Dual load lock chamber

Abstract

A dual load lock chamber for use in a multi-chamber processing system is disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the dual load lock chamber includes: a first load lock chamber having a first interior space and a first substrate support, wherein the first substrate support includes a first plurality of support surfaces vertically spaced apart by a first predetermined distance; at least one heat transfer device disposed in the first substrate support to heat or cool the first plurality of substrates; and a second load lock chamber disposed adjacent to the first load lock chamber and having a second interior space and a second substrate support, wherein the second substrate support includes a second plurality of support surfaces vertically spaced apart by a second predetermined distance, the second predetermined distance being less than the first predetermined distance.

Description

Technical Field

[0001]

[0013] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to substrate processing systems, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for multi-chamber processing systems. Background Art

[0002] Processing systems, such as cluster tools having multiple processing chambers coupled to a shared transfer chamber, are used to reduce system and manufacturing costs and increase processing throughput. One or more load lock chambers facilitate access of substrates to and from the factory interface and the shared transfer chamber.

[0003] However, conventional load lock chambers may reduce throughput at each station in a cluster tool multi-chamber system (e.g., dual or quad chambers.) In such a system, the load locks may act as a bottleneck because a transfer robot in a shared transfer chamber may need to make many trips between the load lock chamber and each multi-chamber system to facilitate transferring substrates in and out of the multi-chamber system.

[0004] Accordingly, the inventors provide an improved load lock chamber for use with a multi-chamber processing system. Summary of the invention

[0005] A dual load lock chamber for use in a multi-chamber processing system is disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the dual load lock chamber includes: a first load lock chamber having a first interior space and a first substrate support disposed in the first interior space, wherein the first substrate support includes a first plurality of vertically spaced support surfaces to support a corresponding first plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the first plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a first predetermined distance; at least one heat transfer device disposed in the first substrate support to heat or cool the first plurality of substrates; and a second load lock chamber disposed adjacent to the first load lock chamber and having a second interior space and a second substrate support disposed in the second interior space, wherein the second substrate support includes a second plurality of vertically spaced support surfaces to support a corresponding second plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the second plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a second predetermined distance, the second predetermined distance being less than the first predetermined distance.

[0006] In some embodiments, a processing system includes: a factory interface; a substrate transfer chamber; one or more multi-chamber processing systems coupled to the substrate transfer chamber; a dual load lock chamber coupling the factory interface to the substrate transfer chamber; and a vacuum robot disposed in the substrate transfer chamber and configured to transfer substrates between the dual load lock chamber and the one or more multi-chamber processing systems. The dual load lock chamber comprises: a first load lock chamber having a first interior space and a first substrate support arranged in the first interior space, wherein the first substrate support comprises a first plurality of support surfaces spaced apart vertically to support a corresponding first plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the first plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a first predetermined distance; at least one heat transfer device arranged in the first substrate support to heat or cool the first plurality of substrates; and a second load lock chamber arranged adjacent to the first load lock chamber and having a second interior space and a second substrate support arranged in the second interior space, wherein the second substrate support comprises a second plurality of support surfaces spaced apart vertically to support a corresponding second plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the second plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a second predetermined distance, the second predetermined distance being smaller than the first predetermined distance.

[0007] In some embodiments, a dual load lock chamber includes: a first load lock chamber having a first interior space and a first substrate support disposed in the first interior space, wherein the first substrate support includes a first plurality of support surfaces spaced apart vertically to support a corresponding first plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the first plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a first predetermined distance; a first heat transfer device disposed adjacent to a lowermost support surface of the first plurality of support surfaces to heat or cool a substrate of the first plurality of substrates disposed on top of the lowermost support surface of the first plurality of support surfaces; a second heat transfer device disposed adjacent to an uppermost support surface of the first plurality of support surfaces to heat or cool another substrate of the first plurality of substrates disposed on top of the uppermost support surface of the first plurality of support surfaces; and a second load lock chamber disposed adjacent to the first load lock chamber and having a second interior space and a second substrate support disposed in the second interior space, wherein the second substrate support includes a second plurality of support surfaces spaced apart vertically to support a corresponding second plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the second plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a second predetermined distance, the second predetermined distance being less than the first predetermined distance.

