JP6256159B2 - Continuous processing apparatus and continuous processing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a continuous processing apparatus and a continuous processing method for forming a film simultaneously and continuously on the surfaces of a plurality of materials to be processed such as steel using plasma.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various film forming apparatuses for forming a film on the surface of a work material having conductivity such as a steel material using plasma have been proposed.
For example, a technique for forming a diamond-like carbon (hereinafter referred to as “DLC”) film on the surface of the above-described material to be processed is known from Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-47207.

  In the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, plasma is supplied to a peripheral region of an inner surface of a quartz window by supplying a microwave toward a material to be processed in a processing container through a quartz window that is a microwave supply port. Generated. The material to be processed is, for example, a rod, and is disposed so as to protrude from the inner surface of the quartz window into the processing container, and a sheath layer is generated in the peripheral portion of the inner surface of the quartz window of the processed material covered with the generated plasma. . Subsequently, during the supply of the microwave, the plasma generation device applies a negative bias voltage to the workpiece material.

  As a result, the sheath layer generated on the surface of the work material expands along the surface of the work material. At the same time, the supplied microwave propagates as a surface wave of high energy density along the expanded sheath layer. At this time, plasma is also generated on the surface of the material to be processed away from the periphery of the inner surface of the quartz window by the surface wave of high energy density, and a sheath layer is also generated. The newly generated sheath layer is also expanded by the negative bias voltage, and the microwave further propagates as a surface wave of high energy density along the expanded sheath layer. As a result, the plasma extends to a portion of the workpiece material away from the periphery of the quartz window, that is, from one end of the workpiece material on the quartz window side to the other end protruding into the processing container. As a result, the source gas is plasma-excited by the surface wave and becomes high-density plasma. Thereby, the DLC film forming process is performed on the entire surface of the material to be processed.

JP 2004-47207 A

  However, the film forming apparatus described in Patent Document 1 originally arranges one processing material in a processing container and forms a film on the one processing material. There is no idea of simultaneously forming films on the material.

  The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a continuous processing apparatus capable of automatically and continuously forming a plurality of materials to be processed. To do.

A continuous processing apparatus according to claim 1 includes a gas supply unit that supplies a gas into a processing container, a microwave supply port that supplies a microwave into the processing container, and a holding member that can hold a plurality of materials to be processed. The workpiece is moved through the holding member disposed at a predetermined position in the processing container, a part of the holding member is protruded from the microwave supply port, and the holding member is A first moving unit that moves the workpiece material installed at the microwave supply port via the holding member and moves the workpiece to be installed at the predetermined position, and is installed at the microwave supply port via the holding member by the first moving unit. A negative voltage applying member is electrically connected to the processed material thus applied, and a negative voltage applying portion for applying a negative voltage, and the first moving portion causes the work material to pass through the holding member to the predetermined position. after being moved to the object Characterized in that it comprises a second moving unit that moves the Engineering material different other work piece through the other of said retaining member to the predetermined position.

The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 2 includes a storage unit in which a plurality of the holding members are arranged and arranged in a region including the predetermined position in the processing container, and the first moving unit includes the first moving unit, The holding member arranged at a predetermined position is moved, a part of the holding member is protruded from the microwave supply port, and the holding member is moved from the microwave supply port, and the storage unit The negative voltage application unit electrically connects the negative voltage application member to the holding member installed at the microwave supply port, and is negatively connected to the work material via the holding member. A voltage is applied.

The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 3 includes a storage unit in which a plurality of the holding members are arranged and arranged in a region including the predetermined position in the processing container, and the second moving unit includes the second moving unit, after the processed material is moved to the office localization location via the holding member by the first moving portion, characterized by moving the position of the storage portion with respect to the predetermined position.

The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 4 is connected to the processing container via a first valve, and stores the storage unit in which the material to be processed before being processed in the processing container is disposed. A storage container, and a second storage container that is connected to the processing container via a second valve and stores the storage unit in which the material to be processed after being processed in the processing container is disposed; said second moving unit, said storage unit, to move from the first storage vessel to the processing chamber, and, thus being moved from the processing chamber into the second reservoir.

The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the negative voltage application unit includes a first electrode having a first voltage applied to the material to be processed, and a second electrode having a second potential higher than the first voltage. with the door, said the first electrode, when the negative voltage is applied a plurality of the material to be processed, the second electrode is non between a plurality of the processed material held by the holding member It is arranged by contact.

  The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the first moving portion includes a first support portion that supports the holding member that holds the workpiece material, and an enclosure wall that is provided so as to surround a part of the holding member. And a second support part for supporting, wherein the workpiece material and the surrounding wall are moved by the first support part and the second support part.

  The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the surrounding wall is detachable from the holding member around a side surface of the holding member with respect to a protruding direction when the holding member is installed in the microwave supply port. And the length in the protruding direction is shorter than the length in the protruding direction of the holding member, and the first moving part includes the first support part and the second support part. The holding member and the surrounding wall are simultaneously moved while holding the surrounding wall around the holding member by the portion.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a continuous processing method that selects a holding member arranged at a predetermined position from among holding members capable of holding a plurality of workpiece materials arranged in a processing container, and places a micro in the processing container. An installation step in which a part of the holding member protrudes from a microwave supply port that supplies a wave, and a negative voltage is applied to the material to be processed that is arranged at the microwave supply port via the holding member. A connecting step of electrically connecting a negative voltage applying member; a supplying step of supplying the microwave and gas to the workpiece to which the negative voltage applying member is connected; and a negative voltage is applied, When the microwave and the gas are supplied, the microwave supply port is released by the releasing step of releasing the connection of the connected negative voltage application member from the film-formed material and the installation step. Set in Is, the holding member, wherein the holding the work piece which is formed, and removed from the microwave supplying port, a return step for returning to the predetermined position, after the return process, disposed in the processing chamber Of the plurality of holding members, film formation is performed by a moving step of moving another holding member different from the holding member selected in the installation step to the predetermined position.

If simultaneous film formation on a plurality of work materials can be performed, the film formation efficiency of each work material can be remarkably improved, which is desirable. Furthermore, if a plurality of materials to be processed can be continuously formed, automatic and continuous film formation is possible, which is further desirable. Therefore, in the continuous processing apparatus according to claim 1, the material to be processed is moved through the holding member arranged at a predetermined position in the processing container, and a part of the holding member is protruded and installed in the microwave supply port. and, via the holding member to move the work piece placed in a microwave supply port, a first moving unit for installation into a predetermined position, and a predetermined position the material to be processed through a holding member by the first moving portion after being moved to, and a second moving portion that moves through the other holding member different from other work piece and the work piece to a predetermined position. In this continuous processing apparatus, the work material is projected from the predetermined position to the microwave supply port by the first moving unit, and the film is formed, and the work material on which the film has been formed is installed at the predetermined position. Further, when the work material is moved by the first moving unit, the other work material is moved to a predetermined position. As a result, it becomes possible to perform film formation of the material to be processed automatically and continuously.

