KR20070000066A - Semiconductor substrate input-output apparatus and equipment for processing a semiconductor substrate having the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A semiconductor substrate input/output apparatus and semiconductor substrate processing equipment with the same are provided to treat a semiconductor substrate without substrate transfer accidents by using an aligner capable of emitting a visual signal. A semiconductor substrate input/output apparatus includes a port stage, an input/output shutter, and aligner. The port stage is used for receiving a container with semiconductor substrates from a transfer capable of moving along a ceiling path of a clean room and transferring the container to the transfer. The input/output shutter(135) is installed between the port stage and a bit of semiconductor substrate processing equipment in order to load/unload the semiconductor substrates of the container to/from the equipment. The aligner(141,142) is installed over the port stage in order to align the container and the transfer in position. The aligner is capable of emit a visual signal.

Description

Semiconductor substrate input / output device and semiconductor substrate processing equipment including the same {SEMICONDUCTOR SUBSTRATE INPUT-OUTPUT APPARATUS AND EQUIPMENT FOR PROCESSING A SEMICONDUCTOR SUBSTRATE HAVING THE SAME}

The present invention relates to a semiconductor substrate input and output device and a semiconductor substrate processing equipment including the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a semiconductor substrate input / output device for receiving a container containing a semiconductor substrate from a transfer moving along a clean room ceiling, and transferring the container to the transfer, and a semiconductor substrate processing facility including the same.

In general, a semiconductor device is manufactured through a number of unit processes such as a photo process, an etching process, a deposition process, a diffusion process, an ion implantation process, and the like. In order to perform such unit processes, semiconductor substrates are stored in a container and transported to a unit processing apparatus in which the process is performed.

When the diameter of small semiconductor substrates, such as 8-inch wafers, was small, they were transported using an open container. However, in recent years, as wafers have been large-sized to 12 inches and highly integrated, the cost of semiconductor substrates has increased, and blocking of pollutants, which has been ignored in the past, has become more important than ever. Therefore, a closed container has been developed, and a front opening unified pod (FOUP) is widely used as a representative example of the closed container.

Now Pouf is making a significant contribution to factory automation by integrating semiconductor processing equipment. Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail with respect to the semiconductor substrate processing equipment using a paw.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a conventional semiconductor substrate processing facility.

Referring to FIG. 1, a semiconductor substrate processing apparatus includes first and second unit processing apparatuses 15 and 16 and semiconductor substrates housed in a pore 30 for performing a predetermined unit processing process on a semiconductor substrate. The first and second substrate input / output devices 21 and 22 and the pouf 30 for loading and unloading the first and second unit processing devices 15 and 16, respectively, and the first and second substrate input / output devices. Transfer (50) for loading or unloading (21, 22), and a guide rail 60 is installed on the ceiling of the clean room (C) to guide the movement of the transfer (50).

In the clean room C, the first and second unit processing devices 15 and 16 are spaced apart from each other, and the first and second unit processing devices 15 and 16 move along the guide rail 60. It is interlocked with each other by the transfer 50. Hereinafter, the interlocking of the first and second unit processing apparatuses 15 and 16 will be described.

When the unit processing process of the semiconductor substrates in the unit of the poop 30 is completed in the second unit processing apparatus 16, the poop 30 is unloaded to the second substrate input / output device 22 and waits for transportation.

The transfer 50 moves to the upper portion of the second substrate input / output device 22, and descends to hold the paw 30 waiting to be transferred. Transfer 50 rises in the state which grasped the paw 30, and moves to the upper part of the 1st unit processing apparatus 15 along the guide rail 60. FIG. Subsequently, the transfer 50 descends and lowers the pope 30 on the first substrate input / output device 21 of the first unit processing apparatus 15.

The first substrate input / output device 21 opens the pores 30 and loads the semiconductor substrates stored in the pores 30 into the first unit processing apparatus 15. The loaded semiconductor substrates are processed in the first unit processing apparatus 15 and then stored in the pope 30 again. Thereafter, the pope 30 is unloaded from the first unit processing apparatus 15 and waits for the transfer from the first substrate input / output device 21 in a sealed state. That is, the paw 30 is then transferred to another unit processing apparatus for performing the process.

As mentioned above, the semiconductor substrate processing process has been largely automated by the transfer. However, in the conventional semiconductor substrate processing equipment, a process accident in which the transfer incorrectly transfers the poop to the unit processing apparatus or is incorrectly transferred from the unit processing apparatus has often occurred. If a transfer with guide rails is installed in a clean room, it is rarely replaced or changed. However, the unit processing unit can be replaced with new equipment or moved to another location. In this case, it is necessary to change the position of the unit processing unit and to make vertical alignment with the transfer. However, in the conventional semiconductor substrate processing equipment, there is no means for easily aligning the unit processing device and the transfer, and thus, a try and error method of changing the position of the unit processing device little by little and aligning with the transfer is used. It was.

