JPH11345771A - Sheet type vacuum treating method and device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the generation of a carrying error in a substrate after vacuum treatment, by adjusting the substrate before treatment at a temperature proper to treatment and the substrate after treatment at a temperature proper to carrying-out into atmospheric air in a lock chamber. SOLUTION: When a substrate is carried into a vacuum from atmospheric air, operation in an unload lock chamber is conducted completely inversely, the substrate 10 is placed on the substrate loading section of a stage 2, a gate valve 9 is closed, a lock-chamber space 8 is formed, and the space 8 is evacuated by using an exhaust means connected to the space 8. The space 8 is exhausted up to fixed pressure, the stage 2 is lowered, the substrate 10 is heated at a temperature proper to vacuum treatment by the stage 2, to which structure, in which the temperature is adjusted, is mounted and which is used for holding the substrate, at that time, and a pusher 11 is elevated. An arm 5 is inserted, the pusher 11 is brought down, and the substrate 10 is loaded on the arm 5, and treated in a vacuum treatment chamber.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a single-wafer vacuum processing method and apparatus, and more particularly to a single-wafer vacuum processing method and apparatus suitable for performing vacuum processing such as etching or CVD on a substrate in a vacuum. It is about.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, a single wafer processing is performed by
Due to its good process controllability, miniaturization of the processing chamber volume, and little damage at the time of abnormal processing, it is widely applied instead of batch processing for processing several wafers at once. In order to effectively perform such a single-wafer processing, a single-wafer-type load lock mechanism is often used in wafer transfer between the atmosphere and the vacuum.

[0003] As a single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus of this type, for example, an apparatus as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 63-45467 is known.

[0004]

The size of the substrate is increasing year by year, and the following problems which have not been noticeable have occurred in the conventional apparatus.

When a substrate heated in a vacuum processing chamber is carried out to the atmosphere via a lock chamber, the substrate is cooled by a substrate holding section of a transfer device installed in the atmosphere. At this time, the temperature of the portion that is in contact with the substrate holding portion rapidly decreases,
Since the other portions are slow, the in-plane distribution of the substrate temperature becomes uneven. There has been a problem that the substrate is thermally deformed due to the temperature unevenness, so that the substrate cannot be sufficiently held at the time of transport and an error occurs. A method of holding a substrate by vacuum suction is often used in an atmospheric transfer apparatus. However, a method of holding a substrate by vacuum suction is sensitive to deformation of the substrate and easily causes a transfer error.

Further, when a substrate subjected to a high-temperature treatment or a low-temperature treatment is transferred, a rapid and non-uniform change in the temperature of the substrate causes thermal stress to be generated in a wiring material or the like on the substrate. There is a concern about adverse effects such as short circuits.

An object of the present invention is to provide a single-wafer vacuum processing method and apparatus which do not cause a transfer error on a substrate after vacuum processing.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a single-wafer processing method in which a substrate before processing is brought to a temperature suitable for processing in advance, thereby shortening the temperature control time in the processing chamber and increasing the production capacity of the apparatus. It is to provide a vacuum processing method and apparatus.

[0009]

