The apparatus comprises an endless tunnel having a wall provided with openings giving access to processing chambers in a locked chamber which has a panel sealing the apparatus from the external environment. A conveyor which follows a closed path is arranged in the tunnel and is provided with seats for containers with articles to be processed and transport means for introducing articles carried by the conveyor into positions opposite to a chamber into a respective chamber. The apparatus has structure by which the environments in the tunnel and in each of the chambers can be controlled. The chambers can each be sealed from the tunnel in a vacuum-tight manner. By means of this apparatus articles, which are screened from the surroundings in a vacuum-tight manner, can be subjected in a controlled environment to a variety of processing steps.
A method for forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate wherein the substrate is transferred between an auxiliary chamber having an inert atmosphere to a reaction chamber having a reactive atmosphere, and wherein the inert and the reactive atmospheres exist concurrently during transfer.
The present invention comprises a reaction furnace including a fixed capsule having an air atmosphere to be replaced with a predetermined atmosphere, with a semiconductor member to be treated placed therein. A movable capsule initially receives the member and has an atmosphere replaced with a predetermined one before the member to be treated is transferred to the fixed capsule. The movable capsule receives the member at a receiving location and is moved to a delivery location where it is connected to a loading chamber. A method of operating the reaction furnace is also disclosed.
Pre- and post-processing of a semiconductor wafer within a main vacuum chamber is accomplished by a wafer holder disposed within a clam shell-like device. The clam shell device includes a first member disposed above the wafer holder and a second member disposed below the wafer holder in a facing relationship to the first member. The first member and the second member each have a respective mating surface. The first member and the second member are movable between a closed position wherein the mating surface of each of the first member and second member hermetically engage each other in an open position. The clam shell device forms an interior chamber when in its closed position. Gases are evacuated from the interior chamber, exteriorally of the main chamber, when the clam shell device is in in a closed position to avoid contamination of the vacuum environment.
A processing system for workpieces such as semiconductor wafers is disclosed which incorporates multiple, isolated vacuum stages between the cassette load lock station and the main vacuum processing chambers. A vacuum gradient is applied between the cassette load lock and the main processing chambers to facilitate the use of a very high degree of vacuum in the processing chambers without lengthy pump down times. Separate robot chambers are associated with the vacuum processing chambers and the load lock(s). In addition, separate transport paths are provided between the two robot chambers to facilitate loading and unloading of workpieces. Pre-treatment and post-treatment chambers may be incorporated in the two transport paths.
In molecular beam epitaxial growth of GaAs substrate, a compound semiconductor thin film having Ga and As is grown by Ga beam and As beam in MBE chamber and then the substrate is transferred to an annealing chamber where the substrate is annealed under As vapor pressure. The above process is repeated to a predetermined layer level whereby it eliminates divergence from stoichiometric.
