Wafer transfer system and semiconductor apparatus

Abstract

The application discloses a wafer transmission system and a semiconductor device, and relates to the technical field of semiconductor manufacturing, in particular to a wafer transmission system and a semiconductor device. The wafer transmission system comprises a vacuum process cavity, a transmission mechanism arranged in the vacuum process cavity, the transmission mechanism comprising a moving unit, a jacking unit and a rotating unit, and the rotating unit being connected with a first mechanical hand and a second mechanical hand; the rotating unit is used for driving the first mechanical hand and the second mechanical hand to perform coaxial reverse rotation motion; a pre-exhausting vacuum cavity is arranged on the side of the vacuum process cavity, and the pre-exhausting vacuum cavity is communicated with the vacuum process cavity through a second valve on one side; and an electric cabinet is arranged on the side of the vacuum process cavity. The mechanical hand of the wafer transmission system only needs to perform 90-degree rotation, the turning radius is reduced, the volume of the cavity can be effectively reduced, Z-axis lifting motion and X-axis direction motion can be realized, the stroke coverage range of motion is increased, the wafer pre-alignment device is directly arranged in the pre-exhausting vacuum cavity, the one-time transmission step is reduced, time is saved, error accumulation in the transmission process is reduced, and the positioning precision is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a wafer transmission system and semiconductor equipment, belonging to the technical field of semiconductor equipment. Background Art

[0002] In current semiconductor inspection equipment, wafers must be transferred to the equipment's vacuum chamber. Most current equipment structures require wafers to be transferred from the semiconductor equipment front-end module (EFEM) to a pre-evacuated chamber, and then from the pre-evacuated chamber to a vacuum process chamber. This first transfer is performed by an atmospheric robot within the EFEM, while the second transfer typically requires the cooperation of a vacuum robot. However, vacuum robots are expensive and bulky, increasing the overall chamber volume and equipment footprint.

[0003] To simplify the structure of the robot and reduce its footprint, Chinese patent publication CN119905438A discloses a wafer transfer device and semiconductor testing equipment. This device uses a rotating swing arm to transfer wafers, resulting in a simple structure. However, the length of the swing arm occupies a significant width of the chamber, and the rotation is coupled with a connecting rod mechanism, resulting in a limited range of motion.

[0004] Chinese patent publication CN118299311A discloses a wafer transfer and exchange system and method. Its rotary robot can rotate 360 ​​degrees and move in the Y direction along a base rail, significantly increasing its range of motion. However, the robot cannot move vertically, so wafer reception and placement require a pre-vacuum chamber and a lifting mechanism on the stage, increasing structural cost and design complexity.

[0005] With respect to the above-mentioned problems in the prior art, no effective solution has been proposed yet. Summary of the Invention

[0006] To solve the above problems, the present invention provides a wafer transfer system and semiconductor equipment. The robot arm of the wafer transfer system only needs to rotate 90 degrees, which reduces the turning radius and can effectively reduce the volume of the cavity. At the same time, it can realize X-axis movement, Z-axis movement and rotation around the Z axis. The motion range is wide, which greatly increases the range of motion coverage; and the wafer pre-alignment equipment is directly set in the pre-vacuum chamber, which reduces one transfer step, saves time, reduces the error accumulation in the transmission process, and improves positioning accuracy.

[0007] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a wafer transfer system, comprising:

[0008] A vacuum process cavity is provided with a transmission mechanism, which comprises a moving unit, a jacking unit and a rotating unit, the jacking unit is installed on the moving unit, the rotating unit is installed on the jacking unit, and the rotating unit is connected with a first mechanical hand and a second mechanical hand; the moving unit is used to drive the jacking unit and the rotating unit to make reciprocating motion, the jacking unit is used to drive the rotating unit to make lifting motion, and the rotating unit is used to drive the first mechanical hand and the second mechanical hand to make coaxial and reverse rotating motion.

[0009] A pre-vacuum cavity is arranged on the side of the vacuum process cavity, the pre-vacuum cavity is communicated with the vacuum process cavity through a second valve on one side and is provided with a first valve on the other side.

[0010] An electric cabinet is arranged on the side of the vacuum process cavity.

[0011] In one embodiment of the present application, the rotating unit comprises a conveyor belt, a third driving mechanism installed on the jacking unit and a rotating shaft, the output end of the third driving mechanism is connected with a worm wheel, the worm wheel is engaged with a worm, one end of the worm is fixedly connected with a first pulley which rotates synchronously with the worm, and the other end is movably connected with a second pulley which can rotate around the first pulley; the rotating shaft is fixedly connected with a fourth pulley and a first mechanical hand fixing seat, and the rotating shaft, the fourth pulley and the first mechanical hand fixing seat rotate synchronously; a middle bushing is arranged on the rotating shaft, a third pulley and a second mechanical hand fixing seat fixedly connected with the third pulley are arranged outside the middle bushing, and the third pulley and the second mechanical hand fixing seat can rotate synchronously around the rotating shaft; one end of the conveyor belt is connected with the first pulley, and the other end passes around the third pulley, the fourth pulley and the second pulley.

[0012] In one embodiment of the present application, the jacking unit comprises a jacking plate connected with the rotating unit, a side plate is fixedly installed on the side of the jacking plate, and the worm is installed on the side plate; a second bearing seat is fixedly installed on the jacking plate, a bearing is installed in the second bearing seat, and the rotating shaft is installed in the bearing of the second bearing seat.

[0013] In one embodiment of the present application, the first mechanical hand fixing seat is fixedly connected with the first mechanical hand, the second mechanical hand fixing seat is fixedly connected with the second mechanical hand, the first mechanical hand and the second mechanical hand are in U-shaped structure and are used to support a wafer, and the first mechanical hand and the second mechanical hand are provided with suction ports used to suck the wafer.

