A semiconductor heat treatment equipment

Abstract

A semiconductor heat treatment device includes a boat transfer mechanism. The boat transfer mechanism includes a main body bracket, a ball screw disposed on the main body bracket in the vertical direction, a tensioning device disposed at the top end of the main body bracket, and a belt whose one end is connected to the tensioning device; the other end of the belt is connected to the bottom end of the main body bracket and is located on the side of the ball screw away from the main body bracket, and the tensioning device is used to automatically tension the belt to keep it vertical. The semiconductor heat treatment device involved in the present invention straightens the belt naturally through the tensioning device, avoiding the possibility of rubbing against moving parts due to bending, preventing the machine platform from generating particles, ensuring the particle cleanliness level in the microenvironment chamber, and improving the stability of the machine platform.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the field of semiconductor technology, and more particularly, relates to a semiconductor heat treatment apparatus. Background Art

[0002] The boat lifting and transferring mechanism is an important transferring component of a vertical furnace apparatus. As Figure 1 shown, the boat lifting and transferring mechanism 100 is installed in the microenvironment chamber of the wafer preprocessing storage space (Loading Area, LA), i.e., the LA microenvironment chamber 108, and is used to lift the wafer from the LA microenvironment chamber 108 into the process chamber 109, or lower the wafer from the process chamber 109 into the LA microenvironment chamber 108. Since the boat lifting and transferring mechanism 100 and the wafer are simultaneously exposed in the LA microenvironment chamber 108, certain cleanliness control needs to be ensured for the boat lifting and transferring mechanism 100 during the lifting process to avoid particulate contamination of the wafer caused during the movement process.

[0003] As Figure 2 and Figure 3 shown, the boat lifting and transferring mechanism 100 includes a main body bracket 101, a pair of bearing boxes 102, a lead screw guard plate 103, a pair of linear guide rails 104, a connecting seat 105, a ball screw 106, and a process door 107. Among them, the pair of bearing boxes 102 are respectively installed at the upper and lower ends of the main body bracket 101, the ball screw 106 is disposed between the pair of bearing boxes 102, the pair of linear guide rails 104 are disposed on both sides of the main body bracket 101, the connecting seat 105 is slidably connected to the pair of linear guide rails 104 and is connected to the ball screw 106, the process door 107 is fixed to the connecting seat 105, and the connecting seat 105 moves in the vertical direction along the pair of linear guide rails 104 as the ball screw 106 rotates, thereby synchronously driving the process door 107 to rise or fall. The wafer boat 110 is installed on the process door 107 to transfer the wafer between the LA microenvironment chamber 108 and the process chamber 109.

[0004] During this process, the lead screw guard plate 103 is disposed between the pair of bearing boxes 102 to cover the ball screw 106 and passes through the gap between the connecting seat 105 and the process door 107, and is used to shield the ball screw 106 to prevent accidents caused by external personnel or materials being involved during the rotation of the ball screw 106, playing a role of safety protection. The connecting seat 105 and the process door 107 move up and down relative to the lead screw guard plate 103. Currently, the lead screw guard plate 103 is a long strip-shaped sheet metal bending part with a relatively long length, about 1.5 meters. Affected by the space, the thickness and width dimensions of the sheet metal part cannot be made very large, and the width is only about 8 centimeters. The gap between the lead screw guard plate 103 and the front and rear ends of the connecting seat 105 and the process door 107 is about 4 mm to ensure that no rubbing occurs during the relative movement process. As Figure 4As shown, due to the aforementioned characteristics, the screw guard 103 can bend to varying degrees and forms due to stress during processing. Furthermore, as the temperature within the LA microenvironment chamber 108 rises during the processing phase, the screw guard 103 will also undergo a certain degree of thermal expansion due to the temperature, causing the bending to intensify. When the degree of bending exceeds the safe gap between the front and rear ends, the screw guard 103 may rub against the connector 105 or the process door 107, generating metal particles. These metal particles diffuse into the air of the LA microenvironment chamber 108, with some falling onto the wafer surface, causing excessive product particles and affecting product quality and stable production. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor heat treatment equipment to solve the problem that the bending of the screw guard plate and the scraping of other components generate particles that affect the quality of the wafer.

