CN114959881A

CN114959881A - Heater assembly for crystal growth furnace, control method of heater assembly and crystal growth furnace

Info

Publication number: CN114959881A
Application number: CN202210557943.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 陈俊宏
Original assignee: Xuzhou Xinjing Semiconductor Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Zhonghuan Leading Xuzhou Semiconductor Materials Co ltd; Zhonghuan Advanced Semiconductor Materials Co Ltd
Priority date: 2022-05-19
Filing date: 2022-05-19
Publication date: 2022-08-30
Also published as: TW202332810A; TWI864710B

Abstract

The invention discloses a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace, a control method of the heater assembly and the crystal growth furnace. According to the heater assembly for the crystal growth furnace, the heating power output to different areas in the axial direction of the crucible can be adjusted, and different thermal field requirements of the crystal growth furnace are met.

Description

Heater assembly for crystal growth furnace, control method of heater assembly and crystal growth furnace

Technical Field

The invention relates to the field of monocrystalline silicon production equipment, in particular to a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace, a control method of the heater assembly and the crystal growth furnace.

Background

A heater is arranged in the crystal growing furnace to form a thermal field in the furnace body, and whether the thermal field is reasonable or not has great influence on the quality of the monocrystalline silicon.

In the related art, an annular heater is arranged outside a crucible to heat silicon material in the crucible by the heater; when the heating power of the crucible is required to be adjusted, the heating power of the crucible can be adjusted only by adjusting the overall output power of the heater, so that the adjustment of the heating power of the crucible is limited, and the actual differentiated requirements cannot be met.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention is directed to solving at least one of the problems of the prior art. Therefore, the invention provides a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace, which can adjust the heating power output to different areas in the axial direction of a crucible and meet different thermal field requirements of the crystal growth furnace.

The invention also provides a crystal growth furnace with the heater assembly.

The invention also provides a control method of the heater assembly.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace includes a furnace body and a crucible provided in the furnace body, the heater assembly being provided in the furnace body and including: a plurality of stationary heaters adapted to be disposed around the crucible; the movable heaters are sequentially arranged along the radial direction of the fixed heater, the movable heaters and the fixed heaters are alternately arranged along the radial direction of the fixed heater, and each movable heater can move up and down between a first height position and a second height position relative to the fixed heater along the axial direction of the fixed heater.

According to the heater assembly for the crystal growth furnace, provided by the embodiment of the invention, the plurality of fixed heaters and the plurality of movable heaters are arranged, the plurality of movable heaters can move up and down along the axial direction, and the distribution of the output power of the whole heater assembly in the axial direction can be adjusted; when the heater assembly is used for heating the crucible, the distribution of the heating power of the heater assembly to the crucible in the axial direction of the crucible can be adjusted, so that the heating power output by the heater assembly to different areas in the axial direction of the crucible can be conveniently adjusted, different thermal fields can be formed according to the growth requirements of crystals, and the actual differentiation requirements can be adapted.

In some embodiments, the heater assembly further comprises: and each first driving mechanism is connected to the lower end of one movable heater so as to enable the movable heaters to respectively and independently move along the axial direction of the fixed heater.

In some embodiments, the heater assembly further comprises: and the heat-resistant transmission part is connected between the first driving mechanism and the corresponding movable heater.

In some embodiments, the length of the fixed heater is greater than the length of the movable heater in the axial direction of the fixed heater, and the length of the heat-resistant transmission member is equal to or greater than the maximum value of the difference in length between the fixed heater and the movable heater.

In some embodiments, in the first height position, an upper end of the movable heater is flush with an upper end of the fixed heater, and in the second height position, a lower end of the movable heater is flush with a lower end of the fixed heater.

In some embodiments, the movable heater has a plurality of height positions including the first height position, the second height position, and the third height position, the third height position being located between the first height position and the second height position, orthographic projections of the plurality of height positions on the longitudinal section of the fixed heater do not overlap.

In some embodiments, the movable heater comprises a plurality of heating sections and a plurality of connecting sections, the plurality of heating sections are arranged at intervals along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater, and two adjacent heating sections are detachably connected through the connecting sections.

In some embodiments, at least one of the movable heaters is rotatable relative to the fixed heater in a circumferential direction of the fixed heater.

In some embodiments, the heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace further comprises a plurality of second driving mechanisms, each second driving mechanism is connected to the lower end of one of the movable heaters, so that the plurality of movable heaters respectively and independently rotate along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater.

A method of controlling a heater assembly according to an embodiment of a second aspect of the present invention, the heater assembly being a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace according to the above-described embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention, the heater assembly having a first operation mode in which at least one of the movable heaters has a different height from the remaining movable heaters and a second operation mode; in the second operation mode, heights of the plurality of active heaters are the same.

According to the control method of the heater assembly provided by the embodiment of the invention, different heating powers are respectively arranged at different height positions of the crucible through different working modes of the heater assembly, so that different working requirements of the crystal growth furnace are met, and the applicability of the heater assembly is improved.

