Substrate processing device

Abstract

Provided is a technique suitable for suppressing unintended operations of parts during delivery of a substrate between boats in a substrate processing device. This substrate processing device includes: a first shaft body for supporting a first boat from below; a second shaft body for supporting a second boat from below; a holding mechanism for holding the second shaft body so as to be vertically displaceable with respect to the first shaft body; a rotation mechanism for synchronously rotating the first shaft body and the second shaft body around axes thereof; a support body for supporting the second shaft body from below in a rotatable state outside a processing chamber in which the first boat and the second boat are accommodated; a placement body on which the support body is placed on a placement surface, the height of which continuously changes; and a displacement mechanism for displacing the placement body so that a position which is in contact with a lower part of the support body on the placement surface moves.

Description

Substrate processing apparatus Cross-reference to related applications

[0001] This international application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2024-221998 filed with the Japan Patent Office on December 18, 2024, and incorporates by reference the entire contents of Japanese Patent Application No. 2024-221998 into this international application.

[0002] The present disclosure relates to a substrate processing apparatus that performs a film-forming process on a semiconductor substrate placed on a boat.

[0003] Conventionally, there has been known a substrate processing apparatus that places a plurality of semiconductor substrates (hereinafter also simply referred to as "substrates") on a boat, and performs a film-forming process on each substrate while accommodating this boat in a processing chamber. In this type of substrate processing apparatus, since the film-forming process is performed with the substrates placed in the recesses formed in each of the plurality of support columns constituting the boat, a film that spreads from the substrate to the recesses may be formed, and as a result, the substrate may adhere to the boat. Such adhesion is not desirable because it causes factors such as film peeling when the substrate is taken out of the boat, which deteriorates the film-forming quality.

[0004] In recent years, in order to prevent such adhesion, there has been proposed a substrate processing apparatus configured such that a second boat provided coaxially with a first boat is relatively movable up and down with respect to the first boat (see Patent Document 1). In this apparatus, by moving the second boat up and down during the film-forming process to transfer the substrate between the first boat and the second boat, it is possible to suppress the formation of a film that spreads from the substrate to the recesses, and as a result, prevent the substrate from adhering to the boat.

[0005] JP 2023-14884 A, JP 2023-18978 A

[0006] The transfer of the substrate between the boats by the substrate processing apparatus may cause unintentional operations of each part such as vibration and contact, which may cause deterioration of the film-forming quality. Therefore, a device is required to prevent such unintentional operations from occurring.

[0007] This disclosure addresses the need for such a modification and aims to provide a technology suitable for suppressing unintended movements of various parts during the transfer of substrates between boats in a substrate processing apparatus configured such that the second boat, of which two boats are provided coaxially, can be raised and lowered relative to the first boat.

[0008] To solve the above problems, the substrate processing apparatus of the first phase comprises: a first shaft body that supports from below a first boat on which one or more substrates can be placed vertically at regular intervals; a second shaft body that supports from below a second boat on which one or more substrates can be placed vertically at the same intervals as the first boat, and is arranged coaxially with the first shaft body; a holding mechanism that holds the second shaft body so that it can be displaced vertically with respect to the first shaft body; a rotation mechanism that rotates the first shaft body and the second shaft body synchronously around their axes; a support body that supports the second shaft body from below in a rotatable state outside the processing chamber in which the first boat and the second boat are housed; a mounting body having a mounting surface of continuously changing height on which the support body is placed; and a displacement mechanism that displaces the mounting body so that the position in contact with the lower part of the support body on the mounting surface moves.

[0009] In this configuration, the substrate processing apparatus raises and lowers the mounting surface on the support body in accordance with the displacement of the mounting body, thereby raising and lowering the second boat via the support body and the second shaft body, and transferring the substrate between the first boat and the second boat. In this way, the structure, in which the support body raises and lowers the mounting surface that changes in height continuously, thereby raising and lowering the second boat which is supported from below by the support body, can suppress vibrations of each part that occur during the raising and lowering process.

