WO2002073672A1

WO2002073672A1 - Substrate treating device

Info

Publication number: WO2002073672A1
Application number: PCT/JP2002/002223
Authority: WO
Inventors: Shigeru Mizukawa; Katsutoshi Nakata; Shunji Matsumoto
Original assignee: Sumitomo Precision Products Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2001-03-14
Filing date: 2002-03-08
Publication date: 2002-09-19
Also published as: TWI283441B; JPWO2002073672A1; CN1455948A; KR20030003235A

Abstract

A substrate treating device capable of applying wet and dry treatments to a substrate in order while transferring the substrate by a transfer means, comprising a transfer mechanism (1) for transferring the substrate (W), a wet treatment part (WET) for applying the wet treatment to the transferred substrate (W), a membrane liquid feeding mechanism (4) disposed on the downstream side of the wet treatment part (WET) in transfer direction and feeding treatment liquid formed in membrane shape onto the substrate (W), and a gas jetting mechanism (6) having a slit-shaped opening part, disposed on the downstream side of the membrane liquid feeding mechanism (4) in transfer direction so that the opening part can face the substrate (W) through the entire width thereof, and causing a platy draft by jetting gas from the opening part.

Description

Description Substrate processing equipment Technical field,

The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for sequentially performing wet and dry processes on a substrate while transporting the substrate by a transport unit, and particularly to a substrate processing apparatus excellent in uniformity of substrate drying. Background art

Conventionally, in the process of manufacturing glass substrates such as liquid crystal displays and photomasks, and substrates such as printed wiring boards and semiconductor wafers, various treatment liquids are supplied to the substrate surface and the substrate surface is treated with the treatment liquid. After that, it is removed from the substrate surface.

For example, in the step of cleaning the substrate, a cleaning device is used to wash the substrate surface by pouring a processing liquid such as pure water onto the surface of the substrate, and then a drying gas is blown onto the substrate surface in the drying device. The processing liquid attached to the substrate surface is removed.

Such a cleaning device and a drying device are integrally connected via a transfer means to constitute a substrate processing device. Usually, a substrate is provided between the cleaning device and the drying device. It is partitioned by walls with openings for carrying in and out.

However, in the cleaning device, since a mist-like cleaning solution is sprayed onto the substrate from a spray nozzle, a mist of the sprayed cleaning solution easily enters the drying device through the opening. As a result, the mist that has entered the drying unit easily adheres to the substrate, causing spot-like spots on the substrate surface. No.

Therefore, conventionally, these are installed at a fixed interval between the cleaning device and the drying device to prevent the mist from entering the drying device.

However, the above-described conventional substrate processing apparatus configured as described above still has a problem as described below.

That is, the surface of the substrate after being cleaned by the cleaning device is removed from the surface by the spontaneous flow of the cleaning liquid supplied onto the surface, and a state in which the pool of the cleaning liquid is scattered in an island shape. If the substrate is dried using a drying gas while the liquid pools are scattered in islands, the island-shaped liquid pools are stained when they are removed and dried. It will be lost.

In particular, in recent years, the size of the substrate has been increased, and such a large-sized substrate is liable to cause the above-mentioned island-shaped liquid pool, which is a problem.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is possible to remove a processing solution from a substrate surface and dry the same so that no stain is generated on the substrate surface, and furthermore, it is possible to reduce the size of the apparatus. The purpose is to provide a simple substrate processing apparatus. Disclosure of the invention

The present invention provides a transfer unit that transfers a substrate substantially horizontally, a wet processing unit that performs wet processing on a substrate transferred by the transfer unit, and a wet processing unit that is disposed downstream of the wet processing unit in a transfer direction. A film liquid supply means for supplying a film liquid in which a processing liquid is formed in a film shape (curtain shape) onto the substrate; and a slit-shaped opening, and the opening faces the entire width of the substrate. And a gas ejecting means provided on the downstream side in the transport direction of the membrane liquid supply means and ejecting gas from the opening to generate a plate-like air flow. To a substrate processing apparatus. According to the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, first, the processing liquid formed in a film shape by the film liquid supply unit is supplied onto the substrate discharged from the wet processing unit. As a result, the processing liquid having a uniform film thickness in the transport direction and the direction perpendicular thereto is applied to the substrate without unevenness, that is, without generating an island-like liquid pool.

