KR20200115418A - Apparatus for removing fume - Google Patents

Abstract

A fume removal device comprises: a wafer cassette on which a wafer is loaded; and an exhaust part for exhausting fumes from the wafer loaded in the wafer cassette. The wafer cassette comprises: a loading table provided in both sides to load the wafer; and a front opening part provided in the front to allow the wafer to come in and out, wherein the loading table includes an inclined part provided to be inclined toward the wafer loaded on the loading table as going to the front opening part, and a purge gas outlet for supplying a purge gas to the wafer loaded on the loading table is provided in the inclined part. According to the present invention, a process gas remaining on the wafer can be efficiently removed.

Description

Fume removing device {Apparatus for removing fume}

The present invention relates to a fume removal device.

In general, semiconductor manufacturing processes include processes such as etching, deposition, and etching, and most of these processes are performed in a state filled with process gas.

Most of the process gases are exhausted during the process, but some remain on the surface of the wafer, affecting the wafer damage or contaminating the devices used in the process, causing a problem.

In order to solve this problem, the applicant's registered patent No. 10-1294143 discloses a wafer processing apparatus in which a fume removal function is provided in the cassette of the EFEM itself.

However, the wafer processing apparatus has a disadvantage in that it cannot evenly remove fume from the entire wafer surface.

KR 10-1294143 B1

An object of the present invention is to provide a fume removal apparatus for removing process gas remaining on a wafer.

A fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention includes a wafer cassette on which a wafer is loaded; And an exhaust unit for exhausting fumes from the wafers loaded on the wafer cassette, wherein the wafer cassette includes: a mounting table provided on both sides of the wafer to load wafers; And a front opening provided in the front and through which the wafer loaded on the mounting table enters and exits, wherein the mounting table includes an inclined portion provided to be inclined toward the wafer loaded on the mounting table toward the front opening, and the inclined portion A purge gas outlet for supplying a purge gas to the wafer mounted on the mounting table may be provided.

The space between the mounting tables provided on both sides of the front opening may be smaller than the diameter of the wafer to be loaded on the wafer cassette.

The purge gas outlet is provided with a plurality, at least a portion is provided on the inclined portion, the mounting table further comprises a purge gas flow path for flowing the purge gas flowing into the purge gas outlet, the purge gas flow path , A main flow path and a plurality of branch flow paths branched from the main flow path to each of the plurality of purge gas outlets, each of the plurality of branch flow paths to be arranged to form an obtuse angle with the main flow path in the direction in which the purge gas is supplied. I can.

A plurality of purge gas outlets may be provided and at least some of the purge gas outlets may have a larger diameter as the purge gas outlets disposed closer to the front opening side are provided.

The mounting table is provided vertically and spaced apart so that the wafers can be stacked up and down inside the wafer cassette, and the purge gas outlet is provided in each of the stacking tables provided vertically apart to supply purge gas to each of the vertically stacked wafers. I can.

The mounting table may further include a pin supporting the wafer.

At least part of the wafer cassette may be provided transparently.

A perforated plate provided on a rear surface to communicate the wafer cassette and the exhaust part may be further included, and the perforated plate may include a plurality of intake holes having a longer width toward an upper portion.

The exhaust unit may include a compressed air exhaust accelerator for supplying compressed air to control an exhaust pressure of fume loaded in the wafer cassette.

Inside the compressed air discharge accelerator, a tube communicating with an exhaust gas pressure sensor for sensing an exhaust pressure of fume may be provided, and an end of the tube may be provided to face an exhaust direction of fume exhausted through the compressed air discharge accelerator. have.

It may further include a first sensor for detecting whether the wafer is present in the wafer cassette.

It may further include a second sensor that detects whether the wafer loaded in the wafer cassette is loaded in the correct position.

It may further include a lighting unit that illuminates the inside of the wafer cassette.

A heating member for heating the inside of the wafer cassette, wherein the heating member includes: an upper heater provided on an upper surface of the case of the wafer cassette; A lower heater provided on a lower surface of the case of the wafer cassette; And it may include a rod heater provided on the side of the case of the wafer cassette.

A fume removal device according to another example of the present invention includes: a main body; A wafer cassette detachably provided on the main body and loaded with a wafer; And an exhaust part provided in the main body and configured to exhaust fume of the wafer loaded in the wafer cassette, wherein the wafer cassette includes: a case surrounding the wafer loaded in the wafer cassette through an upper surface, both sides, and a lower surface; A mounting table provided on both side surfaces of the case and having a plurality of vertically spaced spaced so that a plurality of wafers are stacked; And a perforated plate provided on a rear surface of the case to communicate the wafer cassette and the exhaust unit, wherein the mounting table includes a purge gas outlet for supplying a purge gas provided on each of the plurality of mounting platforms, and the purge gas The purge gas supplied to the wafer through the discharge port may flow between the stacked wafers without leaking to the outside of the wafer cassette, and may be discharged to the exhaust part through the perforated plate.

The mounting table may further include a pin that minimizes an area supporting the wafer.

The mounting table may be formed to have a width corresponding to a space between a wafer mounted on the pin and both side surfaces of the case so that purge gases supplied from each of the plurality of mounting platforms provided vertically and spaced apart are not mixed with each other.

It may further include a bezel connecting the wafer cassette and the body to prevent the purge gas from flowing into the space between the wafer cassette and the body.

It is provided between the wafer cassette and the main body, further includes a base plate capable of horizontal adjustment, the wafer cassette may be mounted detachably on the base plate.

The wafer cassette may further include a digital leveler that outputs an abnormal signal when the level is not aligned when seated on the base plate.

The main body includes a purge gas supply port through which a purge gas supplied from the outside is supplied, and the wafer cassette is provided in a shape corresponding to the purge gas supply port, and a purge gas supply port coupling part selectively coupled to the purge gas supply port And when the purge gas supply port coupling part is coupled to the purge gas supply port, the purge gas supplied to the purge gas supply port may be discharged to the purge gas discharge port of the mounting table through the purge gas supply port coupling part.

The purge gas supply port includes a protrusion, and the purge gas supply port coupling part includes a groove having a shape corresponding to the protrusion, and when the purge gas supply port coupling part is coupled to the purge gas supply port, the protrusion into the groove Can be inserted.

A caster capable of rotation and a leveler capable of fixing the body by flowing up and down may be provided at the lower end of the body.

An interface unit is provided outside the main body, and the interface unit may include a display unit for outputting an operating state.

The interface unit may further include a communication port capable of communicating with the outside.

The main body is provided with a fume discharge port communicating the wafer cassette and the exhaust part, and the position of the fume discharge port may be variable.

A fume removal apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a wafer cassette on which a wafer is loaded; And an exhaust unit for exhausting fumes from the wafers loaded on the wafer cassette, wherein the wafer cassette includes: a mounting table provided on both sides of the wafer to load wafers; And a purge gas supply port provided on the mounting table and supplying a purge gas to the wafer loaded on the mounting table, wherein the exhaust unit supplies a fluid to a compression for controlling an exhaust rate of fume loaded on the wafer cassette. It may include an air exhaust accelerator.

