JP2008028035A - Semiconductor-manufacturing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a semiconductor-manufacturing apparatus for miniaturizing a conveyance system for conveying a body to be conveyed and reducing the cost of manufacturing. <P>SOLUTION: The semiconductor-manufacturing apparatus comprises a plurality of treatment units 30, having a delivery chamber 10 formed so that internal pressure can be adjusted, by installing a delivery robot 90 for receiving/delivering wafers via an opening inside, and a treatment chamber 31 for transferring wafers via the delivery robot 90, while being arranged adjacent to the delivery chamber 10; and an atmosphere conveyance robot 70 that travels to the position of the opening of the delivery chamber 10 of one of treatment units 30 and transfers the wafers to and from the delivery robot 90, arranged inside the delivery chamber 10. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that realizes reduction in manufacturing cost by downsizing a transport system for transporting a transported object.

  At present, a CVD method or the like is used as a method for forming a metal film on a wafer in semiconductor manufacturing or the like. For example, a system as shown in Patent Document 1 has been proposed.

  In such a system, a plurality of process modules are annularly arranged around the transfer module. This transfer module is maintained in a vacuum atmosphere, and has a vacuum transfer robot that transfers a wafer as a transfer target in the vacuum atmosphere. The vacuum transfer robot loads the wafer into the process module, and the process module performs a predetermined process on the loaded wafer. Thereafter, the vacuum transfer robot takes out the wafer from the process module and sequentially carries the wafer into another process module as necessary.

  The timing at which the vacuum transfer robot carries the wafer into and out of the process module is controlled so as not to collide with the timing at which the wafer is carried into and out of the other process module. Therefore, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the vacuum transfer robot waits for the next wafer until it completes loading / unloading with another process module even though the process module has completed predetermined processing on the wafer. Therefore, the transport efficiency of the entire system and the improvement of the throughput are realized.

  However, in order to connect a plurality of process modules to one transfer module, if many process modules are provided, it is necessary to increase the size of the transfer module in proportion to the number of the process modules.

  Generally, since a vacuum transfer robot requires a structure against vacuum (seal structure), the structure of the robot is inevitably complicated and expensive. Therefore, when the transfer module as described above is increased in size, the complexity of the vacuum transfer robot is further promoted. That is, if the transfer module is increased in size, the distance between each process module arranged around the transfer module and the vacuum robot becomes longer. Therefore, the vacuum robot needs to transfer the wafer to each process module. A complicated transport mechanism is required.

  Therefore, the cost of the vacuum transfer robot corresponding to the increase in size becomes expensive, and this cost is reflected in the cost for manufacturing the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.

JP 2006-108549 A

  In view of such circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that realizes a reduction in manufacturing cost by downsizing a transport system that transports a transported object.

In order to achieve the above object, the first aspect of the present invention provides:
A delivery chamber in which a delivery robot for receiving and delivering a transported body through an opening is arranged so that the internal pressure can be adjusted, and the delivery robot arranged adjacent to the delivery chamber A processing unit comprising a processing chamber for transferring the object to be conveyed between
It is formed so as to move to the position of the opening of the delivery chamber of any one processing unit under atmospheric pressure and to deliver the transported object to and from the delivery robot arranged in the delivery chamber. An atmospheric transfer robot;
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising:

  In the first aspect, a processing unit configured by connecting a delivery chamber capable of adjusting pressure to a vacuum to the processing chamber is provided, and an atmosphere in which a transported object operates under atmospheric pressure with respect to the delivery chamber. It is loaded and unloaded via the transfer robot. That is, the delivery chamber functions as a part that delivers the object to be processed to the processing chamber, and is separated from the atmospheric transfer robot that transfers the wafer to the processing unit.

  As a result, the delivery chamber and the delivery robot disposed in the delivery chamber can be formed to a minimum size regardless of the size and number of processing chambers or the transfer range of the transfer robot. As a result, since the transfer robot need only have a function of transferring the wafer, the structure can be simplified, and the cost required for the members of the transfer robot can be reduced by forming the transfer robot to the minimum necessary size. Can be reduced.

  Furthermore, by forming the delivery chamber to a minimum size, it is possible to shorten the time for evacuating the interior of the delivery chamber or to reduce the energy, thereby reducing the running cost for manufacturing the semiconductor.

  In addition, the atmospheric transfer robot can easily be configured to be larger than the vacuum transfer robot, or can be configured to transfer a transported object over a wide range by providing a moving mechanism. This is particularly noticeable when a large number of processing units are provided to improve the semiconductor manufacturing capability. This is because the atmospheric transfer robot is easily provided with a moving mechanism or an increase in size when the transferred object is transferred to / from each processing unit arranged over a wide range. However, if the vacuum transfer robot copes with such a case, the structure for operating in a vacuum atmosphere becomes complicated, and the cost for the members accompanying this increases.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus described in the first aspect,
The processing unit is connected to the side surface in the longitudinal direction and has a transfer chamber whose internal pressure is atmospheric pressure,
The atmospheric transfer robot is configured to be movable in the longitudinal direction inside the transfer chamber, and is configured to be able to transfer the transferred object to and from a transfer robot of a processing unit connected to the side surface. There exists in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus characterized by this.

