US 11,152,203 B2Granted

Semiconductor cleaner systems and methods

AssigneeBrooks Automation (Germany) GmbH

InventorLutz Rebstock

Life of this patent

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Abstract

An EUV cleaner system and process for cleaning a EUV carrier. The euv cleaner system comprises separate dirty and cleaned environments, separate cleaning chambers for different components of the double container carrier, gripper arms for picking and placing different components using a same robot handler, gripper arms for holding different components at different locations, horizontal spin cleaning and drying for outer container, hot water and hot air (70C) cleaning process, vertical nozzles and rasterizing megasonic nozzles for cleaning inner container with hot air nozzles for drying, separate vacuum decontamination chambers for outgassing different components, for example, one for inner and one for outer container with high vacuum (e.g., <10−6 Torr) with purge gas, heaters and RGA sensors inside the vacuum chamber, purge gas assembling station, and purge gas loading and unloading station.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method for cleaning a double container carrier, wherein the double container carrier comprises a first double container carrier component and a second double container carrier component, wherein the first double container carrier component encloses the second double container carrier component, the method comprising:

receiving as a unit the integral double container carrier, with the first double container carrier component surrounding the second double container carrier component, at a first station;
disassembling, with a robotic mechanism, the first double container carrier component from the second double container carrier component, such that the second double container carrier component is disparted from an enclosure of the first double container carrier component of the integral double container carrier unit and the second double container carrier component is disassembled into a first part and second part;
transferring the first double container carrier component of the double container carrier from the first station to a first cleaning chamber;
transferring the first part and the second part of the second double container carrier component of the double container carrier from the first station to a second cleaning chamber;
and
cleaning the first and second double container carrier components in the first and second chambers.

3 more elements

A method for cleaning a double envelopment isolation carrier, wherein the double envelopment isolation carrier comprises a first double envelopment isolation carrier component and a second double envelopment isolation carrier component, wherein the first double envelopment isolation carrier component envelops the second double envelopment isolation carrier component to form a double envelopment isolation carrier unit, the method comprising:

receiving the double envelopment isolation carrier unit, with the first double envelopment isolation carrier component surrounding the second double envelopment isolation carrier component, at a first station;
disassembling, with a robotic mechanism, the first double envelopment isolation carrier component from the second double envelopment isolation carrier component, such that the second double envelopment isolation carrier component is disparted from an envelopment of the first double envelopment isolation carrier component of the double envelopment isolation carrier unit and the second double envelopment isolation carrier component is disassembled into a first part and second part;
transferring the first double envelopment isolation carrier component of the double envelopment isolation carrier from the first station to a first cleaning chamber;
transferring the first part and the second part of the second double envelopment isolation carrier component of the double envelopment isolation carrier from the first station to a second cleaning chamber;
and
cleaning the first and second double envelopment isolation carrier components in the first and second chambers.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 16/155,714Filed 9 Oct 2018 · division
Priority: 23 Jun 2011
Published: US 2019/0148133 A116 May 2019
Granted: 19 Oct 2021
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification18 codes

H10P 70/00
Cleaning of wafers, substrates or parts of devices
B08B 3/08
Cleaning involving contact with liquid: the liquid having chemical or dissolving effect
B08B 3/12
With additional treatment of the liquid or of the object being cleaned, e.g. by heat, by electricity or by vibration: by sonic or ultrasonic…
B08B 9/093
Cleaning containers, e.g. tanks: by the force of jets or sprays

Family

Application61/500,608Us provisional application · filed 23 Jun 2011
Application13/531,501Parent of this division · filed 23 Jun 2012
US 10,096,461 B2Parent of this division · filed 9 Oct 2018
US 2019/0148133 A1Pre-grant publication · published 16 May 2019
US 2012/0325272 A1Published application
US 11,152,203 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.