KR20050019223A - Wet Station Having Cassette Transfer Apparatus And Method Of Operating The Same - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A wet station with a cassette transfer apparatus and a method for operating the same are provided to reduce the number of the cassette transfer apparatus by introducing a second taking-in unit. CONSTITUTION: A wet station with a cassette transfer apparatus includes a first taking-in unit(120), a second taking-in unit(160). The first taking-in unit transfers a cassette(910,920) containing a plurality of wafer to a first position(111) by a translational movement. The second taking-in unit transfers the cassette moved to the first position to a second position(112) by a rotating movement, the cassette moved to the second position is transferred to a third position(113) by the translational movement. The plurality of wafers transferred to the second position is separated from the cassette. A wet station dips the plurality of wafers separated from the cassette into a cleaning vessel.

Description

Cleaning apparatus having a cassette transfer device and a method of operating the same {Wet Station Having Cassette Transfer Apparatus And Method Of Operating The Same}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and an operating method thereof, and more particularly, to a wet cleaning apparatus including a cassette transfer apparatus and an operating method thereof.

In addition to removing particles or contaminants that may affect the product characteristics of the semiconductor device, the cleaning process performed to protect the substrate surface from other impurities is an essential process step in the manufacture of the semiconductor device. The cleaning process can be broadly classified into wet cleaning and dry cleaning, depending on the method used.

The wet cleaning includes cleaning a substrate using a wet cleaning liquid and then performing a rinse process and a dry process. The rinse process is a step of using deionized water (DI water) to remove the wet cleaning liquid remaining on the substrate, the curling process is a step for removing the pure water remaining on the substrate.

Meanwhile, in the wet cleaning process, various cleaning liquids may be used according to the purpose. A mixed solution of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide, known as 'SPM Cleaning' or 'CLN D', is mainly used to remove heavy organic impurities, while a mixed solution of ammonia, hydrogen peroxide and pure water, known as 'APM cleaning', is mainly used to Used to remove. In addition, a cleaning solution containing hydrochloric acid used to remove metallic impurities, an aqueous hydrofluoric acid solution used for etching a silicon oxide film, and the like may be used. In this respect, some cleaning solutions are the same as etchant except that the concentration of chemicals involved is light. Accordingly, the predetermined wet etching process may be performed using the wet cleaning apparatus by adjusting the process time or the concentration of the chemicals included therein.

The dry cleaning can prevent the isotropic etching characteristic when using the wet cleaning method, and has advantages of eliminating the rinsing process and the drying process. However, the method of dry cleaning involves expensive features because it is difficult to process a plurality of substrates at the same time, and as a result, most of the cleaning process proceeds in the manner of wet cleaning.

The wet cleaning generally uses a wet station, which has effective removal of contaminants, is patchable and has high productivity. 1 to 4 are plan views illustrating a wafer cleaning process using a general cleaning apparatus.

1 to 4, when cassettes 91 and 92 are loaded into the apparatus, the cassettes are loaded using the first transfer apparatus 12 to a first point where the second transfer apparatus 14 is accessible. Transfer (91,92). Using the second transfer device 14, the cassettes transferred to the first point are transferred to a second point accessible to the third transfer device 16 and the wafer transfer device 41. After the wafers 90 are separated from the cassettes transferred to the second point using the wafer transfer device 41, the separated wafers are cleaned in the treatment tanks 21 to 29. During the cleaning process, the third cassette 16 is used to transfer empty cassettes 91 and 92 left at the second point to a third point accessible to the cassette transfer device 60 ( 3).

Thereafter, the cassette transfer device 60 is used to transfer the cassettes transferred to the third point to a fourth point accessible to the fourth transfer device 36. Using the fourth transfer device 36, the cassettes transferred to the fourth point are transferred to a fifth point accessible by another wafer transfer device 43 and the fifth transfer device 34. Wafers which have been cleaned in the processing tanks 21 to 29 are put into the cassettes 91 and 92 by the wafer transfer device 43 at the fifth point. Using the fifth transfer device 34, the cassettes transferred to the fifth point are transferred to a sixth point accessible to the sixth transfer device 31. Thereafter, the sixth transfer device 31 is used to transfer the cassette transferred to the sixth point to the exit for unloading.

On the other hand, the carry-in unit 10 and the carry-out unit 30 is provided with three transfer devices, respectively, as the number of the transfer device increases, the price of the cleaning device and the maintenance / maintenance cost increases, the operation method This has a complicated problem. In particular, since the first to sixth transfer devices 12, 14, 16, 36, 34, and 31 are all capable of translational movement, the method of operation of the cleaning device of the prior art is very complicated. For example, at the second point or the fifth point, the copper lines of the transfer devices overlap because only the translational movement is possible. Accordingly, in order to proceed with the predetermined transfer process, other transfer devices have an inefficiency that must be offset.