[0008] Other and further embodiments of the present disclosure are described below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] The embodiments of the present disclosure, briefly summarized above and discussed in detail below, may be understood by reference to the illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure depicted in the accompanying drawings. However, the drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of the present disclosure and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope of the present disclosure, as the present disclosure may admit to other equally effective embodiments.

[0010] Figure 1 A schematic top view of a processing system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0011] Figure 2A-2B Depicted is a cross-sectional view of a dual load lock chamber according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0012] Figure 2C Depicted is a top view of a substrate support arranged in a dual load lock chamber according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0013] Figure 3 A schematic side view of a multi-substrate transfer robot for use in a processing system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0014] To facilitate understanding, the same reference numerals have been used as much as possible to represent the same elements common to the various figures. These figures are not drawn to scale and may be simplified for clarity. Elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated into other embodiments without further explanation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] A dual load lock chamber for a multi-chamber processing system is disclosed herein. The invented dual load lock chamber is configured to allow two or more substrates to be unloaded from the dual load lock chamber and two or more substrates to be loaded into the dual load lock chamber in one stroke by a multi-substrate transfer robot. As a result, the throughput of the multi-chamber processing system is advantageously increased.

[0016] The multi-chamber processing systems disclosed herein may be part of a cluster tool having a plurality of multi-chamber processing systems coupled thereto, such as, for example, Figure 1 The processing system 100 shown in FIG. Figure 1 In some embodiments, the processing system 100 may generally include a vacuum tight processing platform 104, a factory interface 102, one or more multi-chamber processing systems 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111, and a system controller 144. Non-limiting examples of processing systems suitable for modification according to the teachings provided herein include Integrated processing system, processing system One of the production lines (such as GT TM ), ENDURATM Processing system, The present invention relates to a process system for substrates of the invention, for example, a substrate processing system, or other suitable process systems available from Applied Materials, Inc., located in Santa Clara, California. Alternatively, the multi-chamber process system may include two process chambers, such as a single substrate processing chamber, disposed adjacent to each other, for example, side by side. Other process systems, including those from other manufacturers, may also be suitable to benefit from the present disclosure.

[0017] The processing platform 104 includes one or more multi-chamber processing systems 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111 ( Figure 1 In some embodiments, each multi-chamber processing system includes four processing chambers (e.g., 111-114, 131-134, 151-154, 171-174, 191-194, and 195-198). However, each multi-chamber processing system may include fewer or more processing chambers (e.g., two, three, five, etc.). The platform further includes at least one dual load lock chamber 122 ( Figure 1 2 ), this dual load lock chamber 122 is illustrated and discussed in more detail below with respect to FIG. 2 . The factory interface 102 is coupled to the transfer chamber 136 via the dual load lock chamber 122 .

[0018] Each of the multi-chamber processing systems 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111 includes an independent processing space that can be isolated from each other. Each of the multi-chamber processing systems 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111 can be configured to share resources (e.g., a processing gas source, a vacuum pump, or the like) between each processing chamber of the multi-chamber processing system.

[0019] The factory interface 102 may include at least one docking station 108 and at least one factory interface robot 110 ( Figure 1 Two are shown in the figure) to facilitate the transfer of substrates. The docking station 108 can be configured to receive one or more ( Figure 1 1 and 2. The factory interface robot 110 may include a front opening unified pod (FOUP) 106A-B. The factory interface robot 110 may include a blade 116 disposed on one end of the factory interface robot 110, and the blade 116 is configured to transfer substrates from the factory interface 102 to the processing platform 104 through the dual load lock chamber 122 for processing. Optionally, one or more metrology stations 118 may be connected to a terminal 127 of the factory interface 102 to facilitate measurement of substrates from the FOUPs 106A-B.

[0020] Each of the dual load lock chambers 122 may include a first side 123 coupled to the factory interface 102 and a second side 125 coupled to the transfer chamber 136. The dual load lock chambers 122 may be coupled to a pressure controller system (not shown) that evacuates and vents the dual load lock chambers 122 to facilitate transferring substrates between the vacuum environment of the transfer chamber 136 and the substantially ambient (e.g., atmospheric) environment of the factory interface 102.