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a semiconductor heat treatment device, a boat transmission mechanism, the boat transmission mechanism comprising a main body support, a ball screw vertically arranged on the main body support, a tensioning device arranged at the top end of the main body support, and a protective belt connected to the tensioning device at one end;

[0007] The other end of the guard belt is connected to the bottom end of the main body bracket and is located on the side of the ball screw away from the main body bracket. The tensioning device is used to automatically tighten the guard belt to keep it vertical.

[0008] Preferably, the tensioning device includes a tensioning bracket, a first guide shaft and a second guide shaft provided on the tensioning bracket, and elastic elements respectively connected to both ends of the first guide shaft; wherein,

[0009] One end of the protective belt is connected to the top end of the tensioning bracket, and the other end of the protective belt passes through the gap between the first guide shaft and the second guide shaft and is connected to the bottom end of the main bracket;

[0010] The first guide shaft can keep the guard belt in a tensioned state under the action of the elastic element.

[0011] Preferably, the tensioning device also includes a pressure plate; the tensioning bracket is U-shaped, including a pair of side walls and a bottom wall, and the bottom wall is fixed to the top of the main bracket; the first guide shaft and the second guide shaft are parallel to each other and connected between a pair of side walls, the first guide shaft is located above the second guide shaft, and the two ends of the first guide shaft are elastically connected to one of the side walls through each elastic element, and one end of the guard belt is connected between the pressure plate and the bottom wall.

[0012] Preferably, the protective belt is wound around the first guide shaft and the second guide shaft in sequence from top to bottom, and the first guide shaft can move under the action of the elastic element to tighten the protective belt.

[0013] Preferably, the tensioning device further comprises a pair of guide shaft sliding screws, and a sliding groove arranged in the horizontal direction is provided on the side wall; the first guide shaft is connected to the sliding groove via the guide shaft sliding screws;

[0014] One end of the elastic element is connected to the guide shaft sliding screw, and the other end is connected to the side wall via a fixing screw;

[0015] The guide shaft sliding screw can drive the first guide shaft to move along the sliding groove under the action of the elastic element.

[0016] Preferably, there is a distance between the sliding groove and the fixing screw in the horizontal direction, so that the elastic element is tilted to generate a horizontal pulling force on the first guide shaft.

[0017] Preferably, the guard belt sequentially passes around the side of the first guide shaft away from the bottom wall of the tensioning bracket and the side of the second guide shaft close to the bottom wall, and the fixing screw is located above the slide groove and away from the bottom wall; or,

[0018] The guard belt sequentially passes around the side of the first guide shaft close to the bottom wall of the tensioning bracket and the side of the second guide shaft away from the bottom wall, and the fixing screw is located above the sliding groove and close to the bottom wall.

[0019] Preferably, the outer circle tangent of the protective belt passing around the second guide shaft and the portion of the protective belt connected to the bottom end of the main body bracket are located in the same plane.

[0020] Preferably, the boat transport mechanism further includes a bottom fixing plate, the protective belt is made of a non-metallic material, and the other end of the protective belt is connected to the main body bracket through the bottom fixing plate.

[0021] Preferably, the semiconductor heat treatment equipment further comprises a process door, and the boat transport mechanism further comprises a linear guide rail and a connecting seat;

[0022] The linear guide rail is parallel to the ball screw and is arranged on the main support. The connecting seat is slidably connected to the linear guide rail and is threadedly connected to the ball screw. The process door is connected to a side of the connecting seat away from the main support.

[0023] The guard belt passes through between the connecting seat and the process door and forms a gap with the connecting seat and the process door respectively; the tensioning device automatically tensions the guard belt.

[0024] The semiconductor heat treatment equipment involved in the present invention has the beneficial effect that the guard belt is naturally straightened through the tensioning device, avoiding the possibility of rubbing against moving parts due to bending, preventing particles from being generated on the machine platform, ensuring the particle cleanliness level in the microenvironment chamber, and improving the stability of the machine platform.

