JP2006049905A - Liquid-supplying device, and semiconductor manufacturing device equipped therewith - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid-supplying structure which can simultaneously realize three purposes of supplying a liquid in a state of a uniform liquid film, reducing the amount of the liquid used, and to suppress the contamination of the liquid. <P>SOLUTION: A line nozzle 201 has a liquid flowing-in ports and a liquid-flowing space 61 for temporarily retaining liquid flowing-in from the liquid-flowing ports, and a discharging port 15 for discharging the liquid in the liquid-flowing space 61 to the external space in a liquid film-like state, wherein opening width of the discharge port 15 is 300 mm or more, and a gap in a direction of perpendicularly intersecting the opening width direction is 0.5 mm or smaller, and further, has a liquid-feeding device for feeding the liquid into the liquid flowing-in ports, with a flowing-in pressure set at 0.2 MPa or higher. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid supply structure for supplying a liquid to an object, a liquid supply apparatus, and a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus including the same. More specifically, for example, various liquids used in the manufacturing process of flat display panels such as liquid crystal display elements and PDPs (Plasma Display Panel), and flat plates such as semiconductor substrates, solar cell substrates, and magnetic substrates. The present invention relates to a liquid supply structure, a liquid supply apparatus, and a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus including the same.

  In a liquid crystal display device manufacturing process, for example, a cleaning process or a resist stripping process, a liquid such as a cleaning liquid or a resist stripping liquid is formed into a uniform liquid film in order to uniformly process an object (such as a substrate). The liquid supply device to be applied is used. Hereinafter, as such a liquid supply device, a cleaning device used in a cleaning process of a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display element will be described as an example.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the cleaning device includes a cleaning liquid supply tank (not shown); a line nozzle 110; two cleaning liquid supply paths 120 and 120 that connect the cleaning liquid supply tank and the line nozzle 110. Yes. The cleaning liquid supply passages 120 and 120 are respectively attached to hollow attachment portions 112 and 112 provided in the line nozzle 110, and the cleaning liquid in the cleaning liquid supply tank is in a pressurized state with the cleaning liquid supply passages 120 and 120, In addition, the liquid is supplied into the line nozzle 110 through the internal space of the attachment portions 112 and 112 and discharged to the outside from a discharge port (see FIG. 6) 115 communicating with the internal space of the attachment portions 112 and 112.

  The discharge port 115 is formed to have a width larger than the width of the glass substrate 130 as an object to be cleaned, and the cleaning liquid discharged from the discharge port 115 is disposed below as a curtain-like cleaning liquid film 140. A line (linear shape) is supplied onto the glass substrate 130. When supplying the cleaning liquid, the glass substrate 130 is moved relative to the line nozzle 110, whereby the cleaning liquid is supplied to the entire upper surface of the glass substrate 130 in a planar and uniform manner, and a liquid film 141 of the cleaning liquid is formed on the glass substrate 130. Generated. In order to move the glass substrate 130 relative to the line nozzle 110, 1) the glass substrate 130 is moved in the direction of the arrow (traveling direction: see FIG. 5) using a conveying means, and / or 2) the line nozzle. 110 may be moved in the direction opposite to the arrow.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the line nozzle 110 includes a flat plate member 113 having a hollow mounting portion 112/112 provided on one surface thereof, and a rectangular parallelepiped concave portion 115a provided on one surface 114a thereof. This is a general line nozzle composed of the support member 114.

  The flat plate member 113 is formed with two holes so as to be continuous with the hollow portions of the attachment portions 112 and 112, respectively, and the hole portion is on the back side of the surface on which the attachment portions 112 and 112 are provided. Has penetrated. Moreover, although not shown in figure, the U-shaped convex part is provided in this back surface side. On the other hand, a U-shaped concave portion 116 is provided on one surface 114a of the support member 114 so as to surround three sides of the concave portion 115a, and the convex portion and the concave portion 116 are sized to fit each other. Designed to.

  The flat plate member 113 and the support member 114 are assembled so that the convex portion and the concave portion 116 are fitted together, and are fixed by screwing or the like, and a gap (discharge port 115) that discharges the cleaning liquid as a curtain-like film. ) Is provided. In the discharge port 115, the opening width L1 corresponds to the width of the cleaning liquid film 140 to be discharged, and the gap W1 corresponds to the thickness thereof.

  When the cleaning liquid is discharged out of the line nozzle 110 from outside the discharge port 115 (that is, leaked) when the cleaning liquid is discharged, the packing is placed in the recess 116 for connecting the flat plate member 113 and the support member 114. 117 can be arranged to further enhance the sealing performance between the two members. The line nozzle 110 may be provided with at least one attachment portion 112.

  Further, even if the spray nozzle 150 shown in FIG. 8 is employed instead of the line nozzle 110 described above, it is possible to configure a liquid supply apparatus that applies the cleaning liquid to the object as a uniform liquid film. The liquid supply device discharges the pressurized cleaning liquid supplied through the cleaning liquid supply path 120 as a fan-shaped cleaning liquid film 160 from the discharge port 155 having a narrow diameter. As a result, the cleaning liquid is supplied linearly or planarly onto the glass substrate 130 disposed below the spray nozzle 150.

  When supplying the cleaning liquid, the glass substrate 130 is moved relative to the spray nozzle 150 so that the cleaning liquid is supplied in a planar and uniform manner to the entire upper surface of the glass substrate 130. In addition, in order to move the glass substrate 130 relative to the spray nozzle 150, 1) the glass substrate 130 is moved in the direction of the arrow (traveling direction: see FIG. 8) by using the conveying means, and / or 2) the spray nozzle. What is necessary is just to move 150 to the direction opposite to this arrow.

