Rotary wafer heating system

Abstract

The present invention relates to a rotary wafer heating system comprising: a heating block on which a wafer is seated and heated; and a heating control block which is provided below the heating block and, which makes, when a temperature deviation occurs for each part of the heating block, the overall temperature of the heating block uniform by varying the heat transfer rate for each part of the heating block, wherein one or more high-temperature heat transfer recesses and / or one or more low-temperature heat transfer protrusions are formed on the lower surface of the heating control block, the heating control block can rotate by means of a driving motor, a control unit receives the temperature for each part of the heating block detected by a plurality of first temperature sensors provided to respective parts of the heating block, and the control unit rotates the heating control block by means of the driving motor.

Description

Rotary wafer heating system

[0001] The present invention relates to a rotary wafer heating system, and more specifically, to an improved rotary wafer heating system in which a control block is added to maintain the temperature of the heating block uniformly throughout so that the wafer can be heated uniformly.

[0002]

[0003] Well-known semiconductor devices are high-density integrated circuits implemented by depositing a thin film made of a specific material on the surface of a wafer or by patterning it, and the thin film deposition or patterning process is generally carried out in a chamber-type process module.

[0004] Among these chamber-type process modules, the wafer heating device located within the chamber generates heat while the wafer is placed on its surface, performing the function of ensuring that pretreatment processes, such as thin film deposition on the wafer, proceed stably and uniformly. To bake semiconductor devices, a semiconductor heating system is used, which is a form of semiconductor manufacturing process equipment that actually carries out the baking process within the chamber.

[0005] This semiconductor heating system is typically configured to consist of a flat, disc-shaped heating plate installed in close proximity to the device to transfer heat to the device, a heater installed on the lower surface of the heating plate capable of heating the heating plate, and a base installed on the lower surface of the heater to fix the heating plate and the heater.

[0006] However, in conventional semiconductor heating systems, the heating plates experienced severe temperature variations in each part due to the temperature difference between the center and the edges or the environment inside the chamber.

[0007] Due to these temperature variations, uniform baking of the device was not achieved. Consequently, as the linewidth decreased, the uniformity of the photoresist's baking temperature had a significant impact on the fine processing of fine patterns during the photolithography or etching processes, leading to a problem where the yield of semiconductor devices dropped significantly.

[0008] In other words, when a device is mounted inside a chamber, the ability of the semiconductor heating system to maintain a uniform bake temperature within a minute margin of error and as quickly as possible directly affects the yield of the semiconductor device; therefore, there is an urgent need for a heating device with precise temperature control and a fast temperature compensation time.

[0009] The present invention was created to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a rotary wafer heating system that allows the wafer to be heated uniformly by maintaining the temperature of the heating block of the rotary wafer heating system uniformly throughout.

[0010] The present invention, for achieving the above-mentioned purpose, provides a rotary wafer heating system for heating a wafer, comprising: a heating block for placing and heating the wafer; and a heating control block installed below the heating block, wherein if a temperature difference occurs in each part of the heating block, the heat transfer rate in each part of the heating block is varied to make the temperature of the heating block uniform overall, wherein at least one of one or more high-temperature heat transfer grooves and one or more low-temperature heat transfer protrusions are formed on the lower surface of the heating control block, and wherein the heating control block is rotatably installed by a driving motor, wherein a control unit receives the temperature of each part of the heating block detected by a plurality of first temperature sensors installed in each part of the heating block, and wherein the control unit rotates the heating control block by the driving motor.

[0011] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, one or more medium-high temperature heat transfer rod grooves are formed on the lower surface of the heating control block, and the medium-high temperature heat transfer rod grooves are formed in contact with a heating block that has a medium temperature lower than the high temperature portion corresponding to the high temperature heat transfer groove. The medium-high temperature heat transfer rod grooves include a plurality of heat transfer rods in the shape of rods protruding downward; a central heat blocking hole which is a central empty space between the plurality of heat transfer rods; and a space between the heat blocking rods which is an empty space between the plurality of heat transfer rods. A rotary wafer heating system is provided.

