US 12,220,678 B2
Paddle configuration for a particle coating reactor
Govindraj Desai, Karnataka (IN); Sekar Krishnasamy, Bangalore (IN); Sumedh Acharya, Bangalore (IN); Dakshalkumar Patel, Gujarat (IN); Jonathan Frankel, Los Gatos, CA (US); Quoc Truong, San Ramon, CA (US); Mario Cambron, San Jose, CA (US); and Ravindra Patil, Santa Clara, CA (US)
Assigned to Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara, CA (US)
Filed by Applied Materials, Inc, Santa Clara, CA (US)
Filed on Oct. 16, 2020, as Appl. No. 17/073,111.
Claims priority of application No. 202041032720 (IN), filed on Jul. 30, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0032258 A1, Feb. 3, 2022
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. C23C 16/44 (2006.01); B01J 8/00 (2006.01); B01J 19/00 (2006.01); B05C 19/00 (2006.01); B05C 19/02 (2006.01); B05D 1/00 (2006.01)
CPC B01J 19/0066 (2013.01) [B01J 8/0045 (2013.01); B05C 19/008 (2013.01); B05C 19/02 (2013.01); B05D 1/60 (2013.01); C23C 16/4417 (2013.01); B01J 8/0025 (2013.01)] 17 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A reactor for coating particles, comprising:
a stationary vacuum chamber to hold a bed of particles to be coated, the chamber having a lower portion that forms a half-cylinder and an upper portion;
a vacuum port in the upper portion of the chamber;
a chemical delivery system including a fluid passage through an aperture in a wall of the chamber to a deliver a precursor or reactant gas and a purge gas into the lower portion of the chamber, the aperture being located in the lower portion of the chamber; and
a paddle assembly including
a rotatable drive shaft extending through the chamber along an axial axis of the half cylinder,
a plurality of paddles, including a first plurality of outer paddles and a second plurality of inner paddles, extending radially from the drive shaft such that the rotation of the drive shaft by a motor orbits the plurality of paddles about the drive shaft, wherein
the first plurality of outer paddles comprise a first cross-section including an outer curvature and oriented at a first oblique angle,
the second plurality of inner paddles comprise a second cross-section and oriented at a second oblique angle, and
wherein the first cross-section and second cross-section and first oblique angle and second oblique angle are such that orbiting of the paddles causes the first plurality of outer paddles to sweep through and displace a first volume in the lower portion of the stationary vacuum chamber and the second plurality of inner paddles to sweep through and displace a second volume in the lower portion of the stationary vacuum chamber, and the first and second volumes are substantially equal.