| 摘要 |
PURPOSE:To enhance the throughput, simplify the mechanism, and ensure the reliability by providing a rotary table on which a plurality of cassettes can be placed, and installing a plurality of gate valves or the like. CONSTITUTION:Through a gate valve or valves 11, a plurality of cassettes 101-104 or the like are fed from the atmosphere and installed onto a rotary table 2 arranged in a load locking chamber 1. The valve 11 is then shut to evacuate the load locking chamber 1, and with the table 2 rotating one turn, wafers in the cassettes 101-104 are transported to a processing chamber 152, etc., separately or simultaneously to undergo processing there. This permits increasing greatly the number of wafers in the cassettes on the table 2 capable of being vacuum processed during one run of evacuation of the load locking chamber 1 and also allows the chamber 1 to be embodies relatively small. Further the wafers can be vacuum processed continuously and automatically to give a high throughput, and also suppressing space and stabilized operation are established and the economy is enhanced.
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