JP5090291B2 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention is applied to substrates such as semiconductor wafers, liquid crystal display substrates, plasma display substrates, FED (Field Emission Display) substrates, optical disk substrates, magnetic disk substrates, magneto-optical disk substrates, and photomask substrates. A substrate processing apparatus that performs processing on the substrate.

  A single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus used in a manufacturing process of a semiconductor device includes a processing unit, an indexer unit, and a container holding unit that holds a substrate container. The processing unit includes a plurality of (for example, eight) processing chambers for storing a substrate and performing processing on the substrate, and a main transfer robot for loading / unloading the substrate into / from these processing chambers. I have. The indexer unit includes an indexer robot that transports the substrate between the substrate container and the main transport robot.

The substrate container can accommodate a plurality of substrates in its internal space. An opening for taking out the substrate is formed on the side surface of the substrate container, and the opening is opened and closed by a lid on the side surface of the substrate container. In order to improve the substrate transfer efficiency, it is desirable that the number of substrates that can be stored in the substrate container is a large number (for example, 25).
When the substrate container is held by the container holder, the lid is opened to open the opening, and the hand of the indexer robot is advanced through the opening to take out an unprocessed substrate from the substrate container. The unprocessed substrate taken out from the substrate container is delivered to the hand of the main transfer robot and is transferred into the processing chamber by the main transfer robot. Thereafter, a predetermined process is performed on the substrate in the processing chamber.

On the other hand, the processed substrate processed in the processing chamber is unloaded by the hand of the main transfer robot, is transferred to the indexer robot, and is stored in the substrate container by the indexer robot. After all the substrates stored in the substrate container are processed and the last substrate is stored in the substrate container, the opening of the substrate container is closed.
JP 2007-95831 A

It is necessary to wait for the opening of the substrate container to be closed until a large number (for example, 24 sheets) of processing is completed after the processed substrate that has been subjected to the predetermined processing is first stored in the substrate container. .
However, when the opening of the substrate container is opened for loading and unloading the substrate, the atmosphere in the indexer section is filled in the substrate container. Since the atmosphere in the indexer portion contains a relatively large amount of oxygen and moisture (for example, in the general atmosphere, the oxygen concentration is 20% or more and the humidity is 20% or more). If exposed for more than a minute, the surface of the substrate may be oxidized and the substrate may be adversely affected.

To lower the oxygen concentration and humidity of the atmosphere in the substrate container, a substrate container in which the opening is in the open state, it is considered that purging with low humidity hypoxic gas (N ₂ gas), such N ₂ purge However, there is a problem that the oxygen concentration or humidity of the atmosphere in the substrate container does not decrease to a certain level or less (preferably, the oxygen concentration is 1% or less and the humidity is 5% or less).
In addition to this method, it is also considered that the opening of the substrate container is closed and the inside of the substrate container is purged with N ₂ except when the substrate is taken in and out. Since the time until the next opening is short, even if this method is adopted, the inside of the substrate container cannot be filled with N ₂ gas. Therefore, the exposure time of an atmosphere with high humidity on the surface of the substrate and high oxygen (hereinafter referred to as a high-humidity oxygen atmosphere) has been prolonged.

  The present invention has been made under such a background, and an object thereof is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of shortening the exposure time of the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere on the substrate surface.

The invention described in claim 1 for achieving the above object includes a processing chamber (10A to 10H) for storing a substrate (W) and processing the substrate, and a plurality of substrates. A transfer chamber (3; 9) through which a substrate transferred between the substrate holder (C) capable of processing and the processing chamber passes, and a substrate holding member (17) provided in the transfer chamber for holding the substrate. ), A facing member (16; 16A) having a substrate facing surface (20; 20A; 13A) facing the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member, and a surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member; the saw including a low humidity and low humidity low oxygen gas supply mechanism for supplying a low oxygen gas (27, 28, 29, 30) between the substrate-facing surface, said substrate-facing surface, which is held on the substrate holding member Opposite the center of the surface of the substrate, the low humidity and low oxygen Central discharge port humidity hypoxic gas from scan feed mechanism is discharged (21) is provided, the substrate processing apparatus; a (1 1B).

In addition, the alphanumeric characters in parentheses represent corresponding components in the embodiments described later. The same applies hereinafter.
According to this configuration, the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas is supplied between the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member and the substrate facing surface of the facing member. Therefore, the space between the substrate surface and the substrate facing surface is filled with the low-humidity low oxygen gas. Thereby, even when a high-humidity oxygen atmosphere exists in the transfer chamber, the surface of the substrate can be blocked from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere.

Therefore, by holding the substrate on the substrate holding unit and keeping the surface of the substrate from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere in the transfer chamber, while processing the other substrate in the processing chamber, The time (exposure time) exposed to a high-humidity oxygen atmosphere can be shortened. Thereby, the adverse effect on the surface of the substrate can be minimized. The low-humidity and low-oxygen gas preferably has an oxygen concentration of 1% or less and a humidity of 5% or less.
Further, since the central portion discharge port is provided on the substrate facing surface, the atmosphere on the central portion of the substrate can be replaced with low-humidity low oxygen gas.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, a low-humidity and low-oxygen gas from the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas supply mechanism is discharged to the substrate-facing surface so as to oppose a peripheral portion of the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member. Peripheral part discharge ports (22, 22A) are further provided, and the low-humidity low-oxygen gas supply mechanism switches the discharge of the low-humidity low oxygen gas from the central discharge port and the discharge stop for the central part ( 30) and a peripheral portion valve (29) for switching discharge and discharge stop of the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas from the peripheral portion discharge port, and the substrate processing apparatus includes the central portion discharge port and the peripheral portion The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising valve control means (35) for opening the central portion valve prior to opening of the peripheral portion valve when discharging low-humidity and low oxygen gas from the discharge port. A.
According to this configuration, the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas is discharged from the central discharge port prior to the discharge of the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas from the peripheral discharge port. Therefore, after replacing the atmosphere on the central portion of the substrate with the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas, the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas is supplied to the entire area of the substrate. Thereby, the low-humidity low oxygen gas can be smoothly filled in the whole surface of the substrate.

