JP2012195570A - Substrate processing apparatus and substrate processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method which improve the apparatus operation rate.SOLUTION: A substrate processing apparatus according to this invention comprises: at least a processing chamber including a microwave supply part supplying microwaves to a surface of a substrate and a gas supply part supplying an inactive gas to the surface of the substrate; and conveyance chambers which respectively include a cooling mechanism cooling the substrate that has been subjected to processing in the processing chamber and a conveyance mechanism conveying the substrate cooled by the cooling mechanism.

Description

The present invention relates to a method of cooling a substrate when processing the substrate in a substrate processing apparatus.

A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which is a kind of substrate processing apparatus includes at least a carrier mounting table on which a carrier as a substrate container storing a substrate is mounted, a processing chamber for processing the substrate, and a carrier in the carrier mounting table. And a transfer chamber provided with transfer means for transferring the substrate to the processing chamber.

  In such a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, conventionally, when the transporting means carries out the processed substrate (hereinafter referred to as “wafer”) from the processing chamber and returns to the carrier, the transporting means and the carrier are not thermally damaged. The processed wafer may be cooled. For example, Patent Document 1 describes that a cooling process is performed before returning to the carrier. Further, as described in Patent Document 2 and Patent Document 3, conventionally, a chamber for cooling the wafer is provided in the transfer chamber. For example, Patent Document 2 describes that a mounting table (cooling stage) for cooling a substrate is provided in a spare chamber provided between a processing chamber and a transfer chamber. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-228561 describes that a spare chamber is provided in the transfer chamber for retracting the wafer for cooling. However, the apparatus disclosed in the above two patent documents has a configuration in which the substrate in the carrier is transferred across several chambers before being transferred to the processing chamber via the transfer chamber. This cooling mechanism is only required to be provided in the apparatus as necessary.

On the other hand, the processed wafer may be cooled in the processing chamber. For example, it is performed by reducing the temperature in the processing chamber by flowing N ₂ gas into the processing chamber.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, after T1 to T2, the wafer 1 is loaded into the processing chamber 1, and after T2 to T3, the wafer 1 is subjected to substrate processing, and then after T3 to T4, post processing is performed. As a cooling process in the processing chamber. In T3 to T4, the processing chamber 1 is occupied by the wafer 1, and the unprocessed wafer 4 cannot be processed. Therefore, after the cooling process in the processing chamber 1 is completed in T4, the wafer 1 and the wafer 4 are processed. And are transported. Similarly to wafer 1, wafers 2 and 3 cannot be processed in processing chambers 2 and 3 while cooling processing in processing chambers 2 and 3 is performed. After the cooling process in the chambers 2 and 3 is completed, the wafers 2 and 3 and the wafers 5 and 6 are exchanged and transferred.
However, in this case, since the processing chamber is occupied by the processed wafer until the cooling of the processed wafer is completed, the unprocessed wafer cannot be carried in. Therefore, the longer the time required for cooling in the processing chamber, the lower the throughput and the operating rate of the entire apparatus.

Patent No. 4199324 JP 2005-322762 A Japanese Patent No. 4568231

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus that suppresses a reduction in apparatus operation rate caused by substrate retention in the processing chamber.

A substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a processing chamber including at least a microwave supply unit that supplies a microwave toward the surface of the substrate, and a gas supply unit that supplies an inert gas toward the surface of the substrate; It is comprised at least by the conveyance chamber provided with the cooling mechanism which cools the board | substrate processed in the process chamber, and the conveyance chamber provided with at least the conveyance mechanism which conveys the board | substrate cooled by the said cooling mechanism.

According to the present invention, since the time required for substrate processing in the processing chamber is shortened, the apparatus operating rate can be improved.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the substrate processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the case where the distribution system is used in the substrate processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the case where a parallel system is used in the substrate processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which illustrates the process module of the substrate processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the controller structure of the substrate processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows operation | use of the cooling system in this invention. It is a figure which shows operation | movement of the conventional cooling system. It is a figure which shows the temperature change of a board | substrate at the time of a 1st cooling process process in PM. It is a figure which shows the temperature change of the board | substrate from the time of completion | finish of a 1st cooling process to a 2nd cooling process.

First, the substrate processing apparatus 1 which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention is demonstrated using FIG. FIG.
It is the structure schematic when the substrate processing apparatus 1 is seen from the top.
A substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured as a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that executes a predetermined (hereinafter, “predetermined”) process for manufacturing a semiconductor. Hereinafter, a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a variable microwave (VFM).
A description will be given on the assumption that the apparatus uses Frequency Microwave).

A substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes at least a process module (PM) 10 as a processing chamber for performing predetermined processing on a wafer,
Front end module (EFEM; Equip) as a transfer chamber where wafers are transferred
ment Front End Module (20) and a substrate container (for example, FOUP (Front-Opening Unified Pod), hereinafter referred to as a “pod”) in which a wafer is accommodated as a container mounting table that delivers to and from a transfer device outside the apparatus. A port (LP) 30 is configured.
At least one process module 10 and one load port 30 are provided. Here, three process modules 10 and three load ports 30 are provided, but this configuration is an example, and the configuration of the present invention is not limited to this configuration.
In addition, a controller as a control unit to be described later controls a transfer robot 202 as a transfer unit to be described later by executing a predetermined file.
Wafers are transferred between the front end module 20 and the load port 30.
In addition, the controller executes the predetermined file to process module 1
Various mechanisms constituting the zero are controlled, and the wafer is processed in the process module 10.

