Substrate processing device

Abstract

To provide a substrate processing device in which a processing space can be promptly and easily opened and closed.SOLUTION: A substrate processing device 1 comprises: a processing container 10 of which the processing space communicates with the outside via an opening 11a formed on an outer surface 10a; a substrate tray 20 including a support part 21 and a lid part 22; and a cover member 30 covering the lid part 22. The lid part 22 includes a lid main body 23 and engage portions 24 and 25, and engaged portions 35 and 36 which protrude inward from an edge of an insertion port 34 are provided in the cover member 30. In a state where the cover member 30 is located at an unlock position, the support part 21 is inserted into the opening 11a via the insertion port 34, such that the engage portions 24 and 25 pass the insertion port 34 and are abutted to the outer surface 10a so as not to interfere with the engaged portions 35 and 36. The cover member 30 is moved to a lock position, such that the substrate tray 20 is fixed by engaging the engaged portions 35 and 36 with the engage portions 24 and 25 so as to overlap them.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] As an apparatus for processing various substrates such as semiconductor substrates with high-pressure fluid, for example, a substrate processing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. As shown in Fig. 10, this substrate processing apparatus 100 includes a processing chamber 110, a support tray 120, and a transfer mechanism 130, and is configured to load a substrate S onto the support tray 120 by the transfer mechanism 130, and then insert the support tray 120 into a processing space 112 of the processing chamber 110 to perform a predetermined process on the substrate S (for example, a drying process using a high-pressure supercritical fluid).

[0003] The support tray 120 is attached horizontally to the side of the lid member 121, and when the support tray 120 is inserted into the processing space 112, the lid member 121 closes the opening 111 of the processing chamber 110. When the lid member 121 is fixed to the processing chamber 110 by a locking mechanism (not shown), the processing space 112 is sealed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-9877 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the conventional substrate processing apparatus 100, fixing and releasing the lid member 121 to the processing chamber 110 can be complicated, and there is a concern that it takes a long time to open and close the processing space 112. In particular, when processing the substrate S in a large number of processing chambers 110, there is a problem that the time loss required to open and close the lid member 121 accumulates for each processing chamber 110, thereby reducing the processing efficiency.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of quickly and easily opening and closing a processing space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The object of the present invention is to provide a processing vessel having a processing space for processing a substrate with a high-pressure fluid, the processing space being in communication with the outside via an opening formed on an outer surface, a substrate tray having a support part on which a substrate is placed and a lid part provided on one end side of the support part, the lid part closing the opening when the support part is received in the processing space from the other end side, and a cover member provided along the outer surface to be reciprocable between a locked position and an unlocked position and to cover the lid part, the lid part having a lid main body having a seal part that abuts against a peripheral portion of the opening, and a cover member protruding from the lid main body along the outer surface. and an engaging portion that projects out from the cover member, the cover member having an insertion port formed therein through which the substrate tray passes, and an engaged portion that protrudes inward from the edge of the insertion port, and when the cover member is in the released position, the support portion is inserted into the opening through the insertion port, so that the engaging portion passes through the insertion port and abuts against the outer surface so as not to interfere with the engaged portion, and by moving the cover member to the locked position, the engaged portion and the engaging portion engage so as to overlap and fix the substrate tray.

[0008] In this substrate processing apparatus, it is preferable that the opening is formed on a side surface of the processing vessel so that its longitudinal direction is horizontal, and it is preferable that the engaging portion and the engaged portion are each provided at intervals along the longitudinal direction of the opening and engage individually.

[0009] It is preferable that the processing vessels are arranged in multiple locations at least along the longitudinal direction of the opening, and that the cover member is formed to integrally cover the substrate trays contained in each processing vessel, and preferably moves along the longitudinal direction of the opening to simultaneously fix the multiple substrate trays.

[0010] The processing vessels are preferably arranged in a matrix along both the longitudinal and lateral directions of the opening, and the cover members are preferably detachably connected to one another. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of quickly and easily opening and closing a processing space. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a front view for explaining the operation of the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] 2 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] 9 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 8. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional substrate processing apparatus. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a substrate processing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. The substrate processing apparatus 1 of this embodiment shown in Fig. 1 is an apparatus for processing substrates such as semiconductor wafers with a high-pressure fluid such as a supercritical fluid, similar to the conventional substrate processing apparatus 100 shown in Fig. 10, and includes a processing vessel 10, a substrate tray 20, and a cover member 30. The substrate to be processed may be in a sheet shape or a plate shape.