Patent Document 1 discloses a developing device and a developing method that use a line nozzle similar to the line nozzle 110. The nozzle described in this publication is used to discharge a developer on a substrate in a strip shape.
JP 10-189419 A (published July 21, 1998)

  In the manufacturing process of liquid crystal display elements and semiconductor substrates, it is indispensable to supply processing liquid to panel substrates and flat plates (objects) such as wafers, so the amount of processing liquid used is reduced. This is an effective means for reducing costs.

  For example, in the above-described line nozzle 110 and spray nozzle 150, either by 1) reducing the opening area of the respective discharge ports 115 and 155 or 2) lowering the supply pressure of the cleaning liquid (processing liquid), It is possible to reduce the amount of cleaning liquid discharged.

  However, in the spray nozzle 150, if the amount of the cleaning liquid used is reduced by any one of the methods 1) and 2), it becomes difficult to ensure the uniformity of the cleaning liquid supply amount per unit area in a minute time.

  On the other hand, when the amount of use is reduced by using the line nozzle 110 and lowering the supply pressure of the cleaning liquid, the flow rate of the cleaning liquid during discharge decreases. As a result, it becomes difficult to maintain the cleaning liquid film 140, for example, a part or the whole of the cleaning liquid film 140 is broken due to the surface tension of the discharged liquid surface. If the cleaning liquid film 140 is not maintained, uniform supply of the cleaning liquid to the flat plate becomes difficult as in the case of the spray nozzle 150.

  Therefore, in the line nozzle 110, a method of reducing the opening area of the discharge port 115 by reducing the gap W1 is generally selected, but in this case, unevenness in the liquid discharge state occurs due to the open state of the gap W1. There is. When there is a region where the amount of discharged liquid is insufficient due to uneven discharge, it is difficult to maintain the film due to the surface tension of the discharged liquid surface. In the state where the discharge liquid amount (flow rate) is reduced by reducing the gap W1 in this way, when the above-mentioned non-uniform liquid supply occurs, the surface of the flat plate to be processed is not processed. Will occur.

  In this method, the flow rate per unit area of the curtain-like cleaning liquid film 140 is reduced (that is, the cleaning liquid film 140 becomes thin). For this reason, there arises a problem that there is a high possibility that the cleaning liquid film 140 is broken due to disturbance such as water droplets (droplets) adhering to the surface of the line nozzle 110.

  Such water droplets are formed by leaching the cleaning liquid leaked between the joint surfaces (joint portions) of the flat plate member 113 and the support member 114 to the surface of the line nozzle 110. Since the amount of the cleaning liquid leaking between the joint surfaces increases if the opening area of the discharge port 115 is reduced without lowering the supply pressure of the cleaning liquid, it becomes a particularly serious problem.

  As a method for solving the above problem, for example, it is considered to provide packing 117 (see FIG. 7) or seal between the joint surfaces with a sealing material to further improve the adhesion and liquid tightness of both members. It is done. However, if the packing 117 or the sealing material is used, the cleaning liquid leaked into the gap (for example, the recess 116) in which these are provided is retained (accumulated) for a long time without being discharged to the outside, and the cleaning liquid, the packing 117, In addition, the sealing material may change in quality.

  If the cleaning liquid changes in quality, the changed cleaning liquid may be discharged from the discharge port 115 onto an object such as a flat plate, which may contaminate the object. In addition, if the packing 117 or the sealing material changes in quality and wears, a gap remains between the flat plate member 113 and the support member 114, so that the amount of leaked liquid is increased compared to a configuration in which the packing 117 or the like is not provided. Invite you. In addition, the possibility that the uniformity of the cleaning liquid film 140 is destroyed by the leaked cleaning liquid increases.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional problems, and its purpose is 1) to supply a liquid as a uniform liquid film to an object, and 2) to use a liquid such as a cleaning liquid. It is an object to provide a liquid supply structure, a liquid supply apparatus, and a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus including the liquid supply structure that can simultaneously realize three points of reducing and 3) suppressing contamination of a cleaning liquid.

  In order to solve the above problems, a liquid supply device according to the present invention includes a liquid inlet, a space part for temporarily retaining the liquid flowing in from the liquid inlet, and the liquid in the space part to the external space. In a liquid supply apparatus including a liquid discharge port for discharging as a liquid film, the liquid discharge port has an opening width of 300 mm or more, and a gap perpendicular to the opening width direction is 0.5 mm or less. And a liquid feeding means for feeding the liquid to the liquid inlet with an inflow pressure of 0.2 MPa or more.

  According to the above configuration, the liquid that has flowed in via the liquid inflow port is temporarily stopped in the space portion because the gap of the liquid discharge port is small with respect to the space portion. The liquid that has flowed into the space is boosted by being retained in the space, and is accelerated by decreasing the cross-sectional area when passing through the gap, so that kinetic energy is applied. Thereby, the liquid can be discharged from the liquid discharge port as a curtain-like thin liquid film.

  At this time, in the liquid supply device, the opening width of the liquid discharge port is 300 mm or more, the gap in the direction perpendicular to the opening width direction is 0.5 mm or less, and the liquid inflow pressure from the liquid inlet is supplied by the liquid feeding means. Since it is set to 0.2 MPa or more, it is possible to make it difficult to break the liquid film of the discharged liquid while suppressing the discharge amount of the liquid from the liquid discharge port, and a flat plate having a width to be processed of 300 mm or more. (Processing target) can be used.

  In the above liquid supply device, both opposing surfaces in the liquid discharge port that form the gap are flat surfaces, and a position between the two flat surfaces that is spaced 5 mm or more inward from the tip of the liquid discharge port Further, a spacer having a cylindrical outer shape may be provided.

