Process cavity and semiconductor equipment

Abstract

The invention provides a process cavity and a semiconductor device, the process cavity comprises a process chamber, a wafer transfer channel, an air inlet block and an air exhaust block, the side wall of the process chamber is provided with a side air inlet, a wafer transfer port and an air exhaust port arranged opposite to the wafer transfer port, the wafer transfer channel is communicated with the wafer transfer port and is used for transferring a wafer into the process chamber, and the air exhaust port is arranged opposite to the wafer transfer port. The air inlet block is provided with an air inlet hole and an air inlet channel communicated with the air inlet hole, the air outlet block is provided with an air outlet hole for discharging air, the air inlet hole and the air outlet hole are respectively communicated with the wafer conveying channel, and the air inlet hole is located above the air outlet hole. According to the invention, the process cavity has a double-exhaust structure, when the wafer is conveyed, air enters the process cavity along with the wafer, and the process gas entering from the gas inlet and the side gas inlet and the air entering from the wafer conveying port are subjected to hedging, so that the air is prevented from entering the process cavity in the wafer conveying process, the oxygen content in the process cavity is reduced, and the yield of the wafer is improved. And the subsequent oxygen removal and analysis time is also reduced, so that the wafer productivity is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of semiconductor production, and more specifically relates to a process chamber and semiconductor equipment. Background Art

[0002] Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP) is an advanced single-chip heat treatment process, which is now widely used in semiconductor production processes such as integrated circuits and MEMS. Its typical applications include rapid thermal annealing RTA, rapid thermal oxidation RTO, rapid thermal chemical vapor deposition RTCVD, etc. Rapid thermal annealing is generally used to activate doping elements in semiconductor materials and restore the amorphous structure caused by ion implantation to a complete lattice structure. The low-temperature RTA process (170℃~600℃) has very strict requirements on the process atmosphere. Generally, the oxygen concentration is required to be less than 1ppm. At present, when the rapid thermal processing equipment transfers the wafer, it is necessary to open the valve of the wafer transfer port of the process chamber. At this time, the air enters the process chamber from the wafer transfer port with the wafer, and then is discharged through the pump port on the other side of the process chamber. Because a large amount of air will enter the process chamber at the moment the valve is opened, the oxygen concentration in the process chamber exceeds the process requirements. Therefore, nitrogen is used to purge the inside of the process chamber before the process starts, so that the oxygen content in the process chamber is less than 1ppm. Among them, the nitrogen purge time usually needs to last for 3 to 5 minutes. The long purge time affects production efficiency and leads to low production capacity. Summary of the invention

[0003] Based on the technical problems existing in the prior art, the present invention provides a process chamber and semiconductor equipment, aiming to solve the technical problems in the prior art of using nitrogen purging to reduce the oxygen content in the process chamber, resulting in a long purging time, affecting production efficiency and causing low production capacity.

[0004] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a process chamber, which is applied to semiconductor equipment, and includes a process chamber, a wafer transfer channel, an air inlet block and an exhaust block. The side wall of the process chamber is provided with a side air inlet, a wafer transfer port and an exhaust port arranged opposite to the wafer transfer port. The wafer transfer channel is connected with the wafer transfer port and is used to transfer the wafer into the process chamber. The air inlet block has an air inlet hole and an air inlet channel connected with the air inlet hole. The exhaust block has an exhaust hole for exhausting gas. The air inlet hole and the exhaust hole are respectively connected with the wafer transfer channel, and the air inlet hole is located above the exhaust hole.

[0005] Optionally, there are plural air inlet holes and plural air outlet holes, respectively, and the plural air inlet holes and the plural air outlet holes are arranged in a staggered manner.

[0006] Optionally, the plurality of air inlet holes and the plurality of air outlet holes are evenly distributed along the length direction of the film transmission port.

[0007] Optionally, the air inlet is located between the film transmission port and the air outlet.

[0008] Optionally, the film transmission channel is arranged in the exhaust block, the exhaust block has a mounting groove on the top, an opening communicating with the film transmission channel is arranged at the bottom of the mounting groove, the air intake block is inserted into the mounting groove, and the air intake hole is located in the opening.

