JP2010034209A - Thermal processing apparatus and substrate processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thermal processing apparatus that speedily cools a substrate after thermal processing with simple constitution and keeps constant a temperature history of the substrate in the thermal processing. <P>SOLUTION: The substrate W carried in from the outside of a heating unit PHP is placed on lift pins 71 of a cool plate 70, and conveyed up to a hot plate 60 by a conveyance arm 86. While the substrate W is thermally processed by the hot plate 60, the conveyance arm 86 comes into contact with the cool plate 70 to be cooled. After the thermal processing, the substrate W is received by the conveyance arm 86 and moved from the hot plate 60 to the cool plate 70. A reverse surface of the conveyance arm 86 where the substrate W is received and mounted comes into contact with a top surface of the cool plate 70, so that the conveyance arm 86 cools the substrate W. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a heat treatment apparatus for performing a heat treatment on a semiconductor substrate, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a glass substrate for a photomask, a substrate for an optical disk (hereinafter simply referred to as “substrate”), and a substrate processing apparatus incorporating the heat treatment apparatus. About.

  Products such as semiconductor devices and liquid crystal displays are manufactured by subjecting the substrate to a series of processes such as cleaning, resist coating, exposure, development, etching, formation of an interlayer insulating film, heat treatment, and dicing. Among these, the heat treatment is, for example, a process performed after pattern exposure, after application of an SOG (Spin on glass) material, which is a material of an interlayer insulating film, or after application of a photoresist. It is an essential and important process.

  In a heat treatment apparatus that performs this kind of heat treatment, it is required to perform heat treatment and subsequent cooling treatment quickly to shorten the treatment time. In particular, when post-exposure heat treatment is performed on a substrate on which a chemically amplified resist is formed, stop of the resist reaction is delayed unless the cooling treatment is performed within a short time after the post-exposure heat treatment, and the line width of the pattern There was a problem that adverse effects would occur. In order to solve such a problem, Patent Document 1 discloses a heat treatment apparatus in which a transfer arm that transfers a substrate after heat treatment is provided with a cooling function, and the substrate after heat treatment is quickly cooled. .

JP-A-8-162405

  In the heat treatment apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, a Peltier element is provided on the transfer arm, or cooling water is circulated for cooling. However, in this case, since the transfer arm moves, not only wiring and piping are complicated, but there is a possibility that problems such as breakage of the wiring and liquid leakage may occur due to repeated movement.

  Although it is conceivable to increase the heat capacity of the transfer arm without using a Peltier element or cooling water, thereby cooling the substrate after the heat treatment, in this case, the transfer arm gradually accumulates heat by repeated cooling processes. When heat is stored in the transfer arm, the cooling rate differs between the initial substrate and the latter substrate of the lot, and the temperature history cannot be kept constant. In addition, it takes time to gradually cool down and the overhead time becomes longer. Problems also arise.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and can quickly cool a substrate after heat treatment with a simple configuration, and can maintain a constant temperature history of the substrate during heat treatment. An object is to provide a heat treatment apparatus and a substrate processing apparatus.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a first aspect of the present invention provides a heat treatment apparatus for performing heat treatment on a substrate, a hot plate for placing and heating the substrate, a cool plate for cooling the substrate, the hot plate, and the cool plate. A transport mechanism for transporting the substrate between the transport arm, the transport mechanism having a planar size larger than the planar size of the substrate and placing the substrate thereon, and the transport arm as the hot plate. An arm drive mechanism that moves between the cool plate and the cooler plate, and the transfer arm that receives and places the substrate heated by the hot plate moves from the hot plate to the cool plate by the arm drive mechanism. And the substrate through the transfer arm when the back surface of the transfer arm contacts the surface of the cool plate Characterized by cooling.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the heat treatment apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the substrate has a disc shape, and the hot plate and the cool plate have an inner side within 80% of the radius from the center of the substrate. A lift pin that moves up and down while supporting the region is provided, and a slit into which the lift pin enters is formed in the transfer arm.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the heat treatment apparatus according to the second aspect of the invention, when the substrate is transferred from the lift pin to the transfer arm, the arm driving mechanism is moved simultaneously with the transfer arm. It is characterized by raising.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the heat treatment apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects of the present invention, a heat conductive sheet based on a resin is pasted on the back surface of the transfer arm or the surface of the cool plate. It is characterized by providing.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein when the substrate is heated by the hot plate, the back surface of the transfer arm is attached to the cool plate. The transfer arm is cooled by being brought into contact with the surface of the sheet.

  The invention of claim 6 is the heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the transfer arm is at least selected from the group consisting of aluminum, copper, alumina, and silicon carbide. It is formed by the raw material containing 1 type.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the heat treatment apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth aspects of the present invention, a heat radiating member is attached to the transfer arm.

  The invention of claim 8 is a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process on a substrate, and a heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, and a transfer means for transferring the substrate to the heat treatment apparatus. , And the transfer means carries the substrate in and out of the cool plate.

  According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the transport means transports the substrate after the exposure processing to the heat treatment apparatus.

  According to the present invention, the transfer arm that receives and places the substrate heated by the hot plate is moved from the hot plate to the cool plate by the arm driving mechanism, and the back surface of the transfer arm comes into contact with the surface of the cool plate. Since the substrate is cooled via the transfer arm, the transfer arm merely mediates heat transfer from the substrate to the cool plate, and the substrate after the heat treatment can be quickly cooled with a simple configuration. In addition, since heat is not stored in the transfer arm, the substrate cooling rate is constant, and the temperature history of the substrate during the heat treatment can be maintained constant.

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 2, the hot plate and the cool plate are provided with lift pins that move up and down while supporting an inner region within 80% of the radius from the center of the substrate. The in-plane temperature distribution uniformity is prevented from being impaired.

  In particular, according to the third aspect of the present invention, when the substrate is transferred from the lift pin to the transport arm, the arm drive mechanism lifts the transport arm at the same time that the lift pin is lowered, so that the substrate transfer time is shortened.

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 4, since the heat conductive sheet based on the resin is pasted on the back surface of the transfer arm or the surface of the cool plate, the close contact between the back surface of the transfer arm and the surface of the cool plate. And the heat conduction is improved.

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 5, when the substrate is heated by the hot plate, the back surface of the transfer arm is brought into contact with the surface of the cool plate to cool the transfer arm, so that heat transfer of the transfer arm is ensured. When the substrate heated by the hot plate is received, the temperature of the transfer arm can be always constant.

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 6, the transfer arm is formed of a material containing at least one selected from the group consisting of aluminum, copper, alumina, and silicon carbide. The substrate can be quickly cooled.

  In particular, according to the seventh aspect of the present invention, since the heat radiating member is attached to the transfer arm, the heat radiation from the heat radiating member is generated in addition to the heat conduction to the cool plate, so that the cooling of the substrate can be promoted.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<1. Overall configuration>
First, the overall configuration of a substrate processing apparatus incorporating a heat treatment apparatus according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a substrate processing apparatus 1 incorporating a heat treatment apparatus according to the present invention. 2 is a schematic side view showing the arrangement configuration of the liquid processing unit of the substrate processing apparatus 1, FIG. 3 is a schematic side view showing the arrangement configuration of the heat treatment unit, and FIG. 4 is a transfer robot and a substrate mounting portion. It is a side view which shows the arrangement configuration. In addition, in FIG. 1 and subsequent figures, in order to clarify the directional relationship, an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system in which the Z-axis direction is a vertical direction and the XY plane is a horizontal plane is appropriately attached.

  The substrate processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is an apparatus (so-called coater and developer) that applies a photoresist film to a disk-shaped semiconductor wafer as a substrate W and performs development processing on the semiconductor wafer after pattern exposure. The substrate W to be processed by the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention is not limited to a semiconductor wafer, and may be a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a glass substrate for a photomask, or the like.

  The substrate processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is configured by connecting four processing blocks of an indexer block ID, a coating processing block SC, a development processing block SD, and an interface block IF in one direction (X-axis direction). An exposure apparatus (stepper) EXP, which is an external apparatus separate from the substrate processing apparatus 1, is connected to the interface block IF so as to be adjacent thereto.