[0014] The processing vessel 10 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape and has a processing space 11 in which a substrate is processed by a high-pressure fluid, and the processing space 11 communicates with the outside through a rectangular opening 11a formed in an outer surface 10a. The opening 11a is formed in a side surface of the processing vessel 10 so that the longitudinal direction is horizontal. Guide grooves 12 and 13 are formed above and below the opening 11a in the side surface of the processing vessel 10, extending parallel to each other along the longitudinal direction of the opening 11a. In addition, a locking hole 14 into which a lock pin 37 described later is inserted is formed in the side surface of the processing vessel 10.

[0015] The substrate tray 20 includes a support portion 21 on which a substrate is placed in a horizontal state, and a lid portion 22 provided on one end side of the support portion 21. The support portion 21 is a housing-like member with an open top, and is accommodated in the processing space 11 from the other end side through the opening 11a. The lid portion 22 is formed in a block shape, and closes the opening 11a when the support portion 21 is accommodated in the processing space 11. The lid portion 22 is driven in the horizontal direction as indicated by the dashed arrow by a driving device (not shown) such as a linear actuator, thereby moving the support portion 21 in and out of the processing space 11.

[0016] The lid part 22 includes a lid body 23 and engagement parts 24, 25 protruding from the lid body 23. The lid body 23 is formed in a rectangular shape, slightly larger than the opening 11a, so as to extend in the longitudinal direction of the opening 11a, and a seal part made of a rubber material or the like provided in a frame shape abuts against the peripheral edge of the opening 11a, thereby sealing the processing space 11. A plurality of engagement parts 24, 25 are disposed at equal intervals along the longitudinal direction of the lid body 23 on both the top and bottom of the lid body 23, and protrude in a comb-teeth shape along the outer surface 10a of the processing vessel 10 when the lid body 23 seals the processing space 11.

[0017] The cover member 30 has bent portions 32, 33 formed by bending the upper and lower portions of a flat cover body 31, and guide portions 32a, 33a provided at the tips of the bent portions 32, 33 engage with the guide grooves 12, 13 of the processing vessel 10, thereby allowing the cover member 30 to reciprocate between a locked position and an unlocked position along the guide grooves 12, 13. The cover member 30 does not necessarily have to be integral, and can be configured, for example, to be divided into left and right halves and opened on both sides along the guide grooves 12, 13. However, by forming the entire cover member 30 as an integral unit as in this embodiment, opening and closing operations can be simplified.

[0018] The cover body 31 is formed with an insertion port 34 through which the substrate tray 20 can pass. The insertion port 34 is formed in a rectangular shape, and is provided with engaged portions 35, 36 protruding inward from the edge. The engaged portions 35, 36 are arranged at equal intervals along the longitudinal direction of the opening 11a on the upper and lower edges of the insertion port 34, respectively. The cover body 31 is also provided with a lock pin 37 that penetrates the interior and is provided so as to be movable forward and backward. When the cover member 30 is in the locked position, the lock pin 37 is advanced toward the processing vessel 10, whereby the tip portion is inserted into and engaged with the lock hole 14 of the processing vessel 10.

[0019] Next, the operation of the substrate processing apparatus 1 having the above-mentioned configuration will be described with reference to Figures 2 and 3. Figure 2 is a front view of the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Figure 1, and Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Figure 2(a).

[0020] As shown in Figure 2(a), when the cover member 30 is in the released position, the support portion 21 of the substrate tray 20 can be inserted into the opening 11a of the processing vessel 10 via the insertion port 34 so that the engaging portions 24, 25 of the substrate tray 20 shown in Figure 1 do not interfere with the engaged portions 35, 36 of the cover member 30.

[0021] As shown in Fig. 3(a), a gap SP having a width substantially equal to the thickness of the lid portion 22 of the substrate tray 20 is formed between the outer surface 10a of the processing vessel 10 and the cover body 31 so that the lid portion 22 of the substrate tray 20 can be accommodated. When the substrate tray 20 with the substrate S placed on the support portion 21 is transferred in the direction of arrow B toward the processing space 11, the lid body 23 and the engagement portions 24, 25 pass through the insertion opening 34 of the cover body 31 and come into contact with the outer surface 10a of the processing vessel 10, as shown in Fig. 2(b) and Fig. 3(b). The transfer of the substrate tray 20 toward the processing space 11 can be performed by a transfer device (not shown), such as an articulated robot.

[0022] Next, when the cover member 30 is driven in the direction of the arrow C in Fig. 2(b), the cover member 30 moves to the locked position as shown in Fig. 2(c). As shown in Fig. 2(c) and Fig. 3(c), when the cover member 30 is in the locked position, the engaging portions 24, 25 and the engaged portions 35, 36 engage with each other so as to overlap with each other, thereby fixing the lid body 23 to the processing vessel 10. The cover member 30 is held in the locked position as the lock pin 37 is engaged with the locking hole 14.

