JP2011009602A - Method and device for treating substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To rinse and dry a substrate surface exhibiting hydrophobicity after being cleaned while preventing a watermark from being generated on the substrate surface.SOLUTION: In this device for treating a substrate for rinsing and drying a surface of a substrate W at least the part of which is hydrophobic, a dam 18 is arranged in a location surrounding an outer peripheral part of the horizontally arranged substrate W; rinse water is supplied to the surface of the substrate W to form a liquid film 26 where the rinse water the flow of which is dammed by the dam 18 continues, on the whole surface of the substrate W; the substrate W is rotated to move the liquid film 26 located at the center part of the surface of the substrate W to the outer peripheral part of the surface of the substrate W to expose the center part of the substrate surface; and thereafter the liquid film 26 on the surface of the substrate W is completely removed, and the surface of the substrate W is dried.

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing method and a substrate processing apparatus for rinsing and drying the surface of a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer, a liquid crystal, a plasma display substrate, or an optical disk substrate. As the substrate, for example, a disk-shaped silicon substrate having a diameter of 200 mm or more, for example, 200 mm, 300 mm, or 450 mm and a thickness of, for example, 0.6 to 1.2 mm is used.

  Semiconductors invented in the 20th century make our lives rich and convenient. Semiconductor devices, which are elements using semiconductors, have been increasing in degree of miniaturization year by year to achieve both cost reduction and performance improvement. In order to reduce the cost and improve the performance of semiconductor devices, in addition to increasing the diameter of the substrate (wafer) and miniaturizing the structure typified by wiring, it is now 1/5 to 1/4 of the total number of processes in the semiconductor device manufacturing process. The cleaning and drying process that occupies the area plays a very important role. In particular, since the cleaning / drying technology is directly related to the yield of semiconductor devices, it has a large impact on the cost reduction of semiconductor devices, and is expected to become increasingly important in the future.

  Semiconductor device cleaning techniques have been developed using RCA cleaning as a basic technique, and various cleaning techniques have been developed and used. Drying techniques after cleaning include a batch system that processes a large number of substrates at once, and a sheet format that processes substrates one by one. There is a spin drying method that rotates at high speed to dry. In recent years, the plate-type spin drying method is becoming common with the increase in the substrate diameter.

  In the spin drying method, the substrate is held by a substrate holder such as a chuck, and the substrate surface is rotated at a rotational speed of about 300 to 1000 rpm. The chemical solution on the substrate surface is washed away with rinsing water such as, and then the substrate is rotated at a rotational speed of about 2000 to 3000 rpm, and the rinse water on the substrate surface is blown out of the substrate by centrifugal force to dry the substrate surface.

  In recent years, remarkable performance improvement of semiconductor devices has been realized by increasing the operating frequency and narrowing the wiring interval. However, due to the remarkable miniaturization of the wirings constituting the semiconductor device, the electric capacity between the wirings is increased, signal delay is caused by the increase of the operating frequency, and the improvement of the performance of the semiconductor device is hindered. In order to prevent this, a low-k film (low dielectric constant film) has been used as an insulating film between wirings. As described above, when the low-k film is used as the insulating film between the wirings, the increase in the electric capacity between the wirings can be suppressed even if the wiring interval is narrowed, so that the performance of the semiconductor device can be improved.

  As the low-k film is used as the insulating film between the wirings, the following problems occur. A Low-k film generally exhibits hydrophobicity. For this reason, if chemical liquid or rinsing water is supplied to the surface of a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer including a low-k film for cleaning, the entire surface of the substrate is not covered with chemical liquid or rinsing water. The substrate surface shown is partially exposed. When the substrate is rotated and spin-dried with the surface partially exposed in this way, a part of the chemical solution or rinsing water adheres to the substrate surface as a droplet, and the adhered droplet acts on the droplet. It moves on the substrate surface toward the outer periphery of the substrate by centrifugal force. Smaller droplets remain on the traces of the movement of the droplets, and the small droplets remaining on the substrate surface are dried to form a watermark.

  It seems that the above problem can be solved by increasing the supply amount of the chemical solution and the rinsing water so that the entire surface of the substrate is covered with the chemical solution and the rinsing water. However, in reality, a watermark similar to that when the supply amount of the chemical solution or the rinse water is small is formed on the substrate surface. This can be explained as follows. That is, when the supply of the chemical solution or the rinsing water is stopped, the chemical solution or the rinsing water gathers at the outermost peripheral portion of the substrate by centrifugal force and jumps out of the substrate beyond the surface tension. When a part of the chemical solution or rinsing water jumps out from the most peripheral part of the substrate, the chemical solution or rinsing water continues to jump out of the part to the outside of the substrate, and the balance of the surface tension of the chemical solution or rinsing water located in the peripheral part of the substrate is balanced. It collapses and a part of the substrate surface is exposed without being covered with the chemical solution or the rinse water. The exposed surface of the substrate thus generated retreats toward the center of the substrate due to the surface tension of the chemical solution or the rinsing water, and a liquid string is formed on the substrate surface through which the chemical solution or the rinsing water flows. This liquid thread becomes a flow path for the chemical solution and the rinse water, and when the amount of the chemical solution and the rinse water in the center of the substrate gradually decreases, the flow channel is eventually interrupted, and a droplet remains on the substrate surface so as to follow the flow channel. . Spinning and rotating the substrate where the droplets remain in this way is the same as spin drying a substrate that is not covered with chemicals or rinsing water, resulting in a watermark on the substrate surface. Will be formed. Such a watermark causes a decrease in the yield of the semiconductor device, such as causing insufficient adhesion of the wiring.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and is a substrate processing method capable of rinsing and drying a hydrophobic substrate surface after washing while suppressing the generation of a watermark on the substrate surface. An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus.