The processing liquid applied on the substrate in this way then reaches the plate-like jetted from the gas jetting means when it reaches immediately below the gas jetting means provided on the downstream side in the transport direction of the film liquid supply means. The substrate is removed from the substrate by the air current, that is, the liquid is drained, and the substrate is dried.

As described above, according to the substrate processing apparatus, the liquid is drained in a state in which the processing liquid having a uniform film thickness is applied on the substrate, that is, in a state where no island-like liquid pool is generated on the substrate. Therefore, it is possible to fundamentally prevent the occurrence of stains at the time of draining, which has been a problem in the past.

Further, since the film liquid supply means is provided on the upstream side in the transport direction from the gas ejection means, the mist generated in the wet processing section can be completely blocked by the film liquid. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent mist from adhering to the substrate surface after draining and drying, and it is possible to eliminate the occurrence of stains caused by such mist. For this reason, it is not necessary to increase the distance between the wet processing section and the gas ejection means, and the apparatus can be downsized. In addition, it is preferable that the gas ejecting means is disposed such that the longitudinal direction of the opening is inclined with respect to a direction orthogonal to the transport direction. According to this configuration, the processing liquid can be flushed toward the side of the substrate by the airflow ejected from the gas ejection means, and can be smoothly removed from the substrate.

Further, the gas jetting means may be similarly provided below the substrate. The distance between the opening of the gas ejection means and the substrate is It is preferable that the thickness be 1 mm or more and 5 mm or less. If the distance between the opening and the substrate is less than 1 mm, the opening may be in contact with the processing liquid applied on the substrate, while if it exceeds 5 mm, the drying effect is reduced.

Further, a plurality of the gas ejection means may be arranged in parallel along the transport direction. By doing so, the drying effect of the substrate can be further enhanced. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a main part of a preferred substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the first upper air knife shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 5 is a plan view in the direction of arrow V in FIG. 4, and FIG. FIG. 6 is a front view in the direction of arrow VI in FIG. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a transfer unit 1 for horizontally transferring a substrate W in a direction indicated by an arrow 10; Wet processing unit WET that performs dry processing, dry processing unit DRY that performs dry processing, and membrane liquid supply means 4 disposed between the wet processing unit WET and dry processing unit DRY, the first upper air knife 6, the first It comprises a lower air knife 7, a second upper air knife 8, a second lower air knife 9, etc. The wet processing section WET, the membrane liquid supply means 4, the first upper air knife 6, the first lower air knife 7, the second upper air knife Air knife 8, 2nd lower air knife 9 and The dry processing section DRY is housed in a cover body consisting of two side walls 15 and 15, a bottom plate 17 and an upper plate 17. In addition, the membrane liquid supply means 4 is arranged on the upstream side in the carrying direction of the air fin (in this example, the first upper air knife 6 and the first lower air knife 7).

The transporting means 1 includes a large-diameter transport roller R and an auxiliary roller f. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of transport rollers R are provided at appropriate intervals on a shaft 11 laid horizontally between the side walls 15, 15. Are rotatably supported by bearings. One end of the shaft 11 protrudes outside from one of the side walls 15 and is connected to a roller driving device 12 provided outside the side wall 15. Thus, the transport roller R is driven by the roller drive device 12 to transport the substrate W in the direction indicated by the arrow 10.

A plurality of auxiliary rollers r are provided at short intervals in the vicinity of the first upper air knife 6, the first lower air knife 7, the second upper air knife 8, and the second lower air knife 9 along the transport direction of the substrate W. The supporting plates 21, 23, 25 are rotatably supported by supporting members 22, 24, 26, respectively. By arranging a large number of auxiliary rollers r in this manner, the distortion and deflection of the substrate W are prevented, the flatness of the substrate W is made high, and the film liquid supply means 4 places the substrate W on the substrate W It is possible to prevent the supplied processing liquid layer from becoming uneven. The support plates 21, 23, 25 are fixed to the side walls 15, 15 as appropriate.

