KR101415888B1 - Plasma Processing Apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a plasma processing apparatus for removing impurities, water, etc., which are adhered to a surface of a workpiece such as a printed circuit board or remain in a via hole. A first enclosure 11 for providing a first space S1; The first space 11 and the second space S2 are superimposed on each other so that the first space S1 and the second space S2 are combined to provide a volume of processing space S A second housing (13); A housing opening / closing means; A first electrode 19 fixedly installed inside the first housing 11; A second electrode 25 fixedly installed in the second housing 13; A workpiece seat (33); Power supply; A cooling section 9; A vacuum forming part (5); The first and second electrodes 19 and 25 have a multilayer structure. It is possible to uniformly process the workpiece one sheet at a time quickly.

Description

[0001] Plasma Processing Apparatus [0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a plasma processing apparatus, and more particularly, to a plasma processing apparatus for removing impurities, moisture, etc. adhering to a surface of a workpiece such as a printed circuit board or remaining in a via hole.

Generally, a plasma refers to a state of matter that is partially or wholly ionized and is referred to as the fourth state of a material that is not contained in a solid, liquid, or gas. Plasma processing equipment is a device for cleaning, modifying, or etching a workpiece using such a plasma. The present invention is particularly directed to a cleaning apparatus for removing impurities, moisture or smears from the surface of a printed circuit board or via holes, but the scope of the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto.

Patent Application No. 10-2007-0133325 discloses a plasma continuous automatic processing apparatus for a plasma processing apparatus. The present processing apparatus is characterized in that the productivity is greatly improved by continuously processing the workpiece. In the above patent application, a plurality of window frames, which are mounted on a magazine and to which a plate-shaped workpiece such as a PCB is to be mounted, are moved to a plasma chamber at a time. The water-cooled electrode for the plasma etching apparatus of Patent Application No. 10-2007-0133252 has a similar structure.

Conventionally, a system has been generally used in which a plurality of printed circuit boards are installed in a magazine and then charged into a plasma chamber at a time. However, in the case of processing multiple sheets at a time, it may be considered efficient in several aspects such as shortening the working time. However, in reality, the following problems arise.

First, the processing speed is not as fast as I thought. This is because the time required to put the plasma chamber into the plasma chamber becomes longer as many sheets are processed at the same time. For example, it takes 2 to 3 minutes to process once.

Second, the quality of the plasma treatment is not uniform. The plasma is not uniformly applied to all the workpieces installed in the chamber, so that the processing quality is not uniform and the plasma is partially treated in order to prevent the plasma from being partially processed. .

Third, since it is necessary to be able to process a plurality of workpieces, the size of the plasma chamber must be increased, and equipment of a size suitable for controlling a bulky magazine is required. As a result, the size of the plasma processing apparatus as a whole increases, The cost is increased.

It is an object of the present invention to solve the above problem, and it is an object of the present invention to improve the processing speed of a workpiece such as a printed circuit board, to reduce the installation and maintenance cost by reducing the size of the apparatus, A plasma processing apparatus, and a plasma processing apparatus.

The above-

1. A plasma processing apparatus for processing a flat plate type workpiece such as a printed circuit board, comprising:

A first housing provided with a bottom plate and a bottom plate for providing a first space and provided on the base; A second housing provided with a top plate and an upper side plate to provide a second space, wherein the first housing and the second housing are superimposed on each other in the form of a lid to provide a processing space having a combined volume of the first and second spaces; Closing means for opening / closing the first and second enclosures; A first electrode fixedly installed in the first housing; A second electrode fixedly installed inside the second housing; A workpiece mounting means installed in the first housing for maintaining the state in which the workpiece is positioned between the first and second electrodes when the first and second housings are closed; A power supply unit for supplying power to the first and second electrodes; Cooling means for cooling the first and second electrodes; And a vacuum forming part for drawing air out of the processing space provided by combining the first and second enclosures;

The first electrode includes a first-first-layer electrode provided at a first position in a direction away from a first surface of the workpiece, a first-first-layer electrode provided at a second position in a direction away from the first surface, A multi-layer structure including;

Wherein the second electrode comprises a second-first layer electrode disposed at a third position along a direction away from the second surface of the workpiece, a second-first layer electrode disposed at a fourth position along a direction away from the second surface, Layer structure including an electrode.
Here, the first-first-layer electrode and the first-first-layer electrode are disposed on a straight line perpendicular to the first surface of the member to be superposed on each other; The second-first-layer electrode and the second-second-layer electrode may also be disposed on a straight line perpendicular to the second surface of the member to be superposed on each other.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the first and second electrodes are pipe-shaped electrode rods, and the cooling water flows into the first and second electrodes.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the housing opening / closing means may rotate the one end of the second housing with respect to the first housing so that the second housing can be opened or closed to the first housing in the same manner as the cover A hinge connection portion; And a second housing starting part for rotating the second housing around the hinge axis of the hinge connection part.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the hatch opening / closing means includes a rail fixedly installed on both sides of the first housing in parallel with the bottom plate of the first housing; A moving block coupled to a screw rod installed parallel to the rail; Wherein the first enclosure is seated on the rails and is flowable along the rails and has one end connected to the moving block and the other end connected to the second enclosure to cause the second enclosure to move away from or closer to the first enclosure And may include a lifting portion.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the lifting unit may be a second cylinder whose length is changed in a direction perpendicular to the first housing and one end is fixed to the moving block, and the other end is connected to the second housing.