[Process module 10]
The process module 10 is formed by CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition).
ion; chemical vapor deposition) and ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition)
; Processing such as film formation, ashing, etching and film quality improvement by atomic layer deposition) is performed on the wafer. Further, the process module 10 includes mechanisms such as a microwave generation mechanism, a refrigerant supply mechanism, a refrigerant discharge pipe, a gas supply mechanism, a gas exhaust mechanism, and a temperature control mechanism, as will be described later, in accordance with the wafer processing method.
The process module 10 can communicate with the front end module 20 via a gate valve (GV) 100.
[Front-end module 20]
The front end module 20 includes a cooling stage 200 (CS as a cooling mechanism).
; Cooling Stage). The cooling stage 200 is configured as a shelf and a table that can hold a wafer, and in the embodiment of the present invention, the cooling water is circulated inside to cool the back surface of the held wafer. As will be described later, the substrate cooled to the predetermined temperature in the process module 10 is cooled from the predetermined temperature to the target temperature in the cooling stage 200.
The front end module 20 includes a transfer robot 202 as a transfer mechanism for transferring a wafer. The transfer robot 202 includes an arm as a substrate holding unit that holds a wafer one above the other. For example, the transfer robot 202 places an unprocessed wafer on the tip of the upper arm and carries it into each process module 10, and places the treated wafer on the tip of the lower arm and carries it out of each process module 10 (wafer). Can be transferred). Although the same number of process modules 10 and cooling stages 200 are provided, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and the number of process modules 10 is appropriately changed according to the time during which the wafer is transferred, The number of cooling stages 200 can be changed as appropriate according to the time during which the wafer is cooled. The front end module 20 is connected to the load port 30 via a shutter.
It is possible to communicate with.
[Load port 30]
The load port 30 is provided with a plurality of mounting tables on which pods as substrate containers are mounted. As shown in FIG. 1, the same number of load ports 30 as the process modules 10 are provided as in the cooling stage 200, but how many load ports 30 are provided differs depending on the wafer transfer method described later. Specifically, when a wafer is transferred by the sorting method, at least one load port 30 has only to be provided. When a wafer is transferred by the parallel method, according to a transfer recipe describing the transfer destination, or the like. A predetermined number of load ports 30 are provided at least.

Hereinafter, a method of transporting a wafer by the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2A is a diagram for explaining a distribution method in which wafers stored in one pod are transferred to each process module 10 one by one. FIG. 2B is a diagram for explaining a parallel system in which wafers stored in a plurality of pods are transferred to each process module 10 for the purpose of performing processing under different conditions. Hereinafter, it is assumed that the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention transports a wafer by a sorting method.

[Distribution method]
With reference to FIG. 2A, the wafer transfer by the sorting method will be described. Here, it is assumed that the wafer is transferred between the load ports 30-1 to 30-3 and the process modules 10-1 to 10-3.
First, as shown by the arrow A, from the pod placed on the load port 30-1 (first sheet)
The wafer is taken out and loaded into the process module 10-1 as indicated by an arrow B.
Next, as shown by an arrow A, the next (second) wafer is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-1, and is loaded into the process module 10-2 as shown by an arrow C.
Further, as indicated by an arrow A, the next (third) wafer is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-1, and is loaded into the process module 10-3 as indicated by an arrow D.
The wafers processed in the process modules 101 to 3 are sequentially taken out and transferred to the pod of the load port 30-1.

[Parallel method]
With reference to FIG. 2B, the wafer conveyance by the parallel system will be described. Here, it is assumed that the wafer is transferred between each of the load ports 30-1 to 30-3 and each of the process modules 10-1 to 10-3.
As indicated by an arrow A, the wafer is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-1 and loaded into the process module 10-1. The wafer processed in the process module 10-1 is taken out and transferred to the pod of the load port 30-1.
As shown by an arrow B, the wafer is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-2 and loaded into the process module 10-2. The wafer processed in the process module 10-2 is taken out and transferred to the pod of the load port 30-2.
As indicated by an arrow C, the wafer is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-3 and loaded into the process module 10-3. The wafer processed in the process module 10-3 is taken out and transferred to the pod of the load port 30-3.

Hereinafter, the process module 10 of FIG. 1 will be further described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the process module 10 of FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the process module 10 has a configuration in which a processing chamber 12 is provided with a refrigerant supply mechanism 14, a microwave generation mechanism 16, a gas supply mechanism 18, a gas discharge mechanism 22, and a wafer transfer mechanism 24. Yes.

[Processing room]
The processing container 120 forming the processing chamber 12 is made of, for example, aluminum (Al) or stainless steel (
It is made of a metal material such as SUS, and has a structure in which the microwave is shielded by the processing chamber 12 and the outside. In the processing chamber 12, substrate support pins 122 are provided as substrate support portions for supporting the wafer. The substrate support pins 122 are composed of a plurality of (two in this embodiment) made of, for example, quartz or Teflon (registered trademark), and support the wafer at the upper ends thereof. A conductive substrate support 124 as a substrate cooling unit is provided below the wafer and below the substrate support pins 122. The substrate support 124 is made of a metal material that is a conductor such as aluminum. The substrate support 124 is a circular shape having a shape as viewed from above, which is larger than the outer diameter of the wafer, and is formed in a disk shape or a cylindrical shape.

