JPS60230984A - Apparatus for producing deposited film by vapor phase method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make efficient mass production of diversified kinds o deposited films by providing >=1 means for installing reaction furnaces having plural reaction furnaces for forming the deposited films on substrates and >=1 means for conveying the reaction furnaces for carryin the reaction furnaces into and out of such means and controlling these means. CONSTITUTION:Eight units of the reaction furnaces 1 having the capability of forming the different deposited films are installed on instaling bases 2, 3 in such a way that the central axes thereof are positioned on the same circular orbits 13, 14 and that the furnaces are freely rotatable in the lateral direction around the central axes 9, 10 of said orbits 13, 14. A mechanism 4 for conveying the reaction furnaces is provided on the tangent 6 of the orbits 13, 14. Positions 11, 12 for connecting the mechanism 4 and a part 8 for installing the reaction furnaces are provided at the contact points between the mechanism 4 and the orbits 13, 14. The reaction furnaces 1 conveyed to the positions 11, 12 are lowered by hydraulic cylinders 5 and are installed to the part 8. The furnaces are otherwise removed from the part 8 by the reverse operation.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field] The present invention relates to an apparatus for producing a vapor-deposited film, and more specifically, a photoconductive film, a semiconductor film, an inorganic insulating film, an organic resin film, etc. The present invention relates to a vapor-deposited film manufacturing device that can manufacture a wide variety of products on a single production line.

[Prior art]

Typical apparatuses for depositing photoconductive films, semiconductor films, inorganic insulating films, organic resin films, etc. on substrates using the plasma CVD method include so-called coaxial cylinder type and parallel plate type deposited film manufacturing apparatuses. can be mentioned.

A coaxial cylindrical deposited film manufacturing apparatus is an apparatus that can deposit, for example, an amorphous silicon photoreceptor film onto a cylindrical metal substrate made of aluminum or the like to form a photoreceptor drum for electrophotography, etc. The structure includes the cylindrical base and a cylindrical cathode electrode that shares a central axis with the cylindrical base, and a glow discharge is generated between them.

An example of such a device will be described with reference to FIG. 2, which is a longitudinal cross-sectional view thereof. Reference numeral 21 denotes a cylindrical cathode electrode, which shares a central axis with a cylindrical base (anode electrode) 22. 23 is a donut-shaped electrical insulator, 24 is a vacuum chamber lid, 25 is a high frequency power source, 26 is a raw material gas discharge pipe, 27 is a vacuum exhaust pipe, 28 is a heater for heating the substrate, 28 is a substrate rotation mechanism, and 30 is a ground. be.

In this device, one substrate is placed in one reactor, so it is easy to adjust the distribution of the amorphous silicon deposited film by, for example, gas flow and distribution, and it has the advantages of excellent discharge stability. be.

On the other hand, a parallel plate type deposited film manufacturing apparatus uses flat plates installed parallel to each other as a pair of opposing electrodes, instead of the two cylinders sharing a central axis. It has a structure as shown in the cross-sectional view.

In this example, a deposited film can be formed on the substrate 32 by generating a glow discharge between the flat cathode electrode 31 and the flat substrate (anode electrode) 32.

In these devices, the distance between a pair of opposing electrodes is closely related to the intensity of glow discharge, and is an important factor that influences the thickness distribution and film properties of the deposited film, and is essential for forming a high-quality deposited film. It is preferable that the distance be kept at a certain distance.

Generally, the characteristics of the deposited film and the size of the substrate on which the deposited film is formed differ depending on the purpose for which the product after the deposited film is formed. However, when forming a deposited film on a substrate using the above-mentioned apparatus, when using a coaxial cylindrical type, the distance between the cylindrical substrate and the cathode electrode must be kept constant, as described above. In a reactor equipped with a cathode electrode of a certain size, when substrates of different sizes, especially outer diameters, are placed in the reactor, the distance between the substrate and the cathode electrode must be is not a predetermined distance, and good film formation cannot be performed, so it has been impossible to apply substrates with different outer diameters to one device.

In addition, even in the case of a parallel plate type, at least the cathode electrode needs to be larger than the substrate, and further,
Considering these matching factors, it is difficult to apply substrates of various shapes to a reactor provided with a cathode electrode of a certain shape.

Therefore, when producing deposited films in large quantities using the above-mentioned equipment, conventionally it has been unavoidable to have a dedicated line tailored to the size of the substrate and the desired characteristics of the deposited film formed. However, it was not possible to freely flow substrates of different sizes to produce a wide variety of products.

[Purpose of the invention]

An object of the present invention is to provide a vapor phase deposited film manufacturing apparatus that can produce a wide variety of products using substrates of different sizes and the like using only one line.

