Vacuum apparatus including a particle monitoring unit, particle monitoring method and program, and window member for use in the particle monitoring

• US 7,797,984 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2008
• Issued: 09/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: Moriya, Tsuyoshi, Nakayama, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Rogers; David A.
• Application Number:
  US12/258,196
• Publication Number:
  US 20090053835A1
• Time in Patent Office: 697 Days
• Field of Search: 73/232, 73 2801- 2806, 73/310.5, 73/310.7, 250/216, 250573-577, 356335-338, 356340-343
• US Class Current: 73/28.01
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 9/08 Cleaning containers, e.g. tanks
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/0272 with screening; with classification by filtering B01D takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/06 Investigating concentration of particle suspensions by weighing G01N5/00; investigating sedimentation of particle suspensions G01N15/04; investigating individual particles G01N15/10
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/075 by optical means
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32935 Monitoring and controlling tubes by information coming from the object and/or discharge
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/30 Self-sustaining carbon mass or layer with impregnant or other layer
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/315 Surface modified glass [e.g., tempered, strengthened, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/8305 Miscellaneous [e.g., treated surfaces, etc.]

Abstract

A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus includes a processing chamber for performing a manufacturing processing on a wafer. A gas supply line for introducing a purge gas is connected to an upper portion of the processing chamber, a valve being installed on the gas supply line. A rough pumping line with a valve is connected to a lower portion of the processing chamber. Installed on the rough pumping line are a dry pump for exhausting a gas in the processing chamber and a particle monitoring unit for monitoring particles between the valve and the dry pump. In the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, after the valve is opened, the purge gas is supplied to apply physical vibration due to shock wave in the processing chamber so that deposits are detached therefrom to be monitored as particles.

Claims

1. A particle monitoring method of a vacuum apparatus having a vessel defining a predetermined space, the vessel including a chamber wall defining a space necessary for performing a manufacturing processing and a wafer stage installed on a bottom surface of the vessel, comprising the steps of:

(a) exhausting a purge gas from the vessel via a purge gas exhaust line;

(b) monitoring particles within the purge gas exhaust line;

(c) controlling a flow rate of the purge gas exhausted from the vessel;

(d) supplying the purge gas into the vessel via a gas supply line;

(e) controlling a flow rate of the purge gas supplied into the vessel so that a physical vibration due to a shock wave caused by a rapid inflow of the purge gas and transferred to the chamber wall and the wafer stage detaches the particles from the chamber wall and the wafer stage;

(f) supplying a corrosive processing gas into the vessel; and

(g) exhausting the processing gas from the vessel through a processing gas exhaust line,

wherein, a supply of the purge gas is started when exhaust of the purge gas is permitted through the purge gas exhaust line but not permitted through the processing gas exhaust line, and wherein the monitored particles include particles detached from the vessel due to the supply of the purge gas.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein exhaust of the processing gas is prohibited through the purge gas exhaust line when the processing gas is exhausted through the processing gas exhaust line.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the flow rate of the purge gas is controlled in the step (e) such that a pressure of the purge gas becomes at least twice an internal pressure of the vessel right before starting the supply of the purge gas into the vessel.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the purge gas exhaust line is a vacuum exhaust line.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, in the step (e), a pressure level inside the vessel has a range from 10⁻

4 to 10<sup>−

1</sup> Pa and the flow rate of the purge gas is about 70000 SCCM.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein supplying the purge gas in the step (d) is performed for 2 to 5 seconds.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the physical vibration is generated plural times.

8. A computer readable medium encoded with a computer-executable program, stored in a storage medium, for performing a particle monitoring method of a vacuum apparatus having a vessel defining a predetermined space, the vessel including a chamber wall defining a space necessary for performing a manufacturing processing and a wafer stage installed on a bottom surface of the vessel, the computer-executable program comprising:

a processing gas supply module for supplying a corrosive processing gas into the vessel;

a processing gas exhaust module for exhausting the processing gas from the vessel via a processing gas exhaust line;

a first exhaust control module for controlling a flow rate of a gas exhausted from the vessel via the processing gas exhaust line;

a purge gas supply module for supplying a purge gas into the vessel via a gas supply line;

a purge gas exhaust module for exhausting the purge gas from the vessel via a purge gas exhaust line;

a second exhaust control module for controlling a flow rate of a gas exhausted from the vessel via the purge gas exhaust line;

a particle monitoring module for monitoring particles within the purge gas exhaust line; and

a gas supply control module for controlling a flow rate of the purge gas supplied into the vessel so that physical vibration due to a shock wave caused by a rapid inflow of the purge gas and transferred to the chamber wall and the wafer stage detaches the particles from the chamber wall and the wafer stage,

wherein the gas supply control module starts a supply of the purge gas when the second exhaust control module permits exhaust of the purge gas via the purge gas exhaust line and the first exhaust control module prohibits the exhaust of the purge gas via the processing gas exhaust line, and

wherein the particles monitored by the particle monitoring module include particles detached from the vessel due to the supply of the purge gas.

9. The program of claim 8, wherein the flow rate of the purge gas is controlled such that a pressure of the purge gas becomes at least twice an internal pressure of the vessel right before starting the supply of the purge gas into the vessel.

10. A computer-readable medium encoded with a computer-executable program, the computer-executable program comprising:

a processing gas supply module for supplying a corrosive processing gas into a vessel;

a processing gas exhaust module for exhausting the processing gas from the vessel via a processing gas exhaust line;

a first exhaust control module for controlling a flow rate of a gas exhausted from the vessel via the processing gas exhaust line;

a purge gas supply module for supplying a purge gas into the vessel via a gas supply line;

a purge gas exhaust module for exhausting the purge gas from the vessel via a purge gas exhaust line;

a second exhaust control module for controlling a flow rate of a gas exhausted from the vessel via the purge gas exhaust line;

a particle monitoring module for monitoring particles within the purge gas exhaust line;

a gas supply control module for controlling a flow rate of the purge gas supplied into the vessel so that physical vibration due to a shock wave, caused by a rapid inflow of the purge as and transferred to a chamber wall and a wafer stage installed on a bottom surface of the vessel, detaches the particles from the chamber wall and the wafer stage,

wherein the gas supply control module starts a supply of the purge gas when the second exhaust control module permits exhaust of the purge gas via the purge gas exhaust line and the first exhaust control module prohibits the exhaust of the purge gas via the processing gas exhaust line, and

wherein the particles monitored by the particle monitoring module include particles detached from the vessel due to the supply of the purge gas.

11. The storage medium of claim 10, wherein the flow rate of the purge gas is controlled such that a pressure of the purge gas becomes at least twice an internal pressure of the vessel right before starting the supply of the purge gas into the vessel.