[0014] In one embodiment of the present invention, the movable unit includes a screw slide fixedly installed on the bottom of the vacuum process chamber, a first bevel gear connected to one end of the screw in the screw slide, a second bevel gear meshing with the first bevel gear, and a magnetic fluid seal installed in a mounting hole opened at the bottom of the vacuum process chamber, the output shaft of the magnetic fluid seal is fixedly connected to the second bevel gear, the input end of the magnetic fluid seal is connected to a first driving mechanism for driving it to rotate, the first driving mechanism is installed on the outside of the vacuum process chamber, the screw in the screw slide is connected to a slider, and the slider is fixedly connected to an adapter plate.

[0015] In one embodiment of the present invention, the jacking unit includes a mounting plate and a fixed plate fixedly connected to the adapter plate, the mounting plate is fixedly installed with a second driving mechanism, the output end of the second driving mechanism is connected to a lead screw through a coupling, the fixed plate is fixedly connected to a first bearing seat, a bearing is installed in the first bearing seat, and the lead screw is installed in the bearing of the first bearing seat; the lead screw is externally threadedly connected to a jacking seat, and the jacking seat is fixedly connected to a jacking plate through a number of jacking rods, and the second driving mechanism is used to drive the lead screw to rotate so that the jacking seat threadedly connected to the lead screw and the jacking plate fixedly connected to the jacking seat can perform lifting movements.

[0016] In one embodiment of the present invention, the pre-vacuum chamber is connected to the front-end module of the semiconductor device through a first valve, and a wafer pre-alignment device for calibrating the wafer is provided inside the pre-vacuum chamber. The wafer pre-alignment device also serves as a carrier to receive the wafer transported from the front-end module of the semiconductor device.

[0017] In one embodiment of the present invention, an XY-axis moving platform and a Z-axis moving platform connected to the XY-axis moving platform are provided inside the vacuum process chamber, an electrostatic chuck for adsorbing wafers is provided on the Z-axis moving platform, and the electrostatic chuck is provided with a receiving groove for the first robot and the second robot to pass through; the XY-axis moving platform is used to drive the Z-axis moving platform to translate in two orthogonal directions, and the Z-axis moving platform is used to drive the wafer to perform lifting and lowering movements.

[0018] In one embodiment of the present invention, the vacuum process chamber is equipped with a first monitoring mechanism and a second monitoring mechanism, the first monitoring mechanism is used to monitor the movement of the XY axis moving platform along the X axis direction, and the second monitoring mechanism is used to monitor the movement of the XY axis moving platform along the Y axis direction.

[0019] In a second aspect, the present invention provides a semiconductor device comprising the aforementioned wafer transfer system.

[0020] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0021] 1. Unlike the vacuum manipulators used in the prior art, which are expensive and have complex structures, the transmission mechanism of the wafer transmission system provided by the present invention has a compact structure and can simultaneously realize movement in the X-axis direction, movement in the Z-axis direction, and rotation around the Z-axis. It has a wide range of motion, which greatly increases the range of motion. Operations such as wafer transportation and reception can be completed by relying on the movement of the manipulator, without the need for the complex lifting mechanism in the existing equipment. In addition, the structure of the rotation unit of the transmission mechanism realizes the coaxial and counter-rotation of the upper and lower first and second manipulators under the drive of a drive motor, and the manipulators only need to rotate 90 degrees, which reduces the turning radius and can effectively reduce the volume of the cavity. At the same time, through the first-stage deceleration of the worm gear and worm, and the second-stage deceleration of the first pulley, the second pulley, the third pulley, the fourth pulley, and the conveyor belt, the deceleration of the drive motor is realized, and the structure is more compact.

[0022] 2. Different from the existing method of using a rotary manipulator to rotate and transfer wafers 180 degrees, the manipulator provided by the present invention has a rotation angle of 90 degrees, which can greatly reduce the volume of the vacuum process chamber. Combined with the pre-vacuum chamber and electrical cabinet installed on the side, compared with the solution of using the pre-vacuum chamber in front, the electrical cabinet in the back, and the rotary manipulator rotating 180 degrees, the solution of the present invention greatly saves floor space.

[0023] 3. The conventional wafer transfer process involves the semiconductor equipment front-end module receiving the wafer to be tested from the wafer cassette. The robotic arm then places the wafer on the wafer pre-alignment device within the semiconductor equipment front-end module for calibration. After calibration, the wafer is transferred to the wafer stage in the pre-vacuum chamber, and then from the pre-vacuum chamber to the electrostatic chuck in the vacuum process chamber. The wafer transfer system provided by the present invention directly places the wafer pre-alignment device in the pre-vacuum chamber, eliminating a transfer step. Calibration is performed during the wafer transfer process, saving time. After calibration, the wafer is directly transferred to the vacuum process chamber, reducing error accumulation during transfer and improving positioning accuracy.

[0024] 4. The manipulator of the existing wafer transfer mechanism does not have a structure for up and down movement, and usually requires a lifting mechanism to be set in the pre-vacuum chamber and a lifting mechanism to be set in the vacuum process chamber. The manipulator of the wafer transfer system provided by the present invention has a lifting function in the Z-axis direction, which simplifies the overall structure and saves costs. In addition, in the existing wafer transfer mechanism, the lifting of the pre-vacuum chamber and the lifting of the vacuum process chamber usually takes about 5 seconds, which takes up a lot of wafer transfer time. The wafer transfer system provided by the present invention uses the lifting of the manipulator, which is different from the lifting method of performing structural conversion outside the vacuum process chamber. The present invention can greatly speed up the wafer transfer time and improve the operating efficiency and throughput of the equipment.