The wet processing section WET is provided with a processing / supplying means (not shown) for supplying a processing liquid to the upper and / or lower surfaces of the substrate W. The processing liquid supply means (not shown) includes a pipe (not shown) provided above or below the substrate W, and a plurality of pipes connected to the pipe (not shown). Equipped with one nozzle (not shown) to supply processing liquid as needed Connected to a power source (not shown). The shower nozzle (not shown) is arranged such that each spray area covers the entire area in the width direction of the substrate W as a whole. Although not shown, a liquid collecting part is formed on the bottom plate 16, and a drain pipe is connected to the liquid collecting part, and the processing liquid collected in the liquid collecting part is discharged to the outside through the drain pipe. It is being discharged.

As shown in FIG. 2, the film liquid supply means 4 is configured so that the processing liquid supplied from the liquid supply source 40 is formed into a film (force) and flows down over the entire width of the substrate W. Have been.

Further, at a position below the substrate W and facing the film liquid supply means 4 with the substrate W interposed therebetween, a processing liquid jetting means 5 for jetting a processing liquid toward the lower surface of the substrate W is provided. Have been. The processing liquid supplied from the film liquid supply means 4 and the liquid jetting means 5 is usually pure water, but not limited thereto, and various types of processing liquids can be applied.

The first upper air knife 6 and the first lower air knife 7 are vertically arranged side by side so as to face each other across the substrate W. Similarly, the second upper air knife 8 and the second lower air knife 9 also The dry gas is blown out from each of the outlets 61 to generate a plate-like air flow, and the processing liquid attached to the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate W is removed.

The first upper air knife 6, the first lower air knife 7, the second upper air knife 8, and the second lower air knife 9 have respective longitudinal directions L in a direction perpendicular to the substrate W transfer direction, that is, the width of the substrate W. The air outlets 61 are arranged so as to be inclined with respect to the direction H, and are configured to face each other over the entire width of the substrate W.

Hereinafter, specific configurations of the first upper air knife 6, the first lower air knife 7, the second upper air knife 8, and the second lower air knife 9 will be described with reference to FIGS. The first upper air knife 6 and the first lower air knife 6 7. The second upper air knife 8 and the second lower air knife 9 have the same configuration. Therefore, the configuration of the first upper air knife 6 will be described below as a representative.

As shown in FIG. 4, the first upper air knife 6 is configured such that a front plate 63 is fastened to a long main body 64 with screws 65, and between the front plate 63 and the main body 64. The width M of the wide slit 66 formed is adjustable. The opening of the slit 66 serves as the outlet 61. A gas chamber 67 and a gas supply path 68 are formed in the main body 64, and the gas supply path 68 is connected to a gas supply source 60. Although not shown, a flow rate adjusting mechanism, an air filter, and the like are interposed between the gas supply path 68 and the gas supply source 60.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the slit 66, the gas chamber 67, and the gas supply path 68 are connected in series in the longitudinal direction L with a block B composed of a set of these. The gas is supplied from the gas supply source 60 to each of the gas supply passages 68. Further, each slit 66 and the gas chamber 67 are formed along the longitudinal direction L, and each slit 66 communicates with an adjacent slit 66 mutually. Further, the gas supply passage 68 is formed substantially linearly from above in the approximate center of the block B toward the gas chamber 67. In this way, by adopting a configuration in which the blocks B are connected, it is possible to easily cope with a wide and long substrate W. As shown in FIG. 1, the first upper air knife 6, the first lower air knife 7, the second upper air knife 8, and the second lower air knife 9, each having the above-described configuration, are respectively arranged with respect to the normal direction of the substrate W. Therefore, it is fixed in a state of being inclined at an angle of 0 1 toward the downstream side in the transport direction. As described above, the treatment liquid attached to the substrate W is blown off toward the upstream side in the transport direction by the inclination.

Also, in FIG. 1, the first upper air knife 6 and the second upper air knife 8 For convenience of explanation, the scale plate 62 for angle adjustment is not shown, but the first upper air knife 6 and the second upper air knife 8 are the same as the first lower air knife and the second lower air knife 9. The scale plate for angle adjustment 62 is provided, and the first upper air knife 6, the first lower air knife 7, the second upper air knife 8 and the second lower air knife 9 are each a scale plate for angle adjustment 6 2 By using the above, the angle adjustment of the inclination angle 01 can be performed.