An object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum processing chamber for processing a substrate under reduced pressure, and a vacuum processing chamber connected to the vacuum processing chamber via a vacuum space, from the atmosphere to the vacuum processing chamber or from the vacuum processing chamber to the atmosphere. A lock chamber for loading and unloading substrates into and out of the lock chamber, and a substrate support that can hold the substrate in the lock chamber and is exposed to a vacuum atmosphere or an atmospheric pressure atmosphere. The substrate support is suitable for processing substrates before processing. Temperature control means for adjusting the temperature of the substrate to a temperature suitable for unloading the processed substrate to the atmosphere, or a vacuum processing chamber for processing the substrate under reduced pressure, and a vacuum space in the vacuum processing chamber. And a lock chamber for carrying the substrate in and out from the atmosphere into the vacuum processing chamber or from the vacuum processing chamber to the atmosphere, the substrate being held in the lock chamber and exposed to a vacuum atmosphere or an atmospheric pressure atmosphere. Board support Only, the device provided with a temperature adjusting means for temperature control of the substrate after the temperature or processing suitable for processing a substrate pretreatment lock chamber to a temperature suitable for discharge into the atmosphere,
When loading or unloading a substrate from the atmosphere into the vacuum processing chamber or from the vacuum processing chamber to the atmosphere through the lock chamber, the lock chamber places the substrate before processing at a temperature suitable for processing or the substrate after processing into the atmosphere. This is achieved by adjusting the temperature to a temperature suitable for carrying out.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus according to the present invention
When the substrates in the atmosphere are carried one by one into the processing chamber by the load lock mechanism, and the substrates after the processing under reduced pressure are again taken out to the atmosphere, the substrates before or after the processing are subjected to vacuum processing or unloading. A structure that adjusts to a suitable temperature is provided in a lock chamber having a load lock mechanism, whereby a substrate that is processed at a high or low temperature in a vacuum processing chamber and maintains a processing temperature by vacuum insulation is locked. In a room, for example, the temperature is uniformly adjusted by heat transfer between the stage and the substrate. Thereby, without being thermally deformed due to temperature unevenness in the substrate surface, it is possible to transfer normally even in a transfer device having a substrate holding means of a vacuum suction type which is often used in a transfer device installed in the atmosphere. it can. In addition, by changing the heat transfer conditions between the stage and the substrate, the time for raising or lowering the temperature of the substrate can be controlled, and the adverse effect on the substrate due to a rapid temperature change can be eliminated. In addition, by adjusting the temperature of the substrate before processing in the lock chamber to a temperature suitable for processing in advance, the time required for the substrate to reach the predetermined temperature in the processing chamber can be shortened, and the production capacity of the equipment can be increased. Becomes

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described below. FIG. 1 is a view showing the overall configuration of a single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus according to the present invention, and FIGS. 2 to 4 are cross-sectional views showing the operation of a lock chamber of the single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus.

100a and 100b are lock chambers having a load lock mechanism. In this case, 100a is a load lock chamber for transferring a substrate from the atmosphere to a vacuum atmosphere, and 100b is a load lock chamber for transferring the substrate from the vacuum atmosphere to the atmosphere. This is an unload lock room for unloading. Reference numeral 200 denotes a vacuum transfer chamber, which has a vacuum transfer device 250 for transferring the substrate 10 therein. 300a to 300d are vacuum processing chambers, for example, 300a and 300b are etching chambers, and 300c and 300d are ashing chambers. Reference numeral 400 denotes an atmospheric transfer device arranged in the atmosphere, and 500 denotes a cassette for storing or storing substrates. The vacuum processing chambers 300a to 300d and the lock chambers 100a and 100
0b is connected. Lock chambers 100a and 100
An atmosphere transfer device 400 and an aligner 600 are provided between the cassette b and the cassette 500.

In the apparatus configured as described above, the substrate in the cassette 500 is extracted by the atmospheric transfer device 400, transported to the aligner 600, and the substrate is aligned. Bring in. After that, after the atmosphere transfer device 400 is evacuated,
After the load lock chamber 100a is closed and brought into a vacuum atmosphere, the vacuum transfer apparatus 250 causes the vacuum processing chamber 300 to be closed.
a or 300b. The substrate etched in the vacuum processing chamber 300a or 300b is again transferred to the vacuum processing chamber 300c or 300c by the vacuum transfer device 250.
d. The substrate that has been subjected to post-processing, for example, ashing, in the vacuum processing chamber 300c or 300d is transferred again to the unload lock chamber 100b by the vacuum transfer device 250. Thereafter, after the vacuum transfer device 250 is evacuated, the unload lock chamber 100b is closed, leaked to the atmospheric pressure atmosphere, and the substrate is stored in the cassette 500 by the atmospheric transfer device 400 after the atmosphere side is opened.

