Cold Trap Cooling Structure for High-Pressure Byproduct Capture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing substrate processing apparatuses face issues with byproducts adhering to equipment due to high-temperature gas discharge, leading to clogging and inefficient pressure regulation, particularly in high-pressure environments.
Innovation Solution
A high pressure substrate processing apparatus with a cold trap that includes a cooling plate and cooling medium line to capture and solidify byproducts before they reach the gas discharge device, maintaining separate high and low-temperature regions to enhance cooling efficiency and prevent clogging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If byproducts are discharged at high temperature, then the gas discharge efficiency is improved, but byproducts stick to equipment and cause clogging
Solution Approach 1:
A cold trap is introduced as an intermediary component between the high-temperature processing chamber and the gas discharge device. The cold trap captures byproducts through cooling while allowing the main gas flow to pass through to the discharge device, thus preventing byproduct adhesion without compromising gas discharge efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The gas exhaust system is segmented into distinct temperature zones: a high-temperature region for processing, a cooling region with cold trap for byproduct capture, and a low-temperature region for gas discharge. This segmentation allows each component to operate at optimal temperatures, preventing clogging while maintaining discharge efficiency
2Reliability
If cold trap is installed directly in front of scrubber, then byproduct capture is improved, but flow path clogging occurs between scrubber and vacuum pump
Solution Approach 1:
The cold trap serves as an intermediary that captures byproducts before they reach downstream equipment. By positioning it strategically and using the partition plate to guide flow, the system captures byproducts while preventing them from traveling further to cause clogging in the flow path between scrubber and vacuum pump
3Reliability
If cold trap is used in high pressure processing apparatus, then byproduct capture is improved, but burden of high pressure design on cold trap increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system is divided into a high-pressure processing chamber and a separate cold trap region. The partition plate creates distinct pressure zones, allowing the cold trap to operate at lower pressure while the processing chamber maintains high pressure. This segmentation reduces the high pressure design burden on the cold trap while preserving byproduct capture efficiency
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The cold trap effectively captures and solidifies byproducts, preventing equipment clogging and ensuring precise pressure regulation, even in high-pressure conditions, by utilizing a dual-chamber design with a cooling coil and filter system.
Implementation Method 1
a cold trap including a cooling plate for cooling and capturing the byproducts in the mixed gas
Implementation Method 2
The byproducts may be gaseous in a high-temperature environment, and solidified either during a process of leaving the chamber or after leaving the chamber
Implementation Method 3
a cooling medium line through which a cooling medium flows internally, and the cooling plate may be connected to the cooling medium line and discharge heat from the mixed gas to the cooling medium
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are a high pressure substrate processing apparatus and a cold trap used therefor. The cold trap may include a casing, a cooling plate, and a cooling medium line. The casing may have an internal space communicating with an inlet and an outlet. The cooling plate may be disposed in the internal space and cool and primarily capture byproducts included in mixed gas flowing into the internal space from a substrate processing area through the inlet. The cooling medium line may accommodate a cooling medium while being disposed behind the cooling plate along a flow direction of the mixed gas from the inlet toward the outlet in the internal space and connected to the cooling plate and may be configured to discharge heat from the mixed gas to the cooling medium. The cooling medium line may define a well space configured to cool and secondarily capture the byproducts.