JP2002141264A - Edge aligner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an edge aligner for improving the throughput, while limiting the increase in the size of the system. SOLUTION: Light emitted from a light source unit 40a is led through a light guide 31a and the light emitted from a light source unit 40b is led through a light guide 31b. Since the light guide 31a and the light guide 31 are joined at a joining jig 38 into a light guide 35, each light from two light source units 40a and 40b being guided after all through the light guide 35 to a lens system 29 and cast to an edge part of a substrate (W) held by a spin chuck 13 to carry out an edge exposing process. Then, while the enlarging of the size of system is being restrained, the area of irradiation region is enlarged and the throughput is improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rotating semiconductor substrate, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display, a glass substrate for a photomask, a substrate for an optical disk, and the like (hereinafter referred to as "substrate").
The present invention relates to an edge exposure apparatus that irradiates light to an edge portion of the device to expose the edge portion.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, for a substrate as described above,
A series of substrate processes is achieved by sequentially performing a resist coating process, a developing process, and a heat treatment associated therewith. Among these, the resist coating process is a process in which a photoresist (hereinafter, simply referred to as “resist”) is supplied while rotating the substrate, and the resist is applied to the entire surface of the substrate by centrifugal force.

Therefore, although a resist film is formed on the entire surface of the substrate after the resist coating process, a pattern such as a semiconductor chip is not formed at the edge of the substrate. Not only is it unnecessary, but it also causes dust and the like due to mechanical contact during transport of the substrate. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the resist film at the edge of the substrate positively.

For this reason, conventionally, light (generally, ultraviolet light) from a light source is guided by a light guide in which optical fibers are bundled, and is applied to the edge of the substrate to remove the resist film in the relevant portion by edge exposure. Has been done.

[0005]

As a general technical problem of substrate processing including edge exposure, there is a problem of shortening a tact time and improving a throughput. In particular, in recent years, the diameter of the substrate has been remarkably increased, and a substrate having a diameter of 300 mm or more is being handled. As the size of the substrate increases, the area of the edge of the substrate to be subjected to edge exposure (hereinafter, referred to as “exposure area”) also increases. When edge exposure is performed using the same apparatus as in the related art, the tact time required for edge exposure naturally increases as the exposure area increases, and there is a great demand to reduce the tact time required for edge exposure.

The factors that govern the tact time required for edge exposure are the illuminance and irradiation width of the irradiation light. To shorten the tact time, a method of increasing the illuminance or widening the irradiation width is considered. In order to increase the illuminance, it is necessary to increase the capacity of the light source, but it is not realistic because development of a new light source requires enormous time and cost. For this reason, at present, two irradiation units of the same standard using a 200 W lamp as a light source are provided.
If two irradiation units are provided, the irradiation area will be doubled,
Since the tact time is reduced to about half, the throughput is remarkably improved.

However, when two irradiation units are provided, the size of the edge exposure apparatus itself increases. Since an apparatus for processing a substrate is usually installed in a clean room, it is not preferable that the apparatus size becomes large. This requires special equipment such as a temperature and humidity control unit and a filter to maintain a clean room. Therefore, when the area occupied by the substrate processing apparatus in a plane (hereinafter, referred to as a “footprint”) increases, the environment becomes large. This leads to an increase in maintenance costs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide an edge exposure apparatus capable of improving throughput while suppressing an increase in size.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an edge exposure apparatus for irradiating an edge of a rotating substrate with light to expose the edge. A first light source for irradiating light and a second light source for irradiating light
, A first group of wires including a plurality of wires for guiding light from the first light source, and a second group of wires including a plurality of wires for guiding light from the second light source A light guide path merging portion for merging the first strand group and the second strand group to form a merging strand group; and transmitting the light guided by the merging strand group to the edge portion. Emitting means for emitting light toward the camera.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the edge exposure apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the light guide path converging section includes:
The plurality of wires included in the first wire group and the plurality of wires included in the second wire group are mixed with each other to form the merged wire group.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the edge exposure apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the light guide path converging section includes:
The merging element group is formed in a state where a plurality of element elements included in the first element group and a plurality of element elements included in the second element group are separated from each other.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the edge exposure apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a light receiving device for measuring a light flux of the light emitted from the emitting means, and a light receiving device for measuring the light flux measured by the light receiving device. An illuminance for calculating an illuminance of light emitted from the emission unit in accordance with whether one of the first and second light sources or both the first and second light sources are emitting light. Calculating means.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an edge exposure apparatus for irradiating an edge of a rotating substrate with light to expose the edge, wherein the plurality of light sources each irradiate light; A plurality of light guide paths, each provided to correspond to the plurality of light sources, each of which guides light from any one of the plurality of light sources; and a light guide path merging section for forming the merged light guide path by merging the plurality of light guide paths. And emission means for emitting light guided by the merged light guide path toward the edge.

