Substrate processing apparatus

Abstract

The utility model relates to a substrate processing device. The purpose of the present invention is to efficiently suppress the generation of particles caused by a notch provided in a plate. According to one embodiment, a substrate processing apparatus includes: a substrate holding unit including a plate located below a substrate and a plurality of substrate gripping members provided at a peripheral edge portion of the plate, the plate having a plurality of cutout portions at the peripheral edge portion; a rotation driving unit that rotates the substrate holding unit; a plurality of lifting pins capable of supporting the peripheral edge part of the substrate from below and lifting; a plurality of sliding members provided on the plate so as to be capable of sliding in the horizontal direction, each of the sliding members being movable between a closed position at which the cutout portion of the plate is closed and an open position at which the lifting pin is capable of being lifted and lowered through the cutout portion; and a plurality of operating members which are provided below the plate so as to be capable of rising and falling, are capable of engaging with the sliding members, and each of the plurality of operating members rises and falls in a state of engaging with the sliding members, thereby sliding the sliding members in the horizontal direction.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to a substrate processing device. Background Art

[0002] In the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices, a brush cleaning process is performed in which the back side (the side without device formed) of a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer is turned upward and the back side is polished or cleaned with a brush. Patent document 1 describes an example of a processing unit that performs such a brush cleaning process.

[0003] The processing unit of Patent Document 1 is provided with a rotating holding disk that holds the substrate in a horizontal position and rotates it around a vertical axis. In order to prevent the liquid supplied to the back of the substrate from detouring to the surface of the substrate (the surface forming the device) during the processing, the rotating holding disk has a disk-shaped member (plate) slightly larger than the substrate and located below the substrate, and nitrogen is supplied between the substrate and the disk-shaped member. When the substrate is transferred between the arm of the substrate conveying mechanism and the rotating holding disk, three lifting pins (substrate lifting members) lift the substrate while supporting the peripheral edge of the substrate from below. In order to enable the lifting pins to rise, a notch is provided at the peripheral edge of the disk-shaped member.

[0004] Prior art literature

[0005] Patent Literature

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-183310 Utility Model Content

[0007] Problems to be solved by utility models

[0008] The present application provides a technology capable of effectively suppressing the generation of particles caused by providing notches in a plate.

[0009] Solutions for solving problems

[0010] According to a technical solution of the present application, a substrate processing device is provided, which includes: a substrate holding portion, which holds the substrate in a horizontal posture, the substrate holding portion having a plate and a plurality of substrate holding members, the plate being located below the substrate when the substrate holding portion holds the substrate, the plurality of substrate holding members being arranged at the peripheral edge of the plate and holding the substrate, the plate having a plurality of notches at the peripheral edge; a rotation driving portion, which rotates the substrate holding portion around a vertical axis; a plurality of lifting pins, which are configured to support the peripheral edge of the substrate from below and to pass through the plate The notch portion is lifted and lowered; a plurality of sliding members, which can be slidably arranged on the plate of the substrate holding portion in a horizontal direction, each of the sliding members can move between a closed position that at least partially closes the notch portions of the plate and an open position that opens the notch portions of the plate so that the lifting pin can pass through the notch portions for lifting and lowering; and a plurality of operating members, which can be lifted and lowered respectively under the plate of the substrate holding portion and can be engaged with each of the sliding members, the plurality of operating members are lifted and lowered respectively in a state of being engaged with the sliding members, thereby causing the sliding members to slide in the horizontal direction.

[0011] For the above-mentioned substrate processing device, it can also be that each of the sliding members is installed on the plate with the help of a guiding structure that guides the sliding member in a horizontal direction, and has an operated inclined surface inclined relative to a horizontal plane. When the operated inclined surface is in contact with the operating member, the operating member is raised and lowered while sliding relative to the operated inclined surface, thereby moving the sliding member in a horizontal direction.

[0012] In the above substrate processing apparatus, the sliding member may be urged toward the closed position by a spring.

[0013] For the above-mentioned substrate processing device, it is also possible that the substrate processing device further includes: a lifting body, which is arranged below the plate and carries the multiple operating members for the sliding member; and a lifting drive unit, which lifts the lifting body between a rising position and a falling position, and as the lifting body is lifted and lowered, the multiple operating members for the sliding member are lifted and lowered together.

[0014] The substrate processing device may further include a partitioning member disposed below the lifting body to isolate a space where at least an actuator for lifting and lowering the lifting pins and the rotation drive unit are disposed relative to a space where the lifting body is disposed.

[0015] For the above-mentioned substrate processing device, the dividing component may also be provided with: a plurality of through holes, each of the lifting pins being able to pass through each of the through holes; and a cover component, which is able to move between a closed position for closing each of the through holes and an open position for opening the through holes, the lifting pins being located below the cover component in the closed position when in the descending position, and the cover component being opened when the lifting pins rise from the descending position.

[0016] In the above substrate processing apparatus, the cover member may be moved between a closed position for closing the through holes and an open position for opening the through holes by being operated by an operating member for the cover member carried by the elevating body.

[0017] For the above-mentioned substrate processing device, it can also be that the cover member has: a base, which is cylindrical, has a groove formed on the outer peripheral surface and can rotate around a rotation axis extending in the vertical direction; and a cover body, which is installed on the base, and the operating member for the cover member is engaged with the groove of the cylindrical base, the groove of the base and the operating member for the cover member form a cylindrical cam mechanism, and the base is rotated by moving the lifting body toward a lowered position, so that the cover body closes the through hole, and the base is rotated by moving the lifting body toward an ascending position, so that the cover body opens the through hole.

