Substrate processing method and substrate processing apparatus

Abstract

The invention relates to a substrate processing method and a substrate processing apparatus. The invention provides a technology capable of confirming the operation of a driving part in a chamber with higher precision. The substrate processing method includes a processing step, an imaging step, a synchronization step, and a calculation step. In the processing step, the control unit measures the time and outputs a control signal to at least one drive unit of the processing unit to cause the processing unit to process the substrate carried into the chamber. The image capturing step is performed during at least a part of the processing step, and generates image data by capturing an image in the chamber by the camera. In the synchronization step, synchronization processing is performed in which the difference between the current time measured by the control unit and the current time measured by the camera is reduced. In the calculation step, a phenomenon change in the chamber is detected on the basis of the image data, the occurrence time of the phenomenon change is calculated on the basis of the imaging time of the image data, and the time difference between the output time of the control signal and the occurrence time of the phenomenon change is obtained on the basis of the synchronized time.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a substrate processing method and a substrate processing apparatus. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a substrate processing apparatus has been proposed that supplies a processing liquid to a substrate to process the substrate (for example, Patent Document 1). In Patent Document 1, the substrate processing apparatus includes a chamber, a rotary chuck, a nozzle, a supply pipe, a valve, a camera, and a control unit. The rotary chuck is disposed in the chamber, holds the substrate in a horizontal posture, and rotates the substrate about a vertical rotation axis passing through the center of the substrate. The nozzle is disposed in the chamber and sprays the processing liquid onto the upper surface of the rotating substrate. Specifically, the valve is opened by the control unit, the processing liquid is supplied to the nozzle through the supply pipe, and is sprayed from the nozzle onto the upper surface of the substrate. The processing liquid adhering to the upper surface of the substrate is centrifuged by the rotation of the substrate and flows radially outward, and scatters outward from the periphery of the substrate. By the action of the processing liquid on the upper surface of the substrate, the substrate is processed corresponding to the processing liquid.

[0003] The camera takes pictures in the chamber and generates photographic image data. The control unit monitors the monitoring object in the chamber based on the photographic image data.

[0004] [Background Art Documents]

[0005] [Patent Documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2021-190511 Summary of the Invention

[0007] [Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

[0008] The control unit can open the valve by outputting a control signal to the valve. Since the control unit has a function of measuring time, the output time of the control signal can be grasped. On the other hand, the control unit can detect, based on the photographic image data, a change in the spraying state of the processing liquid from the nozzle, for example, and obtain the change time of the spraying state based on the photographing time of the photographic image data. However, when a deviation occurs between the clock of the camera and the control clock of the control unit, the output time of the control signal and the change time of the spraying state cannot be accurately measured on the same time axis. In such a case, there is a concern that the control unit cannot monitor properly.

[0009] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a technique capable of confirming the operation of a driving unit in a chamber with higher accuracy.

[0010] [Technical Means for Solving the Problems]

[0011] The first aspect is a substrate processing method, which includes: a processing step of measuring time by a control unit and outputting a control signal to at least one driving unit in a processing unit to cause the processing unit to perform processing on a substrate carried into a chamber; a photographing step performed during at least a part of the processing step, in which a camera takes a picture in the chamber to generate image data; a synchronization step of performing synchronization processing to reduce the difference between the current time measured by the control unit and the current time measured by the camera; and a calculation step of detecting a change in a phenomenon in the chamber based on the image data, calculating the occurrence time of the change in the phenomenon based on the photographing time of the image data, and obtaining the time difference between the output time of the control signal and the occurrence time of the change in the phenomenon based on the synchronized time.

[0012] The second aspect is the substrate processing method of the first aspect, in which, in the processing step, the control unit outputs a movement command as the control signal to a nozzle movement driving unit, and the nozzle movement driving unit moves a nozzle that sprays a processing liquid onto the main surface of the substrate; in the calculation step, the movement of the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference, that is, the delay time, from the output time of the movement command to the movement time of the nozzle is obtained based on the synchronized time.

[0013] The third aspect is the substrate processing method of the first or second aspect, in which, in the processing step, the control unit outputs an opening command or a closing command as the control signal to a supply valve provided in a supply pipe connected to a nozzle that sprays a processing liquid onto the main surface of the substrate; in the calculation step, a change in the spraying state of the processing liquid from the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference, that is, the delay time, from the output time of the control signal to the change time of the spraying state is obtained based on the synchronized time.

[0014] The fourth aspect is the substrate processing method of the third aspect, in which, in the processing step, after the control unit outputs the opening command to the supply valve to cause the processing liquid to be sprayed from the nozzle, the control unit outputs the closing command to the supply valve to stop the spraying of the processing liquid from the nozzle; in the calculation step, the start of spraying of the processing liquid from the nozzle in response to the opening command is detected based on the image data, the stop of spraying of the processing liquid from the nozzle in response to the closing command is detected based on the image data, and the supply time from the start time of spraying of the processing liquid to the stop time of spraying is obtained.

[0015] The fifth aspect is the substrate processing method of the third or fourth aspect, wherein in the calculation step, based on the image data, a change in the fluctuation of the processing liquid at the liquid landing position of the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate is detected as a change in the ejection state of the processing liquid.

[0016] The sixth aspect is the substrate processing method of any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein in the processing step, the control unit causes the processing liquid to be ejected from the nozzle onto the main surface of the substrate, and outputs a speed change command as the control signal to the rotation drive unit that rotates the substrate; in the calculation step, based on the image data, a change in the fluctuation of the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate at a position radially outside the liquid landing position of the processing liquid is detected as a change in the rotation speed of the substrate.

[0017] The seventh aspect is the substrate processing method of any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein in the processing step, the control unit outputs the control signal to the displacement drive unit that displaces the position of the displacement object in the chamber, and outputs an open command or a close command as the control signal to the supply valve provided in the supply pipe connected to the nozzle that ejects the processing liquid onto the main surface of the substrate; in the calculation step, a change in the ejection state of the processing liquid from the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference between the output time of the control signal for the displacement drive unit and the change time of the ejection state of the processing liquid is obtained based on the synchronized time.

[0018] The eighth aspect is the substrate processing method of the seventh aspect, wherein in the processing step, the control unit outputs the close command to the supply valve, and outputs a speed change command as the control signal to the displacement drive unit that rotates the substrate, that is, the rotation drive unit; in the calculation step, the stop of the ejection of the processing liquid from the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference between the output time of the speed change command and the stop time of the ejection of the processing liquid is obtained based on the synchronized time.

[0019] The ninth aspect is the substrate processing method of any one of the first to eighth aspects, wherein in the processing step, the control unit outputs the control signal to the displacement drive unit that displaces the position of the displacement object in the chamber; in the synchronization step, the start of the position change of the displacement object in the chamber is detected based on the image data, the displacement start time when the position of the displacement object starts to change is calculated based on the imaging time of the image data, and the synchronization process is performed based on the output time of the control signal and the displacement start time.

[0020] The tenth aspect is a substrate processing method according to any one of the first to ninth aspects, wherein for each of the plurality of substrates, the processing step, the imaging step, the synchronization step, and the calculation step are performed to generate aging data representing the aging change of the time difference related to the plurality of substrates.

[0021] The eleventh aspect is a substrate processing method according to any one of the first to tenth aspects, wherein for each of the plurality of processing units, the processing step, the imaging step, the synchronization step, and the calculation step are performed to generate inter-device data representing the unevenness of the time difference between the plurality of processing units.

[0022] The twelfth aspect is a substrate processing apparatus including: a chamber; a camera that performs imaging in the chamber to generate image data; a driving unit that processes a substrate loaded into the chamber; and a control unit that outputs a control signal to the driving unit to cause the driving unit to perform processing on the substrate loaded into the chamber; and the control unit performs synchronization processing to reduce the difference between the current time measured by the control unit and the current time measured by the camera, detects a change in the phenomenon in the chamber based on the image data, calculates the occurrence time of the change in the phenomenon based on the imaging time of the image data, and obtains the time difference between the output time of the control signal and the occurrence time of the change in the phenomenon based on the synchronized time.

[0023] [Effects of the Invention]

[0024] According to the first and twelfth aspects, the time difference between the output time of the control signal and the occurrence time of the change in the phenomenon can be obtained with high accuracy.

[0025] According to the second aspect, the delay time related to the nozzle movement driving unit can be obtained with high accuracy.

[0026] According to the third aspect, the delay time related to the change in the ejection state can be obtained with high accuracy.

[0027] According to the fourth aspect, the supply time can be obtained.

[0028] According to the fifth aspect, the change in the ejection state can be detected with high accuracy based on the image data.

[0029] According to the sixth aspect, the change in the rotation speed can be detected based on the image data.

[0030] According to the seventh aspect, since the responsiveness of the shifting driving unit is high, the shifting start time when the position of the shifting object starts to change is substantially the same as the output time of the control signal for the shifting driving unit. Therefore, the time difference between the shifting start time and the change time of the ejection state can be obtained with high accuracy.

[0031] According to the eighth aspect, the time difference between the start time of the change in the rotation speed of the substrate and the stop time of the ejection of the processing liquid can be obtained more simply and with higher precision.

[0032] According to the ninth aspect, since there is no need for a reset signal for the camera, the function of the camera can be simplified.

[0033] According to the tenth aspect, the aging change of the drive unit can be confirmed.

[0034] According to the eleventh aspect, the unevenness of the drive units between multiple processing units can be confirmed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] Figure 1 It is a top view schematically showing an example of the configuration of a substrate processing apparatus.

[0036] Figure 2 It is a block diagram schematically showing an example of the configuration of a control unit.

[0037] Figure 3 It is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing an example of the configuration of a processing unit.

[0038] Figure 4 It is a flowchart showing a first example of the operation of a processing unit.

[0039] Figure 5 It is a diagram schematically showing an example of the timing of the control signal output by the control unit during the coating process and the timing of the change in the phenomenon in chamber 10 caused by the operation of the drive unit corresponding to the control signal.

[0040] Figure 6 It is a diagram showing an example of the time change in the rotation speed of substrate W in the third process of the coating process.

[0041] Figure 7 It is a flowchart showing an example of the monitoring process.

[0042] Figure 8 In (a) and (b), they are diagrams schematically showing an example of image data.

[0043] Figure 9 In (a) and (b), they are diagrams schematically showing an example of image data.

[0044] Figure 10 It is a diagram schematically showing an example of image data.

[0045] Figure 11 In (a) to (c), they are diagrams for explaining the calculation of the time difference of the occurrence times of different phenomenon changes.

[0046] Figure 12This is a diagram schematically showing an example of aging data.

[0047] Figure 13 This is a diagram schematically showing an example of data between devices.

