Vertical heat treatment system and method for transferring substrate

摘要

There is provided a vertical heat treatment system capable of simplifying the structure of various mechanisms in the vicinity of an opening which is formed in a partition wall separating a housing-box transfer area from a treating-object transfer area (a wafer transfer area), and of contributing to space saving, when an object to be treated is carried in the vertical heat treatment system through the opening to carry out a predetermined treatment. In a vertical heat treatment system for carrying an object W to be treated, which is housed in a treating-object housing box 2 closed by an opening/closing lid 10, in a treating-object transfer area 46 via an opening 28, which is formed in a partition wall 26 separating a housing-box transfer area 44 for transferring the treating-object housing box from the treating-object transfer area 46 in an atmosphere of an inert gas, to carry out a predetermined treatment, a standby box transfer means 60 is provided in the housing-box transfer area for holding a treating-object housing box, which houses therein the next object to be carried in the treating-object transfer area, in the vicinity of the opening to cause the treating-object housing box to stand by. Thus, when the object to be treated is carried in via the opening of the partition wall, which separates the housing-box transfer area from the treating-object transfer area (wafer transfer area), to carry out a predetermined treatment, the structure of various mechanisms in the vicinity of the opening is simplified, and the space is saved.