KR20230105121A - Layer deposition apparatus capable of controlling temperature of a multi-stage substrate chamber - Google Patents

Abstract

A thin film deposition apparatus includes a chamber for processing a plurality of substrates, a plurality of substrate seating units corresponding to lower surfaces of each of the plurality of substrates, and disposed in vertical multi-layers so that the plurality of substrates are seated in the chamber; A support column integrally coupled and supporting the plurality of substrate seating parts, and a plurality of substrates arranged on one side wall of the chamber to correspond to the plurality of substrates and arranged in vertical multi-layers to supply process gases to the plurality of substrates. a spray port; a plurality of exhaust ports disposed on opposite sidewalls of the chamber to correspond to the plurality of substrates and disposed in vertical multi-layers to discharge exhaust gas remaining after the process gas deposits the plurality of substrates; It consists of a horizontal winding duct formed adjacent to a wall of the chamber while wrapping the chamber in a horizontal direction, and for controlling the temperature in the chamber by passing the heated fluid.

Description

Layer deposition apparatus capable of controlling temperature of a multi-stage substrate chamber

The present invention relates to a thin film deposition technology, and more particularly, to a thin film deposition apparatus capable of controlling the temperature of a stacked substrate chamber in which thin films are deposited by supplying a reactive gas to a plurality of vertically stacked substrates.

In general, as a thin film deposition method for depositing a thin film by supplying a reaction gas to a substrate, atomic layer deposition (ALD) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) are known. The atomic layer deposition method is a method of adsorbing and depositing a reaction gas on a substrate by alternately supplying and purging a reaction gas to the substrate, and the chemical vapor deposition method is a method of simultaneously spraying a reaction gas and depositing the reaction gas on the substrate.

In an apparatus using such a thin film deposition method, a process chamber processing a single substrate directly heats the substrate and uniformly supplies a reaction gas to the substrate at a temperature lower than that of the substrate. Since only a single substrate is processed, a high-quality thin film can be obtained, but there is a problem in that productivity is reduced under the condition that the deposition rate must proceed at a low speed.

Also, recently, a thin film deposition apparatus having a vertically stacked substrate chamber has been developed to improve productivity. However, such a vertically stacked device has a large volume in an internal process area and various problems due to non-uniform deposition due to temperature difference between substrates and unnecessary deposition on the rear surface of substrates.

In this way, when a plurality of substrates are laminated in one chamber, a direct heating method in which the substrate and the heater are brought into direct contact with each other to heat the substrate is generally known. However, this direct heating method has a technical difficulty in that it requires multiple heaters as many as the number of substrates and must be able to control each heater according to the situation for each layer.

Chinese Patent Publication No. 106711006 (registered on July 5, 2019)

A technical problem to be achieved by the present invention is to solve the temperature imbalance of a plurality of substrates by forming a flow path in the chamber body itself and passing a heated fluid through the flow path in a thin film deposition apparatus having a stacked substrate chamber.

The technical problems of the present invention are not limited to the technical problems mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

A thin film deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem includes a chamber for processing a plurality of substrates; In the chamber, a plurality of substrate mounting units corresponding to the lower surface of each of the plurality of substrates, arranged in a vertical multi-layered manner so that the plurality of substrates are seated; a support column supporting the plurality of substrate seating parts while integrally coupling them; a plurality of ejection ports disposed on one side wall of the chamber to correspond to the plurality of substrates and arranged vertically in multiple layers to supply process gases to the plurality of substrates; a plurality of exhaust ports disposed on opposite sidewalls of the chamber to correspond to the plurality of substrates and disposed in vertical multi-layers to discharge exhaust gas remaining after the process gas deposits the plurality of substrates; and a horizontal winding duct which surrounds the chamber in a horizontal direction and is formed adjacent to a wall of the chamber, and controls the temperature in the chamber by allowing the heated fluid to pass therethrough.

The horizontal winding duct is formed in the wall of the chamber.

The horizontal winding duct has a different pitch according to its longitudinal position.

The horizontal winding duct includes a plurality of horizontal winding ducts, each of the plurality of horizontal winding ducts being disposed in different longitudinal zones of the chamber.

The thin film deposition apparatus further includes a plurality of temperature sensors corresponding to the plurality of substrates and sensing temperatures of corresponding substrates, and each of the plurality of horizontal winding ducts is controlled to different temperatures based on the sensed temperatures. .

The thin film deposition apparatus further includes a vertical winding duct formed inside a wall of the chamber while vertically surrounding the chamber.

