KR20110119528A - Resist coating apparatus, coating developing system having the same and resist coating method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An apparatus for coating a resist, a coating developing system including the same, and a method for coating the resist are provided to form a color resist film with high film thickness uniformity on a substrate. CONSTITUTION: An apparatus for coating a resist(50) includes a substrate temperature adjusting part, a color resist liquid supplying part, and a substrate rotating part. The substrate temperature adjusting part adjusts the temperature of a substrate in order to increase a temperature at the peripheral part of the substrate. The color resist liquid supplying part supplies color resist liquid to the substrate. The substrate rotating part rotates the substrate on which the color resist liquid is supplied.

Description

RESIST COATING APPARATUS, COATING DEVELOPING SYSTEM HAVING THE SAME AND RESIST COATING METHOD

The present invention relates to a resist coating apparatus for forming a color resist film on a substrate, a coating developing system having the same, and a resist film forming method.

A so-called on-chip color filter (OCCF) used for a CCD (charge-coupled device) or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor forms a color resist film on a wafer using a color resist liquid, and the color resist film is formed. It is manufactured by exposing and developing using a mask. Specifically, formation, exposure and development of the color resist film are performed using the color resist liquids of red (R), green (G) and blue (B), respectively, and red (R) and green (G) constituting one pixel. ) And blue (B) to form three subpixels.

As an apparatus used for manufacture of a color filter, it is disclosed by patent documents 1 and 2, for example.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 06-174911 (claim 1, paragraph 0007) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-202121

The color resist liquid is a non-Newtonian (thixotropy) liquid in which a pigment is dispersed in a solvent, and has a property of decreasing its viscosity when stress is applied. When the color resist liquid is supplied onto the wafer and the wafer is rotated, relatively large stress is applied to the wafer around the periphery of the wafer by the centrifugal force, so that the viscosity of the color resist liquid is lowered. On the other hand, since a large stress does not act on the color resist liquid near the center of the wafer, the viscosity of the color resist liquid is increased. Due to such a difference in viscosity, the color resist film formed tends to be thick near the center of the wafer and to have a thin film thickness distribution near the periphery of the wafer.

Since the film thickness distribution of a color resist film has a big influence on the optical characteristics of a color filter, such as the uniformity of a transmittance | permeability, it is calculated | required to improve the film thickness uniformity of a color resist film.

The present invention provides a resist coating apparatus and a resist film forming method capable of forming a color resist film having a high film thickness uniformity on a substrate.

A first aspect of the present invention provides a resist coating apparatus for forming a color resist film on a substrate. The resist coating apparatus includes a substrate temperature adjusting unit configured to adjust the temperature of the substrate so that the temperature at the periphery of the substrate becomes higher than the temperature at the center of the substrate, and the temperature is adjusted by the substrate temperature adjusting unit so that the temperature is higher at the periphery than at the center. And a color resist liquid supply portion for supplying the color resist liquid onto the substrate, and a substrate rotating portion for rotating the substrate supplied with the color resist liquid.

A second aspect of the present invention provides a coating and developing system comprising the resist coating apparatus of the first aspect.

A third aspect of the present invention provides a resist film forming method of forming a color resist film on a substrate. The method comprises the steps of adjusting the temperature of the substrate so that the temperature at the periphery of the substrate is higher than the temperature at the center of the substrate, and the color resist on the substrate temperature-controlled by the substrate temperature adjusting unit so that the temperature at the periphery is higher than the center. Supplying a liquid, and rotating the substrate supplied with the color resist liquid.

According to embodiment of this invention, the resist coating apparatus which can form the color resist film which has high film thickness uniformity on a board | substrate, the coating developing system provided with this, and the resist film formation method are provided.

1 is a plan view illustrating a coating and developing system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the coating and developing system of FIG. 1. FIG.
3 is a perspective view showing a processing unit block in the coating and developing system of FIG. 1.
4 is a side view of the coating and developing system of FIG. 1.
5 is a schematic view showing a resist coating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention used in the coating and developing system of FIG. 1.
FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining how the temperature of a substrate is adjusted in the resist coating device of FIG. 5.
FIG. 7 is a schematic view showing a modification of the resist coating apparatus of FIG. 5.
8 is a schematic view showing a resist coating apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a schematic view showing a resist coating apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.
10 is a schematic view showing a modification of the resist coating apparatus of FIG. 9.
11 is a schematic view showing a resist coating apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.
12 is a schematic view showing a modification of the resist coating apparatus of FIG. 11.
It is a schematic diagram which shows the resist coating apparatus which concerns on other embodiment of this invention.
14 is a schematic view showing a resist coating apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.
It is a graph which shows the result of the experiment performed using the resist coating apparatus shown in FIG.
It is a graph which shows the result of the experiment performed using the resist coating apparatus shown in FIG.
It is a graph which shows the result of the experiment performed using the resist coating apparatus shown in FIG.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the coating and developing system which concerns on embodiment of this invention is demonstrated, referring an accompanying drawing. In the following description, the same or corresponding parts or members are given the same or corresponding reference numerals, and redundant descriptions are omitted.

1 is a plan view showing a coating and developing system according to the present embodiment. As shown in the drawing, the coating and developing system 1 includes, for example, a carrier block S1 for carrying in and taking out a wafer carrier 20 that can accommodate 13 semiconductor wafers (hereinafter referred to as wafers) and a processing apparatus. The processing block S2 in which the groups B and U1, the shelf units U2 and U3 and the main arm A are disposed, and the interface block S3 disposed between the processing block S2 and the exposure apparatus S4. ).

The carrier block S1 is provided with a mounting table 21 on which a plurality of wafer carriers 20 can be placed, an opening and closing portion 22 provided on a wall behind the mounting table 21, and an opening and closing portion 22. The transfer arm C which takes out the wafer W from the wafer carrier 20 and accommodates in the wafer carrier 20 is provided. The transfer arm C can be lifted and rotated around a vertical axis so that the wafer W can be transferred between the wafer carrier 20 and the shelf unit U2 of the processing block S2 described later. It is comprised so that a movement is possible in the arrangement direction (X-axis direction) of the wafer carrier 20, and it can expand and contract in the direction (Y-axis direction) of the wafer carrier 20. As shown in FIG.

