Cooling device, cooling chamber and semiconductor process equipment

Abstract

The invention discloses a cooling device, a cooling chamber and semiconductor process equipment, the disclosed cooling device is used for the semiconductor process equipment, the cooling device comprises a support frame, a plurality of cooling discs and a plurality of thimble assemblies, the plurality of cooling discs are arranged on the support frame at intervals, the cooling discs are provided with avoiding through holes, and the thimble assemblies are arranged on the support frame. The ejector pin assemblies and the cooling discs are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence mode. Each ejector pin assembly comprises an ejector pin and a driving mechanism, the ejector pins are used for supporting a wafer, the driving mechanisms are arranged on the supporting frame, and the driving mechanism of each ejector pin assembly is connected with the corresponding ejector pin so as to be used for driving the ejector pin to penetrate through the avoiding through hole of the corresponding cooling disc. And the wafer can be driven to be close to or far away from the cooling disc along the vertical direction. According to the scheme, the problem of relatively low wafer process efficiency of a cooling device in related technologies can be solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of semiconductor process equipment, and in particular to a cooling device, a cooling chamber and semiconductor process equipment. Background Art

[0002] Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) is an important step in the manufacture of integrated circuits, which can achieve the deposition of various film layers such as SiO2, SiNx, BPSG, PSG, etc. Most PECVD process temperatures are between 200-450 degrees Celsius. After the process is completed, the wafer temperature is relatively high. Therefore, the wafer needs to be cooled down before being transferred to the reaction chamber and then placed in the wafer loading box to prevent the wafer temperature from being too high, causing the wafer to stick to the wafer loading box, thereby causing damage to the wafer.

[0003] In order to cool the wafers transferred out of the reaction chamber, the wafers are usually cooled by a cooling device. In the related art, when cooling multiple wafers, the cooling device usually needs to place multiple wafers at the same time and then cool the multiple wafers at the same time. However, in the process of placing multiple wafers in sequence, the first placed wafer will have a longer waiting time, which will result in a problem of low wafer process efficiency. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present invention disclose a cooling device, a cooling chamber and a semiconductor process equipment to solve the problem of low process efficiency of the cooling device on the wafer in the related art.

[0005] In order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present invention is achieved as follows:

[0006] In a first aspect, the present application discloses a cooling device for semiconductor process equipment, the cooling device comprising a support frame, a plurality of cooling disks and a plurality of ejector pin assemblies, the plurality of cooling disks being arranged on the support frame at intervals, the cooling disks being provided with avoidance through holes, the ejector pin assemblies being arranged one-to-one correspondingly with the cooling disks;

[0007] Each of the ejector pin assemblies includes an ejector pin and a driving mechanism, wherein the ejector pin is used to support the wafer, and the driving mechanism is disposed on the supporting frame. The driving mechanism of each ejector pin assembly is connected to the corresponding ejector pin to drive the ejector pin to pass through the avoidance through hole of the corresponding cooling plate, and can drive the wafer to approach or move away from the cooling plate in a vertical direction.

[0008] In the second aspect, the present application also discloses a cooling chamber, comprising a cooling cavity and the cooling device described in the first aspect, wherein the cooling device is arranged in the cooling cavity, the support frame is connected to the cooling cavity, and the multiple cooling disks are arranged in sequence at intervals along the vertical direction; the cooling cavity is provided with multiple air outlets in the vertical direction, and each of the cooling disks has a corresponding air outlet.

[0009] In a third aspect, the present application further discloses a semiconductor process equipment, comprising a transfer chamber, a plurality of reaction chambers and the cooling chamber described in the second aspect, wherein the cooling chamber and the plurality of reaction chambers are arranged outside the transfer chamber.

[0010] The technical solution adopted by the present invention can achieve the following technical effects:

[0011] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is provided with a support frame, multiple cooling plates and multiple ejector pin assemblies, so that the multiple cooling plates can be arranged at intervals on the support frame, the ejector pin assemblies are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the cooling plates, and each ejector pin assembly includes an ejector pin and a driving mechanism, so that the driving mechanism of each ejector pin assembly is connected to the corresponding ejector pin to drive the ejector pin to pass through the avoidance through hole of the cooling plate corresponding to it, and drive the wafer to rise and fall in the vertical direction to approach or move away from the cooling plate, so that when the ejector pin drives the wafer to approach the cooling plate, the cooling plate can cool the wafer.

