JP2005243814A - Substrate processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate processing apparatus where two types of liquids are securely prevented from being simultaneously mixed in a liquid storage tank in a structure where two types of liquids can be supplied to the liquid storage tank. <P>SOLUTION: A manual switching bulb 13 is connected to processing liquid piping 11 for supplying sulfuric acid as a processing liquid to a processing liquid tank 3, and cleaning liquid piping 12 for supplying pure water as a cleaning liquid to the processing liquid tank 3. The manual switching bulb 13 permits supply of the processing liquid from processing liquid piping 11 to the processing liquid tank 3 and inhibits supply of the cleaning liquid from cleaning liquid piping 12 to the processing liquid tank 3, while a lever 19 which is manually operated is lodged to one side. The bulb permits supply of the cleaning liquid from cleaning liquid piping 12 to the processing liquid tank 3, and inhibits supply of the processing liquid from processing liquid piping 11 to the processing liquid tank 3 while the lever 19 is lodged to the other side. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate. Substrates to be processed include, for example, semiconductor wafers, glass substrates for liquid crystal display devices, glass substrates for plasma displays, optical disk substrates, magnetic disk substrates, magneto-optical disk substrates, photomask substrates, and the like. .

In the manufacturing process of a semiconductor device or a liquid crystal display device, a substrate processing apparatus is used for supplying a processing liquid to a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display panel, and applying the processing with the processing liquid to the surface of the substrate. .
In a single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus that processes substrates one by one, a processing liquid stored in a processing liquid tank is sent to a nozzle, and the processing liquid is supplied from the nozzle to a substrate to be processed (for example, Patent Document 1). Further, in a batch type substrate processing apparatus that processes a plurality of substrates at once, a processing liquid stored in a processing liquid tank is supplied to the processing tank, and a plurality of processing liquids are stored in the processing liquid stored in the processing tank. By immersing a single substrate at a time, supply of the processing liquid to the substrate is achieved.

The processing liquid tank needs to be periodically cleaned. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, in the processing liquid tank 91, in addition to the processing liquid pipe 92 for supplying the processing liquid to the processing liquid tank 91, a cleaning liquid pipe 93 for supplying the cleaning liquid to the processing liquid tank 91. Is connected. Air valves 94 and 95 are interposed in the middle of the processing liquid pipe 92 and the cleaning liquid pipe 93, respectively. When the processing liquid tank 91 is cleaned, the processing liquid in the processing liquid tank 91 is discharged from the drain pipe 96. After that, the air valve 95 interposed in the cleaning liquid pipe 93 is opened, and the cleaning liquid is supplied from the cleaning liquid pipe 93 to the processing liquid tank 91. While the processing liquid tank 91 is being cleaned, the air valve 94 interposed in the processing liquid pipe 92 is always closed. On the other hand, during operation of the apparatus for substrate processing, the air valve 95 interposed in the cleaning liquid pipe 93 is always closed, and processing is performed based on the amount of processing liquid stored in the processing liquid tank 91. Opening and closing of the air valve 94 interposed in the liquid pipe 92 is controlled.
JP-A 61-1229829

  Opening and closing of the air valves 94 and 95 is controlled by a control unit including a microcomputer. Therefore, if an abnormality occurs in the control unit and the air valve 94 provided in the cleaning liquid pipe 93 is opened while the processing liquid is supplied to the processing liquid tank 91, the processing liquid tank 91 is opened. The processing liquid and the cleaning liquid are mixed at the same time. In addition, when an abnormality occurs in the control unit during the cleaning of the processing liquid tank 91 and the air valve 95 interposed in the processing liquid pipe 92 is opened, the processing liquid tank 91 is processed. Liquid and cleaning liquid are mixed at the same time. Such simultaneous mixing of the treatment liquid and the cleaning liquid also occurs due to a failure of the air valves 94 and 95.

