Heat Insulator Assembly With IR Reflection for Stable Wafer Processing
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Solution Overview
Problem
In vertical type semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses, heat leakage from the process chamber can lead to a decrease in processing quality due to temperature fluctuations.
Innovation Solution
A substrate processing apparatus is configured with a heat insulating region in the substrate retainer, a first reaction tube with open ends, a second reaction tube with a closed upper end, and highly reflective structures with infrared reflectance higher than the heat insulator, arranged to minimize heat leakage and maintain chamber temperature.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If a heat insulator is provided in the substrate retainer to reduce heat leakage, then heat insulation performance is improved, but the infrared reflectance is insufficient to fully prevent heat loss
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines heat insulator material with highly reflective material having infrared reflectance of 80% or more to create a composite heat insulator assembly. This composite structure leverages both the thermal insulation properties of the heat insulator and the infrared reflection properties of the reflective material, achieving superior heat leakage prevention compared to using either material alone.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different materials with different properties to different regions of the heat insulator assembly. The heat insulator provides baseline insulation, while the highly reflective material is strategically positioned to reflect infrared radiation back into the process chamber, creating localized enhancement of heat retention where most needed.
2Manufacturing precision
If the process chamber is heated to maintain processing temperature, then processing quality is improved, but heat leakage causes energy consumption to increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful heat leakage into a beneficial effect by using highly reflective material to bounce escaped heat back into the process chamber. Instead of heat loss representing only waste, the reflective structure recovers this energy and redirects it to maintain chamber temperature, turning an energy loss into a temperature-maintaining mechanism.
3Loss of energy
If a highly reflective structure with high infrared reflectance is added to the heat insulator, then heat leakage is suppressed, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the heat insulator and the highly reflective structure into a single integrated heat insulator assembly. By combining these two functional elements into one component that can be installed as a unit in the substrate retainer, the patent reduces the number of separate parts and simplifies installation while achieving superior heat retention performance.
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 configuration effectively suppresses heat leakage, maintaining the process chamber temperature and improving the processing quality of substrates by reducing temperature deviations and energy consumption.
Implementation Method 1
a first highly reflective structure whose infrared reflectance is higher than that of the heat insulator and provided in the heat insulating region
Implementation Method 2
a substrate retainer provided with a heat insulating region at a lower portion thereof, wherein a heat insulator is provided in the heat insulating region
Data Source
AI summary
According to one aspect of a technique the present disclosure, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus including: a substrate retainer provided with a heat insulating region at a lower portion thereof; a first reaction tube with open upper and lower ends; a second reaction tube with a closed upper end and an open lower end; a furnace opening flange provided with a holder in a first space between the first reaction tube and the second reaction tube; a heater covering the second reaction tube to heat a substrate arranged in the substrate retainer in the first reaction tube; a first highly reflective structure provided in the heat insulating region; and a second highly reflective structure arranged at the holder provided at the furnace opening flange and along an inner wall of the second reaction tube at a lower portion of the second reaction tube in the first space.