JPS6258147B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a novel apparatus in wafer processing.

In the current semiconductor industry, semiconductor wafers are subjected to various wafer processes to produce a large number of semiconductor element chips from a single wafer, and these chips are packaged to obtain semiconductor devices. Heat treatment steps such as thermal diffusion in this type of wafer processing involve furnace operations that deposit, diffuse, and oxidize impurities on the wafer surface.
Before the furnace operation, the wafer is subjected to surface treatment operations such as etching, cleaning, and drying, but these operations have recently been automated. However, conventionally,
In this type of processing apparatus, surface treatment is performed in batches in which thousands of wafers are placed in a cartridge and processed simultaneously, resulting in variations in quality in cleaning and drying.

In addition, in this type of processing equipment, the entire equipment must be large-sized in order to handle various types of cartridges, such as storage cartridges, cleaning cartridges (cleaning jigs), and diffusion cartridges (heat treatment jigs). Another drawback is that a large amount of clean air is consumed for cleaning the cleaning and drying processing chamber, including the conveyance path and the like.

On the other hand, in these apparatuses, the wafer orientation is performed outside the apparatus, and therefore the handling efficiency of wafer orientation is poor.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to stabilize quality and improve yield in wafer processing.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic processing method including wafer orientation and an apparatus therefor, thereby improving work efficiency, reducing the number of workers, and reducing processing costs.

Another object of the present invention is to downsize the entire device, reduce the amount of clean air used, and reduce the installation space of the device.

According to an embodiment of the present invention to meet such purposes, wafers (objects to be processed) are loaded in cartridge units, surface treatment is performed one by one, and heat treatment is performed in batches, so that wafers (objects to be processed) are loaded in cartridge units. This is a wafer processing apparatus that stores processed wafers, and the present invention will be specifically explained below with reference to Examples.

A wafer integrated processing apparatus, which is an embodiment of the present invention, shown in FIG. 1 as a schematic plan view and FIG. 2 as a perspective view, is roughly divided into a loader/unloader section 1, a cleaning section 2, a drying section section 3, wafer loading/unloading section 4, scavenger 5, furnace 6, and gas supply section 7
The main parts are a diffusion furnace section 8 and a control device 9. Further, the control section (control system) consists of the control device 9 and a control equipment section 10 on the side of the loader/unloader section 1.

Next, each part will be explained.

<Loader/unloader section 1> As shown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 5, the loader/unloader section includes a storage cartridge 11.
a loader mechanism 14 that sends out wafers 13 one by one to the first transport path, an unloader mechanism 15 that collects wafers 13 one by one from the last transport path of a series of processing groups, and the stocker 12.
and a transfer mechanism 16 that moves between the loader mechanism 14 and the unloader mechanism 15 to transfer the wafers 13 in the cartridge 11. A plurality of the stockers 12 are arranged in rows and columns, and each has a storage section 17 into which the cartridges 11 can be taken in and out from the outside of the device. Further, inside the storage section 17, the delivery mechanism 16 is provided. This is a transport mechanism 1 that takes out a designated cartridge 11 from the stocker 12 and then transports it to the reversing table 18 or transfers the cartridge 11 from the reversing table 18 to the storage section 17.
9, a loader mechanism 14 and an unloader mechanism 15
an inversion table 18 that moves between the two, and a transfer pusher 2 that feeds the wafers 13 in the cartridge 11 on the inversion table 18 into the storage box 20 of the loader mechanism 14.
1 and the wafers 13 in the storage box 22 of the unloader mechanism 15 are transferred to the empty cartridge 11 on the inversion table 18.
It has a transfer pusher 23 that feeds the feeder. The transport mechanism 19 has forks 25 that face the lower surface of protrusions 24 provided on both upper edges of the cartridge 11. This fork 25 is attached to a movable plate 26 via a roller 27 and can move in the direction of entering and exiting the storage portion 17 (for example, the longitudinal direction of this device is assumed to be the X direction). Hereinafter, in each mechanism, movement along this direction will be referred to as X movement. In contrast, the width direction of the device is the Y direction, and the vertical direction is the Z direction.
Let's call it direction. Also, in the X direction, the direction from the loader/unloader section 1 to the diffusion furnace device section 8, in the Y direction, the direction from the back of the device to the front, and in the Z direction, the upward direction. The + (plus) direction is defined as the + (plus) direction, and the opposite is defined as the - (minus) direction. }.

Further, the movable plate 26 is attached to a pedestal 30 that moves in the Y direction via rollers 29 to an elongated Y-direction guide 28 extending in the Y direction so as to be rotatable in forward and reverse directions by 180 degrees, and is rotationally controlled by a rotation mechanism 31 . The Y direction guide 28 is supported at both ends by Z direction guides 32 extending in the Z direction so as to be movable in the Z direction. Therefore, since the movable plate 26 can freely move in the Y and Z directions, the cartridge 11 in the storage section 17 can be moved by allowing the fork 25 to face the designated storage section 17 and moving the fork 25 forward in the -X direction. Extract. After that, the moving plate 26 is rotated 180 degrees to change the direction of the fork 25 and moved in the Y and Z directions to make the fork 25 face the reversing table 18.
The cartridge 11 is placed on the reversing table 18 by moving the fork 25 forward in the +X direction. In addition,
When moving the cartridge 11 from the reversing table 18 to the stocker 12, the above procedure is reversed.

The reversing table 18 includes two guide rods 33 extending in the Y direction, a substrate 35 that moves in the Y direction via rollers 34, and a substrate 35 that is disposed on the substrate 35 and is reversely reversed by 90 degrees along the XZ plane by a reversing mechanism 36. cradle 3
It consists of 7. The pedestal 37 consists of two orthogonal receiving plates 38 and 39, which alternately support the cartridges 11 by rotating them forward and backward through 90 degrees. Further, one of the receiving plates 38 is provided with a window 40, through which the receiving plate 41 of the transfer pusher 21 passes. Further, on the -X direction side of the loader mechanism 14, a transfer pusher 21 is provided on the unloader mechanism 1.
Transfer pushers 23 are provided on the -X direction side of 5, respectively. The storage boxes 20 and 22 each move up and down, and have the same arrangement of storage grooves as the cartridge 11.
Both edges of the wafer 13 are supported by a pair of V-shaped receiving grooves. Also, for example, if the cartridge 11
If accommodating 25 wafers, check the 25
Storage boxes 20 and 22 having a pair of storage grooves are used. Further, the storage grooves of the storage boxes 20 and 22 are extended in the X direction, so that the wafer 13 passes through the storage boxes 20 and 22. Further, the loader mechanism 14 is provided with a single-wafer delivery pusher 42, which allows the wafers 13 in the storage box 20 to be delivered one by one onto the transport path 43 each time the storage box 20 is raised one pitch at a time. Further, the wafers 13 are fed into the unloader mechanism 15 one by one from the unloading path 44, and one wafer 1 is transferred each time the storage box 22 is raised or lowered one pitch at a time.
3 is stored in the storage box 22.

Therefore, when the cartridge 11 is fed onto the pedestal 37 of the reversing table 18 by the transport mechanism 19, the pedestal 37 is inverted 90 degrees to stand up the cartridge 11 (at this time, the wafer storage groove of the cartridge is in a horizontal state). ), the wafer insertion/ejection opening of the cartridge 11 is directed toward the loader/unloader mechanisms 14 and 15. After that, the wafer 13 is placed in the cartridge 11.
, the reversing table 18 is brought close to the loader mechanism 14 and the transfer pusher 21 is moved temporarily forward by +X movement, so that the cartridge 11 is
The wafers 13 in the storage box 20 are transferred to the storage box 20, and when the cartridge 11 is empty and does not store any wafers, the reversing table 18 approaches the unloader mechanism 15 and is temporarily moved forward by the -X movement of the transfer pusher 23 to store the wafers. The wafer 13 in the box 22 is transferred into the cartridge 11. The wafers are transferred between the storage boxes 20, 22 and the cartridge 11 after the storage boxes 20, 22 are made to match the height of the cartridge 11.

<Cleaning section 2> The cleaning section 2 includes a conveyance path 43 extending from the loader mechanism 14 and a discharge path 44 reaching the unloader mechanism 15.
are provided, and both extend from one end of the cleaning section 2 to the other. Further, the unloading path 44 reaches the wafer loading/unloading section 4, and in the drying section 3, it splits into two and is connected to the unloading port of the drying apparatus, and as shown in FIG. 6a, the wafer 13 is guided and the jet It has a groove 45 with a hole 46 and a transfer arm 47 for transferring the wafer 13. Further, two transfer pins 48 extend downward from the transfer arm 47 so as to push the rear edge of the wafer 13. At the bottom of the groove, there is a guide hole 49 that communicates with the injection hole 46, through which gas such as compressed air is fed, so that the wafer can be transferred while floating from the bottom of the groove. Therefore, since the wafer is transferred without contacting the groove and at the center of the groove, no dust is generated due to wear and no dust is attached to the wafer, improving the yield of wafer processing.

