SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS, SUBSTRATE PROCESSING SYSTEM, AND SUBSTRATE PROCESSING METHOD

Abstract

To effectively prevent adverse influences caused by a process fluid flowing into the side of a substrate via a through hole, which is provided in a substrate support part, when processing the substrate using the process fluid.SOLUTION: A substrate processing device comprises an intermediate movable body which is movable in a vertical direction between a substrate and a substrate support part. A bottom face of the substrate is supported vertically higher than a substrate support position while being supported from a lower side by an upper end of a lift pin protruding vertically upward from a through hole and the lift pin is retracted into the through hole, such that the substrate is delivered to the substrate support part at the substrate support position and locked to the substrate support part and closes the through hole. Therefore, inflow of a process fluid to the side of the substrate via the through hole is blocked by the intermediate movable body.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate processing technique for processing a substrate using a processing fluid. [Background technology]

[0002] Processing processes for various substrates, such as semiconductor substrates and glass substrates for display devices, involve treating the substrate surface with various processing fluids. While processing using liquids such as chemicals and rinse solutions as processing fluids has been widely used, processing using supercritical fluids has also been put to practical use in recent years. For example, Patent Document 1 describes an apparatus in which a substrate supported on a support tray (equivalent to an example of the "substrate support" of the present invention) is carried into a processing space of a processing chamber and then dried within the processing space using a processing fluid in a supercritical state. This apparatus is provided with a transfer mechanism that transfers the substrate to and from the support tray outside the processing chamber. The transfer mechanism has lift pins that move up and down. The lift pins are retractable into and out of through-holes in the support tray. The upper ends of the lift pins protrude above the support surface, thereby abutting against the underside of the substrate and supporting it. Meanwhile, the lift pins retract into the through-holes, allowing the substrate to be transferred to the support tray. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-9877 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above-described conventional technology, the support tray is provided with through-holes, and a portion of the processing fluid flowing below the support tray flows upward through the through-holes, forming an upward flow (reference symbol F2 in FIGS. 4 and 7). This upward flow may reach the upper surface of the substrate via the lower surface of the substrate. This upward flow may carry particles from the lower side of the substrate to the upper surface of the substrate, causing them to re-adhere to the fine pattern formed on the upper surface of the substrate. Furthermore, the upward flow may disrupt the flow of the processing fluid flowing along the upper surface of the substrate, increasing the risk of pattern collapse.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to effectively prevent adverse effects caused by processing fluid flowing into the substrate side through a through hole provided in a substrate support part when processing a substrate using the processing fluid. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A first aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate using a processing fluid, the substrate being supported from below at a substrate support position in a vertical direction. Support tray and, a processing chamber capable of accommodating a support tray and processing a substrate supported on the support tray using a processing fluid; The lift pins move up and down through through holes provided in the lift pins. Support tray a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate between the substrate and the Support tray and an intermediate movable body that is vertically movable between the substrate support position and the substrate support position, and the intermediate movable body supports the lower surface of the substrate vertically above the substrate support position while being supported from below by upper ends of lift pins that protrude vertically upward from the through holes, and the lift pins retract into the through holes to lift the substrate at the substrate support position. Support tray and Support tray The through hole is closed by the engagement of the retaining member.

[0007] A second aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing system comprising: the substrate processing apparatus; a substrate storage unit for storing substrates; an intermediate movable body storage unit for storing intermediate movable bodies; and a transport device for transporting substrates from the substrate storage unit to the substrate processing apparatus and for transporting the intermediate movable body from the movable body storage unit to the substrate processing apparatus, wherein the substrate processing apparatus transports the intermediate movable body carried out of the intermediate movable body storage unit by the transport device: Support tray The substrate is then transferred from the substrate storage unit by the transfer device. Support tray and connects it to the upper contact portion of the intermediate moving body supported by the Support tray The substrate is supported on the wafer stage via an intermediate moving body and treated with a treatment fluid.

