A photoresist processing method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application provides a photoresist processing method and apparatus, relating to the field of semiconductor technology. The photoresist processing method includes: Step S1: Insert a photoresist pipeline for extracting photoresist into a position higher than the inner bottom surface of a photoresist bottle, where the photoresist bottle contains photoresist; Step S2: When the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline, an alarm prompt is issued; Step S3: According to the alarm prompt, add a cushion block below the photoresist bottle so that the lower end of the photoresist pipeline continues to be inserted into the photoresist, effectively improving the process efficiency, greatly enhancing the convenience and flexibility of process operations, and at the same time avoiding cost waste and optimizing the control of process costs.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of semiconductor technology, and particularly to a method and device for processing photoresist. Background Art

[0002] As a product widely used in the process, photoresist is extremely sensitive to environmental factors such as light and heat. Therefore, strict requirements are also imposed on light-shielding properties, especially storage conditions such as storage temperature and idle period. In addition to being light-impermeable, it also needs to be stored in a low-temperature refrigerator. Before using the photoresist, the photoresist (PR) needs to be taken out of the cold storage and de-iced before it can be used. However, the effective period of some photoresist after de-icing is very short. Once the photoresist is used up on the machine (i.e., in the PR empty state) and then the photoresist is taken from the cold storage for de-icing, it takes a long time. Also, because the effective period of some photoresist after de-icing is very short, if it is not used in time after de-icing, the photoresist will expire. Therefore, it is not possible to de-ice too long in advance.

[0003] Currently, the commonly adopted method in the process is to place the photoresist conduit at the bottom of the photoresist bottle. When the photoresist conduit cannot draw out the photoresist, a PR empty reminder will be issued, which will lead to machine downtime due to untimely de-icing and inability to promptly replenish the photoresist that meets the qualified de-icing requirements. Whether the machine stops due to PR empty or the de-icing operation is carried out immediately resulting in inability to quickly replenish the photoresist, it will seriously affect the process efficiency and operation convenience. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, the embodiments of the present specification provide a method and device for processing photoresist, which effectively improve the process efficiency, greatly enhance the process operation convenience and flexibility, and at the same time can avoid cost waste and optimize the process cost control.

[0005] The embodiments of the present specification provide the following technical solutions:

[0006] On the one hand, a method for processing photoresist is provided, including:

[0007] Step S1: Insert the photoresist pipeline for extracting photoresist into a position higher than the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle, and the photoresist bottle contains photoresist;

[0008] Step S2: When the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline, an alarm prompt is issued;

[0009] Step S3: According to the alarm prompt, add a cushion block below the photoresist bottle so that the lower end of the photoresist pipeline continues to be inserted into the photoresist.

[0010] In some embodiments, in the step S1, the position where the photoresist pipeline is inserted above the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle is at a height one-third of the height of the photoresist bottle from the inner bottom surface.

[0011] In some embodiments, in the step S1, the photoresist bottle is placed inside a nitrogen-pressurized steel cylinder.

[0012] In some embodiments, in the step S2, the photoresist in the photoresist bottle is pumped out by a photoresist pump until the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline, and an alarm prompt is sent out by a liquid level sensor connected to the photoresist pipeline.

[0013] In some embodiments, in the step S2, the photoresist in the photoresist bottle is pumped out by the photoresist pump and transported to a coating unit for coating operation.

[0014] In some embodiments, in the step S3, the lower end of the photoresist pipeline is lower than the height line of the photoresist.

[0015] In some embodiments, the lower end of the photoresist pipeline touches the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle.

[0016] In some embodiments, the insertion of the photoresist pipeline into the upper cover of the photoresist bottle is in a fixed and sealed state.

[0017] In some embodiments, after the alarm prompt is sent out, an annealing operation is performed on the photoresist to be annealed.

[0018] On the other hand, a photoresist processing device according to the photoresist processing method described in any one of the above embodiments is provided, including a photoresist bottle containing photoresist, a photoresist pipeline for inserting into the photoresist bottle and pumping out the photoresist, and a spacer. When the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline and an alarm prompt is sent out, the spacer is used to be placed under the photoresist bottle so that the lower end of the photoresist pipeline continues to be inserted into the photoresist.

[0019] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects that can be achieved by at least one of the above technical solutions adopted in the embodiments of this specification at least include:

[0020] Provide an early warning function mechanism, so that when the first alarm is given, there is still enough photoresist in the photoresist bottle for the process to use, avoiding ineffective downtime, and enabling the defrosting operation of the pending photoresist to be carried out in time after the alarm is issued so as to replenish the photoresist in time, effectively improving the process efficiency; at the same time, there is also sufficient time to reasonably arrange the photoresist defrosting time (especially for photoresists with short shelf lives), reducing the risk of photoresist expiration, not only improving the convenience of process operation, but also greatly reducing the risk of cost waste. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0021] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings required for use in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings.

