Vacuum Maintenance Cover for Plasma Etching
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Solution Overview
Problem
In plasma etching apparatuses, the replacement of parts like the focus ring requires exposing the processing container to atmospheric air, leading to prolonged temperature adjustment and moisture control, reducing productivity and risking component deterioration due to moisture and fluoride reactions.
Innovation Solution
A maintenance device with a cover and fixing members that maintain airtightness and visual transparency, allowing for part replacement within a vacuum atmosphere, using adapters and clamp rings to seal the processing container and fill it with dry air, preventing exposure to outside moisture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of repair
If the processing container is exposed to atmospheric air for part replacement, then maintenance can be performed, but temperature adjustment time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the inert atmosphere principle by introducing a cover that maintains a vacuum or inert gas environment during maintenance operations. The cover creates a sealed space that prevents atmospheric air from entering the processing container, allowing part replacement to be performed without exposing components to moisture and oxygen. This eliminates the need for prolonged temperature adjustment and moisture control procedures after maintenance, thereby resolving the contradiction between ease of repair and productivity.
2Ease of repair
If the processing container is exposed to atmospheric air, then maintenance can be performed, but component deterioration occurs due to moisture and fluoride reactions
Solution Approach 1:
The cover creates a protected environment that prevents harmful chemical reactions between atmospheric moisture and fluoride-containing components. By maintaining a vacuum or inert gas atmosphere during maintenance, the patent eliminates the source of deterioration (atmospheric air), allowing maintenance personnel to access and service components without risking their integrity. This resolves the contradiction between maintenance accessibility and component reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The cover acts as an intermediary barrier between the processing container components and the atmospheric air. This intermediate structure allows maintenance personnel to work on components while the cover shields them from direct exposure to harmful atmospheric elements. The cover mediates the interaction between the vulnerable components and the corrosive atmosphere, preventing deterioration while enabling maintenance access.
3Ease of repair
If the processing container is opened for maintenance, then parts can be replaced, but moisture control procedures are required extending processing time
Solution Approach 1:
By maintaining a vacuum or inert gas environment within the cover during maintenance operations, the patent eliminates the need for moisture control procedures that would otherwise be required after opening the processing container. Components remain protected from atmospheric moisture throughout the maintenance process, allowing personnel to access and service parts without subsequent drying or conditioning steps. This resolves the contradiction between component access and time loss.
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
Enables efficient maintenance without exposing the processing container to atmospheric air, reducing restart time and preventing component deterioration, thus enhancing productivity and maintaining equipment integrity.
Implementation Method 1
a cover which is in a vacuum atmosphere during substrate processing, is formed to have a size corresponding to a boundary line between a first part and a second part of a processing container, which is separable into the first part and the second part, or an opening surface separating the first part and the second part, and has airtightness
Implementation Method 2
a fixing member that fixes in an airtight manner the cover along the boundary line between the first part and the second part of the processing container or to the opening surface separating the first part and the second part
Implementation Method 3
and has airtightness, and visual transparency at least in a part
Data Source
AI summary
A maintenance device has a cover and a fixing member. The cover is in a vacuum atmosphere during substrate processing, is formed to have a size corresponding to a boundary line between a first part and a second part of a processing container, which can be separated into the first part and the second part, or an opening surface separating the first part and the second part, and has airtightness, and visual transparency at least in a part. The fixing member fixes in an airtight manner the cover along the boundary line between the first part and the second part of the processing container or to the opening surface separating the first part and the second part.