For example, when sulfuric acid and pure water are used as the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid, respectively, when the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid are simultaneously mixed into the processing liquid tank 91, the pure heat as the cleaning liquid is generated by the intense heat generation of sulfuric acid as the processing liquid. As a result, water may suddenly boil, and as a result, the atmospheric pressure in the processing liquid tank 91 may rapidly increase, and the processing liquid tank 91 may be damaged.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of reliably preventing the two kinds of liquids from being simultaneously mixed into the liquid storage tank in a configuration capable of supplying two kinds of liquids to the liquid storage tank. It is.

  The invention described in claim 1 for achieving the above object includes a liquid storage tank (3), a first liquid pipe (11) for supplying a first liquid to the liquid storage tank, and the liquid storage. The second liquid pipe (12) for supplying a second liquid of a type different from the first liquid to the tank and manually switched, and the flow of the first liquid in the first liquid pipe and the second liquid A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a manual switching valve (13) that selectively permits the second liquid to flow in the liquid piping.

In addition, the alphanumeric characters in parentheses represent corresponding components in the embodiments described later. The same applies hereinafter.
According to this invention, the circulation of the first liquid in the first liquid pipe and the circulation of the second liquid in the second liquid pipe are alternatively permitted by the manual switching valve. Therefore, when the first liquid is supplied from the first liquid pipe to the liquid storage tank, the second liquid is not supplied from the second liquid pipe to the liquid storage tank. In addition, when the second liquid is supplied from the second liquid pipe to the liquid storage tank, the first liquid is not supplied from the first liquid pipe to the liquid storage tank.

In addition, since the manual switching valve is operated manually, even if an abnormality occurs in the control unit for controlling each part of the substrate processing apparatus, undesired switching of the manual switching valve is performed. Absent.
Accordingly, it is possible to reliably prevent the first and second liquids from being mixed into the liquid storage tank at the same time.

  The invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that the first liquid pipe is connected to the manual switching valve, and the first liquid upstream pipe (111) through which the first liquid flows toward the manual switching valve; A first liquid downstream pipe (112) connected to the manual switching valve and the liquid storage tank and through which a first liquid permitted to flow by the manual switching valve flows; The second liquid upstream pipe (121), which is a pipe of a different system from the first liquid pipe, is connected to the manual switching valve, and the second liquid flows toward the manual switching valve; A second liquid downstream pipe (122) connected to the manual switching valve and the liquid storage tank and through which the second liquid allowed to flow by the manual switching valve flows is provided. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1.

According to this invention, the first liquid pipe and the second liquid pipe are provided in separate systems, and the first liquid upstream pipe, the first liquid downstream pipe, the second liquid upstream pipe, and the second liquid downstream. Since the side pipes are independent pipes, it is possible to prevent not only the liquid storage tank but also the first and second liquids from being mixed into these pipes.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the first liquid is sulfuric acid for processing the substrate (S), and the second liquid is pure water for cleaning the liquid storage tank. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is characterized in that

  Since the first and second liquids are not mixed in the liquid storage tank at the same time, when the first liquid is sulfuric acid and the second liquid is pure water, by mixing sulfuric acid and water Heat generation can be prevented, and damage due to bumping of water can be prevented from being given to the liquid storage tank.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. This substrate processing apparatus is a single-wafer type apparatus for supplying a processing liquid from a nozzle 1 to a substrate S such as a semiconductor wafer and processing the substrate S with the processing liquid.
A processing liquid is supplied to the nozzle 1 from a processing liquid supply pipe 2. The processing liquid supply pipe 2 extends from a processing liquid tank 3 for storing the processing liquid, and in the middle of the processing liquid tank 3, a temperature adjusting heater 4, a pump 5, and a damper 6 are sequentially arranged from the processing liquid tank 3 side. A filter 7 and a discharge valve 8 are interposed. The temperature adjusting heater 4 is for adjusting the temperature of the processing liquid pumped from the processing liquid tank 3 by the pump 5 to a constant temperature suitable for processing. The damper 6 is for reducing the pulsation of the processing liquid flowing through the processing liquid supply pipe 2. The filter 7 is for removing foreign substances in the processing liquid flowing through the processing liquid supply pipe 2.

