JP2013115183A - Semiconductor manufacturing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To maintain such a state that foreign matters do not adhere to a processed substrate W1 for a long time, without reducing the throughput, in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.SOLUTION: The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprises a plurality of processing chambers 1a, 1b in which a processed substrate W1 is processed, a transfer mechanism for transferring the processed substrate W1 to each of the plurality of processing chambers, and a transfer chamber 9 having the transfer mechanism internally. The transfer mechanism in the transfer chamber 9 includes a grounded conductive hand 13, and an insulating hand 10, and is provided with a substrate W2 dedicated to foreign matter adhesion, and a carry-in/carry-out chamber 7 of the substrate W2 dedicated to foreign matter adhesion. Foreign matters are made to adhere to the substrate W2 dedicated to foreign matter adhesion, and the substrate W2 to which foreign matters are adhering can be replaced.

Description

  The present invention relates to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and more particularly to a semiconductor processing apparatus suitable for suppressing minute foreign matters from adhering to a semiconductor substrate.

  In a semiconductor device manufacturing process, a substrate transport mechanism that transports a semiconductor substrate from a desired position to a desired position in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is used. As an example, consider an etching process in a semiconductor device manufacturing process. When a desired etching process is performed on a substrate housed in a sealed container called a hoop, the wafers are generally transferred in the following order. “Hoop” → “Positioning chamber” → “Load lock (loading) chamber” → “Transfer chamber” → “Etching chamber” → “Transfer chamber” → “Unload lock (unload) chamber” → “Hoop”. A substrate transport mechanism is used when transporting the substrate between the chambers.

  Examples of the performance required for the substrate transport mechanism include “transporting a substrate at high speed”, “no substrate displacement occurs”, “antistatic charging of the substrate”, and the like. In order to “carry a substrate at a high speed”, it is generally performed to adopt a plurality of carrying hands and carry a plurality of substrates at the same time. In order to “not cause substrate displacement”, the substrate back surface is generally attached and held by a vacuum chuck during substrate transport in the atmosphere. Further, since the problem of minute foreign matter adhering to the substrate or the problem of dielectric breakdown in the substrate has been increasing, a substrate transport apparatus that implements “preventing charging of the substrate” has also been proposed.

  For example, in patent document 1, it has a static elimination means in a board | substrate conveyance mechanism. Moreover, in patent document 2 and patent document 3, it is preventing that a board | substrate is electrically charged by using the grounded conductive component for a board | substrate conveyance mechanism.

  The force acting on the foreign substance includes fluid force, gravity, electrostatic force, thermophoretic force and the like. Among these, the electrostatic force has a greater influence on the foreign matter as the foreign matter diameter becomes smaller. For this reason, it can be expected that foreign substances adhering to the substrate are reduced by removing the substrate from Patent Document 1 or the like or by reducing the potential of the substrate to zero. This is because foreign matters are generally charged, and an electrostatic force that positively attaches foreign matters does not act on an object with zero potential.

  On the other hand, since the static electricity is removed from the substrate and components, it is difficult for the foreign matter to adhere to the substrate, the foreign matter cannot be carried out of the apparatus, and the foreign matter existing in each part of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus stays in that place forever. Therefore, conversely, a method has been proposed in which an electrostatic force is positively used to positively attach foreign matter. For example, there are Patent Document 4 and Patent Document 5. By using these methods using electrostatic force, it becomes possible to attach and collect foreign substances staying in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-60609 JP 7-37962 A Japanese Patent No. 3077117 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-242238 JP 2004-304131 A

  However, the above-mentioned conventional technology only attaches and collects foreign matter on the substrate using electrostatic force. That is, after a long period of time, the foreign matter adhesion / collection ability also decreases and may become a foreign matter generation source. Therefore, in order to maintain the foreign matter attachment / collection ability, Collection maintenance needs to be performed. This is a major factor that decreases throughput and increases cost.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus capable of reducing the number of foreign substances adhering to a substrate without reducing the throughput of the substrate to be processed.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following means.
At least one conductive hand using a grounded conductive material and at least one insulating hand made of only an insulating material were provided as transfer hands for mounting and transferring the substrate to be processed thereon. Furthermore, a foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber for inserting the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate is provided.

