Pressure adjusting valve and semiconductor manufacturing apparatus

Abstract

As a technology capable of effectively suppressing the deposition of by-products on a pressure regulating valve, a pressure regulating valve according to one embodiment of the present disclosure comprises a pipe, a valve body disposed inside the pipe, and a support shaft that supports the valve body so as to be rotatable. The valve body has a valve body-side flow path capable of circulating purge gas inside the valve body, and a plurality of outlets communicating with the valve body-side flow path at the outer circumference of the valve body. The support shaft includes a support shaft-side flow path that introduces the purge gas into the valve body-side flow path.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a pressure regulating valve and a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] In semiconductor manufacturing equipment, when a substrate is processed by a reactive gas within a processing vessel, by-products that do not contribute to the processing are generated. These types of by-products accumulate in the exhaust pipe that exhausts the gas from the processing vessel, the pressure regulating valve within the exhaust pipe, etc. Accordingly, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for suppressing the adhesion of by-products by equipping the exhaust pipe with a heater to adjust the temperature of the exhaust pipe. Prior art literature

[0003] Japanese Patent Publication No. JP2005-026516 The problem to be solved

[0004] The present disclosure provides a technology that can effectively suppress the deposition of by-products on a pressure regulating valve. means of solving the problem

[0005] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a pressure regulating valve is provided, comprising a pipe, a valve body disposed inside the pipe, and a support shaft that supports the valve body so as to be rotatable, and configured to adjust pressure by rotating the valve body, wherein the valve body has a valve body-side passage capable of circulating purge gas inside the valve body and a plurality of outlets on the outer periphery of the valve body that communicate with the valve body-side passage, and the support shaft includes a support shaft-side passage that introduces the purge gas into the valve body-side passage. Effects of the invention

[0006] According to one embodiment, the deposition of byproducts on the pressure regulating valve can be effectively suppressed. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0007] FIG. 1 is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to one embodiment. FIG. 2a is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing a pressure regulating valve. FIG. 2b is a planar cross-sectional view schematically showing a pressure regulating valve. Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the valve body and support shaft of a pressure regulating valve. FIG. 4a is a plan view showing the flow path of the valve body on the valve body side. FIG. 4b is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the installation position status of the valve body and the support shaft. Figure 5a is a side cross-sectional view showing the deposition of by-products. FIG. 5b is a side cross-sectional view showing the action by purge gas discharge. FIG. 6 is a planar cross-sectional view schematically showing a pressure regulating valve according to a first modified example. FIG. 7a is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing a pressure regulating valve according to a second modified example. FIG. 7b is a planar cross-sectional view schematically showing a pressure regulating valve according to a second modified example. FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing a pressure regulating valve according to a third modified example. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0008] Hereinafter, embodiments for implementing the present disclosure are described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, identical components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions may be omitted.

[0009] As shown in FIG. 1, a pressure regulating valve (100) according to one embodiment is applied to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus (1) for manufacturing semiconductors. Below, in order to facilitate understanding of the invention, the configuration of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus (1) will be described first.

[0010] (Configuration of the semiconductor manufacturing device (1))

[0011] A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus (1) according to one embodiment is a film deposition apparatus that forms a metal nitride film, such as a titanium nitride (TiN) film or a titanium oxynitride (TiON) film, on the surface of a substrate (W) by atomic layer deposition (ALD). The substrate (W) on which the film deposition process is performed may be a semiconductor substrate such as a silicon wafer or a compound semiconductor wafer. Meanwhile, the film deposition apparatus may also deposit a film other than a metal nitride film (e.g., a high-k film) on the substrate (W).

[0012] Specifically, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) is equipped with a processing vessel (10) for processing a substrate (W). Additionally, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) is equipped with a susceptor (20), a shower head (30), a gas supply unit (40), and an exhaust unit (50) as components installed or connected to the processing vessel (10). Furthermore, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) is equipped with a control device (90) that performs film deposition processing by controlling each component.

[0013] The processing container (10) is made of a metal such as aluminum and has a processing space (10s) inside for performing film formation treatment on a substrate (W). The processing container (10) is formed in a roughly cylindrical shape according to the planar shape of the substrate (W) to be received. In addition, the processing container (10) is equipped with an inlet / outlet port (11) for taking the substrate (W) in and out, and a gate valve (12) for opening and closing the inlet / outlet port (11).

[0014] Additionally, the processing container (10) is provided with a ring-shaped discharge duct (13) on its upper side. The discharge duct (13) is provided with a slit (13a) that communicates with the processing space (10s) along the circumferential direction of the inner surface, and a discharge port (13b) at a predetermined position on the outer surface.

[0015] The susceptor (20) is composed of nickel or the like and is supported by a support member (23) inside a processing container (10). The susceptor (20) is formed in a planar shape (circular shape) corresponding to the substrate (W) and supports the substrate (W) horizontally. In addition, the susceptor (20) is equipped with a heater (21) inside to heat the substrate (W) mounted on the mounting surface (upper surface) of the susceptor (20). The mounting surface of the susceptor (20) is temperature-controlled by the heater (21) to, for example, 300 to 450°C. In addition, the susceptor (20) is equipped with a cover member (22) made of ceramic such as alumina to cover the outer perimeter area of ​​the mounting surface of the substrate (W) and the side of the susceptor (20).