[Structure of the invention]

The above object can be achieved by the following invention.

That is, the vapor phase deposited film manufacturing apparatus of the present invention includes one or more reactor installation means having a plurality of reactor installation locations for forming a deposited film on a substrate by a vapor phase method, and the reactor installation means. This is a vapor phase deposited film manufacturing apparatus having one or more reactor conveying means for transporting a reactor into the reactor and transporting the reactor from the reactor installation means.

Hereinafter, the apparatus of the present invention will be explained in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the main parts of a deposited film forming section in which a deposited film is formed in an example of the apparatus of the present invention.

In this example, reference numeral 1 is the coaxial cylindrical reactor described above with reference to FIG. 2, and a base body is previously installed inside the reactor. The state in which the substrate is carried into and installed in the reactor I is similar to the state in the reactor shown previously in FIG. 2. The reactor 1 is provided with an exhaust system for evacuating the inside of the reactor, a reaction gas introduction system, and a connection part (not shown) with incidental equipment (not shown) such as a high frequency power source.

4 is a transport mechanism for transporting the reactor 1, which transports the reactor in which the substrate is introduced from the reactor introduction part provided in a predetermined part (not shown) of the apparatus of the present invention. , transport it to the top of the reactor installation stand 2.3 as a means for installing the reactor and install it there, or remove the reactor already installed on the reactor installation stand 2.3 from the reactor installation stand and carry it out. It has the function of The reactor l is held by a reactor holding mechanism (not shown) linked to the hydraulic cylinder 5, suspended, and transported.

8 is a reactor installation part in which the reactor 1 provided on the installation stand 2.3 is installed, and the end part (not shown) of the auxiliary equipment connected to the connection part with the auxiliary equipment of the reactor is It is provided. In this example, eight installation portions 8 are provided on one installation stand. Note that one reactor l can be attached to and detached from each of the reactor installation parts 8. A connection means that can be easily connected, such as a one-touch joint, is suitably used to connect the connection part with the auxiliary equipment of the reactor and the end of the auxiliary equipment. These ancillary equipment include vacuum pumps, reactant gas flow controllers, high frequency power supplies, and the like.

In the apparatus of the present invention, two or more types of reactors 1 having different deposited film forming abilities are placed in a circular orbit 1 whose central axes are the same.
3.14 and the central axis of its circular orbit 9.10
The installation stand 2 is rotatable in both left and right directions around the center.
It can be installed on top of 3.

The installation stand 2.3 on which the reactor l is installed can be rotated around the central axis and has an appropriate shape such as circular or polygonal, or it may be possible to use a plurality of independent installation stands with support members, etc. It may also be possible to use the above-mentioned arrangement and make it rotatable.

Note that the number of reactor installation parts 8 on the circular orbit is not limited to eight, and can be increased or decreased as necessary, and if the radius of the circular orbit is increased or decreased accordingly, an efficient reactor can be achieved. It is possible to install

The reactor transport mechanism 4 is provided on a tangent 6 to the circular orbit 13.14, and the connection position between the transport mechanism 4 and the reactor installation part 8 is located at the contact point 7 between the transport mechanism 4 and the circular orbit 13.14. 11.
12 are provided.

At the connection position 11.12, the reactor l that has been transported is lowered by the action of the hydraulic cylinder 5 and installed in the installation part 8. Alternatively, by reversing this operation, the installation part 8
removed from.

To form a film using the apparatus shown in Figure 1, first, a substrate corresponding to the desired product is installed in the reactor l at a substrate installation part (not shown) provided at a predetermined position. do. While the reactor l with the base body installed in this manner is lifted by a reactor holding mechanism (not shown) linked to the hydraulic cylinder 5 of the reactor transport mechanism 4, the reactor l is moved to the connection position 11 or 12 by the transport mechanism 4. move it to the top.

Note that, when the substrate is installed in the reactor I, it is preferable to exhaust the inside of the reactor using an exhaust system.

By performing the evacuation in advance in this manner, the evacuation during subsequent film formation can be made more efficient.

The reactor that has stopped on the connection position 11 or 12 is installed in the reactor installation section 8 that has been moved to this position. At this time, ancillary equipment such as an exhaust system and a reaction gas introduction system are connected to the reactor.
connected with one touch.

When the reactor l is installed in the reactor installation part, the inside of the reactor is
Using an evacuation system (any commonly used evacuation system may be used), the vacuum is again evacuated to about I x 10 to 10 Torr. Then, while adjusting the flow rate and pressure using a commonly used reaction gas flow rate controller (not shown), impurities are added to the raw material residue for forming the deposited film and, if necessary, to the carrier gas or the film to be formed. Doping gas and the like are introduced into the reactor.

