KR100843103B1 - Apparatus for Semiconductor Process - Google Patents

Abstract

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a semiconductor processing apparatus, and more particularly, to a semiconductor processing apparatus for performing a semiconductor process such as etching or depositing a surface of a substrate such as a wafer.

The present invention is formed in a sealed space in which external air is blocked and a transfer chamber in which gates through which a substrate enters and exits, and is mutually blocked from an internal space through at least one processing space forming part disposed at one side of the transfer chamber and provided therein. A process chamber for performing a semiconductor process by forming an enclosed processing space, and a connection part connecting the transfer chamber and the process chamber to enable transfer of the substrate between the transfer chamber and the process chamber, the transfer chamber Disclosed herein is a semiconductor processing apparatus comprising a transfer part for transferring a substrate to be subjected to a semiconductor process to the process chamber through the connection part or for carrying out a substrate having a semiconductor process completed from the process chamber.

Semiconductor, Semiconductor Process, Cylinder Valve

Description

Semiconductor Process Equipment {Apparatus for Semiconductor Process}

1 is a horizontal cross-sectional view showing a conventional semiconductor processing apparatus.

2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional view of the A-A direction in FIG.

3 is a vertical sectional view showing a semiconductor processing apparatus according to the present invention.

4 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the semiconductor processing apparatus of FIG. 3.

5 is a perspective view illustrating a cassette installed in the semiconductor processing apparatus of FIG. 3 .

***** Explanation of symbols for main parts of drawing *****

100: transfer chamber 150: transfer unit

156: robot arm 170: cassette portion

300: connection part 500: process chamber

512: reaction vessel 530: wafer block

550: processing space forming part (cylinder valve)

552 cylinder valve body

554 drive unit

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a semiconductor processing apparatus, and more particularly, to a semiconductor processing apparatus for performing a semiconductor process such as etching or depositing a surface of a substrate such as a wafer.

The conventional semiconductor processing apparatus may include a process chamber for a semiconductor process and a transfer chamber for transferring a substrate into the process chamber. In particular, in the conventional semiconductor processing apparatus, a plurality of wafer blocks may be installed in the process chamber to process more substrates at the same time.

Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0364089 discloses a semiconductor processing apparatus provided with a pair of wafer blocks.

1 is a horizontal cross-sectional view showing a conventional semiconductor processing apparatus, Figure 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional view of the A-A direction in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the conventional semiconductor processing apparatus disclosed in Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0364089 includes a process chamber 10 in which a pair of wafer blocks 12 are installed, and a pair of transfer robots 30. ) Is configured to include a transfer chamber 60 is installed.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a pair of wafer blocks 12 are installed in the process chamber 10, and the process chamber 10 is a substrate W by a transfer robot 30. After being seated on the wafer block 12, it is sealed by a gate valve 54 provided between the process chamber 10 and the transfer chamber 60. In addition, the process chamber 10 performs a predetermined semiconductor process such as deposition, etching, and annealing in a sealed state.

However, the conventional semiconductor processing apparatus having the above configuration, in particular, the conventional semiconductor processing apparatus provided with a plurality of wafer blocks, such as the semiconductor processing apparatus disclosed in Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0364089, has the following problems.

First, in the conventional semiconductor processing apparatus, when a plurality of wafer blocks are installed, a processing space for performing a semiconductor process is asymmetrically formed around a substrate, thereby making it impossible to form uniform process conditions inside a chamber during a semiconductor process.

In addition, the conventional semiconductor processing apparatus is not isolated between the respective wafer blocks in the process chamber, causing the failure of the semiconductor process, such as the reaction gas, the mixing of the source gas, interference of the plasma generation source during the semiconductor process, the reliability of the semiconductor process may be lowered. Will be.

In addition, the conventional semiconductor processing apparatus has a problem in that the waiting time for cooling after the semiconductor process of the substrate is increased to increase the overall processing time of the semiconductor process, thereby lowering the productivity.

In addition, as the overall process time of the semiconductor process becomes longer, the substrate may be exposed to the air for a long time, contaminated with dust, foreign matters, etc., thereby lowering the yield.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor processing apparatus capable of increasing the reliability of a process by making the process atmosphere uniform by having a structure in which a processing space for a semiconductor process is symmetric about a substrate in order to solve the above problems. have.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor processing apparatus capable of improving process reliability by preventing interference between processes by mutually isolating processing spaces formed in each wafer block when a plurality of wafer blocks are installed. .

