JP2004119714A - Substrate treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate treating device that is low in capital investment and high in productivity. <P>SOLUTION: This substrate treating device 1 is provided with first to fourth treating chambers 12a-12d for treating the surface of a wafer W by using a treating liquid and a carrying-in/out robot 13 which carries the wafer W in and out of the treating chambers 12a-12d. In the first and the fourth treating chambers 12a and 12d, one-surface chemical treatment units 20a and 20d which treat one surface of the wafer W by supplying a liquid chemical to the surface are provided. In the second and the third treating chambers 12b and 12c, both-surface chemical treatment units 20b and 20c which treat both surfaces of the wafer W by supplying a liquid chemical to the surface are provided. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate such as a semiconductor substrate using a processing liquid.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, the semiconductor process has been advanced and miniaturized, and it is necessary to cope with a new device structure (for example, a structure in which a large step is provided on the surface of a semiconductor substrate) and a new material. Along with this, processing using a processing liquid such as a cleaning liquid or an etching liquid has been increasingly required to have higher performance and more types.
[0003]
Examples of processing using a processing solution required in a semiconductor process include the following.
{Circle around (1)} In a semiconductor device manufacturing process, a foreign substance (dust) which is generated in a dry atmosphere such as dry etching, ashing, and film formation and which is firmly attached to a semiconductor substrate is removed at a high removal rate. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1 below).
{Circle around (2)} Cleaning or etching for removing metal contamination adhering to the peripheral portion (bevel portion) or the back surface of the semiconductor wafer or unnecessary film adhering to these regions (for example, see Patent Document 2 below).
{Circle around (3)} High-precision and uniform etching (for example, see Patent Document 3 below).
{Circle around (4)} Immediately before heat treatment, film formation, etc., cleaning to obtain precise and high cleanliness (for example, see Patent Document 4 below).
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-7-6942
[Patent Document 2]
JP-A-2002-110626 (FIG. 1)
[Patent Document 3]
JP 2002-100588 A
[Patent Document 4]
JP 2000-133625 A
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the conventional substrate processing apparatus has a specialized function for performing any one of the above (1) to (4), and two or more of these processes can be performed by one apparatus. Could not do.
For this reason, a plurality of substrate processing apparatuses having different functions must be prepared for processing a plurality of types of substrates using the processing liquid, which has led to an increase in capital investment and a decrease in productivity.
[0006]
In addition, there is a limit to performing various types of processing as described above in one processing chamber because the types of processing liquids (chemical solutions, etc.) to be used are increased, and the quality of each processing is increased. Could not.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus that can reduce capital investment.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus having high productivity.
[0007]
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of realizing multifunctional and high-quality processing.
[0008]
Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention
According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a single-side processing chamber (12a, 12d) for supplying a processing liquid to one surface of a substrate (W) and performing single-side processing for processing the substrate one by one. ), A double-side processing chamber (12b, 12c) for supplying a processing liquid to both sides of the substrate and performing a double-side processing for processing the substrate one by one, and a single-side processing chamber and the double-side processing chamber. And a loading / unloading robot (13) for loading and unloading a substrate.
[0009]
According to the present invention, one-side processing of a substrate can be performed in a one-side processing chamber, and both-side processing of a substrate can be performed in a two-side processing chamber. That is, different types of processing using the processing liquid can be performed by one substrate processing apparatus. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately prepare a substrate processing apparatus for single-sided processing and a substrate processing apparatus for double-sided processing, so that equipment investment can be reduced.
Further, the substrate subjected to the single-side processing in the single-side processing chamber is transferred to a double-side processing chamber by a loading / unloading robot to perform double-side processing, or the substrate subjected to the double-side processing in the double-side processing chamber is loaded by a loading / unloading robot. It can be transferred to a single-side processing chamber and subjected to single-side processing. For this reason, the single-sided processing and the double-sided processing can be continuously performed in one substrate processing apparatus, so that the productivity can be increased.
[0010]
Further, the single-sided processing and the double-sided processing are performed in separate chambers, that is, in a single-sided processing chamber and a double-sided processing chamber. That is, since the single-sided chamber and the double-sided processing chamber are specialized for the technically similar processings of the single-sided processing and the double-sided processing, respectively, the processing performed in each chamber can be of high quality. That is, according to this substrate processing apparatus, multifunctional and high-quality processing can be realized.
[0011]
The single-sided processing chamber may be for performing a single type of single-sided processing, or may be for performing a plurality of types of single-sided processing. Similarly, the double-sided processing chamber may be for performing a single type of double-sided processing, or may be for performing multiple types of double-sided processing.
Only one single-side processing chamber may be provided, or a plurality of single-side processing chambers may be provided. When a plurality of single-sided processing chambers are provided, the processing performed in each of the single-sided processing chambers may be of the same type or different types. Similarly, only one double-side processing chamber may be provided, or a plurality of double-side processing chambers may be provided. When a plurality of double-sided processing chambers are provided, the processing performed in each double-sided processing chamber may be of the same type or different types.
[0012]
The processing performed in the double-sided processing chamber may be, for example, a cleaning processing in which a cleaning liquid is supplied to both surfaces of the substrate to perform cleaning, and an etching liquid is supplied to both surfaces of the substrate to remove unnecessary films formed on the substrate surface. An etching process for removing part or all may be used. By specializing the double-sided processing chamber for performing a specific processing, for example, it is possible to realize high-precision and uniform etching, and cleaning with high precision and high cleanliness.
[0013]
The single-sided processing chamber includes, for example, a substrate holder (30) for holding a substrate substantially horizontally, and a rotary drive for rotating the substrate held by the substrate holder in a substantially horizontal plane. A single-sided liquid processing unit (20a, 20d) having a mechanism (25) and a processing liquid nozzle (35) for discharging a processing liquid toward a lower surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit; Is also good.
In this case, for example, a bevel etching process or a bevel cleaning process can be performed by discharging an etching solution from a processing solution nozzle to a substantially central portion of a lower surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and rotated by the rotation driving mechanism. In this case, due to centrifugal force, the etchant flows so as to spread outward along the lower surface of the substrate, and partially wraps around the upper edge of the substrate at the peripheral edge of the substrate. Unnecessary films and contaminants formed are removed by etching.
[0014]
The single-sided processing chamber may include, for example, a substrate holding part (84) for holding a substrate and a processing liquid nozzle for discharging a processing liquid onto one surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding part. (86, 87) and a brush scrub unit (76a, 76d) having a brush (95) capable of scrubbing the one surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding portion. Good.
According to the present invention, so-called brush scrub cleaning can be performed. This makes it possible to remove foreign matters firmly attached to the substrate surface by the chemical action of the treatment liquid and the physical action of the brush.
