Moisture removal device and electroplating apparatus

Abstract

The present application relates to a moisture removal device and an electroplating apparatus. The moisture removal device comprises: a shell, wherein a cover plate is provided at the top of the shell; a first liquid intake line, which is arranged on the cover plate and used for receiving liquid to be subjected to moisture removal; a first flow distribution plate, which is arranged below the cover plate and located in the shell, and is used for distributing the liquid that has entered inside the shell through the first liquid intake line; flow guide plates, which are mounted on the first flow distribution plate, the distributed liquid flowing along the flow guide plates; an air inlet, which is used for supplying air to a gap between adjacent flow guide plates; and an air outlet, which is used for discharging the air that has passed through the gap between the adjacent flow guide plates. By means of the present application, evaporation of water in an electroplating solution is realized, leading to an increase in the concentration of the electroplating solution, thus enabling the concentration of the electroplating solution to reach a preset standard concentration.

Description

Moisture removal device and electroplating equipment Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of electroplating, and in particular to a moisture removal device and electroplating equipment. Background Art

[0002] After the wafer is electroplated in the plating tank in the plating chamber, it needs to be cleaned to remove the plating solution on the wafer. During the wafer cleaning process, part of the deionized water (DIW) used to clean the wafer is discharged from the plating chamber, and part of it will fall into the plating tank and circulate back into the reservoir with the plating solution, which will cause the concentration of the plating solution in the reservoir to decrease and fail to meet the specified concentration range. When the plating solution is circulated from the reservoir to the plating tank for the electroplating process, the plating solution that does not meet the concentration requirements will have an adverse effect on the quality of the electroplating. Therefore, when the concentration of the plating solution in the reservoir is lower than the standard concentration range, it is necessary to remove excess water from the reservoir to achieve the purpose of making the concentration of the plating solution meet the standard range.

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a moisture removal device, comprising:

[0005] A housing, wherein a cover plate is provided on the top of the housing;

[0006] a first liquid inlet pipeline, provided on the cover plate, for receiving liquid to be dehydrated;

[0007] A first diverter plate is provided below the cover plate and inside the housing, and is used to divert the liquid entering the housing from the first liquid inlet pipeline;

[0008] a guide plate, mounted on the first diverter plate, along which the diverted liquid flows;

[0009] an air inlet for supplying air to the gap between adjacent guide plates;

[0010] The exhaust port is used to discharge the gas flowing through the gap between adjacent guide plates.

[0011] In the second aspect, an embodiment of the present application also provides an electroplating device, including an electroplating chamber, a liquid storage tank and a moisture removal device as described in the first aspect, wherein the moisture removal device is used to receive the electroplating liquid in the electroplating chamber and perform moisture removal treatment, and the electroplating liquid after moisture removal treatment flows into the liquid storage tank.

[0012] The details of one or more embodiments of the present application are set forth in the following drawings and description to make other features, objects, and advantages of the present application more readily apparent.

[0013] Summary of the Figures

[0014] The drawings described herein are used to provide a further understanding of the present application and constitute a part of the present application. The illustrative embodiments of the present application and their descriptions are used to explain the present application and do not constitute an improper limitation on the present application. In the drawings:

[0015] 1 is a cross-sectional view from a front perspective of a moisture removal device according to a first embodiment of the present application;

[0016] 2 is a cross-sectional view of the moisture removal device according to the first embodiment of the present application from a left perspective;

[0017] FIG3 is a schematic structural diagram of a second manifold according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0018] FIG4 is a schematic structural diagram of a first diverter plate according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0019] FIG5 is a cross-sectional view of a first diverter plate according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0020] FIG6 is a schematic structural diagram of a first diverter plate according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0021] FIG7 is a schematic structural diagram of a guide plate according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0022] FIG8 is a top view of a guide plate according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] FIG9 is a top view of a guide plate according to another embodiment of the present application;

[0024] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of a moisture removal device according to a second embodiment of the present application;

[0025] FIG11 is a structural block diagram of an electroplating device according to an embodiment of the present application; and

[0026] Figure 12 is a structural block diagram of electroplating equipment according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0027] Preferred embodiments of the present invention

[0028] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the present application clearer, the present application is described and illustrated below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and examples. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application and are not intended to limit the present application. Based on the embodiments provided in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative work are within the scope of protection of the present application. In addition, it can also be understood that although the efforts made in this development process may be complex and lengthy, for ordinary technicians in the field related to the contents disclosed in the present application, some changes such as design, manufacturing or production based on the technical contents disclosed in the present application are only conventional technical means and should not be understood as the contents disclosed in the present application being insufficient.