[0014]

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

<1. First Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire configuration of an edge exposure apparatus according to the present invention. FIG.
Is provided with an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system in which the XY plane is a horizontal plane and the Z-axis direction is a vertical direction.

The edge exposure apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is an apparatus for performing edge exposure by irradiating the edge of the substrate W with light while rotating the substrate W. A drive processing unit 20 for moving the irradiation position;
An irradiation processing unit 30 for irradiating light and a light receiver 50 are provided.

The rotation processing unit 10 includes a spin motor 11, a motor shaft 12, and a spin chuck 13. The spin chuck 13 vacuum-adsorbs the substrate W from the back surface and holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture. The spin chuck 13 is connected to the spin motor 11 via a motor shaft 12. As a result, the rotation operation of the spin motor 11 is transmitted to the spin chuck 13 via the motor shaft 12, and rotates the substrate W held by the spin chuck 13 in a substantially horizontal plane (XY plane). Note that the spin chuck 13 is not limited to a form in which the substrate W is vacuum-sucked, but may be a form in which the substrate W is mechanically held.

The drive processing unit 20 includes an X-direction drive unit 22 and a Y-direction drive unit 22.
A direction driving unit 24. The X-direction drive unit 22 is fixedly disposed on the edge exposure device, and includes a drive mechanism for driving the Y-direction drive unit 24 disposed on the upper surface thereof in the X direction as indicated by an arrow AR1 in the drawing. . When the X-direction drive unit 22 moves the Y-direction drive unit 24 along the X-direction, the exposure arm 28 disposed on the upper surface of the Y-direction drive unit 24 also moves along the X-direction.

The Y-direction drive unit 24 has a drive mechanism for driving the exposure arm 28 disposed on the upper surface thereof in the Y direction as indicated by an arrow AR2 in the figure. Thus, the Y-direction drive unit 24 can drive the exposure arm 28 along the Y direction. Therefore, the drive processing unit 20
Moves the exposure arm 28 to an arbitrary position within the XY plane by the X-direction drive unit 22 and the Y-direction drive unit 24 (however, within the drivable range of the X-direction drive unit 22 and the Y-direction drive unit 24). Can be done. It should be noted that various known mechanisms such as a mechanism using a ball screw and a mechanism using a pulley and a belt can be adopted as the X-direction driving unit 22 and the Y-direction driving unit 24.

The irradiation processing unit 30 includes two light source units 40a and 40b for irradiating light, a lens system 29 provided at the tip of an exposure arm 28, and light guides 31a, 31b and 35 connecting them. ing. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of the irradiation processing unit 30.

The two light source units 40a and 40b are completely identical to each other. The light source unit 40a
A lamp 42a, a reflector 41a, a shutter motor 43a, and a shutter 44a are provided inside a lamp house 45a. The lamp 42a is a 200 W ultraviolet lamp. The reflector 41a reflects and collects light emitted from the lamp 42a. The shutter motor 43a is
It has a function to open and close the shutter 44a. When the shutter 44a is opened by the shutter motor 43a, the direct light from the lamp 42a and the reflected light from the reflector 41a enter the end face of the light guide 31a. On the other hand, when the shutter 44a is closed by the shutter motor 43a (the state shown in FIG. 2), the direct light from the lamp 42a and the reflector 41a
Reflected light from the light guide 31a
Will not be incident.

The configuration of the light source unit 40b is exactly the same as that of the light source unit 40a. That is, the light source unit 40
b denotes a lamp 42b, a reflector 41b, a shutter motor 43b, a shutter 4 inside a lamp house 45b.
4b is provided. The lamp 42b is a 200 W ultraviolet lamp. The reflector 41b reflects and collects light emitted from the lamp 42b. Shutter motor 43
b has a function of opening and closing the shutter 44b. When the shutter 44b is opened by the shutter motor 43b, the direct light from the lamp 42b and the reflected light from the reflector 41b enter the end face of the light guide 31b. On the other hand, when the shutter 44b is closed by the shutter motor 43b (the state shown in FIG. 2), the direct light from the lamp 42b and the reflected light from the reflector 41b are blocked, and they do not enter the light guide 31b. .

