An annealing crucible

Abstract

This invention discloses an annealing crucible, comprising a crucible body with multiple vertically placed partitions inside. The space between adjacent partitions serves as a sample slot for vertically placing a sample. By adding the sample slot and partitions, this invention transforms the planar contact between the crucible and the sample into a point contact, reducing the risk of sample breakage during annealing due to the difference in thermal conductivity between the crucible and the sample.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the technical field of wafer annealing, and specifically to an annealing crucible. Background Technology

[0002] Tube furnace annealing has wide applications and important uses in many fields such as materials processing and semiconductor manufacturing. For example, in the semiconductor manufacturing process, heating and cooling can improve the electrical properties, crystal structure, and reliability of materials.

[0003] In current tube furnace annealing processes, samples must be placed horizontally within the annealing crucible for heat treatment. However, due to the planar contact between the sample and the crucible, a large contact area is formed. Because of the significant difference in thermal expansion coefficients between the crucible material and the sample matrix, non-uniform thermal stress concentration easily occurs at the interface during thermal cycling, potentially leading to structural failures such as sample cracking. Furthermore, for batch processing of large-sized samples, the horizontal placement causes the samples to spread out planar within the crucible. Large samples in this horizontal position significantly occupy the effective volume of the crucible, limiting the throughput per batch and requiring multiple annealing cycles, thus extending the process cycle and reducing energy efficiency. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of this utility model is to provide an annealing crucible in order to solve the above problems.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model specifically adopts the following technical solution:

[0006] An annealing crucible, comprising:

[0007] Crucible body;

[0008] The crucible body has multiple vertically placed partitions inside, and the space between adjacent partitions is used as a sample slot for vertically placing samples.

[0009] As a further description of the above technical solution, the partition is a partition plate.

[0010] As a further description of the above technical solution, a set of partition plates is provided, and the partition plate array is distributed on the inner wall of the crucible body.

[0011] As a further description of the above technical solution, the partition plate is provided in two sets, and the two sets of partition plates are distributed on opposite inner walls of the crucible body.

[0012] As a further description of the above technical solution, the partition is a mesh partition.

[0013] As a further description of the above technical solution, the shape of the crucible body includes at least a rectangle or a circle;

[0014] The bottom shape of the crucible body includes at least a flat surface or an arc shape.

[0015] As a further description of the above technical solution, the shape of the partition includes at least a rectangle, a circle, or a triangle.

[0016] As a further description of the above technical solution, the sample groove has at least one width, and the width of the sample groove is greater than the thickness of the sample.

[0017] As a further description of the above technical solution, the width of the sample groove includes at least 800μm, 1mm and 1.5mm.

[0018] As a further description of the above technical solution, both the crucible body and the partition are made of high-temperature resistant ceramic.

[0019] The beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows:

[0020] This invention transforms the planar contact between the crucible and the sample into a point contact by adding a sample well and a separator, thereby reducing the risk of sample breakage during annealing due to the difference in thermal conductivity between the crucible and the sample.

[0021] This invention, by incorporating a sample slot and a separator, allows for vertical placement of the sample within the slot, making sample handling more convenient and preventing surface contamination. It also enables batch annealing of large-sized samples, effectively improving annealing efficiency.

[0022] To more clearly illustrate the structural features and functions of this utility model, the following detailed description of this utility model is provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of the annealing crucible provided by this utility model;

[0024] Figure 2 This is a top view of the annealing crucible provided by this utility model.

[0025] Reference numerals: 1. Crucible body; 2. Divider plate; 3. Sample cell. Detailed Implementation

[0026] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this utility model clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0027] like Figures 1-2As shown, in one embodiment, an annealing crucible includes a crucible body 1, the interior of which has a space for accommodating a sample.

[0028] Multiple vertically placed partitions are provided inside the crucible body 1, with gaps between adjacent partitions. These gaps are used to vertically place the sample. In other words, these gaps are the sample grooves 3.

[0029] The sample well 3 is divided into independent spaces by the partition, so that the contact between the sample and the crucible is changed from planar contact to point contact at the edge of the partition, which reduces the risk of sample breakage during annealing due to the difference in thermal conductivity between the crucible and the sample.

[0030] Optionally, a set of partition plates 2 is provided, and the set of partition plates 2 is arrayed and distributed on the inner wall of the crucible body 1. A set of partition plates 2 includes multiple partition plates 2, such as ten partition plates 2, which are evenly distributed on the same side inner wall of the crucible body 1. The sample slots 3 between adjacent partition plates 2 can still effectively support the vertically placed wafer samples.

