KR20220022866A - Substrate processing apparatus and substrate transferring method - Google Patents

Abstract

Deterioration of a structure provided in an opening is suppressed. A substrate processing device includes: a substrate loading/unloading module having an internal space controlled to an atmospheric pressure environment and through which the substrate passes when the substrate is unloaded to an external space controlled by a positive pressure rather than an atmospheric pressure; an opening unit provided in the substrate loading/unloading module and communicating the internal space and the external space; a gate valve provided in the opening and having a conveying space; an ejection unit ejecting a purge gas from the outer space side toward the edge portion of the opening unit; and an exhaust port for exhausting the conveying space through a path different from the opening portion.

Description

Substrate processing apparatus and substrate transfer method TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate transport method.

In a substrate processing apparatus, structures, such as a gate valve, are provided in the opening part through which a board|substrate passes when carrying out a board|substrate etc. (for example, refer patent document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2019-220588

The present disclosure provides a technique for suppressing deterioration of a structure provided in an opening.

A substrate processing apparatus according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a substrate carrying-in/out module having an internal space controlled to an atmospheric pressure environment and through which a substrate passes when a substrate is unloaded to an external space controlled to be positive than atmospheric pressure, and the substrate carrying-in/out module provided a gate valve having a conveyance space provided in the opening and an opening communicating the internal space and the external space; and an exhaust port for exhausting the furnace conveyance space.

According to the present disclosure, deterioration of the structure provided in the opening can be suppressed.

1 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment.
2 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of the load lock chamber 4 .
3 : is a figure which shows the example of the schematic structure of the load lock chamber 4 and the gate valve 5. As shown in FIG.
4 : is a figure which shows the example of the schematic structure of the load lock chamber 4 and the gate valve 5. As shown in FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing the schematic configuration of the substrate G, the gate valve 5 and the load lock chamber 4 .
6 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of the load lock panel 6 .
7 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of the load lock panel 6 .
8 is a diagram schematically illustrating the flow of the ejected purge gas.
9 is a diagram schematically illustrating the flow of the ejected purge gas.
10 : is a figure which shows the example of the schematic structure of the nozzle 61. As shown in FIG.
11 is a view of the load lock panel 6 viewed from the load lock chamber 4 side.
12 is a diagram schematically illustrating a flow of exhausted gas.
13 is a diagram schematically showing the flow of exhausted gas.
14 is a diagram schematically showing the flow of exhausted gas.
15 is a diagram schematically illustrating the flow of exhausted gas.
16 is a diagram schematically illustrating the flow of exhausted gas.
17 is a diagram schematically showing the flow of exhausted gas.
18 is a flowchart showing an example of a process (substrate conveyance method) performed in the substrate processing apparatus 1 .
19 : is a figure which shows the example of the schematic structure of the load lock chamber 4, the gate valve 5, the nozzle 61, and the exhaust pipe 64A.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, with reference to drawings, embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus and board|substrate conveyance method disclosed by this application is described in detail. In addition, the substrate processing apparatus and the board|substrate conveyance method which are disclosed are not limited by this embodiment.

In a substrate processing apparatus, when a processed substrate is taken out, there is a possibility that the processing gas adhering to the substrate adheres to the structure provided in the opening through which the substrate is unloaded, causing corrosion, and the like. Therefore, a technique for suppressing deterioration of the structure provided in the opening for carrying out the substrate is expected.

1 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment. In the drawings, the XYZ coordinate system is shown. The X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction correspond to the left-right direction and the front-back direction of the substrate processing apparatus when the side with the opening for carrying out the substrate is the front, respectively. The Z-axis direction corresponds to the vertical direction (height direction) of the horizontally arranged substrate processing apparatus, that is, the vertical direction.

The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a process chamber 2 , a transfer chamber 3 , a load lock chamber 4 , a gate valve 5 , a load lock panel 6 , and a control unit 7 . . Also, in FIG. 1 , the load lock panel 6 is shown separated from the gate valve 5 . The control unit 7 is shown as a functional block. The load lock chamber 4 of the substrate processing apparatus 1 is configured to be connectable to the loader 8 on the opposite side to the transfer chamber 3 . The loader 8 may not be a component of the substrate processing apparatus 1 , and may be a component of the substrate processing apparatus 1 .

In the substrate processing apparatus 1 , each of the process chamber 2 , the transfer chamber 3 , and the load lock chamber 4 has an internal space for accommodating a substrate or the like. Adjacent internal spaces communicate with each other via the opening. The opening is provided with a structure for opening and closing. An example of a structure for opening and closing is a gate valve, one of which is shown as a gate valve 5 . By closing the opening and making the internal space airtight, it is possible to control the internal spaces in different atmospheric pressure environments. Examples of a controllable atmospheric pressure environment are an atmospheric pressure environment and a reduced pressure environment. The reduced pressure environment is an environment in which the pressure is lower than that of the atmospheric pressure environment (eg, a vacuum pressure environment).

Hereinafter, the components of the substrate processing apparatus 1 are demonstrated in order. In addition, since the board|substrate used as the process target of the substrate processing apparatus 1 is shown as the board|substrate G in FIG. 5 mentioned later, below, it is called the board|substrate G. As shown in FIG.

