Patents by Inventor Kazuteru Obara

Kazuteru Obara has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20230417488
    Abstract: A heat treatment apparatus includes: a processing container having an interior space in which substrates are processed; a temperature adjustment furnace that is disposed around the processing container and heats the substrates from the outer side of the processing container; and an internal temperature adjustment unit that is movable relative to the processing container and supplies a temperature adjustment gas for regulating a temperature of the processing container into the interior space in a state of being disposed facing an opening that opens the interior space.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 15, 2023
    Publication date: December 28, 2023
    Inventors: Makoto TAKAHASHI, Kazuteru OBARA, Tatsuya YAMAGUCHI
  • Patent number: 11784070
    Abstract: A heat treatment apparatus includes: an inner tube having a cylindrical shape and configured to accommodate a substrate; an outer tube configured to cover an outside of the inner tube; a heater provided around the outer tube; a gas supply pipe that extends along a longitudinal direction in the inner tube; an opening formed in a side wall of the inner tube facing the gas supply pipe; a temperature sensor provided at a position shifted by a predetermined angle from the opening in a circumferential direction of the inner tube; and a controller that controls the heater based on a detected value of the temperature sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2023
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Yasuaki Kikuchi, Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Kazuteru Obara, Ryuji Kusajima
  • Patent number: 11674224
    Abstract: A film forming method includes: accommodating a substrate in a processing container of a film forming apparatus; supplying an inert gas to the processing container at a flow rate equal to an average flow rate of a plurality of gases to be supplied into the processing container in a film forming process and maintaining a pressure of the processing container to be substantially same as an average pressure of the processing container in the film forming process; and alternately supplying the plurality of gases into the processing container and forming a film on the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2023
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Yasuaki Kikuchi, Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Kazuteru Obara, Ryuji Kusajima
  • Patent number: 11656126
    Abstract: There is provided a heat treatment apparatus for performing a predetermined film forming process on a substrate by mounting the substrate on a surface of a rotary table installed in a processing vessel and heating the substrate by a heating part while rotating the rotary table. The heat treatment apparatus includes: a first temperature measuring part of a contact-type configured to measure a temperature of the heating part; a second temperature measuring part of a non-contact type configured to measure a temperature of the substrate mounted on the rotary table in a state where the rotary table is being rotated; and a temperature control part configured to control the heating part based on a first measurement value measured by the first temperature measuring part and a second measurement value measured by the second temperature measuring part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2023
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Kazuteru Obara, Koji Yoshii, Yuki Wada, Hitoshi Kikuchi
  • Patent number: 11581201
    Abstract: A heat treatment apparatus includes: a processing container configured to accommodate and process a plurality of substrates in multiple tiers under a reduced-pressure environment; a first heater configured to heat the plurality of substrates accommodated in the processing container; a plurality of gas supply pipes configured to supply a gas to positions having different heights in the processing container; and a second heater provided on a gas supply pipe that supplies a gas to a lowermost position among the plurality of gas supply pipes, and configured to heat the gas in the gas supply pipe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Kazuteru Obara, Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Yasuaki Kikuchi, Ryuji Kusajima, Shinya Nasukawa, Kazuyuki Kikuchi
  • Publication number: 20220373260
    Abstract: A heat treatment apparatus including: a cylindrical processing container; a heater configured to heat the processing container; and a cooler configured to cool the processing container, wherein the cooler includes: discharge holes provided at intervals in a longitudinal direction of the processing container, the discharge holes being configured to discharge a cooling medium toward the processing container; a branch configured to divide the cooling medium into a plurality of flowing paths that communicate with the discharge holes; and blowers provided for respective ones of the flowing paths, the blowers being configured to send the cooling medium to the discharge holes that communicate with the respective ones of the flowing paths.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 10, 2022
    Publication date: November 24, 2022
    Inventors: Kazuteru OBARA, Tatsuya YAMAGUCHI
  • Publication number: 20200340116
    Abstract: A heat treatment apparatus includes: an inner tube having a cylindrical shape and configured to accommodate a substrate; an outer tube configured to cover an outside of the inner tube; a heater provided around the outer tube; a gas supply pipe that extends along a longitudinal direction in the inner tube; an opening formed in a side wall of the inner tube facing the gas supply pipe; a temperature sensor provided at a position shifted by a predetermined angle from the opening in a circumferential direction of the inner tube; and a controller that controls the heater based on a detected value of the temperature sensor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2020
