JP5409343B2 - Substrate storage container - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate storage container used when a substrate such as a glass wafer, a semiconductor wafer, or a mask glass is stored, supported, stored, transported, transported, or the like.

  Although not shown, a conventional substrate storage container includes a container body of a front open box that stores a plurality of semiconductor wafers, and a detachable lid that opens and closes the front surface of the container body. Supports for horizontally supporting the semiconductor wafer are disposed on both sides.

  By the way, a semiconductor wafer (for example, a silicon wafer of φ200 mm and a thickness of 725 μm or a silicon wafer of φ300 mm and a thickness of 775 μm) used in the semiconductor industry has an electronic circuit formed on the surface and the back surface is ground. Thereafter, it may be processed thinly to a thickness used as a semiconductor component, for example, 50 μm to 300 μm, which is less than half the normal thickness. For this reason, it is necessary to store and transport such thin semiconductor wafers in the container body of the substrate storage container.

  On the other hand, glass wafers used for CCD sensors, CMOS sensors, optical filters, etc. are of the type having a diameter of 300 mm and a thickness of about 350 to 500 μm. Such a glass wafer is greatly bent by its own weight, and if it is deformed like a bow, a problem arises in storage and handling. Therefore, a method of restricting the bending with a separate jig has been proposed (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  For example, in the case of the wafer storage cassette disclosed in Patent Document 1, a technique has been proposed in which a wafer holding unit is inserted into a support unit for a plurality of wafers. In Patent Document 2, a technique is proposed in which an insert is frictionally engaged with a plurality of slots of a wafer carrier, and a thin wafer is supported by linear protrusions formed on the insert.

JP 2000-91400 A JP 2004-529493 A

  However, in the case of the wafer storage cassette disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the wafer holding portion is formed flat, the contact area with the wafer is enlarged and may be rubbed to cause contamination of the wafer. In addition, since the wafer holding part may be displaced, there is a problem that the wafer cannot be supported with high accuracy.

  In the case of Patent Document 2, since the insert is frictionally engaged with the plurality of slots of the wafer carrier, the wafer may be contaminated by this frictional engagement. Furthermore, since the insert needs to be fixed in advance in the plurality of slots, it is not easy to remove the insert from the plurality of slots when the insert is unnecessary, for example, when supporting a normal wafer, As a result, there is a problem that the work is complicated and complicated.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, eliminates the possibility of contamination of the substrate, can support the substrate with high accuracy, and can simplify and facilitate the work related to the substrate. The purpose is to provide.

In the present invention, in order to solve the above problems, a container body of a front open box that accommodates a substrate and a support jig that is accommodated in the container body and supports the substrate are provided on both sides of the container body. Each of which is provided with a support body that can horizontally support the support jig,
The support includes a support piece that extends in the front-rear direction of the container body and supports the substrate. A stepped portion that restricts protrusion of the substrate is formed at a front portion of the support piece, and a rear portion of the substrate is formed at the rear portion of the support piece. Form a position restricting part that restricts the storage position,
The support jig includes a plate-shaped jig body having a continuous cross-sectional waveform facing the substrate from the vertical direction of the container body, a bending support portion formed on the jig body and bent in the vertical direction of the container body, and a jig. And a flat rail that is formed to protrude from the side end of the main body and supported by the support piece of the support body, and the central portion of the jig main body serves as a bent support portion that protrudes downward, and both side portions are directed upward. Protruding bend support portions, each of these bend support portions is formed with protrusions that can contact the substrate,
When support jigs are placed on the top and bottom of the substrate, respectively, and the jig body of this support jig is sandwiched between the stepped portion of the support piece of the support and the position restricting portion, both sides of one support jig The protrusion is characterized in that the back surface of the substrate positioned above can be contacted and supported by the protrusion, and the protrusion at the center of another support jig can be contacted to the surface of the substrate positioned below .

Note that at least a part of the support jig can be formed of an elastic material, or a vibration absorbing layer can be laminated on the rail .

  In addition, the front part of the jig body of the support jig is formed in a substantially circular arc shape, reinforcing ribs are formed on the periphery thereof, the rear part of the jig body is formed linearly, and support bodies are formed on both sides thereof. A rotation restricting portion that interferes with the position restricting portion can be formed.