[0018] For the above-mentioned substrate processing device, it can also be that the substrate holding member of the substrate holding part can be rotatably installed on the peripheral portion of the plate, and can move between a holding position for holding the substrate and a release position for releasing the substrate, the holding member comprising: a holding portion, which holds the peripheral portion of the substrate; and an operated portion, which is used to move the holding portion, the lifting body has an operating member for the operated portion that can push up the operated portion of the holding member, the operating member for the operated portion is composed of a member carried by the lifting body or the lifting body itself, the substrate holding member is located in the holding position by placing the lifting body in a lowered position, and the substrate holding member is located in the release position by placing the lifting body in an ascending position.

[0019] For the above-mentioned substrate processing device, it is also possible that the substrate processing device is further provided with a gas supply part, which supplies gas to the space between the lower surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding part and the upper surface of the plate of the substrate holding part, and the gas supplied to the space flows through the space between the upper surface of the plate and the lower surface of the substrate, and then flows out from the space through the gap between the peripheral edge portion of the plate and the peripheral edge portion of the substrate.

[0020] For the above-mentioned substrate processing device, the peripheral portion of the upper surface of the plate may also have a peripheral inclined surface that becomes higher as it approaches the periphery of the plate, and the peripheral inclined surface of the plate turns the gas flowing in the horizontal direction through the space toward the lower surface of the substrate. An end inclined surface is provided at the end of the upper surface of each sliding member, and the end inclined surface is configured so that when the sliding member is in the closed position, the end inclined surface of the sliding member is continuously arranged with the peripheral inclined surface of the plate when viewed from the circumferential direction of the plate.

[0021] Effect of utility model

[0022] According to the above-described embodiment of the present application, the generation of particles caused by providing the notches in the plate can be effectively suppressed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] Figure 1 It is a schematic cross-sectional view of a substrate processing system according to one embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus.

[0024] Figure 2 It means in Figure 1 A schematic longitudinal sectional view of an example of a structure of a processing unit included in a substrate processing system.

[0025] Figure 3 Yes means Figure 2 FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of a structure of a portion of a peripheral edge portion of a plate that rotates and holds a disk in a processing unit.

[0026] Figure 4 It is a schematic representation of the Figure 3 A structural example of a guide member for a slide member of a plate shown in FIG. Figure 2 A schematic cross-sectional view of section IV-IV in FIG.

[0027] Figure 5A Yes Figure 3 A schematic diagram for explaining the effects of the inclined surface of the peripheral edge portion of the plate of the rotation holding disk and the inclined surface of the slider.

[0028] Figure 5B Yes Figure 3 A schematic diagram for explaining the effects of the inclined surface of the peripheral edge portion of the plate of the rotation holding disk and the inclined surface of the slider.

[0029] Figure 5C Yes Figure 3 A schematic diagram for explaining the effects of the inclined surface of the peripheral edge portion of the plate of the rotation holding disk and the inclined surface of the slider. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present application will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0031] Reference Figure 1 A schematic configuration of a substrate processing system 1 (an example of a liquid processing apparatus) according to an embodiment will be described. Figure 1 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrate processing system 1 according to an embodiment. In order to clarify the positional relationship, the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis are defined to be orthogonal to each other, and the positive direction of the Z-axis is defined as the vertical upward direction.

[0032] like Figure 1 As shown, the substrate processing system 1 includes a carrying-in / out station 2 and a processing station 3. The carrying-in / out station 2 and the processing station 3 are disposed adjacent to each other.

[0033] The loading and unloading station 2 includes a carrier loading unit 11 and a conveying unit 12. The carrier loading unit 11 loads a plurality of carriers C for accommodating a plurality of substrates, in the embodiment, semiconductor wafers W (hereinafter referred to as wafers W) in a horizontal state.

[0034] The conveying unit 12 is disposed adjacent to the carrier loading unit 11, and includes a substrate conveying device 13 and an interface 14 therein. The substrate conveying device 13 includes a wafer holding mechanism for holding the wafer W. In addition, the substrate conveying device 13 is capable of moving in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction and rotating around the vertical axis, and conveys the wafer W between the carrier C and the interface 14 using the wafer holding mechanism.

[0035] The processing station 3 is provided adjacent to the conveying unit 12. The processing station 3 includes a conveying unit 15 and a plurality of processing units 16. The plurality of processing units 16 are provided on both sides of the conveying unit 15 in a line.

[0036] The conveying unit 15 includes a substrate conveying device 17 therein. The substrate conveying device 17 includes a wafer holding mechanism for holding the wafer W. In addition, the substrate conveying device 17 can move in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction and rotate around the vertical axis, and conveys the wafer W between the interface 14 and the processing unit 16 using the wafer holding mechanism.

[0037] The processing unit 16 performs substrate processing on the wafer W conveyed by the substrate conveying device 17. The processing unit 16 performs processing on the wafer W such as scrubbing processing and cleaning processing.

[0038] The substrate processing system 1 includes a control device 4. The control device 4 is, for example, a computer, and includes a control operation unit 18 and a storage unit 19. The storage unit 19 stores programs for controlling various processes performed in the substrate processing system 1. The control operation unit 18 controls the operation of the substrate processing system 1 by reading and executing the programs stored in the storage unit 19.

[0039] In addition, the program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or may be loaded from the storage medium to the storage unit 19 of the control device 4. Examples of computer-readable storage media include a hard disk (HD), a floppy disk (FD), a compact disk (CD), a magneto-optical disk (MO), and a memory card.

