Wafer cache cavity and wafer cache device

Abstract

The utility model discloses a wafer cache cavity and a wafer cache device. The wafer cache cavity comprises a cavity body, a wafer supporting assembly is arranged in the cavity body, and the wafer supporting assembly comprises a plurality of supporting pieces which are used for jointly supporting a wafer in the edge area of the wafer; the cover plate is arranged above the cavity body in a sealed mode, transparent observation windows are arranged on the cover plate, and the transparent observation windows correspond to part of or all the supporting pieces in a one-to-one mode. According to the scheme, the state and the position of the wafer in the wafer cache cavity can be conveniently observed from the transparent observation window, the state of the wafer can be known in real time, and the wafer can be prevented from being biased or even damaged when the wafer is taken and placed by the vacuum manipulator.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of semiconductor equipment, in particular to a wafer buffer cavity and a wafer buffer device. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the current wafer manufacturing process, the wafer buffer cavity cover plate is a blind plate, and the inside is closed and invisible, so that the worker cannot observe the real-time state of the wafer inside the wafer buffer cavity, and thus cannot understand the possible problems. Further, when the worker operates the vacuum manipulator to take the wafer, the specific position of the wafer cannot be understood, which may cause the wafer to be placed off-center or damaged. CONTENT OF THE UTILITY MODEL

[0003] To at least solve part of the above problems, the embodiments of the present application provide a wafer buffer cavity, comprising: a cavity body, a wafer support assembly is arranged in the cavity body, the wafer support assembly comprises a plurality of support pieces for collectively supporting the wafer at the edge region of the wafer; and a cover plate, which is sealingly arranged above the cavity body, wherein a transparent observation window is arranged on the cover plate, and the transparent observation window is arranged one-to-one corresponding to part or all of the support pieces.

[0004] Further, the number of transparent observation windows is even, and each of the even number of transparent observation windows is arranged one-to-one corresponding to an even number of support pieces collectively supporting the wafer at the edge region of the wafer, wherein each adjacent two of the even number of support pieces are symmetrically arranged with respect to the diameter of the wafer.

[0005] Further, the number of transparent observation windows is odd, and each of the odd number of transparent observation windows is arranged one-to-one corresponding to an odd number of support pieces collectively supporting the wafer at the edge region of the wafer, wherein the odd number of support pieces are uniformly distributed in the circumferential direction of the wafer.

[0006] Further, the material of the transparent observation window is quartz, and the quartz is sealingly fixed on the cover plate through a metal pressing plate, a Teflon pressing plate and a sealing ring, wherein the sealing ring, the quartz, the Teflon pressing plate and the metal pressing plate are sequentially arranged on the cover plate in a direction away from the cover plate.

[0007] Further, the cover plate is provided with a recess.

[0008] Further, the recess is a milling area realized by milling.

[0009] Further, the center region of the cover plate is provided with an air inlet hole communicated with the cavity body, the air inlet hole comprises a main air inlet hole and a plurality of branch air inlet holes, one end of the main air inlet hole is arranged on the upper surface of the cover plate, and the main air inlet hole penetrates part of the cover plate in the thickness direction of the cover plate, one end of the branch air inlet hole is communicated with the main air inlet hole, and the other end is arranged on the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate, wherein the other ends of the plurality of branch air inlet holes are uniformly distributed on the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate.

[0010] Further, the center region of the cover plate is provided with a recess hole penetrating part of the cover plate in the thickness direction of the cover plate, an air inlet block is sealingly arranged above the recess hole, a main air inlet hole is arranged on the air inlet block, one end of the main air inlet hole is arranged on the upper surface of the air inlet block, and the other end is arranged on the lower surface of the air inlet block, a plurality of branch air inlet holes are arranged on the cover plate, one end of the branch air inlet hole is arranged on the inner wall of the recess hole, and the other end is arranged on the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate, wherein the other ends of the plurality of branch air inlet holes are uniformly distributed on the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate.

[0011] Further, the edge of the air inlet block is in a stepped shape with the upper part being wide and the lower part being narrow, and the lower part of the air inlet block is sealingly embedded in part of the recess hole.

[0012] The embodiments of the present application also provide a wafer caching device comprising the wafer caching cavity as described above.

