Substrate processing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11495477-B2
Application number	US-201816138383-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 21, 2018
Priority date	Aug 4, 2015
Publication date	Nov 8, 2022
Grant date	Nov 8, 2022

Abstract

Provided is a technique in which a heating-up time inside a process chamber is reduced. The technique includes a substrate processing apparatus including a process chamber where a substrate is processed, a substrate retainer configured to support the substrate in the process chamber, a process gas supply unit configured to supply a process gas into the process chamber, a first heater installed outside the process chamber and configured to heat an inside of the process chamber, a thermal insulating unit disposed under the substrate retainer, a second heater disposed in the thermal insulating unit and configured to heat the inside of the process chamber, and a purge gas supply unit configured to supply a purge gas into the thermal insulating unit to purge an inside of the thermal insulating unit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a reaction tube defining a process chamber, wherein the process chamber comprises: a process region where a substrate is processed; and a thermal insulating region under the process region, and the reaction tube comprises: a gas exhaust space that protrudes toward an outside of the reaction tube; a first exhaust provided on a partition between the gas exhaust space and a side of the process region and configured to laterally exhaust an atmosphere of the process region; a second exhaust provided discontinuously to the first exhaust on a partition between the gas exhaust space and the thermal insulating region and disposed at a height corresponding to the thermal insulating region and configured to exhaust an atmosphere of the thermal insulating region; and a gas exhaust port that communicates with the gas exhaust space and configured to connect the reaction tube to an exhaust pipe;
a substrate retainer configured to support the substrate in the process region of the process chamber;
a process gas supply unit configured to supply a process gas into the process chamber;
a heater installed in the thermal insulating region and configured to heat the substrate;
a thermal insulating unit disposed under the substrate retainer and comprising a cylinder accommodating the heater; and
a purge gas supply pipe and a purge gas supply valve communicating with a purge gas supply port, the purge gas supply port opens inside the cylinder of the thermal insulating unit and is configured to be able to supply a purge gas and expose the heater to the purge gas, the purge gas supply port is formed as a ring-shaped opening and disposed in the thermal insulating unit at a height higher than that of the second exhaust.

2. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first exhaust comprises a plurality of gas exhaust slits corresponding to a plurality of substrates including the substrate, and
an opening area of the second exhaust is greater than that of each of the plurality of gas exhaust slits but is smaller than a total opening area of the plurality of gas exhaust slits.

3. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the thermal insulating unit further comprises insulating discs including at least one reflective disc or at least one thermal insulation disc that are accommodated in the cylinder, and
wherein the heater comprises a heater wire disposed below the substrate and above one of the insulating discs inside the thermal insulating unit and configured to heat the substrates from below.

4. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a support member supporting a thermal insulating disc; and
a base member fixed to an upper end of a rotary shaft and supporting the support member.

5. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device using the apparatus of claim 1 , comprising:
(a) placing the substrate on the substrate retainer; and
(b) processing the substrate while supplying the process gas into the process chamber with the process gas supply unit, wherein in the step (b), an inside of the thermal insulating unit is purged with the purge gas from the purge gas supply port.

6. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the reaction tube further comprises a flange that protrudes toward the outside of the reaction tube at a lower end of the reaction tube, and
wherein the gas exhaust space connects with the flange and extends to an upper end of the reaction tube.

7. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the reaction tube further comprises a nozzle connected to the process gas supply unit and extended in a direction in which a plurality of substrates including the substrate are stacked, the nozzle comprising gas supply holes through which a gas is supplied toward the substrates.

8. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the process gas supply unit comprises:
a first gas supply pipe connected to a nozzle and configured to supply at least one of a source gas and a reaction gas;
a first mass flow controller configured to control a flow through the first gas supply pipe;
a first valve serving as an opening and closing valve;
a second gas supply pipe connected to a downstream side of the first gas supply pipe and configured to supply an inert gas;
a second mass flow controller; and
a second valve.

9. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a gas supply space protruding toward the outside of the reaction tube so as to face the gas exhaust space wherein the gas supply space and the gas exhaust space are on an outside of the process chamber, wherein the process chamber and the gas supply space are divided by a partition,
wherein the reaction tube further comprises a nozzle provided in the gas supply space to be connected to the process gas supply unit and extended in a direction in which a plurality of substrates including the substrate are stacked, the nozzle comprising gas supply holes through which a gas is supplied toward the substrates.

10. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising exhaust holes located at a lower portion of the thermal insulating unit lower than the second exhaust and configured to discharge the purge gas from the thermal insulating unit into the process chamber.

11. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the cylinder has a closed upper end and the exhaust holes are formed at a bottom of the thermal insulating unit.

12. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising a manifold provided under the flange and having a diameter greater than that of an inner wall of the reaction tube and forming an annular space inside the manifold and under the flange.

13. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising exhaust holes located at a lower portion of the thermal insulating unit on a side of the insulating region which is opposite to the second exhaust and configured to discharge the purge gas from the thermal insulating unit into the process chamber,
wherein an upper end of the second exhaust is higher than an upper end of the gas exhaust port, and a lower end of the second exhaust is higher than a lower end of the gas exhaust port.

14. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the cylinder has a diameter greater than that of the substrate and a gap between the reaction tube and the cylinder is set within a range from 7.5 mm to 15 mm.

15. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the purge gas is supplied into an inner space of the thermal insulating unit from an upper portion of the inner space of the thermal insulating unit at a first location below the heater and exits the inner space at a second location below the first location, the first location being an upper end of a space between a pillar of the heater and the support member and the second location corresponding with the exhaust holes, and
wherein the purge gas suppresses a formation of a film on the heater.

16. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a reaction tube defining a process chamber, wherein the process chamber comprises: a process region where a substrate is processed; and a thermal insulating region under the process region, and the reaction tube comprises: a gas exhaust space that protrudes toward an outside of the reaction tube; a first exhaust provided on a partition between the gas exhaust space and a side of the process region and configured to laterally exhaust an atmosphere of the process region; a second exha

Assignees

• Kokusai Electric Corp

Inventors

• Saido Shuhei
• Yoshida Hidenari
• Yamaguchi Takatomo
• Nakada Takayuki
• Taniyama Tomoshi

Classifications

• H10P72/7626

  characterised by the construction of the shaft · CPC title

• H10P72/0402

  Apparatus for fluid treatment (H10P72/0441, H10P72/0448 take precedence) · CPC title

• H10P72/0434 Primary

  mainly by convection · CPC title

• H10P72/0431 Primary

  Apparatus for thermal treatment · CPC title

• C23C16/46

  characterised by the method used for heating the substrate (C23C16/48, C23C16/50 take precedence) · CPC title