Substrate processing apparatus and method
By introducing a buffer device into the substrate processing equipment, the problems of contamination and low efficiency in the drying process after wet cleaning of the substrate are solved, and efficient drying of the substrate is achieved.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202311861507.1
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2023-12-29
- Publication Date
- 2025-07-01
AI Technical Summary
After wet cleaning of the substrate, the treatment liquid remaining on the surface of the substrate moving mechanism in the traditional drying process affects the drying effect, and after drying, the substrate needs to return to the liquid treatment tank to occupy resources, resulting in a reduction in processing efficiency.
A buffer device is introduced into the substrate processing device to temporarily store the substrate after drying to prevent it from returning to the liquid treatment tank. Through the mobile configuration of the drying chamber and the buffering device, the drying treatment is carried out independently to prevent contamination and improve efficiency.
The risk of contamination of the substrate during liquid treatment and drying is reduced, the overall efficiency of substrate treatment is improved, and the impact of resource occupation is avoided.
Smart Images
Figure CN120237067A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to the field of semiconductor equipment, and further to a substrate processing device and method. Background Art
[0002] In the field of semiconductor equipment, the drying process is an essential process after wet cleaning of substrates. As a very important surface treatment method, wet cleaning is used to clean various pollutants introduced in various processes during chip manufacturing. However, if the substrate is not dried in time after cleaning, oxidation reaction will occur on the surface and water stains will form. Therefore, a drying device is usually attached to the cleaning equipment.
[0003] Traditional drying processes include spin drying and IPA (Iso-Propyl Alcohol) drying. The former spins the substrate at high speed to shake off moisture, while the latter uses volatile IPA vapor to replace moisture on the surface of the substrate to dry it.
[0004] like Figure 1 As shown, it is a schematic diagram of the structure of a substrate processing device 300 suitable for an IPA drying process, and the substrate processing device 300 includes a liquid processing tank 310 and a drying chamber 320. The liquid processing tank 310 is used to wet clean the substrate, and the drying chamber 320 is movably configured above the liquid processing tank 310, and is used to open or close the top opening of the liquid processing tank 310, and to accommodate the substrate after cleaning for drying treatment. In addition, a substrate moving mechanism 311 is provided inside the liquid processing tank 310, and a substrate clamping mechanism 321 is provided inside the drying chamber 320, and the substrate moving mechanism 311 is used to move the substrate upward or downward, and the substrate clamping mechanism 321 is used to fix the substrate inside the drying chamber 320.
[0005] Specifically, Figure 2As shown, it is a schematic diagram of the main steps of a substrate processing method applicable to the above-mentioned substrate processing device 300, including: Step S1, in the initial state, the drying chamber 320 moves to directly above the liquid processing tank 310; Step S2, the drying chamber 320 moves and leaves directly above the liquid processing tank 310, the substrate moving mechanism 311 rises and loads the substrate 100, and then descends and resets; Step S3, the drying chamber 320 moves to directly above the liquid processing tank 310, and the substrate 100 is wet-cleaned in the liquid processing tank 310; Step S4, after the substrate 100 is cleaned, the substrate moving mechanism 311 rises to send the substrate 100 into the drying chamber 320, and the substrate is fixed by the substrate clamping mechanism 321. Subsequently, the substrate moving mechanism 311 descends a preset distance and separates from the substrate 100. And while the substrate 100 rises with the substrate moving mechanism 311, the drying chamber 320 performs IPA drying on the substrate 100 until the substrate 100 is completely dried; Step S5, after the substrate 100 is dried, the substrate moving mechanism 311 rises and bears the substrate 100, the substrate clamping mechanism 321 unloads the substrate. After the liquid processing tank 310 drains the processing liquid, the substrate moving mechanism 311 descends to move the substrate 100 into the liquid processing tank 310 for pickup; Step S6, the drying chamber 320 leaves directly above the liquid processing tank 310, the substrate moving mechanism 311 rises, and the substrate 100 is moved to the subsequent process by other manipulators.
