JPH11186138A - Substrate processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate processor without a defect owing to the bounce of processing liquid on a coat in an edge rinse processing. SOLUTION: A substrate holding part holding a substrate W has plural restriction pins 8 arranged along the outer peripheral edge of the substrate W. An edge rinse nozzle 6 discharging rinse fluid is provided above the outer peripheral part of the substrate W. An interruption member 22 is arranged near the edge rinse nozzle 6. The interruption member 22 is arranged in front of the edge rinse nozzle 6 in the rotary direction of the substrate W and is provided so that rinse discharged from the edge rinse nozzle 6 and bounced by the restriction pins 8 is prevented from scattering to a substrate W-side.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process on a substrate while rotating the substrate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A substrate processing apparatus is used to supply a processing liquid to a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a glass substrate for a photomask, and a glass substrate for an optical disk to perform predetermined processing. . 2. Description of the Related Art As a substrate processing apparatus, there is a rotary coating apparatus that supplies a resist liquid to a surface of a substrate and performs spin coating.

In a rotary coating apparatus, it is necessary to rotate a substrate at a high speed while keeping the substrate in a horizontal position. Therefore, a suction-type spin chuck that sucks and holds the back surface of a substrate by vacuum suction has been used.

However, in the suction-type spin chuck, since strong suction is performed to surely hold the substrate by suction, a suction mark is left on the back surface of the substrate, which causes an inconvenience of causing a focus error in a subsequent exposure process. There is.

Therefore, a mechanical spin chuck that supports the back surface of the substrate and transmits the rotational force to the substrate while holding the outer peripheral end surface of the substrate has been proposed. FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a conventional rotary coating apparatus using a mechanical spin chuck.

In FIG. 5, a substrate holding section (mechanical spin chuck) 3 includes a disk-shaped rotating member 7. The rotating member 7 is horizontally fixed to a tip of a rotating shaft 2 of a motor (not shown), and is driven to rotate around a vertical axis.

On the upper surface of the rotating member 7, a plurality of support pins 9 for supporting the back surface of the substrate W and a plurality of regulating pins 8 for regulating the horizontal position of the substrate W are provided. Each restriction pin 8
A small gap is provided between the substrate W and the outer peripheral end of the substrate W to facilitate loading and unloading of the substrate W.

At the time of spin coating of the substrate W, the resist nozzle 5 moves above the center of rotation of the substrate W while the substrate W held by the substrate holding unit 3 is driven to rotate, and the resist liquid is discharged from the resist nozzle 5 by the resist nozzle. It is discharged on the surface of W.
Thereafter, the substrate W is rotated at a high speed, and
Is spread over the entire surface.

In the edge rinsing process, a rinsing liquid composed of a solvent is discharged from the edge rinsing nozzle 6 to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W. Thus, unnecessary portions of the resist film 11 spread over the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W are dissolved and removed by the rinsing liquid.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a main part showing a state of the edge rinsing process. As shown in FIG. 6, a rinse liquid 12 is discharged from the edge rinse nozzle 6 toward the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W. The discharged rinsing liquid 12 dissolves unnecessary portions of the resist film 11 formed on the outer peripheral upper surface of the substrate W,
Is scattered out of the substrate W together with the resist film dissolved by receiving the centrifugal force from the substrate W.

[0011]

However, the substrate W
When the rotation speed of the substrate W is high, the rinsing liquid 12 discharged onto the substrate W rebounds from the surface of the substrate W and collides with the regulating pin 8 at a high speed. Then, the rinsing liquid 12 is repelled by the regulating pins 8, and a part thereof rebounds toward the substrate W side. Then, when the rinse liquid 12 that has rebounded adheres to the resist film 11 formed on the upper surface of the substrate W, the resist film 11 is partially dissolved, and a defect occurs in the resist film 11.

