KR20090038088A - Wafer cassette - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a wafer cassette for inserting and fixing a wafer in a wafer drying and cleaning process. The wafer cassette according to the present invention includes a plurality of slots formed with first and second side plates disposed to face each other, both ends of which are respectively fixed to the first and second side plates, and to which end portions of the wafer are fitted. At least one support shaft formed in the longitudinal direction, a support frame at each end fixed to a lower end of the first and second side plates to support a lower end of the wafer, and the wafer inserted into a slot of the support shaft. And an upper frame fixed at both ends of the first and second side plates so as to press an upper end of the first and second side plates.

Description

Wafer Cassette {WAFER CASSETTE}

The present invention relates to a wafer cassette, and more particularly, the present invention relates to a wafer cassette for inserting and fixing a wafer during the wafer cleaning and drying process.

Wafers are usually processed into a thin sheet after crystallization of silicon and the like with high purity to be used as a basic material for making semiconductor devices. A number of patterns are formed on the surface of the wafer through various semiconductor manufacturing processes, and the wafer chip on which the pattern is formed can be applied to a semiconductor device to make a memory device or the like.

Generally, a wafer cassette refers to a separate wafer management apparatus for placing a wafer. Wafers are frequently transported and processed in various semiconductor manufacturing processes. At this time, the wafer should be stored physically and chemically safe from the external environment.

In the process, a wafer cassette suitable for the characteristics of the process is required. In particular, the wafer cassette used in the wafer cleaning apparatus needs a structure capable of enhancing the effect of the wafer cleaning and drying operations.

The preservation of the wafer surface throughout the entire semiconductor manufacturing process is a key factor in yield improvement, so the importance of wafer cleaning is becoming more important. The wafer cleaning operation can be performed by a wet cleaning process.

Background Art Various wafer cassettes used in such a wet cleaning apparatus have been known in the past, and such wafer cassettes were generally formed to mount a plurality of wafers therein.

However, the conventional wafer cassette has a problem that cleaning and drying are not effectively performed due to droplets of the cleaning liquid on the structure supporting the wafer. Furthermore, the conventional wafer cassette has a problem in that the contact area between the structure supporting the wafer and the wafer is large so that cleaning and drying cannot be performed effectively.

In addition, in the drying process, the conventional wafer cassette has a structure in which the left and right sides and the entire surface are closed, so that a significant part of the total wafer drying time is required to dry the wafer cassette containing the wafer, which causes a delay in drying time. .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the problems described above, and an object of the present invention is to provide a wafer cassette capable of improving the cleaning and drying effects of the wafer in the wafer cleaning and drying process.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, a wafer cassette includes a first and a second side plate disposed to face each other, both ends of which are fixed to the first and second side plates, respectively, and an end of the wafer is provided. At least one support shaft formed in a longitudinal direction with a plurality of slots formed to be fitted therein, and supports having both ends fixed to lower ends of the first and second side plates, respectively, to support the lower ends of the wafers. A frame and an upper frame, each end of which is fixed to an upper end of the first and second side plates so as to press an upper end of the wafer inserted into the slot of the support shaft.

In addition, the first and second side plates may each include a plurality of holes in which the support shaft is inserted and installed, and the plurality of holes may include holes for mounting the support shaft in different positions.

In addition, the first and second side plates may include a plurality of grooves supporting the upper frame so that the upper frame may be mounted at different heights.

In addition, the support shaft may be formed such that the lower half of the vertical cross section is cornered.

In addition, the slot may be gradually narrower in the depth direction.

In addition, the slot may include a portion whose width is smaller than the thickness of the wafer.

In addition, the bottom surface of the slot may be formed such that its central portion is convex.

In addition, the at least one support shaft may be four.

As described above, according to the present invention, the mounting position of the support shaft can be moved in the first and second side plates, thereby enabling use according to the wafer size.

In addition, the support shaft may be formed such that the lower half of the vertical cross section is cornered, thereby minimizing the formation of droplets such as a cleaning liquid.

In addition, the slot into which the wafer is inserted is gradually narrowed in the depth direction and the center of the bottom surface is convex, so that the contact area with the wafer can be minimized.

Therefore, the wafer cassette according to the present invention can improve the wafer cleaning effect by minimizing the formation of droplets, such as a cleaning liquid, and can increase the cleaning effect and shorten the drying time by minimizing the wafer contact portion of the wafer cassette.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a view showing the structure of a wafer cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, a wafer cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention includes first and second side plates 11, 12. 2 shows the structure of the first and second side plates 11, 12 from the front.

The first and second side plates 11 and 12 are disposed to face each other at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the wafer cassette.

The wafer cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention may be used to fix a solar wafer of a solar cell, and the solar wafer has a rectangular shape. However, it is apparent that the shape and arrangement of the wafer cassette can be changed depending on the shape of the wafer without departing from the protection scope of the present invention.

The first and second side plates 11 and 12 are suitably formed in a rectangular shape larger than that of the wafer to support the wafer storage state at both ends of the wafer cassette. In addition, as illustrated in the figure, one more side plate 13 may be added to an intermediate point of the wafer cassette to increase the supporting effect of the wafer. The side plates 11, 12, and 13 may be formed of a material such as Teflon.

The first, second, and third side plates 11, 12, and 13 are connected and fixed to each other by the support frame 60 mounted near the vertices of the quadrangular shape so as to more stably support the storage state of the wafer. have.

In addition, the wafer cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention includes at least one support shaft 20. Both ends of the support shaft 20 are fixed to the first and second side plates 11 and 12, respectively, and serve as guides for the received wafers.

In this embodiment, four support shafts 20 are fixed to the first and second side plates 11, 12, respectively. The four support shafts 20 respectively support the top and bottom sides on both sides of the wafer so that the wafer can be more stably fixed to the wafer cassette.

