Patent Application
20170295612
The present disclosure relates to electrical resistance heaters integrated onto or within a ceramic body comprising beryllium oxide (BeO). The integral resistance heaters find particular application in the field of semiconductor fabrication and manipulation, and will be described with particular reference thereto. However, it is to be appreciated that the present disclosure is also amenable to other like applications.
Integral resistance heaters transfer heat energy through a medium more rapidly via conduction (compared to convection or radiation) according to Joule's first law. However, the medium must be electrically insulative or the heater will short out. Most conventional thermally conductive materials are metals, which are electrically conductive and thus would not be suitable as a medium for a direct contact integral heater. Most conventional electrically insulative materials (such as ceramics and glasses) have low thermal conductivity, which would conduct heat poorly.
It would be desirable to provide integral resistance heaters that minimize these problems.
Disclosed in various embodiments herein are integral resistance heaters in which a heating element is directly in contact with and bonded to a beryllium oxide (BeO) ceramic body. Beryllium oxide has the unique property of being both electrically insulative and highly thermally conductive.
In some embodiments disclosed herein, the integral resistance heater includes beryllium oxide (BeO) ceramic body having a first surface and a second surface. A heating element is formed from a refractory metallizing layer. The heating element is directly in contact with and bonded to the first surface or the second surface of the BeO ceramic body.
In other embodiments disclosed herein, methods of forming an integral resistance heater include forming a heating element by applying a refractory metallizing paint onto the first surface or the second surface of a BeO ceramic body. In these embodiments, it is generally contemplated that the ceramic body has a large length and width relative to the thickness of the ceramic body.
In yet other embodiments disclosed herein, the integral resistance heater includes a BeO ceramic tube extending between a first terminal and a second terminal. A heating element is formed from a refractory metallizing paint and is applied directly on an exterior surface of the BeO ceramic tube, i.e. on the circumferential surface / sidewall of the tube (rather than the two end surfaces thereon). A first end of the heating element is connected to the first terminal and a second end of the heating element is connected to the second terminal. These terminals can be joined to the BeO ceramic tube by soldering, brazing, or tack welding.
In other embodiments, an integral resistance heater is disclosed for use in a heater pack. The heater pack includes a BeO ceramic top plate. An intermediate BeO ceramic body has a first surface, a second surface, and a heating element formed from a refractory metallizing paint printed onto the first surface or the second surface. A BeO ceramic base plate is also included. The top plate, intermediate ceramic body, and the base plate form a “sandwich”, with the intermediate ceramic body in the middle. A heater terminal extends through the BeO ceramic base plate and connects to the heating element of the intermediate BeO ceramic body. These terminals are joined to the BeO with either solder, or braze, or tack weld, or mechanical screw threads. Finally, at least one power source can be connected to the heater terminal for controlling the heating element according to Ohm's law, and its Volts Alternating Current (VAC) equivalent form P(t)=I(t)V(t).
The following is a brief description of the drawings, which are presented for the purposes of illustrating the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein and not for the purposes of limiting the same.
A more complete understanding of the processes and devices disclosed herein can be obtained by reference to the accompanying drawings. These figures are merely schematic representations based on convenience and ease and are, therefore, not intended to indicate relative size and dimensions of the assemblies or components thereof.
The present disclosure may be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description of desired embodiments and the examples included therein. In the following specification and the claims which follow, reference will be made to a number of terms which shall be defined to have the following meanings.
The singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
Numerical values in the specification and claims of this application should be understood to include numerical values which are the same when reduced to the same number of significant figures and numerical values which differ from the stated value by less than the experimental error of conventional measurement technique of the type described in the present application to determine the value.
All ranges disclosed herein are inclusive of the recited endpoint and independently combinable (for example, the range of “from 2 grams to 10 grams” is inclusive of the endpoints, 2 grams and 10 grams, and all the intermediate values).
