JP2011071169A - Substrate processing method and apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate processing method and apparatus, capable of preventing the collapse of a pattern formed on the surface of a substrate more reliably. <P>SOLUTION: In the way of a transfer system to a processing unit, ozone gas is sprayed to a substrate carried out from a carrier in order to remove organic contaminations. The substrate is carried in the processing unit after organic contaminations are removed from the surface thereof and is subjected to chemical surface treatment, so that uniform surface treatment can be performed on the entire surface of the substrate. After completing the chemical treatment, the substrate is subjected to pure water rinse treatment and then hydrophobic treatment is performed by supplying HMDS as a hydrophobic agent to the surface of the substrate. The capillary force of a droplet remaining in the pattern on the surface of the substrate becomes close to zero, thereby pattern collapse can be prevented during the drying. In the way of the transfer system back to the carrier, ozone gas is sprayed again to the substrate subjected to hydrophobic treatment and hydrophobic state is released. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  In the present invention, a thin plate-like precision electronic substrate (hereinafter simply referred to as “substrate”) such as a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device is subjected to a surface treatment using a treatment liquid such as a pure water cleaning treatment and then dried. The present invention relates to a substrate processing method and a substrate processing apparatus for performing processing.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a substrate manufacturing process, a substrate processing apparatus that performs a drying process after performing a surface treatment of a substrate such as a chemical treatment using a chemical solution and a rinsing treatment using pure water has been used. As such a substrate processing apparatus, a single-wafer type apparatus that processes substrates one by one and a batch-type apparatus that collectively processes a plurality of substrates are used. Single-wafer type substrate processing equipment usually performs chemical treatment by supplying chemical solution to the surface of a rotating substrate, pure water rinsing treatment by supplying pure water, and then rotating the substrate at high speed to dry it off. I do.

  Also, a drying method using IPA (isopropyl alcohol) is widely known in order to suppress the generation of watermarks during the drying process. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for performing a drying process using IPA vapor in a single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus.

JP 2008-34455 A

  On the other hand, with the progress of miniaturization of the pattern formed on the surface of the substrate, the collapse of the pattern when the substrate is dried has become a problem. The cause of pattern collapse is thought to be non-uniform capillary force due to liquid remaining in the pattern during the drying process. The drying method using IPA as disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a certain effect in preventing the collapse of the pattern because the surface tension of IPA is lower than that of water.

  However, in recent years, the miniaturization of the pattern on the substrate surface has further progressed, and the aspect ratio has also increased, so that the pattern is more likely to collapse. In such a situation, it has become difficult to sufficiently prevent the pattern from collapsing even with a drying method using IPA.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing method and a substrate processing apparatus that can more reliably prevent a pattern formed on a substrate surface from collapsing.

  In order to solve the above problems, the invention of claim 1 is a substrate processing method for performing a drying process after performing a surface treatment using a processing liquid on a substrate, a decontamination process for removing organic contamination on the substrate surface, and a process A surface treatment process for performing a surface treatment of the substrate with a liquid, a hydrophobization process for supplying a hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate after the surface treatment to perform a hydrophobization process, and a drying process for the hydrophobized substrate. A drying treatment step; and a modification release step for releasing the hydrophobic state of the surface of the substrate after drying.

  The invention of claim 2 is the substrate processing method according to the invention of claim 1, wherein the contamination removal step and the modification release step include an ozone supply step of supplying ozone to the surface of the substrate. To do.

  The invention of claim 3 is the substrate processing method according to the invention of claim 1, wherein the contamination removal step and the modification release step include an ultraviolet irradiation step of irradiating the surface of the substrate with ultraviolet rays. To do.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing method according to any one of the first to third aspects of the present invention, the hydrophobizing step supplies HMDS (hexamethyldisilazane) as a hydrophobizing agent. Hydrophobizing treatment is performed by substituting hydrogen of the hydroxy group on the surface with trimethylsilyl group, and the modification releasing step releases the hydrophobized state by returning the trimethylsilyl group formed on the substrate surface to hydrogen. And

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing method according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the modification cancellation step includes a heating step of heating the substrate.

  The invention of claim 6 is the substrate processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the contamination removing step performs the surface treatment from a carrier containing an untreated substrate. The modification release step is executed in the substrate transfer process from the processing unit to the carrier for storing the processed substrate.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing method for performing a surface treatment using a treatment liquid on a substrate and then performing a drying treatment, a surface treatment step for carrying out a surface treatment of the substrate with the treatment liquid, and completion of the surface treatment A hydrophobic process for supplying HMDS to the surface of the substrate that has been made hydrophobic, a drying process for drying the hydrophobized substrate, and releasing the hydrophobic state of the substrate surface after drying And a modification release step for making the surface hydrophilic.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for performing a drying process after performing a surface treatment using a processing liquid on a substrate, an indexer section for placing a carrier for storing the substrate, and a surface treatment and a drying process on the substrate. A processing unit that performs processing; a transport unit that transports the substrate between the indexer unit and the processing unit; and an ozone supply head that supplies ozone to the substrate. The processing unit uses a processing liquid. Hydrophobizing means is provided between the surface treatment and the drying treatment to supply a hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate to perform the hydrophobizing treatment, and the ozone supply head is provided in a transport system path where the transport means transports the substrate. The ozone is supplied to both the substrate transported from the indexer unit to the processing unit and the substrate transported from the processing unit to the indexer unit.

  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 includes an indexer robot that loads and unloads the substrate with respect to the carrier, and unloads the substrate with respect to the processing unit. A main transport robot for entering and a shuttle transport mechanism for transferring a substrate between the indexer robot and the main transport robot, wherein the ozone supply head is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism. .

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the shuttle transport mechanism further includes a heating means for heating the substrate.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in a substrate processing apparatus for performing a drying process after performing a surface treatment using a processing liquid on a substrate, an indexer unit for placing a carrier for storing the substrate, and a surface treatment and a drying process on the substrate. A processing unit that performs processing, a transport unit that transports the substrate between the indexer unit and the processing unit, and an ultraviolet lamp that irradiates the substrate with ultraviolet light, and the processing unit is a surface using a processing liquid. Comprising a hydrophobizing means for supplying a hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate between the treatment and the drying process to perform the hydrophobizing treatment, and the ultraviolet lamp is provided in a transport system path for transporting the substrate by the transport means, Both the substrate transported from the indexer unit to the processing unit and the substrate transported from the processing unit to the indexer unit are irradiated with ultraviolet rays.

  According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the substrate processing apparatus according to the eleventh aspect of the invention, wherein the transport means includes an indexer robot that loads and unloads the substrate with respect to the carrier, and unloads the substrate with respect to the processing unit. And a shuttle transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate between the indexer robot and the main transfer robot, and the ultraviolet lamp is provided in the shuttle transfer mechanism.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, the shuttle transport mechanism further includes a heating means for heating the substrate.

  According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the eighth to thirteenth aspects, the hydrophobizing means supplies HMDS as a hydrophobizing agent.

  According to the first to sixth aspects of the present invention, since the hydrophobizing treatment is performed by supplying the hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate before the surface treatment is finished and the drying treatment is performed, the pattern formed on the substrate surface The capillary force of the droplets remaining inside becomes close to zero, and the pattern collapse can be prevented more reliably. In addition, since organic contamination on the surface of the substrate is removed before the surface treatment, a uniform surface treatment can be performed on the entire surface of the substrate. Furthermore, since the hydrophobic state of the surface of the substrate after drying is released, it is possible to suppress troubles in subsequent processing.

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 5, since the modification release step includes a heating step of heating the substrate, the release process of the hydrophobic state is further promoted, and the time required for the modification release step can be shortened. .

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 6, the decontamination process is performed in the substrate transfer process from the carrier containing the unprocessed substrate to the processing unit for performing the surface treatment, and the modification release process is performed from the processing unit. Since it is executed in the process of transporting the substrate to the carrier that stores the processed substrate, a dedicated unit for performing the decontamination process and the reforming release process is unnecessary, and extra transport is performed to transport the substrate to the dedicated unit. Time can be eliminated.