Here, the substrate 10 is 12 inches (300 m).
In the case of a wafer having a large diameter as shown in m), when heat is applied to the substrate in the substrate processing in the vacuum processing chamber, the amount of deformation increases due to thermal expansion. There is no particular problem when transferring the substrate in a vacuum atmosphere because the transfer of heat is small. However, when the substrate is taken out to the atmosphere through the unload lock chamber 100b, a rapid change in temperature occurs, causing thermal distortion to the substrate.
For this reason, in the present embodiment, the unload lock chamber 100b
Was configured as shown in FIG. 2 so that the substrate could be cooled so that thermal distortion did not occur in the substrate.

Next, the configuration of the unload lock chamber will be described with reference to FIGS. Reference numeral 1 denotes a lock chamber capable of communicating with the atmosphere side and the vacuum side, reference numeral 2 denotes a stage capable of shutting off and communicating the lock chamber 1 on the vacuum side, and a stage 6 through which a flow path 6 through which a heat medium for temperature control flows. Is provided. The stage 2 is connected to the output shaft of the cylinder 3 and moves up and down so as to open and close the lock chamber 1. The movable part of the stage 2 is air-
Sealed between vacuums. Reference numeral 15 denotes a support portion for partially supporting the substrate on the stage 2 to reduce the contact area and minimize the adhesion of dust. Reference numeral 11 denotes a pusher for lifting the substrate from the stage.
Is provided with a hole through which the pusher 11 passes. The pusher 11 is connected to the output shaft of the cylinder 4 and moves vertically. The cylinder 4 is fixed to the output shaft of the cylinder 3 together with the stage 2 and moves together in the vertical direction. The pusher 11 is also linked when the upper and lower stages of the stage 2 are stopped. 17
Is a support for supporting the cylinder 3. Reference numeral 9 denotes a gate valve that is provided on the atmosphere side of the lock chamber 1 and that opens and closes so as to shut off and communicate with the atmosphere. The opening of the gate valve 9 is a rectangular opening having an area at least allowing the substrate held on the arm 18 to pass therethrough. Reference numeral 16 denotes a lid for maintenance of the unload lock chamber 100b,
A viewing window 12 is incorporated so that the state inside the unload lock chamber 100b can be understood.

Reference numeral 18 denotes an arm for transporting the substrate in the atmosphere, which is attached to the tip of the atmosphere loader 14 which can rotate, expand, contract, and move up and down the atmosphere transfer device 400. Arm 1
The substrate mounting portion 8 is configured to hold the substrate by a vacuum chuck. The substrate 10 to be processed is transported horizontally with the processing surface up. Reference numeral 7 denotes an opening for connection to the vacuum transfer chamber 200. Reference numeral 5 denotes an arm for transferring the substrate in a vacuum, which is a robot arm that can rotate and extend and retract the vacuum transfer device 250, and has a substrate mounting portion at its tip.

In the lock chamber constructed as described above, a temperature control means is provided in the lock chamber 1 so that when the inside of the lock chamber 1 becomes an atmospheric pressure atmosphere, heat conduction is performed. The flow path 6 of the stage 2 through which the heat medium flows is not particularly required. Although the cylinder is used for driving the stage 2, a driving mechanism using electric power may be used.