[0006] However, in the above Step S5, during the period when the substrate moving mechanism 311 rises and bears the substrate 100, the liquid medicine remaining on the surface of the substrate moving mechanism 311 may adhere to the surface of the substrate 100, affecting the drying effect of the substrate. To avoid the above problems, the processing liquid remaining on the surface of the substrate moving mechanism 311 can be dried by IPA in the drying chamber 320 in Step S4. However, since the substrate moving mechanism 311 descends a preset distance relative to the substrate 100 in Step S4, the drying effect of the substrate moving mechanism 311 will be poor, which will further increase the overall drying time and reduce the substrate processing efficiency. In addition, in the above Step S5, the substrate 100 needs to be moved into the liquid processing tank 310 for pickup, which will cause the liquid processing tank 310 to be occupied by the substrate to be picked up. At this time, the liquid processing tank 310 cannot perform liquid processing on other batches of substrates, thus affecting the substrate processing efficiency. Summary of the Invention
[0007] Aiming at the above technical problems, the purpose of the present invention is to reduce the risk of the substrate being contaminated by the processing liquid during the liquid processing and drying processes, and at the same time improve the processing efficiency of the substrate.
[0008] To achieve the above purpose, the present invention provides a substrate processing device and a substrate processing method.
[0009] In some embodiments, the substrate processing apparatus includes: a liquid processing tank for storing a processing liquid to perform liquid processing on a substrate; a buffer device for receiving and temporarily storing the substrate after drying processing; a drying chamber for drying the substrate after liquid processing, and the drying chamber is movably disposed above the liquid processing tank and the buffer device; wherein, when the drying chamber dries the substrate after liquid processing, the drying chamber is configured to move directly above the liquid processing tank, and the substrate is lifted into the drying chamber; when the buffer device receives the substrate after drying processing, the drying chamber is configured to move directly above the buffer device, and the substrate is lowered from the drying chamber to the buffer device.
[0010] In some embodiments, the substrate processing method includes: Step S10: conveying a plurality of substrates to a liquid processing tank to perform liquid processing on the substrates; Step S20: moving the substrates after liquid processing to a drying chamber to perform drying processing on the substrates; Step S30: moving the substrates after drying processing to a buffer device to temporarily store the substrates; Step S40: removing the substrates temporarily stored in the buffer device to perform subsequent processes on the substrates.
[0011] Compared with the prior art, the present application configures a buffer device in the substrate processing apparatus and uses the buffer device to temporarily store the substrates after liquid processing and drying processing, avoiding the substrates being moved back to the liquid processing tank for retrieval after drying processing, thereby preventing the substrates from being contaminated by the processing liquid in the liquid processing tank. At the same time, it avoids the drying chamber and / or the liquid processing tank being occupied by the substrates after drying processing, and being unable to perform liquid processing on other substrates. Furthermore, it realizes reducing the risk of the substrates being contaminated by the processing liquid during liquid processing and drying processing, and effectively improves the processing efficiency of the substrates. Description of the Drawings
[0012] The above characteristics, technical features, advantages and their implementation manners of the present invention will be further described below in a clear and understandable manner in conjunction with the drawings in the preferred embodiments.
[0013] Figure 1 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of a substrate processing apparatus;
[0014] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the main steps of a substrate processing method;
[0015] Figure 3 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;
[0016] Figure 4 is a schematic three-dimensional structure diagram of a buffer device according to an embodiment of the present application;
[0017] Figure 5 It is a flowchart of a substrate processing method according to an embodiment of the present application;
[0018] Figures 6a - 6d It is a schematic diagram of the main steps of a substrate processing method according to an embodiment of the present application;
[0019] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of some steps of a substrate processing method according to an embodiment of the present application;
[0020] Figure 8 It is a schematic diagram of some steps of a substrate processing method according to another embodiment of the present application;
[0021] Figure 9 It is a schematic diagram of some steps of a substrate processing method according to another embodiment of the present application; and
[0022] Figure 10 It is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of a substrate processing device according to an embodiment of the present application. Detailed implementation manners
[0023] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the specific implementation manners of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the accompanying drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts, and other implementation manners can also be obtained.
