KR101019533B1 - Load lock chamber of apparatus for processing substrate with plasma - Google Patents

Abstract

A load lock chamber of a plasma processing apparatus is disclosed. The load lock chamber of the plasma processing apparatus of the present invention includes: a chamber body provided with at least one internal receiving space for accommodating a substrate which is an object of plasma processing; And at least one air diffuser module disposed in the inner accommodating space of the chamber body and spraying air toward the inner accommodating space such that the inner accommodating space is at atmospheric pressure. According to the present invention, since the air diffuser module is disposed on the inner side wall of the chamber body, the air diffuser module is not affected by the bending deformation, thereby preventing the generation of particles, and smoothly providing air so that the inner receiving space is at atmospheric pressure. This can improve the reliability of the plasma treatment process for the substrate.

Load Lock Chamber, Vent Line, Air Diffuser Module, Plasma, Chemical Vapor Deposition, Atmospheric Pressure

Description

Load lock chamber of apparatus for processing substrate with plasma}

The present invention relates to a load lock chamber of a plasma processing apparatus, and more particularly, an air diffuser module is disposed on an inner side wall of a chamber body to smoothly supply air to an inner receiving space, and also to prevent bending deformation. The present invention relates to a load lock chamber of a plasma processing apparatus capable of preventing generation of particles without being influenced by the particles.

Flat panel displays (FPDs) are widely used for personal handheld terminals as well as monitors for TVs and computers.

Such flat displays are of various types such as liquid crystal display (LCD) substrates, plasma display panel (PDP) substrates, and organic light emitting diodes (OLED) substrates.

Among them, in particular, an LCD substrate injects a liquid crystal, which is an intermediate material between a solid and a liquid, between two thin top plates (CF) and a bottom plate (TFT), and converts liquid crystal molecules into an electrode voltage difference between the top and bottom plates. It is a device that uses a kind of optical switch phenomenon that displays the number or the image by generating the contrast by changing the arrangement.

Such LCD substrates are now widely used in electronic clocks, electronic calculators, TVs, notebook PCs, electronic products, automobiles, aircraft speed displays, and driving systems.

Previously, LCD TVs were manufactured to have a size of about 20 inches to about 30 inches, and most of monitors of computers were manufactured to have sizes of 17 inches or less. However, in recent years, large LCD TVs of 40 inches or larger and large monitors of 20 inches or larger have been released and sold.

Therefore, manufacturers who manufacture LCD substrates are researching to produce wider glass substrates, and are currently mass producing so-called 8th generation glass substrates having a width and width of about 2 meters.

Such LCD substrates include a TFT process in which deposition, photolithography, etching, chemical vapor deposition, etc. are repeatedly performed, a cell process for bonding upper and lower glass substrates, and It is released as a product through a module process to complete an instrument.

Each process constituting the above-described TFT process is carried out in a process chamber in which an optimal environment for the process is created. In particular, recently, a plurality of processes are disposed at regular intervals so as to process many substrates in a short time. Plasma processing apparatuses having chambers are widely used. Types of plasma processing apparatuses include chemical vapor deposition apparatuses, ashing apparatuses, and etching apparatuses, depending on the purpose of the process, and generally have similar configurations. Hereinafter, a configuration of the chemical vapor deposition apparatus among the plasma processing apparatuses will be described.

In general, a chemical vapor deposition apparatus includes a plurality of process chambers for performing a chemical vapor deposition process, and a load lock chamber for creating an environment for the substrate to enter the process chamber before the substrate enters the process chamber. Transfer chamber that connects the load lock chamber, the process chamber and the load lock chamber, and transfers the substrate in the load lock chamber to the corresponding process chamber or transfers the substrate in the process chamber to the load lock chamber. ).

The process chamber generally undergoes a chemical vapor deposition process on the substrate at high temperature and vacuum. At this time, it is difficult to enter the substrate in the atmospheric pressure into the process chamber in the high temperature and vacuum state, so it is necessary to create the same environment as the process chamber before transferring the substrate to the process chamber. Load lock chamber. That is, the load lock chamber refers to a chamber that receives the substrate in substantially the same state as the environment of the process chamber or the environment outside of the substrate before the substrate is drawn out from the outside or the substrate is drawn out from the process chamber.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a load lock chamber according to an exemplary embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an internal configuration of an upper wall illustrated in FIG. 1.