The process chamber 2 is a part (module) that executes the processing of the substrate G. The process chamber 2 is exemplified as a plurality of process chambers 21 to 23 capable of performing a process on the substrate G. As shown in FIG. The same process may be sufficient as the process performed with respect to the board|substrate G in the process chamber 21 - process chamber 23, and different processes may be sufficient as it. The example of the board|substrate G is a glass substrate for FPD(Flat Panel Display). Examples of FPD are liquid crystal displays, organic EL displays, and the like. Another example of the substrate G is a sheet or film made of a bendable material made of a synthetic resin such as polyimide. An example of substrate processing is plasma processing. Examples of plasma processing are plasma processing such as etching processing, ashing processing, and film forming processing. In substrate processing, various processing gases are used. Examples of the processing gas are chlorine-based gas containing chlorine atoms, and fluorine-based gas containing fluorine atoms. This processing gas may be, for example, a corrosive gas for some components of the substrate processing apparatus 1 . In particular, when mixed with an atmosphere containing moisture, its corrosiveness becomes more remarkable.

The transfer chamber 3 is a part (module) that transfers the substrate G between the process chamber 2 and the load lock chamber 4 . The board|substrate G is conveyed by a vacuum robot, for example. Although not shown, the transfer chamber 3 has a transfer robot having a two-stage configuration, and transfers the unprocessed substrate G to the process chamber 2 while carrying out the processed substrate G from the process chamber 2 and holding it. The board|substrate conveyance to be carried in is performed.

The load lock chamber 4 is a board|substrate loading/unloading module which mediates the conveyance of the board|substrate G between the conveyance chamber 3 and an external space by temporarily holding the board|substrate G in the buffer (not shown) provided inside. In this example, the space included in the loader 8 corresponds to the external space, and the load lock chamber 4 carries in and takes out the substrate G between the loader 8 and the loader 8 . The loading of the substrate G includes blowing (transporting) the substrate G (unprocessed substrate) before being processed in the process chamber 2 into the internal space of the load lock chamber 4 from the loader 8 . do. The unloading of the substrate G includes unloading (transporting) the substrate G (processed substrate) processed in the process chamber 2 from the load lock chamber 4 to the loader 8 . Further, since the transfer robot has a two-stage configuration as described above, the load lock chamber 4 also has a two-stage configuration. The load lock chamber 4 will also be described with reference to FIG. 2 .

2 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of the load lock chamber 4 . The load lock chamber 4 includes a body 41 and an opening 42 . The body 41 defines an inner space S. The opening 42 communicates with the inner space S and the outer space, that is, the loader 8 . When the substrate G is carried out to the loader 8 through the internal space S, the internal space S is controlled to atmospheric pressure, and the loader 8 is controlled to a positive pressure rather than atmospheric pressure. Control is performed by the control part 7 mentioned later.

The inner space S includes an inner space SU (upper inner space) and an inner space SL (lower inner space) that are vertically separated from each other. Correspondingly, the opening 42 includes an opening 42U and an opening 42L.

The opening 42U communicates with the internal space SU and the loader 8 . Among the opening portions 42U, an edge portion extending in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) is referred to as an edge portion 421U. The edge portion 421U is a pair of edge portions positioned on the left and right of the opening portion 42U. Among the opening portions 42U, an edge portion extending in the left-right direction (X-axis direction) is referred to as an edge portion 422U. The edge portion 422U is a pair of edge portions positioned above and below the opening portion 42U.

The opening 42L communicates with the internal space SL and the loader 8 . Among the opening portions 42L, an edge portion extending in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) is referred to as an edge portion 421L. The edge portion 421L is a pair of edge portions positioned on the left and right of the opening portion 42L. Among the opening portions 42L, an edge portion extending in the left-right direction (X-axis direction) is referred to as an edge portion 422L. The edge portion 422L is a pair of edge portions positioned above and below the opening portion 42L.

Returning to FIG. 1 , the gate valve 5 is provided on the side opposite to the transfer chamber 3 with the load lock chamber 4 interposed therebetween, that is, the opening on the loader 8 side among the openings of the load lock chamber 4 . do. The gate valve 5 provided with respect to the load lock chamber 4 in this way is further demonstrated with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4 as well.

3 and 4 are diagrams showing examples of the schematic configuration of the load lock chamber 4 and the gate valve 5 . 3 is a half cross-sectional view. The white arrow in FIG. 4 schematically indicates the opening/closing direction of the gate.

The main body 41 of the load lock chamber 4 is shown as a wall portion defining the upper and lower surfaces and side surfaces of the internal space S. As shown in FIG. A number of wall portions are numbered and are shown as top wall 411 , middle wall 412 , and bottom wall 413 . The upper wall 411 defines the upper surface of the inner space SU among the inner spaces S. The intermediate wall 412 defines a lower surface of the inner space SU and an upper surface of the inner space SL among the inner spaces S. The lower wall 413 defines a lower surface of the inner space SL among the inner spaces S.

