JPH0832956B2 - Thin film processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thin film processing apparatus having a plurality of thin film processing chambers.

2. Description of the Related Art An example of a thin film processing apparatus having a plurality of processing chambers is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-502846. This conventional example is a so-called single-wafer type in-line method in which substrates are processed one by one, but in order to improve mass productivity, a plurality of substrates are mounted on one carrier and the plurality of substrates are processed almost simultaneously. The pallet type in-line method is used.

A case of forming the information carrier layer of the optical disc shown in FIG. 12 in the pallet type in-line type thin film type device will be described.

In FIG. 12, the optical disk 1 has a known structure including a transparent substrate 2, an information carrier layer 3, an adhesive layer 4, and a protective plate 5. The information carrier layer 3 is composed of dielectric layers 6 and 7, a recording layer 8 and a reflective layer 9.

For example, when the optical disc 1 is a phase change type recordable disc, the recording layer 8 is mainly composed of a chalcogen element such as SnTeSe. The dielectric layer 6 is composed of ZnS, Si ₃ N ₄ , AlN or the like. Reflective layer 9 is A
It is composed of l, Ni, etc.

The dielectric layers 6 and 7 and the reflective layer 9 are formed to improve durability against heat effect during repeated recording and to increase signal output due to light interference.

As shown in FIG. 13, a dielectric layer 6, a recording layer 8 and a dielectric layer are sequentially formed on the substrate 2.
7, a film forming apparatus 10 for forming the reflective layer 9 is shown as an example. 11
Is a well-known entrance-side load lock chamber, 12 is a film forming chamber for the dielectric layer 6, and when the dielectric layer 6 is ZnS, for example, the film forming chamber 12 is a sputtering chamber to which a ZnS target 13 is attached. Reference numeral 14 is a film forming chamber for the recording layer 8. When the recording layer 8 is, for example, SnTeSe, the film forming chamber 14 is a sputtering chamber to which a SnTeSe target 15 is attached.

Reference numeral 16 denotes a film forming chamber for the dielectric layer 7, which is a sputtering chamber in which a ZnS target 17 is attached as described above. Reference numeral 18 is a film forming chamber for the reflective layer 9, and when the reflective layer 9 is Al, for example, the film forming chamber 18 is a sputtering chamber to which an Al target 19 is attached. 20 is a load lock room on the outgoing side. Reference numerals 21, 22, 23, and 24 are gate valves, and reference numerals 25, 26, and 27 are slit valves each having a gap through which a carrier 28 capable of mounting nine substrates 2, for example, passes. 29 and 30 are load lock chambers 11 and 20 and film deposition chamber 1
It is a buffer space for intermittently transferring the carrier 28 between the 2 and 18 and buffering the continuous transfer operation for film formation of the carrier 28 in the film forming chambers 12, 14, 16 and 18.

FIG. 14 is a schematic sectional view taken along the line AA ′ in FIG. In FIG. 14, 31, 32, 33 and 34 are spatter area restricting plates, 35 and
Reference numerals 36, 37, and 38 are crystal oscillators for monitoring the film thickness.

In FIGS. 13 and 14, guide means and drive means for transferring the carrier 28 are omitted. Although it is possible to provide targets on both sides of the film forming chamber for double-sided film formation, only one side is shown in this example. Further, in the case of a material having a low film forming rate, a plurality of targets can be used, but one target is shown in one film forming chamber.

Although only one carrier 28 is shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, about ten carriers 28 are necessary. The reason is that when the first carrier 28 passes through the film forming chambers 12, 14, 16 and 18 and four layers of films are sequentially formed on the substrate 2 and then enters the output side load lock chamber 20,
Film formation must be started in the film forming chambers 18, 16, 14, and 12 on the second, third, fourth, and fifth carriers, respectively, and the sixth carrier is set in the input side load lock chamber 11. This is because it is necessary to be ready for entering, and about four spare carriers for replacing the film-formed substrate and the film-unformed substrate are required.