[0012] Since there are multiple ejector pin assemblies and cooling plates, multiple wafers can be placed on the ejector pins of multiple ejector pin assemblies in sequence. Among the multiple ejector pin assemblies, the ejector pin of the ejector pin assembly where the wafer is placed first can be raised and lowered first, that is, the wafer is cooled first, and the ejector pin of the ejector pin assembly where the wafer is placed later can be raised and lowered after the wafer is placed, that is, the cooling of the later wafer is achieved. In this way, the wafer placed first can be cooled first, and the wafer placed later can continue to be cooled. After the wafer placed first is cooled, it can be removed and other wafers that need to be cooled can be placed. Multiple ejector pin assemblies and cooling plates cool the wafers independently, so that the wafer placed first can be cooled first without waiting for other ejector pin assemblies to place wafers, thereby saving the time of waiting for other ejector pin assemblies to place wafers, and thus solving the problem of low process efficiency of the cooling device for wafers in the related art. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the cooling chamber disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0014] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the structure of a cooling device disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0015] Figure 3 A partial schematic diagram of a cooling device disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of a cooling plate disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] Figure 5 It is a structural schematic diagram of the ejector base disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the cooperation between the ejector base and the supporting column disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of a semiconductor process equipment disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 8 The present invention discloses a flowchart of a semiconductor process equipment for wafer processing.

[0021] Description of reference numerals:

[0022] 100-support frame, 120-support column,

[0023] 200-cooling plate, 210-cooling channel, 211-annular channel, 220-avoidance hole,

[0024] 300-thimble assembly, 310-thimble, 320-driving mechanism, 321-power piece, 322-slider, 323-screw, 330-thimble base, 331-connecting part

[0025] 400-cooling chamber, 410-cooling cavity, 411-inner wall, 411a-air blowing port, 412-outer wall, 412a-air inlet, 413-air delivery channel, 420-air inlet device,

[0026] 500-Transmission Chamber,

[0027] 600-Reaction chamber,

[0028] 700-Vacuum manipulator,

[0029] 900-Atmospheric transmission device, 910-Atmospheric manipulator. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention clearer, the technical solution of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the specific embodiments of the present invention and the corresponding drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0031] In the related art, the cooling device in the related art includes a support assembly and a plurality of cooling disks. The support assembly can carry a plurality of wafers and drive the plurality of wafers to move to a position in contact with the plurality of cooling disks so that the cooling disks cool the wafers. After cooling, the support assembly drives the wafers to separate from the cooling disks. However, since the support assembly is an integral whole, when it is necessary to cool a plurality of wafers, the plurality of wafers need to be placed in the support assembly before they can be cooled together, which will cause the wafers placed in the support assembly first to have a longer waiting time, and further cause the cooling device to have a lower process efficiency for the wafers. In order to solve the problem of low cooling efficiency of the cooling device for wafers in the related art, an embodiment of the present application discloses a cooling device.

[0032] The technical solutions disclosed in various embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0033] Please refer to Figures 1 to 8 The embodiment of the present invention discloses a cooling device, which is used for semiconductor process equipment and can be used to cool wafers. The cooling device includes a support frame 100, a plurality of cooling plates 200 and a plurality of ejector pin assemblies 300.

[0034] A plurality of cooling plates 200 are disposed at intervals on the support frame 100 . The plurality of cooling plates 200 may be fixedly disposed on the support frame 100 or movably disposed on the support frame 100 . The embodiment of the present application does not impose any specific limitation on the arrangement of the cooling plates 200 .

[0035] The cooling plate 200 is provided with an avoidance through hole 220 , and the ejector pin assemblies 300 are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the cooling plate 200 , that is, one ejector pin assembly 300 is correspondingly arranged for each cooling plate 200 .

[0036] Each ejector pin assembly 300 includes an ejector pin 310 and a driving mechanism 320 . The ejector pin 310 is used to support the wafer. It should be noted that one end of the ejector pin 310 needs to pass through the avoidance through hole 220 of the cooling plate 200 to support the wafer located above the cooling plate 200 .

[0037] The driving mechanism 320 is disposed on the support frame 100. The driving mechanism 320 of each ejector assembly 300 is connected to the corresponding ejector 310 to drive the ejector 310 to pass through the avoidance hole 220 of the corresponding cooling plate 200, and can drive the wafer to approach or move away from the cooling plate 200 in the vertical direction.

[0038] When the ejector pins 310 drive the wafer to approach the cooling plate 200 in the vertical direction, the cooling plate 200 can cool the wafer. After the cooling plate 200 has finished cooling the wafer, the ejector pins 310 can drive the wafer to move away from the cooling plate 200 in the vertical direction.

