JP2013239579A - Vapor deposition device - Google Patents

Abstract

A plurality of substrate holders provided around a substrate holder rotating plate and having gears on an outer periphery thereof from a substrate holder rotation drive through a substrate holder rotating plate provided at a central portion of a reaction furnace and having gears on an outer periphery. Provided is a vapor phase growth apparatus capable of easily attaching a susceptor holding the substrate holder to the vapor phase growth apparatus in a vapor phase growth apparatus having a configuration for rotating the substrate holder by transmitting a rotational driving force to To do.
In the vapor phase growth apparatus as described above, the substrate holder rotating plate is rotatably held with respect to the base at the center via the bearing ball held by the bearing ball holder 1. A vapor phase growth apparatus in which a susceptor holding a substrate holder can be easily attached to a vapor phase growth apparatus.
[Selection] Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a vapor phase growth apparatus, and in particular, transmits a rotational driving force from a substrate holder rotation driver to a plurality of substrate holders via a substrate holder rotation plate provided at the center of a reaction furnace. The present invention relates to a vapor phase growth apparatus having a configuration for rotating a substrate holder.

As a method for growing a crystal film on a substrate, there is a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method or the like, and a CVD method involving substrate heating is known as a thermal CVD method or the like. In recent years, vapor phase growth performed by heating a substrate under high temperature conditions (for example, 1000 ° C. or more) is increasing, and vapor phase growth of a group III nitride semiconductor for producing a blue or ultraviolet LED or a blue or ultraviolet laser diode. Is one of them. For example, the growth of a group III nitride semiconductor crystal film was heated to a high temperature of 1000 ° C. or higher using an organometallic gas such as trimethylgallium, trimethylindium, or trimethylaluminum as a group III metal source and ammonia as a nitrogen source. In some cases, the thermal CVD method is used in which a crystal film is vapor-phase grown on a substrate such as silicon (Si), sapphire (Al ₂ O ₃ ), or gallium nitride (GaN).

As the vapor phase growth apparatus, there are an apparatus in which the crystal growth surface of the substrate is arranged upward (face-up type) and an apparatus in which the crystal growth surface of the substrate is arranged downward (face-down type). In addition, there is a vapor phase growth apparatus that grows a crystal film on one substrate per batch, but there is also a vapor phase growth apparatus that grows a crystal film on multiple substrates per batch in order to improve productivity. Are known.
In these vapor phase growth apparatuses, a crystal film having a uniform film thickness and film quality can be grown on the substrate surface by rotating the substrate. In addition, by rotating and revolving the substrate, a uniform film thickness and film quality can be obtained not only within the same substrate plane but also between the substrates.

  As a configuration of a vapor phase growth apparatus capable of performing vapor phase growth while revolving the substrate, for example, a plurality of substrate holders holding the substrate are rotatably held by a susceptor, and the susceptor is rotatably held by a gantry. A configuration is mentioned. For example, the vapor phase growth apparatuses described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 have such a configuration, and the rotational driving force is transmitted from the same or different rotational driving devices to the substrate holder and the susceptor. Revolve automatically. In the vapor phase growth apparatus capable of rotating and revolving the substrate, as in the vapor phase growth apparatus described in Patent Document 1, the ratio between the rotation speed and the rotation speed of the substrate is appropriately changed in order to optimize the film forming conditions. It is desirable that the substrate rotation mechanism and the revolution mechanism be provided separately.

As such a rotation mechanism, the substrate holder rotation driver is provided with a gear on the outer periphery provided around the substrate holder rotation plate via a substrate holder rotation plate provided in the center of the reaction furnace and having a gear on the outer periphery. A configuration is known in which the substrate holder is rotated by transmitting a rotational driving force to a plurality of substrate holders. For example, in the vapor phase growth apparatus described in Patent Document 1, a substrate holder rotation drive shaft (substrate rotation shaft) is coupled to a substrate holder rotation plate (center gear), and a substrate holder rotation drive (second motor) Is transmitted to the substrate holder via the substrate holder rotating plate (center gear).
JP 2004-241460 A JP 2009-99770 A

  In a vapor phase growth apparatus, deposits due to decomposition of the source gas are likely to occur on the member in contact with the source gas, and in particular, there is a problem that the substrate holder and the susceptor adjacent to the substrate require frequent cleaning. Cleaning is often performed by taking the susceptor holding the substrate holder out of the reaction vessel, and is a vapor phase growth apparatus with improved maintainability by making the susceptor holding the substrate holder easy to detach. It is desirable.

