Substrate processing apparatus

Abstract

To provide a substrate processing apparatus enabling formation, on a substrate, a coated film improved in uniformity of film thickness.SOLUTION: A coating device 100 includes a stage device 130 and a nozzle device 150. A substrate W is held on a plate member 131 in the stage device 130. The nozzle device 150 has a slit-like ejection port, and is arranged above the stage device 130. The nozzle device 150 moves, above the stage device 130 while ejecting coating liquid from an ejection port of the nozzle device 150, in such a manner that the coating liquid is supplied to the whole upper surface of the substrate W. In the stage device 130 or the nozzle device 150, a temperature adjustment for the coating liquid is performed based on a position to which the coating liquid is supplied, of the substrate W.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for forming a coating film on the upper surface of a substrate.

Background Art

[0002] Substrate processing apparatuses are used to perform various processes on substrates such as semiconductor substrates, substrates for flat panel displays (FPDs) such as liquid crystal display devices or organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display devices, optical disk substrates, magnetic disk substrates, magneto-optical disk substrates, photomask substrates, ceramic substrates, or solar cell substrates.

[0003] As an example of a substrate processing apparatus, Patent Document 1 describes a rotary substrate processing apparatus for forming a resist film on a substrate. In this substrate processing apparatus, a resist liquid is supplied to the central portion of a substrate that is held horizontally and rotated. As the supplied resist liquid spreads toward the peripheral portion of the substrate, a film of the resist liquid is formed over the entire upper surface of the substrate. A predetermined process such as a drying process is performed on the substrate on which the film of the resist liquid is formed. Thereby, a resist film is formed on the upper surface of the substrate.

[0004] As described above, the method of forming a coating film (resist film) on the upper surface of a substrate by supplying a coating liquid (resist liquid) to the upper surface of a rotating substrate is called spin coating. It is known that coating unevenness such as striations is likely to occur in the resist film formed by spin coating. Striations are patterns generated due to differences in film thickness when a coating film is formed on a substrate, and are formed radially from the center to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] As a method for forming a coating film, in addition to the above spin coating, there is a method of forming a coating film on a substrate by scanning a coating liquid nozzle having a slit-shaped discharge port on the substrate. This method of forming a coating film is called slit coating. When forming a coating film by slit coating, striations do not occur in the formed coating film. However, the variation in the thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate by slit coating is larger than the variation in the thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate by spin coating.

[0007] An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of forming a coating film with improved film thickness uniformity on a substrate.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] (1) The substrate processing apparatus according to the first invention includes a first plate member on which a substrate having at least a partially circular outer peripheral portion is placed, a first substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the first plate member in a predetermined fixed posture, a liquid supply portion provided at a position above the first substrate holding portion and having a slit-shaped discharge port for discharging a coating liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate from the discharge port, a relative movement portion that relatively moves the first plate member and the liquid supply portion so that a film of the coating liquid is formed on the entire upper surface of the substrate held by the first substrate holding portion by the coating liquid discharged from the liquid supply portion, and a temperature adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. When the temperature adjustment unit adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply unit, it makes the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the peripheral portion of the substrate different from the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central portion of the substrate. provided.

[0009] In the substrate processing apparatus, with the substrate held on the first plate member, the first plate member and the liquid supply unit move relative to each other. At this time, the coating liquid is discharged from the slit-shaped discharge port of the liquid supply unit onto the upper surface of the substrate, thereby forming a film of the coating liquid over the entire upper surface of the substrate. Thus, according to the method of forming a coating film by scanning the liquid supply unit having a slit-shaped discharge port over the substrate, the occurrence of coating unevenness can be reduced.

[0010] Further, in the above-described substrate processing apparatus, temperature adjustment is performed on the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply unit and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. In other words, temperature adjustment is performed on at least one of the coating liquid before being supplied to the substrate and the coating liquid after being supplied to the substrate. Thereby, it becomes possible to make the thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate uniform.

[0011] (2) The substrate processing apparatus according to the second invention includes a first plate member on which a substrate having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is placed, a first substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the first plate member in a predetermined fixed posture, a liquid supply portion that is provided at a position above the first substrate holding portion and has a slit-shaped discharge port, and discharges a coating liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate from the discharge port, and a relative movement portion that relatively moves the first plate member and the liquid supply portion so that a film of the coating liquid is formed on the entire upper surface of the substrate held by the first substrate holding portion by the coating liquid discharged from the liquid supply portion, and a temperature adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. The liquid supply unit includes a coating liquid flow path that guides the coating liquid supplied from the coating liquid supply system to the discharge port, and the temperature adjustment unit includes a coating liquid adjustment unit that adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid guided to a plurality of portions of the discharge port through the coating liquid flow path so that the flow rate distribution of the coating liquid discharged from a plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply unit becomes a predetermined flow rate distribution. um.

[0012] The viscosity of the coating liquid is lower as the temperature of the coating liquid is higher, and higher as the temperature of the coating liquid is lower. The amount of the coating liquid flowing through the coating liquid flow path per unit time, that is, the flow rate of the coating liquid, is larger as the viscosity of the coating liquid is lower, and smaller as the viscosity of the coating liquid is higher.

[0013] Therefore, according to the above configuration, by adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid flowing through a plurality of portions of the coating liquid flow path, a predetermined amount of the coating liquid is supplied from a plurality of portions of the discharge port to a plurality of portions of the substrate. Thereby, by appropriately determining the predetermined flow rate distribution for the coating liquid discharged from a plurality of portions of the discharge port, the uniformity of the film thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate can be improved.

[0014] (3) The coating liquid adjustment unit may adjust the temperatures of the coating liquid guided to the plurality of portions of the discharge port such that the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is lower than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central portion of the substrate.

[0015] According to the above configuration, since the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is lowered, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes higher. Thereby, the amount of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate can be made smaller than the amount of the coating liquid supplied to other portions. As a result, an increase in the thickness of the coating film formed on at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate compared to other portions is suppressed.

[0016] (4) The liquid supply unit is arranged such that the discharge port extends in the first direction, and the relative movement unit relatively moves the liquid supply unit and the first substrate holding unit in a second direction intersecting the first direction so that the discharge port of the liquid supply unit passes through the space on the substrate while the substrate is held in a fixed posture by the first substrate holding unit. On the substrate placed on the first plate member, an annular region having a certain width including the outer peripheral end portion and a central region inside the annular region are defined. The coating liquid adjustment unit adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply unit that overlaps the annular region of the substrate placed on the first plate member in a plan view to a predetermined first temperature, and the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply unit that does not overlap the annular region of the substrate placed on the first plate member in a plan view may be adjusted to a second temperature higher than the first temperature.

[0017] According to the above configuration, the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region of the substrate is lower than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central region of the substrate. Therefore, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region of the substrate is higher than the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to the central region of the substrate. Thereby, the amount of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region of the substrate can be made smaller than the amount of the coating liquid supplied to the central region of the substrate. As a result, an increase in the thickness of the coating film formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate compared to other portions is suppressed.

[0018] (5) The substrate processing apparatus according to the third invention includes a first plate member on which a substrate having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is placed, a first substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the first plate member in a predetermined fixed posture, a liquid supply portion that is provided at a position above the first substrate holding portion and has a slit-shaped discharge port, and discharges a coating liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate from the discharge port, and a relative movement portion that relatively moves the first plate member and the liquid supply portion so that a film of the coating liquid is formed on the entire upper surface of the substrate held by the first substrate holding portion by the coating liquid discharged from the liquid supply portion, and a temperature adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. The first plate member has a plurality of regions, and the temperature adjustment unit includes a first plate adjustment unit that adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the first plate member respectively. um.

[0019] According to the above configuration, by appropriately adjusting the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the first plate member, it is possible to suppress an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located in the annular region of the substrate. Thereby, the uniformity of the film thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate can be improved.

[0020] (6) The plurality of regions of the first plate member include a plurality of first regions that overlap at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member, and a plurality of second regions that overlap the central portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member. The dimensions of each of the plurality of first regions in the radial direction of the substrate may be smaller than the dimensions of each of the plurality of second regions in the radial direction of the substrate.

[0021] In this case, the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the outer peripheral portion of the substrate can be adjusted with higher accuracy compared to the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the central portion of the substrate.

[0022] (7) The first plate adjustment unit may adjust the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the first plate member such that the temperature of the portion overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member is higher than the temperature of the portion overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member.

[0023] According to the above configuration, since the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes high, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes low. Thereby, it is possible to suppress an increase in the thickness of the coating film formed on at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate as compared with other portions due to an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate.

[0024] (8) The substrate processing apparatus includes a coating device that applies a coating liquid to a substrate and a liquid film drying device that dries a film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate by the coating device. The coating device includes a first substrate holding portion, a liquid supply portion, and a relative movement portion. The liquid film drying device has a second plate member on which the substrate on which the film of the coating liquid is formed by the coating device is placed, and a second substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the second plate member in a predetermined fixed posture, a chamber having an internal space that houses the second substrate holding portion, and a liquid film drying portion that dries the film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate held by the second substrate holding portion by reducing the pressure in the space inside the chamber while the substrate is held by the second substrate holding portion. The second plate member has a plurality of regions, and the temperature adjustment unit may include a second plate adjustment unit that adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member respectively.

