KR101044913B1 - Batch type ald - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a batch atomic layer deposition apparatus capable of performing a plurality of substrates in a batch to perform an atomic layer deposition process for each substrate to be processed with excellent throughput, and the batch atomic layer according to the present invention. The deposition apparatus includes a vacuum chamber capable of forming a vacuum therein; A substrate placing table provided inside the chamber and configured to vertically stack a plurality of substrates spaced apart from each other at a predetermined interval; The gas supply apparatus is provided to be movable horizontally in the direction of the substrate mounting in the vacuum chamber, the gas supply device for sequentially supplying a purging gas and a process gas to each substrate stacked on the substrate mounting table by approaching one side of the substrate mounting table ; A gas discharge part disposed in the vacuum chamber so as to be horizontally movable in the direction of the substrate mounting table on the opposite side of the gas supply device, and approaching the other side of the substrate mounting table to suck and discharge the gas supplied from the gas supply device; Device; includes.

Atomic Layer, Deposition, Batch, Horizontal Shift

Description

Batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus {BATCH TYPE ALD}

The present invention relates to a batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus that processes a plurality of substrates in a batch, and more particularly, to process a plurality of substrates in a batch to complete an atomic layer deposition process for each substrate to be processed while having excellent throughput. It relates to a batch atomic layer deposition apparatus that can be performed easily.

In general, a semiconductor device, a flat panel display device, and the like go through various manufacturing processes, and among them, a process of depositing a thin film required on a substrate such as a wafer or glass is inevitably performed. In such a thin film deposition process, sputtering, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD) and the like are mainly used.

First, the sputtering method injects an inert gas such as argon into the vacuum chamber while a high voltage is applied to the target to generate argon ions in the plasma state. At this time, argon ions are sputtered on the surface of the target, and atoms of the target are separated from the surface of the target and deposited on the substrate.

The sputtering method can form a high purity thin film having excellent adhesion with the substrate. However, in the case of depositing a highly integrated thin film having a process difference by the sputtering method, it is very difficult to secure uniformity over the entire thin film. There is a limit to the application.

Next, chemical vapor deposition is the most widely used deposition technique, and is a method of depositing a thin film having a required thickness on a substrate using a reaction gas and decomposition gas. For example, chemical vapor deposition first deposits a variety of gases into a reaction chamber and deposits a thin film of the required thickness on a substrate by chemically reacting gases induced by high energy such as heat, light or plasma.

In addition, the chemical vapor deposition method increases the deposition rate by controlling the reaction conditions through the ratio and amount of plasma or gases applied by the reaction energy.

However, in chemical vapor deposition, the reactions are fast, and thus, it is very difficult to control thermodynamic stability of atoms and deteriorate physical and chemical electrical properties of the thin film.

Finally, atomic layer deposition is a method for depositing atomic layer unit thin films by supplying source gas (reaction gas) and purge gas alternately. The thin film formed thereby has a high aspect ratio, is uniform even at low pressure, and has electrical and physical characteristics. great.

In recent years, chemical vapor deposition is difficult to apply to a structure having a very large aspect ratio due to the limitation of step coverage. Therefore, in order to overcome the limitation of the step coverage, an atomic layer deposition method using a surface reaction is used. Is being applied.

As an apparatus for performing the atomic layer deposition method, there are a batch type apparatus that processes a plurality of substrates in a batch, and a sheet type apparatus that processes a process by loading substrates one by one in a chamber.

However, the conventional single wafer type device processes the substrates one by one, which causes a low throughput of the device. On the other hand, since the batch type device processes a batch in a state in which a plurality of substrates are stacked in one chamber, an accurate atomic layer deposition process cannot be performed for each of the substrates processed in a batch, thereby lowering deposition efficiency and lowering film quality. There is this.

Therefore, there is an urgent need for the development of an atomic layer deposition apparatus having excellent throughput and excellent film quality and high deposition efficiency.

