Substrate Processing Equipment

Abstract

To provide a substrate processing apparatus having a static elimination unit in which the efficiency of eliminating static electricity from a substrate is enhanced while eliminating the increase in size and cost of an apparatus.SOLUTION: A substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a table 30 for holding the lower surface of a substrate 19, a transfer unit 52 for holding the upper surface of the substrate 19 and carrying the substrate 19 into and out of the table 30, a unit 21 which has a first air injection port 29 for injecting ionized air, and spraying ionized air onto the substrate 19 to perform static elimination on the substrate, an air injection unit 61 which has a second air injection port 69 for injecting air in a direction intersecting with the ionized air injected from the static elimination unit 21, and can change the traveling direction of the ionized air. In either a state where the substrate 19 is held on the table 30 or a state where the substrate 19 is held by the transfer unit 52, the direction of the ionized air jetted from the static elimination unit 21 is changed by the air jetting unit 61, whereby it is possible to spray the ionized air onto the substrate 19 regardless of whether the substrate 19 is held on the table 30 or by the transfer unit 52.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus having a static elimination unit that relieves static electricity from a substrate. [Background technology]

[0002] In a substrate processing apparatus that performs cutting and grinding on substrates such as semiconductor wafers, the substrate is easily charged when it is removed from the holding surface of a holding table, and there is a risk that devices formed on the substrate may be destroyed by the charging. Therefore, it is necessary to eliminate static electricity by, for example, blowing ionized air onto the substrate, and in order to efficiently eliminate static electricity, a mechanism has been proposed that moves a static elimination unit in association with the movement of the substrate, thereby changing the spray direction of the ionized air sprayed from the static elimination unit (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2012-049359 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in order to move the static electricity removal unit and change the direction in which the ionized air is sprayed, a driving unit such as a motor is required, and there is also the problem that the device becomes larger and more costly in order to secure space for installing the static electricity removal unit. Therefore, in a substrate processing apparatus equipped with a static elimination unit that eliminates static electricity from a substrate, there is a problem to be solved of preventing the apparatus from becoming larger and increasing costs, and of increasing the efficiency of static elimination of the substrate. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The present invention for solving the above problem comprises a holding table which holds the underside of a substrate, a transport unit which holds the upper side of the substrate and transports the substrate into or out of the holding table, a static elimination unit which has a first air jet port which jets ionized air and which blows the ionized air onto the substrate to reduce electrostatic charge on the substrate, and an air jet unit which has a second air jet port which jets air in a direction intersecting the ionized air jetted from the static elimination unit and is capable of changing the direction of travel of the ionized air, and in either a state in which the substrate is held on the holding table or a state in which the substrate is held by the transport unit: By switching between a state in which the air injection unit injects air and a state in which the air is not injected, This substrate processing apparatus is capable of changing the direction of the ionized air sprayed from the static electricity removal unit by using the air spray unit, thereby blowing the ionized air toward the substrate regardless of whether the substrate is held on the holding table or the transport unit.

[0006] In the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, it is preferable that the first air ejection port is formed toward an upper surface of the substrate held on the holding table, and the second air ejection port is formed toward a lower surface of the substrate held by the transport unit and removed from the holding table.

[0007] In the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention, it is preferable that the first air ejection port is formed toward a lower surface of the substrate carried out from the holding table by the transport unit, and the second air ejection port is formed toward a upper surface of the substrate held on the holding table.

[0008] It is preferable that the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a plurality of the first air ejection ports and a plurality of the second air ejection ports, and that the arrangement direction of the first air ejection ports and the arrangement direction of the second air ejection ports are parallel to each other.

[0009] In the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention, it is preferable that the first air ejection port is in the form of a single slit, the second air ejection port is in the form of a single slit, and the extending direction of the first air ejection port and the extending direction of the second air ejection port are parallel to each other. Effect of the Invention

[0010] The substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a holding table for holding the lower surface of the substrate, a transport unit for holding the upper surface of the substrate and transporting the substrate to or from the holding table, a static elimination unit having a first air outlet for ejecting ionized air and for blowing the ionized air onto the substrate to relieve the electrostatic charge of the substrate, and an air injection unit having a second air outlet for ejecting air in a direction intersecting the ionized air ejected from the static elimination unit and capable of changing the traveling direction of the ionized air, so that the ionized air ejected from the static elimination unit can be blown onto the upper surface, which is the exposed surface of the substrate, while the substrate is held on the holding table, and even when the substrate is switched from being held on the holding table to being held on, for example, a transport unit, the direction of the ionized air ejected from the static elimination unit can be changed by the air injection unit to blow the ionized air onto the lower surface, which is the exposed surface of the substrate. That is, the ionized air can be blown onto the substrate whether the substrate is held on the holding table or on the transport unit. Furthermore, since there is no need to provide a motor or other driving source for moving the static electricity removal unit and changing the spray direction of the ionized air as in the conventional method, the device does not become larger and costs do not increase, and the efficiency of static electricity removal from the substrate can be improved. In addition, since the static elimination unit has more parts and is larger in size than the air injection unit, the installation location is limited, but the air injection unit has fewer parts and can be made smaller in size than the static elimination unit, so there is more freedom in where it can be installed within the apparatus than the static elimination unit. Therefore, even if the static elimination unit cannot be placed in a location suitable for eliminating static electricity from the substrate due to the layout inside the substrate processing apparatus, by installing the air injection unit in a location where it can assist in changing the flow of the ionized air, it is possible to eliminate static electricity by appropriately blowing ionized air onto the substrate.