As used herein, approximating language, such as “about” and “substantially,” may be applied to modify any quantitative representation that may vary without resulting in a change in the basic function to which it is related. The modifier “about” should also be considered as disclosing the range defined by the absolute values of the two endpoints. For example, the expression “from about 2 to about 4” also discloses the range “from 2 to 4.” The term “about” may refer to plus or minus 10% of the indicated number. The terms “typical” and “typically” refer to a standard and common practice.
The term “room temperature” refers to a range of from 20° C. to 25° C.
Several terms are used herein to refer to specific patterns. The term “spiral” as used herein refers to a curve on a plane that winds around a fixed center point at a continuously increasing distance from the point. The term “Archimedean spiral” refers to a spiral having the property that any ray originating from the center point intersects successive turnings of the spiral in points with a constant separation distance. The terms “maze” and “labyrinth” refer to a pattern of discontinuous lines and/or curves that are joined together to form a circuit that resemble a set of walls forming a series of different paths between the walls. The term “unicursal” refers to a “maze” or “labyrinth” having a single pathway to the center of the pattern. The term “multicursal” refers to a “maze” or “labyrinth” having multiple (i.e., more than one) pathways to the center of the pattern. The term “zigzag” refers to a pattern in which a single line has abrupt turns such that the line runs back and forth between a first side and a second side, with the line beginning at a first end and ending at a second end.
The terms “top” and “base” are used herein. These terms indicate relative orientation, not an absolute orientation.
Methods for forming integral resistance heaters and the heaters formed therefrom are disclosed. The integral resistance heaters disclosed herein can be used in a heater pack useful in the silicon wafer industry, e.g., during semiconductor fabrication. The integral resistance heater includes a beryllium oxide (BeO) ceramic body and an electrical heating element directly in contact with and bonded to the BeO ceramic body. The heating element may be formed with a metallizing paint, which generally forms a thick film of finely divided refractory metal, upon application to the ceramic body. The BeO ceramic body has a unique combination of being highly thermally conductive and electrically insulative. This permits intimate contact with the heating element without causing electrical shorting thereof. BeO heaters can also be cycled fast (ramp up, cool down) due to the high thermal conductivity. BeO is also a high temperature refractory material. BeO is also electrically insulative and etch-resistant in corrosive atmospheres and corrosive liquids.
Referring now to
The BeO ceramic body 102 is shown in
The heating element of the BeO ceramic body is formed from a paint containing a refractory metallic that is electrically conductive (i.e., a metallizing paint). The metallizing paint can contain either molybdenum (Mo) or tungsten (W), and can contain other ingredients. In some embodiments, the metallizing paint contains “moly-manganese”, which is a mixture of molybdenum, manganese, and glass powders. In some particular embodiments, the metallizing paint contains molybdenum disilicide (MoSi2). Molybdenum disilicide is also highly refractory (m.p. 2030° C.), and can operate up to about 1800° C.
The metallizing paint may be applied using one of several techniques, depending on the shape and size of the BeO ceramic body. These techniques include screen printing, roll coating with a pinstriping wheel, hand painting, air brush spraying, immersion dip, centrifugal coating, and needle painting with syringe. In some particular embodiments, one more layers of metallizing paint are applied by screen-printing, roll coating or air brushing. The metallizing paint can form a thick film that acts as the heating element on the surface of the BeO ceramic body. The desired thickness depends on the resistance required to produce heat from current provided by a power supply as well as other factors. However, thickness alone is not the only factor that drives electrical resistance; the metallizing paint recipe (i.e., the metal to glass ratio) and the amount of sintering (i.e., shrinkage, capillary action of glass, and oxy-redox reactions) also change electrical resistivity. In some embodiments the thickness of the thick film can be typically between about 300 and 900 microinches (7.62 μm to 22.86 μm), but can be decreased or increased with multiple applications of the metallizing paint, in order to achieve the desired electrical resistance required to obey Joule's first law of heating. The metallizing paint can also be applied in patterns for more intricate designs of the heating element, such as the maze pattern 112 illustrated in
In some particular embodiments, the metallizing paint is applied using a screen printing process to form the heating element.
