JP4440195B2 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for processing by immersing a substrate such as a semiconductor substrate, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, or a glass substrate for a photomask in a processing solution.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a substrate manufacturing process, a substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate by immersing it in a processing solution is known. Such a substrate processing apparatus includes a processing tank that stores the processing liquid and overflows the processing liquid from above, and processes the substrate by immersing a plurality of substrates in the processing liquid stored in the processing tank. Around the processing tank, an outer tank for receiving the processing liquid overflowing from the processing tank is provided. The configuration of such a conventional substrate processing apparatus is disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example.

  In such a substrate processing apparatus, in order to uniformly process a plurality of substrates and to efficiently discharge particles floating in the processing liquid in the processing tank to the outside, the processing liquid is evenly distributed around the processing tank. It is desirable to overflow. For this reason, in the conventional substrate processing apparatus, the height adjustment bolts are provided at the four corners of the processing tank, and the flow of the processing liquid in the peripheral portion of the processing tank is adjusted by adjusting these bolts.

JP-A-7-310192

  As described above, in the conventional substrate processing apparatus, by adjusting the heights of the four corners of the processing tank, the flow of the processing liquid in the peripheral portion of the processing tank is adjusted to be uniform. However, it has been difficult to precisely adjust the flow of the processing liquid only by adjusting the four bolts. Further, since the inclination of the processing tank itself is adjusted, it is difficult to adjust the flow of the processing liquid only for a part of the peripheral portion of the processing tank.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of precisely adjusting the flow of the processing liquid when the processing liquid overflows from the processing tank.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 is a substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate by immersing the substrate in a processing liquid, the processing tank storing the processing liquid and overflowing the processing liquid from above, A contact member that induces a flow of the treatment liquid by contacting with the treatment liquid and an interval adjusting unit that adjusts an interval between the treatment tank and the contact member at a peripheral portion of the upper portion of the treatment tank. And

  The invention according to claim 2 is the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact member includes a plurality of contact members arranged along a peripheral portion of an upper portion of the processing tank, and the interval The adjusting means adjusts the distance between each of the plurality of contact members and the processing tank individually.

  A third aspect of the present invention is the substrate processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, wherein the contact member is provided outside the processing tank.

  The invention according to a fourth aspect is the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the distance adjusting means sets the distance between the processing tank and the contact member to 0.3 mm. It changes within the range of 1.0 mm or less.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the contact member has a wedge-shaped or conical shape that converges downward, and The interval adjusting means adjusts the interval between the processing tank and the contact member by moving the contact member up and down.

  A sixth aspect of the present invention is the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the contact member has a screw-like shape that converges downward, and the interval adjusting means. Is characterized in that the distance between the treatment tank and the contact member is adjusted by moving the contact member up and down while rotating.

  The invention according to claim 7 is the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the contact member is a member that is rotatable about a rotation shaft provided at an eccentric position. And the distance adjusting means adjusts the distance between the processing tank and the contact member by rotating the contact member around the rotation axis.

  The invention according to an eighth aspect is the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, further comprising posture adjusting means for adjusting a posture of the processing tank.

  According to invention of Claims 1-8, a contact member is provided in the peripheral part of the upper part of a processing tank, and the space | interval adjustment means which adjusts the space | interval of a processing tank and a contact member is provided. For this reason, the flow of a process liquid can be induced | guided | derived by making a contact member contact a process liquid in the peripheral part of a process tank. Further, the flow of the treatment liquid can be precisely adjusted by adjusting the interval between the treatment tank and the contact member.

  In particular, according to the invention described in claim 2, the interval adjusting means adjusts the interval between each of the plurality of contact members and the treatment tank individually. For this reason, the flow of the processing liquid can be finely adjusted only for a part of the peripheral portion of the processing tank, and the flow of the processing liquid in the peripheral portion of the processing tank can be precisely equalized.

  In particular, according to the invention described in claim 3, the contact member is provided outside the treatment tank. For this reason, it can prevent that the particle | grains and metal contamination which generate | occur | produce from a contact member penetrate | invade into the inside of a processing tank.