[0011] In the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, a first air injection port is formed toward the upper surface of a substrate held on the holding table, and a second air injection port is formed toward the underside of a substrate held by a transport unit and carried out of the holding table. Therefore, when the substrate is held on the holding table, with air injection from the air injection unit stopped, ionized air can be blown directly from the static elimination unit onto the upper surface, which is the exposed surface of the substrate, and when the substrate is switched from being held on the holding table to being held by the transport unit, ionized air can be injected from the static elimination unit and air can be injected from the air injection unit in a direction intersecting with the ionized air, thereby changing the direction of the ionized air to be toward the underside, which is the exposed surface of the substrate, and ionized air can be blown onto the underside of the substrate.

[0012] In the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, a first air injection port is formed toward the underside of the substrate carried out from the holding table by the transport unit, and a second air injection port is formed toward the upper surface of the substrate held on the holding table. Therefore, when the substrate is held on the holding table, ionized air is injected from the static electricity removal unit and air is injected from the air injection unit in a direction intersecting the ionized air, thereby changing the direction of the ionized air to face the upper surface, which is the exposed surface of the substrate, and the ionized air can be blown onto the upper surface of the substrate. When the substrate is switched from being held on the holding table to being held by the transport unit, the injection of air from the air injection unit can be stopped and the ionized air can be blown directly from the static electricity removal unit onto the underside, which is the exposed surface of the substrate, with the upper surface side held.

[0013] The substrate processing apparatus of the present invention is equipped with a plurality of first air injection ports and a plurality of second air injection ports, and the arrangement direction of the first air injection ports is parallel to the arrangement direction of the second air injection ports. Therefore, the ionized air injected from the plurality of first air injection ports to form an air curtain without any gaps in the arrangement direction can be changed in direction by the air injected from the second air injection port to form an air curtain in the arrangement direction, making it possible to spray the ionized air without any gaps over almost the entire desired exposed surface of the substrate.

[0014] In the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, the first air jet port is shaped like a single slit, the second air jet port is shaped like a single slit, and the extension direction of the first air jet port and the extension direction of the second air jet port are parallel. Therefore, it is possible to spray the ionized air without any gaps in the extension direction of the ionized air jetted from the first air jet port to form an air curtain, and change the direction of travel with the air jetted from the second air jet port to form an air curtain in the extension direction, thereby spraying the ionized air over almost the entire desired exposed surface of the substrate without any leakage. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall perspective view showing an example of a substrate processing apparatus; [Diagram 2] FIG. 11 is a side view illustrating a state in which ionized air jetted from a static electricity removal unit is directly blown onto the upper surface, which is the exposed surface, of a substrate held on a holding table, with air jetting from the air jetting unit stopped. [Diagram 3] FIG. 11 is a side view illustrating a state in which ionized air is sprayed from a static electricity removal unit onto the exposed underside of a substrate that has been removed from a holding table and held by a transport unit, and the air sprayed from an air spray unit in a direction intersecting the ionized air changes its direction of travel toward the underside of the substrate, and is then blown onto the underside of the substrate. [Figure 4]FIG. 11 is a side view illustrating a state in which ionized air is sprayed from a static elimination unit onto the upper surface, which is the exposed surface of a substrate held on a holding table, and the direction of travel of the ionized air is changed to face the upper surface of the substrate by air sprayed from an air spray unit in a direction intersecting the ionized air, and the air is sprayed onto the upper surface of the substrate. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a side view illustrating a state in which ionized air sprayed from a static electricity removal unit is directly sprayed onto the exposed underside of a substrate that has been removed from the holding table and held by a transport unit, with air spray from the air spray unit stopped. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] 1 is, for example, a cutting device that performs cutting processing on a substrate 19 held on a holding table 30 using a cutting unit (not shown). Note that the substrate processing device 1 may also be a laser processing device that performs a desired processing (e.g., substrate modification or groove formation) on the substrate 19 by irradiating it with a laser, a grinding device that grinds and thins the substrate 19 with a rotating grinding wheel, or a polishing device that polishes the substrate 19 with a polishing pad.

[0017] The substrate 19 shown in FIG. 1 is, for example, a circular plate-shaped silicon semiconductor wafer, and on a surface 190 of the substrate 19 facing upward, devices 192 are formed in lattice-shaped areas partitioned by planned division lines 191. For example, a back surface 193 of the substrate 19 is attached to an attachment surface (front surface) of a dicing tape 198. The outer periphery of the dicing tape 198 is attached to an annular frame 197, and the substrate 19 is supported by the annular frame 197 via the dicing tape 198, forming a work set 199 that can be handled using the annular frame 197. The center of the annular frame 197 and the center of the substrate 19 are in a state of approximately matching. Note that the substrate 19 is not limited to the above example, and may be a single substrate rather than a work set 199, and may be composed of gallium arsenide, sapphire, gallium nitride, resin, ceramics, silicon carbide, or the like other than silicon, or may be a package substrate, or the like.

[0018] As shown in FIG. 1, a housing 100 is disposed on the rear side (-X direction side) of an apparatus base 10 of the substrate processing apparatus 1, and a processing chamber is defined inside the housing 100. Inside the processing chamber, cutting processing of a substrate 19 is performed by a cutting means (not shown) equipped with a cutting blade. The front side (+X direction side) on the equipment base 10 of the substrate processing apparatus 1 is an attachment / detachment area where the work set 199 is loaded and unloaded onto the holding table 30, which can move back and forth in the X-axis direction and enter the processing chamber inside the housing 100, and where cleaning of the substrate 19 that has been subjected to cutting processing is performed. An input unit 101 such as a touch panel capable of inputting control data and the like to a control unit that controls the entire substrate processing apparatus 1 is provided on the outer surface of the housing 100 .