[0010] Furthermore, since the second boat moves up and down within a height range on the mounting surface, by defining this height to the extent necessary for transferring substrates between the boats, the height to which the second boat moves up and down can be physically limited, preventing it from moving up and down more than necessary and causing parts to come into contact. Here, there is no need for special configurations such as detecting the height to which the second boat moves up and down and stopping the movement, or providing a physical stopper to prevent the second boat from moving up and down more than necessary, thus simplifying the device configuration.

[0011] Thus, in the substrate processing apparatus described above, unintended operation of each part during the transfer of substrates between boats can be suppressed.

[0012] Furthermore, in the substrate processing apparatus described above, the support that moves up and down on the mounting surface of the substrate is located outside the processing chamber, so there is no risk of particles or gases associated with this movement entering the processing chamber.

[0013] Furthermore, this phase may be as shown in the second phase below. In the second phase, the above-described mounting body has a cylindrical upper surface in which the height changes continuously from one of the maximum height and minimum height to the other around the axis of the cylinder, and then the height changes continuously from the other to the first, thereby forming the above-described mounting surface. The displacement mechanism rotates the above-described mounting body around the axis of the cylinder, thereby displacing the position in contact with the lower part of the support on the above-described mounting surface.

[0014] In this type of substrate processing apparatus, the cylindrical mounting body is rotated, and the mounting surface formed on its upper surface is moved up and down on the support, thereby allowing the second boat to be raised and lowered via the support and the second shaft.

[0015] Furthermore, this phase may be as shown in the third phase below. In the third phase, multiple mounting bodies are provided at equal angular intervals around the axis of the shaft and at the same horizontal distance from that axis, and each is oriented so that the position in contact with the lower part of the support on the mounting surface is at the same height, and the displacement mechanism rotates each of the mounting bodies in the same direction, thereby displacing the position in contact with the lower part of the support on the mounting surface.

[0016] In this type of substrate processing apparatus, the second boat can be raised and lowered in a balanced manner via the support and the second shaft body by using multiple mounting bodies that are spaced at equal angular intervals around the axis of the shaft body and at the same distance from the axis.

[0017] Furthermore, this phase may be as shown in the fourth phase below. In the fourth phase, the support body is provided with a plurality of wheels positioned at equal angular intervals around the axis of the shaft and at the same horizontal distance from the shaft, each wheel being oriented to orbit the axis of the shaft, and the lower part of each wheel rests on the aforementioned mounting surface.

[0018] In this type of substrate processing apparatus, the second boat can be raised and lowered via the support and the second shaft by moving the mounting surface formed on the upper surface of the mounting body up and down on the wheels of the support.

[0019] Furthermore, this phase may be as shown in the fifth phase below. In the fifth phase, the wheels are provided so as to protrude from the sides of the main body of the support, and each of the members is arranged to sandwich the wheel from above between itself and the mounting body described above, and the clamping surface of each member that contacts the wheel is formed as a surface whose height changes continuously, similar to the mounting surface of the mounting body described above, and the mounting body described above and the clamping bodies arranged to sandwich the wheel are connected so as to rotate synchronously around the axis of the mounting body.

[0020] In this phase of substrate processing, each wheel is held in place by being sandwiched from above and below by the mounting body and the clamping body, preventing the wheels from lifting off the mounting surface. As a result, even if an unintended upward force is generated on the second boat, second shaft, and support due to a pressure difference between the area where the support is installed and the processing chamber, this force will not cause the lower part of the support (wheels) to lift off the mounting surface. In this way, the raising and lowering of the mounting surface by the support can be appropriately achieved.

[0021] For example, in the substrate processing apparatus described above, a large pressure difference can occur between the mechanism for displacing the boat and the processing chamber in which the boat is housed, causing the boat, shaft, and support to be pulled upward. This situation causes the lower part (wheels) of the support to lift off the mounting surface, hindering the proper raising and lowering of the mounting surface by the support. However, in the substrate processing apparatus with the curved shape described above, the wheels will not lift off the mounting surface due to the force caused by the pressure difference, thus enabling the proper raising and lowering of the mounting surface by the support.