For example, to form a hydrogenated amorphous silicon film, SiH, Si2H6, 5i3HB, 5i4
A silane compound gas such as H1O or a mixture of these and a rare gas such as H2, He, or A in an appropriate ratio is introduced into the reactor.As a specific example, when using SiH4 gas, the substrate temperature is set to 200℃. Set to ~400℃, SiH4
A mixed gas of 5-40% by volume of gas and 95-60% by volume of H2 is placed in the reactor at a gas pressure of 0.1-2 Torr and a gas flow rate of 0.
．． 1 to 2 t/ra1n, high frequency power is applied to the cathode electrode from a high frequency power source through a matching circuit, a glow discharge is generated between the substrate and the cathode electrode, the reaction gas is decomposed, and hydrogen is deposited on the substrate. An amorphous silicon film can be formed.

In addition to the above-mentioned gases, the gases introduced into the reactor also include 5i for introducing fluorine atoms into the deposited film to be formed.
F4. B2H6, PH3, for p or n type impurity introduction
AsH3, N2 for nitrogen atom introduction, NH3, N20 for oxygen atom introduction, NO1 carbon OH if necessary for carbon atom introduction
4. A reaction gas consisting of a hydrocarbon compound such as C2H4 and other compounds containing atoms that can be incorporated into the deposited film by the plasma CVD method is mixed at a predetermined ratio using a gas flow controller or the like. It can also be introduced.

Note that the apparatus of the present invention is not limited to forming such an amorphous silicon film, but can also be used to form an Si3 film using a desired raw material gas.
N4. Insulating films such as S+C, 5102, and SiO, or organic resin films can also be manufactured. When forming these deposited films in a reactor, various conditions during film formation are appropriately selected depending on the deposited film to be formed.

Inside the reactor l during film formation by the above operations, the connection position 11 between the substrate transport mechanism 4 and the reactor l is located.
．． It is not necessary to stay at 12, but move it to another position on the circular orbit 13, 14. In this way, while film formation is being performed in one reactor, reactors that have been newly moved to the connection position can be installed one after another on the installation stand, or
The reactors that are installed on the installation table and in which film formation has been completed can be carried out one after another from the installation table.

The movement of the reactor installation part 8 on the circular orbit 13.14 is such that the reactor l is carried in at the connection position 11.12, and in the reactor l during film formation, at least the connection The film formation is controlled so that it is completed when the film returns to the positions 11 and 12. A reactor holding mechanism (not shown) linked to the hydraulic cylinder 5 moves and stops directly above the reactor l, which has returned to the connection position 11.12 and film formation has been completed, and the reactor l is moved to the installation stand 2.12. 3, and then remove the base body from the part (not shown).
Transport to.

The reactor l transferred to the substrate removal section is vacuum leaked, and after further lowering the temperature of the substrate, etc., the substrate on which the deposited film as a product has been formed is taken out from the reactor l.

Note that the number of reactor installation stands is not limited to two as shown in FIG. 1, but may be one. Further, by providing three or more reactor installation stands, the number and types of reactors on the installation stands can be increased, and a greater variety of deposited films can be formed more efficiently.

In addition, when forming a deposited film with a multilayer structure, reactant gases are sequentially introduced into the reactor from a reactant gas introduction system connected to the reactor installation section according to the layered structure of the deposited film to be formed. Alternatively, one type of reaction gas for deposited film is introduced from one reactor installation part, and the reactor is sequentially moved between reactor installation parts introducing different reaction gases using a reactor conveyance mechanism. It is possible to form a deposited film having a multilayer structure.

Further, in this example, the reactor conveyance mechanism was installed on the tangent to the circular orbit in which the reactor installation part is arranged, but the mechanism is not limited to this, and may be installed on the normal line of the circular orbit, for example. Furthermore, the reactor conveyance mechanism is not linear, but may be provided in various shapes depending on the form of the apparatus.

In this way, in the apparatus of the present invention, substrates and reactors suitable for different types of products to be manufactured can be freely selected and combined, and deposited films can be efficiently produced in one production line. It became possible to manufacture.

In the example of the apparatus of the present invention described above using FIG. 1, the reactor installation part is arranged on a circular orbit, but the arrangement of the reactor installation part is not limited to this. However, various arrangements are applicable. As an example of such an arrangement, as shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of reactor installation parts are arranged so that their central axes are aligned on a straight line 48. The operation of each part in this example is similar to the previous example using a circular orbit, except that the reactor installation part is moved in the direction in which the installation part is arranged.