[0025] 5. Existing equipment has a complex wafer transfer mechanism, occupies a large area, and uses a vacuum manipulator, which is expensive. The present invention adjusts the layout of the pre-vacuum chamber, placing it to the side of the vacuum process chamber. The electrical cabinet is also located to the side of the vacuum process chamber. Furthermore, through the integrated design of the rotary manipulator, the equipment structure is simplified while reducing its footprint. Furthermore, compared to conventional systems where the electrical cabinet is located behind the vacuum process chamber, the second monitoring mechanism is also installed behind the vacuum process chamber. This new arrangement avoids obstruction of the second monitoring mechanism's adjustment space, facilitating adjustments. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 A three-dimensional diagram of a wafer transfer system provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 2 A top view of a wafer transfer system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Figure 3 A three-dimensional diagram from another perspective of the wafer transfer system provided by an embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 4 A three-dimensional diagram of the transmission mechanism, XY-axis moving platform, and Z-axis moving platform provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0030] Figure 5 A top view of the transmission mechanism, XY-axis moving platform, and Z-axis moving platform provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Figure 6 A three-dimensional diagram of a transmission mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] Figure 7 A three-dimensional diagram from another perspective of the transmission mechanism provided by an embodiment of the present invention.

[0033] Figure 8 This is a front view of the transmission mechanism provided by an embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] Figure 9 A side view of a transmission mechanism provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

[0035] Figure 10 This is a front view of the rotating unit provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] Figure 11 A three-dimensional diagram of a rotating unit provided in an embodiment of the present invention without a side panel.

[0037] Figure 12 Schematic diagram of the worm gear of the rotation unit provided by an embodiment of the present invention rotating clockwise.

[0038] Figure 13Schematic diagram of the worm gear of the rotation unit provided by an embodiment of the present invention rotating counterclockwise.

[0039] In the figure: 1. Transmission mechanism; 11. Moving unit; 111. Screw slide; 112. First bevel gear; 113. Second bevel gear; 114. Magnetic fluid seal; 115. Mounting hole; 116. Slider; 117. Adapter plate; 12. Lifting unit; 121. Second driving mechanism; 122. Mounting plate; 123. Coupling; 124. Screw; 125. Fixed plate; 126. First bearing seat; 127. Lifting seat; 128. Lifting rod; 129. Lifting plate; 13. Rotating unit; 131. Third driving mechanism; 132. Worm gear; 133. Side plate; 134. Worm; 135. First pulley; 136 , second pulley; 137, second bearing seat; 138, rotating shaft; 139, third pulley; 1310, fourth pulley; 1311, middle bushing; 1312, first robot fixed seat; 1313, second robot fixed seat; 1314, conveyor belt; 14, first robot; 15, second robot; 16, adsorption port; 2, vacuum process chamber; 21, XY axis moving platform; 22, Z axis moving platform; 23, first monitoring mechanism; 24, second monitoring mechanism; 25, electrostatic chuck; 251, receiving tank; 3, pre-vacuum chamber; 31, wafer pre-alignment equipment; 4, electrical cabinet; 5, first valve; 6, second valve. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] The technical solution of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the embodiments described are only some embodiments of the present invention, not all embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field based on the embodiments of the present invention without making any creative efforts shall fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0041] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "center," "up," "down," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "inside," and "outside" and the like, indicating orientations or positional relationships, are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are intended only to facilitate the description of the present invention and simplify the description. They do not indicate or imply that the devices or components referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed, or operate in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on the present invention. Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance. The terms "first position" and "second position" refer to two different positions.

[0042] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," and "connected" should be understood broadly. For example, they may refer to fixed or detachable connections; mechanical or electrical connections; direct or indirect connections through an intermediary; and connections within two components. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention.

[0043] In semiconductor equipment, wafers need to be moved from one workstation to another. During the process of transporting and transferring wafers, actions such as receiving, placing, lifting and translating are usually required. An embodiment of the present invention provides a wafer transfer system that can realize the transfer and exchange of wafers between different workstations.

[0044] Please refer to Figure 1 、 Figure 2 、 Figure 3 、 Figure 4 and Figure 5 The wafer transfer system includes a vacuum process chamber 2, a pre-vacuum chamber 3 and an electrical cabinet 4. The pre-vacuum chamber 3 and the electrical cabinet 4 are connected to the side of the vacuum process chamber 2. A first valve 5 is provided on one side of the pre-vacuum chamber 3. The pre-vacuum chamber 3 is connected to the front-end module of the semiconductor device (not shown in the figure) through the first valve 5. A wafer pre-alignment device (Aligner) 31 for calibrating wafers is provided inside the pre-vacuum chamber 3. The wafer pre-alignment device 31 also serves as a carrier to receive wafers transported from the front-end module of the semiconductor device. The side of the pre-vacuum chamber 3 is connected to the vacuum process chamber 2 through a second valve 6.

[0045] In some embodiments, an XY-axis moving platform 21 and a Z-axis moving platform 22 connected to the XY-axis moving platform 21 are provided inside the vacuum process chamber 2, and an electrostatic chuck 25 for adsorbing the wafer is provided on the Z-axis moving platform 22; the XY-axis moving platform 21 is used to drive the Z-axis moving platform 22 to translate in two orthogonal directions, and the Z-axis moving platform 22 is used to drive the wafer to move up and down.

