JP4282159B2 - Substrate cleaning apparatus and substrate cleaning method - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a technology for cleaning a substrate such as a glass substrate for a semiconductor wafer or a photomask, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display, or a substrate for an optical disk, and more particularly, a vertical axis core that holds the substrate. The present invention relates to a substrate cleaning apparatus and a substrate cleaning method for cleaning a substrate including an operation of horizontally moving a cleaning tool along a cleaning surface of a substrate with a predetermined pressing force while rotating around.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventional rotary substrate cleaning apparatuses of this type include a scrub cleaning apparatus, an ultrasonic cleaning apparatus, and a high-pressure jet cleaning apparatus.
[0003]
For example, a semiconductor device manufacturing process will be described as an example. The surface of a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as a substrate) on which a semiconductor device such as an LSI is formed must maintain extremely strict cleanliness during the process. is there. Therefore, before and after various manufacturing and processing processes, the surface of the wafer may be cleaned whenever necessary. For example, in the photolithography process, such cleaning is indispensable.
[0004]
In this case, the surface of the substrate is cleaned by a scrub cleaning apparatus disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 57-102024 and 62-259447. These scrub cleaning devices supply the cleaning liquid from the nozzle to the surface of the substrate that rotates in a horizontal position, and rotate the cleaning tool such as a brush or sponge to clean the substrate with the pressing force set by default. The contact is made while acting on the surface. In this state, the cleaning tool is moved from the central portion of the substrate surface to the outer peripheral portion, so that the foreign matter adhering to the surface is scraped off and removed.
[0005]
The cleaning tool moves horizontally along the cleaning surface of the substrate at a constant speed to peel off particles and dust adhering to the cleaning surface of the substrate, and rotate the substrate together with the cleaning liquid with the cleaning removal material such as the separated particles and dust. It is configured to flow out to the outside of the substrate while utilizing the centrifugal force.
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In this case, in order not to affect the film quality of the substrate surface, the cleaning tool needs to be very delicately contacted with the substrate surface. Therefore, for example, by rotating the brush tip slightly floating above the substrate surface and cleaning the substrate surface with the flow or vortex of the cleaning liquid supplied to the substrate surface, so-called hydroplane cleaning is performed. Addresses the precise positioning of cleaning tools. This prevents the cleaning tool from being pressed more than necessary by the substrate and causing fine scratches on the substrate.
[0007]
However, when the substrate is cleaned by hydroplane cleaning, various particles (solid fine particles) adhering to the substrate surface may not be sufficiently removed. Therefore, the substrate is washed again to remove particles. As described above, only the hydroplane cleaning requires that fine particles remain on the substrate surface or be cleaned again depending on the type of particles attached to the substrate.
[0008]
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate cleaning apparatus and a substrate cleaning method capable of efficiently removing particles adhering to the substrate surface. It is another object of the present invention to provide a substrate cleaning apparatus and a substrate cleaning method capable of satisfactorily cleaning the substrate while suppressing damage to the substrate over the entire cleaning surface of the substrate.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
  In order to achieve such an object, the present invention has the following configuration. That is, the invention according to claim 1 is a substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a substrate, wherein the substrate is rotatably held around a vertical axis and rotated, and a cleaning liquid is applied to the substrate surface. Cleaning liquid supply means for supplying; cleaning tool for cleaning the cleaning surface of the substrate held by the rotation holding means; and pressing means for holding the cleaning tool and applying a predetermined pressing force to the cleaning surface of the substrate; A cleaning tool moving means for horizontally moving the cleaning tool along the cleaning surface of the held substrate, and the pressing means is automatically operated to raise and lower the cleaning tool with respect to the substrate to change the pressing force. A pressing force control mechanism,
  The cleaning tool moving means is configured to repeatedly perform a cleaning process performed by horizontally moving a path along the cleaning surface of the substrate including the outer peripheral edge of the substrate and the rotation center of the substrate. And a control means for controlling the repetition of the cleaning process by the control means, wherein the control means controls the pressing force control mechanism so that the cleaning process is repeated so that cleaning is performed with different pressing forces in the preceding and following cleaning processes.First, the cleaning tool performs a non-contact cleaning process with the substrate surface and cleaning liquid interposed therebetween, and then performs a cleaning process in which the cleaning tool is in contact with the substrate surface.It is characterized by this.