The chamber is composed of an inner chamber and an outer chamber, the plurality of injection ports and the plurality of exhaust ports are disposed on a wall of the inner chamber, and the horizontal winding duct is disposed on a wall of the outer chamber.

The thin film deposition apparatus may include at least one heat source disposed on each of the plurality of substrate mounting portions; and a cable for supplying power to the heat source.

The cable is accommodated in a hollow longitudinally formed in the support column and connected to the one or more heat sources.

According to the thin film deposition apparatus having a stacked substrate chamber according to the present invention, a flow path is formed in the chamber body itself, and a heated fluid is passed through the flow path, thereby providing a uniform temperature distribution over a plurality of substrates.

In addition, according to the thin film deposition apparatus having a multilayer substrate chamber according to the present invention, by performing different temperature control according to the position of the chamber body, the temperature non-uniformity caused by the direct heating method of directly contacting and heating the multilayer substrate and the heater is reduced. can offset

1 is a perspective view showing a thin film deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the thin film deposition apparatus of FIG. 1 taken in an AA′ direction.
FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a thin film deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention taken in the direction BB′ of FIG. 1 .
4 is a view showing a form in which a horizontal winding duct surrounds a side wall of an external chamber according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a view showing a form in which horizontal winding ducts surround a side wall of an external chamber according to another embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a thin film deposition apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention taken in the direction BB′ of FIG. 1 .
7 is a view showing a form in which a vertical winding duct according to an embodiment of the present invention surrounds an external chamber in a longitudinal direction.
8 is a view showing a form in which a plurality of heat sources are disposed in a substrate mounting unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Advantages and features of the present invention, and methods of achieving them, will become clear with reference to the detailed description of the following embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but will be implemented in various different forms, only these embodiments make the disclosure of the present invention complete, and common knowledge in the art to which the present invention belongs. It is provided to fully inform the holder of the scope of the invention, and the present invention is only defined by the scope of the claims. Like reference numbers designate like elements throughout the specification.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used in this specification may be used in a meaning commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs. In addition, terms defined in commonly used dictionaries are not interpreted ideally or excessively unless explicitly specifically defined.

Terminology used herein is for describing the embodiments and is not intended to limit the present invention. In this specification, singular forms also include plural forms unless specifically stated otherwise in a phrase. As used herein, "comprises" and/or "comprising" does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other elements other than the recited elements.

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

1 is a perspective view showing a thin film deposition apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The thin film deposition apparatus 100 includes a chamber 10 for processing a plurality of substrates, a substrate entrance 70 for loading or unloading the plurality of substrates by means of a substrate transfer unit such as a robot arm, and each of the plurality of substrates. It may be configured to include a spray port 11 formed on the sidewall of the chamber 10 to supply process gas to the chamber 10, and an exhaust port 21 to discharge residual process gas. In addition, the thin film deposition apparatus 100 may further include a lower block 30 including a driving unit for elevating or rotating components in the chamber 10 .

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the thin film deposition apparatus 100 of FIG. 1 taken in the direction A-A'. Inside the chamber 10, a multi-layer assembly 50 in which a substrate and a substrate seating part are installed in multiple layers is accommodated. This multi-layered assembly 50 is configured to be able to move up and down and rotate by the driving unit 60 disposed below. Such drive unit 60 may be configured such that, for example, a rotatable motor is disposed on a liftable linear actuator to provide both rotational and lifting motions. The rotation is generally a rotational movement within 360 degrees while changing a rotational direction, and the elevation is a vertical movement between a load position for loading or unloading a substrate and a process position for depositing a substrate.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the thin film deposition apparatus 100a according to an embodiment of the present invention, taken in the direction BB′ of FIG. 1 .

As shown, the thin film deposition apparatus 100a includes chambers 10 and 90 for processing a plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4. The chambers 10 and 90 may be formed as a single wall, but may also be formed as a double wall as shown in FIG. 3 . Hereinafter, in the present invention, an example in which the chambers 10 and 90 may be composed of an inner chamber 10 and an outer chamber 90 will be described. Injection ports 11-1, 11-2, 11-3, and 11-4 and exhaust ports 21-1, 21-2, 21-3, and 21-4 are provided on the side wall 10a of the inner chamber 10. may be disposed, and a horizontal winding duct 30 may be formed adjacent to or within the wall of the outer chamber 10, that is, the side wall 90a.

