KR100827859B1 - Pressure reduction vessel and pressure reduction processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a reduced pressure vessel and a reduced pressure processing apparatus capable of reliably preventing generation of particles due to deformation of the vessel. In the groove 26 formed in the upper end surface 21a of the container body 21 surrounding the inner space of the load lock chamber 20, an O-ring 90 as a sealing member is inserted, and on the outside thereof, an approximately L-shape. A spacer 91 having a cross-sectional shape having a cross-sectional shape is inserted into a groove 26 so that an upper surface of the container body 21 is formed from the inner wall surface of the groove 26 by bending an L-shaped surface of the inner side. It is arrange | positioned in the state contacted over 21a). By separating the container body 21 and the ceiling plate 22 by the spacer 91, even if the inside of the load lock chamber 20 is bent on the ceiling plate 22 in a state where the inside of the load lock chamber 20 is decompressed to a high vacuum state, the container body 21 The contact between the corner portion 21b of the inner circumferential side and the ceiling plate 22 can be avoided.

Description

PRESSURE REDUCTION VESSEL AND PRESSURE REDUCTION PROCESSING APPARATUS}

1 is a perspective view showing an appearance of a vacuum processing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the vacuum processing apparatus of FIG.

3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the load lock chamber in the vacuum processing apparatus of FIG. 1;

4 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration example of a substrate transfer mechanism;

5 is a plan view of the load lock chamber with the ceiling plate removed;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the main parts taken from the line VI-VI of FIG. 5 in the direction of the arrow;

7 is a cross-sectional view of an essential part showing a connection portion between a main body and a ceiling plate of a load lock chamber;

8 is a view for explaining another embodiment of the sealing portion;

Fig. 9 is a sectional view of the essential parts showing a connecting portion of a main body and a ceiling plate of a load lock chamber according to another embodiment;

10 is a horizontal sectional view of a vacuum processing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings

10: vacuum processing chamber 20: load lock chamber

21: body 22: ceiling plate

23: bottom plate 30, 40: gate valve

50: atmospheric side conveyance mechanism 51: conveyance arm

52: cutout 55: substrate rack

60: vacuum pump 70: substrate transfer mechanism

70a: slide motor 71: base plate

71c: pin through hole

72 to 74: first to third slide plate

72c to 74c: pin through hole 80: substrate exchange mechanism

81, 82: buffer plates 83, 84: buffer lifting mechanism

85: support pin 86: pin lifting mechanism

90, 93: O-ring 91, 94: spacer

100, 200: vacuum processing device

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a pressure reduction vessel and a pressure reduction processing device, and in particular, such as dry etching, film formation, conveyance, position matching, etc., under reduced pressure with respect to a glass substrate for a flat panel display (FPD) such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a plasma display. The technique applied to the pressure reduction container and pressure reduction processing apparatus used when performing a pressure reduction process.

For example, in an LCD manufacturing process, the pressure reduction process, such as dry etching, sputtering, CVD (chemical vapor deposition), is used with respect to the LCD glass substrate which is a to-be-processed substrate.

In the pressure reduction processing apparatus which performs such a pressure reduction process, the vacuum preliminary chamber is provided adjacent to the vacuum processing chamber which is maintained in a reduced pressure state, for example, in a vacuum, and performs the said process, The atmosphere fluctuations in a vacuum processing chamber at the time of carrying in and out of a to-be-processed substrate The structure is made very small.

Specifically, for example, a load lock chamber having a role of an interface between the atmospheric side and the vacuum side is provided between the cassette disposed in the atmosphere and the vacuum processing chamber which performs the etching process or the like. In this load lock chamber, each time the substrate to be processed is passed, the opening of the atmosphere and the exhaust to the high vacuum equivalent to that of the vacuum processing chamber are repeated. In the pressure reduction container used for a load lock chamber, in order to ensure the airtightness, the connection part of a structural member, for example, the junction part of a container main body and a cover, is sealed using sealing members, such as an O-ring.

