JP3205076U - Treatment liquid supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

In a processing liquid bottle that is a supply source for supplying processing liquid to a liquid processing apparatus, the solvent of the processing liquid does not evaporate in the internal space of the processing liquid bottle connected to the processing liquid supply line of the liquid processing apparatus. Provided is a processing liquid supply apparatus having a configuration. Solvent atmosphere gas is supplied to a space in the processing liquid bottle 30 so as to suppress evaporation of the solvent of the stored processing liquid in the processing liquid bottle 30. Specifically, a solvent atmosphere gas supply line 44 for supplying a solvent atmosphere gas is connected to the bottle cap 19 attached to the opening of the treatment liquid bottle 30, and an atmosphere supply valve 45 is provided in the solvent atmosphere gas supply line 44. The opening and closing of the atmosphere supply valve 45 is controlled by the control unit. [Selection] Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a processing liquid supply apparatus for performing liquid processing such as resist coating on a substrate such as a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and a flat panel display manufacturing apparatus.

  For example, a photoresist processing step in the manufacture of a semiconductor device is performed by applying a resist solution on the surface of a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as “wafer”) to form a resist film, and then heating and drying the resist. A predetermined pattern is exposed on the film.

  The resist coating apparatus includes a coating processing unit that individually performs a series of processes necessary for the coating process. The coating processing unit performs a coating process for supplying a resist solution to the surface of the substrate to form a resist film. The resist coating processing apparatus is provided with a processing apparatus for performing a cooling process on the substrate before coating with the resist solution by a cooling processing unit and heating the substrate after coating to cure the resist film to cure the resist film.

  The coating processing unit includes a piping circuit for supplying a resist solution onto the substrate, and is configured to be able to supply the resist solution stored in the resist bottle at a timing set in the process recipe. Therefore, it is known that a resist film having a desired thickness can be formed on a substrate by supplying a resist solution to the substrate held by the chuck in the coating processing unit and rotating the substrate (for example, , See Patent Document 1).

JP2013-63411A (FIG. 1)

  The processing liquid (resist) containing a highly volatile organic solvent is volatilized until the processing liquid is supplied to the processing liquid supply line (dispensing pipe) of the resist coating apparatus, causing the concentration of the processing liquid to fluctuate. Since the substrate is processed with processing solutions having different concentrations, the uniformity of the film thickness is affected within a lot or between lots.

  For example, in order to exchange a new treatment liquid bottle and send it to the treatment liquid supply line, nitrogen gas is supplied to the resist bottle, and the liquid is forcibly discharged from the treatment liquid bottle by the pressure. The nitrogen gas used in this case is dry nitrogen, and the consumption space after the resist solution in the processing solution bottle is consumed is filled with dry nitrogen. In this space, the solvent (thinner) contained in the processing liquid volatilizes, which causes a change in the concentration of the residual resist.

  The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to prevent the concentration of the processing liquid sent to the processing liquid supply line from changing the concentration of the processing liquid in the processing liquid bottle. It is to provide a mechanism for suppressing the volatilization of water.

  In order to solve the above problems, a processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention is a processing liquid supply apparatus for forming a coating film by supplying a processing liquid containing a volatile solvent to a substrate, and processing the substrate toward the substrate. A supply nozzle for supplying a liquid, a replacement processing liquid bottle filled with a new processing liquid, and a processing liquid supply which is attached to the opening of the processing liquid bottle and sends the processing liquid in the processing liquid bottle A bottle cap to which piping is connected, an intermediate reservoir configured to be stored by being fed from the treatment liquid bottle, a filter for filtering the treatment liquid, and provided upstream of the supply nozzle for filtration. A pump for feeding the treated liquid toward the supply nozzle, a solvent atmosphere gas supply line connected to the bottle cap for supplying solvent atmosphere gas, and a solvent atmosphere gas supply line provided in the solvent atmosphere gas supply line. Atmosphere and supply valve for opening and closing, characterized in that it comprises a control unit for controlling the opening and closing of the atmosphere supply valve (claim 1).

  By configuring in this manner, even if the processing liquid is exchanged and set by replacing with a new processing liquid bottle and the space area is expanded, the solvent atmosphere gas is supplied to the inside of the processing liquid bottle, so it is included in the processing liquid. The amount of volatilization of the solvent itself can be suppressed.

