KR102261651B1 - Load lock chamber for a vacuum processing system and vacuum processing system - Google Patents

Abstract

A load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) for a vacuum processing system is described. The load lock chamber includes load lock walls defining a load lock chamber volume, and a vacuum generating device 425 for evacuating the load lock chamber. The load lock chamber further includes a particle trap 127; 427; 527 located in at least one wall 430; 528; 529; 530; 531 of the load lock chamber. Additionally, a processing system including a load lock chamber and a processing chamber is described.

Description

LOAD LOCK CHAMBER FOR A VACUUM PROCESSING SYSTEM AND VACUUM PROCESSING SYSTEM

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a load lock chamber and a vacuum processing system. Embodiments of the present invention relate, inter alia, to a load lock chamber for a vacuum processing system, and a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate.

[0002] Substrates are often coated in vacuum coating plants, eg, under high-vacuum conditions, at ^{pressures in the range of 5*10 -4 hPa to 0.5 hPa.} In order to increase plant productivity, and to avoid the requirement to evacuate the entire facility for each substrate, and in particular the high-vacuum section, load and unload locks are provided for the substrates. used

[0003] Separate load and unload lock chambers are being used in modern in-line coating plants to increase productivity and improve material flux rate. A simple so-called three-chamber coating unit is one in which the substrate is pumped from atmospheric pressure to an appropriate transition pressure of the ^{sequential vacuum coating section (process chamber), eg p = 1*10 -3 hPa to p = 1.0 hPa.} It consists of a load lock and an unload lock in which, by venting, the substrate is brought back to atmospheric pressure level.

[0004] The task of the load lock chambers is to evacuate, as quickly as possible, to a switching pressure low enough and low enough for the process range. The task of the unload lock chambers is to vent to atmospheric pressure as quickly as possible. After that, after the substrate is unloaded from the unload lock chamber, the load lock chamber is evacuated again.

At the same time, over the past few years, the desire for less contamination during vacuum processes has increased. For example, in the case of producing displays, the tolerance of contamination by particles has been reduced, the standard of quality, and also the quality expected by the customer has been increased. Contamination can cause particles to enter the process system where the substrate to be processed is evacuated, for example, if the chambers of the processing system are not properly evacuated to a vacuum, if the transport system or components in the process system generate particles during the process, for example. can occur when introducing them, and in cases of the same kind. Thus, during operation, in a deposition system, there are multiple possible sources of contaminant particles that affect product quality. Continuous vacuum pumping in the process system, as well as cleaning and replacing components, is a way to reduce the risk of product contamination. Nevertheless, as stated above, the process should be carried out in the fastest possible and most efficient manner. Cleaning and replacement procedures take time for maintenance, which cannot then be used for production time.

[0006] In view of the above, it is an object of the embodiments described herein to provide a load lock chamber for a vacuum processing chamber, and a vacuum processing system that overcome at least some of the problems in the art. .

[0007] In view of the above, there is provided, according to the independent claims, a load lock chamber for a vacuum processing system, and a vacuum processing system. Additional aspects, advantages, and features will become apparent from the dependent claims, the description, and the accompanying drawings.

According to one embodiment, a load lock chamber for a vacuum processing system is provided. The load lock chamber includes: load lock walls defining a load lock chamber volume; a vacuum generating device for evacuating the load lock chamber; and at least a particle trap located on one wall of the load lock chamber.

According to another embodiment, a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate is provided. A vacuum processing system comprising: a vacuum processing chamber adapted to process a substrate; and a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein, configured to transfer the substrate from atmospheric conditions into the vacuum processing chamber.

According to a further embodiment, a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate is provided. The vacuum processing system has load lock chamber walls, a first vacuum sealable valve to provide an inlet for a substrate into the vacuum load lock chamber, and a second vacuum to provide an outlet for the substrate out of the load lock chamber. and a vacuum load lock chamber including a sealable valve. The load lock chamber further includes a substrate transport system for transporting the substrate. The vacuum processing system further includes a vacuum processing chamber including one or more process component(s) for performing a process on the substrate, wherein the load lock chamber and the processing chamber include a second vacuum sealable valve are coupled to each other, so that the substrate to be processed can be transferred by the substrate transport system from the load lock chamber through the second vacuum sealable valve to the processing chamber. Additionally, the vacuum processing system includes a particle trap located in at least one wall of the load lock chamber.

Embodiments also relate to apparatus for performing the disclosed methods, including apparatus parts for performing each described method step. These method steps may be performed on hardware components, a computer programmed by suitable software, any combination of the two, or in any other manner. In addition, embodiments also relate to methods in which the described apparatus operates. Embodiments also include method steps for performing every respective function of the apparatus.

