Connection structure, magnetic annealing device using same, and connecting method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10473399-B2
Application number	US-201615001391-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 20, 2016
Priority date	Jan 23, 2015
Publication date	Nov 12, 2019
Grant date	Nov 12, 2019

Abstract

Disclosed is a connection structure that connects a housing to a magnetic annealing furnace that is provided with a fixedly arranged magnet and includes a first drum flange having a cylindrical flange portion. The connection structure includes: a second drum flange that is attached and fixed to the housing and includes a flange portion configured to externally or internally fit the flange portion of the first drum flange thereto; a first sealant that is installed between facing surfaces of the housing and the second drum flange; and a second sealant that is installed between facing surfaces of the first and second drum flanges.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A connection structure comprising:
a first drum flange that is attached and fixed to a magnetic annealing furnace that is provided with a fixedly arranged magnet and includes a first flange portion having a cylindrical shape;
a second drum flange that is attached and fixed to a housing and includes a second flange portion having a cylindrical shape configured to externally or internally fit the first flange portion of the first drum flange thereto in order to connect the housing to the magnetic annealing furnace;
a first sealant that is installed between surfaces of the housing and the second drum flange which are opposite to each other in an axial direction of the first drum flange and the second drum flange, in order to hermetically connect the housing and the magnetic annealing furnace permanently in the axial direction; and
a second sealant that is installed between surfaces of the first flange portion and the second flange portion which are opposite to each other in a diametrical direction of the first drum flange and the second drum flange, when the first drum flange and the second drum flange are hermetically connected in the diametrical direction for the magnetic annealing furnace to be closed by the housing.

2. The connection structure of claim 1 , wherein a first groove is formed on one of the surfaces of the housing and the second drum flange and a second groove is formed on one of the surfaces of the first and second flange portions, the first and second sealants being installed in the first and second grooves, respectively.

3. The connection structure of claim 2 , wherein the first and second sealants are O-rings.

4. The connection structure of claim 3 , wherein the O-ring used as the second sealant has a crush rate that is set to be 7% to 20%.

5. The connection structure of claim 1 , wherein each of the first and second drum flanges includes an attachment portion having a surface that forms a right angle with the surface of the first flange portion and the second flange portion, respectively, from one end of the first flange portion and the second flange portion, respectively, the attachment portion being configured to be attached to a planar surface.

6. The connection structure of claim 5 , wherein the magnetic annealing furnace includes a substrate carry-in port, and the attachment portion of the first drum flange is fixed to a planar surface around the substrate carry-in port of the magnetic annealing furnace by a fixing member.

7. The connection structure of claim 5 , wherein the attachment portion of the second drum flange is fixed to a planar surface of an outer wall of the housing via the first sealant by a fixing member.

8. The connection structure of claim 6 , wherein the fixing member is a bolt.

9. The connection structure of claim 1 , wherein the second flange portion of the second drum flange is inserted into and fixed to the inside of the first flange portion of the first drum flange via the second sealant.

10. The connection structure of claim 1 , wherein at least one of surfaces of the magnetic annealing furnace and the housing which are opposite to each other in the axial direction of the first drum flange and the second drum flange is provided with a guide pin for positioning.

11. A magnetic annealing apparatus comprising:
a housing;
a magnetic annealing furnace that is provided with a fixedly arranged magnet; and
a connection structure that connects the housing to the magnetic annealing furnace, the connection structure including:
a first drum flange that is attached and fixed to the magnetic annealing furnace and includes a first flange portion having a cylindrical shape;
a second drum flange that is attached and fixed to the housing and includes a second flange portion having a cylindrical shape configured to externally or internally fit the first flange portion of the first drum flange thereto in order to connect the housing to the magnetic annealing furnace;
a first sealant that is installed between surfaces of the housing and the second drum flange which are opposite to each other in an axial direction of the first drum flange and the second drum flange, in order to hermetically connect the housing and the magnetic annealing furnace permanently in the axial direction; and
a second sealant that is installed between surfaces of the first flange portion and the second flange portion which are opposite to each other in a diametrical direction of the first drum flange and the second drum flange, when the first drum flange and the second drum flange are hermetically connected in the diametrical direction for the magnetic annealing furnace to be closed by the housing.

12. The magnetic annealing apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the housing is a load chamber configured to carry a substrate into the magnetic annealing furnace.

13. The magnetic annealing apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising:
a fixing member configured to fix the housing to a floor after the magnetic annealing furnace and the housing are connected to each other through the connection structure.

14. A method of connecting, the method comprising:
providing a first drum flange that is attached and fixed to a magnetic annealing furnace that is provided with a fixedly arranged magnet and includes a first flange portion having a cylindrical shape;
semi-fixing a second drum flange, which includes a second flange portion having a cylindrical shape configured to externally or internally fit the first flange portion of the first drum flange thereto in order to connect a housing to the magnetic annealing furnace, and an attachment portion having a planar surface expanding vertically to a surface of the second flange portion from one end of the second flange portion, to an outer wall of the housing via a first sealant by using a fixing member in order to hermetically connect the housing and the magnetic annealing furnace permanently in an axial direction of the first drum flange and the second drum flange;
installing a second sealant on the second flange portion of the second drum flange;
fitting the second drum flange to the first drum flange via the second sealant in order to hermetically connect the second drum flange to the first drum flange in a diametrical direction of the first drum flange and the second drum flange; and
fixing the second drum flange to the outer wall of the housing by using the fixing member for the magnetic annealing furnace to be closed by the housing.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising:
fixing the housing onto a floor, after the fixing of the second drum flange to the outer wall of the housing.

16. The method of claim 14 , wherein a guide pin for positioning is installed on at least one of facing surfaces of the magnetic annealing furnace and the housing, and
the fitting of the second drum flange to the first drum flange via the second sealant to connect the second drum flange to the first drum flange is performed while the positioning of the second drum flange is performed by using the corresponding guide pin.

17. The method of claim 14 , wherein the fixing member is a bolt,
the semi-fixing of the second drum flange to the outer wall of the housing via the first sealant by the fixing member is performed by fastening the bolt halfway, and
the fixing of the second drum flange onto the outer wall of the housing is performed by tightening the bolt to the end of the bolt thread.

18. The magnetic annealing apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the fixing member includes:
a frame that fixes the housin

Assignees

• Tokyo Electron Ltd

Inventors

• Colgan Ian
• Eyres George
• Domsa Ioan
• Sato Junichi
• Hasegawa Koyu
• Abe Tomoaki

Classifications

• H10P72/3311

  Horizontal transfer of a batch of workpieces · CPC title

• H10P72/0441

  Apparatus for sealing, encapsulating, glassing, decapsulating or the like · CPC title

• H10P72/0434

  mainly by convection · CPC title

• C21D9/0006

  Details, accessories not peculiar to any of the following furnaces (control devices C21D11/00) · CPC title

• F27D3/0084 Primary

  Charging; Manipulation of SC or SC wafers · CPC title