One end of a processing liquid return pipe 9 is branched and connected to the processing liquid supply pipe 2 at a branch point J between the filter 7 and the discharge valve 8. The other end of the processing liquid return pipe 9 is connected to the processing liquid tank 3, and a feedback valve 10 is interposed in the middle of the processing liquid feedback pipe 9.
During the operation of the apparatus, the temperature adjusting heater 4 and the pump 5 are always driven, and while the processing liquid is not supplied to the substrate S, the discharge valve 8 is closed and the feedback valve 10 is opened, thereby processing liquid tank. The processing liquid drawn out from 3 is returned to the processing liquid tank 3 from the branch point J in the middle of the processing liquid supply pipe 2 through the processing liquid return pipe 9. That is, while the processing liquid is not supplied to the substrate S, the processing liquid circulates in the processing liquid circulation path including the processing liquid tank 3, the processing liquid supply pipe 2, and the processing liquid return pipe 9. When the processing liquid is supplied to the substrate S, the feedback valve 10 is closed and the discharge valve 8 is opened, so that the processing liquid pumped from the processing liquid tank 3 passes through the processing liquid supply pipe 2 and the nozzle 1. To be supplied. In this way, by circulating the processing liquid while the processing liquid is not supplied to the substrate S, the processing liquid whose temperature is adjusted to a constant temperature can be stored in the processing liquid tank 3, and the discharge valve 8. After the opening, the processing liquid whose temperature is adjusted to the constant temperature can be supplied to the nozzle 1 immediately.

The processing liquid tank 3 is provided in a processing liquid cabinet installed away from the processing chamber in which the nozzle 1 is disposed. For example, in a factory where the substrate processing apparatus is installed, the processing chamber is installed on the floor and the processing liquid cabinet is installed on the floor.
The treatment liquid tank 3 is provided with a treatment liquid pipe 11 for supplying sulfuric acid as a treatment liquid to the treatment liquid tank 3 and a separate system from the treatment liquid pipe 11, and pure water as a cleaning liquid is supplied to the treatment liquid tank. 3 is connected to a cleaning liquid pipe 12 for supplying to the liquid.

A manual switching valve 13 is interposed in the middle of the processing liquid pipe 11 and the cleaning liquid pipe 12 so as to straddle the processing liquid pipe 11 and the cleaning liquid pipe 12.
As a result, the processing liquid pipe 11 is connected to the manual switching valve 13, and is connected to the upstream pipe 111 through which the processing liquid flows toward the manual switching valve 13, the manual switching valve 13, and the processing liquid tank 3. Further, it is divided into a downstream pipe 112 through which the processing liquid flows from the manual switching valve 13 toward the processing liquid tank 3. A processing liquid supply valve 14 constituted by an air valve is interposed in the middle of the upstream side pipe 111 of the processing liquid pipe 11.

  The cleaning liquid pipe 12 is connected to the manual switching valve 13, and is connected to the upstream piping 121 through which the cleaning liquid flows toward the manual switching valve 13, the manual switching valve 13, and the processing liquid tank 3. It is divided into a downstream pipe 122 through which the cleaning liquid flows from the switching valve 13 toward the processing liquid tank 3. A cleaning liquid supply valve 15 composed of an air valve is interposed in the middle of the upstream pipe 121 of the cleaning liquid pipe 12.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the manual switching valve 13 has a processing liquid flow path 17 for circulating the processing liquid and a cleaning liquid flow path 18 for flowing the cleaning liquid inside the main body 16. doing. The upstream pipe 111 of the processing liquid pipe 11 is connected to one end of the processing liquid flow path 17, and the downstream pipe 112 of the processing liquid pipe 11 is connected to the other end, so that the upstream pipe of the processing liquid pipe 11 is connected. 111 and the downstream pipe 112 communicate with each other through the processing liquid flow passage 17. Further, the upstream pipe 121 of the cleaning liquid pipe 12 is connected to one end of the cleaning liquid flow path 18 and the downstream pipe 122 of the cleaning liquid pipe 12 is connected to the other end, so that the upstream pipe 121 and the downstream side of the cleaning liquid pipe 12 are connected. The pipe 122 communicates with the cleaning liquid passage 18.