In the continuous processing apparatus according to claim 2, the processing unit includes a storage unit in which a plurality of holding members are arranged in an area including the predetermined position in the processing container, and the first moving unit is disposed at the predetermined position. The holding member that holds the plurality of processed members is moved, a part of the holding member is protruded from the microwave supply port, and the negative voltage application member is electrically connected to the holding member installed at the microwave supply port. Are connected to each other, a negative voltage is applied to form a film on each of the plurality of work materials held on the holding member, and a holding member for holding each of the work materials on which the film has been formed is installed in the storage unit. . Thereby, it becomes possible to perform film-forming automatically and continuously with respect to each of several workpiece material hold | maintained at the holding member.

In the continuous processing apparatus according to claim 3, the processing unit includes a storage unit in which a plurality of holding members are arranged in an area including a predetermined position in the processing container, and the second moving unit is provided by the first moving unit. after the work piece is moved to a predetermined position location via the holding member, moving the position of the storage portion for a given position. Accordingly, a plurality of work materials are stored in the storage unit in advance, and the work material is moved from the storage unit to the film forming position by the first moving unit, and the work unit is moved when the work material is moved. Moved. Therefore, a plurality of materials to be processed are formed automatically and continuously, and the film formation efficiency can be significantly improved.

  In the continuous processing apparatus according to claim 4, the second moving unit moves the storage unit that is stored in the first storage container and in which the processing material is arranged, into the processing container and is processed in the processing container. The storage part in which the material is arranged is moved to the second storage container. Accordingly, the storage unit can be continuously moved to the processing container via the second moving unit, and the processing of a large number of workpiece materials can be automated.

The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 5 includes a first electrode having a first voltage to be applied to the material to be processed, and a second electrode having a second potential that is higher than the first voltage. when a negative voltage is applied to the plurality of the processed material, the second electrode is disposed in a non-contact manner between a plurality of the processed material held by the holding member. As a result, a sufficient potential difference due to the negative voltage applied from the first electrode by the negative voltage application unit is secured between the plurality of work materials, and plasma is efficiently generated around each work material. Thus, uniform film formation can be simultaneously performed on a plurality of workpiece materials.

  In the continuous processing apparatus according to the sixth aspect, in the first moving part, the holding member is moved by the first support part, and the surrounding wall is moved by the second support part. By providing the surrounding wall, it is possible to prevent film formation particles from adhering to the microwave supply port during film formation of the material to be processed. On the other hand, during film formation, film formation particles are deposited on the upper end of the surrounding wall. When the surrounding wall is moved together with the workpiece by the first moving part, the workpiece to be deposited can be moved and the surrounding wall can be replaced, and an abnormality caused by deposition of film-forming particles on the surrounding wall Electric discharge can be prevented, and uniform film formation can be performed on the work material.

  In the continuous machining apparatus according to claim 7, when the holding member holding the workpiece is moved, the holding member and the surrounding wall are simultaneously held while holding the surrounding wall around the holding member. Moving. When the workpiece material is moved by the first moving unit, the surrounding wall is moved simultaneously with the movement of the plurality of workpiece members by simultaneously moving the surrounding wall while being held around the workpiece material. Is done.

In the continuous processing method according to claim 8, the material to be processed, which has been formed through the connection step and the supply step, is held with respect to the material to be processed that protrudes from the microwave supply port by the installation step . After the holding member is returned to a predetermined position by the return process, another work material different from the work material selected in the installation process is moved to the predetermined position. As a result, it becomes possible to perform film formation of the material to be processed automatically and continuously.

It is explanatory drawing which shows typically the film-forming system which concerns on this embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows typically the film-forming apparatus in a film-forming system. It is explanatory drawing which expands and shows the principal part in a film-forming apparatus. It is a control block diagram of a film-forming system. It is a flowchart of the film-forming control program performed with a film-forming system. It is a flowchart of the film-forming control program performed with a film-forming system. It is a flowchart of the film-forming control program performed with a film-forming system.

  Hereinafter, a continuous processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings based on an embodiment in which the present invention is embodied with respect to a film forming system. First, a schematic configuration of the film forming system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. The film forming system 1 is a continuous processing apparatus including a film forming apparatus 101 including a processing container 2 to be described later and a moving device 14 disposed in the processing container 2. In addition, as a continuous processing apparatus, each mechanism is provided in an integrated apparatus as long as it has at least a mechanism included in the film forming apparatus 101 including the processing container 2 and a mechanism included in the moving apparatus 14. May be. In addition, the moving apparatus 14 of this embodiment is an example of the 1st moving part of this invention.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration of a film forming system 1 of the present embodiment. FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the overall configuration of the film forming system 1 as viewed from above. As shown in FIG. 1, the film forming system 1 according to this embodiment includes a processing container 2, a first storage container 3, and a second storage container 4. In the present embodiment, the processing container 2 includes a negative voltage application electrode 125 and a ground electrode 141, but is not shown in FIG.

  Here, the processing container 2 is made of a metal such as stainless steel and has a hermetic structure, and the processing container 2 is provided with a standby region 5 and a film formation region 6. The waiting area 5 is an area in which a stocker 9 that stocks a plurality (three in FIG. 1) of holding tools 8 that hold a plurality (three in FIG. 1) of work material 7 is kept waiting. The film formation region 6 is an area where a film is formed on each work material 7 held by the holder 8. A vacuum pump 10 is attached to the processing container 2 via a pressure adjustment valve 60. The vacuum pump 10 is a pump capable of evacuating the inside of the processing container 2 via the pressure adjustment valve 60.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the holder 8 includes a conductive holding part 11 and a propagation part 12. Three workpiece materials 7 are held on the holding portion 11. Further, as will be described later, when the propagation unit 12 becomes conductive, the propagation unit 12 propagates the microwave generated from the microwave introduction surface 122A of the microwave supply port 122 upward.

