JP2000031239A - Substrate processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To lessen a substrate processing device in overall length and manufacturing cost. SOLUTION: Substrates are transferred along a nearly U-shaped path equipped with a first transfer path 51 and a second transfer path 52 which are in parallel with each other and a reverse path 53 which combines them together. An ultraviolet irradiation part 62 and an ozone ashing part 63 as dry processors and a brush rinsing part 64 as a wet processor are arranged along the first transfer path 51. Along the second transfer path 52, an ultraviolet irradiator 68 is arranged at a position confronting the ultraviolet irradiator 62, an air knife 67 as a dry processor is arranged at a position confronting the ozone ashing part 63, and a rinsing part 66 as a wet processor is arranged at a position confronting the brush rinsing part 64. The ultraviolet irradiators 62 and 68 are possessed of a processing chamber 81 in common, and the rinsing parts 64 and 66 are possessed of a processing chamber 82 in common.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device,
Used in the manufacturing process of a PDP (Plasma Display Panel) or a semiconductor device, for processing various substrates to be processed such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a glass substrate for a PDP, a semiconductor wafer, or a glass substrate for a photomask. A substrate processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display device, various processes such as a cleaning process of a glass substrate, an etching process of a thin film formed on a surface of a glass substrate, and a peeling process of a resist film formed on the surface of a glass substrate are performed. Applied to a glass substrate.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a glass substrate. This substrate cleaning apparatus has an indexer unit 1 including a cassette mounting unit 11 on which a plurality of cassettes C capable of accommodating a plurality of glass substrates can be mounted. The unprocessed glass substrate taken out of any one of the cassettes C mounted on the cassette mounting portion 11 is transported through the U-shaped substrate transport path 3, and undergoes a cleaning process in the process. And
The cleaned substrate is returned to the indexer unit 1 again, and is stored in any one of the cassettes C mounted on the cassette mounting unit 11.

Along the substrate transport path 3, a conveyor 20, an ultraviolet (UV) irradiation unit 21, an ozone ashing unit 22, a brush washing unit 23, a brush washing unit 24, a washing unit 25, an air knife unit 26, a conveyor 27, a conveyor 28 , An ultraviolet irradiation unit 29 and a conveyor 30 are arranged. In the process of transporting the substrate through these processing units and the like, various processes are sequentially performed. Conveyor 20, 2
In addition to the processing units 7 and 28, each processing unit is provided with a transport roller, and receives a substrate from one adjacent processing unit.
The substrate can be transferred to the other adjacent processing unit.

The substrate transport path 3 includes a first transport path 31 for transporting the substrate in a direction away from the indexer unit 1 and a second transport path 32 for transporting the substrate in a direction approaching the indexer unit 1. And a reverse path 33 for transferring the substrate from the first transport path 31 to the second transport path 32. And
A conveyor 20, an ultraviolet (UV) irradiation unit 21, an ozone ashing unit 22, a brush washing unit 23,
Brush cleaning unit 24, water cleaning unit 25, and air knife unit 26
Are linearly connected and arranged. In the reversing path 33, only a conveyor 27 for transferring a substrate from the first transport path 31 to the second transport path 32 is disposed.
In the second transport path 32, the ultraviolet irradiation section 29, a conveyor 28 for transporting the substrate from the reversing path 33 to the ultraviolet irradiation section 29, and the substrate from the ultraviolet irradiation section 29 to the indexer section 1. And a conveyor 30 are connected linearly. That is, most of the processing on the substrate is performed in the first transport path 31.

One reason for adopting such a configuration is that a configuration in which the substrate is transported linearly allows the substrate to be stably transferred between the processing units. This is because there is no possibility that non-uniformity occurs in the processing of a plurality of substrates.

Therefore, in the apparatus shown in FIG. 8, almost all the processing units are arranged on the first transfer path 31, and the substrate drained and dried by the air knife unit 26 is transferred on the conveyor 27.

However, in such a configuration, the problem that the overall length of the apparatus becomes long and the substrate cleaning apparatus occupies a large area in the clean room is inevitable.

In addition, for example, in both the brush washing section 23 and the washing section 25, although the processing using pure water is performed, the brush washing section 24 is interposed between them. There is also a problem that the cost of the apparatus increases, for example, it is necessary to provide a pure water tank.

[0010] Further, no consideration has been given to the configuration in which a processing section using a chemical is desired to be kept away from an indexer section which is a work section side on which a human intervenes.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned technical problems and to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of shortening the entire length of the apparatus.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of reducing the cost of the apparatus.

[0013]

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first transport path and a second transport path which are arranged substantially parallel to each other, A substrate is transported between the first transport path and the second transport path, and a substrate is transported from the first transport path to the second transport path via the reverse path through the reverse path. A substrate transport unit that transports a substrate along a path, a first wet processing unit that is disposed on the first transport path and performs wet processing on the substrate transported by the substrate transport unit; A second wet processing unit disposed on the road so as to face the first wet processing unit and performing wet processing on a substrate transported by the substrate transport unit;
A first dry processing unit disposed on a transport path and performing dry processing on a substrate transported by the substrate transport unit; and a first dry processing unit disposed on the second transport path so as to face the first dry processing unit; A second dry processing unit for performing a dry process on the substrate transferred by the substrate transfer unit.

