Gas conveying device for wafer cassette, and semiconductor process apparatus

Abstract

The present application provides a gas conveying device for a wafer cassette, and a semiconductor process apparatus. In the device, a fixing seat is configured to be mounted on a wafer cassette bearing component; a flexible connecting member is fixedly connected to the fixing seat; a first connecting channel is provided in the fixing seat; a second connecting channel is provided in the flexible connecting member; one end of the first connecting channel is connected to a gas source or a facility exhaust end; and the other end of the first connecting channel is connected to one end of the second connecting channel. When a wafer cassette is placed on the bearing surface of the wafer cassette bearing component, the other end of the second connecting channel is communicated with a gas supply port or an exhaust port at the bottom of the wafer cassette, and the flexible connecting member is attached to the bottom surface of the wafer cassette and in a compressed state, so as to seal the joint of the second connecting channel and the gas supply port or the exhaust port. According to the present solution, the oxygen content and the humidity in a wafer cassette can be reduced, and external particles are prevented from entering the wafer cassette, improving the micro-environment quality in the wafer cassette, and protecting wafers in the wafer cassette.

Description

Chip box gas conveying device and semiconductor process equipment Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of semiconductor manufacturing, and in particular, to a wafer box gas delivery device and semiconductor process equipment. Background Art

[0002] Before entering the back-end vertical furnace for back-end processing, wafer cassettes are temporarily stored on the cassette support components (support racks) in a temporary storage device. When the cassette and the wafers inside are needed, a robot removes the temporarily stored cassette and removes the wafers from the cassette. The temporary storage device facilitates the coordination of the work rhythm of the front and back of the production line.

[0003] During the temporary storage of the wafer cassette on the cassette carrier, due to the limitation of the sealing degree of the cassette and the certain air permeability of the cassette material, there is air circulation between the inside of the cassette and the external environment. As time goes by, the pressure inside the cassette becomes equal to the ambient atmospheric pressure, and the humidity and oxygen content become equal to those of the external environment (humidity is around 60%, and oxygen content is around 21%). At the same time, external particles may enter the cassette and contaminate the wafers. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The present application aims to solve at least one of the technical problems existing in the prior art, and proposes a wafer box gas delivery device and semiconductor process equipment, which can reduce the oxygen content and humidity inside the wafer box, prevent external particles from entering the wafer box, thereby improving the microenvironment quality inside the wafer box and protecting the wafers in the wafer box.

[0005] To achieve the purpose of the present application, a wafer box gas delivery device is provided, which is applied to semiconductor process equipment, including a gas delivery component for delivering gas to the wafer box, and an exhaust component for exhausting the gas in the wafer box, wherein the gas delivery component and the exhaust component both include a fixed seat and a flexible connector, wherein:

[0006] The fixing seat is used to be installed on the film box carrying component, the flexible connector is fixedly connected to the fixing seat, and a first connecting channel is provided in the fixing seat, and a second connecting channel is provided in the flexible connector, one end of the first connecting channel is used to be connected to an air source or a factory exhaust port, and the other end of the first connecting channel is connected to one end of the second connecting channel;

[0007] When the film box is placed on the supporting surface of the film box supporting component, the other end of the second connecting channel is used to communicate with the air supply port or the exhaust port at the bottom of the film box, and the flexible connecting member is in contact with the bottom surface of the film box and is in a compressed state to seal the connection between the second connecting channel and the air supply port or the exhaust port.

[0008] In some embodiments, the flexible connector includes a flexible bellows, one end of which is fixedly connected to the fixed seat, and when the film box is placed on the bearing surface of the film box bearing component, the other end of the flexible bellows is in contact with the bottom surface of the film box; the interior of the flexible bellows constitutes the second connecting channel.

[0009] In some embodiments, the flexible bellows includes a bellows body and a connecting portion provided at one end of the bellows body, wherein the end surface of the connecting portion away from the bellows body is in contact with the outer surface of the fixing seat and is provided with a threaded column;

[0010] A first threaded hole is provided on the outer surface of the fixing seat, and the threaded column is provided in the first threaded hole and matched with the first threaded hole;

[0011] Sub-channels communicating with the interior of the bellows body and the first connecting channel are correspondingly provided in the connecting portion and the threaded column, and the sub-channels and the interior of the bellows body together constitute the second connecting channel.

