Wafer transfer system and method for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment

Abstract

The application discloses a wafer conveying system for a silicon carbide epitaxial device, which comprises a transfer robot, a calibration device, a wafer loading device, a wafer unloading device and a dismounting device, the calibration device, the wafer loading device, the wafer unloading device and the dismounting device are all arranged outside the transfer robot, and the transfer robot is used for transferring materials, the calibration device is used for calibrating the center and the bevel of a wafer base, the wafer loading device is used for storing wafers which have not completed a process, the wafer unloading device is used for storing wafers which have completed a process, and the dismounting device is used for dismounting the wafer base. The application further discloses a conveying method thereof. The application has the advantages of automatic wafer conveying, high efficiency and small human interference factor.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of semiconductor fabrication technology, and more specifically to a wafer transport system and method for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment. Background Technology

[0002] Silicon carbide (SiC) epitaxial growth furnaces are specialized equipment that uses the principle of chemical vapor deposition and a step growth mode to obtain high-quality homogeneous epitaxial materials of a certain thickness and doping concentration on single-crystal substrates under high temperature and low pressure conditions. The technology involves multiple disciplines such as vacuum technology, heating technology, flow field technology, high temperature technology, automatic conveying technology, mechanics, electrical control, software, and materials physics. It is a large-scale equipment with high integration and complex technology.

[0003] like Figure 1 As shown, the silicon carbide epitaxial furnace wafer carrier base 7 mainly consists of three parts: from bottom to top, the wafer carrier base 71, the wafer carrier ring 72, and the wafer 73. The wafer carrier base 71 and the wafer carrier ring 72 are called wafer carrier disks. The wafer carrier base 71, the wafer carrier ring 72, and the wafer 73 are all designed with beveled edges. Wafers can only be carried after the beveled edges of the three are aligned. During the epitaxial growth furnace process, the wafer carrier 7 rotates. When exiting the furnace, the direction of the bevel of the entire wafer carrier 7 relative to its initial position is random. When replacing the wafer 73, the wafer 73 that has completed the process needs to be separated from the original wafer carrier. When the wafer carrier base 11 and wafer carrier ring 12 need to be replaced during the production process, the wafer carrier base 11 and wafer carrier ring 12 need to be separated. In the existing technology, it is not possible to automatically separate and position the wafer carrier base 11, wafer carrier ring 12 and wafer 13, and it is also difficult to use a robot to align the bevels of the three to complete the wafer carrier. Therefore, the basic mode of manual separation, replacement, bevel alignment and retransfer is adopted, which has disadvantages such as slow efficiency, large human interference factors, and restriction of the mass production of silicon carbide epitaxial wafers. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a wafer transfer system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment that can automatically separate the wafer carrier base, individually position the wafer carrier base, wafer carrier ring and wafer, automatically transfer wafers, and has high efficiency and low human interference.

[0005] The present invention also provides a simple, error-free, and highly reliable method for a wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment.

[0006] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0007] A wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment includes a transfer robot, a calibration device, a wafer loading device, a wafer unloading device, and a disassembly / assembly device. The calibration device, wafer loading device, wafer unloading device, and disassembly / assembly device are all located outside the transfer robot, and the transfer robot is used to transfer materials. The calibration device is used to calibrate the center and bevel of the wafer carrier. The wafer loading device is used to store wafers that have not yet completed the process. The wafer unloading device is used to store wafers that have completed the process. The disassembly / assembly device is used to disassemble and detach the wafer carrier.

[0008] As a further improvement to the above technical solution:

[0009] The transfer robot includes a wafer robot arm for transferring wafers and a wafer tray robot arm for transferring wafer trays.

[0010] The calibration device includes a visual positioning component and a correction component, the correction component having degrees of freedom of movement in the X-axis direction, movement in the Y-axis direction, and rotation around the Z-axis.

[0011] The disassembly and assembly device includes a support platform and a lifting mechanism. The support platform has a circular hole with a diameter larger than that of the substrate base but smaller than that of the substrate ring. The lifting mechanism is located below the support platform.

[0012] It also includes a tray storage device for storing new trays, which is located outside the transfer robot and the transfer robot is used to transfer materials.

[0013] A method for transmitting wafers in a silicon carbide epitaxial device, as described above, includes the following steps:

[0014] S1. The robotic arm of the slide carrier places the completed slide carrier base into the calibration device to calibrate and position the center and inclined side of the slide carrier base.

