KR101217458B1 - Apparatus for manufacturing poly crystaline silicon ingot for door open/close device having a rotatable - Google Patents

Abstract

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus having a rotatable door opening and closing device, comprising: a vacuum chamber of a predetermined size, a crucible provided in the vacuum chamber to accommodate a silicon raw material, and a silicon raw material in the crucible; A heater for applying heat to the heat sink, a susceptor provided under the crucible, a cooling plate for dissipating heat to grow silicon melted in the crucible, and a silicon provided between the crucible and the cooling plate to melt or grow. And a door opening and closing device for restraining heat release, a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the crucible, and a controller for controlling the temperature in the crucible so that the melting and uniform growth of silicon in the crucible is achieved by receiving the output value of the temperature sensor. In the silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus, the door opening and closing device is a predetermined interval And a first door and a second door having an open part, and including a driving part to selectively open and close the open part through relative rotation between the first door and the second door.

Revolving door, ingot, polycrystalline, silicon, thermal equilibrium

Description

Apparatus for manufacturing poly crystaline silicon ingot for door open / close device having a rotatable}

The present invention relates to a polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus, and more particularly, to a polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus equipped with a rotary door opening and closing apparatus that can achieve effective silicon growth according to the improvement of thermal balance by supplementing the door opening and closing apparatus. It is about.

Recently, the photovoltaic power generation by silicon-type solar cells has reached the commercialization stage after the trial phase due to the advantages of pollution-free, stability and reliability.

In the United States, Japan and Germany, solar power generation of hundreds to thousands of kilowatts has been made using silicon solar cells. Currently, solar cells used for photovoltaic power generation are mainly manufactured using monocrystalline silicon thin plates manufactured by the Czochralski impression method, but it is recognized that the price of silicon thin plates should be lowered and the productivity should be further increased for continuous large capacity. It is becoming. Under this background, casting was developed as an effort to reduce the cost of silicon thin film for solar cells.

The production of polycrystalline silicon ingots for solar cells by the casting method is basically characterized by directional solidification. Polycrystalline silicon kernels are melted in a crucible made of quartz or graphite, and then the heat of dissolution of silicon is removed from the bottom of the crucible so that the cooling solidification is also moved from the bottom of the crucible to the upper part. ) Is to get the ingot.

The polycrystalline silicon ingot manufactured as described above is deteriorated in terms of electrical efficiency in solar cell manufacturing due to the grain boundaries present inside compared to the single crystal silicon ingot manufactured by the pulling method, but the crystal is in the direction of ingot growth. Since it is composed of columnar phases, it is inferior to about 20% in terms of its overall physical properties. However, it has the advantage of mass production (2 ~ 3 times of single crystal pulling method), excellent productivity (2 ~ 3 times of single crystal pulling method) and simple manufacturing technology. 2 to 1/3 level. The known casting method is to melt the polycrystalline silicon in advance in the polycrystalline silicon melting section made of quartz before supplying it to the graphite crucible, and then crystal growth is supplied by supplying from the lower part to the square or circular graphite crucible maintained at 600 to 1,200 ° C. There is a method of producing a polycrystalline silicon ingot.

However, in the conventional casting method, since the cold crucible is suddenly cooled and solidified, the fixing between silicon solidified and the crucible can be prevented, but the contamination from the crucible is large and the thermal stress remains so that the defect concentration is increased and the crystal grains are reduced. Has a problem.

In order to solve this problem, the present applicant has filed a Korean Patent Application No. 10-2007-0006218, title of the invention: polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus for solar cells, door in a cooling plate approach for heat dissipation in silicon growth In order to solve the problem of opening and closing method, various domestic applications have been achieved.

Conventionally, there are various methods, but the method of cooling the lower part by lowering the crucible containing the double molten liquid away from the heater and installing a heat exchanger on the lower part to force heat through the relatively cold cooling plate for the crucible The method is universal. Crucible lowering method is preferred to use a heat exchanger because there is a limit to the discharge of heat to the bottom, but this method may be a phenomenon that the silicon does not melt enough because the heat is lost to the lower heat exchanger in the step of melting the silicon, so the melting step Energy consumption is high in.

For this reason, a device using a heat exchanger is constituted by a kind of gate having a heat insulating material between the heat exchanger and the bottom of the crucible. The gate is closed when the silicon melts, preventing heat from being taken away from the heat exchanger, allowing for a smoother melt, and opening during crystal growth to allow enough heat to escape to the heat exchanger below the gate.