In some embodiments, the number of the movable heaters is three or more, each of the movable heaters has a plurality of height positions, orthographic projections of the height positions on the longitudinal section of the fixed heater do not overlap, and at least one of the movable heaters is at a different height position from the rest of the movable heaters in the first operation mode.

In some embodiments, the first operating mode has a first operating state in which at least two of the plurality of active heaters are at the same height position and a second operating state; in the second operating state, the plurality of movable heaters are respectively located at different height positions.

In some embodiments, the number of the movable heaters is three, the three movable heaters are respectively a first movable heater, a second movable heater and a third movable heater, the first movable heater, the second movable heater and the third movable heater are sequentially arranged in a radial direction from outside to inside of the heater assembly, the plurality of height positions include the first height position, the second height position and a third height position, the third height position is located between the first height position and the second height position, the first working state includes a first sub-state and a second sub-state, and in the first sub-state, the first movable heater and the third movable heater are located at the first height position, and the second movable heater is located at the third height position; in the second sub-state, the first and second movable heaters are located at the first height position, and the third movable heater is located at the third height position.

In some embodiments, the second operating state includes a third sub-state and a fourth sub-state, in the third sub-state, a plurality of the movable heaters are arranged in a radial direction of the fixed heater from the outside to the inside and from the bottom to the top in sequence; in the fourth sub-state, the plurality of movable heaters are sequentially arranged from outside to inside and from top to bottom along the radial direction of the fixed heater.

In some embodiments, at least one of the movable heaters is rotatable relative to the fixed heater in a circumferential direction of the fixed heater, and the heater assembly further has a third operation mode in which at least one of the movable heaters is rotated relative to the fixed heater and a direction of rotation of the at least one of the movable heaters is opposite to a direction of rotation of the crucible.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a crystal growth furnace comprising: a furnace body; the crucible is arranged in the furnace body; a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace according to an embodiment of the above first aspect of the invention, the heater assembly being provided in the furnace body and around the crucible.

According to the crystal growth furnace provided by the embodiment of the invention, by adopting the heater assembly, the heating power of different areas in the axial direction of the crucible can be adjusted, so that different thermal fields are realized, and the applicability of the crystal growth furnace is improved.

Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.

Drawings

The above and/or additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a crystal growth furnace according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the assembly of the heater assembly and crucible shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the heater assembly shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is another cross-sectional view of the heater assembly shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is yet another cross-sectional view of the heater assembly shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is yet another cross-sectional view of the heater assembly shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is still another cross-sectional view of the heater assembly shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is a schematic control flow diagram of a heater assembly according to one embodiment of the invention;

fig. 9 is a schematic control flow diagram of a heater assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Reference numerals:

a crystal growth furnace 200, a furnace body 101, a crucible 102,

A heater assembly 100,

A fixed heater 1, a movable heater 2, a first driving mechanism 3, a heat-resistant transmission member 4, a second driving mechanism 5, a first fixed heater 11, a second fixed heater 12,

A first active heater 21, a second active heater 22, a third active heater 23, a heating section 2 a.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are illustrative only for the purpose of explaining the present invention and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention.

The following disclosure provides many different embodiments, or examples, for implementing different features of the invention. To simplify the disclosure of the present invention, the components and arrangements of specific examples are described below. Of course, they are merely examples and are not intended to limit the present invention. Furthermore, the present invention may repeat reference numerals and/or letters in the various examples. This repetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not in itself dictate a relationship between the various embodiments and/or configurations discussed. In addition, the present invention provides examples of various specific processes and materials, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize the applicability of other processes and/or the use of other materials.

Next, referring to the drawings, a heater assembly 100 for a crystal growth furnace 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention is described.

As shown in fig. 1, the crystal growth furnace 200 includes a furnace body 101 and a crucible 102, the crucible 102 is disposed in the furnace body 101, the heater assembly 100 is disposed in the furnace body 101, and the heater assembly 100 can be used for heating the crucible 102 to melt the material in the crucible 102.

The heater assembly 100 includes a plurality of fixed heaters 1 and a plurality of movable heaters 2, the fixed heaters 1 are adapted to be disposed around the crucible 102, the fixed heaters 1 may be formed in a substantially annular structure, and the fixed heaters 1 are adapted to be disposed radially outside the crucible 102; the plurality of movable heaters 2 are sequentially arranged along the radial direction of the fixed heater 1, and the plurality of movable heaters 2 and the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are alternately arranged along the radial direction of the fixed heater 1, then the movable heaters 2 are arranged between two adjacent fixed heaters 1 along the radial direction of the fixed heater 1, and the fixed heater 1 is arranged between two adjacent movable heaters 2, so that the distribution of the plurality of movable heaters 2 has certain dispersibility, thereby on the basis that the occupied space of the heater assembly 100 is not increased or excessively increased, the arrangement space of the driving mechanism for driving the movable heaters 1 to move is favorably increased, and the arrangement of the driving mechanism is convenient.