[0015] S2. After calibration and positioning are completed, the wafer carrier robotic arm transfers the wafer carrier base from the calibration device to the disassembly and assembly device. The disassembly and assembly device separates the wafer carrier base, wafer carrier ring, and the wafer that has completed the process from the wafer carrier base. The separated wafer carrier base is transferred from the disassembly and assembly device to the wafer carrier storage device for temporary storage by the wafer carrier robotic arm. The wafer is transferred to the wafer unloading device by the wafer robotic arm. The wafer carrier ring remains on the disassembly and assembly device.

[0016] S3. The wafer robotic arm takes a new wafer from the wafer loading device and transfers it to the calibration device for calibration of the center and bevel, so that it is consistent with the wafer whose process has been completed in step S1.

[0017] S4. After the new wafer is calibrated and positioned, the wafer robotic arm transfers the new wafer to the assembly / disassembly device and places it into the wafer carrier ring. The wafer carrier robotic arm takes out the temporarily stored wafer carrier base from the wafer carrier storage device and transfers it to the assembly / disassembly device so that it can be combined with the wafer carrier ring to form a wafer carrier base.

[0018] S5. The robotic arm delivers the substrate onto the slide tray.

[0019] As a further improvement to the above technical solution:

[0020] The separation process in step S2 is as follows: the wafer carrier robotic arm places the wafer carrier base onto the lifting mechanism. The lifting mechanism descends, and the wafer carrier base descends with the lifting mechanism through the circular hole of the support platform, while the wafer carrier ring and the wafer remain on the support platform. The wafer carrier robotic arm transfers the wafer carrier base from the lifting mechanism to the wafer carrier storage device for temporary storage. The lifting mechanism moves upward and lifts the wafer, while the wafer carrier ring remains on the support platform. The wafer robotic arm transfers the wafer with completed processing to the wafer unloading device.

[0021] If the wafer tray is damaged, the wafer tray robotic arm will retrieve a new wafer tray from the wafer tray storage device, calibrate and position it, and then load a new wafer.

[0022] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0023] This invention discloses a wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment. A calibration device calibrates and positions the center and bevel of the wafer carrier base. A disassembly / assembly device then disassembles the wafer carrier base. After disassembly, the reacted wafer is fed into the wafer unloading device. A new wafer is then taken from the wafer loading device to the calibration device, which calibrates the center and bevel of the new wafer to align with the bevel of the original wafer carrier. The disassembly / assembly device then completes the wafer loading and delivers it to the reaction chamber. This invention features a disassembly / assembly device that automatically separates and assembles the wafer carrier base. The calibration device allows for individual positioning and calibration of the wafer carrier base, wafer carrier ring, and the center and bevel of the wafer, facilitating alignment. This solves the problem of the random bevel direction relative to the initial position when the wafer carrier base exits the cavity, preventing the use of a robotic arm to load new wafers. Manual alignment of the bevel is eliminated. Furthermore, transfer robots are used between devices for material transfer, achieving automatic wafer transport with high efficiency, minimal human interference, and suitability for mass production.

[0024] The present invention discloses a wafer transfer system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment. Using the above-mentioned transfer system, the wafer carrier base, wafer carrier ring and wafer can be automatically separated, and the wafer can be automatically transferred. The transfer efficiency is high, the interference from human factors is small, the steps are simple, it is not easy to make mistakes, and the reliability is high. Attached Figure Description

[0025] Figure 1This is a schematic diagram of the slide base structure (a is the overall view, b is the separate view).

[0026] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to the present invention.

[0027] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the main structure of the disassembly and assembly device in this invention.

[0028] Figure 4 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the disassembly and assembly device in this invention.

[0029] Figure 5 This is the disassembly state 1 of the disassembly and assembly device in this invention.

[0030] Figure 6 This is the disassembly state 2 of the disassembly and assembly device in this invention.

[0031] Figure 7 This is the disassembly state 3 of the disassembly and assembly device in this invention.

