Substrate carrier, transport system, vacuum system and method of operating a substrate carrier

Abstract

The application provides a substrate carrier, a conveying system, a vacuum system and a method for operating the substrate carrier, the substrate carrier comprising a bearing frame, a substrate bearing surface, a groove and a heat absorbing sheet, the substrate bearing surface is used for placing a substrate, a groove is arranged on the bottom side of each substrate bearing surface, a heat absorbing sheet is arranged on the bottom surface of the groove, the emissivity of the first surface of the heat absorbing sheet is greater than the emissivity of the second surface of the groove bottom surface and / or the heat absorbing sheet, in this case, the low emissivity surface can inhibit heat dissipation, and the high emissivity surface can allow heat to pass through efficiently, therefore the first surface of the heat absorbing sheet can reabsorb the thermal radiation of the substrate and transmit to the second surface or the groove bottom surface, and good heat dissipation effect is achieved. This technology is simple and low in cost, meanwhile, the coating speed does not need to be reduced, and the problem of temperature rise of the substrate can be effectively solved without reducing the processing efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of vacuum coating technology, and more specifically, to a substrate carrier, a conveying system, a vacuum system, and a method for operating the substrate carrier. Background Technology

[0002] Typically, workpieces (such as substrates) can be processed in a vacuum, for example, by coating, heating, etching, and / or structural modification. For instance, vacuum coating of substrates can be achieved through chemical vapor deposition or physical vapor deposition. Large vacuum systems enable high throughput, thereby reducing processing costs, for example, by sequentially feeding workpieces through the vacuum system (also known as continuous configuration), thus enabling batch processing.

[0003] However, certain types of workpieces have size limitations, such as semiconductor wafers, which cannot be manufactured to arbitrary sizes. In such cases, a so-called substrate carrier (also known as a support or tray) is used, which can hold multiple substrates and transport or process them simultaneously. For example, if small substrates are to be coated in a large system, these substrates are transported through a vacuum system via a substrate carrier, passing below or above the coating apparatus (also known as a deposition source or coating material source). Workpiece handling, such as exposing the workpiece to coating processes, can introduce heat into the substrate, causing it to heat up. However, some types of substrates are temperature-sensitive, meaning that heat can cause them to reach temperatures that alter (or even damage) them. For example, tempered glass's hardness decreases when heated. Therefore, the heat introduced during substrate handling can lead to undesirable annealing processes. To suppress or prevent unwanted chemical or physical changes in the substrate due to temperature during processing, conventional techniques use vacuum systems with active cooling surfaces, which act as heat sinks for the substrate by absorbing thermal radiation in a vacuum. However, active cooling surfaces increase the technical complexity of the process and the size of the vacuum system, thus increasing both purchase and processing costs. Alternatively, reducing the coating rate can decrease the temperature rise, but this leads to reduced system throughput. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide a substrate carrier, a conveying system, a vacuum system, and an operation method for the substrate carrier, which can effectively solve the problem of substrate heating without reducing processing efficiency, while being simple in technology and low in cost.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a substrate carrier, comprising: Support frame; Multiple substrate bearing surfaces formed in or connected to the bearing frame; A groove extending from each of the substrate bearing surfaces into the bearing frame to the bottom surface of the groove, wherein the bottom surface of the groove is provided by and defines the groove by the bearing frame; and A heat-absorbing sheet disposed within the groove and near the bottom surface of the groove has a first surface facing the substrate bearing surface, wherein the emissivity of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following: the bottom surface of the groove, and a second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface of the groove.

[0006] In an optional embodiment, the roughness of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following: the bottom surface of the groove, and the second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface of the groove.

[0007] In an optional embodiment, the groove has a groove opening disposed between and / or defined by the substrate bearing surface, wherein the groove opening is spaced apart from the heat-absorbing sheet.

[0008] In an optional embodiment, the heat-absorbing sheet is spaced apart from the substrate bearing surface.

[0009] In an optional embodiment, the heat-absorbing sheet and the bottom surface of the groove achieve thermal contact through physical contact and / or a thermal coupling layer, wherein the thermal coupling layer is non-metallic and / or adhesive.

[0010] In an alternative embodiment, the substrate bearing surface extends circumferentially along the groove.

[0011] In an optional embodiment, the groove extends from the substrate bearing surface toward the interior of the bearing frame to the bottom surface of the groove along the coating direction, wherein the extension length of the groove along the coating direction is greater than the extension length of the heat absorber along the coating direction.

[0012] In an optional embodiment, the substrate further includes a recess corresponding to each substrate bearing surface, wherein the substrate bearing surface is disposed in the recess; wherein the recess extends from the upper surface of the bearing frame to the substrate bearing surface.

[0013] In an optional embodiment, the recess is defined by the substrate bearing surface, and / or the recess communicates with the groove.

[0014] In an alternative embodiment, the groove is defined by a wall provided by the support frame along the transport direction of the substrate carrier.

[0015] In an optional implementation, the load-bearing frame is a one-piece molded structure.

[0016] In an optional embodiment, the support frame includes multiple regions: an upper region provides the multiple substrate support surfaces, a middle region provides the groove for each of the substrate support surfaces, and a lower region provides the bottom surface of the groove for each of the substrate support surfaces.

[0017] In an optional embodiment, the heat-absorbing sheet includes at least one through-hole for gas exchange.

[0018] In an optional embodiment, the heat absorber includes one or more copper-containing coatings, and / or the copper-containing coatings form the first surface and / or the second surface.

[0019] In an optional embodiment, the heat-absorbing sheet is made of metal.

[0020] In an optional embodiment, the heat-absorbing sheet comprises steel.

[0021] In an optional embodiment, the heat-absorbing sheet is a foil structure.

[0022] In an optional embodiment, the first surface is subjected to a brushed and / or frosted finish.

[0023] In an optional embodiment, the second surface is polished.

[0024] In an optional embodiment, the bottom surface of the groove is polished.

[0025] In an optional embodiment, the roughness of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following roughnesses: the upper surface of the support frame, the lower surface of the support frame.

[0026] In an optional embodiment, the substrate carrier further includes at least one flat conveying surface, which is connected to or provided by the support frame.

[0027] In an optional embodiment, the flat conveying surface faces the underside of the substrate carrier.

[0028] In an optional embodiment, at least one of the following faces the upper side of the substrate carrier and / or faces away from the lower side of the substrate carrier: the bottom surface of the groove, each of the substrate bearing surfaces, and the upper surface of the bearing frame.

[0029] In an optional embodiment, at least one of the following is oriented toward the lower side of the substrate carrier and / or away from the upper side of the substrate carrier: the lower surface of the substrate, the coating direction of the substrate.

[0030] In a second aspect, the present invention provides a conveying system comprising a substrate carrier as described in any of the foregoing embodiments and a plurality of conveying rollers for conveying the substrate carrier.

[0031] Thirdly, the present invention provides a vacuum system comprising a conveying system as described in the foregoing embodiments and at least one vacuum chamber, wherein the conveying roller is disposed in the vacuum chamber.

