Ceramic Ring Ladder Structure for Wafer Deposition
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
In semiconductor thin film deposition processes, existing ceramic rings often cause particle production due to collisions between the wafer's sidewall thin film deposition surface and the ring, affecting product yield due to levelness issues and vibrations.
Innovation Solution
A ceramic ring with an annular recess and a buffer portion, featuring slope and arc surfaces, is designed to prevent contact between the wafer's thin film deposition surface and the ring cavity, ensuring reliable positioning and minimizing particle generation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a traditional ceramic ring structure is used, then the manufacturing process is simple, but particles are produced due to contact between the wafer's sidewall thin film deposition surface and the ring cavity
Solution Approach 1:
The ceramic ring is segmented into multiple functional regions: a positioning portion with a positioning surface for stable wafer placement, and a buffer portion with slope surfaces and arc surfaces that prevent direct contact between the wafer's sidewall deposition surface and the ring cavity. This segmentation allows the ring to simultaneously maintain manufacturing simplicity while eliminating particle-generating contact points.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer portion acts as an intermediary structure between the wafer and the ring cavity. By introducing this intermediate element with carefully designed slope and arc surfaces, the patent prevents direct harmful contact while maintaining the overall simple ring structure, thus reducing particle production without complicating manufacturing.
2Ease of manufacture
If the ceramic ring has a simple structure, then manufacturing is easier, but positioning reliability is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The ceramic ring is divided into distinct functional segments: a positioning portion with a specifically designed positioning surface that ensures reliable wafer placement, and a buffer portion that prevents contact. This segmentation enables the ring to achieve high positioning reliability through the specialized positioning surface while maintaining overall structural simplicity for easy manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the ceramic ring are given different local qualities: the positioning portion has a surface optimized for stable wafer placement, while the buffer portion has slope and arc surfaces optimized for contact prevention. This local differentiation ensures high positioning reliability in the critical area without requiring complex structures throughout the entire ring.
3Device complexity
If the wafer is placed directly on the ceramic ring, then the structure is simple, but vibrations and levelness issues cause contact between the wafer's sidewall deposition surface and the ring
Solution Approach 1:
The ceramic ring structure is segmented into a positioning portion and a buffer portion. The buffer portion includes slope surfaces and arc surfaces that create a protective barrier, preventing the wafer's sidewall deposition surface from contacting the ring cavity even when vibrations or levelness issues occur. This segmentation adds minimal structural complexity while effectively eliminating contact-induced particles.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer portion with its slope and arc surfaces serves as a pre-designed protective cushion that anticipates and prevents harmful contact. By incorporating this cushioning structure in advance, the patent protects against vibrations and levelness variations without requiring complex active control systems or increasing overall device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A ceramic ring for supporting a wafer, comprising: a body; and an annular recess provided in the center of the body, the annular recess having a bottom surface and a buffer portion extending upwards from the bottom surface to the surface of the body. The ceramic ring can ensure reliability in positioning the wafer, and can prevent the edge side of the wafer from generating particles by contacting the ceramic ring.