[0012] The more detailed description briefly summarized above may be made with reference to embodiments, in such a way that the features enumerated above may be understood in detail. The accompanying drawings relate to embodiments and are described below.
1 illustrates a load lock chamber coupled to a processing chamber, in accordance with embodiments described herein.
2 shows a schematic diagram of an exemplary desorption/outgassing rate of a particle trap material in a vacuum chamber, in accordance with embodiments described herein.
3 shows a schematic diagram of pressure over time during pump down of a load lock chamber in accordance with embodiments described herein.
4 illustrates a load lock chamber coupled to a processing chamber, in accordance with embodiments described herein.
5 illustrates a processing system having a load lock chamber in accordance with embodiments described herein.

Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Within the following description of the drawings, like reference numbers refer to like components. In general, only differences to individual embodiments are described. Each example is provided by way of illustration and is not intended as a limitation of the embodiments. Additionally, features described or illustrated as part of one embodiment may also be used with or with respect to other embodiments to yield a further embodiment. The description is intended to cover such modifications and variations.

Furthermore, in the following description, a load lock chamber may be understood as a chamber for a vacuum processing system. According to embodiments described herein, a load lock chamber may provide a transition chamber from atmospheric conditions to a low pressure or vacuum. For example, a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein may have a substrate inlet for receiving a substrate being transferred at atmospheric conditions, and a substrate outlet adapted to connect to a vacuum chamber, such as a processing chamber. The load lock chamber according to the embodiments described herein may be vacuum-evacuated, and may include respective equipment such as vacuum pumps. In addition, a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein may have a substrate shipping system for transporting a substrate within the load lock chamber and/or vacuum (eg, processing) chamber. The load lock chamber may have vacuum sealable valves at the substrate inlet and at the substrate outlet. According to different embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the vacuum sealable valve may be provided from the group consisting of a gate valve, a slit valve, and a slot valve.

[0015] The term “particle trap” as used herein refers to dust particles, particles generated by wear of moving parts from a chamber component, particles generated during the deposition process, substrate and/or or as a device capable of capturing particles in a vacuum chamber, such as particles introduced into the vacuum chamber by a carrier. In particular, a particle trap as referred to herein may be a passive particle trap, meaning that in particular the particle trap does not need to be activated or supplied by electric power or the like. A passive particle trap may be a particle trap that traps particles as they pass through the particle trap.

1 shows a load lock chamber 522 coupled to a processing chamber 524 . According to some embodiments described herein, a vacuum chamber, such as a processing chamber, and a load lock chamber, which are related to each other, may be described as a vacuum processing system. The load lock chamber 522 may have an inlet 523 for introducing the substrate 510 into the load lock chamber. The inlet 523 of the load lock chamber may be adapted for each material to be processed, eg, the size of the substrate to be loaded into the load lock chamber 522 or the size of the substrate batch. A substrate to be processed, either individually or as a batch of substrates, may be delivered, at atmospheric conditions, by the respective transport system to the load lock chamber inlet 523 . For example, a substrate or substrate batch is transferred by a transport track for the substrate(s), a transport band-conveyor, a robot that transports the substrate(s), a carrier system comprising single carrier supports for single substrates or substrate batches, etc. can be In order to introduce the substrate(s) to be processed into the load lock chamber 522 , an inlet 523 may be opened, and the load lock chamber is subjected to atmospheric conditions. According to some embodiments described herein, the load lock chamber 522 may be described as being vented when the inlet is open and substrates are introduced into the load lock chamber. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the load lock chamber may include a track device or robot configured to transfer substrates between the load lock chamber and the processing chamber.

When the substrate 110 to be processed is placed in the load lock chamber 522 , the load lock chamber 522 may be closed by closing the load lock chamber inlet 523 . In some embodiments, placing the substrate in the load lock chamber may include transferring the substrate into the load lock chamber, by a robot handling the substrate, over a track system or substrate support within the load lock chamber. have. Alternatively, the substrate may be transported into the load lock chamber by a conveyor belt or track system, as will be described in detail below. When the substrate is in a load lock chamber, the load lock chamber may be evacuated, for example, to bring the load lock chamber to a low pressure, low vacuum, or medium vacuum. For example, the load lock chamber may be brought to a typical pressure of about 1 mbar. According to some embodiments, the load lock chamber may be equipped with, for example, vacuum pumps and vacuum seals, respectively, to ensure reliable installation of a vacuum in the load lock chamber.

According to some embodiments, the substrate may be held in a load lock chamber by a substrate support for a defined time interval, or further associated with a vacuum chamber, such as processing chamber 524 . may be continuously moved to access the outlet 525 of the load lock chamber 522 . For example, whether a substrate will be held in the load lock chamber for a defined time interval, or further continuously moved, may depend on the system of which the load lock chamber is a part. In one example, the holding or movement of the substrate within the load lock chamber depends on a transport mechanism between the load lock chamber and the processing chamber. According to some embodiments, a load lock chamber as described herein may provide part of a transport path of a substrate in processing systems.

