CN114496835A - Center ring, conveying structure and semiconductor equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses a center ring, a conveying structure and semiconductor equipment. The center ring is arranged at the connecting port between the first pipeline and the second pipeline in the conveying structure, so that the temperature change of the conveyed fluid can be effectively avoided when the conveyed fluid flows through the pipeline connecting part, and the temperature of the conveyed fluid can be kept. Further, the conveying structure is applied to a semiconductor device as an exhaust gas discharge pipe of the semiconductor device, and can effectively inhibit the high-temperature exhaust gas from forming powder at the pipe joint due to heat loss to cause pipe blockage.

Description

Center ring, conveying structure and semiconductor equipment

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of semiconductors, in particular to a center ring, a conveying structure and semiconductor equipment.

Background

Semiconductor manufacturing equipment is critical to the quality and efficiency of semiconductor products. Some semiconductor manufacturing equipment, such as film deposition equipment, generate a large amount of process exhaust gas during the semiconductor manufacturing process, and the exhaust gas is discharged outside without being effectively treated, which may cause atmospheric pollution. Thus, it is necessary to discharge the exhaust gas through an exhaust pipe to a special exhaust gas treatment system for treatment. In the exhaust emission process, along with the circulation of high temperature waste gas in the pipeline, the temperature can slowly reduce, can lead to the powder in the waste gas to adhere to in the pipeline like this, not only blocks up the pipeline easily, also can influence the life of pipeline.

At present, a Heating Jacket (Heating socket) is generally used to cover the periphery of the exhaust pipe to maintain a certain temperature of the exhaust pipe, thereby suppressing the powder adhesion caused by the temperature difference. However, the exhaust pipe is usually formed by connecting a plurality of vacuum pipes, and because the connecting part of the pipe cannot be provided with a heating jacket, the exhaust gas is easy to generate heat loss at the position, so that powder is attached to block the pipe, and the service life of the pipe is influenced.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides the center ring, the conveying structure and the semiconductor equipment, so that heat loss at the joint of the pipelines can be effectively inhibited, smoothness of the exhaust pipeline of the semiconductor equipment is favorably kept, and the service life of the pipeline is prolonged.

In a first aspect, the present application provides the following technical solutions through an embodiment of the present application:

a centering ring for mounting at a connection port between a first pipe and a second pipe. The surface of the outer ring end of the central ring is provided with a first sealing groove for mounting a first O-shaped sealing ring; vacuum cavities are distributed in the central ring.

Further, the volume of the vacuum cavity accounts for 15-85% of the volume of the central ring.

Further, the vacuum cavities are annular vacuum cavities distributed along the circumferential direction of the center ring.

Furthermore, a first extension part and a second extension part are respectively formed towards two sides at the inner ring end of the central ring, the first extension part is used for being matched with the inner wall of the first pipeline, and the second extension part is used for being matched with the inner wall of the second pipeline. The first extension portion and the second extension portion are provided with second sealing grooves for inserting second O-shaped sealing rings between the inner wall of the first pipeline and the first extension portion and between the inner wall of the second pipeline and the second extension portion respectively.

Further, when the center ring is in the installation state, the first extension portion is embedded in the inner wall of the first pipeline, the second extension portion is embedded in the inner wall of the second pipeline, and the inner ring end face of the center ring is aligned with the inner wall of the first pipeline and the inner wall of the second pipeline.

Further, when the center ring is in the installed state, the first extending portion protrudes from the inner wall of the first pipe and extends in the length direction of the first pipe, and the second extending portion protrudes from the inner wall of the second pipe and extends in the length direction of the second pipe.

Furthermore, the material of the center ring is stainless steel, aluminum, titanium or polytetrafluoroethylene.

In a second aspect, the present application further provides, by an embodiment of the present application, a conveying structure, including: the first pipe, the second pipe, the connecting piece, the first O type sealing washer and the above-mentioned first aspect the centre ring, first pipe with the second pipe passes through the centre ring, first O type sealing washer and the connecting piece intercommunication. The center ring is installed at a connecting port between the first pipeline and the second pipeline, and the first O-shaped sealing ring is sleeved in a first sealing groove formed in the surface of the outer ring end of the center ring.

