In an substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention, a chamber has a conveyance opening for conveying the substrate along a conveyance path between the outside of the chamber and the substrate holder and a maintenance opening provided on an opposite side of the conveyance opening with the substrate holder. A rotating mechanism has a motor for generating a rotational driving force to rotate the substrate holder and a power transmitter for transmitting the rotational driving force generated by the motor to the substrate holder. The motor and the power transmitter are so arranged on the opposite side of the conveyance opening with respect to the substrate holder, as to face the maintenance opening, to thereby make the rotating mechanism accessible through the maintenance opening from the outside.

In a substrate holder, a gas supply part sends out a gas to the space between the lower surface of a substrate and a base surface of a base part to form a radially outward airflow. A division plate is arranged radially outward of the outer peripheral edge of the substrate on the base surface of the base part to surround the substrate. The inner peripheral edge of the division plate and the outer peripheral edge of the substrate face each other in the radial direction with a space in between. The upper surface of the division plate is located below or at the same position in the up-down direction as the upper surface of the substrate. An annular passage is provided between the lower surface of the division plate and the base surface of the base part.

A method and apparatus for processing a semiconductor is disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a processing system for semiconductor processing is disclosed. The processing chamber includes two transfer chambers, a processing chamber, and a rotation module. The processing chamber is coupled to the transfer chamber. The rotation module is positioned between the transfer chambers. The rotation module is configured to rotate the substrate. The transfer chambers are configured to transfer the substrate between the processing chamber and the transfer chamber. In another embodiment, a method for processing a substrate on the apparatus is disclosed herein.

A gate valve apparatus and a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, in which a volume of a drive portion for driving a valve body is reduced, are provided. The gate valve apparatus includes a housing having an opening, a valve body configured to open and close the opening, and a drive portion configured to drive the valve body, in which the drive portion includes a first crankshaft including a first input shaft rotatably supported by a side wall of the housing and a first output shaft rotatably supported by the valve body, a second crankshaft including a second input shaft rotatably supported by the side wall of the housing and a second output shaft rotatably supported by the valve body, a rotation transmission portion configured to transmit rotation of the first input shaft to the second input shaft, and an actuator configured to rotate the first input shaft.

There is provided an electrostatic chuck heater including: a ceramic plate having a first surface for bearing a wafer on which a film is to be deposited, and a second surface opposite the first surface, and including ESC electrodes and a heater electrode which are built therein; a ceramic shaft which is attached to the second surface of the ceramic plate and which comprises an internal space for accommodating an ESC rod connected to the ESC electrodes and a heater rod connected to the heater electrode; a plurality of lift pin holes penetrating the ceramic plate from the first surface to the second surface; and a plurality of protrusions arranged on the first surface of the ceramic plate with equal spacing from each other and with rotational symmetry about a central axis of each of the lift pin holes.

Disclosed is a ceramic susceptor. The ceramic susceptor may include: an insulating plate in which one or more electrodes are arranged; a hollow shaft with one end connected to the insulating plate; and one or more electrode rods connected to the electrodes. The hollow shaft may include one or more side wall holes penetrating an interior of a side wall, and the one or more electrode rods may include one or more first electrode rods, each of which is electrically connected to a first electrode among the one or more electrodes. The first electrode rods may extend through the side wall holes, respectively.

The present invention relates to a substrate raising/lowering module, a substrate processing module including the same, and a substrate processing system. A lifting module includes: a substrate support disposed in an interior space and supporting a substrate; and an upward/downward driving unit coupled to the substrate support to drive upward/downward movement of the substrate support, wherein the upward/downward driving unit includes a shaft coupled to the substrate support and extending outwardly through a chamber, and an anti-rotation member coupled to the shaft to prevent circumferential rotation of the shaft about a longitudinal reference axis of the shaft.

A lift and rotate assembly includes a shaft carrier, a ceramic shaft, a segmented sleeve, and a flanged sleeve. The shaft carrier defines a bore therethrough, the ceramic shaft is received within the bore of the shaft carrier, the segmented sleeve is seated in the shaft carrier and extends about the ceramic shaft, and the flanged sleeve defines a rotation axis and threadedly receives therein the shaft carrier. The segmented sleeve is compressively fixed and radially collapsed about the ceramic shaft within bore of the shaft carrier to limit tilt and wobble of a substrate support carried by the ceramic shaft during rotation about the rotation axis. Chamber arrangements and semiconductor processing systems including lift and rotate assemblies, methods of making lift and rotate assemblies, and methods of depositing material layers using lift and rotate assemblies are also described.