abbreviated as MFC) 241a as a gas flow controller. Etc. are connected. Further, a purge gas supply pipe 232b is connected to the purge gas nozzle 230b. A purge gas supply source (not shown) or the like is connected to the upstream side of the purge gas supply pipe 232 b (the opposite side to the connection side with the purge gas nozzle 230 b) via the MFC 241 b. The gas supply controller 14 is electrically connected to the MFCs 241a and 241b.

  The manifold 209 is provided with an exhaust pipe 231 for exhausting the atmosphere of the processing chamber 201. The exhaust pipe 231 is disposed at the lower end portion of the cylindrical space 250 formed by the gap between the inner reaction pipe 204 and the outer reaction pipe 205. The exhaust pipe 231 is in communication with the cylindrical space 250. On the downstream side of the exhaust pipe 231 (the opposite side to the connection side with the manifold 209), a pressure sensor 245, for example, a pressure regulator 242 configured as an APC (Auto Pressure Contoroller), and a vacuum pump 246 as an evacuator are upstream. It is connected in order from the side. Further, the pressure controller 13 is electrically connected to the pressure regulator 242 and the pressure sensor 245.

  Below the manifold 209, a seal cap 219 as a lid capable of airtightly closing the lower end opening of the manifold 209 is provided in a disk shape. The seal cap 219 is in contact with the lower end of the manifold 209 from below in the vertical direction. On the top surface of the seal cap 219, an O-ring 220b is provided as a seal member that contacts the lower end of the manifold 209.

  A rotation mechanism 254 for rotating the boat 217 is installed near the center of the seal cap 219 and on the opposite side of the processing chamber 201. The rotation mechanism 254 is configured to be able to rotate the wafer 200 by rotating the boat 217. The rotation shaft 255 of the rotation mechanism 254 penetrates the seal cap 219 and supports the boat 217 from below. At the lower part of the boat 217, a plurality of heat insulating plates 216 as heat insulating members are arranged in multiple stages in a horizontal posture. The heat insulating plate 216 is formed in a disk shape.

  The seal cap 219 is configured to be vertically lifted and lowered by a boat elevator 115 vertically installed outside the process tube 203. By moving the seal cap 219 up and down, the boat 217 can be transported into and out of the processing chamber 201. The transport control unit 27 is electrically connected to the rotation mechanism 254 and the boat elevator 115.

  In the process tube 203, a temperature sensor 263 as a temperature detector is installed. A heating mechanism according to the present embodiment is mainly configured by the heater 206 and the temperature sensor 263. The temperature controller 12 is electrically connected to the heater 206 and the temperature sensor 263.

(3) Operation of Processing Furnace Subsequently, a method of forming a thin film on the wafer 200 using the processing furnace 202 will be described with reference to FIG. In the following description, the operation of each part constituting the substrate processing apparatus 100 is controlled by the substrate processing apparatus controller 240.

  When a plurality of wafers 200 are loaded into the boat 217 (wafer charging), the boat 217 holding the plurality of wafers 200 is lifted by the boat elevator 115 and loaded into the processing chamber 201 (boat loading). . In this state, the seal cap 219 seals the lower end of the manifold 209 via the O-ring 220b.

  The vacuum pump 246 evacuates the process chamber 201 to a desired pressure (degree of vacuum). At this time, based on the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor 245, (the opening degree of the valve of) the pressure adjustment device 242 is feedback-controlled. The heater 206 heats the processing chamber 201 to a desired temperature. At this time, the amount of current supplied to the heater 206 is feedback-controlled based on the temperature value detected by the temperature sensor 263. Subsequently, the boat 217 and the wafer 200 are rotated by the rotation mechanism 254.

