JP3349919B2 - Air purification device for semiconductor manufacturing process - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a semiconductor manufacturing process which is disposed in, for example, a clean room facility and is employed in a cleaning apparatus for cleaning a semiconductor wafer or a clean bench used in an inspection and measurement process of a semiconductor wafer. The present invention relates to an air purification device for use.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As semiconductor devices become more highly integrated, the minimum pattern size required for semiconductor devices has surpassed the 1 μm wall and has entered the submicron region. In a situation where such a high density is required, contamination received in a semiconductor device manufacturing process has greatly affected product yield, quality, and reliability. Therefore, for example, even in a cleaning apparatus for cleaning a semiconductor wafer or a clean bench used in a semiconductor wafer inspection / measurement process, the internal space is required to have a degree of air purification that excludes contaminants in a submicron region. Have been. On the other hand, in the above-mentioned cleaning device or bench for chemical treatment, not only a clean area is required for the treatment operation, but also acid or alkaline gas or vapor generated during the operation is not affected to each treatment step. It must be equipped with a function to exhaust air quickly and not to flow into the clean room.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing an example of a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus which is disposed in a clean room facility and realizes the above-described purification environment. In this cleaning apparatus, an internal space 11a of a housing 11 is formed as a cleaning chamber, in which a carrier transport robot 12 that transports a carrier on which a semiconductor wafer is set and a cleaning tank 13 in which a cleaning liquid and the like are stored. In addition, a rinser dryer or the like for drying the semiconductor wafer after the cleaning process is stored. An air supply port 11b is formed in the ceiling of the housing 11 so as to penetrate the housing 11, and air is taken into the internal space 11a from the outside of the housing 11 into the air supply port 11b. Fan 1 for
4, and an air filter 15 for purifying air taken into the internal space 11a of the housing 11 are arranged.

[0004] An exhaust chamber 16 is formed on the rear side (the right side shown in FIG. 6) of the housing 11, and an internal space 11 of the housing 11 is formed through an exhaust port 11 c formed in the housing 11.
The exhaust gas can be exhausted from the exhaust chamber 16 into the exhaust chamber 16 as shown by an arrow a. And the exhaust chamber 16
An air duct 17 is arranged at the top of the exhaust chamber 1.
The air exhausted to 6 is configured to be able to be exhausted outside the clean room via the air duct 17. On the other hand, a working window 11d is opened on the front side (left side shown in FIG. 6) of the housing 11, and this window 11d is opened.
A door 18 is attached to d so that the window 11d can be opened and closed. An opening 18 a is formed in a part of the door body 18, and a part of the air in the clean room is released through the opening 18 a into the internal space 11 a of the housing 11.
Is configured to be supplied.

In the above configuration shown in FIG.
The air through the air filter 15 is taken into the internal space 11a by the driving of the blower fan 14 attached to the ceiling of the housing 11, and the air taken into the internal space 11a is Housing 11 by pressure
The air is drawn into the exhaust chamber 16 through the exhaust port 11c formed in the air outlet, and is exhausted to the outside through the air duct 17. Therefore, the gas generated by the reaction between the semiconductor wafer and the cleaning liquid is exhausted to the outside along the flow of the air.

[0006]

By the way, in the configuration of the air purifying device described above, the exhaust port 11c is located on the back of the housing 11 because the working window is disposed on the front side of the housing 11. Therefore, a part of the gas generated by the reaction between the semiconductor wafer and the cleaning liquid or the like tends to stay in the internal space of the housing 11, particularly on the front side. In such a state, when the door 18 disposed on the working window 11d is opened for inspection of the carrier transport robot or the like, a problem occurs in which a part of the gas leaks into the clean room. For this reason, in the configuration of this type of conventional air purifying device, as shown in FIG. 6, an opening 18a is provided in a part of a door body 18 that is attached to the working window 11d so as to be openable and closable. As shown by an arrow b through the opening 18a, the air in the clean room is configured to be slightly supplied to the internal space 11a on the front side of the housing 11.