[0013] According to the wafer caching cavity and the wafer caching device, the wafer state and position inside the wafer caching cavity can be conveniently observed through the transparent observation window, the wafer state can be understood in real time, and the wafer can be avoided to be offset or even damaged when the vacuum manipulator takes and places the wafer. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0014] The following drawings, which are part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the present application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the application.

[0015] Figure 1 A top view of a wafer caching cavity according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0016] Figure 2 A structure exploded view of a transparent observation window according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0017] Figure 3 A bottom view of a cover plate according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0018] Figure 4A cross-sectional view of a cover plate with air inlet holes according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0019] Figure 5 A schematic view of a cover plate with air inlet blocks according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0020] Figure 6 A cross-sectional view of a cover plate with air inlet blocks according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0021] Figure 7 A cross-sectional view of a cover plate with air inlet blocks according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0022] Reference Signs:

[0023] 1 - cover plate; 2 - transparent viewing window; 3 - support sheet; 4 - threaded hole; 5 - metal pressing plate; 6 - Teflon pressing plate; 7 - quartz block; 8 - sealing ring; 9 - recess; 10 - main air inlet hole; 11 - branch air inlet hole; 12 - air inlet block; 13 - recessed hole; 14 - threaded hole; 15 - main air inlet hole; 16 - branch air inlet hole; 17 - cooling gas line. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the drawings and detailed description will be used to clearly explain the spirit of the present application. Any person skilled in the art can make changes and modifications to the technology taught by the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application.

[0025] The illustrative embodiments of the present application and their description serve only to explain the present application. In addition, elements / components with the same or similar reference numerals in the drawings and embodiments are used to represent the same or similar parts.

[0026] As for "first", "second", and the like used herein, they do not particularly refer to the order or sequence, nor are they used to limit the present application. They are merely used to distinguish an element or operation from another element or operation described using the same technical terms.

[0027] As for "comprise", "include", "have", "contain", and the like used herein, they are all open terms, meaning to include but not limited to.

[0028] As for "and / or" used herein, it includes any or all combinations of the things.

[0029] As for "a plurality of" herein, it includes "two" and "more than two"; as for "a plurality of groups" herein, it includes "two groups" and "more than two groups".

[0030] Certain words used in the following description are discussed under the heading "Definitions" below or elsewhere in the specification to provide additional guidance to the practitioner in order to practice the present application.

[0031] In the current wafer manufacturing process, the wafer is processed to a certain stage, and needs to be placed in a wafer buffer chamber (LLC) for a period of time, and then the wafer is taken out by the staff operating the vacuum manipulator to the next stage of processing chamber for processing.

[0032] In the LLC, the wafer is supported by a plurality of wafer support pieces inside the LLC, and the LLC cover plate in the prior art is a blind plate, which is not conducive to observing the wafer and taking and placing the wafer.

[0033] The wafer buffer chamber provided by the embodiments of the present application is used for temporary storage of wafers in the wafer manufacturing process. The wafer buffer chamber comprises: a chamber body, a wafer support assembly is arranged in the chamber body, the wafer support assembly comprises a plurality of support pieces for collectively supporting the wafer at the edge region of the wafer; and a cover plate, which is sealingly arranged above the chamber body, wherein a transparent observation window is arranged on the cover plate, and the transparent observation window is arranged one-to-one corresponding to part or all of the support pieces. In this way, the state and position of the wafer inside the wafer buffer chamber can be conveniently observed from the transparent observation window, the state of the wafer can be understood in real time, and the wafer can be avoided to be offset or even damaged when the vacuum manipulator takes and places the wafer.

[0034] Figure 1 A top view of a wafer buffer chamber according to an embodiment of the present application is shown. As shown in Figure 1 The cover plate 1 of the wafer buffer chamber is disc-shaped.