The invention according to claim 3 further includes a moving mechanism (34) for relatively moving at least one of the substrate holding member and the facing member to approach / separate the surface of the substrate and the substrate facing surface. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2 .
According to this configuration, the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas can be supplied to the surface of the substrate in a state where the surface of the substrate and the substrate facing surface are brought close to each other. For this reason, the space between the substrate surface and the substrate facing surface can be filled with a relatively small flow rate of low-humidity and low-oxygen gas, and the substrate surface can be shielded from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere in the transfer chamber. . Thereby, the usage-amount of low-humidity low oxygen gas can be reduced and reduction of running cost can be aimed at.

Further, the substrate can be carried in / out with the surface of the substrate and the substrate facing surface being separated from each other. Thereby, a board | substrate can be carried in / out favorably.
The invention according to claim 4 is the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the moving mechanism includes a holding member moving mechanism (34) for moving the substrate holding member with respect to the counter member.
According to this configuration, by moving the substrate holding member, the surface of the substrate and the substrate facing surface can be relatively approached / separated.

  The substrate processing apparatus may further include a hand (6A) that holds the substrate and delivers the substrate to the substrate holding member. By moving the substrate holding member in a direction intersecting the surface of the substrate and moving the hand in a direction along the surface of the substrate, the substrate can be transferred between the substrate holding member and the hand. For this reason, it is not necessary to move the hand in a direction crossing the substrate when delivering the substrate.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the facing member includes a surrounding portion (19) surrounding the side of the substrate in a state where the surface of the substrate is disposed at a predetermined proximity position facing the substrate facing surface. It is a substrate processing apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-4 .
According to this configuration, the surface of the substrate is close to the substrate facing surface. The side of the substrate is surrounded by the surrounding portion. For this reason, the atmosphere on the side of the substrate can be prevented from entering between the opposing member and the surface of the substrate. Thereby, the surface of the substrate can be further shielded from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the transfer chamber is provided adjacent to an arrangement position of the substrate container, and an indexer unit (3 ) for accommodating an indexer robot (6) for taking a substrate in and out of the substrate container. ) comprises, on the indexer, the substrate holding member and the opposing member is disposed, a substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1-5.
According to this structure, the board | substrate holding member and the opposing member are arrange | positioned at the indexer part adjacent to the arrangement position of a board | substrate container. Therefore, by arranging the substrate holding member and the opposing member and the substrate container close to each other, it is possible to shorten the time for transporting the substrate from the substrate holding member to the substrate container. Thereby, the time for which the surface of the substrate is exposed to the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere can be further shortened.

In this case, as described in claim 7, the transfer chamber further includes a transfer path (9) provided between the indexer unit and the processing chamber, and the transfer path includes a shuttle transfer unit ( 7) is arranged, and the indexer robot may deliver the substrate to and from the shuttle transport unit.
According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a plurality of the substrate holding members are provided which are smaller than the number of substrates that can be accommodated in the substrate container, and each of the substrate holding members can hold the substrates one by one. The substrate processing apparatus controls the substrate transport mechanism (6, 7, 11) for transporting the substrate between the processing chamber, the substrate container, and each of the substrate holding members; The substrates are sequentially transferred from the substrate container to the processing chamber one by one, the substrates processed in the processing chamber are sequentially transferred to the plurality of substrate holding members, and the plurality of substrates are transferred to the plurality of substrate holding members. After the holding, the plurality of substrates are held immediately before the substrate processed in the processing chamber is transported to the substrate container and the substrate finally transported from the substrate container is returned to the substrate container. Keep on parts 8. A transfer control means (35) for transferring the substrate from the substrate holding member to the substrate container so that all of the plurality of substrates that have been placed are returned to the substrate container. The substrate processing apparatus according to one item.

  According to this configuration, the substrate held by the substrate holding member is returned to the substrate container immediately before the substrate last transported from the substrate container is returned to the substrate container. For this reason, the substrate can be cut off from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere until immediately before the inside of the substrate container is closed. Thereby, the exposure time of the high humidity oxygen atmosphere of a board | substrate can be shortened further.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to one embodiment (first embodiment) of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view thereof. The substrate processing apparatus 1 is a single-wafer type apparatus that is installed in a clean room and processes substrates W such as semiconductor wafers one by one.
The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a processing unit 2 for processing a substrate W, an indexer unit (transfer chamber) 3 coupled to one side of the processing unit 2, and a processing unit 2 opposite to the processing unit 2 of the indexer unit 3. And a plurality (three in FIG. 2) of container holders 4 arranged side by side. The container holder 4 is for holding the substrate container C, and is arranged along a predetermined horizontal direction (Y direction shown in FIG. 1).

The substrate container C is, for example, a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod) that accommodates 25 substrates W in a sealed state. An opening (not shown) for taking out the substrate W is formed on one side surface of the substrate container C, and the opening is opened and closed by a lid (not shown) on one side surface of the substrate container C. .
The indexer section 3 is formed with an indexer transport path 5 having a length in the arrangement direction of the container holders 4. An indexer robot 6 is disposed in the indexer transport path 5.

  The indexer robot 6 is provided so as to be able to reciprocate along the indexer transport path 5, and can face the substrate container C held by each container holding unit 4. In addition, the indexer robot 6 includes an arm and a hand 6A (see FIG. 6A) that is coupled to the tip of the arm and holds the substrate W, and faces the substrate container C. The hand 6A can be accessed to the substrate container C to take out the unprocessed substrate W from the substrate container C or store the processed substrate W in the substrate container C. The indexer robot 6 is of a double arm type having an upper hand and a lower hand. Further, the indexer robot 6 is located in the central portion of the indexer transport path 5 and accesses the hand 6A to the processing unit 2 to deliver an unprocessed substrate W to the shuttle transport unit 7 to be described later or to transport the shuttle. The processed substrate W can be received from the unit 7.

