JP2007134619A - Drying system and method of flat-plate-form object - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a drying system and method of flat-plate-form objects whereby such flat-plate-form objects as semiconductor wafers can be so dried in their clean states as to leave no water mark and no stain over their whole surfaces after the washing of them. <P>SOLUTION: The drying system 1 of flat-plate-form objects is the system for drying wafers of flat-plate-form objects W after rinsing them with a pure water, and has at least a water vessel 3 for so supporting therein the peripheries of the flat-plate-form objects W in the state of standing them as to rinse them with the pure water, an air feeding duct 4 for blowing a clean air from above the flat-plate-form objects on them after taking out them from the pure water, robot hands 5 for so grasping the peripheries of the flat-plate-form objects whereon the clean air has been blown as to carry out them from the water vessel, and a drying stage 6 for drying in a sucking way the under portions of the flat-plate-form objects without its contacting with the flat-plate-form objects grasped by the robot hands. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a drying system and a drying method for cleaning a flat plate, particularly a semiconductor wafer such as a silicon wafer, rinsing with pure water, and drying the wafer without contamination.

  A semiconductor wafer typified by a silicon wafer is used as a substrate of a semiconductor device, and a fine pattern is formed on the wafer in a device manufacturing process. If foreign matter such as particles adheres to the surface of the wafer, pattern formation failure occurs. Therefore, the wafer needs to be cleaned and dried in a clean state.

For example, there is a method in which a semiconductor wafer is washed with pure water or the like and then the surface is replaced with an organic solvent. After the cleaning, if the surface of the wafer is replaced with, for example, isopropyl alcohol (IPA), the IPA on the surface quickly evaporates and can be dried in a short time.
However, if an organic solvent such as IPA is used, the equipment cost of the explosion-proof equipment and the like increases, and there is a risk of adversely affecting the human body and the natural environment.

On the other hand, if the wafer is washed with pure water and then dried by so-called spin drying, there is no need for explosion-proof equipment. However, when spin drying is performed, there is a problem that mist adheres to the wafer again, and stain is likely to remain on the surface of the wafer after drying.
Further, if cleaning with heated pure water is performed, the pure water adhering to the wafer after cleaning is easily evaporated and can be dried in a relatively short time. However, a heater is required for heating pure water, and there is a possibility that contaminants are generated from the heater and contaminate the wafer. In addition, there is a problem that it takes time to heat pure water.

Furthermore, a drying apparatus has been proposed in which, after cleaning the wafer, the lower portion of the wafer is supported by a groove while the wafer is vertical in the chamber, and suction is performed from a suction port provided at the bottom of the groove (Patent Document). 1 and 2). With such a drying device, clean air is circulated from the upper part to the lower part of the chamber, or the inside of the chamber is decompressed and sucked from the suction port of each groove while supporting the wafer vertically, It is said that it can be dried without contaminating the wafer and without leaving stains or water marks on the surface.
However, even when the wafer is vertically supported by the grooves as described above and dried, there is a problem that a water mark or the like tends to remain particularly in a portion where the wafer is supported.
Further, such a water mark or the like becomes a problem not only in a semiconductor wafer but also in a plate-like object requiring high cleanliness such as a mask substrate.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-120829 JP-A-8-88210

  In view of the above problems, the present invention provides a drying system and a drying method for a flat plate that can be dried in a clean state without leaving a watermark or stain on the entire surface of the flat plate such as a semiconductor wafer after cleaning. The purpose is to provide.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is a system for rinsing a plate-like object with pure water and then drying the plate-like object, and at least in a state where the plate-like object is erected, A water tank for supporting the peripheral portion and rinsing the flat plate with pure water, an air supply duct for blowing clean air from above on the flat plate discharged from the pure water, and the clean air A robot hand for gripping the peripheral portion of the sprayed flat plate and carrying out the flat plate from the water tank, and the flat plate without contacting the flat plate gripped by the robot hand There is provided a drying system for a flat plate comprising a drying stage for sucking and drying a lower part of the plate (claim 1).

