Wafer Storage Chamber Purge Flow for Humidity and Fume Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wafer storage containers face issues with uneven gas injection, allowing external gases to enter and leading to incomplete fume removal and humidity control, resulting in contamination and defective etch patterns.
Innovation Solution
A wafer storage container design that includes a storage chamber divided into multiple regions, with dedicated gas supply and exhaust parts to ensure even purge gas distribution and prevent external gas entry, using a flow of purge gas to block external gases and maintain humidity control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If gases are introduced into simple gas injection chambers and injected through holes in the chamber walls, then the structure is simple, but the gas injection force becomes uneven between upper and lower regions
Solution Approach 1:
The gas injection chamber is divided into multiple independent injection units, each with its own gas inlet hole and injection holes. This segmentation allows independent control of gas injection in different regions, enabling uniform gas distribution across upper and lower areas while maintaining structural simplicity through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the gas injection chamber are equipped with appropriate numbers of injection holes based on local requirements. The upper and lower regions each have dedicated injection units with optimized hole configurations, ensuring that gas injection force is evenly distributed according to the specific needs of each region rather than using a uniform approach throughout.
2Volume of moving object
If gas inlet holes have small diameter, then the chamber structure is compact, but the flow force of gases cannot be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The single gas inlet is divided into multiple gas inlet holes in each injection unit. This increases the total cross-sectional area for gas entry while maintaining compact chamber dimensions, thereby preserving sufficient gas flow force without requiring large individual hole diameters or increased chamber volume.
Solution Approach 2:
The gas injection system utilizes pneumatic principles where multiple smaller inlet holes collectively provide adequate flow force. The distribution of multiple injection units with multiple holes each creates optimized gas flow patterns that maintain injection force while keeping the chamber compact.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If purge gas is supplied to remove fumes, then fume removal is achieved, but external gases can still flow into the storage chamber through the front opening
Solution Approach 1:
A flow of purge gas is generated inside the storage chamber that moves from the rear toward the front, creating a protective gas barrier. This preliminary anti-action prevents external gases from entering through the front opening by establishing a directional gas flow that blocks contamination paths while simultaneously removing fumes from the stored objects.
Solution Approach 2:
The purge gas acts as an intermediary substance that performs dual functions: it removes harmful fumes generated by stored objects and simultaneously blocks external contaminants from entering. This mediator creates a controlled atmosphere that protects stored items from both internal and external harmful factors.
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 design achieves even purging across the entire wafer surface, minimizing dead areas and effectively controlling humidity, thereby reducing contamination and defect rates in semiconductor manufacturing.
Implementation Method 1
supplying a purge gas to the wafer stored in a wafer storage container
Implementation Method 2
a right gas exhaust part configured to transmit a suction force to the right chamber so that the purge gas inside the storage chamber is exhausted through the right hole
Data Source
AI summary
Proposed is a wafer storage container that supplies a purge gas to wafers stored in a storage chamber to remove fumes from the wafers or control humidity of the wafers. More particularly, proposed is a wafer storage container that generates a flow of a purge gas inside a storage chamber to block an external gas from flowing into the storage chamber and minimize dead areas on a wafer, thereby effectively achieving humidity control and fume removal for the wafer.