  According to the invention of claim 7, in order to make the surface hydrophobic by supplying HMDS to the surface of the substrate before the surface treatment is finished and before the drying treatment, the pattern formed on the substrate surface The capillary force of the remaining droplets becomes close to zero, and the pattern collapse can be prevented more reliably. Moreover, since the hydrophobic state of the surface of the substrate after drying is released to make the surface hydrophilic, it is possible to suppress troubles in subsequent processing.

  According to the invention of claims 8 to 10, since the hydrophobizing treatment is performed by supplying the hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate between the surface treatment using the treatment liquid and the drying treatment, The capillary force of the droplet remaining in the formed pattern becomes close to zero, and the collapse of the pattern can be prevented more reliably. In addition, ozone is supplied to both the substrate transported from the indexer unit to the processing unit and the substrate transported from the processing unit to the indexer unit. Surface treatment can be performed, and the hydrophobic state of the substrate after the drying treatment can be released to prevent troubles in subsequent processing.

  In particular, according to the ninth aspect of the present invention, since the ozone supply head is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism, it is not necessary to separately provide a dedicated unit for supplying ozone, thereby suppressing a decrease in space utilization efficiency of the substrate processing apparatus. In addition, an extra transport time for transporting the substrate to such a dedicated unit can be eliminated.

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 10, since the shuttle transport mechanism further includes a heating means for heating the substrate, the release process of the hydrophobic state is further promoted, and the time required for the release process can be shortened.

  According to the invention of claims 11 to 13, since the hydrophobizing treatment is performed by supplying the hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate between the surface treatment using the treatment liquid and the drying treatment, The capillary force of the droplet remaining in the formed pattern becomes close to zero, and the collapse of the pattern can be prevented more reliably. In addition, since both the substrate transported from the indexer unit to the processing unit and the substrate transported from the processing unit to the indexer unit are irradiated with ultraviolet rays, organic contamination is removed from the substrate before the surface treatment, so that the entire surface of the substrate is uniform. Surface treatment can be performed, and the hydrophobic state of the substrate after the drying treatment can be released to prevent troubles in subsequent processing.

  In particular, according to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, since the ultraviolet lamp is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism, it is not necessary to separately provide a dedicated unit for ultraviolet irradiation, and a reduction in space utilization efficiency of the substrate processing apparatus is suppressed. In addition, an extra transport time for transporting the substrate to such a dedicated unit can be eliminated.

  In particular, according to the invention of claim 13, since the shuttle transport mechanism further includes a heating means for heating the substrate, the release process of the hydrophobic state is further promoted, and the time required for the release process can be shortened.

It is a top view which shows the whole layout of the substrate processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of a processing unit. It is a top view of a shuttle conveyance mechanism. It is a front view of the shuttle conveyance mechanism seen from the direction of arrow AR3 of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of a board | substrate. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of a hydrophobization process. It is a figure which shows the chemical reaction which arises when HMDS acts on the substrate surface. It is a figure which shows the chemical reaction which arises when ozone acts on the surface of the board | substrate hydrophobized. It is a figure which shows the shuttle conveyance mechanism of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the processing unit of 3rd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the processing unit of 4th Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the chemical reaction which arises when trichlorosilane acts on the substrate surface.

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

<1. First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an overall layout of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. This substrate processing apparatus 1 is a single wafer processing apparatus that processes semiconductor substrates W one by one. A chemical treatment using hydrofluoric acid (HF) and a rinse using pure water are performed on a circular silicon substrate W. After the treatment, the drying treatment is performed. The substrate processing apparatus 1 is configured by connecting an indexer unit ID and a processing unit PU. In addition, the substrate processing apparatus 1 controls the shuttle transport mechanism 60 interposed for transferring the substrate W between the indexer unit ID and the processing unit PU, and each operation mechanism provided in the apparatus to perform substrate processing. And a control unit 90 for proceeding.

  The indexer unit ID places a carrier C that stores a plurality of substrates W, takes out an unprocessed substrate W from the carrier C, passes it to the processing unit PU, and receives a processed substrate W from the processing unit PU. Store in carrier C. The indexer unit ID includes a mounting table 11 on which a plurality of carriers C are placed side by side, and an indexer robot 12 that takes out an unprocessed substrate W from each carrier C and stores a processed substrate W in each carrier C. Prepare.

  The mounting table 11 of the indexer unit ID is mounted in a state in which a plurality (four in this embodiment) of carriers C are aligned along a predetermined direction. The carrier C is carried into and out of the mounting table 11 by an unmanned conveyance mechanism such as an AGV (automated guided vehicle). The carrier C of the present embodiment uses a front opening unified pod (FOUP) that stores a plurality of substrates W in a sealed space in a stacked state at a predetermined interval. In addition to the FOUP, 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. In FIG. 1, four carriers C are mounted on the mounting table 11, but the number of carriers C mounted on the mounting table 11 is not limited to four.

  The indexer robot 12 travels in the transport path 5 formed along the direction in which the plurality of carriers C are arranged, and transports the substrate W between each carrier C and the shuttle transport mechanism 60. The indexer robot 12 is a so-called double-arm type transfer robot that can independently drive a pair of arms 13a and 13b. The upper hand 14a and the lower hand are shifted to the tips of the arms 13a and 13b vertically. The hands 14b are coupled to each other. The upper hand 14a and the lower hand 14b each hold one substrate W in a horizontal posture.

  The indexer robot 12 includes an advance / retreat drive mechanism 15 that individually moves the upper hand 14a and the lower hand 14b forward and backward by driving the arms 13a and 13b independently. Further, the indexer robot 12 includes a turning drive mechanism for turning the arms 13 a and 13 b around the vertical axis, a lift drive mechanism for raising and lowering the arms 13 a and 13 b, and a slide for moving the entire indexer robot 12 horizontally along the transport path 5. A drive mechanism (not shown) is provided. As a result, the indexer robot 12 causes the upper hand 14a and the lower hand 14b to individually access each carrier C of the mounting table 11 to take out the unprocessed substrate W and store the processed substrate W. Further, the indexer robot 12 transfers the substrate W by individually accessing the upper hand 14a and the lower hand 14b at an indexer robot access position 67 of the shuttle transport mechanism 60 described later.

  On the other hand, the processing unit PU includes a main transfer robot 16 arranged in the center and four processing units 20 arranged so as to surround the main transfer robot 16. The main transfer robot 16 transfers the substrate between each processing unit 20 and the shuttle transfer mechanism 60. The indexer robot 12, the main transfer robot 16, and the shuttle transfer mechanism 60 constitute transfer means for transferring the substrate W between the carrier C of the indexer unit ID and the processing unit 20.

  The main transfer robot 16 includes a pair of an upper hand 17a and a lower hand 17b that are arranged so as to be shifted in the vertical direction. The main transfer robot 16 includes a turning drive mechanism for turning the upper hand 17a and the lower hand 17b around a vertical axis, and an elevating drive mechanism for raising and lowering the upper hand 17a and the lower hand 17b (all not shown). . Further, the main transfer robot 16 includes an advance / retreat drive mechanism 18 that moves the upper hand 17a and the lower hand 17b independently forward and backward along the turning radius direction. As a result, the main transfer robot 16 causes the upper hand 17a and the lower hand 17b to individually access the surrounding processing unit 20 to carry in the unprocessed substrate W and carry out the processed substrate W. The main transfer robot 16 transfers the substrate W by individually accessing the upper transfer hand 17 a and the lower hand 17 b to the main transfer robot access position 68 of the shuttle transfer mechanism 60. Note that the main transfer robot 16 has a base portion fixed to the processing unit PU and does not move in the horizontal direction in the processing unit PU.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the processing unit 20. In the processing unit 20, surface treatment and drying treatment using a treatment liquid are performed on the substrate W. Here, in this specification, the “treatment liquid” is a general term for liquids that perform surface treatment on the substrate W, and is a concept that includes both a chemical solution and pure water. Examples of the chemical solution include hydrofluoric acid, ammonia hydrogen peroxide solution (SC-1), hydrochloric acid hydrogen peroxide solution (SC-2), and sulfuric acid hydrogen peroxide solution (SPM). Therefore, the surface treatment of the substrate W using the treatment liquid may be, for example, an etching treatment that removes an unnecessary film formed on the surface of the substrate W using hydrofluoric acid, or ammonia hydrogen peroxide solution may be used. It may be a cleaning process for removing particles from the surface of the substrate W, a cleaning process for removing metal contamination of the substrate W using hydrochloric acid / hydrogen peroxide solution, or a resist ashing process. A polymer removing process for removing the polymer adhering to the substrate W may be used. Further, the surface treatment of the substrate W using the treatment liquid includes a rinsing treatment of the surface of the substrate W using pure water.

