JP2008227264A - Substrate processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent or inhibit moisture, impurities and the like attached on the inner wall of a pre-chamber from attaching to substrates after heat treatment, a substrate mounting means and the like in the pre-chamber. <P>SOLUTION: A substrate processing apparatus is equipped with a treatment chamber of a treatment furnace 19 to heat-treat wafers, a load-lock chamber 1 arranged in air-tight communication with the treatment chamber of the treatment furnace 19 through an opening, heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330 arranged in the load-lock chamber 1 and to suppress the turbulence of a gas flow in the load-lock chamber 1, and a moving means to move the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330 from or to a position (solid line section) at the time of cooling the substrates in the load-lock chamber 1 to or from a position (dotted line section) at the other time. When the wafers after heat treatment are cooled in the load-lock chamber 1, the moving means moves the heat absorbing plates 320, 330 to the position at the time of cooling the substrates and the position in the vicinity of the wafers. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus.

  In a substrate processing apparatus used when manufacturing a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, a liquid crystal display device, etc., a spare chamber is often connected to a processing chamber for heat-treating the substrate. The substrate is moved from the preliminary chamber to the processing chamber or from the processing chamber to the preliminary chamber.

  When the preliminary chamber is connected to the processing chamber, the substrate after the heat treatment is moved from the processing chamber to the preliminary chamber in a state where the preliminary chamber is previously set in an inert gas atmosphere after the thermal processing of the substrate. In some cases, the substrate is cooled by supplying (blowing) an inert gas to the substrate.

  At this time, radiant heat from the substrate that has been heated by the heat treatment and the substrate placing means for placing and moving the substrate is radiated into the spare chamber, and the temperature of the inner wall of the spare chamber rises. As a result, moisture, impurities, etc. adhering to the inner wall (uneven gaps, etc.) of the spare chamber are activated and scattered in the spare chamber while being mixed with the inert gas being supplied, and the substrate being cooled and its substrate There is a problem that it adheres to the mounting means and eventually contaminates the product substrate.

  That is, when a substrate (dummy substrate) that has been heat-treated once or its substrate mounting means is moved to the processing chamber again in the subsequent heat treatment and is subjected to the heat treatment there, the dummy substrate during the heat treatment and its substrate placement Moisture, impurities, etc. that have already adhered from the means or the like peel off, and the peeled moisture, impurities, etc. adhere to the product substrate and contaminate the product substrate.

  A main object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of preventing or suppressing moisture, impurities, and the like adhering to the inner wall of a spare chamber from adhering to a substrate and its substrate mounting means in the spare chamber. There is to do.

In order to solve the above problems, a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention includes:
A processing chamber for heat-treating the substrate;
Heating means for heating the substrate in the processing chamber;
A gas supply for supplying a desired processing gas into the processing chamber and exhausting the atmosphere in the processing chamber; an exhaust system;
A preliminary chamber arranged to communicate with the processing chamber in an airtight manner through an opening;
A substrate mounting means for mounting the substrate and moving the substrate through the opening between the processing chamber and the preliminary chamber;
An inert gas supply means for supplying an inert gas into the preliminary chamber;
Preliminary chamber exhaust means for exhausting the atmosphere in the preliminary chamber;
A rectifying means disposed in the spare chamber for suppressing disturbance of gas flow in the spare chamber;
A moving means for moving the rectifying means between the substrate cooling position in the spare room and a position at other times; and
The moving means is characterized in that when the substrate after heat treatment is cooled in the preliminary chamber, the rectifying means is moved to a position around the substrate at the substrate cooling position.

  Preferably, the rectifying means is an endothermic means for absorbing the heat of the inert gas supplied into the preliminary chamber, and the gas flow in the preliminary chamber of the inert gas is disturbed by absorbing the heat from the inert gas. Suppress.

  The rectifying means is preferably a rectifying plate interposed between the inner wall of the preliminary chamber and the substrate disposed in the preliminary chamber or the substrate mounting means, and the rectifying plate is connected to the inner wall of the preliminary chamber, the substrate, By interposing it with the substrate mounting means, the disturbance of the gas flow around the inner wall of the preliminary chamber of the inert gas is suppressed.

