JP6345988B2 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus that removes unnecessary materials from a peripheral portion of a substrate. Examples of substrates to be processed include 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 photomasks. Substrate, ceramic substrate, solar cell substrate and the like.

Manufacturing processes such as semiconductor devices and liquid crystal display devices require a removal process that selectively removes unwanted materials such as particles and thin films from the peripheral edge (bevel part) of the substrate in order to prevent secondary contamination of the substrate. Done accordingly.
Representative examples of the method for removing unnecessary substances from the peripheral edge of the substrate include a method of supplying a chemical solution to the peripheral edge of the substrate, a method of pressing a brush against the peripheral edge of the rotating substrate (so-called scrub cleaning), and a peripheral edge of the substrate. This is a method of polishing a part.

Patent Document 1 discloses a method in which a sponge brush made of PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) holding abrasive grains is pressed against the peripheral edge of a rotating substrate.
Patent Document 2 discloses a method of polishing a peripheral portion of a substrate by CMP (Chemical Mechanical Polishing) in order to remove a thin film from the peripheral portion of the substrate. Specifically, a method is disclosed in which slurry is supplied to the polishing surface of the polishing drum while pressing a polishing drum around which a soft polishing pad is wound against the peripheral edge of the substrate. Patent Document 2 further discloses a method of polishing the peripheral portion of the substrate using a grindstone having a shape corresponding to the contour of the peripheral portion of the substrate.

JP 2009-238938 JP 2002-313757 A

In the method of supplying the chemical solution to the peripheral portion of the substrate, if the thickness of the unnecessary material is large, the processing requires a lot of time.
In the method of pressing an elastically deformable brush against the substrate as described in Patent Document 1, the brush is elastically deformed, so that the brush cannot be pressed against the peripheral edge of the substrate with high pressure. For this reason, there are cases where it is not possible to remove unnecessary objects that are firmly attached to the peripheral edge of the substrate.

  If it is the method of grinding | polishing the peripheral part of a board | substrate using the polishing drum as described in patent document 2, the unnecessary thing adhering firmly to the peripheral part of a board | substrate can be removed. However, in the method described in Patent Document 2, since it is considered that the contact area between the polishing drum and the substrate is not large, it is necessary to use a plurality of polishing drums when polishing a wide range of the substrate. Actually, in Patent Document 2, three polishing drums are used. If the position of the polishing drum is changed while pressing the polishing drum against the peripheral edge of the substrate, the range that can be polished by one polishing drum may be expanded, but in this case, the mechanism for moving the polishing drum becomes complicated. .

Further, in the method of polishing the peripheral edge of the substrate using a grindstone having a shape corresponding to the contour of the peripheral edge of the substrate as described in Patent Document 2, when the grindstone is worn, the shape of the substrate after polishing is changed. It will change. Therefore, stable quality cannot be maintained over a long period of time.
Accordingly, one of the objects of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus that can polish a wide range of the peripheral portion of a substrate with a single grindstone and suppress or prevent complication of a mechanism for moving the grindstone.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 includes a substrate holding means for horizontally holding and rotating the substrate, and an arcuate vertical section having a radius of curvature larger than the thickness of the substrate (a section cut by a vertical plane). ) And a grindstone including a horizontal portion having a horizontal and flat vertical section, and the grindstone is brought into contact with the peripheral edge of the substrate held by the substrate holding means, and the grindstone is in a certain posture. in viewing including the grinding wheel movement means for moving vertically and horizontally along the periphery of the substrate, the horizontal portion includes a top surface horizontal section for polishing the upper surface flat portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate, the peripheral portion of the substrate A lower surface horizontal portion that polishes the lower surface flat portion, and the grindstone moving means supports the grindstone so that the grindstone can move in the vertical direction, and the support mechanism in the horizontal direction. Move horizontally to A vertical movement mechanism that moves the support mechanism in the vertical direction, and a pressing mechanism that presses the grindstone in the vertical direction toward the substrate held by the substrate holding means, and the pressing mechanism includes the support including the placed actuator in the mechanism, a substrate processing apparatus.

According to this configuration, the grindstone moving means brings the horizontal portion of the grindstone into contact with the flat portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate while the substrate is rotating in a horizontal posture. Therefore, the substrate rotates in a state where the horizontal portion of the grindstone is in surface contact with the flat portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate. Thereby, the whole circumference of the flat part of the peripheral part of the substrate is polished with the grindstone.
The grindstone moving means further brings the curved portion of the grindstone into contact with the inclined portion of the peripheral edge of the substrate while the substrate is rotating in a horizontal posture. Therefore, the substrate rotates while the curved portion of the grindstone is in point contact with the inclined portion of the peripheral edge of the substrate. As a result, the entire circumference of the inclined portion of the peripheral edge of the substrate is polished with the grindstone.

  The grindstone moving means further moves the grindstone in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction while maintaining the grindstone in a constant posture. Since the vertical cross section of the curved portion is arcuate, when the grindstone moves in the vertical and horizontal directions with a constant posture, the contact position between the curved portion and the substrate moves in the radial direction (rotation of the substrate) along the inclined portion of the peripheral edge of the substrate. Move in the direction perpendicular to the axis). Thereby, the part to be polished of the substrate is expanded in the radial direction.

Thus, the grindstone can polish the flat part of the peripheral part of the substrate with the flat part, and can polish the inclined part of the peripheral part of the substrate with the curved part. Therefore, a wide range of the peripheral edge of the substrate can be polished with one grindstone. Thereby, unnecessary objects such as particles and thin films can be removed from a wide range of the peripheral edge of the substrate. Furthermore, since the grindstone moving means only needs to move the grindstone in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction in a fixed posture, it is possible to suppress or prevent the structure of the grindstone moving means from becoming complicated. Furthermore, even if the grindstone is worn, the shape of the substrate after polishing can be maintained only by changing the moving amount of the grindstone.
Furthermore, according to this configuration, since one of the upper horizontal portion and the lower horizontal portion is provided on the grindstone, the grindstone can polish the upper flat portion or the lower flat portion of the peripheral edge of the substrate. When both the upper horizontal portion and the lower horizontal portion are provided on the grindstone, the upper flat surface and the lower flat surface of the peripheral edge of the substrate can be polished with one grindstone. Therefore, a wide range of the peripheral edge of the substrate can be polished with one grindstone.
Furthermore, according to this configuration, the horizontal movement mechanism moves the support mechanism that supports the grindstone in the horizontal direction. The grindstone is supported by the support mechanism so as to be movable in the vertical direction with respect to the support mechanism. When the horizontal movement mechanism moves the grindstone horizontally toward the substrate while the curved portion of the grindstone is in contact with the inclined portion of the peripheral edge of the substrate, a force that moves the grindstone in the vertical direction is applied to the grindstone. As a result, the grindstone moves in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction in a constant posture, and the contact position between the curved portion and the substrate moves in the radial direction along the inclined portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate. As a result, the portion of the substrate to be polished spreads in the radial direction, and a wide range of the peripheral portion of the substrate is polished.
Furthermore, according to this configuration, the vertical movement mechanism of the grindstone moving means moves the support mechanism in the vertical direction, thereby bringing the horizontal portion of the grindstone into contact with the flat portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate. In this state, the pressing mechanism of the grindstone moving means pushes the grindstone vertically toward the substrate. Thereby, the horizontal part of the grindstone is pressed against the flat part of the peripheral part of the rotating substrate with a precise pressing pressure. Therefore, the polishing amount of the substrate can be controlled more precisely.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the bending portion includes at least an upper surface bending portion for polishing an upper surface inclined portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate and a lower surface bending portion for polishing the lower surface inclined portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, comprising one of them.
According to this configuration, since one of the upper surface bending portion and the lower surface bending portion is provided on the grindstone, the grindstone can polish the upper surface inclined portion or the lower surface inclined portion of the peripheral edge portion of the substrate. When both the upper surface bending portion and the lower surface bending portion are provided on the grindstone, the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the peripheral edge portion of the substrate can be polished with one grindstone. Therefore, a wide range of the peripheral edge of the substrate can be polished with one grindstone.

A third aspect of the present invention is the substrate processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect , wherein the grindstone further includes a vertical portion having a vertical and flat vertical section for polishing a tip of a peripheral portion of the substrate.
According to this configuration, the grindstone moving means brings the vertical portion of the grindstone into contact with the tip of the peripheral portion of the substrate while the substrate is rotating in a horizontal posture. Therefore, the substrate rotates with the vertical portion of the grindstone contacting the tip of the substrate. Thereby, the whole periphery of the front-end | tip of a board | substrate can be grind | polished with a grindstone. In particular, the tip of the substrate can be efficiently and uniformly polished when the tip of the substrate is not circular in cross section but linear in cross section.

The invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the curved portion has an arcuate vertical cross section that is convex outward and has a radius of curvature larger than the thickness of the substrate. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1.
The invention according to claim 5 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the curved portion has an arcuate vertical cross section that is convex inward and has a radius of curvature larger than the thickness of the substrate. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1.

