JP2000273615A - Method for removing deposited film on surface of substrate holder in film forming apparatus and film forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To effectively solve the problem that a thin film deposited on a substrate holder is peeled off and becomes particles and adheres to a substrate. SOLUTION: A substrate holder 90 in which a film is deposited on the surface of a holding claw 91 is provided in a film forming chamber 51, 52, 53, 54,
The substrate 9 is moved without holding the substrate 9 to a film removal chamber 70 which is branched and provided so that vacuum is communicated with a rectangular transfer path 80 in which a plurality of vacuum chambers including 50 are vertically provided. A high frequency power supply 73 is connected to the holder main body 92 via a movable electrode 74, and a high frequency electric field is set in the film removal chamber 70. High-frequency discharge is generated in the gas introduced by the gas introduction system 72 to form plasma, and the holding claws 9
1 is sputter-etched by ion bombardment and removed in vacuum.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a film forming apparatus for forming a predetermined thin film on a surface of a substrate, and more particularly, to a film deposited on a surface of a substrate holder for holding a substrate in such an apparatus. With regard to the removal of

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Formation of a predetermined thin film on the surface of a substrate is actively performed in the manufacture of semiconductor devices such as LSIs, display devices such as liquid crystal displays, and information recording disks such as hard disks. Such a film forming apparatus includes:
In order to hold a substrate at a predetermined position in a film forming chamber where a film is formed, a substrate holder having a specific configuration is provided. The thin film should be deposited only on the substrate, but particles depositing the thin film adhere to not only the surface of the substrate but also the surface of the substrate holder. For this reason, a thin film is deposited on the surface of the substrate holder. Such film deposition on the substrate holding surface causes problems such as impairing the quality of processing. Hereinafter, this point will be described by taking a film forming apparatus for an information recording disk substrate as an example.

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a schematic structure of a conventional film forming apparatus for an information recording disk substrate. The apparatus shown in FIG. 9 has a configuration including a plurality of vacuum chambers 1, 2, 501 which are vertically provided in an airtight manner along a transfer path 80. Also,
A substrate holder 90 for holding the substrate 9 and a moving mechanism (not shown) for moving the substrate holder 90 along the transport path 80 are provided.

FIG. 10 is a schematic front view showing the structure of the substrate holder 90 shown in FIG. The substrate holder 90 mainly includes a plate-shaped holder main body 92 and a holding claw 91 attached to the holder main body 92. The holding claws 91 hold one substrate 9 in a set of three. Each holding claw 91 is a metal leaf spring bent in an L-shape. The holder main body 92 has two circular openings slightly larger than the substrate 9 as shown in FIG. The holder main body 92 has a substantially L-shaped opening extending from the circular opening, and each holding claw 91 is located in this opening. The holding claw 91 is fixed to the holder main body 92 by screwing, and the tip of the
Edge is locked. The tip of the holding claw 91 is V-shaped. Then, the edge of the substrate 9 is
It is designed to be dropped at the tip of the character.

[0005] Of these three holding claws 91, the lower holding claw 91 is a movable holding claw. That is, there is provided a lever 93 for pushing down the holding claw 91 against its elasticity. When mounting the substrate 9 on the substrate holder 90, the lower holding claw 91 is pushed down by the lever 93, and the substrate 9 is positioned in the center circular opening of the holder main body 92. Then, the lever 93 is returned to return the lower holding claw 91 to the original posture by its elasticity. As a result, the substrate 9 is locked by the three holding claws 91,
The two substrates 9 are held by the substrate holder 90. When the substrate 9 is collected from the substrate holder 90, the operation is completely the opposite. As can be seen from FIG. 10, the substrate 9 is held by the substrate holder 90 in an upright posture. The plate surface of the substrate 9 held by the substrate holder 90 faces the side of the transport path 80.

On the other hand, one of a plurality of vacuum chambers shown in FIG. 9 is a load lock chamber 1 for mounting a substrate 9 on a substrate holder 90, and another is a load lock chamber 1 from the substrate holder 90. The unload lock chamber 2 for collecting the substrate 9 is provided. Further, one of the other vacuum chambers 501 is a film forming chamber for forming a predetermined thin film on the surface of the substrate 9. The remaining vacuum chamber 501 may be configured as a heating chamber for heating the substrate 9 prior to film formation, or may be configured as a second film formation chamber when forming a multilayer film.

In the apparatus shown in FIG. 9, a return mechanism (not shown) for returning the mechanism from which the substrate 9 has been recovered in the unload lock chamber 2 to the load lock chamber 1 is provided on the atmosphere side. Therefore, the substrate holder 90 circulates through the plurality of vacuum chambers 1, 2, 501 and the return mechanism, and is used for holding the substrate 9 many times.

[0008]

In the conventional film forming apparatus described above, the substrate 9 is moved to the film forming chamber 501 while being held by the substrate holder 90, and the surface of the substrate 9 is formed. For this reason, the thin film is not only formed on the surface of the substrate 9,
It is also deposited on the surface of the substrate holder 90. Therefore, there were the following problems. This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a problem of the conventional technique.

FIG. 11 shows the tip of the holding claw 91 shown in FIG. 10 and the peripheral edge of the substrate 9 locked at the tip. First, as shown in FIG. 11A, the thin film 94 is deposited not only on the surface of the substrate 9 but also on the surface of the holding claws 91. More specifically, the thin film 94 is deposited from the holding claws 11 over the periphery of the substrate 9. Therefore, when the substrate 9 is recovered from the substrate holder 90 after the film formation, as shown in FIG.
Except for the portion where the substrate 9 was located, the thin film 94 remains. The substrate holder 90 is used for holding the substrate 9 many times as described above, but when the substrate 9 is mounted next, it is hardly held at the same position as the previous position. . That is, as shown in FIG. 3C, the peripheral edge of the substrate 9 is put on the deposited thin film 94.

At this time, the thin film 94 is peeled off by the impact on the substrate 9, and the peeled thin film 94 is scattered as particles 95 (to be referred to as particles hereinafter) of a certain size. When the particles 95 adhere to the surface of the substrate 9, a local thickness abnormality occurs. In the case of an information recording disk such as a hard disk, a local abnormal film thickness is likely to cause a defect such as a sector defect.

In particular, recent information recording disks have been used up to a marginal area near the periphery of the surface of the substrate 9 in order to improve the recording capacity. The above-described particles often adhere to corners at a limited distance from the periphery, and rarely adhere to parts from the center. For this reason, it was not a problem before the portion near the peripheral edge was not used, but it has become a serious problem recently, when the portion near the peripheral edge is used. Furthermore, in recent information recording disks, the distance between sectors has been reduced in order to improve the recording density. For this reason, even a slight abnormality in film thickness (for example, formation of a projection) is likely to cause a recording error. For example, in the case of a high-density recording hard disk of about 20 gigabits / square inch, even a small particle having a diameter of only about 0.2 μm causes a recording error.

Means for solving such a problem include:
It is conceivable to make the thin film 94 deposited on the surface of the substrate holder 90 difficult to peel off. For example, holding claws 9
The surface of 1 is subjected to blast processing (processing of spraying fine particles such as sand) to form fine irregularities on the surface.
Since the deposited thin film is in a state in which the thin film is cut into the unevenness, the thin film is hardly peeled off. As another method, there is a method of forming irregularities on the surface by spraying a molten metal or the like. However, when a blasting process or a spraying process is performed, the holding claws 91 are easily damaged. The holding claws 91 are as thin as possible so as not to block the arrival of the film forming material on the surface of the substrate 9 during the film formation. Therefore, when processing such as blasting or thermal spraying is performed, there is a problem that the holding claws 91 are deformed or lose elasticity.