  The processing unit 2 extends from the central portion of the indexer transport path 5 of the indexer unit 3 in a horizontal direction (X direction shown in FIG. 1) orthogonal to the indexer transport path 5 and communicates with the internal space of the indexer unit 3. A transfer path (transfer chamber) 9 is formed. In the center of the transfer path 9, a double arm type main transfer robot 11 having an upper hand and a lower hand is arranged. In the processing unit 2, eight processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H are arranged so as to surround the main transfer robot 11. The eight processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H are stacked in two stages two by two along the transfer path 2 on both sides of the transfer path 9. Each of the processing chambers 10A to 10H is for performing a common process (for example, a cleaning process using a chemical solution) on the substrate W. The transport path 9 is provided with a shuttle transport unit 7 that mediates delivery of the substrate W between the indexer robot 6 and the main transport robot 11. The shuttle transport unit 7 can receive an unprocessed substrate W from the indexer robot 6 and can deliver the processed substrate W to the indexer robot 6.

  The main transport robot 11 includes a transport hand (not shown) for holding the substrate W, and allows the shuttle transport unit 7 to access the transport hand to receive an unprocessed substrate W from the shuttle transport unit 7. The processed substrate W can be delivered to the shuttle transport unit 7. In addition, the main transfer robot 11 can access the transfer hands to the plurality of processing chambers 10A to 10H, and can transfer the substrate W to and from each of the processing chambers 10A to 10H. Yes.

In FIG. 1, the container holding unit 4, the indexer robot 6, the main transfer robot 11, and the shuttle transfer unit 7 are omitted.
A feature of this embodiment is that eight N ₂ gas chambers 12 are provided for supplying N ₂ gas as a low-humidity and low-oxygen gas to the surface of the substrate W and keeping the surface of the substrate W from a high-humidity oxygen atmosphere. (The number corresponding to the number of processing chambers 10A to 10H). Here, it is preferable that low humidity hypoxic gas its oxygen concentration is less and the humidity of 5% or less 1%, by supplying the low humidity hypoxic gas to N ₂ gas chamber 12, N ₂ gas chamber It is preferable that the oxygen concentration in 12 is 1% or less and the humidity is 5% or less. These eight N ₂ gas chambers 12 are stacked in the vertical direction in the vicinity of the top surface of the longitudinal end portion of the indexer transport path 5 of the indexer section 3. Each N ₂ gas chamber 12 has the same configuration.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the configuration of the N ₂ gas chamber 12. Each N ₂ gas chamber 12 includes a top plate 13 and a bottom plate 14 made of a horizontal flat plate. The top plate 13 and the bottom plate 14 are formed in a rectangular shape, for example, and their four corners are connected by a connecting rod (not shown). The four side surfaces of the N ₂ gas chamber 12 are open. On each side of the N ₂ gas chamber 12 (in FIG. 3, only two of which are shown) passing through openings 15 for the substrate W to be carried in / out the substrate W to the N ₂ gas chamber 12 passes is formed Yes. Since the passage port 15 is formed on all four sides of the N ₂ gas chamber 12, it is accessible from the hand 6A horizontal four directions of the indexer robot 6 in N ₂ gas chamber 12. Therefore, the transfer efficiency of the substrate W with respect to the N ₂ gas chamber 12 can be improved.

The N ₂ gas chamber 12 includes a counter member 16 fixed to the top plate 13 and a plurality of (for example, four) lift pins (substrate holding members) 17 for raising and lowering the substrate W with respect to the counter member 16. I have.
The facing member 16 includes a flat plate portion 18 formed in a disk shape having a slightly larger diameter than the substrate W, and a surrounding portion 19 that hangs down from the periphery of the flat plate portion 18 and surrounds the side of the substrate W. . The flat plate portion 18 is fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 13. A substrate facing surface 20 is formed on the lower surface of the flat plate portion 18 to face the surface of the substrate W held by the plurality of lift pins 17. Substrate facing surface 20 is a horizontal plane in which the discharge ports 21 and 22 for discharging the N ₂ gas is formed.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the facing member 16.
In the central portion of the substrate facing surface 20, one central portion discharge port 21 is formed at a position facing the central portion (center) of the substrate W held by the plurality of lift pins 17. A plurality (for example, eight) of peripheral edge discharge ports 22 are provided at equiangular intervals at the peripheral edge of the substrate facing surface 20. The peripheral edge discharge port 22 is formed to face the peripheral edge of the substrate W held by the plurality of lift pins 17. In this embodiment, the peripheral edge discharge port 22 is arranged slightly inward from the position directly above the peripheral edge of the substrate W.

A description will be given with reference to FIG. 3 again. A central portion supply pipe 23 for introducing N ₂ gas into the N ₂ gas chamber 12 is provided through the top plate 13 and the flat plate portion 18 of the facing member 16. The central supply pipe 23 extends to the substrate facing surface 20 of the counter member 16 and communicates with the central discharge port 21.
The top plate 13 and the flat plate portion 18 of the facing member 16 are provided with a plurality of peripheral edge supply pipes 24 for introducing N ₂ gas into the N ₂ gas chamber 12. The cross-sectional area of the peripheral portion supply pipe 24 is set substantially equal to the cross-sectional area of the central portion supply pipe 23. Each peripheral edge supply pipe 24 extends to the substrate facing surface 20 of the counter member 16 and communicates with each peripheral edge discharge port 22. The discharge ports 21 and 22 are configured so that N ₂ gas can be supplied by the supply mechanism 25.

The supply mechanism 25 includes a first supply pipe (low-humidity and low-oxygen gas supply mechanism) 27 connected to the N ₂ gas supply source 26 and a second supply pipe (low-humidity and low-oxygen gas) branched from a middle portion of the first supply pipe 27. Supply mechanism) 28. In the middle of the first supply pipe 27, an N ₂ valve for peripheral edge (peripheral valve) 29 for opening and closing the first supply pipe 27 is provided downstream of the branch position of the second supply pipe 28. It is intervened. In the first supply pipe 27, a plurality of (for example, eight) branch supply pipes 31 are branched downstream of the peripheral edge N ₂ valve 29. The tip of each branch supply pipe 31 is connected to each peripheral edge supply pipe 24. An intermediate N ₂ valve (central valve) 30 for opening and closing the second supply pipe 28 is interposed in the middle of the second supply pipe 28. The tip of the second supply pipe 28 is connected to the central supply pipe 23.

