Wafer automatic transmission method for vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment

Abstract

The application discloses a wafer automatic transmission method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device, and comprises the following steps: S1, setting parameters in a control system to specify wafer types stored in wafer buffer racks and boat racks; S2, placing wafers in wafer boxes and placing the wafer boxes on a material table; S3, according to the preset wafer types, transmitting the wafers into corresponding wafer buffer racks by a manipulator; S4, repeating steps S2 and S3 to transmit all the wafers into the wafer buffer racks; S5, according to preset wafer placing types on the boat racks, transmitting the wafers from the wafer buffer racks into the boat racks by the manipulator in sequence; S6, starting a process and waiting for the process to end; S7, transmitting the wafers on the boat racks back to the wafer buffer racks in a first-in, first-out mode; and S8, selecting wafers needing to be unloaded in the control system, transmitting the wafers from corresponding wafer buffer racks into wafer boxes by the manipulator to complete unloading. The application has the advantages of simple operation, high automation degree and high transmission efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of third-generation semiconductor manufacturing, and in particular relates to an automatic wafer transmission method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device. Background Art

[0002] Compared with the first and second generation semiconductor materials, the third generation of semiconductor SiC materials has performance advantages such as wider bandgap, higher breakdown electric field, and higher thermal conductivity. It is particularly suitable for 5G RF devices and high-voltage power devices.

[0003] SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment is key equipment for SiC chip manufacturing. Existing SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment mostly uses manual wafer loading and unloading, which suffers from low automation and inefficiency. It is becoming increasingly difficult to adapt to the growing demand for SiC chips. Furthermore, manual loading and unloading can easily cause problems such as chip scratches and contamination. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to overcome the deficiencies of the prior art and provide a wafer automatic transmission method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device with simple operation, high degree of automation and high transmission efficiency.

[0005] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] A wafer automatic transfer method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device comprises the following steps:

[0007] S1. Setting parameters in the control system to specify the type of wafers placed in the wafer buffer and the type of wafers stored in the wafer slots of the boat;

[0008] S2. Place a wafer of a preset type in a cassette and place the cassette on a loading table;

[0009] S3. According to the preset wafer type, the wafer is transferred from the cassette to the corresponding wafer buffer rack by the robot;

[0010] S4, repeating steps S2 and S3 until all wafers are transferred into the wafer buffer rack;

[0011] S5. According to the wafer types preset on the boat, the wafers are sequentially transferred from the wafer buffer rack to the boat by the robot;

[0012] S6, start the SiC wafer preparation process and wait for the process to end;

[0013] S7, transferring the wafers on the boat back to the wafer buffer rack in a first-in, last-out manner according to a preset transfer path;

[0014] S8. Select the wafer that needs to be unloaded in the control system, and use the robot to transfer the wafer from the corresponding wafer buffer rack to the wafer box on the material table to complete the unloading.

[0015] As a further improvement of the present invention, a mapping sensor is provided in the vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment, and the mapping sensor is used to identify the number of wafers in the wafer cassette and the position of the wafer slots in the wafer cassette.

[0016] As a further improvement of the present invention, in step S2, the required wafers are placed into the wafer box by manual feeding.

[0017] As a further improvement of the present invention, the types of wafers include: baffles, filler sheets, process sheets and monitoring sheets; in step S5, the order in which different types of wafers are transferred into the boat is set by the control system.

[0018] As a further improvement of the present invention, for wafers of the same type, the rule for taking out and placing wafers is to take out from the bottom and place them on the top.

[0019] As a further improvement of the present invention, the boat is provided with a plurality of wafer slots, and wafers of the same type or different types can be placed between adjacent wafer slots.

[0020] As a further improvement of the present invention, a plurality of wafer cache racks are provided, and wafers of the same type or different types can be placed between adjacent wafer cache racks.

[0021] As a further improvement of the present invention, the material table, the boat frame and the plurality of wafer buffer racks are arranged around the robot arm.

[0022] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of the present invention are:

[0023] 1. The present invention is a method for automatically transferring wafers for vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment. By presetting the type of wafers placed on the wafer buffer rack in the control system, the type of wafers placed in the wafer slots of the boat rack is also specified, and the preset type of wafers are placed in the corresponding wafer cassettes. The robot only needs to transfer the wafers in the wafer cassettes to the wafer buffer rack and then to the boat rack in sequence. After the SiC wafers complete the preparation process in the boat rack, the robot only needs to transfer the wafers from the boat rack back to the wafer buffer rack in a first-in-last-out manner. Then, according to needs, the robot is controlled to transfer the wafers from the corresponding wafer buffer rack to the wafer cassette to complete the unloading. The entire transmission process is simple to operate, has clear logic and a high degree of automation, thereby realizing high-efficiency transmission of wafers and improving the preparation efficiency of SiC wafers. It will not cause scratches or contamination of SiC wafers, and well meets the growing demand for SiC wafer preparation.