In order to provide such an effect, the housing 11
It is necessary to constantly adjust the delicate balance between the amount of air taken in by the blower fan 14 attached to the ceiling of the vehicle and the negative pressure provided by the air duct 17. For example, when the negative pressure on the side of the air duct 17 becomes larger than a predetermined value, the amount of air flowing into the internal space 11a through the opening 18a provided in the door body 18 increases, and the contamination of the air in the housing 11 worsens. Problem can arise. Also, housing 1
When the amount of air taken in by the blower fan 14 attached to the ceiling of the first unit 1 is larger than a predetermined amount, the internal space of the housing 11 as shown by an arrow c through an opening 18a provided in the door body 18. From 11a, air flows out into the clean room, which causes a problem that a part of the gas generated by the reaction between the semiconductor wafer and the cleaning liquid leaks into the clean room.

In addition, the ability of the blower fan 14 to take in air changes according to the degree of clogging of the air filter 15. Therefore, the amount of air taken in by the fan 14 and the negative pressure caused by the air duct 17 are reduced. The adjustment of the balance became extremely delicate, and had a technical problem that the adjustment was difficult. The present invention has been made in order to solve the technical problem of such a conventional device, and eliminates the stagnation effect of the reaction gas or the like generated in the internal space of the housing, and allows the reaction gas to pass through an air duct. It is an object of the present invention to provide an air purifying apparatus for a semiconductor manufacturing process, which can reliably exhaust air to the outside.

[0009]

According to the present invention, there is provided an air purifying apparatus for a semiconductor manufacturing process which is used in a semiconductor device manufacturing process and has a space for accommodating a semiconductor device. A case, and an air outlet provided with an air filter for taking in clean air from the outside of the case to the internal space, arranged in a part of the case and penetrating the case, In order to exhaust air taken into the internal space of the housing to the outside, an exhaust port formed in a part of the housing, and a working window formed on one side surface of the housing, An inner wall of an inner wall of the housing, the hollow wall having an outer wall and an inner wall and forming an air chamber between the inner wall and the inner wall of the housing. The air inside the enclosure Wherein the opening for exhausting to the outside through the air chamber is formed.

In this case, the hollow partition wall arranged in the work window is preferably attached to the housing so that the work window can be opened and closed. The hollow partition wall disposed in the work window preferably has an outer wall and an inner wall formed of a transparent material. An exhaust port formed in a part of the housing, and an opening formed in a partition wall for closing a work window are air ducts each formed in a negative pressure environment compared with the inside of the housing. Connected to.
Further, in a preferred embodiment, an air supply port provided with the air filter is formed in a ceiling surface of the housing, and air taken into the housing through the air filter flows from the ceiling to the floor surface in the housing. Form a flowing downflow.

According to the air purifying apparatus for a semiconductor manufacturing process configured as described above, an air supply port provided with an air filter for taking in clean air is provided, for example, on a ceiling of a housing accommodating the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and the like. The air supply port further purifies the air in the clean room and introduces the air into the internal space of the housing. Then, a part of the air introduced into the internal space of the housing is exhausted through a duct from an exhaust port formed on the rear side of the housing, for example. Another part of the air introduced into the internal space of the housing is an opening formed in a hollow partition body that closes a work window formed in, for example, a front surface of the housing, and inside the partition body. It acts to exhaust air to the outside through the respective air chambers.

As described above, the air introduced into the internal space of the housing is exhausted by a plurality of exhaust systems, including the partition wall that closes the working window formed in the housing.
The reaction gas generated in the semiconductor manufacturing process can be efficiently discharged to the outside without staying in the vicinity of the working window. Therefore, when the working window is opened, the inconvenience such as the leakage of the reaction gas into the clean room can be solved.

[0013]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an air purifying apparatus for a semiconductor manufacturing process according to the present invention. 1 to 5 shown below, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the parts corresponding to the parts shown in FIG. 6 shown as the conventional example are also denoted by the same reference numerals. Therefore, FIG.
In FIG. 5 to FIG. 5, the detailed description of the same portions or portions corresponding to the related art will be appropriately omitted. First, FIG.
The appearance of a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus used in a semiconductor manufacturing process is shown in a state viewed from the front, and FIG. 2 is a state where the apparatus is cut at a substantially central portion in a vertical direction. This wafer cleaning apparatus is generally arranged in a clean room facility.