Furthermore, according to this transport, even large diameter wafers have the same buoyancy due to the gas injection per unit area, so they can be reliably transported in a floating state.

Note that FIGS. 7 and 8 show other embodiments of the transport path, and the one shown in FIG. A group of 50 injection holes (a line may be used as shown in FIG. 9) is provided, and the gas ejected from these holes constantly presses the wafer 13 against the transfer pin 48, stabilizing the transfer of the wafer, and This prevents repeated contact between the wafer 13 and the wafer 13, thereby preventing damage to the wafer. In addition, the one shown in FIG. 8 has grooves 4 along the movement range of the transfer pin 48.
A thin groove 51 is formed in the groove 5, and the lower end of the transfer pin 48 is inserted into this groove so that the wafer 13 is not caught between the transfer pin 48 and the groove bottom. There is no need to adjust the gap between the two.

On the other hand, three chemical processing tanks A, B, and C are provided on the side of the transport path 43, into which the wafers 13 are carried in and out. The transport path of this carry-in/out section has a discontinuous structure, and wafers are transferred via a preliminary tank 52 along the way.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing one chemical processing tank 53, the transport path 43 adjacent thereto, and a single wafer transport section therebetween. In the figure, 54 is a processing tank main body, 55 is a wafer holder, 56 is a wafer rotation drive motor, 57 is a stirring plate, and 58 is a stirring plate drive motor. A reserve tank 52 is connected to one side of the tank body 54, and a carry-in pusher 59 transfers wafers in the reserve tank to a wafer holder in the processing tank, or takes out surface-treated wafers from the processing tank to the reserve tank. It's becoming like that.

61 is a wafer pusher for the washing path that sends the wafer on the single-processing washing tank (transport path 43) to the preliminary tank; 62
is a wafer transfer device that transports wafers along a transfer path on a single-wafer processing washing tank, and axes A, B, and C are the pushers 5 mentioned above.
This is a drive shaft for operating the 9, 61 wafer carrier, etc. The bath 53 has a circular or donut-shaped shallow container as its main body, and the etching liquid is filled to a predetermined level, and the circular wafers are moved in a lined manner in the circumferential direction of the ring. During one rotation, the etching solution is put into the tank and processed. Additionally, a heater is built into the bottom of the tank to maintain the liquid at the required temperature. A substantially rectangular preliminary tank 52 that is connected to one side of this tank and has the same bottom surface has a low boundary with the processing tank, so that the liquid in the processing tank can flow into the preliminary tank, and the two tanks can be connected to each other. The liquid level is maintained at the same level. This reserve tank temporarily stores wafers supplied from the outside in the reserve tank, sends the wafers from this reserve tank to the processing tank, and sends the wafers processed in the processing tank to the outside via this reserve tank. I'm starting to do that. The wafer holding plate is made up of two fan-shaped plates stacked on top of each other, and 12 to 15 wafers are lined up along the annular bottom of the processing tank and held at predetermined intervals, and placed on the annular plate concentric with the tank. It is fixed integrally and the entire ring can be rotated by several rotating arms extending from the center of the ring. The wafer is inserted from the side between the two sets of adjacent fan-shaped plates, and the opposing edges of the wafer are held between the upper and lower plates of the fan-shaped plates on both sides, and the wafer is inserted through the rotary arm. By rotationally moving the wafer holding plate, intermittent movement is performed in which movement of one wafer is defined as one pitch. The liquid stirring plate is composed of two annular (doughnut-shaped) plates having slits or a plurality of fan-shaped plates, which are held by a rotary arm such that the fan-shaped plates are sandwiched from above and below, and connected by a connecting gear by a drive motor on a fixed base. etc., along the circumferential direction of the ring. The rotational speed ratio of the wafer feeding plate and the liquid stirring plate can be set to, for example, 1:5. A wafer feed pusher is installed outside the preliminary tank, and pushes the wafer in the direction of the arrow into the processing tank through the boundary with the processing tank, so that the wafer is held between the fan-shaped plates. The wafer take-out pusher is installed at the lower part of the fixed base of the processing tank, and takes out the wafers in the annular processing tank into the preliminary tank by performing the reverse procedure to the above. On one side or both sides of the preliminary tank, a single-sheet processing rinsing tank (transport path 43) having the same liquid level is connected. The liquid supply section supplies the liquid by sending compressed air into a tank in which the etching cleaning liquid is pooled, and the liquid discharge section forcibly discharges the liquid by jetting compressed air from a nozzle as shown below.

The wafer processing operation in the processing tank described above is as follows: (1) In the annular processing tank, the wafer holding plate is in a state where intermittent rotational movement is stopped, and if there is a wafer on the wafer holding plate in the direction adjacent to the preliminary tank, the wafer is taken out. Operate the pusher to send the wafer to the reserve tank, (2) if there is no wafer in the reserve tank, operate the feed link and send the wafer to the reserve tank by the feed link mechanism, (3) feed the wafer in the reserve tank. The wafer held by the swing arm of the link mechanism is sent to the wafer holding plate of the annular processing tank by the wafer supply pusher, (4) the intermittent rotational movement of the wafer holding plate and the rotational movement of the liquid stirring plate continue, (5) Repeat the above operations (1) to (5) every 1/12 to 1/15 rotation of the wafer holding plate, and (6) when the wafer completes one rotation in the processing tank, the eject pusher operates and the wafer is removed from the wafer holding plate. The wafers are sent one by one into the preliminary tank.

The transport path 43 for transporting wafers one by one has an elongated channel with a shallow bottom, and a cleaning liquid (pure water) is continuously fed into the channel from a supply port provided at the bottom of one end of the channel. The cleaning liquid that has sequentially flowed through the channel is drained from a drain port provided at the bottom of the other end of the channel.

A weir is provided near the supply port so that the cleaning liquid sent into the channel from the supply port flows in a laminar flow and flows at a certain depth over the upper and lower surfaces of the wafer. It is being

In the case of such a conveyance path (single-sheet processing rinsing tank), pure water is continuously supplied into the flow path and flows along the flow path. After feeding the wafers one by one to the downstream end of the flow channel, the wafer pusher (transfer mechanism) for the water washing channel is moved upstream (in the opposite direction to the flow), and the rear end of the wafer is pushed with the transfer piece to push the wafer. The wafer is cleaned by moving it against the flow of water while being guided by a V-shaped groove. As a result, the front and back surfaces of the wafer are always in contact with the pure water liquid, and the flow is fast, so that the wafer is effectively washed with water while moving in the channel.

At the connection between the end of the transport path 43 and the entrance of the next drying section 3, the wafer is carried onto a frame-shaped lifting stage provided at the upstream end of the flow path, and then the cleaning liquid is lifted by raising the lifting stage. It escapes from inside and is carried upwards.

Next, referring back to FIG. 1 again, the continuous wafer cleaning processing operation will be explained.

1. Single wafer processing The wafers transferred to the washing tank 43 are moved on the washing path by a washing path pusher, and purified water is flowed into the washing path in the opposite direction to perform deionized water washing.

2. The wafer that has been cleaned with pure water is transported from the washing tank 43 to the preliminary layer 52 by a transporter across the weir between the two tanks.

3. The wafers in the preliminary tank are sent to the rotating part of the processing tank main body 54 by the carry-in pusher.

4 The loaded wafer is held in line contact with a rotating wafer holder in the etching tank and rotates in the processing tank.Meanwhile, the stirring plate also rotates and the wafer is etched while exchanging the chemical solution on the wafer surface. Ru.

5 After the etching is completed, the wafer is pulled out from the wafer holder by the loading/unloading pusher and transferred to the preliminary tank 52.
The sheet is then transferred to the next single-sheet processing washing tank 43, and transported toward the dryer while being washed with water.

According to this chemical treatment device, the following effects can be obtained. (1) First, the wafers 13 are placed in the processing tank and held one by one by the periphery, and the liquid is in sufficient contact with the front and back surfaces, and there are no obstacles such as other wafers near the wafers, making etching effective. (2) All wafers are held by the same means and pass through the same passage in the tank, so all wafers are always processed under the same conditions; (3) A liquid stirring plate (disk) By making the liquid flow and exchanging the liquid, the etching concentration and temperature distribution are made uniform, so that the wafer is always etched uniformly and cleanly, reducing the rate of processing defects caused by non-uniformity of the etching liquid. , (4) The depth of the tank can be made as thin as the thickness of the wafer (for example, t = 0.5 mm) and the thickness of the wafer holding plate and the liquid stirring plate, and the actual volume of the tank can be reduced. Less liquid consumption (5)
For the same reason as (4) above, it is only necessary to transport wafers (without using cartridges), which simplifies the transport mechanism and allows for a compact configuration of the entire plurality of processing tanks. Compared to the conventional method, the effect of individual etching of wafers using such a processing tank is as follows: For example, when a Si wafer coated with a SiO ₂ film is etched with 10% hydrochloric acid, the variation in the amount of SiO ₂ film etched is 3σ = 83 Å. In contrast, in this processing tank, the decrease was 3σ = 56 Å. (6)Next, in the single-wafer processing washing tank that also serves as a transport path, each wafer has a part of its periphery contacting the guide groove. As the wafer moves in the flow channel while moving, the entire front and back surfaces of the wafer come into contact with water, and the frictional force between the front and back surfaces of the wafer and the cleaning liquid increases as the wafer moves against the flow of the liquid. (7) Wafer 1 The sheets are washed with water one by one, and they are washed to the desired level of cleanliness by simply moving them a certain distance in the flow path.
The processing time per wafer is shortened. (8) Since the wafers are moved one by one in the flow channel, sufficiently effective water washing can be performed even if the flow channel is shallow. The amount of cleaning fluid consumed is reduced compared to the conventional overflow type.