The inner chamber 10 may include a side wall 10a, an upper cover 10b, and a lower wall 10c, and similarly, the outer chamber 90 also includes a side wall 90a, an upper cover 90b, and a lower wall 90c. ) can be configured.

Here, the upper covers 10b and 90b are provided to open the inside of the chamber for management, and the lower walls 10c and 90c may include an opening through which a shaft 58 connected to the driving unit 60 passes. .

Within the inner chamber 10, the aforementioned multi-layer assembly 50 is disposed. The multi-layer assembly 50 includes a plurality of substrate seating units 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, and 51-4 and a support column 55 integrally combining and supporting the plurality of substrate seating units. do. The plurality of substrate mounting portions 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, and 51-4 are provided in the chamber 10 to the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4. 4) Corresponding to each lower surface, the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4 may be arranged in vertical multi-layers so as to be seated and supported. The number of layers of the substrate mounting portion may be formed to four as shown, but is not necessarily limited thereto. However, for convenience of explanation, it will be described below as if the number of layers is four.

The multi-layer assembly 50 includes a plurality of elevating members 52-1, 52-2, 52-, which can elevate the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4. 3, 52-4) may be further included. In FIG. 3, the elevating member is illustrated as a structure capable of lifting while supporting a plurality of substrates near the sidewall 10a of the inner chamber 10, but is not limited thereto, and the plurality of substrate mounting portions 51-1 and 51 -2, 51-3, 51-4) may be configured in the form of a lift pin capable of lifting the substrate while moving upward or lowering it to the substrate seating part.

In addition, the plurality of injection ports 11-1, 11-2, 11-3, and 11-4 correspond to the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4 in the chamber. It is disposed on one side wall (10a) of (10), and is arranged in vertical multi-layers to supply process gas (Gi) to the plurality of substrates (54-1, 54-2, 54-3, 54-4). Each of the plurality of injection ports 11-1, 11-2, 11-3, and 11-4 communicates with a single gas inlet 12, and the gas inlet 12 supplies the process gas Gi. It can be opened and closed by the valve 15 that controls.

Similarly, the plurality of exhaust ports 21-1, 21-2, 21-3, and 21-4 correspond to the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4 in the chamber. It is disposed on the sidewall 10a opposite to (10), and the exhaust gas (Go) remaining after the process gas Gi is deposited on the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4. ) are arranged in vertical multi-layers to discharge. Exhaust gas discharged through the plurality of exhaust ports 21-1, 21-2, 21-3, and 21-4 is discharged to the outside of the chambers 10 and 90 through the gas outlet 22.

At this time, in response to the four injection ports (11-1, 11-2, 11-3, 11-4) and the four exhaust ports (21-1, 21-2, 21-3, 21-4), 4 Two deposition spaces may be formed. Specifically, the fourth spray port 11-4 is in charge of the deposition space between the upper cover 10b and the substrate 51-4, and the third spray port 11-3 is the substrate seat 51-4. ) and the substrate 54-3, the second spray port 11-2 is responsible for the deposition space between the substrate seat 51-3 and the substrate 54-2, 1 spray port 11-1 is responsible for the deposition space between the substrate seat 51-2 and the substrate 54-1.

In addition, when the deposition space is formed through the elevation of the substrate seating portions 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, and 51-4, the height and size of the deposition space may be changed according to the elevation position of the substrate seating portion. can Therefore, according to the deposition conditions such as the size of the substrate, the type of deposition gas, and the deposition rate, the elevation of the substrate seating portions 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, and 51-4 is finely controlled by the elevation portion. It is also possible to do

As is known, the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4 are supplied with process gas supplied by injection ports 11-1, 11-2, 11-3, and 11-4. It needs to be sufficiently heated before the deposition process deposited by the can be performed.

However, processing environments for each layer in which the plurality of substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4 are processed may be different from each other. For example, since the uppermost deposition space, the lowest deposition space, and the deposition space disposed between the two substrate seating portions are structurally different from each other, the respective substrate seating portions 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, 51-4), even if a heater is installed and heated with the same energy, the temperature distribution for each substrate can be significantly different. In addition, such a difference in temperature distribution may lead to a difference in deposition quality of the substrate for each layer when a deposition process using the plurality of spray ports 11-1, 11-2, 11-3, and 11-4 is performed later. . Therefore, in the present invention, instead of such a direct heating method, a horizontal winding duct 30 is formed on the side wall 90a of the chamber, particularly the outer chamber 90, and the heated fluid flows through the horizontal winding duct 30. By doing so, it is intended to maintain an even temperature distribution throughout the chamber.

