KR20020021023A - Liquid processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An apparatus for processing liquid is provided to maintain the high quality of a substrate and to improve production yield, by preventing generation of ascending air current and by preventing mist from being attached to the substrate. CONSTITUTION: A maintenance unit(43) maintains the substrate(G). A process liquid supplying apparatus supplies predetermined process liquid to the substrate. A rotating unit and the maintenance unit rotate the substrate. A buffer chamber(63) stays air current and/or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate, and winds up the air current and/or mist while the air current and/or mist is not diffused to the substrate.

Description

Liquid processing device {LIQUID PROCESSING APPARATUS}

The present invention relates to, for example, a spinner type liquid processing apparatus which performs a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display (LCD), a semiconductor wafer or the like.

For example, in the lithography process of liquid crystal display (LCD) and semiconductor devices, a liquid crystal processing apparatus, generally called a spinner type, is used to spin-rotate an LCD substrate or a semiconductor wafer in-plane, thereby cleaning, resist coating, and developing. And the like is performed.

In the spinner liquid processing apparatus, various processing liquids, for example, a cleaning liquid, a resist liquid, a developing liquid, a rinse liquid, and the like are supplied to the substrate while the substrate is held almost horizontal and rotates in-plane. The treatment liquid is inevitably scattered in all directions. Such scattering of the processing liquid also occurs when the substrate is rotated to dry the substrate after the supply of the processing liquid is stopped.

Thus, conventionally, a processing container (processing cup) formed in a cup shape is disposed to surround the substrate, and a discharge port (drain) is provided on the bottom surface of the processing cup, and the processing liquid scattered from the substrate is disposed on the inner wall of the processing cup. The treatment liquid is discharged from the drain by colliding downwardly. In addition, an exhaust port is provided on the bottom surface of the processing cup in addition to the drain to exhaust the atmosphere in the processing cup.

However, in the above-described spinner type liquid processing apparatus, both the airflow containing foreign substances such as particles generated by the rotation of the substrate and the mist of the processing liquid scattered from the substrate during the liquid processing are immediately disposed on the bottom of the container. It is not discharged from the exhaust port. For this reason, there exists a problem of particle | grains and mist floating around a board | substrate, to adhere to a board | substrate, or to adhere to the inner wall of a process cup, and to contaminate a process cup.

In addition, in the spin drying in which the substrate is rotated and shaken out of the processing liquid attached to the substrate after the liquid treatment performed while supplying the predetermined processing liquid, the rotation speed of the substrate becomes larger, so that not only the substrate is shaken, but also A large amount of fine mist is easy to generate | occur | produce also from the process liquid which collided with the inner wall. Mist and the like generated in this way cause a problem that the air flows up along the inner wall of the processing cup and rises above the substrate to adhere to the substrate again. In addition, such mist and the like also cause problems such as particles and contamination.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a liquid treatment apparatus for preventing contamination of a substrate caused by mist or the like occurring during liquid treatment of the substrate or during spin drying after the liquid treatment. There is. Moreover, an object of this invention is to provide the liquid processing apparatus which improved the discharge efficiency to the exterior of processing apparatuses, such as mist.

That is, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate, comprising: holding means for holding a substrate, a processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate, and Rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane with the holding means, and airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate to retain, thereby preventing the airflow and / or mist from winding up and spreading on the substrate. There is provided a liquid processing apparatus having a substantiality.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate, the holding means for holding a substrate, a processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate, and A processing cup consisting of a rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane with a holding means, a liftable upper cup and a fixed lower cup disposed to surround the periphery of the substrate, and formed in the processing cup to rotate the substrate. There is provided a liquid processing apparatus having a buffer chamber for retaining airflow and / or mist generated by the airflow and / or preventing the airflow and / or mist from being wound up and spreading onto the substrate.

In such a liquid processing apparatus, a part of the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate to be processed is introduced into the buffer chamber, and the momentum of the airflow is weakened in the buffer chamber, and the mists collide or collide with the wall surface to grow down. By dropping in, the mist or the like is no longer blown up over the substrate to contaminate the substrate, and the product quality is maintained high.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate, the holding means for holding a substrate, a processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate, and the holding means. And rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane, an umbrella partition plate provided below the holding means, and having a plurality of window portions, and airflow and / or mist generated by driving the rotating means to the window portion. There is provided a liquid processing apparatus having a fin installed on the partition plate so as to be introduced.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid treatment on a substrate, the holding means for holding a substrate, a processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate, and the holding means. And rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane, an umbrella partition plate provided below the holding means, and having a plurality of window portions, and airflow and / or mist generated by driving the rotating means to the window portion. Air flow and / or mist generated by driving the rotating means, a processing cup comprising a first pin provided on the partition plate for introduction, a liftable upper cup and a fixed lower cup arranged to surround the periphery of the substrate; There is provided a liquid processing apparatus having a plurality of second fins provided on an inner circumferential wall of the upper cup so as to introduce the lower portion of the processing cup.

In such a liquid processing apparatus, by providing a window portion in the partition plate and providing a pin (first pin) in the window portion, the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate can be easily received at the window portion, thereby increasing the discharge efficiency. . In this way, generation | occurrence | production of the upward airflow in a process cup is suppressed, and adhesion to board | substrates, such as mist, is suppressed. In addition, by providing a rectifier by arranging a fin (second fin) that introduces airflow or mist downward in the inner wall of the upper cup, airflow can be introduced into the window more efficiently, thereby reducing mist remaining in the processing cup. It becomes possible. In this case, it is possible to prevent the contamination of the substrate more reliably by providing the above-mentioned buffer chamber together.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The top view which shows one Embodiment of the resist coating and image development processing system provided with the washing process unit which concerns on the liquid processing apparatus of this invention.