[0015]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a loading station (19) for loading and unloading a substrate to and from the substrate processing apparatus, and a transfer robot (5) for transferring and transferring the substrate between the loading station and the loading / unloading robot. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:
According to the present invention, the transfer of the substrate between the loading station and the vicinity of the single-side processing chamber and the vicinity of the double-side processing chamber, and the loading / unloading of the substrate to / from the single-side processing chamber and the double-side processing chamber are performed by the transfer robot and the loading / unloading, respectively. The task is shared with the robot. Therefore, the transfer and the loading / unloading of the substrate are not limited by the single-sided processing and / or the double-sided processing of the substrate, so that the productivity can be increased.
[0016]
The loading / unloading robot may not move in the horizontal plane direction.
[0017]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is an illustrative plan view of the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a loading station 19 for loading and unloading a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter, simply referred to as a “wafer”) W to be processed into and out of the substrate processing apparatus 1 and a processing solution for cleaning the wafer W. , And an indexer robot 6 for transferring a wafer W between the loading station 19 and the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d, and an auxiliary transfer. A robot 5 is provided.
[0018]
The loading station 19 includes a plurality of (three in this embodiment) cassette stages 16 arranged linearly in a horizontal direction, and a plurality of wafers W are stored on each cassette stage 16. Can be placed one by one. A first transport path 14 is provided along the direction in which the cassette stages 16 are arranged, and the indexer robot 6 is provided movably along the first transport path 14.
[0019]
On the other hand, the second transport path 15 is provided so as to extend linearly along a horizontal direction orthogonal to the first transport path 14. The second transport path 15 extends from a substantially intermediate position of the first transport path 14 in this embodiment. The auxiliary transport robot 5 is provided movably along the second transport path 15. The indexer robot 6 can access the cassette C mounted on the cassette stage 16 to load and unload the wafer W, and can transfer the wafer W to and from the auxiliary transfer robot 5.
[0020]
On the opposite side of the second transport path 15 from the first transport path 14 side, a loading / unloading robot (main transport robot) 13 that does not move in the horizontal direction is arranged. The loading / unloading robot 13 transfers the wafer W by a telescopic arm (for example, an articulated arm), and can rotate and move up and down around a vertical axis. Thus, the loading / unloading robot 13 can transfer the wafer W to and from the auxiliary transfer robot 5, and can load and unload the wafer W to and from the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d.
[0021]
The first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d are arranged so as to surround the loading / unloading robot 13. The second transfer path 15 is provided so as to pass between the first processing chamber 12a and the fourth processing chamber 12d.
Each of the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d has a pentagonal planar shape obtained by cutting one corner of a rectangle, and a shutter corresponding to the hypotenuse of the pentagon is provided with a shutter. Partitions 17a to 17d provided with 10 are provided. The partition walls 17a to 17d are oriented in a direction in which the loading / unloading robot 13 is arranged. The shutters 10 of the partition walls 17a to 17d are normally closed, and are opened by the loading / unloading robot 13 when loading and unloading the wafer W from the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d.
[0022]
First and fourth fluid valve chambers 11a and 11d are disposed between the first transport path 14 and the first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d, respectively. In addition, second and third fluid valve chambers 11b and 11c are disposed on the opposite sides of the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c from the first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d, respectively. In the first to fourth fluid valve chambers 11a to 11d, valves for controlling the flow of the processing liquid or gas used in the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d are arranged.
[0023]
In the first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d, single-side chemical processing units 20a and 20d for supplying a chemical to one surface of the wafer W and performing processing are provided. Inside the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c, double-side processing units 20b and 20c are provided for supplying a chemical solution to both surfaces of the wafer W for processing.
FIG. 2 is an illustrative sectional view showing a common configuration of the single-sided chemical treatment units 20a and 20d. The single-sided chemical processing units 20a and 20d include a spin chuck 30 that holds the wafer W substantially horizontally and rotates around a vertical axis passing substantially through the center of the wafer W, and a blocking unit 42 that can approach and be opposed to the spin chuck 30. It has.
[0024]
The spin chuck 30 includes a disk-shaped spin base 22 disposed substantially horizontally, and a rotating shaft 23 mounted vertically below the center of the spin base 22. The upper surface 22a of the spin base 22 is a substantially horizontal surface, and a plurality of chuck pins 24 are erected on the periphery of the upper surface 22a at intervals in the circumferential direction. The chuck pins 24 are vertically raised on the radially outward side of the spin base 22 with respect to the supporting portion 24 a that supports the lower peripheral edge of the wafer W, and contact the end surface (peripheral surface) of the wafer W. And a holding portion 24b for holding the wafer W in cooperation with the other chuck pins 24.
[0025]
The rotation drive mechanism 25 that rotates the rotation shaft 23 around the rotation shaft 23 is coupled to the rotation shaft 23. With the above configuration, the wafer W held by the spin chuck 30 can be rotated by the rotation drive mechanism 25.
The rotating shaft 23 has a tubular shape, and a processing liquid pipe 26 is inserted into the rotating shaft 23. The inside of the processing liquid pipe 26 is a processing liquid supply path 33. The upper end of the processing liquid pipe 26 slightly projects from the upper surface 22 a of the spin base 22, and has a lower nozzle 35 having an opening communicating with the processing liquid supply path 33 and discharging the processing liquid. At the tip of the lower nozzle 35, a flange is formed which protrudes outward in the rotational radial direction.
[0026]
A chemical solution and a cleaning solution can be introduced into the processing solution pipe 26 by switching between a chemical solution and a cleaning solution from a chemical solution supply source containing a chemical solution such as an etching solution and a cleaning solution supply source containing a cleaning solution such as pure water. Thus, a chemical solution or a cleaning liquid can be discharged from the lower nozzle 35 toward the center of the lower surface of the wafer W held by the spin chuck 30.
The space between the inner wall of the rotating shaft 23 and the processing liquid pipe 26 is a gas supply path 18. A gap communicating with the gas supply path 18 is provided between the flange of the lower nozzle 35 and the spin base 22, and this gap serves as a gas discharge port 18a. An inert gas can be introduced into the gas supply path 18 from an inert gas supply source such as nitrogen gas. Thus, the inert gas can be discharged from the gas discharge ports 18a to make the space between the wafer W held by the spin chuck 30 and the spin base 22 an inert gas atmosphere.
[0027]
The blocking portion 42 includes a disk-shaped blocking plate 27 having a diameter substantially equal to that of the spin base 22. The blocking plate 27 includes two discs 27a and 27b that are spaced apart and opposed to each other. From the periphery of the disk 27b, a ring portion 27c projects substantially perpendicularly to the disk 27b, and the space between the disk 27a and the disk 27b is closed by the ring 27c. I have.
At the upper center of the blocking plate 27, a rotation shaft 28 is attached along a substantially vertical axis coaxial with the rotation axis of the spin chuck 30. The rotating shaft 28 includes a tubular outer rotating tube 28a, and an inner rotating tube 28b disposed inside the outer rotating tube 28a at an interval from the inner wall of the outer rotating tube 28a. The outer rotating tube 28a is joined to the center of the upper surface of the disk 27a, and the inner rotating tube 28b is joined to the center of the upper surface of the disk 27b.