[0025] In this case, in the liquid film drying device, with the substrate held on the second plate member in the chamber, the internal space of the chamber is depressurized, whereby the film of the coating liquid on the substrate is dried. At this time, the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member are adjusted respectively. Therefore, by appropriately adjusting the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member, it is possible to suppress an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located in the annular region of the substrate. Thereby, it is possible to improve the uniformity of the film thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate.

[0026] (9) The plurality of regions of the second plate member include a plurality of third regions overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member, and a plurality of fourth regions overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member. The dimensions of the plurality of third regions in the radial direction of the substrate may be smaller than the dimensions of the plurality of fourth regions in the radial direction of the substrate.

[0027] In this case, the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the outer peripheral portion of the substrate can be adjusted with higher accuracy compared to the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the central portion of the substrate.

[0028] (10) The second plate adjustment unit may adjust the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member such that the temperature of the portion overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member is higher than the temperature of the portion overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member.

[0029] According to the above configuration, since the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes high, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes low. Thereby, it is possible to suppress an increase in the thickness of the coating film formed on at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate as compared with other portions due to an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate.

Advantages of the Invention

[0033] According to the present invention, it becomes possible to form a coating film with improved film thickness uniformity on a substrate.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0034]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0035] Hereinafter, a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the substrate refers to a substrate for a flat panel display (FPD) such as a liquid crystal display device or an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display device, a semiconductor substrate, a substrate for an optical disk, a substrate for a magnetic disk, a substrate for a magneto-optical disk, a substrate for a photomask, a ceramic substrate, or a substrate for a solar cell. Further, the substrate described below has a circular shape in plan view except for the notch forming portion.

[0036] [1] Basic configuration of the substrate processing apparatus FIG. 1 is a basic configuration diagram of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a coating apparatus 100, a liquid film drying apparatus 200, a post-processing apparatus 300, a transfer apparatus 400, and a control apparatus 500.

[0037] The coating apparatus 100 supplies a predetermined coating liquid to the upper surface of the unprocessed substrate W and forms a liquid film of the coating liquid. The coating liquid according to the present embodiment is a coating liquid for a resist film (resist liquid) or a coating liquid for an antireflection film (antireflection liquid). Details of the configuration and operation of the coating apparatus 100 will be described later.

[0038] The substrate W on which the liquid film of the coating liquid is formed by the coating apparatus 100 is carried into the liquid film drying apparatus 200. The liquid film drying apparatus 200 performs a drying process on the liquid film formed on the substrate W. Thereby, a coating film FF is formed on the substrate W. Details of the liquid film drying apparatus 200 will be described later.

[0039] The substrate W on which the coating film FF is formed by the liquid film drying apparatus 200 is carried into the post-processing apparatus 300. The post-processing apparatus 300 performs a predetermined process on the substrate W on which the coating film FF is formed. For example, the post-processing apparatus 300 in FIG. 1 includes a spin chuck 310, a cup 320, an edge rinse nozzle 331, and a plurality (two in this example) of back rinse nozzles 332.

[0040] In this case, the spin chuck 310 holds the substrate W in a horizontal posture and rotates it around the axis in the vertical direction by adsorbing the central portion of the lower surface of the substrate W on which the coating film FF is formed.

[0041] The edge rinse nozzle 331 discharges a remover that dissolves the coating film FF onto the peripheral edge portion of the upper surface of the substrate W rotated by the spin chuck 310. As a result, a part of the coating film FF formed from the peripheral edge portion to the outer peripheral end portion of the upper surface of the substrate W is removed. The plurality of back rinse nozzles 332 discharge the remover onto the peripheral edge portion of the lower surface of the substrate W rotated by the spin chuck 310. As a result, deposits of the coating liquid adhering to the peripheral edge portion of the lower surface of the substrate W are removed.

[0042] The cup 320 is provided so as to surround the spin chuck 310. The cup 320 receives the liquid scattered from the substrate W when the remover is supplied from the edge rinse nozzle 331 or the back rinse nozzle 332 toward the substrate W. The received liquid is recovered or discarded.

[0043] In the post-treatment apparatus 300, a drying process of the substrate W using an organic solvent (for example, thinner) may be performed. Alternatively, the post-treatment apparatus 300 is not limited to the above example, and may be configured to be able to perform a heat treatment on the substrate W on which the coating film FF is formed, or may be configured to be able to perform an exposure process on a part or all of the substrate W on which the coating film FF is formed.

[0044] The transfer device 400 transfers the substrate W between the coating device 100, the liquid film drying device 200, and the post-treatment device 300. The control device 500 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a memory, or a microcomputer, and gives various command signals related to substrate processing to the coating device 100, the liquid film drying device 200, the post-treatment device 300, and the transfer device 400.

[0045] [2] Configuration and Basic Operation of Coating Device 100 FIG. 2 is a schematic external perspective view of the coating apparatus 100 of FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the coating apparatus 100 mainly includes a control unit 110, two stage supports 120, a stage device 130, two nozzle supports 140, and a nozzle device 150, and is housed in a housing (not shown). In FIG. 2 and predetermined figures described later, arrows indicating the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction orthogonal to each other are attached to clarify the positional relationship. The X direction and the Y direction are orthogonal to each other in the horizontal plane, and the Z direction corresponds to the vertical direction.

[0046] The control unit 110 controls the operations of the respective parts of the coating apparatus 100 in response to a command signal or the like from the control device 500 of FIG. 1. Details of the control unit 110 will be described later. Each of the two stage supports 120 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape extending in one direction and is provided on the bottom surface of a housing (not shown) so as to extend along the X direction. On the upper surface of each stage support 120, a guide rail 121 extending along the longitudinal direction of the stage support 120 is provided. Also, the two stage supports 120 are arranged side by side in the Y direction.

[0047] The stage device 130 is located between the two stage supports 120 in the Y direction and is supported by the two stage supports 120. The stage device 130 includes a plate member 131, a plate adjustment unit 132, a plurality of support pins 133, a pin lifting drive unit 134, and a suction drive unit 135.

[0048] The plate member 131 is formed of a stone material having a rectangular flat plate shape and constitutes the upper surface portion of the stage device 130. A substrate W to be processed is placed on a part of the plate member 131. In the portion of the plate member 131 on which the substrate W is placed (hereinafter referred to as the substrate placement portion), a plurality of intake holes and a plurality of pin insertion holes (not shown) are formed so as to penetrate the plate member 131 in the Z direction.

[0049] In the stage device 130, a plate adjustment unit 132, a plurality of support pins 133, a pin lifting and lowering drive unit 134, and a suction drive unit 135 are provided below the plate member 131. The plate adjustment unit 132 adjusts the temperature of the substrate mounting portion of the plate member 131. Details of the plate adjustment unit 132 will be described later.

[0050] The plurality of support pins 133 are supported by the pin lifting and lowering drive unit 134 so as to extend in the vertical direction and overlap with a plurality of pin insertion holes provided in the substrate mounting portion in a plan view. The pin lifting and lowering drive unit 134 moves the plurality of support pins 133 in the vertical direction based on the control of the control unit 110. Thereby, the upper ends of the plurality of support pins 133 move between a pin rising position above the plate member 131 and a pin lowering position below the plate member 131.

[0051] Thereby, when the substrate W is carried into the coating device 100, the unprocessed substrate W held by the transfer device 400 in FIG. 1 is transferred onto the plurality of support pins 133 with the upper ends of the plurality of support pins 133 in the pin rising position. Also, when the substrate W is carried out of the coating device 100, the processed substrate W supported on the plurality of support pins 133 is received by the transfer device 400 in FIG. 1 with the upper ends of the plurality of support pins 133 in the pin rising position. Further, when the coating process of the substrate W is performed in the coating device 100, the coating liquid is supplied to the substrate W placed on the substrate mounting portion of the plate member 131 with the upper ends of the plurality of support pins 133 in the pin lowering position.

[0052] The plurality of intake holes formed in the plate member 131 are connected to the exhaust facilities of the factory or the like through the suction driving unit 135 and an intake system (not shown). Based on the control of the control unit 110, the suction driving unit 135 switches the intake path formed between the plurality of intake holes and the intake system between a communicating state and a blocking state. With such a configuration, in a state where the substrate W is placed on the substrate placement portion of the plate member 131, the suction driving unit 135 can adsorb and hold the substrate W on the substrate placement portion by making the intake path in a communicating state. Also, in a state where the substrate W is adsorbed and held on the substrate placement portion, the suction driving unit 135 can release the substrate W from the plate member 131 by making the intake path in a blocking state.

[0053] On the upper surfaces of the two stage supports 120, two nozzle supports 140 are respectively provided. The two nozzle supports 140 are arranged side by side in the Y direction. Each of the two nozzle supports 140 is movable in the X direction along the guide rail 121 of the stage support 120 on which the nozzle support 140 is provided.