2 is a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a washing processing unit according to the liquid treating apparatus of the present invention;

3 is another plan view and a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a washing processing unit according to the liquid treating apparatus of the present invention;

4 is another plan view and a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a washing processing unit according to the liquid treating apparatus of the present invention;

5 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing one of the airflow paths caused by the rotation of the substrate and / or the mist discharge path;

6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the upper cup is lowered in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 and a cross-sectional view showing a structure around the seal member of the upper cup and the lower cup;

7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the attachment form of the mist trap to the first outlet;

8 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where a cleaning mechanism is disposed on a substrate in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2;

9 is a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the cleaning treatment unit of the liquid treatment apparatus of the present invention;

10 is an explanatory diagram showing a structure of a pin provided in the cleaning processing unit of FIG. 9.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

1: cassette station 2: processing unit

3: Interface unit 21a, 21b, 21c: Cleaning processing unit (SCR)

41: spin plate 42: support pin

43: holding pin 51: partition plate

52: window 53: pin

54: second outlet 55: exhaust chamber

57: sensor 58: first outlet

60: processing cup 61: upper cup

62: lower cup 63: buffer chamber

67: mist trap 68: vent

80: scrub cleaning device 100: resist coating and development processing system

G: substrate (LCD substrate)

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiment of this invention is described in detail with reference to an accompanying drawing.

1 is a resist coating and developing processing system 100 for an LCD substrate G (substrate G) having a cleaning processing unit (scrubber) (SCR) 21a, 21b, which is one embodiment of the liquid treatment apparatus of the present invention. ) Is a plan view.

The resist coating and developing processing system 100 includes a cassette station 1 on which a cassette C containing a plurality of substrates G is placed, and a series of processes including resist coating and development on the substrate G. A processing unit 2 having a plurality of processing units for processing, and an interface unit 3 for exchanging a substrate G between an exposure apparatus (not shown), and at both ends of the processing unit 2. The cassette station 1 and the interface part 3 are arrange | positioned, respectively.

The cassette station 1 is provided with the conveyance mechanism 10 for conveying the board | substrate G between the cassette C and the process part 2. Then, the cassette C is loaded and unloaded in the cassette station 1. Moreover, the conveyance mechanism 10 is provided with the conveyance arm 11 which can move on the conveyance path 10a formed along the arrangement direction of a cassette, and this conveyance arm 11 has the cassette C and the processing part 2 The transfer of the board | substrate G is performed between ().

The processing part 2 is separated into the front end part 2a, the stop part 2b, and the rear end part 2c, and each has a conveyance path 12 * 13 * 14 in the center, and each process is carried out in both of these conveyance paths. The unit is arranged. And the relay part 15 * 16 is provided between these.

The front end part 2a is equipped with the main conveying apparatus 17 which can move along the conveyance path 12, and one side of the conveyance path 12 has two washing | cleaning processing units (SCR) 21a * 21b. On the other side of the conveying path 12, the processing block 25 in which the ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV) and the cooling unit (COL) are superimposed in two stages, and the heat processing unit (HP) are superimposed in two stages A processing block 27 in which the processing block 26 and the cooling unit COL are stacked in two stages is disposed.

Moreover, the interruption | blocking part 2b is equipped with the main conveying apparatus 18 which can move along the conveyance path 13, The resist coating processing unit (CT) 22 and the board | substrate are provided in one side of the conveyance path 13; The peripheral edge resist removal unit (ER) 23 for removing the resist at the peripheral edge of (G) is integrally provided, and the heat treatment unit HP is stacked in two stages on the other side of the conveying path 13. The processing block 28 which is made up of a deterioration, the processing block 29 in which the heating processing unit HP and the cooling unit COL are piled up and down, and the advice processing unit AD and the cooling unit COL are piled up and down The processing block 30 which is made up is arrange | positioned.

In addition, the rear end portion 2c is provided with a main conveying apparatus 19 that can move along the conveying path 14, and on one side of the conveying path 14, three developing processing units (DEVs) 24a and 24b. 24c is disposed, the processing block 31 in which the heat treatment unit HP is superimposed in two stages on the other side of the conveyance path 14, and together with the heat treatment unit HP and the cooling unit COL The processing blocks 32 占 are formed so as to overlap each other up and down.

Further, the processing unit 2 is a spinner unit such as a cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, a resist coating processing unit (CT) 22, and a developing processing unit (DEV) 24a on one side with a transport path therebetween. Only the heat treatment unit (HP), cooling unit (COL) and the like are arranged on the other side.

In addition, a chemical liquid supply unit 34 is disposed at the spinner unit unit arrangement side of the relay unit 15 · 16, and further includes a space 35 for maintenance and repair of the main transport apparatus 17 · 18 · 19. ) Is installed.

The main transport apparatuses 17, 18, and 19 each include an X-axis driving mechanism in two directions in the horizontal plane, a Y-axis driving mechanism, and a Z-axis driving mechanism in the vertical direction, and a rotation driving mechanism that rotates about the Z axis. It has, and has the arm which supports the board | substrate G, respectively.