  In the second aspect, the processing unit is connected to the side surface in the longitudinal direction of the transfer chamber, and the transfer robot of the processing unit is configured to transfer the transferred object to and from the transfer robot inside the transfer chamber. Yes. Thereby, since the transfer robot may be configured to move linearly in the longitudinal direction in the transfer chamber, the moving mechanism of the transfer robot can be simplified.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus described in the first or second aspect,
The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is characterized in that the plurality of processing units are stacked in the vertical direction.

  In the third aspect, by using the space above the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, the processing units are stacked in the vertical direction, thereby manufacturing the semiconductor without expanding the installation area of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. Throughput can be improved.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus described in the first or second aspect, the processing chambers are a plurality of processing chambers configured to be stacked in the vertical direction.
The delivery chamber is one delivery chamber that can be moved up and down by an elevating mechanism,
The processing unit is configured such that the one delivery chamber moved to the same height as any one of the processing chambers is connected to any one of the processing chambers so as to be detachable. In semiconductor manufacturing equipment.

  In the fourth aspect, the transfer object is transferred to the plurality of processing chambers stacked in the vertical direction by using one transfer chamber, thereby reducing the number of transfer chambers and reducing the manufacturing cost. be able to.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus described in any one of the first to fourth aspects,
The processing unit is in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein the processing unit is formed so as to be retractable from a support that supports the processing unit.

  In the fifth aspect, each processing unit is formed so as to be retractable from a support that supports each processing unit. Accordingly, even if the processing unit is removed as necessary, the other processing units can perform predetermined processing. As a result, even if maintenance of the processing unit, for example, cleaning or replacement is performed, the processing can be continued using another processing unit, so that maintenance of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus can be easily performed without stopping the operation of the entire semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. Can be improved.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus described in any one of the first to fifth aspects,
In the processing chamber, a member to be etched formed of a material containing an element capable of generating a high vapor pressure halide by the action of a working gas containing halogen is etched to form a precursor composed of the element and halogen. On the other hand, this precursor is adsorbed on a wafer which is the object to be transported at a temperature lower than the temperature of the member to be etched, and then the precursor is reduced with a halogen radical to precipitate the elemental component, whereby a predetermined thin film is obtained. There is provided a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus characterized in that means for forming is provided.

  In the sixth aspect, the wafer can be formed using the MCR-CVD method.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus described in the sixth aspect,
The apparatus further includes conveying means for carrying the member to be etched into the processing chamber and disposing the member to be etched inside the processing chamber and carrying the member to be etched disposed inside the processing chamber out of the processing chamber. ,
The atmospheric transfer robot and the delivery robot are in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus configured to be able to carry in and out the etched member as the transferred body.

  In the seventh aspect, not only the transfer of the wafer but also the member to be etched can be transferred and fixed at a predetermined position of the thin film forming apparatus. For this reason, when exchanging the member to be etched, an operation of retracting the processing chamber from the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and exchanging the member to be etched becomes unnecessary, and the burden on the operation can be reduced.

  According to the present invention, the delivery chamber functions as a part that delivers the transferred object to the processing chamber, and is separated from the atmospheric transfer robot that transfers the transferred object to the processing unit. Regardless of the size and number of processing chambers or the transfer range of the atmospheric transfer robot, the delivery robot to be arranged can be formed to the minimum necessary size. Therefore, it is possible to simplify the structure of the delivery robot and the delivery chamber having appropriate sizes, and to reduce the member cost.

  More specifically, since the transfer robot need only be able to transfer the object to be transferred between the adjacent processing chamber and the atmospheric transfer robot that has moved to the transfer robot side, a moving mechanism or the like becomes unnecessary. As a result, the structure of the delivery robot can be simplified. Furthermore, since the size of the transported object can be reduced as much as possible, the cost of the member can be reduced. In addition, since the transfer chamber has only to be formed in a minimum size so that the transfer robot can be disposed therein, the structure can be simplified and the member cost can be reduced.

  As a result, it is possible to realize a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that reduces manufacturing costs by simplifying the structure and reducing member costs.

  In addition, by forming the delivery chamber to a minimum size, it is possible to reduce the time for evacuating the interior of the chamber or to reduce the energy, thereby reducing the running cost for manufacturing the semiconductor. .

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, this invention is not limited to embodiment shown below.

