WO2002025707A2

WO2002025707A2 - Method and apparatus for alignment of carriers and semiconductor processing equipment

Info

Publication number: WO2002025707A2
Application number: PCT/US2001/029852
Authority: WO
Inventors: Alan Rick Lappen
Original assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
Priority date: 2000-09-21
Filing date: 2001-09-20
Publication date: 2002-03-28
Also published as: JP2004527097A; TW512411B; WO2002025707A3; KR20030040452A

Abstract

A support and alignment coupling and method are provided in which a support and alignment coupling for aligning a semiconductor substrate carrier to semiconductor processing equipment has a rail-shaped contact portion adapted to be received by a carrier receptacle. As a consequence, alignment between the carrier and the processing equipment may be improved.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ALIGNMENT OF CARRIERS AND SEMICONDUCTOR PROCESSING EQUIPMENT Inventor: Alan Rick Lappen

FIELD OF THE INVENTIONS

The present inventions relate to carriers for carrying semiconductor substrates and processing equipment for processing semiconductor substrates, and more particularly, to methods and apparatus for aligning semiconductor substrate carriers and processing equipment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONS

Semiconductor substrates such as wafers are often processed in processing lines, which generally comprise a number of stations. One such station is depicted in Figure 1 and generally indicated at 10. The station 10 comprises a transfer chamber 11 with a suitable platform (not shown). Several process chambers (four in this example) 12 are mounted at four facets of the transfer chamber 11 , which, in this example, has six facets. Two load lock chambers 13 are mounted on two other facets of the transfer chamber and connected to the mini-environment (also called Factory Interface, Fl) 15, which is also shown in Fig. 2. A robot schematically indicated at 14 operates to transfer the wafers from the load lock chambers 13 to and between the process chambers 12. Examples of such a station are the Centura or Endura, available from Applied Materials, Inc of Santa Clara, CA.

The mini-environment, generally indicated at 15, serves as a clean environment for wafer scheduling and handling. Such a mini-environment may be a SMIF-300 Wafer Management System available from Asyst Technologies, Inc. of Fremont, CA. It includes an enclosure 16 and several (two in this example) wafer pod loaders 21 and 22 for wafer pods 23 and 24 (Fig. 2), respectively. Each wafer pod 23, 24 contains a stack of wafers to be processed by the station 10. The enclosure 16 houses one or more robots (two in this example) 25 and 27 for transferring the wafers 28 from the pods to the load lock chamber 13. A suitable track robot is available from Equipe Technologies of Sunnyvale, CA. The robot 19 is also used to transfer wafers to and from the wafer aligner 18.

The workstations could be differently structured and, for instance, comprise other elements, such as a buffer chamber, pre-clean and cool-down chambers, pre-processing and post-processing chambers, and so on.

The transformation of wafer disks into integrated circuit chips often involves several steps where the disks are repeatedly processed, stored and transported. Due to the delicate nature of the disks and their extreme value, it is preferred that they are properly protected throughout this procedure from contaminants. One purpose of a wafer carrier is to provide protection from these contaminants. One type of wafer carrier referred to as a pod or box can completely enclose the wafers to facilitate such protection. The wafer pods 23, 24 depicted in Fig. 2 illustrate one example of such a wafer pod.

Since the processing of wafer disks is generally automated, it is preferred for the pod or carrier to precisely align the wafer disks according to the specifications of the processing equipment being used. To seat and align the pods 23, 24, each wafer pod loader 21 , 22 has a load-port 30, 31 through which the robots 25,27 transfer the wafers from the pods to the load lock chambers. The tolerances available for aligning the pods or other carriers are generally very tight, such as around .20 mm, for example, for proper interaction between the processing equipment and the wafer disks. Internationally recognized standards have been published which specify many of these tolerances. For example, the SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International, formerly known as Semiconductor Equipment and Materials Institute) E47.1-0699 standard partially specifies the boxes and pods used to transport and store 300 mm wafers in an IC manufacturing facility.