In FIG. 1 shown in a front view, a casing 11 constituting the outer shape of the wafer cleaning apparatus is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole, and a working window 11d is opened in the front. The work window 11d is formed along the upper half of the horizontally long casing 11, and is closed by a total of six doors 21 as partition walls as shown in FIG. I have. Each door body 21 is attached to the housing 11 so that the window 11d can be opened and closed in a sliding door manner. Therefore, by opening the window 11d by pulling the door 21 in the horizontal direction, the work from the window 11d can be performed. A member's hand or upper body can be put in the internal space 11 a of the housing 11. As shown in FIG. 2, a carrier transport robot 12 for transporting a carrier on which a semiconductor wafer is set, a cleaning tank 13 in which a cleaning solution or the like is accumulated, and a semiconductor wafer having been subjected to a cleaning process are provided in an internal space 11a of the housing 11. And a rinser dryer for drying.

As described in FIG. 6, an air supply port 11b is formed in the ceiling of the housing 11 so as to penetrate the housing 11. A fan 14 for taking in air from outside the interior 11 into the interior space 11a, and an interior space 11a of the housing 11
An air filter 15 for cleaning air taken into the air conditioner is disposed. Further, an exhaust chamber 16 is formed on the rear side of the housing 11, and an arrow a from the internal space 11 a of the housing 11 to the exhaust chamber 16 through the exhaust port 11 c.
As shown in FIG. In addition, an air duct 17 formed in an environment having a negative pressure compared to the inside of the housing is disposed above the exhaust chamber 16.
The air exhausted to the exhaust chamber 16 is configured to be able to be exhausted outside the clean room via the air duct 17. FIG. 3 shows a door 21 attached to the housing 11 so as to be able to open and close the window 11d with respect to the working window 11d formed in the housing 11 in a longitudinally broken manner. I have.

The door body 21 is formed in a hollow shape by an outer side wall 21a and an inner side wall 21b, and an air chamber 21c is formed therebetween. An opening 21d is formed in the inner wall 21b located on the side of the internal space 11a of the housing 11, and the air in the internal space 11a of the housing 11 is exhausted to the outside via the air chamber 21c. It is configured to be able to. The outer wall 2
The entirety of the door body 21 including the inner wall 1a and the inner wall 21b is formed of a transparent synthetic resin such as vinyl chloride or acrylic.
The operation state of, for example, a carrier transport robot or the like disposed in the internal space 11a can be visually recognized from the outside.

The lower edge of the door 21 has a recess 2
1e is formed, and it fits into the convex part 11e formed in the horizontal direction in the lower edge of the window part 11d, and it is comprised so that the door body 21 can slide in a sliding door format. Further, a constricted portion 21f is formed in the upper measuring edge of the door body 21 in the horizontal direction, and a pair of engaging portions 11f formed by bending the upper edge of the window 11d so as to face the horizontal direction. The constricted portion 21f is engaged so that the door body 21 can be similarly slid in a sliding door manner. The air chamber 21c formed in the door body 21 is mounted on an upper portion of the housing 11 as shown in FIG. 2, and communicates with an air duct 25 which is in a negative pressure environment compared with the inside of the housing. . Therefore, part of the air in the housing internal space 11a is supplied to the opening 21d provided in the door body 21, the air chamber 21c, and the air duct 2a.
5 so that it can be discharged outside the clean room. The engaging portion 11f that supports the upper part of the door body 21 is configured to be bent in an L shape and to face each other as shown in FIG. Therefore, when the door 21 is closed, the air in the clean room flows into the air duct 25 through a gap on the extension of the engagement portion 11f where the door 21 does not exist, and the normal negative pressure of the air duct 25 is reduced. It may be impossible to maintain.
Therefore, when the door 21 is closed, it is desirable to provide a means for appropriately closing the gap on the extension line.

In the above configuration shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, air is taken into the internal space 11a of the housing 11 by the operation of the blower fan 14 arranged on the ceiling of the housing 11. At this time, the air in the clean room is further purified by the air filter 15 and introduced into the internal space 11 a of the housing 11. Further, the air taken into the housing 11 forms a downflow that flows from the ceiling of the housing 11 toward the floor surface. Part of the air taken in is introduced into the exhaust chamber 16 from the exhaust port 11c formed on the back side of the housing 11 as shown by the arrow a, and is exhausted outside the clean room via the air duct 17. . Another part of the air introduced into the housing 11 is introduced into the air chamber 21c through an opening 21d formed in the hollow door body 21 as shown by an arrow d, and is introduced into the air duct 25. Exhausted outside the clean room.

