Edge ring carriers for semiconductor processing

Abstract

Ring storage carrier and ring storage buffers for semiconductor processing are provided. A ring storage carrier may have a housing at least partially defined by a front side with an opening that is configured to receive an edge ring and a ring carrier, a back side opposite the front side, a top, and a baseplate, four ring support structures inside the housing, and two alignment rails inside the housing. Each ring support structure has a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the baseplate, each support finger extends along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis. A first support structure has a first set of support fingers and each support finger of the first set has a support pin extending upwards, and each support finger of a second support structure does not have a support pin.

Description

EDGE RING CARRIERS FOR SEMICONDUCTOR PROCESSINGINCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

[0001] A PCT Request Form is filed concurrently with this specification as part of the present application. Each application that the present application claims benefit of or priority to as identified in the concurrently filed PCT Request Form is incorporated by reference herein in their entireties and for all purposes.BACKGROUND

[0002] Semiconductor processing tools typically feature a plurality of semiconductor processing chambers arranged about a vacuum transfer module. Wafers may be provided to a semiconductor processing tool via a front-opening unified pod (FOUP). A FOUP is a container that is configured to store a plurality of semiconductor wafers, e.g., 25, in a stacked arrangement, thereby allowing the plurality of semiconductor wafers to be transported between semiconductor processing tools as a group.

[0003] The FOUPs may typically be delivered to load ports that are arranged along one or more walls of what is referred to as an equipment front end module (EFEM). Each load port may include a platform that is configured to locate and receive a FOUP, and may also include a FOUP door-opening mechanism that is configured to engage with, and remove, a removable FOUP door from the FOUP, thereby allowing access to the wafers that are inside the FOUP by one or more wafer handling robots that are located within the EFEM.

[0004] Some semiconductor processing tools use a removable edge ring positioned around the periphery of a substrate support structure in some of the processing chambers. After some use, a used edge ring may be removed from the processing chamber and replaced with a new edge ring. The semiconductor processing tools may store the used and new edge rings.

[0005] Discussed herein are new concepts that improve on the storage and transfer of new and used edge rings.SUMMARY

[0006] Details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the description, the drawings, and the claims.

[0007] In some embodiments, a ring storage carrier for use in a semiconductor processing tool may be provided. The ring storage carrier may have a housing at least partially defined by a front side with an opening that is configured to receive an edge ring and a ring carrier, a back side opposite the front side, a top, and a baseplate, at least three ring support structures positioned inside the housing, and at least two alignment rails positioned inside the housing. Each ring support structure may have a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the baseplate, each support finger may extend along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis, a first support structure of the plurality of support structures may have a first set of support fingers and each support finger of the first set has a support pin extending upwards away from the baseplate, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a second ring support structure of the plurality of support structures may not have a support pin, and each alignment rail may extend along a rail axis perpendicular to the baseplate and arranged between the at least four ring support structures and the back side of the housing.

[0008] In some embodiments, the first ring support structure may have a second set of support fingers that do not have the support pins.

[0009] In some such embodiments, the first set of support fingers may have six support fingers and the second set of support fingers has six support fingers.

[0010] In some such embodiments, each support finger of the second set of support fingers may have a ring contact structure configured to contact and support an edge ring.

[0011] In some embodiments, the first ring support structure and the second ring support structure may be adjacent to the front side, and a third ring support structure and a fourth ring support structure may be adjacent to the back side.

[0012] In some embodiments, each support finger of the first set of support fingers of the first support structure may have a first length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and a first width in a direction perpendicular to the length, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of the second support structure may have a second length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and a second width in a direction perpendicular to the length, and the first width may be greater than the second width.

[0013] In some such embodiments, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of the third support structure may have the second length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and the second width in a direction perpendicular to the length.

[0014] In some embodiments, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a third support structure of the plurality of support structures may not have a support pin.

[0015] In some such embodiments, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a fourth support structure of the plurality of support structures may not have a support pin.

[0016] In some embodiments, the ring storage carrier may further have a plurality of gaskets, and a door by the front side. One or more gaskets may be positioned between the baseplate and the front side and the back side, one or more gaskets may be positioned between the top and the front side and the back side, and the housing may be a sealed environment when the door is in a closed position.

[0017] In some such embodiments, the baseplate may further include a plurality of purge ports configured to f I uidica lly connect with a gas system of an equipment front end module.

[0018] In some such embodiments, the plurality of purge ports may be configured to interface with a purge gas system of an equipment front end module.

[0019] In some such embodiments, two purge ports may be positioned adjacent to the front side, and two purge ports may be positioned adjacent to the back side.

[0020] In some embodiments, the alignment rails may extend from the baseplate for a rail height that is greater than a height of the support fingers that are farthest from the baseplate.

[0021] In some embodiments, the alignment rails may extend from the baseplate along a rail axis perpendicular to the baseplate, and each alignment rail may have a cross-sectional shape, perpendicular to the corresponding rail axis, partially defined by a V-shaped surface.

[0022] In some embodiments, the support pins may have sapphire.

[0023] In some embodiments, the top may further have a window positioned over the first support structure.

[0024] In some embodiments, the support fingers of the four ring support structures may define a plurality of ring support planes, each ring support plane may be perpendicular to the vertical axis of the ring support structures and defined by one support finger of each ring support structure, and for each ring support plane defined in part by the first set of support fingers, the other three support fingers defining that ring support plane may not have a support pin.

[0025] In some embodiments, the baseplate may further have two end effector alignment posts extending towards the top for a first height and positioned adjacent to the opening, and the first height may be less than a height of the support fingers closes to the baseplate.

[0026] In some embodiments, the baseplate may further have four ring carrier support posts extending towards the top configured to receive and support a ring carrier.

[0027] In some such embodiments, the back side may further have a ring carrier notch at least partially defined by a first surface offset from a center axis of the baseplate by a first distance, and a second surface offset from the center axis by a second distance less than the first distance.

[0028] In some embodiments, the ring storage carrier may further have the ring carrier. The ring carrier may have a tip with a notch, the tip may have a first surface offset from a center point of the ring carrier by a tip distance, and the notch may have a first notch surface offset from the center point by a notch distance less than the tip distance, and a side notch surface spanning between the first surface and the first notch surface.

[0029] In some embodiments, each ring support structure may have thirteen support fingers.

[0030] In some embodiments, each support finger of the second ring support structure may have a ring contact structure configured to contact and support an edge ring.

[0031] In some embodiments, the ring storage carrier of may further have four ring support structures positioned inside the housing.

[0032] In some embodiments, a ring storage buffer for use in a semiconductor processing tool may be provided. The ring storage buffer may have a housing at least partially defined by a front side with an opening that is configured to receive a ring, a back side opposite the front side, a top, and a baseplate, a rotation plate positioned on the baseplate and configured to rotate about a center axis with respect to the baseplate, and three ring support structures positioned on the rotation plate. Each ring support structure may include a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the rotation plate, each support finger may extend along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis, each support finger may have a support pin that extends upwards away from the rotation plate, and the support fingers and ring support structures may be positioned such that each support pin of one ring structure is offset from support pins of the other two ring support structures around the center axis by about 120 degrees.

[0033] In some embodiments, the support fingers of the three ring support structures may define a plurality of ring support planes, and each ring support plane may be perpendicular to the center axis and defined by one support pin of each ring support structure.

[0034] In some embodiments, the support pins may have sapphire.

[0035] In some embodiments, the top may have three windows, and each window may be positioned above a corresponding ring support structure.

[0036] In some embodiments, the rotation plate may be configured to rotate about the center axis with respect to the baseplate by about 4 degrees or less.

[0037] In some embodiments, each ring support structure may have at least five support fingers.

[0038] In some embodiments, the ring storage buffer may further have a plurality of gaskets, and a door by the front side. One or more gaskets may be positioned between the baseplate and the front side and the back side, one or more gaskets may be positioned between the top and the front side and the back side, and the housing may be a sealed environment when the door is in a closed position.

[0039] In some embodiments, a semiconductor processing tool may be provided. The semiconductor processing tool may have a plurality of process modules for processing substrates, a wafer transport station connected to the plurality of process modules and having one or more vacuum transfer robots, an equipment front end module ("EFEM") with one or more atmosphere transfer robots, the EFEM configured to receive a plurality of front opening unified pods (FOUPs), an airlock interposed between the wafer transport station and the EFEM, either the ring storage carrier of any of the above embodiments engaged with the EFEM or the ring storage buffer of any of the above embodiments engaged with the EFEM, and a controller having one or more processors and one or more memories that store instructions for controlling the tool, the instructions are configured to cause the one or more processors to cause the one or more robots to transfer an edge ring between the ring storage buffer and the plurality of process modules.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] Reference to the following Figures is made in the discussion below; the Figures are not intended to be limiting in scope and are simply provided to facilitate the discussion below.

[0041] Figure 1 depicts an off-angle view of a ring storage carrier according to disclosed embodiments.

[0042] Figure 2 depicts an off-angle view of one ring support structure of Figure 1.

[0043] Figure 3 depicts a magnified potion of the ring support structure of Figure 2 as indicated by circle detail A-A in Figure 2.

[0044] Figure 4 depicts a different off-angle view of the ring storage carrier of Figure 1.

[0045] Figure 5 which depicts a top view of the ring storage carrier of Figure 4.

[0046] Figure 6 depicts a magnified, detail view of a cross-sectional area of one alignment rail of Figure 5.

[0047] Figure 7 depicts an off-angle view of the baseplate of Figure 1.

[0048] Figure 8 depicts an off-angle view of a ring storage carrier and a portion of an EFEM.

[0049] Figure 9 which depicts a top view of a ring carrier according to various embodiments.

[0050] Figure 10 depicts an off-angle view of a portion of the housing of Figure 1.

[0051] Figure 11 depicts the top view of Figure 5.

[0052] Figure 12 depicts the top view of the ring storage carrier of Figure 5 with an edge ring, according to various embodiments.

[0053] Figure 13 depicts an off-angle view of a ring storage buffer according to disclosed embodiments.

[0054] Figure 14 depicts an off-angle view of a portion of the ring storage buffer of Figure 13.

[0055] Figure 15 depicts a top view of the portion of the ring storage buffer assembly of Figure 14.

[0056] Figure 16 depicts the off-angle view of the portion of the ring storage buffer of Figure 14.

[0057] Figure 17 depicts a top view of Figure 15 along with an edge ring and ring carrier.

[0058] Figure 18 is a block diagram of a processing system suitable for conducting thin film deposition or etching processes in accordance with certain embodiments.

[0059] Figure 19 shows a schematic view of an embodiment of a multi-station processing tool.

[0060] The above-described Figures are provided to facilitate understanding of the concepts discussed in this disclosure, and are intended to be illustrative of some implementations that fall within the scope of this disclosure, but are not intended to be limiting— implementations consistent with this disclosure and which are not depicted in the Figures are still considered to be within the scope of this disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0061] Some semiconductor processing tools perform processing operations while using a removable edge ring that is positioned around the periphery of a substrate support in a processing chamber of the processing tool. Removable edge rings may perform a variety of functions during processing and after a particular amount of use, it is desirable to remove a used edge ring from the chamber and replace it with a new edge ring. It is advantageous to remove and replace edge rings in a fast and efficient manner. This may include providing storage for the new and used edge rings in the tool, and removing and replacing edge rings withthe robots of the tool, instead of manually, and while the tool is still under some operating conditions, such as a low pressure state, instead of at atmospheric or open conditions.