The main conveying apparatus 17 has a conveying arm 17a, exchanges the board | substrate G with the conveying arm 11 of the conveying mechanism 10, and is for each processing unit of the front end part 2a. The board | substrate G has a function of carrying in / out of the board | substrate G, or exchanging a board | substrate G with the relay part 15. FIG. Moreover, the main conveying apparatus 18 has the conveying arm 18a, the board | substrate G is exchanged with the relay part 15, and the board | substrate G with respect to each processing unit of the interruption | blocking part 2b is carried out. There is a function of carrying in and taking out the substrate G between the carrying in and the carrying out, or the relay unit 16. In addition, the main conveying apparatus 19 has a conveying arm 19a, which exchanges the substrate G with the relay section 16, and simultaneously the substrate G with respect to each processing unit of the rear end 2c. It has a function of carrying in / out of the board | substrate G, or the board | substrate G between the interface part 3, and carrying out. On the other hand, the relay unit 15 · 16 also functions as a cooling plate.

The interface unit 3 includes an extension 36 for temporarily holding the substrate G when the substrate G is exchanged with the processing unit 2, and two buffer stages for placing buffer buffers provided on both sides thereof. 37 and a conveyance mechanism 38 for carrying in and out of the substrate G between these and an exposure apparatus (not shown) are provided. The conveyance mechanism 38 is provided with the conveyance arm 39 which can move on the conveyance path 38a formed along the arrangement 36 of the extension 36 and the buffer stage 37, and the conveyance arm 39 carries out the process part. The conveyance of the board | substrate G is performed between (2) and an exposure apparatus.

By integrating and integrating each processing unit in this manner, it is possible to save space and to increase processing efficiency.

In the resist coating and developing processing system 100 configured as described above, the substrate G in the cassette C is conveyed to the processing unit 2, and in the processing unit 2, first, the processing block 25 of the front end unit 2a. Surface modification / cleaning is performed by the ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV), and after cooling by the cooling unit (COL), scrub cleaning is performed by the cleaning processing units (SCR) 21a, 21b, and the processing block 26 After being heated and dried in any one of the heat treatment units HP, it is cooled in one of the cooling units COL in the treatment block 27.

Subsequently, the substrate G is conveyed to the stop part 2b, and hydrophobized (HMDS treatment) is performed by the advanced treatment unit AD at the upper end of the processing block 30 in order to increase the fixability of the resist. After cooling with the cooling unit (COL) of the resist, the resist is applied to the resist coating process unit (CT) 22, and the extra resist of the peripheral edge of the substrate G is transferred to the peripheral edge resist removal unit (ER) 23. Removed. Subsequently, the substrate G is prebaked with one of the heat treatment units HP in the stop portion 2b and cooled by the cooling unit COL at the lower end of the process block 29 or 30.

Then, the board | substrate G is conveyed from the relay part 16 to the exposure apparatus through the interface part 3 by the main transport apparatus 19, and a predetermined pattern is exposed there. Subsequently, the substrate G is carried back through the interface portion 3 and, if necessary, post-exposed to any one of the heat treatment units HP in the processing blocks 31, 32, 33 of the rear end 2c. After the treatment, the developer is developed by one of the development processing units (DEVs) 24a, 24b, and 24c to form a predetermined circuit pattern. The developed substrate G is subjected to post-baking treatment by any one of the heat treatment units HP of the rear ends 2c, and then cooled by one of the cooling units COL, and the main transport apparatus 19 18 · 17 and the conveyance mechanism 10 are accommodated in a predetermined cassette on the cassette station 1.

Next, the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a according to the present invention will be described in detail. 2 is a plan view and a sectional view showing a schematic structure of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, and the sectional view is a sectional view along the line AA in the plan view. 3 and 4 are also a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing the structure of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, a cross-sectional view of FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in the plan view, and a cross-sectional view of FIG. It is sectional drawing in the line PQRS line. Here, each plan view of FIG. 2 shows the same thing, and in each sectional drawing, the member which is not on line AA phase, line BB phase, and line PQRS is easy to understand the structure of the cleaning process unit (SCR) 21a. It may be shown, and on the other hand, although it is shown in sectional drawing, there is also a member which is not shown in the top view.

The cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a is provided in a sink or casing (not shown) and has a spin plate 41 which is a holding means for placing and holding the substrate G. On the upper surface of the spin plate 41, a plurality of support pins 42 are discretely fixed in an appropriate arrangement pattern. When the substrate G is placed on the spin plate, the substrate G is supported by the support pins 42. ), It is difficult to bend or the like on the substrate (G). In addition, the holding pin 43 is fixedly provided on the upper surface of the spin plate 41 as a means for holding the four corners of the board | substrate G. As shown in FIG.

Lifting and lowering of the board | substrate G is performed by the lift pin 44, and four lift pins 44 are provided, for example. The spin plate 41 is formed with a through hole 45 for passing these lift pins 44 therethrough. Preferably, the support pin 42, the holding pin 43, and the portion of the lift pin 44 in contact with at least the substrate G are made of a member such as resin or rubber so as not to damage the substrate G, and the spin plate 41 can be comprised using stainless steel etc., for example.

An axis 46 is attached to the rear center portion of the spin plate 41, and the axis 46 is attached to a motor 47 fixed to a rotating means, for example, a support member (not shown). By operating the motor 47 and rotating the pivot 46 at a predetermined speed, the spin plate 41 and the substrate G can rotate in-plane together. On the other hand, in the drive unit container 48 which accommodates a part of the shaft 46 and the motor 47, a means for raising and lowering the lift pin 44, for example, an air cylinder not shown, is provided.

