A reticle container for containing a reticle including a base plate having one or more windows. Each of the windows can include mounting recess having a recess sidewall including an undercut defined therein. A transparent substrate can be disposed in the mounting recess and is retained therein by a retention member having an arcuate portion extending between a first end portion and a second end portion. At least the first end portion of the retention member can be positioned in the undercut defined in the recess sidewall such that the arcuate portion of the retention member contacts the transparent substrate to retain the transparent substrate in the mounting recess.

A gas purge apparatus, a load port apparatus, and a gas purge method are capable of filling a container with a cleaning gas without leaning the container to be purged. The first and second purge nozzles are configured to be escalated so that the first purge nozzle 30-1 contacts with the first purge port 5-1 whose distance to the regulating distance 90 is near before the second purge nozzle 30-2 contacts with the second purge port 5-2.

A gas purge unit includes an intake nozzle 28, a pivotable body 31, and an O-ring 35. The intake nozzle 28 has a nozzle opening 26 flowing out a cleaning gas. The pivotable body 31 is arranged in a ring shape to surround a cylindrical projection 28b of the nozzle 28, and is provided with a contact part 34 formed on a tip portion of the pivotable body 31 to be able to detachably contact with the intake port 5. The ring-shaped O-ring 35 is held to be compressively elastically deformable along a longitudinal direction of the cylindrical projection 28b between a rear end of the pivotable body 31 and a base portion 28a of the nozzle 28.

The present invention relates to a wafer transport system and a method of operating the same. The wafer transport system comprises at least one semiconductor apparatus, a track, a transfer device, a positioning device, a carrier and a cleaning device. The wafer transport system transports wafers along the at least one semiconductor apparatus via the carrier riding on the track. The transfer device transfers the wafers from the carrier to the at least one semiconductor apparatus. The positioning device identifies and controls the position of the carrier on the track. The cleaning device maintains the cleanliness of the wafers. The present invention provides advantages for improving the yield rate of a wafer, shortening the fabrication time of a wafer, and offering the flexibility and the extendibility to a wafer transport system.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for removing fume which includes, a wafer cassette for stacking wafers; and an exhaust for exhausting the fume of the wafers stacked in the wafer cassette, wherein the wafer cassette includes stacking shelves provided at both sides for stacking wafers; and a front opening for incoming and outgoing of the wafers which are being stacked in the stacking shelf, wherein the stacking shelves include multiple inclined ramp portions which are slanted towards the wafers stacked in the stacking shelves as they travel towards the front opening, wherein a purge gas outlet is provided in the inclined ramp portion for supplying purge gas for the wafers stacked in the stacking shelves. According to the present invention, the residual process gases on wafers can be removed efficiently.

A gas supplying device has a plurality of connectors each of which is configured to be connected to a container stored in the corresponding one of supplying storage sections, supply lines configured to divide and supply gas to the plurality of connectors, and a mass flow controller configured to control a flow rate of gas that flows through one of the supply lines. The supply lines include first supply lines each of which is installed to a corresponding supplying storage sections, a second supply line installed upstream of the first supply lines, and a branching supply line for dividing gas supplied from the second supply line into the first supply lines. The mass flow controller is installed in the second supply line and in an installation area.

A semiconductor device manufacturing method which improves working efficiency. The method includes the step of transporting by air a package as a sealed moisture-proof bag which contains a case housing a semiconductor wafer laminate, in which the semiconductor wafer laminate has a plurality of semiconductor wafers stacked with a protective sheet interposed between semiconductor wafers. In order to facilitate separation of the protective sheet from the semiconductor wafers after unpacking the package, the protective sheet has a plurality of convex parts, a plurality of concave parts, and a flat part between a convex part and a concave part. A hole penetrating the protective sheet is made in each convex part and the center of the hole is located off the apex of the convex part.

The safety of a worker is ensured, and the area in which purging is halted is limited to the minimum. The inner space of a device is divided into a working area and a non-working area, and purging of articles in the working area is halted and the purging of the articles in the non-working area is continued. The oxygen concentration in the working area is measured, and if the oxygen concentration of the working area decreases to a predetermined value or less, the purging of the articles in the non-working area is halted.

A substrate processing method is for forming a metal film on a target substrate by using a plasma. The method includes loading a target substrate having a silicon-containing layer on a surface thereof into a processing chamber which is pre-coated by a film containing a metal, introducing hydrogen gas and a gaseous compound of the metal and halogen into the processing chamber, generating a plasma, and forming a metal film on the target substrate. The method further includes performing a first reduction process of forming an atmosphere of a plasma obtained by activating hydrogen gas in the processing chamber, unloading the target substrate from the processing chamber, performing a second reduction process of forming an atmosphere of a plasma obtained by activating hydrogen gas in the processing chamber, and loading a next target substrate into the processing chamber.

A container is placed at a predetermined position on a purge device to prevent the container from getting caught on a nozzle. When the container is lowered and placed on the purge device, the two facing sides of the front end of the container's bottom surface and the front end of a recessed part, and the two facing sides of both left and right side ends of the container's bottom surface are guided by a front guide, side guides and a center guide. Following that, the nozzle is brought into contact with the bottom surface of the container.