[0062] Some removable edge rings are positioned at the substrate support without concern for the rotational alignment, i.e., "clocking," of the edge ring with respect to the substrate support. New removable edge rings, and corresponding processes, are being used that do require specific rotational alignment, or clocking, of the edge ring with respect to the substrate support. Without the proper clocking of the edge ring, various processing parameters may not be met. Providing edge rings to the substrate support at the correct rotational alignment presents new and unique challenges in the storage and transfer of the edge rings within the processing tool. Provided herein are new carriers and buffers for edge rings that provide uniform alignment of edge rings within the carriers to thereby provide proper transfer and alignment of the edge rings within the tool. Also provided herein are sealed edge ring carriers that enable the storage and use of edge rings at various gas and pressure environments.

[0063] Some of the edge ring carriers, which may be considered a "ring storage carrier," provided herein are configured to engage with the load ports of EFEMs. Load ports are designed to have a common interface with EFEMs to allow different load ports to be interchangeably mounted to a given EFEM. This common interface is generally a flat surface on the exterior of the EFEM with a particular pattern of threaded holes that are positioned around a large rectangular opening so as to interface with bolts that may be passed through similarly positioned holes on a load port. The rectangular opening is sized to provide enough clearance to allow a FOUP door to be removed from the FOUP and slid downward so as to no longer block any part of the FOUP, thereby allowing wafers to be removed from, or placed into, the FOUP. Some of the edge ring carriers provided herein may therefore be configured with a similar FOUP door that can open and close the same as a FOUP, thereby allowing edge rings to be removed from, or placed into, the edge ring carrier.

[0064] Some edge ring carriers, which may be considered a "ring storage buffer," provided herein may be configured to interface with the EFEM, a load lock, or load port, of the semiconductor processing tool. The interface between the ring storage buffer and the EFEM, or between the ring storage buffer and the load locks or load ports, may have narrow, horizontal slot openings through which wafers and / or edge rings may be passed. Such an opening may be sealed by an external door that may press against a surface of the load lock or EFEM that is flush with the interior surface of the wall in which the load lock is located. The ring storagebuffers are configured to engage directly with the EFEM, thereby allowing edge rings to be removed from, or placed into, the ring storage buffer through the interface.

[0065] The edge ring carriers provided herein may provide various alignment features that are configured to cause an edge ring to be positioned in a specific location and alignment within the edge ring carrier. In some implementations of a ring storage carrier configured to engage with an EFEM, the ring storage carrier may have a plurality of support structures that each have a plurality of support fingers configured to support a plurality of edge rings. Each support finger of a sub-set of support fingers for one support structure may have a support pin extending upwards and configured to engage with a groove on the underside of an edge ring. The engagement of the edge ring with the one support pin provides one alignment point. The remaining support fingers of the other support structures may not have support pins. The ring storage carrier may also have two vertical alignment rods in the back of the ring storage carrier that are configured to be contacted by an edge ring positioned on the support structures and thereby provide two alignment points. The support pin and two alignment rails provide three contact, or alignment, points for the edge ring that together align the edge ring in a known position and orientation. This alignment enables proper clocking of the edge ring during storage in, and transport from, the ring storage carrier. In some implementations, the ring storage carrier may be sealed to provide a sealed environment that can engage with a sealed environment of an EFEM.

[0066] In some implementations of a ring storage buffer configured to engage with the EFEM, the ring storage carrier may have three support structures that each have a plurality of support fingers configured to support a plurality of edge rings. Each support finger may have a support pin extending upwards from the support finger and configured to engage with a groove on the underside of an edge ring. Each edge ring in the ring storage carrier is supported by three support pins. For each trio of support pins supporting one edge ring, the support pins may be positioned equidistant from each other around a center axis of the ring storage carrier. For example, each support pin of one support structure may be offset from the support pins of the other two support structures around the center axis by 120 degrees. In some implementations, the ring storage buffer may be sealed to provide a sealed environment that can engage with a sealed environment of the EFEM. In some implementations, a robot arm of the EFEM may retrieve new edge rings from the ring storage carrier and load them into the ring storage buffer, and the robot arm may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage buffer to transfer it to awafer transfer module of the semiconductor processing tool for transferring to a process module.

[0067] Some tools may utilize both the ring storage buffer and ring storage carrier, while some other tools only have one or the other.Example Ring Storage Carriers

[0068] Figure 1 depicts an off-angle view of a ring storage carrier according to disclosed embodiments. The ring storage carrier 100 has a housing 102 at least partially defined by a front side 104, a back side 106 opposite the front side 104, a top 108, and a baseplate 110 opposite the top 108. The front side 104 has an opening 112 configured to receive an edge ring. Although not shown here for clarity, ring storage carrier 100 also includes a movable door over the opening 112. The movable door includes similar or identical FOUR features and is therefore configured to be engaged and moved by an EFEM in order for a wafer transfer robot to access the edge rings stored in the ring storage carrier 100. The ring storage carrier 100 also includes a plurality of handles, one of which is shown 147, for a person to carry and position the ring storage carrier 100.

[0069] The ring storage carrier 100 also includes a plurality of support structures with each having a plurality of support fingers configured to support an edge ring. In Figure 1, the ring storage carrier 100 has four ring support structures 114A-D positioned inside the housing. Ring support structures 114A and 114B are visible on the left side of the Figure, ring support structure 114C is not visible, and ring support structure 114D is partially visible through the opening 112. Each ring support structure has a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the baseplate 110. Each support finger also extends along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis of the respective ring support structure. One support finger from each support structures 114A-D supports a single edge ring such that four support fingers support one edge ring.

[0070] For example, ring support structure 114A has a plurality of support fingers 116, three of which are identified, that are arranged along a vertical axis 118 which is perpendicular to the baseplate 110. Each support finger 116 of the plurality of support fingers 116 extends outwards along a second axis 120 perpendicular to the vertical axis 118. As discussed in more detail below, the support fingers of a subset of the plurality support fingers of one ring support structure each have a support pin 124 (two of which are identified in Figure 1) extending upwards away from the baseplate 110. In some embodiments, the remaining support fingers of that ring support structure do not have support pins. In some embodiments, the supportfingers of all the other ring support structures do not have support pins. For instance, in Figure 1, the support fingers of the ring support structure 114B do not have support pins. For the ring support structure 114A, a first set of the support fingers in dashed box 122 have a support pin. The remaining support fingers of the ring support structure 114A do not have support pins. The support fingers of one or more other ring support structures do not have support pins. In Figure 1, ring support structures 114B, 114C, and 114D do not have support pins.

[0071] Figure 2 depicts an off-angle view of one ring support structure of Figure 1. Here in Figure 2, the ring support structure 114A of ring storage carrier 100 which has support pins is shown. The ring support structure 114A has a plurality of support fingers 116A-M, thirteen in the depicted embodiment, that are arranged along the vertical axis 118. In other embodiments, the ring support structures 114A-D may have more or less support fingers, such as at least 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, or 16, for example. Each support finger 116A-M also extends outwards along the second axis 120 that is perpendicularto the vertical axis 118. A subset of the support fingers has support pins. Here, each support finger of a first set 122 of support fingers, which includes support fingers 116A-F, has a support pin, with support pins 124A-F corresponding with support fingers 116A-F, respectively. Each support pin 124A-F extends upwards in a direction along the vertical axis 118 and away from the baseplate (not shown) and towards the top (not shown) of the housing. In some instances, each support finger may have a top surface facing the top 108 of the housing 102 and a bottom surface opposite the top surface and facing the baseplate 110 of the housing 102. In Figure 2, for support fingers 116A- F, the corresponding support pins 124A-F may be considered to extend upwards and away from the top surfaces of support fingers 116A-F. Only two top surfaces 126A and 126F are expressly labeled in Figure 2 for clarity purposes.

[0072] In some implementations, the support fingers having the support pins may have a different width, or different width and length, than the support fingers without the support pins. In some such instances, the support fingers having the support pins may have a larger width than the support fingers without the support pins. Figure 3 depicts a magnified potion of the ring support structure of Figure 2 as indicated by circle detail A-A in Figure 2. In Figure 3, support finger 116F that has the support pin 124F and support finger 116G that does not have a support pin are shown. In some embodiments, the support fingers 116A-F having the support pins are used for aligning in-bound, or new, edge rings that require alignment while the support fingers 116G-M without support pins may be used with used edge rings that do not requirealignment. Only having support pins for support fingers holding edge rings may advantageously reduce complexity in the housing 102 and also reduce costs.

[0073] In some embodiments, support fingers without the support pins, like support fingers 116G-116M, may have corresponding ring contact structures 117G-117M, respectively, identified in Figures 2 and 3. The ring contact structures 117G-117M are configured to contact and support an edge ring. As shown in Figure 3, the ring contact structure 117G may extend above a surface 119G of the support finger 116G in order to provide the top most surface of the support finger 116G. In some implementations, the ring contact structure may be press-fit into the support finger. The ring contact structure may be comprised of a non-metal, such as a plastic, PEEK (polyetheretherketone) or Acetal, in order to reduce damage to the edge ring and reduce particle generation. In some embodiments, the support fingers 116B-116D of ring support structures 114B-114D each have a ring contact structure configured to contact and support an edge ring. All such ring contact structures may be configured the same as ring contact structure 117G shown in Figure 2, in some embodiments.

[0074] Support finger 116F has a first width W1 in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis 118 and perpendicular to the second axis 120, and support finger 116G has a second width W2 in the same direction, and the second width W2 is smaller than the first width Wl. Similarly, in some embodiments, the width of the support fingers of ring support structures without any support pins, e.g., ring support structures 114B-D, may have a different width than that of the support fingers with support pins. In some such instances, the width of all the support fingers of structures 114B-D may be the same as the width of the support fingers 116G-M of ring support structure 114A. The larger first width Wl may advantageously provide room and placement of the support pin in the corresponding support finger so that it can engage with a groove on the underside of the edge ring.

[0075] In some implementations, the length of the support fingers 116A-F with the support pins 124A-F may each have a length LI along the second axis 120 and the length of the support fingers 116G-M without the support pins may have the same length LI along the second axis 120 or may have a different length.

[0076] Referring back to Figure 1, the ring storage carrier 100 also includes two alignment rails inside the housing 102, one of which is visible 128A, that are configured to set a boundary for an edge ring in the housing 102. Each alignment rail extends along a rail axis (not shown) that is perpendicular to the baseplate 110, and parallel to the vertical axis 118. The alignment rails are interposed between the four ring support structures 114A-D and the back side 106when viewed from the top 108; the four ring support structures 114A-D are also interposed between the front side 104 and the alignment rails when viewed from the top 108.