[0016] A support member (23) supporting the susceptor (20) extends downward from the center of the bottom surface of the susceptor (20) through a hole formed in the bottom wall of the processing container (10), and its lower end is connected to an up-and-down movement mechanism (24). The susceptor (20) is raised and lowered by the up-and-down movement mechanism (24) with the support member (23) in between. Specifically, the up-and-down movement mechanism (24) displaces the susceptor (20) between a processing position for forming a film on a substrate (W) and a return position that enables the return of the substrate (W) from below the processing position. Additionally, a bellows (25) that extends and retracts in conjunction with the lifting and lowering movement of the susceptor (20), and a sunshade (26) that blocks the lower end of the bellows (25) are provided vertically below the processing container (10).

[0017] The processing container (10) is provided with a substrate lifting unit (27) on its bottom wall. The substrate lifting unit (27) includes a lifting plate (27a), a plurality of support pins (27b) protruding upward from the lifting plate (27a) (e.g., three), and a pin up-and-down movement mechanism (27c) for lifting the lifting plate (27a). When the substrate (W) is brought into the processing container (10), the substrate lifting unit (27) raises each support pin (27b) for the substrate (W) that has been transported by a transport arm (not shown) to receive the substrate (W), and then lowers each support pin (27b) to load the substrate (W) onto the susceptor (20) at the processing position. Conversely, when the substrate lifting unit (27) removes the substrate (W) from the processing container (10), it lifts the substrate (W) from the processing position susceptor (20) by raising each support pin (27b) and hands the substrate (W) to the entered return arm.

[0018] The shower head (30) is formed, for example, of aluminum and is provided to face the susceptor (20) at the vertical upper side of the processing vessel (10). The shower head (30) has a main body (31) and a shower plate (32).

[0019] The main body (31) is formed in a roughly cylindrical shape and has a concave portion (34) which is a gas diffusion space (33) in the lower center in the vertical direction. On the upper side of the outer edge of the main body (31), a flange (31a) is provided that protrudes outward in the diameter direction and is connected to a discharge duct (13). The space between the flange (31a) and the discharge duct (13) is sealed by a sealing member (15). Additionally, the main body (31) is provided with a gas inlet portion (35) in the upper center that protrudes upward in the vertical direction. The gas inlet portion (35) is provided with a gas flow path (35a) connected to the gas diffusion space (33).

[0020] The shower plate (32) is installed to cover the concave portion (34) at the vertical lower side of the main body (31). The gas diffusion space (33) is defined by the concave portion (34) and the shower plate (32). The shower plate (32) is provided with a plurality of gas discharge holes (32a) for discharging gas from the gas diffusion space (33).

[0021] The gas supply unit (40) is provided with a gas supply path (41) connected to the gas flow path (35a) of the main body (31), and a plurality of types of processing gas sources (raw material gas source, reducing gas source, etc.: not shown) are provided upstream of the gas supply path (41). The raw material gas supplied by the gas supply unit (40) is not particularly limited as long as it can form a film in the film formation process, and may be an organic compound or an inorganic compound. When forming a TiN film, for example, titanium chloride (TiCl4) can be used as the raw material gas. In addition, when forming a TiN film, a nitrogen-containing gas such as ammonia (NH3) can be used as the reducing gas supplied by the gas supply unit (40). Meanwhile, the gas supply unit (40) may also be configured to have a purge gas source that supplies purge gas connected to the gas supply path (41). Also, while Fig. 1 illustrates a single gas supply path (41), the gas supply path (41) may be provided for multiple types of processing gases.

[0022] Additionally, the gas supply unit (40) is equipped with a flow controller (not shown), such as a mass flow controller, and an opening / closing valve (not shown) in each gas supply path (41) between the raw gas supply source and the main body (31) and between the reducing gas supply source and the main body (31). The semiconductor manufacturing device (1) controls the flow controller and the opening / closing valve by means of a control device (90), thereby switching the flow of the raw gas and the reducing gas to stop flow and adjust the flow rate of the raw gas.

[0023] The exhaust section (50) is provided with a discharge path (51) connected to the discharge port (13b) of the discharge duct (13) of the treatment vessel (10). The exhaust section (50) is provided with an automatic pressure control valve (APC) configured to adjust the pressure inside the treatment vessel (10) at a location within the discharge path (51). The exhaust section (50) is provided with a vacuum pump (52) and a waste section (53) for treating exhaust gas located downstream of the pressure control valve (100) in the discharge path (51). The exhaust section (50) operates the vacuum pump (52) to suck up the gas inside the treatment vessel (10) during the film formation process, thereby discharging the gas inside the treatment vessel (10) to the waste section (53) through the discharge duct (13) and the discharge path (51). And, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) can adjust the pressure inside the processing vessel (10) by adjusting the opening degree of the pressure regulating valve (100) when the vacuum pump (52) sucks gas.

