KR20100093994A - Wafer processing system - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a substrate processing system, comprising: a process chamber having two or more susceptors on which a substrate is placed; A transfer chamber connected to said process chamber and having an atmospheric pressure transfer robot for transferring a substrate from a carrier to said process chamber; A substrate holding part provided inside the process chamber to load the substrate transferred from the atmospheric transfer robot; And a substrate transfer robot provided inside the process chamber and loading / unloading the substrate loaded on the substrate holding part into the susceptor. This can minimize the substrate transfer time to improve the work efficiency.

Description

Substrate Processing System {WAFER PROCESSING SYSTEM}

The present invention relates to a substrate processing system, and more particularly, to a substrate processing system capable of improving productivity by saving substrate transport time by loading / unloading a plurality of substrates into a chamber body at the same time.

Background Art In recent years, a substrate processing system for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device, a plasma display device, and semiconductor devices generally employs a cluster system capable of consistently processing a plurality of substrates.

In general, a cluster system refers to a multi-chamber substrate processing system including a transfer robot (or handler) and a plurality of substrate processing modules provided around the same.

The cluster system includes a transfer chamber and a transfer robot provided with a free rotation in the transfer chamber. Each side of the transfer chamber is equipped with a process chamber for carrying out a substrate processing process. Such a cluster system increases substrate throughput by allowing a plurality of substrates to be processed simultaneously or a plurality of processes can be performed continuously. Another effort to increase the substrate throughput is to process a plurality of substrates simultaneously in one process chamber to increase the substrate throughput per hour.

However, even when the process chamber processes a plurality of substrates simultaneously (or continuously), time loss occurs when the substrates are not efficiently exchanged between the load lock chamber and the transfer chamber before and after the process chamber.

Therefore, there is a demand for a substrate processing system capable of simultaneously processing a plurality of substrates in a process chamber for processing a plurality of substrates and for exchanging substrates before and after the treatment more efficiently.

An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing system that can minimize the substrate transfer time before and after the process chamber by eliminating the configuration of the load lock chamber.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing system capable of shortening the time required for a process by simultaneously loading / unloading a substrate loaded on a carrier into a process chamber.

One aspect of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem relates to a substrate processing system. The substrate processing system of the present invention includes a process chamber having two or more susceptors on which a substrate is placed; A transfer chamber connected to said process chamber and having an atmospheric pressure transfer robot for transferring a substrate from a carrier to said process chamber; A substrate holding part provided in the process chamber to load the substrate transferred from the atmospheric transfer robot; And a substrate transfer robot provided in the process chamber to load / unload the substrate loaded on the substrate holding part into the susceptor.

The display device may further include an isolation wall provided to be movable up and down in a peripheral area of the substrate holding part to isolate the substrate holding part from the susceptor when the process of the substrate is performed.

In addition, the atmospheric transfer robot, the lower transfer arm for loading / unloading at least one substrate loaded on the lowest layer of the total substrates loaded on the carrier to the substrate holding portion; And an upper transfer arm provided at one side of the first transfer arm to load / unload the remaining substrates except the substrate loaded / unloaded by the first transfer arm among the total substrates loaded on the carrier. .

Here, the substrate holding portion, the lifting shaft; A plurality of substrate support holders are provided in a number corresponding to the total number of substrates loaded in the carrier, and are coupled to the lifting shaft so as to be movable up and down.

In addition, the plurality of substrate support holders are moved up and down along the lifting shaft so that the substrate to be loaded / unloaded is positioned at the transfer height of the substrate transfer robot.

The substrate support holder is lifted by a magnetic force along the lifting shaft.

The substrate support holder is lifted in conjunction with driving of the atmospheric pressure transport robot.

Here, the apparatus further includes a common power supply source for supplying power to the plurality of susceptors.