The term "wet treatment" means a treatment using a treatment liquid such as pure water or a chemical solution, and a treatment using a treatment liquid vapor is also included in the wet treatment. On the other hand, "dry processing" refers to processing that does not use a processing liquid, for example, processing that uses a processing gas such as air or an inert gas or ultraviolet light.

According to the above arrangement, the substrate transport path is provided by the first
It is formed in a substantially U-shape having a transport path, a reverse path and a second transport path. The wet processing section and the dry processing section are distributed to the first transport path and the second transport path, and wet and dry processing are performed in a process in which the substrate is transported along the first transport path. Substrate is second
In the process of being transported along the transport path, wet and dry processing are also performed. Therefore, the plurality of processing units
As a result of being distributed to the transport path and the second transport path,
The overall length of the device can be significantly reduced as compared with the conventional device.

Moreover, in the present invention, at least one pair of wet processing units and at least one pair of dry processing units include:
They are arranged facing each other. Therefore, the wet / dry processing units disposed opposite to each other can easily share a processing liquid tank, a driving mechanism, and the like, thereby reducing the cost of the apparatus.

Even when one processing chamber and one driving mechanism are not shared, the substrate transport lengths in the processing units that perform the same type of processing (wet processing or dry processing) are substantially equal, so that one box-shaped A pair of processing chambers for each processing unit can be formed by partitioning the internal space of the housing by partition walls. In this case, the partition is shared as a side wall of each processing chamber, so that the cost of the apparatus can be reduced.

Incidentally, for all wet / dry processing units,
It is preferable that a processing unit that performs the same type of processing is disposed at a position facing each processing unit.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the substrate transfer means includes a first wet processing section transfer section for transferring the substrate in the first wet processing section, and a second transfer section for transferring the substrate in the second wet processing section. (2) A transport unit for a wet processing unit, and a driving source for a wet processing unit that applies a driving force to the transport unit for the first wet processing unit and the transport unit for the second wet processing unit in common. 2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

According to this configuration, the first wet processing section transport section and the second wet processing section transport section that transport the substrates in the first wet processing section and the second wet processing section respectively share a drive source. As a result, effective cost reduction can be realized. In this case, since the first and second wet processing units are arranged to face each other, sharing of the driving source is easily achieved.

For example, when the transport section for the first wet processing section and the transport section for the second wet processing section transport substrates in opposite directions by the transport rollers, respectively, It is preferable that the transport roller of the transport unit for the two-wet processing unit is coupled to the transport roller by a reversal transmission mechanism that reverses the rotation direction and transmits the rotation. Such an inversion transmission mechanism can be realized by a gear mechanism in which a gear fixed to the rotation shaft of one transport roller and a gear fixed to the rotation shaft of the other transport roller mesh with each other. Further, a similar reversing mechanism includes a pulley fixed to the rotating shaft of one reversing roller, a pulley fixed to the rotating shaft of the other conveying roller, and an endless belt crossed and wound between both pulleys. It can also be realized by a belt mechanism having

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the substrate transport means includes a first dry processing section transport section for transporting the substrate in the first dry processing section and a second dry transport section for transporting the substrate in the second dry processing section. (2) a transport section for a dry processing section; and a drive source for a dry processing section that applies a driving force to the transport section for the first dry processing section and the transport section for the second dry processing section in common. 3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

According to this configuration, the first dry processing section transport section and the second dry processing section transport section for transporting the substrates in the first dry processing section and the second dry processing section respectively share a drive source. As a result, effective cost reduction can be realized. In this case, since the first and second dry processing units are arranged to face each other, sharing of the driving source is easily achieved.

Further, similarly to the case of the second aspect of the present invention, for example, when the first dry processing section transport section and the second dry processing section transport section respectively transport substrates in opposite directions by transport rollers, It is preferable that the transport rollers of the first dry processing section transport section and the transport rollers of the second dry processing section transport section are coupled by a reversal transmission mechanism that reverses the rotation direction and transmits the rotation. Such an inversion transmission mechanism can be configured in the same manner as the inversion transmission mechanism described in claim 2.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the first wet processing section and the second wet processing section share a processing chamber. Device.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the first dry processing section and the second dry processing section share a processing chamber. Device.

According to the fourth or fifth aspect of the present invention, the wet / dry processing units disposed opposite to each other share the processing chamber, so that the cost can be further reduced. In addition, since one processing unit on the first transport path side and one processing unit on the second transport path side are integrated, the rigidity of the entire apparatus can be increased.

If the wet processing units or the dry processing units are used, the lengths of the substrate transfer paths are almost equal, and there is little difference in the processing atmosphere. In addition, it is easy to share the processing chambers of the pair of processing units disposed to face each other.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first transport path and a second transport path which are disposed substantially in parallel with each other, and a reversing path for transporting a substrate between the first transport path and the second transport path. Substrate transfer means for transferring a substrate from the first transfer path to the second transfer path via the reverse path and transferring the substrate along a substantially U-shaped substrate transfer path; And a wet processing unit for performing a wet process on the substrate transferred from the first transport path to the second transport path.

According to this configuration, since the wet processing section is disposed in the reversing path, the substrate can be transferred from the first transport path to the second transport path while performing the wet processing. Thereby, processing can be performed in the process of moving the substrate from the first transport path to the second transport path. Therefore, the overall length of the device can be reduced. Further, it is possible to prevent the indexer section that transfers the cassette from another substrate processing apparatus in the clean room from being contaminated by the processing liquid.

The invention according to claim 7 is the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the wet processing section is a chemical cleaning section.

