JP2006066457A - Stage drive device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stage drive device in which adverse effect due to deformation of a chamber can be prevented. <P>SOLUTION: The stage drive device comprises a ball screw drive motor 12 provided on the outside of a vacuum chamber 1, a torque transmitting shaft 15 for transmitting the driving force of the ball screw drive motor 12 to a ball screw 11, a seal unit 16 for sealing the part of the torque transmitting shaft 15 penetrating the vacuum chamber, and a base 7 provided in the vacuum chamber 1 wherein the seal unit 16 is secured to the base 7 and the vacuum chamber 1 is coupled resiliently and airtightly with the seal unit 16 through a bellows 28. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a stage driving apparatus for driving a stage in a chamber in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus such as a semiconductor exposure apparatus or various inspection apparatuses.

  In a semiconductor exposure apparatus or the like, a stage driving apparatus as shown in FIG. 7 may be used as an apparatus for moving and positioning a stage arranged in a vacuum chamber in a predetermined direction. In FIG. 7, reference numeral 1 denotes a vacuum chamber. In the vacuum chamber 1, a stage 5 is provided, and a stage driving device 6 that slides the stage 5 in one axis direction (left and right in the figure) is provided. It has been.

  The stage driving device 6 includes a base 7 fixed to the bottom surface of the vacuum chamber 1 by a plurality of bolts (not shown), a ball screw 11 ′ supported on the base 7 via a bearing unit 17, and a ball screw 11. A plurality of linear guides that are provided on both sides of the ball screw 11 ′ in parallel with the ball screw 11 ′ to guide the stage 5 and are fixed to the outer wall of the vacuum chamber 1 via a motor bracket 12 a. And a torque transmission mechanism 13 for transmitting the rotational torque of the ball screw drive motor 12 to the ball screw 11 ′. In FIG. 7, 11b is a nut of the ball screw 11 ', and 5a is a nut bracket fixed to the lower surface of the stage 5 and to which the nut 11b is fixed. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the torque transmission mechanism 13 is connected to the output shaft of the drive motor 12 via a coupling 12b and to the screw shaft 11a of the ball screw 11 ′ via a coupling 14. A torque transmission shaft 15 as a motion transmission element, and a seal unit 16 for sealing the vacuum chamber penetrating portion of the torque transmission shaft 15.

  The seal unit 16 includes a cylindrical housing 16 a provided on the outer periphery of the torque transmission shaft 15. The seal unit 16 is fixed to the outer wall surface of the vacuum chamber 1 at the right end of the housing 16 a in the drawing. The seal unit mounting flange 16b is provided. Further, the seal unit 16 includes a bearing (not shown) that rotatably supports the torque transmission shaft 15 with respect to the housing 16a, and the housing 16a has a seal between the torque transmission shaft 15 and the housing 16a. Sealing means (not shown) is provided. As the sealing means of the seal unit 16, there are those using a magnetic fluid and a permanent magnet, those using a contact type seal such as an O-ring, and non-contact type using a differential exhaust seal.

  Further, an XY stage driving device as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is often used as a device for combining the stage driving device as described above and driving the XY stage in a vacuum chamber. 8 and 9, reference numeral 101 denotes a vacuum chamber. An XY stage 105 is provided in the vacuum chamber 101, and an XY stage that drives the XY stage 105 in the X-axis and Y-axis directions in the drawings. A driving device 106 is provided. The vacuum chamber 101 includes a vacuum chamber body 2 formed in a substantially box shape, and a chamber lid 3 that closes an opening for carrying in an internal device formed on one side surface of the vacuum chamber body 2. .

  The XY stage driving device 106 includes a base 107 fixed to the bottom surface of the vacuum chamber 101 by a plurality of bolts (not shown). The XY stage 105 is driven in the X-axis direction in the figure by this base 107. A first stage drive mechanism 108 (see FIG. 9) is provided, and a second stage drive mechanism 17 (see FIG. 9) for driving the XY stage 105 in the Y-axis direction in the figure is provided.

