Carrier plate, load lock chamber, substrate processing system, and method for transporting substrate carrier plate

Abstract

The invention provides a loading disc, a loading lock chamber, a substrate processing system and a substrate and loading disc conveying method. At least three through holes are formed in the carrying disc, and the at least three through holes correspond to the at least three jacking parts in the substrate lifting unit in a one-to-one mode. The loading disc control unit in the loading locking chamber can control the loading disc to rotate so as to position the loading disc, after the at least three through holes of the loading disc are aligned with the at least three jacking parts of the substrate lifting unit, the at least three jacking parts can penetrate through the at least three through holes so as to bear or jack the substrate, and therefore automatic feeding and discharging of the substrate can be achieved. The substrate processing system comprises a substrate storage station, a carrying disc storage station and a loading cavity station, and the loading locking chamber is arranged on the loading cavity station. According to the transmission method, the manipulator can transmit the substrate and / or the carrying disc between the stations, automatic feeding and discharging of the substrate and the carrying disc are achieved, human errors are avoided, and the efficiency of the substrate processing system is improved. And the efficiency of the whole semiconductor process manufacturing procedure is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates primarily to the field of semiconductor technology, and more particularly to a carrier disk, a loading locking chamber, a substrate processing system, and a method for transferring substrate and carrier disk. Background Technology

[0002] In semiconductor manufacturing processes that handle wafers, wafer transfer is often required. In traditional wafer handling, when the wafer is placed in the substrate transfer cavity, it is usually handled manually using a wafer pick-and-place pen. This requires operators to be constantly near the machine, resulting in low automation. In epitaxial processes such as silicon carbide (SiC), the wafer and carrier pad are transferred synchronously. The carrier pad has grooves to hold the wafer in place, preventing it from falling out. However, this also prevents robotic arms from directly handling the wafer, requiring manual handling with a wafer pick-and-place pen, thus hindering automation. Furthermore, manual handling carries the risk of human error. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a carrier tray, a loading and locking chamber, a substrate processing system, and a method for transferring substrates and carrier trays to solve the above-mentioned technical problems.

[0004] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this application provides a carrier tray, which includes a carrier tray body and a substrate support groove. The substrate support groove is recessed downward from the upper surface of the carrier tray body. The carrier tray also includes at least three through holes, which penetrate vertically through the bottom of the substrate support groove and the lower surface of the carrier tray body. The carrier tray body is provided with at least one positioning mark.

[0005] To address the aforementioned technical problems, this application also provides a loading and locking chamber for loading a carrier tray and a substrate into a downstream chamber or receiving the carrier tray and the substrate from the downstream chamber. The carrier tray is the aforementioned carrier tray. The loading and locking chamber includes a loading and locking chamber cavity, a carrier tray control unit, and a substrate lifting unit. The carrier tray control unit and the substrate lifting unit are all or partly located inside the loading and locking chamber cavity. The carrier tray control unit is used to position the carrier tray. The substrate lifting unit includes at least three lifting portions, each corresponding to at least three through holes on the carrier tray. When the at least three through holes are aligned with the at least three lifting portions, the at least three lifting portions can pass through the at least three through holes to receive or lift the substrate.

[0006] In one embodiment of this application, the carrier disk control unit includes a platform, a rotation drive unit, a clamping drive unit, and a clamping unit; the platform includes a platform body and a hole, the hole penetrating the platform body in a vertical direction, the carrier disk is supported on the platform, and a portion of the substrate lifting unit is located in the hole; the rotation drive unit is used to drive the platform to rotate; the clamping unit is mounted on the platform, and the clamping drive unit is used to drive the clamping unit to move, thereby clamping or releasing the carrier disk.

[0007] In one embodiment of this application, at least three clamping portions are included; the at least three clamping portions are movably disposed on the platform along the radial direction of the carrier disk; the clamping drive portion is used to drive the at least three clamping portions to move along the radial direction of the carrier disk to clamp or release the carrier disk.

[0008] In one embodiment of this application, the carrier control unit further includes a positioning device. When the positioning device detects the positioning mark, the rotation drive unit stops driving the platform, at which time the at least three through holes are aligned with the at least three lifting parts.

[0009] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this application also provides a substrate processing system, including a substrate storage station, a carrier disk storage station, and a loading cavity station, wherein the loading cavity station is provided with a loading locking chamber as described above.