As shown in fig. 2, each movable heater 2 is movable up and down between a first height position and a second height position with respect to the fixed heater 1 in the axial direction of the fixed heater 1, so that the position of each movable heater 2 in the up and down direction with respect to the fixed heater 1 and the crucible 102 can be adjusted accordingly, thereby adjusting the distribution of output power in the axial direction of the entire heater assembly 100; when the heater assembly 100 is used for heating the crucible 102, the distribution of the heating power of the heater assembly 100 to the crucible 102 in the axial direction of the crucible 102 can be adjusted, so that the heating power output by the heater assembly 100 to different regions in the axial direction of the crucible 102 can be adjusted, and different thermal fields can be formed according to the growth requirements of crystals, so as to adapt to actual differentiation requirements.

Here, the axial direction of the fixed heater 1 may be understood as the axial direction of the crucible 102.

It is to be noted that, in the description of the present application, "a plurality" means two or more; for example, in the example of fig. 2, the fixed heaters 1 are two and the two fixed heaters 1 include a first fixed heater 11 and a second fixed heater 12, the movable heaters 2 are three, and the three movable heaters 2 include a first movable heater 21, a second movable heater 22, and a third movable heater 23, the first fixed heater 11 is provided radially outside the second fixed heater 12, and in the radial direction of the fixed heaters 1, the first fixed heater 11 is located between the first movable heater 21 and the second movable heater 22, and the second fixed heater 12 is located between the second movable heater 22 and the third movable heater 23. Of course, the number of the fixed heaters 1 and the number of the movable heaters 2 are not limited thereto, and the number of the two may be equal or different.

According to the heater assembly 100 of the embodiment of the present invention, by providing a plurality of fixed heaters 1 and a plurality of movable heaters 1 and making a plurality of movable heaters 2 movable up and down in the axial direction, the distribution of output power of the entire heater assembly 100 in the axial direction can be adjusted; when the heater assembly 100 is used for heating the crucible 102, the distribution of the heating power of the heater assembly 100 to the crucible 102 in the axial direction of the crucible 102 can be adjusted, so that the heating power output by the heater assembly 100 to different regions in the axial direction of the crucible 102 can be adjusted, and different thermal fields can be formed according to the growth requirements of crystals, so as to adapt to actual differentiation requirements.

It will be appreciated that when the heater assembly 100 is in use, the movable heater 2 may have a plurality of height positions including a first height position and a second height position, and that adjustment of the output power distribution of the heater assembly 100 in the axial direction may be achieved by moving the movable heater 2 to the respective height positions so as to simplify the control of movement of the movable heater 1. Of course, the position of the movable heater 2 may also be adjusted in real time according to different requirements of the crystal at different growth stages, etc., so that the movable heater 2 may be moved to any position between the first height position and the second height position.

In some embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 2, the heater assembly 100 further includes a plurality of first driving mechanisms 3, each first driving mechanism 3 being connected to a lower end of one movable heater 2 so that the plurality of movable heaters 2 are independently moved in the axial direction of the fixed heater 1, respectively, and there is no linkage between the movement of each movable heater 2 and the movement of the remaining movable heaters 2, so that there is no linkage between the position of each movable heater 2 in the up-down direction and the positions of the remaining movable heaters 2. Therefore, the flexibility of moving the plurality of movable heaters 2 is improved, which is beneficial to expanding the range of heating power which can be output by the heater assembly 100 and improving the applicability of the heater assembly 100.

Of course, in other embodiments, a plurality of movable heaters 2 may also be moved in unison.

In some embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 2, the heater assembly 100 further includes a heat-resistant transmission member 4, where the heat-resistant transmission member 4 is connected between the first driving mechanism 3 and the corresponding movable heater 2, so as to reduce the heat transferred from the movable heater 2 to the first driving mechanism 3 during the operation process, so as to enable the first driving mechanism 3 to have a suitable working temperature, so as to ensure that the first driving mechanism 3 is reliable to use, and at the same time, the heat-resistant transmission member 4 has good high-temperature resistance, so as to ensure that the power of the first driving mechanism 3 is smoothly transferred to the corresponding movable heater 2. Alternatively, the heat-resistant transmission member 4 may be a graphite member or the like.

Of course, the present application is not so limited; in other embodiments, the heater assembly 100 does not need the heat-resistant transmission member 4, and the first driving mechanism 3 is directly connected to the corresponding movable heater 2, for example, the portion of the first driving mechanism 3 directly connected to the corresponding movable heater 2 is a heat-resistant portion.

In some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in fig. 2 and 4 to 7, the length of the fixed heater 1 is greater than the length of the movable heater 2 in the axial direction of the fixed heater 1, and the length of the heat-resistant transmission member 4 is greater than or equal to the maximum value of the difference in length between the fixed heater 1 and the movable heater 2, even if the movable heater 2 is moved to an extreme position (e.g., the first height position or the second height position described above) such that the axial end of the movable heater 2 remote from the first drive mechanism 3 (i.e., the upper end of the movable heater 2) is flush with the upper end of the fixed heater 1, the first drive mechanism 3 is not disposed horizontally opposite to the fixed heater 1, i.e., on any vertical plane passing through the central axis of the fixed heater 1, the orthographic projection of the first drive mechanism 3 is disposed next to the orthographic projection of the fixed heater 1, or spaced up and down, in order to guarantee at movable heater 2's whole removal in-process, on the upper and lower direction, the upper end of first actuating mechanism 3 can not upwards move to the lower extreme that surpasss fixed heater 1 all the time, the upper end of first actuating mechanism 3 is less than the lower extreme of fixed heater 1 or flushes with the lower extreme of fixed heater 1 promptly, be convenient for reduce fixed heater 1 and transmit the heat to first actuating mechanism 3 at the operation in-process, further make first actuating mechanism 3 have suitable operating temperature, be favorable to improving heater assembly 100's use reliability.

