JP6553498B2 - Substrate storage container - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate storage container in which the gas in the container body is purged by a purge gas such as an inert gas.

  In a conventional substrate storage container such as FOUP, as partially shown in FIG. 7, a container body 1 of a front open box capable of storing a plurality of semiconductor wafers W side by side in the vertical direction and an opening of the container body 1 A lid for closing the front is provided, and a pair of air supply and exhaust valves are disposed on the front and back of the bottom plate of the container body 1, respectively, and the air inside is formed by the air supply and exhaust valves. Is purged and replaced with an inert gas such as nitrogen gas (see arrows in FIG. 7), thereby preventing surface oxidation and contamination of the semiconductor wafer W and corrosion of the wiring (see Patent Documents 1 and 2). ).

  The container body 1 is provided with a pair of left and right support pieces for horizontally supporting the semiconductor wafer W on the inner surfaces of the left and right side walls thereof, and the pair of left and right support pieces are vertically arranged at predetermined intervals. Between the vertically adjacent support pieces and the support pieces, a slot having a substantially V-shaped cross section, which is in sliding contact with the peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer W, is recessed. The container body 1 is mounted on a lid opening / closing device 50 provided with a purge device 51. The lid opening / closing device 50 allows the lid to be fitted to the open front, or the lid to be removed from the front Do.

  The pair of air supply valves and exhaust valves are, for example, a pair of air supply valves that supply inert gas from the purge device 51 to the inside of the container main body 1, respectively, are fitted to the rear of the bottom plate of the container main body 1. A pair of exhaust valves for exhausting air from the inside to the outside are fitted in front of the bottom plate of the container body 1 respectively.

  The lower end portions of a tower nozzle 60 formed in a hollow cylindrical shape or the like are respectively attached to the pair of air supply valves from the viewpoint of contributing to the flow control of the inert gas. The pair of tower nozzles 60 are directed in the vertical direction of the container body 1, and a plurality of outlets are bored in the vertical direction of the peripheral wall, and the flows of inert gas blown out from the plurality of outlets do not intersect The mounting angle is adjusted.

  When such a substrate storage container is mounted on the lid opening / closing device 50 to which the purge device 51 is attached in a state where the front surface of the container main body 1 is closed by the lid, the substrate storage container is brought into the container main body 1 from the purge device 51. The inert gas is supplied through each supply valve, and the inert gas is blown out toward the lid while contacting the semiconductor wafer W from a plurality of outlets arranged in the vertical direction of the peripheral wall of the tower nozzle 60. 1 is full. When the inert gas is filled in the container main body 1, the air in the container main body 1 is purged to the outside via each exhaust valve, and the gas in the container main body 1 is replaced with the inert gas from the air. .

  By the way, the substrate storage container is generally purged in a state where the front of the container body 1 is closed by the lid, but the relative humidity in the container body 1 is constant even during processing and processing of the semiconductor wafer W. When it is desired to lower the level uniformly below the level, the lid body is removed from the front surface of the container body 1 by the lid body opening / closing device 50 so that the semiconductor wafer W can be taken in and out, that is, the front surface of the container body 1 is opened. May be purged in the state.

  When purging with the front surface of the container body 1 opened, as shown in FIG. 7, the container body 1 of the substrate storage container is attached to a lid opening / closing device 50 provided in an EFEM (Equipment Front End Module) 52. After the lid is mounted and removed from the front of the container body 1 by the lid opening / closing device 50, a large amount of clean air (see the arrow in the figure) is down-flowed from the fan filter unit 53 on the ceiling of the EFEM 52 to the floor. At the same time, inert gas is supplied from the purge device 51 into the container body 1 through the air supply valve.

  The supplied inert gas flows upward from the lower end portion of the tower nozzle 60 and blows out in the front direction in which the container body 1 is opened while contacting the semiconductor wafer W from each outlet of the tower nozzle 60.

Japanese Patent No. 3960787 Japanese Patent No. 5528308

  The conventional substrate storage container is configured as described above, and although excellent effects can be expected, the lower end portion of the opening of the tower nozzle 60 is simply attached to the air supply valve of the container main body 1. The humidity among the semiconductor wafers W may be uneven, in other words, the humidity among the support pieces of the container body 1 may be uneven, which may cause a problem.

