Processing liquid temperature control device

Abstract

To provide a processing liquid temperature control apparatus that can achieve compactness and cost reduction and can improve the heat exchange efficiency.SOLUTION: A processing liquid temperature control apparatus 1 includes a block body 10 with an integral structure made of a silicon carbide sintered body, the block body having a flow path F through which a semiconductor processing liquid flows, and a temperature adjustment portion 60 provided at the block body 10 to adjust the temperature of the semiconductor processing liquid flowing through the flow path F. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the number of parts and achieve compactness and cost reduction. In addition, it is possible to enhance heat conduction between the processing liquid and the temperature adjustment portion 60, and improve the heat exchange efficiency.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a processing liquid temperature adjustment device. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a processing liquid temperature adjustment device that adjusts the temperature of a semiconductor processing liquid (hereinafter simply referred to as processing liquid). This device has a block body with a flow path groove formed on its surface. On the surface of the block body, a corrosion-resistant plate that is resistant to corrosion by the processing liquid, a heat transfer plate made of a metal material, and a Peltier module as a temperature adjustment unit are sequentially stacked. In this device, heat is exchanged between the processing liquid and the temperature adjustment unit via the corrosion-resistant plate and the heat transfer plate, and the temperature of the processing liquid is adjusted. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2008-202816 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the above-mentioned processing liquid temperature control device, two components, a corrosion-resistant plate and a heat transfer plate, are present between the block body and the temperature control unit. This increases the number of parts in the entire device, leading to an increase in the size and cost of the device. In addition, the processing liquid temperature control device is required to further improve the heat exchange efficiency between the processing liquid and the temperature control unit.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to provide a processing liquid temperature adjustment device which is compact and inexpensive, and has improved heat exchange efficiency. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A processing liquid temperature control device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a block body having an integral structure made of sintered silicon carbide, the block body having a flow path formed therein through which a semiconductor processing liquid flows and a partition wall separating the flow path from the outside, and a temperature control unit provided on an outer surface of the block body and performing heat exchange with the semiconductor processing liquid via the partition wall. The block body has a first main surface and a second main surface as the outer surface arranged to be spaced apart from each other in a thickness direction T, and the block body comprises a first silicon carbide material having the first main surface and a first flow passage groove forming a part of the flow passage formed on a surface opposite to the first main surface, a second silicon carbide material having the second main surface and a second flow passage groove forming a part of the flow passage formed on a surface opposite to the second main surface, and a third silicon carbide material provided between the first silicon carbide material and the second silicon carbide material, forming a first flow passage together with the first flow passage groove and forming a second flow passage together with the second flow passage groove, and having a communication part connecting the first flow passage and the second flow passage to each other, and the block body is an integral structure made of the first silicon carbide material, the second silicon carbide material, and the third silicon carbide material. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the above aspect, it is possible to provide a treatment liquid temperature adjustment device that is compact and has reduced costs, and has improved heat exchange efficiency. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a side view of a processing liquid temperature adjustment device according to an embodiment; [Diagram 2] 2 is a plan view of a block body of the processing liquid temperature adjustment device according to the embodiment; FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. [Diagram 5] 13 illustrates a first modified example of a flow path of a treatment liquid temperature adjustment device according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] 13 illustrates a second modified example of a flow path of a treatment liquid temperature adjustment device according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. A processing liquid temperature adjustment device 1 shown in Fig. 1 is used to adjust the temperature of a processing liquid (semiconductor processing liquid) used in a semiconductor manufacturing process. As the processing liquid, an acidic aqueous solution such as hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid, etc., used in a wet process (RCA cleaning) or wet etching, or ozone water is used.

[0010] <Overall configuration of processing liquid temperature adjustment device> As shown in FIG. 1, the treatment liquid temperature adjustment device 1 includes a block body 10, a first treatment liquid pipe 51, a second treatment liquid pipe 52, a pair of temperature adjustment parts 60, 60, and a pair of water jackets 70, 70.

[0011] <Block lettering> The block body 10 is in the form of a block made of sintered silicon carbide. As shown in Figs. 2 to 4, a flow path F through which a treatment liquid flows is formed inside the block body 10. The block body 10 is in the form of a flat plate. As shown in Fig. 1, the block body 10 has a first main surface 21 and a second main surface 31, which are outer surfaces arranged to be spaced apart from each other in a thickness direction T of the block body 10. The first main surface 21 and the second main surface 31 are flat surfaces and are parallel to each other.