    Publication date: October 29, 2020
    Inventors: Yasuaki Kikuchi, Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Kazuteru Obara, Ryuji Kusajima
  • Publication number: 20200340111
    Abstract: A film forming method includes: accommodating a substrate in a processing container of a film forming apparatus; supplying an inert gas to the processing container at a flow rate equal to an average flow rate of a plurality of gases to be supplied into the processing container in a film forming process and maintaining a pressure of the processing container to be substantially same as an average pressure of the processing container in the film forming process; and alternately supplying the plurality of gases into the processing container and forming a film on the substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 19, 2020
    Publication date: October 29, 2020
    Inventors: Yasuaki Kikuchi, Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Kazuteru Obara, Ryuji Kusajima
  • Publication number: 20200303222
    Abstract: A heat treatment apparatus includes: a processing container configured to accommodate and process a plurality of substrates in multiple tiers under a reduced-pressure environment; a first heater configured to heat the plurality of substrates accommodated in the processing container; a plurality of gas supply pipes configured to supply a gas to positions having different heights in the processing container; and a second heater provided on a gas supply pipe that supplies a gas to a lowermost position among the plurality of gas supply pipes, and configured to heat the gas in the gas supply pipe.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2020
    Publication date: September 24, 2020
    Inventors: Kazuteru Obara, Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Yasuaki Kikuchi, Ryuji Kusajima, Shinya Nasukawa, Kazuyuki Kikuchi
  • Publication number: 20200080895
    Abstract: There is provided a heat treatment apparatus for performing a predetermined film forming process on a substrate by mounting the substrate on a surface of a rotary table installed in a processing vessel and heating the substrate by a heating part while rotating the rotary table. The heat treatment apparatus includes: a first temperature measuring part of a contact-type configured to measure a temperature of the heating part; a second temperature measuring part of a non-contact type configured to measure a temperature of the substrate mounted on the rotary table in a state where the rotary table is being rotated; and a temperature control part configured to control the heating part based on a first measurement value measured by the first temperature measuring part and a second measurement value measured by the second temperature measuring part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 15, 2019
    Publication date: March 12, 2020
    Inventors: Kazuteru OBARA, Koji YOSHII, Yuki WADA, Hitoshi KIKUCHI
  • Patent number: 10533896
    Abstract: There is provided a heat treatment apparatus for performing a predetermined film forming process on a substrate by mounting the substrate on a surface of a rotary table installed in a processing vessel and heating the substrate by a heating part while rotating the rotary table. The heat treatment apparatus includes: a first temperature measuring part of a contact-type configured to measure a temperature of the heating part; a second temperature measuring part of a non-contact type configured to measure a temperature of the substrate mounted on the rotary table in a state where the rotary table is being rotated; and a temperature control part configured to control the heating part based on a first measurement value measured by the first temperature measuring part and a second measurement value measured by the second temperature measuring part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2020
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Kazuteru Obara, Koji Yoshii, Yuki Wada, Hitoshi Kikuchi
  • Patent number: 10431479
    Abstract: Disclosed is a heat treatment apparatus including: a processing container configured to accommodate a substrate; a furnace body having a heater configured to heat the substrate accommodated in the processing container and provided around the processing container; a blower configured to supply a coolant to a space between the processing container and the furnace body; and a controller having a continuous operation mode in which the blower is continuously energized and an intermittent operation mode in which energization and de-energization of the blower are repeated, and configured to control driving of the blower based on an instruction voltage. The controller drives the blower in the intermittent operation mode when the instruction voltage is higher than 0 V and lower than a predetermined threshold voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2019
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Kazuteru Obara, Yasuaki Kikuchi, Koji Yoshii
  • Publication number: 20180197759
    Abstract: Disclosed is a heat treatment apparatus including: a processing container configured to accommodate a substrate; a furnace body having a heater configured to heat the substrate accommodated in the processing container and provided around the processing container; a blower configured to supply a coolant to a space between the processing container and the furnace body; and a controller having a continuous operation mode in which the blower is continuously energized and an intermittent operation mode in which energization and de-energization of the blower are repeated, and configured to control driving of the blower based on an instruction voltage. The controller drives the blower in the intermittent operation mode when the instruction voltage is higher than 0 V and lower than a predetermined threshold voltage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 8, 2018
    Publication date: July 12, 2018
    Inventors: Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Kazuteru Obara, Yasuaki Kikuchi, Koji Yoshii