<Embodiment 1>
FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 is configured as follows. A plurality of processing units 30 including a processing chamber 31 that performs a predetermined film forming process on a wafer 26 that is a transfer target and a transfer chamber 10 that receives and transfers the wafer 26 are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the transfer chamber 40 (see FIG. It is connected to both side surfaces in the middle longitudinal direction B) via a gate valve 120. In addition, an atmospheric transfer robot 70 that moves in the transfer chamber 40 and carries the wafer 26 in and out of the processing unit 30 is provided inside the transfer chamber 40. Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 is provided with a cassette stage 20 that exchanges the wafer 26 with the atmospheric transfer robot 70.

  The cassette stage 20 is a place where a wafer 26 to be subjected to a film forming process is placed, and the wafer 26 is transferred to each processing unit 30 by the atmospheric transfer robot 70.

  More specifically, the cassette stage 20 includes a wafer cassette support base 21 that supports a wafer cassette 27 in which a plurality of wafers 26 are stored, and a transport base 22 on which guide rails 23 and a wafer aligner 25 are provided. Has been. Further, a robot 80 is provided on the transfer table 22 so as to be movable in the horizontal direction along the guide rail 23, and the wafer 26 is transferred from the wafer cassette 27 to the atmospheric transfer robot 70 or from the atmospheric transfer robot 70 to the wafer cassette 27. It is configured to

  When the wafer 26 is carried in, the robot 80 acquires the wafer 26 in the wafer cassette 27, performs predetermined alignment such as centering by the wafer aligner 25, and passes the wafer 26 to the atmospheric transfer robot 70. At the time of unloading the wafer 26, the robot 80 acquires the wafer 26 on which the predetermined film forming process has been performed from the atmospheric transfer robot 70 and places it in the predetermined wafer cassette 27.

  The transfer chamber 40 functions as a delivery path for delivering the wafer 26 to each processing unit 30. Specifically, the inside of the transfer chamber 40 is formed hollow, and a plurality of openings 41 are provided on both side surfaces in the longitudinal direction B corresponding to the transfer chambers 10 of the processing units 30. Further, a guide rail 42 is extended in the longitudinal direction B on the bottom surface inside the transfer chamber 40, and an atmospheric transfer robot support 43 is disposed so as to be movable along the guide rail 42.

  An atmospheric transfer robot 70 is attached to the atmospheric transfer robot support 43 inside the transfer chamber 40, and moves along the guide rail 42 along the horizontal plane together with the atmospheric transfer robot support 43.

  The atmospheric transfer robot 70 is a rotary shaft extending in the vertical direction, and is rotatably connected to the rotary unit 71 disposed on the atmospheric transfer robot support 73 and supports the wafer 26 while being rotatable. Arm 72.

  The atmospheric transfer robot 70 having such a configuration moves along the longitudinal direction B to a position facing the opening 11a of the delivery chamber 10 of any one of the plurality of processing units 30, and the arm 72 extends. The wafer 26 can be delivered to the delivery robot 90 in the delivery chamber 10 through the gate valve 120 of the one processing unit 30. In addition, the arm 72 can also be rotated integrally with the rotation of the rotating portion 71, and the wafer 26 can be delivered by directing the wafer 26 toward the robot 80 side of the cassette stage 20. Yes.

  As described above, the atmospheric transfer robot 70 operates in the transfer chamber 40 where the internal pressure is atmospheric pressure. For this reason, it is easy to enlarge the atmospheric transfer robot 70 or to provide a moving mechanism as compared with the case of operating in a vacuum atmosphere, and it is inexpensive. This is also advantageous when the operating range of the atmospheric transfer robot 70 is expanded. Thereby, for example, the transfer chamber 40 is further extended in the longitudinal direction B, and the atmospheric transfer robot 70 whose operation range is expanded to correspond to this is disposed, and the processing units 30 are added to both sides thereof, thereby providing a semiconductor. The manufacturing throughput can be improved. This improvement in throughput can be realized at a significantly lower cost than when the wafer 26 is transferred using the transfer chamber 40 whose internal pressure is maintained in a vacuum atmosphere.

  The processing unit 30 includes a processing chamber 31 that performs a predetermined film forming process on the wafer 26, and a transfer chamber 10 that transfers the wafer 26 between the processing chamber 31.

  The delivery chamber 10 has an opening 11a on the side surface on the transfer chamber 40 side, and an opening 11b on the side surface to which the processing chamber 31 is connected. The opening 11a is connected to the opening 41 provided on the side surface of the transfer chamber 40 via the gate valve 120, and the opening 11b is connected to the opening 36 provided on the side surface of the processing chamber 31 via the gate valve 130. is doing.

  Inside the delivery chamber 10, a delivery robot 90 is provided for delivering the wafer 26 to and from the atmospheric transfer robot 70 and delivering the wafer 26 to the processing chamber 31.

  More specifically, the delivery robot 90 is a rotation unit 91 that is a rotation shaft extending in the vertical direction and is rotatably arranged, and an arm 92 that is connected to the rotation unit 91 to support the wafer 26 and is extendable and contractible. It is equipped with.

