JP2000277489A - Plasma processing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a plasma processing apparatus capable of simultaneously processing a plurality of substrates by shortening the time required for transfer. A substrate (1) is transported to a first vacuum preliminary chamber (4), a processing chamber (5) and a second vacuum preliminary chamber (13) while being placed on a transport tray (2). The processing chamber 5 includes a plurality of movable chambers 6 and 11, and the plurality of plasma processing chambers 7 and 12 are configured by bringing the movable chambers 6 and 11 into close contact with the transfer tray 2. In the plurality of plasma processing chambers 7 and 12, different plasma processing can be continuously performed. Further, the same number of substrates 1 as the number of movable chambers 14 can be carried into the first and second pre-vacuum chambers 4 and 13, and the same plasma processing is simultaneously performed in the plurality of plasma processing chambers 15. Can also.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a plasma processing apparatus, and more particularly to a plasma processing apparatus capable of simultaneously processing a plurality of substrates.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Office automation (OA) such as a personal computer
With the spread of device automation (flight automation) devices, there is an increasing demand for downsizing and low power consumption of display devices. As a display device satisfying such requirements, a liquid crystal display device using a liquid crystal (Liquid Cry) is used.
(Stall Display: LCD) is the most widely used.

In recent years, there has been a demand for a liquid crystal display device having a larger screen, higher definition, and lower cost. In order to realize a liquid crystal display device having such a large screen and high definition, a technology for enlarging a glass substrate constituting the liquid crystal display device and a technology for fine processing are required.
As a method of realizing fine processing, a dry etching technique by plasma processing can be given.

FIG. 3 shows a conventional plasma processing apparatus. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a conventional plasma processing apparatus when viewed from a plane.

In the conventional plasma processing apparatus, as shown in FIG. 3, a substrate 51 is transferred to a vacuum preliminary chamber 53 by a first transfer means 52. Next, in FIG. 3, three processing chambers 5 in FIG.
The substrate 51 is transported to any one of the substrates 6, and a processing gas is introduced into the substrate 51 to be converted into plasma by the electrode 57, and processed by the plasma.

After the processing, the substrate 51 is moved from the processing chamber 56 to the vacuum chamber 54 and the vacuum preliminary chamber 5 by the second transfer means 55.
3 and discharged out of the plasma processing apparatus by the first transfer means 52.

[0007]

However, in the conventional plasma processing apparatus, one substrate 51 is placed in the vacuum chamber 54.
Since the substrates are transported one by one, the substrate 51 is transported to one processing chamber 56, and then the next substrate 51 is transported to another processing chamber 56.
Therefore, there is a problem that the time required for the transfer determines the processing capacity of the entire apparatus. In order to solve this, for example, a method of arranging a plurality of transport means can be considered, but there is a problem that the cost required for the transport system is increased.

For example, when an ashing process using oxygen gas plasma is performed after etching in the processing chamber 56, another plasma processing apparatus is prepared for the ashing processing, or the ashing processing in the same apparatus is performed. It is necessary to transfer the substrate 51 to another processing chamber 56 prepared by the second transfer means 55. Therefore, the cost of another plasma processing apparatus is required, or the transfer of the substrate 51 in the apparatus is increased, and the processing capacity of the entire apparatus is reduced.

An object of the present invention is to provide a plasma processing apparatus capable of simultaneously processing a plurality of substrates by shortening the time required for transportation, in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems. .

[0010]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention comprises:
A processing chamber that is constantly kept in a vacuum state during processing, a first vacuum preparatory chamber that is brought into a vacuum state for loading a substrate into the processing chamber, and a second vacuum chamber that is released to the atmosphere to unload the substrate from the apparatus body. A vacuum preparatory chamber, wherein the substrate is placed on a transfer tray and the first
Is transferred to the vacuum preparatory chamber, the processing chamber and the second vacuum preparatory chamber, and the processing chamber is provided with a plurality of movable chambers. It is characterized by constituting a processing chamber.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the plasma processing apparatus of the first aspect, different plasma processes are continuously performed in the plurality of plasma processing chambers.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the plasma processing apparatus of the first aspect, the same number of substrates as the number of the plurality of movable chambers can be carried into the first and second pre-vacuum chambers. The same plasma processing is simultaneously performed in the plurality of plasma processing chambers.