The invention according to claim 6 is the substrate processing according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the grindstone moving means includes a rotation mechanism that rotates the grindstone about a vertical rotation axis passing through the grindstone. Device. The direction of rotation of the grindstone by the rotation mechanism may be the same as the direction of rotation of the substrate by the substrate holding means, or may be the direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the substrate.
According to this configuration, since the rotation mechanism of the grindstone moving means rotates the grindstone while the grindstone is pressed against the peripheral edge of the substrate, the contact portion of the grindstone that contacts the peripheral edge of the substrate is in the rotation direction of the grindstone. Move to. Therefore, local wear of the grindstone can be suppressed or prevented. Thereby, the lifetime of a grindstone can be extended.

The invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that the grindstone is a rough grindstone that holds abrasive grains harder than the surface layer of the substrate, and a finishing grindstone that is harder than the surface layer of the substrate and smaller than the abrasive grains of the rough grindstone. It is a substrate processing apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-6 containing these.
According to this configuration, the rough grindstone is pressed against the peripheral edge of the rotating substrate. Thereby, the peripheral part of a board | substrate is grind | polished with a rough grindstone. Similarly, the finishing grindstone is pressed against the peripheral edge of the rotating substrate simultaneously with the rough polishing (polishing with the rough grindstone) or before or after the rough polishing. Thereby, the peripheral part of a board | substrate is grind | polished with a finishing grindstone. The abrasive grains of the finishing grindstone are smaller than those of the rough grindstone. Therefore, the polished substrate can be made smoother.

  “The portion of the substrate polished with the roughing wheel” is defined as “rough polishing portion”, and “the portion of the substrate polished with the finishing grindstone” is defined as “finish polishing portion”. The rough polishing portion and the finish polishing portion may be partially or entirely overlapped with each other or may not overlap. When at least a part of the final polishing portion overlaps the rough polishing portion, the final polishing (polishing with the finishing grindstone) is performed after the rough polishing (polishing with the rough grindstone). In this case, since a part of the substrate is polished with both the rough grindstone and the finishing grindstone, the polished substrate can be made smoother while shortening the polishing time.

The invention according to claim 8 is the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein at least one of the rough grindstone and the finish grindstone includes both the curved portion and the horizontal portion.
According to this configuration, both the curved portion and the horizontal portion are provided on one or both of the rough grindstone and the finishing grindstone. Therefore, the flat portion and the inclined portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate can be polished only with the rough grindstone or the finishing grindstone. Further, when each of the rough grindstone and the finish grindstone includes a curved portion and a horizontal portion, rough polishing and finish polishing can be performed on the flat portion and the inclined portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate. Thereby, the substrate after polishing can be made smoother while shortening the polishing time.
The invention according to claim 9 is characterized in that the horizontal movement mechanism moves the grindstone in a state where the actuator of the pressing mechanism presses the grindstone vertically against the peripheral edge of the substrate held by the substrate holding means. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the supporting mechanism to be held is moved horizontally outward.

It is the schematic diagram which looked at the inside of the processing unit with which the substrate processing apparatus concerning a 1st embodiment of the present invention was equipped from the upper part. It is the schematic diagram which looked at the inside of a processing unit horizontally. It is a schematic diagram which shows the inside of a 1st grindstone moving mechanism. It is a schematic diagram which shows the inside of a 2nd grindstone moving mechanism. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state in which the 1st grindstone and the 2nd grindstone are contacting the peripheral part of a board | substrate. It is a block diagram which shows the electric constitution of a substrate processing apparatus. It is an enlarged view which shows the peripheral part of a board | substrate. It is process drawing which shows an example of the process of the board | substrate performed by the process unit. It is a schematic diagram which shows a mode that a 1st grindstone moves along the peripheral part of a board | substrate. It is a schematic diagram which shows the inside of the 1st grindstone moving mechanism which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is the fragmentary sectional view which looked at the 1st whetstone concerning a 2nd embodiment of the present invention horizontally. It is process drawing which shows an example of the process of the board | substrate performed by the process unit. It is a schematic diagram which shows a mode that a 1st grindstone moves along the peripheral part of a board | substrate. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which the 1st grindstone and 2nd grindstone which concern on 3rd Embodiment of this invention are contacting the peripheral part of a board | substrate. It is a schematic diagram which shows the vertical cross section of the 1st grindstone which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the vertical cross section of the 1st grindstone which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the vertical cross section of the 1st grindstone which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the vertical cross section of the 1st grindstone which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the front of the 1st grindstone which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic diagram which looked at a part of the 1st whetstone concerning other embodiments of the present invention horizontally. It is a schematic diagram which shows the upper surface and front surface of the 1st grindstone which concern on other embodiment of this invention, the upper surface of the 1st grindstone is shown in the upper part of FIG. 21, and the 1st grindstone of the lower part of FIG. The front is shown.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, the substrate processing apparatus 1 is a single-wafer type apparatus that processes a disk-shaped substrate W such as a semiconductor wafer one by one. The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a processing unit 2 that processes the substrate W, a transfer robot (not shown) that transfers the substrate W to the processing unit 2, and a control device 3 that controls the substrate processing apparatus 1.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the processing unit 2 includes a box-shaped chamber 4 having an internal space, a spin chuck 5 that holds and rotates a single substrate W horizontally in the chamber 4, and a spin chuck 5. The upper surface nozzle 9 that discharges the processing liquid toward the upper surface of the substrate W that has been formed, the lower surface nozzle 12 that discharges the processing liquid toward the lower surface of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 5, and the spin chuck 5 And a polishing mechanism 15 for polishing the peripheral portion of the substrate W.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the spin chuck 5 includes a disk-like suction base 6 having an outer diameter smaller than that of the substrate W, and a lower surface (back surface) of the substrate W adsorbed on the upper surface of the suction base 6. A suction device (not shown) for holding the substrate W in a horizontal posture, a spin shaft 7 extending downward from the center of the horizontal suction base 6, and rotating the suction base 6 and the spin shaft 7 to rotate the substrate W. And a spin motor 8 that rotates the substrate W about a vertical rotation axis A1 that passes through the center of the substrate.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the upper surface nozzle 9 is connected to an upper pipe 11 in which an upper valve 10 is interposed. The lower surface nozzle 12 is connected to a lower pipe 14 in which a lower valve 13 is interposed. When the upper valve 10 is opened, the processing liquid flowing in the upper pipe 11 is discharged downward from the upper surface nozzle 9 toward the center of the upper surface of the substrate W. Thereby, a continuous flow of the processing liquid from the upper surface nozzle 9 toward the upper surface of the substrate W is formed. Similarly, when the lower valve 13 is opened, the processing liquid flowing in the lower pipe 14 is discharged upward from the lower surface nozzle 12 toward the lower surface peripheral portion of the substrate W, and the processing toward the lower surface of the substrate W from the lower surface nozzle 12. A continuous flow of liquid is formed.

  The processing liquid supplied to the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12 is, for example, pure water (deionized water). Another example of the processing liquid supplied to the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12 is SC1 (mixed liquid of ammonia water, hydrogen peroxide water, and water). The treatment liquid supplied to the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12 is not limited to pure water and SC1, but may be functional water such as carbonated water, ionic water, ozone water, reduced water (hydrogen water), or magnetic water. Ammonia water or a mixture of ammonia water and hydrogen peroxide, hydrofluoric acid, hydrochloric acid, a mixture of hydrofluoric acid and hydrogen peroxide, SC2 (a mixture of hydrochloric acid, hydrogen peroxide and water), etc. It may be a chemical solution. Further, the same type of processing liquid may be supplied to the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12, or different types of processing liquids may be supplied to the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12.

As shown in FIG. 2, the polishing mechanism 15 includes a first grindstone 16 that grinds the peripheral portion of the substrate W, and a first grindstone moving mechanism 17 that moves the first grindstone 16 in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction in a fixed posture. including.
As shown in FIG. 2, the first grindstone moving mechanism 17 includes a first support mechanism 20 that supports the first grindstone 16, a first grindstone 16 around a vertical rotation axis A <b> 2 provided around the substrate W, and A first horizontal movement mechanism 18 that rotates the first support mechanism 20 and a first vertical movement mechanism 19 that raises and lowers the first grindstone 16 and the first support mechanism 20 in the vertical direction are included. The polishing mechanism 15 further includes a first pressing mechanism 24 that presses the first grindstone 16 against the peripheral edge of the substrate W, and a first rotation mechanism that rotates the first grindstone 16 about a vertical rotation axis A3 passing through the first grindstone 16. 26.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first support mechanism 20 includes a first support shaft 21 that extends upward from the first grindstone 16, a first housing 22 that houses the first support shaft 21 above the first grindstone 16, and A first vertical spring 23 interposed between the first support shaft 21 and the first housing 22 is included. The first support shaft 21 is supported by the first housing 22 via the first vertical spring 23. The first support shaft 21 can move in the vertical direction with respect to the first housing 22, and can rotate about the center line (rotation axis A <b> 3) of the first support shaft 21 with respect to the first housing 22.