[0023] In this way, it becomes possible to process the substrate S accommodated in the processing space 11 with the high-pressure fluid. By creating a high pressure inside the processing vessel 11, a force acts on the lid body 23 toward the outside of the processing vessel 10, but the cover member 30 maintains a sealed state between the seal portion of the lid body 23 and the outer surface 10a of the processing vessel 10, so that the processing space 11 is maintained in an airtight state.

[0024] After the substrate S has been processed with the high-pressure fluid, the cover member 30 is moved from the locked position to the unlocked position, and the substrate tray 20 is removed and collected. The removed substrate tray 20 can then be replaced with a new substrate tray 20, allowing multiple substrates S to be processed sequentially.

[0025] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 of this embodiment, after the substrate S placed on the substrate tray 20 is accommodated in the processing space 11, the processing space 11 can be opened and closed quickly and easily by simply reciprocating the cover member 30. This reduces the time required to move the substrate S in and out of the processing space 11, thereby enabling efficient processing of the substrate S.

[0026] When the cover member 30 is moved from the release position to the lock position, it is preferable that the engaging parts 24, 25 and the engaged parts 35, 36 slide against each other, so that the substrate tray 20 can be fixed more reliably. The sliding surfaces between the engaging parts 24, 25 and the engaged parts 35, 36 are preferably inclined surfaces inclined along the movement direction of the cover member 30, so that the force with which the engaging parts 24, 25 press the engaged parts 35, 36 can be gradually increased as the cover member 30 moves from the release position to the lock position, thereby improving the adhesion between the lid main body 23 and the processing vessel 10. The sliding between the engaging parts 24, 25 and the engaged parts 35, 36 occurs outside the lid part 22 away from the seal part of the lid main body 23 against the processing vessel 10, so that contamination of the substrate S by wear powder generated by the sliding is prevented.

[0027] In this embodiment, three engaging parts 24, 25 are arranged on the top and bottom of the lid body 23, and three engaged parts 35, 36 are arranged on the top and bottom edges of the insertion port 34, but the number of engaging parts 24, 25 and engaged parts 35, 36 is not limited and may be one. However, the more engaging parts 24, 25 and engaged parts 35, 36 there are, the more durable the product can be by dispersing the shear stress acting in the engaged state, the shorter the distance from the release position to the lock position can be, and the shorter the movement time of the cover member 30 can be. Furthermore, the more uniformly the periphery of the lid body 23 can be pressed to more reliably seal the processing space 11. Therefore, it is preferable to arrange three or more engaging parts 24, 25 on each of the top and bottom of the lid body 23, and three or more engaged parts 35, 36 on each of the top and bottom edges of the insertion port 34. In this embodiment, the engaging portions 24, 25 and the engaged portions 35, 36 arranged vertically are aligned in the left-right direction, but the left-right positions may differ between the top and bottom, for example, they may be arranged in a staggered pattern. The engaging portions 24, 25 may be formed only on either the top or bottom of the lid body 23, and the same applies to the engaged portions 35, 36.

[0028] Fig. 4 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. The substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 4 has a plurality of processing vessels 10 of the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Fig. 1 arranged along the longitudinal direction of the opening 11a, and a substrate tray 20 is accommodated in each processing vessel 10. A cover member 30 is provided in each processing vessel 10 so as to be capable of reciprocating, and each cover member 30 is connected by a connecting member 40. In Fig. 4, the same components as those in Figs. 1 to 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals (similarly in the following figures).

[0029] Both ends of the rod-like connecting member 40 are attached to the cover members 30 by screws or the like, thereby detachably connecting the multiple cover members 30. This allows the multiple cover members 30 to be moved as a unit from the release position to the lock position by a drive device (not shown), and allows the multiple substrate trays 20 to be fixed simultaneously. Since the movement distance of the cover members 30 from the release position to the lock position is constant regardless of the number of processing vessels 10, the substrate processing efficiency can be easily improved by increasing the number of processing vessels 10.

[0030] The cover member 30 may be formed so as to integrally cover the substrate trays 20 accommodated in each processing vessel 10, and the cover member 30 may be formed of a single member spanning multiple processing vessels 10. However, by detachably connecting multiple cover members 30, when the substrate processing times, etc. in each processing vessel 10 differ, it becomes possible to remove the connecting member 40 and drive each cover member 30 individually by a different driving device, and it is possible to flexibly respond to the operating conditions, etc. of each processing vessel 10.