[0022] Figure 1 It is a schematic flowchart of the photoresist processing method provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 2 It is a schematic structural diagram of the photoresist processing device before adding the spacer block provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0024] Figure 3 It is a schematic structural diagram of the photoresist processing device in a working state provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0025] Figure 4 It is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the photoresist processing device provided by the embodiment of the present application. Detailed Embodiments

[0026] The embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0027] The following illustrates the embodiments of the present application through specific specific examples. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present application from the content disclosed in this specification. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. The present application can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments. Various details in this specification can also be modified or changed based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of the present application. It should be noted that, without conflict, the following embodiments and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present application without creative efforts belong to the scope of protection of the present application.

[0028] It should be noted that the following description relates to various aspects of embodiments within the scope of the appended claims. It will be apparent that the aspects described herein can be embodied in a wide variety of forms, and any specific structure and / or function described herein is merely illustrative. Based on this application, those skilled in the art should understand that one aspect described herein can be implemented independently of any other aspect, and two or more of these aspects can be combined in various ways. For example, any number and aspects described herein can be used to implement the device and / or practice the method. Additionally, this device can be implemented and this method can be practiced using other structures and / or functionality in addition to one or more of the aspects described herein.

[0029] It should also be noted that the diagrams provided in the following embodiments only illustrate the basic concept of this application schematically. Only the components related to this application are shown in the diagrams, rather than being drawn according to the number, shape, and size of the components in actual implementation. The type, quantity, and ratio of each component in its actual implementation can be arbitrarily changed, and the component layout type may also be more complex.

[0030] In addition, in the following description, specific details are provided to facilitate a thorough understanding of the examples. However, those skilled in the art will understand that the examples can be practiced without these specific details.

[0031] As Figures 1 to 4 shown, the photoresist processing device 1 includes a photoresist bottle 11 containing photoresist, a photoresist pipeline 12 for inserting the photoresist bottle 11 and extracting photoresist, and a spacer 13. When the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle 11 drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 and an alarm prompt is issued, the spacer 13 is used to be placed below the photoresist bottle 11 so that the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 continues to be inserted into the photoresist, that is, the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 is lower than the height line of the photoresist. Preferably, the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 contacts the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle 11. This can provide an early warning function mechanism, so that when the first alarm prompt occurs, there is still sufficient photoresist in the photoresist bottle 11 for the process to use, avoiding ineffective downtime, and enabling the timely thawing operation of the remaining photoresist after the alarm is issued to replenish the photoresist in time, effectively improving the process efficiency; at the same time, there is also sufficient time for reasonable arrangement of the photoresist thawing time (especially for photoresists with a short shelf life), reducing the risk of photoresist expiration, not only improving the convenience of process operation, but also greatly reducing the risk of cost waste.

[0032] Specifically, as Figure 1 shown, the photoresist processing method mainly includes the following steps:

[0033] Step S1: Insert the photoresist pipeline 12 for extracting photoresist into a position higher than the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle 11, and the photoresist bottle 11 contains photoresist;

[0034] Step S2: When the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle 11 drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12, an alarm prompt is issued.

[0035] Step S3: According to the alarm prompt, a spacer 13 is added below the photoresist bottle 11 so that the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 continues to be inserted into the photoresist.

[0036] In some embodiments, in Step S1, the position where the photoresist pipeline 12 is inserted above the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle 11 is: the height h from the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle 11 accounts for one-third of the height of the photoresist bottle 11. In some embodiments, according to specific needs, it can also be other possible ratios such as one-half or one-fourth of the height of the photoresist bottle 11 from the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle 11, and the embodiments of the present application do not make special restrictions. In some embodiments, in Step S1, the photoresist bottle 11 can be placed in a steel cylinder 14 pressurized with nitrogen (N2). Exemplarily, the N2 of the pressurized steel cylinder 14 can be connected through a pressure relief check valve interface 15 and an N2 interface 16.

[0037] In some embodiments, in Step S2, the photoresist in the photoresist bottle 11 can be pumped by a photoresist pump (PR pump, used to provide pumping pressure, not shown in the figure) until the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle 11 drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12, and the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 is in a suspended state and the photoresist cannot be pumped anymore. At this time, an alarm prompt will be issued by a liquid level sensor (not shown in the figure) connected to the photoresist pipeline 12 for photoresist remaining amount warning. In some embodiments, after the alarm prompt is issued, the thawing operation of the photoresist to be thawed is performed. In some embodiments, in Step S2, the photoresist pump pumps the photoresist in the photoresist bottle 11 and then transports the photoresist to a coating unit (not shown in the figure) for coating operation.

[0038] In some embodiments, in order to maintain a good sealing effect between the photoresist pipeline 12 and the photoresist bottle 11 during the whole process, the position where the photoresist pipeline 12 is inserted into the upper cover of the photoresist bottle 11 is in a sealed state. In some embodiments, the position (such as the height position) where the photoresist pipeline 12 is inserted into the photoresist bottle 11 is in a fixed and locked state.

