JP4889444B2 - Cleaning method, liquid processing apparatus, and computer-readable storage medium - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cleaning method for cleaning a rotating plate provided on the back side of a substrate in a liquid processing apparatus that performs liquid processing by supplying a liquid to the back side of the substrate such as a semiconductor wafer and the liquid processing in which the method is performed. The present invention relates to an apparatus and a computer-readable storage medium.

  In a semiconductor device manufacturing process and a flat panel display (FPD) manufacturing process, a process of supplying a processing liquid to a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate, which is a substrate to be processed, and performing liquid processing is frequently used. An example of such a process is a cleaning process that removes particles, contamination, and the like attached to the substrate.

  As such a liquid processing apparatus, a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer is rotatably held, and a processing liquid is supplied to the front surface, back surface, or front and back surfaces of the wafer in a state where the substrate is rotated. A single-wafer type that forms a liquid film and performs processing is known.

  As an apparatus for forming a liquid film on the back surface or front and back surfaces of a substrate and performing a cleaning process, a rotatable rotating plate is provided on the back surface side of the substrate, and a hole provided in the center of the rotating plate is inserted. An elevating member having a liquid discharge plate for supporting the substrate and discharging the liquid is provided on the upper portion thereof, and the substrate is received there with the liquid discharge plate of the elevating member protruding upward, and then the elevating member is lowered. The liquid discharge plate is lowered to a predetermined position, the substrate is held horizontally by the holding member provided on the rotating plate, and the liquid discharge plate is disposed via the liquid discharge nozzle provided vertically at the center of the substrate lifting member. There is known a technique in which a treatment liquid or a rinsing liquid is supplied between a substrate and a rotating plate from a liquid discharge port to clean the back surface of the substrate (for example, Patent Document 1).

By the way, when such a process is continuously performed on a plurality of substrates, a treatment liquid detached from the back surface of the substrate adheres to the surface of the support plate or the rotating plate, and adversely affects the particle performance on the back surface of the substrate. give. For this reason, it is desirable to clean the support plate and the rotating plate when cleaning the substrate. However, a liquid film is formed on the back surface of the substrate when cleaning or rinsing the substrate. Is not supplied sufficiently and cannot be cleaned sufficiently. For this reason, it is necessary to periodically disassemble the apparatus and clean the rotating plate. However, such a cleaning process is very complicated and increases the downtime of the apparatus.
JP-A-9-298181

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and provides a cleaning method capable of cleaning a rotating plate without disassembling the device, and a liquid processing apparatus capable of realizing such a cleaning method. Objective. It is another object of the present invention to provide a computer-readable storage medium storing a control program for executing such a cleaning method.

In order to solve the above-described problems, in the first aspect of the present invention, a rotating plate having a hole formed in a central portion that is horizontally disposed rotatably and spaced apart by an appropriate length above the rotating plate is placed in a horizontal state. gap between the in and the substrate holding portion having the rotating plate and integrally held to the holding member, and a rotation mechanism which rotates the rotary plate together with the substrate, and the rotating plate to the rotating plate which is formed in the bore And a non-rotating liquid discharge plate having a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid, and the liquid discharge port, the liquid being discharged to the back side of the substrate through the liquid discharge port. In the liquid processing apparatus including the back surface side liquid supply nozzle for supplying the liquid as described above, the cleaning method is for cleaning the upper surface of the rotating plate, and the substrate holding unit holds the substrate or the dummy substrate. Degree and a step of a state filled with liquid to the rear surface side liquid supply nozzle, the liquid ejection plate in that state through the back side liquid supply nozzle to eject liquid from the liquid discharge port of the liquid discharge plate Forming a liquid film between the substrate and the dummy substrate, and rotating the rotating plate and the substrate or dummy substrate so that the liquid film passes the gap between the liquid discharge plate and the rotating plate. And a step of spreading outward along the surface of the rotating plate.

  In the first aspect, the step of spreading the liquid film is performed by setting the rotation speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or dummy substrate to 100 rpm or less, and after the step of spreading the liquid film, the rotating plate and the substrate or dummy. The method may further include a step of increasing the number of rotations of the substrate and shaking off the liquid on the rotating plate. In this case, the step of shaking off the liquid can be performed by setting the rotational speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate to 1000 rpm or more.

In a second aspect of the present invention, a rotating plate having a hole formed in a central portion that is horizontally disposed rotatably and an appropriate distance apart above the rotating plate, the substrate is integrated with the rotating plate in a horizontal state. a substrate holding portion having a holding member for holding the, arranged such that a gap is formed between the the rotary mechanism for the rotating plate is rotated together with the substrate, the rotating plate to the rotating plate which is formed in the bore A non-rotating liquid discharge plate having a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid, and a back surface that supplies the liquid so as to discharge the liquid to the back surface side of the substrate through the liquid discharge port. A liquid processing apparatus comprising a side liquid supply nozzle, a cup surrounding the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, and a control mechanism for controlling rotation of the substrate and supply of liquid, wherein the control mechanism includes: The group In a state of being held to the substrate or a dummy substrate on the holder, firstly, a state filled with liquid to the rear surface side liquid supply nozzle, then the liquid ejection by ejecting liquid from the rear surface side liquid supply nozzle in this state A liquid film is formed between the plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate, and then the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate are rotated so that the liquid film passes the gap between the liquid discharge plate and the rotating plate. Provided is a liquid processing apparatus which is controlled to spread outward along the surface of the rotating plate to clean the surface of the rotating plate.