  This point will be described in detail. As the inert gas supplied to the inside of the tower nozzle 60 flows upward from below the tower nozzle 60, it gradually accumulates above the tower nozzle 60 and the pressure increases. Since a large amount of air is strongly blown out from the lower air outlet above the lower air outlet, the amount of air blown out differs in the vertical direction of the tower nozzle 60.

  If there is a difference in the amount of inert gas blown out from each outlet depending on the height of the tower nozzle 60, the humidity varies between the support pieces of the container body 1 in which a plurality of semiconductor wafers W are aligned and stored, and the semiconductor Since the humidity does not decrease depending on the support piece that supports the wafer W, there is a possibility that the relative humidity in the container body 1 can not be lowered uniformly.

  As shown in FIG. 7, when the front of the container body 1 is opened and replaced with the inert gas, as shown in FIG. It collides partly, the air in the container body 1 stays without being replaced with the inert gas (see the folded arrow in the figure), and the humidity variation between the support pieces supporting the semiconductor wafer W increases. So become more serious and serious.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a substrate storage container capable of reducing variations in humidity among support pieces supporting a substrate.

In the present invention, in order to solve the above problems, a container body of a front open box capable of storing a plurality of substrates arranged in the vertical direction, an air supply member capable of supplying purge gas from the outside to the inside of the container body, and And a purge unit capable of supplying purge gas from the air supply member in the front direction of the container body,
The purge unit communicates with the air supply member at the rear of the bottom of the container main body and is located at the rear of the inside of the container main body. The purge unit is provided in front of the unit main body and stores the purge gas from the air supply member. And a plurality of outlets for blowing out in the front direction of the container body,
The unit main body includes a plurality of unit boxes erected side by side at intervals in the inner rear of the container main body, and a projection for fixing the inner rear of the container main body is projected at the upper part of the plurality of unit boxes Among the upper and lower portions of the plurality of unit boxes, at least the upper portion is communicated so as to allow the flow of the purge gas, and each unit box is formed in a hollow substantially box shape and covers the outlet inside thereof. A filter for filtration is attached, and the front of the unit box is divided into a plurality of left and right blowout areas of different sizes, and each blowout area is divided into substantially vertically long and a plurality of blowout openings are formed in the up and down direction The outlets in the large outlet area and the outlets in the small outlet area are adjacent to each other via the front of the unit box, and Among the plurality of air outlets kicking, it is characterized by open area of at least below the outlet is enlarged than the opening area of the remaining outlet.

  Here, the substrate in the claims includes at least various wafers, liquid crystal glass, and the like. The container body may be transparent, opaque or translucent, and an exhaust member capable of exhausting gas from the inside to the outside can be provided in front of the bottom. A pair of support pieces for supporting the substrate substantially horizontally may be provided on both sides of the inside of the container body, and the pair of support pieces may be arranged at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction.

  The purge gas includes at least various inert gases (for example, nitrogen gas and argon gas), dry air, and the like. Further, the plurality of unit boxes of the purge unit can be communicated with each other so that the purge gas can flow between the upper and lower parts or the upper part. The plurality of outlets of the purge unit may be all in the same form, but may be in a different form. Moreover, it may be regularly arranged at regular intervals in the front vertical direction of the purge unit, or may be irregularly arranged. Each outlet can be circular, oval, rectangular, polygonal, grooved or the like.

  According to the present invention, when the substrate storage container is purged, the container body of the substrate storage container is mounted on the lid opening / closing device or the like, and the purge gas is supplied from the outside to the inside of the container body. Then, the purge gas flows from the air supply member of the container body into the unit body of the purge unit, and blows out from the plurality of outlets in the front of the unit body.

  Under the present circumstances, in view of the possibility that a difference arises in the amount of blow-off of purge gas from a plurality of blow-out openings, since the opening area of a part of blow-out openings is expanded wider than the opening area of the remaining blow-out openings The flow velocity of the purge gas at the outlet can be increased, and an increase in the purge gas can be expected. When the purge gas is blown out from the plurality of outlets of the unit body, the purge gas flows out from the inside rear of the container body to the front of the container body through the plurality of substrates while contacting the substrate, and the gas in the container body is It is purged outside the container body and replaced with purge gas.