[0028]
The space between the inner wall of the outer rotary tube 28a and the inner rotary tube 28b is a first gas supply path 37. The space between the disk 27a and the disk 27b is a second gas supply path 38 communicating with the first gas supply path 37. A third gas supply path 39 penetrating through the disk 27b in the thickness direction of the disk 27b and communicating with the second gas supply path 38 is formed. The third gas supply path 39 communicates with a gas discharge port 39a opened on the lower surface of the disk 27b.
[0029]
A processing liquid pipe 31 is inserted into the inside of the inner rotating pipe 28b. The inside of the processing liquid pipe 31 is a cleaning liquid supply path 32 for flowing the cleaning liquid. The lower end of the processing liquid pipe 31 is an upper nozzle 34 having an opening communicating with the cleaning liquid supply path 32. The cleaning liquid can be introduced into the cleaning liquid supply path 32 from a cleaning liquid supply source (not shown).
The space between the inner rotating pipe 28b and the cleaning liquid pipe 31 is a gas supply path 43, and the lower end of the gas supply path 43 is a gas discharge port 43a. An inert gas can be introduced into the first gas supply path 37 and the gas supply path 43 from an inert gas supply source containing an inert gas such as nitrogen. Thus, the inert gas can be discharged from the gas discharge ports 39a and 43a to make the space between the blocking plate 27 and the wafer W held by the spin chuck 30 an inert gas atmosphere. By discharging the inert gas from the gas discharge port 39a, the vicinity of the peripheral portion of the upper surface of the wafer W can be satisfactorily set to the inert gas atmosphere (low oxygen partial pressure state).
[0030]
A rotation drive mechanism 29 for rotating the rotation shaft 28 around the rotation shaft 28 is connected to the rotation shaft 28. The rotation drive mechanism 29 allows the blocking plate 27 to be synchronously rotated, for example, in the same direction as the spin base 22 at the same rotation speed. In addition, an elevating mechanism 40 that can move the rotating shaft 28 up and down in a direction along the rotating shaft 28 is coupled to the rotating shaft 28. By the lifting mechanism 40, the blocking plate 27 can be moved between a close position close to the wafer W held by the spin chuck 30 and a retracted position retracted above the spin chuck 30.
[0031]
The operations of the rotation drive mechanisms 25 and 29 and the elevating mechanism 40 and the supply and stop of the inert gas, the chemical solution, and the cleaning solution are controlled by the control unit 41.
FIG. 3 is an illustrative sectional view showing a common configuration of the duplex processing units 20b and 20c. The double-sided cleaning units 20b and 20c include a spin chuck 45 that holds the wafer W substantially horizontally and rotates around a vertical axis passing substantially through the center of the wafer W, and a blocking unit 46 that can approach and be opposed to the spin chuck 45. Have.
[0032]
The spin chuck 45 includes a disk-shaped spin base 47 disposed substantially horizontally, and a rotating shaft 48 attached to a lower portion of the center of the spin base 47 along the vertical direction. The upper surface 47a of the spin base 47 is a substantially horizontal surface, and a plurality of chuck pins 49 are erected on the periphery of the upper surface 47a at intervals in the circumferential direction. At a substantially middle portion of the chuck pin 49 in the height direction, a slanted portion 49a is formed on the side surface on the center side of the spin base 47 so as to be lowered toward the center side of the spin base 47. The plurality of chuck pins 49 cooperate with each other to hold the peripheral surface of the wafer W near the upper end of the inclined surface 49a.
[0033]
A rotation drive mechanism 50 for rotating the rotation shaft 48 around the rotation shaft 48 is coupled to the rotation shaft 48. With the above configuration, the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45 can be rotated by the rotation drive mechanism 50.
The rotating shaft 48 has a tubular shape, and a processing liquid pipe 51 is inserted into the rotating shaft 48. The inside of the processing liquid pipe 51 is a processing liquid supply path 52. The upper end of the processing liquid pipe 51 is substantially flush with the upper surface 47 a of the spin base 47, and has a lower nozzle 53 having an opening communicating with the processing liquid supply path 52 and discharging the processing liquid.
[0034]
A chemical solution such as an etching liquid stored in a chemical liquid supply source and a cleaning liquid such as pure water stored in a cleaning liquid supply source can be selectively introduced into the processing liquid supply path 52 from below. Thereby, a chemical solution or a cleaning liquid can be discharged from the lower nozzle 53 toward the center of the lower surface of the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45.
The space between the inner wall surface of the rotating shaft 48 and the processing liquid pipe 51 is a gas supply path 71, and the upper end of the gas supply path 71 is a gas discharge port 71a. An inert gas such as a nitrogen gas can be introduced into the gas supply passage 71 from below the rotating shaft 48. Thus, an inert gas can be discharged from the gas discharge port 71a, and the space between the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45 and the spin base 47 can be made an inert gas atmosphere.
[0035]
The blocking portion 46 includes a disk-shaped blocking plate 54 having substantially the same diameter as the spin base 47. A rotary shaft 55 substantially along a vertical axis is attached to the upper center of the blocking plate 54. The rotating shaft 55 is provided with two flanges 58 and 59 projecting in a direction substantially perpendicular to the rotating shaft 55 and separated from each other in the vertical direction.
The rotation shaft 55 is disposed so as to protrude downward from the inside of the support arm 57. A shaft hole 56 having a shape substantially complementary to the rotation shaft 55 is formed in the support arm 57. The rotation shaft 55 is formed so that a slight gap is formed between the rotation shaft 55 and the inner wall surface of the shaft hole 56. Loosely fitted inside.
[0036]
Gas channels 60a to 60d communicating with the shaft holes 56 are formed in the support arm 57, and pressurized gas for gas bearing such as nitrogen gas or air is sent into the gas channels 60a to 60d. You can do it. When the gas for gas bearing is fed into the gap between the rotating shaft 55 and the inner wall surface of the shaft hole 56, the rotating shaft 55 is supported by the support arm 57 in a non-contact manner. Accordingly, dust is not generated due to wear of the bearing portion of the rotating shaft 55, and contamination of the wafer W due to dust can be prevented.
[0037]
Further, since the rotation shaft 55 is provided with the flanges 58 and 59, the rotation shaft 55 does not fall off the support arm 57 even when the introduction of the gas bearing gas is stopped.
Between the flange 58 and the flange 59, a plurality of permanent magnets 61 are fixed on the peripheral surface of the rotating shaft 55 in a ring shape so that the polarity is reversed at predetermined angles around the rotating shaft 55. ing. A plurality of coils 62 are fixed in the support arm 57 so as to face these permanent magnets 61. A motor 63 is constituted by the permanent magnet 61 and the coil 62, and the blocking plate 54 fixed to the rotating shaft is synchronously rotated at the same rotation speed in the same direction as the spin base 47 by the rotation driving force of the motor 63, for example. It is possible.