[0022] Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. This is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus which is one embodiment of the present disclosure. This is a perspective view showing a boat in one embodiment of the present disclosure. This is a front cross-sectional view of a substrate processing apparatus which is one embodiment of the present disclosure. This is a plan view of the main part of a substrate processing apparatus which is one embodiment of the present disclosure. This is a perspective view showing a mounting body and a clamping body in one embodiment of the present disclosure. This is a front view of the main part showing the operating state of a substrate processing apparatus which is one embodiment of the present disclosure. This is a front view of the main part showing the operating state of a substrate processing apparatus which is one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0023] (1) Overall Configuration The substrate processing apparatus 1, as shown in Figure 1, is an apparatus that houses a boat 100 on which a plurality of semiconductor substrates (hereinafter also simply referred to as "substrates") are placed inside a processing chamber 2 and performs film deposition processing on each substrate.

[0024] As shown in Figure 2, the boat 100 consists of a first boat 110 on which one or more substrates can be mounted vertically at regular intervals, and a second boat 120 on which one or more substrates can be mounted at the same intervals as the first boat 110. The boat 100 is used with the second boat 120 housed inside the first boat 110.

[0025] The first boat 110 is a cylindrical member in which a circular top plate 111 and a circular bottom plate 113 are connected by a plurality of columns 115, and a plurality of recesses 117 for placing a substrate are formed on the columns 115 at equal intervals vertically. These recesses 117 are concave grooves that open inward, and a substrate is placed on the recesses 117 that are at the same height. The second boat 120 is a cylindrical member in which a circular top plate 121 and a circular bottom plate 123 are connected by a plurality of columns 125, and a plurality of recesses 127 for placing a substrate are formed on the columns 125 at equal intervals vertically. These recesses 127 are concave grooves that open inward, and a substrate is placed on the recesses that are at the same height.

[0026] As shown in Figures 1 and 3, the substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a first shaft body 10 that supports the first boat 110 from below, a second shaft body 20 that supports the second boat 120 from below, a holding and rotating mechanism 30 that rotatably holds the first shaft body 10 and the second shaft body 20, a support body 40 that supports the second shaft body 20 from below in a rotatable state, a mounting body 50 on which the support body 40 is placed, a displacement mechanism 60 that displaces the mounting body 50, and a clamping body 70 positioned above the mounting body 50.

[0027] The first shaft body 10 includes a through hole 13 that penetrates the shaft body 11 vertically along its axis, and a first mounting portion 15 at its upper end for mounting the first boat 110.

[0028] The second shaft body 20 is housed in the through hole 13 of the first shaft body 10, is arranged coaxially with the first shaft body 10, and has a second mounting portion 25 on the upper end of the shaft body 21 for mounting the second boat 120.

[0029] The holding and rotating mechanism 30 includes a ball spline 31 interposed between the first shaft body 10 and the second shaft body 20, a holding and rotating pulley 33 that rotates the ball spline nut 31a constituting the ball spline 31 at its lower end, a holding and rotating belt 35 stretched over the holding and rotating pulley 33, and a holding and rotating motor 37 for rotationally driving the holding and rotating pulley 33 via the holding and rotating belt 35.

[0030] Of these, the ball spline 31 consists of a ball spline shaft 31b formed in a part of the shaft body 21 of the second shaft body 20, and a ball spline nut 31a arranged to surround the ball spline shaft 31b.

[0031] This holding and rotating mechanism 30 can displace the second shaft 20 vertically relative to the first shaft 10 by means of a ball spline 31. Furthermore, this holding and rotating mechanism 30 rotates the first shaft 10 and the second shaft 20 synchronously around the axis 200 by rotating the ball spline nut 31a with a holding and rotating motor 37.