[0010] To address the aforementioned technical problems, this application also provides a method for transferring a substrate and a carrier disk, applied to the aforementioned substrate processing system. The method includes: a robotic arm acquiring an unprocessed substrate from the substrate storage station; the robotic arm transferring the unprocessed substrate to the loading cavity station, so that the unprocessed substrate is placed on the at least three lifting portions; and the substrate lifting unit lowering the at least three lifting portions, the substrate descending into the substrate carrying groove.

[0011] In one embodiment of this application, the substrate processing system further includes a substrate edge-finding calibration station, wherein an edge-finding calibration device is provided at the substrate edge-finding calibration station; after the robot arm obtains the unprocessed substrate from the substrate storage station, the system further includes: the robot arm transferring the unprocessed substrate to the substrate edge-finding calibration station, wherein the edge-finding calibration device positions the unprocessed substrate according to a first preset position information.

[0012] In one embodiment of this application, the method further includes: before, simultaneously with, or after the processed substrate and carrier are transported to the loading chamber station, the substrate lifting unit causes the at least three lifting portions to pass through the at least three through holes and rise to lift the processed substrate; and the robot arm obtains the processed substrate from the loading chamber station and transfers the processed substrate to the substrate storage station.

[0013] In one embodiment of this application, the substrate processing system further includes a substrate edge-finding calibration station, wherein an edge-finding calibration device is provided at the substrate edge-finding calibration station; after the robot arm obtains the processed substrate from the loading cavity station, the system further includes: the robot arm transferring the processed substrate to the substrate edge-finding calibration station, wherein the edge-finding calibration device positions the processed substrate according to a second preset position information.

[0014] In one embodiment of this application, the method further includes: the substrate lifting unit lowering the at least three lifting portions, and the clamping drive unit in the tray control unit driving the clamping portions to release the tray; the robot arm acquiring the tray from the loading cavity station; the robot arm transferring the tray to the tray storage station and acquiring another tray from the tray storage station; and the robot arm transferring the other tray to the loading cavity station.

[0015] The carrier tray of this application has at least three through holes, each corresponding to one of the at least three lifting portions in the substrate lifting unit. This type of carrier tray makes it possible to separate the carrier tray and the substrate through the provided substrate lifting unit. In the loading locking chamber of this application, the carrier tray control unit can control the rotation of the carrier tray to position it. After the at least three through holes of the carrier tray are aligned with the at least three lifting portions of the substrate lifting unit, the at least three lifting portions can pass through the at least three through holes to receive or lift the substrate, thereby realizing automatic loading and unloading of the substrate. The substrate processing system of this application includes a substrate storage station, a carrier tray storage station, and a loading cavity station. The loading locking chamber of this application is provided in the loading cavity station. Combined with the substrate and carrier tray transfer method of this application, the robot can transfer the substrate and / or carrier tray between various stations according to the process steps, realizing automatic loading and unloading of the substrate and carrier tray, avoiding human error, and improving the efficiency of the overall semiconductor process. Attached Figure Description

[0016] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of this application; they are incorporated into and constitute a part of this application. The drawings illustrate embodiments of this application and, together with this specification, serve to explain the principles of this application. In the drawings:

[0017] Figure 1This is a schematic diagram of a carrier disk on which a substrate is placed;

[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a carrier disk according to an embodiment of this application;

[0019] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 A top view of the carrier disk in the illustrated embodiment;

[0020] Figure 4 This is a partial schematic diagram of a substrate processing system including a loading and locking chamber according to an embodiment of this application;

[0021] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 An enlarged schematic diagram of the loading and locking chamber;

[0022] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 Exploded view of the carrier disk control unit and substrate lifting unit in the image;

[0023] Figure 7 This is a top view schematic diagram of a disk control unit according to an embodiment of this application;

[0024] Figure 8 This is a top view schematic diagram of a substrate processing system;

[0025] Figure 9 This is an exemplary flowchart of a method for transferring a substrate and a carrier disk according to an embodiment of this application;

[0026] Figure 10 This is a partial schematic diagram of a substrate processing system according to an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0027] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are merely some examples or embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, these drawings can be applied to other similar scenarios without creative effort. Unless obvious from the context or otherwise specified, the same reference numerals in the drawings represent the same structures or operations.