[0077] Figure 4 depicts a different off-angle view of the ring storage carrier of Figure 1. Here, the top of the ring storage carrier 100 has been removed for visibility and a portion of the door 130 is shown in the opening 112 of the front side 104. Portions of all four ring support structures 114A-D are visible. Some support pins of the first set 122 of support fingers 116 of ring support structure 114A are also visible; some of these features are identified. For example, the top-most support finger 116A1 of ring support structure 114A, and its support pin 124A, are identified. Ring support structure 114A having the support pins and support structure 114D without any support pins are adjacent to the opening 112 and door 130. Ring support structures 114B and 114C are adjacent to the back side 106. As used herein, adjacent may mean next to, close, or near. In Figure 4, some ring contact structures are also identified, such as ring contact structure 117B1 of support finger 116B1 of ring support structure 114B, ring contact structure 117C1 of support finger 116C1 of ring support structure 114C, and ring contact structure 117D1 of support finger 116D1 of ring support structure 114D.

[0078] Also visible in Figure 4 are the two alignment rails 128A and 128B. As stated, these alignment rails extend along respective rail axes, one axis 132B is shown, that is perpendicular to the baseplate 110 and parallel to the vertical axis 118. These alignment rails 128A and 128B are interposed between the back side 106 and the support structures 114A-D. The alignment rails may have a height with respect to the baseplate 110 that is higher than the height of the top surface of the highest support fingers. For instance, each ring support structure has a support finger that is offset at the greatest distance from the baseplate 110 than the other support fingers of the ring support structure. These may be considered the top-most support fingers of each ring support structure. For instance, in Figure 4, support finger 116C1 of ring support structure 114C is the top-most support finger such that it is farthest from the baseplate 110 than the other support fingers of that ring support structure 114C. Similarly, support finger 116B1 of ring support structure 114B is the top-most support finger such that it is farthest from the baseplate 110 than the other support fingers of that ring support structure 114B. These top-most support fingers 116B1 and 116C1 may be offset from the baseplate by a height Hl. The alignment rails 128A and 128B may have a height H2 that is greater than the height Hl.

[0079] Figure 5 which depicts a top view of the ring storage carrier of Figure 4. Here, the top of the ring storage carrier has been removed and various features internal to the housing 102 are shown. The four ring support structures 114A-D are shown along with their correspondingtop-most support fingers 116A1-D1. Each support finger 116A-D extends along the corresponding second axis 120A-D that is perpendicular to the vertical axis of the corresponding ring support structure 114A-D (the vertical axes are perpendicular to the page of the Figure). For support finger 116A1, its support pin 124A on the top-most support finger 116A1, along with its width W1 and length LI are shown. In the depicted embodiment, the support fingers of the other ring support structures 114B-D have a different width and / or length than the support fingers with the support pins 124. For instance, the top-most support finger 116D1 has a width W3 that is less than width W1 of support finger 116A1.

[0080] As also seen in Figure 5, ring support structures 114A and 114B are adjacent to a first side 134A of the housing 102 and ring support structures 114C and 114D are adjacent to a second side 134B of the housing 102 that is opposite the first side 134A. Ring support structures 114A and 114D are also adjacent to the opening 112 and door 130, while ring support structures 114B and 114C are adjacent to the back side 106. Alignment rails 128A and 128B are interposed between ring support structures 114B and 114C and the back side 106.

[0081] In some embodiments, the alignment rails 128A and 128B may have a cross-sectional area perpendicular to their rail axes that is partially defined by a V-shape surface. This surface may be configured to contact the edge rings positioned on the support fingers and provide a point of contact for each edge ring and thereby partially aligning the edge rings. In some implementations, it may be advantageous to provide a contact surface having a small surface area which in turn can limit particle generation. Figure 6 depicts a magnified, detail view of a cross-sectional area of one alignment rail of Figure 5. Here, the alignment rail 128B is shown along with its V-shaped surface 136 that forms a rounded point 138 for contacting the edge rings.

[0082] In some embodiments, the ring storage carrier may form a partially sealed, or fully sealed, environment. For instance, the sides and joints of the housing 102 may have a plurality of gaskets that provide an air-tight seal between the sides, between the sides and top, and between the sides and the baseplate. In some implementations, the baseplate may have a gasket around a part of its internal surface to seal with the sides, front, and back. Figure 7 depicts an off-angle view of the baseplate of Figure 1. Here, a gasket 140 extends around a recessed portion of the front and sides of the baseplate 110. When the front, sides, and back of the housing are connected with the baseplate, air-tight seals are formed between these housing elements and the baseplate. Further, seals or gaskets may be provided between the other elements of the housing, such as between sides, between the top and sides, and betweenthe front and the sides. These gaskets provide air-tight seals between adjoining elements. When the door 130 is in a closed position, the housing is at least a fully or partially sealed environment.

[0083] In some embodiments, the ring storage carrier may be configured to engage with, or interface with, a gas system of an EFEM. Some such EFEM gas systems have a plurality of gas interfaces that extend upwards from a top surface of the EFEM. These gas interfaces are configured to engage with the baseplate of a FOUR or ring storage carrier and provide a fluidic connection between the EFEM gas system and the FOUR or ring storage carrier. In some implementations of the ring storage carrier described herein, the ring storage carrier may have a plurality of purge ports that are configured to engage with the EFEM gas system. Referring back to Figure 5, the baseplate 110 includes four purge ports 142A-D that extend through the baseplate 110 and provide a fluidic connection between the internal environment of the housing 102 of the environment external to the housing 102. These purge ports 142A-D are configured to engage with the EFEM gas system such that gas from the EFEM gas system can flow into the internal environment of the housing 102. The purge ports 142A-D are also illustrated in Figure 7. In Figure 5, purge ports 142A and 142D are adjacent to the opening 112 and interposed between the opening 112 and ring support structures 114A and 114D. Purge ports 142B and 142C are adjacent to the back side 106 and interposed between the back side 106 and ring support structures 114B and 114C. The sealed environment of the housing 102 along with these purge ports 142A-D enables purge gas to be flowed from an EFEM gas system into the ring storage carrier 100. In some embodiments, each purge port may be a circular hole. In other embodiments, each purge port may be a circle sectioned into four equal sections by a cross, thereby creating four pie-shaped holes that together are configured to receive a grommet. The purge ports also prevent moisture formation and cross-contamination of edge rings to each other in the same ring storage carrier.

[0084] Figure 8 depicts an off-angle view of a ring storage carrier and a portion of an EFEM. Here, the ring storage carrier 100 of Figure 1 is provided along with a portion of an EFEM that has a load port 143 and a portion of a gas system 145. The ring storage carrier 100 is engaged with the portion of the gas system 145 such that the EFEM gas system can flow gas upwards into the ring storage carrier 100. Further, the load port 143 is configured to engage with the ring storage carrier 100 in order to open the door, remove edge rings from the ring storage carrier 100, and load edge rings into the ring storage carrier 100 using a ring carrier attached to an end effector.

[0085] The ring storage carrier may also have, in some implementations, additional or alternative features in the bottom of the housing. For instance, referring back to Figure 1, the ring storage carrier 100 may have two end effector alignment posts 144A and 144B that extend upwards from the baseplate 110 and are adjacent to the door 130. Figure 5 also shows these features. These posts 144A and 144B extend towards the top 108. In some instances, the height of these pins may be less than the height of the lowest support fingers of the ring support structures. This lower height may prevent the pins from interfering with movement of the edge rings. The end effector alignment posts 144A and 144B are configured to be engaged with, such as by sensors or with direct contact, an end effector for the end effector to become aligned with the ring storage carrier 100.

[0086] In some embodiments, the ring storage carrier may have a plurality of ring carrier support posts extending upwards from the baseplate 110 and configured to receive and support a ring carrier. In Figure 1, four ring carrier support posts 146A-D are seen extending from the baseplate 110 towards the top 108. These posts each have one or more recessed features that can support a surface of the ring carrier. Figures 4 and 5 also illustrate these posts.

[0087] The ring storage carrier may also have the ring carrier 148 positioned on these support posts as shown in Figures 4 and 5. An example ring carrier 148 can be seen by itself in Figure 9 which depicts a top view of a ring carrier according to various embodiments. The ring carrier 148 has three support pads 162 configured to engage with an edge ring. The support pads may be made of an elastomer and may have a shape of an O-ring, a flat circle, or a button. The ring carrier 148 also include two side notches 157A and 157B that are configured to allow the ring carrier 148 to be inserted into the housing 102 and engage with and supported by the four ring carrier support posts 146A-D. The ring carrier 148 also has a tip 150, encircled by the dashed ellipse, with a notch 152. The tip 150 has a first surface offset 154 from a center point 156 of the ring carrier by a tip distance DI, and the notch has a first notch surface offset 158 from the center point 156 by a notch distance D2 less than the tip distance DI. The notch 152 also has a side notch surface 160 spanning between the first surface 154 and the first notch surface 158. In some implementations, the notch of the ring carrier may advantageously enable the ring carrier to be used with features of the ring storage buffer provided below. In some embodiments, the notch 152 may have other shapes, such as semi-circular, semi-elliptical, or linear, while in others, there may be no notch but instead ring carrier with a narrow-width tip.

[0088] The ring storage carrier may have a ring carrier notch configured to receive the tip of a ring carrier. In some implementations, this ring carrier notch maybe configured to receive the tip of ring carrier 148. In Figures 4 and 5, the housing 102 includes an example ring carrier notch 164 that has received the tip of the ring carrier 148. Figure 10 depicts an off-angle view of a portion of the housing of Figure 1. This portion of the housing is adjacent to the back side 106 and has the ring carrier notch 164. The ring carrier notch 164 has a first surface 166 offset from a center axis of the base plate (not shown) by a first distance, represented by arrow DN1, and a second surface 168 offset from the center axis (not shown), by a second distance, represented by arrow DN2 that is less than the first distance. These distances DN1 and DN2 are also shown in Figure 5. As seen in Figure 5, the ring carrier notch 164 is shaped to receive the tip of the ring carrier 148 that also includes a notch 152. As provided below, in some implementations, the notch 152 of the ring carrier 148 enables the ring carrier 148 to align properly inside the ring storage buffer and retrieve or place an edge ring therein without interfering with components in the ring storage buffer, such as its support fingers. The ring carrier 148 is configured to be operated by robotics. In some embodiments, the tip 154 and notch 164 are designed with corner chamfers or rounded corners so that the ring carrier 148 can move into its proper alignment position even when the entry angle is slightly misaligned.

[0089] As noted above, each ring support structure has a plurality of support fingers for supporting edge rings. One support finger of each ring support structure is configured to support an edge ring such that each edge ring positioned in the ring storage carrier is supported by one support finger of each ring support structure. For example, the support fingers of the four ring support structures define a plurality of ring support planes. Each ring support plane is perpendicular to the vertical axis of the ring support structures and defined by one support finger of each ring support structure. These support planes may be considered coplanar with the top views of Figure 5, for example. A support plane is illustrated in Figure 11 which depicts the top view of Figure 5. Here in Figure 11, the four ring support structures 114A-D are shown along with their respective top-most support fingers 116A1-116D1. These four support fingers 116A1-116D1 at least partially define a ring support plane 172, which is illustrated as a shaded, partially transparent circle with a dash-dot-dash boundary. The vertical axes of ring support structures 114A-D are illustrated "X" and labeled 118A-D, respectively. In some embodiments, the ring support plane 172 maybe considered perpendicular to a center axis 174 of the housing102.