The technical problem to be achieved by the present invention is to provide a cleaning device having a cheap and efficient operation.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an efficient method of operating a cleaning device.

In order to achieve the above technical problem, the present invention provides a cleaning apparatus having a plurality of treatment tanks, an inlet and an outlet. The cleaning apparatus has a first loading device, a second loading device and a wafer transfer device capable of vertical motion, translational motion and rotational motion. In this case, the first loading device is a mechanical device for translating a cassette containing a plurality of wafers loaded at the inlet of the cleaning device to a first point, and the second loading device transfers the cassette transferred to the first point. A mechanical device for translating a cassette conveyed to the second point to a third point after rotationally conveying to the second point, wherein the wafer conveying device separates the wafers from the cassette conveyed to the second point, and then It is characterized in that the mechanical device for dipping the wafers into the processing tank.

Preferably, the first loading device is a mechanical device capable of translational and rotational movements, and further performs a function of rotating the transferred cassette 180 degrees after transferring the cassette to the first point. In addition, the second carrying-in apparatus has a support part capable of translational movement, a rotation part capable of rotational movement about an axis passing through the support part, and a holding part to which the cassette is fixed. In addition, the wafer transfer device is a mechanical device capable of vertical movement, translational movement and rotational movement.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a cassette conveying apparatus for conveying the cassette conveyed to the third point to a fourth point, translating the cassette conveyed to the fourth point to a fifth point and transferring the cassette to the fifth point And a first discharging device for rotationally conveying the cassette conveyed to the sixth point and a first discharging device for translating the cassette conveyed to the sixth point to the outlet. In this case, the wafer transfer apparatus may be a mechanical device for transferring the wafers separated at the second point to the cassette transferred at the fifth point. In addition, the first carrying out device may be a mechanical device capable of translational and rotational movements, and the second carrying out device may be a mechanical device capable of up and down movements, translational and rotational movements. In addition, the first discharging device is a mechanical device capable of translational and rotational motion, and thus may perform a function of rotating the cassette transported to the sixth point by 180 degrees and unloading it to the outlet. The second carrying device may include a support part capable of translational movement, a rotation part capable of rotating motion about an axis passing through the support part, and a holding part to which the cassette is fixed.

In order to achieve the above another technical problem, the present invention provides a method of operating a cleaning apparatus having a plurality of processing tanks, a first loading device, a second loading device and a wafer transfer device. The method includes translating a cassette containing a plurality of wafers from the inlet of the cleaning apparatus to the first point using the first loading device and then rotating the cassette transferred to the first point 180 degrees, wherein the second Rotating conveying the cassette to a second point using an loading device, separating the wafers from the cassette conveyed to the second point using the wafer conveying device and using the second loading device Conveying said cassette separated at a second point to a third point.

In addition, transferring the cassette transferred to the third point to a fourth point using a cassette transfer device while processing the separated wafers in the processing tanks using the wafer transfer device, the fourth point Translating the cassette transferred to the fifth point using a second carry-out device, and placing the separated wafers in the cassette transferred to the fifth point by using the wafer transfer device, wherein the second carry-out And rotating the cassette containing the wafer to a sixth point using an apparatus and unloading the cassette transferred to the sixth point to the outlet of the cleaning apparatus.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein but may be embodied in other forms. Rather, the embodiments introduced herein are provided to ensure that the disclosed subject matter is thorough and complete, and that the spirit of the present invention to those skilled in the art will fully convey. Accordingly, the shape of the elements in the drawings and the like are exaggerated to emphasize a clearer description.

5 to 8 are plan views illustrating a cleaning apparatus and a cleaning method using the same according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, in the cleaning apparatus 999 according to the present invention, a loading part 100 in which cassettes 910 and 920 containing wafers 900 are loaded, and a cleaning process is performed on the wafers 900. The cleaning processing unit 200 and the unloading unit 300 for unloading the wafers 900 subjected to the cleaning process are included.

The cleaning processing unit 200 includes a plurality of processing tanks 210 to 290, a plurality of wafer transfer devices 410, 420, and 430, and a cassette transfer device 600. Various treatment liquids and deionized water may be contained in the treatment tanks 210 to 290, or a drying apparatus for a drying process may be disposed. The wafer transfer devices 410, 420, and 430 are mechanical devices capable of vertically moving the wafers 900 to be immersed in the processing tanks 210 to 290. The wafer transfer apparatuses 410, 420, and 430 may also perform translational movement along the directions of the treatment vessels to transfer the wafers 900 to another treatment vessel. The cassette conveying apparatus 600 includes the original cassettes 910 and 920, which are left after the wafers 900 are separated for the cleaning process in the processing tank, from the carry-in unit 100, to the carry-out unit 300. ) To transfer to.