  • Publication number: 20170003171
    Abstract: A temperature measuring method for measuring a temperature in a processing vessel of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus by a radiation temperature measurement part, which is configured to measure a temperature by detecting infrared rays radiated from an object, includes: detecting infrared rays radiated from a low resistance silicon wafer having a resistivity of 0.02 ?·cm or less at room temperature (20 degrees C.) by the radiation temperature measurement part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2016
    Publication date: January 5, 2017
    Inventors: Yuki WADA, Koji YOSHII, Kazuteru OBARA
  • Publication number: 20160379897
    Abstract: There is provided a heat treatment apparatus for performing a predetermined film forming process on a substrate by mounting the substrate on a surface of a rotary table installed in a processing vessel and heating the substrate by a heating part while rotating the rotary table. The heat treatment apparatus includes: a first temperature measuring part of a contact-type configured to measure a temperature of the heating part; a second temperature measuring part of a non-contact type configured to measure a temperature of the substrate mounted on the rotary table in a state where the rotary table is being rotated; and a temperature control part configured to control the heating part based on a first measurement value measured by the first temperature measuring part and a second measurement value measured by the second temperature measuring part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2016
    Publication date: December 29, 2016
    Inventors: Kazuteru OBARA, Koji YOSHII, Yuki WADA, Hitoshi KIKUCHI
  • Patent number: 8961691
    Abstract: A disclosed film deposition apparatus includes a susceptor having in one surface a substrate receiving portion provided rotatably in a chamber; a heating unit including plural independently controllable heating portions, thereby heating the susceptor; a first reaction gas supplying portion for supplying a first reaction gas; a second reaction gas supplying portion for supplying a second reaction gas; a separation area between a first process area where the first reaction gas is supplied and a second process area where the second reaction gas is supplied, the separation area including a separation gas supplying portion for supplying a first separation gas in the separation area, and a ceiling surface opposing the one surface to produce a thin space; a center area having an ejection hole for ejecting a second separation gas along the one surface; and an evacuation opening for evacuating the chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Hitoshi Kato, Kazuteru Obara, Manabu Honma
  • Publication number: 20100151131
    Abstract: In a film deposition apparatus, a turntable is disposed in a vacuum container and includes a substrate placement area in which a substrate is placed. A substrate heating unit is disposed to heat the substrate placed on the turntable. First and second reactive gas supplying units are disposed at mutually distant locations in a rotational direction of the turntable to respectively supply first and second reactive gases to first and second processing areas adjacent to the substrate placement area. A separation gas supplying unit is disposed to supply a separation gas to a separation area located between the first and second processing areas in the rotational direction. An exhaust port is arranged to exhaust the first and second reactive gases and the separation gas from the turntable. A temperature control part is arranged to heat or cool the vacuum container.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 2, 2009
    Publication date: June 17, 2010
    Inventors: KAZUTERU OBARA, Manabu Honma
  • Publication number: 20100068893
    Abstract: A film deposition apparatus includes a reaction chamber evacuatable to a reduced pressure; a substrate holding portion rotatably provided in the reaction chamber and configured to hold a substrate; a first reaction gas supplying portion configured to flow a first reaction gas from an outer edge portion toward a center portion of the substrate holding portion; a second reaction gas supplying portion configured to flow a second reaction gas from an outer edge portion toward a center portion of the substrate holding portion; a separation gas supplying portion configured to flow a separation gas from an outer edge portion toward a center portion of the substrate holding portion, the separation gas supplying portion being arranged between the first and the second gas supplying portions; and an evacuation portion located in the center portion of the substrate holding portion in order to evacuate the first, the second, and the separation gases.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2009
    Publication date: March 18, 2010
    Inventors: HITOSHI KATO, Kazuteru Obara
  • Publication number: 20100055351
    Abstract: A disclosed film deposition apparatus includes a susceptor having in one surface a substrate receiving portion provided rotatably in a chamber; a heating unit including plural independently controllable heating portions, thereby heating the susceptor; a first reaction gas supplying portion for supplying a first reaction gas; a second reaction gas supplying portion for supplying a second reaction gas; a separation area between a first process area where the first reaction gas is supplied and a second process area where the second reaction gas is supplied, the separation area including a separation gas supplying portion for supplying a first separation gas in the separation area, and a ceiling surface opposing the one surface to produce a thin space; a center area having an ejection hole for ejecting a second separation gas along the one surface; and an evacuation opening for evacuating the chamber.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 31, 2009
    Publication date: March 4, 2010
    Inventors: HITOSHI KATO, Kazuteru Obara, Manabu Honma