[0054] The nozzle device 150 is located between the two nozzle supports 140 in the Y direction and is supported by the two nozzle supports 140. At least one of the two nozzle supports 140 incorporates an X - direction driving unit 141, a Z - direction driving unit 142, and a liquid supply unit 143.

[0055] The nozzle device 150 includes a nozzle block 151 and a nozzle adjustment unit 152. The nozzle block 151 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape extending in one direction, and has a slit-shaped discharge port 14 (FIG. 4) extending in the one direction on the lower surface. Further, the nozzle block 151 is connected to a coating liquid supply system (not shown) via a liquid supply unit 143 provided on the nozzle support 140. Inside the nozzle block 151, a coating liquid flow path 13 (FIG. 4) leading to the discharge port 14 is formed. The liquid supply unit 143 of the nozzle support 140 includes, for example, a pump and a valve, and supplies the coating liquid supplied from the coating liquid supply system to the nozzle block 151 further based on the control of the control unit 110. Thereby, in the nozzle block 151, the coating liquid supplied from the liquid supply unit 143 is discharged from the discharge port 14 through the coating liquid flow path 13. Alternatively, the liquid supply unit 143 stops the supply of the coating liquid supplied from the coating liquid supply system to the nozzle block 151 based on the control of the control unit 110.

[0056] In this example, the nozzle block 151 is supported by two nozzle supports 140 such that the discharge port 14 of the nozzle block 151 extends in the Y direction. The nozzle adjustment unit 152 is configured to be able to adjust the temperature of the coating liquid flowing through the coating liquid flow path 13 in the nozzle block 151. Details of the nozzle device 150 will be described later.

[0057] The X-direction driving unit 141 includes an actuator such as a motor, for example, and moves the nozzle support 140 in the X direction on the guide rail 121 of the stage support 120 based on the control of the control unit 110. The Z-direction driving unit 142 includes an actuator such as a motor, for example, and moves the nozzle device 150 supported by the nozzle support 140 in the Z direction based on the control of the control unit 110. Thereby, in the coating device 100, as shown by the white arrows AX and AY in FIG. 2, it is possible to move the nozzle device 150 in the X direction and the Z direction on the substrate W placed on the stage device 130.

[0058] During the coating process of the substrate W, with the substrate W adsorbed and held on the plate member 131, the nozzle device 150 moves in the X direction in the space above the substrate W. At this time, the position (height) of the nozzle device 150 in the Z direction is adjusted such that, for example, the coating liquid in the nozzle block 151 is drawn into the gap between the nozzle block 151 and the substrate W from the discharge port 14 by capillary action, and the discharge port 14 of the nozzle device 150 is brought sufficiently close to the upper surface of the substrate W. In this way, the method of supplying the coating liquid onto the substrate W by utilizing capillary action from the discharge port of the nozzle is called capillary coating.

[0059] [3] Variation in film thickness distribution by slit coating A coating method in which a coating liquid nozzle having a slit-shaped discharge port (so-called slit nozzle) is scanned on the substrate W is called slit coating. The above-described capillary coating is an example of slit coating. Here, as described in the problems to be solved by the invention, the coating film FF formed on the substrate W by slit coating is likely to have variations in its film thickness.

[0060] FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the tendency of film thickness variation generated by normal slit coating. As shown in the upper part of FIG. 3, it is assumed that the coating liquid is discharged from the slit nozzle SN onto the substrate W while scanning the slit nozzle SN at a constant speed, for example, with respect to the upper surface of the substrate W. Here, in the example of FIG. 3, the direction in which the slit nozzle SN moves with respect to the substrate W is called the scan direction D1, and the direction orthogonal to the scan direction D1 is called the scan orthogonal direction D2.

[0061] To the right of the middle section of FIG. 3, for the coating film FF formed on the upper surface of the substrate W by the method of the upper section of FIG. 3, the film thickness distribution on the straight line L1 parallel to the scanning direction D1 and passing through the center of the substrate W is shown. In the graph on the right of the middle section of FIG. 3, the vertical axis indicates the film thickness of the coating film FF, and the horizontal axis indicates the positions p10, p11, p12 of the substrate W on the straight line L1 in the schematic diagram on the left of the middle section of FIG. 3. The position p10 is located at the center of the substrate W. The position p11 is located at one end of the substrate W in the scanning direction D1. The position p12 is located at the other end of the substrate W in the scanning direction D1. Further, the positions p11, p10, p12 are arranged in this order in the scanning direction D1.

[0062] According to the graph on the right of the middle section of FIG. 3, the film thickness on the substrate W is locally large at the positions p11 and p12. On the other hand, between the position p11 and the position p12, the film thickness on the substrate W gradually decreases from the upstream to the downstream in the scanning direction D1. In this case, for example, by appropriately changing the moving speed of the slit nozzle SN according to the position on the substrate W, it is possible to equalize the film thickness on the straight line L1 of the coating film FF.

[0063] To the right of the lower section of FIG. 3, for the coating film FF formed on the upper surface of the substrate W by the method of the upper section of FIG. 3, the film thickness distribution on the straight line L2 parallel to the direction perpendicular to the scan D2 and passing through the center of the substrate W is shown. In the graph on the right of the lower section of FIG. 3, the vertical axis indicates the film thickness of the coating film FF, and the horizontal axis indicates the positions p10, p21, p22 of the substrate W on the straight line L2 in the schematic diagram on the left of the lower section of FIG. 3. The position p10 is located at the center of the substrate W. The position p21 is located at one end of the substrate W in the direction perpendicular to the scan D2. The position p22 is located at the other end of the substrate W in the direction perpendicular to the scan D2. Further, the positions p21, p10, p22 are arranged in this order in the direction perpendicular to the scan D2.

[0064] According to the graph in the lower right part of FIG. 3, the film thickness on the substrate W locally increases at the positions p21 and p22 at the outer peripheral edge of the substrate W, and is relatively uniform in the portion excluding the outer peripheral edge of the substrate W. The variation in the film thickness on the straight line L2 is different from the variation in the film thickness on the straight line L1 parallel to the scan direction D1, and cannot be reduced even by adjusting the moving speed of the slit nozzle SN.

[0065] As described above, the thickness of the coating film FF formed on the outer peripheral edge of the substrate W and in the vicinity thereof tends to be larger than the thickness of the coating film FF formed in the central portion of the substrate W. This phenomenon is considered to be caused by the fact that the liquid film of the coating liquid formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W is cooled faster than the liquid film of the coating liquid formed in the central portion of the substrate W, resulting in a difference in viscosity between the two coating liquids.

[0066] In consideration of these points, in the coating apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the stage apparatus 130 and the nozzle apparatus 150 are provided with devices for equalizing the film thickness of the liquid film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate W. Hereinafter, the details of the stage apparatus 130 and the nozzle apparatus 150 will be described.

[0067] [4] Nozzle apparatus 150 FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the nozzle apparatus 150 of FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is an external perspective view and a longitudinal sectional view of the nozzle apparatus 150 of FIG. 2. In FIG. 5, an external perspective view of the nozzle apparatus 150 is shown in the upper part. Further, in the lower part, a longitudinal sectional view of the nozzle apparatus 150 cut along the virtual plane VS shown by the two-dot chain line in the upper part is shown.

[0068] As described above, the nozzle block 151 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape extending in one direction (the Y direction in this example), and is formed of a material having high thermal conductivity such as metal. Inside the nozzle block 151, a liquid introduction path 11, a coating liquid buffer portion 12, and a coating liquid flow path 13 are formed. The coating liquid buffer portion 12 is located slightly above the central portion of the nozzle block 151 and is formed to be able to store a certain amount of coating liquid.

[0069] A liquid introduction passage 11 is formed so as to extend in the Z direction from the upper surface of the nozzle block 151 to the coating liquid buffer section 12. One end of a pipe 153 for supplying the coating liquid to the upper end opening of the liquid introduction passage 11 is connected to the upper surface of the nozzle block 151. The other end of the pipe 153 is connected to the liquid supply section 143 in FIG. 2.

[0070] As described above, a slit-shaped discharge port 14 is formed on the lower surface of the nozzle block 151. A coating liquid flow passage 13 is formed so as to extend in the Z direction from the discharge port 14 to the coating liquid buffer section 12.

[0071] Here, of the plurality of side surfaces of the nozzle block 151, one surface orthogonal to the X direction in the state provided in the coating apparatus 100 is referred to as the nozzle front surface 151s. Further, in the nozzle block 151, as shown in the lower stage of FIG. 5, it is assumed that the discharge port 14 and the coating liquid flow passage 13 are located in the vicinity of the nozzle front surface 151s when viewed in the Y direction. The nozzle adjustment section 152 is attached to a portion of the nozzle front surface 151s that overlaps the coating liquid flow passage 13 when viewed in the X direction.

[0072] As shown in FIG. 4, the nozzle adjustment section 152 includes a plurality (10 in this example) of thermoelectric elements e1 to e10, a plurality (10 in this example) of temperature sensors ts, and a cooling plate 21. Each of the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 is composed of, for example, a mica heater or a Peltier element. Further, the thermoelectric elements e1, e2, e3, e4, e5, e6, e7, e8, e9, e10 are attached to the nozzle front surface 151s of the nozzle block 151 so as to overlap the coating liquid flow passage 13 when viewed in the X direction and be arranged in this order in the Y direction as indicated by the white arrow A1 in FIG. 4.