  The processing unit 20 includes a processing chamber 7 surrounded by a partition wall 21. A fan filter unit (FFU) 22 for supplying clean air into the processing chamber 7 is provided at the ceiling of the processing chamber 7. The fan filter unit 22 is configured by stacking a fan and a high-performance filter on the top and bottom, purifies the air blown by the fan with a filter, and supplies the purified air to the processing chamber 7 as a downflow. The fan filter unit 22 may include a mechanism for adjusting the temperature and humidity of clean air.

  A processing chamber exhaust pipe 23 and a processing chamber drain pipe 24 are connected to the floor surface of the processing chamber 7. A downstream end of the processing chamber exhaust pipe 23 is connected to an exhaust facility such as an exhaust utility pipe provided in a semiconductor manufacturing factory where the substrate processing apparatus 1 is installed. An exhaust adjusting damper 25 capable of adjusting the passing flow rate using a driving force such as a rotary actuator is inserted in the middle of the path of the processing chamber exhaust pipe 23. The downstream end of the processing chamber drain pipe 24 is connected to a drain facility such as a drain pipe provided in the semiconductor manufacturing factory.

  An opening for carrying the substrate W in and out of the processing chamber 7 is formed in a part of the side wall surface of the processing chamber 7, and the opening is opened and closed by the shutter 26. The shutter 26 is opened and closed by a driving mechanism (not shown). When the shutter 26 is open, the main transfer robot 16 can carry the substrate W into the processing chamber 7 through the opening and can carry the substrate W out of the processing chamber 7. When the shutter 26 is closed, the inside of the processing chamber 7 is substantially closed, and the atmosphere in the processing chamber 7 is prevented from leaking to the main transfer robot 16 side.

  In the processing chamber 7, a rotation holding unit 30 that holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates the substrate W around a central axis along a vertical direction passing through the center of the substrate W is provided. The rotation holding unit 30 includes a spin chuck 31, a rotation shaft 32, and a chuck rotation drive mechanism 33. The spin chuck 31 can hold the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture without contacting the lower surface center portion of the substrate W by gripping the edge of the substrate W with the chuck pins. The rotation shaft 32 is suspended from the central portion on the lower surface side of the spin chuck 31. The chuck rotation drive mechanism 33 rotates the spin chuck 31 in the horizontal plane via the rotation shaft 32. Thereby, the substrate W held on the spin chuck 31 rotates around the central axis along the vertical direction in the horizontal plane together with the spin chuck 31 and the rotation shaft 32.

  The inside of the rotating shaft 32 is hollow, and a lower processing liquid supply pipe 34 is inserted in the hollow portion along the vertical direction. A base end side of the lower processing liquid supply pipe 34 is connected to a processing liquid supply source 36 through a processing liquid valve 35. The lower processing liquid supply pipe 34 extends to the position close to the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31 through the inside of the rotating shaft 32, and the processing is performed at the tip thereof toward the center of the lower surface of the substrate W. A lower processing liquid nozzle 37 for discharging the liquid is formed. A gap between the inner wall surface of the rotating shaft 32 and the outer wall surface of the lower processing liquid supply pipe 34 is a gas supply flow path, and is connected to a gas supply source (not shown). Gas can be supplied from the upper end of the gap toward the lower surface of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31.

  A processing cup 40 is provided surrounding the spin chuck 31 of the rotation holding unit 30. A drainage space 41 for draining the processing liquid used for the surface treatment of the substrate W is formed inside the processing cup 40 so as to surround the rotation holding unit 30. Further, a recovery space 42 for recovering the processing liquid used for the surface treatment of the substrate W is formed so as to surround the drainage space 41. The drainage space 41 and the recovery space 42 are partitioned by a cylindrical partition wall 43. The drainage space 41 is connected to a cup drainage pipe 44 for guiding the processing liquid to a drainage facility (not shown). This drainage facility may be the same as the drainage facility to which the processing chamber drainage pipe 24 is connected. In addition, a cup recovery pipe 45 for guiding the processing liquid to a recovery processing facility (not shown) is connected to the recovery space 42.

  A splash guard 46 is provided above the processing cup 40 to prevent the processing liquid from the substrate W from splashing outward. The splash guard 46 has a rotationally symmetric shape with respect to the central axis of rotation of the substrate W. On the inner surface of the upper portion of the splash guard 46, a drainage guide groove 47 having a V-shaped cross section that opens toward the spin chuck 31 is formed in an annular shape. In addition, a recovery liquid guide portion 48 is formed on the inner surface of the lower portion of the splash guard 46. The recovery liquid guide portion 48 has an inclined surface that goes downward as it goes outward in the rotational radius direction of the substrate W. Near the upper end of the recovery liquid guide 48, a partition wall storage groove 49 for receiving the partition wall 43 of the processing cup 40 when the splash guard 46 is lowered is formed.

  The splash guard 46 is driven up and down along the vertical direction by a guard up / down drive mechanism 39 configured by a ball screw mechanism or the like. The guard lifting / lowering drive mechanism 39 includes a splash guard 46, a recovery position that surrounds the edge of the substrate W where the recovery liquid guide 48 is held by the spin chuck 31, and a drainage guide groove 47 held by the spin chuck 31. The substrate is moved up and down in relation to the drainage position (position shown in FIG. 2) surrounding the edge of the substrate W. When the splash guard 46 is in the recovery position, the processing liquid splashed from the edge of the substrate W is guided to the recovery space 42 of the processing cup 40 by the recovery liquid guide 48 and recovered through the cup recovery tube 45. The On the other hand, when the splash guard 46 is at the drainage position, the processing liquid splashed from the edge of the substrate W is guided to the drainage space 41 of the processing cup 40 by the drainage guide groove 47, and the cup drainage pipe 44. It is drained through. In this way, the drainage and recovery of the processing liquid can be switched and executed. When the substrate W is transferred to the spin chuck 31, the guard lifting / lowering drive mechanism 39 lowers the splash guard 46 to a height position where the spin chuck 31 protrudes from the upper end of the splash guard 46.

  Above the spin chuck 31, a disk-shaped atmosphere blocking plate 50 having substantially the same diameter as the substrate W is provided. On the upper surface of the atmosphere blocking plate 50, a rotation shaft 51 is provided so as to extend along an axis common to the rotation shaft 32 of the spin chuck 31. The inside of the rotating shaft 51 is hollow, and an upper processing liquid supply pipe 52 for supplying a processing liquid to the upper surface of the substrate W is inserted in the hollow portion along the vertical direction. The base end side of the upper processing liquid supply pipe 52 is branched into two, one of which is connected to a hydrofluoric acid supply source 80 via a chemical valve 81 and the other is supplied with pure water via a pure water valve 83. A source 82 is connected. On the tip side of the upper processing liquid supply pipe 52, an upper processing liquid nozzle 53 that opens to the center of the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is formed.

  In addition, a gap between the inner wall surface of the rotating shaft 51 and the outer wall surface of the upper processing liquid supply pipe 52 is a gas supply channel 54 for supplying gas toward the upper surface of the substrate W. The base end side of the gas supply flow path 54 is branched into three, one of which is connected to the IPA supply source 84 via the IPA valve 85 and the other one is connected to the HMDS via the HMDS valve 87. A supply source 86 is connected, and the remaining one is connected to a nitrogen supply source 88 via a nitrogen valve 89. At the front end side of the gas supply channel 54, a gas discharge port 55 that opens so as to surround the upper processing liquid nozzle 53 in an annular shape at the center of the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is formed. The IPA supply source 84 and the HMDS supply source 86 supply IPA (isopropyl alcohol) vapor and HMDS (hexamethyldisilazane) vapor, respectively.