  According to the present invention, according to the pressure difference of the purge gas in the unit main body of the purge unit, the opening area of a part of the plurality of outlets is larger than the opening area of the remaining outlets. There is an effect that it is possible to reduce the variation in humidity between the support pieces supporting the substrate.

In addition, since the purge gas flows from the upper part of at least the substantially box-shaped unit box to the upper part of the other unit boxes and the pressure in the plurality of unit boxes becomes substantially uniform, the cleaning blows out from the front of the plurality of unit boxes The balance of the purge gas can be made substantially uniform.

Further, since the front of the unit box is interposed between the blowout port in the large blowout area and the blowout port in the small blowout area to maintain the strength, the unit of the purge unit is formed even if the blowout port is wide or the like. The strength of the main body can be improved to prevent damage and deformation.

Furthermore, since the opening area of the outlet located below each outlet area is larger than the opening area of the upper and middle outlets, it is possible to increase the amount of purge gas at the outlet located below. Therefore, it is possible to suppress a situation in which the purge gas is strongly blown out from the upper outlet than the lower outlet due to the pressure imbalance. This suppression action can prevent a difference in the amount of purge gas blown out in the vertical direction of the unit body of the purge unit, and can effectively eliminate the possibility that the relative humidity in the container body cannot be lowered uniformly. it can.

It is an exploded perspective explanatory view showing typically the embodiment of the substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is a bottom view showing typically the embodiment of the substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is front explanatory drawing which shows typically the container main body and purge unit in embodiment of the board | substrate storage container which concerns on this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows typically the purge unit in embodiment of the board | substrate storage container which concerns on this invention. It is perspective explanatory drawing which shows typically the unit main body of the purge unit in embodiment of the board | substrate storage container which concerns on this invention. FIG. 6 is a rear view of FIG. 5. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which removes a cover body from the container main body of a substrate storage container, opens the front of a container main body, and purges.

  Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the substrate storage container in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 7, a plurality of semiconductor wafers W are vertically aligned and aligned and stored. A possible container body 1, a detachable lid body 12 that fits and closes the front surface 2 of the container body 1, a locking mechanism 18 that locks the lid body 12 that closes the front surface 2 of the container body 1, and the container body 1. A pair of air supply valves 20 capable of supplying inert gas from the outside to the inside, a pair of exhaust valves 21 capable of exhausting air from the inside of the container body 1 to the outside, and inert gas from each air supply valve 20 And a plurality of air outlets 41 of the purge unit 30 are arranged on the front surface 37 of the unit body 31, and a plurality of air outlets 41 of the air outlets 41 are provided. Less And so as to expand than the rest of the air outlet 41 of the outlet 41a of the downward.

  As shown in FIG. 7, each semiconductor wafer W is made of, for example, a thin and round silicon wafer of φ300 mm or φ450 mm capable of forming a circuit pattern on the surface, and is horizontally placed inside the container main body 1 by an arm of a dedicated robot apparatus (not shown). It is supported and taken out by the camera.

  The container body 1, the lid 12, the locking mechanism 18, the pair of air supply valves 20, the pair of exhaust valves 21, and the purge unit 30 are injection molded using a molding material containing a predetermined resin. Examples of the resin contained in the molding material include thermoplastic resins such as polycarbonate, cycloolefin polymer, cycloolefin copolymer, polyetherimide, polyether ketone, polyether ether ketone, polybutylene terephthalate, polyacetal, liquid crystal polymer, and alloys of these. Etc.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 and 7, the container body 1 is formed into a front open box type having an opening in the front surface 2, and a flat bottom plate 4 serving as an interface is screwed to the bottom plate 3 from below. The bottom plate 4 exhibits a positioning function and a fixing function with respect to the lid opening / closing device 50 to which the purge device 51 is attached.

