JPH11329949A - Semiconductor exposing system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To shorten the time of trouble recovery work requiring the work of operator in a chamber by providing means for unlocking the work door of the chamber when an exposure sequence is stopped due to error. SOLUTION: A chamber door controller 486 controls locking/unlocking of doors for replacing a wafer (reticle) cassette and monitors open/close state of these doors. A sequence controller 402 executes an exposure sequence and stops the exposure sequence upon occurrence of an error. At that time, an exposure sequence execution flag is cleared. Unlocking processing is executed by the sequence controller 402 when an unlock button for a water (reticle) cassette replacing door arranged on a display is depressed. In this regard, unlocking processing of the wafer (reticle) cassette replacing door is executed after confirming that the exposure sequence execution flag has been cleared.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an LSI, a VLSI
The present invention relates to a semiconductor exposure apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor device such as a semiconductor device and a device manufacturing method using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A semiconductor exposure apparatus is provided with an interlock mechanism for protecting a human body from scattered light of a laser used as a light source and contact with various manipulators. The interlock is activated when a work door provided in the chamber is opened, and stops the laser oscillation and the operation of the manipulator instantaneously. Therefore, if the operator inadvertently opens the work door during a normal exposure sequence, the laser oscillation is interrupted, which adversely affects the quality of the product.
When the operation of the manipulator is interrupted,
It takes a long time to restart the exposure sequence. In the semiconductor exposure apparatus, locking of the work door is controlled according to the state of the exposure sequence in order to prevent such a failure.

The working door is originally provided on a chamber for taking a wafer cassette or a reticle cassette into and out of the apparatus. Therefore, when the processing such as the exposure sequence is not performed, the operation is performed so that the operator is easily unlocked or unlocked, and the processing is performed so that the operator is locked. Door is controlled.

[0004] In recent years, the operation efficiency of a semiconductor device manufacturing line has been greatly improved by advanced online or in-line automation. In such a production line, the frequency of various failures occurring on individual devices and the time required for recovery greatly affect the operation rate of the entire production line. In such a situation,
Obstacles due to human error or equipment failure are decreasing due to automation, improvement of equipment performance, improvement of maintenance technology, and the like. On the other hand, no sufficient countermeasures have been taken on the semiconductor exposure apparatus with respect to obstacles in wafer transfer caused by deformation of the wafer during the manufacturing process. A typical failure caused by the deformation of the wafer is a wafer suction error that occurs during wafer transfer. When the wafer suction error occurs, the operator must perform the wafer removing operation with the working door of the chamber opened.

[0005]

However, in the semiconductor exposure apparatus shown in the above-mentioned conventional example, even if a wafer suction error or the like occurs during the execution of the exposure sequence, the working door of the chamber is locked. Is maintained in. If it is necessary to perform the operation with the work door of the chamber opened to eliminate the error that has occurred at this time, the lock of the work door must be forcibly released by a dedicated key switch. When the lock is released by such a method, the control of the lock is performed without intervention of the sequence controller. Therefore, when the exposure sequence is restarted as it is, the operator erroneously opens the door during the exposure sequence. there is a possibility.
Depending on the state of the exposure sequence, the opening of the work door may affect the quality of the product, or may increase the time required for the recovery work. Therefore, the operator must check the status of the exposure sequence and operate the unlocking of the chamber work door to unlock and release the chamber work door in order to deal with this type of error. Must. As a result, the time required for restoration is lengthened, and as a result, the operation rate of the entire production line is reduced.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned problems in the prior art, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for recovering a failure, such as a wafer suction error, which requires an operator to perform a work in a chamber in a semiconductor exposure apparatus. An object of the present invention is to improve the operation rate of a production line as compared with the related art by shortening the required time as much as possible.

[0007]

In order to achieve this object, a semiconductor exposure apparatus according to the present invention does not require a key switch to forcibly unlock a work door of a chamber when an exposure sequence is stopped. And means for unlocking the working door of the chamber.

Further, the semiconductor exposure apparatus of the present invention has a function of determining whether or not an error generated during the execution of the exposure sequence can be eliminated by opening the working door of the chamber. Can be.