[0012] <First processing liquid piping, second processing liquid piping> As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the first treatment liquid pipe 51 and the second treatment liquid pipe 52 are connected to the block body 10. The first treatment liquid pipe 51 is a pipe that supplies the treatment liquid into the block body 10, and the second treatment liquid pipe 52 is a pipe that discharges the treatment liquid from the inside of the block body 10 to the outside. The first treatment liquid pipe 51 and the second treatment liquid pipe 52 are made of a material that has corrosion resistance against the treatment liquid, such as PTFE or PFA. The first treatment liquid pipe 51 and the second treatment liquid pipe 52 are fixed at their respective ends to the block body 10 by, for example, bolting. At the connection points between the first treatment liquid pipe 51 and the second treatment liquid pipe 52 and the block body 10, sealing members such as O-rings are provided to prevent the treatment liquid from leaking to the outside.

[0013] <Temperature adjustment part> 1, a pair of temperature adjustment units 60, 60 are provided corresponding to the first main surface 21 and the second main surface 31 of the block body 10, respectively. The temperature adjustment units 60, 60 are in the form of flat plates laminated on the first main surface 21 and the second main surface 31. No other sheets, flat plates, etc. are interposed between the temperature adjustment units 60, 60 and the first main surface 21 and the second main surface 31. In other words, the temperature adjustment units 60, 60 are in direct contact with the first main surface 21 and the second main surface 31. In this embodiment, as the temperature adjustment units 60, 60, a Peltier module formed of a Peltier element is used.

[0014] <Water jacket> A pair of water jackets 70, 70 are provided on the surface of each temperature adjustment unit 60, 60 opposite to the block body 10 side so as to correspond to each temperature adjustment unit 60, 60. The water jacket 70 has a flat heat dissipation block 71 that is stacked on the temperature adjustment unit 60, and a cooling water pipe 72 that is provided to pass through the inside of the heat dissipation block 71.

[0015] In this manner, the processing liquid temperature adjustment device 1 has a structure in which the temperature adjustment units 60, 60 and the water jackets 70, 70 are stacked on both sides of the block body 10 in the thickness direction T. The block body 10, the temperature adjustment unit 60, and the water jacket 70 are fixed together by fixing members such as bolts penetrating in the thickness direction T.

[0016] <Detailed block structure> The structure of the block body 10 will be described in more detail below. As shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, the block body 10 is composed of a first silicon carbide material 20, a second silicon carbide material 30 and a third silicon carbide material 40, each of which is made of silicon carbide.

[0017] <First silicon carbide material 20> 1, the first silicon carbide material 20 has a rectangular plate shape extending in a first direction D1 and a second direction D2 perpendicular to the thickness direction T and perpendicular to each other. A surface of the first silicon carbide material 20 on one side in the thickness direction T (the lower side in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4) is defined as a first main surface 21.

[0018] A surface of the first silicon carbide material 20 opposite to the first main surface 21, i.e., a surface on the other side in the thickness direction T (the upper side in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4), is defined as a first bonding surface 22. The first bonding surface 22 is a plane parallel to the first main surface 21. 3 and 4, the first silicon carbide material 20 has a first flow passage groove 23 formed so as to be recessed from the first bonding surface 22 to one side in the thickness direction T. The first flow passage groove 23 extends in a direction along an imaginary plane including a first direction D1 and a second direction D2. The thickness of the partition wall 24 of the first silicon carbide material 20 separating the first flow passage groove 23 and the first main surface 21 in the thickness direction T, i.e., the dimension in the thickness direction T1, is set to, for example, 0.5 to 5.0 mm, and more preferably 0.5 to 3.0 mm.

[0019] <Second silicon carbide material> 1 and 2, the second silicon carbide material 30 has a rectangular plate shape extending in a first direction D1 and a second direction D2, similar to the first silicon carbide material. The dimension of the second silicon carbide material 30 in the first direction D1 is smaller than that of the first silicon carbide material 20. The dimension of the second silicon carbide material 30 in the second direction D2 is the same as that of the second silicon carbide material 30. A surface of the first silicon carbide material 20 on one side in the thickness direction T is defined as the second main surface 31.

[0020] 1, 3 and 4, a surface of the second silicon carbide material 30 opposite to the second main surface 31, i.e., a surface on one side in the thickness direction T, is a second bonding surface 32. The second bonding surface 32 is a plane parallel to the second main surface 31. 3 and 4, a second flow passage groove 33 is formed in the second bonding surface 32 so as to be recessed from the second bonding surface 32 to the other side in the thickness direction T. The second flow passage groove 33 extends in a direction along an imaginary plane including the first direction D1 and the second direction D2. The partition wall 24 of the second silicon carbide material 30 separating the second flow passage groove 33 and the second main surface 31 in the thickness direction T has a thickness set to, for example, 0.5 to 5.0 mm, and more preferably 0.5 mm to 3.0 mm.