  Here, the substrate in the claims includes at least one glass wafer, a semiconductor wafer, a mask glass and the like that are thin and brittle and easily broken. The container body may be transparent, opaque, or translucent. Further, it is sufficient that the support jig has at least one bent support portion. The projection may be a single or plural.

  According to the present invention, when a substrate is stored in the container main body of the substrate storage container, the container main body stores and supports the substrate and the support jig via the support piece of the support, and the support jig is provided below the substrate. If the jig body is positioned and the substrate is supported by the bending support portion, even if the substrate is thin and fragile and easily bent, the substrate can be stored while suppressing deformation of the substrate.

According to the present invention, there is an effect that the possibility of contamination of the substrate can be effectively eliminated, the substrate can be supported with high accuracy, and the work relating to the substrate can be simplified and facilitated.
Further, the jig body of the support jig is formed into a continuous cross-sectional waveform, and the center part of the jig body is a bent support part protruding downward, and both side parts are bent support parts protruding upward, Protrusions that can come into contact with the substrate are formed on these bent support portions, so that the substrate can be supported while improving the rigidity of the jig body or reducing the contact area with the substrate while reducing the bending. . Further, when the substrate located below the support jig is bent, the excessive bending of the bent substrate can be restricted by the protrusion of the bending support portion protruding downward.

Further, if at least a part of the support jig is formed of an elastic material, or if a vibration absorbing layer is laminated on the rail, vibrations and impacts associated with the movement of the substrate storage container can be mitigated.

  Furthermore, the front part of the jig body of the support jig is formed in a substantially circular arc shape, reinforcing ribs are formed on the periphery thereof, the rear part of the jig body is formed linearly, and support bodies are formed on both sides thereof. If the rotation restricting portions that interfere with the position restricting portion are respectively formed, it is possible to increase the strength of the jig body or prevent the position and rotation of the jig body.

It is a whole perspective explanatory view showing typically an embodiment of a substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is a perspective explanatory view showing typically the support jig in the embodiment of the substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is front explanatory drawing which shows typically the support jig | tool in embodiment of the substrate storage container which concerns on this invention. It is a perspective explanatory view showing typically the state where a support jig was stored in a container main part in an embodiment of a substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is front explanatory drawing which shows typically the state which accommodated the support jig | tool in the container main body in embodiment of the substrate storage container which concerns on this invention. It is principal part expansion explanatory drawing which shows typically the state which accommodated the support jig | tool in the container main body in embodiment of the substrate storage container which concerns on this invention.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, a substrate storage container in the present embodiment includes a container main body 1 for storing a plurality of glass wafers W, A lid 10 that opens and closes the front of the container body 1 and a support jig 30 that is housed in the container body 1 and supports the glass wafer W are provided. A support 5 that can horizontally support the tool 30 is disposed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the glass wafer W is formed, for example, in a thin, round disk having a diameter of 300 mm, and has a feature that it is easily bent up and down by its own weight, and is inserted into the container body 1 horizontally. A predetermined number of sheets are stored side by side in the vertical direction.

  The container body 1 and the lid body 10 are each formed by a combination of a plurality of parts, each of which is injection-molded with a molding material containing a predetermined resin. Examples of the predetermined resin of the molding material include polycarbonate, polyether ether ketone, polyether imide, polybutylene terephthalate, polyacetal, liquid crystal polymer, and cyclic olefin resin that are excellent in mechanical properties and heat resistance. Carbon, carbon fiber, metal fiber, carbon nanotube, conductive polymer, antistatic agent, flame retardant or the like is selectively added to the predetermined resin as necessary.

  The container body 1 is formed in a front open box type with an open front, and is positioned and mounted on a semiconductor processing device or a gas replacement device with the opened front facing in a horizontal horizontal direction, or by a cleaning liquid in a cleaning tank. Washed. A substrate storage container, specifically, a positioning tool for positioning the container body 1 is mounted on both the front side and the rear center of the bottom plate of the container body 1. Further, a bottom plate that exposes the plurality of positioning tools is horizontally mounted on the bottom plate of the container body 1.

  At the center of the top plate of the container main body 1, a transport top flange gripped by a factory ceiling transport mechanism is detachably mounted. Further, rear retainers 2 that hold the rear periphery of the glass wafer W are arranged on both sides of the inner surface of the back wall of the container body 1. The front surface of the container body 1 has a rim flange 3 bulging outwardly from the periphery, and a detachable lid body 10 is press-fitted into the rim flange 3 by a lid opening / closing device (not shown). Is done. Locking holes 4 for the lid 10 are respectively drilled in the upper and lower sides of the inner peripheral surface of the rim flange 3.