  In the transfer robot 90 having such a configuration, the arm 92 can also be rotated integrally with the rotation of the rotating portion 91. Therefore, the wafer 26 supported by the arm 92 can be transferred to the transfer chamber 40 side or processing. It can be directed to the chamber 31 side. Further, since the arm 92 can be expanded and contracted, the wafer 26 can be received and delivered to and from the atmospheric transfer robot 70 through the gate valve 120, and the inside of the processing chamber 31 can be passed through the gate valve 130. The wafer 26 can be placed on the support 101.

  In addition, a vacuum exhaust device 109 is provided on the lower surface of the delivery chamber 10 through an exhaust port 108. Therefore, the internal pressure of the delivery chamber 10 can be adjusted by closing the gate valve 130 and the gate valve 120 and operating the vacuum exhaust device 109.

  Therefore, when the delivery robot 90 exchanges the wafer 26 with the processing chamber 31, if the internal pressure of the delivery chamber 10 is adjusted to a vacuum in advance, the gate chamber 130 can be opened even if the gate valve 130 is opened. The internal pressure (regulated to a vacuum) can be maintained.

  As a result, in each processing chamber 31, even if the wafers 26 are successively replaced sequentially, the time for evacuating the internal pressure is not required, so that the wafers 26 can be processed efficiently and always in a stable atmosphere. The film forming process can be performed.

  The vacuum exhaust device 109 has a function of detoxifying chlorine gas. When the gate valve 130 is opened, chlorine gas flows from the processing chamber 31 into the delivery chamber 10, but is evacuated to the outside of the delivery chamber 10 by the vacuum exhaust device 109 and rendered harmless.

  As described above, by providing the delivery chamber 10 and the delivery robot 90, it is possible to make them as small as possible. In other words, the delivery robot 90 only needs to be able to deliver the wafer 26 to and from the adjacent processing chamber 31 with the atmospheric transfer robot 70 that has moved to the delivery robot 90 side. Therefore, for example, a moving mechanism for moving horizontally / vertically is not required, so that the structure of the delivery robot 90 can be simplified and miniaturized.

  In general, a robot that operates in a vacuum atmosphere needs to have a special structure (seal structure) against vacuum, and the movable range is restricted because the structure becomes complicated. For this reason, increasing the size of such a robot requires more members, and expanding the movable range requires a more complicated structure, causing a problem of increasing the manufacturing cost of such a robot.

  Therefore, this problem can be avoided by simplifying and downsizing the structure of the delivery robot 90. As a result, the manufacturing cost of the entire semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 can be reduced.

  Since the delivery robot 90 can be downsized as described above, the delivery chamber 10 in which the delivery robot 90 is disposed can be miniaturized as much as possible. This shortens the time required to evacuate the internal pressure of the delivery chamber 10 and saves energy, so that the running cost for manufacturing the semiconductor by forming the wafer 26 can be reduced. it can.

  The processing chamber 31 performs a predetermined film forming process on the wafer 26 therein. Specifically, an opening 36 is formed on the side surface of each processing chamber 31, and the opening 36 is connected to the opening 11 b of the delivery chamber 10 via a gate valve 130. That is, the inside of the processing chamber 31 and the delivery chamber 10 is communicated with each other by opening the gate valve 130. As a result, the transfer robot 90 of the transfer chamber 40 can place the wafer 26 at a predetermined position inside the processing chamber 31 through the opening 36.

  A predetermined film forming process is performed on the wafer 26 placed by the delivery robot 90 in the processing chamber 31 having such a configuration. In the present embodiment, as an example, a case will be described in which a metal is formed on the wafer 26 using the MCR-CVD method (Metal Chloride Reduction) in the processing chamber 31.

  In the vicinity of the bottom of the processing chamber 31, a support body 101 that supports the wafer 26 is provided. A plasma antenna 103 for converting the inside of the processing chamber 31 into plasma is provided above the processing chamber 31, and a matching unit 104 and a high frequency power source 105 are connected to the plasma antenna 103 to supply a high frequency. A member to be etched 102 made of a metal that forms a high vapor pressure halide is provided in a lattice shape above the wafer 26 in the processing chamber 31, and a raw metal is supplied by the member to be etched 102. In addition, an exhaust port 108 is provided on the bottom surface, and a vacuum exhaust device 109 that adjusts the inside of the processing chamber 31 to a vacuum via the exhaust port 108 is provided. The vacuum exhaust device 109 has a function of detoxifying halogen gas, for example, chlorine gas, and exhausts the chlorine gas inside the processing chamber 31 to the outside to render it harmless.

  In the processing chamber 31 having such a configuration, after closing the gate valve 130, the internal pressure is reduced to a predetermined pressure value by the vacuum exhaust device 109 through the exhaust port 108. Thereafter, the halogen-containing gas is adjusted to an appropriate flow rate by the flow rate controller 107 and supplied from the nozzle 106 into the processing chamber 31 to generate induction plasma to generate halogen radicals. As a result, the member to be etched 102 is etched by halogen radicals to generate a precursor of a metal component and a halogen gas component, and the precursor is reduced by the halogen radicals on the wafer 26 at a temperature lower than that of the member to be etched. Then, a metal component is deposited on the surface of the wafer 26.