[0046] In this embodiment, the XY-axis moving platform 21 can be driven by a direct-drive motor and can perform X-axis and Y-axis translation in the vacuum process chamber 2; the Z-axis moving platform 22 is installed on the XY-axis moving platform 21, and the XY-axis moving platform 21 can drive the Z-axis moving platform 22 to translate along the orthogonal X-axis and Y-axis, and the Z-axis moving platform 22 can drive the wafer to perform Z-axis lifting and lowering movement, so that the wafer carried on the top surface of the Z-axis moving platform 22 can translate along the orthogonal X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis three directions to drive the wafer to move to the detection position for detection.

[0047] Optionally, the vacuum process chamber 2 is equipped with a first monitoring mechanism 23 and a second monitoring mechanism 24, wherein the first monitoring mechanism 23 is used to monitor the movement of the XY axis moving platform 21 along the X axis direction, and the second monitoring mechanism 24 is used to monitor the movement of the XY axis moving platform 21 along the Y axis direction.

[0048] Semiconductor lasers can be used for the first monitoring mechanism 23 and the second monitoring mechanism 24. In this embodiment, the first monitoring mechanism 23 is installed on the side of the vacuum process chamber 2, and the second monitoring mechanism 24 is installed at the rear of the vacuum process chamber 2.

[0049] Please refer to Figures 3 to 11 In some embodiments, the transmission mechanism 1 is arranged in the vacuum process chamber 2, and the wafer is grabbed from the pre-vacuum chamber 3 and placed on the Z-axis moving platform of the vacuum process chamber 2 through the movement of the robot. The transmission mechanism 1 includes a moving unit 11, a lifting unit 12 and a rotating unit 13. The lifting unit 12 is installed on the moving unit 11, and the rotating unit 13 is installed on the lifting unit 12. The rotating unit 13 is connected to a first robot 14 and a second robot 15; the moving unit 11 is used to drive the lifting unit 12 and the rotating unit 13 to move along the X-axis direction, the lifting unit 12 is used to drive the rotating unit 13 to move along the Z-axis direction, and the rotating unit 13 is used to drive the first robot 14 and the second robot 15 to rotate.

[0050] Optionally, the electrostatic chuck 25 is provided with a receiving slot 251 for the first manipulator 14 and the second manipulator 15 to pass through. Figure 5 For example, the first robot 14 and the second robot 15 can penetrate into the receiving groove 251 of the electrostatic chuck 25, thereby avoiding interference with the wafer on the electrostatic chuck 25, making it easier to take and place the wafer.

[0051] In some embodiments, the moving unit 11 includes a screw slide 111 fixedly installed at the bottom of the vacuum process chamber 2, a first bevel gear 112 connected to one end of the screw in the screw slide 111, a second bevel gear 113 meshing with the first bevel gear 112, and a magnetic fluid seal 114 installed in a mounting hole 115 opened at the bottom of the vacuum process chamber 2, the output shaft of the magnetic fluid seal 114 is fixedly connected to the second bevel gear 113, the input end of the magnetic fluid seal 114 is connected to a first driving mechanism (not shown in the figure) for driving it to rotate, the first driving mechanism is installed on the outside of the vacuum process chamber 2, the screw in the screw slide 111 is connected to a slider 116, and the slider 116 is fixedly connected to an adapter plate 117.

[0052] In this embodiment, a screw slide 111 is installed at the bottom of the vacuum process chamber 2, and a boss for fixing the screw slide 111 is provided at the bottom of the vacuum process chamber 2. One end of the screw in the screw slide 111 is connected to the first bevel gear 112, and the second bevel gear 113 is arranged at 90 degrees with the first bevel gear 112 and meshes with each other to form a pair of bevel gear pairs. A magnetic fluid seal 114 is also installed at the bottom of the vacuum process chamber 2. The vacuum process chamber 2 is provided with a mounting hole 115 for accommodating the magnetic fluid seal 114. The first drive mechanism is installed on the outside of the vacuum process chamber 2 for driving the magnetic fluid seal 114 to rotate. The magnetic fluid seal 114 transmits the rotational motion from the atmospheric side outside the vacuum process chamber 2 to the vacuum side inside the vacuum process chamber 2, while ensuring airtightness. The output shaft of the magnetic fluid seal 114 is connected to the second bevel gear 113. The meshing of the first bevel gear 112 and the second bevel gear 113 drives the screw in the screw slide 111 to rotate, thereby driving the slider 116 connected to the screw in the screw slide 111 and the adapter plate 117 fixedly connected to the slider 116 to reciprocate along the X-axis. The first drive mechanism can be a rotary motor.

[0053] In another embodiment, unlike the structure of the movable unit 11 described above, the movable unit 11 can also use a direct-drive motor to achieve displacement in the X-axis direction. For example, a linear motor can be arranged within the vacuum process chamber 2, with the motor's stator fixed to the base of the vacuum process chamber 2, the motor's mover fixedly connected to the lifting unit 12, and two linear guides provided on the base of the vacuum process chamber 2 for support and guidance. The lifting unit 12 is mounted on the sliders of the linear guides. When powered, the linear motor can directly drive the entire structure to achieve reciprocating motion in the X-axis direction.

[0054] In some embodiments, the lifting unit 12 includes a mounting plate 122 and a fixed plate 125 fixedly connected to the adapter plate 117, the mounting plate 122 is fixedly installed with a second driving mechanism 121, the output end of the second driving mechanism 121 is connected to a screw 124 through a coupling 123, the fixed plate 125 is fixedly connected to a first bearing seat 126, a bearing is installed in the first bearing seat 126, and the screw 124 is installed in the bearing of the first bearing seat 126; the screw 124 is externally threadedly connected to a lifting seat 127, and the lifting seat 127 is fixedly connected to a lifting plate 129 through a number of lifting rods 128, and the second driving mechanism 121 is used to drive the screw 124 to rotate, so that the lifting seat 127 threadedly connected to the screw 124 and the lifting plate 129 fixedly connected to the lifting seat 127 can perform lifting movements.

