TW202023692A - Substrate treatment method and substrate treatment apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a technique for appropriately determining the timing for starting a second process following a first process which is a liquid process. In order to achieve the purpose, after the supply of a first processing liquid is stopped, an image of an upper surface of a substrate is captured by means of a camera. In a determination region of the captured image acquired by means of the camera, an extreme value point of luminance (optical intensity) in a radial direction is detected to detect an interference pattern. When an interference pattern to be detected has been detected, a timing determination unit determines the timing for starting the second process.

Description

Substrate processing method and substrate processing device

The present invention relates to a technology for processing a substrate, and more particularly to a technology for processing a substrate with a processing liquid. The substrates to be processed include, for example, semiconductor substrates, liquid crystal display devices, and organic EL (Electroluminescence; electroluminescence) display devices, such as FPD (Flat Panel Display) substrates, optical disk substrates, magnetic disk substrates, and magneto-optical devices. Substrates for discs, substrates for photomasks, ceramic substrates, substrates for solar cells, printed substrates, etc.

In semiconductor manufacturing, there may be cases where another second treatment is performed on the semiconductor substrate after the first treatment for treating the surface of the semiconductor substrate with a predetermined liquid. For example, Patent Document 1 describes that a semiconductor substrate having a fine pattern on the surface is treated with a hydrophobizing agent to suppress the collapse of the fine pattern. In more detail, after the semiconductor substrate was treated with liquid PGMEA (propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate), the semiconductor substrate was treated with a hydrophobizing agent.

In addition, Patent Document 2 discloses a technique of suppressing the collapse of the resist pattern when the substrate is dried by high-speed rotation. Specifically, the substrate on which the resist pattern is formed is first subjected to a liquid treatment of supplying a rinse liquid as the first treatment, and then a drying treatment of rotating the substrate at a high speed and drying the substrate is performed as the second treatment. Patent Document 2 describes that after the supply of the cleaning solution is completed, the rotation speed of the substrate is controlled in response to the expansion of the dry area on the main surface of the substrate from the center of the substrate to the outer periphery, and the change in interference fringe is further measured and performed. Detection of the position of the boundary of the dry area. [Prior Technical Literature] [Patent Literature]

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-114414. Patent Document 2: JP 2004-335542 A.

[The problem to be solved by the invention]

Generally speaking, the thickness of the liquid film of the first processing liquid supplied to the substrate in the first processing may affect the subsequent second processing. For example, in the case of Patent Document 1, PGMEA is supplied to the substrate in the first treatment, and the supply of the hydrophobizing agent belonging to the second treatment is performed on the substrate after the supply of PGMEA is stopped. At this time, when the liquid film of PGMEA on the substrate is too thick, the efficiency of substitution with the hydrophobizing agent is low. However, Patent Document 1 does not disclose a technique for supplying the hydrophobizing agent at the most appropriate timing.

In addition, Patent Document 2 only describes the control of measuring the change in interference fringes and performing the drying process that starts the second process, and does not disclose a technique for detecting interference fringes at all. Therefore, according to the cited document 2, it is difficult to appropriately determine the timing of starting the drying process.

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a technique for appropriately determining the timing of starting the subsequent second treatment after the first treatment belonging to the liquid treatment. [Means to solve the problem]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the substrate processing method of the first aspect is used to process the upper surface of the substrate rotating in a horizontal position with a processing liquid, and includes: step (a), holding the substrate in a horizontal position; step (b) ), is to rotate the substrate held in a horizontal posture in the aforementioned step (a) about the vertical axis of rotation; step (c) is to rotate the substrate on the aforementioned step (b) The first treatment liquid is supplied to the surface; step (d) is to stop the supply of the first treatment liquid after the aforementioned step (c); step (e) is to leave the residue on the substrate after the aforementioned step (d) The film of the first treatment liquid on the surface becomes thin; step (f) is to photograph the upper surface of the substrate with a camera in the step (e); step (g) is obtained by the step (f) The light intensity in the radial direction orthogonal to the axis of rotation in the determination area set in the captured image becomes the extreme point of maximum or minimum, and the timing of the second processing of the substrate is determined; and step (h), is The second processing is performed on the substrate in accordance with the timing determined by the step (g).

The substrate processing method of the second aspect is the substrate processing method described in the first aspect, wherein in the step (h), the first processing liquid film remains on the entire upper surface of the substrate. The second treatment.

The substrate processing method of the third aspect is the substrate processing method described in the first aspect or the second aspect, wherein the determination area is set on the upper surface of the substrate in the captured image.

The fourth aspect of the substrate processing method is the substrate processing method described in the third aspect, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g1), which corresponds to the detection of an extreme point in the aforementioned determination area The time until the next extreme point is detected determines the aforementioned timing.

The substrate processing method of the fifth aspect is the substrate processing method described in the fourth aspect, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g2), based on the detection of the first extreme value in the aforementioned determination area The first time after the second extreme point is detected until the second extreme value point is detected, and the second time after the detection of the second extreme value point until the third extreme point is detected to determine the timing sequence.

The substrate processing method of the sixth aspect is the substrate processing method described in any one of the first aspect to the third aspect, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g3), based on the aforementioned The first distance between the first extreme point detected in the determination area and the second extreme point away from the first extreme point in the radial direction is determined to determine the aforementioned timing.

The substrate processing method of the seventh aspect is the substrate processing method described in any one of the first aspect to the third aspect, wherein the aforementioned determination area includes: a first determination area; and a second determination area, It is separated from the first judgment area toward the outside in the radial direction; the step (g) includes: step (g4), based on the detection of the first extreme point in the first judgment area and the detection of the second judgment area The second extreme point is detected in the middle to determine the aforementioned timing.

The substrate processing method of the eighth aspect is the substrate processing method described in the seventh aspect, which further includes: step (i), before the step (g), changing the second determination region relative to the first A position to determine the relative position in the radial direction of the region.

The substrate processing method of the ninth aspect is the substrate processing method described in the sixth aspect, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g5), which is based on the aforementioned first distance and the aforementioned determination area The second distance between the second extreme point and the third extreme point away from the second extreme point in the radial direction determines the aforementioned timing.

The substrate processing method of the tenth aspect is the substrate processing method described in any one of the first aspect to the ninth aspect, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g6), which is in the aforementioned judgment The three aforementioned extreme value points counted from the last detectable final extreme value point among the plurality of extreme value points are detected in the area, thereby determining the aforementioned timing sequence.

The substrate processing method of the eleventh aspect is the substrate processing method described in any one of the first aspect to the tenth aspect, wherein the aforementioned camera is an infrared camera.

The substrate processing method of the twelfth aspect is the substrate processing method described in the eleventh aspect, wherein the step (f) includes: a step (f1) of irradiating the upper surface of the substrate with infrared rays.

The substrate processing method of the thirteenth aspect is the substrate processing method described in any one of the first aspect to the twelfth aspect, wherein the second processing is used to supply the upper surface of the substrate with the Treatment of a second treatment liquid with a different first treatment liquid.

The substrate processing method of the fourteenth aspect is the substrate processing method described in any one of the first aspect to the twelfth aspect, wherein the aforementioned second processing is used to set the rotation speed of the substrate to be higher than the aforementioned process (e) When it is large and removes the first treatment liquid remaining on the upper surface of the substrate.

The substrate processing apparatus of the fifteenth aspect is used for liquid processing on the upper surface of a substrate rotating in a horizontal posture, and is provided with a substrate holding part holding the substrate in a horizontal posture; a rotating part holding the substrate in a horizontal posture; The target substrate of the substrate held by the holding part rotates around a vertical axis of rotation; the processing liquid supply part supplies the first processing liquid to the upper surface of the target substrate; the camera photographs the upper surface of the target substrate; the timing determining part , In the determination area set by the captured image obtained by the aforementioned camera, according to the movement of the extreme point at which the light intensity in the radial direction orthogonal to the aforementioned axis of rotation becomes the maximum or minimum value toward the outside of the radial direction Determining the timing of performing the second processing on the target substrate; and the second processing execution unit performs the second processing on the target substrate in accordance with the timing determined by the timing determining unit.

The substrate processing apparatus of the sixteenth aspect is the substrate processing apparatus described in the fifteenth aspect, wherein the determination area is set on the upper surface of the target substrate in the captured image.

The substrate processing apparatus of the seventeenth aspect is the substrate processing apparatus described in the fifteenth aspect or the sixteenth aspect, wherein the timing determining unit includes: a feature vector extracting unit that extracts plural numbers from the captured images Type feature vector; and an image determination unit that determines whether the captured image is an image that becomes a reference for the timing decision based on the plurality of types of feature vectors. [Invention Effect]

According to the substrate processing method of the first aspect, when the supply of the first processing liquid is stopped, the first processing liquid is spun off by the rotation of the substrate, whereby the thickness of the liquid film gradually becomes thinner. At this time, interference fringes moving outward in the radial direction are generated in accordance with the thickness of the liquid film. This interference pattern corresponds to the extreme point that takes the extreme value of the light intensity. Therefore, the time sequence for performing the second treatment is determined according to the extreme point of the light intensity, whereby the second treatment can be started at the time sequence when the liquid film of the first treatment liquid becomes the optimal thickness.

According to the substrate processing method of the second aspect, the second processing is started with the first processing liquid remaining on the entire upper surface of the substrate. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the drying of the substrate locally.

According to the substrate processing method of the third aspect, a determination area is set on the upper surface of the substrate in the captured image. Thereby, the detection accuracy of the extreme points corresponding to the interference fringes generated on the upper surface of the substrate can be improved.

According to the substrate processing method of the fourth aspect, the progress of thinning can be detected from the time difference between the two extreme points passing through the determination area. Therefore, the start timing of the second process is determined.

According to the substrate processing method of the fifth aspect, the first time and the second time are calculated, whereby it can be determined whether the interference pattern of the inspection object has appeared.

According to the substrate processing method of the sixth aspect, the first distance is calculated, whereby it can be determined whether the interference pattern of the inspection object has appeared.

According to the substrate processing method of the seventh aspect, the first judging area and the second judging area that are separated by an appropriate distance in the radial direction are set, and the interference pattern is detected in the first judging area and the second judging area, thereby Can determine whether the interference pattern of the inspection object has appeared.

According to the substrate processing method of the eighth aspect, the relative position of the second determination area with respect to the first determination area can be changed to the radial direction. With this, it is possible to simultaneously detect the first extreme value point and the second extreme value point as an index determined by the timing of the second process in each of the first determination area and the second determination area, for example.

According to the substrate processing method of the ninth aspect, the first distance and the second distance are obtained, whereby it can be determined whether the interference pattern of the inspection object has appeared.

According to the substrate processing method of the tenth aspect, the timing of the second processing can be determined at a stage before the thickness of the liquid film of the first processing liquid becomes the thinness of the interference pattern that cannot be detected.

According to the substrate processing method of the eleventh aspect, the light intensity corresponding to the interference pattern can be appropriately detected by detecting infrared rays.

According to the substrate processing method of the twelfth aspect, the light intensity corresponding to the interference pattern can be appropriately detected by detecting infrared rays.

According to the substrate processing method of the thirteenth aspect, the second processing liquid can be supplied at the time when the first processing liquid becomes the target thinness. Therefore, since the replacement from the first processing liquid to the second processing liquid can be performed quickly, the usage amount of the second processing liquid can be reduced.