  The rotary shaft 51 is attached in a state where it is suspended from the vicinity of the tip of a support arm 56 that extends substantially horizontally. The support arm 56 can be moved up and down by a blocking plate lift drive mechanism 57. The shield plate lifting / lowering drive mechanism 57 moves the support arm 56 up and down, so that the atmosphere shield plate 50 connected thereto is greatly increased from a position close to the upper surface of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31 and above the spin chuck 31. Raise and lower between the separated retreat positions. Further, the shielding plate rotation drive mechanism 58 rotates the atmosphere shielding plate 50 in the horizontal plane almost in synchronization with the rotation of the substrate W by the rotation holding unit 30 via the rotation shaft 51.

  Next, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 is provided in the transport path 6 that extends from the substantially middle portion of the transport path 5 of the indexer unit ID toward the main transport robot 16. The shuttle transport mechanism 60 can reciprocate the shuttle main body 61 between the indexer robot access position 67 and the main transport robot access position 68 along the transport path 6. Although the transport path 6 is provided in the processing unit PU in a direction orthogonal to the transport path 5, the main transport robot 16 does not move along the transport path 6.

  FIG. 3 is a plan view of the shuttle transport mechanism 60. FIG. 4 is a front view of the shuttle transport mechanism 60 viewed from the direction of the arrow AR3 in FIG. The shuttle transport mechanism 60 includes a pair of rails 63 disposed along the transport path 6, a shuttle main body 61 that reciprocates on the rail 63, and a shuttle main body 61 that reciprocates along the rail 63. The linear motion mechanism 64 is provided.

  A pair of first hands 62 a and a pair of second hands 62 b are provided on the upper side of the shuttle body 61. The first hand 62a and the second hand 62b are provided with a plurality of support claws 66 projecting inward to support the edge of the substrate W from below. The first hand 62 a and the second hand 62 b can support the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture by the support claws 66. Instead of the support claw 66, an arcuate collar portion that extends along the edge of the substrate W may be provided on the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b.

  The shuttle main body 61 includes a first hand lifting mechanism 65a that lifts and lowers the first hand 62a and a second hand lifting mechanism 65b that lifts and lowers the second hand 62b. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the first hand 62 a and the second hand 62 b are displaced along the longitudinal direction of the transport path 6, and these are the first hand lifting mechanism 65 a and the second hand lifting / lowering. The mechanism 65b is configured to be lifted and lowered independently of each other. Further, the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b are arranged so as to be shifted in the height direction (vertical direction), and usually the first hand 62a is positioned above the second hand 62b. Yes. The first hand lifting mechanism 65a lifts and lowers the pair of first hands 62a all at the same height, and the second hand lifting mechanism 65b moves the pair of second hands 62b all at the same height. Go up and down.

  A hot plate 79 is installed on the upper surface of the shuttle main body 61 and below the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b. The hot plate 79 includes a heater using a resistance heating wire. The hot plate 79 can heat the substrate W held by the first hand 62a and / or the second hand 62b by operating a built-in heater.

  A slide block 69 that is slidably movable on the rail 63 is fixedly installed on the bottom surface of the shuttle body 61. The shuttle main body 61 is slidably guided on the pair of rails 63 and is reciprocated between the indexer robot access position 67 and the main transfer robot access position 68 by the linear motion mechanism 64. As the linear motion mechanism 64, various linear drive mechanisms such as an electric cylinder and a rodless cylinder can be employed.

  When the shuttle main body 61 is located at the indexer robot access position 67 on the side closer to the indexer robot 12, the substrate is placed between the upper hand 14a and lower hand 14b of the indexer robot 12 and the first hand 62a and second hand 62b. Deliver W. At this time, the upper hand 14a and the lower hand 14b of the indexer robot 12 advance to positions (directly above or directly below) corresponding to the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b, respectively, and the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b The substrate W is transferred by moving up or down.

  On the other hand, when the shuttle main body 61 is located at the main transfer robot access position 68 on the side close to the main transfer robot 16, the upper hand 17a and the lower hand 17b, the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b of the main transfer robot 16 are located. The substrate W is transferred between the two. At this time, the upper hand 17a and the lower hand 17b of the main transfer robot 16 advance to positions (directly above or directly below) corresponding to the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b, respectively, and the first hand 62a and the second hand 62b. The substrate W is transferred by raising or lowering.

In the first embodiment, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 is provided with an ozone gas supply head 70. The ozone gas supply head 70 is provided so as to cover the upper side of the main transfer robot access position 68. Therefore, the shuttle main body 61 at the main transfer robot access position 68 is located below the ozone gas supply head 70. The ozone gas supply head 70 has a plurality of discharge holes on the lower surface and is connected to an ozone gas supply source 72 via an ozone valve 71. By opening the ozone valve 71, ozone gas (O ₃ ) is ejected downward from the ozone gas supply head 70. The ozone gas supply head 70 may be provided so as to cover the upper part of the indexer robot access position 67, or may be provided so as to cover the entire shuttle transport mechanism 60.

  The control unit 90 controls the various operation mechanisms provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1. The configuration of the control unit 90 as hardware is the same as that of a general computer. That is, the control unit 90 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 processing software and data. It has a magnetic disk. In FIG. 1, for convenience of illustration, the control unit 90 is arranged at the corner of the processing unit PU, but the control unit 90 can be provided at an arbitrary position in the substrate processing apparatus 1.

  Next, the processing operation of the substrate processing apparatus 1 having the above-described configuration will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for the substrate W in the substrate processing apparatus 1. The processing operation described below proceeds by the control unit 90 executing predetermined processing software stored in a storage unit such as a magnetic disk to control each mechanism of the substrate processing apparatus 1.

  First, the indexer robot 12 unloads the substrate W to be processed from the carrier C (step S1). The indexer robot 12 takes out one unprocessed substrate W from the carrier C mounted on the mounting table 11 by the lower hand 14b. Then, the indexer robot 12 moves along the transport path 5 so that the lower hand 14 b holding the unprocessed substrate W is opposed to the indexer robot access position 67. On the other hand, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 moves the shuttle main body 61 to the indexer robot access position 67. Then, the indexer robot 12 advances the lower hand 14b holding the unprocessed substrate W directly above the second hand 62b of the shuttle transport mechanism 60. When the second hand 62b rises in this state, the unprocessed substrate W held by the lower hand 14b of the indexer robot 12 is received by the second hand 62b. In this way, the unprocessed substrate W is transferred from the indexer robot 12 to the shuttle transport mechanism 60.

  After the unprocessed substrate W is delivered, the indexer robot 12 moves the empty lower hand 14b back. On the other hand, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 moves the shuttle main body 61 to the main transport robot access position 68 while holding the substrate W in the second hand 62b. At the main transfer robot access position 68, ozone gas is ejected downward from the ozone gas supply head. For this reason, when the shuttle main body 61 moves to the main transfer robot access position 68, ozone gas is blown and supplied to the unprocessed substrate W held by the second hand 62b. Ozone has an extremely strong oxidizing action, and by supplying ozone gas, organic contamination (mainly carbon contamination) adhering to the surface of the untreated substrate W is oxidized and decomposed and removed (step S2). ).

  Next, the substrate W is transferred from the shuttle transport mechanism 60 to the main transport robot 16. Specifically, the main transfer robot 16 advances the empty lower hand 17b immediately below the second hand 62b of the shuttle transfer mechanism 60 located at the main transfer robot access position 68. When the second hand 62b is lowered in this state, the organic substance-contaminated substrate W held in the second hand 62b is transferred to the lower hand 17b. Subsequently, the main transfer robot 16 retreats the lower hand 17b that has received the substrate W, and turns so as to face any one of the surrounding four processing units 20. Then, the main transfer robot 16 causes the lower hand 17b to access the processing unit 20 and loads the substrate W (step S3).

  In the processing unit 20, the substrate W carried by the lower hand 17 b of the main transfer robot 16 is held by the spin chuck 31. When the lower hand 17 b accesses the processing unit 20, the splash guard 46 is lowered to a height position where the spin chuck 31 protrudes from the upper end of the splash guard 46, and the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is moved from above the spin chuck 31. It moves to a retreat position that is far away so as not to interfere with the lower hand 17b. Of course, when the lower hand 17b accesses the processing unit 20, the shutter 26 of the processing chamber 7 is open.

