JPH05251420A - Cleaning equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enhance cleaning efficiency of an object to be cleaned by uniformly straightening the flow of cleaning liquid. CONSTITUTION:A straightening means 5 having a cleaning liquid introducing passage 12 and a bubble escaping passage 13 is formed between a cleaning liquid supply port 2 located at the lower part of a processing tank 1 and a wafer A arranged in the tank 1. The straightening means 5 is constituted of a central straightener 5a disposed above the cleaning liquid supply port 2, and side straighteners 5b extending laterally, while inclining at an angle theta above the central straightener 5a, on the opposite sides of the central straightener 5a through the cleaning liquid introducing passage 12 and forming the bubble escaping passage 13 between the side straightener 5b and the tank 1. According to the constitution, cleaning liquid C fed through the supply port 2 into the tank 1 is distributed to the right and left through the central straightener 5a and passes through the cleaning liquid introducing passage 12 while being straightened. Thus straightened cleaning liquid C then concentrates uniformly to the inner wafer side and cleans the wafer A.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a semiconductor wafer manufacturing process, a cleaning process for removing dust and the like adhering to the semiconductor wafer is considered to be one of the important steps. In the cleaning solution
A method of cleaning the surface of an object to be processed by immersing the object to be processed arranged in rows at appropriate intervals is widely adopted.

A conventional cleaning processing apparatus of this kind is provided with a supply port for a cleaning processing liquid at a lower portion of a processing tank, and the cleaning processing liquid supply port is provided between the cleaning processing liquid supply port and an object to be processed contained in the processing tank. A large number of small holes are formed in the rectifying plate made of, for example, a quartz plate, and the cleaning treatment liquid supplied from the cleaning treatment liquid supply port into the processing tank is dispersed by the small holes in the rectification plate. However, the structure is such that the surface of the object to be processed is cleaned (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 58-58).
-48423, JP-A-58-66333,
JP-A-61-59838 and JP-A-63-152
237).

[0004]

However, in the conventional cleaning processing apparatus of this type, since the cleaning processing liquid is rectified by a large number of small holes formed in the straightening plate, the size of the small holes is small. There is a problem that it is difficult to evenly rectify the cleaning treatment liquid unless the positions, numbers, etc. are set strictly, and the air bubbles that have passed through the small holes adhere to the treatment object, resulting in the quality of the treatment object. There was also a fear that this would lead to a decrease in
Further, when a large number of holes are formed in a rectifying plate made of a quartz plate, there are problems that the process is troublesome and the cost is high.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning processing apparatus which uniformly rectifies the cleaning processing liquid and improves the cleaning processing efficiency of the object to be processed. is there.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the cleaning apparatus of the present invention allows the surface of the object to be processed by immersing the object in the cleaning solution contained in the processing tank. In a cleaning processing apparatus for cleaning, a rectification having a supply port for a cleaning processing liquid at a lower portion of the processing tank, and having a flow path for introducing a cleaning processing liquid and a bubble removing flow path between the supply port and an object to be processed. It is formed by forming means.

In the present invention, if the rectifying means has a cleaning treatment liquid guiding passage and a bubble removing passage,
Although it may be formed by a single flow straightening plate, it is preferable that the flow straightening means is a central straightening plate located above the cleaning processing liquid supply port, and the cleaning processing liquid guiding flow path is provided above both sides of the central straightening plate. It is better to be configured by a side straightening vane that has a dihedral angle and that extends laterally through the above and forms a bubble removal channel with the processing tank. In this case, one side flow plate may be provided on each side, or the side flow plate may be formed of a plurality of flow plates arranged in a stepwise manner with respect to each other through the cleaning treatment liquid guiding passages. It may be the one.

The side straightening vane may have a flat plate shape, but it is preferable that the side straightening vane is formed with an arc portion for guiding the cleaning treatment liquid at the central side portion.