[0019] The holding table 30 is surrounded by a cover 31, and can be rotated about a rotation axis in the Z-axis direction by a rotation unit (not shown) disposed below the cover 31. A bellows cover 311 that expands and contracts in the X-axis direction is connected to the cover 31, and a cutting feed unit (not shown) that reciprocates the holding table 30 in the cutting feed direction (X-axis direction) is disposed below the cover 31 and the bellows cover 311. The cutting feed unit is, for example, a ball screw mechanism that rotates a ball screw by a motor to cut and feed the holding table 30.

[0020] 1 for holding the substrate 19 has, for example, a circular shape in a plan view, and holds the substrate 19 by suction on a flat holding surface 300 that communicates with a suction source (not shown). In addition, around the periphery of the holding table 30, when the substrate 19 is a work set 199 as in this embodiment, for example, four fixing clamps 32 that can clamp and fix the annular frame 197 are evenly arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction.

[0021] 1, a cassette mounting table 13 is installed in one corner on the -Y direction side of an apparatus base 10 of the substrate processing apparatus 1, and the cassette mounting table 13 can be moved up and down in the Z axis direction by an elevator (not shown) arranged below it. With a cassette 14 housing a plurality of work sets 199 on its internal shelves placed on the cassette mounting table 13, the cassette mounting table 13 is raised and lowered by the elevator, thereby adjusting the height position when a target substrate 19 is inserted or removed from the cassette 14.

[0022] For example, in front of an opening (not shown) on the +Y direction side of cassette 14 placed on cassette mounting table 13 shown in FIG. 1, a push-pull 15 is provided for pulling out unprocessed substrate 19 from cassette 14 and for inserting cut and cleaned work set 199 into cassette 14.

[0023] For example, above the moving path of the holding table 30, a centering guide 16 consisting of a pair of guide rails is disposed, which aligns the work set 199 drawn out from the cassette 14 by the push-pull 15 movable in the Y-axis direction at a certain position. The guide rails, which are L-shaped in cross section and extend in the Y-axis direction, can move away from or approach each other in the X-axis direction, and are disposed so that their stepped guide surfaces (inner surfaces) face each other. When the work sets 199 are carried into the holding table 30, one work set 199 is drawn out from the cassette 14 by the push-pull 15 and placed on the centering guide 16. When cleaning of the work sets 199 after machining is completed, the work set 199 placed on the centering guide 16 by, for example, the first transport unit 51 or the second transport unit 52 is inserted into the cassette 14 by the push-pull 15 and placed on an internal shelf. The pair of guide rails of the centering guide 16 approach each other when the work set 199 is placed to support the outer edge of the annular frame 197 and position (center) it relative to the holding table 30, and when the work set 199 is not placed, they are spaced apart to leave space above the holding surface 300 of the holding table 30.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 1, the substrate processing apparatus 1 is equipped with a transport unit that holds a substrate 19 and transports the substrate 19 onto or from a holding table 30. In this embodiment, for example, the apparatus is equipped with a first transport unit 51 that transports the substrate 19 which is a work set 199, and a second transport unit 52 that transports the work set 199.

[0025] For example, a first transport unit 51 and a second transport unit 52 are disposed on the front surface of the housing 100. The first conveying unit 51 includes a holding pad 511 that holds the work set 199 held on the holding table 30 from above, a vertical movement unit 512 that moves the holding pad 511 up and down, and a Y-axis movement unit 513 that enables the holding pad 511 to move back and forth in the Y-axis direction. The Y-axis moving unit 513 is, for example, an electric actuator disposed on the front surface of the housing 100. For example, the vertical movement unit 512 is an electric cylinder (or a pneumatic cylinder) attached to a slider 514 of a Y-axis movement unit 513.

[0026] The holding pad 511 attached to the lower end side of the lifting rod (not shown) of the vertical movement unit 512 is, for example, H-shaped in plan view, and has four suction pads 515 on its lower surface for adsorbing the annular frame 197 that supports the substrate 19. Each suction pad 515 is connected to a suction source such as a vacuum generator (not shown) that generates a suction force. In this embodiment, the push-pull 15 is capable of reciprocating movement in the Y-axis direction together with the holding pad 511, but the push-pull 15 may be capable of moving independently in the Y-axis direction.

[0027] The second transport unit 52, which transports the post-cut substrate 19 (work set 199) from the holding table 30 shown in Figure 1 and transports the work set 199 onto the holding table 120 of the cleaning unit 12 described later, is equipped with, for example, a holding pad 521 that holds the work set 199 held on the holding table 30 from above, a vertical movement unit 522 that moves the holding pad 521 up and down, and a Y-axis movement unit 523 that enables the holding pad 521 to move back and forth in the Y-axis direction.

[0028] The Y-axis moving unit 523 is, for example, an electric actuator or the like disposed on the front surface of the housing 100. The slide block 524 of the Y-axis moving unit 523 shown in FIG. 1 is formed to be longer in the dimension in the X-axis direction than the slider 514 of the first transport unit 51, and the vertical movement unit 522 and the holding pad 521 are attached to the lower surface of the slide block 524 thus formed. Therefore, the vertical movement unit 512 of the holding pad 521 of the second transport unit 52 is shifted in the X-axis direction from the moving line of the holding pad 521 of the second transport unit 52. Therefore, when the work set 199 is carried out from the holding table 30, the holding pad 521 of the second transport unit 52 can transport the work set 199 in the Y-axis direction without colliding with the first transport unit 51.