[0073] A drive circuit 152c (FIG. 17) for heating the thermoelectric element is connected to each of the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10. When the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 are each heated by the drive circuit 152c (FIG. 17), the coating liquid present in the coating liquid flow passage 13 of the nozzle block 151 is heated. The plurality of temperature sensors ts are respectively attached to the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10.

[0074] The cooling plate 21 is a long plate member formed of a material with excellent thermal conductivity, and is attached to the nozzle front surface 151s of the nozzle block 151 as indicated by the white arrow A2 in FIG. 4. As a result, on the nozzle front surface 151s, a plurality of thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 and the temperature sensor ts are covered by the cooling plate 21 as shown in FIG. 5.

[0075] As shown in FIG. 4, a cooling water flow path 22 is formed inside the cooling plate 21. At the ends of the cooling plate 21, an inlet and an outlet of the cooling water flow path 22 are formed. A cooling water introduction pipe 23 is connected to the inlet portion of the cooling water flow path 22 in the cooling plate 21. A cooling water discharge pipe 24 is connected to the outlet portion of the cooling water flow path 22 in the cooling plate 21.

[0076] Cooling water is supplied to the cooling water flow path 22 of the cooling plate 21 from a cooling facility through the introduction pipe 23. The cooling water flowing through the cooling water flow path 22 is sent to a cooling facility provided outside the cooling plate 21 through the discharge pipe 24. Thereby, when the plurality of thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 generate heat, an excessive temperature rise of the plurality of thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 can be suppressed.

[0077] In the above-described nozzle device 150, the drive circuit 152c (FIG. 17) is controlled based on the temperature detected by the corresponding temperature sensor ts so that the plurality of thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 generate heat at a predetermined temperature. Thereby, the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the plurality of portions of the discharge port 14 can be adjusted to a desired temperature respectively.

[0078] In the coating device 100 of FIG. 2, a nozzle block having the following configuration may be provided instead of the nozzle block 151 of FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a modified example of the nozzle block 151. The differences between the nozzle block 151 of FIG. 6 and the nozzle block 151 of FIG. 4 will be described.

[0079] As shown in the upper part of FIG. 6, in the nozzle block 151 of this example, a plurality of heat transfer parts 15 are provided in the coating liquid flow path 13. In FIG. 6, in order to facilitate the understanding of the shapes of the plurality of heat transfer parts 15, hatching is applied to the parts of the plurality of heat transfer parts 15. The heat transfer part 15 is formed of a material having high thermal conductivity such as metal, like the nozzle block 151, and is provided so as to extend in the Z direction and be arranged in the Y direction inside the coating liquid flow path 13. Note that the heat transfer part 15 may be formed of the same material as the nozzle block 151. In this case, the nozzle block 151 and the heat transfer part 15 may be constituted by a single member.

[0080] In the nozzle block 151 including the heat transfer part 15, as shown in the lower part of FIG. 6, the coating liquid flows so as to pass between the plurality of heat transfer parts 15 inside the coating liquid flow path 13. In this case, the heat generated by the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 in FIG. 5 is efficiently transmitted to the coating liquid flowing through the coating liquid flow path 13 through the nozzle block 151 and the plurality of heat transfer parts 15.

[0081] Here, the viscosity of the coating liquid is lower as the temperature of the coating liquid is higher, and higher as the temperature of the coating liquid is lower. Further, when the coating liquid flows in a flow path having a constant cross-sectional area, if the viscosity of the coating liquid is high, the flow rate of the coating liquid flowing in the flow path decreases. On the other hand, if the viscosity of the coating liquid is low, the flow rate of the coating liquid flowing in the flow path increases. Therefore, as described above, by adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the plurality of parts of the discharge port 14, the flow rate of the coating liquid discharged from the plurality of parts of the discharge port 14 can be controlled.

[0082] Therefore, in this embodiment, the temperature of the coating liquid is adjusted in the nozzle device 150 so that the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the outer peripheral part of the substrate W is lower than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to other parts. In this case, the amount of the coating liquid supplied to the outer peripheral part of the substrate W becomes less than the amount of the coating liquid supplied to other parts (such as the central part) of the substrate W. As a result, even when slit coating is employed, it is possible to prevent the film thickness of the coating liquid from becoming larger at the outer peripheral part of the substrate W than in other regions.

[0083] Figs. 7 to 12 are diagrams showing specific examples of the coating process of the substrate W using the nozzle device 150 of Fig. 4. In Figs. 7 to 12, the operations of the nozzle device 150 with respect to the substrate W during the coating process are shown in plan views in chronological order. Further, in the substrate W shown in Figs. 7 to 12, a region with a certain width including the outer peripheral end portion of the substrate W is defined as an annular region RR, and the region inside the annular region RR is defined as a central region IR. Further, in the Y direction, the plurality of thermoelectric elements e1, e2, e3, e4, e5, e6, e7, e8, e9, e10 of the nozzle adjustment unit 152 are arranged at equal intervals so as to cover the range from one end portion to the other end portion of the substrate W.

[0084] In this example, when the nozzle device 150 scans the substrate W, the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the discharge port 14 that overlaps the annular region RR of the substrate W in plan view is adjusted to a predetermined first temperature. Further, the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the discharge port 14 that does not overlap the annular region RR of the substrate W in plan view is adjusted to a second temperature higher than the first temperature.

[0085] Therefore, when at least a part of the discharge port 14 overlaps the annular region RR of the substrate W, the drive circuit 152c (Fig. 17) is controlled so that the temperature of a part of the thermoelectric elements corresponding to the portion of the discharge port 14 that overlaps the annular region RR in plan view becomes lower than the temperature of the other thermoelectric elements. In Figs. 7 to 12, a part of the thermoelectric elements with a low set calorific value among the plurality of thermoelectric elements is shown by thick hatching.

[0086] Specifically, in the state of Fig. 7, all portions of the discharge port 14 are outside the annular region RR of the substrate W. In this case, the temperatures of all the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 are set to, for example, the second temperature.

[0087] Further, in the state of Fig. 8, the central portion of the discharge port 14 overlaps the annular region RR. In this case, the temperatures of the thermoelectric elements e5 and e6 corresponding to the central portion of the discharge port 14 among the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 are set to, for example, the first temperature, and the temperatures of the other thermoelectric elements e1 to e4, e7 to e10 are set to, for example, the second temperature.

[0088] Also, in the state of FIG. 9, two portions of the discharge port 14 overlap with the annular region RR. In this case, the temperatures of the thermoelectric elements e2 and e9 corresponding to the two portions of the discharge port 14 among the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 are set to, for example, the first temperature, and the temperatures of the other thermoelectric elements e1, e3 to e8, and e10 are set to, for example, the second temperature.

[0089] Also, in the state of FIG. 10, both end portions of the discharge port 14 overlap with the annular region RR. In this case, the temperatures of the thermoelectric elements e1 and e10 corresponding to both end portions of the discharge port 14 among the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 are set to, for example, the first temperature, and the temperatures of the other thermoelectric elements e2 to e9 are set to, for example, the second temperature.

[0090] Also, in the state of FIG. 11, two portions of the discharge port 14 overlap with the annular region RR. In this case, the temperatures of the thermoelectric elements e2 and e9 corresponding to the two portions of the discharge port 14 among the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 are set to, for example, the first temperature, and the temperatures of the other thermoelectric elements e1, e3 to e8, and e10 are set to, for example, the second temperature.

[0091] Furthermore, in the state of FIG. 12, the central portion of the discharge port 14 overlaps with the annular region RR. In this case, the temperatures of the thermoelectric elements e5 and e6 corresponding to the central portion of the discharge port 14 among the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 are set to, for example, the first temperature, and the temperatures of the other thermoelectric elements e1 to e4, e7 to e10 are set to, for example, the second temperature.

[0092] According to the above specific examples, the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region RR of the substrate W is lower than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central region IR of the substrate W. Thereby, the amount of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region RR of the substrate W can be made smaller than the amount of the coating liquid supplied to the central region IR of the substrate W. As a result, an increase in the thickness of the coating film FF formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W compared to other portions is suppressed.

[0093] Note that the temperatures of the plurality of thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 may be set so as to be maintained at a predetermined constant value for each thermoelectric element during the coating process of the substrate W. In this case, for example, in the direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the scanning direction (X direction) of the nozzle device 150, the set temperature of each thermoelectric element is determined so that a temperature gradient is provided. Specifically, the set temperature of each thermoelectric element is determined so that the set temperature decreases as it goes outward from the center of the substrate W in the Y direction. Thereby, while controlling the film thickness on the substrate W in the X direction by adjusting the scanning speed of the nozzle device 150, it is possible to control the film thickness of the coating liquid on the substrate W in the Y direction by temperature control using the plurality of thermoelectric elements e1 to e10.