Still another object of the present invention is to further reduce the standby time for cooling the substrate after performing the semiconductor process by further providing a cassette unit to shorten the overall process time, to prevent exposure of the substrate in the air for a long time dust, foreign matter It is to provide a semiconductor processing apparatus that can minimize the contamination by such.

The present invention was created in order to achieve the object of the present invention as described above, the present invention is a transfer chamber is formed in a sealed space to be cut off from the outside air and the substrate is formed, the transfer chamber and the one side of the transfer chamber A process chamber for performing a semiconductor process by forming an enclosed process space interposed with the internal space through at least one process space forming unit disposed therein, and for transferring the substrate between the transfer chamber and the process chamber. And a connection part connecting the transfer chamber and the process chamber, wherein the substrate transfers a substrate to be subjected to a semiconductor process to the process chamber through the connection part, or takes out a substrate from which the semiconductor process is completed, from the process chamber. Disclosed is a semiconductor processing apparatus comprising a transfer section.

The process chamber includes a reaction vessel in which a gate through which a substrate to be subjected to a semiconductor process is to be formed is formed, at least one shower head installed above the reaction vessel to inject a gas so as to perform a semiconductor process, and each of the shower heads. At least one wafer block disposed in the lower side of the reaction vessel and supporting the substrate, and a space formed in the reaction vessel and sealing the space including the showerhead and the wafer block to form a processing space for a semiconductor process. It may be configured to include a processing space forming unit and an exhaust system connected to the processing space forming unit for pressure control and exhaust in the reaction chamber and the processing space formed in the processing space forming unit.

A cassette part in which a plurality of substrates are stacked is additionally installed inside the transfer chamber, and the transfer part may be configured to transfer the substrate between the wafer block and the cassette part. The cassette unit may be installed to move up and down by a driving unit. The cassette unit may be configured to include a temperature control unit for temperature control of the stacked substrate.

One end of the transfer part may be connected to a rotation driving part installed in the transfer chamber, and the other end may include one or more robot arms for transferring the substrate by reciprocating rotation between the cassette part and the wafer block. Each of the robot arms may be installed at different heights so that rotations do not interfere with each other.

The transfer chamber may be further provided with an exhaust system for adjusting the pressure therein.

The processing space forming unit may be configured to include a cylinder valve which is installed to enable the up and down reciprocating movement in the reaction vessel to rise to form the processing space. The cylinder valve may be connected by the exhaust system and the exhaust pipe.

Hereinafter, a semiconductor processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to embodiments and the accompanying drawings.

3 to 5, the semiconductor processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a transfer chamber 100 in which a sealed space in which external air is blocked and gates 112 and 114 through which the substrate enters and exits is formed; It is configured to include a process chamber 500 coupled to one side of the transfer chamber 100 by the connection part 300 to perform a semiconductor process.

The transfer chamber 100 is composed of an assembly consisting of a lower chamber 110 and an upper plate 130 coupled to the lower chamber 110 to form a closed space. In addition, the transfer chamber 100 is formed with a second gate 114 to be transferred to the first gate 112 and the process chamber 500 for entering and exiting the substrate W from the outside.

The first gate 112 is formed on the sidewall of the transfer chamber 100 to enter and exit the substrate W, and is opened and closed by the gate door 118. In addition, a transfer robot 900 or the like is installed outside the first gate 112 to access the substrate W. The transfer robot 900 may include a substrate for performing a semiconductor process through the first gate 112. W) is transferred to the cassette unit 170, which will be described later, or the substrate W having finished the semiconductor process is carried out to the outside.

In addition, the transfer chamber 100 may be provided with an exhaust system for exhausting the gas or by-products and the like remaining in the transfer chamber 100 after the pressure control and the process inside. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 116 denotes an exhaust pipe connected to a vacuum pump constituting the exhaust system.

The cassette unit 170 in which a plurality of substrates are stacked may be additionally installed in the transfer chamber 100 configured as described above, and the wafer block 530 of the cassette unit 170 and the process chamber 500 may be installed. Transfer unit 150 for transferring the substrate (W) may be installed.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the cassette unit 170 includes a pair of sidewall portions 172 provided with a plurality of laminate plates 171 and sidewall portions so that a plurality of substrates W may be stacked and stacked. It may be composed of a lower plate portion 174 is installed (172). The lower plate 174 is connected to the driving unit 176 so that the cassette unit 170 can move up and down.