Since the substrate support 124 is made of metal, the microwave potential is zero on the substrate support 124. Therefore, when the wafer is placed directly on the substrate support table 124, the electric field strength of the microwave is weak. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the wafer is placed at a position of a quarter wavelength (λ / 4) of the microwave from the surface of the substrate support table 124 or an odd multiple of λ / 4. The surface of the substrate support table 124 here refers to the surface of the substrate support table 124 that faces the back surface of the wafer. Since the electric field is strong at a position that is an odd multiple of λ / 4, the wafer can be efficiently heated by microwaves. For example, since the microwave fixed to 5.8 GHz is used and the wavelength of the microwave is 51.7 mm, the substrate support 1
The height from 24 to the wafer can be 12.9 mm. The frequency of the microwave may be changed (variable) with time. In this case, the height from the surface of the substrate support 124 to the wafer may be obtained from the wavelength of the representative frequency in the changing frequency band. For example, when changing from 5.8 GHz to 7.0 GHz, the representative frequency is set to the center frequency of the changing frequency band, and the height from the surface of the substrate support 124 to the wafer is set to 11 from the wavelength 46 mm of the representative frequency 6.4 GHz. .5 mm. Further, a plurality of fixed frequency power supplies may be provided, and microwaves having different frequencies may be switched and supplied from each of them.
A coolant channel 126 is provided in the substrate support 124 to flow a coolant for cooling the wafer. Here, water is used as the refrigerant. The refrigerant flow path 126 is connected to the refrigerant discharge pipe 128 and the refrigerant supply mechanism 14 outside the processing chamber 12. Refrigerant discharge pipe 128
Discharges the refrigerant from the refrigerant flow path 126.

[Refrigerant supply mechanism]
The refrigerant supply mechanism 14 includes a refrigerant supply pipe 140 that supplies a refrigerant to the refrigerant flow path 126, a refrigerant valve 142 that opens and closes the refrigerant supply pipe 140, and a refrigerant source 144. As will be described later, the refrigerant valve 142 is electrically connected to the controller 40 and is controlled by the controller 40.

A temperature detector 130 for detecting the temperature of the wafer is provided above the wafer in the processing chamber 12. For example, an infrared sensor can be used as the temperature detector 130. As will be described later, the temperature detector 130 is electrically connected to the controller 40. Specifically, when the temperature of the wafer detected by the temperature detector 130 is higher than a predetermined temperature, the controller 40 sets the refrigerant valve 1 so that the wafer temperature becomes a predetermined temperature.
42 is controlled to adjust the flow rate of the cooling water flowing to the refrigerant flow path 126. Further, as will be described later, the controller 40 adjusts the flow rate of the inert gas supplied to the wafer surface.
A pressure sensor 132 that detects the pressure in the processing chamber 12 is provided in the processing chamber 12. As will be described later, the pressure sensor 132 is electrically connected to the controller 40.

[Microwave generation mechanism]
A microwave generation mechanism 16 is provided on the side wall of the processing chamber 12 above the processing container 120.
The microwave generation mechanism 16 includes a microwave generation unit 160, a waveguide 162, and a waveguide port 164.
For example, a fixed frequency microwave or a variable frequency microwave is generated. As the microwave generator 160, a high-frequency power source such as a microtron is used. The microwave generated by the microwave generator 160 is introduced into the processing chamber 12 through the waveguide 162 from the waveguide port 164 communicating with the processing chamber 12. The microwave introduced into the processing chamber 12 is repeatedly reflected on the wall surface of the processing chamber 12. The microwave is reflected in various directions in the processing chamber 12, and the processing chamber 12 is filled with the microwave. The microwave hitting the wafer in the processing chamber 12 is absorbed by the wafer, and the wafer is dielectrically heated by the microwave. Note that the temperature of the wafer varies depending on the power of the microwave, the size and shape of the processing chamber 12, the position of the waveguide 164, the position of the wafer in the processing chamber 12, and the like.
As will be described later, the microwave generation unit 160 is electrically connected to the controller 40 and controlled by the controller.
In the vicinity of the waveguide 164, a frequency sensor 166 for detecting the frequency of the microwave generated by the microwave generator 160 and introduced into the processing chamber 12 from the waveguide 164, and a microwave RF (Radio Frequency; high frequency) ) An RF power sensor 168 for detecting power is provided. As will be described later, the frequency sensor 166 and the RF power sensor 168 are electrically connected to the controller 40.

[Gas supply mechanism]
A gas supply mechanism 18 is provided on the upper wall of the processing chamber 120 and on the upper wall of the processing chamber 12.
The gas supply mechanism 18 includes a gas supply pipe 180 that introduces an inert gas such as nitrogen (N ₂ ), a gas supply valve 182 that opens and closes the gas supply pipe 180, and a gas supply source 184. The gas supply mechanism 18 opens the gas supply valve 182 to introduce the gas from the gas supply pipe 180 into the processing chamber 12 and closes the gas supply valve 182 to stop the gas introduction. The gas introduced from the gas supply pipe 180 is used to push out the gas in the processing chamber 12 as a purge gas. In addition, since the gas supply pipe 180 is configured to blow gas onto the surface of the wafer, the gas introduced from the gas supply pipe 180 is also used to cool the wafer.
As will be described later, the gas supply valve 182 is electrically connected to the controller 40 and is controlled by the controller 40.
A gas flow rate sensor 186 that detects the flow rate of the gas introduced from the gas supply tube 180 is provided in the vicinity of the gas supply tube 180. As will be described later, the gas flow rate sensor 186 is electrically connected to the controller 40.

[Gas emission mechanism]
A gas discharge mechanism 22 is provided on the side wall of the processing chamber 12 below the processing container 120.
The gas exhaust mechanism 22 includes a gas exhaust pipe 220 that exhausts the gas in the processing chamber 12, and a gas exhaust pipe 2.
20 is provided with a gas discharge valve 222 for opening and closing 20 and a vacuum pump 224 as an exhaust device. The gas discharge mechanism 22 adjusts the pressure in the processing chamber 12 to a predetermined value by adjusting the opening degree of the gas discharge valve 222.
As will be described later, the gas discharge valve 222 is electrically connected to the controller 40 and controlled by the controller 40.