The horizontal winding duct 30 may be configured to wrap in a horizontal direction at regular intervals along the sidewall 90a of the external chamber 90 . 4 is a view showing a form in which the horizontal winding duct 30 surrounds the side wall 90a of the external chamber according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 4 , since the external chamber 90 has a cube shape, the horizontal winding duct 30 is also shown in a rectangular spiral shape. However, it is not limited thereto, and if the outer chamber 90 is cylindrical, the horizontal winding duct 30 may also have a circular spiral shape accordingly.

The horizontal winding ducts 30 may be arranged to have basically the same vertical intervals, that is, the same pitch, but may be arranged to have different pitches in consideration of multi-layer characteristics. For example, rather than a substrate disposed between two adjacent substrate receiving portions, a substrate disposed between the upper cover 90b and the substrate receiving portion 51-4 or a substrate receiving portion 51-4 near the lower wall 90c It is conceivable that the substrates disposed in 1) may have relatively different temperatures. At this time, the pitch of the horizontal winding duct 30 may be formed small (or large) near the top and bottom to relatively increase (or decrease) the temperature in the vicinity.

The inlet 31 and the outlet 32 of the horizontal winding duct 30 may be formed on any of the four side walls of the external chamber 90, but an auxiliary device for supplying and discharging the heated fluid (not shown) It is preferable to arrange the inlet 31 and the outlet 32 together on the same side wall in terms of space efficiency for installing the inlet). In addition, any kind of the heated fluid may be used as long as it has high thermal conductivity and high heat content regardless of gas or liquid.

5 is a view showing a form in which horizontal winding ducts 30a and 30b according to another embodiment of the present invention surround the side wall 90a of the external chamber. As shown in FIG. 5 , a plurality of horizontal winding ducts 30a and 30b may be formed on the side wall 90a of the external chamber 90 . At this time, each of the horizontal winding ducts (30a, 30b) is provided with separate inlets (31a, 31b) and outlets (32a, 32b), through which the temperature can be differently controlled for each specific longitudinal zone or vertical layer. do. 5 illustrates the use of two horizontal winding ducts, but is not limited thereto, and it is also possible to use horizontal winding ducts covering three or more longitudinal zones.

Meanwhile, although not shown, a plurality of temperature sensors may be provided inside the inner chamber 10 for each of the plurality of layers. Accordingly, based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor for each layer, different temperature compensation control may be performed for each vertical region or vertical layer in charge of the plurality of horizontal winding ducts 30a and 30b.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a thin film deposition apparatus 100b according to another embodiment of the present invention taken in the direction BB′ of FIG. 1 . Compared with the thin film deposition apparatus 100a of FIG. 3, the thin film deposition apparatus 100b of FIG. 6 is different in that a vertical winding duct 40 is additionally formed in addition to the horizontal winding duct 30. there is The vertical winding duct 40 may also be formed adjacent to the wall of the external chamber 90 or within the wall of the external chamber 90 .

While the horizontal winding duct 30 described above is used to make the temperature distribution uniform for each layer, the vertical winding duct 40 covers the entire surface of the substrates 54-1, 54-2, 54-3, and 54-4. It can be used to provide a uniform temperature distribution over a range of areas. Alternatively, the vertical winding duct 40 is deposited adjacent to the upper cover 10b or the lower cover 10c compared to the deposition space between the substrate seating parts 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, and 51-4. It may also be used to intensively compensate for temperature non-uniformity of the substrates 54-1 and 54-4 located in space.

The vertical winding duct 40 may be configured to wrap vertically at equal intervals along the longitudinal walls 90b, 90a, and 90c of the external chamber 90. 7 is a view showing a form in which the vertical winding duct 40 surrounds the external chamber 90 in the vertical direction according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 7 , since the outer chamber 90 has a cube shape, the vertical winding duct 40 is also illustrated in a rectangular spiral shape.

The inlet 41 and the outlet 42 of the vertical winding duct 40 may be formed on any of the four side walls of the external chamber 90, but an auxiliary device for supplying and discharging the heated fluid (not shown) It is preferable to arrange the inlet 41 and the outlet 42 together on the same side wall in terms of space efficiency for installing the In addition, as long as the heated fluid has high thermal conductivity regardless of gas or liquid, any kind may be used.