[0048] Figure 14 This is a flowchart showing a second example of the operation of the processing unit. Detailed implementation

[0049] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, for ease of understanding, the dimensions or quantities of each part are exaggerated or simplified as needed. In addition, the same reference numerals are given to parts having the same configuration and function, and repeated descriptions are omitted in the following description.

[0050] In addition, in the following description, the same constituent elements are illustrated with the same reference numerals, and their names and functions are also the same. Therefore, there are cases where their detailed descriptions are omitted to avoid duplication.

[0051] In addition, in the following description, even when ordinal numbers such as "first" or "second" are used, the terms are used for ease of understanding the content of the embodiments and are not limited to the order that may be generated by the ordinal numbers.

[0052] When using expressions indicating relative or absolute positional relationships (for example, "in one direction", "along one direction", "parallel", "orthogonal", "center", "concentric", "coaxial", etc.), as long as there is no special limitation, the expressions do not strictly represent only the positional relationships, but also represent a state where the angle or distance is relatively shifted within the tolerance or within a range where the same degree of function can be obtained. When using expressions indicating an equal state (for example, "identical", "equal", "homogeneous", etc.), as long as there is no special limitation, the expressions do not represent only a quantitatively and strictly equal state, but also represent a state where there is a tolerance or a difference in function that can obtain the same degree of function. When using expressions indicating a shape (for example, "quadrilateral shape" or "cylindrical shape", etc.), as long as there is no special limitation on the expressions, they do not strictly represent only the shape geometrically, but also represent a shape having, for example, unevenness or chamfers within a range where the same degree of effect can be obtained. When using expressions such as "provided with", "equipped with", "having", "including", or "possessing" a constituent element, the expressions are not exclusive expressions excluding the existence of other constituent elements. When using the expression "at least one of A, B, and C", the expression includes only A, only B, only C, any two of A, B, and C, and all of A, B, and C.

[0053] <Overall configuration of the substrate processing apparatus>

[0054] Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a top view schematically showing an example of the configuration of a substrate processing apparatus 100. The substrate processing apparatus 100 is a single wafer type processing apparatus that processes substrates W one by one.

[0055] The substrate W is, for example, a semiconductor wafer, a substrate for a liquid crystal display, a substrate for an organic EL (Electroluminescence), a substrate for an FPD (Flat Panel Display), a substrate for an optical display, a substrate for a magnetic disk, a substrate for an optical disk, a substrate for a magneto-optical disk, a substrate for a photomask, or a substrate for a solar cell. The substrate W has a thin plate shape. Hereinafter, the substrate W is a semiconductor wafer. The substrate W has, for example, a disc shape. The diameter of the substrate W is, for example, about 300 mm, and the film thickness of the substrate W is, for example, 0.5 mm or more and 3 mm or less.

[0056] In Figure 1 the example of FIG. 1, the substrate processing apparatus 100 includes a transfer block 110, a processing block 120, and a control unit 90. The processing block 120 is a part that mainly processes the substrate W, and the transfer block 110 is a part that mainly transfers the substrate W between the outside of the substrate processing apparatus 100 and the processing block 120.

[0057] The transfer block 110 includes a load port 111 and a first transfer unit 112. In the load port 111, a substrate container (hereinafter referred to as a carrier) C carried in from the outside is placed. A plurality of substrates W are stored in the carrier C. For example, the plurality of substrates W are stored in the carrier C in a state of being arranged at intervals in the vertical direction.

[0058] The first transfer unit 112 is a transfer robot, and takes out an unprocessed substrate W from the carrier C placed in each load port 111, and transfers the substrate W to the processing block 120. The first transfer unit 112 can also be referred to as a transfer robot. The processing block 120 processes the substrate W. In addition, the first transfer unit 112 receives the processed substrate W from the processing block 120, and transfers the substrate W to the carrier C in the load port 111.

[0059] In Figure 1 the example of FIG. 1, the processing block 120 includes a plurality of processing units 1 and a second transfer unit 122. The second transfer unit 122 is a transfer robot, and transfers the substrate W between the first transfer unit 112 and the plurality of processing units 1. The second transfer unit 122 receives an unprocessed substrate W from the first transfer unit 112, for example, via a placement unit 123, and transfers the substrate W to the processing unit 1. The processing unit 1 processes the substrate W. The configuration of the processing unit 1 will be described later. The second transfer unit 122 takes out the processed substrate W from the processing unit 1, and transfers the substrate W to the first transfer unit 112, for example, via the placement unit 123.

[0060] The second transfer unit 122 can transfer the substrate W between multiple processing units 1 as needed. For example, the second transfer unit 122 can transfer the substrate W that has been processed by a certain processing unit 1 to another processing unit 1, and transfer the substrate W that has been processed by the other processing unit 1 to the first transfer unit 112.

[0061] In Figure 1 the example of, multiple processing units 1 are arranged in a manner that surrounds the periphery of the second transfer unit 122 in a plan view. The second transfer unit 122 can also be referred to as a central robot. In Figure 1 the example of, four processing units 1 surround the second transfer unit 122. At each position in the plan view where each processing unit 1 is arranged, the multiple processing units 1 can be stacked in the vertical direction. That is, multiple (four in the figure) towers TW composed of multiple processing units 1 stacked in the vertical direction can be arranged in a manner that surrounds the second transfer unit 122 in a plan view.

[0062] The control unit 90 comprehensively controls the substrate processing apparatus 100. Specifically, the control unit 90 controls the first transfer unit 112, the second transfer unit 122, and the processing unit 1. Figure 2 is a block diagram schematically showing an example of the configuration of the control unit 90. The control unit 90 is an electronic circuit and has, for example, a data processing unit 91 and a storage unit 92. The data processing unit 91 can be, for example, an arithmetic processing device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The storage unit 92 can have a non-temporary storage unit (for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory)) 921 and a temporary storage unit (for example, a RAM (Random Access Memory)) 922. In the non-temporary storage unit 921, for example, a program that specifies the processing to be executed by the control unit 90 can be stored. By the data processing unit 91 executing the program, the control unit 90 can execute the processing specified in the program. Of course, part or all of the processing executed by the control unit 90 can be executed by hardware such as a dedicated logic circuit.

[0063] In Figure 2 the example of, a storage unit 94 is connected to the control unit 90. The storage unit 94 is, for example, a hard disk or a non-temporary memory. In Figure 2 the example of, process recipe information D1 is stored in the storage unit 94. The process recipe information D1 will be described later.

[0064] The control unit 90 also has a function of measuring time. The control unit 90 includes, for example, a clock generator (clock generation circuit: not shown) that generates a control clock, and measures time based on the control clock.

[0065] InFigure 1 In the example of Figure 1 , the user interface 95 is connected to the control unit 90. The user interface 95 includes an input device and a notification unit. The input device is a device for receiving user input, such as input devices like a mouse and a keyboard. The notification unit is a device for transmitting information to the user, and includes at least one of a display such as a liquid crystal display and a sound output unit such as a speaker.

[0066] <Outline of the processing unit>

[0067] Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing an example of the configuration of the processing unit 1. In addition, not all processing units 1 belonging to the substrate processing apparatus 100 need to have Figure 3 the configuration illustrated in Figure 3 . As long as at least one processing unit 1 has Figure 3 the configuration illustrated in Figure 3 . The processing unit 1 includes a chamber 10, various drive units for processing the substrate W, and a camera 5. As will be described in detail later, the control unit 90 outputs control signals to the respective drive units of the processing unit 1, and each drive unit operates appropriately in response to the control signals, and the processing unit 1 can appropriately process the substrate W. In addition, in the present embodiment, as will be described in detail later, the control unit 90 monitors the inside of the chamber 10 based on the image data captured by the camera 5. Hereinafter, first, the configuration of the processing unit 1 will be described, and each drive unit will be described.

[0068] The chamber 10 has an internal space. The internal space corresponds to a processing space for processing the substrate W. In the chamber 10, an openable and closable loading / unloading port (not shown) is provided. The second transfer unit 122 transfers the unprocessed substrate W into the chamber 10 through the loading / unloading port, and also transfers the processed substrate W out of the chamber 10 through the loading / unloading port.

[0069] In Figure 3 the example of Figure 3 , the processing unit 1 further includes a substrate holding unit 2, a spraying unit 3, a protector 7, and a protector lifting drive unit 8. The substrate holding unit 2 is provided inside the chamber 10, holds the substrate W in a horizontal posture, and rotates the substrate W around the rotation axis Q1. The horizontal posture here refers to a posture in which the thickness direction of the substrate W is along the vertical direction. The rotation axis Q1 is an axis passing through the center of the substrate W and along the vertical direction. Such a substrate holding unit 2 can also be referred to as a rotating chuck.

[0070] In Figure 3In the example, the substrate holding unit 2 includes a rotating base 21, chuck pins 22, and a rotation driving unit 23. The rotating base 21 has a plate-like shape (e.g., a circular plate shape) and is arranged in a posture such that its thickness direction is along the vertical direction. A plurality of chuck pins 22 are provided on the upper surface of the rotating base 21. The plurality of chuck pins 22 are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction with respect to the rotation axis Q1. The plurality of chuck pins 22 are arranged to be displaceable between a holding position and a release position described below. The holding position is the position where the chuck pins 22 are in contact with the periphery of the substrate W. By the plurality of chuck pins 22 stopping at their respective holding positions, the substrate W is held by the plurality of chuck pins 22. In Figure 3 shows the chuck pins 22 stopped at the holding position. The release position is the position where each chuck pin 22 is separated from the substrate W. By the plurality of chuck pins 22 stopping at their respective release positions, the holding of the substrate W by the plurality of chuck pins 22 is released. The substrate holding unit 2 further includes a pin driving unit (not shown) for displacing the chuck pins 22. The pin driving unit includes, for example, a driving source such as a motor or a cylinder and is controlled by the control unit 90.

[0071] The rotation driving unit 23 includes a shaft 231 and a motor 232. The upper end of the shaft 231 is connected to the lower surface of the rotating base 21, and the shaft 231 extends from the lower surface of the rotating base 21 along the rotation axis Q1. The motor 232 is controlled by the control unit 90 to rotate the shaft 231 around the rotation axis Q1. Thus, the rotating base 21, the chuck pins 22, and the substrate W rotate integrally around the rotation axis Q1. The rotation driving unit 23 corresponds to an example of a driving unit for processing the substrate W.

[0072] In addition, the substrate holding unit 2 does not necessarily have the chuck pins 22. For example, the substrate holding unit 2 can hold the substrate W by a chuck method such as a vacuum chuck, an electrostatic chuck, and a Bernoulli chuck.