[0021] <Tertiary silicon carbide material> As shown in Fig. 1, the third silicon carbide material 40 has a sheet shape extending in a rectangular shape in a first direction D1 and a second direction D2. As shown in Fig. 2, the dimensions of the third silicon carbide material 40 in the first direction D1 and the second direction D2 are the same as the dimensions of the first silicon carbide material 20 in the first direction D1 and the second direction D2.

[0022] As shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 4, a surface of the third silicon carbide material 40 on one side in the thickness direction T is a first sheet surface 41. A surface of the third silicon carbide material 40 on the other side in the thickness direction T is a second sheet surface 42. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the third silicon carbide material 40 is formed with a first communicating hole 43, a second communicating hole 44, an inlet opening 45 and an outlet opening 46, which respectively penetrate the first sheet surface 41 and the second sheet surface 42 in the thickness direction T. The thickness of the third silicon carbide material 40, i.e., the dimension in the thickness direction, is set to, for example, 0.5 to 5.0 mm, and more preferably, 0.5 to 3.0 mm. That is, the thickness of the partition wall 24 of the first silicon carbide material 20, the thickness of the partition wall 34 of the second silicon carbide material 30, and the thickness of the third silicon carbide material 40 are similar to each other.

[0023] <Sintered silicon carbide> The block body 10 is produced by integrally sintering a first silicon carbide material 20, a second silicon carbide material 30, and a third silicon carbide material 40. When the block body 10 is sintered, as shown in FIG. 1, the third silicon carbide material 40 is disposed between the first bonding surface 22 of the first silicon carbide material 20 and the second bonding surface 32 of the second silicon carbide material 30. As a result, the entire area of ​​the first bonding surface 22 of the first silicon carbide material 20 is covered with the first sheet surface 41 of the third silicon carbide material 40. The second silicon carbide material 30 is stacked on the second sheet surface 42 of the third silicon carbide material 40 so as to be unevenly distributed on one side in the first direction D1 (the right side in FIGS. 1 to 4). As a result, the entire area of ​​the second bonding surface 32 of the second sheet surface 42 is covered by the second sheet surface 42 of the third silicon carbide material 40. In addition, the area of ​​the second sheet surface 42 of the third silicon carbide material 40 on the other side in the first direction D1 (the left side in FIGS. 1 to 4) is exposed to the outside. When the first silicon carbide material 20, the second silicon carbide material 30, and the third silicon carbide material 40 are laminated, an adhesive is interposed between them. In this way, an integrated structure of the first silicon carbide material 20, the second silicon carbide material 30, and the third silicon carbide material 40 can be obtained.

[0024] By subjecting such an integral structure of the first silicon carbide material 20, the second silicon carbide material 30, and the third silicon carbide material 40 to a heat treatment at high temperature, a block body 10 is produced as a silicon carbide sintered body of the first silicon carbide material 20, the second silicon carbide material 30, and the third silicon carbide material 40.

[0025] <Flow paths inside the block> A flow path F inside the block body is defined by the first flow path groove 23 of the first silicon carbide material 20, the second flow path groove 33 of the second silicon carbide material 30, and the first seat surface 41 and second seat surface 42 of the third silicon carbide material 40.

[0026] The first flow passage grooves 23 of the first silicon carbide material 20 and the first seat surface 41 of the third silicon carbide material 40 form a first serpentine flow passage F1, an inlet flow passage F3 and an outlet flow passage F4. The first serpentine flow path F1 is formed at a position biased toward one side of the first direction D1 as shown in Fig. 3. The first serpentine flow path F1 is a flow path F that extends toward the second direction D2 while reciprocating between one side and the other side of the first direction D1.

[0027] The introduction flow passage F3 is connected to an end portion of the first serpentine flow passage F1 on one side in the second direction D2 (the lower side in FIG. 2) which serves as an inlet side of the treatment liquid, and extends to a corner portion on the other side in the first direction D1 and on one side in the second direction D2. The introduction flow passage F3 is in communication with the first treatment liquid piping 51 through the introduction opening 45 of the third silicon carbide material 40. The outlet flow passage F4 is connected to an end portion of the first serpentine flow passage F1 on the other side in the second direction D2 (upper side in FIG. 2) which serves as an outlet side of the treatment liquid, and extends to a corner portion on the other side in the first direction D1 and the other side in the second direction D2. The outlet flow passage F4 is in communication with the second treatment liquid piping 52 via the outlet opening 46 of the third silicon carbide material 40.

