Classifications

• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
  • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
  • C23C14/00—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material
  • C23C14/22—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material characterised by the process of coating
  • C23C14/50—Substrate holders
  • C23C14/505—Substrate holders for rotation of the substrates
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
  • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
  • C23C14/00—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material
  • C23C14/22—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material characterised by the process of coating
  • C23C14/50—Substrate holders
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
  • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
  • C23C14/00—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material
  • C23C14/22—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material characterised by the process of coating
  • C23C14/56—Apparatus specially adapted for continuous coating; Arrangements for maintaining the vacuum, e.g. vacuum locks
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
  • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
  • C23C14/00—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material
  • C23C14/22—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material characterised by the process of coating
  • C23C14/56—Apparatus specially adapted for continuous coating; Arrangements for maintaining the vacuum, e.g. vacuum locks
  • C23C14/564—Means for minimising impurities in the coating chamber such as dust, moisture, residual gases
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
  • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
  • C23C16/00—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes
  • C23C16/44—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes characterised by the method of coating
  • C23C16/458—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes characterised by the method of coating characterised by the method used for supporting substrates in the reaction chamber
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
  • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
  • C23C16/00—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes
  • C23C16/44—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes characterised by the method of coating
  • C23C16/458—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes characterised by the method of coating characterised by the method used for supporting substrates in the reaction chamber
  • C23C16/4582—Rigid and flat substrates, e.g. plates or discs
  • C23C16/4583—Rigid and flat substrates, e.g. plates or discs the substrate being supported substantially horizontally
  • C23C16/4585—Devices at or outside the perimeter of the substrate support, e.g. clamping rings, shrouds
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
  • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
  • H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
  • H01L21/67005—Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
  • H01L21/67011—Apparatus for manufacture or treatment
  • H01L21/67155—Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations
  • H01L21/67207—Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations comprising a chamber adapted to a particular process
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
  • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
  • H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
  • H01L21/673—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere using specially adapted carriers or holders; Fixing the workpieces on such carriers or holders
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
  • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
  • H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
  • H01L21/683—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping
  • H01L21/687—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping using mechanical means, e.g. chucks, clamps or pinches
  • H01L21/68707—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping using mechanical means, e.g. chucks, clamps or pinches the wafers being placed on a robot blade, or gripped by a gripper for conveyance
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H10—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • H10K—ORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
  • H10K50/00—Organic light-emitting devices
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
  • H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
  • H01L2924/10—Details of semiconductor or other solid state devices to be connected
  • H01L2924/11—Device type
  • H01L2924/13—Discrete devices, e.g. 3 terminal devices
  • H01L2924/1304—Transistor
  • H01L2924/1306—Field-effect transistor [FET]
  • H01L2924/13069—Thin film transistor [TFT]

Definitions

• the invention refers to a coating chamber as well as a method of operating a coating chamber, and especially a vacuum coating chamber in which thin film deposition techniques like chemical vapour deposition CVD processes, plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition PECVD processes, physical vapour deposition PVD processes or sputter processes may be carried out.
• thin film deposition techniques like chemical vapour deposition CVD processes, plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition PECVD processes, physical vapour deposition PVD processes or sputter processes may be carried out.
• Coating techniques are widely used in industry for the production of different products.
• glass substrates for architectural use or for use in connection with displays like thin film transistor TFT displays, organic light emitting diode OLED displays etc. have to be coated with thin films.
• the various methods for carrying out the deposition of coatings may be divided into three different types.
• the first type is stationary coating of a substrate. According to this type the substrate to be coated is kept at a single coating position during the whole coating process. Thus, the coating area defined by the coating source has to cover the whole surface to be coated.
• this method is very simple and thus cost efficient and may also be suitable for various applications, this method suffers from the disadvantage that the deposited coating may not be homogeneous and uniform over the entire surface, since due to the spatial conditions different areas of the substrate surface may be coated differently. Especially at the edges of the surface problems may arise.