1 to 3 is a prior art filed by the applicant, the gate (in the ingot manufacturing apparatus having a vacuum chamber 10, a heater 20, a crucible 30, a temperature sensor 40 and a gate 40) Various methods have been proposed as a method of constructing a door opener). Commercially applied methods include a horizontal sliding method shown in FIG. 1 and a method of controlling opening and closing by pushing up a gate while the heat exchanger is up using a hinge structure shown in FIG. 2. The horizontal sliding method is disadvantageous for the uniform growth of the ingot because it creates thermal unbalance in the growth space of the equipment. This is undesirable because it is the structure that affects the most important ingot growth. The hinged door method has the advantage of obtaining a symmetrical thermal equilibrium condition, but since the heat exchanger pushes up the door, space is needed in the height direction so that the heat exchanger can open and close the gate sufficiently.

In order to increase the size of the ingot in the future, it is necessary to grow the ingot in the width direction rather than in the height direction. In the hinge structure method, since the door height must be increased together when the ingot is extended to the side, the height of the equipment is also increased. There is this.

The present invention for solving the above problems is to solve the thermal inequality of the polycrystalline silicon growth space, and in response to the future technology prospects, polycrystalline silicon which can increase the door size while eliminating the problems caused by the height direction size constraints of the ingot apparatus An object of the present invention is to provide an ingot manufacturing apparatus.

The present invention for achieving the above object is a vacuum chamber of a predetermined size, a crucible provided in the vacuum chamber to accommodate the silicon raw material, a heater for applying heat to melt the silicon raw material in the crucible, A susceptor provided under the crucible, a cooling plate for dissipating heat to grow silicon melted in the crucible, and a door opening and closing device provided between the crucible and the cooling plate to restrain heat release to melt or grow silicon; In the polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus comprising a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the crucible and a control unit for controlling the temperature in the crucible so that the melting and uniform growth of the silicon in the crucible in accordance with the output value of the temperature sensor, the door The switchgear has a first door and a second door having an opening portion at a predetermined interval. It characterized in that it comprises a drive unit for selectively opening and closing the opening through the relative rotation between the first door and the second door.

The driving unit may include a first driving motor and a second driving motor for rotating the first door and the second door, respectively.

In addition, the first door and the second door is coupled to the first driving motor and the second driving motor, respectively, coupled to the first hollow shaft and the second hollow shaft, the second hollow shaft is inserted into the hollow of the first hollow shaft It is provided, the first hollow shaft is characterized in that the support shaft for supporting the lower susceptor is further provided.

In addition, the support shaft is provided with the first hollow shaft extending is formed, characterized in that the bearing is further provided in contact with the susceptor.

In addition, the support shaft is provided separately, characterized in that the bearing is further provided in contact with the first hollow shaft.

In addition, the support shaft is provided through the hollow of the first hollow shaft, it is characterized in that it is provided to be fixed to the outside separately.

The driving unit may include a transfer unit including a shaft configured to move the first door up and down, a drive motor to rotate the second door, and a first door to interlock the first door according to the rotation of the second door. And a locking portion formed on each of the second doors and locked.

In addition, the shaft is inserted into the hollow of the hollow support shaft provided for supporting the susceptor, the plate is provided at the end of the shaft for transferring the first door up / down by the transfer means, the plate Is coupled to the coupling hole formed in the hollow support shaft is characterized in that for transporting the first door according to the up / down transport.

The driving unit may further include an encoder for detecting rotation amounts of the first door and the second door.

In addition, the first and second doors are characterized in that the control of the endothermic amount can be controlled by adjusting the opening of the opening by any angle.

In addition, the polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus for growing the molten silicon raw material by melting the silicon raw material in the crucible provided in the vacuum chamber of a predetermined size and then expose the cooling plate by the selective opening of the door opening and closing device, the door The opening and closing device is configured with a first door and a second door formed with an opening portion at a predetermined interval, characterized in that it comprises a drive unit for selectively opening and closing the opening through a relative rotation between the first door and the second door. .

The present invention constructed and operated as described above has the advantage of eliminating the defects of silicon growth by eliminating thermal inequality.

In addition, according to the structural features of the switchgear can reduce the overall size of the ingot manufacturing apparatus and at the same time increase the size of the door there is an advantage that can achieve an effective silicon solidification.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, a preferred embodiment of a polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus equipped with a rotary door opening and closing device according to the present invention will be described in detail.

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing a state before opening of the rotary door opening and closing device according to the invention, Figure 5 is a state diagram showing a state after opening of the rotary door opening and closing device according to the present invention, Figure 6 is a rotary type according to the present invention Sectional view showing one embodiment of the drive means for the door opening and closing device, Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the drive means for opening and closing the rotary door according to the present invention.