The gate valve 5 is provided in the opening 42 . More specifically, the gate valve 5 includes a gate valve 5U, a gate valve 5L, and a partition wall 56 . The gate valve 5U is an upper gate valve corresponding to the opening 42U. When the gate valve 5U is opened, the opening communicates with the opening 42U. The opening of the gate valve 5U can define an upper conveyance space between the load lock chamber 4 and the load lock panel 6 that is continuous with the internal space SU and communicates with the inside of the loader 8 . The gate valve 5L is a lower gate valve corresponding to the opening 42L. When the gate valve 5L is opened, its opening communicates with the opening 42L. The opening of the gate valve 5L can define a lower conveyance space between the load lock chamber 4 and the load lock panel 6 that is continuous with the internal space SL and communicates with the inside of the loader 8 . The partition wall 56 is provided between the gate valve 5U and the gate valve 5L, and is connected to the intermediate wall 412 of the load lock chamber 4, and is provided. Partition wall 56 may define an upper conveying space and a portion of a lower conveying space. Hereinafter, the upper conveying space and the lower conveying space are collectively referred to as a conveying space.

The gate valve 5U includes a gate cover 51U, a valve body 52U, an air cylinder 53U, a guide block 54U, and a guide rail 55U. The gate cover 51U moves up and down together with the valve body 52U provided inside the gate cover 51U. The gate cover 51U moves along with the vertical movement of the valve body 52U along the edge 421U of the opening 42U of the load lock chamber 4 . The valve body 52U moves up and down in association with the air cylinder 53U. The air cylinder 53U is, for example, an actuator comprised so that movement in the up-down direction is controllable. Further, the valve body 52U is slidably connected to the guide rail 55U via the guide block 54U. The guide rail 55U guides the moving direction of the valve body 52U. The guide rail 55U is a pair of guide rails provided on the edge portion 421U of the opening 42U, and extends in the vertical direction. When the valve body 52U moves along the guide rail 55U, the vertical movement of the valve body 52U is stabilized. Since the guide rail 55U is also a part that supports the movement of the valve body 52U, higher strength than other parts is required. An example of the material of the guide rail 55U for giving such high strength is SUS440C.

The gate valve 5L includes a gate cover 51L, a valve body 52L, an air cylinder 53L, a guide block 54L, and a guide rail 55L. About these elements, since they are the same as that of the corresponding part of the gate valve 5U, description is abbreviate|omitted. In addition, the guide rail 55U and the guide rail 55L are collectively called the guide rail 55 (refer FIG. 6 mentioned later).

FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing the schematic configuration of the substrate G, the gate valve 5 and the load lock chamber 4 . In addition, illustration of the load lock panel 6 is abbreviate|omitted. A white arrow extending in the lateral direction (Y-axis direction) schematically indicates the moving direction of the substrate G. The white arrow extending in the longitudinal direction (Z-axis direction) schematically indicates the opening/closing direction of the gate valve 5 . For example, when the valve body 52U moves upward and the opening 42U is opened, the substrate G supported by the arm A moves from the loader 8 through the upper transfer space to the internal space SU. ) is imported into Moreover, the board|substrate G is carried out to the loader 8 through the upper conveyance space from the internal space SU. The same can be said about the valve body 52L. In addition, in the load lock chamber 4 and the gate valve 5, the sealing member for improving airtightness is shown by the black circle.

Returning to FIG. 1 , the load lock panel 6 is mounted to the gate valve 5 . The details of the load lock panel 6 will be described again later with reference to FIG. 6 and thereafter.

The control unit 7 controls the operation of each unit of the substrate processing apparatus 1 . The control unit 7 includes a controller 71 , a user interface 72 , a storage unit 73 , and the like. The controller 71 includes a CPU, and includes, for example, the process chamber 2 , the transfer chamber 3 , the load lock chamber 4 , the gate valve 5 , and the nozzles ( 61) (described later) and the like. The user interface 72 has, for example, a keyboard through which a process manager executes a command input operation to manage the substrate processing apparatus 1 , and a display that visualizes and displays the operation status of the substrate processing apparatus 1 . . The storage unit 73 stores a recipe in which a control program (software) for realizing various processes executed in the substrate processing apparatus 1 under control of the controller 71 and processing condition data and the like are recorded. The user interface 72 and the storage unit 73 are connected to the controller 71 . Then, if necessary, an arbitrary recipe is called out from the storage unit 73 by an instruction from the user interface 72 or the like and executed by the controller 71 , so that the substrate processing apparatus 1 is controlled by the controller 71 . The desired processing in is performed. A recipe such as a control program and processing condition data may be stored in a computer-readable recording medium, for example, a CD-ROM, a hard disk, a flexible disk, or a flash memory. In addition, it is also possible to transmit from another device at any time via a dedicated line, for example, and use it online.

The loader 8 is a part (module) for carrying in and taking out the substrate G between the load lock chamber 4 and the load lock chamber 4 . The loader 8 is configured to include, for example, an indexer, and a pair of cassettes disposed on the indexer and accommodating the substrate G, and the like. In the cassette, the substrates G are arranged in multiple stages at intervals up and down. For example, an unprocessed substrate is accommodated in one cassette, and a processed substrate is accommodated in the other cassette.