In some embodiments, the load lock chamber 522 being evacuated may be opened towards the processing chamber 524 , such as by opening a slew or valve 525 . According to embodiments described herein, the load lock chamber 522 and the processing chamber 524 may be connected or may lie in relation to each other via a slew or valve 525 . According to embodiments described herein, the processing chamber is a vacuum processing chamber. In one example, the processing chamber may have a higher vacuum (ie, lower pressure) than the load lock chamber ^{, for example, by having a final vacuum (base pressure) of about 10 −8} mbar to about 10 ^{−5 mbar.} . The substrate may be transferred from the load lock chamber to the processing chamber without essentially disturbing the vacuum conditions in the processing chamber due to the pressure conditions present in the load lock chamber. In the processing chamber, the substrate may be subjected to a desired process, as will be referred to in detail below.

[0020] In general, particle specifications for products (substrates) have continued to become more stringent. Even better contamination reduction is desirable in processing systems. A load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein provides at least a particle trap located in one of the walls of the load lock chamber. In FIG. 1 , in a load lock chamber 522 , a particle trap 527 is provided in walls 528 , 529 , 530 , and 531 . In some embodiments, the particle trap may comprise an adhesive, particularly an adhesive foil or glue, to trap particles in the load lock chamber.

[0021] According to embodiments described herein, a load lock chamber for a vacuum processing system is provided. The load lock chamber includes load lock walls defining a load lock chamber volume, and a vacuum generating device for evacuating the load lock chamber. A load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein further comprises a particle trap located at least in one wall of the load lock chamber, or in any other possible carrier collision free location. In general, the particle trap may be located at any free position inside the chamber - which may mean that only the transport area should be unblocked.

[0022] A load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein prevents the particles from entering the processing chamber and/or capturing particles in the load lock chamber before a risk of contaminating the substrate and/or carrier occurs. allow In particular, particle traps located on one or more of the walls in the load lock chamber, while venting or pumping down the load lock chamber, due to high gas velocity/flow and particle transport acceleration during these times, Particles present in the load lock chamber can be captured. For example, some particles cannot be removed by the vacuum pump of the load lock chamber. A load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein may have a geometry comprising one or more so-called “dead zone(s)”. A dead zone of a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein may be understood as a zone or region of a load lock chamber having a geometry that enables the accumulation of particles, particularly during venting of the load lock chamber. Typically, in a “dead zone” as used herein, particle build-up occurs independent of the evacuation process performed to bring the load lock chamber to low pressure or vacuum conditions, such as by a vacuum pump. For example, the dead zone(s) of the load lock chamber may depend on the venting process, venting equipment, vent inlet location, pump down exhaust line connection location, and chamber design. In some embodiments, the dead zone(s) depends on the direction in which the load lock chamber is vented and/or the substrate is loaded into the load lock chamber. According to some embodiments, the dead zone(s) may depend on the location of the vacuum generating device(s) in the load lock chamber, and the gathering area of the vacuum generating device(s).

According to some embodiments, the load lock chamber may include regions with high gas velocity, eg, during venting and pumping down of the load lock chamber. In some embodiments, a particle trap as described herein is located at or near one of these zones where it is more likely to trap (the particle through).

[0024] The inventors of a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein have found that particle accumulation is i.a. found to occur in the chamber walls. For example, the bottom of the load lock chamber may be a dead zone (again, depending on the geometry of the load lock chamber, the vacuum generating device, the location of the substrate inlet, the substrate outlet, etc.) and may tend to accumulate particles. In FIG. 1 , two dead zones 540 and 541 are illustratively shown.

[0025] In some embodiments, particles accumulating on chamber walls may migrate to the substrate and/or carrier when the substrate is transported to the processing chamber. According to some embodiments, during transfer of the substrate from the load lock chamber to the vacuum chamber, the substrate and/or carrier may remove particles lying on the substrate and/or carrier, such as by vibration or shaking. According to embodiments described herein, particles not captured by the pumps in the load lock chamber may be captured by a particle trap located in the load lock chamber walls, according to embodiments described herein. In particular, the particle trap may comprise an adhesive material.

[0026] In some embodiments, a particle trap located on one or more of the chamber walls may include a magnetic material, electrostatic devices, an adhesive material, or the like. For example, a particle trap in a load lock chamber may include a material capable of trapping and holding contaminant particles. In some examples, the particle trap includes the particles to be captured (which may - in turn - depend on the nature of the particles present outside the load lock chamber), the substrate to be processed, the load lock chamber size, the chamber material, the substrate carrier material. and the like, including materials.

