JPH11243126A - Vacuum processing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a vacuum processing apparatus capable of reliably transporting a thin substrate. SOLUTION: In a vacuum processing apparatus in which a thin plate-shaped substrate 1 is placed in a vacuum chamber 11 to perform vacuum processing, the substrate 1
A transport path 14 for transporting the substrate in the longitudinal direction, and transport claws 49a for pushing the substrate 1 on the transport path 14 to carry the substrate into and out of the vacuum chamber 11, and the transport claws 49a A concave portion 49b is provided in a contact portion that comes into contact with an end of the substrate 1, and a lower portion of the concave portion 49b protrudes below the substrate 1 to serve as a support portion for supporting the substrate 1 and preventing the substrate 1 from sagging. Thereby, even if the substrate is a thin plate that is easily bent, the transport claw 49a does not come off from the end of the substrate 1 during transport, and the substrate 1 can be transported reliably.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vacuum processing apparatus for processing a substrate in a vacuum.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Vacuum processing apparatuses such as a plasma processing apparatus are known as apparatuses for performing a surface treatment of a substrate. The vacuum processing apparatus processes a substrate as an object under a reduced-pressure atmosphere, and performs vacuum suction inside the vacuum chamber while the substrate is loaded and placed in the vacuum chamber. As a method of carrying a substrate into a vacuum chamber, a method of pushing a substrate on a transfer path is widely used. In this method, a substrate is placed on a transport path provided with side guides corresponding to the width of the substrate, and the rear end of the substrate is pushed in by a transport claw, so that the substrate is loaded into and unloaded from the vacuum chamber. Is what you do.

[0003]

However, since the inside of the vacuum chamber needs to have a hermetically sealed structure that is shielded from the outside, the transfer path is formed on the transfer path at a portion where the side wall that blocks the inside and the outside of the vacuum chamber descends. A gap corresponding to the thickness of the side wall of the vacuum chamber is interrupted and discontinuous. Therefore, when the substrate passes through the gap, the portion above the gap of the substrate is not supported by the transport path from below, and is held by the rigidity of the substrate itself.

However, when a thin substrate such as a tape substrate is used, the rigidity of the substrate is so small that the edge of the substrate is easily bent and sagged when the edge of the substrate is located in the gap. As a result, the rear end of the substrate is disengaged from the transfer claws during transfer, and the transfer claw cannot stably push the rear end of the substrate, resulting in a problem that a transfer error easily occurs.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum processing apparatus capable of reliably transporting a thin substrate.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a vacuum processing apparatus comprising: a transfer path for transferring a thin plate-shaped substrate in a longitudinal direction; a lid constituting a vacuum chamber; an opening / closing means for opening and closing the lid; A transfer claw that pushes the substrate on the transfer path to transfer the substrate into and out of the vacuum chamber; and a vacuum suction unit that suctions the inside of the vacuum chamber under vacuum. A support portion is provided below the abutting portion that abuts the end portion to protrude below the substrate to support the substrate and prevent the substrate from sagging.

According to the present invention, the transfer claw is provided below the contact portion where the transfer claw contacts the end portion of the substrate by protruding below the substrate to support the substrate and prevent the substrate from hanging down. The substrate can be transported reliably without the nail coming off.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a plasma cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2A is a side sectional view of the plasma cleaning apparatus, and FIG. 2B is a partially enlarged view of a transfer claw of the plasma cleaning apparatus. FIG. 3 is a plan view of a transfer path of the plasma cleaning apparatus, and FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view of the plasma cleaning apparatus.

First, the overall structure of a plasma cleaning apparatus as a vacuum processing apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 denotes a base member.
A transfer path 14 for the substrate 1 is provided on the upper surface of the substrate 1. The transport path 14 is formed continuously in the longitudinal direction corresponding to the width of the substrate 1, and transports the substrate 1 by placing the substrate 1 on the transport path 14 and pushing the substrate 1 in the longitudinal direction. .

On the transfer path 14, a vacuum chamber 11 is provided. The vacuum chamber 11 includes a base member 10, an electrode 12 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) mounted on the base member 10, and a box-shaped lid member 1 provided on the base member 10.
3. Two plate-shaped brackets 15 are fixed to the outer surface of the lid member 13.
Is connected to the block 16. Block 16
Is connected to the opening / closing means 17 of the lid member 13. The opening / closing means 17 is composed of a cylinder or the like. By driving the opening / closing means 17, the lid member 13 moves up and down, and the vacuum chamber 11 opens and closes.

In FIG. 1, a guide rail 40 is provided on a side surface of the base member 10. Two sliders 41 and 42 are slidably fitted on the guide rail 40. Bracket 4 is attached to sliders 41 and 42
3, 44 are fixed respectively. Bracket 43,
A first cylinder 45 and a second cylinder 47 are mounted on 44, respectively. A first transfer arm 49 and a second transfer arm 50 are connected to the rod 46 of the first cylinder 45 and the rod 48 of the second cylinder 47, respectively.