  In the second aspect, when the liquid film is spread, the control mechanism controls the rotation speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate to 100 rpm or less, and after spreading the liquid film, It can be controlled to increase the number of rotations of the substrate or the dummy substrate so as to shake off the liquid on the rotating plate. In this case, the control mechanism can control the rotational speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate to 1000 rpm or more when the liquid is shaken off.

In a third aspect of the present invention, a rotating plate having a hole formed in a central portion rotatably disposed horizontally and an appropriate distance apart above the rotating plate is integrated with the rotating plate in a horizontal state. a substrate holding portion having a holding member for holding the, arranged such that a gap is formed between the the rotary mechanism for the rotating plate is rotated together with the substrate, the rotating plate to the rotating plate which is formed in the bore A non-rotating liquid discharge plate having a liquid discharge port for discharging a liquid at the center, and the liquid continuous with the liquid discharge port so that the liquid is discharged to the back side of the substrate through the liquid discharge port. A computer-readable storage medium storing a control program for causing a computer to control a liquid processing apparatus including a back surface side liquid supply nozzle to be supplied to clean the upper surface of the rotating plate. I, wherein the control program, when executed, so that the cleaning process is conducted to provide a computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that to control the liquid processing apparatus in a computer.

  According to the present invention, with the substrate holding part holding the substrate or the dummy substrate, the back side liquid supply nozzle is first filled with the liquid, and then the liquid is discharged from the back side supply nozzle in that state. A liquid film is formed between the substrate support plate and the substrate or dummy substrate, and then the rotating plate and the substrate or dummy substrate are rotated to spread the liquid film outward along the surface of the rotating plate. A liquid film can be formed on the rotating plate, and the upper surface of the rotating plate can be cleaned without disassembling the apparatus.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Here, a case where the present invention is applied to a liquid processing apparatus that performs front and back surface cleaning of a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter simply referred to as a wafer) will be described.

  1 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a cleaning apparatus in which a cleaning method according to an embodiment of the present invention is performed, FIG. 2 is a plan view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a treatment liquid supply mechanism and a rinse liquid supply of the cleaning apparatus in FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing the mechanism, FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view showing a portion where the rotating plate and the liquid discharge plate of the cleaning apparatus of FIG. 1 are arranged, and FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the exhaust / drainage part of the cleaning apparatus of FIG. FIG.

  A plurality of liquid processing apparatuses 100 are incorporated in a liquid processing system (not shown), and a base plate 1, a wafer holding unit 2 that rotatably holds a wafer W that is a substrate to be processed, and a rotation of the wafer holding unit 2. A rotary motor 3 that rotates, a rotary cup 4 that is provided so as to surround the wafer W held by the wafer holder 2, and rotates with the wafer holder 2, and a surface-side liquid supply that supplies processing liquid to the surface of the wafer W It has a nozzle 5, a back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 for supplying a processing liquid to the back surface of the wafer W, and an exhaust / drainage unit 7 provided at the peripheral edge of the rotating cup 4. A casing 8 is provided so as to cover the periphery of the exhaust / drainage unit 7 and the upper portion of the wafer W. At the upper part of the casing 8 is provided an airflow introduction part 9 for introducing an airflow from a fan filter unit (FFU) of the liquid processing system through an introduction port 9a provided on the side part, and the wafer holding part 2 A down flow of clean air is supplied to the wafer W held on the substrate.

  The wafer holding unit 2 includes a horizontally-rotating rotating plate 11 having a disk shape and a cylindrical rotating shaft 12 connected to the center of the back surface and extending vertically downward. A hole 11 a that communicates with the hole 12 a in the rotating shaft 12 is formed at the center of the rotating plate 11. And the raising / lowering member 13 in which the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 was formed perpendicularly to the center part is provided so that raising and lowering is possible in the hole 12a and the hole 11a. The rotating plate 11 is provided with holding members 14 for holding the outer edge of the wafer W, and as shown in FIG. 2, three of them are arranged at equal intervals. The holding member 14 is configured to hold the wafer W horizontally with the wafer W slightly floating from the rotating plate 11. The holding member 14 includes a holding portion 14a capable of holding the end surface of the wafer W, an attaching / detaching portion 14b extending from the holding portion 14a toward the center of the back surface of the rotating plate, and a rotating shaft for rotating the holding portion 14a in a vertical plane. 14c, and the upper end of the detachable portion 14b is pushed upward by a cylinder mechanism (not shown), whereby the holding portion 14a rotates outwardly and the holding of the wafer W is released. The holding member 14 is urged in a direction in which the holding portion 14a holds the wafer W by a spring member (not shown), and the wafer W is held by the holding member 14 when the cylinder mechanism is not operated.

