Wafer boat, deposition apparatus, and substrate processing method

Abstract

The application provides a wafer boat, a deposition device and a substrate processing method. A tooth rod is arranged to press the substrate. An elastic part is connected to one end of the tooth rod. The other end of the tooth rod is pushed by a driving device to move the tooth rod. When the elastic part of the tooth rod is in a compression state, the wafer boat can be in a state of placing the substrate. When the elastic part is reset, an abutting part on the tooth rod forms a contact plane to press the substrate. In this way, the placing and pressing and fixing of the substrate are realized through the compression and reset of the elastic part. No additional clamping structure and clamping action are needed, time cost is saved in mass production, and hardware cost is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of semiconductor equipment and manufacturing, and particularly to a wafer boat, deposition equipment, and substrate processing method. Background Technology

[0002] With the continuous development of semiconductor technology and the increasing demand for clean energy, the technology of mass-producing solar panels by deposition of silicon wafers using deposition techniques such as ALD (atomic layer deposition) has been widely applied.

[0003] In the deposition process of solar cell wafers, up to hundreds of wafers need to be placed in a wafer boat. The wafers are usually fixed by a wafer-picking mechanism and a clamping mechanism working together, but the structure is complex and the time cost is high in mass production. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a wafer boat, deposition equipment and substrate processing method, which have a simple structure and reduce hardware and time costs.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution:

[0006] A wafer boat includes a support frame, multiple toothed rods, and an elastic component, wherein,

[0007] A plurality of said racks are axially movably disposed on the support frame, each rack including a rack body and abutment portions spaced apart along the extending direction of the rack body;

[0008] The first end of each of the toothed bars is connected to an elastic component. When the second end of the toothed bar is pushed by the driving device so that the elastic component is in a compressed state, the wafer boat is in a substrate placement state. When the elastic component is reset, the abutment portions on the multiple toothed bars located on the same plane press against the substrate.

[0009] Optionally, the support frame includes a first side plate and a second side plate disposed opposite to each other, and the first side plate and the second side plate are provided with guide channels for the toothed rod. The first end and the second end of the toothed rod are respectively disposed in the guide channels. The first end is limited by a compression limiting structure and the second end is limited by a reset limiting structure.

[0010] Optionally, the first end is provided with a boss, and the guide channel of the first side plate is formed with a first limiting groove on the side facing the first end. When the elastic component is in a compressed state, the boss abuts against the bottom surface of the first limiting groove, and the first limiting groove serves as a compression limiting structure for limiting.

[0011] Optionally, it also includes a connecting block disposed in the guide channel of the first side plate, and the elastic component is sleeved on the connecting block.

[0012] Optionally, the first end is further provided with a recess, and at least the end of the connecting block is provided in the recess.

[0013] Optionally, the second side plate is provided with a through hole communicating with the guide channel, and the driving device enters the guide channel through the through hole to drive the second end of the rack.

[0014] Optionally, a second limiting groove is provided on the side of the guide channel of the second side plate away from the second end. When the elastic component is reset, the end face of the second end of the toothed rod abuts against the bottom surface of the second limiting groove, and the second limiting groove acts as a reset limiting mechanism for limiting.

[0015] Optionally, the support frame further includes a base plate fixed to the first side plate and the second side plate.

[0016] Optionally, a removable sealing window may also be provided on the first or second side panel.

[0017] Optionally, the rack body is provided with spaced-apart grooves, and the rack portion between adjacent grooves is an abutment portion.

[0018] Optionally, a plurality of the toothed bars are respectively disposed in the middle region of the two opposite sides and the bottom side of the substrate.

[0019] Optionally, it also includes multiple boat pieces and multiple boat poles, wherein,

[0020] Each of the boat pieces is provided with a settling groove, the settling groove includes a settling area and a hollow area provided in the settling area, and a settling edge is formed between the settling area and the hollow area. The settling edge is used to fit with the edge of the substrate when the substrate is accommodated in the settling area.

