Module for high vacuum processing

Abstract

Module for processing advancing substrates including an elongated housing enclosing pairs of superposed transporters defining a longitudinal passage; a source of pressurized gaseous transport medium communicating with the longitudinal passage, so as to provide a free floating transport of the substrates through the passage; and a series of processing chambers interposed between the pairs of transporters, so that a non-processing side and a processing side of the advancing substrates are exposed within the processing chamber. A plurality of gaseous transport medium discharge ducts extends laterally across the longitudinal passage above and below the substrates so as to collect and remove excess gaseous transport medium, while assisting the advance of the substrates in the passage. A number of substrate processing means may be employed including ion beam deposition, plasma deposition, plasma etching, sputter etching, ion milling, CVD systems, chrome etching, electron beam annealing, ion implantation electron beam deposition, high vacuum evaporation and reactive ion etching.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.