Normally, when a specific error occurs, the exposure sequence is temporarily stopped and then the unlocking of the working door of the chamber, and the operator recognizes the completion of the recovery work for the error to the apparatus. Operating means for causing
A restarting step of, after recognizing completion of the error recovery work, locking the work door and then restarting the exposure sequence temporarily stopped in the unlocking step.

In the unlocking step, means may be provided for allowing an operator to recognize that the working door of the chamber has been unlocked. Further, when the time when the error occurs is during the wafer alignment process or the exposure process and the error is a phenomenon that does not affect the wafer alignment process and the exposure process, the exposure in the unlocking process is performed. The stop of the sequence and the unlocking of the door may have a procedure that is executed after the exposure processing for all the wafers is completed.

[0011]

In the unlocking step, when the interlock is activated, the exposure sequence is stopped in a state where processing of the unit is not interrupted, and then the work door is unlocked. Lets get started. Next, the operating means is means for causing the semiconductor exposure apparatus to recognize the completion of the recovery work by the operator. In the restarting step, when the completion of the work is recognized by the operating means, the work door is immediately locked, and the exposure sequence stopped in the unlocking step is restarted.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described by way of examples. Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a chamber of a semiconductor exposure apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, a wafer cassette replacement door 10 for taking a wafer cassette in and out of the apparatus is provided in front of a temperature control chamber 101 for controlling the environmental temperature of the apparatus body by covering the apparatus body.
2. A display 103 with a touch panel, an operation panel 104, and a reticle cassette replacement door 105 are provided. The wafer cassette replacement door 102 and the reticle cassette replacement door 105 are provided with door locks for controlling locking and unlocking as necessary.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of FIG. FIG. 1 shows a stepper as a semiconductor exposure apparatus. In the figure, reference numeral 202 denotes a reticle, reference numeral 203 denotes a wafer, and a light beam emitted from the light source device 204 is an illumination optical system 205.
When illuminating the reticle 202 through the reticle 202, the pattern on the reticle 202 is projected onto the wafer 2 by the projection optical lens 206.
03 can be transferred to the photosensitive layer. Reticle 20
2 is supported by a reticle stage 207. The wafer 203 is exposed while being supported by the wafer chuck 291. The wafer chuck 291 is fixed on the wafer stage 209, and can move within a movable range of the wafer stage 209. Above the reticle 202, a reticle optical system 281 for mainly detecting the amount of displacement of the reticle is arranged. An off-axis microscope 282 is arranged above the wafer stage 209 and adjacent to the projection optical lens 206.

The main function of the off-axis microscope 282 is to detect the relative position between the reference mark on the apparatus and the alignment mark on the wafer 203. A reticle transport unit including a reticle library 220 and a reticle robot 221 and a wafer transport unit including a wafer cassette elevator 230 and a wafer loading / unloading robot 231 are arranged adjacent to these main units.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wafer transfer unit. In the figure, the pre-alignment unit 232
With a pre-alignment stage that moves and rotates in the horizontal direction and a light source and optical sensor for alignment,
The position and the orientation when the wafer is placed on the wafer chuck 291 are adjusted. Inline station 234
Has two wafer holding units and a signal input / output interface, and transfers a wafer to a coater / developer based on a synchronization method via the interface. The wafer cassette elevator 230 drives the two cassette tables individually up and down, thereby enabling the wafer loading / unloading robot 231 to load / unload wafers into / from an arbitrary slot of the wafer cassette, and the wafer cassette by the wafer sensor. The presence or absence of a wafer in the device is detected. The wafer loading / unloading robot 231 rotates, expands, contracts, moves up and down, and moves on a rail to move the wafer cassette on the wafer cassette elevator 230, the pre-alignment unit 232, and the in-line station 234.
And wafer chuck 291 stationary at wafer recovery position
The movement of the wafer between is performed. Wafer supply hand 23
Reference numeral 3 denotes a wafer chuck 29 which stops the wafer mounted on the pre-alignment unit 232 at the wafer supply position.
Convey to 1.

