JPH07147312A - Substrate heat treater - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a substrate heat treater which has a high throughput and can prevent substrates from being damaged. CONSTITUTION:A lift arm 100 which relatively lifts up and down with respect to a susceptor 50 to temporarily receive a semiconductor wafer W supported and transferred by a susceptor 50 from a heat treatment chamber 60 is arranged at a substrate transfer position where a handling arm 40 and the susceptor 50 transferring a semiconductor wafer W to the heat treatment chamber 60 delivers the semiconductor wafer W. The semiconductor wafer W transferred from the heat treatment chamber 60 stands by above the susceptor 50 with the lift arm 100, and meanwhile the handling arm 40 delivers a semiconductor wafer W to be treated next to the susceptor 50. After the susceptor 50 penetrates into the heat treatment chamber 60, a semiconductor wafer W supported by the lift arm 100 and naturally cooled to some degree is transferred to a cooling plate 20 by the handling arm 40.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a so-called single-wafer type substrate heat treatment apparatus for heat-treating substrates such as semiconductor wafers one by one, and more particularly to a substrate transfer mechanism for loading and unloading substrates.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional apparatus of this type, for example, there is an infrared lamp annealing apparatus for performing a desired heat treatment on a semiconductor wafer by infrared radiation of a halogen lamp. A plan view showing the schematic configuration of this apparatus is shown in FIG. 6 and will be described below.

In the figure, reference numeral 10 is a cassette in which semiconductor wafers W are stacked and housed at regular intervals, and a cooling plate 20 for cooling the heat-treated semiconductor wafers W to a predetermined temperature is provided below the cassette. There is. An alignment unit 30 is arranged in parallel on the cooling plate 20. The alignment unit 30 has a function of aligning the position of the semiconductor wafer W and the orientation of the orientation flat in a predetermined state.

A handling arm 40 is provided along the cooling plate 20 and the alignment unit 30 so as to be movable back and forth. The handling arm 40 is provided with _two arms 44 ₂ and 44 ₃ that can be swiveled, and one end side of the first arm 44 ₂ is connected to a motor shaft (not shown) and driven to rotate. Furthermore, the first arm 4
One end of the second arm 44 ₃ is rotatably connected to the other end of 4 ₂ . The second arm 44 ₃ is attached via a regulation belt so as to rotate in the opposite direction to the first arm 44 ₂ , and the back end of the semiconductor wafer W is suction-supported at the free end of the second arm 44 _3. A suction port 44 _{4 for} sucking air is formed. Further, the first arm 44 ₂ and the second arm 44 ₃ are configured to be able to move up and down integrally.

A susceptor 50 for supporting the back surface of the semiconductor wafer W at three points by point contact is arranged at a position where the handling arm 40 carries the semiconductor wafer W. The susceptor 50 is configured to be capable of advancing and retracting in the horizontal direction, and in the approaching direction, for example, a halogen lamp is provided at a position where the semiconductor wafer W is vertically sandwiched, and a heat treatment chamber 60 for performing heat treatment at a desired temperature is provided. There is.

The substrate supporting portion of the susceptor 50 is formed in a ring shape, and an L-shaped supporting pin 54 is provided upright inside the substrate supporting portion. After the semiconductor wafer W is transferred from the handling arm 40, the susceptor 50 moves into the heat treatment chamber 60 and supports the semiconductor wafer W in the heat treatment chamber 60 during the heat treatment for a predetermined time. And
After the heat treatment, exit the heat treatment chamber 60,
The semiconductor wafer W is unloaded and delivered to the handling arm 40.

Next, the process of processing the semiconductor wafer W by the infrared lamp annealing apparatus having the above-mentioned structure will be described with reference to the operation sequence diagram of FIG. This operation sequence diagram shows a sequence after the operation in which the semiconductor wafer W is loaded into the heat treatment chamber 60 and is unloaded by the susceptor 50 after the heat treatment for a predetermined time. In this specification and the drawings, t represents a unit time.