  When the substrate W is held by the spin chuck 31, the chuck rotation drive mechanism 33 starts to rotate the substrate W, and the splash guard 46 is in the recovery position (the position where the recovery liquid guide 48 surrounds the edge of the substrate W). Rise up to. Further, the main transfer robot 16 causes the lower hand 17b to leave the processing chamber 7, and the shutter 26 is closed to close the opening of the processing chamber 7.

  Thereafter, the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is lowered to a position close to the upper surface of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31, the chemical solution valve 81 is opened, and hydrofluoric acid is supplied from the upper processing solution nozzle 53 to the surface of the substrate W. Is started, and the chemical liquid surface treatment is executed (step S4). By supplying hydrofluoric acid to the surface of the substrate W, etching of the oxide film formed on the surface of the substrate W proceeds. Prior to the chemical liquid surface treatment, since the contamination of the organic matter is removed from the surface of the substrate W by supplying ozone gas in step S2, a uniform chemical liquid surface treatment can be performed on the entire surface of the substrate W.

  At this time, the processing liquid splashed from the edge of the rotating substrate W is received by the recovery liquid guide portion 48 of the splash guard 46 and guided to the recovery space 42 of the processing cup 40 through the recovery liquid guide portion 48. . The processing liquid dropped into the recovery space 42 is guided from the cup recovery pipe 45 to the recovery processing facility and reused for subsequent processing.

When performing the chemical surface treatment, the nitrogen valve 89 is opened and nitrogen gas (N ₂ ) is supplied from the gas discharge port 55 of the atmosphere blocking plate 50, so that the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31 and the atmosphere blocking plate 50 are The space is preferably an inert gas atmosphere. Further, the atmosphere blocking plate 50 lowered to the proximity position may be rotated in the same direction as the substrate W at substantially the same rotational speed. Further, the processing liquid may be supplied from the lower processing liquid nozzle 37 to the lower surface of the substrate W while supplying hydrofluoric acid from the upper processing liquid nozzle 53 to the upper surface of the substrate W.

  After the chemical liquid surface treatment for a predetermined time is performed, the chemical liquid valve 81 is closed and the chemical liquid supply from the upper processing liquid nozzle 53 is stopped. If processing liquid is supplied from the lower processing liquid nozzle 37, this is also stopped. Then, the splash guard 46 is slightly lowered to the drainage position (position where the drainage guide groove 47 surrounds the edge of the substrate W). Subsequently, the pure water valve 83 is opened and pure water is supplied from the upper processing liquid nozzle 53 to the surface of the substrate W. As a result, the pure water rinsing process in which the hydrofluoric acid and the etching residue on the surface of the substrate W are washed away proceeds (step 5). Also at this time, it is preferable that nitrogen gas is supplied from the gas discharge port 55 so that the space between the substrate W and the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is an inert gas atmosphere. Further, it is preferable that pure water is supplied also from the lower processing liquid nozzle 37 to supply pure water to the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate W.

  The processing liquid splashed from the edge of the rotating substrate W during the pure water rinsing process is received by the drain guide groove 47 of the splash guard 46, and passes through the drain guide groove 47 to drain the liquid space 41 of the processing cup 40. Led to. The processing liquid that has fallen into the drainage space 41 is drained out of the apparatus via the cup drainage pipe 44.

  After the pure water rinsing process for a predetermined time is completed, the process proceeds to step S6, where the surface of the substrate W is hydrophobized. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for the hydrophobic treatment of the substrate W. First, the IPA valve 85 is opened, and IPA vapor is supplied to the surface of the substrate W rotating from the gas discharge port 55 (step S61). At this time, the height position of the splash guard 46 can be set to an arbitrary position. Subsequently, the HMDS valve 87 is also opened while the IPA valve 85 is opened, and HMDS vapor and IPA vapor are mixed and supplied from the gas discharge port 55 to the surface of the substrate W (step S62).

  Prior to the supply of HMDS as a hydrophobizing agent, only IPA vapor is supplied in step S61 because HMDS is hardly soluble in water, and even after supplying HMDS only after rinsing with pure water This is because the water on the surface of the substrate W is not replaced. That is, IPA having both a hydroxy group and a hydrophobic group (isopropyl group) is soluble in both water and HMDS. For this reason, in step S61, only IPA is supplied to replace the water adhering to the surface of the substrate W with IPA, and then in step S62, the HMDS vapor and the IPA vapor are mixed and the surface of the substrate W is mixed. The IPA substituted with water is further substituted with HMDS. By doing so, HMDS adheres to the surface of the substrate W.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a chemical reaction that occurs when HMDS acts on the surface of the substrate W. FIG. A silicon oxide film (SiO ₂ film) is formed on the surface of the silicon substrate W. A large number of hydroxy groups (—OH) showing affinity with water are formed on the surface of the silicon oxide film, whereby the normal silicon oxide film shows hydrophilicity. When HMDS acts on such a silicon oxide film, as shown in FIG. 7, the hydrogen of the hydroxy group is substituted with a trimethylsilyl group (—Si (CH ₃ ) ₃ ), thereby exhibiting hydrophobicity. That is, the main part of the hydrophobization process in step S6 is to supply HMDS as a hydrophobizing agent to the substrate W, and to replace the hydrogen of the hydroxy group on the surface of the substrate W with a trimethylsilyl group to impart hydrophobicity. In step S2, the organic substance is removed from the surface of the substrate W by supplying ozone gas, so that the entire surface of the substrate W can be subjected to a uniform hydrophobic treatment.

  In step S63, only the HMDS valve 87 is closed while the IPA valve 85 is open, and only the vapor of IPA is continuously supplied from the gas discharge port 55 to the surface of the substrate W. This step is performed to prevent excessive formation of trimethylsilyl groups on the surface of the substrate W. That is, if the HMDS is left on the surface of the substrate W for a long time, trimethylsilyl groups are excessively formed on the surface of the substrate W, so that only the IPA vapor is supplied to prevent this. HMDS adhering to the surface of W is replaced with IPA again.

  Subsequently, the IPA valve 85 is closed, the pure water valve 83 is opened, and pure water is supplied from the upper processing liquid nozzle 53 to the surface of the substrate W. Thereby, pure water cleaning is performed in which IPA adhering to the surface of the substrate W is washed away (step S64). Thereafter, the pure water valve 83 is closed to finish the pure water cleaning. At this stage, water droplets remain on the surface of the substrate W in a hydrophobic state.

  When the hydrophobic treatment on the surface of the substrate W is thus completed, the process returns to FIG. 5 and proceeds to step S7 where the drying process is executed. When performing the drying process, the chuck rotation driving mechanism 33 increases the rotation speed of the substrate W and shakes off the water droplets adhering to the surface of the substrate W with a centrifugal force of high-speed rotation. At this time, the atmosphere shielding plate 50 located at the close position is rotated in the same direction as the substrate W at substantially the same rotational speed. Further, the nitrogen valve 89 is opened and nitrogen gas is supplied from the gas discharge port 55, so that an inert gas atmosphere is formed between the substrate W rotated at high speed and the atmosphere blocking plate 50.

  In the first embodiment, a hydrophobizing agent (HMDS) is supplied to the surface of the substrate W after the surface treatment (chemical solution surface treatment and pure water rinse treatment) using the treatment liquid is completed and before the drying treatment is performed. To make it hydrophobic. For this reason, even if a pattern in which the recent miniaturization and high aspect ratio have progressed considerably is formed on the surface of the substrate W, that is, even if a pattern that is very easy to collapse is formed on the surface of the substrate W. The capillary force of water droplets remaining in the pattern becomes close to zero, and the collapse of the pattern during the drying process can be reliably prevented.

  After the drying process for a predetermined time is completed, the supply of nitrogen gas from the gas discharge port 55 is stopped, the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is raised from the close position to the retracted position, and the rotation of the substrate W by the rotation holding unit 30 is also stopped. Is done. Further, the splash guard 46 is lowered to a height position where the spin chuck 31 protrudes from the upper end of the splash guard 46, and the shutter 26 of the processing chamber 7 is opened. Then, the main transfer robot 16 causes the upper hand 17a to access the processing unit 20 and unloads the substrate W after the drying process from the processing unit 20 (step S8).