Among the operations of the substrate processing apparatus 1 described above, the outline of the operation related to the transfer of the substrate G will be described. The gate valve 5 is opened, and the substrate G is loaded into the load lock chamber 4 from the loader 8 . The gate valve 5 is closed, and the load lock chamber 4 is controlled from atmospheric pressure to a reduced pressure environment. The substrate G loaded into the load lock chamber 4 is transferred to the process chamber 2 via the transfer chamber 3 . The transfer chamber 3 and the process chamber 2 are also controlled in a reduced pressure environment. When transferring the substrate G from the load lock chamber 4 to the transfer chamber 3 , the load lock chamber 4 and the transfer chamber 3 are controlled to the same degree of decompression environment. In the process chamber 2 , the processing of the substrate G using the processing gas is performed. After the processing is completed, the substrate G is transferred to the load lock chamber 4 via the transfer chamber 3 . After the load lock chamber 4 is controlled to increase the pressure to atmospheric pressure, the gate valve 5 is opened, and the substrate G is unloaded from the load lock chamber 4 to the loader 8 .

In the present specification, when the substrate G (substrate that has been processed) processed in the process chamber 2 is unloaded into the loader 8 through the transfer chamber 3 and the load lock chamber 4, the load lock chamber 4 is controlled to increase pressure to atmospheric pressure, but the loader 8 is controlled to a positive pressure rather than atmospheric pressure. Therefore, an airflow from the loader 8 toward the load lock chamber 4 is generated. In addition, a processing gas is adhered to the substrate G (processed substrate). For this reason, the process gas adhering to the unloaded substrate G diffuses from the loader 8 toward the load lock chamber 4 , and rides on the air stream, which is provided at the edge of the opening 42 of the load lock chamber 4 . It is attached to the structure (eg, the guide rail 55 of the gate valve 5). Since the structure provided at the edge of the opening 42 is also exposed to the atmosphere, there is a possibility of corrosion (deterioration) due to the reaction between the components of the processing gas and moisture in the atmosphere.

In order to suppress adhesion of the processing gas to the structure provided at the edge of the opening 42 (that is, deterioration of the structure), in the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment, the opening 42 is viewed from the loader 8 side. Gas is ejected toward the edge of the Examples of the blowing means (blowing unit) are a nozzle that blows a purge gas supplied from a supply line of a purge gas as gas, a fan that blows the surrounding gas from the loader 8 side, and the like. Hereinafter, an example in which the ejection portion is a nozzle will be described. An example of the means for realizing the purge gas ejection by the nozzle is the load lock panel 6 . The load lock panel 6 is constituted by, for example, assembling a nozzle or the like in a partition between the load lock chamber 4 and the external space.

6 and 7 are diagrams showing an example of a schematic configuration of the load lock panel 6 . 6 is an exploded perspective view of the load lock chamber 4 , the gate valve 5 and the load lock panel 6 . 7 is a view of the load lock panel 6 viewed from the loader 8 side. The load lock panel 6 is provided opposite the load lock chamber 4 to the load lock chamber 4 and the gate valve 5 with the gate valve 5 interposed therebetween. 6 and 7 , among the components of the load lock panel 6 , a nozzle 61 , an opening 62 , an air supply pipe 63 , and a partition wall 66 are illustrated.

The nozzle 61 is provided opposite to the edge of the opening 42 so as to eject the purge gas from the loader 8 side toward the edge of the opening 42 of the load lock chamber 4 . Since the guide rail 55 is provided as a structure at the edge of the opening 42 , the nozzle 61 is provided to face the guide rail 55 so as to eject the purge gas toward the guide rail 55 . Specifically, the nozzle 61 includes a nozzle 61U and a nozzle 61L. The nozzle 61U is a pair of nozzles provided to face the edge portion 421U of the opening 42U, that is, the pair of guide rails 55U. The nozzle 61L is a pair of nozzles provided to face the edge portion 421L of the opening portion 42L, that is, the pair of guide rails 55L.

The opening 62 is provided to communicate with the opening 42 of the load lock chamber 4 and the opening of the gate valve 5 . The opening 62 includes an opening 62U and an opening 62L. The opening 62U is provided to communicate with the opening 42U and the opening of the gate valve 5U. The opening 62U may define an end of the upper conveyance space. The opening 62L is provided so as to communicate with the opening 42L and the opening of the gate valve 5L. The opening 62L can define an end of the lower conveying space.

The air supply pipe 63 is an air supply flow path (supply flow path) for supplying purge gas to the nozzle 61 . An example of a purge gas is dry air. The air supply pipe 63 includes an air supply pipe 63U and an air supply pipe 63L. The air supply pipe 63U supplies purge gas to the nozzle 61U. The air supply pipe 63L supplies purge gas to the nozzle 61L.

The partition wall 66 divides the opening part 62U and the opening part 62L, and is provided in connection with the partition wall 56 of the gate valve 5. As shown in FIG. The partition wall 66 may define an end of the upper conveying space and a part of an end of the lower conveying space.

Since the nozzle 61 is provided to face the guide rail 55 , the nozzle 61 ejects the purge gas toward the front of the guide rail 55 . Thereby, the purge gas can be made to contact the guide rail 55 efficiently. This will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9 .

