Substrate processing module and method of moving workpiece

Abstract

To provide a substrate processing module and a method of moving a workpiece.SOLUTION: The substrate processing module includes a shutter stack and two process stations. A shutter stack is disposed between the process stations. The method of moving a workpiece includes moving a supporting portion from a first location to a shutter stack in a first direction, retrieving the workpiece from the shutter stack, and moving the supporting portion to a second location. The transfer chamber assembly and method allows for moving workpieces to and from the shutter stack to the two process stations. A central transfer robot of the substrate processing module is configured to grip both substrates and shutter discs, allowing for one robot when typically two robots would be required.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2A

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] TECHNICAL FIELD Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to apparatus and methods, and more particularly to a substrate processing module and method for moving a workpiece. [Background technology]

[0002] A conventional cluster tool is configured to perform one or more processes during substrate processing. For example, a cluster tool may include a physical vapor deposition (PVD) chamber for performing a PVD process on a substrate, an atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber for performing an ALD process on a substrate, a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chamber for performing a CVD process on a substrate, and / or one or more other processing chambers.

[0003] The cluster tools described above include a transport system for moving workpieces such as substrates and shutter disks to and from various processing chambers in the system. For example, a carousel system with multiple arms is used to grip either substrates or shutter disks. Rotating the carousel system moves the workpieces to and from various processing chambers in the cluster tool. The carousel typically has different gripping arms with different configurations and functions depending on the desired workpieces to be gripped.

[0004] One drawback of this technique is that the carousels are usually designed to grip either the substrate or the shutter disk, which leads to the use of multiple types of carousels or gripper arms. Furthermore, the shutter garages that store the workpieces are often located in non-high vacuum parts of the cluster tool, requiring the vacuum to be pumped down when transferring the workpieces from the stack to other parts of the tool.

[0005] Therefore, what is needed is a substrate processing module that is capable of transporting both the substrate and the shutter disk using a single transport system. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Embodiments disclosed herein include a substrate processing module and a method for moving a workpiece that allows for the shutter disk and the substrate to be moved using the same transport system.

[0007] In one embodiment, a transfer chamber assembly is provided. The transfer chamber assembly includes a shutter stack and two processing regions. The shutter stack is disposed between the processing regions. The shutter stack is configured to store one or more workpieces. The one or more workpieces include a substrate or a shutter disk. The shutter stack includes a shutter base, one or more shutter disk supports, and a substrate support. The one or more shutter disk supports are coupled to the shutter base. The one or more shutter disk supports are configured to support the shutter disk. The substrate support is coupled to the shutter base. The substrate support is configured to support a substrate.

[0008] In another embodiment, a transfer chamber assembly is provided. The transfer chamber assembly includes a shutter stack, two processing regions, and a central transfer device. The shutter stack is disposed between the processing regions. The shutter stack is configured to store one or more workpieces. The one or more workpieces include a substrate or a shutter disk. The shutter stack includes a shutter base, one or more shutter disk supports, and a substrate support. The one or more shutter disk supports are coupled to the shutter base. The one or more shutter disk supports are configured to support the shutter disk. The substrate support is coupled to the shutter base. The substrate support is configured to support a substrate. The central transfer device includes one or more transfer arms. The transfer arms are configured to transfer at least one of the one or more workpieces from the shutter stack to one of the processing regions.

[0009] In yet another embodiment, a method of moving a workpiece is provided, the method including moving an outer end in a first direction from a first location to a shutter stack, removing the workpiece from the shutter stack, and moving the outer end to a second location, the workpiece being a substrate or a shutter disk.

[0010] So that the above-listed features of the present disclosure can be understood in detail, the disclosure briefly outlined above may be more particularly described by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be noted, however, that the accompanying drawings depict only exemplary embodiments, and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope of the present disclosure, which may embrace other embodiments that are equally valid. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1A]1 is a partial cross-sectional view of a substrate having multiple film layers deposited thereon, formed and / or processed by use of the methods and / or apparatus disclosed herein. [Figure 1B] 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of a substrate having formed thereon features covered, lined or filled with a layer of deposited material formed and / or processed by use of the methods and / or apparatus disclosed herein. [Figure 2A] FIG. 1 illustrates a plan view of a processing system including processing modules that include process stations therein for processing substrates, according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 2B] 2A is a plan view of an alternative form of a processing system including multiple processing modules, each including a process station therein for processing substrates, according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 3A] FIG. 2B is an isometric view of the processing module of FIG. 2A according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 3B] 2B is a top view of the processing module of FIG. 2A according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 4A] 2B is a partial cross-sectional view of the portion of the processing module of FIG. 2A showing a substrate support in a transfer position below a process station of the processing module according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 4B] 2B is a partial cross-sectional view of the processing module of FIG. 2A showing the substrate support raised to a process position thereby forming an enclosed substrate process volume according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 4C] 2B is a partial cross-sectional view of the portion of the processing module of FIG. 2A illustrating an alternative configuration of a substrate support in a transfer position below a process station of the processing module according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 4D] A partial cross-sectional view of the processing module of FIG. 2A showing an alternative configuration of the substrate support shown in FIG. 4C raised to a process position thereby forming an enclosed substrate process volume in accordance with one or more embodiments. [Figure 5A]2B is a schematic plan view of a robot useful for moving substrates between process stations in the processing module of FIG. 2A in accordance with one or more embodiments. [Figure 5B] FIG. 5B is an isometric view of an implementation of the robot of FIG. 5A according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 5C] FIG. 5C is a plan view of an alternative robot configuration to that of FIGS. 5A and 5B, according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 6] 4C is a partial cross-sectional view of a process station of the processing module of FIG. 4B according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 7A] An isometric view of a processing module including a structural support assembly that helps maintain co-planarity between a processing surface of a source assembly and a substrate support surface disposed within the processing module in accordance with one or more embodiments. [Figure 7B] FIG. 7B is a close-up isometric view of a structural support assembly disposed on a top chamber wall of the processing module shown in FIG. 7A according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 8] 8A is a side cross-sectional view of a processing module formed along section line 8-8 shown in FIG. 7A according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 9A] 2B is a plan view of an alternative configuration of the processing module of FIG. 2A according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 9B] FIG. 9B is a plan view of the lower body of the processing module of FIG. 9A, showing the motion path of the paddle robot within the processing module, in accordance with one or more embodiments. [Figure 10A] FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of a shutter disk disposed on a skirt and an electrostatic chuck (ESC) according to some embodiments. [Figure 10B] FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of a shutter disk disposed on a skirt and an electrostatic chuck (ESC) according to some embodiments. [Figure 10C] FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of a shutter disk disposed on a skirt and an electrostatic chuck (ESC) according to some embodiments. [Figure 10D] FIG. 2 is a top view of a shutter disk, according to one embodiment. [Figure 11A] FIG. 13 is a top view of a support portion according to one embodiment. [Figure 11B] FIG. 13 is a side view of a support portion according to one embodiment. [Figure 11C] 11A-11D illustrate the movement of a support portion according to some embodiments. [Figure 11D] 11A-11D illustrate the movement of a support portion according to some embodiments. [Figure 12A] FIG. 2 illustrates a shutter stack in a first position according to one embodiment. [Figure 12B] FIG. 2 illustrates a shutter stack in a second position according to one embodiment. [Figure 12C] FIG. 2 illustrates a shutter stack in a first position according to some embodiments. [Figure 12D] FIG. 2 illustrates a shutter stack in a first position according to some embodiments. [Figure 13] 4 is a flow diagram of operations of a method for moving a workpiece, according to one embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] For ease of understanding, the same reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments, unless specifically stated otherwise.

[0013] The embodiments disclosed herein include a substrate processing module and a method of moving a workpiece. The substrate processing module includes a shutter stack and two processing regions. The shutter stack is disposed between the processing regions. The method of moving a workpiece includes moving a support portion in a first direction from a first location to the shutter stack, removing the workpiece from the shutter stack, and moving the support portion to a second location. The substrate processing module and method allow for moving a workpiece to the shutter stack and moving the workpiece from the shutter stack to the two processing regions. The central transfer robot of the substrate processing module is configured to grip both the substrate and the shutter disk, allowing for one robot when two robots would normally be required. Placing the shutter stack in a high vacuum environment reduces the need to pump up and down the vacuum when transferring the substrate from the shutter stack to the processing regions. The embodiments of the present disclosure may be useful, but are not limited to, for transferring the substrate and the shutter disk in the same device.

[0014] In one embodiment of the disclosure described herein, the substrate processing system shown in FIG. 2A includes an atmospheric or ambient pressure input and output handling station, also known as a front end 220, a substrate processing module 250 having a number of process stations 260 disposed thereon, and at least one intermediate section 202. Substrates are transferred from the front end 220 or processing module 250 to the intermediate section 202, or from the intermediate section 202 to the front end 220 or processing module 250. Although the disclosure described herein generally illustrates a processing module including six process stations, this configuration is not intended to limit the scope of the invention described herein. This is because the processing module 250 can alternatively include two or more process stations 260, such as four or more process stations 260 (e.g., FIGS. 9A-9B), eight or more process stations 260, ten or more process stations 260, or even twelve or more process stations 260. However, for process sequences used to form next generation devices including multi-layer film stacks, such as on chip inductor applications, optical film stack applications, hard mask applications, patterning applications and memory applications, due to the number of layers formed and the similar processing times used to form each layer, it is believed that a processing module 250 configuration including six or twelve process stations will improve substrate throughput, system footprint and CoO compared to more conventional designs known in the art.

[0015] A processing system, such as processing system 200 of Figures 2A and 2B, is used to form one or more thin films on a surface of a substrate S and / or onto previously formed or processed layers on the substrate S. Figure 1A shows a portion 101 of a substrate S having multiple thin film layers 102 and 103 formed thereon, and Figure 1B shows multiple film layers extending over a previously formed layer 122 formed on a conductive layer 121 of the substrate S.

[0016] 1A shows a plurality of film layers 104 sequentially stacked on a portion 101 of a substrate S or on a layer previously formed on the substrate S. For example, using the processing system of FIG. 2A that can access six process stations 260A-260F in a substrate processing module 250, the substrate can be moved sequentially around the circumference of an imaginary circle 252 (FIG. 3B) passing through a central location of each process station 260 in such a manner that a plurality of first thin film layers 102 and a plurality of second thin film layers 103 can be sequentially deposited on the substrate. Each process station 260A-260F can be independently or similarly configured to enable a deposition process, such as PVD, CVD, ALD (atomic layer deposition) or other type of deposition process or an etching process. For example, metal layers 102A-102C may be deposited on the substrate, where the metal layers 102A-102C may consist of a metal, and reactive metal layers 103A-103C may be deposited on the substrate, where the reactive metal layers 103A-103C may consist of a reactive metal (e.g. a metal nitride), where the metal of the reactive metal layers 103A-103C is the same metal as the metal layers 102A-102C. In this example, during a substrate processing sequence performed in the processing module 250, the process stations 260B, 260D and 260F are used to form reactive metal layers 103A-103C (e.g., TaN, TiN, AlN or SiN layers) on the exposed surfaces of the substrate by using a reactive PVD deposition process, and the process stations 260A, 260C and 260E are used to form pure metal layers 102A-102C (e.g., Ta, Ti, Al, Co, Si layers) by using a non-reactive PVD deposition process, in such a manner that the process sequence allows for forming a metal layer followed by a reactive metal layer. By moving the substrate through all the process stations 260A-260F in sequence and processing the substrate, a multi-layer film stack of pure metal / reactive metal / pure metal / reactive metal / pure metal / reactive metal can be formed.Alternatively, the substrates of the thin film layers 102 and 103 can be different materials, in which case sputtering targets of a first material type are sputtered at process stations 260A, 260C, and 260E, and targets of a second material type are sputtered at process stations 260B, 260D, and 260F to form alternating layers of a first type of material and a second type of material. Here, for example, alternating layers of metal layers 102A-102C and dielectric layers 103A-103C, or alternating layers of metal layers 102A-102C and semiconductor layers 103A-103C, such as alternating layers of molybdenum and silicon, can be formed. Similarly, multiple layers of the same material can be formed, in which case all of the layers 102A-102C and 103A-103C are the same material, and the substrate is moved to each process station in sequence to deposit the same material on the substrate at each process station 260. The choice of sputter target material and process parameters (e.g., process pressure), as well as the choice of inert or reactive nature of the gas used to form the plasma in the process station 260, are user selectable in a manner that gives the user or operator of the processing system 200 flexibility in controlling the material and material properties of the films in the film stack formed thereon. It has been found that in substrate processing sequences in which stack layer deposition processes (e.g., processes for forming thin film layers 102 and 103) are used to form a repeating stack layer configuration as shown in FIG. 1A having similar chamber processing times, a significant increase in throughput and improved CoO is observed when using one or more system configurations and methods disclosed herein. In one example, it has been found that substrate processing sequences including stack layer deposition processes having processing times less than 90 seconds, e.g., between 5 and 90 seconds, when combined with the addition of shorter substrate transport overhead times achieved using the architecture described herein, as discussed further below, are significantly more advantageous than current conventional processing system designs.