The lens system 29 is fixed to the tip of the exposure arm 28 (see FIG. 1). Inside the lens system 29, a projection lens 36, a fiber coupling section 34, and a slit mask 37 are provided. One end of a light guide 35 is fitted into and coupled to the fiber coupling portion 34. The slit mask 37 has a rectangular slit. The light emitted from the one end of the light guide 35 passes through the slit of the slit mask 37 and is projected from the projection lens 36 onto the edge of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 13. At this time, the shape of the irradiation region at the height position of the main surface of the substrate W is the same shape (rectangular shape) and size as the slit of the slit mask 37. The shape of the irradiation area at the height position of the main surface of the substrate W will be further described later.

The two light source units 40a and 40b and the lens system 29 are connected by light guides 31a and 31b and a light guide 35 as light guide paths. The light guide 31a is a group of a plurality of optical fiber bundles that guide light from the light source unit 40a (strictly, light emitted from the lamp 42a when the shutter 44a is opened). Similarly, the light guide 31b is a group of a plurality of optical fiber bundles that guide light from the light source unit 40b (strictly, light emitted from the lamp 42b when the shutter 44b is opened). In this embodiment, each of the light guides 31a and 31b is a bundle of 500 optical fiber strands. Then, the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b are joined by the joining jig 38 to form the light guide 35.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a state of merging light guides in the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, as shown in the drawing, a wire bundle 33a composed of 500 optical fiber wires 32a constituting a light guide 31a and 500 optical fiber wires 32b constituting a light guide 31b. And the element bundle 33b are clearly separated from each other inside the light guide 35. That is, in FIG. 3, for example, the wire bundle 33a composed of the 500 optical fiber wires 32a constituting the light guide 31a occupies the left half inside the light guide 35, and the 500 optical fibers constituting the light guide 31b. The wire bundle 33b composed of the wires 32b occupies the right half inside the light guide 35.

As described above, in the first embodiment, the joining jig 38 joins the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b to form the light guide 35, and the 500 optical fiber elements included in the light guide 31a. The light guide 35 is formed in a state where the wire 32a and the 500 optical fiber wires 32b included in the light guide 31b are separated from each other. The optical fiber wires constituting the light guide are not joined or branched from each other, but are connected by a single wire from the light source unit 40a (40b) to the lens system 29. Therefore, the light guide 35 is constituted by 1,000 optical fiber strands.

In the present embodiment, the light source unit 40a serves as the first light source, the light source unit 40b serves as the second light source, the light guide 31a serves as the first element group, and the light guide 31b serves as the second light source. The joining jig 38 corresponds to the converging portion of the light guide path, and the lens system 29 corresponds to the emitting means. The light receiver 50 will be described later in detail.

The configuration of the edge exposure apparatus according to the first embodiment has been described above. Next, light irradiation in the edge exposure apparatus will be described. When both the shutter 44a and the shutter 44b are open, the light emitted from the light source unit 40a
a, and the light emitted from the light source unit 40b is guided by the light guide 31b.
Since the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b are joined to the light guide 35 by the joining jig 38, each light emitted from the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b is eventually guided to the lens system 29 by the light guide 35. It will be. The light guided by the light guide 35 is emitted from the lens system 29 toward the edge of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 13.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state of edge exposure of the substrate W. When both the shutter 44a and the shutter 44b are open, that is, the light guide 35
In the case where light is guided by all the optical fiber strands, the shape of the irradiation area LA at the height position of the main surface of the substrate W is the same shape and size as the slit of the slit mask 37 as described above. In the present embodiment, the irradiation area LA at the height position of the main surface of the substrate W in this case is the irradiation width w.
1. The rectangle has an exposure width w2. The “irradiation width” is the width of one side of the irradiation area LA along the rotation direction of the substrate W, and the “exposure width” is the width of one side of the irradiation area LA along the radial direction of the substrate W.