[0011]
  Claim2The invention according to the invention includes a step of horizontally moving the cleaning tool along the cleaning surface of the substrate in a state where the cleaning tool is applied to the cleaning surface of the substrate with a predetermined pressing force on the horizontally held substrate. In the substrate cleaning method for cleaning, when the cleaning tool repeats a cleaning process performed by moving horizontally along a path along the cleaning surface of the substrate, including the outer peripheral edge of the substrate and the rotation center of the substrate, The substrate is cleaned by changing the pressing force on the cleaning surface of the cleaning tool between the front and rear cleaning processes.In the first cleaning step, the cleaning tool performs cleaning in a non-contact state by interposing a cleaning liquid with the substrate surface, and in the next cleaning process, cleaning is performed with the cleaning tool in contact with the substrate surface.It is characterized by that.
[0012]
  The operation of the present invention is as follows. In the substrate cleaning apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the cleaning tool is held in a state where the cleaning tool is applied to the cleaning surface of the substrate with a predetermined pressing force while holding the substrate and rotating it around the vertical axis. The substrate is cleaned including a step of horizontally moving the substrate along the cleaning surface of the substrate. At that time, the repetition of the cleaning process by the cleaning tool is monitored, and when each process is repeatedIn the cleaning process before and afterThe substrate is cleaned by changing the pressing force of the cleaning tool against the cleaning surface of the substrate so as to have a different preferable pressing force. That is, it has a cleaning process with different pressing forces in order to remove particles that were not removed in the cleaning process with the first pressing force. As a result, the cleanliness of the substrate surface can be obtained with a small number of cleanings.
[0013]
  Further, in the invention according to claim 1, the cleaning tool performs cleaning in a non-contact state with the substrate surface and the cleaning liquid interposed in the first cleaning process, and the cleaning tool is cleaned in contact with the substrate surface in the next cleaning process. Do. In the first cleaning step, the cleaning liquid acts between the cleaning tool and the substrate surface, and particles on the substrate surface are removed by the flow and vortex of the cleaning liquid. In the next cleaning step, cleaning is performed in a state where the cleaning tool is in contact with the substrate surface, so that particles having a strong adhesion state on the substrate surface are removed.
[0014]
As a result, after the moving process of cleaning the substrate with a relatively small pressing force without causing damage to the substrate, the substrate is cleaned with a relatively large pressing force so that the substrate is not damaged and no cleaning residue occurs. The moving process can be repeated. That is, it is possible to improve the cleaning of the substrate by having a cleaning step with a suitable pressing force of the cleaning tool for the cleaning surface of the substrate according to the type of particles to be cleaned.
[0016]
  Claim2In the substrate cleaning method according to the invention, the substrate is held horizontally and the cleaning tool is applied to the cleaning surface of the substrate with a predetermined pressing force. Then, the repetition of the process of horizontally moving the cleaning tool along the cleaning surface of the substrate is monitored, and the substrate is cleaned by changing the pressing force on the cleaning surface of the cleaning tool in the preceding and following cleaning processes. According to the present invention, particles that cannot be removed by one pressing force are removed by a repeated process.Further, in the invention according to claim 2, in the first cleaning step, the cleaning tool performs cleaning in a non-contact state by interposing the substrate surface and the cleaning liquid, and in the next cleaning step, cleaning in a state where the cleaning tool is in contact with the substrate surface. Do. In the first cleaning step, the cleaning liquid acts between the cleaning tool and the substrate surface, and particles on the substrate surface are removed by the flow and vortex of the cleaning liquid. In the next cleaning step, cleaning is performed in a state where the cleaning tool is in contact with the substrate surface, so that particles having a strong adhesion state on the substrate surface are removed.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a rotary substrate cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the rotary substrate cleaning apparatus of FIG. The rotary substrate cleaning apparatus of FIGS. 1 and 2 is a scrub cleaning apparatus.