[0090] In some embodiments, the ring support plane 172 is defined by one support pin of one support finger and three ring support structures of three other support fingers. In some such instances, the edge ring directly contacts, and is supported by, the one support pin of one support finger and three ring support structures of three other support fingers. For instance, in Figure 11, support finger 116B1 includes ring contact structure 117B1, support finger 116C1 includes ring contact structure 117C1, and support finger 116D1 includes ring contact structure 117D1. The ring support plane 172 may be defined by support pin 124A and ring support structures 117B1-117D1. Together, these four elements provide contact support for an edge ring.

[0091] In the depicted embodiment, the four ring support structures 114A-D each have 13 support fingers 116A-D. These 13 support fingers 116A-D may therefore at least partially define 13 separate ring support planes. As provided herein, some implementations may have more support fingers, such as at least 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8, while others have more than 13, such at 14 or 15.

[0092] Each ring support plane that is defined in part by the support fingers of the first set 122 of support fingers of ring support structure 114A that each have a support pin 124, is at least partially defined by the corresponding support pin 116. For example, in Figure 11 the ring support plane 172 is at least partially defined by the support finger 116A1 and the support pin 124A of that support finger 116A1. The other three remaining support fingers 116B1-116D1 do not have support pins, as shown. Referring back to the ring support structure 114A shown in Figure 2, this may be the case for support fingers 116A-116F. For instance, in some implementations, for each ring support plane at least partially defined by support fingers 116A- 116F, the three support fingers of each other ring support structures 116B-116D does not have a support pin. For the ring support planes at least partially defined by support fingers 116G- 116M, the three support fingers of each other ring support structure 116B-116D do not have a support pin.

[0093] Figure 12 depicts the top view of the ring storage carrier of Figure 5 with an edge ring, according to various embodiments. Here, the top is removed for clarity and four ring support structures 114A-D are shown along with their respective top-most support fingers 116A1- 116D1. The support pin 124A of the support finger 116A1 of support structure 114A is also visible along with ring contact structures 117B1-117D1. An edge ring 176, shown as semitransparent, is shown. The edge ring 176 is positioned on the ring support plane 172 of Figure 11. For instance, the support pin 124A engages with the underside of the edge ring 176 andsupports the edge ring 176. In some implementations, the top surfaces of support fingers 116B1-D1 also contact and support the edge ring 176. In some other embodiments, like shown in Figure 12, ring contact structures 117B1-117D1 contact and support the edge ring 176.

[0094] The engagement between the edge ring 176 and the support pin 124 provides a first alignment point. In some instances, the ring storage carrier 100 is also configured to have edge ring 176 contact the alignment rails 128A and 128B when the edge ring 176 is placed in the ring storage carrier 100. In Figure 12, edge ring 176 contacts alignment rail 128A at point 178A and contact alignment rail 128B at point 178B. Together, support pin 124, point 178A, and point 178B provide three alignment points of contact between the housing 102 and the edge ring 176. This example alignment mechanism inside the ring storage carrier 100 enables reliable edge ring alignment, or clocking, so that the edge ring is always positioned in a known orientation before it is removed from the ring storage carrier 100. In some embodiments, providing only one support pin per ring support plane 172 allows an index point alignment check while not over constraining the exact positioning of the edge ring on other fingers. In other words, the exact ring position on support fingers without a support pin may be different from one support plane to another. In some embodiments, all support pins may be located on a different support structure, such as on 114D instead of 114A. In some embodiments, support pins may not all located on the same support structure. For example, the support pins may alternate between 114A and 114D from one ring support plane to another. In some embodiments, more than one support pin can be used for one or more of the ring support planes. Having alternating support pin structure may be advantageous for storing edge rings of different type such that the first type is aligned via the support pin on 114A while the second type is aligned via the support pin on 114D. In some examples, the support pins can be located on 114B or 114C in the alternating support pin configuration to support four or more types of edge rings. In some embodiments, one or more fingers on the ring support structures 114A-D are reconfigurable such that they can be attached and reattached to create different ring support planes between each use.

[0095] In some implementations, the door 130 may have one or more compression features 179 that are configured to push the edge ring towards the back 106 and come into contact with the alignment rails 128A and 128B. These may be, for example, bumpers or spring loaded pads or rollers and illustrated in Figure 12. In some instances, the rollers may be on spring fingers that exhibit an elastic, or spring force, onto the edge rings which together with the alignmentrails 128A and 128B, may hold the edge rings in a stationary position within the ring storage carrier 100. In some embodiments, the rollers may be made of a plastic or a polymer.

[0096] In some embodiments, the top 108 of the housing 102 may have a window 170 positioned above the ring support structure 116A having the support pins 124. Referring back to Figure 1, a portion of the window 170 is shown. When viewed from the top 108, the window 170 is over the support pins of the ring support structure 116A such that a portion of the topmost support finger 116A1 and its support pin 124A are visible through the window 170. This window advantageously allows for visibility of the ring and support pins during alignment of the EFEM robot arm with the ring storage carrier.

[0097] In some implementations, like shown in Figure 1, the ring support structures 114A-D are positioned directly on the baseplate 110, but in other implementations, the support structures 114A-D may be positioned indirectly on the baseplate 110 or supported by another feature in the housing 102, such as a side wall or the top 108.

[0098] In some embodiments, the support pins may be made of a material that comprises sapphire. Sapphire may, in some instances, withstand damage from the edge ring and also prevent particle generation. In some other embodiments, the support pins may be made of a material that comprises a polymer, a plastic, a dielectric, a ceramic, or a metal.Example Ring Storage Buffers

[0099] As provided above, a ring storage buffer may be provided in some additional or alternative embodiments. The ring storage buffer is configured to be connected to a portion of the semiconductor processing tool, which can include the EFEM, a load port of a wafer transfer module, or other element that is in fluidic connection with the process modules. In some embodiments, when connected to the EFEM, the ring storage buffer may be fluidical ly connected, when its door is open, to the EFEM environment. In some instances, when connected to the wafer transfer module, the ring storage buffer may be fluidically connected, when its door is open, to the "process side" or some process conditions of the process modules, such as at a lower pressure than atmospheric. To increase throughput and reduce possible moisture or particulate ingress into the tool, it may be advantageous to use a ring storage buffer connected to the EFEM to store and retrieve new edge rings for transfer to the process module. By providing additional alignment features described herein, the disclosed ring storage buffer does not need to be manually reloaded with new edge rings. Rather, new edge rings can be automatically loaded from another location, such as a ring storage carrier provided herein, to the ring storage buffer without opening the buffer in a location in the fabrication facilityenvironment, such as a door that when opened, exposes the inside of the buffer to the fabrication facility environment. The new alignment features within the ring storage buffer provide sufficient alignment for properly clocking the edge ring during transport into and out of the ring storage buffer. This can reduce unwanted moisture and particle ingress, and advantageously increase throughput by not having to change process conditions inside the buffer or the portion of the tool to which the buffer is connected.

[0100] For example, the ring storage buffer may be connected to the EFEM and the tool may retrieve new edge rings from the buffer and then transfer them to the process module. When used together with the ring storage carrier, the EFEM may retrieve edge rings one at a time from the ring storage carrier, transfer them to the ring storage buffer, and when needed during or after some processing operations, the EFEM can retrieve the new edge rings one at a time from the ring storage buffer for transport to the process modules. In some embodiments, this provides a faster ring exchange from the ring storage buffer to a process module than from the ring storage carrier, provides less impact on the EFEM's environment because less oxygen and moisture enter the EFEM, and an additional alignment point, or rotational alignment point, is provided by the three points of contact in the ring storage buffer.

[0101] Figure 13 depicts an off-angle view of a ring storage buffer according to disclosed embodiments. The ring storage buffer 1480 has a housing 1482 with a front 1484 opposite a back side 1486, a top 1488, and a bottom, e.g., baseplate 1490. The front 1484 defines an opening 1492 which may have a door, not shown, and through which edge rings may be moved into and out of the ring storage buffer 1480. The baseplate 1490 also includes a rotation plate 1494 positioned thereon. The rotation plate 1494 is configured to be rotated about a center axis 1495 of the baseplate 1490 to assist with aligning the edge rings in the ring storage buffer 1480. In some embodiments, the rotation plate 1494 may be rotated by about + / - 3 degrees.

[0102] The ring storage buffer also has three ring support structures positioned on the rotation plate. Ring support structure 1496A and 1496C are mostly visible while ring support structure 1496B is mostly obscured. These structures and other features are discussed and shown further in Figure 14 which depicts an off-angle view of a portion of the ring storage buffer of Figure 13. Here in Figure 14, the top, back, sides, and baseplate of the housing have been removed for clarity. The rotation plate 1494 is shown along with the three ring support structures 1496A-C. Each ring support structure 1496A-C includes a plurality of support fingers 1498A-C, respectively, and in the depicted embodiment, each ring support structure has five support fingers. In some embodiments, each ring support structure may have six supportfingers thereby being configured to support six edge rings. The support fingers 1498A-C are arranged along a vertical axis 14100A-C, respectively, perpendicular to the rotation plate 1494. Each support finger 1498 extends along an axis 14102A-C perpendicular to the respective vertical axis 14100A-C of the corresponding ring support structure 1496A-C. Each support finger 1498 has a support pin 14104 that extends upwards away from the rotation plate 1494. For clarity, only some of these features are identified in Figure 14. For example, the uppermost support finger 1498A1 of ring support structure 1496A has a support pin 14104A1, the support finger 1498B3 third from the top of ring support structure 1496B has a support pin 14104B3, and the support finger 1498C2 second from the top of ring support structure 1496C has a support pin 14104C2. As can be seen, every support finger 1498 of every ring support structure in the depicted embodiment includes the support pin.

[0103] In order to provide clocking and alignment of the edge rings positioned in the ring station buffer, the support pins of each ring support structure are positioned substantially equidistant about the center axis of the rotation plate 1494. Put another way, each support pin of one ring support structure is offset about the center axis from the support rings of the other ring support structures by about 120 degrees. Further, providing three support pins for each edge ring provides three points of contact that are needed for aligning the edge ring in the ring station buffer. Figure 15 depicts a top view of the portion of the ring storage buffer assembly of Figure 14. The three ring support structures 1496A-C are shown along with the top-most support finger 1498A1-C1, respectively, and the corresponding support pin 14104A1-C1, respectively. The support pins 14104A1-C1 are arranged about the center axis 1495 equidistant from each other. In some instances, these support pins may be considered arranged about a referential circle 14106 that is perpendicular to the center axis 1495 and intersects each support pin 14104A1-C1. Each support pin 14104A1-C1 is arranged on that circle and equidistance on that circle from the other support pins. For instance, support pin 14104A1 is positioned about, or substantially (such as within + / - 5%, 1%), 120 degrees around the center axis 1495 from support pin 14104B1 and 14104C1. Similarly, support pin 14104B1 is positioned about, or substantially (such as within + / - 5%, 1%), 120 degrees around the center axis 1495 from support pin 14104A1 and 14104C1, and support pin 14104C1 is positioned about, or substantially (such as within + / - 5%, 1%), 120 degrees around the center axis 1495 from support pin 14104Al and 14104B1.