[0021] The transfer chamber 136 has a vacuum robot 130 disposed therein. The vacuum robot 130 may have one or more transfer blades 135 coupled to a movable arm 133. For example, in some embodiments where a multi-chamber processing system is coupled to the transfer chamber 136 as shown, the vacuum robot 130 may have three or more parallel transfer blades 135 configured such that the vacuum robot 130 can simultaneously transfer two substrates between one of the dual load lock chambers 122 and a processing chamber of the multi-chamber processing system (e.g., the processing chambers 112, 114 of the multi-chamber processing system 101).

[0022] The processing chambers (e.g., 111-114, 131-134, 151-154, 171-174, 191-194, and 195-198) of each multi-chamber processing system 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111 can be any type of processing chamber utilized in substrate processing, such as, for example, an etching chamber, a deposition chamber, or the like. In some embodiments, the processing chambers (e.g., processing chambers 112, 114) of each multi-chamber processing system (e.g., multi-chamber processing system 101) are configured for the same function, such as etching. For example, in an embodiment where each processing chamber of the multi-chamber processing system is an etching chamber, each processing chamber can include a plasma source, such as an inductively or capacitively coupled plasma source, a remote plasma source, or the like. In addition, each processing chamber of the multi-chamber processing system can use a halogen-containing gas, such as a halogen-containing gas provided by a shared gas panel, to etch a substrate disposed therein. Examples of halogen-containing gases include hydrogen bromide (HBr), chlorine (Cl2), carbon tetrafluoride (CF4), and the like. For example, after etching the substrate, halogen-containing residues may remain on the substrate surface. The halogen-containing residues may be removed by a thermal treatment process in the load lock chamber 122, or by other suitable means.

[0023] The following description will refer to FIG. 2A to FIG. 2C And made. Figure 2A and Figure 2B A cross-sectional view of a dual load lock chamber 200 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is depicted. The dual load lock chamber 200 may be used as described above with respect to Figure 1The dual load lock chamber 122 discussed. The dual load lock chamber 200 includes a first load lock chamber 202 and a second load lock chamber 203. The first and second load lock chambers 202, 203 are arranged adjacent to each other. For example, the first and second load lock chambers 202, 203 may be as shown in FIG. Figure 2A , or the first and second load lock chambers 202, 203 may be arranged side by side. The first load lock chamber 202 includes a first interior space 204. In some embodiments, a gas source 240 may be coupled to the first load lock chamber 202 to supply a gas to the first interior space 204. In some embodiments, the gas is an inert gas, such as a noble gas.

[0024] The first load lock chamber 202 includes a first substrate support 206 disposed in the first interior space 204. The first substrate support 206 is configured to support a first plurality of substrates 207a, b (e.g., two are shown in FIG. 2 ) on corresponding first plurality of support surfaces 208a, 208b. Adjacent support surfaces of the first plurality of support surfaces 208a, 208b are vertically spaced apart by a first predetermined distance 210.

[0025] The first load lock chamber 202 further includes at least one heat transfer device (eg, a heater or a cooler) disposed in the first substrate support 206 to heat or cool the first plurality of substrates 207a,b. Figure 2A , at least one heat transfer device is a heater 212, such as a resistive heater or the like. In these embodiments, a heater power supply 250 may be coupled to the heater 212 to control its operation. Figure 2B , the at least one heat transfer device is a cooler 254, such as a cooling plate, for example, including one or more channels formed through the first substrate support 206, and a heat transfer fluid such as a coolant from a coolant source 252 can flow through the one or more channels.

[0026] In some embodiments, at least one heat transfer device is disposed adjacent to the lowest support surface (e.g., support surface 208b) of the first plurality of support surfaces. In some embodiments, the first loading chamber includes a second heat transfer device disposed adjacent to the highest support surface (e.g., support surface 208a) of the first plurality of support surfaces. The second heat transfer device is similar to the first heat transfer device. The second heat transfer device can be of the same type as the first heat transfer device. For example, Figure 2A As shown in , the first heat transfer device is a heater 212 (eg, a first heater), and the second heat transfer device is a heater 213 (eg, a second heater). Figure 2BAs shown in , the first heat transfer device is cooler 254 (eg, a first cooler), and the second heat transfer device is cooler 255 (eg, a second cooler).