[0031] Fig. 5 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. In the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 5, a plurality of processing vessels 10 of the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Fig. 1 are arranged along both the longitudinal and lateral directions of the opening 11a, so that the processing vessels 10 are arranged in a matrix, and a substrate tray 20 is accommodated in each processing vessel 10. A cover member 30 is provided in each processing vessel 10 so as to be capable of reciprocating, and each cover member 30 is connected by a connecting member 40.

[0032] The configuration of the connecting member 40 is the same as that of the connecting member 40 shown in FIG. 4, and the cover members 30 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction of the opening 11a are detachably connected to each other by two connecting members 40 parallel to each other, and the cover members 30 adjacent to each other in the lateral direction of the opening 11a are detachably connected to each other by two connecting members 40 intersecting each other. By connecting each cover member 30 in this manner, it is possible to move each cover member 30 integrally between the release position and the lock position while reliably maintaining the integrated state. In addition, by removing a part or all of the connecting members 40 connecting each cover member 30, it is possible to appropriately select the cover members 30 to be moved simultaneously.

[0033] Fig. 6 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. In the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 6, the rod-shaped connecting member 40 of the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 5 is replaced with a connecting member 40 having protrusions 41 at both ends. The connecting member 40 detachably connects the cover members 30 to each other by fitting the protrusions 41 at both ends into notches formed in the edges of the cover members 30. To reliably prevent the connecting member 40 from falling off, a spacer may be interposed between the connecting member 40 and the processing vessel 10.

[0034] Fig. 7 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. In the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 7, the connecting member 40 of the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 6 is replaced with a connecting member 40 having protrusions 41 at each corner of a rectangular shape. The four protrusions 41 of the connecting member 40 shown in Fig. 7 fit into cutouts formed at the corners of each cover member 30, thereby detachably connecting the four cover members 30.

[0035] Fig. 8 is a front view of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. In the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 8, the connecting member 40 of the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 7 is replaced with a columnar connecting member 40 extending vertically. As shown in the cross-sectional view of Fig. 9, the connecting member 40 shown in Fig. 8 is provided so as to be vertically slidable by engaging with an engaging protrusion 30a provided along the side edge of each cover member 30, and can integrally connect the cover members 30 adjacent to each other in a detachable manner in the vertical direction. Caps 42 for preventing the connecting member 40 from coming off are attached to the upper and lower ends. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 1. Substrate Processing Equipment 10 Processing vessel 10a Exterior 11 Processing Space 11a opening 20 Substrate Tray 21 Support part 22 Lid 23 Lid body 24,25 Engagement part 30 Cover member 31 Cover body 34 Outlet 35, 36 Engaged portion 40 Connecting member

Claims

1. a processing vessel having a processing space for processing a substrate with a high-pressure fluid, the processing space being in communication with the outside through an opening formed on an outer surface; a substrate tray including a support portion on which a substrate is placed and a lid portion provided on one end side of the support portion, the support portion being accommodated in the processing space from the other end side such that the lid portion closes the opening; a cover member provided along the outer surface so as to be reciprocable between a lock position and an unlock position and covering the lid portion; The lid portion includes a lid body having a seal portion that contacts a peripheral portion of the opening, and an engagement portion that protrudes from the lid body along the outer surface, the cover member has an insertion port through which the substrate tray passes, and an engaged portion protruding inward from an edge of the insertion port; A substrate processing apparatus in which, when the cover member is in the released position, the support portion is inserted into the opening through the insertion port so that the engaging portion passes through the insertion port and abuts the outer surface without interfering with the engaged portion, and by moving the cover member to the locked position, the engaged portion and the engaging portion engage so as to overlap each other, thereby fixing the substrate tray.

2. The opening is formed in a side surface of the processing vessel such that a longitudinal direction of the opening is horizontal, The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the engaging portion and the engaged portion are provided in a plurality of portions spaced apart from each other along the longitudinal direction of the opening, and engage with each other individually.

3. Three or more of the engagement portions are disposed on each of the upper and lower portions of the lid body, The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein three or more of the engaged portions are disposed on each of an upper edge and a lower edge of the insertion opening.

4. The processing vessel is disposed at least along a longitudinal direction of the opening, 3 . The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the cover member is formed to integrally cover the substrate trays accommodated in each of the processing vessels, and moves along the longitudinal direction of the opening to simultaneously fix the substrate trays.

5. The processing vessels are arranged in a matrix along both the longitudinal direction and the lateral direction of the opening, The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the cover members are a plurality of cover members detachably connected to each other.

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