  According to said structure, the nonuniformity of the gap accompanying the enlargement of a liquid supply apparatus can be prevented with the said spacer. That is, when a spacer is provided in order to make the gap uniform in the opening width direction of the liquid discharge port, a turbulent liquid flow is less likely to occur if the spacer has a cylindrical shape. Even when turbulent flow occurs due to the presence of the spacer, if the spacer is provided at a position 5 mm or more inward from the tip of the liquid discharge port, the spacer can be extended to the tip of the liquid discharge port. The turbulent flow can be rectified between.

  As a result, particularly in a large liquid supply apparatus, it is possible to prevent the liquid film from being broken due to the variation in the flow rate of the liquid to be discharged, which occurs because the gap of the liquid discharge port becomes non-uniform.

  In the liquid supply apparatus, one liquid inlet is provided every 400 mm or less in the opening width direction in a state where the liquid inlets are arranged at equal intervals in parallel to the opening width direction of the liquid discharge port. It is good.

  According to said structure, a pressure gradient arises in the liquid inflow port of a space part by piping resistance, and the situation where a pressure difference arises in a space part by this pressure gradient can be suppressed. Therefore, a uniform and stable supply pressure of the liquid can be generated in the space.

  As a result, the difference in the distance that the liquid film can reach in a state where the curtain-like thin liquid film is maintained can be eliminated in each part of the liquid discharge port in the opening width direction, and a stable curtain-like liquid film can be supplied. It becomes possible.

  A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention includes any one of the above liquid supply apparatuses.

  According to the above configuration, in the semiconductor device, the liquid supply device can be used as, for example, a substrate cleaning device. In this case, the substrate can be appropriately cleaned with a good liquid film of the cleaning liquid.

  As described above, the liquid supply apparatus according to the present invention has a liquid inlet, a space for temporarily retaining the liquid flowing in from the liquid inlet, and the liquid in the space as a liquid film with respect to the external space. In a liquid supply apparatus including a liquid discharge port for discharging, an opening width of the liquid discharge port is 300 mm or more, a gap perpendicular to the opening width direction is 0.5 mm or less, and The liquid inlet is provided with a liquid feeding means for feeding the liquid at an inflow pressure of 0.2 MPa or more.

  Therefore, while suppressing the discharge amount of the liquid from the liquid discharge port, it is possible to discharge the liquid from the liquid discharge port as a curtain-like thin liquid film and to make the liquid film difficult to break. Play.

[Embodiment 1]
An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited thereby.

  The liquid supply structure according to this embodiment is applied to, for example, a single wafer cleaning device (liquid supply device) used in a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display element or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning apparatus includes a cleaning liquid supply tank (not shown); a line nozzle 11 as a liquid supply structure; two cleaning liquid supply paths (cleaning liquid transport paths) that connect the cleaning liquid supply tank and the line nozzle 11. 20 and 20; The cleaning liquid supply passages 20 and 20 are respectively attached to hollow mounting portions 12 and 12 provided in the line nozzle 11, and the cleaning liquid (liquid) in the cleaning liquid supply tank is in a pressurized state with the cleaning liquid supply passage 20. 20 is supplied into the line nozzle 11 through the inner space of the mounting portions 12 and 12, and is discharged to the outside from a discharge port (see FIG. 1) 15 communicating with the inner space of the mounting portions 12 and 12.

  The discharge port 15 is formed to have a width larger than the width of the glass substrate 30 as an object to be cleaned, and the cleaning liquid discharged from the discharge port 15 is opposed to the discharge port 15 as a curtain-like cleaning liquid film 40. Then, a line (line shape) is supplied onto the glass substrate 30 disposed below. In the present embodiment, since the discharge port 15 is formed in a slit shape with an opening width of 400 mm and a gap of 80 μm, the cleaning liquid film 40 is discharged with a width of 400 mm.

  When supplying the cleaning liquid, the glass substrate 30 is moved relative to the line nozzle 11 so that the liquid film 41 of the cleaning liquid is uniformly generated on the entire upper surface of the glass substrate 30. In order to move the glass substrate 30 relative to the line nozzle 11, 1) the glass substrate 30 is moved in the direction of the arrow (see FIG. 2) using the transport means 51 including a plurality of transport rollers 50, and / or 2) The line nozzle 11 may be moved in the direction opposite to the arrow.

  Further, the distance between the upper surface of the glass substrate 30 to which the cleaning liquid is supplied and the discharge port 15 is not particularly limited as long as the uniformity of the cleaning liquid film 40 can be maintained. In the present embodiment, the distance is set to 10 mm, but can be set as appropriate according to, for example, the supply speed of the cleaning liquid to the upper surface of the glass substrate 30, the size of the discharge port 15, or the viscosity of the cleaning liquid. .

  Hereinafter, the line nozzle 11 will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. The line nozzle 11 is a liquid flow space (space portion) having liquid inflow ports 14 a and 14 a and discharge ports (liquid discharge ports) 15 by combining the flat plate member 13 which is a space component and the support member 60. 61 is a liquid supply structure for supplying the cleaning liquid flowing into the liquid flow space 61 through the liquid inlets 14a and 14a as a liquid film from the discharge port 15 to the external space, Furthermore, a discharge passage 62 (not shown in FIG. 1) that has openings 62a and 62a opened in the external space and discharges the cleaning liquid leaked between the space component members to the external space is provided in the liquid flow space. 61 is formed between the space component members independently of each other.