[0025] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be described in detail in the following specific implementation part. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0026] By describing the exemplary embodiments of the present invention in more detail in conjunction with the drawings, the above-mentioned and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious. Among them, in the exemplary embodiments of the present invention, the same reference numerals generally represent the same components.

[0027] Figure 1 Fig. shows a schematic diagram of the installation position of the boat lifting and transmission mechanism in the prior art;

[0028] Figure 2 Fig. shows a schematic diagram of the structure of the boat lifting and transmission mechanism in the prior art;

[0029] Figure 3 Fig. shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the boat lifting and transmission mechanism in the prior art;

[0030] Figure 4 Fig. shows a schematic diagram of the state of the screw guard plate of the boat lifting and transmission mechanism in the prior art being bent and deformed;

[0031] Figure 5 Fig. shows a schematic diagram of the structure of the boat transmission mechanism and the process door in the semiconductor heat treatment equipment according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 6 Fig. shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the boat transmission mechanism in the semiconductor heat treatment equipment according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 7 Fig. shows a schematic diagram of the structure of the tensioning device of the boat transmission mechanism in the semiconductor heat treatment equipment according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 8 Fig. shows a side cross-sectional view of the tensioning device of the boat transmission mechanism in the semiconductor heat treatment equipment according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[0035] Description of the Reference Numerals:

[0036] 1. Guard belt, 2. Tensioning device, 21. Tensioning bracket, 211. Side wall, 212. Slide groove, 22. First guide shaft, 23. Second guide shaft, 24. Pressing plate, 25. Elastic element, 26. Guide shaft sliding screw, 27. Fixing screw, 28. Guide shaft screw, 3. Bottom fixing plate;

[0037] 100. Boat lifting and transmission mechanism, 101. Main body bracket, 102. Bearing box, 103. Screw guard plate, 104. Linear guide rail, 105. Connecting seat, 106. Ball screw, 107. Process door, 108. LA microenvironment chamber, 109 Process chamber, 110. Wafer boat. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail below. Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below, it should be understood that the present invention can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited by the embodiments set forth herein. Instead, these embodiments are provided to make the present invention more thorough and complete and to fully convey the scope of the present invention to those skilled in the art.

[0039] In order to solve the problems existing in the prior art, the present invention provides a semiconductor heat treatment device, such as Figure 5 As shown, the boat transport mechanism 100 of the semiconductor heat treatment equipment includes a main frame 101, a ball screw 106 vertically arranged on the main frame 101, a tensioning device 2 arranged at the top of the main frame 101, and a protective belt 1 connected to the tensioning device 2 at one end;

[0040] The other end of the guard belt 1 is connected to the bottom end of the main frame 101 and is located on the side of the ball screw 106 away from the main frame 101. The tensioning device 2 is used to automatically tension the guard belt 1 to keep it vertical.

[0041] The semiconductor heat treatment equipment involved in the present invention can naturally straighten the protective belt through a tensioning device, avoiding the possibility of scratching against moving parts due to bending, preventing the machine from generating particles, ensuring the particle cleanliness level in the micro-environment room, and improving the stability of the machine.

[0042] As a preferred solution, the guard belt 1 is made of non-metallic material, preferably a soft material such as polyurethane. A non-metallic guard belt made of polyurethane is used instead of the original metal guard plate, and cooperates with the tensioning device 2 to keep the guard belt 1 in a straightened and tensioned state, thereby preventing the guard belt 1 from being scratched due to bending.

[0043] As a preferred solution, Figure 6 and Figure 7As shown in the figure, the tensioning device 2 includes a tensioning bracket 21, a first guide shaft 22 and a second guide shaft 23 arranged on the tensioning bracket 21, and an elastic element 25 respectively connected to both ends of the first guide shaft 22; wherein, one end of the belt 1 is connected to the top end of the tensioning bracket 21, and the other end of the belt 1 bypasses the gap between the first guide shaft 22 and the second guide shaft 23 and is connected to the bottom end of the main body bracket 101.