[0029] In the embodiments of the present application, the liquid to be dehydrated is described as an electroplating liquid.

[0030] Please refer to Figure 1. The embodiment of the present application proposes a moisture removal device 100, which can be applied to electroplating equipment, and its structure will be described later. Figure 11 shows an electroplating equipment including a moisture removal device 100. As shown in Figure 11, the electroplating equipment includes a moisture removal device 100, a liquid reservoir 300, an electroplating chamber 200, a negative pressure device 500 and a filter device 600. The moisture removal device 100 includes a guide plate 13, an exhaust port 15 and a first liquid inlet pipe 11. The bottom of the guide plate 13 is immersed in the electroplating liquid in the liquid reservoir 300. The moisture removal device 100 is used to receive the electroplating liquid in the electroplating chamber 200 and perform moisture removal treatment. The electroplating liquid after moisture removal treatment flows into the liquid reservoir 300 through the guide plate 13, so that the concentration of the electroplating liquid in the liquid reservoir 300 can reach a preset standard concentration, so that the electroplating liquid in the liquid reservoir 300 can be supplied to the electroplating chamber 200 for reuse. In one embodiment, the moisture removal device 100 can be disposed within the liquid storage tank 300. The filter device 600 is connected between the first liquid inlet line 11 and the electroplating chamber 200 and is configured to filter the electroplating solution in the electroplating chamber 200 to remove impurities therein. The negative pressure device 500 is connected to the exhaust port 15 of the moisture removal device 100 and is configured to adjust the air pressure within the moisture removal device 100 to a negative pressure.

[0031] In this embodiment, the negative pressure device 500 is used to adjust the air pressure in the moisture removal device 100 to a negative pressure, which facilitates the entry of gas into the moisture removal device 100 and the removal of moisture from the electroplating solution. It should be noted that the negative pressure in the moisture removal device 100 can be adjusted by controlling the negative pressure device 500, thereby adjusting the gas flow rate and thus the moisture removal efficiency. In this embodiment, the negative pressure device 500 can be an air pump.

[0032] In this embodiment, the filter device 600 is used to filter the electroplating solution flowing from the electroplating chamber 200 into the moisture removal device 100, thereby reducing impurities in the electroplating solution and improving the purity of the electroplating solution.

[0033] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a moisture removal device 100 according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 1 , the moisture removal device 100 includes a shell 10, a first liquid inlet pipeline 11, a first diverter plate 12, a guide plate 13, an air inlet 14 and an exhaust port 15.

[0034] The housing 10 is a cube with an opening at the top. A cover 22 is provided at the top opening of the housing 10 to seal the top opening of the housing 10. The interior of the housing 10 is divided into a first space 21 and a second space 30 by a partition 40, and the partition 40 is provided with an opening.

[0035] The first liquid inlet pipe 11 is disposed on the cover plate 22 for receiving the electroplating liquid from the electroplating chamber 200 in FIG. 11 and entering the second space 30 of the housing 10 .

[0036] The first diverter plate 12 is disposed below the cover plate 22 and within the second space 30 of the housing 10. It is used to divert the electroplating solution entering the housing 10 from the first liquid inlet line 11. Because the electroplating solution entering the housing 10 from the first liquid inlet line 11 tends to be relatively concentrated, the first diverter plate 12 is provided so that the electroplating solution entering from the first liquid inlet line 11 flows onto the first diverter plate 12 and then disperses along the surface of the first diverter plate 12, thereby dispersing the electroplating solution and facilitating the evaporation of water in the electroplating solution.

[0037] The air inlet 14 is provided on the cover plate 22 . One end of the air inlet 14 is in communication with the ambient air, and the other end of the air inlet 14 is in communication with the first space 21 . Ambient air enters the first space 21 through the air inlet 14 , and then enters the second space 30 through the opening on the partition plate 40 .