  In the present invention, the rectifying means is arranged in the spare chamber, and when the substrate after heat treatment is cooled in the spare chamber, the rectifying means moves to the position around the substrate at the time of cooling the substrate. The turbulence of the inert gas being supplied is suppressed (adjusted) by the gas flow. Therefore, even if moisture and impurities attached to the inner wall are mixed with the inert gas, it is difficult for the inside of the spare chamber to scatter. It is possible to prevent or deter adhesion to the means.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The substrate processing apparatus according to the present embodiment is configured as an example of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus used for manufacturing a semiconductor device (IC (Integrated Circuit)). In the following description, a case where a vertical apparatus that performs heat treatment or the like on a wafer is used as an example of a substrate processing apparatus will be described.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus used in a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, in the substrate processing apparatus 100, a cassette 210 containing a wafer 101 as an example of a substrate is used. The substrate processing apparatus 100 includes a housing 211, and a cassette stage 214 is installed inside the housing 211. The cassette 210 is carried onto the cassette stage 214 or carried out from the cassette stage 214 by an in-factory transfer device (not shown).

  The cassette stage 214 is placed by the in-factory transfer device so that the wafer 101 in the cassette 210 is in a vertical posture and the wafer loading / unloading port of the cassette 210 faces upward. The cassette stage 214 can operate so that the cassette 210 is rotated 90 ° clockwise in the rearward direction, the wafer 101 in the cassette 210 is in a horizontal position, and the wafer loading / unloading port of the cassette 210 faces the rear of the casing 211. It is comprised so that.

  A cassette shelf 205 is installed in a substantially central portion of the casing 211 in the front-rear direction, and the cassette shelf 205 is configured to store a plurality of cassettes 210 in a plurality of rows and a plurality of rows. The cassette shelf 205 is provided with a transfer shelf 223 in which the cassette 210 to be transferred by the wafer transfer mechanism 225 is stored.

  A reserve cassette shelf 207 is provided above the cassette stage 214, and is configured to store the cassette 210 preliminarily.

  A cassette carrying device 218 is installed between the cassette stage 214 and the cassette shelf 205. The cassette carrying device 218 includes a cassette elevator 218a that can move up and down while holding the cassette 210, and a cassette carrying mechanism 218b as a carrying mechanism. The cassette carrying device 218 is configured to carry the cassette 210 among the cassette stage 214, the cassette shelf 205, and the spare cassette shelf 207 by continuous operation of the cassette elevator 218a and the cassette carrying mechanism 218b.

  A wafer transfer mechanism 225 is installed behind the cassette shelf 205. The wafer transfer mechanism 225 includes a wafer transfer device 225a capable of rotating or linearly moving the wafer 101, a wafer transfer device elevator 225b for raising and lowering the wafer transfer device 225a, and an upper surface of the wafer transfer device 225a. And a tweezer 225 c for picking up the wafer 101.

  Behind the wafer transfer mechanism 225, a processing furnace 19 for heat-treating the wafer 101 and a load lock chamber 1 for temporarily storing the wafer 101 before and after the heat treatment are provided.

  In the load lock chamber 1, an elevating mechanism 2 for elevating the boat 10 to the processing furnace 19 is provided. The boat 10 includes a plurality of holding members, and is configured to hold a plurality of (for example, about 50 to 150) wafers 101 horizontally with the centers thereof aligned in the vertical direction. ing.

  Above the cassette shelf 205, a clean unit 234a composed of a supply fan and a dustproof filter is provided so as to supply clean air that is a cleaned atmosphere. The clean unit 234a is configured to circulate clean air inside the housing 211 by a supply fan and a dust filter.

  A clean unit 234b composed of a supply fan and a dustproof filter is installed at the left end of the housing 211 so as to supply clean air. Clean air blown out from the clean unit 234b circulates around the wafer transfer device 225a and the like, and is then exhausted to the outside of the housing 211.

  Next, main operations of the substrate processing apparatus 100 will be described.

