KR100506883B1 - Slurry providing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention discloses a slurry supplying device having a structure in which a slurry circulation line is configured to supply a slurry to a point of use, and can be efficiently cleaned using DI- (De-ionized water).

Slurry supply apparatus of the present invention is a slurry filter in which the inlet is formed in which the slurry is introduced at one end, the circulation inlet and the circulation outlet is formed at the other end; A first pump installed at a first pipe between the circulation inlet and a circulation outlet to pump the slurry to circulate in a circulation path formed by the slurry filter and the first pipe; A second pump installed on a second pipe to discharge the slurry; And a first direction in which de-ionized water is introduced, a second direction connected to the second pipe, and a third direction connected to a specific intersection point of the first pipe between the first pump and the circulation inlet. It has a three-way valve having. As a result, the supply of the slurry is performed in a state in which a third direction and a second direction of the three-way valve are connected, and the cleaning using the DIW is performed by connecting the DIW in a state in which the first and second directions of the three-way valve are connected. The supply is made to the second pipe.

Description

Slurry feeding apparatus

The present invention relates to a slurry supply apparatus, and more particularly, to constitute a slurry circulation line, to supply a slurry from a circulation line to a point of use, and to improve the structure to be efficiently cleaned using DI- (De-ionized water). It is.

Typically, semiconductor manufacturing processes include many unit processes, which include a chemical mechanical polishing process, which is a process for planarizing a film applied on a wafer.

The chemical mechanical polishing process requires the supply of slurry to polish the wafer, which is used as an abrasive to polish the surface of the wafer being rotated.

However, the particles often contain particles larger than average in the slurry, in which case scratching by large particles causes damage to the wafer. Therefore, a filter for filtering the particles is configured in the slurry feeder to prevent this.

With reference to FIG. 1, the conventional slurry supply apparatus is demonstrated in detail.

The slurry is supplied through the pipe 12 in which the valve 10 is installed, the pipe 12 extends into the extended pipe 14, and the pipe 14 is connected to the inlet 20 of the slurry filter 16. .

The slurry filter 16 has one outlet 18 and one inlet 20, and a filter media 22 for filtering the slurry is formed therein.

And the pipe 14 is branched by the pipe 26 in which the valve 24 was provided, and the pipe 26 is used for discharge | emission for cleaning as mentioned later.

In addition, a pipe 28 is connected to the outlet 18 of the slurry filter 16, and a valve 30 and a pump 32 are installed in the pipe 28. The pump 32 is for the pumping operation for supplying the slurry.

In addition, the pipe 28 is branched by the pipe 36 on which the valve 34 is installed and the pipe 40 on which the valve 38 is installed, and the pipe 40 is a DIW for cleaning, and the pipe 36 ) Supplies slurry to a process facility (not shown).

As configured above, the slurry is introduced into the pipe 12 by the pumping of the pump 32 and then filtered in the filter 16 and supplied to the process equipment through the pipes 28 and 36. That is, the slurry is supplied to the process equipment as in the path A. In this case, the valves 38 and 24 are locked, and the valves 34, 30 and 10 are open.

In addition, when the slurry is not supplied, DIW is supplied to clean the pipe. That is, the DIW is supplied to the pipe 40 and discharged after cleaning the corresponding parts via the pipe 28, the slurry filter 16, and the pipes 14 and 26.

However, in the conventional slurry supply apparatus as described above, when the state in which the slurry is not supplied and the cleaning is not maintained continues, the slurry is stagnated, and the slurry stagnation causes precipitation and causes large particles.

In addition, when cleaning using the DIW, the DIW is filled in the slurry filter 16. Therefore, there is a problem in that it takes time to discharge the DIW filled in the slurry filter 16 in order to reuse the slurry.

An object of the present invention is to prevent the settling of the slurry by eliminating the stagnation section in the slurry supply device for supplying the slurry to the semiconductor process.