[0032] The support body 40 is a structure located outside the processing chamber 2, below the second shaft body 20, and supports the second shaft body 20 from below in a rotatable manner. As shown in Figure 4, the support body 40 is equipped with a plurality of wheels 41 (two at 180-degree intervals in this embodiment) positioned at equal angular intervals around the axis 200 and at the same horizontal distance from the shaft bodies 10 and 20. In this embodiment, the wheels 41 are provided so as to protrude from the sides of the main body portion 43 of the support body 40.

[0033] The mounting body 50 has a mounting surface 51 whose height changes continuously, and the support 40 is placed on this mounting surface 51. As shown in Figure 5, the mounting body 50 has a cylindrical member, and the top surface of the cylindrical member changes in height continuously from one of the maximum height and minimum height to the other around the axis of the cylinder, and then changes in height continuously from the other to the first, thereby forming the mounting surface 51. The height of this mounting surface 51 is defined as a height necessary for transferring the substrate between boats, as will be described later.

[0034] Furthermore, multiple mounting bodies 50 are provided at equal angular intervals around the axis 200, and at the same horizontal distance from the axes 10 and 20 (in this embodiment, two are spaced 180 degrees apart). Each mounting body 50 is positioned such that it contacts the lower part of the support 40 (wheels 41) at the same height on the mounting surface 51.

[0035] Each of the mounting units 50 is fixed on the base 53 so that it can rotate around its cylindrical axis 300 as the center of rotation.

[0036] Each clamping body 70 is positioned to clamp the wheel 41 from above between itself and the mounting body 50. The clamping surface 71 of each clamping body 70 that contacts the wheel 41 is formed as a surface with a continuously changing height, similar to the mounting surface 51 of the mounting body 50. As a result, the mounting surface 51 and the clamping surface 71 maintain a constant distance in the vertical direction (specifically, the height of the wheel 41) regardless of their position around the axis 300.

[0037] Furthermore, multiple clamping bodies 70 are provided at equal angular intervals around the axis 200 and at the same horizontal distance from the axis 200 (in this embodiment, two at 180-degree intervals). Each clamping body 70 is positioned such that the contact points with the upper part of the support 40 (wheel 41) on the clamping surface 71 are at the same height.

[0038] Furthermore, the mounting body 50 and the clamping body 70, which are positioned on either side of the wheel 41, are connected by a cylindrical connecting body 80 in the direction of the axis 300 of the mounting body 50, thereby enabling the clamping body 70 to rotate synchronously with the mounting body 50 around the axis 300.

[0039] The displacement mechanism 60 includes a first displacement pulley 61 provided at the lower part of each mounting body 50, a first displacement belt 63 stretched between the first displacement pulleys 61, a second displacement pulley 65 provided at the upper part of either clamping body 70, a second displacement belt 67 stretched across the second displacement pulley 65, and a displacement motor 69 for rotationally driving the second displacement pulley 65 via the second displacement belt 67.

[0040] This displacement mechanism 60 displaces the mounting body 50 so that the position in contact with the lower part of the support 40 (wheel 41) on the mounting surface 51 changes. Here, the position in contact with the lower part of the support 40 (wheel 41) on the mounting surface 51 is displaced by rotating the mounting body 50 around the axis 300 as a cylinder. At this time, by rotating each mounting body 50 synchronously in the same direction, the position in contact with the lower part of the support 40 (wheel 41) on each mounting surface 51 is displaced.

[0041] In addition, the substrate processing apparatus 1 has shafts 10 and 20 and a spline nut 31 surrounded by a casing 90, and is fixed to the processing chamber by a flange 91 formed on the upper end of the casing 90.

