Display processing apparatus, substrate processing apparatus, display method, substrate processing method, method of manufacturing semiconductor device, and recording medium

Abstract

The invention provides a display processing apparatus, a substrate processing apparatus, a display method, a substrate processing method, a semiconductor device manufacturing method, and a recording medium, which can easily determine information related to effective setting items used in the substrate processing apparatus in a file editing operation in the display processing apparatus. A substrate processing device is provided with: a storage unit that stores a file having a plurality of items, which classify substrate processing conditions into a plurality of categories and are provided for each of the categories, setting values for the items, and validity presence / absence information indicating whether or not the setting values for the items are valid; a display unit that displays the valid presence / absence information of the items classified by the categories and the setting values on a screen for each of the categories; and an operation unit that performs an editing operation of the valid presence / absence information displayed on the screen.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a display processing device, a substrate processing device, a display method, a substrate processing method, a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, and a recording medium. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as described in Patent Document 1, there is known a technique for clarifying whether or not a setting item has been changed when editing a file such as a recipe.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-189248 Summary of the invention

[0006] The present invention provides a technology that can easily determine information related to effective setting items used in a substrate processing apparatus during a file editing operation in the display processing apparatus.

[0007] According to one scheme of the present invention, a technology is provided, comprising: a storage unit, which stores a file, wherein the file has a plurality of items that classify processing conditions of a substrate into a plurality of categories and are set for each of the categories, as well as setting values ​​for the items, and validity information indicating whether the setting values ​​for the items are valid; a display unit, which displays the validity information and the setting values ​​for the items classified by the categories on a screen for each of the categories; and an operation unit, which performs editing operations on the validity information displayed on the screen.

[0008] Effects of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, in the file editing operation in the display processing apparatus, information related to valid setting items used in the substrate processing apparatus can be easily identified. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 It is a perspective view showing an example of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment.

[0011] Figure 2 This is a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment as seen from the side.

[0012] Figure 3 This is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a substrate processing apparatus and a display processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0013] Figure 4 It is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a process control unit and a transport control unit of the substrate processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] Figure 5 It is a diagram showing an example of a screen of the display processing device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 6 This is an example (part 1) of the structure of a file according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] Figure 7 This is an example (part 2) of the structure of a file according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 8 This is a flowchart of a file editing process according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Fig. 9 It is a diagram for explaining the transition of the screen of the display processing device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Fig.10 This is a flowchart of the process of the substrate processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Description of Reference Numerals

[0021] 104 Storage Department

[0022] 203 Operation Department

[0023] 204 Display Department DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] The following mainly refers to Figures 1 to 10 One mode of the present invention is described. It should be noted that the drawings used in the following description are all schematic, and the relationship between the dimensions of the elements shown in the drawings, the ratio of the elements, etc. may not be consistent with reality. In addition, the relationship between the dimensions of the elements, the ratio of the elements, etc. may not be consistent between multiple drawings. In addition, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments in any way, and can be implemented by appropriately applying changes within the scope of the present invention.

[0025] The “file” records processing conditions for a substrate, such as commands to a substrate processing apparatus, setting information of various items, and parameter combinations, and is referred to as a “recipe file” or “parameter file” in the following description.

[0026] In the following description, an operator refers to a person who uses a substrate processing apparatus or a person who processes a substrate using a substrate processing apparatus.

[0027] First, refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 , an overview of the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described.

[0028] Figure 1 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. Figure 2 This is a cross-sectional view of the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment as seen from the side. Figure 1 and Figure 2 As an example of a substrate processing apparatus, a vertical substrate processing apparatus 1 is shown. In addition, as an example of a substrate processed in the substrate processing apparatus 1, a semiconductor wafer made of silicon or the like is shown.

[0029] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a housing 2 , and a front maintenance port 4 as an opening provided for maintenance is formed at a lower portion of a front wall 3 of the housing 2 . The front maintenance port 4 is opened and closed by a front maintenance door 5 .

[0030] A wafer box loading and unloading port 6 is provided on the front wall 3 of the housing 2 so as to communicate the inside and outside of the housing 2. The wafer box loading and unloading port 6 is opened and closed by a front gate 7 as a loading and unloading port opening and closing mechanism. A loading port 8 as a substrate transfer container delivery platform is provided on the front front side of the wafer box loading and unloading port 6. The loading port 8 is configured to align the wafer box 9 placed thereon.

[0031] The wafer cassette 9 is a sealed substrate transport container, and is transported to and from the load port 8 by an intra-process transport device (not shown).

[0032] A rotary cassette rack 11 serving as a substrate transfer container storage rack is provided at an upper portion of a substantially central portion in the front-rear direction in the housing 2 . The rotary cassette rack 11 is configured to store a plurality of cassettes 9 .

[0033] The rotary wafer cassette rack 11 includes a support column 12 that is vertically erected and intermittently rotated, and a plurality of shelf plates 13 that are radially supported at each position of the upper, middle, and lower layers of the support column 12 and serve as a substrate transfer container loading rack. The shelf plate 13 is configured to store a wafer cassette 9 in a state where at least one wafer cassette 9 is loaded.