[Wafer transfer mechanism]
A wafer transfer mechanism 24 is provided on one side surface of the processing container 120.
The wafer transfer mechanism 24 includes a wafer transfer port 240 for transferring a wafer into and out of the processing chamber 12, the gate valve 100 described above with reference to FIG. 1, and a gate valve driving unit 242 that drives the gate valve 100. .
The wafer transfer mechanism 24 is configured such that the processing chamber 12 communicates with the front end module 20 (not shown here but described above with reference to FIG. 1) by opening the gate valve 100. The front end module 20 is provided with a transfer robot 202 (not shown here, but described above with reference to FIG. 1). Wafer transfer mechanism 2
4 is configured such that the transfer robot 202 can swap wafers between the processing chamber 12 and the front end module 20 by opening the gate valve 100. A wafer detection sensor 244 that detects the presence or absence of a wafer is provided in the vicinity of the wafer transfer port 240, so that the wafer is not caught in the gate valve 100. Note that the swap transport is described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-289095, and thus the description thereof is omitted.
As will be described later, the wafer detection sensor 244 is electrically connected to the controller 40. Specifically, when the wafer detection sensor 244 detects that there is a wafer, the controller controls the gate valve 100 to close and prevent the wafer from being caught.

Hereinafter, processing in the process module 10 of FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
The process described below constitutes one process among a plurality of processes for manufacturing a semiconductor device.
[First transfer process]
In the wafer loading process for loading a wafer into the processing chamber 12, first, the gate valve 10
0 is opened to allow the processing chamber 12 and the front end module 20 to communicate with each other. Next, the transfer robot 202 takes out the wafer from the pod placed on the load port 30 and carries it into the processing chamber 12 through the front end module 20. The wafer carried into the processing chamber 12 is placed on the upper end of the substrate support pins 122 by the transfer robot 202 and supported by the substrate support pins 122. Next, when the transfer robot 202 returns from the processing chamber 12 to the front end module 20, the gate valve 100 is closed.

[Nitrogen gas replacement process]
Next, the inside of the processing chamber 12 is replaced with a nitrogen (N ₂ ) atmosphere. Processing chamber 1 when wafer is loaded
Since the atmospheric atmosphere outside of 2 is involved, N ₂ substitution in the processing chamber 12 is performed so that moisture and oxygen in the atmospheric atmosphere do not affect the process. From the gas discharge pipe 220, the vacuum pump 22
4, the gas (atmosphere) in the processing chamber 12 is discharged and N 2 is supplied from the gas supply pipe 180.
_Two gases are introduced into the processing chamber 12. At this time, the pressure in the processing chamber 12 is adjusted to a predetermined value (for example, atmospheric pressure) by opening and closing the gas supply valve 182.
In addition, this gas replacement process may be performed as a part of preparation process before starting a wafer process. At the same time, the inside of the plurality of processing chambers 12 may be replaced with a nitrogen atmosphere.

[Heat treatment process]
Next, the microwave generated by the microwave generator 160 is transmitted from the waveguide 164 to the processing chamber 1.
2 is introduced, and the surface of the wafer is irradiated. By this microwave irradiation, the High-k film on the surface of the wafer is heated to 100 to 600 ° C. (for example, about 400 ° C.) to modify the High-k film, that is, from the High-k film to C, H, etc. By removing the impurities, it can be densified and reformed into a stable insulator thin film (improvement of film quality). A dielectric such as a high-k film has a different microwave absorption rate depending on the dielectric constant. The higher the dielectric constant, the easier it is to absorb microwaves. By irradiating the wafer with high-power microwaves, the dielectric film on the wafer is heated and modified. The feature of heating by microwave is dielectric heating by dielectric constant ε and dielectric loss tangent tan δ. By heating the materials with different physical properties at the same time, only the material that is easily heated, that is, the material with the higher dielectric constant. It can be selectively heated.

The annealing of the high-k film will be described. The high-k film has a higher dielectric constant ε than silicon, which is the substrate material of the wafer. For example, although the dielectric constant ε of silicon is 9.6, the dielectric constant ε of the HfO film which is a high-k film is 25, and the dielectric constant ε of the ZrO film is 35. Therefore, when the wafer on which the High-k film is formed is irradiated with microwaves, only the High-k film can be selectively heated. Further, the effect of modifying the film is larger when high-power microwaves are irradiated. Therefore, when the high-power microwave is irradiated, the temperature of the high-k film can be rapidly increased. On the other hand, when a relatively low power microwave is irradiated for a long time, the temperature of the whole wafer becomes high during the modification process. As time elapses, the temperature of the silicon rises due to heat conduction from the high-k film on the wafer surface irradiated with microwaves to the silicon on the back side of the wafer. Because it ends up. The reason why the film modification effect is large when irradiating high-power microwaves is that the temperature of the whole wafer rises and the dielectric is heated to a higher temperature by dielectric heating earlier than the time required to reach the upper limit temperature. This is thought to be possible. Here, in the embodiment of the present invention, the upper limit temperature refers to a temperature at which heat is conducted from the High-k film on the wafer surface to the silicon on the back surface side of the wafer.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, the temperature rise of the wafer is suppressed by supplying the cooling water to the coolant channel 126 during the microwave irradiation. Preferably, the flow rate of the cooling water flowing to the refrigerant flow path 126 is adjusted by controlling the valve so that the wafer temperature is equal to or lower than the upper limit temperature. Thus, by setting the wafer processing temperature constant, even after processing a plurality of wafers, the state of the processed wafer can be made uniform.