According to the substrate processing method of the fourteenth aspect, the rotation speed of the substrate is increased at the point in time when the first processing liquid becomes the target thinness. It is possible to prevent the substrate processing from becoming uneven due to the large amount of remaining first processing liquid.

According to the substrate processing apparatus of the fifteenth aspect, when the supply of the first processing liquid is stopped, the first processing liquid is thrown away by the rotation of the substrate, whereby the thickness of the liquid film gradually becomes thinner. At this time, interference fringes that move radially outward are generated in accordance with the thickness of the liquid film. This interference pattern corresponds to the extreme point that takes the extreme value of the light intensity. Therefore, the timing of performing the second treatment is determined according to the extreme point of the light intensity, whereby the second treatment can be started at the timing when the liquid film of the first treatment liquid becomes the most appropriate thickness.

According to the substrate processing apparatus of the sixteenth aspect, interference patterns appearing on the substrate can be detected.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, the constituent elements described in the embodiments are merely examples, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. In the drawings, for ease of understanding, the size and number of each part may be exaggerated or simplified as needed.

Unless otherwise specified, it is used to show the performance of relative or absolute positional relationship (such as "in one direction", "along one direction", "parallel", "orthogonal", "center", "concentric", "Coaxial" etc.) not only strictly express the positional relationship, but also express the state of relative displacement with respect to the angle or distance within the range of tolerance or the same degree of function can be obtained. Unless otherwise specified, the performance (such as "identical", "equal", "homogeneous", etc.) used to show the state of equality not only strictly indicates the state of equality with quantification, but also indicates that there is tolerance or the same degree of function The status of the error. Unless otherwise specified, the expressions used to express the shape (such as "quadrigonal" or "cylindrical shape", etc.) not only strictly express geometrical shapes, but also express such as unevenness within the range where the same degree of efficacy can be obtained. And shapes such as chamfers. The expression of "has," "has," "has," "includes," or "contains" a component is not an exclusive expression of excluding other components. As long as there is no special explanation, the so-called "at ~ on" refers to the situation where two elements are in contact, but also includes the situation where two elements are separated.

(1) The first embodiment FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a substrate processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. The substrate processing apparatus 100 is a blade type processing apparatus for processing a substrate (also referred to as a target substrate) W belonging to a processing target piece by piece. The substrate processing apparatus 100 uses a cleaning solution such as a chemical solution and pure water to clean a circular thin-plate-shaped silicon substrate W, and then perform a drying treatment. As the chemical solution, for example, SC1 (standard clean-1; the first standard cleaning solution, that is, ammonia-hydrogen peroxide mixture), SC2 (standard clean-2; the second standard cleaning solution, Namely, hydrochloric hydrogen peroxide mixed water solution (hydrochloric hydrogen mixed water solution), DHF (dilute hydrofluoric acid), etc. In the following description, the chemical solution and the cleaning solution may be collectively referred to as the "treatment solution". In addition, the substrate processing apparatus 100 may be configured not to perform a cleaning process, but to supply a coating liquid such as a photoresist liquid for film formation processing, a chemical liquid for removing unnecessary films, or a liquid for etching. Chemical solution and wet processing of the substrate. That is, the substrate processing apparatus 100 may be, for example, an apparatus for performing liquid processing on the upper surface of the substrate W rotating in a horizontal posture. The liquid treatment is a treatment using a treatment liquid for the substrate W.

The substrate processing apparatus 100 is provided with a plurality of cleaning processing units 1, an indexer 102, and a main transfer robot 103.

The indexer 102 transports the substrate W to be processed externally taken from the apparatus (substrate processing apparatus 100) into the apparatus (substrate processing apparatus 100), and carries out the processed substrate W that has completed the cleaning process to the apparatus (substrate The processing device 100) outside. The indexer 102 mounts a plurality of carriers (not shown), and is equipped with a transfer robot (not shown). As the carrier, a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod; front opening wafer transfer box) or SMIF (Standard Mechanical Inter Face; standard manufacturing interface) box (pod) used to store the substrate W in a closed space can also be used, or also An OC (Open Cassette) for exposing the substrate W to the outside air can be used. The transfer robot is to transfer the substrate W between the carrier and the main transfer robot 103.

The cleaning processing unit 1 performs liquid processing and drying processing on one substrate W. Twelve cleaning processing units 1 are arranged in the substrate processing apparatus 100. Specifically, four towers are arranged so as to surround the periphery of the main transfer robot 103, and the four towers each include three washing treatment units 1 stacked in the vertical direction. FIG. 1 schematically shows one of the washing treatment units 1 stacked in three layers. In addition, the number of cleaning processing units 1 in the substrate processing apparatus 100 is not limited to twelve, and can be changed as appropriate.

The main transport robot 103 is arranged in the center of the four towers on which the cleaning processing units 1 are stacked. The main transport robot 103 transports the substrate W to be processed received from the indexer 102 to each cleaning processing unit 1. In addition, the main transfer robot 103 unloads the processed substrate W from each cleaning processing unit 1 and transfers it to the indexer 102.

(Washing treatment unit 1) In the following, although one of the twelve cleaning processing units 1 mounted on the substrate processing apparatus 100 is described, the other cleaning processing units 1 differ in the arrangement relationship of the nozzles 30, 60, and 65. Besides, it has the same composition.

Fig. 2 is a schematic plan view of the washing treatment unit 1 of the first embodiment. Fig. 3 is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the washing treatment unit 1 of the first embodiment. FIG. 2 shows a state where the substrate W is not held by a spin chuck 20, and FIG. 3 shows a state where the substrate W is held by a spin chuck 20.

The cleaning processing unit 1 is provided in a chamber 10 with: a rotation jig 20 that holds the substrate W in a horizontal posture (posture where the normal to the surface of the substrate W is in the vertical direction); three nozzles (also known as The processing liquid supply parts 30, 60, 65 are used to supply the processing liquid to the upper surface of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20; the processing cup 40 surrounds the rotation jig 20; and the camera 70 , The space above the rotation jig 20 is photographed. In addition, a partition 15 is provided around the processing cover 40 in the chamber 10 to partition the inner space of the chamber 10 up and down.

The chamber 10 is provided with a side wall 11 that extends along the vertical direction and surrounds four directions; a top wall 12 that closes the upper side of the side wall 11; and a bottom wall 13 that closes the lower side of the side wall 11. The space surrounded by the side wall 11, the top wall 12, and the bottom wall 13 becomes a processing space of the substrate W. In addition, a part of the side wall 11 of the chamber 10 is provided with an unloading and unloading port (not shown) for the main transfer robot 103 to carry the substrate W into the chamber 10 and unload the substrate W from the chamber 10 ; The shutter (not shown) is used to open and close the carry-out entrance.

A FFU (fan filter unit; fan filter unit) 14 is installed on the top wall 12 of the chamber 10, and the FFU 14 is used to further clean the air in the cleaning room where the substrate processing apparatus 100 is installed. And it is supplied to the processing space in the chamber 10. The FFU 14 is equipped with a fan and a filter (for example, a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter). The fan is used to take in the air in the clean room and deliver it to the chamber 10. The FFU 14 is connected to the processing space in the chamber 10 to form a down flow of clean air. In order to uniformly disperse the clean air supplied from the FFU 14, a punching plate (punching plate) provided with a plurality of blowout holes may be installed directly under the top wall 12.

The rotation jig 20 includes a spin base 21, a spin motor 22, a cover member 23, and a rotating shaft 24. The rotation base 21 has a circular plate shape, and is fixed to the upper end of the rotating shaft 24 extending in the vertical direction in a horizontal posture. The rotation motor 22 is provided below the rotation base 21 and rotates the rotation shaft 24. The rotation motor 22 rotates the rotation base 21 in a horizontal plane via the rotation shaft 24. The cover member 23 has a cylindrical shape, and surrounds the rotation motor 22 and the rotation shaft 24.

The outer diameter of the disk-shaped rotation base 21 is slightly larger than the diameter of the circular substrate W held by the rotation jig 20. The rotation base 21 has a holding surface 21a which faces the entire surface of the lower surface of the substrate W to be held.

A plurality of (four in this embodiment) chuck pins 26 are erected on the peripheral edge of the holding surface 21a of the rotation base 21. The jig pins 26 are arranged at even intervals along the circumference corresponding to the outer shape of the outer peripheral edge of the circular substrate W. In this embodiment, the four clamp pins 26 are arranged at 90° intervals. Each clamp pin 26 is driven in linkage by a link mechanism (not shown) housed in the rotation base 21. The rotation jig 20 holds the substrate W above the rotation base 21 in a horizontal posture close to the holding surface 21a by contacting the respective jig pins 26 to the outer peripheral end of the substrate W and holding the substrate W (see FIG. 3). In addition, the rotation jig 20 separates the respective jig pins 26 from the outer peripheral end of the substrate W, thereby releasing the holding of the substrate W. Each jig pin 26 is a substrate holding portion for holding the substrate W in a horizontal posture.

The lower end of the cover member 23 for covering the rotation motor 22 is fixed to the bottom wall 13 of the chamber 10, and the upper end of the cover member 23 reaches directly below the rotation base 21. A collar-shaped member 25 is provided at the upper end of the cover member 23, and the collar-shaped member 25 protrudes substantially horizontally outward from the cover member 23 and is curved and extended downward. In the state in which the rotation jig 20 holds the substrate W by the plurality of clamp pins 26, the rotation motor 22 as a rotating part rotates the rotation shaft 24, thereby allowing the substrate W to move around the substrate W passing through it. The rotation axis CX in the vertical direction at the center rotates. In addition, the drive system of the rotation motor 22 is controlled by the control unit 9. In the following description, the horizontal direction orthogonal to the rotation axis CX is referred to as the "radial direction". In addition, the direction toward the rotation axis CX in the radial direction is referred to as the "radial direction inner side", and the direction away from the rotation axis CX in the radial direction is referred to as the "radial direction outer side".

The nozzle 30 is configured to attach the ejection head 31 to the tip of the nozzle arm 32. The base end side of the nozzle arm 32 is fixed and connected to the nozzle base 33. The nozzle base 33 is configured to be rotatable about an axis along the vertical direction by a motor 332 (nozzle moving part, refer to FIG. 4) provided on the nozzle base 33.

As shown by the arrow AR34 in FIG. 2, the nozzle base 33 rotates, whereby the nozzle 30 moves in an arc-like shape in the horizontal direction between a position above the rotation jig 20 and a standby position outside the processing cover 40 . By the rotation of the nozzle base 33, the nozzle 30 is oscillated above the holding surface 21a of the rotation base 21. Specifically, it moves toward a predetermined processing position TP1 extending in the horizontal direction while being higher than the rotation base 21. In addition, moving the nozzle 30 to the processing position TP1 means moving the ejection head 31 at the tip of the nozzle 30 to the processing position TP1.

The nozzle 30 is configured to be supplied with plural kinds of treatment liquids (including at least pure water), and to be able to discharge plural kinds of treatment liquids from the discharge head 31. In addition, a plurality of ejection heads 31 may be provided at the tip of the nozzle 30, and the same or different processing liquids may be respectively ejected from the plurality of ejection heads 31. The nozzle 30 (specifically, the ejection head 31) is stopped at the processing position TP1 and ejects the processing liquid. The processing liquid ejected from the nozzle 30 adheres to the upper surface of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20.