The processing block S2 is connected to the back surface of the carrier block S1 (the surface opposite to the wall on which the opening / closing part 22 is provided). The processing block S2 includes a processing device group B including various processing units, a shelf unit U2 arranged on the carrier block S1 side in the processing block S2, and an interface at the processing block S2. Like the main arm A and the processing apparatus group B which are comprised so that the shelf unit U3 arrange | positioned at the block S3 side, and the shelf units U2 and U3 are movable, The processing apparatus group U1 to include is arrange | positioned.

As shown in FIG. 2, the processing apparatus group B includes five stacked unit blocks B1 to B5. Each unit block B1-B5 can have a resist coating apparatus, the developing processing unit, a heating unit, a hydrophobicization processing unit, a cooling unit, etc., for example. For example, the unit blocks B1 and B2 are used to adjust the post-exposure heating unit for heating the wafer W after the color resist film is exposed, and for adjusting the wafer W heated by the post-exposure heating unit to a predetermined temperature. It may have a cooling unit, a developing unit for developing the exposed color resist film, and a processing unit such as a baking unit for heating to dry the wafer W after development. In addition, the unit blocks B3-B5 can have a coating unit mentioned later. For example, referring to FIG. 3, three coating units 50 are provided in the unit block B3. In the coating unit 50, a color resist liquid is supplied onto the wafer W, the wafer W is rotated, and a color resist film is formed.

As shown in FIG. 3, the processing apparatus group U1 is arrange | positioned so that the unit block B3 may face through the movable area of the conveyance arm A3 mentioned later. As shown in the drawing, the processing apparatus group U1 includes the cooling units COL31 to COL33, the heating units CHP31 to CHP33, the hydrophobization processing unit ADH, the peripheral edge exposure unit WEE, and the like in this embodiment. Contains various processing units. Accordingly, before the color resist film is formed in the application unit 50 of the unit block B3, in order to improve the adhesion between the color resist liquid and the wafer W, the hydrophobization processing unit ADH with respect to the wafer W is provided. The hydrophobization treatment may be performed, or the hydrophobization processed wafer W may be adjusted in, for example, the cooling unit COL31. Moreover, before conveying the wafer W in which the color resist film was formed to the exposure apparatus S4, only the peripheral edge part of the wafer W may be selectively exposed by the peripheral edge part exposure unit WEE.

In addition, transfer of the wafer W between each processing unit of the processing apparatus group U1 and the application | coating unit 50 of the unit block B3 is provided corresponding to the unit block B3, as shown in FIG. It is performed by the conveying arm A3. The transfer arm A3 has two forks 61 and 62 that can hold the wafer W, and can move along the rail 65 extending in the Y-axis direction. Thus, the main arm A contains the conveyance arms A1-A5 provided corresponding to the unit blocks B1-B5 (refer FIG. 4). The conveying arms A1, A2, A4 and A5 also have two forks similar to the conveying arm A3 and can move along the Y-axis direction.

Moreover, you may provide the processing apparatus group which has the same structure as the processing apparatus group U1 with respect to the unit block B4 and B5.

Referring to FIG. 4, the shelf unit U2 has stages TRS1 to TRS5 provided corresponding to the unit blocks B1 to B5. For example, two stages TRS1 are provided corresponding to the unit block B1, and each stage TRS1 is arranged to be accessible by the transfer arm A1 of the unit block B1, and the transfer arm is provided. The wafer W carried in by (A1) can be held. Thereby, for example, the wafer W processed by the processing unit of the unit unit B1 is taken out from the processing unit by the transfer arm A1 and carried in one of the two stages TRS1 to be held. . The wafer W held by the stage TRS1 is accommodated in the wafer carrier 20 by the transfer arm C of the carrier block S1, for example. In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the conveying arm D1 is provided adjacent to the shelf unit U2. The conveying arm D1 is comprised so that advancing and raising and lowering are possible. As a result, the wafer W can be transferred between the stages TRS1 to TRS5 of the shelf unit U2.

Moreover, the stage TRS-F is provided in the shelf unit U2. The stage TRS-F is mainly used to temporarily hold the wafer W taken out from the wafer carrier 20 by the transfer arm C of the carrier block S1.

The shelf unit U3 has stages TRS6 to TRS10 provided corresponding to the unit blocks B1 to B5. For example, the shelf unit U3 is provided with two stages TRS10 corresponding to the unit block B5, and each stage TRS10 is accessible by the conveying arm A5 of the unit block B5. It is arrange | positioned so that the wafer W carried in by the conveyance arm A5 can be hold | maintained. Thereby, for example, the wafer W processed by the processing unit of the unit unit B5 is taken out by the transfer arm A5 from the processing unit, and carried in one of the two stages TRS10 and is held. . The wafer W held by the stage TRS10 is taken out by, for example, the interface arm E (to be described later) of the interface block S3, and is carried out to the exposure apparatus S4 (FIG. 1). do. In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the conveyance arm D2 is provided adjacent to the shelf unit U3. The transfer arm D2 is configured to be movable and liftable, and thus the wafer W can be transferred between the stages TRS5 to TRS10 of the shelf unit U3.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the interface block S3 is connected to the side opposite to the carrier block S1 of the processing block S2. The interface block S3 includes an interface arm E for transferring the wafer W to the shelf unit U3 and the exposure apparatus S4 of the processing block S2, and a plurality of wafers W. A buffer 83 having a plurality of shelves each holding. The interface arm E functions as a conveyance mechanism of the wafer W between the processing block S2 and the exposure apparatus S4. In the present embodiment, the interface arm E is configured to be movable up and down, rotatable about a vertical axis, and retractable in the X-axis direction, whereby the shelf unit U3 corresponding to the unit blocks B1 to B5 is formed. The wafer W is transferred between the stages TRS6 to TRS10 and the shelves of the buffer 83.

