Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi-high-technologies Corporation

Yoshifumi Ogawa

Tsunehiko Tsubone

Naoyuki Tamura

Kazue Takahashi

Hiroyuki Shichida

Youichi Ito

Keizo Suzuki

Seiichi Watanabe

Yoshinao Kawasaki

Tetsunori Kaji

Sadayuki Okudaira

Kazuo Nojiri

Shigeru Nishimatsu

Hiromichi Enami

Yutaka Kakehi

Kouji Nishihata

Atsushi Itou

Shigekazu Kato

Susumu Tauchi

Ken Ninomiya

Takahiro Shimomura

Masakazu Isozaki

Katsuyoshi Kudo

Masanori Kadotani

Masaharu Nishiumi

Masahiro Nagatani

Kenji Nakata

Katsuaki Nagatomo

Nobuhide Nunomura

Yoshie Tanaka

Hideji Yamamoto

Katsuyasu Nishita

The present invention provides a vacuum processing apparatus that includes gas supply means having a hard interlock of a pair of gas valves. The present invention provides a vacuum processing apparatus including: a gas supply unit that supplies gas, for performing vacuum processing using normally closed type air-driven valves, to a processing chamber where the vacuum processing is performed, the gas supply unit having an interlock function in which, when a first valve of a pair of the air-driven valves is opened, a second valve of the pair is closed, the gas supply unit including an air circuit that controls air for driving the air-driven valves, the air circuit being configured using an electromagnetic valve having a solenoid coil corresponding to each of the pair of the air-driven valves.

Vacuum processing apparatus

A plasma processing apparatus includes at least three gas supply lines connected to a process chamber in parallel to allow a gas to flow therethrough, and at least three flow-rate controllers provided on the gas supply lines to detect the flow rate of the gas flowing through each of the flow-rate controllers to control the flow rate to a set value and a diagnosis method. The apparatus has a function of splitting and supplying a gas controlled to a predetermined flow rate by the third flow-rate controller, to a first flow-rate controller for the smallest detectable range of the three flow-rate controllers and to a second flow-rate controller, in order to test the operation of the control of the flow rate of the first flow-rate controller, based on the value obtained from the flow rate of the gas flowing through the second flow-rate controller and the predetermined flow rate.

Plasma processing apparatus and diagnosis method thereof

A vacuum processing apparatus includes a row of containers of vacuum transfer chambers connected to each other behind a lock chamber, a wafer being transferred through depressurized inside of the row of the containers of the vacuum transfer containers, an intermediate chamber disposed between the containers of the vacuum transfer chambers, a plurality of processing units including processing containers respectively connected to left or right side walls of the containers of the vacuum transfer chambers and the wafer is processed therein, and a bypass chamber which constitutes a bypass path connecting the processing units, where only either the wafer which is being transferred from the lock chamber toward one of the processing units or the wafer which was processed in one of the processing units and is being transferred toward the lock chamber is transferred through the containers of the vacuum transfer chambers.

Vacuum processing apparatus and operating method of the same

A method and system of holding a substrate to decrease foreign substances on the back surface thereof. The substrate holding system includes a ring-shaped leakage-proof surface having a smooth surface on the specimen table corresponding to the periphery of the substrate, contact holding portions within the periphery of the substrate, and electrostatic attraction means for fixing the substrate by contacting the back surface thereof to the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portions. The substrate contacts a cooling surface at the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portion placed on a position inside the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface. The back surface of the substrate and the cooling surface do not contact each other in the large portion of the remaining area.

Method of holding substrate and substrate holding system

A method and system of holding a substrate where foreign substances on the back surface can be decreased. The substrate holding system comprises a ring-shaped leakage-proof surface having a smooth surface on the specimen table corresponding to the periphery of the substrate, a plurality of contact holding portions within the periphery of the substrate, and electrostatic attraction means for fixing the substrate by contacting the back surface of the substrate to the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portions. The substrate contacts to the cooling surface at the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portion placed on a position inside the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface. The back surface of the substrate and the cooling surface do not contact to each other in the large portion of the remaining area.