On the other hand, the object of the present invention is a process chamber having two or more susceptors on which the substrate is placed; A transfer chamber having an atmospheric pressure transfer robot for transferring the substrate from the carrier; A buffering chamber provided between the process chamber and the transfer chamber; A movable substrate holding part provided in the buffering chamber so as to be movable in the process chamber and on which the substrate transferred from the atmospheric transfer robot is loaded; And a substrate transfer robot provided in the process chamber to load / unload a substrate into the susceptor from the movable substrate holding part moved into the process chamber.

Here, the movable substrate holding unit, the lifting shaft provided in the buffering chamber; A mobile substrate support holder provided on the elevating shaft to be capable of elevating and lifting a plurality of substrates; And a holder guide shaft provided perpendicular to the lifting shaft to guide the number of moving substrate support holders corresponding to the number of the susceptors to the inside of the process chamber during loading / unloading of the substrate.

Here, the movable substrate support holder is moved up and down by the magnetic force on the lifting shaft and the holder guide shaft.

As described above, the substrate processing system according to the present invention can minimize the transfer process because the substrate of the carrier is directly transferred to the process chamber by the transfer chamber without the configuration of a separate load lock chamber. As a result, the substrate transfer time is saved, and thus the process efficiency can be increased.

In addition, since the substrate is simultaneously loaded / unloaded by a plurality of susceptors, processing time may be minimized.

In order to fully understand the present invention, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiment of the present invention may be modified in various forms, the scope of the invention should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described in detail below. This embodiment is provided to more completely explain the present invention to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the shape of the elements in the drawings and the like may be exaggerated to emphasize a more clear description. It should be noted that the same members in each drawing are sometimes shown with the same reference numerals. Detailed descriptions of well-known functions and constructions which may be unnecessarily obscured by the gist of the present invention are omitted.

The basic intention of the present invention is to improve productivity by providing a more efficient substrate exchange method in a substrate processing system having a plurality of substrate processing capabilities. In addition, the present invention provides a substrate processing system capable of simultaneously processing a larger number of substrates based on an efficient substrate exchange method. The to-be-processed substrate W processed by this substrate processing system is typically a wafer substrate for manufacturing a semiconductor circuit or a glass substrate for manufacturing a liquid crystal display. In addition to the illustrated configuration of the present substrate processing system, multiple processing systems may be required to perform all the processes required for complete fabrication of integrated circuits or chips. However, for the sake of clarity, the conventional structures or configurations that can be understood by those skilled in the art are omitted.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a substrate transfer state of a substrate processing system 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which a substrate processing process of the substrate processing system 10 shown in FIG. 1 is in progress. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a substrate transfer process of the substrate processing system 10 of FIG.

As shown, the substrate processing system 10 according to the present invention is provided between the index 100 on which the carrier 120 is mounted and between the index 100 and the process chamber 300 to process the substrate of the carrier 120. The transfer chamber 200 includes an atmospheric pressure transfer robot 210 to be transferred to the chamber 300, and a process chamber 300 to which a process is performed on the substrate transferred from the transfer chamber 200.

Index 100 is also referred to as an equipment front end module (EFEM) and can sometimes be defined encompassing a load lock chamber. The index 100 includes a mounting table (also referred to as a load port) installed in the front portion, and a carrier (also referred to as a storage container or a cassette) 120 on which the plurality of wafers W are stored at predetermined intervals on the mounting table. Is loaded. The carrier 120 is a hermetically sealed container provided with the removable cover which is not shown in the front surface. Typically, the substrate 120 may be loaded with 25 substrates.

The transfer chamber 200 transfers the substrate loaded on the carrier 120 to the process chamber 300. In addition, the transfer chamber 200 preheats the substrate when preheating is required before transferring the substrate to the process chamber 300, and cools the substrate when the process chamber 300 needs to be cooled. The transfer chamber 200 includes an atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 for transferring the substrate from the carrier 120 to the process chamber 300, a preheating chamber 250 for preheating the substrate, and a cooling chamber 260 for cooling the substrate. Included.