  When the cassette 210 is loaded onto the cassette stage 214 by an in-factory transfer device (not shown), the wafer is held in the vertical position on the cassette stage 214 and the wafer loading / unloading port of the cassette 210 is directed upward. It is placed so that it faces. Thereafter, the cassette 210 is rotated clockwise 90 ° to the rear of the casing so that the wafer 101 in the cassette 210 is in a horizontal posture and the wafer loading / unloading port of the cassette 210 faces the rear of the casing by the cassette stage 214. .

  Thereafter, the cassette 210 is automatically transported and delivered by the cassette transport device 218 to the designated shelf position of the cassette shelf 205 or the spare cassette shelf 207 and temporarily stored, and then the cassette shelf 205 or the spare cassette shelf. From 207, the cassette is transferred to the transfer shelf 223 by the cassette transfer device 218 or directly transferred to the transfer shelf 223.

  When the cassette 210 is transferred to the transfer shelf 223, the wafer 101 is picked up from the cassette 210 by the tweezer 225c of the wafer transfer device 225a through the wafer loading / unloading port and loaded (charged) into the boat 10 in the load lock chamber 1. The The wafer transfer device 225 a that has transferred the wafer 101 to the boat 10 returns to the cassette 210 and loads the subsequent wafer 101 into the boat 10.

  When a predetermined number of wafers 101 are loaded into the boat 10, the boat 10 holding a large number of wafers 101 is raised by the elevating mechanism 2 and loaded into the processing furnace 19 from the load lock chamber 1 (loading). Is done.

  After loading, heat treatment is performed on the wafer 101 in the processing furnace 19. After the heat treatment, the wafer 101 and the cassette 210 are carried out of the casing 211 in the reverse procedure described above.

  2 and 3 are schematic configuration diagrams for explaining a load lock chamber and members attached thereto used in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In particular, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line X1-X1 of FIG. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line Y1-Y1 of FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the load lock chamber 1 is an example of a spare chamber capable of accommodating a boat 10 on which a semiconductor wafer 101 such as Si is mounted, and a processing furnace 19 is provided via an opening (an opening 91 described later). It arrange | positions so that it may communicate with the process chamber of airtight. An elevating mechanism 2 that elevates and lowers the boat 10 is provided in the load lock chamber 1. A partition plate 16 having a heat reflecting function is provided in the load lock chamber 1, and the load lock chamber 1 uses the partition plate 16 to move the lift mechanism chamber 52 that houses the lifting mechanism 2 and the boat that houses the boat 10. It is separated from the chamber 51.

  An opening 91 is provided on the side of the load lock chamber 1 on the side of the boat chamber 51, and the gate valve 17 is attached to the opening 91. In the substrate processing apparatus 100, the wafer 101 can be mounted on the boat 10 and the wafer 101 can be taken out from the boat 10 through the opening 91 and the gate valve 17.

  A processing furnace 19 is provided on the load lock chamber 1. The processing furnace 19 has a processing chamber (not shown) in which the boat 10 can be accommodated, and heating means (not shown) such as a heater for heating the processing chamber, and is mounted on the boat 10 in the processing chamber. The wafer 101 can be heat-treated.

  An opening 92 is provided in the ceiling wall 65 between the processing furnace 19 and the boat chamber 51, and the gate valve 18 is attached to the opening 92. In the substrate processing apparatus 100, the boat 10 can be introduced into the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 from the load lock chamber 1 and the boat 10 can be taken out from the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 through the opening 92 and the gate valve 18. It is like that.

  The elevating mechanism chamber 52 is provided with an elevating mechanism 2 that moves the boat 10 in the vertical direction. The elevating mechanism 2 includes a moving block 3, a ball screw 4, a guide 5, bearings 6, 7, a motor 8, and a magnetic seal unit 9 as main components. The ball screw 4 and the guide 5 are provided vertically between a base 71 attached to the bottom wall 66 and a base 72 attached to the ceiling wall 65. The lower end of the ball screw 4 is rotatably supported by a bearing 7 attached in a base 71, and the upper end of the ball screw 4 is rotatably supported by a bearing 6 attached in a base 72. Is attached to the magnetic seal unit 9.

