JP6892773B2 - Wafer accommodating device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a wafer accommodating device including a wafer boat that supports a plurality of wafers such as silicon wafers.

Semiconductor devices include an oxidation step that forms an oxide film on the surface of a substrate such as a silicon wafer, a diffusion step that introduces impurities such as phosphorus and boron, and a CVD method (chemical vapor deposition) that forms a film of silicon nitride or polycrystalline silicon. It is manufactured by a film forming process (growth method), a process of forming a fine circuit using these films, and the like. In these oxidation step, diffusion step and film formation step, various semiconductor manufacturing apparatus such as oxidation diffusion apparatus, annealing apparatus, vacuum CVD apparatus and the like are used.
In all of the semiconductor manufacturing equipment used in these steps, a plurality of silicon wafers are inserted into the furnace, the furnace body portion that heats the silicon wafer body to a high temperature, and gas introduction that supplies various gases into the furnace. A unit, a gas exhaust unit, and the like are provided, and it is possible to process a plurality of silicon wafers at the same time (batch processing).

For example, film formation on a wafer surface, which is one step of the wafer process, is performed by placing a large number of wafers on a wafer boat and inserting the wafer boat into a processing chamber. When the processing chamber is vertically long, a vertical wafer boat is used.
Since the wafer is heated to a high temperature such as 600 to 1200 ° C. in the film forming process, the wafer boat is made of a glass material or a ceramic material having excellent heat resistance.

As a conventional example of a vertical wafer boat, as described in Patent Document 1 below, a wafer boat in which a plurality of columns are connected between a pair of disks arranged vertically and vertically facing each other is known. ing. The plurality of columns are arranged at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction of the disk, and a plurality of grooves and uneven portions are formed at equal intervals on the inner side surface side of each column. Therefore, if the peripheral edge portion of the wafer is placed along the grooves or irregularities located at the same height between the plurality of columns, the wafers can be arranged vertically or in parallel between the columns.

FIG. 3 shows a conventional example of this type of wafer boat. In the wafer boat 100 of this example, three columns 102 are erected on a disk-shaped lower flange plate 101, and three columns are erected. A disk-shaped upper flange plate 103 is placed on the upper end of the 102. A plurality of groove portions 104 are formed on the opposing surfaces of the three columns 102 at predetermined intervals along the vertical direction, and the peripheral edges are supported by the groove portions 104 located at the same height of each column 102. A plurality of wafers 105 are housed. By setting one of the intervals between the three columns 102 to be slightly larger than the diameter of the wafer 105, the wafer 105 can be inserted and accommodated in the gap between the three columns from the side of the wafer boat 100. ..

Grooves and recesses for fixing the columns are formed at the positions where the columns 102 are erected on the upper surface of the lower flange plate 101 and at the positions where the columns 102 are connected on the upper flange plate 103. By inserting the upper and lower ends of the columns 102 into the recesses and recesses, three columns 102 are erected between the lower flange plate 101 and the upper flange plate 103.
Further, as shown in FIG. 3, in a state where a plurality of wafers 105 are housed in the wafer boat 100, a tube body 106 made of a heat-resistant glass material is provided so as to surround all of them. The tube body 106 is formed in a tubular shape having a ceiling portion 107 at the upper portion, and is arranged inside the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus so as to surround the wafer boat 100 with the ceiling portion 107 facing up.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2008-034729

The wafer boat 100 having the configuration shown in FIG. 3 is covered with the tube body 106, and the wafer boat 100 is housed in a film forming chamber or a heat treatment chamber of the film forming apparatus, adjusted to a desired reduced pressure atmosphere, and heated to a desired temperature. Then, the film forming process and the heat treatment can be carried out.
By the way, when a big earthquake occurs, such as in the case of the Great East Japan Earthquake, a big shake acts on the semiconductor manufacturing equipment. In this case, when the wafer boat 100 described above receives a large amount of shaking while the plurality of wafers 105 are mounted, the support column 102 largely rolls inside the tube body 106 as shown in FIG. 4, and the support column 102 or the upper side of the support column upper portion or the support column upper portion. A phenomenon occurs in which the flange member 103 collides with the inner surface of the tube body 106.
In this case, even if the upper end of the strut member 102 is inserted and supported in the groove or unevenness formed on the lower surface of the upper flange member 103, the strut member 102 is disengaged from the upper flange member 103 due to the rolling motion of the earthquake and faces the upper flange member 103. As a result of widening the distance between the columns 102, the wafer 105 may fall inside the tube body 106 as shown in FIG. 5, and the wafer 105 may be damaged. Further, in addition to the dropping and breakage of the wafer 105, the wafer boat 100 may collide with the inner surface of the tube body 106 to cause damage to the wafer boat 100, and measures against these are desired.
In recent years, when a large earthquake actually occurs, such wafer dropping and breakage and wafer boat breakage occur in semiconductor manufacturing factories, which has become a big problem.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and the wafer accommodation is configured such that the supported wafer is not dropped between the columns of the wafer boat even if it is shaken by a large earthquake, and the wafer boat is not easily damaged. The purpose is to provide the device.