By the way, in recent years, the demand for enlargement of the LCD glass substrate is strong, and the large size board | substrate more than 2m is used, and the pressure reduction container is also enlarged in order to accommodate and process such a large sized board | substrate. When the pressure reduction container is enlarged, the amount of warpage of the members constituting the pressure reduction container, for example, the lid, also increases due to the pressure difference inside and outside the pressure reduction container during vacuum. And when this angle | corner changes the angle of the joint surface of a lid | cover and a container main body, the container main body and a cover will directly contact, and the particle | grains by the metal material etc. which comprise both members generate | occur | produce. In particular, in the case where the vacuum state and the open air condition are repeated as in the vacuum preliminary chamber, the cover and the container body are repeatedly slid contact between the cover and the container body by the bending of the cover and the recovery thereof. , Particles are more likely to occur.

For the purpose of preventing the occurrence of particles for the above reasons, the amount of warpage in a reduced pressure state is taken into consideration to the inside of the sealing material on the joint surface of the two container structural members (for example, the container body and the lid). There is proposed a reduced pressure vessel having a void (for example, Patent Document 1).

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1995-273095

Although the proposal of the said patent document 1 is the outstanding technique in the point which suppresses a particle, in order to make a space | gap in the joining surface of two container structural members, one end surface is cut by cutting etc. and a step is formed. Because of the necessity, there have been processing limitations such as an increase in the number of manufacturing steps of the pressure-reduced container, and difficulty in processing with high precision as the container becomes larger.

Moreover, in the case of the pressure reduction container of patent document 1, since it is the structure which two container component materials directly contact from the outer side of a sealing material, while the pressure reduction and air | atmosphere opening are repeated, the outer part slides and makes a particle generate | occur | produce. It is also concerned.

This invention is made | formed in view of such a situation, and makes it a subject to provide the pressure reduction container and pressure reduction processing apparatus which can reliably prevent generation | occurrence | production of the particle by deformation of a container.

MEANS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM In order to solve the said subject, the 1st viewpoint of this invention is a pressure reduction container which comprised the inside of a container so that pressure reduction was possible, The groove | channel is provided in at least one of the connection surface of one container structural member and another container structural member which comprise the said pressure reduction container. And a sealing member disposed inside the groove to ensure the airtightness of the connecting portion, and a portion of the connecting member is inserted into the groove to be in close contact with the sealing member while being different from the one container constituting member outside the groove. Provided is a pressure reducing container comprising a spacer spaced apart between the container constituent members.

The 2nd viewpoint of this invention is a pressure reduction container which comprised the inside of a container so that pressure reduction was possible, The some container structural member which comprises the said pressure reduction container, the container structural member of the said several container structural member, and the said container structural member A groove formed on at least one side of the connection surface with the other container constituent member connected to the housing, a sealing member disposed inside the groove, and a portion thereof inserted into the groove to be in close contact with the sealing member, Provided is a pressure reducing container comprising a spacer spaced apart between the one container member and the other container member.

In said 1st viewpoint or 2nd viewpoint, it is preferable to arrange | position the said spacer from the inside of the said pressure reduction container outside from the said sealing member. Moreover, it is preferable that the cross section of the said spacer is substantially L-shaped. In addition, the sealing member is preferably a zero ring having a substantially triangular cross section. Moreover, it is preferable to form an unevenness | corrugation on the contact surface of the said spacer and the said sealing member.

In addition, the spacer is preferably formed of a harder material than the sealing member. In this case, the hardness (JIS K6253 Shore Hardness D) of the spacer is preferably 50 to 70, and the hardness (JIS K6253 Shore Hardness A) of the O-ring is preferably 70 to 90. Moreover, it is preferable that the said one container structural member and the said other container structural member are a pressure reduction container main body and a cover, or a pressure reduction container main body and a bottom plate.

The 3rd viewpoint of this invention is a pressure reduction processing apparatus which performs a pressure reduction process with respect to a to-be-processed object, and provides the pressure reduction processing apparatus characterized by including the pressure reduction container of the said 1st viewpoint or a 2nd viewpoint.

