JPH11307434A - Substrate processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To uniformly and quickly operate a prescribed processing across the whole area of the main surface of a substrate. SOLUTION: A substrate S is carried along a carrying direction TD in an almost horizontally held state by a carrying mechanism 1 having plural carrying rollers 10. A plurality of spray nozzles 2 are arranged at the upper part of the carrying rollers 10. The spray outline P of the spray nozzle 2 is shaped like a fan, and the main axis is inclined from the center toward side end parts (a) and (b) in the width direction of the substrate S. Thus, the flow of processing liquid flowing from the center toward the side end parts (a) and (b) can be formed on the main surface of the substrate S, and the processing liquid can be quickly displaced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate for flat panel display (FPD) such as a substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a glass substrate for a photomask, a semiconductor substrate, and other various substrates to be processed. And a substrate processing apparatus for processing the substrate by supplying the processing liquid.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display device, a process of forming a thin film on a surface of a glass substrate and patterning the thin film is repeatedly performed. A photolithography process has been conventionally used for patterning a thin film. In this photolithography process,
A resist film is patterned on the film to be etched, and etching is performed using the resist film as a mask. After this etching, the resist film is peeled off.

A substrate processing apparatus for stripping a resist film includes, for example, a plurality of transfer apparatuses for horizontally supporting a substrate and transferring the substrate in a direction along a main surface (a processing target surface on which the resist film is formed). A roller and a plurality of spray nozzles disposed above the transport roller are provided, and are housed in a processing chamber. The plurality of spray nozzles are two-dimensionally arranged in the direction in which the substrate is transported and the direction orthogonal to the transport direction, and the main axis of the spray profile of each nozzle is orthogonal to the main surface of the substrate.

[0004]

In recent years, as the size of flat panel displays has increased, the size of substrates processed in the manufacturing process has also increased. When the resist film formed on the main surface of such a large-sized substrate is stripped by the above-described substrate processing apparatus, there are the following problems.

That is, the stripping solution supplied near the edge of the substrate immediately flows out of the substrate, but the stripping solution supplied near the center of the substrate tends to stay at the center of the substrate. In particular, when a spray nozzle having a conical spray profile is used, the stripping liquid tends to stay near the main axis. Therefore, in the central part of the substrate, the tired stripper cannot be promptly replaced with a new stripper. As a result, after the release treatment,
There is a problem that the resist film remains near the center of the substrate or a long processing time is required to remove the resist film from the entire main surface of the substrate. Was not.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned technical problems and to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of performing a predetermined processing uniformly and quickly over the entire main surface of the substrate. .

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to a main surface of a substrate, wherein the substrate is disposed substantially horizontally. A transporting means for transporting in the direction along the main surface while supporting the processing liquid, and the processing liquid is supplied in a spray shape to the main surface of the substrate transported by the transporting means, and the main axis of the spray contour is set from the center of the substrate. A processing liquid supply unit inclined in a direction toward an edge of the substrate.

According to the above arrangement, the processing liquid supplied from the processing liquid supply means to the main surface of the substrate obliquely enters the substrate. Therefore, when the processing liquid reaches the main surface of the substrate, it immediately flows out, so that the processing liquid does not stay. In addition, since the main axis of the spray contour of the processing liquid supply means is inclined in the direction from the center of the substrate to the edge of the substrate, the flow of the processing liquid on the surface of the substrate flows from the center of the substrate to the edge of the substrate. . Therefore, on the main surface of the substrate, the processing solution that has been fatigued due to the substrate processing is promptly replaced with the new solution, and such replacement of the processing solution occurs uniformly over the entire main surface of the substrate. Will be. As a result, processing on the substrate can be performed promptly and uniformly, so that processing quality and productivity can be improved.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the main axis of the spray contour of the processing liquid supply means is inclined in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction in which the substrate is transported by the transport means. 1. The substrate processing apparatus according to 1.