However, such a try and error method is inefficient because the method itself requires considerable time and its accuracy is not so high.

Due to the problems described above, the current unit processing apparatus is installed somewhat deviated from the transfer, and often the accident that the transfer does not correctly transmit and receive the poop. If the transfer does not deliver or receive the poof correctly, serious accidents may occur, such as the entire semiconductor substrate processing process is stopped or the poof falls during the transfer.

As semiconductor devices become more integrated and higher performance, the value of semiconductor substrates is rapidly increasing as the unit process progresses. However, if the semiconductor substrate is damaged or incorrectly processed due to the problems described above, the resulting damage is enormous and it is urgent to prepare a countermeasure.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor substrate input and output device that can quickly and easily align the transfer and the point where the container containing the semiconductor substrate is taken off and landed. To provide.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor substrate processing facility capable of effectively processing semiconductor substrates using the semiconductor substrate input / output device.

In order to achieve the above object of the present invention, a semiconductor substrate input / output device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a port receiving a container containing a semiconductor substrate from a transfer moving along a clean room ceiling and transferring the container to the transfer. Up and down from the port stage to align the stage, the entrance and exit shutters that mediate the port stage and the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus for loading and unloading the semiconductor substrate contained in the container into the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus, and the transfer point and transfer point of the container. And an aligner that emits a visual signal. In this case, the visual signal may include laser light, the aligner may be embedded in the port stage, and the vessel may include a front opening unified pod (FOUP).

In addition, in order to achieve another object of the present invention, the semiconductor substrate processing equipment according to an aspect of the present invention, the unit processing apparatus for each of the unit processing steps for the semiconductor substrate is installed in the clean room, and the clean room, A transfer that moves between the unit processing apparatuses along the ceiling to carry the container in which the semiconductor substrate is stored, and a port stage each installed in the unit processing apparatuses, and a port stage in which the container is taken off and landed, and an entry / exit shutter that mediates the port stage and the semiconductor device. And an aligner for emitting a visual signal upward from the substrate input / output system to align the transfer with the point at which the vessel is taken off and landed at the port stage.

Hereinafter, a semiconductor input / output device and a semiconductor substrate processing apparatus including the same according to exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited or limited to the following embodiments. .

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view illustrating the semiconductor substrate input and output device illustrated in FIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus 100 may be classified into first and second unit processing apparatuses 111 and 112, transfer 120, first and second substrate input / output systems 131 and 132, and First and second aligners 141 and 142.

The first and second unit processing apparatuses 111 and 112 are apparatuses for performing predetermined unit processes with respect to the semiconductor substrate, respectively, and are spaced apart from each other in the clean room C. The first and second unit processing apparatuses 111 and 112 may be apparatuses that respectively perform front and rear unit processing processes which are sequentially performed among a series of unit processing processes for the semiconductor substrate. For example, the first unit processing apparatus 111 may be an apparatus for performing an etching process, and the second unit processing apparatus 112 may be an apparatus for performing a cleaning and drying process. Alternatively, the first unit processing apparatus 111 may be an apparatus for performing a deposition process, and the second unit processing apparatus 112 may be an apparatus for performing exposure. In addition, the unit processing apparatuses 111 and 112 may be variously selected.

Clean room (C) refers to a closed space in which the suspended solids in the air are managed at a prescribed level and environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, and pressure are kept constant as necessary. The clean room C may be divided into a plurality of bays, and the unit processing devices 111 and 112 may be installed in the bays, respectively.

The guide rail 125 for guiding the movement of the transfer 120 is installed on the ceiling of the clean room C. The guide rail 125 may be installed at least between the unit processing devices 111 and 112, and may be installed to extend further. The transfer rail 120 is defective in the guide rail 125.

The transfer 120 moves between the unit processing apparatuses 111 and 112 along the guide rail 125 and carries a front opening unified pod 150 in which the semiconductor substrates are accommodated. In more detail, the transfer 120 grips the paw 150 from the first substrate input / output system 131 of the first unit processing apparatus 111 to form the second substrate input / output system of the second unit processing apparatus 112. 132 or the first substrate input / output system 131 of the first unit processing apparatus 111 by holding the pope 150 from the second substrate input / output system 132 of the second unit processing apparatus 112. To transport. Here, the pouf 150 is a container for hermetically storing the semiconductor substrate in order to prevent the semiconductor substrate from being contaminated and damaged during transportation, and is largely divided into an opening and closing door 151 and a main body 153.