  However, in the vapor phase growth apparatus in which the substrate holder rotating plate cannot be separated from the substrate holder rotation drive shaft as in Patent Document 1, the susceptor holding the substrate holder can be removed even though the susceptor can be taken out while holding the substrate holder. In order to attach it to the phase growth apparatus, the gears of the substrate holder and the substrate holder rotating plate have to be engaged with each other, which requires a complicated operation. That is, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a vapor phase growth apparatus capable of easily attaching a susceptor holding a substrate holder.

  The inventors of the present invention have intensively studied to solve such problems, and as a result, in the vapor phase growth apparatus as described above, the substrate holder rotating plate is interposed via the bearing ball held by the bearing ball holder. In this way, the substrate holder rotating plate and the substrate holder rotating drive shaft can be separated from each other so that the substrate holder rotating plate and the substrate holder rotating drive shaft can be separated. It has been found that the bearing ball can be prevented from falling off even during the connection, so that the susceptor holding the substrate holder (and the base) can be easily attached to the vapor phase growth apparatus.

  That is, the present invention provides a plurality of substrate holder rotating plates provided around the substrate holder rotating plate and having gears on the outer periphery via a substrate holder rotating plate provided at the center of the reaction furnace and having gears on the outer periphery. A vapor phase growth apparatus configured to rotate the substrate holder by transmitting a rotational driving force to the substrate holder, wherein the substrate holder rotating plate is interposed via a bearing ball held by a bearing ball holder. A vapor phase growth apparatus characterized by having a structure that is rotatably held with respect to a base at the center.

  In the present invention, since the substrate holder rotating plate is held by the base at the center, the substrate holder rotating plate and the substrate holder rotation drive shaft can be separated, and the susceptor holding the substrate holder (and the base) is removed. It can be easily attached to the phase growth apparatus. In addition, because the bearing ball is held by the bearing ball holder, during vapor phase growth, the deterioration of the bearing ball due to reactive gas, the dimensional change of the constituent material due to a sudden temperature rise, or vibration or friction, Not only can the bearing ball fall out of the groove during the vapor phase growth, but also the bearing ball can be prevented from coming off due to vibration or the like when the substrate holder rotating plate and the substrate holder rotating drive shaft are separated and connected. Furthermore, the substrate holder rotating plate that transmits the rotational driving force to a plurality of substrate holders is rotatably held with respect to the center base via the bearing balls, so that the rotation is smaller than when no bearing balls are used. The substrate holder and the substrate can be rotated by driving force.

  The present invention provides a plurality of substrates having gears on the outer periphery provided around the substrate holder rotation plate from a substrate holder rotation driver via a substrate holder rotation plate provided in the center of the reaction furnace and having gears on the outer periphery. The present invention is applied to a vapor phase growth apparatus having a configuration for rotating the substrate holder by transmitting a rotational driving force to the holder. Hereinafter, although this invention is demonstrated in detail based on FIGS. 1-7, this invention is not limited by these.

  1 is a vertical sectional view showing an example of the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view from above showing the bearing ball holder used in the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 shows the bearing ball holder used in the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a perspective view from above, FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of part A of FIG. 1 when the bearing ball holder of FIG. 4 is used, and FIG. 7 is a view of when the bearing ball holder of FIG. 5 is used. It is the A section enlarged view of FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention is provided from a substrate holder rotation driver 8 through a substrate holder rotating plate 6 provided at the center of the reaction furnace 13 and having a gear 6 b on the outer periphery. A vapor phase growth apparatus provided with a configuration for rotating the substrate holder 3 by transmitting a rotational driving force to a plurality of substrate holders 3 provided around the substrate holder rotating plate 6 and having a gear 3a on the outer periphery. The substrate holder rotating plate 6 has a configuration in which the substrate holder rotating plate 6 is rotatably held with respect to the base 10 at the center via the bearing balls 2 held by the bearing ball holder 1. It is a growth device.

  The vapor phase growth apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 includes a plurality of bearing ball holders 1, bearing balls 2, substrate holders 3, substrate holder rotating plates 6, and bases 10 as described above. The susceptor 9 that rotatably holds the substrate holder 3, the gantry 19 that rotatably supports the susceptor 9 via the bearing balls 2, the facing surface 11 of the susceptor, and the heat equalizing plate that is placed on the substrate holder 3 and heats the substrate 5. 4, the heater 12 for heating the soaking plate 4, the reaction furnace 13 formed by the gap between the susceptor 9 and the facing surface 11 of the susceptor, the raw material gas introduction part 14 for supplying the raw material gas to the reaction furnace 13, and the reaction gas discharged from the reaction furnace 13 The reaction gas discharge unit 15 is also provided. The substrate 5 rotates by the rotation of the substrate holder 3, and the substrate 5 revolves by the rotation of the susceptor 9.

