JP2002261066A - Spin processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a spin processor capable of separating and recovering a treatment solvent in the case of treating a substrate with the first treatment solvent and the second treatment solvent in order. SOLUTION: The spin processor is provided with a rotary provided rotatably within a cup body 16, the first treatment solvent nozzle 26 for feeding the first treatment solvent and the second treatment solvent nozzle 27 for feeding the second treatment solvent toward the substrate 11, a main discharging pipe 21 the one end of which is connected to the bottom of the cup body and which has the first branch pipe 22 and the second branch pipe 23 branched from the other end, the first jetting nozzle 32 for jetting a fluid for allowing the first treatment solvent to flow into the first branch pipe and preventing the first treatment solvent from flowing into the second branch pipe when the first treatment solvent is discharged from the cup body to the main discharging pipe, and the second jetting nozzle 33 for jetting the fluid for allowing the second treatment solvent to flow into the second branch pipe and preventing the second treatment solvent from flowing into the first branch pipe when the second treatment solvent is discharged from the cup body to the main discharging pipe.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a spin processing apparatus for sequentially processing a first processing liquid and a second processing liquid while rotating a substrate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a process of manufacturing a semiconductor device or a liquid crystal display device, there is a lithography process for forming a circuit pattern on a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate as a substrate. In this lithography process, as is well known, a resist is applied to the substrate, and the resist is irradiated with light through a mask on which a circuit pattern is formed. The circuit pattern is formed on the substrate by repeating a series of steps such as removing the removed portion and etching the removed portion a plurality of times.

In the above-mentioned series of steps, if the substrate is contaminated, it becomes impossible to form a circuit pattern precisely, which causes defective products. Therefore, when forming a circuit pattern in each step, the substrate is washed in a clean state in which fine particles such as resist and dust do not remain.

[0004] A spin processing apparatus is known as an apparatus for cleaning the substrate. The spin processing apparatus has a processing tank, and a cup body is provided in the processing tank. A rotating body is provided in the cup body, and the substrate is detachably held on the rotating body. A nozzle body is provided above the substrate held by the rotating body, and the processing liquid is jetted from the nozzle body toward the substrate.

[0005] When the substrate is held on the rotating body,
The substrate is processed by supplying the processing liquid to the substrate by rotating the rotator, and then the substrate is dried by rotating the rotator at a higher speed than when processing with the processing liquid. It is.

In the treatment of a substrate, the substrate is treated using a chemical such as an etching solution, a resist stripping solution, or a cleaning solution as a first treatment solution, and then attached to the substrate using pure water as a second treatment solution. In some cases, the removed chemical solution is washed and removed. Because many chemicals are expensive,
After use, they are collected and reused, and since pure water is relatively inexpensive, it is discarded after use.

Conventionally, in a spin processing apparatus, the following configuration is employed to collect the first processing liquid and discard the second processing liquid. That is, a discharge pipe is connected to the bottom of the cup body, and a processing liquid separation tank is connected to this discharge pipe. The inside of the processing liquid separation tank is separated into a first liquid chamber and a second liquid chamber. Further, a liquid separation valve is provided in the processing liquid separation tank so as to face a connection portion with the discharge pipe. By switching the liquid separation valve, the processing liquid flowing from the discharge pipe into the processing liquid separation tank can be selectively flown into the first liquid chamber or the second liquid chamber. A collection pipe is connected to the first liquid chamber, and a drain pipe is connected to the second liquid chamber.

Therefore, if the liquid separation valve is switched in accordance with the type of the processing liquid supplied to the substrate held by the rotating body in the cup body, for example, the first processing liquid flows into the first liquid chamber. , And the second processing solution can flow into the second liquid chamber and be discarded.

[0009]

By the way, a discharge pipe is connected to the cup body, and a processing liquid separation tank is connected to the discharge pipe.
If the processing liquid is separated by a liquid separation valve provided in the processing liquid separation tank, the processing liquid separation tank must be connected to the bottom of the cup body.