In more detail, in order for the substrate accommodated in the load lock chamber 1 to be transferred to a process chamber (not shown), the environment of the load lock chamber 1 should be created to be in the same environment as the process chamber, that is, in a vacuum state. On the contrary, when the substrate accommodated in the load lock chamber 1 needs to be taken out, the environment of the load lock chamber 1 should be maintained at atmospheric pressure. To this end, a pumping line (not shown) for maintaining the internal receiving space 10s of the load lock chamber 1 in a vacuum state and a vent line 30 for maintaining the atmospheric pressure state in the load lock chamber 1. This is provided.

In particular, the vent line 30 will be described in detail. The vent line 30 should be connected to an external N2 supply unit (not shown) to create the inner receiving space 10s of the load lock chamber 1 at atmospheric pressure. If it is to serve to provide air to the inner receiving space (10s) of the load lock chamber (1).

The vent line 30 is installed in the upper wall 11 of the inner receiving space 10s, as shown in FIG. 2, or in the partition wall 15, although not shown, along the moving pipe 31. The transported air is injected downward from the upper portion of the inner receiving space (10s).

However, in the load lock chamber 1 according to the conventional embodiment, since the vent line 30 is installed inside the upper wall 11 or the partition wall 15, the installation is not only difficult but also maintenance is performed. In addition, in the case of the load lock chamber 1 having a plurality of internal receiving spaces 10s by the partition wall 15, the internal receiving space 10s of the load lock chamber 1 has an atmospheric pressure or In the vacuum state, it is converted as needed. At this time, the upper wall 11 or the partition wall 15 of the load lock chamber 10 generates the bending force in the vertical direction by the bending moment generated by the repeated pressure change. This may cause deformation, which may cause particles to be generated at the joining portion of the upper wall 11 or the partition wall 15 and the vent line 30, and the particles may fall on the substrate during the deposition process. As the reliability of the deposition process There is a problem that can be.

An object of the present invention is that the air diffuser module is disposed on the inner side wall of the chamber body to not be affected by the bending deformation to prevent the generation of particles, and to smooth the air so that the inner receiving space is at atmospheric pressure. The present invention provides a load lock chamber of a plasma processing apparatus, which can improve reliability of a plasma processing process for a substrate.

The object is, according to the present invention, a chamber body provided with at least one inner receiving space for receiving a substrate that is the object of the plasma treatment; And at least one air diffuser module disposed in the inner accommodating space of the chamber body and injecting air toward the inner accommodating space such that the inner accommodating space is at atmospheric pressure. Achieved by the load lock chamber of the processing apparatus.

Here, the at least one air diffuser module is a plurality of air diffuser module, the air diffuser module is preferably detachably coupled to the inner side wall of the chamber body.

The air diffuser module may include: a chamber coupling unit detachably coupled to a through hole formed through a side wall of the chamber body; And an air injection unit coupled to the chamber coupling unit such that the chamber coupling unit is located on an inner side wall of the chamber body when the chamber coupling unit is coupled to the chamber body, and injects air toward the inner receiving space.

The air injection unit is disposed in the installation hole formed through the chamber coupling unit, one end of the air movement line is located outside the chamber body and the other end is located inside the chamber body; And an air injection line detachably connected to the other end of the air moving line, and filtering the air introduced by the air moving line and spraying the air into the inner receiving space.

The air moving line, the first air moving pipe disposed through the installation hole; A second air moving pipe provided in a horizontal direction of the first air moving pipe and disposed in parallel with an inner side wall of the chamber body; And it may be provided between the first air moving tube and the second air moving tube may include a 'b' shaped pipe joint material for connecting the first air moving tube and the second air moving tube in communication.

In order to prevent outside air from penetrating between the air moving line and the installation hole, a shielding cap surrounding the air moving line may be detachably coupled to the installation hole.

The air injection line is coupled to communicate with the other end of the air movement line, and a plurality of first injection holes are formed to pass through to filter and inject foreign matters of the air introduced along the air movement line. A first air injection member; And a plurality of second injection holes formed therein to surround the first air injection member, the second air injection holes penetrating the air injected through the first air injection member to the inner accommodation space of the chamber body. It is preferable to include an air injection member.

