A seal ring and a method of manufacturing the same

Abstract

The application discloses a sealing ring and a preparation method thereof. The sealing ring is installed between a body and a cover of a vacuum cavity, and is deformed to seal the vacuum cavity when the cover is closed. The sealing ring comprises a conductive part and an insulating part. The conductive part faces an external environment and contacts the body and the cover when the cover is closed. The insulating part faces a vacuum environment inside the vacuum cavity and blocks the contact between the conductive part and the vacuum environment when the cover is closed. The application can realize the functions of sealing and conducting in a narrow space, and avoid metal pollution to the vacuum environment inside the vacuum cavity.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of chip manufacturing, and in particular to a sealing ring and a method for manufacturing the same. BACKGROUND

[0002] A vacuum chamber is a device that provides a vacuum environment, and is widely used in the field of chip manufacturing technology. In order to generate and maintain a vacuum environment, the sealing ring (O-ring) with elasticity is generally used in the art to fill the gap between the body and the cover, so as to achieve the sealing between the body and the cover of the vacuum chamber. However, the existing sealing ring is generally made of elastic insulating materials such as rubber and silica gel, which will hinder the current transmission between the body and the cover of the vacuum chamber.

[0003] In order to meet the current transmission requirements between the inside and outside of the vacuum chamber, some improvement technologies of the electrical connector are proposed in the art, which conduct current through the metal connector penetrating the metal flange on both sides. However, in the application scenario of chip manufacturing, this scheme of conducting current through the metal connector will cause serious metal pollution to the inside of the vacuum chamber.

[0004] In order to overcome the above-mentioned defects existing in the prior art, there is an urgent need in the art for a vacuum sealing technology for realizing the functions of sealing and conducting electricity in a narrow space, and avoiding metal pollution to the vacuum environment inside the vacuum chamber. SUMMARY

[0005] The following gives a brief summary of one or more aspects to provide a basic understanding of these aspects. This summary is not an exhaustive overview of all contemplated aspects, and is neither intended to identify key or critical elements of all aspects nor delineate the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description to be given later.

[0006] In order to overcome the above-mentioned defects existing in the prior art, the present application provides a sealing ring and a method for manufacturing the same, which can realize the functions of sealing and conducting electricity in a narrow space, and avoid metal pollution to the vacuum environment inside the vacuum chamber.

[0007] Specifically, according to the first aspect of the present application, the above-mentioned sealing ring is installed between the body and the cover of the vacuum chamber, and deforms to seal the vacuum chamber when the cover is closed. The sealing ring includes a conductive part and an insulating part. The conductive part faces the external environment and contacts the body and the cover when the cover is closed. The insulating part faces the vacuum environment inside the vacuum chamber and blocks the contact between the conductive part and the vacuum environment when the cover is closed.

[0008] Further, in some embodiments of the present application, the sealing ring is mounted outside the vacuum chamber. The conductive part is provided on the outer ring of the sealing ring. The insulating part is provided on the inner ring of the sealing ring. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the sealing ring is mounted inside the vacuum chamber. The conductive part is provided on the inner ring of the sealing ring. The insulating part is provided on the outer ring of the sealing ring.

[0009] Further, in some embodiments of the present application, the sealing ring is an elastomer. The sealing ring is embedded in a groove inside the body and deforms under pressure when the cover is closed to fill the gap between the body and the cover.

[0010] Further, in some embodiments of the present application, the contact part of the sealing ring with the cover includes a contact critical line. The conductive part occupies more than 1 / 2, more than 3 / 4 or more than 9 / 10 of the inner area of the contact critical line, and does not contact the part of the contact critical line towards the vacuum environment.

[0011] Further, in some embodiments of the present application, the body of the sealing ring is connected to the positive / negative pole of a radio frequency circuit, and the cover is connected to the negative / positive pole of the radio frequency circuit. The radio frequency circuit conducts current through the cover, the sealing ring and the body.

[0012] Further, in some embodiments of the present application, the sealing ring is made of natural rubber, synthetic rubber and / or silicone, and the conductive part is added with metal and / or non-metal conductive particles.