  The indexer block ID is a processing block for carrying the unprocessed substrate W received from outside the apparatus into the coating process block SC and carrying out the processed substrate W after the development process to the outside of the apparatus. The indexer block ID includes a placement table 11 on which a plurality of carriers C (four in this embodiment) are placed side by side, and an unprocessed substrate W is taken out from each carrier C, and a processed substrate W is placed on each carrier C. And an indexer robot IDR for storage.

  A coating processing block SC is arranged adjacent to the indexer block ID. The coating processing block SC is a processing block for forming a resist film on the substrate W and an antireflection film on the base. The coating process block SC is roughly divided into upper and lower two stages of an upper coating cell UC and a lower coating cell LC. The upper coating cell UC includes a main transfer robot TR1 and a plurality of processing units that are in charge of transfer by the main transfer robot TR1. Similarly, the lower coating cell LC includes a main transfer robot TR2 and a plurality of processing units that are in charge of transfer by the main transfer robot TR2.

  A development processing block SD is arranged so as to be sandwiched between the coating processing block SC and the interface block IF. The development processing block SD is a processing block for performing development processing on the substrate W after the exposure processing. The development processing block SD is roughly divided into upper and lower two stages of an upper development cell UD and a lower development cell LD. The upper development cell UD includes a main transfer robot TR3 and a plurality of processing units that are in charge of transfer by the main transfer robot TR3. Similarly, the lower development cell LD is configured to include a main transfer robot TR4 and a plurality of processing units that are in charge of transfer by the main transfer robot TR4.

  The upper coating cell UC and the upper development cell UD arranged along the X-axis direction are connected to form one substrate processing path that connects the indexer block ID and the interface block IF. Similarly, the lower coating cells LC and the lower development cells LD arranged along the X-axis direction are connected to form one substrate processing path that connects the indexer block ID and the interface block IF. That is, the substrate processing apparatus 1 has two upper and lower substrate processing paths across the coating processing block SC and the development processing block SD.

  An interface block IF is disposed adjacent to the development processing block SD. The interface block IF is a processing block that transfers the unexposed substrate W to the exposure apparatus EXP that is an external apparatus separate from the substrate processing apparatus 1 and receives the exposed substrate W from the exposure apparatus EXP. The interface block IF includes a first interface robot IFR1 and a second interface robot IFR2 that transport the substrate W.

  Substrate placement portions PASS1U, PASS2U, PASS1L, and PASS2L are provided at the connection portion between the indexer block ID and the coating processing block SC. The substrate platforms PASS1U and PASS2U are provided in a vertically stacked manner at the connection portion between the indexer block ID and the upper coating cell UC. The transfer of the substrate W between the indexer robot IDR and the main transfer robot TR1 is performed via the substrate platforms PASS1U and PASS2U. On the other hand, the substrate platforms PASS1L and PASS2L are provided in a vertically stacked manner at the connection portion between the indexer block ID and the lower coating cell LC. Transfer of the substrate W between the indexer robot IDR and the main transport robot TR2 is performed via the substrate platforms PASS1L and PASS2L.

  In addition, substrate mounting portions PASS3U, PASS4U, PASS3L, and PASS4L are provided at a connection portion between the coating processing block SC and the development processing block SD. The substrate platforms PASS3U and PASS4U are provided in a vertically stacked manner at the connection portion between the upper coating cell UC and the upper development cell UD. The transfer of the substrate W between the main transfer robot TR1 and the main transfer robot TR3 is performed through the substrate platforms PASS3U and PASS4U. On the other hand, the substrate platforms PASS3L and PASS4L are provided in a vertically stacked manner at a connection portion between the lower coating cell LC and the lower developing cell LD. The transfer of the substrate W between the main transfer robot TR2 and the main transfer robot TR4 is performed via the substrate platforms PASS3L and PASS4L.

  The development processing block SD is provided with substrate platforms PASS5U, PASS6U, PASS5L, and PASS6L. The substrate platforms PASS5U and PASS6U are provided on the upper development cell UD so as to be stacked one above the other. The transfer of the substrate W between the main transfer robot TR3 and the first interface robot IFR1 is performed via the substrate platforms PASS5U and PASS6U. The substrate platforms PASS5L and PASS6L are provided in a vertically stacked manner on the lower development cell LD. The transfer of the substrate W between the main transfer robot TR4 and the first interface robot IFR1 is performed via the substrate platforms PASS5L and PASS6L.

  Furthermore, the substrate block portions PASS7 and PASS8 are provided on the interface block IF so as to be stacked one above the other. The transfer of the substrate W between the first interface robot IFR1 and the second interface robot IFR2 is performed via the substrate platforms PASS7 and PASS8. Each of the above substrate placement units is configured to include three support pins, and the transfer of the substrate W is performed when the other robot receives the substrate W placed on the support pin by one robot. . Each substrate placement unit is provided with an optical sensor that detects the presence or absence of the substrate W.

<1-1. Indexer Block>
Subsequently, each processing block will be described in order from the indexer block ID. A carrier C storing a plurality of unprocessed substrates W is loaded into the placement table 11 having the indexer block ID by an unmanned transport mechanism such as an AGV (automated guided vehicle). Further, the carrier C storing the processed plurality of substrates W is also carried out by AGV or the like. In addition to the FOUP (front opening unified pod) that stores the substrate W in a sealed space, the carrier C may be an OC (open cassette) that exposes the standard mechanical interface (SMIF) pod or the storage substrate W to the outside air. There may be.

  The indexer robot IR includes a movable table 12 that moves horizontally along the arrangement direction (Y-axis direction) of the carrier C on the side of the mounting table 11, and a lift that expands and contracts in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) with respect to the movable table 12. A shaft 13 and a holding arm 14 that holds the substrate W in a horizontal posture are provided. The holding arm 14 is mounted on the upper end of the elevating shaft 13 and is configured to be capable of turning around the axis along the vertical direction and sliding along the turning radius. Therefore, the holding arm 14 performs horizontal movement along the Y-axis direction, vertical movement, turning movement in the horizontal plane, and advance / retreat movement along the turning radius direction. As a result, the indexer robot IR can access the carrier C to each carrier C to take out the unprocessed substrate W and store the processed substrate W.

<1-2. Application processing block>
In the upper coating cell UC of the coating processing block SC, a heat treatment unit group and a liquid processing unit group are arranged facing each other across a transport space TP1 for the main transport robot TR1 to move. Specifically, the liquid processing unit group is located on the front side of the apparatus ((−Y) side), and the heat treatment unit group is located on the back side of the apparatus ((+ Y) side).

  As shown in FIG. 2, the upper coating cell UC includes a plurality of liquid processing unit groups in the upper stage (three in the present embodiment) and a plurality of antireflection film coating processing units BARC arranged adjacent to each other in the lower stage ( 3 in this embodiment) and a resist film coating processing unit RES arranged adjacent to each other. Each of the three antireflection film coating processing units BARC is mounted on a spin chuck that holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates the substrate W in a substantially horizontal plane, a spin motor that rotates the spin chuck, and the spin chuck. A cup or the like surrounding the periphery of the held substrate W is provided. The three antireflection coating application units BARC are arranged in parallel without being partitioned by a partition wall or the like. A common anti-reflection film coating solution supply unit 21 is provided in the three anti-reflection film coating processing units BARC (FIG. 1). The antireflection film coating liquid supply unit 21 moves the discharge nozzle 22 along the arrangement of the three antireflection film coating processing units BARC, and moves it forward and backward toward the antireflection film coating processing unit BARC. The discharge nozzle 22 discharges the coating liquid for the antireflection film. A plurality of discharge nozzles 22 are provided for each type of coating liquid for the antireflection film, and the coating liquid supply unit 21 for the antireflection film grips and moves one of them.