[0028] A second serpentine flow path F2 is formed by the second flow path groove 33 of the second silicon carbide material 30 and the second seat surface 42 of the third silicon carbide material 40. The second serpentine flow path F2 is formed in a region overlapping with the first serpentine flow path F1 in a plan view. That is, the second serpentine flow path F2 is a flow path F that extends toward the second direction D2 while reciprocating between one side and the other side of the first direction D1, similar to the first serpentine flow path F1.

[0029] The second serpentine flow path F2 has an end portion on one side in the second direction D2, which is an inlet side for the treatment liquid, that is connected to the first serpentine flow path F1 via the first communication hole 43 of the third silicon carbide material 40. The other end of the second serpentine flow path F2 in the second direction, which is the outlet side for the treatment liquid, is in communication with the first serpentine flow path F1 via the second communication hole 44 of the third silicon carbide material 40.

[0030] <Operation of the processing liquid temperature regulator> When adjusting the temperature of the treatment liquid by the treatment liquid temperature adjustment device 1 having the above configuration, the treatment liquid is introduced into the flow path F of the block body 10 through the first treatment liquid piping 51. The treatment liquid introduced into the block body 10 from the first treatment liquid piping 51 passes through the introduction flow path F3, and is introduced in parallel into the first serpentine flow path F1 and the second serpentine flow path F2. The temperature of the treatment liquid is adjusted by the temperature adjustment units 60 arranged on the first main surface 21 and the second main surface 31 while flowing through the first serpentine flow path F1 and the second serpentine flow path F2.

[0031] That is, by applying electricity to the Peltier module, heat exchange occurs between the Peltier element and the treatment liquid via the partitions 24 of the first silicon carbide material 20 and the second silicon carbide material 30. This allows the temperature of the treatment liquid to be adjusted to an appropriate value. At this time, the water jacket 70 dissipates or supplies heat to the Peltier module. The treatment liquid adjusted to an appropriate temperature by the temperature adjusting unit 60 flows from the first serpentine flow path F1 and the second serpentine flow path F2 into the outlet flow path F4, and is then guided to the second treatment liquid pipe 52 through the outlet opening 46. As a result, the treatment liquid is discharged to the outside of the treatment liquid temperature adjusting device 1.

[0032] <Action and effect> The processing liquid introduced into the processing liquid temperature adjustment device 1 is highly corrosive, so the material forming the flow path F through which the processing liquid passes is required to have high corrosion resistance. Recent advances in silicon carbide manufacturing technology have made it possible to manufacture high-purity silicon carbide materials with little contamination by impurities such as metal powder during the manufacturing process. When impurities are present in silicon carbide materials, corrosion is likely to occur starting from the point where the impurities are present. In contrast, high-purity silicon carbide materials exhibit high corrosion resistance to processing solutions, so there is no need to worry about corrosion.

[0033] In this embodiment, the block body 10 is made of a silicon carbide sintered body made of a high-purity silicon carbide material. This makes it possible to prevent the block body 10 itself from being corroded by the treatment liquid flowing through the flow path F.

[0034] In this way, by forming the flow path F of the treatment liquid only from the silicon carbide material, there is no need to provide a highly corrosion-resistant member such as a corrosion-resistant plate, or a heat transfer plate for holding the corrosion-resistant plate. As a result, only the partitions 24, 34 of the first silicon carbide material 20 and the second silicon carbide material 30 are between the treatment liquid flowing through the flow path F and the temperature adjustment units 60, 60 for adjusting the temperature of the treatment liquid. Therefore, the number of parts in the treatment liquid temperature adjustment device 1 as a whole can be reduced, and it is possible to make the device more compact while avoiding an increase in costs.

[0035] Furthermore, since the silicon carbide material itself has corrosion resistance, the thickness of the partition walls 24, 34 between the processing liquid and the temperature adjustment unit in the block body 10 can be reduced. This allows the thickness of the partition wall 24 to be set to, for example, 0.5 to 5.0 mm, more preferably 0.5 to 3.0 mm. By sufficiently narrowing the gap between the processing liquid and the temperature adjustment unit 60 in this manner, the dimension in the thickness direction T can be further reduced, and the entire device can be made even more compact.

