Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Differential fluid etching apparatus – With microwave gas energizing means
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-09
2001-06-26
Mills, Gregory (Department: 1763)
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Differential fluid etching apparatus
With microwave gas energizing means
C118S728000, C118S7230FI
Reexamination Certificate
active
06251218
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an ion beam processing apparatus, and more particularly to an ion beam processing apparatus provided with a large-bore ion source, which is suitably used as a processing apparatus for ion beam milling and ion beam sputtering.
An ion beam processing apparatus has heretofore been used for processing a semiconductor substrate, a magnetic head and so on, and for example, as described in Hitachi Review Vol. 68, No. 6, June 1986, there has been proposed an ion beam milling apparatus provided with a large-bore ion source in order to achieve a high throughput. This ion beam milling apparatus comprises an ion source for forming introduced gas into plasma to produce an ion beam, a processing chamber for processing samples by the ion beam emitted from the ion source, a vacuum chamber interconnecting the ion source and the processing chamber, a vacuum valve connecting the vacuum chamber to an exhaust device, and a control panel responsive to operation for effecting control concerning the processing of the samples. The ion source is formed into a large-bore design, and with this design, many samples can be processed at a time.
In the conventional apparatus, a sample holder is fixedly mounted within the processing chamber through a rotation shaft in such a manner that the sample holder is supported at its opposite sides by the rotation shaft. For loading and unloading samples relative to the sample holder, a chamber door, provided at the processing chamber so as to be opened and closed, must be opened, and therefore a space for allowing the opening and closing of the chamber door need to be provided at the front side of the chamber door. And besides, this space is provided between the chamber door and the control panel, and an operation surface of the control panel and an operation surface of the chamber door are not disposed in a common plane, and therefore the operator must move to reach these operation surfaces each time he operates the control panel, and opens and closes and the chamber door.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide an ion beam processing apparatus in which the movement of the operator is reduced, thereby enhancing the operability.
To attain the above object, according to the invention, there is provided an ion beam processing apparatus comprising a sample holder for holding a sample, a vacuum chamber for receiving the sample holder therein, the vacuum chamber having an introducing port for the sample holder, an ion source for applying an ion beam to the interior of the vacuum chamber, a control panel responsive to operation for effecting a control related to the processing of the sample, a vacuum chamber door for closing the sample holder introducing port, and a support mechanism fixedly mounted on the vacuum chamber door for supporting the sample holder, wherein an operation surface of the control panel and an operation surface of the vacuum chamber door are disposed substantially in a common plane.
In the above ion beam processing apparatus, there can be provided a reciprocally-moving mechanism which is connected to the vacuum chamber door, and supports the vacuum chamber door so as to reciprocally move the vacuum chamber door toward and away from the sample holder introducing port.
The above ion beam processing apparatus can have the following features.
(1) The reciprocally-moving mechanism is connected to a bottom of the vacuum chamber door, and is disposed between the bottom of the vacuum chamber door and a bed supporting the vacuum chamber.
(2) The ion source is detachably fixed to the vacuum chamber.
(3) The vacuum chamber has a fixing flange for fixing the ion source, and the ion source has a connecting flange connected to the fixing flange through a hinge mechanism, and the ion source is detachably fixed to the fixing flange through the connecting flange.
(4) The control panel is disposed adjacent to the sample holder introducing port of the vacuum chamber.
(5) The control panel is disposed adjacent to the sample holder introducing port of the vacuum chamber and in opposed relation to the ion source with the vacuum chamber interposed therebetween.
In the above construction, the operation surface of the control panel and the operation surface of the vacuum chamber door are disposed substantially in a common plane, and therefore the movement of the operator for operating the control panel and for opening and closing the vacuum chamber door can be reduced, thereby contributing the improvement of operability.
The vacuum chamber door is supported by the reciprocally-moving mechanism so as to be reciprocally moved toward and away from the sample holder introducing port, and the sample holder is fixed to the vacuum chamber door by the support mechanism. Therefore, the vacuum chamber door can be drawn apart from the vacuum chamber through the reciprocal movement by means of the reciprocally-moving mechanism, and the sample-removing or unloading operation can be easily carried out. Further, the vacuum chamber door can be drawn by the reciprocally-moving mechanism, and therefore the vacuum chamber can be reduced in size as compared with the type of vacuum chamber in which a vacuum chamber door is supported for open and close through a hinge mechanism. Furthermore, the ion source is detachably fixed to the vacuum chamber, and therefore by removing the ion source from the ion source, cleaning within the vacuum chamber and the maintenance of the ion source can be done easily.
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Hitachi Review, vol. 68, No. 6, Jun. 1986, “Development of Large-Scale Ion Beam Milling Machines”, pp. 49-52.
Fujisawa Tatsuya
Hashimoto Isao
Ooishi Shotaro
Oonuki Hisao
Alejandro Luz L.
Hitachi , Ltd.
Mattingly Stanger & Malur, P.C.
Mills Gregory
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