  The three resist film coating processing units RES provided in the lower stage of the upper coating cell UC also have substantially the same configuration as the antireflection film coating processing unit BARC. That is, each of the three resist film coating processing units RES includes a spin chuck, a spin motor, a cup, and the like. The three resist film coating processing units RES are juxtaposed without being partitioned by a partition wall or the like, and the resist film coating liquid supply section (shared with the three resist film coating processing units RES) (Not shown) is provided. The resist film coating solution supply unit moves the discharge nozzle along the sequence of the three resist film coating processing units RES and moves forward and backward toward the resist film coating processing unit RES. The discharge nozzle discharges the coating liquid for the resist film. In the same manner as described above, a plurality of discharge nozzles are provided for each type of resist film coating liquid, and the resist film coating liquid supply unit grips and moves one of them.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the heat treatment unit group of the upper coating cell UC has heat treatment units stacked and arranged in three rows facing the transfer space TP1. In each of the columns closest to the indexer block ID and the development processing block SD, four heating units PHP and one cooling unit CP are vertically stacked. In the middle row, two heating units PHP and one cooling unit CP are stacked one above the other. The heating unit PHP heats the substrate W up to a predetermined temperature. The heating unit PHP of the present embodiment also has a cooling function, and also performs a rough cooling process on the substrate W after the heating process. The heating unit PHP will be further described later. The cooling unit CP cools the heated substrate W to lower the temperature to a predetermined temperature and maintains the substrate W at the predetermined temperature. In one of the ten heating units PHP arranged in the heat treatment unit group of the upper coating cell UC, in a vapor atmosphere of HMDS (hexamethyldisilazane) in order to improve the adhesion between the substrate W and the coating film. The substrate W is heat-treated (adhesion strengthening treatment). Note that the heating unit PHP for adhesion strengthening treatment forms a sealed space between the surface of the hot plate and a hot plate surface so that the atmosphere of HMDS does not leak outside.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the transport space TP1 is provided with two vertical guide rails 31 for guiding the main transport robot TR1 in the vertical direction and horizontal guide rails 32 for guiding in the horizontal direction (X direction). . The two vertical guide rails 31 are fixedly installed on the liquid processing unit group side at both ends in the X-axis direction of the transport space TP1. The horizontal guide rail 32 is slidably mounted between the two vertical guide rails 31. A base portion 33 is slidably attached to the lateral guide rail 32. The base portion 33 is attached so as to project laterally to the approximate center of the transport space TP1. The horizontal guide rail 32 is guided by the vertical guide rail 31 and moved in the vertical direction by a drive unit (not shown), and the base portion 33 is guided by the horizontal guide rail 32 and moved in the X-axis direction.

  The base portion 33 is provided with a turntable 35 so as to be able to turn around an axis along the vertical direction. On the turntable 35, two holding arms 37a and 37b for holding the substrate W are mounted so as to be independently slidable in the horizontal direction. The two holding arms 37a and 37b are provided at positions close to each other in the vertical direction. The base unit 33 is provided with a drive unit for rotating the turntable 35, and the turntable 35 has a built-in drive unit for slidingly moving the holding arms 37a and 37b in the turning radius direction of the turntable 35 (both shown). (Omitted). Accordingly, each of the holding arms 37a and 37b performs an up-and-down movement, a turning operation in a horizontal plane, and a forward and backward movement along the turning radial direction. As a result, the main transfer robot TR1 has the two holding arms 37a and 37b individually disposed in the liquid processing unit group and the heat treatment unit group of the upper coating cell UC and the substrate platforms PASS1U, PASS2U, and PASS3U. , PASS4U can be accessed and the substrate W can be exchanged between them.

  The configuration of the lower coating cell LC is substantially the same as the configuration of the upper coating cell UC. That is, also in the lower coating cell LC, the heat treatment unit group and the liquid treatment unit group are arranged to face each other across the transport space TP2 for the main transport robot TR2 to move.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid processing unit group of the lower coating cell LC includes a plurality (three in the present embodiment) of the antireflection film coating processing units BARC arranged in the upper stage and a plurality of liquid processing units in the lower stage. (Three in this embodiment) are provided with resist film coating processing units RES arranged adjacent to each other. The antireflection film coating unit BARC and the resist film coating unit RES are the same as those in the upper coating cell UC.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the heat treatment unit group of the lower coating cell LC has heat treatment units stacked and arranged in three rows facing the transfer space TP2. In each of the columns closest to the indexer block ID and the development processing block SD, four heating units PHP and one cooling unit CP are vertically stacked. In the middle row, two heating units PHP and one cooling unit CP are stacked one above the other. The heating unit PHP and the cooling unit CP are the same as those in the upper application cell UC. Similarly to the upper coating cell UC, in one of the ten heating units PHP, the substrate W is heat-treated in a HMDS vapor atmosphere in order to improve the adhesion between the substrate W and the coating film. The heating unit PHP forms a sealed space with the surface of the hot plate by a cover (not shown) so that the HMDS atmosphere does not leak outside.

  The configuration of the main transfer robot TR2 is the same as that of the main transfer robot TR1 in the upper application cell UC. Therefore, the main transfer robot TR2 has two holding arms 37a and 37b that are individually disposed in the liquid processing unit group and the heat treatment unit group of the lower coating cell LC and the substrate platforms PASS1L, PASS2L, and PASS3L. , PASS4L can be accessed, and the substrate W can be exchanged between them.

<1-3. Development processing block>
In the upper development cell UD of the development processing block SD, a heat treatment unit group and a liquid processing unit group are arranged to face each other across a transport space TP3 for the main transport robot TR3 to move. Specifically, like the coating processing block SC, the liquid processing unit group is located on the front side ((−Y) side) of the apparatus, and the heat treatment unit group is located on the rear side ((+ Y) side) of the apparatus.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid processing unit group of the upper development cell UD includes a plurality of (three in the present embodiment) development processing units DEV arranged in two upper and lower stages. Each of the plurality of development processing units DEV includes a spin chuck that sucks and holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates the substrate W in a substantially horizontal plane, a spin motor that rotates the spin chuck, and the substrate W held on the spin chuck. It has a cup that surrounds it. The upper three development processing units DEV in the upper development cell UD are arranged side by side without being partitioned by a partition wall or the like. A common developer supply section 31 is provided for the three development processing units DEV (FIG. 1). The developer supply unit 31 moves the discharge nozzle 32 along the arrangement of the three development processing units DEV. The discharge nozzle 32 discharges the developer. As the discharge nozzle 32, a slit nozzle having a slit-like discharge hole having a length equal to or larger than the size of the substrate W, a nozzle having a plurality of small holes, or the like can be used.

  The three development processing units DEV in the lower stage of the upper development cell UD are also arranged in parallel without being partitioned by a partition wall or the like, as in the upper stage. A common developer supply unit is provided for the three development processing units DEV. This developer supply unit is also the same as the upper stage.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the heat treatment unit group of the upper development cell UD has the processing units stacked in three rows facing the transport space TP3. In the row closest to the coating processing block SC, three heating units PHP and two cooling units CP are vertically stacked. Further, in the row close to the interface block IF, four heating units PHP are stacked and the substrate platforms PASS5U and PASS6U are disposed at the top. In the middle row, a single edge exposure unit EEW and one cooling unit CP are stacked. The heating unit PHP and the cooling unit CP are generally the same as those in the above-described coating processing block SC. The edge exposure unit EEW includes a spin chuck that sucks and holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates the substrate W in a substantially horizontal plane, a light irradiator that irradiates light to the periphery of the substrate W held by the spin chuck, and the like. (Both are not shown). The edge exposure unit EEW is not a processing unit corresponding to the heat treatment unit, but is disposed in the heat treatment unit group of the development processing block SD for the convenience of the apparatus layout.

  The four heating units PHP arranged in a row near the interface block IF are heat treatment units that perform post-exposure heat treatment (Post Exposure Bake) on the substrate W immediately after exposure. These four heating units PHP are different in character from the heating units PHP arranged in a row close to the coating processing block SC in that the first interface robot IFR1 of the interface block IF bears transportation, but the layout is convenient. Above, they are arranged in the heat treatment unit group of the development processing block SD. The four heating units PHP and the substrate platforms PASS5U and PASS6U arranged in a row close to the interface block IF have openings on both the front side facing the transfer space TP3 and the side facing the interface block IF. The substrate W can be carried in and out from both sides (see FIG. 7).