[0036] Furthermore, by reducing the thickness of the partition walls 24 in the block body 10 in this manner, the efficiency of heat exchange between the treatment liquid and the temperature adjustment unit 60 can be improved. The thermal conductivity of the silicon carbide material itself is smaller than that of the corrosion-resistant plate or heat transfer plate that has been used in the past. By thinning the partition walls 24 made of such a silicon carbide material to the above dimensions, the heat capacity of the partition walls 24 can be made sufficiently smaller than before. This can promote heat exchange between the treatment liquid and the temperature adjustment unit 60, and improve the responsiveness of the temperature adjustment unit 60 to temperature changes of the treatment liquid.

[0037] Moreover, the block body 10 of this embodiment can be obtained by stacking a plurality of silicon carbide materials each having a flow passage groove formed therein and subjecting them to a heat treatment. Therefore, the block body 10 having high corrosion resistance and high heat exchange efficiency can be easily obtained without using a special manufacturing method.

[0038] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the technical concept of the invention. For example, in the embodiment, a Peltier module is used as the temperature adjustment unit 60, but other configurations such as a heater may be used as long as the temperature of the processing liquid can be adjusted.

[0039] In the embodiment, the flow path F of the block body 10 includes the first serpentine flow path F1 and the second serpentine flow path F2, but it may have only the first serpentine flow path F1, for example. In this case, the temperature adjustment unit 60 may be provided only on the first main surface 21 out of the first main surface 21 and the second main surface 31. In other words, it is not necessarily necessary to provide a pair of temperature adjustment units 60, and it may be a configuration in which only one is provided.

[0040] In the embodiment, the portion of the flow path F of the block body 10 where heat exchange takes place has a serpentine shape like the first serpentine flow path F1 and the second serpentine flow path F2, but this is not limiting. For example, the flow path F may be a spiral flow path F5 as shown in Fig. 5, or a square spiral flow path F6 as shown in Fig. 6.

[0041] Furthermore, in the embodiment, an example in which the block body 10 is composed of the first silicon carbide material 20, the second silicon carbide material 30, and the third silicon carbide material 40 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. The block body 10 may be composed of two of these three silicon carbide materials. Also, a block body having a more complicated flow path may be composed of four or more silicon carbide materials. The shape of the flow path is also not limited to the embodiment, and can be changed as desired. [Explanation of symbols]

[0042] 1...treatment liquid temperature control device, 10...block body, 20...first silicon carbide material, 21...first main surface, 22...first joint surface, 23...first flow passage groove, 24...partition wall, 30...second silicon carbide material, 31...second main surface, 32...second joint surface, 33...second flow passage groove, 34...partition wall, 40...third silicon carbide material, 41...first seat surface, 42...second seat surface, 43...first communication hole, 44...second communication hole, 45...inlet opening, 46...outlet opening, 51...first treatment liquid piping, 52...second treatment liquid piping, 60...temperature control section, 70...water jacket, 71...heat dissipation block, 72...cooling water pipe 72, F...flow passage, F1...first serpentine flow passage, F2...second serpentine flow passage, F3...inlet flow passage, F4...outlet flow passage, T...thickness direction T, D1...first direction, D2...second direction

Claims

1. a block body having an integral structure made of sintered silicon carbide, the block body having a flow path formed therein through which a semiconductor processing liquid flows and a partition wall separating the flow path from the outside; a temperature adjusting unit provided on an outer surface of the block body and configured to exchange heat with the semiconductor processing solution through the partition wall; Equipped with The block body has a first main surface and a second main surface as the outer surfaces arranged to be spaced apart from each other in the thickness direction T, The block body is a first silicon carbide material having the first main surface and a first flow passage groove that forms a part of the flow passage on a surface opposite to the first main surface; a second silicon carbide material having the second main surface and a second flow passage groove that forms a part of the flow passage formed on a surface opposite to the second main surface; a third silicon carbide material provided between the first silicon carbide material and the second silicon carbide material, the third silicon carbide material having a communication portion which forms a first flow passage together with the first flow passage groove and a second flow passage together with the second flow passage groove, and which connects the first flow passage and the second flow passage to each other; Equipped with The block body is an integral structure of the first silicon carbide material, the second silicon carbide material, and the third silicon carbide material.

2. 2. The processing liquid temperature adjustment device according to claim 1, wherein the partition has a thickness in the range of 0.5 to 5.0 mm.

3. The flow path extends in a direction perpendicular to the thickness direction T, The processing liquid temperature adjustment device according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature adjustment unit is provided so as to be in contact with each of the first main surface and the second main surface.

4. 4. The processing liquid temperature adjustment device according to claim 1, wherein the temperature adjustment unit is a Peltier module including a Peltier element.

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