The loading unit 100 may transfer the loaded cassettes 910 and 920 to the first point 111, and the cassettes transferred to the first point 111. It is provided with a second loading device 160 which can be transported up to point 112.

The first carrying-in device 120 is a mechanical device capable of rotational movement and translational movement, preferably the translational movement from the inlet of the cleaning device 999 to the first point 111, the first point ( 111 rotates the cassette 180 degrees. The rotational movement of the first loading device 120 is preferably rotated about the center of the cassette to the axis in order to minimize the shaking of the wafers contained in the cassette and the required space.

The second loading device 160 is a mechanical device that lifts the cassettes 910 and 920 transferred to the first point 111, and then rotates and lowers the cassettes to the second point 112. In addition, the second loading device 160 may transfer the cassettes 910 and 920 from the second point 112 to a third point 113 to which the cassette transfer device 600 is accessible. To this end, the second loading device 160 performs a translational movement from the second point 112 to the third point 113.

Meanwhile, the wafer transfer apparatus 410 separates the wafers 900 from the cassettes 910 and 920 transferred to the second point 112. The wafers 900 thus separated are subjected to a cleaning process in the treatment tanks 210 to 290 as described above. In addition, after the wafers 900 are separated, the remaining cassettes 910 and 920 are transferred to the third point 113 by the second loading device 160 to transfer the cassette transfer device 600. Through to the fourth point 114.

The carrying out unit 300 includes a first carrying out device 320 and a second carrying out device 360. The second carrying device 360 translates the cassette transferred to the fourth point 114 to the fifth point 115 accessible by the wafer transfer device (eg, 430), and the fifth At point 115, the first carry-out device 320 performs a function of rotationally transporting the cassette to the sixth point 116 accessible. In addition, the first discharging device 320 performs a function of transferring the cassette from the sixth point 116 to the outlet of the cleaning device. In this case, the first and second carrying out devices 320 and 360 are the same mechanical devices as the first and second carrying out devices 120 and 160, respectively, but are preferably arranged in a mirror symmetrical structure. That is, the first carrying out device 320 rotates the cassette 180 degrees at the sixth point 116, similarly to the first carrying out device 120, and then at the sixth point 116. It translates to the exit of the washing | cleaning apparatus 999. Similarly, the first carrying device 320 preferably rotates about the center of the cassette.

9 is a perspective view for explaining a second loading device and a second loading device that constitute the cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9, the second carrying device 160 and the second carrying device 360 are mechanical devices capable of translational and rotational motions. To this end, it is provided with a rotating portion 154 to enable a rotational movement and a support portion 152 to enable a translational movement.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the translational direction of movement of the second carrying device 160 and the second carrying device 360 is defined by a guide groove 151 defined on the surface of the cleaning device 999. Determined by For example, the support part 152 may move only along the guide groove 151. The support 152 is preferably an electro-mechanical device, for example a motor with a tooth, which is electronically controlled and capable of converting rotational motion into parallel motion.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the rotation part 154 rotates the support part 152 about an axis, and is disposed on the support part 152. The rotating part 154 is preferably an electronically controlled electromechanical device, for example a motor. In addition, a bearing may be disposed between the rotation part 154 and the support part 152. According to another embodiment of the present invention, the rotating part 154 may be disposed below the guide groove 151.

One side of the rotating unit 154 is provided with a holding unit 155 for fixing the cassette. The holding unit 155 may have protrusions or grooves that are determined in association with the shape of the cassette to prevent the cassette from slipping.

Hereinafter, a method of operating a cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8. The parts constituting the cleaning device and the function thereof have been described above and thus will be omitted, and only the operation method will be described.

Referring again to FIG. 5, cassettes 910 and 920 containing a plurality of wafers 900 are loaded into the inlet of the cleaning apparatus 999 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The loaded cassettes 910, 920 are translated to the first point 111 by the first loading device 120.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 6, the cassettes 910 and 920 loaded at the first point 111 are rotated 180 degrees by the rotational movement of the first loading device 120. This rotation of the first loading device 120 allows the orientation of the cassettes 910, 920 to be maintained in the same direction as the loading, even after subsequent rotational transfer using the second loading device 160.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 7, the rotated cassette 920 is rotated to the second point 112 using the second loading device 160. Rotational conveyance of the second loading device 160 is preferably a method of rotating the support 180 degrees to the axis. Accordingly, the direction of the cassette 920 is the same as that of the initial loading, and is opposite to the cassette 910 of the first point 111.