[0018]
As shown in FIG. 1, a scrub cleaning apparatus 1 includes a substrate rotation holding mechanism 2 that holds and rotates a substrate W such as a wafer, cleaning liquid supply means 3 that supplies a cleaning liquid to the surface of the substrate W, and a surface of the substrate. It is comprised from the washing | cleaning means 4 to do.
[0019]
The substrate rotation holding mechanism 2 is provided with rotation holding means 22 composed of a vacuum suction spin chuck that sucks and holds the substrate W in the cup 21. The rotation holding means 22 is attached to the upper end of the rotating shaft 24 of the electric motor 23 so that the rotating table 25 for vacuum suction holding the substrate W can be integrally rotated, and the electric motor 23 is driven around the vertical rotation axis P1. Driven by rotation. Therefore, the substrate W is configured to be rotatable around the rotation axis P1.
[0020]
In this embodiment, the rotation holding unit 22 is configured by using the rotary table 25 as a vacuum suction type. However, the rotation holding unit 22 is not limited to this. For example, the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W is placed on the lower surface of the rotary table 25. A plurality of substrate support members to be supported are provided, and a positioning pin for restricting the horizontal position of the substrate W supported by these substrate support members is provided to constitute a rotation holding means, and the substrate W is separated from the upper surface of the turntable 25. You may make it hold | maintain so that rotation is possible.
[0021]
The periphery of the rotation holding means 22 and the substrate W held thereby is covered with a cup 21 that can be raised and lowered by an elevating drive mechanism (not shown) so as to surround the substrate W. Therefore, the cup 21 is configured to be movable up and down. A discharge port 211 for discharging the cleaning liquid is provided on the lower surface of the cup 21.
[0022]
The cleaning liquid supply means 3 sprays a cleaning liquid prepared by mixing a chemical liquid and the like to the laterally outer side of the cup 21 and a nozzle 31a for supplying pure water as a cleaning liquid toward the cleaning surface (upper surface: usually the surface) of the substrate W. The nozzle 31b to supply is provided. The pure water is supplied to the nozzle 31a from a pure water supply unit via an on-off valve (not shown). For the nozzle 31b, for example, a cleaning liquid in which a plurality of types of chemical liquids are prepared by a liquid preparation unit proposed by the present applicant as Japanese Patent Application No. 8-90581, or a cleaning liquid in which a stock solution of the chemical liquid is diluted with pure water. Etc. are being supplied.
[0023]
The cleaning means 4 is provided on the side of the cup 21 so that the support arm 41 can be rotated around a vertical rotation axis P2 by an arm rotation driving unit 42 including an electric motor 421, a belt transmission mechanism 422, and the like. It has been. Further, the support arm 41 can be moved up and down by a lift drive unit 43 configured by a well-known uniaxial drive mechanism such as a ball screw or a belt drive mechanism, and a cleaning tool drive (described later) is provided at the tip of the support arm 41. The cleaning tool 45 is attached to the lower part of the cleaning tool driving unit 44. The cleaning tool 45 is rotationally driven around the rotation axis P3 in the vertical direction by the cleaning tool driving unit 44.
[0024]
As shown in FIG. 2, the support arm 41 is waiting on the laterally outer side of the cup 21, and in this state, the cleaning tool 45 is standby and cleaned with a plurality of types of cleaning tools in a standby pot (not shown).
[0025]
The cleaning tool 45 is made of, for example, a brush material. Examples of the material of the brush material include polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polyamide (PA), acrylic resin, nylon brush, and mohair brush. In addition, as the cleaning tool 45, a sponge, felt, or plastic one is used.
[0026]
With the above configuration, the support arm 41 is moved upward by the lift drive unit 44 with the base end portion as a support shaft, and then held by the arm rotation drive unit 42 at the standby position on the laterally outer side of the cup 21 and the turntable 25. It is possible to displace between a cleaning position indicated by a two-dot chain line in the drawing on the substrate W. Thereby, the cleaning tool 45 can be moved horizontally along the surface of the substrate W when cleaning the substrate W. That is, the support arm 41 and the arm rotation driving unit 42 correspond to the cleaning tool moving means of the present application.