  The configuration of the main transfer robot TR3 of the upper development cell UD is the same as that of the main transfer robots TR1 and TR2 in the coating processing block SC. Therefore, the main transfer robot TR3 has two holding arms 37a and 37b that are individually disposed in the liquid processing unit group and the heat treatment unit group of the upper development cell UD and the substrate platforms PASS3U, PASS4U, PASS5U, The PASS 6U can be accessed, and the substrate W can be exchanged between them.

  The configuration of the lower development cell LD is substantially the same as the configuration of the upper development cell UD. That is, also in the lower development cell LD, the heat treatment unit group and the liquid processing unit group are arranged to face each other across the transport space TP4 for the main transport robot TR4 to move.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid processing unit group of the lower development cell LD includes a plurality (three in the present embodiment) of development processing units DEV arranged in two upper and lower stages. The development processing unit DEV is the same as that in the upper development cell UD. Similarly to the upper development cell UD, three development processing units DEV are juxtaposed in the upper and lower two stages without being partitioned by a partition wall or the like, and are shared by the three development processing units DEV. A developer supply unit is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the heat treatment unit group of the lower development cell LD has the processing units stacked in three rows facing the transport space TP4. In the row closest to the coating processing block SC, three heating units PHP and two cooling units CP are vertically stacked. In addition, in the row close to the interface block IF, four heating units PHP are stacked and the substrate platforms PASS5L and PASS6L are disposed at the top. In the middle row, a single edge exposure unit EEW and one cooling unit CP are stacked. The heating unit PHP, the cooling unit CP, and the edge exposure unit EEW are the same as those in the upper development cell UD. Further, the edge exposure unit EEW and four heating units PHP for performing post-exposure heating processing (heating units PHP in a row close to the interface block IF) are arranged in the heat treatment unit group of the development processing block SD for convenience of layout. . Further, the four heating units PHP and the substrate platforms PASS5L and PASS6L arranged in a row close to the interface block IF have openings on both the front side facing the transfer space TP4 and the side facing the interface block IF. The substrate W can be carried in and out from both sides.

  The configuration of the main transfer robot TR4 of the lower development cell LD is the same as that of the main transfer robots TR1 and TR2 in the coating processing block SC. Accordingly, the main transfer robot TR4 has the two holding arms 37a and 37b individually disposed in the liquid processing unit group and the heat treatment unit group of the lower development cell LD and the substrate platforms PASS3L, PASS4L, and PASS5L. , The PASS 6L can be accessed, and the substrate W can be exchanged between them.

<1-4. Interface block>
FIG. 5 is a side view showing the configuration of the interface block IF. The first interface robot IFR1 and the second interface robot IFR2 of the interface block IF are provided side by side in a direction (Y axis direction) perpendicular to the direction (X axis direction) of the processing blocks. The first interface robot IFR1 is disposed at a position close to the heat treatment unit group of the development processing block SD. The second interface robot IFR2 is disposed at a position close to the substrate carry-in / out entrance of the exposure apparatus EXP. Between the first interface robot IFR1 and the second interface robot IFR2, two substrate platforms PASS7 and PASS8, a substrate return return buffer RBF, and a substrate feed send buffer SBF are stacked one above the other. .

  When the development processing block SD cannot perform the development processing of the exposed substrate W due to some trouble, the return buffer RBF performs the post-exposure heating processing by the heating unit PHP of the development processing block SD, and then the substrate. W is temporarily stored and stored. On the other hand, the send buffer SBF temporarily stores and stores the substrate W before the exposure processing when the exposure apparatus EXP cannot accept the unexposed substrate W. Each of the return buffer RBF and the send buffer SBF is configured by a storage shelf that can store a plurality of substrates W in multiple stages. The first interface robot IFR1 accesses the return buffer RBF, and the second interface robot IFR2 accesses the send buffer SBF.

  The first interface robot IFR1 includes a base 43 that is fixedly installed, a lifting shaft 45 that expands and contracts in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) with respect to the base 43, and a holding arm 47 that holds the substrate W. Yes. The holding arm 47 is mounted on the upper end of the elevating shaft 45, and is configured to be capable of turning around the axis along the vertical direction and sliding along the turning radius. Therefore, the holding arm 47 can move up and down, turn in the horizontal plane, and move forward and backward along the turning radius direction. As a result, the first interface robot IFR1 performs a post-exposure heating process in which the holding arm 47 is disposed in the return buffer RBF, the substrate platforms PASS5U, PASS6U, PASS5L, PASS6L, PASS7, PASS8 and the development processing block SD. The PHP can be accessed, and the substrate W can be exchanged with them.

  The second interface robot IFR2 also includes a base 43, a lifting shaft 45, and a holding arm 47, and has the same configuration as the first interface robot IFR1. For this reason, the second interface robot IFR2 can cause the holding arm 47 to access the send buffer SBF and the substrate platforms PASS7 and PASS8 and transfer the substrate W between them. Further, the second interface robot IFR2 delivers the unexposed substrate W to the substrate carry-in / out port of the exposure apparatus EXP and receives the exposed substrate W from the substrate carry-in / out port.

  The exposure apparatus EXP receives the unexposed substrate W coated with resist by the substrate processing apparatus 1 from the interface block IF, and performs the pattern exposure process. The substrate W subjected to the exposure processing by the exposure apparatus EXP is returned to the interface block IF. The exposure apparatus EXP performs so-called “immersion exposure processing” in which exposure processing is performed in a state where a liquid having a large refractive index (for example, pure water having a refractive index n = 1.44) is filled between the projection optical system and the substrate W. ”May be used.

<1-5. Control system>
Next, the control system of the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be described. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an outline of a control system of the substrate processing apparatus 1. The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a control system configured in a hierarchical structure, and includes an upper main controller MC and a plurality of lower cell controllers CC as shown in FIG. The hardware configuration of the main controller MC and each cell controller CC is the same as that of a general computer. That is, each controller stores a CPU that performs various arithmetic processes, a ROM that is a read-only memory that stores basic programs, a RAM that is a readable and writable memory that stores various information, and control applications and data. A magnetic disk or the like is provided.

  One upper main controller MC is provided for the entire substrate processing apparatus 1, and is mainly responsible for management of the entire apparatus, management of the main panel MP, and management of the cell controller CC. The main panel MP functions as a display for the main controller MC. Various commands can be input to the main controller MC from the keyboard KB. The main panel MP may be configured by a touch panel, and input work may be performed from the main panel MP to the main controller MC.

  The cell controller CC is composed of one transfer robot (including the main transfer robots TR1 to TR4, the indexer robot IDR, the first interface robot IFR1 and the second interface robot IFR2) and a processing unit that is in charge of transfer by the transfer robot. It is a control unit that manages the cells. The cell controller CC controls the transfer operation of the transfer robot via the lower transfer controller TC, and controls the operation of each processing unit in the cell via the unit controller PC.

  A host computer 100 connected to the substrate processing apparatus 1 via a LAN line is located as a higher-level control mechanism of the main controller MC. The host computer 100 is a CPU that performs various arithmetic processes, a ROM that is a read-only memory that stores basic programs, a RAM that is a readable and writable memory that stores various information, and a magnetic that stores control applications and data. It has a disk and the like, and has the same configuration as a general computer. The host computer 100 is normally connected with a plurality of substrate processing apparatuses 1 of the present embodiment. The host computer 100 passes a recipe describing the processing procedure and processing conditions to each connected substrate processing apparatus 1. The recipe delivered from the host computer 100 is stored in a storage unit (for example, a memory) of the main controller MC of each substrate processing apparatus 1.

  The exposure apparatus EXP is provided with a separate control unit that is independent from the control mechanism of the substrate processing apparatus 1 described above. That is, the exposure apparatus EXP does not operate under the control of the main controller MC of the substrate processing apparatus 1 but performs independent operation control by itself. However, such an exposure apparatus EXP also performs operation control according to the recipe received from the host computer 100, and the substrate processing apparatus 1 performs a process synchronized with the exposure process in the exposure apparatus EXP.