4 to 6 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 of the present invention. The atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 conveys the substrate at atmospheric pressure. Atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 is rotated between the carrier 120 and the process chamber 300 is responsible for substrate transfer. The atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 simultaneously loads / unloads the entire substrate loaded on the carrier 120 into the substrate holding part 330 of the process chamber 300. Atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 is the upper transfer arm 213b for transferring the substrate of the upper region loaded on the carrier 120, and the lower transfer arm 213a for transferring the remaining substrate that is not transferred by the upper transfer arm 213b. ). The lower transfer arm 213a determines the number of substrates transferred according to the total number of substrates loaded on the carrier 120 and the number of susceptors 310 in the process chamber 300. The lower transfer arm 213a transfers an extra substrate transfer that is not processed simultaneously according to the number of susceptors 310 provided in the process chamber 300. For example, when 25 substrates are loaded on the carrier 120 and six susceptors 310 are provided, the last one substrate except for six substrates simultaneously processed in the process chamber 300 may be replaced by a lower transfer arm ( 213a).

The upper transfer arm 213b and the lower transfer arm 213a are rotatably provided around the rotation shafts 211a and 211b, respectively, and end effectors 215a and 215b are provided in the end region. The upper transfer arm 213b and the lower transfer arm 213a are rotated according to the driving source of the driving source 212 and transfer the substrate from the carrier 120 to the substrate holding part 330. When 25 substrates are loaded on the carrier 120 as in the above example, as shown in FIG. 5, the upper transfer arm 213b has 24 end effectors 215b, and the lower transfer arm 213a is 1. End effectors 215a. This is just an example and the number of end effectors 215a and 215b of the upper transfer arm 213b and the lower transfer arm 213a varies according to the number of substrates loaded on the carrier 120.

Here, the atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 may include a pitch conversion unit (not shown) for adjusting the pitch interval of the end effectors (215a, 215b) of the upper transfer arm (213b) and the lower transfer arm (213a). By the pitch converting unit (not shown), the plurality of end effectors 215a and 215b may change the vertical gap (pitch) based on the end effector located at the end or the end effector located at the center thereof. As a result, even when the storage pitch of the substrate in the carrier 120 and the substrate mounting pitch of the substrate support holder 335 of the substrate holding unit 330 are different, the plurality of substrates are formed between the carrier 120 and the substrate holding unit 330. You can move at the same time.

Atmospheric pressure conveying robot 210 has long, thin plate-shaped end effectors 215a and 215b for supporting and conveying a substrate as shown in FIG. The end effectors 215a and 215b are provided at the end regions of the upper transfer arm 213b and the lower transfer arm 213a to be horizontally rotated and retracted. Each end effector 215a or 215b may be made of aluminum, ceramic, or the like. The end effectors 215a and 215b are inserted into the bent shape of the substrate support holder 335 so that mutual interference does not occur when loading / unloading the substrate support holder 335. Atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 is the end effector (215a, 215b) is inserted into the substrate support holder 335 to load the substrate in the substrate support holder 335, or unloading the substrate loaded in the substrate support holder 335 do. At this time, the upper transfer arm 213b and the lower transfer arm 213a simultaneously transfer the substrate from the carrier 120 to the substrate support holder 335. The end effectors 215a and 215b are provided with air supply holes 216 for fixing the substrate loaded on the upper surface. By the pressure of the air supplied from the air supply port 216, the substrate may be adsorbed on the surface of the end effectors 215a and 215b to be stably transported.

The preheat chamber 250 is provided at one side of the transfer chamber 200 and is preheated before the substrate is transferred to the process chamber 300. The cooling chamber 260 cools the substrate on which the process is completed in the process chamber 300. Since the configuration of the preheating chamber 250 and the cooling chamber 260 is the same as the conventional configuration, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The process chamber 300 receives a substrate from the transfer chamber 200 and performs a process on the substrate. The process chamber 300 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention includes six susceptors 310 arranged in a radial shape, and the substrate transferred from the atmospheric transfer robot 210 is provided inside the process chamber 300. The substrate holding part 330, the substrate transfer robot 340 for loading and unloading the substrate W loaded on the substrate holding part 330 to each susceptor 310, and the substrate holding part 330 And a blocking wall 350 that blocks the susceptor 310.