[0040] In the substrate processing system 1 configured as described above, first, the substrate conveyor 13 of the transport station 2 takes out the wafer W from the carrier C mounted on the carrier mounting portion 11, and places the taken-out wafer W on the delivery portion 14. The wafer W placed on the delivery portion 14 is taken out from the delivery portion 14 by the substrate conveyor 17 of the processing station 3 and is transported to the processing unit 16.

[0041] After the wafer W is processed by the processing unit 16, it is transferred from the processing unit 16 by the substrate transfer device 17 and placed on the delivery unit 14. Then, the processed wafer W placed on the delivery unit 14 is returned to the carrier C of the carrier placement unit 11 by the substrate transfer device 13.

[0042] When the processing unit 16 is a brush cleaning unit for performing a brush cleaning process on the back side of the wafer W, a commutator (not shown) for flipping the wafer W is provided. Figure 1 In the embodiment, a commutator can be provided in place of the processing unit 16 at some positions where the processing unit 16 is provided. Alternatively, the commutator can be provided above or below the interface 14. In this case, a conveying device that is independent of the substrate conveying devices 13 and 17 and conveys the wafer W between the commutator and the interface 14 can be provided. The commutator, for example, flips the wafer W before the wafer W is to be fed into the processing unit 16 (brush cleaning processing unit) and just after the wafer W is fed out of the processing unit 16 (brush cleaning processing unit).

[0043] Next, refer to Figure 2 to Figure 4 The structure of the processing unit 16 is described. Figure 2 As shown, the processing unit 16 includes a rotating holding plate (substrate holding and rotating mechanism) 100, which is configured to hold the wafer W (substrate) in a horizontal position and rotate it around a vertical axis. The rotating holding plate 100 includes a substrate holding portion 110, a rotating shaft 130, and a rotating driving portion 140. The rotating driving portion 140 is composed of, for example, an electric motor.

[0044] The substrate holding portion 110 includes a disk-shaped plate 111 and a plurality of, for example, three, plates mounted on the periphery of the plate 111 (in the example of FIG. Figure 2 (Only one is shown in the figure) The three holding disk members 112 (substrate holding member) are provided at positions that divide the periphery of the plate 111 into three equal parts in the circumferential direction.

[0045] Each holding plate member 112 of the substrate holding portion 110 can be rotated at a holding position ( Figure 2 The wafer W is rotated between the position shown in FIG. Figure 2 .

[0046] like Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, an inclined surface 117 which becomes higher as it approaches the edge of the upper surface of the plate 111 is provided at the peripheral portion of the upper surface of the plate 111. In this embodiment, the area on the upper surface of the plate 111 which is radially inward of the inclined surface 117 is a horizontal surface 119. Figure 1 When the wafer W is transferred between substrate holding arms of the substrate transfer device 17 shown in FIG. 1 , the wafer W is temporarily placed on the inclined surface 117 .

[0047] When the wafer W is placed on the inclined surface 117 of the plate 111, the holding plate member 112 is rotated from the release position to the holding position, so that the holding claws 114 of the holding plate member 112 engage with the vicinity of the APEX (outer periphery) of the wafer W and the wafer W is lifted from the inclined surface 117 to hold the wafer W. At this time, a small gap G (for example, a gap of about 0.5 mm measured in the vertical direction) is formed between the inclined surface 117 and the periphery of the lower surface of the wafer W.

[0048] When the holding plate member 112 holding the wafer W is rotated from the holding position to the releasing position, the holding claws 114 of the holding plate member 112 are separated from the wafer W, and the wafer W falls toward the inclined surface 117 and is supported by the inclined surface 117 .

[0049] The retaining plate member 112 is Figure 2 The spring 115 (e.g., a torsion coil spring) schematically shown by the dotted line in the figure applies force toward the holding position. Therefore, after the wafer W is held by the holding claws 114 of the holding disk member 112, the wafer W will remain held by the holding disk member 112 even if no external force (except from the spring 115) is applied to the holding disk member 112.

[0050] The disk holding member 112 has a pushed-up portion 116 on the opposite side of the rotation axis 113 from the gripping claws 114. The disk holding member 112 can be rotated and the gripping claws 114 can be moved to a release position away from the wafer W by pushing the pushed-up portion 116 upward using the disk holding member 210.

[0051] In order to enable the platen member 112 to hold the wafer W on the inclined surface 117, the surface of the inclined surface 117 is cut away to a minimum extent in accordance with the shape of the platen member 112. Compared with the cutout 118 described later, this cutout hardly has an adverse effect on the flow of the inert gas described later.

[0052] The gas supply path 131 extends inside the rotating shaft 130 of the rotating holding disk 100. The upper end of the gas supply path 131 is a gas ejection port 132 that ejects an inert gas (e.g., nitrogen) toward a space S between the lower surface of the wafer W held by the substrate holding portion 110 and the upper surface of the plate 111. The gas ejection port 132 may be formed so that a vector indicating the direction of the mainstream of the gas ejected therefrom has a component toward the periphery of the plate 111, or may be configured so that the gas is ejected toward directly upward.

[0053] The lower end of the gas supply path 131 is connected to the inactive gas source 134 via a gas supply control mechanism 133. The gas supply control mechanism 133 includes an on-off valve, a flow control valve, a flow meter, and other devices, and can switch between gas ejection and stopping of ejection from the gas ejection port 132 and control the gas ejection flow rate. The inactive gas source 134 is, for example, a factory utility facility provided in a semiconductor manufacturing factory.

[0054] When the rotary holding disk 100 holds and rotates the wafer W to perform processing on the wafer W, the inert gas is supplied from the gas ejection port 132. The inert gas flows toward the periphery of the wafer W in the space S between the wafer W and the plate 111, and flows out from the space S through the gap G between the periphery of the wafer W and the periphery of the plate 111.