Embodiment

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiment of this invention is described concretely with reference to an accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The perspective view which shows the external appearance of the vacuum processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention, FIG. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the vacuum processing apparatus of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the vacuum reserve chamber in a vacuum processing apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the structural example of the board | substrate conveyance mechanism of the board | substrate conveyance apparatus arrange | positioned in a vacuum preliminary chamber.

The vacuum processing apparatus 100 of this embodiment has the vacuum processing chamber 10 which performs desired vacuum processing, such as a plasma etching process and a thin film formation process, with respect to the board | substrate G, such as an LCD glass substrate, in a vacuum atmosphere, A load lock chamber 20 extending in the vacuum processing chamber 10 and serving as a vacuum preliminary chamber, a gate valve 30 provided between the vacuum processing chamber 10 and the load lock chamber 20, a load lock chamber 20, The gate valve 40 between the external atmospheric side conveyance mechanisms 50 is provided.

The vacuum pump 60 is connected to the vacuum processing chamber 10 via the exhaust control valve 61, and the vacuum exhaust to the vacuum degree required for the predetermined vacuum processing of the board | substrate G is attained. In addition, the processing gas supply part 12 is connected to the vacuum processing chamber 10 via the gas control valve 11, and the inside of the vacuum processing chamber 10 can form the processing gas atmosphere of a predetermined pressure. . The processing stage 13 is provided inside the vacuum processing chamber 10, and the substrate G to be processed is mounted therein.

The vacuum pump 60 is connected to the load lock chamber 20 via the exhaust control valve 62, and the vacuum exhaust to the vacuum degree equivalent to the vacuum processing chamber 10 is attained.

The gate valve 30 communicates with the vacuum processing chamber 10 and the load lock chamber 20 so that the substrate 31 supported by the substrate transfer mechanism 70 to be described later can pass through the opening 31 and the opening. The valve body 32 which performs opening / closing operation | movement of the 31 is provided.

The gate valve 40 communicates with the load lock chamber 20 and the external atmospheric side, and has an opening 41 having a size that allows the substrate G supported by the atmospheric side conveyance mechanism 50 to pass therethrough, and the opening ( The valve body 42 which performs opening / closing operation | movement of 41 is provided.

The load lock chamber 20 is made of a material such as aluminum, and is joined to the container body 21 which is rectangular in plan view surrounding the internal space of the load lock chamber 20 and the container body 21 from above and below. The top plate 22 and the bottom plate 23 are comprised. Sealing parts 24 and 25 are arranged on the joining surface of the upper end surface of the container main body 21 and the top plate 22, and the joining surface of the lower end surface of the container main body 21 and the bottom plate 23, Confidentiality is secured. In addition, the structure of the sealing part 24 and 25 is demonstrated in detail later.

In the load lock chamber 20, a linear substrate transfer mechanism 70 is provided. The substrate transfer mechanism 70 includes a base plate 71 fixed to a bottom portion of the load lock chamber 20, a first slide plate 72 stacked on the base plate 71 in multiple stages, A third slide plate 74 also serves as a second slide plate 73 and a substrate support. The substrate conveyance mechanism main body is comprised by these base plates 71 and the 1st-3rd slide plates 74. FIG. The base plate 71 has a pair of slide rails 71a for supporting the first slide plate 72 directly above and slidable in the horizontal direction, and a horizontal thrust force on the slide plate 72. ), The slide drive device 71b which reciprocates on the slide rail 71a is provided. The first slide plate 72 includes a pair of slide rails 72a for supporting the second slide plate 73 directly above and slidable in the horizontal direction, and a horizontal thrust force on the slide plate 73. The slide drive device 72b which reciprocates on the slide rail 72a is provided. The second slide plate 73 has a pair of slide rails 73a for supporting the third slide plate 74 directly above and slidably guided in the horizontal direction, and the slide plate 74 in the horizontal direction. The slide drive device 73b which thrusts and reciprocates on the slide rail 73a is provided. The uppermost third slide plate 74 is provided with a substantially C-shaped slide pick 74a that functions as a substrate support portion that supports the lower surface of the substrate G to be mounted.