<Drying section 3> As shown in FIG. 10, the drying section 3 has a motor 10.
a rotary table 111 rotationally driven by;
Consisting of a drying device 3A mainly consisting of a drying section cup 112 having a ring-shaped gap provided around the drying section cup 112,
A guide 95 and a guide 113 of the same structure are provided to sandwich the rotary table, and dry N ₂ is introduced from an upper supply pipe 114 to the center of rotation of the rotary table and is forcibly discharged from the drying cup. The wafer rinse section transferred from the water washing path moves to the end of the transport path, is raised to the height of the guide by the stage that moves up and down, and is placed on the rotary table via the guide. The wafer on the rotary table is dried by rotating the table at high speed and simultaneously introducing dry N ₂ with a pin or other escape prevention means applied. The dried wafer is transferred from the table to the next guide 113, and selectively transferred by the wafer sorting table 116 to either the wafer carry-in/out section 4 for the next process or the return carry-out path 44.

Here, the rotary table will be explained. A storage groove 1 for storing wafers is provided on the top surface of the rotary table.
17 are provided, and V-shaped grooves are provided in the side walls of the storage grooves, respectively, and both side edges of the wafer 13 are supported by the pair of V-shaped grooves.

Furthermore, two stopper pins 119 are implanted at one end of the accommodation groove of the rotary table, and the movement of the wafer carried into the accommodation groove is stopped by these stopper pins. Since the stopper pin is disposed close to one outer edge of the rotary table, the center (center of gravity) of the wafer stopped by the stopper pin is far away from the center of rotation of the rotary table. Therefore, even if the rotary table rotates in this state, the centrifugal force moves the wafer in the direction of the stopper pin, so the wafer is blocked by the stopper pin and does not fly out of the storage groove of the rotary table.

Further, a cup 120 that is raised and lowered by a cylinder or the like is disposed below the rotary table. This cup forms an approximately donut-shaped space 121. The inner periphery of the lower plate 122 forming the space 121 is hermetically fitted to the outer periphery of the bearing part 123 of the rotary table and is slidable up and down.
Further, the inner circumferential portion of the upper plate 124 that forms the space 121 rises upward from the middle and protrudes, and this ring-shaped protruding portion extends downward between the outer circumference of the rotary table and the supply/export guides 95, 113. It has come to be located at all times. Then, when the wafer is supplied to the rotary table, the cup 120 is raised by the cylinder, and the protruding portion of the upper plate 124 of the cup 120 is raised to a position higher than the upper surface of the rotary table. Further, a disk-shaped cover 125 is disposed above the rotary table as shown in FIGS. . As a result, a processing chamber (drying chamber) is formed by the cover 125 and the cup 120, and the rotary table is located within this processing chamber.

Note that it is desirable to make the rotary table as thin as possible in order to make the processing chamber as small as possible. Further, a supply pipe 114 is arranged in the center of the cover 125, and a dry and clean gas (for example, nitrogen N ₂ ) is sent into the processing chamber from this supply pipe, thereby forming a drying promotion mechanism. . Further, an exhaust hole (not shown) is provided on the outer periphery of the lower plate 122 of the cup to exhaust air, nitrogen, etc. from the processing chamber. Further, the exhaust hole is connected to a discharge pump (not shown) to constitute a forced discharge mechanism. In addition, each of the above members is attached to the frame 12.
6.

Note that the parts that the wafer comes into contact with are made of quartz glass or fluorine resin, which does not easily generate dust even when worn.

Next, drying of the wafer will be explained. The cleaned wafer is placed in the storage groove 11 of the rotary table 111.
Sent within 7. At this time, the accommodation groove of the rotary table extends along the extension of the conveyance path of the guide 95, and the stopper pin 119 is inserted into the guide 1 for unloading.
It is located on the 13th side. Then, the wafer 13 sent into the accommodation groove 117 of the rotary table enters deep into the accommodation groove, comes into contact with the stopper pin 119, and is stopped. Therefore, in this state, the center of the wafer is far away from the center of rotation of the rotary table, and the outside of the wafer can be supported by the stopper pins 119.

Next, the cup 120 is moved upward by a cylinder or the like to bring the protruding end of the upper plate 124 of the cup 120 into close contact with the lower surface of the cover 125.
and cover 125 form a processing chamber, and a rotary table on which wafer 13 is placed is positioned within this processing chamber. Thereafter, clean and dry nitrogen gas is blown out from the supply pipe 114 of the cover 125, and this nitrogen gas impinges on the rotary table. In addition, exhaust is forced through an exhaust hole provided in the cup 120. In this state, the rotary table rotates at a high speed (for example, 3000 rpm), and the moisture adhering to the surface of the wafer is scattered by centrifugal force.
Since the wafer is only supported in point or line contact by the V-shaped groove 118 of the accommodation groove 117 and the stopper pin 119, water droplets on the wafer surface are efficiently scattered. In addition, since nitrogen gas is blown onto the surface of the wafer, water droplets on the surface of the wafer easily evaporate, further promoting drying. After the rotary table has rotated for a certain period of time, the rotary table stops rotating and the exhaust of nitrogen gas and the like from the processing chamber is stopped. Also, the cup 120 descends downward. At this time, the storage groove 117 of the rotary table stops along the extension line of the conveyance path of the unloading guide 113, and the stopper pin 119 comes to be located on the supplying guide 95 side.

Next, the wafer on the rotary table is unloaded by an unillustrated unloading pusher or the like, and is moved to a guide 11.
3, the wafer is further sent to the wafer sorting table 116.

According to such a drying device, the following effects occur.

(1) Wafers are transported into the drying chamber one by one, and conventional cartridges are not used. Therefore, the drying chamber becomes smaller, which improves forced exhaust efficiency, improves metabolism within the drying chamber, and promotes drying of wafers. Furthermore, since the only moisture brought into the drying chamber is the moisture adhering to the wafer, the drying time is shortened. Also,
Most of the moisture that adheres to the wafer is caused by centrifugal force that causes it to scatter along the surface direction of the wafer (particularly when the center of the wafer deviates significantly from the center of rotation, a large centrifugal force can be obtained, causing moisture to adhere to the wafer). The scattering effect of water droplets is also large.), and only two thin stopper pins are present in the direction of the scattering, so that the water is dispersed efficiently. Additionally, clean, dry nitrogen gas is blown onto the wafer surface.
These nitrogen gases flow radially from the center of the rotary table, creating a fast airflow over the wafer surface, thereby promoting drying. Furthermore, since the wafer that comes out of the rotary table passes through a hot air drying oven, it can be completely dried. For this reason, the wafer can be dried uniformly and in a short time.

(2) Rotary tables only hold wafers. Therefore, not only the structure becomes simple, but also the airflow tends to flow smoothly outward from the center and exhausted from the exhaust hole. Therefore, it is easy to achieve good drying with uniform quality.

(3) The wafer loader/unloader to the rotary table has a structure in which the wafer is a single piece and only its ends are supported and moved.
There is also the advantage that the loader/unloader mechanism can be simplified.

(4) Since the rotary table is small, the inertia is small and the rotation start-up is quick, which helps shorten the drying time.

Note that the drying device is not limited to the above embodiment.
That is, the wafer loader/unloader mechanism (pusher structure) may be a commonly used screw feeding mechanism, wire winding mechanism, or the like.

Alternatively, hot air may be blown into the drying chamber without providing a hot air drying oven.

Furthermore, in centrifugal drying, water droplets shaken off from the wafer collide with the inner wall of the cup and tend to bounce back. In addition, the water droplets are miniaturized by collision, become mist-like, and tend to fly around in the drying chamber on the airflow generated by the rotation of the rotary table. From these results, dirty fine water droplets tend to re-adhere to the wafer. Therefore, in order to prevent the scattered water droplets from bouncing off the inner wall of the cup and falling back onto the wafer, the cup 120 is installed as shown in FIGS. 12a and 12b.
It is also possible to make the inner circumferential wall surface of the inner circumferential wall arc-shaped so that the water droplets colliding with the inner circumferential wall are directed downward. Further, this inner circumferential wall can be arranged as far away from the rotary table 111 as possible to make it difficult for water droplets that have collided with the inner circumferential wall to return onto the rotary table.