[0073] The ejection unit 3 ejects a processing fluid onto the main surface of the substrate W held by the substrate holding unit 2. The processing fluid is, for example, a gas or a liquid (hereinafter referred to as a processing liquid), and as a specific example, it is a processing liquid. In Figure 3 the example, the ejection unit 3 includes a nozzle 31, a supply pipe 32, a supply valve 33, and a flow rate adjustment valve 34. The nozzle 31 is provided in the chamber 10. In Figure 3 the example, the nozzle 31 is provided vertically above the substrate W held by the substrate holding unit 2 and ejects the processing liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate W. The nozzle 31 can be a nozzle that ejects the processing liquid in a continuous flow state, or a water mist nozzle or a spray nozzle that ejects the processing liquid in a droplet state. Here, as an example, the nozzle 31 is a nozzle that ejects the processing liquid in a continuous flow state.

[0074] The processing liquid can be a coating liquid, a chemical liquid, a cleaning liquid, or an antistatic liquid. The coating liquid is a solvent containing components of a thin film formed on the main surface of the substrate W. The coating liquid can be a resist liquid. The chemical liquid can be a cleaning liquid for removing foreign matter on the main surface of the substrate W or an etching liquid for removing the target film. As the chemical liquid, for example, fluonitric acid obtained by mixing hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid, and water, fluoric acid hydrogen peroxide aqueous solution (FPM) obtained by mixing hydrofluoric acid, hydrogen peroxide water, and water, tetra methyl ammonium hydroxide (TMAH), a mixed liquid of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide water (SPM), ammonia water, and a mixed liquid of ammonia, hydrogen peroxide water, and water (SC-1) can be applied. In addition, the chemical liquid can be a single liquid, not a mixed liquid. For example, single liquids such as hydrofluoric acid (HF), hydrogen peroxide water, and sulfuric acid can be applied as the chemical liquid. The cleaning liquid can be pure water (i.e., deionized water) or an organic solvent such as isopropyl alcohol with a higher volatility than pure water. The antistatic liquid is a liquid for removing the charge of the substrate W and can be carbon dioxide water. The carbon dioxide water can be used as a cleaning liquid.

[0075] In Figure 3 the example, the downstream end of the supply pipe 32 is connected to the nozzle 31. The upstream end of the supply pipe 32 is connected to the processing liquid supply source. The processing liquid supply source has a tank (not shown) for storing the processing liquid and supplies the processing liquid to the upstream end of the supply pipe 32. In Figure 3 the example, a supply valve 33 and a flow rate adjustment valve 34 are provided in the supply pipe 32. The supply valve 33 switches the opening and closing of the supply pipe 32, and the flow rate adjustment valve 34 adjusts the flow rate of the processing liquid flowing through the supply pipe 32. The flow rate adjustment valve 34 can be a mass flow controller. The valve is controlled by the control unit 90. Each of the supply valve 33 and the flow rate adjustment valve 34 is an example of a driving unit for processing the substrate W.

[0076] The processing unit 1 can include a plurality of nozzles 31 corresponding to various processing liquids respectively. In Figure 3 the example, the nozzles 31A and 31B are shown as the nozzles 31. The nozzle 31A is a nozzle for the coating liquid, for example, and the nozzle 31B is a nozzle for pure water, for example. Hereinafter, sometimes an “A” is appended to the end of the symbols of the supply pipe 32, the supply valve 33, and the flow rate adjustment valve 34 corresponding to the nozzle 31A, and a “B” is appended to the end of the symbols of the supply pipe 32, the supply valve 33, and the flow rate adjustment valve 34 corresponding to the nozzle 31B.

[0077] In Figure 3In the example, the processing unit 1 includes a nozzle moving drive unit 37 that moves the nozzle 31. In the case where a plurality of nozzles 31 are provided, the nozzle moving drive unit 37 can move the plurality of nozzles 31 integrally. For example, a plurality of nozzles 31 can be connected adjacent to each other to form a nozzle head, and the nozzle moving drive unit 37 moves the nozzle head. The nozzle moving drive unit 37 moves the nozzle 31 between a nozzle processing position and a nozzle standby position described below. The nozzle processing position is a position where the nozzle 31 ejects a processing liquid onto the main surface of the substrate W held by the substrate holding unit 2, for example, a position facing the central portion of the substrate W in the vertical direction. In Figure 3 the example, the nozzle 31 located at the nozzle processing position is shown. The nozzle standby position is a position where the nozzle 31 does not eject the processing liquid onto the main surface of the substrate W, for example, a position radially outside the substrate W.

[0078] In Figure 3 the example, the nozzle moving drive unit 37 includes an arm 371, a support column 372, and a drive source 373. The support column 372 is provided radially outside a protection member 7 described later and extends along the vertical direction. The arm 371 extends along the horizontal direction, its front end is connected to the nozzle 31 (or the nozzle head), and its base end is connected to the support column 372. The drive source 373 is controlled by the control unit 90 to rotate the support column 372 around the central axis Q2 in a predetermined angular range in the forward and reverse directions. The drive source 373 includes, for example, an electric motor. When the support column 372 rotates around the central axis Q2 in a predetermined angular range in the forward and reverse directions, the nozzle 31 reciprocates circumferentially with respect to the central axis Q2. The support column 372 is arranged such that the nozzle processing position and the nozzle standby position are located on the movement trajectory of the nozzle 31. In addition, the nozzle moving drive unit 37 is not necessarily limited to Figure 3 the aspect, and may include a linear motion mechanism such as a linear motor. The nozzle moving drive unit 37 is an example of a drive unit for processing the substrate W.

[0079] In a state where the nozzle 31 is located at the nozzle processing position, when the processing liquid is ejected onto the main surface of the rotating substrate W, the processing liquid adheres to the main surface of the substrate W. The processing liquid is subjected to a centrifugal force accompanying the rotation of the substrate W and flows radially outward, scattering to the outside of the periphery of the substrate W. Thereby, the substrate W is processed according to the type of the processing liquid.

[0080] The protection member 7 catches the processing liquid scattered from the periphery of the substrate W. The protection member 7 has a cylindrical shape surrounding the substrate W held by the substrate holding unit 2.

[0081] The lifting drive unit 8 of the protection member controls the lifting of the protection member 7 under the control of the control unit 90. The lifting drive unit 8 of the protection member causes the protection member 7 to lift between the protection member processing position and the protection member standby position described below. The protection member processing position is a position where the upper end of the protection member 7 is vertically above the upper surface of the substrate W. In a state where the protection member 7 is located at the protection member processing position, the processing liquid scattered from the periphery of the substrate W is received by the inner peripheral surface of the protection member 7. The protection member standby position is a position where the upper end of the protection member 7 is vertically below the upper surface of the rotary base 21. In a state where the protection member 7 is located at the protection member standby position, when the substrate W is loaded and unloaded, collision between each of the second transfer unit 122 and the substrate W and the protection member 7 can be avoided.

[0082] In Figure 3 the example of, the lifting drive unit 8 of the protection member has a so-called rack and pinion mechanism. Specifically, the lifting drive unit 8 of the protection member includes a support plate 81, a rack 82, a gear 83, a motor 84, a fixing member 85, and a bellows 86. The support plate 81 extends radially outward from, for example, the cylindrical portion 71 of the protection member 7. The support plate 81 has a plate-like shape and is disposed in a posture where its thickness direction is along the vertical direction. The rack 82 has a rod-like shape extending along the vertical direction, and a plurality of teeth are provided on its side surface. The gear 83 is an external gear and meshes with the rack 82. The motor 84 is connected to the gear 83. The fixing member 85 fixes the motor 84 to the chamber 10. The motor 84 is controlled by the control unit 90 to rotate the gear 83 in the forward and reverse directions. By the rotation of the gear 83, the rack 82, the support plate 81, and the protection member 7 are integrally lifted and lowered. The bellows 86 connects the lower surface of the support plate 81 and the bottom surface of the chamber 10, and houses the rack 82, the gear 83, the motor 84, and the fixing member 85. The bellows 86 can expand and contract in the vertical direction. In addition, the lifting drive unit 8 of the protection member is not limited to the rack and pinion mechanism. For example, it may be a ball screw mechanism having a motor or a linear motion mechanism having a linear motor. The lifting drive unit 8 of the protection member corresponds to an example of a drive unit for processing the substrate W. In addition, the processing unit 1 may be provided with a plurality of protection members 7 corresponding to a variety of processing liquids.

[0083] In Figure 3 the example of, a cup 75 corresponding to the protection member 7 is provided. The cup 75 has an annular (for example, circular ring-shaped) recess (groove) surrounding the rotation axis Q1. The cup 75 receives the processing liquid flowing down the inner peripheral surface of the corresponding protection member 7. At, for example, the bottom of the cup 75, the upstream end of the drain pipe 76 is connected. The processing liquid received by each cup 75 is discharged to the outside of the processing unit 1 through the drain pipe 76.

[0084] In Figure 3In the example, the camera 5 is disposed inside the chamber 10. The camera 5 is fixed to the chamber 10 by fixing members (not shown), for example. The camera 5 includes a solid-state imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor), an optical system such as a lens, and a camera control unit 51. The camera control unit 51 receives signals from the solid-state imaging element and generates image data. The camera 5 outputs the image data to the control unit 90. The image data may be a frame of moving image data. The camera control unit 51 also includes a function for measuring time. For example, the camera control unit 51 includes a clock generator (clock generation circuit, not shown) and measures time based on the camera clock output from the clock generator. The camera 5 can generate image data (each frame) for each imaging time. The hardware configuration of the camera control unit 51 may be the same as that of the control unit 90, for example.

[0085] The camera 5 is disposed such that its imaging area includes the position of the object to be monitored inside the chamber 10. In Figure 3 the example, the camera 5 is disposed at a position vertically above the substrate W held by the substrate holding unit 2 and radially outside the substrate W. As Figure 3 shown, the camera 5 may be disposed radially outside the protective member 7. In Figure 3 the example, the camera 5 captures the imaging area from an oblique upper direction. In other words, the camera 5 captures the imaging area along an oblique lower direction.

[0086] The camera 5 outputs the image data to the control unit 90. The control unit 90 may also function as an image processing unit that processes the image data. As described later, the control unit 90 detects a change in the phenomenon inside the chamber 10 based on the image data.

[0087] <First Example of <Substrate Processing (Processing Step)>>

[0088] Next, a first example of the substrate processing of the processing unit 1 will be described. Here, the processing unit 1 forms a coating film on the main surface (specifically, the upper surface) of the substrate W. Figure 4 is a flowchart showing a first example of the operation of the processing unit 1. Steps S1 to S6 represent an example of the substrate processing (equivalent to an example of the processing step) for the substrate W, and step S10 represents a monitoring process for monitoring the operations of various driving units of the processing unit 1. The monitoring process will be described later.

[0089] The substrate processing apparatus 100 is controlled by the control unit 90 based on the process recipe information D1, and the substrate processing of the substrate W can be achieved. The process recipe information D1 is information indicating the processing sequence of the substrate W and is stored, for example, in the storage unit 94. During the substrate processing, the control unit 90 measures the time, and based on the process recipe information D1 and the time, outputs a control signal to the drive unit of the processing unit 1, thereby causing the processing unit 1 to perform the processing on the substrate W carried into the chamber l0.