In order to solve the above problems, in the wafer accommodating device of the present invention, a plurality of columns are erected between the upper flange plates and the lower flange plates arranged vertically facing each other, and a plurality of wafers are supported between the plurality of columns. A wafer accommodating device including a wafer boat having such a configuration, a peripheral wall portion surrounding the wafer boat, and a tube body provided with a ceiling portion provided on the peripheral wall portion, and the upper flange plate is thickened on the upper flange plate. A support hole penetrating in the longitudinal direction is formed, and the wafer boat is surrounded by the peripheral wall portion on the ceiling portion of the tube body located above the support hole of the upper support plate, and the wafer boat is fitted into the support hole downward. It is characterized in that the locking convex portion of is formed.

When a tube body is installed on the outside of a wafer boat that supports a plurality of wafers to surround the wafer boat, it is possible to insert a downward locking protrusion on the ceiling of the tube body into a support hole formed in the upper flange plate. The locking protrusion of the tube body can regulate the rolling of the upper flange plate inside the tube body. Therefore, even if vibration such as a large earthquake is transmitted to the wafer accommodating device, the upper flange plate and the support column do not shake significantly individually with the tube body, and the phenomenon that these collide with the inner surface of the tube body can be prevented. Become. Therefore, the support column does not come off from the upper flange plate and the lower flange plate. Therefore, it is possible to provide a wafer accommodating device capable of avoiding damage to the wafer and the wafer boat while preventing the wafer supported by the columns from falling even if the wafer is shaken by a large earthquake.

In the present invention, it is preferable that recesses for fitting the end portions of the columns are formed on the lower surface side of the upper flange plate and the upper surface side of the lower flange plate.
By fitting the upper and lower ends of the columns into the recesses of each flange plate and connecting them, the columns will not easily come off from the flange plates, and even if strong shaking is transmitted due to a large earthquake, etc., the rolling motion of the upper flange plate will be caused by the rolling of the tube body ceiling. Since it is suppressed by the locking convex portion of, there is no possibility that the support column will come off from the upper flange plate. Therefore, even if a large earthquake occurs, the wafer supported between the columns will not be dropped, and damage to the wafer and the wafer boat can be avoided.

In the present invention, a plurality of grooves are formed in each of the plurality of columns at predetermined intervals along their length directions, and a peripheral edge portion is inserted into the grooves formed at the same height of the plurality of columns. The configuration in which the wafer is housed can be applied.
A plurality of wafers can be supported horizontally and vertically by using the grooves provided at the same height of the plurality of columns.

The present invention is characterized in that the upper flange plate, the lower flange plate, the support column, and the tube body are all made of heat-resistant glass.
It is easy to form a downward locking protrusion even on the ceiling of a tube made of heat-resistant glass, and it is not possible to form a support hole even on the upper flange plate made of heat-resistant glass. It's easy. By fitting the locking convex portion into the support hole, it is possible to prevent the upper flange plate from shaking and prevent the upper flange plate from separating from the support column, which may occur during a large earthquake. Therefore, even if the upper flange plate and the tube body are made of heat-resistant glass and a complicated structure cannot be applied, it is possible to withstand a large earthquake by adopting an easy-to-implement structure, and the wafer and the wafer boat are damaged. A wafer accommodating device capable of avoiding the above can be provided.

In the wafer accommodating device of the present invention, when a tube body is installed on the outside of a wafer boat that supports a plurality of wafers to surround the wafer boat, the support hole formed in the upper flange plate is engaged with the tube body ceiling portion downward. A stop convex portion can be inserted, and the locking convex portion of the tube body can suppress rolling of the upper flange plate of the wafer boat. Therefore, even if vibration such as a large earthquake is transmitted to the wafer accommodating device, it is possible to suppress the upper flange plate from colliding with the inner wall of the tube body, and the support column does not come off from the upper flange plate. Therefore, it is possible to provide a wafer accommodating device that can avoid damage to the wafer and the wafer boat without the wafer falling from the support column even if it is shaken by a large earthquake.