  The rotating shaft 12 is rotatably supported by the base plate 1 via a bearing member 15 having two bearings 15a. A pulley 16 is fitted into the lower end of the rotating shaft 12, and a belt 17 is wound around the pulley 16. The belt 17 is also wound around a pulley 18 attached to the shaft of the motor 3. The rotating shaft 12 is rotated via the pulley 18, the belt 17 and the pulley 16 by rotating the motor 3.

  The surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 is attached to the tip of the nozzle arm 22a while being held by the nozzle holding member 22, and is processed through a flow path provided in the nozzle arm 22a from the liquid supply mechanism 85 described later. A liquid such as a liquid is supplied, and the liquid is discharged through a nozzle hole 5a provided therein.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the nozzle arm 22 a is provided so as to be rotatable about the shaft 23 by the drive mechanism 81. By rotating the nozzle arm 22 a, the surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 is centered on the wafer W. The wafer cleaning position on the upper and outer circumferences and the retracted position on the outside of the wafer W can be taken. The nozzle arm 22a can be moved up and down by an elevating mechanism 82 such as a cylinder mechanism.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a channel 83 is provided in the nozzle arm 22 a, and the nozzle hole 5 a of the surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 is connected to one end of the channel 83. A pipe 84 a is connected to the other end of the flow path 83. The pipe 84 a is connected to the liquid supply mechanism 85, and a predetermined liquid is supplied from the liquid supply mechanism 85 to the surface liquid supply nozzle 5 through the pipe 84 a and the flow path 83.

  The back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 is provided at the center of the elevating member 13, and a nozzle hole 6 a extending along the longitudinal direction is formed therein. A pipe 84b is connected to the lower end of the nozzle hole 6a. The pipe 84b is connected to the liquid supply mechanism 85, and a predetermined liquid is supplied from the liquid supply mechanism 85 to the back surface liquid supply nozzle 6 through the pipe 84b.

  The liquid supply mechanism 85 supplies, for example, a DHF supply source 86 that supplies dilute hydrofluoric acid (DHF) that is an acid chemical solution, and an SC1 supply source 87 that supplies ammonia perwater (SC1) that is an alkaline chemical solution as chemical solutions for cleaning processing. The DIW supply source 88 supplies pure water (DIW), for example, as the rinse liquid. Pipes 89a, 90a, 91a extend from the DHF supply source 86, the SC1 supply source 87, and the DIW supply source 88, and these pipes 89a, 90a, 91a are connected to the pipe 84a via open / close valves 92a, 93a, 94a. ing. Therefore, by operating the on-off valves 92a, 93a, 94a, ammonia overwater (SC1), dilute hydrofluoric acid (DHF), and pure water (DIW) can be selectively supplied to the surface side liquid supply nozzle 5. Yes.

Further, pipes 89b, 90b, and 91b also extend from the DHF supply source 86, the SC1 supply source 87, and the DIW supply source 88, and these pipes 89b, 90b, and 91b are connected to the pipe 84b via opening / closing valves 92b, 93b, and 94b. It is connected. Therefore, by operating the on-off valves 92b, 93b, and 94b, ammonia overwater (SC1), dilute hydrofluoric acid (DHF), and pure water (DIW) can be selectively supplied to the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6. Yes. An open / close valve 95 is provided on the downstream side of the open / close valve 92b of the pipe 84b, and a discharge line 95a is connected to the open / close valve 95. The discharge line 95a can discharge the liquid in the nozzle hole 6a by its own weight or by suction of an aspirator or the like. The liquid supply mechanism 85 further includes an H ₂ O ₂ supply source 96 that supplies hydrogen peroxide water (H ₂ O ₂ ) as a chemical liquid for cleaning the rotating plate 11. A pipe 97 extends from the H ₂ O ₂ supply source 96, and this pipe 97 is connected to the pipe 84 b through an opening / closing valve 98. Therefore, hydrogen peroxide water (H ₂ O ₂ ) can also be supplied to the back side liquid supply nozzle 6 by operating the opening / closing valve.

  Note that pipes 91a and 91b extending from the DIW supply source 88 are connected to the most upstream side of the pipes 84a and 84b.

As shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 4, the elevating member 13 is a liquid having a liquid discharge port 24 a for discharging the liquid at the center at the upper end thereof, which is continuous with the nozzle hole 6 a of the back surface side liquid discharge nozzle 6. A discharge plate 24 is provided. The liquid discharge plate 24 has a function of supporting the wafer W, and has three wafer support pins 25 (only two are shown) for supporting the wafer W on the upper surface thereof. The liquid discharge plate 24 has a truncated conical shape extending upward, and is accommodated in the hole 11a during processing so that the height of the surface thereof substantially coincides with the height of the surface of the rotating plate 11. It has become. The hole 11 a has a truncated cone shape corresponding to the liquid discharge plate 24. A gap 24 b is formed between the rotary plate 11 and the liquid discharge plate 24, and N ₂ gas supplied from below the rotary shaft 12 through the gap between the rotary shaft 12 and the elevating member 13 is a gap. 24b is blown to the back side of the wafer W. This prevents liquid from entering the rotary shaft 12.