[0032] The labels in the diagram represent: 1. Transfer robot; 11. Wafer robotic arm; 12. Wafer tray robotic arm; 2. Calibration device; 3. Wafer loading device; 4. Wafer unloading device; 5. Assembly / disassembly device; 51. Carrier platform; 52. Lifting mechanism; 53. Circular hole; 6. Wafer tray storage device; 7. Wafer base; 71. Wafer base; 72. Wafer ring; 73. Wafer. Detailed Implementation

[0033] The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0034] As shown in this disclosure and claims, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, words such as "a," "an," "an," and / or "the" are not specifically singular and may include plural forms. Similarly, words such as "comprising" or "including" mean that the element or object preceding the word covers the element or object listed after the word and its equivalents, without excluding other elements or objects. Words such as "connected" or "linked" are not limited to physical or mechanical connections but may include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect.

[0035] Figures 2 to 7An embodiment of the present invention is shown. The wafer transport system for a silicon carbide epitaxial device in this embodiment includes a transfer robot 1, a calibration device 2, a wafer loading device 3, a wafer unloading device 4, and a disassembly / assembly device 5. The calibration device 2, the wafer loading device 3, the wafer unloading device 4, and the disassembly / assembly device 5 are all located outside the transfer robot 1, and the transfer robot 1 is used to transfer materials. The calibration device 2 is used to calibrate the center and the bevel of the wafer carrier 7. The wafer loading device 3 is used to store wafers 73 that have not yet completed the process. The wafer unloading device 4 is used to store wafers 73 that have completed the process. The disassembly / assembly device 5 is used to disassemble and assemble the wafer carrier 7.

[0036] This wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment uses a calibration device 2 to calibrate and position the center and bevel of the wafer carrier 7. The wafer carrier 7 can then be disassembled using a disassembly and assembly device 5. After disassembly, the reacted wafer 73 is fed into the wafer unloading device 4. A new wafer 73 is then taken from the wafer loading device 3 and fed to the calibration device 2. The calibration device 2 calibrates the center and bevel of the new wafer 73 to align it with the bevel of the original wafer carrier. Finally, the wafer is loaded using the disassembly and assembly device 5 and sent to the reaction chamber. This invention... The assembly and disassembly device 5 can automatically separate and assemble the wafer carrier base 7; the calibration device 2 can individually position and calibrate the center and oblique edge of the wafer carrier base 71, wafer carrier ring 72 and wafer 73, which facilitates the alignment of the three and solves the problem that the oblique edge direction of the wafer carrier base 7 is random relative to the initial position when it exits the cavity, which makes it impossible to use a robot to load a new wafer 73. There is no need to manually align the oblique edge. Moreover, the transfer robot 1 is used to transfer materials between the devices, realizing automatic wafer transfer, high transfer efficiency, less interference from human factors, and is conducive to mass production.

[0037] In this embodiment, the transfer robot 1 includes a wafer robot arm 11 for transferring wafers 73 and a wafer tray robot arm 12 for transferring wafer trays. Since the wafers 73 and wafer trays have a significant weight difference, a dual-arm robot arm is used to accommodate the handling and transfer of both.

[0038] In this embodiment, the calibration device 2 includes a visual positioning component and a correction component. The correction component has degrees of freedom of movement along the X-axis, movement along the Y-axis, and rotation around the Z-axis. X and Y represent the horizontal directions, and Z represents the vertical direction. The visual positioning component (not shown in the figure) can visually identify the slide base 7, and the correction component's degrees of freedom of movement along the X-axis, Y-axis, and rotation around the Z-axis can be used to calibrate and position the center and hypotenuse of the slide base 7.

[0039] In this embodiment, the disassembly and assembly device 5 includes a support platform 51 and a lifting mechanism 52. The support platform 51 is provided with a circular hole 53. The diameter of the circular hole 53 is larger than that of the substrate base 71 and smaller than that of the substrate ring 72. The lifting mechanism 52 is located below the support platform 51.

[0040] The disassembly process of the disassembly device 5 on the substrate 7 is as follows: Figure 5 As shown, the slide base 7 is placed on the lifting mechanism 52, as follows. Figure 6 As shown, the lifting mechanism 52 descends, and the wafer carrier base 71 follows the lifting mechanism 52 as it descends through the circular hole 53. The wafer carrier ring 72 and the wafer 73 remain on the support platform 51. After the wafer carrier robotic arm 12 removes the wafer carrier base 71 from the lifting mechanism 52, as shown... Figure 7 As shown, the lifting mechanism 52 rises and lifts up the wafer 73 to remove it, completing the separation from the carrier ring 72.