  Next, the processing gas supplied from the processing gas supply source and controlled to have a desired flow rate by the MFC 241 a flows in the processing gas supply pipe 232 a and is introduced into the processing chamber 201 from the processing gas nozzle 230 a. The introduced processing gas ascends in the processing chamber 201, flows out from the upper end opening of the internal reaction tube 204 into the cylindrical space 250, and is exhausted from the exhaust pipe 231. The gas comes in contact with the surface of the wafer 200 as it passes through the processing chamber 201, and a thin film is deposited on the surface of the wafer 200, for example, by thermal reaction.

  When a preset processing time has elapsed, a purge gas supplied from a purge gas supply source and controlled to have a desired flow rate by the MFC 241b is supplied to the processing chamber 201, and the processing chamber 201 is replaced with an inert gas. At the same time, the pressure in the processing chamber 201 is returned to normal pressure.

  Thereafter, the seal cap 219 is lowered by the boat elevator 115 and the lower end of the manifold 209 is opened, and the boat 217 holding the processed wafer 200 is unloaded from the lower end of the manifold 209 to the outside of the process tube 203 (boat Be loaded). Thereafter, the processed wafers 200 are taken out of the boat 217 and stored in the pod 110 (wafer discharging).

(4) Configuration of Controller for Substrate Processing Apparatus (Controller for Substrate Processing Apparatus)
Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 4, a control device (hereinafter, also referred to as a control unit) 240 as a substrate processing apparatus controller will be described.

  The control unit 240 mainly includes an arithmetic control unit 25 such as a central processing unit (CPU), a process control unit 20 as a process controller, a transport control unit 27, and a ROM 35 including a memory (RAM) 34 and an HDD. It comprises a storage unit 28, an input unit 29 such as a mouse and a keyboard, and a display unit 31 such as a monitor. The operation control unit 25, the storage unit 28, the input unit 29, and the display unit 31 constitute an operation unit capable of setting each data.

  Arithmetic control unit 25 constitutes the core of control unit 240, executes the control program stored in ROM 35, and stores the recipe stored in storage unit 28 which also constitutes a recipe storage unit according to an instruction from display unit 31. For example, a process recipe or the like as a substrate processing recipe is executed. The ROM 35 is composed of an EEPROM, a flash memory, a hard disk and the like, and is a recording medium for storing an operation program of the operation control unit 25 and the like. The memory (RAM) 34 functions as a work area (temporary storage unit) of the arithmetic control unit 25.

  Here, the substrate processing recipe is a recipe in which processing conditions, processing procedures, and the like for processing the wafer 200 are defined. Further, in the recipe file, setting values (control values) to be transmitted to the transport controller 27, the temperature controller 12, the pressure controller 13, the gas supply controller 14 and the like, transmission timings, and the like are set for each step of substrate processing.

  The processing control unit 20 controls the temperature and pressure in the processing furnace 202 and the flow rate of processing gas introduced into the processing furnace 202 so that the wafer 200 loaded in the processing furnace 202 is subjected to predetermined processing. It has a function to control the

  The transfer control unit 27 has a function of controlling driving of a transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate such as the pod transfer device 118, the wafer transfer mechanism 125, and the boat elevator 115 via a drive motor (not shown). For example, the transfer control unit 27 executes the transfer operation of the rotary pod shelf 105, the boat elevator 115, the pod transfer device 118, the wafer transfer mechanism 125, the boat 217, and the rotation mechanism 254 which constitute a transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate. Is configured as.

  In the storage unit 28, a data storage area 32 for storing various data and the like, and a program storage area 33 for storing various programs including a substrate processing recipe are formed.

  The data storage area 32 stores various parameters related to the recipe file. Further, carrier information including at least a carrier ID which is information to be identified for each pod 110 and type information of the wafer 200 in the pod 110 is stored in the data storage area 32. The program storage area 33 stores various programs necessary to control the apparatus including the above-described substrate processing recipe. Further, in the program storage area 33, a lid opening / closing control program described later is stored.