The first air injection member may be provided in a hollow cylindrical shape, and the plurality of first injection holes may be regularly formed through the outer surface of the first air injection member.

The second air jetting member may be provided in a hollow cylindrical shape such that the first air jetting member is positioned inward, and the plurality of second jetting holes may include the substrate on which an outer surface of the second air jetting member is disposed. It is preferable that the half of the second air injection member facing the inner receiving space side is provided regularly.

The chamber body includes an upper wall; Bottom wall; A plurality of partition walls disposed parallel to the upper wall and the lower wall between the upper wall and the lower wall; And a plurality of side walls that are erected between the upper wall, the lower wall, and the partition wall, and each of the air diffuser modules is disposed.

The substrate may be a liquid crystal display (LCD) substrate, and the load lock chamber may be a load lock chamber of a plasma processing apparatus for a flat panel display.

According to the present invention, since the air diffuser module is disposed on the inner side wall of the chamber body, the air diffuser module is not affected by the bending deformation, thereby preventing the generation of particles, and smoothly providing air so that the inner receiving space is at atmospheric pressure. This can improve the reliability of the plasma treatment process for the substrate.

In addition, the air diffuser module may be provided as one module to facilitate installation and maintenance.

In order to fully understand the present invention, the operational advantages of the present invention, and the objects achieved by the practice of the present invention, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings which illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention and the contents described in the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Like reference numerals in the drawings denote like elements.

For reference, hereinafter, a substrate refers to a flat panel display (FPD) including a liquid crystal display (LCD) substrate, a plasma display panel (PDP) substrate, an organic light emitting diodes (OLED) substrate, and the like. For the convenience of description, these will be referred to as substrates without being divided.

3 is a view showing a schematic configuration of a chemical vapor deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 4 is a perspective view of the load lock chamber shown in FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of the load lock chamber illustrated in FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 is an enlarged perspective view illustrating a portion of FIG. 4 in an enlarged perspective view for explaining an engagement state of the air diffuser module. FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the air diffuser module disassembled from the side wall of the chamber body illustrated in FIG. 4, FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the air diffuser module illustrated in FIG. 7, and FIG. 9 is an air diffuser of FIG. 8. A perspective view of the module from the other side.

Referring to FIG. 3, a chemical vapor deposition apparatus (CVD) according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of process chambers 200 for performing a chemical vapor deposition process, and a corresponding process chamber. Before the substrate G enters the substrate 200, the load lock chamber 100, which creates an environment in which the substrate G may enter the process chamber 200, and the process chamber 200 and the load Transfer chamber 300 for connecting the lock chamber 100 is provided. The transfer chamber 300 includes a robot arm that transfers the substrate G in the load lock chamber 100 to the process chamber 200 or transfers the substrate G in the process chamber 200 to the load lock chamber 100. 310 is provided.

The process chamber 200 performs a chemical vapor deposition process on the substrate G in a vacuum state. At this time, since there is a difficulty in directly entering the substrate G in the atmospheric pressure into the vacuum process chamber 200, the process chamber 200 before transferring the substrate G to the process chamber 200. It is necessary to create the same environment as, the role of the load lock chamber (100).

Specifically, the load lock chamber 100 is a process chamber 200 when the substrate (G), which is the object of the chemical vapor deposition process, is introduced from the outside by a transfer robot (not shown). And at substantially the same temperature and pressure. As such, the substrate G in the load lock chamber 100 having substantially the same environment as the process chamber 200 is drawn out by the robot arm 310 provided in the transfer chamber 300 to the process chamber 200. After the transfer, the deposition process proceeds. On the contrary, the substrate G in which the chemical vapor deposition process is completed in the process chamber 200 is removed by the robot arm 310 and transferred to the load lock chamber 100 maintaining the same temperature and pressure as the outside. It is taken out by the transfer robot to the outside and loaded in a cassette (not shown).

As described above, the load lock chamber 100 is configured in an environment of the process chamber 200 before the substrate G is drawn from the outside to the process chamber 200 or before the substrate G is drawn from the process chamber 200 to the outside. Alternatively, the substrate G plays a role of accommodating the substrate G in substantially the same state as the external environment.

