JP3396124B2 - Substrate cleaning brush - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a semiconductor wafer,
A substrate cleaning device that holds various substrates such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device or a photomask and a substrate for an optical disk in a horizontal posture and supplies a cleaning liquid onto the substrate while rotating the substrate around a vertical axis to brush-clean the substrate. The present invention relates to a substrate cleaning brush used in.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An example of the structure and operation of a substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a substrate with a cleaning brush will be briefly described.
A substrate, for example, a semiconductor wafer is held in a horizontal posture on the upper surface side of a spin chuck by vacuum suction, and a cleaning liquid such as pure water is supplied onto the substrate while rotating the substrate held by the spin chuck about a vertical axis. The brush rotating shaft of the brush holding arm is rotated, and the cleaning brush fixed to the rotating shaft and held in a suspended state by the brush holding arm is rotated and lowered from the upper position, and the lower end of the cleaning brush is placed on the substrate surface. And the lower end of the cleaning brush is brought into contact with or close to the surface of the substrate, the rotating cleaning brush is moved along the surface of the rotating substrate onto the substrate, for example, from the central portion to the peripheral portion. The substrate is cleaned by moving it toward. In such a substrate cleaning apparatus, the cleaning brush that has deteriorated due to use is replaced, or the type of cleaning brush is changed according to the type of substrate and the purpose of cleaning. Therefore, the cleaning brush can be attached to and detached from the brush rotation shaft of the brush holding arm.

The cleaning brush is composed of a brush holder and a brush main body. As the brush main body, one formed by implanting a large number of nylon bristles on the lower surface side or one formed by mohair is used. It is used. In addition, recently, a brush body made of, for example, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as a raw material and made of a hydrophilic sponge-like porous material is also used. In particular, P
The brush body made of a sponge-like porous material produced from VA as a raw material has a high cleaning effect, and when the lower surface of the brush main body is pressed against the surface of the rotating substrate with a predetermined pressure, the substrate is cleaned. Further, the cleaning effect is enhanced.

[0004]

By the way, a brush main body formed of a hydrophilic sponge-like porous material is molded in a dry state and incorporated in a brush holder in a dry state. Then, the assembled cleaning brush is stored in a container, stored and transported,
A user in a semiconductor manufacturing factory or the like uses a cleaning brush such that pure water or the like is sufficiently impregnated in the cleaning brush body before the cleaning brush is used, so that the cleaning brush body is temporarily wet. As described above, since the brush body made of the hydrophilic sponge-like porous material has no elasticity in the dry state and is hardened, it is impregnated with pure water or the like to be ready for use. However, at this time, the brush body swells due to water absorption. Thus, when incorporated into the brush holder by molding the brush body in a dry state, be made brush body underside a planar falls brush body neatly into the brush holder, Fig.
As shown in FIG. 3 , the expansion of the brush main body 1 causes the brush holder 2 to
By being locally regulated by the brush holder 2, the lower surface 3 of the brush main body, which is not regulated by the brush holder 2, may be bent or deformed.

In some cases, like the brush body 4 shown in FIG. 4 , the lower surface 5 of the brush body, which comes into contact with the surface of the substrate held horizontally, is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane 6.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the lower surface of the brush main body is deformed such as curved or inclined with respect to the horizontal plane in the use state, the lower surface of the brush main body is predetermined on the surface of the rotating substrate. When the substrate is cleaned by pressing with the pressure of 1, the film surface of the substrate may be damaged depending on the film type formed on the surface of the substrate. That is, when the lower surface of the brush body is deformed or inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, when the cleaning brush descends and comes into contact with the surface of the rotating substrate, first, not the entire lower surface of the brush body, Since a part of it comes into contact with the surface of the substrate, a relatively large load is applied to the surface of the substrate in spots, and when a soft coating such as an aluminum film is formed on the surface of the substrate. To
When the lower surface of the brush body comes into contact with the surface of the substrate, the film surface of the substrate is damaged. Further, this damage is likely to occur particularly in a portion having a low peripheral speed, such as the central portion of the substrate.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and in the case where the substrate is held in a horizontal posture and rotated around a vertical axis to supply a cleaning liquid onto the substrate to brush-clean the substrate. In order to provide a substrate cleaning brush capable of cleaning the substrate without damaging the film surface of the substrate even when a soft coating is formed on the surface of the substrate. .

[0008]

The invention according to claim 1 is
Cleaning the substrate while holding it horizontally and rotating it
Center of substrate while supplying liquid and rotating brush
The substrate by moving it between the edge and the edge to clean the substrate
A brush holder attached to the apparatus and having an engaging portion formed on the upper surface side to be engaged with the brush rotating shaft of the substrate cleaning apparatus ;
A brush main body that is attached to this brush holder and has its lower surface contacting the surface of the substrate held in a horizontal position to wash the substrate.
A brush for cleaning a substrate, comprising:
Is formed by a hydrophilic sponge-like porous material.
The bottom of the brush body to the brush holder.
When the brush body is attached and moistened, it is formed into a flat surface so that it is parallel to the surface of the substrate.
Make sure that the center of the bottom surface of the main unit
It is characterized by having a concave surface to be touched .