First, the rear surface of the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W stored in the cassette 10 is handled by the handling arm 40.
Supported by suction and conveyed to the alignment unit 30.
The transferred semiconductor wafer W is
After the flat positions are aligned in a predetermined direction, they are again conveyed by the handling arm 40 and transferred to the substrate supporting portion of the susceptor 50. The susceptor 50 supporting the semiconductor wafer W enters the heat treatment chamber 60, and remains in the heat treatment chamber 60 for a predetermined time as it is. During this time, the handling arm 40 moves the cassette 1
The semiconductor wafer W to be processed next from 0 is transferred to the alignment unit 30. Hereinafter, the operation sequence shown in FIG. 7 will be performed.

(1) Carrying Out by Susceptor The semiconductor wafer W which has been subjected to the heat treatment for a predetermined time is carried out from the heat treatment chamber 60 while being supported by the substrate supporting portion of the susceptor 50.

(2) Transfer from susceptor to cooling plate The semiconductor wafer W supported by the susceptor 50 is sucked and supported by the handling arm 40 and transferred to the cooling plate 20.

(3) Cooling process The semiconductor wafer W transferred to the cooling plate 20.
Is cooled to a predetermined temperature.

(4) Transfer from Alignment Unit to Susceptor While the susceptor 50 is in the heat treatment chamber 60, the semiconductor wafer W, which has been transferred to the alignment unit 30 and whose orientation has been completed, is handled by the handling arm 4
0 supports by suction and conveys to the susceptor 50.

(5) Carrying in the susceptor The susceptor 50 supporting the semiconductor wafer W enters the heat treatment chamber 60 and heat treatment is performed.

(6) Transfer from Cassette to Alignment Unit The semiconductor wafer W to be processed next is sucked and supported by the handling arm 40 and transferred from the cassette 10 to the alignment unit 30.

(7) Standby in the alignment unit The semiconductor wafer W transferred to the alignment unit 30 in the above (6) is subjected to alignment processing, and then the semiconductor wafer W that has been heat-treated by the susceptor carry-in (5) is processed. Wait here until the end.

(8) Transport from cooling plate to cassette Semiconductor wafer W cooled in cooling process (3) above
The handling arm 40 suctions and supports the cassette 1
Transport to 0 and store.

Through the above operation, one semiconductor wafer W
Then, a predetermined heat treatment is performed.

[0018]

In a substrate heat treatment apparatus such as an infrared lamp annealing apparatus, in which a single wafer processing apparatus performs processing one by one, the larger the number of sheets that can be processed per unit time, that is, The higher the throughput, the better. For that purpose, the operating rate of the heat treatment chamber is preferably high, and in order to increase this operating rate, it is necessary to carry the substrate into the heat treatment chamber and quickly transfer the substrate to and from the susceptor carried out from the substrate.

However, in the case of the conventional example having the above-mentioned structure, since the operation of (2) transfer from the susceptor to the cooling plate and (4) transfer from the alignment unit to the susceptor are performed only by the handling arm, The operations (2) and (4) are serially executed. Therefore, during the operations of (2) and (4), the heat treatment cannot be performed, and as a result, there is a problem that the operating rate of the heat treatment chamber is reduced and the throughput of the apparatus is reduced.

Since the substrate carried out from the heat treatment chamber is supported by the susceptor in a high temperature state, when the handling arm supports the substrate for transporting it to the cooling plate, the temperature difference between the handling arm and the substrate causes Heat stress will be applied to the board,
There is also a problem that the substrate may be broken in the worst case.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate heat treatment apparatus having a high throughput. It is another object of the present invention to provide a substrate heat treatment apparatus which has a high throughput and can reduce the thermal stress applied to the substrate.