In the heat treatment step, the gas supply valve 182 is opened to introduce N ₂ gas into the processing chamber 12 from the gas supply pipe 180, and the processing chamber 1 is discharged by the gas discharge valve 222.
2 while adjusting the pressure in the chamber 2 to a predetermined value (for example, atmospheric pressure), from the gas exhaust pipe 220 to the processing chamber 12.
The N ₂ gas inside is discharged. In this way, in the heat treatment step, the inside of the processing chamber 12 is maintained at a predetermined pressure value. In the present embodiment, the heat treatment was performed for 5 minutes using a microwave with a frequency of 5.8 to 7.0 GHz with a power of 1600 W and a pressure in the processing chamber 12 of atmospheric pressure.
In this manner, after introducing the microwave for a predetermined time and performing the substrate heat treatment, the introduction of the microwave is stopped. Although the heat treatment is performed here without rotating the wafer in the horizontal direction, the heat treatment may be performed while rotating the wafer.

[First cooling process]
When the heat treatment process is completed, the wafer is cooled to a predetermined temperature by controlling the flow rate of the N ₂ gas introduced into the process chamber 12 and controlling the flow rate of the cooling water supplied to the coolant channel 126. To do. Specifically, the flow of gas in the vicinity of the wafer is controlled while allowing the gas to flow between the wafer and the substrate support table 124, and the coolant valve 142 is opened to supply cooling water to the coolant channel 126. To cool the wafer. At this time, the front surface of the wafer is cooled by N ₂ gas, the back surface of the wafer is cooled by cooling water, and both the front surface and the back surface of the wafer are cooled, so that the wafer can be efficiently cooled. The flow rate of the cooling water may be set in each of the heat treatment step and the first cooling treatment step.
However, it takes time to cool the wafer until it reaches about 80 ° C. that the pod for housing the wafer can withstand, as in the prior art. Therefore, the wafer is cooled until the arm of the transfer robot 202 that transfers the wafer reaches about 200 ° C.
In the embodiment of the present invention, N ₂ gas is used. However, if there is no problem in process and safety, another gas having a high heat transfer rate (for example, diluted He gas) is added to the N ₂ gas. Then, the cooling effect of the wafer may be improved.
Further, the pressure adjusting gas in the processing chamber 12 may be different from the wafer cooling gas. For example, N ₂ gas may be used for pressure adjustment in the processing chamber 12 and diluted He gas may be used for wafer cooling.

[Second transport process]
When the first cooling process is completed, the processed wafer is unloaded from the process chamber 12 and loaded into the front end module 20 by a procedure reverse to the procedure shown in the first transfer process. If there is an unprocessed wafer to be processed next, the processed wafer and the unprocessed wafer are exchanged and transferred. Next, the transfer robot 202 transfers the processed wafer to the cooling stage 200.
Thus, by carrying out the wafer which became predetermined temperature (for example, 200 degreeC) from the process chamber 12, the time for which a processed wafer occupies a process chamber can be shortened. Therefore, the time that an unprocessed wafer waits can be shortened, and as a result, the throughput is improved.
[Second cooling process]
The processed wafer placed on the cooling stage 200 is cooled. In this process,
Cooling is performed so that the temperature of the wafer becomes a target temperature (a temperature that can be withstood by the pod that accommodates the wafer, for example, about 80 ° C.). For example, the cooling water may circulate inside the cooling stage 200. The temperature of the cooling water, the speed at which the cooling water circulates, and the like depend on the processing time in the process module 10 (that is, the time required for the heat treatment step, the time required for the first cooling treatment step, and the second cooling treatment step). It is determined appropriately according to the total time).
[Third transfer process]
When the second cooling process is completed, the processed wafer is unloaded from the front end module 20 and placed on the load port 30 by a procedure reverse to the procedure shown in the first transfer process described above. Store in.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a controller configuration in the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention.
The controller 40 as a control unit includes an operation unit 400 that receives an operation from an operator,
A general control controller 402 as a main controller, a sub-controller 404 as a process control unit for controlling a process system, and a mechanical controller 406 as a transfer control unit for controlling a transfer system are respectively connected via a communication line 408 such as a LAN. Connected and configured.

The operation unit 400 includes at least a display unit (not shown) that displays an operation screen for performing monitor display, log and alarm analysis, parameter editing, and the like, instruction data input via the display unit, A storage unit (not shown) for storing various recipes and various parameters as files, and an input unit (not shown) for inputting commands such as system control commands and setting values of various parameters when creating various recipes are provided.

When the operation unit 400 receives an instruction to process a wafer in response to an instruction from the input unit or the host computer, the overall control controller 402 generates a transfer recipe for transferring the wafer and a process recipe for processing the wafer. To download. The overall control controller 402 controls the sub-controller 404 and the mechanical controller 406 based on these recipes. Then, the sub-controller 404 performs predetermined processing on the wafer based on the process recipe, and the mechanical controller 406 transfers the wafer by controlling the transfer robot 202 based on the transfer recipe and the wafer information.

The overall control controller 402 controls the operation of the entire controller 40. The mechanical controller 406 controls the transfer robot 202 in FIG. 1 and controls the transfer system. The sub-controller 404 is configured so that the temperature, gas flow rate, gas pressure,
Controls RF power and the like. In addition, the sub-controller 404 is the overall controller 4
Wafer detection sensor 2 taken in via a sensor bus which is a communication line 408 immediately below 02
Based on the signal from 44 and the wafer information, the transfer robot 202 is linked. The sub-controller 404 is based on a command (instruction) from the overall controller 402, and includes the refrigerant valve 142, the microwave generator 160, the gas supply valve 182 described with reference to FIG.
Information detected by the temperature detector 130, the pressure sensor 132, the frequency sensor 166, the RF power sensor 168, and the gas flow sensor 186 described with reference to FIG. 3 while controlling the gas discharge valve 222, the gate valve 100, and the like. The refrigerant valve 14
2. The information is transmitted to the overall controller 402 as information indicating the states of the microwave generator 160, the gas supply valve 182, the gas discharge valve 222, and the gate valve 100. Furthermore, the sub-controller 404 interlocks the refrigerant valve 142 based on the commanded (instructed) valve pattern, and if a hard interlock is detected from the valve pattern, the sub-controller 404 notifies that effect. 402.
The display unit, the storage unit, and the input unit described above may be separate from the operation unit 400,
It may be separate from the controller 40. Display unit, storage unit and input unit (or operation unit 400)
) May be configured to be connected to a user (customer) side host computer (not shown) to realize an automated system in a factory.