[0012] In some embodiments, the fixing seat is used to be installed on the bottom of the film box bearing component, and the flexible connector passes through the film box bearing component and protrudes relative to the bearing surface of the film box bearing component when in a non-compressed state.

[0013] In some embodiments, a second threaded hole is provided on the bottom surface of the cassette carrying component;

[0014] The air supply assembly and the exhaust assembly each further include a fastening screw and at least one adjusting washer, wherein a mounting groove is provided on the bottom surface of the fixing seat, and a through hole vertically penetrating the fixing seat is provided on the bottom surface of the mounting groove, and the fastening screw passes through the through hole from bottom to top and is threadedly connected to the second threaded hole;

[0015] At least one adjusting washer is sleeved on the fastening screw and is located between the bottom surface of the mounting slot and the screw head of the fastening screw.

[0016] In some embodiments, the bottom surface of the film box is provided with a plurality of grooves, and the air supply port and the air exhaust port are respectively located on the bottom surfaces of the plurality of grooves;

[0017] When the film box is placed on the bearing surface of the film box bearing component, the flexible connector is in contact with the bottom surface of the corresponding groove and is in a compressed state.

[0018] In some embodiments, the fixing seat is further provided with a plurality of third threaded holes vertically passing through the fixing seat;

[0019] The air supply component and the exhaust component also include a plurality of adjustment screws, which are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence in the plurality of third threaded holes; and the top end of the adjustment screw is against the bottom surface of the film box supporting component, which is used to adjust the horizontality of the fixing seat by rotation.

[0020] In some embodiments, the film box gas delivery device also includes an air supply path mechanism, which includes an air supply pipeline and a pressure reducing valve, a flow controller, a first on-off valve and a filter arranged on the air supply pipeline in sequence along the air supply direction of the air supply pipeline; the two ends of the air supply pipeline are respectively connected to the first connecting channel and the air source in the air supply component.

[0021] In some embodiments, the film box gas conveying device also includes an exhaust gas path mechanism, which includes an exhaust pipeline and a second on-off valve arranged on the exhaust pipeline; the two ends of the exhaust pipeline are respectively connected to the first connecting channel in the exhaust component and the factory exhaust end.

[0022] As another technical solution, the present application further provides a semiconductor process equipment, including a temporary storage device for temporarily storing a cassette, the temporary storage device including:

[0023] A film cassette carrying component, used for carrying at least one film cassette;

[0024] The above-mentioned film box gas conveying device provided in the present application is used to supply gas to the film box and exhaust the gas in the film box when the film box is placed on the supporting surface of the film box supporting component.

[0025] This application has the following beneficial effects:

[0026] The chip box gas conveying device provided by the present application, when the chip box is placed on the bearing surface of the chip box bearing component, gas is supplied to the chip box by means of the gas supply component, and the gas in the chip box is discharged by means of the exhaust component, so that the pressure in the chip box can be maintained at a positive pressure, thereby preventing external particles from entering the chip box, and at the same time, the gas (such as clean nitrogen) introduced into the chip box can also control the pressure, humidity and oxygen content in the chip box, thereby improving the microenvironment quality in the chip box and protecting the wafers in the chip box. On this basis, the above-mentioned gas supply component and exhaust component both include a fixed seat and a flexible connector, and the first connecting channel in the fixed seat and the second connecting channel in the flexible connector can respectively connect the inside of the chip box with the gas source for supplying gas and the factory exhaust end for recovering the gas in the chip box, and the flexible connector is in contact with the bottom surface of the chip box and is in a compressed state, so as to seal the connection between the second connecting channel and the gas supply port or exhaust port of the chip box, thereby ensuring that the gas will not leak.

[0027] The semiconductor process equipment provided in the present application can reduce the oxygen content and humidity inside the wafer box by adopting the above-mentioned wafer box gas delivery device provided in the present application, prevent external particles from entering the wafer box, thereby improving the microenvironment quality inside the wafer box and protecting the wafers in the wafer box. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] FIG1 is a structural diagram of a temporary storage device of a semiconductor process equipment provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] FIG2 is a bottom structural diagram of the film box used in the embodiment of the present application;

[0030] FIG3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the film box at the exhaust port used in the embodiment of the present application;