8 and 9 are diagrams schematically showing the flow of the ejected purge gas. As shown in FIG. 8 , when the purge gas is ejected toward the side surface of the guide rail 55 , the flow of the purge gas is difficult to occur in the portion opposite to the side surface with the guide rail 55 interposed therebetween. Therefore, in a location where the flow of the purge gas is unlikely to occur, the processing gas that diffuses from the loader 8 can adhere to the guide rail 55 . As shown in FIG. 9 , when the purge gas is ejected toward the front of the guide rail 55 , the flow of the purge gas is generated in any one of the front portion and both sides of the guide rail 55 . Therefore, the processing gas diffusing from the loader 8 is removed by the flow of the purge gas before reaching the guide rail 55 , so that it is difficult to attach to the guide rail 55 . Therefore, it is preferable that the purge gas is ejected toward the front of the guide rail 55 rather than the side surface of the guide rail 55 .

It is a figure which shows the example of the schematic structure of a nozzle. In this example, the nozzle 61 is a shower plate that ejects a purge gas from a plurality of holes, and includes a plate 611 , a plate 612 , and a sealing member 613 . The plate 611 includes a port 611a, a port 611b, and a port 611c provided at different positions. By selectively connecting the air supply pipe 63 to any one of these ports, the connection point of the air supply pipe 63 is adjusted. In this example, the air supply pipe 63 is connected to the port 611b, and the other port 611a and the port 611c are blocked. In addition, the number of ports to which the air supply pipe 63 is connected does not necessarily need to be three, and only one may be provided if the optimal position with respect to the gas ejection from the plate 12 to the guide rail 55 is decided, and also, according to the situation In order to select an optimal position suitably by this, it is good also as what is provided in plurality.

The plate 612 has a plurality of ejection holes 612a. The plurality of ejection holes 612a are provided so that a desired flow rate, for example, a flow rate of several tens of L/min to several hundreds of L/min can be obtained. The plurality of ejection holes 612a are provided, for example, in a grid shape in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) and the left-right direction (X-axis direction). Each ejection hole 612a has, for example, a circular shape with a diameter of about several millimeters. Moreover, it is not limited to the above, The some ejection hole 612a may be arrange|positioned in a parallelogram shape, concentric circle shape, etc., Moreover, a rectangle, an ellipse shape, etc. may be sufficient as each ejection hole.

The plate 611 and the plate 612 airtightly form an internal space in which the purge gas supplied to the port 611 (in this example, the port 611b) of the plate 611 is guided to each ejection hole 612a of the plate 612. To do so, it is coupled via a sealing member 613 .

By using the nozzle 61 as a shower plate, for example, the blowing range of the purge gas can be easily adjusted. For example, the configuration for exhausting the purge gas ejected by the nozzle 61 as described above is also incorporated into the load lock panel 6 . This will be described with reference to FIG. 11 .

11 is a view of the load lock panel 6 viewed from the load lock chamber 4 side. In addition to the nozzle 61, the opening 62, the air supply pipe 63, and the bulkhead 66 described so far, the load lock panel 6 has an exhaust pipe 64, exhaust ports 641U to 646U and exhaust ports ( 641L) to an exhaust port 646L, and a purge gas controller 65 . In addition, in this example, the air supply pipe 63U of the air supply pipe 63 branches at the branch point 63Ua in the upper center of the load lock panel 6, and extends in the left-right direction (X-axis direction), and the nozzle 61U ) is connected to The air supply pipe 63L of the air supply pipe 63 branches off at the branch point 63La in the lower center of the load lock panel 6, extends in the left-right direction, and is connected to the nozzle 61L.

The exhaust pipe 64 is an exhaust flow path for exhausting the conveying space. The exhaust pipe 64 includes an exhaust pipe 64U and an exhaust pipe 64L.

The exhaust pipe 64U is connected to the exhaust port 641U to the exhaust port 646U. The exhaust ports 641U to 646U exhaust the upper conveying space through different paths from the opening 42U, the opening of the gate valve 5U, and the opening 62U of the load lock panel 6 . The exhaust ports 641U to 646U are provided in the vicinity of the edge portion 422U of the opening portion 42U of the load lock chamber 4 (for example, within a range of several millimeters to several centimeters), and the edge portions It is provided along (in the X-axis direction) of 422U.

The exhaust pipe 64L is connected to the exhaust port 641L to the exhaust port 646L. The exhaust ports 641L to 646L exhaust the lower conveying space through different paths from the opening 42L, the opening of the gate valve 5L, and the opening 62L of the load lock panel 6 . The exhaust ports 641L to 646L are provided in the vicinity of the edge 422L of the opening 42L of the load lock chamber 4 and are provided along the edge 422L (in the X-axis direction).

The exhaust pipe 64U and the exhaust pipe 64L will be further described. The exhaust pipe 64U branches off at a branch point 64Ua in the upper center of the loadlock panel 6 and extends in the left-right direction, and is connected to each of the exhaust ports 641U to 646U. The exhaust ports 641U to 646U are provided above in the upper conveyance space. The exhaust ports 641U to 646U have a central axial direction (the Z-axis direction in this example) intersecting the opening central axial direction (Y-axis direction) of the opening 42U. The exhaust ports 641U to 646U are located between the pair of guide rails 55U provided in the left and right edge portions 421U of the opening 42U. An exhaust port 641U and an exhaust port 646U are provided in the vicinity of the guide rail 55U. An exhaust port 643U and an exhaust port 644U are provided in the vicinity of the center of the upper conveying space. The exhaust port 642U is provided between the exhaust port 641U and the exhaust port 643U. An exhaust port 645U is provided between the exhaust port 644U and the exhaust port 646U.