• the second type of coating may be designated as a continuous coating and is characterized by the fact that the substrate to be coated is continuously moved through the coating area defined by the coating source by means of movable substrate carriers.
• large area substrates like architectural glass may be homogeneously coated, since due to the continuous movement of the substrate every point of the surface to be coated runs through the different areas of the coating area so that at least along the transport direction similar coating conditions are achieved at the whole substrate surface.
• this method is more laborious, since a transport device, which allows a continuous movement of the substrate, has to be provided for.
• shields have to be provided for.
• shields arranged at the substrate carriers for protecting the substrate carriers as well a shield fixedly arranged in the coating chamber for protecting the transport mechanism have to be provided for.
• the additional shields apparatuses for such coating methods are more expensive.
• the operation of corresponding apparatuses may lead to problems associated with cleaning of the substrate carriers and their shields which has to be carried out after each run through different coating stations.
• the coating chamber should be simple in design and production as well as variable in use. Though high variability of use, the operation should also be easy.
• the solution of the present invention is characterized by the fact that in a coating chamber having a coating source and a transport device for moving a substrate carrier through the coat- ing chamber at least one movable shield is provided for, which comprises a moving apparatus and a coupling device for coupling the shield and the substrate carrier, so that the shield and the substrate carrier are moveable together.
• the moving apparatus is defined as a specific component associated with the movable shield, which allows the shield to be moved, especially also independent from the substrate or substrate carrier. Accordingly, the moving appa- ratus may comprise at least one component different and separate to the transport device of the substrate carrier.
• the variability of use of such a coating chamber is increased, since all different types or modi of operation can be performed by such a coating chamber.
• stationary coating can be performed.
• semi- stationary coating i. e. especially in case of oscillating coating, wherein the substrate is oscillated in front of the coating source, and in case of continuous coating the shield can be moved together with the substrate carrier carrying the substrate to be coated.
• the coupling device the movable shield is attached to the substrate carrier like a mask.
• the movable shield is only coupled to the substrate carrier during the coating process in this coating chamber.
• the movement of the shield can be restricted to an area close to the coating area, wherein the coating area may be defined as an area where the deposition rate is higher than a predetermined value.
• the moving apparatus of the shield may be designed such that the shield is only moveable in the chamber, but can not be moved into the chamber or out of the chamber by means of the moving apparatus.
• the coating chamber according to the present invention may be used for different deposition technologies and may be especially designed as a vacuum chamber for carrying out vacuum deposition techniques like chemical vapour deposition CVD, plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition PECVD, physical vapour deposition PVD and especially sputter processes. However, other deposition techniques like vapour deposition by thermal evaporation may also be used.
• the coating chamber may comprise a coating source designed for such depositing technologies.
• the coating source may comprise treatment tools including electrodes, magnetron electrodes, showerhead electrodes, rotatable electrodes, twin electrodes, microwave sources, heaters, sputter targets, gas inlets, and evaporation sources etc. as well as combinations thereof.
• all the treatment tools necessary for depositing a layer or performing a coating process may be included in or attached to the coating chamber.
• the coating source may comprise only a single treatment tool like a sputter magnetron electrode, a so called line source, or may comprise several treatment tools in order to form a coating source extending over a specific area of the coating chamber.
• Such a two-dimensional coating source may for example comprise an array of electrodes arranged adjacent to each other side by side so that bigger coating areas can be achieved.
• the electrodes may be arranged with their longitudinal axes parallel to each other transverse to the transport direction of the substrate. Accordingly, a substrate having smaller dimensions than the dimensions of the two-dimensional coating source may be coated by a stationary coating process while a substrate with a surface to be coated which is bigger in the transport direction than the extension of the two-dimensional coating source may be coated in a semi-stationary or a continuous coating process.
• the extension of the coating source in the length direction is chosen such that in this dimension the dimension of the substrate to be coated is smaller than the coating source.
• the transport direction for semi-stationary or continuous coating should be chosen in a direction transverse to the length direction in order to cover all other areas of the substrate to be coated by an appropriate movement of the substrate.
• the transport device may comprise a drive and / or a guide device.