[0024] The control device (90) of the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) controls the above-mentioned susceptor (20), gas supply unit (40), exhaust unit (50), etc., to perform film deposition treatment within the processing vessel (10). The control device (90) is a control computer (not shown) equipped with one or more processors, memory, input / output interfaces, and electronic circuits. The one or more processors are a combination of one or more of the following: a CPU, GPU, ASIC, FPGA, or a circuit composed of multiple discrete semiconductors. The memory includes non-volatile memory and volatile memory and forms a memory section of the control device (90). The memory stores programs for controlling film deposition treatment, recipes executed during film deposition treatment, etc. The processor reads the programs or recipes stored in the memory and performs control.

[0025] [Composition of pressure regulating valve (100)]

[0026] Next, the configuration of the pressure regulating valve (100) of the exhaust section (50) will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2a and 2b, the pressure regulating valve (100) includes a pipe (101) connected to an upstream pipe (51a) and a downstream pipe (51b) that form the discharge path (51), a valve body (110) disposed within the pipe (101), and a support shaft (120) that supports the valve body (110) so as to be rotatable. Additionally, the pressure regulating valve (100) is provided with a valve body operating part (130) outside the pipe (101) for adjusting the rotation angle of the valve body (110).

[0027] The pipe (101) is formed in a cylindrical shape and has a through hole (102) on the inside that forms the flow path of the discharge path (51). The inner surface (103) of the pipe (101) is formed in a perfect circle shape when viewed in a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the axial direction of the pipe (101). The axial length of the pipe (101) is not particularly limited, but is set, for example, to be greater than the diameter of the valve body (110). In addition, the pipe (101) is provided with a flange (104) at each of the axial ends. Each flange (104) is connected to the flange of the upstream pipe (51a) and the flange of the downstream pipe (51b) by means of a fastening means such as a screw connection.

[0028] The pipe (101) is provided with a protrusion (105) that protrudes outward in the radial direction on a part of its outer surface. The protrusion (105) forms a part that holds the valve body operating part (130). A shaft hole (106) for receiving a support shaft (120) is formed in the pipe (101) at the part connected to the protrusion (105) and the part connected to the protrusion (105). Additionally, a hole part (107) for receiving a support shaft (120) is formed in the part of the pipe (101) opposite to the shaft hole (106) (a part of the inner surface (103) of the pipe (101) that is 180° out of phase with respect to the shaft hole (106).

[0029] The valve body (110) is formed in a disc shape having a diameter slightly smaller than the diameter of the through hole (102) of the pipe (101). Accordingly, the valve body (110) is positioned non-contact with the inner surface (103) while being received in the through hole (102) of the pipe (101). As shown in FIGS. 2a to 3, the valve body (110) has a base portion (111) fixed to a support shaft (120) and a pair of outer protrusion portions (112) protruding low from the primary side surface (upper surface) of the outer circumference portion of the base portion (111).

[0030] The base portion (111) is formed as a disc with a flat upper surface and a secondary side surface (lower surface) formed parallel to each other. The thickness of the base portion (111) is not particularly limited and is set, for example, to several mm to several tens of mm.

[0031] A pair of outer protrusions (112) have an arc shape that extends approximately 180° along the circumference from the outer circumference of the base portion (111). The outer side of the pair of outer protrusions (112) protrudes slightly outward in the radial direction from the outer circumference of the base portion (111) to form the outer edge portion of the valve body (110). The part where the pair of outer protrusions (112) are spaced apart from each other on the outer circumference of the base portion (111) is formed as a cutout (113) for arranging a support shaft (120).

[0032] The pressure regulating valve (100) supports the valve body (110) so that it can rotate by fixing the support shaft (120) to the upper surface of the valve body (110) and axially supporting the support shaft (120) in the pipe (101). To fix the valve body (110) and the support shaft (120), the base portion (111) is provided with a fixing hole (114) that penetrates the upper and lower surfaces at the location of two cutouts (113) formed between a pair of outer protrusions (112). In the pressure regulating valve (100), the valve body (110) and the support shaft (120) are integrated by screwing a screw (not shown) from the lower side of the base portion (111) to the support shaft (120) through each fixing hole (114).

[0033] The support shaft (120) is a rod-shaped member extending in a straight line and supports the valve body (110) so that it can rotate freely within the pipe (101). The support shaft (120) is provided with a shaft body (121) formed in a circular shape when viewed in a cross-section perpendicular to the axial direction of the support shaft (120), and a coupling part (122) that protrudes convexly from the outer surface of the shaft body (121) and is fixed to the valve body (110).

[0034] The shaft body (121) is inserted into the shaft hole (106) and hole portion (107) of the pipe (101) and is axially supported by the pipe (101) so that it can rotate freely. Inside the pipe (101) that axially supports the shaft body (121), a sealing member (108), such as an O-ring, is installed to block the inflow of gas from the through hole (102).