[0090] In Figure 4 the example, first, the substrate W is transported from the second transport unit 122 to the processing unit 1, and the substrate W is held by the substrate holding unit 2 (step S1). For example, after the second transport unit 122 transfers the substrate W to the substrate holding unit 2, the control unit 90 outputs a control signal for shifting the chuck pin 22 to the holding position to the substrate holding unit 2 (specifically, the pin drive unit). The substrate holding unit 2 responds to the control signal and shifts the chuck pin 22 from the release position to the holding position. Thereby, the substrate holding unit 2 holds the substrate W.

[0091] Next, the processing unit 1 performs pre-processing on the substrate W (step S2). In the pre-processing, for example, a process of cleaning the substrate W can be applied. In addition, step S2 is not necessarily performed.

[0092] Here, in the pre-processing, the processing unit 1 rotates the substrate W and supplies various processing liquids to the main surface of the substrate W. For example, the processing unit 1 supplies pure water to the main surface of the substrate W. More specifically, first, the control unit 90 outputs a raising command as a control signal to the shield lifting drive unit 8. The shield lifting drive unit 8 responds to the raising command and raises the shield 7 to the shield processing position. In addition, the control unit 90 outputs a rotation command as a control signal to the substrate holding unit 2 (specifically, the rotation drive unit 23). The substrate holding unit 2 responds to the rotation command and starts rotating the substrate W.

[0093] In addition, the control unit 90 outputs a movement command as a control signal to the nozzle movement drive unit 37. The movement command in the pre-processing is a control signal for moving the nozzle 31B to the nozzle processing position. The nozzle movement drive unit 37 responds to the movement command and moves the nozzle 31B to the nozzle processing position. As a specific example, the nozzle movement drive unit 37 moves the nozzle 31B to a position where the nozzle 31B is opposed to the center of the substrate W in the vertical direction.

[0094] Next, the control unit 90 outputs an opening instruction as a control signal to the supply valve 33B. The supply valve 33B opens the supply pipe 32B in response to the opening instruction. Thereby, pure water is ejected from the ejection port of the nozzle 31B onto the main surface of the substrate W. The pure water that adheres to the central portion of the substrate W is subjected to a centrifugal force accompanying the rotation of the substrate W and flows radially outward, and scatters from the periphery of the substrate W. Thereby, the main surface of the substrate W is cleaned. Then, when the control unit 90 elapses a specified time specified in the process recipe information D1, it outputs a closing instruction as a control signal to the supply valve 33B. The supply valve 33B closes the supply pipe 32B in response to the closing instruction. Thereby, the ejection of pure water from the nozzle 31B is stopped.

[0095] Next, the processing unit 1 performs a coating process on the substrate W (step S3). More specifically, the processing unit 1 rotates the substrate W and ejects a coating liquid from the nozzle 31A onto the main surface of the substrate W. Here, in the process recipe information D1, as the process equivalent to the coating process, the first to third processes shown in the following table are specified.

[0096] [Table 1]

[0097] Process recipe information

[0098]

[0099] Figure 5 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the timing of the control signal output by the control unit 90 in the coating process and the timing of the change in the phenomenon in the chamber 10 caused by the operation of the driving unit corresponding to the control signal.

[0100] The first process is a process of moving the nozzle 31A to the central position and starting to eject the coating liquid. The central position mentioned here is an example of the nozzle processing position, and for example, it is a position facing the center of the substrate W in the vertical direction. In the first process, the control unit 90 outputs a movement instruction to the nozzle movement driving unit 37 and outputs an opening instruction to the supply valve 33A. The movement instruction in the first process is a control signal for moving the nozzle 31A to the central position. The nozzle movement driving unit 37 moves the nozzle 31A to the central position in response to the movement instruction. The supply valve 33A opens the supply pipe 32A in response to the opening instruction. In Figure 5 the example, the movement instruction and the opening instruction are output almost simultaneously, the ejection of the coating liquid starts after the nozzle 31A starts to move, and then the movement of the nozzle 31A ends. The first required time of the first process is, for example, set in advance to a time sufficient to complete the movement of the nozzle 31A to the central position and the opening operation of the supply valve 33A. As a specific example, it can be set to about 1 second.

[0101] In response to the elapse of the first required time since the start of the first process, the control unit 90 executes the second process. The second process is a process of continuously ejecting the coating liquid and changing the rotation speed of the substrate W. Here, as long as the supply valve 33A does not receive a closing instruction, the supply pipe 32A is always open. In the second process, the control unit 90 outputs a speed change instruction as a control signal to the substrate holding unit 2 (specifically, the rotation driving unit 23). The speed change instruction in the second process is a control signal for changing the rotation speed of the substrate W from the first speed value to the second speed value. The substrate holding unit 2 changes the rotation speed of the substrate W from the first speed value to the second speed value in response to the speed change instruction. In Figure 5 the example of, after the speed change instruction is output, the rotation speed of the substrate W starts to change, and then, the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W substantially ends. The second required time of the second process is, for example, preset to a time sufficient to complete the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W. As a specific example, it can be set to about 1.8 seconds. When the rotation speed of the substrate W reaches the second speed value in the middle of the second process, the rotation speed of the substrate W is ideally fixed at the second speed value.

[0102] In response to the elapse of the second required time since the start of the second process, the control unit 90 executes the third process. The third process is a process of changing the rotation speed of the substrate W and stopping the ejection of the coating liquid. The control unit 90 outputs a speed change instruction to the substrate holding unit 2 and outputs a closing instruction to the supply valve 33A. The speed change instruction in the third process is a control signal for changing the rotation speed from the second speed value to the third speed value. The substrate holding unit 2 changes the rotation speed of the substrate W from the second speed value to the third speed value in response to the speed change instruction. The third speed value can be set higher than, for example, the second speed value. In addition, the supply valve 33A closes the supply pipe 32A in response to the closing instruction. Thereby, the ejection of the coating liquid from the ejection port of the nozzle 31A is stopped. In Figure 5 the example of, the speed change instruction and the closing instruction are output almost simultaneously, the ejection of the coating liquid is stopped after the rotation speed of the substrate W starts to change, and then, the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W substantially ends. That is, the ejection of the coating liquid is stopped during the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W. The third required time of the third process is, for example, preset to a time sufficient to complete the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W and the stop of the ejection of the coating liquid. As a specific example, it can be set to about 4 seconds.

[0103] Through the coating process described above, a liquid film of the coating liquid is formed on the main surface of the substrate W. After the coating process is completed, the control unit 90 can output a control signal to the substrate holding unit 2 to stop the rotation of the substrate W, can output a lowering instruction to the protector lifting drive unit 8 to lower the protector 7 to the protector standby position, or can output a movement instruction to the nozzle movement drive unit 37 to move the nozzle 31 to the nozzle standby position.

[0104] Next, the processing unit 1 dries the liquid film of the coating liquid on the main surface of the substrate W to form a coating film on the main surface of the substrate W (step S4). For example, the processing unit 1 may include a heater (not shown). The heater is disposed, for example, between the substrate W and the rotary base 21 to heat the substrate W. The heater may be, for example, a resistive heater or an optical heater that emits heating light (such as infrared rays). By heating the substrate W with the heater, the liquid film of the coating liquid on the substrate W can be dried. When the processing unit 1 finishes drying the substrate W, the operation of the heater is stopped.

[0105] Next, the substrate holding unit 2 releases the holding of the substrate W (step S5). For example, the control unit 90 outputs a holding release instruction as a control signal to the substrate holding unit 2. In response to the holding release instruction, the substrate holding unit 2 moves the chuck pin 22 from the holding position to the release position. Next, the second transfer unit 122 transfers the processed substrate W out of the processing unit 1 (step S6).

[0106] As described above, by appropriately operating the various drive units of the processing unit 1, the main surface of the substrate W can be appropriately processed.

[0107] However, after the control unit 90 outputs a control signal to the various drive units of the processing unit 1, there is a time difference until the phenomenon in the chamber 10 changes due to the operation of the drive unit in response to the control signal. This time difference can also be referred to as a delay time. Table 2 is a table showing examples of the types of drive units, the types of control signals, and the types of phenomenon changes.

[0108] [Table 2]

[0109]

[0110] For example, after the control unit 90 outputs a control signal to the supply valve 33, there is a delay time until the ejection state of the nozzle 31 changes. More specifically, after the control unit 90 outputs an open instruction, there is a delay time until the nozzle 31 starts ejecting the processing liquid. In addition, after the control unit 90 outputs a close instruction, there is a delay time until the ejection of the processing liquid from the nozzle 31 stops. As one of the reasons for these delay times, it sometimes takes time to complete the opening and closing operations of the supply valve 33. Therefore, these delay times are relatively long.

[0111] In addition, a delay time can also occur from when the control unit 90 outputs a movement command to the nozzle movement drive unit 37 until the position of the nozzle 31 changes. However, since the nozzle movement drive unit 37 has an electric motor as a drive source and the nozzle 31 moves with high responsiveness to the operation of the electric motor, the delay time from when the movement command is output until the movement of the nozzle 31 starts is shorter than the operation of the supply valve 33. In addition, a delay time can also occur from when the control unit 90 outputs a speed change command to the substrate holding unit 2 until the rotational speed of the substrate W changes. Similarly, the delay time from when the speed change command is output until the rotational speed of the substrate W starts to change is shorter than the delay time related to the change in the ejection state of the processing liquid.

[0112] Such various delay times may vary for each processing unit 1 due to many reasons such as uneven loads of each drive unit, manufacturing unevenness of each drive unit, and aging deterioration. Moreover, if such various delay times are different from the assumed times (e.g., design values), there is a concern that the processing degree of the substrate W may not be as assumed. For example, there is a concern that the film thickness of the liquid film of the coating liquid on the main surface of the substrate W deviates from the assumed film thickness. As a specific example, in the third step of the coating process, the time difference between the ejection stop time of the coating liquid and the change time of the rotational speed of the substrate W affects the film thickness of the liquid film. Figure 6 It is a diagram showing an example of the time change of the rotational speed of the substrate W in the third step of the coating process. In Figure 6 this example, the ejection of the coating liquid is stopped during the rising period of the rotational speed of the substrate W. When the ejection stop time t2 deviates from the assumed time, or the change start time t1 of the rotational speed deviates from the assumed time, the value of the rotational speed of the substrate W at the ejection stop time t2 changes. Therefore, the film thickness of the liquid film varies according to the deviation.