[0024] For the sake of simplicity of the drawings, only the parts related to the invention are schematically shown in each drawing, and they do not represent the actual structure of the product. In addition, for the sake of simplicity and easy understanding of the drawings, in some drawings, components with the same structure or function are only schematically shown as one of them, or only one of them is marked. In this document, "one" not only means "only one", but also means "more than one" situation.
[0025] In this document, it should be noted that unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be directly connected, or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, and it can be the communication inside two components. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific situations.
[0026] In addition, in the description of the present application, the terms "first", "second", etc. are only used for distinguishing descriptions, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.
[0027] Such as Figure 3As shown, a substrate processing apparatus 200 according to an embodiment of the present application is disclosed. The substrate processing apparatus 200 includes a liquid processing tank 210, a drying chamber 220, and a buffer device 230. The liquid processing tank 210 is used to store a processing liquid for liquid processing of the substrate 100. The buffer device 230 is used to receive and temporarily store the substrate 100 after drying processing. The drying chamber 220 is used to perform drying processing on the substrate 100 after liquid processing, and the drying chamber 220 is movably disposed above the liquid processing tank 210 and the buffer device 230. Wherein, when the drying chamber 220 performs drying processing on the substrate 100 after liquid processing, the drying chamber 220 is configured to move directly above the liquid processing tank 210, and the liquid processing tank 210 is configured to raise the substrate 100 to the drying chamber 220; when the buffer device 230 receives the substrate 100 after drying processing, the drying chamber 220 is configured to move directly above the buffer device 230, and the buffer device 230 is configured to lower the substrate 100 from the drying chamber 220 to the buffer device 230. It should be noted that while the substrate 100 is rising from the liquid processing tank 210 to the drying chamber 220, the drying chamber 220 starts to perform drying processing on the substrate 100. After the substrate 100 is transferred to the drying chamber 220, the drying chamber 220 continues to dry the substrate 100 for a predetermined time until the drying processing of the substrate 100 is completed.
[0028] The main difference between this embodiment and Figure 1 and Figure 2 the substrate processing apparatus 300 shown is that a buffer device 230 is added. In this embodiment, the buffer device 230 temporarily stores the substrate 100 after drying processing. Compared with the substrate processing apparatus 300, it is possible to avoid moving the substrate 100 after drying processing into the liquid processing tank 210 for waiting to be taken (refer to Figure 2 step S5), which can not only prevent the substrate 100 from being contaminated by the processing liquid remaining on the surface of the moving mechanism 211, but also facilitate the unloading of the substrate 100. At the same time, it is avoided that the substrate 100 after drying processing occupies the liquid processing tank 210, resulting in the inability of the liquid processing tank 210 to perform liquid processing on other batches of substrates, reducing the actual working time, and thus affecting the processing efficiency of the substrate 100.
[0029] Preferably, as Figure 4 shown, the buffer device 230 includes a buffer main body 231 and a cover plate 232. The buffer main body 231 is used to accommodate the substrate 100, and a substrate inlet 2311 is opened at the top of the buffer main body 231. The cover plate 232 is installed at the substrate inlet 2311, and the cover plate 232 is configured to close the substrate inlet 2311 during the temporary storage of the substrate 100 to prevent the substrate 100 from being contaminated.
[0030] In practical applications, when the drying chamber 220 moves directly above the buffer device 230, it may carry impurity particles. In addition, the substrate 100 needs to be subjected to liquid treatment with different treatment liquids in different treatment tanks successively. During the transfer of the substrate 100 between different treatment tanks, the treatment liquid adhering to the surface of the substrate 100 may splash into the surrounding environment. When the substrate 100 is temporarily stored in the buffer device 230, closing the substrate inlet 2311 with the cover plate 232 can effectively prevent the above-mentioned particles and residual liquid from causing contamination.