[0028] As indicated in this application, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the words "a," "an," "an," and / or "the" do not specifically refer to the singular and may also include the plural. Generally speaking, the terms "comprising" and "including" only indicate the inclusion of explicitly identified steps and elements, which do not constitute an exclusive list, and the method or apparatus may also include other steps or elements.

[0029] Unless otherwise specifically stated, the relative arrangement, numerical expressions, and values ​​of the components and steps described in these embodiments do not limit the scope of this application. It should also be understood that, for ease of description, the dimensions of the various parts shown in the drawings are not drawn to actual scale. Techniques, methods, and devices known to those skilled in the art may not be discussed in detail, but where appropriate, such techniques, methods, and devices should be considered part of the specification. In all examples shown and discussed herein, any specific values ​​should be interpreted as merely exemplary and not as limitations. Therefore, other examples of exemplary embodiments may have different values. It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters in the following drawings denote similar items; therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, it need not be further discussed in subsequent drawings.

[0030] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the orientation or positional relationship indicated by directional terms such as "front, back, up, down, left, right", "horizontal, vertical, horizontal" and "top, bottom" is usually based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and is only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description. Unless otherwise stated, these directional terms do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation on the scope of protection of this application; the directional terms "inner" and "outer" refer to the inner and outer contours relative to the outline of each component itself.

[0031] For ease of description, spatial relative terms such as "above," "on top of," "on the upper surface of," "above," etc., are used herein to describe the spatial positional relationship of a device or feature as shown in the figures to other devices or features. It should be understood that spatial relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations in use or operation beyond the orientation of the device as described in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures were inverted, a device described as "above" or "on top of" other devices or structures would subsequently be positioned as "below" or "under" other devices or structures. Thus, the exemplary term "above" can include both "above" and "below." The device may also be positioned in other different ways (rotated 90 degrees or in other orientations), and the spatial relative descriptions used herein will be interpreted accordingly.

[0032] Furthermore, it should be noted that the use of terms such as "first" and "second" to define components is merely for the purpose of distinguishing the corresponding components. Unless otherwise stated, these terms have no special meaning and therefore should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of this application. In addition, although the terminology used in this application is selected from commonly known and used terms, some terms mentioned in this application's specification may have been chosen by the applicant according to his or her judgment, and their detailed meanings are explained in the relevant sections of this description. Moreover, this application should be understood not only through the actual terms used, but also through the meaning implied by each term.

[0033] Flowcharts are used in this application to illustrate the operations performed by the system according to embodiments of this application. It should be understood that the preceding or following operations are not necessarily performed in exact order. Instead, various steps can be processed in reverse order or simultaneously. Furthermore, other operations may be added to these processes, or one or more steps may be removed from these processes.

[0034] Figure 1 This is a carrier tray for holding a substrate W. The carrier tray includes a base 110 and a groove 120 connected to each other. The groove 120 has a recess for holding the substrate W. For loading and unloading... Figure 1 The substrate W in the process requires manual placement and removal of the substrate W using a wafer pick-and-place pen.

[0035] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a carrier disk according to an embodiment of this application. Figure 3 yes Figure 2 A top view of the carrier disk in the illustrated embodiment. Figure 2 The image shown corresponds to the following: Figure 3 A cross-sectional view showing the position of the CC line. (Reference) Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the carrier tray 200 includes a carrier tray body 210 and a substrate carrier groove 220. The substrate carrier groove 220 is recessed downward from the upper surface 211 of the carrier tray body 210. The carrier tray 200 also includes at least three through holes 230, which penetrate vertically through the bottom 221 of the substrate carrier groove 220 and the lower surface 212 of the carrier tray body 210. The carrier tray body 210 is provided with at least one positioning mark. In the illustrated embodiment, a positioning opening 240 is provided on the outer edge of the carrier tray body 210.

[0036] Specifically, in this embodiment, the carrier disk body 210 is generally circular, and the corresponding substrate is also a circular wafer. When the substrate is of other shapes, such as square, the shape of the carrier disk body 210 is also adaptively square. This application does not limit the shape of the carrier disk body 210. The carrier disk body 210 also includes a groove 213 and a base 214 that are interconnected and coaxially arranged. The diameter of the base 214 is smaller than the diameter of the groove 213, which reduces the overall weight of the carrier disk.

