JPS59124712A - Semiconductor device manufacturing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To realize fine control and management for individual material to be processed and enhance working efficiency of an apparatus as a whole by providing a plurality of pairs of thin film forming apparatus and also providing a transfer mechanism which is capable of freely setting the transfer path of material to be processed. CONSTITUTION:In case a material to be processed is required to form a multi- layer film and to continuously form different kinds of metals by the growth method, the material to be processed is sent to a second film forming apparatus 20b. When the second layer film is formed, thickness in the load lock connected to the second film forming apparatus 20b is inspected, thickness of the second layer is inspected by the measuring means 22b, 23b and the surface condition is also inspected. If any fault is detected, wafer can be extracted from the output OUT2. When any fault is not detected, the material to be processed is sent to the third film forming apparatus 20c. Sputtering is carried out to the third layer as described above and it is then outputted from the OUT3, for example, after the inspection. Each process including measuring is conducted under the vacuum condition and the film forming apparatus 20a, 20b, 20c are provided with the heating chamber for heating material to be heated such as wafer and such heating chamber is adjusted to adequate temperature.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (1) Technical Field of the Invention The present invention relates to semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and particularly to improvements in in-line thin film forming equipment for forming multilayer or single-layer thin films on semiconductor substrates.

(2) Background of the technology In the manufacturing process of semiconductors or integrated circuits, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is used to form aluminum alloy films for wiring, glabellar insulating films, etc.
Alternatively, sputtering equipment and the like are widely used.

These thin film forming apparatuses are of an in-line type in order to increase efficiency in the production process. However, when forming a single-layer film on a semiconductor wafer, the wafer to be processed is placed in a set of in-line spuck equipment, etc.
It is sufficient to use one person to take out the workpiece on which a film has been formed in the sputtering chamber, but when forming a multilayer film, the workpiece must be transported again to another set of film forming apparatuses, so processing is performed using multiple film forming apparatuses. The current situation is that

(3) Prior Art and Problems A schematic system diagram of the above-described conventional in-line sputtering apparatus is shown in FIG. FIG. 2 shows a line system diagram when two sets of in-line sputtering devices are arranged in series.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a sender for loading and unloading workpieces such as wafers, the wafer is inserted into a load lock 3 via a valve 2, a valve 6 connected to a sputtering chamber 5, and the valve 2 are closed. 4 to create a vacuum inside the load lock 3. The interior of the sputtering chamber 5 is kept in a vacuum state via the main valve 7, but the valve 6 is opened and the wafer in the load lock 3 is inserted into the sputtering chamber 5, and the valve 6 is closed. At this time, the valve 9 connecting the load lock 8 and the sputtering chamber 5 is closed.

After sputtering is completed in the sputtering chamber 5 and a thin film of a predetermined thickness is formed on the wafer, the wafer is sent to the rotor lock 8 .

In this case, the valve 9 that connects the funnel lock 8 and the sputtering chamber 5 and the valve 11 that connects the receiver 10 are closed and the valve 12 is opened to evacuate and create a vacuum state, and then the valve 9 is opened to perform sputtering. The wafer 4 is fed into the funnel'lock 8.

Next, the valve 9 is closed and the valve 11 is opened to take out the wafer in the load lock 8 into the receiver 10.

FIG. 2 shows a conventional configuration for forming, for example, a multilayer film on an object to be processed by using a plurality of such in-line spuck apparatuses, that is, a plurality of film forming apparatuses.

Note that the same parts as in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanation will be omitted. A valve 11 is interposed between the load lock 8 constituting the preliminary chamber and the second sputtering chamber 13, and the degree of vacuum in the second sputtering chamber 13 is controlled by a mass flow (not shown in the figure) which controls the flow rate of gas introduced. and a main valve 14, and a valve 15 in the second sputtering chamber and load lock 16.
Similarly to the load lock 3.8, an exhaust valve 17 is provided on the load lock 16, and a valve 18 is interposed between the load lock 16 and the 1-seaper 10.