Screen printing can generally include a pre-press process before printing occurs, where an original opaque image of the desired pattern is created on a transparent overlay. A screen having an appropriate mesh count is then selected. The screen is coated with a UV curable emulsion, indicated by shaded area 130. The overlay is placed over the screen and exposed with a UV light source to cure the emulsion. The screen is then washed, leaving behind a negative stencil of the desired pattern on the mesh. The first surface of the BeO ceramic body can be coated with a wide pallet tape to protect from unwanted leaks through the screen which may stain the BeO ceramic body. Finally, any unwanted pin-holes in the emulsion can be blocked out with tapes, specialty emulsions, or block-out pens. This prevents the metallizing paint from continuing through the pin-holes and leaving unwanted marks on the BeO ceramic body.
Printing proceeds by placing the screen 110 atop the first surface or second surface of the BeO ceramic body. The metallizing paint is placed on top of the screen, and a flood bar is used to push the metallizing paint through the holes in the mesh 120. The flood bar is initially placed at the rear of the screen and behind a reservoir of metallizing paint. The screen is lifted to prevent contact with the BeO ceramic body. The flood bar is then pulled to the front of the screen with a slight amount of downward force, effectively filling the mesh openings with metallizing paint and moving the reservoir to the front of the screen. A rubber blade or squeegee is used to move the mesh down to the BeO ceramic body and the squeegee is pushed to the rear of the screen. The metallizing paint that is in the mesh opening is pumped or squeezed by hydraulic action onto the BeO ceramic body in a controlled and prescribed amount. In other words, the wet metallizing paint is deposited proportionally to the thickness of the mesh and/or stencil. During a “snap-off” process, the squeegee moves toward the rear of the screen and tension causes the mesh to pull up and away from the surface of the BeO ceramic body. After snap-off, the metallizing paint is left on the surface of the BeO ceramic body in the desired pattern for the heating element.
Next, the screen can be re-coated with another layer of metallizing paint if desired. Alternatively, the screen may undergo a further dehazing step to remove haze or “ghost images” left behind in the screen after removing the emulsion.
After the metallizing paint has been deposited, sintering can be performed to facilitate a strong, hermetic bond of the metallizing paint to the BeO ceramic body. The non-metallic components in the metallization matrix will diffuse into the grain boundaries of the BeO ceramic body, supplementing its strength. The amount of sintering (i.e., the time and temperature) affects the volumetric composition of the conductive path for electrons. The atmosphere during sintering affects the oxidation and reduction reactions of the metallic and semi-metallic sub-oxides. The sintered layer becomes electrically conductive, allowing subsequent plating of the metallizing layer if desired, but is not necessary for heating. Plating can be performed by electrolytic (rack or barrel) or electroless processes. A variety of materials can be used for plating, including nickel (Ni), gold (Au), silver (Ag) and copper (Cu), although operating temperature and atmosphere should be considered.
The embodiment illustrated in
The first and second heating elements are shown in
In the embodiments illustrated in
Some aspects of the integral resistance heater in
In some embodiments, the heating element is printed onto the first surface of the BeO ceramic body and a second heating element (not visible) is printed onto the second surface to form a dual-zone integral resistance heater. In this regard, the first heating element can be printed using the first screen 122 shown in
Second heater terminals 154 are included here when the heater pack incorporates a dual-zone integral resistance heater. The second heater terminals extend through the base plate, also extend through the intermediate body itself, and connect to the second heating element on the second surface 106 of the intermediate BeO ceramic body by any suitable means such as solder, braze, tack weld, or mechanical screw thread. Power source 158 can also be used to control the second heating element via the second heater terminals. Optionally, a second power source (not shown) can be used to control the second heating element via the second heating terminals. The power sources may independently or cooperatively provide a voltage to the heater element(s).