[0021] Multiple boat poles are fixed to the support frame. Each boat pole includes a boat pole body and fixing parts spaced apart along the extension direction of the boat pole body. A boat piece is fixed to the fixing parts located on the same plane on the multiple boat poles.

[0022] When the elastic component is reset, the abutment portions on the multiple toothed bars located on the same plane press against the substrate in a boat piece.

[0023] Optionally, the fixing part of the boat rod is a groove limiting part.

[0024] Optionally, the depth of the settling trough is greater than the thickness of the substrate on which it is placed.

[0025] Optionally, the wafer boat is a freestanding wafer boat used to hold a row of substrates.

[0026] Optionally, the wafer boat is an integrated wafer boat used to place multiple rows of substrates.

[0027] A deposition apparatus includes a reaction chamber and a wafer boat as described above disposed in the reaction chamber.

[0028] A substrate processing method, characterized in that the substrate is deposited using the aforementioned deposition equipment.

[0029] The wafer boat, deposition equipment, and substrate processing method provided in this invention utilize toothed rods to clamp the substrate. Each toothed rod has an elastic component connected to one end, and a driving device at the other end propels the rod. When the elastic component is compressed, the wafer boat can hold the substrate. When the elastic component returns to its original position, the contact portion on the toothed rod forms a contact plane to clamp the substrate. Thus, by compressing and resetting the elastic component, the substrate is placed and clamped securely without the need for additional clamping structures or actions, saving time and reducing hardware costs in mass production. Attached Figure Description

[0030] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0031] Figure 1 A three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of a wafer boat according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0032] Figure 2 A three-dimensional structural diagram of the wafer boat after removing the first side plate is shown according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 3 It shows Figure 2 A magnified view of a portion of the image;

[0034] Figure 4 A partially enlarged schematic diagram of the wafer boat after the first side plate has been removed, according to an embodiment of the present invention, is shown.

[0035] Figure 5 A schematic cross-sectional view of the first end of the toothed rod in a wafer boat according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0036] Figure 6 A schematic cross-sectional view of the second end of the toothed rod in a wafer boat according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0037] Figure 7 A top view of the wafer in a wafer boat according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0038] To make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more apparent and understandable, the specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0039] Many specific details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a full understanding of the invention. However, the invention may also be practiced in other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar extensions without departing from the spirit of the invention. Therefore, the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0040] See Figures 1-6 This invention provides a wafer boat, including a support frame, multiple toothed bars 130, and an elastic member 160, wherein...

[0041] A plurality of the aforementioned racks 130 are axially movably disposed on the support frame, each rack 130 including a rack body 131 and abutment portions 133 spaced apart along the extending direction of the rack body 131;

[0042] The first end 132 of each of the toothed bars 130 is connected to the elastic member 160. When the second end 134 of the toothed bar 130 is pushed by the driving device (not shown) so that the elastic member 160 is in a compressed state, the wafer boat is in a substrate placement state. When the elastic member is reset, the abutment portions 133 on the same plane of the plurality of toothed bars 130 press the substrate.

[0043] In this embodiment of the invention, a toothed bar is used to press the substrate. An elastic component is connected to one end of each toothed bar, and a driving device pushes the toothed bar to move at the other end. When the elastic component of the toothed bar is in a compressed state, the wafer boat can be in a substrate-placing state. When the elastic component returns to its original position, the abutment portion on the toothed bar forms a contact plane to press the substrate. Thus, by compressing and resetting the elastic component, the substrate is placed and pressed securely without the need for additional clamping structures and actions, saving time and reducing hardware costs in mass production.

[0044] In this embodiment of the invention, a wafer boat is placed in a reaction chamber to provide support for the substrate to be processed. The wafer boat can accommodate multiple substrates at the same time. The substrates can be solar cell wafers or other substrates that require batch coating.