In addition, one surrounding wall 123 </ b> A is provided for each holder 8, and the surrounding wall 123 </ b> A is made of a conductive metal such as stainless steel and is formed in a circular shape having a diameter larger than that of the holder 8. By providing the surrounding wall 123A, it is possible to reduce the supply amount of the raw material gas in the enclosed space formed inside the surrounding wall 123A and reduce the amount of film components attached to the microwave introduction surface 122A.
Here, there is a relationship of Wh <Th between the height Wh of the surrounding wall 123 </ b> A and the height Th of the propagation unit 12. As will be described later, when the holder 8 and the surrounding wall 123A are moved, the holding unit 11 is supported by the upper fork 14A in the moving device 14, and the surrounding wall 123A is supported by the lower fork 14B. This is to prevent the holding portion 11 of the holder 8 and the surrounding wall 123A from contacting each other.
A flange-like flange portion 123B is formed at the upper end edge of the surrounding wall 123A, and the flange portion 123B is not formed at the lower end edge. As shown in FIG. 3, the flange portion 123B is formed to facilitate the support of the surrounding wall 123A by the lower fork 14B. Moreover, the lower end edge where the flange portion 123B is not formed has a shape for easily fitting and supporting the surrounding wall 123A with respect to the second support recess 122C of the microwave supply port 122, as will be described later.
The microwave supply port 122 is a dielectric made of quartz or the like formed in a multistage shape protruding upward. The microwave supply port 122 protrudes upward in the center in the left-right direction, and is formed in a concave shape having a microwave introduction surface 122A on the upper end surface. A first support recess 122B is formed on the inner surface of the recess, and the holder 8 is fitted therein. A second support recess 122C is formed on the outer periphery of the microwave introduction surface 122A. The surrounding wall 123A is fitted into the second support recess 122C. Further, a side electrode 123 is disposed on the outer periphery of the second support recess 122C.
Note that the inner diameter of the surrounding wall 123A is formed such that it can be easily inserted between the inner surface of the side electrode 123 and the outer surface of the second support recess 122C of the microwave supply port 122. The inner surface of the side electrode 123 functions as a guide surface when the surrounding wall 123A is inserted into the second support recess 122C. Accordingly, the surrounding wall 123A can be smoothly inserted and removed from the second support recess 122C.

  Further, among the three holders 8 stocked in the stocker 9, the holder 8 disposed at the standby position 13 is moved to the film formation area 6 backward in the direction of arrow A in the standby area 5. In addition, a moving device 14 is provided that is installed at the microwave supply port 122 and moves the holder 8 to the standby position 13 after the film formation of each work material 7 of the holder 8 is completed. The stocker 9 is provided with a cylindrical groove into which the holder 8 is fitted, and a circular groove with which the surrounding wall 123A is fitted around the cylindrical groove. The circular groove is formed with a larger diameter than the cylindrical groove.

  Here, a mechanism for moving the holder 8 by the moving device 14 will be described with reference to FIG. The moving device 14 is connected to an appropriate driving device (not shown) such as a motor, and is configured to be movable in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1 and to be movable in the vertical direction by the driving device. Yes. As shown in FIG. 3, the moving device 14 includes an upper fork 14A and a lower fork 14B. The upper fork 14A is in contact with the lower surface of the holding portion 11 of the holder 8, and the lower fork 14B. Is in contact with the lower surface of the flange portion 123B formed around the upper end of the surrounding wall 123A.

  In order to move the holder 8 arranged at the standby position 13 in the stocker 9 to the film formation region 6 by the moving device 14 configured as described above, first, the moving device 14 is moved via the driving device. The upper fork 14A is inserted into the lower surface of the holding portion 11 of the holder 8, and the lower fork 14B is inserted into the lower surface of the flange portion 123B of the surrounding wall 123A. Thereafter, the moving device 14 is moved upward while the holder 8 is supported by the upper fork 14A and the lower fork 14B, and is moved toward the film forming region 6 along the arrow A direction. And the propagation part 12 of the holder 8 is installed above the first support recess 122B of the microwave supply port 122, and the lower end of the surrounding wall 123A is above the second support recess 122C of the microwave supply port 122. After being installed, the moving device 14 is lowered. Thereby, the propagation | transmission part 12 of the holder 8 is supported by the 1st support recessed part 122B, and the lower end part of the surrounding wall 123A is supported by the 2nd support recessed part 122C. Thereby, in the film-forming area | region 6, each to-be-processed material 7 hold | maintained at the holder 8 installed in the microwave supply port 122 is installed in the state in which a film-forming process is performed (refer FIG. 2). . Thereafter, the moving device 14 is moved to the original retracted position.

  After the film forming process for each material 7 to be processed held by the holder 8 is performed in the film forming region 6, the moving device 14 performs the reverse operation to the above. That is, the upper fork 14A of the moving device 14 is inserted into the lower surface of the holding portion 11 of the holder 8 through the drive device, and the lower fork 14B is inserted into the lower surface of the flange portion 123B of the surrounding wall 123A. Thereafter, the moving device 14 is moved upward while the holder 8 is supported by the upper fork 14A and the lower fork 14B, and is moved toward the standby area 5 along the arrow A direction. Then, after the holder 8 is placed at the standby position 13, the moving device 14 is lowered. As a result, the holder 8 that holds each processed material 7 on which the film is formed is returned to the original standby position.

The first storage container 3 installs the three workpiece materials 7 together with the surrounding wall 123A on the holder 8 and deposits the holder 8 on the stocker before forming the film on each workpiece 7 in the processing container 2. The first storage container 3 is provided with a vacuum pump 32 via a valve 30 and an atmosphere release valve 33 is attached to the first storage container 3. The first storage container 3 is connected to the processing container 2 via the first gate valve 34.
Further, the second storage container 4 is a container for storing each material 7 to be processed together with the stocker 9 after the film forming process is performed in the processing container 2. A vacuum pump 36 is attached via a valve 35, and an air release valve 37 is attached. The second storage container 4 is connected to the processing container 2 via the second gate valve 38.

The first storage container 3, the processing container 2, and the second storage container 4 are provided with rails 39 that are continuously extended in the containers, and the stocker 9 is placed on the rails 39 on the first storage container 3. To the second storage container 4 through the processing container 2. The stocker 9 is controlled to move on the rail 39 by a stocker moving device 50 having a driving device such as a motor. The stocker moving device 50 of this embodiment is an example of the second moving unit of the present invention.
Thus, the first storage container 3 is arranged on the upstream side in the movement direction of the stocker 9 with the processing container 2 as a reference, and the second storage container 4 is arranged on the downstream side in the movement direction of the stocker 9. .

Next, the film forming apparatus 101 of the film forming system 1 configured to include the processing container 2 will be described with reference to FIGS.
In FIG. 2, a film forming apparatus 101 includes a processing container 2, a gas supply unit 105, a control unit 106, and the like. A microwave supply port 122 is provided in the film formation region 6.

The gas supply unit 105 supplies a film forming source gas and an inert gas into the processing container 2. Specifically, an inert gas such as He, Ne, Ar, Kr, or Xe and a source gas such as CH ₄ , C ₂ H ₂ , or TMS (tetramethylsilane) are supplied. In the present embodiment, CH ₄ and TMS source gases are used for film formation.

The flow rate and pressure of the source gas and the inert gas supplied from the gas supply unit 105 may be controlled by the control unit 106 described later, or may be controlled by an operator. The source gas may be a gas containing a compound having a CH bond such as alkyne, alkene, alkane, aromatic compound, or a compound containing carbon. H ₂ may be included in the source gas.

  In the film forming apparatus 101, a holder 8 in which three workpiece materials 7 are held is arranged on the upper surface of the holder 11. Each work material 7 has conductivity on a rod-shaped surface. The propagation part 12 of the holder 8 holding each work material 7 is supported by a first support recess 122 </ b> B formed in the microwave supply port 122. A dielectric such as quartz is disposed between the first support recess 122B and the central conductor 121A of the coaxial waveguide 121 in order to maintain a vacuum. The material of the work material 7 is not particularly limited as long as the surface has conductivity, but in this embodiment, it is a low-temperature tempered steel. Here, the low temperature tempered steel is a material such as JIS G4051 (carbon steel material for mechanical structure), G4401 (carbon tool steel material), G44-4 (steel material for alloy tool), or maraging steel material. In addition to the low-temperature tempered steel, the work material 7 may be ceramic or resin coated with a conductive material.