Another object of the present invention is to form an efficient cleaning path in the slurry supply apparatus in which the slurry is circulated, thereby minimizing the time required for slurry reuse.

In order to perform the above object, the slurry inlet is provided at one end, the slurry filter having a circulation inlet and the circulation outlet at the other end, and installed in the first pipe between the circulation inlet and the circulation outlet the slurry filter And a first pump pumping the slurry to circulate along the circulation path formed by the first pipe, and a first direction, a second direction, and a third direction, including DIW (De-ionized water) in the first direction. ) Is introduced, the second direction is connected to the second pump and the third direction is connected to the first pipe and the second pipe between the first inlet and the circulation inlet and the second direction is connected The slurry is pumped when the third and second directions of the three-way valve are connected, and the slurry is pumped when the first and second directions of the three-way valve are connected. For it characterized in that it comprises a second pump to pump the DIW.

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In addition, the slurry supply apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, a slurry filter having one inlet through which the slurry is introduced, the other end is provided with a circulation inlet and a circulation outlet, between the circulation inlet and the circulation outlet A pump, a first three-way valve and a second three-way valve that are sequentially installed in the circulation outlet port from the circulation inlet on the first pipe connected to the first pipe, and a second connecting in one direction of the first three-way valve. And a third three-way valve installed on the pipe, and a valve installed on the third pipe connected to the first pipe between the first three-way valve and the second three-way valve.

As a result, the slurry supply state and the slurry circulation state are set according to the operating states of the first, second and third three-way valves, and in the slurry supply state, the slurry is transferred from the slurry filter to the pump and the first three-way valve. And supplied via the second pipe, DIW performs cleaning via the second three-way valve, the intersection and the third pipe, and in the slurry circulation state, the slurry is the pump, the first three-way. Circulated through the valve, the second three-way valve and the slurry filter, the DIW performs cleaning from the third three-way valve via the third pipe.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the slurry supply apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The embodiment according to the present invention may be divided into the first embodiment of FIG. 2 having two pumps and the second embodiment of FIG. 3 having one pump.

First, referring to FIG. 2, in the slurry supply apparatus, the slurry filter 100 and the slurry filter 100 having the inlet 102 formed at one end and the circulation inlet 104 and the circulation outlet 106 formed at the other end thereof. It includes a filter media 103 for filtering the slurry introduced into.

A first pipe 108 is formed between the circulation inlet 104 and the circulation outlet 106 of the slurry filter 100, and the first pump 110 is configured in the first pipe 108. In addition, the circulation inlet 104 and the circulation outlet 106 are preferably configured such that the size is about 20% to 100% compared to the other.

In the above configuration, the slurry filter 100 is in a state in which the slurry is introduced into the inlet 102 at a constant pressure, and the first pump 110 pumps the slurry to continuously circulate through the path C.

Then, the intersection P is formed in the first pipe 108, and the three-way valve 112 is connected to the intersection P.

DIW flows into the first direction a of the three-way valve 112, and a second pipe 114 for supplying the slurry to a process facility (not shown) is connected to the second direction b. The three directions c are connected to the intersection point P. In addition, the three-way valve 112 has a structure in which any two directions of the three directions are connected.

As described above, as the first embodiment is constructed, the slurry filter is continuously circulated in the path C.

In addition, the three-way valve 112 is set so that the second direction and the third direction are connected to supply the slurry, and thus, the slurry flowing out of the intersection point P passes through the three-way valve 112 and the second pipe 114. It is supplied to the process equipment (not shown) through. In this case, a pumping force for supplying the process equipment is provided by the second pump 116.

In addition, the pumping force of the first pump 110 is preferably set to be larger than the second pump 116 for smooth supply.

As a result, the slurry is fed to a process facility (not shown) for use in the process, such as path D.

In addition, cleaning using DIW is unnecessary for the path C. This is because the slurry continuously circulates through the first pipe 108, the slurry filter 100, and the first pump 110, so that precipitation does not occur.