  The substrate holder used in the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention is usually set to hold one substrate having a diameter of 2 inches or more, preferably 3 inches or more, more preferably 4 inches or more. Although preferable, it is not limited to such a setting. A plurality of substrate holders are provided in the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention, and gears are provided on the outer periphery of each substrate holder. For example, in the vapor phase growth apparatus of FIGS. 1 to 3, each substrate holder 3 has a ring shape or a cylindrical shape, and holds the substrate 5 so that the crystal growth surface of the substrate 5 faces downward. The substrate holder used in the present invention is not limited to the substrate holder that holds the substrate downward, and may be a substrate holder that holds the substrate upward or sideways, for example.

  The substrate holder used in the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention is preferably held rotatably by means such as a bearing ball. For example, in the vapor phase growth apparatus of FIGS. 1 to 3, each substrate holder 3 is interposed via bearing balls 2 sandwiched by bearing grooves (3 b, 9 b) carved in the lower surface of the substrate holder 3 and the upper surface of the susceptor 9. The susceptor 9 is rotatably held. In the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention, similarly to the substrate holder rotating plate, bearing balls that hold each substrate holder rotatably may also be held by a bearing ball holder.

  In the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention, the substrate holder rotating plate is provided at the center of the reaction furnace, a plurality of substrate holders are disposed around the substrate holder rotating plate, and a gear is provided on the outer periphery of the substrate holder rotating plate. When the gears of the substrate holders and the gears of the substrate holder rotating plate mesh with each other, a rotational driving force is transmitted from the substrate holder rotating plate to each substrate holder. The substrate holder rotating plate used in the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention is rotatably held via a bearing ball held by a bearing ball holder.

  For example, in the vapor phase growth apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the substrate holder rotating plate 6 is held by bearing grooves (6c, 10a) carved on the lower surface of the substrate holder rotating plate 6 and the upper surface of the base 10, respectively. It is rotatably held by a base 10 provided at the center of the reaction furnace 13 via a bearing ball 2 held by the tool 1. The substrate holder rotating plate 6 preferably has a disk shape with a diameter of 100 to 500 mm and a thickness of 3 to 20 mm, but is not limited to such a size.

  The base used in the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention may be any member that can rotatably hold the substrate holder rotating plate via the bearing ball held by the bearing ball holder. Although it is preferable that it is a disk shape like a vapor phase growth apparatus, it is not limited to a disk shape. The base 10 is preferably a disk having a diameter of 100 to 500 mm and a thickness of 3 to 20 mm, but is not limited to such a size. The susceptor used in the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention may be any member that can hold a plurality of substrate holders, and preferably has an annular shape like the vapor phase growth apparatus of FIGS. It is not limited to. When the susceptor has an annular shape as in the vapor phase growth apparatus of FIGS. 1 to 3, it is preferable that the base is installed in the annular space of the susceptor. The susceptor has an annular shape with an outer diameter of 300 to 1000 mm, an inner diameter of 100 to 500 mm, and a thickness of 5 to 30 mm, and preferably can hold 6 to 15 substrate holders, but is not limited to such a size. Absent.

  In the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention, the base and the susceptor may be integrally formed as one member. In that case, the one member formed integrally with the base and the susceptor is preferably disk-shaped. The shape is not limited. In the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention, for the purpose of facilitating maintenance, the base and the susceptor are preferably provided as separate members so as to be separable, but are separable. There is no limit. For example, in the vapor phase growth apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the base 10 and the susceptor 9 are provided as separate members, but a protrusion provided on the outer periphery of the base 10 toward the peripheral portion; The base 10 is held by the susceptor 9 by superimposing a protruding portion provided toward the center on the inner peripheral lower portion of the susceptor 9.

  The diameter of the bearing ball used in the present invention is preferably 1 to 10 mm, but is not limited to such a size. The bearing ball used in the present invention is held by a bearing ball holder, and the bearing ball holder used in the present invention is preferably ring-shaped as shown in FIGS. It is not limited to.

  The pocket provided in the bearing ball holder used in the present invention is a pocket that can store a bearing ball, and is preferably a pocket that can store one bearing ball in each pocket. A plurality of such pockets are provided, and the plurality of pockets are formed of through-holes and / or recessed pockets that do not pass through, and preferably include at least part of the through-hole pockets, and only from the through-hole pockets. Although it is more preferable, it is not limited to such a form. Since the bearing balls held in the pockets of the through holes can contact both the substrate holder rotating plate and the base, the substrate holder rotating plate can be stably held. For example, all the pockets (1a, 1a ') provided in the bearing ball holder 1 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 are through holes.