[0031] Specifically, as Figure 10 shown, four treatment tanks 500, a substrate processing device 2002, and a substrate processing device 2001 are arranged in sequence along the arrow m direction. During the operation of the equipment, the manipulator 400 moves the substrate 100 to different treatment tanks 500 along the arrow m direction for pre-treatment successively, and then moves the pre-treated substrate 100 to the substrate processing device 2001 or the substrate processing device 2002 for batch liquid treatment and drying treatment. When the manipulator 400 moves the pre-treated substrate 100 to the substrate processing device 2001, the substrate 100 needs to pass above the buffer device 230 of the substrate processing device 2002. At this time, the treatment liquid adhering to the surface of the substrate 100 has a risk of dripping onto the buffer device 230 of the substrate processing device 2002. In this embodiment, by configuring the cover plate 232 for the buffer device 230, it is possible to prevent the treatment liquid from dripping into the buffer device 230 and causing contamination to the substrate 110 temporarily stored in the buffer device 230.
[0032] Furthermore, referring to Figure 4 , the top of the cover plate 232 includes a first slope surface 2321 and a second slope surface 2322 arranged in a herringbone pattern, which are used to prevent the treatment liquid splashed onto the top of the cover plate 232 from remaining on the top of the cover plate 232 and increasing the risk of substrate 100 contamination.
[0033] Preferably, referring to Figure 9 , a sealing door panel 222 is configured at the entrance of the drying chamber 220. The drying chamber 220 is configured to close the sealing door panel 222 when the substrate 150 after liquid treatment rises into the drying chamber 220, so that while the drying chamber 220 performs drying treatment on the substrate 150, it can move away from directly above the liquid treatment tank 210. In this embodiment, through the sealing door panel 222, an independent sealed space separated from the liquid treatment tank 210 can be formed inside the drying chamber 220, enabling the drying chamber 220 to separate from the liquid treatment tank 210 and independently perform drying treatment on the substrate 150. Furthermore, when the substrate 150 is dried inside the drying chamber 220, it can move away from directly above the liquid treatment tank 210, allowing the liquid treatment tank 210 to perform liquid treatment on other substrates 160, thereby increasing the overall processing efficiency of the equipment.
[0034] Preferably, referring again to Figure 3, the substrate processing apparatus 200 further includes a first substrate transfer mechanism 211, a second substrate transfer mechanism 233, a clamping mechanism 221, and a control unit 240. The first substrate transfer mechanism 211 is disposed in the liquid processing tank 210 for transferring the substrate 100 into or out of the liquid processing tank 210, and for transferring the substrate 100 between the liquid processing tank 210 and the drying chamber 220. The second substrate transfer mechanism 233 is disposed in the buffer device 230 for transferring the substrate 100 into or out of the buffer device 230. The clamping mechanism 221 is disposed in the drying chamber 220 for fixing the substrate 100 in the drying chamber 220. The control unit 240 is configured to control the first substrate transfer mechanism 211 to transfer the substrate 100 to be liquid processed downward into the liquid processing tank 210, transfer the substrate 100 that has completed liquid processing upward from the liquid processing tank 210 into the drying chamber 220, and control the clamping mechanism 221 to fix the substrate 100 in the drying chamber 220; and is configured to control the second substrate transfer mechanism 233 to transfer the substrate 100 that has completed drying processing downward from the drying chamber 220 into the buffer device 230.