[0017] It is not necessary that a substrate loaded into the processing module 250 is processed in each of the processing stations 260A-260F. For example, each of the processing stations 260A-260F may use the same sputter target material, and a number of substrates equal to the number of processing stations 260 are loaded into the processing module 250, and each substrate is processed in a different one of the processing stations 260 to deposit the same material film layer on the substrate. Then, all of these substrates are removed from the processing module 250, and the same number of substrates are loaded into the processing module 250 again, and the processing of each of these substrates is performed by a different single one of the processing stations. Alternatively, different processes are performed in each of the adjacent processing stations arranged along the circumference of an imaginary circle. For example, a first deposition process for depositing a first type of film layer is performed in the processing stations 260A, 260C, and 260E, and a second deposition process for depositing a second type of film layer is performed in the processing stations 260A, 260C, and 260E. However, in this case, each substrate is exposed to only two process stations 260. For example, a first substrate is exposed to only process stations 260A and 260B, a second substrate is exposed to only process stations 260C and 260D, and a third substrate is exposed to only process stations 260E and 260F. The substrates are then removed. Similarly, each substrate process in the system can be processed at up to all process stations 260, and the process performed at each process station 260 can be the same process or can be a different process than one or all of the remaining process stations 260.

[0018] 1B, a feature 126 is shown extending inwardly of the dielectric layer 122, where the feature, e.g., a trench, contact, or via, has been formed in and through the dielectric layer 122, such as by pattern-etching the dielectric layer 122 through a patterned mask (not shown). In FIG. 1B, the feature 126 is a conductive via disposed in a via opening 128 that extends down to an underlying conductive layer 121 previously formed on a substrate (not shown), e.g., a copper layer used in an integrated circuit device. To form the feature 126 in the via opening 128, a barrier layer 123 is first formed over the top surface or field 127 of the dielectric layer 122, over the sidewalls of the via opening 128, and over the portion of the conductive layer 121 exposed at the bottom of the via opening 128. The barrier layer 123 can include a single layer of material or two or more different materials stacked together. For example, a bilayer of a tantalum film layer followed by a tantalum nitride film layer can be used, with each sublayer of the bilayer formed at one or more of process stations 260A-260F of FIG. 2A. A seed layer 124, e.g., a thin layer of copper, is then formed on the previously deposited barrier layer 123. The seed layer 124 is used to facilitate plating a copper layer 125 on the seed layer 124 in a copper plating tool separate from the processing system 200. Here, the processing system 200 can be used to sputter a tantalum bilayer from a tantalum target on the same substrate at process stations 260A, 260B, then a tantalum nitride layer can be deposited on the tantalum layer by reactive sputtering of a tantalum target in an inert gas-nitrogen gas plasma at process stations 260C, 260D to form a tantalum nitride layer on the tantalum layer, and a copper seed layer is formed on the tantalum nitride layer by sputtering a copper target in an inert gas plasma at process stations 260E, 260F.Alternatively, a tantalum layer can be deposited on the substrate at process station 260A or 260D, a tantalum nitride layer can be deposited on the substrate at process station 260B or 260E, and a copper seed layer can be deposited on the substrate at process station 260C or 260F. In this configuration, a first substrate is processed sequentially at process stations 260A-260C and a second substrate is processed sequentially at process stations 260D-260F. As will be discussed further below, it is believed that a substrate processing sequence such as that shown in FIG. 1B used to deposit materials in a group of processing sequences achieves a significant increase in throughput when using one or more of the system designs and methods disclosed herein.

[0019] Referring again to FIG. 2A, the processing system 200 generally includes a processing module 250, a mid-section 202 coupled between the processing module 250 and the front-end 220, and a system controller 299. As shown in FIG. 2A, the mid-section 202 includes a pair of load lock chambers 230A, 230B and a pair of intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B. Each of the load lock chambers 230A, 230B is separately connected to the front-end 220 through a corresponding respective first valve 225A, 225B on one side of the load lock chamber, and is connected to one of the intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B through a corresponding respective second valve 235A, 235B. In operation, a front-end robot (not shown) in the front-end 220 moves substrates from the front-end 220 to the load lock chambers 230A or 230B or retrieves substrates from the load lock chambers 230A, 230B. An intermediate robot 285A, 285B in one of the associated intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B connected to the associated load lock chamber of one of the load lock chambers 230A, 230B then moves the substrate from the load lock chamber 230A or the load lock chamber 230B to the corresponding intermediate robot chamber 280A, 280B. In one embodiment, the intermediate section 202 further includes a pre-cleaning / degassing chamber 292 connected to the intermediate robot chamber 280, e.g., a pre-cleaning / degassing chamber 292A connected to the intermediate robot chamber 280A and a pre-cleaning / degassing chamber 292B connected to the intermediate robot chamber 280B. A substrate loaded from the front end 220 into one of the load lock chambers 230A, 230B is moved from the load lock chamber 230A or 230B into the pre-cleaning / degassing chamber 292A or 292B by the associated intermediate robot 285A or 285B. Within the pre-clean / degassing chambers 292A, 292B, the substrate is heated to volatilize any adsorbed moisture or other volatilizable materials from the substrate and is subjected to a plasma etching process to remove any residual contaminant materials on the substrate.The substrate is then moved by the appropriate associated intermediate robot 285A or 285B back to the corresponding intermediate robot chamber 280A or 280B and then moved onto the substrate support 672 (FIGS. 4A,B) of a process station 260 of the substrate processing module 250, here process station 260A or 260F. In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, once placed on the substrate support 672, the substrate S remains on the substrate support 672 until all of its processing in the processing module 250 is completed.

[0020] Here, the pressure in the load lock chambers 230A and 230B is set to about 10° C., which is lower than atmospheric pressure. -3 To reduce the pressure in the load lock chambers, each of the load lock chambers 230A and 230B is connected to a vacuum pump (not shown), e.g., a roughing pump, the output of which is connected to an exhaust duct (not shown). To reduce the pressure in the load lock chambers, each of the load lock chambers 230A or 230B can be connected to its own vacuum pump, or to a vacuum pump shared with one or more components in the processing system 200, or to a house exhaust other than the vacuum pump. In each case, a valve (not shown) can be provided on the exhaust pipe of the load lock chamber 230A, 230B to the pump or house exhaust to isolate or substantially isolate the pumping outlet of the load lock chamber 230A, 230B, which is connected to a vacuum pump or house exhaust, from the internal volume of the load lock chamber 230A, 230B when the first valve 225A or 225B, respectively, is open and the interior of the load lock chamber 230A, 230B is exposed to atmospheric or ambient pressure conditions.

[0021] For example, after the substrate is processed in the pre-clean / degassing chamber 292B, the intermediate robot 285B removes the substrate from the pre-clean / degassing chamber 292B. A process chamber valve 244B disposed between the intermediate robot chamber 280B and the processing module 250 is opened to expose an opening 504B (FIGS. 3A and 4A) formed in the wall of the processing module 250, and the intermediate robot 285B moves the substrate through the opening 504B to the processing station 260F of the processing module 250, where the substrate is received and processed in one or more of the processing stations of the processing module 250. Similarly, the substrate can be moved from the front end 220 through the load lock chamber 230A to the pre-clean / degassing chamber 292A, and then moved through the process chamber valve 244A (FIG. 2A) and the opening 504A in the wall of the processing module 250 to the processing module 250 to be received at the processing station 260A. Alternatively, the process chamber valves 244A, 244B can be eliminated and the intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B can be fluidly connected directly to the interior of the processing module 250 without any barrier.

[0022] The load lock chambers 230A, 230B and the intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B are configured to transfer substrates from the front end 220 into the processing module 250 and from the processing module 250 into the front end 220, respectively. Thus, for the first intermediate robot chamber 280A, to retrieve a substrate disposed in the process station 260A of the processing module 250, the process chamber valve 244A is opened and the intermediate robot 285A retrieves the substrate from the process station 260A and moves the substrate into the load lock chamber 230A through the open second valve 235A connected between the intermediate robot chamber 280A and the load lock chamber 230A. The end effector of the intermediate robot 285A with the transferred substrate is withdrawn from the load lock chamber 230A, the second valve 235A of the load lock chamber 230A is closed, and optionally, the interior volume of the load lock chamber 230A is isolated from the vacuum pump connected to the load lock chamber 230A. The first valve 225A connected to the load lock chamber 230A is then opened and the robot of the front end 220 picks up the substrate in the load lock chamber 230A and moves the substrate to a storage location, for example, a cassette or front-opening unified pod (FOUP) 210 located in the front end 220 or connected to a side wall of the front end 220. Similarly, the intermediate robot chamber 280B, the intermediate robot 285B, the load lock chamber 230B and the associated valves 235B and 225B of the load lock chamber 230B can also be used to move the substrate from the location of the process station 260F to the front end 220. During the transfer of the substrate from the processing module 250 to the front end 220, a different substrate can be placed in the pre-clean / degassing chambers 292A, 292B connected to the intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B through which the substrate moving to the front end 220 passes.Each pre-cleaning / degassing chamber 292A, 292B is separated by a valve from the intermediate robot chamber 280A, 280B in which it is mounted, thereby ensuring the passage of different substrates from the processing module 250 to the front end 220 without interfering with the processing of substrates in the corresponding respective pre-cleaning / degassing chamber 292A, 292B.

[0023] The system controller 299 controls the operation and operational parameters of the automated components within the processing system 200. Generally, most of the movement of substrates through this processing system is performed using the various automated devices disclosed herein with the use of commands sent by the system controller 299. The system controller 299 is a general-purpose computer used to control one or more components within the processing system 200. The system controller 299 is generally designed to facilitate the control and automation of one or more of the processing sequences disclosed herein, and typically includes a central processing unit (CPU) (not shown), memory (not shown) and supporting circuits (or I / O) (not shown). Software instructions and data can be encoded and stored in the memory (e.g., a non-transitory computer readable medium) to instruct the CPU. A program (or computer instructions) that can be read by a processing unit within the system controller determines which tasks are executable within the processing system. For example, the non-transitory computer readable medium includes a program configured to perform one or more of the methods described herein when executed by the processing unit. The program preferably includes code for performing tasks relating to moving, supporting and / or positioning the substrate as well as monitoring, executing and controlling various process recipe tasks and various processing module process recipe steps being performed.

[0024] Referring to FIG. 2B, an alternative configuration of a processing system 200A is shown in which a transfer chamber 240 is placed between the load lock chambers 230A, 230B and one or more processing modules 250. Although not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure herein, the processing system 200A shown in FIG. 2B does not include separate intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B or pre-clean / degassing chambers 292A, 292B. Here, multiple processing modules 250 can be connected to a single front end 220 by using an intermediate transfer chamber 240 in which the transfer chamber robot 242 is located. Here, the transfer chamber 240 is generally rectangular in plan view and includes four generally planar vertical walls 246, three of which have processing modules 250 attached thereto, and the fourth wall is connected to the load lock chambers 230A, 230B through second valves 235A, 235B and process chamber valves 244A, 244B, respectively. Here, the front-end robot places a substrate in one of the load lock chambers 230A, 230B while the second valves 235A, 235B of the respective load lock chambers 230A, 230B are closed, then the first valves 225A, 225B of the respective load lock chambers 230A, 230B are closed, the second valves 235A, 235B of the respective load lock chambers 230A, 230B are opened, and the transfer chamber robot 242 (shown diagrammatically in FIG. 2B ) removes the substrate from the load lock chamber 230A or 230B and places the substrate in one of the first process stations 260A of the processing module 250 through the processing system valve 248. The processing system valve 248 can be selectively opened to move a substrate into or out of the processing module at station 260A and can be closed to isolate the internal volume of the transfer chamber 240 from the internal volume of the processing module 250 (e.g., the transfer region 401).