• the substrate carrier By the drive the substrate carrier is driven to perform the movement of the substrate for semi- stationary or continuous coating.
• the guide device may guide and support the substrate carrier during movement. While the present invention is suitable for both horizontal as well as vertical transport of the substrates, specific embodiments are especially designed for upright transport of plate-like substrates like glass substrates or the like.
• the guide device of the transport device may comprise a support defining a transport path and an opposing guide rail for engagement with the substrate carrier.
• the support may be formed by support rolls on which the substrate carrier is moved. Some of the support rolls may simultaneously be formed as drive rolls for driving the substrate carrier.
• the guide device may comprise a contactless guide, especially a magnetic guide wherein due to magnetic forces the substrate carrier is guided in a guide rail with a distance to the walls of the rail.
• the transport device may comprise several guide devices defining several transport paths.
• several substrate carriers may be moved in the trans- port device simultaneously.
• the throughput can be advantageously increased.
• the several transport paths may be arranged parallel to each other. By parallel arrangement of the transport paths the interaction of the substrate carriers to be moved on the transport paths with the other components of the coating chamber is facilitated.
• the moving apparatus for the moveable shield may be designed in a similar way as the transport device. Accordingly, the moving apparatus may comprise at least one drive and at least one guide apparatus.
• the moving apparatus may be adapted for moving a ring-like shield surrounding a coating area or for moving of a band- like shield and / or of several shields.
• the guide apparatus of the moving apparatus may comprise a shield support defining a shield transport path and opposing shield guide rails.
• the moving apparatus may also comprise rolls for supporting and / or driving the shield similar to the rolls for supporting and / or driving substrate carriers at the transport device. Accordingly, some of the rolls may also be drive rolls for driving the shield.
• the transport device and the moving apparatus may have a single common drive or several independent drives. A single common drive has the advantage that synchronisation of the movement can be achieved easily.
• the coupling device for coupling a moveable shield and the substrate carrier may comprise different coupling means for coupling the moveable shield and the substrate carrier.
• One kind of connection which allows for easy handling, is realized by a form fit connection.
• the coupling device may comprise form fit elements like pins and corresponding recesses or the like.
• form fit elements may be engaged to each other. This can easily be achieved by movement of the transport device and / or the moving apparatus relative to each other, at least for parts of these devices and apparatuses. Such a movement can be in the direction of the coating source, i.e. transverse to the transport direc- tion of the substrate carrier.
• the guide rails may be arranged at different levels with respect to the transport path of the transport device and / or the moving apparatus. Thus, the rails do not clash during reciprocal movement. In this respect the guide rails of the transport device or the guide rails of the moving apparatus may be arranged at a greater distance to the transport path than the other.
• a second shield which is fixed with respect to the coating source may be arranged for protecting the moving apparatus as well as the movable shield.
• the coating chamber can be used in different ways so that the variability of use is enhanced.
• the coating chamber may be used for a stationary coating, continuous coating as well as semi-stationary coating. Due to movability of the shield, in each operation mode high quality coatings with re- spect to uniformity and homogeneity can be deposited.
• Figure 1 a cross sectional view of a part of a coating chamber according to the first embodiment of the invention
• Figure 2 a cross sectional view of parts of the coating chamber shown in figure 1 in a second operation status
• Figure 3 a cross sectional view of parts of the coating chamber according to figures 1 and 2 in a third operation status:
• Figure 4 a cross sectional view of parts of the coating chamber according to the figures 1 to 3 in a fourth operation status
• Figure 5 a cross sectional view of a part of a coating chamber according to a second embodiment of the present invention
• Figure 6 a cross sectional view of a part of the coating chamber according to figure 5 in a second operation status
• Figure 7 a cross sectional view of a part of a coating chamber according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
• Figure 8 a cross sectional view of a part of the coating chamber according to figure 7 in a second operation status.
• Figure 1 shows a part of a coating chamber according to the first embodiment of the present invention in a cross sectional view.
• the coating chamber of the embodiment shown in figure 1 comprises a chamber wall 10 which can only be seen partially.