  The first grindstone 16 is supported by the first housing 22 via the first support shaft 21. The first vertical movement mechanism 19 moves the first grindstone 16 vertically by raising and lowering the first housing 22 in the vertical direction. The first horizontal movement mechanism 18 moves the first grindstone 16 horizontally by rotating the first housing 22 around the vertical rotation axis A2. The first horizontal movement mechanism 18 has a first position between a retracted position (a position of the first grindstone 16 indicated by a broken line in FIG. 1) and a polishing position (a position of the first grindstone 16 indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1). The grindstone 16 is moved horizontally. The retracted position is a position where the first grindstone 16 is separated from the substrate W in plan view. The polishing position is a position where the first grindstone 16 contacts the substrate W. The polishing position includes a polishing start position and a polishing end position which will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first pressing mechanism 24 includes a first actuator 25 that applies a downward force to the first grindstone 16. The first actuator 25 is an air cylinder. The first actuator 25 may be another actuator such as an electromagnetic actuator. The first actuator 25 is disposed in the first housing 22. The first actuator 25 is disposed above the first support shaft 21. The first actuator 25 includes a first actuator body 25a and a first rod 25b protruding downward from the first actuator body 25a.

  The first actuator body 25 a is fixed to the first housing 22. The first rod 25b is movable in the vertical direction with respect to the first actuator body 25a. The first support shaft 21 can rotate about the rotation axis A <b> 3 with respect to the first actuator 25. The amount of protrusion of the first rod 25b from the first actuator body 25a is controlled by the control device 3. When the protruding amount of the first rod 25b increases, the upper end portion of the first support shaft 21 is pushed downward by the first rod 25b. Thereby, a downward force is transmitted to the first grindstone 16 and the first support shaft 21.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first rotation mechanism 26 is disposed in the first housing 22. The first rotation mechanism 26 includes a first driven pulley 27 that rotates around the rotation axis A <b> 3 together with the first support shaft 21, a first drive pulley 29 disposed around the first driven pulley 27, and a first driven pulley 27. And a first endless belt 28 wound around the first drive pulley 29 and a first electric motor 30 that rotates the first drive pulley 29 about its center line. When the first electric motor 30 rotates the first drive pulley 29, the rotation of the first drive pulley 29 is transmitted to the first driven pulley 27 by the first endless belt 28. As a result, the first grindstone 16 and the first support shaft 21 rotate around the rotation axis A3. The rotation direction of the first grindstone 16 may be either clockwise or counterclockwise.

As shown in FIG. 2, the polishing mechanism 15 includes a second grindstone 31 that grinds the peripheral edge of the substrate W, and a second grindstone moving mechanism 32 that moves the second grindstone 31 in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction. including.
As shown in FIG. 2, the second grindstone moving mechanism 32 includes a second support mechanism 35 that supports the second grindstone 31, a second grindstone 31 around the vertical rotation axis A <b> 2 provided around the substrate W, and A second horizontal movement mechanism 33 that rotates the second support mechanism 35 and a second vertical movement mechanism 34 that raises and lowers the second grindstone 31 and the second support mechanism 35 in the vertical direction are included. The polishing mechanism 15 further includes a second pressing mechanism 39 that presses the second grindstone 31 against the peripheral edge of the substrate W, and a second rotation mechanism that rotates the second grindstone 31 about a vertical rotation axis A3 passing through the second grindstone 31. 42.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the second support mechanism 35 includes a second support shaft 36 that extends upward from the second grindstone 31, a second housing 37 that houses the second support shaft 36 above the second grindstone 31, and A second vertical spring 38 interposed between the second support shaft 36 and the second housing 37 is included. The second support shaft 36 is supported by the second housing 37 via the second vertical spring 38. The second support shaft 36 can move in the vertical direction with respect to the second housing 37, and can rotate about the center line (rotation axis A <b> 3) of the second support shaft 36 with respect to the second housing 37.

  The second grindstone 31 is supported by the second housing 37 via the second support shaft 36. The second vertical movement mechanism 34 moves the second grindstone 31 vertically by moving the second housing 37 up and down in the vertical direction. The second horizontal movement mechanism 33 moves the second grindstone 31 horizontally by rotating the second housing 37 around the vertical rotation axis A2. The second horizontal movement mechanism 33 has a second position between the retracted position (the position of the second grindstone 31 indicated by a broken line in FIG. 1) and the polishing position (the position of the second grindstone 31 indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1). The grindstone 31 is moved horizontally. The retracted position is a position where the second grindstone 31 is separated from the substrate W in plan view. The polishing position is a position where the second grindstone 31 contacts the substrate W. The polishing position includes a polishing start position and a polishing end position which will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the second pressing mechanism 39 includes a second actuator 40 that applies an upward force to the second grindstone 31. The second actuator 40 is an air cylinder. The second actuator 40 may be another actuator such as an electromagnetic actuator. The second actuator 40 is disposed in the second housing 37. The second actuator 40 includes a second actuator body 40a, a second rod 40b protruding upward from the second actuator body 40a, and a second arm 41 extending horizontally from the tip of the second rod 40b.

  The second actuator body 40 a is fixed to the second housing 37. The second rod 40b is movable in the vertical direction with respect to the second actuator body 40a. The second arm 41 moves in the vertical direction together with the second rod 40b. The second support shaft 36 can rotate about the rotation axis A <b> 3 with respect to the second actuator 40. The amount of protrusion of the second rod 40b from the second actuator body 40a is controlled by the control device 3. When the protruding amount of the second rod 40 b increases, the second support shaft 36 is pushed upward by the second arm 41. Thereby, an upward force is transmitted to the second grindstone 31 and the second support shaft 36.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the second rotation mechanism 42 is disposed in the second housing 37. The second rotation mechanism 42 includes a second driven pulley 43 that rotates around the rotation axis A <b> 3 together with the second support shaft 36, a second drive pulley 45 disposed around the second driven pulley 43, and a second driven pulley 43. And a second endless belt 44 wound around the second drive pulley 45 and a second electric motor 46 that rotates the second drive pulley 45 about its center line. When the second electric motor 46 rotates the second drive pulley 45, the rotation of the second drive pulley 45 is transmitted to the second driven pulley 43 by the second endless belt 44. As a result, the second grindstone 31 and the second support shaft 36 rotate around the rotation axis A3. The rotation direction of the second grindstone 31 may be either clockwise or counterclockwise.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the first grindstone 16 has a cylindrical shape having a vertical center line. The center line of the first grindstone 16 is disposed on the rotation axis A3. Similarly, the second grindstone 31 has a cylindrical shape having a vertical center line. The center line of the second grindstone 31 is arranged on the rotation axis A3. The first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are the same kind of grindstone. That is, grindstones having the same shape, material, strength, etc. are used as the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31. Therefore, hereinafter, the first grindstone 16 will be described, and the description of the second grindstone 31 will be omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the outer surface of the first grindstone 16 is disposed at a height between the horizontal and flat circular upper surface 47, the horizontal and flat circular lower surface 51, and the upper surface 47 and the lower surface 51. It includes a vertical outer peripheral surface 49, an annular upper corner portion 48 that connects the upper surface 47 and the outer peripheral surface 49 to each other, and an annular lower corner portion 50 that connects the outer peripheral surface 49 and the lower surface 51 to each other. The outer diameters of the upper surface 47 and the lower surface 51 are both smaller than the radius of the substrate W. Similarly, the outer diameter of the outer peripheral surface 49 is smaller than the radius of the substrate W. The height of the outer peripheral surface 49 is larger than the thickness of the substrate W. Similarly, the heights of the upper corner portion 48 and the lower corner portion 50 are both greater than the thickness of the substrate W.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the cross section of the outer surface of the first grindstone 16 cut along the vertical plane along the center line of the first grindstone 16 is a horizontal flat surface for the lower surface 52 and the outer side (of the first grindstone 16. A curved portion 53 for the lower surface convex in the direction away from the center line, a vertical portion 54 that is vertical and flat, a curved portion 55 for the upper surface that protrudes outward, and a horizontal portion 56 that is horizontal and flat. The lower surface horizontal portion 52, the lower surface curved portion 53, the vertical portion 54, the upper surface curved portion 55, and the upper surface horizontal portion 56 are an upper surface 47, an upper corner portion 48, an outer peripheral surface 49, a lower corner portion 50, and a lower surface, respectively. 51. Both the curvature radius R1 of the lower surface bending portion 53 and the curvature radius R1 of the upper surface bending portion 55 are larger than the thickness T1 of the substrate W and smaller than the radius of the substrate W. The curvature radii of the upper surface bending portion 55 and the lower surface bending portion 53 may be equal to each other or may be different from each other.