[0010] Therefore, a processing liquid separation tank must be provided below the cup body, so that the entire apparatus may be increased in size, or the processing liquid supplied to the substrate in the cup body may be processed liquid separation tank or liquid. Since the amount of contact with and separation from the separation valve increases, the recovery efficiency of the first processing liquid may decrease.

According to the present invention, there is provided a spin processing apparatus capable of separating a first processing liquid and a second processing liquid without increasing the size of the apparatus, and improving the recovery efficiency of the processing liquid. Is to provide.

[0012]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a spin processing apparatus for rotating a substrate and sequentially processing the substrate with a first processing liquid and a second processing liquid. A rotating body that holds the substrate and is rotatably provided in the cup body, a drive source that rotationally drives the rotating body, and supplies the first processing liquid toward the substrate held by the rotating body. A first supply means, a second supply means for supplying the second treatment liquid, and a first treatment liquid having one end connected to the bottom of the cup body and supplied to the substrate by the first supply means And a main discharge pipe for discharging the second processing liquid supplied by the second supply means,
A first branch pipe and a second branch pipe branched from the other end of the main discharge pipe, and a first processing liquid discharged from the cup body provided at the other end of the main discharge pipe to the main discharge pipe. When the first processing liquid flows into the first branch pipe,
A first injection nozzle that injects a fluid that prevents the fluid from flowing into the branch pipe, and a second processing liquid that is provided at the other end of the main discharge pipe and that is discharged from the cup body to the main discharge pipe. The second processing liquid is caused to flow into the second branch pipe to
A second injection nozzle for injecting a fluid that prevents the fluid from flowing into the branch pipe.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the spin processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the fluid ejected from at least one of the first ejection nozzle and the second ejection nozzle is an inert gas. is there.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the first injection nozzle and the second injection nozzle form a fluid in a plane so as to close the inlets of the second branch pipe and the first branch pipe, respectively. 2. The spin processing device according to claim 1, wherein the spin processing device is a flat spray nozzle for jetting.

According to the present invention, if the fluid is ejected from the first ejection nozzle or the second ejection nozzle according to the type of the treatment liquid to be used, the treatment liquid is supplied to the first branch pipe or the second branch pipe. Because it can flow into any of the branch pipes, the first
And the second processing liquid can be separated.

[0016]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

The spin processing apparatus according to the present invention shown in FIG. The gantry 1 has a base plate 2 and an upper plate 4 which is held in parallel at a predetermined interval above the base plate 2 by legs 3 erected at four corners on the upper surface of the base plate 2, A processing tank 5 is provided on the upper plate 4.

The processing tank 5 has a rectangular cylindrical shape with an open upper surface, and its peripheral wall is formed as a tapered wall 5a whose outer dimensions gradually decrease from a middle part in the height direction toward the upper end. A clean air unit 7 is attached to an upper wall 6 of the processing tank 5.

The clean air unit 7 purifies a down flow (indicated by an arrow in the figure) blown down from a ceiling of a clean room in which a spin processing device is installed, and cleans the processing tank 5.
Specifically, the clean air in the clean room is further purified by a filter such as HEPA and introduced into the treatment tank 1.

A disk-shaped rotating body 8 is provided inside the processing tank 5.
Is provided. A plurality of support members 9 are provided on the upper surface of the rotating body 8 at predetermined intervals in a circumferential direction, and a substrate 11 such as a semiconductor wafer is detachably held on the support members 9.

An opening 12 is formed at the bottom of the processing tank 5, and a driving shaft 13a that is driven to rotate by a motor 13 is inserted through the opening 12, and the rotating body 8 is mounted on the upper end of the driving shaft 13a. Are linked. This rotating body 8
The motor 13 can be driven to rotate in a predetermined direction, for example, clockwise.

The motor 13 is mounted on a vertical drive mechanism 14. Thus, the rotating body 8 is driven to rotate by the motor 13 and is further driven up and down together with the motor 13 by the up-down driving mechanism 14. The vertical drive mechanism 14 is installed on the base board 2 via a mounting member 15.

