SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS AND SUBSTRATE PROCESSING METHOD

Abstract

To provide a substrate processing apparatus that can appropriately resume processing for a substrate during processing even when the substrate is taken out in the middle of processing.SOLUTION: A substrate processing apparatus 100 comprises: a substrate processing section 10; a carry-in / out apparatus 20 that performs carrying-in / out of a substrate 1 for the substrate processing section 10; and a control section 30 that causes the substrate processing section 10 to perform processing of the substrate 1 on the basis of a processing recipe 50 including a processing step PS. The control section 30 records a progress status 51 of processing of the processing step PS being executed when a carrying-out interruption condition 52a to interrupt processing which is accompanied with carry-out of the substrate 1 from the substrate processing section 10 is satisfied, causes a substrate 1b during processing to be taken out from the substrate processing section 10 by interrupting the processing, acquires the progress status 51 and a resumption point 66 of processing when the taken-out substrate 1b during processing is again carried in the substrate processing section 10, and controls the substrate processing section 10 to resume processing of the interrupted processing of the processing step PS from the resumption point 66.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method, and more particularly to a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method for performing substrate processing based on a processing recipe. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known a substrate processing apparatus that performs substrate processing based on a processing recipe (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] The above-mentioned Patent Document 1 discloses a substrate processing apparatus that performs reactive ion etching (RIE) processing on a substrate based on a recipe including multiple steps. The above-mentioned Patent Document 1 discloses that when an error is detected during the RIE processing corresponding to the recipe, the RIE processing is interrupted, and an input for recipe correction by an operator is accepted, and according to the correction content, the step immediately before the step in which the error occurred is executed in the corrected recipe, and then the step in which the error occurred is executed for the remaining processing time at the time of the error occurrence. As a result, the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 discloses that the processing is executed again without removing the substrate whose processing has been stopped from the processing chamber. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 4900904 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in substrate processing, an event may occur in which it is necessary to interrupt the processing of the substrate and unload the substrate from the substrate processing section. The above-mentioned Patent Document 1 does not take into consideration the case where the processing according to the recipe is interrupted midway and the substrate is unloaded from the substrate processing section. Therefore, it is desired to be able to appropriately resume the processing of the substrate unloaded during processing even when the substrate is unloaded in the middle of processing.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve the problems described above, and one object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method that are capable of properly resuming processing of a substrate being processed even if the substrate is removed during processing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, a substrate processing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a substrate processing section which performs processing on a substrate, a loading / unloading device which loads and unloads a substrate into and from the substrate processing section, and a control section which controls the substrate processing section to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps, and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing involving the unloading of the substrate from the substrate processing section is satisfied, the control section records the progress of the processing step being executed, and when the control section interrupts the processing and unloads the substrate being processed from the substrate processing section and reloads the unloaded substrate being processed into the substrate processing section, it acquires the progress and the time point at which the processing is resumed, and controls the substrate processing section to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed. The unloading interruption condition includes the occurrence of an abnormality that requires unloading the substrate from the substrate processing unit and checking the status inside the processing chamber of the substrate processing unit. .

[0008] In the substrate processing apparatus according to the first invention, as described above, when the carry-out interruption condition for interrupting processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate from the substrate processing unit is satisfied, the progress of the processing of the processing step being performed is recorded, and the processing is interrupted and the substrate being processed is carried out from the substrate processing unit. Therefore, even when the processing being performed is interrupted and the substrate being processed is carried out from the substrate processing unit, the progress of the interrupted processing can be recorded. Then, when the substrate being processed that has been carried out is reloaded into the substrate processing unit, the progress and the time point at which the processing is resumed are obtained, and the processing of the interrupted processing step is resumed from the time point at which the processing is resumed. Thus, even if the substrate is once carried out of the substrate processing unit, the processing of the substrate being processed can be resumed appropriately from the time point at which the processing step was resumed. As a result, even if the substrate is carried out in the middle of processing, the processing of the substrate being processed can be resumed appropriately.

[0009] A substrate processing apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention includes a substrate processing section which processes substrates, a loading / unloading device which loads / unloads substrates to / from the substrate processing section, and a control section which controls the substrate processing section to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps, and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by unloading the substrate from the substrate processing section is satisfied, the control section records the progress of the processing of the processing step being performed, and when the control section interrupts the processing and unloads the substrate being processed from the substrate processing section and reloads the unloaded substrate being processed into the substrate processing section, the control section acquires the progress of the processing and the time point at which the processing is resumed, and controls the substrate processing section to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed, and the carry-out interruption condition includes the occurrence of an interruption process in the substrate processing section other than the processing of the processing step being performed. This allows the processing of the substrate once unloaded from the substrate processing section due to an interruption process that occurred during processing to be resumed without dividing the processing recipe, etc.

[0010] In the substrate processing apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, Preferably, Other interrupt processes include cleaning processes for the processing chambers of the substrate processing section. If you configure it like this, The processing can be resumed by reloading the substrate being processed into the processing chamber after the cleaning processing without changing the recipe.

[0011] A substrate processing apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention includes a substrate processing section for processing a substrate, a loading / unloading device for loading / unloading a substrate from / to the substrate processing section, and a control section for controlling the substrate processing section to process the substrate based on a process recipe including a processing step, and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the process with the substrate being unloaded from the substrate processing section is satisfied, the control section records the progress of the processing of the processing step being performed, and when the control section interrupts the processing and unloads the substrate being processed from the substrate processing section and reloads the unloaded substrate being processed into the substrate processing section, the control section acquires the progress and the time point of resumption of the processing, controls the substrate processing section to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point of resumption, and controls the substrate processing section to perform a process other than the processing of the interrupted processing step and the substrate processing after the processing of the substrate being processed is interrupted and the substrate being unloaded. Here, when the substrate is unloaded in the middle of processing to perform another process, it is usually necessary to prepare separate process recipes for the first half of the processing before the unloading and the second half of the processing after the other process is performed. In contrast, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the third aspect of the invention, processing of the unloaded substrate in the middle of processing can be resumed while keeping the same single processing recipe.

[0012] A substrate processing apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention includes a substrate processing section for processing a substrate, a loading / unloading device for loading / unloading a substrate from / to the substrate processing section, and a control section for controlling the substrate processing section to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps, and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with the substrate being unloaded from the substrate processing section is satisfied, the control section records the progress of the processing of the processing step being performed, and when the processing is interrupted to unload the substrate being processed from the substrate processing section and the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the control section acquires the progress and the time point at which the processing is resumed, and controls the substrate processing section to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed, and acquires the processing status in the substrate processing section at the time point at which the processing is resumed based on the processing recipe, and controls the substrate processing section to execute a reproduction process for reproducing the processing status at the time point at which the processing of the substrate being processed is resumed before the processing of the substrate being processed is resumed, and when the processing step to be resumed includes a process for changing a parameter value during the processing, the processing status at the time point at which the processing is resumed includes the parameter value at the time point at which the processing is resumed, whereby the processing can be resumed with the parameter value that would have been reached at the time point at which the processing was resumed if the processing was not interrupted.

