Exhaust Pump Shielding Unit for Particle Contamination Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
In substrate processing apparatuses, particles exfoliated from turbo-molecular pump rotary blades or recoiled by them can flow back into the processing chamber, leading to decreased yield due to attachment on semiconductor device substrates, despite increased frequency of TMP replacement.
Innovation Solution
An exhaust pump and communicating pipe with a shielding unit inside the air intake portion and communicating pipe, respectively, that captures and shields the rotary blades from particles, using funnel-shaped, plate-shaped, annular, or laminated structures to prevent particle collisions and recoil backflow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the frequency of TMP replacement is increased to prevent particles from deposit exfoliation, then particle contamination from deposit is reduced, but recoiled particles still enter the chamber and substrate yield decreases
Solution Approach 1:
A shielding unit is introduced as an intermediary component between the air intake portion and the rotary blades. This shielding unit captures particles before they reach the rotary blades, preventing both deposit exfoliation and particle recoil issues simultaneously, thereby protecting substrate yield without sacrificing productivity
2Object-affected harmful factors
If TMP replacement frequency is increased to prevent particle backflow, then particle contamination is reduced, but device complexity and maintenance cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The shielding unit performs preliminary action by capturing particles in advance before they can reach the rotary blades and cause contamination. This preventive measure eliminates the need for frequent TMP replacements, reducing device complexity and maintenance requirements while effectively preventing particle backflow
3Object-affected harmful factors
If shielding unit is added to capture particles, then particle contamination is prevented, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The shielding unit is designed as a segmented structure with multiple shielding plates arranged in sequence within the air intake portion. This segmentation approach effectively captures particles through multiple stages while keeping each individual component simple and manageable, minimizing the increase in overall device complexity
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
Effectively prevents particles from entering the processing chamber, reducing substrate contamination and increasing yield by capturing and kinetic energy-decreasing mechanisms within the shielding unit.
Implementation Method 1
particles can be prevented from reaching the rotary blades of the exhaust pump, and hence the particles can be prevented from colliding with the rotary blades and recoiling to directly flow back into the processing chamber
Data Source
AI summary
An exhaust pump that prevents particles from entering a processing chamber of a substrate processing apparatus. The exhaust pump connected to the processing chamber has rotary blades and an air intake portion disposed on the processing chamber side of the rotary blades. A shielding unit is disposed inside the air intake portion and shields the rotary blades when the air intake portion is viewed from the processing chamber side.