In the above, embodiments in which substrates located in a plurality of layers are heated by an indirect heating method of heating the wall of the external chamber 90 have been described. However, although this indirect heating method contributes to uniformizing the overall temperature distribution, it can be seen that the efficiency is not high in terms of the temperature rise of the substrate compared to the overall heating energy. Therefore, these limitations can be overcome by using the indirect heating method proposed in the present invention in addition to the conventional direct heating method.

As an example of the direct heating method, a plurality of heat sources are disposed in the substrate seating units 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, and 51-4 arranged for each layer, and the plurality of heat sources are connected with cables. so that it can be heated directly. 8 is a view showing a form in which a plurality of heat sources 45-4 are disposed on any one substrate seating part 51-4 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, a plurality of heat sources 45-4 may be disposed inside or adjacent to the substrate seating portion 51-4, and a power source disposed in the heat source 45-4 and the lower block 30 ( (not shown) is connected between the cables 57-4. At this time, the cable 57-4 may be accommodated in the hollow 56 formed in the support column 55. 8 shows a heat source 45 and a related cable 57-4 disposed in an uppermost substrate receiving portion 51-4 among a plurality of substrate receiving portions 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, and 51-4. , but it goes without saying that the heat source and the cable may be installed similarly to the board seating part of the other layer.

In this way, in a state in which the substrates of all layers are heated by the direct heating method, after the temperature distribution of each layer is grasped by the temperature sensor for each layer, as shown in FIG. Different temperature control can be performed through the plurality of horizontal winding ducts 30a and 30b. The temperature control for each layer serves to compensate for the difference in temperature distribution for each layer caused by the direct heating method.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art can realize that the present invention can be implemented in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features. you will be able to understand Therefore, it should be understood that the embodiments described above are illustrative in all respects and not restrictive.

10: inner chamber
90: outer chamber
11, 11-1, 11-2, 11-3, 11-4: injection ports
21, 21-1, 21-2, 21-3, 21-4: Exhaust port
30, 30a, 30b: horizontal winding duct
40: vertical winding duct
50: multi-layer assembly
51, 51-1, 51-2, 51-3, 51-4: board seating part
52, 52-1, 52-2, 52-3, 52-4: lifting member
55: support column
58: shaft
100, 100a, 100b: thin film deposition apparatus

Claims (9)

a chamber processing a plurality of substrates;
In the chamber, a plurality of substrate mounting units corresponding to the lower surface of each of the plurality of substrates, arranged in a vertical multi-layered manner so that the plurality of substrates are seated;
a support column supporting the plurality of substrate seating units while integrally coupling them;
a plurality of ejection ports disposed on one side wall of the chamber to correspond to the plurality of substrates and arranged vertically in multiple layers to supply process gases to the plurality of substrates;
a plurality of exhaust ports disposed on opposite sidewalls of the chamber to correspond to the plurality of substrates and disposed in vertical multi-layers to discharge exhaust gas remaining after the process gas deposits the plurality of substrates; and
A thin film deposition apparatus comprising a horizontal winding duct formed adjacent to a wall of the chamber while surrounding the chamber in a horizontal direction, and controlling a temperature in the chamber by allowing a heated fluid to pass therethrough. According to claim 1,
The horizontal winding duct is formed in the wall of the chamber, thin film deposition apparatus. According to claim 2,
The horizontal winding duct has a different pitch (pitch) according to the longitudinal position, thin film deposition apparatus. According to claim 2,
The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1, wherein the horizontal winding duct includes a plurality of horizontal winding ducts, each of the plurality of horizontal winding ducts being disposed in a different longitudinal zone of the chamber. According to claim 4,
Further comprising a plurality of temperature sensors corresponding to the plurality of substrates and sensing the temperature of the corresponding substrate,
Wherein each of the plurality of horizontal winding ducts is controlled to a different temperature based on the sensed temperature. According to claim 1,
A thin film deposition apparatus further comprising a vertical winding duct formed in a wall of the chamber while vertically surrounding the chamber. According to claim 1,
The chamber is composed of an inner chamber and an outer chamber,
The plurality of injection ports and the plurality of exhaust ports are disposed on the wall of the inner chamber,
Wherein the horizontal winding duct is disposed on the wall of the external chamber, thin film deposition apparatus. According to claim 1,
one or more heat sources disposed on each of the plurality of substrate mounting portions; and
Further comprising a cable for supplying power to the heat source, thin film deposition apparatus. According to claim 1,
The cable is accommodated in a hollow formed in the longitudinal direction of the support column and connected to the one or more heat sources.

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