In a method of holding a substrate and a substrate holding system, the amount of foreign substances on the back surface of the substrate can be decreased, and only a small amount of foreign substances transferred from a mounting table to the substrate. For this purpose, the substrate holding system has a ring-shaped leakage-proof surface providing a smooth support surface on the specimen table corresponding to the periphery of the substrate, a plurality of contact holding portions which bear against the substrate on the specimen table between the corresponding position to the periphery of the substrate and the corresponding position to the center of the substrate, and electrostatic attraction means for fixing the substrate by contacting the back surface of the substrate to the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portions. The substrate is exposed to a cooling surface at the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portion placed at a position inside the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface. The back surface of the substrate and the cooling surface do not contact each other in the large portion of the remaining area.

Present invention provides a method of holding substrate and a substrate holding system where the amount of foreign substances on the back surface can be decreased, and a little amount of foreign substances may be transferred from a mounting table to a substrate. The substrate holding system comprises a ring-shaped leakage-proof surface having smooth surface on the specimen table corresponding to the periphery of the substrate, a plurality of contact holding portions against the substrate on the specimen table between the corresponding position to the periphery of the substrate and the corresponding position to the center of the substrate, and electrostatic ttraction means for fixing the substrate by contacting the back surface of the substrate to the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portions. The substrate contacts to the cooling surface at the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portion placed on a position inside the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface. The back surface of the substrate and the cooling surface do not contact to each other in the large portion of the remaining area.

A substrate holding system is provided for holding a substrate in a substrate etching apparatus by using electrostatic force. An electrical insulating member is also provided having a top surface approximately at the same level as the treated surface of the substrate and having an inner side surface in adjacent relationship with a surface of the substrate forming the periphery of the substrate. The inner side surface of the electrical insulating member faces the periphery of the substrate in substantially parallel relationship with a direction normal to the treated surface of the substrate. A dielectric film is formed on one surface of a metallic member having a flow passage for circulating a coolant to control the temperature of the substrate. An electrically insulating material member is placed on and in contact with a surface of the metallic member. An electrically conductive material member grounded to a standard electric potential is placed on and in contact with a surface of the electrically insulating material member. Three kinds of members are overlaid and fixed to each other in order of the metallic member having the dielectric film, the electrically insulating material member and the standard electric potential member. A coolant hole penetrates from the standard electric potential member side to the coolant flow passage of the metallic member being formed, at least three through holes penetrating the three kinds of members being formed and movable members linked to a substrate transporting mechanism being inserted in the through holes.

Substrate holding system including an electrostatic chuck

In a method of holding a substrate and a substrate holding system, the amount of foreign substances on the back surface of the substrate can be decreased and only a small amount of foreign substances transferred from a mounting table to the substrate. For this purpose, the substrate holding system has a ring-shaped leakage-proof surface providing a smooth support surface on the specimen table corresponding to the periphery of the substrate, a plurality of contact holding portions which bear against the substrate on the specimen table between the corresponding position to the periphery of the substrate and the corresponding position to the center of the substrate, and electrostatic attraction means for fixing the substrate by contacting the back surface of the substrate to the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portions. The substrate is exposed to a cooling surface at the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portion placed at a position inside the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface. The back surface of the substrate and the cooling surface do not contact each other in the large portion of the remaining area.

In a method of holding a substrate and a substrate holding system, the amount of foreign substances on the back surface of the substrate can be decreased and only a small amount of foreign substances transferred from a mounting table to the substrate. For this purpose, the substrate holding system has a ring-shaped leakage-proof surface providing a smooth support surface on the specimen table corresponding to the periphery of the substrate, a plurality of contact holding portions which bear against the substrate on the specimen table between the corresponding position to the periphery of the substrate and the corresponding position to the center of the substrate, and electrostatic attraction means for fixing the substrate by contacting the back surface of the substrate to the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portions. The substrate is exosed to a cooling surface at the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portion placed at a position inside the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface. The back surface of the substrate and the cooling surface do not contact each other in the large portion of the remaining area.

Growing community of inventors

Kudamatsu, Japan

Yoshifumi Ogawa