  In the present invention, the space member is a member that contributes to the configuration of the liquid flow space (inner space of the line nozzle 11) 61 in which the liquid flows, and more specifically, the liquid flow space 61 is other. It refers to a member that functions as at least one surface to be separated from the space. Therefore, the line nozzle 11 may include a member other than the flat plate member 13 and the support member 60 such as a joint reinforcement member for reinforcing the joint between the space component members.

  The flat plate member 13 is a thin rectangular parallelepiped member. A hollow attachment portion 12 for attaching the cleaning liquid supply passages 20 and 20 is provided on one surface thereof, and the hollow portion of the attachment portion 12 and 12 is provided. Two holes 14 and 14 are formed so as to be continuous with the respective parts 12a and 12a. These hole parts 14 and 14 are penetrated as the liquid inflow ports 14a and 14a on the back surface side of the surface on which the attachment parts 12 and 12 are provided. Moreover, although not shown in figure, the U-shaped convex part is provided in this back surface side.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, a rectangular parallelepiped concave portion 61 a formed by cutting a rectangular parallelepiped having a part of each of the surfaces 60 a and 60 b as one surface from the rectangular parallelepiped member is provided on one surface 60 a side of the support member 60. A U-shaped concave groove 62b having both ends on the surface 60b side and formed so as to surround three sides of the concave portion 61a is provided. A part of the surface 60a that functions as the surface seal portion 60a 'when combined with the flat plate member 13 is left in a U-shape between the concave portion 61a and the concave groove 62b. That is, the concave portion 61a and the concave groove 62b are provided independently (discontinuously) from each other. Further, inside the concave groove 62b, a cylindrical long string type having a width (diameter 2 mm) smaller than the width of the concave groove 62b (3 mm in the present embodiment) and made of a sealing material such as silicone, for example. The liquid guide member 70 is inserted so that both end portions thereof protrude to the outside of the concave groove 62b.

  The convex portion provided in the flat plate member 13 and the concave groove 62b provided in the support member 60 are designed to have a size and a position that can be fitted to each other, but are concave with respect to the height of the convex portion. The groove 62b is formed to have a greater depth. The flat plate member 13 and the support member 60 are assembled so that the convex portion and the concave groove 62b are fitted together, and are fixed by screwing or the like, so that the line nozzle 11 is configured.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the line nozzle 11 has a liquid flow space surrounded by a back surface of the flat plate member 13 and a surface constituting the concave portion 61a of the support member 60 (for discharge). Channel) 61 is formed. The liquid flow space 61 communicates with the cleaning liquid supply passages 20 and 20 through the hollow attachment portions 12 and 12 at the liquid inflow ports 14a and 14a, and is connected to the external space at the discharge port 15 having a predetermined size. It is open.

  Further, the fitting portion between the flat member 13 and the support member 60, that is, the convex portion provided on the back surface of the flat member 13 and the concave groove 62 b provided on the surface 60 a of the support member 60. A space (corresponding to a discharge path 62 described below) having a predetermined cross-sectional area is formed. More specifically, the height of the convex portion is designed so that the convex portion comes into contact with or slightly presses against the liquid guiding member 70 during fitting. The space (discharge path 62) is formed around the liquid guide member 70 having a diameter smaller than the width of the concave groove 62b.

  This space has openings 62 a and 62 a that open to the external space on both outer sides in the width direction of the discharge port 15, and is provided between the flat plate member 13 and the support member 60 independently of the liquid flow space 61. It is formed. Here, “the space (discharge passage 62) and the liquid flow space 61 are formed independently” means that the back surface of the flat plate member 13 and one surface 60a of the support member 60 (particularly the face seal portion 60a). The area left in a U-shape functioning as') is in close contact with each other to indicate that both spaces are formed substantially discontinuously.

  When supplying the cleaning liquid to the upper surface of the glass substrate 30 to be cleaned, the cleaning liquid is pressurized and the liquid flow space is supplied from the cleaning liquid supply paths 20 and 20 through the liquid inlets 14a and 14a. 61 is supplied to the external space from the discharge port 15 as a liquid film.

  At this time, if the pressurized cleaning liquid flowing in the liquid flow space 61 leaks from the surface seal part (joined part) 60a ′ by joining with the flat plate member 13 in the outer (outer peripheral) direction, the leaked cleaning liquid is discharged from the discharge path. The liquid is collected in 62 and discharged to an external space separated from the cleaning liquid film 40 through the openings 62a and 62a. Further, since a minute amount of cleaning liquid leaking from the face seal portion 60a ′ is always collected in the discharge path 62, new cleaning liquid is constantly supplied into the discharge path 62, so that the leaked cleaning liquid stays (resides) for a long time. It is discharged without doing. As a result, it is possible to significantly reduce the deterioration of the cleaning liquid, the deterioration and wear of the liquid guiding member 70, and the contamination of the cleaning liquid due to this, as compared with the conventional configuration. Conversely, it is not contaminated.

  In addition, since the discharge path 62 and the liquid flow space 61 are formed independently, the leaked liquid flows back into the flow of the cleaning liquid in the liquid flow space 61 or is discharged from the openings 62a and 62a. The cleaning liquid does not join the cleaning liquid film 40 discharged from the discharge port 15, so that the cleaning liquid film 40 is prevented from being broken.

  Further, it is possible to prevent the cleaning liquid from flowing out of the line nozzle 11 to the external space only from the discharge port 15 and the openings 62a and 62a, and to prevent leakage from other portions. By preventing the cleaning liquid from leaking, droplets (water droplets) that cause the cleaning liquid film 40 to be destroyed are not generated on the surface of the line nozzle 11 regardless of the opening area of the discharge port 15. Therefore, for example, even if the gap of the discharge port 15 is reduced, the uniform cleaning liquid film 40 is stably formed, and the cleaning liquid film 41 is uniformly generated on the entire upper surface of the glass substrate 30.