[0113] In addition, the time difference between the ejection start time of the coating liquid in the first step of the coating process and the change time of the rotational speed of the substrate W in the second step of the coating process may also affect the film thickness of the liquid film. Therefore, when the ejection start time in the first step deviates, or the change time of the rotational speed in the second step deviates, the film thickness of the liquid film may also deviate from the assumed film thickness. Or, the time difference between the movement time of the nozzle 31A and the ejection start time in the first step may also affect the processing. Therefore, when the movement time in the first step deviates, or the ejection start time deviates, excessive or insufficient processing may occur during the processing.

[0114] Therefore, in the present embodiment, the control unit 90 calculates the time difference (delay time) between the output of the control signal to each drive unit of the processing unit 1 and the change in the phenomenon in the chamber 10 accompanying the operation of the drive unit. The control unit 90 outputs the control signal to each drive unit based on the required time of each process specified in the process recipe information D1, and thus grasps the output timing of the control signal. The output timing is measured based on the control clock of the control unit 90. On the other hand, as will be described in detail later, the change in the phenomenon in the chamber 10 can be detected based on the image data generated by the camera 5. Since the camera 5 grasps the imaging timing of the image data, the control unit 90 can grasp the occurrence timing of the change in the phenomenon based on the imaging timing of the image data. Among them, the imaging timing is measured based on the camera clock of the camera 5. In this way, since the output timing of the control signal and the imaging timing of the image data are measured by different clocks, a deviation on the time axis may occur. Therefore, the control unit 90 synchronizes the current time measured based on the control clock and the current time measured based on the camera clock.

[0115] Figure 7 It is a flowchart showing an example of the monitoring process. Figure 7 The process of Figure 4 is an example of step S10 of Figure 7 In the example of

[0116] Next, the processing unit 1 repeatedly executes a set of steps S12 to S15 described later, for example, until the substrate processing is completed. Therefore, the series of processes of steps S12 to S15 are repeatedly executed in parallel with the substrate processing (steps S1 to S6).

[0117] In step S12 (imaging process), the camera 5 captures the imaging area and generates image data IM1. The image data IM1 includes frames of moving image data. Since step S12 is repeatedly performed in parallel with the substrate processing as described above, each image data IM1 includes the state in the chamber 10 corresponding to the progress of the substrate processing. Figures 8 to 10This is a diagram schematically showing an example of the image data IM1. Figure 8 (a) in Figure 8 (b) in Figure 9 (a) in Figure 9 (b) in, and Figure 1 The image data IM1 of 0 are image data taken at different time sequences.

[0118] In Figures 8 to 10 the example of, the entire upper opening of the protector 7 located at the protector processing position is included in the image data IM1. In other words, the camera 5 is set at a position where the entire upper opening of the protector 7 is included in the imaging area. In Figure 3 the example of, since the camera 5 is set radially outside and vertically above the protector 7, the imaging direction of the camera 5 becomes obliquely downward. Therefore, the upper opening of the protector 7 that is circular in plan view is represented as an elliptical shape in the image data IM1.

[0119] Figure 8 (a) in shows the image data IM1 taken immediately before the coating process in step S3, Figure 8 (b) in, and Figure 9 (a) in show the image data IM1 taken in the first process of the coating process, Figure 9 (b) in shows the image data IM1 taken in the second process of the coating process, Figure 10 shows the image data IM1 taken in the third process of the coating process.

[0120] Next, in step S13 (phenomenon change determination process), the control unit 90 determines whether a phenomenon change has occurred in the chamber 10 based on the image data IM1. Here, the phenomenon change to be determined changes according to the progress of the substrate processing. Hereinafter, as an example, the coating process in step S3 will be taken as an example for explanation.

[0121] For example, in the first process of the coating process, the control unit 90 outputs a movement instruction to the nozzle movement drive unit 37 and an open instruction to the supply valve 33A. Therefore, in the first process, as the determination process of the phenomenon change, the control unit 90 determines whether the nozzle 31A moves and whether the nozzle 31A has started spraying the coating liquid based on the image data IM1 (step S13). For example, in Figure 8 (b) in, although the nozzle 31A has not reached the central position, the coating liquid has been sprayed from the ejection port of the nozzle 31A. Hereinafter, first, an example of the determination method for whether the nozzle 31A moves will be described, and then an example of the determination method for whether the nozzle 31A has started spraying the coating liquid will be described.

[0122] First, the control unit 90 specifies the position of the nozzle 31A in the image data IM1. For example, the control unit 90 can specify the position of the nozzle 31A by template matching using the reference image data RM1 of the nozzle 31A set in advance. In Figure 8 (b) in, an example of the reference image data RM1 is schematically superimposed and displayed on the image data IM1. In Figure 8 the example of (b) in, the reference image data RM1 includes a part of the nozzle 31A containing the front end of the nozzle 31A. The vertical and horizontal dimensions of the reference image data RM1 are smaller than those of the image data IM1. The reference image data RM1 is stored in the storage unit 94, for example. The control unit 90 specifies the region with the highest similarity to the reference image data RM1 in the image data IM1 as the position of the nozzle 31A by, for example, template matching.

[0123] Then, the control unit 90 determines whether the difference between the position of the nozzle 31A and the position of the nozzle 31A in the image data IM1 generated in the previous step S12 is equal to or greater than a specified difference threshold. When the difference is equal to or greater than the difference threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the nozzle 31A has moved, and when the difference is less than the difference threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the nozzle 31A is stationary. Then, when the nozzle 31A is in a moving state in the next image data IM1 of the image data IM1 in which the nozzle 31A is in a stationary state, the control unit 90 can determine that the nozzle 31A has started to move.

[0124] Next, an example of a method for determining the start of ejection of the coating liquid will be described. When the coating liquid is ejected from the nozzle 31A, the coating liquid from the nozzle 31A adheres to the main surface of the substrate W. Therefore, directly below the nozzle 31A, fluctuations (i.e., ripples) occur in the liquid film of the coating liquid on the main surface of the substrate W (refer to Figure 8 (b) in). In addition, the fluctuations of the liquid film become the largest when the liquid column of the coating liquid from the nozzle 31A collides with the liquid film of the substrate W. After that, the fluctuations are relatively small while the liquid column of the coating liquid from the nozzle 31A continues to adhere to the liquid film of the substrate W.

[0125] Therefore, the control unit 90 can detect the change in the liquid film fluctuation at the liquid landing position based on the image data IM1 as the change in the ejection state of the coating liquid (here, the start of ejection). Specifically, the control unit 90 can determine the magnitude of the liquid film fluctuation based on the pixel values of the determination region R1 that includes the liquid landing position of the coating liquid. For example, the position and size of the determination region R1 in the image data IM1 are set in advance and stored in the storage unit 94. When the fluctuation of the liquid film at the liquid landing position increases, the variance (e.g., standard deviation) of the pixel values of the determination region R1 increases. Therefore, the control unit 90 can determine whether the variance (e.g., standard deviation) of the pixel values of the determination region R1 is equal to or greater than a specified first variance threshold, and when the variance is equal to or greater than the first variance threshold, it is determined that the fluctuation of the liquid film is large. Conversely, the control unit 90 can determine that the fluctuation of the liquid film is small when the variance does not reach the first variance threshold.

[0126] Moreover, for example, when the fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R1 of the next image data IM1 is large while the fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R1 of the image data IM1 is small, the control unit 90 can determine that the nozzle 31A starts ejecting the coating liquid. In addition, the control unit 90 can use a learned model that has been machine-learned to determine the magnitude of the liquid film fluctuation at the liquid landing position based on the image data IM1. In machine learning, for example, deep learning can be applied. This also applies to the liquid film fluctuation described later.

[0127] As described above, during the execution of the first step of the coating process, the control unit 90 performs the movement determination process and the coating liquid ejection start determination process based on the image data IMl. When the control unit 90 does not detect both movement and the start of ejection, it executes step S12 again. On the other hand, when the control unit 90 detects at least one of the movement of the nozzle 31 or the start of ejection, the control unit 90 executes the following step S14.

[0128] In step S14 (calculation step), the control unit 90 calculates the time difference between the output time of the control signal and the occurrence time of the phenomenon change based on the synchronized time. Here, since step S11 has been executed, the times measured by the control unit 90 and the camera 5 are synchronized. Moreover, since the control unit 90 has the function of measuring time, the output time of the output control signal is known. In addition, as described above, the control unit 90 detects the phenomenon change based on the image data IM1, so the occurrence time of the phenomenon change is calculated based on the imaging time of the image data IM1.

[0129] For example, when it is detected in step S13 that the nozzle 31A starts to move, the control unit 90 calculates the movement start time based on the imaging time of the image data IM1 when the nozzle 31A changes from the stationary state to the moving state. As a specific example, the control unit 90 can calculate the average time of the imaging times of two consecutive image data IM1 in terms of time when the nozzle 31A changes from the stationary state to the moving state as the movement start time. This can also be applied to calculating the occurrence time of other phenomenon changes. Then, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the movement command to the movement start time. The control unit 90 can store the delay time data representing the delay time of the nozzle movement drive unit 37 in the storage unit 94.

[0130] The control unit 90 can, in response to a user input to the user interface 95, cause the display of the user interface 95 to display the delay time. Thus, the user can identify the delay time of the nozzle movement drive unit 37. The same applies to the delay time of other drive units.

[0131] In addition, in the above example, although the control unit 90 takes the detection of the start of movement of the nozzle 31A as the phenomenon change, it can also detect that the nozzle 31A reaches the central position (i.e., the movement ends). For example, the control unit 90 can determine that the movement of the nozzle 31A has ended when the nozzle 31A is in the stationary state in the next image data IM1 of the image data IM1 in which the nozzle 31A is in the moving state. Then, the control unit 90 calculates the movement end time of the nozzle 31A based on the imaging time of the image data IM1 when the nozzle 31A changes from the moving state to the stationary state, and calculates the delay time from the output time of the movement command to the movement end time. Alternatively, the control unit 90 can calculate both the delay time from the output time of the movement command to the movement start time and the delay time from the output time of the movement command to the movement end time.

[0132] In addition, when it is detected in step S13 that the ejection of the coating liquid starts, the control unit 90 obtains the ejection start time based on the imaging time of the image data IM1 when the nozzle 31A starts to eject the coating liquid. Then, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the opening command to the ejection start time.

[0133] Next, the control unit 90 determines whether the delay time obtained in step S14 is within a specified reference range (step S15: pass / fail determination process). The reference range is set in advance according to the type of the delay time. Therefore, the reference range for each delay time may be different from the reference range for other delay times. The reference range represents the normal range related to the corresponding delay time.

[0134] When the delay time is within the reference range, the control unit 90 determines whether to end the monitoring process (step S16). For example, the control unit 90 may determine to end the monitoring process when the substrate processing ends. When the monitoring process has not ended, the processing unit 1 executes step S12 again.

