JP2007149986A - Substrate processing apparatus, substrate processing method and method of manufacturing substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To uniformly performing chemical liquid processing of a substrate by using a chemical liquid having a temperature higher than a normal temperature while holding the substrate in an inclined state. <P>SOLUTION: A heater 11 heats the surface of the substrate 1 at a temperature approximate to the temperature of the chemical liquid to be supplied from a chemical liquid nozzle 21 when the substrate 1 passes below the heater 11. The chemical liquid nozzle 21 supplies the chemical liquid having a temperature higher than the normal temperature to the surface of the substrate 1. The chemical liquid processing of surface of the substrate 1 is executed using the chemical liquid supplied to the surface of the substrate 1. The substrate 1 is heated at a temperature approximate to the temperature of the chemical liquid to be used for the chemical liquid processing before executing the chemical liquid processing of the substrate 1, thereby reducing the difference in temperature rise between the upper and lower sides of the surface of the substrate 1 to which the chemical liquid is supplied, and thus, the temperature of the surface of the substrate 1 can become rapidly uniform. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus, a substrate processing method, and a substrate manufacturing method using the same, which perform chemical processing such as development, etching, and peeling on a substrate using a chemical solution such as a developing solution, an etching solution, and a peeling solution. In particular, a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method suitable for performing a chemical treatment of a substrate using a chemical solution at a temperature higher than normal temperature while holding the substrate in an inclined state, and manufacturing a substrate using the same. Regarding the method.

  In the process of manufacturing a panel substrate for a flat panel display device such as a liquid crystal display device or a plasma display device, a chemical solution such as a developing solution, an etching solution or a stripping solution is used to form a circuit pattern or a color filter on the substrate. The chemical solution processing such as development, etching, and peeling is performed. Generally, the process of performing these chemical treatments is called a wet process. The wet process is often performed in a processing chamber by supplying a chemical solution from a nozzle or a spray to the surface of the substrate while holding the substrate using a moving means such as a roller conveyor.

  Thus, when performing a wet process while holding a substrate using a moving means such as a roller conveyor, conventionally, a horizontal transfer method in which the substrate is moved and held in a horizontal state has been adopted. In the horizontal conveyance method, when a chemical solution is supplied to the surface of the substrate from a nozzle or a spray, the chemical solution is deposited almost uniformly on the surface of the substrate, so that the chemical treatment of the substrate is performed almost uniformly. However, when the substrate is enlarged, the chemical solution stagnates at the center of the substrate, and the uniformity of the chemical treatment cannot be maintained.

On the other hand, an inclined conveyance method is known in which a substrate is moved and held in a state where it is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal (Patent Document 1). According to the inclined conveyance method, even when the substrate is enlarged, the stagnation of the chemical solution as in the horizontal conveyance method does not occur on the surface of the substrate.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-74247

  When the wet process is performed while the substrate is held at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal by the inclined conveyance method, the progress of the chemical treatment is delayed on the lower side of the inclined substrate as compared with the upper side. This is because the chemical solution supplied to the surface of the substrate flows down from the upper side to the lower side along the surface of the inclined substrate, and there is a chemical solution with degraded purity that has flowed down from the upper side below the surface of the inclined substrate. This is considered to be because of this (Patent Document 1).

  For example, in a wet process such as etching, in order to promote a chemical reaction by a chemical solution, the chemical solution may be heated to a temperature higher than normal temperature and then supplied to the surface of the substrate. When the wet process is performed using the chemical solution at a temperature higher than the normal temperature in this manner, the progress of the chemical process on the lower side of the inclined substrate surface is higher than the wet process using the chemical solution at the normal temperature. I found the problem that the delay became remarkable.

  The subject of this invention is performing uniformly the chemical | medical solution process of the inclined board | substrate using the chemical | medical solution higher than normal temperature, hold | maintaining the board | substrate in the inclined state. Moreover, the subject of this invention is performing the chemical | medical solution process of a board | substrate uniformly, and manufacturing a high quality board | substrate.