Thus, the N ₂ valve 29 for the peripheral portion is closed and the N ₂ valve 30 for the central portion is opened, so that the N ₂ gas from the N ₂ gas supply source 26 is supplied to the first supply pipe 27 and the second supply pipe 28. It can lead to the center part discharge outlet 21 through in order.
On the other hand, by opening both the periphery for _{N 2} valve 29 and a central portion for _{N 2} valve 30, the _{N 2} gas supplied from _{N 2} gas supply source 26 to the first supply pipe 27, the second supply pipe 28 Can be supplied to the central outlet 21, and can be supplied to each peripheral outlet 22 via the branch supply pipe 31. As described above, the N ₂ gas discharged from all the discharge ports 21 and 22 passes through the first supply pipe 27, and the cross-sectional areas of the central supply pipe 23 and the peripheral supply pipe 24 are substantially equal. N ₂ gas having substantially the same flow rate is discharged from each of the discharge ports 21 and 22. The flow rate of the N ₂ gas discharged from each of the discharge ports 21 and 22 is about 1/9 as compared with the case where the N ₂ gas is discharged from only the central portion discharge port 21.

  Each lift pin 17 is inserted through a through-hole 32 formed so as to penetrate the bottom plate 14 in the vertical direction, and is provided so as to be movable up and down with respect to the bottom plate 14. The lift pins 17 are supported by a common support member 33, and a lift pin lifting mechanism (holding member moving mechanism) 34 is coupled to the support member 33. By the lift pin raising / lowering mechanism 34, the plurality of lift pins 17 are arranged at a proximity position (a position indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 3) where the tips approach the flat plate portion 18 of the facing member 16, and at the tips thereof a substrate delivery position (see FIG. 3, the substrate W can be moved up and down collectively with respect to a retracted position (a position indicated by a solid line in FIG. 3) where the substrate W is retracted downward from a position indicated by a two-dot chain line.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the substrate processing apparatus 1.
The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a control device 35 having a configuration including a microcomputer. This control device 35 is connected to the indexer robot 6 and the main transfer robot 11. The control device 35 controls the transfer operation of the substrate W by the indexer robot 6 and the main transfer robot 11. The control device 35 is connected with a lift pin elevating mechanism 34, a peripheral N ₂ valve 29, a central N ₂ valve 30 and the like as control targets.

  The hand 6A of the indexer robot 6 is accessed to the substrate container C, and the substrate W is taken out from the substrate container C. The substrate W taken out from the substrate container C is transferred to the main transfer robot 11 by the indexer robot 6 and then transferred into the processing chambers 10A to 10H by the main transfer robot 11. Then, processing (for example, cleaning processing using processing liquid or processing gas) is performed on the substrate W in the processing chambers 10A to 10H.

After the processing for the substrate W is completed, the transfer hand of the main transfer robot 11 enters the process chambers 10A to 10H, and the substrate W is unloaded from the process chambers 10A to 10H. The substrate W carried out by the processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H is delivered from the main transfer robot 11 by the indexer robot 6, and then carried into the N ₂ gas chamber 12 by the indexer robot 6.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing how the N ₂ gas is supplied from the substrate W in the N ₂ gas chamber 12. When the indexer robot 6 carries in the substrate W, the lift pin 17 is in the retracted position shown in FIG. 6A, and the peripheral N ₂ valve 29 and the central N ₂ valve 30 are closed.
The hand 6 </ b> A of the indexer robot 6 that holds the substrate W moves in the horizontal direction and enters the N ₂ gas chamber 12 through the passage port 15. As the hand 6A enters, the lift pin 17 is lifted by the lift pin lifting mechanism 34 as shown in FIG. 6B. The lift of the lift pins 17 causes the substrate W to be detached from the hand 6 </ b> A, and the substrate W is transferred from the indexer robot 6 to the lift pins 17.

After the substrate W is transferred to the lift pins 17, the lift pins 17 are raised by the lift pin lifting mechanism 34 to a close position close to the substrate facing surface 20 of the facing member 16 as shown in FIG. At this time, the gap between the upper surface (front surface) of the substrate W and the substrate facing surface 20 is set to 0.3 mm to 5 mm, for example.
As soon as the lift pin 17 reaches the proximity position, or immediately before or after it, as shown in FIGS. 6C and 6D, the peripheral N ₂ valve 29 and the central N ₂ valve 30 are opened. It is. Accordingly, N ₂ gas is supplied from the discharge ports 21 and 22 between the surface of the substrate W held by the lift pins 17 and the substrate facing surface 10 of the facing member 16. As a result, the gap between the upper surface (front surface) of the substrate W and the substrate facing surface 10 is filled with the N ₂ gas, and the atmosphere has an oxygen concentration of 1% or less and a humidity of 5% or less. Therefore, the surface of the substrate W can be shielded from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere in the indexer unit 3.

In the N ₂ gas supply state shown in FIGS. 6C and 6D, the surface of the substrate W is close to the substrate facing surface 20. Further, the side of the substrate W is surrounded by the surrounding portion 19. For this reason, it is possible to more effectively prevent the atmosphere on the side of the substrate W from entering between the opposing member 16 and the surface of the substrate W. As will be described later, the surrounding portion 19 is not an essential configuration, and even when the surrounding portion 19 is not provided (see FIG. 13), the upper surface (front surface) of the substrate W and the substrate facing surface 20 are separated by a predetermined gap. Therefore, the atmosphere on the side of the substrate W can be prevented from entering the predetermined gap.

Further, N ₂ gas is supplied to the surface of the substrate W in a state where the lift pin 17 is moved to a close position close to the facing member 16. For this reason, the space between the surface of the substrate W and the substrate facing surface 20 can be filled with a relatively small flow rate of N ₂ gas. Therefore, the amount of N ₂ gas used can be reduced and the running cost can be reduced.
Further, the substrate W is loaded / unloaded in a state where the lift pin 17 is moved to the retracted position away from the facing member 16. Thereby, the board | substrate W can be carried in / out favorably.

