JP2003338480A - Spin treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a spin treating device for preventing inflow of turbulent flow into a cup body even when the turbulent flow is generated in a treating tank. <P>SOLUTION: The spin treating device is provided with a treating tank 1, a cup body 2 provided in the treating tank and having an opening on the upper surface of the same, a turn table 16 driven to turn while retaining a substrate provided in the cup body, a fan filter unit 32 provided in the upper part of the treating tank to introduce clean air into the treating tank, a discharging pipe 5 for discharging the clean air supplied into the treating tank from the fan filter unit through an internal space in the cup body, and an annular wall body 23 provided at the peripheral part of the opening on the upper surface of the cup body to preclude the inflow of air in the outside of the cup body into the cup body through the opening. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

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 treating a substrate with a treatment liquid while rotating the substrate and for drying a substrate treated with the treatment liquid.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When manufacturing a semiconductor device or a liquid crystal display device, there is a lithographic process for forming a circuit pattern on a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate. In this lithographic process, as is well known, a resist is applied to the above substrate, light is irradiated through a mask on which a circuit pattern is formed, and then a portion of the resist which is not irradiated (or light is irradiated). 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 series of steps, if the substrate is contaminated, the circuit pattern cannot be precisely formed, which causes defective products. Therefore, when the circuit pattern is formed in each step, the substrate is cleaned so that fine particles such as resist and dust do not remain.

A spin processing apparatus is known as an apparatus for cleaning the substrate. This spin processing apparatus has a processing tank, and a cup body is provided in this processing tank.
A rotary table is provided in the cup body, and the substrate is detachably held on the rotary table.

When the substrate is held on the turntable and the treatment liquid is supplied to the substrate while the turntable is rotated, the turntable is rotated at a higher speed than the treatment with the treatment liquid. The substrate is dried.

ULPA and HEPA are provided above the processing tank.
A fan / filter unit such as is provided to supply clean air into the processing tank when processing a substrate. A discharge pipe is connected to the bottom of the cup body. An exhaust pump is connected to this discharge pipe. As a result, the clean air supplied from the fan / filter unit into the processing tank passes through the cup body and is discharged from the discharge pipe.

As described above, when the substrate is processed, clean air is supplied from the fan / filter unit into the processing tank, passes through the cup body, and is discharged, so that mist generated when the substrate is dried is generated in the cup body. And prevents floating in the treatment tank. This prevents mist from adhering to the substrate during the drying process and causing contamination.

A loading / unloading port for loading / unloading the substrate is provided on one side of the processing bath, and the loading / unloading port can be opened and closed by a shutter. When supplying an unprocessed substrate to the rotary table or taking out a dried substrate from the rotary table, the loading / unloading port is opened and the substrate is loaded / unloaded by a robot or the like.

By the way, in a processing factory for processing substrates, a plurality of spin processing apparatuses are installed and the plurality of spin processing apparatuses are exhausted by a single exhaust pump. That is, the discharge pipe connected to the exhaust pump is branched into a plurality of pipes, and each branched discharge pipe is connected to the cup body of each spin processing apparatus.

Of the plurality of spin processing apparatuses, the spin processing apparatus for processing the substrate is supplied with clean air from the fan / filter unit, and the inside of the cup is exhausted through the exhaust pipe.

In the spin processing apparatus which does not process the substrate, the supply of clean air from the fan / filter unit is stopped, and the on-off valve provided in the exhaust pipe is closed to stop the exhaust.

Therefore, in a plurality of spin processing apparatuses, the number of spin processing apparatuses that are processing a substrate and the number of spin processing apparatuses that are not processing vary with time. In the spin processing apparatus which is processing, it is inevitable that the pressure in the processing tank fluctuates.

[0013]

When the pressure in the processing tank changes, the air flow in the processing tank also inevitably changes. For example, when the number of spin processing devices that are operated while a predetermined amount of clean air is being supplied from the fan / filter unit increases, the exhaust amount of the exhaust pump of each processing tank decreases.

When the amount of exhaust air decreases, the amount of clean air supplied from the fan / filter unit becomes larger than the amount of exhaust air, and the pressure in the processing tank rises so that the air supplied into the processing tank smoothly flows through the cup body. It becomes difficult to be discharged to.

As a result, a turbulent flow is generated in the processing tank, the turbulent flow flows along the outer peripheral surface of the cup body, and a part of the turbulent flow may flow into the inside from the opening formed on the upper surface of the cup body. There is. The turbulent flow generated in the processing tank is likely to include dust adhering to the inner surface of the processing tank. Therefore, a part of the turbulent flow enters the cup body, which may contaminate the substrate.

An object of the present invention is to provide a spin processing apparatus capable of preventing the turbulent flow from flowing into the cup body even if the turbulent flow is generated in the processing tank due to pressure fluctuation or the like.