  In such a drying system, a flat object such as a semiconductor wafer is rinsed with pure water in a water tank, and then the peripheral part other than the lower part of the flat object is substantially dried by blowing clean air from an air supply duct. It can be gripped by the robot hand and conveyed to the drying stage while holding the peripheral part of the flat plate with the robot hand, and the lower part of the flat plate can be sucked and dried without contact. Therefore, if this drying system is used after washing the flat plate, it can be dried in a very clean state without leaving stains or water marks on the entire surface of the flat plate.

Moreover, it can be set as the system further provided with the control means for controlling each operation of the said water tank, a robot hand, an air supply duct, and a drying stage (Claim 2).
If it is a system provided with such a control means, it will be possible to perform smoothly by automatic control from pure water rinsing in the water tank to suction drying in the drying stage, and it is possible to quickly dry a plate-like object. .

The robot hand may have a grip portion for simultaneously gripping a plurality of flat objects.
If it is a system provided with such a robot hand, a plurality of flat objects can be processed at a time, and the flat objects can be dried more efficiently.

In addition, the robot hand may have a hole for sucking a peripheral portion of the flat plate when the flat plate is gripped.
If the robot hand is provided with a suction hole as described above, drying can be promoted through the hole of the robot hand when gripping even if the portion to be gripped of the flat plate is not sufficiently dry. It will be possible. Therefore, it is possible to dry in a clean state over the entire surface of the flat plate-like object without leaving stains in the portion to be securely gripped.

The air supply duct may blow clean air from above the drying stage (Claim 5).
If it is a system that can blow clean air from above the drying stage by the air supply duct, the air from above will accelerate the drying of the flat object even after the flat object is transported to the drying stage by the robot hand. And can be dried more reliably and with high cleanliness over the entire surface of the flat plate.

The air supply duct may be fixed (Claim 6).
If a system in which the air supply duct is fixed is used, the generation of particles from the air supply duct can be prevented, and the flat plate can be more reliably dried in a clean state.

Further, the air supply duct may be connected to the robot hand and move together with the robot hand.
In this case, clean air can always be accurately sprayed on the flat object held by the robot hand, and the entire surface of the flat object can be dried more reliably and quickly.

The drying stage may have a suction port for each flat plate in order to suck and dry the lower portions of the flat plates held by the robot hand at the same time (Claim 8).
If the drying stage has individual suction ports for a plurality of flat objects, the plurality of flat objects held by the robot hand can be quickly dried at once.

The drying stage has at least a groove that can be accommodated without contacting the lower part of the flat object gripped by the robot hand, and a suction port is formed at the bottom of the groove. (Claim 9).
If the drying stage has the groove and the suction port as described above, it can be efficiently dried without contaminating the lower part of the flat plate-like object.

  Further, the present invention is a method of drying the flat plate after rinsing the flat plate with pure water, and using the flat plate drying system, at least in a state where the flat plate is erected in the water tank. A step of rinsing with pure water, a step of discharging pure water from the water tank and blowing clean air from the air supply duct to the flat plate, and a contact with pure water in the water tank by the robot hand Gripping the peripheral part of the flat plate without transporting the flat plate to the drying stage, and sucking the lower part of the flat plate gripped by the robot hand without contacting the drying stage There is provided a method for drying a flat plate comprising the step of drying (claim 10).

  If the flat material drying system according to the present invention is used to perform pure water rinsing to suction drying of a flat material such as a semiconductor wafer as described above, stains, water marks, etc. are traced over the entire surface of the flat material. It can be dried in a very clean state and without leaving behind.

  Also, a method of drying the flat plate after rinsing the flat plate with pure water, at least a step of rinsing with pure water in a state in which the flat plate is erected in a water tank, and pure water from the water tank A process of spraying clean air from above on the flat object, and gripping the peripheral part of the flat object without contacting the pure water in the water tank by a robot hand. There is provided a method for drying a flat plate comprising a step of transporting to a drying stage, and a step of sucking and drying the lower part of the flat plate held by the robot hand without contacting the drying stage. (Claim 11).

  After going through the above process and rinsing from pure water to suction drying of the flat plate, it is dried in a very clean state and quickly without leaving traces of stains and water marks on the entire surface of the flat plate. be able to.