[0013] A substrate processing apparatus according to a fifth aspect of the present invention includes a substrate processing section for processing a substrate, a loading / unloading device for loading / unloading a substrate from / to the substrate processing section, and a control section for controlling the substrate processing section to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps, and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with the substrate being unloaded from the substrate processing section is satisfied, the control section records the progress of the processing of the processing step being performed, and when the processing is interrupted and the substrate being processed is unloaded from the substrate processing section and the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the control section acquires the progress and the time point of resumption of the processing, controls the substrate processing section to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point of resumption, and after the processing of the substrate being processed is interrupted and the substrate being processed is unloaded, controls the substrate processing section to execute other processing other than the processing of the interrupted processing step, and the other processing includes a cleaning processing for the processing chamber of the substrate processing section. This allows the processing to be resumed by reloading the substrate being processed into the processing chamber after the cleaning processing without changing the recipe.

[0014] A substrate processing apparatus according to a sixth aspect of the present invention includes a substrate processing section for processing a substrate, a loading / unloading device for loading / unloading a substrate to / from the substrate processing section, and a control section for controlling the substrate processing section to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps, and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with the substrate being unloaded from the substrate processing section is satisfied, the control section records the progress of the processing of the processing step being performed, and when the processing is interrupted and the substrate being processed is unloaded from the substrate processing section and the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the control section acquires the progress and the time point of resumption of the processing, and controls the substrate processing section to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point of resumption, and when a temporary interruption condition for interrupting the processing without unloading the substrate is satisfied, the control section interrupts the processing of the substrate processing section without unloading the substrate being processed, and when the processing of the substrate being processed is resumed, the control section controls the substrate processing section to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from a designated time point. Thus, even when a temporary interruption condition for not requiring the substrate to be unloaded is satisfied, if it becomes possible to resume the processing, the processing can be resumed without loading / unloading the substrate.

[0015] A substrate processing method according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, the method comprising the steps of: loading a substrate into a processing chamber; and processing the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps. When an unloading interruption condition is met for interrupting the processing involving unloading the substrate during processing, the method comprises the steps of recording the progress of the processing step being performed and interrupting the processing and unloading the substrate being processed from the processing chamber. When the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, the method comprises the steps of acquiring the progress and the point in time at which the processing is to be resumed, and resuming the processing of the processing step being performed at the time of interruption from the point of resumption. The unloading interruption condition includes the occurrence of an abnormality that necessitates unloading the substrate from the substrate processing unit where processing is performed on the substrate and checking the situation within the processing chamber of the substrate processing unit. In the substrate processing method according to the seventh aspect of the invention, as in the first aspect of the invention, even when the processing being performed is interrupted and the substrate being processed is removed from the processing chamber, the progress of the interrupted processing can be recorded, and even if the substrate being processed has once been removed from the processing chamber, the processing can be resumed from the point of resumption of the interrupted processing step. As a result, even if the substrate is removed in the middle of processing, the processing of the substrate being processed can be appropriately resumed.

[0016] A substrate processing method according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, the method comprising the steps of: loading a substrate into a processing chamber; and processing the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with unloading the substrate during processing is met, the method includes the steps of: recording the progress of the processing step being performed; and interrupting the processing and unloading the substrate being processed from the processing chamber; and when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, the method includes the steps of acquiring the progress and a time point at which the processing is resumed; and restarting the processing step being performed at the time of interruption from the time point at which the processing is resumed, the carry-out interruption condition including the occurrence of an interruption process other than the processing of the processing step being performed in the substrate processing unit performing processing on the substrate. This allows the processing of the substrate once unloaded from the substrate processing unit due to an interruption process that occurred during processing to be resumed without dividing the processing recipe, etc.

[0017] A substrate processing method according to a ninth aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method for carrying out processing on a substrate, comprising the steps of: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; and processing the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with unloading the substrate during processing is met, the steps of recording the progress of the processing step being performed; and interrupting the processing and unloading the substrate being processed from the processing chamber are executed; and when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, the steps of acquiring the progress and the time point at which the processing is resumed; and restarting the processing step being performed at the time of interruption from the time point at which the processing is resumed; and further comprising the steps of performing another processing other than the processing of the interrupted processing step and the substrate processing after interrupting the processing of the substrate being processed and unloading the substrate being processed. Here, when unloading the substrate during processing to perform another processing, it is usually necessary to prepare separate processing recipes for the first half of the processing before unloading and the second half of the processing after the other processing is performed. In contrast, in the substrate processing method according to the ninth aspect of the present invention, processing of the unloaded substrate in the middle of processing can be resumed while keeping the same single processing recipe.

[0018] A substrate processing method according to a tenth aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising the steps of: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; and processing the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with carrying out the substrate during processing is met, the method includes the steps of: recording the progress of the processing step being performed; and interrupting the processing and carrying out the substrate being processed from the processing chamber; and when the substrate being processed that has been carried out is reloaded into the processing chamber, the method includes the steps of: acquiring the progress and a time point at which the processing is resumed; and resuming the processing step being performed at the time of interruption from the time point at which the processing is resumed; and further includes the steps of: acquiring the processing status of the substrate at the time point at which the processing is resumed based on the processing recipe; and carrying out a reproduction process to reproduce the processing status at the time point at which the processing is resumed before resuming the processing on the substrate being processed; and when the processing step to be resumed includes a process of changing a parameter value during processing, the processing status at the time point at which the processing is resumed includes the parameter value at the time point at which the processing is resumed. This allows the processing to be resumed with the parameter value that would have been reached at the time point at which the processing was resumed if the processing was not interrupted.

[0019] A substrate processing method according to an eleventh aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method for carrying out processing on a substrate, comprising the steps of: carrying the substrate into a processing chamber; and processing the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with the removal of the substrate during processing is met, the steps of recording the progress of the processing step being performed; and carrying out the processing by interrupting the processing and removing the substrate being processed from the processing chamber; and when the substrate being processed that has been removed is to be reloaded into the processing chamber, the steps of acquiring the progress and the time point at which the processing is resumed; and, when the substrate being processed that has been removed is to be reloaded into the processing chamber, the steps of resuming the processing of the processing step being performed at the time of interruption from the time point at which the processing is resumed; and, after the processing of the substrate being processed is interrupted and the substrate being processed is removed, the steps of carrying out other processing other than the processing of the interrupted processing step, including a cleaning processing for the processing chamber. This allows the processing to be resumed by reloading the substrate being processed into the processing chamber after the cleaning processing without changing the recipe.

