Substrate processing apparatus and substrate processing method

Abstract

The present application has a processing liquid ejection section and a bubble supply section. The processing liquid ejection section is provided on the lower side of a substrate held by a substrate holding section, and sprays processing liquid toward the inner bottom surface of a storage space from a processing liquid ejection port. The bubble supply section is provided on the lower side of the substrate held by the substrate holding section and on the upper side of the processing liquid ejection port, and supplies bubbles to the processing liquid stored in the storage space. Between the bubble supply section and the processing liquid ejection port in the vertical direction, at least a portion of the processing liquid flowing upward through the inner bottom surface of the storage space is taken as a flow-diverted target liquid, the flow of the flow-diverted target liquid is diverted into multiple upward flows, and the upward flows are guided to the substrate held by the substrate holding section.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method that immerses a substrate in a processing solution stored in a processing tank while allowing a processing solution such as a pharmaceutical solution or pure water to overflow from the processing tank.

[0002] The disclosures in the specification, drawings, and claims of the following Japanese application are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety:

[0003] Japan Special Appeal 2019-236759 (applied on December 26, 2019).

[0004] Japan Special Appeal 2020-136163 (applied on August 12, 2020). Background Technology

[0005] In the field of semiconductor device manufacturing, there is an urgent need for technologies that form high aspect ratio recesses to meet the demands of increasing density and capacity in semiconductor devices. For example, the manufacturing process of a three-dimensional NAND-type non-volatile semiconductor device (hereinafter referred to as "3D-NAND memory") includes the following steps: after forming a recess in the stacking direction relative to a stack of multiple silicon oxide films (SiO2 films) and silicon nitride films (SiN films), the SiN film is removed via wet etching through the recess. To perform this step, a substrate processing apparatus, for example, described in Patent Document 1, has been investigated.

[0006] In the case of performing the aforementioned wet etching using a substrate processing apparatus, a phosphoric acid-containing etchant, as an example of an etchant for SiN films, is used as the processing solution. More specifically, in the substrate processing apparatus, an ejector pipe is disposed at the bottom inner interior of a storage space formed inside the processing tank, and the processing solution is supplied to the storage space from this ejector pipe. Therefore, in the processing tank, the processing solution overflows from the processing tank and is stored in the processing tank at a constant amount. Furthermore, the substrate having the aforementioned recessed structure is immersed in the processing solution stored in the processing tank. In addition, in the substrate processing apparatus, similar to the ejector pipe, a bubble supply pipe is disposed at the bottom inner interior of the storage space, and bubbles are supplied from the bottom inner interior of the storage space toward the overflow surface. These bubbles rise in the processing solution and are supplied to the substrate. By supplying bubbles to the substrate in this way, fresh processing solution can be supplied to the recessed area rapidly and continuously.

[0007] Existing technical documents

[0008] Patent documents

[0009] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2016-200821 Summary of the Invention

[0010] The problem that the invention aims to solve

[0011] However, the apparatus described in Patent Document 1 has the following problem. By ejecting the processing liquid from the ejection pipe, a liquid flow towards the overflow surface, i.e., an upward flow of the processing liquid, is formed within the storage space. Then, most of the processing liquid reaching the upper opening of the storage space overflows, but a portion does not overflow and flows downwards from near the overflow surface. This creates a so-called downward flow within the storage space. This downward flow hinders the rise of bubbles towards the overflow surface, becoming one of the main reasons for the reduced uniformity of bubble supply to the substrate. As a result, the quality of the substrate processing is reduced.

[0012] The present invention was made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its object is to improve the processing quality by uniformly supplying air bubbles to the substrate in a substrate processing technology in which the substrate is immersed in the processing liquid stored in the processing tank while the processing liquid overflows from the processing tank, and the substrate is processed by supplying air bubbles to the substrate in the processing liquid.

[0013] Solution for solving the problem

[0014] The first aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing apparatus, characterized by comprising: a processing tank having a storage space for storing processing liquid, wherein a substrate is immersed in the processing liquid stored in the storage space while the processing liquid overflows from the upper opening of the storage space to process the substrate; a substrate holding section holding the substrate in an upright position within the storage space; a processing liquid ejection section having a processing liquid ejection outlet on the lower side of the substrate held by the substrate holding section, wherein the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejection outlet flows toward the inner bottom surface of the storage space; and a bubble supply section provided on the lower side of the substrate held by the substrate holding section and on the upper side of the processing liquid ejection outlet, wherein at least a portion of the processing liquid flowing upward through the inner bottom surface of the storage space is used as a diversion target liquid between the bubble supply section in the vertical direction and the inner bottom surface of the storage space, and the flow of the diversion target liquid is diverted into multiple upward flows and guided to the substrate held by the substrate holding section.

[0015] Furthermore, the second aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method, characterized by comprising: an overflow process, in which processing liquid is sprayed into a storage space provided in a processing tank to store processing liquid in the storage space, and the processing liquid overflows from the upper opening of the storage space; an impregnation process, in which the substrate is impregnated in the processing liquid stored in the storage space; and a bubble supply process, in which bubbles are supplied from the lower side of the substrate impregnated in the processing liquid in the storage space by a bubble supply unit, the overflow process being performed in parallel with the impregnation process and the bubble supply process, and at least a portion of the flow of processing liquid flowing upward through the inner bottom surface of the storage space being diverted into multiple upward flows and guided to the substrate between the bubble supply unit and the inner bottom surface of the storage space.

[0016] The effects of the invention are as follows.

[0017] As described above, according to the present invention, a large amount of upward flow is widely dispersed and formed within the processing liquid stored in the storage space, suppressing the generation of downward flow within the storage space. As a result, bubbles can be uniformly supplied to the substrate, thereby enabling high-quality substrate processing.

[0018] Not all of the constituent elements of the various solutions of the present invention described above are necessary. To solve some or all of the aforementioned problems, or to achieve some or all of the effects described in this specification, some of the constituent elements can be appropriately modified, deleted, replaced with new constituent elements, or partially deleted from the limiting content. Furthermore, to solve some or all of the aforementioned problems, or to achieve some or all of the effects described in this specification, some or all of the technical features included in one solution of the present invention can be combined with some or all of the technical features included in another solution of the present invention to form an independent solution of the present invention. Attached Figure Description

[0019] Figure 1 This is a top view showing a simplified structure of a substrate processing system equipped with the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention according to a first embodiment.

[0020] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a simplified structure of a first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0021] Figure 3 It is shown schematically. Figure 2 An exploded and assembled perspective view of the main structure of the substrate processing device shown.

[0022] Figure 4 yes Figure 2 A partial sectional view.

[0023] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram showing the configuration relationship between the multiple base plates held by the elevator and the bubble ejection outlet.

[0024] Figure 6 This is a partial cross-sectional view showing a simplified structure of a second embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0025] Figure 7 This is a top view showing a simplified structure of a third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0026] Figure 8 This is a cross-sectional view showing a simplified structure of a third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of the shunt section used in the fifth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0028] Figure 10 This is a diagram schematically illustrating the structure of the shunt section used in the sixth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 11 This is a cross-sectional view showing a simplified structure of a seventh embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0030] Figure 12 This is a diagram showing the structure of the processing tank used in the eighth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0031] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of the bubbler used in the ninth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0032] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of the bubbler used in the tenth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0033] Figure 15 This is an exploded and assembled perspective view showing the main structure of the eleventh embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0034] Figure 16 This is a partial cross-sectional view of the substrate processing apparatus according to the eleventh embodiment.