According to this structure, the main axis of the spray contour of the processing liquid supply means is inclined in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of transport of the substrate, so that the retention of the processing liquid can be further effectively prevented. That is, regarding the transport direction of the substrate,
Since the relative position between the processing liquid supply unit and the substrate by the processing liquid supply unit changes every moment, the flow of the processing liquid is naturally formed on the main surface of the substrate. Therefore, by setting the supply angle of the processing liquid from the processing liquid supply means so that the flow of the processing liquid in the direction orthogonal to the substrate transport direction is formed on the main surface of the substrate, the processing on the main surface of the substrate is Liquid replacement can be performed efficiently.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the substrate processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, wherein a spray profile of the processing liquid supply means has a fan shape having an elongated cross section at a substrate contact position. .

According to this configuration, since the cross-sectional shape of the spray at the substrate contact position is elongated, the treatment liquid is less likely to stay near the main shaft than in the case of a cone or pyramid spray. This makes it possible to more effectively replace the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate.

In the case of a spray having a conical or pyramidal shape, the processing liquid is discharged in a granular form, and mist of the processing liquid is easily generated. On the other hand, mist is hardly generated in a fan-shaped spray. Therefore, when the atmosphere in the substrate processing chamber in which the substrate is processed is exhausted, the amount of the processing liquid exhausted as mist is reduced. Thereby, when collecting and reusing the processing liquid after being supplied to the substrate,
The recovery efficiency of the processing liquid can be improved, and as a result, the consumption of the processing liquid can be reduced.

It is preferable that the cross section of the spray at the substrate contact position extends along the substrate transport direction. As a result, almost all of the processing liquid sprayed on the substrate reaches the substrate in a state of being inclined in a direction orthogonal to the substrate transfer direction, so that a good processing liquid flow is formed on the main surface of the substrate. And the replacement of the processing solution can be performed satisfactorily.

[0015]

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

FIG. 1 is a front view for explaining the internal configuration of a resist film peeling apparatus as a substrate processing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view thereof.
This substrate processing apparatus transports a rectangular substrate S such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device in the horizontal direction,
This is an apparatus for removing an unnecessary resist film formed on the main surface (the upper surface in FIGS. 1 and 2). The front side of the configuration in FIG. 1 is an “operation side” where various instruments and operation units are arranged, and various pipings are arranged on the back side of the configuration in FIG. In the following description, the back side of the configuration in FIG. 1 will be referred to as the “non-operation side” as necessary.

The substrate processing apparatus includes a transport mechanism 1 configured by arranging a plurality of transport rollers 10 parallel to each other along a horizontal plane, and a plurality of two-dimensionally arrayed above the transport mechanism 1. A spray nozzle 2, a plurality of processing liquid supply pipes 3 for supplying a resist stripping liquid to the spray nozzle 2 as a processing liquid, and a processing chamber 4 containing the transport mechanism 1, the spray nozzle 2, the processing liquid supply pipe 3, and the like. It has.

A processing liquid recovery pipe 41 is provided on the bottom of the processing chamber 4.
Is connected, and the processing liquid supplied to the substrate S from the spray nozzle 2 is collected in the processing liquid tank 30 and can be reused. Processing room 4
The atmosphere inside is always exhausted through the exhaust port 42. The processing chamber 4 has an inlet 45 formed on one side wall.
, An unprocessed substrate S is introduced, and the processed substrate S is discharged from an outlet 46 formed in another side wall facing this side wall.

The transport mechanism 1 transports the substrate S bidirectionally along a horizontal transport direction TD while supporting the substrate S substantially horizontally by a transport roller 10. Each transport roller 10 is configured such that a pair of edge holding rollers 12 and a center holding roller 13 are fixed to a rotating shaft 11 with an interval. The pair of edge holding rollers 12 is a small-diameter portion 12a that supports the lower surface of both side edges along the transport direction TD of the substrate S.
And a large-diameter portion 12b that guides both side surfaces of the substrate S by a step surface with the small-diameter portion 12a. The center holding roller 13 rolls while supporting the lower surface of the central portion of the substrate S in the width direction (horizontal direction perpendicular to the transport direction TD).

