KR101682721B1 - Coating-developing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a coating and developing apparatus capable of performing automatic feeding at appropriate times for each of a moving mechanism such as a wafer transport mechanism and a nozzle moving mechanism.
The control unit 8 measures the use time of the moving base 11 after the feeding of the moving base 11 and measures the use time of the feeding base 3a on the end of the guide rail 10 of the moving base 11, And the moving body 11 is moved to the paper feeding mechanism 3a side at the following timing to perform paper feeding. That is, when the use time of the moving base 11 exceeds the predetermined feeding period, the automatic feeding is performed if the moving base 11 is in the preparation period or the pause period. Further, even when the final substrate of one lot is dispensed from the carrier C, the dispensing of the leading substrate of the next lot is delayed from the carrier C, and after the work of the moving substrate 11 relating to the final substrate is completed , And performs feeding to the moving base 11.

Description

[0001] COATING-DEVELOPING APPARATUS [0002]

The present invention relates to a coating and developing apparatus that applies a resist to a substrate and performs development on a substrate after exposure, and relates to an apparatus that performs automatic feeding with respect to a moving mechanism such as a substrate transport mechanism.

The coating and developing apparatus includes a carrier block, a processing block, and an interface block. The processing block includes a coating module for applying a resist solution to a substrate, for example, a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as a " wafer "), a developing module for supplying a developing solution to a wafer after annealing to perform developing treatment, And a heating and cooling module for performing heating and cooling of the cooling water. The coating and developing apparatus is provided with a moving mechanism that moves along the guide portion, which is a linear guide track. Specifically, the moving mechanism is equivalent to a wafer moving mechanism, a nozzle moving mechanism used in the coating module or the developing module do.

Incidentally, in order for the moving mechanism to slide on the guide portion, it is necessary to periodically supply grease as a lubricant to the sliding portion.

On the other hand, in the wafer transport mechanism, the nozzle moving mechanism, etc., the recommended cycle of supplying grease for proper operation is determined by empirical knowledge from the maker side. For example, in an X-axis moving body having a large number of driving cycles, a moving distance, a vibration, and a mobile inertial moment in the wafer transport mechanism, the period of supplying grease is set to, for example, 9 months. In the Y-axis moving body and the Z-axis moving body in which the number of times of driving is smaller than that of the X-axis moving body, they are set to three months, respectively. Further, for example, in the nozzle moving mechanism, the grease supply period is set to 6 months by the moving distance, the movement and the vibration of the pipe, and in the moving mechanism of the rinse nozzle, the low- Since the distance is short, the grease supply period is set to 12 months.

Therefore, the user stopped the apparatus in accordance with the grease supply period (the greasing period), and the operator was feeding the grease by the grease gun. However, such an operation causes a decrease in the productivity of the apparatus and also burdens the operator. As a known technique related to such paper feeding, Patent Document 1 discloses an apparatus in which paper is fed to a sliding portion by contacting a paper feeding mechanism provided at an end of the guide portion with a moving body moving along the guide portion.

In the coating and developing apparatus, a schedule table in which the wafers in the processing block and the modules are associated with each other in a time series is created, and the wafers are moved one by one from the upstream side to the downstream side Side module. As a result, if the feeding operation is performed while the apparatus is in operation, the wafer conveying mechanism waits for a long time, resulting in a disorder of the schedule and a decrease in the throughput as a whole. Patent Document 1 does not describe such a problem and a solution.

As described above, the recommended grease supply cycle from the maker side is different depending on each movement mechanism, and the user side supplies grease to each of the movement mechanisms at the time of application and regular maintenance of the developing apparatus. The maintenance period is determined by the user when the productivity of the coating and developing apparatus is not lowered. Therefore, there is an actual situation that the supply of grease is performed in excess of the grease supply period recommended by the maker side, and the movement of the moving mechanism becomes slow when the supply of grease is delayed, which may adversely affect the productivity of the semiconductor wafer . The above Patent Document 1 does not specifically describe the timing of supplying grease.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-203175

The present invention has been made under such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a coating and developing apparatus capable of performing feeding at appropriate timing for each of a moving mechanism such as a wafer transport mechanism and a nozzle moving mechanism.