[0027]
As shown in the enlarged vertical sectional view of the support arm 41 in FIG. 3, a rotating body 52 is provided in the distal end side arm portion 41a via bearings 51, 51 so as to be rotatable around the rotation axis P3. A pulley 53 and an electric motor 54, which are attached to the rotating body 52 so as to be integrally rotatable, are interlocked and connected via a timing belt 55. A pair of guide rollers 56 is provided at each of the upper and lower portions sandwiching the pulley 53 of the rotating body 52. These guide rollers 56 are configured to act on a spline portion 58 formed in the middle of a cleaning tool support 57 having a cleaning tool 45 attached to the lower end, and support the cleaning tool with little resistance while rotating integrally with the rotating body 52. It is comprised so that the body 57 can be raised / lowered.
[0028]
A spring seat 61 is attached to the cleaning tool support 57 so as to be integrally rotatable, and a compression coil spring 63 is provided across the spring seat 61 and the spring seat 62 attached to the rotary body 52. The cleaning tool 45 and the cleaning tool support are provided. The weight balance mechanism 60 is configured to maintain the cleaning tool 45 at a predetermined height with respect to the distal arm portion 41a in proportion to the weight of the body 57. Instead of the compression coil spring 63, a non-linear spring having a constant repulsive force regardless of the degree of elastic displacement may be used.
[0029]
An abutting member 65 is attached to the upper end of the cleaning tool support 57 via a bearing 64 so that only relative rotation is possible. An operation rod 66 is connected to the upper end of the contact member 65. The operation rod 66 is passed through a coil 68 that constitutes the linear actuator 67.
[0030]
As shown in the block diagram of FIG. 4, the power supply device 70 includes a power supply 71 and a variable resistor 72, and the current flowing through the coil 68 is changed by adjusting the resistance value of the variable resistor 72. The electromagnetic force is adjusted, and the operation rod 66 is linearly moved up and down to adjust its height position. Accordingly, the cleaning tool 45 is moved up and down via the cleaning tool support 57 to adjust the height position thereof, and the cleaning tool 45 is attached to the substrate W with a pressing load (pressing force) corresponding to the height position of the cleaning tool 45. It can act (press) on the surface. The linear actuator 67 and the power supply device 70 constitute a pressing means in the present invention. In addition, by changing the resistance value of the variable resistor 72 during the cleaning of the substrate W, it is possible to arbitrarily change the pressing force of the cleaning tool 45 against the surface of the substrate W during the cleaning of the substrate W.
[0031]
Further, the weight balance mechanism 60 including the spring seats 61 and 62 and the compression coil spring 64 and the operation rod 66 are provided so that the centers in plan view coincide with the rotation center P3 of the cleaning tool 45.
[0032]
In addition, a magnetic fluid seal 81 and a labyrinth mechanism 82 are provided between the distal arm portion 41a and the lower side of the rotating body 52, and dust generated due to wear due to rotation by the bearing 51 on the upper portion is disposed on the substrate W. It is configured so that it can be prevented from falling or entering the cleaning liquid.
[0033]
As shown in FIG. 4, the resistance value of the variable resistor 72 in the power supply device 70 is configured to be adjusted by the control unit 9 as control means. The control unit 9 is supplied with data such as the number of repetitions of the cleaning process, rotation speed data of the cleaning tool 45, and pressing force by the cleaning tool 45 from the storage unit 91, and also controls driving of the electric motors 23, 54, 421 and nozzle Supply control of cleaning liquid from 31a, 31b to the substrate W (control of supply of cleaning liquid and stop thereof) is performed. Further, a pressing load setting device 92 is also connected to the control unit 9.
[0034]
Then, the control unit 9 controls the power supply device 70 according to the setting value from the pressing load setting device 92, whereby the pressing force is controlled to the installation value. That is, this configuration constitutes a pressing force control mechanism in the present invention.