A cup 16 is provided on the inner bottom of the processing tank 5. The rotating body 8 is accommodated in the cup body 16, that is, in the processing space 17. In the cup body 16, an annular wall 18 whose upper end is opposed to and spaced apart from the inner peripheral surface of an annular step 8 a formed on the periphery of the lower surface of the rotating body 8. A bottom wall 19 is provided between the inner peripheral surface of the body 16 and the bottom wall 19 sloping downward toward the annular wall 18. The annular wall 18 and the annular step 8
The la and la form a labyrinth structure that prevents the atmosphere in the cup body 16 from flowing out through the opening 12 to the outside.

One end of a main discharge pipe 21 is connected near the outer peripheral surface of the annular wall 18, which is the lowest of the bottom wall 19. The main discharge pipe 21 extends downward from the upper plate 4, and the other ends thereof are a first branch pipe 22 and a second branch pipe 23.
And it is forked.

The first branch pipe 22 is connected to a collection tank 24 installed on the base board 2, and the second branch pipe 23 is connected to a gas-liquid separator 25 similarly installed on the base board 2.
It is connected to the.

Above the rotator 8, a first processing liquid nozzle 26 and a second processing liquid nozzle 27 are provided.
A first processing liquid is jetted from the first processing liquid nozzle 26 toward the substrate 11 held by the rotating body 8, and a second processing liquid is jetted from the second processing liquid nozzle 27 toward the substrate 11. The liquid is sprayed. An etching liquid, a stripping liquid, a cleaning liquid, or the like is used as the first processing liquid, and pure water is used as the second processing liquid.

The other end of the main discharge pipe 21 is provided with a separating means 31 described later. The separation means 31 separates the first processing liquid injected from the first processing liquid nozzle 26 toward the substrate 11 and flowing into the main discharge pipe 21 into the first branch pipe 2.
2 through the second processing liquid nozzle 27, the second processing liquid injected from the second processing liquid nozzle 27 toward the substrate 11 and flowing into the main discharge pipe 21 through the second branch pipe 23. 25.

A suction pump (not shown) is connected to the gas-liquid separator 25, and the atmosphere in the cup body 16 is sucked through the exhaust duct 32 by the suction force of the suction pump. The gas-liquid separator 25 separates gas and liquid, and discharges them to appropriate places.

As shown in FIG. 2, the separating means 31 has a first spray nozzle 32 and a second spray nozzle 33, each of which is a flat spray nozzle and is provided at the other end of the main discharge pipe 21. The first injection nozzle 32 injects fluid in a plane along a direction orthogonal to the axis of the second branch pipe 23, and the second injection nozzle 33
The fluid is ejected in a plane along a direction orthogonal to the two axes.

Accordingly, the fluid injected from the first injection nozzle 32 blocks the processing liquid from the main discharge pipe 21 from flowing to the second branch pipe 23, and the second injection nozzle 33
The fluid ejected from the flow path blocks the processing liquid from flowing to the first branch pipe 22.

Gas is more suitable as the fluid injected from each of the injection nozzles 32 and 33. In particular, the first processing liquid reacts with oxygen in the atmosphere such as ammonia peroxide and hydrofluoric acid as an etching liquid. When a gas that causes concentration deterioration is used, by injecting an inert gas such as nitrogen gas from at least the first spray nozzle 32 as a gas, the concentration deterioration of the etching solution can be prevented.

The gas injected from the second processing liquid nozzle 27 may be nitrogen, but may be air.

An access port 35 is formed on one side of the processing tank 5. The entrance 35 is opened and closed by a shutter 37 driven up and down by a cylinder 36.

When the rotating body 8 is driven in the ascending direction by the vertical drive mechanism 14 and the opening 35 is opened, the rotating body 8 is held on the rotating body 8 by a hand of a robot (not shown) which can enter the opening 35. The processed substrate 11 can be taken out or an unprocessed substrate 11 can be supplied.

Next, a case in which the substrate 11 is sequentially processed with the first processing liquid and the second processing liquid by the spin processing apparatus having the above configuration will be described.

Processing tank 5 closed by shutter 37
Opening 35, and the vertical drive mechanism 1
4 is operated to raise the substrate 11 held by the rotating body 8 to a position protruding upward from the upper end of the cup body 16.