[0035] As Figure 5 shown, a substrate processing method according to an embodiment of the present application is disclosed. The method is applicable to the substrate processing apparatus 200 of any of the above embodiments, and includes:
[0036] Step S10: Transfer a plurality of substrates 100 to the liquid processing tank 210 to perform liquid processing on the substrates 100;
[0037] Step S20: Transfer the substrate 100 that has completed liquid processing to the drying chamber 220 to perform drying processing on the substrate 100;
[0038] Step S30: Transfer the substrate 100 that has completed drying processing to the buffer device 230 to temporarily store the substrate 100;
[0039] Step S40: Remove the substrate 100 temporarily stored in the buffer device 230 to perform subsequent processes on the substrate 100.
[0040] In this embodiment, by transferring the substrate 100 that has completed drying processing to the buffer device 230, it is possible to avoid transferring the dried substrate 100 back to the liquid processing tank 210 through the first substrate transfer mechanism 211, thereby preventing the substrate 100 from being re - contaminated by the processing liquid. At the same time, it is possible to avoid the dried substrate 100 occupying the drying chamber 220 and the liquid processing tank 210, resulting in the liquid processing tank 210 being unable to perform liquid processing on other batches of substrates, reducing the actual working time of the liquid processing tank 210, and thus affecting the processing efficiency of the substrate 100.
[0041] Preferably, as Figure 6a shown, the above - mentioned step S10 includes:
[0042] Step S11: The drying chamber 220 moves away from directly above the liquid processing tank 210, and the first substrate moving mechanism 211 located within the liquid processing tank 210 rises to the loading height.
[0043] Step S12: The substrate 100 is picked up by the manipulator 400 and loaded onto the first substrate moving mechanism 211.
[0044] Step S13: The first substrate moving mechanism 211 descends into the liquid processing tank 210, and the substrate 100 is subjected to liquid processing by the processing liquid within the liquid processing tank 210.
[0045] Preferably, as Figure 6b , the above step S20 includes:
[0046] Step S21: The drying chamber 220 moves to directly above the liquid processing tank 210, and the first substrate moving mechanism 211 located within the liquid processing tank 210 rises into the drying chamber 220 and loads the substrate 100 that has completed liquid processing into the drying chamber 220.
[0047] Step S22: The substrate 100 is fixed by the clamping mechanism 221 within the drying chamber 220, and the empty first substrate moving mechanism 211 descends into the liquid processing tank 210.
[0048] Step S23: The substrate 100 completes the drying process within the drying chamber 220.
[0049] In practical applications, during the period when the first substrate moving mechanism 211 lifts the substrate 100 from below the liquid level of the processing liquid to above the liquid level, a large amount of processing liquid will adhere to the surface of the first substrate moving mechanism 211. If the first substrate moving mechanism 211 does not separate from the substrate 100, it is necessary to dry the processing liquid adhering to the contact gap between the first substrate moving mechanism 211 and the substrate 100, which will increase the drying time and reduce the substrate processing efficiency. In this embodiment, after the first substrate moving mechanism 211 loads the substrate 100 into the drying chamber 220, the substrate 100 is fixed by the clamping mechanism 221 within the drying chamber 220, and the first substrate moving mechanism 211 descends into the liquid processing tank 210. Since the substrate 100 that has completed the drying process does not need to be unloaded with the help of the first substrate moving mechanism 211, there is no need to dry the first substrate moving mechanism 211 additionally, thus preventing the increase of the overall drying time and reducing the processing efficiency of the substrate 100. In addition, in step S21, when the substrate 100 completes the liquid processing, the liquid processing tank 210 can discharge the processing liquid or store the processing liquid for the liquid processing of other substrates 100.
[0050] Preferably, as Figure 6c shown, the above step S30 includes:
[0051] Step S31: The drying chamber 220 moves to directly above the buffer device 230, and the second substrate moving mechanism 233 located within the buffer device 230 ascends into the drying chamber 220;
[0052] Step S32: The clamping mechanism 221 within the drying chamber 220 releases the fixation of the substrate 100, and the second substrate moving mechanism 233 bears the substrate 100;
[0053] Step S33: The second substrate moving mechanism 233 descends into the buffer device 230 to temporarily store the substrate 100.
