JPH07178Y2 - Vacuum vessel pressure control valve - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION <Industrial Application Field> The present invention relates to a pressure control valve provided inside a vacuum container for performing sputter film formation and the like.

<Prior Art> When performing sputtering film formation, etching, etc. by plasma discharge, the inert gas in the vacuum container is exhausted without disturbing the plasma discharge that is uniformly occurring on the electrode table in the vacuum container. It is necessary to adjust the pressure. That is, for example, when the inert gas is directly exhausted by a pump from one exhaust port provided in the vacuum container, the pressure of the inert gas on the electrode table becomes nonuniform during the exhaust, and the plasma discharge is disturbed. Therefore, for example, there is a problem that a uniform film cannot be formed by sputtering film formation.

Therefore, conventionally, a vacuum container is provided with a plurality of exhaust ports, and a variable valve is provided in the middle of the exhaust pipe to change the exhaust gas flow rate of the inert gas to adjust the pressure.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> However, in the above-mentioned conventional adjustment, it is necessary to provide a variable valve and many exhaust pipes, which complicates the circumference of the vacuum container and requires a space.

<Means for Solving Problems> The present invention has been devised to solve the above problems, and is an inert gas which is provided inside a vacuum container and is exhausted from an exhaust port provided at the bottom of the vacuum container. This is a valve for adjusting the pressure of gas.

The pressure adjusting valve includes a cylindrical inner cylinder that surrounds the electrode table, a cylindrical outer cylinder in which the inner cylinder is loosely inserted, and an adjustment that rotates the outer cylinder from the outside of the vacuum container. And a device. Further, an annular chamber portion communicating with the exhaust port is formed in the hollow portion of the inner cylinder, and a plurality of fixing holes communicating with the annular chamber portion are provided in the inner cylinder at substantially equal intervals, and the outer cylinder is provided with the above-mentioned fixing holes. A plurality of adjusting holes that can simultaneously open and close a plurality of fixing holes of the inner cylinder are provided. Then, the opening degree of each of the plurality of fixing holes is simultaneously and steplessly adjusted by operating the adjusting device to rotate the outer cylinder.

<Operation> With the above configuration, the inert gas introduced into the vacuum container uniformly flows into the annular chamber portion from all the adjusting holes and the fixing holes of the pressure adjusting valve, and is exhausted from the exhaust port. That is, the inert gas is uniformly exhausted from around the electrode table.

<Embodiment> An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a pressure regulating valve, and FIG. 2 is a schematic side sectional view showing a state in which the pressure regulating valve is provided in a vacuum container.

As shown in the drawing, a cylindrical electrode table 2 is provided inside the cylindrical vacuum container 1, and an exhaust port 12 is provided on the bottom surface 11 of the vacuum container 1 below the electrode table 2. The exhaust port 12 is connected to a vacuum pump P via an open / close valve V by an exhaust pipe p. A pressure adjusting valve 3 is provided around the electrode table 2.

The pressure control valve 3 includes a cylindrical inner cylinder 4 surrounding the electrode table 2 and an outer cylinder 5 in which the inner cylinder 4 is loosely inserted.
And an adjusting device 6 for pneumatically moving the outer cylinder 5 from the outside of the vacuum container 1.

The upper and lower ends of the inner cylinder 4 each have a flange 4 protruding outward.
1, 42 are formed, and the outer cylinder 5 has these flanges 41, 42.
It is possible to rotate in the circumferential direction while being attached between the two. The flange 42 at the lower end of the inner cylinder 4 is in close contact with the bottom surface 11 of the vacuum container 1.

Further, an annular plate material k having a substantially inverted L-shaped cross section is attached to the inner wall 4a of the inner cylinder 4, and the lower end of the annular plate material k is brought into close contact with the bottom surface 11 of the vacuum container 1, whereby An annular chamber portion 7 is formed below the electrode table 2. Therefore, the annular chamber portion 7 is in communication with the exhaust port 12 provided on the bottom surface 11 of the vacuum container 1. Further, the inner cylinder 4 is provided with a plurality of fixing holes 43, 43 ... Which communicate with the annular chamber portion 7 at substantially equal intervals.

On the other hand, the outer cylinder 5 is provided with a plurality of adjusting holes 51, 51 ... Which can simultaneously open and close the plurality of fixing holes 43, 43 of the inner cylinder 4. That is, by rotating the outer cylinder 5 to change the positions of the adjusting holes 51, 51 ... With respect to the fixing holes 43, 43.
The openness of 3,43 ... Can be adjusted simultaneously and steplessly.

In the adjusting device 6, for example, a rotating rod 62 having an adjusting handle 61 attached to one end is passed through the peripheral wall 13 while being screwed into a support nut n fixed to the peripheral wall 13 of the vacuum container 1, and the rotating rod 62 is The other end is rotatably attached to the outer cylinder 5. Then, by rotating the adjustment handle 61, the outer cylinder 5 can be rotated from the outside of the vacuum container 1.

With the above configuration, when the vacuum pump P is operated and the opening / closing valve V is opened, the inert gas g introduced into the vacuum container 1 is supplied with all the adjusting holes 51, 51 ... And the fixing holes 43, 43 of the pressure adjusting valve 1. …
Through it and uniformly flows into the annular chamber portion 7, and is exhausted from the exhaust port 12. At that time, when the adjustment handle 61 of the adjusting device 6 is rotated to rotate the outer cylinder 5, the opening degree of all the fixing holes 43, 43 ... Provided in the inner cylinder 4 by the adjustment holes 51, 51. In addition, the exhaust gas flow rate of the inert gas g is varied by stepless adjustment. That is, the inert gas g is uniformly exhausted from the periphery of the electrode table 2, so that the pressure of the inert gas on the electrode table 2 is adjusted uniformly and the plasma discharge is not disturbed.

Further, the pressure adjusting valve 3 can be formed of a conductor such as metal, and the pressure adjusting valve 3 can also serve as a shield plate for preventing plasma discharge on the side and below the electrode table 2.

<Effect of Device> As described above, according to the pressure adjusting valve of the present invention, the pressure of the inert gas can be finely adjusted without disturbing the plasma discharge uniformly occurring on the electrode table. The complexity around the vacuum container can be eliminated and printing can be performed, and the space can be saved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a pressure regulating valve, and FIG. 2 is a schematic side sectional view showing a state in which the pressure regulating valve is provided in a vacuum container. In the figure, 1 is a vacuum container, 11 is a bottom surface, 12 is an exhaust port, 2 is an electrode table, 3 is a pressure adjusting valve, 4 is an inner cylinder, 44 is a fixing hole, 5 is an outer cylinder, 51 is an adjusting hole, 6 Is a regulator, 7 is an annular chamber, and g is an inert gas.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. An inert gas, which is provided inside a vacuum container for performing sputtering film formation by applying an electric field to the introduced low-pressure inert gas by an electrode table, and is exhausted from an exhaust port provided at the bottom surface of the vacuum container. A valve for adjusting gas pressure, which is a cylindrical inner cylinder surrounding the electrode table, a cylindrical outer cylinder in which the inner cylinder is loosely inserted, and the outer cylinder of the vacuum container. And an annular chamber portion communicating with the exhaust port is formed in the hollow portion of the inner cylinder, and a plurality of fixing holes communicating with the annular chamber portion are formed in the inner cylinder. The outer cylinder has a plurality of adjustment holes that can simultaneously open and close the plurality of fixing holes of the inner cylinder, and the outer cylinder is rotated by operating the adjusting device. Adjusting the aperture of each hole simultaneously and steplessly Pressure control valve of the vacuum vessel to symptoms.