According to this configuration, the indexer section is not easily contaminated by the chemical solution due to the configuration of the substrate processing apparatus, so that the influence on humans can be reduced.

[0033] In the invention described in claim 8, the transporting means includes:
8. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising an inclined transport mechanism that transports the substrate in a state where the substrate is inclined with respect to a horizontal plane in the reverse path.

According to this configuration, in the inversion path,
Since the substrate is transported in a state inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, the processing liquid flows on the surface of the substrate. Thus, the processing of the substrate surface can be performed without retaining the processing liquid on the substrate.

Since the transfer of the substrate by the conveyer in the reverse path requires time to transfer the substrate from the first transfer path to the second transfer path, the state in which the processing liquid is present on the substrate surface is continuously transferred during the transfer. Difficult to maintain.

Due to the inclination, repelling of the processing liquid on the substrate is less likely to occur, and a sufficient supply of the processing liquid can be stably performed until the processing liquid reaches the second transport path.

Further, when the substrate is transferred from the first transfer path to the reversing path, the transfer posture of the substrate can be changed to the inclined position at the same time, and when the substrate is transferred from the reverse path to the second transfer path. At the same time, the transfer posture of the substrate can be changed from the inclined posture. That is, the change of the transfer direction and the change of the transfer posture of the substrate can be performed simultaneously.

For example, while the substrate is being transported along the straight transport path, a special transport roller mechanism capable of changing the inclination angle is required to change the transport attitude of the substrate.
According to the invention of claim 7, such a special transport roller mechanism is unnecessary.

The invention of claim 6 or 7 may be combined with any of the inventions of claims 1 to 5.

[0040]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. This substrate cleaning apparatus transfers a substrate such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device into a substantially U-shaped substrate transfer path 5.
The apparatus is a device for carrying a plurality of cleaning processing steps on a substrate during the transfer process.

The unprocessed substrate is arranged in the indexer section 40. The indexer section 40 includes a cassette mounting section 41 on which a plurality of cassettes C can be mounted. Each cassette C is provided with a plurality of shelves for accommodating a plurality of (for example, 25) substrates in a vertically stacked manner.

The substantially U-shaped substrate transfer path 50 is formed so as to exit from the indexer section 40 and return to the indexer section 40 again. That is, the substrate transport path 50 includes a first transport path 51 in which the substrate is transported in a direction away from the indexer section 40, and a second transport path 52 in which the substrate is transported in a direction approaching the indexer section 40. , First transport path 51
And a reversing path 53 for transferring the substrate to the second transport path 52. First transport path 51 and second transport path 52
Are substantially parallel, and one end of each of them is
, A substantially U-shaped substrate transfer path 50 is formed as a whole.

In the first transfer path 51, a conveyor 61, an ultraviolet (UV) irradiation unit 62,
An ozone ashing unit 63 and a brush washing unit 64 are arranged and connected in series. Also, the second transport path 52
A water washing unit 66, an air knife unit 67, an ultraviolet irradiation unit 68, and a conveyor 69 are sequentially connected and arranged in this order along the substrate transport direction. Further, inversion path 5
3 is provided with a chemical cleaning section 65.

The conveyor 61 is a transport mechanism for transporting an unprocessed substrate from the indexer unit 40 to the ultraviolet irradiation unit 62. The ultraviolet irradiation units 62 and 68 are dry processing units for irradiating the substrate surface with ultraviolet light to decompose organic contamination on the substrate surface. The ozone ashing unit 63 is a dry processing unit that performs a process for decomposing organic substances on the substrate surface by exposing the substrate surface to an ozone atmosphere. The brush rinsing unit 64 is, for example, a wet processing unit that has a plurality of pairs of roll brushes for scrubbing the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate, and scrubs the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate with the roll brushes while supplying pure water to the substrate surface. is there.
The chemical cleaning unit 65 is a wet processing unit that supplies a chemical such as an etchant to the substrate surface and removes unnecessary substances on the substrate surface by using the corrosive action of the chemical. In addition, the washing section 66
Is a wet processing section for washing away unnecessary substances and chemicals remaining on the substrate surface after the chemical cleaning treatment with pure water. The air knife unit 67 is a dry processing unit that includes a pair of air knife devices that eject air to the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate, and that removes droplets on the substrate surface by the air ejected from the air knife device. The conveyor 69 is provided with the ultraviolet irradiation unit 6
8 is a transport mechanism that guides the substrate that has been subjected to the process 8 to the indexer unit 61.

Each of the processing units 62, 63, 64, 65, 66,
67 and 68 include a substrate transport mechanism 72 having a plurality of transport rollers for transporting the substrate along the substrate transport direction.
73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78 are provided, which together with the conveyors 61, 69 constitute a substrate transfer means. The transport rollers in each substrate transport mechanism are arranged in parallel with each other along a direction orthogonal to the substrate transport direction. In the substrate transport mechanism of each processing section of the first transport path 51 and the second transport path 52, the plurality of transport rollers are disposed along a horizontal plane, whereby the substrate is placed in a substantially horizontal posture. It is configured to transport while supporting it.

On the other hand, the substrate transport mechanism 75 provided in the chemical processing section 65 disposed on the reversing path 53 has a plurality of transport rollers provided along a plane inclined at a fixed angle with respect to the horizontal plane. I have. In other words, the substrate transport mechanism 75 of the chemical processing section 65 supports an inclined transport mechanism that transports the substrate from the first transport path 51 to the second transport path 52 while supporting the substrate in a posture inclined with respect to the horizontal plane. No.
The substrate transport mechanism 75 includes one transport roller coupled to a motor M4 as a drive source, and a rotation transmission mechanism for transmitting the rotation of the one transport roller to a plurality of other transport rollers. ing.