[0055] The gas supply path 131 , the gas ejection port 132 , the gas supply control mechanism 133 and the like form a gas supply unit.

[0056] like Figure 5A As shown, when the flow of the inactive gas approaches the gap G, it turns toward the peripheral portion of the lower surface of the wafer W due to the inclined surface 117. Therefore, even if the liquid supplied to the upper surface of the wafer W, such as DIW (pure water), wants to detour to the lower surface of the wafer W, such detour will be blocked by the flow of the inactive gas. In addition, by providing the inclined surface 117, the closer to the gap G, the smaller the height direction distance of the space S becomes (that is, the flow path area of ​​the inactive gas is reduced), and therefore, the closer to the gap G, the greater the flow rate of the inactive gas, thereby promoting the above-mentioned detour prevention effect.

[0057] The processing unit 16 includes a plurality of, in this case, three, lift pins 300. The lift pins 300 are used to transfer the wafer W to the external transport device arm (in this embodiment). Figure 1The arm of the substrate transfer device 17 shown in FIG. 1 and the rotation holding disk 100 are connected. The three lift pins 300 are arranged at approximately the middle position between the holding disk members 112 adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction of the plate 111 in a plan view.

[0058] The head 301 of each lifting pin 300 (substrate lifting member) has a shape suitable for holding the peripheral portion of the wafer W. In the present embodiment, the head 301 has: a support surface 302, which faces upward and is used to support the peripheral portion of the lower surface of the wafer W; and a position limiting surface 303, which faces the radial inner side of the wafer W and is used to limit the radial position of the APEX of the wafer W. The support surface 302 supports, for example, an area corresponding to the edge exclusion of the surface (here, the downward surface) of the wafer W on which the device is formed.

[0059] The lower ends of the three lifting pins 300 are mounted on, for example, an annular lifting body 304. The lifting body 304 can be lifted and lowered by a lifting mechanism formed by a linear actuator 305 such as a cylinder, and the lifting pins 300 can be moved to the raised position (at Figure 2 The wafer handover position (shown by the dotted line) and the lowering position (in Figure 2 The device can be raised and lowered in the vertical direction between the standby position shown by the solid line in the figure.

[0060] In addition, according to Figure 2 As can be seen from the rising position of the lifting pin 300 shown, the actual length of the lifting pin 300 is longer than the length shown in the solid line. The lifting body 304 and the linear actuator 305 are actually located at a position lower than the position shown in the figure, but are shown at the position shown in the figure for the convenience of making the drawings.

[0061] The head 301 of the lifting pin 300 engages with the peripheral portion of the wafer W, and therefore has to be set to pass through the peripheral portion of the plate 111. Therefore, a notch 118 is provided at the peripheral portion of the plate 111 to allow the lifting pin 300 to pass through in the vertical direction. In other words, the inclined surface 117 provided at the peripheral portion of the upper surface of the plate 111 is discontinuous at the notch 118. Figure 3 The notch 118 is shown in the figure for easy understanding.

[0062] If the notch 118 remains like this (that is, if there is no sliding member 120 described later), then Figure 5C As shown, the inactive gas flows downward at the notch 118, and as a result, there is almost no flow of the inactive gas along the peripheral portion of the lower surface of the wafer W. Therefore, it is impossible to prevent the flow of the liquid that is intended to detour from the upper surface to the lower surface of the wafer W. If the liquid that detours to the lower surface dries, particles will be generated.

[0063] In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a slider (sliding member) 120 as a closed block is provided on the plate 111, and the slider (sliding member) 120 as a closed block can block at least a portion of the notch 118 directly below the wafer W. The slider 120 can slide horizontally in the radial direction of the plate 111 between a closed position in which the notch 118 is at least partially blocked and an open position in which the notch 118 is opened to allow the lift pin 300 to pass through.

[0064] The upper surface of the slider 120 has an inner horizontal surface 123 (center side of the plate 111) and an outer inclined surface (end inclined surface) 124 (peripheral side of the plate 111). The horizontal surface 123 is located at the same height as the horizontal surface 119 of the plate 111 that is closer to the center than the inclined surface 117.

[0065] like Figure 3 As shown, the inclined surface 124 is inclined in a manner that the height increases as it approaches the outer side (the peripheral side of the plate 111). When the slider 120 is in the closed position, the inclined surface 124 of the slider 120 is substantially flush with the inclined surface (peripheral inclined surface) 117 of the plate 111. In other words, when viewed from the circumferential direction of the plate 111, the inclined surface 124 of the slider 120 is substantially continuous with the inclined surface 117 of the plate 111.

[0066] like Figure 5B As schematically shown, the inclined surface 124 of the slider 120 in the closed position is similar to the inclined surface 117 of the plate 111 (see Figure 5A ), the inactive gas flowing in the horizontal direction between the plate 111 and the wafer W can be diverted toward the lower surface of the wafer W. Therefore, the inactive gas can be prevented from flowing downward at the notch 118, and as a result, the liquid can be prevented from detouring from the upper surface of the wafer W to the lower surface.

[0067] When the wafer W is held by the holding plate member 112 of the rotating holding plate 100, the top 1241 (see Figure 3 ) is located approximately directly below the periphery We of the wafer W. The periphery We is located at Figure 3 At this time, it is preferred that the distance GS between the peripheral edge We of the wafer W and the top 1241 of the inclined surface 124 of the slide 120 measured in the vertical direction (refer to Figure 3 ) is set to a smaller value such as 0.5 mm or less.