[0027] In some embodiments, the first substrate support 206 is formed of a thermally conductive body (e.g., aluminum) having at least one heat transfer device (e.g., heater 212 or cooler 254) embedded in the thermally conductive body. In some embodiments, the first substrate support 206 may include a plurality of heat transfer devices corresponding to the plurality of first plurality of support surfaces (e.g., support surfaces 208a, 208b) to heat or cool a substrate disposed atop the first plurality of support surfaces. In some embodiments, the plurality of heat transfer devices may be heaters, such as resistive heating elements (e.g., heaters 212, 213). In some embodiments, the plurality of heat transfer devices may be coolers (e.g., coolers 254, 255).

[0028] In some embodiments, when used, the first load lock chamber 202 can be used to remove moisture from the first plurality of substrates 207a,b before processing the substrates in the processing chamber. In some embodiments, when used, the first load lock chamber 202 can be used to cool the first plurality of substrates 207a,b after processing the substrates in the processing chamber.

[0029] Figure 2C A top view of a substrate support according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is depicted. In some embodiments, the first load lock chamber 202 further comprises a lift assembly 209 configured to lift the first plurality of substrates 207a,b off the first plurality of support surfaces 208a,b and lower the first plurality of substrates 207a,b to the first plurality of support surfaces 208a,b as indicated by arrows 230. In some embodiments, the lift assembly 209 comprises a motor 232 coupled to two or more lift elements 234. In some embodiments, as Figure 2C, each of the two or more lifting elements 234 includes two opposing lifting elements 234a, b, each of the lifting elements 234a, b having a pair of forks 236 extending into a corresponding pair of grooves 238 formed in a corresponding support surface of the first plurality of support surfaces 208a, b. The lifting elements 234 are lifted above the first plurality of support surfaces 208a, b to receive the first plurality of substrates 207a, b. Subsequently, the lifting elements 234 are lowered so that the first plurality of substrates 207a, b are placed on corresponding support surfaces of the first plurality of support surfaces 208a, b. After the first plurality of substrates 207a, b have been heated to remove moisture from the substrates, the lifting elements 234 are lifted again so that a robot (e.g., vacuum robot 130) can remove the first plurality of substrates 207a, b from the first load lock chamber 202 and transfer the substrates to a processing chamber.

[0030] return Figure 2A-2B In some embodiments, the second load lock chamber 203 is disposed on top of the first load lock chamber 202 and includes a second interior space 214 and a second substrate support 216 disposed in the second interior space 214. The second substrate support 216 is configured to support a second plurality of substrates 217a, b on corresponding second plurality of support surfaces 218a, b (e.g., Figure 2A-2B 2 (two are shown in FIG), the second plurality of support surfaces 218a, b are vertically spaced apart by a second predetermined distance 220. In some embodiments, the second substrate support 216 includes support elements 256 similar to the lifting elements 234a, b discussed above. In some exemplary uses, the second load lock chamber 203 can be used to receive a second plurality of substrates 217a, b after processing of the substrates is completed, and the second plurality of substrates 217a, b are to be loaded onto a FOUP coupled to the docking station 108.

[0031] In some embodiments, the first substrate support 206 includes additional elements configured to heat the first plurality of substrates 207a,b as discussed above, while the second substrate support 216 is configured only to hold the second plurality of substrates 217a,b. In these embodiments, the second predetermined distance 220 is less than the first predetermined distance 210 because the second substrate support 216 is less complex than the first substrate support 206. In some embodiments, the second predetermined distance 220 is half of the first predetermined distance 210. In some embodiments, the second predetermined distance 220 is half of the first predetermined distance 210. In some embodiments, the first predetermined distance is about 14 mm and the second predetermined distance 220 is about 28 mm. In some embodiments, the first and second predetermined distances 210, 220 may correspond to the vertical distance between adjacent blades of a substrate transfer robot (e.g., vacuum robot 130).