[0042] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 configured in this way, the mounting surface 51 on the support 40 is raised and lowered in accordance with the displacement of the mounting body 50, so that the second boat 120 is raised and lowered via the support 40 and the second shaft 20, as shown in Figures 6A and 6B, and the substrate W is transferred between the first boat 110 and the second boat 120 in accordance with this raising and lowering (Figure 6A → Figure 6B or Figure 6B → Figure 6A). (2) Modifications Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited in any way to the above embodiments and can take various forms as long as they fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0043] For example, in the above embodiment, a configuration was illustrated in which a mechanism for holding the second shaft 20 so that it can be displaced vertically relative to the first shaft 10, and a mechanism for rotating the first shaft 10 and the second shaft 20 synchronously around the axis 200 are realized by a single holding and rotating mechanism 30. However, the holding and rotating mechanism 30 may also be intended to be configured in which the mechanism for holding the second shaft 20 so that it can be displaced vertically relative to the first shaft 10, and the mechanism for rotating the first shaft 10 and the second shaft 20 synchronously around the axis 200 are configured by separate mechanisms.

[0044] In addition, the holding rotation mechanism 30 is exemplified as being configured such that the ball spline nut 31a is indirectly rotationally driven by the holding rotation motor 37 via the holding rotation pulley 33 and the holding rotation belt 35. However, the holding rotation mechanism 30 may be configured to directly rotationally drive the ball spline nut 31a by a driving source such as a motor.

[0045] In addition, the displacement mechanism 60 is exemplified as being configured such that the placement body 50 is indirectly rotationally driven by the displacement motor 69 via the first displacement pulley 61, the first displacement belt 63, the sandwiching body 70, the second displacement pulley 65, and the second displacement belt 67. However, the displacement mechanism 60 may be configured to directly rotationally drive the placement body 50 by a driving source such as a motor. Further, while the sandwiching body 70 is directly rotationally driven by a driving source such as a motor, the placement body 50 may be configured to be indirectly rotationally driven therefrom via the first displacement belt 63 and the first displacement pulley 61. (3) Operations and Effects The substrate processing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment raises and lowers the mounting surface 51 on the support 40 as the placement body 50 is displaced, thereby raising and lowering the second boat 120 via the support 40 and the second shaft body 20, and transferring the substrate W between the first boat 110 and the second boat 120. In this way, since the support 40 continuously moves up and down on the mounting surface 51 whose height changes, in the structure of raising and lowering the second boat 120 supported by the support 40 from below, vibrations of each part accompanying the raising and lowering can be suppressed.

[0046] Further, since the second boat 120 moves up and down within the height range on the placement surface 51, by defining this height to an extent necessary for the transfer of the substrate between the boats, the height at which the second boat 120 moves up and down can be physically restricted, and it can be suppressed that the second boat 120 moves up and down more than necessary and each part comes into contact (for example, the upper surface of the substrate W and the part between the recesses adjacent vertically in the boat 100 after the transfer; see FIG. 5). At this time, since there is no special configuration required to limit the height at which the second boat 120 moves up and down, such as detecting the height at which the second boat 120 moves up and down and stopping the lifting operation, or providing a physical stopper so that the second boat 120 does not move up and down more than necessary, the apparatus configuration can be simplified.

[0047] Thus, the substrate processing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment can suppress the unintentional operation of each part associated with the transfer of the substrate between the boats.

[0048] Further, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment, by rotating the columnar placement body 50 and moving the placement surface 51 formed on the upper surface thereof up and down on the support 40, the second boat 120 can be moved up and down via the support 40 and the second shaft body 20.

[0049] Further, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment, the second boat 120 can be moved up and down via the support 40 and the second shaft body 20 in a balanced manner by a plurality of placement bodies 50 having equal angular intervals around the axis 200 and being at the same distance from the axis.

[0050] Further, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment, by moving the placement surface 51 formed on the upper surface of the placement body 50 up and down on the wheel 41 of the support 40, the second boat 120 can be moved up and down via the support 40 and the second shaft body 20.

[0051] Furthermore, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment, each wheel 41 is held in place by being sandwiched from above and below by the mounting body 50 and the clamping body 70, so that the wheels 41 do not leave the mounting surface 51. As a result, even if an unintended upward force is generated on the second boat 120, the second shaft 20, and the support 40 due to a pressure difference between the area where the support 40 is installed and the processing chamber 2, this force will not cause the lower part of the support 40 (wheels 41) to leave the mounting surface 51. In this way, the upward and downward movement of the support 40 on the mounting surface 51 can be appropriately achieved.