[0044] The first guide shaft 22 can keep the belt 1 in a tensioned state under the action of the elastic element 25.

[0045] The tensioning device 2 further includes a pressing plate 24; the tensioning bracket 21 is U-shaped and includes a pair of side walls 211 and a bottom wall, and the bottom wall is fixed to the top end of the main body bracket 101; the first guide shaft 22 and the second guide shaft 23 are connected between the pair of side walls 211 in parallel, and the first guide shaft 22 is located above the second guide shaft 23. Both ends of the first guide shaft 22 are elastically connected to a side wall 211 through an elastic element 25 respectively. The pressing plate 24 is connected to the bottom wall, and one end of the belt 1 is connected between the pressing plate 24 and the bottom wall.

[0046] Wherein, the main body bracket 101 is a rectangular body structure. A pair of side walls 211 of the tensioning bracket 21 are respectively located on both sides of the width direction of the main body bracket 101 for installing various components. The top end of the belt 1 is pressed by the pressing plate 24 and is fixed to the tensioning bracket 21 through a bolt passing through the pressing plate 24.

[0047] As Figure 7 and 8 shown in the figure, the first guide shaft 22 and the second guide shaft 23 are arranged vertically one above the other. Both ends of the second guide shaft 23 are fixed to a pair of side walls 211 of the tensioning bracket 21 through guide shaft screws 28 for guiding purposes to ensure that the straightening direction of the belt 1 is vertical. Therefore, the outer circle tangent of the belt 1 bypassing the second guide shaft 23 and the part of the belt 1 connected to the bottom end of the main body bracket 101 are located in the same plane to ensure the vertical state of the belt 1. In this embodiment, the guide shaft screw 28 passes through the side wall 211 of the tensioning bracket 21 from the outside to the inside and is connected to the second guide shaft 23.

[0048] The first guide shaft 22 can slide horizontally relative to the second guide shaft 23. The belt 1 is wound around the first guide shaft 22 and the second guide shaft 23 in sequence from top to bottom. The first guide shaft 22 can move under the action of the elastic element 25 to tension the belt 1.

[0049] As Figure 7 and Figure 8, the tensioning device 2 further includes a pair of guide shaft sliding screws 26. A chute 212 is provided on the side wall 211 and is arranged horizontally. The chute 212 faces the bottom wall; the first guide shaft 22 is connected to the chute 212 through the guide shaft sliding screw 26; each guide shaft sliding screw 26 is connected to one end of the first guide shaft 22 and passes through the chute 112 and extends to the outside of the side wall 211;

[0050] One end of the elastic element 25 is connected to the guide shaft sliding screw 26, and the other end is connected to the side wall 211 through a fixing screw 27 and is located outside the side wall 211;

[0051] The guide shaft sliding screw 26 can drive the first guide shaft 22 to move along the chute 212 under the action of the elastic element 25. The outer diameter of the head of the guide shaft sliding screw 26 is greater than the width of the chute 212 so as to always be clamped outside the side wall 211.

[0052] The chute 212 and the fixing screw 27 have a spacing in the horizontal direction of the side wall 211 so that the elastic element 25 is inclined to generate a horizontal pulling force on the first guide shaft 22.

[0053] As a preferred solution, the elastic element 25 is a spring. One end of the spring is connected to the head of the fixing screw 27, and the other end is connected to the head of the guide shaft sliding screw 26.

[0054] In an embodiment of the present application, the winding manner of the protective belt is as follows: the protective belt 1 sequentially bypasses the side of the first guide shaft 22 facing away from the bottom wall of the tensioning bracket 21 and the side of the second guide shaft 23 close to the bottom wall. The fixing screw 27 is located above the chute 212 and away from the bottom wall.

[0055] In other embodiments of the present application, the winding manner of the protective belt may be: the protective belt 1 sequentially bypasses the side of the first guide shaft 22 close to the bottom wall of the tensioning bracket 21 and the side of the second guide shaft 23 away from the bottom wall. The fixing screw 27 is located above the chute 212 and close to the bottom wall.