[0035] Figure 17 This is a partial cross-sectional view of the twelfth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0036] Figure 1 This is a top view showing a simplified structure of a substrate processing system equipped with the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention according to a first embodiment. The substrate processing system 1 includes a receiving unit 2, a gate drive mechanism 3, a substrate transfer robot 4, a posture conversion mechanism 5, a push rod 6, a substrate transport mechanism 7, a processing unit 8, and a control unit 9. To uniformly show the directions in the following figures, as... Figure 1 The XYZ orthogonal coordinate axes are set as shown. Here, the XY plane represents the horizontal plane. And the Z axis represents the vertical axis; more specifically, the Z direction is the vertical direction.

[0037] In the housing placement section 2, a housing that houses the substrate W is placed. In this embodiment, as an example of the housing, a ring F is used, which is configured to house multiple (e.g., 25) substrates W in a horizontally oriented state in a stacked state in the Z direction. The ring F is placed in the housing placement section 2 with unprocessed substrates W housed, or it is placed in the housing placement section 2 empty to house processed substrates W. In this embodiment, the substrate W housed by the ring F is a semiconductor wafer forming a 3D-NAND memory and has a high aspect ratio recess.

[0038] In the process space adjacent to the receiving unit 2 in the (+Y) direction, a gate drive mechanism 3, a substrate transfer robot 4, a posture conversion mechanism 5, a push rod 6, a substrate handling mechanism 7, and a processing unit 8 are arranged. The receiving unit 2 and the process space are separated by a partition (not shown) equipped with a freely opening and closing gate 31. The gate 31 is connected to the gate drive mechanism 3. The gate drive mechanism 3 closes the gate 31 according to a closing command from the control unit 9, thereby spatially separating the receiving unit 2 from the process space. Conversely, the gate drive mechanism 3 opens the gate 31 according to an opening command from the control unit 9, thereby connecting the receiving unit 2 with the process space. Thus, unprocessed substrates W can be moved into the process space from the hoop F, and processed substrates W can be moved out of the hoop F.

[0039] The loading and unloading of the aforementioned substrate W is performed by the substrate transfer robot 4. The substrate transfer robot 4 is configured to rotate freely in a horizontal plane. With the gate 31 open, the substrate transfer robot 4 transfers multiple substrates W between the posture conversion mechanism 5 and the ring clamp F. Furthermore, after receiving the substrate W from the ring clamp F via the substrate transfer robot 4 and before transferring the substrate W to the ring clamp F, the posture conversion mechanism 5 converts the posture of the multiple substrates W between an upright posture and a horizontal posture.

[0040] A push rod 6 is disposed on the substrate transport mechanism 7 side of the posture conversion mechanism 5 (the +X direction side in the figure), and multiple substrates W in an upright posture are transferred between the posture conversion mechanism 5 and the substrate transport mechanism 7. Furthermore, the substrate transport mechanism 7 moves horizontally in the direction of the arrangement of the processing units 81 to 85 constituting the processing unit 8 (the Y direction in the figure) from the position opposite to the push rod 6 as shown in the figure (hereinafter referred to as the "standby position").

[0041] The substrate handling mechanism 7 includes a pair of cantilever arms 71. By swinging these cantilever arms 71, multiple substrates W can be switched between holding and releasing. More specifically, the lower edges of each arm 71 swing in a direction separating them from each other about the horizontal axis to release multiple substrates W, and the lower edges of each arm 71 swing in a direction approaching each other about the horizontal axis to clamp and hold multiple substrates W. Furthermore, although... Figure 1The diagram is omitted, but the substrate transport mechanism 7 has an arm moving part and an arm swinging part. The arm moving part has the function of moving a pair of hanging arms 71 horizontally along the arrangement direction Y of the processing units 81 to 85. Therefore, by this horizontal movement, the pair of hanging arms 71 are positioned in positions opposite to the processing units 81 to 85 (hereinafter referred to as "processing positions") and in standby positions.

[0042] On the other hand, the arm swinging unit has the function of performing the aforementioned arm swinging action, switching between a holding state of clamping and holding the substrate W and a releasing state of releasing the substrate W from clamping. Therefore, through this switching action and the up-and-down movement of the elevator 810a, which functions as the substrate holding unit of processing units 81 and 82, and the elevator 810b, which functions as the substrate holding unit of processing units 83 and 84, the substrate W between the elevator 810 and the suspension arm 71 can be transferred. Furthermore, in the processing position opposite to the processing unit 85, the substrate W between the processing unit 85 and the suspension arm 71 can be transferred. In addition, in the standby position, the substrate W between the posture conversion mechanism 5 and the suspension arm 71 can be transferred via the push rod 6.

[0043] As described above, the processing unit 8 is provided with five processing units 81 to 85, which function as a first chemical solution processing unit 81, a first rinsing processing unit 82, a second chemical solution processing unit 83, a second rinsing processing unit 84, and a drying processing unit 85, respectively. The first chemical solution processing unit 81 and the second chemical solution processing unit 83 store the same or different types of chemical solutions in the processing tank 821, and immerse multiple substrates W together in the chemical solution to perform chemical solution treatment. The first rinsing processing unit 82 and the second rinsing processing unit 84 store rinsing liquid (e.g., pure water) in the processing tank 821, and immerse multiple substrates W together in the rinsing liquid to perform surface rinsing treatment. The first chemical solution processing unit 81, the first rinsing processing unit 82, the second chemical solution processing unit 83, and the second rinsing processing unit 84 correspond to the first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. Although the types of processing liquids are different, the basic structure of the apparatus is the same. Furthermore, in the following text, refer to... Figures 2 to 5 The device structure and operation are explained in detail.

[0044] like Figure 1As shown, the first liquid treatment unit 81 is paired with its adjacent first rinsing unit 82, and the second liquid treatment unit 83 is paired with its adjacent second rinsing unit 84. Furthermore, the elevator 810a functions not only as a "substrate holding unit" in both the first liquid treatment unit 81 and the first rinsing unit 82, but also as a dedicated transport mechanism in the first liquid treatment unit 81 for moving the liquid-treated substrate W to the first rinsing unit 82. Similarly, the elevator 810b functions not only as a "substrate holding unit" in both the second liquid treatment unit 83 and the second rinsing unit 84, but also as a dedicated transport mechanism in the second liquid treatment unit 83 for moving the liquid-treated substrate W to the second rinsing unit 84.

[0045] In the processing unit 8 configured like this, the three support components of the elevator 810a ( Figure 2 The symbol 812 in the diagram indicates that multiple substrates W are received together from a pair of cantilever arms 71 of the substrate transport mechanism 7. As described in detail below, while performing an overflow process to cause the processing liquid to overflow from the processing tank and an air supply process to supply air bubbles to the processing liquid stored in the processing tank, the multiple substrates W are lowered into the processing tank of the first chemical treatment section 81 and immersed in the chemical liquid (immersion process). After a predetermined chemical treatment time, the elevator 810a lifts the support member holding the multiple substrates W from the chemical liquid and moves it laterally to the first rinsing treatment section 82. The support member holding the chemically treated substrates W is then lowered into the processing tank of the first rinsing treatment section 82. Figure 2 The substrate W is immersed in the rinsing solution within the symbol 821. After a predetermined rinsing time, the elevator 810a raises the support member holding the rinsed substrate W and retrieves it from the rinsing solution. Then, multiple substrates W are transferred together from the support member of the elevator 810a to a pair of cantilever arms 71 of the substrate transport mechanism 7.