[0068] In addition, the top edge (peripheral edge) 1171 of the inclined surface 117 of the plate 111 (see Figure 3) is located radially outward from the top 1241 of the inclined surface 124 of the sliding member 120 in the closed position, because the inclined surface 117 is used to temporarily place the wafer W. The top 1241 may also be made consistent with the top edge 1171, but in this case the above-mentioned distance GS must be increased. On the other hand, the top edge 1171 of the inclined surface 117 may also be made consistent with the peripheral edge We of the wafer W when viewed from above, but in this case, for example, a mechanism is required that does not temporarily place the wafer W on the inclined surface 117 but directly delivers the wafer W to the retaining disk member 112. Therefore, Figure 3 The configuration shown is believed to be the presently most preferred configuration.

[0069] Considering the flow of the inert gas near the peripheral portion of the lower surface of the wafer, it is preferred that the slider 120 has an inclined surface 124. However, an embodiment in which the upper surface of the slider 120 is entirely horizontal is also possible. As long as the slider 120 in the closed position blocks the notch 118 directly below the wafer W, Figure 5C The downward flow of the inert gas is reduced, so it is possible to suppress the liquid from the upper surface to the lower surface of the wafer W. In addition, if the slider 120 does not have the inclined surface 124, there is also an advantage that the slit 125 described later does not need to be exposed on the upper surface 119 of the plate 111.

[0070] Next, the moving mechanism of the sliding member 120 will be described. Figure 2 As shown, a guide member 121 for horizontally guiding the slider 120 in the radial direction of the plate 111 is provided on the plate 111 of the substrate holding portion 110. The guide member 121 is fixed relative to the plate 111. As long as the slider 120 can slide horizontally and smoothly in the radial direction of the plate 111, the structure of the guide member 121 is arbitrary.

[0071] The slider 120 has a surface facing the inner side of the plate 111 in the radial direction, and the guide member 121 has a surface facing the outer side of the plate 111 in the radial direction. A spring (compression spring) 122 is provided between the above-mentioned surfaces facing each other. The slider 120 is urged toward the closed position by the spring 122. Therefore, when no external force (except the spring 122) is applied to the slider 120, the slider 120 is located in the closed position.

[0072] The slide 120 is provided with an inclined surface 126 (operated inclined surface) inclined relative to the horizontal plane (directed obliquely downward). The inclined surface 126 is inclined so as to become higher as it approaches the outer side of the slide 120 (as it approaches the outer peripheral edge of the plate 111). For example, the head of the slide operating member 220 in the form of a pin extending in the vertical direction is moved upward while contacting the inclined surface 126, so that the slide 120 guided by the guide member 121 overcomes the biasing force of the spring 122 and slides toward the open position (see Figure 2 . ...

[0073] like Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, on the upper surface of the plate 111, the slider 120 can move between a closed position and an open position, so that the inactive gas may be discharged from the portion of the slit 125 where the slider 120 is not present to the bottom of the plate 111. In addition, in order to enable the slider 120 to move smoothly, the width of the slit 125 is slightly larger than the width of the slider 120. Therefore, the inactive gas may be discharged to the bottom of the plate 111 through the gap between the side wall of the slit 125 and the side wall of the slider 120. In order to make such a situation less likely to occur, as shown in FIG. Figure 4 As schematically shown, the guide member 121 may be provided to surround the slider 120. Alternatively, the width of the lower portion 127 of the slider 120 located below the slit 125 may be greater than the width of the upper portion 128 of the slider 120 located in the slit 125. Figure 4 The shape shown is strictly consistent with Figure 2 The shapes shown are not consistent, but are intended to be understood as Figure 4 It's just a rough diagram.

[0074] Instead of the notch 118 in the form of a recess extending from the periphery of the plate 111 toward the center, a notch in the form of a hole penetrating the periphery in the vertical direction and through which the lift pin 300 can pass may be provided on the periphery of the plate 111 (in the Figure 3 The outline of the hole is shown by the dotted line 119A in FIG. 1 . The notch in the form of such a hole is not opened at the periphery of the plate 111. Obviously, such a hole can also be opened and closed by the same sliding member as described above.

[0075] Next, refer to Figure 2The structure provided around the rotating holding disk 100 is described. A liquid receiving cup 150 is provided around the rotating holding disk 100 to receive and recover the liquid scattered from the wafer W held by the substrate holding portion 110. In the illustrated example, the liquid receiving cup 150 has an outer cup body 151 and an inner cup body 152, and the liquid flows down a passage 153 between the outer cup body 151 and the inner cup body 152. In the technical field of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, as is well known, it is also possible to form a plurality of passages between two adjacent cup bodies by providing one or more movable cup bodies between the outer cup body 151 and the inner cup body 152, and discharge the liquid from the passage selected according to the type of liquid supplied to the wafer W.

[0076] The upper end of the inner cup body 152, which is the innermost cup body, is arranged close to the plate 111, and is set so that the liquid scattered from the wafer W is difficult to enter the space directly below the plate 111. Various actuators (cylinders, motors) and circuits attached to the above actuators are provided in the processing unit 16. In order to reliably protect these actuators and circuits from the polluted atmosphere containing the mist of the processing liquid (liquid supplied to the wafer W), a partitioning member 160 is provided below the plate 111. Actuators and circuits are provided below the partitioning member 160.

[0077] The partition member 160 is formed in a disk shape as a whole, for example, and has a side peripheral portion 167 hanging downwardly provided on the outer periphery of the disk shape. A hole is provided in the center of the partition member 160 for the rotation shaft 130 of the rotation holding disk 100 to pass through.

