Clamp for etching equipment and etching equipment

Abstract

The utility model belongs to the technical field of semiconductors, and discloses a clamp for etching equipment and the etching equipment. The clamp for the etching equipment comprises a tray, a sealing ring and a cover plate, the tray is provided with a bearing area used for bearing wafers and a protection area annularly arranged on the periphery of the bearing area, the width of the protection area is d1, d1 is larger than or equal to 2 mm, and a sealing groove is annularly formed in the edge of the bearing area; the sealing ring is arranged in the sealing groove and partially protrudes out of the sealing groove, the wafer is supported on the sealing ring, and the edge of the wafer is located in the protection area; the cover plate covers the periphery of the protection area of the tray and partially abuts against the top wall of the wafer dome. When the clamp is used, the manufacturing process of the tray does not need to be changed, the manufacturing cost does not need to be increased, and when the edge of the tray is corroded and concaved inwards in the long-time using process of the tray, the inwards-concaved amplitude is only limited in a protection area, and deformation of the sealing groove cannot be caused; and the possibility that the sealing ring loses the sealing effect due to dislocation is effectively reduced, so that the service life of the tray is prolonged.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of semiconductors, in particular to a clamp for etching equipment and etching equipment. Background Art

[0002] During wafer etching operations, the wafer needs to be fixed at a specific position using a dedicated fixture system to ensure that the wafer does not move during the etching process and to ensure a good etching effect.

[0003] In the prior art, such as Figure 1 As shown, the fixture system includes a tray 10, a sealing ring 101 and a cover plate 102. The wafer 103 is placed on the tray 10, and the bottom wall of the wafer 103 is abutted and sealed with the sealing ring 101 on the top wall of the tray 10, while the cover plate 102 is partially abutted against the top wall of the wafer 103 to fix the wafer 103. In order to ensure the overall cooling effect on the wafer 103, the sealing ring 101 is arranged as close to the edge of the tray 10 as possible, and the distance between the sealing groove where the sealing ring 101 is installed and the edge of the tray 10 is extremely small.

[0004] However, a certain gap is maintained between the wafer 103 and the cover plate 102 to ensure sufficient contact between the plasma and the wafer 103. During the etching process, the plasma will continue to contact the edge of the tray 10 and cause corrosion to the edge of the tray 10. During long-term use, the edge will gradually concave toward the position of the sealing groove, which may easily cause the sealing ring 101 to be misaligned and the seal to fail, severely limiting the service life of the tray 10. Utility Model Content

[0005] The utility model aims to provide a fixture for etching equipment and etching equipment, which solves the problem in the prior art that during the etching operation, the edge of the tray is easily etched and concave, causing the sealing ring to be easily misaligned, resulting in sealing failure and a low upper limit on the service life of the tray.

[0006] To achieve this purpose, the utility model adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] In a first aspect, the utility model provides a fixture for an etching device, which comprises:

[0008] A tray, wherein the tray has a carrying area for carrying wafers and a protective area arranged around the carrying area, the width of the protective area is d1, d1 ≥ 2 mm, and a sealing groove is arranged around the edge of the carrying area;

[0009] a sealing ring, disposed in the sealing groove and partially protruding from the sealing groove, the wafer being supported by the sealing ring and the edge of the wafer being located in the protection area; and

[0010] The cover plate is arranged on the periphery of the protection area of ​​the tray and partially presses against the top wall of the wafer.

[0011] Optionally, a first cooling channel is provided in the tray, the first cooling channel is located below the protection area and at least part of the first cooling channel is arranged close to the top wall of the tray, and the width d1 of the protection area is ≤4.5 mm.

[0012] Optionally, the first cooling channel is opened corresponding to the wafer, and the minimum distance between the first cooling channel and the edge of the wafer is d2, d2>0.5mm.

[0013] Optionally, the first cooling channel extends in a vertical direction, and a distance between a top of the first cooling channel and a top wall of the tray is h1, 0.5 mm ≤ h1 ≤ 1 mm.

[0014] Optionally, a distance between an edge of the wafer and an edge of the tray is d3, 1mm≤d3≤1.5mm.

[0015] Optionally, the cover plate includes:

[0016] A main body, arranged around the periphery of the protection area of ​​the tray;

[0017] a ring plate, disposed on the inner side of the main body, wherein the top wall of the ring plate is lower than the top wall of the wafer; and

[0018] A pressing claw has one end fixedly connected to the ring plate and the other end extending out of the ring plate and capable of pressing against the top wall of the wafer.