In some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in fig. 4-7, in the first height position, the upper end of the movable heater 2 is flush with the upper end of the fixed heater 1, and in the second height position, the lower end of the movable heater 2 is flush with the lower end of the fixed heater 1, so that the movable heater 1 has a suitable moving range in the axial direction of the fixed heater 1, thereby satisfying the adjustment of the output power distribution of the heater assembly 100 in the axial direction and saving the occupied space during the operation of the whole heater assembly 100.

For example, in the example of fig. 4 to 7, the upper ends of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are disposed flush, and the upper ends of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are disposed flush with the upper end of the crucible 102, or the upper ends of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are located below the upper end of the crucible 102, and the lower ends of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are also disposed flush, and the lower ends of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are disposed flush with the lower end of the crucible 102, or the lower ends of the plurality of fixed heaters are located above the lower end of the crucible 102.

Of course, the upper ends of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 may be disposed non-flush, and at this time, at the first height position, the upper end of the movable heater 2 may be flush with the upper end of any one of the fixed heaters 1; the lower ends of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 may be disposed non-flush, and at this time, the lower end of the movable heater 2 may be flush with the lower end of any one of the fixed heaters 1 at the second height position.

Of course, the present application is not so limited; in other embodiments, the lower end of the movable heater 2 may be lower than the lower end of the fixed heater 1 at the second height position, and the upper end of the movable heater 2 may be higher than the upper end of the fixed heater 1 at the first height position.

For example, in the examples of fig. 2 and 4 to 7, the length of the heat-resistant transmission member 4 is equal to the difference in length between the fixed heater 1 and the movable heater 2 in the axial direction of the fixed heater 1; in the first height position, the upper end of the movable heater 2 is flush with the upper end of the fixed heater 1, and the lower end of the heat-resistant transmission member 4 is flush with the lower end of the fixed heater 1.

In some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in fig. 4 to 7, the movable heater 2 has a plurality of height positions, the plurality of height positions includes a first height position, a second height position and a third height position, the third height position is located between the first height position and the second height position, and in a longitudinal cross section of the fixed heater 1, orthographic projections of the plurality of height positions do not overlap, so that there is a large positional deviation between the plurality of different height positions, so that the distribution of the output power of the entire heater assembly 100 in the axial direction when the movable heater 2 is at two different height positions has a significant difference, thereby better satisfying the actual requirement, facilitating the position adjustment of the movable heater 2, and simplifying the movement control of the movable heater 2. Wherein the central axis of the fixed heater 1 is located on the longitudinal section of the fixed heater 1.

For example, in the examples of fig. 2, 4-7, the height positions are three and include a first height position where the upper end of the movable heater 2 is flush with the upper end of the fixed heater 1, the movable heater 2 corresponds to the upper portion of the fixed heater 1, the movable heater 2 can boost the output power of the heater assembly 100 in the axial upper portion, a second height position where the lower end of the movable heater 2 is flush with the lower end of the fixed heater 1, the movable heater 2 corresponds to the lower portion of the fixed heater 1, the movable heater 2 can boost the output power of the heater assembly 100 in the axial lower portion, and a third height position where the movable heater 2 corresponds to the middle portion of the fixed heater 1, the movable heater 2 can boost the output power of the heater assembly 100 in the axial middle portion. Of course, the height positions of the movable heater 2 may be two or more than three.

It can be understood that the height positions are n (n is larger than or equal to 2), the orthographic projections of the n height positions do not overlap on the longitudinal section of the fixed heater 1, in addition, the upper end of the movable heater 2 is flush with the upper end of the fixed heater 1 at the first height position, the lower end of the movable heater 2 is flush with the lower end of the fixed heater 1 at the second height position, and the length of the movable heater 2 is 1/n of the length of the fixed heater 1 in the axial direction of the fixed heater 1. At this time, if the heater assembly 100 includes the heat-resistant transmission 4, the length of the heat-resistant transmission 4 in the axial direction of the fixed heater 1 is equal to or greater than (n-1)/n of the length of the fixed heater 1.

In some embodiments of the present invention, the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are arranged in parallel, and the operation of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 is independent and non-interfering with each other, so that the operation state of any fixed heater 1 is not linked with the operation states of the other fixed heaters 1, thereby facilitating the realization of independent control of each fixed heater 1; for example, when the fixed heater 1 is an electric heater, the plurality of fixed heaters 1 are arranged in parallel, so that the independent arrangement of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 in which power is turned on and off is facilitated, such as at least one of the plurality of fixed heaters 1 is operated in a power-on mode and at least one of the fixed heaters 1 is stopped in a power-off mode, or all of the fixed heaters 1 are operated in a power-on mode, and the like, so that the adjustment range of the heating power of the crucible 102 by the heater assembly 100 is further expanded.