[0029] The holding pad 521 has, for example, an H shape in a plan view, and has four suction pads 525 on its underside which communicate with a suction source (not shown) and suction-hold annular frame 197 supporting the substrate 19 .

[0030] 1, a single-wafer cleaning unit 12 for cleaning a processed substrate 19 is disposed within the movable range of the first transport unit 51 and the second transport unit 52. The cleaning unit 12 suction-holds a work set 199 on a holding table 120 having a flat holding surface 121, and cleans the surface 190 by spraying cleaning water from a cleaning nozzle (not shown) that moves in a swiveling motion above the substrate 19 onto a surface 190, which is the surface to be cut, of the rotating substrate 19.

[0031] The substrate processing apparatus 1 is equipped with a cassette-side static electricity removal unit 21 having a first air ejection port 29 (see Figure 2) for ejecting ionized air and for blowing the ionized air onto the substrate 19 to reduce the electrostatic charge of the substrate 19, a cleaning unit-side static electricity removal unit 22, a cassette-side air ejection unit 61 having a second air ejection port 69 (see Figure 2) for ejecting air in a direction intersecting the ionized air ejected from the cassette-side static electricity removal unit 21 and capable of changing the direction of travel of the ionized air, and a cleaning unit-side air ejection unit 62 having a second air ejection port 69 for ejecting air in a direction intersecting the ionized air ejected from the cleaning unit-side static electricity removal unit 22 and capable of changing the direction of travel of the ionized air.

[0032] In this embodiment, the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21 is disposed below and in front of an opening (not shown) on the +Y direction side of the cassette 14 when the cassette 14 is placed on the cassette placement table 13 and the work set 199 can be pulled out by the push-pull 15, and at a position (a position that does not interfere with the loading and unloading of the substrate 19 onto the holding surface 300) outside the outer periphery of the holding table 30 when the holding table 30 is positioned at a position for loading the substrate 19. Also, the cassette-side air injection unit 61 operable together with the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21 is disposed outside the outer periphery of the holding table 30 and at a position lower than the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21 in the example shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3.

[0033] In this embodiment, the cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22 is disposed at a position (a position that does not prevent the substrate 19 from being loaded onto and unloaded from the holding table 120) outside the outer periphery of the holding table 120 of the cleaning unit 12 shown in Fig. 1. The cleaning unit side air spray unit 62 that operates together with the cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22 is disposed at a position outside the outer periphery of the holding table 120, closer to the holding table 120 than the cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22, and lower than the cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22, in the example shown in Fig. 1.

[0034] Since the cassette side static electricity removing unit 21 and the cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 have substantially the same configuration, the configuration of the cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 shown in FIG. 1 will be described below. The cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22 is, for example, a nozzle-type ionizer of a pulse AC type equipped with an electrode needle or the like capable of supplying electricity thereto, but is not limited thereto, and may be a pulse DC type or a fan type. The cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22 is connected to an air supply source (not shown) consisting of a compressor or the like, and is equipped with a first air jet port 29 on the tip side. The first air jet port 29 may be a circular port or a long port.

[0035] When eliminating electricity from at least the substrate 19, the cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22 converts air supplied from an air supply source (not shown) into positively charged ionized air and, for example, approximately the same amount of negatively charged ionized air, and sprays them from the first air spray port 29. The ion balance of the ionized air sprayed by the cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22 can be appropriately changed.

[0036] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the cleaning unit side static electricity removing units 22 are arranged in a line on the front surface of a gate-shaped support column 107 erected on the apparatus base 10, and the first air jetting ports 29 arranged in the X-axis direction are opened to intersect with the holding surface 121 of the holding table 120 from diagonally above. The cleaning unit side static electricity removing units 22 are arranged such that the distance from one end to the other end is longer than the diameter of the holding table 120 in the X-axis direction, which is the arrangement direction. Note that, for example, one cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 may be arranged on a virtual tangent line passing through the outer periphery on the +X direction side of the holding table 120, and another may be arranged on a virtual tangent line passing through the outer periphery on the -X direction side opposite to the outer periphery on the +X direction side across the center of the holding table 120. The cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 may be one.

[0037] 1 is, for example, a single elongated pipe nozzle that communicates with an air supply source (not shown) and extends parallel to the X-axis direction with a length longer than the diameter of the holding table 120. The nozzle-shaped cleaning unit side air spray unit 62 extending in the X-axis direction has a plurality of second air spray ports 69 that open obliquely upward on the outer surface on the holding table 120 side. The arrangement direction of the plurality of second air spray ports 69 is the X-axis direction, and is parallel to the arrangement direction of the plurality of first air spray ports 29 of the cleaning unit side static electricity removal units 22.

[0038] For example, the cleaning unit side static electricity removal units 22 may not be arranged in multiple units, and may have a bar-like form extending in the X-axis direction rather than a nozzle-like form, and the first air ejection port 29 may be formed as a single slit extending in the X-axis direction with a length longer than at least the diameter of the substrate 19 held by suction on the holding table 120. In addition, a single slit-shaped second air nozzle 69 having a length longer than the diameter of at least the substrate 19 held by suction on the holding table 120 is formed on the outer surface of the cleaning unit side air spray unit 62, which is a single long, thin pipe nozzle, and the extension direction (X-axis direction) of the first air nozzle 29 and the extension direction (X-axis direction) of the second air nozzle 69 may be parallel to each other.