  The main transfer robot 16 retreats the upper hand 17 a that has received the substrate W from the processing unit 20 and turns so as to face the main transfer robot access position 68 of the shuttle transfer mechanism 60. On the other hand, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 moves the shuttle main body 61 to the main transport robot access position 68. Then, the main transfer robot 16 advances the upper hand 17a holding the substrate W directly above the first hand 62a of the shuttle transfer mechanism 60. When the first hand 62a rises in this state, the substrate W held by the upper hand 17a of the main transport robot 16 is received by the first hand 62a. At this time, the surface state of the substrate W remains hydrophobic.

  Thereafter, the main transfer robot 16 moves the empty upper hand 17a backward. In this way, the transfer of the substrate W from the main transfer robot 16 to the shuttle transfer mechanism 60 is performed. At this time, the substrate W held by the second hand 62b of the shuttle transfer mechanism 60 is transferred to the lower hand 17b of the main transfer robot 16, and the substrate W held by the upper hand 17a of the main transfer robot 16 is transferred. May be transferred to the first hand 62 a of the shuttle transport mechanism 60. In this way, the substrates W before and after processing in the processing unit 20 are exchanged at the same time between the shuttle transport mechanism 60 and the main transport robot 16.

  When the delivery of the substrate W is completed, the shuttle main body 61 is located at the main transfer robot access position 68. As described above, ozone gas is ejected downward from the ozone gas supply head 70 at the main transfer robot access position 68. For this reason, ozone gas is sprayed and supplied to the substrate W received by the first hand 62a. When ozone gas is supplied to the substrate W whose surface has been rendered hydrophobic by HMDS, the hydrophobic state is released (step S9).

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a chemical reaction that occurs when ozone acts on the surface of the hydrophobized substrate W. FIG. As described above, a large number of trimethylsilyl groups are formed on the surface of the silicon oxide film of the substrate W that has been hydrophobized by HMDS. When ozone gas acts on such a silicon oxide film, as shown in FIG. 8, the trimethylsilyl group is decomposed by the oxidizing action of ozone, and the trimethylsilyl group is replaced with the original hydrogen. As a result, the surface of the silicon oxide film is in a state in which a large number of hydroxy groups are formed as before the hydrophobization treatment. In other words, the hydrophobic state is released by replacing the trimethylsilyl group formed on the surface of the substrate W with hydrogen by the action of ozone to release the hydrophobic state. As a result, the surface state of the substrate W is changed to the original state. This process restores hydrophilicity. The processing time for releasing the hydrophobic state of one substrate W is about several tens of seconds to several minutes.

  Further, when the hydrophobic state is released, ozone gas is supplied from the ozone gas supply head 70 and the substrate W held by the first hand 62 a is heated by the hot plate 79. Thereby, the release process of the hydrophobic state is promoted, and the processing time can be further shortened than described above.

  After the hydrophobic state release processing is completed, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 moves the shuttle body 61 from the main transport robot access position 68 to the indexer robot access position 67 while holding the substrate W in the first hand 62a. Let Then, the indexer robot 12 advances the upper hand 14a immediately below the first hand 62a holding the processed substrate W. When the first hand 62a is lowered in this state, the processed substrate W held by the first hand 62a is transferred to the upper hand 14a. At this time, the processed substrate W held in the first hand 62a of the shuttle transport mechanism 60 is transferred to the upper hand 14a of the indexer robot 12 and is not held in the lower hand 14b of the indexer robot 12. The processing substrate W may be transferred to the second hand 62b of the shuttle transport mechanism 60. In this way, the unprocessed substrate W and the processed substrate W are simultaneously exchanged between the shuttle transport mechanism 60 and the indexer robot 12.

  Thereafter, the indexer robot 12 causes the upper hand 14a that has received the processed substrate W to access the carrier C mounted on the mounting table 11, and stores the processed substrate W in the carrier C (step S10). . In this way, a series of processing procedures for the substrate W in the substrate processing apparatus 1 is completed.

  In the first embodiment, HMDS as a hydrophobizing agent is supplied to the surface of the substrate W between the surface treatment using the treatment liquid and the drying treatment to perform the hydrophobic treatment. Thereby, the surface state of the substrate W becomes hydrophobic, and even when a pattern that is very easy to collapse is formed on the surface of the substrate W, the capillary force of the droplets remaining in the pattern is zero. Close to. As a result, when the substrate W is dried, the pattern formed on the surface of the substrate W can be more reliably prevented from collapsing.

  Further, the post-process of the substrate processing apparatus 1 is often set on the assumption that the surface state of the substrate W is hydrophilic. In the first embodiment, an ozone gas supply head 70 is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism 60, and ozone gas is supplied to the surface of the hydrophobized substrate W after the drying process to release the hydrophobic state. As a result, the hydrophobic state of the substrate W is released and the surface state is restored to the original hydrophilicity, so that there is no possibility of hindering the subsequent process.

  In addition, ozone gas is supplied to the substrate W before the surface treatment using the treatment liquid to remove organic contamination. Thereby, the surface treatment using the treatment liquid can be uniformly performed on the entire surface of the substrate W.

  Further, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 is provided with a hot plate 79 together with the ozone gas supply head 70 to heat the substrate W on which the hydrophobic state is released by the ozone gas. Thereby, the release process of the hydrophobic state is further promoted, and the time required to restore the surface state of the substrate W to hydrophilicity can be shortened.

  Furthermore, in the first embodiment, an ozone gas supply head 70 is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism 60. That is, the ozone gas supply head 70 is provided in a normal substrate transport system path between the carrier C of the indexer ID and the processing unit 20. For this reason, the forward substrate W transported from the carrier C that stores the unprocessed substrate W to the processing unit 20 that performs the surface treatment, and the return path that is transported from the processing unit 20 to the carrier C that stores the processed substrate W. Ozone is inevitably supplied to both of the substrates W. By supplying ozone, organic matter contamination is removed from the surface of the substrate W in the outward path, and the surface state of the hydrophobic substrate W in the return path is released to restore hydrophilicity. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide a dedicated processing unit for supplying ozone in the substrate processing apparatus 1, and a decrease in space utilization efficiency of the substrate processing apparatus 1 can be suppressed. In addition, since no extra transport time for transporting the substrate W to such a dedicated processing unit for supplying ozone occurs, it is possible to prevent a decrease in throughput.

<2. Second Embodiment>
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The overall configuration of the substrate processing apparatus of the second embodiment is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment. The substrate processing apparatus of the second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the configuration of the shuttle transport mechanism 60.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the shuttle transport mechanism 60 in the substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. In the figure, the same elements as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. Instead of providing the ozone gas supply head 70 in the shuttle transport mechanism 60 in the first embodiment, a UV lamp 170 is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism 60 in the second embodiment. The UV lamp 170 is provided so as to cover the upper side of the main transfer robot access position 68. Accordingly, the shuttle main body 61 at the main transfer robot access position 68 is located below the UV lamp 170. The UV lamp 170 is a fluorescent lamp that emits light having a wavelength in the ultraviolet region, and irradiates ultraviolet light toward the main transfer robot access position 68. The remaining configuration of the substrate processing apparatus of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. The UV lamp 170 may be provided so as to cover the upper part of the indexer robot access position 67, or may be provided so as to cover the entire shuttle transport mechanism 60.

  The processing procedure of the substrate W in the second embodiment is also the same as the processing procedure of the first embodiment shown in FIG. However, in the second embodiment, the shuttle transport mechanism 60 is provided with a UV lamp 170. That is, the UV lamp 170 is provided in the normal substrate transfer system path between the carrier C of the indexer ID and the processing unit 20. Since the output of the UV lamp 170 is not stable when it is repeatedly turned on / off (it takes time until the output is stabilized after being turned on), the UV lamp 170 is always on during the operation of the substrate processing apparatus. For this reason, the forward substrate W transported from the carrier C that stores the unprocessed substrate W to the processing unit 20 that performs the surface treatment, and the return path that is transported from the processing unit 20 to the carrier C that stores the processed substrate W. Both the substrates W are necessarily irradiated with ultraviolet rays.