[0019] Optionally, the width d4 of the ring plate is greater than 3 mm.

[0020] Optionally, in the carrying area, a cooling space is formed between the bottom wall of the wafer and the top wall of the tray, a second cooling channel connected to the cooling space is opened in the tray and corresponding to the carrying area, and a cooling gap is provided between the sealing ring and the wafer for cooling gas to flow from the cooling space to the wafer.

[0021] Optionally, the surface of the sealing ring has a metal coating.

[0022] In a second aspect, the utility model provides an etching device, which comprises:

[0023] Racks; and

[0024] The clamp for the etching equipment as described in any one of the first aspects is arranged on the frame to fix the wafer.

[0025] Beneficial effects of the utility model:

[0026] In the first aspect, by forming a bearing area and a protection area on the tray, the sealing groove is opened at the edge of the bearing area, and the width d1 of the protection area is ≥ 2mm, forming a sealing groove retracted structure, so that a sufficient buffer distance can be formed between the sealing groove and the edge of the tray. The sealing ring is embedded in the sealing groove, and one side of the sealing ring extends out of the sealing groove and abuts against the bottom wall of the wafer, and the cover plate is arranged on the outside of the protection area and presses against the top wall of the wafer, thereby fixing the wafer above the tray. In this way, when the clamp is used, only by setting a retracted sealing groove, the protection area can be reserved as a buffer space between the sealing groove and the edge of the tray, without changing the manufacturing process of the tray and increasing the manufacturing cost. When the edge of the tray is corroded and concave during long-term use, the concave amplitude is limited to the protection area, and the sealing groove will not be deformed, which effectively reduces the possibility of the sealing ring being misaligned and losing the sealing function, thereby extending the service life of the tray.

[0027] Secondly, when the etching equipment is in use, the sealing ring of the clamp can maintain a good sealing effect during long-term use, reducing the frequency of replacement of the clamp, thereby effectively improving production efficiency while reducing the overall cost expenditure of the etching equipment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of the background technology of the utility model;

[0029] Figure 2 It is a cross-sectional view from a first perspective of the fixture for etching equipment in an embodiment of the utility model;

[0030] Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view from a second perspective of the fixture for etching equipment in an embodiment of the utility model;

[0031] Figure 4 It is a top view of a fixture for etching equipment in an embodiment of the utility model;

[0032] Figure 5 It is a partial enlarged cross-sectional view of the fixture for etching equipment in the embodiment of the utility model.

[0033] In the figure:

[0034] 10. tray; 101. sealing ring; 102. cover plate; 103. wafer;

[0035] 1. Tray; 11. Load-bearing area; 12. Protection area; 13. Sealing groove; 14. First cooling channel; 15. Cooling space; 16. Second cooling channel; 2. Sealing ring; 3. Cover plate; 31. Main body; 32. Ring plate; 33. Pressing claw; 4. Wafer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention, rather than to limit the present invention. It should also be noted that, for ease of description, only the parts related to the present invention, rather than all structures, are shown in the accompanying drawings.

[0037] In the description of the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "connected", "connected", and "fixed" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0038] In the present utility model, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may include that the first and second features are in direct contact, or may include that the first and second features are not in direct contact but are in contact through another feature between them. Moreover, a first feature being "above", "above" and "above" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below", "below" and "below" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly below and obliquely below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0039] In the description of this embodiment, the terms "upper", "lower", "left", "right" and other directions or positional relationships are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of description and simplified operation, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific direction, be constructed and operated in a specific direction, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation of the present invention. In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are only used to distinguish in the description and have no special meaning.

[0040] The utility model provides a clamp for etching equipment and the etching equipment.

[0041] Reference Figure 2 Medium to Figure 5The fixture for etching equipment includes a tray 1, a sealing ring 2, and a cover plate 3. The tray 1 has a carrying area 11 for carrying a wafer 4 and a protective area 12 arranged around the outer periphery of the carrying area 11, the width of the protective area 12 is d1, d1 ≥ 2mm, and a sealing groove 13 is arranged around the edge of the carrying area 11; the sealing ring 2 is arranged in the sealing groove 13 and partially protrudes from the sealing groove 13, the wafer 4 is supported by the sealing ring 2, and the edge of the wafer 4 is located in the protective area 12; the cover plate 3 is arranged around the outer periphery of the protective area of ​​the tray 1 and partially presses against the top wall of the wafer 4.