An operation method in the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
Here, it is assumed that a process recipe in which at least the heat treatment process and the first cooling process described above are described is executed. Further, the distribution method is adopted, and the wafers 1, 4, 7,... Stored in the pod placed on the load port 30-1 are processed into the process module 10-1.
, And wafers 2, 5, 8,...
It is assumed that the wafers 3, 6, 9,... Stored in the same pod are distributed to the process module 10-3.
Needless to say, the nitrogen gas replacement step may be described in the process recipe.

As shown in FIG. 5, T1 (meaning time on the time axis. T2, T3,... T13
The same is true for the above, and during the time from T2 to T2, the first transfer step described above is executed, and the wafer 1 is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-1, and passes through the front end module 20 to the process module 10. To -1.
In the time from T2 to T8, after the nitrogen gas replacement step described above is executed, the process recipe is executed, whereby the heat treatment step and the first cooling treatment step described above are executed. In particular, the first cooling process is performed during the period from T7 to T8.
Specifically, after the inside of the process module 10-1 is replaced with a nitrogen atmosphere (nitrogen gas replacement), the wafer 1 is irradiated with microwaves (heat treatment), and the wafer 1 is cooled in the process module 10-1. (First cooling process).
The nitrogen gas replacement step may be performed before T2.

In the time from T3 to T4, as in the time from T1 to T2, the above-described first transfer process is executed, and the wafer 2 is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-1, and the front end module. 20 is carried into the process module 10-2.
In the time from T4 to T10, similarly to the time from T2 to T8, after the nitrogen gas replacement step described above is executed, the process recipe is executed, whereby the heat treatment step and the first cooling treatment step described above are performed. Is executed. Especially in the time from T9 to T10
A first cooling process is performed. Note that the nitrogen gas replacement step may be performed before T4.
Specifically, after the inside of the process module 10-2 is replaced with a nitrogen atmosphere (nitrogen gas replacement), the wafer 2 is irradiated with microwaves (heat treatment), and the wafer 2 is cooled in the process module 10-2. (First cooling process).

In the time from T5 to T6, as in the time from T1 to T2, the above-described first transfer process is executed, and the wafer 3 is taken out from the pod placed on the load port 30-1, and the front end module. 20 is carried into the process module 10-3.
In the time period from T6 to T12, as in the time period from T2 to T8, after the nitrogen gas replacement process described above is executed, the process recipe is executed, whereby the heat treatment process and the first cooling process process described above are performed. Is executed. In particular, the first cooling process is performed during the period from T11 to T12. The nitrogen gas replacement step may be performed before T6.
Specifically, after the inside of the process module 10-3 is replaced with a nitrogen atmosphere (nitrogen gas replacement), the wafer 3 is irradiated with microwaves (heat treatment), and the wafer 3 is cooled in the process module 10-3. (First cooling process).

During the period from T8 to T9, the second transfer process described above is executed, and the wafer 1 is unloaded from the process module 10-1 and loaded into the front-end module 20. Here, since there is an unprocessed wafer 4 to be processed next, the wafer 1 and the wafer 4 are exchanged and transferred (swap transfer). The processed wafer 1 is transferred to the cooling stage 200.
During the period from T9 to T11, the above-described second cooling process is performed, and the unprocessed wafer 4 is placed on the load port 30-1 while the processed wafer 1 is cooled by the cooling stage 200. The pod is carried into the process module 10. Depending on the time required for the second cooling process, there may be a waiting time until the third transport process is executed as shown in FIG.

In the time from T10 to T11, the second time described above is the same as the time from T8 to T9.
Then, the wafer 2 is unloaded from the process module 10-2 and loaded into the front end module 20. Here, an unprocessed wafer 5 to be processed next.
Therefore, the wafer 2 and the wafer 5 are exchanged and transferred (swap transfer). The processed wafer 2 is transferred to the cooling stage 200.
During the time from T11 to T13, the second cooling process described above is performed and the processed wafer 2 is being cooled by the cooling stage 200 in the same manner as the time from T9 to T11. Is carried into the process module 10 from the pod placed on the load port 30-1. Depending on the time required for the second cooling process,
As shown in FIG. 5, there may be a waiting time until the third transport process is executed.

In the time period from T11 to T12, the above-described third transfer process is executed, and the wafer 1 is unloaded from the cooling stage 200 and returned to the pod placed on the load port 30-1.
In the time from T12 to T13, the second time described above is the same as the time from T8 to T9.
Then, the wafer 3 is unloaded from the process module 10-3 and loaded into the front end module 20. Here, an unprocessed wafer 6 to be processed next is processed.
Therefore, the wafer 3 and the wafer 6 are exchanged and transferred (swap transfer). The processed wafer 6 is transferred to the cooling stage 200.
In the time after T13, the above-described third transfer process is executed, and the wafer 2 is unloaded from the cooling stage 200 and returned to the pod placed on the load port 30-1, or the above-described second transfer process. While the cooling process is performed and the processed wafer 3 is cooled by the cooling stage 200, the unprocessed wafer 6 is carried into the process module 10 from the pod placed on the load port 30-1. Is made.