The compressed air discharge accelerator includes: a compressed air discharge unit through which the supplied fluid is introduced into the compressed air discharge accelerator; And a compressed air moving part formed so that the supplied fluid is evenly introduced into the entire compressed air discharge part.

The compressed air discharge accelerator may further include an expansion unit provided to expand toward the exhaust direction of the fume so as to induce a flow direction of the fluid introduced through the compressed air discharge unit.

The compressed air discharge unit may have a variable size.

A regulator controlling the pressure of the fluid supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator; And an exhaust gas pressure sensor for sensing an exhaust pressure of fume, wherein the regulator may be controlled by comparing the exhaust pressure of fume and atmospheric pressure measured by the exhaust gas pressure sensor.

A tube communicating with the exhaust gas pressure sensor may be provided inside the compressed air discharge accelerator, and an end of the tube may be provided to face an exhaust direction of fume exhausted through the compressed air discharge accelerator.

The wafer cassette is provided with a perforated plate including a plurality of intake holes in communication with the exhaust portion, and at least a part of the fume of the wafer passing through the perforated plate is guided by an upper hopper having a streamlined shape to flow to the exhaust portion. have.

The fume guided by the upper hopper and flowing to the exhaust unit may be guided again by the lower hopper of the exhaust unit and discharged.

Through the present invention, the process gas remaining on the wafer can be efficiently removed.

1 is a perspective view showing a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention.
2 is a perspective view showing a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention.
3 is an exploded perspective view showing a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention.
Fig. 4(a) is a perspective view showing an upper body-related configuration of a fume removal device according to an example of the present invention, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken from I-I' in (a).
5 is a plan view showing an upper body-related configuration of a fume removal device according to an example of the present invention.
6 is a bottom view showing a fume removal device according to an example of the present invention.
Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing a wafer cassette of a fume removing apparatus according to an example of the present invention.
Fig. 8 is a perspective view and partially enlarged view showing a wafer cassette of a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention.
9 is a plan view showing a mounting table of a first wafer receiving portion of a fume removing apparatus according to an example of the present invention.
10 is a cross-sectional view showing a coupling structure of a wafer cassette, a base plate, and an upper body of the fume removal apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
11 is a perspective view showing an exhaust part of a fume removal device according to an example of the present invention.
12 is a perspective view showing an interface portion of a fume removing apparatus according to an example of the present invention.
13 is a block diagram illustrating a flow path of purge gas, compressed air, and fume in the fume removal apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail through exemplary drawings. In adding reference numerals to elements of each drawing, it should be noted that the same elements are assigned the same numerals as possible even if they are indicated on different drawings. In addition, in describing an embodiment of the present invention, when it is determined that a detailed description of a related known configuration or function interferes with an understanding of the embodiment of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In addition, in describing the constituent elements of an embodiment of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), and (b) may be used. These terms are only used to distinguish the component from other components, and the nature, order, or order of the component is not limited by the term. When a component is described as being "connected", "coupled" or "connected" to another component, that component may be directly connected or connected to that other component, but another component between each component It should be understood that may be “connected”, “coupled” or “connected”.

Hereinafter, a fume removal device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 and 2 are perspective views showing a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention.

1 to 3, the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention may include a main body 100 and a wafer cassette 200.

The main body 100 can form the appearance of a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention. The main body 100 may include a partition wall 101, a front plate 102, and a first hook 103 as an example.

The partition wall 101 may serve as a reference for dividing the main body 100 into an upper main body 110 and a lower main body 120. That is, an upper portion of the partition wall 101 may be referred to as an upper body 110 and a lower portion of the partition wall 101 may be referred to as a lower body 120. In addition, the partition wall 101 may be referred to as a lower surface of the upper body 110 or an upper surface of the lower body 120. The upper body 110 and the lower body 120 will be described later.

In the partition wall 101, as shown in FIG. 4, a height adjustment tool 310 of a base plate 300 to be described later is supported, and a height fixture 320 may be inserted and fixed. That is, the partition wall 101 may support the base plate 300, which will be described later.

In addition, a gas supply path 101a may be provided under the partition wall 101 as shown in FIG. 10. In the gas supply path 101a, a gas supplied to the wafer (hereinafter referred to as "purge gas") to remove fume from the wafer supplied through the purge gas connection port 570 to be described later is purged of the wafer cassette 200. It should be supplied to a gas pipe (not shown). That is, the gas supply path 101a communicates the purge gas connection port 570 with the purge gas pipe of the wafer cassette 200.

The front plate 102 forms the front surface of the main body 100 and may contact EFEM (not shown). In more detail, the fume removal device according to an example of the present invention may be a side storage provided on one side of the EFEM, where EFEM is an abbreviation of Equipment Front End Module, a module that supplies wafers to process modules in a semiconductor production line. Means.

The front plate 102 may be provided with a bezel 117 protruding toward the EFEM in contact. In addition, a first hook 103 may be provided on the rear side of the front plate 102.

The first hook 103 may be hook-coupled with the second hook 111 of the upper body 110 to be described later, and the front plate 102 is coupled with the hooks of the first hook 103 and the second hook 111. ) And the upper body 110 has the advantage of being easy to attach and detach.

In addition, the body 100 may include an upper body 110 and a lower body 120 as an example. The upper body 110 and the lower body 120 will be described later.

Figure 4 (a) is a perspective view showing a configuration related to the upper body of the fume removing apparatus according to an example of the present invention, (b) is a cross-sectional view viewed from I-I' in (a), Figure 5 is a view of the present invention It is a plan view showing an upper body-related structure of a fume removing apparatus according to an example, and FIG. 6 is a bottom view showing a fume removing apparatus according to an example of the present invention.

1 to 5, the upper body 110 includes a second hook 111, a fastening part (not shown), a front opening 113, an upper surface 114, a side surface 115, and a bezel 117. , A purge gas supply port 118 and a fume outlet 119 may be included.

As mentioned above, the second hook 111 may be provided in a shape corresponding to the first hook 111 of the front plate 102 to be hook-coupled with the first hook 111. The second hook 111 may be formed such that the end of the hook faces downward, as an example, and the first hook 103 may be formed such that the end of the hook faces upward. In this case, it is convenient to remove the upper body 110 from the front plate 102 simply by lifting the upper body 110 upward.

The fastening part serves to couple the upper body 110 to the lower body 120. That is, the detachable upper body 110 may be firmly coupled to the lower body 120 through the fastening part. The fastening portion may include a configuration for screwing as an example. That is, the upper body 110 and the lower body 120 may be firmly fixed through screw coupling.

The front opening 113 is formed in front of the upper body 110 and functions as a wafer transfer path. That is, the wafer is supplied to the upper body 110 through the front opening 113 or the wafer is discharged from the upper body 110. In more detail, the front opening 113 may communicate with the EFEM, and the wafer transfer robot arm (not shown) of the EFEM transfers the wafer to the wafer cassette 200 inside the upper body 110 through the front opening 113. Can supply. In addition, the wafer transfer robot arm of the EFEM may discharge a wafer loaded in the wafer cassette 200 inside the upper body 110 through the front opening 113.