<1-6. Substrate placement section>
The substrate processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is provided with a plurality of substrate platforms, which are provided with two substrate platforms as a pair (for example, the substrate platform PASS1U and the substrate platform). Part PASS2U, substrate platform PASS7 and substrate platform PASS8). This includes a sending substrate mounting portion for sending the substrate W before exposure from the indexer block ID to the interface block IF, and returning the substrate W after exposure from the interface block IF to the indexer block ID. This is because the return substrate mounting portion is separated. That is, the substrate platforms PASS1U, PASS1L, PASS3U, PASS3L, PASS5U, PASS5L, and PASS7 correspond to the sending substrate platform, and the substrate W before exposure is transferred via these. On the other hand, the substrate placement units PASS2U, PASS2L, PASS4U, PASS4L, PASS6U, PASS6L, and PASS8 correspond to the substrate placement unit, and the exposed substrate W is transferred via these.

  In addition, when each cell controller CC in FIG. 6 performs transport control in the cell, each substrate platform is placed on an entrance substrate platform on which the substrate W is carried into the cell or on an exit substrate placed on the cell. It becomes a placement part. The entrance substrate placement unit and the exit substrate placement unit are not absolutely defined for a certain substrate placement unit, but are relatively determined. For example, the substrate platform PASS3U on which the substrate W before exposure is placed is an exit substrate platform of the upper coating cell UC and an entrance substrate platform of the upper development cell UD.

<2. Configuration of heating unit>
Next, the structure of the heating unit PHP that is a heat treatment apparatus according to the present invention will be described. Here, among the heat treatment units arranged in the heat treatment unit group of the development processing block SD, the heating units PHP arranged in a row close to the interface block IF (that is, the heating unit PHP that performs post-exposure heat treatment) will be described. However, the other heating units PHP have almost the same configuration.

  FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the heating unit PHP. 8 and 9 are a plan view and a side view of the heating unit PHP, respectively. The heating unit PHP mainly includes a hot plate 60, a cool plate 70, and a local transport mechanism 80 inside the housing 50. The housing 50 is formed with a front side opening 52 facing the transport space TP3 (or TP4) and a side opening 51 facing the interface block IF. The main transfer robot TR3 (or TR4) carries the substrate W into and out of the heating unit PHP through the opening 52 on the front surface, and the first interface robot IFR1 transfers the substrate to the heating unit PHP through the opening 51 on the side surface. W is carried in and out. The other heating units PHP have the same configuration except that the side opening 51 is not formed in the housing 50 and only the front opening 52 is formed.

  The hot plate 60 is a metal (for example, aluminum) plate incorporating a heating mechanism, and has a disk shape. As a heating mechanism of the hot plate 60, for example, a mica heater or a heat pipe structure can be adopted. The diameter of the hot plate 60 is larger than the diameter of the substrate W.

  The hot plate 60 is provided with a plurality of (three in the present embodiment) lift pins 61 that appear and disappear on the plate surface. The three lift pins 61 are arranged in a circular area having a diameter of 80% or less of the diameter of the substrate W. For example, if the substrate W is a semiconductor wafer having a diameter of 300 mm, it is arranged in a circular area having a diameter of 240 mm.

  The three lift pins 61 are moved up and down collectively by the air cylinder 63. Each lift pin 61 moves up and down along the inside of an insertion hole that penetrates the hot plate 60 vertically. When the air cylinder 63 raises the three lift pins 61, the tips of the lift pins 61 protrude from the plate surface of the hot plate 60. Further, when the air cylinder 63 lowers the three lift pins 61, the tips of the lift pins 61 are embedded in the insertion holes of the hot plate 60. Therefore, when the lift pins 61 supporting the substrate W are lowered, the substrate W is placed on the plate surface of the hot plate 60 and the heating process of the substrate W proceeds.

  The cool plate 70 is a metal (for example, aluminum) plate incorporating a cooling mechanism, and has a disk shape. As the cooling mechanism of the cool plate 70 of the present embodiment, constant temperature water is circulated inside the plate, but a Peltier element may be adopted instead. The diameter of the cool plate 70 is larger than the diameter of the substrate W.

  The cool plate 70 is provided with a plurality of (three in the present embodiment) lift pins 71 that appear and disappear on the plate surface. Similar to the lift pins 61, the three lift pins 71 are arranged in a circular area having a diameter of 80% or less of the diameter of the substrate W.

  The three lift pins 71 are lifted and lowered collectively by the air cylinder 73. Each lift pin 71 moves up and down along the inside of an insertion hole that penetrates the cool plate 70 vertically. When the air cylinder 73 raises the three lift pins 71, the tips of the lift pins 71 protrude from the plate surface of the cool plate 70. Further, when the air cylinder 73 lowers the three lift pins 71, the tips of the lift pins 71 are embedded in the insertion holes of the cool plate 70.

  The local transport mechanism 80 includes a transport arm 86 and an arm driving unit 81 that moves the transport arm 86. The transfer arm 86 is a flat plate member having a plane size larger than the plane size of the substrate W. The transfer arm 86 of this embodiment is formed of aluminum (Al) having good heat transfer characteristics.

A plurality of (three in this embodiment) proximity balls 87 (FIG. 8) made of a member such as alumina (Al ₂ O ₃ ) are disposed on the surface of the transfer arm 86. The three proximity balls 87 are arranged such that the upper ends thereof protrude from the surface of the transfer arm 86 by a minute amount. For this reason, when the substrate W is placed by the transport arm 86, a so-called proximity gap called a proximity gap is formed between the substrate W and the surface of the transport arm 86.

  Further, a heat conductive sheet 89 is attached to the back surface of the transfer arm 86 (FIG. 9). The heat conductive sheet 89 is a sheet member based on a resin having a high thermal conductivity and being flexible and having excellent shape followability. For example, a high heat conductive ceramic called a filler using an acrylic resin as a base material. Or a sheet member filled with metal or the like (trade name “Achilles Thermion” manufactured by Achilles Corporation). The heat conductive sheet 89 is at least approximately the same size as the planar size of the cool plate 70, and is pasted on the entire back surface of the transfer arm 86 in this embodiment. Note that the heat conductive sheet 89 may be formed of a sheet member (trade name “Hypersoft Heat Dissipator” manufactured by Sumitomo 3M Limited) using a silicon-based resin as a base material.

  The transfer arm 86 is formed with two slits 88 and 88. The slits 88 and 88 are formed at positions where the lift pins 61 and 71 enter in the plane of the transport arm 86. That is, when the three lift pins 71 are lifted while the transport arm 86 is positioned immediately above the cool plate 70, the tip of each lift pin 71 passes through the slit 88 and protrudes from the surface of the transport arm 86. Further, when the three lift pins 61 are lifted while the transfer arm 86 is positioned immediately above the hot plate 60, the tip of each lift pin 61 passes through the slit 88 and protrudes from the surface of the transfer arm 86. In addition, since the heat conductive sheet 89 is formed according to the shape of the conveyance arm 86, the portions corresponding to the slits 88 and 88 are notched.

  The arm drive unit 81 includes a horizontal drive mechanism 82 and a vertical drive mechanism 83. The horizontal drive mechanism 82 includes, for example, a guide rail and a timing belt, and moves the transfer arm 86 along the horizontal direction. The vertical drive mechanism 83 includes, for example, an air cylinder, and moves the transfer arm 86 along with the horizontal drive mechanism 82 along the vertical direction. Thereby, the arm drive unit 81 can move the transfer arm 86 between the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70. In addition, the arm driving unit 81 can lower the transport arm 86 at a position directly above the cool plate 70 to closely contact the surface of the cool plate 70 via the heat conductive sheet 89. The horizontal drive mechanism 82 and the vertical drive mechanism 83 are not limited to those described above, and the horizontal drive mechanism 82 only needs to be configured to be able to slide and move the transport arm 86 in the horizontal direction. Any configuration that can move up and down in the vertical direction is acceptable.