On the other hand, the main surface of the substrate W is separated into a pattern area PA where pattern formation is performed and an area outside the pattern formation target, that is, an edge area EA where edge exposure is performed. In the edge exposure of the substrate W, the drive processing unit 20 moves the lens system 29 such that the spin chuck 13 holds the substrate W and one side of the irradiation area LA is in contact with the periphery of the pattern area PA of the substrate W. The rotation processing unit 10 proceeds by rotating the substrate W as shown by an arrow AR4 in FIG. 4 while performing eccentricity correction of the lens system 29 by a correction unit not shown.

In the first embodiment, since two light source units 40a and 40b are used, the lens system 2
The total luminous flux (the amount of light propagated per unit time) of the light emitted from the light source 9 is twice as large as when only one light source unit is used. This means that the area of the irradiation area LA can be doubled while maintaining the same illuminance as in the case where only one light source unit is used. In the first embodiment, the irradiation width w1 is twice as large as the conventional one. I have to. If the illuminance is the same and the irradiation width w1 is twice as large as the conventional one, the rotation speed of the substrate W can be doubled as compared with the conventional one, so that the tact time required for edge exposure is reduced to about half and the throughput is reduced. It will be greatly improved (about twice).

Further, in the first embodiment, the two light source units 40a and 40a are formed by the light guide 35 in which the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b are merged.
Since the light from b is guided, only one lens system 29 is required for the edge exposure, and only one drive processing unit 20 attached to the lens system 29 is sufficient, which suppresses an increase in the size of the edge exposure apparatus. can do. As a result, it is possible to reduce the number of the current irradiation units provided for the two units to one, and it is possible to effectively use the space, thereby reducing the cost.

By the way, the above is the state in which both the shutters 44a and 44b are opened, that is, 2
Although the case where the light irradiation is performed from both of the two light source units 40a and 40b is performed, there is a case where the light irradiation of one of the light source units is to be interrupted in order to replace the lamp. In this case, in the first embodiment, the light guide 31a and the light bundle 33a including the 500 optical fiber wires 32a and the light guide 31 are used.
b and the wire bundle 33b composed of 500 optical fiber wires 32b are clearly separated from each other inside the light guide 35, and as if the light guide 3
1a and the light guide 31b are simply superimposed and connected to the lens system 29. Therefore, even if the light irradiation of one of the light source units is interrupted, the light irradiation of the other light source unit is different from the conventional one. Same irradiation area L
A will be formed.

FIG. 5 shows an irradiation area L in the first embodiment.
It is a figure which shows the shape of A. FIG. 5A shows the light source unit 4.
FIG. 5B shows a case where only light irradiation from the light source unit 40b is performed.
(C) is a light source unit 40a and a light source unit 40b.
2 shows a case where light irradiation is performed from both. As shown in FIG. 5C, both the shutter 44a and the shutter 44b are opened, and the light source unit 40a is opened.
When light irradiation is performed from both the light source unit 40b and the light source unit 40b, the irradiation width w1 can be doubled as described above, and the tact time required for edge exposure is reduced to about half, resulting in a large throughput. Will be improved.

On the other hand, either the shutter 44a or the shutter 44b is opened, and the light source unit 40a
Alternatively, when light irradiation is performed from only one of the light source units 40b, as shown in FIG. 5A or 5B, a rectangular irradiation area having the same irradiation width w3 and exposure width w2 as in the related art is used. LA will be formed. However, the irradiation width w3 is half of the irradiation width w1. This is because, for example, when only light irradiation from the light source unit 40a is performed, light guided from the light guide 31a passes only through the element bundle 33a (see FIG. 3) inside the light guide 35, while the light guide Light is not guided from 31b and light guide 35
This is because no light passes through the inner wire bundle 33b, and as a result, light is emitted from only half of the end face of the light guide 35. In other words, the wire bundle 3 of the light guide 35
This is because only 3a functions as an extension of the light guide 31a. Therefore, in this case, there is no difference from the case where one light source unit 40a and the lens system 29 are connected by a normal light guide (light guide having 500 optical fiber wires), and the same irradiation area LA as in the related art is obtained. It is formed.