The substrate exchange mechanism 80 is provided inside the load lock chamber 20. The substrate exchange mechanism 80 includes buffer plates 81 and 82 provided at positions with the substrate transfer mechanism 70 interposed therebetween, and buffer lifting mechanisms 83 and 84 for raising and lowering the buffer plates 81 and 82; The support pin 85 provided in the center of the bottom part of the base plate 71, and the pin lift mechanism 86 which raises and lowers this support pin 85 are provided. And the 1st support part is comprised by the buffer plates 81 and 82 and the buffer lifting mechanisms 83 and 84, and the 2nd support part is comprised by the support pin 85 and the pin lifting mechanism 86. As shown in FIG.

The board | substrate sending / receiving mechanism 80 is a lower part of the board | substrate G supported by the slide pick 74a on the 3rd slide plate 74 of the board | substrate conveyance mechanism 70 from below with buffer plates 81 and 82. FIG. Supporting and exchanging substrates such as an operation of causing the substrate G to float from the slide pick 74a and an operation of dropping the substrate G received from the atmospheric side transport mechanism 50 onto the slide pick 74a. Perform the action. In addition, the center of the board | substrate G is supported by the support pin 85 at this time.

In the center part of the base plate 71 and the 1st-3rd slide plates 72-74 which comprise the board | substrate conveyance mechanism 70 mentioned above, the pin through-hole 71c which the said support pin 85 can pass, and a pin The through hole 72c, the pin through hole 73c, and the pin through hole 74c are provided, respectively. In the stacked state (degenerate state) in which the first to third slide plates 72 to 74 are introduced into the load lock chamber 20, the pin through holes 71c and the pin through holes 72c to 74c. The support pin 85 protrudes on the uppermost slide plate 74 by passing through the pin through holes 71c and 72c to 74c in the vertical direction. The operation of contacting and supporting the bottom center of the mounted substrate G (in the case of this embodiment, as an example, substantially the center position of the substrate G) is enabled. In other words, the support pins 85 are moved up and down in synchronization with the buffer plates 81 and 82 in the above-described substrate exchange operation in the load lock chamber 20, and the peripheral portions are moved by the buffer plates 81 and 82. The center part of the supported board | substrate G functions to support horizontally so that it may not bend downward by self weight.

The atmospheric | transport side conveyance mechanism 50 is equipped with the conveyance arm 51 which can be rotated and expanded, and takes out the unprocessed 1 board | substrate G from the board | substrate rack 55 in which the some board | substrate G was accommodated, And the transfer of the processed substrate G from the substrate transfer mechanism 70 in the load lock chamber 20 to the substrate transfer mechanism 70 in the load lock chamber 20 via the gate valve 40. The operation of taking out to the atmosphere side via the 40 and storing it in the substrate rack 55 is performed. The transfer arm 51 is provided with cutouts 52 so as not to interfere with the support pins 85 during the transfer of the substrate G in the load lock chamber 20.

Next, the operation of the substrate processing in the vacuum processing apparatus 100 will be described.

First, the substrate conveyance mechanism 70 is degenerate in the load lock chamber 20, the valve body 32 of the gate valve 30 is closed, and the inside of the vacuum processing chamber 10 is connected to the vacuum pump 60. By the required degree of vacuum.

The atmospheric | backup side conveyance mechanism 50 takes out the unprocessed board | substrate G from the board | substrate rack 55 by the conveyance arm 51, and the load lock chamber 20 through the opening part 41 of the gate valve 40. FIG. It carries in, and positions it immediately above the 3rd slide plate 74 of the board | substrate conveyance mechanism 70.

Next, the buffer plates 81 and 82 are raised to lift the periphery of the substrate G from both sides, and the support pins 85 are raised through the pin through holes 71c to 74c to raise the transfer arms 51. As shown in FIG. 3, the transfer arm 51 moves in a substantially horizontal posture without bending, as shown in FIG. 3. Injured from.

Thereafter, the transport arm 51 is pulled out to the atmospheric side and retracted to the outside of the load lock chamber 20, and then the substrate G is lowered by lowering the buffer plates 81 and 82 and the support pins 85. It transfers onto the slide pick 74a of the 3rd slide plate 74 in 70, and is mounted.