  The substrate processing apparatus of the present invention includes a substrate moving unit that moves and holds the substrate in a state inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal, and a chemical solution supply that supplies a chemical solution having a temperature higher than normal temperature to the substrate held by the substrate moving unit. A substrate processing apparatus comprising: means for heating a substrate moved or held by the substrate moving means to a temperature close to a temperature of the chemical liquid supplied by the chemical liquid supply means before the chemical liquid supply means supplies the chemical liquid. Means are provided.

  The substrate processing method of the present invention is a substrate processing method for supplying a chemical solution at a temperature higher than normal temperature to the substrate and holding the substrate while maintaining the substrate inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal direction. Then, before performing the chemical treatment of the substrate, the substrate is warmed to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical used for the chemical treatment while moving or holding the substrate while being inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal.

  In the horizontal transfer method, when a chemical solution having a temperature higher than room temperature is supplied to the surface of the substrate, the chemical solution is deposited almost uniformly on the surface of the substrate, so that the temperature of the substrate surface rises substantially uniformly. On the other hand, in the conventional inclined conveyance system, when a chemical solution having a temperature higher than room temperature is supplied to the surface of the substrate, the temperature of the substrate surface does not rise uniformly, and the lower side of the inclined substrate surface is higher than the upper side. , Found that the temperature rise of the substrate is slow. This difference in the temperature increase between the upper side and the lower side of the surface of the substrate is considered to be one of the causes of a significant delay in the progress of the chemical treatment on the lower side of the substrate. In the present invention, the temperature difference between the upper side and the lower side of the surface of the substrate to which the chemical solution is supplied is increased by heating the substrate to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical solution used for the chemical treatment before performing the chemical treatment of the substrate. The temperature on the surface of the substrate becomes almost uniform quickly.

  In order to warm the substrate to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical solution used for the chemical treatment, for example, a heater may be used, or hot water or hot air may be supplied to the front surface, back surface, or both surfaces of the substrate. Further, separately from the chemical solution used for the chemical treatment, a heated chemical solution may be supplied to the front surface, back surface, or both surfaces of the substrate. In either case, the substrate can be easily heated while being moved or held in a state where the substrate is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal.

  Further, in the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, the heating means warms the lower side of the inclined substrate to a temperature higher than the upper side of the inclined substrate. In addition, the substrate processing method of the present invention warms the lower side of the inclined substrate to a temperature higher than the upper side of the inclined substrate. By warming the lower side of the pre-tilted substrate to a temperature higher than the upper side, the lower side of the surface of the inclined substrate compensates for the dull rise in temperature with respect to the upper side, and the temperature of the surface of the substrate is more rapid. Almost uniform.

  The substrate manufacturing method of the present invention performs a wet process using any one of the above-described substrate processing apparatuses or substrate processing methods. Since the chemical treatment of the tilted substrate is uniformly performed using the chemical solution at a temperature higher than normal temperature while holding the substrate in an inclined state, a high-quality substrate is manufactured.

  According to the substrate processing apparatus and the substrate processing method of the present invention, the substrate is heated to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical used for the chemical processing before performing the chemical processing of the substrate, and the upper surface of the substrate supplied with the chemical is Since the difference in temperature rise from the lower side becomes small, the temperature of the surface of the substrate can be made almost uniform quickly. Therefore, the chemical solution treatment of the tilted substrate can be performed uniformly using the chemical solution having a temperature higher than the normal temperature while holding the substrate in an inclined state.

  Furthermore, according to the substrate processing apparatus and the substrate processing method of the present invention, the lower side of the inclined substrate is heated to a temperature higher than the upper side of the inclined substrate, so that the temperature increase on the lower side of the inclined substrate is slowed down. In addition, the temperature of the surface of the substrate can be made almost uniform more quickly. Therefore, the chemical treatment of the inclined substrate can be performed more uniformly.