The pair of ultraviolet irradiators 62 and 68 are disposed on the first and second transport paths 51 and 52 so as to face each other, and are accommodated in one processing chamber 81. The brush rinsing section 64 and the rinsing section 66, both of which are wet processing sections, are disposed in the first and second transport paths 51 and 52, respectively, facing each other. Is housed in

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II in FIG. 1 and shows the substrate transport mechanisms 74 and 76 of the brush rinsing section 64 and the rinsing section 66 (both are transport sections for the wet processing section). ) Is shown in a simplified manner. As described above, the brush washing section 64 and the washing section 66 share the processing chamber 82. From the top surface of the processing chamber 82, partition walls for preventing water droplets colliding with the surface of the substrate S and scattering from entering the other processing unit and preventing the water droplets from adhering to the driving unit, and supporting a rotating shaft described later. 91 and 92 project downward.

A plurality of transport rollers 86 provided in the substrate transport mechanism 76 of the washing section 66 (only one is shown in FIG. 2).
Has a plurality of support disks 861 that support the lower surface of the edge of the substrate S on the peripheral surface, and a rotating shaft 862 to which the support disks 861 are fixed. The plurality of transport rollers 86 can transmit rotation to each other by a rotation transmission mechanism such as a gear mechanism. In one of the plurality of transport rollers 86, one end of a rotating shaft 862 is drawn out of the processing chamber 82 and is coupled to a driving shaft of a motor M1 as a driving source for a wet processing unit. The other end of the rotating shaft 862 is rotatably supported by the partition walls 91 and 92 and extends therethrough, and a gear 863 is fixed to this end.

A plurality of transport rollers 84 provided in the substrate transport mechanism 74 of the brush washing section 64 (only one is shown in FIG. 2).
Has a plurality of support disks 841 that support the lower surface of the substrate S on the peripheral surface, and a rotating shaft 842 to which the support disks 841 are fixed. A plurality of transport rollers 8
Numeral 4 can transmit rotation to each other by a rotation transmission mechanism such as a gear mechanism. In one of the plurality of transport rollers 84, the rotating shaft 84
One end of 2 is rotatably supported by the partition wall 91 and extends therethrough, and a gear 843 is fixed to this end. The gear 843 and the above-mentioned gear 863 mesh with each other, and these constitute a reverse transmission mechanism that reverses the rotation of the rotation shaft 862 and transmits the rotation to the rotation shaft 842.

In FIG. 2, the gears 843 and 863 are meshed in a vertical positional relationship, but they may have any positional relationship as long as the gears 843 and 863 are meshed. It is preferable that the gears 843 and 863 mesh with each other at the same height because the substrate transfer heights by the transfer rollers 84 and 86 can be made uniform.

A similar inversion transmission mechanism is provided by a gear 84.
3,863 instead of pulleys with rotating shafts 842,862
, And these pulleys may be connected to each other by an endless belt that is crossed.

The brush washing section 64 and the washing section 66 further share a pure water tank 95. That is, from the pure water tank 95, the brush washing section 64 and the washing section 6
6 are supplied with pure water.

A pair of ultraviolet irradiators 62,
The configuration at 68 is also substantially the same as the configuration in FIG. 2, and the substrate transport mechanisms 72, 78 of these ultraviolet irradiation units 62, 68
(Each of them is a transport unit for a dry processing unit.) The motor M2 (driving source for the dry processing unit) is operated as a common driving source. However, the ultraviolet irradiation units 62 and 6
Numeral 8 is a dry processing unit, so there is no need to share a processing liquid tank such as the pure water tank 95. Further, the partition walls 91 and 92 as shown in FIG. 2 are not required. On the other hand, the ozone ashing section 63 and the air knife section 67 are disposed in the first and second transport paths 51 and 52 in a state where they are opposed to each other. Does not share a processing room. However, the same configuration as that of FIG. 2 is applied to the driving mechanism, and the substrate transport mechanisms 73 and 77 are provided with a motor M3.
Operate as a common drive source.

When the processing chambers are not shared, housings forming the processing chambers are formed independently for each processing unit. Thus, it is possible to prevent inflow of an atmosphere that cannot be prevented only by the partition.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the ultraviolet irradiation section 68 faces the ultraviolet irradiation section 62, the air knife section 67 faces the ozone ashing section 63, and the water washing section 66 faces the brush water washing section 64. ing. That is, the arrangement of each processing unit in the first transport path 51 and the second transport path 52 is determined so that the dry processing unit faces the dry processing unit and the wet processing unit faces the wet processing unit. .

Thus, the substrate transport mechanism of the pair of processing units facing each other can be driven by the common motor.
Cost can be reduced.

Further, as long as there is no great difference in the processing atmosphere, a pair of processing units facing each other can share one processing chamber. More specifically, they can be shared when the same processing liquid or pure water having a different purity is used in the wet processing section, or when the processing liquid is disposable. That is, to share a processing chamber using an etching solution, a stripping solution, and a developing solution with a processing chamber using a different processing solution,
Disposable materials will be mixed with the processing liquid, so they will be disposable.

