JP5981986B2 - Support unit for substrate support - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a support unit for supporting a substrate that prevents the substrate from being deformed by bending during substrate processing.

  The substrate processing apparatus is used when manufacturing a flat display, and is roughly classified into a vapor deposition apparatus and an annealing apparatus.

  The vapor deposition apparatus is an apparatus for forming a transparent conductive layer, an insulating layer, a metal layer, or a silicon layer that forms the core of a flat display, such as LPCVD (Low Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition) or PECVD (Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition). There are chemical vapor deposition apparatuses such as the above, and physical vapor deposition apparatuses such as sputtering.

  The annealing apparatus is an apparatus for improving the characteristics of the deposited film after depositing the film on the substrate, and performing heat treatment to crystallize or change the phase of the deposited film.

  In general, the substrate processing apparatus includes a single substrate type (Single Substrate Type) for processing one substrate and a batch type (Batch Type) for processing a plurality of substrates. The single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus has an advantage that the configuration is simple, but has a disadvantage that the productivity is lowered. Therefore, a batch type substrate processing apparatus is often used for mass production.

  In the batch type substrate processing apparatus, a chamber that provides a space for processing a substrate is formed, and a support unit that supports the substrate loaded in the chamber is installed in the chamber.

  However, since the conventional support unit cannot support the entire surface of the substrate, the substrate may be bent and deformed by its own weight when the substrate is loaded into the chamber and processed. Thereby, there existed a malfunction that the display characteristic of a flat display deteriorated and reliability fell.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, and its purpose is to support the entire surface of the substrate during substrate processing and to improve the reliability of the flat display. Another object is to provide a support unit for supporting a substrate.

  In order to achieve the above object, a substrate supporting support unit according to the present invention includes a pair of cross support bars arranged in parallel to each other, and one end side and the other end side of the cross support bar, respectively, And a support bracket for positioning the cross support bar on the mating member, and arranged at a distance from each other, each of one end side being supported by any one of the cross support bars and the other end portion Each of the sides is paired with a pair of outer members supported by the other cross support bar, formed in a diameter smaller than the diameter of the outer members and laminated to the outer members, respectively, A pair of outer support bars that are supported on the part side, a plurality of connection bars that connect the pair of outer members to each other, and formed on the connection bars to support the substrate And a boat with a number of support pins.

  Further, the substrate support support unit according to the present invention for achieving the above object includes a plurality of support bars arranged in parallel with each other, and one end side and the other end side of the support bar respectively. A support bracket that is supported and coupled to a counterpart and positions the support bar on the counterpart, and a plurality of support pins that are formed on the support bar and support the substrate.

  In the substrate supporting support unit according to the present invention, since the entire surface of the substrate is uniformly supported by the plurality of support pins during substrate processing, there is no fear that the substrate is bent and deformed by its own weight. Therefore, there is an effect that the reliability of the flat display is improved.

1 is a perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus in which a support unit for supporting a substrate according to a first embodiment of the present invention is used. It is a perspective view of the support unit for substrate support shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of any one substrate supporting support unit shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the boat shown in FIG. 3. It is a perspective view of the support unit for substrate support which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of any one substrate supporting support unit shown in FIG. 5. It is a perspective view of any one support bar shown in FIG.

  The following detailed description of the invention refers to the accompanying drawings that illustrate, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. It should be understood that the various embodiments of the present invention are different from each other but need not be mutually exclusive. For example, the specific shapes, specific structures, and characteristics described herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention in connection with one embodiment. It should also be understood that the location or arrangement of individual components within each disclosed embodiment may be changed without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is, if properly described, only by the appended claims along with all equivalents of those claims that are claimed. Limited. The length, area, thickness and form of the embodiments shown in the drawings may be exaggerated for convenience.

  Hereinafter, a substrate support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  In the description of the present embodiment, the processing of the substrate refers to a process of heating and cooling the substrate, any deposition process for depositing a predetermined film on the substrate, annealing, crystallization, or deposition of the predetermined film deposited on the substrate. It should be understood as a concept including any heat treatment step for phase change.

  First embodiment

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus using a substrate supporting support unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the substrate supporting support unit shown in FIG. .

