MODUL FUER BEHANDLUNG VON HALBLEITERSCHEIBEN

摘要

A sputtering module incorporated into a wafer processing system includes an evacuatable housing connectable to one or more other evacuatable housings and a wafer handling turret adapted to receive a wafer in horizontal orientation at a load/unload position and rotate the wafer 180 DEG about an inclined axis into vertical orientation at a sputtering position across from a sputtering target. After sputter coating, the wafer handling turret again rotates 180 DEG about the inclined axis to rotatably return the wafer to the horizontal load/unload position, whereupon the wafer is lowered to a horizontal receiving position for subsequent retrieval by an arm extendible into the module from an adjacently situated housing. The wafer handling turret includes three wafer holding rings and a disc-shaped shutter that is rotatably located in front of the target during precleaning.