[0037] exist Figure 2 and Figure 3 In the illustrated embodiment, the carrier tray 200 includes three through holes 230, each of the same size and evenly spaced along the circumferential direction. The through holes 230 penetrate the bottom of the groove 213 and the base 214. A positioning port 240 is located on the edge of the groove 213. This positioning port 240 is an open opening at one end, facing outwards from the carrier tray 200. The positioning port 240 is used by a positioning device to determine the position of the carrier tray 200, thereby aligning the three through holes 230 on the carrier tray 200 with the three lifting portions in the substrate lifting unit, allowing the three lifting portions to pass through the through holes 230 to receive or lift the substrate W. The positioning device and the lifting portions will be described later.

[0038] In one embodiment, the carrier disk 200 is a graphite carrier disk, and the substrate W to be carried by the carrier disk 200 is a silicon carbide epitaxial substrate. During the silicon carbide epitaxial deposition process, the carrier disk 200 and the substrate W are sent together into the process chamber for epitaxial deposition.

[0039] Figure 4 This is a partial schematic diagram of a substrate processing system including a loading and locking chamber according to an embodiment of this application. It shows a loading and locking chamber 400 and a downstream chamber. The loading and locking chamber 400 is used to load the carrier tray 200 and substrate W to the downstream chamber or to receive the carrier tray 200 and substrate W from the downstream chamber. It should be noted that this application does not limit the specific function and structure of the downstream chamber. The downstream chamber can be a process chamber, such as a process chamber for epitaxial processes, or a transfer chamber. A robot arm is provided in the transfer chamber, which can perform operations to pick up and place the carrier tray 200 and substrate W to transfer the carrier tray 200 and substrate W between a set location, such as between the loading and locking chamber and the epitaxial chamber. Figure 4 As shown, the downstream chamber may include a first chamber 401 and a second chamber 402. In some embodiments, the first chamber 401 is a wafer transfer chamber (i.e., the transfer chamber described above in this paragraph), and the second chamber 402 is a silicon carbide epitaxial chamber (i.e., a type of "process chamber" described above in this paragraph). In other embodiments, multiple second chambers 402 may be provided, and multiple of the aforementioned second chambers 402 are connected to the first chamber 401 along the periphery of the first chamber 401.

[0040] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 An enlarged schematic diagram of the loading and locking chamber 400. (Reference) Figure 5 The loading and locking chamber 400 includes a loading and locking chamber cavity 410, a tray control unit, and a substrate lifting unit. The tray control unit and the substrate lifting unit are all or partly located inside the loading and locking chamber cavity 410. The tray control unit is used to position the tray 200, and the substrate lifting unit is used to control the lifting and lowering of the substrate W.

[0041] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 Exploded view of the carrier disk control unit and substrate lifting unit. (Reference) Figure 2 , Figure 3 , Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, the substrate lifting unit includes at least three lifting portions 510, and the at least three lifting portions 510 correspond one-to-one with at least three through holes 230 of the carrier disk 200. When the at least three through holes 230 are aligned with the at least three lifting portions 510, the at least three lifting portions 510 can pass through the at least three through holes 230 to receive or lift the substrate W.

[0042] exist Figure 5 and Figure 6 In the illustrated embodiment, the number of lifting portions 510 is three, and their shape and position are adapted to the three through holes 230. The substrate lifting unit also includes a lifting rod 511 located below the three lifting portions 510, and each lifting portion 510 is fixedly connected to the lifting rod 511. This application does not limit the connection method. The substrate lifting unit also includes a lifting drive unit 520, used to control the lifting rod 511 to rise and fall, and simultaneously drive the three lifting portions 510 to rise or fall. This application does not limit the specific implementation of the lifting drive unit 520, and it can be implemented using common means in the art.

[0043] Figure 5 The image shows the state before the raised portion 510 contacts the substrate W. Based on... Figure 5 It can be imagined that when the lifting portion 510 rises from its current position, the upper end of each lifting portion 510 will contact the lower surface of the substrate W, lifting the substrate W and finally stopping at a predetermined height. After the substrate W is lifted to the predetermined height, the robot arm can easily pick up the substrate W and transfer it to another position. Similarly, the robot arm can also place the substrate W on the raised lifting portion 510.