[0039] The configuration of the cassette side static electricity removing unit 21 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 is substantially the same as that of the cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22, and the configuration of the cassette side air injection unit 61 is substantially the same as that of the cleaning unit side air injection unit 62. In this embodiment, the cassette side static electricity removing units 21 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are arranged in a plurality of rows in the X-axis direction so that the distance from one end to the other is longer than the diameter of the holding table 30. The first air injection port 29 of each cassette side static electricity removing unit 21 opens in a direction intersecting the holding surface 300 of the holding table 30 from obliquely above. The cassette side air injection unit 61, which is a single elongated pipe nozzle, extends in parallel to the X-axis direction with a length longer than the diameter of the holding table 30. The cassette side air injection unit 61 extending in the X-axis direction has a plurality of second air injection ports 69 opening obliquely upward on its outer surface on the holding table 30 side. That is, the arrangement direction of the plurality of second air ejection ports 69 is the X-axis direction, and is parallel to the arrangement direction of the first air ejection ports 29 of the plurality of cassette side static eliminating units 21.

[0040] Below, we will explain in detail the operation of each component of the substrate processing apparatus 1, and in particular the operation of the cassette side static electricity removal unit 21 (cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22) and the cassette side air spray unit 61 (cleaning unit side air spray unit 62) when cutting the substrate 19, which is the work set 199, using the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Figure 1.

[0041] First, the cassette 14 accommodating a plurality of work sets 199 shown in Fig. 1 is placed on the cassette placement table 13, and then the height of the cassette 14 is adjusted by the elevator. Next, the push-pull 15 moves in the -Y direction to enter the cassette 14 and grips the annular frame 197 of the work set 199 placed on the target shelf. One work set 199 is pulled out of the cassette 14 by the push-pull 15, and the annular frame 197 is placed on the centering guide 16. Then, the pair of guide rails of the centering guide 16 approach each other and center the work set 199 (detect the center position) while supporting the outer periphery of the annular frame 197.

[0042] The Y-axis moving unit 513 of the first transport unit 51 moves the holding pad 511 in the Y-axis direction, and the holding pad 511 is positioned above the annular frame 197 on the centering guide 16, so that the center of the holding pad 511 and the center of the work set 199 are approximately aligned. Furthermore, the vertical movement unit 512 lowers the holding pad 511, and the four suction cups 515 come into contact with the upper surface of the annular frame 197 to perform suction. Become a stubborn person.

[0043] Next, the pair of guide rails of the centering guide 16 move in directions away from each other, creating a gap between the pair of guide rails through which the work set 199 can descend. Then, the holding pad 511 descends and places the work set 199 on the holding surface 300 of the holding table 30 that was previously positioned below the centering guide 16. After the holding table 30 suction-holds the substrate 19 on the holding surface 300 and the annular frame 197 is clamped and fixed by the fixed clamps 32, the suction of the annular frame 197 by the holding pad 511 is released, and the holding pad 511 detaches from the work set 199.

[0044] In this embodiment, the holding pad 511 adsorbs and holds the annular frame 197, and does not directly adsorb and hold the surface 190 which is the upper surface of the substrate 19, so that the so-called peeling electrification is small. However, in cases where peeling electrification occurs when the surface 190 of the substrate 19 is directly adsorbed and held by the transport unit, or where the substrate 19 and the dicing tape 198 to which the substrate 19 is attached become charged before the substrate 19 is adsorbed and held by the holding table 30, or where the substrate 19 is a substrate on which a device is formed that requires strict control of the amount of charge, if the substrate 19 and the dicing tape 198 of the work set 199 are charged with a positive (+) or negative (-) charge, the dicing process described below may not be performed properly on the substrate 19, or the device may be destroyed by charging.

[0045] Therefore, ionized air is blown onto the surface 190, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 of the work set 199 held by suction on the holding table 30 shown in Figure 2, and onto the upper surface of the dicing tape 198, by multiple cassette-side static elimination units 21 and cassette-side air injection units 61.

[0046] Specifically, air is supplied from an air supply source (not shown) to the multiple cassette side static electricity removing units 21 shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, and each cassette side static electricity removing unit 21 converts positively charged ionized air into, for example, approximately the same amount of negatively charged ionized air, and sprays them from the first air spraying port 29. In this embodiment, the first air spraying port 29 of the cassette side static electricity removing unit 21 is formed toward the upper surface 190 (surface 190) which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held on the holding table 30, and the ionized air 291 sprayed from the multiple cassette side static electricity removing units 21 arranged in the X-axis direction is blown onto the work set 199 sucked and held by the holding table 30 located diagonally below in the form of an air curtain that crosses at least the substrate 19 on the X-axis side. Here, air is not sprayed from the cassette side air spraying unit 61.

[0047] The air curtain-like ionized air 291 flows along almost the entire upper surface of the dicing tape 198, which is the exposed surface of the work set 199, and along almost the entire upper surface 190 (surface 190) of the substrate 19, thereby uniformly removing the static electricity that had been charged to the substrate 19 and the dicing tape 198.

[0048] Next, the holding table 30, which holds the neutralized substrate 19 by suction, is sent in the -X direction by a cutting feed unit (not shown) and enters a processing chamber (not shown) inside the housing 100 shown in Fig. 1. Then, in the processing chamber, the substrate 19 is fully or half-cut by dicing, completing the processing.

[0049] The holding table 30 is sent in the +X direction by a cutting feed unit (not shown) and carried out from inside the machining chamber, and then, for example, the second transport unit 52 shown in Fig. 1 carries out the work set 199 from the holding table 30. The holding pad 521 is moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis moving unit 523 and positioned above the work set 199 held by the holding table 30, so that the center of the holding pad 521 and the center of the work set 199 approximately coincide with each other. Furthermore, the vertical movement unit 522 lowers the holding pad 521, and the four suction cups 525 come into contact with the upper surface of the annular frame 197 to perform suction.