  The display unit 31 of the control unit 240 is provided with a touch panel. The touch panel is configured to display an operation screen for receiving an input of an operation command to the above-described substrate transfer system and substrate processing system. The operation screen includes various display fields and operation buttons for confirming the states of the substrate transfer system and the substrate processing system and inputting operation instructions to the substrate transfer system and the substrate processing system. The operation unit may have a configuration including at least the display unit 31 and the input unit 29 like an operation terminal (terminal device) such as a personal computer or a mobile.

  The temperature controller 12 controls the temperature in the processing furnace 202 by controlling the temperature of the heater 206 of the processing furnace 202, and when the temperature sensor 263 indicates a predetermined value or an abnormal value, the control unit 240 is notified. It is configured to make a notification.

  The pressure controller 13 controls the pressure adjusting device 242 based on the pressure value detected by the pressure sensor 245 so that the pressure in the processing chamber 201 becomes a desired pressure at a desired timing, and the pressure sensor 245 When a predetermined value, an abnormal value, or the like is indicated, the control unit 240 is notified. The pressure controller 13 controls to adjust the pressure in the pod 110 by the adjustment unit of the gas introduction mechanism 1 described later. Specifically, based on the pressure value detected by the pressure sensor 8, the pressure adjusting device 7 is controlled so that the pressure in the pod 110 becomes a desired pressure at a desired timing. In addition, the pressure controller 13 is configured to monitor the pressure in the pod 110 and the pressure in the transfer chamber 124 (lid opening and closing space 124 a) and adjust the pressure. Hereinafter, the pressure controller 13 may be referred to as a monitoring unit for monitoring the pressure.

  The gas supply controller 14 is configured to control the MFCs 241 a and 241 b such that the flow rate of the gas supplied to the processing chamber 201 becomes a desired flow rate at a desired timing. The gas supply controller 14 is configured to control the flow rate of the gas supplied to the pod 110 by the gas introduction mechanism 1 described later to be a desired flow rate.

(5) Gas Introduction Mechanism The gas introduction mechanism 1 in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the gas introduction mechanism 1 includes a flow meter 4 as a gas flow controller for controlling the flow rate of gas, a gas pipe 3 as a gas supply pipe forming a gas flow path, and a pod 110. The configuration includes a gas introducing unit which is a connecting unit for introducing a gas, a sealing unit 2 for sealing the gas introducing unit and the pod 110 from the outside, and an adjusting unit for adjusting the pressure in the pod 110. The gas introduction mechanism 1 is configured to introduce a gas into the pod 110 by the monitoring unit (pressure controller) 13 and maintain the pressure in the pod 110 at a predetermined pressure or more. For example, the monitoring unit 13 is configured to make the pressure in the pod 110 higher than that of the lid opening / closing space 124a.

  The mounting portion 122 is provided with the gas introduction mechanism 1 as a mechanism for introducing an inert gas as a purge gas into the pod 110, and the inert gas is made to flow into the pod 110 to inactivate the inside of the pod 110. It is configured to replace with a gas atmosphere. The gas introduction mechanism 1 is provided with a seal portion 2 so that, when the pod 110 is transported to the placement portion 122, the gas piping 3 communicates with the inside of the pod 110 via the gas introduction portion. It is provided.

  An inert gas supply source (not shown) is connected via a flow meter 4 and a valve 5 on the upstream side of the connection side of the gas pipe 3 as a nozzle. The flow meter 4 and the valve 5 are electrically connected to the monitoring unit 13, and the monitoring unit 13 controls the flow rate of the gas supplied into the pod 110 to a desired amount and at a desired timing. Are configured to control the A purge gas supply unit is configured by the seal unit 2, the gas pipe 3, the flow meter 4, the valve 5, the gas introduction unit, and the inert gas supply source.

