KR20130104341A - Method of transferring substrate, robot for transferring substrate and substrate treatment system having the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A substrate transfer method, a substrate transfer robot, and a substrate processing system including the same. According to a substrate transfer method, (a) loading a plurality of substrates supplied into a load lock chamber into process modules using a substrate transfer robot, respectively; (b) unloading two substrates from the load lock chamber using the second and third arms to wait; (c) exporting the two substrates processed in the process module using the first arm of the substrate transfer robot, and then importing the two substrates in the standby state into the empty process module; And (d) importing two substrates taken out from the process module into the load lock chamber.

Description

Method of transferring substrate, robot for transferring substrate and substrate treatment system having the same}

The present invention relates to a substrate transfer method, a substrate transfer robot, and a substrate processing system including the same for manufacturing a semiconductor device, a display device, and the like.

In general, semiconductor devices and display devices are manufactured through various processes such as thin film deposition and etching on a wafer or a glass substrate (hereinafter referred to as a substrate). Recently, the cluster substrate processing system is mainly used to increase the efficiency of the process.

In the cluster substrate processing system, the transport chamber has a square or polygonal shape and a transfer robot is installed at the center. A load lock chamber is disposed on one side of the transfer chamber and process modules are disposed on the other side.

In the early cluster substrate processing system, it was common for the transfer robot to repeatedly transfer the substrates from the load lock chamber to the process module one by one, and transfer the substrate processed in the process module to the load lock chamber. However, this method has a problem of lowering the productivity of the product, various methods have been proposed to solve this problem.

For example, there is a transfer robot capable of repeatedly transferring the substrates from the load lock chamber to the process module, and transferring the substrate processed by the process module to the load lock chamber. The transfer robot has two end effectors at the end of the arm. Here, each of the end effectors functions to take one substrate and transfer the substrate, thereby enabling the transfer robot to transfer two substrates simultaneously.

However, the above-described transfer robot has a structure in which the distance between end effectors is fixed. That is, the end effectors are fixed to both ends of the support member rotatably installed at the end of the arm. Therefore, the end effectors have no choice but to simultaneously transfer two substrates at a time. In addition, the end effectors should be operated to sequentially center each center of the substrates when the two substrates are loaded into the process module and the centers of the substrates do not match the set positions. As a result, it takes more time than centering the substrates at the same time, which may cause a decrease in productivity.

In addition, in the situation where only one substrate is to be supplied into the process module, for example, even when there is only one substrate to be supplied to the process module at the end, all of the end effectors must enter the process module. Accordingly, there may be a problem in that the probability of dust generation becomes higher than one of the end effectors is operated to enter the process module.

The object of the present invention is to not only transfer two substrates to the process module or load lock chamber at the same time, but also to transfer only one substrate, substrate transfer method that can improve the substrate transfer efficiency, substrate transfer robot and the like It is to provide a substrate processing system.

The substrate transfer method according to the present invention for achieving the above object,

Transfer chamber; A load lock chamber disposed on one side of the transfer chamber and configured to supply two substrates; Process modules disposed on the other side of the transfer chamber, the process modules including separate substrate processing spaces; And disposed in the transfer chamber to transfer a substrate between the load lock chamber and process modules,

A substrate transfer robot having a first arm operable to simultaneously transfer two substrates from one of the upper and lower parts, and a second and third arms operable to individually transfer one substrate from the other side; A transfer method, comprising: (a) loading a plurality of substrates supplied to a load lock chamber into process modules using a substrate transfer robot, respectively; (b) unloading two substrates from the load lock chamber using the second and third arms to wait; (c) exporting the two substrates processed in the process module using the first arm of the substrate transfer robot, and then importing the two substrates in the standby state into the empty process module; And (d) importing two substrates taken out from the process module into the load lock chamber.

The substrate transfer robot according to the present invention,

A robot body installed in the transfer chamber for transferring the substrate between the load lock chamber and the process module; A first arm installed on the robot body and configured to move forward and backward, and seating and transporting two substrates; Second and third arms disposed on the same plane in the upper or lower portion of the first arm and installed on the robot body and respectively formed to move forward and backward, respectively, for seating and transporting one substrate; And a drive unit for driving the first, second, and third arms.

