Ex-situ component recovery
View Patent ↗Disclosed herein are devices, methods and systems for ex-situ component recovery. The ex-situ recovery can be performed by desorbing or outgassing components of a processing system in a recovery system, rather than in the processing system itself. The recovery system can include a docking station and/or a heated vacuum chamber. The heated vacuum chamber can be used to desorb or outgas components that will be located inside the processing system, while the docking station can be used to desorb or outgas components that will be connected to the processing system. The processing system components can be placed under pressure by the recovery system to desorb or outgas contaminants and remove virtual leaks. The recovery system pressure can include a vacuum roughing pump, a turbomolecular pump, and/or a cryogenic pump to apply a pressure necessary to desorb or outgas the components.
1. A method, comprising:
receiving, at a component chamber, a first component of a processing system, the component chamber being independent of the processing system and having a first purge gas inlet;
receiving, at a docking station, a connection to a second component of the processing system, the docking station having a second purge gas inlet;
applying a vacuum pressure to the component chamber and the docking station to extract contaminants from the first component and the second component, the applying being performed until a first rate of pressure rise meets a first threshold rate of pressure rise that corresponds to a defined contaminant level; and
purging the contaminants from the component chamber and the docking station with a purge gas to remove the contaminants, the purging being performed until the first rate of pressure rise meets the first threshold rate of pressure rise that corresponds to a defined contaminant level.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
determining that the first rate of pressure rise meets the first threshold rate of pressure rise;
after determining that the first rate for pressure rise meets the first threshold rate of pressure rise:
rebuilding the processing system with at least one of the first component or the second component;
determining a second rate of pressure rise for the rebuilt processing system; and
determining that the processing system is available for processing based on the second rate of pressure rise meeting a second threshold rate of pressure rise.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the vacuum pressure comprises selectively engaging a first pump and a second pump to apply the vacuum pressure.
4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the first pump is a turbomolecular pump and the second pump is a cryogenic pump.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising heating the component chamber to a defined temperature.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the processing system comprises a semiconductor reactor.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first threshold rate of pressure rise is a steady state pressure change over time that corresponds to a defined contaminant level.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the purge gas is argon or nitrogen.
9. A method, comprising
receiving a component of a processing system in a recovery system that is independent of the processing system;
applying a vacuum pressure to the recovery system to extract contaminants from the component;
purging the contaminants from the recovery system with a purge gas to remove the contaminants from the recovery system, wherein:
the applying and purging are performed until a threshold rate of pressure rise that corresponds to a defined contaminant level is satisfied; and
the recovery system comprises a heated vacuum chamber and a component docking station.
10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
determining that the rate of pressure rise meets the threshold rate of pressure rise;
after determining that the rate for pressure rise meets the threshold rate of pressure rise:
rebuilding the processing system the component; and
determining that the processing system is available for processing based on a second rate of pressure rise for the processing system meeting a second threshold rate of pressure rise.
11. The method of claim 9 , wherein applying the vacuum pressure comprises selectively engaging a first pump and a second pump to apply the vacuum pressure.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the first pump is a turbomolecular pump and the second pump is a cryogenic pump.
13. A method, comprising:
receiving, at a component chamber, a first component of a processing system, the component chamber being independent of the processing system and having a first purge gas inlet;
receiving, at a docking station, a connection to a second component of the processing system, the docking station having a second purge gas inlet;
receiving at each of the first purge gas inlet and the second purge gas inlet, a connection to a purge gas source; and
applying a vacuum pressure to the component chamber and the docking station, the vacuum pressure being applied until a specified contaminant level is reached.
14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
rebuilding the processing system with the first component and the second component; and
determining, based on a second rate of pressure rise, that the processing system is available for processing.
15. The method of claim 13 , wherein applying the vacuum pressure comprises selectively engaging a first pump and a second pump to apply the vacuum pressure.
16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the first pump is a turbomolecular pump and the second pump is a cryogenic pump.
17. The method of claim 13 , further comprising heating the component chamber to a defined temperature.
18. The method of claim 13 , wherein the processing system comprises a semiconductor reactor.
19. The method of claim 13 , wherein the purge gas is argon or nitrogen.