JPH03248418A - Longitudinal type heat treatment device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable an object to be treated to be shifted with a small amount of dust and installation space to be minimized by placing a boat station part, an elevation mechanism part, and a boat waiting to allow a boat to be moved based on a predetermined program using one robot arm. CONSTITUTION:A carrier 17 of a carrying-in/carrying-out boat 10 is carried to a carrier installation stand 8 by a carrier 11. Then, a wafer 3 which is stored in a carrier 7 is shifted to a boat 4 by a supporting mechanism for five wafers or that for one wafer of a carrying machine 9 (five wafers at a time or one wafer at a time). The boat 4 is retained perpendicularly to a stand 24 of a wafer-shifting part 22, this stand 24 is moved upward by an up/down moving mechanism or a supporting member 26 is moved down by the up/down mechanism, an upper edge part of the boat 4 is retained by the supporting member 26, and shifting is performed at this position. A semi-torus arm 19 of a boat- shifting mechanism 6 is moved up or an up/down mechanism of the stand 24 of the wafer-shifting part 22 is moved down to cause the boat 4 to be separated from the stand 24 of the wafer-shifting part 22.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Purpose of the invention] (Industrial application field) The present invention relates to a vertical heat treatment apparatus.

(Prior Art) A technique for transferring the objects to be processed between the other processing boat and the carrier while the objects to be processed stored in one processing boat are being subjected to a predetermined heat treatment is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-291335. It is stated in the No. The technology for transporting a processing boat between multiple processing furnaces and a processing object transfer section is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-244.
It is described in Publication No. 856.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) The technique in the former document is configured such that a processing boat can be placed on both ends of a rotating arm, and when transferring the object to be processed to the boat, this boat is placed on the rotating arm. It is difficult to ensure positional accuracy because the object to be processed is placed on a boat, and when the object to be processed comes into contact with the boat, it may come into contact with the boat, causing dust to be generated and, in some cases, damaging the object to be processed or the boat. There is an improvement point in that

Further, since the rotating arm for moving the boat rotates and requires a large amount of space, the apparatus becomes large-sized, and there is an improvement in that the space in the clean room is unnecessarily occupied.

In the latter document, one processing object transfer unit is provided for multiple processing furnaces, so the processing object is transferred to the sentencing boat that is transferring the processing object to one processing boat. The improvement point is that the processing efficiency is low because it cannot be transferred.

Further, since the object to be processed transfer section and the processing furnace are separated from each other, there is an improvement in that the proportion of dust adhering to the objects to be processed is large.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to provide a compact heat treatment apparatus that can transfer objects to be treated with low dust generation and requires a small installation space.

(Summary of the Invention) The present invention comprises a carrier station on which a plurality of carriers are placed, a boat station part that accommodates the boat when transferring the object to be processed from the carrier station to the boat, and the boat in which the object to be processed is stored. In the heat treatment equipment, the boat is placed in a predetermined position by one robot arm. The boat station section, lifting mechanism section, and boat standby section are arranged so that they can be moved based on a program.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example in which the apparatus of the present invention is used in a heat treatment process of a semiconductor wafer will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, the configuration of the heat treatment apparatus will be explained.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, for example, this apparatus is a vertical heat treatment furnace, and includes a processing section 2 consisting of a reaction tube 1 whose axial direction is a vertical axis, and a substrate that can be set in this processing section 2, for example. A boat 4 capable of storing a plurality of semiconductor wafers 3, for example 100 to 150, at predetermined intervals in the thickness direction;
The boat 4 is supported between the lowered position of the elevator mechanism 5, the wafer transfer section 22, and the boat mounting section 42. A movable boat moving mechanism 6, a carrier installation base 8 on which a plurality of carriers 7 capable of storing a plurality of wafers 3, for example, 25, can be installed, and a carrier 7 installed on the carrier installation base 8 and the boat. A transfer device 9 transfers the wafers 3 between the two, a loading/unloading mechanism for receiving and passing the carrier 7 between this device and an external transfer robot, for example, a loading/unloading boat 10, and the loading/unloading boat 10. 10 and the carrier installation stand 8, a transport machine 11 that transports the carrier 7, and a processing gas supply unit 70 that supplies a reaction gas.
The evacuating unit 60 includes a vacuum pump and the like, and a process control unit 50 that controls the heat treatment process, wafer transfer, etc.