Therefore, the cleaning using the DIW is performed on the three-way valve 112 and the second pipe 114 as in the path E. For this purpose, the three-way valve 112 is performed in the first direction a and the second direction b. ) Should be set to connect.

In this configuration, the slurry remaining in the second pipe 114 and the second pump 116 may be cleaned by DIW input in the first direction a of the three-way valve 112.

Therefore, a section in which the slurry is stagnant does not occur, and the time required for resupplying the slurry can be minimized.

At this time, the distance between the intersection point P and the three-way valve 112 is preferably configured to be three times or less of the pipe inner diameter.

On the other hand, the second embodiment according to the present invention can be configured using one pump as shown in FIG.

In the slurry supply apparatus of FIG. 3, the slurry inlet 202 is formed at one end thereof, and the slurry introduced into the slurry filter 200 and the slurry filter 200 having the circulation inlet 204 and the circulation outlet 206 at one end thereof. And a filter media 203 for filtering.

At this time, the slurry is continuously supplied to the inlet 202 of the slurry filter 200 at a constant pressure. In addition, the circulation inlet 204 and the circulation outlet 206 are preferably configured such that the size of the circulation inlet 204 and 20% to about 100%.

The first pipe 208 is connected between the circulation inlet 204 and the circulation outlet 206, and the pump 21, the first three-way valve 212, and the second three are connected to the first pipe 208. The way valve 214 is configured. A connection point Q is configured between the first three way valve 212 and the second three way valve 214, and a third pipe 216 provided with a valve 218 is connected to the connection point Q.

Pump 210 provides a pumping force for circulation and supply of slurry.

The first three-way valve 212 has a first direction a connected to the second three-way valve 214, a second direction b connected to the pump 210, and a third direction c It is connected to the third three-way valve 222.

In addition, the second three-way valve 214 is connected to the first three-way valve 212 in the first direction a, receives the DIW in the second direction b, and the slurry in the third direction c. The circulation inlet 204 of the filter 200 is connected.

Accordingly, a pump is configured between the first three-way valve 212 and the circulation outlet 206 of the slurry filter 200.

In addition, the first three-way valve 212 is connected to the first direction (a) of the third three-way valve 222, DIW is supplied in the second direction (b), the slurry in the third direction (c) The second pipe 220 for supplying the process equipment (not shown) is connected.

Each of the first, second and third three-way valves 212, 214, and 222 has a structure in which any two directions of three directions are connected to each other.

As described above, as the embodiment is configured, the slurry circulates through the path F including the first pipe 208 and the slurry filter 200 by the pumping force of the pump 210.

In the slurry circulation state in which the slurry is not supplied, the second three-way valve 214 is connected with the first direction a and the third direction c, and the first three-way valve 212 is connected with the first direction a. And the second direction c are set in a connected state, and the valve 218 is set in a locked state.

In this case, DIW may be supplied in the second direction b of the third three-way valve 222 to clean the second pipe 220.

In order to supply the slurry, the third three-way valve 222 connects the first direction a and the third direction c, and the first three-way valve 212 connects the second direction b and the third direction c. The three directions c are connected, and the second three-way valve 214 connects the first direction a and the second direction b.

Accordingly, the slurry from the slurry filter 200 is processed by the pumping force of the pump 210 via the path G through the first three-way valve 212 and the third three-way valve 222 (not shown). Is supplied.

At this time, DIW flows in the first direction a from the second direction b of the second three-way valve 214, and when the valve 218 is opened, the area of the first pipe 208 included therebetween is cleaned. do.

As described above, according to the embodiment of FIG. 3, when the slurry is not supplied, the slurry is circulated through the path F, and DIW is supplied to the path H1 to perform cleaning. And, when supplying the slurry, the slurry is supplied to the process equipment (not shown) through the section G and the path G of the pump 210 of the path F, DIW is supplied to the path H2 is cleaned.