[0034] A pod opener 14 as a substrate transport container lid opening and closing mechanism is provided below the rotary pod rack 11 . The pod opener 14 has a structure for placing the pod 9 and opening and closing the lid of the pod 9 .

[0035] A wafer box transfer mechanism 15 as a container transfer mechanism is provided between the loading port 8 and the rotary wafer box rack 11 and the wafer box opener 14. The wafer box transfer mechanism 15 holds the wafer box 9 and can be raised and lowered, and can move forward and backward in the horizontal direction. The wafer box 9 is transferred between the loading port 8, the rotary wafer box rack 11 and the wafer box opener 14.

[0036] A sub-housing 16 is provided in the lower part of the substantially central part in the front-back direction in the housing 2, within the rear end range. On the front wall 17 of the sub-housing 16, a pair of wafer inlet / outlet ports 19 as substrate inlet / outlet ports for carrying wafers 18 as substrates in and out of the sub-housing 16 are arranged in two layers in the vertical direction, and the wafer box opener 14 is provided respectively with respect to the wafer inlet / outlet ports 19 in the upper and lower layers.

[0037] The wafer box opener 14 includes a mounting table 21 for mounting the wafer box 9 and an opening and closing mechanism 22 for opening and closing the cover of the wafer box 9. The wafer box opener 14 is configured to open and close the wafer inlet and outlet of the wafer box 9 by opening and closing the cover of the wafer box 9 mounted on the mounting table 21 using the opening and closing mechanism 22.

[0038] The sub-shell 16 forms an airtight transfer chamber 23 relative to the space (wafer box transfer space) where the wafer box transfer mechanism 15 and the rotary wafer box rack 11 are arranged. A wafer transfer mechanism 24 as a substrate transfer mechanism is provided in the front area of ​​the transfer chamber 23. The wafer transfer mechanism 24 has a wafer mounting plate 25 for mounting a required number of wafers 18 (for example, 5 wafers in the figure), and the wafer mounting plate 25 can be linearly moved in the horizontal direction, can be rotated in the horizontal direction, or can be raised and lowered. The wafer transfer mechanism 24 is configured to be able to load and unload the wafers 18 relative to the boat 26 as a substrate holding body.

[0039] A standby section 27 for accommodating the boat 26 and making it standby is formed in the rear area of ​​the transfer chamber 23, and a vertical processing furnace 28 is provided above the standby section 27. The processing furnace 28 forms a processing chamber 29 inside, and the lower end of the processing chamber 29 is a furnace opening part, and the furnace opening part is opened and closed by a furnace opening gate 31 as a furnace opening and closing mechanism. In addition, the processing chamber 29 is an example of a processing container for processing a substrate.

[0040] A boat elevator 32 as a substrate holder lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the boat 26 is provided between the right end of the housing 2 and the right end of the standby portion 27 of the sub-housing 16. A sealing cover 34 as a cover is horizontally mounted on an arm 33 connected to a lifting platform of the boat elevator 32. The sealing cover 34 vertically supports the boat 26 and can hermetically seal the furnace opening when the boat 26 is loaded into the processing chamber 29.

[0041] The boat 26 is configured to hold multiple wafers 18 (e.g., 50 to 125 wafers) aligned at their centers and in a horizontal position in multiple layers. In addition, the expression of a numerical range such as "50 to 125 wafers" in this specification indicates that the lower limit and the upper limit are included in the range. Thus, for example, "50 to 125 wafers" means "more than 50 wafers and less than 125 wafers". The same is true for other numerical ranges.

[0042] A cleaning unit 35 is disposed at a position opposite to the boat elevator 32. The cleaning unit 35 is composed of a supply fan and a dust filter to supply a cleaning gas 36 as a purified ambient gas or an inert gas. As the inert gas, for example, a nitrogen (N)-containing gas can be used. As the N-containing gas, for example, a nitrogen (N)-containing gas can be used. 2 ), ammonia (NH 3 ) etc. As the N-containing gas, one or more of them can be used. Between the wafer transfer mechanism 24 and the cleaning unit 35, a notch matching device (not shown) is provided as a substrate matching device for matching the position of the wafer 18 in the circumferential direction.

[0043] The cleaning gas 36 blown out from the cleaning unit 35 is sucked into the pipe (not shown) after flowing through the notch matching device (not shown), the chip transfer mechanism 24 and the boat 26, and is discharged to the outside of the shell 2, or is blown out into the transfer chamber 23 by the cleaning unit 35.

[0044] Next, the operation of the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be described.

[0045] When the wafer box 9 is supplied to the loading port 8, the wafer box loading and unloading port 6 is opened by the front gate 7. The wafer box 9 on the loading port 8 is loaded into the housing 2 through the wafer box loading and unloading port 6 by the wafer box transfer mechanism 15, and is placed on the designated shelf 13 of the rotary wafer box rack 11. After being temporarily stored by the rotary wafer box rack 11, the wafer box 9 is transferred from the shelf 13 to a wafer box opener 14 on one side by the wafer box transfer mechanism 15 and transferred to the loading table 21, or is directly transferred from the loading port 8 to the loading table 21.