[0025] Since there are no intermediate robot chambers 280A, 280B and / or pre-cleaning / degassing chambers 292A, 292B in processing system 200A as in processing system 200 of FIG. 2A, pre-cleaning of the substrate is performed in one or more of the processing modules 250, such as process station 260A, to enable a pre-cleaning process to be performed prior to depositing a film layer on the substrate.

[0026] 2A, 3A-3B, 4A-4B, 5 and 8, components within the process module 250 and additional details of the interior area of ​​the process module 250 are shown. As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, a removable central cover 690 extends over the central opening 713 (FIGS. 2A, 3B and 8) of the top wall 616 of the process module 250. The central cover 690 is removable to allow access to the interior transfer area 401 of the process module 250 to perform servicing operations on the central transfer robot 245 of the process module 250. At least one substrate transfer opening, and in the case of the process module 250 of FIGS. 3A and 4A-4B, two substrate transfer openings 504A, 504B, extend inwardly from the exterior of the peripheral wall 619 into the transfer area 401 of the process module 250. The transfer openings 504A, 504B allow the intermediate robots 285A, 285B or the central transfer robot 245 to transfer a substrate located outside of a processing module 250 to a position on a substrate support 672 located on the support arm 308 of the central transfer robot 245. Alternatively, the transfer openings 504A, 504B allow the intermediate robots 285A, 285B or the central transfer robot 245 to remove a substrate from a substrate support 672 located on the support arm 308 of the central transfer robot 245.

[0027] 4A and 4B show the process station 260F of FIGS. 2A and 3A-3B with an opening 504B opening into the process station 260F of the processing module 250. In this example, the location of the opening 504A corresponds to a location adjacent to the process station 260A. The processing module 250 is configured to include a central transfer robot 245 (FIGS. 3A, 3B) from which a number of support arms 308 extend radially. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 5A, the number of support arms 308 is equal to the number of process stations 260 of the processing module 250. However, the number of support arms 308 of the central transfer robot 245 can be less than or greater than the number of process stations 260 of the processing module 250. In one embodiment, the number of support arms 308 is greater than the number of process stations 260 to allow for more substrates to be transferred at one time within the transfer region and / or to allow some of the support arms 308 to support additional hardware components, such as pasting discs and / or shutter discs (not shown) used to perform a PVD pasting operation to remove contamination from the surface of the PVD target. A PVD pasting operation is typically performed within a process station 260 between two substrate PVD deposition processes performed at the same substrate process station 260.

[0028] The process stations 260 are arranged along an imaginary circle 252 (FIG. 3B) centered on a central axis 253 (i.e., an axis parallel to the Z direction) in such a manner that their centers coincide with the central axis 253, and are equally spaced from one another in the circumferential direction. For example, if the process station 260F is a PVD type process station 260, the center of the PVD target is on a portion of the imaginary circle 252, and the target centers of the remaining process stations 260A-260E are equally spaced from one another in the circumferential direction along the imaginary circle 252. The circumferential spacing between the centers of two adjacent process stations 260 measured along the imaginary circle 252 can be between about 700 mm and about 1000 mm, for example between 800 mm and 900 mm. In some embodiments, the circumferential spacing between the centers of two adjacent process stations 260 measured along the imaginary circle 252 can be greater than about 0.5 times the diameter of a substrate being processed in the processing system and less than about 3 times the diameter of a substrate being processed in the processing system, such as between about 1 to about 2 times the diameter of the substrate (e.g., 150 mm, 200 mm, 300 mm or 450 mm diameter substrates).

[0029] 3A-3B, 4A-4B, and 5A-5B, the central transfer robot 245 is a carousel-type robot assembly 501 including a central support 305 to which the proximal ends 561 of the support arms 308 are secured, such as by threaded fasteners (not shown). The central support 305 is rotated by a carousel motor 457 (FIGS. 4A-4B and 8) disposed below the processing module 250 and may include a stepper motor or servo motor coupled to the bottom wall 618 (FIG. 4A). The carousel motor 457 may include a drive shaft 457A. The drive shaft 457A is coupled to the central support 305 and is coincident with the central axis 253 such that when the drive shaft of the carousel motor 457 rotates, the central support 305 and each of the support arms 308 rotate along an arc about the central axis 253. The top surface of the rotation volume through which the support arms 308 and substrate supports 672 are rotated by the carousel motor 457 is generally referred to herein as the transfer plane, which is parallel to the XY plane of FIG. 4A. The central support 305 and each support arm 308 are disposed within a transfer region 401 that is separately evacuated by a vacuum pump 454, which may be a turbo pump, cryopump, roughing pump or other useful device capable of maintaining a desired pressure within the transfer region 401 of the processing module 250. The central support 305 is generally disposed above a central opening 723 (FIG. 8) formed in the bottom wall 618 of the lower monolith 720. As will be discussed further below, the transfer region 401 and processing region 460 of the process station 260 can be separated so that processes running in the process station 260 can be controlled and run at a different vacuum pressure than the transfer region 401, and so that the processes running in the process station 260 can use a variety of different processing gases without concern for contaminating the transfer region 401 or other adjacently located process stations 260.

[0030] In some embodiments, the support arms 308 are configured to support substrate supports 672 configured to support a substrate for processing in the processing region of the process station 260. The substrates disposed on the substrate supports 672 disposed on the support arms 308 are positioned such that the center of the substrate is located on a portion of the imaginary circle 252 within the tolerance limits of the placement of the substrate thereon. Similarly, the substrate support-located area or support portion 560 (FIG. 4A) of each support arm 308 is also aligned with the imaginary circle 252 (FIGS. 3B and 5A) to allow the center of the support portion 560 to move on the imaginary circle 252 as the support portion 560 pivots about the central axis 253 when the central support 305 is rotated about the central axis 253.

[0031] In addition to the process stations 260, the vacuum pumps 265, and the central transfer robot 245, FIG. 3B further discloses one or more shutter stacks 310 disposed within the substrate processing module 250. The shutter stacks 310 can be disposed between any process station 260 and an adjacent process station 260. In some embodiments, multiple shutter stacks 310 are disposed within the substrate processing module 250 such that the number of shutter stacks 310 is equal to the number of process stations 260 within the substrate processing module 250. In some embodiments, six shutter stacks 310 are disposed in such a manner that one shutter stack 310 is disposed between each of the six process stations 260. The shutter stacks 310 can be disposed radially outward of the central transfer robot 245. In some embodiments, the multiple support portions 560 of the central transfer robot 245 are further configured to transfer substrates to and from the shutter stacks 310. A number of support segments 560 may extend radially outward from the central transfer robot 245 at least partially above or below the shutter stack 310 .

[0032] The shutter stack 310 can provide the substrate processing module 250 with shutter disks. The shutter disks can be utilized to perform preconditioning of the process station 260 during initial burning of the chambers that make up the process station 260, or can be used in situ for target or process kit cleaning. The shutter disks can also be used for a paste process in the process station 260. The paste process is an in situ conditioning process step that uses existing materials (targets or gases) or adds new materials (e.g. gases) to form a blank cover film on all process environment surfaces in the process station 260 to reduce defects or other performance effects due to lifetime. The shutter disks are used to protect surfaces that would not normally be exposed to the process without the shutter disks.

[0033] The shutter stack 310 can also be used to store the substrate between processing operations in the process stations 260. In this embodiment, the substrate is moved from one of the process stations 260 to the shutter stack 310 before being moved to the second process station 260 or transferred out of the substrate processing module 250. This embodiment is beneficial in preventing congestion in the substrate processing module 250 when one or more processing operations take more time to complete than other processes, or when it is beneficial to let the substrate rest before a subsequent processing operation. In some embodiments, one or more of the shutter stacks 310 are used to provide shutter disks, while the remaining shutter stacks are used to store the substrate between processing operations. In some embodiments, the shutter stacks 310 are cooling or annealing chambers such that the substrate is cooled or annealed between the process stations 260. In some embodiments, the number of support portions 560 is increased by the number of shutter stacks 310 present in the substrate processing module 250.

[0034] Locating the shutter stack 330 outside of the process station 260 allows the shutter disks and / or substrates contained therein to be transported without breaking the vacuum of the substrate processing module 250. Reducing the need to break vacuum reduces processing time in the substrate processing module 250 and reduces costs for the user. Additional details of the shutter stack 310 are provided in the discussion of Figures 12A-12D below.

[0035] Referring to FIG. 5B, one configuration of a central transfer robot useful for transferring substrate supports 672 between process stations 260A-260F of FIGS. 2A and 2B is shown. Here, central support 305 includes a centrally located through opening 500 extending about central axis 253 through which a drive shaft 457A of carousel motor 457 (FIG. 4A) located below processing module 250 is connected to rotate central support 305 about central axis 253. Each support arm 308 includes an extension arm portion 506 located between support portion 560 and proximal end 561. Extension arm portion 506 has at least one, here two, cutout areas 510 for weight reduction and heat transfer reduction extending generally parallel on either side of a radius extending from central axis 253. In some configurations, the extension arm portion 506 terminates in a c-shaped end region 508 when viewed in plan, forming part of a support portion 560. In some configurations, the c-shaped end region 508 includes opposing ends 514, 516 spaced apart a distance less than a diameter 520 of a through opening 518 that the c-shaped end region 508 partially surrounds. A peripheral flange 670 ( FIG. 4A ) of a substrate support 672 that is generally circular in layout has an inner diameter and an outer diameter, and the peripheral flange 670 is configured to rest on the support portion 560 during movement of the substrate support 672 between process stations 260 and before the substrate support 672 is lifted off the support portion 560 at the process station 260.

[0036] 4A-4B, in some embodiments, the support arm 308 includes a plurality of electrical contacts 453 (FIG. 4B) disposed on an upper surface of the support arm 308 and within the support portion 560. The electrical contacts 453 are used to provide power to one or more electrical elements formed within the body 643 (FIG. 6) of the substrate support 672 while the substrate support 672 is supported on the support arm 308. The combination of the body 643 and the electrical contacts 673 can thus be considered an electrostatic chuck (ESC). The one or more electrical elements formed within the substrate support 672 can include a resistive heating element 642 (FIG. 6) coupled to two or more electrical contacts 673 (FIG. 4A) formed on the lower surface of the substrate support 672, and / or one or more chucking electrodes 641 (FIG. 6) separately coupled to two or more additional electrical contacts 673 formed on the lower surface of the substrate support 672. 4A-4B, the electrical contacts 453 are electrically coupled to one or more power sources, such as a DC chucking power supply 458 and / or a heater power supply 459, through the use of slip rings 456 adapted to allow electrical connections to be made to the electrical contacts 453 while the support arm 308 is rotated by a carousel motor 457. A number of conductors or wires 455 are used to connect the one or more power sources to the electrical contacts 453. The conductors or wires 455 are routed through the drive shaft 457A, the central support 305, and the support arm 308 disposed within the transfer region 401 of the processing module 250. For example, three wires coupled to the power supply 458 and two wires coupled to the power supply 459 are provided through each support arm 308 such that each of the wires can be separately connected to the electrical contacts 453. Thus, when the substrate support 672 is positioned on the support portion 560, the electrical contacts 673 of the substrate support 672 are electrically coupled to the electrical contacts 453 of the support arm 308 so that the substrate can remain chucked to the substrate support 672 and the desired temperature can be maintained while the substrate S and substrate support 672 are being transferred within the transfer region 401.The ability to chuck and heat the substrate S during the transfer process allows greater rotational speeds to be achieved by the carousel motor 457 during the transfer process without concern of losing the substrate, and allows the temperature of the substrate to be maintained consistently between processes performed in each process station 260.

[0037] 5C is a plan view of a central transfer robot 245 including an alternative robot structure, which is a dual-arm robot 540 including two end effectors 530, 532. The central transfer robot 245 including the dual-arm robot 540 may be useful when the substrate processing sequence performed in the processing module 250 does not include or require the substrate to be transferred in both directions in sequence along a path extending along the imaginary circle 252. In this configuration of the processing module 250, the substrate supports 672 do not need to be movable in a lateral plane (i.e., the XY plane) such that each substrate support 672 is maintained at one position in the XY plane below the process station 260, and during processing, the substrate is transferred between the laterally fixed substrate supports 672 by the dual-arm robot 540.