In the film forming apparatus configured in this way, in the sputtering chamber 5,
The first layer film is formed on the workpiece, and the workpiece is placed in the second sputtering chamber 13 by the exhaust operation of the load lock 3.8 in the same manner as in FIG. A multilayer film structure is formed by sputtering a second layer film, and the object to be treated is transferred to the receiver 10 by operating the valves 15, 16, and 17.

According to the conventional configuration and operation, sender 1 and receiver 1
Since there is only one 0 and multiple sputtering chambers are connected in series, if a problem occurs during the processing process, it not only takes a long time to take out the sputtering chamber, but also sputtering is performed in the first sputtering chamber. However, the second sputtering chamber is often not used as an independent function, and has the disadvantage of extremely low processing efficiency.

(4) Purpose of the Invention The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned drawbacks, and when a plurality of in-line film forming apparatuses are installed in series, the object to be processed is carried into each film forming apparatus independently.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that can be made available to the general public and that can perform efficient film formation processing.

(5) Structure of the Invention According to the present invention, the above object is to provide a plurality of sets of thin film forming apparatuses each having a preparatory chamber at the input/output end of a film forming chamber, and to store a workpiece in each of the plurality of preparatory chambers. To provide a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus characterized in that it is equipped with a loading/unloading mechanism that can carry in or squeeze out items independently, and a conveyance mechanism that can arbitrarily set a single general conveyance path for a workpiece. This is achieved by

(6) Embodiment of the Invention An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6.

FIG. 3 is a system diagram showing the basic configuration of the present invention, and FIGS. 4 to 6 are system diagrams showing other arrangement methods of the present invention.

In FIG. 3, INl and IN2 indicate paths through which wafers and the like to be processed are carried in, and the first to third film forming apparatuses 20a, 20b, 20c are basically
It consists of two sets of load locks (preliminary chambers) and a sputtering chamber similar to those shown in the figure, and film thickness measurement is used to measure the thickness of a film formed on a workpiece such as a wafer within the rotorlock section before and after the sputtering chamber. Means 22a.

22b, 22C are provided, and surface measuring means 23a, 23b, 23c for measuring surface reflectance, etc. in order to measure the surface condition of the wafer are provided. From the surface measuring means 23a, 23b, 23c, the second
film forming apparatus 20b, third film forming apparatus 20c,...
The wafers are connected in series to the first
The film forming apparatus 20a to the third film forming apparatus 20C are used to form a multilayer film by 1M people for the required number of films to be laminated in sequence, and surface measuring means 23a, 23b are also provided.

23c has an output port 0UT1 for advancing the wafer to the next photo process, etc. OUT 2 and OUT 3 are provided. Of course, although not shown, the gas is discharged by a valve so as not to affect the film forming apparatuses shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Furthermore, each film forming device 20a, 20b passes through a pretreatment section 21 such as a dry pretreatment from the person exit IN2.
, 2Qc of workpieces can be carried in in parallel.

To explain the process of forming a film on the object to be treated in the above configuration,
For example, if the wafer placed in the first film forming apparatus 20a has a single layer structure, the film thickness is measured by the film thickness measuring means 22a in the load lock, and the reflectance of the surface is measured by the measuring means 23a. Then, it is sent out to the next photo process from the output port 0UT1.

When the object to be processed needs to form a multilayer film and different types of metals are to be continuously grown, the object to be processed is sent to the second film forming device 20b, and the formation of the 2Nth film is completed. At this point, the film thickness in the load lock connected to the second film forming apparatus 20b and the second measuring means 22b and 23b are measured again.
The film thickness and surface condition of each layer are inspected. If an abnormality is found in the film thickness or surface, for example, the wafer etc. can be taken out from the output port OUT 2, and if it is in good condition, it is sent to the third film forming apparatus 20C. After performing the 3N sputtering or the like in the same manner as described above and performing the inspection, it can be output from the output port 0UT2, for example.

