KR101900771B1

KR101900771B1 - Coating and developing apparatus, coating and developing method, and storage medium

Info

Publication number: KR101900771B1
Application number: KR1020137017552A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 게이조오 구로이와; 구니에 오가타; 노부아키 마츠오카; 노부유키 다사키; 아키라 미야타
Original assignee: 도쿄엘렉트론가부시키가이샤
Priority date: 2011-01-05
Filing date: 2011-12-26
Publication date: 2018-09-20
Also published as: JP5696658B2; TW201250393A; JP2012156497A; TWI560530B; KR20140002697A; KR20180104780A; KR101980508B1; WO2012093609A1; TWI497226B; TW201600935A

Abstract

The present invention is characterized in that a coating film is formed on a substrate in a processing block, the substrate is transferred to an exposure apparatus, the developing substrate is subjected to development processing in the processing block after the exposure, and then transferred to the carrier, In the coating and developing apparatus in which the number of sheets is larger than that of the exposure apparatus, a provisional loading section temporarily temporarily holding the substrate before exposure and a temporary holding section for temporarily holding the substrate before the exposure, A stop time setting unit for setting a length of time for stopping the conveyance of the substrate, a monitoring unit for monitoring whether or not the number of substrates placed on the temporary holding unit has reached the number of processed substrates by the processing block, A control section for outputting a control signal to stop the conveyance of the substrate on the upstream side of the temporary holding section after reaching the process number of the temporary holding section And.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a coating and developing apparatus, a coating and developing method,

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a coating and developing apparatus for applying a resist to a substrate and performing development, a coating and developing method, and a storage medium including a computer program for executing the method.

In a photoresist process, which is one of semiconductor manufacturing processes, a resist is applied to the surface of a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as a wafer), the resist is exposed in a predetermined pattern, and then developed to form a resist pattern. This resist pattern is formed by a system connected to an exposure apparatus that performs exposure processing on a coating and developing apparatus that performs formation processing and development processing of various coating films such as resist.

However, in the coating and developing apparatus, various maintenance such as confirmation of the state of a module for processing wafers and replacement of parts may be carried out, and the operation of the coating and developing apparatus is sometimes stopped. Since the wafer is conveyed between the coating and developing apparatus and the exposure apparatus as described above, when the operation of the coating and developing apparatus is stopped, the operation of the exposure apparatus is also stopped. However, by stopping the operation of the entire system as such, the production efficiency of the semiconductor product is lowered.

Patent Document 1 discloses that a wafer before exposure is stored in a buffer module provided in a coating and developing apparatus and the processing performed on the front end side of the buffer module is once stopped to perform maintenance. While it has been disclosed that the wafer is transported from the buffer module during maintenance to continue the processing on the downstream side, there is a possibility that the wafer in the buffer module is entirely taken out during the maintenance, and the downstream side processing can not be performed. The operation of the exposure apparatus requires a comparatively high cost. Therefore, if the processing on the downstream side can not be performed in this way, the production cost of the semiconductor product may become expensive.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-277528 (paragraph 0046)

The present invention has been made under such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a coating and developing apparatus which does not lower the production efficiency of the exposure apparatus.

In the coating and developing apparatus of the present invention, a substrate taken out from a carrier placed on a carrier block is formed into a coating film containing a resist film in a processing block, and then transferred to an exposure apparatus. Then, , And then to the carrier, wherein the number of substrates to be processed per one hour is larger than that of the exposure apparatus, the apparatus comprising: a temporary mounting section temporarily temporarily mounting a substrate before exposure on which the coating film is formed; A stop time setting section for setting a length of time for stopping the conveyance of the substrate on the upstream side in order to perform maintenance on the module on which the substrate is placed; Monitors whether or not the number of processed substrates of the substrate by the processing block has been reached, Than the temporary stacking unit and a control unit for outputting a control signal to stop the transfer of the upstream-side substrate.

The number of substrates processed by the processing block in accordance with the stopping time is not limited to the number of substrates processed per stoppage time but is not limited to the number of processed substrates For example 95%, are also included in the claims. For example, if the stopping time is set to 30 minutes and the number of processed substrates per unit time is 30 seconds, the number of processed substrates is 60, but the substrate may be stopped when 57 substrates are accumulated in the temporary holding unit. In this case, when the 57 substrates are transported to the exposure apparatus, the processing of the substrate can not be resumed in the processing block. Therefore, the exposure apparatus performs processing for 1 minute and 30 seconds Is cut off on the way. However, such a case is also included in the claims in view of the substantial effect of the method of the present invention. That is, when the apparatus is configured to set the time for stopping conveyance of the substrate and to monitor whether or not the number of substrates placed in the temporary holding unit has reached a predetermined number of processes, the "predetermined number of processes" Is not limited to the number of substrates processed per stoppable time, as long as the effect is judged to be obtained. Also, the 'module' referred to here also includes a transporting means for transporting the substrate.

In the coating and developing method of the present invention, a substrate taken out from a carrier loaded on a carrier block is formed into a coating film containing a resist film in a processing block, and then transferred to an exposure apparatus. Then, The method comprising the steps of: temporarily temporarily stacking a substrate before exposure on a temporary mounting section, the substrate having the coating film formed thereon; A step of setting a length of time for stopping the transportation of the upstream substrate by the stopping time setting unit in order to perform maintenance for the module on which the substrate is placed in the transport path of the substrate; Reaches the number of processed substrates by the processing block, depending on the length of the stopping time After monitoring whether, and to reach all the temporary stacking unit has a step of stopping the transport of the upstream-side substrate.

The storage medium of the present invention is a storage medium storing a computer program used in a coating and developing apparatus, and the computer program is for carrying out the above-described coating and developing method.

According to the present invention, after the number of substrates placed on the temporary mounting section reaches the number of sheets corresponding to the length of the stop time for performing maintenance, the transfer of the substrate on the upstream side of the temporary mounting section is stopped. Therefore, the substrate before exposure can be continuously conveyed to the exposure apparatus for the stopping time to perform the exposure process. Therefore, the reduction of the production efficiency of the exposure apparatus can be suppressed.