[0056] The chute 212 is arranged horizontally. The fixing screw 27 is located above the first guide shaft 22. The spring is inclined by the spacing between the chute 212 and the fixing screw 27 in the horizontal direction. The pulling force of the spring can drive the guide shaft sliding screw 26 to always tend to move away from the second guide shaft 23, so that the first guide shaft 22 tends to move away from the second guide shaft 23 in the horizontal direction, and the protective belt 1 is squeezed to form a pre-tightening force on the protective belt, so that the protective belt 1 is straightened between the second guide shaft 23 and the part where its bottom end is connected to the main body bracket 101.

[0057] The semiconductor heat treatment equipment involved in the present invention continuously tightens the guard belt 1 by driving the first guide shaft 22 and the second guide shaft 23 to press on the guard belt 1 through the elastic element 25, effectively ensuring that the guard belt 1 is in a taut vertical state and is not affected by temperature and the external environment. When the temperature rises and the guard belt undergoes thermal expansion, the elastic element 25 will continue to tighten, causing the first guide shaft 22 to move away from the second guide shaft 23 under tension and remain in that state to absorb the expansion length of the guard belt 1, ensuring that the guard belt 1 is in a continuously stable tensioned state. The first guide shaft 22 and the second guide shaft 23 guide the guard belt 1 and ensure that the guard belt 1 is in a vertical state. While playing a role in protecting the lead screw, it can also prevent the guard belt 1 from rubbing against other components due to bending, avoiding the generation of particles on the machine platform, thereby ensuring the particle cleanliness level in the microenvironment chamber and improving the stability of the machine platform, providing a strong guarantee for further reducing the process.

[0058] The semiconductor heat treatment equipment involved in the present invention further includes a process door 107, and the boat transfer mechanism 100 further includes a linear guide rail 104 and a connecting seat 105;

[0059] The linear guide rail 104 is arranged on the main body bracket 101 parallel to the ball screw 106, and the connecting seat 105 is slidably connected to the linear guide rail 104 and threadedly connected to the ball screw 106; the process door 107 is connected to the side of the connecting seat 105 facing away from the main body bracket 101;

[0060] The guard belt 1 passes through the gap between the connecting seat 105 and the process door 107 and forms a gap with the connecting seat 105 and the process door 107 respectively; the tensioning device 2 automatically tensions the guard belt 1.

[0061] Preferably, there are a pair of linear guide rails 104, which are respectively arranged on both sides of the main body bracket 101. The two ends of the ball screw 106 are respectively connected to the top and bottom of the main body bracket 101 through bearing boxes 102. The tensioning device 2 is connected to the bearing box 102 at the top of the main body bracket 101. The bottom end of the guard belt 1 is fixed to the bearing box 102 at the bottom of the main body bracket 101 through a bottom fixing plate 3 and bolts. The guard belt 1 is automatically tightened and kept vertical under the action of the tensioning device 2, avoiding contact with the process door 107 and the connecting seat 105, and keeping the gap between the connecting seat 105 and the process door 107 unchanged.

[0062] In the semiconductor heat treatment equipment designed by the present invention, under the action of the tensile force of the elastic element 25, the first guide shaft 22 slides away from the second guide shaft 23 along the chute 212 driven by the guide shaft sliding screw 26, and cooperates with the second guide shaft 23 to tension the protective belt 1; elastic elements 25 are provided on both sides of the tensioning support 21, so as to ensure uniform tension on both sides, prevent the first guide shaft 22 from being skewed, and the tensile force of the elastic element 25 can enable the first guide shaft 22 to generate a continuous and stable tensioning force on the protective belt 1, without causing the protective belt 1 to loosen due to time or temperature influence, resulting in rubbing, and can achieve the effect of self-tensioning.

[0063] The embodiments of the present invention have been described above. The above description is exemplary and not exhaustive, and is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations are obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments.