In the coating and developing apparatus according to the present invention,

A carrier block having a carrier mounting table on which a plurality of substrates are loaded and unloaded, and a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate between the carrier mounting table and the carrier on the carrier mounting table and returning the substrate after development to the carrier and,

A module for heating the substrate after application of the resist solution, and a developing solution supply unit for supplying the developing solution to the exposed substrate on which the resist film is formed, A processing module including a module for heating and cooling the substrate before development and a main transport mechanism for transporting the substrate between these modules,

An interface block interposed between the processing module and the exposure apparatus and having a moving mounting mechanism for carrying the substrate,

A paper feeding mechanism for performing automatic paper feeding,

And a control section for controlling the transfer mechanism and the main transfer mechanism so as to transfer the substrate dispensed from the carrier sequentially from the module on the upstream side to the module on the downstream side,

Wherein the coating module and the developing module are provided with a nozzle moving mechanism for moving a nozzle for supplying liquid to the substrate,

The transfer mechanism, the main transport mechanism, the moving mechanism, and the nozzle moving mechanism are provided with a moving body having a lubricant inlet for moving the lubricant in the sliding direction along the linear guide track, ,

Wherein the feed mechanism is provided at an end of the guide track and has a supply port for supplying lubricant to the injection port of the transfer gas by a moving operation of the transfer gas,

The control unit may include a step of measuring a use time of the moving body after the feeding of the moving body is performed and setting a flag when the use time exceeds a predetermined feeding period; (B) the moving gas is in a dormant period, or (c) a final lot of one lot has been dispensed from the carrier on the carrier mounting table, and (c) , and (b), the moving gas is moved to the end and the paper is fed to the moving gas by the paper feeding mechanism. When the moving gas is equivalent to (c), it is necessary to feed the moving gas Delaying the dispensing of the first substrate of the next lot from the carrier by the time after the completion of the operation of the moving substrate relating to the last substrate of the one lot, And a step of moving the gas to the end and outputting a control signal to feed the moving substrate by the paper feeding mechanism.

The coating and developing apparatus may be configured as follows.

1. The processing block is divided into an area for forming a resist film on the substrate and an area for developing the substrate, and a main transport mechanism is provided in each of these areas.

2. The module for heating and cooling the substrate after applying the resist solution includes a heating region for heating the substrate by a heating plate, a transfer region for transferring the substrate between the main transfer mechanism and the transfer mounting mechanism, And a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate between the transfer area and the transfer area, wherein the transfer mechanism includes the transfer mechanism.

According to the present invention, the paper feeding mechanism is provided at the end of the linear track guided by the moving body, and the moving body is moved to the paper feeding mechanism to automatically feed (lubricant supply) to the sliding portion of the moving body. The burden on the operator is reduced and the paper feeding is performed while the application and the developing apparatus are operated, so that the productivity of the apparatus is prevented from being lowered. Since the automatic feeding is performed when the moving body is in the ready state (idling state) or in the idle state, or when the lot is switched, during the operation of transporting the substrates one by one from the upstream side to the downstream side module, It is possible to avoid the occurrence of a long waiting time of the transporting mechanism by the implementation of the above-mentioned method, and therefore the entire transporting operation including the transport of the substrate of the next lot can be carried out smoothly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a wafer transport mechanism embedded in a coating and developing apparatus of the present invention; Fig.
Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a paper feed mechanism constituting a part of the wafer transport mechanism; Fig.
3 is a longitudinal side view of the paper feeding mechanism and the moving mechanism.
4 is a longitudinal side view showing a state in which a paper feeding nozzle of the paper feeding mechanism is pressed by a moving mechanism.
5 is a longitudinal side view showing a state in which paper is fed from the paper feeding mechanism to the moving mechanism.
6 is a longitudinal side view showing a state after the paper is fed from the paper-feeding mechanism to the moving mechanism.
7 is a perspective view showing a mechanism for moving a developer nozzle contained in the coating and developing apparatus.
8 is a perspective view showing a coating and developing apparatus according to the present invention.
9 is a top view showing the coating and developing apparatus.
10 is a side view showing the coating and developing apparatus.
11 is a block diagram showing a control section for controlling the wafer transport mechanism.
12 is an explanatory view for explaining a storage table of a storage unit constituting a part of the control unit;
13 is a flowchart for explaining the timing at which the wafer transport mechanism performs the feeding operation;
14 is a table for explaining the flow of wafers in the coating and developing apparatus.