[0046] At this time, the wafer loading and unloading port 19 is closed by the opening and closing mechanism 22, and the cleaning gas 36 flows through and fills the transfer chamber 23. For example, the transfer chamber 23 is filled with a N-containing gas as the cleaning gas 36, and the oxygen concentration is set to, for example, 20 ppm or less, which is lower than the oxygen concentration inside the housing 2 (atmospheric gas).

[0047] The wafer box 9 placed on the mounting table 21 has its opening side end surface pressed against the opening edge of the wafer loading and unloading port 19 in the front wall 17 of the auxiliary housing 16, and the cover is removed by the opening and closing mechanism 22, thereby opening the wafer loading and unloading port.

[0048] When the chip box 9 is opened by the chip box opener 14, the chip 18 is taken out from the chip box 9 by the chip transfer mechanism 24 and is transferred to the notch matching device (not shown). After the chip 18 is matched by the notch matching device, the chip transfer mechanism 24 moves the chip 18 to the standby part 27 at the rear of the transfer chamber 23 and loads (loads) it into the boat 26.

[0049] The wafer transfer mechanism 24 that has delivered the wafer 18 to the boat 26 returns the wafer cassette 9 and loads the next wafer 18 into the boat 26 .

[0050] During the loading operation of the chip 18 in the chip box opener 14 on one side (the upper layer or the lower layer) to the boat 26 through the chip transfer mechanism 24, the chip box transport mechanism 15 is used to transport and transfer other chip boxes 9 from the rotary chip box rack 11 to the chip box opener 14 on the other side (the lower layer or the upper layer), and the chip box opener 14 on the other side simultaneously performs the opening operation of the chip box 9.

[0051] When a predetermined number of wafers 18 are loaded into the boat 26, the furnace port of the processing furnace 28 which is closed by the furnace port gate 31 is opened by the furnace port gate 31. Then, the boat 26 is lifted by the boat elevator 32 and carried (loaded) into the processing chamber 29.

[0052] After loading, the furnace opening is hermetically sealed by the seal cover 34. In addition, in the present embodiment, at this time (after loading), there is a purging step (pre-purging step) in which the processing chamber 29 is replaced with an inert gas.

[0053] The processing chamber 29 is evacuated by a gas exhaust mechanism (not shown) to a desired pressure (vacuum degree) and heated to a predetermined temperature by a heater driving unit (not shown) to a desired temperature distribution.

[0054] In addition, a process gas controlled to a predetermined flow rate is supplied through a gas supply mechanism (not shown), and the process gas contacts the surface of the wafer 18 while flowing through the process chamber 29, and a predetermined process is performed on the surface of the wafer 18. Moreover, the process gas after the reaction is exhausted from the process chamber 29 through a gas exhaust mechanism. The process gas in this specification refers to the gas supplied into the process chamber 29. This also applies to the following description.

[0055] When the preset processing time has passed, the inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply source (not shown) through the gas supply mechanism, the processing chamber 29 is replaced with the inert gas, and the pressure of the processing chamber 29 is restored to normal pressure (post-purge process). Then, the boat 26 passes through the boat elevator 32 and descends through the sealing cover 34. The processing time in this specification refers to the time for which the processing continues. This is also the same in the following description.

[0056] Regarding unloading of the processed wafers 18, the wafers 18 and the wafer cassette 9 are unloaded to the outside of the housing 2 in the reverse order of the above description. Unprocessed wafers 18 are further loaded into the boat 26, and the batch processing of the wafers 18 is repeated.

[0057] Here, if Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a control device 100, and the control device 100 controls the substrate processing apparatus 1. The control device 100 may be built in the substrate processing apparatus 1, or may be provided in a manner that the substrate processing apparatus 1 can be accessed from outside the substrate processing apparatus 1. Hereinafter, a case where the control device 100 of this embodiment is applied to the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be described, but the control device 100 may also set a device other than the substrate processing apparatus 1 as a control object.

[0058] Next, refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 , the structure of the control system of the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. Figure 3 and Figure 4 It is a block diagram showing an example of the functional structure of the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment.

[0059] like Figure 3 As shown, the substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a control device 100 as a main controller, an external communication unit 201 , an external storage unit 202 , an operation unit 203 , a display unit 204 , a process control unit 205 , and a transport control unit 206 .

[0060] In addition, the control device 100 is configured as a computer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 102, a memory 103, a storage unit 104, and an I / O (also referred to as an I / O port) 105. The storage unit 104 stores various recipe files such as recipes defining processing conditions and processing sequences, control program files (recipe execution programs, etc.) for executing these recipe files, and parameter files (setting value files) for setting processing conditions and processing sequences. In addition to error processing program files and error processing parameter files, various screen files including input screens for inputting process parameters, various icon files, etc. are also stored (none of which are shown in the figure). In addition, the control device 100 uses an external communication unit 201, which is connected to a network such as the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), or a WAN (Wide Area Network), as an example, and can communicate with external devices via the network.