According to the plasma processing apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention, the substrate is linearly conveyed by a belt conveyor or the like in a state where the substrate is placed on the conveyance tray, so that it is possible to cope with an increase in the size of the substrate. In addition, it is possible to prevent a decrease in processing capacity due to the transfer rate control. Furthermore, since the transport mechanism is simple, the cost required for the transport mechanism can be reduced. The processing chamber has a plurality of movable chambers,
By constructing a plurality of plasma processing chambers by bringing the movable chamber and the transfer tray into close contact with each other, the processing capacity can be greatly improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, different plasma processes such as etching and ashing can be continuously and efficiently performed in the same device.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the same number of substrates as the number of the plurality of movable chambers can be carried into the first and second pre-vacuum chambers, and the same plasma is simultaneously supplied to the plurality of the plasma processing chambers. By performing the treatment, the same plasma treatment can be performed with high efficiency.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1 as viewed from a side.

First, as shown in FIG. 1A, for example, a substrate 1 to be etched is placed on a transport tray 2, transported by a belt conveyor 3, and loaded into a first pre-vacuum chamber 4. As the substrate 1, a glass substrate or the like for forming a liquid crystal display device is used. Further, as the transport tray 2, a metal such as Al is used. Since the transfer tray 2 also serves as a lower electrode of the plasma processing chamber, a conductive metal, preferably, Al is used.

After the first pre-vacuum chamber 4 is evacuated to about 0.1 Torr, the substrate 1 is loaded into the processing chamber 5 while being placed on the transfer tray 2. The processing chamber 5 is always kept in a vacuum state. In conjunction with the transfer into the processing chamber 5, the substrate 1 to be processed next is loaded into the first vacuum preliminary chamber 4.

When the transfer tray 2 on which the substrate 1 has been loaded is transferred to below the first movable chamber 6, the first movable chamber 6 is lowered and the transfer tray 2 and the first transfer chamber 2 are moved downward as shown in FIG. And a first plasma processing chamber 7 surrounded by the transfer tray 2 and the first movable chamber 6. At this time, the substrate 1 to be processed next
Is brought into a vacuum state in the first pre-vacuum chamber 4 into which the wafer has been carried. First
The movable chamber 6 uses a conductive metal, preferably Al, in order to bring the chamber to the ground potential.

Then, the upper electrode 9 is supplied by the high-frequency power source 8.
Is applied with high-frequency power to convert the processing gas into plasma 10 to perform an etching process. The processing gas is introduced into the first plasma processing chamber 7 using a gas introduction pipe (not shown).

After completion of the etching process, as shown in FIG. 1A, the first movable chamber 6 is raised, and the transport tray 2 on which the substrate 1 is placed is transported to a position below the second movable chamber 11. As shown in FIG. 1 (b), the second movable chamber 11 is lowered to bring the transport tray 2 and the second movable chamber 11 into close contact with each other, and the second movable chamber 11 is surrounded by the transport tray 2 and the second movable chamber 11. The second plasma processing chamber 12 is constituted. In conjunction with this operation, the transfer tray 2 on which the substrate 1 to be processed next is placed is transferred to a position below the first movable chamber 6 to form a first plasma processing chamber 7. Further, at this time, if the next substrate 1 to be processed is carried into the first vacuum preliminary chamber 4 in conjunction with these operations, the processing can be continued continuously. Hereinafter, description of the next substrate 1 to be processed is omitted. The second movable chamber 11 is similar to the first movable chamber 6,
To bring the chamber to ground potential, use a conductive metal,
Preferably, Al is used.

