A wafer box

Abstract

The application provides a wafer box, which comprises a box cover, a box body and at least one clamping unit for clamping a wafer, the box body has a box body inner cavity for accommodating a wafer boat, the upper end of the box body is provided with a box opening, the box cover covers the box opening, the box cover has a box cover inner cavity, the clamping unit is fixed in the box cover inner cavity, the clamping unit comprises a plurality of clamping pieces which are sequentially and spaced apart along an x direction, a clamping groove is formed between adjacent clamping pieces, and the side surface of the clamping piece towards the clamping groove is a curved surface. In use, the wafer boat in which the wafers are inserted is placed in the box body first, and then the box cover is covered, and in the process of covering the box cover, each wafer inserted in the wafer boat enters a clamping groove of the clamping unit respectively. The application can reduce the damage probability of the wafers.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of wafer storage technology, and in particular to a wafer box. Background Technology

[0002] Wafers need to be stored and transported in a high-cleanliness environment to avoid the effects of dust, moisture, or chemical contaminants. Typically, wafers are placed in a wafer carrier within a wafer cassette, which acts as an outer protective layer, providing a clean and containment space for both the wafer carrier and the wafer.

[0003] Traditional wafer boxes are prone to edge damage or even chipping of wafers during transportation and opening / closing. In addition, traditional wafer boxes have poor sealing, which can easily lead to wafer contamination.

[0004] Therefore, how to reduce the chance of damage or contamination within the wafer cassette is a technical problem that needs to be solved by those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To address the aforementioned technical problems, this application provides a wafer cassette, comprising a cover, a body, and at least one clamping unit for holding a wafer. The body has an inner cavity for accommodating a wafer boat, and an opening is provided at the upper end of the body. The cover covers the opening and has an inner cavity. The clamping unit is fixed within the inner cavity of the cover. The clamping unit comprises a plurality of clamping members arranged at intervals along the x-direction, with a clamping groove formed between adjacent clamping members. The side of the clamping member facing the clamping groove is curved.

[0006] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the clamping member includes a curved spring, one side of which forms the side of the clamping member facing the clamping groove.

[0007] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the clamping member includes two wavy curved springs with opposite convex directions of the crests of the two curved springs, forming a cavity between the crests of the two curved springs, and the most convex point of the crest of the curved spring is used to contact the wafer.

[0008] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the wafer cassette includes two clamping units, which are arranged at intervals in the y-direction, and the clamping slots of the two clamping units are aligned one-to-one in the y-direction. The two clamping units are located on opposite sides of the center of the wafer, wherein the y-direction is perpendicular to the x-direction.

[0009] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the lower end of the clamping member of each clamping unit is tilted relative to the upper end in a direction away from the other clamping unit.

[0010] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the wafer cassette includes a sealing ring, which, when the cassette cover is placed over the cassette opening, presses against the side wall of the cassette cover and the side wall of the cassette body to seal the cassette opening.

[0011] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the cassette cover and the cassette body each have a buckle and a slot, respectively. When the cassette cover is placed over the cassette opening, the buckle engages with the slot, thereby locking the cassette cover and the cassette body together.

[0012] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the lower end of the side wall of the cassette cover has a first wall portion and a second wall portion disposed opposite to each other, and a third wall portion and a fourth wall portion disposed opposite to each other. The third wall portion and the fourth wall portion are disconnected from the first wall portion and the second wall portion. The length of the third wall portion and the fourth wall portion is shorter than the length of the first wall portion and the second wall portion. The buckle or the slot is provided on the third wall portion and the fourth wall portion.

[0013] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the cassette cover is symmetrical in both the x-axis and y-axis, and the cassette body is symmetrical in both the x-axis and y-axis, wherein the x-axis and y-axis are perpendicular to each other.

[0014] In one embodiment of the wafer cassette, the upper end of the cassette cover and the lower end of the cassette body are provided with a protrusion and a groove, respectively. When the two wafer cassettes are stacked, the protrusion of one wafer cassette is located in the groove of the other wafer cassette.

[0015] In the wafer cassette of this application, during the closing process, each wafer inserted in the wafer boat enters a clamping slot of the clamping unit, causing the two sides of the wafer in the thickness direction to contact the two adjacent clamping members respectively, thereby being clamped and limited by the adjacent clamping members. This avoids the problem of wafers being misaligned in the slots of the wafer boat, which could easily lead to wafer damage during wafer handling. Moreover, the sides of the clamping members facing the clamping slots are curved, and because there are no sharp edges, the wafers are less likely to be scratched or worn by the clamping members during the closing process. Therefore, the wafer cassette of this application can reduce the probability of wafer damage.

[0016] Furthermore, the clamping element may include a curved spring, one side of which forms the side of the clamping element facing the clamping groove. This allows the elastic deformation of the curved spring to absorb mechanical vibrations and impacts, thereby further reducing the probability of wafer damage. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 A front view of the cover of a wafer cassette according to one embodiment of the present application;

[0018] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Top view;

[0019] Figure 3 for Figure 1 The left view;

[0020] Figure 4 A schematic diagram showing the clamping of a wafer by some of the clamping components of two clamping units;

[0021] Figure 5 A front view of the housing of one embodiment of the wafer cassette provided in this application;

[0022] Figure 6 for Figure 5 Top view;

[0023] Figure 7 for Figure 5 The left view;

[0024] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of a wafer being inserted into a wafer boat.

[0025] The annotations in the attached figures are explained as follows:

[0026] 100 Box lid, 101 First wall, 102 Second wall, 103 Third wall, 104 Fourth wall, 105 Slot, 105a Large slot, 105b Small slot, 106 Groove.

[0027] 200 Box body, 201 Buckle, 201a Large Buckle, 201b Small Buckle, 202 Protruding Post;

[0028] 300 clamping unit, 301 clamping component, 301a bending spring, 302 clamping groove;

[0029] 400 crystal boats;

[0030] 500 sealing ring;

[0031] 600 wafers. Detailed Implementation

[0032] This application provides a wafer cassette. To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solution of this application, the technical solution of this application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0033] like Figures 1-8 As shown, the wafer cassette provided in this application includes a cover 100, a body 200, and at least one clamping unit 300 for clamping a wafer 600.

[0034] The housing 200 has an internal cavity for accommodating the wafer boat 400. The upper end of the housing 200 has an opening, and the lid 100 covers the opening. In use, the wafer boat 400 containing the wafers 600 is first placed inside the housing 200, with the wafers 600 arranged sequentially along the x-direction, and then the lid 100 is closed.

[0035] The lid 100 has an inner cavity, and the clamping unit 300 is fixed in the inner cavity of the lid 100. The clamping unit 300 includes a plurality of clamping members 301 arranged sequentially at intervals along the x-direction, and a clamping groove 302 is formed between adjacent clamping members 301.

[0036] In the illustrated embodiment, two clamping units 300 are provided, arranged at intervals in the y-direction. The clamping slots 302 of the two clamping units 300 are aligned one-to-one in the y-direction, wherein the y-direction is perpendicular to the aforementioned x-direction. In use, in the y-direction, the two clamping units 300 are located on both sides of the center of the wafer 600, thereby clamping the two side edges of the wafer 600 respectively. It should be noted that in actual implementation, only one clamping unit 300 may be provided, or more than two clamping units 300 may be provided.

[0037] The side of the clamping member 301 facing the clamping groove 302 is curved. Specifically, the side of the clamping member 301 facing the clamping groove 302 can be a wavy curved surface, for example... Figure 4 In the middle, the side of the clamping member 301 facing the clamping groove 302 is a wave-shaped curved surface with two crests and one trough. One crest is further away from the center of the wafer 600 than the other crest. The most convex point of the two crests is in contact with the wafer 600.

[0038] During the closing of the cassette 100, each wafer 600 inserted in the wafer boat 400 enters a clamping slot 302 of the clamping unit 300, so that the two sides of the wafer 600 in the thickness direction contact the two adjacent clamping members 301 respectively, thereby being clamped and limited by the adjacent clamping members 301. This avoids the problem of the wafer 600 being misaligned in the slot of the wafer boat 400, which could easily lead to the breakage of the wafer 600 when it is picked up or put down. Moreover, the side of the clamping member 301 facing the clamping slot 302 is curved. Because there are no sharp edges on the curved surface, the wafer 600 is not easily damaged or worn by the clamping member 301 during the closing of the cassette 100. Therefore, the wafer cassette provided in this application can reduce the probability of wafer 600 breakage.