[0035] The connecting portion (122) is formed in a roughly semicircular shape, for example, with the surface facing the valve body (110) formed in a flat shape, and contacts the upper surface of the valve body (110) in a planar direction. The connecting portion (122) is positioned to pass between a pair of outer protrusions (112) (two cutouts (113)). A screw hole (123) is provided at a predetermined position on the lower surface of the connecting portion (122) so that the screw can be screw-coupled therein.

[0036] The valve body operating part (130) is provided on the protrusion (105) and is supported by one end of the support shaft (120). Inside the valve body operating part (130), a driving source such as a motor and a transmission mechanism that transmits the driving force of the driving source to the support shaft are housed (not shown). The valve body operating part (130) is connected to a control device (90) through a driver (not shown) and rotates the support shaft based on a rotation angle commanded by the control device (90).

[0037] The pressure regulating valve (100) changes the flow path opening degree of the discharge path (51) by the rotation angle (slope) of the valve body (110) operated by the valve body operating part (130). By changing the flow path opening degree of the discharge path (51), the pressure regulating valve (100) adjusts the flow rate of gas to be circulated through the flow path. As a result, the pressure inside the treatment vessel (10) connected to the discharge path (51) is adjusted.

[0038] In addition, the pressure regulating valve (100) according to the present embodiment is equipped with a purge gas discharge mechanism (140) that discharges purge gas from a valve body (110). The purge gas discharge mechanism (140) includes a pipe-side flow path (141) provided in a pipe (101), a support shaft-side flow path (142) provided within a support shaft (120), a valve body-side flow path (143) provided within a valve body (110), and a gas diffusion section (144) provided on each outer projection (112) of the valve body (110). The purge gas discharge mechanism (140) is connected to a purge gas supply section (150) installed outside the pressure regulating valve (100), so that purge gas is supplied from the purge gas supply section (150). The purge gas discharged by the purge gas discharge mechanism (140) is not particularly limited, but an inert gas such as N2 gas, Ar gas, CO2 gas, etc. may be used.

[0039] The purge gas supply unit (150) is provided with an external supply path (151) through which purge gas flows, and is provided in the order of a purge gas supply source (152), a flow controller (153), such as a mass flow controller, and an opening / closing valve (154) from the upstream side to the downstream side of the external supply path (151). The purge gas supply unit (150) adjusts the flow rate of the purge gas by switching the flow of the purge gas and stopping the flow of the purge gas through the control of the flow regulator (153) and the opening / closing valve (154) by the control device (90). The purge gas supply unit (150) may share a purge gas supply source or a part of the path, etc., with the gas supply unit (40) of the semiconductor manufacturing device (1).

[0040] The pipe-side flow path (141) of the purge gas discharge mechanism (140) extends in a direction perpendicular to the axis center of the support shaft (120) within the protrusion (105) (or the pipe (101) itself connected to the protrusion (105). One end of the pipe-side flow path (141) is connected to an external supply path (151) of the purge gas supply unit (150) through a connector (not shown).

[0041] The other end of the pipe-side passage (141) is connected to the support shaft-side passage (142) with a connecting bearing (145) provided on the protrusion (105) in between. The connecting bearing (145) maintains communication between the pipe-side passage (141) and the support shaft-side passage (142) without hindering the rotation of the support shaft (120). For example, the connecting bearing (145) has a groove that communicates with the pipe-side passage (141) around the outer circumference of the support shaft (120), and the connecting hole (142a) of the support shaft-side passage (142) is positioned to face the groove regardless of which direction the support shaft (120) is facing. Additionally, a sealing member (108) that seals the support shaft (120) within the pipe (101) is installed between the valve body operating part (130) and the communication bearing (145), thereby preventing purge gas from leaking out of the pipe (101).

[0042] The support shaft-side flow path (142) extends in a straight line along the axial center of the support shaft (120) inside the support shaft (120). One end of the support shaft-side flow path (142) is connected to a communication hole (142a) formed on the outer surface of the support shaft (120) (see FIG. 2b). The other end of the support shaft-side flow path (142) is bent relative to the axial center of the support shaft (120) and is connected to a communication hole (142b) formed on the lower surface of the central part of the coupling part (122) (see FIG. 3). The communication hole (142b) is positioned at the center of the upper surface of the valve body (110) while the support shaft (120) is fixed to the valve body (110). Meanwhile, the support shaft-side flow path (142) is not limited to being provided within the support shaft (120), but may also be provided within a pipe that is arranged to be continuously connected on the outer surface of the support shaft (120).

[0043] As shown in FIGS. 4a and 4b, the valve body-side flow path (143) has an inlet (143a) at the center of the upper surface of the valve body (110) and a common path (146) that extends briefly downward in the thickness direction from the inlet (143a). Meanwhile, the inlet (143a) may be located at a position slightly offset from the center of the valve body (110) (approximately the center), and in this disclosure, the term "center" includes the case where it is approximately the center. Additionally, the valve body (110) and the support shaft (120) may be provided with a positioning structure (148, see dotted line in FIG. 4b) to connect the inlet (143a) of the valve body (110) with the communication hole (142b) of the support shaft (120). For example, the positioning structure (148) may have a structure in which a concave portion provided on one side of the valve body (110) and the support shaft (120) and a convex portion provided on the other side interlock.