The support shaft 20 may also be formed of a material such as Teflon, like the side plates 11, 12, and 13.

The support shaft 20 has a plurality of slots 30 formed in the longitudinal direction thereof so that a wafer is fitted into each slot 30. Referring to Figure 2, it can be seen that the vertical cross section of the support shaft 20 is formed in a rhombus.

3 shows a plurality of slots 30 formed in the longitudinal direction of the support shaft 20. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 3.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the support shaft 20 is formed so that the lower half part 21 of the vertical cross section may be edged. This form can prevent a phenomenon that water droplets, such as a cleaning liquid, form on the support shaft 20.

On the other hand, the bottom surface 31 of the slot 30 is formed so that the center part may be convex. Referring to FIG. 4, the bottom surface 31 of the slot 30 is formed in a convex arc in the longitudinal direction and almost in point contact with the end of the wafer. In this embodiment, the end of the wafer W is fitted in the slot 30 with a distance of 1 mm from the bottom surface 31 of the slot 30.

In addition, referring to FIG. 3, the slot 30 has a width that gradually decreases toward the depth direction and includes a portion smaller in width than the thickness of the wafer. Thus, the structure of this slot 30 can minimize the contact area between the wafer cassette and the wafer.

As shown in FIG. 5, the wafers W are each fitted in the slots 30 with minimal contact.

In addition, the wafer cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a support frame 40.

The supporting frame 41 may be formed in the form of a pipe made of metal such as aluminum, and both ends thereof are fixed to lower ends of the first and second side plates 11 and 12, respectively, and inserted into the slots 30. Support the bottom of the. 1 and 2, two support frames 41 and 42 are mounted on the lower ends of the first and second side plates 11 and 12. The two support frames 41 and 42 may support the lower end of the wafer on both the left and right sides, respectively.

In addition, the wafer cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention includes an upper frame 50.

Like the support frame 40, the upper frame 50 may be formed in the form of a pipe made of metal such as aluminum, and both ends of the upper frame 50 are fixed to the upper ends of the first and second side plates 11 and 12, respectively. Press the top of the wafer inserted into).

The first and second side plates 11 and 12 respectively include a plurality of holes 112 and 113 into which the support shaft 20 is inserted and installed. Referring to FIG. 2, the first side plate 11 is formed with four holes 112 in which the support shaft 20 is inserted. Four holes 112 are arranged to fix the end of the rectangular solar wafer at the top and bottom of the wafer on both sides. In addition, when using a wafer larger than this, four holes 113 are formed to move and install the support shaft 20.

Accordingly, the support shaft 20 may be inserted into and installed in the four holes 112 of the first and second side plates 11 and 12, and also, the first and second side plates 11 and 12 may be installed. It may be inserted into four holes 113 mounted at other positions. That is, the position of the support shaft 20 may be adjusted according to the size of the wafer and installed on the first and second side plates 11 and 12.

The first and second side plates 11 and 12 include a plurality of grooves 114 and 115 supporting the upper frame 50. Referring to FIG. 2, a groove 114 is formed at the upper end of the first side plate 11 and connected to a guide hole having a rectangular shape and is deeply recessed downward from a center point of the width of the first side plate 11. . In addition, another groove 115 is formed on the left side of the groove 114 relatively shallower than this. The two grooves 114 and 115 are formed to have different heights so that the upper frame 50 installed thereon may press the upper ends of wafers of different sizes.

For example, if the support shaft 20 is installed in the four holes 112 of the first and second side plates 11 and 12 to match the size of the wafer, the upper frame 50 may be the first and second. It may be mounted in the groove 114 of the side plate (11, 12). In addition, if the support shaft 20 is installed in the four holes 113 of the first and second side plates 11 and 12, the upper frame 50 is the first and second side plates 11 and 12. It is preferable that the height is adjusted to be mounted in the groove 115. Thus, the wafer inserted into the slot 30 of the support shaft 20 can be pressed by the upper frame 50 at different heights to suit its size.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the present invention is easily changed and equivalent to those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains. Includes all changes and modifications to the scope of the matter.

1 is a perspective view of a wafer cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a view showing the structure of the side plate of the wafer cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a perspective view illustrating a support shaft of a wafer cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 3.

5 is a view showing a state in which a wafer is fitted to the support shaft of the wafer cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention.

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

11 ... 1st side plate, 12 ... 2nd side plate,

112, 113 ... hole, 114, 115 ... home,

20 ... support shaft, 30 ... slot,

41, 42 ... support frame, 50 ... top frame.

Claims (8)

First and second side plates disposed to face each other, At least one support shaft having both ends fixed to the first and second side plates, respectively, and having a plurality of slots formed in a longitudinal direction, the ends of the wafer being fitted thereto; A support frame fixed at both ends of the first and second side plates to support the bottom of the wafer, and An upper frame at each end fixed to an upper end of the first and second side plates so as to press an upper end of the wafer inserted into a slot of the support shaft; Wafer cassette comprising a. In claim 1, The first and second side plates each include a plurality of holes in which the support shaft is inserted and installed, and the plurality of holes each include holes for mounting the support shaft in different positions. In claim 2, And the first and second side plates include a plurality of grooves supporting the upper frame such that the upper frame can be mounted at different heights. In claim 1, And the support shaft is formed such that the lower half of its vertical section is cornered. The method of claim 1 or 4, And the slot is gradually narrower in width in the depth direction. In claim 5, And the slot includes a portion whose width is less than the thickness of the wafer. In claim 1, And the bottom surface of the slot is formed such that its central portion is convex. In claim 1, And the at least one support shaft is four wafer cassettes.

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