JP2013004804A - Hydrophobic treatment apparatus, hydrophobic treatment method, program, and computer recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently conduct hydrophobic treatment of a substrate with an HMDS gas.SOLUTION: An adhesion unit 41 conducting hydrophobic treatment to a wafer placed on a processing container 110 has: the processing container 110 opening at an upper part; a lid 111 covering an opening of the processing container 110; a placement board 112 on which the wafer W is placed; a gas supply part 112 supplying an HMDS gas and a purge gas; a center exhaust part 140 provided above the wafer W so as to face a center part of the wafer W; and an outer periphery exhaust part 150 provided at the outer side of the wafer W.

Description

  The present invention relates to a hydrophobizing apparatus, a hydrophobizing method, a program, and a computer recording medium that perform a hydrophobizing process on a substrate.

  For example, in a photolithography process in a semiconductor device manufacturing process, a hydrophobization process is performed to improve the adhesion between a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as “wafer”) and a resist solution. In this hydrophobization process, the surface of the wafer is hydrophobized by supplying HMDS (Hexa Methyl Disilazane) gas to the surface of the wafer placed in the processing container for a predetermined time. Thereby, it can suppress that a resist film peels from the surface of a wafer in a post process.

  A processing container used for such a hydrophobizing process is required to have a structure in which the HMDS gas leaking outside the processing container has a predetermined concentration or less. This is because if the HMDS gas leaks to the outside of the processing container, it may cause particles, or the HMDS gas may react with moisture in the air to generate ammonia that adversely affects the resist.

  For this reason, for example, Patent Document 1 proposes a hydrophobizing apparatus that prevents leakage of HMDS gas to the outside of the processing container. Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, when the HDMS gas is supplied into the processing container 300 from above the wafer W via the gas supply unit 301, a purge gas supply path formed in the outer peripheral portion of the processing container 300. Nitrogen gas as a purge gas is supplied from 302. Then, the HMDS gas and the nitrogen gas are discharged from the exhaust part 303 provided above the purge gas supply path 302, and excess nitrogen gas is allowed to flow out from the outflow path 304. As a result, a so-called air curtain is formed between the inside and outside of the processing container 300 to prevent leakage of the HMDS gas to the outside of the processing container 300.

  Further, since the processing container 300 is opened when the wafer W after the hydrophobization process is replaced, the purge inside the processing container 300 is performed prior to the replacement of the wafer W. In purging, nitrogen gas is supplied from the gas supply unit 301 used for supplying the HMDS gas instead of the HMDS gas. Then, the purging in the processing container 300 is performed for a predetermined time so that the HMDS gas in the processing container 300 becomes a predetermined concentration or less. At this time, the nitrogen gas is exhausted from the exhaust unit 303, and the inside of the processing container 300 is replaced with the nitrogen gas. Thereby, the leakage of the HMDS gas when the processing container 300 is opened is prevented.

JP 2009-32878 A

  By the way, as a method for shortening the time required for the above-described hydrophobization treatment in order to improve the productivity of the semiconductor device, a hydrophobization treatment method using a HMDS gas having a higher concentration than the conventional one has been studied.

  However, although the time for supplying the HMDS gas can be shortened by using a high-concentration HMDS gas, on the other hand, it has been confirmed that the time required for purging the processing container becomes longer than before. In this case, the total work time in the processing container cannot be shortened, and eventually the throughput of the hydrophobization process cannot be improved.

  This invention is made | formed in view of this point, and it aims at performing efficiently the hydrophobization process of the board | substrate by HMDS gas.

  To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a hydrophobization apparatus for hydrophobizing a substrate by supplying HMDS gas to the surface of the substrate placed in the process container, the processing container having an upper opening. A mounting table on which the substrate is mounted, a lid that covers the opening of the processing container, a gas supply unit that supplies HMDS gas and purge gas to the substrate from above the center of the substrate on the mounting table, A central exhaust unit provided above the substrate on the mounting table and facing the center of the substrate; and an outer exhaust unit provided outside the substrate on the mounting table. It is characterized by having.

  According to the present invention, since the central exhaust part provided opposite to the central part of the substrate is provided, the purge gas supplied from the gas supply part after the hydrophobic treatment is efficiently exhausted from the central exhaust part. be able to. For this reason, even if it is a case where high concentration HMDS gas is used, it is not necessary to lengthen purge time. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently perform the hydrophobization treatment, and as a result, it is possible to shorten the total treatment time in the treatment container.

  You may have the exhaust mother pipe provided in common with the said center exhaust part and the said outer periphery exhaust part.