  The first stage drive mechanism 108 includes a first slide table 9 that slides in the X-axis direction in the figure, and this slide table 9 is provided on a base 107 via a plurality of linear guides 10. Further, the first stage drive mechanism 108 has a first ball screw 111 that drives the XY stage 105 in the X-axis direction in the figure via the slide table 9, and a first ball screw drive motor 12 that drives the ball screw 111. And. The ball screw drive motor 12 is provided outside the vacuum chamber 101, and a motor bracket 12 a for fixing the ball screw drive motor 12 to the vacuum chamber 101 is attached to the outer wall surface of the vacuum chamber 101.

  The first stage drive mechanism 108 includes a first torque transmission mechanism 13 that transmits the rotational torque of the ball screw drive motor 12 to the ball screw 111. This torque transmission mechanism 13 is the same as that shown in FIG. The torque transmission shaft 15 is connected to the screw shaft 11a of the ball screw 111 via the coupling 14, and the seal unit 16 seals the vacuum chamber penetrating portion of the torque transmission shaft 15. The seal unit 16 includes a cylindrical housing 16 a provided on the outer periphery of the torque transmission shaft 15. The seal unit 16 is fixed to the outer wall surface of the vacuum chamber 101 at the right end of the housing 16 a in the drawing. The seal unit mounting flange 16b is provided. Further, the seal unit 16 includes a bearing (not shown) that rotatably supports the torque transmission shaft 15 with respect to the housing 16a, and the housing 16a has a seal between the torque transmission shaft 15 and the housing 16a. Sealing means (not shown) is provided.

  The second stage drive mechanism 17 includes a second slide table 18 that slides in the Y-axis direction in the figure, and the slide table 18 is provided on the base 107 via a plurality of linear guides 19. The second stage driving mechanism 17 also has a second ball screw 20 that drives the XY stage 105 in the Y-axis direction in the figure via the slide table 18 and a second ball screw driving motor 21 that drives the ball screw 20. And. The ball screw drive motor 21 is provided outside the vacuum chamber 101, and a motor bracket 21 a for fixing the ball screw drive motor 21 to the vacuum chamber 101 is attached to the outer wall surface of the vacuum chamber 101.

  The second stage drive mechanism 17 includes a second torque transmission mechanism 22 that transmits the rotational torque of the ball screw drive motor 21 to the ball screw 21. This torque transmission mechanism 22 is the same as that shown in FIG. The torque transmission shaft 15 is connected to the screw shaft 11a of the ball screw 20 via the coupling 14, and the seal unit 16 seals the vacuum chamber penetrating portion of the torque transmission shaft 15.

  The XY stage 105 moves in the Y-axis direction with respect to the first slide table 9 through a connecting member 9b that passes through the openings of the linear guide 9a and the second slide table 18 and is fixed to the slider of the linear guide 9a. It is guided so that it can move in the X-axis direction with respect to the second slide table 18 via the linear guide 18a. Therefore, the XY stage 105 can move in the XY plane within a range guided by the linear guides 9a and 18a.

  In the uniaxial stage driving device or the XY stage device configured as described above, a ball screw driving motor serving as a heat generation source is provided outside the vacuum chamber, so that the temperature increase in the vacuum chamber due to the heat generation of the motor is suppressed. can do. Further, it is not necessary to use a special and expensive ball screw drive motor that can suppress the generation of outgas and dust.

Further, as a drive source arranged outside the vacuum chamber, for example, a linear motor, such as a shaft that directly reciprocates a shaft as a motion transmission element, and a shaft that penetrates an opening provided in the vacuum chamber. Is directly reciprocated by a drive source (see Patent Document 1). According to this, a sleeve (seal unit) including a hydrostatic bearing that supports a shaft body in an opening provided in the chamber and a differential exhaust seal disposed closer to the chamber than the hydrostatic bearing is fixed. The shaft is inserted through a minute gap inside. Air or the like flowing into the chamber through the minute gap is exhausted by a vacuum pump connected to the annular grooves constituting the differential exhaust seal. This keeps the inside of the chamber sealed to the outside rather than the differential exhaust seal. A stage to be moved and positioned inside the chamber is attached to the side of the shaft body inserted into the chamber. With such a configuration, the stage is driven and positioned from the outside of the chamber without the need to provide a motion conversion mechanism such as a ball screw that needs lubrication in the chamber. In addition to the linear motor, various external sources such as a combination of a motor and a ball screw, a combination of a motor, a plurality of pulleys, and a belt can be used.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,726,689