[0135] On the other hand, when the delay time is outside the reference range, the control unit 90 may perform error processing (step S17). For example, the control unit 90 may notify an error to a user interface 95 (not shown) as error processing. For example, when the user interface 95 includes a display, the control unit 90 may cause the display to display an error. Or, when the user interface 95 has a sound output unit such as a speaker, the control unit 90 may cause the sound output unit to notify an error. The content of the error may include information indicating the type of the drive unit that is the error object and the delay time. In addition, the control unit 90 may interrupt the substrate processing as error processing.

[0136] Since steps S12 to S15 are repeatedly executed together with the progress of the substrate processing, the change in the condition inside the chamber 10 can be included in the image data IM1 through step S12. For example, when processing is performed as shown in (b) in Figure 8 , as shown in (a) in Figure 9 , the camera 5 generates image data IM1 in which the nozzle 31A reaches the central position and the coating liquid is ejected from the nozzle 31A toward the central portion of the substrate W.

[0137] When further processing is performed to execute the second process of the coating process, in step S12, image data IM1 as shown in (b) in Figure 9 is generated. In the second process, as described above, the control unit 90 outputs a speed change command to the substrate holding unit 2. The substrate holding unit 2 responds to the speed change command and changes the rotation speed of the substrate W from the first speed value to the second speed value. Therefore, during the execution of the second process, the control unit 90 determines whether the rotation speed of the substrate W changes based on the image data IM1 as a determination process for the change in the phenomenon (step S13).

[0138] Figure 9 (b) shows the image data IM1 during the period when the rotation speed of the substrate W changes. As shown in Figure 9As shown in (b) thereof, when the rotation speed of the substrate W changes, the fluctuation of the liquid film of the coating liquid on the main surface of the substrate W changes. The fluctuation becomes larger at a position radially outside the liquid landing position of the coating liquid. Therefore, the control unit 90 can determine the magnitude of the fluctuation of the liquid film of the substrate W at a position radially outside the liquid landing position based on the image data IM1. For example, the control unit 90 can determine the magnitude of the fluctuation of the liquid film based on the pixel values of the determination region R2 radially outside the liquid landing position of the coating liquid. For example, the position and size of the determination region R2 in the image data IM1 are set in advance in such a manner that the fluctuation of the liquid film at the liquid landing position is not included. The control unit 90 can determine whether the variance of the pixel values of the determination region R2 is equal to or greater than a specified second variance threshold. When the variance is equal to or greater than the second variance threshold, it is determined that the fluctuation of the liquid film is large. On the contrary, the control unit 90 can determine that the fluctuation of the liquid film is small when the variance of the determination region R2 does not reach the second variance threshold.

[0139] Moreover, for example, the control unit 90 can determine that the rotation speed of the substrate W starts to change when the fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R2 of the next image data IM1 is large while the fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R2 of the image data IM1 is small.

[0140] As described above, during the execution of the second step of the coating process, the control unit 90 performs a determination process for the change in the rotation speed based on the image data IM1. When the control unit 90 detects a change in the rotation speed of the substrate W, it executes step S14.

[0141] In step S14, the control unit 90 calculates the time from the output time of the speed change command to the first speed change time when the rotation speed of the substrate W changes. For example, the control unit 90 calculates the first speed change time based on the imaging time of the image data IM1 when the rotation speed of the substrate W starts to change. The first speed change time in this case corresponds to the change start time when the rotation speed of the substrate W starts to change. Then, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the speed change command to the first speed change time.

[0142] Next, the control unit 90 determines whether the delay time of the rotation drive unit 23 is within the reference range of the rotation drive unit 23 (step S15). If the delay time is outside the reference range, error processing is performed (step S16).

[0143] In addition, in the above example, the control unit 90 detects a change in the rotation speed of the substrate W as a change in the phenomenon. However, the control unit 90 may detect that the rotation speed of the substrate W reaches the second speed value (i.e., the change in the rotation speed ends). For example, the control unit 90 may determine that the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W ends when the fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R2 of the next image data IM1 of the image data IM1 with a large fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R2 is small, and calculate the first speed change time based on the imaging time of the image data IM1. The first speed change time in this case corresponds to the change end time when the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W ends. In this case, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the speed change command to the change end time as the delay time. In addition, the control unit 90 may calculate two delay times, namely, the delay time from the output time of the movement command to the change start time and the delay time from the output time of the movement command to the change end time. This also applies to the second speed change time described later.

[0144] When further processing is performed, the third step of the coating process is executed. In the third step, as described above, the control unit 90 outputs a speed change command to the substrate holding unit 2 and outputs a closing command to the supply valve 33A. The substrate holding unit 2 changes the rotation speed of the substrate W from the second speed value to the third speed value in response to the speed change command, and the supply valve 33A closes the supply pipe 32A in response to the closing command.

[0145] Therefore, during the execution of the third step, the control unit 90 determines whether the rotation speed of the substrate W changes and whether the ejection of the coating liquid stops based on the image data IM1 as a determination process for the change in the phenomenon (step S13). Figure 10 The image data IM1 captured when the rotation speed of the substrate W changes and the ejection of the coating liquid stops is shown. As Figure 10 shown, when the rotation speed of the substrate W changes, the fluctuation of the liquid film of the coating liquid on the main surface of the substrate W becomes larger. The fluctuation may occur at a position radially outside the liquid landing position of the coating liquid. In addition, when the ejection of the coating liquid stops, the coating liquid is interrupted midway between the nozzle 31A and the substrate W, and the lower coating liquid falls onto the substrate W side due to gravity. As a result, a relatively large fluctuation is generated in the coating liquid on the main surface of the substrate W at the liquid landing position.

[0146] Therefore, the control unit 90 can determine the stop of the ejection of the coating liquid based on the fluctuation of the liquid film at the liquid landing position. Specifically, the control unit 90 can determine whether the variance of the determination region R11 is equal to or greater than a specified third variance threshold. When the variance is equal to or greater than the third variance threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the fluctuation of the liquid film is large, and when the variance is less than the third variance threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the fluctuation of the liquid film is small. The determination region R11 is a region that includes the liquid landing position of the coating liquid from the nozzle 31A located at the central position and is separated from the determination region R2, and is set in advance, for example. The third variance threshold may be the same as or different from the first variance threshold. Then, the control unit 90 can determine the stop of the ejection of the coating liquid when the fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R11 of the next image data IM1 of the image data IM1 with a small fluctuation of the liquid film in the determination region R11 is large.

[0147] In addition, the control unit 90 can determine whether there is a change in the rotation speed of the substrate W based on the fluctuation of the liquid film at a position radially outside the liquid landing position. Specifically, when the variance of the determination region R2 is equal to or greater than a specified fourth variance threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the fluctuation of the liquid film is large, and when the variance is less than the fourth variance threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the fluctuation of the liquid film is small. The fourth variance threshold may be the same as or different from the second variance threshold. Then, similar to the determination in the second process, the control unit 90 detects the change in the rotation speed of the substrate W.

[0148] As described above, during the execution of the third process of the coating process, the control unit 90 performs the determination process for the change in the rotation speed and the determination process for the stop of the ejection of the coating liquid based on the image data IM1. When the control unit 90 detects at least one of the change in the rotation speed and the stop of the ejection, it executes step S14.

[0149] When detecting a change in the rotation speed of the substrate W, in step S14, first, the control unit 90 calculates the second speed change time based on the imaging time of the image data IM1 when the rotation speed of the substrate W changes. Then, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the speed change command to the second speed change time.

[0150] In addition, when detecting the stop of the ejection of the coating liquid, in step S14, first, the control unit 90 calculates the ejection stop time based on the imaging time of the image data IM1 when the ejection of the coating liquid stops. Then, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the closing command to the ejection stop time.

[0151] Next, the control unit 90 determines whether the delay time calculated in step S14 is within the reference range (step S15), and when the delay time is outside the reference range, an error process is performed (step S17).

[0152] As described above, the control unit 90 obtains the output timing of the control signal for the drive unit based on the control clock, and obtains the occurrence timing of the change in the phenomenon in the chamber 10 based on the imaging timing measured by the camera clock (steps S11 to S14). In the present embodiment, the control unit 90 synchronizes the current time measured by the control clock with the current time measured by the camera clock through step S11 (synchronization process). Therefore, the control unit 90 can calculate substantially on the same time axis and can calculate the time difference (here, the delay time) from the output timing of the control signal to the occurrence timing of the change in the phenomenon with higher accuracy. For example, the delay time related to the nozzle movement drive unit 37, the delay time related to the rotation drive unit 23, and the delay time related to the change in the ejection state can be obtained with high accuracy.

[0153] In addition, in the above example, the control unit 90 stores the delay time data indicating each delay time in the storage unit 94. Then, in response to, for example, a user input, the control unit 90 causes the display of the user interface 95 to display the delay time. Thus, the user can identify the respective delay times of the processing unit 1 and can infer the deterioration of each drive unit, etc. In addition, in order to make the occurrence timing of the change in the phenomenon a more desired timing, the user can update the required time for each process in the process recipe information D1 based on the identified delay time. For example, when the delay time of the drive unit is longer than the upper limit of the reference range, the process recipe information D1 can be updated in such a way that the output timing of the control signal for the drive unit becomes an earlier timing. Such an update can be performed through a user input to the user interface 95.

[0154] In addition, in the above example, the control unit 90 determines whether each delay time is within the reference range (step S15). Therefore, the processing unit 1 can automatically judge whether the delay time is appropriate. In addition, when the delay time is outside the reference range, the control unit 90 can update the output timing of the control signal (that is, the required time of the process) in the process recipe information D1 based on the amount by which the calculated delay time deviates from the reference range, so that the occurrence timing of the change in the phenomenon becomes a more desired timing.

[0155] In addition, in the above example, although the monitoring process is performed throughout the period of substrate processing, it may also be performed during at least a part of the period. The at least a part of the period is a period including the occurrence timing of the change in the phenomenon to be calculated. For example, when calculating the change timing of the ejection state, the at least a part of the period is a period including the change timing of the ejection state change of the coating liquid.

[0156] In addition, in the above example, the control unit 90 detects a change in the fluctuation of the liquid film at the liquid landing position of the coating liquid based on the image data IM1 as a change in the ejection state of the coating liquid (ejection start or ejection stop). Accordingly, the control unit 90 can detect a change in the ejection state with high accuracy.

[0157] In addition, in the above example, the control unit 90 detects a change in the fluctuation of the liquid film at a position radially outside the liquid landing position of the coating liquid as a change in the rotation speed of the substrate W based on the image data IM1. Accordingly, the control unit 90 can detect a change in the rotation speed based on the image data IM1.