In the film forming apparatus 101, the central conductor 121 </ b> A of the coaxial waveguide 121 is extended to the center of the microwave supply port 122. The outer peripheral surface excluding the upper end surface of the microwave supply port 122, that is, the outer peripheral surface excluding the microwave introduction surface 122A, the first support concave portion 122B, and the second support concave portion 122C is a side electrode 123 formed of a metal such as stainless steel. It is covered. The side electrode 123 is fixed to the inside of the processing container 2 with screws or the like, and is electrically connected to the processing container 2.
A vacuum gauge 126 is connected to the control unit 106. The vacuum gauge 126 detects the degree of vacuum in the processing container 2 and transmits a detection signal to the control unit 106 when a degree of vacuum equal to or higher than a predetermined level is detected. The control unit 106 starts a film forming process for each workpiece material 7.

  In the film forming apparatus 101, plasma is generated for performing a DLC film forming process on the work material 7 held by the holder 8. This plasma is generated by the microwave pulse controller 111, the microwave oscillator 112, the microwave power source 113, the negative voltage power source 115, and the negative voltage pulse generator 116. In the present embodiment, surface wave excitation plasma is generated by a method disclosed in JP 2004-47207 A (hereinafter referred to as “MVP method (Microwave shear-Voltage combination Plasma method)”). In the following description, the MVP method will be described.

  The microwave pulse control unit 111 oscillates a pulse signal in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 106. The oscillated pulse signal is transmitted to the microwave oscillator 112. The microwave oscillator 112 generates a microwave pulse according to the pulse signal from the microwave pulse control unit 111. The microwave power supply 113 supplies power to the microwave oscillator 112 that oscillates the microwave of 2.45 GHz with the instructed output in accordance with the instruction of the control unit 106. The microwave oscillator 112 supplies a 2.45 GHz microwave in the form of a pulse according to a pulse signal from the microwave pulse control unit 111 and supplies it to an isolator 117 described later. Note that the microwave is not limited to 2.45 GHz, but may have a frequency of 0.3 GHz to 50 GHz.

  The microwave passes from the microwave oscillator 112 through the isolator 117, the tuner 118, the waveguide 119, and the coaxial waveguide 121 protruding from the waveguide 119 via a coaxial waveguide converter (not shown). The material is supplied into the processing container 2 from the microwave introduction surface 122A of the microwave supply port 122 made of a dielectric material or the like that transmits microwaves such as quartz. The isolator 117 prevents the reflected wave of the microwave from returning to the microwave oscillator 112. The tuner 118 matches the impedance around the tuner 118 so that the reflected wave of the microwave is minimized.

The film forming apparatus 101 includes a negative voltage power source 115, a negative voltage pulse generator 116, and a negative voltage application electrode 125. Negative voltage power supply 115 is connected to control unit 106. The negative voltage power supply 115 supplies a negative bias voltage to the negative voltage pulse generator 116 in accordance with an instruction from the controller 106. The negative voltage pulse generator 116 pulsates the negative bias voltage supplied from the negative voltage power supply 115 into a pulsed negative bias voltage. This pulsing process is a process in which the negative voltage pulse generator 116 controls the magnitude, cycle, and duty ratio of a negative bias voltage pulse in accordance with an instruction from the controller 106. The pulsed negative bias voltage generated by the negative voltage pulse generator 116 is supplied to the negative voltage application electrode 125. As will be described later, the negative voltage application electrode 125 is electrically connected to the holding portion 11 of the holder 8 when a film forming process is performed on each workpiece material 7 in the film forming region 6. The negative voltage application electrode 125 applies a pulsed negative bias voltage from the holder 11 of the holder to each workpiece material 7. Even if the work material 7 is a metal substrate, or a ceramic or resin is coated with a conductive material, a pulsed negative bias voltage is applied to at least the entire processing surface of the work material 7. Is applied. A pulsed negative bias voltage is also applied to the entire surface of the holder 8 through the work material 7.
The negative voltage application electrode 125 is provided so as to be able to contact and separate from the holding unit 11 of the holder 8 via a negative voltage application electrode driving device 150 having a motor or the like. When the film forming process of each work material 7 held by the holding tool 8 is performed, the film is brought into contact with the holding unit 11, and when the film forming process is not performed on each work material 7, it is separated from the holding unit 11. Held in the position.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a ground electrode 141 is disposed on the side of the holder 8, and the ground electrode 141 is formed on each workpiece material 7. A first position that is disposed in a non-contact manner between each of the plurality of work materials 7 and a second position that is separated from each work material 7 when no film forming process is performed on each work material 7 In between, it is movably provided via a ground electrode driving device 151 having a motor or the like.
Here, since the ground electrode 141 is grounded, it has a potential of 0 volts, and is higher than the negative voltage applied to the negative voltage application electrode 125 described above. Thus, uniform plasma is formed around each work material 7 when film formation is performed on each work material 7. The potential of the ground electrode 141 is not limited to 0 volts, and may be any potential that is higher than the negative voltage applied to the negative voltage application electrode 125.

  Each workpiece 7 is charged when a negative bias voltage is applied by the negative voltage application electrode 125. When each workpiece material 7 is charged, the sheath layer generated by supplying the microwave from the microwave introduction surface 122A is expanded around the workpiece material 7 in the surrounding space in the surrounding wall 123A. The microwave is propagated to the processing surface of the holder 8 and the work material 7 by the sheath layer expanded around the work material 7. A pulsed microwave is supplied, and a pulsed negative bias voltage is applied at the same time, whereby surface wave excited plasma is generated.

[Detailed explanation of surface wave excitation plasma]
Usually, when generating surface wave excitation plasma, first, a microwave is supplied along an interface between a plasma having a certain level of electron (ion) density and a dielectric in contact with the plasma. The supplied microwave is propagated as a surface wave with the energy of electromagnetic waves concentrated on this interface. As a result, the plasma in contact with the interface is excited by a high energy density surface wave and further amplified. Thereby, a high density plasma is generated and maintained. However, when this dielectric is replaced with a conductive material, the conductive material does not function as a surface wave waveguide, and preferable surface wave propagation and plasma excitation cannot occur.

  On the other hand, an essentially unipolar charged particle layer, a so-called sheath layer, is formed near the surface of an object in contact with plasma. In the case where the object is a work material 7 having conductivity to which a negative bias voltage is applied, the sheath layer is a layer having a low electron density, that is, positive polarity, and substantially has a relative dielectric constant in the microwave frequency band. It is a layer of ε≈1. For this reason, the sheath thickness of the sheath layer can be increased by making the absolute value of the negative bias voltage to be applied larger than the absolute value of, for example, −100V. That is, the sheath layer expands. This sheath layer acts as a dielectric that propagates surface waves to the interface between the plasma and the object in contact with the plasma.