Furthermore, in these examples of the apparatus of the present invention, only one line of the reactor conveyance mechanism was provided, but it is possible to more efficiently carry the reactor into and out of the reactor installation stand. In order to do this, two or more reactor conveyance mechanisms may be provided. With such a configuration? -4f, for example, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, two lines of reactor conveyance mechanisms are provided, and the conveyance mechanism 54-1. 54-2.64-2, such as a configuration in which the reactor is transported out after the film formation is completed T.

Although the example of the apparatus of the present invention described above uses a coaxial cylindrical reactor, it is also possible to form a film using a parallel plate reactor as explained using FIG. It may be something you do.

In the vapor deposition film manufacturing apparatus of the present invention described above,
Instead of fixing the reactor, the reactor is sequentially transported to the reactor installation table where film formation is performed using a reactor transport mechanism, and then taken out from there after film formation has been completed, making it possible to produce the desired product. By combining a corresponding substrate and a reactor capable of forming a deposited film, that is, by combining a substrate and a reactor that can be used for a wide variety of products at any time, especially for products that differ in shape and size. It has become possible to efficiently produce a large variety of deposited films in large quantities on one production line.

Reference examples of amorphous silicon deposited films using the apparatus of the present invention are shown below.

An amorphous silicon deposited film was manufactured using the deposited film manufacturing apparatus of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 using a mixed gas of SiH4 gas and H2 gas as a raw material gas. The base is made of high-purity aluminum with an outer diameter of 80 mm and 108 mm.
A cylindrical type reactor (the inner diameter of the cathode electrode was adjusted so that the distance between the electrode and the substrate was 50 mm) was placed in the same circular orbit. placed above.

Inside the reactor, when the reactor internal pressure was 1 Torr and the substrate temperature was 300°C, 400% of SiH4 gas was introduced into the reactor while being controlled by a gas flow controller.
cc/sin of concentrated acid, and additionally 800cc/sin of H2 gas.
At a flow rate of +min, the pressure of these gases is 0.5 Torr.
With the raw material mixed gas being stably supplied into the reactor, high-frequency power with a frequency of 13.58 Hz and 100 W was applied to the cathode electrode using a high-frequency power source, and the cathode was grounded. An amorphous silicon film (film thickness: 25 g) was deposited on the substrate by generating a glow discharge between the substrate and the solid material.

One of the two types of substrates with different sizes is placed in the reactor one after another as desired, and the reactor is sequentially transported to the reactor installation stand by the conveyance mechanism, and the deposited film is then deposited by the operations explained to the light. When the film formation was completed, it was carried out from the installation stand, and the substrate on which the amorphous silicon film was formed was taken out from the reactor. The manufactured amorphous silicon film had excellent dark resistance and photoconductivity, and had uniform film quality.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1, 4, 5 and 6 are schematic diagrams of the main parts of an example of the vapor phase deposited film manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a coaxial cylindrical deposited film manufacturing apparatus. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a parallel plate type deposited film manufacturing apparatus. 1.20, 33, 41. 51, 61: Reactor 2, 3
, 42, 43, 52, 53, 62.83: Reactor installation stand 4.44.54-1.54-2.84-1. E14-2
: Reactor transport mechanism 5.55-1.55-2: Hydraulic cylinder 6.56-1.58-2 : Tangent line 7: Contact point 47: Intersection point 8.48.58.88: Reactor installation part 9.10: Circular orbit center axis 11.12.57-1.57-2.59-1.59-2
．． 87-1.87-289-1.89-2: Connection position 13.14. EIO: Circular orbit 21. 31: Cathode electrode 22. 32: Substrate 23: Donut-shaped electrically insulating insulator 24: Vacuum chamber lid 25. 35: High frequency power source 26. 36: Reaction gas discharge pipe 27. 37: Vacuum exhaust pipe 28. 38: Substrate heating heater 29: Substrate rotation mechanism 30, 40: Ground 46: Transfer mechanism installation direction axis 49, Be: Reactor group installation direction axis Fig. 2 3' / Fig. 3 L $4 Fig. 6

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) One or more reactor installation means having a plurality of installation locations for reactors that form a deposited film on a substrate by a vapor phase method, and a reactor installed into the reactor installation means, and and one or more reactor transport means for transporting from the installation means. (2) Each of the reactor installation locations provided on the installation means has a central axis located on substantially the same circumference, and the reactor installation means is arranged around the central axis of this circle. 2. The vapor phase deposited film manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the vapor phase deposited film manufacturing apparatus is rotatable. (3) A patent claim in which the central axes of each of the reactor installation locations provided on the installation means are located substantially in a straight line, and the reactor installation means is movable in the linear direction. The vapor phase deposited film manufacturing apparatus according to item 1.