[0009]

With the above configuration, the cleaning treatment liquid supplied from the cleaning treatment liquid supply port into the processing tank is rectified by passing through the cleaning treatment liquid guide passage, and the surface of the object is treated. And is used for cleaning the object to be processed.
Further, the bubbles contained in the cleaning treatment liquid pass through the bubble removal channel and are guided to the position where the object to be treated does not exist. Therefore, the laminar flow of the cleaning treatment liquid can be concentrated inside, and the cleaning treatment liquid can be uniformly supplied to the surface of the target object. Moreover, since the bubbles in the cleaning treatment liquid can be discharged laterally, they do not adhere to the object to be treated.

In addition, the rectifying means is provided with a central rectifying plate located above the cleaning treatment liquid supply port, and laterally extending above both sides of the central rectifying plate through a cleaning treatment liquid guide passage. By configuring with a side rectifying plate having a dihedral angle that forms a bubble removal flow channel with the processing tank, it is not necessary to form small holes for the cleaning treatment liquid flow channel in the rectifying plate, and rectification is possible. The means can be easily arranged in the processing tank. In this case, the side straightening vanes are formed of a plurality of straightening vanes that are arranged in a stepwise manner through the washing treatment liquid guiding passages, so that the washing treatment liquid that is evenly rectified is treated. Can be supplied to.

Further, the flow of the cleaning treatment liquid can be further rectified by forming the cleaning treatment liquid guiding arc portion on the central side portion of the side rectifying plate.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

First Embodiment FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a first embodiment of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional perspective view of the main part thereof.

In the cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention, a processing tank 1 having a cleaning processing solution supply port 2 at the bottom and a semiconductor wafer A (hereinafter referred to as a wafer) which is an object to be processed in the processing tank 1 are appropriately spaced. A plurality of wafers A are provided between the wafer holding arm 3 and the wafer holding arm 3 that can be raised and lowered in a row and held.
And a transfer arm 4 capable of moving up and down, and a rectifying means 5 arranged between the supply port 2 in the processing tank 1 and the wafer A,
A circulation pump 6 that circulates and supplies the cleaning treatment liquid C, such as pure water, which has been supplied into the treatment tank 1 and overflowed.
The main part consists of and.

The processing tank 1 is composed of an inner tank 7 for containing the cleaning processing liquid C, and an outer tank 8 provided on the outer periphery of the upper portion of the inner tank 7 for receiving the cleaning processing liquid C overflowing from the inner tank 7. The entire box is shaped like a box. In addition, a circulation pump 6 and a filter 11 are connected in a circulation line 10 connected to a drain port 9 provided at the bottom of the outer tank 8 and a supply port 2 provided at the bottom of the inner tank 7. There is.

The rectifying means 5 extends sideways through the cleaning treatment liquid guiding passage 12 above the central rectifying plate 5a located above the supply port 2 and both sides of the central rectifying plate 5a. It is composed of two side straightening vanes 5b having a dihedral angle θ that forms a bubble removing channel 13 between the inner tank 7 and the side surface thereof. In this case, the width of the cleaning treatment liquid guide channel 12 is about 5
It is set to 10 mm, and the width of the bubble removal channel 13 is about 1-2 mm.
Is set to. Further, the central rectifying plate 5a and the side rectifying plate 5b are formed of a rectangular plate member having chemical resistance, such as a quartz plate or a fluororesin plate. Also,
The central straightening vanes 5a are arranged at the bottom of the inner tank 7 by legs (not shown) fixed to appropriate positions on the bottom surface of the central straightening vanes 5a, and the side straightening vanes 5b are connected to the central straightening vanes 5a via spacers (not shown). The cleaning treatment liquid guiding flow path 12 is formed between them.