1 is a plan view of a coating and developing apparatus of the present invention.
2 is a perspective view of the coating and developing apparatus.
3 is a longitudinal side view of the coating and developing apparatus.
4 is a longitudinal front view of the interface block;
5 is a perspective view of the waiting area in the buffer module.
Fig. 6 is an explanatory view showing the outline of conveyance of the coating and developing apparatus and the exposure apparatus.
Fig. 7 is an explanatory view showing an outline of conveyance of the coating and developing apparatus and the exposure apparatus.
8 is an explanatory diagram of a control unit provided in the coating and developing apparatus.
9 is an explanatory view showing a storage area of the control unit.
10 is an explanatory view showing a storage area of the control unit.
11 is an explanatory view showing a storage area of the control unit.
12 is an explanatory view showing a storage area of the control unit.
13 is a flowchart showing the start of automatic maintenance in the coating and developing apparatus.
14 is a flowchart for performing reservation maintenance.
15 is a flowchart for performing manual maintenance.
16 is an explanatory view showing an outline of conveyance of the coating and developing apparatus and the exposure apparatus.
17 is a perspective view of a disk used for automatic cup cleaning.
18 is a longitudinal side view of the resist coating module during automatic cup cleaning.

The coating and developing apparatus 1 according to the present invention will be described. Fig. 1 is a plan view of the coating and developing apparatus, Fig. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the coating and developing apparatus, and Fig. 3 is a schematic side view of the coating and developing apparatus. The coating and developing apparatus 1 is constituted by connecting a carrier block S1, a processing block S2 and an interface block S3 in a linear shape. The exposure unit S4 is also connected to the interface block S3. In the following description, the arrangement direction of the blocks S1 to S3 is the forward and backward directions.

The carrier block S1 has a role of taking in and taking in the carrier C containing a plurality of wafers W as a substrate of the same lot into and out of the coating and developing apparatus 1, And a transfer arm 13 serving as a transfer mechanism for transferring the wafer W from the carrier C through the opening and closing part 12. [ 2, the carrier block S1 is provided with a shelf 14 above the stacking table 11. The carrier block S1 is supported by the stacking table 11 and the shelf 14 by the carrier transport mechanism 15. [ (C). The carrier C placed on the loading table 11 and taken out of the wafer W stands by on the shelf 14 until the wafer W returns, The wafers W of the plurality of carriers C can be carried into the coating and developing apparatus 1 continuously.

The processing block S2 is constructed by stacking first to sixth unit blocks B1 to B6 for performing a liquid process on the wafer W in order from the bottom. Each of the unit blocks B1 to B6, Two from the side. That is, the unit blocks B 1 and B 2 have the same configuration, the unit blocks B 3 and B 4 have the same configuration, and the unit blocks B 3 and B 4 have the same configuration.

The liquid processing unit 20 and the shelf units U1 to U3 are disposed on the right and left sides of the carrying area R1 from the carrier block S1 to the interface block S3, And the liquid processing unit 20 is provided with an antireflection film forming module BCT and a resist film forming module COT. Each of the antireflection film forming modules BCT has two cups 21 for processing wafers W and a plurality of antireflection film forming modules for supporting the backside of the wafers W in the cups 21 and for supporting the wafers W around the vertical axis And a process liquid supply nozzle 23 commonly used in the two cups 21 to apply a process liquid for forming an antireflection film to the wafer W by spin coating. 1, the anti-reflection film forming module BCT supplies solvent to the back surface of the wafer W held by the spin chuck 22 and performs back surface cleaning for cleaning the back surface of the wafer W. [ And a nozzle.

The resist film forming module (COT) is configured similarly to the antireflection film forming module (BCT) except that the treatment liquid is a resist. 1, reference numeral 24 denotes a cup-shaped base portion. In the standby portion 24, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the processing liquid supply nozzle 23 waiting for the processing liquid supply nozzle 23 to stand by, and the processing liquid supply nozzle 23 is cleaned.

As shown in Fig. 3, a transfer arm A1 which is a transfer mechanism of the wafer W is provided in the transfer region R1. The transfer arm A1 is configured to be capable of advancing and retracting, capable of ascending and descending, being rotatable about a vertical axis, and movable in the longitudinal direction of the carrying region R1, Can be performed. 1, reference numeral 25 denotes a fork portion surrounding the outer periphery of the wafer W, and includes a claw portion 25a for supporting the back surface of the wafer W. [ The shelf units U1 to U6 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the carrying region R1 and the shelf units U1 to U5 are arranged such that the heating modules for performing the heating process of the wafers W are, As shown in Fig. The lathe unit U6 is constituted by two peripheral exposure modules WEE stacked on each other. The peripheral exposure module WEE has a lamp as a light source and exposes the peripheral edge of the wafer W after the resist is coated.

The unit blocks B3 to B6 are formed of unit blocks B1 to B6 except that the processing liquid supplied to the wafer W in the liquid processing unit 20 is different from each other and the heating module is provided instead of the peripheral exposure module. B2. The unit blocks B3 and B4 are provided with two protection film forming modules TCT in place of the anti-reflection film forming module BCT and the resist coating module COT. The antireflection film forming module BCT, the resist coating module COT and the protective film forming module TCT are used as a coating film forming module. The unit blocks B5 and B6 are provided with two developing modules DEV instead of the anti-reflection film forming module BCT and the resist film forming module COT.

The protective film forming module TCT and the developing module DEV are constructed in substantially the same manner as the antireflection film forming module BCT except for the differences in the processing liquids supplied to the wafers W. The protective film forming module TCT supplies a protective film forming processing liquid for protecting the surface of the wafer W during liquid immersion exposure and the developing module DEV supplies the wafer W to a developing liquid. In addition, the carrying arms of the unit blocks B1 to B6 are shown in Fig. 3 as A1 to A6.

On the side of the carrier block S1 of the carrying region R1, as shown in Fig. 3, a shelf unit U7 extending over each unit block B is provided. The shelf unit U7 is constituted by a plurality of modules laminated to each other. These modules include transmission modules CPL11 to CPL13, a transfer module CPL14, a buffer module BU11, and a hydrophobization processing module ADH provided at the height positions of the unit blocks.

In the explanation, the transfer module described as CPL has a cooling stage for cooling the wafer W mounted thereon. The buffer module (BU) is configured to store a plurality of wafers (W). In addition, the hydrophobic processing module ADH supplies a processing gas to the wafer W to hydrophobicize the surface of the wafer W. 1, a transfer arm 30 capable of moving up and down relative to the shelf unit U7 is provided in the vicinity of the shelf unit U7, and a transfer arm 30 is provided between each module of the shelf unit U7 W).

Next, the configuration of the interface block S3 will be described with reference to Fig. 4 is a longitudinal end elevational view of the interface block S3 toward the processing block S2 side. The interface block S3 is provided with a shelf unit U8 and the shelf unit U8 is constituted by stacking the transfer modules TRS0 to TRS2, the transfer module CPL1 and the buffer module group 3 together .