  The invention according to claim 1 is a substrate processing method for rinsing and drying at least a part of a hydrophobic substrate surface, wherein a weir is arranged at a position surrounding an outer periphery of a horizontally arranged substrate, Rinsing water is supplied to the surface of the substrate to form a continuous liquid film of rinsing water in which the flow is blocked by the weir on the entire surface of the substrate, and the substrate is rotated so that the liquid film at the center of the surface of the substrate is The substrate processing method is characterized in that the substrate is moved to the outer peripheral portion to expose the central portion of the substrate surface, and thereafter the liquid film on the substrate surface is completely removed and the substrate surface is dried.

  In this way, a continuous liquid film of rinsing water in which the flow is blocked by the weir is formed on the entire surface of the substrate, and the liquid film at the center of the substrate surface is moved to the outer periphery of the substrate surface by rotating the substrate. After exposing the central part of the substrate surface, the rinse water on the substrate surface is completely removed, so that the liquid film formed on the hydrophobic substrate surface is broken to become droplets, and the substrate surface is partially exposed. In addition, the liquid film can be more uniformly removed from the surface of the substrate, thereby preventing a watermark from being generated on the surface of the substrate.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the weir is provided in a substrate holder that horizontally rotates and holds the substrate, and is disposed at a position that surrounds the outer periphery of the substrate when the substrate is held horizontally by the substrate holder. The substrate processing method according to claim 1.
In this way, simplification of the process is achieved by providing a weir on the substrate holder that holds and rotates the substrate horizontally, and places the weir at a position that surrounds the outer periphery of the substrate when the substrate is held horizontally by the substrate holder. Can be achieved.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing method for rinsing and drying at least a part of a hydrophobic substrate surface, wherein the clamper is a substrate holder having a hydrophilic and flat surface. The substrate is held horizontally so that the surface is flush and the clamper surrounds the entire periphery of the substrate in a ring shape, and rinse water is supplied to the substrate surface while rotating the substrate, and then rinse water is supplied. Is stopped, and the substrate surface is dried by continuing the rotation of the substrate.

  Thus, when the rinse water is supplied to the substrate surface held by the clamper of the substrate holder to rinse the surface, and the supply of the rinse water is stopped to dry the substrate surface, the substrate holder located outside the substrate surface The rinse water gathers on the surface of the hydrophilic clamper to form a continuous liquid film, thereby preventing the generation of a watermark on the substrate surface.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing method for rinsing and drying a substrate surface that is at least partially hydrophobic, and rotating the substrate to supply rinsing water to the substrate surface while the outer peripheral portion of the substrate surface is removed. The substrate processing method is characterized in that the substrate is hydrophilized, and thereafter the rinse water is stopped and the rotation of the substrate is continued to dry the substrate surface.

  In this way, by making the outer peripheral portion of the substrate surface hydrophilic, supplying rinse water to the substrate surface to rinse the surface, stopping the supply of rinse water and drying the substrate surface, the hydrophilic substrate Rinsing water gathers on the outer peripheral portion of the surface to form a continuous liquid film, thereby preventing a watermark from being generated on the substrate surface. The width of the outer peripheral portion to be hydrophilized is about 20 mm in the case of a 200 mm substrate (wafer), for example.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the method of hydrophilizing the outer peripheral portion of the substrate, the method of irradiating the outer peripheral portion of the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film, the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film A method of supplying ozone gas or ozone water to the outer periphery of the substrate, a method of irradiating the outer periphery of the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film, a surfactant on the outer periphery of the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film The substrate processing method according to claim 4, wherein the substrate processing method is at least one method of supplying a solution containing.

6. The substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein rinsing water is supplied to the substrate surface in a vertical direction from a position immediately above a substantially central portion of the substrate surface. It is.
Thereby, it is possible to prevent the rinsing water supplied to the substrate surface from scattering or entraining the gas around the rinsing water.

  The invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that an inert gas or an inert gas containing isopropyl alcohol vapor is sprayed toward the substrate surface while rotating the substrate. This is a substrate processing method.

  This promotes evaporation of the rinse water while blowing away the rinse water on the substrate surface with an inert gas such as nitrogen gas. In particular, the rinse water is obtained by using an inert gas containing IPA (isopropyl alcohol) vapor. Evaporation can be further promoted.