As shown in FIG. 7, the processing section 2 is provided with a cylindrical reaction tube 1 whose upper surface is sealed and made of a heat-resistant material that does not easily react with the processing gas, such as quartz glass. The tube 1 is formed to have a larger diameter than the boat 4 and to be longer than the boat 4 so that the boat 4 can be installed inside the tube 1. The surroundings of the reaction tube 1 are heated to a desired temperature, for example, 60°C.
A heating mechanism capable of heating to about 0 to 1200[deg.] C., such as a coil-shaped heater 12, is wound around the reaction tube 1 at a predetermined interval in a non-contact manner. Although not shown, such a reaction tube 1 is provided with a gas supply pipe extending upward from the lower part along the inner wall of the reaction tube 1, and is connected to the gas supply pipe via a mass flow controller (not shown) in the processing gas supply section 70. Connected to a gas supply. An exhaust pipe 14 is connected to the lower part of the reaction tube 1, and the exhaust pipe 14 is connected to a vacuum pump in a vacuum exhaust section 60 that can reduce the pressure inside the reaction tube 1 to a desired pressure and exhaust the process gas. (not shown).

A lid 15 that can come into contact with the lower end of the reaction tube 1 is provided so that the inside of the reaction tube 1 of the processing section 2 configured as described above is set airtight. The lid 15 is placed on the elevating mechanism 5, and can come into contact with the lower end of the reaction tube 1 by being raised and lowered along a guide 17 driven by a drive mechanism such as a ball screw 16.

A heat-insulating cylinder 18 is placed on the top of the lid 15, and a boat 4 made of a heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant material such as quartz glass can be placed almost vertically on the heat-insulating cylinder 18. .

In the boat moving mechanism 6, a semicircular arm 19 is attached to a rotating shaft 20, and the rotating shaft 20 can be moved up and down by a moving mechanism (not shown) and rotated about the rotating shaft 20 by a rotating mechanism (not shown). ing. By rotating and moving up and down the boat moving mechanism 6, the boat 4 can be supported and transferred between the lowered position of the lifting mechanism 5, the wafer transfer section 22, and the boat mounting section 42.

The transport machine 11 and the transfer machine 9 described above are mounted on the same base (not shown), are attached to a rotating shaft, and are raised and lowered by driving a ball screw (not shown). A pair of carrier support arms 37a that are slidable along the guide rails 36 are provided at both ends of the transfer device 9.

37b is provided. This carrier support arm 37
The carrier support arms 37a and 37b are arranged parallel to each other and are driven in conjunction with each other.
37b can be slid by a drive mechanism (not shown), such as a motor.

The carrier installation table 8 is capable of vertically placing a plurality of carriers 7, for example, four carriers 7, and a fan 53 is provided above the carrier installation table 8, the transfer machine 9, and the transport machine 11. For example HEPA filter or ULPA
A filter 54 such as a filter is provided to prevent contamination of the wafer 3 by supplying only purified air onto the wafer 3 during the wafer transfer.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3(a), the loading/unloading boat base 30 (hereinafter referred to as the base) has clamps 31a facing each other for holding the wafer carrier on the base.
, 31b are provided. The clamp is driven by an air cylinder 32 in a direction to clamp the wafer carrier 7, and a concave portion that fits into a convex portion of the wafer carrier 7 is provided at the tip of the clamp 31a. The base 30 has a structure in which it can be rotated by 90 degrees around a rotating shaft 33.

Furthermore, a rotating roller 34 is provided inside the loading/unloading boat 10 for making the orientation flat directions of the wafers 3 in the wafer carrier 7 the same. A portion of the rotating roller 34 is movable by a moving mechanism (not shown) so as to come into contact with the wafer end surface exposed at the bottom of the wafer carrier 7.

Similar to the rotating roller 34, a wafer counter 35 for counting the number of wafers in the wafer carrier 7 is provided.
8 are arranged and moved near the bottom of the wafer carrier 7 (
(not shown) makes it movable. The boat mounting section 42 is provided with a mounting table 44 that fits into the lower part of the boat 4 and holds the boat 4 vertically. It is configured so that it can be moved in parallel on the top.

The wafer transfer section 22 includes a boat 4 as well as a mounting table 44.
A mounting table 24 is provided for vertically holding the mounting table 24, and the mounting table 24 is configured to be movable up and down by a moving mechanism (not shown).

As shown in FIG.
A support member 26 that holds the upper end portion of the support member 26 is provided so as to be movable up and down by a moving mechanism (not shown).