  The ball screw 4 is connected to a motor 8 through a magnetic seal unit 9. When the ball screw 4 is rotated by the operation of the motor 8, the nut 31 (bearing) and the moving block 3 which are attached to mesh with the ball screw 4 move up and down, and thereby the arm 81 attached to the moving block 3 moves up and down. The boat 10 is also moved up and down.

  The boat 10 is mounted on a boat mounting portion 82 mounted on an arm 81, and the arm 81 penetrates a slit 161 provided vertically in the center of the partition plate 16 in a horizontal direction. Is provided. In addition to the nut 31, the moving block 3 is also provided with a nut 32 (bearing). The nut 32 cooperates with the guide 5 to guide the vertical movement of the moving block 3.

  The boat chamber 51 is provided with three heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330. The heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330 are plate-like members having a predetermined width and length, and the surface has almost no unevenness and the surface is a flat surface. The endothermic plates 310, 320, and 330 are made of a material having a high emissivity for efficiently exchanging the wavelength of light (the endothermic plates 310, 320, and 330 are made of a material having a high emissivity relative to the plate-like member). It may consist of a coating.) Refrigerant tubes 311, 321, and 331 are attached to the back surfaces of the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330, and the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330 can be cooled by circulating the refrigerant through the refrigerant tubes 311, 321, and 331. It can be done.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the heat absorbing plate 310 is disposed along the side wall 61 of the load lock chamber 1, and both side portions are bent at substantially right angles. The endothermic plate 320 and the endothermic plate 330 are disposed to face each other, the endothermic plate 320 is disposed along the side wall 62 so as to close the opening 91 of the load lock chamber 1, and the endothermic plate 330 is disposed in the load lock chamber 1. Arranged along the side wall 64. One end of each of the heat absorbing plates 320 and 330 is slightly bent along the outer periphery of the boat 10.

  As shown in FIG. 3, moving mechanisms 340 and 350 for moving the heat absorbing plates 320 and 330 between the boat chamber 51 and the elevating mechanism chamber 52 are provided below the load lock chamber 1. The moving mechanism 340 moves the heat absorbing plate 320, and the moving mechanism 350 moves the heat absorbing plate 330.

  A slit 162 extending in the vertical direction is formed on the side wall 62 side of the partition plate 16. When the moving mechanism 340 is operated, the heat absorbing plate 320 can be slid between the boat chamber 51 and the lifting mechanism chamber 52 with the slit 162 interposed (see the dotted line in FIG. 2). ).

  A slit 163 extending in the vertical direction is also formed on the side wall 64 side of the partition plate 16. When the moving mechanism 350 is operated, the heat absorbing plate 330 can be slid between the boat chamber 51 and the lifting mechanism chamber 52 with the slit 163 interposed (see the dotted line in FIG. 2). ).

An inert gas supply line 11 for supplying an inert gas such as N ₂ to the load lock chamber 1 is connected to the side wall 61 side of the load lock chamber 1. The inert gas supply line 11 includes inert gas supply pipes 111 to 115. The inert gas supply pipe 111 is branched into two inert gas supply pipes 112 and 113. The inert gas supply pipes 112 and 113 pass through the side wall 61 to reach the load lock chamber 1, and communicate with inert gas supply pipes 114 and 115 extending in the vertical direction in the load lock chamber 1. Yes. The inert gas supply pipes 114 and 115 are each provided with a plurality of holes 116 in the vertical direction.

  A flow meter 118 is provided in the middle of the inert gas supply pipe 111 so that the supply amount of the inert gas from the inert gas supply pipe 111 to the load lock chamber 1 can be adjusted.

  The inert gas flowing in from the inert gas supply pipe 111 is supplied from the holes 116 of the inert gas supply pipes 114 and 115 toward the boat 10 and the wafer 101 by a shower method, and thereafter It passes through the slit 161 of the partition plate 16 and flows into the elevating mechanism chamber 52.