In addition to the nozzle 30 described above, the washing treatment unit 1 of this embodiment is also provided with two nozzles 60 and 65. The nozzles 60 and 65 of the present embodiment have the same or similar structure as the nozzle 30 described above. That is, the nozzle 60 is configured such that the ejection head is attached to the tip of the nozzle arm 62, and the nozzle base 63 is connected to the base end side of the nozzle arm 62 so as to be positioned above the rotation jig 20 as indicated by the arrow AR64. The processing position and the standby position outside the processing cover 40 move in an arc shape. The nozzle 65 is configured such that the ejection head is attached to the tip of the nozzle arm 67, and the nozzle base 68 is connected to the base end side of the nozzle arm 67 so that the processing position above the rotation jig 20 as indicated by the arrow AR69 and The waiting positions outside the processing cover 40 move in an arc shape.

The nozzles 60 and 65 are also configured to be supplied with a plurality of processing liquids containing at least pure water, and the nozzles 60 and 65 also spray the processing liquid toward the upper surface of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20 in the processing position. In addition, at least one of the nozzles 60 and 65 may also be a two-fluid nozzle for mixing a cleaning liquid such as pure water and a pressurized gas to generate droplets and spray the mixed fluid of the droplets and the gas to the substrate W . In addition, the number of nozzles provided in the washing processing unit 1 is not limited to three, and it may be one or more.

It is not necessary to move each of the nozzles 30, 60, and 65 in an arc shape. For example, it is also possible to linearly move the nozzle by providing a linear movement drive unit.

The nozzle 30 is connected to pure water (ie DIW (deionized water)), IPA (Isopropyl Alcohol; isopropyl alcohol), silyl group (silyl) chemical agent, etc. water repellent, DHF ( Diluted hydrofluoric acid, that is, a mixed liquid of hydrofluoric acid and pure water) and other supply sources of various processing liquids, and the various processing liquids can be separately ejected from the ejection head 31 at the tip of the nozzle 30. In addition, a plurality of ejection heads 31 may be provided at the tip of the nozzle 30, and each ejection head 31 may eject different types of processing liquids. In addition, the nozzles 60 and 65 may also eject some of the various processing liquids described above.

A lower surface treatment liquid nozzle 28 is provided along the vertical direction so as to penetrate the inner side of the rotating shaft 24. The upper end opening of the lower surface treatment liquid nozzle 28 is formed at a position opposed to the center of the lower surface of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20. The lower surface treatment liquid nozzle 28 is also configured to be supplied with plural kinds of treatment liquids. The processing liquid ejected from the lower surface processing liquid nozzle 28 is applied to the lower surface of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20.

The processing cover 40 surrounding the rotation jig 20 is provided with an inner cover 41, a middle cover 42, and an outer cover 43 that are independent of each other and can be raised and lowered. The inner cover 41 surrounds the circumference of the rotation jig 20 and has a substantially rotationally symmetrical shape with respect to the rotation axis CX passing through the center of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20. The inner cover 41 is integrally provided with: a bottom 44, which is annular in plan view; a cylindrical inner wall 45, which rises upward from the inner peripheral edge of the bottom 44; and a cylindrical outer wall 46, It stands upward from the outer periphery of the bottom 44; the first guide portion 47 stands between the inner wall portion 45 and the outer wall portion 46, and the upper end forms a smooth arc and faces the center side (close to being rotated The direction of the rotation axis CX of the substrate W held by the jig 20 extends obliquely upward; and the cylindrical middle wall portion 48 stands upward from between the first guide portion 47 and the outer wall portion 46.

The inner wall portion 45 is received between the cover member 23 and the flange-shaped member 25 in a state where the inner cover 41 has been raised to the uppermost position with a proper gap. The middle wall portion 48 is accommodated between the second guide portion 52 of the middle cover 42 and the processing liquid separation wall 53 described later in the state where the inner cover 41 and the middle cover 42 are closest to each other with a proper gap.

The first guide portion 47 has an upper end 47b that is formed in a smooth arc and extends obliquely upward toward the center side (the direction approaching the rotation axis CX of the substrate W). In addition, the space between the inner wall portion 45 and the first guide portion 47 serves as a waste tank 49 for collecting and discarding the used treatment liquid. Between the first guide portion 47 and the middle wall portion 48 is an annular inner recovery tank 50 for collecting and recovering the used treatment liquid. In addition, the space between the middle wall portion 48 and the outer wall portion 46 serves as an annular outer recovery tank 51 for collecting and recovering a processing liquid of a different kind from the inner recovery tank 50.

Connected to the waste tank 49 is an exhaust and drain mechanism, not shown, for discharging the treatment liquid collected in the waste tank 49 and forcibly exhausting the interior of the waste tank 49. For example, four exhaust and drain mechanisms are provided at equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the waste groove 49. In addition, a recovery mechanism (not shown) is provided in the inner recovery tank 50 and the outer recovery tank 51, and the recovery mechanism is used to recover the processing liquid collected in the inner recovery tank 50 and the outer recovery tank 51 to the substrate processing apparatus. 100 outside of the recovery cylinder tank (not shown). In addition, the bottoms of the inner recovery tank 50 and the outer recovery tank 51 are inclined at a slight angle with respect to the horizontal direction, and a recovery mechanism is connected to the lowest positions of the inner recovery tank 50 and the outer recovery tank 51. Thereby, the processing liquid flowing into the inner recovery tank 50 and the outer recovery tank 51 is recovered smoothly.

The middle cover 42 surrounds the circumference of the rotation jig 20 and has a substantially rotationally symmetrical shape with respect to the rotation axis CX passing through the center of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20. The middle cover 42 has a second guide portion 52 and a cylindrical processing liquid separation wall 53, and the processing liquid separation wall 53 is connected to the second guide portion 52.

The second guide portion 52 is provided on the outer side of the first guide portion 47 of the inner cover 41: a lower end 52a, which is made into a cylindrical shape coaxial with the lower end of the first guide 47; an upper end 52b, The upper end of the lower end portion 52a is formed in a smooth arc, and it extends obliquely upward toward the center side (the direction approaching the rotation axis CX of the substrate W); and the turn-back portion 52c is formed by turning back the front end of the upper end portion 52b downward. . The lower end portion 52a is received in the inner recovery groove 50 in a state where the inner cover 41 and the middle cover 42 are closest to each other with a proper gap between the first guide portion 47 and the middle wall portion 48. In addition, the upper end 52b is arranged so as to overlap with the upper end 47b of the first guide portion 47 of the inner cover 41 in the vertical direction, and the inner cover 41 and the middle cover 42 are closest to each other so that a very small interval is left. This approach approaches the upper end 47b of the first guide 47. The folded portion 52c also overlaps the front end of the upper end 47b of the first guide portion 47 in the horizontal direction in a state where the inner cover 41 and the middle cover 42 are closest.

The upper end 52b of the second guide portion 52 is formed in such a way that the thickness becomes thicker as it faces downward. The processing liquid separation wall 53 has a cylindrical shape provided so as to extend downward from the outer peripheral edge portion of the lower end of the upper end portion 52b. The processing liquid separation wall 53 is accommodated in the outer recovery tank 51 in a state where the inner cover 41 and the middle cover 42 are closest to each other with an appropriate gap between the middle wall portion 48 and the outer cover 43.

The cover 43 has a substantially rotationally symmetrical shape with respect to the rotation axis CX passing through the center of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20. The outer cover 43 surrounds the rotation jig 20 in the outer side of the second guide portion 52 of the middle cover 42. The cover 43 has a function as a third guide portion. The outer cover 43 has: a lower end 43a formed in a cylindrical shape coaxial with the lower end 52a of the second guide portion 52; an upper end 43b formed in a smooth arc from the upper end of the lower end 43a toward the center side ( The direction approaching the rotation axis CX of the substrate W) extends diagonally upward; and the folded portion 43c is formed by folding the front end of the upper end 43b downward.

The lower end 43a is received in the outer recovery tank 51 with an appropriate gap between the processing liquid separation wall 53 of the middle cover 42 and the outer wall portion 46 of the inner cover 41 when the inner cover 41 and the outer cover 43 are closest to each other. . The upper end 43b is arranged so as to overlap with the second guide portion 52 of the middle cover 42 in the vertical direction, and approach the second guide with a very small interval when the middle cover 42 and the outer cover 43 are closest to each other. The upper end 52b of the lead 52. The folded portion 43c also overlaps the folded portion 52c of the second guide portion 52 in the horizontal direction in a state where the middle cover 42 and the outer cover 43 are the closest to each other.

The inner cover 41, the middle cover 42, and the outer cover 43 are configured to be independent from each other and can be raised and lowered. That is, each of the inner cover 41, the middle cover 42, and the outer cover 43 is individually provided with a lifting mechanism (not shown), whereby the inner cover 41, the middle cover 42, and the outer cover 43 are independently raised and lowered. As such a lifting mechanism, various known mechanisms such as a ball screw mechanism or an air cylinder can be adopted.

The partition 15 is provided around the processing cover 40 so as to partition the inner space of the chamber 10 up and down. The partition 15 can be a plate-shaped member surrounding the processing cover 40, or a plurality of plate-shaped members can be combined. In addition, a through hole and/or a notch penetrating in the thickness direction may be formed in the partition plate 15. In this embodiment, a through hole is formed to penetrate a support shaft for supporting the nozzles 30, 60. , 65 nozzle bases 33, 63, 68.

The outer peripheral end of the partition 15 is connected to the side wall 11 of the chamber 10. In addition, the edge portion of the partition plate 15 for surrounding the processing cover 40 is formed in a circular shape with a diameter larger than the outer diameter of the outer cover 43. Therefore, the partition 15 does not hinder the lifting of the outer cover 43.

In addition, an exhaust duct 18 is provided in the vicinity of the bottom wall 13 which is a part of the side wall 11 of the chamber 10. The exhaust duct 18 is connected to an exhaust mechanism (not shown) in communication. The clean air supplied from the FFU 14 and flowing down the chamber 10 has passed through the air system between the processing cover 40 and the partition plate 15 and is discharged from the exhaust duct 18 to the outside of the device.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the camera 70 and the nozzle 30 belonging to the movable part. The camera 70 is installed on the upper side of the substrate W in the vertical direction in the vertical direction. The camera 70 is provided with, for example, an optical system such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), which is a kind of solid-state imaging device, an electronic shutter, and a lens. In order to photograph the upper surface of the substrate W, the photographing direction of the camera 70 (that is, the optical axis direction of the photographing optical system) is set obliquely downward toward the rotation center (or near) of the upper surface of the substrate W. The camera 70 covers the entire upper surface of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20 in the field of view of the camera 70. For example, in the horizontal direction, the range surrounded by the dotted line in FIG. 2 is covered by the field of view of the camera 70. In other words, the two dashed lines in FIG. 2 show the outer edge of the field of view of the camera 70.

The camera 70 is installed in a position that covers the vicinity of the ejection head 31 in such a manner that at least the tip of the nozzle 30 in the processing position TP1 is covered by the shooting field of view of the camera 70. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the camera 70 is installed in the position which photographs the nozzle 30 in the processing position TP1 from the front upper direction. Therefore, the camera 70 can photograph the imaging area including the tip of the nozzle 30 in the processing position TP1. Similarly, the camera 70 captures the imaging area including the tip of each of the nozzles 60 and 65 at the processing position when the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20 is processed. In the case where the camera 70 is arranged in the positions shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the nozzles 30 and 60 move in the horizontal direction within the imaging field of view of the camera 70, so that each nozzle 30 and 60 at each processing position can be appropriately photographed. However, since the nozzle 65 moves in the depth direction within the field of view of the camera 70, there is also a risk that the movement near the processing position cannot be appropriately photographed. In this case, a camera different from the camera 70 for photographing the nozzle 65 may be additionally provided.