In some embodiments of the present invention, the plurality of movable heaters 2 are arranged in parallel, so that the operation of the plurality of movable heaters 2 is independent and non-interfering, and the operation state of any movable heater 2 is not linked with the operation states of the other movable heaters 2, thereby facilitating the independent control of each movable heater 2; for example, when the movable heater 2 is an electric heater, the plurality of movable heaters 2 are arranged in parallel, which facilitates independent arrangement of the plurality of movable heaters 2 for power-on and power-off, such as at least one of the plurality of movable heaters 2 being operated in power-on mode and at least one being stopped in power-off mode, or all of the movable heaters 2 being operated in power-on mode, etc., which facilitates further expansion of the adjustment range of the heating power of the crucible 102 by the heater assembly 100.

In some embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 3, the movable heater 2 includes a plurality of heating sections 2a and a plurality of connecting sections, the plurality of heating sections 2a are arranged at intervals along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1, and two adjacent heating sections 2a are detachably connected by the connecting sections, so that when one of the heating sections 2a is damaged, only the corresponding heating section 2a needs to be replaced, thereby reducing the maintenance time and the maintenance cost of the heater assembly 100, meanwhile, the heating section 2a is used for heating the crucible 102, and the connecting section is used for connecting two adjacent heating sections 2a, so as to reduce the cost of the movable heater 2 on the premise of ensuring that the movable heater 2 meets the heating requirement.

It can be understood that the circumferential distance between two adjacent heating sections 2a and the central angle corresponding to the heating section 2a can be set according to actual requirements, so as to appropriately reduce the number of the heating sections 2a, thereby further reducing the cost of the movable heater 2.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the heating section 2a extends in an arc shape along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1, and the central angle α corresponding to the heating section 2a may satisfy 30 ≦ α ≦ 90. For example, α may be 30 °, or 45 °, or 60 °, or 90 °, etc., in the example of fig. 3, α is 45 °, and the central angle of the interval region between two adjacent heating segments 2a is also 45 °.

Of course, in other embodiments of the present application, the plurality of heating segments 2a of the movable heater 2 may also be connected end to end in the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1, so that the movable heater 2 is formed in a closed ring shape.

In some embodiments of the present invention, at least one movable heater 2 is rotatable relative to the fixed heater 1 along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1, so as to ensure that the heating power of the whole heater assembly 100 to different regions of the crucible 102 in the circumferential direction of the crucible 102 is relatively balanced, so as to ensure the melting efficiency and the melting effect, and simultaneously, to ensure the stability of the thermal field formed by the heater assembly 100.

It will be appreciated that when the heater assembly 100 is used in the crystal growth furnace 200, the crucible 102 is rotated during the respective production stages to improve melt efficiency, crystal growth efficiency, etc., while the movable heater 2 is rotated in the direction opposite to the rotation direction of the crucible 102, so as to further ensure the uniformity of the heating power of the heater assembly 100 to different regions in the circumferential direction of the crucible 102.

Further, when at least two of the plurality of movable heaters 2 are rotatable in the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1, the rotation speeds of the at least two movable heaters 2 are equal or unequal.

In some embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 2, the heater assembly 100 further includes a plurality of second driving mechanisms 5, each second driving mechanism 5 being connected to a lower end of one of the movable heaters 2, so that the plurality of movable heaters 2 are independently rotated in the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1, respectively, and there is no linkage between the rotation of each movable heater 2 and the rotation of the remaining movable heaters 2, and thus there is no linkage between the position state of each movable heater 2 in the circumferential direction and the position state of the remaining movable heaters 2. Thereby, the flexibility of rotation of the plurality of movable heaters 2 is improved, facilitating further improvement of the heating uniformity of the heater assembly 100 to different areas in the circumferential direction of the crucible 102.

Of course, in other embodiments, a plurality of movable heaters 2 may also be rotated in a linked manner.

In some embodiments, the heater assembly 100 includes a plurality of first drive mechanisms 3 and a plurality of second drive mechanisms 5, and each movable heater 2 may correspond to one first drive mechanism 3 and one second drive mechanism 5, respectively. For a single movable heater 2, the first driving mechanism 3 can directly drive the movable heater 2 to move up and down, the second driving mechanism 5 can be indirectly connected with the movable heater 2 through the first driving mechanism 3, and then the second driving mechanism 5 can drive the first driving mechanism 3 to rotate along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1 so as to realize the rotation of the movable heater 2; or the second driving mechanism 5 can directly drive the movable heater 2 to rotate along the axial direction of the fixed heater 1, the first driving mechanism 3 can be indirectly connected with the movable heater 2 through the second driving mechanism 5, and the first driving mechanism 3 can drive the second driving mechanism 5 to move up and down so as to realize the up and down movement of the movable heater 2.

For example, in the example of fig. 2, the first driving mechanism 3 is directly connected to the lower end of the corresponding movable heater 2, and the second driving mechanism 5 is connected to the first driving mechanism 3.