[0044] like Figure 5 and Figure 6As shown, the tray control unit includes a platform 610, a rotation drive unit (not shown), a clamping drive unit (not shown), and a clamping unit 620. The platform 610 includes a platform body 611 and a hole 612, the hole 612 penetrating the platform body 611 in a vertical direction. Figure 5 As shown in the installed state, the carrier disk 200 is supported on the platform 610. Specifically, as... Figure 6 As shown, the outer edge of the lower surface 212 of the tray body 210 overlaps the upper surface of the platform body 611. A portion of the substrate lifting unit is located in the hole 612; that is, a portion of the lifting rod 511 and the lifting part 510 are located in the hole 612. A rotary drive unit is used to drive the platform 610 to rotate. A clamping part 620 is mounted on the platform 610. Specifically, at least three clamping parts 620 are provided on the upper surface 613 of the platform body 611. The at least three clamping parts 620 can be evenly spaced along the circumferential direction. A clamping drive unit is used to drive the clamping parts 620 to clamp or release the tray 200.

[0045] In one embodiment, at least three clamping portions 620 are movably disposed on the platform 610 along the radial direction of the carrier 200, and a clamping drive is used to drive the at least three clamping portions 620 to move along the radial direction of the carrier 200 to clamp or release the carrier 200.

[0046] Figure 7 This is a top view schematic diagram of a tray control unit according to an embodiment of this application. In some embodiments, a space, such as a channel 614, may be provided in the platform body 611 to accommodate the clamping part 620, within which the clamping part 620 can move radially. The clamping drive unit may include a gear linkage system, for example, connected to the bottom of the clamping part 620 via a rack. When the drive gear rotates, it drives the rack to move, thereby causing the clamping part 620 to move linearly in the channel 614. When it is necessary to clamp the tray 200, each clamping part 620 is driven to move toward the center of the tray 200 to a predetermined position. When it is necessary to release the tray 200, each clamping part 620 is driven to move toward the outer periphery of the tray 200 to a predetermined position.

[0047] In other embodiments, a rotating clamping part 620 may also be provided. For example, the clamping part 620 may be connected to the platform 610 via a pivot. When it is necessary to clamp the tray 200, each clamping part 620 is rotated toward the center of the tray 200, so that the clamping part 620 contacts the tray 200. When it is necessary to release the tray 200, each clamping part 620 is rotated toward the outer periphery of the tray 200, so that the clamping part 620 releases the tray 200.

[0048] In some embodiments, the clamping centers of the three clamping parts 620 coincide with the central axis of the hole 612. This arrangement facilitates the alignment of the center of the carrier 200 with the central axis of the hole 612 when the carrier 200 is clamped, thereby aligning the center of the carrier 200 with the rotation center and achieving the purpose of centering.

[0049] like Figure 5 As shown, the tray control unit also includes a positioning device. This positioning device can be specifically implemented as a through-beam optical positioning device, including a transmitter 710 and a receiver 720. The transmitter 710 can be disposed on the bottom wall of the loading locking chamber 410, and the receiver 720 can be disposed on the top wall of the loading locking chamber 410, with their positions corresponding to each other. The positioning signal emitted by the transmitter 710 can be received by the receiver 720 after passing through the positioning port 240. If the position of the positioning port 240 does not correspond to the transmitter 710, the receiver 720 will not receive the positioning signal. In other embodiments, the positions of the transmitter 710 and the receiver 720 can be interchanged. In other embodiments, the positioning device can be a reflective optical positioning device, for example, including only a composite transmitter and receiver, which determines whether the signal has passed through the positioning port 240 by the time difference between the transmitted and received signals.

[0050] During operation, the rotary drive unit drives the platform 610 to rotate, which in turn rotates the carrier disk 200. The transmitter 710 can continuously emit positioning signals, such as optical signals. When the positioning signal passes through the positioning port 240 on the carrier disk 200, the rotary drive unit stops driving the platform 610. At this time, at least three through holes 230 are aligned with at least three lifting parts 510. The substrate lifting unit can drive the three lifting parts 510 to rise, pass through the at least three through holes 230, until they contact the bottom surface of the substrate W, and then lift the substrate W.