Process chamber 300 may be configured to perform various substrate processing operations. For example, it can be an ashing chamber that removes photoresist, a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chamber configured to deposit an insulating film, and apertures or openings in the insulating film to form interconnect structures. An etch chamber configured to etch them. Or a PVD chamber configured to deposit a barrier film, and may be a PVD chamber configured to deposit a metal film.

On the other hand, the process chamber 300 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes six susceptors 310 disposed radially, but this is only an example and the number of the susceptors 310 depends on the process type and the process speed. It can be provided in various ways.

The process chamber 300 according to the present invention has a substrate holding part 330 in which the substrate transferred from the transfer chamber 200 is waiting inside the process chamber 300. The substrate holding unit 330 simultaneously receives and supports the substrate loaded on the carrier 120 from the atmospheric transfer robot 210 and loads / substrates corresponding to the number of susceptors 310 by the substrate transfer robot 340. Unload

The substrate holding part 330 is provided to be elevated in the process chamber 300 so that the substrate to be transferred to the substrate transfer robot 340 is located at the transfer position of the substrate transfer robot 340. To this end, the substrate holding part 330 includes a lifting shaft 333, a plurality of substrate support holders 335 coupled to the lifting shaft 333 to load a substrate thereon, and both end regions of the substrate support holder 335. And a lifting shaft accommodation holder 331 configured to support the substrate support holder 335 to be liftable with respect to the lifting shaft 333.

The lifting shaft receiving holder 331 is provided on the lifting shaft 333 so as to be lifted and positioned at a height at which the substrate support holder 335 loads / unloads the substrate to the atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 and the substrate transport robot 340. Do it. That is, when the plurality of substrates are transferred from the atmospheric pressure transport robot 210, the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 corresponds to the end effectors 215a and 215b of the atmospheric pressure transport robot 210. Adjust the height so that it is in position. When the substrate is taken over from the atmospheric transfer robot 210, the height of the substrate support holder 335 positioned at the uppermost position is adjusted to correspond to the transfer robot end effector 341 of the substrate transfer robot 340. In addition, when the process is completed, the substrate is transferred to the substrate support holder 335, the height is adjusted so that the next stacked substrate is transferred to the substrate transfer robot 340.

For example, when transferring 25 substrates to six susceptors as shown in FIG. 7, the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 has the top six substrate supporting holders 335 transport robots of the substrate transfer robot 340. The height is adjusted along the lifting shaft 333 to be in a position corresponding to the end effector 345. Then, when the substrate is transferred to the substrate transfer robot 340, the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 maintains a constant height, and the processed substrate is transferred to the empty transfer robot end effector 345. On the other hand, when the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 is transferred to the substrate support holder 335 after the process is completed, as shown in Figures 8 and 9, the six substrates loaded in the next order of the substrate transfer robot 340 The robot is moved up and down to correspond to the end effector 345. In this way, the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 adjusts the height of the substrate support holder 335 so that all 25 substrates are transferred to the substrate transfer robot 340.

In addition, the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 is predetermined when the substrate is transferred from the atmospheric transport robot 210 to the substrate support holder 335 and when the substrate is taken over from the substrate support holder 335 to the substrate transfer robot 340. By raising and lowering the height, the substrate transfer is performed smoothly.

Here, the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 may be raised and lowered on the lifting shaft 333 by mechanical means, hydraulic means and magnetic means. Among these, the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention is implemented to lift the lifting shaft 333 by magnetic force. This is because when the lifting is implemented by mechanical means and hydraulic pressure, the fine dust or particles generated by the lifting motion may affect the processing of the substrate.