The invention of the present application has been made to solve such a problem, and has a technical significance of effectively solving a problem caused by peeling of a thin film deposited on a substrate holder.

[0014]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application provides a method for holding a substrate by a substrate holder in a film forming chamber maintained at a vacuum pressure. In a film forming apparatus for forming a predetermined thin film, the substrate holder is not taken out to the atmosphere side, but is positioned in another vacuum chamber or the film forming chamber airtightly connected to the film forming chamber. It has a configuration in which the deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder is removed in a vacuum. In order to solve the above-described problem, the invention according to claim 2 has a configuration in which, in the configuration of claim 1, the removal is performed without holding the substrate by the substrate holder. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the first or second aspect, the substrate holder is connected to the film forming chamber and the film forming chamber while holding the substrate. And transporting the substrate to and from another vacuum chamber. In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 4 is the method according to claim 1, 2, or 3, wherein the removing is performed by applying heat, light, or electric energy to the deposited film. This is performed by removing the deposited film from the substrate. In order to solve the above problem, the invention according to claim 5 is characterized in that, in the configuration of claim 1, 2 or 3, the removing is performed by irradiating ions to the deposited film and sputter etching the deposited film by ion bombardment. It has a configuration of performing it. In order to solve the above problem, the invention according to claim 6 is the method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the removing comprises supplying a reactive gas to the deposited film, and removing the reactive gas and the deposited film. The reaction is performed by utilizing the above reaction. To solve the above problems,
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of any one of the first to sixth aspects, the substrate is an information recording disk substrate. In order to solve the above problem, according to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the seventh aspect, the substrate holder includes a holding claw that locks a peripheral edge of the substrate,
And a holder main body to which the holding claws are fixed, wherein the removal is to remove a deposited film on the surface of the holding claws. In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 9 is directly or indirectly connected to a sputter chamber for forming a predetermined thin film on the surface of a substrate by sputtering, and to connect a vacuum to the sputter chamber. In a film forming apparatus having another vacuum chamber and a substrate holder for holding a substrate during film formation in a sputtering chamber, a film removing mechanism for removing a deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder in a vacuum is provided. It is configured to be provided in the other vacuum chamber or the sputtering chamber. In order to solve the above problem, the invention according to claim 10 is directly or indirectly connected to a film forming chamber for forming a predetermined thin film on the surface of a substrate so that a vacuum communicates with the film forming chamber. Another vacuum chamber and, while holding a substrate on which a film is being formed in the film forming chamber, a film forming apparatus having a substrate holder for transferring a substrate between the film forming chamber and the other vacuum chamber. A film removing mechanism for removing a deposited film from the surface of the substrate holder in a vacuum is provided in the another vacuum chamber or the film forming chamber. In order to solve the above problem, the invention according to claim 11 has the configuration according to claim 9 or 10, further comprising an autoloader that mounts the substrate on the substrate holder, and a control unit that controls the autoloader. The control unit is configured to perform control so that the substrate holder does not hold the substrate when the film removing mechanism performs the removal. In order to solve the above problem, according to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the ninth, tenth, or eleventh aspect, the film removing mechanism holds the substrate by applying heat, light, or electric energy to the deposited film. The removal is performed by peeling off the deposited film from the surface of the tool. In order to solve the above problem, according to the invention of claim 13, in the configuration of claim 9, 10, or 11, the film removing mechanism causes ions to be incident on the deposited film and sputters the deposited film by ion bombardment. The structure is such that the removal is performed by etching. In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 14 is the method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, further comprising a film removal chamber exclusively used for the removal, wherein the film removal chamber is the sputter chamber. Alternatively, it is connected directly or indirectly so that a vacuum communicates with the film forming chamber, and the film removing mechanism is provided in the film removing chamber. In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 15 is the invention according to any one of claims 9 to 14,
The sputtering chamber or the film forming chamber and the other vacuum chamber are vertically installed in an airtight manner along an endless transfer path, and a moving mechanism for moving the substrate holder along the transfer path is provided. Is provided, and the film removal chamber is connected to the sputtering chamber or the film formation chamber, or the other vacuum chamber in an airtight manner so as to branch off from the transfer path. Have. In order to solve the above problem, the invention according to claim 16 is the configuration according to claim 15, wherein one of the other vacuum chambers is a load lock chamber for mounting a substrate on a substrate holder. The film removal chamber has a configuration in which the substrate holder moved from the load lock chamber is branched from a portion of a transfer path between the vacuum chamber for processing and the load lock chamber where the substrate holder moves first.
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 17 has a structure according to any one of claims 9 to 16, wherein the substrate is an information recording disk substrate. In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, according to the invention of claim 18, in the configuration of claim 17, the substrate holder has a holding claw that locks a peripheral edge of the substrate, and a holder main body to which the holding claw is fixed. And the film removing mechanism removes the deposited film on the surface of the holding claw.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. In the following description, a film forming apparatus for an information recording disk substrate will be described as an example of a film forming apparatus. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a film forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the apparatus of the present embodiment, a plurality of vacuum chambers are vertically provided along a rectangular outline, and a rectangular transport path 80 is set along the vacuum chambers. Each vacuum chamber is a vacuum container that is evacuated by a dedicated or shared exhaust system. A gate valve 10 is provided at a boundary between the vacuum chambers. The substrate 9 is mounted on a substrate holder 90 and transported.

Of the plurality of vacuum chambers, two vacuum chambers arranged on one side of the square are provided with the substrate holder 90.
A load lock chamber 1 for mounting the substrate 9 on the substrate and an unload lock chamber 2 for collecting the substrate 9 from the substrate holder 90. The vacuum chambers arranged on the other three sides of the square are vacuum chambers for performing various processes. The vacuum chambers at the square corners are directional change chambers 31, 32, 33, and 34 provided with directional change mechanisms for changing the transfer direction of the substrate 9 by 90 degrees.

The substrate 9 held by the substrate holder 90
Is a preheat chamber 4 for preheating the substrate 9 to a predetermined temperature prior to film formation. Preheat chamber 4
The vacuum chambers in which the substrates 9 are sequentially conveyed after the preliminary heating in Steps 1 and 2 are film forming chambers 51, 52, 53, 54, and 50 for forming a predetermined thin film on the surface of the substrate 9.

In the apparatus of this embodiment, a moving mechanism for moving the substrate holder 90 holding the substrate 9 along the transport path 80 is provided. In the present embodiment, the substrates 9 are transported clockwise and are sequentially processed. The moving mechanism mainly includes a linear moving mechanism for linearly moving the substrate holder 90 and the direction changing mechanism described above. A linear movement mechanism for linearly moving the substrate holder 90 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 are views for explaining the configurations of the substrate holder 90 and the moving mechanism in the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2 is a schematic front view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a schematic side sectional view.

The structure of the substrate holder 90 is substantially the same as that shown in FIG.
And a holding claw 91 provided on the front side. Six holding claws 91 are provided in total, and three holding claws 91 form one set to hold one substrate 9. Therefore, the substrate holder 90 simultaneously holds two substrates 9. As shown in FIG. 2, the substrate holder 90 according to the present embodiment includes a large number of small magnets (hereinafter, holder-side magnets) 96 at its lower end. Each holder-side magnet 96 has magnetic poles on upper and lower surfaces. This holder-side magnet 96 is shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure, the magnetic poles are alternately reversed in the arrangement direction.