In addition, in this type of device, the nitrogen gas blown from above the cover 125 flows radially from the center of the rotary table in a laminar flow.
As shown in Figures a and b, the usage groove (receiving hole) 117 of the rotary table 111 for accommodating the wafer 13 is shaped like a tunnel, and the upper surface of the rotary table is flat so as not to disturb the laminar flow. Note that a guide tube 127 is provided at the upper center of the rotary table so that the nitrogen gas hits the wafer surface, and this guide tube 127 is inserted into the supply tube 114 of the cover 125. Further, the wafer is transported within the housing hole 117 by pins 129 attached to two elongated pushers 128 that move forward and backward, and these pins move within a guide groove 130 provided in the housing hole. It's becoming like that. Also, Figure 11a,
b. In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 12a and 12b, the operation of forming the drying chamber and matching the heights of the accommodation hole 117 and the supply/export guides is performed by the rotary table 1.
This is done by moving the cover 11 and the cover 125 up and down. In addition, the lower plate 1 of the cup 120
22 is separated from its outer circumferential portion, and a supply pipe 131 for blowing nitrogen gas is provided at the fitting portion with the bearing portion 123. Also, 132,1 in the figure
33 indicates a seal.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the wafer is located within the tunnel and its upper surface is covered, so even if dirty water droplets fall back onto the rotary table, they will not re-adhere to the wafer. Therefore, high quality drying can be performed.

<Wafer loading/unloading section 4 and diffusion furnace section 8> The wafer loading/unloading section 4 and the diffusion furnace section 8 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 13 to 31. The wafer loading/unloading section 4 has a loading path 134 and a loading path 135.
have. The drying section 3 is located in the carry-in route 134.
Starting from a receiving section 137 that receives wafers 13 one by one from a transfer path 136B using a pusher, which extends from the wafer sorting table 116 and passes through a hot air drying path 136A, a posture correction mechanism 138 and a loading buffer 139 are lined up toward the right. , facing the transfer 140 that moves from side to side and backwards. Further, the carry-out route 135 is arranged along the front side of the carry-in route 134, and a carry-out buffer 141, a single sheet feed-out mechanism 142, and a carry-out table 143 are arranged from the upper left side of the transfer 140 to the right, and the left end of the apparatus The wafers 13 are fed out one by one. Furthermore, an elevator 146 is disposed at the furnace mouth of the process tube 202 arranged in three stages to support a tray station 144 and move up and down (move up and down) along two upright guide rods 145. It is set up. Also, in synchronization with the vertical movement of the elevator 146, the guide rod 1
A boat loader 148 that moves up and down along 47 is provided on the back side of the device. Furthermore, a transfer machine 150 is provided that holds the heat treatment jig 149 on the transfer station 140 (tray station 144) and transports it onto the tray station (transfer).

Next, each part will be explained. The wafer sent from the drying section 3 is received with both edges of the wafer facing the V-shaped grooves provided on both opposing sides of the receiving section 137. Then, an attitude correction device 138 advances to this receiving section 137 and receives the wafer from the receiving section. This posture correction device 138 includes a front and back surface correction mechanism 152 that is guided by two parallel guide rails 151 and reciprocates between position A and position B shown in FIG. Primary orientation correction station
A primary direction correction mechanism 153 disposed in _A1 ;
Secondary orientation correction station on position B side
It consists of a secondary direction correction mechanism 154 disposed at _A2 .

The front and back surface correction mechanism 152 includes a box 155 and a wafer container 156 disposed within the box 155.
and a rotation mechanism 157 that rotates the wafer container 156 in a direction to turn it over. The box body 15
5 consists of two side plates 158 arranged in parallel, and four connecting rods 159 that connect each corner of these side plates 158, and one of the side plates 15
A plurality of rollers 160 are attached to the outer wall of 8. The box body 155 is connected to these rollers 160.
It is suspended on a guide rail 151 via a guide rail 151, and is moved by a generally known transport mechanism (not shown). The container 156 includes a substrate 161, two guide pieces 162 arranged parallel to the upper surface of the substrate 161, and a rotating shaft 163 fixed to the substrate and rotatably attached to the side plate 158.
A guide groove 164 consisting of a V-shaped groove is provided along the longitudinal direction of the corresponding surface of the guide piece 162, and both ends of the wafer 13 are inserted into the guide groove 164 and held therein. Further, the wafer can freely enter and exit from both ends in the direction in which the guide groove 164 extends, and when the substrate 162 is in a horizontal state, the wafer's peripheral edge is supported by the guide groove portion. However, when the substrate 162 begins to be tilted so as to be reversed, the wafer slides within the guide groove 164 and falls out of the guide groove 164. Therefore,
A first stopper 167 consisting of two pins 165 and 166 is provided at the wafer entrance/exit end of the container 156.
and a second stopper 168. When the first and second stoppers 167 and 168 are in the open state, the two pins 165 and 1 are connected, respectively.
66 are separated from each other, the wafer passes between each pin,
Two pins 165 and 16 respectively in the closed state
6 are arranged close together to support the periphery of the wafer.

The rotation mechanism 157 consists of a reversing motor 170 capable of forward and reverse rotation supported by a support plate 169 attached to the outer wall of the side plate 158, and a drive side bevel gear 172 fixed to the tip of this motor shaft 171. The drive side bevel gear 172 is the side plate 15
8 and meshes with a driven side bevel gear 173 fixed to one end of a rotating shaft 163 that protrudes through the shaft.

On the other hand, the primary direction correction mechanism 153 disposed in the primary direction correction station _A1 has a U-shaped housing 175 fixed on a block 174 that is controlled to move up and down, and an upper opening side of this housing. Three correction shafts 176 are provided, an endless belt 177 that rotates these correction shafts, and a motor 178 that rotates the belt. As shown in FIG. 16, the belt is hung around a drive pulley 179 and a guide pulley 180 that are fixed to the rotating shaft of a motor 178, and is rotated by the rotation of the drive pulley 179, so that each of the three correction shafts 17
Rotate 6. One of the ends of the three correction axes rotates in a different direction from the other two, and
These correction axes 3 have the same thickness. Furthermore, the center correction shaft 176 is arranged at a position slightly lower than the height of the correction shafts 176 on both sides, and the arcuate edges of the wafers arranged in a forest form the three correction shafts 176.
76 are all in contact with each other. Also, the OF 181 of the wafer is connected to these three correction axes 176.
When facing the correction axis 176 at both ends is OF18
1, but since the center correction axis 176 is low
It is designed not to come into contact with OF181.

Therefore, there are three correction shafts 1 that rotate the wafer in the container 156 whose directionality is at random.
76 for a certain period of time. Then, as shown in FIG. 16, the wafer whose arc portion contacts the three correction shafts 176 rotates because the rotational force received by the three correction shafts is biased to one side. When the OF 181 consisting of a straight edge comes downward, only the correction shafts at both ends come into contact with the wafer 6. Since the correction shafts at both ends have the same thickness, the rotational force is the same, and since the rotational directions are mutually opposite, the wafer is balanced and does not rotate because it receives rotational forces in opposite directions. As a result, the orientation of the wafer within the container 156 is almost corrected, and the O.
F.181 will be located at the bottom. However, correction based on these three correction axes does not necessarily
OF181 is not in a horizontal state. Therefore,
This is corrected by the secondary orientation correction station _A2 .

The secondary direction correction mechanism 154 disposed in the secondary direction correction station _A2 is guided by a block 182 and is controlled by a correction plate 18 with a flat top surface.
It consists of 3. Then, the correction plate 183 is pushed up from below against the wafer 13 in the container 156 stopped at the secondary direction correction station _A2 ,
The OF 181 of the wafer 13 is aligned horizontally with the upper flat surface.

Next, the carry-in buffer 139 will be explained. The carry-in buffer 139 has the same structure as the carry-out buffer 141, and these buffers are made of elongated boxes with openings at the top and bottom, and parallel V-shaped accommodation grooves 184 are formed on the opposite side walls. A plurality of grooves (for example, 100 each) are provided in the vertical direction, and one
It is designed to guide both side edges of the wafer 13. Further, as shown in FIG. 19, two stoppers 185 are provided below the buffer and extend along the longitudinal direction. A V-shaped groove is cut in this stopper in correspondence with the V-shaped groove 184 of the buffer. This stopper opens and closes, supporting the wafer in the closed state, and allowing the wafer to fall downward through the receiving groove in the open state. Also,
The guide rods 186 are arranged on both sides of the buffer.
via rollers 187 in a slidable manner. Note that the carry-out buffer 141 is adjacent to the carry-in buffer 139. In addition, the unloading buffer 1
A one-sheet delivery mechanism 142 is disposed above 41. This one-sheet feeding mechanism is the front and back surface correction mechanism 1.
The structure is almost the same as that of 52, and the wafer is connected to a pair of V
A rotating storage body 189 accommodated in a guide groove 188 having a shape of a shape, a reversing mechanism 190 consisting of first and second stoppers (not shown), etc., and an unloading buffer 1
41, and a delivery pusher 192, which pushes the wafers corrected to a horizontal state into the reversing mechanism 190 onto the delivery table 143. Then, from the carry-out buffer 141 to the carry-out table 14
The sending of the wafer to the container 1 is carried out by raising the pusher 191 every time the transfer buffer moves in pitch.
This is performed by a series of operations including horizontal rotation of 89 and advancement of delivery pusher 192. Further, the wafers transferred to the carry-out table are carried out one by one out of the apparatus by riding on the flow created by the gas blown out from the bottom of the carry-out table. The transfer of the wafer from the front and back surface correction mechanism 152 to the carry-in buffer 139 is carried out by holding the lower part of the wafer by raising the receiving pusher 193, followed by the opening operation of the pin 165, and lowering the receiving pusher 193, as shown in FIG. It is carried out by.