  According to the method for manufacturing a substrate of the present invention, a chemical solution treatment of a tilted substrate can be performed uniformly using a chemical solution at a temperature higher than normal temperature while holding the substrate in an inclined state, so that a high-quality substrate is obtained. Can be manufactured.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The substrate processing apparatus includes a plurality of rollers 10, a heater 11, and a chemical solution nozzle 21.

  The substrate 1 is mounted on a plurality of rollers 10 and is moved in the substrate movement direction indicated by an arrow by the rotation of the rollers 10. Each roller 10 is installed at regular intervals in the substrate moving direction, and is rotated or stopped at a predetermined speed by a driving means (not shown). Each roller 10 is inclined and installed such that one end is higher than the other end, so that the plurality of rollers 10 can move the substrate 1 in a direction perpendicular to the substrate moving direction with respect to the horizontal by a predetermined angle θ. Move and hold in an inclined state. Flange portions for guiding the side surface of the substrate 1 are provided at both ends of each roller 10.

  A heater 11 is installed above the substrate 1 moved by the roller 10 over the width of the substrate 1 in the direction orthogonal to the substrate moving direction. The heater 11 is composed of, for example, a plate heater such as a ceramic heater or a halogen heater, and when the substrate 1 passes under the heater 11, the surface of the substrate 1 is close to the temperature of a chemical solution supplied by a chemical solution nozzle 21 described later. Warm to temperature.

  Further, on the downstream side of the substrate movement direction, the chemical nozzle 21 is located above the substrate 1 held by the roller 10 near the upper side of the inclined substrate 1 over the width of the substrate 1 in the substrate movement direction. Installed in parallel. The chemical liquid nozzle 21 is configured, for example, by providing a nozzle opening in a slit shape in the longitudinal direction or at a predetermined interval in a long casing. While the rotation of the roller 10 is stopped and the substrate 1 is held in a state inclined by a predetermined angle θ with respect to the horizontal, a chemical liquid heated to a temperature higher than room temperature is supplied from a chemical liquid supply source (not shown) to the chemical liquid nozzle 21. . The chemical liquid nozzle 21 uniformly supplies the chemical liquid from the nozzle opening to the upper side of the surface of the substrate 1 in the longitudinal direction. The chemical solution supplied to the upper side of the surface of the substrate 1 flows down to the lower side of the surface of the substrate 1 along the inclination of the substrate 1. The chemical solution on the surface of the substrate 1 is processed by the chemical solution supplied to the surface of the substrate 1.

  FIG. 2 is a front view of the heater of the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the heater 11 is not parallel to the substrate 1 but is disposed closer to the lower side than the upper side of the inclined substrate 1. Thereby, the heater 11 can warm the lower side of the surface of the inclined substrate 1 to a temperature higher than the upper side of the surface of the inclined substrate 1.

  Instead of installing the heater 11 as shown in FIG. 2, the heat source inside the heater 11 may be divided and the lower temperature of the inclined heater 11 may be set higher than the upper side.

  1 and 2, the heater 11 is provided above the substrate 1 mounted on the roller 10 to warm the substrate 1 from the surface. However, the heater is below or above the substrate 1 mounted on the roller 10 and above. It may be provided below and the substrate 1 may be warmed from the back or both sides.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a hot water nozzle 12 and hot air knives 13a and 13b are provided instead of the heater 11 of the embodiment shown in FIG. Other components are the same as those of the embodiment shown in FIG.

  Above the substrate 1 moved by the roller 10, a hot water nozzle 12 is installed in parallel with the substrate 1 over a width in a direction orthogonal to the substrate moving direction of the substrate 1. The hot water nozzle 12 is configured by, for example, providing a nozzle opening at a predetermined interval or in a slit shape in a longitudinal direction in a long tube. Hot water heated to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical liquid supplied from the chemical liquid nozzle 21 is supplied from a hot water supply source (not shown) to the hot water nozzle 12. The hot water nozzle 21 uniformly supplies hot water from the nozzle opening to the surface of the substrate 1 in the longitudinal direction. With the hot water supplied to the surface of the substrate 1, the surface of the substrate 1 is warmed to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical solution supplied from the chemical solution nozzle 21.