The invention according to claim 2 is the brush for cleaning a substrate according to claim 1, characterized in that the central portion of the lower surface of the brush body is recessed from the peripheral portion.

[0009] The invention according to claim 2 is the substrate cleaning brush of claim 1 Symbol placement, the brush body, characterized in that one prepared PVA as raw material.

In the substrate cleaning brush according to the first aspect of the present invention , the brush main body is attached to the brush holder and wetted.
In this state , since the lower surface of the brush main body is formed to be parallel to the surface of the substrate, when the lower surface of the brush main body contacts the surface of the substrate, the entire lower surface of the brush main body contacts the substrate surface. A large load is not applied to the surface of the substrate in a spot. Therefore, the damage given to the film surface of the substrate is reduced. Also, the board table
The contact of the brush body to the surface is first performed in the center of the board.
In this case, the peripheral speed of the central part of the substrate is small.
Therefore, the film surface of the substrate is likely to be damaged, but the center of the substrate
The bottom part of the brush body that corresponds to the
To prevent the brush body from touching the center of the board.
Damage on the film surface is reduced.

[0011]

[0012] In the substrate cleaning brush of the invention according to claim 2, brush body manufactured PVA as raw material, although the outer shape is changed in a dry state and a wet state, the lower surface of the brush body in the usage state By being formed in a plane shape so as to be parallel to the surface of the substrate, the entire lower surface of the brush main body comes into contact with the surface of the substrate.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

1 and 2 show an example of an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a substrate cleaning brush is disassembled, and FIG. 2 is a state in which a substrate cleaning brush is assembled. FIG.

This substrate cleaning brush has an upper mounting portion 10.
The brush main body 14 is held by a brush holder composed of the lower holding section 12 and the lower holding section 12. The brush main body 14 has an upper half portion having a large diameter, a lower half portion having a smaller diameter portion 18 having a smaller diameter than the large diameter portion 16, and a central portion of the lower surface having a concave surface 20 recessed from the peripheral portion. . The brush body 14 is formed of a hydrophilic sponge-like porous material, for example, a porous material made of PVA as a raw material. The porous material is, for example, polyvinyl formal is produced by a formalization reaction in which formaldehyde is bound to PVA using an acid as a catalyst, and at that time, a pore-forming agent is added to perform pore formation, and an insoluble porous substrate is completed. , Produced by extracting the bubble-generating agent. The brush body 14 made of this material has continuous pores,
It has hydrophilicity, exhibits good flexibility and elasticity when wet, and loses elasticity at all when dried to become a hard material.

At the center of the upper surface of the upper attachment portion 10 of the brush holder, a male screw 24 is threaded on the peripheral surface and the upper end surface is attached to attach the cleaning brush to the brush rotating shaft of the substrate cleaning apparatus. A locking portion 22 having a square hole 26 bored in the axial direction is integrally provided at the center of the locking portion 22. Upper mounting part 1
The lower half portion of 0 is formed to be slightly thinner than the upper half portion, and the cylindrical lower holding portion 12 is fitted to the fitting portion 28 of the lower half portion.
The upper end of the is fitted. Reference numeral 30 in FIG. 1 denotes a small locking protrusion formed on the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion 28 of the upper attachment portion 10, and reference numeral 32 denotes the fitting portion 28 at the upper end portion of the lower holding portion 12. It is a small locking recess that engages with the small locking projection 30 when fitted. The outer diameter of the lower holding part 12 is the same as that of the upper attaching part 1.
0 is the same as the outer diameter of the upper half portion, and the inner diameter of the lower holding portion 12 is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the large diameter portion 16 of the brush body 14. A support annular portion 34 is integrally formed on the inner peripheral surface near the lower end of the lower holding portion 12. The inner diameter of the support annular portion 34 is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the small diameter portion 18 of the brush body 14 and smaller than the outer diameter of the large diameter portion 16. The brush holder is made of a plastic material such as polypropylene.

In order to assemble the brush main body 14 into the brush holder, the small diameter portion 18 of the brush main body 14 is inserted into the circular hole 36 of the support annular portion 34 of the lower holding portion 12, and the lower holding portion 1 is inserted.
After accommodating the brush main body 14 in 2, the fitting portion 28 of the upper attachment portion 10 may be fitted to the upper end portion of the lower holding portion 12. At this time, the brush body 14 is supported by the support annular portion 34 of the lower holding portion 12, and
The upper surface abuts on the lower surface of the upper attachment portion 10 to restrict vertical movement with respect to the brush holder, and the inner peripheral surface of the lower holding portion 12 restricts lateral movement with respect to the brush holder. Then, when the brush main body 14 is held by the brush holder, the lower end surface of the brush main body 14 projects downward from the lower end of the lower holding portion 12.