  The above-described effect can be obtained by using a line nozzle in which the liquid guide member 70 is omitted from the line nozzle 11 shown in FIG. 1, but according to the configuration in which the liquid guide member 70 is further provided, The above effect can be obtained with certainty. That is, in the configuration shown in FIG. 1, since the liquid guide member 70 is inserted into the discharge path 62 so as to protrude from the openings 62a and 62a to the external space, the discharged cleaning liquid is on the surface of the liquid guide member 70. Is guided by the surface tension and is reliably discharged outside the glass substrate 30 (that is, an area unrelated to cleaning) without approaching the cleaning liquid film 40 direction.

  The tip of the liquid guide member 70 may be formed so that the cleaning liquid to be guided is not discharged toward the cleaning liquid film 40 or the glass substrate 30. The cleaning liquid adhering to the liquid can be made into droplets more quickly and dropped and discharged. Further, if the tip is bent in a direction away from the discharge port 15 (that is, the cleaning liquid film 40), the discharged cleaning liquid may be more likely to be dropped on the glass substrate 30 or may be joined to the cleaning liquid film 40. It becomes possible to reduce it. The liquid guide member 70 need not be composed of a sealing material. However, for example, when a high osmotic pressure liquid is used as a cleaning liquid or the like, a sealing material may be disposed in the discharge path 62 for the purpose of preventing leakage of the liquid to the outside of the discharge path 62. More desirable. In this case, the sealing material may be disposed so as to protrude from the openings 62 a and 62 a to the external space, or may be disposed only in the discharge path 62.

  Further, instead of the support member 60 shown in FIG. 3, a support member (space part constituting member) 60 ′ shown in FIG. 4 is used, and the plate member 13 and the support member 60 ′ constitute a line nozzle (liquid supply structure). May be. In this line nozzle, in the configuration in which the liquid guide member 70 is omitted from the line nozzle 11 shown in FIG. 1, the protrusions 71 and 71 for guiding the liquid are provided in the vicinity of the outer sides of the openings 62a and 62a of the discharge passage 62b. It is formed.

  In the configuration of the line nozzle described above, the cleaning liquid discharged from the leakage openings 62a and 62a between the flat plate member 13 and the support member 60 'is guided on the surface of the protrusions 71 and 71 by the surface tension, and the cleaning liquid film It is reliably discharged outside the glass substrate 30 (that is, an area unrelated to cleaning) without approaching the 40 direction (that is, the direction of the discharge port 15).

  The protrusions 71 and 71 may be formed so that the induced cleaning liquid is not discharged toward the cleaning liquid film 40 or the glass substrate 30. Further, if the tip part is formed in a needle shape, the protrusions 71 and 71 adhere to the surface. The washed liquid can be dropletized more quickly and discharged. Further, if the tip is bent in a direction away from the discharge port 15 (that is, the cleaning liquid film 40), the discharged cleaning liquid may be more likely to be dropped on the glass substrate 30 or may be joined to the cleaning liquid film 40. It becomes possible to reduce it.

  Note that the number and shape of the protrusions 71 provided in one opening 62a are not particularly limited. As shown in FIG. 4, a protrusion 71 may be provided in a region near the outside of the opening 62 a and on the distal side of the discharge port 15. For example, a plurality of protrusions may be provided so as to surround the opening 62 a. It may be provided, or one frame-shaped (or annular) protrusion may be provided so as to surround the opening 62a.

  In the liquid supply structure described above, the relationship between the height of the convex portion provided in the flat plate member 13 and the depth of the concave groove 62b provided in the support member 60 (or support member 60 ′) is determined by fitting the two together. In addition, there is no particular limitation as long as the space (corresponding to the discharge path 62) having a predetermined cross-sectional area is configured. Further, the convex portion provided on the flat plate member 13 is used when the bonding between the flat plate member 13 and the support member 60 (or the support member 60 ′) is sufficiently secured, or when the cleaning liquid leaks between the two members. If the amount is very small, it can be omitted.

  Further, needless to say, the concave portion that becomes the liquid flow space by assembling the flat plate member and the support member, and the concave groove that becomes the discharge channel are the back surface side of the flat plate member or the back surface. As long as it is provided on at least one side of the one surface of the support member to be joined.

  In the present embodiment, the discharge path 62 is a U-shaped space having openings 62 a and 62 a on the outer side in the width direction of the discharge port 15, but 1) the flat plate member 13 and the support member 60. (Or the support member 60 ') and the liquid flow space 61 are positioned independently of each other, and 2) the cleaning liquid leaked between the members is separated from the glass substrate 30 and the cleaning liquid film 40 which are the objects to be cleaned. If it is the space in which the opening part was formed in order to discharge in, it will not specifically limit to this shape.

  For example, in FIG. 4, among the two vertical grooves 62b1 and 62b1 forming the concave groove 62b and the horizontal groove 62b2 connecting the vertical grooves 62b1 and 62b1, the horizontal groove 62b2 may be omitted. -One of 62b1 may be further omitted. For the purpose of enabling the cleaning liquid in the discharge path 62 to be discharged more quickly, for example, an air hole opening on the back surface side of the one surface 60 b of the support member 60 ′ is formed so as to be continuous with the discharge path 62. Also good.

  Note that the cross-sectional area of the discharge path 62 is appropriately set according to the physical properties (viscosity, etc.) of the cleaning liquid used and the configuration of the discharge path 62 itself (whether air holes are provided, etc.). Can do.

