Substrate rotating apparatus

• US 6,373,159 B1
• Filed: 07/17/2000
• Issued: 04/16/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/19/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Ebara Corporation
• Original Assignee: Ebara Corporation
• Inventors: Shinozaki, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Mullins, Burton S.
• Application Number:
  US09/617,779
• Time in Patent Office: 638 Days
• Field of Search: 310/90.5, 118/715, 118/730
• US Class Current: 310/90.5
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 2300/42 corrosive, i.e. with aggressive media or harsh conditions
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 2300/62 low pressure, e.g. elements operating under vacuum conditions
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 32/047 Details of housings; Mounting of active magnetic bearings
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/68792 characterised by the construction of the shaft

Abstract

A rotor is placed in a space communicating with a processing chamber. Stator-side constituent members of magnetic bearings and a stator-side constituent member of a motor are placed in a space defined outside the space communicating with the processing chamber by a partition provided between the rotor and the stator-side constituent members. Further, a material electromagnetically equivalent to yokes of electromagnets as stator-side constituent members of the magnetic bearings is fitted in portions of the partition where the yokes are located. The partition constitutes a stator housing as a whole. The magnetic bearings include an axial magnetic bearing and a radial magnetic bearing. The axial magnetic bearing is divided into three or more magnetic bearings, which are positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where the divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle or polygon.

Claims

1. A substrate rotating apparatus comprising:

a rotor provided in a space communicating with a processing chamber, said rotor having a horizontal disk provided thereon, and said rotor being operable to rotate a substrate located thereon;

magnetic bearings comprising electromagnets having yokes, said magnetic bearings being operable to support said rotor, said magnetic bearings including an axial magnetic bearing and a radial magnetic bearing, and said electromagnets being stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings; and

a motor having a stator-side constituent member, said motor being operable to apply a rotational force to said rotor to rotate the substrate in the processing chamber,

wherein said axial magnetic bearing comprises at least three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle or polygon, said electromagnets of said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings being disposed substantially above and below said horizontal disk of said rotor,

wherein said stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings and said stator-side constituent member of said motor are located in a space defined to be outside of the space communicating with the processing chamber by a partition acting as a stator housing, said partition located between said rotor and said stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings and said stator-side constituent member of said motor, and

wherein portions of said partition where said yokes of said electromagnets are located are fitted with a material that is electromagnetically equivalent to said yokes of said electromagnets as said stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings.

2. A substrate rotating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said stator housing has a cooling zone in the vicinity of the processing chamber.

3. A substrate rotating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said stator housing has a gas purge zone located across said cooling zone from the processing chamber.

4. A substrate rotating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said axial magnetic bearing has three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle.

5. A substrate rotating apparatus comprising:

a rotor provided in a space communicating with a processing chamber, said rotor having a horizontal disk provided thereon, and said rotor being operable to rotate a substrate located thereon;

magnetic bearings comprising electromagnets having yokes, said magnetic bearings being operable to support said rotor, said magnetic bearings including an axial magnetic bearing and a radial magnetic bearing, and said electromagnets being stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings; and

a motor having a stator-side constituent member, said motor being operable to apply a rotational force to said rotor to rotate the substrate in the processing chamber,

wherein said axial magnetic bearing comprises at least three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle or polygon, said electromagnets of said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings being disposed substantially above and below said horizontal disk of said rotor,

wherein said stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings and said stator-side constituent member of said motor are located in a space defined to be outside of the space communicating with the processing chamber by a partition located between said rotor and said stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings and said stator-side constituent member of said motor, and

wherein ends of said yokes of said electromagnets as said stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings pierce through said partition so as to face said rotor directly.

6. A substrate rotating apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said axial magnetic bearing has three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle.

7. A substrate rotating apparatus comprising:

a rotor having a horizontal disk provided thereon, said rotor being operable to rotate a substrate located thereon;

magnetic bearings comprising electromagnets having yokes, said magnetic bearings being operable to support said rotor, said magnetic bearings including an axial magnetic bearing and a radial magnetic bearing, and said electromagnets being stator-side constituent members of said magnetic bearings; and

a motor having a stator-side constituent member, said motor being operable to apply a rotational force to said rotor to rotate the substrate in a processing chamber,

wherein said axial magnetic bearing comprises said horizontal disk as a rotor-side constituent member and at least three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle or polygon, said electromagnets of said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings being disposed substantially above and below said horizontal disk of said rotor, and

wherein translational motion in two radial axes is passively supported by a radial restoring force generated when relative positioning between said yoke of one of said electromagnets as one of said stator-side constituent members of said axial magnetic bearing and said horizontal disk as said rotor-side constituent member of said magnetic bearing is displaced in a translational direction.

8. A substrate rotating apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said axial magnetic bearing has three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle.

9. A substrate rotating apparatus comprising:

a rotor having a horizontal disk provided thereon, said rotor being operable to rotate a substrate located thereon;

magnetic bearings operable to support said rotor, said magnetic bearings each having at least one displacement sensor operable to detect a displacement of said rotor and output an output signal So, and said magnetic bearings including an axial magnetic bearing and a radial magnetic bearing, said axial magnetic bearing comprising at least three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle or polygon;

a motor operable to apply rotational force to said rotor to rotate the substrate in a processing chamber; and

comparator circuits operable to compare the output signals So from said displacement sensors with stepwise threshold values |S1|<

|S2|<

|S3| set in said comparator circuits, wherein a first of said comparator circuits drives an alarm when |So|>

|S1|, a second of said comparator circuits drives a failure output circuit which notifies of an occurrence of a failure of said substrate rotating apparatus and a motor operation suspension circuit which suspends operation of said motor when |So|≧

|S2|, and a third of said comparator circuits drives said failure output circuit, said motor operation suspension circuit, and a magnetic bearing suspension circuit which suspends a levitation control of said magnetic bearings when |So|≧

|S3|,

wherein electromagnets comprising said at least three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed substantially above and below said horizontal disk of said rotor.

10. A substrate rotating apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising:

a storage unit operable to store the stepwise threshold values |S1|, |S2|, and |S3|; and

a computer operable to execute the processing of each of said comparator circuits and to drive the alarm circuit, the failure output circuit, the motor operation suspension circuit, and the magnetic bearing suspension circuit.

11. A substrate rotating apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said axial magnetic bearing has three divided axial magnetic bearings positioned so that imaginary lines connecting points where each of said three divided axial magnetic bearings are disposed form an approximately regular triangle.