According to the control method of the heater assembly 100 according to the embodiment of the second aspect of the present invention, the heater assembly 100 is the heater assembly 100 for the crystal growth furnace 200 according to the embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention, as shown in fig. 8 and 9, the heater assembly 100 has a first operation mode in which at least one movable heater 2 is different in height from the remaining movable heaters 2 and a second operation mode; in the second operation mode, the heights of the plurality of active heaters 2 are the same, and the plurality of active heaters 2 may be at the same level.

It can be seen that in the first and second operation modes, the distribution of the output power of the heater assembly 100 in the axial direction is different due to the difference in the height position of at least one active heater 2 among the plurality of active heaters 2.

According to the control method of the heater assembly 100 in the embodiment of the invention, the heater assembly 100 is provided with the first working mode and the second working mode, so that the heater assembly 100 can be switched to the corresponding working modes according to actual requirements, different heating powers can be output to different areas of the crucible 102 in the axial direction, actual different requirements can be better met, and the applicability of the heater assembly 100 is improved.

In some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in fig. 2, 4-7, the number of the movable heaters 2 is three or more, each movable heater 2 has a plurality of height positions, and orthographic projections of the height positions do not overlap on a longitudinal section of the fixed heater 1, so that there is a large positional deviation between the height positions, which facilitates to make the distribution of the output power of the whole heater assembly 100 in the axial direction have a relatively obvious difference when the movable heater 2 is at two different height positions.

In the first operating mode, at least one active heater 2 is at a different height position from the remaining active heaters 2.

In the following description, three movable heaters 2 are taken as an example, and those skilled in the art will easily understand that three or more movable heaters 2 are used after reading the following technical solutions. The three movable heaters 2 comprise a first movable heater 21, a second movable heater 22 and a third movable heater 23 which are sequentially arranged from outside to inside along the radial direction of the fixed heater 1, the fixed heater 1 is arranged between the first movable heater 21 and the second movable heater 22, and the fixed heater 1 is arranged between the second movable heater 22 and the third movable heater 23.

For example, each movable heater 2 has two height positions, which are a first height position and a second height position, respectively, and an orthographic projection of the first height position and an orthographic projection of the second height position do not overlap on a longitudinal section of the fixed heater 1; at least one of the first, second and third

active heaters

21, 22 and 23 is at the first height position and at least one is at the second height position in the first operation mode. Of course, each movable heater 2 may also have three or more height positions.

In some embodiments of the present invention, the first mode of operation has a first operating state and a second operating state, as shown in fig. 4-7.

In the first operating state, at least two of the plurality of movable heaters 2 are located at the same height position, and in the first operating state, the at least two of the plurality of movable heaters 2 and at least one of the remaining movable heaters 2 are located at different height positions, and at this time, if the number of the movable heaters 2 located at the same height position is greater, it is convenient to achieve that the heating power at the positions corresponding to the at least two of the plurality of movable heaters 2 is higher, and it is convenient to meet the requirement of the practical application that the output power of a part of the crucible 102 is higher.

For example, taking the case where the plurality of height positions include a first height position, a second height position, and a third height position, and the third height position is located between the first height position and the second height position, in the first operating state, at least two of the plurality of active heaters 2 are each at the first height position, at least one of the remaining active heaters 2 is at the second height position or the third height position (as shown in fig. 5), or at least two of the plurality of active heaters 2 are each at the second height position, and at least one of the remaining active heaters 2 is at the first height position or the third height position (as shown in fig. 4).

It will be appreciated that when the first elevation is above the second elevation, in the example of FIG. 4, the number of active heaters 2 at the second elevation is greater relative to the number of active heaters 2 at other elevations, and the output of the heater assembly 100 to the bottom of the crucible 102 is higher, the heater assembly 100 can be used to grow crystals having a lower oxygen content to ensure that the oxygen content of the crystal is controlled to be within the desired lower range; in the example of FIG. 5, where the number of movable heaters 2 at the first elevation is greater relative to the number of movable heaters 2 at other elevations, the heater assembly 100 may be used to grow a crystal having a higher oxygen content when the heater assembly 100 is providing a higher output power to the top of the crucible 102, in order to ensure that the oxygen content of the crystal is controlled to be within the desired higher range.

In the second operating state, the plurality of movable heaters 2 are respectively located at different height positions. (as shown in fig. 6 and 7), it is advantageous to make the distribution of the output power of the heater assembly 100 in the axial direction more uniform, and to make the thermal field generated by the heater assembly 100 more stable, for example, it can be applied to the stage of the crystal growth with equal diameter.