Further, the inner ring end of the center ring is respectively formed with a first extension portion and a second extension portion towards two sides, the first extension portion is matched with the inner wall of the first pipeline, the second extension portion is matched with the inner wall of the second pipeline, and the first extension portion and the second extension portion are both provided with second sealing grooves. The conveying structure further comprises a second O-shaped sealing ring, wherein the second O-shaped sealing ring is sleeved in the second sealing groove and is respectively positioned between the first pipeline inner wall and the first extending portion and between the second pipeline inner wall and the second extending portion.

In a third aspect, the present application further provides, by an embodiment of the present application, a semiconductor device, including: a semiconductor process chamber and a conveying structure of the second aspect. The semiconductor process cavity is communicated with a first pipeline or a second pipeline in the conveying structure, and the first pipeline and the second pipeline are vacuum pipes.

One or more technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application have at least the following technical effects or advantages:

the utility model provides a center ring can regard as the support of O type sealing washer, installs at semiconductor equipment exhaust duct's junction, and at this moment, through the vacuum cavity that the center ring distributes, can reach thermal-insulated effect, reduces the heat loss of the waste gas of carrying in the exhaust duct at the pipe connection department effectively to restrain waste gas and meet cold formation powder and attach to the pipe connection department, be favorable to keeping semiconductor equipment exhaust duct's unblocked, and prolong the life of pipeline. Based on this, the conveying structure provided with the center ring provided by the embodiment of the application does not need to throw in an additional heat insulation material at the pipeline connection position, and can conveniently and effectively reduce the heat loss at the pipeline connection position. Furthermore, the conveying structure is applied to semiconductor equipment, and can effectively reduce the powder adhesion formed by the cooling of waste gas, thereby prolonging the cleaning period of a pipeline, reducing the non-periodic shutdown (down) rate of the equipment, increasing the running efficiency of the equipment and saving the dimensional cost of the equipment.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings needed to be used in the description of the embodiments are briefly introduced below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are some embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings based on the drawings without creative efforts.

FIG. 1 illustrates a first exemplary piping connection section schematic of a transport structure provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates a second exemplary piping connection section schematic of a transport structure provided by an embodiment of the present description;

FIG. 3 illustrates a third exemplary piping connection section schematic of a transport structure provided by an embodiment of the present description;

fig. 4 is a schematic view illustrating a connection structure of a semiconductor device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that these descriptions are illustrative only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Moreover, in the following description, descriptions of well-known structures and techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the concepts of the present disclosure.

Various structural schematics according to embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the figures. The figures are not drawn to scale, wherein certain details are exaggerated and possibly omitted for clarity of presentation. The shapes of various regions, layers, and relative sizes and positional relationships therebetween shown in the drawings are merely exemplary, and deviations may occur in practice due to manufacturing tolerances or technical limitations, and a person skilled in the art may additionally design regions/layers having different shapes, sizes, relative positions, as actually required.

In the context of the present disclosure, when a layer/element is referred to as being "on" another layer/element, it can be directly on the other layer/element or intervening layers/elements may be present. In addition, if a layer/element is "on" another layer/element in one orientation, then that layer/element may be "under" the other layer/element when the orientation is reversed. Relational terms such as first and second, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. The term "plurality" includes two or more.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present description provides a transport structure for transporting a fluid, such as a gas or a liquid. As shown in fig. 1, the transfer structure comprises a first pipe 11, a second pipe 12, a centering ring 13, a first O-ring 14 and a connecting piece (not shown). The first pipe 11 and the second pipe 22 are connected and communicated through the center ring 13, the first O-ring 14, and a connector. It will be understood that fig. 1, 2 and 3 are cross-sectional views of the pipe connecting portion of the conveying structure in the radial direction.

The center ring 13 is used as a support for sleeving the first O-ring 14, and is installed at a connection port between the first pipe 11 and the second pipe 12. The outer ring end surface of the center ring 13 is provided with a first seal groove for mounting a first O-ring 14. The first O-ring 14 is used to seal the gap at the pipe joint.