  A valve body is provided in a central exhaust pipe that connects the central exhaust part and the exhaust mother pipe, and an outer exhaust pipe that connects the outer exhaust part and the exhaust mother pipe has a fluid flowing through the outer exhaust pipe. A flow rate limiting mechanism for limiting the flow rate may be provided.

  The gas supply unit may be provided at a central portion of the lower surface of the lid, and the central exhaust unit may be provided concentrically outside the gas supply unit. In such a case, the central exhaust portion may be disposed so as to be within a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in plan view.

  The central exhaust part may be provided in a central part of the lower surface of the lid body, and the gas supply part may be provided concentrically outside the central exhaust part. In such a case, the gas supply unit may be arranged so as to fit inside a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in plan view.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a hydrophobizing method for supplying a HMDS gas to a surface of a substrate placed in a processing container to hydrophobize the substrate, and the substrate is applied to the substrate from above the center of the substrate. On the other hand, the HMDS gas is supplied and the HMDS gas is exhausted from a position outside the substrate to perform the hydrophobic treatment of the substrate. Then, the supply of the HMDS gas is stopped, and then the upper portion of the substrate is fed into the processing container And a purge gas is exhausted from a position outside the substrate and a position above the central portion of the substrate to purge the inside of the processing chamber.

  The supply of HMDS gas and purge gas from above the center of the substrate is performed by a gas supply unit provided above the center of the substrate, and the exhaust from the position above the center of the substrate is above the substrate. In addition, the exhaust may be performed by a central exhaust unit provided to face the central part of the substrate, and the exhaust from a position outside the substrate may be performed by an outer peripheral exhaust unit provided outside the substrate. .

  An exhaust mother pipe may be provided in common to the central exhaust part and the outer peripheral exhaust part, and exhaust from the central exhaust part and the outer peripheral exhaust part may be performed via the exhaust mother pipe.

  A valve body is provided in a central exhaust pipe that connects the central exhaust part and the exhaust mother pipe, and an outer exhaust pipe that connects the outer exhaust part and the exhaust mother pipe has a fluid flowing through the outer exhaust pipe. A flow rate limiting mechanism for limiting the flow rate is provided, and the valve body is closed during the hydrophobization process of the substrate to stop the exhaust from the central exhaust part, and the valve body is opened while the inside of the processing container is purged. The exhaust may be performed from the central exhaust part.

  The gas supply unit may be provided in a central portion of the upper surface inside the processing container, and the central exhaust unit may be provided concentrically outside the gas supply unit. In such a case, the central exhaust portion may be disposed so as to be within a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in plan view.

  The central exhaust part may be provided in a central part on the inner upper surface of the processing vessel, and the gas supply part may be provided concentrically outside the central exhaust part. In such a case, the gas supply unit may be arranged so as to fit inside a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in plan view.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program that runs on a computer of a control unit that controls the hydrophobizing apparatus in order to cause the hydrophobizing apparatus to execute the hydrophobizing method.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, a readable computer storage medium storing the program is provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to efficiently perform the hydrophobization treatment of the substrate with the HMDS gas.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the outline of a structure of the substrate processing system concerning this Embodiment. It is a side view which shows the outline of the internal structure of the substrate processing system concerning this Embodiment. It is a side view which shows the outline of the internal structure of the substrate processing system concerning this Embodiment. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the outline of a structure of an adhesion unit. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the outline of a structure of the gas supply part vicinity. It is a bottom view which shows the outline of a structure of the gas supply part and the center exhaust part vicinity. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which raised the cover body of the adhesion unit. It is explanatory drawing which shows the flow of the gas in the process container at the time of a hydrophobization process. It is explanatory drawing which shows the flow of the gas in the processing container at the time of purge. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the outline of a structure of the conventional hydrophobic treatment apparatus.

  Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an outline of a configuration of a substrate processing system 1 including a hydrophobizing apparatus according to the present embodiment. 2 and 3 are side views showing an outline of the internal configuration of the substrate processing system 1.

  In the present embodiment, the substrate processing system 1 is, for example, a coating and developing processing system that performs photolithography processing of a substrate.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the substrate processing system 1 includes, for example, a cassette station 2 as a loading / unloading unit for loading / unloading a cassette C to / from the outside, and a plurality of single-wafer processing in a photolithography process. A configuration in which a processing station 3 as a processing unit including the various processing units and an interface station 5 as a transfer unit that transfers the wafer W between the exposure apparatus 4 adjacent to the processing station 3 are integrally connected. Have.

  The cassette station 2 is divided into, for example, a cassette carry-in / out unit 10 and a wafer transfer unit 11. For example, the cassette loading / unloading unit 10 is provided at the end of the substrate processing system 1 on the Y direction negative direction (left direction in FIG. 1) side. The cassette loading / unloading unit 10 is provided with a cassette mounting table 12. A plurality, for example, four mounting plates 13 are provided on the cassette mounting table 12. The mounting plates 13 are arranged in a line in the horizontal X direction (up and down direction in FIG. 1). The cassettes C can be placed on these placement plates 13 when the cassettes C are loaded into and unloaded from the substrate processing system 1.