Then, the valve body 42 of the gate valve 40 is closed to keep the load lock chamber 20 closed, and the exhaust control valve 62 is opened to exhaust the vacuum to the same degree as that of the vacuum processing chamber 10. The valve body 32 of the gate valve 30 is opened. At this time, since the load lock chamber 20 is evacuated, the vacuum degree and atmosphere of the vacuum processing chamber 10 are not damaged. Then, the openings 31 of the gate valve 30 extend the first to third slide plates 72 to 74 of the substrate transfer mechanism 70 in multiple stages toward the inside of the vacuum processing chamber 10, and the substrate (G) is carried directly to the upper part of the processing stage 13 of the vacuum processing chamber 10, and is put on the processing stage 13 via a push-up pin (not shown) provided in the processing stage 13 and the like. Mount on. Thereafter, the first to third slide plates 72 to 74 degenerate and retract into the load lock chamber 20 to close the valve body 32 of the gate valve 30 to seal the vacuum processing chamber 10. .

Thereafter, a necessary gas is introduced from the processing gas supply unit 12 into the sealed vacuum processing chamber 10 to form a processing gas atmosphere, and the processing necessary for the substrate G is performed.

After a predetermined time elapses, the introduction of the processing gas is stopped, the valve body 32 of the gate valve 30 is opened, and the first to third slide plates 72 of the substrate transfer mechanism 70 in the load lock chamber 20 are opened. To 74) are extended in the multi-stage interior of the vacuum processing chamber 10, and the processed substrate G of the vacuum processing chamber 10 is moved from the processing stage 13 to the third slide plate in the reverse order to the above-mentioned loading operation. The first to third slide plates 72 to 74 are retracted to move onto the slide pick 74a of 74, and are discharged into the load lock chamber 20, and then the valve body 32 of the gate valve 30 is removed. It is closed and the vacuum processing chamber 10 is sealed.

Thereafter, the exhaust of the load lock chamber 20 is stopped, the N ₂ gas or the like is introduced to a pressure close to atmospheric pressure, and the buffer plates 81 and 82 and the support pins 85 are raised to raise the substrate G. The substrate G which floats the valve body 42 of the gate valve 40 and floats the conveyance arm 51 of the atmospheric conveyance mechanism 50 by supporting the periphery and the center of the surface and floating in a substantially horizontal posture. ) And the buffer plates 81 and 82 and the support pins 85 are dropped in the state, thereby transferring the substrate G to the transfer arm 51.

Then, the transfer arm 51 is pulled out to the atmosphere side, whereby the processed substrate G is taken out from the load lock chamber 20 to the atmosphere side and stored in the substrate rack 55.

Next, the sealing structure of the junction part of the container main body 21 and the top plate 22 in the load lock chamber 20 is demonstrated, referring FIGS. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing an outline of a state where the top plate 22 of the load lock chamber 20 is removed, FIG. 6 is a sectional view of an essential part viewed from the line VI-VI in the direction of an arrow, and FIG. 7 is a container body 21 and a top plate ( It is sectional drawing of the principal part which shows the connection site | part in the state which joined 22). In addition, in FIG. 7, the code | symbol 92 is the connector (bolt) used for joining the container main body 21 and the ceiling plate 22. In addition, in FIG.

A groove 26 is formed in the upper end surface 21a of the container body 21 surrounding the inner space of the load lock chamber 20, and an O-ring 90 as a sealing member is inserted into the groove 26. It is. Moreover, the spacer 91 is arrange | positioned on the outer side (outer peripheral side) of the inside of the load lock chamber 20 in the state which inserted the part in the groove 26 in the outer side (outer peripheral side). As the O-ring 90 and the spacer 91, one annular member may be used, respectively, or two or more divided members may be disposed in the groove 26 continuously without gaps.