Conversely, when only the light irradiation from the light source unit 40b is performed, the element bundle 33b of the light guide 35 is also used.
Only the light guide 31b functions as an extension of the light guide 31b, and light is emitted from only half of the end face of the light guide 35. Therefore, also in this case, there is no difference from the case where one light source unit 40b and the lens system 29 are connected by a normal light guide (light guide having 500 optical fiber wires), and the same irradiation area LA as in the related art is obtained. It is formed. However, the light emission position from the end face of the light guide 35 differs between the case where only the light irradiation from the light source unit 40a is performed and the case where only the light irradiation from the light source unit 40b is performed. The position where the irradiation area LA is formed is different as shown in FIG.

As described above, even if the light irradiation from one of the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b is stopped for the purpose of replacing the lamp, the light irradiation from the other is performed. Irradiation area LA similar to the above is formed, maintenance of one light source unit such as lamp replacement can be performed while performing edge exposure, and as a result, processing efficiency as a whole is improved. When only light irradiation from either the light source unit 40a or the light source unit 40b is performed, the throughput is naturally reduced to about half as compared with the case where light irradiation is performed from both of them. Nevertheless, the same throughput can be obtained as before, and the production efficiency is much higher than in the conventional case where edge exposure is completely interrupted for maintenance.

Further, the edge exposure apparatus of the first embodiment
A light receiver 50 is provided (see FIG. 1). Hereinafter, the light receiver 5
0 will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the light receiver 50. FIG. 6A is a side view of the light receiver 50, and FIG. 6B is a plan view of the light receiver 50. This light receiver 50
Is provided for measuring the illuminance of the irradiation area LA formed by the irradiation processing unit 30.

The light receiver 50 includes a light receiving window 51 and a diffusion plate 52.
And a light receiving element 53. The light receiving window 51 is a circular or elliptical window that completely transmits the incident light. The light beam transmitted through the light receiving window 51 and incident on the diffusion plate 52 is converted into an electric signal by the light receiving element 53. . Note that a known photoelectric conversion element such as a photoelectric tube or a photodiode may be used as the light receiving element 53.

The light receiving element 53 has a plane size substantially equal to that of the light receiving window 51, and the amount of light incident from the entire light receiving window 51 per unit time, that is, the light flux of the light incident on the entire light receiving window 51. Is converted into an electric signal. Also, the light receiver 5
Numeral 0 is provided at substantially the same height position as the substrate W held by the spin chuck 13, and the size of the light receiving window 51 is such that light irradiation from both of the two light source units 40a and 40b is performed. Irradiation area L formed for the case
Larger than the size of A. Further, although the lens system 29 fixed to the tip of the exposure arm 28 can be moved in a horizontal plane (XY plane) by the drive processing unit 20,
It does not move in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) except during focus adjustment. Therefore, the lens system 29 is connected to the drive processing unit 20.
When the light source 50 is moved horizontally to just above the light receiving window 51 of the light receiver 50, all light beams emitted from the lens system 29 are converted into electric signals by the light receiving element 53 irrespective of the irradiation conditions of the two light source units 40 a and 40 b. can do.

The light receiver 50 alone can measure the luminous flux of all the light emitted from the lens system 29, but cannot measure the illuminance of the irradiation area LA, that is, the luminous flux per unit area. This means that the output of the light receiver 50 is simply a function of the amount of light in the irradiation area LA.
This is because the size of the irradiation area LA changes depending on the irradiation conditions of the two light source units 40a and 40b as shown in FIG. For this reason, in the first embodiment, a mechanism for measuring the illuminance of the irradiation area LA is provided along with the light receiver 50, and the illuminance is calculated as follows.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the illuminance calculation mechanism. The output of the light receiver 50, that is, the electric signal resulting from the conversion of all the light beams emitted from the lens system 29 by the light receiving element 53 is amplified by the DC amplifier 61, and then the digital signal is converted by the A / D converter 62. And the digital signal is transmitted to the illuminance calculation unit 60. Thus, the illuminance calculation unit 60 can recognize the output value of the light receiver 50.

On the other hand, two light source units 40a and 40b
Are provided with sensors 49a and 49b, respectively.
The sensors 49a and 49b are respectively provided with shutters 44a and
The open / close state of 44b is detected and transmitted to the illuminance calculation unit 60. As a result, the illuminance calculation unit 60 sets the shutters 44a,
The open / close state of each of the switches 44b can be recognized.