[0078] The partition member 160 is provided with three holes 161 through which the three lift pins 300 are respectively passed. The partition member 160 is provided with a movable cover 162 that blocks the holes 161 when the lift pins 300 are in the lowered position. The movable cover 162 has a substantially cylindrical base 163 and a cover body 164 extending radially outward from the base 163. The base 163 is provided so as to be rotatable around a shaft 165 provided on the partition member 160.

[0079] A groove 166 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the base 163 and extends in an inclined direction along the outer peripheral surface. The groove 166 is formed so that as the angle θ indicating the angle position on the outer peripheral surface increases, the height position h increases. A cover operating member 230 for rotating the movable cover 162 is engaged with the groove 166. By moving the cover operating member 230 up and down, the base 163 and the cover body 164 rotate around the axis 165 (see Figure 2As the cover body 164 rotates, it moves between a closed position where the hole 161 is closed and an open position where the hole 161 is opened and the lifting pin 300 can pass through the hole 161. That is, the base 163 with the groove 166 and the cover operating member 230 constitute a cylindrical cam mechanism. Here, the hole 161 is opened when the cover operating member 230 is in the ascending position, and the hole 161 is closed when the cover operating member 230 is in the descending position. By closing the hole 161, it is possible to more reliably prevent the contaminated atmosphere from entering the lower part of the partition member 160.

[0080] The above three operating members (the holding disk operating member 210, the slider operating member 220 and the cover operating member 230) are carried by a single lifting member 240. The above operating members 210, 220, 230 may be formed integrally with the lifting member 240, or may be formed independently from the lifting member 240 and then fixed to the lifting member 240. The holding disk operating member 210 may be the upper surface of the lifting member 240 itself, or may be a protrusion extending upward from the upper surface of the lifting member 240.

[0081] The lifting member 240 has a generally disk-shaped shape as a whole. A hole is provided at the center of the lifting member 240 for the rotation shaft 130 of the rotation holding disk 100 to pass through. A gap is provided between the central holes of the lifting member 240 and the dividing member 160 and the rotation shaft 130 of the rotation holding disk 100, so that even if the rotation shaft 130 of the rotation holding disk 100 rotates, the lifting member 240 and the dividing member 160 will not rotate.

[0082] The lifting member 240 can be lifted and lowered by a lifting mechanism formed by a linear actuator 241 such as a cylinder. One or more rods 242 extending downward from the lower surface of the lifting member 240 penetrate the partition member 160 and extend. The lower end of the rod 242 is connected to a disc-shaped lifting body 243, and the lifting body 243 is lifted and lowered by the linear actuator 241.

[0083] The linear actuator 241 is provided below the partitioning member 160. By moving the lifting member 240 upward and downward, the tray operating member 210, the slider operating member 220, and the cover operating member 230 can be simultaneously lifted and lowered.

[0084] When the lifting member 240 is raised, the disk holding member 210 raises the pushed-up portion 116 of the disk holding member 112, and the disk holding member 112 moves to the released position. In addition, the slider operating member 220 contacts the inclined surface 126 of the slider 120 and pushes up the inclined surface 126, and the slider 120 moves to the open position. In addition, the cover operating member 230 rotates the movable cover 162, and the cover body 164 moves to the open position. In this way, the lifting pin 300 can be freely raised and lowered between the raised position and the lowered position.

[0085] When the lifting member 240 is lowered, the disk holding member 210 is separated from the pushed-up portion 116 of the disk holding member 112, and the disk holding member 112 moves to the holding position. In addition, the slider operating member 220 is separated from the inclined surface 126 of the slider 120, and the slider 120 moves to the closed position. In addition, the cover operating member 230 rotates the movable cover 162, and the cover body 164 moves to the closed position.

[0086] Next, processing of one wafer W by the processing unit 16 will be described.

[0087] The arm of the substrate conveyor 17 holding the unprocessed wafer W is brought into the processing unit 16 and is placed on standby at the transfer position (a position directly above the rotating holding disk 100). Furthermore, the lifting member 240 is raised so that the lifting pins 300 can be freely raised and lowered between the raised position and the lowered position. Next, the lifting pins 300 are raised to remove the wafer W from the arm of the substrate conveyor 17. Next, the arm of the substrate conveyor 17 is withdrawn from the processing unit 16.

[0088] Next, the lifting pins 300 supporting the wafer W are lowered to the lowered position. When the wafer W rests on the inclined surface 117 during the lowering of the lifting pins 300, the wafer W is separated from the lifting pins 300. Next, by moving the lifting member 240 to the lowered position, the holding plate member 112 is moved to the holding position to hold the wafer W, and the wafer W is slightly separated from the inclined surface 117. In addition, the slider 120 and the cover body 164 are moved to the closed position. Thus, the preparation for processing the wafer W is completed.

[0089] Here, the process performed on the wafer W is set as a brush cleaning process performed on the back side (the side where no device is formed) of the wafer W. In this case, since the wafer W is turned over by the commutator before being sent to the processing unit 16, the wafer W is held on the rotating holding disk 100 in a state where the back side of the wafer W faces upward. While the wafer W is rotated by the rotating holding disk 100, for example, a brush cleaning process, a two-fluid cleaning process, a rinsing process, and a drying process are sequentially performed.