The nozzle 30 is driven by the nozzle base 33 at the processing position TP1 (the position shown by the dotted line in FIG. 4) above the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20 and the standby position (FIG. 4) outside the processing cover 40 To move back and forth between the solid line positions). The processing position TP1 is a position where the nozzle 30 sprays the processing liquid on the upper surface of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20 and performs cleaning processing. The processing position TP1 is a position close to the center (rotation axis CX) of the substrate W held by the rotation jig 20. The standby position is a position where the nozzle 30 stops spraying the processing liquid and stands by when the cleaning process is not performed. The standby position is a position away from above the rotation base 21, and is a position outside the processing cover 40 in a horizontal plane. It is also possible to install a standby box with the ejection head 31 for storing the nozzle 30 in the standby position.

In addition, the processing position TP1 may be any position close to the edge of the substrate W, and the processing position TP1 may be a position away from the substrate W (that is, a position that does not overlap the substrate W in the vertical direction). ). In the latter case, the processing liquid ejected from the nozzle 30 may be scattered from the outside of the substrate W to the upper surface of the substrate W. In addition, it is not always necessary to eject the processing liquid from the nozzle 30 in a state where the nozzle 30 has been stopped at the processing position TP1. For example, while ejecting the processing liquid from the nozzle 30, the nozzle 30 may be moved in a predetermined processing section that has the processing position TP1 as one end and extends in the horizontal direction above the substrate W.

As shown in FIG. 3, an illuminating unit 71 is provided in the chamber 10 and above the partition 15. The lighting part 71 includes, for example, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) lamp as a light source. The illuminating unit 71 supplies illuminating light necessary for the camera 70 to photograph the inside of the chamber 10 to the processing space. In the case where the chamber 10 is a dark room, the control unit 9 controls the illuminating unit 71 in such a manner that the illuminating unit 71 irradiates the nozzles 30, 60, and 65 with light when the camera 70 is shooting. The illumination unit 71 irradiates visible light as illumination light. However, the illumination light is not limited to visible light. As the illumination light, for example, infrared rays having a wavelength of approximately 0.7 µm (micrometers) to 1 mm (millimeters) can be used, and it is more preferable to use, for example, near infrared rays having a wavelength of approximately 0.7 µm to 2.5 µm. In this case, as the camera 70, an infrared camera provided with an infrared sensor useful for detecting infrared rays (more preferably, near infrared rays) can be used. By detecting infrared rays, interference patterns can be detected appropriately.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the camera 70 and the control unit 9. The configuration of the hardware as the control unit 9 provided in the substrate processing apparatus 100 is the same as that of a general computer. That is, the control unit 9 is equipped with the following components: CPU (Central Processing Unit; central processing unit), which performs various arithmetic processing; ROM (Read Only Memory; read-only memory), which is used to store basic programs Reading dedicated memory; RAM (Random Access Memory), a memory that can be read and written freely for storing various information; and a magnetic disk, which is used to pre-store control software (programs) and Information etc. The CPU of the control unit 9 executes a predetermined processing program, and the control unit 9 controls the operation of each element of the substrate processing apparatus 100 to perform processing in the substrate processing apparatus 100.

The determination area setting unit 91 and the timing determination unit 92 shown in FIG. 5 are functions realized by the CPU of the control unit 9 operating in accordance with the control software.

The determination area setting unit 91 sets the determination area DR on the captured image 82 obtained by the camera 70. The size, position, and number of the determination area DR can be set in advance, and can also be set according to the designation of the operator.

The timing determination unit 92 detects the interference pattern ST that appears on the upper surface of the substrate W after the previous processing (first processing) of the substrate W with liquid, and thereby determines the time (below Also referred to as the "second processing start sequence"). The first treatment is a treatment for supplying a first treatment liquid to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. As described later, the timing determination unit 92 detects each interference pattern ST in the determination area DR set in the captured image 82. In addition, as will be described later, the detection of the interference pattern ST in the determination area DR is performed by the extreme value point detection unit 921 included in the timing determination unit 92 detecting the extreme value point of the brightness value.

The control unit 9 is provided with a memory unit 96 including the above-mentioned RAM or magnetic disk. The storage unit 96 stores image data obtained by the camera 70 and input values of the operator, etc.

The display unit 97 and the input unit 98 are connected to the control unit 9. The display unit 97 displays various information in response to the video signal from the control unit 9. The input unit 98 is composed of input devices such as a keyboard and a mouse connected to the control unit 9 and accepts input operations performed on the control unit 9 by the operator.

(Action description) 6 is a diagram showing an example of a flow of substrate processing in one cleaning processing unit 1 of the substrate processing apparatus 100. In each process described below, unless otherwise specified, it is performed under the control of the control unit 9.

First, with the nozzle 30 in the retracted position, the main transport robot 103 transports the substrate W to be processed received from the indexer 102 into the chamber 10 of a certain cleaning processing unit 1 (step S10). The substrate carried into the chamber 10 is placed on each jig pin 26 of the rotation base 21. Next, each clamp pin 26 is locked, thereby holding the substrate W in a horizontal posture. When the substrate W is carried in, the rotation motor 22 starts to rotate the substrate W.

Next, the nozzle 30 moves to the processing position TP1 and supplies various processing liquids to the substrate W, thereby subjecting the substrate W to liquid processing. Here, first, a hydrofluoric acid treatment is performed (step S11) in which hydrofluoric acid is supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the substrate W. The hydrofluoric acid supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W spreads toward the outer edge of the substrate W by the rotation of the substrate W, and the entire substrate W is subjected to hydrofluoric acid treatment. The period during which hydrofluoric acid is supplied to the substrate W is, for example, 30 seconds. The rotation speed of the substrate W during this period is, for example, 800 rpm (revolution per minute; rotation speed per minute, that is, revolutions per minute).

After stopping the ejection of hydrofluoric acid from the nozzle 30, a cleaning liquid process is performed (step S12) in which a cleaning liquid (here, DIW) is supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the substrate W. During the cleaning liquid treatment, the cleaning liquid is continuously supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. The cleaning liquid supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W spreads toward the outer edge of the substrate W by the rotation of the substrate W. Then, together with the hydrofluoric acid remaining on the upper surface of the substrate W, it is thrown away from the outer edge of the substrate W toward the outside in the radial direction. The hydrofluoric acid and the cleaning solution that have been thrown off the substrate W are caught by the processing cover 40 and appropriately discarded. The period during which the cleaning liquid is supplied to the substrate W is, for example, 30 seconds. In addition, the rotation speed of the substrate W during this period is, for example, 1200 rpm.

After stopping the spraying of the cleaning liquid from the nozzle 30, an IPA process is performed (step S13) in which IPA is supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the substrate W. In the IPA process, IPA is continuously supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W in the IPA process. The IPA supplied to the upper surface spreads toward the outer edge of the substrate W by the rotation of the substrate W, and the entire upper surface (the upper surface of the substrate W) replaces the cleaning liquid (that is, DIW) with IPA. In addition, it is also possible to facilitate the heat treatment of the substrate W by a heating mechanism not shown for the purpose of replacing DIW with IPA. The period during which IPA is supplied is 30 seconds, for example. In addition, the rotation speed of the substrate W during this period is, for example, 300 rpm.

After stopping the ejection of the IPA from the nozzle 30, the water repellent treatment is performed (step S14) in which a water repellent agent is supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the substrate W. At this time, the water-repellent agent supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W spreads toward the outer edge of the substrate W by the rotation of the substrate W, and IPA is replaced in the entire upper surface (the upper surface of the substrate W) A water-repellent agent is used, and a water-repellent treatment for modifying the upper surface (the upper surface of the substrate W) to water-repellent is performed. The period during which the water-repellent agent is supplied is, for example, 30 seconds. In addition, the rotation speed of the substrate W during this period is, for example, 500 rpm.

After stopping spraying of the water-repellent agent from the nozzle 30, the same IPA process as in step S13 is performed (step S15). By this IPA treatment, the water-repellent agent remaining on the upper surface of the substrate W is replaced with an IPA treatment liquid.

After stopping the ejection of IPA from the nozzle 30, the nozzle 30 moves from the processing position TP1 to the retreat position. Next, spin drying is performed (step S16). In the spin-drying process, the spin motor 22 rotates the substrate W at a rotation speed higher than that during each liquid process of step S11 to step S15. The rotation speed at this time is, for example, 1500 rpm. By the spin drying process, various liquid systems attached to the substrate W are scattered radially outward from the outer peripheral portion (the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W), are caught by the inner wall of the processing cover 40, and are appropriately discarded. In other words, in the spin-drying process, the rotation speed of the substrate W is set to be higher than that during the IPA process, and the IPA remaining on the upper surface of the substrate W as a processing liquid is removed.

When the spin-drying process is finished, the holding of the substrate W by each clamp pin 26 is released, and the main transfer robot 103 unloads the substrate W from the chamber 10 (step S17).

In this way, the processing performed by the cleaning processing unit 1 includes: a liquid processing step (step S11 to step S15), which is liquid processing the substrate W; and a drying processing step (step S16), which is performed to dry the substrate W The drying treatment.

In the above description, although it has been described that all the liquid processing is ejected from the nozzle 30, a part of the processing liquid may be ejected from the nozzles 60 and 65. In this case, the nozzles 60 and 65 may be moved from the retracted position to the processing position at an appropriate timing, and various processing liquids may be sprayed from the nozzles 60 and 65 to the upper surface of the substrate W.

(Determination process for the start sequence of the second process) In the substrate processing apparatus 100, after the liquid processing using the liquid (first processing) is completed, before starting the next processing (second processing), the timing determination unit 92 determines the timing to start the next processing. For example, the timing determining unit 92 stops the spraying of IPA from the nozzle 30 in the IPA process (first process) of step S13, and then decides to start the spraying of water from the nozzle 30 in the water repellent process (second process) of the next process. The start sequence of the second treatment of the agent. As described above, the timing determination unit 92 determines the timing for executing the next process in response to the detection of the interference pattern ST. Here, the interference pattern ST appearing on the upper surface of the substrate W will be described.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing captured images 82a, 82b, 82c, and 82d at various timings during the transition from the first process to the second process. The captured image 82a shows the state in which the processing liquid is supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the substrate W in the first processing. When the processing liquid is supplied to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W from the nozzle 30 or the like, the processing liquid is moved radially outward on the upper surface of the substrate W, and falls or flung from the outer edge of the substrate W toward the radial outer side . At this time, since the amount of the processing liquid supplied to the substrate W is balanced with the amount that is thrown to the outside by the rotation of the substrate W, a liquid film W1 that is a film of the processing liquid is formed on the upper surface of the substrate W.