  In particular, according to the invention described in claim 4, the interval adjusting means changes the interval between the treatment tank and the contact member within a range of 0.3 mm or more and 1.0 mm or less. For this reason, the flow of the treatment liquid can be adjusted satisfactorily.

  In particular, according to the invention described in claim 5, the distance between the processing tank and the contact member is adjusted by moving the wedge-shaped or conical contact member converging downwards up and down. For this reason, the space | interval of a processing tank and a contact member can be adjusted precisely and easily.

  In particular, according to the invention described in claim 6, the distance between the processing tank and the contact member is adjusted by moving the screw-shaped contact member that converges downward while moving up and down. For this reason, the space | interval of a processing tank and a contact member can be adjusted precisely and easily.

  In particular, according to the seventh aspect of the invention, the distance between the treatment tank and the contact member is adjusted by rotating the contact member around the rotation shaft provided at the eccentric position. For this reason, the space | interval of a processing tank and a contact member can be adjusted precisely and easily.

  In particular, according to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the apparatus further includes posture adjusting means for adjusting the posture of the processing tank. For this reason, the flow of the processing liquid can be finely adjusted by the contact member after the flow of the processing liquid is roughly adjusted by adjusting the posture of the processing tank.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  1 and 2 are diagrams showing a configuration of a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the substrate processing apparatus 1 cut along a plane parallel to the substrate W, and FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the substrate processing apparatus 1 cut along a plane perpendicular to the substrate W. FIG. 3 is a top view of the substrate processing apparatus 1. FIG. 1 also shows the configuration of a processing liquid supply system and a processing liquid discharge system.

  The substrate processing apparatus 1 is a so-called batch type substrate processing apparatus that processes substrates W by immersing a plurality of substrates W (hereinafter simply referred to as “substrates W”) in the processing liquid 9 at once. The substrate processing apparatus 1 is mainly provided at a peripheral position of the processing tank 10, a processing tank 10 that stores the processing liquid 9, a lifter 20 that transports the substrate W up and down, a support unit 30 that supports the processing tank 10. Contact member 40.

  The processing tank 10 is a container for storing the processing liquid 9. A predetermined process is performed on the substrate W by immersing the substrate W in the processing liquid 9 stored in the processing tank 10. A pair of processing liquid discharge sections 11 are provided at the bottom of the processing tank 10. The processing liquid discharge unit 11 is connected to a processing liquid supply source 11b through a pipe 11a. In addition, an on-off valve 11c is interposed in the middle of the route of the pipe 11a. For this reason, when the on-off valve 11c is opened, the processing liquid 9 is supplied from the processing liquid supply source 11b to the processing liquid discharge section 11 through the pipe 11a. The processing liquid 9 supplied to the processing liquid discharge unit 11 is discharged from the processing liquid discharge unit 11 into the processing tank 10 as indicated by the white arrow in FIG. The treatment liquid 9 stored in the treatment tank 10 may be a chemical liquid such as hydrofluoric acid or pure water.

  The processing liquid 9 discharged from the processing liquid discharge unit 11 is stored in the processing tank 10 and overflows from the upper part of the processing tank 10 to the outside. Around the processing tank 10, an outer tank 12 for receiving the processing liquid 9 overflowing from the processing tank 10 is provided. A pipe 12a is connected to the outer tub 12, and the other end of the pipe 12a is connected to a drain line. For this reason, the processing liquid 9 overflowed from the processing tank 10 is stored in the outer tank 12 and then discharged to the drainage line through the pipe 12a.

  The lifter 20 is a transport mechanism for transporting the substrate W up and down. The lifter 20 includes three holding bars 21 that hold the substrate, a lifter arm 22, and a lifter driving unit 23. The holding bar 21 is provided with a plurality of holding grooves (not shown), and the substrate W is held in a standing posture on the holding groove. The lifter driving unit 23 includes a servo motor, a timing belt, and the like. When the lifter drive unit 23 is operated, the lifter arm 22 and the three holding rods 21 move up and down integrally. Thus, the substrate W moves between the immersion position in the processing tank 10 (solid line position in FIGS. 1 and 2) and the pulling position above the processing tank 10 (two-dot chain line position in FIGS. 1 and 2). To do.

