Patent ID: 6450750
Filing Date: 2002-09-17
Classification: H01L,Y10S

Abstract:
A semiconductor workpiece processing system, comprising:a mainframe chamber having at least one pair of adjacent processing chambers coupled to said mainframe chamber; a pressure-tight holding chamber coupled to said mainframe chamber; a first pressure-tight cassette chamber having a first cassette and coupled to said holding chamber; a first transfer robot positioned in said holding chamber and adapted to transfer a stack of workpieces simultaneously from said first cassette chamber to said holding chamber to be held in a first stack for subsequent transfer to said mainframe chamber; a second pressure-tight cassette chamber having a second cassette and coupled to said holding chamber; a second transfer robot positioned in said holding chamber and adapted to transfer a stack of workpieces simultaneously from said second cassette to said holding chamber to be held in a second stack for subsequent transfer to said mainframe chamber; and a third transfer robot positioned in said mainframe chamber and adjacent to said holding chamber and adapted to extend into said holding chamber and pick up a pair of workpieces from said first and second stacks of workpieces in said holding chamber. and transfer two workpieces at a time from said first and second stacks of workpieces in said holding chamber and into said pair of adjacent processing chambers wherein said pair of workpieces comprises a workpiece from each of said first and second stacks of workpieces.