[0031] FIG4 is a structural diagram of an air delivery component / exhaust component in a gas delivery device for a film box according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] FIG5 is a cross-sectional view of the gas supply assembly / exhaust assembly at the first connecting channel and the second connecting channel in the gas delivery device for the film cartridge provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] FIG6 is a cross-sectional view of the gas supply assembly / exhaust assembly at the fastening screw position in the gas delivery device for the film cartridge provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] FIG7 is a structural diagram of the gas delivery device for a tablet box provided in an embodiment of the present application when the tablet box is not placed on the carrying surface;

[0035] FIG8 is an enlarged view of area I in FIG7 ;

[0036] FIG9 is a structural diagram of the gas delivery device for a tablet box provided in an embodiment of the present application when the tablet box is placed on a carrying surface;

[0037] FIG10 is an enlarged view of area II in FIG9 ;

[0038] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of the air supply and exhaust mechanisms used in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solution of the present application, the wafer box gas conveying device and semiconductor process equipment provided by the present application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0040] Referring to FIG1 , an embodiment of the present application provides a wafer cassette gas delivery device 300 for use in semiconductor processing equipment, specifically, for example, a temporary storage device of the semiconductor processing equipment. The device is configured to introduce gas (e.g., clean nitrogen or other inert gas) into the interior of the wafer cassette 200 and exhaust gas from the wafer cassette 200 when the wafer cassette 200 is placed on a supporting surface of a wafer cassette supporting member 100 of the temporary storage device. The wafer cassette 200 has an openable lid. When the lid is closed, the interior of the wafer cassette is sealed.

[0041] In some embodiments, the film cassette support component 100 includes, for example, multiple layers of support brackets 101 spaced apart in a vertical direction, and fixing brackets 102 for supporting and fixing the multiple layers of support brackets 101. To more clearly illustrate the structure of the support brackets 101, FIG1 shows the second layer of support brackets 101, from bottom to top, in a state where no film cassette 200 is placed. Each layer of support brackets 101 includes a support plate 101a for placing at least one film cassette 200. Specifically, as shown in FIG1 , each layer of support brackets 101 can accommodate, for example, two film cassettes 200 on the support plate 101a. In some embodiments, the support plate 101a is further provided with a positioning structure 101b, such as a positioning pin, and / or a presence sensor 101c for detecting whether a film cassette 200 is on the support plate 101a. In addition, the number of the chip box gas conveying devices 300 is the same as the total number of chip boxes 200 that can be placed on the chip box supporting member 100, and each chip box gas conveying device 300 is arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the supporting surface of the chip box supporting member 100 on which each chip box 200 is placed.

[0042] Specifically, each cartridge gas delivery device 300 includes an air delivery assembly 300a for delivering air to the cartridge 200 and an exhaust assembly 300b for exhausting the air within the cartridge 200, the positions of which on the cartridge support member 100 are interchangeable. Accordingly, as shown in FIG2 and FIG3 , the bottom of the cartridge 200 is provided with an air delivery port 201 and an exhaust port 202 communicating with the interior of the cartridge 200. Both are, for example, through holes extending through the bottom wall of the cartridge 200. FIG3 only shows the exhaust port 202; the structure of the air delivery port 201 may be the same or similar thereto. When the wafer cassette 200 is placed on the supporting surface of the wafer cassette supporting member 100, air is supplied to the wafer cassette 200 via the air supply port 201 by means of the air supply assembly 300a, and the air in the wafer cassette 200 is exhausted via the exhaust port 202 by means of the exhaust assembly 300b. This allows the pressure in the wafer cassette 200 to be maintained at a positive pressure (e.g., the pressure in the wafer cassette 200 is greater than or equal to 300 Pa), thereby preventing external particles from entering the wafer cassette 200. Furthermore, during the process of supplying gas (e.g., clean nitrogen) into the wafer cassette 200 and exhausting the gas from the wafer cassette 200, the pressure, humidity, and oxygen content in the wafer cassette 200 can be controlled by controlling parameters such as the air supply flow rate and air supply time, thereby improving the quality of the microenvironment in the wafer cassette 200 and protecting the wafers in the wafer cassette 200.