[0038] Referring to Figures 1 and 2 , the top of the guide plate 13 is disposed on the first diverter plate 12 and is located within the second space 30. The guide plate 13 is arranged parallel to the flow direction of air entering the second space 30 from the first space 21, so that air can pass through the gaps between adjacent guide plates 13 and remove moisture. The bottom of the guide plate 13 passes through the bottom of the housing 10 and is immersed in the plating solution in the liquid reservoir 300 (see Figure 11 ). It is used to guide the plating solution, after moisture is removed, along the bottom of the guide plate 13 into the liquid reservoir 300 storing the plating solution. By providing multiple guide plates 13, the contact area between water in the plating solution and air entering the second space 30 from the first space 21 is increased, thereby improving the efficiency of water evaporation in the plating solution.

[0039] Continuing with Figures 1 and 2 , exhaust port 15 is provided on the side wall of housing 10 . Exhaust port 15 is disposed opposite the opening on partition 40 , is connected to negative pressure device 500 in Figure 11 , and communicates with second space 30 . Negative pressure device 500 adjusts the interior of moisture removal device 100 to a negative pressure through exhaust port 15 , allowing air to enter first space 21 from air inlet 14 and enter second space 30 through the opening on partition 40 , thereby discharging water vapor from the electroplating solution on guide plate 13 within second space 30 . In this manner, air carries water vapor with it, achieving the desired water vapor removal effect.

[0040] In this embodiment, after the electroplating liquid enters the moisture removal device 100 through the first liquid inlet pipe 11, it is diverted by the first diverter plate 12. After diversion, the electroplating liquid flows onto the guide plate 13 and then flows down the sidewalls of the guide plate 13. During this process, ambient air is drawn into the moisture removal device 100 through the air inlet 14 on the cover plate 22. When the air is discharged from the exhaust port 15 through the air inlet 14, the first space 21, and the gap between adjacent guide plates 13 in the second space 30, it will carry away excess water in the electroplating liquid, thereby evaporating the water in the electroplating liquid and increasing the concentration of the electroplating liquid so that the concentration of the electroplating liquid can reach the preset standard concentration.

[0041] In the above embodiment, moisture removal efficiency is improved by adjusting the internal pressure of moisture removal device 100 to a negative pressure, thereby drawing air in and removing moisture from the plating solution that adheres to guide plate 13. Furthermore, by configuring the surface of guide plate 13 in the manner shown in Figures 8 and 9, the area of ​​moisture adhering to guide plate 13 is increased, thereby further improving the efficiency of air transport of moisture.

[0042] 1 , in this embodiment, the moisture removal device 100 further includes a sealing ring 16 , which is disposed between the first liquid inlet pipe 11 and the cover plate 22 to prevent leakage of the electroplating solution due to a gap between the first liquid inlet pipe 11 and the cover plate 22 .

[0043] Continuing to refer to Figure 1, the moisture removal device 100 also includes a second diverter plate 18, the specific structure of which is shown in Figure 3. The dotted circle in Figure 3 is the projection of the first liquid inlet pipeline 11 on the second diverter plate 18. A plurality of through holes are provided on the second diverter plate 18. Preferably, the aperture size of the plurality of through holes on the second diverter plate 18 can be gradually increased according to the arrangement direction of the guide plate 13. Since the electroplating liquid tends to concentrate at the position corresponding to the first liquid inlet pipeline 11, the diameter of the through hole at the position corresponding to the first liquid inlet pipeline 11 on the second diverter plate 18 is smaller than the diameter of the through hole at the position away from the first liquid inlet pipeline 11, so that the electroplating liquid is more evenly dispersed on the second diverter plate 18, thereby realizing the preliminary diversion of the electroplating liquid.

[0044] Preferably, the through holes on the second diverter plate 18 may be arranged in such a manner that the closer the through holes are to the first liquid inlet pipeline 11 , the smaller the apertures of the through holes are.

[0045] In some embodiments, the through holes on the second manifold 18 may be designed in a circular shape as shown in FIG. 3 , or in a triangular, square, trapezoidal, or other shape that can realize the embodiment of the present application.

[0046] FIG4 is a front view of the first manifold plate 12, and FIG5 is a cross-sectional view of the first manifold plate 12. As shown in FIG4 and FIG5 , the first manifold plate 12 is provided with a plurality of strip-shaped openings 24 for further diverting the electroplating solution flowing from the second manifold plate 18. The strip-shaped openings 24 can be arranged in multiple rows and / or columns.

[0047] In this embodiment, the plating solution flows through the through-holes in the second diverter plate 18 to the first diverter plate 12 for secondary diversion. This prevents excessive concentration of the plating solution, which can lead to poor water removal efficiency. Furthermore, the provision of strip-shaped openings 24 in the first diverter plate 12 improves the diversion efficiency of the plating solution and, consequently, the water removal efficiency.