A partition 8 is provided below the substrate holder 90.
3, a magnetic coupling roller 81 is provided. The magnetic coupling roller 81 is a round bar-shaped member, and as shown in FIG. 2, an elongated magnet that extends spirally (hereinafter, roller-side magnet).
82. The roller-side magnet 82 is provided with two magnetic poles different from each other, and has a double spiral shape. The magnetic coupling roller 81 is configured such that the roller-side magnet 82 is
It is arranged so as to face the holder-side magnet 96 with 3 interposed therebetween. The partition 83 is formed of a material having high magnetic permeability, and the holder-side magnet 96 and the roller-side magnet 82 are
3 are magnetically coupled. The space on the substrate holder 90 side of the partition wall 83 is on the vacuum side (the inner side of each vacuum chamber).
And the space on the magnetic coupling roller 81 side is the atmosphere side.
Such a magnetic coupling roller 81 is provided along the rectangular transport path 80 shown in FIG.

Further, as shown in FIG.
Is mounted on a main pulley 84 that rotates about a horizontal rotation axis. A large number of main pulleys 84 are provided along the moving direction of the substrate holder 90. In addition, a pair of sub pulleys 85, 85 that rotate around a vertical rotation axis are in contact with the lower end portion of the substrate holder 90. The auxiliary pulleys 85, 85 hold the lower end portion of the substrate holder 90 so as to sandwich it from both sides, thereby preventing the substrate holder 90 from tipping over. The sub pulleys 85 are also provided in a large number in the moving direction of the substrate holder 90.

As shown in FIG. 3, a drive rod 86 is connected to the magnetic coupling roller 81 via a bevel gear. A drive motor 87 is connected to the drive rod 86 so that the magnetic coupling roller 81 is rotated around the central axis via the drive rod 86. When the magnetic coupling roller 81 rotates, the double spiral roller-side magnet 82 shown in FIG. 2 also rotates. At this time, the state in which the roller-side magnet 82 rotates is such that, when viewed from the holder-side magnet 96, a plurality of small magnets having different magnetic poles are alternately arranged in a line and linearly move integrally along the direction of the arrangement. It becomes a state equivalent to. Accordingly, the holder-side magnet 96 connected to the roller-side magnet 82 moves linearly with the rotation of the roller-side magnet 82, and as a result, the substrate holder 90 moves linearly as a whole. At this time, the main pulley 84 and the sub pulleys 85, 85 shown in FIG. 3 are driven.

The major feature of the film forming apparatus of this embodiment is that a film removing mechanism for removing the deposited film from the surface of the substrate holder 90 in a vacuum is provided. The point is that a film removal chamber 70 is provided.
As shown in FIG. 1, the film removal chamber 70 is airtightly connected to a first direction change chamber (hereinafter, first direction change chamber) 31 provided between the load lock chamber 1 and the preheat chamber 4. ing. As can be seen from FIG. 1, the film removal chamber 70 is in a state of branching from the first direction change chamber 31 with respect to the rectangular transport path 80. The gate valve 10 is provided between the first direction changing chamber 31 and the film removing chamber 70.

The configuration of the film removing chamber 70 and the film removing mechanism will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 shows a film removal chamber 7 provided in the apparatus shown in FIG.
FIG. 2 is a schematic side cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of No. 0. The film removal chamber 70 is also an airtight vacuum chamber like the processing chamber described above. Film removal chamber 70
Has an exhaust system 71. The evacuation system 71 is constituted by a vacuum pump such as a cryopump or a turbo molecular pump, and can exhaust the inside of the film removal chamber 70 to about 10 ⁻⁸ Torr. The film removing mechanism generates a high-frequency discharge in the film removing chamber 70 and removes the deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder 90 by sputter etching. Specifically, the film removal mechanism
A gas introduction system 72 for introducing a predetermined gas into the film removal chamber 70, a high-frequency power supply 73 for generating high-frequency discharge in the introduced gas, and the like.

The gas introduction system 72 introduces a gas such as argon, which is chemically inert, easily generates a discharge, and has a high sputtering rate. The gas introduction system 72
A flow controller (not shown) is provided so that gas can be introduced at a predetermined flow rate. As the high frequency power supply 73,
Those having a frequency of 13.56 MHz and an output of about 100 W to 300 W can be used. On the other hand, a movable electrode 74 is provided in the film removal chamber 70, and a transmission line 732 is provided so as to connect the high-frequency power supply 73 and the movable electrode 74 via a matching device 731. As the transmission line 732, for example, a coaxial cable is used.

The movable electrode 74 has an electrode rod 741 whose tip contacts the holder body 92 of the substrate holder 90, an electrode holder 742 holding the electrode rod 741, and an electrode holder 742 attached to the tip via an insulating material. It mainly comprises an electrode driving rod 743 and an electrode driving source 744 connected to the electrode driving rod 743. The electrode rod 741 has a substantially cylindrical shape, and the electrode holder 742 has a cylindrical shape in which the electrode rod 741 is housed. Electrode rod 741
Are slightly projected from the tip of the electrode holder 742. Also, an electrode rod 741 is provided in the electrode holder 742.
A coil spring 745 is provided so as to be sandwiched between the rear end and the inner surface of the electrode holder 742.

The electrode driving rod 743 passes through a through hole provided in the film removal chamber 70. The electrode driving rod 743 has a flange portion 746 at a portion located outside (atmosphere side) of the film removal chamber 70. A bellows 748 is provided between the flange 746 and the outer wall surface of the film removal chamber 70. Bellows 7
Numeral 48 prevents vacuum leakage from a penetrating portion of the electrode driving rod 743 or the like. Further, the electrode driving rod 743 is hollow, and a high-frequency introducing rod 747 is provided inside the electrode driving rod 743 via an insulating buffer material. The tip of the high-frequency introduction rod 747 is fixed to the electrode rod 741. Then, a portion of the electrode driving rod 743 located inside the bellows 748 includes:
An opening is provided. The transmission line 732 connected to the high-frequency power supply 73 passes through the flange portion 746 in an airtight manner and is connected to the high-frequency introduction rod 747 through this opening. The electrode drive source 744 uses, for example, an air-scilling so that the electrode drive rod 743 is moved back and forth by a predetermined stroke.

Next, the operation of the film removing chamber 70 and the film removing mechanism according to the above configuration will be described, also with the description of the embodiments of the method according to the first to eighth aspects. While holding the substrate 9, the deposition chambers 51, 52, 53, 54,
The substrate holder 90 moved into the substrate 50 and used for film formation is
As described above, a thin film is deposited on the surface of the holding claw 91. The substrate holder 90 is moved into the film removal chamber 70 by a moving mechanism without holding the substrate 9. After the substrate holder 90 moves to the film removal chamber 70, the gate valve 10 is closed.

The inside of the film removal chamber 70 is exhausted to a predetermined vacuum pressure by an exhaust system 71 in advance, and the pressure is maintained. Then, the electrode drive source 744 is driven, and the electrode drive rod 743 advances by a predetermined stroke. As a result, the electrode rod 741 also advances through the electrode holder 742 and contacts the side surface of the holder main body 92 as shown in FIG. At this time, the coil spring 745 is
The impact caused by the contact of the holder 41 with the holder main body 92 is absorbed. Therefore, abrasion of the electrode rod 741 and the like are suppressed. Also, due to the elasticity of the coil spring 745,
The contact of the electrode rod 741 with the holder main body 92 is reliably maintained. In this state, the high-frequency power supply 73 operates, and a high-frequency voltage is applied to the holder main body 92 via the electrode rod 741, the high-frequency introduction rod 747, and the transmission line 732. still,
Like the holder main body 92, the holding claws 91 are also made of metal, and a high-frequency voltage is also applied to the holding claws 91 via the holder main body 92.