For example, taking the case where the plurality of height positions include a first height position, a second height position, and a third height position, and the plurality of movable heaters 2 include a first movable heater 21, a second movable heater 22, and a third movable heater 23, in the second operating state, the first movable heater 21 is in the first height position, the second movable heater 22 is in the third height position, and the third movable heater 23 is in the second height position (as shown in fig. 6), or alternatively, the first movable heater 21 is in the second height position, the second movable heater 22 is in the third height position, and the third movable heater 23 is in the first height position (as shown in fig. 7); but is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in fig. 4 and 5, there are three movable heaters 2, the three movable heaters 2 are respectively a first movable heater 21, a second movable heater 22 and a third movable heater 23, the first movable heater 21, the second movable heater 22 and the third movable heater 23 are sequentially arranged in a radial direction from outside to inside of the heater assembly 100, the plurality of height positions include a first height position, a second height position and a third height position, and the third height position is located between the first height position and the second height position, so that an orthographic projection of the third height position does not overlap with an orthographic projection of the first height position and an orthographic projection of the second height position on a longitudinal section of the fixed heater 1.

Wherein the first operation state includes a first sub-state in which the first movable heater 21 and the third movable heater 23 are located at the first height position and the second movable heater 22 is located at the third height position as shown in fig. 4 and 5 and a second sub-state; in the second sub-state, the first movable heater 21 and the second movable heater 22 are located at the first height position, and the third movable heater 23 is located at the third height position.

When the first height position is above the second height position, in the first sub-state, as shown in fig. 5, the first movable heater 21 and the third movable heater 23 are both at the first height position, and the second movable heater 22 is at the third height position, at this time, the output power of the heater assembly 100 to the top of the crucible 102 is higher, and at this time, the heater assembly 100 can be used for growing crystals with higher oxygen content; when the first elevation is below the second elevation, in the first sub-state, as shown in FIG. 4, where the output of the heater assembly 100 to the bottom of the crucible 102 is high, the heater assembly 100 may be used to grow crystals having a low oxygen content.

Of course, in the first sub-state, the first movable heater 21 and the third movable heater 23 may be both at the second height position, and the second movable heater 22 may be at the third height position.

When the first height position is above the second height position, in the second sub-state, the first movable heater 21 and the second movable heater 22 are both at the first height position, and the third movable heater 23 is at the third height position, and the output power of the heater assembly 100 to the upper part of the crucible 102 is relatively high; when the first elevation position is located below the second elevation position, in the second sub-state, the output of the heater assembly 100 to the lower portion of the crucible 102 is higher at this time.

Of course, in the second sub-state, the first movable heater 21 and the second movable heater 22 may be both at the second height position, and the third movable heater 23 may be at the third height position.

In some embodiments of the present invention, the second operation state includes a third sub-state and a fourth sub-state, as shown in fig. 7, in the third sub-state, the plurality of movable heaters 2 are sequentially arranged from outside to inside and from bottom to top along the radial direction of the fixed heater 1. As shown in fig. 6, in the fourth sub-state, the plurality of movable heaters 2 are arranged in this order from the outside to the inside in the radial direction of the fixed heater 1 and from the top to the bottom. At this time, the distribution of the output power of the heater assembly 100 in the axial direction is relatively balanced, and the output power gradually changes from top to bottom or from bottom to top, so that the thermal field generated by the heater assembly 100 is relatively stable, and can be applied to the equal-diameter growth stage of a crystal, for example.

For example, in the example of fig. 6, the first height position is higher than the second height position, and in the fourth sub-state, the first active heater 21 is at the first height position, the second active heater 22 is at the third height position, and the third active heater 23 is at the second height position; in the example of fig. 7, in the third sub-state, the first movable heater 21 is at the second height position, the second movable heater 22 is at the third height position, and the third movable heater 23 is at the first height position; but is not limited thereto, for example, the first movable heater 21 is at a first height position, the second movable heater 22 is at a second height position, and the third movable heater 23 is at a third height position.

Three movable heaters 3 and three height positions will be exemplified. For example, in the example of fig. 6, in the first operation mode, the first movable heater 21 is at the first height position, the second movable heater 22 is at the third height position, and the third movable heater 23 is at the second height position, so that the three movable heaters 2 are arranged in sequence from outside to inside and from top to bottom; for another example, in the example of fig. 7, in the first operation mode, the first movable heater 21 is located at the second height position, the second movable heater 22 is located at the third height position, and the third movable heater 23 is located at the first height position, so that the three movable heaters 2 are arranged in this order from the outside to the inside and from the bottom to the top.

In some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in fig. 9, the at least one movable heater 2 is rotatable relative to the fixed heater 1 in the circumferential direction of the fixed heater 1, and the heater assembly 100 further has a third operation mode in which the at least one movable heater 2 is rotatable relative to the fixed heater 1, and the rotation direction of the at least one movable heater 2 is opposite to the rotation direction of the crucible 102, so as to ensure the heating uniformity of different regions in the circumferential direction of the crucible 102 by the heater assembly 100.

In some embodiments of the present invention, in the third operation mode, the plurality of movable heaters 2 are rotated synchronously, which facilitates simplifying the rotation control of the plurality of movable heaters 2, and facilitates simplifying the control logic of the heater assembly 100. Of course, in the third operation mode, the plurality of active heaters 2 may also be rotated asynchronously.

The crystal growth furnace 200 according to the embodiment of the third aspect of the present invention includes a furnace body 101, a crucible 102, and a heater assembly 100, the crucible 102 being provided in the furnace body 101, the heater assembly 100 being provided in the furnace body 101, and the heater assembly 100 being provided around the crucible 102. Wherein the heater assembly 100 is the heater assembly 100 for the crystal growth furnace 200 according to the above-described first aspect of the present invention.