One pod or box which complies with E47.1 is known as the Front-Opening Unified Pod (FOUP) and has a non-removable cassette and a front-opening interface that mates with a load-port that complies with SEMI E62, entitled "Provisional Specification for 300 mm Front-Opening Interface Mechanical Standard (FIMS)." More specifically, the pod has a door positioned on the front side of the pod, which corresponds to the front side of the cassette where wafers are accessed. In this standard, the pod door is perpendicular to the wafers and parallel to a specified facial datum plane so that the door and its frame can mate with an FIMS port that conforms to SEMI E62. For proper mating, the door and its frame should have surfaces that mate with the seal zones and the reserved spaces for vacuum application defined in SEMI E62 as well as properly latch to the port.

The physical alignment mechanism from the pod to the tool load-port (or a nest on a handler) includes receptacles such as those indicated at 100a-100c (in phantom) in Figs. 7 and in Figs. 8a-8b, which are located on the bottom wall 102 of each pod such as a pod 103. Typically, the receptacles are molded or cast integrally with the bottom wall of the pod. Alternatively, each receptacle may be formed separately and attached to the under side of the pod wall 102. Suitable fasteners such as rivets, bolts or screws may be passed through a flange on each side of the receptacle to secure the receptacle to the underside of the pod. As best seen in Figs. 8a-8b, each of the pod receptacles as represented by receptacle 100a, has a generally inverted V-shaped groove 108 formed in the underside of the receptacle and positioned to mate with a kinematic coupling pin such as pin 110a disposed on a support plate 111 of a tool load-port. Previously, the receptacles 100a-100c mated with three or six such coupling pins as specified in SEMI E57 entitled "Provisional Mechanical Specification for Kinematic Couplings Used to Align and Support 300 mm Wafer Carriers," 1997; 1990, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. In SEMI E57, it is recommended that each of the V-shaped grooves extend along a line that is perpendicular to and co-planar with the nominal wafer centerline as shown in Fig.7. The grooves are intended to provide adequate alignment even when the grooves are shrunken or slightly misaligned (such as when they do not ail line up with the nominal wafer center line).

As best seen in Fig. 7, the SEMI E57 standard has defined three sets of kinematic coupling pin locations with two possible pin locations in each set. A pin located in the outer position is designated a primary pin and is indicated at 110a. In a conventional load-port, each load-port would have three such primary pins 110a- 1 10c arranged in a triangle pattern as shown in Fig. 7. The three primary kinematic coupling pins form a nest 112 on which the receptacles 100a-100c of a pod may be placed as shown in phantom in Fig. 7.

Each set of possible pin locations also includes an inner location. A pin located in the inner position is designated a secondary pin and is indicated in phantom at 110d-110f. In a conventional pod handler or other transport robot, the handler could have three such secondary pins 110d-110f arranged in a triangle pattern to form a nest on which the receptacles 100a-100c of a pod may be placed as shown in phantom in Fig. 7. The location of each primary and secondary pin is specified with respect to three orthogonal datum planes defined in SEMI E57: the horizontal datum plane, the facial datum plane, and the bilateral datum plane.

The shape of these prior kinematic coupling pins is also specified in SEMI E57. As set forth therein and best seen in Figs. 8a and 8b, each pin 110a- 110c (or 1 10d-1 10f) is radially symmetric about its vertical center axis line 120. Each pin includes a generally cylindrical base portion 122 and a generally spherical top portion 124 disposed at the top of the pin. The spherical top portion 124 is shaped to facilitate contact with a flat plate. Disposed between the spherical portion 124 and the cylindrical portion 122 is an intermediate rounded frusto-conical surface 126 which is shaped to facilitate contact with angled mating surfaces. The rounded surface 126 has radii of curvature as indicated by radii 130a and 130b.

Other mating schemes are also contemplated within SEMI E57, such as those shown in Figs. 9a-9b where one pin 110c is contacted on the top by a pyramid-shaped opening in a wafer carrier receptacle. It is also contemplated that front-opening boxes and pods may need to contact the pins on the side to provide pressure against a front mechanical interface. When designing the mating features of the receptacles on the bottom of the wafer carriers, SEMI E57 recommends that designers follow the recommendations given in the book entitled "Precision Machine Design" by Dr. Alexander H. Slocum, Society of Manufacturing Engineers, Item Code 2597, 1992 (originally published by Prentice-Hail, 1992). SUMMARY OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

It has been recognized by the present applicant that the prior kinematic coupling pins as described in SEMI E57 (1997; 1999) may provide an alignment of the pod or carrier to the processing equipment which is less than desired for many applications. For example, it is recognized that a prior kinematic pin as specified in this SEMI E57 contacts a V-shaped receptacle at two points. Because many carriers are fabricated from a relatively soft, compliant material, such a two point contact may cause sufficient deformation of the carrier at the point of contact, such that the alignment of the carrier to the processing equipment may suffer, particularly in the "Z" (i.e. vertical) axial alignment direction.