[0027] According to some embodiments, a particle trap located on one or more walls of the load lock chamber may include an adhesive foil, an adhesive sheet, an adhesive plate, a carrier for an adhesive material, a glue (glue), a roll of adhesive material (eg, adhesive foil), and the like.

[0028] In some embodiments, the adhesive of the particle trap in the load lock chamber according to the embodiments described herein is a silicone-free material, a polyolefin material, an acrylic adhesive, an acrylic foam adhesive, a polyethylene film, PET, OPP, PES, Tesa-Film, aluminum or generally metal foil, and any combination thereof. In some embodiments, a particle trap according to embodiments described herein may include a foamed adhesive, an acrylic adhesive, or a glue on a polypropylene membrane. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the particle trap comprises an adhesive comprising at least a base material and a foamed adhesive. Additionally, the base material may include a polypropylene membrane, a polyethylene membrane, PET, OPP, PES, or metal foil, wherein the foamed adhesive may include an acrylic adhesive or glue.

[0029] According to some embodiments, the materials used for the particle trap described herein are particularly suitable in vacuum conditions as present in a load lock chamber as described herein, eg, a low outgassing rate. By having , it is possible to provide a low contamination risk. In some embodiments, the material used for particle trapping in the load lock chamber may have a low, 1 hour outgassing value a1h. The a1h value describes the amount of outgassing of the material in one hour. According to some embodiments described herein, the material used for or for a particle trap in a load lock chamber is typically from about 1.0 E-8 mbar*l/(s*cm ² ) to about 1.5 E-6 mbar*l/(s*cm ² ), more typically about 1.0 E-8 mbar*l/(s*cm ² ) to about 1.0 E-6 mbar*l/(s*cm ² ) , and even more typically an a1h outgassing value of from about 2.5 E-8 mbar*l/(s*cm ² ) to about 1.0 E-6 mbar*l/(s*cm ^{2 ).} In some embodiments, the outgassing value a1h for 1 hour is less than 1.5 E-6 mbar*l/(s*cm ^{2 ).}

[0030] A low outgassing rate of a material used as a particle trap in a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein may be beneficial for low contamination within the load lock chamber by the particle trap. A particle trap with a low outgassing rate as described above in a load lock chamber in accordance with embodiments described herein is to keep the time effort for the process cycle at a low level, or at least increase the process cycle. Allow not to do, which is, ia It is affected by the evacuation process of the load lock chamber and its duration. Using the respective material for the particle trap in the load lock chamber according to the embodiments described herein avoids additional outgassing contamination in the load lock chamber, introduced by the particle trap, and the evacuation process. and prevent prolongation of the process cycle, and increase customer acceptance of the load lock chamber according to the embodiments described herein.

2 is a schematic diagram 200 of a desorption measurement using a particle trap in a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein, in particular a particle trap comprising an adhesive material as described herein. show The abscissa in FIG. 2 shows time in minutes, while the ordinate in figure 200 shows the flow rate per hour and per area (Q'/A [mbarl/s+cm ² ]) in curve 210 . The flow rate shown in figure 200 decreases with increasing time, resulting in an a1h outgassing value of ^{about 1.35 E-06 [mbar*l/s*cm 2 ].} 3 shows a schematic diagram 300 showing the pressure in mbar over time in seconds, indicating the pump down time for the load lock chamber. The two curves show the pump down time for a load lock chamber without a particle trap (curve 320 ) and a load lock chamber with a particle trap (curve 310 ). In this example, an adhesive material comprising a polypropylene film as described above and a foamed adhesive was used as a particle trap in a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein. Down to a pressure of about 2E-01 mbar, it can be seen that the effect of the particle trap on the pumping time is negligible since the two curves substantially overlap each other. Going down to lower pressures and with increasing time, load lock chambers with particle traps have slightly negligible longer pump down times than load lock chambers without particle traps.

1 , the load lock chamber is illustratively shown as having the shape of a cuboid having substantially six walls (eg, four sidewalls, a top wall, and a bottom wall). A particle trap may be provided on each wall of the load lock chamber (as shown in the embodiment of FIG. 1 ), or with one, two, three, four, or five walls of the load lock chamber. As such, it may be provided only on some of the walls. In one example, the particle trap is provided only on the bottom wall as one of the dead zones of the load lock chamber. In a still further embodiment, the particle trap is provided only on a portion of the wall or portions of several walls, for example depending on the dead zones in the load lock chamber. In some embodiments, the particle trap may be located at any possible carrier collision free position.