And, the substrate processing system according to the present invention,

Transfer chamber; A load lock chamber disposed on one side of the transfer chamber and configured to supply two substrates; Process modules disposed on the other side of the transfer chamber, the process modules including separate substrate processing spaces; And a substrate transfer robot disposed in the transfer chamber.

According to the present invention, the first arm may be responsible for transferring the substrate after the process from the process module to the load lock chamber by two sheets, and the second and third arms controlled independently of each other may serve as the substrate before the process. Each one can be assigned to transfer from the load lock chamber to the process module.

Accordingly, not only can the substrates be transferred between the load lock chamber and the process module two sheets at a time, but also the replacement between the wafer processed in the process module and the wafer waiting for processing in the transfer chamber can be performed quickly. In addition, since the centers of the two substrates loaded into the process module by the second and third arms can be simultaneously aligned with the set positions, the time required for the centering can be minimized.

In addition, according to the present invention, when only one substrate is supplied into the process module, since the operation of the arms can be processed by minimizing the operation of the arms, the possibility of dust generation can be reduced.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a substrate processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of a substrate transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a side cross-sectional view of the substrate transfer robot of FIG. 2 assembled;
4 is a plan view of the substrate transfer robot of FIG. 3 assembled;
5A to 5H are views for explaining a substrate transfer method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6A to 6C are diagrams for explaining a method for transferring the last one remaining substrate in the substrate transfer method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a view illustrating a process of loading a process module by aligning each center of substrates in a substrate transfer method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a substrate processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the substrate processing system 1000 is equipped with an equipment front end module (EFEM) 1100, which is a type of substrate handling module. The EFEM 1100 includes a frame 1110 and a load station 1200 on which a substrate storage container, for example, a front open unified pod (FOUP) 1210, is placed. An opening and closing part for opening and closing the door of the FOUP 1210 is installed inside the frame 1110, and an atmospheric robot 1120 for transferring a substrate between the FOUP 1210 and the process part 1300 is installed. The standby robot 1120 may be provided in two, and a buffer unit 1130 may be provided to transfer the substrate to the load lock chamber 1320 more quickly between the standby robots 1120.

The process part 1300 is for performing various processes, such as a deposition or etching process, on the substrate. The process part 1300 includes a rectangular transfer chamber 1310, a load lock chamber 1320 disposed on one side of the transfer chamber 1310, process modules 1330 disposed on three sides, and a transfer. It may be configured as a cluster system including the substrate transfer robot 100 installed in the chamber 1310. The transfer chamber 1310 is illustrated as being made of a rectangular shape, but may be made of a polygonal shape.

The load lock chamber 1320 is disposed facing the EFEM 1100. The load lock chamber 1320 may be configured as a dual type chamber in which two substrates may be arranged side by side. In the transfer chamber 1310, a plurality of load lock chamber side sensors 1321 may be provided in pairs to correspond to one set for each substrate.

For example, when two substrates enter and exit the load lock chamber 1320, two sensing sensors 1321 are disposed to correspond to one of the two substrates on a path through which the substrates respectively enter and exit, and correspond to the other one. Two detection sensors 1321 are arranged. Here, the two detection sensors 1321 are disposed to correspond to the left and right sides of the substrate. Accordingly, position information of the substrate may be obtained two-dimensionally as the substrate enters and exits from the load lock chamber 1320. Of course, the load lock chamber-side detection sensor 1321 may form a set of three or more.

The load lock chamber side sensor 1321 may include a light emitting unit for emitting light, and a light receiving unit for receiving a light emitted from the light emitting unit and processing a light receiving signal. Here, the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion are disposed to allow the substrate to pass therebetween.

In order to increase productivity, the load lock chamber 1320 may have a structure in which an upper load lock chamber and a lower load lock chamber are stacked. The upper load lock chamber may be configured as a dual type chamber in which two substrates may be supplied side by side, and the lower load lock chamber may be configured as a dual type chamber in which two substrates may be supplied side by side.

The process modules 1330 may all be configured to perform the same process, or may be configured to perform different processes depending on the nature or needs of the work. Process modules 1330 may be disposed on each side of transfer chamber 1310. The process modules 1330 may be configured to each include separate substrate processing spaces. In the substrate processing spaces, a process for each substrate may be performed independently.

For example, each process module 1330 may be configured with two single-type process chambers arranged side by side. Each single type of process chamber is formed such that one substrate can be supplied, and the process for the substrate can be performed independently. As another example, the process module may be comprised of a single process chamber body that includes a plurality of substrate processing spaces, each processing a single substrate.

