JP2021077862A - Substrate processing device, semiconductor device manufacturing method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a substrate processing device, a semiconductor device manufacturing method, and a program capable of stabilizing the conditions in a furnace at a start of a film deposition process.SOLUTION: The program executed by the substrate processing device has a pre-processing step of preparing a processing environment in a processing furnace, a deposition step of processing a substrate, and a post-processing step. In the first step of the pre-processing step, the device is configured to be able to execute alarm processing. A sub-recipe determines whether to execute a maintenance recipe to maintain components of the device. A maintenance process is executed with the maintenance recipe.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

The present disclosure relates to a manufacturing method and a program of a substrate processing device and a semiconductor device.

In a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which is a kind of substrate processing apparatus, some kind of maintenance processing is performed before or after the film forming processing is performed. Here, there are various maintenance treatments such as a treatment for removing by-products in the furnace and a purging treatment for maintaining the environment in the furnace under specific conditions. In recent years, in order to improve equipment productivity (to reduce equipment downtime), a function to automatically execute maintenance processing has become indispensable.

For example, Patent Document 1 describes that when the current value of the device data to be monitored reaches a predetermined condition, an alarm is generated and a cleaning recipe is executed. Further, for example, Patent Document 2 describes that even if an error occurs in the preparation step before the film forming step, the error processing is performed in the first step of the film forming step.

However, when the current value reaches a predetermined threshold value and the maintenance process is automatically executed, the condition inside the furnace at the start of the film formation process may change.

Japanese Patent No. 2019-14783 Japanese Patent No. 2015-162628

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a technique capable of stabilizing the situation in the furnace at the start of the film forming process.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure
It is a technology having a pretreatment step for preparing a treatment environment in a treatment furnace, a film forming step for treating a substrate, and a posttreatment step. A technique is provided that can determine whether to execute a maintenance recipe to be maintained.

According to the technique of the present disclosure, the conditions before film formation in the furnace can be made the same conditions, and film formation stability can be obtained.

This is an example of a cross-sectional view showing a substrate processing apparatus preferably used in one embodiment of the present disclosure. This is an example of a vertical cross-sectional view showing a substrate processing apparatus preferably used in one embodiment of the present disclosure. It is an example of the vertical cross-sectional view which shows the processing furnace of the substrate processing apparatus preferably used for one Embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure explaining the functional structure of the controller preferably used for one Embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the processing flow preferably used for one Embodiment of this disclosure. It is an illustration example of the maintenance item preferably used for one Embodiment of this disclosure. It is an illustration explaining the maintenance process preferably used for one Embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the detail of the pretreatment process in the processing flow of FIG. It is a figure which shows the detail of the maintenance process determination process in the pretreatment process of FIG. This is a comparative example when the film formation process is executed multiple times in one job. It is a figure which shows the process flow at the time of executing the film formation process a plurality of times in one job preferably used for one Embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the processing flow preferably used for one Embodiment of this disclosure.

(Overview of board processing equipment)
Next, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. In an embodiment to which the present disclosure applies, the substrate processing apparatus is configured, for example, as a substrate processing apparatus that implements the processing apparatus in the method of manufacturing a semiconductor device (IC). In the following description, a case where a vertical device (hereinafter, simply referred to as a processing device) that performs oxidation, diffusion processing, CVD processing, or the like is applied to the substrate as a substrate processing device will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the substrate processing apparatus 10 includes two adjacent processing modules as a processing furnace 202, which will be described later. The processing module is a vertical processing module that collectively processes several tens of wafers 200 as a substrate. Hereinafter, the parts constituting the processing apparatus 10 include, for example, the parts constituting the processing furnace 202, the parts arranged in the transfer chamber 6 and the transfer chamber 8, and the like, and may also include the processing apparatus 10 itself. ..

Below the processing furnace 202, transfer chambers 6A and 6B as preparation chambers are arranged. On the front side of the transfer chambers 6A and 6B, a transfer chamber 8 having a transfer machine 125 for transferring the wafer 200 as a substrate is arranged adjacent to the transfer chambers 6A and 6B. In the present embodiment, the processing furnace 202 described later will be provided above the transport chambers 6A and 6B, respectively.

On the front side of the transfer chamber 8, a storage chamber 9 (pod transfer space) for accommodating a pod (FOUP) 110 as a storage container for accommodating a plurality of wafers 200 is provided. A load port 22 as an I / O port is installed on the entire surface of the storage chamber 9, and the pod 110 is carried in and out of the processing device 2 via the load port 22.

Gate valves 90A and 90B as isolation portions are installed on the boundary wall (adjacent surface) between the transfer chambers 6A and 6B and the transfer chamber 8. Pressure detectors are installed in the transfer chamber 8 and the transfer chambers 6A and 6B, respectively, and the pressure in the transfer chamber 8 is set to be lower than the pressure in the transfer chambers 6A and 6B. ing. Oxygen concentration detectors are installed in the transfer chamber 8 and the transport chambers 6A and 6B, respectively, and the oxygen concentration in the transfer chamber 8A and the transport chambers 6A and 6B is higher than the oxygen concentration in the atmosphere. Is also kept low. Preferably, it is maintained at 30 ppm or less.

A clean unit (not shown) that supplies clean air into the transfer chamber 8 is installed on the ceiling of the transfer chamber 8, and for example, an inert gas is circulated in the transfer chamber 8 as clean air. It is configured to let you. By circulating and purging the inside of the transfer chamber 8 with an inert gas, the inside of the transfer chamber 8 can be made into a clean atmosphere.

With such a configuration, it is possible to prevent particles and the like from the transfer chambers 6A and 6B from being mixed into the processing furnace 202 (not shown) in the transfer chamber 8 and in the transfer chamber 8 and the transfer chambers 6A and 6B. It is possible to prevent the formation of a natural oxide film on the wafer 200.

A plurality of pod openers 21 for opening and closing the lid of the pod 110, for example, three, are arranged on the boundary wall between the storage chamber 9 and the transfer chamber 8 behind the storage chamber 9. When the pod opener 21 opens the lid of the pod 110, the wafer 200 in the pod 110 is carried in and out of the transfer chamber 8.

As shown in FIG. 2, the substrate processing apparatus 10 accommodating a plurality of wafers 200 made of silicon or the like and using the pod 110 includes a housing 111 used as the substrate processing apparatus main body.

A front maintenance opening (not shown) as an opening provided for maintenance is opened in the front front part of the front wall of the housing 111, and front maintenance doors for opening and closing this front maintenance opening are installed respectively. Has been done. Further, a pod carry-in / carry-out outlet is provided on the front wall so as to communicate the inside and outside of the housing 111. The pod carry-in / carry-out port may be configured to be opened / closed by a front shutter (not shown).

A load port 22 used as a loading / unloading section is installed at the pod loading / unloading outlet, and the load port 22 is configured so that the pod 110 is placed and aligned. The pod 110 is carried into the load port 22 by an in-process transfer device, and is also carried out from the load port 22.