The O-ring 90 is a release O-ring having an approximately triangular cross-sectional shape with the bottom portion enlarged with the upper side as a vertex. The shape of the O-ring 90 is a shape having an enlarged bottom so as to secure the fit to the inner surface shape of the groove 26 and the adhesion to the spacer 91 inserted into the groove 26. As a result, it is possible to exert sufficient sealing property without slipping out of the grooves 26.

The O-ring 90 is arranged such that its top portion is raised by a predetermined amount, for example, about 1.5 mm to 2.0 mm, with respect to the upper end surface 21a of the container body 21 with its bottom portion inserted into the groove 26. When the container main body 21 and the ceiling plate 22 are joined by this, as shown in FIG. 7, the O-ring 90 is crushed by the ceiling plate 22, and the sealing function can be exhibited reliably. . As a material of the O-ring 90, the thing whose hardness (JIS K6253 Shore hardness A) is 70-90 can be used preferably, for example. More specifically, the fluorine rubber (For example, Viton, Kaletz (all are brand name; DuPont make), silicone) which has the said hardness is mentioned, for example.

The spacer 91 has a substantially L-shaped cross-sectional shape. By making the cross section of the spacer 91 into an L shape, one end side (insertion part) of the spacer 91 is inserted into the groove 26, and the surface of the inner corner side bent in an L shape from the inner wall surface of the groove 26. It can be arrange | positioned in the state in which it adhered over the upper end surface 21a of the container main body 21, and it is set as the shape which does not come out easily from the groove | channel 26.

A portion (interposed portion) opposite to the portion inserted into the groove 26 of the spacer 91 is extended to the upper end surface 21a of the container body 21 so as to surround the outer side (the outer peripheral side) of the O-ring 90. Extends and is spaced between the container body 21 and the ceiling plate 22 so as to space both members by a thickness thereof (shown by reference numeral D ₁ in FIG. 7), for example, at intervals of 0.5 mm to 1.0 mm. Function. And the spacer main body 21 arrange | positioned outside the O-ring 90 isolate | separates the container main body 21 and the top plate 22, and the load lock chamber 20 is pressure-reduced to the high vacuum state, FIG. Even if warpage occurs in the ceiling plate 22 as shown by the broken line, the contact between the corner portion 21b on the inner circumferential side of the container body 21 and the ceiling plate 22 can be avoided. Therefore, in the load lock chamber 20 in which the vacuum state and the open air condition are repeated, particles such as aluminum powder generated as the edge 21b on the inner circumferential side of the container body 21 and the top plate 22 rub against each other. Can be prevented.

As the material of the spacer 91, a material harder than the O-ring 9O, for example, (JIS K6253 Shore Hardness D) of 50 to 70 can be preferably used. In addition, as other physical properties of the material used for the spacer 91, considering the force applied to the spacer 91 at that time from the vacuum differential pressure when the inside of the load lock chamber 20 is vacuumed, the compression hardness (JIS) It is preferable to select a material having K6251) of 11 MPa or more. The spacer 91 has an elongation (JIS K6251) of 300% or more from the viewpoint of securing sufficient bendability at the time of attachment to the corner portion of the groove 26 (indicated by reference numeral R in FIG. 5). It is preferable to use a material.

Specific examples of the material having the above properties include polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), high molecular weight polyethylene (PE), and the like.

8 shows another embodiment of the O-ring and the spacer disposed in the seal 24. In the present embodiment, the uneven surfaces 93a and 94a are formed at portions where the O-ring 93 and the spacer 94 contact each other. The uneven surfaces 93a and 94a increase the frictional resistance between the O-ring 93 and the spacer 94 so as to prevent both members from slipping so that they are out of position in the grooves 26 or fall out of the grooves 26. Works. That is, the uneven surfaces 93a and 94a function as position shift prevention action portions for preventing the position shift between the O-ring 93 and the spacer 94.