A lever 19 is attached to the main body 16 of the manual switching valve 13 so as to be rotatable within an angle range of approximately 180 degrees. By manually operating the lever 19, it is possible to selectively switch between permitting the flow of the processing liquid in the processing liquid flow path 17 and permitting the flow of the cleaning liquid in the cleaning liquid flow path 18. Yes.
That is, as shown in FIG. 2, when the lever 19 is tilted to one side (upstream in the flow direction of the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid), the processing liquid flow path 17 is opened and the cleaning liquid flow path 18 is closed. Thereby, only the flow of the processing liquid in the processing liquid flow passage 17 is permitted. When the processing liquid supply valve 14 is opened in this state, the processing liquid flowing through the upstream side pipe 111 of the processing liquid piping 11 is transferred to the processing liquid flow path. 17, flows into the downstream pipe 112 of the processing liquid pipe 11, and further supplied to the processing liquid tank 3 through the downstream pipe 112. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, when the lever 19 is laid down on the other side (downstream in the flow direction of the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid), the cleaning liquid flow path 18 is opened and the processing liquid flow path 17 is closed. As a result, only the flow of the cleaning liquid in the cleaning liquid flow passage 18 is permitted. When the cleaning liquid supply valve 15 is opened in this state, the cleaning liquid flowing through the upstream pipe 121 of the cleaning liquid pipe 12 passes through the cleaning liquid flow path 18. 12 is supplied to the processing liquid tank 3 through the downstream piping 122.

Further, one end of a drainage pipe 20 for draining the processing liquid or the cleaning liquid in the processing liquid tank 3 is connected to the processing liquid tank 3. The other end of the drainage pipe 20 is connected to a drainage line in a factory where the substrate processing apparatus is installed. A drainage valve 21 for opening and closing the drainage pipe 20 is interposed in the middle of the drainage pipe 20.
With the above configuration, the processing liquid can be supplied from the processing liquid pipe 11 to the processing liquid tank 3 by opening the processing liquid supply valve 14 with the manual switching valve 13 lying on one side. At this time, if the drain valve 21 is closed, the processing liquid from the processing liquid pipe 11 can be stored in the processing liquid tank 3. At this time, since the cleaning liquid flow passage 18 of the manual switching valve 13 is closed, an abnormality occurs in the control unit for controlling the opening and closing of the processing liquid supply valve 14 and the cleaning liquid supply valve 15, or the cleaning liquid supply valve 15 is Even if a failure occurs, the cleaning liquid is not supplied from the cleaning liquid pipe 12 to the processing liquid tank 3, and the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid are not mixed into the processing liquid tank 3 at the same time.

  Further, by opening the cleaning liquid supply valve 15 with the manual switching valve 13 lying on the other side, the cleaning liquid can be supplied from the cleaning liquid pipe 12 to the processing liquid tank 3, and the processing liquid tank 3 can be supplied by this cleaning liquid. Can be washed. At this time, since the processing liquid flow passage 17 of the manual switching valve 13 is closed, an abnormality occurs in the control unit for controlling the opening and closing of the processing liquid supply valve 14 and the cleaning liquid supply valve 15, or the processing liquid supply valve Even if 14 fails, the processing liquid is not supplied from the processing liquid pipe 11 to the processing liquid tank 3, and the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid are not mixed into the processing liquid tank 3 at the same time.