[0094] When the above nozzle block 151 is formed of metal, it is preferable to coat a portion of the nozzle block 151 that may come into contact with the coating liquid with a corrosion-resistant material. Thereby, it becomes possible to use a chemical solution that corrodes metal as the coating liquid.

[0095] [5] Stage device 130 FIG. 13 is a plan view of the stage device 130 of FIG. 2. FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of the stage device 130 of FIG. 2. In the following description, regarding the stage device 130 of FIG. 2, the configurations of the plate member 131 and the plate adjustment unit 132 will be mainly described. Therefore, in FIGS. 13 and 14, the illustration of the plurality of intake holes and the plurality of pin insertion holes formed in the plate member 131 is omitted. Also, the illustration of the plurality of support pins 133, the pin lifting drive unit 134, and the suction drive unit 135 provided below the plate member 131 is omitted.

[0096] In the stage device 130 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of regions ar are set in the substrate mounting portion of the plate member 131. In the example of FIG. 13, the plurality of regions ar are set so as to be arranged radially in the radial direction with respect to the center of the substrate W and at equal angular intervals in the circumferential direction of the substrate W. In the radial direction of the substrate W placed on the plate member 131, the dimensions of each of the plurality of regions ar overlapping the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W are smaller than the dimensions of each of the plurality of regions ar overlapping the central portion of the substrate W.

[0097] Also, in the present embodiment, the outer edges of the plurality of regions ar located at the outermost periphery among the plurality of regions ar overlap or surround the outer peripheral end portion of the substrate W placed on the plate member 131 in plan view. In the radial direction of the substrate W placed on the plate member 131, the distance dd (FIG. 13) between the inner edge of the plurality of regions ar located at the outermost periphery among the plurality of regions ar and the outer peripheral end portion of the substrate W placed on the plate member 131 is preferably, for example, 20 mm or less.

[0098] As shown in FIG. 14, a plate adjustment unit 132 is provided below the plate member 131. The plate adjustment unit 132 includes a plurality of temperature sensors ts, a plurality of thermoelectric elements te, and a cooling plate 136. The plurality of temperature sensors ts correspond to the plurality of regions ar of the plate member 131, respectively, and are attached to the lower surface of the plate member 131. The plurality of thermoelectric elements te are provided below the plate member 131 so as to overlap the plurality of regions ar set in the plate member 131 in plan view. Each of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te is composed of, for example, a mica heater or a Peltier element.

[0099] A drive circuit 132c (FIG. 17) for heating each of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te is connected to each of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te. When the plurality of thermoelectric elements te generate heat by the drive circuit 132c (FIG. 17), the region ar of the plate member 131 located directly above each thermoelectric element te is heated. Thereby, a plurality of portions of the substrate W located on the plurality of regions ar of the plate member 131 are heated according to the heat generation state of each of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te. Therefore, when a liquid film of the coating liquid is formed on the substrate W, the liquid film of the coating liquid located on the plurality of regions ar of the plate member 131 is further heated according to the heat generation state of each of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te.

[0100] The cooling plate 136 is a circular plate member formed of a material having excellent thermal conductivity, and supports the plurality of thermoelectric elements te from below so that the plurality of thermoelectric elements te are sandwiched between the plate member 131 and the cooling plate 136. A cooling water flow path 136a is provided inside the cooling plate 136.

[0101] Cooling water is supplied from a cooling facility to the cooling water flow path 136a of the cooling plate 136. Further, the cooling water that has flowed through the cooling water flow path 136a of the cooling plate 136 is sent to a cooling facility provided outside the cooling plate 21. Thereby, when the plurality of thermoelectric elements te generate heat, an excessive temperature rise of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te can be suppressed.

[0102] In the above stage device 130, the drive circuit 132c (FIG. 17) of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te is controlled based on the temperature detected by the corresponding temperature sensor ts so that the plurality of thermoelectric elements te generate heat at a predetermined temperature. Thereby, when the coating liquid is supplied onto the substrate W adsorbed and held on the plate member 131, the temperature of the coating liquid on the substrate W can be adjusted to a desired temperature.

[0103] Specifically, in this example, the drive circuit 132c (FIG. 17) of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te is controlled so that the temperature of the coating liquid located at the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W does not become significantly lower than the temperature of the coating liquid located at the central portion of the substrate W. Alternatively, the drive circuit 132c (FIG. 17) of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te is controlled so that the temperature of the coating liquid located at the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W is the same as or higher than the temperature of the coating liquid located at the central portion of the substrate W.

[0104] In this case, it is possible to suppress the viscosity of the coating liquid located at the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W from becoming significantly lower than the viscosity of the coating liquid located at the central portion of the substrate W. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the thickness of the coating film FF formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W from becoming larger than the thickness of the coating film FF formed on the central portion of the substrate W.

[0105] Note that the temperature of the cooling water supplied to the cooling plate 136 needs to be set lower than the lower limit value of the temperature range in which the temperature adjustment should be performed in the stage device 130.

[0106] In the above stage device 130, in addition to the plate adjustment unit 132 in FIG. 14, an auxiliary device for more greatly adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W adsorbed and held on the plate member 131 may be provided.

[0107] FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of an auxiliary device for temperature adjustment attached to the stage device 130 in FIG. 14. As shown in FIG. 15, the auxiliary device 137 in this example is provided further below the plate adjustment unit 132, for example, at a position below the plate member 131. Alternatively, the auxiliary device 137 is provided so as to surround the plate adjustment unit 132, for example, at a position below the plate member 131.

[0108] Here, the auxiliary device 137 includes, for example, a heater wire or a cooling water pipe. When a heater wire is used as the auxiliary device 137, the coating liquid on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W placed on the plate member 131 can be heated with a larger output. On the other hand, when a cooling water pipe is used as the auxiliary device 137, the coating liquid on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W placed on the plate member 131 can be cooled with a larger output.

[0109] [6] Another configuration example of the stage device 130 FIG. 16 is a plan view showing another configuration example of the stage device 130. In this example, a plurality of rectangular regions ar arranged in the Y direction are set on the plate member 131. Each of the plurality of rectangular regions ar extends in the X direction. The length of each region ar in the X direction is longer than the diameter of the substrate W.

[0110] A plate adjuster 132 is provided below the plate member 131. The plate adjuster 132 in this example includes a temperature adjustment member 138 corresponding to each region ar, a temperature sensor ts corresponding to each region ar, and a cooling plate (not shown). The temperature adjustment member 138 is, for example, a heater wire.

[0111] In this example, the plurality of temperature adjustment members 138 are driven based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor ts provided in each region ar. At this time, the set temperature of each temperature adjustment member 138 is determined so that a temperature gradient is provided in the direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the scanning direction (X direction) of the nozzle device 150. Thereby, the film thickness control of the coating liquid on the substrate W in the Y direction can be performed.

[0112] [7] Control system of the coating device 100 FIG. 17 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the coating device 100. The control unit 110 includes a CPU, a RAM (random access memory), a ROM (read only memory), and a storage device. The RAM is used as a work area for the CPU. By the CPU executing the coating process program stored in the storage device on the RAM, the operations of each part of the coating device 100 are controlled.

[0113] The control unit 110 controls the pin lifting drive unit 134, the suction drive unit 135, the X-direction drive unit 141, the Z-direction drive unit 142, and the liquid supply unit 143. Thereby, the pin lifting drive unit 134 moves a plurality of support pins 133 up and down, for example, when loading and unloading the substrate W in the coating apparatus 100. The suction drive unit 135 adsorbs and holds the substrate W on the plate member 131.

[0114] The X-direction drive unit 141 moves the nozzle device 150 in the X direction. The Z-direction drive unit 142 moves the nozzle device 150 in the Z direction. The liquid supply unit 143 supplies the coating liquid to the nozzle block 151 of the nozzle device 150.

[0115] Information indicating the temperature (first temperature) of the coating liquid to be discharged to the annular region RR of the substrate W and the temperature (second temperature) of the coating liquid to be discharged to the central region IR of the substrate W is stored in advance in the control unit 110 as nozzle temperature information. The control unit 110 controls the drive circuit 152c based on the nozzle temperature information and the temperature detected by the plurality of temperature sensors ts of the nozzle adjustment unit 152. Thereby, during the coating process of the substrate W, each of the thermoelectric elements e1 to e10 generates heat at a temperature corresponding to either the first or second temperature.

[0116] Information including the target temperature to be adjusted for each of the plurality of regions ar of the plate member 131 is stored in advance in the control unit 110 as plate temperature information. The control unit 110 controls the drive circuit 132c based on the plate temperature information and the temperature detected by the plurality of temperature sensors ts of the plate adjustment unit 132. Thereby, during the coating process of the substrate W, each of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te generates heat at the target temperature of the region ar corresponding to the thermoelectric element te.

[0117] [8] Configuration and Basic Operation of the Liquid Film Drying Apparatus 200 FIG. 18 is a schematic external perspective view of the liquid film drying apparatus 200 of FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 18, the liquid film drying apparatus 200 mainly includes a control unit 210, a base member 220, a stage device 230, a lid member 240, and a lid lifting device 250, and is housed in a housing (not shown).