When the peripheral part of the flat object is gripped by the robot hand, it is preferable that the robot hand is lowered following the lowering of the water surface in the water tank.
If the robot hand is lowered so as to follow the lowering of the water level in the water tank and the peripheral part of the flat plate is gripped, the flat plate can be quickly held and transported, and the entire drying process can be carried out in a shorter time. It can be carried out.

Further, when the peripheral portion of the flat object is gripped by the robot hand, the peripheral portion of the flat object is dried by the robot hand after drying at least a portion to be gripped by the clean air. Is preferably held (claim 13).
If the flat object is gripped by the robot hand after the portion to be gripped of the flat object is dried, it is possible to reliably prevent a water mark or the like from remaining on the part gripped by the robot hand.

Further, when the peripheral portion of the flat plate is gripped by the robot hand, the peripheral portion of the flat plate is gripped while being sucked by a hole for sucking the peripheral portion of the flat plate provided in the robot hand. (Claim 14).
If the peripheral part of the flat object is gripped with the suction hole of the robot hand, it can be surely dried even if the gripped part of the flat object has not been sufficiently dried. Stain does not remain in the part where it is applied.

It is preferable that the peripheral portion of the flat plate is gripped by the robot hand before the entire flat plate is discharged from the pure water by discharging pure water from the water tank.
If the periphery of the flat object is gripped and transported by the robot hand before the entire flat object comes out of the pure water during drainage, a water mark or the like is further added to the part where the flat object was supported in the water tank. It becomes difficult to remain, and the entire flat plate can be dried in a more clean state.

Further, when the lower part of the flat object is sucked and dried by the drying stage, the lowermost part of the flat object held by the robot hand is brought close to the suction port of the drying stage to 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm. It is preferable to perform suction drying (claim 16).
If the lowermost part of the flat plate and the suction port of the drying stage are brought close to the above range and sucked and dried, the flat plate and the stage can be prevented from contacting each other and the flat plate can be dried quickly.

A semiconductor wafer can be suitably dried as the flat plate (claim 17).
In semiconductor wafers, water marks and stains after drying particularly affect subsequent device processes, etc., but according to the present invention, the entire surface of a flat object is not cleaned, leaving no traces of stains or water marks. Therefore, it is particularly effective for drying a semiconductor wafer.

  If the flat material drying system and drying method according to the present invention are used, a flat object, for example, a semiconductor wafer is rinsed with pure water in a water tank, and then the periphery other than the lower part of the wafer by blowing clean air in an air supply duct. Then, the lower part of the wafer can be sucked and dried on the drying stage while holding the peripheral part of the wafer with the robot hand. Therefore, if this drying system and method are used after cleaning the wafer, the entire wafer can be quickly dried, and the entire wafer can be dried in an extremely clean state without leaving stains or water marks on the lower portion of the wafer. it can.

Hereinafter, as a preferred embodiment, a method for drying a cleaned silicon wafer using a flat material drying system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an example of a flat material drying system according to the present invention. 2 to 7 schematically show the respective steps of drying the silicon wafer using the drying system 1.
The drying system 1 includes a water tank 3, an air supply duct 4, a robot hand 5, and a drying stage 6 inside the chamber 2. Further, outside the chamber 2, the water tank 3, the robot hand 5, the air supply duct 4, A computer 20 is provided as means for controlling each operation of the drying stage 6.

The water tank 3 is provided with a water supply valve (not shown), a drain valve 8, and a support portion 9 for supporting the wafer W in a standing state in the water tank 3.
The air supply duct 4 is provided on the ceiling of the chamber 2 and can blow out clean air downward at a predetermined air volume (air speed) through an air filter such as a HEPA filter.

The robot hand 5 has two arms 5a and 5b that can move up and down, and can grip the periphery of the wafer W by opening and closing the arms.
The drying stage 6 is for sucking and drying the lower part of the wafer W. In addition to the vacuum pump 12, a pressure adjusting valve 10 and a pressure gauge 11 are provided.
The computer 20 as the control means incorporates software for sequence control of the water tank 3, the air supply duct 4, the robot hand 5, and the drying stage 6.

A method for drying a silicon wafer using the drying system 1 will be described.
First, the cleaned silicon wafer W is transported into the water tank 3 and rinsed with pure water 7. At this time, the lower peripheral portion of the wafer W is supported by the support portion 9 in the water tank, and the wafer W is rinsed in a substantially vertical state. The pure water 7 in the water tank can be used at room temperature, but warm water may be used for drying faster later.
During rinsing, it is not always necessary to blow out clean air from the air supply duct 4, but clean air may be blown out at a predetermined wind speed.