On the other hand, below the moving area of the loading/unloading buffers 139, 141 and the transfer machine 150, a transfer station 140 that moves back and forth and left and right is provided. A heat treatment jig 149 is placed on this transfer. This heat treatment jig 149 has four groups of accommodation grooves 19.
4, and the single housing groove group 194 is the same as the housing pitch and number of housing grooves of a commercially available cleaning jig or storage jig. In addition, each accommodation groove group 19
A window 195 is provided in the transfer portion where 4 is located, and the upper end receiving plate 197 of the auxiliary pusher 196 enters into this window from below, as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19. Further, the table supporting the heat treatment jig 149 has a structure that allows it to move up and down. Receiving grooves 199 corresponding to the receiving grooves 198 of the heat treatment jig 149 are provided on the upper surface of these receiving plates 197. The auxiliary pusher 196 moves up and down with the wafer approaching the carry-in buffer 139 and supported in the receiving groove 199 to transfer the wafer from one side to the other, and the table on which the heat treatment jig 149 is placed is lowered.

On the other hand, the transfer machine 150 has a guide rail 200
The heat treatment jig 149 on the transfer 140 or the elevator 146 is temporarily clamped by the chuck mechanism 201 while moving back and forth between the transfer 140 and the elevator 146. Note that since the table is raised when clamping the heat treatment jig 149 on the transfer, the chuck mechanism 201 does not come into contact with the wafer on the transfer 140 when the transfer machine 150 approaches.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 21 and 22, the boat loader 148 has a structure in which a pull-out rod 204 for moving the boat 203 into and out of the reactor core tube 202 is attached to the boat loader drive section 205. That is, a fixed block 207 having a fixed shaft 206 is fixed on the boat loader drive section, a pull-out rod support block 208 is rotatably attached to the fixed shaft, and the pull-out rod support block 208 is rotatably attached to the fixed shaft. One end is fixed. The pull-out rod 204 is configured so that its distal hook end 209 can swing up and down about a fixed shaft 206.

Further, a guide block 210 is fixed on the fixed block 207.
A rotary shaft 211 extending parallel to the fixed shaft 206 is rotatably attached to the rotary shaft 10 .
One end of this rotating shaft 211 is fixed to a control rod support block 212 located apart above the pull-out rod support block 208.
It is designed to support 2. One end of a control rod 213 is fixed to this control rod support block 212. This control rod 213 is the pull-out rod 20
4, and the tip of the other end is bent to form a hook portion 214.
4 to support the middle of the pull-out rod 204. Further, at the other end of the rotating shaft 211, a driven bevel gear 215 is a driving bevel gear connected via a coupling 218 to the rotating shaft of a motor 217 that is fixed to the boat loader drive section 204 via a support 216. It meshes with 219. As shown in FIG. 22, the control rod 213 is vertically moved by θ upward from the horizontal direction by the forward and reverse rotation of the motor 217. The rotation angle θ is set to 1 degree, for example, and the vertical movement is automatically performed when the hooking end 209 at the tip of the pull-out rod 204 is attached to or removed from the hooking hole 220 of the boat 203. Further, the guide rod 147 is a guide rod 2 extending in the X direction.
It is designed to reciprocate along 21.

In a boat loader with such a mechanism, the pull-out rod 204 is normally supported by the control rod 213 and extends horizontally, but the hook end 209 at the tip is attached to the boat 203 on the trace station or inside the core tube 202. When inserting into and removing from the hooking hole 220 of the boat 203, it is moved upward and downward to perform the insertion and removal. The boat 203 is automatically moved in and out of the furnace tube 202 (loading and unloading) by moving the boat loader drive unit 205 back and forth. Therefore, according to such a boat loader, since the boat is automatically loaded and unloaded, there is no need for the operator to handle the pull-out rod, which prevents dust from flying up due to the movement of the operator, and makes it easier to pull out the boat. Contamination within the rod furnace tube is also reduced, and contamination of wafers can also be prevented.

Further, in this boat loader, the pull-out rod is permanently installed in the boat loader, and loading and unloading of the boat is also performed mechanically.

Here, the core tube support structure, which is one of the features of the present invention, will be explained using FIGS. 23 to 25. Conventional diffusion furnace devices have the following drawbacks.

(1) When removing the reactor core tube, the reactor core tube is pulled out to the front of the equipment on the boat transfer section (product transfer section) side. At this time, the front equipment and jigs installed on the boat transport side become obstacles and are difficult to remove.

(2) Dust generated during removal of the reactor core tube adheres to various devices, jigs, etc. on the front side around the removal section, and this dust adheres to subsequent products such as wafers. As a result of this adhesion, defects such as inability to uniformly diffuse or inability to form a clear pattern on the wafer in subsequent steps occur, resulting in a decrease in yield.

(3) Diffusion furnace equipment generally has core tubes arranged in multiple stages, but if even one of the core tubes is replaced, the other core tubes cannot be used at the time of replacement, and the equipment The operating rate will decrease.

Therefore, the contents of the structure for eliminating such drawbacks will be explained. FIG. 23 is a partial external view of the diffusion furnace apparatus, FIG. 24 is a partial plan view, and FIG. 25 is a perspective view showing the rotation mechanism of the furnace core tube. 23rd
A scavenger 5, a furnace 6, and a gas supply section 7 are shown in the figure and FIG. In the furnace 6, three furnace core tubes 202 are arranged in multiple stages. The outer periphery of each core tube is covered with a heat soaking tube (not shown), and a heater 222 is attached to the outer periphery.
As shown in FIG. 25, each furnace core tube and heater are positioned and placed on an elongated rotary plate 223 by a guide 224. This rotating plate is slidably mounted on the base plate 225 via a rail 226, and is rotatably fitted to a support shaft implanted in the base plate on the tail tube 227 side of the core tube. Further, a driven bevel gear 228 is rotatably fitted to a support shaft that protrudes above the rotary plate. This driven side bevel gear 229 is fixed to the rotary plate at its lower surface.

Further, a drive side bevel gear 230 having a small number of teeth meshes with the driven side bevel gear, and this driving side bevel gear is attached to one end of a rotating shaft 232 rotatably attached to a support block 231 fixed to the base plate 225. Fixed. Further, a handle is detachably attached to the other end of this rotating shaft. Therefore, since the handle 233 can also be used for other rotating shafts, this diffusion furnace apparatus only needs to have one handle. Three sets of furnace core tubes including such substrates 225 are stacked as shown by broken lines in FIG. 23. Further, within a cover 234 that covers the furnace 6, a control circuit section 235 including a power transformer is disposed on the side of the furnace core tube 202 in order to lower the height of the furnace 6. Additionally, positioning pins 236 are provided so that the core can return to its original position (height, lateral direction) after rotation.

Next, replace the furnace core tube (removal and installation)
I will explain about it. First, after opening the back side of the furnace cover 234, the furnace core tube 202 that needs to be replaced is
In order to separate the tail pipe 227 and the gas supply mechanism 237, and to avoid contact between the reactor core tube 202 and the tray station 144 during rotation, the reactor core tube 202 was pushed in about 10 mm in the direction of the gas supply section 7.
Furnace tube 2 where the positioning pin 236 is removed and replaced
Attach the handle 233 to the rotating shaft 232 of the board 225 that supports 02, reverse the handle,
Rotating the rotary plate 223 on which the furnace core tube 202 is mounted,
As shown in FIG. 24, it is made to protrude from the back side of the cover 234. Next, place the heater 22 on the back side of the cover.
2, the furnace core tube 202 is taken out. Then, after putting the new reactor core tube into the heater 222 again, rotate the handle in the normal direction to place the rotary plate 223 in the furnace, insert the positioning pin 236 to position it, and move the reactor core tube 202 in the direction of the scavenger 5. (approximately 10 mm) and butt against tray station 144. Furthermore, the tail pipe 227 and the gas supply mechanism 237 are connected, the handle is removed from the rotating shaft 232, and the cover 234 is closed, completing a series of reactor core tube replacement operations. When replacing the core tube, the core tube that is not replaced can be used.

Such a device provides the following effects.

(1) Since the core tube is replaced on the back side of the equipment, dust generated during core tube replacement is unlikely to adhere to the front equipment and jig parts. Therefore, wafer contamination is reduced and yield can be improved.