On the front rear side of the housing 111, storage shelves (pod shelves) 105 are installed in a matrix shape over the top, bottom, left, and right around the pod loading / unloading outlet. The pod shelf 105 is provided with a mounting portion 140 as a storage portion for mounting the pod. The storage unit is composed of the mounting unit 140 and a horizontal moving mechanism (storage shelf horizontal moving mechanism) that horizontally moves the mounting unit 140 between a standby position where the pod 110 is stored and a delivery position where the pod 110 is delivered. Will be done. A plurality of independent mounting portions 140 arranged on the same straight line in the horizontal direction constitute one stage of the pod shelf 105, and the pod shelves are installed in a plurality of stages in the vertical direction. Each mounting portion 140 can be moved horizontally independently of the vertically or horizontally adjacent mounting portions 140 and any other mounting portion 140. The pod transfer device 130 is configured to transfer the pod 110 between the load port 22, the pod shelf 105, and the pod opener 21.

A pod shelf (accommodation shelf) 105 is installed in a matrix on the front side of the sub-housing 119 in the housing 111. Similar to the pod shelf 105 on the front rear side of the housing 111, the mounting portion 140 as a storage portion for mounting the pods of each pod shelf 105 is horizontally movable, and is placed next to each other vertically or horizontally. It can be moved horizontally independently without synchronizing with the unit 140. The pod shelf 105 is configured to hold one pod 110 on each of the plurality of mounting portions 140.

On the front wall 119a of the sub-housing 119, a pair of wafer loading / unloading outlets 120 for loading / unloading the wafer 200 into the sub-housing 119 are provided in two vertical stages arranged vertically. A pair of pod openers 21 are installed at each of the wafer loading / unloading outlets 120 of the above. In this embodiment, the pod openers 21 are installed in two upper and lower stages, but two left and right pod openers may be installed in the horizontal direction. The pod opener 21 includes a mounting table 122 on which the pod 110 is placed, and a cap attachment / detachment mechanism 123 for attaching / detaching the cap of the pod 110. The pod opener 21 is configured to open and close the wafer loading / unloading port of the pod 110 by attaching / detaching the cap of the pod 110 mounted on the mounting table 122 by the cap attachment / detachment mechanism 123.

The sub-housing 119 constitutes a transfer chamber 8 that is fluidly isolated from the installation space of the pod transfer device 130 and the pod shelf 105. A wafer transfer mechanism 125 is installed in the front region of the transfer chamber 8, and the wafer transfer mechanism 125 has a wafer transfer device 125a and a wafer transfer device 125a capable of rotating or linearly moving the wafer 200 in the horizontal direction. It is composed of a wafer transfer device elevator 125b for raising and lowering. By the continuous operation of the wafer transfer device elevator 125b and the wafer transfer device 125a, the tweezers (board holder) 125c of the wafer transfer device 125a is used as a mounting portion of the wafer 200 with respect to the boat (board holder) 217. The wafer 200 is configured to be loaded (charged) and unloaded (discharged).

In the rear region of the transfer chamber 8, a transport chamber 6 is configured as a standby unit for accommodating and waiting the boat 217 via a gate valve 90. Above the transport chamber 6, a processing furnace 202 that constitutes the processing chamber inside is provided. The lower end of the processing furnace 202 is configured to be opened and closed by the furnace opening shutter 147.

The boat 217 is moved up and down by the boat elevator 115 (not shown) and introduced into the processing furnace. A seal cap 219 as a lid is horizontally installed on an arm (not shown) as a connector connected to the lift of the boat elevator 115, and the lid 219 vertically supports and processes the boat 217. It is configured so that the lower end of the furnace 202 can be closed. The boat 217 is provided with a plurality of holding members, and is configured to hold the plurality of wafers 200 horizontally with their centers aligned in the vertical direction.

(Processing furnace of substrate processing equipment)
As shown in FIG. 3, the processing furnace 202 has a heater 207 as a heating means (heating mechanism). The heater 207 has a cylindrical shape and is vertically installed by being supported by a heater base (not shown) as a holding plate.

Inside the heater 207, a reaction tube 203 forming a reaction vessel (processing vessel) is arranged concentrically with the heater 207. The reaction tube 203 is formed in the shape of a ceiling with the lower end open and the upper end closed by a flat wall body. Inside the reaction tube 203, there are a cylindrical portion 209, a nozzle arrangement chamber 222 partitioned between the tubular portion 209 and the reaction tube 203, and a gas supply port formed in the tubular portion 209. It includes a gas supply slit 235, a first gas exhaust port 236 formed in the tubular portion 209, and a second gas exhaust port 237 formed in the tubular portion 209 and formed below the first gas exhaust port 236. .. The tubular portion 209 is formed in the shape of a ceiling in which the lower end portion is open and the upper end portion is closed by a flat wall body, and is provided so as to surround the wafer 200 in the immediate vicinity of the wafer 200. A processing chamber 201 is formed inside the tubular portion 209. The processing chamber 201 is configured to accommodate the boat 217 as a substrate holder that can hold the wafers 200 in a horizontal posture and vertically arranged in multiple stages so that the wafers 200 can be processed.

The lower end of the reaction tube 203 is supported by a cylindrical manifold 226. A flange is formed at the upper end of the manifold 226, and the lower end of the reaction tube 203 is installed and supported on the flange. An airtight member 220 such as an O-ring is interposed between the flange and the lower end of the reaction tube 203 to keep the inside of the reaction tube 203 airtight.

A seal cap 219 is airtightly attached to the opening at the lower end of the manifold 226 via an airtight member 220 such as an O-ring so as to airtightly close the opening side at the lower end of the reaction tube 203, that is, the opening of the manifold 226. It has become.

A boat support 218 that supports the boat 217 is provided on the seal cap 219. The boat support 218 functions as a heat insulating portion and serves as a support for supporting the boat 217. Boat 217 is made of a heat resistant material such as quartz or SiC. The boat 217 has a bottom plate fixed to a boat support (not shown) and a top plate arranged above the bottom plate, and has a configuration in which a plurality of columns are erected between the bottom plate and the top plate. There is. A plurality of wafers 200 are held in the boat 217. The plurality of wafers 200 are loaded in multiple stages in the tube axis direction of the reaction tube 203 in a state where they maintain a horizontal posture while being spaced apart from each other and are centered on each other, and are supported by the columns of the boat 217.

A boat rotation mechanism 267 for rotating the boat is provided on the side of the seal cap 219 opposite to the processing chamber 201. The rotation shaft 265 of the boat rotation mechanism 267 is connected to the boat support 218 through the seal cap, and the boat rotation mechanism 267 rotates the boat 217 via the boat support 218 to rotate the wafer 200. ..

The seal cap 219 is vertically raised and lowered by a boat elevator 115 as an elevating mechanism provided outside the reaction tube 203, whereby the boat 217 can be carried in and out of the processing chamber 201.