[0009] Optionally, the process chamber further includes a first exhaust pipe, a second exhaust pipe and a main exhaust pipe, the first exhaust pipe is connected below the exhaust block and communicates with the exhaust hole, the second exhaust pipe is communicated with the exhaust port, and the first exhaust pipe and the second exhaust pipe are respectively communicated with the main exhaust pipe.

[0010] Optionally, a first angle valve is provided on the first exhaust pipe, and a second angle valve is provided on the second exhaust pipe.

[0011] Optionally, a TV valve is further provided on the second exhaust pipe, and the TV valve is located between the exhaust port and the second angle valve.

[0012] Optionally, a vacuum gauge is further provided on the second exhaust pipe, and the vacuum gauge is provided between the exhaust port and the TV valve.

[0013] According to another aspect of the present invention, a semiconductor device is provided, comprising a process chamber as described in any one of the above embodiments.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of a process chamber and a semiconductor device provided by the present invention are as follows: by arranging an exhaust block with exhaust holes below an air inlet block, so that the air inlet block and the exhaust block are respectively connected to the wafer transfer port of the process chamber through the wafer transfer channel, and an exhaust port is opened on the side wall of the process chamber, so that the process chamber has a double exhaust structure. When the wafer is transferred from the wafer transfer port to the process chamber, air enters the process chamber along with the wafer, and the process gas entering from the air inlet holes of the air inlet block and the air inlet on the upper side wall of the process chamber respectively conflicts with the air entering from the wafer transfer port, thereby preventing air from entering the process chamber during the wafer transfer process, reducing the oxygen content in the process chamber, and also reducing the subsequent oxygen removal and analysis time, thereby improving wafer production capacity. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative labor.

[0016] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a process chamber provided by an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2A schematic cross-sectional view of a process chamber provided by an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 A schematic cross-sectional view of an air intake block and an exhaust block provided in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of an air intake block and an exhaust block provided in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a simulation structure of a process chamber provided by an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 A schematic diagram of gas flow in a horizontal cross section of a process chamber provided in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 7 A schematic diagram of gas flow rate in a horizontal cross section of a process chamber provided in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the gas flow rate in the vertical direction of the process chamber provided by an embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of oxygen diffusion simulation in a process chamber provided by an embodiment of the present invention; Fig.10 A schematic diagram of the simulation of oxygen diffusion rate in a process chamber provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] The reference numerals in the above drawings are as follows: 1. Process chamber; 2. Film transfer channel; 3. Air inlet block; 4. Exhaust block; 5. Side air inlet; 6. Film transfer port; 7. Exhaust port; 8. Air inlet hole; 9. Air inlet channel; 10. Exhaust hole; 11. Air inlet pipe; 12. First exhaust pipe; 13. Second exhaust pipe; 14. Main exhaust pipe; 15. First angle valve; 16. Second angle valve; 17. TV valve; 18. Vacuum gauge. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are intended to be used to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0019] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "length", "width", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", etc., indicating the orientation or position relationship are based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