[0039] It should be noted that the driving mechanism 320 of each ejector pin assembly 300 is connected to its corresponding ejector pin 310, and the driving mechanisms 320 and ejector pins 310 between the multiple ejector pin assemblies 300 do not interfere with each other, that is, the ejector pins 310 of the multiple ejector pin assemblies 300 can independently drive the wafer to rise and fall in the vertical direction under the action of the corresponding driving mechanisms 320.

[0040] In a specific implementation process, the driving mechanism 320 can drive one end of the ejector pin 310 to pass through the avoidance through hole 220 of the cooling plate 200, and the wafer can be transferred to the ejector pin 310 so that the end of the ejector pin 310 passing through the avoidance through hole 220 supports the wafer. At this time, the driving mechanism 320 can drive the ejector pin 310 to descend so that the ejector pin 310 drives the wafer to move toward the cooling plate 200, so that the wafer is close to the cooling plate 200, so that the cooling plate 200 cools the wafer. After the cooling plate 200 has finished cooling the wafer, the driving mechanism 320 can drive the ejector pin 310 to rise so that the ejector pin 310 drives the wafer to move in a direction away from the cooling plate 200, and then the wafer is removed from the ejector pin 310.

[0041] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is provided with a support frame 100, a plurality of cooling plates 200 and a plurality of ejector pin assemblies 300, so that the plurality of cooling plates 200 can be arranged at intervals on the support frame 100, and the ejector pin assemblies 300 are arranged one-to-one with the cooling plates 200, and each ejector pin assembly 300 includes an ejector pin 310 and a driving mechanism 320, so that the driving mechanism 320 of each ejector pin assembly 300 is connected with the corresponding ejector pin 310 to drive the ejector pin 310 to pass through the avoidance through hole 220 of the corresponding cooling plate 200, and drive the wafer to rise and fall in the vertical direction to approach or move away from the cooling plate 200, so that when the ejector pin 310 drives the wafer to approach the cooling plate 200, the cooling of the wafer by the cooling plate 200 can be achieved.

[0042] Since there are multiple ejector pin assemblies 300 and cooling plates 200, among the multiple ejector pin assemblies 300, the ejector pin 310 of the ejector pin assembly 300 that places the wafer first can be lifted and lowered first, that is, the wafer is cooled first, and the ejector pin 310 of the ejector pin assembly 300 that places the wafer later can be lifted and lowered after the wafer is placed, that is, the cooling of the later wafer is realized. In this way, the wafer placed first can be cooled first, and the wafer placed later can continue to be cooled. After the wafer placed first is cooled, it can be removed and other wafers that need to be cooled can be placed. Multiple ejector pin assemblies 300 and cooling plates 200 cool the wafers independently, so that the wafer placed first can be cooled first without waiting for other ejector pin assemblies 300 to place the wafer, thereby saving the time of waiting for other ejector pin assemblies 300 to place the wafer, and thus solving the problem of low process efficiency of the cooling device for the wafer in the related art.

[0043] To facilitate the installation of the ejector pin 310, optionally, each ejector pin assembly 300 may further include an ejector pin base 330. The ejector pin base 330 may be disposed below the corresponding cooling plate 200. The ejector pin base 330 may be movably disposed on the support frame 100 along the vertical direction. The ejector pin 310 may be disposed on the ejector pin base 330 and be opposite to the avoidance through hole 220 of the corresponding cooling plate 200. The driving mechanism 320 may be connected to the ejector pin base 330 to drive the ejector pin base 330 to drive the ejector pin 310 to rise and fall.

[0044] It should be noted that one end of the ejector pin 310 may be disposed on the ejector pin base 330 , and the driving mechanism 320 may drive the ejector pin base 330 to drive the ejector pin 310 to move up and down, so that the other end of the ejector pin 310 passes through the avoidance through hole 220 of the cooling plate 200 .

[0045] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is provided with an ejector base 330 so that the ejector 310 can be arranged on the ejector base 330, thereby facilitating the installation of the ejector 310. The ejector base 330 can be driven by the driving mechanism 320 to drive the ejector 310 to rise and fall, thereby making it easier for the driving mechanism 320 to drive the ejector 310 to move.

[0046] Specifically, the ejector base 330 may be an annular structure. The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is advantageous in reducing the weight of the cooling device by configuring the ejector base 330 as an annular structure.