[0038] In some embodiments, the two end effectors 530, 532 of the dual-arm robot 540 are independently operable, and the end effectors 530, 532 extend from and swing in an arc around a central axis 505. The central axis 505 extends in the Z direction (e.g., perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 5C ) and typically coincides with the central axis 253 of the processing module 250. Each end effector 530, 532 is operably coupled to a central hub 536, which consists of a rotatable upper hub and a rotatable lower hub (not shown) that can each independently rotate around the central axis 505. The end effector 530 includes a first fork 537a and a first arm 538. The first hub arm 542 has a first end coupled to the central hub 536 and an end distal to the end effector 536a coupled to the first arm 538 at a first wrist connection 544. The first wrist connection 544 allows the first arm to pivot about the first wrist axis Ω1 to allow the first end effector 530 to rotate about the first wrist axis Ω1. Similarly, the first hub arm moves in an arc about the central axis 505 to allow the first wrist connection 544, and therefore the first wrist axis Ω1, to pivot about the central axis 505. The end effector 532 includes a second fork 537b and a second arm 546. The second hub arm 548 has a first end coupled to the rotatable upper hub and an end distal to the second end effector 532 coupled to the second arm 546 at a second wrist connection 550. The second wrist connection 550 allows the second arm 546 to pivot about the second wrist axis Ω2 to enable the second end effector 532 to rotate about the second wrist axis Ω2. Similarly, the second hub arm 548 moves in an arc about the central axis 505 to allow the second wrist connection 550, and therefore the second wrist axis Ω2, to pivot about the central axis 505.Furthermore, because the first and second end effectors 530, 532 are operably connected to the central hub 536 through a rotatable upper hub and a rotatable lower hub, respectively, the forks 537a, 537b of the end effectors 530, 532 can vertically overlap each other to, for example, move a different substrate inside the processing module 250, such that one of the forks 537a or 537b receives and retracts a substrate from the substrate support 672, while the other of the forks 537a or 537b moves the substrate onto the substrate support 672 after the first substrate has been removed from the substrate support 672.

[0039] The forks 537a, 537b of the first and second end effectors 530, 532, respectively, can extend a maximum distance from the central axis 505 when the arms (first arm 538 and first hub arm 542 or second arm 546 and second hub arm 548) are aligned together, i.e., when the arms form a straight path together. In this orientation of the arms, one of the first and second forks 537a or 537b is in a load or unload position to receive or leave a substrate relative to the substrate support 672. From this position, the arcuate motion of the upper or lower hub about the central axis 505 and the arcuate motion of one of the first or second arms 538, 546 about the corresponding first wrist axis Ω1 or second wrist axis Ω2 causes the corresponding fork 537a or 537b to retract toward the central hub 536. By locating the dual arm robot 540 within the processing module 250 and locating the central axis 505 at the location of the central axis 253, the forks 537a, 537b can be operated independently of one another to access any substrate support 672 at any one of the process stations 260A-F. Thus, using a robot in the configuration of the dual arm robot 540, a substrate can be moved from any one of the process stations 260A-F to any other one of the process stations 260A-F without passing through any of the intermediate process stations 260A-F along the imaginary circle 252.

[0040] 4A-4B and 6 include cross-sectional views of a process station 260F and a portion of a processing module 250, which are intended to generally illustrate various components and attributes of a process station that may be disposed within the processing module 250. Although the process station 260F configuration shown in these figures is adapted to perform a PVD deposition process, this process station configuration is not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure described herein, since, as noted above, one or more of the process stations 260 within the processing module 250 may be adapted to perform CVD, PECVD, ALD, PEALD, etch, thermal processes (e.g., RTP, anneal, cooling, thermal management control), or other useful semiconductor or flat panel substrate processing steps. However, a processing module 250 that includes primarily or exclusively process stations configured to perform PVD deposition processes is believed to be advantageous in some semiconductor device formation applications over other processing module configurations utilizing other deposition and etch processes due to the lower potential for process cross-contamination (e.g., lower potential for residual gas cross-contamination) and higher deposition rates typically achieved with PVD processes.

[0041] The process stations 260 generally include a source assembly 470, a process kit assembly 480, and a substrate support actuation assembly 490, which, when used together, enable a desired process to be performed within a processing region 460 of the process station 260. In various embodiments of the disclosure described herein, the processing region 460 within each process station 260 is configured to be separately separable from the transfer region 401 of the processing module 250, thus substantially preventing electromagnetic energy, vapors, gases, or other undesirable contaminants from adversely affecting the substrate and processes being performed at adjacent process stations or within the transfer region 401. When separated from the transfer region 401, the processing region 460 is generally enclosed by one or more processing surfaces of the source assembly 470, one or more processing region components 685 within the process kit assembly 480, and the substrate support 672 during substrate processing steps performed within the process station 260.

[0042] As discussed above and illustrated in FIG. 4A, the source assembly 470 of the process station 260F is configured to perform a PVD deposition process. In this configuration, the source assembly 470 includes a target 472, a magnetron assembly 471, a source assembly wall 473, a lid 474, and a sputtering power supply 475. In this configuration, the processing surface 472A of the PVD target 472 generally defines at least a portion of the top of the processing region 460. The magnetron assembly 471 includes a magnetron region 479 in which the magnetron 471A is rotated by use of a magnetron rotation motor 476 during processing. The target 472 and magnetron assembly 471 are typically cooled by supplying a cooling fluid (e.g., DI water) to the magnetron region 479 from a fluid recirculation device (not shown). To facilitate the sputtering process performed in the processing region 460 during a PVD deposition process, the magnetron 471A includes a plurality of magnets 471B configured to generate a magnetic field that extends below the processing surface 472A of the target 472.

[0043] In alternative configurations of the process station 260 adapted to perform CVD, PECVD, ALD, PEALD, etch or thermal processes, the source assembly 470 typically includes different hardware components. In one example, the source assembly 470 of a process station adapted to perform a PECVD deposition process or etch process typically includes a gas distribution plate or showerhead configured to deliver precursor or etch gases into the processing region 460 and across the surface of a substrate disposed in the process station 260 during processing. In this configuration, the processing surface or surfaces that define at least a portion of the processing region 460 are the lower surface (e.g., the surface that interfaces with the processing region) of the gas distribution plate or showerhead. In this configuration, the magnetron assembly 471 and target are not used, and the sputtering power supply 475 can be replaced by an RF power supply configured to bias the gas distribution plate.

[0044] The substrate support actuation assembly 490 includes a pedestal lift assembly 491 and a pedestal assembly 492. The pedestal lift assembly 491 includes a lift actuator assembly 768 and a lift mounting assembly 766, which is coupled to the bottom wall 618 of the processing module 250. The lift actuator assembly 768 may include a stepper or servo motor actuated lead screw assembly, a linear motor assembly, a pneumatic cylinder actuated assembly, or other conventional mechanical linear actuation mechanism. In operation, the lift actuator assembly 768 and the lift mounting assembly 766 are configured to position the pedestal assembly 492 at a transfer position ( FIG. 4A ) (i.e., transfer plane) located vertically (in the Z direction) below the support arm 308, and at a processing position ( FIG. 4B ) vertically above the support arm 308 through the use of one or more mechanical actuators (e.g., servo motors, stepper motors, linear motors) within the lift actuator assembly 768. A lift actuator assembly 768 is coupled to the pedestal shaft 492A, which is supported by bearings (not shown) coupled to the bottom wall 618 for guiding the pedestal shaft 492A as it is translated by the lift actuator assembly 768. A bellows assembly (not shown) is used to form a seal between the outer diameter of the pedestal shaft 492A and a portion of the bottom wall 618 such that the vacuum environment created in the transfer region 401 by use of the vacuum pump 454 is maintained during normal operation. The use of separate dedicated pedestal lift assemblies 491 configured to accurately position the substrate S and substrate support 672 at desired processing locations in their respective process stations 260, and which can be separately aligned with components in the source assemblies 470 (e.g., target 472) in the process stations 260, is believed to be significantly advantageous over conventional designs that position multiple substrates on a single support structure that cannot be separately aligned and adjusted.An example of the importance and issues regarding the positioning and alignment of the substrate S relative to the components of the source assembly 470 is discussed further below with respect to Figures 7A and 7B.

[0045] The pedestal assembly 492 includes a support plate assembly 494 coupled to a plate support element 493 coupled to a pedestal shaft 492 A. The pedestal assembly 492 includes a heater power supply 498, an electrostatic chuck power supply 499, and a backside gas source 497.

[0046] In some embodiments, the support plate assembly 494 includes a plurality of electrical contacts 496 ( FIG. 4A ) disposed on an upper surface of the support plate 494A. A heater power supply 498 and an electrostatic chuck power supply 499 are each electrically coupled to two or more of the electrical contacts 496. The electrical contacts 496 are used to provide power to one or more electrical elements formed in the substrate support 672 when the substrate support 672 is lifted from the support portion 560 of the support arm 308 by the support plate 494A. The electrical contacts 496 are configured to mate with electrical contacts 673 formed on the lower surface of the substrate support 672. In some embodiments, a separate set of electrical contacts 673 formed on the lower surface of the substrate support 672 is configured to mate with the electrical contacts 496 of the support plate 494A. In one embodiment, the separate set of electrical contacts 673 is physically separate from the electrical contacts 673 configured to mate with the electrical contacts 453 of the support arm 308. In this configuration, the substrate support 672 includes two separate sets of contacts, each adapted to create a similar electrical connection to an electrical element (e.g., resistive heating element, chucking electrode) embedded in the substrate support 672. The resistive heating elements disposed within the substrate support 672 are coupled to two or more electrical contacts 673 that electrically couple with two or more electrical contacts 496 of the support plate 494A that are coupled to the output of a heater power supply 498 when the substrate support 672 is disposed in the processing position ( FIG. 4B ). One or more chucking electrodes disposed within the substrate support 672 are coupled to two or more electrical contacts 673 that electrically couple with the two or more electrical contacts 496 of the support plate 494A. In one example, three wires coupled to the output of the heater power supply 498 and two wires coupled to the electrostatic chuck power supply 499 are provided through the pedestal shaft 492A such that the wires can be separately connected to their corresponding respective mating electrical contacts 496.In some embodiments, a reliable, separable electrical connection is formed between the electrical contacts 496 and their corresponding respective mating electrical contacts 673, at least in part, by allowing a portion of the weight of the substrate support 672 to press against mating surfaces of the respective electrical contacts 496 when the substrate support 672 is positioned in a processing position within the process station 260, thus allowing the substrate to be chucked and heated by the substrate support 672 while the substrate support 672 is positioned on the support plate 494A during processing.

[0047] In some embodiments, the support plate assembly 494 includes a separable backside gas connection 495 configured to mate with a backside gas receiving surface formed around a backside gas port 671 formed on the backside of the substrate support 672. The backside gas connection 495 is coupled to a backside gas source 497 configured to supply a backside gas (e.g., N2, He, Ar) to the backside gas port 671 formed on the substrate support 672 during processing, the backside gas port 671 being connected to a gas passage formed in the substrate support 672 and to a space formed between the substrate support 672 and a substrate disposed on the substrate receiving surface of the substrate support 672. Thus, the separable backside gas connection 495 is configured to be sealably and repeatedly connected to the backside gas receiving surface of the substrate support 672 when the substrate support 672 is disposed on the support plate 494A, and to be separated from the substrate support 672 when the support plate 494A is in the transfer position (i.e., below the support arm 308). In some embodiments, the separable backside gas connection 495 includes a machined metal sealing surface or a compliant sealing surface configured to mate with a polished mating surface of the backside gas receiving surface to form a reproducible gas-tight seal formed, at least in part, by a portion of the weight of the substrate support 672 pressing against a surface of the separable backside gas connection 495 when the substrate support 672 is positioned in a processing position within the process station 260.

[0048] 4A-4B and 6, the process kit assembly 480 generally includes a plurality of processing region components 685 and a sealing assembly 485 disposed over and / or within a process station upper opening 734 in the chamber upper wall 616 of the processing module 250. In the example configuration of the process station 260 disclosed in FIGS. 4A-4B and 6, the processing region components 685 include a base plate 481, a process region shield 482, an isolation ring 483, a station wall 484, a cover ring 486, a deposition ring 488, and an inner shield 489, which together at least partially define a processing region 460 of the process station 260. The base plate 481 is configured to support the process region shield 482, the isolation ring 483, the station walls 484, the sealing assembly 485, the cover ring 486, the deposition ring 488 and the inner shield 489, allowing these components to be placed and removed as an assembly through a central opening 713 formed in the top wall 616 of the process module 250. The isolation ring 483, formed from a dielectric material, is configured to support the target 472 and to be placed on the station walls 484 that are disposed on the base plate 481. The isolation ring 483 is used to electrically isolate the target 472 from the grounded station walls 484 when the target 472 is biased by a sputtering power supply 475.