[0013] In addition, the manufacturing method of the above-mentioned sealing ring according to the second aspect of the present application comprises the following steps: preparing a conductive part; preparing an insulating part; and combining the conductive part and the insulating part to form a sealing ring, with the conductive part facing the external environment and the insulating part facing the vacuum environment inside the vacuum chamber. The sealing ring is mounted between the body and the cover of the vacuum chamber and deforms to seal the vacuum chamber when the cover is closed. The conductive part contacts the body and the cover when the cover is closed. The insulating part blocks the contact between the conductive part and the vacuum environment when the cover is closed.

[0014] Further, in some embodiments of the present application, the step of preparing the conductive part comprises: determining the contact critical line of the contact part of the sealing ring with the cover according to the target size of the sealing ring and the size of the groove where the sealing ring is mounted; determining the distribution range of the conductive part in the sealing ring according to the contact critical line; and adding conductive substances in the conductive part.

[0015] Further, in some embodiments of the present application, the step of combining the conductive part and the insulating part to form the sealing ring comprises at least one of heating and / or pressing the conductive part and the insulating part to combine the conductive part and the insulating part. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] The above features and advantages of the present application will be better understood through reading the detailed description of the embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the attached drawings. In the drawings, components are not necessarily drawn to scale and components of similar or identical function or components that are identical or similar in structure or function can have the same or similar reference number.

[0017] Figure 1 A schematic view of a vacuum cavity provided according to one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0018] Figure 2 A longitudinal sectional schematic view of a sealing ring provided according to one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0019] Figure 3 A structural schematic view of a sealing ring provided according to one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0020] Figure 4 A schematic view of a groove provided according to one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0021] Figure 5 A flow schematic view of a method of manufacturing a sealing ring provided according to one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0022] LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

[0023] 1 cavity cover

[0024] 2 vacuum cavity

[0025] 3 cavity body

[0026] 4 sealing ring

[0027] 41 conductive part

[0028] 42 insulating part

[0029] 43 contact part DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The advantages and features of the present application will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following description of the preferred embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Although the description of the present application will be in the context of the preferred embodiments, it will be appreciated that the application can be carried out in other constructions and arrangements without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. In order to provide for a complete understanding of the application, numerous specific details are described in the following description. Specific details not necessary to an understanding of the application are omitted from the specification. In addition, some particularities of the application will be described in the following description by reference to particular embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present application can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and functions have not been described in detail in order to avoid obscuring the application. Also, so as not to obscure the application, individual functions of the structures will not be described in detail unless for a comprehending understanding of the present application, it is required for further clarity and a better understanding.

[0031] In the description of the present application, it should be noted that unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "mounting", "connection", "connecting" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be fixed connection, or detachable connection, or integrally connected; it can be mechanical connection, or electrical connection; it can be directly connected, or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, or it can be the internal communication of two elements. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0032] In addition, "up", "down", "left", "right", "top", "bottom", "horizontal", "vertical" used in the following description should be understood as the orientation shown in the section and the related drawings. The relative terms are only for the convenience of description, and they do not mean that the devices described by them must be manufactured or operated in a particular orientation, so they should not be understood as a limitation on the present application.

[0033] It can be understood that although the terms "first", "second", "third" and the like can be used herein to describe various components, regions, layers and / or parts, these components, regions, layers and / or parts should not be limited by these terms, and these terms are only used to distinguish different components, regions, layers and / or parts. Therefore, the first components, regions, layers and / or parts discussed below can be referred to as the second components, regions, layers and / or parts without departing from some embodiments of the present application.

[0034] As described above, the existing sealing ring is generally made of elastic insulating materials such as rubber and silicone, which will hinder the transmission of current between the vacuum cavity body and the cover. In order to meet the demand of current transmission between the inside and outside of the vacuum cavity, some improvement technologies of electrical connectors are proposed in the field, which conduct current through metal connectors penetrating the metal flanges on both sides. However, in the application scenario of chip manufacturing, this scheme of conducting current through metal connectors will cause serious metal pollution inside the vacuum cavity.