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to perform the atomic layer deposition process in a state in which a plurality of substrates are stacked on the substrate mounting stage, the throughput is excellent, but the gas supply device and the gas discharge device is horizontal to the substrate placement direction The present invention provides a batch atomic layer deposition apparatus capable of moving so that loading and unloading of a substrate and process progress can be performed easily and quickly.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a batch atomic layer deposition apparatus including a vacuum chamber capable of forming a vacuum therein; A substrate placing table provided inside the chamber and configured to vertically stack a plurality of substrates spaced apart from each other at a predetermined interval; The gas supply apparatus is provided to be movable horizontally in the direction of the substrate mounting in the vacuum chamber, the gas supply device for sequentially supplying a purging gas and a process gas to each substrate stacked on the substrate mounting table by approaching one side of the substrate mounting table ; A gas discharge part disposed in the vacuum chamber so as to be horizontally movable in the direction of the substrate mounting table on the opposite side of the gas supply device, and approaching the other side of the substrate mounting table to suck and discharge the gas supplied from the gas supply device; Device; includes.

The gas supply device in the present invention, the gas supply body; A gas supply unit connected to an external gas supply source to supply a purging gas and a process gas to the gas supply body; A plurality of gas injectors formed in the gas supply body and formed to have the same spacing between the substrate placing tables and injecting the gas supplied to the gas supply body toward the substrate placing table; And a first horizontal moving part which horizontally moves the gas supply body in the direction of the substrate placing table.

And a buffer space which is formed in front of the gas injector in the gas supply body and temporarily holds the gas supplied from the gas supply unit, under the same conditions for a plurality of substrates placed on each substrate mounting table. It is preferable to be able to inject. Here, the buffer space may be formed as one to be connected in common with the plurality of gas injection units, or may be formed separately for each gas injection unit.

In the present invention, the gas supply device is controlled to supply the purging gas and the process gas in the form of a pulse in the direction of the substrate mounting table, it is possible to perform an accurate atomic layer deposition process for each substrate placed on the substrate mounting table It is preferable.

On the other hand, the gas discharge device, the gas discharge body; A gas discharge line connected to an external pump to suck and discharge gas existing in the gas discharge body; A plurality of gas suction slits formed in the gas discharge body and formed to be equal to an interval at which the substrate is placed between the substrate holders, and sucking the gas existing between the substrate holders; And a second horizontal moving part which horizontally moves the gas discharge body in the direction of the substrate placing table.

In addition, the batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus according to the present invention further includes a substrate mounting platform moving means for moving the substrate mounting table into and out of the vacuum chamber, so that the loading and unloading of the substrate can be performed quickly and efficiently. desirable.

According to the present invention, the gas supply device and the gas discharge device are configured to be horizontally movable in a direction of a substrate mounting table in which a plurality of substrates are stacked, and in close contact with the substrate mounting table during the atomic layer deposition process, The atomic layer deposition process is performed accurately and efficiently independently for each substrate present, and in the loading or unloading of the substrate, the gas supply device and the gas discharge device are spaced apart from the substrate mounting table to load and unload the substrate. There is an effect to proceed easily.

Therefore, it is possible to load / unload a plurality of substrates in the form of a cassette or to sequentially load the substrates on the substrate mounting table using a robot, and an atomic layer deposition process is independently performed for each substrate stacked on the substrate mounting table. It has the advantage of going exactly.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a specific embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus 1 according to the present exemplary embodiment may include a vacuum chamber 10, a substrate placing table 20, a gas supply device 30, and a gas discharge device 40. It is configured to include.

First, the vacuum chamber 10 has a constant internal space, and has a closed chamber structure capable of forming a high vacuum state in the internal space. To this end, the vacuum chamber 10 is provided with a high vacuum pump 70. In addition, a gate (not shown) is formed on one side wall of the vacuum chamber 10 so that a cassette or a cassette in which a plurality of substrates are stacked can enter or exit, and the gate is inside the vacuum chamber during the process. It is interrupted by the gate valve (not shown in figure) which can seal the.