[0020] A substrate processing method according to a twelfth aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising the steps of: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; and processing the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; and when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing with unloading the substrate is met during processing, the steps of recording the progress of the processing step being performed; and the steps of interrupting the processing and unloading the substrate being processed from the processing chamber; and when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, the steps of acquiring the progress and the time point at which the processing is resumed; and when a temporary interruption condition for interrupting the processing without unloading the substrate is met, the steps of interrupting the processing of the substrate without unloading the substrate being processed; and when the processing of the substrate being processed is resumed, the steps of resuming the processing of the interrupted processing step from a designated time point are further included. Thus, even when a temporary interruption condition for not requiring unloading the substrate is met, if the processing can be resumed, the processing can be resumed without loading or unloading the substrate. Effect of the Invention

[0022] According to the present invention, as described above, even if the substrate is unloaded during processing, the processing of the substrate can be appropriately resumed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0023] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration of a control unit. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a processing recipe. [Figure 4] 4 is a schematic diagram showing a flow of interruption of processing in a substrate processing section, and unloading and reloading of a substrate. FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining an interrupt process. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the progress of processing when the processing is interrupted. [Figure 7] 13 is a diagram for explaining an instruction to resume processing of a substrate being processed. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining selection of a restart point. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining reproduction of the processing status at the time of restarting. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing a flow of substrate processing. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the flow of an unloading interruption process. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a flow chart for resuming processing on a substrate being processed. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the flow of a temporary interruption process. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific example of a processing recipe. [Figure 15]1 is a timing chart showing the change over time of each parameter, ie, an etching gas flow rate (a), a protective film forming gas flow rate (b), and an exhaust gas flow rate (c), during a processing step. [Figure 16] 11 is a timing chart showing a specific example in which a parameter changes over time. [Figure 17] 11 is a timing chart for explaining a reproduction process when a parameter changes over time. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0025] 1 to 13, the configuration of a substrate processing apparatus 100 will be described. The substrate processing apparatus 100 is an apparatus that performs processing on a substrate 1 in accordance with a processing recipe 50 (see FIG. 3) including a processing step PS (see FIG. 3). The substrate 1 is a semiconductor substrate.

[0026] 1, the substrate processing apparatus 100 includes a substrate processing unit 10, a load / unload device 20, and a control unit 30. A load lock chamber 40 and a plurality of substrate processing units 10 are radially connected to a vacuum transfer chamber 21 in which the load / unload device 20 is installed, the vacuum transfer chamber 21 being at the center. Two load lock chambers 40 and four substrate processing units 10 are provided. A cassette 41 for holding a substrate 1 is installed in the load lock chamber 40.

[0027] The carry-in / out device 20 is composed of a vacuum transfer robot that grips and transfers the substrate 1. The carry-in / out device 20 transfers the substrate 1 into and out of the substrate processing unit 10. The carry-in / out device 20 can take out the substrate 1 from a cassette 41 installed in the load lock chamber 40 and transfer the substrate 1 into the processing chamber 11 of any of the substrate processing units 10, and can remove the substrate 1 from the processing chamber 11 of the substrate processing unit 10 and transfer it to another location.

[0028] Each of the substrate processing units 10 performs processing on the substrate 1. The processing includes etching, film formation, removal of a film on the substrate surface, etc. The substrate processing unit 10 includes a processing chamber 11 for performing processing on the substrate 1, and performs processing on the substrate 1 in the processing chamber 11.

[0029] The control unit 30 controls the overall operation of the substrate processing apparatus 100 including the substrate processing unit 10 and the load / unload device 20. The control unit 30 controls the load / unload device 20 to carry out a transport operation of the substrate 1.

[0030] 2, the control unit 30 controls the substrate processing unit 10 to process the substrate 1 based on a processing recipe 50 including a plurality of processing steps PS (see FIG. 3). The control unit 30 includes a main control unit 31, a processing control unit 32, and a transport control unit 33. The main control unit 31 is a computer including a processor and a storage unit 31a. The main control unit 31 is connected to an input unit 34 that accepts operational inputs.

[0031] The storage unit 31a stores the program executed by the main control unit 31, data of a processing recipe 50, and data on a progress status 51 of processing in each substrate processing unit 10. The storage unit 31a stores a carry-out interruption condition 52a and a temporary interruption condition 52b, which will be described later. The data on the progress status 51 may be stored in a storage unit (not shown) of the processing control unit 32.

[0032] The process control unit 32 is a controller that controls the operation of the substrate processing unit 10. One process control unit 32 is provided for each substrate processing unit 10. The process control unit 32 controls the substrate processing unit 10 so as to perform processing on the substrate 1 according to the processing recipe 50 transmitted from the main control unit 31. The transport control unit 33 is a controller that controls the operation of the load / unload device 20. The transport control unit 33 controls the load / unload device 20 based on information transmitted from the main control unit 31.

[0033] 3, the process recipe 50 specifies processing for the substrate 1 in units of process steps PS. The process recipe 50 includes one or more process steps PS. Setting information that specifies process conditions (parameters) for each process step PS is registered in the process recipe 50.

[0034] During the execution of a processing step PS by the substrate processing unit 10 according to the processing recipe 50, an event may occur that interrupts the processing being executed. For example, an event occurs in which the processing is interrupted at time Ta of "Step 3" shown in Fig. 3. In this embodiment, when a preset interruption condition is satisfied, the control unit 30 (main control unit 31 or process control unit 32) interrupts the processing being executed by the substrate processing unit 10.

[0035] In this specification, the interruption condition is classified into two types according to whether or not the substrate is unloaded at the time of interruption. That is, as shown in Fig. 2, one of the interruption conditions is an unloading interruption condition 52a in which the processing is interrupted with the unloading of the substrate 1 from the substrate processing unit 10. The other interruption condition is a temporary interruption condition 52b in which the processing is interrupted without the unloading of the substrate 1.

[0036] 4, in this specification, a substrate 1 for which a series of processes according to a process recipe 50 has not yet been started is referred to as an unprocessed substrate 1a. A substrate 1 for which processing has been interrupted during the execution of any of the processing steps PS is referred to as an in-process substrate 1b. In this embodiment, by reloading the in-process substrate 1b into the substrate processing unit 10, processing can be resumed without changing the process recipe 50.

[0037] In this embodiment, the unloading interruption condition 52a includes the occurrence of a predetermined unloading event that is set in advance. The unloading event set in the unloading interruption condition 52a is not particularly limited, but for example, an abnormality that requires unloading the substrate 1 and checking the situation inside the processing chamber 11 is an example. The unloading event is not limited to the occurrence of an abnormality, and may be an event other than an abnormality, such as an elapsed time exceeding a threshold value. Examples of the source of the unloading event (the trigger of the unloading event) include the measurement time of a timer (for example, the high frequency application time), the detection values ​​of various sensors (for example, the coolant flow rate, the electrostatic chuck current value, the pressure control valve opening, etc.), etc.