[0008] Furthermore, a third aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method for performing processing by the substrate processing apparatus, comprising: removing an intermediate movable body from an intermediate movable body storage unit. Support tray and transferring the substrate from the substrate storage area to the Support tray a step of transferring the intermediate moving body to an upper contact portion supported by the intermediate moving body; Support tray and treating the substrate supported on the intermediate moving body with a treatment fluid.

[0009] In the invention configured as described above, a through-hole is provided in the substrate support part so that the substrate can be transferred between the substrate support part and the substrate support part by the lift pins of the transfer mechanism. The through-hole serves as a flow path for the processing fluid to reach the substrate side, but is blocked by the intermediate mover when the substrate is transferred to the substrate support part by the lift pins. Therefore, the intermediate mover prevents the processing fluid from flowing into the substrate side via the through-hole. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] As described above, according to the present invention, when processing a substrate using a processing fluid, it is possible to effectively prevent adverse effects caused by the processing fluid flowing into the substrate side through a through hole provided in the substrate support part. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a first embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. [Figure 2] 2 is a diagram showing the shapes and positional relationships of the various parts involved in the transfer of the substrate in the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Figure 3A] 2 is a partial enlarged view of each part during a substrate transfer operation in the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 3B] 2 is a partial enlarged view of each part during a substrate transfer operation in the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a state in which a substrate is processed by a processing fluid in a processing chamber in the first embodiment. [Figure 5] 10 is a diagram showing the shapes and positional relationships of the parts involved in the transfer of the substrate in a second embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. [Figure 6A] 6 is a partial enlarged view of each part during a substrate transfer operation in the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 5. [Figure 6B] 6 is a partial enlarged view of each part during a substrate transfer operation in the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 5. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating a state in which a substrate is processed by a processing fluid in a processing chamber in the second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a plan view showing an example of a substrate processing system for processing a substrate using a substrate processing apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] 9 is a diagram showing the configuration of intermediate movers used in the substrate processing system shown in FIG. 8 and a container for storing them. [Figure 10] 9 is a diagram showing an operation of processing a substrate by the substrate processing system shown in FIG. 8. FIG. [Figure 11A] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating a receiving operation of an intermediate moving body. [Figure 11B] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating a preparation operation for transferring a substrate. [Figure 11C] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating a receiving operation of a substrate. [Figure 11D] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing a schematic diagram of a preparation operation for storing the substrate and the intermediate mover in the processing chamber. [Figure 11E]10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an operation of accommodating the substrate and the intermediate mover into the processing chamber. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a first embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the shape and positional relationship of each part involved in substrate transfer in the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1. FIGS. 3A and 3B are partial enlarged views of each part during a substrate transfer operation in the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1. Note that in these drawings and in drawings described later, the dimensions and number of each part are exaggerated or simplified as necessary for ease of understanding. In addition, to unify the directions in each drawing, an XYZ Cartesian coordinate system is set as shown in FIG. 1. Here, the XY plane is a horizontal plane, and the Z direction represents the vertical direction. More specifically, the (-Z) direction represents the vertical downward direction.

[0013] This substrate processing apparatus 1 is an apparatus for processing the surfaces of various substrates, such as semiconductor substrates, using a processing fluid in a supercritical state. Here, the "substrate" in this embodiment can refer to various substrates, such as semiconductor wafers, glass substrates for photomasks, glass substrates for liquid crystal displays, glass substrates for plasma displays, substrates for FEDs (Field Emission Displays), substrates for optical disks, substrates for magnetic disks, and substrates for magneto-optical disks. The following description will be given with reference to the drawings, primarily using a substrate processing apparatus used for processing semiconductor wafers as an example, but the apparatus can also be applied to processing the various substrates exemplified above.

[0014] The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a processing unit 10, a transfer unit 30, a supply unit 50, an intermediate mover 70, and a control unit 90. The processing unit 10 is the main body that performs the supercritical drying process, and the transfer unit 30 receives unprocessed substrates transported by an external transport device (not shown) and transports them into the processing unit 10, and also transports processed substrates from the processing unit 10 to the external transport device. The supply unit 50 supplies chemicals and power required for processing to the processing unit 10 and the transfer unit 30. The intermediate mover 70 moves integrally with the lift pins 37 of the transfer unit 30 when the transfer unit 30 receives or delivers a substrate, and moves together with the support tray 15 when the processing unit 10 processes the substrate, as will be described in detail later.