[0020] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, the meaning of "plurality" is two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0021] In the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", "connected", "fixed" and the like should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0022] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0023] See also Figures 1 to 4 As shown, the present invention provides a process chamber, which is applied to semiconductor equipment. The semiconductor equipment may include rapid thermal processing equipment. The process chamber may cooperate with other structures of the semiconductor equipment to realize a thermal processing process. The process chamber includes a process chamber 1, a wafer transfer channel 2, an air intake block 3 and an exhaust block 4. The side wall of the process chamber 1 is provided with a side air intake port 5, a wafer transfer port 6 and an exhaust port 7 arranged opposite to the wafer transfer port 6. The wafer transfer channel 2 is connected to the wafer transfer port 6 and is used to transfer the wafer into the process chamber 1. The air intake block 3 has an air intake hole 8 and an air intake channel 9 connected to the air intake hole 8. The exhaust block 4 has an exhaust hole 10 for exhausting gas. The air intake hole 8 and the exhaust hole 10 are respectively connected to the wafer transfer channel 2, and the air intake hole 8 is located above the exhaust hole 10. Specifically, the air inlet channel 9 is connected to the air inlet pipe 11, and the air inlet pipe 11 is connected to an external gas source to provide process gas to the air inlet channel 9; when the wafer is transferred, the wafer enters the process chamber 1 through the wafer transfer channel 2 and the wafer transfer port 6. At this time, in order to reduce the external air entering the process chamber 1 with the wafer, the process gas (for example, nitrogen) is introduced into the side air inlet 5 and the air inlet hole 8, and the process gas entering through the air inlet hole 8 is counteracted with the air at the wafer transfer port 6, so that the air is discharged from the exhaust hole 10 of the exhaust block 4, and the process gas entering through the side air inlet 5 is counteracted with the air entering the process chamber 1, so that the air in the process chamber 1 is discharged through the exhaust port 7, so that the air is blown out by the process gas, and the amount of air entering the process chamber 1 during the wafer transfer process is reduced. Among them, the number of the side air inlets 5 is multiple, and the multiple side air inlets 5 are evenly distributed along the circumference of the side wall of the process chamber 1 to ensure the symmetry of the flow field in the cavity.

[0024] By applying the above technical scheme of the present invention, the exhaust block 4 with the exhaust hole 10 is arranged below the air intake block 3, so that the air intake block 3 and the exhaust block 4 are respectively connected with the film transfer port 6 of the process chamber 1 through the film transfer channel 2, and the exhaust port 7 is opened on the side wall of the process chamber 1, so that the process chamber has a double exhaust structure. When the wafer is transferred from the film transfer port 6 to the process chamber 1, the air enters the process chamber 1 along with the wafer, and the process gas entering from the air intake hole 8 of the air intake block 3 and the air intake 5 on the upper side wall of the process chamber 1 respectively conflicts with the air entering from the film transfer port 6, thereby preventing the air from entering the process chamber 1 during the wafer transfer process, reducing the oxygen content in the process chamber 1, and also reducing the subsequent oxygen removal and analysis time, thereby improving the wafer production capacity.

[0025] See also Figure 4 As shown, in some embodiments, the number of the air inlet holes 8 and the number of the air exhaust holes 10 are respectively multiple, and the multiple air inlet holes 8 are arranged in a staggered manner with the multiple air exhaust holes 10. Such an arrangement can avoid the generation of eddy currents near the wafer transfer port 6 during the process, and at the same time, it can also prevent the process gas from carrying out particles in the exhaust pipe to contaminate the wafer.

[0026] See also Figure 4 As shown, in some embodiments, a plurality of air inlet holes 8 and a plurality of air outlet holes 10 are evenly distributed along the length direction of the film transmission port 6. Such an arrangement allows the airflow to be evenly dispersed through the plurality of air inlet holes 8 or air outlet holes 10, avoiding airflow concentration in a certain area, thereby making the airflow distribution of the air intake or exhaust even.

[0027] See also Figure 4 As shown, in some embodiments, the air inlet 8 is located between the film transfer port 6 and the exhaust port 10. Since the air inlet 8 is close to the film transfer port 6, the process gas passes through the air inlet 8 to form a barrier at the front end of the film transfer port 6, which can effectively block air from entering the process chamber during the film transfer process, thereby reducing the oxygen content in the process chamber.

[0028] See also Figure 4 As shown, in some embodiments, the film conveying channel 2 is arranged in the exhaust block 4, the top of the exhaust block 4 has a mounting groove, the bottom of the mounting groove is provided with an opening connected with the film conveying channel 2, the air intake block 3 is inserted into the mounting groove, and the air intake hole 8 is located in the opening. As set above, the exhaust block 4 is installed outside the process chamber 1, and the film conveying channel 2 is connected with the film conveying port 6, and the air intake block 3 is installed in the mounting groove above the exhaust block 4. The structure is simple and easy to install, and the air intake block 3 and the exhaust block 4 can be quickly installed in the process chamber 1. In addition, by setting the mounting groove, it is convenient to position and install the air intake of the air intake block 3, so that the air intake hole 8 is connected with the film conveying channel 2.

