JP6412670B1 - Gate valve - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a gate valve with a heater that can uniformly heat the gate valve and can be easily replaced.
A gate valve includes a valve body for opening and closing an opening of a vacuum chamber, a heater for uniformly transferring heat to the valve body, a shaft body for moving and holding the valve body and accommodating the heater. The shaft body is characterized in that the heater is detachably attached from the atmospheric pressure side without exposing the heater to the vacuum side where the valve body is disposed.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a gate valve with a heater capable of heating a gate valve that opens and closes between chambers in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.

  In a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, a plurality of chambers are provided, and a substrate is transferred to a chamber that performs processing for each process. The chambers are partitioned by gate valves, and the substrate is transferred by opening and closing the gate valves when changing the chamber for processing.

  If process gas generated during the process in the chamber condenses and adheres to the gate valve, etc., particles are scattered due to vibration during opening and closing, etc., causing the substrate to be contaminated. Need to be heated.

  As described in Patent Document 1, an invention of a gate valve capable of removing a heater is also disclosed. Further, as described in Patent Document 2, an invention of a vacuum valve that can easily replace a heater is also disclosed.

Japanese Patent No. 3406528 Japanese Patent No. 5664846

  However, if a sheathed heater or the like is stretched around the gate valve, it is difficult to replace the heater when the heater is disconnected. In the invention described in Patent Document 1, the cartridge heater circulates in the valve body and can be replaced by stopping the entire apparatus and removing the valve body, but it is not possible to replace only the heater.

  Further, in the invention described in Patent Document 2, a cartridge heater is arranged in the center of the gate valve. However, when the inside of the chamber is evacuated, the heater is exposed to a vacuum atmosphere, so metal contamination occurs. Sometimes, when changing the heater, the entire apparatus must be stopped to release the vacuum state.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a gate valve with a heater that can uniformly heat the gate valve and can be easily replaced.

In order to solve the above-described problems, a gate valve according to the present invention includes a valve body disposed in a frame body for opening and closing an opening of a vacuum chamber, a heater for uniformly transferring heat to the valve body, A shaft body that moves and holds the valve body and accommodates the heater, and the shaft body is not exposed to the vacuum side so as not to release the vacuum state in the frame body in which the valve body is disposed. It is a hole, It has an insertion hole for attaching and detaching the heater from the atmospheric pressure side which is the outside of the frame .

  In the gate valve, the valve body is made of a material having a higher thermal conductivity than the shaft body, and the heater is inserted to a position where a rod-shaped cartridge heater reaches the valve body from the shaft body. It is characterized by that.

  According to the present invention, since the heater is attached from the atmospheric pressure side, the valve body can be uniformly heated as a whole without the heater being stretched around the valve body. Further, even if the heater is disconnected or the like, only the heater can be exchanged from the atmospheric pressure side, and it is not necessary to release the vacuum state of the entire apparatus, so that maintenance is easy.

It is a side view which shows the outline | summary of the gate valve which is this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the state which removed the gate valve which is this invention from the frame. It is the top view, front view, and right side view when the gate valve which is the present invention is seen from the back. It is a perspective view of the valve body and shaft of the gate valve which is the present invention. It is a graph which shows the result of having performed the temperature rising test about the gate valve which is this invention. It is a graph which shows the result of having carried out the temperature rising test, after adjusting the temperature about the gate valve which is this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition, what has the same function attaches | subjects the same code | symbol, and the repeated description may be abbreviate | omitted.

  First, the structure of the gate valve according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a side view showing an outline of a gate valve. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the gate valve is removed from the frame. FIG. 3A is a plan view, FIG. 3B is a front view, and FIG. 3C is a right side view of the gate valve as viewed from the back (part is shown in cross section). FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the valve body and the shaft body of the gate valve.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the gate valve 100 is a device provided in the opening 120 of the chamber 110 in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and closes the opening 120 while the substrate is processed in the chamber 110, and the substrate is placed in the chamber. The opening 120 is opened when carrying into or out of the 110. A frame body 200 serving as a passage for transporting the substrate is connected to the opening 120 of the chamber 110 via a flange 130, and the gate valve 100 is disposed in the frame body 200.

  When the gate valve 100 is interposed between the chamber 110 and another chamber 110a adjacent thereto, the other end of the frame body 200 is connected to the opening 120a of the chamber 110a via the flange 130a. The flanges 130 and 130a are annular joints for connecting to the openings 120 and 120a of the chambers 110 and 110a.

  The frame body 200 has a valve seat 210 at the edge of a hole formed in accordance with the opening 120 in order to bring the gate valve 100 into contact with the opening 120 of the chamber 110. In addition, a drive unit 220 for operating the gate valve 100 is provided on the lower surface of the frame body 200.

  The drive unit 220 can accommodate the lower part of the gate valve 100, lifts the gate valve 100 until it reaches the height of the opening 120, and pushes the valve valve 210 against the valve seat 210 and peels the gate valve 100 from the valve seat 210. And a mechanism for lowering the opening 120 so as to be opened.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the gate valve 100 supports the valve body 300 by extending into the frame body 200 from the driving body 220 and the valve body 300 for closing the opening 120 of the chamber 110 in the frame body 200. The shaft body 400 and the like are provided.

  The valve body 300 is a plate material that is one size larger than the opening 120, and a seal material 310 is provided in a portion that contacts the valve seat 210. The valve body 300 is made of a metal or an alloy such as Al (aluminum) having good thermal conductivity. Further, the valve body 300 is attached to the upper end of the shaft body 400 via the support member 320.