[0047] It should be noted that the ejector base 330 may be a metal structural component. Of course, the ejector base 330 may also be a non-metallic structural component. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific material of the ejector base 330.

[0048] Specifically, a cooling channel 210 may be provided inside the cooling plate 200 , and a cooling medium such as a cooling liquid or a cooling gas may be introduced into the cooling channel 210 to cool the wafer.

[0049] The distance from the position where the wafer is supported by the ejector pin 310 to the edge of the wafer is usually smaller than the distance from the center of the wafer, that is, the ejector pin 310 is usually supported at a position of the wafer close to the edge of the wafer. In order to enable the cooling disk 200 to better cool the position of the wafer that is farther away from the center of the wafer, optionally, a cooling channel 210 may be opened inside the cooling disk 200, and the cooling channel 210 may include a plurality of annular channels 211. The plurality of annular channels 211 may be sequentially arranged along the radial direction of the cooling disk 200, and the projection of the outer edge of the ejector pin base 330 in the vertical direction may coincide with the projection of the outermost annular channel 211 among the plurality of annular channels 211 in the vertical direction.

[0050] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application sets the ejector base 330 so that the projection of the outer edge of the ejector base 330 in the vertical direction coincides with the projection of the outermost annular channel 211 among the multiple annular channels 211 in the vertical direction, so that the cooling plate 200 can better cool the position of the wafer that is farther away from the center of the wafer, thereby better cooling the wafer.

[0051] In an optional embodiment, each ejector pin assembly 300 may include a plurality of ejector pins 310, each cooling plate 200 may be provided with a plurality of avoidance holes 220, the plurality of ejector pins 310 of each ejector pin assembly 300 may correspond one-to-one to the plurality of avoidance holes 220 of the corresponding cooling plate 200, and the plurality of ejector pins 310 are arranged on the ejector pin base 330 at intervals in sequence along the extension direction of the ejector pin base 330.

[0052] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application supports the same wafer through multiple ejector pins 310, which is beneficial to the stable support of the wafer. By arranging the multiple ejector pins 310 at intervals along the extension direction of the ejector pin base 330 (that is, along the extension direction of the annular structure), the arrangement of the multiple ejector pins 310 of each ejector pin assembly 300 is more reasonable, which is further beneficial to the stable support of the wafer by the ejector pins 310.

[0053] In order to make the ejector base 330 drive the wafer to move in the vertical direction more stably through the ejector pin 310, optionally, the cooling device may further include a limiting structure, which may be provided on the support frame 100. The limiting structure may be used to limit the ejector base 330 in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction during the process in which the driving mechanism 320 drives the ejector base 330 to rise and fall.

[0054] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is provided with a limiting structure, so that the limiting structure can limit the ejector base 330 in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction when the driving mechanism 320 drives the ejector base 330 to rise and fall, thereby making the ejector base 330 drive the wafer to move in the vertical direction more stably through the ejector 310.

[0055] In a specific embodiment, the limiting structure may be a slide groove extending in the vertical direction and opened on the support frame 100. The ejector base 330 may include a connecting portion 331, and the connecting portion 331 may slide in the vertical direction in the slide groove. The inner wall of the slide groove may limit the connecting portion 331 in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction, thereby limiting the ejector base 330 in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction.

[0056] In another embodiment, the limiting structure may include a limiting slider 322, which may have a through sliding hole, and the support frame 100 may include two support columns 120 that are spaced apart and extend in the vertical direction, and the two support columns 120 may be sleeved with the slider 322. The ejector base 330 may include a connecting portion 331, which may be located between the two support columns 120 and connected to the slider 322 located on the two support columns 120, and the driving mechanism 320 may be connected to the connecting portion 331, and the two sliders 322 may be raised and lowered with the ejector base 330 to slide along the support column 120, and the two sliders 322 may cooperate with the support column 120 in the upper limit position in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction during the process of raising and lowering with the ejector base 330, so as to limit the ejector base 330 in the plane perpendicular to the vertical direction.

[0057] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is configured to include a limiting structure including a limiting slider 322, and the limiting slider 322 has a structure with a through sliding hole, so that the two supporting columns 120 extending in the vertical direction of the support frame 100 can be slidably sleeved with the slider 322, and the connecting portion 331 of the ejector base 330 is located between the two supporting columns 120 and can be connected to the slider 322 located on the two supporting columns 120, so that the two sliders 322 can cooperate with the supporting columns 120 in the upper limit position in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction during the process of rising and falling with the ejector base 330, so as to limit the ejector base 330 in the plane perpendicular to the vertical direction. The connecting portion 331 is located between the two supporting columns 120, so that the two sliders 322 can limit the ejector base 330 from rotating around any one of the supporting columns 120, and the slider 322 is sleeved on the supporting column 120, which can make the ejector base 330 more stably limited in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction.