  After rinsing with pure water 7 in the water tank 3 for a predetermined time, the drain valve 8 is opened to discharge the pure water 7 from the water tank 3 and high-speed clean air is blown from the air supply duct 4 to the wafer W. As the water drains, the water level decreases, and the wafer W gradually comes out of the pure water 7. Clean air is blown from the air supply duct 4 to the portion coming out of the pure water 7. For example, if the air velocity of the air from the duct 4 is set to 2.0 m / second or more, the moisture in the portion of the wafer W that has come out of the water can be blown away and dried quickly. Note that the wind speed from the duct 4 is not necessarily constant, and may be appropriately changed according to the operation of the robot hand 5.

Next, the peripheral portion of the wafer W is gripped by the robot hand 5 without contacting the pure water 7 in the water tank 3.
8 and 9 show a suitable example of the robot hand 5. The robot hand 5 is mainly composed of a metal support bone 18 and a fluororesin, and can secure strength for gripping and transporting the wafer W, and also prevents contamination when the wafer W is gripped. be able to. At the tips of the hands 5a and 5b, gripping portions 14 and 15 for gripping 25 wafers (one batch) at a time are provided. In addition, the gripping portions 14 and 15 are respectively formed with holes 16 for sucking the peripheral portion of the wafer W when gripping the wafer W as shown in an enlarged manner in FIG. The hole diameter can be about 1 to 5 mm, for example. In addition, the shape of the hole 16 is not specifically limited, For example, circular, an ellipse, a rectangle, a slit shape etc. are employable. Further, a vacuum line 17 communicating with each hole 16 is formed inside each hand 5a, 5b.

When gripping the wafer W with such a robot hand 5, the robot hand 5 does not come into contact with the pure water 7 in the aquarium, but follows the lowering of the water surface in the aquarium 3 as seen in FIG. 2. It is preferable to lower the robot hand 5. If the robot hand 5 is lowered as the water level drops, the peripheral portion of the wafer W can be quickly grasped.
However, if the portion to be gripped by the wafer W is gripped by the robot hand 5 in a state where the portion is not yet dried, the water mark may remain. Therefore, by adjusting the amount of clean air sprayed from the air supply duct 4, the portion to be gripped of the wafer W is dried and then gripped by the robot hand 5.

  When gripping the wafer W with the robot hand 5, even if the gripped portion of the wafer W is not sufficiently dry, the vacuum operation is performed from the suction holes 16 of the gripping portions 14 and 15 immediately before gripping the wafer W. The moisture can be removed by performing the above. That is, if the peripheral portion of the wafer W is gripped while sucking from the holes 16 provided in the gripping portions 14 and 15 of the robot hand 5, even when a slight amount of water remains in the gripped portion of the wafer W, Drying is promoted, and the portion of the wafer to be gripped is gripped after being reliably dried. Therefore, stain does not occur in the gripped portion.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, it is preferable that the peripheral portion of the wafer W is gripped by the robot hand 5 before the entire wafer W comes out of the pure water 7 by discharging the pure water 7 from the water tank 3. After the wafer W is gripped by the robot hand 5, the wafer W is pulled upward as shown in FIG. 4. If the wafer W is gripped and lifted after the entire wafer W comes out of the pure water 7, the wafer support in the water tank is supported. Water droplets remain on the portion supported by the portion 9, and the bottom of the wafer W is likely to be dropped, which may cause a water mark. On the other hand, if the wafer W is grasped by the robot hand 5 and pulled up before the entire wafer W comes out of the pure water 7 during drainage (at the stage where the support portion 9 is in the liquid), the wafer W will not easily get drips and will dry quickly. Therefore, the generation of water marks can be effectively prevented.