The coating and developing apparatus according to the present invention automatically feeds a chipped portion (sliding portion) of a moving mechanism such as a transport mechanism for transporting a wafer serving as a substrate. Before describing the entire configuration, The mechanism will be described.

[Moving mechanism and feeding mechanism used in coating and developing apparatus]

As shown in Fig. 1, the wafer transfer device, which is a moving mechanism, includes a guide rail 10, which is a guide member that forms a guide track linearly arranged in the Y direction along the support surface, And a moving base 11 moving horizontally. Since this moving base 11 moves in the Y direction, it is hereinafter referred to as " Y moving base ". This Y moving body is composed of a pedestal portion 12 and a supporting member (not shown) extending vertically on both left and right sides of the pedestal portion 12 (Y direction is in the left-right direction) And a lifting mechanism 15 which is a moving base for moving up and down while guiding both end portions of the lifting guide members 14 and 14 provided on the supporting members 13 and 13 respectively. In Fig. 1, one support member 13 is shown by a chain line, and the guide member 14 inside is shown.

The elevating body 15 is provided with a rotary body 16 rotatable about a vertical axis via a rotary mechanism 16a. A movable body 17 capable of advancing and retreating is provided on the rotary body 16. The moving base 17 is provided with a fork 17a, which is a holding member for holding the wafer. Since the moving direction of the fork 17a is the direction orthogonal to the guide rail, that is, the X direction, the moving base 17 is hereinafter referred to as "X moving base".

A timing belt 20 is provided on the side of the guide rail 10 along the guide rail 10 and the timing belt 20 is guided by the guide rail 10, And between the drive pulley 21a and the slave pulley 21b, which are located slightly outside of both ends of the drive pulley 21a. The Y moving base 11 is installed on the timing belt 20 through the blanket and is thereby controlled by a motor serving as a driving unit connected to the driving pulley 21a. A lubricant (grease) inlet (feeding hole) 22 for feeding the Y moving body 11 and the sliding portion of the guide rail 10 is formed on the end face of the Y moving body 11 1 and 2, a paper feeding mechanism 3a for feeding paper to the Y moving body 11 is fitted to the paper feeding hole 22 at one end of the guide rail 10 .

The elevating guide rail 14 is provided at the upper end side of the elevating guide rail 14 in the supporting member 13 and is provided with a guide rails 14 for feeding the elevating member 15 and the sliding portions of the guide rails 14, And a mechanism 3b is provided. A paper feeding hole 22a for feeding paper from the paper feeding mechanism 3b is formed on an end face of the lifting body 15 opposite to the paper feeding mechanism 3b. In addition, on the rear end face of the X moving body 17, that is, on the rear end face of the fork 17a when the fork 17a is projected forward, And a paper feed hole is formed. The paper feeding mechanism 3c for feeding the X-axis moving body 17 is disposed separately from the wafer carrying apparatus in this example. For example, the elevating mechanism 15 descends most downward Axis moving body 17 when the X-axis moving body 17 is retreated at one position.

Although not shown in Fig. 1, a well-known belt mechanism or the like is used for the lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the lifting body 15 and the driving mechanism for moving the X moving body 17 in the X direction.

Next, the paper feeding mechanism will be described. Only the paper feeding mechanism 3a provided at the end portion of the guide rail 10 extending in the Y axis direction is described below and only the paper feeding mechanism 3a (3b, 3c) 3b, and 3c will be omitted.

As shown in Fig. 3, the paper feeding mechanism 3a is provided with a cylinder chamber 30 for accommodating grease as a lubricant. In the cylinder chamber 30, the piston portion 31 of the piston rod is tightly fitted So as to move in the longitudinal direction thereof. The piston rod 40 passes through the side wall and protrudes toward the Y-axis moving body 11 side. A lubricant passage is formed in the longitudinal direction of the piston rod 40. One end of the lubricant passage opens to the front end of the piston rod 40 and the other end of the lubricant passage opens to the piston portion 31 (the side opposite to the tip end of the piston rod 40). The opening 43 on the other end side of the lubricant passage is formed in two places in the radial direction of the longitudinal section of the piston rod 40, for example, and the first check valve 43a is provided. When the pressure in the lubricant passage is smaller than the pressure in the cylinder chamber 30, the first check valve 43a is opened.

The cylinder chamber 30 is filled with a grease. A reservoir tank 32 for storing grease G is provided on the upper side of the cylinder chamber 30 and is connected to the cylinder chamber 30 through a communication hole 33 formed on the upper surface of the cylinder chamber 30. Further, (32) are communicated with each other. A second check valve 34 is provided in the communication hole 33 to prevent the backflow of the grease G from the cylinder chamber 30 to the storage tank 32. The second check valve 34 is opened when the pressure inside the reservoir tank 32 is larger than the pressure inside the cylinder chamber 30. [

The piston rod 40 has a flange portion 41 for contacting the Y-axis moving body 11 at its tip end. One end of the spring 45 is connected to the other end of the piston rod 40 and the other end of the spring 45 is fixed to the inner wall of the cylinder chamber 30. Therefore, And is pushed in the left direction in Fig.

Next, a description will be given of how the grease is replenished by the moving body of the wafer transfer apparatus. The replenishment of the grease G by the paper feeding mechanism is performed in the same manner in all of the feeding mechanism 3c of the X axis, the feeding mechanism 3a of the Y axis, and the feeding mechanism 3b of the Z axis. .

When the Y-axis moving body 11 moves to a position (paper feeding position) adjacent to the paper feeding mechanism 3a along the guide rail 10, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, The side surface of the flange portion 41 comes in contact with each other and the inertia force of the Y axis moving body 11 presses the piston rod 40 against the restoring force of the spring 45. [ The piston 31 retreats and the pressure of the cylinder chamber 30 becomes larger than the pressure inside the piston rod 40. The grease G that has flowed into the lubricant flow path is discharged from the supply hole 22 to the sliding portion.

6, when the Y-axis moving body 11 moves in a direction away from the paper feeding mechanism 3a, the piston rod 40 is disengaged from the paper feeding hole 22 and the spring 45 To the home position. At this time, the pressure in the cylinder chamber 30 is smaller than that in the reservoir tank 32, so that the check valve 34 is opened and the grease G is supplied to the cylinder chamber 30 from the reservoir tank 32 do.

Here, the moving mechanism is not limited to the above-described wafer transporting mechanism, and may be a nozzle mechanism used in a resist coating module installed in a coating and developing apparatus described later. The nozzle moving mechanism, for example, a developer nozzle for ejecting a developing solution, moves the support body 50 onto the Y-axis moving body 11 frictionally moving along the Y-axis direction on the guide rail 10, The nozzle holding member 51 is extended in the horizontal direction from the support body 50 and the developer nozzle 52 is held on the nozzle holding member 51. [ A feeding mechanism 3a is provided at the end of the guide rail 10 and the feeding operation is performed to the sliding portion of the Y-axis moving body 11 and the guide rail 10 as described above.

[Overall configuration of coating and developing apparatus]

Next, the overall configuration of the coating and developing apparatus will be described. As shown in Figs. 8 and 9, the coating and developing apparatus 110 is provided with a carrier block C1. In this carrier block C1, the wafer W is taken out from the hermetically sealed carrier FOUP (C) loaded on the loading table 111 by the transfer mechanism 112 (CRA), and the carrier block C1 To the adjacent processing block C2 and the transfer mechanism 112 receives the processed wafer W processed in the processing block C2 and returns the processed wafer W to the carrier C. [

As shown in Fig. 10, the processing block C2 includes a first block (DEV layer B1) for performing development processing in this example, and an anti-reflection film formed on the lower layer side of the resist film , A third block (COT layer B3) for performing a resist solution coating process, a second block (BCT layer B2) for forming an antireflection film on the upper side of the resist film 4 blocks (ITC layer B4) are laminated from the bottom.

The third block (COT layer B3) includes a liquid processing module (coating module) 60 for applying a resist solution, a heating and cooling system processing for post-processing the processing performed by the liquid processing module Module groups U1 to U4, and a main transport mechanism A3 for transferring the wafers W between these modules. The second block (BCT layer B2) and the fourth block (ITC layer B4) each have a liquid processing module (antireflection film module) for applying a chemical solution for forming an antireflection film by spin coating, A processing module group of the heating and cooling system, and main transport mechanisms A2 and A4 for transferring the wafer W between these modules.

On the other hand, for the first processing block (DEV layer (B1)), for example, the developing modules are laminated in two stages in one DEV layer (B1). In the DEV layer B1, a common main transport mechanism A1 for transporting the wafers W by these two-stage development modules is provided. 9 and 10, the processing block C2 is provided with a lathe unit U5 and is disposed in the vicinity of the lathe unit U5 between the respective portions of the lathe unit U5 The wafer W is carried by the transfer arm D1 which can be elevated.

In this coating and developing apparatus 110, the wafer W discharged from the carrier block C1 by the transfer mechanism 112 is transferred to one transfer module of the lathe unit U5, for example, the second block [ BCT layer B2) by the transfer mechanism 112 to the corresponding transfer module CPL2. Subsequently, the wafer W is carried into the third block (COT layer B3) through the transfer module CPL3 and the main transport mechanism A3, and a resist film is formed by the liquid processing module. The wafer W after the resist film formation is transferred to the transfer module BF3 of the lathe unit U5 by the main transport mechanism A3. In some cases, the antireflection film is formed on the resist film or the hydrophobic treatment is performed on the wafer W before applying the resist.

On the other hand, at the upper part in the DEV layer B1, a transferring unit CPL11 provided in the lathe unit U5, A shuttle arm E is provided. The wafer W on which the resist film has been formed is transferred by the transfer arm D1 to the transfer module CPL11 via the transfer modules BF3 and TRS4 and is transferred to the transfer module CPL11 by the transfer arm D1 of the lathe unit U2 CPL12 to be introduced into the interface block C3. In Fig. 11, the transfer module to which the CPL is attached also serves as a temperature control cooling module, and the transfer module to which the BF is attached also serves as a buffer module capable of loading a plurality of wafers W therein.

Subsequently, the wafer W is transferred to the exposure apparatus C4 by the moving mounting mechanism 118, and after the predetermined exposure process is performed, the wafer W is loaded on the transfer module TRS6 of the lathe unit U2, (C2). The returned wafer W is first heated by a module of a heating and cooling system and subjected to development processing in the first block (DEV layer B1) after cooling and is transferred by the main transport mechanism A1 to the lathe unit U5 And is returned to the carrier C through the transfer mechanism 112. The transfer mechanism 112 of the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

9, the module includes a heating plate 71, a transfer region in which wafer transfer is performed by the main transfer mechanism A3, And a dedicated wafer moving mechanism 72 for moving the wafer between the upper regions of the heating plate 71. [ In this example, the dedicated moving mechanism also serves as the cooling arm 72, and the wafer heated by the heating plate 71 is transferred to the cooling plate. The moving mechanism is configured such that the moving base (cooling arm) moves along the linear guide rail.

In the liquid processing module such as a cooling module or a developing module, a chemical liquid nozzle for supplying the chemical liquid to the wafer and a pure water nozzle for supplying pure water to the wafer are provided.

The transfer of the wafer of the coating and developing apparatus described above is performed based on a previously prepared transfer schedule as shown in Fig. 14 to be described later. This conveyance schedule is a time series of phases indicating which wafers are placed in each module at a certain point in time. The wafers are conveyed one by one from the module on the upstream side to the module on the downstream side. It is understood by simulation that the target value of the time required for each phase to be executed is determined and the conveying control is performed so as to approach the target value as much as possible, resulting in a high throughput. In addition, the module described in this transport schedule is not included in the module in the interface block C3 in this example. The reason for this is that it is preferable to carry the wafer in the interface block C3 asynchronously with the conveyance of the wafer in the processing block C2 in relation to the processing of the exposure machine.

In the above-described coating and developing apparatus 110, as a moving mechanism that is fed by the paper feeding mechanism, there are a transfer conveying arm 112 (CRA) for moving the lathe unit U5 up and down, a main conveying mechanism A1 to A5), a cooling arm of the heating device, a nozzle moving mechanism, a moving mounting mechanism 118 of the interface block C3, and the like.

Next, the configuration of the control unit will be described focusing on the feeding-related portion of the moving mechanism in the above-described coating and developing apparatus. As shown in Fig. 11, the control unit 8 is composed of, for example, a computer and includes a transport program 80 for controlling the operation of the movement mechanism, a paper-supply time management program 81, An automatic paper feed program 84 for controlling the paper feeding operation of each of the moving mechanisms 83 and a paper feeding management table 85 for each of the moving mechanisms 83 are provided. The table 85 is stored in the storage unit, but the storage unit is not shown for convenience of illustration. 12 shows an example of the description of the table 85, and it shows the type of the moving mechanism, the moving axis, the feeding period, and the flag field in order from the left side. In Fig. 11, reference numeral 86 denotes a CPU, 87 denotes a display unit such as a display, 88 denotes a data bus, 89 denotes an alarm, and 83 denotes a transmission mechanism and a main transport mechanism.

The time management program 81 is a program for managing the use time after the paper feeding for each of the moving mechanisms. The feeding mechanism, the main transport mechanisms A1 and A2, the heating and cooling arm, the nozzle moving mechanism in the respective liquid processing modules, and the loading mechanism are determined for the paper feeding period from the paper feeding to the next paper feeding. The time management program 81 measures the use time after paper feeding is performed for each of these moving mechanisms. When the use time reaches a predetermined paper feeding period, the time management program 81 displays a flag in a column corresponding to the moving mechanism in the table 85 A step is formed to set "1".

Here, the use time is a measure of the use time of each moving mechanism. The use time may be calculated for each movement axis, but the time for which the movement mechanism is used may be counted as the use time for each axis of the movement mechanism. The time at which the moving mechanism is used is, for example, the operating time of the coating and developing apparatus that makes the moving mechanism in use (i.e., the time when the moving mechanism is waiting is also counted). Further, the time when the moving mechanism is waiting may not be counted as the use time. The X-axis direction is 9 months, the Y-axis direction and the Z-axis direction are 3 months, the cooling arm is 6-month, and the X-axis direction is 6 months, for example, The Z-axis direction is 3 months, the nozzle moving mechanism is 6 months, and the rinse nozzle is 12 months. With respect to the timing of starting the measurement of the use time of each of the moving mechanisms, for example, the automatic paper feed program 84, which will be described later, can be triggered to output the paper feed end signal.

The transport program 80 is for controlling the unloading operation of each of the moving mechanisms, and is provided for each of the moving mechanisms. For convenience of explanation, these program groups are collectively treated as a transport program. When the flag is set in the table 85, the judgment program 82 further judges whether or not a predetermined condition has been established, and when it is judged that the condition is established, a step is executed so as to start the automatic feeding program 84 It is woven. The determination program 82 and predetermined conditions will be described in detail in the flowchart of FIG. 13 to be described later.

The automatic paper feed program 84 causes the determination program 82 to perform automatic paper feed as described above when the automatic paper feed start command is output to the movement mechanism (specifically, to the moving body relating to the movement axis of the movement mechanism) And outputting a control signal to output the control signal.

Next, the operation of the above-described embodiment will be described. It is now assumed that the carrier C is carried into the carrier stage 111 and the wafer is taken out therefrom and the coating is carried out as described above and the treatment is performed in the developing apparatus 110. On the other hand, the paper-feeding time management program 81 measures the use time after paper-feeding is performed for each moving mechanism. Then, when the use time of the moving body of the moving shaft of any of the moving mechanisms reaches the paper feed period, a flag " 1 " On the other hand, the paper feeding determination program 82 determines whether or not a flag is set on the table 85 as shown in Fig. 12 (step S1). If a flag is set for any of the moving mechanisms, It is determined whether or not the moving mechanism is in the idling state (step S2). The term idling refers to the time when the preparatory operation is performed before the wafer is stopped from the carrier C when the application and the operation of the developing apparatus are stopped and then restarted, for example, when the operation is resumed after maintenance. At the time of idling, the automatic feeding program is started and feeding to the moving mechanism is performed (step S7).

If it is not idling time, it is judged whether or not the moving mechanism is in the idle state (step S3). If it is idle, the automatic feeding program 84 is started and the feeding is performed for the moving mechanism. The term " stopping the moving mechanism " refers to a state in which the coating and developing apparatus are operated but the moving mechanism is not used for a sufficient time to perform automatic feeding from that point of time. For example, immediately after the application and the developing apparatus are started, when the wafer of the first lot is discharged from the carrier C and the leading wafer reaches the BCT layer, the heating in the COT layer and the cooling The arm has room for a time until the operation is started, in which case the cooling arm is in a resting state. When the wafer of the lot discharged from the carrier C does not need coating of the antireflection film, the wafer is transported to the COT layer without passing through the BCT layer, so that the movement mechanism in the BCT layer is in a rest state.

As another example, although the lot distance is empty for the moving mechanism and the moving mechanism (main moving mechanism and nozzle moving mechanism) in the DEV layer, the following lot is discharged from the carrier C, And corresponds to the idle state when there is a sufficient time until the moving mechanism performs the work. The determination as to whether or not there is a sufficient time can be made by referring to, for example, the transport schedule in the coating and developing apparatus. The return schedule is a time series in which the arrangement of the wafers at which the wafers are placed and the arrangement of the wafers are arranged in a time series, for example, as shown in Fig. Therefore, since the determination program 82 can know the number of blank phases (cycles) from the current phase to the next operation phase of the moving mechanism, whether or not the feeding mechanism can be fed to the moving mechanism at this time It can be judged. Since the time required for a certain phase to be executed is set in advance, for example, at present, when the moving mechanism is not performing the operation and the module related to the operation of the moving mechanism is in the phase after that phase For example, two times the number of phases, the moving mechanism is put in a dormant state. The number of blank phases is determined in relation to the time required for feeding.

If the moving mechanism is not in the idle state, it is determined whether or not the lot of the wafer released from the carrier C is switched, that is, whether or not the final wafer of the lot is dispensed from the carrier C (step S4). The lot refers to a wafer to which the same kind of wafer is subjected to the same treatment in the coating and developing apparatus. When the lot is not switched, the process returns to step S2. When the lot is switched, the wafer in the next lot from the carrier C is stopped for a predetermined time (step S5). The predetermined time is a time sufficient to feed the moving mechanism, for example, by delaying the wafer by two times of the above-described phase, thereby dispensing the wafer at the head of the next lot. In this way, if the moving mechanism, for example, the mechanism for moving the chemical liquid nozzle in the developing module, is in the idle state for a time corresponding to two times of the phase after the wafer is taken out from the developing module, have. Therefore, after step S5 is executed, it is judged whether or not the work of the moving mechanism has been completed (step S6) with respect to the last wafer of the lot in the previous lot at the time of switching of the lot. The operation of the moving mechanism with respect to the final wafer is a process carried out by the module including the nozzle if the wafer is transported by the transport mechanism of the wafer and by the moving mechanism of the nozzle. If the determination in step S6 is " YES ", paper feeding is performed for the moving mechanism (step S7). As for the carrier block transfer mechanism 112, after the final wafer having been processed is returned to the carrier C, the unprocessed wafer is discharged from the carrier C while the paper feeding operation is being performed , The dispensing operation is delayed by that much.

13 is an operation in the case where the application and the developing apparatus are normally operated. When a flag is set when the apparatus is being maintained, a flag is set for a certain moving mechanism on a screen (display section) And is not shown in the control unit of Fig. 11, for example, by the operator's judgment, the paper feeding can be performed by the soft switch which is an operation unit displayed on the screen, for example.

According to the above-described embodiment, for example, the paper feeding mechanism 3a is provided at the end of the linear track where the Y-axis moving body 11 is guided, and the Y-axis moving body 11 is moved to the paper feeding mechanism 3a Since the feeding of the lubricant is automatically performed on the sliding portion of the Y-axis moving body 11, the burden on the operator is reduced, and the feeding operation is performed while the coating and developing device 110 is operated The lowering of the productivity of the apparatus is suppressed. Since the automatic feeding is performed when the moving body is in the ready state (idling state) or in the idle state, or when the lot is switched, during the operation of feeding the wafers one by one from the upstream side to the downstream side module, It is possible to avoid the occurrence of a long waiting time of the transporting mechanism by the implementation of the above-mentioned method, and therefore the entire transporting operation including the transport of the substrate of the next lot can be carried out smoothly.

The heating and cooling module may be divided into a heating module and a cooling module instead of using a module integrated as described above. In this case, the wafer is conveyed to the heating module and the cooling module by the main conveying means, respectively, and heated or cooled.

The coating and developing apparatus 110 is not limited to the case where the processing block (coating module, heating, cooling module, developing module) is divided, and the processing block may be integrated.

3a, 3b, 3c:
8:
10: Guide rail
11: Y-axis moving gas
12:
13: Support member
14: Guide member
15: lifting mechanism
16:
17: X-axis moving gas
20: Timing belt
22: Feed hole
30: cylinder chamber
31:
32: Reservoir tank
40: Piston rod
41: flange portion
80: Return Program
81: Time management program
82: Judgment program
83:
84: Automatic feeding program
85: Paper feeding management table
110: coating, developing device
G: Greece

Claims (3)

A carrier block having a carrier mounting table on which a plurality of substrates are loaded and unloaded, and a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate between the carrier mounting table and the carrier on the carrier mounting table and returning the substrate after development to the carrier and,
A module for heating the substrate after applying the resist solution, and a developing solution supply unit for supplying the developing solution to the exposed substrate on which the resist film is formed and performing the development A processing module including a development module, a module for heating and cooling the substrate before development, and a main transport mechanism for transporting the substrate between these modules,
An interface block interposed between the processing module and the exposure apparatus and having a moving mounting mechanism for carrying the substrate,
A paper feeding mechanism for performing automatic paper feeding,
And a control section for controlling the transfer mechanism and the main transfer mechanism so as to transfer the substrate dispensed from the carrier sequentially from the module on the upstream side to the module on the downstream side,
Wherein the coating module and the developing module are provided with a nozzle moving mechanism for moving a nozzle for supplying liquid to the substrate,
Wherein the transfer mechanism, the main transport mechanism, the movement mounting mechanism, and the nozzle moving mechanism have a moving body which moves along a linear guide track and in which a lubricant inlet for supplying lubricant to the sliding portion is formed on an end face in the moving direction ,
Wherein the feed mechanism is provided at an end of the guide track and has a supply port for supplying lubricant to the injection port of the transfer gas by a moving operation of the transfer gas,
The control unit includes a step of measuring a use time of the moving vehicle after the feeding of the moving vehicle is performed and setting a flag when the use time exceeds a predetermined feeding period; (B) the moving gas is in a dormant period, or (c) the final substrate of one lot has been dispensed from the carrier on the carrier mounting table, , and (b), the moving gas is moved to the end and the paper is fed to the moving gas by the paper feeding mechanism. When the moving gas is equivalent to (c), it is necessary to feed the moving gas Delaying the dispensing of the first substrate of the next lot from the carrier by time and after the work of the moving substrate relating to the last substrate of the one lot is completed, And a step of moving the sieve to an end and outputting a control signal to feed the moving body by the paper feeding mechanism. The coating and developing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing module is divided into an area for forming a resist film on the substrate and an area for developing the substrate, each of which has a main transport mechanism. The module for heating and cooling a substrate according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the module for heating and cooling the substrate after applying the resist solution comprises: a heating area for heating the substrate by a heating plate; Wherein the main transport mechanism includes a transporting area where the substrate is transported, and a transporting mechanism for transporting the substrate between the heating area and the transporting area, wherein the main transporting mechanism includes the transporting mechanism.

Images