[0049] The process kit assembly 480 further includes a number of sealing elements 1001 (e.g., O-rings) that are used to prevent atmospheric gases from entering the processing region 460 during normal processing. Additionally, the source assembly 470 is configured to form a seal with a portion of the process kit assembly 480 by using the sealing elements 1001, and the process kit assembly 480 is configured to form a seal with an upper surface of the upper chamber wall 616, also by using the sealing elements 1001, to enable isolation of the processing region 460 from the external environment during processing.

[0050] The station wall 484 includes a first port 484A coupled to a vacuum pump 265 and configured to evacuate the processing region 460 during processing through an upper portion of the shield 489, a lower surface of the target 472, and a peripheral gap formed between the isolation ring 483 and portions of the station wall 484. The station wall 484 further includes a second port 484B coupled to a gas source 699 and configured to supply one or more process gases (e.g., Ar, N2) to the processing region 460 through a peripheral plenum 484C during processing.

[0051] The process region shield 482 is disposed below the station wall 484. The process region shield 482 is typically used to collect sputtered deposits from the target 472, to enclose a portion of the processing region 460, and in some configurations, to support a sealing assembly 485, as shown in FIG. 6. In this configuration, the process region shield 482 is adapted to form a seal with a surface 484D of the station wall 484 on which the process region shield 482 is supported, and is similarly adapted to form a seal between a surface 485D of a lower plate 485B of the sealing assembly 485 and a lower surface 482A of the process region shield 482. The seals formed between the process region shield 482 and portions of the station wall 484 and between the process region shield 482 and portions of the lower plate 485B may each be formed by using an O-ring (not shown), welding, or other conventional sealing methods.

[0052] In some embodiments, sealing assembly 485 includes an upper plate 485A, a lower plate 485B, and a compliant member 485C disposed between upper plate 485A and lower plate 485B. In some embodiments, compliant member 485C includes a flexible bellows assembly configured to be compliant in at least one direction, such as the vertical direction (i.e., the Z direction), and configured to prevent gas from passing therethrough during processing, as shown in FIG. 6. The flexible bellows assembly can be a stainless steel or Inconel bellows assembly sealably welded at opposite ends to upper plate 485A and lower plate 485B.

[0053] During processing, when the substrate and substrate support 672 are disposed in a processing position beneath the source assembly 470 as shown in Figures 4B and 6, a portion of the substrate support 672 or a component attached to the substrate support 672, together referred to herein as a "sealing portion" of the substrate support 672, is adapted to form a "seal" with a portion of the sealing assembly 485 to substantially fluidly isolate the processing region 460 from the transfer region 410. Thus, in the exemplary configuration of the process station 260 disclosed in Figures 4A-4B and 6, the substrate support 672, the target 472, the sealing assembly 485, and a number of processing region components 685 including the process region shield 482, the station wall 484, and the isolation ring 483 substantially enclose and define the processing region 460. In some embodiments, the "seal" formed between the sealing portion of the substrate support 672 and the upper plate 485A of the sealing assembly 485 is formed in a sealing region 487 formed by physical contact between a surface of the sealing portion of the substrate support 672 and a surface of this portion of the sealing assembly 485. In some low temperature applications, the seal is formed by using a wiper seal, u-cup seal, or O-ring (not shown) disposed at the interface between a surface of the sealing portion of the substrate support 672 and a surface of this portion of the sealing assembly 485. In some high temperature applications, such as applications at temperatures greater than 200°C, the seal is formed by a metal-metal or metal-ceramic contact formed at the interface between the sealing portion of the substrate support 672 and this portion of the sealing assembly 485. In some embodiments, the flexible bellows assembly of the sealing assembly 485 is configured such that the sealing portion of the substrate support 672 is vertically stretched when placed in contact with a surface of this portion of the sealing assembly 485 by using the lift actuator assembly 768 of the substrate support actuation assembly 490.The compliant nature of the flexible bellows assembly allows for small misalignments or differences in planarity between the surface of the sealing portion of the substrate support 672 and the surface of this portion of the sealing assembly 485 such that a reliable and reproducible seal can be formed at the sealing region 487 over many cycles. As shown in Figures 4A-4D and 6, the substantially parallel orientation / alignment of the sealing portion of the substrate support 672, the sealing portion of the sealing assembly 485, the processing surface of the substrate and the lower surface of the source assembly 470 (e.g., the lower surface of the target 472) further allows for a reliable and reproducible seal to be formed while also allowing angular alignment between the processing surface of the substrate and the lower surface of the source assembly 470 to be easily formed and / or maintained during processing. Issues regarding angular misalignment between the processing surface of the substrate and the lower surface of the source assembly 470 are discussed further below with respect to Figures 7A-7B and 8.

[0054] However, in some alternative embodiments, the sealing assembly 485 simply comprises a wiper seal, u-cup seal or O-ring (not shown) disposed at the interface between the sealing surface of the substrate support 672 and the underside 482A of the process region shield 482 to form a seal therebetween when the substrate support 672 is disposed in the processing position. In this configuration, the diameter of the substrate support 672 where the sealing surface is formed is larger than the inner diameter of the process region shield 482 so that a seal can be formed between the sealing surface and the underside 482A while the substrate support is disposed in the processing position during a processing step.

[0055] After performing the substrate processing steps in the first process station 260, the substrate S and the substrate support 672 are lowered so that the substrate S and the substrate support 672 are positioned on the support arm 308. The central transfer robot 245 then rotates the central support 305 about the central axis 253 extending through the central support 305 to swing the support arm 308, the substrate S and the substrate support 672 along an arc, thereby moving the substrate support 672 and the substrate S to a position below the second process station 260. At this position, the substrate S is again lifted on the same substrate support 672 to a processing position by the pedestal lift assembly 491 dedicated to that second process station 260. After processing of the substrate S is completed, the substrate S and the substrate support 672 are returned to the end of the support arm 308 and transferred to the next process station 260. This processing cycle of lifting the substrate S and substrate support 672, processing the substrate S, lowering the substrate S and substrate support 672, and transferring the substrate support 672 and substrate S can then be repeated multiple times.

[0056] During the transfer sequence of the substrate S and substrate support 672 within the processing module 250, the processing region 460 of each processing station 260 is directly coupled to the transfer region 401. This structural design reduces system costs by eliminating the need for dedicated slit valves separating each processing station from the transfer region found in more conventional designs, and therefore also allows for easier and faster balancing of the pressure in the processing region 460 with the pressure in the transfer region 401 and achieving a desired base pressure throughout the processing module 250, while reducing substrate transfer overhead time (i.e., increasing throughput) by reducing the number of steps required to transfer a substrate. The system design disclosed herein further reduces complexity and cost by eliminating the need for separate processing chamber structures (e.g., separate welded compartments) and support hardware (e.g., individual support frames, slit valves, etc.) required in conventional processing system designs. Moreover, this design and transfer sequence further provides additional advantages since the processing regions 460 of each process station 260 can be separately and selectively isolated by controlling the movement and position of the substrate support 672 based on commands sent from the system controller 299 (FIG. 2A) by the substrate support actuation assembly 490 located at each process station 260. For example, it may be desirable to separately process the substrates at process stations 260A and 260B by placing the substrate S and substrate support 672 at processing positions within these process stations while process stations 260C, 260D, 260E, and 260F remain unisolated by keeping the substrate support 672 at these positions in a transfer position, thus allowing fluid communication between the processing regions 460 and the transfer region 401 at these process stations.

[0057] 4C-4D are schematic cross-sectional views of a processing module 250 including an alternative configuration of a process station 260F, according to one embodiment. In this configuration, the processing module 250 includes an alternative configuration of a central transfer robot 245 including a plurality of support arms 309 configured to transfer and place one or more substrates on a substrate support surface 591A of a support chuck assembly 590. The substrate support surface 591A is formed on a support chuck assembly 590 mounted to a pedestal lift assembly 491.

[0058] FIGURE 4C illustrates the support chuck assembly 590 positioned in a substrate receiving or transfer position. FIGURE 4D illustrates the support chuck assembly 590 while positioned in a substrate processing position. The configuration of the support chuck assembly 590 illustrated in FIGURES 4C-4D illustrates a design in which the substrate support elements 591 of the support chuck assembly 590 remain attached to components of the pedestal lift assembly 491 such that the substrate support elements 591 are dedicated substrate support elements for a single process station 260, and the substrate support elements 591 of the support chuck assembly 590 are limited to moving a substrate vertically, such as moving a substrate between a substrate receiving position and a processing position.

[0059] The support chuck assembly 590 includes a plate support 594 configured to support and hold a substrate support element 591 and coupled to a pedestal shaft 592A. The support chuck assembly 590 includes a heater power supply 498, an electrostatic chuck power supply 499, and a backside gas source 497. The heater power supply 498 and / or the electrostatic chuck power supply 499 are each electrically coupled to one or more electrical elements formed within the substrate support element 591. In this configuration, the body of the substrate support element 591 includes one or more resistive heating elements embedded therein. The resistive heating elements are disposed within the body of the substrate support element 591 and are electrically coupled to output connections of the heater power supply 498. One or more chucking electrodes disposed within the body of the substrate support element 591 are electrically coupled to the power supply 499. In one example, three wires coupled to the output of heater power supply 498 and two wires coupled to power supply 499 are provided through pedestal shaft 592A so that the wires can be separately connected to their corresponding respective electrical elements.

[0060] The support chuck assembly 590 includes a backside gas port 595 formed in a substrate support element 591. The backside gas port 595 is coupled to a backside gas source 497 that is configured to supply a backside gas (e.g., N2, He, Ar) to gas passages formed in the substrate support element 591 and to a space formed between the substrate and a surface of the substrate support element 591 during processing.

[0061] As also discussed above, during processing, when the substrate and support chuck assembly 590 are disposed in a processing position below the source assembly 470 ( FIG. 4D ), a portion of the support chuck assembly 590 or a component attached to the support chuck assembly 590 includes a sealing surface 596 adapted to form a “seal” with a portion of the sealing assembly 485 to substantially fluidly separate the processing region 460 from the transfer region 410. In some embodiments, this “seal” formed between the sealing surface 596 and the upper plate 485A of the sealing assembly 485 is formed in the sealing region 487 by physical contact made between a surface of the sealing surface 596 and a surface of this portion of the sealing assembly 485. As also discussed above, in some low temperature applications, this seal is formed by the use of a wiper seal, u-cup seal, or O-ring (not shown) disposed at the interface between the sealing surface 596 of the support chuck assembly 590 and a surface of this portion of the sealing assembly 485. Additionally, in some high temperature applications, such as applications at temperatures greater than 200° C., the seal is formed by a metal-metal or metal-ceramic contact formed at the interface between this portion of the sealing surface 596 of the support chuck assembly 590 and this portion of the sealing assembly 485.

[0062] 4C, the central transfer robot 245 includes a plurality of support arms 309 configured to pick up and place one or more substrates on a substrate support surface 591A of the support chuck assembly 590. In one embodiment, the central transfer robot 245 includes a lift actuator 599 configured to raise and lower the central support 305 and the plurality of support arms 309 attached to the central support 305 at least in the Z direction from a transfer position to a substrate drop-off position below the transfer position. The support arms 309 are mounted, shaped and configured similarly to the support arms 308 described above, except that the support arms 309 are configured to transfer substrates between the process stations 260, rather than to transfer substrates and substrate supports 672 between the process stations 260. In one embodiment, each support arm 309 includes a plurality of substrate support elements 309A disposed on a lower surface of the support arm 309, such that a substrate supported on a support surface 309C of the substrate support elements 309A can be placed directly on the support surface 591A of the substrate support elements 591. To ensure that the support arm 309 can receive and transfer all possible substrates, the inner edges 309B of opposing substrate support elements 309A are spaced apart a distance less than the smallest possible outer dimension of a substrate. The top surface and upper cutout (not shown) of the substrate support element 591 are configured to match the orientation of the substrate support element 309A so that the substrate support element 309A does not contact or interfere with the substrate support element 591 after a substrate is placed on the support surface 591A, and so that the support arm 309 can be rotated about the central axis 253 to move the support arm 309 to a position that is not above the support chuck assembly 590.