[0022]

The present invention has the following constitution in order to achieve such an object. That is, the substrate heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one substrate is carried into the heat treatment chamber and the substrate is carried out from the heat treatment chamber after the heat treatment, and a substrate supply for storing a plurality of substrates. A second substrate for loading / unloading the substrate to / from the unit and for delivering the substrate to / from the first transporting unit
In a substrate heat treatment apparatus provided with a transfer means, a substrate support part for supporting the substrate, a position where the first transfer means and the second transfer means transfer the substrate, and an interference between the first transfer means and the second transfer means. A substrate provisional unit including a substrate supporting unit moving mechanism that reciprocates the substrate supporting unit over a retracted position and a substrate supporting unit elevating mechanism that moves the substrate supporting unit up and down relatively to the first transfer unit. It is characterized by having a receiving means.

The substrate heat treatment apparatus according to a second aspect is the substrate heat treatment apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the substrate support portion of the temporary substrate receiving means has at least three protrusions for supporting the substrate on the upper surface thereof. It is equipped with.

[0024]

The operation of the present invention is as follows. That is,
According to the invention described in claim 1, after the substrate is carried out from the heat treatment chamber by the first transfer means, the substrate support part of the temporary substrate receiving means transfers the first transfer means and the second transfer means by the substrate support part moving mechanism. The substrate is moved to a position where it is transferred to and from the means, and is raised relative to the first transfer means by the substrate support elevating mechanism, and temporarily receives the substrate from the first transfer means. Immediately thereafter, the second transfer unit transfers the substrate to be processed next from the substrate supply unit, and transfers the substrate to the first transfer unit. After the first transfer means carries the substrate into the heat treatment chamber and before the first transfer means receives the substrate to be processed next from the second transfer means, the second transfer means transfers the processed substrate that has been naturally cooled to some extent. Receive from the temporary receiving means.
Alternatively, the second transport means transports the next substrate from the substrate supply section to the temporary substrate receiving means and temporarily delivers it.
When the first transfer means carries out the processed substrate from the heat treatment chamber, the second transfer means immediately receives the processed substrate from the first transfer means. After that, the temporary substrate receiving means transfers the temporarily received next substrate to the first transfer means.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the substrate carried out from the heat treatment chamber supported by the first transfer means is at least 3 formed on the upper surface of the substrate support portion of the temporary substrate receiving means. The two protrusions are point-contacted and stably supported with little mutual heat transfer.

[0026]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a single-wafer type infrared lamp annealing device, FIG. 2 is a plan view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a mutual relationship of substrate supporting portions of respective substrate carrying means. is there.

In the figure, reference numeral 10 is a cassette for supporting the edge of the semiconductor wafer W and stacking and accommodating it at regular intervals. A cooling plate 20 for rapidly cooling the semiconductor wafer W after the heat treatment to room temperature is provided below the cassette 10. An alignment unit 30 is arranged in parallel on the cooling plate 20.
A handling arm 40 that can move back and forth along the above is provided. A susceptor 50 is provided at a position (substrate transfer position) where the handling arm 40 delivers the semiconductor wafer W, and a heat treatment chamber 60 is provided at a destination of the susceptor 50. Furthermore, susceptor 5
A lift arm 100 for receiving the semiconductor wafer W after the heat treatment at the substrate transfer position from the susceptor 50 is provided at a position facing the handling arm 40 with 0 interposed therebetween.

The susceptor 50 corresponds to the first transfer means in the present invention, the cassette 10 and the alignment unit 30 are the substrate supply section, the handling arm 40 is the second transfer means, and the lift arm 10 is.
0 corresponds to a substrate temporary receiving means.

The alignment unit 30 arranged in parallel on the cooling plate 20 detects the orientation flat formed on the semiconductor wafer W, and determines the position of the semiconductor wafer W and the orientation of the orientation flat in a predetermined state. It has the function of aligning with.