On the rear surface of the spin plate 41, a substantially rectangular plate-like blowing pin 49 extending radially from the center toward the outer edge is formed. The blowing pin 49 generates airflow for smoothly exhausting or draining the liquid when the spin plate 41 rotates. The number of attachments of the blowing pin 49 can be arbitrarily selected.

An umbrella-shaped partition plate 51 is provided below the spin plate 41 to serve as an upper wall of the drive unit container 48 to surround the axis 46. In the inclined surface of the partition plate 51, the window parts 52 are formed in eight places along the periphery edge, for example, and the airflow and / or mist which arise by rotation of the spin plate 41 with respect to each window part 52 are carried out. A pin 53, which serves to introduce the inlet into the window portion 52, is provided to protrude on the partition wall 51. As shown in FIG. In addition, a second discharge port 54 is formed on the bottom surface of the lower part of the window 52 so that air flow and / or mist entering the window 52 are discharged from the second discharge port 54 through a short discharge path. Consists of.

5 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing a discharge path of airflow and / or mist from the window portion 52. When the board | substrate G is rotated in the direction of arrow S, the direction (arrow S1) of the airflow generate | occur | produced by this rotation will also become a direction of rotation similar to arrow S, and mist will move easily in this airflow. The pin 53 is formed by the pin 53 because one side is fixed to the partition plate 51 on the downstream side of the airflow, and the other side is inclined so as to be at a high position upstream of the airflow. Airflow easily enters the exhaust chamber 55 from the substantially vertical opening 53a, and airflow also easily enters the exhaust chamber 55 from the window 52. If the wall portion 53b is provided on the side surface of the pin 53, the air flow and / or mist can be mixed more effectively from the opening portion 53a and the window portion 52.

The second discharge port 54 has a downstream side of the air flow with respect to the window portion 52 in consideration of the flow of the air flow so as to shorten the discharge path of the air flow and / or mist flowing in the window 52 and the opening 53a. It is installed in this position. In this way, since the discharge path of the airflow and / or mist introduced into the second discharge port 54 from the window 52 is stepped on the shortest path indicated by arrow S2, the exhaust efficiency is increased.

In this case, since the amount of air flow and mist remaining in the exhaust chamber 55 formed under the window 52 is reduced, the generation of mist flowing back from the window 52 is suppressed, and the partition plate It is possible to reduce the amount of mist falling out of the hole 56 of the wall portion 51a provided vertically along the outer edge of the 51 and flying back onto the substrate G again. Such an effect can be obtained even when the buffer chamber 63 described later is not provided. On the other hand, most of the air flow and / or mist which escaped through the hole 56 from the exhaust chamber 55 to the outside flows into the buffer chamber 63 and is discharged from the first outlet 58.

The partition plate 51 is provided with a sensor 57 for inspecting and confirming the holding state of the substrate G in the spin plate 41. As this sensor 57, an optical sensor can be used, for example. As shown in FIG. 5, the window part 57a which consists of transparent members, such as glass, is formed in the partition board 51, and this window part The sensor 57 can be provided below the 57a. When the sensor 57 detects whether or not the substrate G is disposed by the sensor 57 and detects an abnormal state of the sensor 57, the device locks and the device does not operate. can do.

The cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a has a processing cup 60 consisting of a liftable upper cup 61 and a fixed lower cup 62 arranged to surround the periphery of the substrate G. 2-4 show the state which raised the upper cup 61 to the upper limit position. In the processing cup 60, a buffer chamber 63 is formed in which the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate G are retained and the diffusion into the substrate G is prevented by winding up the mist or the like. have.

The upper cup 61 has an inner circumferential wall 61a and an outer circumferential wall 61f, and a ceiling plate 61e is provided to horizontally install the inner circumferential wall 61a and the outer circumferential wall 61f. . On the other hand, the lower cup 62 has an outer circumferential wall 62a and a bottom plate 62b, and the buffer chamber 63 has these inner circumferential walls 61a, an outer circumferential wall 61f, and a ceiling plate 61e. And an outer circumferential wall 62a and a bottom plate 62b.

A first protruding wall portion 62c is formed at the upper portion of the outer circumferential wall 62a of the lower cup 62 toward the outer side, and inward at the lower portion of the outer circumferential wall 61f of the upper cup 61. The second protruding wall portion 61g is formed. 2 to 4, when the upper cup 61 is stopped at the raised limit position, the seal member 66 seals the gap between the first protruding wall portion 62c and the second protruding wall portion 61g. It becomes the structure that becomes.

6 (a) shows the state in which the upper cup 61 is lowered, but the structure around the seal member 66 has a first protrusion as shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 6 (b) in which the portion is enlarged. A gap is formed between the wall portion 62c and the second protruding wall portion 61g. The width of the gap may be actively widened or may be narrowly conversely. The upper cup 61 is lowered, for example, at the time of conveyance of the substrate G.

Inside the inner wall 61a of the upper cup 61, a buffer chamber guide wall 61b for guiding airflow and / or mist that rises along the inner wall 61a to the buffer chamber 63 is formed. It is. In addition, the protective wall 61c covers the upper portion of the buffer chamber guide wall 61b so that the airflow and / or mist introduced by the buffer chamber guide wall 61b does not fly back onto the substrate G again. It is formed in the wall 61a. The airflow and / or mist introduced into the buffer chamber guide wall 61b is changed by the deflecting wall 61c except for the mist and the like attached to the deflecting wall 61c, and the ventilation opening 68 formed in the inner wall 61a. It is introduced into the buffer chamber 63 through.