Next, the operation when the substrate 10 mounted on the arm 5 in a vacuum is taken out to the atmosphere will be described. First,
As shown in FIG. 2, the vacuum transfer device 250 is operated to transfer the substrate in a vacuum, and the arc on which the substrate 10 is placed is placed.
The stage 5 is inserted on the stage 2. At this time, the cylinders 3 and 4 are in the retracted state, that is, at the lower limit, and the stage 2 and the pusher 11 are located at the lower stage. Next, the substrate 10 is received by the substrate mounting portion of the pusher 11 by driving the cylinder 4 to raise the pusher 11. By retracting the arm 5 and lowering the pusher 11 from this state as shown in FIG.
Receiving the substrate on the substrate mounting surface. From this state, the cylinder 3 is driven to raise the stage 2 to form the lock chamber space 8. A lock mechanism (not shown) for returning the pressure from the vacuum to the atmospheric pressure is provided in the lock chamber space 8, and the leak mechanism is operated in the state of FIG. 4 to return the inside of the lock chamber space 8 to the atmospheric pressure. . The substrate mounting surface of the stage 2 is temperature-controlled to a predetermined temperature. At this time, when the atmosphere is in an atmospheric pressure atmosphere, the substrate can be placed for an appropriate time, so that a substrate temperature suitable for atmospheric transfer can be obtained. In this case, the cooling rate of the substrate is determined by the heat transfer conditions between the substrate and the stage.
Originally, what is needed for a load lock mechanism is how to perform vacuum evacuation and release to the atmosphere in a short time, and how quickly the substrate is transferred between the vacuum and the atmosphere. In order to prevent deformation, cracking, and residual stress, it is necessary to appropriately control the time required for the temperature change, and it is not always necessary to rapidly adjust the temperature. In the present embodiment, the amount of heat transfer per unit time is controlled by appropriately setting the height of the small-width convex support portion 15 provided on the stage 2, thereby affecting the production capacity of the apparatus. The time for adjusting the temperature of the substrate is extended to an extent that is not enough. In addition, the support portion 15 provided on the stage 2 prevents the substrate 10 and the stage 2 from contacting over the entire surface and preventing dust on the stage 2 from adhering to the substrate.

After the substrate is held on the stage 2 until the substrate temperature reaches a temperature suitable for transporting to the atmosphere, the gate valve 9 is opened, and the substrate is taken out of the vacuum device by the atmosphere transporting device 400 installed in the atmosphere. The atmosphere loader 14 of the atmosphere transfer device 400 can be driven in both the horizontal direction and the vertical direction.
By raising the pusher 11 at the upper limit position of the stage 2, the arm 18 enters below the substrate 10, raises while driving the vacuum chuck, grasps the substrate 10, and moves it in the horizontal direction to take it out.

In this embodiment, the case where the substrate is carried out into the atmosphere has been described. However, when the substrate is carried into the vacuum from the atmosphere, the operation in the unload lock chamber is completely reversed. After placing the substrate 10 on the substrate mounting portion of the stage 2, the gate valve 9 is closed to form a lock chamber space 8, and exhaust means (not shown) connected to the lock chamber space 8
Evacuate using. After evacuation to a predetermined pressure (for example, a pressure between the vacuum transfer chamber pressure and 100 Pa), the stage 2 is lowered. At this time, the substrate 10 is subjected to a vacuum process (for example, an etching process or a film forming process in which the vacuum process is performed at a temperature of 100 ° C. or more) by the substrate holding stage 2 provided with a temperature adjusting structure. After heating to a suitable temperature, the pusher 11 is raised. Thereafter, the arm 5 is inserted, the pusher 11 is lowered, the substrate 10 is mounted on the arm 5, and the processing is performed in the vacuum processing chamber.

In the single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus as in this embodiment, two separate load lock units are provided for loading and unloading only, or two or more load lock units are provided only for unloading. There is no problem even if it is provided or one load lock unit can carry in and out. Also, even when using a wafer transfer method that does not rely on a pusher,
There is no change in the effect of the present invention.

[0022]

According to the present invention, by providing the load lock mechanism with a structure for adjusting the temperature of the substrate, a uniform substrate temperature can be obtained with a desired temperature rise and temperature decrease time. In this case, the deformation of the substrate due to the non-uniform temperature distribution in the plane of the substrate can be prevented, and there is no fear of a transport error. In addition, in the case of a wafer before processing, the temperature of the substrate can be previously set to a temperature suitable for the next step, and the processing time in the next step can be reduced. Further, the speed of the temperature change of the substrate can be changed before and after the process, so that the temperature can be adjusted according to the characteristics of the substrate, and the influence of the heat on the substrate can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of a single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing details of a lock chamber of the device shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state where a substrate has been received by a stage in the lock chamber of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the lock chamber of FIG. 2 in a state where an arm is retracted and then a stage is raised to form a lock chamber space.