[0012] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, one or more medium-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusions are formed on the lower surface of the heating control block, such that they come into contact with a heating block that has formed a medium-low temperature which is higher than the low-temperature portion corresponding to the low-temperature heat transfer protrusion; wherein the medium-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusions comprise: a slit protrusion having a cylindrical shape and extending downward; and a slit groove which is a space between the plurality of slit protrusions. A rotary wafer heating system is provided.

[0013]

[0014] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a control unit that receives the temperature of each part of the heating block from the temperature sensor installed in each part of the heating block operates a drive motor to rotate the heating control block when a deviation occurs in the received temperature of each part of the heating block, and rotates it so that a concave groove is positioned in the high-temperature part and a convex protrusion is positioned in the low-temperature part, thereby increasing the heat transfer relatively in the high-temperature part of the heating block and decreasing the heat transfer relatively in the low-temperature part, so that the overall temperature deviation of the heating block is reduced.

[0015] Therefore, the temperature of the heating block is maintained uniformly throughout, allowing the wafer to be heated uniformly, which can significantly improve the yield of the wafer (or semiconductor).

[0016] FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the overall configuration of a rotary wafer heating system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional example of the heating control block of Figure 1.

[0018] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a heating control block of a rotary wafer heating system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 4 is a cross-sectional example of the heating control block of Figure 3.

[0020] Figure 5 is a plan view of the medium-to-high temperature heat transfer rod groove configuration of Figure 3.

[0021] Figure 6 is a plan view of the medium-to-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusion configuration of Figure 3.

[0022]

[0023] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0024] FIG. 1 shows a partial cross-sectional view illustrating the overall configuration of a rotary wafer heating system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows a bottom view of the heating control block of FIG. 1.

[0025] And, FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of a heating control block of a rotary wafer heating system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows a bottom view of the heating control block of the second embodiment of FIG. 3, FIG. 5 shows a plan view of the medium-high temperature heat transfer rod groove configuration of the second embodiment, and FIG. 6 shows a plan view of the medium-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusion configuration of the second embodiment.

[0026]

[0027] First, referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a rotary wafer heating system (100) according to the first embodiment of the present invention is configured to heat a wafer (w) and includes a heating block (20) in which a wafer (w) is placed and heated within a chamber (10) in which a gate (11) is installed on one side to allow the wafer (w) to be loaded and withdrawn and an opening / closing member (13) for opening and closing the gate (11) is installed, and a heating control block (30) installed at the bottom of the heating block (20) so that if the heating block (20) is not heated uniformly and a temperature difference occurs in specific parts, the heat transfer rate is varied in each part of the heating block (20) so that the temperature of the heating block (20) becomes uniform overall.

[0028] High-temperature heat transfer grooves (34) are formed on the lower surface of the heating control block (30), and preferably, they are formed repeatedly at regular intervals.

[0029] This heating control block (30) is rotatably installed by a drive motor (50). The drive motor (50) includes a stepping (or step) motor capable of changing the angle at a constant rate, maintaining the position, and stopping depending on whether there is a change in the input signal. The stepping motor converts electronic pulses into mechanical motion, and each pulse step can rotate the shaft by a predetermined angle, so that the responsiveness for starting, stopping, and forward / reverse rotation is excellent, and the rotational speed is varied in proportion to the input frequency of the pulse signal. The speed, rotational direction, and driving of this drive motor (50) are controlled by a control unit (60).

[0030] A heater (21) is installed in the heating block (20), and when the heating block (20) is heated by the heater (21), a plurality of first temperature sensors (23) are installed in various parts of the heating block (20). Then, the control unit (60) receives temperature signals for each part of the heating block (20) from the first temperature sensors (23).

[0031] In addition, the control unit (60) drives and rotates the drive motor (50) to rotate the heating control block (30).

[0032] The high-temperature heat transfer groove (34) is formed in a round (R) shape.