  The shape of the pocket provided in the bearing ball holder used in the present invention is preferably a cylinder, a hemisphere, or a combination thereof so that the bearing ball can be stably held, but is limited to such a shape. Never happen. For example, the pockets (1a, 1a ′) provided in the bearing ball holder 1 of FIGS. 4 and 5 are formed of a combination of a cylinder and a hemisphere, and the end face of the cylinder constituting the pocket and the periphery of the apex of the hemisphere Is a through hole having an opening.

  The pocket provided in the bearing ball holder used in the present invention preferably has an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball accommodated in the pocket. By making the opening of the pocket larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held, the bearing ball 2 can be stored deeply in the pocket (1a, 1a ′) as shown in FIGS. Can be suppressed. The diameter of such an opening is preferably 0.1 to 1 mm larger than the diameter of the bearing ball, but is not limited to such a diameter.

  The depth of the pocket provided in the bearing ball holder used in the present invention is set smaller than the diameter of the bearing ball held in the pocket. When the pocket is concave, the pocket depth is preferably 50 to 90% of the diameter of the bearing ball held in the pocket. When the pocket is a through-hole, the pocket depth (through-hole Is preferably 30 to 90% of the diameter of the bearing ball held in the pocket, but is not limited to such a depth.

  4 and 5, when the pocket is a through hole, the pocket preferably has an opening smaller than the diameter of the bearing ball on the opposite side of the opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball. By providing the opening smaller than the diameter of the bearing ball on the opposite side of the opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball, the bearing ball can be stably held. The diameter of the opening smaller than the diameter of the bearing ball is preferably smaller by 0.5 to 5 mm than the diameter of the bearing ball, but is not limited to such a diameter.

  In the present invention, a plurality of pockets as described above are provided. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the bearing ball holder used in the present invention has a pocket having an opening on the lower surface of the ring larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held, and an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held. It is preferable to include a pocket having a portion on the upper surface of the ring, and such a configuration can prevent the upper and lower surfaces of the bearing ball holder from contacting the substrate holder rotating plate and the base. Friction with the substrate holder rotating plate and / or the base is reduced, and the substrate holder rotating plate can be rotated with a small rotational driving force, but is not limited to such a configuration.

  As a more preferable first form of the bearing ball holder used in the present invention, for example, a pocket having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held on the lower surface of the ring, and an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held. There is a form in which pockets having portions on the upper surface of the ring are alternately provided. For example, in the bearing ball holder 1 of FIG. 4, all the pockets are provided on the same circumference, and a pocket 1a ′ having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held on the lower surface of the ring, and the bearing to be held. The pockets 1a having openings larger than the diameter of the ball on the upper surface of the ring are alternately provided. Such alternate arrangement reduces friction between the bearing ball holder and the substrate holder rotating plate and / or the base, and not only can the substrate holder rotating plate be rotated with a small rotational driving force, but also the substrate holder rotating plate. The table can be held stably.

  Further, as a more preferable second form of the bearing ball holder used in the present invention, for example, pockets having openings larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held on the lower surface of the ring are provided on the same circumference and held. There is a form in which a pocket having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball on the upper surface of the ring is provided on the same circumference different from the circumference. For example, in the bearing ball holder shown in FIG. 5, a pocket 1a 'having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held on the lower surface of the ring and an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held are formed on the upper surface of the ring. Not only the pockets 1a are alternately provided in the circumferential direction, but also the pockets 1a ′ having openings larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held on the lower surface of the ring are provided on the same circumference and held. A pocket 1a having an opening larger than the diameter of the ball on the upper surface of the ring is provided on the same circumference different from the circumference. Even with such an arrangement, the friction between the bearing ball holder and the substrate holder rotating plate and / or the base is reduced, and not only can the substrate holder rotating plate be rotated with a small rotational driving force, but also the substrate holder rotating plate can be Can be held more stably.

The bearing ball holder used in the present invention is preferably made of a material selected from carbon, boron nitride (BN), molybdenum disulfide (MoS ₂ ), tungsten disulfide (WS ₂ ), and combinations thereof. It is not limited to such a material. Since these materials are excellent in lubricity, corrosion resistance and heat resistance, the friction between the bearing ball holder and the bearing ball can be reduced to further prevent the bearing ball from falling off the bearing ball holder. It is also durable for use in environments such as inside growth equipment. In addition, since BN is particularly excellent in corrosion resistance and heat resistance, the bearing ball holder used in the present invention is particularly preferably made of BN.

The bearing ball used in the present invention is preferably a material selected from carbon, BN, MoS ₂ , WS ₂ and combinations thereof, but is not limited to these materials, and the bearing ball holder By selecting the material having excellent lubricity as described above, the material is selected from carbon, BN, MoS ₂ , WS ₂ , alumina, silicon carbide (SiC), silicon nitride (Si ₃ N ₄ ), and combinations thereof. A material is also preferable. Since alumina is particularly excellent in strength, corrosion resistance and heat resistance, and BN is particularly excellent in lubricity, corrosion resistance and heat resistance, the bearing ball used in the present invention may be alumina or BN. Particularly preferred.