  The invention according to claim 8 is characterized in that a gas injection position for injecting the inert gas or the inert gas containing isopropyl alcohol vapor is moved from a position corresponding to a substantially central portion of the substrate surface toward an outer peripheral portion. The substrate processing method according to claim 7.

  Accordingly, in conjunction with the centrifugal force acting on the rinse water on the substrate surface by the rotation of the substrate, the rinse water on the substrate surface is moved from the position corresponding to the substantially central portion of the substrate surface toward the outer peripheral portion and driven out of the substrate surface. Can do.

  The invention according to claim 9 is a substrate holder for horizontally holding and rotating a substrate, a rinse water supply nozzle for supplying rinse water to the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holder, and a substrate held by the substrate holder A weir that is disposed at a position that surrounds the outer periphery of the substrate, prevents outflow of rinse water supplied to the substrate surface and forms a continuous liquid film of rinse water on the entire surface of the substrate, and a weir opening that opens the weir A substrate processing apparatus.

  The invention according to claim 10 is characterized in that the weir is provided so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the substrate holder, and the weir opening is formed between the weir and the substrate holder when the weir is separated from the substrate holder. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is configured as described above.

  The weir is provided, for example, so as to be movable up and down with respect to the substrate holder. When the weir rises, a weir opening is formed between the weir and the substrate holder, and rinse water supplied to the substrate surface when the weir descends A continuous liquid film of rinsing water is formed on the entire surface of the substrate by blocking the flow of water by the weir.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, the substrate holder includes a clamper that holds the substrate so that the substrate surface and the upper surface of the substrate holder are flush with each other. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is provided on an outer peripheral portion of the clamper.

  As a result, when the supply of rinse water is stopped and the substrate surface is dried, the rinse water is collected on the clamper surface of the substrate holder located outside the substrate surface, so that a watermark is formed on the substrate surface. It is possible to dry the substrate surface while more reliably preventing.

A twelfth aspect of the present invention is the substrate processing apparatus according to the ninth aspect, wherein the weir is integrally connected to the substrate holder.
In this way, the structure can be simplified by integrally connecting the weir to the substrate holder to form an integrally molded product.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the weir integrally connected to the substrate holder has an upper surface formed in a cross-sectional streamline that forms the dam opening portion. It is a substrate processing apparatus.
Thereby, it is not necessary to provide a separate weir opening, and the structure can be further simplified.

  The invention described in claim 14 is characterized in that the inner peripheral surface of the weir and the portion in contact with the rinse water supplied from the rinse water supply nozzle located inside the weir are hydrophilic. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of 9 to 13.

  The invention according to claim 15 is provided with a clamper having a hydrophilic and flat surface, the upper surface of the clamper being flush with the substrate surface, and the clamper surrounds the entire outer periphery of the substrate in a ring shape. A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a substrate holder that horizontally holds and rotates a substrate holder; and a rinse water supply nozzle that supplies rinse water to a substrate surface held by the substrate holder.

  According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate holder for horizontally holding and rotating a substrate, a hydrophilizing device for hydrophilizing an outer peripheral portion of the substrate held and rotated by the substrate holder, and held by the substrate holder And a rinse water supply nozzle for supplying rinse water to the surface of the substrate.

  The invention according to claim 17 is characterized in that the hydrophilization device includes a plasma irradiation device that irradiates plasma to the outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate, an ozone supply device that supplies ozone water or ozone gas to the outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate, The ultraviolet irradiation device for irradiating the outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate with ultraviolet rays, and the solution supply device for supplying a solution containing a surfactant to the outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate. 16. The substrate processing apparatus according to 16.

  The invention according to claim 18 is characterized in that the rinsing water supply nozzle is arranged in a vertical direction at a position just above the center of the substrate surface held by the substrate holder. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the above.

  The invention described in claim 19 further includes a gas injection nozzle for injecting an inert gas containing an inert gas or isopropyl alcohol vapor toward the substrate surface held by the substrate holder. 19. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of items 18 to 18.

  The invention according to claim 20 is characterized in that the gas injection nozzle is configured to be movable from a position corresponding to a substantially central portion of the substrate surface held by the substrate holder toward the outer peripheral portion. 19. The substrate processing apparatus according to 19.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to rinse and dry the hydrophobic substrate surface after cleaning, while suppressing the generation of watermarks on the substrate surface.