[0055] In this embodiment, the second drive mechanism 121 is mounted on a mounting plate 122. A through hole for accommodating a coupling 123 is provided in the middle of the mounting plate 122. The output end of the second drive mechanism 121 is connected to the lead screw 124 via the coupling 123. A fixing plate 125 is also installed on one side of the mounting plate 122. Two first bearing seats 126 are mounted on the fixing plate 125. The two first bearing seats 126 are respectively provided above and in the middle of the fixing plate 125. Bearings for positioning the lead screw 124 are fixedly installed in the first bearing seats 126 to ensure smooth rotation of the lead screw 124. The lead screw 124 is externally threaded with a lifting seat 127. A lifting rod 128 is installed on the lifting seat 127. A lifting plate 129 is installed at the other end of the lifting rod 128. Optionally, the lifting rods 128 can be arranged in two or three symmetrical arrangements to achieve a stable support effect. The second driving mechanism 121 drives the lead screw 124 to rotate, driving the lifting seat 127 threadedly connected to the lead screw 124 and the lifting plate 129 fixedly connected to the lifting seat 127 to perform lifting movements, thereby achieving the lifting movement of the lifting unit 12. The second driving mechanism 121 can be a rotary motor.

[0056] In some embodiments, the rotating unit 13 includes a conveyor belt 1314 and a third driving mechanism 131 fixedly mounted on the lifting plate 129, the output end of the third driving mechanism 131 is connected to a worm gear 132, the third driving mechanism 131 is used to drive the worm gear 132 to rotate, the side of the lifting plate 129 is fixedly mounted with a side plate 133, the side plate 133 is mounted with a worm 134, the worm 134 is meshed with the worm gear 132; one end of the worm 134 is fixedly connected to a first pulley 135 that rotates synchronously with the worm 134, and the other end is movably connected to a second pulley 136 that can rotate around the worm 134; a second bearing seat 137 is fixedly mounted on the lifting plate 129, a bearing is mounted in the second bearing seat 137, and the second bearing seat 137 is engaged with the worm gear 132. A rotating shaft 138 is installed in the bearing, and the rotating shaft 138 is fixedly connected to the fourth pulley 1310 and the first manipulator fixed seat 1312, and the rotating shaft 138, the fourth pulley 1310 and the first manipulator fixed seat 1312 rotate synchronously; the rotating shaft 138 is outerly provided with a middle bushing 1311, and the middle bushing 1311 is outerly installed with a third pulley 139 and a second manipulator fixed seat 1313 fixedly connected to the third pulley 139, and the third pulley 139 and the second manipulator fixed seat 1313 can rotate synchronously around the rotating shaft 138; one end of the conveyor belt 1314 is connected to the first pulley 135, and the other end passes around the third pulley 139 and the fourth pulley 1310 and is connected to the second pulley 136.

[0057] Optionally, the first manipulator fixed seat 1312, the second manipulator fixed seat 1313, the third pulley 139, and the fourth pulley 1310 are arranged in sequence from top to bottom; the first pulley 135 and the second pulley 136 are coaxially arranged, the third pulley 139 and the fourth pulley 1310 are coaxially arranged, and the worm 134 is perpendicular to the rotating shaft 138.

[0058] In this embodiment, the third drive mechanism 131 is installed on the lifting plate 129, which is an L-shaped plate. The worm gear 132 is installed at the output end of the third drive mechanism 131. Two side plates 133 are installed on the side of the lifting plate 129. The side plates 133 are used to install a worm 134. A first pulley 135 is fixedly connected to one end of the worm 134. The first pulley 135 can rotate synchronously with the rotation of the worm 134. The other end of the worm 134 is movably connected to a second pulley 136 that can rotate around it. Among them, the worm 134 is installed in the side plate 133 through a bushing. The installation and positioning of the worm 134 is achieved by the bushing. The second pulley 136 is installed on the bushing. A second bearing seat 137 is installed above the lifting plate 129. A bearing is installed in the second bearing seat 137. The rotating shaft 138 is installed in the inner hole of the bearing in the second bearing seat 137. A fourth pulley 1310 is fixedly connected to the lower end of rotating shaft 138. A first manipulator mounting base 1312 is mounted at the upper end of rotating shaft 138. Rotating shaft 138, fourth pulley 1310, and first manipulator mounting base 1312 rotate synchronously. A middle bushing 1311 is sleeved in the middle of rotating shaft 138. This stepped bushing 1311 is used to secure a second manipulator mounting base 1313 and a third pulley 139. Below second manipulator mounting base 1313, a third pulley 139 is fixedly connected. The second manipulator mounting base 1313 and the third pulley 139 are sleeved outside the middle bushing 1311 and can rotate freely about rotating shaft 138. A conveyor belt 1314 connects the first pulley 135 and second pulley 136 on worm gear 134, and the third pulley 139 and fourth pulley 1310 on rotating shaft 138. The third drive mechanism 131 can be a rotary motor.

[0059] Furthermore, the first robot fixing seat 1312 is installed with a first robot 14, and the second robot fixing seat 1313 is installed with a second robot 15. The first robot 14 is located above the second robot 15. The first robot 14 and the second robot 15 are U-shaped structures for receiving wafers; optionally, the first robot 14 and the second robot 15 are provided with adsorption ports 16 for adsorbing wafers.

[0060] In this embodiment, the first robot 14 and the second robot 15 are U-shaped structures, which are convenient for receiving and placing wafers. They are installed on the coaxially rotating first robot fixing seat 1312 and the second robot fixing seat 1313. Adsorption ports 16 can be set on the left, right and middle of the robot U-shaped structure for adsorbing and fixing wafers.