As shown in fig. 1, a vacuum cavity 131 is distributed in the central ring 13 for blocking heat transfer between the inside of the pipe connection portion and the outside, so as to achieve a heat insulation effect, prevent the temperature of the fluid to be conveyed from changing when the fluid flows through the pipe connection portion, and facilitate to maintain the temperature of the fluid to be conveyed. For example, when the conveying structure is used for conveying high-temperature fluid such as gas or liquid at 180 ℃, a thermal insulation material does not need to be additionally put into the pipeline connecting part, and the heat loss of the high-temperature fluid flowing through the pipeline connecting part can be effectively reduced through the thermal insulation of the vacuum cavity in the central ring of the conveying structure.

To provide good thermal insulation, in an alternative embodiment, the volume of the vacuum cavity 131 may be 15% to 85% of the total volume of the center ring. For example, assuming that the volume of the central ring 13 is V, the volume of the vacuum cavity 131 distributed in the central ring 13 may be 15% V, 50% V, or 85% V, etc., which is determined according to actual needs.

The number of the vacuum cavities 131 distributed in the central ring 13 may be one or more, and the specific shape and distribution may be set according to actual needs. As an embodiment, the vacuum cavity 131 may be an annular vacuum cavity distributed along the circumferential direction of the center ring 13, and penetrates through the entire center ring 13 and is concentrically arranged with the center ring 13, so that 360 ° heat insulation at the pipeline joint can be realized, which is beneficial to achieving a better heat insulation effect.

In an alternative embodiment, the centering ring 13 may be made of a material that is corrosion resistant, heat resistant and cold resistant, which is advantageous in ensuring a long service life of the centering ring. For example, the material of the center ring 13 may be stainless steel, aluminum, titanium, or polytetrafluoroethylene.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the structural style of the center ring 13 may be various, and may be specifically customized according to actual needs.

In an alternative embodiment, the inner ring end of the center ring 13 is formed with a first extension 132 and a second extension 133 toward both sides, respectively, and in this case, the radial cross-sectional shape of the center ring 13 is similar to two symmetrically arranged T-shapes, as shown in fig. 1 and 2. The first extension 132 is engaged with the inner wall of the first pipe 11, and the second extension 133 is engaged with the inner wall of the second pipe 12. It will be appreciated that the inner annular end of the central ring 13 is the end opposite the outer annular end, close to the inside of the pipe.

In this case, the above-mentioned transfer structure further includes a second O-ring 15, and the first extension 132 and the second extension 133 of the center ring 13 are respectively provided with a second seal groove. The second O-ring 15 is respectively fitted over the second seal grooves of the first and second extending portions 132 and 133. Between first pipeline 11 inner wall and first extension 132, insert second O type sealing washer 15 between second pipeline inner wall and the second extension 133 respectively, can be on the basis of sealing up the pipeline connection gap through first O type sealing washer 14, further through O type sealing washer 15 second between first pipeline 11 inner wall and first extension 132, seal up between second pipeline 12 inner wall and the second extension 133, realize double seal, can prevent more effectively that the fluid of carrying in the transport structure from taking place to leak at the pipe connection department and influencing the external environment, be favorable to ensureing transport structure's security.

Specifically, the specific matching manner of the first extension portion 132 and the inner wall of the first pipe 11, and the second extension portion 133 and the inner part of the second pipe 12 can be customized according to actual needs.

In one embodiment, as shown in fig. 1, the center ring 13 is an insert-type center ring, and when the center ring 13 is in an installed state, the first extension portion 132 is inserted into an inner wall of the first pipe 11, and the second extension portion 133 is inserted into an inner wall of the second pipe 12. Further, in order to avoid the influence of the first extension 132 and the second extension 133 on the pipe transmission efficiency, the inner ring end surface of the center ring 13 is aligned with the inner wall of the first pipe 11 and the inner wall of the second pipe 12, that is, the inner ring diameter of the center ring 13 is consistent with the inner diameters of the first pipe 11 and the second pipe 12, so that the inner wall of the first pipe 11, the inner ring end surface of the center ring 13, and the inner wall of the second pipe 12 are smoothly transited, and the transmission efficiency of the pipes is kept unchanged.