When a high-frequency voltage is applied to the holder body 92 and the holding claws 91, an electric field is set between the holder body 92 and the wall of the film removal chamber 70 maintained at the ground potential, and the introduced gas is A high-frequency discharge is generated and a high-frequency discharge plasma is formed. At this time, there is a capacitance between the plasma and the high frequency power supply 73 due to a capacitor included in the matching unit 731 or a separately provided capacitor (not shown). When a high-frequency electric field is set via a capacitance in a space where plasma is formed, electrons and ions in the plasma act on charging and discharging of the capacitance. As a result, a negative DC voltage called a self-bias voltage is superimposed on the surface of the holding claw 91 due to a difference in mobility between electrons and ions. The surfaces of the main pulley 84 and the sub-pulley 85 are made of an insulating material, so that the substrate holder 90 is insulated from the ground potential and is at an insulating potential.

The ions in the plasma are accelerated by the self-bias voltage and are incident on the deposited film on the surface of the holding claw 91 to impact the deposited film. Thus, the deposited film is sputter-etched and removed from the holding claws 91. The material of the deposited film flipped out by the sputter etching is discharged from the film removal chamber 70 by the exhaust system 71.
After performing the sputter etching for a predetermined time, the high-frequency power source 7
3 is stopped. Thereafter, the electrode driving source 744 is driven to separate the electrode rod 741 from the holder main body 92.
Then, after the inside of the film removal chamber 70 is evacuated again, the substrate holder 90 is carried out of the film removal chamber 70.

More specific conditions will be described. In forming the information recording disk substrate, a magnetic film or a protective film is formed on the surface of the substrate 9. Therefore, these thin films are deposited on the surface of the holding claw 91, and the description will be made on the assumption that these thin films are removed. The material of the holding claws 91 is Inconel or the like. Argon gas is introduced from the gas introduction system 72, and the flow rate is set to 50 to 100 cc / min. By controlling the evacuation speed regulator of the evacuation system 71, the pressure in the film removal chamber 70 is maintained at about 0.05 to 0.11 Torr. The high frequency power supply 73 has a frequency of 13.56.
MHz output is set to about 200W. Under such conditions, high-frequency discharge plasma is formed and sputter etching is performed. When the deposited film is removed under these conditions, it is possible to remove the deposited film at an etching rate of about 4 nm / min. Particle adhesion can be sufficiently suppressed.

Next, another structure of the film removing mechanism will be described together with the description of another embodiment of the method of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic side sectional view illustrating another configuration of the film removing mechanism. The film removing mechanism of this example is configured to irradiate the deposited film on the surface of the holding claw 91 with light to remove the deposited film. More specifically, a light introduction window 751 is provided on the wall of the film removal chamber 70 in an airtight manner. The film removing mechanism includes a light source 752 that emits light of a predetermined wavelength.
And an optical system 753 for guiding the light from the light source 752 to irradiate the holding claws 91 in the film removal chamber 70 in a predetermined pattern. The optical system 753 is configured to split light from a light source 752 such as a laser, and to condense the light with a lens so as to form a pattern slightly larger than the tip of each holding claw 91.

In this example, light irradiation is used as means for applying thermal energy. The deposited film on the surface of the holding claw 91 is often deposited with a large internal stress. This may be because the holding claw 91 has a complicated shape as described above. Such a thin film having a high internal stress causes thermal distortion due to rapid heating and peels off. Therefore, if an infrared laser or an infrared lamp is adopted as the light source 752 and the light is condensed by the optical system and irradiated on the holding claws 91, the deposited film on the surface is peeled off by rapid heating.

An example in which light energy itself is used is also conceivable. For example, in some cases, such as light ashing, the deposited film is separated from the holding claws 91 by decomposing the deposited film by irradiation with ultraviolet rays. In any case, the peeled deposited film is similarly discharged from the film removal chamber 70 by the exhaust system 71.

FIG. 6 shows still another example of the film removing mechanism.
This will be described using. FIG. 6 is a schematic plan sectional view illustrating still another example of the film removing mechanism. In this example, the deposited film on the surface of the holding claw 91 is removed by the action of the reactive gas. That is, the film removing mechanism is constituted by the gas introduction system 761 for introducing the reactive gas.

As the reactive gas, for example, oxygen gas is used. When a metal-based thin film such as a magnetic thin film is contacted with a highly active reactive gas such as oxygen gas, fluorine gas or chlorine gas, it reacts rapidly (corrodes), becomes ragged and peels off from the holding claws 91. The holding claws 91 and the holder main body 92 are covered with a protective film so as not to be chemically damaged by such a reactive gas.

In some cases, the thin film is removed only by introducing the reactive gas. However, in order to perform the removal in a short time, a structure for applying energy to the thin film is employed. Specifically, a discharge is formed in the film removal chamber 70, and the film is removed using the impact of the discharge. A high-frequency electrode 762 is provided in the film removal chamber 70. The high-frequency electrode 762 is attached to an insulating block 763 that is hermetically inserted into the film removal chamber 7. The high-frequency electrode 762 is hollow inside, and has a gas blowing hole on the front surface. The gas introduction system 761 introduces a reactive gas into the film removal chamber 4 via the internal space of the high-frequency electrode 762.

A high-frequency power source 764 for applying a high-frequency voltage to the high-frequency electrode 762 to generate a high-frequency discharge is provided. The thin film that has reacted with the reactive gas is easily peeled off by the impact of the high-frequency discharge. The configuration shown in FIG. 6 can be applied to the configuration of the protective film forming chamber 50 shown in FIG. If the gas introduction system 761 is configured to introduce a mixed gas of an organic compound gas such as CH ₄ and hydrogen gas, a carbon protective film is formed on the surface of the substrate 9 by decomposition of the organic compound gas.

As a configuration of the film removing mechanism, a mechanism using electric energy may be considered. For example, when the thin film on the surface of the holding claw 91 is conductive, a configuration is conceivable in which a large current is instantaneously passed through the thin film and the thin film is peeled off by an impact due to energization. Since the internal stress of the thin film is high as described above, the thin film is easily peeled off when a large current is momentarily applied. In this configuration, a pair of probes that move automatically in the film removal chamber 70 is provided. The tip of the pair of probes is brought into contact with the holding claws 91, and a voltage is applied to both of the probes to energize the holding claws 91. In addition, a configuration in which the thin film is removed by ultrasonic waves can be considered. For example, both sides of the holding claw 91 are sandwiched between a pair of ultrasonic vibrators, and ultrasonic waves are applied to vibrate the thin film to separate it.

In any of the above configurations, the holding claws 91
Can be removed in a vacuum in the film removal chamber 70. The removal of the deposited film in a vacuum has the following technical significance. That is, in order to remove the deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder 90, a method in which the substrate holder 90 is taken out to the atmosphere side and the deposited film is manually scraped is considered. However, when the substrate holder 90 is taken out to the atmosphere side, oxygen, moisture, dust and the like in the atmosphere adhere to the substrate holder 90 and remain as it is.
When these are carried into the apparatus, these substances are brought into the apparatus via the substrate holder 90. As a result, there arise problems that the surface of the substrate 9 is contaminated by oxidation or the like, the formed thin film is oxidized, and the thin film contains foreign matter such as moisture or dust.