  As shown in an enlarged manner in FIG. 5, the first grindstone 16 includes a plurality of abrasive grains 57 that are harder than the surface layer of the substrate W and a base material 58 that holds the plurality of abrasive grains 57. The plurality of abrasive grains 57 are dispersed on the entire outer surface of the first grindstone 16. The size (granularity) of the abrasive grains 57 and the number of abrasive grains 57 per unit area are set to values necessary for polishing the peripheral edge of the substrate W. Further, the base material 58 has a hardness such that the peripheral edge of the substrate W does not bite into the first grindstone 16 when the peripheral edge of the substrate W is polished by the first grindstone 16. In other words, the base material 58 has a hardness that maintains the shape of the outer surface of the first grindstone 16 when the peripheral edge of the substrate W is polished by the first grindstone 16. Specific examples of the material (abrasive material) of the abrasive grains 57 are silicon carbide, alumina, and cerium oxide. A specific example of the material of the base material 58 is a synthetic resin such as PVA (polyvinyl alcohol).

As illustrated in FIG. 6, the control device 3 includes a storage unit 3 a that stores information such as a recipe that indicates processing conditions for the substrate W, and a substrate that is specified based on the conditions specified in the recipe stored in the storage unit 3 a. The processing execution part 3b which makes the processing apparatus 1 process the board | substrate W, and the information reception part 3c into which the conditions replaced with the conditions designated by the recipe are input are included.
The conditions input to the information receiving unit 3c may be transmitted from an external device such as a host computer, or the information receiving unit via an input device (for example, a touch panel) provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1. It may be input to 3c. For example, when the user of the substrate processing apparatus 1 inputs a pressing force or a cleaning width (polishing width) to the information receiving unit 3c via the input device, the value of the pressing force specified in the recipe is replaced with the input value. . Similarly, when the cleaning width is input to the information receiving unit 3c, the cleaning width value specified in the recipe is replaced with the input value.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the peripheral edge of the substrate W has a horizontal and flat annular upper surface flat part, an annular upper surface inclined part that extends obliquely downward from the outer end of the upper surface flat part, and a horizontal flat surface. An annular lower flat portion, an annular lower inclined portion that extends obliquely outward from the outer end of the lower flat portion, and an annular tip connected to the outer end of the upper inclined portion and the lower inclined portion. FIG. 7 shows an example in which the peripheral edge of the substrate W has a parabolic cross section. The peripheral edge of the substrate W is not limited to a parabolic cross section, but may be a trapezoidal cross section (see FIGS. 15 and 16). That is, the upper surface inclined portion, the tip, and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W are not limited to the circular arc shape in cross section, and may be linear in cross section.

  As will be described below, the control device 3 controls the processing unit 2 in accordance with the recipe in order to remove unnecessary materials from the peripheral edge of the substrate W, thereby processing the entire periphery of the peripheral edge of the substrate W. To polish. In FIG. 7, the outline of the substrate W before polishing is indicated by a solid line, and the outline of the substrate W after polishing is indicated by a two-dot chain line. The thickness of the unwanted material is, for example, several tens nm to several hundreds nm. Even if it is thick, the thickness of the unwanted material is, for example, 1000 nm to 2000 nm. The aforementioned cleaning width means the distance in the radial direction (left and right direction in FIG. 7) from the inner end of the region to be polished to the tip of the substrate W before polishing. The unnecessary materials include particles, thin films, deposits deposited during dry etching, etching residues, and the like.

FIG. 8 is a process diagram showing an example of the processing of the substrate W performed by the processing unit 2. FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a state in which the first grindstone 16 moves along the peripheral edge of the substrate W. In the following, reference is made to FIG. Reference is also made to FIGS. 3, 4, 8, and 9 as appropriate.
When the substrate W is processed by the processing unit 2, the substrate W is loaded into the chamber 4 by a transfer robot (not shown), and the substrate W is placed on the suction base 6 with the surface facing upward. (Step S1 in FIG. 8). Thereafter, the lower surface (back surface) of the substrate W is adsorbed on the upper surface of the adsorption base 6. Subsequently, the spin motor 8 is driven, and the rotation of the substrate W is started (step S2 in FIG. 8). As a result, the substrate W rotates at a polishing rate (for example, several tens of rpm to several hundreds of rpm). Thereafter, the upper valve 10 and the lower valve 13 are opened, and the discharge of pure water from the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12 is started (step S3 in FIG. 8). The pure water discharged from the upper surface nozzle 9 lands on the center of the upper surface of the substrate W and then flows outward along the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. The pure water discharged from the lower surface nozzle 12 lands on the periphery of the lower surface of the substrate W and then flows outward along the lower surface of the rotating substrate W.

  Next, the first rotation mechanism 26 starts the rotation of the first grindstone 16, and the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19 move the first grindstone 16 from the retracted position to the first polishing start position. Let As a result, as indicated by a solid line in FIG. 9, the upper horizontal portion 56 of the rotating first grindstone 16 contacts the upper flat portion of the rotating substrate W (step S4 in FIG. 8). Since the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 is horizontal and flat, and the upper surface flat portion of the substrate W is also horizontal and flat, at this time, the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 is the upper surface flat portion of the substrate W. In surface contact. After the first grindstone 16 is disposed at the first polishing start position, a downward force is applied to the first rod 25 b of the first actuator 25 shown in FIG. 3, and the pressing force of the first actuator 25 is applied to the first grindstone 16. Is transmitted to. As a result, the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 is pressed against the upper surface flat portion of the rotating substrate W with a predetermined pressing force specified in the recipe.

  Next, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 moves the first housing 22 holding the first grindstone 16 horizontally outward (step S5 in FIG. 8). As the first grindstone 16 moves outward, the amount of projection of the first rod 25b (see FIG. 3) increases, and the first grindstone 16 moves downward along the peripheral edge of the substrate W accordingly. 9, at this time, the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 is separated from the upper surface flat portion of the substrate W, and the upper surface curved portion 55 of the first grindstone 16 is inclined to the upper surface of the substrate W. Point contact with the part. Further, as indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 9, the first grindstone 16 moves the substrate W while moving the contact position (contact point) of the upper curved portion 55 with respect to the substrate W along the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W. It moves outward along the peripheral edge. Then, as indicated by a broken line in FIG. 9, the first grindstone 16 is disposed at the first polishing end position where the upper surface curved portion 55 contacts the tip of the substrate W. Thereafter, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19 move the first grindstone 16 from the first polishing end position to the retracted position, and the first rotation mechanism 26 ends the rotation of the first grindstone 16. (Step S6 in FIG. 8).

  As described above, the upper horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 comes into surface contact with the upper flat portion of the rotating substrate W with a predetermined pressing force at the first polishing start position. As can be seen from FIG. 9, as the first grindstone 16 moves outward from the first polishing start position, the contact area between the upper horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 and the upper flat portion of the substrate W. Decrease. Then, the upper horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 is separated from the upper flat portion of the substrate W, and the upper curved portion 55 of the first grindstone 16 makes point contact with the upper inclined portion of the rotating substrate W. The contact position (contact point) between the upper surface curved portion 55 and the substrate W moves from the inner end of the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W to the outer end of the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W along the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Then, the upper curved portion 55 of the first grindstone 16 makes point contact with the tip of the substrate W. The first grindstone 16 thus moves along the peripheral edge of the substrate W so as to trace the peripheral edge of the substrate W.

  Since the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 contacts the upper surface flat portion of the rotating substrate W, the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 is rubbed all around the upper surface flat portion of the substrate W, The entire area of the upper flat portion of the substrate W is polished. That is, the surface layer of the upper flat portion of the substrate W is scraped off. A part of the substrate W that has been scraped off is discharged from the substrate W to the periphery together with the pure water supplied to the substrate W. Similarly, since the upper surface curved portion 55 of the first grindstone 16 contacts the entire upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W, the entire upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W is polished. Further, since the upper surface curved portion 55 of the first grindstone 16 contacts the entire area of the front end of the substrate W, the entire area of the front end of the substrate W is polished. In this manner, the upper surface flat portion, the upper surface inclined portion, and the entire region of the tip of the substrate W are polished by the first grindstone 16.

  While the direction in which the first actuator 25 (see FIG. 3) pushes the first grindstone 16 is the vertical direction, the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W is inclined obliquely with respect to the vertical direction. Therefore, when the upper surface curved portion 55 of the first grindstone 16 comes into contact with the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W, the force for pressing the first grindstone 16 against the substrate W in the normal direction perpendicular to the outer surface of the substrate W decreases. On the other hand, when the upper surface curved portion 55 of the first grindstone 16 contacts the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W, the contact between the first grindstone 16 and the substrate W changes from surface contact to point contact. In addition, the contact area of the substrate W is reduced. Therefore, a decrease in pressure at the contact position between the first grindstone 16 and the substrate W is suppressed, and the pressure necessary for polishing the substrate W is maintained. As a result, the entire area of the upper inclined portion of the substrate W is reliably polished by the first grindstone 16.