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According to the above configuration, a plasma processing apparatus is provided that can process a workpiece such as a printed circuit board into a plasma chamber formed by the first and second enclosures, one by one, and process the plasma chamber intensively. According to this, since the plasma effect is applied to each of the electrodes provided in a multi-layer structure along the surface direction of the workpiece, plasma can be intensively applied to one workpiece, and thus the processing speed can be greatly shortened, The entire area can be uniformly processed.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a plasma processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the plasma processing apparatus, FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1, Fig.
5 is a schematic side view of a plasma processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 shows an example of the electrode arrangement structure inside the plasma chamber according to the embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a schematic side view of a plasma processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a schematic perspective view of an electrode assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 4, only the first electrode 19 is shown in an exploded view. Since the second electrodes 25 are arranged in the same structure, the exploded view is omitted.

The plasma processing apparatus of the present invention is for processing a plate-like workpiece (P) such as a printed circuit board. Here, treatment refers to cleaning, modification, residue removal and the like, but may be used for other purposes. The workpiece P is usually provided with a constant area, and an operator inserts a workpiece P into the plasma processing apparatus and operates the switch to perform the processing operation.

A plasma processing apparatus (hereinafter simply referred to as a "processing apparatus") includes a plasma chamber 1; A base frame (3) for installing the plasma chamber (1) at a predetermined height from the floor; A vacuum forming unit 5 for making the interior of the plasma chamber 1 into a vacuum environment; And a cooling unit 9 for cooling the electrode 7 provided inside the plasma chamber 1. [

The plasma chamber 1 is configured to selectively enclose the processing space by incorporation into the first enclosure 11 and the second enclosure 13.

The first enclosure 1 is fixed to the base frame 3 and comprises a bottom plate 15 and a bottom plate 17 to provide a first space S1. The bottom plate 15 may be rectangular as shown, which preferably conforms to the shape of the workpiece P. The lower side plate 17 extends vertically to the bottom plate 15 and has a constant height. A first electrode 19 is provided at the first space S1 in the first space S1.

3 and 6A, the first electrode 19 includes a first-layer electrode 19a provided at a first position in a direction away from the first surface of the workpiece P, And a first-second layer electrode 19b provided at a second position in a direction away from the surface.

The second enclosure 13 is composed of an upper panel 21 and an upper panel 23 similarly to the first enclosure 11 described above and provides a second space S2. A transparent window 24 is provided on the upper surface of the second housing 13 so that the inside of the plasma chamber 1 can be seen. The plasma light is diffused to the outside through the viewing window 24, so that the operator can confirm whether or not the normal operation is performed.

The second enclosure 13 can be covered with the first enclosure 11 in the same manner as the cover. The first and second casings 11 and 13 are superposed to provide a processing space S having a combined volume of the first and second spaces S1 and S2. A second electrode 25 is provided at a second end of the second housing 13 in the second space S2.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 6A, the second electrode 25 includes a second-layer electrode 25a disposed at a third position along a direction away from the second surface of the workpiece P, And a second 2-layer electrode 25b provided at a fourth position along the direction away from the two surfaces.

An electrode holder 26 for fixing the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 in the plasma chamber 1 is provided. Referring to FIG. 4, the electrode fixture 26 may include a first fixture 26a for fixing the power supply electrode and a second fixture 26b for fixing the ground electrode. The first fixing table 26a for fixing the power supply electrode may be made of an insulator such as Teflon and the second fixing table 26b for fixing the ground electrode may be made of a conductive material such as aluminum. The first and second casings 11 and 13 are made of a metal material, and they are electrically connected to the ground electrode through the second fixing table 26b. However, the power supply electrodes are insulated from each other by the first fixing table 26a. Each of the power supply electrodes is supplied with electric power through the terminal plate 27 which has an L-shaped cross section. The electrode fixture 26 may vary depending on the arrangement of the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 and the shape of the electrode.