[0038] The carry-out interruption condition 52a also includes the occurrence of an interruption process other than the process of the processing step PS being executed. As shown in FIG. 5, when an interruption process occurs, the control unit 30 interrupts the process for the substrate 1b being processed, causes the substrate 1b to be carried out, and then controls the substrate processing unit 10 to execute a process other than the process of the interrupted processing step PS. The other process includes a cleaning process for the processing chamber 11 of the substrate processing unit 10. For example, the interruption of the cleaning process is determined based on the emission intensity detected by OES (optical emission spectroscopy) during the process. The interruption may be determined based on the high frequency application time and the interval setting value of the cleaning process. The cleaning process may be performed by carrying a dummy substrate into the processing chamber 11, or may be performed without a substrate.

[0039] 2 is an interruption event other than the unloading event set in the unloading interruption condition 52a, and includes the occurrence of a predetermined interruption event set in advance. The interruption event set in the temporary interruption condition 52b is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, a temporary abnormality in a measurement parameter monitored in the process chamber 11.

[0040] <Control operation based on carry-out interruption conditions> (When interrupted) When the ejection interruption condition 52a is satisfied, the control unit 30 is configured to record the processing progress status 51 (see Figure 2) of the processing step PS being executed, and to interrupt the processing and eject the substrate 1b being processed from the substrate processing unit 10.

[0041] 6, the progress status 51 includes each piece of information: substrate identification information 61, recipe name 62, interrupted step 63, and interruption time point 64. The substrate identification information 61 is individual identification information (ID) of the substrate 1. The recipe name 62 is a name (or number) that identifies the processing recipe 50 that was executed on the substrate 1. The interrupted step 63 is information (step number) that identifies the interrupted processing step PS. The interruption time point 64 is information that identifies the time when the interrupted processing step PS was interrupted (the elapsed time from the start of the processing step).

[0042] 2, the progress status 51 is generated by the process control unit 32 that controls the substrate processing unit 10 that satisfies the unloading interruption condition 52a. The process control unit 32 outputs the progress status 51 to the main control unit 31, which records the progress status 51 in the storage unit 31a. The main control unit 31 then causes the load / unload device 20 to unload the substrate 1b being processed from the processing chamber 11 via the transport control unit 33. Even if the data of the progress status 51 for the substrate 1b being processed is cleared in the process control unit 32, when the substrate 1b being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber 11, the processing of the substrate 1b is resumed based on the progress status 51 recorded in the storage unit 31a.

[0043] (At the time of re-loading) When the control unit 30 re-loads the unloaded in-process substrate 1b into the substrate processing unit 10, it acquires the progress status 51 and the processing resumption point 66 (see FIG. 7), and controls the substrate processing unit 10 to resume the interrupted processing step PS from the resumption point 66.

[0044] Specifically, when the currently processed substrate 1b that has been removed is reloaded into the substrate processing unit 10, the main control unit 31 outputs a resume instruction 53 (see Figure 7) based on the progress status 51 to the processing control unit 32 of the substrate processing unit 10, so as to resume processing of the currently processed substrate 1b from the resume point 66.

[0045] 7, the restart instruction 53 includes each piece of information: substrate identification information 61, recipe name 62, restart step 65, and restart time point 66. The restart step 65 is information (step number) that identifies the processing step PS at which processing of the currently processed substrate 1b is to be restarted. The restart time point 66 is information that identifies the time at which processing is to be restarted in the restart step 65 (the elapsed time from the start of the processing step).

[0046] In this embodiment, the process restart time 66 is not limited to the process interruption time 64. The control unit 30 (main control unit 31) selects, as the restart time 66, either the process interruption time 64 or a designated time 67 designated in a designated processing step PS, as shown in FIG.

[0047] When the control unit 30 determines that the restart time 66 is the interruption time 64, the control unit 30 is configured to acquire the interruption time 64 based on the progress status 51 recorded at the time of interruption. In this case, the restart step 65 and the restart time 66 of the restart instruction 53 match the interruption step 63 and the interruption time 64 of the progress status 51 recorded in the memory unit 31a.

[0048] When the control unit 30 sets the restart time 66 as the designated time 67, it acquires the designated time 67 via the input unit 34. When the restart time 66 is set as the designated time 67, any processing step PS included in the processing recipe 50 can be designated as the restart step 65, and any time point in the designated restart step 65 can be designated as the restart time 66. The designated time 67 may be designated by the elapsed time from the start of the processing step PS, or may be designated by an offset value relative to the interruption time 64, such as "resume Z seconds before the interruption time 64."

[0049] <Processing upon resumption> The control unit 30 acquires the processing status within the substrate processing unit 10 at the restart time 66 based on the processing recipe 50, and controls the substrate processing unit 10 to execute a reproduction process to reproduce the processing status at the restart time 66 before resuming processing on the substrate 1b being processed.

[0050] The reproduction process is a process for adjusting parameter values ​​set as processing conditions so as to approach the values ​​at the restart time 66 of the restart step 65. If the processing step PS to be restarted includes a process for changing parameter values ​​during processing, the processing status at the restart time 66 includes the parameter values ​​at the restart time 66. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, when the restart time 66 is given as the elapsed time Tb, the control unit 30 calculates the parameter value Vr at the elapsed time Tb from the initial value, the final value, and the total processing time Tc. Then, before resuming processing on the currently processed substrate 1b, the control unit 30 executes the reproduction process so that the parameter becomes the parameter value Vr.

[0051] Control based on temporary suspension conditions When the temporary suspension condition 52b is satisfied, the control unit 30 suspends the processing of the substrate processing unit 10 without removing the substrate 1b being processed. When resuming the processing of the substrate 1b being processed while it is still housed in the processing chamber 11, the control unit 30 controls the substrate processing unit 10 to resume the processing of the suspended processing step PS from a designated point in time. The designated point in time may be the point in time of suspension or a point in time other than the point in time of suspension.

[0052] (Operation of the substrate processing apparatus) 10 to 13, the operation of the substrate processing apparatus 100 will be described. The substrate processing apparatus 100 performs the substrate processing method of the present embodiment.

[0053] <Substrate Processing> First, a basic flow of substrate processing will be described with reference to FIG. 10. In step S1, the loading / unloading device 20 loads the substrate 1 (unprocessed substrate 1a) to be processed from the cassette 41 into the processing chamber 11 of the substrate processing unit 10. The loaded unprocessed substrate 1a is individually identified by the control unit 30 based on the substrate identification information 61 (see FIG. 6). In step S2, the substrate processing unit 10 performs processing on the unprocessed substrate 1a loaded into the processing chamber 11 based on the processing recipe 50. When all processing steps PS included in the processing recipe 50 are completed, the substrate processing is completed. In step S3, the loading / unloading device 20 loads the processed substrate 1 out of the substrate processing unit 10 and transports it to the cassette 41. The substrate identification information 61 corresponding to the processed substrate 1 is set to "processed".