Further, the substrate W can be transferred between the lift pin 17 and the hand 6A by raising and lowering the lift pin 17 and moving the hand 6A in the horizontal direction. For this reason, it is not necessary to raise and lower the hand 6A when delivering the substrate W.
As shown in FIG. 6 (c) and FIG. 6 (d), the in discharge starting N ₂ gas, prior to the discharge of the N ₂ gas from the peripheral edge portion discharge port 22, N ₂ gas from the central portion the discharge port 21 Is discharged.

FIG. 7 is a time chart showing the discharge flow rate from the central discharge port 21 and the peripheral discharge port 22 when N ₂ gas is discharged.
At the N ₂ gas discharge timing, the central N ₂ valve 30 is opened while the peripheral N ₂ valve 29 is closed, and a relatively high flow N ₂ gas is discharged from the central discharge port 21. (See FIG. 6 (c)). After a middle portion N ₂ valve 30 is opened, for example, when 3 seconds have passed, while a central portion N ₂ valve 30 is opened, the peripheral edge portion for N ₂ valve 29 is opened (see FIG. 6 (d) ). The discharging operation of the peripheral portion for N ₂ valves 29, together with a relatively low flow rate of N ₂ gas is ejected from the eight peripheral portion discharge port 22, the discharge flow rate of N ₂ gas from the central portion the discharge port 21, It decreases to the same level as the discharge flow rate from the peripheral discharge port 22.

And N ₂ gas is discharged from the central portion the discharge port 21, N ₂ after the atmosphere in the central portion of the substrate W is replaced with N ₂ gas, from the central portion the discharge port 21 and the peripheral portion a discharge port 22 to the entire area of the substrate W Gas is discharged. Thereby, the surface of the substrate W and the substrate facing surface 20 can be smoothly filled with N ₂ gas.
Thereafter, when it is time to carry out the substrate W, the lift pin 17 is lowered by the lift pin lifting mechanism 34 as shown in FIG. Thereafter, the hand 6A of the indexer robot 6 enters the N ₂ gas chamber 12, and holds the substrate W from below. When the lift pins 17 are lowered by the lift pin lifting mechanism 34, the processed substrate W is received by the hand 6A. Thereafter, the hand 6 </ _b > A is retracted out of the N ₂ gas chamber 12.

FIG. 8 is a time chart showing the transport state of the substrate W in the substrate processing apparatus 1. In this embodiment, the substrate container C can accommodate 25 substrates W. In FIG. 8, a case where the maximum number of sheets accommodated in one substrate container C, that is, 25 substrates W is processed will be described as an example.
In each of the processing chambers 10A to 10H, the substrate W is processed one by one. These eight processing chambers 10A-10
The processing of the substrate W by H is performed in parallel. Since the processing is performed on the 25 substrates W using the eight processing chambers 10A to 10H, the processing is performed three times on the substrate W in the eight processing chambers 10A to 10H. The substrate W is processed in the processing chamber 10A. The processing time of the processing in each processing chamber 10A to 10H is, for example, 3 minutes.

An unprocessed substrate W taken out from the substrate container C by the indexer robot 6 includes eight processing chambers 10A to 10A-10.
H is sequentially carried into the H through the main transfer robot 11.
In the following description, the substrate W is described with numbers (“1” to “25”) in the order in which the processing in the processing chambers 10A to 10H is performed.

  In the processing of the first (first round) eight substrates W ("1" to "8"), the processing is started in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, and the processing chamber 10C as shown in FIG. The processing in the processing chamber 10H is started latest. When a predetermined processing time elapses, the processing is sequentially completed in the processing chambers 10A to 10H. As described above, since the processing times of the processing chambers 10A to 10H are common, the processing ends in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, and the processing chamber 10C, and the processing of the processing chamber 10H ends most recently. .

  When the cleaning process by the processing chambers 10A to 10H is completed, the processed substrate W is unloaded from the processing chambers 10A to 10H by the main transfer robot 11. The processed substrate W is unloaded in the order in which the processing is completed, that is, in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, the processing chamber 10C,..., The processing chamber 10G, and the processing chamber 10H. In each of the processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H, the processed arm W is unloaded by the double arm type main transfer robot 11, and at the same time the unprocessed substrate W in the next second round is unloaded. After the substrate W is carried in, processing for the unprocessed substrate W is started.

The substrate W unloaded from each of the processing chambers 10A to 10H is transferred to the indexer robot 6 and then loaded into a predetermined N ₂ gas chamber 12 by the indexer robot 6. FIG. 8 shows a state where eight substrates W (“1” to “8”) are carried into the N ₂ gas chamber 12. Then, N ₂ gas is supplied between the surface and the substrate-facing surface 10 of the substrate W with N ₂ gas chamber 12. Thereby, the space between the surface of the substrate W and the substrate facing surface 10 is filled with N ₂ gas, and the surface of the substrate W can be shielded from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere in the indexer unit 3.

  In the next (second round) processing of the eight substrates W (“9” to “16”), the processing starts in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, and the processing chamber 10C as in the first round processing. Then, the processing of the processing chamber 10H is started latest. When a predetermined processing time elapses, the processing is sequentially completed in the processing chambers 10A to 10H. Further, the processing ends in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, and the processing chamber 10C, and the processing in the processing chamber 10H ends most recently.

  Then, the processed substrate W that has been processed by the processing chambers 10A to 10H is unloaded from the processing chambers 10A to 10H by the main transfer robot 11. The processed substrate W is unloaded in the order in which the processing is completed, that is, in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, the processing chamber 10C,..., The processing chamber 10G, and the processing chamber 10H. In each of the processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H, the processed arm W is unloaded by the double arm type main transfer robot 11, and the unprocessed substrate W in the next third round is simultaneously loaded. After the substrate W is carried in, processing for the unprocessed substrate W is started.

In the second round process, the substrate W carried out of the processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H is directly stored in the substrate container C without passing through the N ₂ gas chamber 12. Specifically, the substrate W carried out from each of the processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H is transferred to the indexer robot 6 and then stored in the substrate container C by the indexer robot 6. FIG. 8 shows a state in which eight substrates W (“9” to “16”) are carried into the substrate container C.