[0044] The path (143) to the valve body is branched into a plurality of branch paths (147) (six in the illustrated example) from the bottom of the common path (146). Meanwhile, the number of branch paths (147) of the purge gas discharge mechanism (140) is not particularly limited and can be set to an appropriate number considering the shape of the valve body (110), etc.

[0045] Each branch path (147) extends radially from a common path (146) (inlet (143a)) at the center of the valve body (110) toward the outer diameter of the valve body (110). At the outer circumference of the base portion (111), each branch path (147) is obliquely curved upward, reaching a pair of outer projections (112) that are continuous with the upper surface of the base portion (111). Each branch path (147) is connected to an outlet (143b) provided within the pair of outer projections (112).

[0046] Each outer projection (112) is provided with a placement groove (115) for arranging a gas diffusion section (144). The placement groove (115) is continuous over the entire outer edge of the outer projection (112) and has an open portion on the outer side in the radial direction of the outer projection (112), and has an appropriate depth extending from the open portion toward the inner side in the radial direction of the outer projection (112). The outlet (143b) of each branch path (147) is connected to the bottom of the wiring groove (115).

[0047] A gas diffusion section (144) is placed in the placement groove (115) to diffuse the purge gas supplied from each branch path (147) through the outlet (143b). For example, a porous body (144a) having multiple irregular holes through which gas can pass can be applied as the gas diffusion section (144). Thus, the purge gas supplied from each branch path (147) moves along the circumferential direction of the porous body (144a) (placement groove (115)) while passing through the porous body (144a) and is discharged evenly from the outer surface of the porous body (144a).

[0048] Meanwhile, the gas diffusion section (144) is not limited to using a porous body (144a) and can take various configurations. For example, as the gas diffusion section (144), a lattice structure (144b) in which a plurality of grids of a step structure are periodically arranged may be applied. By applying the lattice structure (144b) in this way, the gas diffusion section (144) can achieve the same gas diffusion function (reproducibility of the gas diffusion function) for each valve body (110). In addition, for example, the gas diffusion section (144) may take a shower structure that includes a passage extending in the circumferential direction of the outer protrusion (112) instead of the placement groove (115), and a plurality of discharge holes provided on the outer surface of the outer protrusion (112) and communicating with the passage.

[0049] The valve body (110) having the above purge gas discharge mechanism (140) may be manufactured using a 3D printer (not shown). By manufacturing using a 3D printer, even in a configuration having a valve body-side flow path (143) (common path (146), branch path (147)), the desired shape can be formed without performing extrusion to form the valve body-side flow path (143). In addition, by using a 3D printer, a gas diffusion section (144) (e.g., porous body (144a), lattice structure (144b)) can be formed continuously with the formation of the valve body (110), thereby simplifying the manufacturing process.

[0050] [Operation of semiconductor manufacturing device (1) and pressure regulating valve (100)]

[0051] The pressure regulating valve (100) and semiconductor manufacturing device (1) according to the present embodiment are basically configured as described above, and their operation is described below.

[0052] As shown in FIG. 1, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) opens the gate valve (12) while the susceptor (20) is lowered to the return position, and brings the substrate (W) into the processing container (10) through the inlet / outlet port (11) by means of a return arm (not shown). Then, the substrate (W) is supported by a support pin (27b) in the processing container (10), the return arm is retracted, and the support pin (27b) is lowered to mount the substrate (W) onto the susceptor (20). Subsequently, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) raises the susceptor (20) to the processing position.

[0053] After that, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) reduces the pressure inside the processing vessel (10) to a predetermined pressure by sucking gas inside the processing vessel (10) by means of the exhaust unit (50). Then, after the pressure reduction, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) forms a TiN film on the substrate (W) by an ALD process in which raw material gas (TiCl4) and reducing gas (NH3), which are processing gases, are supplied. For example, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) forms a TiN film by promoting the reaction between the raw material gas and the reducing gas inside the processing vessel (10) by alternately repeating the process of supplying the raw material gas and the process of supplying the reducing gas.

[0054] In this film formation process, the pressure regulating valve (100) of the exhaust section (50) adjusts the degree of flow path opening within the discharge path (51) (pipe (101)) under the control of the control device (90). By doing so, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) can properly maintain the inside of the processing vessel (10) at a predetermined pressure.