[0032] In an optional embodiment, the vacuum system further includes at least one coating device configured to emit coating material toward the conveyor roller, and / or, when the substrate carrier is conveyed by the conveyor system, the substrate carrier is exposed to the coating device.

[0033] Fourthly, the present invention provides an operation method for a substrate carrier, applicable to the substrate carrier described in the foregoing embodiments, the method comprising: A heat-absorbing sheet is disposed in the groove and close to the bottom surface of the groove. The heat-absorbing sheet has a first surface facing the substrate bearing surface, wherein the roughness of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following: the bottom surface of the groove, and the second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface of the groove. Place the substrate on the substrate support surface.

[0034] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: The substrate carrier is conveyed by at least one conveying roller, wherein the substrate carrier is configured to carry the substrate.

[0035] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: The substrate and / or the substrate carrier are coated, wherein the coating is performed using a coating material, and / or the coating is performed in a vacuum.

[0036] In an optional embodiment, the coating material comprises copper.

[0037] The beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present invention include: The substrate carrier, conveying system, vacuum system, and operating method of the substrate carrier provided in this invention utilize a substrate bearing surface in or connected to a bearing frame to place a substrate. Simultaneously, a groove is provided on the bottom side of each substrate bearing surface, and a heat-absorbing sheet is provided on the bottom surface of the groove. The emissivity of the first surface of the heat-absorbing sheet facing the substrate bearing surface is greater than the emissivity of the bottom surface of the groove and / or the second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet. In this case, the low-emissivity surface can suppress heat loss, while the high-emissivity surface can allow heat to pass through efficiently. Therefore, the first surface of the heat-absorbing sheet can reabsorb the thermal radiation from the substrate and transfer it to the second surface or the bottom surface of the groove, achieving a good heat dissipation effect.

[0038] Compared with the prior art, the embodiments of the present invention add a groove under the substrate and set a heat-absorbing sheet in the groove. The heat-absorbing sheet achieves a good heat dissipation effect by setting different emissivity surfaces. The technology is simple and low cost, and can effectively solve the problem of substrate temperature rise without reducing processing efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0039] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of the present invention and should not be regarded as a limitation on the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0040] Figure 1A A top view of the substrate carrier is shown; Figure 1B shows a cross-sectional view of the substrate carrier; Figure 2A A partial schematic cross-sectional view of the substrate carrier is shown; Figure 2B A schematic cross-sectional view of the vacuum system is shown; Figure 3A and Figure 3B The variation of substrate temperature T with process time t is shown for various example configurations. Figure 3C Another partial schematic cross-sectional view of the substrate carrier is shown; Figure 4 shows a partial top view of the substrate carrier 100. Detailed Implementation

[0041] The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate by way of illustration specific details and aspects that enable the implementation of this disclosure. One or more embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to implement this disclosure. Other embodiments may be utilized, and structural, logical, and electrical changes may be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. The various embodiments are not necessarily mutually exclusive, as some aspects may be combined with one or more other aspects to form new embodiments. Various embodiments are described in connection with methods, and various embodiments are described in connection with apparatus. However, it should be understood that the embodiments described in connection with methods can be similarly applied to apparatus, and vice versa. Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that the same reference numerals are used to depict the same or similar elements, features, and structures.

[0042] The expressions “at least one,” “at least one or more,” etc., regarding a certain element should be understood as indicating exactly one or more elements. The at least one element can be, for example, exactly one element or several elements (e.g., two, three, or more). The at least one element may include one or more elements, such as one or more groups of elements.

[0043] According to various embodiments, it has been recognized that the cooling potential of the substrate carrier for the workpiece it carries is not fully utilized. Specifically, it has been recognized that the thermal coupling between the existing substrate carrier and the substrate results in insufficient heat dissipation. According to various embodiments, the thermal coupling between the workpiece and the substrate carrier can be improved by adding heat-absorbing sheets. The term "sheet" should be understood as a homogeneous, flat structure. A sheet can be understood as a homogeneous, flat structure whose thickness is less than 3% (e.g., less than 1%) of its width and / or length. For example, the sheet used herein may have a thickness of less than 5 mm (e.g., less than 2.5 mm, less than 1 mm, less than 0.5 mm). Examples of sheets include: foil, sheet metal, and metal sheet. According to various embodiments, the substrate can be processed (also referred to as a processing technique). Examples of processing techniques include: adding materials (e.g., coating and / or doping), removing materials (e.g., etching), inputting energy (e.g., heating and / or irradiation), outputting energy (e.g., cooling), and chemical modification (e.g., recrystallization or segregation). Taking coating as an example, the processing can be achieved using chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and physical vapor deposition (PVD). Optionally, coating can be performed using plasma-assisted methods, such as plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition. The processing apparatus can include: a coating apparatus, an etching apparatus, and an irradiation apparatus. The coating apparatus can be configured to perform PVD processes, such as by converting a solid into a gaseous material and by means of plasma and / or thermal evaporation. The coating apparatus can include: a sputtering apparatus and an electron beam evaporation apparatus. According to various embodiments, the substrate can be processed by exposing it to plasma. A so-called process gas (e.g., containing at least one gaseous material) can then be introduced into the plasma, which can be excited by the plasma to interact with the substrate. The process gas may include precursors, etching gases (e.g., gaseous acids), oxygen, polymers, dopant gases, etc. In this article, "thermal conductivity" should be understood as a thermal conductivity greater than approximately 0.1 watts per (m). Kelvin)(W / (m K), for example, greater than about 0.15 W / (m K) or greater than about 0.2 W / (m K). Thermally conductive metals can include: copper, steel, gold, and brass. This article refers to radiation measurement terms such as radiation (e.g., thermal radiation) and radiation absorbed by surfaces. Thermal radiation is electromagnetic radiation, which includes electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging from 1 µm to 100 µm and / or electromagnetic radiation with maximum spectral wavelengths ranging from 1 µm to 100 µm, visible (light) radiation, and infrared radiation. The emissivity of an object (e.g., an object surface and / or object material) refers to the efficiency with which the object emits energy in the form of thermal radiation. The emissivity of an object depends on its chemical composition and / or geometry. The surface emissivity of an ideal blackbody is 1 (equivalent to 100%). Emissivity can also be expressed as the efficiency of absorbing radiant energy (in which case it is also called absorptivity). For a given wavelength and direction, the emissivity of a surface is equal to its absorptivity. The terms “vacuum” and “vacuum pressure” refer to pressure within a vacuum range (i.e., pressure less than 0.3 bar), for example, pressure between about 10 mbar and about 1 mbar or lower. - Pressures between 3 mbar and lower, for example, between approximately 10 mbar - ³mbar and approximately 10 -7 Pressures between mbar and lower.

[0044] The term "transfer system" (also known as a conveyor system) can be understood as a set of interacting components used to provide a transfer process (also known as a conveying process), which may include: one or more transfer rollers (also known as conveyor rollers), one or more bearing assemblies (e.g., each transfer roller is rotatably supported thereby), coupling devices, drivetrains, gearboxes, shafts, etc. A transfer system may be configured to use transfer rollers to transfer objects (e.g., substrate carriers).