[0041] The installation process is as follows: The wafer robotic arm 11 places the new wafer 73 on the lifting mechanism 52. The lifting mechanism 52 descends, and the new wafer 73 is installed into the wafer carrier ring 72. Then, the wafer carrier base 71 is placed on the lifting mechanism 52, and the lifting mechanism 52 rises to install into the wafer carrier ring 72, thus completing the installation of the wafer carrier base 7.

[0042] In this embodiment, a tray storage device 6 for storing new trays is also included. The tray storage device 6 is located outside the transfer robot 1, and the transfer robot 1 is used to transfer materials. The trays have a limited service life and need to be replaced. The tray storage device 6 is arranged to store new trays, which facilitates replacement.

[0043] A method for transmitting wafers in the aforementioned silicon carbide epitaxial wafer transmission system includes the following steps:

[0044] S1. The robotic arm 12 places the completed substrate 7 onto the calibration device 2 to calibrate and position the center and inclined side of the substrate 7.

[0045] S2. After calibration and positioning are completed, the wafer carrier robotic arm 12 transfers the wafer carrier base 7 from the calibration device 2 to the disassembly and assembly device 5. The disassembly and assembly device 5 separates the wafer carrier base 71, the wafer carrier ring 72 and the wafer 73 that has completed the process from the wafer carrier base 7. The separated wafer carrier base 71 is transferred from the disassembly and assembly device 5 to the wafer carrier storage device 6 for temporary storage by the wafer carrier robotic arm 12. The wafer 73 is transferred to the wafer unloading device 4 by the wafer robotic arm 11. The wafer carrier ring remains on the disassembly and assembly device 5.

[0046] S3. The wafer robotic arm 11 takes a new wafer 73 from the wafer loading device 3 and transfers it to the calibration device 2 for calibration of the center and the oblique edge, so that it is consistent with the wafer 73 whose process has been completed in step S1.

[0047] S4. After the new wafer 73 is calibrated and positioned, the wafer robotic arm 11 transfers the new wafer 73 to the disassembly and assembly device 5 and puts it into the wafer carrier ring 72. The wafer carrier robotic arm 12 takes out the temporarily stored wafer carrier base 71 from the wafer carrier storage device 6 and transfers it to the disassembly and assembly device 5 so that it can be combined with the wafer carrier ring 72 to form the wafer carrier base 7.

[0048] S5, the slide carrier robotic arm 12 delivers the slide carrier base 7.

[0049] The wafer transfer method for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment utilizes the aforementioned transfer system to achieve automatic wafer transfer, high transfer efficiency, minimal human interference, simple steps, low error rate, and high reliability.

[0050] In this embodiment, the separation process in step S2 is as follows: In the initial state, the lifting mechanism 52 is flush with the bearing surface of the support platform 51. The wafer tray robotic arm 12 places the wafer base 7 on the support platform 51. The lifting mechanism 52 descends, and the wafer base 71 descends with the lifting mechanism 52 through the circular hole 53 of the support platform 51. The wafer ring 72 and the wafer 73 remain on the support platform 51. The wafer tray robotic arm 12 transfers the wafer base 71 on the lifting mechanism 52 to the wafer tray storage device 6 for temporary storage. The lifting mechanism 52 moves upward and lifts the wafer 73. The wafer ring 72 remains on the support platform 51. The wafer robotic arm 11 transfers the wafer 73 that has completed the process to the wafer unloading device 4. The separation process is simple and convenient.

[0051] In this embodiment, if the wafer carrier is damaged, the wafer carrier robotic arm 12 takes a new wafer carrier from the wafer carrier storage device 6, calibrates and positions it, and then loads a new wafer 73. There is no need to manually replace the wafer carrier, and it will not affect the automatic wafer transfer.

