Movable Cover Member for Substrate Exposure Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing substrate processing apparatuses face challenges in maintaining a constant low oxygen atmosphere during substrate exposure due to leaks through the carry-in and carry-out window, which complicates the configuration and reduces processing efficiency.
Innovation Solution
An exposure device with a movable closing member and inert gas suppliers to create a hermetic environment for substrate processing, minimizing gas leaks and maintaining a low oxygen concentration, allowing for efficient exposure without complicating the substrate handling configuration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a shutter is provided to open and close the carry-in carry-out window, then the window can be closed to prevent air entry, but a gap is formed between the sidewall and shutter which causes nitrogen gas leakage and air entry, making it difficult to maintain constant low oxygen atmosphere
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the opening/closing function from the traditional shutter mechanism and relocates it to a cover member that opens only when the substrate is being carried in/out. The cover member is integrated with the substrate moving mechanism, eliminating the need for a separate shutter that would require gaps for movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The cover member is merged with the substrate moving mechanism (hand or robot arm), combining the functions of substrate transport and opening/closing operations. This integration eliminates the need for a separate shutter mechanism and its associated gaps.
2Manufacturing precision
If nitrogen gas is supplied to the processing container to adjust oxygen concentration, then exposure quality improves, but gas leaks through the carry-in carry-out window reducing processing efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the gas supply function from the main processing container and relocates it to the substrate holder or hand. This allows the inert gas atmosphere to be maintained locally at the substrate level without requiring the entire processing container to be sealed and pressurized with inert gas.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a local inert gas atmosphere around the substrate using the substrate holder or hand as a sealed chamber. This local atmosphere control ensures high exposure quality while avoiding the need to maintain inert atmosphere throughout the entire processing container, improving gas utilization efficiency.
3Reliability
If air enters the processing container through the carry-in carry-out window, then the low oxygen atmosphere is compromised, but providing a sealed window prevents substrate carry-in and carry-out
Solution Approach 1:
The cover member is designed to be dynamic, opening only during substrate carry-in/carry-out operations and remaining closed during exposure processing. This dynamic behavior allows easy substrate handling when needed while maintaining atmosphere control during processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The substrate holder or hand is pre-filled with inert gas before substrate insertion, and the cover member is closed immediately after substrate placement. This preliminary preparation ensures the low oxygen atmosphere is established before exposure begins, maintaining both atmosphere control and operational ease.
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 solution enables consistent low oxygen exposure for substrates, reducing light attenuation and maintaining processing efficiency by minimizing gas leaks and simplifying the handling mechanism, thus enhancing the overall substrate processing apparatus performance.
Implementation Method 1
a first inert gas supplier that supplies an inert gas to an inside of the casing when the closing member is located at the second position
Implementation Method 2
a light irradiator that irradiates one surface of the substrate moved by the second substrate moving mechanism with light
Implementation Method 3
a closing member provided to be movable in an up-and-down direction between a first position spaced apart from the opening and a second position at which the closing member closes the opening
Data Source
AI summary
With a cover member being located directly upward of an opening of a casing, a substrate in a horizontal attitude is carried into a gap between the cover member and the opening. The carried-in substrate is moved to the inside of the casing through the opening. The cover member is lowered, so that the opening is closed. An inert gas is supplied to the inside of the casing. One surface of the substrate is irradiated with vacuum ultraviolet rays by a light emitter while the substrate is moved in a horizontal direction in the casing. The cover member is lifted, so that the opening is opened. The substrate is moved to a position between the cover member and the opening from a position inside of the casing through the opening. Thereafter, the substrate in the horizontal attitude is taken out in the horizontal direction.