In addition, when growing a thin film to form a multilayer structure on a workpiece that has been exposed to the atmosphere due to an ethoching process, intermediate branches (dotted line 24 in Figure 3)
The object to be treated is fed to the dry pre-treatment section 21, and the altered surface of the first layer is slightly scraped off to the second film forming device 20b.
Then, the second layer film is formed.

Each of the above steps, including measurements, etc., is performed in a vacuum, and the film forming apparatuses 20a, 20b, and 2Oc have heating chambers for heating objects to be processed such as wafers, and are heated to a predetermined temperature. It has been adjusted.

The above configuration and operation are the basic configuration of the present invention, and a set of configurations including the film thickness measuring means 22a, the surface measuring means 23a, and the film forming apparatus 20a is represented as 20a'.
Similarly, according to the structure of FIG. 4, the semiconductor processing section is designated as 9-20b' including 20b, 22b, and 23b, and 20c' includes 20c, 22c, and 23c, that is, the first to third semiconductor processing sections. The sections are configured in series, with input/output ports IN1 to IN5, 0UTI.
~ Easily transport different types of workpieces from OUT 4, 1
I can get it out.

The one shown in FIG. 5 has one passage 25a in the load lock.
A semiconductor processing section 20a' is provided for the passage.

2Qb' and 20C' are arranged in parallel, and in order to balance the capabilities of each processing section, the haphastations 26a and 26b are arranged in parallel to the passage 25b.

Furthermore, in the case of FIG. 6, there is a semiconductor processing section 20a'.

1ffl path 25 at the input/output port of 20b' and 20C'
25a and 25b are the cases in which the processing chamber is arranged so as to shunt between the passages, and the passages shown in each of the above embodiments are, of course, placed in a load lock and configured to maintain a vacuum state. .

(7) Effects of the Invention As explained in detail above, according to the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the control system can be divided into each processing section and Illll thread feeding, so that fine-grained control can be achieved for each workpiece. Control and management are possible, and since each processing chamber is independent, troubles that occur during the processing process will not affect other processing chambers, allowing each processing item to perform its functions to its fullest. It has the feature of increasing overall operating efficiency.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a line system diagram of a conventional in-line sputtering device, Figure 2 is a line system diagram when two sets of conventional in-line sputter units are arranged in series, and Figure 3 is a line diagram of a conventional in-line sputtering apparatus. 1 is a principle system diagram of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, and FIGS. 4 to 6 are system diagrams for explaining other arrangement methods of the present invention. 1...Sender, 2. 4. 6. 9.11゜12, 15.18.19... valve, 7,14...
Main pulp, 3.8... Load lock, 5.
13... Sputtering chamber, 10... Receiver, 20a,
20b, 20c --- Film forming device, 21...
Pre-processing section, 22a, 22b, 22c... Film thickness measuring means, 23a, 23b, 23c ---
Surface measurement means. Patent Applicant: Fujitsu Limited 13 times IN2 Flute 4 Figure) 85 Notebook 6 (2) 20a Δ 53- 11 11

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A plurality of sets of thin film forming apparatuses having preparatory chambers at the input and output ends of the film forming chamber are arranged in series, and objects to be processed can be independently carried in or taken out from each of the plurality of preparatory chambers. Import. 2. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, comprising: a carry-out mechanism; and a conveyance mechanism capable of arbitrarily setting a conveyance path for the workpiece. (2) A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, characterized in that one or more of the above thin film forming apparatuses forms a metal thin film. (3) The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the preliminary chamber is maintained in a vacuum to prevent deterioration of the metal surface of the object to be processed. (3) The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the preliminary chamber is provided with a measuring means for measuring the physical quantity of the object to be processed. (5) The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the film thickness of the object to be processed is measured by a physical quantity measuring means. (6) The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the surface reflectance of the object to be processed is measured by a physical quantity measuring means.