[0061] The control device 100 is connected to the process control unit 205 and the transport control unit 206 via the I / O 105. Since the control device 100 is electrically connected to the process control unit 205 and the transport control unit 206 via the I / O 105, it is configured to be able to transmit and receive data and download and upload files.

[0062] The control device 100 is connected to an external host computer (not shown) via an external communication unit 201. Therefore, even if the substrate processing device 1 is installed in a clean room, the host computer can be arranged in an office outside the clean room. In addition, the control device 100 is connected to an external storage unit 202 as an installation unit, which is used for inserting and removing a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory as an example of a recording medium.

[0063] The display unit 204 is a display device (not shown) such as a liquid crystal display panel, and displays a screen. In addition, the operation unit 203 uses an input device (not shown) such as a keyboard for inputting operation input to perform operation input. In addition, the operation unit 203 and the display unit 204 can be integrally configured in the case of, for example, a touch panel.

[0064] The display unit 204 displays information for checking the status of the substrate process system controlled by the process control unit 205 and the substrate transport system controlled by the transport control unit 206. In addition, the display unit 204 can also display various operation buttons as an input unit for inputting operation instructions to the substrate process system and the substrate transport system.

[0065] Furthermore, the display unit 204 can display a screen for editing a setting value included in a recipe file defining a processing condition for substrate processing of the display processing device 106 of the present invention and validity information indicating whether the item of the setting value is valid or invalid. The display processing device 106 will be described in detail later.

[0066] The process control unit 205 is as follows Figure 4 As shown, at least one of the temperature control unit 207, the gas flow control unit 208 and the pressure control unit 209 is provided. These temperature control unit 207, the gas flow control unit 208 and the pressure control unit 209 constitute sub-controllers respectively, and are electrically connected to the process control unit 205, so that the transmission and reception of various data and the download and upload of various files can be performed. In addition, the process control unit 205 and each sub-controller (temperature control unit, gas flow control unit and pressure control unit) can be separately constituted or integrally constituted.

[0067] The transport control unit 206 Figure 4 As shown, the structure is configured to control the rotating unit 210, the lifting unit 211 and the conveying unit 212 as the driving unit system of the substrate processing apparatus 1. The conveying control unit 206 is configured to control the rotating wafer box rack 11 by the rotating unit 210, the boat elevator 32 by the lifting unit 211, and the conveying unit 212 to control the conveying actions of the wafer box conveying mechanism 15, the wafer transfer mechanism 24 and the boat 26.

[0068] In addition, the control device 100, the process control unit 205, and the transport control unit 206 of the present embodiment do not rely on a dedicated system, and can be implemented using a general computer system. For example, by installing the program for executing the above-mentioned processing from a recording medium (CD-ROM, USB, etc.) storing the program in a general-purpose computer, each controller that executes the specified processing can be configured.

[0069] Furthermore, the means for supplying these programs is arbitrary, and in addition to being able to be supplied via a predetermined recording medium as described above, for example, it is also possible to supply via a communication network or the like.

[0070] The recipe file including the processing conditions of the substrate processing such as the recipe may be acquired from another device via the external communication unit 201 , or may be acquired from a recording medium such as a USB via the external storage unit 202 .

[0071] The storage unit 104 is an auxiliary storage device such as a HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a flash memory. The storage unit 104 includes a recording medium for recording an action program executed by the CPU 102 and a recording medium for recording a recipe file. The action program stored in the storage unit 104 is transferred to the memory (main storage device) 103 of the control unit 101 and executed when, for example, the substrate manufacturing apparatus is started.

[0072] In addition, a display processing program for executing the display processing of the present embodiment is stored in the storage unit 104. The display processing program is pre-installed in the substrate processing apparatus 1, for example, and the substrate processing apparatus 1 functions as the display processing apparatus 106 of the present invention. The display processing program can also be realized by being recorded in a non-volatile recording medium or distributed via a network and appropriately installed in the substrate processing apparatus 1. In addition, as examples of non-volatile recording media, CD-ROM, magneto-optical disk, HDD, DVD-ROM, flash memory, memory card, USB, etc. are conceivable.

[0073] In addition, the display processing device 106 of the present invention is composed of CPU 102, memory 103, storage unit 104, total unit 107, operation unit 203, and display unit 204. When the control device 100 is started, the CPU 102 executes the display processing program configured on the memory 103 to function as the display processing device 106.

[0074] The display unit 204 displays a screen that allows editing of the validity information and setting values ​​contained in the recipe file that defines the processing conditions for the substrate processing. In the screen, the processing conditions for the substrate are classified into a plurality of categories, and a plurality of items contained in each category, and the validity information and setting values ​​for each item are displayed. In addition, the display unit 204 may also be provided with various operation buttons for editing the validity information and setting values, and function as the operation unit 203.

[0075] like Figure 6 As shown, the recipe file includes a plurality of groups, each group having processing conditions for substrates classified into a plurality of categories. In addition, the processing conditions for substrates in each group correspond to various substrate processes and to the recipes prepared in advance.