The heat treatment apparatus is configured in this manner.

Next, the operation of the heat treatment apparatus described above and the wafer transfer method will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 3(a), the wafer carrier 7 transferred to the loading/unloading boat 10 by an unmanned transfer robot (not shown) is held between the clamps 31a and 31b.
The rotating roller 34 aligns the orientation flat of the wafer. In addition, 35 wafer counters
The number of wafers and the presence or absence of wafers in the wafer carrier are confirmed by 6 After the above confirmation, as shown in FIG. Fixed. Next, carrier support arm 37a,
37b moves horizontally by a previously programmed distance, and the side surface of the wafer carrier 7 is held by a carrier holder provided at the tip of the arm. After being held, the clamps 31a, 31b are held by the air cylinder 32.

The wafer carrier is driven in a direction away from the side surface of the wafer carrier.

At this time, the load of the wafer carrier 7 is supported by the carrier support arms 37a, 37b. As shown in FIG. 3(c), the carrier support arms 37a and 37b move horizontally toward the apparatus main body together with the wafer carrier 7, and take the wafer carrier 7 into the apparatus. At this time, optical sensors 39 are provided at several locations around the intake port 40 to the device along the vertical direction of the opening, and the sensor light is set to block the opening, so the carrier support arm 37a ,
If, for example, an operator or the like accidentally crosses the inside of the opening while the 37b is in operation, the sensor 39 detects this and automatically inhibits the transfer operation to prevent damage to the operator, the equipment, etc.

Then, the carrier 17 of the loading/unloading boat 10 is transported to the carrier installation stand 8 by the transporting machine 11. Next, the wafers 3 stored in the carrier 7 are transferred to the boat 4 five by five or one by one using the five-wafer support structure or one-wafer support mechanism of the transfer machine 9. . At this time,
The monitor wafer or dummy wafer may be replaced as necessary. When carrying out this relocation, the above boat 4
is held perpendicularly to a mounting table 24 of the wafer transfer section 22, and this mounting table 24 is moved upward by a vertical movement mechanism (not shown), or the support member 26 is moved downward by a vertical movement mechanism (not shown), and the support member 26 is moved downward by a vertical movement mechanism (not shown). The upper end portion is held by the support member 26, and transfer is performed at this position. When the transfer is completed, the mounting table 24 is moved downward by the vertical movement mechanism, or the support member 26 is moved upward, and the upper end of the boat 4 is opened from the support member 26. The boat moving mechanism 6 rotates and the arm 1
9 is fitted into the lower recess of the boat 4.

As shown in FIG. 4, the arm 19 of the boat moving mechanism 6 is moved upward, or the vertical mechanism (not shown) of the mounting table 24 of the wafer transfer section 22 is moved downward, and the boat 4 is placed on the wafer transfer section 22. It is removed from the mounting stand 24.

Next, the arm 19 is rotated to move the boat 4 above the boat mounting section 42, and the arm 19 is moved downward to transfer the boat 4 onto the boat mounting section 42.

Next, the mounting table 42 of the boat mounting section 42 is moved in parallel so that the arm 19 is released from the boat 4.

Next, a boat 4 other than the one described above, which is located in the reaction tube 1 and accommodates the wafers 3 that have been subjected to a predetermined heat treatment, is moved downward by the lifting mechanism 5.

As shown in FIG. 4, the arm 19 is rotated in the lower recess of the boat 4 placed on the heat-insulating tube 18 on the lifting mechanism 5, and the arm is moved upward, or the lifting mechanism 5 is moved downward, and the boat 4 is placed in the heat-insulating tube 18. Remove boat 4 from.

This boat 4 is moved to the wafer transfer section 2 by rotation of the arm 19.
2 and place it on the loading table 24 in the same manner as above, and move it from the boat 4 to the carrier 7 using the transfer machine 9 in the opposite way to the above.
The processed wafer 3 is transferred to the inside. Then, the carrier 7 is transported to the outside from the loading/unloading boat 10 by an automatic guided vehicle or the like.

Next, the arm 19 turns to the boat mounting section 42 and stands by, and the boat 4 containing the wafers 3 transferred from the carrier 7 placed on the mounting table 44 moves on the rail 46, and the boat 4 The arm 19 is fitted into the lower recessed portion.

