Hitachi-High-Technologies Corporation

Hitachi High-Tech Corporation

Akitaka Makino

Susumu Tauchi

Hideki Kihara

Minoru Soraoka

Youji Takahashi

Tsutomu Nakamura

Manabu Edamura

Kohei Sato

Masakazu Isozaki

Tomohiro Ohashi

Hiroho Kitada

Takeo Uchino

Tsunehiko Tsubone

Hideyuki Kazumi

Ken Yoshioka

Seiichi Watanabe

Hitoshi Tamura

Motohiko Yoshigai

Naoki Yasui

Kazuyuki Ikenaga

Hiroyuki Shichida

Tomoyuki Tamura

Takumi Tandou

Muneo Furuse

Masamichi Sakaguchi

Hideaki Kondo

Yusaku Sakka

Akihiro Sano

Michiaki Kobayashi

Kazuumi Tanaka

Shingo Kimura

Minoru Yatomi

Masashi Nakagome

Takanori Nakatsuka

A vacuum processing apparatus that can excellently perform uniform processing and can efficiently perform regular maintenance and occasional maintenance even in the case where the diameter of a workpiece is increased. A vacuum processing apparatus having a vacuum transport chamber includes: a lower container in a cylindrical shape; a sample stage unit including a sample stage and a ring-shaped sample stage base having a support beam disposed in axial symmetry with respect to the center axis of the sample stage; an upper container in a cylindrical shape; and a moving unit that is fixed to the sample stage base and moves the sample stage unit in the vertical direction and in the horizontal direction.

Vacuum processing apparatus

A sample stage includes plural pushup pins that move a sample up/down above the stage, a recessed and protruding dielectric film on which the sample is loaded, a feeding port disposed on the film and through which gas is fed to a gap between the sample and the film, and openings of through-holes in which the pushup pins are housed, and the stage is connected to a feeding and evacuation conduit including a feeding path that communicates with the port and through which gas fed to the gap flows, an evacuation path that communicates with the opening and through which gas fed to the gap is discharged, and a connection path through which the feeding path and the evacuation path communicate. With communication between the feeding path and the evacuation path via the connection path interrupted, gas from the feeding path is fed to the gap and into the through-hole via the gap.

Plasma processing apparatus with gas feed and evacuation conduit

A vacuum processing apparatus includes a robot connected to a vacuum container to carry a wafer on one of its two arms to or from a processing chamber; a unit to detect an amount of deviation of the wafer from a predetermined wafer mounting position on the arm that may occur when the robot carries the wafer into or out of the processing chamber; and an adjusting device to adjust the operation of the robot based on the detected amount of deviation. The adjusting device adjusts the robot operation based on the result of a teaching operation performed in advance. After being subjected to the initial teaching operation, the robot again undergoes a second teaching operation according to the information on the amount of wafer position deviation that is detected by moving the wafer in a predetermined transfer pattern, before the wafer processing is performed.

Wafer processing based on sensor detection and system learning

A vacuum processing apparatus that includes a vacuum vessel; an opening disposed in a wall of the vacuum vessel, through which a sample to be processed is taken in and out; a valve body disposed outside the wall for airtightly sealing the opening; and a drive unit driving the valve body to carry out a sealing or opening operation. The drive unit includes a first member coupled to an actuator that moves along a substantially linear first direction as a result of operation of the actuator, and a second member coupled to the first member that moves along a substantially linear second direction that intersects with the first direction. The valve body, coupled to the second member, seals the opening as a result of movement of the second member.

A plasma processing apparatus is provided which includes an inert gas supply route connected to a process gas supply piping which supplies a process gas into a processing chamber in a vacuum vessel, a valve which opens or closes the inert gas supply route, and an adjuster which adjusts a flow rate of the inert gas. When processing of a sample is complete, an inert gas is supplied into the process gas supply piping so that a pressure in the process gas supply piping is maintained at a pressure higher than a pressure at which a compound of the process gas and a material of an inner wall of the process gas supply piping vaporizes.

Plasma processing apparatus and plasma processing method

A vacuum processing apparatus includes a transfer unit disposed at a center thereof, plural processing chambers, each processing chamber having a processing table for supporting an object to be processed and carrying out processing using a gas, and a mass flow controller unit interposed between two of the processing chambers for supplying gas to the chambers.