[0045] The following provides various examples from different aspects.

[0046] Example 1 A substrate carrier configured and / or provided according to any one of the appended claims includes: a support frame; a plurality of substrate support surfaces formed in or connected to the support frame; and, for each substrate support surface: a groove extending from the substrate support surface into the support frame, the groove extending to a groove bottom surface (also referred to as a groove depth) provided by the support frame and defining the groove boundary; and a heat radiation absorbing sheet disposed in the groove near (e.g., located at) the groove bottom surface, and including a first surface facing the substrate support surface, wherein the roughness of the first surface is greater than the roughness of one or more of the following: the groove bottom surface and a second surface of the heat radiation absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface.

[0047] Example 2 A substrate carrier configured according to any one of the appended claims and / or a substrate carrier comprising: a support frame; a plurality of substrate support surfaces formed in or connected to the support frame; and, for each substrate support surface: a groove extending from the substrate support surface into the support frame, the groove extending to a groove bottom surface (also referred to as a groove depth) provided by the support frame and defining the groove boundary; and a thermal radiation absorbing sheet disposed in the groove near (e.g., located at) the groove bottom surface, and including a first surface facing the substrate support surface, wherein the emissivity of the first surface is greater than the emissivity of one or more of the following: the groove bottom surface and a second surface of the thermal radiation absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface.

[0048] Example 3 A substrate carrier configured according to any one of the appended claims and / or a substrate carrier comprising: a support frame; a plurality of substrate support surfaces formed in or connected to the support frame; and, for each substrate support surface: a groove extending from the substrate support surface into the support frame, the groove extending to a groove bottom surface (also referred to as a groove depth) provided by the support frame and defining the groove boundary; and a thermal radiation absorbing sheet disposed in the groove near (e.g., located at) the groove bottom surface, and including a first surface facing the substrate support surface, wherein the absorptivity (e.g., thermal radiation absorptivity) of the first surface is greater than the absorptivity of one or more of the following: the groove bottom surface and a second surface of the thermal radiation absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface.

[0049] Example 4 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 3, wherein the groove is exposed through a groove opening, which is preferably located between two regions of the substrate bearing surface and / or preferably defined by the substrate bearing surface, wherein the groove opening is spaced apart from the thermal radiation absorbing sheet (e.g., such that a cavity is formed between the substrate and the thermal radiation absorbing sheet).

[0050] Example 5 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 4, wherein the thermal radiation absorbing sheet is spaced a certain distance from the substrate bearing surface.

[0051] Example 6 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 5, wherein the thermal radiation absorbing sheet is in thermal contact with the bottom surface of the groove (e.g., physical contact and / or through a thermal coupling layer), wherein the thermal coupling layer is preferably non-metallic (e.g., a polymer containing carbon allotropes) and / or viscous (e.g., a paste).

[0052] Example 7 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 6, wherein the substrate bearing surface extends along the periphery of the groove (e.g., extends uninterruptedly).

[0053] Example 8 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 7, wherein the groove extends along the coating direction from the substrate support surface to the bottom surface of the groove within the support frame; wherein the extension length of the groove along the coating direction is greater than the extension length (e.g., thickness) of the thermal radiation absorbing sheet.

[0054] Example 9 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 8, and further includes another groove for each substrate support surface, the substrate support surface being disposed in the other groove; wherein the other groove preferably extends from the upper surface of the support frame (e.g. along the coating direction) to the substrate support surface.

[0055] Example 10 is configured according to Example 9, wherein another groove is defined by a substrate bearing surface (e.g., along the coating direction) and / or wherein the other groove preferably leads into the groove.

[0056] Example 11 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 10, wherein the groove is defined by a wall provided by a support frame along the transport direction of the substrate carrier.

[0057] Example 12 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 11, where the load-bearing frame is integrally formed.

[0058] Example 13 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 12, wherein the support frame includes multiple regions (e.g., stacked on top of each other, e.g., stacked along a direction), wherein: the upper region provides multiple substrate support surfaces, the middle region provides a groove for each substrate support surface, and the lower region provides a bottom surface for each substrate support surface.

[0059] Example 14 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 13, wherein the thermal radiation absorbing sheet includes one or more through holes for gas exchange.

[0060] Example 15 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 14, wherein the heat radiation absorbing sheet comprises copper, preferably comprises one or more copper-containing coatings (e.g., made of copper) and / or preferably provides a first surface and / or provides a second surface.

[0061] Example 16 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 15, wherein the heat radiation absorbing sheet comprises a metal (e.g., copper or aluminum), is a metallic material, and / or comprises a metal layer. For example, the metal layer may be coated.

[0062] Example 17 is configured according to one of Examples 1 through 16, wherein the heat radiation absorbing sheet comprises steel, such as stainless steel.

[0063] Example 18 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 17, wherein the thermal radiation absorbing sheet comprises (e.g., made of the following materials) foil.

[0064] Example 19 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 18, wherein the first surface is brushed and / or sandblasted.

[0065] Example 20 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 19, wherein the second surface is polished.

[0066] Example 21 is configured according to one of Examples 1 through 20, wherein the bottom surface is polished.

[0067] Example 22 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 21, wherein the roughness and / or absorption rate of the first surface is greater than the roughness and / or absorption rate of one or more of the following: the upper surface of the load-bearing frame; and / or the lower surface of the load-bearing frame.

[0068] Example 23 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 22, wherein the emissivity of the first surface is greater than the emissivity of one or more of the following: the upper surface of the support frame; and / or the lower surface of the support frame.

[0069] Example 24 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 23, and further includes one or more flat (e.g., planar) transport surfaces connected to or provided by the support frame and / or facing the underside of the substrate carrier.

[0070] Example 25 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 24, and further includes one or more flat conveyor surfaces that are connected to or provided by the support frame.

[0071] Example 26 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 25, wherein one or more of the following face the upper side of the substrate carrier and / or away from the lower side of the substrate carrier: the bottom surface, each substrate carrier surface and / or the upper surface of the carrier frame.

[0072] Example 27 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 26, wherein one or more of the following face the lower side of the substrate carrier and / or away from the upper side of the substrate carrier: lower surface and / or coating direction.

[0073] Example 28 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 27, and includes multiple conveying rollers (e.g., arranged sequentially along the conveying direction) for conveying the substrate carrier.

[0074] Example 29 is configured according to Example 28, and includes one or more vacuum chambers in which the conveyor rollers are disposed.

[0075] Example 30 is a vacuum system according to Example 29, further comprising one or more coating devices configured to spray coating material (e.g., copper) onto a conveyor roller and / or expose the substrate carrier to the coating device when the substrate carrier is conveyed by the conveyor system.

[0076] Example 31 is a method for operating a substrate carrier, the substrate carrier comprising: a support frame; a plurality of substrate support surfaces formed in or connected to the support frame; and, for each substrate support surface: a groove extending from the substrate support surface into the support frame, the groove extending to a bottom surface of the groove provided by the support frame and defining the groove boundary; the method comprising, for each substrate support surface: disposing a thermal radiation absorbing sheet in the groove near (e.g., located at) the bottom surface of the groove, the thermal radiation absorbing sheet comprising a first surface facing the substrate support surface, wherein the absorptivity and / or roughness of the first surface is greater than one or more of the absorptivity and / or roughness of the bottom surface of the groove and a second surface of the thermal radiation absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface; and disposing a substrate on the substrate support surface.