The buffer module group 3, which is a temporarily mounted portion of the wafer W, is constituted by buffer modules BU1 to BU4 stacked on each other. The transfer module TRS1 is provided at each height position of the third unit block B3 and the fourth unit block B4. The transfer module TRS2 is installed at each height position of the fifth unit block B5 and the sixth unit block B6. A transfer module TRS0 and a transfer module CPL1 are provided below the transfer modules TRS1 and TRS2 and the buffer module group 3, respectively.

The buffer module BU1 will be described. The buffer module BU1 is provided with a housing having left and right side openings. In the housing, as shown in Fig. 5, the pair of vertical plates 36 and 36 and the vertical plates 36 are extended in the inward direction And a horizontal plate 37 is provided. The wafers W are supported on the support pins 39 provided on the surface of the horizontal plate 37. The wafers W are placed on the horizontal plate 38, A plurality of vertical plates 36 are installed in one buffer module BU and twenty buffer modules BU1 are installed in the waiting module 38. In other words, the buffer module BU1 is provided with a wafer W, For example, up to a maximum of 20 sheets. The buffer modules BU2 to BU4 are configured similarly to the buffer module BU1.

Referring back to Fig. 4, the shelf units U9 and U10 are provided so as to sandwich the shelf unit U8 from the left and right directions. The lathe unit U9 is formed by stacking six backside cleaning modules BST for cleaning the back surface of the wafer W by brush before exposure. The lathe unit U10 is formed by stacking four units of post-exposure cleaning modules (PIR) for cleaning the surface of the wafer W after exposure.

A first interface arm 3A is provided between the shelf units U8 and U9. The first interface arm 3A includes a base 32 capable of moving up and down along the lifting shaft 31, a rotating table 33 rotatable about a vertical axis on the base 32, And a support portion (34). A second interface arm 3B is provided between the shelf units U8 and U10 and this second interface arm 3B is configured similarly to the first interface arm 3A. Except that the third interface arm 3C is provided below the second interface arm 3B and the elevation shaft 31 is configured to be movable in the left and right direction by the horizontally moving portion 35 , And the second interface arm 3B.

The interface arms 3A and 3B output different signals to the control unit 100 to be described later according to the height of the base 32, the direction of the rotation table 33, and the position of the wafer support unit 34, respectively. That is, when accessing the pre-exposure cleaning module BST, accessing each transfer module TRS, accessing the post-exposure cleaning module PIR, accessing the transfer module CPL, BU), they output different signals to the control unit 100, respectively. When accessing the buffer module (BU), different signals are output for each waiting area (38) to be accessed. The control unit 100 determines which wafer W is to be exposed in the waiting area 38 of which buffer module BU and which waiting area 38 can be discriminated whether or not the post-exposure wafer W is waiting.

The conveyance path of the wafer W in the normal system of the coating and developing apparatus 1 and the exposure apparatus S4 will be described. For example, the wafer W is transported by a first path passing through a unit block (B1? B3? B5) and a second path passing through a unit block (B2? B4? B6) And receive processing. The wafers W are taken out from the next carrier C after all the wafers W of one carrier C are taken out. Further, for example, the wafers W are alternately assigned to the first path and the second path in the order taken out from the carrier C, and returned to the taken-out carrier C. Hereinafter, the conveyance of the first path will be described in detail.

The wafer W is transferred from the carrier C to the transfer arm 13 to the buffer module BU11 to the transfer arm 30 to the hydrophobic processing module ADH to the transfer arm A1 to the antireflection film forming module BCT The transfer arm A1 → the heating module → the transfer arm A1 → the resist application module COT → the transfer arm A1 → the heating module HP → the peripheral exposure module WEE → the transfer arm A1 → the transfer module CPL11, and the coating film is laminated on the surface of the wafer W from the lower side in the order of the antireflection film and the resist film.

Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred from the transfer arm 30 to the transfer module CPL12 through the transfer arm A3, the protective film forming module TCT, the transfer arm A3, the heating module HP, ) - > transfer module TRS1. As a result, a protective film is formed on the upper layer of the resist film, and the wafer W is brought into the interface block S3.

The wafer W is transferred from the first interface arm 3A to the pre-exposure cleaning module BST to the first interface arm 3A to the buffer module group 3 to the second interface arm 3B to the transfer module CPL1 ) → the third interface arm 3C → the exposure apparatus S4, and is subjected to liquid immersion exposure processing subsequent to the back surface cleaning processing.

The exposed wafer W is transferred from the third interface arm 3C to the transfer module TRS0 to the second interface arm 3B to the post-exposure cleaning module PIR to the buffer module group 3 to the second interface arm 3B to the transfer module TRS2 in that order. Thereafter, the transfer arm A5, the heating module HP, the developing module DEV, the transfer arm A5, the heating module HP, the transfer arm A5, the transfer module CPL13, The transfer module CPL14, the transfer arm 30, and the carrier C in that order. The wafer W carried in the second path is transported between the modules in the same manner as the first path, except that the unit blocks passing therethrough are different from each other.

Next, with reference to Figs. 6 and 7 showing the conveying path of the wafer W with the arrows, the outline of changing the conveying method of the wafer W in this embodiment will be described. Fig. 6 shows the transport (normal transport) of the wafer W during normal operation in an extremely simplified manner. In the drawing, the wafer W before exposure taken out from the carrier C is transferred to the buffer module group 3 by the forward transfer (F1), the wafer W after the exposure is transferred from the buffer module group 3 to the carrier C are indicated by the arrows as return-side transportation F2. The conveyance from the buffer module group 3 to the buffer module group 3 after passing through the exposure apparatus S4 is indicated by an arrow as the exposure transport F3.

The throughput of the coating and developing apparatus 1 (the number of processed wafers W at a predetermined time) is higher than the throughput of the exposure apparatus S4. Therefore, when the normal transfer is continued, the wafer W before exposure is accumulated in the buffer module group 3 at a speed corresponding to the throughput difference between the coating and developing apparatus 1 and the exposure apparatus S4. The transfer of the wafers W temporarily accumulated in the buffer module group 3 to the exposure apparatus S4 is carried out by conveying the wafers W successively to the exposure apparatus S4 and performing the exposure processing without delay It is for. The throughput of the forward-path-side transfer (F1) and the through-path-side transfer (F2) may be the same or different from each other. In this example, the throughputs of these transports F1 and F2 are the same. It is also assumed that the number of wafers W exceeding the number of waiting areas 38 of the buffer module group 3 is not taken out from the carrier C. [

The module of the processing block S2 used for the forward-path-side transfer F1 may be maintained. In this case, the take-out of the wafer W from the carrier C is stopped, and the transfer of the forward path side transfer F1 is stopped. On the other hand, as shown in Fig. 7, the exposure conveyance F3 and the return-side conveyance F2 are continued. At this time, when the number of wafers W corresponding to the length of time required for performing the maintenance on the buffer module group 3 is accumulated so that the processing of the exposure apparatus S4 is not cut off, Is stopped. The module is a place where the wafer W is placed, and a transport mechanism for transporting the wafer W is also included in the module.