The invention provides a highly reliable plasma processing apparatus having stable sealing performance. The vacuum processing apparatus comprises a vacuum vessel having its inside decompressed; an opening disposed in a wall of the vacuum vessel for communicating the inside with the outside thereof and through which a sample to be processed is taken in and out; a valve bodydisposed outside the wall for airtightly sealing or opening the opening; and a drive unit for driving the valve body to carry out the sealing or opening operation, the drive unit comprising a first membercoupled to an actuatorthat moves along a substantially linear first direction as a result of operation of the actuator, a second membercoupled to the first memberthat moves along a substantially linear second direction that intersects with the first direction, and the valve bodycoupled to the second member that seals the opening as a result of the movement of the second member.

A plasma processing apparatus for generating highly-uniform and stable plasma. In an apparatus for generating plasma by using a &#x3bc; wave, concerning a method for rotating the &#x3bc; wave in terms of time, a plurality of (larger than two and smaller than four) waveguides are used, then forming an angle between the respective waveguides, and setting a phase difference between respective electric fields therein. This configuration allows introduction of the circularly polarized wave into a processing chamber. At this time, there are provided configuration components such as a waveguide locating method, a unit therefor, a &#x3bc;-wave merging box, and a reflective-wave control unit using a reflection control chamber.

Plasma processing apparatus

The invention provides a plasma treatment apparatus or a plasma treatment method having a high productivity while maintaining a stable treatment performance. In a plasma treatment apparatus feeding a plurality of gases fed into the treatment chamber and treating a sample arranged within the treatment chamber by a plasma formed by using the plurality of gases, the plasma treatment apparatus has a plurality of feeding gas lines in which the plurality of gases respectively pass, a plurality of gas flow rate regulators respectively arranged on the feeding gas lines and respectively regulating flow rates of the plurality of gases, and a testing gas flow path coupled to the gas line so as to be arranged outside the treatment chamber and arranging a tester testing a flow rate of a gas from a gas flow rate controller therein, and the plasma treatment apparatus tests the gas flow rate regulator on a gas line corresponding to the gas which is not used for the treatment in the plurality of gases in parallel with the treatment.

Plasma treatment apparatus and plasma treatment method

A vacuum processing apparatus includes vacuum processing vessels each having a processing chamber with a pressure-reduced interior space, a vacuum transfer vessel which is coupled to the vacuum vessels disposed therearound and which has a low-pressure interior space in which a to-be-processed workpiece is conveyed, an atmospheric air transfer vessel which is coupled to the front side of the vacuum transfer vessel and which includes on its front face side cassette tables mounting thereon a cassette with the workpiece received therein for conveying the workpiece in an interior space under an atmospheric pressure, a position-aligning machine disposed within the atmospheric air transfer vessel at one of right and left ends for adjusting a position of the workpiece, and an adjuster disposed between lower part of this machine and a floor face for adjusting the supply of a fluid being fed to the vacuum processing vessels.

A plasma processing apparatus which contributes to reducing required time for maintenance and thereby to enhancing the efficiency of processing and that of apparatus operation is to be provided. A vacuum processing apparatus comprises a vacuum vessel in which a substrate-shaped sample is arranged in an internally arranged processing chamber in which the pressure is reduced; a transfer chamber to which the vacuum vessel is linked and through whose inside reduced in pressure the sample is transferred; a passage which establishes communication between the transfer chamber and the vacuum vessel in a state in which the transfer chamber and the processing chamber are linked to each other and through whose inside the sample not yet processed or already processed is transferred; and a covering member which is removably coupled to cover the internal wall face of the passage, wherein the sample is processed within the processing chamber with a plasma formed in the processing chamber.

A vacuum processing apparatus comprising a transfer unit disposed at a center thereof, plural processing chambers, each processing chamber having a processing table for supporting an object to be processed and carrying out processing using a gas; and amass flow controller unit interposed between two processing chambers for supplying gas to the chambers.

A vacuum processing apparatus includes an outer chamber comprising a vacuum container, an inner chamber in which a plasma used for processing a wafer is generated, the inner chamber being detachably disposed inside of the outer chamber, a wafer holder on which the wafer is located is disposed inside of the inner chamber, and an exhausting device disposed below the wafer holder which exhausts the inside of the inner chamber. The inner chamber is sealed in air-tight manner with respect to a space between the inner chamber and the outer chamber while the space is maintained at a vacuum pressure.

The present invention provides a plasma processing apparatus or a plasma processing method that can etch a multilayer film structure for constituting a gate structure with high accuracy and high efficiency. A plasma processing method of, on processing a sample on a sample stagein a depressurized discharge room, etching a multilayer film (including a high-k and a metal gate) at 0.1 Pa or less and with the sample stagetemperature-regulated by using a pressure gaugeto be used for pressure regulation and connected to the processing room and a main pump for exhaustion

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Hikari, Japan

Akitaka Makino