[0035] In order to solve the above problems in the prior art, the application provides a sealing ring and a preparation method of the sealing ring, which can realize the functions of sealing and conducting electricity in a narrow space and avoid metal pollution to the vacuum environment inside the vacuum cavity.

[0036] Please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 . Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a vacuum cavity provided by an embodiment of the application is shown. Figure 2 A longitudinal sectional schematic diagram of a sealing ring provided by an embodiment of the application is shown.

[0037] As Figure 1 and Figure 2 shown, in some embodiments of the application, the sealing ring 4 is installed between the body 3 and the cover 1 of the vacuum cavity and deforms under pressure when the cover 1 is closed to seal the internal vacuum cavity 2.

[0038] Specifically, the contact part of the body 3 and the cover 1 can be preferably provided with a groove. The sealing ring 4 can be made of elastic materials such as natural rubber, synthetic rubber and / or silica gel, and the height thereof is greater than the depth of the groove. In this way, by embedding the sealing ring 4 in the groove inside the body 3, the sealing ring 4 will deform under extrusion when the cover 1 is closed to fill the gap between the body 3 and the cover 1, thereby realizing the function of sealing.

[0039] Further, as Figure 2 shown, the above sealing ring 4 provided by the application includes a conductive part 41 and an insulating part 42. The conductive part 41 can be formed by adding metal and / or non-metal conductive particles to natural rubber, synthetic rubber and / or silica gel, and faces the external environment and contacts the body 3 and the cover 1 of the vacuum cavity respectively when the cover 1 is closed to realize the conduction of current between the body 3 and the cover 1. The insulating part 42 can be made of natural rubber, synthetic rubber and / or silica gel, and faces the vacuum environment 2 inside the vacuum cavity and fills the gap between the body 3 and the cover 1 when the cover 1 is closed to block the contact between the conductive part 41 and the vacuum environment, thereby avoiding metal pollution to the vacuum environment inside the vacuum cavity by the conductive part 41.

[0040] For example, for the everted cover 1 shown in Figure 1 , the sealing ring 4 can be installed outside the vacuum cavity. Accordingly, the conductive part 41 can be provided on the outer ring of the sealing ring 4 to face the high-pressure environment outside, and the insulating part 42 can be provided on the inner ring of the sealing ring 4 to face the vacuum environment 2 inside the vacuum cavity.

[0041] Those skilled in the art can understand that Figure 1The shown out-flap cover 1 is only a non-restrictive embodiment provided by the present application, which aims to clearly show the main concept of the present application and provide a specific solution for the public to implement, but not to limit the protection scope of the present application.

[0042] Alternatively, in other embodiments, the vacuum cavity can also be provided with an in-flap cover. At this time, the sealing ring can be installed inside the vacuum cavity, and the conductive part thereof is arranged at the inner ring of the sealing ring to face the high-pressure environment outside, and the insulating part thereof is arranged at the outer ring of the sealing ring to face the vacuum environment 2 inside the vacuum cavity.

[0043] Further, in Figure 2 In the shown embodiment, the deformed sealing ring 4 includes a contact part (for example, a top part) that contacts the cover 1. The contact part involves two contact critical lines inside and outside to enclose the contact range of the sealing ring 4 and the cover 1. Here, the conductive part 41 can preferably occupy most of the contact range (for example, more than 1 / 2, more than 3 / 4, or more than 9 / 10 or 19 / 20 of the internal area) within the contact critical line to reduce the contact resistance and parasitic capacitance between the sealing ring 4 and the cover 1, thereby meeting the electrical requirements of the radio frequency current conduction. In addition, the doping range of the conductive part 41 should not be tangent or intersected with the contact critical line close to the vacuum side, that is, should not contact the contact critical line close to the vacuum side, so as to prevent the metal doping components in the conductive part 41 from causing metal pollution to the vacuum environment. In this way, the skilled person only needs to connect the body 3 to the negative pole (or the positive pole) of the radio frequency circuit and connect the cover 1 to the positive pole (or the negative pole) of the radio frequency circuit, and the radio frequency current conduction of the radio frequency circuit can be performed via the cover 1, the sealing ring 4, and the body 3 as shown. Figure 2

[0044] Compared with the scheme of directly conducting current between the body 3 and the cover 1 of the vacuum cavity, the conductive part 41 of the sealing ring 4 made of an elastic material is used to respectively contact the body 3 and the cover 1 of the vacuum cavity, and the present application can promote sufficient electrical contact between the body 3 and the cover 1, thereby reducing the contact resistance and parasitic capacitance between the sealing ring 4 and the cover 1 to meet the electrical requirements of the radio frequency current conduction and the like.