Examples of the maintenance include automatic maintenance, scheduled maintenance, and manual maintenance. The automatic maintenance is maintenance performed automatically and repeatedly at regular intervals, specifically, automatic cup cleaning for automatically cleaning the cup 21 in each coating film forming module by a cleaning mechanism (not shown) There is an automatic nozzle cleaning in which the process liquid supply nozzle 23 is automatically cleaned at the base portion 24 of the module.

The reserved maintenance is maintenance performed by the user in advance by setting the scheduled date and time at which the maintenance is to be performed and the user operating the apparatus. Specifically, as the reservation maintenance, there is the exchange of the cup 21 of the resist coating module (COT), the lamp replacement of the peripheral exposure module WEE, and the exchange of the claw portions 25a of the respective transfer arms A1 to A4 .

The manual maintenance is maintenance that instructs the user to start at an arbitrary timing. As the manual maintenance, there is, for example, maintenance in which the resist is discharged from the treatment liquid supply nozzle 23 of the resist coating module (COT), and the user confirms the adequacy of the discharge amount and discharge state.

The control unit 100 installed in the coating and developing apparatus 1 will be described. The control unit 100 is constituted by a computer, and its configuration is shown in Fig. In the figure, reference numeral 41 denotes a bus, and the bus 41 is connected with a CPU 42 for performing various calculations, a program storage unit 44 storing a program 43, a memory 45, a work memory 46, A display unit 48 and a display unit 48 are connected. The program 43 is supplied with commands (each step) so as to control the conveyance of the wafers W by sending control signals from the control section 100 to the respective sections of the coating and developing apparatus 1, It is built-in. The program 43 is stored in, for example, a flexible disk, a compact disk, a hard disk, an MO (magneto-optical disk) memory card or the like and installed in the control unit 100 and stored in the program storage unit 44. The setting unit 47 is constituted by a keyboard, a touch panel, and the like, and contents set by the setting unit 47 by the user are stored in the memory 45. [ In the work memory 46, various calculations are performed by the CPU 42 as described later. These constitute an operation unit.

Next, the memory 45 will be described. The memory 45 is provided with a throughput storage area 51, a buffer state storage area 52, and a maintenance setting storage area 53. [ In the throughput storage area 51, the throughput of the coating and developing apparatus 1 and the throughput of the exposure apparatus S4 are stored. In this throughput storage area 51, the accumulation rate, which is the number of wafers W accumulated in the buffer module group 3 per hour, is stored. This accumulation rate is calculated by the following equation (1).

[Formula 1]

The throughput (per hour) of the exposure apparatus S4] / 60 (throughput /

The buffer state storage area 52 stores a standby state storage area 52a in which the presence or absence of the wafer W before exposure is stored for each wait area 38 of the buffer module group 3, And a total wafer W number storage area 52b. FIG. 9 shows data stored in the buffer state storage area 52. FIG. The CPU 42 calculates the total number of pre-exposure wafers W waiting in the buffer module group 3 based on the data stored in the standby state storage area 52a and stores the total number of pre-exposure wafers W And stores the calculated value in the area 52b.

The maintenance storage setting storage area 53 is provided with setting storage areas 61, 62, and 63 for storing settings for automatic maintenance, scheduled maintenance, and manual maintenance, respectively. Figs. 10 to 12 show data stored in these setting storage areas 61 to 63. Fig. In the automatic maintenance setting storage area 61, the time required for maintenance (maintenance required time) for each coating processing module of BCT, COT and TCT and the time interval (maintenance time) for maintenance are set for each of automatic cup cleaning and automatic nozzle cleaning (Required number of wafers) that need to be accumulated in the buffer module group 3 in correspondence with the maintenance required time and the number of wafers that are insufficient in the required number of wafers in the buffer module group 3 And the predicted wait time until the required number of wafers are accumulated in the buffer module group 3 are stored in correspondence with each other.

The maintenance required time and the maintenance time interval are set values set by the user. The required number of wafers is calculated by the following equation (2) using the maintenance required time and the throughput of the exposure apparatus (S4) stored in the throughput storage area (51).

[Formula 2]

(Number of necessary wafers (number of wafers) = number of required maintenance times (minutes) x throughput (number of wafers per minute) of exposure apparatus S4

The number of insufficient wafers is calculated by the following formula (3) by using the required number of wafers calculated in equation (2) and the total number of wafers before exposure stored in the buffer state storage area (52).

[Formula 3]

(Wafers) Wafers (wafers) Total number of wafers (wafers)

The predicted waiting time is calculated by the following equation (4) using the number of deficient wafers calculated in the equation (3) and the accumulation rate stored in the throughput storage area (51).

[Formula 4]

Estimated waiting time (minutes) = number of insufficient wafers (wafers) / accumulation rate (w / min)

A description will be given of a process in which each calculation value of the setting storage area 61 is calculated specifically for numerical values of automatic cup cleaning of the resist coating module (COT), which is one of the automatic maintenance. The throughput of the coating and developing apparatus 1 is 330 sheets / hour, the throughput of the exposure apparatus S4 is 300 sheets / hour, and the maintenance required time is set to 2 minutes. The total number of wafers W before exposure in the buffer module group 3 is set to four.

in this case,

From Equation 1, the accumulation rate is [330 (hour / hour) -300 (hour / hour)] / 60 = 0.5 / minute.

From Equation 2, the number of required wafers = 2 (minutes) x 300/60 (w / min) = 10.

From Equation 3, the number of deficient wafers = 10 sheets - 4 sheets = 6 sheets.

From equation (4), the predicted waiting time = 6 sheets / 0.5 (sheets / minute) = 12 minutes.

Next, the reservation maintenance storage area 62 will be described. Like the automatic maintenance setting storage area 61, the setting storage area 62 stores the maintenance required time, the number of required wafers, the number of defective wafers, and the estimated wait time for each maintenance in association with each other. In the setting storage area 62, a maintenance start date and time set for each maintenance is stored.