[0045] In this embodiment of the invention, the support frame is the support frame for the entire wafer boat, which can fix the toothed rod 130 to the support frame. At the same time, the support frame provides a guide channel for the toothed rod 130. In some embodiments, the support frame includes a first side plate 102 and a second side plate 104 arranged opposite to each other. The toothed rod 130 is arranged axially between the first side plate 102 and the second side plate 104. The first side plate 102 and the second side plate 104 may be provided with circular holes as guide channels for the toothed rod 130. The first end 132 and the second end 134 of the toothed rod 130 are respectively arranged in the guide channel. The guide channel guides the compression and reset stroke of the toothed rod 130. Meanwhile, at the first end 132, the compression limiting structure 1021 limits the compression stroke of the elastic component 160 when the drive device pushes the rack to move; at the second end 134, the reset limiting structure 152 limits the reset stroke of the elastic component 160 when it resets. In this way, through the guide channels provided in the first side plate 102 and the second side plate 104, and the compression limiting structure 1021 and the reset limiting structure 152 respectively provided at both ends of the rack 130, the two states of substrate placement and pressing can be precisely controlled using only the elastic component. The structure is compact and the stroke control is precise.

[0046] Furthermore, the support frame can also include a base plate fixedly disposed with the first side plate 102 and the second side plate 104, thus forming a support frame that is basically U-shaped. The side plates are used to fix and support components such as the toothed rod, and the base plate can serve as a sealing plate. The opposite side of the base plate serves as the substrate inlet, through which the wafer is placed into the wafer boat. When the wafer boat enters the reaction chamber, the base plate seals the bottom of the wafer, and the inlet on the opposite side of the base plate 1 is also sealed by the upper sealing plate. The openings on the opposite side of the support frame can be used to connect the air intake structure and the air exhaust structure, thereby forming the reaction space for the wafer. This support frame structure is simple and easy to implement, and is convenient for integration with equipment to create a reaction space.

[0047] In some embodiments, a boss 136 is provided at the first end 132 of the rack 130, see [reference]. Figure 5 As shown, a first limiting groove 1021 is formed on the guide channel of the first side plate 102 facing the first end 132. When the elastic member 160 is in a compressed state, the boss 136 abuts against the bottom surface of the first limiting groove 102, and the first limiting groove 1021 serves as a compression limiting structure for limiting. In this embodiment, after the elastic member 160 is pushed by the driving device, the boss 136 is limited by the first limiting groove 102, so the boss 136 and the first limiting groove 1021 cooperate to limit the compression stroke of the elastic member 160.

[0048] Furthermore, an elastic component 160 can be provided via a connecting block 142. The elastic component 160 can be, for example, a spring. The connecting block is disposed in the guide channel of the first side plate 102, and the elastic component 160 is sleeved on the connecting block 160. One end of the elastic component 160 is connected to the first end 132 of the toothed rod. The connecting block 160 can be fixed to the outside of the first side plate 102 by the first fixing block 140. For a compact arrangement, a recess 138 can be provided in the first end 132 of the toothed rod, and the end of the connecting block 160 is at least disposed in the recess 138, achieving a compact design for the entire structure.

[0049] In some embodiments, a second limiting groove 152 is provided on the side of the guide channel of the second side plate 104 away from the second end 134. When the elastic component is reset, the end face of the second end 134 of the rack abuts against the bottom surface of the second limiting groove 152, and the second limiting groove 152 acts as a reset limiting mechanism to limit the movement. When the driving device stops pushing the rack, the elastic component 160 is reset, and the second end 134 of the rack is limited by the second limiting groove 152. In this way, the reset stroke of the elastic component 160 is limited by the structure of the second end 134 of the rack and the second limiting groove 152.

[0050] Furthermore, the second limiting groove 152 can be formed in the second fixing block 150, which is disposed in the second side plate 104 and located at the end position of the second end 304. The second side plate 104 is provided with a through hole 154 for the introduction of a driving device. The driving device can be, for example, a driving cylinder. The driving shaft of the driving cylinder can be introduced through the through hole 154. The position of the through hole 154 corresponds to the end position of the rack, preferably the center position of the rack end, so as to better provide driving force to the rack.