The sequence controller 402, the wafer transfer controller 403, the wafer stage controller 404, and the reticle transfer controller 405
It is designed so that parallel processing of a plurality of sequences and synchronization between the sequences can be performed on a real lime operating system.

FIG. 4 shows a configuration of a controller for controlling the semiconductor exposure apparatus. In the figure, a console control EWS 401 controls various operations via the display 103 with a touch panel and manages various system parameters, exposure control parameters, and the like. The sequence controller 402 communicates with the console control EWS 401 via the communication unit 410 such as parameters and commands while communicating with the communication units 420 and 430.
The exposure sequence is managed by controlling various lower-level controllers via the. The wafer transfer controller 403 includes a wafer cassette elevator controller 491, a wafer loading / unloading robot controller 492, and a pre-alignment controller 493 via the communication unit 440.
By controlling the wafer supply hand controller 494, the transfer of the wafer is managed. The wafer stage controller 404 and the reticle transfer controller 405 also control a plurality of controllers similarly to the wafer transfer controller 403, but their configurations are omitted in FIG. The chamber door lock controller 486 controls locking or unlocking of the wafer cassette replacement door 102 and the reticle cassette replacement door 105 and monitors the open / closed state of these doors. A number of controllers for controlling the alignment system unit, the illumination optical system unit, and the like are also connected to the communication unit 420, but are omitted in FIG. Communication means 45
Numeral 0 is a logical communication means in which the wafer transfer controller directly communicates with the console control EWS via the communication means 410 and 430.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an outline of an exposure sequence executed by the sequence controller 402. Upon receiving the exposure sequence execution command, the sequence controller 402 sets an exposure sequence execution flag, locks the wafer cassette replacement door 102, and starts the exposure sequence (step S1). Next, system parameters and exposure control parameters are read from the console control EWS 401 (step S
2) Request the start of wafer transfer to the wafer transfer controller 403 (step S3). Next, while loading the reticle specified by the exposure control parameter on the reticle stage (step S4), preparation for reticle alignment is performed (step S5), and reticle alignment is performed after completion of steps S4 and S5 (step S6). ). Next, the wafer is transferred to the wafer chuck 291.
The wafer alignment is prepared (step S7) while the wafer is supplied to the upper side (step S8). Next, after completion of steps S7 and S8, the alignment marks on the wafer are measured for wafer alignment (step S9). After this, wafer stage 2
09 to the exposure position (step S10) to transfer the pattern on the reticle to the wafer (step S1).
Step 1) is repeated until the last shot is determined in step S12. Next, the exposed wafer is recovered from wafer chuck 291 (step S13).
Then, it is determined whether or not the lot end condition of the exposure control parameter is satisfied (step S14).

If it is determined in step S14 that the lot has ended, the wafer cassette replacement door 102 is unlocked, the exposure sequence execution flag is cleared, and the exposure sequence ends (step S15). If it is determined in step S14 that the lot has not been completed, the flow returns to steps S7 and S8 to prepare for wafer alignment measurement while supplying the next wafer onto the wafer chuck 291. In step S3, the wafer transfer system starts a preceding transfer sequence in which the transfer before placing the wafer on the wafer chuck 291 performed in step S7 is performed as early as possible. This sequence is performed in parallel with steps S7 and S3.
The occurrence of an error in the immediately preceding process is determined (step S
16, S18, S20, and S22), if no error has occurred (No), the exposure sequence is advanced. If an error has occurred (Yes), the exposure sequence is stopped (step S16). S17, S1
9, S21 and S23), and thereafter, the exposure sequence is restarted from the processing in which the error occurred.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing details of the stop processing in FIG. According to the figure, when the stop processing is started (step S1001), the exposure sequence execution flag is cleared (step S100).
2) Wait for a restart command to be sent (step S1)
003). Next, when the restart command is received, the exposure sequence execution flag is set (step S1004), the door for replacing the wafer carrier and the door for replacing the reticle cassette are locked (step S1005), and the stop processing ends.