  Further, downstream of the substrate moving direction, hot air knives 13 a and 13 b are parallel to the substrate 1 over the width in the direction perpendicular to the substrate moving direction of the substrate 1 above and below the substrate 1 moved by the roller 10. Is installed. The hot air knives 13a and 13b are configured, for example, by forming a pressurizing chamber inside a long casing and providing an air passage leading to the pressurizing chamber in a slit shape in the longitudinal direction. Air heated to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical solution supplied from the chemical solution nozzle 21 is supplied from an air supply source (not shown) to the air knives 13a and 13b. The air knives 13a and 13b uniformly blow air over the longitudinal direction at a predetermined incident angle in the direction opposite to the substrate moving direction from the front end of the air passage to the front or back surface of the substrate 1. The air blown onto the surface of the substrate 1 warms the surface of the substrate 1 to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical solution supplied from the chemical solution nozzle 21 and is dried.

  In FIG. 3, the hot water nozzle 12 is provided above the substrate 1 mounted on the roller 10 to warm the substrate 1 from the surface, but the hot water nozzle 12 is below or above the substrate 1 mounted on the roller 10 and It may be provided below and the substrate 1 may be warmed from the back or both sides.

  Further, when the surface of the substrate 1 can be heated to a desired temperature only by the hot air knives 13a and 13b, the hot water nozzle 12 can be omitted.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The substrate processing apparatus is configured to include a plurality of rollers 10 and chemical nozzles 21, 22a, 22b. The configuration and operation of the roller 10 and the chemical nozzle 21 are the same as those in the embodiment shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the chemical nozzles 22 a and 22 b are installed in parallel with the substrate 1 over the width in the direction perpendicular to the substrate moving direction of the substrate 1 above and below the substrate 1 moved by the roller 10. Has been. The chemical liquid nozzles 22a and 22b are configured by, for example, providing a nozzle opening in a slit shape in the longitudinal direction or at a predetermined interval in a long casing. A chemical liquid heated to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical liquid supplied from the chemical liquid nozzle 21 is supplied from a chemical liquid supply source (not shown) to the chemical nozzles 22a and 22b. The chemical nozzles 22a and 22b supply the heated chemical liquid uniformly from the nozzle opening to the front surface or back surface of the substrate 1 in the longitudinal direction. The heated chemical solution supplied to the front and back surfaces of the substrate 1 warms the surface of the substrate 1 to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical solution supplied from the chemical solution nozzle 21.

  In the present embodiment described above, the heater 11, the hot water nozzle 12 and the hot air knives 13a and 13b or the chemical solution nozzles 22a and 22b are provided in only one stage, but these may be provided in two or more stages in the substrate moving direction. .

  According to the embodiment described above, before the chemical solution treatment of the substrate, the substrate is heated to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical solution used for the chemical treatment, so that the upper side and the lower side of the surface of the substrate to which the chemical solution is supplied Since the difference in temperature rise is reduced, the surface temperature of the substrate can be made almost uniform quickly. Therefore, the chemical solution treatment of the tilted substrate can be performed uniformly using the chemical solution having a temperature higher than the normal temperature while holding the substrate in an inclined state.

  Further, according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the lower side of the tilted substrate is heated to a temperature higher than the upper side of the tilted substrate, so that the temperature rise on the lower side of the tilted substrate is reduced. In addition, the temperature of the surface of the substrate can be made almost even more quickly. Therefore, the chemical treatment of the inclined substrate can be performed more uniformly.

  By performing a wet process using the substrate processing apparatus or the substrate processing method of the present invention, the chemical treatment of the tilted substrate is uniformly performed using a chemical solution at a temperature higher than normal temperature while holding the substrate in a tilted state. Therefore, a high quality substrate can be manufactured.