[0058] In order to further improve the positioning of the ejector base 330 in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction, optionally, the support column 120 may be a prism structure, and the inner contour shape of the sliding hole may be adapted to the shape of the prism.

[0059] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application can better limit the ejector base 330 in a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction by configuring the support column 120 to be a prism structure and configuring the inner contour shape of the sliding hole to match the shape of the prism.

[0060] In order to make the driving mechanism 320 drive the ejector base 330 to rise and fall more smoothly, optionally, the driving mechanism 320 may include a power piece 321 and a screw rod 323, the power piece 321 may be connected to the screw rod 323, the connecting portion 331 may be provided with a threaded hole, the screw rod 323 and the threaded hole are threadedly matched, and the power piece 321 may be used to drive the screw rod 323 to rotate, so that the connecting portion 331 drives the ejector base 330 to rise and fall in the vertical direction along the screw rod 323.

[0061] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application has a threaded hole in the connecting portion 331, so that the connecting portion 331 is not only used for limiting cooperation with the limiting structure, but also used for threading cooperation with the screw rod 323 to drive the ejector base 330 to rise and fall in the vertical direction along the screw rod 323, so that the connecting portion 331 can be used for two purposes, and the ejector base 330 can be driven to rise and fall in the vertical direction along the screw rod 323 by threading cooperation between the screw rod 323 and the connecting portion 331, so that the movement of the ejector base 330 in the vertical direction can be more stable.

[0062] In order to further improve the stability of the ejector base 330 driving the ejector 310 to rise and fall, optionally, there may be multiple support frames 100, and the multiple support frames 100 may be arranged in sequence at intervals and surround a receiving space. Multiple cooling plates 200 may be arranged in the receiving space and connected to at least one of the multiple support frames 100. The ejector base 330 is arranged in the receiving space, and each support frame 100 is provided with a limiting structure.

[0063] The cooling device disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is configured with a plurality of support frames 100, and the plurality of support frames 100 are sequentially spaced and arranged to form an accommodation space, so that a plurality of cooling plates 200 can be arranged in the accommodation space, and an ejector base 330 is arranged in the accommodation space, and each support frame 100 is provided with a limiting structure, so that the plurality of limiting structures limit the ejector base 330 in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction, so that the lifting and lowering of the ejector base 330 is more stable.

[0064] The present application also discloses a cooling chamber 400, the disclosed cooling chamber 400 includes a cooling chamber 410 and a cooling device disclosed in the above embodiment, the cooling device is arranged in the cooling chamber 410, the support frame 100 is connected to the cooling chamber 410, and a plurality of cooling disks 200 are arranged in sequence and spaced in the vertical direction. The cooling chamber 410 is provided with a plurality of blowing ports 411a in the vertical direction, and each position of the cooling disk 200 may correspond to a blowing port 411a, and the blowing port 411a may blow cooling gas to the wafer located on the cooling disk 200, and the cooling gas may be helium. Of course, the cooling gas may also be other gases, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific type of cooling gas.

[0065] The cooling chamber 400 disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is provided with a cooling cavity 410, so that a cooling device can be arranged in the cooling cavity 410, and a plurality of blowing ports 411a are opened in the vertical direction through the cooling cavity 410. There is a blowing port 411a corresponding to the position of each cooling disk 200, so that the blowing port 411a can blow cooling gas to the wafer located on the cooling disk 200, thereby further improving the cooling efficiency of the wafer.

[0066] In order to optimize the structure of the cooling cavity 410, the cooling cavity 410 may be designed to have an inner wall 411 and an outer wall 412, wherein the inner wall 411 and the outer wall 412 may be hollow, and the inner wall 411 and the outer wall 412 may enclose a gas delivery channel 413, wherein the inner wall 411 may be provided with a plurality of air blowing ports 411a, and the outer wall 412 may be provided with an air inlet 412a, and the plurality of air blowing ports 411a and the air inlet 412a may be connected to the gas delivery channel 413. The air inlet 412a may be connected to the air inlet device 420, and the air inlet device 420 may transmit the cooling gas to the gas delivery channel 413 through the air inlet 412a, and blow the cooling gas from the air blowing port 411a to the wafer on the cooling plate 200.

