Using Precise Mechanisms in Modern Vacuum Technological Equipment

Abstract

There are several groups of vacuum technological equipment equippedwith vacuum transporting systems. These groups include: thin films coating equipment [1–4], electron and ion lithography [5], molecular epitaxy [6], surface research [7, 8], electron beam equipment for welding, melting, crystal growing; equipment for outgassing, tubeless pumping, assembling vacuum devices (in ultrahigh vacuum up to 10⁻⁸ Pa) [9]. It is necessary to transfer the samples, heaters, evaporators, screens, sensors into vacuum chambers of this equipment with high to very low speed and high precision. In many cases it is impossible to use any lubricants in vacuum transporting systems because of the special requirements on the residual atmosphere. The coating equipment for thin films is the largest group of vacuum equipment, which uses the precise vacuum mechanisms. In this kind of equipment it is necessary to transfer the wafers or samples into the treatment area (coating, heating, cooling), to move screens of the evaporators and view-ports, to move the evaporators or sensors for measuring thickness of the film. Every new generation of this equipment, especially equipment for optical film coating, requires a higher degree of vacuum. As it is known, the ever lower residual pressure makes worse the working conditions of the mechanisms in vacuum and decreases the reliability of the mechanisms.