Substrate support
AssigneeApplied Materials, Inc.
InventorsAndrew Nguyen, Gerhard Schneider, Akihiro Hosokawa, Takayuki Matsumoto
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus for supporting a substrate is described that has a ball adapted to minimize damage between the substrate support and the substrate supported thereon. In one embodiment, an apparatus for supporting a substrate includes ball disposed on an inclined ball support surface. The ball support surface is adapted to bias the ball toward one side of the ball support surface thereby providing space for the ball to roll as the substrate supported thereon changes in length when exposed to thermal influences. In another embodiment, the apparatus further comprises a cage adapted to capture the ball to the ball support surface.
Claims92
Apparatus for supporting a substrate in a chamber having at least one substrate support member disposed in the chamber, comprising:
- a support surface;
- a roller disposed on the support surface and adapted to move laterally thereon, the roller adapted to contact and support the substrate in a spaced apart relation to the substrate support member, the roller biased to one side of the support surfaces;
- a support member having an upper surface:
- and
- a plurality of spacers disposed on the upper surface, at least one of the spacers having the roller support surface formed therein and supporting the roller thereon.
Apparatus for supporting a substrate comprising:
- a support member having a top surface;
- a plurality of rollers disposed around a perimeter of the top surface and adapted to support the substrate thereon in a spaced-apart relation relative to the top surface, the rollers biased away from the perimeter of the top surface;
- and
- a plurality of spacers, each spacer having a lower end coupled to the support member and an upper end having the roller support surface formed therein.
Apparatus for supporting a glass substrate, comprising:
- a chamber body;
- at least one support member disposed within the chamber body;
- a plurality of spacers each having a lower portion disposed on the support member and an upper portion;
- a recess formed in the upper portion of at least one of the spacers;
- and
- a roller disposed in the recess and adapted to roll laterally across the recess.
Apparatus for supporting a glass substrate, comprising:
- a processing chamber;
- a plurality of heated support members have an upper surface disposed in the chamber;
- a plurality of spacers disposed on each support member, each of the spacers having an upper portion and a lower portion, the lower portion coupled to the upper surface support member;
- and
- a roller disposed on the upper portion of at least two of the spacers disposed on opposite sides of the upper surface of the support member and biased toward a center of the support member, the roller adapted to support the glass substrate in a spaced-apart relation to the support member.
Apparatus for supporting a glass substrate, comprising:
- a load lock chamber having a first substrate transfer port disposed in a first sidewall and second substrate transfer port disposed in a second sidewall;
- at least one support member disposed in the load lock chamber;
- a plurality of spacers disposed on the support member, each of the spacers having an upper portion and a lower portion, the lower portion coupled to the support member;
- and
- a recess formed in the upper portion of at least one of the spacers;
- and
- a roller disposed in the recess and adapted to roll laterally across the recess.
A method for supporting a substrate comprising:
- biasing a roller toward a side of a roller support surface of a support member assembly;
- placing a substrate on the roller;
- and
- thermally treating the substrate wherein the thermally treating step causes the substrate to expand or contract, thereby rolling the roller away from the side of the roller support surface.
A method for supporting a substrate comprising:
- supporting a substrate on a plurality of balls each respectively disposed on a roller support surface;
- and
- changing the temperature of the substrate to cause the roller to roll laterally across the roller support surface from a starting position.
Apparatus for supporting a substrate in a chamber having at least one substrate support member disposed in the chamber, comprising:
- a support surface;
- a roller disposed on the support surface and adapted to move laterally thereon, the roller adapted to contact and support the substrate in a spaced apart relation to the substrate support member, the roller biased to one side of the support surface;
- and
- a biasing member contacting the roller and urging the roller laterally.
Apparatus for supporting a substrate in a chamber having at least one substrate support member disposed in the chamber, comprising:
- a support surface having a first inclined surface and a second inclined surface coupled to the first inclined surface, where the second inclined surface has a shorter ball supporting length than the first inclined surface;
- and
- a roller disposed on the support surface and adapted to move laterally thereon, the roller adapted to contact and support the substrate in a spaced apart relation to the substrate support member, the roller biased to one side of the support surface.
Apparatus for supporting a substrate comprising:
- a support member having a top surface,
- a plurality of rollers disposed around a perimeter of the top surface and adapted to support the substrate thereon in a spaced-apart relation relative to the top surface, the rollers biased away from the perimeter of the top surface;
- a plurality of spacers coupled to the support member;
- a roller supporting surface formed in each spacer and supporting one of the rollers;
- and
- a cage coupled to each spacer and capturing the roller to the spacer, wherein the cage has a slot formed therethrough, wherein a portion of the roller extends through the slot.
The apparatus for supporting a substrate comprising;
- a support member having a top surface;
- a plurality of rollers disposed around a perimeter of the top surface and adapted to support the substrate thereon in a spaced-apart relation relative to the top surface, the rollers biased away from the perimeter of the top surface;
- and
- a plurality of spacers, each spacer having recess formed therein, the recess having a bottom surface that urges the roller into a first position closer to one side of the recess, wherein the roller when in first position is spaced from walls of the recess.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.