The distal end of the first transport arm 49 and the distal end of the second transport arm 50 extend on the transport path 14 and are bent downward, so that the first transport claw 49a and the second transport It is a nail 50a. The first transport claws 49a and the second transport claws 50a are located on the transport path 14, and the rod 46 of the first cylinder 45 and the rod 48 of the second cylinder 47
Is moved up and down as a result.

A first motor 57 and a second motor 58 are provided on a side surface of the base member 10. Pulleys 55 and 56 are mounted on the rotating shafts of the first motor 57 and the second motor 58, respectively. Base member 1
Driven pulleys 53 and 54 are provided on the side surface of 0 in correspondence with the pulleys 55 and 56. Belts 59 and 60 are tuned to the pulley 55 and the driven pulley 53, and to the pulley 56 and the driven pulley 54, respectively. The belts 59, 60 are connected to the brackets 43, 44 by connecting members 51, 52.

Accordingly, when the first motor 57 and the second motor 58 are driven forward and backward, the belts 59 and 60 travel in the horizontal direction, and the first cylinder 45 mounted on the brackets 43 and 44, the first cylinder 45 and the second The second cylinder 47 moves forward and backward in the horizontal direction. By combining the forward / reverse movement in the horizontal direction and the vertical movement of the first cylinder 45 and the second cylinder 47, the first transport claws 49a and the second transport claws 50a move the substrate 1 on the transport path 14 Push and transport. That is, the first transport claws 49a carry the substrate 1 into the vacuum chamber 11 from the upstream side (left side in FIG. 1). The second transport claw 50a unloads the substrate 1 from the vacuum chamber 11 to the downstream side (to the right in FIG. 1).

On the upstream side of the base member 10, a loader section 20 of the substrate 1 is provided. The loader unit 20 has a Z table 22 provided with a Z axis motor 23, and a magazine 21 is mounted on the Z table 22. A large number of substrates 1 are stacked and stored in the magazine 21 in a horizontal posture. A pusher 24 pushes the substrate 1 in the magazine 21 onto the transport path 14.

On the downstream side of the base member 10, an unloader section 30 for the substrate 1 is provided. The unloader unit 30 has a Z table 32 provided with a Z-axis motor 33, and a magazine 31 is mounted on the Z table 32. The substrate 1 after the plasma cleaning process is inserted into the magazine 31 by the second transport claw 50a and collected.

Next, the structure of the vacuum chamber 11 will be described with reference to the drawings. 2 and 4, the base member 10
Is provided with an opening 10a, and an electrode 12 is attached to the opening 10a from below through an insulating member 8. The electrode 12 is electrically connected to a high frequency power supply 19. As shown in FIG. 4, the vacuum chamber 11 is connected to the vacuum suction unit 6 through a pipe 18 provided in the base member 10.
2. It is connected to the plasma gas supply unit 63 and the atmosphere release valve 64.

The vacuum suction unit 62 suctions the inside of the vacuum chamber 11 under vacuum. The plasma gas supply unit 63 is a vacuum chamber 1
A gas for plasma generation is supplied into 1. Atmospheric release valve 6
By opening 4, air for vacuum breaking is introduced into the vacuum chamber 11. The substrate 1 to be subjected to plasma cleaning is transported on the transport path 14, carried into the vacuum chamber 11, and placed on the electrode 12. The lid member 13 is electrically grounded to the grounding portion 61 and serves as a counter electrode facing the electrode 12. A seal member 1 is provided on a portion of the base member 10 where the lower end of the lid member 13 contacts.
0s is attached.

Next, the shapes of the transport path 14, the first transport claws 49a, and the second transport claws 50a will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG.
It is composed of book transport rails 14a and 14b. Notches are formed in the upper portions of the transfer rails 14a and 14b, and the substrate 1 is conveyed by sliding on these notches. On the base member 10 and the electrode 12, the transport path 1
The guide members 10b and 12b are mounted in a width dimension corresponding to the width of No. 4. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 3, the transport path 14 and the guide member 10 b are separated by a gap S for lowering the side wall of the lid member 13. That is, the transport path 14 is interrupted and discontinuous at this portion, and when the substrate 1 passes over the gap S, the end of the substrate 1 is not supported from below by the transport path 14 and only the rigidity of the substrate 1 The state is held.