[0061] The third driving mechanism 131 of the rotating unit 13 drives the worm gear 132 to rotate, and the worm gear 132 drives the worm 134 and the first pulley 135 fixedly connected to the worm 134 to rotate. Figure 12 For example, Figure 12 The worm wheel 132 in the middle rotates clockwise, driving the worm 134 to rotate clockwise. The first pulley 135 and the worm 134 rotate clockwise synchronously, driving the conveyor belt 1314 to rotate. At this time, the rotation direction of the second pulley 136 is opposite to that of the worm 134. The third pulley 139 above begins to rotate counterclockwise under the action of the conveyor belt 1314, thereby driving the second manipulator fixed seat 1313 fixedly connected to the third pulley 139 and the second manipulator 15 fixedly connected to the second manipulator fixed seat 1313 to rotate counterclockwise. The fourth pulley 1310 below rotates clockwise under the action of the conveyor belt 1314, thereby driving the rotating shaft 138 fixedly connected to the fourth pulley 1310, the first manipulator fixed seat 1312 fixedly connected to the rotating shaft 138, and the first manipulator 14 to rotate clockwise.

[0062] Similarly, Figure 13 For example, Figure 13 The worm wheel 132 in the middle rotates counterclockwise, driving the worm 134 to rotate counterclockwise. The first pulley 135 and the worm 134 rotate counterclockwise synchronously, driving the conveyor belt 1314 to rotate. At this time, the rotation direction of the second pulley 136 is opposite to that of the worm 134. The third pulley 139 above begins to rotate clockwise under the action of the conveyor belt 1314, thereby driving the second manipulator fixed seat 1313 fixedly connected to the third pulley 139 and the second manipulator 15 fixedly connected to the second manipulator fixed seat 1313 to rotate clockwise. The fourth pulley 1310 below rotates counterclockwise under the action of the conveyor belt 1314, thereby driving the rotating shaft 138 fixedly connected to the fourth pulley 1310, the first manipulator fixed seat 1312 fixedly connected to the rotating shaft 138, and the first manipulator 14 to rotate counterclockwise.

[0063] Thus, the structure of the rotation unit 13 enables the coaxial counter-rotation of the upper and lower first and second manipulators 14 and 15, driven by a single drive motor. Simultaneously, the primary reduction of the worm gear 132 and worm 134, and the secondary reduction of the first pulley 135, second pulley 136, third pulley 139, fourth pulley 1310, and conveyor belt 1314, achieves deceleration of the drive motor, resulting in a more compact structure.

[0064] Therefore, the bottom of the transmission mechanism 1 of the wafer transmission system provided by the present invention transmits the motion into the vacuum process chamber 2 through the magnetic fluid seal 114, and then the motion is transmitted to the screw in the screw slide 111 through the bevel gear pair formed by the engagement of the second bevel gear 113 and the first bevel gear 112, driving the slider 116 to reciprocate along the X-axis direction. The slider 116 is connected to an adapter plate 117, and the adapter plate 117 is fixed on the mounting plate 122, which can drive the lifting unit 12 and the rotating unit 13 to reciprocate along the X-axis direction. The lifting rod 128 of the lifting unit 12 is arranged and installed below the lifting plate 129, and the second driving mechanism 121 drives the lifting seat 127 to perform lifting motion, so as to drive the lifting plate 129 and the rotating unit 13 installed on the lifting plate 129 to perform lifting motion, thereby realizing the lifting motion of the transmission mechanism 1 along the Z-axis direction. The rotation unit 13 uses a drive motor to drive the worm gear 132. The coordination between the worm gear 132 and the worm 134, and the coordination between the first pulley 135, the second pulley 136, the third pulley 139, the fourth pulley 1310, and the conveyor belt 1314, enables the coaxial and counter-rotating rotation of the first and second manipulators 14 and 15. The combination of the reciprocating motion of the mobile unit 11 in the X-axis direction, the lifting motion of the jacking unit 12 in the Z-axis direction, and the rotational motion of the rotation unit 13 enables the transfer and placement of wafers between different workstations.

[0065] The following describes the process of wafer transmission by the wafer transmission system provided by the present invention, including conveying wafers and exchanging wafers.

[0066] The first wafer transfer includes:

[0067] S11, the first robot 14 moves to the pre-vacuum chamber 3, lifts and takes the wafer, and then exits the pre-vacuum chamber 3;

[0068] S12: When the first robot 14 takes the wafer and exits, the Z-axis moving platform 22 has moved to the receiving position, and the first robot 14 rotates 90 degrees clockwise to above the receiving position;

[0069] S13 , the first robot 14 descends and places the wafer on the Z-axis moving platform 22 , and the Z-axis moving platform 22 moves back to the detection position to start detection.

[0070] The exchange wafer includes:

[0071] S21, the first robot 14 moves toward the pre-vacuum chamber 3, the first robot 14 lifts and obtains the first wafer, and the first robot 14 exits the pre-vacuum chamber 3;

[0072] S22, the second mechanical arm 15 is lowered, the Z-axis moving platform 22 is moved to a receiving position, the second mechanical arm 15 is raised and connected to the second wafer, the first mechanical arm 14 is rotated clockwise by 90 degrees, the second mechanical arm 15 is rotated counterclockwise by 90 degrees, and the exchange of the first wafer and the second wafer is completed;

[0073] S23, the first mechanical arm 14 is lowered, the first wafer falls on the Z-axis moving platform 22, and the Z-axis moving platform 22 retreats to a detection position to start detection;

[0074] S24, the second mechanical arm 15 is raised and moved to the pre-evacuation cavity 3, the second mechanical arm 15 is lowered and the second wafer is placed on the wafer pre-alignment device 31, the second mechanical arm 15 exits the pre-evacuation cavity 3, after exiting, the second mechanical arm 15 is rotated clockwise by 90 degrees, the first mechanical arm 14 is rotated counterclockwise by 90 degrees, and returns to the initial state;

[0075] S25, the wafer in the pre-evacuation cavity 3 that has completed detection is taken out, and after a new undetected wafer is placed in the pre-evacuation cavity 3, the above steps S21 to S25 are cycled to start a new exchange cycle.