[0054] The main difference between this embodiment and Figure 2 the substrate processing method shown is that the substrate 100 after the drying process is transferred by the second substrate moving mechanism 233 within the buffer device 230. Compared with Figure 2 the substrate processing method shown, it is possible to avoid transferring the substrate 100 after the drying process by the first substrate moving mechanism 211 within the liquid processing tank 210 (refer to Figure 2 Step S5), thereby preventing the substrate 100 from being contaminated by the processing liquid remaining on the surface of the first substrate moving mechanism 211.
[0055] Preferably, as Figure 6d shown, the above Step S40 includes:
[0056] Step S41: The drying chamber 220 moves and leaves directly above the buffer device 230;
[0057] Step S42: The second substrate moving mechanism 233 located within the buffer device 230 ascends to the unloading height;
[0058] Step S43: The substrate 100 is picked up by the manipulator 400 to move the substrate 100 to the subsequent station.
[0059] Preferably, as Figure 7 shown, during the execution of Step S40 for a batch of substrates 120, Step S10 can be executed for another batch of substrates 110.
[0060] Specifically, the above Step S10 and Step S40 include:
[0061] Step S101: The first substrate moving mechanism 211 located within the liquid processing tank 210 ascends to the loading height, and a batch of substrates 120 are temporarily stored within the buffer device 230;
[0062] Step S102: Another batch of substrates 110 are picked up by the manipulator 400 and loaded onto the first substrate moving mechanism 211;
[0063] Step S103: The first substrate moving mechanism 211 descends into the liquid processing tank 210, and performs liquid processing on another batch of substrates 110 through the processing liquid in the liquid processing tank 210;
[0064] Step S401: The drying chamber 220 moves to directly above the liquid processing tank 210, and Step S401 is performed simultaneously while Step S103 is being executed;
[0065] Step S402: The second substrate moving mechanism 233 located in the buffer device 230 carries a batch of substrates 120 and rises to the unloading height;
[0066] Step S403: The manipulator 400 picks up the substrate 100 temporarily stored in the buffer device 230 to move a batch of substrates 120 to the subsequent workstations.
[0067] In this embodiment, a batch of substrates 120 that have completed the drying process are temporarily stored in the buffer device 230. Meanwhile, another batch of substrates 110 to be liquid-processed are loaded into the liquid processing tank 210 by the first substrate moving mechanism 211. At this time, a batch of substrates 120 no longer occupy the space of the drying chamber 220. Furthermore, the drying chamber 220 can continue to move to directly above the liquid processing tank 210 to cooperate with the liquid processing tank 210 to perform liquid processing and drying processing on another batch of substrates 110. This embodiment increases the actual working time of the drying chamber 220 and the liquid processing tank 210, and improves the working efficiency of the substrate processing device 200.
[0068] Preferably, as Figure 8 shown, during the execution of Step S30 on a batch of substrates 140, Step S10 is executed on another batch of substrates 130.
[0069] Specifically, the above-mentioned Step S10 and Step S30 include:
[0070] Step S101: The drying chamber 220 moves and leaves directly above the liquid processing tank 210, and the first substrate moving mechanism 211 located in the liquid processing tank 210 rises to the loading height;
[0071] Step S301: The drying chamber 220 moves to directly above the buffer device 230, and the second substrate moving mechanism 233 located in the buffer device 230 rises into the drying chamber 220, and Step S301 is executed simultaneously while Step S101 is being executed;
[0072] Step S102: The manipulator 400 picks up another batch of substrates 130 and loads another batch of substrates 130 onto the first substrate moving mechanism 211;
[0073] Step S302: The clamping mechanism 221 in the drying chamber 220 releases the fixation of a batch of substrates 140, and the second substrate moving mechanism 233 carries a batch of substrates 140, and Step S302 is executed while Step S102 is being executed;
[0074] Step S103: The first substrate moving mechanism 211 descends into the liquid processing tank 210, and performs liquid processing on another batch of substrates 130 through the processing liquid in the liquid processing tank 210;
[0075] Step S303: The second substrate moving mechanism 233 descends into the buffer device 230 to temporarily store a batch of substrates 140, and Step S303 is executed while Step S103 is being executed.