[0050] When the holding pad 521 is raised in this state to remove the work set 199 from the holding surface 300 of the holding table 30 which has stopped vacuum suction, peeling static electricity may occur, and the substrate 19 and dicing tape 198 of the work set 199 may become charged after removal.

[0051] Therefore, even when the state in which the substrate 19 is held by the holding table 30 shown in FIG. 2 is switched to a state in which the substrate 19 is held by the second conveying unit 52 shown in FIG. 3, the direction of the ionized air 291 sprayed from the cassette-side static electricity removal unit 21 is changed by the cassette-side air spraying unit 61, and the ionized air 291 is blown toward the underside 193 (in this embodiment, the underside of the dicing tape 198), which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held by the second conveying unit 52 shown in FIG. 3.

[0052] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the first air injection port 29 of the cassette side anti-static unit 21 is formed toward the upper surface 190, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held on the holding table 30, and as shown in FIG. 3, the second air injection port 69 of the cassette side air injection unit 61 is formed toward the lower surface 193 (in this embodiment, the lower surface of the dicing tape 198), which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held by the holding pad 521 of the second conveying unit 52 and carried out from the holding table 30.

[0053] 1 and 3, air is supplied from an air supply source (not shown), and each cassette side static electricity eliminating unit 21 converts the air into ionized air 291 with a predetermined ion balance and injects it from the first air injection port 29. In this embodiment, the ionized air 291 is injected obliquely downward in the form of an air curtain from the cassette side static electricity eliminating units 21 arranged in the X-axis direction, as shown in FIG. 3. Compressed air 699 with a predetermined pressure is injected from the cassette side air injection unit 61 in a direction intersecting the ionized air 291 injected obliquely downward from the cassette side static electricity eliminating unit 21 toward the holding table 30, that is, in a direction toward the lower surface of the dicing tape 198, which is the exposed surface of the work set 199 held by the holding pad 521 of the second conveyor unit 52.

[0054] As a result, the air 699 sprayed from the cassette-side air spraying unit 61 changes the traveling direction of the ionized air 291 sprayed from the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21 so that it is directed toward the underside 193 (the underside of the dicing tape 198 in this embodiment), which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held by the second transport unit 52. The air curtain-like ionized air 291 flows along substantially the entire underside of the dicing tape 198, which is the exposed surface of the work set 199, thereby uniformly removing static electricity from the substrate 19 and the dicing tape 198.

[0055] For example, after the holding pad 521 holding the work set 199 by suction is raised and the work set 199 is de-electrified as described above by moving it in the +Y direction, the work set 199 is transported by the second transport unit 52 onto the holding table 120 of the cleaning unit 12 shown in FIG. 1, and the work set 199 is placed on the holding table 120 with the substrate 19 facing up and held by suction.

[0056] In this embodiment, the holding pad 521 attracts and holds the annular frame 197, and does not directly attract and hold the surface 190, which is the exposed surface facing upward of the substrate 19, so that the so-called peeling charge is small, but if the surface 190 of the substrate 19 is directly attracted and held by, for example, the second transport unit 52, the peeling charge remains on the surface 190, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19. Therefore, in this case, air is supplied to the multiple cleaning unit side static electricity removing units 22 shown in Fig. 1, and each cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 sprays ionized air from the first air spraying port 29. Here, air is not sprayed from the cleaning unit side air spraying unit 62 shown in Fig. 1.

[0057] The ionized air sprayed from multiple cleaning unit side charge removal units 22 and formed into an air curtain travels diagonally downward and flows along almost the entire upper surface of dicing tape 198, which is the exposed surface of work set 199, and almost the entire upper surface 190 (surface 190) of substrate 19, thereby de-ionizing substrate 19 and dicing tape 198.

[0058] After the neutralization is completed, a cleaning nozzle (not shown) revolves back and forth at a predetermined angle above the work set 199. In addition, by rotating the holding table 120 at a predetermined rotational speed, cleaning water is sprayed from the cleaning nozzle toward the entire surface 190 of the substrate 19, thereby cleaning the surface. After cleaning, the work set 199 is air-dried or spin-dried.

[0059] 1 is positioned above the work set 199 on the holding table 120. Furthermore, the holding pad 511 is lowered so that the four suction cups 515 come into contact with the upper surface of the annular frame 197 to perform suction.

[0060] Next, when the holding pad 511 is raised by the vertical movement unit 512 and the work set 199 is detached from the holding table 120 from which the suction holding is released, the work set 199 is charged by peeling electrification. Therefore, air is supplied from an air supply source (not shown) to the plurality of cleaning unit side static electricity removing units 22 shown in FIG. 1, and each cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 ejects ionized air with an appropriate ion balance from each first air ejection port 29. Then, the ionized air is ejected obliquely downward from each cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 in the form of an air curtain. In addition, compressed air of a predetermined pressure is ejected from the cleaning unit side air ejection unit 62 in a direction intersecting the ionized air ejected obliquely downward from the cleaning unit side static electricity removing unit 22 toward the holding table 120, that is, in a direction toward the lower surface of the dicing tape 198, which is the exposed surface of the work set 199 held by the holding pad 511 of the first transport unit 51.

[0061] As a result, the air jetted from the cleaning unit side air jetting unit 62 changes the direction of travel of the ionized air jetted from the cleaning unit side static electricity removal unit 22 so that it is directed toward the underside of the dicing tape 198 of the work set 199 held by the first transport unit 51. The air curtain-like ionized air flows along almost the entire underside of the dicing tape 198, thereby uniformly removing static electricity that had been charged to the cleaned substrate 19 and dicing tape 198.

