Cluster tool batchloader of substrate carrier
US5613821A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 6, 1995 |
| Grant date | Mar 25, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 6, 2015 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S414/139
- WIPO fieldSemiconductors
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A system is provided for batch loading semiconductor wafers into a load lock from a portable carrier used for supporting a plurality of the wafers in spaced relationship and transporting them in a particle free environment. The carrier is supported adjacent a load lock chamber also having a particle free environment. A multilevel end effector associated with the load lock chamber includes a plurality of spaced end effector sets, each set being adapted to support a wafer thereon and aligned with an associated wafer supported in the carrier. The plurality of wafers are engaged and simultaneously retrieved as a grouping, then held in the load lock chamber for subsequent transport, one at a time, into an adjacent transport chamber for delivery to a specified one of a plurality of processing stations. A mini-environment sealingly isolates the load lock chamber and the interior of the carrier from the surrounding atmosphere. After transfer of the plurality of wafers from the carrier to the load lock chamber, the carrier and the load lock chamber are sealed and the load lock chamber and transport chambers are evacuated. A variety of mechanisms are provided for moving the end effector sets…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.