[0017]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, in a spin processing apparatus for rotating a substrate for processing, a processing tank and a cup body having an opening on an upper surface provided in the processing tank are provided. A rotary table that is provided in the cup body and is driven to rotate while holding the substrate, a fan / filter unit that is provided above the processing bath and that introduces clean air into the processing bath, and a fan / filter unit Exhaust means for discharging the clean air supplied into the processing tank through the inner space of the cup body, and air provided outside the cup body around the opening on the upper surface of the cup body is the opening. And a flow-in prevention means for preventing the fluid from flowing into the cup body from the spin processing apparatus.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the inflow preventing means is
The spin processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the spin processing apparatus is an annular wall body provided on a peripheral portion of the opening on the upper surface of the cup body.

A third aspect of the present invention is the spin processing apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein a height adjusting member is detachably provided on the annular wall body.

According to the present invention, the inflow prevention means provided at the peripheral portion of the opening on the upper surface of the cup body prevents the air outside the cup body from flowing into the cup body from the upper opening of the cup body. Therefore, even if a turbulent flow occurs due to the pressure fluctuation in the processing tank, the turbulent flow is prevented from flowing into the cup body and contaminating the substrate.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a spin processing apparatus according to the present invention, which has a box-shaped processing tank 1. A cup body 2 is arranged in the processing tank 1. The cup body 2 includes a lower cup 3 provided on the bottom plate of the processing tank 1 and an upper cup 4 provided on the lower cup 3 so as to be vertically movable by a vertical drive mechanism (not shown).
Consists of.

A plurality of discharge pipes 5 are connected to the bottom wall of the lower cup 3 at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction. These discharge pipes 5
Communicates with the exhaust pump 6. The discharge pipe 5 is provided with a butterfly valve 5a, and the opening degree of the butterfly valve 5a can be set by the controller 7.

A base plate 8 is arranged on the lower surface side of the cup body 7. The lower plate 3 is attached to the base plate 8.
A mounting hole 9 is formed at a position corresponding to. An upper end of a stator 12 of a control motor 11 which constitutes a driving means is fitted and fixed in the mounting hole 9.

The stator 12 has a cylindrical shape, and a cylindrical rotor 13 is also rotatably fitted therein. The upper end surface of the rotor 13 has a cylindrical connecting body 14
Is fixed integrally by contacting the lower end surfaces. A flange portion 15 having a diameter larger than the inner diameter of the stator 12 is formed at the lower end of the connecting body 14. The flange portion 15 slidably contacts the upper end surface of the stator 12, thereby preventing the rotor 13 from falling out of the stator 12 without blocking the rotation of the rotor 13. There is.

A through hole 3a is formed in the lower cup 3 at a portion corresponding to the rotor 13, and the connecting body 14 projects into the cup body 2 through the through hole 3a. A rotary table 16 is attached to the upper end of the connecting body 14.
Around the periphery of the rotary table 16, a predetermined interval is provided in the circumferential direction.
In this embodiment, 6 at 60 degree intervals (only 2 shown)
The cylindrical holding member 17 is rotatably provided by a drive mechanism (not shown).

A support pin 18 having a tapered surface is provided on the upper end surface of the holding member 17 at a position eccentric from the rotation center of the holding member 17. A semiconductor wafer W as a substrate is supplied to the rotary table 16 so that the lower surface of the peripheral edge portion abuts the tapered surface of the support pin 18. If the holding member 17 is rotated in that state, the support pin 1
Since 8 rotates eccentrically, the semiconductor wafer W supplied to the rotary table 16 is held by the support pins 18.

The rotary table 16 has a turbulence prevention cover 2
Covered by 1. The turbulent flow prevention cover 21 has an outer peripheral wall 22 that covers the outer peripheral surface of the rotary table 16 and an upper surface wall 23 that covers the upper surface. The outer peripheral wall has a small diameter portion 22a on the upper side and a large diameter portion 22b on the lower side. Has been done.

The upper surface of the upper cup 4 is open, and an annular wall 25 is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the opening 4a. This annular wall body 25 has a lower end portion in the height direction at the upper cup 4
The upper end of the upper cup 4 is located substantially inside the upper cup 4.

The outer peripheral surface of the upper cup 4 is a smooth curved surface 2
6, the curved surface 26 is highly inclined toward the inner peripheral edge portion of the upper cup 4, and the inner peripheral edge portion thereof is
Is formed on the annular protruding portion 27 that protrudes toward the upper surface side.
As a result, the annular protrusion 27 constitutes inflow blocking means for blocking turbulent flow generated outside the cup body 2 from flowing into the cup body 2 as described later.

When the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W is supplied to the rotary table 16 or the dried semiconductor wafer W is taken out, the upper cup 4 is lowered as described later.