  Each support 5 is injection-molded with a molding material containing a predetermined resin, for example, polybutylene terephthalate, polyether ether ketone, polycarbonate, COP or the like having excellent sliding properties. Carbon fiber, metal fiber, carbon nanotube, conductive polymer, resin imparted with conductivity and the like are added to the molding material as necessary.

  The support 5 includes a mounting plate 6 that is detachably mounted on the inner surface of the side wall of the container body 1. A plurality of support pieces 7 that horizontally support the glass wafer W are juxtaposed from the mounting plate 6, and each support piece 7 is projected. A step 8 is formed in the front part of the substrate to contact the glass wafer W to restrict its protrusion, and the rear surface of each support piece 7 is in contact with the glass wafer W to insert and store it. A position regulating wall 9 for regulating the position is formed. Each support piece 7 is curvedly formed into a flat arc-shaped plate along the side edge of the glass wafer W, extends in the front-rear direction of the container body 1, and protrudes horizontally in the container body 1.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the lid 10 includes a housing 11 that fits into the opened front of the container body 1 via a gasket 15 and a surface plate that covers the opened surface (front) of the housing 11. 16 and a locking mechanism 18 interposed between the casing 11 and the surface plate 16. The casing 11 is basically formed in a shallow dish shape having a frame-shaped peripheral wall, and an installation space for the locking mechanism 18 is defined between the center portion and the left and right side portions of the peripheral wall. Is done. Through holes 12 for the locking mechanism 18 are formed in both the upper and lower sides of the peripheral wall of the housing 11, and each through hole 12 faces the locking hole 4 of the rim flange 3 of the container body 1.

  A front retainer 13 that elastically holds the glass wafer W is detachably attached to both sides of the rear surface of the housing 11. Each front retainer 13 includes a frame body that is detachably mounted on the back surface of the housing 11 and that is positioned behind the locking mechanism 18 to prevent the lid body 10 from being deformed. Elastic pieces 14 extending in the direction of the back wall of the container body 1 are integrally formed vertically, and each elastic piece 14 has a small holding block for holding the front peripheral edge of the glass wafer W by a U-shaped groove or a V-groove. It is integrally formed.

  A frame-shaped fitting groove is formed on the peripheral edge of the back surface of the housing 11, and a lip type gasket 15 is tightly fitted in the fitting groove, and this gasket 15 is the inner periphery of the rim flange 3 of the container body 1. Deforms by being pressed against. The gasket 15 has a frame shape that can be elastically deformed using, for example, fluorine rubber, silicone rubber, various thermoplastic elastomers (for example, olefin-based, polyester-based, polystyrene-based, etc.) having excellent heat resistance, weather resistance, and the like as molding materials. Molded. Moreover, the surface plate 16 is formed in the flat plate corresponding to the surface which the housing | casing 11 opened, and the operation port 17 for the locking mechanism 18 is pierced in the right-and-left both sides, respectively.

  The locking mechanism 18 includes a pair of left and right rotating plates 19 that are rotated by operating pins of the lid opening / closing device that penetrates the operation port 17 of the surface plate 16, and a plurality of slides that slide in the vertical direction as each rotating plate 19 rotates. The slide plate 20 includes a plurality of locking claws 21 that protrude from the housing 11 and slide into the locking holes 4 of the container body 1 as the slide plates 20 slide. To position.

  The support jig 30 is formed of a molding material containing a predetermined resin or the like. However, when it is desired to suppress vibration during transportation, all or at least a part of the support jig 30 is formed of an elastic material. Examples of the predetermined resin of the molding material include various heats such as polyacetal, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polybutylene naphthalate, polypropylene, polyethylene, polycarbonate, polyetheretherketone, polyester, and polyolefin having elasticity and slipperiness. Examples thereof include a plastic elastomer.