[0054] In step S4, the control unit 30 judges whether or not there is an unprocessed substrate 1a to be processed. If there is an unprocessed substrate 1a, the control unit 30 returns the process to step S1 with the unprocessed substrate 1a as the next substrate to be processed, and starts substrate processing. If there is no unprocessed substrate 1a, the control unit 30 ends the substrate processing.

[0055] <Discharge interruption processing> Next, the flow of the export interruption process will be described with reference to Fig. 11. The export interruption process is executed when the export interruption condition 52a is satisfied during the repetition of steps S1 to S4 in Fig. 10.

[0056] In step S11, the control unit 30 judges whether the unloading interruption condition 52a is satisfied. If the unloading interruption condition 52a is not satisfied, step S11 is repeated. If the unloading interruption condition 52a is satisfied in any of the substrate processing units 10, the control unit 30 advances the process to step S12 and subsequent steps.

[0057] In step S12, the control unit 30 suspends the substrate processing in the substrate processing unit 10 that satisfies the unloading suspension condition 52a. In step S13, the control unit 30 records the processing progress status 51 of the processing step PS being executed in the memory unit 31a. In step S14, the carry-in / out device 20 unloads the in-process substrate 1b from the processing chamber 11 of the substrate processing unit 10 where the substrate processing has been suspended, and transports it to a cassette 41. The destination of the in-process substrate 1b may be on the hand of a vacuum transport robot, a buffer stage, a cooling stage, or the like.

[0058] In step S15, the control unit 30 determines whether or not there is another process for the substrate processing unit 10 that has unloaded the currently processed substrate 1b, based on the contents of the unloading interruption condition 52a. If the unloading interruption condition 52a is satisfied due to the occurrence of an interruption process, the control unit 30 determines that there is another process. In that case, in step S16, the control unit 30 causes the substrate processing unit 10, after unloading the currently processed substrate 1b, to execute the other process (interruption process).

[0059] On the other hand, if there is no interrupt process, the control unit 30 determines that there is no other process. In step S17, the control unit 30 determines whether or not to resume the processing operation of the substrate processing unit 10 after the substrate is unloaded. For example, if an instruction to resume processing is received via the input unit 34, the control unit 30 determines to resume the processing operation. If an instruction to resume processing is not received, the control unit 30 repeats the determination in step S17. Although not shown in FIG. 11, if the unloading interruption condition 52a is satisfied due to the occurrence of an abnormality and processing cannot be resumed, the substrate processing itself is stopped (aborted).

[0060] After step S16 is executed, or if it is determined in step S17 that the processing operation is to be resumed, the unloading interruption process is ended, and the substrate processing in the substrate processing unit 10 is resumed.

[0061] <Control when processing of substrates being processed is resumed> 12, a process flow for resuming substrate processing on the currently processed substrate 1b by reloading the currently processed substrate 1b into the substrate processing section 10 will be described. The substrate processing on the currently processed substrate 1b may be performed immediately after the substrate processing in the substrate processing section 10 is resumed after the unloading is interrupted, or may be performed after the substrate processing on another unprocessed substrate 1a.

[0062] In step S21, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the substrate 1 to be processed is a substrate 1b being processed, based on the substrate identification information 61. If the substrate 1 to be processed is not a substrate 1b being processed (it is an unprocessed substrate 1a), the normal substrate processing shown in Fig. 10 is executed. If the substrate 1 to be processed is a substrate 1b being processed, the control unit 30 acquires a processing progress status 51 for the substrate 1b being processed from the storage unit 31a in step S22.

[0063] In step S23, the control unit 30 determines whether or not a restart time 66 for the processing of the currently processed substrate 1b has been specified. If the control unit 30 has received a specification of the restart time 66, then in step S24, the control unit 30 sets the specified time 67 as the restart time 66. If no time has been specified or if the control unit 30 has received an input selecting the interruption time 64, then in step S25, the control unit 30 sets the interruption time 64 as the restart time 66.

[0064] In step S 26 , the control unit 30 acquires the processing status in the substrate processing unit 10 at the set restart time point 66 based on the processing recipe 50 .

[0065] In step S27, the control unit 30 causes the substrate processing unit 10 to resume processing of the substrate 1b being processed. First, the load / unload device 20 loads (reloads) the substrate 1b being processed into the processing chamber 11 of the substrate processing unit 10. The main control unit 31 outputs a resume instruction 53 and a processing status at the resume time 66 to the process control unit 32 of the substrate processing unit 10. The process control unit 32 causes the substrate processing unit 10 to execute a reproduction process corresponding to the resume time 66. Then, upon completion of the reproduction process, the process control unit 32 controls the substrate processing unit 10 to resume from the resume time 66 in the resume step 65.

[0066] After the processing is resumed, control is returned to step S2 in Fig. 10. That is, after the resumed processing step PS, the processing steps PS are executed in order until all remaining processing steps PS included in the processing recipe 50 are completed. As a result, as shown in Fig. 4, the processing of the substrate 1b being processed is completed with unloading and reloading in between.

[0067] <Temporary Suspension Processing> Next, the flow of the temporary interruption process will be described with reference to FIG.

[0068] In step S31, the control unit 30 determines whether the temporary suspension condition 52b is satisfied. If the temporary suspension condition 52b is not satisfied, step S31 is repeated. If the temporary suspension condition 52b is satisfied, the control unit 30 advances the process to step S32.

[0069] In step S32, the control unit 30 suspends the substrate processing in the substrate processing unit 10 that satisfies the temporary suspension condition 52b. In step S33, the control unit 30 determines whether or not to resume the processing operation. For example, if an instruction to resume processing is not accepted, the determination in step S33 is repeated.

[0070] When resuming the processing operation, in step S34, the control unit 30 determines whether or not a time point for resuming the temporarily suspended processing has been designated. If a time point for resuming has been designated, in step S35, the control unit 30 sets the designated time point as the time point for resuming. If no time point has been designated or if the control unit 30 has received an input for selecting the time point for interruption, the control unit 30 advances the process to step S36, where the time point for temporarily suspending the processing is set as the time point for resuming the processing.

[0071] In step S37 and after, the control unit 30 causes the substrate processing unit 10 to resume the temporarily suspended processing from the restart point. If the restart point is different from the interruption point, a reproduction process may be performed to reproduce the processing status at the restart point.

[0072] (Specific examples) A specific example of the operation of the substrate processing apparatus 100 will now be described.

[0073] Fig. 14 shows an example of a processing recipe 50. The processing recipe 50 shown in Fig. 14 performs deep excavation processing to form a high aspect ratio recess (hole, trench or through hole) in the substrate 1, which is a silicon substrate, by repeating two processing steps PS, namely, a dry etching process and a film formation (formation of a protective film). The substrate processing unit 10 is an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) device. Note that the processing step PS may be defined as a multi-layer structure including multiple steps (child steps), such as an etching process and a film formation, in one processing step (parent step).