9 is related with another embodiment of the pressure reduction container of this invention, Comprising: The step is provided in the upper end surface of the container main body 21. FIG. That is, the upper end surface 21d of the inner side (inner circumferential side) is cut from the groove 26 in which the O-ring 90 is disposed, and is formed lower than the upper end surface 21c of the outer side (outer circumferential side) of the groove 26. have. Thus, by arranging the spacer 91 and forming a step on the upper end surface of the container main body 21, even if the amount of warpage of the top plate 22 of the load lock chamber 20 increases, the inner peripheral side of the container main body 21 is increased. it is possible to sufficiently ensure the distance D ₂ of the upper end surface (21d) and the ceiling plate 22, it is possible to avoid the contact of the edge portion (21b) and a top plate 22. the In addition, for the same amount of warpage, the thickness D ₁ of the spacer 91 can be made relatively small or the amount of cutting of the upper end surface 21d on the inner circumferential side can be reduced, thereby ensuring airtightness by the O-ring 90. Can be made more certain.

As mentioned above, although the structure of the sealing part 24 in the junction part of the container main body 21 and the ceiling plate 22 was demonstrated, the sealing part 25 in the junction part of the container main body 21 and the bottom plate 23 was demonstrated. The same holds true for the structure of.

The sealing structure of this invention is not limited to what was equipped with the board | substrate conveyance mechanism 70 like the load lock chamber 20 in the vacuum processing apparatus 100 of FIG. In addition, the sealing structure of this invention is not limited to the load lock chamber which repeats vacuum and air | atmosphere opening, The board | substrate conveyance chamber and vacuum processing chamber which comprise a board | substrate conveyance mechanism and mainly convey a board | substrate to a vacuum processing chamber in a vacuum state. Applicable to As a board | substrate conveyance chamber and the load lock chamber which can apply the sealing structure of this invention, the conveyance chamber 220 in the vacuum chamber 200 of the multichamber type as shown, for example in the horizontal cross section in FIG. And load lock chamber 230. In this vacuum processing apparatus 200, the conveyance chamber 220 and the load lock chamber 230 are extended in the center part. Three process chambers 210a, 210b, 210c are disposed around the transfer chamber 220. Between the conveyance chamber 220 and the load lock chamber 230, between the conveyance chamber 220 and each process chamber 210a, 210b, 210c, and the opening which communicates with the load lock chamber 230 and the atmospheric atmosphere outside, between these. Is hermetically sealed and a gate valve 222 configured to be openable and closed is interposed therebetween.

On the outer side of the load lock chamber 230, two cassette indexers 241 are provided, and cassettes 240 each containing the substrate G are mounted thereon. For example, an untreated substrate can be accommodated in one of these cassettes 240, and a processed substrate can be accommodated in the other. These cassettes 240 are capable of lifting up and down by a lifting mechanism not shown.

Between these two cassettes 240, a conveyance mechanism 243 is provided on the support base 244, which conveys the picks 245 and 246 provided in two stages up and down, and these are integrally advanced. A base 247 is supported for retraction and rotation.

In the process chambers 210a, 210b, and 210c which are vacuum processing chambers, the internal space can be maintained in a predetermined reduced pressure atmosphere, and plasma processing, for example, etching or ashing processing is performed therein. Thus, since it has three process chambers, for example, two process chambers are comprised as an etching process chamber, and the other one process chamber is comprised as an ashing process chamber, or all three process chambers perform the same process. In addition, it can be configured as an ashing processing chamber. The number of process chambers is not limited to three, but may be four or more.

As with the process chambers 210a, 210b, and 210c, the transfer chamber 220 can be maintained in a predetermined reduced pressure atmosphere, and the transfer apparatus 250 is disposed therein. And the board | substrate G is conveyed between the load lock chamber 230 and three process chambers 210a, 210b, 210c by this conveyance apparatus 250. FIG.

The load lock chamber 230 can be maintained in a predetermined reduced pressure atmosphere similarly to the process chambers 210 and the transfer chamber 220. The load lock chamber 230 is for carrying the substrate G between the cassette 240 in the air atmosphere and the process chambers 210a, 210b, and 210c in the reduced pressure atmosphere. Due to the repetition, the internal volume is very small.