The wafer holding arm 3 is formed by arranging a large number of arcuate holding grooves 3a for holding the arcuate surface of the wafer A, and is arranged so as to be able to move up and down in the processing tank 1 by an elevator (not shown). There is. The transfer arm 4 that controls the transfer of the wafer A to and from the wafer holding arm 3 is a wafer holding arm 3.
Is formed in a fork shape having two holding arms 4a located on both sides of the holding arm 4a, and a large number of arcuate holding grooves 4b for holding the wafer A are provided in each holding arm 4a. The transfer arm 4 is also arranged to be movable up and down in the processing tank 1 by a lifting device (not shown) at a position where it does not interfere with the wafer holding arm 3. In order to transfer the wafer A between the wafer holding arm 3 and the transfer arm 4 configured as described above, the transfer arm 4 holding the wafer A with respect to the fixed wafer holding arm 3 is lowered. , The wafer A can be transferred to the wafer holding arm 3, and the wafer A held by the wafer holding arm 3 can be transferred to the transfer arm 4 by moving the transfer arm to a position below the wafer holding arm 3. Wafer A on wafer holding arm 3 can be transferred to transfer arm 4 by raising 4.

Above the processing tank 1, a wafer confirmation / detection device for detecting whether or not the wafer A is reliably held when the wafer A is transferred between the wafer holding arm 3 and the transfer arm 4. 14 are provided. The wafer confirmation / detection device 14 is formed of, for example, a light emitting portion 15 formed by a light emitting element arranged on one of the opposite sides of the processing tank 1 and a light receiving element arranged on the opposite side. And a light receiving section 16 that According to the wafer confirmation / detection device 14 thus configured, the holding groove 3 a of the wafer holding arm 3 or the holding groove 4 of the transfer arm 4 is used when the wafer A is transferred.
If the wafer A is not securely held on the wafer b,
Is lifted or is excessively inclined, this state can be detected by the deviation of the orientation flat B of the wafer A, and the falling of the wafer A and the contact between the wafers can be prevented.

In the cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention configured as described above, in order to perform the wafer A cleaning processing, first,
The wafer A held by the transfer arm 4 is transferred to the wafer holding arm 3, and the wafer holding arm 3 is lowered to place the wafer A in the processing tank 1. And the circulation pump 6
Is driven to supply the cleaning treatment liquid C from the not-shown cleaning treatment liquid supply source into the inner tank 7 through the supply port 2. The cleaning treatment liquid C supplied from the supply port 2 to the inner tank 7 is distributed to the left and right by the central rectifying plate 5a of the rectifying means 5, and then passes through the cleaning treatment liquid guiding flow passage 12 to increase the flow rate by the ejector effect. Is rectified and uniformly supplied to the surface of the wafer A to be used for cleaning the surface of the wafer A. Also,
The air contained in the cleaning treatment liquid C is deflated in advance by the filter 11, but the air remaining in the supplied cleaning treatment liquid C is the dihedral angle θ of the side rectifying plate 5b of the rectifying means 5.
There is no possibility that air bubbles will adhere to the wafer A, because the air bubbles can be discharged upward from the air bubble removal channel 13 by moving along. When the inner tank 7 is filled with the cleaning treatment liquid C, the cleaning treatment liquid C in the inner tank 7 overflows and is received by the outer tank 8.
The cleaning treatment liquid C in the outer tank 8 is supplied to the outer tank 8 by the circulation pump 6.
The liquid is again circulated from the drainage port 9 to the supply port 2 and supplied to the wafer A in the same manner as described above. By repeating this operation for a predetermined time, the cleaning process of the wafer A can be performed.

Second Embodiment FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the principal part of a second embodiment of the cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention.

The cleaning apparatus in the second embodiment is a case where the rectifying means 5 is made to have a rectifying effect. That is, the cleaning treatment liquid after passing through the cleaning treatment liquid guiding channel 12 is formed by forming the cleaning treatment liquid guide arc portion 17 that bends downward toward the central side portion of the side rectifying plate 5b. This is a case where the flow is expanded and the rectification effect can be improved.

Further, a step portion 18 having the same inclination angle as the dihedral angle θ of the side straightening vanes 5b is provided in a portion of the inner tank 7 of the processing bath 1 facing the side straightening vanes 5b to provide a bubble removing channel. Thirteen
By forming the above, the air in the cleaning treatment liquid C can be guided to the air bubble removal flow path 13 side more reliably.