[0033] According to some embodiments, and particularly in cases where the particle trap comprises an adhesive sheet, an adhesive foil, or an adhesive plate, a particle trap according to embodiments described herein typically may have a size ranging from about 0.2 m ² to about 10 m ² , and more typically from about 0.5 m ² to about 5 m ^{2 .}

According to some embodiments, a particle trap, in particular a particle trap sheet, a particle trap foil, a particle trap plate, etc., particularly a particle trap comprising an adhesive material, is attached to at least one wall of the load lock chamber. may be or may be fixed. In some embodiments, the particle trap may be removably attached to or fixed to at least one wall of the load lock chamber. For example, the load lock chamber may provide a particle trap holding device such as a frame, a clamping device, an area for attaching the particle trap, bores for holding the particle trap, a particle trap support, and the like. For example, the particle trap holding device may be made of a metal or other material with low outgassing rates. According to some embodiments, the particle trap holding device is made of the same material as the load lock chamber walls. In some embodiments described herein, a particle trap securing device may allow positioning a particle trap on a wall of a load lock chamber. For example, a particle trap fixing device may be provided on the wall of the load lock chamber, in particular, such that the particle trap may be located near the wall, cover the wall, or be attached or secured to the wall.

[0035] According to some embodiments, the particle trap, when in contact with the chamber wall, or relative to the load lock chamber wall, is typically less than 3 cm, more typically less than 2 cm, and even more typically may be located on the chamber wall if it has a distance of less than 1 cm. The same applies for positioning a particle trap at or near dead zones. In some embodiments, as described herein, the location of the particle trap on the chamber wall of the load lock chamber is such that any possible carrier collision free position in the load lock chamber, eg, the particle trap is positioned on the substrate carrier, the substrate carrier It may mean or include the positioning of the particle trap at any location that does not interfere with the operation of the robot of the robot, the substrate tracking system present in the load lock chamber, the robot of the substrate tracking system, or the like. In one example, the carrier collision free position does not include the carrier itself. In some embodiments, the particle trap being positioned on the wall of the load lock chamber, in accordance with the embodiments described herein, is such that the particle trap is fixed or attached to the wall, eg, by a fixing device, such as: It can be understood as being on a wall. According to some embodiments, the fixing device is provided directly on the wall, but the particle trap does not necessarily have to contact the load lock chamber wall. In other embodiments, at least a portion of the particle trap contacts the load lock chamber wall. According to some embodiments, the particle trap has a trapping surface for trapping particles facing the load lock chamber volume.

[0036] Alternatively, a particle trap in the form of a particle trap sheet, particle trap foil, etc. may be provided on the wall of the load lock chamber by a particle trap winding/unwinding system. In one example, the particle trap unwinding roll and the particle trap winding roll are located outside the load lock chamber. The particle trap can be guided from an unwinding roll into the load lock chamber by passing the particle trap into the load lock chamber through a slew (eg, an inflatable vacuum slew), gate valve, slit valve, or slot valve. can be performed. The particle trap in the load lock chamber is positioned on the wall of the load lock chamber and is again guided to a particle trap winding roll outside the load lock chamber, for example again, through a slew, slit valve, or the like. According to some embodiments described herein, the particle trap may be moved continuously, or may be moved in stages, from a particle trap unwinding roll to a particle trap winding roll or rewinding roll. In one embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, a particle trap unwinding roll and a particle trap winding roll may be provided within the load lock chamber. In this case, the roll support for the unwinding and winding rolls can be made of metal or any material having a low outgassing value.

As indicated above with respect to FIG. 1 , a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein may be connectable to a vacuum chamber. To allow connection to the vacuum chamber, respective connection devices, receiving devices, and sealing devices may be provided in the load lock chamber. For example, the load lock chamber may include a flange, bores, bolts, screws, etc. for connecting the load lock chamber to the vacuum chamber. The load lock chamber may further include a substrate outlet, such as a gap slew, a load valve, or the like, that permits transfer of the substrate from the load lock chamber to the vacuum chamber. In the drawings illustratively described herein, a load lock chamber is shown coupled to a processing chamber. However, it should be understood that the load lock chamber may also be connected to other vacuum chambers. For example, the vacuum chamber to which the load lock chamber may be coupled may be selected from the group consisting of a buffer chamber, a heating chamber, a transfer chamber, a cycle-time-adjustment chamber, a deposition chamber with deposition sources, and the like. In particular, a load lock chamber according to embodiments described herein may be coupled to one or more vacuum chambers. According to some embodiments, the load lock chamber may be directly coupled to a vacuum chamber other than the processing chamber, although a vacuum processing system of which the load lock chamber is a part may include the vacuum processing chamber.