[0052] While the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the invention. Any person skilled in the art can make many possible variations and modifications to the technical solutions of the present invention, or modify them into equivalent embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, any simple modifications, equivalent changes, and modifications made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of the present invention, without departing from the scope of the present invention, should fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment, characterized in that: The system includes a transfer robot (1), a calibration device (2), a wafer loading device (3), a wafer unloading device (4), and a disassembly / assembly device (5). The calibration device (2), wafer loading device (3), wafer unloading device (4), and disassembly / assembly device (5) are all located on the outside of the transfer robot (1) and the transfer robot (1) is used to transfer materials. The calibration device (2) is used to calibrate the center and the oblique edge of the wafer carrier base (7). The wafer carrier base (7) includes a wafer base (71), a wafer carrier ring (72), and a wafer (73) arranged sequentially from bottom to top. The wafer loading device (3) is used to store wafers (73) that have not yet completed the process. The wafer unloading device (4) is used to store wafers (73) that have completed the process. The disassembly / assembly device (5) is used to disassemble and detach the wafer carrier base (7). The transfer robot (1) includes a wafer for transferring wafers (73). The robotic arm (11) and the tray robotic arm (12) for transferring the tray are included. The disassembly and assembly device (5) includes a support platform (51) and a lifting mechanism (52). The support platform (51) has a circular hole (53). The diameter of the circular hole (53) is larger than that of the tray base (71) and smaller than that of the tray ring (72). The lifting mechanism (52) is located below the support platform (51). During disassembly, the tray base (7) is placed on the top. On the lifting mechanism (52), the lifting mechanism (52) descends, and the wafer base (71) follows the lifting mechanism (52) through the circular hole (53) and descends. The wafer ring (72) and the wafer (73) remain on the carrier stage (51). After the wafer tray robotic arm (12) removes the wafer base (71) from the lifting mechanism (52), the lifting mechanism (52) rises and lifts up the wafer (73) to remove it, completing the separation from the wafer ring (72).

2. The wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: The calibration device (2) includes a visual positioning component and a correction component, wherein the correction component has degrees of freedom of movement in the X-axis direction, movement in the Y-axis direction, and rotation around the Z-axis.

3. The wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: It also includes a tray storage device (6) for storing new trays, the tray storage device (6) being located outside the transfer robot (1), and the transfer of materials is achieved by the transfer robot (1).

4. A method for transmitting wafers in a silicon carbide epitaxial device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: Includes the following steps: S1. The robotic arm (12) of the substrate tray places the completed substrate base (7) into the calibration device (2) to calibrate and position the center and inclined side of the substrate base (7); S2. After completing the calibration and positioning, the wafer carrier robotic arm (12) transfers the wafer carrier base (7) from the calibration device (2) to the disassembly and assembly device (5). The disassembly and assembly device (5) separates the wafer carrier base (71), wafer carrier ring (72) and the wafer (73) that has completed the process from the wafer carrier base (7). The separated wafer carrier base (71) is transferred from the disassembly and assembly device (5) to the wafer carrier storage device (6) for temporary storage by the wafer carrier robotic arm (12). The wafer (73) is transferred to the wafer unloading device (4) by the wafer robotic arm (11). The wafer carrier ring (72) remains on the disassembly and assembly device (5). S3. The wafer robotic arm (11) takes a new wafer (73) from the wafer loading device (3) and transfers it to the calibration device (2) for calibration of the center and the oblique edge, so that it is consistent with the wafer (73) that has completed the process in step S1. S4. After the new wafer (73) is calibrated and positioned, the wafer robotic arm (11) transfers the new wafer (73) to the disassembly and assembly device (5) and puts it into the wafer carrier ring (72). The wafer carrier robotic arm (12) takes out the temporarily stored wafer carrier base (71) from the wafer carrier storage device (6) and transfers it to the disassembly and assembly device (5) so that it and the wafer carrier ring (72) can be combined to form a wafer carrier base (7). S5. The slide carrier robotic arm (12) delivers the slide carrier base (7).

5. The transmission method for a wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 4, characterized in that: The separation process in step S2 is as follows: the wafer carrier robotic arm (12) places the wafer carrier base (7) onto the lifting mechanism (52). The lifting mechanism (52) descends, and the wafer carrier base (71) descends through the circular hole (53) of the support platform (51) along with the lifting mechanism (52). The wafer carrier ring (72) and the wafer (73) remain on the support platform (51). The wafer carrier robotic arm (12) transfers the wafer carrier base (71) on the lifting mechanism (52) to the wafer carrier storage device (6) for temporary storage. The lifting mechanism (52) moves upward and lifts the wafer (73). The wafer carrier ring (72) remains on the support platform (51). The wafer robotic arm (11) transfers the wafer (73) that has completed the process to the wafer unloading device (4).

6. The transmission method for a wafer transport system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 4, characterized in that: If the wafer tray is damaged, the wafer tray robotic arm (12) takes a new wafer tray from the wafer tray storage device (6), calibrates and positions it, and then loads a new wafer (73).

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