  A pair of left and right support pieces 5 supporting the both sides of the peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer W in a substantially horizontal manner are provided on the inner surfaces of the left and right side walls of the container body 1. Slots 6 having a substantially U-shaped cross section, which are arranged at predetermined intervals and are in contact with the peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer W, are recessed between the support pieces 5 and the support pieces 5 adjacent in the vertical direction. Each support piece 5 is formed as a long plate oriented in the front-rear direction of the container body 1, and a protrusion preventing stepped portion that restricts the protrusion of the semiconductor wafer W to the front is provided at the front end portion of the surface or more than the thickness of the semiconductor wafer W. It is integrally formed with a thickness of.

  In the vicinity of both sides of the rear portion of the bottom plate 3 of the container body 1, mounting holes for the air supply valves 20 adjacent to the back wall 7 of the container body 1 are respectively perforated in a round shape. The mounting holes for the exhaust valve 21 are respectively pierced round and pierced. Each mounting hole is drilled in an area other than the projection area of the semiconductor wafer W relative to the bottom plate 3 so as to contribute to the smooth loading and unloading of the semiconductor wafer W. At the center of the top plate 8 of the container body 1, a top flange 9 for transfer held by a ceiling transfer mechanism of a semiconductor manufacturing plant is detachably mounted, and upper and lower portions on the inner periphery of the front 2 of the container body 1 Locking holes for the lid 12 are respectively drilled on both sides of the cover 12.

  Grip portions 10 that function for gripping operation are detachably attached to the center portions of both side walls of the container body 1. Moreover, the side rails 11 for conveyance are selectively attached to the lower part of the both-sides wall of the container main body 1, respectively.

  Such a container main body 1 is positioned and mounted on the lid opening / closing device 50, and is purged in a state in which the lid 12 is press-fit and fitted to the opened front 2, or the lid opening / closing attached to the EFEM 52 After the lid 12 in the sealed state is removed from the front 2 by the lid opening / closing device 50 after being positioned and mounted on the device 50, the purge is performed in a state where the front 2 is open.

  The lid 12 is, as shown in FIG. 1, a lid body 13 fitted by press-fitting into the open front face 2 of the container body 1, and a surface plate 16 covering the opened surface of the lid body 13. A sealing gasket 15 for sealing is interposed between the inner periphery of the front surface 2 of the container body 1 and the lid body 13, and a locking mechanism 18 for locking is interposed between the lid body 13 and the surface plate 16. Will be installed.

  The lid body 13 is basically formed in a substantially dish-shaped section with a shallow bottom, and is provided with a plurality of reinforcing and mounting ribs therein, and the center of the back surface, which is the facing surface facing the semiconductor wafer W. In the vicinity of the portion, a recess for avoiding contact with the semiconductor wafer W is formed, and in this recess, the front retainer 14 for resiliently holding the front of the peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer W is attached.

A frame-shaped fitting groove is recessed in the peripheral edge of the back surface of the lid body 13, and an elastic seal gasket 15 pressed against the inner periphery of the front surface 2 of the container body 1 is closely fitted in this fitting groove, On both sides of the upper and lower portions of the peripheral wall of the lid main body 13, a protrusion / recess hole for the locking mechanism 18 facing the locking hole of the container main body 1 is penetrated and drilled.
The surface plate 16 is formed in a horizontally long front rectangular shape, and a plurality of reinforcing and mounting ribs, screw holes, and the like are disposed. Operation holes 17 for the locking mechanism 18 are respectively drilled on both sides of the surface plate 16.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the locking mechanism 18 is pivotally supported on the left and right sides of the lid main body 13 of the lid 12 and is operated to rotate from the outside. A plurality of advancing and retracting plates which slide in the vertical direction of the body 12 and a plurality of locking claws which protrude and retract from the projecting and retracting holes of the lid main body 13 with the sliding of each advancing and retracting plate Is configured.

  As shown in FIG. 2, each air supply valve 20 is detachably fitted through a substantially cylindrical first housing facing the inside of the container body 1 and an opening lower portion of the first housing via an O-ring. And a second cylindrical housing which is exposed to the outside of the container body 1, and the first and second housings are screwed together via a screw, and the container body 1 is fixed to the lid opening / closing device 50. When positioned and mounted, it is connected to the purge device 51 of the lid opening / closing device 50.