In accordance with one aspect of the present inventions, an improved support and alignment coupling is provided which obviates one or more of these shortcomings of the prior pins. In the illustrated embodiment, the coupling . has a rail-shaped contact portion adapted to be received by the carrier receptacle. As a consequence, it is believed that alignment between the carrier and the processing equipment may be improved, particularly in the vertical or "Z" axial direction.

There are additional aspects to the present inventions as discussed below. It should therefore be understood that the preceding is merely a brief summary of some embodiments and aspects of the present inventions. Additional embodiments and aspects of the present inventions are referenced below. It should further be understood that numerous changes to the disclosed embodiments can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions. The preceding summary therefore is not meant to limit the scope of the inventions. Rather, the scope of the inventions is to be determined only by the appended claims and their equivalents.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a top schematic view of a processing station in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present inventions.

Fig. 2 is a pictorial view of the minienvironment of the processing station of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3a is a front elevational view of a support and alignment coupling in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present inventions.

Fig. 3b is a top view of the support and alignment coupling of Fig. 3a.

Fig. 3c is a side elevational view of the support and alignment coupling of Fig. 3b.

Fig. 3d is a bottom view of the support and alignment coupling of Fig. 3b.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view of the support and alignment coupling of Fig. 3b, as viewed in cross-sectional plane 322a of Fig. 3b.

Fig. 5a is a broken away top view of a carrier resting on a nest having support and alignment couplings in accordance with Figs. 3a-3d.

Fig. 5b is a broken away front elevational view of the carrier of Fig. 5a carrier resting on a nest having support and alignment couplings in accordance with Figs. 3a-3d.

Fig. 5c is a broken away side elevational view of the carrier of Fig. 5a carrier resting on a nest having support and alignment couplings in accordance with Figs. 3a-3d. Fig. 6 is a partial, enlarged pictorial view of a receptacle resting on a support and alignment coupling in accordance with Figs. 3a-3d.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating primary and secondary prior art kinematic pin locations.

Fig. 8a is a broken away front elevational view of a carrier receptacle resting on a prior art kinematic pin. Fig. 8b is a broken away side elevational view of a carrier receptacle resting on a prior art kinematic pin.

Fig. 9a is a schematic top view of a carrier having alternative prior art receptacles resting on a nest having prior art kinematic pins.

Fig. 9b is a cross-sectional view of the carrier of Fig. 9a as viewed along the lines 9b-9b.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to Figs. 3a-3d, a support and alignment coupling in accordance with one aspect of the present inventions is indicated generally at 300. Instead of being radially symmetric about a center axis, the support and alignment coupling 300 of the illustrated embodiment is generally rail-shaped as best seen in Figs. 3b and 3c. Instead, of a cylindrically shaped base portion, the coupling 300 has a generally bar-shaped base portion 302 (Fig. 3c) which as shown in Fig. 4, is rectangular in cross-section. Above the base portion 302 is a longitudinal crown portion 304 (Fig. 3b) which, as shown in Fig. 4 has a rounded, truncated triangular shape in the cross-section orthogonal to a longitudinal center axis 307. As explained in greater detail below, it is believed that the longitudinal shape of the contact portions 302 and 304 of the coupling 300 improves alignment between the carrier and the processing equipment while maintaining sufficient compliance with appropriate standards. The coupling also has a generally rectangular mounting base portion 305 disposed below the base portion 302.

Figs. 5a-5c illustrate the bottom wall 352 of a carrier 350 (shown in phantom in Fig. 5a) having three receptacles 306a-306c (also depicted in phantom in Fig. 5a) secured to the bottom wall 352 of the carrier. In the illustrated embodiment, each receptacle 306a-306c is formed as a separate piece which is received in a generally rectangular cavity 354 formed on the under side of the pod wall 352. Suitable fasteners such as rivets, bolts or screws may be passed through a flange 356 on each side of the receptacle to secure the receptacle to the underside of the pod. Alternatively, the receptacles may be integrally formed with the carrier.