It is a schematic diagram showing the whole substrate processing apparatus applied to the drying unit of the embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which closed the dam opening part and dried the substrate surface with the drying unit shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which opens the dam opening part and is drying the substrate surface with the drying unit shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the principal part of the substrate processing apparatus applied to the drying unit of other embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the principal part of the substrate processing apparatus applied to the drying unit of further another embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the principal part of the substrate processing apparatus applied to the drying unit of further another embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the principal part of the substrate processing apparatus applied to the drying unit of further another embodiment of this invention. FIG. 8 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 7. It is a schematic diagram which shows the principal part of the substrate processing apparatus applied to the drying unit of further another embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the whole substrate processing apparatus applied to the drying unit of further another embodiment of this invention. 1 is an overall plan view showing a polishing apparatus including a polishing unit (substrate processing apparatus) according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In each of the following embodiments, the same or corresponding members are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  1 to 3 show an outline of a substrate processing apparatus applied to a drying unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10 has a substrate (surface to be processed) facing upward so that a substrate W such as a semiconductor wafer is detachably held horizontally and rotated. A holder 12 is provided. A pair of substrate holders 12 are connected to and opposed to the upper end of a support 14 that extends from a spindle (not shown) that rotates with the rotation of a motor for rotation, and can move horizontally in the direction of approaching each other. The clamper 16 is provided. The clamper 16 is formed in a semi-ring shape that becomes a continuous ring when the end surfaces are brought into contact with each other from the open position, and the inner peripheral surface follows the outer shape of the outer peripheral end portion of the substrate W. In the shape, a clamp groove 16a for holding the substrate W by fitting the outer peripheral end of the substrate W over the entire circumference is formed.

  As a result, the substrate W is disposed between the pair of clampers 16 at the open positions indicated by the phantom lines in FIG. As shown by the solid line in FIG. 1, the entire periphery of the outer peripheral end of the substrate W is positioned inside the clamp groove 16a to hold the substrate W. Then, the holding of the substrate W is released by horizontally moving the clamper 16 to an open position away from each other. The upper surface of the clamper 16 is configured to be substantially flush with the surface of the substrate W when the substrate W is held in this manner.

  Each clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 is provided with a semi-cylindrical weir 18 that extends over the entire length of the clamper 16 in the circumferential direction and protrudes above the clamper 16. Thus, when the substrate W is held by the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 as described above, both end surfaces of the weir 18 come into contact with each other and become cylindrical. In this state, when the rinsing water 22 is supplied from the rinsing water supply nozzle 24 to the surface of the substrate W as described below, the outflow of the rinsing water is blocked by the cylindrical weir 18 as shown in FIG. Thus, a continuous liquid film 26 of rinse water is formed on the surface of the substrate W.

  The weir 18 is detachably attached to the upper surface of each clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 via a weir moving mechanism (not shown) combining, for example, a spring, a cam, and an electromagnet. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3, when the weir 18 is separated upward from the upper surface of the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 via the weir moving mechanism, a gap as a weir opening is provided between the weir 18 and the clamper 16. The rinsing water liquid film 26 formed on the surface of the substrate W flows out to the outside through this gap (weir opening portion) 20, and the weir 18 is placed on the upper surface of the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12. When contacted, the gap 20 as the weir opening is closed.

  A rinsing water supply nozzle 24 that supplies rinsing water 22 such as ultrapure water to the surface of the substrate W is vertically disposed at a position immediately above the substantially central portion of the substrate W held by the substrate holder 12. . Thus, by supplying the rinsing water 22 from the rinsing water supply nozzle 24 arranged perpendicularly to the position immediately above the substantially central portion of the substrate W, the rinsing water 22 is scattered, or the rinsing water 22 is a gas in the periphery. The rinsing water 22 can be supplied to the substantially central portion of the substrate W while preventing the substrate W from being caught. Thus, by supplying the rinsing water 22 to the surface of the substrate W, a continuous liquid film 26 of the rinsing water is formed on the surface of the substrate W as shown in FIG.

  Further, an inert gas 28 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) such as nitrogen gas is sprayed onto the surface of the substrate W, which is positioned immediately above the substantially central portion of the substrate W held by the substrate holder 12, and the substrate A gas injection nozzle 30 that accelerates evaporation of the liquid film (rinsing water) 26 while blowing away the liquid film 26 of the rinse water on the surface is arranged vertically. In this example, the gas injection nozzle 30 injects the inert gas 28 toward the surface of the substrate W and moves horizontally from the substantially central portion of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral portion, thereby rotating the substrate W. Along with the centrifugal force acting on the liquid film (rinse water) 26 on the substrate surface, the liquid film 26 on the surface of the substrate W can be moved from the center of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral portion and driven out of the surface of the substrate W. It is configured to be able to. Instead of the inert gas 28, an inert gas containing IPA (isopropyl alcohol) vapor may be used. Thus, by using an inert gas containing IPA vapor, evaporation of the liquid film (rinsing water) 26 can be further promoted.

  The substrate holder 12 in this example includes a pair of clampers 16, but includes three or more clampers that are ring-shaped by bringing both end surfaces into contact with each other, and both end surfaces are in contact with each other. By doing so, weirs that are cylindrical may be provided. Alternatively, a cylindrical weir may be brought into contact with the clamper from above.

Next, an operation example of the drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10 will be described.
First, for example, a substrate W such as a cleaned semiconductor wafer is disposed between a pair of clampers 16 at an open position indicated by phantom lines in FIG. 1 of the substrate holder 12, and the clampers 16 are moved in directions close to each other. Both ends of the clamper 16 are brought into contact with each other to hold the substrate W. At this time, the weir 18 provided in the clamper 16 has a cylindrical shape with both end surfaces in contact with each other.