Also, when bubbles are mixed in the rinse liquid 12 discharged from the edge rinse nozzle 6, or when the discharge speed of the rinse liquid 12 is excessive, the rinse liquid 1
Rinsing liquid 1 bounces off the surface of substrate W and bounces off.
2 may be repelled by the control pin 8 and rebound to the substrate W side. In this case as well, defects occur in the resist film 11.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus in which a processing liquid is supplied while a substrate is rotated and a predetermined processing is performed, and in particular, a defect due to a rebound of the processing liquid onto a coating film during edge rinsing processing does not occur. It is to provide.

[0014]

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention A substrate processing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing apparatus for performing predetermined processing on a substrate while rotating the substrate. A substrate holding unit having a plurality of regulating members that contact and regulate the position of the substrate, a driving unit that rotationally drives the substrate holding unit, a processing liquid supply unit that supplies a processing liquid to the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, And a blocking means for blocking the processing liquid scattered toward the substrate by the regulating member.

In the substrate processing apparatus according to the first invention, the substrate is held by the substrate holding means by a plurality of regulating members abutting on the outer peripheral end of the substrate. Then, the substrate held by the substrate holding means is rotated by the driving means, and the processing liquid is supplied to the substrate from the processing liquid supply means. When the number of rotations of the substrate is high, the processing liquid supplied to the substrate is repelled by a regulating member that rotates together with the substrate, and a part of the processing liquid is scattered toward the substrate. Therefore, the blocking means is provided to block the processing liquid scattered toward the substrate side. This prevents the processing liquid scattered from the regulating member from adhering to the film formed on the substrate and causing a defect in the film on the substrate.

A substrate processing apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention is the substrate processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the processing liquid supply means and the position above the substrate held by the substrate holding means together with the shut-off means are determined. Further, there is provided a moving means for moving to a position deviated from above.

In this case, the processing liquid supply unit moves together with the blocking unit to a position above the substrate and a position outside the substrate. For this reason, when supplying the processing liquid by moving the processing liquid supply unit above the substrate, the blocking unit moves simultaneously and is disposed at a position that blocks the processing liquid scattered from the regulating member side. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the processing liquid from scattering on the substrate side and causing defects in the coating film formed on the substrate.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the substrate processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the processing liquid supply means includes a nozzle for discharging the processing liquid, and the shut-off means controls the restriction. It has a blocking member having a blocking surface for blocking the processing liquid scattered by the member, and a supporting member for supporting the blocking member forward of the nozzle in the rotation direction of the substrate holding means.

In this case, the blocking member is supported via the support member in front of the nozzle in the rotation direction of the substrate holding means. The processing liquid is discharged to the front side of the nozzle in the rotation direction of the substrate holding unit, collides with the regulating member, and is scattered toward the inside of the substrate by the regulating member. By disposing the blocking member in the scattering path of the processing liquid on the front side of the nozzle, the scattering of the processing liquid can be blocked. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the processing liquid from adhering to the film formed on the substrate and causing a defect.

A substrate processing apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the substrate processing apparatus according to the third aspect, wherein the support member comprises:
The blocking member is supported so that the distance between the nozzle and the blocking member is variable.

In this case, the blocking member supported by the support member can be moved closer to the nozzle side and separated from the nozzle according to the state of discharge of the processing liquid from the nozzle. This makes it possible to arrange the blocking member at an optimum position with respect to the nozzle and sufficiently block the processing liquid scattered toward the substrate.

A substrate processing apparatus according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the substrate processing apparatus according to the third or fourth aspect, wherein the support member supports the blocking member so that the direction of the blocking surface is variable. It is.

In this case, the direction of the blocking surface of the blocking member can be adjusted according to the direction in which the processing liquid scatters from the regulating member. Thus, the processing liquid scattered toward the substrate is blocked by the blocking surface of the blocking member, and it is possible to prevent a defect caused by the adhesion of the processing liquid to the coating formed on the surface of the substrate.

[0024]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a rotary coating apparatus will be described as an example of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a rotary coating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main part of the rotary coating apparatus of FIG. FIG.
In FIG. 2 and FIG. 2, the rotary coating apparatus has a motor 1 having a rotating shaft 2 disposed in a vertical direction, and a substrate holding unit 3 connected to a tip of the rotating shaft 2.