[0033] In addition, a plurality of heat-blocking grooves (25, 33) that block heat conduction are formed in the heating block (20) and the heating control block (30), and the heat-blocking grooves (25) of the heating block (20) and the heat-blocking grooves (33) of the heating control block (30) are formed to be in communication with each other.

[0034] And an air blocking member (70) is installed on the upper part of the wafer (w) to block air from the wafer (w) when heated, and a plurality of second temperature sensors (71) are installed on the air blocking member (70) to detect the temperature of each part of the wafer (w).

[0035] In addition, the control unit (60) receives the temperature of each part of the wafer (w) from the second temperature sensor (71), and receives the signal of the wafer (w) from the second temperature sensor (71). When a temperature difference occurs in each part of the wafer (w), the heating control block (30) is controlled to rotate.

[0036]

[0037] Next, as shown in the cross-sectional view of the heating control block (30) of the rotary wafer heating system according to the second embodiment of the present invention illustrated in FIG. 3, high-temperature heat transfer grooves (34) and low-temperature heat transfer protrusions (35) are repeatedly formed on the lower surface of the heating control block (30) to create a temperature difference of the heating control block (30). These high-temperature heat transfer grooves (34) and low-temperature heat transfer protrusions (35) are formed in a round (R) shape. Meanwhile, unexplained reference numeral 53 represents a bearing.

[0038] The operation of the rotary wafer heating system according to the present invention having the configuration described above is as follows.

[0039] Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 2, a first temperature sensor (23) is installed in a heating block (20) of a rotary wafer heating system (100) according to the first embodiment of the present invention, installed in each part, and a control unit (60) receives the temperature of each part of the heating block (20) from the first temperature sensor (23).

[0040] And when the control unit (60) causes a deviation in the temperature of each part of the received heating block (20), it operates the drive motor (50) to rotate the heating control block (30), and rotates it so that the high-temperature heat transfer groove (34) is positioned in the part with the high temperature.

[0041] In addition, in the case of the heating control block (30) of FIG. 3, which is the second embodiment, the high temperature area is rotated so that the high temperature heat transfer groove (34) is positioned and the low temperature heat transfer projection (35) is positioned in the relatively low temperature area.

[0042] Then, the parts of the heating block (20) with a high temperature will have relatively higher heat transfer, and the parts with a low temperature will have relatively lower heat transfer.

[0043] Therefore, the temperature of the high-temperature area of ​​the heating block (20) drops further, and the temperature of the low-temperature area drops relatively less, so that the overall temperature difference of the heating control block (30) is reduced.

[0044] In addition, a control unit (60) that receives a temperature signal from a second temperature sensor (71) installed on a portion of the wafer (w) on an air blocking member (70) on the upper part of the wafer (w) can rotate the heating control block (30) in the same way to reduce the temperature difference of the heating block (20).

[0045] In addition, the temperature deviation of the heating block (20) can be controlled by controlling the heat blocking grooves (25, 33) formed in the heating block (20) and the heating control block (30) through the rotation of the heating control block (30).

[0046] And as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, on the lower surface of the heating control block (30), one or more medium-high temperature heat transfer rod grooves (36) are formed in contact with the heating block (20), which has formed a medium-high temperature that is lower than the high temperature portion corresponding to the high temperature heat transfer groove (34). That is, the high temperature heat transfer groove (34) is located in the portion of the heating block (20) that is detected to have the highest temperature, thereby achieving heat transfer to the high temperature portion. On the other hand, in the heating block (20), the medium-high temperature heat transfer rod groove (36) portion is located in the portion that is relatively high temperature but not the highest temperature. Generally, the medium-high temperature heat transfer rod groove (36) has an overall shape that is rounded like the high temperature heat transfer groove (34), but a plurality of heat transfer rods (362), which are multiple rods extending downward, are formed inside.

[0047] That is, such medium-to-high temperature heat transfer rod grooves (36) are formed with a plurality of rod-shaped heat transfer rods (362) protruding downward, and heat-blocking rod spaces (363) which are empty spaces between the plurality of heat transfer rods (362).