The upper surface 114 is a term referring to the upper surface of the upper body 110, and in an example of the present invention, the upper surface 114 may include a transparent plate 114a. In this case, the user of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention has the advantage of being able to observe the situation inside the upper body 110 through the transparent plate 114a.

The side surface 115 refers to a surface forming a side portion of the upper body 110 and may include a transparent plate 115a like the upper surface. In this case, as described in the description of the upper surface 114, the user of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention has the advantage of being able to observe the situation inside the upper body 110 through the transparent plate 115a. have.

The bezel 117 may be provided to protrude from the front plate 102. When the bezel 117 is combined with the EFEM through this structure, a part of the bezel 117 may be inserted into the EFEM. Therefore, the bezel 117 may be manufactured in consideration of the radius of rotation of the wafer transfer robot arm of EFEM.

In addition, the bezel 117 combines the wafer cassette 200 and the upper body 110 from the front as shown in FIG. 1, and the purge gas purged from the wafer cassette 200 is applied to the wafer cassette 200 and the upper body. It can play a role of preventing leakage into the space between (110).

As shown in FIG. 10, the purge gas supply port 118 includes the purge gas supply port coupling part 270 so that the purge gas supply port coupling part 270 of the wafer cassette 200 to be described later can be inserted and coupled. It may be provided in a corresponding shape. The purge gas supply port 118 may be provided with a protrusion 118a protruding inward as an example. In this case, the purge gas supply port coupling portion 270 is provided with a groove 271 having a shape corresponding to the protrusion 118a, and the upper main body in a manner in which the protrusion 118a is inserted into the groove 271. 110) and the wafer cassette 200 may be combined.

The fume discharge port 119 serves to discharge fume (residual process gas) generated from the wafer loaded on the wafer cassette 200. The wafer is processed in a process gas atmosphere (a state in which the process gas is provided inside the process chamber) in the process module, and the process gas remains on the wafer even after the process is completed. However, such a process gas remaining on the wafer has an effect on damage to the wafer or contaminates devices used in the process, causing a problem. The fume outlet 119 communicates with the exhaust unit 400 to be described later to serve as a passage for discharging fume, which is a process gas remaining on the wafer. As an example, fume remaining on the wafer accommodated in the wafer cassette 200 may flow along the upper hopper 260 of the wafer cassette 2000, flow into the lower hopper 410 through the fume outlet 119, and then be discharged. .

In addition, the fume outlet 119 may be formed by the fume outlet forming portion 119a, as shown in FIG. 4. The fume outlet forming part 119a is provided to be movable so that the position of the fume outlet 119 may be varied. Through this, when the fume removal device according to an example of the present invention is installed in the EFEM, the position of the discharge port 119 is adjusted so that it can be used in both the left and right sides of the EFEM.

2 and 6, the lower body 120 may include a side surface 121, a lower surface 122, a fume outlet 123, a caster 124, a leveler 125, and a door 126. have.

On the side surface 121, an interface unit 500 may be provided as shown in FIG. 2, which will be described later.

On the lower surface 122, a bottom surface of the lower body 120 may be formed, and a fume outlet 123, a caster 124, and a leveler 125 to be described later may be formed.

The fume outlet 123 communicates with the connection port 450 of the exhaust unit 400 to be described later to serve as a passage for discharging fume exhausted through the exhaust unit 400 to the outside. The fume outlet 123 may be provided in a circular shape at the center of the lower surface 122 of the lower body 120 as an example, but is not limited thereto.

The caster 124 is provided on the lower surface 122 of the lower body 120 and serves to increase the ease of movement of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention. In more detail, the caster 124 is provided with a wheel so that the fume removal device can be easily moved through the rotation of the caster 124.

The leveler 125 is provided on the lower surface 122 of the lower body 120 and serves to increase the fixing force of the fume removing apparatus according to an example of the present invention. In more detail, the leveler 125 may move up and down by rotation and may protrude from the lower surface 122 of the lower body 120 than the caster 124. When the leveler 125 protrudes from the lower surface 122 of the lower body 120 than the caster 124, the caster 124 is in a state of floating in the air, so that the user cannot easily move the fume removal device. State. Of course, even when both the caster 124 and the leveler 125 are in contact with the floor, the movement of the fume removal device may be restricted. Also, the leveler 125 may be used to adjust the height when the fume removal device is installed in the EFEM.

When the user wants to move the fume removal device, the user may rotate the leveler 125 to move it upward and make the caster 124 contact the floor on which the fume removal device is installed. In this state, the user can move the fume removal device by simply pushing the fume removal device. In addition, if the fume removing device is installed in the EFEM, the leveler 125 may be rotated to move downward so that the fume removing device may be firmly installed without moving, so that the leveler 125 may touch the floor.

The door 126 may be provided on the side surface 121 of the lower body 120 so as to be selectively opened or closed. That is, the user can easily access the interior of the lower body 120 by opening and closing the door 126.

A wafer cassette 200 on which a wafer is loaded is accommodated in the upper body 110. In addition, the wafer cassette 200 may be described as being supported by the lower body 120. The wafer cassette 200 will be described in detail below.

7 is a perspective view showing a wafer cassette of a fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention, FIG. 8 is a perspective view and partially enlarged view showing a wafer cassette of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention, and FIG. It is a plan view showing the mounting table of the 1st wafer accommodating part of the fume removal apparatus concerning an example of this invention.

7 to 9, the wafer cassette 200 of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention includes a case 210, a first wafer receiving unit 220, a second wafer receiving unit 230, and heating. Member 240, perforated plate 250, upper hopper 260, purge gas supply port coupling part 270, sebum gas pipe (not shown), leveler 291, first sensor 292, second sensor (not shown) City) and a lighting unit 294 may be included.

The case 210 can form the exterior of the wafer cassette 200. The case 210 may be provided larger than the wafer so as to accommodate the wafer therein. The case 210 may be formed to be sealed except for a portion corresponding to the front opening 113 of the upper body 110 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. In this case, the purge gas injected from the purge gas outlet 226 of the first wafer accommodating unit 220 to be described later may flow and be discharged only inside the case 210. That is, when the case 210 is not provided, the purge gas discharged to the wafer flows through the entire interior of the upper body 110, and is used to remove fume from the wafer compared to the case where the case 210 is provided. The amount of purge gas increases. In other words, the sealing structure of the case 210 may serve to save the amount of purge gas used to remove fume from the wafer. This may be described as the sealing structure of the case 210 improves the fume removal efficiency of the wafer.

The case 210 may include a front opening 211 formed in a size corresponding to a position corresponding to the front opening 113 of the upper body 110. The front opening 211 of the case 210 may function as an entrance passage for a wafer. In addition, the case 210 may be formed in a closed structure except for the front opening 211 as previously salpinned.

The case 210 may include an upper heater 241 and a leveler 291 on the upper surface 212. The upper heater 241 and the leveler 291 will be described later.

In addition, the case 210 may include a first wafer receiving portion 220, a second wafer receiving portion 230, a side gas pipe 282, and a rod heater (not shown) on the side 213. The first wafer receiving portion 220, the second wafer receiving portion 230, the side gas pipe 282, and the rod heater will be described later.