As a result of the magnetic force, as shown in FIG. 10, the lifting shaft 333 is lifted in conjunction with the rotary shaft 211a of the lower transfer arm 213a of the atmospheric transfer robot 210, and the lifting shaft 333 and the lifting shaft It may be implemented with a magnet (331a, 333a) for generating an attraction force between the receiving holder 331. That is, when the rotating shaft 211a of the lower transfer arm 213a is lifted by the driving unit 370, the lifting shaft 333 is lifted in conjunction with this. At this time, since the magnet 333a coupled on the lifting shaft 333 is lifted together, the magnet 331a of the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 is also lifted together by the attraction force. In this case, since the magnets 331a and 333a are provided inside the lifting shaft 333 and inside the lifting shaft receiving holder 331, the magnets 331a and 333a do not generate contaminants such as particles during lifting of the lifting shaft receiving holder 331. Here, the lifting shaft 333 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is linked to the rotary shaft 211a of the lower transfer arm 213a, but ascended or connected to a separate drive source (not shown) in some cases or with a drive source of another configuration. It may be implemented to work together.

As shown in FIG. 11, the substrate support holder 335 is provided in a form in which the substrate support holder 335 is bent from the lifting shaft receiving holder 331 at both ends thereof. At this time, the end effectors 215a and 215b of the atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 are accommodated in the curvature of the substrate support holder 335. In addition, an effector accommodating groove 335b through which the transfer robot end effector 341 of the substrate transfer robot 340 is provided may be provided in the lower region of the substrate support holder 335. The effector accommodation groove 335b is provided in the lower region of the substrate support holder 335 and is loaded on the upper surface of the substrate support holder 335 while the transfer robot end effector 341 of the substrate transfer robot 340 is received and detached therein. The substrate is taken over or the substrate is turned over to the substrate support holder 335.

The substrate transfer robot 340 is provided in the process chamber 300 to load / unload the substrate loaded in the substrate holding part 330 into the plurality of susceptors 310. The substrate transfer robot 340 rotates along the transfer robot drive shaft 345 and includes a plurality of transfer robot arms 343 for loading / unloading the substrate into the susceptor 310. The transfer robot arm 343 is provided to correspond to the number of susceptors provided in the process chamber 300. The substrate transfer robot 340 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention is provided so that each transfer robot arm 343 simultaneously performs loading and unloading of the substrate. However, in some cases, the substrate transfer robot 340 may be implemented to have a loading transfer robot arm 343 and an unloading transfer robot arm 343 separately.

Here, the transfer robot arm 343 includes a first transfer robot arm 343a that rotates in a clockwise direction and a second transfer robot arm 343b that rotates in a counterclockwise direction according to the arrangement direction of the susceptor 310. .

In the end region of each transfer robot arm 343, a transfer robot end effector 341 on which a substrate is loaded is provided. As shown in FIG. 11, the transfer robot end effector 341 has a shape in which no interference occurs at the same time as the shape of the end effectors 215a and 215b of the atmospheric transfer robot 210 and the shape of the substrate support holder 335. Is prepared. In addition, the transfer robot end effector 341 is provided in a shape that does not cause interference with the lift pin 311 on the susceptor 310 when rotating in the process chamber 300 for loading and unloading the substrate. desirable.

The transfer robot end effector 341 is accommodated in the effector accommodating groove 335b of the substrate support holder 335 to transfer the substrate, and loads / unloads the substrate from the substrate support holder 335 and rotates each susceptor ( 310 load / unload substrate onto.

The transfer robot arm 343 is positioned as the substrate holding part 330 and receives a substrate corresponding to the number of susceptors 310 before the process is performed. Then, the transfer robot arm 343 rotates corresponding to the position of each susceptor 310 and seats the substrate on the lift pins 311 of the susceptor 310. The transfer robot arm 343 loaded with the susceptor 310 rotates toward the substrate holding part 330 and waits until the process is completed.

Here, the height difference between the height of the susceptor 310 and the transfer robot end effector 341 may be compensated by the lift pins 311. That is, as shown in FIG. 13, the lifting heights of the lift pins 311 in the susceptor 310 of the same height are different from h1, h2, and h3 so that the substrate can be smoothly transferred from the transfer robot end effector 341. Can be.