  However, in the uniaxial stage driving apparatus shown in FIG. 7 and the XY stage apparatus shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, when the vacuum chamber is evacuated, deformation due to atmospheric pressure occurs in the vacuum chamber. The screw shaft and torque transmission shaft will be displaced (change in axial distance, shaft misalignment or shaft tilt), making it difficult to efficiently transmit the rotational torque of the ball screw drive motor to the ball screw. In addition, when the rigidity of the coupling is high (low flexibility), the deformation of the ball screw cannot be ignored. For this reason, when the coupling is made highly flexible, there is a possibility that the dynamic rigidity of the entire stage driving device is lowered.

  Further, in the stage driving device described in Patent Document 1, since the seal unit (sleeve) is directly fixed to the chamber, the sleeve is inclined depending on the position of the opening due to the deformation of the chamber, and the stage guiding accuracy is reduced. Problems arise. In addition, when the minimum gap between the sleeve and the shaft body is a very small gap, such as several μm, there is a possibility that the sleeve and the shaft body come into contact with each other due to the slight deformation of the sleeve accompanying the deformation of the chamber. There was also.

Further, the example in which the inside of the chamber is set to a vacuum (negative pressure) has been described above, but the same problem occurs when the inside of the chamber has a higher pressure than the outside (for example, atmospheric pressure).
The present invention has been made paying attention to such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a stage drive device that can prevent adverse effects caused by deformation of the chamber while being a stage drive device. It is.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the invention of claim 1 is characterized in that the inside is a sealed space and the stage is slidably driven in a uniaxial direction in a vacuum chamber having an opening, and is provided outside the vacuum chamber. A drive source, a motion transmission element that passes through the opening and transmits the driving force of the drive source to the stage, a seal unit that inserts and supports the motion transmission element and seals between the motion transmission element, And a base provided in a vacuum chamber, wherein the seal unit is fixed to the base, and the vacuum chamber and the seal unit are elastically and airtightly coupled to each other. It is characterized by that.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the stage driving device according to the first aspect, a bellows for elastically coupling the vacuum chamber and the seal unit is provided.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the stage drive device according to the first or second aspect, the drive source is a rotary motor, and the motion transmission element is a torque transmission shaft that is rotatably supported by the seal unit. Features.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided the stage drive device according to the third aspect, further comprising a linear motion conversion mechanism for converting the rotation of the torque transmission shaft into a linear motion of the stage.
The invention according to claim 5 is the stage driving apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the motion transmission element is a stage support shaft provided above the base with an end protruding outside the vacuum chamber. The drive source is a linear motion actuator that slide-drives the stage support shaft in the axial direction of the shaft, and the seal unit is a bearing unit that slidably supports the stage support shaft.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the stage drive device according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the direction of the linear motion of the rotary motor, the seal unit, the torque transmission shaft, and the linear motion conversion mechanism are orthogonal to each other within a single plane. The two stages are arranged as described above, and the stage is engaged with the two sets of linear motion conversion mechanisms.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the seal unit includes a hydrostatic radial bearing, and a differential exhaust seal provided adjacent to the hydrostatic radial bearing and closer to the inside of the vacuum chamber than the hydrostatic radial bearing. It is characterized by.
The invention according to claim 8 is characterized in that the opening is sized so that the stage driving device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, 6, and 7 can be pulled out from the inside of the vacuum chamber. To do.