  The wafer transfer unit 11 is provided with a wafer transfer device 21 that is movable on a transfer path 20 extending in the X direction as shown in FIG. The wafer transfer device 21 is also movable in the vertical direction and the vertical axis (θ direction), and is provided between a cassette C on each mounting plate 13 and a delivery device for a third block G3 of the processing station 3 to be described later. Wafers W can be transferred between them.

  The processing station 3 is provided with a plurality of, for example, four blocks G1, G2, G3, and G4 having various units. For example, the first block G1 is provided on the front side of the processing station 3 (X direction negative direction side in FIG. 1), and the second side is provided on the back side of the processing station 3 (X direction positive direction side in FIG. 1). Block G2 is provided. Further, a third block G3 is provided on the cassette station 2 side (Y direction negative direction side in FIG. 1) of the processing station 3, and the processing station 3 interface station 5 side (Y direction positive direction side in FIG. 1). Is provided with a fourth block G4.

  For example, in the first block G1, as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of liquid processing units, for example, a development processing unit 30 for developing the wafer W, an antireflection film (hereinafter referred to as “lower antireflection”) under the resist film of the wafer W. A lower antireflection film forming unit 31 for forming a film ”, a resist coating unit 32 for applying a resist solution to the wafer W to form a resist film, and an antireflection film (hereinafter referred to as“ upper reflection ”on the resist film of the wafer W). An upper antireflection film forming unit 33 for forming an “antireflection film” is stacked in four stages in order from the bottom.

  For example, each unit 30 to 33 of the first block G1 has a plurality of cups F that accommodate the wafer W in the horizontal direction during processing, and can process the plurality of wafers W in parallel.

  For example, in the second block G2, as shown in FIG. 3, a heat treatment unit 40 for performing heat treatment of the wafer W, an adhesion unit 41 as a hydrophobizing apparatus for hydrophobizing the wafer W, and an outer peripheral portion of the wafer W The peripheral exposure unit 42 for exposing the light is arranged in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction. The heat treatment unit 40 has a hot plate for placing and heating the wafer W and a cooling plate for placing and cooling the wafer W, and can perform both heat treatment and cooling treatment. The number and arrangement of the heat treatment unit 40, the adhesion unit 41, and the peripheral exposure unit 42 can be arbitrarily selected.

  For example, in the third block G3, a plurality of delivery units 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, and 56 are provided in order from the bottom. The fourth block G4 is provided with a plurality of delivery units 60, 61, 62 in order from the bottom.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a wafer transfer region D is formed in a region surrounded by the first block G1 to the fourth block G4. For example, a wafer transfer device 70 is disposed in the wafer transfer region D.

  The wafer transfer device 70 has a transfer arm that is movable in the Y direction, the front-rear direction, the θ direction, and the vertical direction, for example. The wafer transfer device 70 moves in the wafer transfer area D and transfers the wafer W to a predetermined unit in the surrounding first block G1, second block G2, third block G3, and fourth block G4. it can. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of wafer transfer apparatuses 70 are arranged in the vertical direction, and can transfer the wafer W to a predetermined unit having the same height of the blocks G1 to G4, for example.

  Further, in the wafer transfer region D, a shuttle transfer device 80 that transfers the wafer W linearly between the third block G3 and the fourth block G4 is provided.

  The shuttle conveyance device 80 is linearly movable in the Y direction of FIG. 3, for example. The shuttle transfer device 80 moves in the Y direction while supporting the wafer W, and can transfer the wafer W between the transfer unit 52 of the third block G3 and the transfer unit 62 of the fourth block G4.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a wafer transfer device 90 is provided on the positive side in the X direction of the third block G3. The wafer transfer device 90 has a transfer arm that is movable in the front-rear direction, the θ direction, and the vertical direction, for example. The wafer transfer device 90 moves up and down while supporting the wafer W, and can transfer the wafer W to each delivery unit in the third block G3.

  The interface station 5 is provided with a wafer transfer device 100. The wafer transfer apparatus 100 has a transfer arm that is movable in the front-rear direction, the θ direction, and the vertical direction, for example. The wafer transfer apparatus 100 can transfer the wafer W to the transfer units and the exposure apparatus 4 in the fourth block G4, for example, by supporting the wafer W on the transfer arm.

  Next, the configuration of the adhesion unit 41 will be described. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an outline of the configuration of the adhesion unit 41.