In addition, the buffer 83 temporarily stores the wafer W on which the color resist film is formed, for example, at the time of adjusting the throughput between the exposure apparatus S4 and the processing block S2 or changing the exposure conditions. In addition, it is used preferably when conveying to exposure apparatus S4 sequentially. In this way, the processing in the processing block S2 can be performed in accordance with the processing speed of the exposure apparatus S4, and the exposure processing can be performed by appropriately changing the exposure intensity, reticle, etc. for each lot.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the substrate processing apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a control unit 100. The control unit 100 includes, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), and executes a program prepared according to a target process, thereby carrying the carrier arms C, A1 to A5, D1, and D2 and the interface arms ( E), each processing unit is controlled. The control unit 100 also includes a memory (not shown) that stores a program, which includes an input / output (I / O) device (not shown) determined from the computer storage medium 100a in which the program is stored. The program is read through.

Next, the resist coating apparatus 50 provided in the unit block B3 of the process block S2 is demonstrated, referring FIG. 5 and FIG.

Referring to FIG. 5A, the resist coating device 50 includes a chuck 51 holding a central portion of the back surface of the wafer W by suction, and a rotating shaft 51a coupled to the chuck 51. The rotary motor 52 which rotates the chuck 51 via it, the dispenser 55 which supplies a color resist liquid to the wafer W hold | maintained by the chuck 51, and the wafer W hold | maintained by the chuck 51. ), A fluid supply unit 56 for supplying a fluid to the fluid, a temperature regulator 57 for cooling the fluid supplied to the wafer W to a predetermined temperature, and providing the fluid supply part 56 to the fluid supply part 56, and a chuck 51. The cup part 53 provided so that the wafer W hold | maintained at (circle) may be enclosed is provided.

The fluid supply part 56 is comprised by the rotation shaft 56s, the arm part 56a, the conduit 56c, the temperature holding part 56h, etc. The rotation shaft 56s extends through the bottom of the resist coating device 50, engages with a drive mechanism (not shown), and is rotated around a vertical axis by the drive mechanism. The arm part 56a is coupled to the upper end of the rotation shaft 56s and extends horizontally. When the rotation shaft 56s is rotated, the tip portion 56t of the arm portion 56a is located near the center of the wafer W held by the chuck 51 as shown in Fig. 5A. . The conduit 56c passes through the inside of the rotation shaft 56s and the arm portion 56a from the inlet formed in the rotation shaft 56s outside the resist coating device 50 and reaches the tip portion 56t. The temperature holding part 56h should just be comprised, for example with the thermoelectric conversion element supplied from the power supply which is not shown in figure, and the thermocouple connected to the temperature controller which is not shown in figure, and the temperature of the fluid which flows through the conduit 56c is In order to suppress a fluctuation, it is provided so that the rotation shaft 56s and the arm part 56a may be enclosed.

The temperature regulator 57 is connected with the fluid supply facility provided in the clean room in which the application | coating development system 50 is installed, for example, and the fluid is supplied to the temperature regulator 57 from this fluid supply facility. In the present embodiment, the temperature regulator 57 may be constituted by a spiral tube made of metal (for example, stainless steel), a refrigerant in which the spiral tube is immersed, and a circulating freezer which circulates the refrigerant and maintains it at a predetermined temperature. As a result, the fluid is set at a predetermined temperature while flowing through the spiral tube.

Moreover, the supply amount adjustment part (not shown) which adjusts the flow volume and supply time of the fluid from the temperature regulator 57 is provided in the piping which connects the inflow port of the rotation shaft 56s and the temperature regulator 57. FIG. A supply amount adjustment part can be comprised, for example with a flow control valve, a decay valve, and the like. In addition, the piping between the inlet port of the rotation shaft 56s and the temperature regulator 57 is surrounded by a temperature holding unit, including a supply amount adjusting unit, and the temperature of the fluid maintained at a temperature determined by the temperature regulator 57 is maintained. Can be. What is necessary is just to comprise this temperature holding part similarly to the temperature holding part 56h of the fluid supply part 56, for example.

By the above structure, when the rotation shaft 56s of the fluid supply part 56 rotates and the tip part 56t is located in the substantially center upper side of the wafer W hold | maintained by the chuck 51, the temperature regulator The fluid set at the temperature determined by the 57 is supplied to the center of the wafer W from the tip portion 56t of the arm portion 56a through the conduit 56c while adjusting the supply amount.

The cup portion 53 has an upper cup 53U, a lower cup 53B, and a cup base 53E. The upper cup 53U is disposed on the upper end of the lower cup 53B so as to receive the color resist liquid that is supplied from the dispenser 55 to the wafer W and falls from the wafer W by rotation. The waste liquid pipe 54a is connected to the bottom part of the lower cup 53B. Thereby, the color resist liquid etc. which were received by the upper cup 53U and fell to the lower cup 53B are discharged | emitted from the cup part 53 via the waste liquid pipe 54a. Moreover, the some exhaust pipe 54b is connected to the bottom part of the lower cup 53B, and it is connected to the exhaust part not shown in the exhaust pipe 54b. The exhaust unit may be, for example, an exhaust treatment facility provided in a clean room in which the coating and developing system 1 is installed. Thereby, the air in the cup part 53 is exhausted through the exhaust pipe 54b, and the organic solvent etc. which evaporate from the color resist liquid etc. which are supplied on the wafer W are exhausted. That is, by the exhaust through the exhaust pipe 54b, cross contamination by the organic solvent or the like in the coating and developing system 1 can be reduced.

Referring to FIG. 5A, the dispenser 55 is attached to the base portion 55a provided to be slidable to the guide rail 55b. In the case of supplying the color resist liquid onto the wafer W (FIG. 5A) held by the chuck 51, the color resist liquid is moved to the upper side of the center of the wafer W, and the color resist liquid is removed from a supply pipe (not shown). It is supplied on the wafer (W). In addition, as shown in Fig. 5A, a wafer transfer port 50c is provided in the case 50a of the resist coating device 50, and the wafer W is transferred to the transfer arm via the wafer transfer port 50c. It carries in and out to the resist coating apparatus 50 by (A3) (FIG. 3). Moreover, the door 50d which opens and closes the wafer conveyance port 50c is provided in the case 50a.

Next, an example of the operation (wafer treatment) of the coating and developing system 1 will be described with reference to the drawings referred to so far.