  Further, the heating unit PHP is provided with a shutter 75 that blocks the atmosphere between the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70 (for convenience of illustration, the shutter 75 is omitted in FIG. 7). The shutter 75 is a rectangular flat plate member and is moved up and down by an air cylinder 76. When the air cylinder 76 raises the shutter 75, the shutter 75 blocks the atmosphere between the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70. On the other hand, when the air cylinder 76 lowers the shutter 75, the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70 are in communication with each other, and the transfer arm 86 can be moved horizontally.

<3. Operation of substrate processing apparatus>
Next, the operation of the substrate processing apparatus 1 having the above configuration will be described. First, a procedure for transporting a substrate in the entire substrate processing apparatus 1 will be briefly described. The processing procedure described below is executed by the control system of FIG. 6 controlling each part of the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the description contents of the recipe received from the host computer 100.

  First, an unprocessed substrate W is loaded from the outside of the apparatus into the indexer block ID by AGV or the like while being stored in the carrier C. Subsequently, the unprocessed substrate W is paid out from the indexer block ID. Specifically, the indexer robot IR takes out an unprocessed substrate W from a predetermined carrier C, and alternately transports and places it on the substrate platform PASS1U or the substrate platform PASS1L.

  When the unprocessed substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS1U, the main transport robot TR1 of the upper coating cell UC transports the substrate W to the cooling unit CP. The temperature of the substrate W is adjusted to a predetermined temperature by the cooling unit CP. Subsequently, the substrate W is transferred to one of the antireflection film coating units BARC by the main transfer robot TR1. In the coating processing unit BARC for antireflection film, a coating liquid for antireflection film is spin-coated on the substrate W. After the coating process is completed, the substrate W is transferred to the heating unit PHP by the main transfer robot TR1. By performing the heat treatment of the substrate W in the heating unit PHP, the coating liquid is dried, and a base antireflection film is formed on the substrate W. The antireflection film is a film formed on the base of the resist film in order to reduce standing waves and halation generated during exposure. Thereafter, the substrate W taken out from the heating unit PHP by the main transport robot TR1 is transported to the cooling unit CP and cooled. Before forming the base antireflection film, the substrate W may be transported to the heating unit PHP for the adhesion strengthening process and the adhesion strengthening process may be performed in a HMDS vapor atmosphere.

  The cooled substrate W is transferred from the cooling unit CP to one of the resist film coating units RES by the main transfer robot TR1. In the resist film coating processing unit RES, a resist film coating solution is spin-coated on the substrate W. In the present embodiment, a chemically amplified resist is used as the resist. After the coating process is completed, the substrate W is transferred to the heating unit PHP by the main transfer robot TR1. The substrate W is heated by the heating unit PHP, whereby the coating liquid is dried and a resist film is formed on the substrate W. Thereafter, the substrate W taken out from the heating unit PHP by the main transport robot TR1 is transported to the cooling unit CP and cooled. The cooled substrate W is taken out from the cooling unit CP by the main transport robot TR1 and placed on the substrate platform PASS3U.

  When the substrate W on which the resist film is formed is placed on the substrate platform PASS3U, the main transport robot TR3 of the upper development cell UD transports the substrate W to the edge exposure unit EEW. In the edge exposure unit EEW, the peripheral edge exposure process is performed by irradiating the peripheral edge with light while rotating the substrate W. The substrate W that has been subjected to the peripheral edge exposure processing is placed on the substrate platform PASS5U by the main transport robot TR3.

  On the other hand, the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS1L is subjected to the same processing as described above in the lower coating cell LC and the lower development cell LD and placed on the substrate platform PASS5L. The substrate W is transferred by the main transfer robot TR2 in the lower coating cell LC, and is transferred by the main transfer robot TR4 in the lower development cell LD. That is, the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS1U is transported from the upper coating cell UC to the substrate platform PASS5U via the substrate platform PASS3U and the upper substrate processing path passing through the upper development cell UD. Placed. The substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS1L is transported from the lower coating cell LC via the substrate platform PASS3L along the lower substrate processing path passing through the lower development cell LD, and the substrate platform PASS5L. Placed on. The substrate W that has entered the upper substrate processing path does not move from the middle to the lower substrate processing path, and conversely, the substrate W that has entered the lower substrate processing path may move from the middle to the upper substrate processing path. Absent.

  The substrate W placed on the substrate platforms PASS5U and PASS5L is placed on the substrate platform PASS7 by the first interface robot IFR1 of the interface block IF. The substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS7 is received by the second interface robot IFR2, carried into the exposure apparatus EXP, and subjected to pattern exposure processing. Since a chemically amplified resist is used in the present embodiment, an acid is generated by a photochemical reaction in the exposed portion of the resist film formed on the substrate W. In the exposure apparatus EXP, immersion exposure processing may be performed on the substrate W.

  The exposed substrate W after the pattern exposure processing is returned from the exposure apparatus EXP to the interface block IF, and placed on the substrate platform PASS8 by the second interface robot IFR2. When the exposed substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS8, the first interface robot IFR1 receives the substrate W and is heated in the upper development cell UD or the lower development cell LD of the development processing block SD. Transport to unit PHP. The heating unit PHP of the transport destination is a heating unit PHP arranged in a row close to the interface block IF. In the heating unit PHP, the product generated by the photochemical reaction at the time of exposure is used as an acid catalyst to advance reactions such as crosslinking and polymerization of the resin of the resist, and after exposure to locally change the solubility in the developer only in the exposed part Heat treatment (Post Exposure Bake) is performed. Although the operation in the heating unit PHP will be described later, the substrate W that has been subjected to the post-exposure heat treatment is cooled by being transported by the transport arm 86, and the chemical reaction is stopped. Subsequently, the substrate W is taken out from the heating unit PHP by the first interface robot IFR1, and placed on the substrate platform PASS6U or the substrate platform PASS6L.

  When the substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS6U, the main transport robot TR3 of the upper development cell UD receives the substrate W and transports it to the cooling unit CP. In the cooling unit CP, the substrate W that has been subjected to the post-exposure heat treatment is further cooled and accurately adjusted to a predetermined temperature. Thereafter, the main transfer robot TR3 takes out the substrate W from the cooling unit CP and transfers it to one of the development processing units DEV. In the development processing unit DEV, a developing solution is supplied to the substrate W to advance the development processing. After the development process is finished, the substrate W is transported to the heating unit PHP by the main transport robot TR3. At this time, it is transported to the heating unit PHP arranged in a row near the coating processing block SC. In the heating unit PHP, the substrate W is dried by heat treatment. Thereafter, the substrate W is transported to the cooling unit CP by the main transport robot TR3 and cooled. The cooled substrate W is taken out from the cooling unit CP by the main transport robot TR3 and placed on the substrate platform PASS4U. The substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS4U is placed on the substrate platform PASS2U as it is by the main transfer robot TR1 of the upper coating cell UC.

  On the other hand, the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS6L is subjected to the same processing as described above in the lower development cell LD and the lower coating cell LC and placed on the substrate platform PASS2L. That is, the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS6U is transported from the upper development cell UD to the substrate platform PASS2U through the upper coating cell UC via the substrate platform PASS4U. Placed. The substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS6L is transported from the lower development cell LD via the substrate platform PASS4L along the lower substrate processing path through the lower coating cell LC to be transferred to the substrate platform PASS2L. Placed on. Similarly to the forward path, the substrate W that has entered the upper substrate processing path does not move from the middle to the lower substrate processing path. It doesn't move on the route.

  The processed substrate W placed on the substrate platforms PASS2U and PASS2L is stored in a predetermined carrier C by the indexer robot IR having the indexer block ID. Thereafter, the carrier C storing the predetermined number of processed substrates W is carried out of the apparatus, and a series of photolithography processes are completed.

<4. Operation of heating unit>
Next, the operation of the heating unit PHP will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 20. Here, the operation in the heating unit PHP of the development processing block SD arranged in a row close to the interface block IF will be described. The operation of the heating unit PHP proceeds by the cell controller CC that manages the first interface robot IFR1 controlling each part of the heating unit PHP. The hot plate 60 is maintained in advance at a predetermined heating temperature, and the cool plate 70 is maintained in advance at a predetermined cooling temperature.