[0074] 15 is a timing chart of the processing steps PS defined in the processing recipe 50 of FIG. 14, showing an example of a multi-phase process (MPP) in which parameter values ​​change during the processing steps PS. The horizontal axis indicates the elapsed time, and the vertical axis indicates the parameter value. The MPP is a processing technique that makes it possible to increase the etching rate, increase the mask selectivity, and obtain a highly accurate etching shape by making the gas replacement in the processing chamber 11 more efficient by changing the parameters (gas flow rates).

[0075] In the processing steps PS of Step 1 and Step 3, the processing time T etch During this time, the etching process is performed. In the etching process, the substrate processing unit 10 introduces an etching gas (SF 6 ) and a predetermined high-frequency power are supplied to turn the etching gas into plasma. F radicals contained in the plasma react chemically with silicon atoms, and ions contained in the plasma move toward and collide with the substrate 1 due to the potential difference, resulting in the formation of recesses in the substrate 1.

[0076] In the processing steps PS of Step 2 and Step 4, the processing time T depoDuring the film formation process, the substrate processing unit 10 supplies a protective film forming gas (C 4 F 8 ) and a predetermined high-frequency power are supplied to turn the protective film forming gas into plasma. Polymers are generated from the radicals contained in the plasma and are deposited isotropically on the side walls and bottom surface of the recess in the substrate 1. The deposited polymers form a protective film that does not react with the radicals generated from the etching gas.

[0077] As shown in FIG. 15(c), the inside of the processing chamber 11 is evacuated between the etching process and the film forming process, and the etching gas is replaced with a protective film forming gas.

[0078] When an etching process is performed after the protective film is formed, due to the directionality of the ions, the protective film is removed by ion irradiation at the bottom of the recess where ion irradiation is heavy, while the protective film remains on the sidewall of the recess where ion irradiation is lighter. Therefore, the sidewall where the protective film remains remains protected from etching, and etching by radicals and ion irradiation proceeds at the bottom of the recess where the protective film has been removed. As a result, etching proceeds only in the depth direction of the recess, and a recess with a high aspect ratio is formed in the substrate 1. A process step PS of removing the protective film at the bottom of the recess and a process step PS of etching after the protective film is removed may be provided separately.

[0079] Here, it is assumed that at time Td in the processing step PS of etching (Step 3), the unloading interruption condition 52a is satisfied in the substrate processing unit 10. In this case, as the progress status 51, the substrate identification information 61, the recipe name 62, the information of the interrupted step 63 (etching processing), and the information of the time Td which is the interruption point 64 (the elapsed time Pa from the start of the processing step PS) are recorded in the storage unit 31a.

[0080] When the process is resumed from the interruption point 64, the control unit 30 determines the parameter value at the restart point 66. In the example of FIG. 15, the etching gas flow rate V 1 , protective film forming gas flow rate V2 , exhaust gas flow rate V 3 The gas control parameters also include the pressure value inside the process chamber 11 and the like.

[0081] Other parameter values ​​include power control parameters such as the frequency of the high frequency power supply connected to the coil for generating plasma, the supplied power, the frequency of the high frequency power supply connected to the base on which the substrate 1 is placed, and the bias power supplied to the base, as well as temperature control parameters such as the temperature of the base.

[0082] In the cases of FIGS. 14 and 15, the processing of the in-process substrate 1b after reloading is the processing from time Td onward in the third processing step PS where the interruption occurred, and the processing in the fourth processing step PS.

[0083] Next, an example of reproduction processing will be described with reference to Fig. 16 and Fig. 17. Fig. 16 shows an example of a change in a parameter value of a certain parameter X in an N-th processing step PS in a processing recipe 50. The horizontal axis indicates elapsed time, and the vertical axis indicates the parameter value. Fig. 16 shows an example of a processing technique called parameter ramping, which changes a parameter value over time as processing progresses. The parameter is basically switched between two values, a high value Hv (High) and a low value Lv (Low), and the high value Hv and the low value Lv have a predetermined rate of change (slope) with respect to elapsed time. The change in parameter X is preset in the processing recipe 50.

[0084] Assume that processing is resumed at time Te of the Nth processing step PS as a resumption point 66. In Fig. 16, the change in parameters before time Te is shown by a solid line, and the change after time Te is shown by a dotted line, indicating that the processing was interrupted at time Te.

[0085] 16 set in the process recipe 50 and the time Te which is the restart time 66, the control unit 30 obtains the parameter value at the restart time 66. In the example of FIG. 16, the parameter value Vr corresponding to the high value Hv at the time Te is obtained.

[0086] When resuming the process, the control unit 30 sets a preparation period PP for executing the reproduction process immediately before the restart time point 66 (time Te) as shown in Fig. 17. The end point of the preparation period PP becomes the restart time point 66. The reproduction process is performed during the preparation period PP.

[0087] Meanwhile, the control unit 30 controls various parameters so that the substrate processing does not proceed during the preparation period PP. For example, when performing etching or film formation processing with the above-mentioned inductively coupled plasma device, control of parameters related to plasma generation is stopped during the preparation period PP. The control unit 30 starts application of high frequency power at the end of the preparation period PP (when the restart time 66 is reached). As a result, a reproducible processing situation is prepared in advance during the preparation period PP from time Tf to the restart time 66, and the processing is restarted from the restart time 66 (time Te).

[0088] The length of the preparation period PP is set to a predetermined time that allows various parameters to be stabilized. The length setting value of the preparation period PP can be set and changed by receiving an input via the input unit 34.

[0089] (Effects of this embodiment) In this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

[0090] In the substrate processing apparatus 100 of this embodiment, as described above, when the carry-out interruption condition 52a for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate 1 from the substrate processing unit 10 is satisfied, the progress status 51 of the processing of the processing step PS being executed is recorded, and the processing is interrupted to carry out the substrate 1b being processed from the substrate processing unit 10. Therefore, even when the processing being executed is interrupted to carry out the substrate 1b being processed from the substrate processing unit 10, the progress status 51 of the interrupted processing can be recorded. Then, when the substrate 1b being processed that has been carried out is reloaded into the substrate processing unit 10, the progress status 51 and the restart time 66 of the processing are acquired, and the processing of the interrupted processing step PS is restarted from the restart time 66. Thus, even if the substrate 1 is once carried out outside the substrate processing unit 10, the processing of the substrate 1 being processed can be restarted from the restart time 66 of the interrupted processing step PS. As a result, even if the substrate 1 is carried out in the middle of the processing, the processing of the substrate 1 being processed can be restarted appropriately.