[0043] Please refer to Figures 4 and 5 together. The air supply component 300a and the exhaust component 300b that realize the above functions can, for example, adopt the same structure capable of transmitting gas, but have different functions, that is, the air supply component 300a is used to supply gas to the chip box 200, and the exhaust component 300b is used to exhaust the gas in the chip box 200. For example, the air supply component 300a and the exhaust component 300b both include a fixed base 1 and a flexible connector 2, wherein the fixed base 1 is used to be installed on the chip box supporting component 100, the flexible connector 2 is fixedly connected to the fixed base 1, and a first connecting channel 11 is provided in the fixed base 1, and a second connecting channel 23 is provided in the flexible connector 2, one end of the first connecting channel 11 is used to be connected to the gas source or the factory exhaust end, and the other end of the first connecting channel 11 is connected to one end of the second connecting channel 23. When the film cartridge 200 is placed on the supporting surface of the film cartridge support member 100, the air supply port 201 of the film cartridge 200 corresponds to an air supply assembly 300a, and the exhaust port 202 of the film cartridge 200 corresponds to an exhaust assembly 300b. Specifically, the second connecting channel 23 in the air supply assembly 300a is used to communicate with the air supply port 201 at the bottom of the film cartridge 200, and the second connecting channel 23 in the exhaust assembly 300b is used to communicate with the exhaust port 202 at the bottom of the film cartridge 200. Moreover, the flexible connector 2 in the air supply assembly 300a is in contact with the bottom surface of the film cartridge 200 and is in a compressed state, thereby sealing the connection between the second connecting channel 23 in the air supply assembly 300a and the air supply port 201; the flexible connector 2 in the exhaust assembly 300b is in contact with the bottom surface of the film cartridge 200 and is in a compressed state, thereby sealing the connection between the second connecting channel 23 in the air supply assembly 300b and the exhaust port 202.

[0044] In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 5, an internal threaded hole 12 is provided at one end of the first connecting channel 11 for connecting to the gas source or the factory exhaust end. The internal threaded hole 12 is used to install an air pipe joint so that it can be adapted to the air pipe of the gas source or the factory exhaust end to achieve a sealed connection.

[0045] When the film box 200 is placed on the supporting surface of the film box supporting component 100, the first connecting channel 11 in the fixing seat 1 and the second connecting channel 23 in the flexible connecting member 2 can respectively connect the interior of the film box 200 with the gas source for supplying gas and the factory exhaust end for recovering the gas in the film box 200. Specifically, the gas provided by the gas source passes through the first connecting channel 11 and the second connecting channel 23 in the gas supply component 300a and enters the film box 200 through the gas supply port 201. The gas in the film box 200 is discharged into the factory exhaust end through the exhaust port 202 and the first connecting channel 11 and the second connecting channel 23 in the exhaust component 300b. On this basis, the flexible connector 2 in the air supply component 300a is in contact with the bottom surface of the film box 200 and is in a compressed state, so as to seal the connection between the second connecting channel 23 in the air supply component 300a and the air supply port 201; the flexible connector 2 in the exhaust component 300b is in contact with the bottom surface of the film box 200 and is in a compressed state, so as to seal the connection between the second connecting channel 23 in the exhaust component 300b and the exhaust port 202, thereby ensuring that gas will not leak.

[0046] In some embodiments, the flexible connector 2 for achieving the above-mentioned function includes, for example, a flexible bellows 21, one end of which is fixedly connected to the fixing seat 1. When the film cassette 200 is placed on the supporting surface of the film cassette support member 100, the other end of the flexible bellows 21 is tightly attached to the bottom surface of the film cassette 200 to achieve a sealing effect. The interior of the flexible bellows 21 forms the above-mentioned second connecting channel 23. The flexible bellows 21 can be compressed and deformed when the film cassette 200 is placed on the supporting surface of the film cassette support member 100. When the film cassette 200 is placed in a horizontal position, the end surface of the flexible bellows 21 can be tightly attached to the bottom surface of the film cassette 200, thereby avoiding the formation of a gap between the flexible bellows 21 and the bottom surface of the film cassette 200 due to machining errors (e.g., ±0.5 mm) of the film cassette 200. This ensures a good seal between the flexible bellows 21 and the bottom surface of the film cassette 200 and prevents air leakage. In some embodiments, the flexible bellows 21 is made of rubber, for example.