  In this state, the rinsing water 22 is supplied from the rinsing water supply nozzle 24 to the surface of the substrate W as shown in FIG. 1 while rotating the substrate W through the substrate holder 12 at a rotational speed of 300 to 1000 rpm, for example. Thus, a continuous liquid film 26 of rinse water whose outflow is blocked by the weir 18 is formed on the entire surface of the substrate W.

  Next, the supply of the rinsing water 22 from the rinsing water supply nozzle 24 is stopped, and the substrate W is rotated at a rotational speed of, for example, 2000 to 3000 rpm, and at the same time, the gas injection nozzle 30 is not applied to the surface of the substrate W as necessary. The gas injection nozzle 30 is moved from the substantially central portion of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral portion while injecting the active gas. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, the liquid film 26 at the center of the surface of the substrate W is moved to the outer periphery of the substrate W to expose the center of the surface of the substrate W.

  Next, while the substrate W is rotated, as shown in FIG. 3, the weir 18 is lifted and separated from the upper surface of the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 via the weir moving mechanism, and between the weir 18 and the clamper 16. A gap (weir opening) 20 is formed in As a result, the liquid film 26 moved to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W through the gap (weir opening portion) 20 flows out of the substrate W, and the liquid film (rinse water) 26 on the surface of the substrate W is completely removed. Then, the surface of the substrate W is dried.

  In this way, a continuous liquid film 26 of rinsing water 22 blocked by the weir 18 is formed on the entire surface of the substrate W, and the substrate W is rotated so that the liquid film 26 at the center of the surface of the substrate W is formed on the substrate W. After moving to the outer peripheral part of the surface to expose the center part of the surface of the substrate W, the liquid film (rinse water) 26 on the surface of the substrate W is completely removed to form on the surface of the hydrophobic substrate W The liquid film 26 is removed from the surface of the substrate W more uniformly while preventing the surface of the substrate W from being partially exposed while the liquid film 26 is broken to form droplets. Can be prevented from being generated.

  After finishing the drying of the surface of the substrate W, the injection of the inert gas from the gas injection nozzle 30 is stopped, the gas injection nozzle 30 is returned to the original position, the rotation of the substrate W is stopped, and the dried The substrate W is transferred to the next process.

  FIG. 4 shows an outline of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus applied to a drying unit according to another embodiment of the present invention. The drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10a shown in FIG. 4 is different from the drying unit 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 in that the inclined surface 16b is inclined downward with the upper surface of the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 facing outward. As a result, the liquid film 26 (see FIG. 1) that has moved to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W smoothly flows out of the substrate W along the inclined surface (upper surface) 16b. The lower surface 18a of the weir 18 that contacts the inclined surface (upper surface) 16b of the clamper 16 is also an inclined surface that matches the inclination of the inclined surface 16b of the clamper 16.

  In this way, the clamper 16 having the upper surface as the inclined surface 16b is used, and the lower surface 18a of the weir 18 that contacts the inclined surface (upper surface) 16b of the clamper 16 is also an inclined surface that matches the inclination of the inclined surface 16b of the clamper 16. In this case, although not shown, a gap serving as a dam opening portion may be formed between the dam and the clamper by translating the dam outward.

  FIG. 5 shows an outline of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus applied to a drying unit according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10b shown in FIG. 5 is different from the drying unit 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 as follows. That is, as the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12, when the substrate W is held by the clamper 16, the upper surface is flush with the surface of the substrate W and becomes a flat surface 16c extending outward, and this flat surface ( As the weir opening, the weir 18 is integrally connected to the clamper 16 outside the upper surface 16c, and further penetrates the inside of the weir 18 continuously to the flat surface 16c and is inclined downward toward the outside. A through hole 32 is provided.

  In this example, the supply of rinsing water is stopped, the substrate W is rotated at a rotational speed of, for example, 2000 to 3000 rpm, and at the same time, the surface of the substrate W from the gas injection nozzle 30 (see FIG. 1) as necessary. The gas injection nozzle 30 is moved from the substantially central portion of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral portion while injecting the inert gas. As a result, the liquid film at the center of the surface of the substrate W is moved to the outer periphery of the substrate W to expose the center of the surface of the substrate W, and penetrates the liquid film moved to the outer periphery of the substrate W. The surface of the substrate W can be dried by allowing it to flow out of the substrate W through the hole (weir opening) 32 and completely removing the liquid film (rinse water) on the surface of the substrate W.

  Thus, the structure can be simplified by integrating the substrate holder 12 and the clamper 16 together. In addition, a flat portion 16c that is flush with the surface of the substrate W when the substrate W is held on the clamper 16 and extends outward is provided on the upper surface, and a liquid film is formed on the upper surface of the flat portion 16c when the surface of the substrate W is dried. By making it reach, it is possible to more reliably prevent the formation of a watermark on the surface of the substrate W, particularly on the outer peripheral portion.