  The support part 30 is a member for connecting the processing tank 10 to a stationary part 31 such as an apparatus frame and horizontally supporting the processing tank 10. The support unit 30 includes a support plate 32 fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the processing tank 10, and four bolts 33 that connect the stationary unit 31 and the support plate 32. As shown in FIG. 3, the support plate 32 is fixed to three surfaces around the treatment tank 10. The bolts 33 connect the support plate 32 and the non-moving portion 31 at the four corners of the processing tank 10.

  When the four bolts 33 of the support unit 30 are adjusted, the heights of the support plates 32 at the four corners of the processing tank 10 are adjusted, thereby adjusting the posture (tilt) of the processing tank 10. That is, the four bolts 33 of the support part 30 have a function as posture adjusting means for adjusting the posture of the processing tank 10. The user adjusts the attitude of the processing tank 10 by adjusting the four bolts 33 so that the processing liquid 9 overflows almost uniformly from the upper surface of the processing tank 10 to the surroundings.

  The contact member 40 is a member for finely adjusting the flow of the processing liquid 9 in the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10. The contact member 40 is provided at a plurality of locations along the peripheral edge portion of the processing tank 10. The contact members 40 are arranged at equal intervals outside the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10 and are attached to the outer tank 12 via connection members 41.

  4 and 5 are enlarged longitudinal sectional views in the vicinity of the contact member 40. FIG. The lower part of the contact member 40 is formed in a wedge shape or a conical shape that converges downward. Moreover, the upper part of the contact member 40 is formed in the column shape, and the thread groove is engraved on the side surface. A screw hole corresponding to the screw groove is formed at the end of the connecting member 41, and the contact member 40 is held in a state where the screw groove and the screw hole are screwed together. For this reason, when the contact member 40 is rotated, the contact member 40 moves up and down along the screw hole.

  As described above, the lower portion of the contact member 40 is formed in a wedge shape or a conical shape that converges downward. For this reason, if the contact member 40 is moved up and down, the space | interval d of the peripheral part of the processing tank 10 and the contact member 40 will change. For example, when the contact member 40 is lowered, the distance d between the treatment tank 10 and the contact member 40 is narrowed, and when the contact member 40 is raised, the distance d between the treatment tank 10 and the contact member 40 is widened. That is, the user can adjust the distance d between the processing tank 10 and the contact member 40 by rotating the contact member 40.

  When there is a portion (a portion as shown in FIG. 4) where the processing liquid 9 does not partially flow out in the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10, the user lowers the contact member 40 arranged at that portion. Thereby, the contact member 40 approaches the processing liquid 9 staying at the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10. When the contact member 40 comes into contact with the treatment liquid 9, the treatment liquid 9 flows out through the contact member 40 to the outer tank (state of FIG. 5). Thus, the contact member 40 contacts the treatment liquid 9 at the peripheral portion of the treatment tank 10 and plays a role of inducing the flow of the treatment liquid 9.

  Further, the amount of the processing liquid 9 flowing out from the processing tank 10 varies depending on the distance d between the processing tank 10 and the contact member 40. For this reason, the user can finely adjust the flow of the processing liquid 9 flowing out from the processing tank 10 by moving the contact member 40 up and down to adjust the distance d between the processing tank 10 and the contact member 40. Even when the flow of the treatment liquid 9 is not precisely uniform at the peripheral portion of the treatment tank 10, the flow of the treatment liquid 9 can be precisely adjusted at the peripheral portion of the treatment tank 10 by individually adjusting the heights of the plurality of contact members 40. Can be equalized.