[0035] In one embodiment, the number of transparent observation windows is even, and each of the transparent observation windows is arranged one-to-one corresponding to an even number of support pieces for collectively supporting the wafer at the edge region of the wafer, wherein each adjacent two of the even number of support pieces are symmetrically arranged relative to the diameter of the wafer. As shown in Figure 1 Four transparent observation windows 2 are arranged on the cover plate 1, and the four transparent observation windows 2 are arranged one-to-one corresponding to four support pieces 3 for collectively supporting the wafer at the edge region of the wafer, and each adjacent two of the four support pieces 3 are symmetrically arranged relative to the diameter of the wafer, so that the wafer supported on the support pieces 3 can be observed from the transparent observation windows 2 at various angles. Figure 3 A bottom view of the cover plate 1 according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0036] In another embodiment, the number of transparent viewing windows can be odd, each corresponding to an odd number of support sheets that jointly support the wafer at its edge region, wherein the odd number of support sheets are evenly distributed along the circumference of the wafer. For example, three transparent viewing windows can be provided on the cover plate 1, each corresponding to one of three support sheets that jointly support the wafer at its edge region, wherein these three support sheets are evenly distributed along the circumference of the wafer.

[0037] In one implementation, such as Figure 1 As shown, the cover plate 1 has multiple threaded holes 4 around its perimeter, which can be used to seal and fix the cover plate 1 to the cavity body.

[0038] In one embodiment, the transparent viewing window 2 is made of quartz. For example... Figure 2 As shown, the quartz block 7 can be sealed and fixed to the cover plate 1 by the metal pressure plate 5, the Teflon pressure plate 6, and the sealing ring 8. Specifically, countersunk holes matching the dimensions of the metal pressure plate 5, the Teflon pressure plate 6, and the quartz block 7 can be sequentially provided on the cover plate 1, and then the sealing ring 8 can be used to seal and fix the quartz block 7 to the cover plate 1.

[0039] In one implementation, such as Figure 2 As shown, the cover plate 1 also has a recessed portion 9. The recessed portion 9 can be a milled area achieved by milling. Alternatively, the recessed portion 9 can be formed in one step when manufacturing the cover plate body. In this way, the cover plate can be made thinner while meeting the performance requirements, thereby reducing the overall weight of the cover plate.

[0040] In one embodiment, a handle may also be provided on the cover plate 1. The handle is fixed to the cover plate 1 by providing threads on the cover plate 1 to facilitate the removal of the cover plate 1.

[0041] Furthermore, in existing wafer cache cavities, the lower layer of the wafer cache cavity has a heating plate, which makes the upper wafer susceptible to heat transfer and temperature rise, thereby affecting the wafer's condition and even causing wafer failure. Therefore, in one embodiment of this application, the wafer cache cavity is also provided with a cooling system to ensure that the wafer does not overheat.

[0042] In one embodiment, the central region of the cover plate 1 is provided with an air inlet hole communicating with the cavity body, which includes a main air inlet hole and a plurality of branch air inlet holes. One end of the main air inlet hole is provided on the upper surface of the cover plate, and the main air inlet hole penetrates part of the cover plate in the thickness direction of the cover plate. One end of the branch air inlet hole communicates with the main air inlet hole, and the other end is provided in the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate to communicate with the wafer buffer cavity below the cover plate. The other ends of the plurality of branch air inlet holes can be uniformly distributed in the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate so as to make the air inlet uniform. The thickness direction of the cover plate is the direction from the upper surface to the lower surface of the cover plate. When the central region of the cover plate is provided with a recess 9, the air inlet hole is provided at the recess 9.

[0043] As shown in Figure 4 , the cover plate 1 is provided with a main air inlet hole 10 penetrating part of the cover plate 1 in the thickness direction of the cover plate 1, and a plurality of branch air inlet holes 11 communicating with the main air inlet hole 10. One end of the branch air inlet hole 11 communicates with the main air inlet hole 10, which can be located on the side wall or bottom surface of the main air inlet hole 10, and the other end of the branch air inlet hole 11 is provided in the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate 1. In this way, gas can enter from the main air inlet hole 10 and exit from the one end of the branch air inlet hole 11 located on the lower surface of the cover plate into the wafer buffer cavity (the direction of the gas flow is shown by the arrow in Figure 4 When the heating disc below the wafer buffer cavity is working, cooling gas can be filled through the air inlet hole, and the cooling gas enters the wafer buffer cavity from the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate 1. On the one hand, it can cool the wafer buffer cavity to ensure the cooling state of the wafer, and on the other hand, the gas enters from the edge, avoiding the wafer surface located in the center, thereby ensuring the stable placement of the wafer. The cooling gas can be, for example, helium.