  Next, the vapor phase growth apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 will be described in more detail. 1 to 7 is provided with a substrate rotation mechanism for rotating and revolving the substrate 5. That is, the substrate holder 3 and the substrate holder rotating plate 6 are rotatably held as described above, and similarly, the susceptor 9 is also rotatably held by the ring-shaped mount 19 using the bearing balls 2. In the vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention, the bearing ball that rotatably holds the susceptor may also be held by the bearing ball holder like the substrate holder rotating plate.

  The rotational driving force from the substrate holder rotation drive 8 is first transmitted to the substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7 that is rotatably sealed so as not to impair the sealing performance of the reaction vessel 20 by means such as a magnetic fluid seal. A plurality of protrusions 7 a are provided at the tip of the substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7 on the substrate holder rotation plate 6 side, and the protrusions 7 a are inserted into holes 6 a provided on the upper surface of the substrate holder rotation plate 6. The rotational drive force is transmitted to the substrate holder rotating plate 6 by being detachably engaged. A plurality of substrate holders 3 are provided around the source gas introducing portion 14, and the gears 6 b provided on the outer periphery of the substrate holder rotating plate 6 and the gears 3 a of the respective substrate holders 3 are engaged with each other. Rotational driving force is transmitted to each substrate 5 and each substrate 5 rotates to obtain a crystal film having a uniform film quality and film thickness within each substrate surface.

  In addition, the rotational driving force from the susceptor rotation driver 16 is first supplied via the susceptor rotation drive shaft 17 that is rotatably sealed so as not to impair the sealing performance of the reaction vessel 20 by means such as a magnetic fluid seal. The rotation is transmitted to a susceptor rotating plate 18 fixed to the susceptor side tip of the rotation drive shaft 17. A gear 9 a is provided at the peripheral edge of the susceptor 9, and a gear 18 a is provided at the peripheral edge of the susceptor rotating plate 18, and the rotational driving force from the susceptor rotation driver 16 is caused by the meshing of the gears 18 a. , The susceptor 9 rotates. By rotating the susceptor 9 in this way, the substrate 5 revolves, and a crystal film having a uniform film quality and thickness can be obtained between the substrate surfaces.

The vertical cross section of each bearing groove (6c, 9b, 9b ′, 10a, 19a) is preferably a semi-circle, a triangle, or a quadrangle, but is not limited to such a cross section. Each gear (3a, 6b, 9a, 18a) preferably has a spur gear structure, but is not particularly limited.
The vapor phase growth reaction for generating the crystal film is performed in the reaction furnace 13 inside the reaction vessel 20. A source gas introduction unit 14 is provided at the center of the reaction furnace 13, and the source gas is blown out radially from the source gas introduction unit 14 and supplied horizontally to the crystal growth surface of the substrate 5. It is not limited to. The vapor phase growth reaction is performed by supplying the source gas from the source gas introduction unit 14 while heating the substrate 5 via the soaking plate 4 by the heater 12 in the reaction furnace 13. A crystal film is formed on the substrate. The source gas used for the vapor phase growth reaction is directly discharged from the reaction gas discharge unit 15 as a reaction gas. The present invention is not limited to the vapor phase growth apparatus that supplies the source gas from the central part of the reactor and discharges it from the peripheral part to the outside. For example, the source gas is supplied from one end of the reactor and the reaction is performed. It can also be applied to a vapor phase growth apparatus that discharges the later gas to the outside from the other end.

  During vapor phase growth, the substrate 5 is preferably always rotated by the rotation of the substrate holder 3, and more preferably is always rotated and revolved by the rotation of the substrate holder 3 and the susceptor 9. The rotation direction and rotation speed of the substrate holder 3 and the susceptor 9 can be arbitrarily set by changing the rotation direction and rotation speed of the substrate holder rotation driver 8 and the susceptor rotation driver 16, respectively. In order to obtain a uniform film thickness and film quality between the substrates, the substrate holders 3 are arranged on the same circumference with the source gas introduction part 14 as the center, and the distance from the source gas introduction part 14 is made equal. However, it is not limited to such a configuration.