As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the load lock chamber 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention has a plurality of internal accommodating spaces 110s such that a plurality of substrates G can be pulled in and pulled out, respectively. The chamber body 110 and an air diffuser module 130 disposed at the side of the inner receiving space 110s of the chamber body 110 to convert the inner receiving space 110s into an atmospheric pressure state are provided. . Here, the chamber body 110 may be provided in two stages or may be provided in four or more stages, but in this embodiment is provided in three stages in consideration of the installation location and efficiency.

First, the configuration of the chamber body 110 will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, the chamber body 110 includes an upper wall 111, a lower wall 113, an upper wall 111, and a lower portion. The plurality of partition walls 115 disposed in parallel with the upper wall 111 and the lower wall 113 between the walls 113, and the air diffuser module 130, which is vertically disposed therebetween, are arranged side by side. The side wall 117 is disposed, and a plurality of internal accommodation spaces 110s may be formed by these configurations.

In addition, the chamber body 110 has a pair of access doors 121 that can be opened and closed on each floor such that the environment of the inner receiving space 110s is maintained independently of other spaces, for example, the outside environment or the space of the transfer chamber 300. 122) is mounted. That is, one entrance door 121 is mounted to be opened and closed at a portion drawn out from the outside of the substrate G, and the other entrance door 122 is mounted to be opened and closed at a portion adjacent to the transfer chamber 300. .

 In addition, a pair of alignment units 125 are arranged diagonally inside the chamber body 110 to align the positions of the loaded substrates G, whereby the robot arm 310 of the transfer chamber 300 is disposed. The substrate G may be directly transferred into the process chamber 200 without the separate alignment, and an external transfer robot may directly load the substrate G into the cassette without additional alignment.

Meanwhile, before the substrate G is transferred to the process chamber 200, the inner accommodating space 110s in which the substrate G is accommodated must maintain a vacuum state, and before the substrate G is transferred to the outside, the substrate ( The internal receiving space 110s in which G) is accommodated must be maintained at atmospheric pressure.

To this end, each interior accommodation space 110s is provided with a pumping line (not shown) for converting the interior environment into a vacuum state and a plurality of air diffuser modules 130 for converting the interior environment to an atmospheric pressure state. . The pumping line is connected to an external vacuum device (not shown), and when the inner accommodating space 110s is to be vacuumed, the internal air is sucked so that the inner accommodating space 110s is in a vacuum state. In addition, the air diffuser module 130 is connected to an external N2 supply unit (not shown) and provides air when the internal accommodating space 110s needs to be made at atmospheric pressure so that the internal accommodating space 110s is at atmospheric pressure. .

Hereinafter, a configuration of the air diffuser module 130 for converting the internal accommodation space 110s into an atmospheric pressure state among these configurations will be described in detail.

6 to 9, the air diffuser module 130 of the present embodiment is detachably coupled to a through hole 117h formed through each side wall 117 of the chamber body 110. When the chamber coupling unit 140 is coupled to the coupling unit 140 and the chamber coupling unit 140 to the side wall 117 of the chamber body 110, the chamber is provided inside the side wall 117 and is accommodated inside. It is provided with an air injection unit 150 for injecting air toward the space (110s).

As shown in FIG. 7, each side wall 117 of the chamber body 110 has a through hole 117h formed therethrough, and the chamber coupling unit 140 penetrates to shield the through hole 117h. It is fastened to the side wall 117 around the sphere 117h. At this time, the chamber body 110 and the chamber coupling unit 140 is screwed by a screw 141 in order to facilitate the coupling and release of the chamber body 110 and the chamber coupling unit 140. In addition, in order to prevent the air in the inner receiving space 110s from leaking through the joint portion between the chamber body 110 and the chamber coupling unit 140, the joint portion has a sealing member such as an O-ring. May be intervened).

In addition, an installation hole 140h (see FIG. 9) is provided at the center portion of the chamber coupling unit 140, and the shielding cap 145 through which the air injection unit 150 penetrates is installed in the installation hole 140h. Combined. Accordingly, the chamber coupling unit 140 and the air injection unit 150 may maintain a firm coupling state, but the air diffuser module 130 may be provided as a module independent of the chamber body 110. Due to this, there is an advantage in that the installation and maintenance of the air diffuser module 130 can be facilitated. Here, the shielding cap 145 is screwed to the chamber coupling unit 140 by a screw 146, thus facilitating coupling and decoupling.