By sharing the processing chamber, the cost can be further reduced. Further, since the pair of opposing processing units are integrated, that is, formed by a continuous housing, the overall rigidity of the substrate cleaning apparatus can be reduced. Can be enhanced.

Further, the processing units having the same processing method (dry type / wet type) use substantially the same substrate transfer length for the processing, so that even if the processing atmosphere is different, a processing chamber having a common specification is used. As a result, the cost can be reduced at the design stage.

In the above embodiment, since the inclined transport mechanism is used for the reversing path 53 and is used as a wet processing section, the above-described embodiment only functions to transfer the substrate from the first transport path 51 to the second transport path 52. The space is being used effectively because it does not. In addition, since the chemical cleaning unit 65 is disposed in the reversing path 53 farthest from the indexer unit 1, it is possible to prevent the human working area from being contaminated with the chemical or the like.

If the ozone ashing section 63 and the air knife section 67 are individually provided with driving motors, the inner space of one box-shaped housing is divided into two by partition walls, and the ozone ashing section 63 A processing chamber and a processing chamber for the air knife section 67 can be formed. As a result, the two processing chambers share one side wall, so that the cost of the apparatus can be reduced. In addition, by integrating the ozone ashing section 63 and the air knife section 67, the rigidity of the entire apparatus can be further increased.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the inclined transport mechanism is applied only to the substrate transport mechanism 75 of the reversing path 53.
The transport mechanism of the transport path may be an inclined transport mechanism.

FIG. 3 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. 3, parts corresponding to the respective parts shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals as in FIG. In this substrate cleaning apparatus, a conveyor 101, an ultraviolet irradiation unit 102, and a brush washing unit 103 are sequentially arranged in the first transfer path 51 along a substrate transfer direction (a direction moving away from the indexer unit 41). I have. Further, in the second transport path 52, a spray water washing section 104, a drying section 105, and a conveyor 106 are sequentially arranged along a substrate transport direction (a direction approaching the indexer section 41). A conveyer 107 for transporting the substrate from the first transport path 51 to the second transport path 52 is disposed in the reversing path 53, but a processing unit that performs substantial processing on the substrate is provided. Absent.

The ultraviolet irradiation section 102 is a dry processing section for decomposing organic substances by irradiating the substrate with ultraviolet rays, and a drying section 105, which is also a dry processing section, is disposed at a position opposite to the dry processing section. I have. This drying unit 105
Is equipped with, for example, an air knife device, and performs liquid drainage and drying by injecting a gas such as air onto the substrate surface.

The ultraviolet irradiation section 102 and the drying section 105 are housed in one processing chamber 111 and share this processing chamber 111. Further, the substrate transport mechanism 1 provided in the ultraviolet irradiation unit 102 and the drying unit 105
The driving force is transmitted to the motors 22 and 125 (dry processing unit transport unit) from a motor M11 (dry processing unit driving source) as a driving source by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. It is supposed to be.

The brush rinsing section 103 includes upper and lower surfaces of the substrate.
This is a wet processing unit for performing scrub cleaning with a roll brush or the like while supplying pure water, and a spray water washing unit 104, which is also a wet processing unit, is disposed at a position opposite to the wet processing unit. The spray water washing section 104 is for rinsing the substrate surface by spraying pure water on the substrate surface.

The brush rinsing section 103 and the spray rinsing section 104 are housed in one processing chamber 112,
This processing chamber 112 is shared. The substrate transport mechanisms 123 and 124 (transport sections for the wet processing section) provided in the brush rinsing section 103 and the spray rinsing section 104, respectively, are driven by a driving source by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. The driving force is transmitted in common from the motor M12 (drive source for the wet processing unit).
Further, the brush washing section 103 and the spray washing section 104
, Pure water can be supplied from a common pure water tank (not shown).

In this embodiment, the conveyors 101, 106, 107 and the substrate transport mechanisms 122, 1
The substrate transfer means is constituted by 23, 124, 125 and the like.

As described above, also in this embodiment, the processing units are arranged so that the wet processing units and the dry processing units face each other, and a pair of the wet processing units and the pair Are each accommodated in one processing chamber. Thus, as in the case of the first embodiment, effects such as shortening of the overall length of the device, cost reduction, and improvement of the rigidity of the entire device can be obtained.

FIG. 4 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 4, parts corresponding to the respective parts shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals as in FIG. In this substrate cleaning apparatus, the conveyor 201 and the ultraviolet irradiating unit 20 are provided along the substrate transport direction in the first transport path 51.
2. The brush washing section 203 and the high-pressure washing section 204 are arranged in order. The second transport path 52 includes an ultrasonic rinsing unit 205 and a spray rinsing unit 2 along the substrate transport direction.
06, a drying unit 207 and a conveyor 208 are arranged in order. A conveyor 209 for transporting the substrate from the first transport path 51 to the second transport path 52 is disposed in the reversing path 53, but a processing unit that performs substantial processing on the substrate is provided. Absent.

The ultraviolet irradiation section 202 is a dry processing section for decomposing organic substances by irradiating the substrate with ultraviolet rays, and a drying section 207, which is also a dry processing section, is disposed at a position opposite to the dry processing section. I have. This drying unit 207
Is equipped with, for example, an air knife device, and performs liquid drainage and drying by injecting a gas such as air onto the substrate surface.