  In parallel with the polishing of the upper surface portion of the substrate W, the second rotation mechanism 42 starts the rotation of the second grindstone 31, and the second horizontal movement mechanism 33 and the second vertical movement mechanism 34 move the second grindstone 31. Move from the retracted position to the second polishing start position. Thereby, the horizontal part 52 for the lower surface of the rotating second grindstone 31 comes into contact with the lower flat part of the rotating substrate W (step S7 in FIG. 8). Since the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 is horizontal and flat, and the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W is also horizontal and flat, at this time, the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 is the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W. In surface contact. After the second grindstone 31 is arranged at the second polishing start position, an upward force is applied to the second rod 40 b of the second actuator 40 shown in FIG. 4, and the pressing force of the second actuator 40 is applied to the second grindstone 31. Is transmitted to. As a result, the lower horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 is pressed against the lower flat portion of the rotating substrate W with a predetermined pressing force specified in the recipe.

  Next, the second horizontal movement mechanism 33 moves the second housing 37 holding the second grindstone 31 horizontally and outward (step S8 in FIG. 8). As the second grindstone 31 moves outward, the protruding amount of the second rod 40b (see FIG. 4) increases, and accordingly, the second grindstone 31 moves upward along the peripheral edge of the substrate W. At this time, the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 is separated from the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W, and the lower surface curved portion 53 of the second grindstone 31 makes point contact with the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Further, the second grindstone 31 moves outward along the peripheral edge of the substrate W while moving the contact position (contact point) of the lower surface bending portion 53 with respect to the substrate W along the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. . The second grindstone 31 is disposed at the second polishing end position where the lower surface bending portion 53 contacts the tip of the substrate W. Thereafter, the second horizontal movement mechanism 33 and the second vertical movement mechanism 34 move the second grindstone 31 from the second polishing end position to the retracted position, and the second rotation mechanism 42 ends the rotation of the second grindstone 31. (Step S9 in FIG. 8).

  As described above, the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 comes into surface contact with the lower surface flat portion of the rotating substrate W with a predetermined pressing force at the second polishing start position. As the second grindstone 31 moves outward from the second polishing start position, the contact area between the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 and the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W decreases. Then, the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 is separated from the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W, and the lower surface curved portion 53 of the second grindstone 31 makes point contact with the lower surface inclined portion of the rotating substrate W. The contact position (contact point) between the lower curved portion 53 and the substrate W moves from the inner end of the lower inclined portion of the substrate W to the outer end of the lower inclined portion of the substrate W along the lower inclined portion of the substrate W. Then, the lower curved portion 53 of the second grindstone 31 makes point contact with the tip of the substrate W. The second grindstone 31 thus moves along the peripheral edge of the substrate W so as to trace the peripheral edge of the substrate W. Thereby, the lower surface flat portion, the lower surface inclined portion, and the entire region of the tip of the substrate W are polished by the second grindstone 31.

  After the polishing of the substrate W by the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 is completed, that is, after the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are retracted from the substrate W, the upper valve 10 and the lower valve 13 are closed, and the upper surface The discharge of pure water from the nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12 is stopped (step S10 in FIG. 8). Thereafter, the rotation of the spin motor 8 is accelerated, and the substrate W is rotated at a drying speed (for example, several thousand rpm) larger than the polishing speed. Thereby, the pure water adhering to the substrate W is shaken off around the substrate W, and the substrate W is dried (step S11 in FIG. 8). When a predetermined time elapses after the high-speed rotation of the substrate W is started, the rotation of the spin motor 8 and the substrate W is stopped (step S12 in FIG. 8). Thereafter, the holding of the substrate W by the suction base 6 is released. Then, the substrate W is unloaded from the chamber 4 by a transfer robot (not shown) (step S13 in FIG. 8).

  As described above, in the first embodiment, the first grindstone moving mechanism 17 and the second grindstone moving mechanism 32 are configured so that the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 and the substrate W rotate in a horizontal posture. The lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 is brought into contact with the upper surface flat portion and the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W, respectively. Therefore, the substrate W rotates while the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are in surface contact with the upper surface flat portion and the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W. As a result, the entire circumference of the upper flat portion and the lower flat portion of the substrate W is polished by the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31.

  The first whetstone moving mechanism 17 and the second whetstone moving mechanism 32 further bend the upper surface bending portion 55 of the first whetstone 16 and the lower surface bending of the second whetstone 31 while the substrate W is rotating in a horizontal posture. The portions 53 are brought into contact with the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W, respectively. Accordingly, the substrate W rotates in a state where the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are in point contact with the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Accordingly, the entire circumference of the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W is polished by the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31.

  The first grindstone moving mechanism 17 and the second grindstone moving mechanism 32 further move the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction while maintaining a constant posture. Since the vertical cross sections of the upper surface bending portion 55 and the lower surface bending portion 53 are arcuate, when the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 move in a vertical direction and a horizontal direction in a constant posture, the upper surface bending portion 55 and the substrate W Is moved in a radial direction (a direction orthogonal to the rotation axis A1 of the substrate W) along the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W, and the contact position between the lower curved portion 53 and the substrate W is inclined to the lower surface of the substrate W. It moves in the radial direction along the part. Thereby, the part to be polished of the substrate W is expanded in the radial direction.

  As described above, the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 can polish the upper surface flat portion and the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W with the upper surface horizontal portion 56 and the lower surface horizontal portion 52, and the upper surface curved portion 55 and the lower surface curved portion. The upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W can be polished by the portion 53. Therefore, a wide range of the peripheral portion of the substrate W can be polished with one grindstone. Thereby, unnecessary substances such as particles and thin films can be removed from a wide range of the peripheral edge of the substrate W. Further, the first grindstone moving mechanism 17 and the second grindstone moving mechanism 32 need only move the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction in a fixed posture, so that the structure becomes complicated. This can be suppressed or prevented. Further, even if the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are worn, the shape of the substrate W after polishing can be maintained only by changing the movement amounts of the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31.

  In the first embodiment, since both the upper surface curved portion 55 and the lower surface curved portion 53 are provided on the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31, respectively, the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Can be polished with one grindstone. Furthermore, since both the upper horizontal portion 56 and the lower horizontal portion 52 are provided on the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31, the upper flat portion and the lower flat portion of the substrate W can be polished with one grindstone. . Therefore, a wide range of the peripheral portion of the substrate W can be polished with one grindstone.

  In the first embodiment, the first vertical movement mechanism 19 and the second vertical movement mechanism 34 move the first support mechanism 20 and the second support mechanism 35 in the vertical direction, so that the horizontal surface for the upper surface of the first grindstone 16 can be obtained. The portion 56 and the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 are brought into contact with the upper surface flat portion and the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W, respectively. In this state, the first pressing mechanism 24 and the second pressing mechanism 39 press the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 toward the substrate W in the vertical direction. Accordingly, the upper surface horizontal portion 56 of the first grindstone 16 and the lower surface horizontal portion 52 of the second grindstone 31 are pressed against the upper surface flat portion and the lower surface flat portion of the rotating substrate W with a precise pressing pressure. Therefore, the polishing amount of the substrate W can be controlled more precisely.

  In the first embodiment, the first rotation mechanism 26 and the second rotation mechanism 42 are the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone while the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are pressed against the peripheral edge of the substrate W. Since 31 is rotated, the contact part of the 1st grindstone 16 which contacts the peripheral part of the board | substrate W moves to the rotation direction of the 1st grindstone 16. FIG. Similarly, the contact portion of the second grindstone 31 that contacts the peripheral edge of the substrate W moves in the rotation direction of the second grindstone 31. Therefore, local wear of the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 can be suppressed or prevented. Thereby, the lifetime of the 1st grindstone 16 and the 2nd grindstone 31 can be extended.

Second Embodiment In the second embodiment, the shape of the first grindstone and the structure of the first support mechanism are different from those in the first embodiment. 10 to 13, the same components as those shown in FIGS. 1 to 9 are given the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 1 and the description thereof is omitted.
As shown in FIG. 10, the polishing mechanism 15 according to the second embodiment includes a first grindstone 216 that grinds the peripheral portion of the substrate W, and a first grindstone 216 that moves the first grindstone 216 in a horizontal position and a vertical direction in a fixed posture. 1 grindstone moving mechanism 217. The first grindstone moving mechanism 217 includes a first support mechanism 220 that supports the first grindstone 216 in addition to the first horizontal moving mechanism 18 and the first vertical moving mechanism 19 according to the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the first support mechanism 220 includes a first support shaft 21 extending upward from the first grindstone 216, a first vertical guide 261 that supports the first support shaft 21 so as to be movable in the vertical direction, A cylindrical first case 262 that houses the first support shaft 21 and the first vertical guide 261 above the first grindstone 216, and a first vertical spring that is interposed between the first support shaft 21 and the first case 262. 23.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the first support mechanism 220 further supports the first case 262 through the first bearing 263 and the first bearing 263 that rotatably supports the first case 262 around the rotation axis A3. A first holder 264, a first horizontal guide 265 that supports the first holder 264 so as to be movable in the horizontal direction, a first housing 22 that houses the first case 262 and the first holder 264, and a first holder 264. And a first horizontal spring 266 interposed between the first housing 22 and the first housing 22.