In the embodiment of the present invention, in the first cooling process, the wafer is heated to a predetermined temperature (200
The process recipe in which the first cooling processing step is described is terminated by using the cooling to the degree of (° C.) as a trigger. Usually, since the processing time in each step of the process recipe is set with a margin, it is not preferable from the viewpoint of improving the throughput that the first cooling processing step is ended when the predetermined processing time has passed. . Therefore, it is desirable to end the process recipe describing the first cooling process step using the fact that the wafer has been cooled to a predetermined temperature as a trigger, and take out the processed wafer from the processing chamber as soon as possible.

As described above, the embodiment of the present invention is configured to cool the wafer and suppress the temperature rise of the wafer while irradiating the microwave, so the temperature of the wafer can be made constant, Even when a plurality of wafers are processed, the state of the processed wafers can be made uniform.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention, in the first cooling processing step, since both the front surface and the back surface of the wafer are cooled, the wafer can be efficiently cooled. The time required for the cooling process can be shortened.
In addition, since the gas introduced from the gas supply pipe into the processing chamber is directly blown onto the surface of the wafer, the wafer can be efficiently cooled, and the time required for the first cooling process can be shortened.

As described above, in the first cooling process, when the wafer is cooled to a predetermined temperature (200 ° C.), the processed wafer is taken out of the processing chamber, so that heat damage is conveyed. An unprocessed wafer to be processed next can be loaded efficiently without giving it to the substrate holding part of the mechanism.
In particular, like the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the process module 10 as a processing chamber, the front end module 20 as a transfer chamber provided with one transfer mechanism, and the load port 30 are configured. This is effective when an unprocessed wafer is directly transferred from the load port 30 to the process module 10.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention, the cooling stage 200 for placing the wafer is provided in the transfer chamber, and the unprocessed wafer is cooled while the processed wafer taken out from the processing chamber is cooled to a target temperature that the pod can withstand. Therefore, the wafer can be cooled to the target temperature without reducing the throughput.
That is, as described above, in a simple substrate processing apparatus constituted by the process module 10 as a processing chamber, the front-end module 20 as a transfer chamber provided with one transfer mechanism, and the load port 30, unprocessed Can be efficiently transferred from the load port 30 to the process module 10. Further, the processed wafer can be efficiently transferred from the process module 10 to the load port 30.
The number of cooling stages 200 is set so that the wafer can be efficiently transferred. For example, the number of cooling stages 200 is set based on conditions for efficiently transferring wafers between the load port 30 and the process module 10.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention, since the two cooling processing steps of the first cooling processing step and the second cooling processing step are provided, the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention is particularly provided. As described above, the process module 10 as a processing chamber, the front-end module 20 as a transfer chamber having one transfer mechanism, and the load port 30, and an unprocessed wafer is transferred from the load port 30 to the process module 10. When transporting directly to
The wafer can be efficiently cooled.

In the embodiment of the present invention, when the cooling process for the wafer is performed in both the process module 10 and the cooling stage 200, the process is performed only in the process module 10 as in the related art described with reference to FIG. As compared with the above, the wafer is efficiently replaced in the process module 10 without causing damage due to heat to the substrate holding part of the transport mechanism. As a result, the operating rate of the entire apparatus can be increased.

  7 and 8 are graphs obtained by actually measuring the temperature change of the wafer in the first cooling process and the second cooling process in the embodiment of the present invention, respectively. Next, the cooling process for the wafer will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 7 is a graph showing the temperature change of the wafer during the first cooling process in the process module 10, where the horizontal axis represents the step time and the vertical axis represents the wafer temperature. Incidentally, the wafer temperature is an actual measurement value by a non-contact type radiation thermometer. As shown in FIG. 7, it takes about 80 seconds until the temperature of the wafer is cooled from a predetermined temperature (for example, 400 ° C.) to a first temperature (for example, about 150 ° C.) that is the pressure resistance temperature of the transfer mechanism. You can see this. Moreover, after about 100 seconds, the temperature is about 140 ° C., and after 80 seconds there is almost no change, and the optimal setting of the step (cooling step) time for performing the cooling process in the process recipe as the first cooling process is 80 seconds. I understand that there is.

FIG. 8 shows the temperature change of the wafer from the end of the first cooling process (cooling step) until it is transferred to the cooling stage 200 and reaches the target temperature by the second cooling process (cooling by the cooling stage 200). It is a line graph for. The horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the wafer temperature. Further, in FIG. 8, the wafer temperature measured by the radiation thermometer is shown by a dotted line as in FIG. On the other hand, the wafer temperature indicated by the solid line is an actual measurement value measured using a thermocouple. As shown in FIG. 8, there is an error between the measurement with the radiation thermometer and the measurement with the thermocouple. Specifically, the wafer temperature at time 0 second (at the end of the first cooling process) is about 220 ° C. There is a deviation from the wafer temperature (150 ° C.) after 80 seconds in FIG. In this case, since the thermocouple is directly attached to the wafer, it can be said that the measurement by the thermocouple indicates an accurate temperature. However, after 10 seconds, the wafer temperature is about 200 ° C., and there is no problem in transferring the wafer. That is, the process recipe is completed and wafer discharge is started when the temperature measured by the radiation thermometer reaches 150 ° C., but it takes about 11 seconds for the wafer to be placed on the substrate holder of the transport mechanism.