[0158] <Protective member lifting drive unit>

[0159] In the above example, the control unit 90 outputs a control signal to the protective member lifting drive unit 8, and the protective member lifting drive unit 8 raises and lowers the protective member 7 in response to the control signal. Therefore, the control unit 90 can calculate the delay time from the output time of the control signal to the protective member lifting drive unit 8 to the lifting and lowering time of the protective member 7. For example, the control unit 90 detects a change in the position of the protective member 7 based on the image data IM1 (step S13). As a specific example, the control unit 90 can detect a change in the position of the protective member 7 based on the temporal change in the pixel values of the determination region R3 (also refer to (a) in Figure 8 ). The determination region R3 is a region that includes at least a part of the upper peripheral edge portion of the protective member 7 and can be set in advance.

[0160] For example, when the similarity between the determination regions R3 of two temporally consecutive image data IM1 does not reach a specified similarity threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the protective member 7 has been lifted or lowered, and when the similarity is equal to or greater than the similarity threshold, the control unit 90 determines that the protective member 7 is stationary. Although the similarity is not particularly limited, for example, it can be the sum of the squares of the differences in pixel values (Sum of Squared Difference), the sum of the absolute values of the differences in pixel values (Sum of Absolute Difference), normalized cross-correlation, zero-mean normalized cross-correlation, or other well-known similarities.

[0161] Then, the control unit 90 calculates the lifting time of the protection member 7 based on the shooting time of the image data IM1, and calculates the delay time from the output time of the control signal to the lifting time (step S14). Specifically, the control unit 90 can calculate the start time of lifting based on the shooting time of the image data IM1 when the protection member 7 changes from the stationary state to the lifting state. In this case, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the control signal to the start time of lifting. Alternatively, the control unit 90 can calculate the end time of lifting based on the shooting time of the image data IM1 when the protection member 7 changes from the lifting state to the stationary state. In this case, the control unit 90 calculates the delay time from the output time of the control signal to the end time of lifting. In addition, the control unit 90 can calculate both the delay time from the output time to the start time of lifting and the delay time from the output time to the end time of lifting.

[0162] <Time difference of occurrence times of different phenomenon changes>

[0163] The control unit 90 can calculate the time difference of the occurrence times of different phenomenon changes obtained based on the image data IM1. Figure 11 It is a diagram for explaining the calculation of the time difference.

[0164] <Supply time of the processing liquid (= time difference between the start time of spraying and the stop time of spraying)>

[0165] As Figure 11 shown in (a) of, the control unit 90 can calculate the supply time for supplying the coating liquid to the main surface of the substrate W based on the start time of spraying and the stop time t2 of spraying obtained from the image data IM1 (also refer to Figure 6 ). More specifically, the control unit 90 subtracts the start time of spraying from the stop time t2 of spraying to calculate the supply time. The control unit 90 can store the supply time data indicating the supply time in the storage unit 94. In addition, the control unit 90 can, for example, in response to a user input to the user interface 95, display the supply time on the display of the user interface 95. Thereby, the user can identify the supply time. Moreover, the user can identify the occurrence of defects such as insufficient or excessive supply time. And, as described above, since the user can also identify the delay time related to the start of spraying and the delay time related to the stop of spraying, the user can also determine whether the cause of the supply time defect is due to the start of spraying or the stop of spraying.

[0166] In addition, the control unit 90 can determine whether the supply time is within a specified supply reference range. When the supply time is within the supply reference range, since appropriate coating processing is performed, the control unit 90 continues the processing. On the other hand, when the supply time is outside the supply reference range, the control unit 90 can perform error processing, for example. Thereby, the user can identify that an error has occurred in the supply time, and can quickly explore the cause of the supply time defect as described above.

[0167] <Time difference between the stop of ejection of coating liquid and the change in rotational speed in the third process>

[0168] In the above example, in the third process of the coating process, the ejection of the coating liquid is stopped during the change in the rotational speed of the substrate W (see also Figure 5 and Figure 6 ). Therefore, the time difference Δt between the second speed change time (for example, the change start time t1) and the ejection stop time t2 has a relatively large influence on the film thickness of the coating liquid. Therefore, as shown in (b) of Figure 11 , the control unit 90 can calculate the time difference Δt based on the change start time t1 and the ejection stop time t2 obtained from the image data IM1. Specifically, the control unit 90 subtracts the change start time t1 from the ejection stop time t2 to calculate the time difference Δt. The control unit 90 can store the time difference data representing the time difference Δt in the storage unit 94. In addition, the control unit 90 can, for example, in response to a user input to the user interface 95, cause the display of the user interface 95 to display the time difference Δt. Thereby, the user can identify the occurrence of defects such as insufficient or excessive time difference Δt. Moreover, as described above, the user can also identify the delay time related to the change in the rotational speed and the delay time related to the ejection stop. Therefore, the user can also determine whether the cause of the defect in the time difference Δt is due to the rotation drive unit 23 or the supply valve 33A.

[0169] In addition, the control unit 90 can determine whether the time difference Δt is within a specified time difference reference range. When the time difference Δt is within the time difference reference range, since appropriate coating processing is performed, the control unit 90 continues the processing. On the other hand, when the time difference Δt is outside the time difference reference range, the control unit 90 can, for example, perform error processing. Thereby, the user can identify that a defect has occurred in the time difference Δt and can explore the cause of the defect in the time difference Δt as described above.

[0170] However, in the above example, the control unit 90 obtains the second speed change time (for example, the change start time t1) based on the fluctuation of the liquid film on the main surface of the substrate W in the image data IM1. However, there are cases where the detection accuracy of the change in the rotational speed of the substrate W caused by the fluctuation of the liquid film is not necessarily high. For example, the reason is that the fluctuation of the liquid film at a position outside the liquid landing position may also change due to the change in the flow rate of the coating liquid. Therefore, in a case where a change in the ejection state and a change in the rotational speed of the substrate W occur in parallel as in the third process of the coating process, the detection accuracy may decrease. On the contrary, since the liquid landing position is close to the center of the substrate W, the fluctuation of the liquid film at the liquid landing position is almost independent of the change in the rotational speed of the substrate W.

[0171] Therefore, the control unit 90 can determine the second speed change time (e.g., the change start time t1) based on the output time of the speed change command for the substrate holding unit 2. Specifically, as shown in (c) of Figure 11 , the control unit 90 sets the output time of the speed change command in the third process as the second speed change time. Moreover, the control unit 90 can subtract the output time of the speed change command from the ejection stop time t2 to calculate the time difference Δt. Thus, the control unit 90 can calculate the time difference Δt with higher accuracy and simpler processing.

[0172] Here, when explaining more generally, a shift driving unit is introduced. The shift driving unit is, for example, the nozzle moving driving unit 37 or the rotation driving unit 23, and is a driving unit that shifts the shift object (the nozzle 31 or the substrate W) in the chamber 10. Here, the control unit 90 calculates the time difference between the start time of the position change of the shift object and the change time of the ejection state of the processing liquid. For example, the control unit 90 calculates the time difference between the start time of the movement of the nozzle 31 and the start time of the ejection of the processing liquid. In the above case, the control unit 90 applies the output time of the control signal (e.g., the movement command) for the shift driving unit (e.g., the nozzle moving driving unit 37) as the start time of the position change. That is, the control unit 90 calculates the time difference between the output time of the control signal for the shift driving unit and the change time of the ejection state of the coating liquid calculated based on the image data IM1.

[0173] Accordingly, since the output time of the control signal is applied to the start time of the shift driving unit with higher responsiveness, the control unit 90 can calculate the time difference more simply.

[0174] <Aging deterioration of the driving unit>

[0175] The substrate W is sequentially loaded into the processing unit 1. Since the control unit 90 calculates the above time difference (including the delay time) every time the substrate W is processed, aging data D2 representing the aging change of the time difference is generated. Figure 12 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the aging data D2. For example, when the control unit 90 calculates the delay time of each driving unit, the delay time can be added to the aging data D2 corresponding to the driving unit and the aging data D2 can be updated, and the updated aging data D2 is stored in the storage unit 94.

[0176] The control unit 90 can, for example, respond to a user input for the user interface 95 and cause the display of the user interface 95 to display the aging data D2. Thus, the user can confirm the aging change of the time difference based on the aging data.

[0177] <Non-uniformity between devices>

[0178] In the example, the substrate processing apparatus 100 includes a plurality of processing units 1. Each processing unit 1 calculates the time difference (including the delay time) during the processing of the substrate W. Therefore, the control unit 90 generates the inter-device data D3 indicating the unevenness of the time differences among the plurality of processing units 1. Figure 13 FIG. is a diagram schematically showing an example of the inter-device data D3. For example, when the control unit 90 calculates the delay time of each driving unit in each processing unit 1, the control unit 90 adds the delay time to the inter-device data D3 corresponding to the driving unit and updates the inter-device data D3, and stores the updated inter-device data D3 in the storage unit 94.

[0179] The control unit 90 can, for example, in response to a user input to the user interface 95, cause the display of the user interface 95 to display the inter-device data D3. Thereby, the user can recognize the unevenness of the time differences among the plurality of processing units 1.

[0180] The control unit 90 can specify in advance, through experiments or the like, the processing unit 1 with the best processing performance among the plurality of processing units 1, and set each time difference of the processing unit 1 as the reference time. The reference time data indicating the reference time is, for example, stored in the storage unit 94 in advance. The control unit 90 can determine whether the difference between the time difference of each processing unit 1 calculated in step S14 and the reference time is equal to or greater than a specified threshold value. When the difference is equal to or greater than the threshold value, the control unit 90 can cause the display of the user interface 95 to display an error. The error can include information indicating the processing unit 1 that is the object of the error and information indicating the type of the time difference.

[0181] <Synchronization processing>

[0182] In the example, the control unit 90 performs synchronization processing on the reset signal output to the camera 5. However, it is not necessarily limited thereto. For example, the shift driving unit that controls the position of the shift object in the chamber 10 has high responsiveness. The shift driving unit includes, for example, a nozzle movement driving unit 37, a rotation driving unit 23, and a shield lifting driving unit 8. When the control unit 90 outputs a control signal to the shift driving unit, at a moment close to the output moment of the control signal, the position of the shift object starts to change. If the responsiveness is high, the shift start moment at which the position of the shift object starts to change can be regarded as substantially the same as the output moment. The shift start moment corresponds to the movement start moment when the shift object is the nozzle 31.

[0183] Therefore, the control unit 90 can perform synchronization processing as follows. First, the control unit 90 detects the start of the position change of the shifting object based on the image data IM1. As described above, the detection can be performed based on the temporal change of the pixel values of the image data IM1. Moreover, the control unit 90 obtains the shift start time when the shifting object starts to change based on the imaging time of the image data IM1. Since the shift start time is obtained based on the imaging time of the image data IM1, it is a time based on the camera clock. In the case of high responsiveness, the deviation amount between the output time and the shift start time mainly corresponds to the difference between the time axis of the control unit 90 and the time axis of the camera 5. Therefore, the control unit 90 performs synchronization processing based on the output time of the control signal and the shift start time. Specifically, the control unit 90 corrects at least one of the measurement time of the control unit 90 and the measurement time of the camera 5 with the offset amount to reduce the difference between the current time measured by the control unit 90 and the current time measured by the camera 5.