  As described above, the line nozzle 11 formed by combining the flat plate member 13 and the support member 60 (or the support member 60 ') does not generate droplets on the surface due to the leaked cleaning liquid, and is equivalent to the conventional one. It is possible to discharge the cleaning liquid film 40 having the above uniformity from the discharge port 15 having a smaller gap. Specifically, a conventional line nozzle having a discharge port with a size of 2 mm (gap) × 400 mm (opening width) requires a discharge amount of 30 liters per minute to form a uniform cleaning liquid film. In the configuration of the embodiment, since the size of the discharge port 15 can be set to 80 μm (gap) × 400 mm (opening width), it becomes possible to form a uniform cleaning liquid film 40 with a discharge amount of 4 liters per minute. We were able to greatly reduce the amount used.

[Embodiment 2]
Another embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The liquid supply apparatus in the present embodiment is applied as a liquid supply line nozzle (hereinafter simply referred to as a line nozzle) 201 shown in FIG. 9 (disassembled perspective view) and FIG. 10 (longitudinal sectional view). The line nozzle 201 includes a flat plate member 202 and a support member 203 corresponding to the flat plate member 13 and the support member 60 of the line nozzle 11. Further, the line nozzle 201 includes the discharge port 15 and the liquid flow space 61, the mounting member 12 and the liquid inlet 14 a are formed in the flat plate member 202, and the concave portion 61 a is formed in the support member 203. Is formed.

  That is, the line nozzle 201 forms a liquid flow space 61 that functions as a discharge port 15 and a buffer for temporarily stopping liquid by combining the flat member 202 and the support member 203 which are space constituent members. is doing. And the washing | cleaning liquid which flowed in into the liquid flow space 61 via the said attaching part 12 (liquid inflow port) is supplied to the external space from the said discharge port 15 as a liquid film form.

  In the support member 203, the surface that forms the gap of the discharge port 15, that is, the gap forming surface 15 a is a flat surface that protrudes toward the flat plate member 202 from the concave portion 61 a. Similarly, the surface of the flat member 202 facing the gap forming surface 15a, that is, the gap forming surface 202a (see FIG. 10) is also a flat surface.

  On the gap forming surface 15a, two spacers 204 for appropriately setting the gap of the discharge port 15 (gap W1 between the flat plate member 202 and the support member 203; see FIG. 10) are formed. Yes. The spacer 204 has a cylindrical shape and protrudes toward the flat plate member 202, and the front end surface is in contact with the gap forming surface 202 a of the flat plate member 202.

  Since the gap W1 of the discharge port 15 is narrow with respect to the length of the liquid flow space 61 in the liquid inflow direction, the cleaning liquid that has flowed into the liquid flow space 61 can temporarily stop therein. Further, with the configuration having the liquid flow space 61 as described above, the pressurized cleaning liquid flowing into the liquid flow space 61 is pressurized when passing through the discharge port 15 (narrow gap W1), and the cross-sectional area is increased. Since it is accelerated by decreasing, kinetic energy is given. Therefore, the cleaning liquid is discharged from the discharge port 15 as a curtain-like thin liquid film.

  Specifically, a cleaning liquid having a static pressure of 0.5 MPa is supplied to the in-nozzle 201 through the cleaning liquid supply path 20 and the two attachment portions 12 from the liquid feeding device (liquid feeding means) 210 (see FIG. 11). When the cleaning liquid is caused to flow into the liquid flow space 61 (H = 10 mm; see FIG. 10), the curtain-shaped cleaning liquid film 40 (width 400 mm) having the opening width L1 of 400 mm and the gap W1 of 80 μm is set. (See FIG. 11).

  However, since the curtain-like liquid film (water film) is easily affected by disturbance, it is indispensable to maintain a stable supply pressure in order to generate a stable water film. In order to generate a uniform and stable supply pressure, the number of attachment portions 12 (liquid inlets) is an important factor.

  That is, when the assigned area per attachment portion 12 becomes large, a region away from the attachment portion 12 is generated. And in the liquid flow space 61, the pressure gradient shown in FIG. Therefore, a pressure difference based on the pressure gradient is generated between a region near the mounting portion 12 and a region far from the attachment portion 12 in the discharge port 15, and this pressure difference generates the above uniform and stable supply pressure. May be an obstacle.

  Therefore, the inventors of the present application conducted an experiment on the number of mounting portions 12 (liquid inlets) for supplying liquid to the line nozzle 201 having an opening width L1 of 400 mm. As a result, in the line nozzle 201, when only one attachment portion 12 is set at the center of the opening width direction of the discharge port 15, a water film is generated, but the distance from the discharge port 15 that can maintain the water film. That is, it has been observed that the distance from the discharge port 15 until the water film discharged from the discharge port 15 is broken varies greatly depending on the position of the discharge port 15 in the opening width direction. Therefore, when producing the line nozzle 201, it turned out that it is necessary to provide the attaching part 12 for every distance of 400 mm at the minimum.

  In this case, a plurality of mounting portions (liquid inflow ports) 12 are provided every 400 mm or less in the opening width direction in a state of being arranged at equal intervals in parallel with the opening width direction of the discharge ports 15.

  For example, in the line nozzle 201, when the opening width L1 of the discharge port 15 is 400 mm, the gap W1 is 0.1 mm, and only one mounting portion 12 is set at the end in the discharge port opening width direction, From the other end of the outlet 15 opposite to the mounting portion 12 side, the liquid film did not form a liquid film from the position of 100 mm, and the liquid became a string.