  According to the stage driving apparatus of the present invention, the seal unit is fixed to the base in the chamber and is elastically coupled to the chamber. Therefore, the influence of the deformation of the chamber due to the pressure difference between the inside and outside of the chamber is transmitted to the seal unit. It becomes difficult. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the displacement of the movement transmitting element and thus the stage.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a main part of a stage driving apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Parts that are the same as or correspond to those shown in FIG. 7 are given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted. As shown in FIG. 1, the stage drive device 8 according to the first embodiment of the present invention has a torque transmission mechanism that transmits the rotational torque of a ball screw drive motor 12 as a drive source to a ball screw 11 constituting a motion conversion mechanism. 13 is provided.

  The torque transmission mechanism 13 includes a torque transmission shaft 15 as a motion transmission element connected to the screw shaft 11 a of the ball screw 11 via a coupling 14, and a seal unit 16 that seals the vacuum chamber penetrating portion of the torque transmission shaft 15. The seal unit mounting flange 16 b of the seal unit 16 is attached to a bracket 26 described later fixed to the base 7. The configuration of the seal unit 16 is the same as that shown in FIG.

  The bracket 26 is integrally fixed to the base 7 and is formed in a plate shape with a thickness that does not cause deformation due to atmospheric pressure. A seal unit mounting flange 16b of the seal unit 16 is fixed to the bracket 26 with a plurality of bolts (not shown). The close contact surface between the bracket 26 and the seal unit mounting flange 16b is sealed by a seal ring 27 such as an O-ring. Further, a bellows mounting member 28a faces the outside of the vacuum chamber 1 of the bracket 26 and receives atmospheric pressure, and a plurality of bolts (not shown) are interposed between the bracket 26 and a seal ring 28b such as an O-ring. The one end of the bellows 28 is airtightly joined to the bellows attachment member 28a by welding or the like.

The bellows 28 is elastically deformable with a sufficient elastic coefficient in comparison with the coupling 14 in the axial direction and the like, and the bellows 28 is sealed to the side surface of the vacuum chamber 1 at the other end. A bellows mounting member 30 fixed by a plurality of bolts (not shown) via a ring 29 is airtightly joined by welding or the like.
The bracket 26 is fixed to the base 7 by a plurality of bolts (not shown). The vacuum chamber 1 has an opening 31 having a size that allows the entire stage driving device 8 together with the base 7 to be taken out of the vacuum chamber 1. Is formed. The base 7 has sufficient rigidity so as not to be affected by the deformation of the vacuum chamber 1.

  In the stage drive device 8 configured as described above, the ball screw drive motor 12 serving as a heat generation source is provided outside the vacuum chamber 1 in the same manner as the conventional stage drive device described above. The temperature rise inside the vacuum chamber 1 can be suppressed. Further, it is not necessary to use a special and expensive motor that can suppress the generation of outgas and dust as the ball screw drive motor 12. Further, even if the vacuum chamber 1 is deformed according to the pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the vacuum chamber 1, it is assumed that the deformation due to atmospheric pressure occurs in the vacuum chamber 1 due to deformation of the bellows 28 such as axial expansion and contraction. Can also be absorbed by the bellows 28. As a result, the positional deviation of the seal unit 16 and thus the torque transmission shaft 15 is almost eliminated, and the positional deviation of the torque transmission shaft 15 with respect to the ball screw 11 can be suppressed, so that the screw shaft 11a of the ball screw 11 and the torque transmission shaft 15 are connected. A highly rigid coupling can be used.

Further, since the position of the seal unit 16 can be arranged more inward of the vacuum chamber 1 than that shown in FIG. 7, the shaft end of the screw shaft 11a can be shortened, and the screw shaft 11a can be shortened. It is also effective for improving torsional rigidity.
Furthermore, since the opening 31 for taking out the whole stage drive apparatus with the base 7 to the exterior of the vacuum chamber 1 is formed in the vacuum chamber 1, the bolt which has fixed the base 7 to the vacuum chamber 1 is removed, and a bellows is attached. By removing the bolt that fixes the member 30 to the vacuum chamber 1, the stage drive mechanism 8 can be easily pulled out of the vacuum chamber 1 from the opening 31 during maintenance.