The side view which shows the wafer accommodating apparatus of 1st Embodiment which concerns on this invention. Exploded view of the wafer accommodating device. The side view which shows an example of the conventional wafer accommodating apparatus. A side view showing a state in which shaking due to a large earthquake is transmitted to a conventional wafer accommodating device. A side view showing a state in which a large earthquake sway is transmitted to a conventional wafer accommodating device and the wafer is dropped.

Hereinafter, the wafer accommodating device according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. In the drawings used in the following description, in order to make the features easier to understand, the featured parts may be enlarged for convenience, and the dimensional ratios of each component may not be the same as the actual ones. Absent.

FIG. 1 shows a wafer accommodating device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In this wafer accommodating device 1, a plurality of wafers 2 are individually arranged horizontally and a plurality of wafers (several wafers to) are vertically arranged. It is composed of a wafer boat 3 that can accommodate each other at predetermined intervals, and a cylindrical tube body 5 that surrounds and accommodates the wafer boat 3.
The wafer boat 3 is composed of an upper flange plate 6 and a lower flange plate 7 arranged horizontally in the vertical direction, and a plurality of (for example, three) columns 8 erected between them. Also consists of glass material or heat resistant ceramic material. The wafer boat 3 is applied to various semiconductor manufacturing devices such as a sputtering device, an oxidation diffusion device, an annealing device, and a reduced pressure CVD device, and is exposed to a high temperature of 600 to 1200 ° C., and therefore has heat resistance to withstand the processing temperature of these semiconductor manufacturing devices. It is made of a glass material or a heat-resistant ceramic material.

Three recesses 6a for fitting the upper end portion of the support column 8 are formed in the lower peripheral edge portion of the upper flange plate 6 in the circumferential direction, and the lower end portion of the support column 8 is also fitted to the upper surface peripheral edge portion of the lower flange plate 7. Three recesses 7a for the purpose are formed in the circumferential direction. The upper flange plate 6 and the lower flange plate 7 are formed to have a diameter slightly larger than that of the wafer 2 so as to accommodate the disc-shaped wafer 2.
The three recesses 6a formed on the lower peripheral edge of the upper flange plate 6 are formed in a semicircular region when the upper flange plate 6 is viewed in a plan view, and are the largest of the horizontal intervals formed by the three recesses 6a. The interval is formed to be slightly larger than the outer diameter of the wafer 2. The recess 7a formed on the upper peripheral edge of the lower flange plate 7 is formed at a position facing the recess 6a of the upper flange plate 6 in the vertical direction.

A plurality of support grooves 8a that reach the center side of the columns 8 are formed on the inner side surfaces of the three columns 8 that face each other at regular intervals in the length direction of the columns 8. These support grooves 8a are formed along the length direction at positions other than the upper end portion and the lower end portion of the support column 8. Further, in each support column 8, the intervals at which the support grooves 8a are formed are the same, the number of the support grooves 8a formed is the same, and the formation height of the lowermost support groove 8a and the support at the uppermost portion are the same. The formation height of the groove 8a is also the same between the columns. Further, the groove width in the vertical direction (groove width in the vertical direction) of the support groove 8a is formed to be larger than the thickness of the wafer 2 to be supported.
Since the support column 8 may be configured to support the wafer 2, a plurality of convex portions may be formed on the support column 8 at predetermined intervals instead of grooves, and the wafer 2 may be supported by the convex portions.
With the above configuration, of the support grooves 8a formed along the length direction of the three columns 8, the three columns are supported so that the peripheral edges are supported by the three support grooves 8a located at the same height. By inserting the disk-shaped wafer 2 horizontally between them, the wafer 2 can be supported horizontally by the wafer boat 3. Further, by supporting the wafer 2 in the support grooves 8a provided at different heights, a plurality of wafers 2 can be supported in parallel along the support column 8 in the vertical direction.