  The preferred materials used for the bearing ball holder 1 and the bearing ball 2 are as described above. Although the material which comprises the reaction container 20 includes a metal or an alloy, it is not limited to these materials. The substrate holder 3, the substrate holder rotating plate 6, the susceptor 9, the base 10, the susceptor facing surface 11, and the susceptor rotating plate 18 are preferably carbon materials or carbon materials coated with a ceramic material. The material is not limited. The heater 12 is preferably a carbon heater or a ceramic heater, but is not limited to these heaters. The substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7 and the susceptor rotation drive shaft 17 are preferably a metal, an alloy, a metal oxide, a carbon material, a ceramic material, a carbon material coated with a ceramic material, or a combination thereof. You are not limited to such materials

Here, examples of the metal include aluminum and the like, but are not limited to aluminum, and examples of the alloy include stainless steel and Inconel, but are not limited thereto. Examples of the carbon-based material include carbon, pyrolytic graphite (PG), and glassy carbon (GC), but are not limited thereto. Examples of ceramic materials include, but are not limited to, alumina, SiC, Si ₃ N ₄ , BN, and the like.

  The material constituting the reaction vessel 20 is particularly preferably stainless steel. In particular, the substrate holder 3, the substrate holder rotating plate 6, the susceptor 9, the base 10, the susceptor facing surface 11 and the susceptor rotating plate 18 are SiC coated carbon, the heater 12 is a carbon heater, and the susceptor rotation drive shaft 17 is particularly stainless steel. preferable. The substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7 is made of Inconel on the side of the substrate holder rotation drive to ensure strength, and the substrate holder rotation plate is used to prevent breakage when engaging with the substrate holder rotation plate 6. It is preferable that the side portion is made of SiC coated carbon and is integrated by fixing both with screws or the like, and the protrusion 7a is made of SiC coated carbon and is an end surface of the substrate holder rotating plate side portion of the substrate holder rotating drive shaft 7 It is preferable that they are integrally formed in advance.

  EXAMPLES Next, although an Example demonstrates this invention concretely, this invention is not limited by these.

[Example 1]
(Production of bearing ball holder)
A ring-shaped bearing ball holder 1 (made of BN, inner diameter 175 mm, outer diameter 195 mm, thickness 3 mm) shown in FIG. 4 was produced. Each pocket (1a, 1a ') is formed of a through-hole in the thickness direction, one opening has a circular shape with a diameter of 4.5 mm, and the other opening has a circular shape with a diameter of 3 mm. Provided. All pockets are arranged on a circumference of 185 mm diameter concentric with the inner and outer circumferences of the bearing ball holder 1, and a pocket 1 a ′ having a circular opening with a diameter of 4.5 mm on the lower surface of the ring, and a diameter of 4.5 mm Pockets 1a having circular openings on the upper surface of the ring were alternately provided in the circumferential direction.

(Production of vapor phase growth equipment)
Next, the vapor phase growth apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 was manufactured. One bearing ball 2 (made of alumina, 4 mm in diameter) is stored in each pocket (1a, 1a ′) of the bearing ball holder 1 as described above, and the bearing ball 2 held by the bearing ball holder 1 is held. Using the substrate holder rotating plate 6 (SiC coated carbon, diameter 255 mm (including gear 6b), thickness 8.5 mm), the base 10 (SiC coated carbon, diameter 240 mm (including protrusions), thickness 5 mm). Further, the base 10 holding the substrate holder rotating plate 6 is made of a susceptor 9 (made of SiC coated carbon, an outer diameter of 720 mm (including the gear 9a), an inner diameter of 210 mm (including a protruding portion), an annular shape of 11 mm in thickness, a substrate holder 6 pieces can be held). A similar bearing ball holder 1 is produced by appropriately changing the number and dimensions of the bearing balls and pockets, and each substrate holder 3 and susceptor 9 are rotatably held using the same size and material bearing ball 2. did.

(Vapor phase growth experiment)
Using such a vapor phase growth apparatus, gallium nitride (GaN) was grown on the crystal growth surface of the substrate. First, the substrate 5 (diameter 6 inches, sapphire) was set on the substrate holder 3 one by one, and rotation (10 rpm) and revolution (1 rpm) of the substrate 5 were started. It should be noted that the rotation and revolution of the substrate 5 were continued at these speeds until the internal temperature dropped to near room temperature after all the growth was completed, and the inside of the reaction vessel 20 was maintained at atmospheric pressure. Thereafter, the temperature of the substrate 5 was raised to 1050 ° C. while flowing hydrogen from the source gas introduction part 14, and the substrate 5 was annealed. Subsequently, the temperature of the heater 12 is lowered to 510 ° C., and a buffer layer having a thickness of 20 nm made of GaN is grown on the sapphire substrate 5 using trimethylgallium (TMG) and ammonia as source gases and hydrogen as a carrier gas. After the buffer layer growth, the supply of only TMG was stopped, and the temperature of the heater 12 was raised to 1050 ° C. Thereafter, hydrogen and nitrogen were supplied as carrier gases in addition to TMG and ammonia from the source gas introduction unit 14 to grow undoped GaN for 1 hour.