  During normal substrate transfer (when processing a substrate to be processed), the substrate to be processed in the substrate carry-in chamber is placed on a transfer hand made of a grounded conductive material and transferred to the processing chamber. The substrate to be processed, which has been processed, is also transferred to the substrate carry-out chamber on a transfer hand made of a grounded conductive material. By doing in this way, the to-be-processed substrate can be prevented from being charged and the adverse effect of foreign matter adhering to the substrate can be eliminated. This is because, even if the substrate to be processed is charged by placing the substrate on the grounded conductive hand, an opposite charge equal to the substrate charge amount is supplied to the grounded conductive hand. This is because the charge amount in the vicinity is the same in both positive and negative directions, and the potential becomes zero.

  Also, if there is a concern about the increase in foreign matter or if you want to reduce foreign matter, place the special substrate for foreign matter adhesion on the insulating hand that is not grounded from the loading / unloading chamber for the foreign matter adhesion substrate. The substrate is transported to the vicinity of a place where there is a concern or where foreign matter is to be reduced. At this time, the transport hand made of an insulating material and the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate are charged. This is because, when removing the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate, the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate and the insulating hand are charged by "peeling charging" that occurs when the substrate to be processed and the substrate cassette are separated. In addition, since the hand is an insulating material, the charge amount does not become zero. Since the foreign matter is generally charged, the foreign matter tends to adhere to the charged hand. Thus, by placing and moving the substrate to be processed on an insulating hand made of an insulating material, it is possible to effectively collect and capture the surrounding foreign objects to which the insulating hand has moved.

  In addition, by returning the dedicated substrate for foreign matter adhesion to the loading / unloading chamber for the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate and using another foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate to which no foreign matter is adhered, the foreign material adhesion dedicated substrate with less adhered foreign matter can be removed at any time. Can adhere.

  The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention has a plurality of substrate loading / unloading chambers having a vacuum exhaust and vent function, and a substrate to be processed in and out of the device, a plurality of processing chambers for processing the substrate to be processed, and the plurality of the processing chambers. In a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising a transport mechanism for transporting the substrate to be processed to each chamber of the processing chamber and a transport chamber having the transport mechanism therein, a transport hand for placing the substrate to be processed by the transport mechanism At least one of the transfer hands is made of a grounded conductive material, and is used when transferring a substrate to be processed in the processing chamber, and is provided with at least one foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber. And at least one of the transfer hands on which the substrate to be processed is placed by the transfer mechanism is made of an insulating material in a non-grounded state, The substrate to be processed in the carry-out chamber is placed on the transfer hand made of the non-grounded insulating material and moved in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and the substrate for exclusive use with foreign matter adhesion is carried in without processing the substrate to be processed. The substrate is returned to the carry-out chamber again.

  The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention is further characterized in that the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber and the transfer chamber are separated by a gate valve.

  Further, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is further characterized in that a substrate cassette made of an insulating material is installed in the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber.

  The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is further characterized in that quartz, insulating ceramic, PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), and polyimide are used as the insulating material of the substrate cassette.

  In addition, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is further characterized in that a charging device and a charge removal device are provided in the substrate carrying-in / out chamber for foreign matter adhesion.

  The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that a silicon wafer or a substrate to be processed whose surface is an insulating film is placed in the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber.

  Further, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention further moves the inside of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus by placing the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate on the transfer hand made of the non-grounded insulating material from the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber. Then, one or a plurality of substrates to be processed to be processed in the processing chamber are transported.

  Since the present invention has the above-described configuration, it is possible to remove foreign substances in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and discharge them outside the apparatus without reducing the throughput. Further, since foreign substances adhering to the substrate are reduced, the yield of semiconductor devices is improved, and the manufacturing cost is reduced.

FIG. 1 is a view for explaining an entire etching apparatus including a foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate carrying in / out chamber according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a view for explaining a cross section of the substrate carrying-in / out chamber for exclusive adhesion of foreign matters and the substrate cassette according to the third to seventh embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a view for explaining a case where a wafer charging device is provided in a foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out chamber according to the eighth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a case where a VUV lamp is attached as a static eliminating device to a foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carrying in / out chamber according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a plasma etching apparatus, which has two etching processing chambers (1a, 1b) for performing an etching process, a transfer chamber 9 for transferring the substrate W1 to be processed to various places, and a substrate W1 to be processed. A substrate carrying-in chamber 3 for supplying the substrate into the plasma etching apparatus, a substrate carrying-out chamber 5 for carrying out the substrate to be processed W1 for which the etching process has been completed to the outside of the plasma etching apparatus, and a foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate for temporarily storing the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2. It is composed of a loading / unloading chamber 7 and the like. The chambers are separated by gate valves 2a, 2b, 4, 6, and 8. Although not shown, each room is provided with a vacuum pump and a pressure gauge, and the etching chambers 1a and 1b are provided with a power source for generating plasma and a gas supply system necessary for the etching process. .