Next, as shown in FIG. 1, the substrate placing table 20 is provided in the chamber 10, and is a component that vertically stacks a plurality of substrates spaced apart from each other at regular intervals. In the batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, an atomic layer deposition process is performed while a plurality of substrates are stacked on the substrate placing table 20. The substrate placement table 20 is provided in a circle when the substrate to be processed is circular, such as a semiconductor wafer, and is provided as a rectangle when the substrate to be processed is rectangular, such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display element.

The structure of the substrate mounting table 20 may have a variety of structures that can be stacked a plurality of substrates at regular intervals, for example, may have a structure that supports only a specific edge of the substrate and do not contact the rest of the substrate, As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the substrate may have a flat plate structure on which it can be mounted. However, no structure is disposed in the direction in which the gas supply device 30 and the gas discharge device 40 approach, so that the gas supply device 30 and the gas discharge device 40 are placed on the substrate placing table 20. It is preferable because it can be easily adhered without interference).

In addition, the substrate placing table 20 according to the present embodiment may further include a substrate placing table moving unit 80 for moving the substrate placing table 20 into and out of the vacuum chamber 10. In this case, when the substrate placing table moving unit 80 is further provided, the substrate placing table 20 has a cassette structure in which a plurality of substrates can be stacked, and the substrates are stacked on the substrate placing table 20. The furnace substrate may be loaded or unloaded. This eliminates the need for a separate cassette and eliminates the inconvenience of loading / unloading multiple substrates one by one, thereby reducing the process time. In this case, the gate formed in the vacuum chamber 10 should be formed large enough to allow the substrate placing table 20 to pass therethrough.

Next, the gas supply device 30 is provided to be horizontally movable in the direction of the substrate placing table 20 in the vacuum chamber 10, and approaches one side of the substrate placing table 20 to the substrate placing table. It is a component which sequentially supplies a purging gas and a process gas to each board | substrate laminated | stacked by 20. 1 and 2, the gas supply body 32, the gas supply part 36, the gas injection part 34 and the first horizontal moving part 31 are shown in this embodiment. It may be configured to include.

First, the gas supply body 32 is a component forming the overall shape of the gas supply device 30, and forms a basis on which components such as the gas injection unit 34 and the gas supply unit 36 may be installed. The gas supply main body 32 is formed at the same height as or slightly larger than the substrate placing table 20, and is disposed on one side of the substrate placing table 20.

Next, as shown in FIG. 1, the gas supply unit 36 is connected to an external gas supply source 50 and the gas supply main body 32 to supply the gas supplied from the gas supply source 50 to the gas supply main body. It is a construction show to supply to (32). Specifically, the gas supply unit 36 has a structure in which one end is connected to the purging gas supply source 52, the first and second process gas supply sources 54 and 56, and the other end is connected to the gas supply body 32. The purge gas and the first and second process gases are commonly supplied to the gas supply body 32 through the gas supply unit 36. Therefore, the gas supply unit 36 should be provided with a device to control the gas supplied from the respective gas supply source 50 in the form of a pulse.

In addition, the gas supply unit 36 may have a flexible structure in which the length of the gas supply main body 32 may be changed or changed in shape as the gas supply body 32 moves horizontally in the direction of the substrate placing table 20.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2, the gas injection unit 34 is formed in the gas supply main body 32, and is formed to have the same spacing between the substrate placing tables 20 as the substrate is placed thereon. It is a component which injects the gas supplied to the supply main body 32 to the said board | substrate mounting stage 20 direction. Specifically, the gas injector 36 has a nozzle structure capable of uniformly injecting gas onto a substrate stacked on the substrate holder 20, and may have various shapes. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, when the substrate Sa to be processed is a glass substrate having a rectangular shape, the substrate Sa is formed in a straight shape on the rectangular gas supply main body 30a, and as shown in FIG. 4. When the substrate Sb to be processed is a circular wafer, it is formed in a curved shape on the gas supply main body 30b having a curved shape corresponding to the circular substrate mounting table shape.