  First, as shown in FIG. 10, the first interface robot IFR1 enters the holding arm 47 that holds the exposed substrate W from the opening 51 on the side surface of the heating unit PHP, and the substrate is placed on the lift pins 71 of the cool plate 70. Put W. At this time, the transfer arm 86 is in contact with the cool plate 70 via the heat conductive sheet 89. Further, the lift pins 71 of the cool plate 70 are raised and the lift pins 61 of the hot plate 60 are lowered. Therefore, the tip of the lift pin 71 protrudes from the surface of the transfer arm 86, and the exposed substrate W is placed thereon. Further, the shutter 75 is raised to block the atmosphere between the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 11, simultaneously with the lift pins 71 descending, the transport arm 86 is lifted, and the substrate W is transferred from the lift pins 71 to the transport arm 86. The substrate W is placed on the surface of the transfer arm 86 via three proximity balls 87. At the same time when the lift pins 71 are lowered, the transfer arm 86 is raised to deliver the substrate W, so that the substrate delivery time is shortened and the overhead time associated with the heat treatment can be reduced. Further, the lift pins 61 of the hot plate 60 are raised and the shutter 75 is lowered.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 12, the transfer arm 86 moves horizontally from a position immediately above the cool plate 70 toward a position directly above the hot plate 60. When the transfer arm 86 is lowered at a position immediately above the hot plate 60, the upper end of the lift pin 61 protrudes from the surface of the transfer arm 86 through the slit 88. As a result, the substrate W placed on the transport arm 86 is placed on the lift pins 61. The transfer arm 86 is lowered at a position directly above the hot plate 60, but does not contact the hot plate 60. After transferring the substrate W to the lift pins 61 that are rising, the transfer arm 86 horizontally moves again toward the position immediately above the cool plate 70 as shown in FIG.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 14, the lift pins 61 are lowered to place the substrate W on the hot plate 60. Thereby, the heat treatment of the substrate W (post-exposure heat treatment in this example) proceeds. At the same time as the lift pins 61 are lowered, the shutter 75 is raised to block the atmosphere between the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70. As a result, it is possible to prevent mutual heat effects between the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70 and to prevent components generated from the heated substrate W from flowing into the vicinity of the cool plate 70.

  Further, the transport arm 86 is lowered and is in close contact with the cool plate 70 via the heat conductive sheet 89. That is, when the substrate W is heated by the hot plate 60, the transfer arm 86 is cooled by bringing the back surface of the transfer arm 86 into contact with the surface of the cool plate 70. Since the transfer arm 86 is brought into contact with the surface of the cool plate 70 via the heat conductive sheet 89 having excellent shape followability, the adhesion between the back surface of the transfer arm 86 and the surface of the cool plate 70 is improved, and good heat conduction is achieved. As a result, the transfer arm 86 is efficiently cooled. Further, since the back surface of the transfer arm 86 and the front surface of the cool plate 70 are not in direct contact with each other, metal contact is avoided and dust generation or the like is prevented.

  When the heat treatment for a predetermined time is completed, the lift pins 61 are raised to lift the substrate W away from the surface of the hot plate 60 as shown in FIG. At the same time, the transfer arm 86 is raised and the shutter 75 is lowered. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 16, the transfer arm 86 moves horizontally from a position directly above the cool plate 70 toward a position directly above the hot plate 60. Although the lift pin 61 is raised, the lift pin 61 and the transfer arm 86 do not interfere with each other because they enter the slit 88 formed in the transfer arm 86. The substrate W is received by the transport arm 86 from the lift pins 61 when the transport arm 86 rises at a position directly above the hot plate 60. Since the transfer arm 86 is cooled during the heat treatment of the substrate W, the substrate W immediately after the heat treatment is placed on the surface of the transfer arm 86, and thus heat conduction from the substrate W to the transfer arm 86 occurs immediately. W is cooled to some extent.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 17, the transfer arm 86 that has received the substrate W moves horizontally from a position directly above the hot plate 60 toward a position directly above the cool plate 70. Then, as shown in FIG. 18, the transfer arm 86 on which the substrate W is placed descends and comes into close contact with the cool plate 70 via the heat conductive sheet 89. As described above, since the back surface of the transfer arm 86 and the front surface of the cool plate 70 are in contact with each other via the heat conductive sheet 89 having excellent shape followability, good heat conduction is achieved between the transfer arm 86 and the cool plate 70. Thus, the substrate W is efficiently cooled. Further, the lift pin 61 is lowered and the shutter 75 is raised.

  When a predetermined time elapses after the transfer arm 86 comes into contact with the cool plate 70, the lift pins 71 rise and pass the substrate W through the slit 88 of the transfer arm 86 as shown in FIG. 19. Lift it away from it. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 20, the first interface robot IFR1 causes the holding arm 47 to enter from the opening 51, receives the substrate W placed on the lift pins 71, and carries it out of the heating unit PHP. The heat treatment of the substrate W in the PHP is completed.

  As described above, in the heating unit PHP of the present embodiment, the transfer arm 86 that receives and places the substrate W heated by the hot plate 60 is moved from the hot plate 60 to the cool plate 70 by the arm driving unit 81. The substrate W is cooled via the transfer arm 86 when the back surface of the transfer arm 86 contacts the surface of the cool plate 70. Therefore, the substrate W after the heat treatment is immediately cooled by being received by the transfer arm 86. Further, the transfer arm 86 itself is not provided with a special cooling mechanism such as a flow path for circulating cooling water or a Peltier element. For this reason, not only complicated piping and wiring are not required, but even if the transfer arm 86 repeatedly moves, there is no concern that defects such as breakage of the wiring or liquid leakage will occur.

  Further, the cooling of the substrate W does not depend on the heat capacity of the transfer arm 86 but is forced cooling by the cool plate 70, and the transfer arm 86 merely mediates heat transfer from the substrate W to the cool plate 70. Therefore, even if the processing is repeated, there is no concern that the transfer arm 86 stores heat, and the substrate W can always be cooled at a constant cooling rate even when the substrate W is processed continuously. as a result. It is possible to maintain a constant temperature history between different substrates W processed continuously. Thus, according to the heating unit PHP which is a heat treatment apparatus according to the present invention, the substrate W after the heat treatment can be quickly cooled with a simple configuration, and the temperature history of the substrate W during the heat treatment is constant. Can be maintained.

  Further, the planar size of the transfer arm 86 is larger than the planar size of the substrate W. For this reason, when the substrate W heated by the hot plate 60 is received, the transfer arm 86 is placed close to the entire surface of the substrate W, so that the uniformity of the in-plane temperature distribution is not impaired. W can be uniformly cooled. In particular, when the post-exposure heat treatment is performed on the substrate W on which the chemically amplified resist is formed as in this embodiment, the cooling rate of the heated substrate W affects the time until the chemical reaction is stopped. Can be uniformly cooled, the in-plane uniformity of the pattern line width can be maintained.

  Further, the lift pins 61 of the hot plate 60 and the lift pins 71 of the cool plate 70 are arranged in a circular area having a diameter of 80% or less of the diameter of the substrate W. Therefore, if normal transport processing is performed, the lift pins 61 and 71 move up and down while supporting an inner region within 80% of the radius from the center of the substrate W. Inevitably, the lift pins 61 and 71 are provided in the inner regions of the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70, respectively (see FIGS. 7 and 8). An insertion hole is formed in the plate at the position where the lift pins 61 and 71 are provided, and the temperature of the portion cannot be adjusted. However, if the insertion hole is formed in the inner region of the hot plate 60 and the cool plate 70, Since temperature compensation is performed from the periphery, the influence of the formation of the insertion hole can be suppressed to the minimum, and the temperature distribution uniformity in the plate surface is not impaired. As a result, the uniformity of the in-plane temperature distribution of the substrate W during the heat treatment by the hot plate 60 and the cooling treatment by the cool plate 70 can be maintained.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 14, when the substrate W is heated by the hot plate 60, the transfer arm 86 is cooled by bringing the back surface of the transfer arm 86 into contact with the surface of the cool plate 70. Yes. For this reason, heat storage of the transfer arm 86 can be surely prevented, and the temperature of the transfer arm 86 can always be constant when the substrate W after the heat treatment is received by the hot plate 60.