  The flat surface 16c of the clamper 16 and the inner peripheral surface 18b of the weir 18 are preferably hydrophilic, so that rinse water remains as droplets on the flat surface 16c of the clamper 16 and the inner peripheral surface 18b of the weir 18, This can prevent the occurrence of a watermark. For example, the clamper 16 and the weir 18 are integrally molded with a hydrophilic resin, the surface of the fluorine-based resin molded product is modified to be hydrophilic, or the plasma gas is irradiated, so that the flat surface of the clamper 16 is obtained. 16c and the inner peripheral surface 18b of the weir 18 can be made hydrophilic. The same applies to the following.

  FIG. 6 shows an outline of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus applied to a drying unit according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10c shown in FIG. 6 differs from the drying unit 10b shown in FIG. 5 in that the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 is a streamlined cross section, and the clamper 16 is moved upward. The bulging portion 34 plays a role as the weir 18, and the surface 34 a of the bulging portion 34 plays a role as a dam opening portion.

  That is, according to this example, the supply of rinse water is stopped, and the substrate W is rotated at a rotational speed of 2000 to 3000 rpm, for example, and at the same time, an inert gas is supplied from the gas injection nozzle 30 (see FIG. 1) to the surface of the substrate W. While injecting, the gas injection nozzle 30 is moved from the substantially central portion of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral portion, thereby moving the liquid film at the central portion of the surface of the substrate W to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W. The liquid film moved to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W is allowed to flow outside along the surface (weir open portion) 34a of the bulging portion (weir) 34 while exposing the central portion of the surface of the substrate W. The liquid film (rinse water) can be completely removed, and the surface of the substrate W can be dried.

FIG. 7 shows an outline of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus applied to a drying unit according to still another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8 shows a partially enlarged view of FIG. The drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10d shown in FIG. 7 differs from the drying unit 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 as a clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12, as shown in detail in FIG. ₁ at approximately the same thickness as the thickness T ₂ of the substrate _{W (T 1 ≒ T 2)} , when the substrate W is held clamper 16 on the upper surface, a flat extending outwardly become flush with the surface of the substrate W A weir moving mechanism (not shown) having a surface 16c and having a lower surface flush with the back surface of the substrate W is provided on the outer side of the flat surface 16c in substantially the same manner as the example shown in FIG. The weir 18 is provided through the

The thickness _{T 2} of the substrate W, for example, 725μm approximately in the case of a diameter of 200mm wafers, 775 .mu.m approximately in the case of a diameter of 300mm wafers, a 850~900μm about in the case of a diameter of 450mm wafers. For this reason, it is preferable that the clamp groove 16a of the clamper 16 has a V-shaped cut along the outer peripheral end surface of the substrate W as shown in FIG. The flat surface 16c of the clamper 16 and the inner peripheral surface 18b of the weir 18 are preferably hydrophilic, as in the example shown in FIG.

As described above, the clamper 16 of the substrate holder 12 has a thickness T ₁ that is substantially the same as the thickness T _{2 of the} substrate W (T ₁ ≈T ₂ ). It is possible to prevent the substrate surface from being obstructed during the drying process.

  FIG. 9 shows an outline of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus applied to a drying unit according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10e shown in FIG. 9 is different from the drying unit 10d shown in FIG. 7 in that the damper 16 (see FIG. 7) is not provided and the clamper 16 has the same thickness and has a flat outer shape. The extending portion 16d is provided so that the flat surface 16c on the upper surface of the clamper 16 has a sufficient width, and the flat surface 16c is made hydrophilic.

  In this example, the rinsing water 22 is supplied to the surface of the substrate W from the rinsing water supply nozzle 24 (see FIG. 1) while rotating the substrate W through the substrate holder 12 at a rotational speed of 300 to 1000 rpm, for example. Then, the rinse water flows on the flat surface 16c of the clamper 16 from the surface of the substrate W and flows out to the outside. When the supply of the rinse water 22 from the rinse water supply nozzle 24 is stopped, the rinse water forms a liquid film on the flat surface 16 c of the clamper 16 from the surface of the substrate W. For example, the gas injection nozzle 30 rotates the substrate W at a rotational speed of 2000 to 3000 rpm, and at the same time, injects an inert gas from the gas injection nozzle 30 (see FIG. 1) onto the surface of the substrate W as necessary. Is moved from the substantially central portion of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral portion, the liquid film existing at the central portion of the surface of the substrate W is further transferred from the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W onto the flat surface 16 c of the hydrophilic clamper 16. Move while maintaining the membrane. Thereby, the liquid film is removed and the surface of the substrate W is dried.

  Thus, when the supply of the rinse water is stopped and the surface of the substrate W is dried, the rinse water gathers on the flat surface 16c of the hydrophilic clamper 16 located outside the surface of the substrate W and is a continuous liquid film. As a result, the generation of watermarks on the surface of the substrate W can be prevented.

  FIG. 10 shows an outline of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus applied to a drying unit according to still another embodiment of the present invention. A drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) 10f shown in FIG. 10 has a holding portion 40 that holds the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W at a plurality of locations along the circumferential direction, and the substrate W can be detachably attached to the holding portion 40. A substrate holder 42 that is horizontally held and rotated is provided. Then, the rinse water supply nozzle 24 and the gas injection nozzle 30 are arranged vertically above the substantially central portion of the surface of the substrate W held by the substrate holder 42.