[0063] A robot arm configuration or end of a robot arm similar to that portion of the substrate support element 309A of the support arm 309 may also be utilized as part of the end effector of the intermediate robots 285A, 285B to pick up and drop off a substrate at or instead of the support surface 591A of the substrate support element 591 at the support surface 674 of the body 643 of the substrate support 672. Similarly, as discussed above, in one embodiment the intermediate robots 285A, 285B include a lift mechanism (not shown) configured to at least raise and lower the end effector (not shown) of the intermediate robot 285A, 285B to and from the transfer position and a substrate drop-off position below the transfer position. One or more cutouts (not shown) in the upper surface and top of the substrate support element 591 or substrate support 672 are configured to match the orientation of the substrate support element 309A positioned on the end effector (not shown) of the intermediate robot 285A, 285B so that the substrate support element 309A does not contact or interfere with the substrate support element 591 or substrate support 672 after the substrate is placed on the substrate support element 591 or substrate support 672, and so that the end effector retracts from a position that is not above the support chuck assembly 590 or above the substrate support 672.

[0064] A processing system 200 that includes the use of a robot end effector having a support element such as support element 309A shown in FIG. 4C is useful for enabling placement of a substrate on the substrate support surface of substrate support 672 or support chuck assembly 590 without the need to use a separate substrate lift assembly (e.g., lift pins, lift hoops, and lift actuators) commonly used in the art for the purpose of separating the substrate from the substrate support surface during a substrate exchange operation. While reducing the cost and complexity of process station 260, the use of this type of robot end effector further eliminates the need to form holes in substrate support 672 or support chuck assembly 590 that are necessary to allow access of lift assembly components (e.g., lift pins) to substrates placed on the substrate receiving surface, and further eliminates the need to seal holes formed in substrate support 672 or support chuck assembly 590 for fluidly separating process region 460 from transfer region 401 during processing. Thus, in one or more of the embodiments described herein, substrate support 672 or support chuck assembly 590 does not include through holes (e.g., lift pin holes) used to receive substrate lift components, and in some cases, substrate support 672 or support chuck assembly 590 can include only a single through hole, such as backside gas port 671 or backside gas port 595, used to supply backside gas to the substrate during processing.

[0065] 4C-4D includes a substrate transfer sequence that does not involve moving the substrate support along with the substrate, but the processing module 250 in this case nevertheless includes the same basic structural configurations and advantages as those described above for the transfer region 401 and processing region 460. For example, the processing region 460 of each process station 260 can be separately and selectively isolated by controlling the movement and position of the support chuck assembly 590 by the substrate support actuation assembly 490 of each process station 260 based on commands sent from the system controller 299 (FIG. 2A).

[0066] As discussed above with respect to FIGS. 1A and 1B, each process station 260A-260F is configured to separately perform a desired process on a substrate. In one example, a deposition process is separately performed at the process stations in the processing module 250. The separately performed deposition process may include sequentially depositing layers on a substrate by a PVD process as the substrate is sequentially processed at the process stations 260A-260F. During a PVD deposition process or a sputtering process, a bias is applied to the target 472 by a power supply 475. The application of the bias to the target ejects a portion of the target material from the face of the target 472 by impacting the surface of the target with ionized gas atoms formed by the applied bias provided to the sputtering gas provided by the gas source 699. The flux of ejected or sputtered material includes ionized and neutral atoms of the target material that generally travel toward the bottom of the formed processing region 460 and the surface of the substrate S and the shields (e.g., inner shield 489, process region shield 482) of the process kit assembly 480. The direction of the flux of ionized target atoms ejected from the surface of the target 472 can be changed by grounding or by applying a direct current (DC) or radio frequency (RF) bias to one of the electrodes formed in the substrate support 672. Thus, in some embodiments, the heater power supply 498 and the electrostatic chuck power supply 499 include a DC or RF power supply configured to apply a bias to one or more chucking electrodes or heating elements disposed in the substrate support 672. The chucking electrodes disposed in the substrate support element 591 are generally positioned immediately (e.g., 0.1 mm to 1 mm) below the dielectric material disposed on the substrate support surface of the substrate support 672. However, because not all of the atoms sputtered during processing can be ionized, and because of the structural configuration of the PVD chamber, the PVD process is considered to be a line-of-sight deposition process.A line-of-sight deposition process is a deposition process that is affected by the target shape and the parallelism of the target 472 with respect to the surface of the substrate during the PVD deposition process in terms of within-wafer (WIW) deposition uniformity. In one example, a smaller target-substrate spacing at one edge of the substrate compared to the opposite edge of the substrate results in thickness variations across the substrate due to angular misalignment. Thus, as discussed below with respect to Figures 7A-7B, distortion of the chamber top wall 616 and bottom wall 618 due to the pressure difference created between the external ambient pressure region 403 (Figure 4A) and the transfer region 401 and processing region 460 tends to cause the surface of the target 472 to flex and form an angle with respect to the surface of the substrate support 672 during processing compared to when no vacuum pressure is provided in the transfer region 401 and processing region 460, such as occurs during maintenance operations. This deflection of the target 472 in each process station 260 also increases as the size of the processing module 250 increases due to the larger overall span (e.g., diameter >3 m) that the chamber top and bottom walls 616 and 618 must span in the XY plane to allow the substrate to be placed in the transfer region 401 and transferred between the process stations 260 as the substrate size increases (e.g., ≥ 300 mm). To minimize the effects of distortion of the chamber top and bottom walls 616 and 618, the processing module 250 is maintained under vacuum (e.g., 10 Torr to 10. -8 A structural support assembly 710 is used to minimize distortion of the chamber upper and lower walls 616, 618 and improve the parallelism of the source assemblies 470 of the process stations 260A-260F relative to one another, whether at low pressure (e.g., 700 Torr) or ambient pressure (e.g., 760 Torr).

[0067] After performing a PVD processing step in process station 260, the bias voltage on target 472 is returned to zero, the ignited plasma is extinguished, and the substrate S and substrate support 672 are lowered and placed back onto support arm 308 as discussed above with respect to the embodiment shown in Figures 4A and 4B.

[0068] In addition to the deposition process, one or more target pasting processes (e.g., cleaning an oxide layer or a layer formed by reactive sputtering from the surface of the target) and / or chamber cleaning processes can additionally be performed in the process station. In one example, to enable a PVD deposition process to be performed on a pasting disk and / or a shutter disk (e.g., a substrate-sized metal disk) instead of a substrate to clean the surface of the target 472, the pasting disk and / or the shutter disk are placed on and moved to a processing position by the pedestal lift assembly 491 during the pasting process.

[0069] 7A, 7B and 8, additional structure and details of the process module 250 are shown. Here, as shown in FIG. 7A, the process module 250 includes a lower monolith 720 that forms the bottom or base of the process module 250, and an upper monolith 722 that is sealed to and supported on the lower monolith 720. In some embodiments, the lower monolith 720 and the upper monolith 722 are welded, brazed or fused together by some desired means to form a vacuum tight joint at the interface between the lower monolith 720 and the upper monolith 722. In some embodiments, the lower monolith 720 has a generally plate-like structure with seven minor side facets (FIG. 2A) and includes a lower wall 618 that includes a central opening 723 disposed in a central recess 724 (FIG. 8) disposed in a central region, and a plurality of process station lower openings 725 (two process station lower openings are shown in FIG. 8), each corresponding to the location of a process station 260. Extending downwardly from and through the lower wall 618 are a plurality of pedestal assemblies 492, two of which are shown in FIG. 8. A lower support structure 727 including a support frame 728 is used to support the lower monolith 720 and upper monolith 722 and to position the processing module 250 at a desired vertical location above a floor (not shown).

[0070] In some embodiments, the upper monolith 722 has a generally plate-like structure with eight minor sides (FIG. 2A) that align with the minor sides of the lower monolith 720. The upper main portion 711, including the upper chamber wall 616, includes a central opening 713 (FIG. 8) located in a central region, and a plurality of process station openings 734 (FIGS. 4A-4D, 7B and 8), each corresponding to a location where the process kit assembly 480 and source assembly 470 of the process station 260 are located. It has been found that forming the central opening 713 in the upper chamber wall 616 in a manner that falls within a range of diameter ratios of less than about 0.5 and greater than 0.3 allows user accessibility to a central region of the processing module 250 through the central opening 713, and surprisingly, does not unduly increase distortion of the upper chamber wall 616 during processing (e.g., under vacuum) due to material removal from the center of the upper chamber wall 616. The diameter ratio is defined by the ratio of the diameter of the central opening to the diameter of the outer periphery of the transfer region 401 at the inner surface 721A of the peripheral region 721 (i.e., the unsupported length of the chamber top wall 616). In this configuration, the removable central cover 690 spans over the central opening 713, but the removable central cover 690 is generally not bonded to the chamber top wall 616 or used to provide additional structural support to the chamber top wall 616. The removable central cover 690 includes a seal (not shown) that prevents external environmental gases from leaking into the transfer region 401 when the transfer region 401 is maintained at a vacuum by the vacuum pump 454. The inner surfaces 721A of the peripheral regions 721 of the lower monolith 720 and the upper monolith 722 form the outer edge of the transfer region 401. Access openings 504A, 504B extend through a portion of inner surface 721A and through either a portion of the wall of upper monolith 722 (FIGS. 4A-4D) or a portion of the wall of lower monolith 720 (not shown).

[0071] As discussed above, distortion of the upper and lower chamber walls 616 and 618 due to pressure differentials between the ambient pressure region 403 and the transfer and processing regions 401 and 460 tends to cause portions of the source assembly 470 (e.g., the surface of the target 472) to flex and form an angle with respect to the surface of the substrate support 672 during processing. To minimize distortion of the upper and lower chamber walls 616 and 618, a structural support assembly 710 is used to minimize distortion of the upper and / or lower chamber walls 616 and / or 618 and improve parallelism of the source assembly 470, regardless of whether the processing module 250 is under vacuum or ambient pressure. Due to manufacturing limitations, cost limitations, and limitations related to transportation of the assembled upper and lower monoliths 722 and 720, the upper chamber wall 616 typically has an average wall thickness (Z direction) between 50 millimeters (mm) and 100 mm, and the lower wall 618 has an average wall thickness (Z direction) between 75 mm and 150 mm. Here, to help ensure this parallelism, the upper monolith 722 includes a structural support assembly 710 including an upper support element 701 and a plurality of mounting elements 702, each having a first end coupled to the chamber top wall 616. In some embodiments, the first ends of the mounting elements 702 are coupled to the chamber top wall 616 by bolting the mounting elements 702, by welding the mounting elements 702, or even by integrally forming the mounting elements 702 as part of the chamber top wall 616. The array of mounting elements 702 is disposed between each of the process stations 260 on the chamber top wall 616 and is coupled to the chamber top wall 616 between each of the process stations 260. In some embodiments, the array of mounting elements each has a first end coupled to the first wall at a radial position disposed in a radial direction 735 extending between two adjacent process station openings. In one example, as shown in FIG. 7B, the radial position of each mounting element is disposed along a radial direction 735 extending between each pair of process station openings and is disposed at a radial position closer to the center (e.g., at a smaller radius extending from the central axis 253) than the process station openings 734.In some configurations, the mounting element 702 includes a vertical section 714A (FIG. 8) and further includes a radial section 714B (FIG. 7B) that extends radially from the central axis 253.