  As shown in the figure, the substrate processing apparatus includes a main body 10 formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and having an appearance, and a chamber 11 that is a sealed space in which the substrate 50 is processed is formed inside the main body 10. . The main body 10 can be formed in various shapes depending on the shape of the substrate 50 as well as a rectangular parallelepiped shape.

  The front surface of the main body 10 is open and a door 13 is installed. The door 13 opens and closes the chamber 11. That is, with the door 13 opened and the chamber 11 opened, the substrate 50 is supported by a robot (not shown) and the substrate 50 is loaded into the chamber 11. Then, the substrate 50 is processed with the door 13 closed and the chamber 11 closed.

  The upper surface of the main body 10 can also be opened, and a cover 15 is installed for this purpose, but the chamber 11 is also opened and closed by the cover 15. The cover 15 opens the interior of the chamber 11 when repairing or replacing parts necessary for processing the substrate 50 installed in the chamber 11.

  The components installed inside the chamber 11 include a substrate supporting support unit 100 for mounting and supporting the substrate 50, a heater 17 for heating the substrate 50, and a cooling pipe (not shown) for cooling the substrate 50. Or the like).

  The left end and the right end of the heater 17 are supported by the left wall and the right wall of the main body 10, respectively. A plurality of heaters 17 are installed with a predetermined interval from the front side to the rear side of the main body 10, and a plurality of heaters 17 are installed with a predetermined interval from the upper side to the lower side of the main body 10.

  A substrate supporting support unit 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of any one substrate supporting support unit shown in FIG.

  As illustrated, the substrate support support unit 100 may include a cross support bar 110, a support bracket 120, and a boat 130. A plurality of substrate supporting units 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention can be installed in the substrate processing apparatus so as to be able to process a plurality of substrates 50 at once.

  A pair of cross support bars 110 are provided, are located at the same height with respect to the lower surface of the main body 10 and are arranged in parallel to each other. At this time, one cross support bar 110 is supported on both side walls on the front side of the main body 10 adjacent to the door 13, and the other cross support bar 110 is supported on both side walls on the rear side of the main body 10.

  In the substrate processing apparatus, the main body 10 is a counterpart (support that supports the support bar) on which the cross support bar 110 is supported.

  A structure in which the cross support bar 110 is supported by the main body 10 will be described in detail.

  The left end portion and the right end portion of the cross support bar 110 extend outside the main body 10 through the left wall portion and the right wall portion of the main body 10. A support bracket 120 that supports the cross support bar 110 is coupled to the left and right side walls of the main body 10.

  A support groove 121 and a locking groove 123 are formed on the upper surface of the support bracket 120 so as to be orthogonal to each other. The support groove 121 parallel to the cross support bar 110 is fitted and supported at the lower portion of the end of the cross support bar 110 extending to the outside of the main body 10, and the locking groove 123 orthogonal to the cross support bar 110. The engagement ring 111 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the end portion of the cross support bar 110 is fitted and supported.

  Since the end of the cross support bar 110 is fitted and supported in the support groove 121 and the locking ring 111 is fitted and supported in the locking groove 123, the cross support bar 110 is firmly supported by the support bracket 120.

  A boat according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the boat shown in FIG.

  The boat 130 is preferably made of quartz that can withstand high temperatures during processing of the substrate 50 and has almost no structural change.

  As shown in the figure, the boat 130 includes a pair of outer members 131 arranged in parallel at a predetermined interval from each other. The front end portion of the outer member 131 is supported by a front cross support bar 110 disposed on the front side of the main body 10 (see FIG. 1), and the rear end portion of the outer member 131 is disposed on the rear surface side of the main body 10. The rear cross support bar 110 is supported.

  In order to firmly support the outer member 131 to the cross support bar 110, a first locking piece 131 a that is engaged and supported by the front cross support bar 110 is provided at the front end portion of the outer member 131. The rear end portion of the member 131 is provided with a second locking piece 131b that is placed and supported on the rear cross support bar 110. The second locking piece 131b can also be provided on a connecting bar 135 (to be described later) that connects the pair of outer members 131 to each other by connecting the left and right ends to the pair of outer members 131, respectively.