An opening 31 is formed in the upper wall of the processing tank 1. ULPA or HEPA is provided in this opening 31.
And a fan / filter unit 32 are provided. The fan / filter unit 32 further purifies the air in the clean room and introduces it into the processing tank 1.
The fan / filter unit 32 has a drive unit 33, and a fan (not shown) is rotationally driven by the drive unit 33 to introduce clean air into the processing tank 1.

The clean air introduced into the processing tank 1 by the fan / filter unit 32 is transferred to the cup body 2.
It flows into the inside through the opening 4a on the upper surface and is discharged through the discharge pipe 5.

That is, if the amount of discharge from the exhaust pipe 5 is approximately the same as or slightly larger than the amount of clean air supplied from the fan / filter unit 32, the fan / filter unit 32 moves into the processing tank 1. Since the supplied clean air is smoothly discharged through the cup body 2, turbulent flow does not occur in the processing tank 1.

The start / stop of the drive unit 33 is controlled by the control device 7.

An inlet / outlet opening 34 is formed on one side of the processing tank 1. The inlet / outlet port 34 is used as the processing tank 1.
It is opened and closed by a shutter 35 provided on one side so as to be vertically slidable. The shutter 35 is driven by a cylinder 36 that operates with compressed air. That is,
A control valve 37 for controlling the flow of compressed air is provided in the cylinder 36, and the shutter 35 can be moved up and down by switching the control valve 37 by the control device 7. .

A cylindrical fixed shaft 41 is inserted into the rotor 13 of the control motor 11. A nozzle head 43 is provided at the upper end of the fixed shaft 41 so as to project from the through hole 42 formed in the rotary table 16 to the upper surface side of the rotary table 16. The nozzle head 43 is provided with a pair of nozzles 44 that selectively eject the chemical liquid and the cleaning liquid as the processing liquid toward the lower surface of the semiconductor wafer W held on the rotary table 16.

An opening 45 is formed in the upper wall 23 of the turbulent flow prevention cover 21 so as to face the nozzle head 43, and the processing liquid sprayed from the nozzle 44 by the opening 45 causes the lower surface of the semiconductor wafer W. Is reachable.

An upper nozzle body 46 is arranged above the semiconductor wafer W held on the rotary table 16. The processing liquid is supplied from the upper nozzle body 46 to the upper surface of the semiconductor wafer W.

Next, the operation of the spin processing apparatus having the above structure will be described.

By operating the fan / filter unit 32 to supply clean air into the processing tank 1 and setting the butterfly valve 5a to a predetermined opening,
The clean air supplied from the filter unit 32 into the processing tank 1 is discharged from the inside of the cup body 2 through the discharge pipe 5 on which the suction force of the exhaust pump 6 acts.

If the amount of clean air supplied from the fan / filter unit 32 is substantially equal to or slightly smaller than the exhaust amount of the exhaust pump 6, the pressure in the processing tank 1 is maintained at 0 or negative pressure. As a result, the clean air supplied from the fan / filter unit 32 into the processing tank 1 passes through the cup body 2 and is smoothly discharged from the discharge pipe 5, so that turbulent flow occurs in the processing tank 1. There is nothing to do.

For example, in a factory, when a spin processing apparatus that has been idle among a plurality of spin processing apparatuses starts operating, the exhaust amount of the exhaust pump 6 per spin processing apparatus decreases, and the inside of the processing tank 1 decreases. The pressure may increase. Further, when the shutter 35 is lowered to open the loading / unloading port 34 in order to load / unload the semiconductor wafer W into / from the processing bath 1, outside air may flow into the processing bath 1 and the pressure in the processing bath 1 may increase.

The exhaust action of the exhaust pump 6 in the factory may be used not only in the spin processing apparatus but also in other equipment. Therefore, the pressure in the processing tank 1 may vary depending on the usage status of those equipment. May fluctuate.

When the pressure in the processing tank 1 changes from a negative pressure to a positive pressure, the exhaust pump 6 cannot exhaust the inside of the processing tank 1 smoothly, and a part of the clean air from the fan / filter unit 32 is treated. There is a case where turbulent flow occurs due to the retention in the No. 1 chamber. The turbulent flow generated in the processing tank 1 is likely to include dust attached to the inner surface of the processing tank 1.

When a turbulent flow is generated in the processing tank 1 as described above, the turbulent flow tends to flow into the inside from the opening 4a on the upper surface of the upper cup 4 along the peripheral wall of the cup body 2. However, the inner peripheral edge portion of the upper cup 4 is formed as an annular protruding portion 27 protruding toward the upper surface side of the upper cup 4.