In the above configuration, the film thickness is monitored by the crystal unit. However, when the crystal unit is replaced, the difference between the units, the change in linearity as the film adheres, the target As a result of changes in the scattering direction distribution of sputtered particles due to the consumption of, the detected film thickness of the crystal oscillator and the film thickness actually formed on the substrate 2 will differ. Therefore, in order to accurately control the film thickness formed on the substrate 2, the thickness of the film formed on the substrate is periodically measured by an optical or mechanical method to calibrate the measured value of the crystal oscillator. There is a need to.

In order to measure the thickness of the film formed on the substrate, it is necessary to form only one film on the substrate. Also, depending on the process, for example, in the case of reactive sputtering, it is necessary to form only one film for checking the degree of reaction.

For example, in FIG. 13, when only the film of the target 13 is formed, sputter power is applied to the target 13 only when the carrier 28 passes through the target 13, or a shutter (not shown) is opened and the targets 15, 17, 19 are opened. When passing, it is possible by not applying sputter power to those targets or by closing the shutter. Similarly, the films of the targets 15, 17, and 19 can be independently formed on the substrate.

However, in the above method, when the film of four targets is sampled, four times of nine films of one carrier, that is, 36
There was a problem that the number of sheets produced decreased.

Therefore, the present invention intends to provide a film forming apparatus in which the decrease in the production amount due to sampling is extremely small.

Means for Solving the Problems In view of the above points, the present invention provides a plurality of sample substrates in a plate-shaped jig body, the surface of the sample substrate is arranged along the plate surface of the jig body, and the opening is formed. A shutter member is provided on the jig body so as to be movable relative to each other to form a sample jig, and the sample jig is provided with a carrier on which n unprocessed substrates are detachably attached, and the carrier is provided in a plurality of thin film processing chambers. Sampling drive is performed so that at least one of the jig main body and the shutter member is engaged with each other to relatively move the two so as to expose a desired sample substrate from the opening while sequentially transferring the sample substrate to the opening.

Operation The present invention, with the above-described configuration, can selectively perform thin film processing on the sample substrate in the order of passing through the plurality of thin film processing chambers.

As a result, the decrease in the production amount due to sampling is only one, and the decrease in the production amount can be made extremely small.

Further, the present invention has a feature that the sample jig can be thinly formed and thus is suitable for a thin carrier, and that the sample jig, that is, the sample substrate can be attached / detached in a short time because it can be attached / detached to / from the carrier.

Example Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
The same components as those of the conventional example have the same reference numerals.

The carrier 40 shown in FIG. 5 is provided with a plurality of holes 41 for holding the substrate 2 and grooves 42.

Here, the hole at the lower right of the carrier 40 is numbered 41S.

The sample jig 43 shown in FIG. 1 is detachably attached to the hole 41S as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the plate-shaped jig body 44 is provided with four sample substrates 45 concentrically with the axis of a boss 50, which will be described later. A retaining hole 46 is formed so as to be fitted and held along the plate surface.

The holding hole 46 has an opening 47 as shown in detail in FIG.
The sample substrate 45 is formed of a stepped portion 48 for preventing the sample substrate 45 from coming out of the opening 47.

Reference numeral 49 is a holding plate for preventing the sample substrate 45 from falling out of the holding hole 46, and the center hole 51 is inserted into the boss 50 formed in the jig body 44 and fixed by the retaining ring 52. A hole 53 which is slightly larger than the sample substrate 45 is formed in the holding plate 49, and a cut-and-raised portion 54 is formed on one side of the hole 53 as shown in detail in FIG. Presser plate 49
Since the center hole 51 is formed in a disc spring shape which is convex to the right in FIG. 1, when assembled with the retaining ring 52,
The outer periphery of the holding plate 49 presses the jig body 44 to generate an appropriate rotation resistance.

55 is a positioning pin fixed to the jig main body 44 by caulking or the like, 56 is a fitting cylindrical portion that fits into the hole 41S of the carrier 40, and the portion of the circumference indicated by the angle C is from the jig main body 44. It is separated and formed as the elastic portion 57.