  As described above, the contact member 40 finely adjusts the flow of the processing liquid 9 at a plurality of locations in the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10. This utilizes the property that when a solid approaches the fluid, the fluid is adsorbed on the surface of the solid and flows along the surface of the solid. For this reason, the distance d between the treatment tank 10 and the contact member 40 is changed before and after the limit distance at which the surface of the treatment liquid 9 swelled by the surface tension in the peripheral portion of the treatment tank 10 is adsorbed on the contact member 40. Is desirable. Specifically, when the distance d is changed within a range of 0.3 mm or more and 1.0 mm or less, the flow of the processing liquid 9 can be adjusted favorably.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a procedure for adjusting the flow of the processing liquid 9 in the substrate processing apparatus 1 having the above-described configuration. In this substrate processing apparatus 1, the following procedure is executed before processing the substrate W, and adjustment is performed so that the processing liquid 9 uniformly overflows from the processing tank 10 to the surroundings.

  First, the substrate processing apparatus 1 places a dummy substrate on the holding rod 21 of the lifter 20, and immerses the dummy substrate in the processing liquid 9 stored in the processing tank 10 (step S1). The dummy substrate is an adjustment substrate different from the product substrate W to be processed later. By performing the following adjustment work while the dummy substrate is immersed in the processing liquid 9, the flow of the processing liquid 9 can be adjusted in a state closer to the time of processing.

  When the dummy substrate is immersed in the processing liquid 9, the substrate processing apparatus 1 opens the on-off valve 11c. Then, the processing liquid 9 is discharged from the processing liquid discharge unit 11 into the processing tank 10, and the processing liquid 9 overflows from the upper part of the processing tank 10. The user adjusts the four bolts 33 of the support portion 30 while confirming the flow of the processing liquid 9 in the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10 (step S2). Thereby, the attitude | position of the process tank 10 is adjusted so that the process liquid 9 may overflow into the circumference | surroundings from the process tank 10 substantially equally. That is, in this step S2, the flow of the processing liquid 9 that overflows from the processing tank 10 is roughly adjusted.

  Next, the user checks whether or not the flow of the processing liquid 9 in the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10 is precisely equal (step S3). Then, when the flow of the treatment liquid 9 is precisely uniform, the adjustment operation is finished at this point. On the other hand, when the flow of the treatment liquid 9 is not precisely equal, that is, when there is a portion where the treatment liquid 9 does not partially flow out at the peripheral portion of the treatment tank 10 or a portion where the flow of the treatment liquid 9 is weak. In this case, the contact member 40 arranged at that location is lowered to finely adjust the flow of the processing liquid 9 (step S4).

  When the contact member 40 is lowered, the treatment liquid 9 staying at the peripheral portion of the treatment tank 10 and the contact member 40 come into contact with each other. Then, the processing liquid 9 flows out to the outer tank 12 through the contact member 40. As a result, the amount of the treatment liquid 9 flowing increases even at locations where the treatment liquid 9 does not partially flow out or at locations where the flow of the treatment liquid 9 is weak. In this way, in step S4, the flow of the processing liquid 9 is partially adjusted, and the flow of the processing liquid 9 in the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10 is made precisely uniform. Thereafter, the substrate processing apparatus 1 closes the on-off valve 11c and pulls up the dummy substrate to finish the adjustment work of the substrate processing apparatus 1.

  As described above, the substrate processing apparatus 1 has a configuration in which the contact member 40 is provided in the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10 and the distance d between the processing tank 10 and the contact member 40 can be adjusted. For this reason, the flow of the processing liquid 9 in the peripheral part of the processing tank 10 can be induced by bringing the contact member 40 into contact with the processing liquid 9. Moreover, the flow of the processing liquid 9 can be precisely adjusted by adjusting the distance d between the processing tank 10 and the contact member 40.

  A large number of contact members 40 are arranged at equal intervals along the peripheral edge of the treatment tank 10. And the space | interval d of each contact member 40 and the processing tank 10 is adjusted separately. For this reason, the flow of the processing liquid 9 can be partially adjusted only in a portion where the processing liquid 9 does not flow out or a portion where the flow of the processing liquid 9 is weak. Therefore, the flow of the treatment liquid 9 can be precisely equalized at the peripheral portion of the treatment tank 10.