[0035]
Next, the operation of the embodiment apparatus configured as described above will be described. First, prior to the cleaning of the substrate W, the operator applies the type of film or the like (aluminum film, oxide film, nitride film, polysilicon film, pattern film, bare silicon, etc.) formed on the substrate W to the substrate W. In accordance with the nature and type of the adhered contaminants, a corresponding pressing force (pressing load) at the time of cleaning is set from the pressing load setting device 92.
[0036]
In the scrub cleaning apparatus 1, when the substrate W is held by the substrate rotation holding mechanism 2 (or when a cleaning start command is given by the operator), the control unit 9 raises the support arm 41 and drives the electric motor 421. Then, the support arm 41 is rotated around the rotation axis P2, and the cleaning tool 45 is horizontally moved from the standby position onto the rotation center P1 of the substrate W. On the other hand, the resistance value of the variable resistor 72 is adjusted to cause the cleaning tool 45 to act on the surface of the substrate W with the pressing force set as described above.
[0037]
Then, while driving the electric motor 23 and rotating the substrate W, the cleaning liquid is jetted and supplied from the nozzles 31a and 31b to the substrate W, and the electric motor 54 is driven as necessary to move the cleaning tool 45 around the rotation axis P3. While rotating, the electric motor 421 is driven and the cleaning tool 45 is moved horizontally along the surface of the substrate W at a constant speed to clean the substrate W. The cleaning tool 45 is rotated around the rotation axis P3 to clean the substrate W, or is determined according to the type of film formed on the substrate W without rotating, the type of the cleaning tool 45, and the like.
[0038]
More specifically, the control unit 9 controls each device in accordance with the cleaning control flow data selected and given from the storage unit 91 to clean the substrate W. That is, first, as a carry-in process, when the control unit 9 receives a command for carrying in a substrate W by a transfer mechanism (not shown), the control unit 9 lowers the cup 21 and causes the turntable 24 to protrude above the cup 21. When the substrate W is loaded into the apparatus 1, the substrate W is held on the turntable 24. Then, the cup 21 is raised to place the cup 21 around the rotation holding means 22 and the substrate W held by the rotation holding means 22.
[0039]
At the same time, the control unit 9 controls the variable resistor 72 according to the pressing load value in the pressing load setting device 92 selected at the standby position to adjust the pressing load (pressing force) on the substrate W of the cleaning tool 45. Do.
[0040]
At the start timing of the cleaning by the cleaning tool 45, the control unit 9 drives the elevating drive unit 43 and the arm rotation driving unit 42 to displace the support arm 41 from the standby position to the cleaning position, and the selected cleaning control. The electric motor 23 is driven according to the number of rotations of the substrate in the flow data to rotate the substrate W at the designated number of rotations, and further, the supply of the cleaning liquid from the nozzle 31b to the substrate W is started.
[0041]
The turntable 24 sucks and holds the substrate W in the horizontal state with the upper surface facing upward, and rotates the held substrate W. When the cleaning liquid is supplied from the nozzle 31b to a predetermined position near the center of the substrate W supported by the turntable 24 while rotating the substrate W in this way, the cleaning liquid is uniformly supplied to the entire surface of the substrate W by centrifugal force.
[0042]
Next, the entire surface of the substrate W is cleaned.
The controller 9 drives the elevating drive unit 43 so that the cleaning tool 45 held by the support arm 41 is placed on the substrate W on the rotation center P1 of the substrate W, and the cleaning surface of the cleaning tool 45 is the same as the surface of the substrate W. While being lowered to a predetermined height position having a gap, the electric motor 54 is driven according to the number of rotations of the brush in the selected cleaning control flow data during the lowering, and the cleaning tool 45 is rotated around the rotation axis P3. Rotate. Then, the arm rotation driving unit 42 is driven according to the cleaning method and speed in the selected cleaning control flow data, and the cleaning tool 45 is scanned at the specified scanning method and at the specified scanning speed. The substrate W is cleaned by the cleaning tool 45 while being supplied.