[0076] The display unit 204 displays the validity information and setting values ​​of a plurality of items included in a plurality of categories of one of the groups on the screen in an editable manner. Figure 5As shown, the display unit 204 is provided with a group display area 50 on the left side of the screen, a category selection area 51 on the upper part of the center of the screen, and a category editing area 52 on the lower part of the center of the screen. The display unit 204 reads the recipe file from the storage unit 104 according to, for example, the operator's display instruction for the recipe file, and displays the group names of the groups contained in the recipe file in the group display area 50. If an operation input is made from the operation unit 203 to select a group name, the display unit 204 displays the category name of the category of the group of the selected group name in the category selection area 51, and displays the name of the item contained in each category and the validity information and setting value for each item in the category editing area 52. In addition, the validity information and setting value displayed in the category editing area 52 can be edited according to the operation input from the operation unit 203. In addition, the category editing area 52 can be scrolled, and the items that cannot be displayed in the range of the category editing area 52 can be confirmed and edited by scrolling.

[0077] Furthermore, the display unit 204 provides a command selection area 53 on the right side of the screen to display command buttons. Figure 5 In the example of FIG. 20 , command buttons corresponding to the "Close" command and the "Save" command are displayed. The "Close" command is a command to discard the edited content and end the editing. The "Save" command is a command to end the editing and set all the data including the edited validity information and setting values ​​as a recipe file and store them in the storage unit 104. The display unit 204 may also display any command button with appropriate functions as needed.

[0078] Furthermore, when a selection operation (operation input) is performed from the operation unit 203 to select a category name displayed in the category selection area 51, the display unit 204 displays the items included in the category of the selected category name and the validity information and setting values ​​for the items in the category editing area 52. Furthermore, when a selection operation is performed from the operation unit 203 to select another category, the display unit 204 switches to display the items included in the other category and the validity information and setting values ​​for each of the items in the category editing area 52.

[0079] exist Figure 5 In the example of the screen shown, group names "Group 1", "Group 2", "Group 3", ... "Group n" are displayed in the group display area 50. Category names "Category 1", "Category 2", "Category 3", "Category 4" are displayed in the upper layer of the category selection area 51, and subcategory names "Subcategory 1", "Subcategory 2", "Subcategory 3" which are subcategories of the selected category are displayed in the lower layer of the category selection area 51. The selected category and subcategory are displayed in a manner such that it can be recognized that they are selected, such as by being reversed.

[0080] Figure 5 The state in which category 1 is selected and "subcategory 1", "subcategory 2", and "subcategory 3" as subcategories of category 1 are displayed in the lower layer of category selection area 51 (the selected category is shown with hatching). In addition, the state in which "subcategory 3" is selected among the subcategories of category 1 is shown, and the items of subcategory 3 of category 1 are displayed in category editing area 52. Figure 5 In the example of , the items included in the subcategory 3 of the category 1 selected in the category editing area 52 and their validity information and set values ​​(upper limit value, lower limit value) are displayed in the category editing area 52. In the case of substrate processing, specifically, the category names are "temperature", "gas flow rate", "pressure", etc., and when the category name is "temperature", for example, the subcategory names are "main heater", "sub heater", etc.

[0081] Furthermore, the storage unit 104 stores the validity information and setting values ​​of the edited items as a recipe file.

[0082] exist Figure 6 and Figure 7 An example of the structure of a recipe file is shown in FIG. Figure 6 As shown in FIG. 1 , the recipe file has a layered structure. The recipe file is composed of group information indicating the top-level group, category information indicating multiple categories of each group, and item information indicating multiple items included in each category. Figure 6 In the example, the recipe file contains information of group 1 to group 1.

[0083] The group information includes the group name and information about categories 1 to m that the group has, and each category information of categories 1 to m includes the category name and item information about items 1 to n included in the category. Figure 7 As shown in FIG. 1 , each item information of item 1 to item n includes the item name, validity information, and setting value 1 to setting value i. In addition, the validity information is stored for each item. Figure 7 In the example, multiple set values ​​are stored for one item. For example, two set values ​​may be stored for one item, such as an upper limit value and a lower limit value. Figure 5 In the example, the validity information of name 1, name 3, and name 4 is "valid", and the validity information of name 2 and name 5 is "invalid".

[0084] In addition, the recipe file includes processing conditions for performing substrate processing, and may also include alarm conditions that define upper and lower limits of the set value of the item and processing to be performed when the upper and lower limits of the set value of the item are exceeded. Figure 7, an example of storing the validity information and setting value of each item is shown. For each item, for example, as a process to be performed when the upper and lower limits are exceeded, an error process, an alarm output, or an alarm process such as ending the substrate process (recipe end) according to the recipe when the upper and lower limits are exceeded may also be stored (see Figure 5 ).

[0085] The totaling unit 107 totals the validity information recorded in the recipe file for each category (subcategory), and totals the number of items whose validity information is set as "valid" among the items included in each category (subcategory). Furthermore, the totaling unit 107 totals the number of items whose validity information is set as "valid" among the items included in all categories of each group as the number of valid items for the group.