The upper electrode 9 is supplied by the high frequency power supply 8.
Ash power is applied to the plasma gas of the processing gas. The processing gas is introduced into the second plasma processing chamber 12 using a gas introduction pipe (not shown).
At this time, an etching process is performed on the substrate 1 to be processed next in the first plasma processing chamber 7.

After the ashing process is completed, the second movable chamber 11 is raised as shown in FIG.
Is transported into the second pre-vacuum chamber 13 which is kept in a vacuum state of about 0.1 Torr. In conjunction with this operation, the transfer tray 2 on which the substrate 1 to be processed next is placed is transferred to a position below the second movable chamber 11 to form a second plasma processing chamber 12.

Then, the second pre-vacuum chamber 13 is released to the atmosphere, the transport tray 2 on which the substrate 1 is placed is carried out of the apparatus, and a series of processing is completed. At this time, the ashing process is performed on the substrate 1 to be processed next in the second plasma processing chamber 12, and the substrate 1 is loaded into the second vacuum preparatory chamber 13.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, different plasma treatments can be simultaneously and continuously performed on a plurality of substrates. In this embodiment mode, a case where two different plasma treatments are performed is described. However, a case where three or more different plasma treatments are performed can be easily realized by increasing the number of movable chambers.

Here, the difference between the plasma processing apparatus of the present embodiment and a plasma processing apparatus in which a plurality of chambers are simply connected linearly (hereinafter, referred to as a connected chamber) is that different plasma processings such as etching and ashing are continuously performed. An example will be described.

First, in the connection chamber, when a substrate is transferred between a plurality of chambers, there is a problem that the residual gas in the chamber after the completion of etching flows into the chamber for performing ashing. in this case,
Depending on the type of residual gas, components of the residual gas may adhere to the substrate during ashing.

On the other hand, in the plasma processing apparatus of the present embodiment, for example, during the etching process in the first plasma processing chamber 7 including the first movable chamber 6 and the transfer tray 2, the processing chamber 5 0.1 to 0.2 with nitrogen gas
By purging at about Torr, the processing chamber 5 and the first
A pressure difference is provided between the first plasma processing chamber 7 and the second plasma processing chamber 12.
Can be prevented from entering.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the processing chamber has a double structure, different plasma processings such as etching and ashing can be performed continuously and efficiently in the same apparatus.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus according to Embodiment 2 as viewed from the side.

First, as shown in FIG. 2A, for example, two substrates 1 to be etched are placed in separate transport trays 2.
, Transported by the belt conveyor 3, and loaded into the first vacuum preliminary chamber 4. As the substrate 1, a glass substrate or the like for forming a liquid crystal display device is used. Further, as the transport tray 2, a metal such as Al is used. Carry tray 2
Uses a conductive metal, preferably Al, because it also serves as the lower electrode of the plasma processing chamber.

After the first vacuum preparatory chamber 4 is evacuated to about 0.1 Torr, the two substrates 1 are loaded into the processing chamber 5 while being placed on the separate transfer trays 2. The processing chamber 5 is always kept in a vacuum state. In conjunction with the transfer into the processing chamber 5, two substrates 1 to be processed next are transferred into the first vacuum preliminary chamber 4.

Separate transport tray 2 on which two substrates 1 are placed
Are transported below the movable chamber 14, respectively, as shown in FIG. 2B, the movable chamber 14 is lowered to bring the transport tray 2 and the movable chamber 14 into close contact with each other, and is surrounded by the transport tray 2 and the movable chamber 14. Two plasma processing chambers 15 are configured. At this time, the next processing 2
The first pre-vacuum chamber 4 into which the one substrate 1 has been loaded is evacuated. The movable chamber 14 uses a conductive metal, preferably Al, to bring the chamber to a ground potential.

Then, the upper electrode 9 is
, A high-frequency power is applied to convert the processing gas into plasma 10, and the two substrates 1 are simultaneously etched. The processing gas is supplied to the plasma processing chamber 1 using a gas introduction pipe (not shown).
Introduce to 5.