[0051] refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, a removable sealing window 106 may also be provided on the first side plate 102 or the second side plate 104. The removable sealing window 106 can serve as a maintenance window for the wafer boat. When problems such as substrate breakage occur inside the boat, the sealing window 106 can be removed to clean the substrate or perform other internal processing without disassembling the entire boat, making wafer boat maintenance easier.

[0052] In this embodiment of the invention, the rack 130 is movably fixed to the support frame along the axial direction of the rack, and the pushing direction is the axial direction of the rack. There are multiple racks 130, and each rack 130 has an abutment portion. The abutment portion forms a pressing plane against the substrate, and the substrate is fixed by moving the rack. Each rack 130 may include a rack body and abutment portions 133 spaced apart along the extension direction of the rack body. Thus, multiple abutment planes are correspondingly formed by the spaced abutment portions 133 on multiple racks 130. The abutment portions 133 on the rack 130 can be implemented by grooves. Specifically, groove portions can be spaced apart on the rack body, and the rack portion between adjacent groove portions, i.e., the edge of the groove, forms the abutment portion 133. The groove limits the substrate, and the rack is pushed to further press the substrate. The groove can be an annular groove formed on the rack body.

[0053] Depending on the design, the abutment portion can form a fixing plane for one or more substrates. In some embodiments, the wafer boat is a freestanding wafer boat design, with the abutment portion on the same plane forming a pressure contact plane for a substrate, forming a wafer boat for placing a row of substrates, see reference. Figure 4 As shown, it only contains Figure 4 The diagram shows a row of substrate placement areas. In other embodiments, the wafer boat is a monolithic wafer boat design, with abutment portions on the same plane forming pressure contact planes for multiple substrates, thus forming a wafer boat for placing multiple rows of substrates, see reference. Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown.

[0054] The position and number of the toothed bars 130 can be set as needed. It is understood that the position of the toothed bars 130 should not interfere with the placement of the wafer. They can be located in an area outside the wafer inlet. In some embodiments of the present invention, the toothed bars are respectively located in the middle region of the two opposite sides and the bottom side of the substrate. The opposite side of the bottom side is the wafer inlet. This forms a generally C-shaped contact plane with the substrate. The middle region is distinct from the edge region and can be a region in the middle. The number of toothed bars 130 can be set as needed. In a specific application, see [reference needed]. Figure 1-4 As shown, in each substrate placement area, a toothed bar 130 can be set in the upper middle area of ​​the two opposite sides of the substrate, and a toothed bar can be set on each side of the middle of the bottom side. In this way, a smaller number of toothed bars can be used to press the wafer. Of course, a larger number of toothed bars can also be set.

[0055] The toothed bar 130 in the above embodiment can be used to directly fix the substrate, or further cooperate with other components to better achieve the pressing of the substrate.

[0056] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, see Figure 1-4As shown, the rack 130 further cooperates with the boat 110 to better compress the substrate. At the same time, there is a gap between the boat 110 in the axial direction. This setting can play the role of uniform airflow, so that the airflow can be evenly distributed on the surface of the substrate. Therefore, there is no need to set up a uniform flow structure, which further improves the integration of the equipment.

[0057] Further, the system may include multiple boat pieces 110 and multiple boat rods 120. Each boat piece 110 is provided with a settling groove 111, which includes a settling area 112 and a hollow area 114 within the settling area. A settling edge is formed between the settling area 112 and the hollow area 114. The settling edge is used to fit against the edge of the substrate when the substrate is accommodated in the settling area. The multiple boat rods 120 are fixed to the support frame 100. Each boat rod 120 includes a boat rod body and fixed parts spaced apart along the extension direction of the boat rod body. The fixed parts on the multiple boat rods 120, located on the same plane, fix a boat piece. When the elastic member 160 is reset, the abutment parts 133 on the multiple toothed rods 130, located on the same plane, press against the substrate in a boat piece 110.