  The adhesion unit 41 includes a bottomed, substantially U-shaped processing container 110 whose top is open, and a lid 111 that covers the opening of the processing container 110. A mounting table 112 on which the wafer W is mounted is provided on the upper bottom surface of the processing container 110. A heater 113 for heating the wafer W is provided inside the mounting table 112.

  The lid 111 includes a horizontal top plate 120 and a side plate 121 that extends vertically downward from the outer peripheral edge of the top plate 120. A lower end portion 121 a of the side plate 121 faces the upper end portion 110 a of the processing container 110. Thereby, a processing space S is formed between the processing container 110 and the lid 111.

  The lid body 111 includes an elevating mechanism 114 that moves the lid body 111 up and down relatively with respect to the processing container 110. The lifting mechanism 114 may be provided on the processing container 110 side as long as the lid 111 and the processing container 110 can be moved up and down relative to each other. Further, the position of the lid 111 in the height direction with respect to the processing container 110 so that a predetermined gap G is formed between the lower end part 121a of the side plate 121 and the upper end part 110a of the processing container 110 by the lifting mechanism 114. Has been adjusted. In the present embodiment, the predetermined gap G is set to about 3 mm to 10 mm, for example.

  A gas supply unit 122 that supplies a processing gas to the wafer W from above the wafer W is provided at the center of the lower surface of the lid 111. As shown in FIG. 4, the gas supply unit 122 has a substantially truncated cone shape in which a vertical cross-sectional shape is formed in a trapezoidal shape with a narrow bottom side. A gas flow path 123 formed inside the lid 111 communicates with the gas supply unit 122. As shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of gas supply holes 124 having a predetermined diameter are provided concentrically at equal intervals on the side surface of the lower end portion of the gas supply unit 122.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a gas supply pipe 125 is connected to the gas flow path 123. An HMDS gas supply source 130 for supplying HMDS gas as a processing gas and a nitrogen gas supply source 131 as a purge gas are connected to the opposite end of the gas flow path 123 in the gas supply pipe 125. Valve bodies 132 and 133 having an opening / closing function and a flow rate adjusting function are respectively provided on the upstream side of the HMDS gas supply source 130 and the upstream side of the nitrogen gas supply source 131 in the gas flow path 123. As a result, the gas supplied to the wafer W can be switched alternately between the HMDS gas and the nitrogen gas.

  A central exhaust part 140 is formed on the lower surface of the lid 111 and outside the gas supply part 122. The central exhaust part 140 is a position facing the central part of the wafer W, and is formed outside the gas supply hole 124 of the gas supply part 122, for example, concentrically in the gas supply hole 124 as shown in FIG. The exhaust hole 141 is formed. Each exhaust hole 141 is provided so as to fit inside a circle of radius H from the center of the substrate in plan view. In the present embodiment, the radius H is, for example, 50 mm.

  A central exhaust passage 142 communicating with each exhaust hole 141 is formed inside the lid body 111. A central exhaust pipe 143 is connected to the central exhaust path 142. The central exhaust pipe 143 is connected to an exhaust device 145 such as a vacuum pump, for example, via an exhaust mother pipe 144 provided in common to the central exhaust pipe rear 143 and an outer peripheral exhaust pipe 153 described later. Thereby, the atmosphere in the processing space S can be exhausted from the central exhaust part 140. The exhaust mother pipe 144 is provided with a valve body 146 having an opening / closing function.

  Further, an outer peripheral exhaust part 150 that exhausts the atmosphere in the processing space S from the outside of the wafer W on the mounting table 112 is formed at the lower end part 121 a of the side plate 121 of the lid 111. The outer peripheral exhaust part 150 is configured by a plurality of exhaust holes 151 provided annularly at equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the lower end part 121 a of the lid 111. Each exhaust hole 151 communicates with an outer peripheral exhaust passage 152 formed inside the lid 111.

  The outer peripheral exhaust passage 152 is connected to the exhaust mother pipe 144 via the outer peripheral exhaust pipe 153. The end of the outer exhaust pipe 153 on the exhaust mother pipe 144 side is connected between a valve body 146 provided in the exhaust mother pipe 144 and the exhaust device 145. The outer exhaust pipe 153 is provided with a flow restriction mechanism 154 that restricts the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the outer exhaust pipe. The flow restriction mechanism 154 is configured such that when the valve body 146 of the central exhaust pipe 143 is opened, the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the outer exhaust pipe 153 is the same as or less than the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the central exhaust pipe 143. ing. For example, an orifice or the like can be used as the flow restriction mechanism 154, but the flow restriction mechanism 154 only needs to have a function of restricting the flow as a minimum function. A valve element such as a needle valve having a function may be used instead of the orifice.