[0046] Similarly, the elevator 810b also receives multiple substrates W from the pair of cantilever arms 71 of the substrate transport mechanism 7, lowering the substrates W into the treatment tank 821 of the second chemical treatment unit 83 to immerse them in the chemical solution. After a predetermined chemical treatment time, the elevator 810b raises the support member to retrieve the chemically treated substrates W from the chemical solution, moves them laterally to the treatment tank of the second rinsing treatment unit 84, and lowers the support member into the treatment tank 821 of the second rinsing treatment unit 84 to immerse them in the rinsing solution. After a predetermined rinsing treatment time, the elevator 810b raises the support member to retrieve the substrates W from the rinsing solution. Then, the multiple substrates W are transferred together from the elevator 810b to the substrate transport mechanism 7. In addition, elevators that function as the “substrate holding part” of the present invention may be provided in the first liquid treatment unit 81, the first rinsing treatment unit 82, the second liquid treatment unit 83, and the second rinsing treatment unit 84 respectively. On the other hand, the substrate W is moved in and out relative to the treatment units 81 to 84 by the substrate transport mechanism 7 and a dedicated transport mechanism.

[0047] The drying unit 85 includes a substrate holding member (not shown) capable of holding multiple substrates W (e.g., 52) in an upright arrangement. The substrates W are dried by supplying an organic solvent (such as isopropanol) to them under reduced pressure or by using centrifugal force to remove liquid components from their surfaces. The drying unit 85 is configured to transfer substrates W between a pair of cantilever arms 71 of the substrate transport mechanism 7. Then, multiple substrates W, after rinsing, are received together from the substrate transport mechanism 7, and the substrates W are dried. After drying, the multiple substrates W are transferred together from the substrate holding member to the substrate transport mechanism 7.

[0048] Next, the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention will be described. Figure 1 The substrate processing system shown includes a first chemical treatment unit 81, a first rinsing unit 82, a second chemical treatment unit 83, and a second rinsing unit 84. While the processing solutions used in these units differ, their structures and operations are essentially the same. Therefore, the structure and operation of the first chemical treatment unit 81, which corresponds to a first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, will be described below, omitting descriptions of the first rinsing unit 82, the second chemical treatment unit 83, and the second rinsing unit 84.

[0049] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a simplified structure of a first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. Figure 3 It is shown schematically. Figure 2 An exploded and assembled perspective view of the main structure of the substrate processing device shown. Figure 4 yes Figure 2A partial sectional view. Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram showing the arrangement of multiple substrates held by the elevator and the bubble ejection outlet. The first chemical treatment unit 81 is an apparatus that uses, for example, a chemical solution containing phosphoric acid as a treatment liquid to etch away a silicon nitride film through a recess formed on the surface of the substrate W. Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the first chemical treatment unit 81 includes a treatment tank 821 for treating the substrate W with a first chemical solution. The treatment tank 821 has a box structure with an opening at the top, consisting of a rectangular bottom wall 821a and four side walls 821b-821e rising from the periphery of the bottom wall 821a. Therefore, the treatment tank 821 can store the treatment solution in a storage space 821f surrounded by the bottom wall 821a and the side walls 821b-821e, while simultaneously immersing multiple substrates W held by the elevator 810a. Furthermore, the treatment tank 821 has an opening at the top 821g that opens in the (+Z) direction, allowing the treatment solution to overflow from the storage space 821f.

[0050] An overflow trough 822 is provided around the treatment tank 821, and a recovery space 822a is formed by the overflow trough 822 and the side walls 821b to 821e of the treatment tank 821 to recover the overflowed treatment liquid. Furthermore, an outer container 823 is provided to surround the treatment tank 821 and the overflow trough 822 below and to the side.

[0051] A flow piping system 839 is arranged in the space on the (-X) direction side of the recovery space 822a of the overflow tank 822, more specifically on the sidewall 821d. The inlet of the flow piping system 839 is connected to the processing liquid supply unit 832, and the outlet is connected to the flow pipe 831 of the processing liquid ejection unit 830. Therefore, if the processing liquid supply unit 832 operates according to the processing liquid supply command from the control unit 9, processing liquid is supplied to multiple flow pipes 831 simultaneously via the flow piping system 839. As a result, the processing liquid is ejected from the flow pipes 831 and stored in the storage space 821f. Furthermore, the detailed structure of the flow pipe 831 will be described below.

[0052] Furthermore, the processing fluid overflowing from the processing tank 821 is recovered by the overflow tank 822. The processing fluid recovery unit 833 is connected to the overflow tank 822. If the processing fluid recovery unit 833 operates according to a processing fluid recovery command from the control unit 9, the processing fluid recovered to the overflow tank 822 is transported to the processing fluid supply unit 832 via the processing fluid recovery unit 833, thereby enabling reuse. Thus, in this embodiment, processing fluid can be continuously supplied to the processing tank 821 while being stored in the storage space 821f.

[0053] In order to impregnate multiple substrates W together with the storage space 821f containing the processing liquid, such as Figure 2 An elevator 810a is provided as shown. This elevator 810a is configured to be able to connect with the substrate transport mechanism 7 ( Figure 1 The elevator 810a is a device that lifts and lowers between the "intersection position" of multiple substrates W and the storage space 821f. The elevator 810a includes a back plate 811, three support members 812, and an extension member 813. The back plate 811 extends along the side wall 821b of the processing groove 821 toward the bottom wall 821a. The support members 812 extend from the lower end side of the back plate 811 in the (-X) direction. In this embodiment, three support members 812 are provided. In each support member 812, multiple V-shaped grooves 812a are arranged in the X direction at constant intervals. Each groove 812a has a V-shaped groove 812a that opens in the (+Z) direction and is slightly wider than the thickness of the substrate W, thus securing the substrate W. Therefore, by using the three support members 812, a constant substrate spacing PT can be maintained. Figure 5 The substrates W transported by the substrate transport mechanism 7 are held together. Furthermore, the extension member 813 extends from the upper rear side of the back plate 811 in the (+X) direction. Figure 2 As shown, the elevator 810a is generally L-shaped. Furthermore, the highest lifting position of the elevator 810a is set to such a height that the substrate transport mechanism 7 can pass above the support member 812 even when multiple substrates W are being transported.