Next, the shape of the transport claws 49a will be described with reference to FIG. The same applies to the second transport claw 50a. As shown in FIG. 2B, a concave portion 49 b is provided on an end surface on a side where the first transport claw 49 a comes into contact with the substrate 1 when pushing the substrate 1. At the time of pushing, the rear end portion of the substrate 1 contacts the inner bottom portion 49c of the concave portion 49b. Therefore, a portion 49d below the inner bottom portion 49c, which is a contact portion, protrudes below the substrate 1 to support the substrate 1 and serves as a support portion for preventing the substrate 1 from sagging.

By providing the concave portion 49b in the first transport claw 49a, the rear end of the substrate 1 does not sag when the substrate 1 is transported, so that it is reliably pushed in a stable state without coming off from the transport claw 49a. Is done. At the time of pushing, the lower end of the transport claw 49a is located at a position fitted into a groove 12a (see FIG. 4) provided in the longitudinal direction on the upper surface of the electrode 12, and the height position of the concave portion 49b is in this state. The height is suitable for pushing the substrate 1 placed on the upper surface.

Next, the sectional shape of the electrode 12 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, a pair of left and right guides 1 made of an insulator such as ceramic are provided on the upper surface of the electrode 12.
2b are provided, and the substrate 1 is provided with these guides 12b.
Are guided on both sides. On the upper surface of the guide 12b, there is provided a projection 12c projecting inward in the horizontal direction. The protrusion 12c prevents the substrate 1 from being lifted by the flow of air when the substrate is opened to the atmosphere.

This substrate plasma cleaning apparatus is constructed as described above, and the operation will be described next. First,
In FIG. 2A, a state where the vacuum chamber 11 is open,
That is, with the lid member 13 raised, the first transport claw 4
The substrate 1 is carried into the vacuum chamber 11 by 9a. Next, the lid member 13 is lowered and the vacuum chamber 11 is closed. Thereafter, the inside of the vacuum chamber 11 is
2, and then the plasma gas supply unit 63
As a result, a gas for plasma generation is introduced into the vacuum chamber 11. Next, by driving the high-frequency power supply 19 and applying a high-frequency voltage to the electrode 12, plasma is generated in the vacuum chamber 11. The ions and electrons generated as a result collide with the surface of the substrate 1, whereby plasma cleaning of the surface of the substrate 1 is performed.

When the plasma cleaning is completed, air is introduced into the vacuum chamber 11 through an atmosphere release valve 64. At this time, the substrate 1 is
Are guided, no displacement of the substrate 1 occurs. Thereafter, the lid member 13 is raised and the vacuum chamber 11 is opened. Next, the first transport claws 49a and the second transport claws 50a
By moving the substrate to the downstream side, a new substrate 1 is carried into the vacuum chamber 11, and the substrate 1 after the plasma cleaning processing is carried out from the vacuum chamber 11.

In the process of loading and unloading, the substrate 1 moves from the transport path 14 onto the base member 10 and further onto the electrode 12, but when passing through the gap S between the transport path 14 and the base member 10, the substrate 1 The rear end of the substrate 1 is fitted into the recesses 49b and 50b of the first transport claws 49a and the second 50a, so that the rear end of the substrate 1 does not hang down. Therefore, the substrate 1 is always pushed normally by the first transport claws 49a and the second transport claws 50a, and no transport error occurs.

In this embodiment, the first transport claws 49
a, the shape of the support portion of the second transport claw 50a is concave 49
Although an example in which the b and 50b portions are formed is shown, other shapes such as the first transport claw 49a and the second transport claw 5 are used.
0a simply protrudes below the substrate 1, etc.
In short, any shape may be used as long as the end of the substrate 1 can be prevented from hanging down.

[0027]

According to the present invention, the supporting portion is provided below the abutting portion where the carrying claw abuts on the edge portion of the substrate to protrude below the substrate to support the substrate and prevent the substrate from sagging. In addition, even if the substrate is on a thin plate that is easily bent, the substrate can be reliably transported without the end of the substrate dropping off the transport claw during transport.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a plasma cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a side sectional view of a plasma cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2B is a partially enlarged view of a transport claw of the plasma cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a transport path of the plasma cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view of the plasma cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate 10 Base member 11 Vacuum chamber 12 Electrode 13 Lid member 14 Transport path 17 Opening / closing means 49a First transport claw 49c Inner bottom 50a Second transport claw 62 Vacuum suction unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI // H01L 21/3065 H01L 21/302 N

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A transport path for transporting a thin substrate in the longitudinal direction, a lid constituting a vacuum chamber, an opening / closing means for opening and closing the lid, and a vacuum on the substrate by pushing the substrate on the transport path. A transfer claw for carrying in and out of the chamber; and vacuum suction means for vacuum suctioning the inside of the vacuum chamber, wherein the transfer claw contacts the end of the substrate. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising: a supporting portion that protrudes downward from the substrate and supports the substrate to prevent the substrate from sagging.