Hereinafter, FIG. 8 will be described based on the wafer temperature measured by the thermocouple. As shown in FIG. 8, it can be seen that the time taken from the first temperature (for example, 200 ° C.) to the second temperature (for example, 80 ° C.), which is the target temperature, takes about 90 seconds. Therefore, the time setting for the second cooling process (cooling by the cooling stage 200) is 90 seconds or more. This is because priority is given to loading an unprocessed wafer into the process module 10 in consideration of the throughput.

  As described above, according to FIGS. 7 and 8, in the embodiment of the present invention, the time taken from the predetermined processing temperature of 400 ° C. to the target temperature of 80 ° C. is 80 seconds + 10 seconds + 90 seconds. Is 180 seconds (3 minutes). On the other hand, a case where the temperature of the wafer is cooled from 400 ° C. to 80 ° C. only by the cooling process in the process module 10 as in the past will be considered. For example, in FIG. 7, assuming that the wafer is cooled at 150 to 140 ° C. from 80 to 100 seconds, assuming that the wafer is cooled at this rate, it is cooled from 150 to 80 ° C. It takes 140 seconds. Therefore, the time required for the wafer temperature to change from the processing temperature of 400 ° C. to 80 ° C. is 80 seconds + 140 seconds, which is 220 seconds. As a result of comparison, it can be seen that the cooling method in the present embodiment takes as much as 50 seconds from 400 ° C. to 80 ° C. compared to the conventional cooling method. Thus, in the embodiment of the present invention, it can be seen that the method of cooling the wafer in two stages of the first cooling process in the process module 10 and the second cooling process in the cooling stage 200 is effective.

  As described above, the time required for the cooling process is obviously shortened by the two-stage cleaning in the embodiment of the present invention, so that the throughput can be improved. Further, since the cooling stage is located away from the wafer transfer path from the pod placed on the load port 30 through the front end module 20 to the process module 10, the cooling stage is not subjected to the second cooling process. The processing wafer can be loaded in parallel. Therefore, since the unprocessed wafer is efficiently transferred to the process module 10 while cooling the processed wafer, the throughput is not hindered. Furthermore, by combining the first cooling process in the process module 10 and the second cooling process, the time for the first cooling process can be shortened, so that the wafer retention that hinders wafer conveyance can be suppressed. Therefore, the production efficiency of the apparatus is improved.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus 1 has been described as the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, but the present invention can also be applied to a vertical type substrate processing apparatus 1 and a horizontal type substrate processing apparatus 1. Further, it can be applied not only to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus for processing a wafer but also to a processing apparatus for processing a glass substrate such as an LCD device.
As described above, the present invention can be modified in various ways, and the present invention naturally extends to the invention thus modified.

Next, other preferred embodiments of the present invention will be additionally described, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the following description.

[Embodiment 1]
A processing chamber provided with at least a microwave supply section that supplies a microwave toward the surface of the substrate, a gas supply section that supplies an inert gas toward the surface of the substrate, and a process was performed in the processing chamber A substrate processing apparatus comprising at least a cooling mechanism for cooling a substrate and a transfer chamber provided with at least a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate.

[Embodiment 2]
A processing chamber comprising at least a microwave supply unit that supplies a microwave toward the surface of the substrate, a gas supply unit that supplies an inert gas toward the surface of the substrate, and a substrate cooling unit that cools the back surface of the substrate And a cooling mechanism for cooling the substrate that has been processed in the processing chamber,
And the substrate processing apparatus comprised at least by the conveyance chamber provided with at least the conveyance mechanism which conveys the said board | substrate.

[Embodiment 3]
A gas supply unit that supplies an inert gas toward the surface of the substrate, a processing chamber that includes at least a substrate cooling unit that cools the back surface of the substrate, and a transfer mechanism that transfers the substrate that has been processed in the processing chamber A substrate cooling method in a substrate processing apparatus comprising at least a transfer chamber comprising: a gas supply unit configured to supply an inert gas toward the surface of the substrate from the surface side of the previous substrate in the processing chamber. The substrate cooling method of cooling, wherein the substrate cooling unit cools the back surface of the substrate.

Embodiment 4
A recipe including at least a processing step of performing a predetermined process on the substrate at a predetermined temperature and a cooling step of cooling the substrate subjected to the predetermined process from the predetermined temperature to the first temperature. And a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device including at least a cooling step of cooling the substrate cooled to the first temperature to a second temperature.

[Embodiment 5]
At least a processing step of performing a predetermined process on the substrate at a predetermined temperature, and a cooling step of cooling the substrate subjected to the predetermined process from the predetermined temperature to the first temperature. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device including at least a step of executing a recipe, wherein the step of executing the recipe includes a step in which a substrate that has been subjected to a predetermined process is the first substrate.
The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device is terminated when it is cooled to a temperature of 1.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate processing apparatus 10 Process module 100 Gate valve 20 Front end module 200 Cooling stage 202 Transfer robot 30 Load port 40 Controller

Claims (3)

A processing chamber including at least a microwave supply unit that supplies a microwave toward the surface of the substrate, and a gas supply unit that supplies an inert gas toward the surface of the substrate;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising at least a transfer chamber having a cooling mechanism for cooling a substrate processed in the processing chamber, and a transfer chamber having at least a transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate cooled by the cooling mechanism. Carrying the substrate into the processing chamber;
Supplying microwaves toward the surface of the substrate;
Supplying an inert gas to the surface of the substrate;
A step of unloading the substrate processed in the processing chamber from the processing chamber;
And a step of cooling the unloaded substrate by a cooling mechanism. A processing step for performing a predetermined process on the substrate at a predetermined temperature, and a cooling step for cooling the substrate that has been subjected to the predetermined process from the predetermined temperature to the first temperature. Executing the recipe to be performed;
And a cooling step of cooling the substrate cooled to the first temperature to the second temperature.