Applied Materials, Inc.

Jeffrey Allen Brodine

Michael Robert Rice

Jeffrey C Hudgens

Steven Victor Sansoni

Dean C Hruzek

Alexander N Lerner

Roey Shaviv

Kevin Vincent Moraes

Kim Ramkumar Vellore

Andrew J Constant

Michael P Karazim

Devendra Channappa Holeyannavar

Sandesh Doddamane Ramappa

Damon Keith Cox

Glen T Mori

Izya Kremerman

Niranjan Kumar

Whitney B Kroetz

Domingo J Guerra

Jason M Schaller

Dan A Marohl

Satish Sundar

Mario Dave Silvetti

Song-Moon Suh

Marvin L Freeman

Daniel A Greenberg

William P Laceky

William Nixon Taylor, Jr

Amikam Sade

Pulkit Agarwal

Ami Sade

Tony P Schiavo, Jr

Prudhvi R Chintalapati

Nicholas Cravalho

Domingo Guerra

A platform is of a side storage pod. The platform includes an upper surface and kinematic pins extending from the upper surface within a chamber of the side storage pod to engage a lower surface of a side storage container in the chamber to level the side storage container in the chamber.

Side storage pods, equipment front end modules, and methods for processing substrates

An alignment module for housing and cleaning masks. The alignment module comprises a mask stocker, a cleaning chamber, an alignment chamber, an alignment stage a transfer robot. The mask stocker is configured to house a mask cassette configured to store a plurality of masks. The cleaning chamber is configured to clean the plurality of masks by providing one or more cleaning gases into a chamber after a mask is inserted into the cleaning chamber. The alignment stage is configured to support a carrier and a substrate. The transfer robot is configured to transfer a mask from one or more of the alignment stage and the mask stocker to the cleaning chamber.

Alignment module with a cleaning chamber

An equipment front end module (EFEM) includes sidewalls forming an EFEM chamber configured to receive inert gas from an inert gas supply. The sidewalls include a first sidewall configured to attach to a panel first side of a panel. The panel forms a panel opening extending between the panel first side and a panel second side. The panel second side is configured to attach to a side storage pod. The EFEM further includes a robot disposed in the EFEM chamber. The robot is configured to transfer substrates from the EFEM chamber into the side storage pod via the panel opening. An exhaust conduit is coupled to the side storage pod to exhaust gas from the side storage pod to an exterior of the side storage pod.

Multi-blade robot apparatus, electronic device manufacturing apparatus, and methods adapted to transport multiple substrates in electronic device manufacturing

An alignment module for positioning a mask on a substrate comprises a mask stocker, an alignment stage, and a transfer robot. The mask stocker houses a mask cassette that stores a plurality of masks. The alignment stage is configured to support a carrier and a substrate. The transfer robot is configured to transfer one of the one or more masks from the mask stocker to the alignment stage and position the mask over the substrate. The alignment module may be part of an integrated platform having one or more transfer chambers, a factory interface having a substrate carrier chamber and one or more processing chambers. A carrier may be coupled to a substrate within the substrate carrier chamber and moved between the processing chambers to generate a semiconductor device.

System and method for aligning a mask with a substrate

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to a processing system for forming one or more layers of a photodiode. In one embodiment, the processing system includes a transfer chamber, a plurality of processing chambers, and a controller configured to cause a process to be performed in the processing system. The process includes performing a pre-clean process on a substrate, aligning and placing a first mask on the substrate, depositing a first layer on the substrate, and depositing a second layer on the substrate. The processing system can form layers of a photodiode in a low defect, cost effective, and high utilization manner.

Processing system for forming layers

Substrate transfer robot blades used to engage and support a substrate during transfer include a blade body having a blade support surface and at least one pad having a top surface and an opposite bottom surface, a central opening extending from the top surface to the bottom surface, and a resilient portion formed from the at least one pad. The resilient portion formed from the at least one pad extends from and cantilevers from a side surface of the central opening of the at least one pad that is disposed directly on the side surface at the end of a long axis of the resilient portion. The resilient portion further includes a curved substrate contact surface on an outermost end of the resilient portion on which a substrate is supported when disposed on the substrate transfer robot blade.