The body 153 has a front surface open box shape. The main body 153 has a plurality of slots formed in the vertical direction, and the semiconductor substrates are accommodated in the slots in the horizontal direction. For example, about 12 to about 25 wafers may be accommodated in the main body 153. The opening / closing door 151 is coupled to the front part of the main body 153 to seal the main body 153.

The pouf 150 moves between the first unit processing unit 111 and the second unit processing unit 112 along the ceiling of the clean room C by the transfer 120. What is the alignment of the transfer 120 and the first and second substrate input / output systems 131, 142 in order to accurately convey the pouf 150 between the first unit processing unit 111 and the second unit processing unit 112? More important than that. Hereinafter, the first and second substrate input / output systems 131 and 142 will be described.

The first substrate input / output system 131 includes a port stage 133, an entry / exit shutter 135, and a first aligner 141.

The port stage 133 is installed at the front of the first unit processing apparatus 111 and receives the pov 150 containing the semiconductor substrate from the transfer 120 moving along the ceiling of the clean room C. Delivers the paw 150 to the transfer 120. That is, the port stage 133 provides a place where the pope 150 is taken off and landed. The pot stage 133 and the first unit processing apparatus 111 are selectively communicated with each other via the entry and exit shutter 135.

The entrance / exit shutter 135 is installed between the port stage 133 and the first unit processing apparatus 111 to prevent the impurities from flowing into the first unit processing apparatus 111. The entrance and exit shutter 135 may open the first unit processing apparatus 111 and at the same time, open the pope 150. For example, in more detail, when the pope 150 disposed on the port stage 133 is in close contact with the entry / exit shutter 135, the entry / exit shutter 135 opens or closes the opening / closing door 151 of the pope 150. The paw 150 and the first unit processing apparatus 111 can both be opened by being lowered in the adsorbed state.

When the pouf 150 is opened, a transfer robot (not shown) inside the first unit processing apparatus 111 grips the semiconductor substrate accommodated in the pouf 150 to load the first unit processing apparatus 111. do. The semiconductor substrate processed in the first unit processing apparatus 111 is unloaded as opposed to the above. The first substrate input / output system 131 is provided with a first aligner 141 for vertically aligning the transfer 120 and the port stage 133.

The first aligner 141 emits a visual signal above the port stage 133 so that the first substrate input / output system 131 can be quickly, easily and accurately aligned with the transfer 120. The visual signal may be a point light selected as a visible signal. In this case, visible light is sufficient as the visual signal, but laser light may be selected in particular. The first aligner 141 emits a visual signal from the first substrate input / output system 131 in the vertical direction. Therefore, when the transfer 120 is positioned directly on the first substrate input / output system 131, the visual signal is irradiated to the transfer 120.

Although the first aligner 141 may be installed anywhere in the first substrate input / output system 131, it is preferable that the first aligner 141 is installed at the port stage 133 on which the pope 150 is taken off and landed. In further development, the first aligner 141 is embedded in the port stage 133 so as not to disturb take-off and landing of the pope 150. In this case, it is preferable that a transparent window is further formed on an upper portion of the first aligner 141 embedded in the port stage 133. A transparent grid may be further formed in the transparent window for easy reading.

The first aligner 141 can always emit a visual signal, but this is not very efficient. It is efficient for the first aligner 141 to emit a visual signal only when it is necessary to align the first substrate input / output system 131 and the transfer 120. To this end, the first aligner 141 preferably further includes an on-off switch 145. In this case, the on-off switch 145 may be installed at the front end of the port stage 133 of the first substrate input / output system 131.

The first substrate input / output system 131 is installed in the first unit processing apparatus 111. That is, when the 1st unit processing apparatus 111 is moved and arrange | positioned, the 1st board | substrate input / output system 131 also moves and arrange | positions together. Conventionally, when the first unit processing apparatus 111 is first placed in the clean room C or when the first unit processing apparatus 111 is moved and disposed, the first unit processing including the first substrate input / output system 131 is performed. All of the devices 111 were moved little by little to align the first substrate input / output system 131 and the transfer 120. This was very inefficient given that the first unit processing apparatus 111 is relatively large. However, when using the first substrate input / output system 131 provided with the first aligner 141 as in the present embodiment, the first substrate input / output system 131 and the transfer 120 can be quickly and accurately aligned with ease. have. Hereinafter, an example of a method of aligning the first unit processing apparatus 111 and the transfer 120 provided with the first substrate input / output system 131 will be described.