  A flat ring-shaped locking flange is provided around the outer peripheral surface of each of the first and second housings, and these locking flanges are inserted into the peripheral edge of the mounting hole of the container body 1 from above and below via an O-ring. By locking, the air supply valve 20 is firmly fitted and fixed to the bottom plate 3 of the container main body 1 and approaches the back wall 7 of the container main body 1.

  The open upper end of the first housing is exposed in the container body 1, and a filter for filtration is housed inside. Further, the second housing is formed shorter and shorter than the first housing, and a connecting joint is integrally formed in the lower part as necessary, and the inert gas from the purge device 51 is directed to the first housing. Supply to

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, each exhaust valve 21 includes a cylindrical case that is fitted to mounting holes near both sides of the front portion of the bottom plate 3 of the container body 1 via an O-ring. An on-off valve, which is a check valve for controlling the air flow, is built in such a manner that it can be moved up and down via a coil spring, and a filter for filtration is fitted in the upper and lower portions of the case. Such an exhaust valve 21 is mounted on the lid opening / closing device 50 with the container body 1 positioned and mounted, and when the air supply valve 20 supplies the inert gas, the container body 1 whose front 2 is closed by the lid 12 It functions to exhaust the air inside to the purge device 51 of the lid opening / closing device 50.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, the purge unit 30 is in communication with a pair of air supply valves 20 of the container body 1, and a hollow unit body 31 for storing the inert gas from the air supply valve 20; A plurality of air outlets 41 which are perforated in the front surface 37 of the unit main body 31 and blow out inert gas in the two directions of the front surface of the container main body 1. Located closer to you.

  The unit main body 31 includes a pair of left and right unit boxes 32 that are arranged on the left and right sides with a space therebetween. A connecting member 39 is integrally installed between upper and lower ends of the pair of left and right unit boxes 32, and The space between the connecting members 39 is defined in a vertically elongated space 40, and is erected near the inner surface of the back wall 7 of the container body 1 to face the vicinity of the central portion of the inner surface of the back wall 7. Are directed in two directions.

  Each unit box 32 is formed in a vertically long shallow box shape with an open back surface, and a thin vertically long cover plate 33 is covered on the open back surface, and in the inert gas between the cover plate 33. The front rectangular and vertical membrane filter 34 for removing fine particles is interposed, and if necessary, ultrasonic welding, screw coupling, to the rear of the bottom plate 3 of the container body 1, the rear of the side walls, the rear wall 7 and the rear of the top plate 8 It is fixed by a method such as concave and convex bonding.

  The inside of the unit box 32 is partitioned and formed into a front rectangle corresponding to the membrane filter 34, and functions as a purge space for inert gas. A membrane filter 34 is fixed to the front face inside the unit box 32 without any gaps to cover the plurality of outlets 41. Further, a cylindrical connecting pipe 35 communicating with the purge space is integrally formed on the lower one side of the unit box 32, and the connecting pipe 35 is connected to and supported by the lower air supply valve 20. The connection pipe 35 is connected to the air supply valve 20 via an elastic attachment, as required.

  At one upper side of the unit box 32, a protruding piece 36 for fixing is formed to protrude, and this protruding piece 36 is utilized when the unit box 32 is fixed to the inside rear of the container main body 1. Further, the front surface 37 of the unit box 32 is divided into a pair of left and right blowout areas 38 different in size, and each blowout area 38 is divided into vertically long front rectangular shapes, and a plurality of blowout openings 41 Perforated side by side. In the pair of blowing regions 38, the large blowing region 38 is positioned closer to the connecting member 39 than the small blowing region 38, and the area of the large blowing region 38 is set to be twice or more than the area of the small blowing region 38. .

  The pair of upper and lower connecting members 39 is formed into a hollow pipe in which at least the upper connecting member 39 communicates with the pair of unit boxes 32, and allows inert gas to flow from one unit box 32 to another adjacent unit box 32. . The upper connecting member 39 functions to make the pressure in the pair of unit boxes 32 uniform by the flow of the inert gas and to make the balance of the inert gas blown out from the purge space of the left and right unit boxes 32 uniform.