In order to prevent such a problem, it is necessary to take out the substrate holder 90 to the atmosphere side, delete the deposited film, perform cleaning such as surface cleaning, and then carry the substrate into the apparatus. For this reason, it is very troublesome, and productivity is significantly reduced. In addition, after loading the substrate holder 90, it is necessary to evacuate the vacuum chamber again, and to restart the process after confirming that the vacuum chamber is maintained at the predetermined pressure. It takes time. This point also causes a significant decrease in productivity. On the other hand, if the deposited film is removed in a vacuum as in the method of the present embodiment, procedures such as cleaning of the substrate holder 90 after the removal and exhaustion from the atmospheric pressure again become unnecessary. Therefore, the productivity is not significantly reduced.

Next, the configuration of each part of the embodiment of the film forming apparatus will be described again with reference to FIG. First, a loading robot 11 is provided in the load lock chamber 1. The mounting robot 11 is configured to hold the substrates 9 one by one from the mounting auxiliary chamber 12 by the arm thereof and mount the substrates 9 on the substrate holder 90. The unload lock chamber 2 is provided with a collection robot 21 having the same configuration as the mounting robot 11. The collection robot 21 is configured to hold the substrates 9 one by one from the substrate holder 90 by the arm thereof and carry the substrates 9 into the auxiliary collection chamber 22.

The four direction changing chambers 3 at the corners of the square are provided with a direction changing mechanism (not shown) for changing the direction of transport of the substrate 9 by 90 degrees. This turning direction configuration will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a schematic side view illustrating the configuration of the direction change mechanism provided in the direction change chambers 31, 32, 33, and 34 shown in FIG. The direction changing mechanism shown in FIG. 7 includes a holding body 61 which entirely holds a linear moving mechanism including a magnetic coupling roller (not shown in FIG. 7) having the same structure as described above, and holds the rotating body 61 by rotating the holding body 61. Body 6
1 mainly comprises a rotation motor 62 for rotating the whole.

First, a drive rod 86 is connected to a shaft of a magnetic coupling roller not shown in FIG. 7 via a movement conversion mechanism such as a bevel gear. At the rear end of the drive rod 86, another bevel gear 861 is provided as shown in FIG. A power transmission rod 88 having a vertical posture is connected to the other bevel gear 861. That is, a bevel gear 88 is provided at the tip of the power transmission rod 88.
1 is screwed into a bevel gear 861 at the rear end of the drive rod 86. The rear end of the power transmission rod 88 is
Output shafts are connected.

On the other hand, the holding member 61 constituting the direction changing mechanism
Is a columnar or cylindrical member, and is disposed with its axial direction being vertical. As shown in FIG. 7, the holding body 61 has a vertically long through-hole, and the power transmission rod 88 is disposed in a state of being inserted through the through-hole. A bearing 882 is disposed in a gap between the inner surface of the through hole and the power transmission rod 88, and holds the power transmission rod 88 in the through hole while allowing the power transmission rod 88 to rotate.

The holder 61 is disposed inside a substantially cylindrical holder cover 62 having a larger diameter. The holder cover 62 is attached to the bottom plate portion 300 of the direction change chambers 31, 32, 33, and 34 in which the direction change mechanism is disposed while holding and holding the holder 61 inside. That is, the direction change chambers 31, 32,
The bottom plate portion 33 of each of the base plates 33 and 34 has a circular opening having a size adapted to the outer diameter of the holder cover 62, and the holder cover 62 is fitted and fixed in this opening. A sealing material such as an O-ring is provided on a contact surface between the holder cover 62 and the bottom plate portion 300.

The gap between the holder cover 62 and the holding body 61 inside the holder cover 62 is provided so as to be sandwiched between four bearings 63 arranged vertically and two upper bearings 63. A mechanical seal 64 is provided. The mechanical seal 64 is for vacuum-sealing the gap between the holder 61 and the holder cover 62 while allowing the holder 61 to rotate, and a sealing mechanism using a magnetic fluid can be suitably used. .

On the other hand, a pulley mounting member 651 is provided on the lower surface of the holding body 61.
Is fixed to the lower end of the holder. The holder pulley 65 is arranged concentrically with the center axis of the holder 61. Further, a motor-side pulley 66 is disposed at a position at the same height as the holder-side pulley 65.
The output shaft of the rotation motor 62 projecting upward is connected to the motor-side pulley 66. A belt 67 is stretched so as to connect the motor-side pulley 66 and the holder-side pulley 65. Specifically, the holder-side pulley 65 and the motor-side pulley 66 are configured by timing pulleys, and the belt is configured by a timing belt.

A holding frame 68 as shown in FIG. 7 is fixed to the upper surface of the holding body 61. The holding frame 68 is for holding the substrate holder 90 and the magnetic coupling roller 81 shown in FIG. 2 as a whole. At the tip of the lower portion of the holding frame 68, several columns 681 are arranged as shown in FIG.
And a pair of sub pulleys 85, 85 are held. The space between the holding frame 68 and the holding body 61 is vacuum-sealed, and the direction change chamber 3 from the inside of the holding frame 68 is closed.
1, 32, 33, and 34 are prevented from leaking.

The operation of the direction change mechanism of the direction change chamber will be described. First, the moving motor 87
Is driven, a rotational drive is transmitted to a magnetic coupling roller (not shown in FIG. 7) via the power transmission rod 88 and the driving rod 86, and the magnetic coupling roller rotates. As a result, the upper substrate holder 90 moves linearly.

When the substrate holder 90 moves and reaches a predetermined position in the direction change chambers 31, 32, 33, 34,
The rotation motor 62 is driven. The power of the rotation motor 62 is transmitted from the pulley 66 on the motor side to the pulley 65 on the holder by the belt 67 to rotate the pulley 65 on the holder. Thereby, the upper holding body 61 rotates, and the linear moving mechanism held on the holding body 61 rotates as a whole. As a result, the substrate holder 90 also rotates. When the rotation angle reaches 90 degrees, the rotation motor 62 stops driving,
The rotation of the substrate holder 90 also stops. Thereby, the direction of conveyance of the substrate holder 90 is bent by 90 degrees.

Next, after receiving a predetermined control signal, the linear moving mechanism is further driven to move the substrate holder 90 along the transport path 80 bent by 90 degrees, and move the substrate holder 90 to the next vacuum chamber. 90 is conveyed. Therefore, even in the transport path 80 after being bent, the plate surface of the substrate 91 is directed to the side in the transport direction.

In the configuration of the direction change mechanism according to the above configuration, the control of the rotation at a predetermined angle such as 90 degrees may be performed by the control of the rotation motor 62 or the detection of the rotation of the holder 61 at the predetermined angle. This may be performed by a sensor mechanism or the like (not shown). The apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a control unit (not shown) that controls the entire apparatus. The control unit includes the moving mechanism, the loading robot 11, and the collection robot 2 described above.
1 and the like are controlled.