  The first support shaft 21 is supported by the first case 262 via the first vertical spring 23. The first support shaft 21 is movable in the vertical direction with respect to the first case 262. The first case 262 can rotate about the rotation axis A <b> 3 with respect to the first holder 264. When the first case 262 rotates around the rotation axis A3, the first support shaft 21 also rotates around the rotation axis A3. The first driven pulley 27 of the first rotation mechanism 26 is attached to the first case 262. When the first electric motor 30 rotates the first drive pulley 29, the rotation of the first drive pulley 29 is transmitted to the first driven pulley 27 by the first endless belt 28. As a result, the first grindstone 216 and the first support shaft 21 rotate around the rotation axis A3.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the first grindstone 216 has a drum shape having a vertical center line. The center line of the first grindstone 216 is disposed on the rotation axis A3. The outer surface of the first grindstone 216 includes a horizontal and flat circular upper surface 247, a horizontal and flat circular lower surface 251, and a drum-shaped outer peripheral surface 249 disposed at a height between the upper surface 247 and the lower surface 251. Including. The outer diameters of the upper surface 247 and the lower surface 251 are both smaller than the radius of the substrate W. Similarly, the outer diameter of the outer peripheral surface 249 is smaller than the radius of the substrate W. The height of the outer peripheral surface 249 is larger than the thickness of the substrate W.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the cross section of the outer surface of the first grindstone 216 cut by a vertical surface along the center line of the first grindstone 216 is composed of a horizontal and flat upper surface horizontal portion 256 and an inner side (of the first grindstone 216. A semicircular curved portion 253, 255 convex in the direction toward the center line), and a horizontal and flat lower surface horizontal portion 252. The upper surface horizontal portion 256, the curved portions 253, 255, and the lower surface horizontal portion 252 are provided on the upper surface 247, the outer peripheral surface 249, and the lower surface 251, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the upper surface horizontal portion 256 and the lower surface horizontal portion 252 are opposed to each other in the vertical direction with a space therebetween. The curved portion includes a lower surface curved portion 253 extending upward from the inner end of the lower surface horizontal portion 252 and an upper surface curved portion 255 extending downward from the inner end of the upper surface horizontal portion 256. The upper surface bending portion 255 and the lower surface bending portion 253 are connected to each other at the bottom of the bending portion. The curvature radius R1 of the upper curved portion 255 and the curvature radius R1 of the lower curved portion 253 are both larger than the thickness T1 of the substrate W and smaller than the radius of the substrate W. The curvature radii of the upper surface bending portion 255 and the lower surface bending portion 253 may be equal to each other or different from each other.

FIG. 12 is a process diagram illustrating an example of processing of the substrate W performed by the processing unit 2. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating a state in which the first grindstone 216 moves along the peripheral edge of the substrate W.
When the substrate W is processed by the processing unit 2, the substrate W is loaded into the chamber 4 by a transfer robot (not shown), and the substrate W is placed on the suction base 6 with the surface facing upward. (Step S21 in FIG. 12). Thereafter, the lower surface (back surface) of the substrate W is adsorbed on the upper surface of the adsorption base 6. Subsequently, the spin motor 8 is driven, and the rotation of the substrate W is started (step S22 in FIG. 12). As a result, the substrate W rotates at the polishing rate. Thereafter, the upper valve 10 and the lower valve 13 are opened, and the discharge of pure water from the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12 is started (step S23 in FIG. 12). The pure water discharged from the upper surface nozzle 9 lands on the center of the upper surface of the substrate W and then flows outward along the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. The pure water discharged from the lower surface nozzle 12 lands on the periphery of the lower surface of the substrate W and then flows outward along the lower surface of the rotating substrate W.

  Next, the first rotation mechanism 26 starts the rotation of the first grindstone 216, and the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19 move the first grindstone 216 from the retracted position to the first polishing start position. Let As a result, as shown by a solid line in FIG. 13, the upper horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 that rotates is rotated while the upper curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 is away from the substrate W. It contacts the upper flat portion of the substrate W (step S24 in FIG. 12). Since the upper surface horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 is horizontal and flat, and the upper surface flat portion of the substrate W is also horizontal and flat, the upper surface horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 is the upper surface flat portion of the substrate W. In surface contact. Further, the upper horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 is pressed against the upper flat portion of the substrate W by the first vertical movement mechanism 19 with a predetermined pressing force.

  Next, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 moves the first housing 22 holding the first grindstone 216 horizontally and inward (step S25 in FIG. 12). As the first grindstone 216 moves inward, the upper horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 moves along the upper flat portion of the substrate W, and the upper horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 and the substrate W Increases the contact area. Further, as indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 13, as the first grindstone 216 moves inward, the upper surface curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 approaches the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W, and Point contact with the top slope.

  The upper surface bending portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 is pressed horizontally against the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W by a predetermined pressing force by the first horizontal movement mechanism 18. Since the upper surface curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 is curved, an upward force is applied to the first grindstone 216 when the upper surface curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 is pressed against the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Therefore, the first grindstone 216 moves upward by elastic deformation of the first vertical spring 23 (see FIG. 10). As a result, the upper horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 is separated from the substrate W as indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 13, in the first horizontal movement mechanism 18, the upper surface horizontal portion 256 of the first grindstone 216 is separated from the substrate W, and the upper surface curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 is the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W. The first housing 22 is moved horizontally and inwardly while being in point contact. The contact position (contact point) between the upper surface curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 and the substrate W is the upper surface of the substrate W along the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W as the first housing 22 moves inward. It moves from the outer end of the inclined portion to the inner end of the upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Then, as indicated by a broken line in FIG. 13, the first grindstone 216 is disposed at the first polishing end position where the upper surface curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 contacts the tip of the substrate W. Thereafter, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19 move the first housing 22 outward and upward to separate the first grindstone 216 from the substrate W (step S26 in FIG. 12).

  Next, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19 move the first grindstone 216 to the second polishing start position. As a result, the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the rotating first whetstone 216 contacts the lower surface flat portion of the rotating substrate W while the lower surface bending portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 is separated from the substrate W. (Step S27 in FIG. 12). Since the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 is horizontal and flat, and the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W is also horizontal and flat, at this time, the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 is the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W. In surface contact. Further, the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 is pressed against the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W by the first vertical movement mechanism 19 with a predetermined pressing force.

  Next, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 moves the first housing 22 holding the first grindstone 216 horizontally and inward (step S28 in FIG. 12). As the first grindstone 216 moves inward, the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 moves along the lower surface flat portion of the substrate W, and the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 and the substrate W Increases the contact area. Further, as the first grindstone 216 moves inward, the lower surface curved portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 approaches the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W and makes point contact with the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W.

  The lower surface bending portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 is pressed horizontally against the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W by the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 with a predetermined pressing force. Since the lower surface bending portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 is curved, a downward force is applied to the first grindstone 216 when the lower surface bending portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 is pressed against the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Therefore, the first grindstone 216 moves downward due to the elastic deformation of the first vertical spring 23 (see FIG. 10), and the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 moves away from the substrate W.

  In the first horizontal movement mechanism 18, the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 is separated from the substrate W, and the lower surface curved portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 is in point contact with the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. The first housing 22 is moved horizontally inward. The contact position (contact point) between the lower surface bending portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 and the substrate W is the lower surface of the substrate W along the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W as the first housing 22 moves inward. It moves from the outer end of the inclined portion to the inner end of the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. The first grindstone 216 is disposed at the second polishing end position where the lower surface bending portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 contacts the tip of the substrate W. Thereafter, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19 move the first grindstone 216 from the second polishing end position to the retracted position, and the first rotation mechanism 26 ends the rotation of the first grindstone 216. (Step S29 in FIG. 12).

  Thus, since the upper surface horizontal portion 256 and the lower surface horizontal portion 252 of the first grindstone 216 are in contact with the upper surface flat portion and the lower surface flat portion of the rotating substrate W, respectively, The entire area of the lower flat portion is polished. Similarly, the upper surface curved portion 255 of the first grindstone 216 contacts the entire upper surface inclined portion of the substrate W, and the lower surface curved portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 contacts the entire lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. The entire area of the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W is polished. Further, since the upper surface bending portion 255 and the lower surface bending portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 are in contact with the entire area of the front end of the substrate W, the entire area of the front end of the substrate W is polished. In this way, the entire periphery of the substrate W is polished with the same grindstone (first grindstone 216).