[0077] Example 32 is a method for operating a substrate carrier (e.g., configured according to Example 31), the substrate carrier comprising: a support frame; a plurality of substrate support surfaces formed in or connected to the support frame; and, for each substrate support surface: a groove extending from the substrate support surface into the support frame, the groove extending to a bottom surface of the groove provided by the support frame and defining the groove boundary; the method comprising, for each substrate support surface: disposing a thermal radiation absorbing sheet in the groove near (e.g., located at) the bottom surface of the groove, the thermal radiation absorbing sheet including a first surface facing the substrate support surface, wherein the emissivity of the first surface is greater than one or more of the emissivity of the bottom surface of the groove and a second surface of the thermal radiation absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface; and disposing a substrate on the substrate support surface.

[0078] Example 33 is configured according to one of Examples 31 to 32, and further includes carrying the substrate by means of a substrate carrier (preferably by means of one or more conveyor rollers).

[0079] Example 34 is configured according to one of Examples 32 to 33, further including coating a substrate and / or a substrate carrier, preferably by means of a coating material (e.g., emitted by a coating apparatus) and / or in a vacuum.

[0080] Example 35 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 34, wherein the coating material contains (e.g., made of) copper.

[0081] Example 36 is configured according to one of Examples 1 to 35, wherein the emissivity and / or absorptivity are related to thermal radiation.

