Wafer temperature detection device and thin film deposition equipment thereof

Abstract

The invention discloses a wafer temperature detection device and thin film deposition equipment thereof, the wafer temperature detection device comprises a wafer cooling buffer station and a temperature detection assembly, the wafer cooling buffer station is internally provided with a cooling cavity used for caching wafers, the temperature detection assembly comprises a plurality of temperature sensors, and the temperature sensors are connected with the wafer cooling buffer station. The temperature sensor is used for detecting the wafer stored in the cooling cavity. According to the wafer temperature detection device and the thin film deposition equipment thereof, the plurality of temperature sensors are additionally arranged in the wafer cooling buffer station and are used for independently detecting the temperature of each wafer, so that the cooling data of each wafer can be accurately obtained in real time. According to the thin film deposition equipment adopting the detection device, accurate cooling data can be rapidly obtained, the mechanical arm is controlled to convey the corresponding wafer according to the real-time cooling data, the situation that a conveying box is scalded due to the fact that the temperature is too high can be prevented, the cooled wafer can be rapidly conveyed out, and the process efficiency is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of thin film deposition equipment, and in particular to a wafer temperature detection device and thin film deposition equipment thereof. Background Art

[0002] After completing a thin film deposition process, the wafer needs to be sent to the wafer cooling buffer device for cooling treatment. The wafer is transferred between the thin film deposition device and the cooling buffer device by a robot. However, the existing wafer cooling buffer station is only equipped with a sensor for detecting whether there is a wafer in the placement position, and when to transfer the cooled wafer is generally determined based on experience. However, this judgment method, if the wafer temperature is too high and is transferred, it will cause the wafer to burn the front-opening wafer transfer box, and if the temperature is too low, the cooling time will be longer, affecting the efficiency of wafer transfer. Summary of the invention

[0003] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the deficiencies of the prior art and to provide a wafer temperature detection device and a thin film deposition device thereof, so as to solve the technical problem that the temperature of the prior art wafer cooling treatment cannot be accurately determined.

[0004] To achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a wafer temperature detection device, which includes: a wafer cooling buffer station and a temperature detection component, wherein the wafer cooling buffer station is provided with a cooling chamber for caching wafers, and the temperature detection component includes a plurality of temperature sensors, and the temperature sensors are used to detect wafers stored in the cooling chamber.

[0006] Wherein, the temperature detection component also includes a connecting plate, which is vertically arranged on the side of the cooling chamber, and a plurality of the temperature sensors are detachably connected to the connecting plate.

[0007] Wherein, the detection ends of several of the temperature sensors extend into the gaps between adjacent wafers.

[0008] The temperature sensors are arranged in two vertically distributed rows, and the temperature sensors in the two rows are cross-distributed in the horizontal direction.

[0009] Among them, the detection distance of the temperature sensor is not less than 100mm, the detection temperature range is 0-500℃, and the detection accuracy is ±0.1.

[0010] The wafer cooling buffer station comprises: a plurality of columns vertically enclosed and arranged and a cooling unit, a plurality of partitions of equal height are arranged on the columns, and the plurality of columns together enclose the cooling chamber.

[0011] Wherein, a base is also provided at the bottom of the cooling buffer station, and the temperature detection component is arranged on the top of the base and located at the side of the cooling chamber.

[0012] The wafer cooling buffer station further includes a detection sensor for detecting whether there is a wafer at the corresponding placement position.

[0013] Wherein, the wafer temperature detection device also includes: a controller and a power supply electrically connected to the temperature sensor.

[0014] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a thin film deposition device, wherein the thin film deposition device comprises a wafer temperature detection device as described in any one of the above.

[0015] The wafer temperature detection device and thin film deposition equipment of the present invention add multiple temperature sensors in the wafer cooling buffer station to detect the temperature of each wafer independently, so that the cooling data of each wafer can be obtained in real time and accurately. The thin film deposition equipment using the detection device can quickly obtain accurate cooling data, and control the mechanical arm to transfer the corresponding wafer according to the real-time cooling data, which can not only prevent the transfer box from being burned by excessive temperature, but also quickly transfer the cooled wafers to improve process efficiency.

[0016] The above description is only an overview of the technical solution of the present invention. In order to more clearly understand the technical means of the present invention, it can be implemented in accordance with the contents of the specification. In order to make the above and other purposes, features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and easy to understand, the following preferred embodiments are specifically cited and described in detail as follows. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figures 1 to 3 Schematic diagram of the overall structure of the wafer temperature detection device from different viewing angles according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 4 for Figure 3 The enlarged structural schematic diagram of local A is shown.