First, for example, the wafer carrier 20 in which 13 wafers W are accommodated is disposed on the mounting table 21 (see FIG. 4) of the carrier block S1. Next, the wafer W in the wafer carrier 20 is taken out by the transfer arm C and carried into the stage TRS-F of the shelf unit U2 of the processing block S2. Subsequently, the wafer W is moved to the stage TRS3 of the shelf unit U2 by the conveyance arm D1, and is taken out from the stage TRS3 by the conveyance arm A3 of the unit block B3. Thereafter, the wafer W is loaded into the cooling unit COL31 (see FIG. 3) by the transfer arm A3, set at a predetermined temperature here, and then conveyed to the hydrophobization processing unit ADH.

In the hydrophobization processing unit ADH, for example, the wafer W is heated to a temperature within a range from about 80 ° to about 150 °, and the wafer W is placed on a silylating agent such as hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS). By exposing. Next, the wafer W is conveyed to the cooling unit COL32 by the conveyance arm A3, and is cooled by the fixed temperature here. As a result, the wafer W heated by the hydrophobic treatment is cooled, and as shown in FIG. 6A, the entire wafer W is at a constant temperature (for example, 23 ° C. equal to the room temperature in a clean room). It remains almost uniform.

The wafer W held at the predetermined temperature is conveyed to the resist coating device 50 by the transfer arm A3, and a color resist film is formed on the wafer W. Specifically, when the wafer W is received and held by the chuck 51 (FIG. 5) from the transfer arm A3, the rotation shaft 56s of the fluid supply part 56 rotates to adjust the temperature regulator 57. The fluid cooled by) is supplied from the tip portion 56t to the center portion of the surface of the wafer W that is stopped. Here, the temperature of a fluid should just be in the range from about 10 degreeC to about 20 degreeC with respect to the ambient temperature (23 degreeC) inside the resist coating apparatus 50, for example, from about 16 degreeC to about 18 degreeC It is still more preferable if it exists in the range of.

In addition, the quantity of the fluid L supplied on the wafer W is set so that fluid may not diffuse to the peripheral part of the wafer W, as shown to FIG. 5 (b). For example, the diameter of the fluid L on the wafer W ranges from about 10 mm to about 250 mm with respect to 300 mm in diameter of the wafer W (from 1/30 of the diameter of the wafer W). It is good to exist in the range up to 5/6, and it is preferable to exist in the range (about 1/3 to 2/3 of the diameter of the wafer W) from about 100 mm to about 200 mm. After about 3 seconds to about 15 seconds, preferably about 5 seconds to about 10 seconds have elapsed while the fluid L remains on the wafer W, by rotating the wafer W by the rotation motor 52, The fluid on the wafer W is dried.

Then, for example, a red color resist liquid is supplied from the dispenser 55 to the center portion of the surface of the wafer W. When the rotary motor 52 rotates and the wafer W held by the chuck 51 rotates, the color resist liquid falls from the outer edge of the wafer W by rotation, and the color remaining on the wafer W is retained. A color resist film is formed from a resist liquid. After removing the part formed in the edge of the wafer W of this color resist film, the wafer W is conveyed to the heating unit CHP32 (FIG. 3) by the conveyance arm A3, and is heated here. Subsequently, the wafer W is carried in to the cooling unit COL31 by the transfer arm A3 and cooled to the temperature defined here.

Subsequently, the wafer W is conveyed from the stage TRS8 of the shelf unit U3 to the exposure apparatus S4 by the interface arm E, and the color resist film on the wafer W is exposed here. As a result, a large number of red subpixels are formed on the wafer (W).

After exposure, the wafer W is conveyed to the stage TRS6 (FIG. 4) of the shelf unit U3 by the interface arm E, and then heating of the unit block B1 by the conveyance arm A1. It is conveyed in order of a unit, a cooling unit, a developing processing unit, and a heating unit, and the process prescribed | regulated by each unit is performed. After the heat processing in the heating unit, the wafer W is conveyed to the stage TRS1 (FIG. 4) of the shelf unit U2 by the conveyance arm A1.

Subsequently, the wafer W is conveyed to the stage TRS4 (FIG. 4) of the shelf unit U2 by the conveyance arm D1 (FIG. 1), and the processing apparatus group B4 etc. and exposure apparatus S4. In this manner, green subpixels are formed in the same order as described above. Thereafter, in the same manner, a blue subpixel is formed by the processing apparatus group B5 and the like and the exposure apparatus S4, and pixels composed of red, green, and blue subpixels are formed on the plurality of wafers W. As shown in FIG. Is formed.

Thereafter, the wafer W is returned to the stage TRS1 of the shelf unit U2, and is accommodated in the wafer carrier 20 from the stage TRS1 by the transfer arm C of the carrier block S1. The series of processes for the wafer W in the coating and developing system 1 ends.

In the coating and developing system 1 of this embodiment, the following effects are exhibited by the resist coating apparatus 50 provided here. The wafer W carried in to the resist coating apparatus 50 and held by the chuck 51 is, for example, room temperature (23 ° C.) as shown in FIG. 6A by the cooling unit COL32 before loading. It is kept constant. Here, when the fluid cooled by the temperature regulator 57 is supplied to the surface center part of the wafer W stopped from the tip part 56t of the fluid supply part 56, and it is left in this state for several seconds, The central part is cooled by the fluid. For this reason, as shown in FIG.6 (b), the temperature of a peripheral part becomes higher than the temperature of the center part of the wafer W. FIG. When the color resist liquid is supplied onto the wafer W having such a temperature distribution and the wafer W is rotated, the peripheral portion having a high temperature when the color resist liquid diffuses toward the peripheral edge of the wafer W by centrifugal force In the above, since the viscosity of the color resist liquid is increased, the drop in viscosity caused by the stress acting on the color resist liquid can be compensated. Therefore, the film thickness fall in the peripheral part can be reduced, and the color resist film which has high film thickness uniformity is formed on the wafer W. As shown in FIG.

The temperature of the fluid cooled by the temperature regulator 57 and the diameter of the fluid L (FIG. 5 (b)) remaining on the wafer W are not limited to the above ranges, but are preferably determined through preliminary experiments. Do.