  Further, when the wafer W is pulled up by the robot hand 5, it is preferable to pull it up at a low speed until the wafer W completely leaves the pure water 7. Increasing the pulling speed while the lower part of the wafer W is still in pure water tends to increase the number of drops remaining on the lower part of the wafer W, and the drying time on the drying stage 6 becomes longer. There is also a risk that it will reattach to the dry surface of the wafer and cause water marks. Accordingly, it is preferable that the wafer W is pulled up at a relatively low speed until it completely leaves the pure water 7 and is pulled up at a high speed when the wafer W is completely separated from the pure water 7 (FIG. 5).

  In addition, what is necessary is just to obtain | require an appropriate numerical value by repeating experiment several times about the wind speed of the air from the air supply duct 4, the drainage speed from the water tank 3, the descent | fall speed | rate of the robot hand 5, and a raising speed | rate. For example, if the air velocity is set to 8 m / sec, the descent speed of the liquid level in the water tank is set to 1.5 to 2.0 mm / sec, and the descent speed of the robot hand 5 is set to about 1.4 to 1.6 mm / sec. The robot hand 5 quickly reaches a predetermined position where the wafer W is gripped without coming into contact with the pure water 7 in the water tank, and the portion gripped by the robot hand 5 is dried before the entire wafer W comes out of the water completely. And the wafer can be gripped.

  After the wafer W is gripped and pulled up by the robot hand 5, it is laterally fed and conveyed to the drying stage 6 (FIG. 6). Then, the wafer W is held by the robot hand 5 and suction drying is performed without bringing the lower portion of the wafer W into contact with the drying stage 6 (FIG. 7).

  FIG. 11 shows an example of the drying stage 6. The drying stage 6 has 25 grooves 21 that can be accommodated without contacting the lower portions of the 25 wafers W gripped by the robot hand 5, and the individual wafers W are provided at the bottom of each groove 21. Is formed. Further, a punching plate 23 for uniformly sucking from each suction port 22 is provided under the groove 21.

Although the size of the groove 21 and the suction port 22 of the stage 6 depends on the size of the wafer W to be processed, the thickness of the normal wafer W is less than 1 mm. The length Y of the suction port 22 can be about 1.0 to 30 mm. By providing the suction port 22 having such a size, contact between the wafer W and the stage 6 (the groove 21 and the suction port 22) can be avoided and suction drying can be effectively performed.
The suction force may be set as appropriate according to the shape of the suction port 22 and the like, but the linear velocity from the suction port 22 is preferably 1 m / second or more. However, the linear velocity from the suction port 22 is not necessarily constant. Normally, if the pressure is about 2 to 5 MPa, particularly 2.5 to 3 MPa, the moisture in the lower portion can be quickly sucked and dried without vibrating the wafer W.

  Thus, in the case of the drying stage 6 provided with the suction ports 22 for the individual wafers W, each wafer W held by the robot hand 5 is made vertical as shown in FIGS. 11 (C) and 11 (D). In this state, the lower part of the wafer W can be accommodated without touching the grooves 21. Thereby, the lower part of all the wafers W can be dried simultaneously and rapidly.

  When the wafer W is brought close to the drying stage 6 and the lower part of the wafer W is sucked and dried, the wafer W can be dried in a shorter time as it gets closer to the suction port 22 of the drying stage 6. There is also a risk of contact with the drying stage 6. Therefore, the distance L between the lowermost part of the wafer W gripped by the robot hand 5 and the suction port 22 of the drying stage 6 is preferably in the range of 0.1 mm to 5 mm, particularly 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm. If the wafer W is brought close to the suction port 22 within the above range and suction drying is performed, the wafer W can be quickly dried.

  Further, it is preferable to blow clean air from above the drying stage 6 while the wafer W is conveyed to the drying stage 6 and the lower part is sucked and dried. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the air supply duct 4 a is provided above the water tank 3, and the air supply duct 4 b is also provided above the drying stage 6 so that clean air is blown. Even after being transported to the drying stage 6, drying of the wafer W can be promoted and kept clean by clean air from above. Further, in this case, since the air supply ducts 4a and 4b are fixed, the generation of particles from the air supply ducts 4a and 4b can be effectively prevented, and the wafer W can be more reliably dried in a clean state. Can be made.

  Alternatively, the air supply duct 4 may be connected directly above the robot hand 5 so as to move together with the robot hand 5. In this case, since clean air can always be blown to the wafer W gripped by the robot hand 5 at a predetermined wind speed, the entire surface of the wafer W can be reliably and quickly dried.