The housing opening / closing means enables the first housing (11) and the second housing (13) to be merged or separated. As a means for opening and closing the enclosure, a method is generally preferred in which the first enclosure 11 is fixed to the base frame 3 and the second enclosure 13 is activated so that the second enclosure 13 functions like a lid. Various methods can be adopted as the arm opening and closing means.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the hinge opening / closing means is of the following hinge type.

The hinge connection portion 28 allows one end of the second enclosure 13 to be rotated with respect to the first enclosure 11 so that the second enclosure 13 is incorporated into the first enclosure 11 in the same manner as the lid, . A second housing starting portion for rotating the second housing 13 about the hinge shaft 29 of the hinge connecting portion 28 is included. The second armature starting portion has a first cylinder 31 (a pneumatic cylinder or a hydraulic cylinder), one end of which is rotatably connected to the base frame 3 and the other end of which is rotatably connected to the side plate 23 of the second housing 13, Lt; / RTI > The first cylinders 31 are installed at the same positions on the left and right upper side plates of the second housing 13 as a pair.

The operation of the first cylinder 31 causes the second housing 13 to be rotated around the hinge shaft 29 to be combined with or separated from the first housing 11 and to selectively form the processing space S do.

The plasma chamber 1 may lie parallel to the ground as shown, but may also be installed standing upright on the ground.

The workpiece mounting means is installed inside the first housing 11, that is, in the first space S1. The workpiece mounting means may include a seating table 33 for allowing the workpiece P to be positioned between and positioned between the first electrode 19 and the second electrode 25. In addition, a clamp (not shown) for fixing the workpiece P may further be provided. When the plasma chamber 1 is set up vertically, this clamp will be necessary, but it may not be necessary if it is laid.

The power supply unit supplies power to the first and second electrodes 19 and 25. The first and second electrodes 19 and 25 are each composed of a power supply electrode and a ground electrode. The first and second electrodes 19 and 25 are each composed of a power supply electrode and a ground electrode.

As the plasma is generated, a high temperature is generated in the first and second electrodes 19 and 25, and thus a cooling means for cooling the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 is required. According to the embodiment of the present invention, the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 are pipe-shaped electrode rods, and the cooling means employs a water-cooling type in which cooling water is circulated to the inner space of the electrode rod. The cooling water is circulated as it flows in and out as shown by arrows in Fig. For more details on this, refer to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2007-0133252. Reference numeral 35 in Fig. 2 represents a cooling water supply pipe, and the cooling means may include a cooling water storage tank, a circulation pump, or a cooling means.

And a vacuum forming unit 5 for removing air from the process space S provided by combining the first and second casings 11 and 13 and maintaining the vacuum pressure state. The vacuum forming part includes a vacuum pump, and the vacuum pump is connected to the lower plate 17 of the first housing through a vacuum line.

Hereinafter, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The present embodiment relates to a modified example of an electrode installation mode. 6 corresponds to a schematic sectional view taken along the line B-B in Fig.

FIG. 6 (a) corresponds to the embodiment described above and shows that the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 are respectively provided in two layers. The workpiece P is disposed at the center, and the power supply electrode and the ground electrode are arranged in various shapes as needed. For reference, the electrode represented by hatching in FIG. 6 is a power supply electrode, and the electrode not shown in FIG. 6 is a ground electrode.

6 (b) shows a case where the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 are plate-shaped electrode plates. A cooling water pipe 36 for cooling is fixed to each electrode plate by welding or bolting.

6 (c) shows that the first and second electrodes are each composed of three layers.

As described above, the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 can be provided in a plurality of layers, respectively. In this way, the workpiece P, which is installed in the plasma chamber 1, 19, 25). Therefore, the workpiece P is intensively influenced by the plasma, and is subjected to a desired treatment such as reforming, cleaning, residue removal in a short time in proportion thereto. The frequency applied to each of the electrodes 19 and 25 can be variously applied from a low frequency to a high frequency. Since there is no need to supply the same frequency power to all the electrodes 19 and 25, the frequency can be adjusted depending on the situation.

Hereinafter, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. This embodiment relates to a modification of the arm opening and closing means. 7 shows the operation in which the second enclosure 13 is opened and closed in the first enclosure 11. Fig. The second housing 13 is vertically movable in the vertical and horizontal directions as shown by the arrows.

The rails 37 are fixed to both sides of the first housing 11 in parallel with the bottom plate of the first housing 11. [ The rail 37 can be fixed to the base frame 3. [ A screw rod 41 which is rotatable by a drive motor 39 is installed parallel to the rail 37. The movable block 43 is screwed into the screw rod 41. [

The elevating portion 45 is seated on the rail 37 and is movable along the rail 37. One end of the lifting portion 45 is connected to the moving block 43 and the other end is connected to the second housing 13. [ The elevating portion 45 is a device for causing the second enclosure 13 to start to move away from or closer to the first enclosure 11. [ As the screw rod 41 is rotated, the movable block 43 and the second housing 13 can be moved back and forth along the extending direction of the screw rod 41.