In addition, in order to prevent mist or the like from spreading to the entire cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a in the processing cup 60, the tapered portion inclined inward on the inner circumferential wall 61a of the upper cup 61. 61d is formed.

The first discharge port 58 is formed in four places of the bottom surface of the buffer chamber 63, and the mist which grew by the airflow and the collision which weakened the wind speed, etc. in the buffer chamber 63, or the mist attached to the wall surface is It is supposed to be discharged from the first discharge port 58. In addition, one end of the air flow and / or the mist descending along the partition plate 51 or the window 52 and the opening 53a provided in the partition plate 51 is taken into the exhaust chamber 55, but again the hole portion 56 The airflow and / or mist discharged from) are introduced into the buffer chamber 63 at the lower portion of the circumferential wall 61a, and these airflows and / or mist are also discharged from the first outlet 58.

As apparent from the comparison of Figs. 2 to 4, the buffer chamber 63 has a structure in which the spaces at the four corners of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a are efficiently used. The cross section of the line BB has a narrow width. By using the spaces at the four corners of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a in this way to secure a large volume of the buffer chamber 63, the amount of airflow and / or mist that can stay in the buffer chamber 63 is increased. The flow of air in the processing cup 60 can be controlled to prevent the generation of air flow and / or mist flying over the substrate G.

FIG. 7: is explanatory drawing which showed an example of the attachment form of a mist trap by taking the 1st discharge port 58 as an example. The mist trap 67 is provided in each of the 1st discharge port 58, The main liquid component isolate | separated in the mist trap 67 is discharged to the drain 67a, while the gas component is exhausted to the exhaust pipe 67b. It is supposed to be. This attachment of the mist trap also applies to the second outlet 54. Moreover, the shape of the mist trap used and the collection method of mist components are not limited to the form shown in FIG.

8 is a cross-sectional view showing one embodiment of the scrub cleaning mechanism 80 provided in the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a. The scrub cleaning mechanism 80 has, for example, a brush scrubber mechanism 71 and a blow cleaning mechanism 72. Although the brush scrubber mechanism 71 and the blow washing | cleaning mechanism 72 are shown simultaneously in FIG. 8, normally, brushing washing | cleaning (scrub washing) by the brush scrubber mechanism 71 is performed first, and after that, the blow cleaning mechanism 72 is performed. Blow cleaning is performed, and while the other mechanism is in operation, the other mechanism waits at a predetermined standby position provided on the edge of a casing or the like not shown outside of the upper cup 61.

The structure of the brush scrubber mechanism 71 is not limited, For example, the brush rotation drive part 74 which rotationally drives while contacting the surface of the board | substrate G with the surface of the board | substrate G at fixed pressure, and this brush, It is possible to use the one having a brush transfer mechanism (not shown) for sending the rotary drive portion 74 along the guide 91 in the long side direction of the substrate G. A brush scrubber mechanism which scans and scrubs in the long side direction of the substrate G while rotating the roll brush may be used using a roll brush having a length almost equal to the length of the short side direction of the substrate G. have.

The blow cleaning mechanism 72 includes, for example, a plurality of nozzles 75 for discharging the cleaning liquid directly toward the surface of the substrate G, a cleaning liquid supply unit not shown for supplying the cleaning liquid to these nozzles 75, It has a nozzle conveyance mechanism not shown which sends the nozzle 75 along the guide 90 to the long side direction of the board | substrate G. As shown in FIG. Moreover, in the blow cleaning by the blow washing | cleaning mechanism 72, the sequence which rotates the board | substrate G generally is woven.

Next, the washing treatment step in the washing treatment unit (SCR) 21a will be described. According to the timing of conveyance of the board | substrate G hold | maintained by the conveyance arm 17a of the main conveying apparatus 17, as shown to FIG. 6 (a), the upper cup 61 is lowered and the lift pin 44 is carried out. ) Is raised to a predetermined position and the substrate G is passed from the transfer arm 17a to the lift pin 44. After that, as shown in FIGS. 2-4, the lift pin 44 is lowered to a predetermined position, and the board | substrate G is mounted on the support pin 42 formed on the spin plate 41, and the holding pin 43 ), The substrate G is positioned, and the upper cup 61 is raised to a predetermined position.

After the loading of the substrate G into the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a is completed, as shown in FIG. 8, brushing and cleaning by the brush scrubber mechanism 71 is started. In this brush cleaning, the disk brush 73 rotates while contacting the surface of the substrate G with a constant pressure, and moves from the end to the end on the substrate G. Thereby, contamination of a particle, a resin component, etc. is removed over the whole surface of the board | substrate G.

In this brush cleaning, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the disk brush 73. For this reason, the cleaning liquid scatters from the disk brush 73 and the substrate G in all directions. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the scattered cleaning liquid is separated from the window portion 52 formed in the partition plate 51 into the exhaust chamber 55 and discharged from the second discharge port 54, or the partition plate 51. ) Is discharged from the second outlet 54 or the first outlet 58 apart from the bottom of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, that is, the bottom plate 62b of the lower cup 62, or After colliding with the inner circumferential wall 61a or the buffer chamber guide wall 61b of the cup 61, they fall downward on their walls and are discharged from the second outlet 54 or the first outlet 58.

After the cleaning of the brush is completed, the blow cleaning by the blow cleaning mechanism 72 is performed. In this blow cleaning, the nozzle 75 reciprocates on the substrate G in the horizontal direction while injecting the ultrasonic vibration high pressure cleaning liquid toward the substrate G. At this time, the motor 47 is operated to rotate the substrate G together with the spin plate 41 at a predetermined speed. Thereby, the whole surface of the board | substrate G is blow-washed, and the contamination etc. which cannot be removed by the above-mentioned brush cleaning are wash | cleaned.