[0048] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the back structure of the first diverter plate 12. As shown in Figure 6, a plurality of strip grooves 23 are provided on the back of the first diverter plate 12, and each strip groove 23 and each strip opening 24 are located on the same straight line. The guide plate 13 (refer to Figures 1 and 7) is embedded and fixed on the first diverter plate 12 through the strip grooves 23.

[0049] In this embodiment, the guide plate 13 is embedded and fixed on the first diverter plate 12 through the strip groove 23, so that the plating liquid can flow directly onto the guide plate 13 along the strip opening 24, avoiding the problem of dripping and splashing of the plating liquid caused by the presence of a gap between the first diverter plate 12 and the guide plate 13.

[0050] In this embodiment, the width of the strip-shaped opening 24 is generally greater than the width of the guide plate 13. Preferably, the difference between the width of the strip-shaped opening 24 and the width of the guide plate 13 is in the range of 2 mm to 5 mm. In this manner, the plating solution can flow from the strip-shaped opening 24 to the guide plate 13.

[0051] In order to further increase the water evaporation area, in some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 7 , vertical strip grooves 25 may be provided on the guide plate 13 .

[0052] In this embodiment, the strip groove 25 can be configured as an arc-shaped groove, and its cross-sectional shape is shown in the top view of the guide plate in Figure 8. In another embodiment, the strip groove 25 can also be configured as a triangular groove, and its cross-sectional shape is shown in the top view of the guide plate in another embodiment in Figure 9.

[0053] It should be noted that, in some embodiments, the cross-sectional shape of the strip-shaped groove 25 may also be a trapezoid, a square, etc., so as to further increase the water evaporation area.

[0054] In this embodiment, the guide plates 13 are preferably made of a hydrophilic material at least on their surfaces. This allows for better absorption of water in the electroplating solution, allowing air to carry away more water when passing through the gaps between adjacent guide plates 13, thereby increasing the efficiency of water evaporation in the electroplating solution.

[0055] Continuing with FIG1 , in this embodiment, the housing 10 is further provided with an overflow hole 19, which is disposed between the second diverter plate 18 and the cover plate 22. By providing the overflow hole 19, when the plating liquid flow rate in the moisture removal device 100 is too high, the plating liquid can flow into the plating tank 300 through the overflow hole 19, while also preventing the risk of the plating liquid overflowing from the first liquid inlet pipe 11.

[0056] It should be noted that a plurality of overflow holes 19 may be provided between the second diverter plate 18 and the cover plate 22 .

[0057] In some embodiments, there is no need to set the partition 40 in the shell 10. Instead, the air inlet 14 is set on the other side of the shell 10 and opposite to the exhaust port 15. The air is directly supplied to the gap between adjacent guide plates by the air inlet 14 and discharged through the exhaust port 15 to achieve evaporation of water vapor in the plating solution on the guide plate 13.

[0058] Figure 12 discloses a structural representation of an electroplating device according to another embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the electroplating device disclosed in Figure 11 is that the electroplating device disclosed in Figure 12 further includes a circulation loop 400. The circulation loop 400 is a self-circulating pipeline in the reservoir 300, which can be understood as a pipeline for making the electroplating solution in the reservoir 300 flow. Specifically, the liquid outlet of the circulation loop 400 is connected to the reservoir 300, and the liquid inlet of the circulation loop 400 is also connected to the reservoir 300. The electroplating solution in the reservoir 300 enters the circulation loop 400 through the liquid outlet of the circulation loop 400 and enters the reservoir 300 through the liquid inlet of the circulation loop 400, to form the self-circulating pipeline of the reservoir 300.

[0059] In this embodiment, providing a circulation loop 400 in the electroplating equipment has the following advantages:

[0060] Advantage 1: The self-circulation of the circulation loop 400 allows the plating solution in the liquid reservoir 300 to flow, thereby facilitating thorough mixing of the plating solution in the liquid reservoir 300. For example, when adding plating solution to the liquid reservoir 300, the concentration of the plating solution at the inlet of the added plating solution will change significantly. The self-circulation can ensure that the plating solution at the inlet is evenly mixed.

[0061] Advantage 2: Since the electroplating chamber 200 is open, the electroplating solution flowing back from the electroplating chamber 200 to the liquid storage tank 300 may contain impurities. The impurities in the electroplating solution can be filtered out by the filtering equipment of the circulation loop 400 itself.