  In the present invention, the control unit of the processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention supplies a pressurizing line for supplying a gas for pressurizing the bottle to the processing liquid bottle when the solvent atmosphere gas is supplied. Is controlled so as to close the intermediate reservoir opening / closing valve provided in the intermediate reservoir supply line that supplies liquid to the intermediate reservoir and supplies the liquid to the intermediate reservoir (Claim 2).

  By comprising in this way, solvent atmosphere gas can be smoothly supplied (introduced) to a process bottle, and internal nitrogen atmosphere can be substituted.

  In the present invention, the bottle cap of the processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention is provided with humidity detecting means for detecting the humidity in the processing liquid bottle. Further, the control unit of the processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention is configured to supply an atmosphere supply valve so that the solvent atmosphere gas is supplied into the processing liquid bottle when the humidity of the internal space of the processing liquid bottle becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined humidity. It is characterized by controlling opening and closing. Further, the control unit controls the supply of the solvent atmosphere gas so that the humidity in the processing liquid bottle becomes the predetermined humidity based on a humidity setting value. , Claim 4 and Claim 5).

  In the present invention, a weight detection unit is provided below the processing liquid bottle provided in the processing liquid supply device of the present invention to detect the weight by placing the processing liquid bottle, and the control unit is set by weight. The supply time of the solvent atmosphere gas is controlled (claim 6).

  With this configuration, since the space volume inside the processing liquid bottle can be determined from the remaining amount of processing liquid consumed in the processing liquid bottle, the amount of solvent atmosphere gas supplied to the space is also set in advance in time. It is possible to supply only the optimal time without waste.

  Further, in the present invention, the control unit of the processing liquid supply device of the present invention controls to supply the solvent atmosphere to the processing liquid bottle for a predetermined time each time the processing liquid is supplied to the intermediate storage unit. (Claim 7).

  By comprising in this way, since solvent atmosphere gas is supplied whenever the consumption space in a process bottle increases, the evaporation of the solvent of a process liquid is suppressed.

  As described above, the processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention can suppress the evaporation of the solvent from the remaining processing liquid in the space region generated in the process of consuming the processing liquid stored in the processing liquid bottle. I can do it. Therefore, the processing liquid is supplied to the substrate while maintaining the state in which the change in the concentration of the processing liquid is suppressed, and the effect of the viscosity due to the concentration change is suppressed and the film thickness uniformity is stabilized. can get.

  Further, by extruding a component (for example, nitrogen or air at the time of opening to the atmosphere) that can be absorbed into the processing liquid inside the processing liquid bottle to become particles from the processing liquid bottle, an effect of stabilizing the processing liquid or stabilizing the components can be obtained. .

1 is a plan view of a resist coating and developing apparatus according to the present invention. 1 is a perspective view of a resist coating and developing treatment apparatus according to the present invention. It is a piping lineblock diagram of the processing liquid supply device concerning the present invention. It is a block diagram of a solvent atmosphere supply line and a solvent atmosphere generation tank according to the present invention.

  A resist coating and developing apparatus according to the present invention will be described below. The processing liquid supply device, for example, sends a resist liquid used in a resist coating and developing processing apparatus, which is a liquid processing apparatus, from a resist liquid gallon bin, which is a processing liquid bottle, which is a supply source. It shows the process until the resist solution is supplied to the surface, and is configured to operate in conjunction with the solution processing apparatus by being incorporated in the resist coating and developing processing apparatus. As a form of the resist coating and developing apparatus in which the processing liquid supply apparatus is incorporated, a case where the present invention is applied to the resist coating and developing apparatus for the wafer W, which is the semiconductor substrate of FIGS. In the resist coating and developing apparatus, a carrier block S1 is provided, and a transfer arm C receives a wafer W from a carrier 20 which is a hermetically sealed substrate storage container mounted on the mounting table 21 via an opening / closing part 22. The wafer W is taken out and transferred to the processing block S2 surrounded by the casing 24 on the back side of the carrier block S1, and the transfer arm C is configured to receive the processed wafer W from the processing block S2 and return it to the carrier 20.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the processing block S2 is formed in the first block (DEV layer) B1 and B2 of the development processing apparatus and the lower layer side of the resist film which is the subject of the present invention in order to perform development processing in this example. The second block (BCT layer) B3 provided with a lower antireflection film coating apparatus for performing the antireflection film forming process, and a resist coating processing apparatus for coating the resist film to be the subject of the present invention are provided. The third block (COT layer) B4, the fourth block (TCT layer) B5 of the upper antireflection film coating apparatus for forming the antireflection film formed on the upper layer side of the resist film to be the subject of the present invention. The layers are laminated in order from the bottom.