FIG. 7 shows an outline of an unlocking process executed by the sequence controller when an operator presses an unlocking button of a wafer carrier replacing door (or a reticle cassette replacing door) provided on the display 103 with the touch panel. It is a flowchart shown. When the unlocking process is started by the sequence controller (step S1101), the state of the exposure sequence execution flag is determined (step S1102). If the flag is cleared, the wafer carrier replacement door (or reticle cassette replacement) is determined. The door is unlocked, and then the unlocking process ends. If the exposure sequence execution flag is set in step S1102,
The unlocking process ends with an error.

According to the above embodiment of the present invention, the exposure sequence is stopped because an error has occurred in the exposure sequence, and the operator unlocks the wafer carrier replacement door (or the reticle cassette replacement door) during the stop. In this case, the door is automatically locked when the exposure sequence is restarted. Therefore, even if the operator forgets to perform the locking operation when the exposure sequence is restarted, the exposure sequence can be reliably continued in the locked state.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 8 shows a second embodiment having the same apparatus configuration as the first embodiment according to the present invention, which is performed when the wafer transfer controller 403 detects an error occurring during wafer transfer. It is a flowchart which shows a process. In the figure, step S201 determines whether or not an error has occurred in the immediately preceding process, step S202 displays information on the content and handling of the error on the display 103 with a touch panel, and step S203 indicates that the error has occurred in the chamber by the operator. It is determined whether or not the operation is canceled by the operation of Step S204. Step S204 is to stop the transport sequence being executed in parallel, Step S20.
5 is a process for transmitting a request for unlocking the wafer cassette replacement door 102 to the sequence controller 402 and then receiving a notification of completion of unlocking which is returned, and step S206 is performed after the operator completes the work in the chamber. Process of displaying a transfer restart panel for restarting transfer of a wafer on display 103 with touch panel, step S
Step 207 is a step of waiting for reception of a transfer restart command issued when a button on the transfer restart panel is pressed, and step S 207.
208, a process of transmitting a request to lock the wafer cassette replacement door 102 to the sequence controller 402 and receiving a notification of completion of the lock returned from the sequence controller 402, step S20
9 is a process corresponding to the work performed in the chamber by the operator, a process of driving the unit and checking the state according to the contents of the error, a process of restarting the transport sequence stopped in step S204, and a process of step S210. Indicates the interruption of the transport where the error occurred.

According to the flowchart of FIG. 8, when the wafer transfer controller 403 recognizes the occurrence of an error during transfer (step S201), it displays the content of the error and a countermeasure on the display 103 with a touch panel (step S202). When the error can be recovered by the operation in the chamber (Yes in step S203)
After stopping all transport (step S204), the controller requests the sequence controller to unlock the door and waits for a notification of unlock completion (step S205).
Next, display the transport restart panel (step 20).
6) The operation is stopped after waiting for a restart operation by the operator (step S207). When the operator performs a restart operation on the transport restart panel, the operator recognizes the operation (step S207), requests the sequence controller to lock the door, and waits for a lock completion notification (step S20).
8). Next, preparations for resumption are made (step S209).
Thereafter, the transport stopped in S204 is restarted (step S210), and the transport sequence is continued.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the operation in step S205 shown in FIG.
Sequence controller 402 corresponding to
6 is a flowchart showing a process executed by the user. In the door unlock sequence of FIG. 9, when the unlock request transmitted from the wafer transfer controller 403 in step S205 is received, the unlock sequence is started (step S300). Next, it is determined whether or not the exposure sequence is during wafer loading (unloading) (step S301). If wafer loading (wafer unloading) is being performed, if there is any processing being performed in parallel with wafer loading (unloading), the process is waited for to be completed (step S302), and then the chamber door lock controller 48 is operated.
6 unlocks the wafer cassette replacement door 102 and displays the unlock on the display 103 with the touch panel (step S303). Next, the completion of unlocking is notified to the wafer transfer controller 403 (step S30).
4), end the unlock sequence (step S30)
5). If it is determined in step S301 that the wafer is not being loaded (unloaded), the fact that there is a request for unlocking from the wafer transfer controller 403 is recorded (step S390), and the unlocking sequence ends (step S305). ).