In addition, the manual switching valve 13 is configured to manually operate the lever 19, and the manual switching valve 13 is not undesirably switched even when an abnormality occurs in the control unit.
Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid from being mixed into the processing liquid tank 3 at the same time.

Further, the processing liquid pipe 11 and the cleaning liquid pipe 12 are provided in different systems, and the upstream side pipe 111, the downstream side pipe 112, the upstream side pipe 121, and the downstream side pipe 122 are constituted by mutually independent pipes. . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid from being mixed not only in the processing liquid tank 3 but also in the pipes 111, 112, 121 and 122.
Further, since there is no mixing of the processing liquid and the cleaning liquid, as in this embodiment, when the processing liquid is sulfuric acid and the cleaning liquid is pure water, heat generation due to mixing of sulfuric acid and water can be prevented, It is possible to prevent the liquid storage tank from being damaged by bumping.

  If a level sensor is provided in the processing liquid tank 3 and the liquid level of the processing liquid stored in the processing liquid tank 3 is not less than the lower limit level detected by the level sensor, the cleaning liquid supply valve 15 is used. May not be opened. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the cleaning liquid from being supplied to the processing liquid tank 3 in a state where a large amount of the processing liquid is stored in the processing liquid tank 3. Heat generation due to mixing of pure water as a cleaning liquid into sulfuric acid as a processing liquid can be prevented.

As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention can also be implemented with another form. For example, in the above embodiment, the single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus is taken as an example. However, the present invention can also be applied to a batch type substrate processing apparatus that processes a plurality of substrates at once.
In a batch type substrate processing apparatus, an acidic chemical solution is supplied to a treatment tank and a plurality of substrates are immersed in the chemical solution at a time. There is one that discharges, and then supplies an alkaline chemical to the treatment tank and performs treatment with the alkaline chemical. In such an apparatus, a manual switching valve 13 is interposed between a pipe for supplying an acidic chemical to the treatment tank and a pipe for supplying an alkaline chemical to the treatment tank. It is possible to reliably prevent the chemical liquid and the alkaline chemical liquid from being mixed into the treatment tank at the same time, and to eliminate the possibility that the adverse effect due to the reaction between the acid chemical liquid and the alkaline chemical liquid is exerted on the treatment tank.

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

1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the state in which distribution | circulation of the process liquid was permitted by the manual switching valve. It is a figure which shows the state in which distribution | circulation of the washing | cleaning liquid was permitted by the manual switching valve. It is an illustration figure which shows the supply piping structure of the process liquid and the washing | cleaning liquid to the process liquid tank in the conventional substrate processing apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

3 Processing liquid tank 11 Processing liquid piping 12 Cleaning liquid piping 13 Manual switching valve 111 Upstream piping 112 Downstream piping 121 Upstream piping 122 Downstream piping S Substrate

Claims (3)

A liquid reservoir,
A first liquid pipe for supplying the first liquid to the liquid storage tank;
A second liquid pipe for supplying a second liquid of a different type from the first liquid to the liquid storage tank;
And a manual switching valve that is switched manually and selectively permits the flow of the first liquid in the first liquid pipe and the flow of the second liquid in the second liquid pipe. Processing equipment. The first liquid pipe is connected to the manual switching valve, and includes a first liquid upstream pipe through which the first liquid flows toward the manual switching valve, the manual switching valve, and the liquid storage tank. A first liquid downstream pipe through which the first liquid that is connected and flows through the manual switching valve is allowed to flow;
The second liquid pipe is a pipe of a different system from the first liquid pipe, and is connected to the manual switching valve, and a second liquid upstream pipe through which the second liquid flows toward the manual switching valve. And a second liquid downstream pipe connected to the manual switching valve and the liquid storage tank and through which a second liquid allowed to flow by the manual switching valve flows. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1. The first liquid is sulfuric acid for processing a substrate;
The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second liquid is pure water for cleaning the liquid storage tank.

Images