On the other hand, the air injection unit 150, as described above, by injecting the filtered air into the internal receiving space (110s) to allow the internal receiving space (110s) to be at atmospheric pressure, and also by a chemical vapor deposition process It plays a role of cooling the heated substrate G. The temperature of the substrate G after the chemical vapor deposition process is completed in the process chamber 200 is usually 300 to 400 ° C. When the substrate G is discharged to the outside without being cooled, the thermal deformation due to the temperature difference occurs. Cracks may occur in the substrate G. Therefore, in order to prevent this, the air diffuser module 130 injects air at room temperature toward the inner receiving space 110s, and the substrate G is cooled to a temperature that can be carried out to the outside by the injected air.

Referring to the configuration of the air injection unit 150 in more detail, the air injection unit 150 of the present embodiment, as shown in Figure 8 and 9, the installation hole of the above-described chamber coupling unit 140 ( 140h) is disposed on the inner surface of the air movement line 160 and the one end of the outer side is connected to communicate with the supply line of the N2 supply portion, the side wall 117 of the chamber body 110 and the air movement line 160 It is coupled to communicate with the other end of the) is provided with an air injection line 170 for injecting air toward the interior receiving space (110s) on which the substrate (G) is loaded.

As shown in FIG. 8, the air moving line 160 is fastened to the chamber coupling unit 140 while being fixedly supported by the shielding cap 145, and one end thereof is connected to communicate with an N2 supply unit externally mounted. , The other end is connected to communicate with the air injection line (170).

However, as described above, the air injection line 170 should be disposed on the inner surface of the side wall 117 to be parallel to the longitudinal direction of the side wall 117. To this end, the air moving line 160 communicating with the air injection line 170 should be bent in a '-' shape, and thus has the following configuration.

That is, the air moving line 160 may be bent to have a '-' shape after being manufactured integrally when manufacturing is easy, but the air moving line 160 of the present embodiment is connected to the supply line of the N2 supply unit. The first air moving tube 161, the second air moving tube 163 connected to the air injection unit 150, the 'b' shape and the first air moving tube 161 and the second air moving tube 163 It is provided with a pipe joint material 165 to connect. By this configuration, the cross section of the pipe through which air moves can be kept constant, and the air can be smoothly moved without changing the speed or pressure of the air.

As illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9, the air injection line 170 is coupled to communicate with an end portion of the second air movement pipe 163, and is configured to primarily inject air introduced along the air movement line 160. 1 is provided to surround the air injection member 171, the first air injection member 171, and the air injected through the first air injection member 171 is injected into the inner receiving space (110s) of the chamber body 110 The second air injection member 175 is provided.

The first air injection member 171 filters the air introduced along the air movement line 160 and injects the filtered air into the internal space 175s of the second air injection member 175. Play a role. This may be because foreign matter may be contained in the air supplied from the N2 supply part, because the process reliability of the substrate G may be deteriorated when such foreign matter is injected into the inner accommodating space 110s without being filtered.

Therefore, although not shown, the first air injection hole 171h, which is a hole having a micrometer (μm) unit, is formed through the first air injection member 171, thereby realizing a filtering effect. The first injection hole 171h is regularly formed on the entire surface of the first air injection member 171 having a cylindrical shape, and only air particles having a size smaller than the first injection hole 171h are formed. 2 may move to the inner space 175s of the air injection member 175.

However, when repeatedly injecting air into the inner receiving space 110s of the chamber body 110 through the air diffuser module 130 for a long time, the first injection hole (1) of the first air injection member 171 due to the foreign matter ( 171h) may be blocked, and in this case, the first air injection member 171 needs to be cleaned or replaced. To this end, a male screw (not shown) is formed on an outer surface of the end of the first air injection member 171 connected to the air moving line 160, and a male screw (not shown) is also formed at the end of the second air moving tube 163. Is formed, there is a hex nut 155 having a female screw interposed therebetween, the second air moving tube 163 and the first air injection member 171 can be easily coupled and released.

Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9, the second air injection member 175 is provided in a cylindrical shape with an empty inside to surround the first air injection member 171. As described above, the first injection hole 171h for filtering is formed on the front surface of the first air injection member 171, and the air filtered by the first injection hole 171h is the chamber body 110. The second injection hole 175h to be described later of the second air injection member 175 after being moved to the internal space 175s of the second air injection member 175 instead of being injected into the internal accommodation space 110s of the second air injection member 175. It will be injected into the inner receiving space (110s) through.

Unlike the first air injecting member 171, the second air injecting member 175 is provided with a hole through which air can flow only in a partial region, that is, the second injecting hole 175h. In more detail, the second injection hole 175h of the second air injection member 175 is, as shown in FIG. 8, a portion facing the internal receiving space 110s in which the substrate G is loaded, That is, when it is assumed that the second air injection member 175 is cut in the vertical direction, only the half portion (hatched portion) facing the inner receiving space 110s is regularly formed. This is because, when the second injection hole 175h is formed in the side wall 117 direction, vortex may be generated in the inner edge portion of the chamber body 110 due to the high velocity of air, which is an internal accommodation space 110s. This is because the process reliability of the substrate G can be lowered by preventing the pressure of) from being kept constant.

As described above, since the air diffuser module 130 is provided as one module, the process of coupling or releasing to the chamber body 110 is not only simple, but also provided on the inner surface of the side wall 117 of the chamber body 110. Since the arrangement is hardly influenced by the bending of the upper wall 111, the lower wall 113 and the partition wall 115, it is possible to prevent the generation of particles, and also the inner receiving space (110s) of the chamber body 110 Air can be sprayed smoothly.

Hereinafter, a method of operating the load lock chamber 100 having such a configuration will be described.

For example, the substrate G having completed the chemical vapor deposition process in the process chamber 200 is drawn into the inner receiving space 110s of any one of the load lock chambers 100 by the robot arm 310 of the transfer chamber 300. If so, first open and close the access valve 122 in the direction of the transfer chamber (300). At this time, the inner accommodating space 110s must maintain a vacuum like the environment of the transfer chamber 300.

Subsequently, the substrate G is introduced into the substrate G loading part of the inner accommodating space 110s by the operation of the robot arm 310, and then the substrate G is aligned by the alignment part 125. Next, the entrance valve 122 is shielded. At this time, in order for the substrate G to be carried out in the process chamber 200 to be carried out to the outside, the environment of the inner accommodating space 110s of the chamber body 110 must be substantially the same as the external environment.

To this end, the air diffuser module 130 is operated to inject air into the corresponding inner receiving space 110s on which the substrate G is loaded. When the air is injected in more detail, first, the switch of the N2 supply unit is turned on to allow the air stored in the N2 supply unit to flow into the air movement line 160 of the air injection unit 150.

The air introduced into the air moving line 160 moves to the first air injection member 175 of the air injection line 170 and is filtered by the first injection holes 171h. The filtered air is transferred to the internal space 175s of the second air injection member 175 and then the corresponding internal accommodation space 110s through the second injection hole 175h formed in one region of the second air injection member 175. ) Is injected into the inner accommodating space 110s, and the inner accommodating space 110s is substantially at the same atmospheric pressure.

On the other hand, as described above, the air diffuser module 130 by spraying the air in the inner receiving space (110s) to allow the inner receiving space (110s) to be formed in the atmospheric pressure as well as loading in the inner receiving space (110s). The substrate G is cooled to a temperature at which it can be carried out.

Subsequently, the access valve 121 facing outward is opened to unload the substrate G by the transfer robot, and the substrate G is loaded into an external cassette.

As described above, according to the present exemplary embodiment, the air diffuser module 130 is disposed on the inner side wall 117 of the chamber body 110 to create the inner accommodating space 110s in which the substrate G is accommodated at atmospheric pressure. It is possible to smoothly provide the air for the cycle, it is also not affected by the bending deformation can prevent the generation of particles, thereby improving the reliability of the plasma treatment process.

In addition, since the air is injected at a high speed in the plurality of air diffuser module 130, the vent time is shortened, thereby improving productivity.

In addition, the air diffuser module 130 is provided as a unit module has the advantage that easy installation and maintenance.

In the above-described embodiment, the air movement line is bent so that the air diffuser module is arranged side by side on the side wall, but if there is enough space in the inner receiving space to install the air diffuser module, it is not necessary to be installed immediately. It will be okay.