[0062] After the neutralization is completed, the holding pad 511 moves in the −Y direction, and the annular frame 197 of the work set 199 is placed on the centering guide 16. Furthermore, after the annular frame 197 is gripped by the push-pull 15, the work set 199 is inserted into the shelf of the cassette 14.

[0063] As described above, the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention includes the holding table 30 which holds the lower surface 193 (rear surface 193) of the substrate 19, the second transport unit 52 which holds the upper surface 190 side (front surface 190 side) of the substrate 19 via, for example, an annular frame 197 and transports the substrate 19 into or out of the holding table 30, the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21 which has a first air ejection port 29 which ejects ionized air and which blows the ionized air onto the substrate 19 to reduce the charge on the substrate 19, and the second air ejection port 69 which ejects air in a direction intersecting the ionized air ejected from the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21, and the cassette-side air spraying unit 61 capable of changing the traveling direction of the air, it is possible to directly blow the ionized air sprayed from the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21 onto the upper surface 190, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19, while the substrate 19 is held on the holding table 30, and even if the substrate 19 is switched from being held on the holding table 30 to being held on the second transport unit 52, it is possible to change the direction of the ionized air sprayed from the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21 by the cassette-side air spraying unit 61, so that the ionized air can be blown towards the lower surface 193, which is the exposed surface of the held substrate 19. That is, it is possible to blow the ionized air onto the substrate 19 either while the substrate 19 is held on the holding table 30 or while it is held on the second transport unit 52. Furthermore, since there is no need to provide a motor or the like as a drive source for rotating the cassette side static electricity removal unit 21 to change the spray direction of the ionized air as in the conventional case, the device does not become larger and costs do not increase, and the static electricity removal efficiency of the substrate 19 can also be improved.

[0064] Incidentally, the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21, which is an ionizer, has more parts and is larger in size than, for example, the pipe-shaped cassette-side air injection unit 61, and therefore the installation location is limited, but the pipe-shaped cassette-side air injection unit 61, which has fewer parts and can be smaller in size than the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21, has a higher degree of freedom in the installation location than the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21. Therefore, even if the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21 cannot be placed in a location suitable for static electricity removing the substrates 19 due to the layout inside the substrate processing apparatus 1, the cassette-side air injection unit 61 can be placed in a location where it can assist the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21 in blowing ionized air, thereby making it possible to appropriately blow ionized air to remove static electricity from the substrates 19.

[0065] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention, the first air jetting port 29 is formed toward the upper surface 190, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held on the holding table 30, and the second air jetting port 69 is formed toward the lower surface 193, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held by the second transport unit 52 and carried out from the holding table 30. Therefore, when the substrate 19 is held on the holding table 30, the cassette side static electricity removing unit 21 can spray ionized air directly onto the exposed surface of the substrate 19 with the air jetting from the cassette side air jetting unit 61 stopped. When the air is sprayed onto a certain upper surface 190 and the substrate 19 is switched from being held on the holding table 30 to being held on the second transport unit 52, ionized air is sprayed from the cassette side static electricity removal unit 21 and air is sprayed from the cassette side air spraying unit 61 in a direction intersecting the ionized air, so that the direction of the ionized air is changed by the air so that it heads toward the underside 193, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19, and the ionized air can be sprayed onto the underside 193 of the substrate 19 (in this embodiment, the underside of the dicing tape 198).

[0066] The substrate processing apparatus 1 of the present invention is equipped with a plurality of first air jet ports 29 and a plurality of second air jet ports 69, and the arrangement direction (X-axis direction) of the first air jet ports 29 is parallel to the arrangement direction (X-axis direction) of the second air jet ports 69. This makes it possible to spray the ionized air without any gaps in the arrangement direction from the plurality of first air jet ports 29 to form an air curtain, and to change the direction of travel of the air jetted from the second air jet ports 69 to form an air curtain in the arrangement direction, thereby spraying the ionized air over almost the entire desired exposed surface of the substrate 19 without any omissions.

[0067] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention, for example, the first air jet port 29 is in the form of a single slit, and the second air jet port 69 is in the form of a single slit, and the extension direction (X-axis direction) of the first air jet port 29 and the extension direction (X-axis direction) of the second air jet port 69 are parallel to each other. This makes it possible to spray the ionized air without any gaps in the extension direction from the first air jet port 29 to form an air curtain, and change the direction of travel with the air jetted from the second air jet port 69 to form an air curtain in the extension direction, thereby spraying the ionized air over almost the entire desired exposed surface of the substrate 19 without any omissions. For example, the first air ejection port 29 may be multiple and the second air ejection port 69 may be a single continuous slit, or vice versa.

[0068] The substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be embodied in various different forms within the scope of the technical concept. Furthermore, the processing of the substrate 19 using the substrate processing apparatus 1 is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be modified as appropriate within the scope of the effect of the present invention.

[0069] For example, in the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 5, the first air ejection port 29 may be formed toward the lower surface 193 (in this embodiment, the lower surface of the dicing tape 198), which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 carried out from the holding table 30 by the second transport unit 52, and as shown in FIG. 4, the second air ejection port 69 may be formed toward the upper surface 190, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 held on the holding table 30.