  Ultraviolet light itself has a strong chemical action, and reacts with oxygen in the air to generate ozone. Therefore, when ultraviolet rays are irradiated to the outgoing substrate W before the surface treatment using the treatment liquid, organic contaminants adhering to the surface of the substrate W are decomposed and removed (step S2 in FIG. 5). Further, when the surface of the hydrophobic substrate W on the return path after the drying treatment is irradiated with ultraviolet rays, a reaction similar to that shown in FIG. 8 occurs, and the hydrophobic state of the substrate W is released and the surface state thereof is released. Is restored to its original hydrophilicity (step S9 in FIG. 5).

  Thus, even if the shuttle transport mechanism 60 is provided with the UV lamp 170 instead of the ozone gas supply head 70, the same processing procedure as in the first embodiment can be executed, and the same effect can be obtained.

<3. Third Embodiment>
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. The overall configuration of the substrate processing apparatus of the third embodiment is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment. The substrate processing apparatus of the third embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the partial configuration of the processing unit 20.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the processing unit 20 in the substrate processing apparatus of the third embodiment. In the figure, the same elements as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. Instead of providing the ozone gas supply head 70 in the shuttle transport mechanism 60 in the first embodiment, the ozone gas supply mechanism is provided in the processing unit 20 in the third embodiment. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, one of the proximal ends of the gas supply path 54 provided on the rotating shaft 51 of the atmosphere shielding plate 50 is connected to an ozone gas supply source 180 via an ozone valve 181. ing. By opening the ozone valve 181, ozone gas is ejected from the gas discharge port 55. The shuttle transport mechanism 60 of the third embodiment is not provided with the ozone gas supply head 70. The remaining configuration of the substrate processing apparatus of the third embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment.

  The processing procedure of the substrate W in the third embodiment is substantially the same as the processing procedure of the first embodiment shown in FIG. However, in the third embodiment, since the ozone gas supply mechanism is provided in the processing unit 20 instead of the shuttle transport mechanism 60, after the unprocessed substrate W is loaded into the processing unit 20, Ozone gas is supplied from the gas discharge port 55, and organic contamination is decomposed and removed. More specifically, after the unprocessed substrate W carried into the processing unit 20 is held by the spin chuck 31 and the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is lowered to a close position close to the upper surface of the substrate W, the chemical valve 81 is moved. Before opening, the ozone valve 181 is opened to supply ozone gas from the gas discharge port 55 to the surface of the substrate W. That is, step S2 and step S3 in FIG. 5 are interchanged.

  In addition, before the hydrophobized substrate W after the drying process is unloaded from the processing unit 20, ozone gas is supplied from the gas discharge port 55 to the surface of the substrate W, and the hydrophobic state is released. Become. More specifically, after the drying process is completed and the supply of nitrogen gas from the gas discharge port 55 is stopped, the ozone valve 181 is opened while the atmosphere blocking plate 50 is maintained in the proximity position, and the substrate is removed from the gas discharge port 55. Ozone gas is supplied to the surface of W. That is, step S8 and step S9 in FIG. 5 are interchanged.

  Even in this case, similarly to the first embodiment, it is possible to remove the organic contamination by supplying ozone gas to the substrate W before performing the surface treatment using the treatment liquid. For this reason, the surface treatment using the treatment liquid can be uniformly performed on the entire surface of the substrate W.

  In the processing unit 20, the hydrophobic state is released by supplying ozone gas to the surface of the hydrophobicized substrate W after the drying process. As a result, the hydrophobic state of the substrate W is released and the surface state is restored to the original hydrophilicity, so that there is no possibility of hindering the subsequent process.

  Also in the third embodiment, HMDS as a hydrophobizing agent is supplied to the surface of the substrate W between the surface treatment using the treatment liquid and the drying treatment to perform the hydrophobic treatment. As a result, as in the first embodiment, when the substrate W is dried, the pattern formed on the surface of the substrate W can be prevented from collapsing.

  Furthermore, also in the third embodiment, since the ozone gas supply mechanism is provided in the processing unit 20, it is not necessary to separately provide a dedicated processing unit for supplying ozone in the substrate processing apparatus. A decrease in utilization efficiency can be suppressed. In addition, since no extra transport time for transporting the substrate W to such a dedicated processing unit for supplying ozone occurs, it is possible to prevent a decrease in throughput.

<4. Fourth Embodiment>
Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The overall configuration of the substrate processing apparatus of the fourth embodiment is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment. The substrate processing apparatus of the fourth embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the partial configuration of the processing unit 20.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the processing unit 20 in the substrate processing apparatus of the fourth embodiment. In the figure, the same elements as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. Instead of providing the ozone gas supply head 70 in the shuttle transport mechanism 60 in the first embodiment, the UV lamp 270 is provided in the processing unit 20 in the fourth embodiment. Specifically, a head for the UV lamp 270 is provided separately from the atmosphere blocking plate 50. As in the second embodiment, the UV lamp 270 emits ultraviolet rays. The UV lamp 270 is swung in the horizontal direction by the lamp scan driving mechanism 271. The shuttle transport mechanism 60 of the fourth embodiment is not provided with the ozone gas supply head 70. The remaining configuration of the substrate processing apparatus of the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment.

  The processing procedure of the substrate W in the fourth embodiment is substantially the same as the processing procedure of the first embodiment shown in FIG. However, in the fourth embodiment, the UV lamp 270 is provided not in the shuttle transport mechanism 60 but in the processing unit 20, so that after the unprocessed substrate W is loaded into the processing unit 20, the UV is applied to the substrate W. Ultraviolet rays are irradiated from the lamp 270, and organic matter contamination is decomposed and removed. More specifically, after the unprocessed substrate W carried into the processing unit 20 is held by the spin chuck 31, before the atmosphere blocking plate 50 comes close to the upper surface of the substrate W, the UV lamp 270 moves to the substrate W. Irradiate the surface with UV light. That is, step S2 and step S3 in FIG. 5 are interchanged. In addition, since the UV lamp 270 of the fourth embodiment is a point light source, the substrate W is rotated while the UV lamp 270 is swung in the horizontal direction by the lamp scan drive mechanism 271 to uniformly emit ultraviolet rays over the entire surface of the substrate W. Irradiation is preferred.

  In addition, before the hydrophobic substrate W after the drying process is carried out of the processing unit 20, the surface of the substrate W is irradiated with ultraviolet rays from the UV lamp 270, and the hydrophobic state is released. . More specifically, after the drying process is completed and the supply of nitrogen gas from the gas discharge port 55 is stopped and the atmosphere blocking plate 50 rises from the close position to the retracted position, the UV lamp 270 moves to the surface of the substrate W. Irradiate ultraviolet rays. That is, step S8 and step S9 in FIG. 5 are interchanged. Even at this time, it is preferable to uniformly irradiate the entire surface of the substrate W with ultraviolet rays by rotating the substrate W while the lamp lamp driving mechanism 271 swings the UV lamp 270 in the horizontal direction.

  As described above, even when the UV lamp 270 is provided in the processing unit 20, the same processing procedure as in the third embodiment can be executed, and the same effect can be obtained.

<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 each of the above embodiments, HMDS is used as the hydrophobizing agent. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any material can be used as long as the surface of the silicon oxide film can be made hydrophobic. As such a hydrophobizing agent, for example, trichlorosilane (SiHcl ₃ ) can be used. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a chemical reaction that occurs when trichlorosilane acts on the surface of the substrate W. FIG. As shown in FIG. 12A, trichlorosilane is easily hydrolyzed by moisture remaining on the substrate W after the pure water rinsing process to become SiH (OH) ₃ and generates hydrogen chloride gas (Hcl). When this SiH (OH) ₃ reacts with the surface of the silicon oxide film, as shown in FIG. 12B, a dehydration reaction occurs and the surface of the silicon oxide film becomes hydrophobic.

  Thus, even if trichlorosilane is supplied to the surface of the substrate W as a hydrophobizing agent and subjected to a hydrophobizing treatment, it remains in the pattern formed on the surface of the substrate W as in the above embodiments. The capillary force of the water droplets that are close to zero makes it possible to reliably prevent the pattern from collapsing during the drying process. Further, the surface of the substrate W hydrophobized with trichlorosilane is also released from the hydrophobized state by ozone supply or ultraviolet irradiation, and the surface state is restored to the original hydrophilicity.