Nozzle support portions 350a to 350d that support nozzles 340a to 340d as gas nozzles for supplying processing gas into the processing chamber 201 are installed in the manifold 226 so as to penetrate the manifold 226. Here, four nozzle support portions 350a to 350d are installed. Gas supply pipes 310a to 310c for supplying gas into the processing chamber 201 are connected to one end of the nozzle support portions 350a to 350c on the reaction tube 203 side, respectively. Further, a gas supply pipe 310d that supplies gas to the gap S formed between the reaction pipe 203 and the cylinder portion 209 is connected to one end of the nozzle support portion 350d on the reaction pipe 203 side. Further, nozzles 340a to 340d are connected to the other ends of the nozzle support portions 350a to 350d, respectively.

The gas supply pipe 310a is connected to the first processing gas supply source 360a for supplying the first processing gas, the mass flow controller (MFC) 320a which is a flow rate controller (flow control unit), and the valve 330a which is an on-off valve in this order from the upstream direction. Are provided respectively. The gas supply pipe 310b is provided with a second processing gas supply source 360b, an MFC 320b, and a valve 330b, which supply the second processing gas, in this order from the upstream direction. The gas supply pipe 310c is provided with a third processing gas supply source 360c, an MFC 320c, and a valve 330c, which supply the third processing gas, in this order from the upstream direction. The gas supply pipe 310d is provided with an inert gas supply source 360d, an MFC 320d, and a valve 330d, which supply the inert gas, in this order from the upstream direction. Gas supply pipes 310e and 310f for supplying the inert gas are connected to the downstream side of the gas supply pipes 310a and 310b with respect to the valves 330a and 330b, respectively. The gas supply pipes 310e and 310f are provided with MFCs 320e and 320f and valves 330e and 330f, respectively, in order from the upstream direction.

The first processing gas supply system is mainly composed of the gas supply pipe 310a, the MFC320a, and the valve 330a. The first processing gas supply source 360a, the nozzle support portion 350a, and the nozzle 340a may be included in the first processing gas supply system. Further, the second processing gas supply system is mainly composed of the gas supply pipe 310b, the MFC320b, and the valve 330b. The second processing gas supply source 360b, the nozzle support portion 350b, and the nozzle 340b may be included in the second processing gas supply system. Further, the third processing gas supply system is mainly composed of the gas supply pipe 310c, the MFC320c, and the valve 330c. The third processing gas supply source 360c, the nozzle support portion 350c, and the nozzle 340c may be included in the third processing gas supply system. Further, the inert gas supply system is mainly composed of the gas supply pipe 310d, the MFC320d, and the valve 330d. The inert gas supply source 360d, the nozzle support 350d, and the nozzle 340d may be included in the inert gas supply system.

An exhaust port 230 is formed in the reaction tube 203. The exhaust port 230 is formed below the second gas exhaust port 237 and is connected to the exhaust pipe 231. A vacuum pump 246 as a vacuum exhaust device is connected to the exhaust pipe 231 via a pressure sensor 245 as a pressure detector for detecting the pressure in the processing chamber 201 and an APC (Auto Pressure Controller) valve 244 as a pressure adjusting unit. It is configured so that the pressure in the processing chamber 201 can be evacuated to a predetermined pressure. The exhaust pipe 231 on the downstream side of the vacuum pump 246 is connected to an exhaust gas treatment device (not shown) or the like. The APC valve 244 can open and close the valve to stop the vacuum exhaust and the vacuum exhaust of the processing chamber 201, and further adjust the valve opening degree to adjust the conductance to adjust the pressure of the processing chamber 201. It is an on-off valve. Mainly, an exhaust system that functions as an exhaust unit is configured by an exhaust pipe 231, an APC valve 244, and a pressure sensor 245. The vacuum pump 246 may be included in the exhaust system.

A temperature sensor (not shown) as a temperature detector is installed in the reaction tube 203, and the power supply to the heater 207 is adjusted based on the temperature information detected by the temperature sensor to adjust the power supply to the heater 207 in the processing chamber 201. The temperature is configured to have a desired temperature distribution.

In the above processing furnace 202, in a state where a plurality of wafers 200 to be batch processed are loaded on the boat 217 in multiple stages, the boat 217 is inserted into the processing chamber 201 while being supported by the boat support 218, and the heater 207 is inserted. The wafer 200 inserted in the processing chamber 201 is heated to a predetermined temperature.

(Controller configuration)
As shown in FIG. 4, the control system 240 includes a controller 121 which is a main control unit (main controller), a process controller PMC (Process Controller) as a recipe execution unit, and a transport controller as a job execution unit. At least include. Further, the controller 121 is connected to, for example, a storage device 128 composed of a flash memory, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or the like, or an input / output device 127 as a display unit configured as a touch panel or the like.

Note that FIG. 4 is an illustrated example when there are two processing furnaces 202. Hereinafter, the process controller PMC is simply referred to as PMC. The PMCs 1 and 2 are connected to the processing furnace 202 shown in FIG. 3, respectively, but are not shown in the PMC 2.

In the storage device 128, a control program (job) for controlling the operation of the substrate processing device 10, a process recipe as a film forming recipe in which the procedure and conditions of the substrate processing are described, and the like are readablely stored. There is. The process recipes are combined so that the PMC can execute each procedure in the substrate processing process described later and obtain a predetermined result, and the maintenance recipe is a state in which the wafer 200 is not put into the apparatus. Therefore, it is a maintenance recipe that allows the PMC to execute each procedure in the maintenance process, for example, to maintain the parts.

A table showing maintenance items (FIG. 6) and maintenance processing (FIG. 7), which will be described later, is also stored in the storage device 128. These tables relate to the maintenance recipes described above. The controller 121 is configured to read the maintenance recipe and these tables related to the maintenance recipe from the storage unit 128 and download them to the PMC, respectively. The PMC is configured to use the data in these tables to execute maintenance recipes.

The storage device 128 stores device data generated by operating each component constituting the device by executing a job (process job) including this process recipe. Time data is added to these device data by the time stamp function of the controller 121. The same applies to a job (maintenance job) including a maintenance recipe (maintenance recipe). Jobs (process jobs and maintenance jobs) may be treated as main recipes below. The sub-recipe is a recipe that assists this main recipe, and is used, for example, when a simple predetermined step is repeatedly executed. These function as programs. In addition, when the term program is used in the present specification, it may include only a recipe alone, a control program (job) alone, or both of them.

In the present embodiment, the PMC executes a main recipe composed of three steps of pretreatment, main treatment, and posttreatment, whereby a series of processing steps in the substrate processing is performed. Here, the main processing of the main recipe corresponds to the substrate processing process. Each step of the pretreatment, the main treatment (board treatment step), and the posttreatment will be described later.

Here, the maintenance recipe includes a purge recipe, a warm-up recipe, a cleaning recipe, and the like, and is appropriately selected and executed according to the content of the error. In addition, maintenance recipes may be set in advance according to the location (part) where the error occurred. In the processing furnace 202 (processing room 201) at the time of executing these maintenance recipes, control parameters such as temperature, gas flow rate, electric power, and pressure are arbitrarily set according to the contents of each maintenance recipe.