In addition, the case 210 may include a perforated plate 250 and an upper hopper 260 on the rear surface 214. The perforated plate 250 and the upper hopper 260 will be described later.

In addition, the case 210 has a lower heater 242, a purge gas supply port coupling unit 270, a lower gas pipe (not shown), a first sensor 292, and a second sensor (not shown) on the lower surface 215 And a lighting unit 294 and the like. The lower heater 242, the purge gas supply port coupling unit 270, the lower gas pipe, the first sensor 292, the second sensor, and the lighting unit 294 will be described later.

The first wafer receiving unit 220 serves to support a wafer and supply a purge gas to the wafer. As shown in FIG. 8, the first wafer accommodating part 220 may be provided on both sides of the side 213 of the case 210. In addition, the first wafer accommodating unit 220 may include a plurality of mounting tables 221 for loading a single wafer in a vertically spaced form. A wafer may be allowed in and out of the space between the plurality of mounting tables 221. In other words, the wafer transfer robot arm of EFEM can enter and exit the wafer through the spaced space between the plurality of mounting tables 221. Through such a structure, the first wafer receiving unit 220 may support a plurality of wafers to be stacked apart from each other.

The mounting table 221 may be provided with an inclined portion 222 as an example. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the inclined portion 222 is a portion protruding toward the circular wafer mounted on the mounting table 221 as a part of the mounting table 221 and having an inclination. A second purge gas outlet 226c to be described later may be provided in the inclined portion 222. The second purge gas outlet 226c supplies purge gas to the front of the circular wafer mounted on the mounting table 221 (in the direction of the front opening 211) (refer to FIG. 8) to supply purge gas to the entire wafer. To be able to. That is, the inclined portion 222 of the mounting table 221 and the second purge gas outlet 226c provided in the inclined portion 222 are used in which purge gas is not supplied to the wafer loaded on the mounting table 221. It plays the role of not having an area

Further, the mounting table 221 may be provided with a pin 223 that supports the wafer. As an example, the mounting table 221 may be provided with a plurality of pins 223 to support the wafer. As an example, the pin 223 may have a thin rod shape as shown in FIG. 8. When the wafer is supported by the pins 223, since a portion in contact between the wafer and other members to support the wafer is minimized, there is an advantage in that a phenomenon in which the wafer is damaged by contact is minimized.

In the case of the mounting table 221, it may have a predetermined width (see w in FIG. 9). In this case, the purge gas supplied to the wafer loaded on the pins 223 is blocked by the mounting table 221 and the wafer, so that the up and down flow is limited and flows only in the horizontal direction. That is, when the mounting table 221 has a width to fill the space between the wafer and the case 210, the purge gas used for purging the wafer is limited because the vertical movement of the purge gas is restricted by the mounting table 221 and the wafer. There is an advantage of saving the amount of. This may be described as improving the fume removal efficiency of the wafer in addition to the sealing structure of the case 210 mentioned above.

The mounting table 221 may be provided with a purge gas inlet 224 for accommodating a side gas pipe 282 for supplying a purge gas. That is, the purge gas may be introduced into the mounting table 221 through the purge gas inlet 224.

Further, the mounting table 221 may be provided with a purge gas flow path 225 and a purge gas outlet 226. The purge gas flow path 225 is a flow path through which the purge gas introduced through the purge gas inlet 224 flows to be discharged through the purge gas outlet 226. That is, the purge gas outlet 226 is a passage through which the purge gas introduced through the purge gas inlet 224 passes through the purge gas flow path 225 and is discharged. The purge gas discharged through the purge gas outlet 226 is supplied to the wafer loaded on the mounting table 221.

The purge gas flow path 225 may include a plurality of branch flow paths 225b, 225c, 225d, and 225e branched from the main flow path 225a. The purge gas flow path 225 includes, as an example, a main flow path 225a, a first branch flow path 225b, a second branch flow path 225c, a third branch flow path 225d, and a fourth branch flow path 225e. can do. The first branch flow path 225b to the fourth branch flow path 225e may be sequentially referred to as going from the front (the direction in which the wafer is supplied) to the rear. The first branch passage 225b to the fourth branch passage 225e may be provided so that an angle formed with the main passage 225a in the direction in which the purge gas is supplied is an obtuse angle. In addition, among the first branch flow path 225b to the fourth branch flow path 225e, a flow path for spraying a relatively small amount of purge gas may form a right angle or an acute angle with the main flow path 225a in the direction in which the purge gas is supplied. Can be placed. Each of the diameters of the first branch passage 225b, the second branch passage 225c, the third branch passage 225d, and the fourth branch passage 225e may be provided differently from each other. Here, the diameter may be understood as a concept including an index indicating the size of a polygon such as width and width. As an example, the diameters of the first branch flow path 225b, the second branch flow path 225c, the third branch flow path 225d, and the fourth branch flow path 225e are from the first branch flow path 225b to the fourth branch. It may be smaller as it goes to the flow path 225e. In addition, the diameters of the first branch passage 225b, the second branch passage 225c, the third branch passage 225d, and the fourth branch passage 225e are the first purge gas outlet 226b, which will be described later, and the second It may have a size corresponding to the purge gas outlet 226c, the third purge gas outlet 226d, and the fourth purge gas outlet 226e. Accordingly, the diameter may decrease from the first purge gas outlet 226b to the fourth purge gas outlet 226e. In this case, more purge gas is discharged from the purge gas discharge port 226 that discharges the purge gas to the front of the wafer. At this time, since the purge gas discharged to the wafer flows from the front (front opening 211 side) to the rear (perforated plate 250 side), a larger amount of purge gas flows from the front to the rear of the wafer.

In addition, the mounting table 221 may be provided with a fixture (not shown). A rod-shaped support member (not shown) for fixing and supporting the plurality of mounting tables 221 may be inserted into the fixture. That is, a plurality of mounting tables 221 may be fixedly supported in a state spaced apart from each other through the fixture.

In addition, the mounting table 221 of the first wafer receiving unit 220 may be provided on both sides of the case 210 of the wafer cassette 200, and at this time, the width between the mounting tables 221 provided on both sides (B, see FIG. 8) may be provided to be smaller than the diameter of the wafer. As mentioned above, this structure is advantageous in supplying the purge gas from the front of the wafer. However, it may be problematic to load the wafer onto the mounting table 221, but in the present invention, a space is provided between the mounting tables 221 so that there is no problem for the wafer to enter and exit.

The second wafer receiving portion 230 serves to support the wafer. Further, the second wafer receiving unit 230 may be described as supporting the first wafer receiving unit 220 to support the wafer. As shown in FIG. 8, the second wafer accommodating part 230 may be provided on both sides of the side 213 of the case 210. In addition, the second wafer receiving unit 230 may be provided relatively behind the first wafer receiving unit 220. The second wafer receiving part 230 may include a mounting table 231 and a pin 232 protruding from the mounting table 231. The pin 232 serves to support the wafer from the bottom. The pin 232 of the second wafer receiving unit 230 may be provided in the form of a thin rod having the same shape as the pin 223 of the first wafer receiving unit 220, thereby minimizing the contact area with the wafer. can do.