[0051] refer to Figure 5 Platform 610 may have a clearance structure to allow the positioning signal to pass through the clearance structure to reach the carrier 200. In one embodiment, a positioning through-hole 615 may be provided in platform 610, which penetrates the platform body 611. When placing the carrier 200 onto platform 610, the axis of the positioning through-hole 615 must be concentrically aligned with the center line of the positioning port 240. It should be understood that the "center line of the positioning port 240" here is a vertical line passing through the geometric center of the positioning port 240. In this way, it can be used for positioning the carrier 200 on the one hand, and allows the positioning signal to pass through the positioning through-hole 615 and the positioning port 240 in sequence on the other hand.

[0052] Figure 8This is a top view schematic diagram of a substrate processing system, including a substrate storage station P1, a tray storage station P2, and a loading cavity station P3. The substrate storage station P1 is equipped with a wafer storage device 810, such as a wafer cassette. The tray storage station P2 is equipped with a tray storage device 820, such as a tray box. The loading cavity station P3 is equipped with the loading locking chamber 400 described above. (In conjunction with...) Figure 4 As shown, the substrate processing system includes a first chamber 401 and a second chamber 402. The first chamber 401 is a wafer transfer chamber, in which a robot arm 403 is provided. The robot arm 403 can transfer the substrate W and the carrier disk between the first chamber 401, the second chamber 402 and the loading and locking chamber 400.

[0053] Figure 9 This is an exemplary flowchart of a method for transferring a substrate and a carrier disk according to an embodiment of this application. This transfer method is applied to the aforementioned substrate processing system. Figure 10 This is a partial schematic diagram of a substrate processing system according to an embodiment of this application, and... Figure 8 Compared to what is shown, the main difference is that Figure 10 The image shows robotic arm 840. (Reference) Figure 9 and Figure 10 As shown, the transmission method of this embodiment includes:

[0054] Step S1: The robot arm 840 retrieves the unprocessed substrate W1 from the substrate storage station P1;

[0055] Step S2: The robot arm 840 transfers the unprocessed substrate W1 to the loading cavity station P3, so that the unprocessed substrate W1 is placed on at least three lifting parts 510; and

[0056] Step S3: The substrate lifting unit lowers at least three lifting parts 510, and the substrate W1 is lowered to the substrate support groove 220.

[0057] It is understood that in step S2, the carrier disk 200 is located at the loading cavity station P3, and the through holes 230 and the lifting portions 510 on the carrier disk 200 should be aligned, with at least three lifting portions 510 penetrating through at least three through holes 230 and extending outwards. Specifically, the carrier disk 200 can be transferred from the carrier disk storage station P2 to the loading cavity station P3 by the robot arm 840, or after the previous epitaxial process, the carrier disk 200 can be transferred to the loading locking chamber 400 (it should be understood that at this time, the wafer after the process is removed). It should be noted that W1 here represents the unprocessed substrate, and W2 will be used below to represent the processed substrate; the two can be the same substrate. W is a general term for substrates, which can be the unprocessed substrate W1 or the processed substrate W2.

[0058] refer to Figure 8 and Figure 10 The substrate processing system also includes a substrate edge-finding calibration station P4, which is equipped with an edge-finding calibration device 830; after the robotic arm 840 obtains the unprocessed substrate W1 from the substrate storage station P1, it also includes:

[0059] Step S11: The robot arm 840 transfers the unprocessed substrate W1 to the substrate edge-finding calibration station P4, and the edge-finding calibration device 830 positions the unprocessed substrate W1 according to the first preset position information.

[0060] For ease of description, the position of the carrier 200 when the three through holes 230 and the lifting portion 510 on the carrier 200 are aligned is referred to as the alignment position. The first preset position information is set based on the position information of the carrier 200 in the alignment position. Typically, the substrate W has a cut edge or notch, and the substrate carrier groove 220 on the carrier 200 has a corresponding shape. Therefore, the positions of the substrate W and the carrier 200 need to correspond.

[0061] After steps S1 to S3, at loading chamber station P3, substrate W1 is carried by carrier plate 200. Robot arm 403 can pick up carrier plate 200 and substrate W1 on it, and send them together to downstream chamber for processing.

[0062] It should be noted that the numbering of the above steps is not intended to restrict the order of the steps. Before, after, or simultaneously with the edge-finding calibration device 830 positioning the unprocessed substrate W1 according to the first preset position information, the carrier control unit performs clamping, rotation, and positioning actions on the carrier 200 in the loading chamber station P3.