  The plurality of outlets 41 are respectively arranged in a matrix at equal intervals in the vertical direction of the plurality of outlet areas 38, and the outlets 41 in the large outlet area 38 and the outlets 41 in the small outlet area 38 are unit box 32 The blower outlet 41 in the large blowout area 38 is formed to have a size (length) about twice as large as the blowout port 41 in the small blowout region 38 via the front face 37 of FIG.

  Each air outlet 41 is formed in, for example, a groove extending in the lateral direction so as to correspond to the size of the semiconductor wafer W and faces the membrane filter 34, and blows an inert gas between the plurality of semiconductor wafers W, It functions to bring an inert gas into contact with the surface of each semiconductor wafer W. The matrix is, for example, a 4 × 25 matrix according to the number of semiconductor wafers W arranged in the vertical direction and the arrangement pitch.

  By the way, in consideration of the pressure difference of the inert gas of the unit main body 31 and the fact that the downflowed clean air flows in a large amount in the vicinity of the lower front 2 of the container main body The outlet 41a is formed larger than the remaining outlets 41. That is, the plurality of air outlets 41 gradually accumulate the inert gas on the upper side in the unit main body 31 to increase the pressure, and the inert gas is stronger and larger from the upper air outlet 41 than the lower air outlet 41a. In view of the possibility of blowing out, at least the opening area of the lower outlet 41a is made larger than the opening area of the remaining upper and middle outlets 41a.

  The lower outlets 41a correspond to the lowermost, preferably the lowermost to upper three rows, preferably the lowermost to the uppermost rows 1-5. The opening area of the lower air outlet 41a is greater than the opening area of the upper or central air outlet 41 so that the inert gas is strongly blown out from the lower air outlet 41a as well as the upper air outlet 41. 1 to 4.0 times, preferably 1.2 to 3.0 times, more preferably 1.5 to 2.5 times. The opening area of the lower outlet 41a may be partially enlarged by a different area, or may be gradually enlarged as it goes from the lowermost to the upper side.

  Moreover, when the sum total of the area of all the blower outlets 41 is made into 100%, it sets so that the total area of the blower outlets 41a from the lowermost step to the 3rd step below may be 15% or more and 25% or less of the whole. can do. Thus, if the total area of the blowouts 41a from the lowermost lower stage to the third step is 15% or more of the whole, the volume of the inert gas ejected from the lower blowouts 41a can be increased, so It is possible to prevent the entry of downflow air which is going to flow below the front surface 2 which is the opening of the main body 1 and to replace the gas stagnation portion in the container main body 1 with an inert gas.

  Moreover, if the area of the blower outlet 41a from the lowermost lower stage to the third stage is 25% or less of the whole, the air volume of the inert gas blown from other than the lower blower outlet 41a becomes extremely small, It is possible to prevent the occurrence of the stagnation portion of the gas in the container body 1 and to purge while maintaining the overall blowout balance of the inert gas suitably.

  By setting the total area of the blowouts 41a from the lowermost stage to the third stage in this way to be 15% or more and 25% or less of the whole, variations in relative humidity in the container body 1 are eliminated, The relative humidity on each semiconductor wafer W stored in the container body 1 can be uniformly reduced to 10% or less in a short time after the start of the purge.

  In the above configuration, when purge is performed in a state in which the front 2 of the container body 1 is closed by the lid 12, the container body 1 of the substrate storage container is positioned and mounted on the lid opening / closing device 50. It is sufficient to supply an inert gas. Then, the inert gas flows from the purge device 51 of the lid opening / closing device 50 to the pair of connection pipes 35 of the unit main body 31 via the air supply valve 20 and purges the connection pipes 35 and the unit boxes 32. The space and the upper connecting member 39 are sequentially circulated to fill the purge spaces of the pair of unit boxes 32, and after equalizing the pressure of the purge spaces of the pair of unit boxes 32, pass through the membrane filter 34 and discharge outlets. Blows out from 41.