The heating member 240 serves to heat the inside of the wafer cassette 200. The heating member 240 may include an upper heater 241, a lower heater 242, and a rod heater (not shown) as an example. The upper heater 241 may be provided on the upper surface 212 of the case 210. In addition, the lower heater 242 may be provided on the lower surface 215 of the case 210. A plurality of rod heaters may be provided on the side 213 of the case 210. The heating member 240 is evenly disposed on the upper surface 212, the side surface 213, and the lower surface 215 of the case 210, as salpin, so that the inside of the wafer cassette 200 can be evenly heated.

The perforated plate 250 may be provided on the rear surface 214 of the case 210 as an example. In addition, the perforated plate 250 may include a plurality of intake holes 251. The intake hole 251 is a passage through which fume and purge gas generated from a wafer accommodated in the wafer cassette 200 are discharged. The shape of the intake hole 251 may be provided in a straight line as shown in FIG. 8 as an example, but is not limited thereto. That is, the intake hole 251 may be formed in various ways, such as a circular shape or a polygonal shape, provided that only the role of the fume and purge gas discharge passage is performed. However, preferably, the intake hole 251 may be provided such that the width increases toward the upper portion (see FIG. 8 ). In this case, there is an advantage that fume and purge gas inside the wafer cassette 200 can be uniformly discharged from both the upper and lower portions. This is, fume and purge gas are discharged through the fume outlet 119 provided in the partition wall 101 corresponding to the lower surface of the upper body 110 through the upper hopper 260 provided on the rear surface of the perforated plate 250, This is because the flow path of the fume and purge gas causes a flow velocity faster than the upper portion of the wafer cassette 200 located relatively close to the fume outlet 119.

The upper hopper 260 serves to guide fume and purge gas discharged through the intake hole 251 of the perforated plate 250 to the fume outlet 119 of the upper body 110. As an example, the upper hopper 260 may include an inclined portion 261, a streamlined portion 262, and a discharge passage 263 as shown in FIG. 7. The inclined portion 261 is positioned above the upper hopper 260 and serves to guide the fume and purge gas discharged through the intake hole 251 toward the fume outlet 119 positioned below. The streamlined portion 262 is located under the inclined portion 261 and serves to guide fume and purge gas to the fume outlet 119. The streamlined portion 262 may have a streamlined structure so that there is no dead area in which fume and purge gas stagnate. The discharge passage 263 is provided under the streamlined portion 262 and may be inserted into the fume discharge port 119. The fume and purge gas discharged through the fume outlet 119 flow into the lower hopper 410 of the exhaust unit 400 to be described later, which will be described later.

The purge gas supply port coupling unit 270 may be inserted into the hollow 301 of the base plate 300 and the purge gas supply port 118 of the upper body 110 as shown in FIG. 10. The purge gas supply port coupling unit 270 is coupled to the hollow 301 and the purge gas supply port 118, and when coupled in this way, the purge gas supplied from the gas supply path (see 101a in FIG. 10) is supplied. You can be in a state. The purge gas supplied from the gas supply path 101a may be discharged to the wafer surface through the purge gas outlet 226 of the mounting table 221 through a purge gas pipe (not shown) to be described later. The purge gas supply port coupling part 270 may include a groove 271 as an example. The groove 271 may be provided in a shape corresponding to the protrusion 118a of the upper body 110. In this case, when the purge gas supply port coupling part 270 is inserted into the purge gas supply port 118, the protrusion 118a is inserted into the groove 271 to form a solid coupling force. In addition, since the binding force between the purge gas supply port 118 and the purge gas supply port coupling unit 270 is improved through such a structure, leakage of the purge gas may be prevented.

The purge gas pipe (not shown) serves to supply the purge gas supplied by being connected to the purge gas supply port coupling unit 270 to the purge gas inlet 224 of the first wafer receiving unit 220. As an example, the purge gas pipe may include a lower gas pipe (not shown) and a side gas pipe 282. The lower gas pipe may be arranged along the lower surface 215 of the case 210 as an example. The lower gas pipe may connect the purge gas supply port coupling portion 270 and the side gas pipe 282. That is, the lower gas pipe may supply the purge gas supplied through the purge gas supply port coupling unit 270 to the side gas pipe 282. The side gas pipe 282 may be coupled to the purge gas inlet 224 as shown in FIG. 8 to supply purge gas to the purge gas flow path 225.

The leveler 291 serves to detect whether the wafer cassette 200 is installed so as to be horizontal. The leveler 291 may be, for example, a digital leveler. In this case, there is an advantage that the horizontal measurement value of the wafer cassette 200 sensed by the leveler 291 can be displayed through the display unit 520 of the interface unit 500 to be described later. In addition, a separate gauge (not shown) for displaying a measured value measured by the digital leveler may be provided on the interface unit 500. In addition, when the measured value measured by the leveler 291 exceeds the reference value, that is, when the wafer cassette 200 is not installed horizontally (to the original position), a warning message or a warning sound is output. A sub (not shown) may be provided. The warning output unit may be controlled by a control unit (not shown) to be described later. The horizontal adjustment of the wafer cassette 200 is performed by the base plate 300, which will be described later.

The first sensor 292 serves to detect whether a wafer is present in the wafer cassette 200. The first sensor 292 may be provided on the lower surface 215 of the case 210 as illustrated in FIG. 8 as an example, but is not limited thereto. The first sensor 292 may be connected to the control unit, and the control unit may control the discharge of purge gas to be stopped when it is determined by the first sensor 292 that a wafer does not exist in the wafer cassette 200. have.

The second sensor (not shown) serves to detect whether the wafer loaded on the pins 223 and 232 of the mounting tables 221 and 231 of the wafer cassette 200 protrudes forward, that is, whether the wafer is loaded in the correct position. do. The second sensor may be provided on the lower surface 215 of the case 210, but is not limited thereto. The second sensor may be connected to the control unit, and the control unit may output a warning message or a warning sound through the warning output unit when it is determined that the wafer is not loaded in the correct position by the second sensor, and the wafer transfer robot arm of EFEM Through this, it is possible to control the wafer to be loaded in place.

The lighting unit 294 serves to illuminate the inside of the wafer cassette 200. As an example, the upper body 110 may include transparent plates 114a and 115a, and the wafer cassette 200 may also be made of a transparent material. In this case, the wafer When light is shining on the inside of the cassette 200, the user has the advantage of being able to observe whether the work inside the wafer cassette 200 is properly proceeding from the outside. The lighting unit 294 may be an LED as an example, but is not limited thereto.

10 is a cross-sectional view showing a coupling structure of a wafer cassette, a base plate, and an upper body of the fume removal apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 and 10, the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention may further include a base plate 300.