[0043]
As shown in FIG. 5A, the horizontal movement of the cleaning tool 45 along the surface of the substrate W causes the cleaning tool 45 to move between the rotation center J of the substrate W and the outer peripheral edge G to HF (in the meantime HF And the cleaning tool 45 is moved from one outer peripheral edge G1 of the substrate W via the rotation center J to the other outer peripheral edge G2, as shown in FIG. 5 (b). Range AF (the range AF may be reciprocated). In either case, the entire surface of the substrate W can be cleaned by the cleaning tool 45.
[0044]
Then, the control unit 9 controls the cleaning tool 45 to scan the surface of the substrate W as shown in FIG. 5A or 5B for the number of times within the selected cleaning control data. .
[0045]
With respect to the pressing force in repeated scanning of the cleaning process, the following control is performed by the control unit 9 in accordance with information given from the pressing load setting device 92. The pressing force will be described with reference to FIG. In the example of FIG. 6, the cleaning step (AF1) is first performed by the scanning method shown in FIG. In this cleaning step (AF1), the cleaning surface of the cleaning tool 45 is positioned with a certain gap from the surface of the substrate W. Then, the cleaning liquid acts between the cleaning tool 45 and the surface of the substrate W, and particles on the surface of the substrate W are removed by the flow and vortex of the cleaning liquid.
[0046]
When the first cleaning step (AF1) is completed, the second cleaning step (AF2) is performed. In the second cleaning step (AF2), the entire surface of the substrate W is cleaned according to the turning of the support arm 41 in a cleaning state in which the cleaning surface of the cleaning tool 45 is in contact with the surface of the substrate W. Thereby, particles having a strong adhesion state on the surface of the substrate W are removed.
[0047]
While the cleaning tool 45 moves horizontally from the outer peripheral edge G1 of the substrate W toward the outer peripheral edge G2 via the rotation center J, the pressing force is kept constant. On the other hand, the second cleaning step (AF2) is in a state stronger than the pressing force of the first cleaning step (AF1), and particles that have not been cleaned in the first cleaning step (AF1) are removed.
[0048]
The cleaning process of FIG. 6 further includes two cleaning processes (AF3 and AF4), and a total of four cleaning processes are performed. In this repeated cleaning process, the setting value of the pressing force by the pressing load setting device 92 is set to be increased stepwise, and the control unit 9 monitors the repetition of each cleaning process and changes in each cleaning process. At the time, the variable resistor 72 is adjusted to change the pressing force. The timing is detected based on the cleaning control flow data from the storage unit 91.
[0049]
When the cleaning is completed as described above, the rotation of the cleaning tool 45 is stopped, and at the timing of stopping the supply of the cleaning liquid, the control unit 9 stops the supply of the cleaning liquid from the nozzle 31b. Then, the arm rotation drive unit 42 is driven to displace the support arm 41 from the cleaning position to the standby position, and the cleaning tool 45 held by the support arm 41 is placed in the standby pot to be cleaned. .
[0050]
Similarly, at the start timing of cleaning in the next cleaning process, the control unit 9 controls the pure water supply unit to perform cleaning control by supplying pure water to the surface of the substrate W. At this time, the control unit 9 drives the cleaning tool 45 held by the support arm 41 in accordance with the method and speed of the cleaning member control flow data in the selected cleaning control data, and presses the same as in the designated FIG. The substrate W is cleaned while supplying pure water with pressure.
[0051]
Then, the substrate W that has been subjected to the cleaning process is carried out in the reverse order of the loading of the substrate W. When the cup 21 is lowered, a substrate transport mechanism (not shown) unloads the substrate W from the apparatus 1 and transports the substrate W to the next process. At this time, the apparatus 1 is in an initial state, and when a new unprocessed substrate W is loaded by the substrate transport mechanism, the cleaning process is repeated.