As noted above, the combination of a load lock chamber and a process chamber may be referred to herein as a processing system. According to embodiments described herein, a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate is provided. The vacuum processing chamber includes: a vacuum processing chamber adapted to process a substrate; and a load lock chamber for transferring the substrate from atmospheric conditions into the vacuum processing chamber, the load lock chamber having walls surrounding the load lock chamber volume. The vacuum processing chamber further includes a particle trap located at least in one wall of the load lock chamber. According to some embodiments, the load lock chamber, and the particle trap in the load lock chamber, may be, for example, as described above with respect to the geometry, material, and features detailed above. For example, the particle trap may include an adhesive material such as an adhesive sheet, an adhesive foil, an adhesive plate, and the like.

[0039] According to embodiments described herein, a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate is provided. The vacuum processing system has load lock chamber walls, a first vacuum sealable valve to provide an inlet for a substrate into the vacuum load lock chamber, and a second vacuum to provide an outlet for the substrate out of the load lock chamber. and a vacuum load lock chamber including a sealable valve. The load lock chamber further includes a substrate transport system for transporting the substrate, such as a transport system as described in detail below. The vacuum processing system further includes a vacuum processing chamber including one or more process component(s) for performing a process on the substrate. According to embodiments described herein, the load lock chamber and the processing chamber are coupled to each other using a second vacuum sealable valve such that the substrate to be processed is removed from the load lock chamber by the substrate transport system. 2 can be transferred to the processing chamber through a vacuum sealable valve. The vacuum processing system further includes a particle trap located at least in one wall of the load lock chamber. According to some embodiments described herein, a particle trap can be, for example, by including the above-named materials, by having the above-mentioned shape, by having the above-mentioned material values, and by the same kind; It may be a particle trap as detailed above.

According to some embodiments, a processing chamber as referred to herein is suitable for performing a process on a substrate, such as a heating process, a cooling process, a cleaning process, a pre-treatment process, a positioning process, a deposition process, etc. can do.

According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the processing chamber may be adapted for a sputtering process, eg, by including sputtering targets, such as rotatable sputtering targets. . According to typical implementations thereof, DC sputtering, pulsed sputtering, RF sputtering, or MF sputtering may be provided in the vacuum processing chamber described herein. According to still further embodiments, which may be combined with other embodiments described herein, intermediate frequency sputtering using frequencies in the range of 5 kHz to 100 kHz, such as 30 kHz to 50 kHz, is as described herein. may be provided in the same processing chamber. In some embodiments, the vacuum processing chamber may be adapted for a PVD process, a CVD process, a PECVD process, a vaporization process, a microwave process, or the like.

The processing chamber 524 shown in FIG. 1 includes a substrate support 512 on which a substrate may be placed during processing. The processing chamber 524 of FIG. 1 further includes a deposition source 513 for depositing material on the substrate 110 , in accordance with some embodiments. 1 , the substrate 110 to be processed is held in a substantially horizontal direction, and the deposition process may occur in a substantially vertical direction.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of a load lock chamber 422 coupled to a processing chamber 424 . On the bottom wall 430 of the load lock chamber 422 , a particle trap 427 is located. The particle trap 427 shown in FIG. 4 may be a particle trap as described above. The load lock chamber 422 may include a vacuum generating device 435 such as a pump. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 , the substrate is essentially vertically-oriented in the load lock chamber and processing chamber. A vertically oriented substrate may have slight deviations from the vertical, ie, 90° orientation, in the processing system, i.e., the substrates may have ±20° or more to allow for stable transport over inclinations of several degrees. It should be understood that it may have a deviation from the vertical orientation of less than, such as ±10° or less.

According to some embodiments, a load lock chamber as described herein may be adapted for large area substrates. According to some embodiments, each of the carriers having a plurality of substrates or the large-area substrates may have a size ^{of at least 0.67 m 2 .} Typically, the size may be about 0.67 m ² (0.73 x 0.92 m - Gen 4.5) or more, more typically from about 2 m ² to about 9 m ² , or even up to 12 m ² . Typically, substrates or carriers, provided with structures, systems, chambers, sluices, and valves in accordance with embodiments described herein, are large area substrates, as described herein. For example, the large area substrate or carrier may be ^{GEN 4.5 corresponding to about 0.67 m 2} substrates (0.73 x 0.92 m), GEN 5 corresponding to about 1.4 m ² substrates (1.1 m x 1.3 m), about 4.29 m ² substrate. GEN 7.5 corresponding to s (1.95 mx 2.2 m), GEN 8.5 corresponding to about 5.7 m ² substrates (2.2 mx 2.5 m), or even GEN corresponding to about 8.7 m ² substrates (2.85 mx 3.05 m) It could be 10. Even larger generations such as GEN 11 and GEN 12 and corresponding substrate areas can be implemented similarly. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the system may be configured for TFT fabrication using, for example, static deposition.