[0019] Description of reference numerals:

[0020] Wafer temperature detection device 100, base 1, column 2, partition 21, cooling unit 3, temperature detection component 4, connecting plate 41, temperature sensor 42, detection end 421, first row of temperature sensors 401, second row of temperature sensors 402, wafer 5, detection sensor 6, wafer cooling buffer station 20. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] 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 specific implementation methods.

[0022] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. 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 those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0023] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "clockwise", "counterclockwise" and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships described in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the referred device or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be understood as limiting the present invention.

[0024] 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.

[0025] 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 connected, detachably connected, or integrated; it can be mechanically connected or electrically connected; it can be directly connected or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For those skilled in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0026] In the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may include that the first and second features are in direct contact, or may include that the first and second features are not in direct contact but are in contact through another feature between them. Moreover, a first feature being "above", "above" and "above" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below", "below" and "below" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly below and obliquely below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0027] In the description of this specification, the description with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "example", "specific example", or "some examples" means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the schematic representation of the above terms should not be understood as necessarily referring to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0028] After completing a thin film deposition process, the wafer needs to be sent to a wafer cooling buffer device for cooling treatment. The wafer is transferred between the thin film deposition device and the cooling buffer device by a robot. However, the existing wafer cooling buffer station is only equipped with a sensor for detecting whether there is a wafer in the placement position, and the appropriate wafer to be transferred out for cooling treatment is generally judged based on experience. However, this judgment method, if the wafer temperature is too high and is transferred out, it will cause the wafer to burn the front-opening wafer transfer box, and if the temperature is too low, the cooling time will be longer, affecting the efficiency of wafer transfer. In order to solve the above problems, the present embodiment discloses a wafer temperature detection device 100.

[0029] See also Figures 1 to 4 In this embodiment, a wafer temperature detection device 100 is disclosed, which is applied to a semiconductor thin film deposition device, and specifically applied to wafer temperature detection in a wafer cooling buffer station of the thin film deposition device.

[0030] The wafer temperature detection device 100 includes: a wafer cooling buffer station 20 and a temperature detection component 4. The wafer cooling buffer station 20 is provided with a cooling chamber for caching wafers 5. The temperature detection component 4 includes a plurality of temperature sensors 42. The temperature sensors 42 are used to detect the wafers 5 stored in the cooling chamber.

[0031] Compared with the existing traditional equipment, the wafer temperature detection device 100 of this embodiment has an additional temperature detection component 4, which detects the temperature of each wafer 5 stored in the wafer cooling buffer station 20. When the temperature reaches the temperature value required by the process, the controller mechanical arm and other wafer conveying mechanisms move the corresponding wafer out of the wafer cooling buffer station 20. The cooling time of the existing equipment is generally determined based on experience. The real-time temperature detection method of this embodiment can accurately control the actual cooling of each wafer, and will not cause damage to the wafer transfer box due to insufficient cooling or excessively high temperature, and will not cause low wafer conveying efficiency due to too long cooling time.

[0032] Furthermore, the temperature detection component 4 also includes a connecting plate 41 , which is vertically arranged on the side of the cooling chamber, and a plurality of the temperature sensors 42 are detachably connected to the connecting plate 41 .

[0033] Among them, the detection ends 421 of the temperature sensors 42 extend into the gaps between the adjacent wafers 5. The detection ends 421 of the temperature sensors 42 extend into the gaps between the adjacent wafers so that the detection ends 421 are as close to the surface of the wafer 5 as possible, so that the temperature detection is more accurate. When the wafers 5 are cooled, the wafers 5 are stacked and placed in the cooling chamber in a vertical direction, so that there are gaps between the adjacent wafers 5, which is conducive to cooling and convenient for the operation of the wafer transfer robot.

[0034] Please refer again Figure 4 The temperature sensors 42 are arranged in two vertically distributed rows, namely, a first row of temperature sensors 401 and a second row of temperature sensors 402, and the temperature sensors 401 and 402 in the two rows are arranged crosswise with each other in the horizontal direction. Figure 4 As shown, the temperature sensors 401 in the first row are arranged in sequence in the vertical direction, the shells of the temperature sensors 42 are cylindrical, and there is a blank space slightly on the outer side between the cylindrical shells of adjacent temperature sensors 42. Therefore, the temperature sensors 402 in the second row are slightly lower than the temperature sensors 401 in the first row in the vertical direction, so that the two rows of temperature sensors 42 are cross-divided in the horizontal direction. For example, the temperature sensor at the top of the first row of temperature sensors 401 is slightly higher than the top of the temperature sensor in the second row of temperature sensors 402 in the vertical direction. At this time, the temperature sensors 42 in the second row are just partially located in the above-mentioned blank space, so that the assembly of all temperature sensors 42 is more compact, and the detection end 421 of each temperature sensor 42 can correspond to the gap between one of the adjacent wafers 5, that is, this installation distribution method is compatible with the size of the sensor 42 itself and the corresponding wafer detection spacing requirements.