[0039] In some embodiments, in step S3, after the alarm prompt is issued, there is still a remaining amount in the photoresist bottle 11 set to meet the continued use. By adding a spacer 13 under the photoresist bottle 11, the photoresist bottle 11 can be lifted while keeping the height of the photoresist pipeline 12 unchanged. As a result, the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 is again lower than the height line of the photoresist, that is, it is inserted again into the photoresist in the photoresist bottle 11. In this way, the photoresist can be continuously supplied without the machine tool stopping, thus greatly improving the working efficiency affected by the stop and standby of the machine tool in the normal process. In some embodiments, after the photoresist bottle 11 is lifted by the spacer 13, the lower end of the photoresist pipeline 12 can be made to contact the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle 11 to provide a longer margin of photoresist supply until the liquid level sensor alarms again. Since the subsequent photoresist thawing operation has been prepared after the previous reminder, the risk that the photoresist thawing is not timely, unqualified, or the photoresist fails due to a short shelf life and the qualified thawed photoresist cannot be supplied in time is effectively reduced. The convenience and flexibility of the process operation are greatly improved, and at the same time, cost waste can be avoided and the process cost control can be optimized.

[0040] In this specification, the same or similar parts among the various embodiments can be referred to each other, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. In particular, for the product embodiments described later, since they correspond to the methods, the descriptions are relatively simple, and the relevant parts can be referred to the partial descriptions of the system embodiments.

[0041] At the same time, this specification uses specific terms to describe the embodiments of this specification. Such as "one embodiment", "an embodiment", and / or "some embodiments" mean a certain feature, structure, or characteristic related to at least one embodiment of this specification. Therefore, it should be emphasized and noted that the "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" or "an alternative embodiment" mentioned twice or more at different positions in this specification is not necessarily the same embodiment. In addition, certain features, structures, or characteristics in one or more embodiments of this specification can be combined appropriately.

[0042] In addition, unless clearly stated in the claims, the order of the processing elements and sequences, the use of numbers, letters, or other names in this specification is not used to limit the order of the processes and methods in this specification. Although various examples are discussed in the above disclosure for some currently considered useful invention embodiments, it should be understood that such details only serve the purpose of illustration, and the appended claims are not limited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary, the claims are intended to cover all modifications and equivalent combinations that conform to the essence and scope of the embodiments of this specification. For example, although the system components described above can be implemented by hardware devices, they can also be implemented only through software solutions, such as installing the described system on existing processing devices or mobile devices.

[0043] The basic concepts have been described above. Obviously, for those skilled in the art, the above detailed disclosure is only an example and does not constitute a limitation to this specification. Although not explicitly stated here, those skilled in the art may make various modifications, improvements, and corrections to this specification. Such modifications, improvements, and corrections are suggested in this specification, so such modifications, improvements, and corrections still fall within the spirit and scope of the exemplary embodiments of this specification.

Claims

1. A photoresist processing method, characterized in that, Comprising: Step S1: Insert the photoresist pipeline for extracting photoresist into a position higher than the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle, where the photoresist bottle contains photoresist; Step S2: When the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline, an alarm prompt is issued; Step S3: According to the alarm prompt, place a spacer block under the photoresist bottle so that the lower end of the photoresist pipeline continues to be inserted into the photoresist.

2. The photoresist processing method according to claim 1, wherein, In Step S1, the position where the photoresist pipeline is inserted higher than the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle is at a height one-third of the height of the photoresist bottle from the inner bottom surface.

3. The photoresist processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that, In Step S1, place the photoresist bottle in a steel cylinder pressurized with nitrogen.

4. The photoresist processing method according to claim 1, wherein In Step S2, the photoresist in the photoresist bottle is pumped by a photoresist pump until the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline, and an alarm prompt is issued by a liquid level sensor connected to the photoresist pipeline.

5. The photoresist processing method according to claim 4, wherein, In Step S2, the photoresist in the photoresist bottle is pumped by the photoresist pump and transported to a coating unit for coating operation.

6. The photoresist processing method according to claim 1, wherein In Step S3, the lower end of the photoresist pipeline is lower than the height line of the photoresist.

7. The photoresist processing method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The lower end of the photoresist pipeline touches the inner bottom surface of the photoresist bottle.

8. The photoresist processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The insertion of the photoresist pipeline into the upper cover of the photoresist bottle is in a fixed and sealed state.

9. The photoresist processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, After the alarm prompt is issued, perform the thawing operation on the photoresist to be thawed.

10. A photoresist processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, Comprising a photoresist bottle containing photoresist, a photoresist pipeline for inserting into the photoresist bottle and extracting photoresist, and a spacer block. When the height line of the photoresist in the photoresist bottle drops below the lower end of the photoresist pipeline and an alarm prompt is issued, the spacer block is used to be placed under the photoresist bottle so that the lower end of the photoresist pipeline continues to be inserted into the photoresist.

Images