In the transfer chamber 1310, a plurality of process module side detection sensors 1331 may be provided in pairs corresponding to each pair of substrates. For example, when two substrates enter and exit the process module 1330, two sensing sensors 1331 are disposed to correspond to one of the two substrates on a path through which the substrates enter and exit each other, and correspond to the other one. Two detection sensors 1331 are disposed. Of course, the process module side detection sensor 1331 may form a set of three or more. The process module side sensor 1331 may be configured in the same manner as the load lock chamber side sensor 1321 described above.

The substrate transfer robot 100 transfers a substrate between the load lock chamber 1320 and the process module 1330.

The substrate transfer robot 100 may be configured as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4.

2 is an exploded perspective view of the substrate transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 is a side cross-sectional view in the assembled state of the substrate transfer robot of FIG. 4 is a plan view in a state where the substrate transfer robot of FIG. 3 is assembled.

2 to 4, the substrate transfer robot 100 includes a robot body 110, first, second, and third arms 121, 122, and 123, and a driving unit.

The robot body 110 is installed in the transfer chamber 1310. The robot body 110 supports the first to third arms 121, 122, 123, and allows the first to sixth actuators 141, 142, 143, 144. 145, 146 of the drive unit to be embedded.

The first arm 121 is installed on the robot body 110 and is formed to be capable of forward and backward movement. Then, the first arm 121 seats and transports two substrates W at the end. The second and third arms 122 and 123 are disposed on the same plane from the bottom of the first arm 121 and installed on the robot body 110, respectively, and are formed to be capable of forward and backward movement. The second and third arms 122 and 123 mount and transport one substrate W at each end. Of course, the second and third arms 122 and 123 may be installed above the first arm 121.

The driving unit may include first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth actuators 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, and 146, and first, second, and third rotating shafts 151, 152, and 153. The first to third actuators 141, 142, and 143 independently move the first to third arms 121, 122, 123 to move forward and backward to transfer the substrates W back and forth. The first to third actuators 141, 142, and 143 may include a rotation driver and the like.

The fourth actuator 144 is for rotating the one of the second and third arms 122 and 123, for example, the third arm 123. The fifth actuator 145 is for rotating the first arm 121 and the second arm 122 together. Of course, it is also possible that the fourth actuator 144 rotates the second arm 122 and the fifth actuator 145 rotates the first arm 121 and the third arm 123 together.

The sixth actuator 146 raises and lowers the entire first to third arms 121, 122, and 123 to adjust the height of the first to third arms 121, 122, and 123. The sixth actuator 146 may include a rotary motor and a timing belt or a ball screw, which are power transmission means.

The first, second and third rotation shafts 151, 152 and 153 are coupled to the first, second and third arms 121, 122 and 123, respectively. As the first to third rotation shafts 151, 152, 153 rotate by the first to third actuators 141, 142, 143, respectively, the first to third arms 121, 122, 123 may independently move forward and backward.

When the first arm 121 and the second arm 122 rotate together by the fifth actuator 145, the first rotational axis 151 and the second rotational axis 153 are joined together by the fifth actuator 145. Can rotate The first to third rotation shafts 151, 152 and 153 may be installed on the same axis on the robot body 110.

Since the substrate transfer robot 100 having the above-described configuration can control the first to third arms 121, 122, and 123 independently of the forward and backward movements, the substrate transfer robot 100 may have the following advantages. For example, in order to prevent defects in the processing of the substrates, the substrates before the processing need each center to be loaded at a predetermined position of the process modules 1330. In this case, the second and third arms 122 and 123 may be in charge of transferring the substrate before the process to the process module 1330 from the load lock chamber 1320. In this case, since the second and third arms 121 and 122 may be independently controlled, each center of the two substrates may be loaded at the same time according to the setting position of the process module 1330. Therefore, the time required for loading the substrates can be minimized.