[0184] Accordingly, the control unit 90 does not need to output a reset signal to the camera 5, and the camera control unit 51 does not need a function corresponding to the reset signal. Therefore, the function of the camera control unit 51 can be simplified.

[0185] <Second Example of Substrate Processing>

[0186] Figure 14 It is a flowchart showing a second example of the operation of the processing unit 1. In Figure 14 the processing unit 1 executes steps S21 to S28 to perform substrate processing (corresponding to a processing step) on the substrate W. Here, the ejection unit 3 of the processing unit 1 includes three nozzles 31 (not shown). More specifically, the processing unit 1 includes a nozzle 31 for a chemical solution (e.g., hydrofluoric acid), a nozzle 31 for a first cleaning solution (e.g., pure water), and a nozzle 31 for a second cleaning solution (e.g., isopropyl alcohol). Each nozzle 31 is connected to the downstream end of each supply pipe 32, and the upstream end of the supply pipe 32 is connected to a processing liquid supply source that supplies the corresponding processing liquid. Figure 14 The substrate processing of

[0187] is also achieved by the control unit 90 controlling each component of the substrate processing apparatus 100 based on the process recipe information D1.

[0188] Next, the processing unit 1 performs the first cleaning process (step S23). Specifically, the ejection unit 3 ejects the first cleaning liquid from the nozzle 31 for the first cleaning liquid onto the main surface of the substrate W. Then, in response to the elapse of a prescribed first cleaning time, the ejection unit 3 ends the ejection of the first cleaning liquid.

[0189] Next, the processing unit 1 performs an interruption process (step S24). Specifically, a closing instruction is maintained for all the supply valves 33 for a prescribed interruption time (for example, 0.1 second). That is, the control unit 90 does not output an opening instruction to the other supply valves 33 from the time when the closing instruction is output to the supply valve 33 for the first cleaning liquid until the interruption time has elapsed.

[0190] Next, the processing unit 1 performs the second cleaning process (step S25). Specifically, the ejection unit 3 ejects the second cleaning liquid from the nozzle 31 for the second cleaning liquid onto the main surface of the substrate W. That is, the control unit 90 outputs an opening instruction to the supply valve 33 for the second cleaning liquid in response to the elapse of the interruption time from the output time of the closing instruction for the supply valve 33 for the first cleaning liquid. Then, in response to the elapse of a second cleaning time from the output time of the opening instruction, a closing instruction is output to the supply valve 33 for the second cleaning liquid. In addition, the nozzle movement drive unit 37 moves the nozzle 31 to the nozzle standby position.

[0191] Next, the processing unit 1 performs a drying process (step S26). Specifically, the substrate holding unit 2 increases the rotation speed of the substrate W (so-called spin drying). In response to the elapse of a prescribed drying time, the substrate holding unit 2 ends the rotation of the substrate W. Next, the substrate holding unit 2 releases the holding of the substrate W (step S27), and the second transfer unit 122 transfers the substrate W out of the processing unit 1 (step S28).

[0192] As described above, the processing unit 1 can process the substrate W. Moreover, a short-time interruption process is performed between the first cleaning process and the second cleaning process. In the interruption process, although the ejection flow rate of the first cleaning liquid decreases, the ejection flow rate is not zero at the end of the interruption process. Therefore, a liquid film can be maintained on the main surface of the substrate W until the ejection of the second cleaning liquid starts. That is, the coverage range of the substrate W can be ensured. Moreover, at the start of the ejection of the second cleaning liquid, since the ejection flow rate of the first cleaning liquid is small, the possibility of liquid splash occurring on the main surface of the substrate W can also be reduced.

[0193] However, in order to balance the suppression of liquid splashing and the coverage range, it is important to determine the ejection stop time of the first cleaning liquid and the ejection start time of the second cleaning liquid. Therefore, the control unit 90 can calculate these times. Specifically, first, the control unit 90 detects the ejection stop of the first cleaning liquid based on the image data IM1, and calculates the delay time from the output time of the closing command for the supply valve 33 for the first cleaning liquid to the ejection stop time of the first cleaning liquid based on the synchronized time. In addition, the control unit 90 detects the ejection start of the second cleaning liquid based on the image data IM1, and calculates the delay time from the output time of the opening command for the supply valve 33 for the second cleaning liquid to the ejection start time of the second cleaning liquid based on the synchronized time. If the control unit 90 displays each delay time on the user interface 95, the user can confirm whether the ejection stop time of the first cleaning liquid and the ejection start time of the second cleaning liquid are appropriate. The control unit 90 can determine whether each delay time is within the reference range, and can also calculate the time difference between the ejection stop time of the first cleaning liquid and the ejection start time of the second cleaning liquid, and determine whether the time difference is within the specified time difference reference range.

[0194] In addition, in the second example of substrate processing, the control unit 90 can also calculate the time difference from the output time for other driving units to the occurrence time of the phenomenon change.

[0195] As described above, the substrate processing apparatus 100 and the substrate processing method have been described in detail. The description is illustrative in all aspects, and the disclosure is not limited thereto. In addition, the above various modification examples can be combined and applied as long as they do not conflict with each other. Moreover, it should be understood that multiple modification examples not illustrated can be conceived without departing from the scope of the disclosure.

[0196] [Reference Signs]

[0197] 1: Processing unit

[0198] 10: Chamber

[0199] 2: Driving unit (substrate holding unit)

[0200] 100: Substrate processing apparatus

[0201] 23: Driving unit (rotation driving unit)

[0202] 31, 31A, 31B: Nozzle

[0203] 32, 32A, 32B: Supply pipe

[0204] 33, 33A, 33B: Supply valve

[0205] 37: Driving unit (nozzle movement driving unit)

[0206] 5: Camera

[0207] 8: Driving unit (protective member lifting driving unit)

[0208] 90: Control unit

[0209] IM1: Image data

[0210] S11: Synchronization process (step)

[0211] S12: Imaging process (step)

[0212] S14: Calculation process (step)

[0213] W: Substrate.

Claims

1. A substrate processing method, comprising: In a processing step, the control unit measures the timing and outputs a control signal to at least one driving unit in the processing unit so that the processing unit processes the substrate carried into the chamber; An imaging step, performed during at least a portion of the processing step, wherein a camera is used to capture images in the chamber to generate image data; a synchronization step of performing synchronization processing to reduce a difference between the current time measured by the control unit and the current time measured by the camera; and A calculation process detects a phenomenon change in the chamber based on the image data, calculates an occurrence time of the phenomenon change based on a shooting time of the image data, and obtains a time difference between an output time of the control signal and the occurrence time of the phenomenon change based on a synchronized time.

2. The substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein In the processing step, the control unit outputs a movement instruction as the control signal to the nozzle movement driving unit, and the nozzle movement driving unit moves the nozzle that sprays the processing liquid toward the main surface of the substrate; In the calculation step, the movement of the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference, that is, the delay time, from the output timing of the movement command to the movement timing of the nozzle is obtained based on the synchronized timing.

3. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein In the processing step, the control unit outputs an opening command or a closing command as the control signal to a supply valve provided in a supply pipe connected to a nozzle that sprays the processing liquid onto the main surface of the substrate; In the calculation process, the change in the discharge state of the processing liquid from the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference, that is, the delay time, from the output time of the control signal to the change time of the discharge state is calculated based on the synchronized time.

4. The substrate processing method according to claim 3, wherein In the treatment process, the control unit outputs the opening instruction to the supply valve to eject the treatment liquid from the nozzle, and then outputs the closing instruction to the supply valve to stop ejecting the treatment liquid from the nozzle; In the calculation process, the start of ejection of the processing liquid from the nozzle in response to the open command is detected based on the image data, and the stop of ejection of the processing liquid from the nozzle in response to the close command is detected based on the image data, and the supply time from the start time of ejection of the processing liquid to the stop time of ejection is calculated.

5. The substrate processing method according to claim 3, wherein In the calculation step, based on the image data, a change in the ripple of the processing liquid at a landing position of the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate is detected as a change in the discharge state of the processing liquid.

6. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein In the processing step, the control unit causes the processing liquid to be ejected from the nozzle toward the main surface of the substrate, and outputs a speed change instruction as the control signal to a rotation drive unit that rotates the substrate; In the calculation step, based on the image data, a change in the ripple of the processing liquid on the main surface of the substrate at a position radially outward of a landing position of the processing liquid is detected as a change in the rotation speed of the substrate.

7. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein In the processing step, the control unit outputs the control signal to a displacement driving unit that displaces the position of the displacement object in the chamber, and outputs an opening instruction or a closing instruction as the control signal to a supply valve provided in a supply pipe connected to a nozzle that sprays a processing liquid onto the main surface of the substrate; In the calculation process, the change in the ejection state of the processing liquid from the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference between the output timing of the control signal for the shift drive unit and the change timing of the ejection state of the processing liquid is calculated based on the synchronized timing.

8. The substrate processing method according to claim 7, wherein In the processing step, the control unit outputs the closing command to the supply valve, and outputs a speed change command as the control signal to the shift drive unit, that is, the rotation drive unit, which rotates the substrate; In the calculation step, stop of discharge of the processing liquid from the nozzle is detected based on the image data, and the time difference between the output timing of the speed change command and the stop timing of discharge of the processing liquid is obtained based on the synchronized timing.

9. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein In the processing step, the control unit outputs the control signal to a displacement driving unit that shifts the position of the displacement object in the chamber; In the synchronization process, the start of the position change of the displacement object in the chamber is detected based on the image data, the displacement start time when the position of the displacement object starts to change is calculated based on the shooting time of the image data, and the synchronization processing is performed based on the output time of the control signal and the displacement start time.

10. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein The processing step, the imaging step, the synchronization step and the calculation step are performed on each of the plurality of substrates. Aging data representing aging changes of the time differences associated with the plurality of substrates are generated.

11. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein The processing step, the imaging step, the synchronization step and the calculation step are performed on each of the plurality of processing units. Inter-device data indicating unevenness of the time differences between the plurality of the processing units is generated.

12. A substrate processing apparatus comprising: Chamber; A camera, for taking pictures in the chamber to generate image data; a driving unit, used for processing the substrate carried into the chamber; and a control unit that outputs a control signal to the driving unit to process the substrate carried into the chamber; and The control unit performs synchronization processing to reduce the difference between the current time measured by the control unit and the current time measured by the camera, detects the phenomenon change in the chamber based on the image data, calculates the occurrence time of the phenomenon change based on the shooting time of the image data, and calculates the time difference between the output time of the control signal and the occurrence time of the phenomenon change based on the synchronized time.

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