The top portion of the carrier 350 above bottom wall 352 has been omitted from Figs. 5a-5c for clarity. The three carrier receptacles 306a-306c are shown resting on three support and alignment couplings 300a-300c of the same type as the coupling 300 of Figs. 3a-3d. The three couplings 300a- 300c are secured to a support member such as a support plate 308 of a load- port such as load-port 21 (Figs. 1 , 2) to form a nest to support the carrier 350.

In the illustrated embodiment, each coupling has a series of threaded openings 360 (Fig. 3d) formed in the base 305 to fasten the couplings to the support plate 308 in the positions indicated in Fig. 5a, for example. Other fasteners may be used as well. Still further, in some applications, it may be appropriate to form the couplings integrally with the underlying supporting structure.

Because the rounded crown portion 304 of each of the support and alignment couplings 300a-300c has a longitudinal shape rather than the rounded frusto- conical shape of previous kinematic pins, it is believed that the area of contact between the couplings 300a-300c and the receptacles 306a-306c, respectively, can be substantially increased. For example, the area of contact between a coupling 300 and a receptacle 306 can be extended in a line 320 (Fig. 6) along the entire length of the outer surface of the crown portion 304 of the couplings rather than just the two points of contact 150a, 150b between a prior pin 110a and a receptacle 100a as indicated at 150a and 150b in Fig. 8a. As best seen in Fig. 3b, the longitudinal shape of the support and alignment couplings of the illustrated embodiment, defines the longitudinal center line axis 307 which extends the length of the coupling. At each end of the coupling 300 is a rounded perimeter portion 321a, 321b. A cross-sectional plane 322a may be defined perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 307 and adjacent one end of the base portion 302 and crown portion 304 and coinciding with the beginning of the rounded perimeter portion 321a. Thus, extending beyond the cross-sectional plane 322 is the rounded perimeter portion 321a. In a similar manner, a second cross-sectional plane 322b may be defined perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 307 and adjacent the other end of the base portion 302 and crown portion 304 and coinciding with the beginning of the other rounded perimeter portion 321 b. Extending between the cross-sectional planes 322a and 322b are the mating surfaces 370 (Fig. 3b) of the coupling 300.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the mating surfaces of the support and alignment coupling 300 as viewed in the cross-sectional plane 322a (or the cross-sectional plane 322b or any parallel cross-sectional plane intermediate the mating surfaces end planes 322a and 322b). As shown therein, the support and alignment couplings 300 of the illustrated embodiment have a cross-sectional shape when viewed in the cross-sectional plane 322a, which is the same cross-sectional shape of the prior kinematic pins 110a when viewed in the cross-sectional plane defined by center axis 120 of the pins 110a as shown in Fig. 8a. However, the prior pins 110a are radially symmetric about the center line axis 120 whereas the support and alignment couplings 300 of the illustrated embodiment are generally rail-shaped, as discussed above.

Table 1 set forth below provides the dimensions specified by SEMI E57 for the prior art kinematic pin in the center line cross-sectional view of the prior pin 1 10a. The shape and dimensions of a support and alignment coupling in accordance with the present inventions may vary, depending upon the particular application. In one example, the dimensions in the cross-sectional view of Fig. 4 of the support and alignment couplings 300 of the illustrated embodiment, may have the same numerical values as those provided in SEMI E57 for the corresponding center line cross-sectional view of the prior pin of this standard.

The dimensions are provided relative to a horizontal datum plane which is defined in SEMI E57 as the horizontal plane that is 13 mm (0.51 in) below the average of the heights of the highest and lowest pin tops. In the example referenced above for a support and alignment coupling in accordance with the present inventions, an example of a horizontal datum plane is indicated at 324 in Figs. 5b and 5c. The horizontal datum plane 324 is defined in the same manner as that specified in SEMI E57 except with respect to the coupling tops rather than pin tops.