Reference numeral 58 denotes a shutter member, which has an opening 59 and teeth 60 on its outer periphery, and a center hole 61 is inserted into a boss 62 of the jig body 44 and fixed by a retaining ring 63.

The shutter member 58 has its center hole 61 as well as the holding plate 49.
1 is formed in the shape of a disc spring that is convex to the left in FIG. 1, the outer peripheral portion of the shutter member 58 presses the jig body 44 to generate an appropriate rotational resistance.

A center cap 64 is fixed to the boss 62 with a screw 65 to prevent the film from adhering to the vicinity of the retaining ring 63.

In FIGS. 5, 7, and 8, 66 is a cam for fixing the jig main body 44 to the hole 41S. From the shaft portions 67, 68 on both sides, the small diameter portion 69 and the large diameter portion 70 at the center portion. The cam portion 71 is formed. Reference numeral 72 is a sleeve for engaging a tool (not shown) to rotate the cam 66. Reference numeral 73 is a plate for supporting the shaft portion 68, and is fixed to the carrier 40 with a screw 74.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 75 denotes a shutter member 58 which meshes with teeth 60.
The gears for rotating are arranged at the positions J, K, L which do not interfere with the moving space of the carrier 40 of the film forming apparatus 78 shown in FIG. 9, and the arrow shown in FIG. It is operated in the D and E directions, and is rotationally driven, for example, in the arrow F direction. The tips of the teeth are sharpened so that the teeth 60 and the gear 75 can mesh smoothly.

The notch 76 in FIG. 5 is provided so as not to interfere with the displacement of the gear 75 in the D direction. Hole 77 is the jig body
It is a fitting hole for the positioning pin 55 provided on the 44.

 Next, the operation will be described.

After assembling each part as a sample jig 43 in FIG. 1, the hole 53 of the holding plate 49 is aligned with the holding hole 46 of the jig body 44. Since the hole 53 is larger, the sample board is passed through the hole 53.
The 45 can be fitted into the holding hole 46. Then presser plate 49
If the finger is put on the cut-and-raised portion 54 and the pressing plate 49 is rotated by 45 °, the sample substrate 45 will not fall out from the holding hole 46.

Next, the opening 59 of the shutter member 58 is aligned with, for example, the F position of the holding hole 46.

In that state, for example, the center cap 64 is held by, for example, a vacuum suction jig or the like, and the fitting cylindrical portion 56 is fitted into the hole 41S of the carrier, the pin 55 is fitted into the hole, and then the cam 66 is screwed. Insert a tool (not shown) into the 72 cam
The large diameter portion 70 of 66 is rotated so as to push the elastic portion 57, and the sample jig 43 is fixed to the carrier 40.

In the above, since the large-diameter portion 70 of the cam pushes the elastic portion 57, the elastic portion 57 can absorb the processing error and the like and reliably hold the sample jig 43 even if there is a processing error or the like on both sides.

Further, since both the shutter member 58 and the pressing plate 49 have appropriate rotation resistance with respect to the jig main body 44 as described above, the carrier 40 is rotated by vibrations or the like when the carrier 40 is transferred, so that the mutual positional relationship is maintained. There is no deviation.

Next, the ordinary substrate 2 is set in another hole 41. Let this carrier 40 be M.

FIG. 9 shows a state in which the carrier M is taken into the film forming apparatus 78 and the film formation by the target 13 is completed. In this state, the film of the target 13 is formed on the substrate 2 and the sample substrate 45 at the holding hole F position of the sample jig 43.

In this state, the gear 75 at the J position is displaced in the D direction by a means (not shown) so that the opening 59 of the shutter member 58 becomes G.
After rotationally driving in the F direction so as to match the position holding hole,
The carrier M is displaced in the E direction out of the movement space so that the movement of the carrier M is not obstructed.

At this time, the carrier N having only the subsequent substrate 2 set in the hole 41S is waiting just before the target 13.