  At this time, since the pressure of the inert gas at the upper part of each purge space increases, the flow velocity at the upper part of the purge space increases. When the inert gas is blown out from each outlet 41, the inert gas flows out in the two directions of the front surface of the container body 1 through a plurality of semiconductor wafers W while contacting the semiconductor wafer W, and the inside of the container body 1 The air is purged to the outside by the exhaust valve 21 and replaced with an inert gas. In this case, since the inside of the container body 1 is a closed space closed by the lid 12, there is no inflow of air from the outside, and it is smoothly replaced with the inert gas.

  On the other hand, when purging with the front surface 2 of the container main body 1 opened, the container main body 1 is positioned and mounted on the lid opening / closing device 50 provided in the EFEM 52, and the lid 12 is removed from the container main body 1. After removal by the lid opening / closing device 50, a large amount of clean air is downflowed from the fan filter unit 53 on the ceiling of the EFEM 52 in the floor direction, and an inert gas is supplied from the outside of the container body 1 to the inside.

  Then, the inert gas flows from the purge device 51 of the lid opening / closing device 50 to the pair of connection pipes 35 of the unit main body 31 via the air supply valve 20 and purges the connection pipes 35 and each unit box 32. After being sequentially circulated in the space, the air passes through the membrane filter 34 and blows out from the respective air outlets 41.

  Under the present circumstances, since the pressure in the upper part of each purge space increases the inert gas, the flow velocity in the upper part of the purge space will increase, and the opening area of the lower blower outlet 41a becomes the opening area of the remaining blower outlets 41. If it is the same as the above, the flow rate at the lower outlet 41a will be reduced. However, in this embodiment, since the opening area of the lower outlet 41a is larger than the opening area of the remaining outlets 41, it is possible to effectively prevent a decrease in the flow rate of the inert gas at the lower outlet 41a. .

  When the inert gas is blown out from each outlet 41, the inert gas flows out between the plurality of semiconductor wafers W in contact with the semiconductor wafer W in the two directions of the front face of the container body 1, and the container body. The air in 1 is purged from the front surface 2 of the container body 1 to the outside and replaced with an inert gas.

  According to the above configuration, the opening area of the lower outlet 41a is larger than the opening area of the upper and middle outlets 41, so the inert gas in the lower outlet 41a can be increased. it can. Therefore, the pressure imbalance can reduce the situation where the inert gas is strongly blown out from the blowout port 41 above the lower blowout port 41a.

  Thereby, it is possible to effectively suppress the occurrence of a difference in the blowing amount of the inert gas in the vertical direction of the unit main body 31, and the humidity among the support pieces 5 of the container main body 1 varies, and the relative humidity in the container main body 1 Can be effectively eliminated. In particular, it is possible to extremely effectively eliminate the possibility that the variation in humidity between the supporting pieces 5 supporting the uppermost and lowermost semiconductor wafers W, which has been a problem in the past, becomes large.

  In addition, since the amount of inert gas from the lower outlet 41a can be increased, even if the inert gas from the lower outlet 41a partially collides with clean air that has been downflowed in large quantities, It is possible to prevent the air in the container body 1 from staying without being replaced by the inert gas. By these, since it can suppress effectively that a difference arises in the blowing amount of an inert gas in the up-down direction of the unit main body 31, the humidity between the support pieces 5 of the container main body 1 containing the semiconductor wafer W varies, The possibility that the relative humidity in the container body 1 can not be lowered uniformly can be eliminated.

  Further, the wide outlet 41 in the large outlet area 38 and the narrow outlet 41 in the small outlet area 38 do not continue, but the front 37 of the unit box 32 is interposed between these 41 and 41. The strength of the unit body 31 of the purge unit 30 can be greatly improved even if the blowout port 41 is formed wide. Furthermore, since the unit body 31 is thin so as not to occupy a large space, it can be easily installed in the container body 1.

  In the above embodiment, the connection pipe 35 of the unit body 31 of the purge unit 30 may be directly connected to the air supply valve 20, but the connection pipe 35 may be connected to the air supply valve 20 via a joint member. . Moreover, although the unit main body 31 of the purge unit 30 was shape | molded by the synthetic resin, it is not limited to this at all. For example, the unit body 31 may be made of a breathable porous pipe. Also, the unit body 31 may be a hollow cylinder, a prism or the like. Further, the cover plate 33 may be removably attached to the open rear surface of the unit box 32. Further, the inside of the unit main body 31 can be divided into a plurality of purge spaces.