[0054] A lifting drive mechanism 814 is provided on the (+X) direction side of the processing tank 821. The lifting drive mechanism 814 includes a lifting motor 815, a ball screw 816, a lifting base 817, a lifting strut 818, and a motor drive unit 819. The lifting motor 815 is mounted on the frame of the substrate processing system 1 (not shown) with its rotation axis placed longitudinally. The ball screw 816 is connected to the rotation axis of the lifting motor 815. One side of the lifting base 817 is threadedly connected to the ball screw 816. The base end of the lifting strut 818 is mounted on the center of the lifting base 817, and the other end is mounted on the lower surface of the extension member 813. When the motor drive unit 819 drives the lifting motor 815 according to the lifting command from the control unit 9, the ball screw 816 rotates, and the lifting strut 818 and the lifting base 817 rise together. As a result, the support member 812 is positioned at the junction. Furthermore, if the motor drive unit 819 drives the lifting motor 815 in the opposite direction according to the descent command from the control unit 9, the ball screw 816 rotates in the opposite direction, and the lifting support column 818 and the lifting base 817 descend together. As a result, the multiple substrates W held by the support member 812 are immersed together in the processing liquid stored in the storage space 821f.

[0055] In the storage space 821f, a processing liquid ejection section 830 and a bubble supply section 840 are provided on the lower side of the plurality of substrates W held by the support member 812, i.e., on the (-Z) direction side. The processing liquid ejection section 830 ejects the processing liquid supplied from the processing liquid supply section 832 via the flow piping system 839 into the storage space 821f, and the bubble supply section 840 ejects nitrogen bubbles V ( Figure 5 The above-mentioned devices are configured as follows: ) The treatment liquid is supplied to the storage space 821f.

[0056] like Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the treatment fluid ejection section 830 has a flow tube 831 extending in the X direction. In this embodiment, four flow tubes 831 are arranged separately in the Y direction. The (-X) direction end of each flow tube 831 is connected to the outlet of the flow piping system 839, and the (+X) direction end is sealed. Furthermore, a plurality of treatment fluid ejection outlets 834 are arranged through each flow tube 831 at constant intervals in the X direction. In this embodiment, as... Figure 4 As shown, each treatment liquid outlet 834 is oriented in the (-Z) direction. Therefore, the treatment liquid supplied to the flow pipe 831 flows in the (+X) direction inside the piping and is sprayed from each treatment liquid outlet 834 toward the inner bottom surface 821h of the bottom wall 821a, i.e., the storage space 821f. Then, as... Figure 4 As shown by the solid arrow in the diagram, the processing liquid flows upward through the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f, forming a flow F of processing liquid from the bottom wall 821a of the processing tank 821 toward the upper opening 821g, i.e., the overflow surface. Thus, an upward flow of processing liquid is formed on the lower side of the substrate W. Furthermore, for ease of understanding of the invention, the flow pipe arranged closest to the (-Y) direction among the four flow pipes 831 is referred to as "flow pipe 831a", and the flow pipes arranged sequentially toward the (+Y) direction are referred to as "flow pipe 831b", "flow pipe 831c", and "flow pipe 831d", respectively. And, without distinction, they are simply referred to as "flow pipe 831" as described above.

[0057] like Figures 3 to 5 As shown, the bubble supply unit 840 has a plurality of (four in this embodiment) bubblers 841. Each bubbler 841 has a foam pipe 842 extending in the X direction and a plurality of protruding portions 843 protruding upward from the foam pipe 842 in the (+Z) direction. One end of each foam pipe 842 is connected to a nitrogen supply unit 844, and the other end is sealed. The plurality of protruding portions 843 are provided at a spacing PT equal to the constant substrate spacing PT on the upper sidewall of the foam pipe 842. Figure 3As shown, each protruding portion 843 has a hollow cylindrical shape, and a bubble outlet 845 is provided at the center of the upper end face. In this embodiment, the foam piping 842 and the multiple protruding portions 843 are integrally formed by machining and penetrating the surface of a long resin tube made of a resin material, particularly selected from at least one material from the group consisting of polyetheretherketone (PEEK), perfluoroalkoxyalkane (PFA), and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). Of course, the foam piping 842 and the multiple protruding portions 843 can also be prepared separately, and the multiple protruding portions 843 can be installed on the foam piping 842 to form an integral unit.

[0058] In the bubble supply unit 840 configured in this way, if the gas supply unit 844 supplies nitrogen gas to the bubble supply unit 840 according to the bubble supply command from the control unit 9, the nitrogen gas flowing through the foam piping 842 is ejected upward from the bubble nozzle 845. Thus, nitrogen bubbles V are supplied to the processing liquid stored in the storage space 821f, supplied from a position higher than the processing liquid nozzle 834 in the vertical direction Z towards the overflow surface, i.e., in the (+Z) direction. These bubbles V rise in the processing liquid, promoting the replacement of the processing liquid on the surface of the substrate W with fresh processing liquid. Furthermore, the gas supply unit 844 can be a structure that supplies nitrogen gas from, for example, a nitrogen-filled gas tank, and can also be used in the equipment room of a factory where the substrate processing system 1 is installed.

[0059] And, as Figure 4 As shown, four bubblers 841 are supported from below by three bubble plates 851, and are thus fixedly arranged on the side below the substrate W held by the elevator 810a and above the processing liquid spray outlet 834. Here, again, for ease of understanding of the invention, the bubbler arranged on the (-Y) direction side among the four bubblers 841 is called "bubbler 841a", and the bubblers arranged sequentially on the (+Y) direction side are called "bubbler 841b", "bubbler 841c", and "bubbler 841d", respectively. And, without distinction, they are simply referred to as "bubbler 841" as described above. On the other hand, the same applies to the bubble plates 851; the bubble plate arranged on the (-Y) direction side among the bubble plates 851 is called "bubbling plate 851a", and the bubble plates arranged sequentially on the (+Y) direction side are called "bubbling plate 851b" and "bubbling plate 851c", respectively. Furthermore, without distinction, it is simply referred to as "bubbling board 851" as described above.

[0060] Bubble-forming plates 851a to 851c all have a plate shape extending along the X direction. Among them, such as... Figure 4As shown, the foaming plate 851a is positioned in the vertical direction Z, at a higher position than the treatment liquid outlet 834, between the flow tubes 831a and 831b, and is fixed to the treatment tank 821 by a fixing component (not shown). Furthermore, a bubbler 841a is fixed to the upper surface of the foaming plate 851a in a configuration that satisfies the following relationship: [The configuration relationship is as follows...] Figure 5 As shown, the protruding portion 843 of the bubbler 841a faces upward, and the substrate W and the bubble ejection outlet 845 are alternately located in the X direction. With this configuration, bubbles V supplied from the bubble ejection outlet 845 are ejected between adjacent substrates W in the X direction, thereby performing efficient chemical treatment. Furthermore, this configuration is also the same in the other bubblers 841b to 841d.

[0061] A foaming plate 851b is positioned in the vertical direction Z, higher than the treatment liquid outlet 834, between flow tubes 831b and 831c, and is fixed to the treatment tank 821 by a fixing member (not shown). Furthermore, bubblers 841b and 841c are fixed at intervals in the Y direction on the upper surface of the foaming plate 851b. Additionally, a foaming plate 851c is positioned in the vertical direction Z, higher than the treatment liquid outlet 834, between flow tubes 831c and 831d, and is fixed to the treatment tank 821 by a fixing member (not shown). A bubbler 841d is fixed to the upper surface of the foaming plate 851c. Thus, the foaming plates 851a to 851c function to support the bubble supply unit 840 from below.