In the door locking sequence shown in FIG.
Upon receiving the locking request transmitted from the wafer transfer controller 403 in step S205, the locking sequence is started (step S350). Next, the wafer door replacement door 102 is locked by the chamber door lock controller 486, and then the wafer transfer controller 4 is locked.
03 is notified of the completion of the locking (step S352),
The locking sequence ends (step S353).

In the unlocking sequence shown in FIG.
If the exposure sequence is not during wafer loading (unloading), only the unlock request is recorded. On the other hand, at the beginning of the wafer loading (step S7) and the wafer unloading (step S13), the step S3 is performed.
Only when there is a record of the unlock request in step 90, the processes of steps S302 to S304 and the process of deleting the record of the unlock request are included. That is, since the preceding transfer sequence started in step S3 is being performed, an error in wafer transfer may occur even while steps S9 to S12 are being executed. However, for errors that occur in such situations,
The exposure sequence is not immediately stopped to unlock. This is because stopping the exposure sequence during continuous exposure in which the movement of the wafer stage and the exposure are repeated is likely to adversely affect the quality of the product.

In the above-mentioned conventional example, the supply and collection of the wafer performed by the sequence controller to the wafer chuck includes transmission of a command to the wafer transfer controller and reception of the execution result. Therefore, the exposure sequence can be stopped by stopping the transfer by the wafer transfer controller.

In the above embodiment, the reticle transfer controller is applied to the wafer transfer controller 403, and the reticle cassette exchange door is applied to the wafer cassette exchange door. Errors during transportation can be dealt with.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, a controller (wafer transfer controller 403) for managing errors and a controller (sequence controller 402) for managing wafer cassette replacement door 102 are provided.
Are different from each other, unlocking and locking of the wafer cassette replacement door 102 due to an error occurring during wafer transfer can be easily realized.

Third Embodiment FIG. 10 illustrates the processing contents of a wafer transfer controller 403 for an error occurring during the transfer of a wafer in a third embodiment having the same apparatus configuration as the first embodiment according to the present invention. FIG. In the same figure, step S401 determines whether or not an error has occurred in the immediately preceding process, step S402 displays information on the content and handling of the error on the display 103 with a touch panel, and step S403 indicates that the error has occurred in the chamber by the operator. It is determined whether or not the operation can be canceled by the above operation. Step S404 stops the transport sequence being executed in parallel, and step S405.
Is a process of transmitting a request for unlocking the wafer cassette replacement door 102 to the sequence controller 402 and receiving a notification of completion of unlocking which is returned, and a step S406 receives a restart instruction transmitted from the sequence controller 402. S407 is a process corresponding to the work performed in the chamber by the operator, and is a process of driving the unit and checking the state according to the content of the error. Step S408 is a process of restarting the transport sequence stopped in step S404. Step S490 represents the interruption of the conveyance in which the error has occurred.

According to the flowchart of FIG. 10, when the wafer transfer controller 403 recognizes the occurrence of an error during transfer (step S401), it displays the contents of the error and a countermeasure on the display 103 with a touch panel (step S402). When the content of the error can be recovered by the operation in the chamber (Y in step S403)
es), all the transports are stopped (step S40).
From 4), the controller requests the sequence controller 402 to unlock the door, and then waits for the unlock completion notification (step S405). Next, the flow waits for a restart command sent from the sequence controller 402 (S406). When the restart instruction is received, preparation for restart is made (step S407), and S
After restarting the transport stopped at 404 (S408), the transport sequence is continued.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of step S4 shown in FIG.
It is a flowchart which shows the unlocking sequence which a sequence controller performs corresponding to 05. According to the figure, the wafer transfer controller 403 determines in step S
Upon receiving the unlock request transmitted in 405, an unlock sequence is started (step S500). Next, it is determined whether or not the exposure sequence is during wafer loading (unloading) (step S501). If wafer loading (wafer unloading) is in progress, if there is any processing being performed in parallel with wafer loading (unloading), the processing is waited for (step S502). Cassette replacement door 1
02 and unlock the display 10
3 is displayed (step S503).
Next, the completion of the unlocking is notified to the wafer transfer controller 403 (step S504), and the fact that the unlocking is performed based on the request of the wafer transfer controller 403 is recorded (step S505), and the unlocking sequence is ended (step S505). Step S506). If it is determined in step S501 that the wafer is not being loaded (unloaded), the fact that there is an unlock request from the wafer transfer controller 403 is recorded (step S590), and the unlock sequence is ended (step S505). ). On the other hand, at the beginning of the wafer loading (step S7) and the wafer unloading (step S13), if there is a record of the unlock request in the step S590, the steps S502 to S502 are executed.
505 and processing for erasing the record of the unlock request. This is a process for avoiding stopping the exposure sequence during exposure of one wafer as in the first embodiment.