[0118] The control unit 210 controls the operations of each part of the liquid film drying apparatus 200 in response to a command signal or the like from the control device 500 of FIG. 1. Details of the control unit 210 will be described later. The base member 220 is provided on the bottom surface of a housing (not shown). The stage device 230 is provided on the base member 220. The substrate W to be carried into the liquid film drying apparatus 200 is placed on the stage device 230. Details of the stage device 230 will be described later.

[0119] The lid member 240 is supported by the lid lifting device 250 so as to be movable in the vertical direction at a position above the base member 220. The lid member 240 has an internal space IS that can accommodate the stage device 230 and is open downward. Further, the base member 220 and the lid member 240 have contact surfaces 220s, 240s that face each other in the vertical direction. The contact surfaces 220s, 240s are formed so as to surround the stage device 230 in plan view. At least one of the contact surfaces 220s, 240s is provided with a seal member (not shown) such as an O-ring.

[0120] The lid lifting device 250 includes an actuator such as a motor or an air cylinder, and moves the lid member 240 in the vertical direction based on the control of the control unit 210. As a result, when the lid member 240 descends and the contact surfaces 220s, 240s of the base member 220 and the lid member 240 come into contact, the internal space IS of the lid member 240 is in an airtight state with the stage device 230 accommodated therein. On the other hand, when the lid member 240 ascends and the contact surfaces 220s, 240s of the base member 220 and the lid member 240 are separated from each other, the internal space IS of the lid member 240 is in an open state, and external access to the stage device 230 becomes possible. Thus, in the liquid film drying device 200, one chamber CH is formed by the base member 220 and the lid member 240.

[0121] The stage device 230 includes a plate member 231, a plate adjustment unit 232, a plurality of support pins 233, a pin lifting drive unit 234, and a decompression device 235. The plate member 231 has basically the same configuration as the plate member 131 of the coating device 100. The differences between the plate member 231 and the plate member 131 are that a plurality of air intake holes are not formed in the plate member 231, and a plurality of support pieces (not shown) for supporting the substrate W are provided on the upper surface of the plate member 231. The plurality of support pieces are, for example, hemispherical proximity balls formed of ceramic. Also, the plate member 231 does not need to be formed of stone, and may be formed of metal, resin, or the like.

[0122] In the stage device 230, a plate adjustment unit 232, a plurality of support pins 233, a pin lifting drive unit 234, and a decompression device 235 are provided below the plate member 231.

[0123] The plurality of support pins 233 are supported by a pin lifting and lowering drive unit 234 so as to extend in the vertical direction and overlap with a plurality of pin insertion holes provided in the substrate placement portion in a plan view. The pin lifting and lowering drive unit 234 moves the plurality of support pins 233 in the vertical direction based on the control of the control unit 210. Thereby, the upper end portions of the plurality of support pins 233 move between a pin rising position above the plate member 231 and a pin lowering position below the plate member 231.

[0124] Thereby, when the substrate W is carried into the liquid film drying apparatus 200, the substrate W conveyed by the conveying apparatus 400 in FIG. 1 is placed on the plurality of support pins 233 in a state where the upper end portions of the plurality of support pins 233 are at the pin rising position. Also, when the substrate W is carried out of the liquid film drying apparatus 200, the substrate W supported on the plurality of support pins 233 is received by the conveying apparatus 400 in FIG. 1 in a state where the upper end portions of the plurality of support pins 233 are at the pin rising position. Further, during the drying process of the substrate W in the liquid film drying apparatus 200, the substrate W is supported on the substrate placement portion of the plate member 231 in a state where the upper end portions of the plurality of support pins 233 are at the pin lowering position.

[0125] In the plate member 231 of the liquid film drying apparatus 200, similar to the plate member 131 of the coating apparatus 100, a plurality of regions ar are set in the substrate placement portion. In FIG. 18, the plurality of regions ar set in the plate member 231 are shown within the blowout. The plate adjustment unit 232 of the liquid film drying apparatus 200 has the same configuration as the plate adjustment unit 132 of the coating apparatus 100, and adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions ar of the plate member 231 based on the control of the control unit 210 in the same manner as the plate adjustment unit 132.

[0126] Specifically, the drive circuit 132c of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te included in the plate adjustment unit 232 is controlled so that the temperature of the coating liquid located at the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W does not become significantly lower than the temperature of the coating liquid located at the central portion of the substrate W. Alternatively, the drive circuit 132c of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te included in the plate adjustment unit 232 is controlled so that the temperature of the coating liquid located at the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W is the same as or higher than the temperature of the coating liquid located at the central portion of the substrate W.

[0127] In this case, it is possible to suppress a significant decrease in the viscosity of the coating liquid located at the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W compared to the viscosity of the coating liquid located at the central portion of the substrate W. Thereby, it is possible to suppress an increase in the thickness of the coating film FF formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W compared to the thickness of the coating film FF formed on the central portion of the substrate W.

[0128] The decompression device 235 includes a vacuum pump, valves, a plurality of pipes, etc., and is configured to be able to adjust the pressure in the internal space IS in a state where the lid member 240 is in contact with the base member 220, that is, in a state where the chamber CH is closed. The decompression device 235 may be provided separately from the stage device 230 on the base member 220.

[0129] Specifically, the decompression device 235 sucks the atmosphere in the internal space IS in a state where the substrate W on which the liquid film of the coating liquid is formed is placed on the plate member 231 and the chamber CH is closed, and decompresses the absolute pressure in the internal space IS to be lower than 100 Pa. Thereby, the volatilization of the coating liquid on the substrate W is promoted, the liquid film on the substrate W is dried, and the coating film FF is formed.

[0130] Further, at the end of the drying process of the substrate W, the decompression device 235 introduces an inert gas supplied from an inert gas supply unit (not shown) into the internal space IS in order to return the decompressed internal space IS to atmospheric pressure. Thereby, the chamber CH is opened, and the substrate W on which the coating film FF is formed is carried out from the liquid film drying device 200.

[0131] [9] Control system of the liquid film drying device 200 FIG. 19 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the liquid film drying apparatus 200. The control unit 210 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and a storage device. The RAM is used as a working area for the CPU. By the CPU executing the drying process program stored in the storage device on the RAM, the operations of each part of the liquid film drying apparatus 200 are controlled.

[0132] The control unit 210 controls the pin lifting drive unit 234, the decompression device 235, the lid lifting device 250, and the plate adjustment unit 232. Thereby, the pin lifting drive unit 234 moves a plurality of support pins 233 up and down, for example, when loading and unloading the substrate W in the liquid film drying apparatus 200. The decompression device 235 decompresses the internal space IS of the lid member 240 from atmospheric pressure in a state where the chamber CH is closed. Alternatively, the decompression device 235 returns the internal space IS of the lid member 240 from a decompressed state to atmospheric pressure in a state where the chamber CH is closed.

[0133] Information including the target temperature to be adjusted for each of a plurality of regions ar of the plate member 231 is stored in advance in the control unit 210 as plate temperature information. The control unit 210 controls the drive circuit 132c based on the plate temperature information and the temperatures detected by a plurality of temperature sensors ts of the plate adjustment unit 232. Thereby, during the coating process of the substrate W, each of the plurality of thermoelectric elements te generates heat at the target temperature of the region ar corresponding to the thermoelectric element te.

[0134]

[10] Effect (1) In the above-described coating apparatus 100, with the substrate W held on the plate member 131, the nozzle device 150 moves on the plate member 131. At this time, the coating liquid is discharged from the slit-shaped discharge port 14 of the nozzle device 150 onto the upper surface of the substrate W. Thereby, a film of the coating liquid is formed on the entire upper surface of the substrate W. According to such a method of forming a film of the coating liquid (slit coating), the occurrence of coating unevenness can be suppressed.

[0135] In the above-described substrate processing apparatus 1, temperature adjustment is performed on the coating liquid before being supplied to the substrate W or the coating liquid after being supplied to the substrate W according to the position on the substrate W. Specifically, in the nozzle device 150 of the coating device 100, when the nozzle device 150 moves, the temperature of the coating liquid guided to a plurality of portions of the discharge port 14 is adjusted according to the position on the substrate W. As a result, it becomes possible to supply an appropriate amount of the coating liquid to a plurality of portions on the substrate W in order to make the coating film FF uniform.

[0136] Also, in the stage device 130 of the coating device 100, with the substrate W placed on the plate member 131, the temperatures of a plurality of regions ar of the plate member 131 are adjusted to appropriate temperatures respectively in order to make the coating film FF uniform. Further, in the stage device 230 of the liquid film drying device 200, with the substrate W placed on the plate member 231, the temperatures of a plurality of regions ar of the plate member 231 are adjusted to appropriate temperatures respectively in order to make the coating film FF uniform. As a result of these, the thickness of the coating film FF formed on the substrate W is made uniform.

[0137] (2) As described above, in the radial direction of the substrate W placed on the plate members 131 and 231, the dimensions of each of the plurality of regions ar overlapping the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W are smaller than the dimensions of each of the plurality of regions ar overlapping the central portion of the substrate W. In this case, compared with the temperature of the coating liquid located on the central portion of the substrate W, the temperature of the coating liquid located on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate W can be adjusted with higher accuracy.