[0062] Furthermore, since the foaming plates 851a to 851c are positioned in the vertical direction Z between the flow tubes 831a to 831d at a higher position than the treatment liquid outlet 834, in addition to the aforementioned support function, they also have the function of restricting the flow F of the treatment liquid flowing upward through the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f. The foaming plates 851a to 851c have through-holes 852a and 852b that are mutually separated and form the flow paths of the treatment liquid. Moreover, the lower ends of the flow tubes 831b and 831c are positioned to enter the through-holes 852a and 852b. Furthermore, at the same height as the flow tubes 831b and 831c, the flow tube 831a is positioned on the (-Y) direction side of the foaming plate 851a, and the flow tube 831d is positioned on the (+Y) direction side of the foaming plate 851a. Furthermore, gaps 86 are formed between adjacent components in the bubbling plates 851a-851c and the flow pipes 831a-831d. Therefore, the flow F of the treatment liquid (hereinafter referred to as the "target liquid") flowing towards the lower surface of the bubbling plate 851 in the upward flow of the treatment liquid is restricted by this lower surface and distributed in the horizontal plane. For example, in... Figure 4In the enlarged view, the flow F of the target liquid towards the lower surface of the foaming plate 851c is divided into a flow F5 of the processing liquid flowing in the gap 86 between the foaming plate 851c and the flow tube 831c, and a flow F6 of the processing liquid flowing in the gap 86 between the foaming plate 851c and the flow tube 831d. Furthermore, in the other foaming plates 851a and 851b, similar to foaming plate 851c, the flow F of the target liquid is restricted and divided into multiple flows F1 to F4 of the processing liquid.

[0063] Thus, in this embodiment, a portion (the target liquid) of the treatment liquid flowing upward through the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f is diverted into multiple flows F1 to F6 and rises toward the overflow surface. Thus, in this embodiment, the foaming plates 851a to 851c serve as the diversion section 850. Figure 3 The function is to take at least a portion of the processing liquid that flows upward through the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f as the diversion target liquid, and to divert the flow F of the diversion target liquid into multiple upward flows and guide them to the substrate W held by the elevator 810a.

[0064] In addition, refer to Figures 2 to 5 The structure of the first solution treatment unit 81, which corresponds to the first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, has been described. However, the second solution treatment unit 83 has the same structure as the first solution treatment unit 81, except that the type of treatment liquid is the same or different, and is equivalent to the first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. Furthermore, the first rinsing treatment unit 82 and the second rinsing treatment unit 84 have the same structure as the first solution treatment unit 81, except that the treatment liquid is a rinsing liquid such as pure water or DIW (deionized water), and are equivalent to the first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

[0065] In summary, according to this embodiment, the processing liquid is sprayed from the processing liquid outlet 834 toward the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f, forming a flow F of the processing liquid that passes through the inner bottom surface 821h and moves toward the overflow surface. Therefore, by spraying the processing liquid upward and obliquely upward from the lower side of the substrate W, compared with the prior art where the liquid is sprayed along the inner bottom surface of the storage space as described in Patent Document 1, it is possible to suppress the upward flow of the processing liquid that is biased within the storage space 821f. Furthermore, between the bubble supply section 840 in the vertical direction Z and the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f, a portion of the flow F of the processing liquid that flows upward through the inner bottom surface 821h is divided into multiple flows F1 to F6 and guided toward the overflow surface. Therefore, a large amount of upward flow is widely dispersed within the processing liquid stored in the storage space 821f, and the processing liquid rises in this state. Therefore, the downward flow generated within the storage space 821f can be effectively suppressed. As a result, bubbles V can be uniformly supplied to the substrate W, thereby enabling high-quality substrate processing.

[0066] In particular, since the first solution processing unit 81 performs wet etching of the SiN film via a high aspect ratio recess, it is important to apply the present invention to the first solution processing unit 81 in the manufacture of 3D-NAND memory. That is, in order to improve wet etching performance, it is necessary to effectively displace the processing liquid between the inside and outside of the recess. Furthermore, near the bottom of the recess, silicon precipitation occurs along with the etching reaction, but this silicon can be removed from the recess by the displacement of the processing liquid. In order to stably and continuously exhibit this liquid displacement, it is necessary to increase the concentration difference, i.e., the concentration gradient, between the inside and outside of the recess, and to maintain uniformity across the entire surface of the substrate W. In other words, to meet this condition, uniformly supplying fresh processing liquid to the surface of the substrate W is an important technical matter. In this regard, according to the first solution processing unit 81, which can uniformly supply bubbles V to the substrate W, the wet etching of the SiN film can be performed well by uniformly supplying the processing liquid with bubbles V.

[0067] And, as Figure 4 As shown in the enlarged view, a bubbler plate 851c and a bubbler 841d are arranged between adjacent flow tubes 831c and 831d. Specifically, the bubbler plate 851c and the bubbler 841d are positioned in the vertical direction Z between the topmost and lowest points (processing liquid outlet 834) of the flow tubes 831c and 831d. The same applies between flow tubes 831a and 831b, and between flow tubes 831b and 831c. In this way, the processing liquid outlet 830, the bubble supply section 840, and the flow divider 850 are all included within the outer diameter of the flow tube 831 in the vertical direction Z, thus enabling high-quality substrate processing without increasing the size of the processing tank 821 in the vertical direction Z.

[0068] And, as Figure 4 As shown, the processing liquid ejection section 830, the bubble supply section 840, and the diversion section 850 are symmetrically arranged relative to the imaginary vertical plane VS, which is held in the storage space 821f by the elevator 810a at the center Wc and is orthogonal to the surface of the substrate W. Therefore, the upward flow generated in the processing liquid stored in the storage space 821f is also symmetrical relative to the imaginary vertical plane VS, thereby suppressing the deflection of the upward flow and effectively suppressing the generation of the downward flow.

[0069] And, as Figure 5 As shown in the enlarged view, since the substrate W and the bubble outlet 845 are arranged alternately in the bubbler 841d in the X direction, bubbles V can be efficiently supplied between adjacent substrates W. As a result, substrate processing (chemical treatment, rinsing treatment) can be performed with high quality.

[0070] Furthermore, the bubble-forming plates 851a to 851c are positioned directly below the bubble supply section 840 to support the bubble supply section 840 from below. Therefore, the bubble supply section 840 can be securely fixed, thereby enabling the stable supply of bubbles V between adjacent substrates W.

[0071] In addition, such as Figure 3 As shown, the through-holes 852a and 852b are arranged in a direction parallel to the arrangement direction X of the bubble ejection outlet 845. Therefore, the relative relationship between the flow of the processing liquid flowing upward through the through-holes 852a and 852b and the flow of the bubbles V is constant in the X direction, suppressing disorder in the supply direction of the bubbles V. As a result, bubbles V can be stably supplied between adjacent substrates W.

[0072] Thus, in the first embodiment, the bubbling plates 851a-851c correspond to an example of the "restricted portion" of the present invention. Furthermore, the processing liquid flowing through the gap 86 after being distributed by the lower surface of the bubbling plates 851a-851c corresponds to the "processing liquid flowing in through the aforementioned restricted portion" of the present invention. Moreover, the X direction and the Y direction correspond to the "first horizontal direction" and the "second horizontal direction" of the present invention, respectively.