  Note that the main transport robots TR1 to TR4 also have openings 52 on the front surface for the other heating units PHP (heating units PHP that perform heating processing other than post-exposure heating processing) arranged in the coating processing block SC and the development processing block SD. The same operation is performed except that the holding arms 37a and 37b are moved forward to transfer the substrate W.

<5. Modification>
While the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention can be modified in various ways other than those described above without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the transfer arm 86 is formed of aluminum. However, the transfer arm 86 is not limited to this, and may be formed of another material having a relatively high thermal conductivity. . For example, the transfer arm 86 may be formed of copper (Cu), alumina (Al ₂ O ₃ ), or silicon carbide (SiC). Further, the transfer arm 86 may be formed of a composite material obtained by laminating and welding these instead of a single body. That is, the transfer arm 86 only needs to be formed of a material including at least one selected from the group consisting of aluminum, copper, alumina, and silicon carbide. If the transfer arm 86 is formed of such a material, good heat transfer characteristics can be imparted to the transfer arm 86, and the heat of the substrate W can be quickly transferred to the cool plate 70 to quickly cool the substrate W. Can do. Furthermore, the transfer arm 86 may be formed of a carbon fiber material that is lightweight and excellent in strength.

  Further, in the operation of the heating unit PHP, the moving speed of the transfer arm 86 may be variable depending on whether or not the substrate is held. Specifically, in order to further reduce the overhead time associated with the heat treatment, the moving speed of the transfer arm 86 is increased within a range in which the shift amount of the substrate W at each position is allowable. If the transfer arm 86 is moved at high speed, the transfer arm 86 may be formed of a vibration damping material.

  In the above embodiment, in the cool plate 70, the lift pins 71 are lowered, and at the same time, the transfer arm 86 is raised to transfer the substrate W. However, the hot plate 60 performs the same operation. May be. That is, when the transport arm 86 receives the heated substrate W from the lift pins 61 (FIG. 16), the transport arm 86 may be lifted and receive the substrate W at the same time as the lift pins 61 are lowered. Substrate delivery time is further shortened, and overhead time associated with heat treatment can be reduced.

  Further, a heat radiating member may be attached to the transfer arm 86 to further enhance the cooling ability of the substrate W. FIG. 21 is a plan view showing a transfer arm 86 in which a plurality of radiating fins 84 are erected as a radiating member. A plurality of radiating fins 84 are erected in a region other than the region on which the substrate W is placed on the surface of the transfer arm 86. As the material of the radiation fin 84, the same aluminum or copper as that of the transfer arm 86 may be used. By providing such heat radiation fins 84, heat radiation from the heat radiation fins 84 is generated in addition to heat conduction to the cool plate 70, and thus the cooling of the substrate W can be promoted. Further, the heat dissipating member attached to the transfer arm 86 is not limited to the heat dissipating fin, and other members that promote heat radiation, such as a heat dissipating sheet, may be used. Further, a black coating may be applied to the surface of the transfer arm 86 in order to promote heat radiation. As the black coating, a solid lubricating coating or black alumite treatment can be used if the transfer arm 86 is made of aluminum.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the heat conductive sheet 89 was stuck on the back surface of the conveyance arm 86, it replaces with this and the heat conductive sheet 89 is stuck on the surface of the cool plate 70 in addition to this. You may do it. Even in this case, the adhesion between the back surface of the transfer arm 86 and the surface of the cool plate 70 is enhanced, good heat conduction is achieved, and metal contact is avoided to prevent dust generation and the like.

  In the above embodiment, the substrate W for which the post-exposure heating process has been completed is once taken out from the heating unit PHP by the first interface robot IFR1, and the main transfer robot TR3 or It was handed over to the main transfer robot TR4. Instead of this, the main transfer robot TR3 or the main transfer robot TR4 may directly take out the substrate W after the post-exposure heat treatment from the opening 52 on the front side of the heating unit PHP. In this case, the heating unit PHP also serves as the substrate platforms PASS6U and PASS6L.

  Further, the configuration of the substrate processing apparatus 1 is not limited to the form shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, and a heating unit PHP for heating the substrate W is incorporated, and the substrate is mounted on the heating unit PHP by a transfer robot. Various configurations can be employed as long as the cool plate 70 is carried in and out. For example, the number and layout of processing units and transfer robots can be changed as appropriate.

It is a top view of the substrate processing apparatus incorporating the heat processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic side view which shows the arrangement configuration of the liquid processing unit of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. It is a schematic side view which shows the arrangement configuration of the heat processing unit of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. It is a side view which shows the arrangement configuration of the conveyance robot and substrate mounting part of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. It is a side view which shows the structure of an interface block. It is a block diagram which shows the outline of the control system of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. It is a perspective view of a heating unit. It is a top view of a heating unit. It is a side view of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement content of a heating unit. It is a top view which shows the example of the conveyance arm which attached the heat radiating member.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate processing apparatus 51,52 Opening part 60 Hot plate 61,71 Lift pin 70 Cool plate 75 Shutter 80 Local conveyance mechanism 81 Arm drive part 82 Horizontal drive mechanism 83 Vertical drive mechanism 84 Radiation fin 86 Transfer arm 88 Slit 89 Thermal conduction sheet BARC Antireflective coating coating unit CP Cooling unit DEV Development processing unit ID Indexer block IDR Indexer robot IF Interface block IFR1 First interface robot IFR2 Second interface robot LC Lower coating cell LD Lower developing cell PHP Heating unit RES For resist film Coating processing unit SC Coating processing block SD Development processing block TR1, TR2, TR3, TR4 Main transfer robot UC Upper coating center UD upper developing cell W board

Claims (9)

A heat treatment apparatus for performing heat treatment on a substrate,
A hot plate for placing and heating the substrate;
A cool plate to cool the substrate,
A transport mechanism for transporting a substrate between the hot plate and the cool plate;
With
The transport mechanism is
A transfer arm for placing a substrate having a larger planar size than the planar size of the substrate;
An arm drive mechanism for moving the transfer arm between the hot plate and the cool plate;
With
The transfer arm that receives and places the substrate heated by the hot plate is moved from the hot plate to the cool plate by the arm driving mechanism, and the back surface of the transfer arm contacts the surface of the cool plate. The substrate is cooled via the transfer arm by the heat treatment apparatus. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
The substrate has a disc shape,
The hot plate and the cool plate are provided with lift pins that move up and down while supporting an inner region within 80% of the radius from the center of the substrate,
A heat treatment apparatus, wherein the transfer arm is formed with a slit into which the lift pin enters. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 2,
When the substrate is transferred from the lift pin to the transfer arm, the arm driving mechanism raises the transfer arm at the same time when the lift pin is lowered. In the heat processing apparatus in any one of Claims 1-3,
The heat processing apparatus characterized by sticking the heat conductive sheet which uses resin as a base material on the back surface of the said conveyance arm, or the surface of the said cool plate. In the heat processing apparatus in any one of Claims 1-4,
A heat treatment apparatus that cools the transfer arm by bringing the back surface of the transfer arm into contact with the surface of the cool plate when the substrate is heated by the hot plate. In the heat processing apparatus in any one of Claims 1-5,
The said heat transfer arm is formed with the raw material containing at least 1 sort (s) selected from the group which consists of aluminum, copper, an alumina, and silicon carbide, The heat processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. In the heat processing apparatus in any one of Claims 1-6,
A heat treatment apparatus, wherein a heat radiating member is attached to the transfer arm. In a substrate processing apparatus that performs predetermined processing on a substrate,
A heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
Transport means for transporting the substrate to the heat treatment apparatus;
With
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the transport means carries the substrate in and out of the cool plate. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the transport means transports the substrate after exposure processing to the heat treatment apparatus.

Images