As described above, the brush main body 1 is attached to the brush holder.
When the brush main body 14 is sufficiently impregnated with a cleaning liquid such as pure water in a state in which No. 4 is incorporated, a local force is applied from the brush holder to the swollen brush main body 14 so that the lower surface of the brush main body 14 is The diameters of the large-diameter portion 16 and the small-diameter portion 18 of the brush main body 14 and the height dimension of the large-diameter portion 16 and the inner diameter dimension and the height of the lower holding portion 12 of the brush holder so as not to cause deformation such as bending. The relationship between the size and the diameter of the circular hole 36 of the support annular portion 34 is appropriately set. As a result, the lower surface (concave surface 20) of the brush main body 14 held in a wet state by the brush holder becomes flat so as to be parallel to the surface of the substrate held in a horizontal posture.

The cleaning brush shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is attached to the brush rotating shaft of the brush holding arm of the substrate cleaning apparatus, and the substrate held by the spin chuck is rotated around the vertical axis while pure water is applied onto the substrate. A cleaning liquid is supplied, the cleaning brush is rotated and lowered from the upper position while the lower surface of the brush body 14 is in contact with the substrate surface, and the cleaning brush is centered on the substrate along the surface of the substrate. When the substrate is cleaned by moving the brush main body 1 toward the peripheral portion, the lower surface of the brush body 14 is formed to be parallel to the surface of the substrate.
When the lower surface of 4 contacts the surface of the substrate, an unbalanced load is not applied from the lower surface of the brush body 14 to the surface of the substrate. Therefore, damage to the film surface of the substrate at the time when the lower surface of the brush body 14 contacts the substrate surface is reduced.
Further, since the central portion of the lower surface of the brush body 14 is recessed from the peripheral portion to form the concave surface 20, water is likely to exist in the central portion of the substrate having a low peripheral speed, and the substrate at the time when the brush body 10 abuts on the substrate. Damage to the film surface is also reduced.

The structure of the cleaning brush according to the present invention is as described above, but the scope of the present invention is not limited by the above description and the contents of the drawings, and the structure of the brush holder and the shape of the brush main body are not limited. The materials are not limited to those described above .

[0021]

The substrate cleaning brush according to the first aspect of the present invention is used, the cleaning liquid is supplied onto the substrate while the substrate is held in a horizontal posture and rotated about the vertical axis, and the brush main body is attached to the surface of the substrate. When cleaning the substrate with the bottom surface in contact with the brush, the substrate should be cleaned without damaging the film surface of the substrate even when a soft coating is formed on the surface of the substrate. You can Also, the basis
Make sure that the brush body does not come in contact with the surface of the plate when the peripheral speed is low.
At the center of the substrate where the film surface of the plate is likely to be damaged
Even when doing so, damage to the film surface in the center of the substrate
It can be reduced.

[0022]

[0023] In the substrate cleaning brush of the invention according to claim 2, the outer shape of the brush body manufactured PVA as raw material is changed in a state with a wet dry, the lower surface of the brush body in the use state substrate By being formed in a plane shape so as to be parallel to the surface of the substrate, the substrate can be cleaned without damaging the film surface of the substrate.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of an embodiment of the present invention and showing a state in which a substrate cleaning brush is disassembled.

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an assembled state of the substrate cleaning brush shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 illustrates problems with a conventional substrate cleaning brush.
It is a figure for doing and is a partial longitudinal cross-sectional view of a cleaning brush .

FIG. 4 is also a problem in the conventional substrate cleaning brush.
FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the above , and is a schematic configuration diagram of a brush main body .

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Upper part of brush holder 12 Lower part of brush holder 14, 38 Brush body 20 Concave surface on the bottom of the brush body

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Tadashi Sasaki, 322 Hazushishi Furukawa-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto Dai Nippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd. Rakusai Plant (56) Reference Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-134896 (JP, A) Kaihei 5-267259 (JP, A) JP-A-3-206615 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01L 21/304 B08B 1/00-1/04

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A substrate is held in a horizontal posture while being rotated.
Supply the cleaning liquid onto the substrate and rotate the brush
While cleaning the substrate, move it between the center and the periphery of the substrate.
A brush holder attached to a substrate cleaning device for cleaning and having an engaging portion formed on the upper surface side to be engaged with the brush rotating shaft of the substrate cleaning device, and the brush holder attached and held in a horizontal posture a brush body for cleaning a substrate lower surface is in contact with the surface of the substrate
In a brush for cleaning a substrate, the brush body is made of a hydrophilic sponge-like porous material.
Formed by the material, the lower surface of the brush body, the blanking
When the brush main body is attached to the rush holder and formed in a wet state, the brush main body is formed to be parallel to the surface of the substrate.
Also, make sure that the center of the bottom surface of the brush body is
A brush for cleaning a substrate, which has a concave surface that comes into contact with the surface of the substrate. 2. The brush body is made of polyvinyl alcohol.
The brush for cleaning a substrate according to claim 1, which is manufactured by using as a raw material .