The support and alignment couplings of the present inventions may be mounted on a support member in a variety of positions and in a variety of manners, again, depending upon the particular application. In one example depicted in Fig. 5a. the intersection of the cross-sectional plane 322a with the longitudinal center axis 307 of the support and alignment coupling 300 defines an end center point 323a which has been chosen to coincide with the location of the vertical center axis of symmetry of a primary kinematic pin as defined in SEMI E57, such as the primary kinetic pin indicated at 110a in Fig. 7. The intersection of the other cross-sectional plane 322b with the longitudinal center axis 307 of the support and alignment coupling 300 defines the other end center point 323b which has been chosen to coincide with the location of the vertical center axis of symmetry of a secondary kinematic pin of SEMI E57, such as the secondary kinematic pin 110d depicted in Fig. 7. Accordingly, the distance between the mating surfaces end planes 322a and 322b are chosen to coincide with the distances specified by the SEMI E57 standard for the distances between each set of primary and secondary pin center axis lines. Accordingly, in the illustrated embodiments, the mating surfaces of the rear support and alignment coupling 310a of the nest illustrated in Fig. 5a have an overall length of 24.2316 mm (.9450 in.) and the front support and alignment couplings 310b and 310c each have a length of 28.0162 mm (1.1030 in.)

Again, the actual length may vary depending upon the particular application. In general, the longer the length of the support and alignment coupling, the greater the contact area available to make contact with the overlying carrier to increase stability. In the illustrated embodiment, it is preferred to have a length of at least 10-12 mm or longer. Should the standards for a kinematic pin change, the various dimensions of a support and alignment coupling described herein may be modified accordingly.

As set forth in Table 2 below, the SEMI E57 standard defines the location of the prior kinematic pins on a support plate with respect to three orthogonal datum planes: the horizontal datum plane discussed hereinabove, a facial datum plane and a bilateral datum plane:

The bilateral datum plane is defined to be the vertical plane that contains the center axis line 120 (Fig. 8a) of the rear kinematic pin 110a (Fig. 7). In addition, the bilateral datum plane should be equally distant from the center axis lines of the two front kinematic pins 110b and 110c. The facial datum plane is defined to be the vertical plane that is perpendicular to the bilateral datum plane and whose distance Y92 to the center axis line of the rear kinematic pin 110a is 1.5 times the average of the distances Y91 to the center axis lines of the front kinematic pins 110b and 110c. Once the three datum planes have been determined for a particular nest of couplings, the three kinematic pins 110a-110c can be evaluated to determine if they conform to the specifications set forth in Tables 1 and 2 for compliance with SEMI E57.

Here too, the locations of the alignment and support couplings of the present invention on a support member may vary, depending upon the particular application. In one example, in a manner compatible with that specified for the primary and secondary kinematic pin locations as in SEMI E57, the location of each support and alignment coupling 300a-300c may, in this example, be determined with respect to the three orthogonal datum planes: the horizontal datum plane depicted at 324 discussed hereinabove, a facial datum plane 330 and a bilateral datum plane 332 as depicted in Fig. 5a. The location of each coupling is shown from above in Fig. 5a in a layout which complies appropriately with SEMI E57. Thus, in this example the dimensions set forth in Table 2 above may be applied to define the locations of the support and alignment couplings 300a-300c (all of which are bilaterally symmetric about the bilateral datum plane 332). Other dimensions may also be selected, depending upon the particular application.

In the arrangement depicted in Fig. 5a, the three couplings 300a-300c are arranged in a triangular pattern. In addition, each coupling 300a-300c is centered and aligned along a radial axis 380a-380c, respectively. Each radial axis 380a-380c passes through a pair of primary and secondary kinematic pin locations. Thus, the contact portions 302 and 304 of each coupling 300a-300c are disposed primarily between the associated primary and secondary kinematic pin locations. The radial axes 380a-380c are centered on a common center point which is coaxially aligned with the center axis 382 of a wafer 384 depicted in phantom in Fig. 5. The wafer 384 represents the position of the stack of semiconductor substrates in the carrier. In the illustrated embodiment, the support and alignment couplings 300 are formed from 440c stainless steel and are heat treated to be finished at 45-48 Re, 16 RMS. Other materials and finishes may be used, depending upon the application.

The carriers of the illustrated embodiment have described as the Front- Opening Unified Pods (FOUP) that have a non-removable cassette and a front-opening interface for a 300 mm wafer. Other types of carriers may be used including carriers which are not enclosed, have removable cassettes and suitable for substrates having other diameters such 200mm.