[0086] The display unit 204 displays each category displayed in the category selection area 51 in a manner that can identify whether the setting value of the item included in the category is valid based on the validity information. That is, the display mode is different when the setting value of the item included in the category is a valid item and when the setting value of the item included in the category is not a valid item. Specifically, for each category displayed in the category selection area 51, based on the value totaled by the totaling unit 107 based on the validity information, it is determined whether the setting value of the item included in each category is a valid item. For example, Figure 5 As shown, if there is a valid item in the item within the category, the category name is underlined, and if there is no valid item in the item within the category, the category name is not underlined. Alternatively, the color of the category name may be changed according to whether there is a valid item in the item within the category, or the category name may be displayed in a flashing manner if there is a valid item in the item within the category. Figure 5 As shown, it is desirable to display the valid number of items in the category counted by the count unit 107 next to the category name. The above display mode is an example, and the category name may be displayed in an appropriate display mode that allows identification of whether there are valid items in the category.

[0087] As for the subcategory, similarly to the category, the subcategory name is displayed in a manner that allows identification of whether the setting values ​​of the items included in the subcategory are valid. Since the display mode is the same as that of the category name, detailed description is omitted.

[0088] Furthermore, the display unit 204 displays each group displayed in the group display area 50 in a manner that allows identification of whether the set values ​​of the items included in the multiple categories of the group are valid based on the validity information. That is, the display of the group name in the group display area 50 is different in the case where there are valid items in the items included in the categories of the group and in the case where there are no valid items in the items included in the categories of the group. Specifically, for each group displayed in the group display area 50, based on the value totaled by the totaling unit 107 based on the validity information, it is determined whether there are valid items in the items included in all the categories of each group. For example, Figure 5 As shown in FIG. 1 , the group name is underlined when there is a valid item in the group, and the group name is not underlined when there is no valid item in the group. Alternatively, the color of the group name may be changed according to whether there is a valid item in the group, or the group name may be displayed in a flashing manner when there is a valid item in the group. Figure 5 As shown, if there are valid items, it is desirable to display the valid number of items in the group counted by the count unit 107 next to the group name. The above display mode is an example, and the group name can be displayed in an appropriate display mode that allows identification of whether there are valid items in the group.

[0089] exist Figure 5 In the example of , it is shown that in the group display area 50, 11 items in group 1 are valid, and 5 items in group 3 are valid. In addition, the group display area 50 shows that group 1 is selected, and the categories of group 1 are displayed in the category selection area 51. In the category selection area 51, it is shown that 4 items of category 1 of group 1 are valid, 2 items of category 3 of group 1 are valid, and 5 items of category 4 of group 1 are valid. In addition, the category selection area 51 shows that category 1 is selected, and the subcategories of category 1 are displayed in the lower part of the category selection area 51. It is shown that 1 item of subcategory 1 of category 1 is valid, and 3 items of subcategory 3 of category 1 are valid. In addition, it is shown that subcategory 3 is selected in the category selection area 51, and the validity information and setting values ​​of the items of subcategory 3 of the selected category 1 are displayed in the category editing area 52.

[0090] Next, use Figure 8 The flowchart of the display processing device is described.

[0091] After the display device 106 is started, when, for example, editing of a recipe is selected through the operation unit 203, the display processing unit 106 reads out the recipe file stored in the storage unit 104 and expands it on the memory 103 (step S101). Next, the group names contained in the recipe file are read out, and the display unit 204 displays the group names in the group display area 50 of the screen at a glance (step S102), and displays the group selected as the default in the category selection area 51 and the category editing area 52, for example, the category name and subcategory name of group 1 are displayed in the category selection area 51 (step S103), and the list of validity information and set values ​​of the items of subcategory 1 of category 1 is displayed in the category editing area 52 (step S104). Next, the totaling unit 107 totals the number of valid items for each group, each category, and each subcategory (step S105), and the display unit 204 underlines the category name of the category in which the valid items exist and the subcategory name of the subcategory and displays them in the category selection area 51, and changes the number of valid items next to the category name and the subcategory name to the number totaled by the totaling unit 107 (step S106). Here, for the category name of the category in which there are no valid items and the subcategory name of the subcategory, the underline is set not to be displayed, and the number of items of the category name and the subcategory name is set not to be displayed. In addition, the number of items of the category name and the subcategory name of the category in which there are no valid items can be displayed as "0" as long as it can be distinguished from the category and the subcategory with valid items. In addition, the display unit 204 underlines the group name of the group including the category in which the valid items exist and displays it in the group display area 50, and changes the number of valid items next to the group name to the number newly totaled by the totaling unit 107 (step S107). Here, the group name of the group without valid items is set to be non-underlined. In addition, the number of valid items is set to be non-displayed next to the group name. In addition, in the case of no valid items, for example, "0" can be displayed as long as it can be distinguished from the group with valid items.