Next, the carriers M and N pass through the targets 15 and 13, respectively, to be film-formed, and further, the carrier P having only the subsequent substrate 2 set therein is taken into the entry side load lock chamber 11. By the above operation, the film of the target 15 is formed on the film of the target 13 already formed on the substrate 2 of the carrier M, and the sample substrate at the position of the holding hole G of the sample jig 43.
The film of the target 15 is formed on 45.

Then, in the same manner as described above, the shutter member 58 is rotated by the gear 75 at the K position so that the opening 59 is aligned with the holding hole 46 at the H position.

In the same manner, the target 17 and 19 are formed into a film,
F of the carrier M taken out by the load lock chamber 20 on the outgoing side
On the sample substrate 45 in the position, only the film of the target 13 and only the film of the target 15 in that of the G position, the target 17 in the H position, and the target 19 in the I position are described below.
This means that only the film of No. 1 is formed, and the films of the targets 13, 15, 17, 19 are laminated in that order on all the other substrates 2. Subsequent carrier N, P
Also, although not shown, films of respective targets are sequentially laminated on the substrate 2 also in the carrier thereafter. Sample jig 43
Sampling may be performed at a cycle as necessary.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, even if the four target films are sampled, the production amount is reduced to only one, and the reduction in the production amount can be made extremely small as compared with the conventional case. This effect becomes greater as the number of laminated layers of films increases and as the number of substrates mounted per carrier increases.

Although the number of targets is four in the above description, the number of targets is not limited to this, and a sample jig on which a desired number of sampling substrates can be mounted may be used. If necessary, a film may be formed on a plurality of sampling substrates per target, or the size and shape of the sampling substrate may be changed according to the target.

 Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described.

In the above example, the jig main body 44 is fixed to the carrier 40 and the shutter member 58 is rotationally driven. However, conversely, the shutter member may be fixed to the carrier to rotationally drive the jig main body.

As described above, the so-called passing film formation method of forming a film while allowing the carrier to face the target and passing the carrier has been described, but in a state where the circular carrier 80 is opposed to the round target 81 shown by the broken line as shown in FIG. 10, for example. , The carrier 80 is supported by the shaft 80-1, and the substrate 83 is rotated by the shaft 84 while rotating.
Although not shown, the substrate 83 can also be applied to a system in which the substrate 83 is revolved by a known revolving mechanism. In this case, for example, the sample jig 85 corresponding to the sample jig 43 is attached to the shaft 84 at the Q position as shown in FIG.

Although not described in detail, the point different from the sample jig 43 is that the jig main body 86 corresponding to the jig main body 44 can be attached to and detached from the shaft 84 similarly to the shutter member 58 on the outer circumference of the jig main body 86. 87 is provided.

Next, a mechanism for imparting relative rotational movement to the jig body 86 and the shutter member 58 will be described.

89 and 90 are gears fixed to both ends of the shaft 91 respectively, and 92 is a hollow shaft which rotatably supports the shaft 91 inside and a gear 93 at one end.
Are fixed and formed integrally with the swing arm 94.

Reference numeral 95 denotes a shaft, and the swing arm 94 is fixed to one end of the swing arm 94 and the arm 97 to which the motor 96 is fixed is fixed to the other end.

Reference numeral 98 denotes a hollow shaft which rotatably supports a shaft 95 inside thereof, and gears 99 and 100 are integrally fixed to both ends thereof. Reference numeral 101 denotes a bearing that supports the hollow shaft 98, which is separated into an atmosphere side and a vacuum side with this bearing as a boundary, and the vacuum seal is configured by using a magnetic fluid or the like. 102 is a gear of the motor 96.

 Next, the operation will be described.

In the standby state, the arm 97 is rotated counterclockwise about the bearing 101 by means (not shown).
The gears 93 and 89 are separated from the teeth 87 and 60, respectively.

Then, the rotation of the carrier 80 is positioned and stopped by a known means (not shown) so that the sampling jig 85 comes to a position where it can mesh with the gears 89, 93.

Next, when the arm 97 is rotated clockwise by a means (not shown), the swing arm 94 causes the gear 93 to the tooth 87 and the gear 89.
Rotate so that the teeth mesh with the teeth 60.