An example of numerical values will be specifically described with respect to the process in which each arithmetic value of the setting storage area 62 is calculated for lamp replacement of the peripheral exposure module WEE, which is one of the reservation maintenance. The maintenance required time is set to 10 minutes, for example. The total number of wafers W before exposure in the buffer module group 3 is set to four as in the immediately preceding example.

in this case,

From Equation 2, the number of required wafers = 10 (minutes) x 300/60 (w / min) = 50 sheets.

From Equation 3, the number of deficient wafers = 50 sheets-4 sheets = 46 sheets.

From equation (4), the predicted waiting time = 46 sheets / 0.5 (sheets / minute) = 92 minutes.

Like the automatic maintenance setting storage area 61, the maintenance required time, the number of required wafers, the number of defective wafers, and the estimated waiting time are stored in the manual maintenance setting storage area 63 in correspondence with each other. An example of numerical values will be specifically described with respect to the step of calculating the arithmetic values of the setting storage area 63 with respect to the confirmation of the resist discharge amount and the discharge state which are one of the manual maintenance. The maintenance required time is set to, for example, 5 minutes. The throughput of the exposure apparatus S4 and the total number of wafers W before exposure of the buffer module group 3 are 330 sheets / hour, 300 sheets / hour, and 4 sheets, respectively, as in the previous example. in this case,

From Equation 2, the number of required wafers = 5 (minutes) x 300/60 (w / min) = 25.

From Equation 3, the number of deficient wafers = 25 sheets-4 sheets = 21 sheets.

From equation (4), the predicted waiting time = 21 sheets / 0.5 (sheets / minute) = 42 minutes.

Returning to Fig. 8, the display unit 48 will be described. The display unit 48 displays the total number of wafers before exposure in the buffer module group 3, which is constituted by, for example, a display and stored in the memory 45, the maintenance required time in each maintenance, The required number of wafers, the number of insufficient wafers, and the predicted waiting time. More specifically, the tables shown in Figs. 10 to 12 are displayed on the display section 48. Fig. The display of the display unit 48 is updated in real time during the processing of the wafer W. [

The user sets the maintenance required time and the maintenance time interval for each automatic maintenance before starting the processing of the wafers W in the coating and developing apparatus 1. [ Further, the user sets the maintenance required time and the maintenance start date and time for each reservation maintenance. Based on the setting of the user, the control unit 100 calculates the accumulation rate and further calculates the number of required wafers, the number of insufficient wafers, and the estimated wait time for each maintenance. These set values and computed values are displayed on the display unit 48. [

Each maintenance belonging to the above-described automatic maintenance and reserved maintenance is classified into block retention maintenance and module retirement maintenance by a difference in the waiting method of the wafer W when maintenance is performed. In the block evacuation maintenance, it is necessary to retreat all the wafers W carrying the unit blocks B1 to B4 to the buffer module group 3 in order to perform maintenance. The module retract maintenance is a maintenance that does not require such retreat, and maintenance of the module is performed in a state in which the wafer W is waiting on the module on the front end side and the module on the rear end side of the module for performing maintenance.

For example, automatic cup cleaning and automatic nozzle cleaning as examples of automatic maintenance correspond to module retract maintenance. The replacement of the cup of the resist coating module (COT) and the lamp replacement of the peripheral exposure module (WEE) as examples of the reservation maintenance corresponds to the module retract maintenance. The exchange of the pawl portions 25 of the conveying arms A1 to A4 as an example of the reserved maintenance corresponds to block evacuation maintenance.

Hereinafter, with reference to a flowchart of Fig. 13, a process of performing automatic cup cleaning in the resist coating module (COT) will be described as an example of module retention maintenance. When normal transportation and processing of the wafer W is started, the control unit 100 determines whether or not the time set as the maintenance time interval elapses from the start of the process (step D1). If not, It continues. If it is determined that the set time has elapsed, the control unit 100 determines whether or not the required number of wafers is accumulated in the buffer module group 3 (step D2).

When it is determined that the necessary number of wafers is not accumulated in the buffer module group 3, the normal transfer continues. When it is determined that the required number of wafers have been accumulated, the wafer W to be processed and taken out by the resist coating module (COT), which is the object of maintenance, is a wafer W of one lot, It is determined whether or not the wafer W to be transferred to the COT is the wafer W of the next lot. That is, it is judged whether or not the perforation line of the lot is attached to the resist coating module (COT) (step D3). When it is judged that it is not the perforated line of the lot, the normal transportation is continued. When it is judged that the perforated line of the lot is taken, the taking out of the wafer W from the carrier C is stopped, ) Is stopped. As a result, the resist coating module COT is emptied, so that the preceding lot remains on the module in the preceding stage than the resist coating module, and the subsequent lot remains on the rear stage of the resist coating module (COT) (step D4). In the vacated resist application module (COT), the cup 21 is cleaned (step D5).

The post-exposure conveyance F3 and the return-to-side conveyance F2 are continued as described in Fig. 7 while the cup 21 is being cleaned. Therefore, the pre-exposure wafer W accumulated in the buffer module group 3, Is returned to the carrier C after being transferred to the exposure apparatus S4 and the unit blocks B5 and B6 to be processed. When the set maintenance time has elapsed after the cleaning of the cup 21 has been completed and the forward path side transportation F1 has been stopped, the removal of the wafer W of the following lot from the carrier C, The forward transfer F1 of the outward transfer path S2 is resumed and the wafer W of the lot subsequent to the maintenance of the resist coating module COT is carried. Subsequently, the control unit 100 determines whether or not the set maintenance time interval has elapsed from this maintenance end time. That is, the above-mentioned steps D1 to D5 are repeatedly performed, and cup cleaning of the resist coating module (COT) is performed periodically and repeatedly. Also in the other coating film forming module, the cup cleaning is carried out in accordance with the steps D1 to D5. Also, even when automatic nozzle cleaning is performed, the operation proceeds in accordance with steps D1 to D5 as in the case where automatic cup cleaning is performed.

In describing the flow of the module retract maintenance, an example of automatic cup cleaning as automatic maintenance has been described. However, in the case of the reserved maintenance, the process is also progressed in accordance with the steps D1 to D4 in FIG. 13, After the conveyance of the wafer W is stopped, the operator performs maintenance. For example, in the case of performing the lamp replacement of the primary exposure module WEE, description will be made in step D1 to determine whether or not the date and time set for performing maintenance is reached. After the transfer to the main exposure module WEE is stopped in step D4, the operator performs the replacement of the lamp. Then, when instructed by the operator as described later, the conveyance is resumed. When the cup 21 of the resist coating module (COT) is exchanged, the process proceeds similarly to the steps D1 to D4, and the transfer of the wafer W to the resist coating module (COT) is stopped.