  On the opposite side, the downstream side, a gas pipe 6 for exhausting the atmosphere in the pod 110 is provided, and the pressure in the pod 110 is provided via the pressure sensor 8 as a pressure detector in the pod 110 and the pressure adjusting device 7. Is configured to operate at a predetermined pressure. The pressure sensor 8 and the pressure adjusting device 7 are also referred to as an adjusting unit, and the adjusting unit is configured to be controlled by the monitoring unit 13.

  Next, details of the seal portion 2 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 6A, the periphery of the gas pipe 3 as a gas supply pipe is sealed by the sealing material 2a and the holding part 2b for holding the sealing material 2a so that the inert gas does not leak, and the gas introduction part is configured. It is done. According to this configuration, since the space between the gas introduction portion and the pod 110 can be sealed by the holding portion 2b holding the sealing material 2a and the sealing material 2a, the height, shape, and the like of the inert gas inlet of the pod 110 The inert gas can be introduced into the pod without leaking the inert gas to the outside even if there is a difference in the material.

  The seal portion 2 is configured to be supported by the holding portion 2 b so that the seal material 2 a is in contact with the lower side in the pod 110. The holding portion 2 b is configured of, for example, an expandable member such as a spring. The expansion and contraction force is configured to push up the sealing material 2 a from the lower side of the pod 110. The sealing material 2a is an elastically deformable member such as rubber, and, for example, a packing, an O-ring or the like is selected. According to these configurations, the elastic body deformation (reaction force) can be used to prevent leakage, and the space between the gas pipe 3 and the pod 110 can be sealed.

  Moreover, as shown to FIG. 6B, while the pod 110 is mounted, you may be comprised so that the sealing material 2c may be pressed. Also by such a configuration, the space between the gas pipe 3 and the pod 110 can be sealed from the outside. The material of the sealing material 2c held by the holding portion 2d is the same as that of the sealing material 2a, but is made of rubber or the like having low hardness. Therefore, by utilizing the contraction of the soft rubber, the sealing performance of the gas introduction portion and the pod 110 can be maintained when the pod 110 is placed regardless of the configuration of the pod 110.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the inside of the pod 110 can be pressurized (positive pressure) with an inert gas before the lid of the pod 110 is opened (before the operation of the pod lid opening / closing mechanism). Thereby, when the lid of the pod 110 is opened, it is possible to suppress the intrusion of the generated particles into the pod 110, so that the adhesion of the particles to the wafer 200 accommodated in the pod 110 is prevented. Can.

(6) Lid Opening and Closing System Next, an operation of opening and closing the lid of the pod 110 by the lid opening and closing system will be described. The lid opening and closing of the pod 110 is appropriately performed when the wafer transfer mechanism 125 loads the wafer 110 from the pod 110 into the boat 217 and unloads the wafer 217 from the boat 217 into the pod 110. Hereinafter, the operation at the time of wafer charging (wafer charging process) will be described with reference to the drawings. 7A, 7B... FIG. 7F are collectively referred to as FIG.

  First, the configuration of the lid opening / closing system will be described with reference to FIG. The lid opening / closing system is provided in the partition opening 121 which forms the lid opening / closing space 124a between the front wall 119a, the placement unit 122 for placing the pod 110, and the lid opening / closing space 124a. It is configured to have at least a lid opening and closing mechanism 123 for attaching and detaching the lid 120 of the pod 110, and a gate portion 121a provided in the lid opening and closing space 124a (not shown). Further, the gas introduction mechanism 1 and the exhaust mechanism VENT not shown may be included in the lid opening / closing system. The gate unit 121a will be described later.

  FIG. 7A is a view schematically showing a state in which the pod 110 is placed on the placement unit 122. As shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the lid opening / closing control program is started to be executed by the control unit 240 at this time. Hereinafter, the operation of each unit constituting the lid opening / closing system is controlled by the control unit 240.

  In FIG. 7A, an inert gas is supplied into the pod 110 by the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. Then, an inert gas is circulated in the pod 110 so that the pressure in the pod 110 is controlled to be more positive than the pressure in the transfer chamber 124 (or the lid opening / closing space 124 a). The pressure or purge gas flow rate is set in advance. For example, in the present embodiment, the pressure is set to twice that of the transfer chamber 124.