  A cylinder mechanism 27 is connected to the lower end of the elevating member 13 via a connecting member 26. The elevating member 13 is moved up and down by the cylinder mechanism 27 to move the wafer W up and down to load and unload the wafer W. .

  The rotary cup 4 has an annular flange 31 that extends obliquely upward inward from the upper end of the rotary plate 11 and a cylindrical outer wall 32 that extends vertically downward from the outer end of the flange 31. . As shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 5, an annular gap 33 is formed between the outer wall portion 32 and the rotary plate 11, and the wafer W is transferred from the gap 33 to the rotary plate 11 and the rotary cup 4. At the same time, the processing liquid and the rinsing liquid that are rotated and scattered are guided downward.

  A plate-shaped guide member 35 is interposed between the flange portion 31 and the rotating plate 11 at a position substantially the same height as the wafer W. Openings 36 and 37 are formed between the flange 31 and the guide member 35 and between the guide member 35 and the rotary plate 11, respectively, through which the processing liquid and the rinse liquid pass. The openings 36 and 37 are formed by a plurality of spacer members (not shown) interposed along the circumferential direction between the flange portion 31 and the guide member 35 and between the guide member 35 and the rotating plate 11. The And the collar part 31, the guide member 35, the rotation plate 11, and the spacer member between these are screwed with the screw 40 (refer FIG. 5).

  The guide member 35 is provided such that the front and back surfaces thereof are substantially continuous with the front and back surfaces of the wafer W. When the wafer 3 is rotated together with the wafer W by the motor 3 and the processing liquid is supplied from the surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 to the center of the surface of the wafer W, the processing liquid is subjected to the wafer W by centrifugal force. Is spread out from the periphery of the wafer W. The processing liquid shaken off from the surface of the wafer W is guided to the surface of the guide member 35, discharged outward from the opening 36, and guided downward by the outer wall portion 32. Similarly, when the wafer holding unit 2 and the rotating cup 4 are rotated together with the wafer W and the processing liquid is supplied from the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 to the center of the back surface of the wafer W, the processing liquid is subjected to the wafer W by centrifugal force. Is spread from the periphery of the wafer W. The processing liquid spun off from the back surface of the wafer W is guided to the back surface of the guide member 35 provided substantially continuously, discharged outward from the opening 37, and guided downward by the outer wall portion 32. At this time, since the centrifugal force acts on the processing liquid that has reached the outer wall portion 32, these are prevented from returning to the inside as mist.

  Further, since the guide member 35 guides the processing liquid shaken off from the front surface and the back surface of the wafer W in this way, the processing liquid detached from the peripheral edge of the wafer W is not easily turbulent and rotates without causing the processing liquid to be misted. It can be led out of the cup 4. As shown in FIG. 2, the guide member 35 is provided with a notch 41 at a position corresponding to the wafer holding member 14 so as to avoid the wafer holding member 14.

  The exhaust / drainage part 7 is mainly for collecting gas and liquid discharged from the space surrounded by the rotary plate 11 and the rotary cup 4, and as shown in the enlarged view of FIG. An annular drain cup 51 that receives the treatment liquid and the rinse liquid discharged from the cup 4 and an exhaust cup 52 that is concentric with the drain cup 51 so as to accommodate the drain cup 51 are provided. .

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 5, the drainage cup 51 includes a cylindrical outer peripheral wall 53 provided vertically outside the rotating cup 4 in the vicinity of the outer wall portion 32, and a lower end of the outer peripheral wall 53. And an inner wall 54 extending inward from the portion. An inner peripheral wall 54 a is formed vertically on the inner periphery of the inner wall 54. An annular space defined by the outer peripheral wall 53 and the inner wall 54 serves as a liquid storage portion 56 that stores the processing liquid and the rinse liquid discharged from the rotary cup 4. Further, at the upper end of the outer peripheral wall 53, a protruding portion 53 a that protrudes from the upper portion of the rotating cup 4 is provided in order to prevent the processing liquid from jumping out from the draining cup 51. A partition wall 55 that extends from the inner wall 54 to the vicinity of the lower surface of the rotating plate 11 and that is annularly provided along the circumferential direction of the drainage cup 51 is provided at a position corresponding to the outside of the holding member 14 of the liquid container 56. is doing. And the liquid storage part 56 is divided into the main cup part 56a which receives the liquid discharged | emitted from the clearance gap 33 by this partition wall 55, and the subcup part 56b which receives the liquid dripped from the holding part 14a vicinity part of the holding member 14. It is separated. The bottom surface 57 of the liquid storage portion 56 is divided by the partition wall 55 into a first portion 57a corresponding to the main cup portion 56a and a second portion 57b corresponding to the sub cup portion 56b, both of which are from the outside to the inside. It inclines so that it may rise toward (rotation center side). The inner end of the second portion 57b reaches a position corresponding to the inner side (rotation center side) of the holding portion 14a of the holding member 14. The partition wall 55 serves to prevent the airflow formed by the portion of the holding member 14 protruding below the rotating plate 11 from reaching the wafer W side with mist when the rotating plate 11 rotates. Have. The partition wall 55 is formed with a hole 58 for guiding the processing liquid from the sub cup portion 56b to the main cup portion 56a (see FIG. 1).