Next, as an example of block evacuation maintenance, a process of exchanging the pawl portion 25a of the transfer arm A1 will be described with reference to the flow of FIG. 14, focusing on the difference from the flow of automatic maintenance. After the coating and developing apparatus 1 is started and normal conveyance and processing of the wafer W is started, the control unit 100 determines whether or not the time has reached the time set as the maintenance start date and time (step E1) If not, normal conveyance is continued. If it is determined that the set time has come, the control section 100 determines whether the required number of wafers is accumulated in the buffer module group 3 (step E2).

When it is determined that the necessary number of wafers is not accumulated in the buffer module group 3, the normal transfer continues. When it is judged that the required number of wafers have been accumulated, a sign indicating that the necessary number of wafers have been accumulated is displayed on the display unit 48, and subsequently the wafers W in the lot being taken out from the carrier C, (W) of the wafer W is determined. That is, it is judged whether or not the take-out of the wafer W from the carrier C is caught by the perforated line of the lot (step E3). When it is judged that the wafer W is not the last wafer W of the lot, the take-out of the wafer W from the carrier C is continued. When it is determined that the wafer W taken out of the carrier C is the last wafer W of the lot, the takeout of the wafer W of the following lot from the carrier C is stopped (step E4).

When the final wafer W of the lot carried out to the processing block S2 passes through the processing block S2 and is carried into the buffer module group 3 (step E5), as shown in Fig. 7, (S2), the forward road side transportation F1 is stopped (step E6). The user performs replacement of the pawl portion 25a of the transfer arm A1 while the outboard transfer F1 is stopped. When the pre-exposure wafer W of the buffer module group 3 becomes equal to or less than a preset number, that is, when the maintenance time approaches the end, the controller 100 generates an alarm sound from an alarm generator (not shown). The worker finishes the maintenance work, performs a predetermined operation in the setting section 47, and instructs the normal conveyance to be resumed, whereby the normal conveyance is resumed. Even if the maintenance required time has elapsed since the forwarding-side transfer F1 is stopped, the normal conveyance is not resumed until such an operator instructs. Even when the pawl portions 25a of the transfer arms A2 to A4 are exchanged, the processing is performed in accordance with the steps E1 to E6.

Next, as an example of manual maintenance, a step of confirming the resist discharge amount and the discharge state will be described with reference to the flow of FIG. When the coating and developing apparatus 1 is started and the normal conveyance of the wafer W is started, the user sets the maintenance required time at an arbitrary timing, and in the control unit 100, the necessary number of wafers, The number of wafers and the estimated wait time are calculated, and these set values and calculated values are displayed on the display unit 48. [ Then, the control unit 100 determines whether or not the required number of wafers is stored in the buffer module group 3 (step F1). When the wafer W is not stored, the normal transfer is continued. When the wafer W is stored, the take-out of the wafer W from the carrier C is stopped (step F2) (Step F3). In the meantime, the user confirms the resist discharge amount and discharge state of the resist coating module (COT). When the maintenance required time elapses from the stopping point of the forward-path-side transfer (F1), the normal conveyance is resumed.

For example, this manual maintenance is performed in preference to the automatic maintenance and the scheduled maintenance, and the automatic maintenance and the scheduled maintenance are performed during the period until the normal transportation is resumed after inputting the maintenance required time for performing the manual maintenance The wafer W is not stopped from being taken out from the carrier C. In addition, either automatic maintenance or manual maintenance may be performed with priority.

According to the coating and developing apparatus 1, whether or not the number of pre-exposure wafers W corresponding to the maintenance time required for the maintenance performed in the processing block B2 is stored in the buffer module group 3, The wafer W is taken out of the carrier C and the forward path side transportation of the processing block S2 is stopped. On the other hand, the transfer of the wafer W returned from the buffer module group 3 to the carrier C via the exposure device S4 is continued. Therefore, since the exposure process of the exposure apparatus S4 is not stopped, it is possible to prevent the processing efficiency of the exposure apparatus S4 from being lowered. As a result, deterioration of the throughput of the wafer W can be prevented. Further, in each maintenance, the waiting time until the required number of wafers is accumulated is displayed on the display section 48. The user is able to know when the maintenance is to be started from when the maintenance is in progress so that the carrier C that restrains the conveyance of the carrier C to the coating and developing apparatus 1 and conveys it to the other coating and developing apparatus 1 ) Can be set in advance, and in the case of carrying out the manual maintenance described above, it is possible to carry out when appropriate without affecting the other maintenance, and consequently contributes to improvement of productivity of the product. Further, in this coating and developing apparatus 1, when the number of necessary wafers is accumulated for each maintenance, a sign indicating this is displayed on the display unit 48, so that the user is surely cautioned.

In the coating and developing apparatus 1, maintenance is performed after the last wafer W of the lot passes through the processing block S2 or through a module to be a maintenance target. Thereby, the environment for treating the wafers W of the same lot is prevented from being different from each other by the wafers, so that the quality of the products in the same lot is suppressed from fluctuating. Therefore, a decrease in the yield can be prevented. Further, in the case of carrying out the module retract maintenance, the wafer W is waiting for the module other than the module to be the maintenance target, so that the process can be resumed quickly after the completion of the maintenance. Therefore, deterioration of the throughput can be suppressed more reliably.

The kind of maintenance is not limited to the above example. For example, there is a module check as one of reservation maintenance. This is because the carrier C in which the module inspection wafer W is stored is transferred to the carrier block S1 and the inspection wafer W is transferred by using the carrier means S1 and the conveying means of the processing block S2 To the desired module, and after returning to the carrier C after carrying out a predetermined inspection. The inspection wafer W is conveyed to, for example, an external inspection apparatus of the apparatus 1, and the operation of the module is inspected. One of the two protection film forming modules (TCT) installed in each of the unit blocks B3 and B4 is referred to as a back side cleaning module BST. As the reservation maintenance, the brush replacement of the back side cleaning module BST may be performed.

The maintenance start timing is not limited to the above example. For example, after the last wafer W of the lot has passed through the processing block S2, the conveyance of the processing block S2 may be stopped and the maintenance may be started before the wafer W is brought into the buffer module group 3. Further, for example, in the case of performing the automatic maintenance, the maintenance may be started at the time when the last wafer W of the lot passes the module in which the maintenance is performed.