[0042] Specifically, the top wall of the tray 1 can be designed with multiple bearing areas 11, the size and number of the bearing areas 11 depend on the size and shape of the wafer 4, and a protective area 12 is set at the edge of each bearing area 11. In this embodiment, taking the disc-shaped wafer 4 as an example, the bearing area 11 is circular, and a sealing groove 13 is arranged around the edge of the bearing area 11. The sealing groove 13 is filled with a sealing ring 2, which is formed by doping 80% silicone rubber, 18%-19% fluororubber and 1%-2% thermal conductive inorganic powder. The thermal conductive inorganic powder can be silicon nitride, aluminum oxide or diamond, etc., and the particle size of the particles is less than 100μm, so as to ensure that the sealing ring 2 can have the characteristics of heat resistance, corrosion resistance, high mechanical strength and good thermal conductivity. A protective area 12 is formed on the outside of the sealing groove 13, and the width d1 of the protective area 12 is ≥2mm, so as to ensure that there is a sufficient buffer distance between the edge of the tray 1 and the sealing groove 13. The cover plate 3 is designed according to the shape of the tray 1 , and a plurality of through holes corresponding to the bearing area 11 may be provided on its surface, and a pressing structure may be provided in the through hole to press against the top wall of the wafer 4 to fix the wafer 4 on the upper side of the tray 1 .

[0043] By forming the bearing area 11 and the protection area 12 on the tray 1, the sealing groove 13 is opened at the edge of the bearing area 11, and the width d1 of the protection area 12 is ≥ 2mm, forming a retracted structure of the sealing groove 13, so that a sufficient buffer distance can be formed between the sealing groove 13 and the edge of the tray 1. The sealing ring 2 is embedded in the sealing groove 13, and one side of the sealing ring 2 extends out of the sealing groove 13 and abuts against the bottom wall of the wafer 4, and the cover plate 3 is arranged around the outside of the protection area and presses against the top wall of the wafer 4, so that the wafer 4 is fixed above the tray 1. In this way, when the clamp is in use, only by setting up an inward-retracted sealing groove 13, a protective area 12 can be reserved as a buffer space between the sealing groove 13 and the edge of the pallet 1. There is no need to change the manufacturing process of the pallet 1 and the manufacturing cost will not be increased. When the edge of the pallet 1 is corroded and concave during long-term use, the extent of the concave is limited to the protective area 12, and the sealing groove 13 will not be deformed, which effectively reduces the possibility of the sealing ring 2 being misaligned and losing its sealing function, thereby extending the service life of the pallet 1.

[0044] Optionally, a first cooling channel 14 is provided in the tray 1 , the first cooling channel 14 is located below the protection area 12 and at least part of the first cooling channel 14 is disposed close to the top wall of the tray 1 , and the width d1 of the protection area 12 is ≤4.5 mm.

[0045] Specifically, a first cooling channel 14 is provided inside the tray 1, which is located below the protection area 12. The first cooling channel 14 may be annular or spiral or in other shapes, and the first cooling channel 14 is at least partially provided close to the top wall of the tray 1 to cool the edge of the wafer 4 located in the protection area 12. A plurality of first cooling channels 14 may be provided, and the plurality of cooling channels may be evenly spaced around the circumference of the tray 1 to ensure a good cooling effect on the edge of the wafer 4 as a whole. The width d1 of the protection area 12 is ≤4.5 mm, that is, the range of the width d1 of the protection area 12 is 2 mm ≤ d1 ≤ 4.5 mm, so that there is not only enough space in the protection area 12 to provide the first cooling channel 14, but also the sealing groove 13 is not retracted too much, resulting in a large distance between the sealing groove 13 and the edge of the tray 1, thereby avoiding the cooling effect of the first cooling channel 14 on the edge of the wafer 4 being poor, resulting in an enhanced edge distortion effect of the wafer 4.

[0046] Optionally, the first cooling channel 14 is opened corresponding to the wafer 4, and the minimum distance between the first cooling channel 14 and the edge of the wafer 4 is d2, and d2>0.5mm.

[0047] Specifically, the opening position of the first cooling channel 14 is located below the edge of the wafer 4 to ensure that the first cooling channel 14 can correspond to the wafer 4, thereby improving the cooling effect on the wafer 4 when the cooling gas is filled in the first cooling channel 14. The minimum distance between the first cooling channel 14 and the edge of the wafer 4 is designed to be d2, and d2>0.5mm, so that the first cooling channel 14 is completely located directly below the wafer 4 and maintains a sufficient distance from the edge of the tray 1, thereby reducing the possibility of damaging the first cooling channel 14 when the edge of the tray 1 is corroded and concave, resulting in leakage of cooling gas.