[0076] Wherein: the first wafer is an undetected wafer, and the second wafer is a detected wafer.

[0077] In summary, the wafer conveying system provided by the application has the following advantages:

[0078] 1. Unlike the vacuum mechanical arm used in the prior art, which is expensive and complex in structure, the wafer conveying system provided by the application has a compact structure, can simultaneously realize X-axis direction movement, Z-axis direction movement and rotation movement around the Z-axis, has a wide movement range, greatly increases the travel coverage range of movement, relies on the movement of the mechanical arm to complete wafer conveying and picking operations, and does not need the complex jacking mechanism in the existing device. Moreover, the structure of the rotating unit of the conveying mechanism realizes coaxial reverse rotation of the upper and lower first mechanical arm and the second mechanical arm under the driving of one driving motor, and the mechanical arm only needs to rotate by 90 degrees, thereby reducing the turning radius and effectively reducing the volume of the cavity; meanwhile, through one-stage reduction of the worm and the worm gear and two-stage reduction of the first pulley, the second pulley, the third pulley, the fourth pulley and the conveyor belt, the driving motor is reduced in speed, and the structure is more compact.

[0079] 2. Unlike the existing method of rotating the mechanical arm by 180 degrees to convey wafers, the mechanical arm provided by the application rotates by 90 degrees, which can greatly reduce the volume of the vacuum process cavity 2, and the cavity of the vacuum process cavity 2 can be made to be 850mm*1400mm, which, in combination with the pre-evacuation cavity 3 and the electric cabinet 4 installed on the side, greatly saves the floor area compared with the scheme of using the pre-evacuation cavity 3 in front and the electric cabinet 4 in back and rotating the mechanical arm by 180 degrees.

[0080] 3. The conventional wafer transfer process involves the semiconductor equipment front-end module receiving the wafer to be tested from the wafer cassette. The robot then places the wafer on the wafer pre-alignment device 31 within the semiconductor equipment front-end module for calibration. After calibration, the wafer is transferred to the wafer stage of the pre-vacuum chamber 3. From the pre-vacuum chamber 3, the wafer is transferred to the electrostatic chuck 25 of the vacuum process chamber 2. The wafer transfer system provided by the present invention directly places the wafer pre-alignment device 31 within the pre-vacuum chamber 3, eliminating a transfer step. Calibration is performed during the wafer transfer process, saving time. After calibration, the wafer is directly transferred to the vacuum process chamber 2, reducing error accumulation during the transfer process and improving positioning accuracy.

[0081] 4. The manipulator of the existing wafer transfer mechanism does not have a structure for up and down movement. It is usually necessary to set a lifting mechanism in the pre-vacuum chamber 3 and a lifting mechanism in the vacuum process chamber 2. The manipulator of the wafer transfer system provided by the present invention has a lifting function in the Z-axis direction, which simplifies the overall structure and saves costs. In addition, in the existing wafer transfer mechanism, the lifting of the pre-vacuum chamber 3 and the lifting of the vacuum process chamber 2 usually take about 5 seconds, which takes up a lot of wafer transfer time. The wafer transfer system provided by the present invention uses the lifting of the manipulator, which is different from the lifting method of performing structural conversion outside the vacuum process chamber 2. The present invention can greatly speed up the wafer transfer time and improve the operating efficiency and throughput of the equipment.

[0082] 5. Existing equipment has a complex wafer transfer mechanism, occupies a large area, and uses a vacuum manipulator that is expensive. The present invention adjusts the layout of the pre-vacuum chamber 3, placing it on the side of the vacuum process chamber 2. The electrical cabinet 4 is also located on the side of the vacuum process chamber 2. Furthermore, through the integrated design of the rotary manipulator, the equipment structure is simplified while reducing the equipment footprint. Furthermore, compared to the arrangement of the electrical cabinet 4 behind the vacuum process chamber 2, since the second monitoring mechanism 24 is also installed behind the vacuum process chamber 2, the new arrangement avoids blocking the adjustment space of the second monitoring mechanism 24, facilitating adjustment.

[0083] In addition, an embodiment of the present invention further provides a semiconductor device, which includes the above-mentioned wafer transfer system. Since the semiconductor device uses any one of the above-mentioned wafer transfer systems, it has all the above-mentioned advantages.