The captured image 82b shows the state of the upper surface of the substrate W when a predetermined time has passed after the supply of the processing liquid from the nozzle 30 is stopped. When the supply of the processing liquid is stopped in the state where the liquid film W1 is formed, the processing liquid system on the surface of the substrate W is scattered outward in the radial direction, whereby the liquid film W1 (the film of the first processing liquid remaining on the upper surface of the substrate W) ) Is gradually getting thinner. In the process of reducing the film thickness, the light reflected on the upper surface of the substrate W interferes with the light reflected on the surface of the liquid film W1. In this way, the part where the phases of the two light rays are the same appears as a bright band region, and the part where the two light rays are opposite in phase appears as a dark band region. As shown in the captured image 82b, the bright band area and the dark band area are alternately displayed in the radial direction (the radial direction of the substrate W), thereby observing the pattern of bright and dark patterns. Here, a dim zone area is used as interference pattern ST. However, the bright band area can also be used as interference fringes.

As the substrate W rotates, the processing liquid system in the center part moves toward the outer edge part. Therefore, in the process of thinning of the liquid film W1, the respective interference fringes ST exhibit an annular band shape (loop shape) on the substrate W, and move while spreading outward in the radial direction. In addition, the interference pattern ST is not limited to a complete circular ring shape.

The captured image 82c shows the state of the upper surface of the substrate W when time has passed further from the state shown in the captured image 82b. With the passage of time, the interval between the interference fringes ST adjacent in the radial direction (the radial direction of the substrate W) gradually increases. As shown in the photographic image 82c, when the number of interference fringes ST simultaneously appearing on the substrate W becomes approximately three, for example, the substrate W is covered with a liquid film W1 having a thickness close to the minimum. In the case where the state of this pattern is used as the reference for the start of the next processing, at least one of the interference patterns ST constituting the pattern is used as the detection target, thereby appropriately determining the start of the second processing Timing.

The captured image 82d shows the state of the upper surface of the substrate W when time further elapses from the state shown in the captured image 82c. In the captured image 82d, the last interference pattern STL appears on the substrate W. The area inside the interference fringe STL may locally produce dry areas without liquid components.

Here, it is assumed that the second treatment performed after the first treatment is a liquid treatment using a second treatment liquid. The second processing liquid is a processing liquid different from the first processing liquid in the first processing, and the second processing liquid is supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W in the second processing. In this case, like shooting images 82a and 82b, when the second processing liquid is supplied with the first processing liquid film W1 thick, it may take time to replace the first processing liquid with the second processing liquid. possibility. In addition, as in the captured image 82d, when the second processing liquid is supplied in a state where the drying area occurs locally, the time covered by the second processing liquid is different for each position of the substrate W, so the second processing occurs. The odds are uneven.

In addition, in the case where the second treatment is a drying treatment such as spin drying treatment, as in the captured image 82d, when a dry area occurs locally, the first treatment liquid may locally exist in a small amount. In this case, even if it moves to high-speed rotation, it may be time-consuming to throw off. Therefore, it may be better to start high-speed rotation before the state of the captured image 82d (that is, the state where the last interference pattern STL has appeared). On the other hand, as in the images 82a and 82b, when the liquid film W1 of the first processing liquid is thick and the liquid film W1 moves to a high-speed rotation, the movement of the first processing liquid to the radially outer side may deviate and be affected. There is a possibility that the thrown away treatment liquid collides with the treatment cover 40 and the like and contaminates the chamber 10. Therefore, it is considered that it is better to start high-speed rotation after reducing the thickness of the liquid film W1 as much as possible.

The interference pattern ST to be detected by the timing determining unit 92 is appropriately set in accordance with the processing contents of the first processing and the second processing, so that the timing determining unit 92 can appropriately determine the second processing start timing. Next, the detection mode of the interference pattern ST will be described.

(First detection mode) FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the first detection mode of the interference pattern ST. The first detection mode is a state in which the determination area setting unit 91 sets a determination area DR11 on the captured image 82. The determination area DR11 is set on the upper surface of the substrate W on which the liquid film W1 is formed on the captured image 82. The position in the vertical direction of the determination area DR11 coincides with the center of the substrate W in the captured image 82. The interference fringe ST system moves toward the outer side in the radial direction, whereby the interference fringe ST system passes in the horizontal direction of the captured image 82 in the determination area DR11. That is, in the determination area DR11, the interference fringe ST moves outward in the radial direction.

As shown in FIG. 8, the determination area DR11 is set to a size that can overlap with only one interference pattern ST belonging to the detection target. For example, the width of the determination area DR11 in the radial direction (the radial direction of the substrate W) (the width in the horizontal direction on the captured image 82) is greater than the distance between adjacent interference fringes ST in the radial direction (the radial direction of the substrate W). small. In addition, the interval between the interference fringes ST varies in accordance with the thickness of the liquid film W1. For example, as shown in the captured image 82b of FIG. 7 when the liquid film W1 is thick, the interval between the interference fringes ST is relatively small; as shown in the captured image 82c, the interference fringe ST is in the thin state of the liquid film W1. The interval between is relatively large. The size of the determination area DR11 can be set in accordance with the width between the interference fringes ST when the interference fringes ST of the detection target appears.

Here, a region relatively weak with respect to the surrounding light intensity is referred to as interference fringe ST. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, when passing through the determination area DR11, the brightness of the light intensity in the horizontal direction in the display determination area DR11 gradually decreases from the radially inner side toward the outer side, and then becomes larger. In addition, the point (position) where the brightness becomes the minimum value corresponds to the point (position) of the approximate center of the interference fringe ST. Therefore, the extreme point detection unit 921 detects the extreme point that takes the minimum value of the brightness (the minimum value of the light intensity in the radial direction of the substrate W) in the determination area DR11, thereby detecting the interference pattern in the determination area DR11 The passage of ST.

In addition, in the case of capturing a bright portion (a region with relatively high light intensity on the captured image 82) as interference fringes, the bright (that is, high light intensity) band-shaped region moves toward the radially outer side. In this case, the extreme point detection unit 921 can also detect extreme points in the radial direction (the radial direction of the substrate W) that become the maximum value of the light intensity (brightness), thereby detecting bright parts in the determination area DR11 The interference pattern.

In the case of the first detection mode, the timing determining unit 92 calculates the detection time difference of the difference between the first detection time and the second detection time, and the first detection time detects the nth (n is a natural number) interference pattern. The time of ST (first extreme point), and the second detection time is the time of detecting the interference pattern ST (second extreme point) that occurs after the n+1th. Here, the second detection time may also be the time for detecting the n+1th interference pattern ST, or may also be the time for the interference pattern ST occurring after n+2. Since the interval between the interference fringes ST varies in accordance with the thickness of the liquid film W1, it is considered that the detection time difference corresponds to the thickness of the liquid film W1. For example, the smaller the thickness of the liquid film W1, the greater the detection time difference. Therefore, for example, it is only necessary to experimentally determine the optimal detection time difference corresponding to the thickness of the most appropriate liquid film W1 at the start of the second process in advance. In addition, when the detection time difference actually detected by the timing determination unit 92 becomes the optimal detection time, it is also possible to determine the interference pattern ST of the detection target and determine the second processing start timing. In other words, for example, the timing determination unit 92 may also determine the second processing start timing based on the detection time difference between the detection of one extreme point in the determination area DR11 and the detection of the next extreme point. In this way, the timing determining unit 92 can determine the second processing of the substrate W in response to the movement of the extreme point at which the light intensity in the radial direction of the substrate W becomes the maximum or minimum in the determination area DR11 toward the outside in the radial direction. The sequence of the second processing start sequence.

In addition, it is also possible to determine whether or not the interference pattern ST of the detection target has been detected in the determination area DR11 based on the respective detection times of three or more interference patterns ST. For example, calculate the first detection time difference between the first interference pattern ST (first extreme point) and the second interference pattern ST (second extreme point) and the second interference pattern ST (second extreme point), and The second detection time difference of the third interference pattern ST (third extreme point). Here, for example, the first detection time difference is the first detection time when the first interference pattern ST (first extreme point) is detected and the second detection time when the second interference pattern ST (second extreme point) is detected. The difference between. The second detection time difference is the difference between the second detection time when the second interference pattern ST (second extreme point) is detected and the third detection time when the third interference pattern ST (third extreme point) is detected . In addition, the second processing start timing can also be determined based on the comparison between the first detection time difference and the second detection time difference. More specifically, it is only necessary to determine that the interference pattern ST of the detection target has been detected when the difference between the first detection time difference and the second detection time difference becomes a predetermined value, and use this time as a reference to determine the second processing start timing. . In other words, for example, the timing determining unit 92 may determine the second processing start timing based on the first detection time difference and the second detection time difference. The first detection time difference is the detection of the first interference pattern ST in the determination area DR11 (first Extremum point) until the second interference pattern ST (second extreme value point) is detected. The second detection time difference is that the second interference pattern ST (second extreme value point) is detected in the determination area DR11. Point) after the second time until the third interference pattern ST (third extreme point) is detected. Here, consider the situation in which the first to third interference fringes ST correspond to three extreme points. The three extreme points are from the last interference fringe corresponding to the last detectable final extreme point. Three extreme points counted from STL.

As described above, as the liquid film W1 gradually becomes thinner, that is, as the appearance time of the last interference fringe STL approaches, the interval between the interference fringes ST gradually becomes larger. Therefore, in the case of the first detection mode, since the number of frames obtained after one interference pattern ST passes in the determination area DR11 until the next interference pattern ST passes, the number of frames obtained gradually increases, thereby improving the detection time difference. Measurement accuracy. Therefore, the thinner the liquid film W1, the more appropriately the timing determination unit 92 can determine whether the detection time difference corresponds to the target film thickness.

In addition, the interference pattern ST (such as the interference pattern STL that appears last in the captured image 82d shown in FIG. 7) that occurs in the state where the liquid film W1 is thinner may not be clearly visible due to disturbances such as the shaking of the liquid surface. Concerned about detection. Therefore, it is desirable to use the interference pattern ST that can be detected as clearly as possible as a detection target. In addition, it is only necessary to add a predetermined delay time to the time when the clear interference pattern ST is detected as the second processing start timing. Thereby, the interference pattern ST of the detection target can be detected with high accuracy, and the second process can be started after the liquid film W1 becomes an appropriate thickness.

(Second detection mode) FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the second detection mode of the interference pattern ST. In the second detection mode, the determination region setting unit 91 sets a plurality of determination regions DR21, DR22, and DR23. In other words, a determination area DR21 as the first determination area, a determination area DR22 as a second determination area away from the determination area DR21 in the radial direction, and a third determination area away from the determination area DR22 in the radial direction are set. Determine area DR23. In the example shown in FIG. 9, three determination regions DR21, DR22, and DR23 are sequentially set from the inner side in the radial direction to the outer side in the radial direction. In addition, the number of determination regions DR is not limited to three, and may be two or more than four.

The respective determination areas DR21, DR22, and DR23 are arranged in the horizontal direction of the captured image 82 at intervals. The vertical positions of the determination regions DR21, DR22, and DR23 coincide with the center position of the substrate W in the captured image 82. The interference pattern ST moves toward the outer side in the radial direction, and thereby passes through the respective determination areas in the order of the determination area DR21, the determination area DR22, and the determination area DR23.

Similar to the determination area DR11 in FIG. 8, the determination areas DR21, DR22, and DR23 are set to a size that does not simultaneously include a plurality of interference fringes ST. For example, the horizontal width of each determination area DR is smaller than the interval in the radial direction between adjacent interference fringes ST.