[0038]
The rotating shaft 55 is tubular, and an inert gas pipe 64 is inserted inside the rotating shaft 55. The lower end of the inert gas pipe 64 is located at a position slightly higher than the lower surface of the blocking plate 54 and opens to form an upper nozzle 65. An inert gas such as a nitrogen gas can be introduced into the inert gas pipe 64. This makes it possible to discharge the inert gas from the upper nozzle 64 to make the space between the blocking plate 54 and the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45 an inert gas atmosphere.
[0039]
An elevating mechanism 68 is connected to the support arm 57. By the lifting mechanism 68, the blocking plate 54 can be moved between a close position close to the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45 and a retracted position retracted above the spin chuck 45.
A processing liquid pipe 66 can be arranged between the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45 and the blocking plate 54. The processing liquid pipe 66 is disposed on the side of the cut-off portion 46 and extends substantially vertically along a vertical direction, a horizontal portion 66b extending substantially horizontally from a lower end of the vertical portion 66a, and a vertical portion 66a of the horizontal portion 66b. And a discharge portion 66c that extends vertically downward from the end opposite to the side. The lower end of the discharge section 66c is opened to form a processing liquid nozzle 67.
[0040]
Into the processing liquid piping 66, a chemical liquid such as an etching liquid and a cleaning liquid such as pure water can be switched and introduced, and the chemical liquid or the cleaning liquid can be discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 67.
The length of the horizontal portion 66b is larger than the radius of the spin base 47 or the blocking plate 54. A rotation drive mechanism 69 that can rotate the vertical portion 66a around its axis is connected to the vertical portion 66a, and the discharge portion 66c is moved along a circumference around the axis of the vertical portion 66a. Can be moved. At this time, the discharge unit 66c is mounted on the rotation axis of the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45. Thus, the processing liquid nozzle 67 can be moved between a processing position facing the center of the wafer W held by the spin chuck 45 and a retreat position not facing the spin chuck 45.
[0041]
The operation of the rotation drive mechanism 50, the motor 63, the rotation drive mechanism 69, and the elevating mechanism 68, and the supply and stop of the inert gas, the gas for gas bearing, the chemical solution, and the cleaning solution are controlled by the control unit 70.
Next, a method of processing the wafer W using the substrate processing apparatus 1 of FIG. 1 will be described, taking as an example a case where the wafer W having a metal oxide film formed on one surface is subjected to bevel etching and double-side cleaning. In the single-sided chemical treatment units 20a and 20d, the chemical supply source contains an etching liquid suitable for selectively removing the target metal oxide, and the cleaning liquid supply source contains pure water. It shall be housed. In the double-sided processing units 20b and 20c, it is assumed that the chemical liquid supply source contains an etching solution for light etching, and the cleaning liquid supply source contains pure water.
[0042]
First, a cassette C containing a wafer W having a metal oxide film formed on one surface is placed on the cassette stage 16 by a separately prepared film forming apparatus.
Next, one wafer W is taken out of the cassette C by the indexer robot 6 and transferred to the auxiliary transfer robot 5. The auxiliary transfer robot 5 transfers the wafer W to the loading / unloading robot 13, and the loading / unloading robot 13 loads the wafer W into the first processing chamber 12a. Similarly, one wafer W is taken out of the cassette C and is carried into the fourth processing chamber 12d.
[0043]
Referring to FIG. 2, wafer W is loaded into first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d, respectively, in a state where blocking plate 27 is at the retracted position, and the surface on which the metal oxide film is formed is raised. Then, it is held substantially horizontally on the spin chuck 30 by the chuck pin 24. Subsequently, under the control of the control unit 41, the lifting / lowering mechanism 40 is controlled to bring the blocking plate 27 into the close position, and the inert gas is discharged from the gas discharge ports 18a, 39a, 43a, and the spin base 22 and the blocking plate are discharged. The space between them is made an inert gas atmosphere. Then, the rotation driving mechanisms 25 and 29 are controlled by the control unit 41, and the wafer W and the blocking plate 27 held by the spin chuck 30 are rotated.
[0044]
Next, under the control of the control unit 41, the etching liquid is discharged from the lower nozzle 35. The etchant hits the center of the lower surface of the wafer W, spreads out along the lower surface of the wafer W by centrifugal force caused by the rotation of the wafer W, and is shaken off laterally at the peripheral portion of the wafer W. Since the etchant has wettability to the surface of the wafer W, part of the etchant wraps around the upper surface of the wafer W at the periphery of the wafer W. Thus, the metal oxide film on the peripheral portion of the upper surface of the wafer W is removed by etching (bevel etching).
[0045]
After the bevel etching of the wafer W is continued for a certain period of time, the processing liquid discharged from the lower nozzle 35 is switched from the etching liquid to pure water under the control of the control unit 41. The pure water discharged from the lower nozzle 35 flows along the lower surface of the wafer W so as to spread outward from the center of the wafer W. The pure water that has reached the peripheral edge of the wafer W flows around the peripheral edge of the upper surface of the wafer W due to wettability to the surface of the wafer W. Thus, the etchant remaining on the surface of the wafer W is washed away.
[0046]
When cleaning the wafer W by discharging pure water from the lower nozzle 35, the cleaning liquid may be discharged simultaneously from the upper nozzle 34.
After the cleaning of the wafer W with the pure water is continued for a certain time, the supply of the pure water to the wafer W is stopped under the control of the control unit 41. Subsequently, the rotation driving mechanisms 25 and 29 are controlled by the control unit 41, and the spin chuck 30 and the blocking plate 27 are rotated at a high speed for a predetermined time. Thereby, the wafer W is shaken off and dried.
[0047]
Thereafter, the rotation driving mechanisms 25 and 29 are controlled by the control unit 41, the rotation of the spin chuck 30 and the blocking plate 27 is stopped, and the discharge of the inert gas from the gas discharge ports 18a, 39a and 43a is stopped. Then, the elevating mechanism 40 is controlled by the control unit 41, and the blocking plate 27 is moved to the retracted position.
In this state, the loading / unloading robot 13 unloads the wafer W from the first processing chamber 12a and loads the wafer W into the second processing chamber 12b or the third processing chamber 12c. Similarly, the wafer W is unloaded from the fourth processing chamber 12d by the loading / unloading robot 13, and is loaded into the third processing chamber 12c or the second processing chamber 12b.
[0048]
Next, in the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c, both-side cleaning of the wafer W is performed.
Referring to FIG. 3, loading of wafer W into second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c is performed in a state where blocking plate 54 and processing liquid nozzle 67 are at the retracted position. The wafer W is held substantially horizontally on the spin chuck 45 by the chuck pins 49. Subsequently, under the control of the control unit 70, the elevating mechanism 68 is controlled to move the blocking plate 54 to the close position, the rotation drive mechanism 69 is controlled, and the processing liquid nozzle 67 is moved to the processing position. Further, under the control of the control unit 70, the inert gas is discharged from the gas discharge port 71a and the upper nozzle 65, and the space between the spin base 47 and the blocking plate 54 is made an inert gas atmosphere.