  FIG. 7B is a view showing a state in which the lid 120 of the pod 110 is pressed against the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 and the lid 120 is attached to the lid opening / closing mechanism 123. The gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. 5 is configured to be able to supply an inert gas (for example, N 2 gas) into the pod 110 even in the state after FIG. 7B. Thereby, the pressure in the pod 110 can be maintained at a positive pressure.

  FIG. 7C is a view showing a state in which the lid 120 is removed. As described above, the lid 120 of the pod 110 placed on the placement unit 122 is attached and detached in the lid opening and closing space 124 a by the lid opening and closing mechanism 123, thereby opening and closing the wafer loading and unloading opening 120 a of the pod 110. ing. At this time, since the pod 110 is held at a positive pressure, even if minute particles are generated due to the operation of the lid opening / closing mechanism 123, it does not enter the pod 110. For example, the pressure in the pod 110 is held at about twice the pressure of the transfer chamber 124 (lid opening / closing space 124 a). The pressure in the pod 110 is not limited to twice the pressure of the transfer chamber 124 (the lid opening / closing space 124 a), as long as it can suppress the entry of minute particles into the pod 110. It may be less (for example, 1.1 times), and may be twice or more.

  FIG. 7C is also a view in which the space for the wafer transfer mechanism 125 to transport the wafer 200 between the transfer chambers 124 is closed by the gate part 121 a. The control unit 240 is configured to cause the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 to remove the lid 120 from the pod 110 and operate the gate portion 121a together with the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 to separate the transfer chamber 124 and the lid opening / closing space 124a. . In this embodiment, although the inside of the pod 110 is previously replaced with the inert gas, generally, the inside of the pod 110 has a higher oxygen concentration state than the transfer chamber 124, while the transfer chamber 124 Is a low oxygen concentration (20 ppm or less) state, and is isolated by the gate portion 121 a to prevent oxygen from flowing into the transfer chamber 124.

  According to the present embodiment, when the lid 120 is removed by the lid opening / closing mechanism 123, as described above, the inert gas is supplied to the inside of the pod 110 so that the pressure becomes higher than the pressure of the lid opening / closing space 124a. (Or filled with inert gas). That is, the control unit 240 controls the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 to open the lid 120 of the pod 110 while causing the monitoring unit 13 to maintain the pressure in the pod 110 higher than the pressure in the lid opening / closing space 124a. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the mixing of minute particles due to the operation of the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 into the pod 110. In addition, when the lid 120 of the pod 110 is opened by the inert gas supply by the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. 5 and the exhaust by the exhaust mechanism VENT shown in FIG. The atmosphere of the air 124 a is configured to flow to the exhaust mechanism VENT, and the flow path is formed such that the inert gas introduced into the pod 110 flows in the direction of the exhaust mechanism VENT. As a result, the effect of suppressing the mixing of minute particles into the pod 110 by the operation of the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 can be expected.

  Then, in a state where the transfer chamber 124 and the lid opening / closing space 124 a are separated, the monitoring unit 13 continues the inside of the pod 110 and the inside of the pod 110 by the inert gas supply by the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. The pressure in the lid opening and closing space 124a is maintained higher than the pressure in the transfer chamber 124, and the inside of the pod 110 and the lid opening and closing space 124a are replaced with an N 2 atmosphere. The exhaust by the exhaust mechanism VENT may be stopped after the transfer chamber 124 and the lid opening / closing space 124a are separated by the gate portion 121a, and may be stopped, or a predetermined pressure (for example, about twice that of the transfer chamber 124) At this time, the exhaust mechanism VENT may be operated to exhaust the lid opening / closing space 124a. In addition, the oxygen concentration of the lid opening / closing space 124a may be configured to be equal to or less than a predetermined threshold while replacing with the N 2 atmosphere. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, since the inside of the pod 110 is purged with N 2 in advance by the inert gas, the time to reach the necessary oxygen concentration can be shortened.