[0067] The cooling chamber 400 disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is configured such that the cooling cavity 410 has an inner wall 411 and an outer wall 412, and a hollow structure is formed between the inner wall 411 and the outer wall 412, so that the cooling cavity 410 itself has an air delivery channel 413, thereby optimizing the structure of the cooling cavity 410.

[0068] The present application also discloses a semiconductor process equipment, which includes a transfer chamber 500 , a plurality of reaction chambers 600 , and the cooling chamber 400 disclosed in the above embodiment, wherein the cooling chamber 400 and the plurality of reaction chambers 600 are arranged outside the transfer chamber 500 .

[0069] In a specific application scenario, such as when a semiconductor process equipment is suspended in multiple chambers for wafer flow, after the wafer completes the process in one of the multiple reaction chambers 600, the wafer can be transferred to the transfer chamber 500 and then transferred to the cooling chamber 400 for cooling. After the wafer is cooled, the wafer is transferred to the next reaction chamber 600 for processing, and so on. Since the wafer only needs to be transferred back and forth between the cooling chamber 400 and the reaction chamber 600, and with the structure of the cooling device in the cooling chamber 400, the wafer transfer can be more flexible, the cooling efficiency is higher, and multi-cavity collaborative work can be achieved.

[0070] The cooling chamber 400 may include multiple cooling sub-chambers, and wafers may be cooled in the cooling sub-chambers. When a large number of wafers are processed, the wafers in the cooling sub-chambers may have different transmission paths. For example, wafers in different cooling sub-chambers may be transmitted to different reaction chambers 600, and wafers in different reaction chambers 600 may be transmitted to different cooling sub-chambers. This design allows the cooling sub-chamber in a cooling state to cool the wafer without affecting the transmission of wafers in other cooling sub-chambers, and can avoid causing other wafers that need to be cooled to wait for a long time during the cooling of the wafer by the cooling chamber 400, thereby improving the process efficiency of semiconductor process equipment for wafers.

[0071] In the process of the semiconductor process equipment, the reaction chamber 600 is usually a vacuum environment. Therefore, the wafer needs to be in a vacuum environment before being transferred to the reaction chamber 600. Therefore, when transferring the wafer into the reaction chamber 600, it is necessary to keep the transfer chamber 500 in a vacuum environment. If the process of evacuating the transfer chamber 500 to a vacuum is performed every time the wafer is transferred into the reaction chamber 600, the process efficiency of the semiconductor process equipment will be affected. In order to improve the process efficiency of the semiconductor process equipment, optionally, the semiconductor process equipment may further include an atmospheric transmission device 900, the atmospheric transmission device 900 is connected to the cooling chamber 400, the transfer chamber 500 is connected to the cooling chamber 400, and the cooling chamber 400 can be used to switch between atmosphere and vacuum.

[0072] The atmospheric transmission device 900 can be in an atmospheric environment, and the transmission chamber 500 can be in a vacuum environment. The cooling chamber 400 is connected between the atmospheric transmission device 900 and the transmission chamber 500, and can realize the conversion between the atmosphere and the vacuum, so that the atmospheric transmission device 900 is always in an atmospheric environment, and the transmission chamber 500 is always in a vacuum environment. The atmospheric transmission device 900 can be used to transmit wafers in an atmospheric environment. For example, the atmospheric transmission device 900 can include an atmospheric manipulator 910, and the atmospheric manipulator 910 can take the wafer out of the cooling chamber 400 and transmit it to a wafer loading box.

[0073] The semiconductor process equipment disclosed in the embodiment of the present application sets the cooling chamber 400 as a chamber for switching between atmosphere and vacuum, so that the transfer chamber 500 can always be kept in a vacuum environment, so that there is no need to evacuate the transfer chamber 500 when transferring the wafer to the reaction chamber 600, thereby improving the process efficiency of the semiconductor process equipment. Moreover, the cooling chamber 400 can not only cool the wafer through the cooling device, but also realize the conversion between atmosphere and vacuum, so that the cooling chamber 400 has two uses, and the cooling chamber 400 can switch between atmosphere and vacuum during the process of cooling the wafer, thereby saving process time and being conducive to improving the process efficiency of the semiconductor process equipment.

[0074] During the process of transferring the wafer between the cooling chamber 400 and the reaction chamber 600, the wafer needs to be kept in a vacuum environment. Therefore, the semiconductor process equipment may also include a vacuum robot 700. The vacuum robot 700 may be arranged in the transfer chamber 500. The vacuum robot 700 may be used to transfer the wafer between multiple reaction chambers 600 and the cooling chamber 400.