[0073] Figure 6 This is a partial cross-sectional view showing a simplified structure of a second embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. The major difference between this second embodiment and the first embodiment is the addition of two bubble plates 851 and two bubblers 841; the other structures are the same as in the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will focus on the differences, and the same symbols will be used to denote the same structures, omitting further explanation.

[0074] In the first embodiment, such as Figure 4 As shown, the treatment liquid that flows through the inner bottom surface 821h into the space between the side wall 821c and the flow pipe 831a of the treatment tank 821 rises towards the overflow surface as before, forming a flow F of the treatment liquid. In contrast, in the second embodiment, a foaming plate 851 (referred to as "foaming plate 851d") is disposed between the side wall 821c and the flow pipe 831a of the treatment tank 821. Therefore, the aforementioned treatment liquid is equivalent to the target liquid, and its flow F is restricted by the lower surface of the foaming plate 851d and distributed in the horizontal plane. As a result, the flow F of the target liquid is split into a flow F7 of the treatment liquid flowing in the gap between the side wall 821c and the foaming plate 851d, and a flow F8 of the treatment liquid flowing in the gap between the foaming plate 851c and the flow pipe 831a. Furthermore, the same applies to the sidewall 821e of the treatment tank 821. A foaming plate 851 (referred to as "foaming plate 851e") is disposed between the sidewall 821e of the treatment tank 821 and the flow pipe 831d, so that the treatment liquid flowing into the space is equivalent to the target liquid, and its flow F is restricted by the lower surface of the foaming plate 851e and distributed in the horizontal plane. As a result, the flow F of the target liquid is split into a flow F9 of the treatment liquid flowing in the gap between the foaming plate 851e and the flow pipe 831d, and a flow F10 of the treatment liquid flowing in the gap between the sidewall 821e and the foaming plate 851e.

[0075] Thus, according to the second embodiment, not only is a large amount of upward flow widely dispersed and formed in the central part of the storage space 821f as in the first embodiment, but a large amount of upward flow is also widely dispersed and formed at the ends of the storage space 821f. That is, the flow F of the processing liquid that flows upward through the inner bottom surface 821h is divided into multiple flows and guided towards the overflow surface. Therefore, the generation of downward flow in the storage space 821f can be further effectively suppressed. As a result, bubbles V can be supplied to the substrate W uniformly, thereby enabling substrate processing with higher quality.

[0076] Furthermore, in the second embodiment, since a bubbler 841 is additionally provided on the bubble plates 851d and 851e, the supply range of the bubbles V can be expanded, thereby enabling substrate processing with higher quality.

[0077] Figure 7 This is a top view showing a simplified structure of a third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. Figure 8 This is a cross-sectional view showing a simplified structure of a third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. The main difference between this third embodiment and the first embodiment lies in the number of bubblers 841 and bubble plates 851, and the relative positions of the flow tube 831, bubblers 841, and bubble plates 851; other structural details are the same as in the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will focus on the differences, omitting descriptions of the same structures by using the same symbols.

[0078] In the third embodiment, four flow tubes 831 are arranged separately in the X direction above the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f. Each flow tube 831 extends in the Y direction and has a treatment liquid outlet 834 facing the inner bottom surface 821h. Furthermore, multiple (eight in the third embodiment) foaming plates 851 are arranged separately in the Y direction above the flow tubes 831. Each foaming plate 851 extends in the X direction. Therefore, the flow tubes 831 and the foaming plates 851 are orthogonal to each other, forming a grid structure when viewed from above. Thus, the treatment liquid ejected from the treatment liquid outlets 834 of the flow tubes 831 passes through the inner bottom surface 821h, flows between adjacent flow tubes 831, and flows upwards. A portion of the treatment liquid (the liquid to be diverted) is restricted by the lower surface of the foaming plate 851 and distributed horizontally, rising towards the overflow surface when viewed from above, as neither the flow pipe 831 nor the through portion 852 of the foaming plate 851 exists. Thus, similar to the first and second embodiments, the flow of the liquid to be diverted is divided into multiple streams by the foaming plate 851. As a result, the same effects as in the first and second embodiments are achieved.

[0079] Furthermore, although bubblers 841 are fixed on each bubbler plate 851, the arrangement of the bubble outlet 845 of the bubbler 841 with the substrate W is the same as in the first and second embodiments, enabling efficient supply of bubbles V between adjacent substrates W. As a result, substrate processing (chemical treatment, rinsing treatment) can be performed with high quality.

[0080] However, in the first and second embodiments, a bubbler plate 851 constituting a flow divider 850 is arranged between adjacent flow tubes 831. But it is also possible, as in the third embodiment, to arrange the bubbler plate 851 directly above the flow tube 831, and to arrange a bubbler 841 on the bubbler plate 851 (fourth embodiment).

[0081] Furthermore, in the first to fourth embodiments, the three independent bubbling plates 851 are separated from each other and arranged in the Y direction to form a flow divider 850. However, the structure of the flow divider 850 is not limited to this; for example, it can also be arranged as follows: Figure 9 The configuration shown is (fifth embodiment).

[0082] Figure 9This diagram schematically illustrates the structure of the flow divider used in the fifth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. In this fifth embodiment, a component having a slit 854 extending in the X direction separated from a single plate component 853 in the Y direction may also be used as the flow divider 850. In this fifth embodiment, the slit 854 functions as a through portion 852, and each strip-shaped region 855 separated by the slit 854 functions as a bubbling plate 851, achieving the same effect as in the embodiments described above.

[0083] Furthermore, in the third and fourth embodiments, a plurality of independent bubble-forming plates 851 are separated from each other and arranged in the Y direction to form a flow divider 850 directly above the flow tube 831. However, for example, it may also be as follows: Figure 10 The configuration shown is (sixth embodiment).

[0084] Figure 10 This diagram schematically illustrates the structure of the flow divider used in the sixth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. In this sixth embodiment, as shown in the diagram, a plurality of through holes 856 are provided through the plate member 853 instead of a slit 854. That is, in the sixth embodiment, the through hole group substantially functions as a through portion 852, and each strip region 855 separated by the through hole group functions as a bubble plate 851, achieving the same effect as in the embodiments described above.

[0085] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the foamer 841 is fixedly disposed within the processing liquid stored in the storage space 821f by the foaming plate 851 of the diversion section 850, and the foaming plate 851 diverts the flow F of the processing liquid flowing upward through the inner bottom surface 821h into multiple flows. Here, for example, if the foaming plate 851 is directly fixed to the processing tank 821, it is also possible to... Figure 11 As shown, a bubbler 841 is arranged between adjacent flow tubes 831 (seventh embodiment).

[0086] Figure 11 This is a cross-sectional view showing a simplified structure of a seventh embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. In this seventh embodiment, as shown in the figure, the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid outlet 834 of the flow pipe 831 passes through the inner bottom surface 821h and flows upward between adjacent flow pipes 831. A portion of this processing liquid (the target liquid for diversion) is restricted by the lower surface of the foam piping 842 of the foamer 841 and distributed in a horizontal plane, rising towards the overflow surface. In this way, the flow of the target liquid for diversion is divided into multiple streams by the foamer 841. As a result, the same operating effects as in the first and second embodiments are obtained. Furthermore, the apparatus can be simplified accordingly by omitting the diversion section 850.