[0084] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, rather than to limit the same. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or make equivalent replacements for some of the technical features therein. These modifications or replacements do not deviate the essence of the corresponding technical solutions from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the various embodiments of the present invention, and should all be included in the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wafer transfer system, characterized in that: include: A vacuum process chamber (2) is provided with a transmission mechanism (1) in a vacuum state, wherein the transmission mechanism (1) comprises a moving unit (11), a lifting unit (12) and a rotating unit (13), wherein the lifting unit (12) is mounted on the moving unit (11), and the rotating unit (13) is mounted on the lifting unit (12), and the rotating unit (13) is connected to a first manipulator (14) and a second manipulator (15); the moving unit (11) is used to drive the lifting unit (12) and the rotating unit (13) to perform reciprocating motion, the lifting unit (12) is used to drive the rotating unit (13) to perform lifting motion, and the rotating unit (13) is used to drive the first manipulator (14) and the second manipulator (15) to perform coaxial counter-rotating motion, with a maximum rotation angle of 90 degrees; A pre-vacuum chamber (3) is provided on a side of the vacuum process chamber (2); the pre-vacuum chamber (3) is connected to the vacuum process chamber (2) via a second valve (6) on one side, and a first valve (5) is provided on another side; An electrical cabinet (4) is arranged on a side of the vacuum process chamber (2); The rotating unit (13) includes a conveyor belt (1314), a third driving mechanism (131) and a rotating shaft (138) installed on the lifting unit (12), the output end of the third driving mechanism (131) is connected to a worm wheel (132), the worm wheel (132) is meshed with a worm (134), one end of the worm (134) is fixedly connected to a first pulley (135) that rotates synchronously with the worm, and the other end is movably connected to a second pulley (136) that can rotate around the worm; the rotating shaft (138) is fixedly connected to a fourth pulley (1310) and a first manipulator fixed seat (1312), the rotating shaft (138), the fourth pulley (1310) and the first manipulator fixed seat (1312) are fixedly connected to the ... 310), and the first manipulator fixed seat (1312) rotate synchronously; the outer sleeve of the rotating shaft (138) is provided with a middle bushing (1311), and the third pulley (139) and the second manipulator fixed seat (1313) fixedly connected to the third pulley (139) are installed outside the middle bushing (1311), and the third pulley (139) and the second manipulator fixed seat (1313) can rotate synchronously around the rotating shaft (138); one end of the conveyor belt (1314) is connected to the first pulley (135), and the other end passes around the third pulley (139), the fourth pulley (1310) and is connected to the second pulley (136).

2. A wafer transfer system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The lifting unit (12) includes a lifting plate (129) connected to the rotating unit (13), a side plate (133) is fixedly mounted on the side of the lifting plate (129), and the worm (134) is mounted on the side plate (133); the lifting plate (129) is fixedly mounted with a second bearing seat (137), a bearing is mounted in the second bearing seat (137), and the rotating shaft (138) is mounted in the bearing of the second bearing seat (137).

3. The wafer transport system according to claim 1, wherein: The first manipulator fixing seat (1312) is fixedly connected to the first manipulator (14), and the second manipulator fixing seat (1313) is fixedly connected to the second manipulator (15). The first manipulator (14) and the second manipulator (15) are U-shaped structures for receiving wafers. The first manipulator (14) and the second manipulator (15) are provided with adsorption ports (16) for adsorbing wafers.

4. The wafer transport system according to claim 1, wherein: The moving unit (11) includes a lead screw slide (111) fixedly mounted on the bottom of the vacuum process chamber (2), a first bevel gear (112) connected to one end of a lead screw in the lead screw slide (111), a second bevel gear (113) meshing with the first bevel gear (112), and a magnetic fluid seal (114) mounted in a mounting hole (115) opened at the bottom of the vacuum process chamber (2), wherein the output shaft of the magnetic fluid seal (114) is fixedly connected to the second bevel gear (113), the input end of the magnetic fluid seal (114) is connected to a first driving mechanism for driving the magnetic fluid seal (114) to rotate, and the first driving mechanism is mounted outside the vacuum process chamber (2), the lead screw in the lead screw slide (111) is connected to a slider (116), and the slider (116) is fixedly connected to an adapter plate (117).

5. The wafer transport system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The lifting unit (12) includes a mounting plate (122) and a fixing plate (125) fixedly connected to the adapter plate (117); the mounting plate (122) is fixedly mounted with a second driving mechanism (121); the output end of the second driving mechanism (121) is connected to a lead screw (124) via a coupling (123); the fixing plate (125) is fixedly connected to a first bearing seat (126); a bearing is installed in the first bearing seat (126); the lead screw (124) is installed on In the bearing of the first bearing seat (126); the lead screw (124) is externally threadedly connected to a lifting seat (127), and the lifting seat (127) is fixedly connected to a lifting plate (129) through a plurality of lifting rods (128); the second driving mechanism (121) is used to drive the lead screw (124) to rotate, so that the lifting seat (127) threadedly connected to the lead screw (124) and the lifting plate (129) fixedly connected to the lifting seat (127) perform lifting movements.

6. The wafer transport system according to claim 1, wherein: The pre-vacuum chamber (3) is connected to the front-end module of the semiconductor device via a first valve (5). A wafer pre-alignment device (31) for calibrating wafers is provided inside the pre-vacuum chamber (3). The wafer pre-alignment device (31) also serves as a carrier to receive wafers transported from the front-end module of the semiconductor device.

7. The wafer transport system according to claim 1, wherein: The vacuum process chamber (2) is provided with an XY-axis moving platform (21) and a Z-axis moving platform (22) connected to the XY-axis moving platform (21), the Z-axis moving platform (22) is provided with an electrostatic chuck (25) for adsorbing wafers, and the electrostatic chuck (25) is provided with a receiving groove (251) for the first robot (14) and the second robot (15) to pass through; the XY-axis moving platform (21) is used to drive the Z-axis moving platform (22) to translate in two orthogonal directions, and the Z-axis moving platform (22) is used to drive the wafer to move up and down.

8. The wafer transport system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The vacuum process chamber (2) is equipped with a first monitoring mechanism (23) and a second monitoring mechanism (24), wherein the first monitoring mechanism (23) is used to monitor the movement of the XY-axis moving platform (21) along the X-axis direction, and the second monitoring mechanism (24) is used to monitor the movement of the XY-axis moving platform (21) along the Y-axis direction.

9. A semiconductor device, characterized in that: A wafer transfer system comprising any one of claims 1-8.

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