[0049]
Subsequently, under the control of the control unit 70, the gas for gas bearing is introduced into the gas flow paths 60a to 60d, and the rotating shaft 55 is held by the support arm 57 in a non-contact manner. In this state, the rotation driving mechanism 50 and the motor 63 are controlled by the control unit 70, and the wafer W and the blocking plate 54 held by the spin chuck 45 are rotated.
Next, under the control of the control unit 70, the etching liquid is discharged from the lower nozzle 53 and the processing liquid nozzle 67. The etchant hits the center of the lower surface and the upper surface of the wafer W, and spreads outward along the lower surface and the upper surface of the wafer W due to centrifugal force caused by the rotation of the wafer W, and is shaken laterally at the peripheral portion of the wafer W. It is. Thereby, the lower surface and the upper surface of the wafer W are light-etched, and both surfaces are cleaned with high precision and high cleanliness.
[0050]
After the light etching processing of the wafer W is continued for a certain time, the processing liquid discharged from the lower nozzle 53 and the processing liquid nozzle 67 is switched from the etching liquid to pure water under the control of the control unit 70. Pure water discharged from the lower nozzle 53 and the processing liquid nozzle 67 flows from the center of the wafer W to the outside along the lower surface and the upper surface of the wafer W. Thus, the etchant remaining on the surface of the wafer W is washed away.
[0051]
After the cleaning of the wafer W with the pure water is continued for a certain time, the supply of the pure water to the wafer W is stopped. Subsequently, the rotation driving mechanism 50 is controlled by the control unit 70, and the spin chuck 45 is rotated at a high speed for a predetermined time. Thereby, the wafer W is shaken off and dried. Subsequently, the rotation driving mechanism 50 and the motor 63 are controlled by the control unit 70, the rotation of the spin chuck 45 and the blocking plate 54 is stopped, and the discharge of the inert gas from the gas discharge port 71a and the upper nozzle 65 is stopped. Stopped.
[0052]
After that, the control unit 70 controls the elevating mechanism 68 and the rotation driving mechanism 69, and moves the blocking plate 54 and the processing liquid nozzle 67 to the retracted position. In this state, the loading / unloading robot 13 unloads the wafer W from the second processing chamber 12b and transfers it to the auxiliary transfer robot 5 (see FIG. 1). The wafer W is further transferred from the auxiliary transfer robot 5 to the indexer robot 6, and is stored in the cassette C by the indexer robot 6. Similarly, the wafer W is unloaded from the third processing chamber 12c by the loading / unloading robot 13, and is stored in the cassette C via the auxiliary transfer robot 5 and the indexer robot 6.
[0053]
Thus, the bevel etching and the double-sided cleaning of the wafer W are completed. The wafer W that has undergone the above processing is further carried into a separately prepared apparatus for performing processing in a dry atmosphere, such as a film forming apparatus and a heat treatment apparatus, and subjected to film forming processing and heat treatment. The wafer W, which has been precisely and highly cleaned by the double-sided cleaning process, has a surface state suitable for such a film forming process and a heat treatment.
As described above, according to the substrate processing apparatus 1, the bevel etching of the wafer W and the double-sided cleaning with high precision and cleanliness, which are conventionally performed by separate apparatuses, are continuously performed by one apparatus. be able to. As a result, it is possible to reduce capital investment for the device and increase productivity.
[0054]
The transfer of the wafer W between the loading station 19 and the vicinity of the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d and the loading / unloading of the wafer W to / from the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d are performed by indexers, respectively. The operation is shared by the robot 6, the auxiliary transfer robot 5, and the loading / unloading robot 13. Therefore, the transfer of the wafer W and the loading / unloading of the wafer W are not limited by the processing of the wafer W in the first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d. Can be.
[0055]
Furthermore, since the bevel etching process and the double-sided cleaning of the wafer W are performed in separate processing chambers provided exclusively, high-quality processing can be realized respectively.
FIG. 4 is an illustrative plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Components in FIG. 4 corresponding to the components of the substrate processing apparatus 1 in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals in FIG.
The substrate processing apparatus 75 includes first to fourth processing chambers 12a to 12d. Inside the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c, double-sided processing units 20b and 20c are arranged as in the substrate processing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment, but the first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12c are arranged. 12d, single-sided brush scrub units 76a and 76d for scrubbing (rubbing) one surface of the wafer W with a brush are arranged.
[0056]
FIG. 5 is an illustrative sectional view showing a common configuration of the single-sided brush scrub units 76a and 76d. The single-sided brush scrub units 76a and 76b include a substrate rotation holding mechanism 77 that holds and rotates the wafer W, a processing liquid supply unit 78 that supplies a processing liquid to the surface of the wafer W, and a cleaning mechanism 79 that cleans the surface of the wafer W. And The substrate rotation holding mechanism 77 includes a cup 80 having a cylindrical peripheral wall extending substantially vertically, and a vacuum chuck spin chuck 81 for sucking and holding the wafer W substantially horizontally. The spin chuck 81 is configured such that a spin base 84 that holds a wafer W by vacuum suction is integrally attached to an upper end of a rotating shaft 83 of a motor 82. The rotation shaft 83 is provided so as to penetrate the bottom of the cup 80. By driving the motor 82, the spin base 84 can be rotated around the rotation axis P1 substantially along the vertical axis. Thus, the wafer W is rotated around the rotation axis P1.
[0057]
Instead of the spin chuck 81, a spin chuck similar to the spin chuck 30 of the single-sided chemical processing units 20a and 20d or the spin chuck 45 of the double-sided processing units 20b and 20c may be provided. In this case, the wafer W can be held by the chuck pins without making the lower surface of the wafer W almost contact the spin base 84.
A discharge port 80a for discharging the cleaning liquid is provided in a peripheral portion at the bottom of the cup 80. An elevating drive mechanism 85 that moves up and down the cup 80 is connected to the cup 80. By raising and lowering the cup 80, the spin base 84 can be set higher than the upper end of the cup 80 or can be placed inside the cup 80.
[0058]
The processing liquid supply unit 78 includes a pure water nozzle 86 that discharges pure water toward the upper surface of the wafer W, and a cleaning liquid nozzle 87 that discharges a cleaning liquid prepared by mixing a chemical solution or the like. The pure water nozzle 86 and the cleaning liquid nozzle 87 are provided at the upper end of the peripheral portion of the cup 80. A pure water pipe 88 is connected to the pure water nozzle 86 so that pure water can be introduced into the pure water pipe 88 from a pure water supply source. Thereby, pure water can be discharged from the pure water nozzle 86.
[0059]
A liquid preparation unit 90 is connected to the cleaning liquid nozzle 87 via a cleaning liquid pipe 89. The liquid preparation unit 90 can prepare a cleaning liquid by preparing a plurality of types of chemical solutions or diluting a stock solution of the chemical solution with pure water. The cleaning liquid can be introduced from the cleaning liquid nozzle 87 into the cleaning liquid pipe 89 from the chemical liquid preparation unit 90.