[0087] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a portion or all of the treatment liquid flowing upwards after passing through the inner bottom surface for 821 hours is used as the diversion target liquid, and the flow of the diversion target liquid is diverted to suppress the generation of downflow. In addition, other structures for suppressing downflow can be added. For example, as shown below... Figure 12 As shown, side wall openings 821i to 821l are provided in the processing tank 821 (eighth embodiment).

[0088] Figure 12 This is a diagram showing the structure of the processing tank used in the eighth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. The eighth embodiment differs from the first embodiment (…). Figure 3 The main difference is that, in all the sidewalls 821b to 821e of the processing tank 821, there are sidewall openings 821i to 821l in the substrate-facing areas opposite the substrate W immersed in the processing liquid; the other structures are the same as in the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will focus on the differences, and the same symbols will be used to mark the same structures, and the description will be omitted.

[0089] In the eighth embodiment, the storage space 821f and the recovery space 822a are connected through side wall openings 821i to 821l. Therefore, the processing liquid flowing toward the upper opening 821g is diverted into a flow that overflows from the processing tank 821 to the recovery space 822a via the upper opening 821g, and a flow that flows from the processing tank 821 to the recovery space 822a via the side wall openings 821i to 821l. This diversion of the processing liquid near the overflow surface further effectively suppresses the downward flow, thereby enabling a more uniform supply of bubbles V to the substrate W. As a result, substrate processing can be performed with higher quality.

[0090] Furthermore, in order to further suppress the generation of the downflow, the technology described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-102888, namely, the technology of adding a cover to limit the area of ​​the upper opening 821g to suppress the downflow, can also be added to the above embodiment.

[0091] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made in addition to the embodiments described above without departing from its spirit. For example, in the above embodiments, a bubbler 841 with a hollow cylindrical protruding portion 843 provided from the foam pipe 842 is used to supply the bubbles V, but the structure of the bubbler 841 is not limited to this. For example, a device such as... Figure 13 The bubbler shown has a hollow frustum-shaped protrusion 846 protruding from the foam piping 842 (ninth embodiment). Furthermore, for example, it can also be as follows... Figure 14The bubbler shown does not have a protruding part, that is, the bubble nozzle 845 is provided through the upper surface of the foam pipe 842 (tenth embodiment).

[0092] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the processing liquid ejection section 830 includes four flow tubes 831, but the number of flow tubes 831 is not limited to this, and is expected to be set according to the storage space 821f, the size of the substrate W, etc. Furthermore, the bubble supply section 840 includes four (first embodiment, seventh embodiment, etc.), six (second embodiment), and eight (third embodiment), but the number of bubblers 841 is not limited to this, and is expected to be set according to the storage space 821f, the size of the substrate W, etc. Furthermore, the diversion section 850 includes three (first embodiment, seventh embodiment, etc.), five (second embodiment), and eight (third embodiment), but the number of bubblers 851 is not limited to this, and is expected to be set according to the storage space 821f, the size of the substrate W, etc.

[0093] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, for example, Figure 4 As shown, the treatment liquid spray outlet 834 opens toward the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f, and sprays the treatment liquid toward the inner bottom surface 821h. Here, the method of allowing the treatment liquid to flow toward the inner bottom surface 821h is not limited to this (for example, the eleventh embodiment and the twelfth embodiment).

[0094] Figure 15 This is an exploded and assembled perspective view showing the main structure of the eleventh embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. Figure 16 This is a partial cross-sectional view of the substrate processing apparatus according to the eleventh embodiment. This eleventh embodiment differs from the first embodiment (…). Figure 4 The main differences are in the number and arrangement of the flow tubes 831, the addition of the cover component 835, and the addition of the slit 857 that functions as a through-hole 852 in the bubbling plate 851. Other structures are basically the same as in the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will focus on the differences, and the same symbols will be used to mark the same structures, and the description will be omitted.

[0095] In the eleventh embodiment, the flow tube 831 is configured the same as in the conventional device. That is, the flow tube 831 opens its processing liquid outlet 834 toward the lower end of the substrate W held by the elevator (substrate holding section), which is not shown in the figure. Therefore, if the processing liquid supply unit 832 operates according to the processing liquid supply command from the control unit 9, the processing liquid... Figure 16In the enlarged view, arrow AR1 indicates that the liquid is ejected from the flow tube 831 towards the substrate W. However, in this embodiment, the cover member 835 is arranged to cover the flow tube 831 from above, and the processing liquid is guided towards the inner bottom surface 821h of the storage space 821f as indicated by arrow AR2 in the figure. Thus, as in the first to tenth embodiments, the processing liquid flows upward through the inner bottom surface 821h. That is, a diverted target liquid is formed. A portion of the diverted target liquid is restricted by the lower surface of the foaming plate 851 and distributed in the horizontal plane. Moreover, the distributed processing liquid rises towards the overflow surface through the slit 857 (through portion 852) of the foaming plate 851. In this way, as in the above embodiments, the flow of the diverted target liquid is divided into multiple streams by the foaming plate 851. As a result, the downward flow generated in the storage space 821f can be effectively suppressed, thereby enabling high-quality substrate processing.

[0096] In the eleventh embodiment described above, by providing the cover member 835, the flow of the processing liquid directly above the cover member 835 tends to decrease. Therefore, it is also possible to... Figure 17 The configuration shown is such that a through hole 836 is provided in a part of the cover member 835, and a part of the processing liquid is also introduced directly above the cover member 835 (twelfth embodiment).

[0097] Figure 17 This is a partial cross-sectional view of the twelfth embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. In this twelfth embodiment, the through-hole 836 is provided on the cover member 835 at a position not opposite to the processing liquid spray outlet 834. Therefore, the processing liquid sprayed from the processing liquid spray outlet 834 flows along the curved lower surface of the cover member 835, and a portion of it flows through the through-hole 836 from the cover member 835 toward the lower end of the substrate W (refer to arrow F0 in this figure). On the other hand, the other processing liquid, like in the eleventh embodiment, becomes the diversion target liquid, and a portion of it is restricted by the lower surface of the bubble plate 851 and distributed in the horizontal plane. In this way, by adding the flow F0 of the processing liquid in the region directly above the cover member 835, the downward flow generated in the storage space 821f can be further effectively suppressed. As a result, the uniformity of the supply of bubbles V to the substrate W is improved, thereby enabling substrate processing of higher quality.

[0098] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, nitrogen is introduced into the bubbler 841 to supply bubbles V into the treatment liquid, but gases other than nitrogen can also be used as the "gas" of this invention.

[0099] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the present invention is applied to a substrate processing apparatus that uses a solution containing phosphoric acid for chemical treatment and a substrate processing apparatus that performs rinsing treatment. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can be applied to all substrate processing technologies that immerse the substrate in a processing solution other than the above-mentioned chemical solution and rinsing solution for substrate processing.

[0100] The invention has been described above with reference to specific embodiments, but this description is not intended to be limiting. When referring to the description of the invention, various modifications of the disclosed embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, as with other embodiments of the invention. Therefore, the claims are considered to include such modifications or embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention.

[0101] Industrial availability

[0102] This invention can be applied to all substrate processing technologies, which involve immersing a substrate in the processing liquid stored in the processing tank while the processing liquid overflows from the processing tank, and supplying air bubbles to the substrate in the processing liquid for processing.