  Further, a refrigerant supply pipe 360 that supplies refrigerant to the refrigerant pipes 311, 321, and 331 and a refrigerant discharge pipe 370 that discharges the refrigerant in the refrigerant pipes 311, 321, and 331 are connected to the side wall 61 side of the load lock chamber 1. ing. The refrigerant supply pipe 360 and the refrigerant discharge pipe 370 are connected to the refrigerant pipes 311, 321, 331, and the refrigerant flows from the refrigerant supply pipe 360 through the refrigerant pipes 311, 321, 331 (via the refrigerant pipe) 370. It comes to be discharged from.

  The side wall 63 of the load lock chamber 1 is provided with a vacuum exhaust line 121 penetrating therethrough. An air valve 13 is provided in the middle of the vacuum exhaust line 121. An atmospheric pressure vent line 14 is connected to the front side of the air valve 13 of the vacuum exhaust line 121. The tip of the atmospheric pressure vent line 14 is substantially at atmospheric pressure. An air valve 15 is provided in the middle of the atmospheric pressure vent line 14. In the substrate processing apparatus 100, the exhaust can be switched between the vacuum exhaust line 121 and the atmospheric pressure vent line 14 by the air valves 13 and 15.

  The vacuum exhaust line 121 is connected to the vacuum exhaust line 120, and the vacuum pump 80 is connected to the vacuum exhaust line 120. In the middle of the vacuum exhaust line 120, one end of the vacuum exhaust line 122 is connected, and the other end of the vacuum exhaust line 122 is connected to the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19. An air valve 123 is provided in the middle of the vacuum exhaust line 122.

  Note that a gas supply line for supplying a processing gas to the processing chamber and an inert gas supply line for supplying an inert gas to the processing chamber are connected to the processing furnace 19, and the vacuum is maintained with the air valve 123 opened. When the pump 80 is operated, the gas atmosphere in the processing chamber can be exhausted from the vacuum exhaust line 122 while supplying the processing gas or the inert gas into the processing chamber.

  In the middle of the vacuum exhaust line 122, an inert gas ballast pipe 131 is connected. A flow meter 132 is provided in the middle of the inert gas ballast pipe 131 so that the amount of inert gas supplied to the inert gas ballast pipe 131 can be adjusted.

  The bottom wall 66 of the load lock chamber 1 is provided with a pressure gauge 41 that passes through the bottom wall 66 and communicates with the inside of the lift mechanism chamber 52, and the pressure in the load lock chamber 1, particularly the pressure in the lift mechanism chamber 52. Can be measured.

  In the above configuration, the moving mechanisms 340 and 350, the air valves 13, 15 and 123, the flow meters 118 and 132, and the pressure gauge 41 are connected to the control device 150. A display device 151 is connected to the control device 150 so as to display the operation status of the moving mechanisms 340 and 350, the flow information from the flow meters 118 and 132, the pressure information from the pressure gauge 41, and the like.

  In addition, the vacuum pump for exhausting the load lock chamber 1 and the vacuum pump for exhausting the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 are combined with one vacuum pump 80, thereby reducing costs and simplifying the apparatus. ing.

  Next, a method for forming a film on the wafer 101 using the substrate processing apparatus 100 configured as described above will be described.

  In the substrate processing apparatus 100, the heating means and the gas supply line for the processing furnace 19, the moving mechanisms 340 and 350, the air valves 13, 15, and 123, the vacuum pump 80, the flow meters 118 and 132, the pressure gauge 41, and the like are controlled. The operation status of the moving mechanisms 340 and 350, the flow rate information from the flow meters 118 and 132, the pressure information from the pressure gauge 41, and the like are displayed on the display device 151 via the control device 150.

(Step S1)
First, the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 is maintained at a predetermined temperature and atmosphere with the gate valve 18 closed, and the heat absorbing plates 320 and 330 are moved to the dotted line positions in FIG. In this state, the gate valve 17 is opened. At this time, the air valves 13 and 15 are closed. Thereafter, a plurality of wafers 101 are mounted on the boat 10 from the atmospheric pressure atmosphere outside the load lock chamber 1 through the opening 91 and the gate valve 17.

(Step S2)
Thereafter, the gate valve 17 is closed. The air valve 13 is opened with the air valve 15 closed, and the load lock chamber 1 is evacuated through the vacuum exhaust lines 121 and 120.