[0029] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, in some embodiments, the process chamber further includes a first exhaust pipe 12, a second exhaust pipe 13 and a main exhaust pipe 14, the first exhaust pipe 12 is connected to the bottom of the exhaust block 4 and communicates with the exhaust hole 10, the second exhaust pipe 13 is communicated with the exhaust port 7, and the first exhaust pipe 12 and the second exhaust pipe 13 are respectively communicated with the main exhaust pipe 14. Specifically, the gas passing through the exhaust hole 10 is discharged through the first exhaust pipe 12 and the main exhaust pipe 14 in sequence, and the gas passing through the exhaust port 7 is discharged through the second exhaust pipe 13 and the main exhaust pipe 14 in sequence. In this way, the gas discharged through the exhaust block 4 and the process chamber 1 respectively does not need to be designed with two exhaust pipelines.

[0030] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments, a first angle valve 15 is provided on the first exhaust pipe 12, and a second angle valve 16 is provided on the second exhaust pipe 13. The first angle valve 15 is used to open and close the connection between the first exhaust pipe 12 and the main exhaust pipe 14, and the second angle valve 16 is used to open and close the connection between the second exhaust pipe 13 and the main exhaust pipe 14, and the gas flow direction can be controlled by the first angle valve 15 and the second angle valve 16. The first angle valve 15 and the second angle valve 16 can be solenoid valves, electric valves or other control valves.

[0031] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments, a TV valve 17 is further provided on the second exhaust pipe 13, and the TV valve 17 is located between the exhaust port 7 and the second angle valve 16. By adjusting the opening of the TV valve 17, the exhaust gas flow rate is limited, thereby controlling the pressure in the process chamber 1.

[0032] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments, a vacuum gauge 18 is further provided on the second exhaust pipe 13, and the vacuum gauge 18 is provided between the exhaust port 7 and the TV valve 17. The vacuum gauge 18 is used to measure the internal pressure of the process chamber 1, and the TV valve 17 adjusts the opening in real time according to the pressure fed back by the vacuum gauge 18 to reach the set pressure.

[0033] Exemplarily, the present invention provides a process chamber with the following workflow: close the film transmission port 6, make the first angle valve 15 in a normally closed state, and the second angle valve 16 in a normally open state; introduce nitrogen with a flow rate of 20L / min into the air inlet block 3, and control the pressure in the process chamber 1 through the TV valve 17. When the pressure reaches the preset film transmission condition, open the film transmission port 6, open the first angle valve 15, and close the TV valve 17; introduce nitrogen with a flow rate of 50L / min into the side air inlet 5, and adjust the flow rate Nitrogen is passed into the air inlet block 3 at a rate of 100 L / min. At this time, the wafer is sent into the process chamber 1 through the film transfer channel 2 via the film transfer port 6 and placed at the processing position. After the wafer is at the processing position, the film transfer port 6 is closed. After being closed for 2 seconds, the TV valve 17 is opened, the first angle valve 15 and the side air inlet 5 are closed, and the nitrogen is stopped from being passed through the air inlet block 3. The process is started, and the gas required for the process flows into the air inlet block 3. At this time, the TV valve 17 enters the pressure control mode to control the pressure inside the cavity.

[0034] The present invention provides a simulation structure of a process chamber, such as Figure 5 As shown, during the wafer transfer process, there are three air intakes, namely the side air inlet 5, the wafer transfer port 6 and the air inlet hole 8 of the air inlet block 3. The air intake flow rates of the side air inlets 5 on both sides are the same to ensure the symmetry of the flow field in the cavity. Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, the gas flow direction and flow rate of the horizontal cross section of the process chamber can be known; see Figure 8 As shown, it can be seen that the gas flow rates on both sides of the intake block 3 and the exhaust block 4 are symmetrical; see Fig.10 As shown in the figure, during the wafer transfer process, the oxygen content in the chamber is always less than 1ppm. Therefore, after the wafer transfer is completed, the time for removing oxygen can be greatly reduced, and the process stage can be directly entered, thereby achieving the purpose of improving wafer production capacity.