[0092] Next, it is determined whether there is a selection instruction (operation input) to select a group from the group list displayed on the group display area 50 through the operation unit 203 (step S108). In order to confirm the edited validity information and setting values, the operator selects the group from the group list. Figure 5 The user selects the group to be confirmed from the underlined groups. For example, when there is a selection instruction to select group 3 from the operation unit 203 (step S108-Yes), the display unit 204 switches the category selection area 51 to the category of group 3 and displays it (step S103). Furthermore, the display unit 204 displays the items and setting values ​​of the category included in group 3 in the category editing area 52 (step S104). Fig. 9 , an example of the screen when group 3 is selected is shown.

[0093] If the next operation input from the operation unit 203 is not a selection instruction for selecting a group, the process proceeds to determine whether a selection instruction for a category has been given (step S108-no, step S109). Since the operator wants to display and confirm valid items among multiple items, the operator selects, for example, category 3, which is an underlined category name, from the category names displayed in the upper layer of the category selection area 51 (see Fig. 9 ). If category 3 is selected, the subcategory displayed in the lower layer of the category selection area 51 is switched to the subcategory name of category 3. Then, regarding the subcategory displayed in the lower layer of the category selection area 51, by selecting subcategory 3 with an underlined subcategory name (step S109-Yes), the validity information and setting values ​​of the items contained in subcategory 3 of the selected category 3 are displayed in the category editing area 52 (step S104). Each time a group selection instruction or a category selection instruction is issued, the processing from step S104 to step S109 is repeated.

[0094] As described above, the group name, category name, and subcategory name containing items with valid setting values ​​are underlined, and by selecting the underlined group name, category name, and subcategory name, an overview of the items containing valid setting values ​​can be displayed in the category editing area 52, so that the valid setting values ​​can be quickly confirmed.

[0095] Next, the validity information of the item displayed in the category editing area 52 is edited. It is determined whether there is an editing operation (operation input) from the operation unit 203 to edit the validity information displayed in the category editing area 52 (step S110). Wait for input until there is an editing operation (step S110-no). When there is an editing operation (step S110-yes), change the validity information according to the editing operation (step S111). Alternatively, the setting value or the error handling content can also be edited as needed. In addition, when there is a group selection indication or a category selection indication during the waiting period for the input of the editing operation, the display of the category selection area 51 and the category editing area 52 is switched as described above.

[0096] The processing of step S103 to step S111 is repeated until the "Save" button in the instruction selection area 53 of the screen is pressed from the operation unit 203 (step S112-No). If the "Save" button in the instruction selection area 53 of the screen is pressed from the operation unit 203, it is determined that the editing is completed (step S112-Yes), and the recipe file including the validity information and the set value is stored in the storage unit 104 (step S113).

[0097] As described in detail above, in this embodiment, the category selection area 51 of the screen is displayed in a manner that allows confirmation of which of the items included in each of the multiple categories has an item with a valid setting value, so that the category with a valid item can be selected and the item and the setting value can be displayed in the category editing area 52, thereby improving the operator's work efficiency and avoiding erroneous editing. In addition, it is also easy to confirm under what conditions an alarm is generated for a valid item.

[0098] Furthermore, when applied to a substrate processing apparatus, by classifying the categories into, for example, "temperature", "gas flow rate", "pressure", etc., only related items can be displayed, thereby preventing the operator from making erroneous settings.

[0099] Next, use Fig.10 The flowchart of will explain the process of executing the recipe after saving the recipe file and executing the substrate processing.

[0100] First, a group is selected from the saved recipe files as a recipe to be executed for substrate processing (step S201). By starting the recipe execution program, Figure 3 The control unit 101 shown functions as a control execution unit. In addition, the setting value and validity information of each item contained in the category of the group stored in the recipe file are uploaded to the memory 103, and the control execution unit executes each process of substrate processing according to the recipe (step S202), and the control device 100 of the substrate processing device 1 outputs a control signal to each control unit of the process control unit 205 and the transport control unit 206 (step S203). The transport control unit 206 controls the rotating unit 210, the lifting unit 211 and the transport unit 212 to transport the wafer 18 to the standby unit 27, the processing furnace 28, and the processing chamber 29. On the other hand, the process control unit 205 controls the temperature control unit 207, the gas flow control unit 208 and the pressure control unit 209 to control the temperature, the flow of the processing gas, and the pressure. In addition, when the temperature control unit 207, the gas flow control unit 208, and the pressure control unit 209 detect that the temperature, gas flow, and pressure exceed the upper and lower limits of the validity information of each item specified by the recipe, an alarm process is performed. When all the processes are completed, the substrate processing is completed.

[0101] The configurations of the display processing apparatus and the substrate processing apparatus described in the above embodiments are merely examples and may be modified according to circumstances without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

[0102] Furthermore, the processing flow described in the above embodiment is merely an example, and unnecessary steps may be deleted, new steps may be added, or the processing order may be replaced without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

[0103] In the above embodiments, the processing of the embodiments is implemented by a software structure using a computer by executing a program, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The embodiments may be implemented by a hardware structure or a combination of a hardware structure and a software structure, for example.