  Further, a hydrophilizing device 44 is disposed above the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W held by the substrate holder 42 and hydrophilizes the outer peripheral portion. The hydrophilizing device 44 is sprayed with an inert gas such as nitrogen gas on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W to remove the liquid film and expose a part of the surface of the substrate W, and the inert gas injection nozzle 46. A plasma gas irradiation nozzle 48 is provided to irradiate the region exposed with gas with plasma gas to make the region hydrophilic.

  Thereby, rinse water is supplied from the rinse water supply nozzle 24 to the surface of the substrate W held and rotated by the substrate holder 42, and at the same time, an inert gas is sprayed from the inert gas injection nozzle 46 to the outer periphery of the substrate W. By removing the liquid film to expose a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W and irradiating the exposed portion with plasma gas from the plasma gas irradiation nozzle 48, the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W can be made hydrophilic. For example, in the case of a 200 mm wafer (substrate), the width of the outer peripheral portion to be hydrophilized is about 20 mm.

  In this example, the plasma gas irradiation nozzle 48 is used to hydrophilize the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W by plasma gas irradiation, but an ozone supply nozzle is used instead of the plasma gas irradiation nozzle. Even if ozone gas or ozone water is supplied to the exposed area after removing the liquid film, or using a solution supply nozzle, a solution containing a surfactant is added to the exposed area after removing the liquid film. You may make it supply. Further, a liquid suction device may be used in place of the inert gas injection nozzle 46, and the liquid (liquid film) may be sucked and removed by this liquid suction device to expose a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W. .

  According to this example, the outer periphery of the substrate W is made hydrophilic while supplying rinse water from the rinse water supply nozzle 24 to the surface of the substrate W held by the substrate holder 42 and rotated at a rotation speed of about 300 to 1000 rpm, for example. Hydrophilization is performed by the crystallization apparatus 44. Then, the supply of the rinsing water 22 from the rinsing water supply nozzle 24 is stopped, and the substrate W is rotated at a rotational speed of 2000 to 3000 rpm, for example. While injecting the active gas, the gas injection nozzle 30 is moved from the substantially central portion of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral portion, whereby the liquid film on the surface of the substrate W is removed and dried.

  At this time, since the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W is hydrophilized by the hydrophilizing device 44, the rinsing water collected on the outer peripheral portion of the hydrophilized substrate W forms a continuous liquid film. This prevents the rinse water from remaining as water droplets on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W to form a watermark.

  FIG. 11 shows a polishing apparatus provided with the drying unit (substrate processing apparatus) of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 11, this polishing apparatus includes a load / unload unit 100 for loading / unloading a substrate, a polishing unit 102 for polishing and flattening the substrate surface, a cleaning unit 104 and a substrate for cleaning the substrate after polishing. The board | substrate conveyance part 106 which conveys is provided. The load / unload unit 100 includes a front load unit 108 on which a plurality of (three in the drawing) substrate cassettes for stocking a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer are placed, and a first transfer robot 110.

  In this example, the polishing unit 102 includes four polishing units 112, and the substrate transfer unit 106 includes a first linear transporter 114a and a second transformer that transfer substrates between two adjacent polishing units 108. It consists of a porter 114b. The cleaning unit 104 includes, for example, two cleaning units 116a and 116b that perform rough cleaning using a roll brush method, and a cleaning unit 118 and a drying unit 120 that perform final cleaning using a spin dry method. Further, a second transfer robot 122 is disposed between the first linear transporter 114 a, the second transporter 114 b, and the cleaning unit 104.

  In this example, the drying unit 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is used as the drying unit 120, and the substrate after polishing and cleaning is dried by the drying unit 120 (10). Instead of the drying unit 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, any of the drying units 10 a to 10 f shown in FIGS. 4 to 10 may be used.

  In this polishing apparatus, the substrate taken out by the first transport robot 110 from the substrate cassette mounted on the front load unit 108 is the first linear transporter 114a, or the first linear transporter 114a and the second linear transformer. It is conveyed to at least one polishing unit 112 of the polishing unit 102 via the porter 114b. Then, the substrate polished by the polishing unit 112 is transferred to the cleaning unit 104 by the second transfer robot 122, sequentially cleaned by the cleaning units 116a and 116b and the cleaning unit 118 of the cleaning unit 104, and dried by the drying unit 120. Thereafter, the first transfer robot 110 returns the substrate cassette mounted on the front load unit 108.

  Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described so far, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and may be implemented in various forms within the scope of the technical idea.