[0039] Specifically, when two clamping units 300 are provided, the lower end of the clamping member 301 of each clamping unit 300 can be tilted away from the upper end in a direction away from the other clamping unit 300, so as to... Figure 1From a visual perspective, the lower end of the clamping member 301 of the left clamping unit 300 is tilted to the left relative to the upper end, and the lower end of the clamping member 301 of the right clamping unit 300 is tilted to the right relative to the upper end. The clamping members 301 of the left and right clamping units 300 are in a figure-eight shape. In this way, during the process of closing the cover 100, the force on the wafer 600 from the two clamping units 300 will be dispersed to both sides of the wafer 600, and will not be concentrated on the edge area of ​​the wafer 600 between the two clamping units 300. This can avoid damage to the local edge area of ​​the wafer 600 due to stress concentration, and thus it is more conducive to reducing the probability of damage to the wafer 600.

[0040] Specifically, the clamping member 301 may include a curved spring 301a, and one side of the curved spring 301a forms the side of the clamping member 301 facing the clamping groove 302. That is to say, the side of the clamping member 301 facing the clamping groove 302 is one side of the curved spring 301a. With this design, during the process of the wafer 600 entering the clamping groove 302, the bending spring 301a can undergo elastic deformation, so that after the wafer 600 enters the clamping groove 302, the wafer 600 and the clamping member 301 are not rigidly squeezed but elastically squeezed. If it were rigidly squeezed, the width of the clamping groove 302 would need to be set to be basically the same as the thickness of the wafer 600 to achieve clamping. This would cause the wafer 600 to be prone to rigid impact and friction with the clamping member 301 during the process of entering the clamping groove 302, thus easily being damaged. However, by using elastic compression, the elastic deformation can absorb the impact and reduce the probability of wafer damage. Moreover, during the wafer cassette transfer process, the clamping member 301 can also rely on elastic deformation to absorb the mechanical vibration during the transfer process, thereby also reducing the probability of wafer 600 damage during the transfer process.

[0041] In the illustrated embodiment, each clamping member includes two wavy curved spring pieces 301a. The crests of the two wavy curved spring pieces 301a have opposite convex directions, and a cavity is formed between the crests of the two wavy curved spring pieces 301a. This cavity provides the curved spring pieces 301a with deformation space, making the curved spring pieces 301a easier to deform, thereby better absorbing impact and vibration.

[0042] Specifically, the wafer box may include a sealing ring 500. When the box cover 100 is placed over the box opening, the sealing ring 500 presses against the side wall of the box cover 100 and the side wall of the box body 200, thereby sealing the box opening and ensuring the airtightness of the wafer box. This prevents dust, moisture, chemical contaminants, etc., from entering the wafer box from the joint between the box cover 100 and the box body 200, causing wear and contamination to the wafer 600.

[0043] In the illustrated embodiment, the inner side wall of the box body 200 is provided with a stepped surface, and the lower end face of the sealing ring 500 abuts against the stepped surface. The stepped surface serves as the supporting base for the sealing ring 500. When the box cover 100 is placed on the box opening, the sealing ring 500 is pressed between the side wall of the box cover 100 and the stepped surface.

[0044] Specifically, the lid 100 and the body 200 are provided with a buckle 201 and a slot 105, respectively. When the lid 100 is placed on the opening of the box, the buckle 201 is engaged with the slot 105, so that the lid 100 and the body 200 are engaged with each other.

[0045] In the illustrated embodiment, the box body 200 has one large latch 201a and two small latches 201b on each of its left and right sides, and the box cover 100 has one large slot 105a and two small slots 105b on each of its left and right sides. The large slot 105a and the small slots 105b penetrate the inner and outer sides of the sidewall of the box cover 100.

[0046] Specifically, such as Figure 3 As shown, the lower end of the side wall of the lid 100 has a first wall portion 101 and a second wall portion 102 disposed opposite to each other, and a third wall portion 103 and a fourth wall portion 104 disposed opposite to each other. In the figure, the fourth wall portion 104 is obscured by the third wall portion 103, so the indicator line is a dashed line. The third wall portion 103 is disconnected from the first wall portion 101 and the second wall portion 102, and the fourth wall portion 104 is disconnected from the first wall portion 101 and the second wall portion 102. The length of the third wall portion 103 is shorter than the length of the first wall portion 101 and also shorter than the length of the second wall portion 102. The length of the fourth wall portion 104 is shorter than the length of the first wall portion 101 and also shorter than the length of the second wall portion 102. The buckle 201 or the slot 105 (slot 105 in the figure) is provided on the third wall portion 103 and the fourth wall portion 104. In the figure, the third wall portion 103 is provided with a large slot 105a and two small slots 105b, and the fourth wall portion 104 is provided with a large slot 105a and two small slots 105b. With this design, the third wall portion 103 and the fourth wall portion 104 are easier to deform inward and outward, so that the buckle 201 can be more easily engaged in the slot 105.