When illuminance measurement is performed, first, the sequence control unit 65 gives an instruction to the drive
9 is moved horizontally to just above the light receiving window 51 of the light receiver 50,
After the movement is completed, the shutter controller 66 controls the opening and closing of the shutters 44a and 44b. In particular,
The shutter control unit 66 that has received the instruction from the sequence control unit 65 controls the motor drive circuits 48a and 48b,
Shutter motor 43a and shutter motor 43b
Adjust the power supply to each of the. As a result, each of the shutters 44a and 44b becomes either the open state or the closed state.

Next, after the respective open / close states of the shutters 44a and 44b are determined, the sequence controller 65 instructs the illuminance calculator 60 to calculate the illuminance. The illuminance calculation unit 60 measures the illuminance of the irradiation area LA formed by the irradiation processing unit 30 based on the detection results of the sensors 49a and 49b and the output value of the light receiver 50. That is, both the shutters 44a and 44b are in the open state, and the light source units 40a and 40b
Irradiation area LA when light irradiation from both sides is performed
Is twice as large as the area of the irradiation area LA when only one of the shutters 44a and 44b is in the open state and only light irradiation from one of the light source units 40a and 40b is performed. Therefore, the illuminance measurement is performed in consideration of this point (see FIG. 5). More specifically, assuming that the area of the irradiation area LA is “S” (the value of S is known) when only light irradiation from one of the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b is performed, the sensor 49a , 49b, when both the shutter 44a and the shutter 44b are in the open state, the luminous flux received by the light receiver 50 is divided by "2S" to obtain the illuminance of the irradiation area LA. When only one of them is in the open state, the luminous flux received by the light receiver 50 is divided by "S" to obtain the illuminance of the irradiation area LA.

The illuminance value calculated by the illuminance calculation unit 60 is displayed on an illuminance display 63. When the illuminance value deviates from a predetermined range, an alarm is issued from a warning device attached to the illuminance display 63.

In this manner, the illuminance is measured in consideration of the change in the area of the irradiation area LA.
A single illuminance measurement can be performed for each of the light source unit 0a and the light source unit 40b.

Such illuminance measurement may be automatically performed at the time of starting up the edge exposure apparatus, at the start of loading of a lot, at intervals of a fixed time, or at a fixed number of processed substrates W, or It may be performed manually as needed as needed.

The illuminance calculation section 60, the sequence control section 65, and the shutter control section 66 are all processing sections realized by a computer using a predetermined processing program, and are provided in the same computer. Alternatively, they may be provided in different computers. The method of measuring the illuminance of the irradiation area LA formed by the irradiation processing unit 30 is not limited to the embodiment described with reference to FIG. Any form may be used. That is, FIG. 7 is an example, and based on the luminous flux measured by the light receiver 50, one of the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b or the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b
Any form may be used as long as the illuminance of the light emitted from the lens system 29 is calculated in accordance with whether both are irradiating.

As described above, in the first embodiment,
The two light source units 40 are formed by the light guide 35 in which the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b are merged.
Since the light from the a and 40b is guided, the size of the edge exposure apparatus is suppressed, and the tact time is reduced by increasing the area of the irradiation area LA without lowering the illuminance, and the throughput is greatly reduced without lowering the illuminance. Can be improved.

The wire bundle 33a composed of the optical fiber wires 32a constituting the light guide 31a and the wire bundle 33b composed of the optical fiber wires 32b constituting the light guide 31b are mutually clear inside the light guide 35. Light source unit 40a
Alternatively, even when the light irradiation from one of the light source units 40b is stopped for the purpose of maintenance or the like, the irradiation area LA having the same area as the conventional one can be formed. Can continue.

Furthermore, since the illuminance of the light emitted from the lens system 29 is calculated from the light beam received by the light receiver 50 in consideration of the open / close states of the shutters 44a and 44b, accurate illuminance measurement is always performed. The illuminance can be measured for each of the light source units 40a and 40b. In addition, by using the illuminance value calculated in this manner, the motor can be controlled so that the unit area has a constant exposure amount (illuminance × time) for each substrate regardless of the light irradiation state from each of the light source units 40a and 40b. 11 can also be controlled.