Next, the configuration of the preheat chamber 4 will be described. The preheating in the preheating chamber 4 is performed for the purpose of degassing, that is, releasing the occluded gas of the substrate 9. If the film is formed without degassing, there is a problem that bubbles are formed in the film due to release of the occlusion gas due to heat during the film formation, or the surface of the film is roughened due to foaming. For this reason, in the preheat chamber 4, the substrate 9
Is previously heated to about 100 to 300 ° C. The preheat chamber 4 is provided with a gas introduction system (not shown) for introducing an inert gas such as nitrogen into the inside, and a heating unit for heating the loaded substrate 9. As the heating means, a radiation heating means such as an infrared lamp is usually employed.

Each of the film forming chambers 51, 52, 53, 5
Nos. 4, 50 form a predetermined thin film by sputtering or CVD (chemical vapor deposition). As an example, a first base film forming chamber 51 which is a film forming chamber in which the substrate 9 is first transferred will be described as an example. FIG.
3 is a schematic plan sectional view showing a configuration of a first base film forming chamber 51. FIG.

The first base film forming chamber 51 forms a base film by sputtering. The first base film forming chamber 51 includes an exhaust system 55 for exhausting the inside and a gas introducing system 56 for introducing the process gas into the inside.
And a target 57 provided with the surface to be sputtered exposed in an internal space, a sputter power supply 58 for applying a voltage for sputter discharge to the target 57, and a magnet mechanism 59 provided behind the target 57. It is configured.

The evacuation system 55 is provided with a vacuum pump such as a cryopump or the like, so that the inside of the chamber for forming the first undercoating film is 10 ⁻⁸ T
It is configured to be able to exhaust up to about orr. Gas introduction system 56
Is configured such that a gas such as argon can be introduced at a predetermined flow rate as a process gas. The sputtering power source 58 is configured to apply a negative high voltage of about −300 V to −500 V to the target 57. The magnet mechanism 59 is for achieving magnetron discharge, and has a central magnet 5.
91, a ring-shaped peripheral magnet 592 surrounding the center magnet 591, and a plate-shaped yoke 593 connecting the center magnet 591 and the peripheral magnet 592. The target 57 and the magnet mechanism 59 are fixed to the base film forming chamber 51 via the insulating block 571. The first base film forming chamber 51 is electrically grounded.

While the process gas is being introduced by the gas introducing system 56, the inside of the first underlayer forming chamber 51 is maintained at a predetermined pressure by the exhaust system 55, and the sputtering power source 58 is operated in this state. As a result, a sputter discharge occurs and the target 57 is sputtered, and the material of the sputtered target 57 reaches the substrate 9 to form a predetermined base film on the surface of the substrate 9. As can be seen from FIG. 8, a set of the target 57, the magnet mechanism 59, and the sputtering power source 58
It is provided on both sides of the arrangement position of the substrate 9 in the first base film forming chamber 51 so that base films are formed on both surfaces of the substrate 9 at the same time.

Further, as shown in FIG.
The size of 7 is slightly larger than one substrate 9. The substrate holder 90 holding the two substrates 9 is
The substrate 9 moves in the first base film forming chamber 51 so that the two substrates 9 are sequentially positioned in front of the target 57. That is, first, the substrate 9 in the transport direction is positioned in front of the target 57, and a film is formed on the substrate 9. Then, after that, the substrate 9 is advanced by a predetermined distance, and the substrate 9 on the rear side in the transport direction is positioned in front of the target 57, and a film is formed on the substrate 9.

Each of the film forming chambers 51, 52, 53, 5
More specific configuration examples of 4, 50 will be described in the order in which the substrates 9 are transported. First base film forming chamber 51 described above
Is such that a Cr film is formed as a base film. Further, the substrate 9 is placed next to the first base film forming chamber 51.
Is a first magnetic film forming chamber 52 for forming a magnetic film by sputtering. In this embodiment, the magnetic film is made of CoCrT.
An a film is formed.

In the device of this embodiment, the underlayer and the magnetic film can be formed in two layers. That is,
The film forming chamber in which the substrate 9 is transferred next to the first magnetic film forming chamber 52 is the second base film forming chamber 53, and the film forming chamber in which the substrate 9 is transferred next is the second magnetic film forming chamber. It is a chamber 54. The second base film forming chamber 53 is a chamber for forming a Cr film as a base film similarly to the first base film forming chamber 51, and the second magnetic film forming chamber 54 is similarly formed of Co.
This is a chamber for forming a CrTa film as a magnetic film.

The film forming chamber in which the substrate 9 is transferred next to the second magnetic film forming chamber 54 is a protective film forming chamber 50 for forming a carbon protective film by CVD.
It is. Two protective film forming chambers 50 are provided. First, a protective film forming chamber 5 in which the substrate 9 is transferred.
At 0, a protective film of half the required thickness is formed, and in the next protective film forming chamber 50, a protective film of the other half thickness is formed. The protective film forming chamber 50 includes a process gas introducing system (not shown) for introducing an organic compound gas such as CH ₄ into the inside thereof, and a plasma forming means (not shown) for giving high frequency energy to the process gas to form plasma. I have. The organic compound gas is decomposed in the plasma, and a carbon thin film is deposited on the surface of the substrate 9.

The vacuum chamber in which the substrate 9 is transferred next to the protection film forming chamber 50 is the preliminary chamber 5
00. The spare chamber 500 is configured as a chamber for cooling the substrate 9 as needed. After passing through the preliminary chamber 500, the substrate 9 reaches the unload lock chamber 2 via the last turning chamber 34.

Next, the operation of the apparatus according to this embodiment having the above configuration will be described. In the apparatus of the present embodiment, in a normal operation state, the substrate holder 90 is always located in all the vacuum chambers except for the film removal chamber 70. Then, the substrate holder 90 in each vacuum chamber is simultaneously moved to the next vacuum chamber for each tact time determined by the operation time in the vacuum chamber (the rate-limiting chamber) where the most time-consuming operation is performed.

Focusing on the movement of the specific substrate 9, one substrate 9 is loaded into the substrate holder 90 in the load lock chamber 1.
, And is preheated in the preheat chamber 4. Then, the first underlayer forming chamber 51, the first magnetic film forming chamber 52, and the second underlayer forming chamber 5
3. Through the second magnetic film forming chamber 54, a laminated film of the base film and the magnetic film is formed in two layers. afterwards,
The substrate 9 is formed with a protective film in the protective film forming chamber 50, and reaches the unload lock chamber 2 via the auxiliary chamber 500. Then, it is collected from the substrate holder 90 in the unload lock chamber 2.

The substrate holder 90 circulates around the rectangular transport path 80 shown in FIG. 1 and is used many times in the above-described film formation processing of the substrate 9. Then, after being used for a predetermined number of film forming processes, the substrate holder 90 moves to the film removing chamber 70 without mounting the substrate 9. That is, when the control unit (not shown) determines that it is necessary to remove the deposited film from the specific substrate holder 90, it sends a control signal to the mounting robot 11 to control the substrate 9 not to be mounted. The substrate holder 90 is connected to the first direction changing chamber 3.
The substrate holder 90 is moved to the film removal chamber 70 through the gate valve 10 without being changed in direction at 1. Then, in the film removal chamber 70, the deposited film on the surface of the holding claw 91 is removed as described above.

The time required for removing the deposited film in the film removal chamber 70 is often longer than the tact time described above. That is, the substrate holder 90 is positioned in the film removal chamber 70 for several tact times to remove the deposited film. During this time, the other substrate holder 90 is moved to the vacuum chamber for the next tact time, as described above, to perform the operation. Therefore, the place where the substrate holder 90 is located in the film removal chamber 70 is in a so-called “missing tooth” state. In the state of the missing tooth, each substrate holder 9
0 moves simultaneously to the next vacuum chamber every tact time.