[0082] The embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0083] Figure 1A shows a top view of the substrate carrier 100 (viewed from direction 103). Figure 1B shows a cross-sectional view of the substrate carrier 100 (viewed from direction 105), wherein the substrate carrier 100 has a first side 102o and a second side 102u. In some embodiments, the heat-absorbing sheet 106 is disposed within a groove 104h of the substrate carrier 100, near or located on the bottom surface 108 of the groove. The heat-absorbing sheet 106 has a first surface 106o facing the substrate bearing surface 104s and a second surface 106u facing (e.g., in physical contact) the bottom surface 108 of the groove. The roughness of the first surface 106o is greater than at least one of the following: the bottom surface 108 of the groove, the substrate bearing surface 104s, and the second surface 106u. During operation, the heat-absorbing sheet 106 improves heat transfer between the substrate (not shown) and the substrate carrier 100. The substrate carrier 100 may include a support frame 102, which may be flat and / or plate-shaped. For example, the support frame 102 may be flat along the transport surface. The support frame 102 may contain metal. The metal may include steel and / or stainless steel. The geometry of the substrate carrier 100 may include a carrier length 100l, a carrier width 100q, and a carrier height 100h. The carrier length 100l may extend along the transport direction 105 from the leading edge 100a to the trailing edge 100b of the substrate carrier 100. The carrier width 100q may extend along a direction perpendicular to the transport direction 105 from the left edge to the right edge of the substrate carrier 100. The carrier length 100l may be greater than the carrier width 100q, for example, greater than twice the carrier width 100q. Optionally or additionally, the carrier length 100l may be greater than about 1 meter, for example, about 1.5 meters, about 2 meters, about 3 meters, about 5 meters, or about 7 meters. The carrier width 100q may be greater than about 0.5 meters, for example, about 1 meter, about 2 meters, or about 3 meters. The substrate carrier 100 includes one or more substrate receiving areas 104 (also called substrate grooves or simply grooves), each substrate receiving area 104 including a substrate bearing surface 104s. The following description uses one substrate receiving area 104 as an example, and it should be understood that the same description applies to each substrate receiving area 104 of the substrate carrier 100. Each substrate receiving region 104 can be configured to receive a substrate disposed on a substrate bearing surface 104s. Furthermore, the substrate receiving region 104 includes a groove 104h extending from the substrate bearing surface 104s into the support frame 102 to a groove bottom surface 108, the groove bottom surface 108 being provided by and defining the groove 104h by the support frame 102. The substrate receiving region 104 may include a heat-absorbing sheet 106 disposed within the groove 104h. Additionally, the substrate receiving region 104 also includes a recess 104u (also referred to as a recessed portion) extending from the upper surface 102s of the support frame 102 to the substrate bearing surface 104s. The length of the recess 104u (e.g., along direction 100l) may be greater than the length of the groove 104h. Optionally or additionally, the width of the recess 104u (e.g., along direction 100q) may also be greater than the width of the groove 104h. The number of substrate receiving areas 104 in each substrate carrier 100 is one or more, for example, two or more, three or more, four or more, five or more, ten or more, twenty or more, or fifty or more. Optionally or additionally, the number of substrate receiving areas 104 per meter along the carrier length 101l of the substrate carrier 100 may be, for example, one or more, two or more, three or more, four or more, five or more, ten or more, twenty or more, or fifty or more. The substrate carrier 100 may have a heat-absorbing sheet 106 disposed in each recess 104h. The heat-absorbing sheet 106 may be configured to contact the support frame 102. For example, the heat-absorbing sheet 106 may be arranged within the substrate receiving area 104, in direct physical contact with the support frame 102. The heat-absorbing sheet 106 may be configured to allow the substrate to be arranged within the substrate receiving area 104 and to contact the heat-absorbing sheet 106. Optionally, the support frame 102 may have a substrate support section through which the substrate can directly physically contact the support frame 102. For example, the depth of the substrate receiving region 104 (also known as the region depth) may be greater than the depth of the groove 104h (also known as the groove depth) and less than the height of the support frame. Optionally or additionally, the groove depth may be greater than the thickness of the heat absorber 106 and / or greater than about 1 mm. The region depth may be the sum of the groove depth and the depth of the recess 104u. The thickness of the heat-absorbing fin 106 (also referred to as the fin thickness), for example along direction 103, ranges from about 0.1 micrometers to about 5 millimeters. Optionally or additionally, the fin thickness may be greater than about 1% of the frame carrier height 100h and / or less than 10% of the frame carrier height 100h. For example, the fin thickness may be greater than 10% of the groove depth. The substrate bearing surface 104s may continuously surround the upper edge (also referred to as the groove opening) of the groove 104h. Optionally, the substrate bearing surface 104s may be segmented, for example, comprising multiple spatially separated segments. In any case, the substrate bearing surface 104s may include two first regions (e.g., a first segment) with the groove opening disposed between the two first regions, and / or the substrate bearing surface 104s may include two second regions (e.g., a second segment) with the groove opening disposed between the two second regions. The two first regions may be arranged sequentially along the transport direction 100l. The two second regions may be arranged sequentially along the direction 100q. As described above, the sheet thickness is less than the groove depth. For example, the upper surface of the heat-absorbing sheet 106 is spaced apart from the substrate bearing surface 104s. Optionally or additionally, the sheet thickness is less than half the groove depth. Figure 2A shows a partial schematic cross-sectional view of the substrate carrier 100 (viewed from direction 105), a detailed view of the substrate receiving area 104, and a related diagram 202a showing the operating state of the substrate carrier 100. The heat-absorbing sheet 106 can be disposed within the groove 104h, and the substrate 202 can be disposed within the recess 104u, located on the substrate bearing surface 104s spaced apart from the heat-absorbing sheet 106. A cavity 206 is formed between the substrate 202 and the heat-absorbing sheet 106, so that the heat-absorbing sheet 106 and the substrate 202 do not contact each other, and heat energy is exchanged through thermal radiation. The heat-absorbing sheet 106 can contact the bottom surface 108 of the groove, thereby exchanging heat energy through thermal conduction. For example, the heat-absorbing sheet 106 can cover the bottom surface 108 of the groove, for example, as a liner of the groove 104h and / or covering more than 75%, 85%, or 95% of the bottom surface. During operation, the substrate 202 exchanges heat with the support frame 102 of the substrate carrier 100 through the heat-absorbing sheet 106. Specifically, the substrate 202 and the heat-absorbing sheet 106 exchange heat through thermal radiation 251. In addition, the heat-absorbing sheet 106 and the support frame 102 exchange heat through thermal conduction 253. The thermal energy transferred between two objects O1 (e.g., substrate 202) and O2 (e.g., heat absorber 106) via thermal radiation 251 can be expressed by the following equation: Q=ε 12 σ A (T2 4 T1 4 ) Where, q rad = Q / A represents the heat energy Q exchanged across surface area A, σ represents the Stefan-Boltzmann constant, T1 represents the surface temperature of the first object O1, and T2 represents the temperature of the second object O2. The radiation exchange coefficient ε 12 = (ε1 - ¹+ ε2 - ¹-1) - ¹ represents the effect of two emissivity values ​​on the exchange of heat energy, where ε1 represents the emissivity of the first object O1 and ε2 represents the emissivity of the second object O2. Figure 2A Figure 202a shows the temperature T along the coating direction 103' (which is parallel to the opposite direction of direction 103) in two cases: (A) without heat absorber 106, and (B) with heat absorber 106. Obviously, with the same temperature of the supporting frame 102, the temperature of the substrate 202 in case (B) is lower than that in case (A). In some embodiments, the heat absorber 106 achieves a high heat transfer rate at its thermally bonded junction with the support frame 102 via thermal conduction 253. For example, direct physical contact between the heat absorber 106 and the bottom surface 108 of the groove can improve the heat transfer efficiency from the heat absorber 106 to the support frame 102. Furthermore, the first surface 106o of the heat absorber 106 has a high emissivity, enabling high radiation absorptivity. Increased radiation absorptivity aids in heat dissipation from the substrate 202, thereby reducing the temperature of the substrate 202 during exposure to the coating process. This also reduces the number of active cooling surfaces required for cooling the substrate 202 in a vacuum. To limit the temperature of substrate 202, heat energy can also be dissipated from substrate 202 through cooling processes (also known as heat dissipation), for example, by limiting the temperature of substrate 202 below a specific temperature threshold. Heat dissipation in a vacuum is limited to heat conduction and radiation because there is a lack of gas for heat convection in a vacuum. It is believed that convection cooling becomes less effective at pressures in the range of below 10 mbar to 100 mbar, and further deteriorates at 10... -2 It becomes ineffective at pressures of mbar and below. For substrate 202, scenarios where it cannot be securely connected to the cooling fixture due to contact and / or transport of substrate 202 should be minimized; therefore, heat dissipation of substrate 202 is primarily thermal radiation. Furthermore, the emissivity of a thermally radiating surface is a function of the chemical composition of that surface and other surface properties such as roughness. Chemical compositions with extremely low inert surface emissivity (also known as low-emissivity materials) can include silver (Ag), copper (Cu), and aluminum (Al). Therefore, substrates coated and / or made of low-emissivity materials may further reduce heat dissipation efficiency. This situation can be addressed by reducing the coating process rate, thereby increasing the heat dissipation time. For the substrate carrier 100, this can be addressed by changing the emissivity of the substrate carrier 100 or by filling the groove 104h with a deformable material (e.g., a fluid or soft solid) that can contact the substrate 202 to enhance the contribution of thermal conduction to heat dissipation. However, deformable materials may also contaminate the substrate 202 and the substrate carrier 100, and are difficult to remove. However, the emissivity of such substrate carriers 100 is highly susceptible to contamination, temperature, and reactants (such as oxides, nitrogen, plasma, and the target material itself). For example, the substrate carrier 100 itself is coated during the coating process, and therefore its emissivity may change. Low-emissivity materials (such as copper) have an emissivity below 0.02. In some embodiments, the bottom surface 108 of the groove may be pre-configured to have a high emissivity to facilitate heat dissipation from the substrate 202. However, the substrate may crack during operation, exposing the bottom surface 108 of the groove to the coating process. As a result, the pre-configured bottom surface 108 of the groove may be coated with a target material (possibly a low-emissivity material such as copper). The emissivity of low-emissivity materials such as copper is less than 0.02 (equivalent to 2%). This coating reduces the heat absorption efficiency of the bottom surface 108 of the groove, thus potentially increasing the risk of the substrate 200 exceeding a temperature threshold during subsequent use of the substrate carrier 100. This also applies to other cases where the substrate groove of the substrate carrier 100 is coated, thereby increasing the workload of maintenance, cleaning, and / or upkeep of the substrate carrier 100. The following example illustrates the effect of coating on heat transfer when a substrate carrier is coated with a target provided by a coating process:

[0084] Obviously, when the substrate carrier is coated, the heat transfer efficiency may be significantly reduced to about 50%. Compensating for such variations in substrate carrier emissivity may involve updating the substrate carrier after each use cycle (e.g., through cleaning, etching, etc.) to ensure the time invariance of process conditions. However, adjusting such an update process to restore the entire substrate carrier to a repeatable baseline state can be challenging. Several embodiments of the present invention, detailed herein, address these problems, for example by providing a heat-absorbing sheet 106 within the groove 104h. For example, the heat-absorbing sheet 106 may be coated and / or made of the aforementioned low-emissivity material. The heat-absorbing sheet 106 has the following advantages (also referred to as beneficial effects): 1. The heat absorber 106 has low production cost, so it can be replaced at low cost, and the substrate carrier 100 can be restored to the reference state in an economical and efficient manner.