[0072] In some embodiments, to minimize deflection of the chamber top wall 616, the upper support element 701 generally includes a toroidal shaped structural element coupled to the second end of each of the mounting elements 702. As shown in FIGS. 7A-7B, in some configurations, the toroidal shape is not a complete toroid, but may include one or more facets (e.g., six facets are shown) as well as one or more flat mounting surfaces (e.g., top and bottom). The upper support element 701 is coupled to each of the mounting elements 702 by bolting the mounting elements 702 (i.e., bolts 703), by welding the mounting elements 702, or even by integrally forming the mounting elements 702 as part of the upper support element 701. The vertical section 714A of the mounting elements 702 is configured to position the upper support element 701 at a distance 808 between about 150 mm and about 450 mm from the mounting surface (e.g., the exposed top surface) of the chamber top wall 616. To support the upper chamber wall 616 and counteract the load induced by the applied vacuum pressure (e.g., about 14.7 psig) and minimize distortion of the upper chamber wall 616, the cross-section of the upper support element 701 includes a cross-sectional height 806 and a cross-sectional width 807 configured to provide the desired additional stiffness to the upper chamber wall 616 at least by its area moment of inertia, as shown in FIG. -3 Tor ~10 -8The vacuum pressure applied during processing by maintaining the pressure between 1000 and 2000 Torr results in a total force of approximately 161,000 pounds on the 3 meter diameter upper chamber wall 616. In some embodiments, the upper support element 701 and the mounting element 702 are formed from the same material as the material used to form the upper monolith 722 and lower monolith 720 components (e.g., upper chamber wall 616 and lower wall 618), such as an aluminum material (e.g., 6061Al). In some embodiments, the upper support element 701 and the mounting element 702 are formed from a material having a greater elastic modulus (E) than the material used to form the upper monolith 722 and lower monolith 720 components, such as a stainless steel material (e.g., 304SST, 316SST), which are formed from an aluminum material. In one example, upper support element 701 has a cross-sectional height 806 between about 50 mm and about 125 mm, a cross-sectional width 807 between about 75 mm and about 200 mm, and a central opening 805 having an inner diameter between about 750 mm and about 900 mm. In this configuration, upper support element 701 is configured to withstand a vacuum induced load applied to a chamber top wall 616 that includes a central opening 713 therein that has a diameter smaller than the inner diameter of central opening 805, for example, a central opening 713 having a diameter less than 85% of the inner diameter of central opening 805 or less than 95% of the inner diameter of central opening 805. In some embodiments, the combination of the structural support assembly 710 and the structure of the chamber top wall 616 are configured to minimize angular deflection or misalignment of the processing surface 472A of the target 472 relative to a lateral plane 801 ( FIG. 8 ) parallel to the XY plane to a tilt angle of between about 0.1 mm and about 0.25 mm (e.g., an angle of between about 0.02 and 0.05 degrees) measured edge-to-edge (rise) across a 300 mm diameter (e.g., run) centered on the center of the target 472.In some embodiments, the structural support assembly 710 in combination with the structure of the chamber top wall 616 is configured to minimize angular misalignment of the processing surface 472A of the target 472 relative to an exposed surface of a substrate S disposed on the substrate support 672 to a tilt angle of between about 0.1 mm and about 1 mm (e.g., an angle between about 0.02 and 0.2 degrees) measured edge-to-edge (e.g., rise) across a 300 mm diameter (e.g., run) of the substrate S. While not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure described herein, in some cases, the angular misalignment between the processing surface 472A and the lateral plane 801 may cause a deflection of the chamber top wall 616 (e.g., a first bending mode shape (1. st Depending on the bending mode shape, the maximum may be along a radial direction extending from the central axis.

[0073] 8, in some embodiments, a second structural support assembly 710 is coupled to the lower wall 618 similar to the structural support assembly 710 coupled to the chamber upper wall 616. Thus, in some embodiments, a processing module 250 may include a first structural support assembly 710 on the chamber upper wall 616 and a second structural support assembly 710 on the lower wall 618 to improve parallelism of the source assemblies 470 of all process stations 260 regardless of whether the transfer region 401 in the processing module 250 is under vacuum or at ambient pressure.

[0074] 9A and 9B show an example of an alternative configuration of a processing module 250 including four process stations, which differs from the six process station configuration primarily described above. Thus, FIGS. 9A and 9B show an additional processing module concept, a paddle robot processing module 900. In this configuration, four process stations 260 are provided, each having the same general configuration as the process stations 260 of FIGS. 2A-8 herein, but in contrast thereto, these four process stations are located at the four corners of a rectangular housing 902, and the substrate supports 672A-D do not move from one process station 260 to another process station 260, as described with respect to FIGS. 4C-4D. The rectangular housing 902 includes an upper body 904 and a lower body 906, which are configured similarly to the upper monolith 722 and lower monolith 720 described above. 9A includes an upper body 904 and a lower body 906 of the paddle robot processing module 900, while FIG. 9B includes only the lower body 906 portion of the paddle robot processing module 900. The upper body 904 includes a chamber upper wall configured to support the source assembly 470 and the process kit assembly 480 of each of the process stations 260A-260D. The lower body 906 similarly includes a lower wall configured to support the support chuck assembly 590 in each of the process stations 260A-260D.

[0075] In a common one of the four walls of the paddle robot processing module 900, the first and second process chamber valves 244A, 244B are located in such a manner that a substrate can be loaded onto the first substrate support 672A through the valves by using a robot such as the intermediate robot 285 of FIG. 2A. The substrate support 672A is then lifted to a processing position in the first process station 260A and the substrate is processed, such as by depositing a sputtered film layer on the substrate. The substrate can then be moved from the substrate support 672A to the substrate support 672B by the first paddle robot 908A for processing in the next process station 260B. Alternatively, a first substrate may be loaded onto the first substrate support 672A and then moved by the first paddle robot 908A to the second substrate support 672B without processing on the first substrate support 672A, and then a second substrate is loaded onto the first substrate support 672A for processing on the first substrate support 672A. Similarly, the second paddle robot 908B may move two additional substrates between the fourth substrate support 672D and the third substrate support 672C. The processes performed on the first and second substrates at the corresponding respective process stations, and possibly additional processes performed on additional substrates at the corresponding respective process stations, may be performed simultaneously or substantially simultaneously.

[0076] Each paddle robot 908A, 908B includes a rotatable base 910A, 910B from which extends a paddle arm 912A, 912B terminating in a paddle end effector 914A, 914B. The rotatable bases 910A, 910B are connected to a motor (not shown) below a rectangular housing and are rotatable to position the paddle end effector 914A, 914B on a respective one of the substrate supports 672A-D. Additionally, along an arcuate path 995 through which the paddle end effectors 914A, 914B swing, rest stations 916A-D are positioned such that substrates can be stored at the rest stations 916A-D between processing at the process stations 260 or directly between the process stations 260.

[0077] 10A-C show side views of a skirt 680 and shutter disks 1300a, 1300b, 1300c disposed over an electrostatic chuck (ESC) 622, according to some embodiments. For example, the skirt 680 can be the covering ring 486 described above with respect to FIG. 6. The skirt 680 includes skirt features 680a-c. For example, the ESC can include the body 643 described above with respect to FIG. 6.

[0078] The shutter disks 1300a, 1300b, 1300c are configured to protect underlying components (e.g., body 643) from unwanted deposition. As shown, the shutter disks 1300a, 1300b, 1300c include a disk body 1301 and one or more disk features 1310a-c. The disk body 1301 may include any material used in the art for shutter disks, such as titanium (Ti), aluminum-silicon-carbon (AlSiC), stainless steel (SST), aluminum (Al), and any combination thereof. The disk feature 1310a (FIG. 10A) includes a rounded portion at the bottom surface 1330 of the shutter disk 1300a in such a manner that the body 1301 protrudes further from the center of the shutter disk than the top surface 1331 of the shutter disk. Disk feature 1310b (FIG. 10B) includes a rounded portion at the bottom surface 1330 of shutter disk 1300b such that the body 1301 protrudes from the center of the shutter disk by approximately the same distance as the top surface 1331 of the shutter disk. Disk feature 1310c (FIG. 10C) includes a rounded portion at the bottom surface 1330 of shutter disk 1300a such that the body 1301 protrudes further from the center of the shutter disk than the top surface 1331 of the shutter disk. Additionally, disk feature 1310c includes a lip that extends below the bottom surface 1330. Disk features 1310a, 1310b, 1310c can be evenly distributed around the edge of disk body 1301 or can be distributed only on some parts of the edge. According to one embodiment, the shutter disk includes two or more of disk features 1310a, 1310b.

[0079] The disk features 1310a-c allow for stress reduction in the disk body 1301 during high temperature processing. For example, the disk features 1310a-c reduce stress in the disk body 1301 if the shutter disks 1300a-c experience bowing. The shutter disks 1300a-c are sized such that they rest on the ESCs and skirts in such a manner that they still protect the ESCs and skirts even if the shutter disks experience bowing. In some cases, bowing occurs due to a rapid increase and / or decrease in temperature. For example, the shutter disks 1300-c are configured to withstand bowing of up to about 1 mm or more. The bowing can be toward the top surface 1331 or away from the top surface. Additionally, the shutter discs 1300a-c are configured to withstand expansion or shifting of at least one port of the body 1301 in the sideways (ie perpendicular to the bottom surface 1330 and top surface 1331) of up to about 0.5 mm or more.

[0080] FIG. 10D shows a top view of one of the shutter disks 1300a-c, according to some embodiments. The shutter disks 1300a-c include a plurality of long grooves 1320 that extend from the side of the body 1301 to the center C of the body. The shutter disks 1300a-c include a plurality of short grooves 1321 that extend from the side of the body 1301 to the center C of the body. The length of the long grooves 1320 is equal to or longer than the length of the short grooves 1321. The long grooves 1320 and the short grooves 1321 can follow any path, such as a straight path. As shown in FIG. 10D, the long grooves 1320 and the short grooves 1321 have an arc curve. The arc curve can have any angle, such as about 10°. The long grooves 1320 and the short grooves 1321 can have a depth of about 0.25 mm to about 0.50 mm.

[0081] The long and short grooves 1320 and 1321 direct the deposition material away from the components below without depositing the material in the long and short grooves themselves, further protecting those components. The long and short grooves 1320 and 1321 direct the deposition material away from the components below, further protecting those components. The long and short grooves 1320 and 1321 have an inclination angle with respect to the deposition plane.

[0082] The shutter disks 1300a-c can have a diameter of about 300 mm or more. This large diameter allows the shutter disks 1300a-c to protect the components underneath even if they experience warping. This reduces the cost of ownership by extending the service life and deferring replacement of the protected components, especially for thicker depositions of about 5000 nm or more.

[0083] FIG. 11A illustrates a side view of the support portion (also referred to as a transfer system) 560, according to one embodiment. FIG. 11B illustrates a top view of the support portion 560, according to one embodiment. As shown, the support portion 560 includes a support portion body 1405, a first grasper 1401, a second grasper 1402, and a support portion actuator 1410. The first and second graspers 1401, 1402 are each coupled to the support portion body 1405. The first grasper 1401 and the second grasper 1402 are configured to grasp a workpiece (e.g., a substrate S or one of the shutter disks 1300a-c). The support portion 560 is configured to keep the rotational orientation of the workpiece constant during transfer. A constant and consistent rotational orientation of the workpiece is desirable for a substrate having layers deposited only on certain portions of the substrate.

[0084] In some embodiments, the first gripper 1401 and the second gripper 1402 include a horizontal surface such that the workpiece is seated securely on the first gripper and the second gripper. In other embodiments, the first gripper 1401 and the second gripper 1402 include a fastener or other mechanism (not shown) for securing the workpiece to the support portion 560. The support portion actuator 1410 is configured to move the support portion 560 in the Z direction relative to the central support 305 (FIG. 5B). The support portion actuator 1410 may include any actuator used in the art, such as a pneumatic actuator, an electric motor, a hydraulic actuator, a stepper motor, a brush motor, or other suitable actuator. In some embodiments, the entire central support 305 moves in the Z direction, and thus the support portion 560 moves in the Z direction.

[0085] 11C illustrates the movement of the support portion 560, according to one embodiment. The support portion 560 starts at a first position 1420. In the first position 1420, the support portion 560 is not gripping the shutter disk or the substrate.

[0086] The support portion 560 is then moved to a second position 1421. For example, the carousel motor 457 rotates the central transfer robot 245 (FIG. 5B) so that the support portion 560 rotates to the second position 1421. The second position 1421 is located so that the support portion 560 can grip a shutter disk (e.g., one of the shutter disks 1300a-c in FIGS. 10A-D). In some embodiments, the shutter disk is disposed in the shutter stack 310. The support portion actuator 1410 is configured to move the support portion 560 in the Z direction to grip the shutter disk. In some embodiments, the lift actuator 599 moves the entire central support 305 in the Z direction, and thus the support portion 560 moves in the Z direction to grip the shutter disk.

[0087] The support portion 560 is then moved to a third position 1422. For example, the carousel motor 457 rotates the central transfer robot 245 (FIG. 5B) so that the support portion 560 rotates to the third position 1422. For example, the third position 1422 is located in a processing area (e.g., process station 260). The support portion actuator 1410 is configured to move the support portion 560 in the Z direction to place the shutter disk in the processing area. In some embodiments, the lift actuator 599 moves the entire central support 305 in the Z direction, and thus the support portion 560 moves in the Z direction to place the shutter disk.

[0088] 11D illustrates the movement of the support portion 560, according to one embodiment. The support portion 560 starts at a first position 1420. In the first position 1420, the support portion 560 is not gripping the shutter disk or the substrate.