A rotation force from a rotation drive mechanism 15 is transmitted to the rotation shaft 11 of any one of the transport rollers 10, and the rotation force is transmitted to a transmission mechanism such as a gear mechanism or a belt mechanism (see FIG. 1). (Not shown), all the transport rollers 1
0 is commonly transmitted.

A plurality of processing liquid supply pipes 3 are provided substantially parallel to each other along the transport direction TD, and a plurality of processing liquid supply pipes 3 are provided below each processing liquid supply pipe 3 along the longitudinal direction (this embodiment). (Seven spray nozzles 2) are arranged in series. The processing liquid stored in the processing liquid tank 30 is supplied to each processing liquid supply pipe 3 via a pump 31, a valve 32, and a processing liquid supply path 33. Therefore, by opening and closing the valve 32, the processing liquid is supplied from the spray nozzle 2 to the main surface (upper surface) of the substrate S being transferred by the transfer mechanism 1, or the supply of the processing liquid is stopped. be able to.

The opening and closing of the valve 32 is controlled by a control device 5 including a microcomputer and the like. The control device 5 also controls the operation of the rotary drive mechanism 15 to transport the substrate S in one direction along the transport direction TD, transport the substrate S in the opposite direction, or stop transport. When processing the substrate S while supplying the processing liquid from the spray nozzle 2, the control device 5
By controlling the operation of the rotation drive mechanism 15, the substrate S
Is reciprocated within a certain distance range along the transport direction TD to swing. Accordingly, the processing with the processing liquid on the substrate S can be continued for a required time without requiring a long transport path length.

Each of the plurality of spray nozzles 2 is configured to spray the processing liquid with a fan-shaped spray contour P as shown in FIG. This spray contour P
Is defined as the main axis, and the direction along the main axis from the vertex of the spray profile P toward the main surface of the substrate S is defined as the main axis direction. Then, the main axis directions of the plurality of spray nozzles 2 are all along the vertical plane perpendicular to the transport direction TD of the substrate S, and the plurality of spray nozzles 2 are commonly fixed to one processing liquid supply pipe 3. The two principal axis directions are along a common plane.

As shown in FIG. 2, three processing liquid supply pipes 3 arranged closer to the operation side than the center.
The main axis direction of each of the spray nozzles 2 arranged on the substrate S
With respect to the width direction of the substrate S, it is inclined in a direction from the center toward the operation side edge a of the substrate S, and is arranged in three processing liquid supply pipes 3 arranged closer to the non-operation side than the center of the substrate S. The main axis direction of each spray nozzle 2 is inclined in the direction from the center toward the non-operation side edge b of the substrate S with respect to the width direction of the substrate S, and is disposed at a position corresponding to the center in the width direction of the substrate S. The main axis direction of each of the spray nozzles 2 arranged on the one processing liquid supply pipe 3 is perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate S. That is, the main axis of the spray nozzle 2 is inclined toward the side edges a and b along the transport direction TR, except for supplying the processing liquid toward the center of the substrate S.

On the other hand, paying attention to the cross-sectional shape of the spray profile P on the main surface of the substrate S, since each spray profile P has a sector shape, as shown in FIG. 4 are indicated by oblique lines.) Are elongated along the transport direction TD. Therefore, assuming a vector in the direction of incidence of the processing liquid discharged from the spray nozzle 2 having the main axis inclined in the direction from the center toward the side edges a and b with respect to the width direction of the substrate S with respect to the main surface of the substrate S. The incident direction vectors of all the processing liquids can have components directed to the side edges a and b of the substrate S.

As described above, in the substrate processing apparatus of the present embodiment, the substrate S is sprayed from the spray nozzle 2 having the main axis inclined from the center in the width direction of the substrate S toward the side edges a and b along the transport direction TD. Since the processing liquid is supplied to the main surface of the substrate S, the processing liquid that has reached the main surface of the substrate S immediately flows toward the side edges a and b. Therefore, the replacement of the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate S can be promptly advanced.