Therefore, even if a turbulent flow is generated in the processing tank 1 and the turbulent flow flows along the peripheral wall of the cup body 2 as shown by the arrow in FIG. The annular protrusion 27 protruding toward the upper surface of the cup 4 prevents the inflow from the opening 4a of the upper cup 4 into the inside. Therefore, the cup body 2 is caused by the turbulent flow containing dust.
It is possible to prevent the semiconductor wafer W held on the rotary table 16 therein from being contaminated.

Moreover, the outer peripheral surface of the upper cup 4 is formed into a smooth curved surface 26. Therefore, the air flow indicated by the arrow in FIG. 2 smoothly flows along the outer peripheral surface of the upper cup 4 and no turbulent flow is generated, which also prevents the semiconductor wafer W from being contaminated.

As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of height adjusting members, in this embodiment, a first height adjusting member 51 and a second height adjusting member 52 are attached to and detached from the annular protrusion 27. It is possible to install them one after another.

The above first and second height adjusting members 51, 52
Each has an annular shape, and the first height adjusting member 51
Is formed so as to be joined to the curved surface 26 of the outer peripheral surface of the upper cup 4 and the upper end surface of the annular protruding portion 27. The lower end surface of the second height adjusting member 52 is formed so as to be joined to the outer peripheral surface and the upper end surface of the first height adjusting member 51.

Therefore, if the first height adjusting member 51 is mounted on the annular protrusion 27 of the upper cup 4, the first height adjusting member 51
The height of the upper cup 4 can be increased according to the height of the height adjusting member 51. Second to the first height adjusting member 51
If the height adjusting member 52 is attached, the height of the upper cup 4 can be further increased.

The inner peripheral surfaces of the first and second height adjusting members 51 and 52 mounted on the annular protruding portion 27 have the above-mentioned annular wall body 25.
The inner surface is flush with the inner peripheral surface of, and a smooth inner peripheral surface is formed without a step. As a result, even if the first and second height adjusting members 51 and 52 are mounted on the annular protruding portion 27, dirt is unlikely to adhere and remain on the inner peripheral surfaces thereof.

There is a difference in the force of the turbulent flow generated in the processing tank 1 depending on the magnitude of the pressure fluctuation in the processing tank 1. For example, under a use condition in which the pressure in the processing tank 1 greatly changes to a positive pressure, the turbulent flow generated in the processing tank 1 also becomes strong. Therefore, when the spin processing apparatus is used under such conditions, the first height adjusting member 51 is attached to the annular protruding portion 27, and the second height adjusting member 52 is further attached in layers. .

As a result, even if the turbulent flow generated in the processing tank 1 is strong, the first and second members mounted on the annular wall 25 are mounted.
The height adjusting members 51 and 52 can reliably prevent turbulent flow from flowing into the cup body 2.

The number of height adjusting members mounted on the upper cup is not limited to two and may be three or more. In addition, an annular protrusion is integrally provided on the inner peripheral edge of the upper cup, and a height adjusting member is attached to the annular protrusion, but the upper end of the annular wall body provided on the inner peripheral surface of the upper cup is attached to the upper cup. Of the annular wall body may be used as the inflow prevention means. In that case, the height adjusting member may be detachably attached to the annular wall body.

[0056]

As described above, according to the present invention, the inflow to the peripheral portion of the opening on the upper surface of the cup body for preventing the air outside the cup body from flowing into the cup body from the upper surface opening of the cup body. A blocking means is provided.

Therefore, even if a turbulent flow occurs in the processing tank, the turbulent flow is prevented from flowing into the cup body, so that the substrate can be prevented from being contaminated by the turbulent flow generated in the cup body.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a schematic configuration of a spin processing apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a turbulent flow is prevented from flowing into the cup body by an annular wall body provided on the upper cup.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a part of a state where a height adjusting member is laminated on the annular wall body.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Treatment tank 2 ... Cup body 3 ... Lower cup 4 ... Upper cup 5 ... Discharge pipe (discharging means) 6 ... Exhaust pump (discharging means) 16 ... Rotary table 27 ... Annular protrusion (inflow prevention means) 32 ... Fan / filter unit 51 ... First height adjusting member 52 ... Second height adjusting member

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A spin processing apparatus for rotating and processing a substrate, comprising: a processing tank; a cup body having an opening on an upper surface provided in the processing tank; and a substrate provided in the cup body for holding the substrate. The rotary table driven to rotate, the fan / filter unit provided above the processing tank for introducing clean air into the processing tank, and the clean air supplied from the fan / filter unit into the processing tank. A discharge means for discharging through the inner space of the cup body and an inflow for preventing air outside the cup body from flowing into the cup body through the opening provided on the upper surface of the cup body around the opening. A spin processing apparatus comprising: a blocking means. 2. The spin processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inflow prevention means is an annular wall body provided on a peripheral portion of the opening on the upper surface of the cup body. 3. The spin processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a height adjusting member is detachably provided on the annular wall body.