According to some embodiments, a load lock chamber as described herein, components of such a load lock chamber, such as a substrate support or tracking system, slit valves or slews, or as described herein The same processing chamber may be adapted to handle substrates comprising glass substrates, or substrates made of plastic material, ie substrates such as substrates used for the manufacture of displays, for example. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the embodiments described herein are suitable for display manufacturing, such as, for example, sputter deposition on large area substrates for PVD, ie, display markets. can be utilized.

As noted above, the load lock chamber may include vacuum generating devices such as vacuum pumps, eg, providing respective seals to chamber doors, windows, slit valves, or sluices. By doing so, it can be adapted to maintain a vacuum within the load lock chamber. According to some embodiments, a load lock chamber as described herein is adapted to provide a vacuum of less than 1 mbar. In some embodiments, the load lock chamber provides a vacuum of typically from about 0.01 mbar to about 1 mbar, more typically from about 0.1 mbar to about 1 mbar, and even more typically from about 0.5 mbar to about 1 mbar. adapted to provide

According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, a vacuum processing chamber as described herein may be adapted to be a high vacuum chamber. For example, the processing chamber may include respective vacuum pumps, seals, valves, and sluices to create and maintain a vacuum in the processing chamber. In some embodiments, the processing chamber is adapted to provide a vacuum of less than ^{about 10 -5 mbar.} In some examples, the processing chamber is typically from about 10 ^-12 mbar to about 10 ^-5 mbar, more typically from about 10 ^-9 mbar to about 10 ^-5 mbar, and even more typically from about 10 ^-7 mbar It is adapted to provide an ultra-high vacuum with a pressure of from to about 10 ^{-5 mbar.}

5 shows a processing system 100 in accordance with embodiments described herein. The processing system includes a first vacuum chamber 101 , a second vacuum chamber 102 , a third vacuum chamber 103 , and a fourth vacuum chamber 121 . The vacuum chambers may be deposition chambers or other processing chambers in which a vacuum is created. In FIG. 5 , a load lock chamber 122 can be seen that provides a transition from atmospheric conditions outside the processing system to vacuum conditions within the chambers of the processing system. The load lock chamber 122 may be a load lock chamber as detailed above, and may include a particle trap 127 in one or more walls. According to embodiments described herein, the load lock chamber 122 and the vacuum chambers 101 , 102 , 103 , and 121 are connected via linear transport paths by a transport system. According to embodiments described herein, the transportation system may comprise a dual track transportation system comprising several transportation tracks 161 , 163 , 164 . In the example shown in FIG. 5 , the transport system further includes a rotation module 150 that allows rotation of the substrates along the transport path. For example, large area substrates typically used for display manufacturing may be transported along linear transport paths in the substrate processing system 100 . Typically, linear transport paths are provided by transport tracks 161 and 163, such as, for example, linear transport tracks having a plurality of rollers arranged along a line.

According to typical embodiments, transport tracks and/or rotation tracks are provided by a transport system at the bottom of large-area substrates and by a guiding system at the top of essentially vertically oriented large-area substrates. can be

According to different embodiments, which may be combined with other embodiments described herein, in vacuum chambers such as vacuum chambers 122 , 121 , 101 , 102 , and 103 shown in FIG. 5 . Dual track transport systems, ie, transport systems having a first transport route and a second transport route, may be provided by a fixed dual track system, a movable single track system, or a movable dual track system. The fixed dual track system includes a first transport track and a second transport track, wherein the first transport track and the second transport track cannot be displaced laterally, that is, the substrate is perpendicular to the transport direction. cannot be moved in this direction. The movable single track system is a dual track by having a linear transport track that can be displaced laterally, ie perpendicular to the transport direction, so that a substrate can be provided on a first transport path or a second transport path. A transport system is provided, wherein the first transport path and the second transport path are remote from each other. The movable dual track system comprises a first transport track and a second transport track, wherein both transport tracks can be displaced laterally, ie, both transport tracks move away from the first transport path. It is possible to switch their respective positions to the second transport route and vice versa.

[0051] Using a load lock chamber in accordance with embodiments described herein, and a processing system including the load lock chamber, it is possible to reduce contamination in a processing system. Using a particle trap according to some embodiments described herein allows an easy and uncomplicated way to trap particles in a load lock chamber, while at the same time having defined material properties, such as a defined outgassing rate. By using the respective materials, the risk of contamination is reduced. A particle trap is located on the wall of the load lock chamber, which is very compact and space-saving, allowing not only efficient particle trapping in the dead zones of the load lock chamber, but also allowing easy assembly and exchange of the particle trap. .

[0052] While the foregoing is directed to some embodiments, other and additional embodiments may be devised without departing from the basic scope of such several embodiments, the scope of which is determined by the following claims.