In the load lock chamber 230, the substrate accommodating part 231 is provided in two upper and lower stages (only the upper end is shown), and each of the substrate accommodating parts 231 is provided with a plurality of buffers 232 supporting the substrate G. The release groove 232a of the carrier arm is formed between these buffers 232. Further, in the load lock chamber 230, a positioner 233 for performing position registration in the vicinity of the corner portions of the rectangular substrate G that face each other is provided.

Although description is abbreviate | omitted, also in the conveyance chamber 220 and the load lock chamber 230 of the above structure, the sealing structure similar to FIG. 5-9 is applicable to the junction part of a ceiling plate or a bottom plate, and a container main body, for example. Can be. And generation | occurrence | production of the particle by the friction of the container structural members which comprise the conveyance chamber 220 and the load lock chamber 230 can be prevented.

In addition, this invention is not limited to the said Example, A various deformation | transformation is possible within the scope of the idea of this invention. For example, the substrate is not limited to the LCD substrate but may be applied to other FPD substrates, semiconductor wafers, and the like. Here, as another FPD substrate, for example, a substrate used for a light emitting diode (LED) display, an electroluminescence (EL) display, a fluorescent fluorescence display (VFD), a plasma display panel (PDP), or the like can be exemplified. have.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for a pressure reduction vessel housing a substrate for manufacturing FPD and the like and a pressure reduction processing apparatus for processing the substrate.

According to the present invention, by arranging a sealing member and a spacer interposed between both members while being in close contact with the sealing member between the connecting surfaces of the two members constituting the pressure-sensitive container, the two members can be arbitrarily secured. Can be spaced apart.

Therefore, even when the inside of a pressure reduction container is bent in the pressure reduction state in the vacuum state, even if curvature generate | occur | produces in a container structure member, the contact of container component members can be avoided. Thus, for example, even if the pressure inside the decompression vessel is repeated between the vacuum and the atmosphere opening, the particles due to the friction of the joining portions of the container constituent members are suppressed.

In addition, by using the spacer, two container constituent members can be separated from each other without requiring high-density cutting and the like, so that the pressure-sensitive container can be easily processed and the number of processing steps thereof is not increased.

Claims (11)

In the pressure reduction container which comprised the inside of a container so that pressure reduction was possible, By providing a groove in at least one of the connection surface of one container component member and the other container component member which comprise the said pressure reduction container, and arrange | position a sealing member in the said groove, ensuring the airtightness of a connection part, A part of the spacer is inserted into the groove to be in close contact with the sealing member, and a spacer is disposed between the one container component member and the other container component member to be spaced apart from the outside of the groove. Reduced pressure vessel. In the pressure reduction container which comprised the inside of a container so that pressure reduction was possible, A plurality of container constituent members constituting the pressure-sensitive container; A groove formed in at least one of a container constituting member of the plurality of container constituting members and at least one of a connection surface of another container constituting member connected to the one container constituting member; A sealing member disposed in the groove, And a spacer interposed between the one container member and the other container member outside the groove while being inserted into the groove to be in close contact with the sealing member. Reduced pressure vessel. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The spacer is disposed outside the sealing member when viewed from the inside of the pressure reducing container. Reduced pressure vessel. The method according to claim 1 or 2, A cross section of the spacer has an approximately L shape. Reduced pressure vessel. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The sealing member is characterized in that the O-ring cross-section is approximately triangular Reduced pressure vessel. The method according to claim 1 or 2, Concavities and convexities are formed on the contact surfaces of the spacer and the sealing member. Reduced pressure vessel. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The spacer is formed of a material that is harder than the sealing member. Reduced pressure vessel. The method of claim 7, wherein Hardness (JIS K6253 Shore hardness D) of the spacer is characterized in that 50 to 70 Reduced pressure vessel. The method of claim 7, wherein Hardness (JIS K6253 Shore Hardness A) of the sealing member is characterized in that 70 to 90 Reduced pressure vessel. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The one container member and the other container member are a pressure reducing container body and a cover, or a pressure reducing container body and a bottom plate. Reduced pressure vessel. In the pressure reduction processing apparatus which performs a pressure reduction process with respect to a to-be-processed object, The pressure reduction container of Claim 1 or 2 was provided. Decompression processing device.

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