[0090] In the brush cleaning process, the two-fluid cleaning process and the rinsing process, the process is performed while a liquid (e.g., DIW) is supplied to the back side (the upward side (upper surface)) of the wafer W. In the brush cleaning process, the rotating brush 401 moves between the center and the peripheral portion of the wafer W while being pressed against the upper surface of the rotating wafer W. At this time, the liquid (e.g., DIW) is supplied to the wafer W from the liquid ejection structure built into the brush 401. In the two-fluid cleaning process, the nozzle 402 that ejects two fluids including a cleaning liquid (e.g., DIW) and a gas (e.g., nitrogen) toward the upper surface of the rotating wafer W moves back and forth between a position above the center of the wafer W and a position above the peripheral portion. In the rinsing process, the rinsing liquid (e.g., DIW) is supplied to the center of the upper surface of the rotating wafer W from the nozzle 402 (or other nozzles).

[0091] In order to prevent the liquid supplied to the upper surface of the wafer W from bypassing the lower surface of the wafer and contaminating the lower surface of the wafer W (the surface where the device is formed), an inactive gas is supplied from the gas ejection port 132 to the space S between the upper surface of the plate 110 and the lower surface of the wafer W. Figure 5A to Figure 5C As described above, the slider 120 in the closed position can exert the effect of preventing the inert gas from bypassing the liquid over the entire periphery of the wafer W.

[0092] The drying step is performed by rotating the wafer W at a high speed without supplying liquid to the upper surface of the wafer W. When the drying step is completed, a series of processing steps performed on one wafer W are completed.

[0093] If the processing of wafer W is completed, the lifting member 240 is moved to the raised position. Along with this, the holding disk member 112 is moved to the release position, and the wafer W held by the holding disk member 112 falls on the inclined surface 117 of the plate 110. In addition, the slider 120 and the cover body 164 are moved to the open position. Next, the lifting pins 300 are raised, and the wafer W is lifted from the inclined surface 117 by the lifting pins 300. The lifting pins 300 supporting the wafer W are continued to rise until the raised position. Next, the arm of the empty substrate conveying device 17 is located at the delivery position in the processing unit 16. In this state, the lifting pins 300 are lowered to deliver the wafer W to the arm of the substrate conveying device 17. Next, the arm of the substrate conveying device 17 holding the wafer W is withdrawn from the processing unit 16.

[0094] According to the above embodiment, since the slider 120 at least partially blocks the notch 118 of the plate 110 when processing the wafer W, it is possible to prevent the lower surface of the wafer W from being contaminated by liquid flowing toward the lower surface near the notch 118 .

[0095] In addition, the slider 120 moves to the open position by moving the slider operating member 220 upward to overcome the elastic force of the spring 122, and moves to the closed position and is fixed at the closed position by moving the slider operating member 220 downward using the elastic force of the spring 122. Therefore, when the rotary holding disk 100 rotates, since the slider 120 is fixed at the closed position, it is not necessary to apply an external force (except the spring force) to the slider 120.

[0096] In addition, the disk holding member 112 moves to the release position by moving the disk holding operating member 210 upward to overcome the elastic force of the spring 115, and moves to the holding position by moving the disk holding operating member 210 downward using the elastic force of the spring 115. Therefore, when the rotating disk holding member 100 rotates, since the disk holding member 112 is fixed at the holding position, it is not necessary to apply an external force (except the spring force) to the disk holding member 112.

[0097] By positioning the operating members 220 and 210 in the ascending position, the slider 120 and the retaining disk member 112 are positioned at positions suitable for performing assembly and disassembly operations on the wafer W relative to the rotating retaining disk 100. In addition, by positioning the operating members 220 and 210 in the descending position, the slider 120 and the retaining disk member 112 are positioned at positions suitable for rotating and processing the wafer W using the rotating retaining disk 100. Therefore, by integrating the slider operating member 220 and the retaining disk operating member 210 with a lifting member 240, the slider 120 and the retaining disk member 112 can be simultaneously moved toward a desired position using a single lifting drive mechanism (here, the linear actuator 241). Therefore, the number of components of the processing unit 16 can be reduced, and the manufacturing cost of the processing unit 16 can be reduced.

[0098] In addition, the cover body 164 moves to the open position by moving the cover operating member 230 to the ascending position, and moves to the closed position by moving the cover operating member 230 to the descending position. That is, in addition to the slider 120 and the holding disk member 112, the cover body 164 is also located in a position suitable for the disassembly and disassembly operation of the wafer W relative to the rotating holding disk 100 by placing its operating member (cover operating member 230) in the ascending position, and is located in a position suitable for rotating the wafer W using the rotating holding disk 100 and performing processing by placing its operating member (cover operating member 230) in the descending position. Therefore, by integrating the cover operating member 230 with a lifting member 240, the slider 120, the holding disk member 112, and the cover body 164 can be simultaneously moved toward the desired position using a single lifting drive mechanism (here, the linear actuator 241). Therefore, the number of components of the processing unit 16 can be reduced, and the manufacturing cost of the processing unit 16 can be reduced.

[0099] In the above-mentioned embodiment, the disk operating member 210, the slider operating member 220 and the cover operating member 230 are all integrated with a single lifting member 240, and are lifted and lowered together with the lifting member 240. This structure is the most preferred from the viewpoint of reducing the number of components and manufacturing cost of the processing unit 16, but is not limited to this. In other words, it is also possible to adopt the following modified embodiment: two of the disk operating member 210, the slider operating member 220 and the cover operating member 230 are integrated with the lifting member 240, and the remaining one is not integrated with the lifting member 240 but driven by another driving source. For example, the following modified embodiment can also be considered: the slider operating member 220 and the cover operating member 230 closely related to the lifting and lowering of the lifting pin 300 are integrated with the lifting member 240, and the disk operating member 210 is not integrated with the lifting member 240 but driven by another driving source. In this case, the number of components of the processing unit 16 can also be reduced, and the effect of reducing the manufacturing cost of the processing unit 16 can be obtained.