  After the polishing of the substrate W by the first grindstone 216 is completed, that is, after the first grindstone 216 is retracted from the substrate W, the upper valve 10 and the lower valve 13 are closed, and pure water from the upper surface nozzle 9 and the lower surface nozzle 12 is closed. Is stopped (step S30 in FIG. 12). Thereafter, the rotation of the spin motor 8 is accelerated, and the substrate W rotates at a drying speed larger than the polishing speed. Thereby, the pure water adhering to the substrate W is shaken off around the substrate W, and the substrate W is dried (step S31 in FIG. 12). When a predetermined time elapses after the high-speed rotation of the substrate W is started, the rotation of the spin motor 8 and the substrate W is stopped (step S32 in FIG. 12). Thereafter, the holding of the substrate W by the suction base 6 is released. Then, the substrate W is unloaded from the chamber 4 by a transfer robot (not shown) (step S33 in FIG. 12).

  As described above, in the second embodiment, the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 (see FIG. 2) moves the first support mechanism 220 that supports the first grindstone 216 in the horizontal direction. The first grindstone 216 is supported by the first support mechanism 220 so as to be movable in the vertical direction with respect to the first housing 22 of the first support mechanism 220. The first horizontal movement mechanism 18 moves the first grindstone 216 of the substrate W while the upper surface curved portion 255 and the lower surface curved portion 253 of the first grindstone 216 are in contact with the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. When it is moved horizontally, the force that moves the first grindstone 216 in the vertical direction is applied to the first grindstone 216. As a result, the first grindstone 216 moves in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction in a fixed posture, and the contact positions of the upper surface bending portion 255 and the lower surface bending portion 253 and the substrate W are the upper surface inclined portion and the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W. Along the radial direction. As a result, the portion of the substrate W to be polished spreads in the radial direction, and a wide range of the peripheral portion of the substrate W is polished.

3rd Embodiment In 3rd Embodiment, the structure of a grindstone differs from 2nd Embodiment. In the following FIG. 14, the same components as those shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 13 are given the same reference numerals as those in FIG. In addition, in FIG. 14, the rough grindstone 371 is shown by cross hatching. The same applies to the other drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the polishing mechanism 15 according to the third embodiment includes a first grindstone 316 and a second grindstone 331. The first grindstone 316 and the second grindstone 331 are each supported by two first grindstone moving mechanisms 217. The shape and size of the first grindstone 316 and the second grindstone 331 according to the third embodiment are the same as the shape and size of the first grindstone 216 according to the second embodiment.

  The first grindstone 316 includes a rough grindstone 371 and a finishing grindstone 372 having different surface roughness. Similarly, the second grindstone 331 includes a rough grindstone 371 and a finishing grindstone 372 having different surface roughness. The rough grindstone 371 of the first grindstone 316 is disposed above the finishing grindstone 372 of the first grindstone 316. The finishing grindstone 372 of the second grindstone 331 is disposed above the rough grindstone 371 of the second grindstone 331. Both the rough grindstone 371 of the first grindstone 316 and the finishing grindstone 372 of the second grindstone 331 include an upper surface horizontal portion 256 and an upper surface curved portion 255. The finishing grindstone 372 of the first grindstone 316 and the rough grindstone 371 of the second grindstone 331 both include a lower surface horizontal portion 252 and a lower surface bending portion 253.

  The rough grindstone 371 includes a plurality of abrasive grains 57 that are harder than the surface layer of the substrate W and a base material 58 that holds the plurality of abrasive grains 57 (see FIG. 5). The plurality of abrasive grains 57 are dispersed on the entire outer surface of the rough grindstone 371. The size (granularity) of the abrasive grains 57 and the number of abrasive grains 57 per unit area are set to values necessary for polishing the peripheral edge of the substrate W. Further, the base material 58 has a hardness such that the peripheral edge of the substrate W does not bite into the rough grinding stone 371 when the peripheral edge of the substrate W is polished with the rough grinding stone 371. In other words, the base material 58 has a hardness that maintains the shape of the outer surface of the rough grindstone 371 when the peripheral edge of the substrate W is polished by the rough grindstone 371.

  Similarly, the finishing grindstone 372 includes a plurality of abrasive grains 57 that are harder than the surface layer of the substrate W and a base material 58 that holds the plurality of abrasive grains 57 (see FIG. 5). The plurality of abrasive grains 57 are dispersed on the entire outer surface of the finishing grindstone 372. The size (granularity) of the abrasive grains 57 and the number of abrasive grains 57 per unit area are set to values necessary for polishing the peripheral edge of the substrate W. The base material 58 has a hardness that prevents the peripheral edge of the substrate W from biting into the finishing grindstone 372 when the peripheral edge of the substrate W is polished by the finishing grindstone 372. In other words, the base material 58 has a hardness that maintains the shape of the outer surface of the finishing grindstone 372 when the peripheral edge of the substrate W is polished by the finishing grindstone 372.

  The outer surface of the rough grindstone 371 is rougher than the outer surface of the finishing grindstone 372. That is, the average particle diameter of the abrasive grains 57 of the rough grindstone 371 is larger than the average particle diameter of the abrasive grains 57 of the finishing grindstone 372. The abrasive grains 57 of the rough grindstone 371 and the abrasive grains 57 of the finishing grindstone 372 may be formed of the same type of material, or may be formed of different types of materials. If the surface of the substrate W is harder, the abrasive grains 57 of the rough grindstone 371 and the abrasive grains 57 of the finishing grindstone 372 may have the same hardness or different hardness. Similarly, the base material 58 of the rough grindstone 371 and the base material 58 of the finishing grindstone 372 may be formed of the same kind of material or may be formed of different kinds of materials. Further, if the hardness of the outer surface of the roughing grindstone 371 or the finishing grindstone 372 is maintained when the peripheral portion of the substrate W is being polished, the base material 58 of the roughing grindstone 371 and the base material 58 of the finishing grindstone 372 are used. The hardness may be equal, or the hardness may be different.

The control device 3 (see FIG. 6) controls the processing unit 2 to cause the first grindstone 316 and the second grindstone 331 to polish the peripheral portion of the substrate W as in the second embodiment.
Specifically, the control device 3 moves the first grindstone 316 by the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19 so that the upper surface flat portion, the upper surface inclination portion, and the tip of the substrate W are moved to the first. Polishing with the rough grindstone 371 of the grindstone 316. At the same time, the control device 3 moves the second grindstone 331 by the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19, thereby causing the lower surface flat portion, the lower surface inclined portion, and the tip of the substrate W to move to the second grindstone 331. A rough grindstone 371 is used. As a result, the rotating grindstone 371 of the first grindstone 316 and the second grindstone 331 rotating is rubbed over the entire peripheral portion of the rotating substrate W, and the entire peripheral portion of the substrate W is roughly polished.

  After the rough polishing is performed, the control device 3 moves the first grindstone 316 by the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19, so that the upper surface flat portion, the upper surface inclined portion, and the tip of the substrate W are moved. Is polished with the finishing grindstone 372 of the first grindstone 316. At the same time, the control device 3 moves the second grindstone 331 by the first horizontal movement mechanism 18 and the first vertical movement mechanism 19, thereby causing the lower surface flat portion, the lower surface inclined portion, and the tip of the substrate W to move to the second grindstone 331. Polishing with the finishing grindstone 372. Thereby, the finishing grindstone 372 of the rotating first grindstone 316 and the second grindstone 331 is rubbed to the entire peripheral edge portion of the rotating substrate W, and the entire peripheral edge portion of the substrate W is finish-polished.

Other Embodiments Although the description of the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the contents of the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention.
For example, as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, a finish polishing portion 473 having a shape corresponding to the peripheral edge portion of the substrate W after being polished by the upper surface bending portion 55 or the upper surface bending portion 255 according to the first embodiment. The first grindstone 16 and the first grindstone 216 according to the second embodiment may be provided. The finish polishing portion 473 is pressed against the peripheral portion of the substrate W after the upper surface bending portion 55 or the upper surface bending portion 255 is polished. Although not shown, the finish polishing portion 473 having a shape corresponding to the peripheral edge portion of the substrate W after polishing by the lower surface bending portion 53 or the lower surface bending portion 253 includes the first grindstone 16 according to the first embodiment, The first grindstone 216 according to the second embodiment may be provided.

  As shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, the capture recess 474 that captures the polishing scraps scraped from the substrate W includes the first grindstone 16 according to the first embodiment and the first grindstone 216 according to the second embodiment. And may be provided. By providing the capture recess 474, the polishing debris can be removed from the contact position between the first grindstone 16 and the first grindstone 216 and the substrate W, so that the peripheral portion of the substrate W can be efficiently polished.

In the second embodiment, the upper curved portion 255 and the lower curved portion 253 are continuous. However, the upper curved portion 255 and the lower curved portion 253 may not be continuous. For example, as shown in FIG. 19, the upper part of the first grindstone 216 shown in FIG. 11 may be arranged below the lower part of the first grindstone 216 shown in FIG.
Moreover, although 2nd Embodiment demonstrated the case where the depth of the curved parts 253 and 255 was constant over the perimeter of the 1st grindstone 216, the depth of a curved part is continuous according to the position of the circumferential direction. It may have changed.