(Step S3)
Thereafter, the air valve 13 is closed, and an inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply line 11 until the inside of the load lock chamber 1 becomes atmospheric pressure or higher, thereby making the inside of the load lock chamber 1 an inert gas atmosphere. Thereafter, with the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply line 11, the air valve 15 is opened and the inert gas is exhausted from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14.

At this time, in order to prevent the backflow of particles and oxygen from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14, the flow meter 118 is set so that the inside of the load lock chamber 1 is slightly positive pressure (about 0.05 kgf / cm ² G) from the atmospheric pressure. Is used to control the flow rate of the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply line 11. The control of the flow rate of the flow meter 118 is performed by the control device 150 according to the pressure information in the load lock chamber 1 input from the pressure gauge 41.

(Step S4)
Thereafter, the inert gas is exhausted from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14 while supplying the inert gas from the inert gas supply line 11. In this state, the gate valve 18 is opened, and the boat 10 is lifted by the lifting mechanism 2 and introduced into the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19.

  When opening the gate valve 18, the pressure information in the load lock chamber 1 from the pressure gauge 41 is input to the control device 150, and the measured pressure value in the load lock chamber 1 and a predetermined pressure value set in advance or The pressure value in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 is compared with the pressure value in the processing chamber 19 and the pressure controller 118 is controlled by the controller 150 to control the pressure in the load lock chamber 1. The pressure is controlled so as to eliminate the pressure difference from the inside as much as possible.

  The pressure in the load lock chamber 1 can also be adjusted by providing a flow meter 140 in the atmospheric vent line 14 and adjusting the flow rate of the atmospheric vent line 14.

Thus, when exhausting the inert gas from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14 while supplying the inert gas from the inert gas supply line 11, in order to prevent the backflow of particles and oxygen from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14. It is desirable to set the inside of the load lock chamber 1 to be slightly positive pressure (about 0.05 kgf / cm ² G) from the vent side (substantially atmospheric pressure).

  When the gate valve 18 is opened and the boat 10 is introduced into the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19, the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 receives radiant heat leaking from the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19. 10 and the wafer 101 mounted thereon, the rise in the surface temperature of the load lock chamber 1 can be suppressed.

(Step S5)
Thereafter, the gate valve 18 is closed, the wafer 101 mounted on the boat 10 is heated while supplying the processing gas in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19, and film formation processing is performed on the wafer 101.

  During the film forming process, the inert gas is exhausted from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14 while supplying the inert gas from the inert gas supply line 11 in the load lock chamber 1.

At this time, in order to prevent the backflow of particles and oxygen from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14, the flow meter 118 is set so that the inside of the load lock chamber 1 is slightly positive pressure (about 0.05 kgf / cm ² G) from the atmospheric pressure. Is used to control the flow rate of the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply line 11.

  In step S5, the wafer 101 is formed in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 as described above. It is important to strictly control the temperature and pressure in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 as film forming conditions. .

  In the present embodiment, an inert gas ballast system is adopted as a pressure control method in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19. In the “inert ballast system”, the vacuum pump 80 is exhausted at a constant exhaust capacity, while an inert gas is introduced from an inert gas ballast pipe 131 connected in the middle of the vacuum exhaust line 122. In this method, the flow rate of the gas is controlled by the flow meter 132 to adjust the exhaust amount from the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 to adjust the pressure in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19.

  In place of the inert gas ballast method, a flow rate adjusting valve use (APC) method may be used. The “APC system” does not introduce an inert gas from the inert gas ballast pipe 131, but a flow rate adjusting valve 160 is provided in the vacuum exhaust line 122, and the conductance of the vacuum exhaust line 122 is determined by the opening degree of the flow rate adjusting valve 160. This is a method for adjusting the pressure in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19.

(Step S6)
After the film forming process in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 is completed, the atmosphere in the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 is changed to an inert gas atmosphere.

  On the other hand, while the inert gas is being supplied from the inert gas supply line 11 into the load lock chamber 1, the exhaust gas is continuously exhausted from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14 to maintain the load lock chamber 1 in an inert gas atmosphere. deep.