[0104] Similar to above, the support fingers of the three ring support structures define a plurality of ring support planes. In Figure 15, the ring support plane may be represented byreferential circle 14106, which is also shaded and partially transparent. Each ring support plane, such as 14106 of Figure 15, is perpendicular to the center axis 1495 and defined by one support pin of each ring support structure. For example, ring support plane 14106 is defined by support pin 14104A1 of ring support structure 1496A, support pin 14104B1 of ring support structure 1496B, and support pin 14104C1 of ring support structure 1496C. In some instances, the ring support plane 14106 is defined by the top-most surface of support finger 1498A1 of ring support structure 1496A, the top-most surface support finger 1498B1 of ring support structure 1496B, and the top-most surface of support finger 1498C1 of ring support structure 1496C. The ring support plane 14106 is also visible in Figure 16 which depicts the off-angle view of the portion of the ring storage buffer of Figure 14. As can be seen here, ring support plane 14106 is defined by the support pin 14104A1 of the top-most support finger 1498A1 of ring support structure 1496A, the support pin 14104B1 of the top-most support finger 1498B1 of ring support structure 1496B, and the support pin 14104C1 of the top-most support finger 1498C1 of ring support structure 1496C.

[0105] Similar to above, in some embodiments, the support pins of the ring buffer station may be made of a material that comprises sapphire. In some other embodiments, the support pins may be made of a material that comprises a polymer, a plastic, a ceramic, glass, or a metal.

[0106] In some embodiments, like shown in Figures 14-16, the ring buffer station 1480 has only three ring support structures 1496A-C. The ring storage buffer 1480 does not have more than, or less than, three ring support structures 1496A-C.

[0107] Referring back to Figure 13, the top 1488 may have a plurality of windows 14108A-C. Each window may be positioned over a corresponding ring support structure. For example window 14108A is positioned over ring support structure 1496A, window 14108B is positioned over ring support structure 1496B, and window 14108C is positioned over ring support structure 1496C. When viewed from an angle normal to the top 1488, the ring support structure, including the support pin on the corresponding support finger, is visible through the corresponding window. This may advantageously allow for calibration and alignment of a robot arm without opening the ring buffer station.

[0108] In some embodiments, the ring storage buffer may form a partially sealed, or fully sealed, environment. For instance, the sides and joints of the housing 1482 may have a plurality of gaskets that provide an air-tight seal between the sides, between the sides and top, and between the sides and the baseplate. In some implementations, the baseplate may have a gasket around a part of its internal surface to seal with the sides, front, and back. When thefront, sides, and back of the housing are connected with the baseplate, air-tight seals are formed between these housing elements and the baseplate. Further, seals or gaskets may be provided between the other elements of the housing, such as between sides, between the top and sides, and between the front and the sides. These gaskets provide air-tight seals between adjoining elements. When the door of the ring storage buffer is in a closed position, the housing is at least a fully or partially sealed environment. This sealing advantageously allows the ring storage buffer to be connected to the internal environment of the tool and to have edge rings moved into and out of the ring storage buffer.

[0109] As mentioned above, the ring carrier 148 shown in Figures 4, 5, 9, and 12, for instance, is configured to extend into the ring storage buffer 1480 and transfer an edge ring into and out of the ring storage buffer 1480. The notch 152 at the tip 150 of the ring carrier 148 allows it to reach an edge ring in the ring storage buffer 1480 without contacting a ring support structure 1496A-C as illustrated in Figure 17. Figure 17 depicts a top view of Figure 15 along with an edge ring and ring carrier. Here, an edge ring 176, a ring carrier 148, and the ring support structures 1496A-C of the ring storage buffer 1480 are depicted. The notch of the ring carrier 148 enables it to get close to, but not contact, the ring support structure 1496B so that the ring carrier 148 can provide the edge ring 176 onto the ring support structures 1496A-C, or can lift the edge ring 176 from the ring support structures 1496A-C. Without this notch, the ring carrier 148 would not be able to reach the edge ring 176 given the arrangement and positioning of the ring support structures 1496A-C in the ring storage buffer 1480. As can be seen in Figure 17, the support finger 1498B1 extends within the ring storage buffer housing 1482 and would prevent a ring carrier from reaching and engaging with an edge ring 176 stored therein. The ring carrier 148 in this example advantageously includes the notch 152 described above which provides a clearance area for the support finger 1498B1. This configuration allows the ring carrier 148 to reach deeper into to the ring storage buffer housing 1482 without contacting the support finger 1498B1 so an edge ring can be retrieved from and placed in the ring storage buffer housing 1482.Example Systems and Apparatuses

[0110] Semiconductor processing systems, tools, and / or apparatuses may use a ring storage carrier, a ring storage buffer, or both a ring storage carrier and ring storage buffer described herein.

[0111] Figure 18 is a block diagram of a processing system suitable for conducting thin film deposition or etching processes in accordance with certain embodiments. The system 1900includes an equipment front end module (EFEM) 1919 connected to a transfer module 1903. As provided above, some implementations of an EFEM 1919 provide an atmospheric transfer chamber that has an atmospheric robot (not shown) configured to remove wafers from a source module 1901, which may be a FOUR. The wafer source module 1901 is where wafers may be stored before and after processing. The system 1900 also includes a ring storage carrier 1923 engaged with the EFEM. The ring storage carrier 1923 may be any of the ring storage carriers provided herein. The ring storage carrier 1923 may store unused and used edge rings. For example, the first set 122 of the support fingers 116A-F with the support pins 124A-F shown in Figure 2 are configured to support unused edge rings and support fingers 116G-M are configured to support used edge rings. The atmospheric robot of the EFEM is also configured to remove edge rings from the ring storage carrier 1923 and to place edge rings into the ring storage carrier 1923. In some embodiments, as provided above, the ring storage carrier 1923 may provide a sealed environment that enables it to have a purge gas flowed therethrough to remove unwanted moisture and contaminants. Further, the sealed environment may enable it to engage with an EFEM having a sealed environment.

[0112] The transfer module 1903 provides a clean, pressurized or low pressure vacuum environment to minimize risk of contamination of substrates and edge rings being processed as they are moved between various reactor modules. A wafer transfer device (generally a robot arm unit) in the transfer module 1903 moves the wafers and edge rings between various elements of the system 1900. For example, the wafer transfer device may move wafers from various from load locks 1921 to and among the modules mounted on the transfer module 1903. The wafer transfer device of the transfer module 1903 may also receive or retrieve an edge ring from the load locks 1921 or the EFEM 1919. Mounted on the transfer module 1903 are two multi-station reactors 1909 and 1910, each capable of performing atomic layer deposition (ALD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD), atomic layer etching (ALE), or other deposition or etching process according to certain embodiments. Reactors 1909 and 1910 may include multiple stations 1911, 1913, 1915, and 1917 that may sequentially or non-sequentially perform operations in accordance with disclosed embodiments. The stations may include a heated pedestal or substrate support, one or more gas inlets or showerhead or dispersion plate. The transfer module 1903 is configured to transfer substrates and edge rings to reactors 1909 and 1910.

[0113] Also mounted on the transfer module 1903 may be one or more single or multi-station modules 1907 capable of performing plasma or chemical (non-plasma) pre-cleans, or any otherprocesses described in relation to the disclosed methods. The module 1907 may in some cases be used for various treatments to, for example, prepare a substrate for a deposition process. The module 1907 may also be designed / configured to perform various other processes such as etching or polishing. An atmospheric robot (not shown) in the atmospheric transfer chamber 1919 may first remove wafers from the source modules 1901 to load locks 1921.

[0114] Alternatively or additionally, a ring storage buffer 1927 may be connected to the EFEM 1919. The ring storage buffer 1927 may be any of the ring storage buffers provided herein. The ring storage buffer 1927 may store unused edge rings for use in the any of process modules 1907, 1909, or 1910. The atmospheric robot of the EFEM may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage buffer 1927 and then transfer it the wafer transfer module 1903 which transfers it to a processing station in one of the process modules 1907, 1909, or 1910. The atmospheric robot of the EFEM may also retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage carrier 1923 and transfer it to the ring storage buffer 1927 in order to restock or reload the ring storage buffer 1927. In some instances, the ring storage buffer 1927 provides a sealed environment that allows it to be exposed to the environment of the EFEM 1919 without changing or adjusting the conditions of the environment. This advantageously allows for higher throughput when reloading the ring storage buffer 1927 and reduces unwanted moisture or particulate ingress into the ring storage buffer 1925 during the reloading. In some embodiments, the EFEM environment 1919 may be a recirculated ultra clean nitrogen environment.

[0115] Alternatively or additionally, a ring storage buffer 1925 may be connected to the transfer module 1903. The ring storage buffer 1925 may be any of the ring storage buffers provided herein. The ring storage buffer 1925 may store unused edge rings for use in the any of process modules 1907, 1909, or 1910. The wafer transfer device of the transfer module 1903 may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage buffer 1925 and then transfer it to a processing station in one of the process modules 1907, 1909, or 1910. The wafer transfer device of the transfer module 1903 may also retrieve or receive an edge ring from the EFEM 119 or load lock 1921 and transfer it to the ring storage buffer 1925 in order to restock or reload the ring storage buffer 1925. In some instances, the ring storage buffer 1925 provides a sealed environment that allows it to be exposed to the environment of the wafer transfer module 1903 without changing or adjusting the conditions of the environment. This advantageously allows for higher throughput when reloading the ring storage buffer 1925 and reduces unwanted moisture or particulate ingress into the ring storage buffer 1925 during the reloading.

[0116] In some embodiments, the system 1900 may execute various techniques. In one example technique, the ring storage carrier 1923 and the ring storage buffer 1927 provided herein may both be engaged with the EFEM. The atmospheric robot of the EFEM may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage carrier 1923 and transfer the edge ring to the ring storage buffer 1927 where the three points of contact / alignment provide the necessary clocking and alignment of the edge rings therein. The atmospheric robot of the EFEM may retrieve one edge ring from the ring storage buffer 1927 and transfer it to the wafer transfer module 1903, which may include a load lock 1921. The wafer transfer device of the wafer transfer module 1903 may, in some instances, transfer the edge ring to a process station of one process modules 1907, 1909, or 1910 connected to the wafer transfer module 1903. The wafer transfer device of the wafer transfer module 1903 may also transfer a used edge ring to the atmospheric robot of the EFEM which may transfer the used edge ring to the ring storage buffer 1927 and then from the ring storage buffer 1927 to the ring storage carrier 1923.

[0117] In another example technique, the ring storage carrier 1923 provided herein may be provided and engaged with an EFEM. The atmospheric robot of the EFEM may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage carrier 1923 and transfer the edge ring to the wafer transfer module 1903, which may include a load lock 1921. The wafer transfer device of the wafer transfer module 1903 may, in some instances, transfer the edge ring to a process station of one process modules 1907, 1909, or 1910 connected to the wafer transfer module 1903. In some implementations, the wafer transfer device of the wafer transfer module 1903 may transfer the edge ring to the ring storage buffer 1925 connected to the wafer transfer module 1903. The wafer transfer device of the wafer transfer module 1903 may also transfer an edge ring from the ring storage buffer 1925 to a process station of one process modules 1907, 1909, or 1910 connected to the wafer transfer module 1903. The wafer transfer device of the wafer transfer module 1903 may also transfer a used edge ring to the EFEM and the atmospheric robot of the EFEM may transfer the used edge ring to the ring storage carrier 1923.