[0076] In this embodiment, while moving another batch of substrates 140 to the buffer device 230, another batch of substrates 130 is transported to the liquid processing tank to perform liquid processing on another batch of substrates 130, thereby increasing the actual working time of the drying chamber 220 and the liquid processing tank 210 and improving the working efficiency of the substrate processing apparatus 200.
[0077] Preferably, as Figure 9 shown, while Step S20 is being executed on a batch of substrates 150, Step S10 is being executed on another batch of substrates 160. Among them, after moving a batch of substrates 150 that have completed liquid processing to the drying chamber 220, the sealing door panel 222 of the drying chamber 220 is closed, so that while the drying chamber 220 performs drying processing on a batch of substrates 150, it moves outside directly above the liquid processing tank 210, and then Step S10 is executed on another batch of substrates 160 through the liquid processing tank 210.
[0078] Specifically, the above-mentioned Step S10 and Step S20 include:
[0079] Step S201: The drying chamber 220 moves directly above the liquid processing tank 210, the first substrate moving mechanism 211 located in the liquid processing tank 210 ascends into the drying chamber 220, and loads a batch of substrates 150 that have completed liquid processing into the drying chamber 220;
[0080] Step S202: The substrate 100 is fixed by the clamping mechanism 221 in the drying chamber 220, the empty first substrate moving mechanism 211 descends into the liquid processing tank 210, and the sealing door panel 222 is closed;
[0081] Step S203: A batch of substrates 150 completes drying processing in the drying chamber 220, and while the drying chamber 220 performs drying processing on a batch of substrates 150, it moves directly above the buffer device 230;
[0082] Step S101: The first substrate moving mechanism 211 located in the liquid processing tank 210 rises to the loading height, and Step S101 is executed while Step S203 is being executed;
[0083] Step S102: The manipulator 400 picks up another batch of substrates 160 and loads the another batch of substrates 160 onto the first substrate moving mechanism 211;
[0084] Step S103: The first substrate moving mechanism 211 descends into the liquid processing tank 210, and the another batch of substrates 160 are subjected to liquid processing by the processing liquid in the liquid processing tank 210.
[0085] In this embodiment, a batch of substrates 140 are moved to the drying chamber 220, and the sealing door panel 222 is used to form an independent sealed space inside the drying chamber 220 that is separated from the liquid processing tank 210. While a batch of substrates 140 are being dried inside the drying chamber 220, they are moved to directly above the buffer device 230, and another batch of substrates 160 are transported to the liquid processing tank to perform liquid processing on the another batch of substrates 160, thereby increasing the actual working time of the drying chamber 220 and the liquid processing tank 210 and improving the working efficiency of the substrate processing apparatus 200.
[0086] It should be noted that the above embodiments can be freely combined as needed. The above are only the preferred embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the principle of the present invention, several improvements and refinements can be made, and these improvements and refinements should also be regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.
Claims
1. A substrate processing apparatus, characterized in that, Comprising: A liquid processing tank for storing a processing liquid to perform liquid processing on a substrate; A buffer device for receiving and temporarily storing the substrate after drying treatment; A drying chamber for drying the substrate after liquid processing, and the drying chamber is movably arranged above the liquid processing tank and the buffer device; wherein, When the drying chamber dries the substrate after liquid processing, the drying chamber is configured to move to directly above the liquid processing tank, and the substrate is lifted into the drying chamber; When the buffer device receives the substrate after drying treatment, the drying chamber is configured to move to directly above the buffer device, and the substrate is lowered from the drying chamber to the buffer device.
2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The buffer device includes: A buffer main body for accommodating the substrate, and the buffer main body has a substrate inlet opening vertically upward; A cover plate installed at the substrate inlet, and the cover plate is configured to close the substrate inlet during temporarily storing the substrate.