[0047] There are many ways to fix one end of the flexible bellows 21 to the fixing seat 1. For example, the flexible bellows 21 includes a bellows body and a connecting portion 22 provided at one end of the bellows body. The end face of the connecting portion 22, which is away from the bellows body, is in contact with the outer surface of the fixing seat 1 and is provided with a threaded column 221. The outer surface of the fixing seat 1 is provided with a first threaded hole. The threaded column 221 is provided in the first threaded hole and cooperates with the first threaded hole, thereby achieving a fixed connection between the bellows body and the fixing seat 1. In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 4, the outer periphery of the connecting portion 22 is provided with a hexagonal screw head structure. When the threaded column 221 is tightened in the first threaded hole, the bottom surface of the hexagonal screw head structure is pre-tightened to the outer surface of the fixing seat 1 (i.e., the end face of the first threaded hole). That is, a friction force is generated between the bottom surface of the hexagonal screw head structure and the outer surface of the fixing seat 1 to lock the two, thereby achieving a fixed connection between the flexible bellows 21 and the fixing seat 1.

[0048] In some embodiments, the material of the bellows body includes, for example, rubber, and the material of the connecting portion 22 includes, for example, metal. The bellows body and the connecting portion 22 are fixed together by, for example, bonding, clamping, etc. The connecting portion 22 and the threaded column 221 are also correspondingly provided with sub-channels 222 that are connected to the interior 211 of the bellows body and the first connecting channel 11 respectively. The sub-channels 222 and the interior 211 of the bellows body together constitute the second connecting channel 23. Thus, for the air supply component 300a, the gas in the first connecting channel 11 can flow into the interior 211 of the bellows body via the threaded column 221 and the sub-channel 222 in the connecting portion 22 in sequence, and then flow into the interior of the film box 200. The airflow direction in the exhaust component 300b is opposite to the airflow direction of the above-mentioned air supply component 300a.

[0049] In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 6, the fixing seat 1 is used to be installed on the bottom of the film box bearing component 100, for example, installed on the bottom of the bottom plate 101a, and the flexible connector 2 passes through the film box bearing component 100 (for example, the bottom plate 101a). As shown in Figures 7 and 8, when the flexible connector 2 is in a non-compressed state, it protrudes relative to the bearing surface of the film box bearing component 100 (for example, the bearing surface A of the bottom plate 101a), and the protruding height is the height H1 in Figure 8. In this way, when the film box 200 is placed on the bearing surface of the film box bearing component 100, as shown in Figures 9 and 10, the film box 200 is subjected to the action of its gravity so that the part of the flexible connecting member 2 (i.e., the flexible bellows 21) protruding from the above-mentioned bearing surface A is pressed downward, so that the film box 200 can be placed horizontally on the bearing surface A, that is, the bottom surface B of the film box 200 is in contact with the bearing surface A, and at the same time, the end face of the flexible bellows 21 is ensured to be in close contact with the bottom surface of the film box 200, avoiding the generation of a gap between the flexible bellows 21 and the bottom surface of the film box 200 due to the processing error of the film box 200, thereby ensuring that the flexible bellows 21 and the bottom surface of the film box 200 are well sealed to avoid air leakage.

[0050] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG8 , the height H1 of the portion of the flexible connector 2 (ie, the flexible bellows 21 ) protruding from the bearing surface is, for example, 3 mm or 3.5 mm.

[0051] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG8 , in order to position the flexible connector 2 (i.e., the flexible bellows 21), the bottom surface B of the film box 200 is provided with a plurality of grooves, and the air supply port 201 and the exhaust port 202 are respectively located at the bottom surfaces of the plurality of grooves, for example, there are two such grooves, and the air supply port 201 and the exhaust port 202 are respectively located at the bottom surfaces of the two grooves. Furthermore, as shown in FIG10 , when the film box 200 is placed on the bearing surface of the film box bearing component 100 (e.g., the bearing surface A of the bottom plate 101a), the flexible connector 2 is in contact with the bottom surface C of the corresponding groove and is in a compressed state. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the depth H2 of the aforementioned groove is, for example, 1.5 mm, so that the height of the flexible connector 2 protruding from the bearing surface A when in the compressed state is 1.5 mm. By setting a groove on the bottom surface B of the film box 200, the flexible connector 2 is located in the corresponding groove, which not only can position the flexible connector 2, but also can reserve a certain space for the flexible connector 2 in the vertical direction (that is, the depth H2 of the groove), thereby increasing the installation space of the flexible bellows 21 and the connecting part 22 in the vertical direction, thereby reducing the dimensional tolerance requirements of the flexible bellows 21 and the connecting part 22 and the installation tolerance requirements with the fixing seat 1 to a certain extent.