In another embodiment, as shown in fig. 2, the center ring is a protrusion type center ring, and when the center ring is in the installed state, the first extension portion 132 protrudes from the inner wall of the first pipe 11 and extends in the longitudinal direction of the first pipe 11, and the second extension portion 133 protrudes from the inner wall of the second pipe 12 and extends in the longitudinal direction of the second pipe 12. At this time, the inner ring diameter of the center ring 13 is smaller than the inner diameters of the first pipe 11 and the second pipe 12. Compared with the embedded center ring, the protruding center ring has relatively low manufacturing difficulty, but due to the fact that the protruding center ring protrudes out of the inner wall of the pipeline, certain influence may be caused on the transmission efficiency of the pipeline. Further, in order to minimize the influence of the first and second extensions 132 and 133 on the pipe transmission efficiency, the distal ends of the first and second extensions 132 and 133 may be designed in an inclined pattern with an inner diameter increasing in a direction away from the pipe connection port. This can effectively reduce the degree of obstruction of the fluid in the pipe by the protruding first and second extensions 132 and 133, thereby reducing the influence on the pipe transmission efficiency. It is understood that the distal ends of the first and second extensions 132 and 133 refer to the ends of the first and second extensions 132 and 133, respectively, which are distal from the pipe connection port.

Of course, in other embodiments of the present disclosure, the center ring 13 may be a linear vacuum ring, as shown in fig. 3, and the cross-sectional shape in the radial direction thereof is similar to two symmetrically arranged hollow rectangles. At this time, the inner diameter of the center ring 13 is identical to the inner diameter of the first pipe 11 and the second pipe 12, and the manufacturing process of this structure is relatively simple without affecting the pipe transfer efficiency.

In addition, the above-described transfer structure requires the connection of the first pipe and the second pipe by the connecting member in addition to the center ring and the O-ring. In this embodiment, the connecting member may be an existing pipe connecting device such as a pipe clamp or a band clamp, which is not described in detail herein.

The conveying structure provided by the embodiment of the specification can be applied to a semiconductor device, for example, an exhaust system of the semiconductor device, and is used for exhausting process exhaust gas formed in a semiconductor process chamber to an exhaust gas treatment system for treatment. At the moment, the first pipeline and the second pipeline are vacuum pipes, and play a role in heat insulation through the vacuum cavities distributed in the central ring, so that the heat loss of waste gas with higher temperature at the pipeline joint can be effectively reduced, the phenomenon that the waste gas is attached to the pipeline joint due to powder formed by cooling and causes pipeline blockage and corrosion of an O-shaped sealing ring, and the service life of the pipeline is influenced is avoided, therefore, the smoothness of the exhaust pipeline of the semiconductor equipment is favorably kept, and the service life of the pipeline is prolonged. Meanwhile, the phenomenon of condensation and dewing caused by liquefaction of some substances in the waste gas in the case of cooling can be prevented. In addition, through the first extension and the second extension of design center ring, on the basis of the installation first O type sealing washer, still installed second O type sealing washer, realize double seal, can prevent effectively that waste gas from leaking, polluting the external environment.

It should be noted that the center ring and the conveying structure including the center ring provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to other situations that require heat preservation for intake or exhaust, and for intake or discharge, and that require a plurality of pipes for connection of the conveying pipes, in addition to the semiconductor device, for example, may also be applied to an exhaust system of an automobile engine.

In a second aspect, as shown in fig. 4, embodiments of the present specification further provide a semiconductor device 20, including: a semiconductor processing chamber 210 and a transfer structure 220. The conveying structure 220 is the conveying structure provided in any embodiment of the first aspect, in which case, the first pipeline and the second pipeline in the conveying structure are vacuum pipes. The semiconductor process chamber is communicated with a first pipeline or a second pipeline in the conveying structure so as to convey gas or liquid required to be conveyed in the semiconductor manufacturing process through the conveying structure. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the process exhaust from the semiconductor processing chamber 210 is delivered to the exhaust treatment system 30.