The ultraviolet irradiation section 202 and the drying section 207 are housed in one processing chamber 211, and share this processing chamber 211. Further, the substrate transport mechanism 2 provided in the ultraviolet irradiation unit 202 and the drying unit 207
The driving force is transmitted from the motor M21 (driving processing unit driving source) as a driving source to the driving units 22, 227 (dry processing unit transport unit) by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. It is supposed to be.

Brush washing section 203 and high-pressure washing section 20
Numeral 4 denotes wet processing units for performing brushing while supplying pure water to the substrate surface and performing a cleaning process by supplying pure water at a high pressure. , A spray water washing unit 206 and an ultrasonic water washing unit 205 are disposed. These water washing units 205 and 206 are for rinsing the substrate surface by spraying pure water on the substrate surface or spraying while applying ultrasonic waves.

The brush rinsing section 203 and the spray rinsing section 206 are housed in one processing chamber 212 and share this processing chamber 212. Similarly, the high-pressure water washing unit 204 and the ultrasonic water washing unit 205 are housed in one processing chamber 213 and share this processing chamber 213. Then, the substrate transport mechanisms 223 and 226 (transport sections for the wet processing section) provided in the brush rinsing section 203 and the spray rinsing section 206, respectively, are driven by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. The driving force is transmitted in common from a motor M22 (drive source for the wet processing unit). Similarly, the high-pressure washing section 204 and the ultrasonic washing section 20
5, the substrate transport mechanisms 224, 225 provided respectively.
(Wet processing unit transport unit) is driven by a motor M23 as a driving source by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG.
The driving force is commonly transmitted from the (wet processing unit driving source).

In this embodiment, the conveyors 201, 208, 209 and the substrate transport mechanisms 222, 2
23, 224, 225, 226, 227 and the like constitute a substrate transfer means.

As described above, also in this embodiment, the processing units are arranged such that the wet processing units and the dry processing units are opposed to each other. Each of the pair of dry processing units is accommodated in one processing chamber. As a result, effects such as shortening of the overall length of the device, cost reduction, and improvement of the rigidity of the entire device can be obtained.

FIG. 5 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 5, parts corresponding to the respective parts shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals as in FIG. In this substrate cleaning apparatus, the first transport path 51 includes a conveyor 301 and a first ultraviolet irradiation unit 3 along the substrate transport direction.
02, second ultraviolet irradiation section 303 and detergent spray section 3
04 are arranged in order. In addition, the second transport path 52 includes a brush washing section 305, a spray washing section 306, a drying section 307, and a conveyor 308 along the substrate transport direction.
Are arranged in order. In the inversion path 53, the substrate is
A conveyor 309 for transporting from the transport path 51 to the second transport path 52 is provided, but a processing unit for performing substantial processing on the substrate is not provided.

The first ultraviolet irradiation section 302 is a dry processing section for decomposing organic substances by irradiating the substrate with ultraviolet rays, and a drying section 307, which is also a dry processing section, is disposed at a position opposite to the dry processing section. Have been. This drying section 3
07 is provided with, for example, an air knife device, and performs liquid drainage and drying by injecting a gas such as air onto the substrate surface.

The first ultraviolet irradiation section 302 and the drying section 307 are housed in one processing chamber 311 and share this processing chamber 311. Further, the substrate transport mechanisms 322 and 327 (the transport section for the dry processing section) provided in the ultraviolet irradiation section 302 and the drying section 307 serve as a drive source by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. The driving force is transmitted in common from the motor M31 (driving source for the dry processing unit).

The second ultraviolet irradiation section 303 is a dry processing section for performing the same processing as that of the first ultraviolet irradiation section 302 on the substrate, and a spray water washing section 306 as a wet processing section is provided at a position opposed to the dry processing section. Are located. Therefore, these have individual processing chambers, and the substrate transport mechanism 32
3, 326 operate using the respective motors M32, M33 as drive sources.

The detergent spraying section 304 is a wet processing section for cleaning the substrate by spraying a cleaning chemical (eg, an etching liquid) on the surface of the substrate. Part 305
Is arranged. The brush washing unit 305 scrubs the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate with a roll brush or the like while supplying pure water. In this case, the detergent spray unit 30
The cleaning solution 4 is disposable.

The detergent spray unit 304 and the brush washing unit 305 are housed in one processing chamber 312,
This processing chamber 312 is shared. Then, the substrate transport mechanisms 324 and 325 (wet processing section transport sections) provided in the detergent spray section 304 and the brush washing section 305, respectively, are driven by a drive power transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. The driving force is transmitted in common from the motor M34 (wet processing unit driving source).

In this embodiment, the conveyors 301, 308, 309 and the substrate transport mechanisms 322, 3
23, 324, 325, 326, 327 and the like constitute a substrate transfer means.

As described above, the apparatus of this embodiment has a pair of dry processing units arranged opposite to each other, and a pair of wet processing units arranged opposite to each other, each of which has one processing chamber. Sharing. Thereby, the second or third
As in the case of the embodiment, effects such as shortening of the overall length of the device, cost reduction, and improvement of rigidity of the entire device can be obtained.

FIG. 6 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. This fifth embodiment is a modification of the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 5, and in FIG. 6, parts corresponding to the respective parts shown in FIG. It is shown with a reference numeral. In this embodiment, a brush washing unit 305, which is a wet processing unit, is disposed in the reversing path 53.