Here, the device data is the data collected when the job is executed as described above. For example, data related to substrate processing (for example, set value, measured value) such as processing temperature, processing pressure, and flow rate of processing gas when the substrate processing apparatus processes the wafer 200 (when executing a process recipe), and manufactured products. Data on the quality of the substrate (for example, the film thickness formed and the cumulative value of the film thickness) and data on the components (reaction tube, heater, valve, MFC, etc.) of the substrate processing apparatus 1 (for example, set value). , Measured value) and the like, which includes data generated by operating each component when the substrate processing apparatus processes the wafer 200. Similarly, when the board processing device is maintained (when the maintenance recipe is executed), the data generated by operating each component is included in the device data.

The controller 121 is configured to read a process recipe (or maintenance recipe) from the storage device 128 in response to an input of an operation command from the input / output device 127 or the like. The controller 121 uses the MFC 320a to 320f to adjust the flow rate of various gases, opens and closes the valves 330a to 330f, opens and closes the APC valve 244, and sets the APC valve based on the pressure sensor 245 so as to follow the contents of the process recipe via the PMC. Pressure adjustment operation by 244, start and stop of vacuum pump 246, temperature adjustment operation of heater 207 based on temperature sensor, rotation and rotation speed adjustment operation of boat 217 by boat rotation mechanism 267, lifting operation of boat 217 by boat elevator 115, etc. Is configured to control.

The controller 121 transfers the pod 110 between the load port 22, the pod shelf 105, and the pod opener 21 by the pod transfer device 130 so as to follow the contents of the process job via the transfer system controller. The tweezers (board holder) of the wafer transfer device 125a by the cap attachment / detachment operation of the pod 110 mounted on the mounting table 122 and the continuous operation of the wafer transfer device elevator 125b and the wafer transfer device 125a by the wafer transfer device 125. The 125c is used as a mounting portion for the wafer 200, and is configured to control the loading (charging) operation and the unloading (discharging) operation of the wafer 200 on the boat (board holder) 217.

(Substrate processing process)
Next, the substrate processing step will be described with reference to FIG. A boat 217 on which a predetermined number of wafers 200 are placed is inserted (boat loaded) into the reaction tube 203, and the reaction tube 203 is airtightly closed by the seal cap 219. In the airtightly closed reaction tube 203, the wafer 200 is heated and the processing gas is supplied into the reaction tube 203, so that the wafer 200 is subjected to a predetermined process.

As a predetermined treatment, for example, a Si film is formed on the wafer 200 by simultaneously supplying PH3 gas as the first treatment gas and SiH4 gas as the second treatment gas.

First, PH3 gas is supplied from the gas supply pipe 310a of the first treatment gas supply system to the treatment chamber 201 via the gas supply hole 234a of the nozzle 340a and the gas supply slit 235, and the gas supply pipe of the second treatment gas supply system. SiH4 gas is supplied from 310b to the processing chamber 201 via the gas supply hole 234b of the nozzle 340b and the gas supply slit 235. Specifically, by opening the valves 330a, 330b, 330e, and 330f, the supply of PH3 gas from the gas supply pipe 310a and the SiH4 gas from the supply pipe 310b to the processing chamber 201 is started together with the carrier gas. At this time, the opening degree of the APC valve 244 is adjusted to maintain the pressure in the processing chamber 201 at a predetermined pressure. After the predetermined time has elapsed, the valves 330a and 330b are closed to stop the supply of SiH4 gas and PH3 gas.

The SiH4 gas and PH3 gas supplied into the processing chamber 201 are supplied to the wafer 200, flow in parallel on the wafer 200, and then flow through the gap S from the upper part to the lower part through the first gas exhaust port 236. It is exhausted from the exhaust pipe 231 via the second gas exhaust port 237 and the exhaust port 230.

After closing the valves 330a and 330b and stopping the supply of SiH4 gas and PH3 gas to the processing chamber 201, the processing chamber 201 is exhausted, and the SiH4 gas, PH3 gas, reaction products, etc. remaining in the processing chamber 201 are exhausted. Eliminate. At this time, when inert gases such as N2 are supplied from the gas supply pipes 310a, 310b, 310c, 310d to the processing chamber 201 and the gap S, respectively, and purged, the effect of removing the residual gas from the processing chamber 201 and the gap S is obtained. It can be further enhanced.

When the processing of the wafer 200 is completed, the boat 217 is carried out (boat unloading) from the reaction tube 203 by the reverse procedure of the above operation.

Here, the process conditions for forming the Si film are described below.
Si source: SiH4 (monosilane)
Film formation temperature: 520 ° C
Pressure: 0.68 Torr
Gas flow rate: 2.8 SLM (monosilane)
Film formation time: Approximately 15 min

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the first treated gas and the second treated gas are supplied at the same time has been described, but the present disclosure also applies to the case where the first treated gas and the second treated gas are alternately supplied. be able to.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 5 to 9, it is a processing flow for executing the process job (main recipe) in the present embodiment, and in particular, regarding a processing flow for enabling maintenance processing to be executed in the first step of the preprocessing step. This will be described in detail.

As shown in FIG. 5, the process job is a main recipe including a pretreatment (standby step), a main treatment (deposition step), and a posttreatment (end step). In the present embodiment, the pretreatment It is configured so that alarm processing (maintenance processing) can be executed in the first step (first step) of the step. Here, the pretreatment step is a step of preparing the treatment preparation, a step of preparing the treatment environment (treatment atmosphere) in the treatment furnace 202, a step of loading the wafer 200 into the boat 217 (wafer charge), and under the treatment furnace 202. This step includes at least a step of preparing a transfer environment (transfer atmosphere) on which the side boat 217 and the wafer 200 stand by.

Specifically, the sub-recipe is executed in the first step of the pre-processing step, and the maintenance process is executed in the first step of this sub-recipe. Here, the maintenance process shows a maintenance recipe for maintaining the members constituting the processing furnace 202 that processes the substrate. This maintenance process will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 6, maintenance items are set for each part. Note that this maintenance item may be displayed on the display unit 127, for example, and may be arbitrarily set on the screen.

In FIG. 6, the pod 110 as “FOUP”, the wafer 200 as “WAFER”, the boat 217 as “BOAT”, the reaction tube 203 as “TUBE”, and the substrate processing device 10 as “EQUIPMENT” are components, respectively. Is set as.

In FIG. 6, “number of uses”, “use time”, “stay time in equipment”, “cumulative film thickness”, “remaining number of usable sheets”, “standby time”, “number of times maintenance processing is executed”, “number of times dummy wafers are used”, and “cumulative dummy wafers”. "Film thickness" is set as a maintenance item. These parts and maintenance items are configured so that, for example, addition of parts, deletion of maintenance items, and the like can be arbitrarily set. In FIG. 6, “−” indicates invalid setting, and “◯” indicates valid setting. The settings of valid "○" and invalid "-" are also configured to be editable as appropriate.