[0047] Specifically, the lid 100 is symmetrical in the x-axis and y-axis, and the box body 200 is symmetrical in both directions. This means that when closing the lid 100, there's no need to specifically distinguish the orientation of the two symmetrical parts. For example, using the x-axis as left-right and the y-axis as front-back, the lid 100 can be swapped left-right or front-back and still fit over the box opening. Therefore, it's more convenient to use as there's no need to consciously distinguish between left-right and front-back orientations of the lid 100.

[0048] Specifically, the upper end of the cover 100 and the lower end of the body 200 are provided with a protrusion 202 and a groove 106, respectively. With this design, when the two wafer boxes are stacked, the protrusion 202 of one wafer box is located in the groove 106 of the other wafer box, thereby limiting each other and preventing the upper wafer box from falling down.

[0049] In the illustrated embodiment, a groove 106 is provided at each of the four corners of the upper end of the lid 100, and a protrusion 202 is provided at each of the four corners of the lower end of the box body 200.

[0050] The above examples illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this application. The descriptions of these embodiments are merely for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of this application. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various improvements and modifications to this application without departing from its principles, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the protection scope of the claims of this application.

Claims

1. A wafer cassette, characterized in that, The wafer cassette includes a cover (100), a body (200), and at least one clamping unit (300) for clamping a wafer (600). The body (200) has an inner cavity for accommodating a wafer boat (400). The upper end of the body (200) is provided with a cassette opening. The cover (100) covers the cassette opening and has an inner cavity. The clamping unit (300) is fixed in the inner cavity of the cover. The clamping unit (300) includes a plurality of clamping members (301) arranged sequentially at intervals along the x-direction. A clamping groove (302) is formed between adjacent clamping members (301). The side of the clamping member (301) facing the clamping groove (302) is curved.

2. The wafer cassette according to claim 1, characterized in that, The clamping member (301) includes a curved spring (301a), one side of which forms the side of the clamping member (301) facing the clamping groove (302).

3. The wafer cassette according to claim 2, characterized in that, The clamping member (301) includes two wavy curved springs (301a), the crests of the two curved springs (301a) are convex in opposite directions, a cavity is formed between the crests of the two curved springs (301a), and the most convex point of the crest of the curved spring (301a) is used to contact the wafer (600).

4. The wafer cassette according to claim 1, characterized in that, The wafer cassette includes two clamping units (300) arranged at intervals in the y-direction. The clamping slots (302) of the two clamping units (300) are aligned one-to-one in the y-direction. The two clamping units (300) are located on opposite sides of the center of the wafer (600), wherein the y-direction is perpendicular to the x-direction.

5. The wafer cassette according to claim 4, characterized in that, The lower end of the clamping member (301) of each clamping unit (300) is inclined relative to the upper end in a direction away from the other clamping unit (300).

6. The wafer cassette according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The wafer cassette includes a sealing ring (500). When the cassette cover (100) is placed over the cassette opening, the sealing ring (500) presses against the side wall of the cassette cover (100) and the side wall of the cassette body (200) to seal the cassette opening.

7. The wafer cassette according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The lid (100) and the body (200) are provided with a buckle (201) and a slot (105), respectively. When the lid (100) is placed over the opening of the box, the buckle (201) is engaged with the slot (105), so that the lid (100) and the body (200) are engaged with each other.

8. The wafer cassette according to claim 7, characterized in that, The lower side wall of the lid (100) has a first wall portion (101) and a second wall portion (102) disposed opposite to each other, and a third wall portion (103) and a fourth wall portion (104) disposed opposite to each other. The third wall portion (103) and the fourth wall portion (104) are disconnected from the first wall portion (101) and the second wall portion (102). The length of the third wall portion (103) and the fourth wall portion (104) is shorter than the length of the first wall portion (101) and the second wall portion (102). The buckle (201) or the slot (105) is provided on the third wall portion (103) and the fourth wall portion (104).

9. The wafer cassette according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The lid (100) is symmetrical in both the x and y directions, and the body (200) is symmetrical in both the x and y directions, wherein the x and y directions are perpendicular to each other.

10. The wafer cassette according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The upper end of the cover (100) and the lower end of the body (200) are provided with a protrusion (202) and a groove (106), respectively. When the two wafer boxes are stacked, the protrusion (202) of one wafer box is located in the groove (106) of the other wafer box.

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