After blow cleaning is completed, spin drying is performed in a state in which the scrub cleaning mechanism 80 is retracted to the outside of the upper cup 61 without supplying the treatment liquid. In this spin drying, the substrate G is rotated for a fixed time at a faster rotation speed than at the time of blow cleaning. By this high speed rotation, the cleaning liquid adhering to the front and back surfaces of the substrate G is shaken off by centrifugal force, and the substrate G is dried in a short time.

In the blow cleaning by the blow cleaning mechanism 72 described above, since a large amount of high-pressure cleaning liquid is supplied to the substrate G, the substrate G is spin-rotated, so that the cleaning liquid scattered in all directions from the substrate G is large. The momentum is strong. In blow cleaning, air flow and / or mist as indicated by arrow S1 in FIG. 5 are first generated by the rotation of the substrate G and the spin plate 41.

Further, in spin drying, since the rotation speed of the substrate G and the spin plate 41 is high, a stronger air flow is generated than at the time of blow cleaning. Mist also arises at this time, and the generated mist tends to be finer than that generated during blow cleaning. Moreover, after the generated mist collides once with the inner circumference wall 61a of the upper cup 61 by the strong airflow, it becomes a small mist again, and flows into the airflow to fly out of the processing cup 60. You may think.

However, in the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, a part of the cleaning liquid scattered from the substrate G or the like at the time of blow cleaning, and the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate G and the spin plate 41. A part of is introduced into the exhaust chamber 55 in the window portion 52 and the opening portion 53a by the action of the pin 53 installed in the partition plate 51 by this airflow, and is discharged from the second outlet 54. It is. This discharge path is as shown by the arrow S2 in FIG. 5 shown above, and by performing such efficient exhaust, it is suppressed that it blows up on the board | substrate G, such as a part of scattered washing | cleaning liquid and the generated mist.

In addition, another part of the cleaning liquid scattered from the substrate G or the like at the time of blow cleaning, or another part of the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate G or the spin plate 41 may be removed from the upper cup 61. After colliding with the buffer chamber guide wall 61b provided in the inner wall 61a and flowing downward, it is discharged from the 2nd discharge port 54 or the 1st discharge port 58. As shown in FIG.

The generated airflow collides with the inner circumferential wall 61a and the buffer chamber guide wall 61b, so that the raised airflow along the buffer chamber guide wall 61b is generated. A part of the cleaning liquid or a part of the mist scattered in the rising air flows up. However, since the deflection wall 61c is provided in the upper cup 61, the mist or the like rising along the rising air flow is the substrate G. It is introduced into the buffer chamber 63 through the vent 68 without being blown up. In addition, the mist or the like attached to the protective wall 61c aggregates, falls naturally on the wall, and is discharged from the second outlet 54 or the first outlet 58.

The airflow introduced into the buffer chamber 63 becomes turbulent in the interior, weakening the momentum, and the mist is discharged from the first outlet 58 by increasing its mass due to collision between the mists or the impact on the wall. do. In this way, it is prevented to blow up on the substrate G of the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the scattering cleaning liquid, the substrate G, or the like introduced into the buffer chamber 63.

Since the buffer chamber 63 is formed to increase in volume using four corners of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, the footprint of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a is not increased. And since the buffer chamber 63 can receive a large amount of airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the scattering cleaning liquid, the board | substrate G, etc., for example, the airflow around the board | substrate G, and / or Mist flows smoothly, generation of an upward airflow, and the like is prevented, and mist and the like are prevented from being blown up onto the substrate G.

In addition, when the volume of the buffer chamber 63 is large, such an effect is largely obtained. However, a large volume of the buffer chamber 63 also causes an increase in size of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a. For this reason, the magnitude | size of the buffer chamber 63 is suitably set in the range which can control suitably the airflow and / or mist which generate | occur | produced by rotation of the washing liquid, the board | substrate G, etc. which scatter.

However, since blow cleaning is performed while discharging the cleaning liquid, even if mist generated at the time of blow cleaning is blown onto the substrate G and falls on the substrate G, the blow cleaning flows again with the cleaning liquid. On the other hand, when the mist etc. blown up by spin drying adhere on the board | substrate G, the mist becomes a cause of contamination, such as a particle | grain.

For this reason, the effect which prevents airflow and / or mist from flying off by providing the buffer chamber 63 and introducing into the buffer chamber 63 the airflow and / or mist which generate | occur | produces by rotation of the board | substrate G etc., And by installing the window portion 52 and the pin 53 in the partition plate 51 to introduce the air flow and / or mist into the exhaust chamber 55, the effect of preventing the air flow and / or mist is blown up is spin-drying process Particularly remarkable.

In addition, during the above blow cleaning or during the spin drying, the inner circumferential wall 61a of the upper cup 61 is moved from the spin plate 41 side by the rectifying action of the blowing pin 49 provided on the rear surface of the spin plate 41. The wind pressure of the airflow corresponding to) is enhanced in particular in the radial direction or its normal direction. This rectification facilitates the introduction of airflow and / or mist into the exhaust chamber 55 and the buffer chamber 63 generated by the rotation of the spin plate 41 and the substrate G. 49 is not necessarily required, and even if the blowing pin 49 is not provided, the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate G and the like described above can be controlled.