The exhaust pipe 64L branches at the branch point 64La in the lower center of the load lock panel 6, extends in the left-right direction, and is connected to each of the exhaust ports 641L to 646L. The exhaust ports 641L to 646L are provided below in the lower conveyance space. The exhaust ports 641L to 646L have a central axis direction (the central axis direction of the Z axis in this example) intersecting the central axis direction of the opening (Y axis direction) of the opening portion 42L. The exhaust ports 641L to 646L are located between the pair of guide rails 55L provided in the left and right edge portions 421L of the opening portion 42L. An exhaust port 641L and an exhaust port 646L are provided in the vicinity of the guide rail 55L. An exhaust port 643L and an exhaust port 644L are provided in the vicinity of the center of the lower conveying space. The exhaust port 642L is provided between the exhaust port 641L and the exhaust port 643L. An exhaust port 645L is provided between the exhaust port 644L and the exhaust port 646L.

As described above, by providing an exhaust port not only in the vicinity of the guide rail 55 but also in the vicinity of the center of the upper transport space and the lower transport space, the entire transport space is easily exhausted. This will be described with reference to FIGS. 12 to 17 .

12 to 17 are diagrams schematically showing the flow of exhausted gas. 12 and 13 , when the exhaust port is provided only in the vicinity of the guide rail 55 , the exhaust flow of the purge gas is formed only in the vicinity of the guide rail 55 . 14 and 15, when the exhaust port is also provided between the vicinity of the guide rail 55 and the vicinity of the center of the conveyance space (intermediate position), the flow of exhaust of the purge gas is also formed at the intermediate position. As shown in Figs. 16 and 17, when the exhaust port is also provided in the center of the conveyance space, the exhaust flow of the purge gas is also formed in the vicinity of the center. Therefore, it is preferable that the exhaust port be provided not only in the vicinity of the guide rail 55 but also in the vicinity of the center of the conveyance space.

Returning to FIG. 11 , the purge gas controller 65 controls the air supply of the purge gas by the air supply pipe 63 . Examples of purge gas supply control are ON/OFF of supply air, adjustment of flow rate, and the like. In addition, the purge gas controller 65 controls exhaust by the exhaust pipe 64 . Examples of exhaust control of purge gas are ON/OFF of exhaust, adjustment of flow rate, and the like. For such air supply control and exhaust control, the purge gas controller 65 may include a variable valve, a flow meter, etc. provided for the air supply pipe 63 and the exhaust pipe 64 .

An example of ON/OFF control of air supply and exhaust by the purge gas controller 65 will be described. When an unprocessed substrate is carried in from the loader 8 into the load lock chamber 4, air supply and exhaust are controlled to be OFF. When the processed substrate is taken out from the load lock chamber 4 to the loader 8, the air supply and exhaust are controlled to be ON. In addition, although it is not performed in a normal process, when an unprocessed board|substrate is taken out from the load lock chamber 4 to the loader 8 for some reason, air supply and exhaust are controlled to OFF. When the substrate processing apparatus 1 is starting (in an idle state), air supply and exhaust are controlled to ON. When the substrate processing apparatus 1 is not starting up (in a down state), air supply and exhaust are controlled to OFF. When the supply and/or exhaust of the purge gas does not operate normally, the supply and exhaust are controlled to be OFF. In addition, the air supply control and exhaust control by the purge gas controller 65 may be performed under the control of the control part 7 (FIG. 1). When the supply and/or exhaust of the purge gas by the purge gas controller 65 does not operate normally (for example, when the flow rate decreases), the control unit 7 may execute control to generate an alarm.

Among the operations of the substrate processing apparatus 1 described above, an operation for unloading the substrate G from the load lock chamber 4 to the loader 8 will be described with reference to FIG. 18 .

18 is a flowchart showing an example of a process (substrate conveyance method) performed in the substrate processing apparatus. Except where otherwise specified, each process is executed under the control of the control unit 7 . Initially, it is assumed that the substrate G is in the process chamber 2 in a state before processing.

In step S1, substrate processing is performed. That is, in the process chamber 2 , the processing of the substrate G using a processing gas (eg, chlorine-based gas) is performed. The process gas which is not consumed by the process and remains on the board|substrate G adheres.

In step S2, the load lock chamber is controlled to a reduced pressure environment. That is, the load lock chamber 4 is controlled to a reduced pressure environment rather than atmospheric pressure. In addition, the reduced pressure environment may be continuously maintained from the point in time when the unprocessed substrate G is loaded into the process chamber 2 from the load lock chamber 4 .

In step S3, the purge gas is blown out and exhausted. That is, the purge gas is supplied to the nozzle 61 via the air supply pipe 63, and is ejected toward the guide rail 55U and the guide rail 55L. At the same time, the conveying space is exhausted via the exhaust port 641U to the exhaust port 646U, the exhaust port 641L to the exhaust port 646L, and the exhaust pipe 64 .