Claims (15)

A load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) for a vacuum processing system, comprising:
load lock walls (430; 528; 529; 530; 531) defining a load lock chamber volume;
a vacuum generating device 425 for evacuating the load lock chamber;
a particle trap (127; 427; 527) located on at least one wall (430; 528; 529; 530; 531) of said load lock chamber; and
a particle trap holding device allowing positioning of the particle trap (127; 427; 527) on a wall (430; 528; 529; 530; 531) of the load lock chamber;
the particle trap (127; 427; 527) is removably attached or fixed to at least one wall (430; 528; 529; 530; 531) of the load lock chamber by the particle trap fixing device;
The load lock chamber 122; 422; 522 includes one or more dead zone(s), wherein the geometry of the one or more dead zone(s) is configured to prevent accumulation of particles. wherein the particle trap (127; 427; 527) is located in the one or more dead zones of the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522).
load lock chamber. The method of claim 1,
wherein the particle trap (127; 427; 527) comprises an adhesive;
load lock chamber. The method of claim 1,
the particle trap is positioned on the chamber wall by contacting the chamber wall, or with a distance of less than 1 cm, and
wherein the particle trap comprises an adhesive foil, an adhesive sheet, or an adhesive plate;
load lock chamber. The method of claim 1,
The particle trap (127; 427; 527) comprises at least an adhesive comprising a base material and a foaming adhesive.
load lock chamber. The method of claim 1,
The particle traps 127; 427; 527 are outgassing for 1 hour of 1.0 E-8 mbar*l/(s*cm ² ) to 1.0 E-6 mbar*l/(s*cm ^{2 )} ) comprising a material with the value a1h,
load lock chamber. The method of claim 1,
The particle trap (127; 427; 527) has an area of ^{0.2 m 2} to 10 m ^2,
load lock chamber. 7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
wherein the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) is adapted to provide a vacuum substantially in the range of 0.05 mbar to 1 mbar;
load lock chamber. The method of claim 1,
The walls 430; 528; 529; 530; 531 of the load lock chamber 122; 422; 522 include at least one side wall 529; 531, a bottom wall 430; 530, and a top wall 528. wherein the particle trap (127; 427; 527) is located on the bottom wall (430; 530) of the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522);
load lock chamber. 9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 or 8,
wherein the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) comprises a metal holding device for holding the particle trap in the load lock chamber.
load lock chamber. 9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 or 8,
The load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) comprises an unwinding/rewinding system for unwinding and rewinding the particle trap (127; 427; 527).
load lock chamber. A vacuum processing system for processing a substrate, comprising:
a vacuum processing chamber (424; 524) adapted to process the substrate (410; 510); and
Load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) according to any one of claims 1 to 6 or 8, configured to transfer the substrate (410; 510) from atmospheric conditions into the vacuum processing chamber.
containing,
vacuum processing system. 12. The method of claim 11,
The vacuum in the processing chamber (424, 524) is an ultra-high vacuum with a pressure in the range of ^{10 −8} mbar to 10 ^{−5 mbar;}
vacuum processing system. 12. The method of claim 11,
wherein the vacuum processing system is adapted for a deposition process in the processing chamber (424; 524).
vacuum processing system. A vacuum processing system for processing a substrate, comprising:
a first vacuum sealable valve having load lock chamber walls (430; 528; 529; 530; 531; 430) for providing an inlet for the substrate into the vacuum load lock chamber; a vacuum load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) comprising a second vacuum sealable valve for providing an outlet for the substrate, the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) comprising a substrate transport for transporting the substrate further comprising a system;
a vacuum processing chamber (424; 524) including one or more process component(s) for performing a process on the substrate - the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522) and the processing chamber (424; 524) ) are coupled to each other using the second vacuum sealable valve so that a substrate to be processed is transferred, by the substrate transport system, from the load lock chamber to the processing chamber through the second vacuum sealable valve. can be transported -; and
at least a particle trap (127; 427; 527) located in one wall (430; 528; 529; 530; 531) of the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522);
The load lock chamber 122; 422; 522 holds a particle trap allowing positioning of the particle trap 127; 427; 527 on the walls 430; 528; 529; 530; 531 of the load lock chamber. further comprising a device,
the particle trap (127; 427; 527) is removably attached or fixed to at least one wall (430; 528; 529; 530; 531) of the load lock chamber by the particle trap fixing device;
The load lock chamber 122; 422; 522 includes one or more dead zone(s), wherein the geometry of the one or more dead zone(s) is configured to prevent accumulation of particles. wherein the particle trap (127; 427; 527) is located in the one or more dead zones of the load lock chamber (122; 422; 522).
vacuum processing system. delete

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