Next, with reference to FIG. 7, the modification of the process of the said wafer W is demonstrated centering on difference with the said example. First, in this modification, the fluid is heated by the temperature regulator 57 to the temperature of about 30 degreeC to about 70 degreeC. When the wafer W uniformly held at room temperature (23 ° C.) by the cooling unit COL32 is loaded into the resist coating device 50 and held by the chuck 51, as shown in FIG. 7B. The wafer W is rotated by the rotation motor 52, and the rotation shaft 56s of the fluid supply part 56 rotates so that the tip portion 56t is held above the peripheral portion of the wafer W. As shown in FIG. The fluid heated by the temperature regulator 57 (FIG. 7A) is supplied to the wafer W from the tip portion 56t of the fluid supply portion 56. At this time, the position of the tip portion 56t, the flow rate of the fluid, and the rotational speed of the wafer W are preferably set so that the fluid supplied on the wafer W does not flow toward the center portion of the wafer W. It is still more preferable to obtain conditions for obtaining a desired film thickness distribution in a preliminary experiment.

After the rotation of the wafer W and the supply of the fluid are continued for about 3 seconds to about 15 seconds, preferably about 5 seconds to about 10 seconds, the supply of the fluid from the tip portion 56t is stopped and the wafer W is stopped. The fluid of the wafer W is dried by increasing the rotational speed of the wafer. Subsequently, the color resist liquid is supplied from the dispenser 55 to the center portion of the surface of the wafer to form a color resist film. Hereinafter, the above-described procedure is repeated to form a plurality of pixels on the wafer (W).

According to this modification, the center part of the wafer W held by the chuck 51 is kept at room temperature (23 ° C.) held by the cooling unit COL32, while the peripheral part is heated to a temperature higher than the temperature of the center part. do. For this reason, when the color resist liquid is spread | diffused on the wafer W by rotation of the wafer W, the fall of the viscosity in the peripheral part of the wafer W can be compensated. Therefore, the fall of the film thickness in the peripheral part can be reduced, and the color resist film which has high film thickness uniformity is formed on the wafer W. As shown in FIG.

Next, with reference to FIG. 8, the resist coating apparatus which concerns on other embodiment of this invention is demonstrated centering on difference with the resist coating apparatus 50 shown in FIGS. Referring to FIG. 8A, the chuck 51 has a thermoelectric conversion element, for example, a Peltier element 51p. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8B, the Peltier elements 51p are arranged to form three concentric circles, and the Peltier elements 51p constituting each circle are independent of the control device 57a. Electrically connected, the temperature is independently controlled.

When the wafer W conveyed from the cooling unit COL32 to the resist coating device 50 is held by the chuck 51 configured as described above, the center portion of the wafer W is cooled, so that the peripheral portion of the wafer W is cooled. Since the temperature is relatively higher than the temperature of the central portion, the same effect as described above is exerted. In addition, since the three nearly concentric circularly arranged Peltier elements 51p can be controlled independently, it is also possible to maintain the temperature of the chuck 51 uniformly at a temperature lower than room temperature (23 ° C), for example. It is also possible to set so that the temperature of the peripheral part becomes higher than the temperature of the central part of 51. Therefore, it becomes possible to control the temperature distribution of the wafer W in more detail, and the film thickness distribution of a color resist film can also be controlled more uniformly.

In addition, the diameter of the chuck 51 is preferably in the range of, for example, 240 mm to 270 mm for a wafer having a diameter of 300 mm. This is because the temperature distribution can be adjusted in a wider range of the wafer W. In addition, when the chuck 51 has such a diameter, the peltier elements 51p may be arranged in four or more concentric circles.

Next, with reference to FIG. 9, the resist coating apparatus which concerns on other embodiment of this invention is demonstrated centering on difference with the resist coating apparatus 50 shown in FIGS. 9, in the resist coating apparatus 50 which concerns on this embodiment, in order to support the head part 59 in which the thermoelectric conversion element (for example, Peltier element) was built, and the head part 59, The arm part 56a which extends horizontally and the rotational shaft 56s which support the base end part of the arm part 56a and extend through the bottom part of the case 50a are provided. The rotating shaft 56s can be rotated around the central axis and can be moved up and down. Moreover, the thermoelectric conversion element in the head part 59 is electrically connected with the power supply 58, and is controlled by the temperature supplied by the electric power supply from the power supply 58. FIG.

According to this structure, after the wafer W uniformly maintained at room temperature by the cooling unit COL32 is loaded into the resist coating apparatus 50 and held by the chuck 51, it is shown in FIG. 9 (b). As described above, the rotation shaft 56s rotates so that the head portion 59 reaches the upper side of the center portion of the wafer W. As shown in FIG. Next, when the rotation shaft 56s descends to the extent that the head portion 59 does not come into contact with the surface center portion of the wafer W and the period determined in this state has elapsed, the center portion of the wafer W has passed. Is cooled. At this time, the temperature of the head 59 and the predetermined period may be determined through preliminary experiments. In addition, the temperature of the head part 59 takes into consideration the temperature and humidity in the resist coating device 50, and as long as moisture in the air in the resist coating device 50 does not condense on the head part 59 as much as possible. It is desirable to set it low.

Also in the resist coating apparatus according to this embodiment, since the temperature of the wafer W can be made low at the center portion and high at the peripheral portion, as described above, the film thickness distribution of the color resist film can be made uniform.

The temperature of the head 59 may be higher than room temperature by reversing the power supply voltage of the power supply 58 to the thermoelectric conversion element in the head 59. In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, the head part 59 is hold | maintained near the surface periphery of the wafer W by the rotating shaft 56s and the arm part 56a, and the wafer W rotates. It is rotated by the motor 52. As a result, the temperature of the periphery of the wafer W becomes high and decreases in the center part. Therefore, as described above, it becomes possible to equalize the film thickness distribution of the color resist film.