At a position along the cooling plate 20 and the alignment unit 30, a handling arm 40 for delivering the semiconductor wafer W between the susceptor 50 and the lift arm 100 is provided. The handling arm 40 includes a moving mechanism 42, an arm lifting mechanism 43, and a handling arm body 44.

The moving mechanism 42 includes a movable base member 41 slidably fitted to a pair of guide rails 42 ₁ provided along the cassette 10, the cooling plate 20 and the alignment unit 30. The movable base member 41 is screwed onto a screw shaft 42 _{2 provided} in parallel with the guide rail 42 ₁ , and a drive unit 42 including a motor, a pulley, and the like connected to one end of the screw shaft 42 _2.
The screw shaft 42 ₂ is rotationally driven in the forward and reverse directions by _{3 so} that the screw shaft 42 ₂ moves horizontally along the cassette 10, the cooling plate 20, and the alignment unit 30.

On the movable base member 41 of the moving mechanism 42, an arm lifting mechanism 43 having the following structure is mounted. A gate-shaped frame 43 ₁ is erected on the movable base member 41, and an elevating member 43 ₃ is slidably fitted on a guide shaft 43 ₂ which is vertically installed on the gate-shaped frame 43 ₁ . . Elevating member 43 ₃ is screwed into the screw shaft 43 ₄ which is arranged in the guide shaft 43 _2, for driving the screw shaft 43 ₄ in forward and reverse directions by the motor 43 ₅ attached to the movable base member 41 As a result, it can be moved up and down.

The arm lifting mechanism 43 is equipped with a handling arm body 44 having the following structure. A columnar arm support member 44 ₁ is erected on the elevating member 43 ₃ of the arm elevating mechanism 43, and a driving unit such as a motor (not shown) is arranged inside the arm supporting member 44 ₁ . One end side of the first arm 44 ₂ is connected to the drive portion above the arm support member 44 ₁ , and the drive portion is rotated by driving the drive portion in the forward and reverse directions. This first
The other end of the arm 44 _2, a second arm 44 ₃ made of ceramic are mounted to rotate in a first arm 44 ₂ and the opposite direction through the regulating belt (not shown). With these structures, the first arm 44 ₂ and the second arm 44 2
_The arm composed of ₃ and ₃ can be swiveled and extended in any direction within the horizontal plane. Further, a suction port 44 ₄ for suctioning and supporting the back surface of the semiconductor wafer W by air suction is formed on the upper surface of the second arm 44 _{3 on} the free end side.

A susceptor 50 is horizontally movable so as to be substantially orthogonal to the moving direction of the handling arm 40. The susceptor 50 has a moving mechanism 52 having the same structure as the moving mechanism 42 of the handling arm 40.
And a susceptor body 51 and a support member 53 that horizontally supports the susceptor body 51. The susceptor body 51 is
As an example, it is made of quartz and is formed in a ring shape, and an L-shaped support pin 54 is provided in the inner portion of the susceptor body 51.
It is formed in a state of protruding above. This support pin 54 has a handling arm 40 for the semiconductor wafer W.
It is formed at a position where it does not interfere with the second arm 44 ₃ when delivering (see FIG. 3). The susceptor body 51 is
By rotating the moving mechanism 52 in the forward and reverse directions, the substrate transfer position and the semiconductor wafer W are moved to the heat treatment chamber 6
It moves horizontally to and from the processing position when heat treatment is performed within 0.

A heat treatment chamber 60 is provided at a position facing the susceptor 50. This heat treatment chamber 60
Is equipped with a shutter 61 that opens and closes a transfer port of a size that allows the susceptor main body 51 to move forward and backward, and internally has a halogen lamp that sandwiches the semiconductor wafer W that has been carried in, and heat treatment is performed by light irradiation of this lamp. Is to do.