[0052]
As described above, in the cleaning process of the example of FIG. 6, the pressing force is different in the repetition of the cleaning process. Therefore, the cleaning state for the substrate W differs in the cleaning process. Thereby, the frictional force acting on the particles attached to the surface of the substrate W by the cleaning tool 45 is different. Therefore, the cleaning tool 45 strips particles of different types from the surface of the substrate W to the cleaning process (AF1) to the cleaning process (AF4). As described above, the particles adhered to the surface of the substrate W can be favorably removed by performing the cleaning in different cleaning states.
[0053]
By the way, how many stages the pressing force is changed also depends on the particles to be cleaned. As shown in FIG. 7, a so-called cleaning process (AF11, AF13) by removal due to the flow of cleaning liquid and a cleaning process (AF12, AF14) by removal by friction by direct contact are sequentially repeated. Also good. Thus, by repeating each of the two types of cleaning states, the target particles adhering to the surface of the substrate W are sufficiently stripped and swept out.
[0054]
Furthermore, in the cleaning process of FIG. 6, AF2 which is a cleaning state in which the cleaning tool 45 contacts the surface of the substrate W may be performed before AF1 which is a cleaning process by removal due to the hydroplane phenomenon. As described above, by performing the cleaning process in the previous contact state, the particles adhering to the surface of the substrate W are more sufficiently removed and swept out.
[0055]
Furthermore, the present invention can be modified as follows.
In the above embodiment, the pressing means is configured by the linear actuator 67 and the power supply device 70, but the pressing means is not limited to this, and can be realized by various configurations. That is, the control unit 9 controls the supply of air to the air cylinder, thereby adjusting the thrust of the cylinder rod, adjusting the height position of the cleaning brush with respect to the surface of the substrate W, and appropriately changing the pressing force. . Alternatively, a mechanism using a weight is used.
[0056]
Further, the tip of the support arm 41 is provided with a brush chuck portion disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 8-10719 and 8-10737, and an arbitrary cleaning tool is selected from the standby pot. And may be configured to be used for cleaning the substrate W.
[0057]
Further, in the above embodiment, the horizontal movement of the cleaning tool 45 along the surface of the substrate W is configured such that the support arm 41 is rotated around the rotation axis P2 by the electric motor 421. The support arm may be moved in a linear direction by an appropriate uniaxial moving mechanism such as a ball screw, and the cleaning brush may be moved horizontally along the surface of the substrate W.
[0058]
Further, a sensor (for example, a load cell type sensor) for detecting the pressing force of the cleaning tool against the surface of the substrate W is provided, and the actual pressing force of the cleaning brush against the surface of the substrate W during the cleaning of the substrate W is detected. The above cleaning process may be performed based on the detection information.
[0059]
Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the adjustment is performed in such a manner that the cleaning process repeats only the pressing force of the cleaning tool. However, it is also possible to simultaneously control the moving speed of the support arm 41 and the rotating speed of the turntable 25.
[0060]
【The invention's effect】
  As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, there is provided a substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a substrate, the rotation holding means for rotating and holding the substrate around a vertical axis, and the substrate surface. A cleaning liquid supply means for supplying a cleaning liquid to the substrate, a cleaning tool for cleaning the cleaning surface of the substrate held by the rotation holding means, and a press for holding the cleaning tool and applying a predetermined pressing force to the cleaning surface of the substrate. Means, a cleaning tool moving means for horizontally moving the cleaning tool along the cleaning surface of the held substrate, and a pressing force that automatically operates the pressing means to raise and lower the cleaning tool relative to the substrate. And a cleaning process that is performed by horizontally moving the path along the cleaning surface of the substrate including the outer peripheral edge of the substrate and the rotation center of the substrate. Let the washing done Control means for controlling the repetition of the cleaning process by the moving means, and the control means controls the pressing force control mechanism and repeats the cleaning process so that cleaning is performed with different pressing forces in the preceding and following cleaning processes. . Therefore, the substrate is cleaned by changing the pressing force of the cleaning tool against the cleaning surface of the substrate so as to have a different preferable pressing force when each cleaning step is repeated. That is, it has a cleaning process with different pressing forces in order to remove particles that were not removed in the cleaning process with the first pressing