For reference, although the slurry circulation of the path C of FIG. 2 and the path F of FIG. 3 may be designed to be continuous, the circulation may be designed to be performed for a predetermined time at regular time intervals for efficiency. In this case, the circulation of the slurry is preferably set on the path C and the path F for at least 5 minutes with a time interval of 5 minutes or more.

According to the present invention, since the slurry is continuously circulated under the structure in which the slurry is circulated, precipitation can be prevented, thereby preventing wafer damage in the process due to large particles, thereby improving the yield.

In addition, according to the present invention, the efficiency of cleaning can be minimized, and the time required for slurry reuse can be minimized.

1 is a view showing a conventional slurry supply device

Figure 2 shows a preferred embodiment of the slurry supply apparatus according to the present invention

3 shows another embodiment of a slurry supply apparatus according to the present invention.

Claims (10)

A slurry filter having an inlet through which a slurry is introduced at one end and a circulation inlet and a circulation outlet at the other end; A first pump installed at a first pipe between the circulation inlet and a circulation outlet to pump the slurry to be circulated along a circulation path formed by the slurry filter and the first pipe; Including a first direction, a second direction and a third direction, DIW (De-ionized water) is introduced into the first direction, the second direction is connected to the following second pump and the third direction is the third direction A three-way valve connected to the first pipe between the first pump and the circulation inlet; And The slurry is pumped when the third direction and the second direction of the three-way valve are connected to the second direction, and the DIW is used for cleaning when the first and second directions of the three-way valve are connected. Pump to pump the Slurry supply apparatus comprising a. The method of claim 1, Slurry supply apparatus, characterized in that the distance between the three-way valve and the first pipe is set to less than three times the pipe inner diameter. The method of claim 1, And a pumping force of the first pump is greater than or equal to that of the second pump. The method of claim 1, The slurry inlet and the circulation outlet of the slurry filter, any one of the two, characterized in that having a size of 20% to 100% compared to the size of the other. The method of claim 1, And the first pump is configured to perform pumping for a minimum time set to a minimum at intervals of a predetermined time or more. A slurry filter having an inlet through which a slurry is introduced at one end and a circulation inlet and a circulation outlet at the other end; A pump, a first three-way valve, and a second three-way valve that are sequentially installed in the direction of the circulation outlet from the circulation inlet on the first pipe connected between the circulation inlet and the circulation outlet; A third three-way valve installed on a second pipe connected in one direction of the first three-way valve; And By having a valve installed in a third pipe connected to the first pipe between the first three way valve and the second three way valve, A slurry is circulated through a path including the slurry filter, a pump, a first three-way valve, and a second three-way valve, and the second and third three-way valves connect the first pipe and the second pipe. Slurry supply apparatus characterized in that the slurry is supplied in. The method of claim 6, The first three-way valve has a first direction connected to the first direction of the second three-way valve and the first pipe, a second direction to the pump, and a third direction to the third three-way valve. Connected to, The second three-way valve is DIW flows in the second direction, the third direction is connected to the circulation inlet, The third three-way valve is a slurry supply device, characterized in that the first direction is connected to the third direction of the first three-way valve, DIW flows in the second direction, the third direction is connected to the second pipe . The method of claim 6, The slurry supply state and the slurry circulation state are set according to the operating states of the first, second and third three-way valves, In the slurry supply state, the slurry is supplied from the slurry filter through the pump, the first three way valve and the second pipe, and the DIW flows in the third direction of the second three way valve to perform cleaning. , In the slurry circulation state, the slurry is circulated through the pump, the first three way valve, the second three way valve and the slurry filter, and the DIW is cleaned from the third three way valve via the third pipe. Slurry supply apparatus characterized in that for performing. The method according to any one of claims 6 and 8, The circulation of the slurry is a slurry supply device, characterized in that performed by the pump at least a second time interval at least a second time. The method of claim 6, The slurry inlet and the circulation outlet of the slurry filter, any one of the two, characterized in that having a size of 20% to 100% compared to the size of the other.