  Further, the flow area in the liquid flow space 61 is greatly different from the flow area of the discharge port 15, and therefore the line nozzle 201 has a very large pipe resistance. Due to this pipe resistance, the liquid flow space 61 functions as a buffer that maintains a certain pressure state. Thereby, the nonuniformity of the supply pressure due to the pressure distribution as shown in FIG. 12 that occurs when the cleaning liquid is supplied from the attachment portion 12 can be suppressed.

  As described above, the line nozzle 201 can obtain both a low flow rate and a uniform supply pressure. When a uniform supply pressure can be obtained, the flow rate required to actually generate the curtain-like liquid film is only the size of the gap W1 at the discharge port 15 and the supply pressure from the mounting portion 12 (liquid inlet). It turns out that it depends. FIG. 13 shows the relationship.

  As is clear from the figure, in the case of the line nozzle 201 used this time, the supply pressure needs to be 0.2 MPa or more, but the flow rate does not change even if it is more than that. When the supply pressure was less than 0.2 MPa, the water film was cut off, and the target water film could not be formed. Thus, it can be seen that the flow rate depends only on the size of the gap W1 of the discharge port 15. When the opening width L1 of the discharge port 15 is 400 mm and the gap W1 is 80 μm, the flow rate is about 4 liters / min. Become.

  In addition, when the opening width L1 is 400 mm and the gap W1 is 0.5 mm or more, the flow rate is increased to about 10 liters / min. .

  Therefore, as an example of the line nozzle 201, the gap W1 is 0.07 or more and 0.08 mm or less, and the supply pressure of the supplied liquid can be a minimum of 0.4 MPa.

  In addition, when it was going to set gap W1 to 0.04 mm, the part of the width | variety of 0.02-0.03 mm generate | occur | produced from points, such as machining precision. And since such a part with a width | variety of 0.02-0.03 mm exists, the uniform water film was not able to be formed. Therefore, considering the current machining accuracy, the gap W1 is preferably larger than 0.04 mm.

  Here, it is possible to obtain a curtain-like water film by increasing the supply pressure. However, when high-pressure liquid is discharged, both the flow velocity and the flow rate increase, and the physical force that the curtain-like cleaning liquid film 40 applies to the substrate 211 increases. As a result, as shown in FIG. 14, warping of the substrate 211 is likely to occur, causing a transport error due to contact with the transport roller 212.

  At present, the flat plate (substrate 211) to be processed is becoming larger, and such a flat plate has a width to be processed of 300 mm or more. Although there is an apparatus for supplying liquid to such a flat plate using two or more line nozzles 110 as shown in FIG. 15, an intersecting region 213 is generated in this apparatus. The liquid supply in this intersecting area is completely wasted. Accordingly, it is required to increase the size of the line nozzle 110, that is, to increase the opening width L1 of the discharge port 115 (see FIG. 6) in the line nozzle 110.

  In this increase in size, the gap W1 of the discharge port 115 in the line nozzle 110 needs to be uniform. However, when the opening width L1 increases, it becomes difficult to make the gap W1 of the discharge port 115 uniform because there are few portions that support the gap W1 in the discharge port 115. When the gap W1 is not uniform, the thickness of the discharged water film (cleaning liquid film 140) is not uniform. In this case, taking into consideration that the pipe resistance depends on the cross-sectional area and the length of the circumference thereof, the change in the pipe resistance is caused by the change in the gap W1, and the liquid concentrates on the portion where the pipe resistance is small, Even if other conditions are the same, the liquid film cannot be maintained. In a line nozzle with an actual gap W1 of 80 μm created by the inventors of the present application, when the gap W1 varies from 60 to 80 μm, the water film becomes unstable and the water film is easily broken.

  Therefore, in order to maintain the predetermined gap W1, a cylindrical spacer 204 having a diameter of 6 mm is inserted at a position 10 mm or more inward from the tip of the discharge port 15 in the gap of the discharge port 15. In general, the resistance coefficient of an object in a path through which a fluid flows is inversely proportional to the square of the diameter of the object when the object is a cylinder with the same material and the same flow rate. On the contrary, when the diameter of the object is 4 mm or less, the load at both ends of the gap W1 is concentrated, so that indentation is observed on the gap forming surface. Further, when the spacer 204 has a shape having a corner such as a quadrangular prism, a turbulent flow is generated at the corner portion, and a water film is broken at a position where a thin plate serving as the spacer 204 is installed. Therefore, the spacer 204 is preferably cylindrical.

  However, the turbulent flow is generated even if the spacer 204 is a cylindrical thin plate. Therefore, when the distance between the discharge port 15 and the spacer 204 where the water film does not break is examined by experiment, if the spacer 204 is installed at a distance of 5 mm from the tip of the discharge port 15, the water film It was confirmed that it was maintained. In actual use, it is preferable to set a distance of 10 mm or more in consideration of safety. When the distance between the discharge port 15 and the spacer 204 is set in this way, there is an effect that the turbulent flow generated by the spacer 204 is rectified in the gap between the discharge ports 15, the distortion of the discharged water film disappears, and the curtain It becomes possible to produce a water film.

  Further, in this embodiment, the configuration shown in the first embodiment, that is, the discharge path 62, the liquid guiding member 70, and the like may be provided.

  The liquid supply structure and the liquid supply device are not particularly applied only to the above-described exemplary cleaning device. For example, any device that supplies liquid as a liquid film to an object (for example, a semiconductor manufacturing device) such as a resist stripping device. (Apparatus). By using this liquid supply device, 1) supply the liquid as a uniform liquid film to the object, 2) reduce the amount of liquid used such as cleaning liquid, and 3) contamination of the cleaning liquid. It is possible to simultaneously realize three points of suppressing. The liquid supply apparatus is also suitable for use as a substrate cleaning apparatus in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, for example.