In step S4, the board|substrate G is carried out. That is, the substrate G passes from the process chamber 2 through the transfer chamber 3 and the load lock chamber 4 in a state in which the purge gas is ejected and discharged as in step S3, and the loader 8 is exported to At this time, the substrate G transferred from the transfer chamber 3 to the load lock chamber 4 is once held in the load lock chamber 4 , the load lock chamber 4 is raised to atmospheric pressure, and then the gate valve 5 . is opened and carried out to the loader (8). In addition, ejection and exhaust of the purge gas may be started in parallel with the transfer of the substrate G from the process chamber 2 to the transfer chamber 3 , and after transfer of the substrate G to the transfer chamber 3 , the gate valve (5) may be started until open.

In the above processing, when the substrate G is unloaded from the load lock chamber 4 to the loader 8, the transport space is evacuated together with the purge gas (steps S3 and S4). Accordingly, as described above, deterioration of the structure due to adhesion of the processing gas to the structure (eg, the guide rail 55 ) provided in the opening 42 is suppressed.

It should be thought that embodiment demonstrated above is an illustration in every point, and is not restrictive. The above embodiment may be embodied in various forms. The above-described embodiment may be omitted, replaced, or changed in various forms without departing from the scope of the claims and the spirit thereof.

In the said embodiment, the example which exhausted the upper upper conveyance space from upper side was demonstrated. However, you may exhaust the upper conveyance space from below. In this case, the exhaust port is provided below the upper conveyance space. In addition, you may exhaust the upper conveyance space from both upper and lower sides. In this case, the exhaust port is provided above and below in the upper conveyance space.

In the said embodiment, the example which exhausts the lower side conveyance space from below has been demonstrated. However, the lower conveyance space may be exhausted from above. In this case, the exhaust port is provided above in the lower conveyance space. Moreover, you may exhaust the lower conveyance space from both upper and lower sides. In this case, for example, exhaust ports are provided above and below in the lower conveying space.

For example, when the process gas exhausted together with the purge gas is lighter than air, the gas tends to move upwards in the upper transport space and the lower transport space. Therefore, upward exhaust is more efficient than downward exhaust. It is more likely to be able to exhaust gas. When the process gas exhausted together with the purge gas is heavier than air (for example, in the case of a chlorine-based gas), the gas tends to move below the upper conveyance space and the lower conveyance space. The possibility that gas can be exhausted more efficiently than using exhaust gas increases. An example in which the upper conveyance space is also exhausted downward will be described with reference to FIG. 19 .

19 is a diagram (half sectional view) showing an example of the schematic configuration of the load lock chamber 4, the gate valve 5, the nozzle 61, and the exhaust pipe 64A. The load lock panel 6 is omitted except for the nozzle 61 and the exhaust pipe 64A. The exhaust pipe 64A, which is an exhaust flow path, includes an exhaust pipe 64UA and an exhaust pipe 64LA. The exhaust pipe 64UA is connected to a plurality of exhaust ports through an edge portion on the partition wall 56 of the gate valve 5 . Among the plurality of exhaust ports, an exhaust port 646UA and an exhaust port 645UA are exemplified. This exhaust port provided on the partition wall 56 is provided below in the upper conveyance space, and exhausts the upper conveyance space from below. The exhaust pipe 64LA is connected to a lower exhaust port in the lower conveying space, similarly to the exhaust pipe 64L, so that the lower conveying space is also exhausted from below.

In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which elements related to ejection and exhaust of the purge gas, for example, the nozzle 61 and the exhaust port 641U, are assembled to the load lock panel 6 . However, it is not limited to this aspect, The element related to the ejection and exhaustion of a purge gas may be provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1 in all aspects.

In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the process chamber 2 is three process chambers of the process chamber 21 to the process chamber 23 . However, a single process chamber may be sufficient as the process chamber 2, and two or four or more process chambers may be sufficient as it.

In the above embodiment, the example in which the board|substrate carrying-in/out module is the load-lock chamber 4 was demonstrated. However, in addition to the load lock chamber 4 , all modules capable of loading and unloading the substrate G in the substrate processing apparatus 1 may be used as the substrate loading/unloading module.

The substrate processing apparatus 1 described above is specified, for example, as follows. As described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 17 , the substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a substrate loading/unloading module (eg, a load lock chamber 4 ), an opening 42 , a gate valve 5 , and a jet A portion (for example, a nozzle 61) and an exhaust port (such as an exhaust port 641U) are provided. The substrate loading/unloading module has an internal space S controlled to an atmospheric pressure environment and through which the substrate G passes when unloading the substrate G to an external space (for example, the loader 8) controlled to a positive pressure rather than atmospheric pressure. . The opening 42 is provided in the substrate carrying-in/out module, and communicates with the internal space S and the external space. The gate valve 5 is provided with respect to the opening part 42, and has a conveyance space. The ejection portion ejects the purge gas from the outer space side toward the edge of the opening 42 . The exhaust port 641U or the like exhausts the conveying space through a path different from that of the opening 42 .

According to the substrate processing apparatus 1 described above, the purge gas is ejected from the space outside the opening 42 toward the edge of the opening 42 . Further, the conveying space is exhausted through a different path from the opening 42 . Thereby, it is possible to suppress adhesion of the processing gas adhering to the substrate G to the structure provided at the edge of the opening 42 when the substrate G is unloaded. Accordingly, deterioration of the structure provided in the opening 42 can be suppressed.