8 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of Figure 7, Figure 9 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of Figure 7, Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the drive means for opening and closing the rotary door according to the present invention. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an operating state of FIG. 10 and FIG. 12 is a cutaway perspective view of a polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus equipped with a rotatable door opening and closing device according to the present invention.

Polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus equipped with a rotatable door opening and closing device 500 according to the present invention, a vacuum chamber 100 of a predetermined size, a crucible 200 provided in the vacuum chamber to accommodate the raw material silicon, A heater 220 that applies heat to melt the silicon raw material in the crucible, a susceptor 210 provided below the crucible, and a cooling plate 400 that releases heat to grow silicon melted in the crucible. And a door opening and closing device 500 provided between the crucible and the cooling plate to constrain heat release to melt or grow silicon, a temperature sensor 300 for measuring the temperature of the crucible, and an output value of the temperature sensor. In the solar cell polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus comprising a control unit for controlling the temperature in the crucible so that the melting and uniform growth of the silicon in the crucible The door opening and closing device includes a first door 510 and a second door 520 in which a opening is formed at predetermined intervals in a circular structure, and the opening is selectively formed through relative rotation between the first door and the second door. Characterized in that it comprises a drive unit 540 for opening and closing.

Inside the vacuum chamber 100, a predetermined space is formed, and most components of the ingot manufacturing apparatus are provided in the vacuum chamber 100.

The crucible 200 is for accommodating the silicon raw material and melting therein, and is preferably provided at the center of the vacuum chamber 100. The crucible 200 has an open top, and may have a cover (not shown) to open and close the top. As shown in the figure, the crucible 200 is preferably formed in a cube shape and is made of quartz.

Meanwhile, a susceptor 210 is provided below the crucible 200, and the susceptor serves to protect the crucible 200. The susceptor material is preferably made of carbon or graphite excellent in heat transfer.

A heater 220 is provided along the circumference of the crucible except for the lower side of the crucible provided with the susceptor 210. Of course, although the heater may be provided at the lower portion of the susceptor 210, in one embodiment of the present invention, the heater 220 is provided only at the top and the circumference of the susceptor 210. This is because it is possible to melt the silicon raw material in the crucible 200 even if the heater 220 is provided only on the top and the circumference of the susceptor 210.

As mentioned above, the heater is for melting the silicon raw material in the crucible, and the silicon raw material melting point is about 1423 degrees. For example, the power control method of the heater may be operated by a method of controlling a duty ratio of a voltage pulse applied to the heater or a method of controlling a period of the voltage pulse applied to the heater.

Of course, such a temperature measurement is made by the temperature sensor 300. The temperature sensor may be provided in plural ingot manufacturing apparatuses, and the temperature is measured by installing the heater and the crucible as an example.

Meanwhile, a cooling plate 400 for growing molten silicon is provided below the susceptor provided below the crucible, and a door opening and closing device 500 is provided between the cooling plate and the susceptor. That is, molten silicon in the crucible grows by the cooling plate 400 by the door opening of the door opening and closing device.

For example, the cooling plate 400 has a coolant path formed therein, and the coolant plate that cools by moving the coolant along the coolant path releases the crucible heat.

The schematic configuration of the polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus configured as described above is described in detail in the polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus for solar cells (Korea application number: 10-2007-0006218) filed by the applicant of the present invention, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted. Shall be.

The door opening and closing device 500 is a main technical gist of the present invention. The first door 510 and the second door 520 having the openings are provided at upper and lower positions at regular intervals, and are opened by rotating the door. Opening a certain radius to expose the cooling plate 400 provided on the lower side of the door opening and closing device with the crucible to perform heat dissipation for silicon growth (solidification).

 Hereinafter, the door opening and closing device 500 according to the present invention will be described in detail.

The first door 510 and the second door 520 have a radial structure, and the opening is formed in a radial shape in a circular or polygonal structure. In this structure, the first door and the second door are provided in the same manner, and according to the rotation, the first and second doors are coincident or coincide with each other only by a specific angle, and the heat is released while simultaneously rotating. The determining the opening size of the opening by a specific angle is to properly adjust the endothermic amount.

In addition, various embodiments of the driving unit 540 for driving the first door and the second door will be described.

6 illustrates a structure of the driving unit 540 as an embodiment of the door opening and closing apparatus 500 according to the present invention, which is a first driving motor 541 for driving the first door and a second door for driving the second door. A two drive motor 542 is provided. Here, each door and the driving motor transmits a driving force to the hollow first hollow shaft and the second hollow shaft.