Next, with reference to FIG. 11, the resist coating apparatus which concerns on other embodiment of this invention is demonstrated centering on difference with the resist coating apparatus 50 shown to FIG. 5 and FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, in the resist coating apparatus by this embodiment, the heater 57h which can heat the peripheral part of the back surface of the wafer W hold | maintained by the chuck 51, and the temperature of the heater 57h are measured. The temperature regulator 58b to adjust is provided. In this resist coating apparatus, the fluid supply part 56 and the temperature regulator 57 shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 are not provided. According to this configuration, after the wafer W uniformly held at room temperature by the cooling unit COL32 (Fig. 3) is loaded into the resist coating apparatus and held by the chuck 51, the peripheral portion of the wafer W is held. Is heated by heat radiation and / or heat conduction from the heater 57h, the temperature of the wafer W is low at the center and high at the periphery. Therefore, as described above, it becomes possible to equalize the film thickness distribution of the color resist film.

Instead of the heater 57h shown in FIG. 11, a heater may be built in the cup base 53E of the cup portion 53. Such an example is demonstrated with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 12, the heater 57e is inserted into the cup base 53E at a position close to the periphery of the back surface of the wafer W held by the chuck 51. Since the temperature of the peripheral part of the wafer W can be made high like this by the heater 57h of FIG. 11, the same effect is exhibited. In addition, instead of the heater 57e, the heater 57u may be inserted in the portion closest to the edge of the wafer W in the upper cup 53U. According to this heater 57u, the temperature of the peripheral part of the wafer W can be made higher than the temperature of the center part instead of the heater 57e, and when used together with the heater 57e, the temperature of the peripheral part of the wafer W is used. Can be surely high in a short time. In addition, in FIG. 12, the temperature regulator to which the heaters 57e and 57u are connected is abbreviate | omitted for convenience.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, the resist coating apparatus does not include the structure for making the temperature of the peripheral part of the wafer W higher than the temperature of the center part, but instead transfer arm A3 which carries the wafer W into the resist coating apparatus. In Fig. 3, a configuration for adjusting wafer temperature is provided.

In FIG. 13, the conveyance arm A3 arrange | positioned between process apparatus group B3 and U1 (FIG. 3) is shown. Here, the conveyance arm A3 is in the home position and can enter the resist coating apparatus from the wafer conveyance port 50c (FIG. 3) of the resist coating apparatus by extending in the arrow direction in FIG. 13A. As shown in FIG. 13, the annular heater 57r along the periphery of the wafer W hold | maintained by the arm 61 is arrange | positioned above the arm 61 of the conveyance arm in a home position. The annular heater 57r is supported using the case of the processing apparatus group U1. In addition, the annular heater 57r is electrically connected to a temperature controller (not shown), and is maintained at a temperature higher than room temperature by the temperature controller.

According to such a structure, the wafer W hold | maintained at room temperature in the cooling unit COL32 (FIG. 3) is taken out from the cooling unit COL32 by the arm 61 of the conveyance arm A3, and the conveyance arm A3. When left for a predetermined period of time at the home position, the periphery of the wafer W is heated by the annular heater 57r disposed above the arm 61 and has a higher temperature than the central portion. Subsequently, the wafer W is loaded into the resist coating apparatus by the arm 61 through the wafer transfer port 50c of the resist coating apparatus and is received by the chuck 51. Subsequently, the color resist liquid is supplied from the dispenser 55 onto the wafer W, and when the wafer W rotates, a color resist film is formed on the wafer W. As shown in FIG.

Also in this case, since the temperature of the wafer W is higher at the peripheral portion than at the central portion, when the color resist liquid on the wafer W is diffused by the rotation of the wafer W, the stress at the peripheral portion of the wafer W is reduced. The fall of the viscosity which arises is compensated and the film thickness uniformity of a color resist film is improved.

In addition, in FIG. 13, the arm 61 of the conveyance arm A3 is used only when carrying in the wafer W in the resist coating apparatus, and the arm 62 carries out the wafer W from the resist coating apparatus. It only needs to be used.

In addition to providing the annular heater 57r on the transfer arm A3, or in addition to providing the annular heater 57r on the transfer arm A3, in the cooling unit COL32, the center of the wafer W is provided. The temperature distribution in which the temperature is low and the peripheral portion is high may be realized. An example thereof will be described with reference to FIG. 14.

As shown in FIG. 14, the wafer stage 32S in which the wafer W is arrange | positioned is provided in cooling unit COL32. In order to receive the wafer W carried in the cooling unit COL32 by the transfer arm A3 and to arrange | position it on the wafer stage 32S, the wafer stage 32S is provided with three lifting pins which are not shown in figure. have. In addition, the wafer stage 32S has an inner channel CH1 and an outer channel CH2, and in each of the channels CH1 and CH2, a conduit through which fluid flows is formed, for example, in a spiral shape. Fluids adjusted to different temperatures flow through the channels CH1 and CH2. Accordingly, the temperature of the outer channel CH2 is maintained to be higher than the temperature of the inner channel CH1.

According to this configuration, for example, when the wafer W heated for the hydrophobic treatment in the hydrophobization processing unit ADH is loaded into the cooling unit COL32 and disposed on the wafer stage 32S, the wafer W By cooling the center portion to, for example, room temperature, the temperature of the peripheral portion of the wafer W becomes higher than the temperature of the center portion. The wafer W having such a temperature distribution is loaded into the resist coating apparatus by the transfer arm A3, held by the chuck, and the wafer after the color resist liquid is supplied onto the wafer W by the dispenser 55. When (W) is rotated, a color resist film is formed on the wafer (W). Also in this case, when the color resist liquid on the wafer W is diffused by the rotation of the wafer W, the decrease in the viscosity caused by the stress at the periphery of the wafer W is compensated and the film thickness uniformity of the color resist film is compensated. This is improved.

Since the experiment which formed the color resist film on the wafer using the resist coating apparatus 50 shown in FIG. 5 was performed, this experiment is demonstrated below.

In this experiment, cyclohexanone, isopropyl alcohol (IPA) and propylene glycol methyl ether (PGME) were used as the fluid. Their heat of evaporation, specific heat and thermal conductivity are shown in Table 1 below.