  As shown in FIG. 7D, the lid 120 and lid of the pod 110 are arranged so that the wafer transfer mechanism 125 can transfer the wafer 200 when N2 replacement of the lid open / close space 124a is completed (the oxygen concentration becomes lower than the threshold) The opening / closing mechanism 123 and the gate portion 121 a are configured to slide. At this time, the arrow (dotted line) in FIG. 7D indicates the flow of the inert gas from the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. 5, and the arrow (solid line) following the transfer chamber 124 to the exhaust mechanism VENT indicates the flow of gas atmosphere. Show. Here, the supply of the inert gas from the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. 5 may also be stopped. Although not shown, the gate portion 121a is also moved to a predetermined position (initial position) of the lid opening / closing space 124a.

  Then, in FIG. 7D, the transfer of the wafer 200 in the pod 110 by the wafer transfer mechanism 125 is started. Here, even if the transfer of the wafer 200 by the wafer transfer mechanism 125 starts, the atmosphere in the pod 110 and the atmosphere in the transfer chamber 124 flow through the lid opening / closing space 124 a and are exhausted by the exhaust mechanism VENT. You may Thereby, even if particles are generated by the operation of the wafer transfer mechanism 125, an effect of reducing the intrusion into the pod 110 can be expected. Furthermore, the inert gas may be supplied from the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. 5 while the wafer transfer mechanism 125 transports the wafer 200.

  As shown in FIG. 7E, when the wafer 200 disappears in the pod 110, the lid 120 of the pod 110 and the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 are slid to reattach the lid 120 to the pod 110. Also at this time, the atmosphere of the transfer chamber 124 may be exhausted by the exhaust mechanism VENT, or the inert gas may be supplied from the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. The lid 120 of the pod 110 and the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 may be operated after the transfer chamber 124 and the lid opening / closing space 124 a are separated by the gate portion 121 a (not shown).

  Thereafter, the lid 120 is returned to the pod 110 (FIG. 7F), and the pod 110 is returned to the original position of the placement unit 122 (position of the pod shown in FIG. 7A). The pod 110 is returned to the rotatable pod shelf 105 (not shown), and the new pod 110 containing the wafer 200 is transported to the placement unit 122, and the lid opening and closing operations from FIG. 7A to FIG. 7F continue. Be done. The lid opening and closing operations from FIG. 7A to FIG. 7F are repeated until a predetermined number of wafers 200 are loaded into the boat 217 (not shown) by the wafer transfer mechanism 125.

  As for the dismounting (wafer discharging) from the boat 217, the lid opening and closing operations from FIG. 7A to FIG. 7F are repeated until all the wafers 200 loaded in the boat 217 are dismounted as described above. .

(7) Operation of Substrate Processing Apparatus Next, the operation of the substrate processing apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the pod 110 is supplied to the load port 114 by the in-process transfer device (not shown), the substrate detection sensor 140 detects the pod 110 and the pod loading / unloading port 112 is at the front. It is opened by the shutter 113. Then, the pod 110 on the load port 114 is carried into the housing 111 from the pod loading / unloading port 112 by the pod transport device 118.

  The pod 110 carried into the inside of the housing 111 is automatically transported by the pod transport device 118 onto the shelf plate 117 of the rotatable pod shelf 105 and temporarily stored. Thereafter, the pod 110 is transferred from the shelf plate 117 onto the placement unit 122. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 7A, when the pod 110 is transported and transferred onto the placement unit 122, an inert gas is introduced from the lower surface of the pod 110 by the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. . The pod 110 carried into the housing 111 may be directly transferred onto the placement unit 122 by the pod transfer device 118.