[0103] Explanation of symbols

[0104] 81—First chemical solution treatment unit (substrate processing apparatus), 82—First rinsing treatment unit (substrate processing apparatus), 83—Second chemical solution treatment unit (substrate processing apparatus), 84—Second rinsing treatment unit (substrate processing apparatus), 810, 810a, 810b—Lifting machine (substrate holding unit), 821—Processing tank, 821a—Bottom wall (of the processing tank), 821b~821e—Side walls (of the processing tank), 821f—Storage space, 821g—Top opening, 821h—Inner bottom surface (of the storage space), 821h~821k—Side wall openings, 822—Overflow tank, 8 22a—Recovery space, 830—Processing liquid ejection section, 831, 831a~831d—Flow pipe, 834—Processing liquid ejection outlet, 835—Cover component, 836—Through hole, 840—Bubble supply section, 841, 841a~841d—Bubber, 845—Bubble ejection outlet, 850—Diverter section, 851, 851a~851e—Bubble plate, 852, 852a, 852b—Through section, V—Bubble, VS—Imaginary vertical plane, W—Substrate, Wc—(Substrate) center, X—First horizontal direction, Y—Second horizontal direction, Z—Vertical direction.

Claims

1. A substrate processing apparatus characterized by comprising: Possess: a processing tank having a storage space that stores a processing liquid, immersing a substrate in the processing liquid stored in the storage space while causing the processing liquid to overflow from an upper opening of the storage space, thereby processing the substrate; a substrate holding portion that holds the substrate in an upright posture in the storage space; a processing liquid ejection portion that has a processing liquid ejection port that ejects the processing liquid below the substrate held by the substrate holding portion, and causes the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejection port to flow toward an inner bottom surface of the processing tank; and a bubble supply portion that is provided below the substrate held by the substrate holding portion and above the processing liquid ejection port, and supplies bubbles to the processing liquid stored in the storage space, the processing liquid ejection port is disposed downwardly facing the inner bottom surface of the processing tank, between the bubble supply portion and the inner bottom surface of the processing tank in the vertical direction, at least a portion of the processing liquid that flows upwardly past the inner bottom surface of the processing tank is branched as a branched liquid, the flow of the branched liquid is branched into a plurality of upward flows facing the inner bottom surface of the processing tank, and the branched liquid is guided to the substrate held by the substrate holding portion.

2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a branching portion that branches the flow of the branched liquid into a plurality of upward flows, the branching portion has: a restriction site that restricts the flow of the branched liquid upwardly and distributes the branched liquid in a horizontal plane; and a plurality of through sites that are provided adjacent to the restriction site in the horizontal plane and penetrate in the vertical direction, and guide the processing liquid that flows in through the restriction site toward the substrate held by the substrate holding portion.

3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the processing liquid ejection portion has a plurality of flow tubes that are disposed extending in a first horizontal direction, and a plurality of the processing liquid ejection ports are provided in a side wall in alignment in the first horizontal direction, the plurality of flow tubes are disposed separately from each other in a second horizontal direction orthogonal to the first horizontal direction, and the restriction site is disposed between the flow tubes adjacent to each other in the second horizontal direction.

4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the restriction site is further disposed between the flow tubes adjacent to each other and the processing tank in the second horizontal direction.

5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the substrate holding portion holds a plurality of the substrates, and the plurality of the substrates are separated from each other in a first horizontal direction, the bubble supply portion has a plurality of bubble generators that are disposed extending in the first horizontal direction, and a plurality of bubble ejection ports that eject the bubbles are provided in a side wall in alignment in the first horizontal direction, the substrates and the bubble ejection ports are alternately positioned in the first horizontal direction, the bubble ejection ports respectively eject the bubbles toward between the substrates adjacent to each other in the first horizontal direction. ​ 6. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the restriction site is provided extending in a first horizontal direction, the processing liquid ejecting section has a plurality of flow tubes provided extending in a second horizontal direction orthogonal to the first horizontal direction, and a plurality of the processing liquid ejection ports are provided in the side wall in alignment in the second horizontal direction.

7. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the substrate holding section holds a plurality of the substrates and separates the plurality of the substrates from each other in the first horizontal direction, the bubble supplying section has a plurality of bubble generators provided extending in the first horizontal direction, and a plurality of bubble ejection ports ejecting the bubbles are provided in the side wall in alignment in the first horizontal direction, the substrates are alternately located in the first horizontal direction with the bubble ejection ports, the bubble ejection ports respectively eject the bubbles toward between the substrates adjacent in the first horizontal direction.

8. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the restriction site is located vertically directly below the bubble supplying section to support the bubble supplying section from below.

9. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the through site is provided extending in a direction parallel to an alignment direction of the bubble ejection ports.

10. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing liquid ejecting section has a plurality of flow tubes provided extending in a first horizontal direction, and a plurality of the processing liquid ejection ports are provided in the side wall in alignment in the first horizontal direction, the bubble supplying section has a bubble generator provided extending in the first horizontal direction, and a plurality of bubble ejection ports ejecting the bubbles are provided in the side wall in alignment in the first horizontal direction, the bubble generator is disposed between the flow tubes adjacent to each other in a second horizontal direction orthogonal to the first horizontal direction, to split the flow of the split target liquid flowing between the adjacent flow tubes into a plurality of upflows.

11. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein with respect to an imaginary vertical plane passing through a center of the substrate held by the substrate holding section in the storage space and orthogonal to a surface of the substrate, the processing liquid ejecting section and the bubble supplying section are symmetrically disposed.

12. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein with respect to an imaginary vertical plane passing through a center of the substrate held by the substrate holding section in the storage space and orthogonal to a surface of the substrate, the processing liquid ejecting section, the bubble supplying section and the split section are symmetrically disposed.

13. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein a side wall opening is provided in a vicinity of the upper opening in the side wall of the processing tank, the processing liquid flowing toward the upper opening is split into a flow overflowing via the upper opening and a flow discharged from the processing tank via the side wall opening.

14. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the processing liquid ejection port is opened toward an inner bottom surface of the processing tank.

15. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the processing liquid ejection port is opened toward the substrate held by the substrate holding section, the processing liquid ejection section has a cover member that guides the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejection port toward the inner bottom surface of the processing tank.

16. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the cover member has a through-hole that allows a portion of the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejection port to flow toward the substrate held by the substrate holding section.

17. A substrate processing method, comprising: comprises: an overflow process in which the processing liquid is stored in a storage space of the processing tank by ejecting the processing liquid from a processing liquid ejection port provided to oppose the inner bottom surface of the processing tank toward the storage space, and the processing liquid overflows from an upper opening of the storage space; an immersion process in which the substrate is immersed in the processing liquid stored in the storage space; and a bubble supply process in which bubbles are supplied from a bubble supply section from a lower side of the substrate immersed in the processing liquid in the storage space, the processing liquid ejection port is provided to face downward in opposition to the inner bottom surface of the processing tank on a lower side of the bubble supply section, the overflow process is performed in parallel with the immersion process and the bubble supply process, and at least a portion of the flow of the processing liquid that flows upward past the inner bottom surface of the processing tank is branched into a plurality of upward flows and guided to the substrate between the bubble supply section and the inner bottom surface of the processing tank.

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