The cassette unit 170 configured as described above has excellent thermal conductivity such as aluminum and a heat resistant member. When the cassette unit 170 uses aluminum, it is possible to naturally cool the substrate W, so that a separate cooling device for cooling the substrate W is unnecessary.

In addition, the cassette unit 170 may be further provided with a temperature control unit 178 for controlling the temperature of the substrate (W) to be stacked. The temperature control unit 178 is configured to cool or heat the substrate W stacked on the cassette unit 170, and various methods such as cooling or heating by a gas and cooling or heating by a refrigerant may be used.

One end of the transfer part 150 is connected to the rotating shaft 154 of the rotation driving part 152 installed in the transfer chamber 100, and the other end of the transfer part 150 is reciprocated between the cassette part 170 and the wafer block 530 by a reciprocating rotation. And one or more robot arms 156 for conveying W). As shown in FIG. 4, the robot arm 156 is provided with a seating portion 157 for mounting the substrate W. The seating portion 157 has various shapes such as a fork shape and an 'S' shape. Can have

In addition, the transfer unit 150 configured as described above may be composed of a pair of robot arms 156 that rotate independently of each other, wherein each of the robot arms 156 has a respective concentric axis of rotation axis 154. It consists of a pair of rotary drive unit 152. In this case, the respective robot arms 156 are preferably installed at different heights so that rotations do not interfere with each other.

On the other hand, the connection part 300 is a gate 518 of the process chamber 500 and the second gate 114 of the transfer chamber 100 to be described later to enable the transfer of the substrate between the transfer chamber 100 and the wafer block 530. It is installed to connect).

As shown in FIG. 3, the connection part 300 is opened to be transported by the transfer part 150 between the cassette part 170 and the wafer block 530 or the semiconductor process is performed in the process chamber 500. It is provided with a gate valve 310 to isolate the process chamber 500 and the transfer chamber 100 so that it can be.

Meanwhile, the process chamber 500, which is a feature of the present invention, is disposed on one side of the transfer chamber 100 and is sealed in one or more processing spaces S, which are intercepted with the internal space through one or more processing space forming units 550 provided therein. ) To form a semiconductor process.

That is, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the process chamber 500 is formed in the reaction vessel 512 and the reaction vessel 512 formed with a gate 518 to enter and exit the substrate (W) to be subjected to the semiconductor process, One or more wafer blocks 530 installed to support the substrate W and the up and down movement in the reaction vessel 512 to seal the space including the respective wafer blocks 530 to process the semiconductor process. It is configured to include a processing space forming unit 550 to form a space (S), and an exhaust system connected to the processing space forming unit 550 to exhaust the gas of the processing space to the outside.

The reaction vessel 512 is formed in an open state at an upper side thereof, such that a gas supply system, a power supply device, and a shower head for injecting gas into the processing space S are installed to perform a semiconductor process. The lower plate 514 is installed, and the upper plate 516 for sealing the reaction vessel 512 is provided above the shower head.

In addition, the reaction vessel 512 is provided with an exhaust system for exhausting gas or by-products, etc. remaining in the process chamber 500 after the pressure control and the process inside. The exhaust system is connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) through an exhaust pipe 570 to create a vacuum atmosphere. The exhaust pipe 570 may be installed in various ways according to design conditions.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the exhaust pipe 570 is configured to be directly connected to the processing space forming unit for the pressure control and exhaust in the processing space (S) formed by the processing space forming unit 550.

According to this configuration, in the semiconductor processing apparatus according to the present invention, since the exhaust pipe 570 connected to the vacuum pump is connected to the processing space forming unit 550, the pressure inside the process chamber 500 is lower than atmospheric pressure through the exhaust pipe. Will remain in the state. In addition, when performing the semiconductor process, by maintaining the pressure of the processing space (S) formed by the processing space forming unit 550 through the exhaust pipe 570 in a vacuum state of a level capable of a semiconductor process, the processing space (S) The semiconductor process is performed within.

The wafer block 530 is installed to be movable by the driving unit 534 installed under the reaction vessel 512.