According to the crystal growth furnace 200 of the embodiment of the invention, by adopting the heater assembly 100, the heating power of different areas in the axial direction of the crucible 102 can be adjusted to realize different thermal fields, so that the applicability of the crystal growth furnace 200 is improved.

In the description herein, references to the description of the term "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "an illustrative embodiment," "an example," "a specific example," or "some examples" or the like mean that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. In this specification, the schematic representations of the terms used above do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

While embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that: various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to the embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace, the crystal growth furnace comprising a furnace body and a crucible, the crucible being disposed within the furnace body, the heater assembly being disposed within the furnace body and comprising:

a plurality of stationary heaters adapted to be disposed around the crucible;

the movable heaters are sequentially arranged along the radial direction of the fixed heater, the movable heaters and the fixed heaters are alternately arranged along the radial direction of the fixed heater, and each movable heater can move up and down between a first height position and a second height position relative to the fixed heater along the axial direction of the fixed heater.

2. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of claim 1, further comprising:

and each first driving mechanism is connected to the lower end of one movable heater so as to enable the movable heaters to respectively and independently move along the axial direction of the fixed heater.

3. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of claim 2, further comprising:

and the heat-resistant transmission part is connected between the first driving mechanism and the corresponding movable heater.

4. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of claim 3, wherein a length of the fixed heater is greater than a length of the movable heater in an axial direction of the fixed heater, and a length of the heat-resistant transmission member is equal to or greater than a maximum value of a difference in lengths of the fixed heater and the movable heater.

5. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of claim 1, wherein in the first elevation position an upper end of the movable heater is flush with an upper end of the fixed heater, and in the second elevation position a lower end of the movable heater is flush with a lower end of the fixed heater.

6. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of claim 1, wherein the movable heater has a plurality of elevation positions including the first elevation position, the second elevation position, and a third elevation position between the first elevation position and the second elevation position, orthographic projections of the plurality of elevation positions do not overlap on a longitudinal cross-section of the fixed heater.

7. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of claim 1, wherein the movable heater comprises a plurality of heating sections and a plurality of connecting sections, the plurality of heating sections are arranged at intervals along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater, and two adjacent heating sections are detachably connected through the connecting sections.

8. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of any of claims 1-7, wherein at least one of the movable heaters is rotatable relative to the fixed heater in a circumferential direction of the fixed heater.

9. The heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace of claim 8, further comprising:

and each second driving mechanism is connected to the lower end of one movable heater, so that the movable heaters can respectively and independently rotate along the circumferential direction of the fixed heater.

10. A method of controlling a heater assembly, wherein the heater assembly is a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace according to any one of claims 1 to 9, the heater assembly having a first operating mode and a second operating mode,

in the first working mode, the height of at least one movable heater is different from that of the rest movable heaters;

in the second operation mode, heights of the plurality of active heaters are the same.

11. The control method of the heater assembly according to claim 10, wherein the number of the movable heaters is three or more, each of the movable heaters has a plurality of height positions, orthographic projections of the plurality of height positions do not overlap on a longitudinal section of the fixed heater,

in the first working mode, at least one of the movable heaters is at a different height position from the rest of the movable heaters.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first operating mode has a first operating state and a second operating state,

in the first working state, at least two movable heaters in the plurality of movable heaters are at the same height position;

in the second operating state, the plurality of movable heaters are respectively located at different height positions.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the number of the movable heaters is three, the three movable heaters are a first movable heater, a second movable heater and a third movable heater, the first movable heater, the second movable heater and the third movable heater are arranged in sequence in a radial direction from outside to inside of the heater assembly, the plurality of height positions include the first height position, the second height position and a third height position, the third height position is located between the first height position and the second height position, and the first operating state includes: a first sub-state and a second sub-state,

in the first sub-state, the first and third movable heaters are located at the first height position, and the second movable heater is located at the third height position;

in the second sub-state, the first and second movable heaters are located at the first height position, and the third movable heater is located at the third height position.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the second operating state comprises: a third sub-state and a fourth sub-state,

in the third sub-state, the plurality of movable heaters are sequentially arranged from outside to inside along the radial direction of the fixed heater and from bottom to top;

in the fourth sub-state, the plurality of movable heaters are sequentially arranged from outside to inside and from top to bottom along the radial direction of the fixed heater.

15. The heater assembly control method according to any one of claims 10 to 14, wherein at least one of the movable heaters is rotatable relative to the fixed heater in a circumferential direction of the fixed heater,

the heater assembly also has a third operating mode in which at least one of the movable heaters rotates relative to the fixed heater and the direction of rotation of the at least one movable heater is opposite to the direction of rotation of the crucible.

16. A crystal growth furnace, comprising:

a furnace body;

the crucible is arranged in the furnace body;

a heater assembly for a crystal growth furnace according to any one of claims 1 to 9, the heater assembly being disposed within the furnace body and surrounding the crucible.