Ckd Corporation

Tokyo Electron Limited

Horiba Stec, Co., Ltd.

Minoru Ito

Hiroki Doi

Akiko Nakada

Tsuneyuki Okabe

Yasunori Nishimura

Hideki Nagaoka

Yoji Mori

Naoya Shiroyama

Jun Hirose

Hiroshi Itafuji

Shuji Moriya

Hiroki Endo

Shigeyuki Hayashi

Takashi Kitazawa

Shigeyuki Okura

Kazuyuki Miura

Keiki Ito

Masayuki Watanabe

Tsuyoshi Shimazu

Atsushi Ieki

Akihito Sugino

Yoshihisa Sudo

Yukio Ozawa

Seiji Hashiguchi

Masami Nishikawa

Tetsujiro Kono

Osamu Katsumata

A flow rate verification unit that uses the pressure variation value per unit time of a pressure measurement value measured by a pressure gauge and a temperature measurement value measured by a thermometer in a state where a second shut-off valve is closed to calculate the volume between a flow-rate control valve and the second shut-off valve and verifies the flow rates of mass flow controllers one at a time, wherein a first verification side connection part attachably and detachably connected to an integrated gas unit is provided upstream from the pressure gauge and a serially connected verification gas input valve, verification side mass flow controller, and verification side flow rate control valve are provided in parallel with the second shut-off valve.

Flow rate verification unit

A vacuum valve placed between a vacuum vessel and a vacuum pump to adjust a valve opening degree using an operating fluid includes a packing mounted in a recessed groove of a piston. The packing is provided with a contact portion on a radially inner side and a contact portion on a radially outer side, and a slide-contact portion contacting with an inner peripheral surface of a cylinder. A portion between the contact portion and the slide-contact portion has a thin thickness.

Vacuum valve and vacuum pressure control system using the same

In a gas flow monitoring method using a MFC (a flow control device) for controlling a flow rate of process gas from a process gas supply source and supply the process gas to a predetermined process chamber, a start shut-off valve placed upstream of the MFC, and a pressure gauge placed between the start shut-off valve and the MFC, the start shut-off valve is closed and a drop of pressure on an upstream side of the MFC is measured by the pressure gauge to measure a flow rate of the MFC, thereafter, the start shut-off valve is opened to monitor the flow rate of the MFC. The MFC is switched from an ON state to an OFF state before the start shut-off valve is opened. The method enables in-line monitoring a low rate of process gas without affecting a semiconductor manufacturing process.

Gas flow monitoring method and gas flow monitoring apparatus

A gas flow monitoring system is provided in process gas lines each arranged to supply gas to a predetermined process chamber via a flow control device, the system being configured to measure lowering or rising of gas pressure before and after the flow control device to monitor a flow rate of the flow control device. The system includes a first flow monitoring unit placed upstream of the flow control device in a selected one of the process gas lines, a second flow monitoring unit placed in a discharge passage upstream of the process chamber, and a controller that constantly monitors the flow rate of the flow control device with the first flow monitoring unit and, when the first flow monitoring unit detects the flow-rate abnormality two or more times, commands the second flow monitoring unit to re-verify whether flow-rate abnormality is present or not in the flow control device.

Gas flow monitoring system

A gas supply unit and a gas supply system that are small-sized and inexpensive. The gas supply unit is installed on operation gas conveyance pipeline and has fluid control devices communicated via flow path blocks and controlling operation gas. The gas supply unit has the first flow path block, to one side of which an inlet open/close valve included in the fluid control devices is attached, and also has the second flow path block, to one side of which a purge valve included in the fluid control devices is attached. The first flow path block and the second flow path block are layered in the direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the operation gas. The inlet open/close valve and the purge valve are arranged between a mass flow controller installed on the operation gas conveyance pipeline and an installation surface where the unit is installed.