(2) Since the core tube is installed on the back side of the equipment, an automatic boat loader or the like can be permanently installed in the boat transport section. Furthermore, work efficiency is improved because the furnace core tube can be easily replaced by simply providing a space for replacing the furnace core tube at the back of the device.

(3) Each part of the multi-stage reactor core tube can be replaced independently, so when replacing a part of the reactor core tube, the reactor core tube that is not replaced can be used as is, improving the operating rate of the equipment. do.

(4) In conventional devices, control circuits, etc. are built in at the bottom, but with this device, they can be installed in small details, making the entire device lower and more compact.

In addition, as another embodiment, for example, the furnace core tube may be detachable so as to be moved in parallel in the rear direction of the apparatus.

Next, the operation of aligning the wafers 13 in a desired direction, placing them in the furnace tube 202, and taking them out will be described with reference to FIGS. 14a and 14b. To correct the posture of the wafer, place the wafer on the heat treatment jig with the OF side up and the main surface of the wafer facing toward the back of the furnace core tube 202 of the diffusion furnace (hereinafter abbreviated as the furnace back direction). When the main surface of the wafer faces toward the inlet of the furnace tube, it is abbreviated as the direction of the furnace inlet.) In other words, in the posture mode A shown in FIG. This will be explained with reference to the operation group in the upper row. The positions A to J shown in FIGS. 14a and 14b correspond to the positions A to J shown in FIG. 13. First, the front and back surface correction mechanism 152 is initially located at position A, and in this state, the storage body 15
6 is in a horizontal state so as to accommodate the wafer sent from the drying section to the receiving section 137, and the guide groove 164 is made horizontal. Further, the two pins 166 of the second stopper 168 located on the carry-in side are separated from each other and opened to prevent the moving wafer from coming into contact with the pins 166, and the first stopper 168 located on the carry-in side is opened. The 167 pins 165 are in a closed state in which they approach each other and are prevented from falling out of the wafer container 156 that has entered the guide groove 164. At this time, the wafer has a part of its periphery
Since the wafer is held by the square guide groove 164, the upper main surface and the back surface of the wafer will not be rubbed or scratched.

The front and back surface correction mechanism 152 containing the wafer moves along the guide rail 151 to the primary direction correction station _A1 and stops there. During this movement, the second
Stop 168 is closed and first stop 16 is closed instead.
7 is opened, and then the container 156 is reversely rotated (rotated to the left) about the rotation axis 163 by the rotation mechanism 157, and the wafer is stood upright. At the primary direction correction station _A1, after the primary direction correction mechanism 153 is raised, the correction shaft 176 is rotated to rotate the wafer and position the wafer OF 181 downward as shown in the operation shown in FIG. Thereafter, after the primary direction correction mechanism 153 is lowered, the front and back surface correction mechanism 152 again reaches the secondary direction correction station _A2 along the guide rail 151 and stops. Then, the secondary direction correction mechanism 154 rises and slightly pushes up the OF 181 of the wafer, which may be tilted by the flat upper surface of the correction plate 183. As a result, the wafer's O.
F.181 is horizontally aligned.

Next, when the secondary direction correction mechanism 154 descends, the front and back surface correction mechanism 152 moves from the secondary direction correction station _A2 to position B, and receives and pushes the wafer it is holding as shown in FIG. Loading buffer 1 located below using 193
39 (see operation in Figure 17).
By the way, while the secondary direction correction mechanism 154 is moving to position B, although not shown, as shown in the operation shown in FIG.
6 repeats the forward rotation of 90 degrees twice to rotate the wafer in the O.
F.181 on top. Further, between the two normal rotation operations, the first stopper 167 is closed and the second stopper 168 is opened. The wafer, which stands upright with the OF 181 on top, is supported downwardly by the first stopper, and when the first stopper is opened, the wafer is held upright by the first stopper.
85 falls into the carry-in buffer 139 in the closed state. When a wafer enters one storage groove 184 of the carry-in buffer, the carry-in buffer 139 moves one pitch, and wafers are sequentially placed into the storage groove 184 in the same manner. Note that in the case of the carry-in buffers corresponding to the spaces between the housing groove groups of the heat treatment jig 149, the carry-in buffers move several pitches at a time. In this way, the wafer is loaded into the loading buffer with the desired directionality (orientation).

Note that three other examples of the wafer posture are possible, as shown in FIGS. 17B to 17D. That is, in B, the main surface faces toward the furnace mouth, and the OF surface faces down. In C, the main surface is facing the furnace mouth and the OF surface is facing upward. Furthermore, in D, the main surface faces toward the back of the furnace, and the OF surface faces downward. These posture corrections can be carried out by rotating the container in a desired direction during each movement, movement, and movement.

Next, the carry-in buffer 139 containing, for example, 100 wafers moves to position C, and the transfer 140 also advances to position C. When the alignment of both is completed, the table on which the heat treatment jig is placed rises and approaches the carry-in buffer 139. Next, auxiliary pusher 1
96 rises to support the wafer on the carry-in buffer 139, and after the stopper 185 is opened, it descends to transfer the wafer onto the heat treatment jig 149 on the transfer 140, and the table on which the heat treatment jig 149 is placed descends. .

Next, the transfer moves backward in the +X direction and stops at position D. Then, the transfer machine 150 moves onto the transfer, and then the transfer table rises and moves to the chuck position.
The chuck mechanism 201 grips the heat treatment jig 149 on the transfer, and the transfer table lowers and stops at a predetermined height in the elevator 1.
46 carry it on top. At this time, position D if necessary.
Insert the dummy wafer into the heat treatment jig. Also,
The heat treatment jig is placed on a boat 203 placed on the elevator.

Next, the elevator 146 moves to the furnace mouth of a predetermined furnace tube 202 that is not in use (position F
reference). Then, the boat loader 148, which has risen in synchronization with the elevator 146, operates to load the boat 20.
3 into the reactor core tube (see position G). When the boat is placed in the center of the core tube, the pull-out rod 204 rotates slightly upward and the hook end 209 at the tip of the pull-out rod 204 rotates upward.
is pulled out from the hooking hole 220 of the boat and retreated, and the inlet of the reactor core tube is closed by the shutter mechanism 238.

On the other hand, when unloading wafers from the reactor core tube, the elevator and boat loader 148 automatically move to the reactor mouth where the command has been received. The door (shutter) of that particular furnace opening opens before or after the elevator moves. Therefore, when the elevator stops at the furnace mouth, the boat loader 148 operates to insert the hooking end 209 at the tip of the pull-out rod into the boat's hooking hole in the core tube, and retreats to place the boat on the tray station 144 on the elevator. Pull out. After that, when the elevator reaches a predetermined height, the transfer machine 150 moves and grabs the heat treatment jig 149 on the elevator, and places the heat treatment jig on the transfer located on the unloading side. Here, the dummy wafer on the heat treatment jig is taken out by a mechanism not shown.

Next, the transfer moves below the unloading buffer (position H), and at this position the wafer on the heat treatment jig is transferred to the auxiliary pusher 196.
It is transferred all at once to an unloading buffer.

Next, the wafers that have been moved to the position are sequentially delivered onto the delivery table by the one-sheet delivery mechanism. Then, the wafer on the carry-out table is carried by the airflow and sent out onto the carry-out path 44 located on the extension of the carry-out table.

The above-mentioned devices and mechanisms include a storage section 17 of a stocker 12 for loading and unloading storage cartridges 11;
It is covered with a cover 238, except for one open end, to prevent dirty air from entering the cover from outside the cover. Although not particularly shown in the drawings, clean air is fed into the cover and exhausted. Additionally, the pressure inside the cover is slightly higher than atmospheric pressure to prevent air from entering outside the cover.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 32, the control unit (control system) has a storage unit that stores the operating order and working conditions of each device and mechanism, and also stores the working status of each device, mechanism, etc., and the processing status of wafers. monitor, manage,
Controls each part.

Next, wafer processing operations in such an integrated processing apparatus will be explained with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, a cartridge 11 containing wafers 13 (for example, a storage cartridge containing 25 wafers) 11 is stored in the storage section 17 of the stocker 12, which serves as a storage shelf. At this time, the storage status of the cartridges in the stocker, the types of wafers stored in the cartridges, processing conditions, processing priorities, etc. are stored in the control system. Therefore, the wafer processing is performed in the order listed below by the operator operating the operation panel of the control system.

(1) When the apparatus is driven, the wafers in one cartridge 11 are transferred to the loader mechanism 14 by the transfer mechanism 16, and the wafers are sequentially fed into the transport path 43 from the loader mechanism 14 one by one.

(2) The wafers that have been moved through the transport path 43 while being cleaned against the flow of pure water are placed in a reserve tank 52 located in front of the chemical treatment tank A, and then transferred to the loading/unloading pusher 59. into the processing tank. The wafer transferred into the processing tank moves in an annular manner through the etching solution in the processing tank and returns to the original rotation start position again, and returns when the carry-in/out pusher 59 transports the wafer to the processing tank. The operation returns it to the reserve tank 52. Thereafter, this wafer is transported from the preliminary tank 52 through the carry-out path 43 to the next chemical treatment tank B, and is etched again. In this way, the wafers are sequentially processed by chemical processing equipment A, B, and C.
It is sent to the next drying section through the conveyance path 43.