Meanwhile, the process of loading the substrates after the process into the load lock chamber 1320 may not require precise position control with respect to the substrates than the process of loading the substrates before the process into the process module 1330. In this case, since the first arm 121 may be dedicated to transferring the substrates after the process treatment from the process module 1330 to the load lock chamber 1320, the entire substrate transfer time may be shortened. In addition, compared to the first arm 121 is configured as the second and third arms 122 and 123, the configuration can be simplified, and thus the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

In addition, since the first to third arms 121, 122, and 123 can control forward and rearward movement independently, the first and third arms 122, 123 carry the substrates from the load lock chamber 1320 and wait for the first arms. The 121 may carry out the substrates after the processing in the processing module 1330. Immediately thereafter, the second and third arms 122 and 123 may bring the standby substrates into the empty process module 1330, thereby enabling a quick replacement between the substrate after processing and the substrate before processing.

On the other hand, the first to third arms 121, 122, 123 may have a difference in the size of some components so that the stroke (stroke) during the forward and backward movements can be set the same, the actual configuration may be the same. Hereinafter, the first arm 121 will be described in detail.

The first arm 121 has a structure capable of moving forward and backward and includes a rear main bar 131, a rear sub bar 132, a link member 133, a front main bar 134, and a front sub bar 135. ), A support member 136, and an end effecter 137.

The rear main bar 131 has one end coupled to the first rotation shaft 151 and the other end coupled to the link member 133. Here, the rear main bar 131 is fixed to the first rotation shaft 151 and rotates together with the first rotation shaft 151, and hinged to the link member 133 to be rotatable with respect to the link member 133.

The rear sub bar 132 is disposed side by side next to the rear main bar 131. In addition, one end of the rear sub bar 132 is rotatably coupled to one of the first and second guide shafts 161 and 162, for example, the second guide shaft 162, and the other end is rotatably coupled to the link member 133. do. Here, the first and second guide shafts 161 and 162 are installed to protrude to the upper portion of the robot body 110, respectively. Each rear sub-bar of the second and third arms 122 and 123 is rotatably coupled to the first guide shaft 161. The rear sub bar 132, together with the front sub bar 135, allows the end effector 137 to linearly move when the rear main bar 131 rotates by the first rotation shaft 151.

The link member 133 connects the rear main bar 131 and the front main bar 134 to each other and the rear sub bar 132 and the front sub bar 135 to each other. One end of the front main bar 134 and the front sub bar 135 is rotatably coupled to the link member 133, and the other end is rotatably coupled to the support member 136, respectively.

The front main bar 134 may be rotatably coupled to the rotation center axis to which the link member 133 and the rear main bar 131 are coupled. In addition, the front sub bar 135 may be rotatably coupled to a rotation center axis to which the link member 133 and the rear sub bar 132 are coupled. The support member 136 is for supporting the end effector 137 on which the substrate W is seated. The end effector 137 is fixed to the end of the support member 136. In the case of the first arm 121, the end effector 137 is formed such that the two substrates W are seated together. In the case of the second and third arms 122 and 123, each end effector 137 ′ is formed so that one substrate W is seated.

In the substrate processing system 1000 having the above-described configuration, a method of transferring a substrate by a substrate transfer method according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5A to 5H together with FIG. 1 as follows. .

First, as shown in FIG. 1, a number of substrates loaded in the FOUP 1210 are located in the load station 1200. Then, the atmospheric robots 1120 included in the EPEM 1100 carry the substrates loaded in the FOUP 1210 into the load lock chamber 1320, and are processed through the process module 1330 to load the chamber 1320. Subsequently, the boards are collected and loaded into the FOUP 1210.

Here, when the substrate is transferred between the buffer unit 1130 and the FOUP 1210 by one of the atmospheric robots 1120, the substrate is transferred between the buffer unit 1130 and the load lock chamber 1320 by the other. You can. As a result, the substrate transfer efficiency can be increased.