  Therefore, the microwave is supplied from the microwave supply port 122 disposed in the vicinity of one end of the holder 8 that holds the workpiece 7, and a negative bias voltage is applied to the workpiece 7 and the holder 8. Then, the microwave propagates as a surface wave along the interface between the sheath layer and the plasma. As a result, high-density excitation plasma based on surface waves is generated along the surfaces of the work material 7 and the holder 8.

The electron density of the high-density plasma due to surface wave excitation in the vicinity of the surface of the workpiece 7 reaches 10 ¹¹ to 10 ¹² cm ⁻³ . When the DLC film formation process is performed by plasma CVD using the MVP method, the film formation speed is 3 to 30 (nanometers / second), which is one to two orders of magnitude higher than the case where the DLC film formation process is performed by normal plasma CVD. Therefore, high-speed film formation is possible.

  In this MVP method, high-density excitation plasma is generated in the vicinity of the surfaces of the work material 7 and the holder 8 that are metal substrates, so that the surface temperature of the work material 7 and the holder 8 is equal to or higher than the tempering temperature, for example, The temperature rises from about 250 ° C to about 300 ° C. However, since high-speed film formation is possible, the film formation time is 1/10 to 1/100 of the normal plasma CVD film formation time. That is, since the film formation time can be shortened to several tens of seconds to several minutes, the softening of the work material 7 can be suppressed even if the surface temperature of the work material 7 exceeds the tempering temperature.

  The negative voltage power supply 115 and the negative voltage pulse generator 116 are examples of the negative voltage application unit of the present invention. The microwave pulse control unit 111, the microwave oscillator 112, the microwave power source 113, the isolator 117, the tuner 118, the waveguide 119, and the coaxial waveguide 121 are examples of the microwave supply unit of the present invention. The film forming apparatus 101 includes the negative voltage power source 115 and the negative voltage pulse generator 116, but may further include a positive voltage power source and a positive voltage pulse generator, or instead of the negative voltage pulse generator 116. In addition, a negative voltage generator for applying a continuous negative bias voltage instead of a pulsed negative bias voltage may be provided.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram showing an outline of the electrical configuration of the film forming system 1. As shown in FIG. 4, a vacuum pump 32 is electrically connected to the control unit 106 via the valve 30 of the first storage container 3. The atmosphere release valve 33 is also electrically connected to the control unit 106.

  The vacuum pump 10 is electrically connected to the control unit 106 via the pressure adjustment valve 60 of the processing container 2, and the vacuum pump 36 is electrically connected via the valve 35 of the second storage container 4. Has been. Further, the control unit 106 includes a first gate valve 34 interposed between the processing container 2 and the first storage container 3 and a second gate interposed between the processing container 2 and the second storage container. The valve 38 is electrically connected.

  Further, the control unit 106 includes a vacuum gauge 126 of the processing container 2, a moving device 14 that moves the holder 8, a stocker moving device 50 that moves the stocker 9 along the rail 39, a negative voltage power supply 115, a negative voltage application electrode. A negative voltage pulse generation unit 116, a microwave pulse control unit 111, a gas supply unit 105, and a microwave power supply 113, to which 125 is connected, are electrically connected.

  The control unit 106 outputs control signals to the negative voltage power source 115 and the microwave power source 113 to control the applied power of the microwave pulse and the applied voltage of the pulsed negative voltage. The control unit 106 outputs a control signal to the negative voltage pulse generation unit 116 and the microwave pulse control unit 111, thereby applying the pulsed negative bias voltage application timing, supply voltage, duty ratio, and the microwave oscillator 112. The supply timing, duty ratio, and supply power of the generated microwave pulse are controlled.

  The control unit 106 outputs a flow rate control signal to the gas supply unit 105 to control the supply of the source gas and the inert gas. The control unit 106 outputs a control signal to the pressure adjustment valve 60 based on a pressure signal representing a pressure in the processing container 2 input from a vacuum gauge 126 attached to the processing container 2. The pressure adjustment valve 60 to which the control signal is input controls the pressure in the processing container 2 by adjusting the valve opening based on the pressure signal included in the control signal.

  The control unit 106 outputs fully open and fully closed control signals to the atmosphere release valves 33 and 37. The atmospheric release valves 33 and 37 to which the fully open control signal is input fully open the valve opening. The atmosphere release valves 33 and 37 to which the fully closed control signal is input fully closes the valve opening. When the atmosphere release valves 33 and 37 are fully opened, the internal pressure of the first storage container 3 and the second storage container 4 becomes the same as the external pressure via the atmosphere release valves 33 and 37.

  The control unit 106 includes a CPU 131, a RAM 132, a ROM 133, a hard disk drive (hereinafter referred to as “HDD”) 134, a timer 135 that measures the elapsed time of all film forming processes, ion cleaning, an intermediate film forming process, and a DLC film. The computer includes an end determination timer 136 for determining the end of the film forming process. The CPU 131 temporarily stores various types of information in a volatile storage device such as the RAM 132 and executes a film forming process program described later to control the entire film forming system 1.

  The ROM 133 and the HDD 134 are non-volatile storage devices, and store various film forming conditions for the film forming process performed by the film forming system 1 and a film forming process program executed by the CPU 131. Specifically, the ROM 133 and the HDD 134 store data indicating film formation conditions for the intermediate layer and the DLC film, and control programs such as a film formation control program. The data indicating the film formation conditions and the film formation processing program may be read from a storage medium such as a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM by a driver (not shown) or downloaded from a network such as the Internet (not shown). Also good.

Next, film formation control performed by the control unit 106 in the film formation system 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
First, when film formation control is started, a start process is performed. At this time, since the film forming process for the material 7 to be processed is performed while the inside of the processing container 2 is kept in a vacuum state, the processing container 2 and the second storage container 4 are evacuated, and the first The storage container 3 is open to the atmosphere. In this state, an operator, a robot arm or the like opens the door of the first storage container 3, and a stocker 9 in which a plurality of holding tools 8 in which a plurality of work materials 7 are installed is arranged inside the first storage container 3. Is installed on the rail 39.

  In step (hereinafter abbreviated as “S”) 10, the CPU 131 inputs an instruction to complete the installation of the workpiece 7 by the operator to the control unit 106 via an operation button provided on an operation unit (not shown). By detecting this, simultaneously with starting the film forming process, the number of the holder 8 to be subjected to the next film forming process is set to “1”. In this state, the type of the work material 7 and the number of the holders 8 held by the plurality of holders 8 stocked in the stocker 9 set in the processing container 2 are detected by a sensor (not shown), The type of the corresponding work material 7 is stored in the RAM 132. Note that the type of the work material 7 and the number of the holders 8 may be input by an operator via an operation unit (not shown) and stored in the RAM 132.