[0062] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of a moisture removal device according to a second embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, the moisture removal device further includes a second liquid inlet line 20. The second liquid inlet line 20 is disposed on the cover plate 22 and is connected to the liquid inlet of the circulation loop 400, and is used to receive the electroplating solution in the circulation loop 400. The electroplating solution in the circulation loop 400 flows into the second space 30 of the housing 10 through the second liquid inlet line 20. In this embodiment, receiving the electroplating solution from the circulation loop 400 through the second liquid inlet line 20 can improve the water evaporation efficiency of the electroplating solution.

[0063] Those skilled in the art should understand that the various technical features of the above-described embodiments can be combined arbitrarily. In order to make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the various technical features in the above-described embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0064] The above-described embodiments merely represent several implementation methods of the present application. While the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention. It should be noted that a person skilled in the art could make various modifications and improvements without departing from the spirit of the present application, all of which fall within the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present patent application shall be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A moisture removal device, characterized in that: include: A shell, wherein a cover plate is provided on the top of the shell; A first liquid inlet pipeline, disposed on the cover plate, for receiving liquid to be dehydrated; A first diverter plate, disposed under the cover plate and located in the shell, for diverting the liquid entering the shell from the first liquid inlet pipeline; A guide plate, mounted on the first diverter plate, along which the diverted liquid flows; an air inlet for supplying air to the gap between adjacent guide plates; The exhaust port is used to exhaust the gas flowing through the gap between adjacent guide plates.

2. The moisture removal device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first diverter plate is provided with strip openings.

3. The moisture removal device according to claim 2, characterized in that: A strip groove is provided on one side of the first diverter plate, and the strip groove and the strip opening are located on the same straight line, and the guide plate is embedded and fixed on the first diverter plate through the strip groove.

4. The moisture removal device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The width of the strip-shaped opening is greater than the width of the guide plate.

5. The moisture removal device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The difference between the width of the strip opening and the width of the guide plate ranges from 2 mm to 5 mm.

6. The moisture removal device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The guide plate is provided with vertical strip grooves.

7. The moisture removal device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The guide plate surface has a hydrophilic material.

8. The moisture removal device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The moisture removal device further comprises a second diverter plate, which is arranged between the first diverter plate and the cover plate. The second diverter plate is provided with through holes for preliminarily diverting the liquid from which moisture is to be removed.

9. The moisture removal device according to claim 8, characterized in that: The shell is also provided with an overflow hole, and the overflow hole is arranged between the second diverter plate and the cover plate.

10. The moisture removal device according to claim 1, characterized in that A partition is arranged inside the shell, and the partition divides the interior of the shell into a first space and a second space. An opening is arranged on the partition, and the air inlet is connected to the first space. The guide plate is arranged in the second space, and the air inlet supplies gas to the gap between adjacent guide plates through the opening.

11. The moisture removal device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: A sealing ring is arranged between the first liquid inlet pipeline and the cover plate.

12. The moisture removal device according to claim 1, characterized in that A portion of the lower end of the guide plate is immersed in the liquid to be dehumidified.

13. An electroplating device, characterized in that: It comprises a plating chamber, a liquid storage tank and a moisture removal device as described in any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the moisture removal device is used to receive the plating liquid in the plating chamber and perform moisture removal treatment, and the plating liquid after the moisture removal treatment flows into the liquid storage tank.

14. The electroplating equipment according to claim 13, characterized in that: The moisture removal device is arranged in the liquid storage tank, and the bottom of the guide plate of the moisture removal device is immersed in the electroplating liquid in the liquid storage tank.

15. The electroplating equipment according to claim 13, characterized in that: It also includes a filtering device. The first liquid inlet pipeline of the moisture removal device is connected to the electroplating chamber for receiving the plating liquid in the electroplating chamber and performing moisture removal treatment. The filtering device is arranged between the first liquid inlet pipeline and the electroplating chamber.

16. The electroplating equipment according to claim 13, characterized in that: It also includes a negative pressure device, which is connected to the exhaust port of the moisture removal device.

17. The electroplating equipment according to claim 13, characterized in that: It also includes a circulation loop, which is a self-circulating pipeline in the liquid storage tank. The moisture removal device also includes a second liquid inlet pipeline for receiving the electroplating liquid in the circulation loop to remove moisture from the electroplating liquid in the circulation loop.

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