[0032] Reference Figure 3 A substrate transfer robot (eg, vacuum robot 130) for transferring substrates between the dual load lock 122 and the processing chamber includes a plurality of blades (eg, Figure 3 306a, b). The motor assembly 303 is configured to rotate the forearm 304 around the first axis 305 and independently rotate the plurality of blades (e.g., the first blade 302a, the second blade 302b, and the third blade 302c) around the second axis 307 via a pulley (not shown) disposed in the forearm. The first blade 302a is spaced apart from the second blade 302b by a first vertical distance 306a. The second blade 302b is spaced apart from the third blade 302c by a second vertical distance 306b. In some embodiments, the first and second vertical distances 306a, b are equal. In some embodiments, the first and second vertical distances 306a, b are different.

[0033] In some embodiments, the first predetermined distance 210 is equal to the vertical distance between the first blade 302a and the third blade 302c. This spacing allows two blades (the first and third blades 302a, c) to be inserted into the first load lock to simultaneously remove, for example, two substrates that have been heated to remove moisture and transfer the substrates to the multi-chamber processing system (e.g., 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111). Because one of the blades (e.g., the second blade 302b) is empty, the empty blade can remove the processed substrates from the multi-chamber processing system before the heated substrates are transferred to the processing system. For example, during one trip to the multi-chamber processing system, a processed substrate is removed from the multi-chamber processing system, one of the heated substrates is transferred to the multi-chamber processing system, another processed substrate is removed from the multi-chamber processing system, and another of the heated substrates is transferred to the multi-chamber processing system. Because the second blade 302b holds a processed substrate and one of the first or third blades 302a, c holds another processed substrate, the vertical distance between two processed substrates held by the substrate transfer robot is either 306a or 306b. Thus, in some embodiments, the second predetermined distance 220 is equal to the vertical distance (306a or 306b) between two adjacent blades. As a result of the number of blades, the vertical spacing between adjacent blades, and the corresponding vertical spacing of the support surfaces of the substrate supports in the dual load lock, the number of trips required to transfer a substrate between the dual load lock 122 and one of the multi-chamber processing systems 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111 is reduced, thereby increasing the throughput of the processing system 100.

[0034] Furthermore, the apparatus of the present invention may be used in the reverse orientation to that described above. For example, instead of feeding a preheated substrate into a processing system, the apparatus may also be advantageously used to return a plurality of substrates to a load lock having, for example, a cooling plate for cooling the substrates exiting the processing system. In these embodiments, the load lock may be as described above with respect to Figure 2A As described above, and may include cooling plates instead of heating plates. In operation, two incoming substrates fed into the processing system may be picked up by a three-blade robot using two blades (e.g., the innermost blade and the first outermost blade) that are close to each other. An outgoing substrate may then be picked up from the processing chamber using an idle outermost blade (e.g., the second outermost blade). The incoming substrate on the first outermost blade may be placed in the processing chamber. The completed second outgoing substrate may be picked up using the now empty first outermost blade. The remaining incoming substrate on the innermost blade may be placed in the processing chamber. The two outgoing substrates remaining on the two outermost blades may now be simultaneously placed in a load lock having two cooling plates spaced at the vertical distance between the two outermost blades.

[0035] Although the above description has been made with respect to two support surfaces and three blades (302a, b, c) in each load lock chamber (202, 204), there may be any number of support surfaces and blades, except that the number of blades should be greater than the number of support surfaces by 1. The additional blades allow processed substrates to be removed from the multi-chamber processing system prior to transferring the heated substrate in the first load lock chamber 202, thereby allowing the robot to make fewer trips between the load locks and the multi-chamber processing system.

[0036] return Figure 1 , a system controller 144 is coupled to the processing system 100. The system controller 144 controls the operation of the processing system 100 using direct control of the processing chambers 111-114, 131-134, 151-154, 171-174, 191-194, 195-198 of the processing system 100, or alternatively by controlling individual controllers (not shown) associated with the processing chambers 111-114, 131-134, 151-154, 171-174, 191-194, 195-198 and / or the various multi-chamber processing systems 101, 103, 105, 107, 109, 111 and the processing system 100. In operation, the system controller 144 enables data collection and feedback from the various chambers and the system controller 144 to optimize the performance of the processing system 100.