Compliant robot blade for substrate support and transfer

Substrate carrier apparatus having a hard mask are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, a substrate carrier apparatus includes a carrier body having a support surface to support a substrate; and a mask assembly disposed above the support surface. The mask assembly includes an annular frame disposed atop the support surface; and a hard mask coupled to and disposed within the annular frame above the support surface, wherein the hard mask includes one or more openings arranged in a predetermined pattern and disposed through the hard mask, and wherein the hard mask includes a plurality of spacer elements extending from a bottom surface of the hard mask.

Substrate carrier having hard mask

Electronic device processing systems including side storage pods are described. One electronic device processing system has a side storage pod having a first chamber configured to receive a side storage container; a panel having a panel opening; the panel configured to be coupled between a side storage container and an equipment front end module; a side storage container received in the first chamber; and an exhaust conduit configured to be coupled to the side storage container received and extending to an exterior of the first chamber.

Embodiments of substrate transfer robot blades to engage and support a substrate during transfer are provided herein. In some embodiments, a substrate transfer robot may include a blade body having a blade support surface; and a plurality of compliant pads, each comprising a contact surface and an opposite bottom surface supported by the body and arranged to support a substrate when disposed on the substrate transfer robot blade.

Compliant robot blade for defect reduction

Embodiments of the present invention relates to high temperature anti-droop end effectors for transferring semiconductor substrates. One embodiment of the present invention provides an end effector for using with a substrate handler. The end effector comprises a free end having a substrate supporting plane configured to support a substrate and positioned that substrate at a first angle relative to a horizontal plane. The end effector comprises a fixed end configured to be mounted to the substrate handler, wherein the end effector is mounted to the substrate handler at a position that the substrate supporting plane is at a second angle relative to the horizontal plane when no substrate is disposed on the free end, and the first angle is different from the second angle.

High temperature anti-droop end effector for substrate transfer

Embodiments of apparatus for supporting a substrate are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, an apparatus for supporting a substrate includes a support member; and a plurality of substrate contact elements protruding from the support member, wherein each of the plurality of substrate contact elements includes: a first contact surface to support a substrate when placed thereon; and a second contact surface extending from the first contact surface, wherein the second contact surface is adjacent a periphery of the substrate to prevent radial movement of the substrate, wherein the first contact surface is at a first angle with respect to the support member and the second contact surface is at a second angle with respect to the support member, and wherein the first angle is between about 3 degrees and 5 degrees.

Substrate transfer robot end effector

Embodiments include multi-arm robots for substrate transport systems that include a boom, first and second forearms rotationally coupled to the boom, the second forearm being shorter than the first forearm, a first wrist member rotationally coupled to the first forearm, and a second wrist member rotationally coupled to the second forearm. Each of the boom, first and second forearms, and the first and second wrist members are configured to be independently rotated to carry out substrate motion profiles. Electronic device processing systems and methods of transporting substrates are described, as are numerous other aspects.

Multi-axis robot apparatus with unequal length forearms, electronic device manufacturing systems, and methods for transporting substrates in electronic device manufacturing

Substrate transport systems, apparatus, and methods are described. The systems are adapted to efficiently put or pick substrates at a destination by rotating a boom linkage to a position adjacent to the destination and then independently actuating an upper arm link housing and one or more wrist members to put or pick one or more substrates at the destination wherein the wrist member is independently actuated relative to the forearm link housing and the motion of the forearm link member is kinematically linked to the motion of the upper arm link housing. Numerous other aspects are provided.

Robot systems, apparatus, and methods adapted to transport substrates in electronic device manufacturing

Boom drive apparatus for substrate transport systems and methods are described. The boom drive apparatus is adapted to drive one or more multi-arm robots rotationally mounted to the boom to efficiently put or pick substrates. The boom drive apparatus has a boom including a hub, a web, a first pilot above the web, and a second pilot below the web, a first driving member rotationally mounted to the first pilot, a second driving member rotationally mounted to the second pilot, a first driven member rotationally mounted to the boom above the a web, a second driven member rotationally mounted to the boom below the a web, and a first and second transmission members coupling the driving members to driven members located outboard on the boom. Numerous other aspects are provided.

Boom drive apparatus, multi-arm robot apparatus, electronic device processing systems, and methods for transporting substrates in electronic device manufacturing systems with web extending from hub

Growing community of inventors

Los Gatos, CA, United States of America

Jeffrey Allen Brodine