[0048] Optionally, the first cooling channel 14 extends in the vertical direction, and the distance between the top of the first cooling channel 14 and the top wall of the tray 1 is h1, 0.5 mm≤h1≤1 mm.

[0049] Specifically, the first cooling channel 14 extends in the vertical direction, and its lower end is open to facilitate communication with the gas source of the cooling gas. Multiple first cooling channels 14 can be interconnected to form a channel for the circulation of the cooling gas, or they can be disconnected to form a separate channel. h1 is between 0.5 mm and 1 mm, which can make the top of the first cooling channel 14 close to the top wall of the tray 1, while ensuring that no gas leakage occurs, and can also effectively cool the edge of the wafer 4, thereby reducing the possibility of deformation of the wafer 4.

[0050] Optionally, the distance between the edge of the wafer 4 and the edge of the tray 1 is d3, 1mm≤d3≤1.5mm.

[0051] Specifically, d3 is set between 1 mm and 1.5 mm so that the wafer 4 can just cover the entire sealing ring 2 and the bearing area 11, to ensure that the wafer 4 can be stably fixed above the tray 1, while also ensuring that the wafer 4 blocks the main body 31 structure of the tray 1, reducing the possibility of plasma contact with the bearing area 11 of the tray 1.

[0052] Optionally, the cover plate 3 includes a main body 31, a ring plate 32 and a pressing claw 33. The main body 31 is arranged around the periphery of the protection area 12 of the tray 1; the ring plate 32 is arranged on the inner side of the main body 31, and the top wall of the ring plate 32 is lower than the top wall of the wafer 4; one end of the pressing claw 33 is fixedly connected to the ring plate 32, and the other end extends out of the ring plate 32 and can press against the top wall of the wafer 4.

[0053] Specifically, the main body 31 is arranged on the outside of the tray 1, and a ring plate 32 is arranged on the inner wall thereof. The inner side of the ring plate 32 maintains a certain distance from the outer edge of the wafer 4, and the top wall of the ring plate 32 is sunken so that the top wall of the ring plate 32 is lower than the top wall of the wafer 4. In this embodiment, the distance between the top wall of the ring plate 32 and the top wall of the wafer 4 is h2, and h2>300μm. The pressure claw 33 is arranged on the top wall of the ring plate 32, and part of it protrudes from the ring plate 32, and the bottom wall of the pressure claw 33 can be pressed against the top wall of the wafer 4. The main body 31, the ring plate 32 and the pressure claw 33 can be an integrated structure for easy processing and production, and can also be spliced ​​and formed by welding or bonding, etc., which is not limited by the present utility model.

[0054] By providing the ring plate 32 so that the top wall of the wafer 4 is higher than the top wall of the ring plate 32 , the plasma can be vertically incident and flow toward the edge of the wafer 4 during injection, thereby further reducing the possibility of distortion of the edge of the wafer 4 .

[0055] Optionally, the width d4 of the ring plate 32 is greater than 3 mm.

[0056] Specifically, d4>3mm can ensure that a certain space is formed on the upper side of the ring plate 32, which is beneficial to reduce the deflection interference caused by the metal part of the top wall of the wafer to the plasma during the flow process, thereby further reducing the possibility of the wafer 4 being easily deformed.

[0057] Optionally, in the carrying area 11, a cooling space 15 is formed between the bottom wall of the wafer 4 and the top wall of the tray 1, and a second cooling channel 16 connected to the cooling space 15 is provided in the tray 1 and corresponds to the carrying area 11, and a cooling gap is provided between the sealing ring 2 and the wafer 4 for cooling gas to flow from the cooling space 15 to the wafer 4.

[0058] Specifically, a plurality of second cooling channels 16 are provided inside the tray 1, and the second cooling channels 16 are open at both ends, the lower end opening of which is connected to the gas source of the cooling gas, and the upper end opening of which is connected to the cooling space 15, so that the cooling gas is injected into the cooling space 15 to cool the wafer 4. The Shore hardness of the sealing ring 2 can be maintained between 60 and 80, so that the sealing ring 2 can lift the edge of the wafer 4, and when the sealing ring 2 with a higher hardness contacts the wafer 4, a certain gap can be formed at the contact position between the two as a cooling gap.