[0104] The present invention can be applied not only to substrate manufacturing devices for semiconductor manufacturing, but also to devices for processing glass substrates such as LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) manufacturing devices and other substrate manufacturing devices. The content of substrate processing is not only CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition), PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition), film forming processes such as forming epitaxial growth films, oxide films, nitride films, and metal-containing films, but can also be annealing, oxidation, diffusion, etching, exposure, photolithography, coating, injection molding, development, cutting, wire bonding, or inspection.

[0105] In the above-mentioned method, an example of forming a film using a batch-type substrate processing device that processes multiple substrates at a time is described. The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned method, and for example, it can also be suitably used when a film is formed using a cluster-type substrate processing device that processes one or more substrates at a time. In addition, in the above-mentioned method, an example of forming a film using a substrate processing device having a hot-wall type processing furnace is described. The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned method, and it can also be suitably used when a film is formed using a substrate processing device having a cold-wall type processing furnace.

[0106] Also when these substrate processing apparatuses are used, each process can be performed in the same process order and process conditions as those of the above-mentioned embodiment and modified examples, and the same effects as those of the above-mentioned embodiment and modified examples can be obtained.

Claims

1. A display processing device, characterized in that: have: a storage unit storing a file having a plurality of items and setting values ​​for the items by classifying substrate processing conditions into a plurality of categories and setting each of the categories, and validity information indicating whether the setting values ​​for the items are valid; a display unit for displaying the validity information and the setting value of the items classified by the categories on a screen for each of the categories; as well as An operation unit performs an editing operation of the validity information displayed on the screen.

2. The display processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The file has multiple groups. The group includes processing conditions of the substrate formed by the classified plurality of categories, The display unit displays the validity information of the plurality of items included in the plurality of categories of one of the groups on the screen in an editable manner for each of the categories.

3. The display processing device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The display unit is provided with a group display area on the screen for displaying a list of the plurality of groups. Each of the groups displayed in the group display area is displayed in such a manner that it is identifiable whether or not the items included in the plurality of categories of the group include a valid item based on the validity information.

4. The display processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The display unit provides a category selection area on the screen for displaying a category from among the plurality of categories so as to allow selection. Each of the categories displayed in the category selection area is displayed in such a manner that it is identifiable whether or not the items included in the category include a valid item based on the validity information.

5. The display processing device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The display unit displays a category editing area that displays the validity information of the plurality of items included in the selected category in an editable manner in response to an operation input of the operation unit for selecting one of the plurality of categories displayed in the category selection area.

6. The display processing device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The display unit displays, for each of the categories displayed in the category selection area, the number of valid items in the validity information of the items included in the category.

7. The display processing device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The display unit displays, for each of the groups displayed in the group display area, the number of valid items in the validity information of the items included in the category of the group.

8. The display processing device according to claim 4, characterized in that: In a case where, among the categories displayed in the category selection area, there are items for which the validity information of the items contained in the category is valid, the display unit displays the category name of the category displayed in the category selection area in a display manner different from the category name of the category for which there are no items for which the validity information of the items contained in the category is valid.

9. The display processing device according to claim 8, characterized in that: The display unit displays an underline on the category name of the category in which there is an item in which the validity information is valid, among the categories displayed in the category selection area.

10. The display processing device according to claim 3, characterized in that: In a case where, in the group displayed in the group display area, there exists an item in which the validity information of the item contained in the category possessed by the group is valid, the display unit displays the group name of the group in the group display area in a display manner different from the group name of the group in which there is no item in which the validity information of the item contained in the category possessed by the group is valid.

11. The display processing device according to claim 10, characterized in that: The display unit displays the group name of the group displayed in the group display area, which has an item in which the validity information included in the category is valid, underlined.

12. The display processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The file includes processing conditions for processing the substrate, and includes an alarm condition defining upper and lower limits of a setting value of the item and an alarm to be executed when the upper and lower limits of the setting value of the item are exceeded.

13. A substrate processing device, characterized in that: have: The display processing device according to claim 1; and A control unit is capable of controlling processing of the substrate using the file.

14. A display method, characterized in that: have: A step of storing a file, wherein the file includes a plurality of items that classify substrate processing conditions into a plurality of categories and are set for each of the categories, setting values ​​for the items, and validity information indicating whether the setting values ​​for the items are valid; A step of displaying the validity information classified by the categories on a screen for each of the categories; and A step of performing an editing operation on the validity information displayed on the screen.

15. A substrate processing method, characterized in that: The method further comprises the step of processing the substrate using the document according to claim 14.

16. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, characterized in that: The method further comprises the step of processing the substrate using the document according to claim 14.

17. A recording medium, which is a computer-readable recording medium and has a program recorded thereon, characterized in that: The program causes the computer to execute the following steps: A step of storing a file, wherein the file has a plurality of items and setting values ​​for the items, and validity information indicating whether the setting values ​​for the items are valid, by classifying the processing conditions of the substrate into a plurality of categories and setting each of the categories; The step of displaying the validity information classified by the categories on a screen for each category; and A step of performing an editing operation on the validity information displayed on the screen.

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