A nest of alignment couplings 300a-300c has been described as being disposed on a support plate of a load-port of a workstation. It is contemplated that the alignment couplings of the present inventions may be used in connection with other applications including pod handlers or other robot handlers which transport or otherwise handle carriers of various types. In one example, the handler support member could have three alignment couplings 300a-300c arranged in a triangle pattern to form a nest in the manner depicted in Fig. 5a. Alternatively, the arrangement of the alignment couplings may be modified, depending upon the particular carrier handler specifications.

In the illustrated embodiment, the support and alignment couplings 300 have been described as being generally compatible with certain SEMI standards. It is recognized that a support and alignment coupling in accordance with the present inventions may conform to other standards and proprietary applications. Still further, the support and alignment couplings of the present inventions may have a variety of shapes including nonsymmetrical. It will, of course, be understood that modifications of the present invention, in its various aspects, will be apparent to those skilled in the art, some being apparent only after study, others being matters of routine mechanical design. Other embodiments are also possible, their specific designs depending upon the particular application. As such, the scope of the invention should not be limited by the particular embodiments herein described but should be defined only by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. An alignment coupling for aligning a semiconductor substrate carrier to a support member, wherein the carrier has an alignment receptacle, said coupling comprising:

a coupling having a rail-shaped contact portion adapted to be received by said carrier receptacle and a base portion adapted to be coupled to said support member.

2. The alignment coupling of claim 1 wherein the coupling contact portion includes a longitudinal base portion and a longitudinal crown portion which define a longitudinal axis.

3. The alignment coupling of claim 2 wherein the crown portion has a truncated triangular cross-section transverse to said axis.

4. The alignment coupling of claim 3 wherein the truncated triangular cross-section of the crown portion is rounded.

5. The alignment coupling of claim 4 wherein the truncated triangular cross-section of the crown portion has two lateral sides and a top center side.

6. The alignment coupling of claim 5 wherein the top center side has a radius of curvature in said cross-section and wherein each lateral side has a radius of curvature in said cross-section.

7. The alignment coupling of claim 1 wherein said coupling is formed of stainless steel.

8. The alignment coupling of claim 2 wherein the base portion has a rectangular cross-section transverse to said axis.

9. The alignment coupling of claim 2 wherein a SEMI standard defines a diameter of a base of a kinematic pin and wherein the contact portion of said coupling has a length of at least said pin base diameter.

10. The alignment coupling of claim 2 wherein the contact portion has a length of at least 10 mm.

11. The alignment coupling of claim 2 wherein the contact portion has a length in the range of 10-28 mm.

12. The alignment coupling of claim 3 wherein the alignment receptacle defines a longitudinal groove which defines a longitudinal axis and the receptacle has a V-shaped cross-section transverse to said groove longitudinal axis.

13. A nest for receiving a semiconductor substrate carrier having a plurality of alignment receptacles, comprising:

a support member adapted to support said carrier; and

a plurality of alignment couplings coupled to said support member, each coupling having a rail-shaped contact portion adapted to be received by a carrier receptacle.

14. The nest of claim 13 wherein three of said alignment couplings are coupled to said support member.

15. The nest of claim 14 wherein said three alignment couplings are arranged in a triangular pattern on said support member.

16. The nest of claim 15 wherein said three alignment couplings are each aligned along a radial axis, each radial axis being centered on a common point.

17. The nest of claim 16 wherein a substrate within said substrate carrier defines a center axis and said common point is aligned with said substrate center axis.

18. The nest of claim 17 wherein a SEMI standard defines three pairs of kinematic pin locations, each pair including a primary kinematic pin location and a secondary kinematic pin location and wherein each radial axis is aligned with a pair of primary and secondary kinematic pin locations.

19. The nest of claim 18 wherein the contact portion of each coupling is disposed primarily between the pair of primary and secondary kinematic pin locations upon which the radial axis of the coupling is aligned.

20. The nest of claim 13 wherein the support member is a workstation load-port support member.

21. The nest of claim 13 wherein the support member is a carrier handler support member.

22. A method of aligning a semiconductor substrate carrier to a support member, comprising: positioning said carrier on a plurality of alignment couplings supported by said support member, wherein said positioning includes positioning a rail- shaped contact portion of each coupling in an alignment receptacle defined by the underside of said carrier.