[0055] Additionally, in the process of forming a film, by-products that do not contribute to the formation of the film are generated in the processing vessel (10) by supplying multiple types of gases. The exhaust unit (50) sucks up these by-products by sucking up the gas. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5a, by-products that have moved to the pressure regulating valve (100) through the discharge path (51) are deposited in the pressure regulating valve (100). In particular, since the pressure regulating valve (100) is positioned so that the through hole (102) of the pipe (101) can face the upstream pipe (51a) of the discharge path (51), by-products are prone to accumulating, making it difficult to remove the by-products from the pressure regulating valve (100) by means of temperature control of the discharge path (51). If by-products accumulate between the outermost edge of the valve body (110) and the inner surface (103) of the pipe (101), there is a possibility that it will affect the operation of the valve body (110). For example, if the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) is operated for a long period of time, there is a risk that the valve body (110) and the piping (101) will become stuck due to the accumulation of a large amount of byproducts.

[0056] In FIG. 5b, the purge gas discharge mechanism (140) of the pressure regulating valve (100) discharges purge gas from each outer projection (112), which is the outer periphery of the valve body (110), toward the side (outer in the diametrical direction: horizontal direction) of the valve body (110). By doing so, the purge gas discharged from the valve body (110) can suppress the accumulation of by-products on the outer periphery of the valve body (110). By-products separated from the valve body (110) by the purge gas are smoothly discharged to the waste section (53) by the suction of the vacuum pump (52).

[0057] In addition, even if by-products accumulate between the valve body (110) and the pipe (101), by blowing away the by-products by the discharge of purge gas, it is possible to avoid the by-products affecting the operation of the valve body (110). In particular, the purge gas discharge mechanism (140) discharges purge gas over the entire circumference of the outermost edge of the valve body (110) by means of the gas diffusion section (144), so that by-products can be reliably removed even if they accumulate at any point on the outermost edge. Meanwhile, the valve body-side flow path (143) of the valve body (110) may be configured with a dedicated branch path (147) to blow the purge gas to a place where by-products are particularly likely to accumulate (e.g., around the support shaft (120)).

[0058] The semiconductor manufacturing device (1) may continuously discharge purge gas from the purge gas discharge mechanism (140) during film deposition, or it may be configured to discharge purge gas only when supplying gas that generates by-products. This makes it possible to suppress the amount of purge gas supplied. In addition, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) may discharge purge gas from the valve body (110) not only continuously but also intermittently. Alternatively, the semiconductor manufacturing device (1) may be configured to discharge purge gas for a predetermined period during the termination process after film deposition. This allows the operation to stop after removing the by-products deposited on the valve body (110).

[0059] Meanwhile, the pressure regulating valve (100) according to the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiment and may take various variations. For example, the valve body (110) may be composed only of a base portion (111) without having a pair of outer protrusions (112). In this case, the branch path (147) of the valve body-side flow path (143) may be configured to extend straight along the diameter direction within the base portion (111) to reach the outer edge portion of the base portion (111).

[0060] Below, several examples of variations of the pressure regulating valve (100) are described.

[0061] [1st Variation Example]

[0062] The pressure regulating valve (100A) according to the first modified example shown in FIG. 6 is equipped with a purge gas discharge mechanism (140A) that discharges purge gas from the inner surface (103) of the pipe (101). This purge gas discharge mechanism (140A) is provided with a pipe discharge path (149) that communicates with the pipe-side path (141) within the pipe (101) and extends along the circumferential direction of the pipe (101). Additionally, on the inner surface (103) of the pipe (101), a plurality of discharge holes (149a) are provided along the pipe discharge path (149) that communicate with the pipe discharge path (149) at a position approximately the same height as the valve body (110).

[0063] The pipe discharge path (149) and discharge hole (149a) formed in this manner can suppress the attachment of by-products to the valve body (110) by discharging the purge gas supplied from the purge gas supply unit (150) from the outer surface (103) toward the valve body (110). In addition, by discharging the purge gas from the valve body (110) as well, the attachment of by-products can be suppressed even more reliably.

[0064] [2nd Variation Example]

[0065] The pressure regulating valve (100B) according to the second modified example shown in FIG. 7 improves the sealing performance of the valve body (110) by means of a sealing mechanism (160) in order to reduce the conductance of the discharged gas. Specifically, in the sealing mechanism (160), a sealing member (161), such as an O-ring, is provided on the outer projection (112) which is the outer circumference of the upper surface (primary side surface) and lower surface (secondary side surface) of the valve body (110). The sealing member (161) forms a ring shape and extends around the outer circumference (outer edge portion) of the valve body (110).

[0066] Meanwhile, the pipe (101) is provided with a pair of inner flanges (162) protruding inward from the inner surface (103). The pair of inner flanges (162) have an arc shape extending along the circumferential direction of the valve body (110), except for the support shaft (120). One of the pair of inner flanges (162) is formed above the position of the valve body (110) (primary position) to contact the sealing member (161) on the upper side of the valve body (110). The other of the pair of inner flanges (162) is formed below the position of the valve body (110) (secondary position) to contact the sealing member (161) on the lower side of the valve body (110). Meanwhile, the pressure regulating valve (100B) may have a sealing member (161) on the inner flange (162) rather than on the valve body (110).