  The resist coating and developing apparatus includes a first block (DEV layer) B1 and B2, a second block (BCT layer) B3 for performing an antireflection film forming process formed on the lower layer side of the resist film, a resist film And a fourth block (TCT layer) B5 for forming an antireflection film formed on the upper layer side of the resist film.

  For example, taking the fourth block (COT layer) B4 as an example, as shown in FIG. 1, for each layer, for example, three cups for applying a resist are provided in the COT unit 31. Then, heating and cooling processing unit groups U1, U2, U3, U4 are arranged facing the straight conveyance path so as to sandwich the straight conveyance of the conveyance arm A4. The processing unit groups U1, U2, U3, U4 are each configured in two stages, and there are a total of eight processing units in the drawing of FIG.

  Further, the processing block S2 is provided with a shelf unit U5 (detailed configuration is not shown) as shown in FIG. 1, and the wafer W from the carrier block S1 becomes a delivery unit of the shelf unit U5 by the delivery arm C 3 It is transferred to transition stages TRS1 and TRS2 (not shown) formed by standing up to two pins, and is supplied to a corresponding cooling processing unit CPL2 (cooling plate) (not shown) of the second block (BCT layer) B2. Then, it is sequentially conveyed by a transfer arm D that is movable up and down provided in the vicinity of the shelf unit U5. A shelf unit U6 is provided at a position adjacent to the interface block S3 on the opposite side of the processing block S2 from the carrier block S1. The shelf unit U6 is configured in the same manner as the shelf unit U5, and is configured so that the wafer W can be moved up and down by each transfer arm E. Note that the shelf unit U5 includes a plurality of cooling plates CPL and transition stages TRS1 and TRS2 (not shown), which are stacked. Further, the shelf unit U6 (detailed configuration is not shown) is configured similarly to the shelf unit U5.

  The transfer arm A3 (detailed configuration is not shown) in the second block (BCT layer) B2 receives the wafer W from the cooling processing unit CPL of the shelf unit U5 and receives each unit (antireflection film unit and heating / heating unit). An antireflection film is formed on the wafer W by these units. Similarly, the wafer W processed in the BCT layer B2 is transferred to the cooling processing unit CPL of the shelf unit U6 and transferred to the cooling processing unit CPL corresponding to the COT layer B4 by the transfer arm E to transfer the COT layer B4. The resist coating process is carried out by the arm A4 to each processing unit.

  Thereafter, it is transported to the cooling processing unit CPL, and the transfer arm D is transferred to the receiving cooling processing unit CPL in the same manner as described above, and the target antireflection film is transferred by the transfer arm A5 (details not shown) of the TCT layer B5. Processing is done. Thereafter, the wafer W is delivered to the cooling unit CPL of the shelf unit U6, and the wafer W is delivered to the transition stages TRS3 and TRS4 (not shown) by the delivery arm E. This wafer W is transferred to the exposure machine S4 by the transfer arm F in the interface block S3. The wafer W unloaded from the exposure machine S4 is received by the transfer arm F, and transferred to a cooling processing unit CPL configured so that three pins for supporting the wafer W can be protruded and retracted, and then development processing is performed on the DEV layer B1. , B2 (detailed configuration is not shown). After that, it is transferred to the cooling processing unit CPL and passed therethrough, and the transfer arm C of the carrier block S1 is received and stored in the carrier 20.

  The processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention, the configuration related to the bottle 30 illustrated in FIG. 4 and the bottle 30 to the discharge nozzle 55 illustrated in FIG. For example, the COT unit 26 (not shown in detail) in FIG. 1 includes a spin chuck 29 that can rotatably hold the wafer W and a processing cup 28 that is provided so as to surround the spin chuck 29. For example, an appropriate amount of resist solution is discharged from the discharge nozzle 55 onto the upper surface of the wafer W adsorbed by the chuck 29 to form a coating film having a nearly uniform thickness.

  Next, the arrangement on the upstream side from the discharge nozzle 55 of the resist solution that is the most downstream of the dispensing system 70 described in FIG. 3 will be described in order. On the upstream side of the discharge valve 55, there is a dispense valve 54 for discharging the resist solution at a predetermined timing connected by the piping of the supply line 51, and a supply pump 53 and a resist solution for feeding the resist solution upstream thereof. A filter 52 and a flow path valve 50 for blocking the flow path are provided.