[0052] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG6 , a second threaded hole is provided on the bottom surface of the cassette support member 100 (e.g., the bottom surface of the bottom plate 101a facing away from the support surface A). Furthermore, the air supply assembly 300a and the exhaust assembly 300b each further include a fastening screw 3 and at least one adjusting washer 5. The bottom surface of the fixing base 1 is provided with a mounting groove 13, and a through hole is provided on the bottom surface of the mounting groove 13, extending vertically through the fixing base 1. The fastening screw 3 passes through the through hole from bottom to top and is threadedly engaged with the second threaded hole, thereby securing the fixing base 1 to the cassette support member 100 (e.g., the bottom plate 101a). The at least one adjusting washer 5 is sleeved over the fastening screw 3 and positioned between the bottom surface of the mounting groove 13 and the screw head of the fastening screw 3. The adjusting washer 5 is used to adjust the length of the fastening screw 3 extending into the second threaded hole to prevent the fastening screw 3 from being screwed in too deeply, or even penetrating and protruding from the cassette support member 100.

[0053] In some embodiments, the fixing seat 1 is further provided with a plurality of third threaded holes vertically passing through the fixing seat 1; the air supply component 300a and the exhaust component 300b also include a plurality of adjusting screws 4, and the plurality of adjusting screws 4 are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence in the plurality of third threaded holes; and the top end of the adjusting screw 4 is abutted against the bottom surface of the film box bearing component 100 (for example, the bottom surface of the groove 101a1 formed on the bottom surface of the bottom plate 101a facing away from the bearing surface A), and is used to adjust the horizontality of the fixing seat 1 by rotation, thereby avoiding the flexible connector 2 from tilting relative to the vertical direction, resulting in sealing failure.

[0054] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG11 , the tablet cassette gas delivery device 300 further includes a gas delivery mechanism, which includes a gas delivery pipeline 61 and a pressure reducing valve 62, a flow controller 63, a first on-off valve 64, and a filter 65, which are sequentially arranged along the gas delivery direction of the gas delivery pipeline 61. The ends of the gas delivery pipeline 61 are respectively connected to the first connecting channel 11 in the gas delivery assembly 300a and a gas source (e.g., a gas source N2 for providing nitrogen gas). Gas provided by the gas source is sequentially delivered to the tablet cassette 200 via the gas delivery pipeline 61 and the gas delivery assembly 300a. The pressure reducing valve 62 is used to reduce the pressure of the gas flowing through the pressure reducing valve 62 to a desired pressure value (e.g., 0.4 MPa) while ensuring pressure stability. The flow controller 63 is used to adjust the gas flow rate of the gas delivery pipeline 61. The first on-off valve 64 is used to connect or disconnect the gas delivery pipeline 61. The filter 65 is used to filter impurities in the gas flowing through the pressure reducing valve 62. The pressure reducing valve 62, flow controller 63, and first on-off valve 64 can be, for example, manual valves or automatic control valves controlled by a controller such as a host computer. Specifically, the first on-off valve 64 is, for example, a diaphragm valve, which is connected or disconnected under the control of a control air circuit 66. Specifically, the ends of the control air circuit 66 are connected to the diaphragm valve and a compressed air source (i.e., air source CDA), respectively. A three-way valve 67 and a pressure reducing valve 68 are provided on the control air circuit 66. When the three-way valve 67 is open, compressed air provided by the compressed air source is passed through the control air circuit 66 to the diaphragm valve, thereby connecting the diaphragm valve. At this time, the gas provided by the air source is delivered to the cassette 200 via the air supply line 61 and the air supply assembly 300a. The pressure reducing valve 68 is used to reduce the pressure of the gas output from the pressure reducing valve 68 to a desired pressure value (e.g., 0.3 MPa to 0.4 MPa) while ensuring pressure stability.

[0055] In some embodiments, the cassette gas delivery device 300 further includes an exhaust gas circuit mechanism, which includes an exhaust pipeline 71, a second on-off valve 72 disposed on the exhaust pipeline 71, and a flow control valve 73. The second on-off valve 72 is used to connect or disconnect the exhaust pipeline. The second on-off valve 72 is controlled to connect or disconnect by, for example, a pilot-operated two-way solenoid valve. The flow control valve 73 is, for example, a ball valve.