[0058] The boat 110 is used to carry a substrate, which may be, for example, a wafer. See the embodiment of the present invention. Figure 7 As shown, a settling groove 111 is provided on the boat 110. The settling groove 111 includes a settling area 112 and a hollow area 114 provided in the settling area 112. A settling edge is formed between the settling area 112 and the hollow area 114. The settling groove 111 forms a space for receiving the wafer. Since the settling groove 111 contains the hollow area 1114, a settling edge is formed between the settling area 112 and the hollow area 114. After the wafer is received in the settling groove 111, the settling edge fits into the edge of the wafer. In a specific embodiment, the shape of the boat 110 is adapted to the wafer 200. The battery wafer is generally rectangular, and the boat and the settling groove can adopt a rectangular structure. The size of the settling groove of the boat can be slightly larger than the size of the battery wafer.

[0059] The depth of the settling tank 111 can be greater than the thickness of the substrate. In this way, after the wafer is placed in the settling tank, the surface of the wafer will be lower than the surface of the settling tank. When the process airflow passes through the wafer surface, it is blocked by the settling tank, which further prevents the process airflow from entering the gap of the wafer bonding surface, thereby further improving the substrate winding phenomenon.

[0060] The settling tank 111 holds two stacked wafers, which are placed back-to-back in the settling tank. The two wafers on both sides of the cutout area can be coated simultaneously. It is known that in specific applications, this structure can also be used for single wafers. A single wafer is placed in the settling tank, and double-sided coating of the wafer can be performed.

[0061] The boat rod 120 is fixed to the support frame, and the boat rod 120 provides fixed support for the boat piece 110. There are multiple boat rods 120, forming a support plane to provide stable support for the boat piece. In this embodiment of the invention, multiple boat pieces that are basically parallel are fixed on the boat rod 120 along the extension direction of the boat rod. Depending on the production volume, the number of boat pieces can be hundreds.

[0062] refer to Figure 7 As shown, each boat rod 120 may include a boat rod body and fixing parts 122 spaced apart along the extension direction of the boat rod body. The fixing parts 122 on the same plane of multiple boat rods 120 can fix one boat sheet. Thus, multiple boat rods 120 form multiple substantially parallel fixing planes, achieving the fixing of multiple substantially parallel boat sheets. Each fixing plane is substantially perpendicular to the boat rod. The fixing part 122 can be a groove limiting part, i.e., it adopts a groove structure, which can simultaneously serve the functions of fixing and limiting. The position and number of boat rods 120 can be set as needed. Solar cells are basically square, and the properties of the boat sheets are basically adapted to the solar cell wafers. In a specific embodiment, for an independent wafer boat, four boat rods can be set, and the boat rods can be set at the four apex corners of the boat sheet to form a stable support plane. For an integrated wafer boat, refer to... Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the boat rods can be set at the four apex corners of the boat piece and in the upper and lower areas between the two base pieces to form a stable support plane, while reducing the overall number of boat rods.

[0063] In the above embodiments, the materials that can be used for the boat 110, the rack 120, and the rack 130 include: aluminum alloy, titanium alloy, stainless steel 316, graphite, quartz, silicon carbide, etc., or combinations thereof.

[0064] In this preferred embodiment, since the wafer boat uses a combination of a boat plate and a toothed bar to fix the wafer, and the wafer is accommodated by a settling tank, the edge of the wafer is surrounded by the settling tank. At the same time, by pushing the abutting part of the toothed bar, the wafer can be further pressed, increasing the degree of wafer adhesion. In this way, during the deposition process, it is difficult for the process airflow to enter the gap of the substrate edge bonding surface, thereby improving the wafer wrap-around phenomenon.

[0065] Furthermore, embodiments of the present invention also provide a deposition apparatus, including a reaction chamber and the wafer boat described above.

[0066] This invention also provides a substrate processing method, which uses the above-mentioned deposition equipment to perform a deposition process on the substrate.