  At the same time, the moving mechanisms 340 and 350 are operated to move the heat absorbing plates 320 and 330 to the positions indicated by solid lines in FIG. 2, and the heat absorbing plates 320 and 330 are moved to the position when the wafer 101 is cooled. Further, the refrigerant is supplied from the refrigerant supply pipe 360 to the refrigerant pipes 311, 321, 331, and the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330 are cooled.

  In this state, the gate valve 18 is opened, the boat 10 is lowered by the elevating mechanism 2 and moved from the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 into the load lock chamber 1, and then the gate valve 18 is closed.

  Since the inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply line 11 in the load lock chamber 1, when the boat 10 moves to the load lock chamber 1, the inert gas flows into the boat 10, the wafer 101 mounted on the boat 10, and the like. Cooling.

  When opening the gate valve 18, the pressure in the load lock chamber 1 is controlled by controlling the flow rate of the flow meter 118, and the pressure difference between the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 and the load lock chamber 1 is set. It is preferable to control the pressure as much as possible.

  Here, when the gate valve 18 is opened and the boat 10 descends from the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 to the load lock chamber 1 or stays in the load lock chamber 1 after descending, the boat 10 and the wafer 101 mounted thereon. Emits radiant heat, but the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330 are interposed between the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 and the boat 10, the wafer 101 mounted on the boat 10, etc., and receive the radiant heat to receive the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1. Receives almost no radiant heat.

  The inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply line 11 is warmed by receiving the radiant heat, and the inert gas is heat-exchanged (cooled) by the heat-absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330, and the heat-absorbing plates 310 and 320. , 330 flows along the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330, and cools the boat 10 and the wafer 101 mounted thereon.

(Step S7)
Thereafter, the inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply line 11 and the inert gas is exhausted from the atmospheric pressure vent line 14, the gate valve 17 is opened, and the boat 10 is opened via the opening 91 and the gate valve 17. The plurality of wafers 101 are taken out into the atmospheric pressure atmosphere outside the load lock chamber 1.

  Even when the gate valve 17 is opened, the pressure in the load lock chamber 1 is controlled by controlling the flow rate of the flow meter 118 so that the pressure difference between the load lock chamber 1 and the atmospheric pressure atmosphere outside the load lock 1 is as much as possible. It is preferable to eliminate them.

  In the above embodiment, the heat absorption plates 310, 320, and 330 are disposed in the load lock chamber 1, and when the heat-treated wafer 101 is cooled in the load lock chamber 1, the heat absorption plates 320 and 330 are solid lines in FIG. 2. And the radiant heat of the boat 10 and the wafer 101 mounted on the boat 10 can be cut off and absorbed by the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330. The inner wall hardly receives the radiant heat, and moisture, impurities, etc. adhering to the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 hardly float in the load lock chamber 1.

  At this time, since the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply line 11 is absorbed by the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330, the gas flow in the load lock chamber 1 is hardly disturbed. (The gas flow is adjusted), and the occurrence of thermal convection in the load lock chamber 1 can be suppressed.

  At the same time, the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330 are interposed between the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 and the heat-treated boat 10 and the wafer 101 mounted thereon, so that the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply line 11 is provided. The gas hardly generates thermal convection around the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 by the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330, and the surface of the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330 has almost no unevenness, Even if it flows along the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330, thermal convection is hardly generated around the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, and 330.

  Therefore, even if moisture, impurities, etc. adhering to the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 float in the load lock chamber 1 and are mixed with the inert gas, the moisture, impurities, etc. remain in the load lock chamber 1. It becomes difficult to scatter.

  From the above, it is possible to prevent or deter the moisture, impurities, etc. adhering to the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 from adhering to the wafer 101 after heat treatment, the boat 10 on which it is mounted, etc. 101 can be prevented or prevented from being contaminated.

  Here, as a comparative example of the substrate processing apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, assuming a substrate processing apparatus that does not have the above configuration (the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330, etc.), the substrate processing apparatus is shown in FIGS. The configuration is as follows. 4 and 5 are views for explaining a load lock chamber of a substrate processing apparatus as a comparative example. In particular, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line X7-X7 in FIG. 5, and FIG. 5 is Y7 in FIG. FIG.