[0059] By forming a cooling gap between the sealing ring 2 and the wafer 4, the cooling gas in the cooling space 15 leaks to a certain extent. The leaked cooling gas flows along the bottom wall of the wafer 4 to the edge of the wafer 4, thereby improving the cooling effect on the edge of the wafer 4.

[0060] Optionally, the surface of the sealing ring 2 has a metal coating.

[0061] Specifically, a coating with densely arranged metal particles is deposited on the surface of the sealing ring 2. The metal material can be Al, Au, Ag, Cu, Fe, etc. The particle size of the metal particles is less than 50 μm, so as to form a conductor, so that the surface of the sealing ring 2 is conductive. After the sealing ring 2 is installed in the sealing groove 13, it can form an integrated conductor with the tray 1, which is beneficial to expand the electric potential between the wafer 4 and the upper surface of the tray 1, thereby enhancing the plasma etching effect.

[0062] The etching device comprises a frame and a fixture for the etching device in the above embodiment. The fixture for the etching device is arranged on the frame to fix the wafer 4.

[0063] When the etching device is in use, the sealing ring 2 of the fixture can maintain a good sealing effect during long-term use, reducing the frequency of replacement of the fixture, thereby effectively improving production efficiency while reducing the overall cost expenditure of the etching device.

[0064] Obviously, the above embodiments of the present invention are merely examples for the purpose of clearly illustrating the present invention, and are not intended to limit the implementation methods of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, various obvious changes, readjustments and substitutions can be made without departing from the scope of protection of the present invention. It is not necessary and impossible to list all implementation methods here. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention shall be included in the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A fixture for etching equipment, characterized in that: include: A tray (1), the tray (1) comprising a carrying area (11) for carrying a wafer (4) and a protective area (12) arranged around the outer periphery of the carrying area (11), the width of the protective area (12) being d1, d1 being ≥ 2 mm, and a sealing groove (13) being arranged around the edge of the carrying area (11); A sealing ring (2) is disposed in the sealing groove (13) and partially protrudes from the sealing groove (13); a wafer (4) is supported by the sealing ring (2) and an edge of the wafer (4) is located in the protection area (12); and A cover plate (3) is arranged to cover the periphery of the protection area of ​​the tray (1) and partially press against the top wall of the wafer (4).

2. The fixture for etching equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: A first cooling channel (14) is provided in the tray (1), the first cooling channel (14) is located below the protection area (12) and the first cooling channel (14) is at least partially arranged close to the top wall of the tray (1), and the width d1 of the protection area (12) is ≤4.5 mm.

3. The fixture for etching equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first cooling channel (14) is opened corresponding to the wafer (4), and the minimum distance between the first cooling channel (14) and the edge of the wafer (4) is d2, d2>0.5mm.

4. The fixture for etching equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first cooling channel (14) extends in a vertical direction, and the distance between the top of the first cooling channel (14) and the top wall of the tray (1) is h1, 0.5 mm ≤ h1 ≤ 1 mm.

5. The fixture for etching equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The distance between the edge of the wafer (4) and the edge of the tray (1) is d3, 1mm≤d3≤1.5mm.

6. The fixture for etching equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The cover plate (3) comprises: A main body (31) is arranged around the periphery of the protection area (12) of the tray (1); a ring plate (32) disposed on the inner side of the main body (31), wherein the top wall of the ring plate (32) is lower than the top wall of the wafer (4); and A pressing claw (33) has one end fixedly connected to the ring plate (32) and the other end extending out of the ring plate (32) and capable of pressing against the top wall of the wafer (4).

7. The fixture for etching equipment according to claim 6, characterized in that: The width d4 of the ring plate (32) is greater than 3 mm.

8. The fixture for etching equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: In the carrying area (11), a cooling space (15) is formed between the bottom wall of the wafer (4) and the top wall of the tray (1); a second cooling channel (16) connected to the cooling space (15) is provided in the tray (1) and corresponds to the carrying area (11); and a cooling gap is provided between the sealing ring (2) and the wafer (4) to facilitate the flow of cooling gas from the cooling space (15) to the wafer (4).

9. The fixture for etching equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The surface of the sealing ring (2) has a metal coating.

10. Etching equipment, characterized in that include: frame; as well as A fixture for an etching device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, arranged on the frame for fixing a wafer (4).

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