[0035] The detection distance of the temperature sensor 42 is not less than 100 mm, the detection temperature range is 0-500° C., and the detection accuracy is ±0.1. It is understandable that in other embodiments, according to the application environment of the temperature sensor and the corresponding temperature detection requirements, the detection accuracy and other parameters of the temperature sensor 42 can be adjusted accordingly, and are not limited thereto.

[0036] Please refer again Figure 1 and Figure 2 The wafer cooling buffer station 20 comprises: a plurality of vertically enclosed columns 2 and a cooling unit 3, wherein the columns 2 are provided with a plurality of partitions 21 of equal height, and the plurality of columns 2 together enclose the cooling chamber. The cooling unit 3 is used to transport a refrigerant to the cooling chamber, thereby quickly cooling the wafer 5 with a relatively high temperature to a preset temperature.

[0037] The bottom of the cooling buffer station 20 is further provided with a base 1 , and the temperature detection component 4 is arranged on the top of the base 1 and is located at the side of the cooling chamber.

[0038] The wafer temperature detection device of this embodiment still retains the existing detection unit, and the wafer cooling buffer station 20 also includes a detection sensor 6 for detecting whether there is a wafer at the corresponding placement position, and the detection sensor 6 includes a laser, ultrasonic and other detection sensors.

[0039] The wafer temperature detection device further includes: a controller and a power supply electrically connected to the temperature sensor 42. The controller can not only obtain the real-time temperature value of the temperature sensor 42, but also transmit the detection data to the industrial computer, which controls the stable operation of the thin film deposition equipment according to the preset control logic of the software.

[0040] An embodiment of the present invention provides a thin film deposition device, wherein the thin film deposition device includes the wafer temperature detection device 100 as described in any one of the above.

[0041] The wafer temperature detection device and thin film deposition equipment of the present invention add multiple temperature sensors in the wafer cooling buffer station to detect the temperature of each wafer independently, so that the cooling data of each wafer can be obtained in real time and accurately. The thin film deposition equipment using the detection device can quickly obtain accurate cooling data, and control the mechanical arm to transfer the corresponding wafer according to the real-time cooling data, which can not only prevent the transfer box from being burned by excessive temperature, but also quickly transfer the cooled wafers to improve process efficiency.

[0042] The above examples are only used to further illustrate the technical content of the present invention, so that readers can understand it more easily, but they do not mean that the implementation of the present invention is limited to this. Any technical extension or re-creation made according to the present invention is protected by the present invention. The protection scope of the present invention shall be subject to the claims.

Claims

1. A wafer temperature detection device, characterized in that: include: A wafer cooling buffer station and a temperature detection component, wherein the wafer cooling buffer station is provided with a cooling chamber for caching wafers, and the temperature detection component includes a plurality of temperature sensors, and the temperature sensors are used to detect the wafers stored in the cooling chamber.

2. The wafer temperature detection device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The temperature detection component also includes a connecting plate, which is vertically arranged on the side of the cooling chamber, and a plurality of the temperature sensors are detachably connected to the connecting plate.

3. The wafer temperature detection device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The detection ends of the temperature sensors extend into the gaps between adjacent wafers.

4. The wafer temperature detection device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The temperature sensors are arranged in two vertically distributed rows, and the temperature sensors in the two rows are cross-distributed in the horizontal direction.

5. The wafer temperature detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The detection distance of the temperature sensor is not less than 100 mm, the detection temperature range is 0-500° C., and the detection accuracy is ±0.

1.

6. The wafer temperature detection device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The wafer cooling buffer station comprises: a plurality of columns arranged in a vertical direction and a cooling unit, a plurality of partitions of the same height are arranged on the columns, and the plurality of columns together enclose the cooling chamber.

7. The wafer temperature detection device according to claim 6, characterized in that: A base is also provided at the bottom of the cooling buffer station, and the temperature detection component is arranged on the top of the base and located at the side of the cooling chamber.

8. The wafer temperature detection device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The wafer cooling buffer station also includes a detection sensor for detecting whether there is a wafer at the corresponding placement position.

9. The wafer temperature detection device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The wafer temperature detection device also includes: a controller electrically connected to the temperature sensor and a power supply.

10. A thin film deposition device, characterized in that: The thin film deposition equipment comprises the wafer temperature detection device as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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