In this embodiment, the operation of recognizing the completion of the work in the chamber by the operator is the act of closing the cassette replacement door 102. FIG.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a flow of processing and communication executed by the chamber door lock controller 486, the sequence controller 402, and the wafer transfer controller 403 after the operator closes the wafer cassette replacement door 102. In this figure, steps S406 and S407 performed by the wafer transfer controller correspond to steps S406 and S407 shown in FIG. 8, respectively. FIG.
When the wafer transfer controller waits for a restart command sent from the sequence controller 402 in step S406 according to 0, and the wafer cassette replacement door 102 is closed by the operator, the chamber door lock controller 486 detects this. Then, the sequence controller 402 is notified that the door has been closed (step S601). On the other hand, when the sequence controller 402 receives the notification,
The locking sequence is started (step S602), and it is first determined whether or not the unlock record in step S505 remains (step S603). If there is a record of the unlocking (the result of step S603 is Yes), a lock request is transmitted to the chamber door lock controller 486 (step S604). Upon receiving the lock request, the chamber door lock controller 486 locks the wafer cassette replacement door 102 and returns a lock completion notification to the sequence controller 402 (step S606). When the sequence controller 402 receives the lock completion notification, the sequence controller 402 deletes the unlock record (step S607).
03 is transmitted (step S608), and the locking sequence is terminated (step S609). On the other hand, upon receiving the restart instruction, the wafer transfer controller 403 immediately prepares for restart (step S407). If it is determined in step S603 that there is no record of the unlocking (No), the locking sequence is immediately terminated (S609). According to the above-described embodiment, an additional operation for causing the device to recognize the completion of the work is not required.

[Embodiment of Device Production Method] Next, an embodiment of a device production method using the above-described exposure apparatus or exposure method will be described. FIG. 13 shows a micro device (I
1 shows a flow of manufacturing semiconductor chips such as C and LSI, liquid crystal panels, CCDs, thin-film magnetic heads, micromachines, and the like. In step 1 (circuit design), a device pattern is designed. Step 2 is a process for making a mask on the basis of the designed pattern. Step 3
In (wafer manufacture), a wafer is manufactured using a material such as silicon or glass. Step 4 (wafer process) is called a pre-process and uses the prepared mask and wafer to
An actual circuit is formed on a wafer by a lithography technique. The next step 5 (assembly) is called post-processing,
This is a process of forming a semiconductor chip using the wafer produced in Step 4, and includes processes such as an assembly process (dicing and bonding) and a packaging process (chip encapsulation). In step 6 (inspection), inspections such as an operation confirmation test and a durability test of the semiconductor device manufactured in step 5 are performed. Through these steps, a semiconductor device is completed and shipped (step 7).

FIG. 14 shows a detailed flow of the wafer process. Step 11 (oxidation) oxidizes the wafer's surface. Step 12 (CVD) forms an insulating film on the wafer surface. Step 13 (electrode formation) forms electrodes on the wafer by vapor deposition. In step 14 (ion implantation), ions are implanted into the wafer. Step 1
In 5 (resist processing), a photosensitive agent is applied to the wafer. Step 16 (exposure) uses the above-described exposure apparatus to print and expose the circuit pattern of the mask onto the wafer. Step 17 (development) develops the exposed wafer. In step 18 (etching), portions other than the developed resist image are removed. In step 19 (resist stripping), unnecessary resist after etching is removed. By repeating these steps, multiple circuit patterns are formed on the wafer.