  Further, in the first embodiment (or the second embodiment), the shuttle transport mechanism 60 is provided with the ozone gas supply head 70 (or the UV lamp 170: the same applies in this paragraph), but the carrier of the indexer unit ID. The ozone gas supply head 70 may be provided in any one of the transport paths of transport means (the indexer robot 12, the main transport robot 16, and the shuttle transport mechanism 60) for transporting the substrate W between C and the processing unit 20. . For example, the ozone transport head 70 may be provided on the main transfer robot 16 or the indexer robot 12. Further, an ozone gas supply head 70 may be provided in the vicinity of the shutter 26 of the processing unit 20 or in the vicinity of the opening of the carrier C. Even if the ozone gas supply head 70 is provided at any position on the transport path where the transport means transports the substrate W, the forward path transported from the carrier C that stores the unprocessed substrate W to the processing unit 20 that performs the surface treatment. Ozone is inevitably supplied to both the substrate W and the substrate W on the return path transported from the processing unit 20 to the carrier C that stores the processed substrate W. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide a dedicated processing unit for supplying ozone, and the same effects as those of the above embodiments can be obtained.

  In the third embodiment, ozone gas is supplied from the gas discharge port 55 of the atmosphere blocking plate 50. However, a dedicated nozzle for supplying ozone gas is provided in the processing unit 20, and the substrate W is rotated while rotating the substrate W. The ozone gas may be supplied to the surface of the substrate W by reciprocating the nozzle in the horizontal direction.

  In the fourth embodiment, the UV light 270 of the point light source is swung while the entire surface of the substrate W is irradiated with ultraviolet rays. Instead, the line shape has a length longer than the radius of the substrate W. A UV light source (for example, an ultraviolet LED) may be provided, and the entire surface of the substrate W may be irradiated with ultraviolet rays by rotating the substrate W while holding the linear UV light source at a fixed position.

  Further, the processing unit 20 may be provided with a dedicated nozzle for discharging the processing liquid and / or a dedicated nozzle for discharging the IPA vapor and the HMDS vapor separately from the atmosphere shielding plate 50. good.

  Further, instead of the etching process using hydrofluoric acid, a cleaning process using another chemical solution such as ammonia hydrogen peroxide solution may be performed. Furthermore, as the surface treatment using the treatment liquid, only the cleaning treatment using pure water may be performed without performing the treatment with the chemical liquid.

  Further, the heating means for accelerating the release processing of the hydrophobic state on the surface of the substrate W is not limited to the hot plate 79, but the substrate W being released by other heating means, for example, light irradiation from a halogen lamp. May be heated.

  The substrate to be processed by the substrate cleaning apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to a semiconductor substrate, and may be a glass substrate used for a liquid crystal display device or the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate processing apparatus 12 Indexer robot 16 Main transfer robot 20 Processing unit 30 Rotation holding part 31 Spin chuck 40 Processing cup 46 Splash guard 50 Atmosphere blocker board 53 Upper process liquid nozzle 55 Gas discharge port 60 Shuttle transfer mechanism 61 Shuttle main part 64 Direct Moving mechanism 67 Indexer robot access position 68 Main transfer robot access position 70 Ozone gas supply head 71,181 Ozone valve 72,180 Ozone gas supply source 84 IPA supply source 85 IPA valve 86 HMDS supply source 87 HMDS valve 90 Controller 170,270 UV lamp C Carrier ID Indexer unit PU processing unit W substrate

Claims (14)

A substrate processing method for performing a drying process after performing a surface treatment using a processing liquid on a substrate,
A decontamination process for removing organic contamination on the substrate surface;
A surface treatment process for treating the surface of the substrate with a treatment liquid;
A hydrophobizing step of supplying a hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate after the surface treatment to perform a hydrophobizing treatment;
A drying process step for drying the hydrophobized substrate;
A modification release step for releasing the hydrophobic state of the substrate surface after drying;
A substrate processing method comprising: The substrate processing method according to claim 1,
The substrate processing method, wherein the decontamination step and the modification cancellation step include an ozone supply step of supplying ozone to the surface of the substrate. The substrate processing method according to claim 1,
The substrate processing method, wherein the contamination removal step and the modification cancellation step include an ultraviolet irradiation step of irradiating the surface of the substrate with ultraviolet rays. In the substrate processing method in any one of Claims 1-3,
The hydrophobizing step performs hydrophobizing treatment by supplying HMDS (hexamethyldisilazane) as a hydrophobizing agent and replacing hydrogen of the hydroxy group on the substrate surface with a trimethylsilyl group,
The substrate treatment method characterized in that the modification release step releases the hydrophobic state by returning the trimethylsilyl group formed on the substrate surface to hydrogen. In the substrate processing method in any one of Claims 1-4,
The substrate processing method, wherein the modification cancellation step includes a heating step of heating the substrate. In the substrate processing method in any one of Claims 1-5,
The decontamination process is performed in a substrate transfer process from a carrier containing an unprocessed substrate to a processing unit that performs the surface treatment,
The substrate processing method is characterized in that the modification cancellation step is executed in a substrate transport process from the processing unit to a carrier for storing processed substrates. A substrate processing method for performing a drying process after performing a surface treatment using a processing liquid on a substrate,
A surface treatment process for treating the surface of the substrate with a treatment liquid;
A hydrophobizing step of supplying HMDS to the surface of the substrate after the surface treatment to make the surface hydrophobic;
A drying process step for drying the hydrophobized substrate;
A modification release step for releasing the hydrophobic state of the surface of the substrate after drying and making the surface hydrophilic;
A substrate processing method comprising: A substrate processing apparatus for performing a drying process after performing a surface treatment using a processing liquid on a substrate,
An indexer unit for mounting a carrier for storing a substrate;
A processing unit for performing surface treatment and drying treatment on the substrate;
Transport means for transporting a substrate between the indexer unit and the processing unit;
An ozone supply head for supplying ozone to the substrate;
With
The processing unit includes a hydrophobizing unit that performs a hydrophobizing process by supplying a hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate between the surface treatment using the processing liquid and the drying process.
The ozone supply head is provided in a transport path through which the transport means transports a substrate, and ozone is supplied to both the substrate transported from the indexer unit to the processing unit and the substrate transported from the processing unit to the indexer unit. A substrate processing apparatus. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein
The conveying means is
An indexer robot for carrying the substrate in and out of the carrier;
A main transfer robot for carrying the substrate in and out of the processing unit;
A shuttle transport mechanism for delivering a substrate between the indexer robot and the main transport robot;
With
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the ozone supply head is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein
The shuttle processing mechanism further includes a heating means for heating the substrate. A substrate processing apparatus for performing a drying process after performing a surface treatment using a processing liquid on a substrate,
An indexer unit for mounting a carrier for storing a substrate;
A processing unit for performing surface treatment and drying treatment on the substrate;
Transport means for transporting a substrate between the indexer unit and the processing unit;
An ultraviolet lamp that irradiates the substrate with ultraviolet rays;
With
The processing unit includes a hydrophobizing unit that performs a hydrophobizing process by supplying a hydrophobizing agent to the surface of the substrate between the surface treatment using the processing liquid and the drying process.
The ultraviolet lamp is provided in a conveyance path through which the conveyance means conveys a substrate, and emits ultraviolet rays to both the substrate conveyed from the indexer unit to the processing unit and the substrate conveyed from the processing unit to the indexer unit. Irradiating a substrate processing apparatus. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein
The conveying means is
An indexer robot for carrying the substrate in and out of the carrier;
A main transfer robot for carrying the substrate in and out of the processing unit;
A shuttle transport mechanism for delivering a substrate between the indexer robot and the main transport robot;
With
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the ultraviolet lamp is provided in the shuttle transport mechanism. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein
The shuttle processing mechanism further includes a heating means for heating the substrate. In the substrate processing apparatus in any one of Claims 8-13,
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the hydrophobizing means supplies HMDS as a hydrophobizing agent.

Images