  A drainage port 60 for draining from the liquid container 56 is provided at the outermost part of the inner wall 54 of the drainage cup 51, and a drainage pipe 61 is connected to the drainage port 60. (See FIG. 1). The drainage pipe 61 is provided with a drainage switching unit (not shown), which is separated and collected or discarded according to the type of processing liquid. Note that a plurality of drain ports 60 may be provided.

  The exhaust cup 52 is provided so that the outer wall 64 provided perpendicular to the outer part of the outer peripheral wall 53 of the drain cup 51 and the inner part of the holding member 14 are perpendicular to the upper end and the upper end thereof is close to the rotary plate 11. The inner wall 65, the bottom wall 66 provided on the base plate 1, and the upper wall 67 that is curved upward from the outer wall 64 and is provided so as to cover the upper side of the rotating cup 4. The exhaust cup 52 takes in and exhausts mainly gas components in and around the rotary cup 4 from an annular inlet 68 formed between the upper side wall 67 and the flange 31 of the rotary cup 4. ing. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, an exhaust port 70 is provided below the exhaust cup 52, and an exhaust pipe 71 is connected to the exhaust port 70. A suction mechanism (not shown) is provided on the downstream side of the exhaust pipe 71 so that the periphery of the rotary cup 4 can be exhausted. A plurality of exhaust ports 70 are provided, and can be switched and used in accordance with the type of treatment liquid.

  An annular outer ring space 99 a is formed between the outer peripheral wall 53, which is the outer wall of the drain cup 51, and the outer wall 64 of the exhaust cup 52, and the bottom of the drain cup 51 and the exhaust cup 52 An annular airflow adjusting member 97 in which a large number of air holes 98 are formed along the circumferential direction is provided on the outer portion of the exhaust port 70 between the bottom portion. The outer annular space 99a and the airflow adjusting member 97 are incorporated into the exhaust cup 52 and have a function of adjusting the airflow reaching the exhaust port 70 and exhausting it uniformly. That is, the air flow is uniformly guided downward along the entire circumference through the outer annular space 99a which is an annular space as described above, and the air flow adjusting member 97 having a large number of air holes 98 is provided to reduce pressure loss, that is, air flow. By providing resistance and dispersing the air flow, the exhaust can be performed relatively uniformly regardless of the distance from the exhaust port 70.

  Further, an annular inner annular space 99 b is formed between the inner peripheral wall 54 a of the drain cup 51 and the inner wall 65 of the exhaust cup 52, and the exhaust cup 51 is disposed on the inner peripheral side of the drain cup 51. A gap 77 is formed with respect to 52. And the gas component taken in from the inlet 68 flows not only in the outer annular space 99a but also in the liquid storage part 56 of the drain cup 51, and the airflow passes through the inner annular space 99b from the liquid storage part 56. The gas is guided downward uniformly over the entire circumference, and can be exhausted relatively uniformly from the exhaust port 70 through the gap 77.

  As described above, since the drainage from the drainage cup 51 and the exhaustion from the exhaust cup 52 are performed independently, the drainage and the exhaust can be guided in a separated state. Further, even if mist leaks from the drain cup 51, the exhaust cup 52 surrounds the periphery thereof, so that it is quickly discharged through the exhaust port 70, and the mist is reliably prevented from leaking outside.

  The liquid processing apparatus 100 includes a process controller 121 including a microprocessor (computer), and each component of the liquid processing apparatus 100 is connected to the process controller 121 and controlled. Further, the process controller 121 visualizes the operation status of each component of the liquid processing apparatus 100 and a keyboard on which the process manager manages command input to manage each component of the liquid processing apparatus 100. A user interface 122 including a display for displaying is connected. Furthermore, the process controller 121 has a control program for realizing various processes executed by the liquid processing apparatus 100 under the control of the process controller 121 and predetermined components in each component of the liquid processing apparatus 100 according to processing conditions. A storage unit 123 that stores a control program for executing the process, that is, a recipe, is connected. The recipe is stored in a storage medium in the storage unit 123. The storage medium may be a hard disk or semiconductor memory, or may be portable such as a CDROM, DVD, flash memory or the like. Moreover, you may make it transmit a recipe suitably from another apparatus via a dedicated line, for example.