[0024] 2. The present invention is a method for automatically transferring wafers for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device. By arranging a material table, a boat and a plurality of wafer buffer racks around a manipulator, the structure of the vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device is effectively simplified, and the degree of coordination between the manipulator and the wafer box, the boat and the wafer buffer rack is improved. By arranging a plurality of wafer buffer racks and arranging a plurality of wafer slots on the boat, the transmission requirements of various types of wafers are well met. Furthermore, by limiting the transmission sequence of wafers of the same type and wafers of different types, the entire transmission process is orderly, the complexity of controlling the manipulator is reduced, and the working efficiency and reliability of automatic wafer transmission are greatly improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] Figure 1 The figure is a flow chart of the automatic wafer transfer method for vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment according to the present invention.

[0026] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structural principle of the neutral SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment of the present invention.

[0027] Legend: 1. Material table; 2. Film box; 3. Wafer buffer rack; 4. Boat; 5. Robot arm. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific preferred embodiments, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereby.

[0029] Example

[0030] like Figure 1 As shown, the wafer automatic transmission method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device of the present invention comprises the following steps:

[0031] S1. Set parameters in the control system to specify the type of wafers to be placed in the wafer buffer rack 3 and the type of wafers to be stored in the wafer slots of the boat 4. That is, based on the type of wafers to be transported, the control system sets the placement of each type of wafer on each wafer buffer rack 3, and also sets the type of wafer to be stored in each wafer slot of the boat 4, to achieve classified wafer transportation. In this embodiment, wafers are processed on a boat, and the boat 4 also has several wafer slots. Depending on the actual situation, when using it, it is necessary to specify what type of wafer to place in each slot, such as where the monitoring wafer is placed and where the process wafer is placed.

[0032] S2. Place wafers of a preset type in the cassette 2, and place the cassette 2 on the stage 1. According to the settings in the control system, wafers of corresponding types are placed in the cassette 2 in order to facilitate the subsequent transfer of wafers by the robot 5. In this embodiment, the cassette 2 is a three-dimensional structure, and the standard cassette can hold 25 wafers. During the process, it can be filled, or of course, it can be less than filled. In actual operation, wafers of the same type are generally placed in the cassette 2. For example, if it is currently a box of process wafers, then before entering the wafer buffer rack 3 on the stage 1, it is necessary to specify in the control system that this is a box of process wafers, and the robot 5 transfers the wafers in the cassette 2 one by one to the wafer buffer rack 3 where the process wafers are placed.

[0033] S3. According to the preset wafer type, the wafer is transferred to the corresponding wafer buffer rack 3 by the robot 5. The robot 5 only needs to grab and transfer the wafers in the preset order without involving complex identification and control processes.

[0034] S4. Repeat steps S2 and S3 until all wafers are transferred into the wafer buffer rack 3.

[0035] S5 . According to the wafer types to be placed on the boat 4 preset in the control system, the robot 5 sequentially transfers the wafers from the wafer buffer 3 to the boat 4 .

[0036] S6. Start the SiC wafer preparation process and wait for the process to end.

[0037] S7, the wafers on the boat 4 are transferred back to the wafer buffer rack 3 in a first-in, last-out manner according to the preset transfer path. The first-in, last-out method is used to reversely transfer the prepared chips, ensuring the reliability of wafer transportation and preventing the chips from being contaminated during transportation.

[0038] S8. Select the wafer to be unloaded in the control system, and transfer the wafer from the corresponding wafer buffer rack 3 to the cassette 2 on the material table 1 through the robot 5 to complete the unloading.

[0039] In this embodiment, by pre-setting the type of wafers placed on the wafer buffer rack 3 in the control system, and also specifying the type of wafers placed in the wafer slots of the boat rack 4, and placing the preset type of wafers in the corresponding wafer box 2, the robot 5 only needs to transfer the wafers in the wafer box to the wafer buffer rack 3 in sequence, and then transfer them to the boat rack 4; after the preparation process of the SiC wafer in the boat rack 4 is completed, the robot 5 only needs to transfer the wafer from the boat rack 4 back to the wafer buffer rack 3 in a first-in-last-out manner, and then control the robot 5 to transfer the wafer from the corresponding wafer buffer rack 3 to the wafer box 2 as needed to complete the unloading. The entire transmission process is simple to operate, clear in logic and highly automated, which realizes high-efficiency transmission of wafers, improves the preparation efficiency of SiC wafers, and does not cause scratches or contamination of SiC wafers, thus meeting the growing demand for SiC wafer preparation.

[0040] In this embodiment, a mapping sensor is provided in the vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment, and the mapping sensor is used to identify the number of wafers in the wafer cassette 2 and the position of the wafer in the wafer slot in the wafer cassette 2. Specifically, the mapping sensor can be provided on the material table 1 or integrated into the robot 5.

[0041] Furthermore, in step S2, the required wafers are placed into cassette 2 using manual unloading. Cassette 2 is removable and movable from the loading platform 1; during loading, after one cassette is loaded, the empty cassette 2 is removed and replaced with another. Depending on the wafer type, wafers are placed into cassette 2 before entering the loading platform 1. Manual unloading improves wafer placement accuracy and reduces the complexity of the robot 5's work.