[0118] In various embodiments, a system controller 1929 is employed to control process conditions during processing. The controller is also employed and configured to transfer the edge rings as provided herein. The controller 1929 will typically include one or more memory devices and one or more processors. A processor may include a CPU or computer, analog and / or digital input / output connections, stepper motor controller boards, etc.

[0119] The controller 1929 may control all of the activities of the processing apparatus. The system controller 1929 executes system control software, including sets of instructions forcontrolling the timing, mixture of gases, chamber pressure, chamber temperature, wafer temperature, radio frequency (RF) power levels, wafer chuck or pedestal position, and other parameters of a particular process. Other computer programs stored on memory devices associated with the controller 1929 may be employed in some embodiments.

[0120] Typically there will be a user interface associated with the controller 1929. The user interface may include a display screen, graphical software displays of the apparatus and / or process conditions, and user input devices such as pointing devices, keyboards, touch screens, microphones, etc.

[0121] System control logic may be configured in any suitable way. In general, the logic can be designed or configured in hardware and / or software. The instructions for controlling the drive circuitry may be hard coded or provided as software. The instructions may be provided by "programming." Such programming is understood to include logic of any form, including hard coded logic in digital signal processors, application-specific integrated circuits, and other devices which have specific algorithms implemented as hardware. Programming is also understood to include software or firmware instructions that may be executed on a general purpose processor. System control software may be coded in any suitable computer readable programming language.

[0122] The computer program code for controlling the germanium-containing reducing agent pulses, hydrogen flow, and tungsten-containing precursor pulses, and other processes in a process sequence can be written in any conventional computer readable programming language: for example, assembly language, C, C++, Pascal, Fortran, or others. Compiled object code or script is executed by the processor to perform the tasks identified in the program. Also as indicated, the program code may be hard coded.

[0123] The controller parameters relate to process conditions, such as, for example, process gas composition and flow rates, temperature, pressure, cooling gas pressure, substrate temperature, and chamber wall temperature. These parameters are provided to the user in the form of a recipe, and may be entered utilizing the user interface. Signals for monitoring the process may be provided by analog and / or digital input connections of the system controller 1929. The signals for controlling the process are output on the analog and digital output connections of the apparatus 1900.

[0124] The system software may be designed or configured in many different ways. For example, various chamber component subroutines or control objects may be written to control operation of the chamber components necessary to carry out the deposition processes (andother processes, in some cases) in accordance with the disclosed embodiments. Examples of programs or sections of programs for this purpose include substrate positioning code, process gas control code, pressure control code, and heater control code.

[0125] In some implementations, a controller 1929 is part of a system, which may be part of the above-described examples. Such systems can include semiconductor processing equipment, including a processing tool ortools, chamber or chambers, a platform or platforms for processing, and / or specific processing components (a wafer pedestal, a gas flow system, etc.). These systems may be integrated with electronics for controlling their operation before, during, and after processing of a semiconductor wafer or substrate. The electronics may be referred to as the "controller," which may control various components or subparts of the system or systems. The controller 1929, depending on the processing requirements and / or the type of system, may be programmed to control any of the processes disclosed herein, including the delivery of processing gases, temperature settings (e.g., heating and / or cooling), pressure settings, vacuum settings, power settings, radio frequency (RF) generator settings in some systems, RF matching circuit settings, frequency settings, flow rate settings, fluid delivery settings, positional and operation settings, wafer transfers into and out of a tool and other transfer tools and / or load locks connected to or interfaced with a specific system.

[0126] Broadly speaking, the controller may be defined as electronics having various integrated circuits, logic, memory, and / or software that receive instructions, issue instructions, control operation, enable cleaning operations, enable endpoint measurements, and the like. The integrated circuits may include chips in the form of firmware that store program instructions, digital signal processors (DSPs), chips defined as application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and / or one or more microprocessors, or microcontrollers that execute program instructions (e.g., software). Program instructions may be instructions communicated to the controller in the form of various individual settings (or program files), defining operational parameters for carrying out a particular process on or for a semiconductor wafer or to a system. The operational parameters may, in some embodiments, be part of a recipe defined by process engineers to accomplish one or more processing steps during the fabrication of one or more layers, materials, metals, oxides, silicon, silicon dioxide, surfaces, circuits, and / or dies of a wafer.

[0127] The controller, in some implementations, may be a part of or coupled to a computer that is integrated with, coupled to the system, otherwise networked to the system, or a combination thereof. For example, the controller may be in the "cloud" or all or a part of a fabhost computer system, which can allow for remote access of the wafer processing. The computer may enable remote access to the system to monitor current progress of fabrication operations, examine a history of past fabrication operations, examine trends or performance metrics from a plurality of fabrication operations, to change parameters of current processing, to set processing steps to follow a current processing, or to start a new process. In some examples, a remote computer (e.g. a server) can provide process recipes to a system over a network, which may include a local network or the Internet. The remote computer may include a user interface that enables entry or programming of parameters and / or settings, which are then communicated to the system from the remote computer. In some examples, the controller receives instructions in the form of data, which specify parameters for each of the processing steps to be performed during one or more operations. It should be understood that the parameters may be specific to the type of process to be performed and the type of tool that the controller is configured to interface with or control. Thus as described above, the controller may be distributed, such as by comprising one or more discrete controllers that are networked together and working towards a common purpose, such as the processes and controls described herein. An example of a distributed controller for such purposes would be one or more integrated circuits on a chamber in communication with one or more integrated circuits located remotely (such as at the platform level or as part of a remote computer) that combine to control a process on the chamber.

[0128] Without limitation, example systems may include a plasma etch chamber or module, a deposition chamber or module, a spin-rinse chamber or module, a metal plating chamber or module, a clean chamber or module, a bevel edge etch chamber or module, a physical vapor deposition (PVD) chamber or module, a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chamber or module, an atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber or module, an atomic layer etch (ALE) chamber or module, an ion implantation chamber or module, a track chamber or module, and any other semiconductor processing systems that may be associated or used in the fabrication and / or manufacturing of semiconductor wafers.

[0129] As noted above, depending on the process step or steps to be performed by the tool, the controller might communicate with one or more of other tool circuits or modules, other tool components, cluster tools, other tool interfaces, adjacent tools, neighboring tools, tools located throughout a factory, a main computer, another controller, or tools used in material transport that bring containers of wafers to and from tool locations and / or load ports in a semiconductor manufacturing factory.

[0130] Figure 19 shows a schematic view of an embodiment of a multi-station processing tool 2000 with an inbound and outbound load lock 2002 and a ring storage buffer 2004. A robot 2006, at atmospheric pressure, is configured to move wafers from a cassette loaded through a pod 2008, e.g., a FOUR, into load lock 2002 via an atmospheric port 2010. The robot 2006 may be positioned in an EFEM 2011. The robot 2006 is also configured to move edge rings in a ring storage carrier 2009 into the load lock 2002. A wafer or edge ring can be placed by the robot 2006 on a pedestal 2012 in the load lock 2002, the atmospheric port 2010 is closed, and the load lock is pumped down. Where the load lock 2002 comprises a remote plasma source, the wafer may be exposed to a remote plasma treatment in the load lock prior to being introduced into a processing chamber 2014. Further, the wafer also may be heated in the load lock 2002 as well, for example, to remove moisture and adsorbed gases. Next, a chamber transport port 2016 to processing chamber 2014 is opened, and another robot (not shown) places the wafer or load lock into the reactor on a pedestal of a first station shown in the reactor for processing. Although not shown, the multi-station processing tool 2000 may include a wafer handling system (e.g., robot 1019 including spider forks 1001) for transferring and / or positioning wafers within processing chamber 1015.

[0131] The depicted processing chamber 2014 comprises four process stations, numbered from 1 to 4 in the embodiment shown in Figure 19. Each station has a heated pedestal (shown at 2018 for station 1), and gas line inlets. It will be appreciated that in some embodiments, each process station may have different or multiple purposes. While the depicted processing chamber 2014 comprises four stations, it will be understood that a processing chamber according to the present disclosure may have any suitable number of stations. For example, in some embodiments, a processing chamber may have five or more stations, while in other embodiments a processing chamber may have three or fewer stations.

[0132] Figure 19 also depicts an embodiment of a wafer handling system 2090 for transferring wafers and edge rings within processing chamber 2014. In some embodiments, wafer handling system 2090 may transfer wafers and edge rings between various process stations and / r between a process station and a load lock. The wafer handling system 2090 may also transfer edge rings to a ring storage buffer 2004, and from a ring storage buffer and a process station. It will be appreciated that any suitable wafer handling system may be employed. Non-limiting examples include wafer carousels and wafer handling robots.

[0133] Alternatively or additionally, a ring storage buffer 2004 may be connected to the EFEM 2011. The ring storage buffer 2004 may be any of the ring storage buffers provided herein. Thering storage buffer 2004 may store unused edge rings for use in the any of process stations. A robot 2006 may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage buffer 2004 and then transfer it to a wafer handling system 2090. The robot 2006 may also retrieve or receive an edge ring from the ring storage carrier 2009 and transfer it to the ring storage buffer 2004 in order to restock or reload the ring storage buffer 2004. In some instances, the ring storage buffer 2004 provides a sealed environment that allows it to be exposed to the EFEM 2011 without changing or adjusting the conditions of the environment. This advantageously allows for higher throughput when reloading the ring storage buffer 2004 and reduces unwanted moisture or particulate ingress into the ring storage buffer 2004 during the reloading. In some implementations, the ring storage buffer 2004 may be positioned above a load lock that spans between the EFEM2011 and the processing chamber 2014.

[0134] Alternatively or additionally, a ring storage buffer 2004 may be connected to the processing chamber 2014. The ring storage buffer 2004 may be any of the ring storage buffers provided herein. The ring storage buffer 2004 may store unused edge rings for use in the any of process stations. A wafer handling device 2090 may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage buffer 2004 and then transfer it to a processing station. The wafer handling device 2090 may also retrieve or receive an edge ring from the load lock 2002 and transfer it to the ring storage buffer 2004 in order to restock or reload the ring storage buffer 2004. In some instances, the ring storage buffer 2004 provides a sealed environment that allows it to be exposed to the environment of the processing chamber 214 without changing or adjusting the conditions of the environment. This advantageously allows for higher throughput when reloading the ring storage buffer 2004 and reduces unwanted moisture or particulate ingress into the ring storage buffer 2004 during the reloading.