[0091] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, the control unit 30 selects either the interruption time point 64 of the process or the designated time point 67 as the restart time point 66. This makes it possible to select whether to restart the processing of the substrate 1b in process from the interruption time point 64 or from the designated time point 67 designated by the operator, depending on the interruption situation, etc.

[0092] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, the control unit 30 is configured to acquire the interruption time 64 based on the progress status 51 recorded at the time of interruption when the restart time 66 is set as the interruption time 64. With this configuration, the processing can be automatically resumed from the interruption time 64 without the operator having to specify the interruption time 64.

[0093] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, when the unloading interruption condition 52a is satisfied, the process control unit 32 outputs the progress status 51 to the main control unit 31, and when the unloaded in-process substrate 1b is reloaded, the main control unit 31 outputs a resume instruction 53 based on the progress status 51 to the process control unit 32 to resume the processing of the in-process substrate 1b from the interruption point 64. This eliminates the need for the process control unit 32 to hold the progress status 51 after the in-process substrate 1b is unloaded, so that another process can be performed in the substrate processing unit 10 after the in-process substrate 1b is unloaded and before it is reloaded to resume processing.

[0094] In this embodiment, as described above, when the resumption time point 66 is set as the designated time point 67, the control unit 30 is configured to acquire the designated time point 67 via the input unit 34. This allows the operator to resume the processing from any time point depending on the interrupted situation.

[0095] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, the control unit 30 acquires the processing status in the substrate processing unit 10 at the restart time 66 based on the processing recipe 50, and executes a reproduction process before resuming the processing on the currently processed substrate 1b. This makes it possible to reproduce the status that would have been achieved at the restart time 66 if the processing had not been interrupted based on the processing recipe 50, and resume the processing.

[0096] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, if the resumed processing step PS includes a process that changes a parameter value during processing, the processing status at the resume time 66 includes the parameter value at the resume time 66. This makes it possible to resume processing with the parameter value that would have been reached at the resume time 66 if the processing had not been interrupted.

[0097] In this embodiment, as described above, the unloading interruption condition 52a includes the occurrence of a predetermined unloading event that is set in advance. This allows the processing of the substrate 1b being processed when the unloading event occurs to be resumed without resetting the processing recipe 50, etc., even if an event occurs that requires the unloading of the substrate 1.

[0098] In this embodiment, as described above, the unloading interruption condition 52a includes the occurrence of an interrupt process other than the processing of the processing step PS being executed. This allows the processing of the substrate 1 once unloaded from the substrate processing unit 10 due to the interrupt process to be resumed without dividing the processing recipe 50, etc.

[0099] In this embodiment, as described above, after the processing of the substrate 1b being processed is interrupted and the substrate is unloaded, the control unit 30 controls the substrate processing unit 10 to execute processing other than the processing of the interrupted processing step PS. This makes it possible to resume processing of the substrate 1b being unloaded using the same processing recipe 50 without preparing separate processing recipes 50 before the substrate is unloaded and after the substrate is reloaded after the other processing has been executed.

[0100] In this embodiment, as described above, the other processes include a cleaning process for the process chamber 11 of the substrate processing unit 10. With this configuration, the process can be resumed by reloading the substrate 1b being processed into the process chamber 11 after the cleaning process without changing the recipe.

[0101] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, when the temporary suspension condition 52b for suspending the processing without unloading the substrate 1 is satisfied, the control unit 30 suspends the processing of the substrate processing unit 10 without unloading the substrate 1b being processed, and when the processing of the substrate 1b being processed is to be resumed, the control unit 30 controls the substrate processing unit 10 to resume the processing of the suspended processing step PS from a designated point in time. As a result, even when the temporary suspension condition 52b for not requiring the unloading of the substrate 1 is satisfied, if it becomes possible to resume the processing, the processing can be resumed as is without loading or unloading the substrate 1.

[0102] Furthermore, in the substrate processing method of this embodiment, even when the processing being performed is interrupted to unload the substrate 1b being processed from the processing chamber 11, the progress status 51 of the interrupted processing can be recorded, and the processing can be resumed from the resumption point 66 of the interrupted processing step PS even for the substrate 1b being processed that has once been unloaded from the processing chamber 11. As a result, even if the substrate 1 is unloaded in the middle of processing, the processing of the substrate 1 being processed can be appropriately resumed.

[0103] [Variations] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims, not by the description of the embodiments above, and further includes all modifications (variations) within the meaning and scope of the claims.

[0104] For example, in the above embodiment, the substrate processing apparatus 100 includes a plurality of (four) substrate processing units 10, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The number of substrate processing units 10 may be any number. Similarly, the substrate processing apparatus 100 may include a plurality of loading / unloading units 20.

[0105] In the above embodiment, the main control unit 31, the process control unit 32, and the transport control unit 33 are provided separately, but the present invention is not limited to this. These individual control units may be integrated into a single control unit (single hardware).

[0106] In the above embodiment, etching, film formation, and film removal are shown as examples of processing performed by the substrate processing unit 10, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The processing performed by the substrate processing unit 10 is not particularly limited as long as it is a process performed in the processing chamber 11.

[0107] In the above embodiment, the substrate 1 is a silicon substrate (semiconductor substrate), but the present invention is not limited to this. The substrate 1 may be a semiconductor substrate other than a silicon substrate, or a non-semiconductor substrate such as a glass substrate.

[0108] In the above embodiment, the restart time 66 of the processing of the substrate 1b being processed is selected from the interruption time 64 and the designated time 67, but the present invention is not limited to this. Only the interruption time 64 may be the restart time 66. Only the designated time 67 may be the restart time 66.

[0109] In the above embodiment, an example is shown in which a reproduction process is executed to reproduce the processing state at the restart time 66 before restarting the processing of the currently processed substrate 1b, but the present invention is not limited to this. Processing may be restarted from the restart time 66 without executing the reproduction process. [Explanation of symbols]

[0110] 1: substrate, 1b: substrate being processed, 10: substrate processing section, 11: processing chamber, 20: loading / unloading device, 30: control section, 31: main control section, 32: processing control section, 34: input section, 50: processing recipe, 51: progress status, 52a: unloading interruption condition, 52b: temporary interruption condition, 53: restart instruction, 64: interruption time, 66: restart time, 67: designated time, 100: substrate processing apparatus, PS: processing step

Claims

1. a substrate processing section for performing processing on a substrate; a loading / unloading device that loads / unloads the substrate to / from the substrate processing section; a control unit that controls the substrate processing unit to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps; The control unit is when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate from the substrate processing unit is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing of the processing step being executed, and interrupting the processing to carry out the substrate being processed from the substrate processing unit; when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the progress status and the time point at which the processing is resumed are acquired, and the substrate processing section is controlled so as to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed; The unloading interruption condition includes occurrence of an abnormality that requires unloading the substrate from the substrate processing section and checking a condition within a processing chamber of the substrate processing section.