The susceptor 310 is biased by a susceptor power supply 313. Here, the plurality of susceptors 310 may have a separate power supply or may be powered by a common susceptor power supply 313 as shown in FIG. 13.

On the other hand, the plasma generating unit 320 for generating a plasma for processing the substrate is provided at a position facing the susceptor 310. The power supply source 325 is coupled to the plasma generator 320. The power supply source 325 may be separately provided in each plasma generator 320 or one power supply 325 may supply power to the plurality of plasma generators 320 in common. In this case, a phase difference controller 321 may be provided to supply the plasma generators 320 by varying the phase difference of the power supplied from the power supply source 325.

The isolation wall 350 moves up and down the process chamber 300 to insulate the substrate holding part 330 and the substrate transfer robot 340 from the susceptor 310. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the separating wall 350 moves to the bottom or upper side of the process chamber 300 so that the substrate transfer robot 340 is moved to the process chamber. 300) Allow to move inside. On the other hand, when the substrate is loaded on the susceptor and the substrate transfer robot 340 moves to the substrate holding part 330 side, as shown in FIG. 2, as shown in FIG. 310, the substrate holding part 330 and the substrate transfer robot 340 are isolated from each other. As a result, stability during processing of the substrate can be maintained. At this time, the transfer arm 343 of the substrate transfer robot 340 is located inside the isolation wall.

Here, a substrate entrance 270 is provided between the transfer chamber 200 and the process chamber 300 to access the substrate. The substrate entrance 270 is opened and closed by a slit valve or the like.

A substrate processing process of the substrate processing system 10 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention described above will be described with reference to FIGS.

First, when the carrier 120 is mounted on the index 100, the atmospheric pressure transport robot 210 simultaneously transfers the substrate loaded on the carrier 120 to the substrate holding part 330. At this time, the isolation wall 350 is elevated upward to insulate the substrate holding part 330 from the susceptor 310.

The substrate holding part 330 moves up and down the substrate support holder 335 along the lifting shaft 333 and transfers the number of substrates corresponding to the susceptor 310 to the transfer robot end effector 341 of the substrate transfer robot 340. Transfer. When the isolation wall 350 descends to the bottom of the process chamber 300, the transfer robot end effector 341 moves to each susceptor 310 to transfer the substrate on the lift pins 311 as shown in FIG. 1. do. The transfer robot end effector 341 on which the substrate transfer is completed moves to the substrate holding part 330 side as shown in FIG. 2, and the isolation wall 350 rises.

At the same time as the separation wall 350 rises, plasma is generated from the plasma generator 320 to process the substrate. When the substrate processing is completed, the transfer robot end effector 341 unloads the substrate of the susceptor 310 and transfers the substrate to the substrate support holder 335. The substrate holding part 330 adjusts the height of the substrate of the next-order substrate support holder 335 to be transferred to the transfer robot end effector 341.

When 25 substrates are processed in this manner and 25 substrates are unloaded onto the substrate holding part 330, the substrate entrance 270 is opened and the atmospheric transfer robot 210 moves to transfer the substrate to the carrier 120. Transfer and this process is repeated.

As described above, the substrate processing system according to the present invention can minimize the transfer process because the substrate of the carrier is directly transferred to the process chamber by the transfer chamber without the configuration of a separate load lock chamber. As a result, the substrate transfer time is saved, and thus the process efficiency can be increased.

In addition, since the substrate is simultaneously loaded / unloaded by a plurality of susceptors, processing time may be minimized.

14 to 17 are schematic diagrams showing the configuration of a substrate processing system 10a according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Substrate processing system 10a according to the second embodiment of the present invention, when compared to the substrate processing system 10 according to the first embodiment of the buffering chamber 400 between the process chamber 300 and the transfer chamber 200 And a movable moving substrate holding part 410 vertically and horizontally movable in the buffering chamber 400. That is, in the substrate processing system 10a according to the second embodiment, the moving substrate holding part 410 is not provided in the process chamber 300a but is provided in a separate buffering chamber 400.