• the chamber wall 10 is divided into the upper chamber wall part 10a and the lower chamber wall part 10b.
• the chamber wall parts 10a and 10b define an opening which is closed by a lid 9.
• a coating source 8 is arranged, for example a rotatable magnetron cathode for sputter deposition. Due to the detachably arranged lid 9 the coating source 8 can easily be exchanged.
• the substrate 1 being contained in a substrate carrier 2 can be disposed via a transport device 5.
• the substrate carrier 2 is shown in two parts 2a and 2b.
• the substrate carrier may be formed as a surrounding frame or a plate-like receiver.
• Other embodiments for carrying a substrate are also conceiv- able.
• the transport device 5 for supporting and moving of the substrate carrier 2 comprises a guide device 6 and a drive 13.
• the guide device 6 includes an upper guide rail 24 and lower support rolls 15, 16.
• the bearing surface of the support rolls 15, 16 comprise a circumferential recess to engage a sliding element 19 provided at the lower end of the substrate carrier 2.
• the guide device comprises two support rolls 15, 16 as well as a guide rail 24 designed as a double guide rail comprising two engagement channels 26 and 27 for receiving the upper end 28 of the substrate carrier. Accordingly, the guide rail 24 is de- signed as a profile to have the cross sectional shape of an E.
• the upper end 28 of the substrate carrier 2 is engaging in one of the engagement channels 26 and 27.
• the substrate carrier 2 is shown which is engaged in the engagement channel 26 of the guide rail 24, while engagement channel 27 is not used.
• magnets 25 are arranged at the side walls of the engagement channels 26 and 27 so as to keep the upper end of the substrate carrier 2 engaging with the engagement channels 26, 27 at a distance to the side walls of the engagement channels 26, 27.
• the substrate carrier 2 may also comprise appropriate magnets or may be formed of an appropriate material.
• the substrate carrier 2 is supported by the support roll 16 and engaged in the engagement channel 26 of the guide rail 24.
• a second substrate carrier (not shown) may be disposed at the second support roll 15 as well as in the engagement channel 27, so that a second parallel transport path is defined by the support roll 15 and the engagement channel 27 in addition to the first transport path defined by the support roll 16 and the engagement channel 26.
• the support rolls 15 and 16 are arranged on a rotatable shaft 14 which is driven by a drive roll 13 that is connected to a motor (not shown). Accordingly, when the drive roll 13 is rotated, the support rolls 15, 16 are also driven by the rotatable shaft in order to move the substrate carriers 2 arranged on the support rolls 15, 16.
• all support rolls may be driven by a drive, it is not necessary to drive all support rolls, since due to the extension of the substrate carrier 2 it is sufficient to drive only some of the support rolls arranged in a line.
• the substrate carrier 2 can be moved together with a substrate 1 in a direction perpendicular to the plotting plane, so that the substrate 1 may be arranged in one or more coating positions opposite to the coating source 8 or may be moved such that the substrate is passing the coating source 8 once or several times.
• the substrate 1 may be coated completely in this direction when being arranged opposite to the coating source 8.
• the substrate 1 may not be completely coated in this direction. Accordingly, the substrate may be moved during deposition by the transport device 5, so that during movement the whole surface of the substrate is running through the coating area defined by the coating source 8 and thus being completely coated.
• the plurality of treatment tools forming such an enlarged coating source may be arranged in a row in the direction perpendicular to the plotting plane.
• a series of rotatable magnetron electrodes may be arranged adjacent to each other side by side with the length direction 31 being parallel.
• the substrate 1 may be coated in a stationary mode with the substrate carrier 2 and the substrate 1 being held in a single position during the whole coating process or in several coating positions.
• the substrate carrier 2 and the substrate 1 may be continuously moved in one transport direction during coating or in an oscillating way with alternating transport directions.
• a movable shield 3 associated to the coating chamber is arranged at the coating chamber wall.
• the shield 3 has a ring-like shape surrounding a coating area, wherein the upper part 3a and the lower part 3b can only be seen due to the cross sectional view of figures 1 to 4.