The base plate 300 is provided between the wafer cassette 200 and the partition wall 101 of the main body 100 to adjust the horizontal and the height of the wafer cassette 200. That is, the base plate 300 may include a horizontal adjustment structure. The base plate 300 may include, as an example, a hollow 301, a height adjuster 310, and a height fixture 320. The purge gas supply port coupling part 270 of the wafer cassette 200 may be inserted into the hollow 301 of the base plate 300. In addition, the height adjuster 310 of the base plate 300 may move up and down by rotation as shown in FIG. 4 to adjust the distance between the base plate 300 and the partition wall 101. The height fixture 320 of the base plate 300 penetrates the base plate 300 and at least partially is inserted into the partition wall 101 as shown in FIG. 4 to fix the base plate 300 to the main body 100 can do. The height fixture 320 may be provided with screws as an example and screwed to the main body 100, but is not limited thereto.

Of course, a structure for adjusting the horizontal and height of the wafer cassette 200 itself may be directly provided. However, in an example of the present invention, even when several wafer cassettes 200 are mixed and used by applying the horizontal and height adjustment structure of the wafer cassette 200 to the base plate 300, each wafer cassette 200 is horizontally There is an advantage that there is no need to adjust the value.

11 is a perspective view showing an exhaust part of a fume removal device according to an example of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 11, the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention may further include an exhaust part 400.

The exhaust unit 400 may suck fume generated from a wafer loaded inside the wafer cassette 200 and a purge gas injected from the wafer cassette 200 and exhaust the fume to the outside. The exhaust part 400 may include a lower hopper 410, a first exhaust pipe 420, a second exhaust pipe 430, an exhaust pump 440, and a connection port 450.

The lower hopper 410 may be provided on the lower surface of the upper body 110 to the lower portion of the partition wall 101. That is, the lower hopper 410 may be provided inside the lower body 120. The lower hopper 410 is in communication with the fume outlet 119 of the upper body 110 and serves to guide the flow of fume and purge gas discharged through the fume outlet 119. The lower hopper 410 may guide fume and purge gas discharged through the fume outlet 119 to the first exhaust pipe 420. The lower hopper 410 forms a double hopper structure together with the upper hopper 260 located on the upper body 110. In an example of the present invention, it is possible to minimize backflow of fume and exhaust gas discharged through such a double hopper structure. In addition, the lower hopper 410 has a streamlined structure in which the upper part is open, so that dead areas in which fume and purge gas are stagnated can be minimized.

The first exhaust pipe 420 may connect the lower hopper 410 and the second exhaust pipe 430. That is, fume and exhaust gas introduced into the first exhaust pipe 420 through the lower hopper 410 may flow to the second exhaust pipe 430. The first exhaust pipe 420 may include a connection pipe (not shown) and a connection end 422 as an example. The connection pipe may couple the lower hopper 410 and the first exhaust pipe 420. Accordingly, the connection pipe may include a sealing member so that fume and exhaust gas do not leak from the connection end. In addition, the connection end 422 may be formed on the side of the first exhaust pipe 420 to be connected to a separate pipe (not shown). As an example, the connection end 422 may be in communication with a tube (not shown) connecting the inside of the EFEM. In this case, there is an advantage of installing only a relatively simple piping structure to remove fluid such as fumes inside the EFEM. The connecting end 422 is provided with an opening/closing member such as a damper and can be controlled to be opened only when in use.

The second exhaust pipe 430 connects the first exhaust pipe 420 and the connection port 450. An exhaust pump 440 may be provided inside the second exhaust pipe 430 as an example.

The exhaust pump 440 may control a flow direction and speed of a fluid in a flow path leading to the upper hopper 260, the lower hopper 410, the first exhaust pipe 430 and the second exhaust pipe 430. That is, the fume and purge gas in the wafer cassette 200 may be discharged to the outside by the exhaust pump 440, and the amount of fume and purge gas exhausted per unit time may be increased or decreased.

As an example, the exhaust pump 440 may be provided as a member that controls the speed of the fluid by supplying compressed air through a compressor (not shown) without using a motor. Hereinafter, this member will be referred to as a compressed air discharge accelerator. I can. However, it should be noted that the compressed air supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator may be replaced with another fluid. In this case, compared to the case of using a motor, there is an advantage in that vibration transmitted to the fume removal device is minimized. In addition, the motor requires continuous replacement, but the compressed air discharge accelerator has the advantage of solving this problem. 11 shows the structure of the compressed air discharge accelerator in detail in cross section.

Referring to FIG. 11, the compressed air discharge accelerator includes a first body 441, a second body 442, an expansion part 443, a compressed air moving part 444, and a compressed air discharge part 445. can do.

As shown in FIG. 11, the first body 441 and the second body 442 are hollow tubes, and at least a portion of the first body 441 and the second body 442 may be provided in a corresponding shape so as to be mutually coupled. When the first body 441 and the second body 442 are coupled, a compressed air moving part 444 and a compressed air discharge part 445 may be provided between them. The compressed air moving unit 444 is a space through which compressed air introduced through an external compressor can flow, and the compressed air discharge unit 445 is the compressed air flowing through the compressed air moving unit 444 to the first body. It may be a passage that flows into the inside of the 441 and the second body 442. In other words, the compressed air supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator flows through the compressed air moving part 444 which is a space between the first body 441 and the second body 442, and through the compressed air discharge part 445 It is introduced into the inside of the first body 441 and the second body 442. At this time, since the compressed air is discharged along the compressed air discharge part 445 after filling the compressed air moving part 444, there is an advantage that the discharged compressed air can be evenly discharged without being biased to one side. The compressed air discharge unit 445 may be manufactured in various sizes. In addition, the compressed air discharge unit 445 may be provided to be variable. Such a variable structure of the compressed air discharge unit 445 may be realized by providing, for example, the first body 441 and the second body 442 to be able to move relative to each other. In this case, since the amount of compressed air discharged through the compressed air discharge unit 445 is varied, the exhaust speed of the exhaust gas exhausted through the compressed air discharge accelerator may be changed.

The second body 442 may include an expansion part 443 whose diameter increases toward the bottom. In this case, the compressed air introduced into the first body 441 and the second body 442 flows toward a portion of the expansion pipe 443 having a wide diameter. This is because the pressure of the gas acting in the part with a larger diameter than in the part with a small diameter is relatively small, and the gas with the higher pressure tries to flow toward the lower pressure. That is, the expansion part 443 may play a role of determining a flow direction of compressed air introduced into the first body 441 and the second body 442. When the compressed air flows inside the compressed air discharge accelerator as described above, the fume and purge gas inside the wafer cassette 200 communicated through the upper hopper 260, the lower hopper 410, and the first exhaust pipe 430 It also affects the direction and speed of discharge.

Referring to FIG. 13, a valve 446, a regulator 447, and an operating air pressure sensor 448 may be additionally provided as components related to compressed air in the compressed air discharge accelerator. The valve 446 may be a member that opens and closes a flow path of compressed air. That is, whether compressed air is provided through the valve 446 may be determined. The valve 446 may be an on/off type valve as an example, but is not limited thereto, and may be a valve that controls the passage of compressed air, such as a damper. The regulator 447 may maintain a constant speed or amount of compressed air passing through the regulator 477. That is, in an example of the present invention, compressed air may be provided to the compressed air discharge accelerator at a constant amount or at a constant speed through the regulator 447. The operating air pressure sensor 448 may sense a pressure of compressed air provided to the compressed air discharge accelerator. The operating air pressure sensor 448 may be connected to a control unit, and the control unit may output a pressure value measured by the operating air pressure sensor 448 to a display unit 520 to be described later, and the measured pressure value If it is different from the preset pressure value, a warning message may be output through the warning output unit.

