Tokyo Electron Limited

Kenji Nebuka

Teruo Asakawa

Tetsu Oosawa

Hiroo Ono

Mitsuaki Komino

Teruo Iwata

A treatment apparatus comprises a heater including an insulator carrying a to-be-treated object thereon and a resistance heating element therein for heating the to-be-treated object, an electrical supply mechanism including feeders extending into a treatment chamber from outside and terminals connecting the feeders and the resistance heating element, and a metallic pipe surrounding the terminals and those portions of the feeders which extend in the treatment chamber. A treatment apparatus for discharging an exhaust gas from the treatment chamber through an exhaust pipe by means of a suction unit comprises a first heater in the inner wall of the treatment chamber for heating the gas in the treatment chamber, and a second heater for independently heating the exhaust gas in the exhaust pipe at various portions of the exhaust pipe.

Treatment apparatus

A load-lock unit is disposed between first and second atmospheres, for storing a wafer transferred from the first atmosphere, and which is blocked off from the first atmosphere, thereafter being set in an atmosphere at least substantially similar to the second atmosphere, and opened so as to communicate with the second atmosphere in order to transfer the wafer to the second atmosphere. The load-lock unit includes a load-lock chamber, a holding mechanism, disposed in the load-lock chamber for holding the wafer, a rotating mechanism for rotating the wafer held by the holding mechanism, and an error detecting mechanism for detecting a positional error of the center of the wafer and an orientation error of the wafer on the basis of data obtained by radiating light on the wafer which is rotating.

Load-lock unit and wafer transfer system

A load-lock unit is disposed between first and second atmospheres, stores a wafer transferred from the first atmosphere, is blocked off from the first atmosphere, is thereafter set in the same atmosphere as or a similar atmosphere to the second atmosphere, and is opened to communicate with the second atmosphere in order to transfer the wafer to the second atmosphere. The load-lock unit includes a load-lock chamber, a storing device, disposed in the load-lock chamber, for storing a plurality of wafers vertically at a gap, a holding mechanism for holding one of the plurality of wafers stored in the storing device, a rotating mechanism for rotating the wafer held by the holding mechanism, and an error detecting device for detecting the positional error of the center of the wafer and an orientation error of the wafer on the basis of data obtained by radiating light on the wafer which is rotating.

Growing community of inventors

Nirasaki, Japan

Kenji Nebuka