After the etching process, as shown in FIG. 2A, the movable chamber 14 is raised and the two substrates 1
Are transported into the second pre-vacuum chamber 13 in a vacuum state of about 0.1 Torr.
In conjunction with this operation, separate transfer trays 2 on which two substrates 1 to be processed next are placed are transferred to below the movable chamber 14 to form a plasma processing chamber 15. Further, at this time, if the two substrates 1 to be processed next are carried into the first vacuum preliminary chamber 4 in conjunction with these operations,
Processing can be continued continuously. Hereinafter, description of the next two substrates 1 to be processed is omitted.

Then, the second pre-vacuum chamber 13 is opened to the atmosphere, and the separate transport trays 2 on which the two substrates 1 are loaded are carried out of the apparatus, and a series of processing is completed. At this time, two plasma processing chambers 1 are provided for two substrates 1 to be processed next.
At 5, the etching process is performed at the same time, and the wafer is carried into the second pre-vacuum chamber 13.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the same plasma processing can be simultaneously performed on a plurality of substrates. In this embodiment, the case where the same plasma processing is performed on two substrates simultaneously has been described.
When performing the same plasma processing on three or more substrates simultaneously, the number of movable chambers is increased, and the number of substrates that can be carried into the first and second pre-vacuum chambers is made equal to the number of movable chambers. This can be easily realized.

[0039]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention,
According to the plasma processing apparatus described above, the substrate is linearly conveyed by a belt conveyor or the like in a state where the substrate is placed on the conveyance tray, so that it is possible to cope with the enlargement of the substrate,
It is possible to prevent a decrease in processing capacity due to the transfer rate control. Furthermore, since the transport mechanism is simple, the cost required for the transport mechanism can be reduced. Further, the processing chamber is provided with a plurality of movable chambers, and the movable chamber and the transfer tray are brought into close contact with each other to form a plurality of plasma processing chambers, so that the processing capacity can be greatly improved.

According to the plasma processing apparatus of the second aspect, different plasma processings such as etching and ashing can be continuously performed with high efficiency in the same apparatus.

According to the plasma processing apparatus of the third aspect, the same number of substrates as the number of the plurality of movable chambers can be carried into the first and second pre-vacuum chambers, and the same plasma is simultaneously supplied to the plurality of plasma processing chambers. By performing the treatment, the same plasma treatment can be performed with high efficiency.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus according to a first embodiment when viewed from a side.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the plasma processing apparatus according to the second embodiment when viewed from a side.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view when a conventional plasma processing apparatus is viewed from a plane.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate 2 Transport tray 3 Belt conveyor 4 First vacuum preliminary chamber 5 Processing chamber 6 First movable chamber 7 First plasma processing chamber 8 High frequency power supply 9 Upper electrode 10 Plasma 11 Second movable chamber 12 Second plasma Processing chamber 13 Second vacuum preparatory chamber 14 Movable chamber 15 Plasma processing chamber 51 Substrate 52 First transfer means 53 Vacuum preparatory chamber 54 Vacuum chamber 55 Second transfer means 56 Processing chamber 57 Electrode

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A processing chamber which is always kept in a vacuum state during processing, and a first chamber which is brought into a vacuum state in order to carry a substrate into the processing chamber.
A vacuum preparatory chamber, and a second vacuum preparatory chamber that is open to the atmosphere to unload the substrate from the apparatus main body, wherein the substrate is placed on a transfer tray and the first Is transported to the vacuum preparatory chamber, the processing chamber and the second vacuum preparatory chamber, and the processing chamber includes a plurality of movable chambers, and a plurality of plasmas are brought into close contact with the movable chamber and the transfer tray. A plasma processing apparatus comprising a processing chamber. 2. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein different plasma processes are continuously performed in the plurality of plasma processing chambers. 3. The first and second pre-vacuum chambers include:
The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the same number of substrates as the number of the plurality of movable chambers can be carried in, and the same plasma processing is simultaneously performed in the plurality of plasma processing chambers.