force. As a result, the cleanliness of the substrate surface can be obtained with a small number of cleanings. Furthermore, according to the present invention, the method includes the step of horizontally moving the cleaning tool along the cleaning surface of the substrate while holding the substrate horizontally and causing the cleaning tool to act on the cleaning surface of the substrate with a predetermined pressing force. In the substrate cleaning method for cleaning a substrate, the cleaning step is repeated a plurality of times when the cleaning tool horizontally moves along a path along the cleaning surface of the substrate including the outer peripheral edge of the substrate and the rotation center of the substrate. At this time, the substrate is cleaned by changing the pressing force with respect to the cleaning surface of the cleaning tool in the previous and subsequent cleaning steps. Therefore, according to the present invention, particles that cannot be removed with one pressing force are removed.Further, according to the apparatus and method of the present invention, the cleaning tool performs non-contact cleaning with the substrate surface and the cleaning liquid interposed in the first cleaning process, and the cleaning tool is in contact with the substrate surface in the next cleaning process. Since the cleaning is performed, the substrate can be satisfactorily cleaned.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a schematic configuration showing a schematic configuration of an entire substrate cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing a schematic configuration of an entire substrate cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of a support arm of the embodiment device.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control system of the apparatus according to the embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a path of horizontal movement of the cleaning tool along the surface of the substrate.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a control example in which the pressing force is changed in accordance with the position of the cleaning tool on the substrate surface.
FIG. 7 is a diagram of another embodiment showing a control example in which the pressing force is changed in accordance with the position of the cleaning tool on the substrate surface.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Scrub cleaning device
2 Substrate rotation holding mechanism
22 Rotation holding means
23 Electric motor
24 turntable
3 Cleaning liquid supply means
4 Cleaning means
41 Support arm
42 Arm rotation drive unit
43 Lifting drive
44 Cleaning tool drive
45 Cleaning tool
67 Linear Actuator
68 coils
70 Power supply
72 Variable resistor
9 Control unit
91 Memory means
92 Press load setting device
W substrate
P1, P2, P3 rotary shaft

Claims (2)

A substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a substrate,
Rotation holding means for holding and rotating the substrate rotatably around the vertical axis;
Cleaning liquid supply means for supplying a cleaning liquid to the substrate surface;
A cleaning tool for cleaning the cleaning surface of the substrate held by the rotation holding means;
A pressing unit that holds the cleaning tool and applies a predetermined pressing force to the cleaning surface of the substrate;
Cleaning tool moving means for horizontally moving the cleaning tool along the cleaning surface of the held substrate;
A pressing force control mechanism that automatically operates the pressing means to raise and lower the cleaning tool with respect to the substrate to change the pressing force;
The cleaning tool moving means is configured to repeatedly perform a cleaning process performed by horizontally moving a path along the cleaning surface of the substrate including the outer peripheral edge of the substrate and the rotation center of the substrate. Control means for controlling the repetition of the cleaning process by
Wherein the control means controls the pressure control mechanism so as to perform cleaning with different pressing force before and after the cleaning step, to repeat the cleaning process, and initially the cleaning tools is interposed a cleaning liquid and the substrate surface A substrate cleaning apparatus, wherein a cleaning process in a non-contact state is performed, and then a cleaning process in which the cleaning tool is in contact with the substrate surface is performed . A substrate cleaning method for cleaning a substrate including a step of horizontally moving a cleaning tool along a cleaning surface of a substrate while the cleaning tool is applied to the cleaning surface of the substrate with a predetermined pressing force on a horizontally held substrate In the above, when the cleaning tool repeats the cleaning process performed by horizontally moving the path along the cleaning surface of the substrate including the outer peripheral edge of the substrate and the rotation center of the substrate, the cleaning surface of the cleaning tool In the first cleaning process, the cleaning tool performs cleaning in a non-contact state by interposing the substrate surface and the cleaning liquid, and in the next cleaning process, the cleaning force is changed in the front and rear cleaning processes. A substrate cleaning method, wherein cleaning is performed while the cleaning tool is in contact with the substrate surface .

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