  4 and 5, in the substrate processing apparatus 200 as a comparative example, the heat absorbing plates 310, 320, 330, the refrigerant pipes 311, 321, 331, the moving mechanism 340, described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. 350, the refrigerant supply pipe 360, the refrigerant discharge pipe 370, and the like are not provided.

  Therefore, in the substrate processing apparatus 200, when the boat 10 and the wafer 101 mounted thereon are moved from the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 to the load lock chamber 1 after the heat treatment, the radiant heat of the boat 10 and the wafer 101 is directly applied. The water and impurities adhering to the inner wall of the load lock chamber 1 are activated and scattered in the load lock chamber 1 while being mixed with the inert gas supplied from the inert gas supply line 11. There is a possibility of adhering to the dummy wafer 101 or the boat 10 being cooled.

  In this state, when the dummy wafer 101, the boat 10 and the like are moved again to the processing chamber of the processing furnace 19 and subjected to a heat treatment there, moisture, impurities and the like are peeled off from the dummy wafer 101 and the boat 10 and the like during the heat treatment, The peeled moisture and impurities adhere to the product wafer 101 and the product wafer 101 is contaminated.

The above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.
For example, the present invention can be applied not only to a semiconductor wafer but also to a glass substrate load lock chamber for forming a liquid crystal display element. In this case, the present invention can also be used in a load lock chamber of a type in which glass substrates are mounted on a boat or cassette, but a single wafer type load for loading and unloading wafers and glass substrates one by one into the load lock chamber. Of course, it can also be used in lock rooms.

It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the substrate processing apparatus used by preferable embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram for demonstrating the load lock chamber used in preferable embodiment of this invention, and the member attached to it, and is the X1-X1 line cross-sectional view of FIG. It is a schematic block diagram for demonstrating the load lock chamber used in preferable embodiment of this invention, and the member attached to it, Comprising: It is the Y1-Y1 line longitudinal cross-sectional view of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the load lock chamber of the substrate processing apparatus as a comparative example, Comprising: It is the X7-X7 line cross-sectional view of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the load lock chamber of the substrate processing apparatus as a comparative example, Comprising: It is the Y7-Y7 line longitudinal cross-sectional view of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Substrate processing apparatus 1 Load lock chamber 2 Elevating mechanism 3 Moving block 4 Ball screw 5 Guide 6, 7 Bearing 10 Boat 11 Inert gas supply line 12 Vacuum exhaust line 13, 15, 123 Air valve 14 Atmospheric pressure vent line 16 Partition plate 17, 18 Gate valve 19 Processing furnace 31, 32 Nut (bearing)
41 Pressure gauge 51 Boat chamber 52 Elevating mechanism chamber 61-64 Side wall 80 Vacuum pump 91, 92 Opening 101 Wafer 111-115 Inert gas supply pipe 118, 132, 140 Flowmeter 131 Inactive ballast piping 150 Control device 151 Display device 160 Flow rate adjusting valves 161-163 Slits 310, 320, 330 Endothermic plates 311, 321, 331 Refrigerant pipes 340, 350 Moving mechanism 360 Refrigerant supply pipe 370 Refrigerant discharge pipe

Claims (1)

A processing chamber for heat-treating the substrate;
Heating means for heating the substrate in the processing chamber;
A gas supply for supplying a desired processing gas into the processing chamber and exhausting the atmosphere in the processing chamber; an exhaust system;
A preliminary chamber arranged to communicate with the processing chamber in an airtight manner through an opening;
A substrate mounting means for mounting the substrate and moving the substrate through the opening between the processing chamber and the preliminary chamber;
An inert gas supply means for supplying an inert gas into the preliminary chamber;
Preliminary chamber exhaust means for exhausting the atmosphere in the preliminary chamber;
A rectifying means disposed in the spare chamber for suppressing disturbance of gas flow in the spare chamber;
A moving means for moving the rectifying means between the substrate cooling position in the spare room and a position at other times; and
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the moving means moves the rectifying means to a position around the substrate at the time of cooling the substrate when cooling the substrate after the heat treatment in the preliminary chamber.

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