Moreover, the temperature of these fluids was 6 degreeC, and about 3 ml was supplied to the surface center part of the wafer W. As shown in FIG. In this supply amount, the diameter of the fluid diffused to the central portion of the surface of the wafer W was about 10 cm. Moreover, after cooling the surface center part of the wafer W with the fluid, the color resist liquid (SG-5000L) by the FUJIFILM MATERIALS CO., LTD was used on the wafer W. As shown in FIG. This color resist liquid was supplied 1.5 ml on the wafer W at a feed rate of 1.0 ml / sec. The used wafer W was a silicon wafer having a diameter of 300 mm, and the film thickness of the formed color resist film was measured at approximately 48 points along the diameter of the wafer W at equal intervals.

In addition, when cyclohexanone and PGME were used, the film thickness distribution was mainly investigated using cooling time as a parameter. In addition, also in the case where the color resist film was formed on the wafer W without cooling by fluid, the film thickness distribution of the film was investigated.

In the case of using IPA, the color resist film was formed by changing the supply amount of IPA to not only 3 ml but also 5 ml and 8 ml, respectively, and the film thickness distribution was examined. For comparison, the film thickness distribution of the film was examined also when the color resist film was formed after the IPA was supplied on the wafer W without cooling (3 ml).

15 shows experimental results when PGME was used as the fluid. As a result, compared with the case where the wafer W is not cooled (◆), the film thickness at the center of the wafer W becomes thinner in the case where the wafer W is cooled for about 5 seconds by PGME at 6 ° C (■). It can be seen that the thickness uniformity is improved. However, the film thickness distribution in the case where cooling time was made into about 15 second (▲) was almost the same as the film thickness distribution in the case of cooling time about 5 seconds. However, compared with the case without cooling, the improvement of the film thickness uniformity was seen, and the effect by embodiment of this invention was confirmed by this. In addition, although the experimental result in the case of using cyclohexanone as a fluid is shown in FIG. 16, it turns out that even in the case of using cyclohexanone, the same result as in the case of using PGME (FIG. 15) can be obtained. Can be.

17 shows experimental results when IPA was used as the fluid. This figure shows that the color resist film obtained when cooling IPA at 6 degreeC and using (■) compared with the color resist film obtained when using IPA without cooling (◆) has a uniform film thickness distribution. Can be. Moreover, it turns out that the uniformity of film thickness distribution improves further by increasing the supply amount of cooled IPA. Also in this result, the effect of cooling the center part of the wafer W with a cooling fluid is confirmed. In addition, comparing FIG. 15, FIG. 16, and FIG. 17 shows that the film thickness distribution can be made more uniform when IPA is used. Referring to Table 1, since lPA has a larger thermal conductivity than cyclohexanone and PGME, it is speculated that the heat exchange between IPA and the wafer W is performed quickly, thereby remarkably improving.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated referring some embodiment, this invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and a change can be made with reference to attached claim.

In the resist coating apparatus, when the color resist liquid is supplied onto the wafer and the wafer is rotated, the color resist liquid returns to the back surface of the wafer. Therefore, the color resist liquid on the back surface of the wafer is generally sprayed by spraying the rinse liquid toward the periphery of the back surface of the wafer. A back rinse nozzle is installed to remove this. If an additional rinse nozzle is provided in the resist coating apparatus, the wafer temperature can be adjusted using this. For example, since the rinse liquid is discharged from the rinse nozzle through a predetermined conduit (tube) connecting the rinse liquid storage tank and the rinse nozzle, such as a temperature controller 57 (FIGS. 5 and 6) in the middle of the conduit. A temperature regulator can be provided, and the temperature regulator can heat the rinse liquid to a temperature higher than room temperature, for example, in a range from about 30 ° C to about 70 ° C. Before supplying the color resist liquid onto the wafer, the temperature of the peripheral portion of the wafer can be increased by blowing the heated rinse liquid into the peripheral portion of the back surface of the wafer. That is, it is also possible to comprise a board | substrate temperature adjustment part in this way, and the effect similar to the above-mentioned effect can be acquired.

In particular, in the above-mentioned experiment, although cyclohexanone, IPA, and PGME were used in the resist coating apparatus 50 shown in FIG. 5, it is not limited to these, For example, alcohols and butyric-acid solvent other than IPA can be used. . Moreover, you may mix two or more solvents. In this case, it is preferable to obtain a mixed solvent having a predetermined thermal conductivity with reference to the results of the above-described experiment. In addition, you may use deionized water or pure water instead of a solvent. In addition, from the fluid supply part 56, inert gas, such as nitrogen gas and argon, and gas, such as air, may be temperature-controlled and supplied instead of liquid, such as a solvent and water. Even if it does so, since the temperature of the peripheral part of a wafer can be made high, the above-mentioned effect can be acquired. When gas is used as the fluid, the tip end portion 56t of the arm portion 56a may be configured as a shower head having an area corresponding to the region of the wafer W to be cooled.

Moreover, the blower which ejects the air whose temperature and humidity were adjusted with the fixed blower is normally provided in the upper part of a resist coating apparatus, and the downflow is formed by the air blown in here. Here, the temperature distribution of the wafer may be adjusted by supplying a large amount of air to the periphery of the wafer held by the chuck 51 by installing a louver or the like in the air vent or in a space below the air vent. In this case, the louver has a conical shape (upward) and is preferably disposed above the center of the wafer held by the chuck 51.

Further, instead of attaching the head portion 59 incorporating the thermoelectric conversion element (Peltier element) 51p to the arm portion 56a, for example, to remove the color resist film at the edge of the wafer on which the color resist film is formed. The head portion 59 may be attached to an arm for an edge rinse nozzle (also referred to as an edge bead removal (EBR)). According to this, since an additional arm becomes unnecessary, a resist coating apparatus can be comprised simply.

In the resist coating apparatus 50 shown in FIG. 5, after the cooled fluid is supplied to almost the center of the wafer W, the fluid on the wafer W does not diffuse to the periphery when the central part of the wafer W is cooled. You may rotate the wafer W at the rotational speed of the grade. Moreover, you may supply the cooled fluid on the wafer W rotating at such a rotational speed.

Moreover, instead of the temperature holding part 56h provided in the arm part 56a and the rotation shaft 56s, for example, the arm part 56a so that the temperature of the fluid cooled or heated by the temperature regulator 57 may not fluctuate. ) And the temperature change of the fluid may be suppressed by winding the heat insulating material around the rotating shaft 56s.