  Further, in the next (third round) processing of the eight substrates W (“17” to “24”), the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, and the processing chamber are the same as the first round and the second round processing. Processing is started in the order of 10C, and processing in the processing chamber 10H is started latest. When a predetermined processing time elapses, the processing is sequentially completed in the processing chambers 10A to 10H. Further, the processing ends in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, and the processing chamber 10C, and the processing in the processing chamber 10H ends most recently.

  Then, the processed substrate W that has been processed by the processing chambers 10A to 10H is unloaded from the processing chambers 10A to 10H by the main transfer robot 11. The processed substrate W is unloaded in the order in which the processing is completed, that is, in the order of the processing chamber 10A, the processing chamber 10B, the processing chamber 10C,..., The processing chamber 10G, and the processing chamber 10H. Among the eight processing chambers 10A to 10H, in the processing chamber 10A, the processed arm W is unloaded by the double arm type main transfer robot 11, and the unprocessed substrate W in the next fourth round is loaded at the same time. . After the substrate W is carried in, processing for the unprocessed substrate W is started.

Also in the third round process, the substrate W carried out of the processing chambers 10A to 10H is directly stored in the substrate container C without passing through the N ₂ gas chamber 12, as in the second round process described above. Specifically, the substrate W carried out from each of the processing chambers 10 </ b> A to 10 </ b> H is transferred to the indexer robot 6 and then stored in the substrate container C by the indexer robot 6. FIG. 8 shows a state where eight substrates W (“17” to “24”) are carried into the substrate container C.

In parallel with the storage of the substrates W (“17” to “24”) in the third round of processing, the substrates W (“1” to “8”) stored in the N ₂ gas chamber 12 are the substrates. It is conveyed toward the container C.
The substrate W is sequentially unloaded from the N ₂ gas chamber 12 by the indexer robot 6 and stored in the substrate container C. The transfer of the substrate W from the N ₂ gas chamber 12 to the substrate container C is performed in the order in which the eight substrates W are processed in the processing chambers 10A to 10H. The conveyance timing of the eight substrates W is determined based on the timing at which the fourth substrate W (“25”) described below is accommodated in the substrate container C. Immediately before the fourth substrate W (“25”) is accommodated in the substrate container C, the last substrate W (“8”) to be accommodated in the substrate container among the eight substrates W. It is accommodated in the substrate container C.

In the next fourth round of processing, processing is performed on the substrate W (“25”) in the processing chamber 10A. After the processing, the substrate W carried out of the processing chamber 10 </ b> A is transferred to the indexer robot 6 and then stored in the substrate container C by the indexer robot 6. FIG. 8 shows a state where the substrate W (“25”) is stored in the substrate container C.
After the fourth round substrate W is stored in the substrate container C, the opening of the substrate container C is closed, and N ₂ gas is supplied to the substrate container C. Then, 90 seconds after the opening of the substrate container C is closed, the substrate container C is filled with N ₂ gas.

In the configuration in which the N ₂ gas chamber 12 is not used, the last substrate W is processed during the time (for example, 3 minutes × 3) from the start of the second process in the process chamber 10A to the end of the fourth process. Time (for example, 20 seconds) from unloading from chamber A to storage in substrate container C and purge from opening of substrate container C to filling of substrate container C with N ₂ gas This is the total time (for example, 10 minutes and 50 seconds) of time e (for example, 90 seconds). The upper limit of the oxygen exposure time on the surface of the substrate W is based on 10 minutes, and this reference time is exceeded in a configuration in which the N ₂ gas chamber 12 is not employed.

In contrast, in this embodiment, the exposure time of the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere on the surface of the substrate W (“1”) processed in the processing chamber 10A in the first round is changed from the processing chamber 10A to the N ₂ gas chamber. 12 to a transfer time a (for example, 20 seconds), and a purge time b (from when the substrate W is loaded into the N ₂ gas chamber 12 until the N ₂ gas is filled between the substrate facing surface 20 and the substrate W). For example, 5 seconds), the transfer time c (for example, 20 seconds) from the N ₂ gas chamber 12 to the substrate container C, and the remaining seven substrates W (“2” to “8”) are transferred from the N ₂ gas chamber 12 to the substrate. Total time d (for example, 12 seconds × 7 + 12 seconds) of the time for transporting to the container C and the time for the last processed substrate W (“25”) to be transported from the processing chamber 10A to the substrate container C And the opening of the substrate container C Is the total time (for example, 3 minutes and 41 seconds) of the purge time e (for example, 90 seconds) from when the substrate is closed until the substrate container C is filled with the N ₂ gas. Therefore, the oxygen exposure time reference time (10 minutes) is not exceeded.

The exposure time of the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere on the surface of the substrate W (“9”) processed in the processing chamber 10A in the second round is the transfer time f (for example, 20 from the processing chamber 10A to the substrate container C). Second), the time from the start of the third process in the processing chamber 10A to the end of the fourth process (for example, 3 minutes × 2 + 20 seconds), and the opening of the substrate container C is closed. This is the total time (for example, 8 minutes and 10 seconds) of the purge time e (for example, 90 seconds) until the container C is filled with N ₂ gas. Therefore, the oxygen exposure time reference time (10 minutes) is not exceeded.

As described above, according to this embodiment, in the N ₂ gas chamber 12, the space between the surface of the substrate W and the substrate facing surface 20 is filled with N ₂ gas, and the surface of the substrate W is high in the indexer unit 3. Shut off from wet oxygen atmosphere.
Therefore, by holding the substrate W on the lift pins 17, the surface of the substrate W is shielded from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere in the indexer unit 3, and the other chamber W is processed in the processing chamber 10 during that time. The time (exposure time) during which the surface of the substrate W is exposed to a high-humidity oxygen atmosphere can be shortened. As a result, adverse effects on the surface of the substrate W can be minimized.

Further, since the N ₂ gas chamber 12 is disposed in the indexer unit 3, the distance from the N ₂ gas chamber 12 to the substrate container C is relatively short. For this reason, the time for transporting the substrate from the N ₂ gas chamber 12 to the substrate container C can be shortened.
Furthermore, the substrate held in the N ₂ gas chamber 12 immediately before the substrate W (the fourth round substrate W (“25”)) last carried out from the substrate container C is returned to the substrate container C. W is returned to the substrate container C. For this reason, the substrate W can be shielded from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere until immediately before the inside of the substrate container C is closed. Thereby, the exposure time of the high humidity oxygen atmosphere of the board | substrate W can be shortened further.