The handling arm 40 and the susceptor 50 are constructed as follows. That is, when the movable base member 41 of the handling arm 40 moves to the most susceptor 50 side and the arm including the first arm 44 ₂ and the second arm 44 ₃ extends to the most susceptor 50 side, the suction port 44 ₄ becomes the tip of the second arm 44 ₃ formed is farthest from the heat treatment chamber 60 a susceptor 50
The position is the same as that of the susceptor body 51 in plan view. When both are in this position, the elevating member 43 ₃ of the handling arm 40 moves up and down, so that the second arm 44 ₃
From the support pins 54 of the susceptor 50, or from the support pins 54 of the susceptor 50 in the opposite to the second arm 44 _3,
It becomes possible to deliver the semiconductor wafer W. This position is referred to as a substrate transfer position in this embodiment.

A lift arm 100 is provided at a position facing the handling arm 40 with the susceptor 50 interposed therebetween. The lift arm 100 includes a moving mechanism 110.
And arm lifting mechanism 120 and lift arm body 130
It is composed of.

Movable base member 111 of moving mechanism 110
Is slidably fitted to a pair of guide rails 112 arranged so as to be orthogonal to the movement axis of the susceptor 50,
The guide shaft 112 is screwed onto a screw shaft 113 provided in parallel. A drive unit 114 including a motor and a pulley is connected to one end of the screw shaft 113. This drive unit 1
By rotating and driving the screw shaft 113 in the forward and reverse directions, the lift arm main body 130 horizontally moves between the standby position and the substrate transfer position opposite to the substrate transfer position. There is.

On the upper part of the moving mechanism 110, an arm lifting mechanism 120 as described below is arranged. A pair of guide shafts 121 are erected on the movable base member 111, and an elevating member 122 is slidably fitted therein. The rod of the air cylinder 123 is connected to the bottom of the elevating member 122. By driving the air cylinder 123, the lifting member 122 moves the guide shaft 121.
Go up and down.

The lifting arm body 1 is provided on the lifting member 122.
30 are provided. The lift arm body 130 cantilevers and supports a quartz substrate support 131. The substrate support 131 is formed in a U shape so as not to interfere with the support pins 54 in a state of being close to the susceptor body 51 (see FIG. 3), and supports the semiconductor wafer W by point contact on its upper surface. Protrusions 132 for forming are formed at three places.

The lift arm 100 is constructed as follows. That is, when the movable base member 111 of the lift arm 100 moves to the most susceptor 50 side, the substrate support portion 131 of the lift arm body 130 is located at the substrate transfer position described above. When the lift arm 100 is in this position, the lift member 122 of the lift arm 100 moves up and down, between the lift arm 100 and the support pin 54 of the susceptor 50, and the lift member 122 of the lift arm 100 or the lift member of the handling arm 40. The semiconductor wafer W can be transferred to and from the second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40 by moving up and down of 43 ₃ . Further, even when the lift arm body 130 is in the substrate transfer position in a plan view, the lift arm body 130 is located outside the movement range of the handling arm 40 and the susceptor 50 when the elevating member 122 is at the highest position. It does not interfere with their movement. This position is referred to as a retracted position in this embodiment.

The movable base member 1 of the moving mechanism 110
The driving means 11 includes a driving portion 114 such as a motor and the screw shaft 1.
Regardless of 13, an air cylinder that drives between the standby position and the substrate transfer position may be used. In this case, it is preferable that the guide rail 112 be provided with a buffer portion such as a damper so that the impact during driving and stopping of the movable base member 111 does not adversely affect other portions such as vibration.

Incidentally, the second arm 44 ₃ is a substrate support portion of the handling arm 44 is not limited to by the suction support, for example, it may be those supported by contact a point as shown in FIG. The second arm 144 ₃ is provided with two long fingers 144 ₄ at the tip thereof and the short finger 14 ₄ is provided between them.
4 ₅ are provided. Protrusions 144 ₆ for supporting the substrate are formed on the upper surfaces of the long fingers 144 ₄ and the short fingers 144 ₅ , respectively. In addition, the long fingers 144 ₄ and the short fingers 144 ₅ are provided on the support pin 54 of the susceptor body 51 and the lift arm body 13 respectively.
It is formed in a shape that does not interfere with 1.