[0052] For example, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 described above, a large pressure difference can occur between the mechanism for displacing the boat 100 and the processing chamber in which the boat 100 is housed, causing the boat 100, shafts 10 and 20, and support 40 to be pulled upward. This situation can cause the lower part of the support 40 (wheels 41) to move away from the mounting surface 51, hindering the proper raising and lowering of the mounting surface 51 by the support 40. However, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 described above, the wheels 41 will not move away from the mounting surface 51 due to the force caused by the pressure difference, thus enabling the proper raising and lowering of the mounting surface 51 by the support 40.

[0053] Furthermore, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment, the support 40 that moves up and down on the mounting surface 51 of the mounting body 50 is located outside the processing chamber 2, so that particles and gases associated with this up and down movement do not enter the processing chamber 2.

[0054] 1...Substrate processing device, 2...Processing chamber, 10...First shaft body, 20...Second shaft, 11...Shaft body, 13...Through hole, 21...Shaft body, 30...Holding and rotating mechanism, 31...Ball spline, 31a...Ball spline nut, 31b...Ball spline shaft, 33...Holding and rotating pulley, 35...Holding and rotating belt, 37...Holding and rotating motor, 40...Support, 41...Wheel, 43...Main body, 50...Mounting body, 5 1... Mounting surface, 53... Base, 60... Displacement mechanism, 69... Displacement motor, 70... Clamping body, 71... Clamping surface, 80... Connecting body, 90... Casing, 91... Flange, 100... Boat, 110... First boat, 111... Top plate, 113... Bottom plate, 115... Column, 117... Recess, 120... Second boat, 121... Top plate, 123... Bottom plate, 125... Column, 127... Recess, 200... Axis, 300... Axis, W... Substrate.

Claims

1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a first shaft body that supports from below a first boat on which one or more substrates can be placed vertically at regular intervals; a second shaft body that supports from below a second boat on which one or more substrates can be placed vertically at the same intervals as the first boat, and is arranged coaxially with the first shaft body; a holding mechanism that holds the second shaft body so that it can be displaced vertically relative to the first shaft body; a rotation mechanism that rotates the first shaft body and the second shaft body synchronously around their axes; a support body that supports the second shaft body from below in a rotatable state outside the processing chamber in which the first boat and the second boat are housed; a mounting body having a mounting surface of continuously changing height on which the support body is placed; and a displacement mechanism that displaces the mounting body so that the position in contact with the lower part of the support body on the mounting surface moves.

2. The mounting body has a cylindrical upper surface in which the height changes continuously around the axis of the cylinder from one of the maximum height and minimum height to the other, and then the height changes continuously from the other to the first, thereby forming the mounting surface described above, and the displacement mechanism rotates the mounting body around the axis of the cylinder to displace the position on the mounting surface that contacts the lower part of the support. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1.

3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the mounting body is provided in a plurality of units at equal angular intervals around the axis of the shaft and at the same horizontal distance from the axis, and each unit is oriented so that it contacts the lower part of the support on the mounting surface at the same height, and the displacement mechanism rotates each of the mounting bodies in the same direction to displace the contact position with the lower part of the support on the mounting surface.

4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the support comprises a plurality of wheels positioned at equal angular intervals around the axis of the shaft and at the same horizontal distance from the shaft, each wheel being oriented to orbit the axis of the shaft, and the lower part of each wheel rests on the aforementioned mounting surface.

5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the wheels are provided so as to protrude from the sides of the main body of the support, and further comprises a plurality of clamping bodies, each of which is a member positioned to sandwich the wheel from above between itself and the mounting body described above, and the clamping surface of this member is formed as a surface of continuously changing height, similar to the mounting surface of the mounting body described above, and a connecting body that connects the mounting body described above and the clamping bodies, which are positioned to sandwich the wheel, so as to rotate synchronously around the axis of the mounting body.

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