  It should be noted that atmospheric pressure acts on a portion of the surface 26a of the bracket 26 inside the bellows 28, and a pressure difference is generated between the inside and the inside. This force can be a force that deforms the bracket 26. However, since the area of this portion is sufficiently small compared to the area of the wall surface of the vacuum chamber 1, the force for deforming the bracket 26 is sufficiently small, and the deformation amount of the bracket 26 is also smaller than the deformation amount of the vacuum chamber 1. Small enough.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a main part of a stage driving apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment described above in that the pressure in the vacuum chamber 1 is A partition 33 that forms a space including a portion inside the bellows 28 of the surface 26a of the bracket 26 is surrounded by the vacuum chamber 1 so that the opening 1a of the vacuum chamber 1 is surrounded by the low pressure chamber 32 that is higher than the atmospheric pressure and lower than the atmospheric pressure. It is a point provided. In the figure, reference numeral 34 denotes a vacuum pump that exhausts the air in the low-pressure chamber 32.

According to such a configuration, in the first embodiment described above, the area inside the bellows 28 of the surface 26a of the saddle bracket 26 on which atmospheric pressure acts is at a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure. It is possible to prevent the bracket 26 from being deformed by a pressure difference between the inside and the outside.
In this case, if the pressure in the low-pressure chamber 32 is reduced to, for example, 1000 Pa, it becomes about 1/100 compared with the external atmosphere (atmospheric pressure), that is, about 10 ⁵ Pa. Thereby, as compared with the case of the first embodiment, the deformation based on the pressure difference between the front and back of the bracket 26 can be suppressed to about 1/100. Therefore, the atmospheric pressure in the vacuum chamber 1 is set to a high level such as 10 ⁻⁵ Pa. Even when a vacuum is applied, the displacement between the ball screw 11 and the torque transmission shaft 15 can be suppressed, and as a result, a more rigid coupling 14 can be used.

It should be noted that the stage driving device 8 shown in the first and second embodiments described above can be employed in an XY stage device that combines, for example, the configuration shown in FIGS.
In the case of the configuration shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the two torque transmission mechanisms 13 are fixed to the two outer wall surfaces of the vacuum chamber 101, which is separate from the base 107, in order to introduce the biaxial motion in the orthogonal direction. Therefore, it is necessary to work and assemble the torque transmission mechanism 13. Further, since the seal unit 16 is directly fixed to the vacuum chamber 101, if the vacuum chamber 101 is deformed due to a pressure difference between the inside and the outside, it leads to a deviation in the perpendicularity between the two axes.

On the other hand, as in the first and second embodiments described above, the seal unit 16 is fixed to the bracket 26 that is directly fixed to the base 107, and the two-axis bracket and the vacuum chamber 101 are respectively bellows. By connecting through 28, it is easy to assemble the XY stage with a good degree of orthogonality, and it becomes difficult for the deviation in the orthogonality between the two axes due to the pressure difference between the inside and outside of the vacuum chamber 101 to occur.
In the above embodiments, the bracket 26 and the vacuum chamber 1 are connected via the bellows 28. However, it goes without saying that the seal unit 26 and the vacuum chamber 1 may be connected via the bellows 28 instead. Yes. Further, although the bracket 26 and the base 107 are separated, of course, they may be integrated.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
In FIG. 3, reference numeral 41 denotes a vacuum chamber. In the vacuum chamber 41, a stage 42 is provided, and a stage driving device 43 that drives the stage 42 is provided.
The stage driving device 43 is provided with a linear motor 44 as a driving source for driving the stage 42 in the X-axis direction in the figure, and this linear motor 44 is provided outside the vacuum chamber 41. The stage driving device 43 includes a pair of bases 45 installed on the bottom surface of the vacuum chamber 41. Above the base 45, a stage support shaft as two motion transmission elements that support the stage 42. 46 is slidable in the X-axis direction in the figure. The slider 44a of the linear motor 44 is connected to the two stage support shafts 46 via the connecting plate 46a.