The substrate holder 3 has a disk-shaped rotating member 7. A plurality of regulating pins 8 are arranged on the upper surface of the rotating member 7 along the outer periphery of the substrate W. The regulating pin 8 contacts the outer peripheral end of the substrate W to regulate the horizontal position of the substrate W. Further, on the upper surface of the rotating member 7, there is provided a support 3 for supporting the back surface of the substrate W.
Book support pins 9 are provided. The support pin 9 is formed so as to be able to move up and down by an air cylinder 13 disposed below the support pin 9.

A hollow cup 4 is provided around the substrate holding unit 3 to prevent the processing liquid supplied to the substrate W from scattering outside.

Above the substrate holder 3, a resist nozzle 5 for discharging a resist solution onto the substrate W is vertically movable and movable between a position above the substrate W and a standby position outside the cup 4. Is provided. Above the outer periphery of the substrate holding unit 3, a rinsing nozzle 6 that discharges a rinsing liquid composed of a solvent that is a processing liquid for rinsing processing onto the periphery of the substrate W is provided at a position above the outer periphery of the substrate W and the cup 4. Is provided so as to be movable with respect to a standby position on the outside. Further, a blocking mechanism 20 that moves together with the rinse nozzle 6 is provided above the substrate holding unit 3 as described later.

In FIG. 2, the edge rinse nozzle 6 is attached to a bracket 16 by a fixture 17, and the bracket 16 is further connected to a nozzle holding arm 15. The nozzle holding arm 15 is a rotary drive mechanism (not shown)
Thus, the edge rinse nozzle 6 moves between a supply position above the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W and a standby position provided outside the substrate W.

The edge rinse nozzle 6 supplies a rinsing liquid to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W at the supply position, and dissolves and removes an unnecessary portion of the resist film formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W.

Further, a blocking mechanism 20 is attached to the bracket 16. The blocking mechanism 20 is a rod-shaped support member 2.
1 and a flat blocking member 22. One end of the rod-shaped support member 21 is attached to a side surface of the bracket 16 by a fixture 23. A shaft holding portion 24 is formed at the other end of the support member 21. The shaft holding unit 24 rotatably holds the shaft 25 of the blocking member 22. Blocking member 22
Has a blocking surface 22a for blocking splash of the rinsing liquid.

The blocking mechanism 20 is configured so that the position of the blocking member 22 can be adjusted. That is, by loosening the attachment 23, the support member 21 can be moved in the longitudinal direction. Thus, the distance between the edge rinse nozzle 6 and the blocking member 22 can be adjusted by moving the blocking member 22 in the longitudinal direction of the support member 21. Further, by rotating the support member 21 around its longitudinal axis, the blocking surface 22a of the plate-shaped blocking member 22
The angle of inclination with respect to the main surface of can be adjusted.

Further, the shaft holding portion 24 can be loosened, and the blocking member 22 can be turned around the shaft 25. Thereby, the direction of the blocking surface 22 a of the blocking member 22 can be changed around the axis 25.

Here, the substrate holding section 3 in this embodiment corresponds to the substrate holding means of the present invention, the regulating pin 8 corresponds to a regulating member, and the shutoff mechanism 20 corresponds to the shutoff means. Further, the nozzle holding arm 15 and the bracket 16 correspond to a moving unit, the blocking member 22 corresponds to a blocking member, and the support member 21 corresponds to a support member.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the rotary coating device during the edge rinsing process, and FIG. 4 is a plan view of a main portion of the rotary coating device during the edge rinsing process. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the edge rinse nozzle 6
Above the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W, and slightly inclined toward the outer side of the substrate W and toward the front side in the rotation direction of the substrate W. Further, the blocking member 22 is disposed in front of the edge rinse nozzle 6 in the rotation direction of the substrate W.