  Then, if necessary, an arbitrary recipe is called from the storage unit 123 by an instruction from the user interface 122 and is executed by the process controller 121, so that a desired value in the liquid processing apparatus 100 is controlled under the control of the process controller 121. Is performed.

  Next, the operation of the liquid processing apparatus 100 configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. Control of the liquid processing operation at this time is performed by the process controller 121 based on the recipe stored in the storage unit 123 as described above.

  In the cleaning process using the processing solution (chemical solution), first, as shown in FIG. 6A, the lifting member 13 is lifted and the support arm 25 on the liquid discharge plate 24 is moved from the transport arm (not shown). The wafer W is delivered to the wafer. Next, as shown in FIG. 6B, the elevating member 13 is lowered until the liquid discharge plate 24 reaches a predetermined position of the hole 11a of the rotary plate 11, and the rotary plate 11, the liquid discharge plate 24, and the wafer W are The wafer W is chucked by the holding member 14 with a gap for forming a liquid film formed therebetween. Then, as shown in FIG. 6C, the surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 is moved from the retracted position to the wafer cleaning position.

  In this state, as shown in FIG. 6D, a predetermined process is performed from the front surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 and the rear surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 while rotating the wafer W together with the rotating plate 11 and the rotating cup 4 by the motor 3. The liquid is supplied to clean the front and back surfaces of the wafer W.

  In this wafer cleaning process, with the wafer W rotated, the processing liquid is supplied from the front surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 and the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 to the center of the front surface and the back surface of the wafer W, and the processing liquid is subjected to centrifugal force. As a result, the wafer W spreads outside and the cleaning process is performed in the process. Then, the processing liquid used for the cleaning process in this manner is shaken off from the periphery of the wafer W. The rotation speed of the wafer W during this cleaning process is preferably 100 to 700 rpm.

  In this wafer cleaning process, since the cup provided so as to surround the outside of the wafer W is the rotating cup 4 that rotates together with the wafer W, when the processing liquid shaken off from the wafer W hits the rotating cup 4. In addition, centrifugal force acts on the treatment liquid, and scattering (misting) unlike the case of the fixed cup hardly occurs. Then, the processing liquid that has reached the rotary cup 4 is guided downward, and is discharged from the gap 33 to the main cup portion 56 a of the liquid storage portion 56 in the drain cup 51. On the other hand, since a hole for inserting the holding portion 14 a is provided at the attachment position of the holding member 14 of the rotating plate 11, the processing liquid is dropped from that portion into the sub-cup portion 56 b of the draining cup 51. Then, the processing liquid received in the drainage cup 51 in this manner is discharged through the drainage pipe 61 from the drainage port 60 while turning inside the cup. Further, the exhaust cup 52 mainly receives gas components in and around the rotary cup 4 from an inlet 68 that forms an annular shape between the upper wall 67 of the rotary cup 4 and the flange 31 of the rotary cup 4. The exhaust is exhausted through the exhaust pipe 71.

  After the treatment with the treatment liquid is performed in this manner, the rinse treatment is subsequently performed. In this rinsing process, after the supply of the previous processing liquid is stopped, pure water is supplied as a rinsing liquid from the front surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 and the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 to the front and back surfaces of the wafer W, and cleaning with the processing liquid As in the case of the processing, the rinsing liquid is moved from the front surface side liquid supply nozzle 5 and the rear surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 to the center of the front and rear surfaces of the wafer W while rotating the wafer W together with the holding member 2 and the rotating cup 4 by the motor 3. As the pure water is supplied, the wafer W is rinsed in the process of spreading outward by the centrifugal force. Then, the pure water subjected to the rinsing process in this manner is shaken off from the periphery of the wafer W.

  As in the case of the treatment liquid, the pure water as the rinse liquid thus shaken out is discharged from the gap 33 of the rotating cup 4 and the hole portion into which the holding portion 14a is inserted into the liquid storage portion 56 in the drain cup 51. Then, it is discharged from the drainage port 60 through the drainage pipe 61 while swirling through it.

  Next, a method for cleaning the rotating plate 11 in the present embodiment using such a liquid processing apparatus 100 will be described. Control of the cleaning processing operation of the rotating plate 11 according to the present embodiment is also performed by the process controller 121 based on the recipe stored in the storage unit 123, similarly to the liquid processing operation of the wafer W described above.

  When the cleaning process of the wafer W is continuously performed on a plurality of wafers, the processing liquid detached from the wafer W adheres to the liquid discharge plate 24 and the rotating plate 11 and becomes particles on the back surface of the wafer W. During the liquid treatment, the liquid is not sufficiently supplied to the rotating plate 11 and is not cleaned. For this reason, in this embodiment, the washing | cleaning sequence of the rotating plate 11 is implemented regularly.

The cleaning sequence of the rotating plate 11 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
First, as shown in FIG. 8A, the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW is chucked by the holding member 14 in the same procedure as in FIGS. 6A and 6B (step 1).