  In the third embodiment, each of the rough grindstone 371 and the finishing grindstone 372 includes a horizontal portion (the upper surface horizontal portion 256 or the lower surface horizontal portion 252) and a curved portion (the upper surface curved portion 255 or the lower surface curved portion 253). However, the rough grindstone 371 may include only one of the horizontal portion and the curved portion. Similarly, the finishing grindstone 372 may include only one of the horizontal portion and the curved portion.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 20, the upper surface horizontal portion 256 may be formed of a finishing grindstone 372, and the upper surface bending portion 255 may be formed of a rough grindstone 371. The amount of polishing debris removed from the substrate W during polishing is usually larger in rough polishing than in final polishing. Accordingly, in this case, the amount of polishing dust generated from the upper flat portion of the substrate W is reduced, so that it is possible to prevent the polishing dust from being scattered in a region (for example, a device formation region) inside the upper flat portion of the substrate W. Or it can be prevented. Further, since the upper inclined portion of the substrate W is polished with the rough grindstone 371, the polishing time can be shortened compared with the case where the same amount is polished by the final polishing.

  Moreover, in 3rd Embodiment, although the upper part of the 1st grindstone 316 was comprised with the rough grindstone 371 and the lower side part of the 1st grindstone 316 was demonstrated with the finishing grindstone 372, it shows in FIG. As described above, the right side portion of the first grindstone 316 may be composed of the rough grindstone 371, and the left side portion of the first grindstone 316 may be composed of the finishing grindstone 372. The right side portion of the first grindstone 316 means one portion obtained by dividing the first grindstone 316 into two equal parts on the vertical plane along the center line of the first grindstone 316, and the left side portion of the first grindstone 316 is the first portion. It means the other part of the first grindstone 316 divided into two equal parts on a vertical plane along the center line of the grindstone 316.

In the third embodiment, the case where the entire upper surface horizontal portion 256 is configured by one of the rough grindstone 371 and the finishing grindstone 372 has been described. However, the upper surface horizontal portion 256 includes the rough grindstone 371 and the finishing grindstone. 372 may be configured. The same applies to the upper curved portion 255, the lower curved portion 253, and the lower horizontal portion 252.
In the first embodiment, the upper surface horizontal portion 56, the upper surface bending portion 55, the lower surface bending portion 53, and the lower surface horizontal portion 52 are provided on each of the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31. As described above, only the upper horizontal portion 56 and the upper curved portion 55 may be provided on the first grindstone 16, and only the lower horizontal portion 52 and the lower curved portion 53 may be provided on the second grindstone 31. . That is, the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 may have different shapes.

In the first embodiment, the case where the peripheral portion of the substrate W is polished with the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 has been described. However, the upper surface flat portion, the upper surface inclined portion, the tip, the lower surface inclined portion of the substrate W, and The lower flat portion may be polished with only one of the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31.
In the first embodiment, the case where the tip of the substrate W is polished by the bending portion (the upper surface bending portion 55 or the lower surface bending portion 53) has been described. However, the substrate is formed by the vertical portion 54 having a vertical and flat vertical section. The tip of W may be polished. Specifically, the vertical portion 54 of the first grindstone 16 shown in FIG. 5 may be pressed against the tip of the substrate W. As shown in FIG. 16, the vertical portion 54 provided on the first grindstone 216 according to the second embodiment may be pressed against the tip of the substrate W.

Moreover, although 1st Embodiment demonstrated the case where the 1st horizontal movement mechanism 18 was a rotation mechanism which rotates the 1st grindstone 16 and the 1st support mechanism 20 around the vertical rotation axis A2, The 1 horizontal movement mechanism 18 may be a slide mechanism that translates the first grindstone 16 and the first support mechanism 20 in the horizontal direction. The same applies to the second horizontal movement mechanism 33.
In the first embodiment, the case where the polishing mechanism 15 includes the first pressing mechanism 24 and the second pressing mechanism 39 has been described. However, at least one of the first pressing mechanism 24 and the second pressing mechanism 39 is omitted. May be. Further, the first pressing mechanism 24 according to the first embodiment may be provided in the polishing mechanism 15 according to the second embodiment, and the first grindstone 216 according to the second embodiment may be pressed in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction.

  In the first embodiment, the case where the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are pressed against the peripheral edge of the substrate W while rotating around the rotation axis A3 has been described. However, the first grindstone 16 and the second grindstone 31 are rotated. It may be pressed against the peripheral edge of the substrate W in a state where it is not. That is, at least one of the first rotation mechanism 26 and the second rotation mechanism 42 may be omitted. The same applies to the second and third embodiments.

It is also possible to configure the grindstone according to the present invention using a brush with high hardness. Examples of such a brush having high hardness include a brush having at least a portion harder than an unnecessary object to be polished existing in the substrate bevel portion or a surface layer portion of the substrate bevel portion at the tip portion of the brush.
In the above-described embodiment, the case where the substrate processing apparatus is an apparatus that processes a disk-shaped substrate has been described. However, the substrate processing apparatus may be an apparatus that processes a polygonal substrate.

  Further, two or more of all the embodiments described above may be combined.

1: Substrate processing apparatus 5: Spin chuck (substrate holding means)
15: Polishing mechanism 16: First grinding wheel (grinding wheel)
17: 1st whetstone moving mechanism (whetstone moving means)
18: First horizontal movement mechanism (horizontal movement mechanism)
19: First vertical movement mechanism (vertical movement mechanism)
20: First support mechanism (support mechanism)
24: First pressing mechanism (pressing mechanism)
26: First rotation mechanism (rotation mechanism)
31: Second grinding wheel (grinding wheel)
32: Second whetstone moving mechanism (whetstone moving means)
33: Second horizontal movement mechanism (horizontal movement mechanism)
34: Second vertical movement mechanism (vertical movement mechanism)
35: Second support mechanism (support mechanism)
39: Second pressing mechanism (pressing mechanism)
42: Second rotation mechanism (rotation mechanism)
52: Horizontal portion for lower surface (horizontal portion)
53: Curved portion for lower surface (curved portion)
54: Vertical portion 55: Upper surface bending portion (curving portion)
56: Horizontal portion for upper surface (horizontal portion)
57: Abrasive grain 58: Base material 216: First grinding wheel (grinding stone)
217: First whetstone moving mechanism (whetstone moving means)
220: First support mechanism (support mechanism)
252: Horizontal portion for lower surface (horizontal portion)
253: Curved portion for lower surface (curved portion)
255: Curved portion for upper surface (curved portion)
256: Horizontal portion for upper surface (horizontal portion)
316: 1st grindstone (grindstone)
331: Second whetstone (whetstone)
371: Roughing wheel 372: Finishing wheel R1: Curvature radius T1: Substrate thickness W: Substrate

Claims (9)

Substrate holding means for horizontally holding and rotating the substrate;
A grindstone including a curved portion having an arcuate vertical cross section having a radius of curvature larger than the thickness of the substrate, and a horizontal portion having a horizontal and flat vertical cross section,
Wherein while contacting the grinding wheel on the periphery of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, seen including a grinding wheel movement means for moving the grinding wheel in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction along the peripheral edge of the substrate at a constant posture ,
The horizontal portion includes at least one of an upper surface horizontal portion that polishes the upper surface flat portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate and a lower surface horizontal portion that polishes the lower surface flat portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate,
The grindstone moving means includes a support mechanism that supports the grindstone so that the grindstone can move in the vertical direction, a horizontal movement mechanism that moves the support mechanism in the horizontal direction, and a vertical movement that moves the support mechanism in the vertical direction. A mechanism, and a pressing mechanism that pushes the grindstone vertically toward the substrate held by the substrate holding means,
The pressing mechanism including the arranged actuators in the support mechanism, the substrate processing apparatus.   2. The curved portion includes at least one of a curved portion for an upper surface that polishes an upper inclined portion of a peripheral portion of the substrate and a curved portion for a lower surface that polishes a lower inclined portion of the peripheral portion of the substrate. Substrate processing equipment. The grinding wheel further includes a vertical portion having a vertical flat vertical cross section of polishing a distal end of the peripheral portion of the substrate, the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. The curved portion is convex outwardly, the radius of curvature has a large arc-shaped vertical cross-section than the thickness of the substrate, the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1-3. The curved portion is convex inwardly, the curvature radius has a large arc-shaped vertical cross-section than the thickness of the substrate, the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1-3. Said grinding wheel movement means comprises a rotation mechanism for rotating the grinding wheel to vertical rotation about an axis passing through the grinding wheel, the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1-5. The grindstone includes a rough grindstone for holding the hard abrasive grains than the surface layer of the substrate, and a finishing grindstone for retaining the smaller abrasive grains than the abrasive grains of hard the rough grindstone than the surface layer of the substrate, according to claim 1 to 6 The substrate processing apparatus as described in any one of these. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein at least one of the rough grindstone and the finishing grindstone includes both the curved portion and the horizontal portion.   The horizontal movement mechanism horizontally removes the support mechanism that holds the grindstone while the actuator of the pressing mechanism presses the grindstone vertically against the peripheral edge of the substrate held by the substrate holding means. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, which is moved toward the substrate.

Images