  The processing chamber 31 as described above is not limited to a film forming process using the MCR-CVD method. For example, a film forming chamber such as PVD or MOCVD, a sputtering process chamber, an etcher, a pre-deposition processing chamber ( Heating, cooling, surface treatment) and the like can be used. That is, a chamber corresponding to a device to be manufactured can be used. Further, it is not necessary to be manufactured specifically for the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment, and an existing processing chamber may be used. As a result, the manufacturing cost can be reduced, for example, by reusing an existing processing chamber.

  With the processing unit 30 having the above-described configuration, the internal pressure should be adjusted to a vacuum even when the processing unit 30 is added to improve the throughput of semiconductor manufacturing and the transfer chamber 40 is expanded accordingly. Since it is not necessary to expand the volume of the delivery chamber 10, it is possible to suppress the increase in time and energy for evacuating the internal pressure as much as possible. Thereby, the running cost of semiconductor manufacturing can be reduced.

  Next, a series of operations for manufacturing a semiconductor in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 having the above-described configuration will be described.

  First, the robot 80 acquires the wafer 26 from the wafer cassette 27 of the cassette stage 20, aligns the wafer 26 with a predetermined position, and then passes the wafer 26 to the atmospheric transfer robot 70.

  Next, the atmospheric transfer robot 70 moves along the guide rail 42 to a position facing any one of the plurality of processing units 30, opens the gate valve 120, and passes the delivery chamber of the processing unit 30. The arm 72 is extended toward 10 to deliver the wafer 26 to the robot 90.

  Next, the gate valve 130 and the gate valve 120 are closed, and the internal pressure of the delivery chamber 10 is evacuated to the same level as the internal pressure of the processing chamber 31. Thereafter, the gate valve 130 is opened, and the delivery robot 90 places the wafer 26 on the support 101 of the processing chamber 31.

  Finally, the gate valve 130 is closed, and a predetermined film forming process is performed on the wafer 26 inside the processing chamber 31 to manufacture a semiconductor.

  Note that the atmospheric transfer robot 70, after carrying one wafer 26 into any one of the processing units 30, transfers other wafers 26 to other processing units regardless of the progress of processing in the processing unit 30. You may control so that it can carry in to 30.

  The transfer chamber 40 is not necessarily provided. For example, each processing unit 30 is disposed within a range in which the atmospheric transfer robot 70 can transfer the wafer 26, and the wafer 26 is transferred to and from the transfer chamber 10. You may be able to deliver.

<Embodiment 2>
In the first embodiment, the plurality of processing units 30 are arranged on both sides of the transfer chamber 40 in a planar manner. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the plurality of processing units 30 are arranged in the vertical direction as described below. You may arrange | position so that it may laminate | stack.

  FIG. 3A is a schematic plan view of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 3B is a schematic side view of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment. The description of the same reference numerals as those of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment is omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 3A to 3B, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment includes a plurality of processing units 30 that are supported by a support (not shown) and stacked in the vertical direction. It has. On the other hand, the transfer chamber 140 is formed at a height substantially the same as the height of the processing unit 30 at the highest position, and an opening 41 is formed on the side surface corresponding to each processing unit 30. These openings 41 are connected to the openings 11a of the delivery chambers 10 of the processing units 30 via the gate valves 120. When the gate valves 120 are opened, the insides of the transfer chamber 140 and the delivery chambers 10 of the processing units 30 are connected to each other. Communicate.

  A guide rail 42 extends on the bottom surface inside the transfer chamber 140, and an elevating mechanism 160 is movably provided along the guide rail. A lifting base 161 is attached to the lifting mechanism 160 via a lifting rod 162 and supports the atmospheric transfer robot 70. The elevating mechanism 160 can be easily formed by using known linear moving means such as a cylinder for linearly moving the elevating base 161 in the vertical direction.

  When the lifting mechanism 160 moves the lifting base 161, the atmospheric transfer robot 70 can move to a position at the same height as any one of the processing units 30.

  Therefore, when the wafer 26 is loaded into any one of the processing units 30, first, the robot 80 acquires the wafer 26 from the wafer cassette 27 of the cassette stage 20 and performs a predetermined alignment by the wafer aligner 25. Then, the wafer 26 is transferred to the atmospheric transfer robot 70.

  Next, the atmospheric transfer robot 70 moves in the horizontal direction to a position facing any one of the processing units 30 and moves to the same height as the processing unit 30 by the lifting mechanism 160. Thereafter, the gate valve 120 is opened, the arm 72 is extended toward the delivery chamber 10 of the processing unit 30, and the wafer 26 is delivered to the delivery robot 90.