  Further, the contact member 40 is disposed outside the peripheral portion of the processing tank 10. For this reason, particles and metal contamination generated from the contact member 40 can be prevented from entering the inside of the processing tank 10.

  As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to said example. For example, in the above example, the contact member 40 is moved up and down by the screw mechanism, but the contact member 40 may be moved up and down using other known means. For example, a piezoelectric actuator may be connected to the contact member 40 and moved up and down based on the electrical signal.

  Further, the contact member of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the contact member 40 described above. For example, the configuration shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 may be used. The contact member 50 shown in FIG. 7 has an upper part configured in the same manner as the contact member 40 described above, and a lower part formed in a conical shape that converges downward. A spiral screw groove is also formed on the lower side surface. When the contact member 50 is rotated, the contact member 50 moves up and down while rotating, and the distance d between the processing tank 10 and the contact member 50 changes along the screw groove. For this reason, like the contact member 40 described above, the distance d between the treatment tank 10 and the contact member 50 can be adjusted precisely and easily.

  The contact member 60 in FIG. 8 is configured to be rotatable about a rotation axis L in the vertical direction. The rotation axis L is disposed at an eccentric position of the contact member 60. The cross section obtained by cutting the contact member 60 along the AA plane of FIG. 8 has a shape as shown in FIG. 9, for example. The distance between the rotation axis L of the contact member 60 and the outer peripheral surface can take a value from r to R. For this reason, when the contact member 60 is rotated around the rotation axis L, the distance d between the processing tank 10 and the contact member 60 can be adjusted accurately and easily.

It is the longitudinal cross-sectional view which cut | disconnected the substrate processing apparatus by the plane parallel to a board | substrate. It is the longitudinal cross-sectional view which cut | disconnected the substrate processing apparatus by the plane perpendicular | vertical to a board | substrate. It is a top view of a substrate processing apparatus. It is an enlarged view near a contact member. It is an enlarged view near a contact member. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure which adjusts the flow of a process liquid. It is the figure which showed the structure of the contact member which concerns on a modification. It is the figure which showed the structure of the contact member which concerns on a modification. It is the figure which showed the shape of the horizontal cross section of the contact member which concerns on a modification.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate processing apparatus 10 Processing tank 11 Processing liquid discharge part 12 Outer tank 20 Lifter 30 Support part 32 Support plate 33 Bolt 40, 50, 60 Contact member 41 Connecting member 9 Processing liquid W Substrate

Claims (8)

A substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate by immersing it in a processing solution,
A treatment tank for storing the treatment liquid and for overflowing the treatment liquid from above,
A contact member for inducing a flow of the treatment liquid by contacting with the treatment liquid at a peripheral portion of the upper part of the treatment tank;
An interval adjusting means for adjusting an interval between the processing tank and the contact member;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising: The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1,
The contact member has a plurality of contact members disposed along a peripheral edge portion of the upper portion of the processing tank,
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the distance adjusting means individually adjusts the distance between each of the plurality of contact members and the processing tank. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the contact member is provided outside the processing tank. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the distance adjusting means changes the distance between the processing tank and the contact member within a range of 0.3 mm to 1.0 mm. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The contact member has a wedge or conical shape converging downward;
The said space | interval adjustment means adjusts the space | interval of the said processing tank and the said contact member by moving the said contact member up and down, The substrate processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The contact member has a screw shape that converges downward,
The said space | interval adjustment means adjusts the space | interval of the said processing tank and the said contact member by moving up and down while rotating the said contact member, The substrate processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The contact member is a member that can rotate around a rotation shaft provided at an eccentric position,
The said space | interval adjustment means adjusts the space | interval of the said processing tank and the said contact member by rotating the said contact member centering | focusing on the said rotating shaft. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
A substrate processing apparatus, further comprising posture adjusting means for adjusting a posture of the processing tank.

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