  Further, the shape of each outlet 41 may be a circle, an ellipse, a polygon or the like in addition to the slot, and the membrane filter 34 may be covered on the peripheral edge of each outlet 41. Moreover, although the opening area of the blower outlet 41a of 1 to 5 rows which goes upward from the lowest position was enlarged in this embodiment rather than the opening area of the remaining blower outlets 41, it is not limited to this at all. For example, among the plurality of outlets 41 arranged in a matrix, the opening areas of the plurality of outlets 41a from the lowermost to almost the center (for example, 1 to 12, 1 to 13 lines, etc.) are left as needed. It is also possible to enlarge the opening area of the air outlet 41. Under the present circumstances, it is also possible to expand gradually the opening area of the some blower outlet 41a as heading to the approximate center vicinity from the lowermost part.

  Further, a unit main body 31 of the purge unit 30 is formed into a substantially box shape, and a connection pipe 35 for purge gas connected to the air supply valve 20 is provided at the lower part thereof, and communicates with the connection pipe 35 inside the unit main body 31. A conduction path for the purge gas is formed, and a lead-out path for the purge gas extending in the width direction of the unit body 31 is connected to the conduction path, and a purge path for the purge gas extending in the vertical direction It is possible to form a branch and make the branch face a plurality of outlets 41.

  In this case, the conduction path and the lead-out path may be combined in an L shape, but may be combined in a T shape or the like. Further, it is also possible to form the lead-out passage and the branch passage in an endless form with a substantially zero-shaped front face to face the plurality of outlets 41 and to blow out from the outlet 41 while circulating the inert gas. The width of the branch may be gradually narrowed from the lead-out side toward the closed end, and the depth of the branch may be gradually reduced from the lead-out to the end. Furthermore, the branch paths may be formed in a strip shape that is long in the lateral width direction of the unit main body 31 instead of a plurality of branch paths.

  The substrate storage container according to the present invention is used in the field of manufacturing semiconductors, liquid crystal glass, reticles and the like.

1 container body 2 front 3 bottom plate (bottom)
5 support piece 7 back wall (inside rear of container body)
12 lid 18 locking mechanism 20 air supply valve (air supply member)
21 exhaust valve 30 purge unit 31 unit main body 32 unit box 33 cover plate 34 membrane filter (filter for filtration)
35 Connecting pipe 37 Front face 38 Blowing area 39 Connecting member 41 Blowing outlet 41a Blower outlet 50 Lid opening / closing device 51 Purge device 52 EFEM
W Semiconductor wafer (substrate)

Claims (1)

A container body of a front open box that can store a plurality of substrates arranged in the vertical direction, an air supply member that can supply purge gas to the inside from the outside of the container body, and a purge gas from the air supply member to the front of the container body A substrate storage container including a purge unit capable of supplying in a direction,
The purge unit is in communication with the air supply member at the rear of the bottom of the container body and is located at the inner rear of the container body, and is a hollow unit body for storing purge gas from the air supply member; A plurality of outlets for blowing out the container body in the front direction,
The unit main body includes a plurality of unit boxes standing up and down on the left and right sides inside the container main body, and a protruding protrusion for fixing to the inner rear of the container main body projects above the plurality of unit boxes. Among the upper and lower portions of the plurality of unit boxes, at least the upper portion is communicated so as to allow the flow of the purge gas, and each unit box is formed in a hollow substantially box shape and covers the outlet inside thereof. A filter for filtration is attached, and the front of the unit box is divided into a plurality of left and right blowout areas of different sizes, and each blowout area is divided into substantially vertically long and a plurality of blowout openings are formed in the up and down direction The outlets in the large outlet area and the outlets in the small outlet area are adjacent to each other via the front of the unit box, and Among the plurality of air outlets kicking, substrate storage container, wherein the open area of at least below the outlet is enlarged than the opening area of the remaining outlet.

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