The wafer block 530 supports the substrate W transferred by the transfer unit 150, but relatively lowers as the wafer block 530 rises to seat the substrate on the support surface of the wafer block 530. A plurality of lift pins 531 may be installed.

Meanwhile, the processing space forming unit 550 seals a space surrounding the shower head and the wafer block 530 to form an independent processing space in the process chamber 500, that is, the wafer block on which the substrate W is seated. It is configured to isolate the space surrounding the 530 from the surroundings in order to create an environment for a semiconductor process, such as deposition, etching, etc., various modifications and implementations are possible by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Do.

For example, in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the processing space forming unit 550 is installed in the reaction vessel 512 to enable the up and down reciprocating movement when raised and the processing space with the bottom of the lower plate 514 It consists of a cylinder valve forming (S). At this time, the sealing member 513 for sealing the processing space (S) is provided on the upper surface or the bottom surface of the lower plate 514 of the processing space forming unit 550. Meanwhile, the processing space forming unit 550 may be configured to form a closed processing space S in contact with a protrusion (not shown) formed in the shower head or the reaction vessel 512 in addition to the bottom of the lower plate 514. .

That is, in the embodiment of the present invention, the cylinder valve 550, which is a processing space forming unit, includes a cylinder valve body 552 for sealing or opening the processing space S, and a driving unit 554 for vertically reciprocating the cylinder valve body 552. It may be configured to include.

The cylinder valve body 552 is reciprocated up and down by the driving of the drive unit 554, the sealing process for the semiconductor process by sealing the space containing the wafer block 530 by the movement of the cylinder valve body 552. The space S is formed. The cylinder valve body 552 may have various shapes such as a polygonal shape in addition to a circular cross-sectional shape, and an exhaust pipe 570 is connected to a bottom surface of the cylinder valve body 552.

In addition, the cylinder valve 550 may form a uniform process condition in the chamber during the semiconductor process by forming a symmetrical structure of the processing space S in which the semiconductor process is performed, and each wafer block in the process chamber 500. By isolating the 530, it is possible to prevent gas mixing and interference of a plasma generation source in a semiconductor process.

In addition, the cylinder valve 550 may be configured in plural to form a plurality of processing spaces S, and may perform different semiconductor processes in the respective processing spaces S. FIG. That is, the substrate W is subjected to an etching process in the first processing space S, and then transferred to the next processing space S through the cassette unit 170 to be described later, followed by a deposition process. It can be done with In addition, the etching and deposition may be simultaneously performed in the plurality of processing spaces S.

Referring to the operation of the semiconductor processing apparatus according to the present invention having the configuration as described above in detail as follows.

First, the first gate 112 is opened by the operation of the gate door 118 so that the transfer robot 900 installed on the outside of the transfer chamber 100 can enter and exit the inside of the transfer chamber 100.

When the first gate 112 is opened, the transfer robot 900 stacks the substrates W on which the semiconductor process is to be sequentially performed on the stack 171 of the cassette unit 170. At this time, the cassette unit 170 is moved up and down so that the substrates W are laminated on the respective laminated plates 171. When the stacking of the substrate W to the cassette unit 170 is completed, the gate door 118 operates to close the first gate 112.

Accordingly, the transfer chamber 100 is blocked from external air, and the pressure inside the transfer chamber is maintained at a lower than atmospheric pressure through the exhaust pipe 116 connected to the lower chamber 110 by the driving of the vacuum pump. Dust and foreign matter present in the chamber are exhausted to the outside.

Therefore, unlike the semiconductor processing apparatus in which the conventional cassette unit 200 is exposed to the atmosphere, the cassette 200 is installed inside a transfer chamber having a relatively small number of particles, so that the substrate is contaminated by dust and foreign substances during the semiconductor process. It will be reduced.

After the pressure in the process chamber 100 is controlled by the exhaust system as described above, the transfer is performed by the operation of the gate valve 310 of the connection portion 300 connecting the transfer chamber 100 and the process chamber 500. The second gate 114 of the chamber and the gate 518 of the process chamber 500 are opened to communicate with each other.

In addition, when the gate 518 of the second gate 114 and the process chamber 500 is opened, the transfer part 150 starts to operate, and the substrate W stacked on the cassette 170 is reciprocally rotated to process the process chamber ( 500 is transferred to each wafer block 530 provided therein. At this time, the cassette unit 170 is positioned at the height indicated by the vertical movement so that the substrate W can be smoothly transferred to the wafer block 530, and the cylinder valve 550 is in an open state, that is, the cylinder valve body ( 552 remains in a lowered state.