[0075] In order to further improve the process efficiency of semiconductor process equipment, optionally, there can be multiple vacuum robots 700, and multiple vacuum robots 700 can transfer the wafers after the process in the reaction chamber 600 to the cooling chamber 400, and transfer the wafers after cooling in the cooling chamber 400 to the reaction chamber 600 simultaneously, so that the transfer of wafers is more flexible and the process efficiency of semiconductor process equipment can be effectively improved. Specifically, two wafers can be stored in the reaction chamber 600 at the same time, and there are two vacuum robots 700, which can take and place two wafers at the same time. On the other hand, during the wafer tape-out process and transfer out, by utilizing the cooling chamber 410 of the multi-layer cooling plate 200, when a large number of wafers are being processed, the wafers in the cooling chamber 410 have different transfer directions. For example, the a-layer wafers are transferred to the next reaction chamber 600, and the b-layer wafers have completed the process and need to be transferred to the wafer loading box, etc. This more flexible lifting cooling plate 200 design can reduce the cooling time of wafers in different processes, and while there is still wafer cooling in the cooling chamber 410, the wafers to be cooled or the wafers to be processed can be transferred again, and the cooling effect between the wafers will not be affected.

[0076] Specifically, in an embodiment in which the cooling chamber 410 includes multiple blowing ports 411a, the blowing ports 411a can realize the process of converting the cooling chamber 400 from vacuum to atmosphere during the process of blowing air toward the wafer. After cooling, the wafer can be transferred to a wafer loading box or the cooling chamber 400 can be converted to a vacuum environment again to transfer the wafer to the reaction chamber 600.

[0077] Optionally, in order to further improve the process efficiency, if the wafer needs to enter the reaction chamber 600 again for processing after cooling in the cooling chamber 400, at this time, the wafer can be cooled only by the cooling plate 200, and there is no need to blow air through the blowing port 411a. The cooling chamber 400 can be maintained in a vacuum environment, thereby saving the time for switching between atmosphere and vacuum, thereby improving the process efficiency of the semiconductor process equipment.

[0078] Please refer to the attached Figure 6 and attached Figure 8 The present application embodiment describes a process of a semiconductor process equipment for a wafer, which is as follows:

[0079] S101 , after the wafer process is completed in the reaction chamber 600 , the vacuum robot 700 can take out the wafer after the process is completed from the reaction chamber 600 .

[0080] S102 , the driving mechanism 320 can drive the ejector pins 310 to rise and pass through the avoidance holes 220 on the cooling plate 200 , waiting for the vacuum robot 700 to place the wafer on the ejector pins 310 .

[0081] S103, after the vacuum robot 700 places the wafer on the ejector pin 310, the vacuum robot 700 exits the cooling chamber 400, and the driving mechanism 320 drives the ejector pin 310 to bring the wafer down to approach the cooling plate 200 until the wafer falls on the cooling plate 200, and the cooling plate 200 can cool the wafer.

[0082] S104, blowing cooling gas into the cooling chamber 400 through the blowing port 411a on the cooling chamber 400. This process can also realize the conversion from vacuum environment to atmospheric environment in the cooling chamber 400.

[0083] S105, after the wafer is cooled, the cooling chamber 400 is in an atmospheric environment, and the atmospheric robot 910 can transfer the wafer to a wafer loading box.

[0084] The above embodiments of the present invention focus on the differences between the various embodiments. As long as the different optimization features between the various embodiments are not contradictory, they can be combined to form a better embodiment. Considering the simplicity of the text, they will not be repeated here.

[0085] The embodiments of the present invention are described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned specific implementation modes, which are merely illustrative rather than restrictive. Under the guidance of the present invention, ordinary technicians in this field can also make many forms without departing from the scope of protection of the present invention and the claims, all of which are within the protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cooling device for semiconductor process equipment, characterized in that: The cooling device comprises a support frame (100), a plurality of cooling disks (200) and a plurality of ejector pin assemblies (300); the plurality of cooling disks (200) are arranged on the support frame (100) at intervals; the cooling disks (200) are provided with avoidance through holes (220); and the ejector pin assemblies (300) are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the cooling disks (200); Each of the ejector pin assemblies (300) comprises an ejector pin (310) and a driving mechanism (320), wherein the ejector pin (310) is used to support a wafer, and the driving mechanism (320) is disposed on the support frame (100). The driving mechanism (320) of each of the ejector pin assemblies (300) is connected to the corresponding ejector pin (310) so as to drive the ejector pin (310) to pass through the avoidance through hole (220) of the corresponding cooling plate (200), and can drive the wafer to approach or move away from the cooling plate (200) in a vertical direction.