[0044] In another embodiment, the air inlet hole can not be directly provided on the cover plate 1, but can be realized by providing an air inlet block on the cover plate 1 and further providing an air inlet hole on the air inlet block. Specifically, a recess is provided in the central region of the cover plate and penetrates part of the cover plate in the thickness direction of the cover plate. An air inlet block is sealingly provided above the recess. The air inlet block is provided with a main air inlet hole. One end of the main air inlet hole is provided on the upper surface of the air inlet block, and the other end is provided on the lower surface of the air inlet block. A plurality of branch air inlet holes are provided on the cover plate. One end of the branch air inlet hole is provided on the inner wall of the recess, and the other end is provided in the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate. The other ends of the plurality of branch air inlet holes are uniformly distributed in the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate.

[0045] As shown in Figure 5 and Figure 6 , a recess 13 is provided in the central region of the cover plate 1, and the recess 13 penetrates part of the cover plate 1. An air inlet block 12 is sealingly provided on the recess 13. As shown in Figure 5 and Figure 6As shown, the air inlet block 12 can be slightly larger than the recessed hole 13 and is fixed around the recessed hole 13 by the threaded hole 14, or is fixed around the recessed hole 13 by other means such as adhesion. Figure 7 As shown, the edge of the air inlet block 12 can be stepped with the upper part wider and the lower part narrower, and the lower part is sized to fit the recessed hole 13, so that the lower part is embedded in the part of the recessed hole 13 of the cover plate 1.

[0046] The air inlet block 12 is provided with a main air inlet hole 15, one end of which is arranged on the upper surface of the air inlet block 12 and the other end of which is arranged on the lower surface of the air inlet block 12. The cover plate 1 is provided with a plurality of branch air inlet holes 16, one end of each of which is arranged inside the recessed hole 13 and can be arranged on the side wall or the bottom surface of the recessed hole 13 to communicate with the main air inlet hole 15, and the other end of each of which is arranged on the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate 1. The other ends of the plurality of branch air inlet holes 16 are uniformly distributed on the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate 1, as shown in Figure 3 In this way, the gas can enter from the main air inlet hole 15 and be discharged from the branch air inlet holes 16 on the edge of the lower surface of the cover plate into the wafer buffer cavity (the direction of the gas flow is shown by the arrow in Figure 6 and Figure 7 When the heating plate below the wafer buffer cavity is working, the cooling gas can be filled through the air inlet hole, and the cooling gas enters the wafer buffer cavity from the edge region of the lower surface of the air inlet block, which can cool the wafer buffer cavity on the one hand to ensure the cooling state of the wafer, and on the other hand, the gas enters from the edge to avoid the wafer surface located in the center, thereby ensuring the stable placement of the wafer.

[0047] In an embodiment, as shown in Figure 1 , the main air inlet hole can be connected to a cooling gas pipeline 17 to deliver the cooling gas to the air inlet hole through the cooling gas pipeline 17.

[0048] In an embodiment, whether the air inlet hole is directly arranged on the cover plate or arranged on the air inlet block, the branch air inlet hole can be a passage extending from the side wall or the bottom of the main air inlet hole or the recessed hole to the edge region of the lower surface of the cover plate in an inclined direction, or can be arranged as a curved passage to slow down the flow rate of the cooling gas and reduce the influence on the wafer inside the wafer buffer cavity.

[0049] An air outlet can be arranged on the side wall or the bottom of the cavity body of the wafer buffer cavity to cooperate with the discharge of the cooled cooling gas.

[0050] In an embodiment, the wafer buffer cavity includes two layers of cavities, the lower layer of cavities is provided with a heating plate, the bottom surface of the upper layer of cavities is provided with a plurality of support pieces for supporting the wafer, and the cover plate covers the upper layer of cavities to observe the wafer through the transparent observation window and cool the upper wafer through the cooling system.