As described above, the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, which will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, such modifications or variations will have to belong to the claims of the present invention.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a load lock chamber according to a conventional embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the upper wall shown in FIG. 1.

3 is a view showing a schematic configuration of a chemical vapor deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the load lock chamber illustrated in FIG. 3, illustrating a state in which the upper wall is decoupled.

5 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of the load lock chamber shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged perspective view illustrating a portion of FIG. 4 in an enlarged perspective view for explaining an engagement state of the air diffuser module.

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the air diffuser module disassembled from the side wall of the chamber body shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of one side of the air diffuser module shown in FIG. 7.

9 is a perspective view of the air diffuser module of FIG. 8 viewed from another side.

* Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings

100: load lock chamber 110: chamber body

111: upper wall 113: lower wall

115: partition wall 117: side wall

130: air diffuser module 140: chamber coupling unit

145: shielding cap 150: air injection unit

160: air moving line 161: first air moving pipe

163: second air moving pipe 165: pipe joint material

170: air injection line 171: first air injection member

175: second air blowing member

Claims (11)

A chamber body provided with at least one inner accommodating space for accommodating a substrate that is an object of plasma processing; And Is disposed in the inner receiving space of the chamber body, and includes at least one air diffuser module (Air Diffuser Module) for injecting air toward the inner receiving space so that the inner receiving space is at atmospheric pressure, The at least one air diffuser module is a plurality of air diffuser module, The air diffuser module is detachably coupled to the side wall of the chamber body. delete The method of claim 1, The air diffuser module, A chamber coupling unit detachably coupled to a through hole formed through a side wall of the chamber body; And The chamber coupling unit is coupled to the chamber coupling unit to be located inside the side wall of the chamber when the chamber coupling unit is coupled to the chamber body, characterized in that it comprises an air injection unit for injecting air toward the interior receiving space Load lock chamber of processing unit. The method of claim 3, The air injection unit, An air movement line disposed in an installation hole formed through the chamber coupling unit, one end of which is located outside the chamber body and the other end of which is located inside the chamber body; And Removably connected to the other end of the air moving line, the load lock of the plasma processing apparatus, characterized in that it comprises an air injection line for filtering the air introduced by the air moving line and then injected into the inner receiving space chamber. The method of claim 4, wherein The air moving line, A first air moving tube disposed through the installation hole; A second air moving pipe provided in a horizontal direction of the first air moving pipe and disposed in parallel with an inner side wall of the chamber body; And A 'b' shaped pipe joint material provided between the first air moving tube and the second air moving tube to connect the first air moving tube and the second air moving tube to communicate with each other. Load lock chamber. The method of claim 4, wherein The load lock chamber of the plasma processing apparatus, characterized in that the shielding cap surrounding the air moving line is detachably coupled to the installation hole to prevent outside air from penetrating between the air moving line and the installation hole. The method of claim 4, wherein The air injection line, The first air injection member is coupled to communicate with the other end of the air movement line, the first air injection member is formed through the plurality of first injection holes to filter and inject the foreign matter of the air introduced along the air movement line ; And Second air provided to surround the first air injection member and having a plurality of second injection holes penetrated therein so as to inject the air injected through the first air injection member into the inner receiving space of the chamber body. The load lock chamber of the plasma processing apparatus, characterized in that it comprises an injection member. The method of claim 7, wherein The first air injection member is provided in a hollow cylindrical shape, the plurality of first injection holes are formed through the regular along the outer surface of the first air injection member, the load lock chamber of the plasma processing apparatus. The method of claim 8, The second air injection member is provided in a hollow cylindrical shape so that the first air injection member is located inside, The plurality of second injection holes are regularly disposed in the half region of the second air injection member facing the inner receiving space side of the outer surface of the second air injection member in which the substrate is disposed. Load lock chamber of the device. The method of claim 1, The chamber body, Upper wall; Bottom wall; A plurality of partition walls disposed parallel to the upper wall and the lower wall between the upper wall and the lower wall; And And a plurality of side walls disposed between the upper wall, the lower wall, and the partition wall, the side walls each of which the air diffuser module is disposed on. The method of claim 1, The substrate is a liquid crystal display (LCD) substrate, The load lock chamber is a load lock chamber of the plasma processing apparatus for a flat panel display.

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