When two substrates are loaded into the upper load lock chamber and the lower load lock chamber of the load lock chamber 1320 by the atmospheric robot 1120, the substrate is transferred to the load lock chamber 1320 using the substrate transfer robot 100. Two substrates are taken out and supplied to the process modules 1330, respectively.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5A, when two substrates W1 and W2 are loaded into either one of the upper load lock chamber and the lower load lock chamber of the load lock chamber 1320, the second and third arms are provided. The two substrates W1 and W2 are seated on the end effectors 137 ′ by advancing the 122 and 123 to the load lock chamber 1320.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5B, the second and third arms 122 and 123 are retracted to take out the two substrates W1 and W2 seated on the end effectors 137 ′. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5C, the second and third arms 122 and 123 are rotated toward the process module 1330, and then the second and third arms 122 and 123 are advanced to advance the two substrates to the process module 1330. Import one (W1, W2) piece of paper. If the process is repeated, the substrates W1, W2, W3, W4, W5, and W6 may be loaded into all the process modules 1330 as shown in FIG. 5D.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5E, in the state in which the substrates W7 and W8 are loaded and loaded in the load lock chamber 1320, the second and third arms 122 and 123 are advanced to end end effectors 137 ′. The substrates W7 and W8 are seated on the substrate. Thereafter, the second and third arms 122 and 123 are reversed to carry out the substrates W7 and W8. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5F, both the first arm 121 and the second and third arms 122 and 123 are rotated toward the process module 1330 supplied with the original substrates W1 and W2.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 5G, the first arm 121 is advanced to the process module 1330 in which the substrates W1 and W2 are processed to move the substrates W1 and W2 to the end effector 137. After seating, the first arm 121 is moved backward and taken out. Immediately thereafter, the substrates W7 and W8 waiting on the second and third arms 122 and 123 are supplied to the empty process module 1330. As described above, the substrates W1 and W2 are processed using the first arm 121 while the substrates W7 and W8 are held by using the second and third arms 122 and 123. Immediately after the release from the 1330, the standby substrates W7 and W8 are supplied to the process module 1330, so that the substrate replacement can be performed more quickly.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 5H, the first arm 121 is rotated toward the load lock chamber 1320 to bring the taken-out substrates W1 and W2 into the load lock chamber 1320. Here, if the substrates are loaded in one of the upper load lock chamber and the lower load lock chamber, the substrates W1 and W2 are loaded into the other empty.

By repeating the process illustrated in FIGS. 5E to 5H, the substrates W3, W4, W5 and W6 processed in the remaining process modules 1330 may be quickly replaced with new substrates, respectively. In addition, since the substrate can be processed by transferring the sheet by two, it is possible to contribute to productivity improvement.

Meanwhile, in the process of processing the substrates as described above, when one substrate is present in the load lock chamber 1320, for example, one substrate may be finally present. In this case, as shown in FIGS. 6A to 6C, one remaining substrate WR can be processed.

First, as shown in FIG. 6A, only one of the second and third arms 122 and 123, for example, the second arm 122, is advanced to the load lock chamber 1320 so that the substrate WR may be connected to the end effector 137 ′. 6B, the second arm 122 is retracted and the substrate WR is carried out, as shown in FIG. 6B.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 6C, the first and third arms 121 and 123 are rotated together with the second arm 122 to the process module 1330 loaded with the processed substrates WE1 and WE2. Thereafter, the first arm 121 is advanced to take out the processed substrates WE1 and WE2. Immediately thereafter, one substrate WR in the standby state is carried into the process module 1330 by the second arm 122. In this case, when the process module 1330 is configured to independently perform process processing in substrate processing spaces, an operation for process processing may be performed only in a substrate processing space accommodating one substrate WR, and the substrate adjacent thereto In the processing space, there is an advantage that an operation for processing the process does not have to be performed.

Thereafter, the first arm 121 is rotated toward the load lock chamber 1320 to bring the taken-out substrates WE1 and WE2 into the load lock chamber 1320. When the process is completed on the last substrate WR in the process module 1330, one of the first to third arms 121, 122, and 123, for example, the first arm 121 is operated to be taken out of the process module 1330. Then, it may be carried into the load lock chamber 1320. As such, when one substrate WR is left, the operations of the first to third arms 121, 122, and 123 can be minimized, and the possibility of dust generation can be minimized.

Meanwhile, before loading the substrates seated in the end effectors 137 ′ of the second and third arms 122 and 123 into the process module 1330, the substrates may not be correctly positioned on the end effectors 137 ′. have. The reason for this is that the substrates are supplied to the load lock chamber 1320 in the state in which the substrates are misplaced and loaded in the FOUP 1210 or the position is changed in the process of transferring the substrate from the FOUP 1210 to the load lock chamber 1320. May be due. Alternatively, the cause may be due to a change in position in the process in which the substrate is removed from the load lock chamber 1320 and transferred to the process module 1330.