[0138]

[11] Other embodiments (1) In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above embodiment, the nozzle adjustment unit 152 may not be provided in the nozzle device 150 of the coating device 100. Further, the liquid film drying device 200 may not be provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1. Even in such a case, in the coating device 100, by adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid on the substrate W by the plate adjustment unit 132, it is possible to reduce the non-uniformity of the thickness of the liquid film of the coating liquid on the substrate W. Therefore, the thickness of the coating film FF is made uniform.

[0139] (2) In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above embodiment, the plate adjustment unit 132 may not be provided in the stage device 130 of the coating device 100. Further, the substrate processing apparatus 1 may not be provided with the liquid film drying device 200. Even in such a case, in the coating device 100, by adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid by the nozzle adjustment unit 152, the reduction in the non-uniformity of the thickness of the liquid film of the coating liquid on the substrate W is achieved. Therefore, the thickness of the coating film FF is made uniform.

[0140] (3) In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above embodiment, the nozzle adjustment unit 152 may not be provided in the nozzle device 150 of the coating device 100. Also, the plate adjustment unit 132 may not be provided in the stage device 130 of the coating device 100. Even in such a case, in the liquid film drying device 200, by adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid on the substrate W by the plate adjustment unit 232, the reduction in the non-uniformity of the thickness of the liquid film of the coating liquid on the substrate W is achieved. Therefore, the thickness of the coating film FF is made uniform.

[0141] (4) In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above embodiment, the coating device 100 may not be provided. Even in such a case, in the liquid film drying device 200, by adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid on the substrate W by the plate adjustment unit 232, the reduction in the non-uniformity of the thickness of the liquid film of the coating liquid on the substrate W is achieved. Therefore, the thickness of the coating film FF is made uniform.

[0142]

[12] Corresponding relationship between each component of the claims and each element of the embodiment Hereinafter, an example of the correspondence between each component of the claims and each element of the embodiment will be described, but the present invention is not limited to the following example. As each component of the claims, various other elements having the configuration or function described in the claims can also be used.

[0143] In the above-described embodiment, the plate member 131 is an example of the first plate member, the stage device 130 is an example of the first substrate holding portion, the discharge port 14 is an example of the discharge port, the nozzle device 150 is an example of the liquid supply portion, the nozzle support 140, the X-direction driving portion 141, and the Z-direction driving portion 142 are examples of the relative movement portions, the nozzle adjustment portion 152 and the plate adjustment portion 132 are examples of the temperature adjustment portions, and the substrate processing apparatus 1 is an example of the substrate processing apparatus.

[0144] Further, the coating liquid flow path 13 is an example of the coating liquid flow path, the nozzle adjustment portion 152 is an example of the coating liquid adjustment portion, the Y direction is an example of the first direction, the X direction is an example of the second direction, the annular region RR is an example of the annular region, the central region IR is an example of the central region, the plurality of regions ar are examples of the plurality of regions, and the plate adjustment portion 132 is an example of the first plate adjustment portion.

[0145] Also, the coating apparatus 100 is an example of the coating apparatus, the liquid film drying apparatus 200 is an example of the liquid film drying apparatus, the plate member 231 is an example of the second plate member and the plate member, the stage device 230 is an example of the second substrate holding portion and the substrate holding portion, the chamber CH is an example of the chamber, the decompression device 235 is an example of the liquid film drying portion, and the plate adjustment portion 232 is an example of the second plate adjustment portion and the temperature adjustment portion.

[13] Reference embodiment (1) The substrate processing apparatus according to the first reference embodiment includes a first plate member on which a substrate having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is placed, a first substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the first plate member in a predetermined fixed posture, a liquid supply portion that is provided at a position above the first substrate holding portion and has a slit-shaped discharge port, and discharges a coating liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate from the discharge port, and a relative movement portion that relatively moves the first plate member and the liquid supply portion so that a film of the coating liquid is formed over the entire upper surface of the substrate held by the first substrate holding portion by the coating liquid discharged from the liquid supply portion, and a temperature adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. In the substrate processing apparatus, with the substrate held on the first plate member, the first plate member and the liquid supply portion move relative to each other. At this time, the coating liquid is discharged from the slit-shaped discharge port of the liquid supply portion onto the upper surface of the substrate, whereby a film of the coating liquid is formed over the entire upper surface of the substrate. Thus, according to the method of forming a coating film by scanning the liquid supply portion having a slit-shaped discharge port on the substrate, the occurrence of coating unevenness can be reduced. Further, in the above-described substrate processing apparatus, the temperature of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion and the coating liquid applied on the substrate is adjusted. In other words, the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid before being supplied to the substrate and the coating liquid after being supplied to the substrate is adjusted. Thereby, it becomes possible to make the thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate uniform. (2) The liquid supply portion includes a coating liquid flow path that guides the coating liquid supplied from the coating liquid supply system to the discharge port, and the temperature adjustment portion may include a coating liquid adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid guided to a plurality of portions of the discharge port through the coating liquid flow path so that the flow rate distribution of the coating liquid discharged from a plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply portion becomes a predetermined flow rate distribution. The viscosity of the coating liquid is lower as the temperature of the coating liquid is higher, and higher as the temperature of the coating liquid is lower. The amount of the coating liquid flowing through the coating liquid flow path per unit time, that is, the flow rate of the coating liquid, is larger as the viscosity of the coating liquid is lower, and smaller as the viscosity of the coating liquid is higher. Therefore, according to the above configuration, by adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid flowing through the plurality of portions of the coating liquid flow path, a predetermined amount of the coating liquid is supplied from the plurality of portions of the discharge port to the plurality of portions of the substrate. Thereby, by appropriately determining a predetermined flow rate distribution for the coating liquid discharged from the plurality of portions of the discharge port, the uniformity of the film thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate can be improved. (3) The coating liquid adjustment unit may adjust the temperature of the coating liquid guided to the plurality of portions of the discharge port such that the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is lower than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central portion of the substrate. According to the above configuration, since the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is lowered, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes higher. Thereby, the amount of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate can be made smaller than the amount of the coating liquid supplied to other portions. As a result, an increase in the thickness of the coating film formed on at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate compared to other portions is suppressed. (4) The liquid supply unit is arranged such that the discharge port extends in a first direction, and the relative movement unit relatively moves the liquid supply unit and the first substrate holding unit in a second direction intersecting the first direction so that the discharge port of the liquid supply unit passes through the space on the substrate while the substrate is held in a fixed posture by the first substrate holding unit. On the substrate placed on the first plate member, an annular region having a certain width including the outer peripheral end portion and a central region inside the annular region are defined. The coating liquid adjustment unit adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply unit that overlaps the annular region of the substrate placed on the first plate member in a plan view to a predetermined first temperature, and adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply unit that does not overlap the annular region of the substrate placed on the first plate member in a plan view to a second temperature higher than the first temperature. According to the above configuration, the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region of the substrate is lower than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central region of the substrate. Therefore, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region of the substrate is higher than the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to the central region of the substrate. Thereby, the amount of the coating liquid supplied to the annular region of the substrate can be made smaller than the amount of the coating liquid supplied to the central region of the substrate. As a result, an increase in the thickness of the coating film formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate compared to other portions is suppressed. (5) The first plate member may have a plurality of regions, and the temperature adjustment unit may include a first plate adjustment unit that adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the first plate member respectively. According to the above configuration, by appropriately adjusting the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the first plate member, it is possible to suppress an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located in the annular region of the substrate. Thereby, the uniformity of the film thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate can be improved. (6) The plurality of regions of the first plate member include a plurality of first regions that overlap at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member, and a plurality of second regions that overlap the central portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member. The dimensions of each of the plurality of first regions in the radial direction of the substrate may be smaller than the dimensions of each of the plurality of second regions in the radial direction of the substrate. In this case, the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the outer peripheral portion of the substrate can be adjusted with higher accuracy compared to the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the central portion of the substrate. (7) The first plate adjustment unit may adjust the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the first plate member such that the temperature of the portion overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member is higher than the temperature of the portion overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member. According to the above configuration, since the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes high, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes low. Thereby, an increase in the thickness of the coating film formed on at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate compared to other portions due to an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located in at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is suppressed. (8) The substrate processing apparatus includes a coating device that coats a substrate with a coating liquid, and a liquid film drying device that dries the film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate by the coating device. The coating device includes a first substrate holding portion, a liquid supply portion, and a relative movement portion. The liquid film drying device has a second plate member on which the substrate having the film of the coating liquid formed thereon by the coating device is placed, and includes a second substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the second plate member in a predetermined fixed posture, a chamber having an internal space that houses the second substrate holding portion, and a liquid film drying portion that dries the film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate held by the second substrate holding portion by reducing the pressure in the space inside the chamber while the substrate is held by the second substrate holding portion. The second plate member has a plurality of regions, and the temperature adjustment portion may include a second plate adjustment portion that adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member respectively. In this case, in the liquid film drying device, with the substrate held on the second plate member in the chamber, the internal space of the chamber is depressurized, whereby the film of the coating liquid on the substrate is dried. At this time, the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member are adjusted respectively. Therefore, by appropriately adjusting the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member, it is possible to suppress an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located in the annular region of the substrate. Thereby, the uniformity of the film thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate can be improved. (9) The plurality of regions of the second plate member include a plurality of third regions that overlap at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member, and a plurality of fourth regions that overlap the central portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member. The dimensions of the plurality of third regions in the radial direction of the substrate may be smaller than the dimensions of the plurality of fourth regions in the radial direction of the substrate. In this case, the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the outer peripheral portion of the substrate can be adjusted with higher accuracy than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied onto the central portion of the substrate. (10) The second plate adjustment portion may adjust the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member such that the temperature of the portion overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member is higher than the temperature of the portion overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member. According to the above configuration, since the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes high, the viscosity of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes low. Thereby, it is suppressed that the thickness of the coating film formed on at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes larger than that of other portions due to the increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate. (11) The substrate processing apparatus according to the second reference embodiment has a plate member on which a substrate having a film of a coating liquid formed thereon and having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is placed, a substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the plate member in a fixed posture, a chamber having an internal space that houses the substrate holding portion, a liquid film drying portion that dries the film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate held by the substrate holding portion by reducing the pressure in the space inside the chamber while the substrate is held by the substrate holding portion, and a temperature adjusting portion that adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid applied on the substrate, the plate member has a plurality of regions, and the temperature adjusting portion adjusts the temperature of each of the plurality of regions of the plate member. In the substrate processing apparatus, a substrate having a film of a coating liquid formed thereon and having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is held on the plate member in the chamber. In this state, the internal space of the chamber is depressurized, whereby the film of the coating liquid on the substrate is dried. At this time, the temperature of each of the plurality of regions of the plate member is adjusted. Therefore, by appropriately adjusting the temperature of the plurality of regions of the plate member, it is possible to suppress an increase in the viscosity of the coating liquid located at the outer peripheral portion of the substrate. Thereby, it is suppressed that the thickness of the coating film formed on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate becomes larger than that of other portions. In the above substrate processing apparatus, the temperature of the coating liquid after being supplied to the substrate is adjusted. Thereby, it becomes possible to make the thickness of the coating film formed on the substrate uniform.

