Heater block for heating wafer

• US 6,207,932 B1
• Filed: 12/30/1998
• Issued: 03/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Intellectual Discovery Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hyundai Electronics Industries Co. Ltd. (SK Hynix Inc.)
• Inventors: Yoo, Jin-Seock
• Primary Examiner(s): Paik, Sam
• Application Number:
  US09/222,928
• Time in Patent Office: 818 Days
• Field of Search: 219/443.1, 219/444.1, 219/462.1, 219/538, 219/539, 118/723.VE, 118/725, 118/726, 118/727, 118/620, 118/621, 427/255.1, 427/255.2
• US Class Current: 219/444.1
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/50 Substrate holders
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/541 Heating or cooling of the substrates
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67103 mainly by conduction
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67109 mainly by convection

Abstract

A heater block for heating a wafer comprising a body member; a wafer support disposed on the body member, the wafer support containing a plurality of troughs which extend along the surface thereof; a plurality of heated elements disposed under the wafer support in the body wherein the heat generated from each of the heated elements is transferred to the wafer support; a gas line conmected to the wafer support for supplying gas to the plurality of troughs; means for supplying heat to the heated elements; and a controller connected to the heated elements for controlling the temperature of the heated elements.

Claims

1. A heater block for heating a wafer, the heater block comprising:

a body member;

a wafer support disposed on said body member;

a plurality of heating elements disposed under the wafer support and in said body member,

wherein, for a reference circle visualized from a top view of said body member and centered upon a reference point of said body member, individual ones of said heating elements are located entirely within sectors of said reference circle, and

wherein the heat generated from each of said heating elements is transferred to said wafer support;

a power supply to energize said heating elements; and

a controller connected to said heating elements for non-uniformly controlling the energy supplied to said heating elements so as to produce angularly anisotropic heating of said heating elements.

2. The heater block for heating the water according to claim 1 wherein the heating elements are units wrapped with hot wires and said power supply is electrically connected to said hot wires.

3. The heater block for heating the wafer according to claim 2, wherein said wafer support has a plurality of troughs that extend along the surface thereof, the heater block further comprising a gas line connected to said wafer support to supply gas to said plurality of troughs.

4. The heater block for heating the wafer according to claim 1, wherein said troughs have a depth of 1 mm from the surface of the wafer support.

5. The heater block for heating the wafer according to claim 1, wherein said gas is Ar.

6. The heater block for heating the wafer according to claim 1, wherein said heating elements are evenly distributed along the surface of the wafer support.

7. The heater block for heating the wafer according to claim 1, wherein the heating elements are made of a ceramic material.

8. The heater block for heating the wafer according to claim 1, further comprising a central heating element located so as to be substantially centered upon said reference point of said body member and to partially extend into each of said sectors.

9. The heater block for heating the wafer according to claim 1, wherein said heating elements represent circular areas within said sectors, respectively.