In the coating and developing apparatus 1, the wafers W are stored in the buffer module group 3. Therefore, if the number of wafers W in the apparatus is large and the number of carriers to be loaded into the coating and developing apparatus 1 is insufficient, the wafers W can not be supplied to the respective modules, and the productivity may be lowered . Therefore, after considering the accumulation rate of the buffer module group 3, the number of carriers C to be brought into the carrier block S1 is set. It is also effective to increase the number of carriers C that can be stacked on the shelf of the carrier block S1. The control unit 100 outputs a signal to a computer that controls the operation of the transport mechanism outside the coating and developing apparatus 1 and the wafer W is carried into the coating and developing apparatus 1, 14 may be retracted to the outside of the coating and developing apparatus 1 by the carrying mechanism. Thereby, the number of carriers C in the carrier block S1 is controlled so as to be suppressed to a number in which the carrier C can be loaded.

However, in the case of performing the maintenance of the module of the return-to-side transfer path F2 of the processing block S2, The invention can be applied. Fig. 16 shows the outline of the conveyance in the case of performing the maintenance on the return path side as described above. As shown in this figure, the conveyance of both of the return-side conveyance F2 and the forward-side conveyance F1 is stopped. Then, the exposure transport (F3) is continued while the transports F1 and F2 are stopped.

The switching from the normal conveyance to the conveyance at the time of maintenance shown in Fig. 16 will be concretely explained, for example, in the case where the pawl portion 25a of the conveyance arm A6, which is a reserved maintenance, is to be replaced. In this explanation, the lots of the exposed wafer are A and B, and the lot B is the next lot of the lot A. When the steps E1 and E2 of the flow of the block evacuation maintenance are proceeded and it is judged that the necessary number of wafers have been stored in the buffer module group 3, the lot A being carried out from the buffer module group 3 is transferred to the return- F2 continues to be conveyed. After the last wafer W of the lot A is taken out, the carrying out of the exposed wafer W from the buffer module group 3 is stopped. That is, the lot B does not go out of the buffer module group 3 but stays in the buffer module group 3.

Then, when the last wafer W of the lot A is returned to the carrier C, the return-side transportation F2 is stopped. Further, the forward-path-side transfer (F1) stops according to the above-mentioned steps E3 to E6. During this time, in the buffer module group 3, the unexposed wafer W is transferred to the exposure apparatus S4, the number of which is reduced, and the exposed wafer W carried from the exposure apparatus S4 is accumulated. When the maintenance setting time elapses from the stopping point of the return-to-side transfer F2, the lot B is carried out from the buffer module 3 and the wafer W is taken out from the carrier C. That is, the normal conveyance is resumed. Even when carrying is carried out in this way, the exposure apparatus S4 can continue the exposure process, and the above-mentioned effect can be obtained. In the case of carrying out maintenance in the module of the outward route side transportation F1, both of the return-side transfer F2 and the forward-side transfer F1 may be stopped.

Although the cleaning liquid may be supplied to the cup 21 directly from the nozzle constituting the cleaning mechanism provided in the cup 21, if the cleaning liquid is supplied to the cup 21 using the cleaning jig do. 17 shows the disk 71 which is the cleaning jig. A circular ring portion 73 is provided so as to surround the outer periphery of the central portion 72 which is in the form of a disk. 18, the peripheral end portion of the ring portion 73 protrudes upward, and the outer peripheral surface 74 of the ring portion 73 stands up. For example, one shelf of the shelf units U1 to U6 is configured as a standby portion for storing the disc 71, and the disc 71 waits at the standby portion at the time of processing the wafer W. [

When the above-described flows D1 to D4 are performed, the transfer arm A1 transfers the disk 71 from the shelf to the resist coating module (COT) And the ring portion 73 of the disk 71 is sucked to the spin chuck 22. The spin chuck 22 rotates and a solvent such as a thinner is discharged from the backside cleaning nozzle 26 for cleaning the back surface of the wafer W to the back surface of the ring portion 73 of the disk 71. [ In Fig. 18, the flow of the solvent is indicated by the dotted arrow. The discharged solvent is directed to the outer surface of the ring portion 73 by the centrifugal force and then rides on the outer peripheral surface 74 by surface tension and viscosity, 21). Then, the scattered solvent is transferred to the inner circumferential surface of the cup 21, descends while washing the resist attached to the cup 21, and flows into a drain path (not shown) to be drained. When the cleaning operation is completed, the disk 21 returns to the waiting section, and the normal conveyance of the wafer W is resumed.

In the other coating film forming module, the automatic cleaning of the cup 21 is similarly performed at the time of maintenance. The air bearing portion is not limited to this example. All of the wafers W of the unit blocks B1 to B4 are evacuated to the buffer module group 3 and then the disc 71 is transported to the coating and developing apparatus 1 by the carrier C. [ That is, the carrier C may be an atmospheric portion.

W: Wafer
A1 to A6:
BCT: anti-reflection film forming module
BU: Buffer module
COT: a resist film forming module
DEV: Development module
TCT: protective film forming module
S1: Carrier block
S2: Processing block
S3: Interface block
S4: Exposure device
WEE: Primary exposure module
1: Coating and developing apparatus
100:
3: buffer module group
45: Memory
47: Setting section
48:

Claims

A substrate taken out from a carrier loaded on a carrier block is formed in a processing block so as to form a coating film containing a resist film and then transferred to an exposure apparatus to carry out development processing in the processing block with respect to the substrate after exposure, And the number of substrates to be processed per the same time is larger than that of the exposure apparatus,
A temporarily holding unit for temporarily temporarily holding the substrate before the exposure on which the coating film is formed,
A stop time setting unit for setting a length of time for stopping the conveyance of the substrate on the upstream side in order to carry out maintenance for the module on which the substrate is placed in the conveyance path of the substrate,
Monitoring whether or not the number of substrates placed on the temporary holding section has reached the number of processed substrates of the substrate by the processing block according to the length of the stopping time and then stops conveying the substrate on the upstream side of the temporary holding section And a control unit for outputting a control signal to the control unit,
Wherein the stop time setting unit sets a stop time using the following Equations (1) to (4).
[Formula 1]
The throughput (per hour) of the exposure apparatus S4] / 60 (throughput /
[Formula 2]
(Number of necessary wafers (number of wafers) = number of required maintenance times (minutes) x throughput (number of wafers per minute) of exposure apparatus S4
[Formula 3]
(Wafers) Wafers (wafers) Total number of wafers (wafers)
[Formula 4]
Estimated waiting time (minutes) = number of insufficient wafers (wafers) / accumulation rate (w / min)

The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the controller stops the taking-out of the substrate from the carrier block side to the processing block after the number of the substrates placed on the temporary loading portion reaches the number of processed substrates by the processing block according to the length of the stopping time And then outputs a control signal for stopping the conveyance of the substrate on the upstream side.

