Shielding Unit and Plating Apparatus Including the Same

Abstract

A shielding unit for a plating apparatus may include a shielding plate, a controlling plate and a rotary actuator. The shielding plate may have a plurality of holes configured to permit a passage of an electrolyte therethrough. The controlling plate may make contact with the shielding plate. The controlling plate may have a plurality of controlling holes for controlling an opening ratio of the plurality of holes of the shielding plate. The rotary actuator may rotate the controlling plate to control the opening ratio of the plurality of holes shielding plate.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A shielding unit for a plating apparatus comprising:
 a shielding plate having a plurality of holes configured to permit a passage of an electrolyte therethrough;   a controlling plate configured to make contact with the shielding plate, the controlling plate having a plurality of controlling holes for controlling an opening ratio of the plurality of holes of the shielding plate; and   a rotary actuator configured to rotate the controlling plate to control the opening ratio of the plurality of holes of the shielding plate.   
     
     
         2 . The shielding unit of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of holes of the shielding plate has a size substantially the same as a size of each of the plurality of controlling holes. 
     
     
         3 . The shielding unit of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of holes of the shielding plate are arranged spaced apart from each other by substantially a same interval. 
     
     
         4 . The shielding unit of  claim 3 , wherein the plurality of controlling holes are arranged spaced apart from each other by an interval substantially the same as the interval between the plurality of holes of the shielding plate. 
     
     
         5 . The shielding unit of  claim 1 , wherein the shielding plate has a circular shape, and the controlling plate has a rectangular shape. 
     
     
         6 . The shielding unit of  claim 1 , wherein the rotary actuator rotates the controlling plate with respect to a center point of the controlling plate. 
     
     
         7 . The shielding unit of  claim 1 , wherein the shielding plate comprises a first shielding plate and the plurality of holes comprises a plurality of first holes, the shielding unit further comprising a second shielding plate configured to make contact with the controlling plate, the second shielding plate having a plurality of second holes configured to permit a passage of an electrolyte therethrough. 
     
     
         8 . The shielding unit of  claim 7 , wherein each of the plurality of second holes has a size substantially the same as a size of each of the plurality of first holes, the plurality of first holes are arranged spaced apart from each other by substantially the same interval, and the plurality of second holes are arranged spaced apart from each other by an interval substantially the same as the interval between the plurality of first holes. 
     
     
         9 . A shielding unit for a plating apparatus comprising:
 a shielding plate having a plurality of s holes configured to permit a passage of an electrolyte therethrough;   a first controlling plate configured to make contact with a first region of the shielding plate, the first controlling plate having a plurality of first controlling holes for controlling an opening ratio of the plurality of holes in the first region of the shielding plate; and   a second controlling plate configured to make contact with a second region of the shielding plate, the second controlling plate having a plurality of second controlling holes for controlling an opening ratio of the plurality of s holes in the second region of the shielding plate.   
     
     
         10 . The shielding unit of  claim 9 , wherein the first region includes at least a central region of the shielding plate, the second region includes an edge region of the shielding plate, the first controlling plate comprises a single plate configured to make contact with the central region of the shielding plate, and the second controlling plate comprises a pair of plates arranged at opposing sides of the first controlling plate and is configured to make contact with the edge region of the shielding plate. 
     
     
         11 . The shielding unit of  claim 10 , further comprising a third controlling plate arranged between the first controlling plate and the second controlling plates and configured to make contact with a third region of the shielding plate, the third controlling plate having a plurality of third controlling holes for controlling an opening ratio of the plurality of holes in the third region of the shielding plate. 
     
     
         12 . The shielding unit of  claim 9 , wherein the first region and the second region are defined by a radius line of the shielding plate. 
     
     
         13 . The shielding unit of  claim 9 , wherein the plurality of holes of the shielding plate, the first controlling holes and the second controlling holes have a substantially same size. 
     
     
         14 . The shielding unit of  claim 13 , wherein the plurality of holes of the shielding plate, the first controlling holes and the second controlling holes are arranged spaced apart from each other by a substantially same interval. 
     
     
         15 . The shielding unit of  claim 9 , further comprising a linear actuator configured to move linearly and individually the first controlling plate and the second controlling plate for controlling an opening ratio of the plurality holes of the shielding plate. 
     
     
         16 . A shielding unit for a plating apparatus comprising:
 a shielding plate having a plurality of holes configured to permit a passage of an electrolyte therethrough;   a controlling plate positioned adjacent the shielding plate, the controlling plate having a plurality of controlling holes configured to control an opening ratio of the plurality of holes of the shielding plate; and   an actuator configured to move the controlling plate to control the opening ratio of the plurality of holes of the shielding plate.   
     
     
         17 . The shielding unit of  claim 16 , wherein the shielding unit is configured to be positioned in a plating apparatus comprising a plating bath, an anode, a cathode, and a diffusion plate between the anode and the cathode, the shielding unit being configured to be positioned between the diffusion plate and the cathode. 
     
     
         18 . The shielding unit of  claim 16 , wherein the actuator is configured to move the controlling plate from a first position to a second position that changes a degree to which the plurality of controlling holes overlap the plurality of holes of the shielding plate to thereby control the opening ratio of the plurality of holes of the shielding plate. 
     
     
         19 . The shielding unit of  claim 16 , wherein the shielding plate comprises a first shielding plate and the plurality of holes comprises a plurality of first holes, the shielding unit further comprising a second shielding plate configured to make contact with the controlling plate, the second shielding plate having a plurality of second holes configured to permit a passage of an electrolyte therethrough. 
     
     
         20 . The shielding unit of  claim 19 , wherein each of the plurality of second holes has a size substantially the same as a size of each of the plurality of first holes, the plurality of first holes are arranged spaced apart from each other by a substantially same interval, and the plurality of second holes are arranged spaced apart from each other by an interval substantially the same as the interval between the plurality of first holes.