[0037] The system controller 144 typically includes a central processing unit (CPU) 138, a memory 140, and support circuits 142. The CPU 138 may be one of any form of general purpose computer processor that may be used in an industrial setting. The support circuits 142 are conventionally coupled to the CPU 138 and may include cache, clock circuits, input / output subsystems, power supplies, and the like. When a software program such as the method 300 described below for controlling one or more chamber processes (such as reducing pressure, venting or purging individual chambers of a multi-chamber processing system) is executed by the CPU 138, the software program transforms the CPU 138 into a special purpose computer (controller) 144. The software program may also be stored and / or executed by a second controller (not shown) located remotely from the processing system 100.

[0038] Thus, methods and apparatus for a multi-chamber processing system having a shared vacuum system have been provided. The multi-chamber processing system of the present invention advantageously allows a first chamber to be serviced while allowing the remaining chambers to operate normally. Additionally, the multi-chamber processing system of the present invention advantageously avoids contamination of the remaining processing chambers after the first processing chamber has been serviced.

[0039] While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments of the present disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof.

Claims

1. A dual load lock chamber comprising: a first load lock chamber having a first interior space and a first substrate support disposed in the first interior space, wherein the first substrate support comprises a first plurality of vertically spaced support surfaces to support a corresponding first plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the first plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a first predetermined distance; at least one heat transfer device disposed in the first substrate support to heat or cool the first plurality of substrates; and a second load lock chamber disposed adjacent to the first load lock chamber and having a second interior space and a second substrate support disposed in the second interior space, wherein the second substrate support comprises a second plurality of vertically spaced support surfaces to support a corresponding second plurality of substrates, and wherein adjacent support surfaces of the second plurality of support surfaces are spaced apart by a second predetermined distance, the second predetermined distance being smaller than the first predetermined distance. 2 . The dual load lock chamber of claim 1 , wherein the second predetermined distance is half of the first predetermined distance. 3 . The dual load lock chamber of claim 1 , wherein the first plurality of support surfaces are two first support surfaces, and wherein the second plurality of support surfaces are two second support surfaces.

4. The dual load lock chamber of claim 3, wherein the at least one heat transfer device is disposed adjacent to a lowermost support surface of the first plurality of support surfaces.

5. The dual load lock chamber of claim 4, further comprising: A second heat transfer device is disposed adjacent to an uppermost support surface of the first plurality of support surfaces.

6. The dual load lock chamber of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the first load lock chamber further comprises a lift assembly configured to lift the first plurality of substrates off the first plurality of supporting surfaces and lower the first plurality of substrates onto the first plurality of supporting surfaces.

7. The dual load lock chamber of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the at least one heat transfer device is a resistive heating element.

8. The dual load lock chamber of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the at least one heat transfer device is a cooling plate.

9. The dual load lock chamber of any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising: A gas source is coupled to the first load lock chamber to supply gas to the first internal space.

10. A processing system comprising: Factory interface; a substrate transfer chamber; one or more multi-chamber processing systems coupled to the substrate transfer chamber; a dual load lock chamber coupling the factory interface to the substrate transfer chamber, wherein the dual load lock chamber is as described in any one of claims 1 to 5; and A vacuum robot is disposed in the substrate transfer chamber and configured to transfer substrates between the dual load lock chamber and the one or more multi-chamber processing systems, wherein the vacuum robot includes a plurality of blades that are independently rotatable.

11. The processing system of claim 10, wherein each of the plurality of blades is spaced apart from an adjacent blade by a vertical distance.

12. The processing system of claim 11, wherein the second predetermined distance and the vertical distance are substantially equal.

13. The processing system of claim 11, wherein the first predetermined distance is approximately twice as large as the vertical distance.

14. The processing system of claim 10, wherein the at least one heat transfer device is any one of a resistive heating element or a cooling plate.

15. The processing system of claim 10, wherein the first load lock chamber further comprises a lift assembly configured to lift the first plurality of substrates off the first plurality of supporting surfaces and lower the first plurality of substrates onto the first plurality of supporting surfaces.

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