  For example, FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the manufacturing process of the TFT substrate of the liquid crystal display device. In the thin film forming step (step 101), a thin film such as a conductor film or an insulator film, which becomes a transparent electrode for driving a liquid crystal, is formed on a glass substrate by sputtering, plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVC), or the like. In the resist coating process (step 102), a photosensitive resin material (photoresist) is applied by a roll coating method or the like to form a photoresist film on the thin film formed in the thin film forming process (step 101). In the exposure step (step 103), the mask pattern is transferred to the photoresist film using a proximity exposure apparatus, a projection exposure apparatus, or the like. In the development step (step 104), a developer is supplied onto the photoresist film by a shower development method or the like to remove unnecessary portions of the photoresist film. In the etching process (step 105), a portion of the thin film formed in the thin film formation process (step 101) that is not masked by the photoresist film is removed by wet etching. In the stripping step (step 106), the photoresist film that has finished the role of the mask in the etching step (step 105) is stripped with a stripping solution. Before or after each of these steps, a substrate cleaning / drying step is performed as necessary. These steps are repeated several times to form a TFT array on the glass substrate.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate of the liquid crystal display device. In the black matrix forming step (step 201), a black matrix is formed on the glass substrate by processes such as resist coating, exposure, development, etching, and peeling. In the colored pattern forming step (step 202), a colored pattern is formed on the glass substrate by a dyeing method, a pigment dispersion method, a printing method, an electrodeposition method, or the like. This process is repeated for the R, G, and B coloring patterns. In the protective film forming step (step 203), a protective film is formed on the colored pattern, and in the transparent electrode film forming step (step 204), a transparent electrode film is formed on the protective film. Before, during or after each of these steps, a substrate cleaning / drying step is performed as necessary.

  In the manufacturing process of the TFT substrate shown in FIG. 5, in the development process (step 104), the etching process (step 105) and the peeling process (step 106), in the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate shown in FIG. The substrate processing apparatus or the substrate processing method of the present invention can be applied to the development, etching, and peeling processes in the process (step 201) and the colored pattern forming process (step 202).

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the substrate processing apparatus by one embodiment of this invention. It is a front view of the heater of the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the substrate processing apparatus by other embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the substrate processing apparatus by further another embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the manufacturing process of the TFT substrate of a liquid crystal display device. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the manufacturing process of the color filter board | substrate of a liquid crystal display device.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Board | substrate 10 Roller 11 Heater 12 Hot water nozzle 13a, 13b Hot air knife 21,22a, 22b Chemical solution nozzle

Claims (12)

Substrate moving means for moving and holding the substrate in a state inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a chemical solution supply unit that supplies a chemical solution having a temperature higher than room temperature to the substrate held by the substrate moving unit;
Before the chemical liquid supply means supplies the chemical liquid, the apparatus includes a heating means for heating the substrate moved or held by the substrate moving means to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical liquid supplied by the chemical liquid supply means. Substrate processing equipment.   The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heating unit includes a heater.   The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heating means includes means for supplying hot water or hot air to the substrate.   The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heating unit includes a unit that supplies a heated chemical solution to the substrate separately from the chemical solution supply unit.   5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heating unit heats the lower side of the inclined substrate to a temperature higher than the upper side of the inclined substrate. While holding the substrate at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal,
A substrate processing method for supplying a chemical solution at a temperature higher than room temperature to a substrate to perform chemical treatment of the substrate,
Before performing chemical processing on a substrate, the substrate is heated to a temperature close to the temperature of the chemical used for the chemical processing while moving or holding the substrate in a state inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal. .   The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein the substrate is heated with a heater.   The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein the substrate is heated by supplying warm water or warm air to the substrate.   The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein the substrate is heated by supplying a heated chemical solution to the substrate separately from the chemical solution used for the chemical treatment.   The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein the lower side of the inclined substrate is heated to a temperature higher than the upper side of the inclined substrate.   A method for manufacturing a substrate, comprising performing a wet process using the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1.   A method for manufacturing a substrate, comprising performing a wet process using the substrate processing method according to claim 6.

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