[0051] According to the wafer caching cavity, the wafer state and position inside the wafer caching cavity can be conveniently observed through the transparent observation window corresponding to the support sheet on the cover plate, the wafer state can be understood in real time, and the wafer can be prevented from being offset or even damaged when the vacuum manipulator takes and places the wafer; the weight of the cover plate can be greatly reduced through the recess, and the cover plate is convenient to operate; the wafer can be rapidly cooled without impacting the wafer through the cooling system with the outlet located at the edge of the wafer caching cavity.

[0052] The embodiment of the present application further provides a wafer caching device, which comprises the wafer caching cavity. The wafer caching cavity comprises a cavity body, a wafer support assembly arranged in the cavity body, and a cover plate arranged above the cavity body, wherein the wafer support assembly comprises a plurality of support sheets for jointly supporting the wafer at the edge region of the wafer, and the cover plate is provided with a transparent observation window corresponding to part or all of the support sheets. In this way, the wafer state and position inside the wafer caching cavity can be conveniently observed from the transparent observation window, the wafer state can be understood in real time, and the wafer can be prevented from being offset or even damaged when the vacuum manipulator takes and places the wafer.

[0053] It should be noted that in the present application, "upper", "lower", "lateral", "bottom" and the like refer to the orientation in the working state of the wafer caching cavity, and those skilled in the art should understand that the corresponding orientation relationship should be changed when the wafer caching cavity is placed laterally or upside down.

[0054] In the above embodiments or implementation manners of the present application, various embodiments or implementation manners are associated with each other, and can be mutually referred to and cited without departing from the general principles. The above description is only a specific implementation manner of the present application, and any equivalent changes and modifications made by those skilled in the art without departing from the concept and principles of the present application should be within the scope of protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A wafer cache cavity, characterized in that, include: The cavity body contains a wafer support assembly, which includes multiple support pieces for supporting the wafer at its edge region. as well as A cover plate is provided above the cavity body for sealing. The cover plate is provided with a transparent observation window, and the transparent observation window is provided in a one-to-one correspondence with some or all of the support pieces.

2. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of transparent observation windows is even, and each of them corresponds to an even number of support sheets that jointly support the wafer in the edge region of the wafer. In particular, each pair of adjacent support sheets in the even number of support sheets is symmetrically arranged with respect to the diameter of the wafer.

3. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of transparent observation windows is odd, and each of them corresponds to an odd number of support sheets that jointly support the wafer in the edge region of the wafer. The odd number of support sheets are evenly distributed in the circumferential direction of the wafer.

4. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The transparent observation window is made of quartz. The quartz is sealed and fixed on the cover plate by a metal pressure plate, a Teflon pressure plate and a sealing ring. The sealing ring, the quartz, the Teflon pressure plate and the metal pressure plate are arranged sequentially on the cover plate in a direction away from the cover plate.

5. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cover plate has a recessed portion.

6. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 5, characterized in that, The recessed portion is a milled area achieved through milling.

7. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The central area of ​​the cover plate is provided with an air inlet that communicates with the interior of the cavity body. The air inlet includes a main air inlet and multiple branch air inlets. One end of the main air inlet is located on the upper surface of the cover plate and penetrates a portion of the cover plate in the thickness direction. One end of each branch air inlet is connected to the main air inlet, and the other end is located in the edge area of ​​the lower surface of the cover plate. The other ends of the multiple branch air inlets are evenly distributed in the edge area of ​​the lower surface of the cover plate.

8. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The central area of ​​the cover plate has a recessed hole that extends through part of the cover plate in the thickness direction. An air inlet block is sealed above the recessed hole. The air inlet block has a main air inlet. One end of the main air inlet is located on the upper surface of the air inlet block, and the other end is located on the lower surface of the air inlet block. The cover plate has multiple branch air inlets. One end of each branch air inlet is located on the inner wall of the recessed hole, and the other end is located on the edge area of ​​the lower surface of the cover plate. The other ends of the multiple branch air inlets are evenly distributed on the edge area of ​​the lower surface of the cover plate.

9. The wafer cache cavity according to claim 8, characterized in that, The edge of the air intake block is stepped, wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, and the lower part of the air intake block is sealed and embedded in part of the recess.

10. A wafer cache device, characterized in that, Includes the wafer cache cavity as described in any one of claims 1-9.

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