[0089] The support portion 560 is then moved to a second position 1421. For example, the carousel motor 457 rotates the central transfer robot 245 (FIG. 5B) so that the support portion 560 rotates to the second position 1421. The second position 1421 is located such that the support portion 560 can grip a substrate (e.g., substrate S). In some embodiments, the substrate is disposed in the shutter stack 310. The support portion actuator 1410 is configured to move the support portion 560 in the Z direction to grip the substrate. In some embodiments, the lift actuator 599 moves the entire central support 305 in the Z direction, and thus the support portion 560 moves in the Z direction to grip the substrate.

[0090] The support portion 560 is then moved to a third position 1422. For example, the central transfer robot 245 (FIG. 5B) is rotated such that the support portion 560 is rotated to the third position 1422. For example, the third position 1422 is located within a processing area (e.g., process station 260). The support portion actuator 1410 is configured to move the support portion 560 in the Z direction to deposit the substrate in the processing area. In some embodiments, the lift actuator 599 moves the entire central support 305 in the Z direction, and thus the support portion 560 moves in the Z direction to deposit the substrate.

[0091] 11C and 11D, other positions can be included, such as moving support portion 560 to four, five, or even more than five positions. Each position can be located at any angular increment from about 0° to about 360°. Support portion 560 can move uniformly from one position to another, or the outer end can move in steps.

[0092] In some embodiments, the first location 1420 is located in a secondary processing region (e.g., another process station 260). In these embodiments, the second location 1421 can be bypassed, and thus the substrate S moves from the secondary processing region to the processing region at the second location 1421. These embodiments allow for two-stage processing of the substrate, first in the secondary processing region and then in the processing region.

[0093] 12A shows a shutter stack 1500A in a first position 1591, according to one embodiment. The shutter stack 1500A is configured to hold one or more shutter disks 1300 and one or more substrates S. In some embodiments, the shutter stack 1500A includes only the substrate S. In some embodiments, the shutter stack 1500A includes only one or more shutter disks 1300a-c. This shutter stack 1500A can be used in place of the shutter stack 330 described above.

[0094] As shown, the shutter stack 1500A includes a stack base 1502, one or more shutter disk supports 1505, a substrate support 1501, and a stack actuator 1503. The one or more shutter disk supports 1505 and the substrate support 1501 are coupled to the stack base 1502. The one or more shutter disk supports 1505 are configured to support the shutter disks 1300a-c. The substrate support 1501 is configured to support a substrate S. The stack actuator 1503 is coupled to the stack base 1502. The stack actuator 1503 is configured to move the stack base 1502 in a desired direction. For example, the stack actuator 1503 is configured to move the stack base 1502 in a Z direction. The stack actuator 1503 may include any actuator used in the art, such as a pneumatic actuator, an electric motor, a hydraulic actuator, a step motor, a brush motor, or other suitable actuator.

[0095] Although only one set of shutter disk supports 1505 and corresponding shutter disks 1300 are shown, it will be understood that the shutter stack 1500A can include any number of sets of shutter disk supports 1505 and a same number of corresponding shutter disks 1300a-c. Similarly, although only one substrate support 1501 and corresponding substrates S are shown, it will be understood that the shutter stack 1500A can include any number of sets of substrate supports 1501 and a same number of corresponding substrates S.

[0096] 12A, the support portion 560 grips the shutter disks 1300a-c. The spacing between the top 1501T of the substrate support 1501 and the shutter disk support 1505 is such that the support portion 560 fits between the stack base 1502 and the top.

[0097] Figure 12B illustrates the shutter stack 1500A in a second position 1592, according to one embodiment. The second position 1592 is at a lower height compared to the first position 1591. In the second position 1592 illustrated in Figure 12B, the support portion 560 grips the substrate S. Thus, the shutter stack 1500A is configured such that the support portion 560 can grip either the substrate S or the shutter disk 1300.

[0098] 12A and B, it should be understood that any number of positions of the shutter stack 1500A are possible. For example, in a configuration of the shutter stack 1500A including multiple substrate supports 1501, multiple positions of the shutter stack are possible, with each position including the stack base 1502 at a different height. Additionally, the shutter stack 1500A may also include lift pins (not shown) that allow for enhanced control of the movement of the workpiece in the Z direction.

[0099] FIG. 12C illustrates the shutter stack 1500B in a first position 1593 according to one embodiment. This shutter stack 1500B can be used in place of the shutter stack 330 described above. The shutter stack 1500B is similar to the shutter stack 1500B, except that the shutter stack 1500B does not include a stack actuator. That is, the shutter stack 1500B is set to a single position 1593. Instead, as shown in FIG. 12D, the support portion 560 moves in the Z direction relative to the shutter stack 1500B. For example, the support portion actuator 1410 (FIGS. 11A and B) is used to move the support portion 560. In some embodiments, the lift actuator 599 moves the entire central support 305 in the Z direction, thus moving the support portion 560 in the Z direction. In some embodiments, the actuators of Figures 15C and 15D are used in conjunction with the shutter stack 1500A, such that the shutter stack and outer end 1032 work in concert to grip the shutter disks 1300a-c and / or the substrate S, respectively.

[0100] Each of the shutter stacks 1500A, 1500B allows for removal of the workpiece (i.e., substrate and shutter disk) without breaking the vacuum. Reducing the time spent breaking and restoring the vacuum increases the throughput of the cluster tool. Additionally, according to some embodiments, the shutter stacks 1500A, 1500B include a cooling system, such as a radiative cooling system, which reduces the temperature of the shutter disks 1300a-c, extending the useful life of the shutter disks and reducing the cost of ownership for the user. The shutter stacks 1500A, 1500B may further include one or more sensors (not shown). These sensors notify the support portion 560 when it is positioned on the shutter stack.

[0101] FIG. 13 is a flow diagram of operations of a method 1600 for moving a workpiece, according to one embodiment. Although operations of the method 1600 are described with respect to FIGS. 11A-D, 12A-D, and 13, one skilled in the art will understand that a system configured to perform the operations of the method in any order is within the scope of the embodiments described herein. An embodiment of the method 1600 can be used in combination with one or more of the systems and system operations described herein, such as the substrate processing module 250 of FIGS. 2A and 2B. The method 1600 can be stored in or accessible to the system controller 299 of the substrate processing module 250 as a computer-readable medium that includes instructions that, when executed by a processor of the system controller, cause the transfer chamber assembly to perform the method. The entire method 1600 can be performed in a vacuum environment, such as an ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) environment.

[0102] Method 1600 begins with operation 1610, where a support portion (e.g., support portion 560) is moved in a first direction from a first location (e.g., first position 1420) to a shutter stack (e.g., shutter stack 310, 1500A or 1500B located at second position 1421). The first direction can be a straight line or can be along an arcuate path. According to one embodiment, the support portion is configured to grip the shutter disk and the substrate. According to one embodiment, the support portion is part of a central transfer robot (e.g., central transfer robot 245).

[0103] In operation 1620, the support portion removes a work piece (e.g., the shutter disk 1300 or the substrate S) from the shutter stack. According to some embodiments, operation 1620 includes moving the support portion in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. For example, moving the support portion relative to the shutter stack (as shown in FIGS. 12C and D). According to one embodiment, removing the work piece includes either removing a shutter disk from the shutter stack or removing a substrate from the shutter stack, where the removing of the shutter disk and the removing of the substrate are performed at different heights in the second direction.

[0104] According to some embodiments, operation 1620 includes moving the shutter stack in a second direction, for example, moving the shutter stack relative to the support (as shown in FIGS. 12A and 12B ). According to one embodiment, removing the workpiece includes either removing a shutter disk from the shutter stack or removing a substrate from the shutter stack, and the removing of the shutter disk and removing the substrate are performed at different heights in the second direction.

[0105] In some embodiments, the operation 1620 includes both moving the support portion in the second direction and moving the shutter stack in the second direction.

[0106] In operation 1630, the support portion is moved to a second location (e.g., third position 1422). The second location includes a processing region (e.g., process station 260).

[0107] It should be understood that method 1600 can be performed with multiple work pieces. For example, a central transfer robot may include multiple support portions, and thus multiple work pieces may be moved simultaneously. Additionally, method 1600 may include returning the support portions to their previous positions (e.g., first position 1420, second position 1421). For example, after operation 1630, when the substrate is placed in the processing region, the support portions may return to the second position to retrieve the shutter disk and place the shutter disk in the processing region.

[0108] As described above, a substrate processing module and a method for moving a workpiece are provided. The substrate processing module includes a shutter stack and two processing regions. The shutter stack is disposed between the processing regions. The method for moving the workpiece includes moving a support portion in a first direction from a first location to the shutter stack, removing the workpiece from the shutter stack, and moving the support portion to a second location. The substrate processing module and method enable moving the workpiece to the shutter stack and moving the workpiece from the shutter stack to the two processing regions.

[0109] The central transfer robot of the substrate processing module is configured to grip both the substrate and the shutter disk, allowing for one robot when two would normally be required. Placing the shutter stack in a high vacuum environment reduces the need to pump the vacuum up and down when transferring the substrate from the shutter stack to the processing region.

[0110] While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present disclosure, other and additional embodiments of the disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope of the disclosure, the scope of which is determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. 1. A shutter stack configured to store one or more workpieces, the one or more workpieces including one or more of a substrate or a shutter disk, the shutter stack comprising: Shutter base, one or more shutter disk supports coupled to the shutter base, each of the one or more shutter disk supports configured to support a shutter disk; and a substrate support coupled to the shutter base, the substrate support configured to support a substrate; the shutter stack comprising: two process stations, the shutter stack being disposed between the two process stations; A substrate processing module comprising:

2. The shutter stack comprises: a shutter actuator coupled to the shutter base, the shutter actuator configured to move the shutter base. The substrate processing module of claim 1 further comprising:

3. The substrate processing module of claim 1 , wherein each of the process stations comprises a source assembly.

4. The substrate processing module of claim 3 , wherein the source assembly comprises a target, a magnetron assembly, a lid, and a sputtering power supply.

5. 1. A shutter stack configured to store one or more workpieces, the one or more workpieces including one or more of a substrate or a shutter disk, the shutter stack comprising: Shutter base, one or more shutter disk supports coupled to the shutter base, each of the one or more shutter disk supports configured to support a shutter disk; and a substrate support coupled to the shutter base, the substrate support configured to support a substrate; the shutter stack comprising: two process stations, the shutter stack being disposed between the process stations; a central transfer robot including one or more support portions configured to transfer at least one of the one or more workpieces from the shutter stack to one of the process stations; A substrate processing module comprising:

6. The shutter stack comprises: a shutter actuator coupled to the shutter base, the shutter actuator configured to move the shutter base. The substrate processing module of claim 5 further comprising:

7. The substrate processing module of claim 5 , wherein each of the process stations comprises a source assembly.

8. The substrate processing module of claim 7 , wherein the source assembly comprises a target, a magnetron assembly, a lid, and a sputtering power supply.

9. The substrate processing module of claim 5 , wherein each of the one or more support portions is configured to grip the substrate and the shutter disk.

10. The transfer chamber assembly of claim 9 , wherein each of the support portions comprises a support portion actuator configured to move the support portion relative to the central transfer robot.

11. 1. A method of moving a workpiece, comprising the steps of: moving the support portion in a first direction from a first location to the shutter stack; removing the workpiece, which may be a substrate or a shutter disk, from the shutter stack; and Moving the support portion to a second location. The method includes:

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the support portion is configured to grip the substrate and the shutter disk.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second location comprises a process station.

14. The process station comprises: A top device, and Upper chamber The method of claim 13 comprising:

15. The support portion comprises a support portion actuator, and removing the workpiece comprises: moving the support portion in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; The method of claim 11 , comprising:

16. Removing the work piece from the shutter stack (1) removing the shutter disk from the shutter stack; or (2) Removing the substrate from the shutter stack. and removing the shutter disk and removing the substrate are performed at different heights in the second direction. The method of claim 15.

17. The shutter stack comprises: A shutter base; a shutter actuator coupled to the shutter base, the shutter actuator configured to move the shutter base in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; The method of claim 11 , comprising:

18. The shutter stack comprises: one or more shutter disk supports coupled to the shutter base, each of the one or more shutter disk supports configured to support a shutter disk; a substrate support coupled to the shutter base, the substrate support configured to support a substrate; 20. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

19. Removing the work piece from the shutter stack (1) removing the shutter disk from the shutter stack; or (2) Removing the substrate from the shutter stack. and removing the shutter disk and removing the substrate are performed at different heights in the second direction.

20. The method of claim 18.

20. The support portion is A first gripper, and Second gripper 20. The method of claim 18 comprising:

Images