Further, since the sectional shape of the spray contour of each spray nozzle 2 on the main surface of the substrate S is elongated along the transport direction TD, the spray nozzle whose main axis is inclined with respect to the main surface of the substrate S. Almost all of the processing liquid discharged from 2 has a vector component directed to the side edges a and b of the substrate S. When the processing liquid reaches the main surface of the substrate S, the processing liquid is immediately applied to the side edges a and b. It will flow toward. Thereby, the quick replacement of the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate S can be surely performed. Furthermore, as a result, since the processing liquid that has been fatigued does not stay on the main surface of the substrate S, the processing of each part of the substrate S can be performed uniformly and quickly.

The spray contour P of the spray nozzle 2 for supplying the processing liquid toward the center of the substrate S in the width direction is also fan-shaped, and the cross-sectional shape of the main surface of the substrate S is elongated in the substrate transport direction TD. I have. Therefore, in the direction orthogonal to the substrate transport direction TD, the processing liquid is less likely to stay, and therefore, there is no problem in replacing the processing liquid.

Incidentally, with respect to the transport direction TD of the substrate S,
Since the relative positional relationship between the substrate S and the spray nozzle 2 changes every moment, the flow of the processing liquid is naturally formed. Therefore, even if the cross-sectional shape of the spray contour P extends long along the transport direction TD of the substrate S, there is no possibility that the processing liquid will stay.

In the spray nozzle 2 having the fan-shaped spray contour P, the processing liquid discharged in a granular form is smaller than in the case of using a spray nozzle having a spray contour having a conical or pyramid shape. Can be reduced. Accordingly, the amount of the processing liquid exhausted from the exhaust port 42 in the form of a mist can be reduced, so that the recovery efficiency of the processing liquid through the recovery pipe 41 can be improved.

While one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention can be implemented in other embodiments. For example, in the above-described embodiment, a spray nozzle having a fan-shaped spray contour is used, but a spray nozzle having a conical or pyramid-shaped spray contour is used, and a main axis of the spray nozzle is positioned from the center with respect to a main surface of the substrate. You may use it inclining in the direction toward an edge. Even in this case, the flow of the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate can be favorably formed, and the processing liquid can be quickly replaced.

In the above-described embodiment, a substrate processing apparatus for performing a resist film stripping process is described as an example. However, the present invention is directed to, for example, an apparatus for supplying an etchant to a main surface of a substrate to clean the substrate. For example, the present invention can be applied to a substrate processing apparatus that performs another type of processing.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, an apparatus for processing a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device has been described as an example. The present invention can also be applied to a processing apparatus.

In addition, it is possible to make various design changes within the scope of the technical matters described in the claims.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a simplified front view showing an internal configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a simplified side view showing an internal configuration of the substrate processing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a spray shape of a spray nozzle.

FIG. 4 is a plan view for explaining a sectional shape of a spray contour of a spray nozzle.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Conveying mechanism (conveying means) 10 Conveying roller 15 Rotation drive mechanism 2 Spray nozzle (processing liquid supply means) 3 Processing liquid supply pipe 30 Processing tank 4 Processing chamber 41 Collection pipe 42 Exhaust port 5 Control device

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI H01L 21/30 569D

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A substrate processing apparatus for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to a main surface of a substrate, wherein the substrate is transported in a direction along the main surface while supporting the substrate substantially horizontally, and the substrate is transported by the transporting means. A processing liquid supply means for supplying the processing liquid to the main surface of the substrate in a spray shape, and a processing liquid supply means in which a main axis of the spray contour is inclined in a direction from the center of the substrate toward the edge of the substrate. Substrate processing equipment. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the main axis of the spray contour of the processing liquid supply means is inclined in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of transport of the substrate by the transport means.
The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims. 3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a spray profile of the processing liquid supply means has a fan shape having an elongated cross section at a substrate contact position.