[0085] 2. The size and weight of the heat absorber 106 are smaller than those of the substrate carrier 100, which facilitates the replacement of the heat absorber 106. 3. Compared with the replacement of the substrate carrier 100, the heat absorber 106 can be replaced more quickly, thus having less impact on the production line and requiring lower logistics costs; 4. The emissivity of multiple sets of heat absorbers 106 can be different, thus enabling rapid and cost-effective changes to process conditions. Please continue reading Figure 1B The support frame 102 may include a support plate 102p and a grid structure 102g to provide a substrate receiving area 104, into which a substrate can be inserted from a first side 102o of the substrate receiving area 104. The grid structure 102g may include one or more bars. The support plate 102p (also referred to as a back plate) provides a recessed bottom surface 108, thereby providing a closed support surface on a second side 102u of the substrate carrier 100 to prevent undesirable back coating from occurring on the back side of the substrate (particularly the back side of the substrate that is not intended to be coated). The carrier plate 102p may include multiple machined openings to provide a groove 104h. The groove 104h can reduce the direct physical contact between the substrate and the carrier 102p, thereby reducing the risk of damage to the substrate surface. Figure 2B shows a schematic cross-sectional view of the vacuum system (viewed from direction 101). The conveying system may include a substrate carrier 100 and a plurality of (e.g., 5, 10, or more than 50) conveying rollers 806 for conveying the substrate carrier 100 along a conveying direction 105. The conveying rollers 806 are disposed in a vacuum chamber, and a coating apparatus 804 (also referred to as a vacuum coating system) is disposed in the vacuum chamber. The coating apparatus 804 may include a PVD coating apparatus. Vacuum coating systems are techniques suitable for depositing materials in low-pressure environments, such as vacuum. A low-pressure environment can be called a vacuum if the pressure is below 0.3 bar (e.g., below 300 mbar). Coating processes in a vacuum (also known as vacuum coating processes) can operate at pressures below 10... -4 millibars to 10 - ² millibars or lower, for example, 10 in large-area industrial vacuum coating systems. -7 Millibar level. Physical vapor deposition (PVD) is a type of vacuum coating process used for large-area coating. It can include thermal evaporation, magnetron sputtering, or arc evaporation. For example, PVD processes convert the solid material to be deposited (also called the target) into a gaseous state, for example, through pyrolysis or sputtering into atomic-sized particles. The resulting particle stream is transported to the substrate or substrate to be coated through a vacuum space. The vacuum reduces the scattering of the particle stream, resulting in high deposition yields. Some PVD processes (such as magnetron sputtering or arc evaporation) can generate plasma discharge (also called plasma) in a vacuum, exposing the target to this plasma. To form the plasma, a vacuum pressure of 10... - ³ millibars to 10 - The range of 2 millibars is preferred. Some coating processes can employ substrate heating to control the coating layer formation process on the substrate. Furthermore, the coating process may transfer heat (also known as thermal energy) to the substrate, namely due to high-energy particle bombardment and condensation energy released primarily during coating layer formation. The embodiments detailed in this invention are particularly applicable to various industrial production lines employing vacuum coating processes, especially physical vapor deposition processes, which may involve multiple processing steps. Such industrial production lines are suitable for the photovoltaic manufacturing industry, particularly the manufacture of solar cells, where recent technologies may incorporate copper (Cu) coating as a manufacturing step. Specifically, a pretreated silicon (Si) wafer is exposed as a substrate to the coating process, more specifically, a vacuum coating process, more specifically, a physical vapor deposition process, and more specifically, a magnetron sputtering process. To avoid wafer damage, the substrate temperature should not exceed 200°C. In one working example, the coating apparatus 804 is configured to provide a metal PVD coating process, such as using copper (Cu) as a target and / or a magnetron sputtering process performed in a vacuum. Furthermore, a pre-treated silicon wafer is used as a substrate, one side of which is exposed to the coating process provided by the coating apparatus 804. Multiple wafers are transported through the entire vacuum system via a substrate carrier 100. Figure 3A shows graph 300a, which illustrates how the substrate temperature T varies with process time t under various example configurations. According to Example Configuration 1, the first surface 106o of the heat-absorbing sheet 106 disposed on the bottom surface 108 of the groove is a smooth surface. According to Example Configuration 2, the first surface 106o of the heat-absorbing sheet 106 disposed on the bottom surface 108 of the groove is subjected to surface sandblasting treatment (also referred to as sandblasted surface). Obviously, the substrate temperature T in Example Configuration 2 is lower than that in Example Configuration 1 and is limited to below 200°C, while the substrate temperature in Example Configuration 1 reaches 270°C. For example, the process time t can include multiple stages, such as radiative heating in stage 1, coating process heating in stage 2, and effective cooling of the lock chamber in stage 3, wherein during the venting step in stage 3, the cooling process can be assisted by convection. In stage 3 (also known as the venting stage), the pressure on the substrate is increased to atmospheric pressure, for example, about 1 bar. In Example Configuration 1, the cooling of the substrate is limited by a low emissivity (estimated <10%). In Example Configuration 2, the roughness Rz of the sandblasted surface is about 50 micrometers, and the surface emissivity is in the range of 30% to 35%. Figure 3B shows graph 300b, which illustrates how the substrate temperature T varies with process time t under various example configurations. According to Example Configuration 3, the first surface 106o of the heat-absorbing sheet 106 disposed on the bottom surface 108 of the groove is a smooth surface coated with copper. According to Example Configuration 4, the first surface 106o of the heat-absorbing sheet 106 disposed on the bottom surface 108 of the groove is anodized to form a black surface coating (also known as a black anodized coating). Clearly, the substrate temperature T in Example Configuration 4 is lower than that in Example Configuration 3 and is limited to below 160°C, while the substrate temperature in Example Configuration 4 reaches 300°C. For example, the process time t comprises multiple stages, including radiative heating in stage 1, coating process heating in stage 2, and effective cooling of the lock chamber in stage 3, wherein during the venting step in stage 3, the cooling process can be assisted by convection. In stage 3 (also known as the venting stage), the pressure on the substrate is increased (also known as the pressure rise) to atmospheric pressure, for example, about 1 bar. In example configuration 4, the cooling of the substrate is limited by an estimated low emissivity of less than 5%. In example configuration 3, the surface emissivity is approximately 85%. Other working examples of the heat absorber 106 are detailed in the following table:

[0086] Clearly, even when coated with copper, the high roughness of the first surface 106o limits variations in emissivity. This facilitates the reuse of such absorbers 106. Figure 3C shows a partial schematic cross-sectional view of the substrate carrier 100 (viewed from direction 105). Each recess 104h in the substrate carrier 100 may be provided with at least one through-hole 302 (also referred to as a slot venting channel), each slot venting channel extending from the bottom surface 108 of the recess 104h through the support frame 102 and leading to the space below. The heat-absorbing sheet 106 may also include one or more through-holes 304 (also referred to as sheet venting channels), each sheet venting channel extending from a first surface 106o to a second surface 106u. Figure 4 shows a partial top view of the substrate carrier 100 (viewed along direction 103'). The heat absorber 106 includes rounded corners for easy handling and multiple (e.g., four) fin exhaust channels. The heat-absorbing plate 106 can be square and includes a plate exhaust channel for fixing it in the groove 104h. The thickness of the heat-absorbing plate 106 can be in the range of 0.2 mm to 4 mm, more preferably 1 mm to 2 mm, to maintain sufficient mass as a heat sink, while facilitating machining and reducing material costs, and preventing the heat-absorbing plate 106 from directly contacting the substrate when placed in the groove 104h. The substrate carrier 100 may include a support backplate 102p and an attached grid structure 102g to provide a plurality of recesses 104u, each recess 104u configured to accommodate a wafer as a substrate. Since a closed recess bottom surface 108 is required, for example, there is no venting channel under the substrate to avoid undesirable back-side coating on the substrate back side, the support backplate 102p of the substrate carrier 100 may have a machined groove as a recess 104h below each substrate support surface 104s to reduce the contact area between the substrate and the substrate carrier 100, thereby reducing the risk of substrate damage. Other examples of work are detailed below: According to Example 1, the substrate carrier includes a support frame made of steel or aluminum alloy, the support frame providing a grid of rectangular slots, each rectangular slot including a recess for accommodating a heat-absorbing sheet. Each recess extends from the substrate carrier toward the interior of the support frame to a bottom surface defined by a lower plate of the support frame. The heat-absorbing sheet is disposed near the bottom surface of the recess. A first surface of the heat-absorbing sheet faces the substrate carrier surface and has a roughness greater than the roughness of the bottom surface of the recess or a second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet. This roughness is achieved by a controlled sandblasting process that forms a uniform textured microstructure across the entire first surface of the sheet, thereby providing a surface emissivity of at least 30%. According to Working Example 2 (preferably configured according to Working Example 1), each heat absorber consists of a 1.5 mm thick copper sheet, which is chemically anodized before or after the sandblasting step to form a deep black coating. The anodized coating is selected to ensure a baseline emissivity of 70%, which is increased to 85% by the subsequent sandblasting process. The bottom surface of the grooves in the support frame is machined to a surface roughness of Ra 0.2 micrometers, which is intentionally designed to be smoother than the Ra value (5 micrometers) of the first surface of the heat absorber. The heat absorber is secured by a mechanical snap-fit ​​engagement that engages with small protrusions arranged around the periphery of each groove; these protrusions can be machined into the inner wall of the support frame and are designed to accommodate 2 mm diameter unthreaded fastening pins to provide additional securing effect without introducing thermal bridge paths. According to Working Example 3 (preferably any configuration from Working Examples 1 to 2), a silicon wafer is placed as a substrate on a substrate support surface, and the wafer's heat energy is dissipated radiatively through the first surface of a heat absorber. Due to the high emissivity of the first surface of the heat absorber and the relatively smooth bottom surface of the recess, the heat absorber acts as an effective heat sink, transferring heat to the bottom surface of the recess. The textured first surface ensures that the emissivity of the heat absorber is uniform throughout the wafer area, thereby avoiding hot spots that could lead to thermal stress or process variations. Integrated holes on the heat absorber can accommodate retaining pins and also provide additional channels for residual gases to escape, improving overall system reliability. According to Working Example 4 (preferably any configuration of Working Examples 1 to 3), the substrate carrier includes a support frame made of high-strength steel alloy, with each substrate support surface equipped with a V-shaped groove terminating at the bottom surface of the groove formed by the intersecting sides of the V-shape. The heat absorber used in this configuration is a 2 mm thick titanium alloy coated with a dedicated high-emissivity ceramic layer. The ceramic coating is applied via a plasma spraying process, resulting in a surface roughness Rz = 80 micrometers, significantly greater than the roughness of the groove bottom surface (Rz = 5 micrometers) and the roughness of the second surface of the heat absorber (the second surface of the heat absorber retains the original state of the rolling process used to manufacture the heat absorber, e.g., Rz = 1 micrometer). The coating design employs a gradient microstructure to increase emissivity to 90% while maintaining mechanical stability during heat absorber processing. According to Working Example 5 (preferably any configuration of Working Examples 1 to 4), the heat absorber (e.g., made of titanium) is stamped from rolled coil into a square with sides of 100 mm. For ease of installation and removal, each heat absorber includes four through-holes arranged in a cross shape; these holes allow the insertion of small stainless steel retaining pins, which engage with corresponding recessed corners on the carrier frame. The retaining pins are designed to be embedded within the heat absorber to prevent direct contact between the wafer and the heat absorber, thereby avoiding thermal bridges that could affect radiative cooling performance. The inner walls of the recesses in the carrier frame can be polished to Ra = 0.1 micrometers to ensure minimal surface roughness, thereby improving thermal conductivity in contact with the heat absorber. The assembly consisting of the heat absorber and retaining pins can be completed using an automated pick-and-place machine that aligns the heat absorber with each recess, verifies the engagement of the specified pins, and seals the substrate carrier for vacuum operation. According to Working Example 6 (preferably any configuration of Working Examples 1 to 5), a heat absorber with a high emissivity ceramic coating can be used as a heat radiator to absorb heat from a wafer placed on a substrate support surface. The high emissivity of the coating promotes uniform radiative heat transfer to the heat absorber, thereby keeping the wafer temperature below 200°C during processing. According to Working Example 7 (preferably any configuration of Working Examples 1 to 6), the first surface of the heat absorber facing the substrate support surface is designed with a laser-etched microgrid pattern, forming a surface roughness Rz = 30 micrometers. This roughness is intentionally designed to be greater than the roughness of the bottom surface of the groove (Rz = 10 micrometers) and the roughness of the second surface of the heat absorber (which can be a smooth copper coating, Rz = 0.5 micrometers) to promote heat transfer to the support frame. The laser-etched pattern increases the emissivity of the heat absorber to a target value of 45%. According to working example 8 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 7), the heat absorber can be stamped from a prefabricated composite laminated roll. According to working example 9 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 8), the bottom surface of the groove can be coated with a target material (e.g., a metal target material). This improves the heat exchange efficiency between the bottom surface of the groove and the heat-absorbing sheet disposed thereon. According to working example 10 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 9), the first surface of the heat absorber is spaced apart from the plane containing the substrate bearing surface. This reduces the risk of mechanical contact between the heat absorber and the substrate. According to working example 11 (preferably any of working examples 1 to 10), the heat-absorbing sheet is in physical contact with the bottom surface of the groove, which may be provided by a copper coating on the support frame. According to working example 12 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 11), the heat absorber can be in thermal contact with the bottom surface of the groove through a thermal coupling layer made of a non-metallic and / or adhesive material. When the second surface of the heat absorber is rough, the thermal coupling layer can improve the heat exchange efficiency between the heat absorber and the supporting frame. According to working example 13 (preferably according to any configuration of working examples 1 to 12), the heat absorber is a one-piece molded structure and / or coated with an oxide material (e.g., anodized). According to working example 14 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 13), the heat absorber includes a metal layer, such as a copper layer and / or an aluminum layer, both of which have high thermal conductivity. For example, the aluminum layer may be anodized. According to working example 15 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 14), the heat absorber includes one or more through holes that serve as gas exchange exhaust channels. This reduces cavitation that could affect the process atmosphere within the vacuum chamber. According to working example 16 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 15), the heat-absorbing sheet includes a metal layer, such as copper foil or copper plate. Optionally, the heat-absorbing sheet may be coated with a heat-absorbing coating capable of forming a first surface. The heat-absorbing coating may be a black coating and / or a dielectric coating. The heat-absorbing coating may include oxides and / or nitrides, such as heat-absorbing metal oxides (e.g., copper oxide). According to Working Example 17 (preferably any configuration of Working Examples 1 to 16), the heat absorber (e.g., its metal layer) undergoes a roughening process. The roughening process can be additive roughening, removeable roughening, wet roughening (e.g., by etching), and / or dry roughening (e.g., by grinding). Removeable roughening can include chemical roughening, laser roughening, and / or mechanical (e.g., grinding and / or dry) roughening. Mechanical roughening can include sandblasting, wire drawing, grinding, cutting, etc. Wet roughening can include etching. Additive roughening can include lamination, spraying, electroplating, PVD, CVD, etc. According to working example 18 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 17), the heat absorber includes a stainless steel layer (e.g., a foil heat absorber or a sheet). It has extremely high mechanical strength. According to working example 19 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 18), the second surface of the heat absorber and / or the bottom surface of the groove are polished to facilitate heat exchange with the bottom surface of the groove. According to working example 20 (preferably any configuration of working examples 1 to 19), multiple sets of heat-absorbing sheets can be used, with one heat-absorbing sheet disposed in a recess within each substrate receiving area of ​​the substrate carrier. The substrate carrier can hold multiple sets of substrates, with one substrate disposed in each substrate receiving area of ​​the substrate carrier, positioned on the substrate bearing surface of the substrate receiving area and spatially separated from the heat-absorbing sheet disposed in the recess. The multiple sets of substrates are transported through a vacuum system via the substrate carrier and exposed to a vacuum provided by the vacuum system. The vacuum system includes one or more processing devices configured to provide a processing step (e.g., coating), in which the multiple sets of substrates are exposed. After the substrates are transported out of the vacuum system, they can be unloaded from the substrate carrier. According to Working Example 21 (preferably any configuration of Working Examples 1 to 20), several absorber sheets in a plurality of sets of absorber sheets can be identified as degraded absorber sheets (also referred to as a degradation determination process). The degradation determination process can be based on the condition of the absorber sheets, such as actual emissivity and / or the coating condition of the absorber sheets. The degradation determination process may include comparing the actual condition of the absorber sheets with a reference condition. Each degraded absorber sheet can be restored to the reference condition (also referred to as a cleaning process), for example by a removal process, or replaced with an absorber sheet in the reference condition. Although the invention has been particularly shown and described by way of specific embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. The scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims and is therefore intended to cover all variations falling within the meaning and equivalents of the claims.