As shown, the first hollow shaft is connected to the first door, and the second hollow shaft is connected to the second door. In this case, the first hollow shaft has a structure inserted into the hollow inside of the second hollow shaft, and a component such as a bearing (unsigned) may be configured therebetween for smooth rotation. In addition, it is preferable that a bearing is installed in order to achieve smooth rotation even outside the second hollow shaft.

In this case, referring to the connection structure of the driving motor, the first driving motor 541 is directly connected to the first hollow shaft 511 according to the structural characteristics of the first hollow shaft inserted into the second hollow shaft. The drive motor 542 transmits a driving force from one side to the second hollow shaft 521 by using a drive transmission means such as a drive belt or a chain belt. The mechanism of such a drive can be easily changed by those skilled in the art.

Referring to the operation principle of the door opening and closing device configured as described above, when the silicon raw material is melted in the crucible, melting is performed while the openings of the first door and the second door are crossed (closed state), and the molten silicon is polycrystalline. In order to grow, the driving unit is operated to rotate the first door or the second door to rotate a predetermined amount so that the openings have a specific opening angle to each other.

Then, the silicon is grown while performing heat dissipation by the cooling plate 400 provided under the door opening and closing device. In addition, if the openings of the first door and the second door coincide with each other and the silicon growth starts, the growth of the first door and the second door while simultaneously rotating the first door and the second door is gradually cooled from the bottom while maintaining the thermal equilibrium of the lower side of the crucible.

The first and second driving motors may further include a rotation position detecting unit such as an encoder 560. The encoder is provided to detect the amount of rotation for adjusting the opening angle between the doors or to detect and control an appropriate amount of rotation in the entire rotation of the door.

FIG. 7 illustrates a structure for supporting the susceptor 210 provided below the crucible by using the structure of the driving unit in a further embodiment according to the present invention. At the center of the susceptor, deflection may occur because the load is most applied. Therefore, it has a structure for supporting the center of the susceptor by additionally provided with a support shaft 530 to extend to the first hollow shaft. Here, the support shaft 530 has a bearing 512 at its end contacting the susceptor to help smoothly rotate without friction by the bearing when the first hollow shaft rotates.

8 is provided with a support shaft 530, which is divided with the first hollow shaft and one end contacting the susceptor is fixed without friction due to rotation, such as being fixed with the susceptor. It proposes a structure in which the other end of the support shaft is in contact with the rotating first hollow shaft to install a bearing therein.

FIG. 9 is a further embodiment according to the present invention, in which the above-described support shaft is not provided on the first hollow shaft line and is provided separately to support the susceptor through the inside of the first hollow shaft hollow.

The support shaft is configured to support one end of the susceptor and to pass through the hollow of the first hollow shaft so that the other end thereof is supported by the external structure. In this case, a bearing may be provided between the first hollow shaft and the support shaft to support the position with smooth rotation.

10 and 11 are still another embodiment of the drive unit according to the present invention, which has a structure for driving by using one drive motor and a cylinder, and a method of driving two doors through the operation of the cylinder and the drive motor. Suggest.

First, as described above, a first hollow shaft and a second hollow shaft are provided, and the first hollow shaft is not connected to the first door and is extended to support the susceptor. The hollow inside of the first hollow shaft is connected to the cylinder and the shaft flowing up and down penetrates, and the shaft end is provided with a plate 552 for supporting the first door to move up and down. At this time, both sides of the first hollow shaft corresponding to the plate position is provided with a coupling hole 531 so that the plate protrudes outward through the coupling hole.

As described above, the second hollow shaft is connected to the second door to rotate the second door.

Meanwhile, the locking parts 522 are provided at the first and second doors so that the first doors may interlock as the second door rotates. The locking part is provided to allow the first door to rotate together with the first door according to the rotation of the second door when the first door is seated on the second door.

Looking at the operation principle of the engaging portion, first, if the heat is required for the silicon growth in the state that the door is closed, the plate connected to the shaft while the cylinder is operated upward lifts the first door to the upper side. As the first driving motor rotates the second door by a predetermined radius while the first door is raised, the locking portions of the first door and the second door are engaged with each other, so that the positions of the first door and the second door can be specified. You are ready. Then, when the second door is rotated by the desired angle in the reverse direction, the opening and closing angles of the first door and the second door are specified as desired.

After that, the plate supporting the first door is placed on the second door again by the downward driving of the cylinder. As described above, the first door is constrained by the rotation of the second door in the state where the first door is placed on the second door, and rotates while maintaining the relative angle with the second door specified by the door opening operation.