[0067] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Although the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person skilled in the art can make many possible variations and modifications to the technical solutions of the present invention using the methods and techniques disclosed above, or modify them into equivalent embodiments with equivalent changes, without departing from the scope of the technical solutions 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 content of the technical solutions of the present invention shall still fall within the protection scope of the technical solutions of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wafer boat, characterized in that, Includes a support frame, multiple toothed rods, and elastic components, among which, A plurality of said racks are axially movably disposed on the support frame, each rack including a rack body and abutment portions spaced apart along the extending direction of the rack body; The first end of each of the toothed bars is connected to an elastic component. When the second end of the toothed bar is pushed by the driving device so that the elastic component is in a compressed state, the wafer boat is in a substrate placement state. When the elastic component is reset, the abutment portions on the multiple toothed bars located on the same plane press against the substrate. It also includes multiple boat pieces, each of which is provided with a settling groove. The settling groove includes a settling area and a hollow area provided within the settling area. A settling edge is formed between the settling area and the hollow area. The settling edge is used to fit against the edge of the substrate when the substrate is accommodated in the settling area. When the elastic component is reset, the abutment portions on the multiple toothed bars located on the same plane press against the substrate in a boat piece.

2. The wafer boat according to claim 1, characterized in that, The support frame includes a first side plate and a second side plate arranged opposite to each other. The first side plate and the second side plate are provided with guide channels for the toothed rod. The first end and the second end of the toothed rod are respectively disposed in the guide channels. The first end is limited by a compression limiting structure and the second end is limited by a reset limiting structure.

3. The wafer boat according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first end is provided with a boss, and the guide channel of the first side plate is formed with a first limiting groove on the side facing the first end. When the elastic component is in a compressed state, the boss abuts against the bottom surface of the first limiting groove, and the first limiting groove serves as a compression limiting structure for limiting.

4. The wafer boat according to claim 2, characterized in that, It also includes a connecting block, which is disposed in the guide channel of the first side plate, and the elastic component is sleeved on the connecting block.

5. The wafer boat according to claim 4, characterized in that, The first end is also provided with a recess, and at least the end of the connecting block is provided in the recess.

6. The wafer boat according to claim 2, characterized in that, The second side plate is provided with a through hole communicating with the guide channel. The driving device enters the guide channel through the through hole to drive the second end of the rack.

7. The wafer boat according to claim 2, characterized in that, The guide channel of the second side plate is provided with a second limiting groove on the side away from the second end. When the elastic component is reset, the end face of the second end of the toothed rod abuts against the bottom surface of the second limiting groove, and the second limiting groove acts as a reset limiting mechanism for limiting.

8. The wafer boat according to claim 2, characterized in that, The support frame also includes a base plate fixed to the first side plate and the second side plate.

9. The wafer boat according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first or second side panel is also provided with a removable sealing window.

10. The wafer boat according to claim 1, characterized in that, The toothed rod body is provided with spaced grooves, and the toothed rod portion between adjacent grooves is an abutment portion.

11. The wafer boat according to claim 1, characterized in that, The plurality of the aforementioned toothed bars are respectively disposed in the middle region of the two opposite sides and the bottom side of the substrate.

12. The wafer boat according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes multiple boat poles, among which, Multiple boat poles are fixed to the support frame. Each boat pole includes a boat pole body and fixing parts spaced apart along the extension direction of the boat pole body. A boat piece is fixed to the fixing parts located on the same plane on the multiple boat poles.

13. The wafer boat according to claim 12, characterized in that, The fixing part of the boat rod is a groove limiting part.

14. The wafer boat according to claim 12, characterized in that, The depth of the settling tank is greater than the thickness of the substrate on which it is placed.

15. The wafer boat according to any one of claims 1-14, characterized in that, The wafer boat is a freestanding wafer boat used to hold a row of substrates.

16. The wafer boat according to any one of claims 1-14, characterized in that, The wafer boat is an integrated wafer boat used to place multiple rows of substrates.

17. A deposition apparatus, characterized in that, It includes a reaction chamber and a wafer boat disposed in the reaction chamber as described in any one of claims 1-16.

18. A substrate processing method, characterized in that, A deposition process is performed on a substrate using the deposition equipment as described in claim 17.

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