Next, as shown in FIG. 8B, the inside of the nozzle hole 6a of the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 is filled with the liquid (step 2). The liquid at this time may be a chemical liquid of SC1, DHF, or H ₂ O ₂ , or pure water (DIW) that is a rinse liquid. In the case of using a chemical solution, it is particularly effective when dirt of particles, organic matter, and metal oxide is noticeable. Among these chemical solutions, H ₂ O ₂ has the largest organic substance removal effect.

  With the nozzle hole 6a of the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 filled with the liquid, the liquid is discharged from the back surface side liquid supply nozzle 6 as shown in FIG. A liquid film is formed between the plate 24 and the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW (step 3). When the liquid is discharged from a state in which no liquid is present in the nozzle hole 6a, a liquid film is formed on the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW, but no liquid film is formed on the liquid discharge plate 24. However, a liquid film is also formed on the surfaces of the wafer W and the liquid discharge plate 24 by discharging the liquid after filling the nozzle hole 6a once. This step 3 may be performed while the wafer W is stopped or while rotating at a low speed.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 8D, the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW and the rotating plate 11 are rotated to move outward along the liquid rotating plate 11 formed between the wafer W and the liquid discharge plate 24. (Step 4). At this time, the liquid discharge plate 24 is non-rotating, and a gap 24b is formed between the rotating plate 11 and the rotating plate 11. Therefore, when the rotational speed of the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW is high, the liquid is It becomes easy to spread along the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW, and hardly spreads to the rotating plate 11 beyond the gap 24b. For this reason, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW at this time is such that the force of dropping based on the weight of the liquid is larger than the centrifugal force. As a result, the liquid spreads on the rotating plate 11 from the liquid discharge plate 24, a liquid film is formed on the rotating plate 11, and the upper surface of the rotating plate 11 is washed by this liquid film. From such a viewpoint, the rotational speed of the rotating plate 11 and the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW is preferably 100 rpm or less, and more preferably 10 to 100 rpm. Of course, even if the rotation speed is such that the liquid spreads on the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW, it is sufficient if a liquid film can be formed on the rotating plate 11 beyond the gap 24b.

  After cleaning the rotating plate 11 in this manner, as shown in FIG. 8E, the rotational speed of the rotating plate 11 and the wafer W or the dummy wafer dW is increased to shake off the liquid on the rotating plate 11 (step 5). ). It is preferable that the rotation speed at this time is 1000 rpm or more.

  When pure water is used as the liquid for the cleaning process of the rotating plate 11 as described above, an appropriate drying process such as gas spraying is performed as necessary after such shaking, and the process ends. On the other hand, when a chemical solution such as SC1 or DHF is used as the solution during the cleaning process, after the shaking, the treatments (a) to (e) in FIG. 8 are performed using pure water as a rinsing solution. Do.

  By cleaning the rotating plate 11 in this way, it is possible to prevent particles from adhering to the back surface of the wafer W as much as possible. Further, since the rotating plate 11 can be cleaned without disassembling the apparatus in this way, the trouble associated with the disassembly of the apparatus and the downtime of the apparatus associated with the disassembly of the apparatus do not occur.

  In addition, in the above liquid processing apparatus 100, there can exist the following additional effects. That is, since the rotating cup 4 is present, the drainage cup 51 may be as small as drainable, the drainage cup 51 and the exhaust cup 52 are provided independently, and the drainage cup 51 In addition, since the exhaust gas is taken in separately and discharged from the drainage port 60 and the exhaust port 70, it is not necessary to provide a special mechanism for separating the exhaust gas / drainage. Moreover, since the drain cup 51 is provided in the state accommodated in the exhaust cup 52, it is possible to reduce the space while having a structure for taking in the exhaust and drain separately. As a result, the footprint of the apparatus can be reduced. Can be small. Further, since the drain cup 51 is accommodated in the exhaust cup 52, even if the mist of the processing liquid leaks from the drain cup 51, it can be trapped by the exhaust cup 52, and the mist of the processing liquid is discharged outside the apparatus. Can be prevented from being scattered and adversely affected.

  The present invention can be variously modified without being limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, a cleaning processing apparatus that performs front and back surface cleaning of a wafer is shown as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a cleaning processing apparatus that performs cleaning processing only on the back surface may be used. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a case where a semiconductor wafer is used as a substrate to be processed has been described. Needless to say, it is applicable.

  The present invention is effective for removing particles and contamination adhering to a semiconductor wafer.