In the second embodiment, the step portion 18 is provided in the processing tank 1 to form the bubble removal channel 13, but the step 18 is not provided and the bubble removal is performed in the same manner as in the first embodiment. The flow path 13 may be formed, or the step 18 may be provided in the processing tank 1 in the first embodiment to form the same bubble removal flow path 13 as in the second embodiment.

Since the other parts of the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment, the same parts are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

Third Embodiment FIG. 4 shows a sectional view of a third embodiment of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention.

The cleaning processing apparatus in the third embodiment is one in which the supply of the cleaning processing liquid is made to be more evenly rectified. That is, the side rectifying plate 5b of the rectifying means 5 is provided between the central rectifying plate 5a and the first side rectifying plate 5c via the cleaning treatment liquid guiding flow path 12, and the first side rectifying plate 5c. This is a case where it is configured in a stepwise manner with the second side rectifying plate 5d which is arranged between the partial rectifying plate 5c and the cleaning treatment liquid guiding flow path 12.

As described above, the side rectifying plate 5b is formed by the plurality of rectifying plates 5c and 5d which are arranged in a step-like manner with respect to each other through the cleaning treatment liquid guiding flow path 12, so that the side rectifying plate 5b is supplied from the supply port 2. Cleaning treatment liquid C distributed by the central rectifying plate 5a
Since the cleaning treatment liquid C can be further passed through the plurality of cleaning treatment liquid guiding flow paths 12, the cleaning treatment liquid C can be supplied to the wafer A in a subdivided state, and the cleaning treatment liquid can be evenly cleared. You can

In this case, a case has been described in which the one side rectifying plate 5b is composed of the first side rectifying plate 5c and the second side rectifying plate 5d. It is also possible to arrange the side rectifying plates such as the above in a multi-stage manner, and it is possible to supply the cleaning treatment liquid C which is further subdivided and uniform. Further, the cleaning treatment liquid C is supplied to the center side by narrowing the width of the central straightening plate 5a or by forming small holes (not shown) at appropriate intervals in the central portion of the central straightening plate 5a. It is also possible to supply the cleaning treatment liquid C more uniformly.

In the third embodiment, the wafer holding arm 3 is formed of two holding rods fixed in the processing tank 1, and the portion for transferring the wafer A to the wafer holding arm 3 is as follows. The wafer chuck 20 is formed of a wafer chuck 20 having four holding rods 19 for holding the central portion and the lower portion on both sides of the wafer A and capable of moving up and down and moving toward and away from the wafer chuck 20. As shown in phantom lines in FIG. 4, the wafer chuck 20 holds the wafer A while the wafer chuck 20 holds the wafer A.
0 is moved above the processing tank 1, and the wafer chuck 20 is lowered to place the wafer A on the wafer holding arm 3. Then, the wafer chuck 20 is separated to the outside, and the wafer A is held on the wafer holding arm. It is supposed to be handed over to 3rd. In this case, it is preferable to arrange the wafer holding arm 3 at a position where it does not disturb the flow of the cleaning treatment liquid C as much as possible.
For example, if the upper surface of the first side straightening vane 5c is contacted, the flow of the cleaning treatment liquid C is not hindered. In this case, the wafer A held by the wafer chuck 20 is checked by the wafer checking / detecting device 14 at a position above the processing tank 1 for displacement and contact.

In the third embodiment, the case where the wafer holding arm 3 is fixed to the processing tank 1 and the wafer transfer means is formed by the wafer chuck 20 has been described. However, instead of this structure, the first embodiment is used. Of course, the structure of the example may be adopted, or the structure of the first embodiment may be the same as that of the third embodiment.

Since the other parts of the third embodiment are the same as those of the first and second embodiments, the same parts are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

The cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention configured as described above is incorporated, for example, as one unit of the cleaning apparatus shown in FIG. 5 and used for wafer cleaning processing.