Claims

1. A semiconductor heat treatment apparatus, characterized in that, The invention comprises a boat transmission mechanism (100) and a process door (107), wherein the boat transmission mechanism (100) comprises a main frame (101), a ball screw (106) arranged on the main frame (101) in a vertical direction, a tensioning device (2) with a connecting seat (105) arranged at the top end of the main frame (101), and a protective belt (1) with one end connected to the tensioning device (2); The other end of the guard belt (1) is connected to the bottom end of the main support (101) and is located on the side of the ball screw (106) facing away from the main support (101), and the tensioning device (2) automatically tensions the guard belt (1) to keep it vertical; The connecting seat (105) is threadedly connected to the ball screw (106); the process door (107) is connected to the side of the connecting seat (105) facing away from the main support (101); the protective belt (1) passes between the connecting seat (105) and the process door (107) and forms a gap between the connecting seat (105) and the process door (107).

2. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The tensioning device (2) comprises a tensioning bracket (21), a first guide shaft (22) and a second guide shaft (23) arranged on the tensioning bracket (21), and elastic elements (25) respectively connected to both ends of the first guide shaft (22); wherein, One end of the protective belt (1) is connected to the top end of the tensioning bracket (21), and the other end of the protective belt (1) passes through the gap between the first guide shaft (22) and the second guide shaft (23) and is connected to the bottom end of the main bracket (101); The first guide shaft (22) can keep the guard belt (1) in a tensioned state under the action of the elastic element (25).

3. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 2, wherein The tensioning device (2) also includes a pressure plate (24); the tensioning bracket (21) is U-shaped, including a pair of side walls (211) and a bottom wall, and the bottom wall is fixed to the top of the main bracket (101); the first guide shaft (22) and the second guide shaft (23) are parallel to each other and connected between the pair of side walls (211), the first guide shaft (22) is located above the second guide shaft (23), and the two ends of the first guide shaft (22) are elastically connected to one of the side walls (211) through an elastic element (25), the pressure plate (24) is connected to the bottom wall, and one end of the protective belt (1) is connected between the pressure plate (24) and the bottom wall.

4. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 3, wherein, The guard belt (1) is wound around the first guide shaft (22) and the second guide shaft (23) in sequence from top to bottom, and the first guide shaft (22) can move under the action of the elastic element (25) to tighten the guard belt (1).

5. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 4, wherein The tensioning device (2) further includes a pair of guide shaft sliding screws (26); a sliding groove (212) arranged in a horizontal direction is provided on the side wall (211); the first guide shaft (22) is connected to the sliding groove (212) via the guide shaft sliding screws (26); One end of the elastic element (25) is connected to the guide shaft sliding screw (26), and the other end is connected to the side wall (211) by a fixing screw (27); The guide shaft sliding screw (26) can drive the first guide shaft (22) to move along the chute (212) under the action of the elastic element (25).

6. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 5, wherein, There is a distance between the chute (212) and the fixing screw (27) in the horizontal direction, so that the elastic element (25) is inclined to generate a horizontal pulling force on the first guide shaft (22).

7. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 5, wherein The protective belt (1) sequentially bypasses one side of the first guide shaft (22) away from the bottom wall of the tensioning bracket (21) and one side of the second guide shaft (23) close to the bottom wall, and the fixing screw (27) is located above the chute (212) and away from the bottom wall; or, The protective belt (1) sequentially bypasses one side of the first guide shaft (22) close to the bottom wall of the tensioning bracket (21) and one side of the second guide shaft (23) away from the bottom wall, and the fixing screw (27) is located above the chute (212) and close to the bottom wall.

8. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 2, wherein The outer circle tangent of the protective belt (1) bypassing the second guide shaft (23) and the part of the protective belt (1) connected to the bottom end of the main body bracket (101) are in the same plane.

9. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The boat transmission mechanism (100) further includes a bottom fixing plate (3), the protective belt (1) is made of a non-metallic material, and the other end of the protective belt (1) is connected to the main body bracket (101) through the bottom fixing plate (3).

10. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, The boat transmission mechanism (100) further includes a linear guide rail (104); The linear guide rail (104) is arranged on the main body bracket (101) parallel to the ball screw (106), and the connecting seat (105) is slidably connected to the linear guide rail (104).

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