When the removal of the deposited film in the film removal chamber 70 is completed, the control unit moves the substrate holder 90.
Is returned to the rectangular transport path 80. For example, when each of the substrate holders 90 almost makes a round of the rectangular transport path 80 and the position of the tooth dropping just reaches the position of the load lock chamber 1, the control unit controls the mounting robot 11 to Do not perform the mounting operation. Then, in the movement for the next tact, the control unit returns to the film removal chamber 70.
The substrate holder 90 located in the first direction change chamber 31
The moving mechanism is controlled so as to be transferred to the pre-heat chamber 4 through. As a result, the substrate holders 90 are located in all the vacuum chambers except the film removal chamber 70, and the operation is repeated in the same manner.

When the substrate holder 90 is returned from the film removal chamber 70 before the missing portion does not go around,
The control unit performs control to move the missing portion. In other words, the controller holds the substrate holder 90 located in each vacuum chamber from the preheat chamber 4 to the vacuum chamber immediately before the vacuum chamber that is missing at that time.
At the same time is moved one vacuum chamber forward. As a result, the preheat chamber 4 is in a toothless state. Then, the control unit moves the substrate holder 90 from the film removal chamber 70 to the preheat chamber 4. After that, the above-described operation is performed in each of the vacuum chambers and the preheat chamber 4 in which the substrate holder 90 has moved. During this tact, no work is performed in the other vacuum chamber, and the vacuum chamber is in a standby state. Then, at the next tact, all the substrate holders 90 move at the same time, and the same operation is repeated.

As described above, the configuration in which the film removal chamber 70 branches off from the rectangular transfer path 80 has the significance that the time for film removal can be determined independently of the tact time of another vacuum chamber. That is, if the film removal chamber 70 is one of the vacuum chambers along the rectangular transfer path 80, the processing time in the film removal chamber 70 is limited by the tact time. When the time required for film removal becomes the longest, it becomes the tact time. As a result, the tact time is prolonged to lower the productivity, and the other vacuum chamber is in a standby state until the film removal in the film removal chamber 70 is completed, resulting in wasteful time.

However, when the film removal chamber 70 is provided in a state of being branched from the transfer path 80, the time for film removal can be determined regardless of the tact time, and the reduction in productivity and the occurrence of useless time are suppressed. Is done. If the time required for removing the film in the film removal chamber 70 is shorter than the current tact time, the film removal chamber 70 may be inserted into the rectangular transport path 80. For example, a position between the unload lock chamber 2 and the load lock chamber 1 is conceivable. Note that the film removal chamber 70 may be directly connected to the film formation chambers 51, 52, 53, and 54 for performing film formation by sputtering.

The structure in which the film removing chamber 70 is provided by branching from the first direction changing chamber 31 is as follows.
This configuration is suitable for ensuring reproducibility of film formation.
As can be understood from the above description, the substrate holder 90 from which the film removal has been completed goes around the rectangular conveyance path 80 almost empty (without holding the substrate 9). Then, the substrate 9 is held in the load lock chamber 1, and a film formation process is performed in the next one round. If the film removal chamber 7
0 is branched from a direction change chamber (hereinafter, referred to as a fourth direction change chamber) 34 between the auxiliary chamber 36 and the unload lock chamber 2, and the substrate holder 90 from which the film has been removed in the film removal chamber 70. If it is configured to hold the substrate 9 immediately via the unload lock chamber 2, the substrate holder 90 will hold the substrate 9 in a state significantly different from other substrate holders 90.

In this case, the most important is the temperature. Since the substrate holder 90 does not pass through the preheat chamber 4 or the like, the substrate holder 90 holds the substrate 9 at a lower temperature than the other substrate holders 90. The substrate 9 held by the substrate holder 90 is preheated in the preheat chamber 4 and rises in temperature. However, since the temperature of the substrate holder 90 is low, the heat is deprived by the substrate holder 90 and under predetermined conditions. Even when heated, the substrate 9 does not reach the expected temperature. When such a substrate 9 is sent to each of the film forming chambers 31, 32, 33, and 34 to form a film, in many cases, the film forming process depends on the temperature, so that the reproducibility is reduced and the film forming speed is reduced. There is a possibility that problems such as deterioration of film quality and film quality may occur.

To solve this problem, the heating conditions in the preheat chamber 4 need only be changed for the substrate 9. However, it is practically difficult to rapidly heat the substrate 9 to the same degree within the same tact time. As another method, the substrate holder 90 is moved around the fourth turning chamber 34 one round without holding the substrate 9, and then the unload lock chamber 2 is moved.
There is also a method in which the substrate 9 is held in the load lock chamber 1 through the above. However, in this method, as compared with the above-described method, only the portion between the unload lock chamber 2 and the load lock chamber 1 remains empty and the moving distance is longer, resulting in poor productivity. From such a point, it is preferable that the film removal chamber 70 is branched at the first direction change chamber 31. In more general terms, this means that the substrate holder 90 moved from the load lock chamber 1 is branched between the processing vacuum chamber in which the substrate holder 90 first moves and the load lock chamber 1.

The apparatus of this embodiment performs film formation by circulating the substrate holder 90 in a vacuum as described above.
Oxygen, moisture, dust and the like in the atmosphere are not brought into the apparatus via the substrate holder 90. Therefore, contamination of the surface of the substrate 9 is reduced. Further, when the substrate holder 90 having the thin film deposited on the surface is taken out to the atmosphere side, the surface of the thin film is oxidized or foreign matter adheres. Then, when the next substrate 9 is held and a thin film is formed on the surface, a thin film is further deposited on the thin film on which the surface has been oxidized or foreign matter has adhered. When thin films having different properties are stacked, the stress is high and the films are easily peeled. Therefore, the risk of generation of the particles increases. However, the film forming apparatus of this embodiment does not have such a problem because the substrate holder 90 is not taken out to the atmosphere.

In each of the embodiments described above, the removal of the deposited film on the surface of the holding claw 91 has been mainly described. However, the deposited film on the surface of the holding body 92 is also removed in the same manner. Particles emitted from are also reduced. Further, in each of the above embodiments, the dedicated film removing chamber 70 having the film removing mechanism is provided, but the other vacuum chamber is provided with the film removing mechanism, and the exclusive film removing chamber 70 is not provided. Is also good. For example, a film removing mechanism may be provided in the first direction changing chamber 31.

Further, the film forming chambers 51, 52, 5
3, 54, 50 may be provided with a film removing mechanism. For example, since the protective film forming chamber 50 is provided with a high frequency power source for CVD, the protective film forming chamber 5 is provided.
If the function of introducing argon gas is provided to the gas introduction system of No. 0, the film may be removed in the protective film forming chamber 50 in some cases. The movable electrodes 74 are also provided in the film forming chambers 51, 52, 53, and 54 for performing sputtering.
Is provided so that a high-frequency voltage can be applied to the substrate holder 90, the film can be removed. At this time, target 5
In order to prevent the target 7 from being sputter-etched,
Is kept at the ground potential, and the target 57 is similarly covered with a shutter having the ground potential.