The door is closed again by moving the first door upward from the second door by the cylinder, and rotating the second door in a reverse direction by the opening angle by rotating the second door, and then moving the first door downward again to release the opening. Will be.

The present invention configured as described above has the advantage of eliminating the defects of silicon growth by eliminating thermal inequality by applying the rotary door opening and closing device, and the overall size of the ingot manufacturing apparatus according to the structural features of the rotary opening and closing device. It has the effect of lowering.

While the invention has been described and illustrated in connection with a preferred embodiment for illustrating the principles of the invention, the invention is not limited to the construction and operation as shown and described.

Rather, those skilled in the art will appreciate that many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims. And all such modifications and changes as fall within the scope of the present invention are therefore to be regarded as being within the scope of the present invention.

1 to 3 is a schematic cutaway perspective view of the apparatus for producing ingots for solar cells according to the prior art;

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing a state before opening of the rotary door opening and closing device according to the present invention,

Figure 5 is a state diagram showing a state after the opening of the rotary door opening and closing apparatus according to the present invention,

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the drive means for opening and closing the rotary door according to the present invention,

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the drive means for opening and closing the rotary door according to the present invention,

8 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of FIG.

9 is a sectional view showing another embodiment of FIG.

10 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the drive means for opening and closing the rotary door according to the present invention;

11 is a cross-sectional view showing an operating state of FIG. 10;

12 is a cutaway perspective view of a polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus equipped with a rotary door opening and closing device according to the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: vacuum chamber 200: crucible

210: susceptor 220: heater

300: temperature sensor 400: cooling plate

500: door opening and closing device 510: first door

511: first hollow shaft 512: bearing

513: engaging portion 520: second door

521: second hollow shaft 522: locking portion

530: support shaft 531: coupling hole

540: drive unit 541: first drive motor

542: second drive motor 550: transfer means

551: shaft 552: plate

560: encoder

Claims (11)

A vacuum chamber of a predetermined size, a crucible provided in the vacuum chamber to receive a silicon raw material, a heater applying heat to melt the silicon raw material in the crucible, a susceptor provided below the crucible, and the crucible in the crucible A cooling plate for dissipating heat to grow molten silicon crystals, a door opening and closing device provided between the crucible and the cooling plate to restrict heat release, a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the crucible, and an output value of the temperature sensor In the polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus comprising a control unit for receiving a temperature to control the temperature in the crucible, The door opening and closing device is composed of a first door and a second door formed with an opening at a predetermined interval to control heat dissipation, And a driving unit to selectively open and close the opening through relative rotation between the first door and the second door. The first and second doors are polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus having a rotatable door opening and closing device for controlling the endothermic amount by controlling the opening of the opening by any angle. The method of claim 1, wherein the driving unit, And a first driving motor and a second driving motor for rotating the first door and the second door, respectively. The method of claim 2, wherein the first door and the second door, It is coupled to the first driving motor and the second driving motor and the first hollow shaft and the second hollow shaft, respectively, The second hollow shaft is inserted into the hollow of the first hollow shaft, The first hollow shaft is a polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus having a rotatable door opening and closing device further comprising a support shaft for supporting the susceptor bottom. The method of claim 3, wherein the support shaft, The first hollow shaft extends and is provided, the polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus having a rotary door opening and closing device characterized in that the bearing is further provided in contact with the susceptor. The method of claim 3, wherein the support shaft, Separately provided, the polycrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing apparatus with a rotary door opening and closing device characterized in that the bearing is further provided in contact with the first hollow shaft. The method of claim 3, wherein the support shaft, A device for manufacturing a polycrystalline silicon ingot provided with a rotatable door opening and closing device, which is provided to penetrate through the hollow of the first hollow shaft and is separately fixed to the outside. The method of claim 1, wherein the driving unit, A transfer means including a shaft configured to transfer the first door up and down; A drive motor to rotate the second door; And Polycrystalline crystal with a rotatable door opening and closing device, characterized in that it comprises a; engaging portion which is formed and fixed to each of the first door and the second door to interlock the first door according to the rotation of the second door; Silicon ingot manufacturing equipment. The method of claim 7, wherein the shaft, It is inserted into the hollow of the hollow support shaft provided to support the susceptor, the plate is provided at the end of the shaft for conveying the first door up / down by the transfer means, the plate is the hollow support A device for manufacturing a polycrystalline silicon ingot having a rotatable door opening and closing device coupled to a coupling hole formed in a shaft to transfer the first door according to up / down transfer. The method of claim 1, wherein the driving unit, And an encoder for detecting rotation amounts of the first door and the second door. delete delete

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