2. A substrate processing section that performs processing on a substrate; a loading / unloading device that loads / unloads the substrate to / from the substrate processing section; a control unit that controls the substrate processing unit to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps; The control unit is when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate from the substrate processing unit is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing of the processing step being executed, and interrupting the processing to carry out the substrate being processed from the substrate processing unit; when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the progress status and the time point at which the processing is resumed are acquired, and the substrate processing section is controlled so as to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed; The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the unloading interruption condition includes occurrence of an interrupt process other than the process of the processing step being executed in the substrate processing section.

3. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 2, wherein the other interrupt processing includes a cleaning process for a processing chamber of the substrate processing unit.

4. A substrate processing section that performs processing on a substrate; a loading / unloading device that loads / unloads the substrate to / from the substrate processing section; a control unit that controls the substrate processing unit to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps; The control unit is when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate from the substrate processing unit is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing of the processing step being executed, and interrupting the processing to carry out the substrate being processed from the substrate processing unit; when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the progress status and the time point at which the processing is resumed are acquired, and the substrate processing section is controlled so as to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed; A substrate processing apparatus that, after interrupting processing of the substrate in progress and removing the substrate in progress, controls the substrate processing unit to perform processing other than the processing of the interrupted processing step and other than substrate processing.

5. A substrate processing section that performs processing on a substrate; a loading / unloading device that loads / unloads the substrate to / from the substrate processing section; a control unit that controls the substrate processing unit to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps; The control unit is when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate from the substrate processing unit is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing of the processing step being executed, and interrupting the processing to carry out the substrate being processed from the substrate processing unit; when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the progress status and the time point at which the processing is resumed are acquired, and the substrate processing section is controlled so as to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed; acquiring a processing status in the substrate processing unit at the time of the restart based on the processing recipe; controlling the substrate processing unit to execute a reproduction process for reproducing a processing state at the time of resuming processing of the substrate being processed before resuming processing of the substrate being processed; When the processing step to be resumed includes a process in which a parameter value is changed during processing, the processing status at the time of the restart includes the parameter value at the time of the restart.

6. A substrate processing section that performs processing on a substrate; a loading / unloading device that loads / unloads the substrate to / from the substrate processing section; a control unit that controls the substrate processing unit to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps; The control unit is when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate from the substrate processing unit is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing of the processing step being executed, and interrupting the processing to carry out the substrate being processed from the substrate processing unit; when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the progress status and the time point at which the processing is resumed are acquired, and the substrate processing section is controlled so as to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed; After interrupting the processing of the substrate being processed and removing the substrate being processed, control is performed to cause the substrate processing unit to execute a process other than the processing of the interrupted processing step; The other process includes a cleaning process for a process chamber of the substrate processing section.

7. A substrate processing section that performs processing on a substrate; a loading / unloading device that loads / unloads the substrate to / from the substrate processing section; a control unit that controls the substrate processing unit to process the substrate based on a processing recipe including processing steps; The control unit is when a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate from the substrate processing unit is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing of the processing step being executed, and interrupting the processing to carry out the substrate being processed from the substrate processing unit; when the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the substrate processing section, the progress status and the time point at which the processing is resumed are acquired, and the substrate processing section is controlled so as to resume the processing of the interrupted processing step from the time point at which the processing is resumed; When a temporary interruption condition for interrupting the processing without unloading the substrate is satisfied, interrupting the processing of the substrate processing unit without unloading the substrate being processed; the substrate processing apparatus controlling the substrate processing unit so that, when the processing of the currently processed substrate is resumed, the interrupted processing step is resumed from a designated point in time.

8. A substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising the steps of: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; performing processing of the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; When a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate during the processing is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing step being executed; and interrupting the processing and removing the substrate being processed from the processing chamber. When the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, obtaining the progress status and a time point for resuming processing; restarting the processing of the processing step being executed at the time of interruption from the restart point; The substrate processing method, wherein the unloading interruption condition includes the occurrence of an abnormality that requires unloading the substrate from a substrate processing unit performing processing on the substrate and checking the condition within the processing chamber of the substrate processing unit.

9. A substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; performing processing of the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; When a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate during the processing is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing step being executed; and interrupting the processing and removing the substrate being processed from the processing chamber. When the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, obtaining the progress status and a time point for resuming processing; restarting the processing of the processing step being executed at the time of interruption from the restart point; The substrate processing method, wherein the unloading interruption condition includes occurrence of an interrupt process other than the process of the processing step being executed in a substrate processing section that processes the substrate.

10. A substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; performing processing of the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; When a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate during the processing is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing step being executed; and interrupting the processing and removing the substrate being processed from the processing chamber. When the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, obtaining the progress status and a time point for resuming processing; restarting the processing of the processing step being executed at the time of interruption from the restart point; The substrate processing method further comprises a step of, after interrupting the processing of the substrate in progress and removing the substrate in progress, performing a process other than the interrupted processing step and other than the substrate processing.

11. A substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; performing processing of the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; When a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate during the processing is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing step being executed; and interrupting the processing and removing the substrate being processed from the processing chamber. When the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, obtaining the progress status and a time point for resuming processing; restarting the processing of the processing step being executed at the time of interruption from the restart point; acquiring a processing status of the substrate processing at the time of restarting the processing based on the processing recipe; and performing a reproduction process before resuming the processing of the substrate in the process, to reproduce the processing status at the time of the resumption, A substrate processing method, wherein when the processing step to be resumed includes a process in which a parameter value is changed during processing, the processing status at the time of the restart includes the parameter value at the time of the restart.

12. A substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; performing processing of the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; When a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate during the processing is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing step being executed; and interrupting the processing and removing the substrate being processed from the processing chamber. When the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, obtaining the progress status and a time point for resuming processing; restarting the processing of the processing step being executed at the time of interruption from the restart point; and after interrupting the processing of the substrate in process and removing the substrate in process, performing a processing step other than the processing step that was interrupted. The other process includes a cleaning process for the process chamber.

13. A substrate processing method for performing processing on a substrate, comprising: loading the substrate into a processing chamber; performing processing of the substrate in the processing chamber based on a processing recipe including processing steps; When a carry-out interruption condition for interrupting the processing accompanied by carrying out the substrate during the processing is satisfied, recording the progress of the processing step being executed; and interrupting the processing and removing the substrate being processed from the processing chamber. When the unloaded substrate being processed is reloaded into the processing chamber, obtaining the progress status and a time point for resuming processing; restarting the processing of the processing step being executed at the time of interruption from the restart point; interrupting the processing of the substrate without unloading the substrate when a temporary interruption condition for interrupting the processing without unloading the substrate is satisfied; The substrate processing method further comprises the step of: when resuming processing of the substrate being processed, resuming the interrupted processing step from a designated point in time.

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