  In the liquid supply structure, a space portion having a liquid inlet and a liquid discharge port is formed by combining two or more space portion constituent members, and the liquid portion is introduced into the space portion via the liquid inlet. In a liquid supply structure for supplying liquid as a liquid film to the external space from the liquid discharge port, the liquid supply structure has an opening that opens to the external space, and discharges the liquid leaked between the space component members to the external space. The discharge path may be formed in the space portion constituting member independently of the space portion.

  According to the above configuration, the liquid leaked between the space component members is discharged to the external space through the discharge path, so that the liquid droplets are applied to the surface of the liquid supply structure regardless of the opening area of the liquid discharge port. It is never formed. That is, it is possible to provide a liquid supply structure in which the liquid film of the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge port is not destroyed by the leaked liquid droplets.

  In addition, since the liquid leaked between the space component members is discharged to the external space through the opening without staying for a long time, for example, a sealing material is used to increase the adhesion between the space component members. Even when it is used, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the liquid and the deterioration / damage of the sealing material.

  In addition to the above configuration, the liquid supply structure may be configured such that a protrusion for guiding the liquid is formed in the vicinity of the outside of the opening of the discharge path.

  According to said structure, the liquid discharged | emitted from a discharge path via an opening part is induced | guided | derived by surface tension on the projection part surface. Therefore, it is possible to surely discharge the liquid leaked between the space component members without approaching the liquid film direction of the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge port.

  In addition to the above configuration, the liquid supply structure may be configured such that a liquid guide member is inserted into the discharge path so as to protrude from the opening to the external space.

  According to said structure, the liquid discharged | emitted from a discharge path via an opening part is induced | guided | derived by surface tension on the liquid guide member surface. Therefore, the liquid leaked between the space component members can be reliably discharged without being brought close to the liquid film direction of the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge port.

  The liquid supply apparatus may include any one of the liquid supply structures described above.

  According to the above configuration, the three points of supplying the liquid as a uniform liquid film to the object, reducing the amount of the liquid used such as the cleaning liquid, and suppressing the contamination of the cleaning liquid are simultaneously provided. A feasible liquid supply device can be provided.

  Liquid supply in the manufacturing process of liquid crystal display elements and semiconductor substrates is possible because the liquid can be discharged from the liquid discharge port as a curtain-like thin liquid film while suppressing the amount of liquid discharged from the liquid discharge port. Can be used as a device.

It is a perspective view showing a schematic structure of a liquid supply structure concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the operation | movement which supplies the washing | cleaning liquid with respect to the glass substrate upper surface using the washing | cleaning apparatus provided with the liquid supply structure shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows one schematic structure of the space part structural member which makes the liquid supply structure shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the other space part structural member used instead of the member shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the operation | movement which supplies the washing | cleaning liquid with respect to the glass substrate upper surface using the washing | cleaning apparatus provided with the line nozzle of a conventional structure. It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the line nozzle of the conventional structure with which the washing | cleaning apparatus shown in FIG. 5 was equipped. It is a perspective view which shows one schematic structure of the member which makes the line nozzle shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the operation | movement which supplies the washing | cleaning liquid with respect to the glass substrate upper surface using the washing | cleaning apparatus provided with the spray nozzle of a conventional structure. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows schematic structure of the line nozzle as a liquid supply apparatus in the other embodiment of this invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the assembly state of the line nozzle shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the operation | movement which supplies a washing | cleaning liquid with respect to a substrate upper surface using the washing | cleaning apparatus provided with the line nozzle shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the state of the pressure distribution in a line nozzle in case there is one liquid inflow port. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the gap of the discharge outlet of the line nozzle shown in FIG. 9, and the flow volume required in order to maintain a water film. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which a warp generate | occur | produces in a board | substrate when the liquid discharged from the line nozzle is high pressure. It is a perspective view which shows the operation | movement which supplies the washing | cleaning liquid with respect to the glass substrate upper surface using the washing | cleaning apparatus provided with two line nozzles of the conventional structure.

Explanation of symbols

11 Line nozzle (liquid supply structure)
13 Flat member (spacer component)
14a Liquid inlet 15 Discharge port (Liquid discharge port)
15a Gap forming surface 40 Cleaning liquid film (liquid)
41 Liquid film (liquid)
60 Support member (space component member)
60 'support member (space component member)
61 Liquid flow space (space part)
62 Discharge path 62a Opening 70 Liquid guiding member 71 Protrusion 201 Line nozzle 202 Flat plate member 203 Support member 204 Spacer 210 Liquid feeding device (liquid feeding means)

Claims (4)

A liquid supply comprising a liquid inlet, a space for temporarily retaining the liquid flowing in from the liquid inlet, and a liquid outlet for discharging the liquid in the space to the external space as a liquid film In the device
The opening width of the liquid discharge port is 300 mm or more, and the gap in the direction perpendicular to the opening width direction is 0.5 mm or less,
The liquid supply apparatus further comprises liquid feeding means for feeding the liquid to the liquid inlet with an inflow pressure of 0.2 MPa or more.   Both opposing surfaces in the liquid discharge port that form the gap are flat surfaces, and the outer shape is a cylindrical shape between the two flat surfaces at a position 5 mm or more inward from the tip of the liquid discharge port. The liquid supply device according to claim 1, wherein a spacer is provided.   2. The liquid inflow port is provided for every 400 mm or less in the opening width direction in a state of being arranged at equal intervals in parallel with the opening width direction of the liquid discharge port. Or the liquid supply apparatus of 2. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising the liquid supply apparatus according to claim 1.

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