KR100862703B1 - Support member, and apparatus and method for treating substrate with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a support member for supporting a substrate and an apparatus and method for treating the substrate with the support member. The support member according to the present invention includes a support for supporting the substrate in line or surface contact with the lower edge region of the substrate during the process. The support supports the substrate so that the substrate is precisely leveled during the process, and prevents the treatment liquid used during the process from contaminating the lower surface of the substrate.

Substrate, development, cleaning, drying, chuck, spin chuck, support member, support,

Description

SUPPORT MEMBER, AND APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR TREATING SUBSTRATE WITH THE SAME

1 is a perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating configurations of the substrate processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1.

3 is a perspective view of the spin chuck and the support shown in FIG. 2.

4 is a perspective view of a support according to another embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a view showing a substrate processing method according to the present invention.

6A to 6D are diagrams for describing a process of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention.

* Description of symbols on the main parts of the drawings *

1: substrate processing apparatus

10: process processing unit

12: housing

14: spin chuck

20: treatment liquid supply unit

22: slit nozzle

24: cleaning nozzle

100: support member

110: plate

120: spin chuck

130: support

140: driver

The present invention relates to a member for supporting a substrate and an apparatus and method for treating the substrate with the support member.

A general substrate processing apparatus is a device for processing a substrate such as a wafer for manufacturing a semiconductor integrated circuit chip and a glass substrate for manufacturing a flat panel display. Such a substrate processing apparatus usually performs a process by mounting a substrate on a support member. The support member includes a support member using a mechanical clamp during the process, an electrostatic chuck supporting the substrate using electrostatic force, and a vacuum chuck supporting the substrate using suction force by vacuum. Used.

Among the support members described above, the support member provided in the apparatus for performing the developing process includes a housing, a spin chuck, and a support. The housing provides a space therein for performing a substrate processing process. The spin chuck supports and rotates the substrate inside the housing during the process. The support supports the substrate so that the substrate is horizontal in the developing process. The support has a plurality of support pins. The heights of the upper ends of the respective support pins have the same height as each other. Accordingly, each of the support pins supports the substrate so that the substrate is horizontal in point contact with the lower surface of the substrate during the process.

In the developing process, a processing liquid such as a developer should be uniformly applied to the surface of the substrate, so that the substrate should be completely horizontal during the developing process. However, the support of the above-described structure has a structure in which each of the support pins are in point contact with the substrate to support the substrate, so that it is difficult to precisely maintain the level of the substrate during the process. In particular, as the substrate becomes larger in size, regions of the substrate that are not supported by the support pins when the substrate is supported are struck down compared to the regions supported by the support pins. In addition, when the height of each support pin is not constant, the phenomenon that the substrate is tilted to one side occurs. In order to prevent these phenomena, a large number of support pins may be provided to support more detailed areas of the substrate. However, as the number of support pins increases, the structure of the device becomes complicated, and the maintenance of the height of each support pin Because of this, the maintenance work burden on the operator is increased.

In addition, since the developer supplied to the upper surface of the substrate is introduced into the lower surface of the substrate through the support pins supporting the substrate during the developing process, the lower surface of the substrate may be contaminated by the developer. If the lower surface of the substrate is contaminated, errors may occur in subsequent processes. Therefore, the substrate processing apparatus should be provided with a separate cleaning apparatus for cleaning the lower surface of the substrate after the developing process, but the addition of such a cleaning apparatus complicates the internal structure of the substrate processing apparatus and increases the manufacturing cost of the apparatus. There is a problem.

An object of the present invention is to provide a support member for improving the efficiency of a substrate processing process and a substrate processing apparatus and method including the support member.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a support member for supporting a substrate so that the substrate is horizontal during the process, and a substrate processing apparatus and method including the support member.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a support member for preventing the lower surface of the substrate from being contaminated by the treatment liquid during the process and a substrate processing apparatus and method having the support member.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a support member having a simplified structure of the apparatus and easy maintenance of an operator, and a substrate processing apparatus and method including the support member.

The support member according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a plate, a spin chuck which is installed on the plate, and supports the substrate during the spin treatment process, and is installed on the plate to surround the outer surface of the spin chuck and during the coating process It includes a support that is shaped in a ring shape so that the upper surface is in line contact or surface contact with the lower surface of the substrate.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the support has a rectangular frame body.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the support member further comprises a driver for adjusting the relative height of the spin chuck and the support.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a sealing member is provided on the upper surface of the support.

The substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a housing that provides a space for performing a process for processing the substrate therein, a support member for supporting the substrate in the housing during the process, and the support member during the process And a processing fluid supply unit for injecting a processing fluid to a substrate supported by the substrate, wherein the support member is provided on a plate, a spin chuck installed on the plate to support a substrate during a spin treatment process, and surrounding an outer surface of the spin chuck. It includes a support that is installed in the plate and the upper surface is shaped in a ring shape so that the line contact or surface contact with the lower surface of the substrate during the development process.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the processing fluid supply unit includes a developing nozzle for supplying a developing solution and a cleaning nozzle for supplying a cleaning solution.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the support has a rectangular frame body.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the support has a cylindrical body.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the support member further comprises a driver for adjusting the relative height of the spin chuck and the support.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the driver includes an elevator for lifting and lowering the spin chuck up and down.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a sealing member is provided on the upper surface of the support.

The substrate processing method according to the present invention for achieving the above object is provided with a plate and a spin chuck installed in the center of the plate to support the substrate during the spin treatment process, and a support for supporting the substrate during the development process to process the substrate In the method of applying a developer, the relative height of the support and the spin chuck is adjusted so that the height of the support is higher than the height of the spin chuck, the process is carried out, and the process of cleaning the substrate The relative height between the support and the spin chuck is adjusted so that the height is higher than the height of the support, and the support supports the substrate by line contact or point contact with the lower surface of the substrate during the developing process.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the substrate treatment method is to apply the developer to the substrate supported by the support to apply the developer on the surface of the substrate, the developer applied to the substrate by providing a sealing member on the upper surface of the support Is prevented from entering the central region of the lower surface of the substrate by the support.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein but may be embodied in other forms. Rather, one embodiment introduced herein is provided so that the disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the spirit of the invention to those skilled in the art. In addition, in this embodiment, the apparatus for processing a glass substrate for flat panel display manufacturing has been described as an example, but the present invention is applicable to all substrate processing apparatuses having a supporting member for supporting the substrate.

(Example)

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a view showing the configurations of the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the spin chuck and the support shown in FIG. 2.

1 to 3, an apparatus for treating substrate 1 according to the present invention includes a process treating member 10 and a treating-fluid supply member 20. It includes. The process processor 10 performs a substrate treatment process, and the treatment fluid supply unit 20 supplies the fluid required for the substrate treatment process to the process processor 10. The process processor 10 includes a housing 12 and a support member 100, and the process fluid supply unit 20 includes a slit nozzle 22 and a cleaning nozzle. (24).

The housing 12 provides a space for performing a process of processing the substrate s therein. The substrate treating process may include a developing process of applying a developer to a surface of the substrate s, and a cleaning process of removing developer and other foreign matter remaining on the surface of the substrate s. do. The housing 12 has a cylindrical shape with an open top. The open upper part of the housing 12 is used as a passage for moving the substrate s between the outside of the housing 12 and the space during the process. The housing 12 is provided with a drain line 12a for draining the processing liquid used in the process from the housing 12.

The slit nozzle 22 supplies the developer to the processing surface of the substrate s during the process. The slit nozzle 22 is moved between the process position (a) and the standby position (b). The process position a is the position of the slit nozzle 22 for supplying the developer to the processing surface of the substrate s supported by the support 130 during the developing process, and the standby position b is the process position a This is the position of the slit nozzle 22 waiting outside the housing 12 before moving to. The process position a has a first position a1 and a second position a2. The first position a1 is the position of the slit nozzle 22 for applying the developer to one end of the substrate s, and the second position a2 is the slit for applying the developer to the other end of the substrate s. This is the position of the nozzle 22. In the present embodiment, the slit nozzle is used as the nozzle (developing nozzle) for injecting the developer, but various nozzles may be used as the developing nozzle.

The cleaning nozzle 24 supplies the cleaning liquid to the processing surface of the substrate s during the process. The cleaning nozzle 24 has a nozzle portion 24a and a conveying member 24b. The nozzle portion 24a discharges the cleaning fluid during the process. The cleaning fluid includes a rinse liquid and a dry gas. For example, ultra pure water (DIW: Deionized Water) may be used as a rinse liquid, and nitrogen gas may be used as a dry gas. The transfer member 24b moves the nozzle portion 24a between the injection position c and the standby position d. The injection position c is a position of the nozzle portion 24a for injecting the cleaning fluid to the substrate s supported by the spin chuck 120 during the process, and the standby position d moves to the process position c. It is the position of the nozzle part 24a waiting outside of the housing 12 before doing so.

The support member 100 supports the substrate s in the housing 12 during the process. The support member 100 includes a plate 110, a spin chuck 120 and a support body 130, and a driving part 140.

The plate 110 is installed on the central lower surface inside the housing 12. The plate 110 has a generally disc shape. In the center of the plate 110, an opening for lifting and lowering the spin chuck 120 is formed.

The spin chuck 120 supports the substrate s during the cleaning process. Spin chuck 120 has a generally cylindrical shape. The spin chuck 120 is rotatably installed in the center of the housing 12. In addition, the spin chuck 120 is installed to enable the lifting and lowering up and down. The spin chuck 120 is provided with means for adsorbing and fixing the substrate s on the upper surface of the spin chuck 120 during the process. For example, the means includes vacuum holes 122 formed on the upper surface of the spin chuck 120 and a vacuum line (not shown) connected to the vacuum holes 122. When the substrate s is seated on the upper surface of the spin chuck 120 during the process, the vacuum line provides suction pressure to the vacuum holes 122 to fix the substrate s by the spin chuck 120.

The support 130 supports the substrate s in the developing process. The support 130 is fixedly installed on the upper portion of the plate 110. The support 130 has a ring shaped body 132 surrounding the outer surface of the spin chuck 120. The body 132 has an upper surface 134 that contacts the substrate s when supporting the substrate s. The upper surface 134 of the body 132 is completely horizontal. Therefore, when the substrate s is seated on the support 130 during the process, the substrate s is horizontal. In addition, the upper surface 132 of the body 132 is in line or surface contact with the lower edge region of the substrate (s) during the process. To this end, the body 132 has a rectangular frame shape.

The upper surface 132 of the body 132 is provided with a sealing member 136. The sealing member 136 is provided to seal the contact portion between the body 130 and the substrate s when the support 130 supports the substrate s. Therefore, during the development process, since the contact portion between the support 130 and the substrate s is sealed by the sealing member 136, the support 130 has the developer supplied to the substrate s at the lower surface of the substrate s. Prevent entry into the central area. As the sealing member 136, an O-ring may be used. Here, since the body 132 supports the substrate s in line contact with the edge region of the substrate s, the shape of the body 132 is changed according to the shape of the substrate s. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, when the substrate w is a disk-shaped substrate such as a wafer, the body 132 'is formed in an annular shape.

The driver 140 drives the spin chuck 120 and the support 130 during the process. That is, the driver 130 rotates the spin chuck 120 during the process to rotate the substrate s mounted on the spin chuck 120 at a predetermined process speed. In addition, the driver 130 adjusts the relative height of the spin chuck 120 and the support 130. For example, the driver 130 adjusts the relative height of the spin chuck 120 and the support 130 by raising and lowering the spin chuck 120. To this end, the driver 130 has an elevator (not shown) that lifts and lowers the spin chuck 120.

In the present exemplary embodiment, the driver 140 lifts and lowers the spin chuck 120 to adjust the relative height of the spin chuck 120 and the support 130, but the spin chuck 120 and the support ( The relative height of 130 can be adjusted in various ways. For example, the driver 140 may maintain a constant height of the spin chuck 120 and raise and lower the support 130 to adjust the relative height of the spin chuck 120 and the support 130. Alternatively, the driver 140 may adjust the relative height of the spin chuck 120 and the support 130 by raising and lowering the heights of both the spin chuck 120 and the support 130.

Hereinafter, the process of the substrate processing apparatus having the above-described configuration will be described in detail. Here, the same reference numerals for the same components as the above-described components are the same, and detailed description of the components is omitted.

5 is a view showing a substrate processing method according to the present invention, Figures 6a to 6d are views for explaining the process of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention.

 Referring to FIG. 5, when a substrate processing process is started, a substrate transfer device (not shown) such as a robot arm loads the substrate s onto the support member 100 (S110). That is, referring to FIG. 6A, the driver 140 raises the spin chuck 120 so that the upper surface of the spin chuck 120 is exposed to the outside of the housing 12 through the open upper portion of the housing 12, and the substrate. The transfer device seats the substrate s on the upper surface of the raised spin chuck 120.

When the substrate s is loaded, the developing process of the substrate s is started. That is, referring to FIG. 6B, the driver 140 lowers the spin chuck 120 so that the height of the upper surface of the support 130 is higher than the height of the upper surface of the spin chuck 120. If the height of the upper surface of the spin chuck 120 is lower than the height of the upper surface of the support 130 while the spin chuck 120 is lowered, the substrate s placed on the spin chuck 120 is formed of the support 130. It is seated on the upper surface (S120). The support 130 is in line or surface contact with the edge region of the lower surface of the substrate s to support the substrate s. The substrate s placed on the support 130 is horizontal, and the contact portion of the support 130 of the substrate s is sealed by the sealing member 134.

When the substrate s is seated on the support 130, the processing fluid supply unit 20 supplies the developer to the processing surface of the substrate s (S130). That is, referring to FIG. 6B, the slit nozzle 22 is moved from the standby position b to the first position a1 of the process position a. Then, the slit nozzle 22 is applied to the processing surface of the substrate s while moving from the first position a1 to the second position a2. When the developer is applied to the surface of the substrate s, the thin film on the surface of the substrate s and the developer are allowed to react for a predetermined time.

When the developer solution is completed, the rinsing process of the substrate s is started (S140). That is, referring to FIG. 6C, the slit nozzle 22 is moved from the process position (a) to the standby position (b), and the driver 140 raises and lowers the spin chuck 120 to form an upper surface of the spin chuck 120. The height is higher than the height of the upper surface of the support 130. If the height of the upper surface of the spin chuck 120 becomes higher than the height of the upper surface of the support 130 in the process of lifting the spin chuck 120, the substrate s placed on the support 130 is attached to the spin chuck 120. To be placed. When the substrate s is placed on the spin chuck 120, a vacuum line (not shown) provides suction pressure to the vacuum holes 122 to fix the substrate s to the spin chuck 120.

When the substrate s is fixed to the spin chuck 120, the driver 140 rotates the spin chuck 120 to rotate the substrate s at a predetermined process speed. When the substrate s is rotated, the cleaning nozzle 24 is moved from the standby position d to the process position c and then sprays the rinse liquid onto the processing surface of the substrate s. The sprayed rinse liquid is scattered from the substrate s after removing the developer on the surface of the substrate s and the thin film reacted with the developer. The scattered rinse liquid is received in the space in the housing 12 and then drained from the housing 12 through the drain line 12a.

When the rinse process of the substrate s is completed, the drying process of the substrate s is started (S150). That is, the cleaning nozzle 24 stops the supply of the rinse liquid and then sprays dry gas to the processing surface of the substrate s. The injected dry gas dries the surface of the substrate s. When the cleaning process of the substrate s is completed, the substrate s raises the spin chuck 120 above the housing 12 and spins by a substrate transfer device (not shown), as shown in FIG. 6D. After unloading (unlaoding) from the chuck 120 is transferred to a facility that the subsequent process is performed (S160).

The substrate processing apparatus and method according to the present invention described above includes a support 130 for supporting the substrate s in line contact with the edge region of the substrate s during the process, so that the horizontality of the substrate s during the process is effectively To be done. That is, the support body 130 of the present invention can stably support the substrate s as compared to the conventional method of supporting the substrate using a plurality of support pins, so that the substrate s is inclined to one side or the substrate s. ) To prevent certain parts from hitting down. In addition, the present invention adjusts the height of each support pin by adjusting the height of each of the conventional support pins, as compared to the method of adjusting only the height of a single configuration of the support 130, the support 130 The horizontal level can be easily adjusted.

In addition, in the substrate processing apparatus and method according to the present invention, since the support 130 supports the substrate s while being in line or surface contact with the lower surface edge region of the substrate s, the substrate 130 is sprayed onto the substrate s during processing. The processing liquid can be prevented from flowing into the lower surface of the substrate s to prevent contamination of the substrate s. In particular, in the conventional process, since the lower surface of the substrate s is contaminated by the treatment liquid during the process, an apparatus for cleaning the lower surface of the substrate s is essentially added, but the present invention provides a method for cleaning the lower surface of the substrate s. The device is not necessarily provided.

In addition, the substrate processing apparatus and method according to the present invention can simplify the structure compared to the method having a plurality of support pins of the prior art, it is possible to efficiently perform the maintenance work of the operator.

The foregoing detailed description illustrates the present invention. In addition, the foregoing description shows and describes preferred embodiments of the present invention, and the present invention can be used in various other combinations, modifications, and environments. That is, changes or modifications may be made within the scope of the concept of the invention disclosed in this specification, the scope equivalent to the disclosed contents, and / or the skill or knowledge in the art. The above-described embodiments illustrate the best state for implementing the technical idea of the present invention, the use of other inventions such as the present invention in other state known in the art, and the specific fields of application and uses of the invention. Various changes required are also possible. Accordingly, the detailed description of the invention is not intended to limit the invention to the disclosed embodiments. Also, the appended claims should be construed to include other embodiments.

As described above, the support member and the substrate processing apparatus and method including the support member according to the present invention support the substrate to achieve a precise horizontal level of the substrate during the process to improve the efficiency of the substrate processing process, in particular the coating process.

In addition, the support member and the substrate processing apparatus and method including the support member according to the present invention can prevent the lower surface of the substrate from being contaminated by the treatment liquid during the coating process.

In addition, the support member and the substrate processing apparatus and method including the support member according to the present invention simplify the structure of the apparatus and facilitate the maintenance of the operator.

Claims (13)

In a member for supporting a substrate, With plates, A spin chuck installed on the plate and supporting the substrate during the spin treatment process; A support provided on the plate to surround the outer surface of the spin chuck, and having an upper surface formed in a ring shape such that the upper surface is in line or surface contact with the lower surface of the substrate during an application process; And a driver for adjusting the relative height of the spin chuck and the support. The method of claim 1, The support, A support member, characterized in that it has a rectangular frame body. delete The method of claim 1, On the upper surface of the support, Support member, characterized in that the sealing member is provided. In the apparatus for processing a substrate, A housing providing a space therein for performing a process of processing a substrate; A support member supporting the substrate in the housing during the process; Including a processing fluid supply unit for injecting the processing fluid to the substrate supported by the support member during the process, The support member, With plates, A spin chuck installed on the plate and supporting the substrate during the spin treatment process; A support provided on the plate to surround the outer surface of the spin chuck, and having an upper surface formed in a ring shape such that the upper surface is in line or surface contact with the lower surface of the substrate during the development process; And a driver for adjusting a relative height of the spin chuck and the support. The method of claim 5, wherein The treatment fluid supply unit, A developing nozzle for supplying a developing solution and a cleaning nozzle for supplying a cleaning solution. The method of claim 6, The support, A substrate processing apparatus comprising a body having a rectangular frame shape. The method of claim 6, The support, The substrate processing apparatus characterized by having a cylindrical body. delete The method according to any one of claims 5 to 8, The driver, And an elevator for elevating and lowering the spin chuck up and down. The method of claim 5, wherein On the upper surface of the support, Substrate processing apparatus, characterized in that the sealing member is provided. In the substrate processing method of the substrate processing apparatus provided with the spin chuck which supports a board | substrate at a spin processing process, and the support body which supports a board | substrate at a developing process, In the process of applying the developer, the relative heights of the support and the spin chuck are adjusted so that the height of the support is higher than the height of the spin chuck. In the process of cleaning the substrate, the relative height of the support and the spin chuck is adjusted so that the height of the spin chuck is higher than the height of the support, The support, The substrate processing method, characterized in that for supporting the substrate in line or point contact with the lower surface of the substrate during the development step. The method of claim 12, The substrate processing method, The developer is applied to the substrate supported by the support to apply the developer to the surface of the substrate, and the developer applied to the substrate is provided to the center area of the lower surface of the substrate by providing the sealing member on the upper surface of the support. Substrate processing method characterized in that the inflow is prevented.

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