  In subsequent S <b> 11, the CPU 131 activates the vacuum pump 32 and opens the valve 30 of the first storage container 3. Based on the pressure signal input from the vacuum gauge 126, the process waits for the inside of the processing container 2 to have a predetermined degree of vacuum (for example, 1.0 Pa). When the inside of the first storage container 3 reaches the ultimate vacuum (Pa), the CPU 131 proceeds to the process of S12.

  In S <b> 12, the CPU 131 outputs an opening command to the first gate valve 34. The first gate valve 34 is opened in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 131, and when the opening is completed, an opening completion signal is output to the CPU 131. After receiving the opening completion signal from the first gate valve 34, the CPU 131 outputs a movement command for moving the stocker 9 to the processing container 2 to the stocker moving device 50. The stocker moving device 50 moves the stocker 9 along the rail 39 to the processing container 2 in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 131. When it is detected by a sensor (not shown) that the stocker 9 has been moved into the processing container 2, the CPU 131 proceeds to the process of S13.

  In S <b> 13, the CPU 131 outputs a cutoff command to the first gate valve 34. The first gate valve 34 is shut off in accordance with a command from the CPU 131, and outputs a shutoff completion signal to the CPU 131 when the shutoff is completed. After receiving the shutoff completion signal from the first gate valve 34, the CPU 131 outputs an atmosphere release command to the atmosphere release valve 33 of the first storage container 3. The air release valve 33 of the first storage container opens the valve in accordance with a command from the CPU 131 and opens the first storage container 3 to the atmosphere.

  In subsequent S <b> 14, the CPU 131 reads out and stores the holder 8 to be subjected to the film formation process next from the RAM 132. Further, the CPU 131 reads out data of ion cleaning conditions, intermediate layer film formation conditions, and DLC layer film formation conditions corresponding to the type of the material 7 to be processed stored in the RAM 132 from the data table, and stores them in the RAM 132.

  In S15, the CPU 131 reads the number of the material to be processed next from the RAM 132, and instructs to move the stocker 9 so that the holder 8 corresponding to the number is moved to the standby position 13 in the standby area 5. The signal is output to the stocker moving device 50. As a result, the stocker 9 is moved by the stocker moving device 50 in accordance with a signal from the CPU 131 so that the holder 8 to be deposited next is disposed at the standby position 13. When the CPU 131 detects completion of movement of the stocker 9 by a sensor (not shown), the process proceeds to S16.

In S <b> 16, the CPU 131 outputs a signal that instructs the moving device 14 to move the holder 8 at the standby position 13 to the film forming region 6. The moving device 14 moves the holder 8 at the standby position 13 to the film forming region 6 in accordance with a signal from the CPU 131. At this time, the holder 8 is supported so that the propagation part 12 of the holder 8 protrudes into the first support recess 122B of the microwave supply port 122, as shown in FIG.
When the movement of the holder 8 is completed, the moving device 14 outputs a movement completion signal to the CPU 131. When the CPU 131 receives the movement completion signal, the CPU 131 proceeds to S17.

In S <b> 17, the CPU 131 outputs a signal for moving the negative voltage application electrode 125 to the contact position where the negative voltage application electrode 125 and the holder 8 come into contact with the negative voltage application electrode driving device 150. The negative voltage application electrode 125 moves to the contact position in accordance with a signal from the CPU 131. When the sensor 131 (not shown) detects that the negative voltage application electrode 125 has moved to the contact position, the CPU 131 does not contact the ground material 141 between the plurality of workpieces 7 held by the holder 8. A signal to be moved to the first position to be arranged is output to the ground electrode driving device 151. The ground electrode 141 is moved to the first position via the ground electrode driving device 151 in accordance with a command from the CPU 131.
The first position of the ground electrode 141 is a position where the ground electrode 141 is not in contact with the holder 8 and the work material 7 and is disposed between the work materials 7. In addition, since the ground electrode 141 is electrically connected (grounded) to the processing container 2 having the ground potential, the ground electrode 141 has a higher potential than the negative voltage output from the negative voltage application electrode 125.

  In S <b> 18, the CPU 131 supplies gas into the processing container 2 at the read gas flow rate value to the gas supply unit 105 according to the gas flow rate value of the gas flow rate (sccm) among the cleaning conditions read from the RAM 132. A supply signal instructing is output. Thereby, the gas supply part 105 supplies gas into the processing container 2 according to a supply signal. That is, the supply of gas is started. Then, a determination is made to confirm whether or not a predetermined amount of gas has been introduced into the processing container 2, and if the predetermined amount of gas has not been introduced, the process waits until it is introduced, while the predetermined amount of gas is When it is introduced into the processing container 2, the process proceeds to S19.

  In S19, the CPU 131 sets the negative bias voltage to the negative voltage power source 115, the negative bias voltage pulse period, the pulse on time, and the application delay time to the negative voltage pulse generator 116 according to the ion cleaning conditions read from the RAM 132, and the microwave. The power is transmitted to the microwave power source 113, and the microwave pulse period and the pulse on time are transmitted to the microwave pulse control unit 111. The negative voltage power supply 115 supplies a voltage to the negative voltage pulse generator 116 in accordance with the received information from the controller 106. The negative voltage application electrode 125 applies a negative bias voltage pulse to the holder 8 in accordance with an instruction from the negative voltage pulse generator 116. The microwave pulse control unit 111 oscillates a pulse signal in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 106 and supplies the oscillated pulse signal to the microwave oscillator 112. The microwave oscillator 112 generates a microwave pulse according to the pulse signal from the microwave pulse control unit 111. The microwave power supply 113 supplies a microwave of 2.45 GHz to the microwave oscillator 112 with the instructed output according to the instruction of the control unit 106. By these negative bias voltage pulse and microwave pulse, plasma is generated around each work material 7 through the coaxial waveguide 121, the microwave supply port 122, etc., and ion cleaning is started.

  In S20, the CPU 131 determines whether or not the time stored in the cleaning data table has elapsed. If the set time has elapsed, the CPU 131 waits. If the set time has elapsed, the CPU 131 supplies negative voltage, microwaves, and gas. Shut off.

  In S <b> 21, the CPU 131 outputs a flow rate control command for supplying the inert gas, additive gas, and source gas to the gas supply unit 105 in accordance with the intermediate gas flow rate condition read from the RAM 132. The gas supply unit 105 supplies an inert gas and a source gas to the inside of the processing container 2 in accordance with a flow control command. It waits until the flow rate according to the flow rate control command is introduced and the pressure is stabilized by the pressure adjustment valve 60. If a predetermined amount of the intermediate layer gas is not introduced into the processing container 2, the process waits until it is introduced. On the other hand, if a predetermined amount of the intermediate layer gas is introduced into the processing container 2, the process proceeds to S22. Transition.