In addition, since the eight substrates W that have been shielded from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere in the N ₂ gas chamber 12 are accommodated in the substrate container C before the fourth round substrate W (“25”), the substrates It can prevent that the exposure time of the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere of the other board | substrate W accommodated in the container C becomes long.
FIG. 9 is a front view schematically showing the configuration of the N ₂ gas chamber 12A of the substrate processing apparatus according to another embodiment (second embodiment) of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the facing member 16A shown in FIG.

In the second embodiment, portions corresponding to those shown in the first embodiment (the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 8) described above are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIGS. The description is omitted.
The N ₂ gas chamber 12A according to the second embodiment is greatly different from the N ₂ gas chamber 12 of the first embodiment described above in that the discharge direction of each peripheral portion discharge port 22A is not vertically downward, but is vertical. It is the point which inclines only by the predetermined angle with respect to.

More specifically, the N ₂ gas chamber 12A includes an opposing member 16A formed in a substantially disc shape. A horizontal substrate facing surface 20 is formed on the lower surface of the facing member 16A so as to face the surface of the substrate W held by the plurality of lift pins 17. A plurality of (for example, eight) peripheral edge discharge ports 22 </ b> A are formed at the peripheral edge of the facing member 16 </ b> A so as to face the peripheral edge of the substrate W held by the plurality of lift pins 17. The plurality of peripheral edge discharge ports 22A are provided at equiangular intervals. The discharge direction of each peripheral edge discharge port 22A is along the tangential direction in plan view, and is inclined at a predetermined angle (for example, 60 °) with respect to the vertical direction. The discharge direction of each of the peripheral edge discharge ports 22A is directed in one circumferential direction. In this embodiment, the peripheral edge discharge port 22A is arranged at a position immediately above the peripheral edge of the substrate W, unlike the peripheral edge discharge port 22 of the first embodiment.

By discharging N ₂ gas from each peripheral edge discharge port 22B, an air flow surrounding the side of the substrate W is formed. By this airflow, the space on the surface of the substrate W is blocked from the space outside the airflow. As a result, the atmosphere in the space outside the airflow can be prevented from flowing into the space on the surface of the substrate W.
Further, since the discharge direction of each peripheral edge discharge port 22B is inclined from the vertical direction to the tangential direction, the airflows discharged from each peripheral edge discharge port 22B are compared with the case where the discharge direction is the vertical direction. The interval of is narrow. Therefore, it is possible to more effectively prevent the atmosphere in the space on the side of the substrate W from flowing into the space on the surface of the substrate W.

FIG. 11 is a schematic perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus 1B according to still another embodiment (third embodiment) of the present invention, and FIG. 12 is a plan view thereof.
In the third embodiment, portions corresponding to the respective portions shown in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as in FIGS. 1 to 8 and description thereof is omitted.
The third embodiment is different from the first embodiment described above in that only two N ₂ gas chambers 12B among the eight N ₂ gas chambers 12B are arranged in the indexer section 3, and the other 6 The two N ₂ gas chambers 12B are accommodated in the processing unit 2.

More specifically, two N ₂ gas chambers 12B are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the indexer unit 3 on the top surface of the indexer unit 3. Further, three N ₂ gas chambers 12 </ _b > C are stacked in the vertical direction on the top surface of the transport path 9 of the processing unit 2 and arranged around the shuttle transport unit 7. On the transfer path 9, three N ₂ gas chambers 12 D are stacked in the vertical direction on the opposite side of the main transfer robot 11 from the indexer unit. These three N ₂ gas chambers 12B are arranged not on the top surface of the transport path 9 but on the bottom surface of the transport path 9.

The indexer robot 6 can enter a hand into the N ₂ gas chamber 12B and the N ₂ gas chamber 12C, and the indexer robot 6 can move the substrate W between the N ₂ gas chambers 12B and 12C. Can be carried out / in.
In the N ₂ gas chamber 12D, the main transfer robot 11 has become possible to enter the hand, the main transfer robot 11 performs the unloading / loading of the substrate W between the N ₂ gas chamber 12D be able to.

When the processing of the substrate W in the processing chambers 10A to 10H is completed, the processed substrate W is unloaded from the processing chambers 10A to 10H by the main transfer robot 11. Of the eight processed substrates W carried out of the processing chambers 10A to 10H, three substrates W are carried into the N ₂ gas chamber 12D by the main transfer robot 11. The other five of the eight processed substrates W are transferred to the indexer robot 6, and three of the substrates W are carried into the N ₂ gas chamber 12B, and the other _two substrates are transferred. The substrate W is carried into the N ₂ gas chamber 12C.

When the timing for unloading the substrate W is reached, the substrates W accommodated in the N ₂ gas chambers 12B to 12D are sequentially conveyed toward the substrate container C one by one. Specifically, the movement operation of the substrate W to the substrate container C is performed in the order of the N ₂ gas chamber 12D, the N ₂ gas chamber 12C, and the N ₂ gas chamber 12B farthest from the substrate container C.
The substrate W is housed in the N ₂ gas chamber 12D, as well is unloaded from the N ₂ gas chamber 12D by the main transfer robot 11, after being transferred to the indexer robot 6, this indexer robot 6, substrate container C It is stored in.

Also, with N ₂ gas chamber 12C, the substrate W having been cut off from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere causes the indexer robot 6, it is unloaded from the N ₂ gas chamber 12C, is housed in the substrate container C.
Further, the substrate W that has been cut off from the high-humidity oxygen atmosphere in the N ₂ gas chamber 12B is also unloaded from the N ₂ gas chamber 12B by the indexer robot 6 and stored in the substrate container C.

While the three embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention can also be implemented in other forms.
In the first embodiment described above, the N ₂ gas chamber 12 includes the surrounding portion 19 that hangs down from the peripheral edge of the flat plate portion 18 and surrounds the side of the substrate W. As shown in FIG. May not be provided. In this case, the lower surface 13a of the top plate 13 serves as a substrate facing surface, and discharge ports 21 and 22 for discharging N ₂ gas are formed on the top surface of the top plate 13.