(3) In the drying section, the wafer is held on a rotary table 111 and dried by rotation, and then reaches the wafer sorting table 116. The wafer sorting table 116 allows the unloader mechanism 15 to
Unless there is a command transferred to
It passes through 36A and moves to the wafer loading/unloading section.

(4) The wafers transferred to the wafer loading/unloading section 4 are sequentially loaded into the loading buffer 139 with the orientation of the OF 181 of the wafer and the main surface forming the circuit element pattern being uniformly aligned by the attitude correction mechanism 138. When a desired number of wafers (for example, 100 wafers) are stored in the carry-in buffer 139, the wafer processing operation changes to a batch processing mode, and the wafers in the carry-in buffer 139 are transferred to the heat treatment jig 149. This heat treatment jig 149 is transported to the boat 203 of the tray station 144 on the elevator 146 by the transfer machine 140 and the transfer machine 150, and then transported to the designated furnace mouth by the elevator 146, and then transferred to the boat loader. 148 into the reactor core tube 202 .
When the heat treatment jig 149 is housed in the furnace core tube 202, the furnace opening is closed by a shutter mechanism, and the wafers on the heat treatment jig 149 are subjected to heat treatment such as diffusion.

(5) After the wafer heat treatment, the heat treatment jig 149 in the furnace core tube 202 is moved again to the transfer chamber located at position H, which is the unloading side position, by the continuous action of the boat loader 148, elevator 146, and transfer machine 150. Transported to 140. Thereafter, 100 wafers accommodated in the heat treatment jig 149 on the transfer 140 are simultaneously transferred to the unloading buffer 141. Next, the wafers in the carry-out buffer 141 are delivered onto the carry-out path 44 one by one by the single-wafer delivery mechanism 142. The wafers sent out onto the unloading path 44 move along the unloading path 44 and are sequentially accommodated in the storage box 22 of the unloader mechanism 15. When the storage box 22 of the unloader mechanism 15 is full of wafers, the transfer mechanism 16 operates again and transfers the 25 wafers 13 held by the unloader mechanism to the empty cartridge 11, and the cartridge 11 that is full of wafers is transferred. The wafers are stored in the empty storage section 17 of the stocker 12 to complete a series of wafer processing operations. Note that since a plurality of furnace core tubes 202 and chemical treatment tanks 53 are installed,
Each of the above operations is carried out organically, with at least 3
The main furnace tube 202 is always used effectively.

Such a wafer integrated processing method and its apparatus produce many effects as described below.

(1) Each work is performed automatically by a machine. Furthermore, the entire apparatus is covered with a cover, so that the wafer passage space is always filled with clean air. Therefore, there is no worker in the work processing space who is a source of dust, unlike in the past, so wafer contamination is extremely reduced, and deterioration in quality can be prevented.

(2) When cleaning wafers before heat treatment,
Since the wafers are individually processed, not only the cleanliness of the wafers is good, but also the processing between each wafer is uniform, and the heat treatment work is performed in this state. Therefore, quality is high and yield is improved.

(3) Since each work is automated, it is possible not only to reduce the number of workers, but also to prevent damage to wafers due to handling errors by workers, which was the case in the past. This is particularly effective in that it eliminates the need to transport wafers between devices.

(4) Since each device section is optimally controlled by a control section such as a microcomputer, efficient work can be performed and wafer processing costs can be reduced.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. For example, as shown in FIGS. 26a, b to 31, a predetermined number (for example, 25) of wafers that are fed one by one are temporarily stored, and the orientation of these 25 wafers is aligned simultaneously. Alternatively, it may be transported from there to a heat treatment jig. The structure of this embodiment is basically the same as the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13 to 20, so many parts are the same or very similar, and parts that differ greatly are sent one by one. A part that temporarily stores the coming wafers and when a predetermined number (for example, 25 wafers) is reached, transfers them to an attitude correction mechanism to correct the attitude of all wafers;
These are a mechanism for receiving and receiving wafers in units of 25 wafers, and a section in which a boat loader and tray station are arranged for each reactor core tube. Next, the structure and operation of parts that require special explanation in this embodiment will be explained (for parts omitted from explanation, refer to the explanation of the same corresponding parts in the previous embodiment. Also, the names of mechanisms that are the same as or similar to those in the previous embodiment, (Use the instruction number as is.) A wafer sent from outside the apparatus is received by a receiving guide 240 in position A with only both edges supported, and this receiving guide 240 is moved along a guide bar 241 to position B.
Move to. In position B, the pusher 242 moves along the guide bar 243, and the pusher transfers the wafer in the receiving guide 240 into the loading cartridge 244. This loading cartridge is arranged in parallel to accommodate 25 wafers, for example.
Pairs of receiving grooves are provided, and each pair of receiving grooves accommodates a wafer. Further, this carry-in cartridge moves up and down, and each time a wafer is loaded, it rises one pitch and accommodates the wafers one by one. Note that the wafer may be placed directly into this loading cartridge from position A.

Next, when 25 wafers are stored in this carry-in cartridge, it is lowered, and the carry-in cartridge comes to rest at a constant height as shown in FIG. Then, the transfer pusher 245 moves forward and transfers the 25 wafers in the carry-in cartridge to the posture correction mechanism 138. The tip of the transfer pusher 245 is parallel to 25
A striped receiving groove 246 is provided which presses the rear end of each wafer. For convenience of explanation, all pushers for transferring 25 wafers are transfer pushers 245.
I will call it.

Next, the posture correction mechanism 138 moves to position D.
At position E, the wafer posture is corrected, and at position E, 25 wafers are transferred to the transfer buffer 139 using the transfer pusher. Here, the posture correction mechanism 138 for accommodating 25 sheets shown in FIG. 30 will be briefly described. A plurality of wafers, for example, 25 wafers, are accommodated in the container 156 in parallel using guide grooves 164. And this container 156
The OF alignment is performed by a direction correction mechanism 247 provided at position D and incorporating a primary direction correction mechanism 153 and a secondary direction correction mechanism 154. Further, the direction correction mechanism 247 is arranged so that the correction shaft 176 of the primary direction correction mechanism and the correction plate 183 of the secondary direction correction mechanism can be alternately positioned directly below the container 156 moving along the guide rail 151. It is designed to be able to reciprocate along two guide rods 250 attached to a base 248 via support pieces 249.
In addition, the first and second direction correction mechanisms 153 and 154
The lifting shafts 251, 252 are vertically movably attached to a block 254 fixed to a slider 253 which is slidably attached to a guide rod, and these lifting shafts 251, 252 are connected to a cam 255 (one cam is not shown). ) moves up and down. Further, the reciprocating movement of the slider 253 is also performed by the cam 256. Further, the lifting force of the lifting shafts 251 and 252 and the moving force of one of the sliders 253 are provided by springs 257 and 258.

Next, when 100 wafers are stored in the carry-in buffer 139 by repeating the transfer of 25 wafers four times, the carry-in buffer is
Move onto the transfer 140 located at position F as shown in the figure. This transfer is supported by an auxiliary pusher 196 that supports 25 wafers at a time.
(transfer pusher 245), and also has a mounting table 259 that supports the heat treatment jig 149. Further, although not shown, this mounting table is provided with a window through which the receiving plate 197 of the auxiliary pusher 196 passes. Further, this mounting table is also moved up and down by the lifting pusher 260. Furthermore, this transfer 140 is in position J,
Move along the guide rod 261 between F and G.

Next, the transfer table 259 and the auxiliary pusher 260 are raised to transfer the 100 wafers housed in the carry-in buffer 139 onto the heat treatment jig on the transfer table. When the wafer transfer is completed, the transfer moves to position G as shown in FIG. After that, the transfer machine 150 descends from above, and its chuck mechanism 20
1, grab the heat treatment jig 149 on the transfer and move up. When the transfer moves away from position G, one of the tray stations 144 disposed at the furnace mouth moves forward along the guide rod 262 and stops at position G. Then, the transfer machine 150 descends again and stops above the tray station 144, releases the chuck mechanism 201, and transfers the boat 20 of the tray station in position H.
3. Place the heat treatment jig on top.

Next, when the transfer machine rises again, the tray station moves back and positions the tray station at the furnace mouth. Then, the pull-out rod 204 of the boat loader 148 moves forward and puts the heat treatment jig together with the boat 203 into the furnace core tube 202 indicated by the position.
A series of wafer loading operations is completed.