The pure water nozzle 86 and the cleaning liquid nozzle 87 point near the rotation center of the wafer W held on the spin base 84. For this reason, when the pure water or the cleaning liquid is discharged from the pure water nozzle 86 or the cleaning liquid nozzle 87 while the wafer W is being held and rotated by the spin base 84, the pure water or the cleaning liquid is centrifugally generated. The ink spreads along the surface of the wafer W and is supplied evenly over the entire surface of the wafer W.
[0060]
The cleaning mechanism 79 includes a rotating shaft 91 substantially along a vertical axis disposed on the side of the cup 80, a brush support arm 92 extending substantially horizontally from an upper end of the rotating shaft 91, and a rotation of the brush supporting arm 92. A brush support shaft 93 extends downward along an almost vertical axis from an end opposite to the shaft 91.
A rotation drive mechanism 94 is coupled to the rotation shaft 91, and the brush support arm 92 is rotatable around an axis P2 of the rotation shaft 91. At the lower end of the brush support shaft 93, a brush 95 having a large number of wires made of resin or the like suspended from one end of a cylindrical base is detachably attached to the brush support shaft 93 with the wire side facing downward. Installed. A brush rotation mechanism 97 is provided inside the brush support shaft 93, and can rotate the brush 95 around a rotation axis P3 substantially along the central axis of the base.
[0061]
The rotating shaft 91 is configured to be able to move up and down by an elevating mechanism 96, and is also configured to be able to rotate around the axis P2 of the rotating shaft 91 by a rotating drive mechanism 94. Thereby, the brush 95 can be brought into contact with the upper surface of the wafer W held by the spin base 84, can be retracted above the spin base 84, and the brush 95 can be moved to the wafer W held by the spin base 84. Can be arranged at an opposing position opposing the camera, or can be arranged at a retreat position retracted laterally from the opposing position.
[0062]
A standby pot (not shown) that accommodates a plurality of types of brushes 95 and that can wash the brushes 95 is disposed on the side of the cup 80, and the brush 95 faces the standby pot at the retracted position. It has become.
The operation of the motor 82, the lifting / lowering mechanisms 85 and 96, the rotation drive mechanism 94, and the brush rotation mechanism 97, and the supply and stop of the cleaning liquid and pure water are controlled by the control unit 98.
[0063]
Next, with respect to the wafer W having an unnecessary oxide film or polysilicon film formed on one surface, after completely removing the oxide film or the polysilicon film, the above one surface or the other surface of the wafer W is removed. A first method of processing a wafer W using the substrate processing apparatus 4 of FIG.
In the double-sided processing units 20b and 20c, the chemical liquid supply source contains an etching liquid suitable for selectively removing an oxide film or a polysilicon film, and the cleaning liquid supply source contains pure water. It is assumed that
[0064]
First, a wafer W having an oxide film or a polysilicon film formed on one surface by a separately prepared film forming apparatus, or after these films are formed, is further subjected to heat treatment by a separately prepared heat treating apparatus. The processed wafer W is stored in a cassette C, and the cassette C is mounted on the cassette stage 16.
Next, one wafer W is taken out of the cassette C by the indexer robot 6 and transferred to the auxiliary transfer robot 5. The auxiliary transfer robot 5 transfers the wafer W to the loading / unloading robot 13, and the loading / unloading robot 13 loads the wafer W into the second processing chamber 12b. Similarly, one wafer W is taken out from the cassette C and is carried into the third processing chamber 12c.
[0065]
In the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c, processing is performed according to the same procedure as the double-sided cleaning in the processing method of the wafer W using the substrate processing apparatus 1 of FIG. The oxide film or the polysilicon film formed on the surface of the wafer W is completely removed by the etchant. However, the wafer W in this state is in a state where foreign matter (dust) generated due to the etching is firmly attached.
Therefore, next, in order to remove such foreign matter, brush scrub cleaning of the wafer W is performed in the first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d. The wafer W is unloaded from the second processing chamber 12b and loaded into the first processing chamber 12a by the loading / unloading robot 13, and is similarly loaded from the third processing chamber 12c and loaded into the fourth processing chamber 12d. .
[0066]
Referring to FIG. 5, the loading of wafer W into first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d is performed in a state where brush 95 is at the retracted position and spin base 84 is at a position higher than the upper end of cup 80. . The wafer W is held by the spin base 84 such that the rotation axis P1 substantially passes through the center of the wafer W. The wafer W is held with the surface to be scrubbed facing up. After that, the control unit 98 controls the elevating mechanism 85 to raise the cup 80, so that the spin base 84 is housed in the cup 80.
[0067]
Subsequently, the motor 82 is controlled by the control unit 98, so that the wafer W held on the spin base 84 is rotated around the rotation axis P1, and the cleaning liquid is discharged from the cleaning liquid nozzle 87 onto the wafer W. The cleaning liquid hits the center of the upper surface of the wafer W, spreads outward along the upper surface of the wafer W, is shaken off laterally from the peripheral edge of the wafer W, is collected in the cup 80, and is further discharged from the outlet 80a. And be discarded.
[0068]
Next, the rotation drive mechanism 94 is controlled by the control unit 98, and the brush 95 is moved to the opposing position. The brush 95 is made to face the center of the wafer W. Further, the control unit 98 controls the elevating mechanism 96 to lower the rotating shaft 91 so that the lower end (the tip of the wire) of the brush 95 contacts the surface of the wafer W held by the spin base 84. .
In this state, the brush rotation mechanism 97 is controlled by the control unit 98 to rotate the brush 95 around the rotation axis P3, and the rotation drive mechanism 94 is controlled to move the brush support arm 92 to the rotation shaft 91. About the axis P2. As a result, while the brush 95 is rotating, it is scanned in an arc from the center of the rotating wafer W toward the outer periphery. As a result, the brush 95 is rubbed on the entire upper surface of the wafer, and the upper surface of the wafer W is cleaned. Due to the chemical action of the cleaning liquid and the physical action of the brush 95, the foreign substances firmly attached to the surface of the wafer W are separated from the surface of the wafer W and washed away together with the cleaning liquid.
[0069]
The control unit 98 controls the rotation of the brush support arm 92 so as to stop when the brush 95 moves to the peripheral portion of the wafer W.
Thereafter, the brush rotation mechanism 97 is controlled by the control unit 98, and the rotation of the brush 95 around the rotation axis P3 is stopped. Then, the lifting / lowering mechanism 96 is controlled by the control unit 98 so that the lower end (the end of the wire) of the brush 95 is higher than the upper end of the cup 80, and further, the rotation driving mechanism 94 is controlled, and the brush support arm is controlled. The brush 92 is rotated about the rotation axis P2, and the brush 95 is moved to the retracted position. Then, the brush 95 is detached from the brush support shaft 93 and accommodated in the standby pot, and another brush 95 is attached to the brush support shaft 93.