2. The cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each ejector pin assembly (300) further comprises an ejector pin base (330), wherein the ejector pin base (330) is arranged below the corresponding cooling plate (200), the ejector pin (310) is arranged on the ejector pin base (330) and is opposite to the avoidance through hole (220) of the corresponding cooling plate (200), and the driving mechanism (320) is connected to the ejector pin base (330) and is used for driving the ejector pin base (330) to drive the ejector pin (310) to rise and fall.

3. The cooling device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The ejector base (330) is an annular structural component.

4. The cooling device according to claim 2, characterized in that: A cooling channel (210) is provided inside the cooling disk (200), and the cooling channel (210) includes a plurality of annular channels (211), and the plurality of annular channels (211) are sequentially arranged in a radial direction of the cooling disk (200), and a projection of an outer edge of the ejector base (330) in the vertical direction coincides with a projection of the outermost annular channel (211) among the plurality of annular channels (211) in the vertical direction.

5. The cooling device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The cooling device further comprises a limiting structure, the limiting structure being arranged on the support frame (100), and the limiting structure being used to limit the position of the ejector base (330) in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction when the driving mechanism (320) drives the ejector base (330) to rise and fall.

6. The cooling device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The limiting structure comprises a limiting slider (322), the limiting slider (322) having a through sliding hole, the support frame (100) comprises two supporting columns (120) arranged at intervals and extending along the vertical direction, the two supporting columns (120) are both sleeved with the slider (322); The ejector base (330) comprises a connecting portion (331), wherein the connecting portion (331) is located between the two supporting columns (120) and is connected to the slider (322) located on the two supporting columns (120), and the driving mechanism (320) is connected to the connecting portion (331). The two sliders (322) cooperate with the supporting columns (120) to limit the position in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction during the process of the ejector base (330) rising and falling, so as to limit the ejector base (330) in a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction.

7. The cooling device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The supporting column (120) is a prism structure, and the internal contour shape of the sliding hole is adapted to the shape of the prism.

8. The cooling device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The driving mechanism (320) comprises a power piece (321) and a screw rod (323); the power piece (321) is connected to the screw rod (323); a threaded hole is provided on the connecting portion (331); the screw rod (323) is threadedly matched with the threaded hole; the power piece (321) is used to drive the screw rod (323) to rotate, so that the connecting portion (331) drives the ejector base (330) to rise and fall along the screw rod (323) in the vertical direction.

9. The cooling device according to claim 5, characterized in that: There are a plurality of support frames (100), and the plurality of support frames (100) are arranged in sequence at intervals and surround a storage space. The plurality of cooling plates (200) are arranged in the storage space and connected to at least one of the plurality of support frames (100). The ejector base (330) is arranged in the storage space, and each of the support frames (100) is provided with the limiting structure.

10. A cooling chamber, characterized in that: It comprises a cooling cavity (410) and a cooling device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the cooling device is arranged in the cooling cavity (410), the support frame (100) is connected to the cooling cavity (410), and the plurality of cooling disks (200) are arranged in sequence and spaced apart in the vertical direction; the cooling cavity (410) is provided with a plurality of air outlets (411a) in the vertical direction, and each of the cooling disks (200) has a corresponding air outlet (411a) at its position.

11. The cooling chamber according to claim 10, characterized in that The cooling cavity (410) comprises an inner wall (411) and an outer wall (412); the inner wall (411) and the outer wall (412) enclose an air delivery channel (413); the inner wall (411) is provided with the plurality of air blowing ports (411a); the outer wall (412) is provided with an air inlet (412a); the plurality of air blowing ports (411a) and the air inlet (412a) are both in communication with the air delivery channel (413).

12. A semiconductor process equipment, characterized in that: It comprises a transfer chamber (500), a plurality of reaction chambers (600) and a cooling chamber (400) according to any one of claims 10 to 11, wherein the cooling chamber (400) and the plurality of reaction chambers (600) are arranged outside the transfer chamber (500).

13. The semiconductor process equipment according to claim 12, characterized in that: The semiconductor process equipment also includes an atmosphere transmission device (900), the atmosphere transmission device (900) is connected to the cooling chamber (400), the transmission chamber (500) is connected to the cooling chamber (400), and the cooling chamber (400) is used to switch between atmosphere and vacuum.

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