For example, when the maintenance item of the target component "EQUIPMENT" is "standby time", here, the "standby time" is the time during which the board processing apparatus 10 is in standby (IDLE), for example, continuous. When processing, the "waiting time" is 0 min, and when there is no lot to be set next, waiting (IDLE) is performed after processing. The standby time of the substrate processing apparatus 10 reaches, for example, 1 hour, and the in-core cycle purge is executed. In this case, the threshold value for executing the maintenance process is preset to 1 hour.

For example, when the maintenance item of the target part "TUBE" is "number of times of use", here, "number of times of use" means the number of times of process processing in the processing furnace 202, for example, a specific step in the recipe. When executed, it counts as 1 time. When the number of executions reaches a predetermined threshold value, the maintenance process is executed. For example, a furnace cycle purge or a cleaning recipe is executed as a maintenance recipe executed during the maintenance process.

For example, when the maintenance item of the target part "BOAT" is "cumulative film thickness", the cumulative film thickness of the boat 217 is the state where the boat 217 is inserted in the processing furnace 202. For example, when a specific step in the recipe is executed, the accumulation of the film thickness values registered in advance for that step is shown. When the cumulative film thickness reaches a predetermined threshold value, the maintenance process is executed. For example, a cleaning recipe is executed as a maintenance recipe that is executed during the maintenance process.

Then, the maintenance process for the maintenance item set as “◯” in FIG. 6 is defined in FIG. 7. Maintenance processing includes "not specified", "alarm report", "job execution prohibited", "maintenance job manual start", "maintenance job automatic start", and "alarm recipe call". The timing of executing the maintenance process can be appropriately determined depending on the maintenance item and the maintenance process. As a result, it is possible to properly use the maintenance process as the post-treatment after the film formation process is completed and the maintenance process as the pre-treatment before the film formation process is started, and the maintenance process can be efficiently executed.

If "Not specified" shown in FIG. 7 is selected, the maintenance process is not performed. If the maintenance process is changed to "Not specified" while the alarm is being notified, the alarm will be recovered. For example, when a minor alarm occurs, "not specified" can be selected to forcibly recover the alarm and continue the process.

Next, when "Alarm Report" is selected, it is configured to notify an alarm. In this maintenance process, the alarm can be recovered by setting the current value of the maintenance item of the target component to the threshold value or less. Notification is set with a minor error that is necessary but not enough to stop the process.

When "Job Execution Prohibition" is selected, the execution of the next job is paused when the execution of the currently executing job is completed. In this maintenance process, the alarm can be recovered and the next job can be executed by setting the current value of the maintenance item of the target component to the threshold value or less.

When "Maintenance job manual start" is selected, the maintenance job is automatically generated and interrupted before the next job to be executed. Since this maintenance job is specified to be manually started, it is configured to wait for the start and execute this maintenance job if there is a start instruction. Recovers the alarm when the maintenance job ends normally. On the other hand, when the maintenance job ends abnormally, the alarm is not recovered. In this case, the alarm can be recovered by setting the current value of the maintenance item of the alarm generation target component to the threshold value or less. Further, "maintenance job automatic start" is the same as "maintenance job manual start" except that the maintenance job is automatically executed without waiting for the job start if there is no other job being executed.

When "Alarm Recipe Call" is selected, the current value of the maintenance item set for the monitored part reaches the threshold value in the first step of the sub-recipe executed in the standby step as the preprocessing step. If so, it is configured to perform the specified alarm recipe process. Then, when the alarm recipe process ends normally, the alarm is recovered, and when the alarm recipe process ends abnormally, the alarm does not recover. Further, if the current value of the maintenance item set for the component to be monitored has not reached the threshold value, nothing is executed and the next step is automatically executed.

The content of the maintenance process defined in FIG. 7 is configured so that the maintenance content can be arbitrarily changed, deleted, or added as appropriate, as in the case of the maintenance item shown in FIG. Further, the maintenance process shown in FIG. 7 may be displayed on the display unit 127 in the same manner as the maintenance item shown in FIG. 6, and may be arbitrarily set on the screen. Further, the content of the maintenance recipe (maintenance recipe) including the alarm recipe is not limited to the boat loading process, the maintenance process, and the boat unloading process. For example, the maintenance recipe for removing particles near the rotation shaft 265 of the rotation mechanism 267 is configured to include a cooling step in the main process (boat loading step, N2 purging step, boat unloading step). Details of this maintenance recipe will be described later.

FIG. 8 is a sequence showing in detail the first step of the sub-recipe executed in the pre-processing in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, the first recipe execution instruction is transmitted from the job execution unit TM to the recipe execution unit PMC. The recipe execution unit PMC requests the recipe main body (process recipe main body) from the control unit 121, and the control unit 121 transmits the data of the recipe main body (process recipe main body) to the recipe execution unit PMC.

Next, in the present embodiment, the recipe execution unit PMC requests the maintenance item status from the control unit 121, and the control unit 121 transmits the maintenance item status data (for example, the current value) to the recipe execution unit PMC. Then, when the recipe execution unit PMC receives the maintenance item status data, it notifies the job execution unit TM of the completion of recipe acquisition, and the job execution unit TM that receives this notification notifies the recipe execution unit PMC of the second recipe. Send an execution instruction. Here, the content of the maintenance item status data stores the maintenance processing method for each maintenance item. In the case of the "alarm recipe call" shown in FIG. 7, in the present embodiment, maintenance processing necessity information is stored. Here, if "alarm recipe call" is not selected as the maintenance process, the sub-recipe may not be executed. In addition, this maintenance processing necessity / non-presence information includes information on whether the current value of the maintenance item has reached the threshold value, and if the threshold value has not been reached, the sub-recipe may not be executed.

Next, the step of determining the execution of the alarm processing shown in FIG. 9 is executed. The recipe execution unit is configured to confirm the execution setting of the maintenance recipe as an alarm recipe, compare the current value of the preset maintenance item with the threshold value, and confirm whether or not the threshold value has been reached. If the current value has reached the threshold value, the recipe execution unit executes the maintenance recipe, and if the current value has not reached the threshold value, the recipe execution unit ends this process without executing the maintenance recipe in particular.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the current value of the preset maintenance item has reached the threshold value, the recipe execution unit sends a notification to start processing to the control unit 121 when the alarm recipe execution starts, and the alarm recipe is executed. At the end, a notification of the end of processing is transmitted to the control unit 121. If the current value of the preset maintenance item has not reached the threshold value, the recipe execution unit determines that it is not necessary to execute the maintenance recipe in particular, and is configured to move to the next step and continue the recipe.

The recipe execution unit is configured to execute predetermined error processing when the alarm recipe is not completed normally. The predetermined error processing is configured to forcibly shift (jump) to the post-processing and perform the post-processing, for example. In this case, the recipe execution unit omits (skips) the sub-recipe (cooling process and wafer collection) shown in FIG. 5 and puts it in a paused state. Alternatively, the recipe execution unit executes the abort recipe to perform the abort process. In this case as well, the primary stop state is reached. In either case, processing is performed for the failure (error) that has occurred, and then the production processing is restored.