Referring to FIG. 8, the wafers 900 are separated from the cassette 920 reaching the second point 112 using the wafer transfer device 410. The wafer transfer device 410 having the separated wafers 900 performs a cleaning process in the cleaning processing unit 200 according to a conventional method. In addition, the empty cassettes 910 and 920 remaining at the second point 112 are transferred to the third point 113 accessible by the cassette transfer device 600 by using the second loading device 160 again. do.

Preferably, the wafer transfer device 410 separates and cleans the wafers 900 included in the two cassettes 910 and 920. To this end, after transferring both the cassettes 910 and 920 to the second point 112, it is preferable to separate the wafers 900 from both of the transferred cassettes.

The empty cassettes 910 and 920 transferred to the third point 113 are transferred to the fourth point 114 accessible by the second carrying device 360 using the cassette transfer device 600. The following export process may be performed in the reverse order of the above-described import process, and it is apparent that the export process may be easily embodied by those skilled in the art based on the above description. Therefore, description thereof is omitted.

According to the present invention, by providing the cassette conveying apparatuses capable of rotational movement, the number of cassette conveying apparatuses can be reduced. Thereby, the cost of the cassette transport apparatus and the cost of maintaining it can be reduced. In addition, as the number of cassette transfer devices decreases, it is possible to minimize inefficient operation of equipment caused by overlapping transfer paths of the cassette transfer devices. As a result, by providing a cassette conveying apparatus capable of rotating motion, it is possible to manufacture a cleaning apparatus which is inexpensive and efficient in operation.

1 to 4 are plan views illustrating a wafer cleaning process using a general cleaning apparatus.

5 to 8 are plan views illustrating a cleaning apparatus and a cleaning method using the same according to an embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a perspective view for explaining a second loading device and a second loading device that constitute the cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (11)

A cleaning apparatus having a plurality of treatment tanks, an inlet and an outlet, A first carrying device; A second import device capable of vertical motion, translational motion and rotational motion; And With wafer transfer devices, The first loading device is a mechanical device for translating a cassette containing a plurality of wafers loaded at the inlet of the cleaning device to a first point, The second loading device is a mechanical device that rotates the cassette conveyed to the first point to a second point, and then translates the cassette conveyed to the second point to a third point, And the wafer transfer device is a mechanical device for separating the wafers from the cassette transferred to the second point and then dipping the separated wafers into the processing tank. The method of claim 1, The first loading device is a mechanical device capable of translational and rotational movement, And said first loading device is a mechanical device that further performs a function of rotating the transferred cassette by 180 degrees after transferring said cassette to said first point. The method of claim 1, The second carrying device is Support for translational movement; A rotating unit capable of rotating movement about an axis passing through the supporting unit; And And a holding portion to which the cassette is fixed. The method of claim 1, The wafer transfer device is a cleaning device, characterized in that the mechanical device capable of vertical movement, translational movement and rotational movement. The method of claim 1, A cassette conveying apparatus for conveying the cassette conveyed to the third point to a fourth point; A second discharging device for translating the cassette conveyed to the fourth point to a fifth point and rotating conveying the cassette conveyed to the fifth point to a sixth point; And And a first discharging device for translating the cassette transferred to the sixth point to the outlet. The method of claim 5, wherein And the wafer transfer device is a mechanical device for transferring the wafers separated at the second point to the cassette transferred at the fifth point. The method of claim 5, wherein The first carrying out device is a mechanical device capable of translational and rotational movements, And said second carrying device is a mechanical device capable of vertical movement, translational movement and rotational movement. The method of claim 5, wherein The first carrying out device is a mechanical device capable of translational and rotational movement, And said first discharging device is a mechanical device for rotating said cassette conveyed to said sixth point by 180 degrees and unloading it to said outlet. The method of claim 5, wherein The second carrying device is Support for translational movement; A rotating unit capable of rotating movement about an axis passing through the supporting unit; And And a holding portion to which the cassette is fixed. A method of operating a cleaning apparatus having a plurality of processing tanks, a first loading device, a second loading device and a wafer transfer device, Translating the cassette containing the plurality of wafers from the inlet of the cleaning apparatus to the first point using the first loading device, and then rotating the cassette transferred to the first point by 180 degrees; Rotationally conveying the cassette to a second point using the second loading device; Separating the wafers from the cassette transferred to the second point using the wafer transfer device; And And using said second loading device, conveying said cassette separated at said second point to a third point. The method of claim 10, Transferring the cassette transferred to the third point to a fourth point using a cassette transfer device while processing the separated wafers in the processing tanks using the wafer transfer device; Translating the cassette transferred to the fourth point to a fifth point using a second discharging device; Placing the separated wafers in a cassette transferred to the fifth point using the wafer transfer device; Rotating conveying said cassette containing said wafer to a sixth point using said second carrying device; And And unloading the cassette conveyed to the sixth point to an outlet of the cleaning device.