Gas supply unit and gas supply system

A gas flow rate verification unit capable of enhancing reliability of gas flow rate verification. The gas flow rate verification unit has a first cutoff valve that is connected to a flow rate control device and to which gas is inputted, a second cutoff valve for discharging the gas, a communication member for allowing the first cutoff valve and the second cutoff valve to communicate with each other, a pressure sensor for detecting the pressure of the gas supplied between the first cutoff valve and the second cutoff valve, a temperature detector for detecting the temperature of the gas supplied between the first cutoff valve and the second cutoff valve, and a control means for verifying the flow of the gas flowing in the flow control device, the verification being performed by using both the result of the pressure detected by the pressure sensor and the result of the temperatures detected by the temperature detector. The volume (Vk) between the valve seat of the first cutoff valve and the valve seat of the second cutoff valve is equal to or less than the volume (Ve) between the outlet of the flow control device and the valve seat of the first cutoff valve.

Gas flow rate verification unit

Provided is a relative pressure control system has a simple configuration, but enables accurate regulation of a division ratio of an operation gas, and concurrently makes it possible to securely drain the operation gas from an operation gas pipeline in case of emergency. The system includes a plurality of air operated valves of a normally open type that are connected to an operation gas pipeline supplied with an operation gas; pressure sensors that are series connected to the respective air operated valves and that detect output pressures of the respective air operated valves; a controller that controls operation pressures of the respective air operated valves in accordance with the pressures detected by the pressure sensors; and a hard interlock solenoid valve that correlates the plurality of air operated valves to one another so that at least one of the plurality of air operated valves is normally opened. In the configuration, an opening of a specified one of the plurality of air operated valves is regulated, the operation gas is output at a predetermined division ratio.

Relative pressure control system and relative flow control system

A liquid raw material supply unit for a vaporizer is adapted to supply a liquid raw material to the vaporizer that vaporizes the liquid raw material. The unit comprises: a manifold internally formed with a flow passage; and a plurality of fluid control valves mounted on the manifold, wherein the plurality of fluid control valves includes: a liquid raw material control valve for controlling supply of the liquid raw material to the flow passage; a cleaning solution control valve for controlling supply of a cleaning solution to the flow passage; a purge gas control valve for controlling supply of a purge gas to the flow passage; and a first introducing control valve connectable to the vaporizer for controlling supply of a fluid from the flow passage to the vaporizer, the purge gas control valve, the cleaning solution control valve, the liquid raw material control valve, and the first introducing control valve being mounted on the manifold in this order from an upstream side of the manifold, wherein the flow passage is connected to valve ports of the plurality of control valves respectively, the valve ports communicating with valve openings of the respective control valves, and the flow passage is configured to allow the purge gas supplied from the purge gas control valve to directly flow in the valve ports of the cleaning solution control valve and the liquid raw material control valve placed downstream from the purge gas control valve.

Liquid raw material supply unit for vaporizer

In a flow quantity test system for a mass flow controller, a gas source for measurement is provided to supply gas for measurement. A cutoff valve for start of measurement is connected at its inlet port to the gas source for measurement and is connected at its outlet port to an inlet port of the mass flow controller. The cutoff valve for start of measurement is opened to flow the gas for measurement therethrough and closed to block the flow of the gas for measurement therethrough. A pressure gauge is provided to detect pressure of the gas for measurement appearing at the outlet port side of the cutoff valve for start of measurement. A microcomputer is provided to close the process gas cutoff valve and open the cutoff valve for start of measurement to change pressure detected by the pressure gauge. The microcomputer further closes the cutoff valve for start of measurement after pressure detected by the pressure gauge has reached predetermined pressure and measures lowering of pressure detected by the pressure gauge dependent on lapse of time after closing of the cutoff valve for start of measurement. Thereafter the microcomputer tests measuring precision of the mass flow controller in accordance with the measured lowering of the detected pressure.

Flow quantity test system for mass flow controller

Growing community of inventors

Kasugai, Japan

Minoru Ito