Although not shown, both ends of the first upper air knife 6, the first lower air knife 7, the second upper air knife 8, and the second lower air knife 9 are respectively attached to the columns so as to be movable in the vertical direction. The distance between and can be adjusted.

The distance between the outlet 61 of the first upper air knife 6 and the outlet 61 of the second air knife 8 and the substrate W is preferably in the range of 1 mm or more and 5 mm or less. If the distance between the outlet 61 and the substrate W is less than 1 mm, the outlet 61 may come into contact with the processing liquid applied on the substrate W, and if it exceeds 5 mm, the drying effect is reduced. . Further, it is preferable that the inclination angle 01 is 15 degrees or more and 60 degrees or less from the viewpoint that a stable boundary surface having no unevenness and no scattering of liquid can be formed.

Although not particularly shown, an exhaust mechanism is appropriately connected to the chamber surrounded by the side walls 15 and 15, the bottom plate 17 and the upper plate 17, and the gas in the chamber is removed by the exhaust mechanism. It has become exhausted.

According to the substrate processing apparatus of the present example having the above configuration, the film is formed from the film liquid supply means 4 on the substrate W transferred by the transfer means 1 and discharged from the wet processing unit WET. The supplied processing liquid is supplied. Thus, the processing liquid having a uniform film thickness in the transport direction and the direction orthogonal thereto is applied to the substrate W without unevenness, that is, without generating an island-shaped liquid reservoir. On the other hand, the processing liquid is sprayed onto the lower surface of the substrate W from the processing liquid ejecting means 5, and the lower surface is cleaned.

Then, when the substrate W is further transported, this reaches between the first upper air knife 6 and the first lower air knife 7, and is caused by a plate-like air current ejected from the first upper air knife 6, as shown in FIG. As shown, the processing liquid on the substrate W is removed by being pushed in the arrow 13 direction, and the upper surface of the substrate W is dried. On the other hand, the lower surface of the substrate W is dried by removing water droplets attached to the lower surface by the plate-like airflow ejected from the first lower air knife 7. When the substrate W is further conveyed in the direction indicated by the arrow 10, the upper and lower surfaces thereof are dried by the second upper air knife 8 and the second lower air knife 9, respectively, and the dried substrate W is dried. Processing unit DRY is carried in.

As described above, according to the substrate processing apparatus, the liquid is drained in a state where the processing liquid having a uniform film thickness is applied on the substrate W, that is, in a state where no island-like liquid pool is generated on the substrate. As a result, it is possible to fundamentally prevent the occurrence of stains at the time of drainage, which has conventionally been a problem.

Further, since the film liquid supply means 4 is provided upstream of the first upper air knife 6 in the re-transport direction, mist generated in the wet processing section can be completely shut off by the film liquid. Accordingly, it is possible to effectively prevent mist from adhering to the surface of the substrate W after draining and drying, and it is possible to eliminate the occurrence of stains caused by such mist. Therefore, it is not necessary to increase the distance between the wet processing section W ET and the first upper air knife 6, and the apparatus can be downsized.

In addition, since the first upper air knife 6 is disposed in an inclined state, the processing liquid can be flushed toward the side of the substrate W, and can be smoothly removed from the substrate W. Industrial applicability

As described above, the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention can be suitably used in a process for manufacturing a glass substrate such as a liquid crystal display and a photomask, and a substrate such as a printed wiring board and a semiconductor wafer.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. transport means for transporting the substrate substantially horizontally;

A wet processing unit that performs wet processing on the substrate transferred by the transfer unit;

A film liquid supply unit disposed downstream of the wet processing unit in the transport direction, forming a processing liquid into a film, and supplying the processing liquid onto the substrate;

A slit-shaped opening, which is disposed downstream of the film liquid supply means in the transport direction so that the opening faces the entire width of the substrate, and which is configured to eject gas from the opening to form a plate. And a gas ejecting means for generating a gas flow in a substrate processing apparatus.

2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the gas jetting means is disposed such that a longitudinal direction of the opening is inclined with respect to a direction orthogonal to the transport direction.

3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a distance between an opening of the gas jetting means and the substrate is set to 1 mm or more and 5 mm or less.

4. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a plurality of the gas ejection units are arranged in parallel along the transport direction.