<2. Second Embodiment> Next, an edge exposure apparatus according to a second embodiment will be described. The difference between the edge exposure apparatus of the second embodiment and the apparatus of the first embodiment is the mode of merging of the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b. The description is omitted because it is the same as the device of the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a state of merging light guides in the second embodiment. As is clear from comparison with FIG. 3 of the first embodiment, in the second embodiment,
The 500 optical fiber wires 32a constituting the light guide 31a and the 5 constituting the light guide 31b
The light guide 35 and the optical fiber 32b
Internally mixed with each other. That is, the 500 optical fiber wires 32a constituting the light guide 31a and the 50 optical fibers 32a constituting the light guide 31b.
Both the zero optical fiber 32b are the light guide 3
5 are uniformly dispersed.

As described above, in the second embodiment, the joining jig 38 joins the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b to form the light guide 35, and the 500 optical fiber elements included in the light guide 31a. The light guide 35 is formed by mutually mixing the wire 32a and the 500 optical fiber wires 32b included in the light guide 31b. Note that, similarly to the first embodiment, the optical fiber strands constituting the light guide are not joined or branched from each other, but the light source unit 40a.
The connection from (40b) to the lens system 29 is connected by one line. Therefore, the light guide 35 is constituted by 1,000 optical fiber strands.

Even in this case, if both the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b emit light from the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b while both the shutters 44a and 44b are open, the illuminance is the same as in the first embodiment. Without reducing the irradiation area LA, the tact time can be reduced, and the throughput can be greatly improved. Further, the light guide 35 is formed by merging the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b.
Since the light from the two light source units 40a and 40b is guided, an increase in the size of the edge exposure apparatus can be suppressed.

However, since the light guide merges with the first embodiment, the following differences occur. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the shape of the irradiation area LA in the second embodiment. FIG. 9A shows a case where light irradiation is performed from both the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b, and FIG. 9B shows a case where only light irradiation from one of the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b is performed. 3 shows the shape of each irradiation area LA in the case where it is shown. Note that the hatched density in FIG. 9 indicates the illuminance in the irradiation area LA.

As shown in FIG. 9A, the shutter 44
When both the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b are opened and the light irradiation is performed from both the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 40b, the irradiation width w1 can be doubled as in the first embodiment. The tact time required for edge exposure is reduced to about half, and as a result, the throughput is greatly improved.

On the other hand, either the shutter 44a or the shutter 44b is opened, and the light source unit 40a
Alternatively, when light irradiation is performed from only one of the light source units 40b, as shown in FIG. 9B, the shape and size of the irradiation area LA are the same as the irradiation width w shown in FIG.
1. Although the rectangle has an exposure width w2, the illuminance is halved. This is because the light guide 31a
00 optical fiber wires 32a and light guide 3
500 optical fiber wires 32b constituting 1b
Are uniformly dispersed inside the light guide 35. For example, when only light irradiation from the light source unit 40a is performed, the light guided from the light guide 31a is uniformly diffused inside the light guide 35. Because. Conversely, when only light irradiation from the light source unit 40b is performed, light guided from the light guide 31b is uniformly diffused inside the light guide 35.

Here, the above description is based on the light source unit 40.
a and the light guide 31a and the light guide 3
1b is a light guide 3
5 means that they are uniformly dispersed inside and mixed with each other. Therefore, the light source unit 40a and the light source unit 4
0b, even if there is an individual performance difference or deterioration over time,
In an extreme case, for example, even if one of the light source units uses a new lamp and the other light source unit uses a lamp whose use limit has been reached, the light guided from both the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b can be used as the light guide 35. Since the light source units 40a and 40b are uniformly diffused and mixed with each other, individual differences between the light source units 40a and 40b are reduced, and the illuminance distribution in the irradiation area LA becomes uniform.

As described above, in the second embodiment, the two light source units 40a, 40a are formed by the light guide 35 in which the light guide 31a and the light guide 31b are merged.
Since the light from 40b is guided, the area of the irradiation area LA is increased without reducing the illuminance and the tact time is reduced and the throughput is greatly improved, while suppressing the increase in the size of the edge exposure apparatus. In addition to being able to perform the light guide 35, the 500 optical fiber strands 32a included in the light guide 31a and the 500 optical fiber strands 32b included in the light guide 31b are mixed with each other to form the light guide 35. Therefore, the light emitted from each of the light source units 40a and 40b is uniformly diffused and mixed in the light guide 35,
The illuminance distribution in the irradiation area LA becomes uniform.

