Importance

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Abstract

Provided is a semiconductor manufacturing system. The semiconductor manufacturing system includes a wafer loading boat, a complementary wafer loading boat, a door assembly, and a spacing controlling system. The wafer loading boat is mounted in the reaction tube and includes a plurality of wafer supporters on which the semiconductor wafer is rested on. The complementary wafer loading boat is located inside or outside of the wafer loading boat, moves vertically, includes a wafer holder that is devised to support the semiconductor wafer. The contact between the wafer and the holder in the center part of the wafer other than edges of the wafer is adjusted by moving one of the wafer loading boats vertically. The spacing controlling system is mounted in the door assembly, controls a space between the semiconductor wafer and the wafer holder, and maintains or adjusts a contact area of the semiconductor wafer with the wafer holder dynamically during the thermal processing. Thus, the mechanical deformation including warping, bowing, slip can be completely eliminated by supporting the wafer in the center part of the wafer with controlled contact area, resulting from ideal distribution of the gravitational force of the wafer. Also the reliability, uniformity and reproducibility of the thermal processing steps can be significantly enhanced due to the ability to control the gap between the wafer and the holder, and to control the contact area between the wafer and the holder dynamically even during the process at high temperatures, which has been never possible in the previous arts. In addition, it is possible to perform the thermal process without any mechanical damages to the semiconductor wafer having a diameter of 300 mm (12 inches) or greater.

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First Claim