Vacuum processing apparatus and operating method therefor

• US 20040074104A1
• Filed: 10/14/2003
• Published: 04/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/1990
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Atsushi Itou, Kouji Nishihata, Shigekazu Kato, Tsunehiko Tsubone
• Original Assignee: Atsushi Itou, Kouji Nishihata, Shigekazu Kato, Tsunehiko Tsubone
• Inventors: Itou, Atsushi, Tsubone, Tsunehiko, Kato, Shigekazu, Nishihata, Kouji
• Granted Patent: US 6,886,272 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 34/92
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 3/006 Processes utilising sub-atmospheric pressure; Apparatus therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/36 Print density control
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/365 by compensation for variation in temperature
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/564 Means for minimising impurities in the coating chamber such as dust, moisture, residual gases
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67028 for cleaning followed by drying, rinsing, stripping, blasting or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67167 surrounding a central transfer chamber
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67253 Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67736 Loading to or unloading from a conveyor
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67748 horizontal transfer of a single workpiece
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 134/902 Semiconductor wafer
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 414/137 including means for charging or discharging wafer cassette
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 414/139 including wafer charging or discharging means for vacuum chamber
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 414/14 Wafer cassette transporting

Abstract

This invention relates to a vacuum processing apparatus having vacuum processing chambers the insides of which must be dry cleaned, and to a method of operating such an apparatus When the vacuum processing chambers are dry-cleaned, dummy substrates are transferred into the vacuum processing chamber by substrates conveyor means from dummy substrate storage means which is disposed in the air atmosphere together with storage means for storing substrates to be processed, and the inside of the vacuum processing chamber is dry-cleaned by generating a plasma. The dummy substrate is returned to the dummy substrate storage means after dry cleaning is completed. Accordingly, any specific mechanism for only the cleaning purpose is not necessary and the construction of the apparatus can be made simple Furthermore, the dummy substrates used for dry cleaning and the substrates to be processed do not coexist, contamination of the substrates to be processed due to dust and remaining gas can be prevented and the production yield can be high.

Claims

1. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates, in the atmosphere;

an atmospheric transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in the atmosphere, being capable of moving at least vertically and being capable of being controlled such that any of said substrates and any of said dummy substrates can be taken out of any location in the cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table; and

a control means (a) for transferring substrates and said dummy substrates from any location in any of said cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table in the atmosphere to the vacuum processing chambers via said atmospheric transfer device, and (b) for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in said vacuum processing chambers to original locations of original cassettes, at which respective substrates and dummy substrates were located prior to transfer to the vacuum processing chambers, via said atmospheric transfer device.

2. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates, in the atmosphere;

a transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates, being capable of moving at least vertically and of being controlled such that any of said substrates and any of said dummy substrates can be taken out of any location in the cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table; and

a control means (a) for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates from any location in any of said cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table in the atmosphere to the vacuum processing chambers via said transfer device, and (b) for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in said vacuum processing chambers to original locations of original cassettes, at which respective substrates and dummy substrates were located prior to transfer to the vacuum processing chambers, via said transfer device.

3. A vacuum processing apparatus comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates, in the atmosphere;

an atmospheric transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in the atmosphere, being capable of being controlled such that any of said substrates and any of said dummy substrates can be taken out of any location in said cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table; and

a control means (a) for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates from any location in any of said cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table in the atmosphere to the vacuum processing chambers via said atmospheric transfer device, and (b) for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in said vacuum processing chambers to original locations of original cassettes, at which respective substrates and dummy substrates were located prior to transfer to the vacuum processing chambers, via said atmospheric transfer device.

4. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates, in the atmosphere;

a transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates, being capable of being controlled such that any of said substrates and any of said dummy substrates can be taken out of any location in the cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table; and

a control means (a) for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates from any location in any of said cassettes mounted on said at least one cassette mount table in the atmosphere to the vacuum processing chambers via said transfer device, and (b) for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in said vacuum processing chambers to original locations of original cassettes, at which respective substrates and dummy substrates were located prior to transfer to the vacuum processing chambers, via said transfer device.

5. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates, in the atmosphere;

an atmospheric transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in the atmosphere, being capable of moving at least vertically; and

a controller connected at least to said atmospheric transfer device for controlling locations of said substrates and said dummy substrates such that substrates transferred from any location in one of the cassettes mounted on the at least one cassette mount table in the atmosphere to at least one of the vacuum processing chambers are transferred to original locations of original cassettes, in which the substrates or said dummy substrates are stored prior to processing.

6. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates;

a transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates, being capable of moving at least vertically; and

a controller connected at least to said transfer device for controlling locations of said substrates and said dummy substrates such that substrates transferred from any location in one of the cassettes mounted on the at least one cassette mount table to at least one of the vacuum processing chambers are transferred to original locations of original cassettes, in which the substrates or said dummy substrates are stored prior to processing.

7. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates, in the atmosphere;

an atmospheric transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates in the atmosphere, and

a controller connected at least to said atmospheric transfer device for controlling locations of said substrates and said dummy substrates such that substrates transferred from any location in one of the cassettes mounted on the at least one cassette mount table in the atmosphere to at least one of the vacuum processing chambers are transferred to original locations of original cassettes, in which the substrates or said dummy substrates are stored prior to processing.

8. A vacuum processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of vacuum processing chambers for generating a plasma in each of said chambers;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates, in the atmosphere;

a transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates; and

a controller connected at least to said transfer device for controlling locations of said substrates and said dummy substrates such that substrates transferred from any location in one of the cassettes mounted on the at least one cassette mount table to at least one of the vacuum processing chambers are transferred to original locations of original cassettes, in which the substrates or said dummy substrates are stored prior to processing.

9. A processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of processing chambers for processing substrates;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates;

an atmospheric transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates; and

a controller connected at least to said atmospheric transfer device for controlling locations of the substrates and said dummy substrates such that substrates transferred from any location in one of the cassettes mounted on the at least one cassette mount table to at least one of the processing chambers are transferred to original locations of original cassettes, in which the substrates or said dummy substrates are stored prior to processing.

10. A processing apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of processing chambers for processing substrates;

at least one cassette mount table for mounting at least one cassette storing substrates and at least one cassette storing dummy substrates;

a transfer device for transferring said substrates and said dummy substrates; and

a controller connected at least to said transfer device for controlling locations of the substrates and said dummy substrates such that substrates transferred from any location in one of the cassettes mounted in the plurality of cassette mount tables one by one to at least one of the processing chambers are transferred to original locations of original cassettes one by one, in which the substrates or said dummy substrates are stored prior to processing.