On the other hand, a round hole type support hole 6b having an inner diameter of about half the diameter of the upper flange plate 6 is formed in the central portion of the upper flange plate 6.
Further, the tube body 5 has an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameters of the upper surface flange plate 6 and the lower surface flange plate 7, has an outer diameter capable of accommodating the wafer boat 3 with a margin, and is a vertically long wafer boat 3. It is formed in the shape of a cylindrical container that is slightly taller than its height.
The tube body 5 is composed of a disk-shaped ceiling portion 5a and a cylindrical peripheral wall 5b, and a part of the ceiling portion 5a is downward in a U-shaped cross section or a downward convex shape at the center of the lower surface of the ceiling portion 5a. A locking convex portion 5c extending to the surface is formed.

For the locking convex portion 5c, for example, when the tube body 5 is molded from a glass material, a molding recess for forming the locking convex portion is provided in advance in the molding mold, and the molding mold is made of glass. It can be formed at the same time when the material is poured to manufacture the tube body 5. As described above, the locking convex portion 5c can be easily formed on the tube body 5 made of heat-resistant glass.

The tube body 5 accommodates the wafer boat 3 inside, and in a state where the entire wafer boat 3 is surrounded by the peripheral wall 5b, the lower end portion of the locking convex portion 5c has a required length, and the inside of the support hole 6b of the upper flange plate 6 It is inserted into the upper flange plate 6 to limit the horizontal swing of the upper flange plate 6.
In the present embodiment, the outer diameter of the locking convex portion 5c is substantially the same as the inner diameter of the support hole 6b of the upper flange plate 6, and when the locking convex portion 5c is inserted into the support hole 6b, the two come into contact with each other. It is preferable that the relationship is to be fitted.

The tube body 5 described above is installed so as to surround the wafer boat 3 after mounting the required number of wafers 2 on the wafer boat 3 when the wafer 2 is subjected to the necessary processing by the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.
The upper end or lower end of the support column 8 is fitted into the recess 6a of the upper flange plate 6 and the recess 7a of the lower flange plate 7 which are vertically opposed to each other to assemble the wafer boat 3, and the three columns 8 have the same height. By inserting the wafer 2 along the support groove 8a formed in the vertical direction, the wafer 2 can be horizontally supported by the wafer boat 3.
After the required number of wafers 2 are supported by the wafer boat 3, the wafer boat 3 is housed inside the tube body 5. After that, by connecting the bottom of the tube body 5 to a gas supply device or the like and adjusting the inside of the tube body 5 to the desired atmosphere, various types of wafers such as film formation treatment, etching treatment, and heat treatment can be simultaneously formed on the required number of wafers 2. Processing can be applied.

When accommodating the wafer boat 3 in the tube body 5, the upper end portion of the wafer boat 3 is fitted into the support hole 6b of the upper flange plate 6 to a predetermined depth by fitting the locking convex portion 5c of the tube body 5 into the tube body 5. It can be stably supported by the locking convex portion 5c. Therefore, even if the wafer accommodating device 1 is greatly rolled together with the semiconductor manufacturing device due to the rolling motion of a large earthquake or the like, the upper flange plate 6 and the locking convex portion 5c of the tube body 5 are rolled at almost the same time. The upper flange plate 6 does not collide with the inner surface of the tube body 5, and the support column 8 does not come off from the recess 6a of the upper flange plate 6. Therefore, even when the rolling motion of a large earthquake acts, the wafer 2 housed in the wafer boat 3 is not dropped, and the wafer boat 3 can be avoided from colliding with the tube body 5. Therefore, it is possible to provide a wafer accommodating device 1 that can avoid damage to the wafer 2 and can avoid damage to the wafer boat 3 and is resistant to the shaking of an earthquake.

Further, by fitting and connecting the upper end and the lower end of the support column 8 into the recesses 6a and 7a of the upper and lower flange plates 6 and 7, the support column 8 is hard to come off from the upper and lower flange plates 6 and 7, and strong shaking is caused by a large earthquake or the like. Even if it is transmitted, since the rolling of the upper flange plate 6 is suppressed by the locking convex portion 5c of the ceiling portion of the tube body, there is no possibility that the support column 8 will come off from the upper flange plate 6.
When the shaking of the earthquake acts on the wafer boat 3, since the wafer boat 3 is vertically long, the lower flange plate 7 is used as a base point, and the upper flange plate 6 tries to swing so as to generate the maximum amplitude. Here, if the upper flange plate 6 that tends to generate the maximum amplitude is directly suppressed by the locking convex portion 5c, the rolling of the wafer boat 3 can be suppressed most efficiently.
Therefore, even if a large earthquake occurs and the wafer boat 3 is attempted to cause a large roll, the roll of the upper flange plate 6 can be suppressed, and as a result, the wafer 2 supported between the columns does not fall. It is possible to provide a wafer accommodating device 1 capable of avoiding damage to the wafer 2 and the wafer boat 3.