Next, the entire structure of the cleaning apparatus in the case of the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 shows a case where a cleaning device is configured by three cleaning processing units 21, 22, and 23. A loader 24 is connected to the cleaning processing unit 21 on the loading side and an unloader 25 is connected to the cleaning processing unit 23 on the unloading side. Are connected, and further between the cleaning processing units 21 and 22 and between the cleaning processing units 22 and 23,
An underwater loader 26 that constitutes a part of a processing chamber included in any of the three units is provided.

In the cleaning processing unit 21 on the carrying-in side, a container 40 for arranging the transfer arm 4 is located at the center position, and the ammonia processing chamber 27 and the present invention are provided around the container 40 on the left of the container 40 and in front of the loader 24. A water washing processing chamber 28 including the washing processing device (not shown) is provided. The cleaning processing unit 22 at the center has the transfer arm 4 at the center position.
The submersible loader 26 is disposed on both the left and right sides of the container 40, and the hydrofluoric acid treatment chamber 29 and the washing overflow treatment chamber 30 are disposed in the front and rear positions therebetween. Further, in the cleaning processing unit 23 on the unloading side, a container 40 in which the transfer arm 4 is arranged is located at the center position, and a water rinsing final rinse processing chamber 31 is arranged around the container 40 on the front side of the unloader 25. A drying processing chamber 32 is arranged on the right side of the container 40.

In the cleaning apparatus constructed as described above, when two carriers 33 each having 25 wafers (not shown) placed on the loader 24 are carried, the orientation flat alignment mechanism 34 operates. , The wafers in the carrier 33 are aligned, and then the push-up bar (not shown) is actuated upward so that the carrier 33 is left as it is and the wafer is taken out upward. The wafers are placed at equal intervals.

Next, the transfer arm 4 is actuated to rotate horizontally, and extends in the direction of the loader 24 to position the holding arm 4a at the front end under the push-up rod, and the push-up rod descends to hold the holding arm 4a. The wafer is placed and positioned on top.

Next, with the wafer placed on the holding arm 4a, the transfer arm 4 horizontally rotates and expands / contracts so that the wafer is transferred from the opening 3b of the ammonia processing chamber 27 to the processing tank 27a of the ammonia processing chamber 27. The insertion position is set on the exclusive boat 27b. Then, in this state, the ammonia processing chamber 2
The wafer in 7 is cleaned.

After the cleaning in the ammonia processing chamber 27 is completed, the wafer on the boat 27b is placed and positioned on the holding arm 4a of the transfer arm 4 by the operation reverse to the above operation, and the wafer is placed in the ammonia processing chamber. The wafer is taken out of the outside 27 and carried into the next water washing processing chamber 28. And the water treatment room 2
At 8, the wafer alignment detection device (not shown) confirms the wafer alignment state, the wafer is transferred from the transfer arm 4 to the wafer holding arm 3, and then processed by the cleaning processing device of the present invention as described above. The surface of the wafer is cleaned by the cleaning processing liquid that is rectified and supplied into the bath 1.

The wafer that has been cleaned by the carry-in side cleaning processing unit 21 is transferred to the central cleaning processing unit 22 by an underwater loader 26 between the carrying-in side cleaning processing unit 21 and the central cleaning processing unit 22. It is transported in the same manner as described above by the transport arm 4 arranged in the container 40 of the central cleaning processing unit 22. Then, the wafer is sequentially subjected to cleaning treatment in the hydrofluoric acid treatment chamber 29 and water washing overflow treatment in the overflow treatment chamber 30.

The wafer that has been subjected to the cleaning processing in the central cleaning processing unit 22 is processed in the central cleaning processing unit 2
2 and the cleaning processing unit 23 on the unloading side are transported to the cleaning processing unit 23 on the unloading side by an underwater loader 26.
Then, the transfer arm 4 of the cleaning processing unit 23 on the unloading side
After being transported in the same manner as described above, a final rinse is performed, and then a drying process is performed.