[0100] The processing unit 16 of the above embodiment is suitable for processing the back side of the wafer W with the back side of the wafer W facing upward, but it is also possible to process the surface of the wafer W with the surface of the wafer W facing upward. In addition, the processing performed by the processing unit 16 is not limited to the above-mentioned scrubbing processing, and may also be a chemical solution processing (chemical solution cleaning processing, etching processing). Regardless of the processing, the effect of preventing the liquid from bypassing from the upper surface of the wafer W to the lower surface can be obtained by using the slider 120.

[0101] The embodiments described here should be considered to be illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive. The above embodiments may be omitted, replaced, or modified in various forms without departing from the claims and the gist thereof.

[0102] The substrate to be processed is not limited to a semiconductor wafer, but may be various substrates used in the field of semiconductor device manufacturing, such as a glass substrate and a ceramic substrate.

Claims

1. A substrate processing device, characterized in that: The substrate processing device comprises: A substrate holding portion that holds a substrate in a horizontal position, the substrate holding portion comprising a plate and a plurality of substrate holding members, the plate being located below the substrate when the substrate holding portion holds the substrate, the plurality of substrate holding members being provided at a peripheral edge of the plate and holding the substrate, the plate having a plurality of notches at the peripheral edge; A rotation driving unit that rotates the substrate holding unit around a vertical axis; a plurality of lifting pins configured to support the peripheral edge of the substrate from below and to be able to pass through the notch of the plate to be lifted and lowered; a plurality of sliding members slidably provided on the plate of the substrate holding portion in a horizontal direction, each of the sliding members being movable between a closed position for at least partially closing each notch of the plate and an open position for opening each notch of the plate so that a lifting pin can pass through the notch for lifting; as well as A plurality of operating members are respectively arranged below the plate of the substrate holding portion so as to be able to be raised and lowered and can be engaged with each of the sliding members. The plurality of operating members are respectively raised and lowered in a state of being engaged with the sliding members, thereby causing the sliding members to slide in a horizontal direction.

2. The substrate processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the sliding members is installed on the plate with the aid of a guiding structure that guides the sliding member in a horizontal direction, and has an operated inclined surface inclined relative to a horizontal plane. When the operated inclined surface is in contact with the operating member, the operating member is raised and lowered while sliding relative to the operated inclined surface, thereby moving the sliding member in a horizontal direction.

3. The substrate processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The slide member is urged toward the closed position by a spring.

4. The substrate processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The substrate processing device also includes: a lifting body, which is arranged below the plate and carries the multiple operating members for the sliding member; and a lifting drive unit, which lifts the lifting body between a rising position and a falling position, and as the lifting body is lifted or lowered, the multiple operating members for the sliding member are lifted or lowered together.

5. The substrate processing device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The substrate processing apparatus further includes a partitioning member provided below the elevating body and isolating a space where at least an actuator for elevating the elevating pins and the rotation drive unit are provided from a space where the elevating body is provided.

6. The substrate processing device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The partition member is provided with: a plurality of through holes, each of which can be penetrated by the lift pins; and a cover member which can move between a closed position for closing each of the through holes and an open position for opening the through holes. The lift pin is located below the cover member in the closed position when in a lowered position, and opens the cover member when the lift pin rises from the lowered position.

7. The substrate processing device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The cover member is moved between a closing position for closing the through holes and an opening position for opening the through holes by being operated by an operating member for the cover member carried by the lifting body.

8. The substrate processing device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The cover member comprises: a base portion which is cylindrical and has a groove formed on the outer peripheral surface and is rotatable around a rotation axis extending in a vertical direction; and a cover body which is mounted on the base portion. The operating member for the cover member is engaged with the groove of the cylindrical base. The groove of the base and the operating member for the cover member form a cylindrical cam mechanism, and the base is rotated by moving the lifting body toward a lowered position, thereby causing the cover body to close the through hole, and the base is rotated by moving the lifting body toward an ascending position, thereby causing the cover body to open the through hole.

9. The substrate processing device according to claim 8, characterized in that: The substrate holding member of the substrate holding portion is rotatably mounted on the peripheral edge of the plate and is movable between a holding position for holding the substrate and a releasing position for releasing the substrate. The holding member includes: a holding portion that holds the peripheral edge of the substrate; and an operated portion that is used to move the holding portion. The lifting body has an operating member for the operated part capable of pushing up the operated part of the gripping member, and the operating member for the operated part is composed of a member carried by the lifting body or the lifting body itself. The substrate holding member is located at the holding position when the elevating body is located at the descending position, and the substrate holding member is located at the releasing position when the elevating body is located at the ascending position.

10. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that: The substrate processing device also includes a gas supply unit, which supplies gas to a space between the lower surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and the upper surface of the plate of the substrate holding unit. The gas supplied to the space flows through the space between the upper surface of the plate and the lower surface of the substrate, and then flows out of the space through the gap between the peripheral edge of the plate and the peripheral edge of the substrate.

11. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein: The peripheral edge portion of the upper surface of the plate has a peripheral edge inclined surface that becomes higher as it approaches the peripheral edge of the plate, and the peripheral edge inclined surface of the plate turns the gas flowing in the horizontal direction through the space toward the lower surface of the substrate. An end inclined surface is provided at the end of the upper surface of each sliding member, and the end inclined surface is arranged so that when the sliding member is in the closed position, the end inclined surface of the sliding member is continuously arranged with the peripheral inclined surface of the plate when viewed from the circumferential direction of the plate.

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