[0070]
Further, under the control of the control unit 98, the discharge of the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid nozzle 87 is stopped, and pure water is discharged from the pure water nozzle 86. Pure water also hits the center of the upper surface of the wafer W similarly to the cleaning liquid, spreads out along the upper surface of the wafer W, is shaken off from the peripheral edge of the wafer W to the side, and is collected in the cup 80. Is discharged from the outlet 80a and discarded.
Next, the rotation drive mechanism 94 is controlled by the control unit 98, and the brush 95 is moved to the opposing position. The brush 95 is made to face the center of the wafer W. Further, the control unit 98 controls the elevating mechanism 96 to lower the rotating shaft 91 so that the lower end (the tip of the wire) of the brush 95 contacts the surface of the wafer W held by the spin base 84. .
[0071]
In this state, the brush rotation mechanism 97 is controlled by the control section 98 to rotate the brush 95 around the rotation axis P3, and the rotation drive mechanism 94 is controlled so that the brush support arm 92 is rotated by the rotation axis. It is turned around the axis P2. Accordingly, the brush 95 is scanned in an arc from the center to the outer periphery of the surface of the rotating wafer W while rotating. As a result, the brush 95 is rubbed against the front surface of the upper surface of the wafer W, and the upper surface of the wafer W is cleaned. As a result, the cleaning liquid and foreign substances remaining on the surface of the wafer W are washed away together with the pure water.
[0072]
The rotation of the brush support arm 92 is controlled so as to stop when the brush 95 moves to the peripheral edge of the wafer W.
Thereafter, the brush rotation mechanism 97 is controlled by the control unit 98, the rotation of the brush 95 about the rotation axis P3 is stopped, the lifting mechanism 96 and the rotation drive mechanism 94 are controlled, and the brush 95 is moved to the retracted position. . Further, under the control of the control unit 98, the discharge of the pure water from the pure water nozzle 86 is stopped, and the motor 82 is controlled to stop the rotation of the wafer W held by the spin base 84. Then, the control unit 98 controls the elevating mechanism 85 to lower the cup 80 so that the spin base 84 is higher than the upper end of the cup 80.
[0073]
In this state, the loading / unloading robot 13 unloads the wafer W from the first processing chamber 12a and transfers it to the auxiliary transfer robot 5 (see FIG. 4). The wafer W is further transferred from the auxiliary transfer robot 5 to the indexer robot 6, and is stored in the cassette C by the indexer robot 6. Similarly, the wafer W is unloaded from the fourth processing chamber 12d by the loading / unloading robot 13, and is stored in the cassette C via the auxiliary transfer robot 5 and the indexer robot 6.
[0074]
Thus, the unnecessary removal of the unnecessary oxide film or polysilicon film formed on the surface of the wafer W and the one-side brush scrub cleaning are completed. The wafer W that has undergone the above processing is further carried into another processing apparatus and subjected to predetermined processing.
As described above, according to the substrate processing apparatus 75, the complete removal of the unnecessary film formed on the surface of the wafer W and the single-sided brush scrub cleaning, which were conventionally performed by separate apparatuses, are continuously performed by one apparatus. You can do it. As a result, it is possible to reduce capital investment for the device and increase productivity.
[0075]
In addition, since the complete removal of the unnecessary film formed on the surface of the wafer W and the one-side brush scrub cleaning are performed in separate processing chambers provided exclusively, high-quality processing can be realized respectively.
Next, with respect to a wafer W on which a film is formed by dry etching or a chemical vapor deposition method or a sputtering method, after removing foreign substances accompanying these processes, an oxide film formed on the wafer W is etched and cleaned. As an example, a second processing method for a wafer W using the substrate processing apparatus 4 of FIG. 4 will be described.
[0076]
In the double-sided processing units 20b and 20c, it is assumed that the chemical liquid supply source contains an etching liquid suitable for selectively dissolving the target oxide film, and the cleaning liquid supply source contains pure water. It is assumed that
First, a wafer W on which dry etching or film formation has been performed is accommodated in a cassette C by a separately prepared dry etching apparatus or a film forming apparatus by a chemical vapor deposition method or a sputtering method. Placed on These wafers W are in a state where foreign matter generated by film formation by dry etching, chemical vapor deposition, or sputtering is firmly attached to the surface.
[0077]
Next, one wafer W is taken out from the cassette C by the indexer robot 6 and transferred to the auxiliary transfer robot 5. The auxiliary transfer robot 5 carries the wafer W into the first processing chamber 12a. Similarly, one wafer W is taken out of the cassette C and is carried into the fourth processing chamber 12d. The wafer W is held on the spin base 84 with the surface for brush scrub cleaning facing upward.
In the first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d, brush scrub cleaning similar to that of the first processing method using the above-described substrate processing apparatus 75 is performed. As a result, the foreign matter firmly attached to the back surface of the wafer W is removed.
[0078]
Next, both sides of the wafer W are cleaned in the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c in order to remove metal contaminants attached to the wafer W. The wafer W is unloaded from the first processing chamber 12a by the loading / unloading robot 13, loaded into the second processing chamber 12b or the third processing chamber 12c, unloaded from the fourth processing chamber 12d, and loaded into the third processing chamber. 12c or the second processing chamber 12b.
[0079]
In the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c, double-sided processing similar to that of the first processing method using the above-described substrate processing apparatus 75 is performed. At this time, an etchant is supplied from a chemical solution supply source to the lower surface and the upper surface of the wafer W, and after the oxide film on the surface of the wafer W is accurately and uniformly etched, pure water is supplied to the lower surface and the upper surface of the wafer W. Thus, the etchant on the surface of the wafer W is removed.
Thereafter, the wafer W is unloaded from the second processing chamber 12b by the loading / unloading robot 13, and is stored in the cassette C via the auxiliary transfer robot 5 and the indexer robot 6 (see FIG. 4). Similarly, the wafer W is unloaded from the third processing chamber 12c by the loading / unloading robot 13, and is stored in the cassette C via the auxiliary transfer robot 5 and the indexer robot 6.
[0080]
As described above, according to the substrate processing apparatus 75, unlike the first processing method using the above-described substrate processing apparatus 75, the wafer W is first subjected to one-side processing (brush scrub cleaning), It is also possible to perform a double-sided treatment (removal of an oxide film).
Further, the brush scrub cleaning of the wafer W and the removal of the oxide film, which have conventionally been performed by separate apparatuses, can be continuously performed by one apparatus. As a result, it is possible to reduce capital investment for the device and increase productivity.
[0081]
Further, since the single-sided brush scrub cleaning and the removal of the oxide film of the wafer W are performed in separate processing chambers provided for exclusive use, respectively, high-quality processing can be realized. FIG. 6 is an illustrative plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Components corresponding to those of the substrate processing apparatus 1 of FIG. 1 and the substrate processing apparatus 75 of FIG. 4 are denoted by the same reference numerals in FIG. 4 as those in FIG. 1 and FIG. In the substrate processing apparatus 100, a single-sided chemical processing unit 20a is disposed in a first processing chamber 12a, and double-sided processing units 20b and 20c are disposed in second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c. A single-sided brush scrub unit 76d is provided in the fourth processing chamber 12d.