In the above description, the substrate holder 90 locks the peripheral edge of the substrate 9 by the holding claws 91. However, for a substrate having a circular opening at the center, such as an information recording disk substrate, Alternatively, the edge of the central opening may be locked. However, in a configuration in which the holding claws lock the edge of the central opening, it is not possible to simultaneously form a film on both surfaces of the substrate due to the structure in which the holding claws are provided. In recent years, very small information recording disks, such as hard disks for notebook computers, have been increasing. However, it is difficult to lock small substrates at the edge of the central opening. Therefore, the configuration of locking at the peripheral edge of the substrate 9 has an advantage that the film can be formed on both surfaces of the substrate 9 at the same time and a small substrate can be accommodated.

[0080]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder is removed, problems such as generation of particles due to peeling of the deposited film are suppressed. Is done. Then, since the deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder is removed without removing the substrate holder to the atmosphere side, procedures such as cleaning of the substrate holder after the removal and re-evacuation from the atmospheric pressure are unnecessary, and productivity is remarkable. Reduction is prevented. Further, according to the method of claim 2 or the apparatus of claim 11, in addition to the above effects, the deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder is removed in a state where the substrate is not held. The effect that there is no fear of being received is obtained. According to the apparatus of claim 15, in addition to the above-mentioned effects, the time for removing the film can be determined independently of the tact time. The effect that generation of useless time is suppressed is obtained. According to the apparatus of claim 16, in addition to the above effects, the substrate holder from which the deposited film has been removed can be brought into the same state as other substrate holders, so that highly reproducible film formation can be performed. In addition, the effect of suppressing a decrease in productivity at that time is obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a film forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic front view illustrating a configuration of a substrate holder 90 and a moving mechanism in the apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic side sectional view illustrating a configuration of a substrate holder 90 and a moving mechanism in the apparatus shown in FIG.

4 is a schematic side sectional view illustrating a configuration of a film removal chamber 70 provided in the apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a schematic side sectional view illustrating another configuration of the film removing mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan sectional view illustrating still another example of the film removing mechanism.

FIG. 7 shows the direction change chambers 31, 32, 3 shown in FIG.
It is a side schematic diagram explaining the structure of the direction change mechanism provided in 3,34.

FIG. 8 is a schematic plan sectional view showing a configuration of a first base film forming chamber 51.

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a conventional information recording disk substrate film forming apparatus.

10 is a schematic front view showing the configuration of the substrate holder 90 shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a problem of a conventional technique.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Gate valve 1 Load lock chamber 2 Unload lock chamber 31 Direction change chamber 34 Direction change chamber 4 Preheat chamber 51 First base film formation chamber 52 First magnetic film formation chamber 53 Second base film formation chamber 54 Second magnetic film formation Chamber 50 Protective film forming chamber 70 Film removal chamber 71 Exhaust system 72 Gas introduction system 73 High frequency power supply 74 Movable electrode 9 Substrate 90 Substrate holder 91 Holding claw 92 Main body of holder

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (reference) // H01L 21/203 H01L 21/203 SF term (reference) 4K029 AA24 BD11 CA05 DC28 DC35 DC39 FA04 JA01 KA03 KA09 4K057 DA01 DB11 DD10 DE01 DE06 DE20 DM35 DM40 DN01 5D112 AA24 FB21 FB25 KK01 5F103 AA08 DD30 LL20

Claims (18)

[Claims] In a film forming apparatus for forming a predetermined thin film on a surface of a substrate while holding a substrate by a substrate holder in a film forming chamber maintained at a vacuum pressure, the substrate holder is taken out to the atmosphere side. A substrate which is located in another vacuum chamber or the film formation chamber which is airtightly connected to the film formation chamber, and in which the deposition film on the surface of the substrate holder is removed in a vacuum. A method for removing the deposited film on the surface of the holder. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the removal is performed without holding the substrate on the substrate holder. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the substrate holder is configured to transfer the substrate between the film forming chamber and another vacuum chamber connected to the film forming chamber while holding the substrate. 3. The method for removing a deposited film on a surface of a substrate holder according to claim 1 or 2. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the removing is performed by applying heat, light or electric energy to the deposited film to peel off the deposited film from the surface of the substrate holder. 3. The method for removing a deposited film on a surface of a substrate holder according to 3. 5. The surface of the substrate holder according to claim 1, wherein the removal is performed by injecting ions into the deposited film and sputter etching the deposited film by ion bombardment. How to remove the deposited film. 6. The substrate according to claim 1, wherein the removal is performed by supplying a reactive gas to the deposited film and utilizing a reaction between the reactive gas and the deposited film. A method for removing the deposited film on the surface of the holder. 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is an information recording disk substrate. 8. The substrate holder includes a holding claw that locks a peripheral edge of the substrate, and a holder main body to which the holding claw is fixed, and the removal includes removing a deposited film on the surface of the holding claw. The method for removing a deposited film from the surface of a substrate holder according to claim 7, wherein: 9. A sputter chamber for forming a predetermined thin film on the surface of a substrate by sputtering, another vacuum chamber directly or indirectly connected to the sputter chamber so as to communicate with a vacuum, In a film forming apparatus having a substrate holder for holding a substrate at the time of film formation, a film removing mechanism for removing a deposited film on the surface of the substrate holder in a vacuum is provided in the another vacuum chamber or the sputtering chamber. A film forming apparatus, which is provided. 10. A film forming chamber for forming a predetermined thin film on a surface of a substrate, another vacuum chamber connected directly or indirectly to the film forming chamber so as to communicate with a vacuum, and a film forming chamber. And a substrate holder that transports the substrate between the film forming chamber and the other vacuum chamber. A film forming apparatus, wherein a film removing mechanism for performing the removal in a vacuum is provided in the another vacuum chamber or the film forming chamber. 11. An autoloader for mounting the substrate on the substrate holder, and a control unit for controlling the autoloader, wherein the control unit is configured to perform the removal when the film removing mechanism performs the removal. 11. The film forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein a control is performed so that the substrate holder does not hold the substrate. 12. The film removing mechanism applies heat to the deposited film.
11. The method according to claim 9, wherein the removal is performed by peeling the deposited film from the surface of the substrate holder by applying light or electric energy.
2. The film forming apparatus according to 1. 13. The film removing mechanism according to claim 9, wherein ions are incident on the deposited film, and the deposited film is sputter-etched by ion bombardment to perform the removal. A film forming apparatus as described in the above. 14. A film removal chamber for exclusively performing the removal is provided, and the film removal chamber is connected directly or indirectly to the sputtering chamber or the film formation chamber such that a vacuum is communicated therewith. 14. The film forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the film removing mechanism is provided in the film removing chamber. 15. The sputtering chamber or the film forming chamber and the other vacuum chamber are vertically installed in an airtight manner along a non-terminal transfer path, and the substrate holder is moved along the transfer path. A moving mechanism for moving is provided, and the film removal chamber is hermetically connected to the sputtering chamber or the film forming chamber, or the other vacuum chamber so as to branch off from the transfer path. 10. The method according to claim 9, wherein
15. The film forming apparatus according to any one of items 14 to 14. 16. One of the other vacuum chambers is a load lock chamber for mounting a substrate on a substrate holder, and the film removing chamber is moved first by the substrate holder moved from the load lock chamber. 16. The film forming apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the film forming apparatus is provided by branching off from a portion of a transfer path between a processing vacuum chamber and a load lock chamber. 17. The film forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the substrate is an information recording disk substrate. 18. The substrate holding device comprises a holding claw for locking a peripheral edge of the substrate, and a holding device main body to which the holding claw is fixed, and wherein the film removing mechanism includes a deposition film on a surface of the holding claw. 18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising:
A film forming apparatus as described in the above.