The second ultraviolet irradiation section 303 and the drying section 307 are arranged opposite to each other, are housed in one processing chamber 411, and have their respective substrate transport mechanisms 323, 327 (dry processing). The driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. 2 allows the driving force to be transmitted in common from a motor M41 (driving source driving source) as a driving source. I have. Similarly, the detergent spraying section 304 and the spray water washing section 306 are arranged to face each other, and these are accommodated in one processing chamber 412, and the respective substrate transport mechanisms 324 and 324 are provided.
326 (wet processing unit transport unit) receives a common driving force from a motor M42 (wet processing unit driving source) as a driving source by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. It has become.

The driving force from the motor M43 is applied to the substrate transfer mechanism 322 provided in the ultraviolet irradiation section 302. Similarly, a driving force from a motor M44 is applied to the substrate transport mechanism 325 provided in the brush washing section 305.

Since the distance between the drying section 307 and the indexer section 41 is longer than in the case of the configuration of FIG. 5, the conveyor 308A disposed between them is longer than the conveyor 308 of FIG.

In this embodiment, the conveyors 301, 308A and the substrate transport mechanisms 322, 323,
The substrate transport means is constituted by 324, 325, 327 and the like.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the transfer of the substrate from the first transport path 51 to the second transport path 52 can be utilized by disposing the brush washing section 305, which is a wet processing section, in the reverse path 53. Thus, sufficient cleaning can be performed. Moreover, the overall length of the device is substantially the same as in the configuration shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a peeling / cleaning apparatus according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. This apparatus is an apparatus for removing an unnecessary resist film on a substrate surface, and thereafter cleaning and drying the substrate surface. 7, parts corresponding to the respective parts shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals as in FIG.

In the peeling / cleaning apparatus, the first transport path 51 includes a conveyor 501,
UV irradiation section 502, first peeling section 503, second peeling section 5
04 and a first spray washing section 505 are arranged in order. Further, in the second transport path 52, along the substrate transport direction, a brush rinsing unit 506, a second spray rinsing unit 507,
A drying unit 508, a charge removing unit 509, and a conveyor 510 are arranged in order. A conveyor 511 for transporting the substrate from the first transport path 51 to the second transport path 52 is disposed in the reversing path 53, but a processing unit that performs substantial processing on the substrate is provided. Absent.

The ultraviolet irradiation section 502 is a dry processing section for decomposing organic substances by irradiating the substrate with ultraviolet rays, and a charge removing section 509, which is also a dry processing section, is disposed at a position opposed to the dry processing section. I have. This static elimination unit 509
Is to discharge static electricity from a substrate by, for example, an ionizer.

The ultraviolet irradiation section 502 and the charge removing section 509 are housed in one processing chamber 515, and share this processing chamber 515. Further, the substrate transport mechanism 5 provided in the ultraviolet irradiation unit 502 and the static elimination unit 509
22 and 529 (the transport section for the dry processing section) commonly transmit a driving force from a motor M51 (a driving source for the dry processing section) as a driving source by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. It is supposed to be.

[0097] First peeling section 503 and second peeling section 504
Is a wet processing unit that performs a stripping process of removing a resist film on the substrate surface by supplying a stripping solution to the substrate surface.

At a position facing the second peeling section 504, a second spray washing section 507, which is also a wet processing section, is disposed. The second spray rinsing unit 507 is for rinsing the substrate surface by spraying pure water on the substrate surface. The second peeling unit 504 and the second spray washing unit 507 are housed in one processing chamber 516,
This processing chamber 516 is shared. Then, the substrate transfer mechanisms 524 and 527 (the transfer units for the wet processing unit) provided in the second peeling unit 504 and the second spray washing unit 507, respectively, are driven by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. The driving force is commonly transmitted from a motor M52 (driving source for a wet processing unit) as a driving source.
Then, in the second stripping section 504, the stripping liquid is disposable.

On the other hand, at a position facing the first peeling unit 503, a drying unit 508, which is a dry processing unit for draining and drying the substrate surface by an air knife device, is disposed. Therefore, these have separate processing chambers, and the substrate transport mechanisms 523, 528 are provided with separate motors M53, M53 respectively.
The operation is performed using the drive source 54 as a drive source.

The first spray washing section 506 is a wet processing section that performs the same processing as the second spray washing section 507.
A brush rinsing unit 506, which is also a wet processing unit, is disposed at a position opposed to this. Brush washing unit 506
Is to scrub the upper and lower surfaces of a substrate with a roll brush or the like while supplying pure water.

The first spray water washing section 505 and the brush water washing section 506 are housed in one processing chamber 517, and share this processing chamber 517. Then, the substrate transport mechanisms 525 and 526 (the transport units for the wet processing unit) provided in the first spray water washing unit 505 and the brush water washing unit 506, respectively, are driven by a driving force transmission mechanism similar to the configuration shown in FIG. Driving force is commonly transmitted from a motor M55 (driving source for a wet processing unit) as a driving source.
Further, the first spray rinsing unit 505 and the brush rinsing unit 506 can supply pure water from a common pure water tank (not shown).

In this embodiment, the conveyors 501, 510, 511 and the substrate transport mechanisms 522, 5
23,524,525,526,527,528,52
9 and the like constitute a substrate transfer means.

With the above-described configuration, also in this embodiment, effects such as shortening of the overall length of the device, cost reduction, and improvement of rigidity of the entire device can be obtained.