  Inside the substrate transfer chamber 9, a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate to be processed W1 is provided. The transport mechanism includes arms 12 and 15 made of a grounded conductive material, a conductive hand 13 made of a conductive material and grounded, an insulating hand 10 made of an insulating material, and the like. It is configured.

  A processing method for a normal substrate to be processed W1 will be described. The substrate to be processed W1 is introduced into the substrate carry-in chamber 3, and the inside of the substrate carry-in chamber 3 is evacuated by a vacuum pump for the substrate carry-in chamber 3 (not shown). When the substrate carry-in chamber 3 is lowered to a predetermined pressure, the gate valve 4 is opened. At this time, the inside of the substrate transfer chamber 9 is exhausted to a predetermined pressure by a vacuum pump (not shown). The grounded conductive hand 13 is inserted into the substrate carry-in chamber 3 and the substrate W1 to be processed is placed on the conductive hand 13. In the case where the substrate to be processed W1 is processed in the etching chamber 1a, the substrate is moved to the etching chamber 1a by the conductive hand 13, and after performing a predetermined etching process, the substrate W1 is mounted again by the conductive hand 10. Thereafter, the gate valve 6 between the substrate carry-out chamber 5 and the transfer chamber 9 is opened, the substrate W1 to be processed is moved to the substrate carry-out chamber 5, and the gate valve 6 is closed. Further, after returning the substrate carry-out chamber 5 to atmospheric pressure, the substrate to be processed W1 is taken out.

  Consider the potential of the substrate W1 at this time. The substrate W1 to be processed before being processed by the plasma etching apparatus has undergone various processes, and the substrate W1 to be processed is electrically charged. Moreover, even when it is not charged, it is charged while plasma processing is performed in the etching processing chamber 1a. When the charged substrate W1 is transported on the grounded conductive hand 13, the potential of the substrate W1 is zero. In general, the minute foreign matter is charged, but in this case, since the potential of the substrate to be processed W1 is zero, no electrostatic force acts between the minute foreign matter and the substrate to be processed W1. That is, the minute foreign matter does not adhere to the substrate W1 due to electrostatic force. The force acting when the minute foreign matter adheres to the substrate to be processed W1 is gravity or fluid force.

  In this way, when the substrate W1 is transported using the grounded conductive hand 13, since the minute foreign matter does not adhere to the substrate W1 due to electrostatic force, the minute foreign matter generated for some reason is plasma. It remains in the apparatus as it is without being removed from the etching apparatus. In order to remove the minute foreign matter, it is necessary to open the entire plasma etching apparatus to the atmosphere and to clean the inside of the apparatus. Since this operation takes time and reduces the throughput of the product, it is desirable to avoid wiping and cleaning as much as possible unless product defects due to foreign substances occur frequently.

  In order to remove the minute foreign matters in the apparatus without releasing the atmosphere of the apparatus, the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7, the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2, and the insulating hand 10 are used. The usage method will be described below.

  Insert the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 into the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out chamber 7 and evacuate the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out chamber 7 with a vacuum pump (not shown). Set to a predetermined pressure.

  In order to clean the minute foreign matter inside the plasma etching apparatus, the gate valve 8 that separates the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out chamber 7 and the transfer chamber 9 is opened. The insulating hand 10 is inserted into the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7, and the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W 2 is placed on the insulating hand 10. At this time, the stand for holding the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 and the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7 to be processed (not shown) W1 changes from the “contact” state to the “peeled” state. . Further, since the insulating material hand 10 is not electrically grounded, the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2 is charged by “peeling charging” to generate a potential. Alternatively, the insulating hand 10 is not grounded, and the insulating material hand 10 is charged due to repeated peeling from the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2 that has been transported so far, and the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2 placed thereon is applied. Charges up.

  By transporting this charged foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 to a place where it is desired to reduce the fine foreign substances with the insulating hand 10, for example, to the etching processing chamber 1a, the charged minute foreign substance adhesion substrate W2 is present around the area where the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 has passed. The foreign matter adheres to the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2.

  For example, by transferring the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2 to the vicinity of the gate valve 2a immediately after the opening / closing operation, minute foreign matters from an O-ring (not shown) constituting the gate valve 2a can be attached to the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2. .