  After the growth of GaN as described above, the temperature of the heater 12 was lowered to cool the interior to near room temperature, and then the revolution of the substrate 5 was stopped. From the start to the end of the self-revolution of the substrate 5, the substrate holder rotation driver 8 and the susceptor rotation driver 16 operated normally. After that, when the reaction vessel 20 was opened and the substrate 5 was taken out, formation of GaN was confirmed on the substrate 5. Further, when each part in the reaction vessel 20 was visually inspected, there was no abnormality such as corrosion, breakage, etc., and the bearing ball 2 was not confirmed to fall off, and all the bearing balls 2 were held by the bearing ball holder 1. It was in a state.

(Removal of susceptor)
Next, the substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7 was moved upward, and the protrusion 7 a was pulled out from the hole 6 a of the substrate holder rotation plate 6. Thereafter, when the susceptor 9 is manually removed, the susceptor 9 with the bearing holder 1, the bearing ball 2, the substrate holder 3, the substrate holder rotating plate 6, and the base 10 being held can be easily removed from the reaction vessel 20. I was able to take it out. After the substrate holder 3 and the susceptor 9 are cleaned outside the reaction vessel 20, the susceptor 9 holding the bearing holder 1, the bearing ball 2, the substrate holder 3, the substrate holder rotating plate 6 and the base 10 is removed. When the substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7 is returned to the original position and the protrusion 7a is inserted into the hole 6a of the substrate holder rotation plate 6, the substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7 is rotated. It was easy to connect to the plate 6.

  Then, when the substrate 5 was set in the substrate holder 3 and the above-described vapor phase growth experiment was performed again, the substrate holder rotation driver 8 and the susceptor rotation driver 16 were normally operated from the start to the end of the self-revolution of the substrate 5. Worked. After that, when the reaction vessel 20 was opened and the substrate 5 was taken out, formation of GaN was confirmed on the substrate 5. Further, when each part in the reaction vessel 20 was visually inspected, there was no abnormality such as corrosion, breakage, etc., and the bearing ball 2 was not confirmed to fall off, and all the bearing balls 2 were held by the bearing ball holder 1. It was in a state.

[Example 2]
(Production of bearing ball holder)
A ring-shaped bearing ball holder 1 (made of BN, inner diameter 168 mm, outer diameter 204 mm, thickness 3 mm) shown in FIG. 5 was produced. Each pocket (1a, 1a ') is formed of a through-hole in the thickness direction, one opening has a circular shape with a diameter of 4.5 mm, and the other opening has a circular shape with a diameter of 3 mm. Provided. That is, 30 pockets (1a ′) having a circular opening with a diameter of 4.5 mm on the lower surface of the ring are provided on the same circumference with a diameter of 176 mm, and a circular opening with a diameter of 4.5 mm is provided on the upper surface of the ring. Thirty pockets (1a) were provided on the same circumference having a diameter of 196 mm different from the circumference. These two different circumferences were set to be concentric with the inner and outer circumferences of the holder 1. At the same time, pockets 1a ′ having circular openings with a diameter of 4.5 mm on the lower surface of the ring and pockets 1a having circular openings with a diameter of 4.5 mm on the upper surface of the ring may be alternately arranged in the circumferential direction. Arranged.

(Production of vapor phase growth equipment)
A vapor phase growth apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 was manufactured in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the bearing ball holder 1 of FIG. 5 manufactured as described above was used.

(Vapor phase growth experiment)
Using such a vapor phase growth apparatus, a vapor phase growth experiment was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1. From the start to the end of the self-revolution of the substrate 5, the substrate holder rotation driver 8 and the susceptor rotation driver 16 operated normally. After that, when the reaction vessel 20 was opened and the substrate 5 was taken out, formation of GaN was confirmed on the substrate 5. Further, when each part in the reaction vessel 20 was visually inspected, there was no abnormality such as corrosion, breakage, etc., and the bearing ball 2 was not confirmed to fall off, and all the bearing balls 2 were held by the bearing ball holder 1. It was in a state.

(Removal of susceptor)
Next, when the susceptor 9 was manually removed in the same manner as in Example 1, the susceptor 9 with the bearing holder 1, the bearing ball 2, the substrate holder 3, the substrate holder rotating plate 6, and the base 10 held thereon was retained. It could be easily taken out of the reaction vessel 20. Then, after performing the same cleaning and susceptor installation work as in Example 1, the projection 7a was inserted into the hole 6a of the substrate holder rotating plate 6, and the substrate holder rotating drive shaft 7 was easily connected to the substrate holder rotating plate 6. did it.