[0135] In some embodiments, the system 2000 may execute various techniques. In one example technique, the ring storage carrier 2009 provided herein may be provided and engaged with an EFEM 2011. The robot 2006 of the EFEM may retrieve an edge ring from the ring storage carrier 2009 and transfer the edge ring to the load lock 2002. The wafer handling device 2090 may, in some instances, transfer the edge ring from the load lock 2002 to a process station. In some implementations, the wafer handling device 2090 may transfer the edge ring to the ring storage buffer 2004. The wafer handling device 2090 may also transfer an edge ring from the ring storage buffer 2004 to a process station. The wafer handling device 2090 may also transfer a used edge ring to the load lock 2002 and the robot 2006 may transfer the usededge ring to the ring storage carrier 2009. The controller 2050 of the system 2000 is configured to perform these techniques.

[0136] Figure 19 also depicts an embodiment of a system controller 2050 employed to control process conditions and hardware states of process tool 2000. System controller 2050 may include one or more memory devices 2056, one or more mass storage devices 2054, and one or more processors 2052. Processor 2052 may include a CPU or computer, analog and / or digital input / output connections, stepper motor controller boards, etc.

[0137] In some embodiments, system controller 2050 controls all of the activities of process tool 2000. System controller 2050 executes system control software 2058 stored in mass storage device 2054, loaded into memory device 2056, and executed on processor 2052.System control software 2058 may include instructions for controlling the timing, mixture of gases, chamber and / or station pressure, chamber and / or station temperature, purge conditions and timing, wafer temperature, RF power levels, RF frequencies, substrate, pedestal, chuck and / or susceptor position, and other parameters of a particular process performed by process tool 2000. System control software 2058 may be configured in any suitable way. For example, various process tool component subroutines or control objects may be written to control operation of the process tool components necessary to carry out various process tool processes in accordance with the disclosed methods. System control software 2058 may be coded in any suitable computer readable programming language.

[0138] In some embodiments, system control software 2058 may include input / output control (IOC) sequencing instructions for controlling the various parameters described above. For example, each phase of a PEALD process may include one or more instructions for execution by system controller 2050. The instructions for setting process conditions for a PEALD process phase may be included in a corresponding PEALD recipe phase. In some embodiments, the PEALD recipe phases may be sequentially arranged, so that all instructions for a PEALD process phase are executed concurrently with that process phase.

[0139] Other computer software and / or programs stored on mass storage device 2054 and / or memory device 2056 associated with system controller 2050 may be employed in some embodiments. Examples of programs or sections of programs for this purpose include a substrate positioning program, a process gas control program, a pressure control program, a heater control program, and a plasma control program.

[0140] A substrate positioning program may include program code for process tool components that are used to load the substrate onto pedestal 2018 and to control the spacing between the substrate and other parts of process tool 2000.

[0141] A process gas control program may include code for controlling gas composition and flow rates and optionally for flowing gas into one or more process stations prior to deposition in order to stabilize the pressure in the process station. The process gas control program may include code for controlling gas composition and flow rates within any of the disclosed ranges. A pressure control program may include code for controlling the pressure in the process station by regulating, for example, a throttle valve in the exhaust system of the process station, a gas flow into the process station, etc. The pressure control program may include code for maintaining the pressure in the process station within any of the disclosed pressure ranges.

[0142] A heater control program may include code for controlling the current to a heating unit that is used to heat the substrate. Alternatively, the heater control program may control delivery of a heat transfer gas (such as helium) to the substrate. The heater control program may include instructions to maintain the temperature of the substrate within any of the disclosed ranges.

[0143] A plasma control program may include code for setting RF power levels and frequencies applied to the process electrodes in one or more process stations, for example using any of the RF power levels disclosed herein. The plasma control program may also include code for controlling the duration of each plasma exposure.

[0144] In some embodiments, there may be a user interface associated with system controller 2050. The user interface may include a display screen, graphical software displays of the apparatus and / or process conditions, and user input devices such as pointing devices, keyboards, touch screens, microphones, etc.

[0145] In some embodiments, parameters adjusted by system controller 2050 may relate to process conditions. Non-limiting examples include process gas composition and flow rates, temperature, pressure, plasma conditions (such as RF power levels, frequency, and exposure time), etc. These parameters may be provided to the user in the form of a recipe, which may be entered utilizing the user interface.

[0146] Signals for monitoring the process may be provided by analog and / or digital input connections of system controller 2050 from various process tool sensors. The signals for controlling the process may be output on the analog and digital output connections of process tool 2000. Non-limiting examples of process tool sensors that may be monitored include massflow controllers, pressure sensors (such as manometers), thermocouples, etc. Appropriately programmed feedback and control algorithms may be used with data from these sensors to maintain process conditions.

[0147] Any suitable chamber may be used to implement the disclosed embodiments. Example deposition apparatuses include, but are not limited to, apparatus from the ALTUS® product family, the VECTOR® product family, and / or the SPEED® product family, each available from Lam Research Corp., of Fremont, California, or any of a variety of other commercially available processing systems. Two or more of the stations may perform the same functions. Similarly, two or more stations may perform different functions. Each station can be designed / configured to perform a particular function / method as desired.

[0148] When an element, such as a layer, is referred to as being "on," "connected to," or "coupled to" another element, it may be directly on, directly connected to, or directly coupled to the other element or at least one intervening element may be present. When, however, an element is referred to as being "directly on," "directly connected to," or "directly coupled to" another element, there are no intervening elements present. Other terms and / or phrases if used herein to describe a relationship between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion, such as "between" versus "directly between," "adjacent" versus "directly adjacent," "on" versus "directly on," etc. Further, the term "connected" may refer to physical, electrical, and / or fluid connection. To this end, for the purposes of this disclosure, the phrase "fluidica I ly connected" is used with respect to volumes, plenums, holes, etc., that may be connected to one another, either directly or via one or more intervening components or volumes, to form a fluidic connection, similar to how the phrase "electrically connected" is used with respect to components that are connected to form an electric connection. The phrase "fluidical ly interposed," if used, may be used to refer to a component, volume, plenum, hole, etc., that is fluidica I ly connected with at least two other components, volumes, plenums, holes, etc., such that fluid flowing from one of those other components, volumes, plenums, holes etc., to the other or another of those components, volumes, plenums, holes, etc., would first flow through the "fluidica lly interposed" component before reaching that other or another of those components, volumes, plenums, holes, etc.. For example, if a pump is fluidically interposed between a reservoir and an outlet, fluid flowing from the reservoir to the outlet would first flow through the pump before reaching the outlet. The phrase "fluidically adjacent," if used, refers to placement of a fluidic element relative to another fluidic element such that no potential structures fluidically are interposed between the two elements that might potentially interruptfluid flow between the two fluidic elements. For example, in a flow path having a first valve, a second valve, and a third valve arranged sequentially therealong, the first valve would be fluidically adjacent to the second valve, the second valve fluidically adjacent to both the first and third valves, and the third valve fluidically adjacent to the second valve.

[0149] The use, if any, of ordinal indicators, e.g., (a), (b), (c)... or (1), (2), (3)... or the like, in this disclosure and claims is to be understood as not conveying any particular order or sequence, except to the extent that such an order or sequence is explicitly indicated. For example, if there are three steps labeled (i), (ii), and (iii), it is to be understood that these steps may be performed in any order (or even concurrently, if not otherwise contraindicated) unless indicated otherwise. For example, if step (ii) involves the handling of an element that is created in step (i), then step (ii) may be viewed as happening at some point after step (i). Similarly, if step (i) involves the handling of an element that is created in step (ii), the reverse is to be understood. It is also to be understood that use of the ordinal indicator "first" herein, e.g., "a first item," should not be read as suggesting, implicitly or inherently, that there is necessarily a "second" instance, e.g., "a second item."

[0150] It is to be understood that the phrases "for each <item> of the one or more <items>," "each <item> of the one or more <items>," or the like, if used herein, are inclusive of both a single-item group and multiple-item groups, i.e., the phrase "for ... each" is used in the sense that it is used in programming languages to refer to each item of whatever population of items is referenced. For example, if the population of items referenced is a single item, then "each" would refer to only that single item (despite the fact that dictionary definitions of "each" frequently define the term to refer to "every one of two or more things") and would not imply that there must be at least two of those items. Similarly, the term "set" or "subset" should not be viewed, in itself, as necessarily encompassing a plurality of items— it will be understood that a set or a subset can encompass only one member or multiple members (unless the context indicates otherwise).

[0151] The term "between," as used herein and when used with a range of values, is to be understood, unless otherwise indicated, as being inclusive of the start and end values of that range. For example, between 1 and 5 is to be understood to be inclusive of the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, not just the numbers 2, 3, and 4.

[0152] The term "operatively connected" is to be understood to refer to a state in which two components and / or systems are connected, either directly or indirectly, such that, for example, at least one component or system can control the other. For example, a controller may bedescribed as being operatively connected with a resistive heating unit, which is inclusive of the controller being connected with a sub-controller of the resistive heating unit that is electrically connected with a relay that is configured to controllably connect or disconnect the resistive heating unit with a power source that is capable of providing an amount of power that is able to power the resistive heating unit so as to generate a desired degree of heating. The controller itself likely cannot supply such power directly to the resistive heating unit due to the currents involved, but it will be understood that the controller is nonetheless operatively connected with the resistive heating unit.

[0153] It is understood that the examples and implementations described herein are for illustrative purposes only and that various modifications or changes in light thereof will be suggested to persons skilled in the art. Although various details have been omitted for clarity's sake, various design alternatives may be implemented. Therefore, the present examples are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the disclosure is not to be limited to the details given herein but may be modified within the scope of the disclosure.

[0154] It is to be understood that the above disclosure, while focusing on a particular example implementation or implementations, is not limited to only the discussed example, but may also apply to similar variants and mechanisms as well, and such similar variants and mechanisms are also considered to be within the scope of this disclosure.

[0155] It is to be further understood that the above disclosure, while focusing on a particular example implementation or implementations, is not limited to only the discussed example, but may also apply to similar variants and mechanisms as well, and such similar variants and mechanisms are also considered to be within the scope of this disclosure. For example, this disclosure includes at least the following numbered implementations.

[0156] I mplementation 1: A ring storage carrier for use in a semiconductor processing tool, the ring storage carrier comprising: a housing at least partially defined by a front side with an opening that is configured to receive an edge ring and a ring carrier, a back side opposite the front side, a top, and a baseplate; at least three ring support structures positioned inside the housing; and at least two alignment rails positioned inside the housing, wherein: each ring support structure has a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the baseplate,each support finger extends along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis, a first support structure of the plurality of support structures has a first set of support fingers and each support finger of the first set has a support pin extending upwards away from the baseplate, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a second ring support structure of the plurality of support structures does not have a support pin, and each alignment rail extends along a rail axis perpendicular to the baseplate and arranged between the at least four ring support structures and the back side of the housing .

[0157] I mplementation 2: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein the first ring support structure has a second set of support fingers that do not have the support pins.

[0158] Implementation 3: The ring storage carrier of implementation 2, wherein the first set of support fingers has six support fingers and the second set of support fingers has six support fingers.

[0159] Implementation 4: The ring storage carrier of implementation 2, wherein each support finger of the second set of support fingers has a ring contact structure configured to contact and support an edge ring.

[0160] I mplementation 5: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein: the first ring support structure and the second ring support structure are adjacent to the front side, and a third ring support structure and a fourth ring support structure are adjacent to the back side.