  An upstream side of the flow path valve 50 is provided with an intermediate tank 33 for temporarily storing a predetermined amount of resist solution and a replaceable bottle 30 for supplying the resist solution to the intermediate tank 33. The bottle 30 and the intermediate tank An intermediate tank supply valve 32 is provided in the pipe 34 between the pipes 33.

  The intermediate tank 33 is provided with three liquid level detecting means for detecting the amount of stored liquid, and the lower limit sensor 38 and the liquid for starting the supply of the resist solution from the bottle 30 when the liquid amount in the intermediate tank 33 is insufficient. An upper limit sensor 37 for stopping the supply to the intermediate tank 30 when the amount reaches a predetermined value and a lower limit sensor 39 for detecting the minimum lower limit of the storage amount are provided. Above the intermediate tank 33, a drain valve 35 that opens the pipe of the drain 36 when supplying the resist solution, an intermediate tank pressurizing line 14 that supplies nitrogen to pressurize the intermediate solution 33 and pressurize the resist solution, and a reverse valve 15. And a pressure valve 16 for opening and closing the nitrogen supply.

  Next, the pressurization of the bottle 30 and the main part of the configuration of the present invention will be described. A bottle cap 19 is connected to the opening of the bottle 30 and sealed to prevent direct contact with outside air. A supply tube 31 for feeding liquid to the intermediate tank 33 passes through the bottle cap 19 and extends to the bottom of the bottle. Further, a pressure line 11 including a pipe for performing pressurization with nitrogen, a regulator 10 for adjusting the pressure, and a bottle pressurization valve 18 for opening and closing the pressure is connected. The bottle pressurizing valve 18 can be switched to an open side for releasing the internal pressure of the bottle 30 and can be connected to the pressure release adjusting valve 13 to be opened to the atmosphere. Further, a pipe of an atmosphere gas supply line 44 that supplies the same solvent atmosphere gas as, for example, a thinner that is a solvent of the resist solution, is connected to the bottle cap 19 inside the bottle 30.

  In the generation of the solvent atmosphere gas, nitrogen is supplied to the solvent atmosphere generation tank 43 from the thinner supply pipe 41 and stored and supplied by opening and closing the N2 supply valve 42 with the nitrogen supply pipe connected thereto. Generated by bubbling. The generated solvent atmosphere gas is supplied into the bottle 30 by opening the atmosphere gas supply valve 45. Here, the solvent atmosphere gas refers to a gas containing a gas obtained by vaporizing a solvent (here, thinner) contained in a processing solution (here, a resist solution). The content ratio (concentration) of the gas vaporized by the solvent is not particularly limited, and may be a gas composed only of the gas vaporized by the solvent, or may be a gas mixed with another gas (here, nitrogen). In the case of mixing with other gases, it is preferable to use an inert gas in consideration of the reaction of the solvent with the vaporized gas or the deterioration of the vaporized gas of the solvent.

  Next, the flow up to the supply of the solvent atmosphere gas will be described. When the resist solution is discharged from the discharge nozzle 55 and the storage amount of the intermediate tank 33 is reduced and the liquid level is detected by the lower limit sensor 38, the control unit 40 opens the bottle pressurizing valve 18 and the intermediate tank supply valve 32 to open the bottle 30. Is pressurized by nitrogen and fed from the bottle 30 to the intermediate tank 33, the upper limit sensor 37 detects the liquid level, and the feeding is stopped.

  At this time, the inside of the bottle 30 is supplied with dry nitrogen in the consumption space region corresponding to the amount of liquid sent, and the evaporation of the solvent of the resist solution has begun. The nitrogen pressurization of the bottle 30 is stopped and at the same time the bottle pressurization valve 18 is switched to the atmosphere open side, and then the atmospheric gas supply valve 45 is opened to supply the solvent atmospheric gas into the bottle 30 to replace the nitrogen in the consumption space region. . The solvent atmosphere gas may be linked to opening the N2 supply valve 42 and bubbling the inside of the solvent atmosphere generation tank 43.

  By supplying the solvent atmosphere gas to the inside of the bottle 30 in this way, the evaporation of the solvent from the resist solution stored in the bottle 30 is suppressed, so that the change in the concentration of the resist solution can be suppressed. Thereafter, a uniform concentration can be maintained even in the piping of the discharge nozzle 55, so that the film thickness uniformity during film formation is not affected.