• other shapes of the shield may be considerable like structures comprising only a shield function in the upper and lower part with band-like shapes or the like.
• the cross section of the shield 3 shown in figure 1 is cup-like or flange-like structure having an opening to provide a coating aperture.
• the shield 3 may be used in a stationary way, i. e. the shield is kept immovable dur- ing the deposition, the shield 3 is arranged in a moving apparatus 11 similar to the transport device 5 for the substrate carrier 2 to provide the ability to move.
• the moving apparatus comprises a shield guide device 12 and a drive 13 which is commonly used with the transport device 5.
• the shield guide device 12 comprises a support roll 17 simi- lar to the support rolls 15, 16 of the transport device as well as a shield guide rail 21 similar to part of the guide rail 24 of the transport device 5.
• the shield guide rail 21 only comprises one engagement channel wherein the upper part 23 of the shield 3 is engaged in a contactless manner.
• the shield guide rail 21 also comprises magnets 22 at the side walls of the engagement channel.
• the shield guide rail 21 has the shape of an U.
• the shield guide rail 21 is fixed to the chamber wall 10 by elbows 20.
• the shield 3 is supported on the support roll 17 which also comprises a recess in the bearing surface. Similar to the substrate carrier 2 the shield 3 comprises a sliding element 18 to engage with the recess of the support roll 17.
• the support roll 17 is arranged at the shaft 14 in a torque-proof manner, so that the support roll 17 can be driven by the drive roll 13.
• the support roll 17 can slide along the longitudinal axes of the shaft 14, so that the shaft 14 may be moved according to the double arrow shown in the lower left part of figure 1.
• the shaft is slidably disposed in the chamber wall 10.
• the guide rail 24 of the transport device 5 of the substrate carrier 2 may be moved according to the double arrow shown in the upper right part of figure 1. Since the support rolls 15, 16 are fixedly arranged at the shaft 14, the support rolls 15, 16 are moved together with the shaft 14, when the shaft 14 is moved according to the double arrow.
• the guide rail 24 is coupled to the shaft 14 in order to synchronously move the guide rail 24 with the shaft 14.
• a coupling device 7 is provided to couple the shield 3 and the substrate carrier 2.
• the coupling device 7 comprises a pin 30 which may engage in a re- cess 29 provided in the substrate carrier 2 to provide a form fit connection. Due to the movement of the shaft 14 and consequently of the support roll 16 as well as the guide rail 24, the substrate carrier 2 can be moved such that the pin 30 of the shield 3 is engaging the recess 29. Thus, a coupling of the shield 3 and the substrate carrier 2 can be achieved. When the substrate carrier 2 and the shield 3 are coupled together by the coupling device 7, the shield 3 and the substrate carrier 2 can be moved together by the transport device 5 and the moving apparatus 11.
• a movable shielding may be established in a simple manner only for the coating process by coupling of the shield 3 and the substrate carrier 2.
• the entire surface of the substrate 1 may be coated by the coating source 8, al- though the coating area defined by the coating source 8 does not cover the whole surface to be coated.
• the substrate carrier and the shield 3 may be oscillated during the position so that a homogeneous and uniform coating may be achieved. Since the movable shield 3 is associated to the coating chamber, the shield 3 has not to be moved with the substrate carrier 2 out of the coating chamber after deposition and to be re-introduced with a new substrate to be coated. Moreover, the number of shields may be reduced. Further, the movable shield may not only be used in an operation mode during which movement of the substrate occurs, but also for stationary coating.
• a second shield 4 is fixed to the chamber wall 10. Similar to the shield 3 the second shield 4 is not restricted to upper and lower shield bands 4a and 4b as shown in the cross sectional views of figures 1 to 4, but may comprise a ring structure.
• the shield 3 provides an appropriate protection from deposition of coating material at undesired areas while simultaneously high quality deposition of a coating, especially with respect to homogeneity and uniformity of the deposited coating, is achieved. While during the stationary operation the shield 3 is in a stationary position, the shield 3 may be moved with the substrate carrier 2 in a continuous and a semi-stationary operation mode, during which the substrate 1 is moved into several different coating positions or is oscillated during the coating process.