Upon successful completion of the alarm recipe, it is configured to perform the next step after the first step of the sub-recipe. As shown in FIG. 5, the sub-recipe further comprises a transfer step of transporting the substrate and is configured to perform a transfer step of transferring the wafer 200 onto the boat 217. If the transfer step ends abnormally, it will be in a paused state as described above. Then, when this transfer step is completed, the second step of the main recipe is started from the sub-recipe. Then, this process (deposition step) is started. Since this process has been described above, it will be omitted here.

Further, the control unit 121 is configured to clear the current value of the preset maintenance item to zero when the alarm recipe is normally completed. As a result, the control unit 121 is configured to release the alarm generated by the maintenance item set for the component to be monitored. As a result, if the job is reserved in advance to be executed twice in a row, even if the first job reaches the threshold value at the end, the alarm recipe is set in the first step of the preprocessing of the second job. If it is executed and completed normally, the second job can be executed in a state where the atmosphere in the processing furnace 202 is adjusted.

Next, the post-treatment (end step) is a post-treatment after the film formation, and is a step of preparing the environment in the furnace for the next film formation, a step of cooling the treated boat 217 and the wafer 200, and a step of cooling the processed boat 217 and the wafer 200. This step includes at least a step of collecting the processed wafer 200 from the boat 217 (wafer discharge).

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 121 executes the sub-recipe in the first step of the post-processing, and the sub-recipe executed in the post-processing includes at least the processed wafer 200 and the boat 217. It is configured to have a cooling step for cooling and a transfer step for recovering the processed wafer 200 from the boat 217. Then, when the sub-recipe is completed, the process proceeds to the post-treatment step, and a process of preparing the processing environment in the processing furnace 202 for the next film forming process is performed.

(Example 1)
Next, the operation of the substrate processing apparatus 10 will be described. In the present embodiment, when the reserved process job execution processing start time is reached, the control unit 121 controls the operation of each unit constituting the board processing device 10 to start the process job.

In the first step (first step) of the pretreatment (before the transfer processing of the wafer 200), the control unit 121 executes a step of determining whether to execute the maintenance processing. Specifically, the recipe execution unit PMC determines whether or not it is necessary to execute the maintenance process. For example, the threshold value executed by the recipe execution unit PMC and the current value of the preset maintenance item are compared. In the present embodiment, it is compared whether the current value of the preset maintenance item has reached the threshold value for executing the alarm recipe. It should be noted that this comparison may be performed so that the maintenance processing item is set to the “alarm recipe call” shown in FIG. 7 among the maintenance items set to “◯” in FIG. ..

If the current value has not reached the threshold value for executing the alarm recipe, it is determined that maintenance processing is unnecessary, and the recipe execution unit PMC shifts to the next step and continues the sub-recipe. In this case, the recipe execution unit PMC notifies the transfer system controller as the job execution unit of the end of the first step of the sub-recipe. If the current value reaches the threshold value for executing the alarm recipe, it is determined that maintenance processing is required, and the recipe execution unit PMC executes maintenance processing (calls the alarm recipe) in the first step of the sub-recipe. At this time, the recipe execution unit PMC transmits the alarm processing start notification and the end notification to the control unit 121.

When the alarm recipe ends normally, the recipe execution unit PMC shifts to the next step and continues the sub-recipe as described above. The control unit 121 is configured to return the current value of the preset maintenance item to zero and release the alarm that has occurred.

When the alarm recipe ends abnormally, the recipe execution unit PMC executes a predetermined error process to put the device in the paused state. On the other hand, the control unit 121 is configured to hold the alarm while keeping the current value of the preset maintenance item as it is.

The transport system controller that has received the notification of the end of the first step is configured to execute the transfer step of transferring the wafer 200 to the boat 217. That is, the transfer process of the wafer 200 is performed by the transfer system controller as the transfer step of the preprocess. When the pod 110 is supplied to the load port 22, the pod 110 on the load port 22 is carried into the inside of the housing 111 by the pod carry-in device from the pod carry-in / carry-out outlet. The carried-in pod 110 is automatically transported to the designated mounting portion 140 of the pod shelf 105 by the pod transfer device 130 and delivered, and after being temporarily stored, it is temporarily stored and then transferred from the pod shelf 105 to one of the pod openers 21. It is transported and delivered and transferred to the mounting table 122, or directly transported to the pod opener 21 and transferred to the mounting table 122.

The opening side end face of the pod 110 mounted on the mounting table 122 is pressed against the opening edge of the wafer loading / unloading outlet 120 on the front wall 119a of the sub-housing 119, and the cap is removed by the cap attachment / detachment mechanism 123. The wafer loading / unloading port is opened. When the pod 110 is opened by the pod opener 21, the wafer 200 is picked up from the pod 110 by the tweezers 125c of the wafer transfer device 125a through the wafer loading / unloading port, and the gate valve 90 is moved to the transfer chamber 6 behind the transfer chamber 8. It is carried in via and loaded (charged) on the boat 217. At this time, charging may be performed after aligning the wafers with a notch matching device (not shown). The wafer transfer device 125a that has delivered the wafer 200 to the boat 217 returns to the pod 110, and loads the next wafer 200 into the boat 217.

During the loading work of the wafer into the boat 217 by the wafer transfer mechanism 125 in one (upper or lower) pod opener 21, another pod 110 from the pod shelf 105 is placed in the other (lower or upper) pod opener 21. It is transported and transferred by the pod transfer device 130, and the opening work of the pod 110 by the pod opener 21 is simultaneously carried out.

When a predetermined number of wafers 200 are loaded into the boat 217, the process recipe (main process) is executed. This process recipe is a recipe for processing the substrate and is controlled by the controller 121. When this process recipe is started, the lower end of the processing furnace 202, which was closed by the furnace opening shutter 147, is opened by the furnace opening shutter 147. Subsequently, the boat 217 holding the wafer 200 group is carried (loaded) into the processing furnace 202 by raising the seal cap 219 by the boat elevator 115.

After loading, the process controller performs arbitrary processing on the wafer 200 in the processing furnace 202. After the treatment, the wafer 200 and the pod 110 are unloaded to the outside of the housing in the reverse procedure described above.

(Comparison example)
As shown in FIG. 10A, when the film forming process is executed a plurality of times in one job (for example, when the film forming process is performed by dividing N wafers 200 into N / 2 sheets and N / 2 sheets). In addition, when performing continuous film formation processing in the same processing chamber 201 (or processing furnace 202), "maintenance job automatic start" is set because there was no "alarm recipe call" shown in FIG. 7 in the conventional maintenance processing. Even if it is done, when one process job is executed, the process recipe is executed twice in succession, so the device recognizes that the scheduled maintenance threshold is reached during the execution of the first process recipe and maintenance is required. Even if (determined by the control unit 121), the maintenance recipe by the maintenance job could not be executed until after the second process recipe was executed (if the process job was not completed). Therefore, even if it is known that the substrate processing result is bad, the process recipe must be executed twice in succession, and there is a concern that the reliability of the substrate processing result may be lowered.