In addition, the exhaust pump 440 may be provided with a tube 575a in which at least a portion of the exhaust pump 440 is provided to communicate with the exhaust pump 440. The tube 575a is connected to an exhaust gas pressure sensor 575 to be described later so that the pressure of the exhaust gas passing through the exhaust pump 440 can be measured. The tube 575a may be provided so that the end 575b faces the exhaust direction of the exhaust gas. In this case, a negative pressure is formed in the exhaust gas pressure sensor 575 connected to the tube 575a, and it is confirmed through a number of experiments that more accurate exhaust pressure is measured when the end 575b of the tube 575a takes a different direction. I did.

The connection port 450 may connect the second exhaust pipe 430 and the fume outlet 123 of the lower body 120. That is, fume and purge gas flowing to the exhaust pump 440 inside the second exhaust pipe 430 through the connection port 450 may be discharged to the outside. The connection port 450 is coupled to one side of the fume outlet 123 of the lower body 120 and a discharge pipe (not shown) is provided on the other side to discharge fume and purge gas to the outside.

12 is a perspective view showing an interface portion of a fume removing apparatus according to an example of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 12, the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention may further include an interface unit 500.

The interface unit 500 may include a plurality of configurations for a user to manipulate the operation of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention. The interface unit 500 may be provided on the side surface 121 of the lower body 120 as an example, but is not limited thereto.

The interface unit 500 is, for example, an EMO switch 510, a display unit 520, an operation unit 530, a compressed air gauge 540, a purge gas gauge 541, a communication port 550, a compressed air connection port. 560 and a purge gas connection port 570.

The EMO switch 510 can quickly cut off power in case of an emergency. That is, the ㄸMO switch 510 may be an operation stop button or a power cutoff button used in an emergency situation. That is, when the user presses the EMO switch 510, the purge gas supplied to the wafer cassette 200, the power delivered to the heating member 240, and the compressed air delivered to the exhaust pump 440 are blocked and the operation is stopped. It can be stopped. It goes without saying that a power switch separate from the EMO switch 510 may be provided.

The display unit 520 may output a current operation state of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention. The display unit 520 may output, for example, a digital leveler, a first sensor 292, a second sensor, and a measurement value measured by the operating air pressure sensor 448. The display unit 520 may function as a warning output unit, and may output a warning message when necessary. In addition, the display unit 520 may be connected to the controller and controlled by the controller. The display unit 520 may be provided as an example as a touch screen and may also serve as an operation unit 530 to be described later.

In addition, the interface unit 500 further includes a heater temperature control unit 521 that controls the heating member 240 that controls the internal temperature of the wafer cassette 200 and outputs the temperature of the heating member 240. I can. The heater temperature control unit 521 may be provided separately from the display unit 520 and the operation unit 530 to be described later, but when omitted, the heater temperature control unit 521 is provided by the display unit 520 and the operation unit 530. The function of can be performed.

The operation unit 530 may function as a means for inputting a command so that the user controls the operation of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention. The user is compressed by the operation unit 530 to supply purge gas and supply pressure (supply amount, supply time), the temperature inside the wafer cassette 200 (whether or not the heating member 240 is operated), and the exhaust pump 440 You can control whether air is supplied or not and supply pressure. In addition, matters manipulated by the manipulation unit 530 may be output through the display unit 520 and configured so that the user can check them.

The compressed air gauge 540 may output a pressure of compressed air provided to a compressed air discharge accelerator that is an example of the exhaust pump 440 of the exhaust unit 400. The compressed air gauge 540 may be connected to the operating air pressure sensor 448 and output a pressure value sensed through the operating air pressure sensor 448.

The purge gas gauge 541 may output a pressure of a purge gas purged into the wafer cassette 200. The purge gas gauge 541 may be connected to the purge gas pressure sensor 573 to output a pressure value sensed through the purge gas pressure sensor 573.

The communication port 550 may be provided to communicate with the EFEF and semiconductor process main equipment. That is, a communication cable capable of communicating with other equipment may be connected to the communication port 550.

The compressed air connection port 560 may be connected to an external compressor to supply compressed air to the compressed air discharge accelerator. That is, the compressed air discharged through the compressor may be supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator through the compressed air connection port 560.

The purge gas connection port 570 may be connected to an external purge gas supply source (not shown) to supply purge gas to the wafer cassette 200. That is, the purge gas discharged through the purge gas supply source may be supplied to the wafer cassette 200 through the purge gas connection port 570.

13, the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention further includes a valve 571, a regulator 572, a purge gas pressure sensor 573, and a filter 574 as a configuration for supplying a purge gas. can do.

The valve 571 may be a member that opens and closes the flow path of the purge gas. That is, whether or not to provide the purge gas through the valve 571 may be determined. The valve 571 may be an on/off type valve as an example, but is not limited thereto, and may be a valve that controls the amount of purge gas to pass through, such as a damper. The regulator 572 may maintain a constant speed or amount of purge gas passing through the regulator 572. That is, in an example of the present invention, a purge gas may be provided to the wafer cassette 200 in a certain amount or at a constant rate through the regulator 572. The purge gas pressure sensor 573 may sense the pressure of the purge gas provided to the wafer cassette 200. The purge gas pressure sensor 573 may be connected to a controller, and the controller may output a pressure value measured by the purge gas pressure sensor 573 to the display unit 520, and the measured input value is If it is different from the set input value, a warning message can be output through the warning output unit. The filter 574 serves to filter the purge gas supplied through the flow path of the purge gas. As an example, the supplied purge gas may be nitrogen (N ₂ ), and in this case, unnecessary fluids may be filtered through a filter.

The power connection port 580 may be coupled to a power cable for supplying power to the fume removal device according to an example of the present invention. That is, power may be supplied to the fume removal device through the power connection port 580.

In addition, the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention may further include an exhaust gas pressure sensor 575. The exhaust gas pressure sensor 575 may sense the pressure of the exhaust gas (fume and purge gas) exhausted through the exhaust unit by being connected at least in part to the tube 575a provided in the exhaust pump 440.

The fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention may further include a control unit. As mentioned above, the control unit includes a digital leveler, a first sensor 292, a second sensor, a working air pressure sensor 448, a purge gas pressure sensor 573, a display unit 520, an operation unit 530, and a warning. It can be connected to a configuration such as an output unit. That is, the control unit may be connected to various sensors, a configuration for inputting an operation control command, a configuration for displaying the state of the operation, etc. to control the operation of the fume removal device according to an example of the present invention, and read values thereof or Can be controlled. However, it goes without saying that even a configuration not mentioned can be controlled by the control unit.

Hereinafter, the operation of the fume removal apparatus according to an example of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

13 is a block diagram illustrating a flow path of purge gas, compressed air, and fume in the fume removal apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

First, the heating member 240 provided inside the wafer cassette 200 operates to adjust the temperature inside the wafer cassette 200 to the temperature set by the user. Further, a wafer is stacked on the pins 223 of the first wafer receiving portion 220 of the wafer cassette 200 and the pins 232 of the second wafer receiving portion 230.