By the way, the pull-out rod 2 of the boat loader 148
04 is always attached to the boat loader drive section 205. That is, the pull-out rod 20
The bent hooking end 209 of No. 4 is simply inserted into and removably from above into the hooking hole 220 of the boat 203 as in the conventional case, but the other end is a rotating body that is rotatably attached to the boat loader drive unit. 2
63 so as to be slidable. Further, when the pull-out rod is advanced toward the furnace core tube 202, the circumferential surface of the rotating body comes into contact with this mounting end, and the pull-out rod 20
An insertion stopper 264 for pushing the boat 203 from the furnace core tube 202 and an extraction stopper 265 that comes into contact with the circumferential surface of the rotating body when the boat 203 is pulled out from the furnace core tube 202 are fixed in a brim shape. Also, the distance l between the insertion stopper 264 and the extraction stopper (for example, l = 15 mm,
The tray station horizontal movement distance (180 mm) is formed to be wide, so that when the tray station 144 is moved, the position of the rotating body 263 and the tray station 1 are
Changes in length between the boat 203 and the hooking hole 220 on the rotating body can be absorbed by the sliding change of the pull-out rod 204 on the rotating body. Further, the pull-out rod is designed to be able to swing vertically relative to the rotating body, and the hook end of the pull-out rod can be inserted into and removed from the boat hook hole 220 on the tray station 144. Further, the pull-out rod always has its hooked end inserted into the hooking hole of the boat, and the hooked end is inserted into the furnace core tube 202 during diffusion.
In the figure, reference numeral 266 is a support block fixed to the lower surface of the boat loader drive section 205, which rotatably supports the lower part of the rotating body.

For the wafer unloading operation, the procedure for carrying in the wafer is reversed, and the heat treatment jig 149 is taken out from the furnace core tube 202, transported to position J by the transfer 140, and the auxiliary pusher 196 and the elevating pusher 260 are operated. To the unloading buffer 141
Transfer 100 wafers. Thereafter, the carry-out buffer advances to position K, where the transfer pusher 245 is used to transfer 25 wafers to a carry-out container 267 having the same structure as the container 156 (accommodating 25 wafers). While this unloading container moves along the guide rod 268 to position M (position L)
Flip the wafer 90 degrees and place the wafer horizontally. When position M is reached, the transfer pusher, which moves back and forth in the horizontal direction, is raised and then operated to transfer all 25 wafers housed in the transfer container to the transfer cartridge 269. Since this carry-out cartridge has the same structure and movement as the carry-in cartridge 244, it sequentially moves upward in pitches. Then, for each pitch operation, one wafer is pushed out from the carry-out cartridge by a feed-out pusher (not shown), and is pushed out from the carry-out table 143 (the carry-out path 4).
4) It is sent upward. The wafer 13 delivered onto the unloading table 143 is carried to the unloader mechanism 15 by the air current. When all the wafers 13 in the carry-out cartridge are sent out, the carry-out container 207 again carries 25 wafers from the carry-out buffer 141. Each of the above operations is automatically controlled by the control device 9. In addition, the entire device is covered by cover 2.
70 to prevent dust from entering.

In addition to the effects of the previous embodiments, this embodiment also has the advantage of improving the work speed because the postures of a predetermined number of wafers are corrected at one time.

As described above, according to the wafer integrated processing apparatus of the present invention, since the wafers are individually cleaned, the quality of the wafers is stable without variation, and the heat treatment is performed in this state. Therefore, it is possible to improve the quality and yield of wafer processing.

Further, according to the present invention, one wafer is mainly transported between each work process, and a large storage (transport) cartridge for accommodating wafers as in the prior art is not required. Therefore, the wafer transport space becomes smaller, and the entire apparatus becomes smaller. In addition, since the entire device can be made smaller, not only does the equipment cost become cheaper, but the space that needs to be cleaned becomes smaller, reducing the amount of clean air needed to clean the space, and reducing the equipment cost. maintenance costs are significantly reduced.

Further, according to the present invention, since each device section is optimally controlled by the control system, each device section can operate optimally, and wafer processing costs can also be reduced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 32 are diagrams showing an integrated processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the external appearance, and FIG. 3 is a wafer processing apparatus. Flowchart showing the process, FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the mechanism of the loader/unloader section, FIG. 5 is a front view of a part of the same, FIGS. 7 and 8 are perspective views and sectional views showing other embodiments of the carrying out path, and FIG.
The figure is a perspective view showing the cleaning device in the cleaning section.
Figure 0 is a perspective view of the drying section, Figures 11a and 11b are perspective views and cross-sectional views of the rotary table in the drying device,
Figures 12a and 12b are also cross-sectional views of the drying device;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of the wafer loading/unloading section, Figures 14a and b
15 is a perspective view showing a wafer posture correction mechanism, FIG. 16 is a front view showing a wafer orientation mechanism, FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a wafer posture correction mode, and FIG. FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view showing the wafer transfer operation between the container and the buffer;
19 and 20 are front and side views showing the wafer transfer mechanism between the buffer and the heat treatment jig, FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing the boat loader, and FIG. 22 is a front view showing a part of the same. , FIG. 23 is a perspective view showing the diffusion furnace apparatus, FIG. 24 is a plan view, FIG. 25 is a perspective view of the rotating mechanism that supports the core tube, and FIGS. 26 a, b to 31 a, b are 26A and 26B are perspective views showing the wafer moving path, FIG. 27 is a front view of the wafer loading/unloading section, and FIG. 28 is a plan view of the wafer loading/unloading section.
FIG. 29 is a side view, FIG. 30 is a perspective view showing the wafer posture correction mechanism, FIGS. 31 a and b are perspective views showing the boat loader, and FIG. 32 is a system showing the automatic processing system of the wafer integrated processing device. It is a diagram. 1...Loader/unloader section, 2...Cleaning section, 3...
Drying section, 3A...Drying device, 4...Wafer loading/unloading section,
5...Scavengeer, 6...Furnace, 7...Gas supply section, 8
...Diffusion furnace device section, 9...Control device, 10...Control equipment section, 11...Storage cartridge, 12...Stocker, 13...Wafer, 14...Loader mechanism, 15...Unloader mechanism, 16...Delivery mechanism, 18...Reversing Table, 19...Transportation mechanism, 25...Fork, 42...
Single sheet delivery pusher, 43...Transportation path, 44...Ejection path, 46...Ejection hole, 47...Transfer arm, 52...Preliminary tank, 53...Chemical solution processing tank (processing tank), 54...Processing tank main body, 55...Wafer holder, 57... Stirring plate, 59... Carrying pusher, 61... Wafer pusher for water washing path, 63... Heater, 64... Boundary part, 65
...Wafer holding plate, 66...Sector plate, 7
4...Liquid stirring plate, 75...Rotating arm, 7
6... Wafer feeding pusher, 94... Stage,
107...Connection rod, 111...Rotary table, 112
...Drying cup, 115...Rinse section conveyance path, 116
...Wafer sorting table, 119...Suppa pin,
120...Cup, 134...Carry-in route, 135...Carry-out route, 136A...Hot air drying oven, 139...Carry-in buffer, 140...Transfer, 141...Carry-out buffer, 144...Tray station, 146...
Elevator, 148...Boat loader, 149...Heat treatment jig, 150...Transfer machine, 152...Front and back surface correction mechanism, 153...Primary direction correction mechanism, 154...Second direction correction mechanism, 165, 166...Pin, 16
7...First stopper, 168...Second stopper, 18
1...OF, 202...furnace tube, 203...boat,
204... Pull-out rod, 235... Control circuit section, 238...
Shutter mechanism, 339... Cover, 240... Receiving guide, 241... Guide rod, 242... Pusher, 2
43... Guide rod, 244... Carrying-in cartridge, 2
45...transfer pusher, 247...direction correction mechanism, 2
55, 256...Cam, 260...Elevating pusher, 2
69...Export cartridge, 270...Cover.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A surface treatment device that sequentially processes the surface of each wafer that is sequentially supplied through a substantially horizontal conveyance path, and a surface treatment device that simultaneously processes a plurality of wafers stored in a heat treatment jig. a heat treatment device that performs heat treatment; a loader mechanism that feeds out wafers one by one from a cartridge for storing a plurality of wafers; and a loader mechanism that sequentially transports the wafers sent out by the loader mechanism and passes through the surface treatment device. A transport mechanism system having a transport path, a mechanism for rotating the wafer surface so that the outer peripheral part of the wafer sent from the transport mechanism system comes into contact with a rotation correction shaft, and a wafer orientation flat part. The rotation correction shaft applies a rotational force along the outer circumference of the wafer when the outer circumference of the wafer is in contact with the wafer, and stops applying the rotational force to the wafer when the orientation flat part is in contact with the wafer. a transfer mechanism for storing a plurality of wafers whose orientation flat portions are aligned in the direction of the orientation flat portion by the attitude correction mechanism into the heat treatment jig; a loading/unloading mechanism system including a loading/unloading mechanism for loading/unloading the heat treatment apparatus; an unloading mechanism system including an unloading mechanism for storing a plurality of wafers supplied from the loading/unloading mechanism system in a cartridge; A wafer processing apparatus comprising a control means for controlling the operation of the apparatus and a mechanical system. 2. The wafer processing according to claim 1, wherein at least the transport mechanism system, carry-in/out mechanism system, and carry-out mechanism system are covered with a cover, and the inside of the cover is made to have a clean atmosphere. Device.