[0031] Optionally, such as Figure 2 As shown, there are two sets of partition plates 2, each set of partition plates 2 is distributed on the opposite inner wall of the crucible body 1, and the corresponding sample slots 3 are arranged opposite each other. The sample slots 3 can effectively support the vertically placed wafers. The two sets of partition plates 2 make the support effect of the wafer samples better.

[0032] Optionally, the shape of the crucible body 1 may include, but is not limited to, a square, a circle, or an irregular shape. The bottom shape of the crucible may include, but is not limited to, a flat surface or a curved surface. These can be configured to meet different requirements.

[0033] Optionally, the sample slot 3 has at least one width. In some embodiments, the sample slots 3 have the same width, and the width of the sample slot 3 is greater than the thickness of the sample. Specifically, the width of the sample slot 3 may be slightly greater than the thickness of the sample, and the specific dimensions of the sample slot 3 are set according to the thickness of the sample. This allows for the simultaneous placement and support of the wafer sample. For example, the width of all sample slots 3 is 1 mm. In other embodiments, the widths of the sample slots 3 may be different; for example, the widths of the sample slots 3 may be 800 μm, 1 mm, and 1.5 mm, etc. This allows for the simultaneous annealing of wafers of different thicknesses.

[0034] Optionally, the separator is a partition plate 2. Specifically, the partition plate 2 is a rectangular plate with a certain length and thickness. The partition plate 2 can separate adjacent wafer samples while also supporting the wafers. In other feasible embodiments, the shape of the partition plate 2 includes, but is not limited to, rectangles, triangles, and irregular shapes, which can be set according to actual needs and will not be elaborated here. The dimensions of the partition plate 2 and the crucible body 1 are related to the size of the tube furnace and the size of the sample to be annealed. For example, in one embodiment, when annealing a 2-inch wafer in an 80mm diameter tube furnace, the dimension of the crucible exterior parallel to the partition plate 2 (length) is 51-56mm. The dimension of the crucible exterior perpendicular to the partition plate (width) is 25-50mm, and the length of the partition plate 2 is 5-8mm.

[0035] Optionally, both the crucible body 1 and the partition are made of high-temperature resistant ceramics. Specifically, the crucible body 1 and all components within it are made of high-temperature resistant ceramics, such as alumina or zirconium oxide. High-temperature resistant ceramics have excellent thermal conductivity and high-temperature resistance. During high-temperature use, their coefficient of thermal expansion is low, effectively coping with rapid temperature changes and exhibiting good strain resistance. Furthermore, this crucible has strong corrosion resistance to both acidic and alkaline solutions and excellent chemical stability. Using this crucible, large-size metal materials, ceramic materials, semiconductor materials, and composite materials can be annealed, especially large-size sapphire crystals and silicon carbide crystals.

[0036] The above description of the disclosed embodiments enables those skilled in the art to make or use the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention is not to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. An annealing crucible, characterized by, include: Crucible body; The crucible body has multiple vertically placed partitions inside, and the space between adjacent partitions is used as a sample slot for vertically placing samples.

2. The annealing crucible according to claim 1, characterized in that The partition is a partition plate.

3. The annealing crucible according to claim 2, characterized in that, A set of partition plates is provided, and the partition plate array is distributed on the inner wall of the crucible body.

4. The annealing crucible according to claim 2, characterized in that, The partition plates are provided in two sets, and the two sets of partition plates are distributed on opposite inner walls of the crucible body.

5. The annealing crucible according to claim 1, characterized in that, The partition is a mesh partition.

6. The annealing crucible according to claim 1, characterized in that, The shape of the crucible body includes at least a rectangle or a circle; The bottom shape of the crucible body includes at least a flat surface or an arc shape.

7. The annealing crucible according to claim 1, characterized in that, The shape of the partition includes at least rectangles, circles, and triangles.

8. The annealing crucible according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sample groove has at least one width, and the width of the sample groove is greater than the thickness of the sample.

9. The annealing crucible according to claim 1, characterized in that, The width of the sample well includes at least 800 μm, 1 mm, and 1.5 mm.

10. The annealing crucible according to claim 1, characterized in that, Both the crucible body and the partition are made of high-temperature resistant ceramic.

Images