  Carbon fibers, carbon powder, carbon nanotubes, and the like are appropriately added to the predetermined resin of the molding material from the viewpoint of obtaining conductivity. Moreover, when improving a rigidity, a glass fiber is added, and when improving sliding property, a fluorine resin, mica, etc. are selectively mix | blended.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, the support jig 30 is formed in a plate-shaped jig body 31 that faces the glass wafer W from below the container body 1, and the container body 1. A plurality of bent support portions 32 and 32A for the glass wafer W that are curved in the vertical direction, and a flat surface that is horizontally formed on the support piece 7 of the support body 5 so as to protrude from both end portions of the jig body 31. The rail 36 is formed so as to be detachably sandwiched between the stepped portion 8 of the support piece 7 and the position restricting wall 9 to restrict the displacement of the glass wafer W in the insertion direction (front-rear direction of the container body 1). To function.

  As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the jig body 31 is curved in a vertical waveform with respect to the horizontal plane and has a substantially continuous cross section in the left-right direction from the viewpoint of improving rigidity. Each of these is formed in a bent support portion 32A that protrudes smoothly downward and partitions a gap with the glass wafer W, and both side portions are formed in bent support portions 32A that protrude smoothly upward. Protrusions 33 and 33A that can contact the glass wafer W are formed on the front and back surfaces of the bent support portions 32 and 32A, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 2, three or four protrusions 33A located on the surfaces of the protruding bent support portions 32A on both sides protrude to come into contact with the back surface of the glass wafer W and reduce its deflection. While functioning to support. On the other hand, when the glass wafer W located immediately below the support jig 30 is bent upward due to vibration, impact, or the like, the projection 33 located on the back surface of the bending support portion 32 that is recessed upward and protrudes downward. The glass substrate W is elastically interfered and contacted with each other to suppress excessive bending of the bent glass wafer W. Each of the projections 33 and 33A is formed, for example, in a circular shape, and protrudes substantially vertically from the front and rear portions of the bent support portions 32 and 32A or the center of the back surface.

  The front portion of the jig body 31 is curved and formed in a plane arc shape so as to correspond to the front peripheral edge of the glass wafer W, and a reinforcing rib 34 extending in the vertical direction is integrally formed on the peripheral edge. This prevents bending and deformation. Further, the rear part of the jig body 31 is formed in a linear shape perpendicular to the insertion direction of the glass wafer W, and on both sides, there are rotation restricting portions 35 that engage with the position restricting walls 9 of the opposing support 5. Round and chamfered. Each rotation restricting portion 35 is located behind the rail 36 and restricts displacement while avoiding rubbing with the position restricting wall 9.

  Each rail 36 is formed in a flat plate shape in the front-rear direction of the support jig 30, and when it is desired to reduce vibration during transportation, a vibration absorbing layer made of various films and sheets is selectively attached to the back surface. . The rail 36 is formed to be shorter than the length of the jig body 31 in the front-rear direction from the viewpoint of reducing the contact area of the support 5 with the support piece 7.

  In the above configuration, when a glass wafer W that is easily bent is stored in the container main body 1 of the substrate storage container, first, the support jig 30 is opposed to the container main body 1 via the support pieces 7 of the pair of support bodies 5 so as to be detachable. The jig body 31 of the support jig 30 is sandwiched between the stepped portion 8 of the support piece 7 and the position regulating wall 9.

  When the support jig 30 is thus housed in the container body 1, the glass wafer W is horizontally supported on the container body 1 via the support piece 7 of the support 5, and the support jig 30 is positioned directly below the glass wafer W. If the glass wafers W are respectively supported by the plurality of protrusions 33A of the bending support portion 32A by point contact, deformation of the glass wafer W can be suppressed and stored safely.

  When the glass wafer W is stored in the container body 1, the lid body 10 is press-fitted into the front surface of the container body 1 by a lid opening / closing device and fitted in a sealed state, and the glass wafer W is inserted into the front retainer 13 of the lid body 10. If the front periphery is held, the glass wafer W can be safely transported or transported. At this time, since the glass wafer W is hardly bent by the support jig 30, the front peripheral edge of the glass wafer W can be reliably held by the front retainer 13 of the lid 10.

  According to the above configuration, each of the bending support portions 32A is not flat, but is curved and the plurality of protrusions 33A support the glass wafer W by point contact, so that the contact area with the glass wafer W can be greatly reduced. Therefore, the possibility of contamination of the glass wafer W due to rubbing can be effectively eliminated. Further, since the rotation restricting portion 35 of the support jig 30 reliably restricts the positional deviation, the glass wafer W can be supported with high accuracy.

