Method and apparatus for cooling wafers
First Claim
1. A wafer cooling apparatus, comprising:
- a chamber;
a pedestal comprising a support body having a substantially planar wafer support surface exposed to said chamber, said wafer support surface being provided with a groove which is so configured and located as to form an open channel when said wafer is supported on said surface to permit the escape of gas trapped between said wafer and said surface as the wafer is lowered onto the surface to prevent skating; and
a mechanism for lowering a wafer disposed within said chamber towards said wafer support surface of said support body, whereby said support body is adapted to remove heat from said wafer.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A wafer cooling apparatus characterized by a chamber, a pedestal disposed within the chamber and a mechanism for lowering a semiconductor wafer onto an upper surface of the pedestal. The upper surface of the pedestal is grooved to allow gas trapped between the wafer and the pedestal surface to escape around the periphery of the wafer, thereby minimizing the tendency of the wafer to "skate" across the surface of the pedestal on a thin layer of gas. The method involves extending a number of pins through a grooved cooling surface of the pedestal to contact a wafer, and retracting the pins into the pedestal to lower the wafer to the cooling surface and to force gas trapped between the wafer and the pedestal into the grooves of the pedestal.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A wafer cooling apparatus, comprising:
- a chamber;
a pedestal comprising a support body having a substantially planar wafer support surface exposed to said chamber, said wafer support surface being provided with a groove which is so configured and located as to form an open channel when said wafer is supported on said surface to permit the escape of gas trapped between said wafer and said surface as the wafer is lowered onto the surface to prevent skating; and a mechanism for lowering a wafer disposed within said chamber towards said wafer support surface of said support body, whereby said support body is adapted to remove heat from said wafer. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
- a chamber;
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8. An anti-skating pedestal for wafers, comprising:
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a body having a substantially planar wafer support surface; and a fluid channel provided in said body which is so configured and located as to form an open channel when said wafer is supported on said surface to permit the escape of gas trapped between said wafer and said surface as the wafer is lowered onto the surface to prevent skating. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for lowering a wafer onto a pedestal in a gaseous environment, comprising:
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positioning a wafer over a substantially planar, grooved surface of a pedestal; extending a plurality of pins through said surface to contact a bottom surface of said wafer; and retracting said plurality of pins into said pedestal to lower said wafer towards said surface, said grooved surface being so configured and located as to form an open channel when said wafer is supported on said surface to permit the escape of gas trapped between said wafer and said surface as the wafer is lowered onto the surface to prevent skating. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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20. A method for cooling a wafer within a gaseous environment, comprising:
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extending a plurality of pins through a substantially planar, grooved surface of a pedestal made from a material having good thermal conductivity; contacting a semiconductor wafer with said plurality of pins; retracting said plurality of pins into said pedestal to lower said wafer towards said surface, said grooved surface being so configured and located as to form an open channel when said wafer is supported on said surface to permit the escape of gas trapped between said wafer and said surface as the wafer is lowered onto the surface to prevent skating, whereby said pedestal is adapted to remove heat from said wafer. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification