Patent ID: 8623457

Claim:
A method for using a vacuum processing system, the method comprising: a first standby step of setting a first gate valve, positioned between a transfer chamber and a process chamber, closed and setting a central gas exhaust section, which is connected to a central exhaust port formed in a bottom of the transfer chamber, enabled to exhaust gas from inside the transfer chamber with a target object present therein; then, a first vacuum transfer step of setting the first gate valve open and transferring the target object by a transfer mechanism disposed in the transfer chamber through the first gate valve from the transfer chamber into the process chamber, with an operation of setting the central gas exhaust section disabled while setting a peripheral gas exhaust section, which is connected to a peripheral exhaust port formed in the bottom of the transfer chamber at a foot of the first gate valve, enabled in a period of from immediately before opening the first gate valve to immediately after closing the first gate valve; then, a second standby step of setting the first gate valve closed and setting the peripheral gas exhaust section disabled while setting the central gas exhaust section enabled to exhaust gas from inside the transfer chamber, with the target object being processed inside the process chamber; and then, a second vacuum transfer step of setting the first gate valve open and transferring the target object by the transfer mechanism through the first gate valve from the process chamber into the transfer chamber, with an operation of setting the central gas exhaust section disabled while setting the peripheral gas exhaust section enabled in a period of from immediately before opening the first gate valve to immediately after closing the first gate valve.