  Next, the gate valve 130 and the gate valve 120 are closed, and the internal pressure of the delivery chamber 10 is evacuated to the same level as the internal pressure of the processing chamber 31. Thereafter, the gate valve 130 is opened, and the delivery robot 90 places the wafer 26 on the support 101 of the processing chamber 31.

  Finally, the gate valve 130 is closed, and a predetermined film forming process is performed on the wafer 26 inside the processing chamber 31 to manufacture a semiconductor.

  As described above, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment, the processing units 30 are stacked in the vertical direction using the space above the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 200, thereby installing the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 200. Throughput for manufacturing a semiconductor can be improved without increasing the area.

<Embodiment 3>
In the first embodiment, the processing unit 30 includes one processing chamber 31 and one delivery chamber 10, but is not limited thereto, and includes a plurality of processing chambers 31 and one delivery chamber 10. May be.

  4A is a schematic plan view of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the third embodiment, and FIG. 4B is a schematic side view of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the third embodiment. The description of the same reference numerals as those of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment is omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 4A to 4B, the processing unit 330 of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 300 according to the third embodiment includes a plurality of processing chambers 31 that are stacked in the vertical direction, and a lifting mechanism 160. It is comprised from the delivery chamber 310 which raises / lowers vertically.

  A lifting base 161 is attached to the lifting mechanism 160 via a lifting rod 162 and supports the delivery chamber 310.

  When the elevating mechanism 160 moves the elevating pedestal 161, the delivery chamber 310 can be moved to a position at the same height as any one of the plurality of processing chambers 31 stacked in the vertical direction.

  In addition, when the delivery chamber 310 moves up and down, an appropriate interval is provided between the delivery chamber 310 and the processing chamber 31 so that the delivery chamber 310 does not come into contact with the processing chamber 31 or the transfer chamber 40. A connecting mechanism 50 as described below is provided between them.

  FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a main part of a connecting portion between the delivery chamber and the processing chamber. The connection mechanism 50 between the processing chamber 31 and the delivery chamber 310 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the coupling mechanism 50 is configured as follows. A base end portion of the bellows 51 having elasticity is attached to a gate valve 130 provided in the processing chamber 31. A flange 52 having a through hole formed in the center is attached to the tip of the bellows 51. The bellows 51 is rigid to the extent that its tip does not bend downward in the vertical direction due to its own weight.

  The coupling mechanism 50 is provided with a drive mechanism (not shown) that linearly expands and contracts the bellows 51 in the axial direction. This drive mechanism can be easily formed using known linear moving means such as a rack and pinion, a cylinder, a ball screw shaft, and the like.

  The connection mechanism 50 having such a configuration is configured such that a tip portion thereof can be brought into contact with and separated from the side surface of the delivery chamber 310 as necessary. For this reason, when the tip portion is not in contact with the side surface of the delivery chamber 310, the delivery chamber 310 can be smoothly moved up and down by the elevating mechanism 160 without contacting the connection mechanism 50 or the processing chamber 31.

  On the other hand, when the flange 52 is in contact with the side surface of the delivery chamber 310, the flange 52 comes into contact with the opening 11 b of the delivery chamber 310, so that the opening 11 b is kept airtight with the opening 36 of the processing chamber 31. Can be connected. When the gate valve 130 is opened in this state, the interiors of the delivery chamber 310 and the processing chamber 31 communicate with each other through the interior of the bellows 51.

  As a result, even if the gate valve 130 is opened in a state where the internal pressure of the delivery chamber 310 is set to be approximately the same as the internal pressure of the processing chamber 31, the inside of the processing chamber 31 is not mixed with the outside air by the coupling mechanism 50. The internal pressure of the processing chamber 31 can be kept constant. That is, the internal pressure of the processing chamber 31 can be kept constant not only during the film forming process but also when the wafer 26 is carried in / out. For this reason, it is possible to save time for evacuating the internal pressure of the processing chamber 31 each time the wafer 26 is loaded / unloaded, and as a result, it is possible to manufacture a semiconductor with high throughput.

  The connection mechanism 50 described above is also provided between the transfer chamber 340 and the delivery chamber 310, the base end of the connection mechanism 50 is attached to the side surface of the transfer chamber 340, and the distal end portion is on the side surface of the transfer chamber 310. It is possible to contact and separate.

  The connecting mechanism 50 is not limited to the case where the base end portion is attached to the processing chamber 31 side, and may be attached to the delivery chamber 310 side.

  Therefore, when the wafer 26 is carried into any one of the processing units 330, the robot 80 first acquires the wafer 26 from the wafer cassette 27 of the cassette stage 20 and performs a predetermined alignment by the wafer aligner 25. Then, the wafer 26 is transferred to the atmospheric transfer robot 70.

  Next, the atmospheric transfer robot 70 moves in the horizontal direction to a position facing any one of the processing units 330. Thereafter, the connecting mechanism 50 provided in the transfer chamber 340 is extended to deliver the tip thereof to contact the delivery chamber 310. In this state, the arm 72 is extended toward the delivery chamber 310 of the processing unit 330, and the wafer 26 is delivered to the delivery robot 90.