[0056] In some embodiments, when a cassette 200 is placed on the supporting surface of the cassette support member 100, or when a presence sensor 101c for detecting whether a cassette 200 is on the support plate 101a is triggered and a trigger signal indicating the presence of a cassette 200 is fed back to the host computer, the host computer controls the air supply mechanism to start delivering the gas provided by the gas source to the first connecting channel 11, which is ultimately passed into the interior of the cassette 200, and controls the exhaust mechanism to exhaust the gas in the cassette 200 into the factory exhaust port. When the cassette 200 placed on the supporting surface of the cassette support member 100 is removed by the robot, the presence sensor 101c is triggered and a trigger signal indicating the absence of the cassette 200 is fed back to the host computer, at which point the host computer controls the air supply mechanism to stop delivering the gas provided by the gas source to the first connecting channel 11. Of course, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. In actual applications, the start and stop of the air supply, the duration of the air supply, and the adjustment of the flow rate can be controlled according to different process requirements.

[0057] Table 1 shows the oxygen content at different intake flow rates at the connection points of the air supply port 201 and the exhaust port 202 with the air supply component 300a and the exhaust component 300b respectively when four chip boxes (chip box 1 to chip box 4) are placed on the supporting surface of the chip box supporting component 100.

[0058] Table 1

[0059] As shown in Table 1, the oxygen content at the connections of the four cassettes at various inlet flow rates was either 21% or greater than 20% but less than 21%. An oxygen content of 21% indicates that the oxygen content at the connection is consistent with that in the external environment, indicating no gas leakage. Oxygen contents greater than 20% but less than 21% indicate a slight leakage of gas from the cassette at the connection. However, based on process requirements, this level of leakage does not affect the functionality of the cassette gas delivery device.

[0060] By introducing an inert gas, such as clean nitrogen, into the film box 200 and controlling the air flow rate, the pressure inside the film box 200 can be controlled to maintain a positive pressure, thereby preventing external particles from entering the film box. Specifically, Table 2 shows the pressure values ​​of the film box at different air flow rates.

[0061] Table 2

[0062] As can be seen from Table 2, when the air intake flow rate is greater than or equal to 4 L / min, the pressure in the chip box can be maintained in a range greater than or equal to 300 Pa, thereby preventing external particles from entering the chip box 200 while allowing gas (such as clean nitrogen) to flow into the chip box 200.

[0063] The oxygen content of the cassette can be controlled by introducing an inert gas such as clean nitrogen into the cassette 200 and controlling the air flow rate and / or air delivery time. Specifically, Table 3 shows the changes in the oxygen content of the cassette during the air delivery process.

[0064] [Corrected 20.02.2025 in accordance with Rule 91] Table 3

[0065] It can be seen from Table 3 that when the air intake flow rate is 10 L / min, the oxygen content in the chip box gradually decreases from 20.60% to 0.75% during the process of the air delivery time from 0s to 460s. Therefore, the chip box gas delivery device 300 provided in the embodiment of the present application can effectively reduce the oxygen content in the chip box.

[0066] The humidity of the cassette can be controlled by introducing an inert gas such as clean nitrogen into the cassette 200 and controlling the air flow rate, cassette pressure and / or air delivery time. Specifically, Table 4 shows the humidity changes of the cassette during the air delivery process.

[0067] Table 4

[0068] It can be seen from Table 4 that when the air intake flow rate is 15 L / min and the chip box pressure is 680 Pa, the humidity in the chip box gradually decreases from 58.9% to 3.98% during the process of the air delivery time from 20s to 400s. Therefore, the chip box gas delivery device 300 provided in the embodiment of the present application can effectively reduce the humidity in the chip box.

[0069] As another technical solution, an embodiment of the present application also provides a semiconductor process equipment, including a temporary storage device for temporarily storing a wafer box 200, the temporary storage device including: a wafer box carrying component 100, for carrying at least one wafer box 200; and the above-mentioned wafer box gas conveying device 300 provided in an embodiment of the present application. When the wafer box 200 is placed on the carrying surface of the wafer box carrying component 100, the wafer box gas conveying device 300 is used to supply gas to the wafer box 200 and discharge the gas in the wafer box 200.

[0070] The semiconductor process equipment provided in the present application can reduce the oxygen content and humidity inside the wafer box 200 by adopting the above-mentioned wafer box gas delivery device 300 provided in the present application, prevent external particles from entering the wafer box 200, thereby improving the microenvironment quality inside the wafer box 200 and protecting the wafers inside the wafer box 200.