  Then, when the substrate 5 was set in the substrate holder 3 and the above-described vapor phase growth experiment was performed again, the substrate holder rotation driver 8 and the susceptor rotation driver 16 were normally operated from the start to the end of the self-revolution of the substrate 5. Worked. After that, when the reaction vessel 20 was opened and the substrate 5 was taken out, formation of GaN was confirmed on the substrate 5. Further, when each part in the reaction vessel 20 was visually inspected, there was no abnormality such as corrosion, breakage, etc., and the bearing ball 2 was not confirmed to fall off, and all the bearing balls 2 were held by the bearing ball holder 1. It was in a state.

[Comparative Example 1]
(Production of vapor phase growth equipment)
As shown in FIG. 8, 100 bearing balls 2 are directly sandwiched between a bearing groove 6 c provided on the lower surface of the substrate holder rotating plate 6 and a bearing groove 10 a provided on the upper surface of the base 10, thereby providing a bearing ball holder. The vapor phase growth apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 was manufactured in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the substrate holder rotating plate 6 was rotatably held without using 1.

(Vapor phase growth experiment)
Using such a vapor phase growth apparatus, a vapor phase growth experiment was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1. However, during the growth of undoped GaN, the gas phase growth experiment was stopped because the alarm device of the substrate holder rotation driver 8 detected an abnormality. After the temperature of the heater 12 was lowered and the inside was cooled to near room temperature, the reaction vessel 20 was opened, and each component in the reaction vessel 20 was visually inspected. One of the 100 bearing balls 2 used to hold the holder rotating plate 6 rotatably is dropped off and is sandwiched between the engagement (3a, 6b) of the substrate holder rotating plate 6 and the substrate holder 3. It was.

  The vapor phase growth apparatus of the present invention is suitable, for example, as a group III nitride semiconductor vapor phase growth apparatus used for manufacturing blue or ultraviolet light emitting diodes or laser diodes.

It is a vertical cross-section block diagram which shows an example of the vapor phase growth apparatus of this invention. It is a BB cross-section block diagram of FIG. It is CC cross-section block diagram of FIG. It is a perspective view from the upper part which shows the bearing ball holder used for the 1st Embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view from the top which shows the bearing ball holder used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is the A section enlarged view of FIG. 1 when the bearing ball holder of FIG. 4 is used. It is the A section enlarged view of FIG. 1 when the bearing ball holder of FIG. 5 is used. It is the A section enlarged view of FIG. 1 in the vapor phase growth apparatus of the comparative example 1.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Bearing ball holder 1a, 1a 'pocket 2 Bearing ball 3 Substrate holder 3a Gear 3b Bearing groove 4 Heat equalizing plate 5 Substrate 6 Substrate holder rotating plate 6a Hole 6b Gear 6c Bearing groove 7 Substrate holder rotation drive shaft 7a Protrusion 8 Substrate holder Rotator 9 Susceptor 9a Gears 9b, 9b 'Bearing groove 10 Base 10a Bearing groove 11 Face of susceptor 12 Heater 13 Reactor 14 Raw material gas introduction part 15 Reactant gas discharge part 16 Susceptor rotation driver 17 Susceptor rotation drive shaft 18 Susceptor Rotating plate 18a Gear 19 Base 19a Bearing groove 20 Reaction vessel 21 Bellows

Claims (7)

  Rotation drive from a substrate holder rotation drive to a plurality of substrate holders provided around the substrate holder rotation plate and having gears on the outer periphery via a substrate holder rotation plate provided at the center of the reaction furnace and having gears on the outer periphery. A vapor phase growth apparatus having a configuration for rotating the substrate holder by transmitting force, wherein the substrate holder rotating plate is supported by a center ball via a bearing ball held by a bearing ball holder. A vapor phase growth apparatus characterized in that it has a structure that is held rotatably with respect to a table.   The bearing ball holder has a ring shape and has a pocket on the lower surface of the ring having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held, and a pocket having an opening on the upper surface of the ring larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held. The vapor phase growth apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:   The bearing ball holder has alternately a pocket having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held on the lower surface of the ring and a pocket having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held on the upper surface of the ring. The vapor phase growth apparatus according to claim 2.   A pocket in which the bearing ball holder has a pocket having an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held in the lower surface of the ring on the same circumference, and has an opening larger than the diameter of the bearing ball to be held in the upper surface of the ring. The vapor phase growth apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the vapor phase growth apparatus is provided on the same circumference different from the circumference.   The vapor phase growth apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the pocket further comprises a through hole having an opening smaller than the diameter of the ball on the opposite side of the opening larger than the diameter of the ball.   The vapor phase growth apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the bearing ball holder is made of a material selected from carbon, boron nitride, molybdenum disulfide, tungsten disulfide, and combinations thereof.   The vapor phase growth apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the bearing ball holder is made of boron nitride.

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