If incorrectly positioned substrates are loaded into the processing module 1330 as they are, a defect may occur in processing the substrate. To prevent this, each center of the substrates may be loaded into the process module 1330 at a set position in the process module 1330.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the second and third arms 122 and 123 may be moved forward and backward independently of each other. Therefore, the process module 1330 is aligned with the set position C3 on the stage 1332a positioned in the process module 1330 by moving the center C1 of the substrate W1 seated on the second arm 122 back and forth. Simultaneously with loading, the center C2 of the substrate W2 seated on the third arm 123 is moved back and forth and left and right to match the set position C4 on the stage 1332b located in the process module 1330. It is possible to quickly load into module 1330.

The centers C1 and C2 of the substrates W1 and W2 may be adjusted to the set positions C3 and C4. For example, the process module side detection sensors 1331 may be used. In this case, in the process of entering the substrates W1 and W2 into the process module 1330, each position information of the substrates W1 and W2 is obtained from the sensor module side sensing sensors 1331 in the transfer chamber 1310. do. After the respective position information of the substrates W1 and W2 thus obtained are compared with the reference position information, the centers C1 and C2 of the substrates W1 and W2 are set to the set positions C3 and C4 based on the result. The second and third arms 122 and 123 may be independently controlled to fit into the process module 1330. The reference position information may correspond to preset position information on the assumption that the substrate is loaded into the process module 1330 in a state where the substrate is normally positioned at the end effector.

As another example, each position information of the substrates W1 and W2 may be obtained from the load lock chamber-side detection sensors 1321. After the respective position information of the substrates W1 and W2 thus obtained are compared with the reference position information, the centers C1 and C2 of the substrates W1 and W2 are set to the set positions C3 and C4 based on the result. The second and third arms 122 and 123 may be independently controlled to fit into the process module 1330.

Of course, by using both the process module side sensor 1331 and the load lock chamber side sensor 1321, the centers C1 and C2 of the substrates W1 and W2 are aligned to the set positions C3 and C4. The second and third arms 122 and 123 may be independently controlled to be loaded into the process module 1330. In this case, the center positions C1 and C2 of the substrates W1 and W2 to be loaded into the process module 1330 are set based on the position information acquired from the process module side sensor 1331. ), Position information obtained from the load lock chamber side sensor 1321 can be used to perform the correction. Therefore, the centers C1 and C2 of the substrates W1 and W2 can be more precisely aligned with the set positions C3 and C4.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation and that those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and equivalent arrangements may be made therein. It will be possible. Accordingly, the true scope of protection of the present invention should be determined only by the appended claims.

100 .. vacuum robot 121 .. 1st arm
122..second arm 123 .. third arm
1100..EFEM 1120..Standby Robot
1210.FOUP 1310..Transfer chamber
1320. Load lock chamber 1330 Process module

Claims (21)