  Further, since the pair of left and right rails 36 is shorter than the length of the jig body 31 in the front-rear direction, the frictional engagement area with the support piece 7 is small, and the possibility of contamination of the glass wafer W can be eliminated. Further, when the support jig 30 is unnecessary, for example, when supporting a wafer having a normal thickness, the support jig 30 can be easily removed from between the pair of left and right supports 5. It is possible to prevent complications and complications of the loading / unloading work.

  Further, since the bending support portion 32 at the center of the jig body 31 is recessed downward and the bending support portions 32A on both sides are protruded upward, the center portion of the jig body 31 can be easily lifted by a handling robot. It becomes possible to up. In addition, since the bending support portion 32 positioned at the center of the jig body 31 forms a working gap between the glass wafer W and the back surface of the glass wafer W, an arm of a handling robot is inserted into the gap and the glass wafer is inserted. W can be loaded and unloaded.

  Furthermore, since the protrusion 33 located on the back surface of the bending support part 32 suppresses the glass wafer W located immediately below from bending upwards like a bow, the glass wafer located below the glass wafer W located above the glass wafer W located above. The safe holding of the wafer W can be greatly expected.

  In the above embodiment, the support jig 30 is formed of a molding material. However, on the front and back surfaces of the support jig 30, polythiophene, polypyrrole, or the like having a π-electron conjugated bond is used from the viewpoint of obtaining electrical conductivity and scratch resistance. The conductive polymer or diamond-like coating may be coated.

  In addition, the jig body 31 of the above embodiment is formed in a curved shape with a substantially wavy cross section, the center portion is formed in the bent support portions 32 and 32A that protrude smoothly upward, and the both sides are protruded downward respectively. You may form in 32 * 32A. Furthermore, in the said embodiment, although protrusion 33 * 33A was formed in planar circle shape, it is not limited to this at all. For example, the protrusions 33 and 33A may be appropriately formed in a plane ellipse, rectangle, polygon, or the like, or may be formed in a pin shape whose upper end is curved in a hemispherical shape.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Container body 5 Support body 7 Support piece 8 Step part 9 Position control wall 10 Lid body 11 Case 13 Front retainer 16 Surface plate 18 Locking mechanism 30 Support jig 31 Jig body 32 Bend support part 32A Bend support part 33 Projection 33A Protrusion 34 Reinforcing rib 35 Rotation restricting portion 36 Rail W Glass wafer (substrate)

Claims (3)

A container body of a front open box for accommodating the substrate, the container is housed in the body and a support jig for supporting the substrate, the interior sides of the container body, the horizontal supportable supporting the substrate and the support jig A substrate storage container provided with a body ,
The support includes a support piece that extends in the front-rear direction of the container body and supports the substrate. A stepped portion that restricts protrusion of the substrate is formed at a front portion of the support piece, and a rear portion of the substrate is formed at the rear portion of the support piece. Form a position restricting part that restricts the storage position,
The support jig includes a plate-shaped jig body having a continuous cross-sectional waveform facing the substrate from the vertical direction of the container body, a bending support portion formed on the jig body and bent in the vertical direction of the container body, and a jig. And a flat rail that is formed to protrude from the side end of the main body and supported by the support piece of the support body, and the central portion of the jig main body serves as a bent support portion that protrudes downward, and both side portions are directed upward. Protruding bend support portions, each of these bend support portions is formed with protrusions that can contact the substrate,
When support jigs are placed on the top and bottom of the substrate, respectively, and the jig body of this support jig is sandwiched between the stepped portion of the support piece of the support and the position restricting portion, both sides of one support jig A substrate storage container characterized in that the protrusion can be contacted and supported by the protrusion on the back surface of the substrate positioned above, and the protrusion at the center of another support jig can be contacted with the surface of the substrate positioned below .   2. The substrate storage container according to claim 1, wherein at least a part of the support jig is formed of an elastic material, or a vibration absorbing layer is laminated on the rail.   The front part of the jig body of the support jig is formed in a plane arc shape, reinforcing ribs are formed on the periphery thereof, the rear part of the jig body is formed linearly, and the position of the support body is regulated on both sides thereof The substrate storage container according to claim 1, wherein a rotation restricting portion that interferes with the portion is formed.

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