Next, the processing steps performed by the apparatus having the above-mentioned configuration will be described with reference to the operation sequence diagram of FIG.
This operation sequence diagram shows a sequence after the operation in which the semiconductor wafer W is loaded into the heat treatment chamber 60 and is unloaded by the susceptor 50 after the heat treatment for a predetermined time.

First, in order to detect the storage position of the semiconductor wafer W in the cassette 10, a wafer detection sensor (not shown) starts a search from the outside of the cassette 10, and the position where the semiconductor wafer W is detected is stored and stored. The suction port 44 ₄ of the second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40 is moved to the position. Then, the suction port 44 ₄ starts to suction in contact with the back surface of the semiconductor wafer W, transports the semiconductor wafer W to the alignment unit 30. The transported semiconductor wafers W are aligned in a predetermined direction, again suctioned and supported by the handling arm 40, transported, and moved above the susceptor body 51. Then the second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40 is slightly lowered by arm lift mechanism 43, a susceptor 50
Immediately before the back surface of the semiconductor wafer W comes into contact with the support pins 54 of 1, the suction is released and the semiconductor wafer W is delivered to the susceptor 50. After the semiconductor wafer W is delivered to the susceptor 50, the second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40 is
It retreats through between the upper end of the support pin 54 and the upper surface of the susceptor body 51. After the second arm 44 ₃ is retracted, the susceptor body 51 supporting the semiconductor wafer W is driven by the moving mechanism 52 to enter the heat treatment chamber 60 at the same time when the shutter 61 of the heat treatment chamber 60 is opened. At this time, the support member 53 becomes
The opening is closed and heat treatment is performed for a predetermined time. During this heat treatment, the handling arm 40
Conveys the semiconductor wafer W to be processed next from the cassette 10 to the alignment unit 30. Hereinafter, the operation sequence shown in FIG. 5 will be performed.

(1) Carrying out by susceptor The semiconductor wafer W supported by the susceptor body 51 and having entered the heat treatment chamber 60 is retracted to the substrate transfer position by driving the drive mechanism 52.

(2) The lift arm main body 130 enters the gap between the susceptor main body 51 and the semiconductor wafer W supported by the support pins 54 by driving the retracting movement mechanism 110 by the lift arm. Then, the arm elevating mechanism 120 is driven up, the semiconductor wafer W is transferred to the substrate support 131 of the lift arm 100, and the lift arm main body 130 is left as it is, and the lift arm main body 130 is handled.
And the susceptor 50 is driven up to a retracted position outside the moving range. Since the protrusion 132 is formed on the substrate support 131 of the lift arm 100, the semiconductor wafer W is supported by the substrate support 131 in a point contact state. Although the temperature of the semiconductor wafer W at this time is somewhat lower than that during the heat treatment, it is high enough to be stored in the cassette 10 immediately, but both are in a point contact state. , There is little mutual heat transfer between the high-temperature semiconductor wafer W and the substrate support 131 at approximately room temperature. As a result, the thermal stress applied to the semiconductor wafer W after the heat treatment is reduced.

(3) Standby for lift arm Standby in the state of (2) above. At this time, the semiconductor wafer W is exposed to room temperature and naturally cooled.

(4) Transfer from the handling arm to the susceptor The handling arm 40 transfers the semiconductor wafer W waiting in the alignment unit 30, and the susceptor 5
Reprinted to 0. After the semiconductor wafer W is delivered to the susceptor 50, the second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40 is
Are saved as described above.

(5) Carrying in the susceptor Next, the susceptor body 51 supporting the semiconductor wafer W to be heat-treated enters into the heat treatment chamber 60, and heat treatment is performed.