Sectional drawing which shows schematic structure of the liquid processing apparatus with which the washing | cleaning method of this invention is implemented. FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing the liquid processing apparatus of FIG. Schematic which shows the liquid supply mechanism of the liquid processing apparatus of FIG. Sectional drawing which expands and shows the part which has arrange | positioned the rotation plate and liquid discharge plate of the liquid processing apparatus of FIG. Sectional drawing which expands and shows the exhaust_gas | exhaustion part of the liquid processing apparatus of FIG. The figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the wafer process of the liquid processing apparatus of FIG. The flowchart which shows the washing | cleaning sequence of the rotating plate which concerns on this embodiment. Sectional drawing for demonstrating the washing | cleaning sequence of the rotating plate which concerns on this embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1; Base plate 2; Wafer holding part 3; Rotating motor 4; Rotating cup 5; Front side liquid supply nozzle 6; Back side liquid supply nozzle 7; Exhaust / drain part 8; Casing 9; ; Hole 12; Rotating shaft 13; Lifting member 14; Holding member 22; Nozzle holding member 22a; Nozzle arm 24; Liquid discharge plate 51; Drain cup 52; Exhaust cup 85; Liquid supply mechanism 100; Controller 122; User interface 123; Storage unit W; Wafer (substrate)
dW: Dummy wafer (dummy substrate)

Claims (7)

Substrate holding having a rotating plate having a hole formed in a central portion rotatably disposed horizontally and a holding member for holding the substrate integrally with the rotating plate in a horizontal state spaced apart by an appropriate length above the rotating plate And
A rotating mechanism for rotating the rotating plate together with the substrate;
And is arranged so that a gap is formed, a non-rotating liquid delivery plate having a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid between the rotating plate to the rotating plate which is formed in said bore,
A liquid processing apparatus comprising a back surface side liquid supply nozzle that is continuous with the liquid discharge port and supplies liquid so as to discharge the liquid to the back surface side of the substrate through the liquid discharge port. A cleaning method for cleaning,
A step of holding a substrate or a dummy substrate in the substrate holding portion;
A step of filling the back side liquid supply nozzle with a liquid;
Forming a liquid film between the liquid discharge plate and the substrate or dummy substrate by discharging liquid from the liquid discharge port of the liquid discharge plate through the back surface side liquid supply nozzle in that state;
Rotating the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate, and extending the liquid film to the outside along the surface of the rotating plate beyond the gap between the liquid discharge plate and the rotating plate. A characteristic cleaning method.   The step of spreading the liquid film is performed by setting the rotational speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or dummy substrate to 100 rpm or less, and after the step of spreading the liquid film, the rotational speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or dummy substrate is increased. The cleaning method according to claim 1, further comprising a step of shaking off the liquid on the rotating plate.   The cleaning method according to claim 2, wherein the step of shaking off the liquid is performed at a rotation speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate of 1000 rpm or more. Substrate holding having a rotating plate having a hole formed in a central portion rotatably disposed horizontally and a holding member for holding the substrate integrally with the rotating plate in a horizontal state spaced apart by an appropriate length above the rotating plate And
A rotating mechanism for rotating the rotating plate together with the substrate;
And is arranged so that a gap is formed, a non-rotating liquid delivery plate having a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid between the rotating plate to the rotating plate which is formed in said bore,
A back surface side liquid supply nozzle that is continuous with the liquid discharge port and supplies the liquid so that the liquid is discharged to the back surface side of the substrate through the liquid discharge port;
A cup surrounding the substrate held by the substrate holding unit;
A liquid processing apparatus comprising a control mechanism for controlling rotation of the substrate and supply of liquid,
In the state where the substrate holding unit holds the substrate or the dummy substrate, the control mechanism first fills the back side liquid supply nozzle with the liquid, and then in that state, the liquid is supplied from the back side liquid supply nozzle. Is discharged to form a liquid film between the liquid discharge plate and the substrate or dummy substrate, and then the rotating plate and the substrate or dummy substrate are rotated so that the liquid film is formed between the liquid discharging plate and the rotating plate. A liquid processing apparatus, wherein the liquid processing apparatus is controlled so as to spread outward along the surface of the rotating plate over the gap therebetween.   The control mechanism controls the rotational speed of the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate to 100 rpm or less when the liquid film is expanded, and after expanding the liquid film, the rotational speed of the rotational plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the liquid processing apparatus is controlled such that the liquid in the rotating plate is completely shaken by raising the liquid.   The cleaning method according to claim 5, wherein the control mechanism controls the number of rotations of the rotating plate and the substrate or the dummy substrate to 1000 rpm or more when shaking off the liquid. Substrate holding having a rotating plate having a hole formed in a central portion rotatably disposed horizontally and a holding member for holding the substrate integrally with the rotating plate in a horizontal state spaced apart by an appropriate length above the rotating plate and parts, a rotating mechanism for rotating the rotary plate together with the substrate, the gap between the rotating plate to the rotating plate formed within said hole is arranged to be formed, and discharges the liquid to the central portion A non-rotating liquid discharge plate having a liquid discharge port, and a back surface side liquid supply nozzle that is continuous with the liquid discharge port and supplies liquid so as to discharge the liquid to the back surface side of the substrate through the liquid discharge port. A computer-readable storage medium storing a control program for causing a computer to control the liquid processing apparatus provided to clean the upper surface of the rotating plate,
The computer-readable storage is characterized in that, when executed, the control program causes a computer to control the liquid processing apparatus so that the cleaning method according to any one of claims 1 to 3 is performed. Medium.

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