[0048] Furthermore, as shown in the example illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, a central heat-blocking hole (361), which is a central empty space between a plurality of the heat transfer rods (362), is further provided. Accordingly, this central heat-blocking hole (361) is the part with the thinnest thickness of the round, and thus can improve heat transfer efficiency.

[0049] Next, as illustrated in FIGS. 3, 4, and 6, one or more medium-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusions (37) are formed on the lower surface of the heating control block (30) to contact the heating block (20), which has a medium-low temperature that is higher than the low-temperature portion corresponding to the low-temperature heat transfer protrusion (35). That is, heat transfer is achieved through the low-temperature heat transfer protrusion (35) for the low-temperature portion of the heating block (20). On the other hand, the medium-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusion (37) is positioned in the portion of the heating block (20) where the temperature is formed to be somewhat lower than that of the low-temperature heat transfer protrusion (35).

[0050] These medium-to-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusions (37) have an overall shape that protrudes downward in a rounded shape, similar to the low temperature heat transfer protrusions (35).

[0051] However, as shown in FIG. 6, a plurality of cylindrical protrusions may be formed. That is, the above medium-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusion (37) includes a slit protrusion (371) that is a cylindrical shape and extends downward, and a slit groove (272) which is a space between the plurality of slit protrusions (371).

[0052] Therefore, heat transfer is achieved through a plurality of slit protrusions (371) and slit grooves (272) between them, but because the heat transfer efficiency is higher than that of the low-temperature heat transfer protrusion (35), it is brought into contact with a low-temperature heating block (20) that is slightly higher than a very low temperature.

[0053] As described above, the heating block (20) forms a constant temperature overall through various configurations formed in the heating control block (30) in contact with the heating block (20).

[0054]

[0055] As described above, the present invention has been explained with reference to an embodiment illustrated in the drawings, but this is merely illustrative, and those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent embodiments are possible therefrom.

[0056] Therefore, the true scope of protection of the present invention must be determined solely by the appended claims.

Claims

1. In a rotary wafer heating system for heating a wafer, A heating block for placing and heating the above wafer; and It includes a heating control block installed at the bottom of the heating block, which, when a temperature difference occurs in each part of the heating block, causes the heat transfer rate to vary in each part of the heating block so that the temperature of the heating block becomes uniform overall. On the lower surface of the above heating control block, One or more high-temperature heat transfer grooves; and One or more of one or more low-temperature heat transfer protrusions are formed, and The above heating control block is rotatably installed by a drive motor, and A control unit receives the temperature of each part of the heating block detected by a plurality of first temperature sensors installed in each part of the heating block, and A rotary wafer heating system characterized by the above-described control unit rotating the heating control block by the above-described drive motor.

2. In Paragraph 1, On the lower surface of the above heating control block, One or more medium-high temperature heat transfer rod grooves are formed, which come into contact with a heating block forming a medium-high temperature that is lower than the high temperature portion corresponding to the high temperature heat transfer groove above. Among the above, the high-temperature heat transfer rod groove is, Multiple rod-shaped heat transfer rods protruding downward; A central heat-blocking hole, which is a central empty space between a plurality of the above-mentioned heat transfer rods; and A rotary wafer heating system characterized by including a space between heat-blocking rods, which is an empty space between a plurality of the above-mentioned heat transfer rods.

3. In Paragraph 1, On the lower surface of the above heating control block, One or more medium-low temperature heat transfer slit protrusions are formed that come into contact with a heating block forming a medium-low temperature, which is a higher temperature than the low-temperature portion corresponding to the above low-temperature heat transfer protrusions, and The low-temperature heat transfer slit protrusions mentioned above are, A slit projection in the form of a downwardly extended projection forming a cylindrical shape; and A rotary wafer heating system characterized by including a slit groove, which is a space between a plurality of the above-mentioned slit protrusions.

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