Although the five embodiments of the present invention have been described, the present invention can be embodied in other forms.
For example, in the above-described second, third, fourth, and sixth embodiments, the transfer of the substrate in the reversing path 53 is performed by the conveyer. The substrate may be moved from the first transport path 51 to the second transport path 52 using a substrate transport robot that transports the substrate by turning, moving up and down, or the like. In addition, a shuttle-type transfer mechanism that transfers a substrate from the first transfer path 51 to the second transfer path 52 by reciprocating the substrate holding hand between the first transfer path 51 and the second transfer path 52 is applied. May be done.

In the above description of the embodiment, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device has been exemplified as a substrate to be processed. However, the present invention is not limited to a glass substrate for a PDP or a semiconductor wafer. The present invention can also be applied to a substrate processing apparatus that performs processing.

In addition, various design changes can be made within the scope of the technical matters described in the claims.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an illustrative sectional view taken along the line II-II in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a simplified schematic plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a substrate cleaning apparatus according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a peeling / cleaning apparatus according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a simplified plan view showing a layout of a conventional substrate cleaning apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 50 substrate transfer path 51 first transfer path 52 second transfer path 53 reverse path 61 conveyor 62 ultraviolet irradiation unit 63 ozone ashing unit 64 brush washing unit 65 chemical treatment unit 66 washing unit 67 air knife unit 68 ultraviolet irradiation unit 69 conveyors 72, 73 , 74, 75, 76, 77, 78 Substrate transport mechanism 81, 82 Processing chamber M1, M2, M3, M4 Motor 101 Conveyor 102 Ultraviolet irradiation unit 103 Brush washing unit 104 Spray washing unit 105 Drying unit 106, 107 Conveyor 111, 112 Processing chambers 122, 123, 124, 125 Substrate transport mechanism M11, M12 Motor 201 Conveyor 202 Ultraviolet irradiation unit 203 Brush rinsing unit 204 High pressure rinsing unit 205 Ultrasonic rinsing unit 206 Spray rinsing unit 207 Drying unit 208, 209 Conveyor 211, 212 213 processing chamber 222,223,224,225,226,227
Substrate transport mechanism M21, M22, M23 Motor 301 Conveyor 302 First ultraviolet irradiation unit 303 Second ultraviolet irradiation unit 304 Detergent spray unit 305 Brush washing unit 306 Spray washing unit 307 Drying unit 308, 309 Conveyor 311, 312 Processing chamber 322, 323 , 324, 325, 326, 327
Substrate transfer mechanism M31, M32, M33, M34 Motor 308A Conveyor 411, 412 Processing chamber M41, M42, M43, M44 Motor 501 Conveyor 502 Ultraviolet irradiation part 503 First peeling part 504 Second peeling part 505 First spray washing part 506 Brush Washing section 507 Second spray washing section 508 Drying section 509 Static elimination section 510, 511 Conveyor 515, 516, 517 Processing chamber 522, 523, 524, 525 Substrate transport mechanism 526, 527, 528, 529 Substrate transport mechanism M51, M52, M53 , M54, M55 Motor

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat II (Reference) H01L 21/304 645 H01L 21/304 648A 648 651L 651 21/30 572B F-term (Reference) 3B116 AA02 AA03 AB14 AB23 BA02 BA08 BA14 BB21 BB83 BC01 CC01 CC03 3B201 AA02 AA03 AB13 AB23 BA02 BA08 BA15 BB83 BB93 BB94 BB95 BC01 CC01 CC12 5F031 BB01 CC01 CC15 KK02 5F046 MA04 MA10

Claims (8)

[Claims] A first transport path and a second transport path arranged substantially parallel to each other; a reversing path for transporting a substrate between the first transport path and the second transport path; A substrate transport means for transporting the substrate from the path to the second transport path via the reverse path, and transporting the substrate along a substantially U-shaped substrate transport path; and A first wet processing section that performs wet processing on a substrate transferred by the transfer section; and a first wet processing section disposed on the second transfer path so as to face the first wet processing section and transferred by the substrate transfer section. A second wet processing unit that performs wet processing on the substrate; a first dry processing unit that is disposed on the first transport path and performs dry processing on the substrate transported by the substrate transport unit; In the second transport path, the first dry processing section It is arranged to, a substrate processing apparatus which comprises a second dry processing unit for performing a dry process on a substrate carried by said substrate conveying means. 2. The transfer unit for transferring a substrate in the first wet processing unit, and the transfer unit for transferring a substrate in the second wet processing unit. 2. A wet processing unit drive source that applies a driving force to the first wet processing unit transport unit and the second wet processing unit transport unit in common. Substrate processing equipment. 3. A transport section for a first dry processing section for transporting a substrate in the first dry processing section, and a transport section for a second dry processing section for transporting a substrate in the second dry processing section. And a drive source for the dry processing section that applies a driving force to the transport section for the first dry processing section and the transport section for the second dry processing section in common. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first wet processing section and the second wet processing section share a processing chamber. 5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first dry processing section and the second dry processing section share a processing chamber. 6. A first transport path and a second transport path arranged substantially in parallel with each other, a reversing path for transporting a substrate between the first transport path and the second transport path, and the first transport path. Substrate transfer means for transferring a substrate from the path to the second transfer path via the reverse path and transferring the substrate along a substantially U-shaped substrate transfer path; The second from the road
A wet processing unit for performing wet processing on the substrate transferred to the transport path. 7. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said wet processing section is a chemical cleaning section for supplying a chemical to the substrate surface. 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transporting means includes:
The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising an inclined transfer mechanism configured to transfer the substrate while being inclined with respect to a horizontal plane.