It should be noted that the semiconductor device provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure may be a film deposition device, such as a chemical vapor deposition device, a physical vapor deposition device, or an epitaxial furnace device, or may be other semiconductor devices that require to deliver gas or liquid at a certain temperature through a vacuum tube, which is not limited herein. Of course, the semiconductor device includes other components besides the semiconductor process chamber and the conveying structure shown in fig. 4, and reference may be made to the structure of the existing semiconductor device, which is not described in detail herein.

Because the vacuum cavity is distributed in the central ring arranged at the pipeline joint in the conveying structure, the heat insulation effect can be realized at the pipeline joint, and the temperature of the conveyed gas or liquid can be effectively kept. For example, when the conveying structure is used for discharging the process waste gas in the semiconductor process chamber, the heat loss of the waste gas with higher temperature at the pipeline joint can be effectively reduced, the waste gas is prevented from forming powder to be attached to the pipeline joint when being cooled, the cleaning period of the pipeline is favorably prolonged, the non-periodic shutdown (down) rate of the equipment is reduced, the operation efficiency of the equipment can be increased by 30 percent, and the dimensional cost of the equipment is saved.

While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, additional variations and modifications in those embodiments may occur to those skilled in the art once they learn of the basic inventive concepts. Therefore, it is intended that the appended claims be interpreted as including preferred embodiments and all such alterations and modifications as fall within the scope of the invention.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present invention fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention and their equivalents, the present invention is also intended to include such modifications and variations.

Claims (10)

1. A centre ring, for mounting at a connection port between a first pipe and a second pipe,

the surface of the outer ring end of the central ring is provided with a first sealing groove for mounting a first O-shaped sealing ring;

vacuum cavities are distributed in the central ring.

2. Center ring according to claim 1, characterized in that the volume of the vacuum cavity is 15-85% of the volume of the center ring.

3. The centering ring according to claim 1, wherein said vacuum cavities are annular vacuum cavities distributed in a circumferential direction of said centering ring.

4. Center ring according to claim 1, characterized in that the inner ring end of the center ring is formed with a first extension for engaging with the inner wall of the first pipe and a second extension for engaging with the inner wall of the second pipe towards both sides, respectively,

the first extension portion and the second extension portion are provided with second sealing grooves for inserting second O-shaped sealing rings between the inner wall of the first pipeline and the first extension portion and between the inner wall of the second pipeline and the second extension portion respectively.

5. The centering ring according to claim 4, wherein said first extension is embedded in an inner wall of said first conduit and said second extension is embedded in an inner wall of said second conduit when said centering ring is in an installed state, and an inner ring end surface of said centering ring is aligned with said inner wall of said first conduit and said inner wall of said second conduit.

6. Center ring according to claim 4, characterized in that the first extension protrudes from the inner wall of the first pipe and extends in the direction of the length of the first pipe and the second extension protrudes from the inner wall of the second pipe and extends in the direction of the length of the second pipe when the center ring is in the mounted state.

7. Center ring according to claim 1, characterized in that the material of the center ring is stainless steel, aluminium, titanium or teflon.

8. A conveying structure, characterized by comprising:

a first pipe, a second pipe, a connector, a first O-ring, and the centering ring of any one of claims 1-7, the first pipe and the second pipe communicating through the centering ring, the first O-ring, and the connector,

the center ring is installed at a connecting port between the first pipeline and the second pipeline, and the first O-shaped sealing ring is sleeved in a first sealing groove formed in the surface of the outer ring end of the center ring.

9. The conveying structure as claimed in claim 8, wherein the inner ring end of the center ring is formed with a first extension portion and a second extension portion toward both sides, respectively, the first extension portion is engaged with an inner wall of the first pipe, the second extension portion is engaged with an inner wall of the second pipe, and the first extension portion and the second extension portion are provided with second sealing grooves,

the conveying structure further comprises a second O-shaped sealing ring, wherein the second O-shaped sealing ring is sleeved in the second sealing groove and is respectively positioned between the first pipeline inner wall and the first extending portion and between the second pipeline inner wall and the second extending portion.

10. A semiconductor device, comprising:

a semiconductor processing chamber and the transfer structure of claim 8 or 9,

the semiconductor process cavity is communicated with the first pipeline or the second pipeline in the conveying structure,

the first pipeline and the second pipeline are both vacuum pipes.

Images