When the first unit processing apparatus 111 on which the first substrate input / output system 131 is installed is first disposed or moved in the clean room C, the first aligner 141 is operated to the ceiling of the clean room C. Emits a visual signal. The first unit processing apparatus 111 including the first substrate input / output system 131 moves to a point where the visual signal irradiates the guide rails 125. More precisely, the point at which the transfer 120 descends to lower the pope 150 on the first substrate input / output system 131 (the point at which the popper 150 is lifted from the first substrate input / output system 131 to rise). ), The first unit processing apparatus 111 including the first substrate input / output system 131 is moved to irradiate a visual signal. Subsequently, after adjusting the direction of the first unit processing apparatus 111 including the first substrate input / output system 131 so that the pouf 150 is accurately disposed on the port stage 133, the pouf 150 is fixed.

As described above, the pouf 150 may be opened simultaneously with the opening of the first unit processing apparatus 111. To this end, the pouf 150 must be accurately disposed on the port stage 133, which can be easily performed using the first aligner 141 as described above. In addition, the flow rate of the first unit processing unit 111 generated during the repeated use of the first unit processing unit 111 can be easily checked and adjusted using the first aligner 141.

The second substrate input / output system 132 is substantially the same as the first substrate input / output system 131 except that the second substrate input / output system 132 is installed in the second unit processing apparatus 112. Naturally, the second substrate input / output system 132 is also provided with a second aligner 142 for vertical alignment with the transfer 120, and the second substrate corresponds to the transfer 120 using the second aligner 142. The position of the 2nd unit processing apparatus 112 in which the input / output system 132 was installed can be determined and adjusted. Hereinafter, the description of the second substrate input / output system 132 replaces the first substrate input / output system 131 as an explanation, but it will be easily understood by those skilled in the art. Hereinafter, an example of the semiconductor substrate processing method using the semiconductor substrate processing equipment 100 will be described.

When the process of processing the semiconductor substrates in units of the pouf 150 is completed in the second unit processing apparatus 112, the pouf 150 is frozen from the second unit processing apparatus 112 to the second substrate input / output system 132. Loaded. In this case, the second unit processing apparatus 112 is sealed. The transfer 120 moves to the upper portion of the second unit processing apparatus 112 and then descends to grip the paw 150 disposed on the second substrate input / output system 132.

The transfer 120 ascends in a state in which the paw 150 is accurately gripped and moves upward along the guide rail 125 to the first unit processing apparatus 111. The transfer 120 descends and lowers the pope 150 on the first substrate input / output system 131.

The opening / closing door 151 of the pope 150 is in close contact with the entry / exit shutter 135 and is opened at the same time as the entry / exit shutter 135 descends. When the pouf 150 is opened, the transfer robot 115 inside the first unit processing apparatus 111 grips a semiconductor substrate housed in the pouf 150 and loads the first unit processing apparatus 111. The semiconductor substrate processed in the first unit processing apparatus 111 is unloaded as opposed to the above.

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily, quickly and accurately align the transfer and the point where the container in which the semiconductor substrates are housed are taken off and landed. As a result, the transfer can accurately grasp the container and transport it in the correct position. Thus, the container in which the semiconductor substrates are stored can be transported effectively and safely.

Although the above has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, those skilled in the art various modifications and changes of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention described in the claims below You can. Accordingly, all changes that come within the meaning or range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a conventional semiconductor substrate processing facility.

2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a semiconductor substrate processing facility according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a perspective view illustrating the semiconductor substrate input / output device illustrated in FIG. 2.

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

100: semiconductor substrate processing equipment 111: first unit processing apparatus

112: second unit processing apparatus 115: transfer robot

120: Transfer 125: Guide rail

131: first substrate input / output system 132: second substrate input / output system

133: Port stage 135: Entrance and exit shutter

141: First aligner 142: Second aligner

145: On-off switch 150: Pope

151: Opening and shutting door 153: The body

Claims (5)

A port stage for receiving the container containing the semiconductor substrate from the transfer moving along the clean room ceiling and transferring the container to the transfer; An entrance / exit shutter which mediates the port stage and the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus for loading and unloading the semiconductor substrate contained in the container into the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus; And And an aligner for emitting a visual signal upward from the port stage to align the transfer and the point where the container is taken off and landed. The semiconductor substrate input / output device according to claim 1, wherein the visual signal comprises laser light. The semiconductor substrate input / output device according to claim 1, wherein the aligner is built in the port stage. The semiconductor substrate input / output device according to claim 1, wherein the container comprises a front opening unified pod (FOUP). Unit processing apparatuses installed in the croom to perform unit processing processes on the semiconductor substrate, respectively; A transfer to move the unit processing apparatuses along the ceiling of the clean room and to carry the container in which the semiconductor substrate is stored; A substrate input / output system respectively installed in the unit processing apparatuses, the substrate input / output system including a port stage on which the container is taken off and landed, and an entrance / exit shutter that mediates the port stage and the semiconductor device; And, And a aligner for emitting a visual signal upwardly from the substrate input / output system to align the transfer and the point where the container is taken off and landed in the port stage. Substrate processing equipment.