3. The substrate processing equipment according to claim 2, wherein, The top of the cover plate includes a first slope surface and a second slope surface arranged in a herringbone pattern.
4. The substrate processing equipment according to claim 1, wherein, A sealing door plate is configured at the inlet of the drying chamber, and the drying chamber is configured to close the sealing door plate after the substrate after liquid processing rises into the drying chamber, so that while the drying chamber performs drying treatment on the substrate, it can move and leave directly above the liquid processing tank.
5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein Comprising: A first substrate moving mechanism arranged in the liquid processing tank for moving the substrate into or out of the liquid processing tank; A second substrate moving mechanism arranged in the buffer device for moving the substrate into or out of the buffer device; A clamping mechanism arranged in the drying chamber for fixing the substrate in the drying chamber; A control unit for controlling the first substrate moving mechanism to move the substrate to be liquid processed downward into the liquid processing tank and move the substrate that has completed liquid processing upward from the liquid processing tank into the drying chamber; And for controlling the clamping mechanism to fix the substrate in the drying chamber; and for controlling the second substrate moving mechanism to move the substrate that has completed drying treatment downward from the drying chamber into the buffer device.
6. A substrate processing method, applicable to the substrate processing equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, Comprising: Step S10: Convey a plurality of substrates to the liquid processing tank to perform liquid processing on the substrates; Step S20: Move the substrate that has completed liquid processing to the drying chamber to perform drying treatment on the substrate; Step S30: Move the substrate that has completed drying treatment to the buffer device to temporarily store the substrate; Step S40: Remove the substrate temporarily stored in the buffer device to perform subsequent processes on the substrate.
7. The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein, The step S10 includes: Step S11: The drying chamber moves and leaves directly above the liquid processing tank, and the first substrate moving mechanism in the liquid processing tank rises to the loading height; Step S12: Clamp the substrate by a manipulator and load the substrate on the first substrate moving mechanism; Step S13: The first substrate moving mechanism descends into the liquid processing tank, and the substrate is subjected to liquid processing by the processing liquid in the liquid processing tank.
8. The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein The step S20 includes: Step S21: The drying chamber moves to directly above the liquid processing tank, and the first substrate moving mechanism located in the liquid processing tank ascends into the drying chamber and loads the substrate that has completed the liquid processing into the drying chamber. Step S22: The substrate is fixed by the clamping mechanism in the drying chamber, and the empty first substrate moving mechanism descends into the liquid processing tank. Step S23: The substrate completes the drying process in the drying chamber.
9. The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein The step S30 includes: Step S31: The drying chamber moves to directly above the buffer device, and the second substrate moving mechanism located in the buffer device ascends into the drying chamber. Step S32: The clamping mechanism in the drying chamber releases the fixation of the substrate, and the second substrate moving mechanism bears the substrate. Step S33: The second substrate moving mechanism descends into the buffer device to temporarily store the substrate.
10. The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein, The step S40 includes: Step S41: The drying chamber moves away from directly above the buffer device. Step S42: The second substrate moving mechanism located in the buffer device ascends to the unloading height. Step S43: The substrate is picked up by a manipulator to move the substrate to a subsequent station.
11. The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein During the execution of step S40 for a batch of substrates, step S10 is executed for another batch of substrates.
12. The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein During the execution of step S30 for a batch of substrates, step S10 is executed for another batch of substrates.
13. The substrate processing method according to claim 6, wherein During the execution of step S20 for a batch of substrates, step S10 is executed for another batch of substrates; wherein After moving the batch of substrates that have completed liquid processing into the drying chamber, the sealing door panel of the drying chamber is closed, so that while the drying chamber performs drying processing on the batch of substrates, it moves away from directly above the liquid processing tank, and then step S10 is executed on another batch of substrates through the liquid processing tank.