When the wafer block 530 is seated on the substrate W by the transfer unit 150, the robot arm of the transfer unit is moved to the transfer chamber side by rotational driving, and then the gate valve of the connection unit is sealed to transfer the process chamber 500 and the process chamber 500. The chamber 100 is blocked to each other.

Next, the wafer block 530 and the cylinder valve 550 are lifted upward to form a closed processing space S for performing a semiconductor process, and the substrate W in the processing space S is Certain semiconductor processes such as etching and deposition are performed. Of course, the vacuum pump is to control the pressure in the processing space (S) so that the pressure in the processing space (S) through the exhaust pipe 570 is suitable for the performance of the semiconductor process.

On the other hand, when the substrate (W) has completed a predetermined semiconductor process, the above process is reversed in the semiconductor processing apparatus according to the present invention.

That is, when the semiconductor process is completed in the processing space S of the processing space forming unit, exhaust and pressure control are performed by the exhaust pipe 570, and the cylinder valve body 552 is lowered to open the processing space S. The connection part 300 is also opened together with the opening of the processing space S.

The substrate W, which has completed the semiconductor process by the transfer unit 150, is transferred to the cassette unit 170 and stacked. The substrate W stacked on the cassette unit 170 is transferred to the wafer block 530 of another cylinder valve body 552 by the transfer unit 150 or through the first gate 112 to perform a subsequent process. The robot 900 is carried out to the outside of the transfer chamber 100.

The semiconductor processing apparatus of the present invention has an effect of eliminating interference between process gas and plasma generating source by installing a processing space forming unit such as a cylinder valve, and forming a uniform process atmosphere to improve process reliability.

In addition, different semiconductor processes may be simultaneously performed, and complex processes may be continuously performed, thereby reducing the process time and improving productivity.

In addition, since the cassette is located in the transfer chamber, the wafer reduces the contamination caused by dust and foreign matters, thereby improving the yield. The process time is shortened by the rapid transfer of the substrate and the reduction of the cooling waiting time by using the cassette of the heat-resistant member. Has the effect of improving.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above by way of example, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and may be appropriately changed within the scope described in the claims.

Claims (9)

delete A transfer chamber in which an airtight space is formed to block the outside air and gates through which the substrate enters and exits are formed; A process chamber disposed at one side of the transfer chamber and having an inner space to perform a semiconductor process; It includes a connecting portion connecting the transfer chamber and the process chamber to enable the transfer of the substrate between the transfer chamber and the process chamber, The process chamber is: A reaction vessel having the internal space and having a gate through which a substrate to be subjected to a semiconductor process is formed; A plurality of shower heads installed on an upper side of the reaction vessel and spraying gas to perform a semiconductor process; A plurality of wafer blocks corresponding to each of the shower heads and installed in the lower side of the reaction vessel and supporting the substrate; A plurality of processing space forming units installed in the inner space of the reaction container to seal a space including the shower head and the wafer block to form a processing space for a semiconductor process; And an exhaust system connected to the processing space forming unit for controlling and evacuating pressure within the reaction chamber and within the processing space formed by the processing space forming unit. And a transfer part configured to transfer a substrate to be subjected to a semiconductor process to the process chamber or to carry out a substrate from which the semiconductor process is completed, from the process chamber, in the transfer chamber. The method of claim 2, Inside the transfer chamber, a cassette unit in which a plurality of substrates are stacked is additionally installed. The transfer unit transfers the substrate between the wafer block and the cassette unit. The method of claim 3, wherein And the cassette unit is installed to be able to move up and down by a driving unit. The method of claim 3, wherein The cassette unit comprises a temperature control unit for controlling the temperature of the stacked substrate. The method of claim 3, wherein The transfer unit At least one robot arm, one end of which is connected to a rotation driving unit installed in the transfer chamber, and the other end of which transfers the substrate by reciprocating rotation between the cassette unit and the wafer block. The method of claim 6, Each robot arm is installed at a different height so that the rotation does not interfere with each other. delete The method according to any one of claims 2 to 6, The processing space forming unit And a cylinder valve installed in the reaction vessel to enable the up-and-down reciprocating movement to form the processing space when raised.

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