Further, for a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, it is easy to form a downward locking convex portion 5c even in a tube body 5 made of expensive heat-resistant glass, and a support hole 6b is formed in the upper flange plate 6. You can also do that easily. Therefore, by providing the easy-to-manufacture tube body 5 and the upper flange plate 6, the wafer accommodating device 1 that can withstand a large earthquake and does not damage the supported wafer 2 is provided while suppressing the cost increase as much as possible. can do.

By the way, in the above-mentioned wafer accommodating device 1, one round hole type support hole 6b is formed in the central portion of the upper flange plate 6, and the ceiling portion 5a of the tube body 5 is engaged with a U-shaped cross section or a downward convex shape. A stop convex portion 5c was formed. However, the shape of the support hole 6b formed in the upper flange plate 6 is not limited to the round hole, but may be a square hole, an elliptical hole, or the like, and the shape of the locking convex portion 5c may be an appropriate shape that matches the shape of the support hole 6c. You can use it. Further, it is not necessary that the inner peripheral contour shape of the support hole 6b and the outer peripheral surface contour shape of the locking convex portion 5c match, and the round hole type support hole 6b is inscribed in the support hole 6b. Alternatively, a locking convex portion 5c having a shape such as a polygonal columnar shape may be adopted.
In short, the shape of the locking convex portion 5c that can be inserted into the support hole 6b, and the locking convex portion 5c and the support hole that can prevent the wafer boat 3 from rolling in the inserted state of the locking convex portion 5c. Any combination of 6b may be used, and the shape of the locking convex portion 5c and the shape of the support hole 6b are not particularly limited.

Further, in the above example, only one support hole 6b is formed at the center of the upper flange plate 6, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and a plurality of support holes are provided at the center of the upper flange plate 6 or at another position. A configuration may be adopted, and a required number of locking convex portions 5c may be formed on the ceiling portion 5a according to the formation position and number of support holes.
Considering the manufacturing cost of the upper flange plate 6 and the tube body 5 made of heat-resistant glass, the number of support holes 6b formed is small and it is desirable that the support holes 6b have a simple three-dimensional shape. A combination of one locking convex portion 5c and one round hole type support hole 6b was adopted. With this structure, it is possible to provide a wafer accommodating device 1 that can be implemented at low cost.

1 ... Wafer accommodating device, 2 ... Wafer, 3 ... Wafer boat, 5 ... Tube body, 5a ... Ceiling, 5b ... Peripheral wall, 5c ... Locking convex, 6 ... Upper flange plate, 6a ... Recess, 6b ... Support hole , 7 ... Lower flange plate, 7a ... Recess, 8 ... Support, 8a ... Support groove.

Claims (4)

A wafer boat having a configuration in which a plurality of columns are erected between an upper flange plate and a lower flange plate arranged so as to face each other and a plurality of wafers are supported between the plurality of columns, and a peripheral wall portion surrounding the wafer boat. A wafer accommodating device provided with a tube body provided with a ceiling portion provided on the peripheral wall portion.
A support hole is formed in the upper flange plate so as to penetrate the upper flange plate in the thickness direction, and the wafer boat is surrounded by the peripheral wall portion on the ceiling portion of the tube body located above the support hole of the upper flange plate. In this state, a downward locking protrusion that fits into the support hole is formed.
The support hole has a size that allows the locking convex portion to be brought into contact with the inner circumference of the support hole to be fitted when the locking convex portion is inserted.
The locking convex portion is characterized in that when the wafer accommodating device rolls, the upper flange plate and the locking convex portion are fitted to a predetermined depth of the support hole so as to roll at the same time. Wafer storage device. The wafer accommodating device according to claim 1, wherein recesses for fitting the end portions of the columns are formed on the lower surface side of the upper flange plate and the upper surface side of the lower flange plate. A plurality of grooves are formed in each of the plurality of columns at predetermined intervals along their length directions, and a peripheral edge portion is inserted into the grooves formed at the same height of the plurality of columns to accommodate the wafer. The wafer accommodating apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the wafer accommodating device. The wafer accommodating device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the upper flange plate, the lower flange plate, the support column, and the tube body are all made of heat-resistant glass.

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