[0042] Furthermore, the types of wafers include: baffles, filler sheets, process sheets and monitoring sheets. In step S5, the order in which different types of wafers are introduced into the boat rack 4 is set by the control system. For example, the order in which different types of wafers are introduced into the boat rack 4 is: baffles, filler sheets, process sheets and monitoring sheets. For wafers of the same type, the rule for taking and placing wafers is to take from the bottom and place from the top, that is, to take the wafer from the bottom and place it above the target position. By limiting the conveying order of the wafers, it is beneficial to improve the orderliness of the entire conveying process and avoid the situation where the wafers are placed incorrectly.

[0043] In this embodiment, the boat 4 is provided with multiple slots, and adjacent slots can accommodate wafers of the same or different types. Based on the type and quantity of wafers, the control system sets the wafer type for each slot in the boat 4 to achieve precise wafer placement.

[0044] like Figure 2As shown, in this embodiment, four wafer buffer racks 3 are provided, and the type of wafers placed on each wafer buffer rack 3 can be set in the control system. Wafers of the same type or different types can be placed between adjacent wafer buffer racks 3 to improve the efficiency of wafer transportation. In this embodiment, the same type of wafers are placed on one wafer buffer rack 3, and four wafer buffer racks 3 can simultaneously meet the storage of four types of wafers. Of course, in the actual process, it is not necessarily the case that wafers are placed on each wafer buffer rack 3.

[0045] like Figure 2 As shown, in this embodiment, the material table 1, the boat 4 and the four wafer buffer racks 3 are arranged around the robot 5, which makes the structure of the vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment more compact and is also conducive to improving the orderliness of wafer transportation.

[0046] In this embodiment, by surrounding the material table 1, the boat 4 and the plurality of wafer buffer racks 3 around the manipulator 5, the structural arrangement of the vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment is effectively simplified, and the degree of coordination between the manipulator 5 and the wafer cassette 2, the boat 4 and the wafer buffer rack 3 is improved. By providing a plurality of wafer buffer racks 3 and providing a plurality of wafer slots on the boat 4, the transmission requirements of various types of wafers are well met. Furthermore, by limiting the transmission sequence of wafers of the same type and wafers of different types, the entire transmission process is orderly, the complexity of controlling the manipulator 5 is reduced, and the efficiency and reliability of automatic wafer transmission are greatly improved.

[0047] Although the present invention is disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person skilled in the art can, without departing from the spirit and technical solutions of the present invention, use the methods and technical contents disclosed above to make many possible changes and modifications to the technical solutions of the present invention, or modify them into equivalent embodiments with equivalent changes. Therefore, any simple modification, equivalent replacement, equivalent change and modification made to the above embodiments based on the technical spirit of the present invention without departing from the content of the technical solutions of the present invention, shall still fall within the scope of protection of the technical solutions of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wafer automatic transmission method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: S1. Setting parameters in the control system to specify the type of wafers placed in the wafer buffer rack (3) and the type of wafers stored in the wafer slots of the boat rack (4); Wafer types include: baffles, filler wafers, process wafers, and monitoring wafers; S2, placing a wafer of a preset type in the wafer box (2), and placing the wafer box (2) on the material table (1); S3, according to the preset wafer type, the wafer is transferred from the cassette (2) to the corresponding wafer buffer rack (3) by the robot (5); S4, repeating steps S2 and S3 until all wafers are transferred into the wafer buffer rack (3); S5, according to the wafer types preset on the boat (4), the wafers are sequentially transferred from the wafer buffer (3) to the boat (4) by the robot (5); S6, start the SiC wafer preparation process and wait for the process to end; S7, transferring the wafers on the boat (4) back to the wafer buffer rack (3) in a first-in, last-out manner according to a preset transfer path; S8, selecting the wafer to be unloaded in the control system, and transferring the wafer from the corresponding wafer buffer rack (3) to the cassette (2) on the material table (1) by the robot (5), thus completing unloading; A mapping sensor is provided in the vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment, and the mapping sensor is used to identify the number of wafers in the wafer box (2) and the positions of the wafers in the wafer slots in the wafer box (2).

2. The wafer automatic transmission method for vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the step S2, the required wafers are placed into the wafer box (2) by manual feeding.

3. The wafer automatic transmission method for vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step 5, the order in which different types of wafers are introduced into the boat (4) is set by the control system.

4. The wafer automatic transmission method for vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: For wafers of the same type, the rule for taking out and placing wafers is to take out from the bottom and place them on the top.

5. The wafer automatic transport method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The boat (4) is provided with a plurality of wafer slots, and wafers of the same type or different types are placed between adjacent wafer slots.

6. The wafer automatic transport method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: A plurality of wafer buffer racks (3) are provided.

7. The automatic wafer transfer method for a vertical SiC high-temperature furnace tube device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The material platform (1), the boat frame (4) and the plurality of wafer buffer racks (3) are arranged around the robot arm (5).

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