After the lower part of the wafer W is sucked and dried by the drying stage 6, the wafer W is held by the robot hand 5 and stored in the storage box at a time.
If the wafer W is dried by the process as described above, the wafer W after rinsing with pure water does not come into contact with the drying stage 6 except that the peripheral portion is gripped by the robot hand 5, and stains and water marks are formed on the entire surface of the wafer. It will not remain. Further, since it is possible to smoothly perform from pure water rinsing in the water tank to suction drying in the drying stage 6, the wafer W can be quickly dried in an extremely clean state.

  The operation of each means described above, the wind speed, etc. are examples, and the timing of each operation of the water tank 3, the air supply duct 4, the robot hand 5, and the drying stage 6, the wind speed, the drainage speed, the lowering and raising of the robot hand. The speed and the like may be appropriately set by repeating the experiment, and sequence control may be performed by the computer 20.

Examples of the present invention will be described below.
(Example)
A drying system as shown in FIG. 1 was constructed, and the washed wafer was rinsed with pure water and then dried. The drying conditions are as follows.
Air volume from the air supply duct (wind speed)
Directly under the robot hand: 3.0 m / second Near wafer: 2.0 m / second Robot hand lowering speed: 1.5 mm / second Water surface lowering speed: 1.8 mm / second Drying stage suction force: −2.7 MPa to −2. 9 MPa
Distance between drying stage and wafer: 1.0 mm
In chamber: atmospheric pressure

Air supply duct: Multi-spot air conditioner Robot hand material (PTFE)
Drying stage material (PEEK)
In addition, the speed control can be changed by the servo for the robot hand ascending / descending, wafer gripping, and lateral feeding operations.

Under the conditions described above, 25 silicon wafers (diameter 300 mm) were rinsed at once with pure water, dried according to the procedures shown in FIGS. 2 to 7, and stored in a box.
When the wafer in the box was taken out and the surface condition was examined visually, no water mark or contamination was found on all the wafers.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. The above-described embodiment is an exemplification, and any structure having substantially the same configuration as the technical idea described in the claims of the present invention and having the same function and effect can be used. It is included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the semiconductor wafer is dried using the drying system as shown in FIG. 1 has been described. However, the flat plate drying system and drying method according to the present invention uses a semiconductor wafer such as a silicon wafer. It is not limited to the case of drying, but can be suitably applied to a flat object requiring high cleanliness such as a mask substrate. Moreover, it is not limited to the case where the system of FIG. 1 is used, and at least a step of rinsing with pure water in a state where the flat plate is set up in the water tank, and discharging pure water from the water tank and The process of spraying clean air from the surface, the step of gripping the periphery of the flat plate without contacting the pure water in the water tank by the robot hand, the step of transporting the flat plate to the drying stage, and the robot hand If the step of sucking and drying without bringing the lower part of the flat plate into contact with the drying stage is included, the flat plate may be dried using a drying system having another configuration.

In the above embodiment, the case where the wafer supported by the support portion in the water tank is discharged from the pure water by discharging the pure water from the water tank has been described. However, the support portion is raised so that the wafer comes out of the pure water. It may be.
Moreover, although the said embodiment demonstrated the case where 25 silicon wafers (1 batch) were rinsed at a time and dried, the number of the wafers processed at a time is not specifically limited, The wafers are processed one by one. A single wafer type may be used, or more than 25 sheets may be processed at a time.

It is the schematic which shows an example of the structure of the drying system of the flat material which concerns on this invention. It is the schematic which shows the state before holding a wafer with a robot hand. It is the schematic which shows a state when a wafer is hold | gripped with a robot hand. It is the schematic which shows the state which hold | gripped the wafer with a robot hand and has pulled up upwards at low speed. It is the schematic which shows the state which pulled up the wafer further upwards at high speed with the robot hand. It is the schematic which shows the track | orbit at the time of conveying a wafer to a drying stage with a robot hand. It is the schematic which shows the state which sucks and dries the lower part of a wafer in a drying stage. It is the schematic which shows an example of a robot hand. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the robot hand of FIG. (A) AA line sectional view (B) BB line sectional view It is the schematic which expands and shows a holding part. It is the schematic which shows an example of a drying stage. (A) Top view (B) Enlarged view of suction port (C) Side sectional view (D) Front sectional view

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Flat material drying system, 2 ... Chamber, 3 ... Water tank, 4 ... Air supply duct, 5 ... Robot hand, 6 ... Drying stage, 14, 15 ... Grasping part, 16 ... Hole for suction, 20 ... Control Means (computer), 21 ... groove, 22 ... suction port, W ... flat plate (semiconductor wafer).