[0035] According to another aspect of the present invention, a semiconductor device is provided, comprising a process chamber as described in any of the above embodiments. It is understandable that the beneficial effects of the semiconductor device can be found in the relevant description of the process chamber, which will not be repeated here.

[0036] In summary, the process chamber and semiconductor equipment provided by this embodiment have at least the following beneficial technical effects: (1) The process chamber has a double exhaust structure. When the wafer is transferred from the wafer transfer port 6 to the process chamber 1, air enters the process chamber 1 along with the wafer. The process gas entering from the air inlet hole 8 of the air inlet block 3 and the air inlet 5 on the upper side of the side wall of the process chamber 1 respectively counteracts the air entering from the wafer transfer port 6, thereby preventing air from entering the process chamber 1 during the wafer transfer process. This reduces the oxygen content in the process chamber 1 and also reduces the subsequent oxygen removal and analysis time, thereby improving the wafer production capacity. (2) The staggered arrangement of the air inlet 8 and the exhaust hole 10 can avoid the generation of eddy currents near the wafer transfer port 6 during the process. At the same time, it can also prevent the process gas from carrying out particles in the exhaust pipe to contaminate the wafer; (3) Since the air inlet 8 is close to the film transfer port 6, the process gas passes through the air inlet 8 to form a barrier at the front end of the film transfer port 6, which can effectively block the air from entering the process chamber during the film transfer process, thereby reducing the oxygen content in the process chamber.

[0037] The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, and only specifically describe the technical principles of the present invention. These descriptions are only for explaining the principles of the present invention and cannot be interpreted as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention in any way. Based on the explanations here, any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention, and other specific implementations of the present invention that can be associated with by technicians in this field without creative labor, should be included in the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A process chamber, applied to semiconductor equipment, characterized in that: It includes a process chamber, a wafer transfer channel, an air inlet block and an exhaust block. The side wall of the process chamber is provided with a side air inlet, a wafer transfer port and an exhaust port arranged opposite to the wafer transfer port. The wafer transfer channel is connected with the wafer transfer port and is used to transfer the wafer into the process chamber. The air inlet block has an air inlet hole and an air inlet channel connected with the air inlet hole. The exhaust block has an exhaust hole for exhausting gas. The air inlet hole and the exhaust hole are respectively connected with the wafer transfer channel, and the air inlet hole is located above the exhaust hole.

2. The process chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that: The number of the air inlet holes and the number of the air exhaust holes are respectively multiple, and the multiple air inlet holes are staggeredly arranged with the multiple air exhaust holes.

3. The process chamber according to claim 2, characterized in that: The plurality of air inlet holes and the plurality of air exhaust holes are evenly distributed along the length direction of the film transmission port.

4. The process chamber according to claim 1 or 3, characterized in that: The air inlet is located between the film transmission port and the air outlet.

5. The process chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that: The film transmission channel is arranged in the exhaust block, the top of the exhaust block is provided with a mounting groove, the bottom of the mounting groove is provided with an opening connected with the film transmission channel, the air intake block is inserted into the mounting groove, and the air intake hole is located in the opening.

6. The process chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that: The process chamber further includes a first exhaust pipe, a second exhaust pipe and a main exhaust pipe, the first exhaust pipe is connected below the exhaust block and communicates with the exhaust hole, the second exhaust pipe is communicated with the exhaust port, and the first exhaust pipe and the second exhaust pipe are respectively communicated with the main exhaust pipe.

7. The process chamber according to claim 6, characterized in that: The first exhaust pipe is provided with a first angle valve, and the second exhaust pipe is provided with a second angle valve.

8. The process chamber according to claim 7, characterized in that: The second exhaust pipe is further provided with a TV valve, and the TV valve is located between the exhaust port and the second angle valve.

9. The process chamber according to claim 8, characterized in that: The second exhaust pipe is also provided with a vacuum gauge, and the vacuum gauge is arranged between the exhaust port and the TV valve.

10. A semiconductor device, characterized in that: Comprising a process chamber as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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