The arm 19 was moved upward to remove the boat 4 from the mounting table, and the arm 19 was rotated and moved onto the heat insulation cylinder 18 placed on the lifting mechanism 5, so that the axes of the boat 4 and the heat insulation cylinder 18 were aligned. In this state, lower the arm 19 or move the lifting mechanism 5 upward, place the boat 4 on the heat-insulating tube 18, and lower the arm 1.
9 is retracted above the boat mounting portion 42 and the elevating mechanism 5 is raised. By this rising, the lid 15 is brought into contact with the lower end of the reaction tube 1 and the inside of the reaction tube 1 is made airtight, and at the same time,
The boat 4 is placed inside the reaction tube 1. Then, the inside of the reaction tube 1 is heated to a desired temperature and temperature distribution by the heater 12, and in this state, a predetermined processing gas is supplied into the reaction tube 1 from a gas supply pipe (not shown), and a predetermined oxidation, diffusion,
Perform CVD treatment, etc.

After this process is completed, the supply of process gas is stopped, and the inside of the reaction tube 1 is replaced with an inert gas, for example, N2 gas, as required, and then the boat 4 is lowered by the lifting mechanism 5, and the process is completed.

As explained above, the boat 4 is transferred to the dedicated wafer transfer section 22.
The upper end of the boat 4 is held by the support member 26 to accurately hold the wafer 4 in a predetermined position. There is no unnecessary contact with the wafer 3, no dust is generated due to chipping of the wafer 3 or film peeling, and the wafer 3 or boat 4 is not damaged, so the defective rate of semiconductor devices can be significantly reduced.

Transfer the processed object from the boat 4 to the carrier 7,
This carrier 7 is replaced with a carrier 7 containing an unprocessed object, and the next object to be processed is transferred from the carrier 7 to the boat 4.
It takes a relatively long time to complete the series of operations.

Therefore, two sets of boats 4 are housed in the heat treatment apparatus, and one boat 4 is configured to accommodate the objects to be treated and transfer the objects to the other boat 4 during a predetermined heat treatment. As a result, the heat treatment equipment has a high availability rate and can perform efficient treatment.

Further, the movement range of the boat 4 transferred by the arm 19 is between the wafer transfer section 22, the elevating mechanism 5, and the boat mounting section, and the space required for the arm 19 to rotate is configured to be minimal. Therefore, the equipment can be made smaller, occupying less space in the clean room, and the cost of the clean room can be reduced.

In addition, since the processing object transfer section and the processing furnace are located close to each other in the equipment, and clean air is supplied between them, there is less dust adhering to the processing object, which greatly reduces the defective rate of semiconductor devices. can be reduced to

In addition, when the lengths of the boats 4 accommodated in the wafer transfer section 22 are different, such as those for 100 wafers or 150 wafers, the vertical movement mechanism of the wafer transfer section 24 is used to transfer a predetermined wafer. A moving mechanism may be provided to move the boat to another position and to move the support member 26 that supports the upper end of the boat.

In the above embodiments, the present invention is applied to a vertical heat treatment apparatus, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and similar effects can be obtained even if the present invention is applied to, for example, a horizontal heat treatment apparatus.

Furthermore, although a semiconductor wafer is used as the object to be processed in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and it goes without saying that the present invention may be applied to an apparatus that processes liquid crystal glass substrates, ceramic substrates, etc., for example.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, the present invention has the remarkable effect that it is possible to transfer objects to be treated with low dust generation, and it is also possible to configure a compact vertical heat treatment apparatus with a small installation space.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 and 2 are block diagrams of a heat treatment apparatus for explaining one embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is (a). (b) and (c) are explanatory diagrams of the operation of the loading/unloading boat shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a diagram explanatory of transferring the boat. 3... Wafer 4... Boat 5... Lifting mechanism 6... Boat moving mechanism 7... Carrier 22... Wafer transfer section 30... Base 31a, 31b... Clamps 37a, 3
7b...Carrier support arm 42...Boat mounting part

Claims (1)

[Claims] A carrier station on which a plurality of carriers are placed; a boat station section that accommodates the boats when transferring the objects to be processed from the carrier station to the boat; and a boat station section that accommodates the boats containing the objects to be processed and transfers them to a vertical heat treatment furnace. In a heat treatment equipment consisting of an elevating mechanism part provided for loading and unloading, and a boat waiting part provided for temporarily waiting a boat, the boat can be moved based on a predetermined program by one robot arm. A vertical heat treatment apparatus characterized in that the boat station section, the lifting mechanism section, and the boat standby section are arranged.