The interval at which the determination areas DR21, DR22, and DR23 are arranged can be set in accordance with the interval between the plurality of interference patterns ST to be detected. Specifically, it can also be set in the upper surface of the substrate W in accordance with the number of interference fringes ST of the detection target and the interval between each interference fringe ST.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9, in the case where the detection target is three interference fringes ST (interference fringes ST1, ST2, ST3) that appear at the interval shown in the figure, three interference fringes ST are arranged at intervals corresponding to the three interference fringes ST. Determine areas DR21, DR22, DR23. Here, for example, the following aspect is considered: the distance between the interference fringe ST1 in the radial direction of the substrate W and the interference fringe ST2 separated from the interference fringe ST1 in the radial direction outer side is taken as the first distance, and the interference fringe ST2 is taken from The distance between the interference fringes ST3 spaced outward in the radial direction is the second distance. Thereby, it is possible to simultaneously detect the three interference patterns ST that are the detection targets in the determination areas DR21, DR22, and DR23. That is, when the extreme point detection unit 921 detects that the extreme point of the minimum value is taken in all of the determination regions DR21, DR22, and DR23, the timing determination unit 9 determines that each interference pattern ST to be detected is detected. In addition, for example, consider the following situation: in the case where the number of the determination regions DR is two, the extreme point detection unit 921 detects the first extreme point in the determination region DR21 as the first determination region. When the second extreme value point is detected in the second extreme value point in the determination area DR22 that is the second determination area, the timing determination unit 92 determines that the detection target interference patterns ST1 and ST2 have been detected. In this aspect, for example, the timing determination unit 92 can be based on detecting the first extreme point in the determination area DR21 as the first determination area and the second extreme value in the determination area DR22 as the second determination area. Click to determine the start timing of the second process. In other words, for example, the timing determining unit 92 can determine the second processing start timing based on the first distance between the first extreme point and the second extreme point in the radial direction of the substrate W.

The positions of the respective determination regions DR21, DR22, and DR23 may also be configured to be arbitrarily set by the operator. In this case, for example, it is only necessary to obtain in advance the captured image 82 in which each interference pattern ST of the detection target appears, and the operator moves the frame of the display determination areas DR21, DR22, DR23 on the captured image 82 to the position of each interference pattern ST. Location is fine. Thereby, each determination area DR21, DR22, DR23 can be set at each position of the interference pattern ST of each detection object which can be detected simultaneously.

In particular, three interference fringes ST counted from the last interference fringe STL may be used as the three interference fringes ST1, ST2, ST3 to be detected. That is, the last interference fringe STL may be used as the innermost interference fringe ST1 to be detected, and the two interference fringes ST immediately before the last interference fringe STL may be used as the detected interference fringes ST2 and ST3. In this case, it is possible to determine the timing of the second process before the liquid film W1 becomes unable to detect the thinness of the interference pattern ST. The last interference pattern STL corresponds to the last detectable extreme point. In other words, here, for example, three extreme points counted from the final extreme point are detected in the determination areas DR21, DR22, and DR23, so that the final interference pattern STL and the final interference fringe STL can be detected. The two interference fringes ST occurring before the interference fringe STL are detected as three interference fringes ST1, ST2, ST3, and the second processing start timing is determined. In this way, the timing determining unit 92 determines to perform the first step on the substrate W in response to the movement of the extreme point of the maximum or minimum value of the light intensity in the radial direction of the substrate W in the determination regions DR21, DR22, and DR23 toward the radial direction outer side. The second processing start sequence of the second processing sequence.

(Third detection mode) FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the third detection mode of the interference pattern ST. In the third detection mode, the determination area setting unit 91 sets a determination area DR31 on the captured image 82. The determination area DR31 has a shape extending in the radial direction (the radial direction of the substrate W) (here, a shape extending along the horizontal direction in the captured image 82). The determination area DR31 is set to a size that can simultaneously overlap with the plurality of interference patterns ST of the detection target.

In the third detection mode, the extreme value point detection unit 921 detects the extreme value point that takes the smallest value of the extreme value in the determination area DR31. The timing determination unit 92 specifies the extreme point that takes the minimum value in the determination area DR31, thereby detecting the interference pattern ST of the detection target. Specifically, the timing determination unit 92 detects the interference pattern ST of the detection target based on the distance between the extreme points calculated in the determination area DR31. The distance between extreme points refers to the distance between the points (positions) where the brightness becomes the minimum in the determination area DR31. The distance between the extreme points includes, for example, the distance (first distance) between the first extreme point and the second extreme point away from the first extreme point in the radial direction. The distance between extreme points may also include, for example, the distance between the second extreme point and the third extreme point away from the second extreme point toward the outer side in the radial direction (also referred to as the second distance). In the example shown in FIG. 10, the detection objects are three interference patterns ST1, ST2, and ST3. In this case, as long as the distances L1, L2 corresponding to the intervals of the three interference patterns ST1, ST2, ST3 are set in advance, and the timing determination unit 92 determines whether the distance between the respective extreme points detected in the determination area DR31 is the same as The distances L1 and L2 can correspond. When there are interference patterns ST1, ST2, ST3 in the determination area DR31, it is determined that the distance between the respective extreme points corresponds to the distance L1, L2, and the interference patterns ST1, ST2, ST3 of the detection target are detected.

In addition, the timing determination unit 92 may also detect the interference pattern ST of the detection target based on the number of extreme points detected in the determination area DR31. In the example shown in FIG. 10, the detection objects are three interference patterns ST1, ST2, and ST3. Therefore, the timing determination unit 92 only needs to determine that the detection target interference pattern ST1, ST2, ST3 has been detected when three extreme points are detected in the determination area DR31.

The second processing start timing can also be determined according to the distances L1 and L2 between the extreme points. For example, it may be determined that the interference pattern ST1, ST2, ST3 of the detection target has been detected when the difference between the distances L1 and L2 between the extreme points becomes a predetermined value. In other words, for example, the timing determining unit 92 may determine that the detection target has been detected when the distance L1 between the extreme points as the first distance becomes the predetermined distance and the distance L2 between the extreme points as the second distance becomes the predetermined distance. Interference patterns ST1, ST2, ST3. At this time, the timing determining unit 92 can determine the second processing start timing based on the first distance and the second distance. In addition, for example, the timing determination unit 92 may determine that the interference fringes ST1 and ST2 of the detection target have been detected when the distance L1 between the extreme points, which is the first distance, becomes a predetermined distance. In this case, the timing determining unit 92 may determine the second processing start timing based on the distance L1 between the extreme points as the first distance. In addition, for example, the timing determination unit 92 may determine that the interference patterns ST2 and ST3 of the detection target have been detected when the distance L2 between the extreme points, which is the second distance, becomes a predetermined distance. At this time, the timing determination unit 92 can determine the second processing start timing based on the distance L2 between the extreme points as the second distance. In this way, the timing determining unit 92 can determine the start of the second process as the timing of the second process on the substrate W in response to the extreme point where the light intensity in the radial direction of the substrate W in the determination area DR31 becomes the maximum value or the minimum value. Timing. From another point of view, the timing determination unit 92 can determine as the counter substrate W in response to the movement of the radial direction outside the extreme point where the light intensity becomes the maximum or minimum in the radial direction of the substrate W in the determination area DR31. The second processing start sequence of the second processing sequence.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the process flow for determining the start timing of the second process. The flow shown in Fig. 11 shows that the IPA process (step S13 in Fig. 6) is used as the first process and the water repellent treatment (step S14 in Fig. 6) is used as the second process to determine the second process start timing (start The process flow of the sequence of spraying water repellent agent).

In the IPA process (step S13 in FIG. 6), IPA is supplied from the nozzle 30 to the upper surface of the substrate W (step S21). During this period, the camera 70 performs continuous shooting (step S22). The so-called continuous shooting means that the camera continuously shoots the shooting area at certain intervals, such as continuous shooting at 33 millisecond intervals. By this continuous shooting, a captured image 82 that has visualized the state of the upper surface of the substrate W is obtained.

When the continuous shooting is started, the determination area DR is set for the captured image 82 of the acquired determination area setting unit 91 (step S23). The determination area DR set in step S23 differs according to the detection mode of the interference pattern ST of the detection target. For example, in the case of the first detection mode illustrated in FIG. 8, one determination area DR11 is set for the shot image 82. In addition, for example, in the case of the second detection mode illustrated in FIG. 9, the process of setting the determination area DR for the captured image 82 may include changing the determination area DR22 as the second determination area with respect to the determination as the first determination area. The process of relative positions in the radial direction of the substrate W in the region DR21.

In addition, it is not necessary to start continuous shooting while the IPA is being sprayed. For example, continuous imaging may be performed from the time when the substrate W is carried into the chamber 10 until the substrate W is carried out.

When the determination area DR is set, the supply of IPA from the nozzle 30 to the substrate W is stopped (step S24). At this point in time, the IPA processing ends (step S13 in FIG. 6). As described above, when the supply of IPA is stopped, the IPA on the substrate W is thrown away radially outward by the centrifugal force. As a result, the liquid film W1 gradually becomes thinner, and interference patterns ST begin to appear.

The extreme point detection unit 921 detects an extreme point that takes the minimum value of the luminance in the radial direction in the determination area DR (step S25). Thereby, the interference pattern ST overlapping in the determination area DR is detected as an extreme point taking the minimum value.

The timing determination unit 92 determines whether or not the interference pattern ST of the detection target has been detected based on the detection result of the minimum value by the extreme point detection unit 921 (step S26). The specific content of this determination differs according to the detection mode of the interference pattern ST. When it is determined that the interference pattern ST of the detection target has not been detected (NO in step S26), the process returns to step S25, and the detection of the minimum value is continued.

For example, in the case of the first detection mode shown in FIG. 8, the timing determination unit 92 determines that the detection time difference between the interference patterns ST detected in the determination area DR11 corresponds to the preset optimal detection time difference. The interference pattern ST of the detection object is detected. In addition, in the case of the second detection mode shown in FIG. 9, the timing determination unit 92 determines that the interference pattern ST1 of the detection target has been detected when the interference pattern ST is detected simultaneously in the determination areas DR21, DR22, and DR23. ST2, ST3. In addition, in the case of the third detection mode shown in FIG. 10, the timing determination unit 92 sets the distance between the extreme points between the points (positions) where the minimum value has been detected in the determination area DR31 and the preset distance L1, When L2 corresponds, it is determined that the interference patterns ST1, ST2, and ST3 of the detection target have been detected.

Returning to FIG. 11, when the timing determination unit 92 determines that the interference pattern ST of the detection target has been detected ("Yes" in step S26), the timing determination unit 92 determines the second processing start timing (step S27) . The timing determination unit 92 determines the second processing start timing in accordance with the detection end time (the time when the minimum value corresponding to the detection target interference pattern ST has been detected) when the detection target interference pattern ST has been detected. For example, the timing determination unit 92 sets a time obtained by adding a predetermined delay time from the detection end time as the second processing start timing.

When the second process start timing is determined in step S27, the spray of the water-repellent agent from the nozzle 30 toward the upper surface of the substrate W is started at the second process start timing (step S28). Thereby, the water repellent treatment is started (step S14 in FIG. 6). In step S28, the control unit 9 sprays the water-repellent agent from the nozzle 30 in accordance with the timing determined by the timing determination unit 92 as the next process. In other words, the control unit 9 executes the water repellent processing belonging to the next processing in accordance with the second processing start timing. Therefore, the control unit 9, the nozzle 30, and the mechanism for supplying the water-repellent agent to the nozzle 30 can be an example of the second processing execution unit. The second processing execution unit is a portion for performing the second processing on the substrate W to be processed, and can perform the second processing on the substrate W in accordance with the timing determined by the timing determining portion 92.