  Next, each of the openings 11a and 11b of the delivery chamber 310 is closed so that the internal pressure is reduced to the same level as the internal pressure of the processing chamber 31, and the delivery chamber 310 is moved to any one processing chamber by the lifting mechanism 160. Move to the same height as 31. The connecting mechanism 50 is extended from the processing chamber 31 side, and its tip is delivered to contact the delivery chamber 310. In this state, the gate valve 130 is opened, and the delivery robot 90 passes through the bellows 51 and places the wafer 26 on the support 101 of the processing chamber 31.

  Finally, the gate valve 130 is closed, and a predetermined film forming process is performed on the wafer 26 inside the processing chamber 31 to manufacture a semiconductor.

  As described above, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 300 according to the third embodiment transfers the wafer 26 using the single transfer chamber 310 to the plurality of processing chambers 31 stacked in the vertical direction.

  On the other hand, the processing unit composed of one processing chamber 31 and one delivery chamber 10 as in Embodiments 1 and 2 requires the number of delivery chambers 10 as many as the number of processing chambers 31, and is therefore relatively expensive. The number of delivery robots 90 also increases.

  Therefore, by using one delivery chamber 310 in common for a plurality of processing chambers 31, an increase in the number of delivery robots 90 can be suppressed and a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus with reduced manufacturing costs can be realized.

<Embodiment 4>
As described in the first to third embodiments, the atmospheric transfer robot 70 (see FIG. 1) disposed inside the transfer chambers 40, 140, and 340 (see FIGS. 1, 3, and 4; the same applies hereinafter). The same applies to the following), and the transfer robot 90 disposed inside the transfer chambers 10 and 310 (refer to FIGS. 1 and 4; the same applies to the following) transports the wafer 26, but is not limited thereto. The member to be etched 102 may be transported as a transport body. As a result, the member to be etched 102 disposed in the processing chamber 31 can be replaced.

  FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the processing chamber of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the support and the member to be etched. The same parts as those of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 7, in the processing chamber 31, the member to be etched 102 is disposed at a predetermined position in the processing chamber 31, and the member to be etched 102 disposed at the predetermined position is processed. As conveying means for carrying out of the chamber 31, a support 150 that moves up and down in the vertical direction and a fixing jig 110 that detachably fixes a member to be etched are provided.

  The support 150 includes a support base 151 that supports the wafer 26 and a cylinder 152 that raises and lowers the support base 151 in the vertical direction, and a support bar that holds the member to be etched 102 at the outer edge of the upper surface of the support base 151. 153. Since the member to be etched 102 is placed on the support rod 153, the member to be etched is kept spaced from the upper surface of the support base 151, that is, in a state where the arm 92 of the delivery robot 90 is inserted. The member 102 is held on the upper surface side of the support base 151.

  When loading / unloading the member to be etched 102, the delivery robot 90 lowers the support base 151 to a height at which the member to be etched 102 can be placed on the support rod 153 through the opening 36 (this state is referred to as a lowered state). .) On the other hand, when the member to be etched 102 is fixed to the fixing jig 110 or released from the fixing jig 110, the support base 151 is raised to a height at which the fixing jig 110 is disposed (this state is changed). It is called the rising state.)

  On the other hand, the member to be etched 102 is detachably fixed to the processing chamber 31 by a fixing jig 110. That is, the fixing jig 110 is provided at three locations on the side surface of the processing chamber 31, and the fixing jig 110 is provided with a locking member 111 that locks to the periphery of the member to be etched 102. Each of the locking members 111 can be moved back and forth by the cylinder 112, and when the locking members 111 move forward all at once, the three locking members 111 are locked to the peripheral edge of the member to be etched 102 so that the member to be etched 102 is supported. Further, when the cylinders 112 are moved backward all at once, the three locking members 111 are separated from the peripheral edge of the member to be etched 102 to release the member to be etched 102.

  With the processing chamber 31 having such a configuration, the member to be etched 102 is stacked on the support rod 153 by the delivery robot 90 and is fixed to the fixing jig 110 by raising and lowering the support base 151 and moving the cylinder 112 back and forth.

  More specifically, the member to be etched 102 is carried into the processing chamber 31 as follows. First, the member to be etched 102 is transferred from the cassette stage 20 (see FIG. 1; the same applies hereinafter) to the atmospheric transfer robot 70 in the transfer chamber 40 in the same manner as the wafer 26, and any one of the plurality of processing units 30 is processed. Is delivered to the delivery robot 90 of the delivery chamber 10. The delivery robot 90 extends the arm 92 into the processing chamber 31 and places the member 102 to be etched on the support bar 153 of the support base 151. Thereafter, the arm 92 is moved backward, the cylinder 112 is moved backward, and the support base 151 is raised. Next, the cylinder 112 is moved forward to bring the locking member 111 into contact with the periphery of the member to be etched 102, thereby fixing the member to be etched 102 with the fixing jig 110 and then lowering the support base 151. . As a result, the member to be etched 102 is detached from the support bar 153 and fixed by the fixing jig 110.