[0082]
As described above, unlike the substrate processing apparatuses 1 and 75 of the first and second embodiments, the first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d for performing single-side processing have different types of single-side processing. A unit for performing the operation is arranged.
According to the substrate processing apparatus 100, both-side processing (light etching, removal of an oxide film, and the like) of the wafer W can be performed in the second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c, and in the first processing chamber 12a. Single-sided chemical treatment of the wafer W such as bevel etching can be performed, and single-sided brush scrub cleaning of the wafer W can be performed in the fourth processing chamber 12d. Therefore, a processing method similar to the processing method of the wafer W using the substrate processing apparatuses 1 and 75 of the first and second embodiments can be performed.
[0083]
The same type of single-sided processing (bevel etching, brush scrub cleaning, etc.) can be performed on only one sheet at a time, but if single-sided processing is not rate-determining (if it can be performed in a shorter time than double-sided processing), productivity , The single-sided processing and the double-sided processing can be performed continuously.
Further, according to the substrate processing apparatus 100, different types of single-sided processing, that is, single-sided chemical solution processing and single-sided brush scrub cleaning can be continuously performed. Hereinafter, a method for performing such processing will be described. In the single-sided chemical processing unit 20d, the chemical supply source contains an etching liquid suitable for selectively removing metal contaminants.
[0084]
First, a wafer W on which dry etching or film formation has been performed is accommodated in a cassette C by a separately prepared dry etching apparatus or a film forming apparatus by a chemical vapor deposition method or a sputtering method. Placed on These wafers W are in a state where foreign matter generated by film formation by dry etching, chemical vapor deposition, or sputtering is firmly attached to the surface.
Next, one wafer W is taken out of the cassette C by the indexer robot 6 and transferred to the auxiliary transfer robot 5. The auxiliary transfer robot 5 transfers the wafer W to the loading / unloading robot 13, and the loading / unloading robot 13 loads the wafer W into the fourth processing chamber 12d. In the fourth processing chamber 12d, the same brush scrub cleaning as in the case of the first and second processing methods using the above-described substrate processing apparatus 75 is performed. As a result, the foreign matter firmly attached to the surface of the wafer W is removed.
[0085]
Subsequently, the wafer W is unloaded from the fourth processing chamber 12d and loaded into the first processing chamber 12a by the loading / unloading robot 13. In the first processing chamber 12a, an etchant is supplied to the lower surface of the wafer W held and rotated by the spin chuck 30 (for example, the surface opposite to the surface on which dry etching or film formation has been performed), and metal Contaminants are removed (see FIG. 2).
Although the description of the embodiment of the present invention is as described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be implemented in other forms. For example, as a unit for one-side processing involving physical cleaning, in addition to the single-side brush scrub units 76a and 76d, a two-fluid nozzle spray for spraying a droplet of a chemical solution onto the surface of the wafer W and a wafer W may be used. It may be for performing megasonic cleaning using ultrasonic vibration together with cleaning with a cleaning liquid.
[0086]
In the single-sided chemical processing units 20a and 20d and the double-sided processing units 20b and 20c, a plurality of types of chemicals may be switched (or simultaneously) and ejected toward the wafer W.
In each of the substrate processing apparatuses 1, 75, and 100 of the first to third embodiments, a processing chamber (first and fourth processing chambers 12a and 12d) for performing single-side processing and a processing for performing double-side processing are all provided. Two chambers (second and third processing chambers 12b and 12c) are provided. However, the present invention is not limited to such a case, and the number of processing chambers for performing one-sided processing and the number of processing chambers for performing double-sided processing can be arbitrarily set. Can be arbitrarily designed.
[0087]
Each of the substrate processing apparatuses 1, 75, and 100 does not need to be used so as to continuously perform one-sided processing and two-sided processing, and may be used to perform only one-sided processing or only two-sided processing. For example, the wafer W taken out of the cassette C is subjected to double-sided processing in the second or third processing chamber 12b, 12c, and is not loaded into the first or fourth processing chamber 12a, 12d. May be returned. Further, the wafer W taken out of the cassette C is subjected to one-sided processing in the first or fourth processing chamber 12a, 12d, and is not carried into the second or third processing chamber 12b, 12c. May be returned.
[0088]
Further, instead of the auxiliary transport robot 5, a transfer unit including a mounting table (transfer table) may be provided. That is, the wafer W is placed on the mounting table of the transfer unit by the indexer robot 6 (the loading / unloading robot 13), and the wafer W on the mounting table is received by the loading / unloading robot 13 (the indexer robot 6). May be. Further, the auxiliary transfer robot 5 may be omitted, and the wafer W may be directly transferred between the indexer robot 6 and the loading / unloading robot 13.
[0089]
In addition, various changes can be made within the scope of the matters described in the claims.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an illustrative plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an illustrative sectional view showing the configuration of a single-sided chemical treatment unit.
FIG. 3 is an illustrative sectional view showing a configuration of a double-sided processing unit.
FIG. 4 is an illustrative plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is an illustrative sectional view showing the configuration of a single-sided brush scrub unit.
FIG. 6 is an illustrative plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
1,75,100 Substrate processing equipment
5 Auxiliary transfer robot
6 Indexer robot
13 Loading / Unloading Robot
12a to 12d First to fourth processing chambers
19 Loading station
20a, 20d Single-sided chemical treatment unit
25 Rotation drive mechanism
30, 45, 81 Spin chuck
35 lower nozzle
41, 70, 98 control unit
76a, 76d Single-sided brush scrub unit
84 Spin Base
86 Pure water nozzle
87 Cleaning liquid nozzle
95 brush
C cassette
W wafer

Claims (4)

A single-sided processing chamber for supplying a processing liquid to one surface of the substrate and performing a single-sided processing of processing the substrate one by one;
A double-sided processing chamber for supplying a processing liquid to both sides of the substrate and performing a double-sided processing for processing the substrate one by one,
A substrate processing apparatus, comprising: a loading / unloading robot for loading / unloading a substrate into / from the single-side processing chamber and the double-side processing chamber. The one-side processing chamber is
A substrate holding part for holding the substrate almost horizontally,
A rotation drive mechanism for rotating the substrate held by the substrate holding unit in a substantially horizontal plane,
The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a single-sided liquid processing unit having a processing liquid nozzle for discharging a processing liquid toward a lower surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit. The one-side processing chamber is
A substrate holding unit for holding the substrate,
A processing liquid nozzle for discharging a processing liquid to one surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit,
3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a brush scrub unit having a brush capable of scrubbing the one surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a loading station for loading and unloading the substrate into and from the substrate processing apparatus, and a transport robot for transporting and transferring the substrate between the loading station and the loading / unloading robot. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of items 3 to 3.

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