  Further, by transporting the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2 to the etching processing chamber 1a, minute foreign matters existing in the etching treatment chamber 1a can be attached to the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2.

  In this way, the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 to which the minute foreign substance in the apparatus is adhered is transferred to the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out apparatus 7 and the gate valve 8 is closed. When the amount of foreign matter adhering to the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2 is large, or when foreign matter adheres to the equipment beyond the predetermined number of times of transportation, the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out device 7 is released to the atmosphere and used. The foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 is taken out and replaced with a new foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, by adopting a structure in which the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 can be replaced, it is possible to always remove fine foreign substances in the apparatus with the clean foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2, and to extend the wiping cleaning cycle of the entire apparatus. It is possible to improve the throughput due to, and to suppress the occurrence of defects due to minute foreign matter.

  A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, the second embodiment is characterized in that the gate valve 8 is provided between the transfer chamber 9 and the foreign substance adhesion-only substrate loading / unloading chamber 7.

  By providing the gate valve 8 between the transfer chamber 9 and the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7, the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7 can be released to the atmosphere while the transfer chamber 9 is kept in a vacuum. it can. That is, the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2 can be exchanged without stopping the operation status of the device, so that it is possible to always attach and remove foreign matters in the device using the clean foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2.

  A third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram when the inside of the foreign substance adhesion-only substrate loading / unloading chamber 7 in FIG. 1 is viewed from the transfer chamber 9 side.

  A substrate cassette 21 made of an insulating material is provided inside the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7. Further, the substrate cassette 21 can have five foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrates W2, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which four foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W23 and W25 are held using four of them. It is. Although the fourth stage from the top is vacant, the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W24 in this stage is placed on the insulating hand 10 and indicates that it is being transported.

  The foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W24 placed on the insulating hand 10 to which foreign matter in the apparatus adheres is returned to the fourth stage from the top of the substrate cassette 21. Thereafter, when it is necessary to remove foreign matter in the apparatus, for example, the insulating hand 10 takes out the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W25 at the fifth stage from the top, and transports the inside of the apparatus to attach the foreign substance.

  The operation for taking out or returning the predetermined foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2 from the substrate cassette 21 may be carried by the arms 12 and 15 or the insulating hand 10 which are transport mechanisms, or the substrate cassette 21 is moved up and down. May be.

  For example, an oxide film substrate or a silicon substrate is used as the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25.

  By using an insulating material for the substrate cassette 21, when the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 are taken out by the insulating hand 10, the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 are charged by peeling electrification. Foreign matters can be effectively adhered in the transfer chamber 9 or the like.

  By using such a material and structure, it is possible to always supply a clean foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate W2.

  Next, Embodiment 4 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, the case where quartz is used as the material of the substrate cassette 21 is the fourth embodiment.

  A fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, the case where an insulating ceramic such as alumina is used as the material of the substrate cassette 21 is the fifth embodiment.

  A sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, the case where PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) is used as the material of the substrate cassette 21 is Example 6.

  A seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, the case where polyimide is used as the material of the substrate cassette 21 is Example 6.

  An eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows a case where a DC power supply 30 is used as a charging device.

  FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7 having an insulating substrate cassette 21 therein, and foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 are placed on the substrate cassette 21; A grounded DC power supply 30 is provided outside the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7, and its output is connected to the charging cable 32 via a feedthrough 31 provided on the side wall of the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7. To do. The charging cable 32 is branched by the number of stages of the substrate cassette 21 inside the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7, and the branched end portions 33 to 37 of the respective charging cables 32 are respectively the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25. To come into contact.

  When the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 are charged by a desired positive and negative charge amount and foreign matter is desired to be adhered, the DC power supply 30 is set to an appropriate output and a predetermined voltage is set to the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25. To supply. By doing in this way, a predetermined voltage is applied to the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25, and they are charged to a predetermined potential.

  By transporting the foreign substance adhesion-dedicated substrates W21 to W25 charged to a predetermined potential by the insulating hand 10, foreign substances can be effectively adhered.

  An eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 shows a case where a VUV (Vacuum Ultra Violet) lamp is used as the static eliminator.

  A VUV lamp 40 is installed in the substrate carrying-in / carrying-out chamber 7 dedicated to foreign matter adhesion. When the VUV lamp 40 is operated in a state where the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7 is evacuated by a vacuum pump (not shown), the gas slightly remaining in the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7 is ionized, Positive ions and negative electrons are generated. These positive ions and electrons reach the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 while moving inside the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber 7. Since the substrate cassette 21 is made of an insulating material, the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 are neutralized by the reached positive ions and electrons. That is, the potentials of the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 are zero. Although the peeling charge is generated by taking out the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 having the potential of zero with the insulating hand 10, the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrates W21 to W25 are charged to the same potential every time, and the foreign matter adhesion management is performed. It becomes easy to do.