(Example 2)
As shown in FIG. 10B, when the film forming process is executed a plurality of times in one job (for example, when the film forming process is performed by dividing N wafers 200 into N / 2 sheets and N / 2 sheets). In addition, even when the continuous film forming process is performed in the same processing chamber 201 (or processing furnace 202), in the present embodiment, the second time by setting the "alarm recipe call" shown in FIG. The maintenance process can be executed at the first step of the preprocessing of the process recipe.

(Example 3)
When the Si film is formed on the wafer 200, particles may be generated in the vicinity of the rotation shaft 265 of the rotation mechanism 267 when the batch processing is performed a predetermined number of times. In the present embodiment, the alarm recipe call shown in FIG. 7 is set for the maintenance process, and the number of times the wafer 200 (WAFER) and the reaction tube 203 (TUBE) are used is set for the maintenance item shown in FIG. Specifically, when at least one of the wafer 200 (WAFER) and the reaction tube 203 (TUBE) has been used reaches a threshold value, a particle reduction recipe as a maintenance process (alarm recipe) for the purpose of particle reduction. (N2 purge recipe of FIG. 11) is configured to be executed.

The N2 purge recipe shown in FIG. 11 includes a cooling step in the main process (boat loading step, N2 purging step, boat unloading step). Further, FIG. 11 is an example embodying the maintenance recipe (maintenance process) shown in FIG. 5, and other recipes such as the main recipe are exactly the same as those in FIG.

Therefore, in FIG. 11, the same part as in FIG. 5 will be omitted, and in this embodiment, the N2 purge recipe shown in FIG. 11 will be described as the maintenance process (alarm recipe).

In the boat loading process, the operation of inserting the boat 217 into the processing furnace 202 is the same as that of the boat loading process described above, but in the boat loading process of the N2 purge recipe, the (empty) boat 217 not loaded with the wafer 200 is used. It is inserted into the processing furnace 202. In this step, the boat 217 may not be mounted, and conversely, the boat 217 may be loaded with a wafer 200 for adjusting the inside of the furnace, which is not a product. The presence / absence of the boat 217 and the presence / absence of the wafer 200 loaded on the boat 217 can be arbitrarily set.

Next, it is a step of adjusting the pressure in the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201). At this time, it goes without saying that not only the pressure but also the temperature inside the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) is adjusted to a predetermined temperature. In this embodiment, the inside of the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) is maintained at a predetermined temperature and a predetermined pressure even in the subsequent N2 purging step and the atmospheric pressure returning step.

Then, the process proceeds to the N2 purge gas step while the temperature and pressure in the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) are maintained at predetermined values. Here, the purge gas is supplied into the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201). Specifically, the inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply system into the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201). The valves 330a, 330b, 330c of the first treated gas supply system, the second treated gas supply system, and the third treated gas supply system are closed. At this time, the valves 330e and 330f of the second processing gas supply system and the third processing gas supply system may be opened, respectively, and the inert gas may be supplied into the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201). In the N2 purge step, a large flow rate of purge gas supplied to the vicinity of the rotation shaft 265 of the rotation mechanism 267 is set.

Here, an example of the purge conditions of the N2 purge recipe will be described below.
Purge gas: N2 gas temperature: 400 ° C
Pressure: 0.006 Torr

Then, when the inert gas is supplied for a certain period of time while the temperature and pressure in the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) are maintained at predetermined values, the process shifts to the atmospheric pressure restoration step. Here, purge gas is supplied into the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) until the pressure in the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) reaches atmospheric pressure. Similarly, the temperature inside the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) is also lowered.

When the temperature is lowered to a certain level (for example, standby temperature), the process shifts to the boat unloading process. Here, the boat 217 is taken out from the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201).

After unloading the boat, it has a step of cooling at least the boat 217. This is because, depending on the temperature at the time of N2 purging, the boat 217 may be taken out from the processing furnace 202 (processing chamber 201) while the temperature of the boat 217 remains high. In this embodiment, a cooling step is provided because the temperature at the time of N2 purging is relatively high. Specifically, if the temperature, which is one of the N2 purge conditions, is as high as 400 ° C. and the transfer step is performed without providing the cooling step, a transfer failure occurs during the transfer of the wafer 200. Because there is a possibility. In this cooling step, a set time is provided in advance, but a temperature sensor may be provided in the transport chamber 6, and the cooling step may be terminated when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor becomes lower than a predetermined temperature. .. As an example, the total time of the N2 purge recipe is about 15 minutes.

Then, when the N2 purge recipe is completed, the process proceeds to the next step of the sub-recipe determination step. After that, it is configured to move to the transfer step of the wafer 200. Since the steps following this are the same operations as those in FIG. 5, the description thereof will be omitted here.

In this embodiment, in order to reduce particles that greatly affect the substrate processing result, the alarm recipe is set to be executed when the number of times of use of either the wafer 200 or the reaction tube 203 reaches the threshold value. .. However, the setting is not limited to this, and the maintenance items shown in FIG. 6 and the maintenance process shown in FIG. 7 are appropriately determined according to the maintenance purpose. Further, the maintenance recipe in this embodiment is composed of a combination of the main treatment (boat loading step, processing step, boat unloading step) and a cooling treatment for cooling the wafer 200 and the boat 217, respectively. As described above, the maintenance recipe incorporated in the pretreatment is not limited to the configuration of the main processing (boat loading process, processing process, boat unloading process), and is configured to be appropriately set according to the maintenance content. ..

By executing the N2 purge recipe in this way, particles near the rotation axis 265 can be removed. For example, particles accumulated in the dead space of the seal cover can be blown off with a large flow rate of the inert gas.

According to this embodiment, one or more of the effects shown in the following (1) to (6) are exhibited.

(1) If the time (hereinafter, standby time) until the next process job is executed becomes long even if the maintenance recipe is executed after the current process job is executed, conventionally, the board processing result of the first batch is obtained. Was worse (the board processing result is stable after the second batch), but according to this embodiment, the board processing result is started from the first batch by executing the maintenance recipe at the first step of the preprocessing of the process job. Can be stabilized.

(2) In the present embodiment, by executing the maintenance recipe in the first step of the preprocessing of the process job, the process recipe executed in this process is not affected, so that the influence on the board processing result is extremely small. can do. In particular, even when batch processing is continuously performed, the time until the process recipe is executed is always constant when the maintenance recipe is executed, so that the substrate processing result can be stabilized. On the other hand, in the conventional technique of executing the next process job after the maintenance recipe is completed, the maintenance recipe is executed at the stage where it is unknown whether or not there is an execution instruction of the process job after the maintenance recipe is completed, and the process is executed according to the timing of the process job execution instruction. The time until the recipe is executed will be different, and there is a concern that the substrate processing result will be adversely affected.