  The sealing material 310 may be attached so as to surround the edge of the valve body 300 using an annular rubber packing such as an O-ring. When the valve body 300 is pressed against the valve seat 210, the sealing material 310 is crushed to close the gap, and the opening 120 is sealed.

  The shaft body 400 is a rod-shaped member that connects between the valve body 300 and the drive unit 220. The shaft body 400 is formed of a metal or an alloy such as SUS (stainless steel) having low thermal conductivity and heat retention. When the opening 120 is horizontally long, the shaft body 400 is connected at the central portion 340 of the valve body 300, and the end portion 330 of the valve body 300 is left and right.

  Since the gate valve 100 closes the opening 120 of the chamber 110, the gate valve 100 serves as a gas contact portion with the process gas generated during processing in the chamber 110. When the process gas decreases in temperature at the gate valve 100 and condenses and adheres, the adhering matter scatters due to vibration associated with the opening and closing of the gate valve 100 to generate particles. Install.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the heater 500 is a rod-shaped heating unit such as a cartridge heater, and is embedded in the shaft body 400 so as to be detachable from the atmospheric pressure side. The shaft body 400 is not exposed to vacuum on the valve body 300 side, but has an insertion hole 410 so that it is exposed to atmospheric pressure on the drive unit 220 side, and the heater 500 is attached and detached.

  The heater 500 only needs to have a tip extending to the central portion 340 of the valve body 300. Heat dissipation is suppressed in the shaft body 400, and heat conduction is performed from the central portion 340 to the end portion 330 in the valve body 300. The heater 500 may be provided with temperature adjusting means such as a thermocouple 510.

  When the inside of the chamber 110 is vacuum, the gate valve 100 operates in vacuum in order to make the inside of the frame body 200 vacuum so that there is no pressure difference. Note that the outside of the frame body 200 and the drive unit 220 is at atmospheric pressure. The heater 500 can be replaced from the atmospheric pressure side without releasing the vacuum state in the frame body 200.

  Next, the heater for the gate valve according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 5 is a graph showing the results of a temperature rise test for the gate valve. FIG. 6 is a graph showing the results of a temperature increase test performed on the gate valve after adjusting the flange temperature to (a) 70 ° C. and (b) 140 ° C.

In the test of FIG. 5, the valve body 300 of the gate valve 100 is set to the closed position, the pressure inside the frame body 200 is set to a vacuum state of about 10 ⁻² Pa, the flange 130 is in a normal temperature state, and the temperature of the heater 500 is set to about 215. The temperature change of the end portion 330 of the valve body 300 when the temperature was set to ° C. was measured.

  As a result, the temperature of the end portion 330 increased to about 140 ° C. over about 120 minutes, and the temperature of the valve body 300 was stabilized. In addition, since it takes 120 minutes or more due to the influence of heat escaping toward the frame body 200, it is preferable to reduce the thermal conductivity of the frame body 200.

  In the test of FIG. 6A, the valve body 300 of the gate valve 100 is set to the closed position, the atmospheric pressure in the frame body 200 is set to a vacuum state of about 500 Pa, and in order to reproduce the temperature when processing in the chamber 110, the flange is previously set. With the temperature of 130 adjusted to 70 ° C., the temperature of the heater 500 for stabilizing the temperature of the central portion 340 and the end portion 330 of the valve body 300 at about 140 ° C. was measured.

  As a result, when the temperature of the heater 500 was about 215 ° C., both the central portion 340 and the end portion 330 were stabilized at about 140 ° C. in about 60 minutes.

  In the test of FIG. 6A, the valve body 300 of the gate valve 100 is set to the closed position, the atmospheric pressure in the frame body 200 is set to a vacuum state of about 500 Pa, and in order to reproduce the temperature when processing in the chamber 110, the flange is previously set. While the temperature of 130 was adjusted to 140 ° C., the temperature of the heater 500 for stabilizing the temperature of the central portion 340 and the end portion 330 of the valve body 300 at about 140 ° C. was measured.

  As a result, when the temperature of the heater 500 was about 160 ° C., both the central portion 340 and the end portion 330 were stabilized at about 140 ° C. in about 30 minutes.

  According to the present invention, since the heater is attached from the atmospheric pressure side, the valve body can be uniformly heated as a whole without the heater being stretched around the valve body. Further, even if the heater is disconnected or the like, only the heater can be exchanged from the atmospheric pressure side, and it is not necessary to release the vacuum state of the entire apparatus, so that maintenance is easy.

  As mentioned above, although the Example of this invention was described, it is not limited to these.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100: Gate valve 110: Chamber 120: Opening part 130: Flange 200: Frame body 210: Valve seat 220: Drive part 300: Valve body 310: Sealing material 320: Support material 330: End part 340: Center part 400: Shaft body 410: Insertion hole 500: Heater 510: Thermocouple

Claims (2)

A valve body disposed within the frame body for opening and closing the opening of the vacuum chamber;
A heater for uniformly transferring heat to the valve body;
A shaft body that holds the heater while moving and holding the valve body,
The shaft body is an insertion hole that is not exposed to the vacuum side so as not to release the vacuum state in the frame body in which the valve body is arranged, and the heater is attached to and detached from the atmospheric pressure side outside the frame body Having an insertion hole for
A gate valve characterized by that. The valve body is a material having higher thermal conductivity than the shaft body,
The heater is inserted to a position where a rod-shaped cartridge heater reaches the valve body from the shaft body,
The gate valve according to claim 1.

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