Transfer chamber; A load lock chamber disposed on one side of the transfer chamber and configured to supply two substrates; Process modules disposed on the other side of the transfer chamber, the process modules including separate substrate processing spaces; And a first arm disposed in the transfer chamber to transfer a substrate between the load lock chamber and the process modules, the first arm operative to simultaneously transfer two substrates at one of the upper and lower sides, and one substrate at the other. A substrate transfer method of a substrate processing system comprising; a substrate transfer robot having a second and third arms to operate.
(a) loading a plurality of substrates supplied to the load lock chamber into the process modules using a substrate transfer robot;
(b) unloading two substrates from the load lock chamber using the second and third arms to wait;
(c) exporting the two substrates processed in the process module using the first arm of the substrate transfer robot, and then importing the two substrates in the standby state into the empty process module; And
(d) importing two substrates taken out of the process module into the load lock chamber;
Substrate transfer method comprising a. The method of claim 1,
The step (c)
Independently controlling the second and third arms, the center of the substrate seated on the second arm is loaded into the process module according to the set position in the process module, and the center of the substrate seated on the third arm is set at the set position in the process module. And a step of loading into the process module accordingly. The method of claim 2,
In the transfer chamber, two pairs of process module-side detection sensors are arranged to correspond to one pair for each substrate;
In the step (c), the second and third arms are based on a result of comparing the respective position information of the substrates obtained from the process module-side sensor in the process of bringing the substrates into the process module with the reference position information. And 3 independently controlling the arms to load each center of the substrates into the process module at a predetermined position in the process module. The method according to claim 2 or 3,
In the transfer chamber, a plurality of load lock chamber-side detection sensors are provided in pairs, one pair for each substrate;
In the step (b), the second and third arms are independent based on a result of comparing respective position information of the substrates obtained from the load lock chamber-side sensor sensors with the reference position information in the process of removing the substrates from the load lock chamber. Controlling and loading each center of the substrates into the process module according to a predetermined position in the process module. The method of claim 1,
(e) if there is one substrate in the load lock chamber, operating only one of the second and third arms to take the substrate out of the load lock chamber and to wait;
(f) taking out two substrates processed in the process module using the first arm, and then importing one substrate in the standby state into the empty process module; And
(g) importing two substrates taken out of the process module into the load lock chamber;
Substrate transfer method characterized in that it further comprises. The method of claim 1,
The load lock chamber is formed by stacking an upper load lock chamber and a lower load lock chamber respectively formed to supply two substrates;
Wherein (d), if the substrate is loaded in any one of the upper load lock chamber and the lower load lock chamber, the substrate transfer method comprising the step of bringing the substrate to the other empty. The method of claim 1,
The process module is a substrate transfer method, characterized in that the two process chambers each comprising a substrate processing space is arranged arranged horizontally. The method of claim 1,
Wherein said process module comprises a single process chamber body comprising a plurality of substrate processing spaces each processing a substrate. It is installed in the transfer chamber for transferring the substrate between the load lock chamber and the process module,
A robot body installed in the transfer chamber;
A first arm installed on the robot body and configured to move forward and backward, and seating and transporting two substrates;
Second and third arms disposed on the same plane in the upper or lower portion of the first arm and installed on the robot body and respectively formed to move forward and backward, respectively, for seating and transporting one substrate; And
A drive unit for driving the first, second and third arms;
Substrate transfer robot comprising a. 10. The method of claim 9,
The driving unit includes:
First, second and third rotational shafts respectively coupled to the first to third arms;
First, second and third actuators for independently moving the first to third arms forward and backward;
A fourth actuator for rotating one of the second and third arms;
A fifth actuator for rotating the first arm and the other of the second and third arms in parallel; And
A sixth actuator for elevating the entirety of the first to third arms;
Substrate transfer robot comprising a. The method of claim 10,
And the first, second and third rotation axes are installed on the same axis on the robot body. The method of claim 10,
Each of the first to third arms is:
A rear main bar engaging with one of the first to third rotational shafts,
A rear sub-bar rotatably coupled to one of the first and second guide shafts installed in the robot body and disposed side by side of the rear main bar;
Link members rotatably coupled to the rear main bar and the rear sub bar, respectively;
A front main bar rotatably coupled to a rotation center axis to which the link member and the rear main bar are coupled;
A front sub bar rotatably coupled to a rotation center axis where the link member and the rear sub bar are coupled and disposed side by side of the front main bar,
Support members rotatably coupled to the front main bar and the front sub bar, respectively;
And an end effector fixed to said support member. The method of claim 12,
The end effector of the first arm is formed so that two substrates are seated, each end effector of the second and third arms is formed so that one substrate is seated. Transfer chamber;
A load lock chamber disposed on one side of the transfer chamber and configured to supply two substrates;
Process modules disposed on the other side of the transfer chamber, the process modules including separate substrate processing spaces; And
The substrate transfer robot of any one of Claims 9-13 arrange | positioned in the said transfer chamber;
Substrate processing system comprising a. 15. The method of claim 14,
In the transfer chamber, a plurality of process module-side sensor sensors are formed in pairs to correspond to each pair of substrates so as to acquire respective position information of the substrates while the substrates are brought into the process module. . 16. The method according to claim 14 or 15,
In the transfer chamber, a plurality of load lock chamber-side detection sensors are formed in pairs to correspond to each pair of substrates so as to acquire respective position information of the substrate in the process of taking out the substrates from the load lock chamber. Processing system. 15. The method of claim 14,
The load lock chamber is a substrate processing system, characterized in that the two substrates are arranged to be arranged laterally. 15. The method of claim 14,
The load lock chamber is a substrate processing system, characterized in that the upper load lock chamber and the lower load lock chamber formed so that the two substrates can be supplied are stacked. 19. The method of claim 18,
And the upper and lower load lock chambers are configured such that two substrates are disposed transversely. 15. The method of claim 14,
The process module is a substrate processing system, characterized in that the two process chambers each comprising a substrate processing space is arranged arranged horizontally. 15. The method of claim 14,
Wherein said process module comprises a single process chamber body comprising a plurality of substrate processing spaces each processing a substrate.

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