[0063] In some embodiments, when setting up the substrate lifting unit in the loading locking chamber 400, its installation position can be controlled so that at least three lifting portions 510 are in an initial position that matches the position of the substrate W when it is transferred from the substrate storage station P1 to the loading cavity station P3. According to these embodiments, the substrate processing system may not include the substrate edge-finding calibration station P4, omitting the edge-finding calibration step, thereby reducing processing time and speeding up substrate processing.

[0064] In one embodiment, after the processed substrate W2 and carrier disk 200 are transported to the loading chamber station P3, the following steps are also included:

[0065] Step S4: The substrate lifting unit causes at least three lifting portions 510 to pass through at least three through holes 230 and lifts the substrate W2 after the process; and

[0066] Step S5: The robot arm 840 obtains the processed substrate W2 from the loading cavity station P3 and transfers the processed substrate W2 to the substrate storage station P1.

[0067] It should be noted that before step S4, the clamping part 620 must be controlled to clamp the carrier plate 200 and rotated for positioning so that the lifting part 510 is aligned with the through hole 230.

[0068] In one embodiment, after the robotic arm 840 obtains the processed substrate W2 from the loading cavity station P3, it further includes:

[0069] Step S6: The robotic arm 840 transfers the processed substrate W2 to the substrate edge-finding and calibration station P4. The edge-finding and calibration device P4 positions the processed substrate W2 according to the second preset position information. It should be noted that the second preset position information here corresponds to the position requirement of the processed substrate W2 at the substrate storage station P1, so as to place the substrate W2 into the wafer storage device 810 according to the requirements.

[0070] According to steps S1-S6 above, wafer W has undergone a complete process from unprocessed to processed.

[0071] In one embodiment, the carrier disk 200 also needs to be replaced after one or more processes. Therefore, the transfer method further includes:

[0072] Step S7: The substrate lifting unit lowers at least three lifting parts 510, and the clamping drive unit in the carrier control unit drives the clamping part 620 to release the carrier 200;

[0073] Step S8: The robot arm 840 retrieves the carrier plate 200 from the loading cavity station P3;

[0074] Step S9: The robot arm 840 transfers the carrier 200 to the carrier storage station P2, and retrieves another carrier from the carrier storage station P2; and

[0075] Step S10: The robot arm 840 transfers another tray to the loading cavity station P3.

[0076] After step S10, the new carrier disk 200 is placed at the loading cavity station P3, which can prepare to carry the substrate W.

[0077] According to the transfer method of this application, a fully automated loading and unloading process and transfer process of substrate W and / or carrier disk 200 can be realized, making the process more automated and efficient.

[0078] The basic concepts have been described above. Obviously, for those skilled in the art, the above disclosure is merely illustrative and does not constitute a limitation of this application. Although not explicitly stated herein, those skilled in the art may make various modifications, improvements, and corrections to this application. Such modifications, improvements, and corrections are suggested in this application, and therefore remain within the spirit and scope of the exemplary embodiments of this application.

[0079] Furthermore, this application uses specific terms to describe embodiments of the application. For example, "an embodiment," "one embodiment," and / or "some embodiments" refer to a particular feature, structure, or characteristic related to at least one embodiment of the application. Therefore, it should be emphasized and noted that "an embodiment," "one embodiment," or "an alternative embodiment" mentioned twice or more in different locations in this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, certain features, structures, or characteristics in one or more embodiments of the application can be appropriately combined.

[0080] In some embodiments, numbers describing the quantity of components and attributes are used. It should be understood that such numbers used in the description of embodiments are modified in some examples with the terms "approximately," "approximately," or "generally." Unless otherwise stated, "approximately," "approximately," or "generally" indicates that the numbers are allowed to vary by ±20%. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters used in this application are approximate values, which may be changed according to the characteristics required by individual embodiments. In some embodiments, numerical parameters should take into account specified significant digits and employ a general method of digit preservation. Although the numerical ranges and parameters used to confirm their breadth of range in some embodiments of this application are approximate values, in specific embodiments, such numerical values ​​are set as precisely as feasible.

[0081] Although this application has been described with reference to specific embodiments, those skilled in the art should recognize that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate this application, and various equivalent changes or substitutions can be made without departing from the spirit of this application. Therefore, any changes or modifications to the above embodiments within the scope of the essential spirit of this application will fall within the scope of this application.