Thereafter, in order to remove the process gas (fume) remaining on the wafer loaded in the wafer cassette 200, a purge gas (eg, nitrogen (N ₂ )) through the purge gas outlet 226 of the first wafer receiving unit 220 ) Gas). Meanwhile, compressed air is supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator of the exhaust part 400. The supply of the purge gas and the supply of compressed air will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 13.

First, looking at the supply process of the purge gas, the purge gas is supplied from a purge gas supply source (not shown) through a flow path (a). The purge gas supplied to the flow path passes through a valve 571 that is automatically or manually opened and closed, is changed to a pressure preset by the user in the regulator 572, and is supplied at a preset pressure by the purge gas pressure sensor 573 It is sensed whether or not it is being filtered through a filter 574 and then supplied into the wafer cassette 200. In more detail, the purge gas filtered by the filter 574 is transferred to the purge gas supply port coupling part 270 provided on the lower surface 215 of the wafer cassette 200 through the gas supply path 101a of the main body 100. It flows through the lower gas pipe in communication with the purge gas supply port coupling part 270 and flows through the side gas pipe 282 through the purge gas flow path 225 of the mounting table 221 of the first wafer receiving part 220. It is discharged through the purge gas outlet 226. If the flow of the purge gas in the mounting table 221 of the first wafer receiving unit 220 is examined in more detail, as an example, the purge gas flow path 225 will be provided to have a larger diameter as it is positioned in the front (refer to FIG. 8). In this case, the largest amount of purge gas flows through the first purge gas flow path 225b located at the front and is discharged through the first purge gas outlet 226b. Through this, since a large amount of purge gas flows from the front of the wafer, there is an advantage in that a dead region does not occur on the wafer to which the purge gas does not contact. In particular, the second purge gas outlet 226c is provided on the inclined portion 222 protruding in the center direction of the loaded wafer, so that the purge gas can flow even to the center of the wafer.

As described above, the purge gas discharged into the wafer cassette 200 is the intake hole 251 of the perforated plate 250 provided on the rear surface 214 of the wafer cassette 200 together with the process gas (fume) remaining on the surface of the wafer. ) Through. The fume and purge gas discharged through the intake hole 251 are an upper hopper 260, a lower hopper 410, a first exhaust pipe 420, a second exhaust pipe 430, an exhaust pump 440, and a connection port ( 450) may be sequentially flowed and discharged to the outside. This process will be described in detail below together with the process of supplying compressed air.

Compressed air is discharged from a compressor (not shown) and supplied to the flow path (b). The compressed air supplied to the flow path is changed to a pressure preset by the user in the regulator 447 through the valve 446 that is automatically or manually opened and closed, and is supplied at a preset pressure by the operating air pressure sensor 448 It is supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator after sensing whether or not it is being performed. The compressed air supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator flows through the compressed air moving part 444 and then flows into the first body 441 and the second body 442 through the compressed air discharge part 445. The compressed air introduced into the first body 441 and the second body 442 flows after the flow direction is determined by the expansion pipe 443. That is, referring to FIG. 11, compressed air introduced into the first body 441 and the second body 442 flows toward the lower portion where the diameter of the expansion portion 443 gradually increases. Such a flow of compressed air also affects the inside of the wafer cassette 200, which is a communication space. Accordingly, when compressed air having a higher speed or compressed air having a higher pressure is supplied to the compressed air discharge accelerator, the speed of fume and purge gas discharged through the perforated plate 250 is also increased.

That is, the exhaust speed of fume and purge gas inside the wafer cassette 200 is controlled according to the compressed air supplied to the air amplifier, so that the upper hopper 260, the lower hopper 410, the first exhaust pipe 420, the second The exhaust pipe 430, the exhaust pump 440, and the connection port 450 sequentially flow and are discharged to the outside (c). In addition, some of the fume and purge gas discharged to the outside may be introduced into the exhaust gas pressure sensor 575 and the pressure may be sensed (d).

Through such a series of processes, fume from the wafer loaded on the wafer cassette 200 can be efficiently removed. In addition, the series of processes may be performed when a command is inputted by the user through the manipulation unit 530, and various numerical values such as a pressure of a purge gas and a pressure of compressed air may be controlled. In addition, information on the operation may be output through the display unit 520, and the user can check the operation state through the upper body 110 and the case 210 of the wafer cassette 200, which are provided at least partially transparently. May be.

In the above, even if all the constituent elements constituting an embodiment of the present invention have been described as being combined into one or operating in combination, the present invention is not necessarily limited to these embodiments. That is, within the scope of the object of the present invention, all of the constituent elements may be selectively combined and operated in one or more. In addition, terms such as "include", "consist of" or "have" described above mean that the corresponding component may be present unless otherwise stated, excluding other components It should not be construed as being able to further include other components. All terms, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art, unless otherwise defined. Terms generally used, such as terms defined in the dictionary, should be interpreted as being consistent with the meaning of the context of the related technology, and are not interpreted as ideal or excessively formal meanings unless explicitly defined in the present invention.

The above description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention, and those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains will be able to make various modifications and variations without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Accordingly, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are not intended to limit the technical idea of the present invention, but to explain the technical idea, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. The scope of protection of the present invention should be interpreted by the following claims, and all technical ideas within the scope equivalent thereto should be interpreted as being included in the scope of the present invention.

100: main body
200: wafer cassette
300: base plate
400: exhaust
500: interface unit

Claims (5)

A wafer cassette on which wafers are loaded; And
And an exhaust part for exhausting fume of the wafer loaded on the wafer cassette,
The wafer cassette,
A mounting platform provided on both sides to load wafers; And
It is provided in the front and includes a front opening through which the wafer loaded on the mounting table enters and exits,
The mounting table includes an inclined portion provided to be inclined toward the wafer loaded on the mounting table toward the front opening,
A fume removal device provided with a purge gas outlet for supplying a purge gas to a wafer mounted on the mounting table at the slope. The method of claim 1,
The space between the mounting tables provided on both sides of the front opening is smaller than the diameter of the wafer to be loaded in the wafer cassette. The method of claim 1,
The purge gas outlet is provided with a plurality and at least a portion is provided on the inclined portion,
The loading platform further includes a purge gas flow path for flowing the purge gas flowing into the loading platform to the purge gas outlet,
The purge gas passage includes a main passage and a plurality of branch passages branched from the main passage to each of the plurality of purge gas outlets,
Each of the plurality of branch passages is disposed to form an obtuse angle with a main passage in a direction in which the purge gas is supplied. The method of claim 1,
The purge gas outlet is provided with a plurality and at least a portion is provided on the inclined portion,
The plurality of purge gas outlets are fume removal devices having a larger diameter as the purge gas outlets disposed closer to the front opening side. The method of claim 1,
The mounting table is provided vertically and spaced apart so that the wafers can be stacked vertically in the wafer cassette,
The purge gas outlet is provided in each of the mounting tables provided vertically and spaced apart from each other to supply a purge gas to each of the vertically stacked wafers.

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