[0045] For further reference, Figure 3 Figure 3 The structure diagram of the sealing ring provided by one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0046] As Figure 3 shown, in some embodiments of the present application, the contact part 43 of the sealing ring 4 and the cover 1 can preferably be an arched structure. By designing the contact part 43 of the sealing ring 4 and the cover 1 as an arch, the present application can improve the deformation amount of the contact part 43 when being pressed, promote sufficient contact between the sealing ring 4 and the cover 1, and enhance the sealing degree of the vacuum cavity.​​

[0047] Optionally, in some other embodiments, for the cover 1 and / or the body 3 with flat contact surface, the contact portion 44 of the sealing ring 4 can also be designed as flat shape to increase the contact area between the contact portion 44 and the contact surface, so as to improve the reliability and stability of the vacuum cavity.

[0048] In addition, please refer to Figure 4 . Figure 4 The structure diagram of the groove provided according to one embodiment of the present application is shown. In Figure 4 In the embodiment shown, the groove arranged inside the body 3 can also be designed as trapezoidal cross-section structure with inclined bottom, or any other cross-section shape meeting the sealing requirement according to actual needs, which is not limited herein.

[0049] In addition, according to the second aspect of the present application, a preparation method of the sealing ring is also provided herein.

[0050] Please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 The flowchart of the preparation method of the sealing ring provided according to one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0051] As Figure 5 shown, in the process of preparing the sealing ring, the technician can first prepare the conductive portion 41 and the insulating portion 42 of the sealing ring respectively. Then, the technician can direct the conductive portion 41 towards the intended external environment, direct the insulating portion 42 towards the intended vacuum environment 2 inside the vacuum cavity, and combine the conductive portion 41 and the insulating portion 42 to form the above-mentioned sealing ring provided by the first aspect of the present application. In this way, by installing the sealing ring 4 between the body 3 and the cover 1 of the vacuum cavity, the sealing ring 4 will deform when the cover 1 is closed to seal the vacuum cavity. The conductive portion 41 will respectively contact the body 3 and the cover 1 when the cover 1 is closed to realize the current conduction between the body 3 and the cover 1. The insulating portion 42 will block the contact between the conductive portion 41 and the vacuum environment 2 when the cover 1 is closed, so as to avoid the metal pollution of the vacuum environment inside the vacuum cavity by the conductive portion 41.

[0052] Further, in order to increase the contact area of the conductive part 41 and the cover 1, so as to reduce the contact resistance and parasitic capacitance between the sealing ring 4 and the cover 1, during the preparation of the conductive part, the technician can also preferably determine the contact critical line of the contact part of the sealing ring and the cover 1 according to the target size of the sealing ring 4 and the size of the groove for installing the sealing ring 4. Then, the technician can determine the distribution range of the conductive part in the sealing ring (for example: occupying more than 1 / 2, 3 / 4 or 9 / 10 of the internal area of the contact critical line) according to the contact critical line. In addition, in order to avoid the metal doping components in the conductive part 41 causing metal pollution to the vacuum environment, the technician can also formulate the constraint condition that the doping range should not be tangent or intersect with the contact critical line close to the vacuum side, that is, should not contact the contact critical line close to the vacuum side. Then, the technician can add conductive substances to the determined distribution range to form the conductive part 41 of the corresponding size.

[0053] By performing the above steps, the sealing ring 4 prepared can not only realize the sealing between the cover 1 and the body 3, but also meet the electrical requirements of conducting radio frequency current between the cover 1 and the body 3, and avoid the metal doping components in the conductive part 41 causing metal pollution to the vacuum environment.