Claims

1. A carrier tray, characterized by: The carrier disc comprises a carrier disc body and a substrate carrying groove recessed downward from the upper surface of the carrier disc body, and further comprises at least three through holes penetrating the groove bottom of the substrate carrying groove and the lower surface of the carrier disc body in the vertical direction, and at least one positioning mark is arranged on the carrier disc body.

2. A load lock chamber for loading and unloading a carrier disc and a substrate to or from a downstream chamber, characterized in that: The carrier disc is the carrier disc as claimed in claim 1, and the load lock chamber comprises a load lock chamber cavity, a carrier disc control unit and a substrate lifting unit, wherein: The carrier disc control unit and the substrate lifting unit are wholly or partially located inside the load lock chamber cavity; The carrier disc control unit is used for positioning the carrier disc; The substrate lifting unit comprises at least three jacks corresponding to the at least three through holes of the carrier disc, wherein the at least three jacks can pass through the at least three through holes to support or lift the substrate when the at least three through holes are aligned with the at least three jacks.

3. The load lock chamber of claim 2, wherein, The carrier disc control unit comprises a platform, a rotary drive part, a clamping drive part and clamping parts; The platform comprises a platform body and a hole penetrating the platform body in the vertical direction, the carrier disc is carried on the platform, and part of the substrate lifting unit is located in the hole; The rotary drive part is used for driving the platform to rotate; The clamping parts are installed on the platform, and the clamping drive part is used for driving the clamping parts to act to clamp or release the carrier disc.

4. The load lock chamber of claim 3, wherein, The clamping parts comprise at least three clamping parts; The at least three clamping parts are arranged on the platform and are movable along the radial direction of the carrier disc; The clamping drive part is used for driving the at least three clamping parts to move along the radial direction of the carrier disc to clamp or release the carrier disc.

5. The load lock chamber of claim 4, wherein, The carrier disc control unit further comprises a positioning device, when the positioning device detects the positioning mark, the rotary drive part stops driving the platform, and at this time the at least three through holes are aligned with the at least three jacks.

6. A substrate processing system, comprising: The substrate processing system comprises a substrate storage station, a carrier disc storage station and a loading cavity station, and the loading cavity station is provided with the load lock chamber as claimed in any one of claims 2-5.

7. A method of transporting substrates and carrier trays, characterized by, The substrate processing system is as claimed in claim 6, and the transmission method comprises: A robot obtains a non-processed substrate from the substrate storage station; The robot delivers the non-processed substrate to the loading cavity station, so that the non-processed substrate is placed on the at least three jacks; and The substrate lifting unit lowers the at least three jacks, and the substrate is lowered to the substrate carrying groove.

8. The transmission method of claim 7, wherein, The substrate processing system further comprises a substrate edge finding calibration station, wherein an edge finding calibration device is arranged at the substrate edge finding calibration station; after the robot obtains the unprocessed substrate from the substrate storage station, the robot further comprises: the robot delivers the unprocessed substrate to the substrate edge finding calibration station, and the edge finding calibration device positions the unprocessed substrate according to the first preset position information.

9. The transmission method of claim 7, wherein, Further comprising: Before, simultaneously or after the processed substrate and the carrier plate are transported to the loading chamber station, the substrate lifting unit makes the at least three jacks pass through the at least three through holes and lift the processed substrate; And The robot obtains the processed substrate from the loading chamber station and delivers the processed substrate to the substrate storage station.

10. The transmission method of claim 9, wherein, The substrate processing system further comprises a substrate edge finding calibration station, wherein an edge finding calibration device is arranged at the substrate edge finding calibration station; after the robot obtains the unprocessed substrate from the substrate storage station, the robot further comprises: the robot delivers the unprocessed substrate to the substrate edge finding calibration station, and the edge finding calibration device positions the unprocessed substrate according to the first preset position information.

11. The transmission method of claim 7, wherein, Further comprising: The substrate lifting unit lowers the at least three jacks, and the clamping driving part in the carrier plate control unit drives the clamping part to release the carrier plate; The robot obtains the carrier plate from the loading chamber station; The robot delivers the carrier plate to the carrier plate storage station and obtains another carrier plate from the carrier plate storage station; and The robot delivers the another carrier plate to the loading chamber station.

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