The buffering chamber 400 is provided between the transfer chamber 200 in the atmospheric pressure state and the process chamber 300 in the vacuum state to change the atmospheric pressure and the vacuum.

The moving substrate holding part 410 includes a moving lift shaft 411 and a moving substrate support holder 413 coupled on the moving lift shaft 411. One side of the moving substrate holding part 410 is provided with a holder guide part 420 provided in a direction orthogonal to the moving lifting shaft 411 to guide the moving substrate support holder 413 to the process chamber 300a.

The moving lifting shaft 411 and the moving substrate support holder 413 contain magnets that generate mutual attraction. When the movable lifting shaft 411 is raised or lowered, the movable substrate support holder 413 is also elevated.

The holder guide part 420 has a holder guide shaft 421 for guiding the moving substrate support holder 413 to the process chamber 300a, and a moving substrate provided on the holder guide shaft 421 and coupled to the moving lifting shaft 411. And a guide holder 423 for transferring the support holder 413 to the holder guide shaft 421. The holder guide shaft 421 transfers the number of moving substrate support holders 413 corresponding to the number of susceptors 310 provided in the process chamber 300a to the process chamber 300a. The position of the holder guide part 420 is fixed, and the movable substrate support holder 413 is elevated together with the movable lifting shaft 411 to transfer the substrate to the process chamber 300a. The guide holder 423 includes a moving substrate support holder 413 and an electromagnet for generating attraction force. The guide holder 423 generates a magnetic force to separate the moving substrate support holder 413 from the moving elevating shaft 411 and to allow the moving substrate support holder 413 to move along the holder guide shaft 421.

A substrate transfer process of the substrate processing system 10a according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

First, when the substrate is transferred from the transfer chamber 200 to the moving substrate holding part 410, the guide holder 423 supports the lowest six moving substrates of the moving substrate support holders 413 coupled to the moving lifting shaft 411. The magnetic force is generated in the holder 413. As a result, the movable substrate support holder 413 moves to the process chamber 300a as shown in FIG. 16 and transfers the substrate to the substrate transfer robot 340. In the susceptor 310, the substrate on which the process is completed is loaded on the movable substrate support holder 413 moved to the process chamber 300a, and the guide holder 423 moves the movable substrate support holder 413 to the movable lifting shaft 411. Combine.

On the other hand, the movable lifting shaft 411 is changed in height so that the next-order moving substrate support holder 413 is disposed in a position corresponding to the holder guide shaft 421, the guide holder 423 moves the moving substrate support holder 413 in the process chamber Transfer to 300a.

As described above, the substrate processing system according to the second embodiment of the present invention is separated from the process chamber because the moving substrate holding part is located in the buffering chamber. Therefore, although the transfer time of the substrate is longer than that of the substrate processing system of the first embodiment, since the process chamber and the moving substrate holding portion are separated from each other, it is possible to fundamentally prevent the generation of particles during the process and ensure stability of the process.

Embodiment of the substrate processing system of the present invention described above is merely illustrative, and those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible from this. Could be. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention will be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims. It is also to be understood that the present invention includes all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process of loading a substrate into a process chamber of a substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process of unloading a substrate into a process chamber of a substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention of FIG.