Next, when the substrate 11 is supplied to the rotating body 8 by a robot (not shown), the rotating body 8 is lowered to close the entrance 35. Next, the rotating body 8 is rotated in a predetermined direction by the motor 13. Furthermore, the first
The first processing liquid such as hydrofluoric acid as an etching liquid and ammonia peroxide as a cleaning liquid is supplied from the processing liquid nozzle 27 toward the upper surface of the substrate 11. At the same time, nitrogen gas is injected from the first injection nozzle 32.

When the first processing liquid is supplied to the upper surface of the substrate 11, the upper surface of the substrate 11 is processed by the first processing liquid. The first processing liquid supplied to the upper surface of the substrate 11 scatters from the peripheral edge of the substrate 11 after processing the substrate 11 because the substrate 11 is rotationally driven, and collides with the inner peripheral surface of the cup body 16 so that the first processing liquid is supplied to the bottom. Drop on wall 19.

The processing liquid dropped on the bottom wall 19 flows inward in the radial direction of the cup body 16 which is inclined downward,
The main discharge pipe 2 connected to the lowest part of the bottom wall 19
Flow into 1.

The first branch pipe 22 flows into the main discharge pipe 21
The first processing liquid that has reached the branch between the first and second branch pipes 23 flows into the first branch pipe 22 by the nitrogen gas injected from the first injection nozzle 32.

That is, as shown by the arrow A in FIG. 3A, the nitrogen gas injected from the first injection nozzle 32 is:
It flows along the opening face at the base end of the second branch pipe 23 and flows into the first branch pipe 22 while closing this opening face with the flow of nitrogen gas.

Therefore, the first processing liquid flowing through the main discharge pipe 21 is prevented from flowing into the second branch pipe 23 interrupted by the nitrogen gas as shown by the arrow B in FIG.
Since the first branch pipe 23 flows into the first branch pipe 23, the first branch pipe 2
3 is collected in the connected collection tank 24. Then, the first processing liquid recovered in the recovery tank 24 is supplied to the first processing liquid nozzle 26, and is repeatedly used.

Even if the first processing liquid is a processing liquid such as ammonia peroxide or hydrofluoric acid, the concentration of which degrades by reacting with oxygen in the atmosphere, nitrogen gas is injected from the first injection nozzle 32. Therefore, the etchant is collected in the collection tank 24 by the nitrogen gas without causing concentration deterioration.

When the substrate 11 has been processed with the first processing liquid, the supply of the first processing liquid is stopped, and the second processing liquid is supplied from the second processing liquid nozzle 27. At the same time,
The supply of the nitrogen gas to the first injection nozzle 32 is stopped, and the gas is injected from the second injection nozzle 33.

When the second processing liquid supplied to the substrate 11 flows from the bottom wall 19 of the cup body 16 to the main discharge pipe 21 and reaches the branch portion between the first branch pipe 22 and the second branch pipe 23, The gas injected from the second injection nozzle 33 is shown in FIG.
As shown by the arrow C in (b), the gas flows along the opening surface at the base end of the first branch tube 22, and flows into the second branch tube 23 while blocking the opening surface by the gas flow.

Therefore, the second processing liquid flows from the main discharge pipe 21 to the second branch pipe 23 as shown by an arrow D in FIG. 3B, and the second processing liquid flows from the second branch pipe 23 to the gas-liquid separator 25. Flows into That is, the first processing liquid nozzle 2
The first processing liquid injected from the main processing pipe 6 and the second processing liquid injected from the second processing liquid nozzle 27 are respectively separated from the first processing liquid by the first branch pipe 22 branched from the main discharge pipe 21 and the second processing liquid. It can flow separately from the branch pipe 23. As a result, the first processing liquid can be collected and used repeatedly.

In addition, the first and second injection nozzles 32, 3
Reference numeral 3 denotes a flat spray nozzle for jetting a fluid in a plane, so that the fluid jetted from each of the nozzles 32 and 33 can reliably shut off the second branch pipe 23 or the first branch pipe 22.