According to this embodiment, the elevating portion is a second cylinder 47 whose length is changed in the direction perpendicular to the first housing 11 and whose one end is fixed to the moving block 43 and the other end is connected to the second housing 13 .

8 is a schematic perspective view of an electrode assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention. According to the present embodiment, the plate-shaped electrodes 7 are vertically arranged with the workpiece P disposed in the center. According to the present embodiment, since the electrodes 7 are not of a multilayer structure but are of a plate shape, plasma can be generated more satisfactorily than conventional ones, and thus an effect of intensively processing a single workpiece P can be obtained have. Of course, the electrode 7 is composed of a power supply electrode PE provided at the upper part and a ground electrode GE installed at the lower part.

Like the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 (b), the cooling water pipe 36 is welded or bolted to one or both surfaces of each electrode 7, and the cooling water pipe 36 is provided with cooling water, So that the electrode 7 is cooled.

The configuration shown and described above is merely a preferred embodiment based on the technical idea of the present invention. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

1: plasma chamber 3: base frame
5: Vacuum forming part 7: Electrode
9: cooling section 11,13: first and second enclosures
15: bottom plate 17: bottom plate
19, 25: first and second electrodes 21:
23: upper side plate 26:
27: terminal plate 28: hinge connection
29: Hinge shafts 31, 47: First and second cylinders
33: workpiece seating base 35: cooling water supply pipe
36: cooling water pipe 37: rail
39: drive motor 41: screw rod
43: Moving block 45:
P: workpiece S: processing space

Claims (5)

1. A plasma processing apparatus for processing a flat plate type workpiece (P) such as a printed circuit board, comprising:
A first housing 11 composed of a bottom plate 15 and a bottom plate 17 and provided in the base frame 3 to provide a first space S1; The second space S2 is formed by an upper plate 21 and an upper plate 23 and is superimposed on the first housing 11 in the same manner as a lid to form the first and second spaces S1 and S2 A second enclosure 13 for providing a combined volume of processing space S; Closing means for opening or closing the first enclosure (11) and the second enclosure (13); A first electrode 19 in the form of a pipe fixedly installed inside the first housing 11; A second electrode 25 in the form of a pipe fixedly installed inside the second housing 13; The first and second housings 11 and 13 are installed on the first housing 11 so that the workpiece P is positioned between the first and second electrodes 19 and 25 A workpiece mounting table (33) for maintaining the state; A power supply unit for supplying power to the first and second electrodes 19 and 25; A cooling unit 9 for cooling the first and second electrodes 19 and 25; And a vacuum forming part (5) for drawing air out of the processing space (S);
The first electrode 19 includes a first-first-layer electrode 19a provided at a first position in a direction away from the first surface of the workpiece P, a first-layer electrode 19a at a second position in a direction away from the first surface, Layered structure including a first-second-layer electrode 19b to be installed;
The second electrode 25 includes a second-layer electrode 25a disposed at a third position along a direction away from the second surface of the workpiece P, And a second-layer electrode (25b) provided at a position of the second-layer electrode (25b).
The first-first-layer electrode 19a and the first-first-layer electrode 19b are disposed on a straight line perpendicular to the first surface of the workpiece P and are superimposed on each other;
The second-first-layer electrode 25a and the second-second-layer electrode 25b are also disposed on a straight line perpendicular to the second surface of the workpiece P and are superimposed on each other. Plasma processing apparatus.
The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first and second electrodes (19, 25) are pipe-shaped electrode rods, and cooling water flows through the electrodes.
The method according to claim 1,
A hinge connection part (28) for allowing the second housing to be opened or closed in the same manner as the cover by rotating one end of the second housing with respect to the first housing with respect to the first housing; And a second housing starting portion for rotating the second housing (13) about the hinge shaft (29) of the hinge connection portion.
The method according to claim 1,
The arm opening and closing means includes a rail 37 fixed to both sides of the first housing 11 in parallel with the bottom plate of the first housing 11; A screw rod 41 installed parallel to the rail 37 and rotated by a driving motor 39; A moving block 43 screwed to the screw rod 41; And the other end of which is connected to the second enclosure 13 so that the second enclosure 13 is connected to the moving block 43. The other end of the second enclosure 13 is connected to the rail 37, 13. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a lifting portion (45) for lifting the first housing (11) in a direction perpendicular to the bottom plate (15) of the first housing (11).
5. The method of claim 4,
The lifting unit 45 is vertically shifted with respect to the bottom plate 15 of the first housing 11. The lifting unit 45 has one end fixed to the moving block 43 and the other end fixed to the second housing 13, And a second cylinder (47) connected to the plasma processing apparatus.

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