When blow cleaning and subsequent spin drying are completed, the lift pin 44 is raised to lift the substrate G from the spin plate 41 to a predetermined height, and the upper cup 61 is lowered to a predetermined position. There, the conveyance arm 17a of the main conveying apparatus 17 enters, receives the board | substrate G from the lift pin 44, and the board | substrate G is conveyed to the process unit of a next process.

Since the surface of the substrate G subjected to the cleaning treatment by such a series of processes is scrubbed and hardly adhered to mist or the like, the surface of the substrate G has a high cleanness surface. Also in the development treatment, a treatment result with less contamination and particles can be obtained, and the production yield of LCD production is increased.

Next, another embodiment of the cleaning processing unit will be described. 9 is a plan view and a sectional view showing a schematic structure of the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21c. The cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21c can be mounted on the resist coating and developing processing system 100 instead of the cleaning processing units (SCR) 21a and 21b. In the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21c, a pin 69 is introduced below the buffer chamber guide wall 61b to the inside of the inner circumferential wall 61a to introduce airflow generated by the rotation of the substrate G downward. It is provided and has a structure different from the cleaning process unit (SCR) 21a mentioned above at this point.

In the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, the spin plate 41 is sized to accommodate the entire substrate G on the upper surface. In the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21c, the spin plate 41 The outer diameter is reduced, and the edge portion of the substrate G is pushed out of the spin plate 41. The size of the spin plate 41 is not limited as long as the substrate G can be held.

10 is an explanatory view showing the attachment form of the pin 69 in more detail. The pins 69 are provided at a position lower than the substrate G held substantially horizontally along the inner circumference of the inner circumferential wall 61a, for example, at the same intervals (16 in the plan view of FIG. 9). Shown), a predetermined angle θ, for example, about 30 degrees to about 60 degrees, preferably about 45 degrees with respect to the vertical direction. The airflow generated when the substrate G is rotated in the direction of arrow S3 in FIG. 10 is rectified to face downward of the processing cup 60 by the pins 69, as indicated by arrow S4, thereby opening 53a. And the airflow flowing into the window 52 increases.

In order to make it easy for airflow to flow through the opening 53a and the window part 52 by the pin 69, it is preferable to provide the pin 69 corresponding to the position where the pin 53 or the window part 52 is installed. . In addition, by providing the pin 69 on the inner circumferential wall corresponding to the outside of the portion where the pin 53 is not provided, the airflow generated by the rotation of the substrate G is more efficiently lowered below the processing cup 60. It can introduce | transduce, and it can improve exhaust efficiency by this.

As the fins 69 are provided on the inner wall 61a in this manner, the air flows toward the lower side of the processing cup 60 in the vicinity of the inner wall 61a to increase the first exhaust port 58 or the second exhaust port ( The exhaust gas is exhausted from the second exhaust port 54 by increasing the airflow flowing into the opening portion 53a and the window portion 52 and exhausting the air from the second exhaust port 54. In this way, the retention of the mist in the processing cup 60 can be prevented and the adhesion of the mist to the substrate G can be prevented. In addition, the pin 69 is made of, for example, stainless steel, and it is also preferable to suppress the adhesion of the mist by coating the surface thereof with fluorine resin.

As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, of course, this invention is not limited to the said form. For example, as the spin plate 41 rotates, the rectifying action of the airflow and / or mist generated by the blowing pin 49 provided on the rear surface of the spin plate 41 is a buffer chamber installed in the upper cup 61. It is raised by the guide wall 61b. However, even in the structure in which the buffer chamber guide wall 61b is not provided, the effect which prevents mist etc. from flying over the board | substrate G can be acquired.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, although the process cup 60 was comprised from the upper cup 61 which can be elevated, and the fixed lower cup 62, as long as the buffer chamber 63 is formed, one process cup may be used. You may arrange. In order to discharge airflow and / or mist to the outside, it is supposed that the window 52 and the fin 53 are provided in the two means provided in the washing | cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, 21b, ie, the partition board 51. One means and one means for providing the buffer chamber 63 in the processing cup 60 do not have to be provided in parallel, but the buffer chamber 63 is preferably installed permanently.

It is also preferable to set it as the structure which can change the inclination of the pin 53. In this case, when the predetermined processing is performed on the substrate G while discharging the cleaning liquid such as brushing cleaning to the substrate G, the fin 53 of the cleaning liquid is prevented from protruding from the partition plate 51. ) Can be suppressed from jumping. On the other hand, in the process performed in the state which stopped supply of the cleaning liquid, such as a spin drying process, airflow and / or mist mix in the state in which the pin 53 was inclined by predetermined angle as mentioned above. At this time, when the number of revolutions of the spin plate 41 is large, the inclination of the pin 53 is increased, and when the number of revolutions of the spin plate 41 is small, the inclination of the pin 53 is reduced. The amount of mixing of the air flow into the exhaust chamber 55 can also be controlled in accordance with the strength of the air flow or the like generated by the rotation of.

The means for holding the substrate G on the spin plate 41 is not limited to mechanical means using the holding pin 43 or the like as in the above embodiment. For example, a vacuum suction type holding means is provided. It is also possible to use. When the blowing pin 49 is provided, the shape of the spin plate 41 is preferably circular in order to enhance the effect, but may be other shapes, for example, rectangular. In this case, it is preferable to take countermeasures such as designing an inner wall shape of the processing cup so that the control can be performed by generating airflow by the side surface of the square spin plate.