The main discharge pipe 21 connected to the bottom wall 19 of the cup body 16 branches into a first branch pipe 22 and a second branch pipe 23, and a first injection nozzle 32 and a second injection nozzle 33
Since the first processing liquid and the second processing liquid can be separated and collected by injecting gas from the first processing liquid and the second processing liquid, the first processing liquid and the second processing liquid There is no need to provide a processing liquid separation tank for separating the liquid.

Therefore, it is possible to separate and collect the first processing liquid and the second processing liquid without increasing the size of the spin processing apparatus. Moreover, the main discharge pipe 21 connected to the cup body 16
Is discharged from the main discharge pipe 21 to the recovery tank 24 immediately. In addition, the path for collecting the first processing liquid can be shortened as compared with the related art in which a processing liquid separation tank is provided between the main discharge pipe 21 and the recovery tank 24.

By these means, the amount of the first processing liquid adhering to the intermediate route and remaining and not being recovered in the recovery tank 24 can be reduced, so that the recovery rate of the first processing liquid can be improved. It becomes possible.

In the above embodiment, the bottom wall to which the discharge pipe is connected is inclined downward from the outside in the radial direction of the cup body toward the inside, but the inclination direction of the bottom wall is opposite. Alternatively, the bottom wall may be inclined downward from one end of the cup body in the radial direction to the other end, and the main discharge pipe may be connected to the lowest position.

The types of the first processing liquid and the second processing liquid are not limited, either.
May be separately collected, and in that case, the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe may be connected to different recovery tanks.

[0053]

As described above, according to the present invention, the first injection nozzle or the second injection nozzle can be used depending on the type of the processing liquid used.
By jetting a fluid from the jet nozzle, the processing liquid can be flowed into either the first branch pipe or the second branch pipe.

Therefore, when the substrates are sequentially processed with different types of processing liquids, each processing liquid is supplied to the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe.
The spin processing apparatus can be downsized compared to the conventional case in which a processing liquid separation tank is provided outside the cup body, and the separated processing liquid is collected. There is an advantage that the path to the processing liquid can be shortened and the recovery rate of the processing liquid can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a spin processing tank according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a branch portion between a first branch pipe and a second branch pipe.

FIG. 3A is an explanatory diagram when a first processing liquid flows through a first branch pipe, and FIG. 3B is an explanatory diagram when a second processing liquid flows through a second branch pipe.

[Explanation of symbols]

 8 Rotating body 11 Substrate 13 Motor 16 Cup body 21 Main discharge pipe 22 First branch pipe 23 Second branch pipe 26 First processing liquid nozzle 27 Second processing liquid nozzle 32 ... First injection nozzle 33 ... Second injection nozzle

Claims (3)

[Claims] A spin processing apparatus for rotating a substrate and sequentially processing the substrate with a first processing liquid and a second processing liquid, wherein the cup body and the substrate are held and rotatable in the cup body. , A driving source for driving the rotator, a first supply unit for supplying the first processing liquid toward the substrate held by the rotator, and a second processing unit A second supply means for supplying a liquid; and a first processing liquid supplied to the substrate at one end connected to a bottom of the cup body and supplied by the first supply means, and supplied by the second supply means. A main discharge pipe for discharging the second processing liquid; a first branch pipe and a second branch pipe branched from the other end of the main discharge pipe; and a cup provided at the other end of the main discharge pipe. The first processing liquid is discharged from the body to the main discharge pipe A first injection nozzle for injecting the first processing liquid into the first branch pipe and injecting a fluid for preventing the first processing liquid from flowing into the second branch pipe; When the second processing liquid is discharged from the cup body to the main discharge pipe, the second processing liquid flows into the second branch pipe to prevent the second processing liquid from flowing into the first branch pipe. A second jet nozzle for jetting a fluid to be rotated. 2. The spin processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the fluid ejected from at least one of the first ejection nozzle and the second ejection nozzle is an inert gas. 3. A flat spray nozzle for injecting a fluid in a plane so as to close an inlet of the second branch pipe and the first branch pipe, respectively, the first spray nozzle and the second spray nozzle. 2. The spin processing device according to claim 1, wherein