Explanation of Symbols

[0146] 1... Substrate processing apparatus, 11... Liquid introduction path, 12... Coating liquid buffer section, 13... Coating liquid flow path, 14... Discharge port, 15... Heat transfer section, 21... Cooling plate, 22... Cooling water flow path, 23... Introduction pipe, 24... Discharge pipe, 100... Coating apparatus, 110, 210... Control section, 120... Stage support, 121... Guide rail, 130, 230... Stage apparatus, 131, 231... Plate member, 132, 232... Plate adjustment section, 132c, 152c... Drive circuit, 133, 233... Support pin, 134, 234... Pin lifting drive section, 135... Suction drive section, 136... Cooling plate, 136a... Cooling water flow path, 137... Auxiliary apparatus, 138... Temperature adjustment member, 140... Nozzle support, 141... X-direction drive section, 142... Z-direction drive section, 143... Liquid supply section, 150... Nozzle apparatus, 151... Nozzle block, 151s... Nozzle front surface, 152... Nozzle adjustment section, 153... Pipe, 200... Liquid film drying apparatus, 220... Base member, 220s, 240s... Contact surface, 235... Vacuum device, 240... Cover member, 250... Cover lifting device, 300... Post-treatment apparatus, 310... Spin chuck, 320... Cup, 331... Edge rinse nozzle, 332... Back rinse nozzle, 400... Conveying apparatus, 500... Control apparatus, CH... Chamber, FF... Coating film, IR... Central region, IS... Internal space, RR... Annular region, SN... Slit nozzle, VS... Virtual surface, W... Substrate, ar... Region, dd... Distance, e1~e10, te... Thermoelectric element, ts... Temperature sensor

Claims

1. A first plate member on which a substrate having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is placed, and a first substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the first plate member in a predetermined fixed posture. A liquid supply portion provided at a position above the first substrate holding portion, having a slit-shaped discharge port, and discharging a coating liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate from the discharge port. A relative movement portion that relatively moves the first plate member and the liquid supply portion so that a film of the coating liquid is formed on the entire upper surface of the substrate held by the first substrate holding portion by the coating liquid discharged from the liquid supply portion. A temperature adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. The temperature adjustment portion, when adjusting the temperature of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion, makes the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the peripheral portion of the substrate different from the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central portion of the substrate. A substrate processing apparatus.

2. A first plate member on which a substrate having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is placed, and a first substrate holding portion that holds the substrate placed on the first plate member in a predetermined fixed posture. A liquid supply portion provided at a position above the first substrate holding portion, having a slit-shaped discharge port, and discharging a coating liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate from the discharge port. A relative movement portion that relatively moves the first plate member and the liquid supply portion so that a film of the coating liquid is formed on the entire upper surface of the substrate held by the first substrate holding portion by the coating liquid discharged from the liquid supply portion. A temperature adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply portion and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. The liquid supply portion includes a coating liquid flow path that guides the coating liquid supplied from the coating liquid supply system to the discharge port. The temperature adjustment portion includes a coating liquid adjustment portion that adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid guided to a plurality of portions of the discharge port through the coating liquid flow path so that the flow rate distribution of the coating liquid discharged from a plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply portion becomes a predetermined flow rate distribution. A substrate processing apparatus.

3. The coating liquid adjustment unit adjusts the temperature of the coating liquid guided to the plurality of portions of the discharge port so that the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is lower than the temperature of the coating liquid supplied to the central portion of the substrate. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2.

4. The liquid supply unit is arranged such that the discharge port extends in a first direction. The relative movement unit relatively moves the liquid supply unit and the first substrate holding unit in a second direction intersecting the first direction so that the discharge port of the liquid supply unit passes through the space on the substrate while the substrate is held in the fixed posture by the first substrate holding unit. On the substrate placed on the first plate member, an annular region having a certain width including the outer peripheral end portion and a central region inside the annular region are defined. The coating liquid adjustment unit When the relative movement unit relatively moves the liquid supply unit and the first substrate holding unit, the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply unit that overlaps the annular region of the substrate placed on the first plate member in a plan view is adjusted to a predetermined first temperature, and the temperature of the coating liquid discharged from the portion of the plurality of portions of the discharge port of the liquid supply unit that does not overlap the annular region of the substrate placed on the first plate member in a plan view is adjusted to a second temperature higher than the first temperature. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2.

5. A first plate member on which a substrate having an outer peripheral portion that is at least partially circular is placed, and a first substrate holding unit that holds the substrate placed on the first plate member in a predetermined fixed posture. A liquid supply unit provided at a position above the first substrate holding unit and having a slit-shaped discharge port, and discharging a coating liquid onto the upper surface of the substrate from the discharge port. A relative movement unit that relatively moves the first plate member and the liquid supply unit so that a film of the coating liquid is formed on the entire upper surface of the substrate held by the first substrate holding unit by the coating liquid discharged from the liquid supply unit. A temperature adjustment unit that adjusts the temperature of at least one of the coating liquid guided to the discharge port in the liquid supply unit and the coating liquid applied on the substrate. The first plate member has a plurality of regions. The temperature adjustment unit includes a first plate adjustment unit that adjusts the temperature of the plurality of regions of the first plate member. The substrate processing apparatus.

6. The plurality of regions of the first plate member are a plurality of first regions overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member, and a plurality of second regions overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member, and The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein each dimension of the plurality of first regions in the radial direction of the substrate is smaller than each dimension of the plurality of second regions in the radial direction of the substrate. **Claim 7** The first plate adjusting unit adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the first plate member such that the temperature of a portion overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member is higher than the temperature of a portion overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the first plate member. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 5 or 6. **Claim 8** A coating device for coating a coating liquid on a substrate, and a liquid film drying device for drying a film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate by the coating device, and The coating device includes the first substrate holding unit, the liquid supply unit, and the relative movement unit, The liquid film drying device has a second plate member on which the substrate on which the film of the coating liquid is formed by the coating device is placed, and a second substrate holding unit that holds the substrate placed on the second plate member in a predetermined fixed posture, a chamber having an internal space for accommodating the second substrate holding unit, and a liquid film drying unit that dries the film of the coating liquid formed on the substrate held by the second substrate holding unit by reducing the pressure in the space inside the chamber while the substrate is held by the second substrate holding unit. The second plate member has a plurality of regions, The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the temperature adjusting unit includes a second plate adjusting unit that adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member respectively. **Claim 9** The plurality of regions of the second plate member are a plurality of third regions overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member, and a plurality of fourth regions overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member, and The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein each dimension of the plurality of third regions in the radial direction of the substrate is smaller than each dimension of the plurality of fourth regions in the radial direction of the substrate. **Claim 10** The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the second plate adjusting unit adjusts the temperatures of the plurality of regions of the second plate member such that the temperature of a portion overlapping at least a part of the outer peripheral portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member is higher than the temperature of a portion overlapping the central portion of the substrate placed on the second plate member.

Images