  A humidity sensor 36 as a humidity detecting means is attached to the bottle cap 19 having the above-described configuration, and the humidity inside the bottle 30 is monitored. Thereby, the start and stop of the supply of the atmospheric gas may be controlled by the control unit 40. Correlation data between the humidity inside the bottle 30 and the atmospheric gas is stored in the control unit 40, and the atmospheric gas can be supplied if the humidity is below a predetermined humidity.

  Next, since the atmosphere gas is supplied to the bottle 30 and the volume of the consumption space region can be estimated from the weight sensor value of the amount of resist solution stored in the bottle 30, the supply time of the atmosphere gas can be optimized. For example, a weight sensor 46 serving as a weight detection unit is provided below the bottle 30 to detect the weight of the bottle 30 placed on the weight sensor 46, and the atmosphere in the consumption space region at the weight corresponding to the liquid level A by the weight sensor 46. The gas supply time is set to 5 seconds, and the atmosphere gas is set to 25 seconds in the consumption space region where the gas can be placed at a weight corresponding to the liquid level B. Further, in combination with the humidity sensor 36 described above, it can be determined by the value of the humidity sensor 36 whether the replacement within the set time has been completed.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the processing liquid supply apparatus according to the present invention is applied to a semiconductor resist coating and developing apparatus system has been described. However, the processing liquid supply apparatus according to the present invention is applied to an FPD substrate processing system and a cleaning apparatus. Of course, the above can also be applied.

18 Bottle pressure valve 19 Bottle cap 30 Bottle 32 Intermediate tank supply valve 33 Intermediate tank 36 Humidity sensor 40 Controller 43 Solvent atmosphere generation tank 44 Atmosphere gas line 45 Atmosphere gas supply valve 46 Weight sensor

In the present invention, the control unit of the processing liquid supply apparatus of the present invention supplies the solvent atmosphere gas to the processing liquid bottle for a predetermined time each time the processing liquid is supplied to the intermediate storage unit. It is characterized by controlling (Claim 7).

Claims (7)

A processing liquid supply device for an apparatus for forming a coating film by supplying a processing liquid containing a volatile solvent to a substrate,
A supply nozzle for supplying a processing liquid toward the substrate;
A replacement treatment liquid bottle filled with a new treatment liquid;
A bottle cap connected to a treatment liquid supply pipe that is attached to the opening of the treatment liquid bottle and feeds the treatment liquid in the treatment liquid bottle;
An intermediate reservoir configured to be stored by being fed from the treatment liquid bottle, a filter for filtering the treatment liquid, and a filtered treatment liquid provided upstream of the supply nozzle toward the supply nozzle A pump for feeding liquid,
A solvent atmosphere gas supply line connected to the bottle cap and supplying a solvent atmosphere gas;
An atmosphere supply valve provided in the solvent atmosphere gas supply line for opening and closing the supply of the solvent atmosphere gas;
A control unit for controlling opening and closing of the atmosphere supply valve;
A treatment liquid supply apparatus comprising:   The control unit switches a pressurization line for supplying a gas for pressurizing the bottle to the processing liquid bottle when the solvent atmosphere gas is supplied and pressurizing it to the atmosphere, and sends the liquid to the intermediate storage unit. The processing liquid supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed so as to close an intermediate reservoir opening / closing valve provided in the intermediate reservoir supply line.   The processing liquid supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the bottle cap is provided with humidity detection means for detecting humidity in the processing liquid bottle.   The control unit controls opening / closing of an atmosphere supply valve so as to supply the solvent atmosphere gas into the treatment liquid bottle when the humidity of the internal space of the treatment liquid bottle becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined humidity. The processing liquid supply apparatus according to claim 3.   The said control part controls to supply the said solvent atmosphere gas so that the humidity in the said process liquid bottle may become the said predetermined humidity based on a humidity setting value. Treatment liquid supply device.   A weight detection unit for detecting the weight by placing the processing solution bottle is provided below the processing solution bottle, and the control unit controls the supply time of the solvent atmosphere gas set by the weight. The processing liquid supply apparatus according to claim 1.   3. The control unit according to claim 1, wherein the control unit performs control so that the solvent atmosphere is supplied to the processing liquid bottle for a predetermined time each time the processing liquid is supplied to the intermediate storage unit. Treatment liquid supply device.

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