Claims

1. A substrate carrier, characterized in that, include: Support frame; Multiple substrate bearing surfaces formed in or connected to the bearing frame; A groove extending from each of the substrate bearing surfaces into the bearing frame to the bottom surface of the groove, wherein the bottom surface of the groove is provided by and defines the groove by the bearing frame; and A heat-absorbing sheet disposed within the groove and near the bottom surface of the groove has a first surface facing the substrate bearing surface, wherein the emissivity of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following: the bottom surface of the groove, and a second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface of the groove.

2. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The roughness of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following: the bottom surface of the groove, and the second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface of the groove.

3. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The groove has a groove opening, which is disposed between two regions of the substrate bearing surface and / or defined by the substrate bearing surface, wherein the groove opening is spaced apart from the heat-absorbing sheet.

4. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heat-absorbing sheet is spaced apart from the substrate bearing surface.

5. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heat-absorbing sheet and the bottom surface of the groove achieve thermal contact through physical contact and / or a thermal coupling layer, wherein the thermal coupling layer is non-metallic and / or adhesive.

6. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The substrate bearing surface extends circumferentially along the groove.

7. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The groove extends from the substrate bearing surface toward the interior of the bearing frame along the coating direction to the bottom surface of the groove, wherein the extension length of the groove along the coating direction is greater than the extension length of the heat absorber along the coating direction.

8. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The substrate further includes a recess corresponding to each substrate bearing surface, wherein the substrate bearing surface is disposed in the recess; wherein the recess extends from the upper surface of the bearing frame to the substrate bearing surface.

9. The substrate carrier according to claim 8, characterized in that, The recess is defined by the substrate bearing surface, and / or the recess communicates with the groove.

10. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The groove is defined by the wall provided by the support frame along the transport direction of the substrate carrier.

11. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The load-bearing frame is a one-piece molded structure.

12. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The support frame includes multiple regions: an upper region provides the multiple substrate support surfaces, a middle region provides the groove for each substrate support surface, and a lower region provides the bottom surface of the groove for each substrate support surface.

13. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heat-absorbing plate includes at least one through-hole for gas exchange.

14. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heat absorber includes one or more copper-containing coatings, and / or the copper-containing coatings form the first surface and / or the second surface.

15. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heat-absorbing sheet is made of metal.

16. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heat-absorbing sheet contains steel.

17. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heat-absorbing sheet has a foil structure.

18. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first surface is subjected to a wire drawing process and / or a sanding process.

19. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The second surface is polished.

20. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom surface of the groove is polished.

21. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The roughness of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following: the upper surface of the support frame, the lower surface of the support frame.

22. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, The substrate carrier also includes at least one flat conveying surface, which is connected to or provided by the support frame.

23. The substrate carrier according to claim 22, characterized in that, The flat conveying surface faces the lower side of the substrate carrier.

24. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, At least one of the following faces the upper side of the substrate carrier and / or faces away from the lower side of the substrate carrier: the bottom surface of the groove, each of the substrate bearing surfaces, and the upper surface of the bearing frame.

25. The substrate carrier according to claim 1, characterized in that, At least one of the following is oriented toward the lower side of the substrate carrier and / or away from the upper side of the substrate carrier: the lower surface of the substrate, the coating direction of the substrate.

26. A conveying system, characterized in that, It includes a substrate carrier as described in any one of claims 1 to 25 and a plurality of conveying rollers for conveying the substrate carrier.

27. A vacuum system, characterized in that, It includes the conveying system as described in claim 26 and at least one vacuum chamber, wherein the conveying roller is disposed in the vacuum chamber.

28. The vacuum system according to claim 27, characterized in that, The vacuum system further includes at least one coating device configured to emit coating material toward the conveyor roller, and / or, when the substrate carrier is conveyed by the conveyor system, the substrate carrier is exposed to the coating device.

29. A method of operating a substrate carrier, applicable to the substrate carrier as described in any one of claims 1 to 25, characterized in that, The method includes: A heat-absorbing sheet is disposed in the groove and close to the bottom surface of the groove. The heat-absorbing sheet has a first surface facing the substrate bearing surface, wherein the roughness of the first surface is greater than at least one of the following: the bottom surface of the groove, and the second surface of the heat-absorbing sheet facing the bottom surface of the groove. Place the substrate on the substrate support surface.

30. The method of operating the substrate carrier according to claim 29, characterized in that, The method further includes: The substrate carrier is conveyed by at least one conveying roller, wherein the substrate carrier is configured to carry the substrate.

31. The method of operating the substrate carrier according to claim 30, characterized in that, The method further includes: The substrate and / or the substrate carrier are coated, wherein the coating is performed using a coating material, and / or the coating is performed in a vacuum.

32. The method of operating the substrate carrier according to claim 31, characterized in that, The coating material contains copper.

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