[0071] It is understood that the above embodiments are merely exemplary embodiments for illustrating the principles of the present application, and the present application is not limited thereto. Those skilled in the art may make various modifications and improvements without departing from the spirit and substance of the present application, and such modifications and improvements are also considered to be within the scope of protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A chip box gas delivery device, used in semiconductor process equipment, characterized in that: It includes an air supply component for supplying air to the film box, and an exhaust component for exhausting the gas in the film box, and the air supply component and the exhaust component both include a fixing seat and a flexible connector, wherein: The fixing seat is used to be installed on the film box carrying component, the flexible connector is fixedly connected to the fixing seat, and a first connecting channel is provided in the fixing seat, and a second connecting channel is provided in the flexible connector, one end of the first connecting channel is used to be connected to an air source or a factory exhaust port, and the other end of the first connecting channel is connected to one end of the second connecting channel; When the film box is placed on the supporting surface of the film box supporting component, the other end of the second connecting channel is used to communicate with the air supply port or the exhaust port at the bottom of the film box, and the flexible connecting member is in contact with the bottom surface of the film box and is in a compressed state to seal the connection between the second connecting channel and the air supply port or the exhaust port.

2. The film box gas delivery device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible connecting member includes a flexible bellows, one end of which is fixedly connected to the fixing seat. When the film box is placed on the bearing surface of the film box bearing component, the other end of the flexible bellows is in contact with the bottom surface of the film box; the interior of the flexible bellows constitutes the second connecting channel.

3. The film box gas delivery device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The flexible bellows comprises a bellows body and a connecting portion provided at one end of the bellows body, wherein the end surface of the connecting portion away from the bellows body is in contact with the outer surface of the fixing seat and is provided with a threaded column; A first threaded hole is provided on the outer surface of the fixing seat, and the threaded column is provided in the first threaded hole and matched with the first threaded hole; Sub-channels communicating with the interior of the bellows body and the first connecting channel are correspondingly provided in the connecting portion and the threaded column, and the sub-channels and the interior of the bellows body together constitute the second connecting channel.

4. The film box gas conveying device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fixing seat is used to be installed on the bottom of the film box bearing component, and the flexible connecting member passes through the film box bearing component and protrudes relative to the bearing surface of the film box bearing component when in a non-compressed state.

5. The film box gas conveying device according to claim 4, characterized in that: A second threaded hole is provided on the bottom surface of the film box carrying component; The air supply assembly and the exhaust assembly each further include a fastening screw and at least one adjusting washer, wherein a mounting groove is provided on the bottom surface of the fixing seat, and a through hole vertically penetrating the fixing seat is provided on the bottom surface of the mounting groove, and the fastening screw passes through the through hole from bottom to top and is threadedly connected to the second threaded hole; At least one adjusting washer is sleeved on the fastening screw and is located between the bottom surface of the mounting slot and the screw head of the fastening screw.

6. The film box gas conveying device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The bottom surface of the film box is provided with a plurality of grooves, and the air supply port and the air exhaust port are respectively located on the bottom surfaces of the plurality of grooves; When the film box is placed on the bearing surface of the film box bearing component, the flexible connector is in contact with the bottom surface of the corresponding groove and is in a compressed state.

7. The film box gas conveying device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fixing seat is further provided with a plurality of third threaded holes vertically passing through the fixing seat; The air supply component and the exhaust component also include a plurality of adjustment screws, which are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence in the plurality of third threaded holes; and the top end of the adjustment screw is against the bottom surface of the film box supporting component, which is used to adjust the horizontality of the fixing seat by rotation.

8. The gas delivery device for a film box according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The film box gas conveying device also includes an air supply path mechanism, which includes an air supply pipeline and a pressure reducing valve, a flow controller, a first on-off valve and a filter arranged on the air supply pipeline in sequence along the air supply direction of the air supply pipeline; the two ends of the air supply pipeline are respectively connected to the first connecting channel and the air source in the air supply component.

9. The gas delivery device for a film box according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The film box gas conveying device also includes an exhaust gas path mechanism, which includes an exhaust pipeline and a second on-off valve arranged on the exhaust pipeline; the two ends of the exhaust pipeline are respectively connected to the first connecting channel in the exhaust component and the factory exhaust end.

10. A semiconductor process equipment comprising a temporary storage device for temporarily storing a cassette, characterized in that: The temporary storage device includes: A film cassette carrying component, used for carrying at least one film cassette; The chip box gas conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is used to supply gas to the chip box and exhaust gas in the chip box when the chip box is placed on the bearing surface of the chip box bearing component.

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