  A tenth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1-4, Example 10 is the case where silicon wafers are used as the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrates W2, W21 to W25 to be put into the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out chamber 7.

  Example 11 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1-4, the case where the board | substrate whose surface is an insulating film is used as the board | substrate W2 and W21-W25 only for a foreign material adhesion put in the carrying-in / carry-out chamber 7 for a foreign material adhesion-only board | substrate 7 is Example 11. FIG.

  A twelfth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The foreign substance adhering substrate W2 is transferred to the transfer chamber 9 and the etching chambers 1a and 1b by using the insulating hand 10, and the foreign substance is attached, and the foreign substance adhering substrate W2 is returned to the foreign substance adhering substrate carrying-in / out chamber 7. Thereafter, the substrate W1 to be processed is transferred from the substrate carry-in chamber 3 to the etching chambers 1a and 1b by the conductive hand 13, and subjected to predetermined processing, and is moved to the substrate carry-out chamber 5.

  In this way, the number of foreign substances adhering to the substrate W1 is reduced by transporting the substrate to be processed W1 in a state where the foreign substances in the apparatus are adhered and removed by the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2, so that the substrate to be processed W1 is reduced. The process yield is improved.

  Further, in order to improve the processing throughput of the substrate to be processed W1, a plurality of substrates to be processed W1 may be processed after transporting one foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate W2.

  In the embodiment described above, the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in / out chamber 7 is used, but the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carry-in chamber and the foreign matter adhesion dedicated substrate carry-out chamber 7 may be provided separately.

  Further, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus has been described as an example, but the present invention can also be applied to a liquid crystal panel manufacturing apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1a, 1b Etching process chamber 2a, 2b, 4, 6, 8 Gate valve 3 Substrate carrying-in chamber 5 Substrate carrying-out chamber 7 Foreign substance adhesion exclusive substrate carrying-in / out chamber 9 Transfer chamber 10 Insulating hand 11, 14 Connector 12, 15 Arm 13 Conductivity W1 substrate to be processed W2 dedicated substrate for adhesion of foreign matter W21 to W25 dedicated substrate for adhesion of foreign matter 21 substrate cassette 30 DC power supply 31 feedthrough 32 charging cable 33 to 37 charging cable tip 40 VUV lamp

Claims (9)

A plurality of substrate loading / unloading chambers having a vacuum exhausting and venting function for loading and unloading the substrate to be processed in the apparatus;
A plurality of processing chambers for processing the substrate to be processed;
A transport mechanism for transporting the substrate to be processed to each of the plurality of processing chambers;
In a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising a transfer chamber having the transfer mechanism therein,
At least one of the transfer hands for placing the substrate to be processed by the transfer mechanism is made of a grounded conductive material, and is used when transferring the substrate to be processed in the processing chamber. And
At least one foreign substance adhering substrate loading / unloading chamber is provided, and at least one of the transfer hands on which the substrate to be processed is placed by the transfer mechanism is made of an insulating material in a non-grounded state. And
The substrate to be processed in the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber is placed on a transfer hand composed of the non-grounded insulating material and moved in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus,
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein the substrate is returned again to the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber without processing the substrate to be processed. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1.
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber and the transfer chamber are separated by a gate valve. In the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein a substrate cassette made of an insulating material is installed in a substrate carrying-in / out chamber dedicated to foreign matter adhesion. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3.
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus using quartz, insulating ceramic, PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), or polyimide as an insulating material of the substrate cassette. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3.
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus characterized in that a charging device is provided in the foreign substance adhering substrate carrying-in / out chamber. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus characterized in that a static eliminating device is provided in the foreign substance adhering substrate carrying-in / out chamber. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein a silicon wafer is used by being put into the substrate carrying-in / out chamber dedicated for foreign matter adhesion. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein a substrate to be processed whose surface is an insulating film is put into the substrate carrying-in / out chamber for foreign matter adhesion and used. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
The foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate is placed on the transfer hand made of the non-grounded insulating material from the foreign substance adhesion dedicated substrate loading / unloading chamber and moved in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and then processed in the processing chamber. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that conveys one or more processed substrates.

Images