3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the control section outputs a control signal to retract the substrate existing in the processing block to the temporary loading section before outputting a control signal to stop conveying the substrate on the upstream side.

The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the control unit controls the number of substrates placed in the temporary holding unit to reach the number of processed substrates by the processing block according to the length of the stopping time, After the substrate is taken out to the processing block from the carrier block side, the subsequent substrate is stopped to be taken out, and after the final substrate has passed through the processing block, a control signal is outputted so as to stop the transfer of the substrate on the upstream side And a developing device.

The method according to claim 1,
The waiting time until the number of sheets corresponding to the length of the stop time until the substrate before exposure is placed in the temporary mounting portion is calculated based on the number of substrates before exposure and the number of processed substrates of the coating and developing apparatus placed on the temporary mounting portion ,
And a display unit for displaying the calculated waiting time,

The method according to claim 1,
And a timing setting unit for setting timing for starting the maintenance,
Wherein the control section outputs a control signal to stop conveying the substrate on the upstream side after the elapse of the timing.

The method according to claim 1,
The module includes a nozzle for supplying a processing liquid for forming a coating film to a substrate, and a nozzle cleaning mechanism for supplying a cleaning liquid to the nozzle,
Wherein the control unit outputs a control signal to supply the cleaning liquid from the nozzle cleaning mechanism in order to clean the nozzle at the stopping time,

The method according to claim 1,
The module includes a loading section for a substrate, a nozzle for supplying a processing liquid for forming a coating film to the substrate, a cup surrounding the substrate loaded on the loading section, and a cleaning mechanism for supplying a cleaning liquid into the cup ,
Wherein the control section outputs a control signal to supply the cleaning liquid to clean the cup at the stop time.

9. The method of claim 8,
And a jig which stands by at a standby portion provided outside the cup when the substrate is processed in the module and is transported to the cup at the stopping time,
Wherein the loading section is configured to rotate the jig with the holding section,
Wherein the cleaning mechanism is configured to discharge the cleaning liquid by the jig and scatter the liquid to clean the inside of the cup.

A substrate taken out from a carrier loaded on a carrier block is formed in a processing block to form a coating film containing a resist film and then transferred to an exposure apparatus to carry out development processing in the processing block with respect to the substrate after exposure, In a coating and developing method using a coating and developing apparatus in which the number of substrates processed per the same time is larger than that in an exposure apparatus,
Temporarily temporarily mounting the substrate before the exposure on the temporary holding portion where the coating film is formed,
A step of setting a length of time for stopping the conveyance of the substrate on the upstream side by the stopping time setting section in order to perform maintenance on the module on which the substrate is placed in the conveyance path of the substrate,
Monitoring whether or not the number of substrates placed on the temporary holding section has reached the number of processed substrates of the substrate by the processing block according to the length of the stopping time and then stops conveying the substrate on the upstream side of the temporary holding section , &Lt; / RTI >
Wherein the step of setting the length of the stopping time sets the stopping time using the following equations (1) to (4).
[Formula 1]
The throughput (per hour) of the exposure apparatus S4] / 60 (throughput /
[Formula 2]
(Number of necessary wafers (number of wafers) = number of required maintenance times (minutes) x throughput (number of wafers per minute) of exposure apparatus S4
[Formula 3]
(Wafers) Wafers (wafers) Total number of wafers (wafers)
[Formula 4]
Estimated waiting time (minutes) = number of insufficient wafers (wafers) / accumulation rate (w / min)

11. The method of claim 10,
Stopping the take-out of the substrate from the carrier block side to the processing block after the number of the substrates placed on the temporary holding portion reaches the number of processed substrates by the processing block in accordance with the length of the stopping time;
And then, stopping the transfer of the substrate on the upstream side.

11. The method of claim 10,
And a step of withdrawing the substrate existing in the processing block to the temporary mounting section before stopping the transfer of the substrate on the upstream side.

11. The method of claim 10,
After the number of substrates placed in the temporary mounting section reaches the number of processing steps of the substrate by the processing block according to the length of the stopping time, the final substrate of the lot to which the substrate present in the processing block belongs, A step of stopping taking-out of a subsequent substrate after being taken out to a processing block from a side of the processing block,
And a step of stopping the transfer of the substrate on the upstream side after the final substrate has passed through the processing block.

11. The method of claim 10,
And supplying a cleaning liquid to a nozzle for supplying a processing liquid for forming a coating film to the substrate provided in the module at the stop time.

11. The method of claim 10,
And supplying the cleaning liquid to the cup surrounding the loading portion of the substrate provided in the module at the stopping time to perform cleaning.

16. The method of claim 15,
Wherein the step of cleaning the cup comprises:
A step of conveying the jig from the standby portion provided on the outside of the cup to the cup at the stopping time,
Holding the jig in the loading section and rotating the jig,
And discharging the cleaning liquid from the cleaning mechanism to the jig and scattering the liquid in the cup.

A substrate taken out from a carrier loaded on a carrier block is formed in a processing block so as to form a coating film containing a resist film and then transferred to an exposure apparatus to carry out development processing in the processing block with respect to the substrate after exposure, And a computer program for use in a control section of a coating and developing apparatus is stored in order to perform a coating and developing method by a coating and developing apparatus in which the number of substrates processed per the same time is larger than that of an exposure apparatus,
In the coating and developing method,
Temporarily temporarily mounting the substrate before the exposure on the temporary holding portion where the coating film is formed,
A step of setting a length of time for stopping the conveyance of the substrate on the upstream side by the stopping time setting section in order to perform maintenance on the module on which the substrate is placed in the conveyance path of the substrate,
Monitoring whether or not the number of substrates placed on the temporary holding section has reached the number of processed substrates of the substrate by the processing block according to the length of the stopping time and then stops conveying the substrate on the upstream side of the temporary holding section , &Lt; / RTI >
Wherein the step of setting the length of time for stopping the transportation of the substrate on the upstream side sets the stop time using the following equations (1) to (4).
[Formula 1]
The throughput (per hour) of the exposure apparatus S4] / 60 (throughput /
[Formula 2]
(Number of necessary wafers (number of wafers) = number of required maintenance times (minutes) x throughput (number of wafers per minute) of exposure apparatus S4
[Formula 3]
(Wafers) Wafers (wafers) Total number of wafers (wafers)
[Formula 4]
Estimated waiting time (minutes) = number of insufficient wafers (wafers) / accumulation rate (w / min)