  The first locking piece 131a has a semicircular cross-sectional shape and is engaged and supported by the cross support bar 110. The second locking piece 131 b is formed in a bar shape, and is placed and supported on the cross support bar 110. Since the first locking piece 131a is engaged and supported by the cross support bar 110, and the second locking piece 131b is placed and supported on the cross support bar 110, the boat 130 is firmly supported by the cross support bar 110. Is done. Further, since the first locking piece 131a of the boat 130 is formed in a semicircular shape and is placed on the cross support bar 110, the boat 130 is lifted from the cross support bar 110 by lifting the boat 130 upward. Can be separated. Therefore, the boat 130 can be easily separated from the cross support bar 110.

  An outer support bar 133 is coupled to each outer member 131. Since the outer support bar 133 is coupled to each outer member 131, a pair of outer support bars 133 are also provided. The outer support bar 133 has a diameter smaller than that of the outer member 131, and is arranged on and coupled to the outer member 131 in parallel with the member. The outer support bar 133 supports the frame portion of the substrate 50.

  In order for the outer member 131 to have a predetermined rigidity or more, the outer member 131 needs to have a relatively large diameter. However, if the substrate 50 is contacted and supported by the outer member 131, the portion of the substrate 50 that contacts the outer member 131 may not be processed uniformly. Therefore, in the present invention, the outer support bar 133 having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the outer member 131 is arranged on the outer member 131 in parallel to the member, and the substrate 50 is contacted and supported by the outer support bar 133. did.

  The pair of outer members 131 are coupled to each other by a plurality of connecting bars 135. A plurality of support pins 136 for supporting the substrate 50 are coupled to the connection bar 135. The entire substrate 50 can be evenly supported by the support pins 136. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the substrate 50 from being bent and deformed by its own weight or the like.

  Of the plurality of connecting bars 135, the connecting bar 135 disposed at the rear end of the outer member 131 is provided with the second locking piece 131b described above.

  The support pin 136 is preferably detachably coupled to the connection bar 135. Since the support pins 136 can be attached to and detached from the connecting bar 135, the support pins 136 can be centrally arranged on the portion where the substrate 50 is bent by the weight of the substrate 50, thereby completely preventing the substrate 50 from being deformed. can do. The support pin 136 may be formed in various shapes, which will be described later.

  A plurality of substrates 50 may be partitioned and supported on the outer support bar 133. At this time, a plurality of stoppers 133 a are provided on the outer support bar 133 in order to prevent the plurality of partitioned and supported substrates 50 from moving (displaced) on the outer support bar 133. The stopper 133 a contacts the side surface of the substrate 50, thereby preventing the substrate 50 from being displaced in the longitudinal direction of the outer support bar 133.

  It is preferable that the stopper 133a is also detachably coupled to the outer support bar 133. In this way, since the stopper 133a can be attached and detached according to the size of the substrate 50, the substrates 50 of various sizes can be supported by the outer support bar 133.

  The coupling bar 135 and the outer support bar 133 are respectively formed with a first coupling groove 135a and a second coupling groove 133b to which the lower end portions of the support pin 136 and the stopper 133a are detachably coupled.

  Support pieces 133 c for supporting the frame portion of the substrate 50 may be provided at the front end and the rear end of the outer support bar 133 so as to be orthogonal to the outer support bar 133. The substrate 50 is more firmly supported by the support piece 133c. When a plurality of substrates 50 are supported by the outer support bar 133, the support pieces 133 c are also arranged at the center of the outer support bar 133 so as to correspond to the substrate 50.

  To engage a jig (not shown) with the boat 130 when the boat 130 is loaded into or unloaded from the chamber 11 (see FIG. 1) at the front end and the rear end of the outer member 131. Locking hooks 131c are provided. When the jig is engaged with the locking hook 131c, the height of the locking hook 131c is adjusted as appropriate so that the jig does not receive interference between the support pin 136 and the stopper 133a.

  Reference numeral 20 in FIG. 1 denotes a support frame that supports the main body 10.

  According to the substrate supporting support unit 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, since the entire surface of the substrate 50 is supported by the plurality of support pins 136, there is no possibility that the substrate 50 is bent and deformed by its own weight. Therefore, an effect of improving the reliability of the flat display can be obtained.