A controller (not shown) may also be included to modulate the voltage signals provided by the power sources and may further convert analog to digital signals for readout on a display means (not shown). Display means may include an LCD, computer monitor, tablet or mobile reader device, and other display means as known by one having ordinary skill in the art. A single, multiple, or redundant thermocouple(s) are in direct surface contact at a desired location on the device, providing a closed loop feedback signal to the controller.
In some embodiments, the top plate 150 is comprised of a layer of ceramic semiconducting material, an electrode layer, and a ceramic BeO layer. The ceramic semiconducting material may include beryllium oxide (BeO) which is doped with titanium dioxide, or titania (TiO2). The layer of ceramic semiconducting material may also include a minor amount of glass eutectic which serves as an adhesive bond, and/or hermetic sealing encapsulation during sintering.
In further embodiments, the base plate 152 may be comprised of a beryllium oxide BeO ceramic layer, similar to the intermediate BeO ceramic body 102. The base plate can include includes holes 162 for the connection to the first heating element via first heating terminals and holes 160 for connection to the second heating element via second heating terminals.
With reference to
Here, the heating element 308 is a foil or thin film layer having a general zigzag pattern formed by any suitable method such as etching, die cutting, water jet, or laser cutting. In some embodiments, the heating element 308 may be a foil made from one of a nickel-cobalt ferrous alloy (e.g., KOVAR), molybdenum (Mo), tungsten (W), platinum (Pt), or a platinum-rhodium (PtRh) alloy. The heating element 308 is directly bonded to the surface of the BeO via gas/metal eutectic bond using precisely controlled temperature to produce a transient liquid phase. In other embodments, the heating element is a thin film containing molybdenum and deposited using a physical vapor deposition (PVD) process (e.g., sputter deposition, vacuum evaporation, or so forth).
A heating element having a resistance of about 4.5 ohms and formed from metallizing paint was embedded 0.040″ below the surface of a 2 inch×2 inch BeO ceramic square plate. A voltage of about 6.5 vdc was applied to the heating element. The heating element drew a current of about 1.44 amps and output about 9W of power. The BeO ceramic plate felt warm to the touch.
A dual-zone heating element formed from metallizing paint was embedded inside a BeO disc having a diameter of about 200 mm (7.5″). The first zone is located about 0.068″ below the surface, and the second zone is located about 0.136″ below the surface. The first zone heating element was powered and reached an output of about 501W of power at about 282° C. The second zone heating element was then powered, and the first zone heating element dropped to about 418W of power. The second zone heating element reached an output of about 354W of power at about 458° C. The heating elements exhibited a high temperature resistance coefficient.
A voltage range of about 6VAC to 60VAC was applied to the heating element from Example 1 above. The heating element had a starting resistance of 4.2 ohms and the room temperature was 76° F. At about 60VAC, the heating element reached a maximum temperature of about 592° C. and power output of about 228W, respectively. The results are shown below in Table 1.
In
Power was supplied to the dual-zone heating element described according to Example 2 above. A voltage range of about 7VAC to 121VAC was applied in two tests, at the first and second zones. A starting resistance for zone 1, test 1 was about 17.8Ω. Starting resistance for zone 2, test 1 was about 5.9 0. At zone 1, test 2, the starting resistance was about 20.9Ω. Finally, the starting resistance for zone 2, test 2 was about 7.4Ω. The results of the two tests at the first and second zones are shown below in Tables 2-5.
In
Two heating element types were constructed according to the embodiment illustrated in
In
The present disclosure has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments. Obviously, modifications and alterations will occur to others upon reading and understanding the preceding detailed description. It is intended that the present disclosure be construed as including all such modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/319,388, filed on Apr. 7, 2016, which is fully incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62319388 | Apr 2016 | US |