In step S27, the length of the delay time added from the detection end time in order to determine the second processing start timing may also be determined by prior experimental substrate processing. Specifically, after detecting the interference pattern ST of the detection target, the water-repellent treatment is started with a different delay time, and the hydrophobization state of the substrate W obtained thereby is evaluated. The best delay time can also be determined based on the evaluation result.

In addition, in step S27, it is not always necessary to set the second processing start timing to a time from the detection end time plus a predetermined delay time. For example, the second processing start sequence may also be used as the detection end time. In this case, in step S26, when it is determined that the interference pattern ST of the detection target has been detected, the spraying of the water-repellent agent is started immediately.

Although FIG. 11 shows the determination processing of the second processing start timing when the first processing is the IPA processing and the second processing is the water repellent processing, the combination of the first processing and the second processing is not limited to this . For example, when the first process is the IPA process after the water repellent process (step S15 in FIG. 6) and the second process is the spin-drying process (step S16 in FIG. 6), the second process start sequence can also be applied. The decision to deal with. In this case, the control unit 9 controls the rotation motor 22 of the rotation jig 20 in accordance with the second processing start timing determined by the timing determination unit 92, thereby increasing the rotation speed of the substrate W from 300 rpm to 1500 rpm. That is, the control unit 9 executes the spin-drying process belonging to the second process in accordance with the second process start timing. Therefore, the control unit 9 and the rotation motor 22 can serve as the second processing execution unit. In this case, for example, the spin-drying process as the second process is a process in which the rotation speed of the substrate W is set to be higher than that in the IPA process as the first process, and the remaining on the upper surface of the substrate W is removed It serves as the IPA of the first treatment liquid.

(effect) According to the substrate processing apparatus 100, the second processing can be performed on the substrate W that has been subjected to the first processing belonging to the liquid processing at an appropriate timing.

In the case where the second treatment is liquid treatment (for example, in the case where the first treatment is IPA treatment (step S13 in FIG. 6) and the second treatment is water repellent treatment (step S14 in FIG. 6)), the The film of the first treatment liquid (the film of the liquid film W1) is as thin as possible before the second treatment liquid is supplied. In this case, since the amount of the first processing liquid on the substrate W can be reduced, the replacement from the first processing liquid to the second processing liquid can be promoted. Thereby, the processing time of the second processing can be shortened. In addition, since the amount of the second processing liquid used can be reduced, the cost of substrate processing can be reduced.

In the case where the second process is a drying process (for example, when the first process is an IPA process (step S15 in FIG. 6) and the second process is a spin-drying process (step S16 in FIG. 6)), the substrate The processing apparatus 100 can move to the drying process in an appropriate state of the liquid film of the first processing liquid. Therefore, it is possible to suppress excessive swelling of the liquid film. Thereby, the surface of the substrate can be processed uniformly.

(For the condition setting for detecting interference pattern ST) FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the setting screen SW1 for setting the conditions for detecting the interference pattern ST. In the substrate processing apparatus 100, on the processing program creation screen (not shown) displayed on the display unit 97, the operator performs processing for determining the processing content to be executed in each cleaning processing unit 1. The setting screen SW1 is the screen that moves and displays from the screen created by the processing program.

The setting screen SW1 is displayed as a window of the whole or part of the screen displayed on the display unit 97. When the operator performs a predetermined operation on the setting screen SW1, the determination area setting unit 91 sets the conditions of the determination area DR in response to the operation input. The determination area setting section 91 sets the determination area DR that meets the set conditions on the imaging screen 82 for detecting the interference pattern ST of the detection target in step S23 shown in FIG. 11.

Define the display areas DA1, DA2, DA3, DA4, DA5, DA6 for displaying various information in the setting screen SW1. The contents of the first process and the second process are displayed in the display area DA1. The content of the designated process is displayed in the display area DA1, such as the type of the process liquid, the amount of process liquid discharged, the discharge time of the process liquid, and the number of rotations of the substrate W when the process liquid is discharged. In addition, in the display area DA1, the change of each parameter can also be accepted in accordance with the input operation of the operator. In the display area DA1, when the operator sets the processing content of the first processing or the second processing, the second processing start timing is determined. The display area DA1 defines an area for displaying the detection mode and the position mode selected in the display areas DA2 and DA3 described later.

When the first processing and the second processing are set, the timing determination unit 92 automatically determines the interference pattern ST belonging to the detection target based on these processing conditions. As a pre-preparation for determining the processing, the interference pattern ST of the detection target may be specified in advance under different conditions for the first processing. In this case, in each case where the conditions of the treatment liquid, the ejection amount, and the number of rotations are changed and the first treatment is performed, it is only necessary to determine the preferred start timing of the second treatment and determine the interference pattern corresponding to the start timing ST is fine.

In the display area DA2, buttons BT11, BT12, BT13, and BT14 for selecting the detection mode are displayed. Each of the buttons BT11, BT12, and BT13 is an operating unit for setting the detection mode of the interference pattern ST to any one of the first detection mode to the third detection mode (refer to FIGS. 8 to 10). The operator operates any one of the buttons BT11, BT12, and BT13 to select the corresponding detection mode. Here, the first detection mode is selected by operating the button BT11, and the display area DA1 is displayed to indicate the selection result. The button BT14 is used to automatically set the operation part of the detection mode. When the key BT14 is operated, any one of the first detection mode to the third detection mode is automatically selected.

In the display area DA3, buttons BT21, BT22, BT23, and BT24 for selecting the position mode of the determination area DR are displayed. When the operator operates any one of the buttons BT21, BT22, BT23, and BT24, the position pattern of the determination area DR is set in accordance with the operated button. The content assigned by the keys BT21, BT22, and BT23 only needs to be preset in each detection mode selected in the display area DA2. For example, in the case of the first detection mode, the position (for example, the position in the radial direction) where one determination area DR11 is arranged may be different among the buttons BT21, BT22, and BT23. In the case of the second detection mode, it is only necessary to make the interval in the radial direction between the respective determination areas DR21, DR22, and DR23 different between the buttons BT21, BT22, and BT23.

In the case of operating the button BT24, the determination area setting unit 91 automatically sets the position of the determination area DR. For example, the determination area setting unit 91 may set the determination area DR at a position preset as an initial value, or may set the position of the determination area DR based on a predetermined determination criterion. In the latter case, it is only necessary to set the determination area corresponding to the interference pattern ST of the detection target at a position suitable for the detection of the interference pattern ST.

The buttons BT31, BT32, and BT33 for selecting the type of substrate W to be processed are displayed in the display area DA4. The type of substrate W preferably corresponds to, for example, various states that affect the appearance of interference fringes ST, such as the size of substrate W, the presence or absence of structures such as circuit patterns on the upper surface of substrate W, and the affinity of the upper surface of substrate W for water (Hydrophobicity, hydrophilicity) etc.

A shot image 82 is displayed in the display area DA5. The shot image 82 may be a shot image obtained by shooting by the camera 70 in the past, or a shot image obtained by shooting by the camera 70 in real time. Preferably, in response to the detection mode and position mode selected in the display areas DA2 and DA3, a rectangular frame useful for indicating the determination area DR is displayed on the captured image 82. For example, in the case of selecting the first detection mode, only one determination area DR11 needs to be displayed.

It is also possible to accept an operation for changing the position of the determination area DR on the captured image 82. For example, a drag operation may be accepted, thereby changing the determination area DR to the moved position. The movement operation of the determination area DR can also be performed by changing only one direction corresponding to the radial direction (here, the horizontal direction of the captured image 82). In this case, since the position of the determination area DR can be changed according to the moving direction of the interference pattern ST (outside the radial direction), the determination area DR can be easily set.

In the case of displaying the photographed image 82 obtained by the past photographing, the photographed image 82 in which the interference pattern ST of the detection target appears during the transition from the first process designated in the display area DA1 to the second process (for example, The captured images 82b and 82c shown in FIG. 7). In this case, since the operator can move the frame of the determination area DR while visually viewing the interference pattern ST, the determination area DR can be set at an appropriate position. In addition, a series of shot images 82 obtained by continuous shooting may be continuously played in the display area DA5, thereby performing animation display. In this case, it is also possible to prepare various buttons for controlling display such as playing or stopping, and accept the display control performed by the operator. Thereby, the operator can appropriately set the conditions of the determination area DR while confirming the appearance of the interference pattern ST.

The display area DA6 is an area for receiving the input of the target film thickness. The target film thickness is the thickness of the liquid film W1 of the first processing liquid used as a reference when the second processing is started. When the target film thickness is input, the timing determination unit 92 specifies the interference pattern ST that appears when corresponding to the target film thickness. For such specific processing, as a preliminary preparation, the thickness of the liquid film W1 is measured after stopping the ejection of the processing liquid from the nozzle 30 in the first processing. It is only necessary to specify the relationship between the appearance time of each interference pattern ST and the thickness of the liquid film W1. In this case, the thickness of the liquid film W1 corresponding to the appearance timing of each interference pattern ST may be determined in each case where the first processing is performed for each condition of the processing liquid, the ejection amount, and the number of rotations. In addition, the position of the substrate W at which the thickness is to be measured may be any of the center, the outer edge of the substrate W, or the position between the center and the outer edge of the substrate W.

In the case of inputting the target film thickness in the display area DA6, the interference pattern ST corresponding to the target film thickness can also be selected in the display areas DA2 and DA3, and the candidates for the detection mode and position mode of the interference pattern ST can be selected and combined. To display. In this case, it is only necessary to determine the detection mode and the position mode for each interference pattern ST of the detection target in advance.

In addition, there may be cases in which the input target film thickness cannot be reached due to the number of revolutions or ejection time conditions in the first process, and the interference pattern ST of the detection target cannot be specified. In this case, you can also display "Unable to detect, please extend the step time" on the setting screen SW1. Thereby, it is possible to encourage the operator to change the processing conditions.

(2) Second embodiment Next, the second embodiment will be described. In the following description, elements having the same or similar functions as those already described are assigned the same reference numerals or reference numerals added with English letters, and detailed descriptions are omitted.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a substrate processing apparatus 100A of the second embodiment. The control unit 9A of the substrate processing apparatus 100A includes a timing determination unit 92A. The timing determination unit 92A includes a feature vector extraction unit 922 and a classifier K2.

The feature vector extraction unit 922 extracts the feature vectors of the arrangement of plural types of feature amounts from each of the series of captured images 82 obtained by the continuous shooting of step S22. The item of the feature amount is, for example, the sum of the pixel value or the brightness in the gray scale, the pixel value or the standard deviation of the brightness, and the like.

The classifier K2 is based on the feature vector extracted by the feature vector extraction unit 922 to classify the captured image 82 between the first class and the second class. The first class is displayed as the determination of the second processing start timing The second category is to display the images that will not be the reference for determining the start timing of the second process.

The timing determining unit 92A classifies a series of captured images 82 by the classifier K2. In the case where the captured image 82 classified into the first category has appeared, the timing determination unit 92A determines the second processing start timing based on the time when the captured image 82 is acquired. That is, the classifier K2 is an example of an image determination unit for determining whether the captured image is an image that serves as a reference for determining the timing of the second processing start based on plural types of feature vectors.