[0161] I mplementation 6: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein: each support finger of the first set of support fingers of the first support structure has a first length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and a first width in a direction perpendicular to the length, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of the second support structure has a second length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and a second width in a direction perpendicular to the length, and the first width is greater than the second width.

[0162] I mplementation 7: The ring storage carrier of implementation 6, wherein each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of the third support structure has the second length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and the second width in a direction perpendicularto the length.

[0163] Implementation 8: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a third support structure of the plurality of support structures does not have a support pin.

[0164] Implementation 9: The ring storage carrier of implementation 8, wherein each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a fourth support structure of the plurality of support structures does not have a support pin.

[0165] I mplementation 10: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, further comprising: a plurality of gaskets, and a door by the front side, wherein: one or more gaskets are positioned between the baseplate and the front side and the back side, one or more gaskets are positioned between the top and the front side and the back side, and the housing is a sealed environment when the door is in a closed position.

[0166] Implementation 11: The ring storage carrier of implementation 10, wherein the baseplate further includes a plurality of purge ports configured to fluidically connect with a gas system of an equipment front end module.

[0167] I mplementation 12: The ring storage carrier of implementation 11, wherein the plurality of purge ports are configured to interface with a purge gas system of an equipment front end module.

[0168] I mplementation 13: The ring storage carrier of implementation 11, wherein: two purge ports are positioned adjacent to the front side, and two purge ports are positioned adjacent to the back side.

[0169] I mplementation 14: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein the alignment rails extend from the baseplate for a rail height that is greater than a height of the support fingers that are farthest from the baseplate.

[0170] I mplementation 15: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein: the alignment rails extend from the baseplate along a rail axis perpendicular to the baseplate, andeach alignment rail has a cross-sectional shape, perpendicular to the corresponding rail axis, partially defined by a V-shaped surface.

[0171] I implementation 16: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein the support pins comprise sapphire.

[0172] Implementation 17: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein the top further has a window positioned over the first support structure.

[0173] I mplementation 18: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein: the support fingers of the four ring support structures define a plurality of ring support planes, each ring support plane is perpendicular to the vertical axis of the ring support structures and defined by one support finger of each ring support structure, and for each ring support plane defined in part by the first set of support fingers, the other three support fingers defining that ring support plane do not have a support pin.

[0174] Implementation 19: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein: the baseplate further has two end effector alignment posts extending towards the top for a first height and positioned adjacent to the opening, and the first height is less than a height of the support fingers closes to the baseplate.

[0175] Implementation 20: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein the baseplate further has four ring carrier support posts extending towards the top configured to receive and support a ring carrier.

[0176] I mplementation 21: The ring storage carrier of implementation 20, wherein the back side further has a ring carrier notch at least partially defined by: a first surface offset from a center axis of the baseplate by a first distance, and a second surface offset from the center axis by a second distance less than the first distance.

[0177] Implementation 22: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, further comprising the ring carrier, wherein: the ring carrier has a tip with a notch, the tip has a first surface offset from a center point of the ring carrier by a tip distance, andthe notch has a first notch surface offset from the center point by a notch distance less than the tip distance, and a side notch surface spanning between the first surface and the first notch surface.

[0178] I implementation 23: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein each ring support structure has thirteen support fingers.

[0179] Implementation 24: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, wherein each support finger of the second ring support structure has a ring contact structure configured to contact and support an edge ring.

[0180] I mplementation 25: The ring storage carrier of implementation 1, further comprising four ring support structures positioned inside the housing.

[0181] Implementation 26: A ring storage buffer for use in a semiconductor processing tool, the ring storage buffer comprising: a housing at least partially defined by a front side with an opening that is configured to receive a ring, a back side opposite the front side, a top, and a baseplate; a rotation plate positioned on the baseplate and configured to rotate about a center axis with respect to the baseplate; and three ring support structures positioned on the rotation plate, wherein: each ring support structure includes a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the rotation plate, each support finger extends along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis, each support finger has a support pin that extends upwards away from the rotation plate, and the support fingers and ring support structures are positioned such that each support pin of one ring structure is offset from support pins of the other two ring support structures around the center axis by about 120 degrees.

[0182] Implementation 27: The ring storage buffer of implementation 26, wherein: the support fingers of the three ring support structures define a plurality of ring support planes, and each ring support plane is perpendicular to the center axis and defined by one support pin of each ring support structure.

[0183] I mplementation 28: The ring storage buffer of implementation 26, wherein the support pins comprise sapphire.

[0184] Implementation 29: The ring storage buffer of implementation 26, wherein: the top has three windows, and each window is positioned above a corresponding ring support structure.

[0185] I mplementation 30: The ring storage buffer of implementation 26, wherein the rotation plate is configured to rotate about the center axis with respect to the baseplate by about 4 degrees or less.

[0186] Implementation 31: The ring storage buffer of implementation 26, wherein each ring support structure has at least five support fingers.

[0187] I mplementation 32: The ring storage buffer of implementation 26, further comprising: a plurality of gaskets, and a door by the front side, wherein: one or more gaskets are positioned between the baseplate and the front side and the back side, one or more gaskets are positioned between the top and the front side and the back side, and the housing is a sealed environment when the door is in a closed position.

[0188] I mplementation 33: A semiconductor processing tool, comprising: a plurality of process modules for processing substrates; a wafer transport station connected to the plurality of process modules and having one or more vacuum transfer robots; an equipment front end module ("EFEM") with one or more atmosphere transfer robots, the EFEM configured to receive a plurality of front opening unified pods (FOUPs); an airlock interposed between the wafer transport station and the EFEM; either the ring storage carrier of claim 1 engaged with the EFEM or the ring storage buffer of claim 26 engaged with the EFEM; and a controller having one or more processors and one or more memories that store instructions for controlling the tool, the instructions are configured to cause the one or more processors to cause: the one or more robots to transfer an edge ring between the ring storage buffer and the plurality of process modules.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A ring storage carrier for use in a semiconductor processing tool, the ring storage carrier comprising: a housing at least partially defined by a front side with an opening that is configured to receive an edge ring and a ring carrier, a back side opposite the front side, a top, and a baseplate; at least three ring support structures positioned inside the housing; and at least two alignment rails positioned inside the housing, wherein: each ring support structure has a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the baseplate, each support finger extends along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis, a first support structure of the plurality of support structures has a first set of support fingers and each support finger of the first set has a support pin extending upwards away from the baseplate, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a second ring support structure of the plurality of support structures does not have a support pin, and each alignment rail extends along a rail axis perpendicular to the baseplate and arranged between the at least four ring support structures and the back side of the housing .

2. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein the first ring support structure has a second set of support fingers that do not have the support pins.

3. The ring storage carrier of claim 2, wherein each support finger of the second set of support fingers has a ring contact structure configured to contact and support an edge ring.

4. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein: the first ring support structure and the second ring support structure are adjacent to the front side, and a third ring support structure and a fourth ring support structure are adjacent to the back side.

5. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein: each support finger of the first set of support fingers of the first support structure has a first length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and a first width in a direction perpendicular to the length, each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of the second support structure has a second length in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis and a second width in a direction perpendicular to the length, and the first width is greater than the second width.

6. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein each support finger of the plurality of support fingers of a third support structure of the plurality of support structures does not have a support pin.

7. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of gaskets, and a door by the front side, wherein: one or more gaskets are positioned between the baseplate and the front side and the back side, one or more gaskets are positioned between the top and the front side and the back side, and the housing is a sealed environment when the door is in a closed position.

8. The ring storage carrier of claim 7, wherein the baseplate further includes a plurality of purge ports configured to fluidica I ly connect with a gas system of an equipment front end module.

9. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein the alignment rails extend from the baseplate for a rail height that is greater than a height of the support fingers that are farthest from the baseplate.

10. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein: the alignment rails extend from the baseplate along a rail axis perpendicular to the baseplate, and each alignment rail has a cross-sectional shape, perpendicular to the corresponding rail axis, partially defined by a V-shaped surface.

11. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein the support pins comprise sapphire.

12. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein the top further has a window positioned over the first support structure.

13. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein: the support fingers of the four ring support structures define a plurality of ring support planes, each ring support plane is perpendicular to the vertical axis of the ring support structures and defined by one support finger of each ring support structure, and for each ring support plane defined in part by the first set of support fingers, the other three support fingers defining that ring support plane do not have a support pin.

14. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein: the baseplate further has two end effector alignment posts extending towards the top for a first height and positioned adjacent to the opening, and the first height is less than a height of the support fingers closes to the baseplate.

15. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, wherein the baseplate further has four ring carrier support posts extending towards the top configured to receive and support a ring carrier.

16. The ring storage carrier of claim 15, wherein the back side further has a ring carrier notch at least partially defined by: a first surface offset from a center axis of the baseplate by a first distance, anda second surface offset from the center axis by a second distance less than the first distance.

17. The ring storage carrier of claim 1, further comprising the ring carrier, wherein: the ring carrier has a tip with a notch, the tip has a first surface offset from a center point of the ring carrier by a tip distance, and the notch has a first notch surface offset from the center point by a notch distance less than the tip distance, and a side notch surface spanning between the first surface and the first notch surface.

18. A ring storage buffer for use in a semiconductor processing tool, the ring storage buffer comprising: a housing at least partially defined by a front side with an opening that is configured to receive a ring, a back side opposite the front side, a top, and a baseplate; a rotation plate positioned on the baseplate and configured to rotate about a center axis with respect to the baseplate; and three ring support structures positioned on the rotation plate, wherein: each ring support structure includes a plurality of support fingers arranged along a vertical axis perpendicular to the rotation plate, each support finger extends along an axis perpendicular to the vertical axis, each support finger has a support pin that extends upwards away from the rotation plate, and the support fingers and ring support structures are positioned such that each support pin of one ring structure is offset from support pins of the other two ring support structures around the center axis by about 120 degrees.

19. The ring storage buffer of claim 18, wherein: the support fingers of the three ring support structures define a plurality of ring support planes, and each ring support plane is perpendicular to the center axis and defined by one support pin of each ring support structure.

20. The ring storage buffer of claim 18, wherein: the top has three windows, and each window is positioned above a corresponding ring support structure.

21. The ring storage buffer of claim 18, further comprising: a plurality of gaskets, and a door by the front side, wherein: one or more gaskets are positioned between the baseplate and the front side and the back side, one or more gaskets are positioned between the top and the front side and the back side, and the housing is a sealed environment when the door is in a closed position.

22. A semiconductor processing tool, comprising: a plurality of process modules for processing substrates; a wafer transport station connected to the plurality of process modules and having one or more vacuum transfer robots; an equipment front end module ("EFEM") with one or more atmosphere transfer robots, the EFEM configured to receive a plurality of front opening unified pods (FOUPs); an airlock interposed between the wafer transport station and the EFEM; either the ring storage carrier of claim 1 engaged with the EFEM or the ring storage buffer of claim 18 engaged with the EFEM; and a controller having one or more processors and one or more memories that store instructions for controlling the tool, the instructions are configured to cause the one or more processors to cause: the one or more robots to transfer an edge ring between the ring storage buffer and the plurality of process modules.

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