<3. Modifications> While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described examples. For example, in each of the above embodiments, the number of optical fiber wires constituting each of the light guides 31a and 31b is 500, but is not limited to this, and may be an arbitrary number of wires.

In each of the above embodiments, the number of light source units is two, but it may be three or more. That is, if a plurality of light guide paths, each of which guides light from any of the plurality of light source units, are merged to form a merged light guide path, the same effects as those of the above embodiments can be obtained. Although the throughput is improved as the number of light source units is increased, the space occupied by the light source unit group is increased and the size of the edge exposure apparatus is increased. It is appropriate to keep the number of light source units to about two as described above.

[0064]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the first strand group and the second strand group are merged to form the merged strand group. While suppressing the increase in the size of the edge exposure device, the area of the irradiation area is increased without reducing the illuminance, and the tact time is reduced.
Throughput can be greatly improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the plurality of wires included in the first wire group and the plurality of wires included in the second wire group are mixed with each other to form a converging element. Since the line group is formed, light from the first and second light sources is uniformly diffused and mixed in the merging element line group, and the illuminance distribution in the irradiation region becomes uniform.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the plurality of wires included in the first wire group and the plurality of wires included in the second wire group are separated from each other. Since the merging element group is formed, even when the irradiation from either the first or the second light source is stopped, the irradiation area having the same area as the conventional one can be formed. Edge exposure processing can be performed at a throughput.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, one of the first and second light sources or both of the first and second light sources perform irradiation based on the light beam measured by the light receiver. Since the illuminance of the light emitted from the emission unit is calculated depending on whether or not the illumination is performed, accurate illuminance measurement can be performed in consideration of the irradiation area.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since a plurality of light guide paths are joined to form a combined light guide path, the illuminance is reduced while suppressing an increase in the size of the edge exposure apparatus. Without increasing the area of the irradiation region, the tact time can be reduced, and the throughput can be greatly improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an overall configuration of an edge exposure apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an irradiation processing unit of the edge exposure apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a state of merging light guides in the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a state of edge exposure of a substrate by the edge exposure apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a shape of an irradiation area in the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a light receiver of the edge exposure apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of an illuminance calculation mechanism provided in the edge exposure apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a state of merging light guides according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a shape of an irradiation area in the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 29 Lens system 31a, 31b, 35 Light guide 32a, 32b Optical fiber strand 38 Merging jig 40a, 40b Light source unit 50 Light receiver 1 Illuminance calculator

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Kenji Kamei 4-chome Tenjin Kitamachi 1-chome, Horikawa-dori-Terauchi, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto F-term (reference) 2H097 AA08 AB07 LA10 LA12 LA20 5F046 BA07 CA02 CB04 CB06 CB12 CC01 CC06 CC15 DA01 DA02 DB01 DC10

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An edge exposure apparatus for irradiating an edge of a rotating substrate with light to expose the edge, comprising: a first light source for irradiating light; and a first light source for irradiating light. A first wire group including a plurality of wires for guiding light from the first light source; and a second wire including a plurality of wires for guiding light from the second light source. A light guide path merging portion for merging the first wire group and the second wire group to form a merging wire group; and applying light guided by the merging wire group to the edge. And an emission unit for emitting light toward the unit. 2. The edge exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the light guide path merging section includes a plurality of wires included in the first wire group and a plurality of wires included in the second wire group. An edge exposure apparatus, wherein lines are mixed with each other to form the merged element group. 3. The edge exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the light guide path converging portion includes a plurality of wires included in the first wire group and a plurality of wires included in the second wire group. An edge exposure apparatus, wherein the merging element group is formed in a state where lines are separated from each other. 4. The edge exposure apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a light receiver for measuring a light flux of the light emitted from the emission means, and the first or second light source based on the light flux measured by the light receiver. Illuminance calculation means for calculating the illuminance of light emitted from the emission means in accordance with whether one of the light sources or both the first and second light sources are emitting light. Characteristic edge exposure equipment. 5. An edge exposure apparatus for irradiating an edge of a rotating substrate with light to expose the edge, wherein the plurality of light sources each irradiate light; A plurality of light guide paths respectively provided to guide light from any one of the plurality of light sources; a light guide path merging section for merging the plurality of light guide paths to form a merged light guide path; An emission unit that emits light guided by an optical path toward the edge.