As a result, the gas injector 34 uniformly gasses the substrate S stacked on the substrate support 20 while the gas supply body 32 is in close contact with the substrate support 20. It is to have a shape that is in close contact with the substrate mounting table 20 to supply.

In the gas supply main body 32 according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the gas supply main body 32 is formed in front of the gas injector 34 in the gas supply main body 32, and is supplied from the gas supply unit 36. It is preferable to further provide a buffer space 38 in which the gas thus temporarily stays, so that the gas can be uniformly supplied to each gas injection section 34. That is, the gas supplied by the gas supply part 36 is uniformly sprayed onto each substrate through each gas injection part 34 in a state where the gas supplied by the gas supply part 36 is uniformly diffused while remaining in the buffer space 38. will be.

To this end, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the buffer space 38 may be formed as one so as to be commonly connected to the plurality of gas injectors 34, and in the plurality of gas injectors 34. A plurality may be formed to be connected in common, or may be individually formed to be connected to each of the plurality of gas injectors 34 individually.

Meanwhile, in the present embodiment, the gas supply device 30 is controlled such that the gas injected through the gas injector 34 is supplied in a pulse form so as to enable the atomic layer deposition process. That is, a separate control unit (not shown in the drawing) is provided, and the gas supplied from each gas supply source 50 is supplied to the gas supply main body 32 in the form of a pulse, and the gas thus supplied is supplied to each gas injection unit ( It is supplied to each substrate (S) in the form of a pulse through 34, so that the atomic layer deposition process is performed independently for a plurality of substrates (S) stacked on the substrate mounting table 20. In the conventional batch atomic layer deposition apparatus, a plurality of substrates are loaded into one chamber, and then a gas is supplied in a pulse form to the entire inside of the chamber, so that atomic layer deposition is accurately performed on a plurality of substrates loaded in one chamber. There was a problem that the process does not proceed, and the throughput is a lot of time to discharge the supplied gas has a poor throughput.

Next, the first horizontal moving part 31 is a component for horizontally moving the gas supply main body 32 in the direction of the substrate placing table 20. In the batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus 1 according to the present exemplary embodiment, an atomic layer deposition process is performed while the gas supply device 30 and the gas discharge device 40 are horizontally moved in a fixed state. Therefore, the gas supply body 32 is moved in the horizontal direction. Specifically, in the process of loading or unloading the substrate, the gas supply device 30 is moved backward from the substrate placing table 20 so as not to interfere with loading or unloading of the substrate. Subsequently, when the loading of the substrate is completed and the process is performed, the gas supply body 32 is advanced toward the substrate placing table 20 so that the gas injector 34 closely adheres to the substrate placing table 20. Be sure to At this time, each gas injection portion 34 should be adjusted to exactly match the position of each substrate (S) stacked on the substrate mounting table 20. In addition, the first horizontal moving part 31 should be configured in a structure capable of accurately controlling the horizontal movement of the gas supply body 32.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the gas discharge device 40 may move horizontally in the vacuum chamber 10 in the direction of the substrate placing table 20 opposite to the gas supply device 30. It is provided to, and is a component for sucking and discharging the gas supplied from the gas supply device 30 by approaching the other side of the substrate mounting table (20).

In the present embodiment, the gas discharge device 40 includes a gas discharge body 42, a gas discharge line 44, a gas suction slit 46, and a second horizontal moving part 41. First, the gas discharge main body 42, like the gas supply main body 32, forms an overall appearance of the gas discharge device 40, and is disposed in an opposite direction to the gas supply main body 32. 3 and 4, the shape of the gas discharge body 42 may have various shapes so as to correspond to the shape of the substrate to be processed or the shape of the substrate mounting table.