[0051] (6) The second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40, which have been saved in the conveying said to the cooling plate (4) from the lift arm is driven to the substrate transfer position, followed by
The arm elevating mechanism 120 is driven to descend, and the above (2)
Then, the lift arm main body 130, which has been retracted to the retracted position above the substrate transfer position while supporting the semiconductor wafer W, is lowered. As a result, the semiconductor wafer W that has undergone the heat treatment
Is transferred from the lift arm 100 to the handling arm 40, and is then transported to the cooling plate 20 by the handling arm 40. Since the semiconductor wafer W is (3) naturally cooled in the standby state of the lift arm, the temperature thereof is slightly lowered and the temperature difference between the semiconductor wafer W and the handling arm 40 is reduced, and the thermal stress applied to the semiconductor wafer W is reduced. Is small. After the semiconductor wafer W is handed over to the handling arm 40, the moving mechanism 110 is driven and the lift arm main body 130 is retracted in the direction away from the susceptor 50. This is to prevent the movement of the susceptor 50 from being obstructed when the susceptor 50 retracts to the substrate transfer position after the heat treatment of the semiconductor wafer W is completed. It should be noted that although (5) carrying in the susceptor and (6) carrying from the lift arm to the cooling plate are simultaneously carried out as shown in FIG. 5, this (6) is carried out after (5) above, or The step (5) may be performed after the step (6).

(7) Cooling process Semiconductor wafer W transferred to cooling plate 20
Is cooled to a predetermined temperature.

(8) Transfer from Cassette to Alignment Unit The semiconductor wafer W to be processed next is sucked and supported by the handling arm 40 and transferred from the cassette 10 to the alignment unit 30.

(9) Standby in alignment unit The semiconductor wafer W transferred to the alignment unit 30 in the above (8) is subjected to alignment processing,
(5) The semiconductor wafer W that has been heat-treated by carrying in the susceptor waits here until the processing is completed.

(10) Transport from cooling plate to cassette Semiconductor wafer W cooled in the above (7) cooling process
The handling arm 40 suctions and supports the cassette 1
Transport to 0 and store. After that, when the heat treatment of the semiconductor wafer W is completed, the operation returns to the same operation as the above (1), and the same operation is repeated thereafter.

Through the above operation, one semiconductor wafer W
Although the predetermined heat treatment is performed on the heat treatment chamber, the time from (1) the start of unloading by the susceptor to (5) the end of susceptor loading is the time during which the heat treatment chamber 60 does not perform any processing (heat treatment chamber non-operation time). In the apparatus of the embodiment having the above configuration, the heat treatment chamber non-operation time is about 2.5.
The time is t seconds, which is drastically reduced compared to about 4.5 t seconds (see FIG. 7) of the conventional device. Therefore, the operating rate of the heat treatment chamber is high, and as a result, the throughput of the apparatus is high.

In the present embodiment, the substrate heat treatment apparatus for performing heat treatment in a state where the susceptor supporting the substrate remains in the heat treatment chamber has been described as an example. However, in the present invention, the susceptor is provided in the heat treatment chamber. The present invention can also be applied to a substrate heat treatment apparatus in which a substrate is placed on the substrate rest part, and thereafter, heat treatment is performed with the susceptor retracted outside the heat treatment chamber.

In this embodiment, an infrared lamp annealing apparatus of a light irradiation type was used as an example of the heating method for the heat treatment chamber, but the present invention is not limited to this type of heat treatment apparatus, and various heat treatment apparatuses can be used. It can be implemented in a device. For example, it can be implemented by a resistance heating type or high frequency heating type substrate heat treatment apparatus using a graphite heater or the like.