[Description of Signs] 1 ... Lock chamber, 2 ... Stage, 3 ... Cylinder, 4
... Cylinder, 5 ... Arm, 6 ... Heat medium flow path, 7 ... Opening, 8 ... Lock chamber space, 9 ... Gate valve, 10 ... Substrate, 11 ... Pusher, 12 ... View window, 13 ... Bellows flange , 14 ... Atmosphere loader, 15 ... Support part, 16 ... Lid, 17 ... Support, 18 ... Arm, 100a, 100
b: lock chamber, 200: vacuum transfer chamber, 250: vacuum transfer apparatus, 300a to 300d: vacuum processing chamber, 400: atmospheric transfer apparatus, 500: cassette, 600: aligner.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Minoru Soraoka 794, Higashi-Toyoi, Katsumatsu-shi, Kamamatsu, Japan Inside the Kasado Plant of Hitachi, Ltd. (72) Inventor Akitaka Makino 794, Higashi-Toyoi, Katsumatsu-shi, Yamaguchi In the Kasado factory of Hitachi, Ltd. (72) Inventor Nobuo Nagayasu 794, Higashi-Toyoi, Oaza, Kudamatsu-shi, Yamaguchi Prefecture In the Kasado factory of Hitachi, Ltd.

Claims (6)

[Claims] In a single-wafer vacuum processing method capable of carrying a substrate from the atmosphere into a vacuum processing chamber or from the vacuum processing chamber to the atmosphere via a lock chamber, a substrate before processing is performed in the lock chamber. A single-wafer vacuum processing method comprising adjusting a temperature suitable for processing or a temperature suitable for carrying out a processed substrate to the atmosphere. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the temperature of the substrate is adjusted.
A single-wafer vacuum processing method performed by heat transfer from a substrate holder in the lock chamber. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the temperature of the substrate is adjusted.
A single-wafer vacuum processing method in which the temperature of the lock chamber is adjusted to a temperature suitable for processing a substrate before processing or a temperature suitable for carrying out a substrate after processing to the atmosphere. 4. The method for controlling the temperature of the substrate according to claim 1,
A single-wafer vacuum processing method in which a substrate after processing is cooled and adjusted to a temperature suitable for being carried out to the atmosphere. 5. A vacuum processing chamber for processing a substrate under reduced pressure, and said substrate being connected to said vacuum processing chamber via a vacuum space and from the atmosphere to said vacuum processing chamber or from said vacuum processing chamber to said atmosphere. A lock chamber for carrying in and out, and a substrate support table capable of holding the substrate in the lock chamber and being exposed to a vacuum atmosphere or an atmospheric pressure atmosphere is provided. The substrate support table is suitable for processing a substrate before processing. A single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus provided with a temperature adjusting means for adjusting the temperature to a temperature suitable for unloading the processed substrate to the atmosphere. 6. A vacuum processing chamber for processing a substrate under reduced pressure, and said substrate is connected to said vacuum processing chamber via a vacuum space, and said substrate is transferred from the atmosphere to said vacuum processing chamber or from said vacuum processing chamber to said atmosphere. A lock chamber for carrying in and out, and a substrate support table capable of holding the substrate in the lock chamber and exposed to a vacuum atmosphere or an atmospheric pressure atmosphere is provided, and the lock chamber is suitable for processing a substrate before processing. A single-wafer vacuum processing apparatus, further comprising a temperature adjusting means for adjusting the temperature to a temperature or a temperature suitable for carrying out the processed substrate to the atmosphere.