  The substrate processing system 1 is provided with a control unit 200 as shown in FIG. The control unit 200 is a computer, for example, and has a program storage unit (not shown). The program storage unit stores a program for controlling the processing of the wafer W in the substrate processing system 1. The program storage unit also stores a program for controlling the operation of drive systems such as the above-described various units and transport devices to realize the coating and developing process in the substrate processing system 1. The program is recorded on a computer-readable storage medium H such as a computer-readable hard disk (HD), a flexible disk (FD), a compact disk (CD), a magnetic optical desk (MO), or a memory card. May have been installed in the control unit 200 from the storage medium H.

  The substrate processing system 1 according to the present embodiment is configured as described above. Next, wafer processing performed in the substrate processing system 1 configured as described above will be described.

    In the processing of the wafer W, first, the cassette C containing a plurality of wafers W is placed on a predetermined cassette placement plate 13 of the cassette carry-in / out section 10. Thereafter, the wafers W in the cassette C are sequentially taken out by the substrate carrying device 21 and transferred to, for example, the transfer device 53 of the third processing device group G3 of the processing station 11.

  Next, the wafer W is transferred to the heat treatment unit 40 of the second block G2 by the wafer transfer device 70, and the temperature is adjusted. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the lower antireflection film forming unit 31 of the first block G1, for example, by the wafer transfer device 71, and a lower antireflection film is formed on the wafer W. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the heat treatment unit 40 of the second block G2, and heat treatment is performed. Thereafter, it is returned to the delivery unit 53 of the third block G3.

  Next, the wafer W is transferred to the delivery unit 54 of the same third block G3 by the wafer transfer device 90. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred by the wafer transfer apparatus 70 to the adhesion unit 41 of the second block G2. The hydrophobizing process in the adhesion unit 41 will be described in detail.

  In the hydrophobization process in the adhesion unit 41, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, the lid 111 is raised to a predetermined position by the elevating mechanism 114. Then, the wafer W is carried in between the processing container 110 and the lid body 111, and the wafer W is mounted on the mounting table 112.

  Next, the lid 111 is lowered to a position where a predetermined gap G is formed between the lower end 121 a of the lid 111 and the upper end 110 a of the processing container 110, thereby forming the processing space S.

  Next, after heating the wafer W to 90 ° C. by the heater 113, for example, the valve body 132 is opened at a predetermined opening, and a high concentration HMDS gas having a concentration of 3%, for example, is supplied into the processing space S from the gas supply unit 122. Supply at a predetermined flow rate. Further, the exhaust device 145 is activated together with the supply of the HMDS gas, and the HMDS gas is exhausted from the outer peripheral exhaust unit 150 at a predetermined flow rate. At this time, the valve element 146 of the exhaust mother pipe 144 is in a closed state, and the exhaust in the processing space S is performed only from the outer peripheral exhaust part 150. As a result, as shown in FIG. 8, the HMDS gas supplied from above the center of the wafer W flows so as to diffuse toward the outer peripheral edge of the wafer W. Thereby, the surface of the wafer W which contacted HMDS gas is hydrophobized. Then, the HMDS gas diffused to the outer peripheral edge of the wafer W is exhausted from the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 provided outside the wafer W. Further, due to the exhaust from the outer peripheral exhaust part 150, the atmosphere is drawn toward the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 from the gap G between the processing container 110 and the lid 111 as shown in FIG. 8. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the HMDS gas supplied from the gas supply unit 122 from leaking outside the processing container 110.

  After supplying the HMDS gas for a predetermined time to hydrophobize the entire surface of the wafer W, the valve body 132 is closed and the supply of the HMDS gas is stopped. Then, the valve body 133 is opened at a predetermined opening, nitrogen gas is supplied from the gas supply unit 122 at a predetermined flow rate, and the HMDS gas remaining in the processing space S is purged for 10 seconds, for example. Further, the valve body 146 is opened together with the supply of the nitrogen gas, and the processing space S is also exhausted from the central exhaust part 140. At this time, the exhaust amount from the central exhaust unit 140 is larger than the exhaust amount from the outer exhaust unit 150 by the flow restriction mechanism 154 provided in the outer exhaust pipe 153. As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, for example, an air flow from the gap G toward the outer exhaust part 150 and a flow of nitrogen gas from the outer exhaust part 150 toward the central exhaust part 140 are formed in the processing container 110. Thereby, the HMDS gas in the processing container 110 is purged.

  After the purge in the processing container 110 is completed, the valve bodies 133 and 146 are closed and the exhaust device 145 is stopped. Next, the lid is raised to a predetermined height by the elevating mechanism 114, and the wafer W that has been subjected to the hydrophobic treatment is carried out of the processing container 110.

  Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the resist coating unit 52 by the wafer transfer device 70, and a resist film is formed on the wafer W. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the heat treatment unit 40 by the wafer transfer device 70 and pre-baked. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred by the wafer transfer apparatus 70 to the delivery unit 55 of the third block G3.

  Next, the wafer W is transferred to the upper antireflection film forming unit 33 by the wafer transfer device 70, and an upper antireflection film is formed on the wafer W. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the heat treatment unit 40 by the wafer transfer device 70, heated, and the temperature is adjusted. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the peripheral exposure unit 42 and subjected to peripheral exposure processing.

  Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the delivery unit 56 of the third block G3 by the wafer transfer device 70.

  Next, the wafer W is transferred to the transfer unit 52 by the wafer transfer device 90 and transferred to the transfer unit 62 of the fourth block G4 by the shuttle transfer device 80. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the exposure apparatus 6 by the wafer transfer apparatus 100 of the interface station 7 and subjected to exposure processing.

  Next, the wafer W is transferred by the wafer transfer apparatus 100 to the delivery unit 60 of the fourth block G4. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the heat treatment unit 40 by the wafer transfer device 70 and subjected to post-exposure baking. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the development processing unit 30 by the wafer transfer device 70 and developed. After the development is completed, the wafer W is transferred to the heat treatment unit 40 by the wafer transfer device 90 and subjected to a post-bake process.

  Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the delivery unit 50 of the third block G3 by the wafer transfer device 70, and then transferred to the cassette C of the predetermined cassette mounting plate 14 by the wafer transfer device 21 of the cassette station 4. Thus, a series of photolithography steps is completed.

  According to the above embodiment, when purging the HMDS gas after the hydrophobic treatment of the wafer W, the purge gas is exhausted from the central exhaust part 140 provided opposite to the central part of the wafer W. Compared with the case where exhaust is performed only from the outside of the wafer W, the atmosphere in the processing chamber 110 can be exhausted more efficiently. For this reason, by performing the hydrophobization process using a HMDS gas having a higher concentration than before, the time required for hydrophobizing the wafer W is shortened. On the other hand, the atmosphere of the process vessel 110 is increased without increasing the purge time. Can be replaced. Therefore, the hydrophobization process can be performed efficiently, and the processing time in the processing container 110 can be shortened, thereby improving the wafer processing throughput.

  In addition, in the case where the hydrophobization process is performed using the same concentration of HMDS gas as in the prior art, the purge time can be shortened compared to the conventional case, and in this case as well, the processing time in the processing vessel 110 is shortened, Throughput can be improved.

  In addition, since the exhaust mother pipe 144 and the exhaust device 145 are provided in common with the central exhaust pipe 143 and the outer peripheral exhaust pipe 153, it is sufficient to install a minimum number of pipes and exhaust devices. Further, since the valve body 146 is provided in the central exhaust pipe 143 and the flow restriction mechanism 154 is provided in the outer exhaust pipe 153, the exhaust amount from the central exhaust section 140 and the outer exhaust section 150 can be adjusted. In particular, since the exhaust state of both the central exhaust part 140 and the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 can be controlled only by opening and closing the valve body 146, the operation of the adhesion unit 41 is also simplified. A valve body 146 provided in the exhaust mother pipe 144 may be provided with a flow rate adjusting function. In such a case, by adjusting the valve body 146, the flow rate ratio of the exhaust from the central exhaust part 140 and the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 can be adjusted more strictly.

  In the above embodiment, the central exhaust part 140 is provided outside the gas supply part 122. However, the central exhaust part 140 is provided at the center of the lower surface of the lid 111, and the gas supply part 122 is concentrically arranged outside the central exhaust part 140. It may be provided in a shape. Even in such a case, by exhausting from the upper center of the wafer W, the processing chamber 110 can be efficiently purged. Even when the central exhaust part 140 is provided inside the gas supply part 122, each exhaust hole 141 is preferably provided so as to fit inside a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the wafer W in plan view. Further, the central exhaust part 140 is not necessarily provided concentrically with respect to the center of the wafer W. The central exhaust part 140 is located inside a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the wafer W, and the center exhaust part 140 is not exhausted. Any arrangement can be used as long as the airflow is not disturbed in the vicinity.

  In the above embodiment, the central exhaust part 140 and the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 are provided on the lower surface of the lid 111, but are not necessarily provided on the lid 111. The central exhaust part 140 and the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 are not necessarily provided. May be, for example, an exhaust nozzle provided through the lid 111. Further, the outer peripheral exhaust portion 150 is not necessarily provided at the lower end portion 121a of the side plate 121, and may be provided on the lower surface of the top plate 120, as long as it is located outside the outer peripheral end portion of the wafer W. The arrangement can be arbitrarily set according to the size and shape of the processing container 110.