By using the production method of this embodiment, it is possible to manufacture a highly integrated device, which has been conventionally difficult to manufacture, at low cost.

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A failure occurs in the semiconductor exposure apparatus because the semiconductor exposure apparatus has a function of determining whether an error occurred during execution of the exposure sequence can be eliminated by opening the work door of the chamber. In such a case, the operation time of the production line can be improved by minimizing the time required for the recovery work of the failure.

When it is determined that the error occurred during the exposure sequence can be eliminated by the operation in the chamber by the operator, the work door is automatically unlocked and locked, so that the recovery work can be performed. The time required can be reduced.

Further, by letting the operator recognize that the work door of the chamber is unlocked, the operator can immediately start the recovery work after unlocking.

Further, by temporarily stopping the exposure sequence and unlocking the work door due to the error after completion of the wafer exposure processing as much as possible, the influence on the quality of the product is further reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an overview of a semiconductor exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of the device of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a wafer transfer unit configured in the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a control mechanism in the apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an exposure procedure in the apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a stop process in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an unlocking process executed by a sequence controller.

8 is a flowchart showing an error processing procedure in a wafer transfer sequence of the apparatus shown in FIG.

9 is a flowchart showing a procedure of unlocking and locking when a transport error occurs in the apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an error processing procedure in a wafer transfer sequence in the third embodiment of the apparatus in FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of unlocking when a transport error occurs in the third embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an execution procedure of a chamber door lock controller, a sequence controller, and a wafer transfer controller after closing a wafer cassette replacement door in the third embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of manufacturing a micro device.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a wafer process.

[Explanation of symbols]

101: Temperature control chamber, 102: Wafer cassette replacement door, 103: Display with touch panel, 10
4: operation panel, 105: reticle cassette replacement door, 202: reticle, 203: wafer, 204: light source device, 205: illumination optical system, 206: projection optical lens,
207, reticle stage, 209: wafer stage,
220: reticle library, 221: reticle robot, 230: wafer cassette elevator, 231: wafer loading / unloading robot, 232: pre-alignment unit, 233: wafer supply hand, 234: inline station, 281: reticle optical system, 282: off axis Microscope, 291: wafer chuck, 401: console control EWS, 402: sequence controller,
403: wafer transfer controller, 404: wafer stage controller, 405: reticle transfer controller, 406: chamber door lock controller, 41
0: two-way communication means, 420: two-way communication means, 4
30: two-way communication means, 440: two-way communication means,
450: logical two-way communication means, 486: chamber door lock controller, 491: wafer cassette elevator controller, 492: wafer loading / unloading robot controller, 493: pre-alignment controller,
494: Wafer supply hand controller.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A semiconductor exposure apparatus comprising means for unlocking a work door of a chamber when an exposure sequence is stopped due to occurrence of an error. 2. A semiconductor exposure apparatus having a function of determining whether an error occurred during execution of an exposure sequence can be eliminated by opening a work door of a chamber. 3. When the error generated during execution of the exposure sequence is determined to be a phenomenon that can be eliminated by opening the work door of the chamber, the exposure sequence is stopped and then the operation of the chamber is stopped. An unlocking step of unlocking the door, operating means for recognizing the completion of the operation of the operator in response to the error, and restarting the exposure sequence after recognizing the completion of the operation by locking the work door. 3. The semiconductor exposure apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising: 4. The semiconductor exposure apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising means for allowing an operator to recognize that the work door of the chamber has been unlocked in the unlocking step. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the error occurs during a wafer alignment process or an exposure process, and the error is a phenomenon that does not affect the wafer alignment process or the exposure process. 4. The semiconductor exposure apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the stopping of the exposure sequence and the unlocking of the door in the process have a processing procedure that is executed after the exposure processing for the wafer is completed. 6. A device manufacturing method, comprising manufacturing a device using the exposure apparatus according to claim 1.