[0070] That is, for example, the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21 is disposed at a position (a position that does not hinder the loading / unloading of the substrate 19 onto / from the holding table 30) outside the outer periphery of the holding table 30 shown in Figures 4 and 5. Also, the cassette-side air injection unit 61 used together with the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21 is disposed at a position outside the outer periphery of the holding table 30 and higher than the cassette-side static electricity eliminating unit 21 in the example shown in Figures 4 and 5.

[0071] For example, the multiple second air jet ports 69 aligned in the X-axis direction of the pipe-shaped cassette-side air jet unit 61 extending in the X-axis direction open in a direction intersecting from diagonally above toward the holding surface 300 of the holding table 30. For example, the multiple cassette-side static electricity removing units 21 are arranged such that the distance from one end to the other is longer in the X-axis direction, which is the alignment direction, than the diameter of the holding table 30. Each first air jet port 29 of the cassette-side static electricity removing unit 21 opens to face diagonally upward on the holding table 30 side.

[0072] The following describes the case where static elimination is performed by blowing ionized air onto the upper surface (front surface) 190, which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 of the work set 199 held by suction on the holding table 30 shown in Figure 4, and onto the upper surface of the dicing tape 198, using multiple cassette-side static elimination units 21 and cassette-side air injection units 61.

[0073] Specifically, air is supplied from an air supply source (not shown) to the cassette side static electricity eliminating units 21 shown in Fig. 4, and each cassette side static electricity eliminating unit 21 injects ionized air 291 from the first air injection port 29. In this embodiment, the ionized air 291 injected from the multiple cassette side static electricity eliminating units 21 arranged in the X-axis direction is injected obliquely upward in the form of an air curtain. In addition, compressed air 699 with a predetermined pressure is injected from the cassette side air injection unit 61 in a direction intersecting the ionized air 291 injected from the cassette side static electricity eliminating units 21, that is, in a direction toward the upper surface of the dicing tape 198, which is the exposed surface of the work set 199 held by the holding table 30, and the upper surface 190 of the substrate 19.

[0074] Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the air 699 sprayed from the cassette-side air spraying unit 61 changes the direction of travel of the ionized air 291 sprayed from the cassette-side static electricity removal unit 21 to a direction toward the upper surface of the dicing tape 198 and the upper surface 190 of the substrate 19, and the substrate 19 and dicing tape 198 are uniformly static-removed by the air curtain-like ionized air 291.

[0075] The following describes the case where static elimination is performed by blowing ionized air onto the underside 193 (in this embodiment, the underside of the dicing tape 198), which is the exposed surface of the substrate 19 of the work set 199 while it is being sucked and held by the holding pad 521 of the second conveying unit 52 shown in Figure 5, using multiple cassette-side static elimination units 21. In this case, air is not sprayed from the cassette side air spray unit 61, and instead, ionized air 291 is sprayed directly from the cassette side static elimination unit 21 shown in FIG. 5 in the form of an air curtain onto the underside of the work set 199 which is attracted and held by the holding pad 521 located diagonally above, and flows along almost the entire underside of the dicing tape 198, which is the exposed surface of the work set 199, thereby uniformly eliminating the static electricity that had been charged to the substrate 19 and the dicing tape 198. [Explanation of symbols]

[0076] 19: Substrate 190: Surface (upper surface) of substrate 191: Planned division line 192: Device 193: Back surface (lower surface) of substrate 198: Dicing tape 197: Annular frame 1: Substrate processing apparatus 10: Apparatus base 100: Housing 101: Input section 13: Cassette stand 14: Cassette 15: Push-pull 16: Centering guide 30: Holding table 300: Holding surface 31: Cover 311: Bellows cover 51: First transport unit 511: Holding pad 515: Suction pad 512: Vertical movement unit 513: Y-axis movement unit 514: Slider 52: Second transport unit 521: Holding pad 522: Vertical movement unit 523: Y-axis movement unit 524: Slide block 525: Suction pad 107: Gate-shaped column 21: Cassette side static elimination unit 29: First air injection port 61: Cassette side air injection unit 69: Second air injection port 22: Cleaning unit side static elimination unit 29: First air injection port 62: Air injection unit on cleaning unit side 69: Second air injection port 12: Cleaning unit 120: Holding table

Claims

1. a holding table for holding the lower surface of the substrate; a transport unit that holds an upper surface of a substrate and transports the substrate onto or off of the holding table; a static elimination unit having a first air ejection port for ejecting ionized air and for blowing the ionized air onto the substrate to relieve the electrostatic charge on the substrate; an air injection unit having a second air injection port for injecting air in a direction intersecting the ionized air injected from the static electricity removing unit and capable of changing the traveling direction of the ionized air, A substrate processing apparatus capable of changing the direction of the ionized air sprayed from the static electricity removal unit by switching between a state in which air is sprayed from the air spray unit and a state in which air is not sprayed when the substrate is held on either the holding table or the transport unit, thereby blowing the ionized air toward the substrate regardless of whether the substrate is held on the holding table or the transport unit.

2. the first air ejection port is formed toward an upper surface of the substrate held on the holding table, 2 . The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the second air ejection port is formed toward a lower surface of the substrate held by the transport unit and unloaded from the holding table.

3. the first air ejection port is formed toward a lower surface of the substrate carried out from the holding table by the transport unit, 2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second air ejection port is formed toward an upper surface of the substrate held on the holding table.

4. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first air ejection ports are provided in a plurality of positions, the second air ejection ports are provided in a plurality of positions, and an arrangement direction of the first air ejection ports is parallel to an arrangement direction of the second air ejection ports.

5. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first air ejection port has a single slit shape, the second air ejection port has a single slit shape, and an extending direction of the first air ejection port and an extending direction of the second air ejection port are parallel to each other.

Images