FIG. 4 shows another example of the mounting form of the hollow door body 21 mounted on the window of the housing 11. In the example shown in FIG. 4, a pair of engaging portions 11g are formed so that the upper edge of the door body 21 is bent so as to face the horizontal direction. A constricted portion 21g is formed, and a pair of engaging portions 11g of the door body 21 is formed on the constricted portion 21g.
Are configured to engage. Thereby, the door body 2
1 can be slid in the form of a sliding door.

FIG. 5 shows another embodiment of the door 21. In the door body 21, openings 21d and 21j are respectively formed in the hollow inner and outer side walls.
Is formed. According to the configuration of the door, the air in the housing 11 and the air from the clean room are both sucked in by the openings 21d and 21j, respectively.
The air can be exhausted to the outside through the air duct 25.

Although the above description has been given based on the embodiment in which the air purifying apparatus according to the present invention is employed in a wafer cleaning apparatus, the present invention is applied to a clean bench used in, for example, an inspection and measurement process of a semiconductor wafer. You can also. In this case, instead of the door, an operation hole through which an operator's hand can be inserted is provided in the hollow partition.

[0022]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the air purifying apparatus for a semiconductor manufacturing process according to the present invention, the air purifying apparatus is disposed in the working window formed in the housing and has the outer wall and the inner wall. A hollow partition wall having an air chamber formed therebetween is provided, and an opening is provided on the inner wall of the partition wall, so that air in the internal space of the housing is exhausted to the outside through the air chamber. With this configuration, the reaction gas and the like generated in the semiconductor manufacturing process can be efficiently discharged to the outside without staying in the vicinity of the work window. Therefore, when the working window is opened, the inconvenience such as the reaction gas leaking into the clean room can be eliminated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a state in which an air purification device according to the present invention is employed in a wafer cleaning device.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the device shown in FIG. 1 cut in a vertical direction at a substantially central portion.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a door disposed in a work window in the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing another attachment configuration of the door body.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing another configuration of the door body.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing an example of a conventional wafer cleaning apparatus.

[Description of Signs] 11 Housing 11a Internal space 11b Inlet 11c Exhaust 11d Window 14 Blower fan 15 Air filter 16 Exhaust chamber 17 Air duct 21 Door 21a Outer side wall 21b Inner side wall 21c Air chamber 21d Opening 25 Air duct

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-61-262537 (JP, A) JP-A-6-84876 (JP, A) JP-A-7-103532 (JP, A) 139835 (JP, U) Shokai 60-89538 (JP, U) Shokai 1-1110427 (JP, U) Shokai 4-92628 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B01D 46/00 H01L 21/02 F24F 7/06 B01L 1/04

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A housing which is used in a semiconductor device manufacturing process and has a space in which a semiconductor device is housed, and is arranged in a part of the housing so as to penetrate the housing,
An air inlet provided with an air filter for taking in clean air from the outside of the housing to the internal space; and a part of the housing for exhausting air taken into the internal space of the housing to the outside. An exhaust port formed on a work window formed on one side surface of the housing is disposed so as to close the window, an outer wall and an inner wall are provided, and an air chamber is provided therebetween. The inner wall of the partition, which is formed of a hollow partition formed, is located on the inner space side of the housing,
An air purifying apparatus for a semiconductor manufacturing process, wherein an opening for exhausting air in an internal space of a housing to the outside through the air chamber is formed. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the hollow partition wall disposed in the work window is attached to the housing so that the work window can be opened and closed. Air purification device for semiconductor manufacturing process. 3. The hollow partition wall disposed in the work window, wherein the outer wall and the inner wall are formed of a transparent material. Air purification device for semiconductor manufacturing process. 4. An exhaust port formed in a part of the housing and an opening formed in a partition body for closing a work window are each formed in a negative pressure environment as compared with the inside of the housing. 2. The air duct is connected to a closed air duct.
An air purification device for a semiconductor manufacturing process according to any one of claims 1 to 3. 5. An air supply port provided with the air filter is formed in a ceiling surface of the housing, and air taken into the housing via the air filter flows from the ceiling to the floor in the housing. The air purification device for a semiconductor manufacturing process according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a down flow is formed.