Furnace with metal furnace tube
AssigneeTokyo Electron Limited
InventorsMelvin Verbaas, Anthony Dip
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An exemplary apparatus includes a metal furnace tube having an open first end and an opposite second end. The metal furnace tube includes an inner chamber, a fluid inlet to intake a fluid into the inner chamber, and a fluid outlet to exhaust the fluid from the inner chamber, the inner chamber to support a plurality of substrates within the metal furnace tube. The apparatus includes a first base plate or flange back plate coupling the fluid inlet to the inner chamber; a second base plate or flange back plate coupling the fluid outlet to the inner chamber; and a furnace includes a heater to heat the metal furnace tube, the metal furnace tube being mounted within the furnace and the heater being disposed outside the metal furnace tube.
Claims20
An apparatus comprising:
- a metal furnace tube having an open first end and an opposite second end, the metal furnace tube comprising an inner chamber, a fluid inlet configured to intake a fluid into the inner chamber, and a fluid outlet configured to exhaust the fluid from the inner chamber, the inner chamber configured to support a plurality of substrates within the metal furnace tube;
- a first base plate or flange back plate coupling the fluid inlet to the inner chamber;
- a second base plate or flange back plate coupling the fluid outlet to the inner chamber;
- and
- a furnace comprising a heater configured to heat the metal furnace tube, the metal furnace tube being mounted within the furnace and the heater being disposed outside the metal furnace tube.
A method comprising:
- having a metal furnace tube, the metal furnace tube comprising an inner chamber to house a plurality of substrates, a fluid inlet configured to intake a fluid into the inner chamber, and a fluid outlet configured to exhaust the fluid from the inner chamber;
- having a tube flange at a first end of the metal furnace tube;
- mounting the metal furnace tube in a furnace configured to heat the metal furnace tube;
- having a base plate or a flange back plate in the furnace;
- and
- mating the tube flange with the base plate or the flange back plate.
A method comprising:
- removing a glass or quartz furnace tube from a furnace from a tube mounting location of the furnace;
- mounting a metal furnace tube in the furnace at the tube mounting location, the metal furnace tube comprising an inner chamber to house a plurality of substrates, a fluid inlet configured to intake a fluid into the inner chamber, and a fluid outlet configured to exhaust the fluid from the inner chamber;
- and
- attaching a tube flange at a first end of the metal furnace tube to a base plate or to a flange back plate in the furnace.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.