Next, when the motor 96 is rotated, the rotation is generated by the gears 102, 10
The shutter member 58 is driven to rotate by being transmitted to 0, 99, 90 and 89. At this time, the jig body 86 does not rotate, so the shutter member 58
Will rotate relative to the jig body 86. Therefore, as in the first example of the invention, the opening 59 of the shutter 58 is
Can be rotated to the next sample substrate position.

The feature of this configuration is that the shutter member 58 and the jig body 86 can be moved relative to the sample jig 85 in an arbitrary stopped state by a desired angle. Therefore, not only one film can be sequentially formed on one sample substrate, but also a plurality of required films can be selectively formed on one sample substrate each time according to the purpose, so that the structure can be freely changed without changing the structure. You will be able to sample. Further, the sample jig 43 has the same effect.

Although the application to the sputtering film formation has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the application, but the present invention can be applied to PVD and CVD such as vapor deposition and ion plating, as well as etching and ion implantation.

Further, the film forming process can be applied regardless of vacuum, vapor phase or liquid phase.

Advantageous Effects of Invention The present invention provides a carrier with a sample jig capable of holding a plurality of sample substrates and selectively exposing the sample substrates, and sequentially transfers the carrier to a plurality of thin film processing chambers. While driving the sample jig while selectively exposing the sample substrate, it is possible to perform a required thin film process.

As a result, the decrease in the production amount due to sampling is only one, and the decrease in the production amount can be made extremely small. Further, since the present invention can make the sample jig thin, it is suitable for a thin carrier and can be attached to and detached from the carrier so that the sample jig, that is, the sample substrate can be attached and detached in a short time. Moreover, the sampling driving means is provided at a position that does not interfere with the required thin film processing chamber or the passage space of the carrier near the passage of the carrier, and when the carrier reaches a predetermined position, the jig body or the shutter is moved from the position where the carrier does not interfere. Sampling operation is performed to displace at least one of the members and to move the jig body and the shutter member relatively to expose the required sample substrate. In addition to the formation of the above films, a plurality of required films can be selectively formed on one sample substrate each time according to the purpose, so that sampling can be freely performed without changing the structure.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an essential part of a thin film processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of an essential part of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged perspective view of FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is a partial front view of a main part of one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line AA ′ of FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is B- of FIG.
B'cross-sectional view, FIG. 8 is an enlarged perspective view of an essential part, FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a film forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing a part of another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11, FIG. 11 is a schematic view of another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 12 is a sectional view of an optical disk shown for explaining the present invention, and FIG. 13 is a schematic view showing an example of a conventional film forming apparatus, FIG. 14 is a schematic sectional view taken along the line AA ′ in FIG. 43 …… Sample jig, 44 …… Jig body, 45 …… Sample substrate, 49 …… Presser plate, 58 …… Shutter member, 59 …… Opening, 60 …… Tooth, 75 …… Gear, 40 …… Carrier, 66 ... Cam.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A jig main body for holding a plurality of sample substrates, and a member that engages with the jig main body so as to be capable of relative rotational movement. The jig main body covers the plurality of sample substrates and the plurality of sample substrates are moved by the relative movement. A shutter member having an opening for selectively exposing the surface of the sample substrate, and a carrier to which a sample jig composed of the jig body and the shutter member can be detachably attached and an unprocessed substrate can be attached, A means for sequentially transferring the carrier to a plurality of thin film processing chambers and a position where the carrier does not interfere with the required thin film processing chamber or the passage space of the carrier near the passage of the carrier, and when the carrier reaches a predetermined position Displacing from the position not interfering with the jig body or the position engaging with at least one of the shutter members, and
Unprocessed substrates in the order of passage in the process of sequentially passing through a plurality of thin film processing chambers, comprising a sampling driving means for performing a sampling operation to expose a required sample substrate by relatively moving the jig body and the shutter member. And a thin film processing apparatus for selectively performing thin film processing on the sample substrate.