In addition, the fluid supply part 56 shown to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 may be comprised from the guide rail, the base part provided so that it can slide here, and the arm part connected to the base part similarly to the dispenser 55. FIG. Moreover, the arm part 56a which supports the head part 59 (temperature variable part) shown to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 may be attached to a base part, and a base part may be provided so that a guide rail may slide.

Moreover, although the head part 59 incorporates the thermoelectric conversion element (Peltier element) 59p, although the temperature of the head part 59 is adjusted, it is not limited to this, The rotating shaft 56s and the arm part 56a are not limited to this. The temperature of the head portion 59 may be adjusted by forming a circulating conduit passing through the inside of the head portion 59 to the inside of the head portion 59 and flowing a temperature-regulated fluid thereto.

In addition, instead of the annular heater 57r disposed above the arm 61 of the transfer arm A3, a heater is built in the arm 61 to heat the peripheral portion of the wafer W supported by the arm 61. You may also

Moreover, in the resist coating apparatus, the application | coating development system, and the resist film formation method which concern on embodiment of this invention, you may use the glass substrate for flat panel displays instead of a silicon wafer.

1: coating developing system S1: carrier block
S2: processing block S3: interface block
S4: exposure apparatus B, U1: processing apparatus group
U2, U3: shelf unit 50: resist coating device
51: Chuck 52: Rotating Motor
53: cup portion 56: fluid supply portion
56a: arm 56s: rotating shaft
57: temperature regulator 51p: thermoelectric conversion element (Peltier element)
59: head part 57h, 57e, 57u: heater
57r: annular heater 32S: wafer stage

Claims (18)

A resist coating apparatus which forms a color resist film on a board | substrate,
A substrate temperature adjuster configured to adjust the temperature of the substrate such that the temperature at the periphery of the substrate is higher than the temperature at the center of the substrate;
A color resist liquid supply unit for supplying a color resist liquid on the substrate temperature-controlled by the substrate temperature adjusting unit so that the temperature is higher at the peripheral portion than the central portion;
And a substrate rotating part for rotating the substrate supplied with the color resist liquid. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate temperature adjusting unit,
A fluid cooling unit for cooling the fluid to a temperature lower than an ambient temperature inside the resist coating apparatus;
And a first fluid supply part for supplying the fluid cooled by the fluid cooling part to the central part. The method of claim 2, wherein the first fluid supply unit,
A first discharge part for discharging the fluid;
A first arm portion including a first conduit for guiding the fluid cooled by the fluid cooling portion to the first discharge portion, the first arm portion capable of holding the first discharge portion above the central portion;
And a first temperature holding portion included in said first arm portion for maintaining a temperature of said fluid flowing through said first conduit. The method of claim 3, wherein the first fluid supply unit,
And a supply amount adjusting portion for adjusting the supply amount of the fluid so that the fluid supplied from the first fluid supply portion to the central portion does not diffuse to the peripheral portion. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate temperature adjusting unit,
A fluid heating part for heating the fluid to a temperature higher than an ambient temperature inside the resist coating device;
A second fluid supply for supplying the fluid heated by the fluid heating part to the peripheral part,
And the substrate rotating portion is configured to rotate the substrate while the fluid is supplied to the peripheral portion. The method of claim 5, wherein the second fluid supply unit,
A second discharge part for discharging the fluid;
A second arm portion including a second conduit for guiding the fluid heated by the fluid heating portion to the second discharge portion, the second arm portion being capable of holding the second discharge portion above the peripheral portion;
And a second temperature holding part provided in said second arm part and maintaining a temperature of said fluid flowing through said second conduit. The resist coating apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the substrate rotating part is configured to rotate the substrate at a rotational speed at which the fluid supplied from the second fluid supply part to the peripheral part does not reach the central part. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the substrate temperature adjusting part includes a third fluid supply part configured to supply a fluid heated to a temperature higher than an ambient temperature inside the resist coating apparatus to a periphery of a rear surface of the substrate,
And the substrate rotating portion is configured to rotate the substrate while the fluid is being supplied from the third fluid supply portion to the periphery of the back surface. The resist coating device according to any one of claims 2 to 8, wherein the fluid is any one of cyclohexanone, propylene glycol methyl ether, and alcohol. The resist coating apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 8, wherein the fluid is a gas. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate temperature adjusting unit,
A temperature variable member maintained at a temperature lower than an ambient temperature inside the resist coating device;
And a support part configured to be able to support the temperature variable member above the central part of the substrate. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate temperature adjusting unit,
A temperature variable member maintained at a temperature higher than an ambient temperature inside the resist coating apparatus;
It includes a support that is configured to support the temperature variable member on the upper side of the peripheral portion,
And the substrate rotating portion is configured to rotate the substrate while the temperature varying member is supported above the peripheral portion. The resist coating apparatus according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the temperature varying member includes a thermoelectric conversion element. The resist coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate temperature adjusting part includes a first heating part which is arranged to be capable of heating a peripheral portion of the substrate from the back surface or the surface of the substrate. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate temperature adjusting unit,
A carrier supporting a substrate, the carrier transferring the substrate to the substrate rotating part;
And a second heating portion for heating a peripheral portion of the substrate supported by the substrate supporting portion. A coating and developing system comprising the resist coating apparatus according to any one of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14 or 15. A resist film forming method of forming a color resist film on a substrate,
Adjusting the temperature of the substrate such that the temperature at the periphery of the substrate is higher than the temperature at the center of the substrate;
Supplying a color resist liquid onto the substrate temperature-controlled by a substrate temperature adjusting unit so that the temperature is higher at the peripheral portion than the central portion;
And rotating the substrate supplied with the color resist liquid. The method of claim 17, wherein adjusting the temperature of the substrate,
Discharging a fluid having a temperature lower than the ambient temperature inside the resist coating apparatus to the central portion of the substrate to such an extent that it does not diffuse to a peripheral portion of the substrate;
Maintaining the fluid on the substrate for a predetermined time while the fluid remains in the central portion of the substrate;
And rotating the substrate.

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