[0067] As described above, the pressure regulating valve (100B) configured can minimize the gap in the flow path while the valve body (110) blocks the flow path (through hole (102) of the pipe (101)) of the discharge path (51). Thus, it is possible to more reliably block the discharge of gas from the treatment vessel (10).

[0068] In addition, in this pressure regulating valve (100B), the purge gas can be directed to the sealing portion by discharging the purge gas through the purge gas discharge mechanism (140) to suppress the attachment of by-products. That is, the valve body-side flow path (143) can guide the purge gas between the sealing member (161) and the inner flange (162) by discharging the purge gas from the outermost edge of the radial outer side of the valve body (110). Alternatively, the valve body-side flow path (143) may be configured to suppress the attachment of by-products to the sealing member (161) by discharging the purge gas from the inside of the sealing member (161) toward the sealing member (161).

[0069] [Third Variation Example]

[0070] The pressure regulating valve (100C) according to the third modified example shown in FIG. 8 differs from the pressure regulating valves (100, 100A, 100B) in that it is equipped with a vibrator (170) on the outside of the pipe (101) to vibrate the pipe (101). The vibrator (170) is connected to a control device (90) and vibrates the pipe (101) at an appropriate timing under the control of the control device (90). The pressure regulating valve (100C) can further reduce the attachment of by-products to the pipe (101) around the valve body (110) by vibrating the pipe (101) in addition to the discharge of purge gas from the valve body (110) by the purge gas discharge mechanism (140).

[0071] The technical concept and effects of the present disclosure described in the above embodiments are described below.

[0072] A first embodiment of the present invention comprises a pressure regulating valve (100, 100A to 100C) configured to adjust pressure by rotating the valve body (110), the valve body (101), a valve body (110) disposed inside the pipe (101), and a support shaft (120) that supports the valve body (110) so as to be rotatable, wherein the valve body (110) has a valve body-side passage (143) inside the valve body (110) capable of circulating purge gas, and has a plurality of outlets (143b) communicating with the valve body-side passage (143) from the outer periphery of the valve body (110), and the support shaft (120) has a support shaft-side passage (142) that introduces purge gas into the valve body-side passage (143).

[0073] According to the above, the pressure regulating valve (100, 100A to 100C) can suppress the accumulation of matter (by-products) on the valve body (110) and the piping (101) surrounding the valve body (110) by discharging purge gas from the valve body (110). As a result, the pressure regulating valve (100, 100A to 100C) has improved durability and can continue to operate the valve body (110) stably.

[0074] Additionally, the valve body (110) is provided with an inlet (143a) at the center of the valve body (110) that communicates with the flow path (142) toward the support shaft, and the flow path (143) toward the valve body is provided with a plurality of branch paths (147) that extend radially from the inlet (143a) toward each of the plurality of outlets (143b). Thus, the valve body (110) can evenly distribute the purge gas through each branch path (147), and it becomes possible to discharge the purge gas from the entire outer periphery of the valve body (110).

[0075] Additionally, the valve body (110) is provided with a plurality of outlets (143b) and has an outer edge portion (outer projection portion (112)) that discharges purge gas toward the outer diameter direction of the valve body (10). By doing so, the pressure regulating valve (100, 100A~100C) can prevent byproducts from accumulating between the valve body (110) and the pipe (101) and thereby impeding the operation of the valve body (110).

[0076] Additionally, the valve body (110) is provided with a gas diffusion section (144) that extends in the circumferential direction of the valve body (110) and covers a plurality of outlets (143b), and the gas diffusion section (144) diffuses the purge gas discharged from the plurality of outlets (143b) in the circumferential direction of the valve body (110) and discharges it to the outside of the valve body (110). By doing so, the valve body (110) can further diffuse the purge gas along the circumferential direction of the valve body (110) and discharge it to the outside of the valve body (110).

[0077] Additionally, the gas diffusion section (144) is a porous body (144a) having a plurality of holes. By applying the porous body (144a) in this way, the pressure regulating valve (100, 100A~100C) can simply diffuse the purge gas.

[0078] Alternatively, the gas diffusion section (144) may be a lattice structure (144b) with a grid arranged periodically. By applying the lattice structure (144b) in this way, the pressure regulating valve (100, 100A to 100C) can improve the diffusion reproducibility of the purge gas.

[0079] Additionally, the piping (101) is provided with a pipe discharge path (149) extending around the placement location of the valve body (110), and a plurality of discharge holes (149a) communicating with the pipe discharge path (149) and discharging purge gas toward the valve body (110). By doing so, the pressure regulating valve (100C) can more reliably suppress the attachment of byproducts to the piping (101) around the valve body (110).

[0080] Additionally, the pipe (101) is provided with a plurality of inner flanges (162) that protrude inward in the diametrical direction from the inner side, and the plurality of inner flanges (162) seal the primary side and the secondary side of the valve body (110) by contacting each of the primary side and the secondary side of the valve body (110). By doing so, the pressure regulating valve (100B) can increase the gas blocking ability in the pipe (101) while suppressing the attachment of by-products.