  As shown in FIGS. 7B to 7C, the opening side end face of the pod 110 placed on the placement unit 122 is pressed against the opening edge of the wafer loading / unloading opening in the front wall 119a of the sub case 119. The lid opening / closing space 124a is isolated from the transfer chamber 124 by the gate portion 121a. Thereafter, the lid 120 of the pod 110 is removed by the lid opening / closing mechanism 123, and the wafer loading / unloading port 120a is opened. At that time, the pressure in the pod 110 is set and maintained in advance higher than the pressure of the transfer chamber 124 (the lid opening / closing space 124 a) by the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIG. 5. As a result, the atmosphere from the transfer chamber 124 is less likely to cause a flow of introduction into the pod 110. As a result, the operation of the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 reduces intrusion into the pod 110 even if particles are generated.

  According to the present embodiment, the lid opening / closing space 124a partitioned by the front wall 119a and the partition portion 121 is provided, and the exhaust mechanism VENT is provided near the pod 110 of the front wall 119a from which the lid 120 is removed by the lid opening / closing mechanism 123. When the lid 120 is opened by the operation of the lid opening / closing mechanism 123, the control unit 240 controls the atmosphere of the lid opening / closing space 124a to a desired atmosphere by forming a flow path from the pod 110 to the exhaust mechanism VENT. And control the pressure in the pod 110. Furthermore, after the transfer chamber 124 and the lid opening / closing space 124a are separated by the gate portion 121a shown in FIG. 7C, the control unit 240 performs the replacement operation of the inside of the pod 110 and the lid opening / closing space 124a with inert gas (for example, N.sub.2 gas) It controls or controls the pressure in the pod 110 and the lid opening / closing space 124a.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 7D, the control unit 240 operates the lid 120, the lid opening / closing mechanism 123, and the like so that the wafer 200 can be transferred. Thereafter, the wafer 200 is picked up from the inside of the pod 110 through the wafer loading / unloading port 120a by the tweezers 125c of the wafer transfer device 125a, and the orientation is aligned by the notch alignment device not shown. The wafer is loaded into the wafer 126 and loaded into the boat 217 (wafer charging). Then, the wafer transfer device 125a having the wafer 200 loaded on the boat 217 returns to the pod 110, and loads the next wafer 200 on the boat 217.

  During the loading operation of the wafers 200 onto the boat 217 by the wafer transfer mechanism 125 in the pod 110 on the one (upper or lower) placement unit 122, the other (lower or upper) placement unit 122 is Another pod 110 is conveyed from the top of the rotatable pod shelf 105 by the pod conveyance device 118, and the pressurization control in the pod 110 by the gas introduction mechanism 1 shown in FIGS. 7A to 7D and the opening of the pod 110 by the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 Work is going on simultaneously.

  When the wafer 200 in the pod 110 on the one (upper or lower) placement unit 122 is exhausted, the lid 120 is returned to the pod 110 by the lid opening / closing mechanism 123 as shown in FIGS. 7E and 7F. The pod 110 is moved to the position shown in FIG. On the other hand, loading of the wafers 200 into the boat 217 by the wafer transfer mechanism 125 in another pod 110 is started in parallel.

  When a predetermined number of wafers 200 are loaded into the boat 217, the lower end portion of the processing furnace 202 closed by the furnace port shutter 147 is opened by the furnace port shutter 147. Subsequently, the boat 217 holding the wafer 200 is loaded (loaded) into the processing furnace 202 as the seal cap 219 is lifted by the boat elevator 115.

  After loading, arbitrary processing is performed on the wafer 200 in the processing furnace 202. After the processing, the boat 217 storing the processed wafer 200 is unloaded from the processing chamber 201 in a procedure substantially reverse to the above procedure except for the wafer alignment process in the notch alignment apparatus, and the processed wafer 200 is processed. The stored pod 110 is carried out of the housing 111.