  In S22, the CPU 131 sets the negative bias voltage to the negative voltage power source 115, the negative bias voltage pulse period and the on-time, and the application delay time to the negative voltage pulse generator 116 in accordance with the intermediate layer deposition conditions read from the RAM 132. The microwave power is transmitted to the microwave power source 113, and the microwave pulse period and the pulse on time are transmitted to the microwave pulse control unit 111. The negative voltage power supply 115 supplies a voltage to the negative voltage pulse generator 116 in accordance with the received information from the controller 106. The negative voltage application electrode 125 applies a negative bias voltage pulse to the holder 8 according to information from the control unit 106. The microwave pulse control unit 111 oscillates a pulse signal in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 106 and supplies the oscillated pulse signal to the microwave oscillator 112. The microwave oscillator 112 generates a microwave pulse according to the pulse signal from the microwave pulse control unit 111. The microwave power supply 113 supplies a microwave of 2.45 GHz to the microwave oscillator 112 with the instructed output according to the instruction of the control unit 106. By the negative bias voltage pulse and the microwave pulse, as described above, plasma is generated around each material to be processed 7 and the intermediate layer film formation is started.

  In S <b> 23, the CPU 131 determines whether or not a set time set as a time required for forming the intermediate layer has elapsed. If the set time has not elapsed, the film formation of the intermediate layer is continued. On the other hand, if the set time has elapsed, the supply of the negative voltage, the microwave and the gas is shut off.

  In S <b> 24, the CPU 131 outputs a flow rate control command for supplying an inert gas, an additive gas, and a raw material gas to the gas supply unit 105 under the DLC layer gas flow rate condition according to the DLC layer deposition condition read from the RAM 132. The gas supply unit 105 supplies an inert gas and a source gas to the inside of the processing container 2 in accordance with a flow control command. Wait until the flow rate according to the flow rate control command is introduced and the pressure stabilizes. The source gas for the DLC layer is set more than that for the intermediate layer.

  In S25, the CPU 131 sets the negative bias voltage to the negative voltage power supply 115, the negative bias voltage pulse period and the on-time, and the application delay time to the negative voltage pulse generator 116 according to the DLC layer deposition conditions set in the RAM 132. The microwave power is transmitted to the microwave power source 113, and the microwave pulse period and the pulse on time are transmitted to the microwave pulse control unit 111. The negative voltage power supply 115 supplies a voltage to the negative voltage pulse generator 116 in accordance with the received information from the controller 106. The negative voltage application electrode 125 applies a negative bias voltage pulse to the holder 8 according to information from the control unit 106. The microwave pulse control unit 111 oscillates a pulse signal in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 106 and supplies the oscillated pulse signal to the microwave oscillator 112. The microwave oscillator 112 generates a microwave pulse according to the pulse signal from the microwave pulse control unit 111. The microwave power supply 113 supplies a microwave of 2.45 GHz to the microwave oscillator 112 with the instructed output according to the instruction of the control unit 106. As described above, the negative bias voltage pulse and the microwave pulse generate plasma around each material to be processed 7 to start the DLC layer deposition.

  In S26, the CPU 131 determines whether or not the set time has elapsed. If the set time has not elapsed, the film formation is continued. On the other hand, if the set time has elapsed, the supply of negative voltage, microwave and gas is shut off.

  In S <b> 27, the CPU 131 outputs a command to move the holder 8 from the microwave supply port 122 to the standby position 13 to the moving device 14. Based on this, the moving device 14 moves the holder 8 to the standby position 13 in accordance with a command from the CPU. When the movement of the holder 8 is completed, the moving device 14 outputs a movement completion signal to the CPU 131. When the CPU 131 receives the movement completion, the CPU 131 proceeds to S28.

  In S <b> 28, the CPU 131 sends a signal for moving the ground electrode 141 from the first position to the second position, which is not in contact with the holder 8 and does not hinder the movement of the holder 8 by the moving device 14. 151 is output. The ground electrode 141 is moved to the second position via the ground electrode driving device 151 in accordance with a signal from the CPU 131.

  In S <b> 29, the CPU 131 adds “1” to the number of the holder 8 to be deposited next set in the RAM 132.

  In S <b> 30, the CPU 131 compares the number of the holders 8 to be deposited next and the number of the holders 8 set in the RAM 132, and determines whether or not the film forming process for all the holders 8 has been completed. If the number of holders 8 to be deposited next is larger than the number of holders 8, it is determined that the film forming process has been completed for all the holders 8, and the process proceeds to S31. On the other hand, when the number of the holders 8 to be formed next is smaller than the number of the holders 8, it is determined that the film forming process of all the holders 8 is not completed, and S15 to S15 The process of S29 is performed.

In S <b> 31, the CPU 131 outputs an opening command to the second gate valve 38. The second gate valve 38 is opened in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 131, and when the opening is completed, an opening completion signal is output to the CPU 131. After receiving the opening completion signal from the second gate valve 38, the CPU 131 outputs a movement command for moving the stocker 9 to the second storage container 4 to the stocker moving device 50.
The stocker 9 is moved to the second storage container 4 through the stocker moving device 50 in accordance with a command from the CPU 131. If the sensor 131 detects that the stocker 9 has been moved into the second storage container 4, the CPU 131 proceeds to the process of S32.

  In S <b> 32, the CPU 131 outputs a cutoff command to the second gate valve 38. The second gate valve 38 is shut off in accordance with a command from the CPU 131, and outputs a shutoff completion signal to the CPU 131 when the shutoff is completed. After receiving the shutoff completion signal from the second gate valve 38, the CPU 131 outputs an atmosphere release command to the atmosphere release valve 37 of the second storage container 4. The air release valve 37 of the second storage container 4 opens the valve in accordance with a command from the CPU 131 to open the second storage container 4 to the atmosphere.

  In S33, an operator or a robot arm opens the door inside the second storage container 4, and the stocker 9 is taken out. When the CPU 131 detects that an instruction to complete the removal of the work material 7 by the operator is input to the control unit 106 via an operation button provided on an operation unit (not shown), the vacuum pump of the second storage container 4 36 is started, the valve 35 of the second storage container 4 is opened, and the film forming process is terminated.

  As described above, in the film forming system 1 according to the present embodiment, the holder 8 that holds the plurality of workpieces 7 that are waiting in the waiting area 5 in the processing container 2 is formed via the moving device 14. After moving to the film region 6 and installed in the microwave supply port 122 and simultaneously forming films on the plurality of workpieces 7 in the film formation region 6, the holder 8 is moved to the standby region 5. Configured to move. Thereby, it becomes possible to simultaneously and continuously form a plurality of workpieces 7 simultaneously and continuously.

  Further, a negative voltage application electrode driving device 150 that moves the negative voltage application electrode 125 between the contact position and the non-contact position with respect to the holder 8 is provided, and the negative voltage application electrode driving device 150 starts film formation. Sometimes, the negative voltage application electrode 125 is moved to the contact position with the holder 8 and brought into contact with the holder 8, and after the film formation is completed, the negative voltage application electrode 125 is moved to a non-contact position separated from the holder 8. In this way, the negative voltage application electrode driving device 150 interlocks with the movement operation of the holder 8 by the moving device 14, and holds the negative voltage application electrode 125 in the holder 8 as needed during film formation and non-film formation. Can be contacted or non-contacted. Further, the negative voltage application electrode 125 is not in direct contact with the work material 7 but is in contact with the conductive holder 8 that holds the work material 7, so that it is formed over the entire work material 7. Can be membrane.