[0081] Additionally, the pipe (101) is equipped with a vibrator (170) that vibrates the pipe (101). By doing so, the pressure regulating valve (100C) can remove by-products attached to the pipe (101) by the vibration of the vibrator (170). Thus, the accumulation of by-products on the pipe (101) can be suppressed.

[0082] Additionally, a second aspect of the present disclosure is a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus (1) comprising a processing vessel (10), a gas supply unit (40) for supplying processing gas to the processing vessel (10), and a discharge path (51) for discharging gas from the processing vessel (10), wherein the discharge path (51) comprises a pipe (101), a valve body (110) disposed inside the pipe (101), and a support shaft (120) for supporting the valve body so as to be rotatable, and comprises a pressure regulating valve (100, 100A~100C) configured to adjust pressure by rotating the valve body (110), wherein the valve body (110) has a valve body-side flow path (143) inside the valve body (110) capable of circulating purge gas and is provided with a plurality of outlets (143b) communicating with the valve body-side flow path (143) from the outer periphery of the valve body (110), and the support shaft (120) supplies purge gas to the valve body-side flow path (143). It is equipped with a Euro (142) on the support axis side that is introduced.

[0083] The pressure regulating valve (100, 100A~100C) and semiconductor manufacturing apparatus (1) according to the embodiments disclosed herein are not limited in all respects as examples. The embodiments may be modified and improved in various forms without departing from the appended claims and their main intent. The matters described in the plurality of embodiments may take different configurations within a non-contradictory scope and may also be combined within a non-contradictory scope.

[0084] The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus (1) of the present disclosure can be applied to any type of apparatus including an Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) apparatus, Capacitively Coupled Plasma (CCP), Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP), Radial Line Slot Antenna (RLSA), Electron Cyclotron Resonance Plasma (ECR), and Helicon Wave Plasma (HWP).

[0085] The present invention claims priority based on patent application No. 2022-009520 filed with the Japan Patent Office on January 25, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Claims

Claim 1 A pressure regulating valve comprising a pipe, a valve body disposed inside the pipe, and a support shaft that supports the valve body so as to be rotatable, configured to adjust pressure by rotating the valve body, wherein the valve body has a valve body-side flow path capable of circulating purge gas inside the valve body, and a plurality of outlets communicating with the valve body-side flow path at the outer periphery of the valve body, and the support shaft includes a support shaft-side flow path for introducing the purge gas into the valve body-side flow path, and the purge gas discharged from the outer periphery of the valve body toward the side of the valve body is controlled to diffuse along the inner surface of the pipe, and the valve body includes a gas diffusion section extending in the circumferential direction of the valve body and covering the plurality of outlets, wherein the gas diffusion section diffuses the purge gas discharged from the plurality of outlets in the circumferential direction of the valve body and discharges it to the outside of the valve body. Claim 2 A pressure regulating valve according to claim 1, wherein the valve body has an inlet communicating with the flow path toward the support shaft at the center of the valve body, and the flow path toward the valve body includes a plurality of branch paths extending radially from the inlet toward each of the plurality of outlets. Claim 3 A pressure regulating valve according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the valve body comprises a plurality of outlets and includes an outer edge portion that discharges the purge gas toward the outer side in the diameter direction of the valve body. Claim 4 delete Claim 5 In claim 1, the gas diffusion part is a pressure regulating valve having a plurality of holes, which is a porous body. Claim 6 In claim 1, the gas diffusion section is a pressure regulating valve having a lattice structure with periodically arranged grids. Claim 7 A pressure regulating valve according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the piping comprises a pipe discharge path extending around the position of the valve body and a plurality of discharge holes communicating with the pipe discharge path and discharging the purge gas toward the valve body. Claim 8 A pressure regulating valve according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the piping comprises a plurality of inner flanges protruding inward in the diametrical direction from the inner surface, and the plurality of inner flanges seal the primary side and the secondary side of the valve body by contacting each of the primary side surface and the secondary side surface of the valve body. Claim 9 A pressure regulating valve according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pipe is equipped with a vibrator that vibrates the pipe. Claim 10 A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising a processing vessel, a gas supply unit for supplying processing gas to the processing vessel, and a discharge path for discharging gas from the processing vessel, wherein the discharge path comprises a pipe, a valve body disposed inside the pipe, and a support shaft that supports the valve body so as to be rotatable, and a pressure regulating valve configured to adjust pressure by rotating the valve body, wherein the valve body has a valve body-side flow path capable of circulating purge gas inside the valve body and a plurality of outlets communicating with the valve body-side flow path at the outer periphery of the valve body, and the support shaft includes a support shaft-side flow path for introducing the purge gas into the valve body-side flow path, and controls the purge gas discharged from the outer periphery of the valve body toward the side of the valve body to diffuse along the inner surface of the pipe, wherein the valve body includes a gas diffusion unit extending in the circumferential direction of the valve body and covering the plurality of outlets, and wherein the gas diffusion unit diffuses the purge gas discharged from the plurality of outlets in the circumferential direction of the valve body and discharges it to the outside of the valve body. Manufacturing device.

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