Claims (17)

  A system for drying a flat plate after rinsing the flat plate with pure water, at least supporting a peripheral portion of the flat plate in a standing state, A water tank for rinsing with pure water, an air supply duct for blowing clean air from above on the flat plate that has come out of the pure water, and a peripheral portion of the flat plate to which the clean air has been blown A robot hand for gripping and unloading the flat plate from the water tank, and a drying stage for sucking and drying the lower portion of the flat plate without contacting the flat plate held by the robot hand A flat plate drying system characterized by comprising:   2. The flat object drying system according to claim 1, further comprising control means for controlling each operation of the water tank, the robot hand, the air supply duct, and the drying stage.   3. The flat object drying system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the robot hand has a grip portion for simultaneously gripping a plurality of flat objects.   4. The robot hand according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the robot hand has a hole for sucking a peripheral portion of the flat plate-like object when the flat plate-like object is gripped. The flat plate drying system described.   The flat air drying system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the air supply duct blows clean air from above the drying stage.   The flat air drying system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the air supply duct is fixed.   6. The flat object drying system according to claim 1, wherein the air supply duct is connected to the robot hand and moves together with the robot hand.   4. The drying stage according to claim 3, wherein the drying stage has a suction port for each flat plate for simultaneously drying the lower portions of the plurality of flat plates held by the robot hand. Item 8. The flat product drying system according to any one of Items 7 to 9.   The drying stage has at least a groove that can be accommodated without contacting the lower part of the flat object gripped by the robot hand, and a suction port is formed at the bottom of the groove. The flat material drying system according to any one of claims 1 to 8.   A method for drying a flat plate after rinsing the flat plate with pure water, using the flat plate drying system according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein at least the A step of rinsing with pure water in a state where a flat plate is erected in a water tank, a step of discharging pure water from the water tank and blowing clean air from the air supply duct to the flat plate, and the robot hand Gripping the periphery of the plate-like object without contacting the pure water in the water tank and transporting the plate-like object to the drying stage; and lower part of the plate-like object held by the robot hand. A method for drying a plate-like product, comprising the step of suction drying without contacting the drying stage.   A method of drying a flat plate after rinsing the flat plate with pure water, at least a step of rinsing with pure water in a state where the flat plate is erected in a water tank, and discharging pure water from the water tank And a step of spraying clean air from above on the flat object, and holding the peripheral part of the flat object without contact with pure water in the water tank by a robot hand, and then drying the flat object And a step of sucking and drying the lower part of the flat plate held by the robot hand without contacting the drying stage.   The flat plate according to claim 10 or 11, wherein when the peripheral portion of the flat plate-like object is gripped by the robot hand, the robot hand is lowered following the lowering of the water surface in the water tank. Method of drying the product.   When gripping the peripheral part of the flat object by the robot hand, the robot hand grips the peripheral part of the flat object after drying at least a portion to be gripped by the clean air. The method for drying a flat product according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein:   When gripping the peripheral part of the flat object by the robot hand, the peripheral part of the flat object is gripped while sucking through a hole for sucking the peripheral part of the flat object provided in the robot hand. The method for drying a flat product according to any one of claims 10 to 13, wherein:   11. The peripheral portion of the flat plate is gripped by the robot hand before the entire flat plate is discharged from the pure water by discharging pure water from the water tank. The method for drying a flat product according to any one of 14.   When sucking and drying the lower part of the flat object on the drying stage, the lowermost part of the flat object held by the robot hand is brought close to the suction port of the drying stage to 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm and sucked and dried. The method for drying a flat product according to any one of claims 10 to 15, wherein:   The method for drying a flat plate according to any one of claims 10 to 16, wherein a semiconductor wafer is dried as the flat plate.

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