  On the other hand, when the member to be etched 102 fixed to the fixing jig 110 is carried out, the support base 151 is raised so that the upper surface of the tip of the support rod 153 contacts the lower surface of the member to be etched 102, and then the cylinder 112. Move backward. As a result, the lower surface side of the member to be etched 102 is held by the support bar 153 and is detached from the fixing jig 110. After that, after the support base 151 is lowered, the transfer robot 90 in the transfer chamber 10 receives the member to be etched 102 and transfers it to the atmospheric transfer robot 70 in the transfer chamber 40. Next, the atmospheric transfer robot 70 delivers the member 102 to be etched to the cassette stage 20.

  As described above, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the present embodiment, the member to be etched 102 can be transferred to the processing chamber 31 like the wafer 26. For this reason, when exchanging the member to be etched 102, the operation of retracting the processing chamber 31 from the processing unit 30 and exchanging the member to be etched 102 becomes unnecessary, and the burden on the work can be reduced.

  The present invention can be used in the industrial field of manufacturing and selling semiconductors.

1 is a schematic plan view of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is AA sectional drawing of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG. It is the schematic plan view and schematic side view of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which concern on Embodiment 2. FIG. It is the schematic plan view and schematic side view of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which concern on Embodiment 3. FIG. 10 is an enlarged view of a main part of a connection portion between a delivery chamber and a processing chamber of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to a third embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the processing chamber of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 4. FIG. It is a perspective view showing the relationship between the support body of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 4, and a to-be-etched member.

Explanation of symbols

1,200,300 Semiconductor manufacturing apparatus 10,310 Chamber 11a, 11b, 36, 41 Opening 20 Cassette stage 21 Wafer cassette support base 22 Transfer base 23 Guide rail 25 Wafer aligner 26 Wafer 27 Wafer cassette 30, 330 Processing unit 31 Processing chamber 40, 140, 340 Transfer chamber 42 Guide rail 43 Atmospheric transfer robot support 50 Connection mechanism 51 Bellows 52 Flange 70 Atmospheric transfer robot 71, 91 Rotating units 72, 92 Arm 73 Atmospheric transfer robot support 80 Robot 90 Delivery robot 101 Support 102 to-be-etched member 103 plasma antenna 104 matching unit 105 high frequency power source 106 nozzle 107 flow rate controller 108 exhaust port 109 vacuum exhaust device 110 fixing jig 111 locking member 112 cylinder 20,130 gate valve 150 support 151 support table 152 cylinder 153 supporting rods 160 lift mechanism 161 elevating pedestal 162 lift rod

Claims (7)

A delivery chamber in which a delivery robot for receiving and delivering a transported body through an opening is arranged so that the internal pressure can be adjusted, and the delivery robot arranged adjacent to the delivery chamber A processing unit comprising a processing chamber for transferring the object to be conveyed between
It is formed so as to move to the position of the opening of the delivery chamber of any one processing unit under atmospheric pressure and to deliver the transported object to and from the delivery robot arranged in the delivery chamber. An atmospheric transfer robot;
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising: In the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1,
The processing unit is connected to the side surface in the longitudinal direction and has a transfer chamber whose internal pressure is atmospheric pressure,
The atmospheric transfer robot is configured to be movable in the longitudinal direction inside the transfer chamber, and is configured to be able to transfer the transferred object to and from a transfer robot of a processing unit connected to the side surface. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. In the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein the plurality of processing units are arranged in a stacked manner in the vertical direction. In the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The processing chamber is a plurality of processing chambers configured to be stacked in the vertical direction,
The delivery chamber is one delivery chamber that can be moved up and down by an elevating mechanism,
The processing unit is configured such that the one delivery chamber moved to the same height as any one of the processing chambers is connected to any one of the processing chambers so as to be detachable. Semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, wherein the processing unit is formed so as to be retractable from a support body that supports the processing unit. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
In the processing chamber, a member to be etched formed of a material containing an element capable of generating a high vapor pressure halide by the action of a working gas containing halogen is etched to form a precursor composed of the element and halogen. On the other hand, this precursor is adsorbed on a wafer which is the object to be transported at a temperature lower than the temperature of the member to be etched, and then the precursor is reduced with a halogen radical to precipitate the elemental component, whereby a predetermined thin film is obtained. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus provided with means for forming a semiconductor device. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 6,
The apparatus further includes conveying means for carrying the member to be etched into the processing chamber and disposing the member to be etched inside the processing chamber and carrying the member to be etched disposed inside the processing chamber out of the processing chamber. ,
2. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the atmospheric transfer robot and the delivery robot are configured so that the member to be etched can be carried in and out as the carrier.

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