As shown in FIG. 13, a communication unit 99 is connected to the control unit 9A. The communication unit 99 is provided for data communication between the control unit 9A and the server 8. The substrate processing apparatus 100A, the communication unit 99, and the server 8 constitute a substrate processing system. The classifier K2 is generated by the server 8 through mechanical learning, and is provided from the server 8 to the control unit 9A via the communication unit 99.

The server 8 is equipped with a machine learning unit 80. The machine learning unit 80 generates the classifier K2 through machine learning. As machine learning, well-known techniques such as neural network, decision tree, support vector machine (SVM), and discriminant analysis can be used.

As the teacher data for machine learning used in the machine learning section 80, for example, teacher data for teaching each of the photographed image 82 (or the feature vector of the photographed image 82) obtained by the camera 70 can be used. The captured image 82 obtained by the camera 70 can be provided to the server 8 from the substrate processing apparatus 100A via the communication unit 99.

For example, in the case where the captured images 82a, 82c, and 82d shown in FIG. 7 are used as teacher data, the captured image 82 that becomes the reference of the second processing start timing is the captured image 82c (that is, the interference that appears on the substrate W). When the number of patterns ST is three), the first classification for displaying the reference of the second processing start timing is taught for the captured image 82c. Then, it is only necessary to teach the second classification for displaying the second classification that is not the basis of the second processing start timing for the captured images 82a, 82b, 82d. A plurality of such various teacher materials are prepared and learned by the machine learning unit 80 to generate a classifier K2. The classifier K2 is used for the machine learning unit 80 to classify the captured image 82 between the first category and the second category according to the feature vector. Between classification.

The classifier K2 is for each type of substrate W (for example, the size of the substrate W, whether there are structures such as circuit patterns on the upper surface of the substrate W, and the affinity (hydrophobicity, hydrophilicity) of the upper surface of the substrate W for water) Or, it is sufficient to generate a plurality of types of classifiers K2 for each condition (type of processing liquid, ejection amount, ejection time) different from the first process. In this case, it is only necessary to prepare teacher materials for each type of substrate W or for each condition different from the first process and perform machine learning.

It is also possible to connect a plurality of substrate processing apparatuses 100A to the server 8 in a communicative manner, and to provide a classifier K2 from the server 8 to each substrate processing apparatus 100A.

It is not necessary to provide the classifier K2 from the server 8. For example, the classifier K2 may also be provided to the control unit 9A via a storage medium such as an optical medium and a flash memory. In addition, the substrate processing apparatus 100A may be provided with a machine learning unit 80 to generate the classifier K2 in the substrate processing apparatus 100A.

In the substrate processing apparatus 100A, the second processing start timing is determined after step S24 (stop supply of IPA) shown in FIG. 11, and the timing determination unit 92A uses the classifier K2 to capture a series of images acquired by the camera 70 The image 82 is classified into categories to detect the captured image 82 that serves as a reference for the start timing of the second process. Next, the timing determination unit 92A sets the detection time of the captured image 82 or the time from the detection time plus a predetermined delay time as the second processing start timing.

In this embodiment, the classifier K2 performs classification based on the entire captured image 82. Therefore, the entire captured image 82 is regarded as a determination area. In addition, as described above, the classifier K2 uses the captured image 82 that has been taught the classification according to the appearance state of the interference pattern ST as the teacher data and is generated by mechanical learning. Therefore, the timing determination unit 92A determines the start timing of the second process in accordance with the interference fringes ST (extreme points of light intensity on the captured image 82) moving outward in the radial direction in the determination area.

In this embodiment, the second processing start timing can also be determined based on the interference pattern ST that appears in response to the thickness of the liquid film W1 of the first processing liquid. Therefore, in the case where the second treatment is liquid treatment, the second treatment can be started after the liquid film W1 is reduced as much as possible to promote the replacement from the first treatment liquid to the second treatment liquid, so that the second treatment can be shortened. Liquid supply amount and supply time. In addition, in the case where the second treatment is a drying treatment, the drying treatment can also be started when the liquid film W1 of the first treatment liquid has an optimal thickness.

In addition, it is not necessarily necessary to use the entire captured image 82 as teacher information. For example, it is possible to use only the video part in the determination area DR from the captured video 82 as teacher data. In this case, since the image size can be reduced, the amount of various arithmetic processing can be reduced.

Although the present invention has been described in detail, all the embodiments described above are only examples, and the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. As long as it does not deviate from the spirit and scope of the present invention, countless variations that are not illustrated can be covered. The respective configurations described in the above-mentioned respective embodiments and respective modification examples may be combined or omitted as long as they do not contradict each other.

1: Washing treatment unit 8: server 9, 9A: Control Department 10: Chamber 11: side wall 12: top wall 13: bottom wall 14: FFU 15: Zone divider 18: Exhaust duct 20: Rotation fixture 21: pedestal base 21a: Keep the face 22: Rotation motor 23: cover member 24: Rotation axis 25: Angular member 26: Fixture pin 28: Lower surface treatment liquid nozzle 30, 60, 65: nozzle 31: ejection head 32, 67: nozzle arm 33, 63, 68: nozzle abutment 40: Treatment hood 41: inner cover 42: middle cover 43: outer cover 43a, 52a: lower end 43b, 47b, 52b: upper end 43c, 52c: Turn-back part 44: bottom 45: inner wall 46: Outer wall 47: The first guide 48: middle wall 49: Abandoned Slot 50: Inside recovery slot 51: Outer recovery slot 52: The second guide 53: Treatment liquid separation wall 70: Camera 71: Lighting Department 80: Mechanical Learning Department 82, 82a, 82b, 82c, 82d: shooting images 91: Judgment area setting section 92, 92A: Timing decision unit 96: Memory Department 97: Display 98: Input section 99: Ministry of Communications 100, 100A: substrate processing equipment 102: Indexer 103: Main handling robot 332: Motor 921: Extremum Point Detection Department 922: Feature vector extraction part AR34, AR64: Arrow A BT11, BT12, BT13, BT14, BT21, BT22, BT23, BT24, BT31, BT32, BT33: keys CX: axis of rotation DA1, DA2, DA3, DA4, DA5, DA6: display area DR, DR11, DR21, DR22, DR23, DR31: judgment area K2: classifier L1, L2: distance (distance between extreme points) ST, ST1, ST2, ST3, STL: interference pattern SW1: Setting screen TP1: Processing location W: substrate W1: Liquid film (of the first treatment liquid)

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a substrate processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. Fig. 2 is a schematic plan view of the washing treatment unit 1 of the first embodiment. Fig. 3 is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the washing treatment unit 1 of the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the camera 70 and the nozzle 30 belonging to the movable part. FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the camera 70 and the control unit 9. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a flow of substrate processing in one cleaning processing unit 1 of the substrate processing apparatus 100. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing captured images 82a, 82b, 82c, and 82d in each time sequence during the transition from the first process to the second process. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the first detection mode of the interference pattern ST. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the second detection mode of the interference pattern ST. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the third detection mode of the interference pattern ST. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the process flow for determining the start timing of the second process. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the setting screen SW1 for setting the conditions for detecting the interference pattern ST. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a substrate processing apparatus 100A of the second embodiment.

30: nozzle

82c: Shooting images

DR11: Judgment area

ST: interference pattern

W: substrate

W1: Liquid film (of the first treatment liquid)

Claims (17)

A substrate processing method is used to process the upper surface of a substrate rotating in a horizontal posture with a processing liquid, and includes: Step (a) is to hold the substrate in a horizontal position; Step (b) is to rotate the aforementioned substrate held in a horizontal posture in the aforementioned step (a) about a vertical rotation axis; Step (c) is to supply the first treatment liquid to the upper surface of the substrate rotated by the step (b); Step (d), after the step (c), stop supplying the first treatment liquid; Step (e), after the step (d), thin the film of the first treatment liquid remaining on the upper surface of the substrate; Step (f) is to photograph the upper surface of the aforementioned substrate with a camera in the aforementioned step (e); Step (g) is based on the determination of the point where the light intensity in the radial direction orthogonal to the axis of rotation in the determination area set in the captured image obtained by the above step (f) becomes a maximum or minimum extreme point. The sequence of the second processing of the aforementioned substrate; and The step (h) is to perform the second treatment on the substrate in accordance with the timing determined by the step (g). The substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein in the step (h), the second processing is started while the film of the first processing liquid remains on the entire upper surface of the substrate. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the determination area is set on the upper surface of the substrate in the captured image. The substrate processing method described in claim 3, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g1), which is based on the detection of one extreme point in the aforementioned determination area until the next extreme point is detected Time determines the aforementioned timing. The substrate processing method described in claim 4, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g2), based on the detection of the first extreme point in the aforementioned determination area until the second extreme point is detected The first time until the second extreme point is detected and the second time until the third extreme point is detected to determine the timing sequence. The substrate processing method described in claim 1 or 2, wherein the step (g) includes: step (g3), which is based on the first extreme point detected in the aforementioned determination area and the difference from the first extreme The first distance between the second extreme points that the value points are away from the radially outer side determines the aforementioned timing. The substrate processing method described in claim 1 or 2, wherein the aforementioned determination area includes: The first determination area; and The second judgment area is away from the aforementioned first judgment area in the radial direction; The step (g) includes the step (g4), which determines the timing sequence based on the detection of the first extreme point in the first determination region and the detection of the second extreme point in the second determination region. The substrate processing method as described in claim 7, which further includes: step (i), before step (g), changing the relativity of the second determination area in the radial direction with respect to the first determination area s position. The substrate processing method described in claim 6, wherein the step (g) includes: step (g5), which is based on the first distance and the second extreme point in the judgment area and the second The second distance between the third extreme points that the extreme points are away from the outside in the radial direction determines the aforementioned timing. The substrate processing method described in claim 1 or 2, wherein the aforementioned step (g) includes: step (g6), which is to detect the last detectable final pole among the plurality of extreme points in the aforementioned determination area The three aforementioned extreme points counted from the value points are used to determine the aforementioned timing. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the aforementioned camera is an infrared camera. The substrate processing method described in claim 11, wherein the step (f) includes: a step (f1) of irradiating the upper surface of the substrate with infrared rays. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second processing is a processing for supplying a second processing liquid different from the first processing liquid to the upper surface of the substrate. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second processing is for setting the rotation speed of the substrate to be higher than that in the step (e) and removing the first remaining on the upper surface of the substrate. Treatment of treatment liquid. A substrate processing device is used to perform liquid processing on the upper surface of a substrate rotating in a horizontal posture, and is provided with: The substrate holding part is to hold the substrate in a horizontal position; The rotating part is to rotate the target substrate of the substrate held by the aforementioned substrate holding part around a vertical rotation axis; The processing liquid supply part supplies the first processing liquid to the upper surface of the aforementioned target substrate; A camera that photographs the upper surface of the aforementioned target substrate; The timing determination unit is located in the determination area set by the captured image obtained by the aforementioned camera, and the extreme point of the light intensity in the radial direction orthogonal to the rotation axis becomes the maximum value or the minimum value is directed outward in the radial direction To determine the timing of the second processing of the aforementioned target substrate; and The second processing execution unit performs the second processing on the target substrate in accordance with the timing determined by the timing determining portion. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the determination area is set on the upper surface of the target substrate in the captured image. The substrate processing apparatus described in claim 15 or 16, wherein the aforementioned timing determination unit includes: The feature vector extraction unit extracts multiple types of feature vectors from the aforementioned captured images; and The image determination unit determines whether the captured image is an image that serves as a reference for the timing decision based on the feature vectors of the plurality of types.

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