Both end portions in the axial direction of the stage support shaft 46 protrude to the outside of the vacuum chamber 41, and bearing units 47 (see FIG. 3) as seal units are respectively provided in the vacuum chamber penetrating portions of the stage support shaft 46. Yes. The base 45 has sufficient rigidity so that the bottom surface of the vacuum chamber 41 is not affected by deformation.
The bearing unit 47 includes a bearing housing 48 (see FIG. 4) attached to the base 45, two substantially cylindrical hydrostatic porous bearings 49 accommodated in the bearing housing 48, and the hydrostatic porous bearing 49. And a differential exhaust seal 50 for preventing the inflow of air into the vacuum chamber 41. In the static pressure porous bearing 49, the inner peripheral surfaces of two substantially cylindrical porous bodies fitted and fixed in the bearing housing 48 constitute a bearing surface. The air passage 48a formed in the bearing housing 48 is connected to an air supply unit including an external air supply pump (not shown). In addition, the air supply path 48 a communicates with the outer peripheral surface of each porous body, and air supplied from the air supply unit is supplied to the static pressure porous bearing 49.

Of the air ejected from the inner surface of the static pressure porous bearing 49, the amount of air flowing into the annular groove between the two porous bodies and the annular groove adjacent to the inner end of the porous body closer to the inside of the vacuum chamber 41 is Most of the air is discharged to the outside through the air passage 48b communicating with the outside and also communicating with the annular space.
The differential exhaust seal 50 is provided in two rows of annular grooves 50a and 50b provided on the inner peripheral surface closer to the inside of the vacuum chamber 41 than the static pressure porous bearing 49 of the bearing housing 48, and the annular grooves 50a and 50b, respectively. The air passages 50c and 50d communicate with each other and communicate with the outside through the inside of the bearing housing 48, and an exhaust device including a vacuum pump (not shown) connected to the air passages 50c and 50d.

The bearing housing 48 and the static pressure porous bearing 49 excluding each annular groove and the stage support shaft 46 are opposed to each other with a minute gap of about several μm, for example.
With the above configuration, the bearing unit 47 supports the stage support shaft 46 in a non-contact manner, and prevents external air or the like from flowing into the vacuum chamber 41 through the minute gap.
A seal device 51 is provided on the outer periphery of the bearing housing 48. The sealing device 51 includes a bellows 52, and a gap between the upright portion at the end of the base 45 to which the bearing unit 47 is fixed and the opening 41 a of the vacuum chamber 41 is sealed by the sealing device 51 including the bellows 52. ing.

  In the third embodiment configured as described above, the bearing unit 47 having the differential exhaust seal 50 is provided on the outer periphery of the stage support shaft 46, so that the vacuum chamber 41 extends from the vacuum chamber penetrating portion of the stage support shaft 46. Since the outside air can be prevented from flowing in, the inside of the vacuum chamber 41 can be kept at a high vacuum. Further, since the upright portion of the base 45 and the vacuum chamber 41 are connected via the bellows 52 having excellent elastic deformability, the alignment of the bearing unit 47 is out of order due to the deformation of the wall surface portion of the vacuum chamber 41 due to evacuation. Can be prevented. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the size of the opening 41a is set to a size that allows the base 45 to be inserted without disassembling the bearing unit 47 and the stage support shaft 46, which are the main parts of the stage driving device 43. Therefore, it can be easily removed from the vacuum chamber 41. This is very effective for the stage driving apparatus configured as in the present embodiment, which requires extremely high assembly accuracy.

In the third embodiment described above, the case where the present invention is applied to a stage driving device in which both end portions of the stage support shaft 46 protrude to the outside of the vacuum chamber 41 is illustrated, but as shown in FIG. Of course, the present invention can also be applied to a stage driving apparatus in which only one end of the stage support shaft 46 protrudes outside the vacuum chamber 41.
In that case, on the side where the drive source is located, a low pressure chamber may be provided so that the drive source is also included therein, or a low pressure chamber that penetrates the stage support shaft is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the penetration portion. An appropriate seal unit may be provided. A vacuum pump may be provided for each low-pressure chamber, or all the low-pressure chambers may be depressurized with a single vacuum pump.