[0054] Further, as shown in Figure 4 During the process of combining the conductive part 41 and the insulating part 42 to form the sealing ring 4, the technician can also inspect the bonding strength, sealing performance and other parameters of the combined product after each heating and / or pressing operation is completed. In response to the inspection result that the bonding strength, sealing performance and other parameters of the combined product do not meet the standard, the technician can continue to perform multiple heating and / or pressing operations on the conductive part 41 and the insulating part 42 until the bonding strength, sealing performance and other parameters of the combined product meet the inspection standard.

[0055] Although the above-described methods are illustrated and described as a series of acts for the sake of simplicity, it should be understood and appreciated that the methods are not limited by the order of acts, as some acts may, in accordance with one or more embodiments, occur in different orders and / or concurrently with other acts from that shown and described herein. And, some acts can be omitted where appropriate.

[0056] The previous description of the disclosure is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein can be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is to be accorded the broadest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A sealing ring, characterized in that, The sealing ring is installed between the body and the cover of the vacuum cavity. When the cover is closed, it deforms to seal the vacuum cavity. The sealing ring includes a conductive part and an insulating part. The conductive part faces the external environment and contacts the body and the cover when the cover is closed. The insulating part faces the vacuum environment inside the vacuum cavity and blocks the contact between the conductive part and the vacuum environment when the cover is closed. The body is connected to one of the positive and negative terminals of the radio frequency circuit, and the cover is connected to the other of the positive and negative terminals of the radio frequency circuit. The radio frequency circuit conducts current through the cover, the conductive part of the sealing ring, and the body.

2. The sealing ring as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The sealing ring is installed outside the vacuum cavity, the conductive part is located on the outer ring of the sealing ring, and the insulating part is located on the inner ring of the sealing ring, or... The sealing ring is installed inside the vacuum cavity, the conductive part is located on the inner ring of the sealing ring, and the insulating part is located on the outer ring of the sealing ring.

3. The sealing ring as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The sealing ring is an elastic body that is embedded in a groove inside the body. When the cover is closed, it is compressed and deformed to fill the gap between the body and the cover.

4. The sealing ring as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The contact portion between the sealing ring and the cover includes two contact thresholds, inner and outer. The conductive portion occupies more than 1 / 2, 3 / 4, or 9 / 10 of the area between the two contact thresholds, and does not contact the portion of the contact thresholds facing the vacuum environment.

5. The sealing ring as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The contact portion between the sealing ring and the cover has an arched structure, which increases the deformation under pressure to enhance the sealing performance.

6. The sealing ring as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The sealing ring is made of natural rubber, synthetic rubber and / or silicone, and the conductive part contains conductive particles of metal and / or non-metal.

7. A method for manufacturing a sealing ring, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Fabrication of conductive parts; Preparation of insulating parts; as well as The conductive part faces the external environment, and the insulating part faces the vacuum environment inside the vacuum cavity. The conductive part and the insulating part are combined to form a sealing ring. The sealing ring is installed between the body and the cover of the vacuum cavity. When the cover is closed, it deforms to seal the vacuum cavity. The conductive part contacts the body and the cover when the cover is closed. The insulating part prevents the conductive part from contacting the vacuum environment when the cover is closed. The body is connected to one of the positive and negative terminals of the radio frequency circuit, and the cover is connected to the other of the positive and negative terminals of the radio frequency circuit. The radio frequency circuit conducts current through the cover, the conductive part of the sealing ring, and the body.

8. The manufacturing method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The step of preparing the conductive part includes: Based on the target size of the sealing ring and the size of the groove for installing the sealing ring, determine the contact critical line of the contact portion between the sealing ring and the cover body; Based on the contact critical line, determine the distribution range of the conductive portion within the sealing ring; and A conductive material is added to the conductive part.

9. The manufacturing method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The step of combining the conductive portion and the insulating portion to form a sealing ring includes: The conductive part and the insulating part are heated and / or pressurized at least once to bond the conductive part and the insulating part together.

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