10, 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d, 10e, 10f Drying unit (substrate processing apparatus)
12, 42 Substrate holder 16 Clamper 16a Clamp groove 16b Inclined surface 16c Flat surface 16d Extension portion 18 Weir 18b Inner peripheral surface 20 Clearance (weir open portion)
24 Rinse water supply nozzle 26 Liquid film 30 Gas injection nozzle 32 Through hole (weir opening)
34 Swelling part (weir)
34a surface (weir opening)
44 Hydrophilization device 46 Inert gas injection nozzle 48 Plasma gas irradiation nozzle

Claims (20)

A substrate processing method of rinsing and drying a substrate surface that is at least partially hydrophobic,
Place a weir at a position surrounding the outer periphery of the horizontally placed substrate,
Rinsing water is supplied to the surface of the substrate, and a continuous liquid film of rinsing water is formed on the entire surface of the substrate.
Rotate the substrate to move the liquid film at the center of the substrate surface to the outer periphery of the substrate surface to expose the center of the substrate surface, and then
A substrate processing method characterized by completely removing a liquid film on a substrate surface and drying the substrate surface.   2. The dam is provided in a substrate holder that rotates while holding the substrate horizontally, and is disposed at a position that surrounds the outer periphery of the substrate when the substrate is held horizontally by the substrate holder. Substrate processing method. A substrate processing method of rinsing and drying at least a part of a hydrophobic substrate surface,
A clamper of a substrate holder having a hydrophilic and flat surface, the upper surface of the clamper and the substrate surface are flush, and the substrate is held horizontally so that the clamper surrounds the entire outer periphery of the substrate in a ring shape,
Supply rinse water to the substrate surface while rotating the substrate, and then
A substrate processing method characterized in that the supply of rinsing water is stopped and the rotation of the substrate is continued to dry the substrate surface. A substrate processing method of rinsing and drying a substrate surface that is at least partially hydrophobic,
While rotating the substrate and supplying rinse water to the substrate surface, the outer peripheral portion of the substrate surface is hydrophilized, and then
A substrate processing method characterized in that the supply of rinsing water is stopped and the rotation of the substrate is continued to dry the substrate surface.   The method of hydrophilizing the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is to irradiate plasma to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film, or to apply ozone gas or ozone water to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film. At least a method of supplying, a method of irradiating the outer peripheral portion of the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film with an ultraviolet ray, and a method of supplying a solution containing a surfactant to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate exposed by removing the liquid film 5. The substrate processing method according to claim 4, wherein the number is one.   6. The substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein rinsing water is supplied to the substrate surface in a vertical direction from a position immediately above a substantially central portion of the substrate surface.   7. The substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein an inert gas or an inert gas containing isopropyl alcohol vapor is sprayed toward the substrate surface while rotating the substrate.   8. The substrate processing according to claim 7, wherein a gas injection position for injecting the inert gas or the inert gas containing isopropyl alcohol vapor is moved from a position corresponding to a substantially central portion of the substrate surface toward an outer peripheral portion. Method. A substrate holder for holding and rotating the substrate horizontally;
A rinse water supply nozzle for supplying rinse water to the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holder;
A weir that is disposed at a position surrounding the outer periphery of the substrate held by the substrate holder, and that prevents the rinse water supplied to the substrate surface from flowing out and forms a continuous liquid film of rinse water on the entire surface of the substrate;
A weir opening to open the weir;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising:   The weir is provided so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the substrate holder, and when the weir is separated from the substrate holder, the weir opening is formed between the weir and the substrate holder. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein:   The substrate holder has a clamper that holds the substrate so that the substrate surface is flush with the substrate surface and the top surface of the substrate holder is flush with the substrate holder, and the weir is provided on the outer periphery of the clamper The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is provided.   The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the weir is integrally connected to a substrate holder.   The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the weir integrally connected to the substrate holder has an upper surface formed in a streamlined cross section that forms the weir opening.   14. The part located in the inner peripheral surface of the weir and the inside of the weir and in contact with the rinse water supplied from the rinse water supply nozzle is hydrophilic. Substrate processing equipment. A clamper having a hydrophilic and flat surface is provided, the upper surface of the clamper is flush with the substrate surface, and the clamper surrounds the entire outer periphery of the substrate in a ring shape so that the substrate is held horizontally and rotated. A substrate holder;
A rinse water supply nozzle for supplying rinse water to the substrate surface held by the substrate holder;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising: A substrate holder for holding and rotating the substrate horizontally;
A hydrophilizing device that hydrophilizes the outer periphery of the substrate held and rotated by the substrate holder;
A rinse water supply nozzle for supplying rinse water to the substrate surface held by the substrate holder;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising:   The hydrophilization device includes a plasma irradiation device that irradiates plasma to the outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate, an ozone supply device that supplies ozone water or ozone gas to the outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate, and an ultraviolet ray that is applied to the outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is at least one of an ultraviolet irradiation apparatus that irradiates and a solution supply apparatus that supplies a solution containing a surfactant to an outer peripheral portion of the exposed substrate.   The substrate according to any one of claims 9 to 17, wherein the rinse water supply nozzle is arranged in a vertical direction at a position immediately above a substantially central portion of a substrate surface held by the substrate holder. Processing equipment.   The substrate according to any one of claims 9 to 18, further comprising a gas injection nozzle for injecting an inert gas or an inert gas containing isopropyl alcohol vapor toward the substrate surface held by the substrate holder. Processing equipment.   The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the gas injection nozzle is configured to be movable from a position corresponding to a substantially central portion of a substrate surface held by a substrate holder toward an outer peripheral portion.

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