(3) In the present embodiment, since the maintenance process can be incorporated in the first step of the pre-process of the process job to be produced, the pre-alarm recovery process in the pre-process can be performed. As a result, the process recipe can be executed after the current value of the maintenance item confirms the threshold for executing the maintenance process. For example, even if the current value of the maintenance item exceeds the threshold for executing the maintenance process, maintenance can be executed. Since it is configured to execute the process and set the current value to zero before executing the process recipe, the substrate processing result can be stabilized.

(4) In the present embodiment, when the process recipe is executed two or more times in succession, the apparatus recognizes that the scheduled maintenance threshold is reached during the execution of the first process recipe and maintenance is required (4). Even if the control unit 121 determines), the maintenance recipe can be executed in the first step of the preprocessing of the second process recipe. Therefore, before the second process recipe is executed, the current maintenance item to be monitored is present. The value can be zero.

(5) In the present embodiment, when the process recipe is executed two or more times in succession, the apparatus recognizes that the scheduled maintenance threshold is reached during the execution of the first process recipe and maintenance is required (5). Even if the control unit 121 determines), the maintenance recipe is executed in the first step of the preprocessing of the second process recipe, and the second process recipe is executed with the current value of the maintenance item to be monitored set to zero. Therefore, the reliability of the substrate processing result can be improved.

(6) In the present embodiment, by executing the N2 purge recipe in the first step of the sub-recipe, the particle source accumulated in the dead space of the seal cover is blown off with a large flow rate of the inert gas before the wafer is transferred. be able to.

According to the present embodiment, in order not to affect the substrate processing result in the main processing (boat loading process, processing process, boat unloading process), the in-core environment at the start of the main processing (start of the process recipe). It is configured to incorporate a maintenance recipe in the first step of preprocessing so that It is natural that the first step of the preprocessing is the step farthest from the first step of the main processing. However, for example, if the time from the end of the maintenance recipe to the start of the first step of the main process is set to a predetermined time or longer, the substrate processing result of the main process (boat loading process, processing process, boat unloading process) is affected. If it is known that the above is not given, in short, it is sufficient if the predetermined time or more can be held, and it does not mean that the maintenance recipe must be incorporated in the first step of the preprocessing.

The control unit 121 in the embodiment of the present disclosure is not limited to the case where it is configured as a dedicated computer, and may be configured as a general-purpose computer. For example, by preparing an external storage device (for example, a semiconductor memory such as a USB memory) that stores the above-mentioned program and installing the program on a general-purpose computer using this external storage device, the controller of the present embodiment can be used. 121 can be configured. However, the means for supplying the program to the computer is not limited to the case of supplying the program via an external storage device. For example, a communication means such as the Internet or a dedicated line may be used to supply the program without going through an external storage device. The storage device 128 and the external storage device are configured as a computer-readable recording medium. Hereinafter, these are collectively referred to simply as a recording medium. When the term recording medium is used in the present specification, it may include only the storage device 128 alone, it may include only the external storage device alone, or it may include both of them.

The substrate processing apparatus 10 in the embodiment of the present disclosure can be applied not only to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor but also to an apparatus for processing a glass substrate such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) apparatus. Needless to say, it can also be applied to various substrate processing devices such as an exposure device, a lithography device, a coating device, and a processing device using plasma.

10 ... Substrate processing device,

Claims (20)

It is a manufacturing method of a semiconductor device having a pretreatment step for preparing a treatment environment in a treatment furnace, a film forming step for treating a substrate, and a posttreatment step.
In the first step of the pretreatment step, a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device for determining whether or not to execute a maintenance recipe for maintaining parts constituting the device. The first step of the pretreatment step includes the step of executing the sub-recipe.
The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein it is determined whether or not the maintenance recipe is executed in the first step of the sub-recipe. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 2, wherein in the first step of the sub-recipe, there is a step of confirming a setting for executing the maintenance recipe and a step of comparing a preset current value of a maintenance item with a threshold value. .. The semiconductor device according to claim 3, wherein when the current value of the maintenance item has reached the threshold value, the maintenance recipe is executed and the next step of the first step of the sub-recipe is executed. Production method. In addition, the sub-recipe has a transfer step of transporting the substrate.
The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 2, wherein the transfer step is executed after the first step of the sub-recipe is executed. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 5, wherein after the transfer step is executed, the sub-recipe is terminated and the process proceeds to the next step of the first step of the pretreatment step. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein when the maintenance recipe is not normally completed, the sub-recipe is forcibly terminated and the post-processing step is executed. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 4, wherein the current value of the maintenance item is set to zero after the maintenance recipe is completed. In the first step of the pretreatment step
If the prescribed maintenance process is set, execute the sub-recipe and
The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein if the predetermined maintenance process is not set, the pretreatment step is executed without executing the sub-recipe. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the pretreatment step includes at least a step of loading a substrate into a substrate holder and a step of preparing a transfer environment in which the substrate holder on the lower side of the processing furnace and the substrate stand by. .. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the maintenance recipe includes at least one selected from the group consisting of a purge recipe, a warm-up recipe, and a cleaning recipe. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 11, wherein the purge recipe is configured to execute a step of supplying purge gas while the temperature and pressure in the processing furnace are maintained at predetermined values. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 12, wherein the purge recipe includes a step of inserting the substrate holder into the processing furnace and a step of taking out the substrate holder from the processing furnace. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 13, wherein the purge recipe further includes a cooling step for cooling the substrate holder. The maintenance items are "number of times of use", "time of use", "time of stay in equipment", "cumulative film thickness", "remaining number of usable sheets", "standby time", "number of times of maintenance processing", "number of times of use of dummy wafer", and "dummy wafer". The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 3, wherein at least one or more is selected from the group consisting of "cumulative film thickness". The semiconductor according to claim 9, wherein one of the maintenance processes is selected from the group consisting of "not specified", "alarm report", "job execution prohibited", "maintenance job manual start", "maintenance job automatic start", and "alarm recipe call". Manufacturing method of the device. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 16, wherein when the "alarm recipe call" is selected as the maintenance process, the sub-recipe is executed. At least from the group consisting of a pod as "FOUP", a wafer as "WAFER", a boat as "BOAT", a reaction tube as "TUBE", and a processing device as "EQUIPMENT" as parts constituting the device. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein one is selected as a component. A memory that stores a file containing at least a main recipe including a pretreatment step for preparing the processing environment in the processing furnace, a film forming step for processing the substrate, and a posttreatment step, and a maintenance recipe for maintaining the parts constituting the apparatus. A program executed by a board processing apparatus including a unit, a control unit for causing the recipe execution unit to execute the main recipe and the maintenance recipe.
A program that causes the recipe execution unit to execute the maintenance recipe in the first step of the preprocessing step. Have the recipe execution unit execute the main recipe including the pretreatment step for preparing the processing environment in the processing furnace, the film forming step for processing the substrate, and the posttreatment step, and the maintenance recipe for maintaining the parts constituting the apparatus. It is a substrate processing device equipped with a control unit.
The recipe execution unit is a substrate processing apparatus configured to be able to execute the maintenance recipe in the first step of the preprocessing step.

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