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the atmospheric pressure transport robot of the substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention,

5 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing the configuration of an atmospheric pressure transport robot of the substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

6 is a plan view showing the configuration of the atmospheric pressure transport robot of the substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

7 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a substrate transfer robot of the substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

8 and 9 are perspective views showing the transfer process of the substrate transfer robot of the substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention,

10 is a schematic diagram schematically showing a lifting structure of a substrate holding part of a substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

11 is a plan view showing the configuration of the substrate holding portion and the transfer robot end effector of the substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

12 is a cross-sectional view showing the cross-sectional structure of the substrate support holder of the substrate holding of the substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

13 is a schematic diagram schematically showing a whole side surface of a substrate processing system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

14 is a plan view showing a substrate transfer process of the substrate processing system according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

15 is a plan view showing the position of the substrate transfer robot during substrate processing of the substrate processing system according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

16 and 17 are perspective views illustrating a substrate transfer process of the mobile substrate holding unit of the substrate processing system according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

* Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings *

10,10a: substrate processing system 100: index

120: carrier 200: transfer chamber

210: atmospheric transfer robot 211: drive shaft

212: drive source 213: transfer arm

215: transport robot end effector 216: air supply port

250: preheating chamber 260: cooling chamber

270: substrate entrance 300,300a: process chamber

310: susceptor 311: lift pin

320: plasma generating unit 330: substrate holding unit

331: lifting shaft receiving holder 333: lifting shaft

335: substrate support holder 337: effector movement hole

340: substrate transfer robot 341: transfer robot end effector

343: transfer robot arm 345: transfer robot drive shaft

350: blocking wall 400: buffering chamber

410: moving substrate holding unit 411: moving lifting shaft

413: moving substrate support holder 420: holder guide

421: holder guide shaft 423: guide holder

Claims (11)

A process chamber having two or more susceptors on which the substrate is placed; A transfer chamber connected to said process chamber and having an atmospheric pressure transfer robot for transferring a substrate from a carrier to said process chamber; A substrate holding part provided inside the process chamber to load the substrate transferred from the atmospheric transfer robot; And a substrate transfer robot provided in the process chamber to load / unload a substrate loaded in the substrate holding part into the susceptor. The method of claim 1, And a separation wall provided to be movable up and down in a peripheral area of the substrate holding part to isolate the substrate holding part from the susceptor when the process of the substrate is in progress. The method of claim 2, The atmospheric pressure transfer robot, A lower transfer arm for loading / unloading at least one substrate loaded on a lowermost layer of the total substrates loaded on a carrier into the substrate holding part; An upper transfer arm provided on one side of the first transfer arm and configured to load / unload the remaining substrates except for the substrate loaded / unloaded by the first transfer arm among the total substrates loaded on the carrier; Substrate processing system, characterized in that. The method of claim 3, The substrate holding part, Lifting shafts; And a plurality of substrate support holders provided in a number corresponding to the total number of substrates loaded in the carrier, the substrate supporting holders being coupled to the lifting shafts. The method of claim 4, wherein And the plurality of substrate support holders are moved up and down along the lifting shaft so that a substrate to be loaded / unloaded is positioned at a transfer height of the substrate transfer robot. The method of claim 4, wherein And the substrate support holder is lifted by a magnetic force along the lifting shaft. The method of claim 6, And the substrate support holder is lifted in conjunction with driving of the atmospheric pressure transport robot. The method of claim 1, And a common power supply source for supplying power to the plurality of susceptors. A process chamber having two or more susceptors on which the substrate is placed; A transfer chamber having an atmospheric pressure transfer robot for transferring the substrate from the carrier; A buffering chamber provided between the process chamber and the transfer chamber; A movable substrate holding part provided in the buffering chamber so as to be movable in the process chamber and on which the substrate transferred from the atmospheric transfer robot is loaded; And a substrate transfer robot provided in the process chamber to load / unload a substrate into the susceptor from the movable substrate holding part moved into the process chamber. 10. The method of claim 9, The movable substrate holding part, A lifting shaft provided in the buffering chamber; A mobile substrate support holder provided on the elevating shaft to be capable of elevating and lifting a plurality of substrates; And a holder guide shaft provided perpendicular to the lifting shaft to guide the number of moving substrate support holders corresponding to the number of susceptors to the inside of the process chamber during loading / unloading of the substrate. The method of claim 10, And the movable substrate support holder is moved up and down by the magnetic force on the lifting shaft and the holder guide shaft.

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