Next, as shown in FIG. 1, the gas discharge line 44 is connected to an external pump 60 to inhale and discharge the gas present in the gas discharge body 42 to the outside. Specifically, the gas discharge line 44 has one end connected to the pump 60 and the other end connected to the gas discharge body 42. In this state, the gas is interlocked with the gas supply device 30 to inhale and discharge the gas. As shown in FIG. 1, the gas discharge line 44 may be provided with one gas discharge line in the gas supply body 42 or may include a plurality of gas discharge lines.

And the gas suction slit 46 is formed in the gas discharge body 42, as shown in Figure 2, is formed in the same interval as the substrate is placed between the substrate mounting table 20, the substrate mounting It is a component that sucks the gas existing between the base 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the gas suction slit 46 may be formed in the same number as the substrates S stacked on each substrate placing table 20, and one gas suction slit 46 may be provided for a plurality of substrates. ) May have a corresponding structure.

When gas is injected from the gas injector 32, the gas suction slit 46 sucks and discharges gas existing in the space between the substrates in association with the gas injecting slit 46. Then, in the batch atomic layer deposition apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, each gas for the atomic layer deposition process is independently supplied to the space between the substrates stacked on the substrate placing table 20 in the form of a pulse. Effect occurs. Therefore, the atomic layer deposition process may be independently and accurately performed on the plurality of substrates S stacked on the substrate placing table 20.

The gas discharge device 40 is also provided with a second horizontal moving part 41 which horizontally moves the gas discharge body 42 in the direction of the substrate placing table 20 in the same manner as the gas supply device 30. do. Similar to the first horizontal moving part 31, the second horizontal moving part 41 is configured to closely contact the gas discharge device 40 to the substrate mounting table 20 during the atomic layer deposition process. 42 is advanced, and the gas discharge body 42 is reversed during the loading and unloading of the substrate.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of a batch atomic layer deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the structure of a gas supply device and a gas discharge device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a plan view illustrating the shapes of a gas supply device and a gas discharge device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a plan view showing the shapes of a gas supply device and a gas discharge device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (8)

A vacuum chamber capable of forming a vacuum therein; A substrate placing table provided inside the chamber and configured to vertically stack a plurality of substrates spaced apart from each other at a predetermined interval; The gas supply apparatus is provided to be movable horizontally in the direction of the substrate mounting in the vacuum chamber, the gas supply device for sequentially supplying a purging gas and a process gas to each substrate stacked on the substrate mounting table by approaching one side of the substrate mounting table ; A gas discharge part disposed in the vacuum chamber so as to be horizontally movable in the direction of the substrate mounting table on the opposite side of the gas supply device, and approaching the other side of the substrate mounting table to suck and discharge the gas supplied from the gas supply device; A batch atomic layer deposition apparatus comprising; The gas supply apparatus of claim 1, A gas supply body; A gas supply unit connected to an external gas supply source to supply a purging gas and a process gas to the gas supply body; A plurality of gas injectors formed in the gas supply main body and formed to have the same spacing between the substrate mounting tables and injecting the gas supplied to the gas supply main body toward the substrate mounting table; And a first horizontal moving part configured to horizontally move the gas supply body in the direction of the substrate placing table. The method of claim 2, And a buffer space that is formed in front of the gas injector in the gas supply body and temporarily holds the gas supplied from the gas supply unit. The method of claim 3, The buffer space is a batch atomic layer deposition apparatus, characterized in that formed in one so as to be connected in common with the plurality of gas injection unit. The method of claim 3, And the buffer space is individually formed to be individually connected to each of the plurality of gas injection units. The gas supply apparatus of claim 1, And a purge gas and a process gas are supplied in a pulse form toward the substrate placing table. According to claim 1, The gas discharge device, A gas exhaust body; A gas discharge line connected to an external pump to suck and discharge gas existing in the gas discharge body; A plurality of gas suction slits formed in the gas discharge body and formed to be equal to an interval at which the substrate is placed between the substrate holders, and sucking the gas existing between the substrate holders; And a second horizontal moving part which horizontally moves the gas discharge body in the direction of the substrate placing table. The method of claim 1, And a substrate placing table moving means for moving the substrate placing table into and out of the vacuum chamber.

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