  In the above embodiment, the exhaust is performed from both the central exhaust part 140 and the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 at the time of purging. However, even if the exhaust is performed only from the central exhaust part 140 and the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 is stopped. Although it is good, it is preferable to exhaust from the outer peripheral exhaust part 150. Since the HMDS gas does not stay in the outer peripheral exhaust pipe 153 if the exhaust from the outer peripheral exhaust section 150 is always performed, the HMDS gas does not leak from the outer peripheral exhaust pipe 153 when the processing container 110 is opened. Because.

  As an example, the hydrophobization process of the wafer W is performed using the adhesion unit 41 according to the present embodiment, and the HMDS gas supply time, the exhaust amount at the time of purge, and the exhaust time are changed. A test was conducted to confirm the contact angle of the subsequent wafer W and the HMDS gas concentration in the processing container 110 after the purge. The concentration of the HMDS gas supplied during the hydrophobization treatment was 3%, which was higher than the conventionally used 1.5%, and the supply time was 15 seconds and 30 seconds. The exhaust in the processing container 110 during the supply of the HMDS gas was performed only from the outer peripheral exhaust part 150. The purge time after the hydrophobization treatment was 10 seconds, 8 seconds, 5 seconds, and 3 seconds. Nitrogen gas was used as the purge gas, and the supply amount was 5 L / min in any case. In any case, the purge gas was exhausted from the central exhaust part 140 to 11 L / min and from the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 to 11 L / min.

  The results of the confirmation test are shown in Table 1. When the HMDS gas concentration and the supply time were changed, the contact angle of the wafer W was measured, and the case where the contact angle exceeded a predetermined angle was indicated by ○, and the case where the contact angle did not satisfy the predetermined angle was indicated by ×. . As an example for comparison, the contact angle was also confirmed when HMDS gas was supplied at a concentration of 1.5% for 15 seconds and 30 seconds.

  Further, in the confirmation of the HMDS gas concentration in the processing container 110 after the purge, the concentration when the exhaust time was changed was measured, and when the concentration was 1 ppb or less, the value was ◯ and became higher than 1 ppb. The thing was shown by x. As an example for comparison, the concentration was also confirmed when the valve body 146 was closed and the exhaust was performed only from the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 as in the prior art.

  As shown in Table 1, when a conventional HMDS gas having a concentration of 1.5% is used, it is not sufficient to supply for 15 seconds to obtain a desired contact angle (Comparative Example A). For 30 seconds (Comparative Example B). On the other hand, in Examples 1 to 4 in which the hydrophobization treatment was performed using HDMS gas having a high concentration of 3.0%, it was confirmed that a desired contact angle was obtained by supplying for 15 seconds. That is, it was confirmed that the time required for hydrophobizing the wafer W can be halved by using a high-concentration HMDS gas of 3.0%.

  The concentration of the HMDS gas in the processing container 110 after the hydrophobic treatment is 1 ppb when purging for 5 seconds or more using both the central exhaust part 140 and the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 as in the first to third embodiments. It was confirmed that the following can be achieved. On the other hand, in Comparative Example C in which exhaust was performed only by the outer peripheral exhaust part 150 as in the prior art, 1 ppb or less could not be achieved even after purging for 10 seconds. From this result, it was confirmed that the time required for purging in the processing container 110 can be halved as compared with the conventional case by exhausting using the central exhaust part 140. Therefore, from the above results, it has been confirmed that the processing time in the processing container 110 can be shortened as compared with the conventional case where the exhaust is performed only by the outer peripheral exhaust part 150.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious for those skilled in the art that various modifications or modifications can be conceived within the scope of the idea described in the claims, and these naturally belong to the technical scope of the present invention. It is understood.

  For example, in the substrate processing system described in the above embodiment, a semiconductor wafer is processed, but when processing other substrates such as an FPD (flat panel display) and a photomask mask reticle in addition to the semiconductor wafer. It can also be applied to.

  The present invention is useful when a substrate is hydrophobized.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate processing system 2 Cassette station 3 Processing station 4 Exposure apparatus 5 Interface station 10 Cassette carrying-in part 11 Wafer conveyance part 12 Cassette mounting table 13 Mounting plate 20 Conveyance path 21 Wafer conveyance apparatus 30 Development processing unit 31 Lower antireflection film formation unit 32 resist coating unit 33 upper antireflection film forming unit 40 heat treatment unit 41 adhesion unit 42 peripheral exposure unit 70 wafer transfer device 80 shuttle transfer device 90 wafer transfer device 100 wafer transfer device 110 processing container 111 lid body 112 mounting table 113 heater 114 Elevating Mechanism 120 Top Plate 121 Side Plate 122 Gas Supply Unit 130 HMDS Gas Supply Source 131 Nitrogen Gas Supply Source 132 Valve Element 140 Center Exhaust Portion 141 Exhaust Hole 142 Heart exhaust path 143 around the exhaust pipe 144 exhaust header pipe 145 exhausting device 146 the valve body 150 outer peripheral exhaust unit 151 exhaust hole 152 outer peripheral exhaust path 153 outer peripheral exhaust pipe 154 flow restriction mechanism C cassette W wafer