  Second embodiment

  A substrate-supporting support unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a substrate supporting support unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of any one of the substrate supporting support units shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of any one support bar shown in FIG. 6.

  As illustrated, the substrate support unit 200 according to the second embodiment of the present invention may include a plurality of support bars 210, a support bracket 220, and a plurality of support pins 230. A plurality of substrate supporting units 200 according to the second embodiment of the present invention can be installed in the substrate processing apparatus so that a plurality of substrates 50 can be processed at a time.

  The plurality of support bars 210 are positioned at the same height with respect to the lower surface of the main body 10 (see FIG. 1), and are arranged in parallel to each other. That is, the plurality of support bars 210 are positioned on the same virtual horizontal plane and are arranged in parallel to each other. The left end portion and the right end portion of the support bar 210 are respectively coupled to and supported by the left wall portion and the right wall portion of the main body 10 as a counterpart.

  A structure in which the support bar 210 is coupled and supported to the main body 10 will be described in detail.

  The left end portion and the right end portion of the support bar 210 extend outside the main body 10 through the left wall portion and the right wall portion of the main body 10, respectively. A support bracket 220 that supports the support bar 210 is coupled to the left and right side walls of the main body 10.

  A support groove 221 and a locking groove 223 are formed on the upper surface of the support bracket 220 so as to be orthogonal to each other. The lower portion of the end portion of the support bar 210 extending to the outside of the main body 10 is fitted and supported in the support groove 221 that is parallel to the support bar 210. A locking ring 211 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the end of the support bar 210 is fitted and supported in the locking groove 223 orthogonal to the support bar 210.

  Since the end of the support bar 210 is fitted and supported in the support groove 221 and the lock ring 211 is fitted and supported in the lock groove 223, the support bar 210 is firmly supported by the support bracket 220.

  Each support bar 210 is provided with a plurality of support pins 230, and the substrate 50 is supported by the support pins 230. That is, the lower end portion of the support pin 230 is coupled to the support bar 210, and the substrate 50 is supported by the upper end portion of the support pin 230. Since the plurality of support pins 230 are respectively coupled to the plurality of support bars 210, the entire substrate 50 can be evenly supported by the support pins 230. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the substrate 50 from being bent and deformed by its own weight or the like.

  A coupling groove 213 is formed in the support bar 210, and the support pin 230 can be detachably inserted and coupled to the coupling groove 213. Since the support pins 230 can be attached to and detached from the support bar 210, the support pins 230 can be intensively arranged at a portion where the substrate 50 bends due to its own weight when the substrate 50 is processed. Therefore, it is possible to completely prevent the substrate 50 from being deformed.

  The cross-sectional shape of the lower end of the support pin 230 may be variously formed such as a circle, an ellipse, or a square. At this time, it is natural that the shape of the coupling groove 213 to which the support pin 230 is attached / detached needs to correspond to the cross-sectional shape of the lower end portion of the support pin 230.

  If the cross-sectional shape of the lower end portion of the support pin 231 and the shape of the coupling groove 213 a are circular, the support pin 231 can rotate with respect to the support bar 210. If the cross-sectional shape of the lower end portion of the support pin 233 and the shape of the coupling groove 213b are elliptical, or the cross-sectional shape of the lower end portion of the support pin 235 and the shape of the coupling groove 213c are square, It is possible to prevent the support pins 233 and 235 from rotating with respect to the support bar 210.

  The support pin 231 is bent at an intermediate portion 231a (bent), and has a length of an upper end portion of the support pin 231 that contacts and supports the substrate 50 and a lower end portion of the support pin 231 inserted and coupled to the support bar 210. Virtual straight lines L1 and L2 that respectively pass through the centers of the directions (axial directions) may be formed so as to be parallel to each other. If the lower end of the support pin 231 is formed in a circular shape and the support pin 231 is rotatable, the support pin 231 does not need to be attached to and detached from the coupling groove 213a, and the support pin 231 is rotated to By changing the position of the pins, it is possible to easily support the portion where the substrate 50 bends.

  The bending portion 231a of the support pin 231 can be bent (bent) a plurality of times as necessary.