The wafer cleaned by the cleaning processing unit 23 on the unloading side is transferred to the unloader 25, and the unloader 25 divides the wafer into 25 wafers and aligns the orientation flats, and mounts the wafers on the two carriers. It is placed and carried out.

In the above embodiment, the case where the cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention is incorporated into the wafer cleaning apparatus has been described, but the invention is not necessarily limited to the wafer cleaning apparatus, and other cleaning such as LCD glass substrate is possible. Of course, it can be applied to an apparatus, an etching apparatus, and the like.

[0043]

As described above, according to the cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention, since it is configured as described above,
The following effects can be obtained.

1) According to the cleaning processing apparatus of the first aspect, an induction flow path of the cleaning processing liquid and bubbles are provided between the cleaning processing liquid supply port provided in the lower portion of the processing tank and the object to be processed. Since the rectifying means having the discharge channel is formed, the cleaning treatment liquid can be rectified and supplied to the object to be treated,
It is possible to prevent bubbles from adhering to the object to be processed and improve the cleaning process of the object to be processed.

2) According to the cleaning processing apparatus of the second aspect, the rectifying means is provided with the central rectifying plate located above the cleaning processing liquid supply port, and the cleaning processing liquid guiding flow above both sides of the central rectifying plate. Since it is composed of a side straightening vane that has a dihedral angle that extends laterally through the passage to form a bubble removal flow path between the treatment bath and the processing tank, a large number of small holes, etc. are formed in the straightening vane. Since it is not necessary to pierce, the number of processing steps of the rectifying means can be reduced, and the assembly of the device can be simplified.

3) According to the cleaning processing apparatus of the third aspect, since the side straightening vanes are formed by a plurality of straightening vanes arranged in a stepwise manner with respect to each other through the washing treatment liquid guiding flow paths, a more uniform distribution is achieved. It is possible to supply the cleaning treatment liquid rectified to the object to be treated.

4) According to the cleaning treatment apparatus of the fourth aspect, since the circular arc portion for guiding the cleaning treatment liquid is formed on the central side portion of the side straightening vane, the flow of the cleaning treatment liquid is further rectified. Can be made

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing a first embodiment of a cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a main part of the cleaning processing apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing an essential part of a second embodiment of the cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing a third embodiment of the cleaning processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view showing an entire cleaning device having the cleaning processing device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Processing Tank 2 Cleaning Treatment Liquid Supply Port 5 Rectifying Means 5a Central Rectifying Plate 5b Side Rectifying Plate 5c First Side Rectifying Plate 5d Second Side Rectifying Plate 12 Cleaning Treatment Liquid Inducing Flow Path 13 Bubble Exhausting Flow Path 17 Circular part for guiding cleaning solution A Semiconductor wafer (object to be processed) C Cleaning solution

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A cleaning processing apparatus for cleaning a surface of an object to be processed by immersing the object to be processed in a cleaning processing solution contained in a processing tank, wherein a cleaning processing solution supply port is provided at a lower portion of the processing tank. The cleaning processing apparatus is characterized in that a rectifying means having an induction flow path for the cleaning processing liquid and a bubble removal flow path is formed between the supply port and the object to be processed. 2. A rectifying means, a central rectifying plate located above the cleaning treatment liquid supply port, and laterally extending above both sides of the central rectifying plate through a cleaning treatment liquid guide passage, The cleaning processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning processing apparatus is configured by a side straightening plate having a dihedral angle that forms a bubble removal flow path between the processing tank and the processing tank. 3. The cleaning processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the side straightening vanes are formed by a plurality of straightening vanes arranged in a stepwise manner with respect to each other through the washing processing liquid guiding passages. .. 4. The cleaning treatment liquid guiding arc portion is formed on the central side portion of the side straightening vane.
Alternatively, the cleaning apparatus according to the above item 3.