When the rinsing liquid 12 is discharged from the edge rinsing nozzle 6 while rotating the substrate W, the rinsing liquid 12 dissolves the unnecessary resist film 11 on the outer periphery of the substrate W,
Is scattered out of the substrate W together with the resist film dissolved by receiving the centrifugal force from the substrate W.

Further, with the rotation of the substrate W, the plurality of regulating pins 8 are sequentially turned to the discharge area of the rinse liquid 12 of the edge rinse nozzle 6. At this time, the rinsing liquid 12 discharged from the edge rinsing nozzle 6 collides with the regulating pin 8, and when the rotation speed of the substrate is high, a part thereof is scattered inside the substrate W as shown in FIG. . The blocking member 22 receives the rinsing liquid 12 scattered by the regulating pins 8 and prevents the rinsing liquid 12 from adhering to the resist film 11.

The optimal arrangement position of the blocking member 22 is determined by the arrangement position of the edge rinse nozzle 6. For this reason,
The distance between the blocking member 22 and the edge rinsing nozzle 6 and the direction of the blocking surface of the blocking member 22 may be appropriately adjusted according to the state of discharge of the rinsing liquid 12 from the edge rinsing nozzle 6. In addition, since the shutoff mechanism 20 and the edge rinse nozzle 6 are attached to the nozzle holding arm 15 via the common bracket 16, the relative positional relationship between the edge rinse nozzle 6 and the shutoff mechanism 20 can be easily adjusted and maintained. Becomes

Further, in FIG. 3, the width of the resist film 11 removed by the rinsing liquid 12 is, for example, 2 to 5 mm. Therefore, the blocking member 22 may be arranged at a height capable of blocking the droplets scattered on the resist film 11 among the droplets rebounding from the regulating pin 8, for example, about 1.5 mm from the substrate surface.

Normally, as the rotation speed of the substrate W increases, the flying distance of the droplet rebounding by the regulating pin 8 increases.
However, in the rotary coating apparatus of the present embodiment, the provision of the blocking mechanism 20 allows the rinsing liquid 12 scattered toward the substrate W to be removed even if the rotation speed of the substrate W increases. 11 can be prevented from adhering. For this reason, the edge rinsing process can be performed on the substrate W even at a high rotation speed, and the degree of freedom in selecting the rotation speed in the spin coating process is increased.

The shapes and mounting structures of the support member 21 and the blocking member 22 in the above embodiment are not limited to the shapes and mounting structures shown in FIG. 2, but an appropriate shape and mounting structure can be applied. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a rotary coating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main part of the rotary coating apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of a rotary coating apparatus in an edge rinsing process.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a main part of a rotary coating apparatus in an edge rinsing process.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a main part of a conventional rotary coating apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state during edge rinsing processing of a conventional rotary coating apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Motor 2 Rotating shaft 3 Substrate holding part 6 Edge rinse nozzle 7 Rotating member 8 Restriction pin 9 Support pin 11 Resist film 12 Rinse liquid 15 Nozzle holding arm 16 Bracket 20 Blocking mechanism 21 Support member 22 Blocking member 24 Shaft holding part

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process on a substrate while rotating the substrate, comprising: a substrate holding unit having a plurality of restricting members for restricting the position of the substrate by contacting an outer peripheral edge of the substrate; A driving unit that rotationally drives the substrate holding unit, a processing liquid supply unit that supplies a processing liquid to the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, and a block that blocks the processing liquid that is scattered toward the substrate by the regulating member. And a means for processing the substrate. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising moving means for moving the processing liquid supply means together with the blocking means to a position above the substrate held by the substrate holding means and a position deviated from above the substrate. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1. 3. The processing liquid supply means includes a nozzle for discharging a processing liquid, the blocking means includes a blocking member having a blocking surface for blocking the processing liquid scattered by the regulating member, 3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a support member that supports the blocking member at a position forward of the nozzle in a rotation direction. 4. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said support member supports said blocking member such that a distance between said nozzle and said blocking member is variable. 5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the support member supports the blocking member such that the direction of the blocking surface is variable.