  According to the substrate supporting support unit 200 according to the second embodiment of the present invention, since the entire surface of the substrate 50 is supported by the plurality of support pins 230 when the substrate 50 is processed, the substrate 50 is bent and deformed by its own weight. There is no fear of doing. Therefore, an effect of improving the reliability of the flat display can be obtained.

  The support pin 136 (see FIG. 4) according to the first embodiment of the present invention can also be configured like the support pin 230 according to the second embodiment.

  More specifically, the support pin 136 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is similar to the support pins 231, 233, and 235 according to the second embodiment in that the cross-sectional shape of the lower end is circular and elliptical. It can be formed like a shape or a square. At this time, it is natural that the shape of the first coupling groove 135 a formed in the connection bar 135 needs to correspond to the cross-sectional shape of the support pin 136.

  The support pin 136 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is also bent (bent) at an intermediate portion and inserted into the connecting bar 135 like the support pin 231 according to the second embodiment. An imaginary straight line that passes through the lower end portion 136 and the upper end portion of the support pin 136 that supports the substrate 50 in the length direction (axial direction) may be formed to be parallel to each other. At this time, the lower end portion of the support pin 136 is rotatably inserted and coupled to the connecting bar 135, and the intermediate portion can be bent (bent) a plurality of times.

  The drawings for the embodiments of the present invention described above are schematically shown so that detailed contour lines are omitted and portions belonging to the technical idea of the present invention can be easily understood. Moreover, the said embodiment cannot be a standard which limits the technical idea of this invention, and is only a reference matter for understanding the technical matter contained in the claim of this invention.

Claims (10)

A pair of cross support bars arranged parallel to each other at a predetermined interval;
A pair of support brackets attached to a support that supports the pair of cross support bars and supporting both ends of the pair of cross support bars;
A boat supported by the pair of cross support bars,
The boat
A pair of outer members disposed in parallel with each other at a predetermined interval and having both ends supported by the pair of cross support bars,
A pair of outer support bars for supporting a frame portion of the substrate, having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the outer member, and arranged and coupled to each of the outer members in parallel to the member;
A plurality of connecting bars for connecting the pair of outer members to each other; and
A support unit for supporting a substrate, comprising a plurality of support pins provided on the connection bar for supporting the substrate. A locking ring is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the end portion of the cross support bar,
2. The substrate support support according to claim 1, wherein the support bracket includes a support groove that fits and supports an end portion of the cross support bar and a lock groove that fits and supports the lock ring. 3. unit. The outer support bar divides and supports the plurality of substrates;
2. The substrate support according to claim 1, wherein the outer support bar has a plurality of stoppers that contact a side surface of the substrate and prevent the substrate from being displaced in a longitudinal direction of the outer support bar. Support unit. The connecting bar and the outer support bar each have a first coupling groove and a second coupling groove;
The one end portion of the support pin and the one end portion of the stopper are configured to be detachably coupled to the first coupling groove and the second coupling groove, respectively. Support unit for substrate support. The cross-sectional shape of one end of the support pin has any one shape selected from a circle, an ellipse, and a square, and the first coupling groove corresponds to the shape of the support pin The support unit for supporting a substrate according to claim 4, comprising: One end of the support pin is rotatably coupled to the connecting bar;
An intermediate portion of the support pin has a bent shape, and one end portion of the support pin coupled to the connecting bar and the center in the length direction of the other end portion of the support pin that supports the substrate, respectively. the substrate support supporting unit according to claim 4, characterized in that the imaginary straight line is consists as to be parallel to each other through.   The substrate supporting support unit according to claim 6, wherein a plurality of intermediate portions of the support pins are bent and bent. One end portion of each outer member has a first locking piece engaged and supported by one cross support bar of the pair of cross support bars,
A second locking piece in which the connecting bar coupled to the other end of the outer member or the other end of the outer member is placed and supported on the other cross support bar of the pair of cross support bars. The support unit for supporting a substrate according to claim 1, comprising:   2. The support for supporting a substrate according to claim 1, wherein the outer support bar has a support piece formed to be orthogonal to the outer support bar for supporting a frame portion of the substrate. unit.   The support unit for supporting a substrate according to claim 1, wherein both ends of the outer member have locking hooks for engaging a jig with the boat when the boat is moved.

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