It is also preferable to change the inclination angle of the buffer chamber guide wall 61b formed in the upper cup 61. When the substrate G is rotated, the inclination angle of the buffer chamber guide wall 61b is changed in accordance with the amount of the cleaning liquid shaken off from the substrate G or the size of the rotation speed of the substrate G, so that the buffer chamber guide wall ( Airflow and / or mist can be introduced into the buffer chamber 63 while the cleaning liquid corresponding to 61) is dropped more reliably downward.

In the above embodiment, the case where the liquid processing apparatus of the present invention is applied to the resist coating and developing processing system has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to other liquid processing apparatuses. For example, when the liquid processing apparatus of the present invention is applied to a resist coating processing unit (CT) 22 or a developing processing unit (DEV) 24a to 24c in a resist coating and developing processing system, In this case, only the supply mechanism and the cleaning mechanism of the processing liquid are replaced by a predetermined mechanism, and the other parts are common to the cleaning processing unit (SCR) 21a, and the above-described effects can be obtained. In addition, although the LCD substrate has been described as the substrate, it can be used for other substrates such as semiconductor wafers and CD substrates.

As described above, according to the present invention, when a window part or a fin is provided in a partition plate provided below the spin plate, or a buffer chamber is provided in a processing cup, the substrate is rotated to generate a predetermined liquid treatment. Airflow and / or mist is smoothly discharged out of the liquid treatment apparatus. Moreover, when the fin which introduces the airflow which arises when rotating a board | substrate is provided in the inner wall of the cup provided so that the board | substrate is enclosed, exhaustion efficiency becomes high. In this way, the generation of an upward airflow in the liquid processing apparatus is prevented, and the generation of mist that blows up onto the substrate and the adhesion of the mist to the substrate are prevented, so that the quality of the substrate can be maintained high. The remarkable effect that the production yield of manufacture can be improved can be acquired. When the buffer chamber is formed using the dead space of the liquid processing apparatus, the footprint of the liquid processing apparatus does not become large, and a buffer chamber can be easily installed by replacing or modifying a part of the existing liquid processing apparatus.

Claims (16)

A liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate, Holding means for holding a substrate, A processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate; Rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane with the holding means; And a buffer chamber for retaining the airflow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate, thereby preventing the airflow and / or mist from winding up and spreading on the substrate. A liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate, Holding means for holding a substrate, A processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate; Rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane with the holding means; A processing cup comprising a liftable upper cup and a fixed lower cup disposed to surround a circumferential edge of the substrate; A liquid processing apparatus formed in the processing cup and having a buffer chamber for retaining air flow and / or mist generated by the rotation of the substrate and preventing the air flow and / or mist from being rolled up and spreading on the substrate; . 3. The buffer chamber of claim 2, wherein the buffer chamber includes a ceiling plate horizontally installed on the inner wall and the outer wall of the upper cup, the inner wall and the outer wall, and the outer wall and the bottom plate of the lower cup. Liquid treatment apparatus formed. The method according to claim 2, wherein when the upper cup is stopped at the raised limit position, the gap between the outer circumferential wall of the upper cup and the outer circumferential wall of the lower cup is sealed, and the upper cup is lower than the raised limit position. And a gap is formed between the outer circumferential wall of the upper cup and the outer circumferential wall of the lower cup. The buffer chamber guide member according to claim 2, 3, or 4, for guiding airflow and / or mist that rises along the inner wall of the upper cup to the buffer chamber. Installed liquid treatment device. The liquid treatment apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a protective wall is provided on an upper portion of the buffer chamber guide member to prevent the airflow and / or mist from rising along the buffer chamber guide member. 6. The liquid treatment apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a vent hole for introducing air flow and / or mist that rises along the buffer chamber guide member is formed in the inner wall of the upper cup. The liquid treatment apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an outlet for discharging airflow and / or mist introduced into the buffer chamber to the outside is formed on the bottom surface of the buffer chamber. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of fins are provided on an inner circumferential wall of the upper cup to introduce airflow and / or mist generated by driving of the rotating means to the lower side of the processing cup. The umbrella partition plate of Claim 1 or 2 further provided below the said holding means, A plurality of window portions are formed in the partition plate, And a fin is provided on the partition plate to introduce airflow and / or mist generated by the drive of the rotating means into the window portion. A liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate, Holding means for holding a substrate, A processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate; Rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane with the holding means; An umbrella-shaped partition plate provided below the holding means and having a plurality of window portions; And a fin provided on said partition plate to introduce airflow and / or mist generated by the drive of said rotating means into said window portion. A liquid processing apparatus for performing a predetermined liquid processing on a substrate, Holding means for holding a substrate, A processing liquid supply mechanism for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to the substrate; Rotating means for rotating the substrate in-plane with the holding means; An umbrella-shaped partition plate provided below the holding means and having a plurality of window portions; A first pin provided on the partition plate to introduce airflow and / or mist generated by the drive of the rotating means into the window portion; A processing cup comprising a liftable upper cup and a fixed lower cup disposed to surround a circumferential edge of the substrate; And a plurality of second fins provided on an inner circumferential wall of the upper cup to introduce airflow and / or mist generated by driving of the rotating means to the lower side of the processing cup. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the second fin is provided corresponding to a position where the window portion is formed. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the second fin is provided more than the number of the window portions formed at regular intervals. The liquid treatment apparatus according to claim 12, 13, or 14, wherein an outlet for discharging airflow and / or mist introduced downward through the window is formed at the bottom of the window. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 12, 13 or 14, wherein a sensor for inspecting a holding state of the substrate in the holding means is provided on the partition plate.