Another Embodiment of the Present Invention
In addition, the control unit 240 according to the embodiment of the present invention can be realized using a normal computer system without using a dedicated system. For example, the control unit 240 is configured to execute the above-described processing by installing a control program from an external recording medium (USB memory, external HDD, etc.) storing a program for executing the above-mentioned various processing into a general-purpose computer. It can be configured.

  And the means for supplying these programs are arbitrary. As described above, in addition to supply via a predetermined recording medium, for example, supply may be via a communication line, communication network, communication system, and the like. In this case, for example, the program may be posted on a bulletin board of a communication network and provided superimposed on a carrier wave via the network. Then, the above-described processing can be executed by activating the program provided as described above and executing the program in the same manner as other application programs under the control of the OS.

  In the present embodiment, a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is shown as an example of the substrate processing apparatus, but the apparatus is not limited to the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and may be an apparatus for processing a glass substrate such as an LCD apparatus. Further, the specific content of the substrate processing is irrelevant, and may be not only the film forming processing but also processing such as annealing processing, oxidation processing, nitriding processing, diffusion processing and the like. Further, the film forming process may be, for example, a process of forming an oxide film or a nitride film, or a process of forming a film containing a metal.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described concretely, this invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, It can change variously in the range which does not deviate from the summary.

1 gas introduction mechanism 100 substrate processing apparatus 200 wafer (substrate)

Claims (5)

  A mounting unit for mounting a substrate container in which a substrate is stored, a guide unit constituting a lid opening / closing space in which the lid of the substrate container is opened / closed, the lid opening / closing space as the substrate container and the substrate A gate portion for separating the substrate from the transfer chamber for transporting the substrate between the held substrate holder, a lid opening / closing mechanism provided in the lid opening / closing space for opening / closing the lid of the substrate container, and The gas introduction mechanism for introducing a gas into the substrate container placed in the mounting unit and the gas introduction mechanism cause the gas to be introduced into the substrate container to replace the gas in the substrate container and adjust the pressure And a monitoring unit configured to cause the lid opening / closing mechanism to open the lid of the substrate container while causing the monitoring unit to maintain the pressure in the substrate container higher than the pressure of the lid opening / closing space A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a control unit.   The control unit causes the gas introduction mechanism to introduce the gas into the substrate container when the substrate container is placed on the placement unit, and the pressure in the substrate container is transferred to the transfer chamber. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is configured to be greater than the pressure.   Furthermore, the lid opening / closing mechanism is provided in the vicinity of the substrate container from which the lid is removed, and the apparatus further comprises an exhaust mechanism for exhausting the atmosphere of the lid opening / closing space, and the control unit opens the lid of the substrate container. 2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the gas supplied to the gas introduction mechanism is configured to form a flow path flowing from the substrate container to the direction of the exhaust mechanism when performing.   The gas introduction mechanism includes a flow rate controller that controls the flow rate of gas, a gas pipe that configures a gas flow path, a gas introduction unit that introduces gas into the substrate container, the gas introduction unit, and the substrate accommodation The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a purge gas supply unit including a seal unit that seals the container from the outside; and an adjustment unit that adjusts the pressure in the substrate container.   The step of mounting a substrate container in which a substrate is stored, the lid opening / closing space where the lid of the substrate container is opened and closed, and the substrate between the substrate container and the substrate holder in which the substrate is held Separating the transfer chamber for transporting the substrate, opening the lid of the substrate container, and transferring the substrate between the substrate holder and the substrate holder whose lid is opened. And a process step of loading the substrate holder while holding the substrate and processing the substrate, and in the step of mounting the substrate container, the gas is In the process of introducing into the substrate container to replace the gas in the substrate container and raising the pressure, and in the step of opening the lid, the pressure in the substrate container is higher than the pressure of the lid opening / closing space It is configured to cause the lid opening / closing mechanism to open the lid of the substrate container while maintaining it Method of manufacturing a conductor arrangement.

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