In the third embodiment described above, only a portion of the plurality of N ₂ gas chamber 12 b to 12 d, but the construction of arranging on the conveying path 9 of the processing unit 2 has been described as an example, a plurality of N ₂ The configuration may be such that all of the gas chambers are arranged on the transfer path 9 of the processing unit 2.
Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the unprocessed substrate W is taken out from the substrate container C, and the processed substrate is stored (returned) in the original substrate container C after the processing of the taken-out substrate W. ) As an example, the configuration may be such that the processed substrate W is stored in another substrate container C.

Further, the substrate processing apparatuses 1 and 1B including the eight processing chambers 10A to 10H have been described as an example, but the number of processing chambers may be four or twelve.
In each of the above-described embodiments, the configuration in which the shuttle transport unit 7 is disposed on the transport path 9 has been described as an example. However, the shuttle transport unit 7 may be omitted.
Furthermore, in each of the above-described embodiments, a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod) that accommodates the substrate W in a sealed state is illustrated as the substrate container C. However, in addition to this, SMIF (Standard Mechanical Interface) Other types of substrate containers such as pods and OC (Open Cassette) can also be used.

  In addition, various design changes can be made within the scope of matters described in the claims.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the structure of the N ₂ gas chamber. It is a bottom view of the opposing member shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control system of a substrate processing apparatus. Is a longitudinal sectional view of schematically illustrating how the supply of N ₂ gas of the substrate W in the N ₂ gas chamber. Is a time chart showing the discharge flow rate from the central portion the discharge port and the peripheral portion discharge port during discharge of the N ₂ gas. It is a time chart which shows the conveyance state of the board | substrate W in a substrate processing apparatus. It is a front view schematically showing the structure of the N ₂ gas chambers of the substrate processing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the facing member shown in FIG. 9. FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention. It is an illustration top view of the substrate processing apparatus concerning a 3rd embodiment of the present invention. Modification of the N ₂ gas chamber is a vertical sectional view schematically showing the.

Explanation of symbols

1,1B Substrate processing equipment 3 Indexer section (transfer chamber)
6 Indexer robot 6A Hand 7 Shuttle transfer section 9 Transfer path (transfer chamber)
10A to 10H Processing chamber 11 Main transfer robot 13a Lower surface (substrate facing surface)
16; 16A Opposing member 17 Lift pin (substrate holding member)
19 Enclosures 20 and 20A Substrate facing surface 21 Central discharge port 22 Peripheral discharge port 27 First supply pipe (low humidity low oxygen gas supply mechanism)
28 Second supply pipe (low humidity low oxygen gas supply mechanism)
29 N ₂ valve for peripheral part (valve for peripheral part)
30 N ₂ valve for center (valve for center)
34 Lift pin lifting mechanism (holding member moving mechanism)
35 Control device (control means)
C Substrate container W Substrate

Claims (8)

A processing chamber for containing the substrate and processing the substrate;
A transfer chamber through which a substrate transferred between a substrate container capable of storing a plurality of substrates and the processing chamber passes;
A substrate holding member provided in the transfer chamber for holding the substrate;
A facing member having a substrate facing surface facing the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member;
Look containing a low humidity low oxygen gas supply mechanism for supplying humidity hypoxic gas between the surface and the substrate-facing surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member,
The substrate facing surface is provided with a central portion discharge port that is opposed to the central portion of the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member and discharges low-humidity low oxygen gas from the low-humidity low oxygen gas supply mechanism. A substrate processing apparatus. The substrate facing surface is further provided with a peripheral portion discharge port that is opposed to the peripheral portion of the surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding member and discharges low-humidity and low-oxygen gas from the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas supply mechanism. And
The low-humidity and low-oxygen gas supply mechanism has a central valve for switching discharge and discharge stop of the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas from the central portion discharge port, and discharge and discharge of the low-humidity and low-oxygen gas from the peripheral portion discharge port A peripheral valve for switching the stop,
The substrate processing apparatus includes valve control means for opening the central valve prior to opening the peripheral valve when low-humidity and low-oxygen gas is discharged from the central discharge port and the peripheral discharge port. further comprising, a substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1. Said at least one of the substrate holding member and the counter member are relatively moved, further comprising a moving mechanism for approaching / separating the surface and the substrate-facing surface of the substrate, the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein . The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the moving mechanism includes a holding member moving mechanism that moves the substrate holding member with respect to the counter member. The opposing member, in a state where the surface of the substrate in a predetermined proximity position opposing the substrate opposing surface is disposed, comprises a surrounding portion that surrounds the lateral side of the substrate, in any one of claims 1-4 The substrate processing apparatus as described. The transfer chamber is provided adjacent to an arrangement position of the substrate container, and includes an indexer unit that houses an indexer robot that puts and removes a substrate with respect to the substrate container.
To the indexer, the substrate holding member and the opposing member is disposed, the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1-5.   The transfer chamber further includes a transfer path provided between the indexer unit and the processing chamber,
  A shuttle transport unit is disposed in the transport path,
  The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the indexer robot delivers a substrate to and from the shuttle transport unit. The substrate holding member is provided in a plurality smaller than the number of substrates that can be accommodated in the substrate container,
Each of the substrate holding members can hold the substrates one by one,
The substrate processing apparatus includes a substrate transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate between the processing chamber, the substrate container, and each of the substrate holding members;
Controlling the substrate transport mechanism to sequentially transport substrates one by one from the substrate container to the processing chamber, sequentially transporting substrates processed in the processing chamber to the plurality of substrate holding members, After the plurality of substrates are held by the substrate holding member, the substrate processed in the processing chamber is transported to the substrate container, and the last substrate unloaded from the substrate container is transferred to the substrate container. Immediately before returning, a transport control means for transporting the substrate from the substrate holding member to the substrate container so that all of the plurality of substrates held by the plurality of substrate holding members are returned to the substrate container. The substrate processing apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-7 containing.

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