In the above description of the embodiment, the lift arm 100 temporarily receives the heat-treated semiconductor wafer W carried out by the susceptor 50 from the heat treatment chamber 60. However, in the present invention, the lift arm 100 is temporarily used. The substrate to be received may be a semiconductor wafer before the heat treatment that the handling arm 40 carries from the alignment unit 30. The specific operation of the example in this case is as follows. Before the susceptor 50 carries out the semiconductor wafer W from the heat treatment chamber 60, the lift arm 100 temporarily receives the next semiconductor wafer W carried by the handling arm 40 from the alignment unit 30, and then the handling arm 40 retracts. Then, when the susceptor 50 carries out the heat-treated semiconductor wafer W from the heat treatment chamber 60, the second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40 is driven to the substrate transfer position,
The semiconductor wafer W is immediately received and conveyed to the cooling plate 20. When the second arm 44 ₃ of the handling arm 40 retreats from the substrate transfer position, followed by lowering the lift arm 40 to the position placing transfer substrate, the next semiconductor wafer W was supported, transfers to the susceptor 50. The susceptor 50 carries the received semiconductor wafer W into the heat treatment chamber 60. Even in this case, the throughput of the device can be increased.

Further, in this embodiment, the substrate supported by the susceptor is temporarily received by raising and lowering the lift arm, but the lift arm may be made to temporarily receive the substrate by raising and lowering the susceptor. .

[0061]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the invention described in claim 1, after the first transfer means carries out the substrate from the heat treatment chamber, the temporary substrate receiving means receives the substrate and Since the second transfer means transfers the substrate to be processed to the first transfer means and the first transfer means carries the substrate into the heat treatment chamber, the time during which the heat treatment chamber is not performing heat treatment can be shortened. As a result, the throughput of the device is increased.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the high temperature substrate carried out from the heat treatment chamber is supported by point contact, heat transfer between the substrate supporting portion of the temporary substrate receiving means and the substrate. Since the amount is reduced, the substrate can be further prevented from being damaged.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a substrate heat treatment apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a substrate heat treatment apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a mutual relationship between a handling arm of a semiconductor wafer and a substrate support portion of a susceptor and a lift arm.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a mutual relationship between a modified example of a handling arm of a semiconductor wafer and a substrate support portion of a susceptor and a lift arm.

FIG. 5 is an operation sequence diagram of the substrate heat treatment apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a conventional substrate heat treatment apparatus.

FIG. 7 is an operation sequence diagram of a conventional substrate heat treatment apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 ... Cassette 20 ... Cooling plate 30 ... Alignment unit 40 ... Handling arm (second carrying means) 50 ... Susceptor (first carrying means) 51 ... Susceptor body 60 ... Heat treatment chamber 100 ... Lift arm (temporary receiving means for substrate) 110 ... Moving mechanism (substrate supporting portion moving mechanism) 120 ... Arm raising / lowering mechanism (substrate supporting portion raising / lowering mechanism) 130 ... Arm main body 131 ... Substrate supporting portion 132 ... Protrusion W ... Semiconductor wafer

Front page continuation (72) Inventor Shigeru Suzuki 322 Hazushi Furukawa-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto Prefecture Kyoto Prefecture Rakusai Factory, Nippon Steel Screen Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Screen Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in Rakusai Factory (72) Inventor Toru Sato 322 Hazushi Furukawacho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto Dainippon Screen Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in Rakusai Factory

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A single substrate is loaded into a heat treatment chamber,
Subsequent to the first heat transfer chamber, the first transfer means for unloading the substrate from the heat treatment chamber and the substrate supply part for storing a plurality of substrates, and the transfer of the substrate to and from the first transfer means. In a substrate heat treatment apparatus having a second transfer means, a substrate support part for supporting a substrate, a position at which the first transfer means and the second transfer means transfer the substrate, a first transfer means and a second transfer means. A substrate support part moving mechanism that reciprocates the substrate support part over a retracted position that does not interfere with the means; and a substrate support part elevating mechanism that elevates and lowers the substrate support part relative to the first transfer means. A substrate heat treatment apparatus comprising: 2. The substrate heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate support portion of the temporary substrate receiving means has at least three protrusions for supporting the substrate on its upper surface.