As described with reference to FIG. 11 and the like, a plurality of exhaust ports may be provided along the edge portion 422U and the edge portion 422L of the opening 42 (exhaust ports 641U to 646U, and exhaust ports 641L). to exhaust port 646L, etc.). Thereby, the whole conveyance space becomes easy to exhaust.

As described with reference to FIG. 11 and the like, the exhaust port may have a central axis direction (eg, a central axis direction in the Z-axis direction) intersecting the central axis direction of the opening 42 (Y-axis direction) of the opening 42 . For example, in this way, the conveyance space can be exhausted in a direction different from the opening part 42 .

As described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 19, the exhaust port may include an exhaust port provided below the conveying space (such as the exhaust port 641L, the exhaust port 646UA, etc.). By evacuating the conveyance space downward, it is possible to efficiently exhaust gas heavier than air.

As described with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, 6 and 11, the internal space S includes an upper internal space (internal space SU) and a lower internal space (internal space SL), The conveying space includes an upper conveying space communicating with the upper inner space and a lower conveying space communicating with the lower inner space, and an exhaust port may be provided in both the upper conveying space and the lower conveying space (exhaust port 641U etc. and exhaust port 641L) ) etc). Thereby, exhaust can be exhausted to both the upper conveyance space and the lower conveyance space.

As described with reference to FIG. 10 or the like, the ejection portion may be a shower plate. Thereby, for example, it becomes easy to adjust the blowing range of a purge gas.

3, 4, 6, 7, etc., the gate valve 5 is a valve body 52U etc. which move along the edge part 421U etc. of the opening part 42, and a valve body. The guide rail 55 which guides the moving direction of 52U etc. may be included, and the blowing part may blow a purge gas toward the guide rail 55. The substrate processing apparatus 1 may include a process chamber 2 that processes the substrate G using a processing gas that may corrode the guide rail 55 (eg, a processing gas containing chlorine atoms). good night. Thereby, corrosion of the guide rail 55 can be suppressed.

The substrate transport method described with reference to FIG. 18 is also an aspect of the present disclosure. That is, in the substrate transport method, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 , a purge gas is ejected toward the edge of the opening 42 from the outer space side (loader 8 side) rather than the opening 42 , and the opening 42 . and evacuating the conveying space through a different path (S3). According to this substrate transport method, as described above, deterioration of the structure provided in the opening portion 42 can be suppressed.

1: Substrate processing device
2: process chamber
3: return room
4: load lock room
5: gate valve
6: Loadlock panel
7: control unit
8 : loader
42: opening
51U : Gate Cover
51L : Gate Cover
55: guide rail
61: nozzle (jet part)
421U: edge
421L : Edge
422U: edge
422L: edge
641U : exhaust port
642U : exhaust port
643U : exhaust vent
644U : exhaust vent
645U : exhaust port
646U : exhaust port
641L : exhaust vent
642L : exhaust vent
643L : exhaust vent
644L : exhaust vent
645L : exhaust vent
646L : exhaust port

Claims (11)

When the substrate is transported to an external space controlled by a positive pressure rather than atmospheric pressure, a substrate transport module controlled to an atmospheric pressure environment and having an internal space through which the substrate passes;
an opening provided in the substrate carrying-in/out module and communicating the inner space and the outer space;
a gate valve provided with respect to the opening and having a conveying space;
an ejection portion for ejecting a purge gas from the outer space side toward an edge portion of the opening portion;
and an exhaust port for exhausting the conveying space through a path different from the opening.
substrate processing equipment. The method of claim 1,
The exhaust port is provided in plurality along the edge of the opening
substrate processing equipment. 3. The method of claim 1 or 2,
The exhaust port has a central axis direction crossing the central axis direction of the opening of the opening.
substrate processing equipment. 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The exhaust port includes an exhaust port provided below the conveying space.
substrate processing equipment. 5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The inner space includes an upper inner space and a lower inner space,
The conveying space includes an upper conveying space communicating with the upper inner space and a lower conveying space communicating with the lower inner space,
The exhaust port is provided in both the upper conveying space and the lower conveying space.
substrate processing equipment. 6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The ejection part is a shower plate
substrate processing equipment. 7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The board loading/unloading module is a load lock chamber configured to be connectable to the loader having the external space.
substrate processing equipment. 8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The gate valve includes a valve body moving along a first edge portion extending in a first direction among edge portions of the opening portion, and a guide rail guiding a movement direction of the valve body,
The ejection unit ejects the purge gas toward the guide rail.
substrate processing equipment. 9. The method of claim 8,
and a process chamber for processing the substrate using a process gas capable of corroding the guide rail.
substrate processing equipment. 10. The method of claim 9,
The process gas contains chlorine atoms
substrate processing equipment. When the substrate is transported to an external space controlled by a positive pressure rather than atmospheric pressure, a substrate transport module having an internal space controlled to an atmospheric pressure environment and through which the substrate passes, and a substrate transport module provided in the substrate transport module, the internal space and the external space A substrate processing apparatus comprising: an opening communicating with each other; and a gate valve provided with respect to the opening and having a conveyance space, the substrate processing apparatus comprising:
blowing a purge gas toward an edge of the opening from a side of the outer space rather than the opening, and evacuating the conveying space through a path different from that of the opening.
substrate transfer method.

Images