Claims (17)

A hydrophobizing apparatus that supplies HMDS gas to the surface of a substrate placed in a processing container to hydrophobize the substrate,
A processing vessel with an open top;
A lid covering the opening of the processing container;
A mounting table for mounting the substrate;
A gas supply unit that supplies HMDS gas and purge gas to the substrate from above the center of the substrate on the mounting table;
A central exhaust part provided above the substrate on the mounting table and opposite to the central part of the substrate;
A hydrophobization treatment apparatus, comprising: an outer peripheral exhaust portion provided outside the substrate on the mounting table. 2. The hydrophobizing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an exhaust mother pipe provided in common to the central exhaust part and the outer peripheral exhaust part. A valve body is provided in the central exhaust pipe connecting the central exhaust part and the exhaust mother pipe,
The outer peripheral exhaust pipe connecting the outer peripheral exhaust section and the exhaust mother pipe is provided with a flow rate limiting mechanism for limiting the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the outer peripheral exhaust pipe. Hydrophobic treatment equipment. The said gas supply part is provided in the center part of the said cover body lower surface, and the said center exhaust part is provided concentrically outside the said gas supply part, The 1-3 characterized by the above-mentioned. The hydrophobization apparatus according to any one of the above. 5. The hydrophobizing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the central exhaust unit is disposed so as to be inside a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in plan view. The said center exhaust part is provided in the center part of the said cover body lower surface, The said gas supply part is provided concentrically outside the said center exhaust part, The 1-3 characterized by the above-mentioned. The hydrophobization apparatus according to any one of the above. The hydrophobization apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the gas supply unit is disposed so as to be within a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in a plan view. A method of hydrophobizing treatment in which HMDS gas is supplied to the surface of a substrate placed in a processing container to hydrophobize the substrate,
HMDS gas is supplied to the substrate from above the center of the substrate, and the substrate is hydrophobized by exhausting HMDS gas from a position outside the substrate.
Next, the supply of HMDS gas is stopped, and then the purge gas is supplied into the processing container from above the center of the substrate, and the purge gas is exhausted from the position outside the substrate and the position above the center of the substrate. A method of hydrophobizing treatment, wherein the inside of the container is purged. The supply of the HMDS gas and the purge gas from the upper center of the substrate is performed by a gas supply unit provided at the upper center of the substrate,
Exhaust from a position above the central portion of the substrate is performed by a central exhaust portion provided above the substrate and facing the central portion of the substrate,
The hydrophobizing method according to claim 8, wherein exhaust from a position outside the substrate is performed by an outer peripheral exhaust portion provided outside the substrate. An exhaust mother pipe is provided in common to the central exhaust part and the outer peripheral exhaust part,
The hydrophobic treatment method according to claim 9, wherein exhaust from the central exhaust part and the outer peripheral exhaust part is performed through the exhaust mother pipe. A valve body is provided in the central exhaust pipe connecting the central exhaust part and the exhaust mother pipe,
The outer peripheral exhaust pipe connecting the outer peripheral exhaust section and the exhaust mother pipe is provided with a flow rate limiting mechanism for limiting the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the outer peripheral exhaust pipe,
During the hydrophobic treatment of the substrate, the valve body is closed to stop the exhaust from the central exhaust part, and while purging the inside of the processing container, the valve body is opened to exhaust from the central exhaust part. The hydrophobization method according to claim 10. The said gas supply part is provided in the central part of said processing container inner upper surface, and said center exhaust part is provided concentrically outside the said gas supply part, The 9th-characterized by the above-mentioned. The hydrophobic treatment method according to any one of 11. 13. The hydrophobizing method according to claim 12, wherein the central exhaust part is disposed so as to be inside a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in plan view. The central exhaust part is provided at a central part of the inner upper surface of the processing container, and the gas supply part is provided concentrically outside the central exhaust part. The hydrophobic treatment method according to any one of 11. 15. The hydrophobizing method according to claim 14, wherein the gas supply unit is disposed so as to be within a circle having a radius of 50 mm from the center of the substrate in plan view. A program that operates on a computer of a control unit that controls the development processing apparatus in order to cause the substrate processing apparatus to execute the substrate processing method according to claim 8. A readable computer storage medium storing the program according to claim 16.

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