  In the third embodiment or its modification, the stage is supported by using two stage support shafts. However, the configuration of one stage support shaft (both ends project from the vacuum chamber to the outside). Of course, the present invention may be applied to any one of them and one whose one end projects from the vacuum chamber to the outside. In that case, in addition to the movement in the axial direction as the driving source, it is also possible to cause the stage to perform a complex movement by transmitting a movement that rotates the stage support shaft.

In the third embodiment or its modification, a suitable drive source other than the linear motor can be used instead. For example, a combination of a motor and a ball screw, a combination of a motor, a belt and a pulley, a servo cylinder, or the like may be used.
Further, in each of the above embodiments, the case of a vacuum chamber having a vacuum inside is shown as the chamber. However, the present invention can be applied if the chamber is deformed by a pressure difference between the inside and outside of the chamber. It can also be applied to the case of high pressure such as outside.
Further, in each of the above embodiments, the bellows is used as an airtight coupling between the bracket fixed to the base or the upright portion of the base and the chamber, and the seal unit and the chamber are hermetically connected. As long as it has the airtightness and can maintain airtightness, it may be replaced with another one.

It is a schematic block diagram of the torque transmission mechanism in the stage drive device which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the torque transmission mechanism in the stage drive device which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the stage drive device concerning the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is IV-IV sectional drawing of FIG. FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the stage driving device shown in FIG. 4. It is a figure which shows the 4th Embodiment of this invention. It is a side view of the conventional stage drive device. It is a side view of the conventional XY stage drive device. It is IX-IX sectional drawing of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1, 101, 41 Vacuum chamber 2 Chamber body 3 Chamber lid 5, 42 Stage 7, 107 Base 6 Stage drive device 8, 17, 43 Stage drive mechanism 9, 18 Slide table 9a, 10, 18a, 19 Linear guide 11 ', 11, 20 Ball screw 12, 21 Ball screw drive motor 13 Torque transmission mechanism 14, 12b Coupling 15 Torque transmission shaft 16 Seal unit 26 Bracket 28 Bellows 28a, 28b Bellows mounting member 32 Low pressure chamber 33 Bulkhead 34 Vacuum pump 44 Linear motor 45 Base 46 Stage support shaft 47 Bearing unit 48 Bearing housing 49 Hydrostatic porous bearing 50 Differential exhaust seal 51 Sealing device 52 Bellows

Claims (8)

The interior is a sealed space, and the stage is driven in a uniaxial direction in a chamber having an opening. The driving source is provided outside the chamber, and the driving force of the driving source passes through the opening. In a stage drive device comprising: a motion transmission element that transmits to the stage; a seal unit that inserts and supports the motion transmission element and seals it; and a base provided in the chamber;
The stage driving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the seal unit is fixed to the base, and the chamber and the seal unit are elastically and airtightly coupled.   2. The stage driving apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a bellows that elastically couples the chamber and the seal unit.   3. The stage driving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving source is a rotary motor, and the motion transmission element is a torque transmission shaft that is rotatably supported by the seal unit.   4. The stage driving apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a linear motion conversion mechanism that converts rotation of the torque transmission shaft into linear motion of the stage.   The motion transmitting element is a stage support shaft provided above the base with an end protruding outside the chamber, and the drive source is a linear motion that slides the stage support shaft in the axial direction of the shaft. 3. The stage driving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stage driving device is an actuator, and the seal unit is a bearing unit that slidably supports the stage support shaft.   Two sets of the rotary motor, the seal unit, the torque transmission shaft, and the linear motion conversion mechanism are arranged so that the directions of the linear motion are orthogonal to each other in one plane, and the stage is moved to the two linear motions. 5. The stage driving apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the stage driving apparatus is engaged with a conversion mechanism.   The seal unit includes a static pressure radial bearing, and a differential exhaust seal provided adjacent to the static pressure radial bearing and closer to the inside of the chamber than the static pressure radial bearing. Item 5. A stage driving apparatus according to Item 4.   8. The stage driving device according to claim 1, wherein the opening has a size that allows the stage driving device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, 6, and 7 to be pulled out from the inside of the chamber.

Images