  Furthermore, a stocker 9 for stocking a plurality of holders 8 is provided, and the moving device 14 moves the holders 8 from the stocker 9 to the film formation region 6. As a result, a plurality of holders 8 for holding a plurality of work materials 7 are stocked in the stocker 9 in advance, and the holder 8 can be moved from the stocker 9 to the film forming region 6 by the moving device 14. The film formation efficiency can be remarkably improved.

  Further, a stocker moving device 50 for moving the stocker 9 to the standby area 5 in the processing container 2 is provided. Accordingly, it is possible to continuously move the plurality of stockers 9 to the standby area 5 via the stocker moving device 50, and it is possible to automate the film forming process of a large number of workpieces 7.

  In addition, the holder 8 that is disposed upstream of the moving direction by the stocker moving device 50 and is connected to the processing container 2 via the first gate valve 34 and holds the workpiece 7 before the film forming process is stocked. A first storage container 3 for storing the stocker 9 and a work material that is disposed downstream of the movement direction by the stocker moving device 50 and is connected to the processing container 2 via the second gate valve 38 and after the film forming process. And a second storage container 4 for storing the stocker 9 for stocking the holder 8 that holds the stocker 7. The stocker moving device 50 moves the stocker 9 from the first storage container 3 through the processing container 2 to the second storage container 4. Moving. Thereby, automation of the film-forming process of many workpiece materials 7 can be further promoted.

  In addition, microwaves are supplied from the microwave supply units 111, 112, 113, 117, 118, 119, 121 and the microwave supply port 122 to each work material 7 of the holder 8 and held from the negative voltage application electrode 125. When a negative voltage is applied to the tool 8, it is arranged in a non-contact manner between the workpieces 7 held by the holder 8 and controlled to a voltage higher than the voltage applied to the negative voltage application electrode 125. The ground electrode 141 is provided. Thereby, a sufficient potential difference due to the negative voltage applied from the negative voltage application electrode 125 is secured between the plurality of workpiece materials 7, and plasma is efficiently generated around each workpiece material 7. Thus, uniform film formation can be performed simultaneously on each of the plurality of work materials 7.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Of course, various improvement and deformation | transformation are possible in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Film-forming system 2 Processing container 3 1st storage container 4 2nd storage container 5 Standby area 6 Film-forming area 7 Work material 8 Holder 9 Stocker 13 Standby position 14 Moving apparatus 34 1st gate valve 38 2nd gate valve 50 Stocker moving device 101 Deposition device 105 Gas supply unit 106 Control unit 111 Microwave pulse control unit 112 Microwave oscillator 113 Microwave power source 115 Negative voltage power source 116 Negative voltage pulse generation unit 117 Isolator 118 Tuner 119 Waveguide 121 Coaxial waveguide Tube 122 Microwave supply port 141 Ground electrode 150 Negative voltage application electrode driving device 151 Ground electrode driving device

Claims (8)

A gas supply unit for supplying gas into the processing container;
A microwave supply port for supplying microwaves into the processing container;
A holding member capable of holding a plurality of work materials;
The material to be processed is moved through the holding member arranged at a predetermined position in the processing container, a part of the holding member is protruded from the microwave supply port, and the holding member is interposed. Moving the workpiece material installed in the microwave supply port and installing the first moving unit to the predetermined position;
A negative voltage application unit configured to electrically connect a negative voltage application member to the workpiece material installed in the microwave supply port via the holding member by the first moving unit, and to apply a negative voltage;
After the processed material by the first moving portion is moved to the predetermined position through the holding member, another different material to be processed and the processed material through the other of said retaining member to the predetermined position A second moving part that moves;
A continuous processing apparatus comprising: A storage unit in which a plurality of the holding members are arranged and arranged in an area including the predetermined position in the processing container,
The first moving unit moves the holding member disposed at the predetermined position, projects a part of the holding member at the microwave supply port, and receives the holding from the microwave supply port. Move the member, install it in the storage section,
The negative voltage application unit electrically connects the negative voltage application member to the holding member installed at the microwave supply port, and applies a negative voltage to the work material via the holding member. The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 1. A storage unit in which a plurality of the holding members are arranged and arranged in an area including the predetermined position in the processing container,
Said second moving unit, after the work piece by the first moving portion is moved to the office localization location via the holding member, and characterized by moving the position of the storage portion with respect to the predetermined position The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 1 . A first storage container that is connected to the processing container via a first valve and stores the storage unit in which the material to be processed before being processed in the processing container is disposed;
A second storage container for storing the storage unit, which is connected to the processing container via a second valve and in which the material to be processed after being processed in the processing container is disposed;
The said 2nd moving part moves the said storage part from the said 1st storage container to the said processing container, and moves from the said processing container to the said 2nd storage container. 3. The continuous processing apparatus according to 3. The negative voltage application unit includes a first electrode having a first voltage applied to the workpiece material, and a second electrode having a second potential higher than the first voltage,
When a negative voltage is applied to the plurality of workpiece materials by the first electrode, the second electrode is disposed in a non-contact manner between the plurality of workpiece materials held by the holding member. The continuous processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the apparatus is a continuous processing apparatus. The first moving unit includes:
A first support part that supports the holding member that holds the workpiece material, and a second support part that supports an enclosing wall provided to surround a part of the holding member,
The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the material to be processed and the surrounding wall are moved by the first support portion and the second support portion. The surrounding wall is formed to be detachable from the holding member around a side surface of the holding member with respect to a protruding direction when the holding member is installed in the microwave supply port, and in the protruding direction. The length is shorter than the length of the holding member in the protruding direction, and the first moving part is formed around the holding member by the first support part and the second support part. The continuous processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the holding member and the surrounding wall are moved simultaneously while holding the surrounding wall. The holding member arranged at a predetermined position is selected from among holding members capable of holding a plurality of workpiece materials arranged in the processing container, and the microwave supply port for supplying the microwave into the processing container An installation process in which a part of the holding member protrudes and is disposed;
A connection step of electrically connecting a negative voltage applying member for applying a negative voltage to the workpiece material disposed through the holding member at the microwave supply port;
A supply step of supplying the microwave and gas to the work material to which the negative voltage application member is connected;
A release step of releasing the connection of the connected negative voltage application member from the material to be processed by applying a negative voltage and supplying the microwave and the gas;
In the installation step, the holding member that holds the material to be processed and is formed at the microwave supply port is removed from the microwave supply port and returned to the predetermined position; and
After the returning step, a moving step of moving the other holding member different from the holding member selected in the installation step to the predetermined position among the plurality of holding members arranged in the processing container. And a continuous processing method for forming a film.

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