• the figures 2 to 4 show the same coating chamber as in figure 1 with the only difference that in the figures 2 to4 the lid 9 and the coating source 8 are not shown.
• figure 2 shows the arrangement of the substrate carrier 2 and the substrate 1 in the second transport path with the support roll 15 and the engagement channel 27. Due to the displacement of the shaft 14 and the guide rail 24 the substrate carrier 2 and the shield 3 are also coupled by the coupling device 7.
• Figure 4 shows such a situation where two substrates Ia and Ib are transported by the transport device 5 in the two transport paths provided by the transport device 5. Accordingly, the pin 30 is not engaged in recesses 29b and 29a of the substrate carriers 2a and 2b as it is also shown in figure 3.
• FIGS 5 and 6 show cross sectional views of a second embodiment of the present invention which is in most parts similar to the embodiments shown in figures 1 to4. Accordingly, a repeated description of the whole embodiment is omitted for the sake of simplicity. Only the differences are explained below.
• the embodiments shown in figures 5 and 6 differ from the embodiments shown in figures lto 4 by the arrangement of the shield guide rail 21 of the shield guide device 12 and the guide rail 24 of the transport device 5.
• the shield guide rail 21 is not disposed side by side with the guide rail 24 in the coating direction, but above the guide rail with respect to the support or the shaft.
• a space saving design is achieved, since the guide rail 24 can be moved more close to the shield 3.
• FIG. 7 A similar embodiment is shown in figures 7 and 8.
• the rail guide 24 is arranged above the shield guide rail 21 so that especially in the situation, when the engage- ment channel 27 of the rail guide 24 is used, a very space saving arrangement of the transport device 5 can be achieved.
• the present invention is characterized by the following features:
• Coating chamber comprising a coating source, a transport device for moving a substrate carrier adapted to be able to carry a substrate to be coated into at least one coating position with respect to the coating source so that the substrate may be coated, and at least one first shield being arranged in an area between the coating position of the substrate and the coating source to prevent coating of areas other than the surface of the substrate to be coated, wherein the first shield comprises a moving apparatus and a coupling device for coupling the first shield and the substrate carrier, so that first shield and substrate carrier are movable together.
• Coating chamber according to feature 1 or 2 wherein the coating source is selected from a group comprising CVD sources, PECVD sources, PVD sources, sputter sources and vapour deposition sources. 4. Coating chamber according to any of the preceding features, wherein the coating source defines a coating area where a deposition rate is higher than a predetermined value, with the coating area being smaller than the substrate surface to be coated in at least one dimension. 5. Coating chamber according to any of the preceding features, wherein the coating source comprises one or several treatment tools being distributed over the coating source.
• Coating chamber according to any of the preceding features wherein the transport device comprises a drive and / or a guide device.
• the transport device is adapted for upright transport of plate-like substrates and / or the guide device comprises a support defining a transport path and an opposing guide rail.
• Coating chamber according to feature 16 wherein the moving apparatus is adapted for moving of a ring-like shield and/or the guide apparatus comprises a shield support defining a shield transport path and an opposing shield guide rail. 18. Coating chamber according to feature 16 or 17, wherein the moving apparatus comprises rolls for supporting and / or driving the shield.
• Method of operating a coating chamber comprising the steps of: providing a substrate on a substrate carrier, selecting of one operation mode of different operation modi, wherein a first operation mode comprises continuous movement of the substrate carrier through a coating area of the coating chamber with a movable shield of the coating chamber being kept stationary during coating, a second operation mode comprises moving the substrate carrier with the substrate into a coupling position, coupling the substrate carrier with a movable shield provided in the coating chamber, and moving the substrate carrier and the movable shield in at least a further position so that the substrate is coated in at least two different positions with respect to a coating source, and a third operation mode comprises stationary coating of the substrate with the movable shield of the coating chamber being kept stationary during coating.

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• 2009
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