[0015] The control unit 90 controls each part of these devices to perform predetermined processing. For this purpose, the control unit 90 is equipped with a CPU 91 that executes various control programs, a memory 92 that temporarily stores processing data, a storage 93 that stores the control programs executed by the CPU 91, and an interface 94 for exchanging information with users and external devices. The operation of the devices, which will be described later, is achieved by the CPU 91 executing the control programs written in advance in the storage 93 and causing each part of the devices to perform predetermined operations.

[0016] As shown in Fig. 1, the processing unit 10 has a structure in which a processing chamber 12 is mounted on a base 11. The processing chamber 12 is constructed by combining several metal blocks, and its interior is hollow, forming a processing space SP. A substrate S to be processed is loaded into the processing space SP and undergoes processing. A slit-shaped opening 121 that extends elongatedly in the X direction is formed on the (-Y) side surface of the processing chamber 12, and the processing space SP communicates with the outside space via the opening 121.

[0017] A lid member 13 is provided on the (-Y) side surface of the processing chamber 12 so as to close the opening 121. A flat support tray 15 is attached in a horizontal position to the (+Y) side surface of the lid member 13. An upper surface 151 of the support tray 15 serves as a support surface on which a substrate S can be placed. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of (three in this embodiment) through holes 152 are provided in the substrate support area of ​​this upper surface 151, dispersed in the vertical direction Z. Each through hole 152 is provided to allow lift pins 37 of the transfer unit 30, which will be described later, to move in and out of the support tray 15, and the inner diameter of each through hole 152 is set to be slightly wider than the outer diameter of the lift pins 37.

[0018] Furthermore, one plug structure 71 is disposed so as to be insertable and detachable into each of the three through holes 152, and these three plug structures 71 constitute an intermediate mover 70. Each plug structure 71 has a columnar member 72 that is entirely insertable and detachable into the through hole 152 and has a lower end that is finished into a shape that allows engagement with the upper end of the lift pin 37, and an umbrella member 73 that is connected to the upper end of the columnar member 72 so as to cover the through hole 152 and the periphery of the through hole 152 from above. The plug structure 71 can be made of a metal material, such as stainless steel, whose surface has been electropolished after processing.

[0019] 3B, when the lift pin 37 rises toward the through hole 152 with the columnar member 72 of the plug structure 71 inserted in the through hole 152, the upper end of the lift pin 37 engages with the lower surface of the columnar member 72 within the through hole 152. While maintaining this engagement, the lift pin 37 further passes through the through hole 152 and rises through the support tray 15. As shown in FIG. 3A, the plug structure 71 moves in the vertical direction Z together with the lift pin 37 while covering the upper end of the lift pin 37. When the lift pin 37 reaches a preset upper end, the plug structure 71 is positioned at a transfer position P1 spaced above the support tray 15. The lift pin 37, whose upper end is thus capped by the plug structure 71, can transfer the substrate S to and from a hand H provided on an external transfer device (for example, a transfer robot 111 shown in FIG. 10). In this embodiment, a protruding portion 731 is provided at the center of the upper end of the umbrella member 73 to protrude upward, and when the substrate S is transferred to and from the hand H, it comes into contact with the lower surface of the substrate S to support it.

[0020] Meanwhile, when the lift pins 37 descend through the through holes 152, the plug structures 71 descend together to a height position P3 on the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15, as will be described in detail below. That is, the intermediate movable body 70 formed by the plug structures 71 moves in the vertical direction Z in conjunction with the lift pins 37's up-and-down movement while positioned midway between the support tray 15 and the substrate S. In particular, as shown in FIG. 3B , while the upper ends of the lift pins 37 move below the height position P3, the substrate is supported at the substrate support position P2 and the through holes 152 are sealed at the height position P3, in this order. That is, when the protrusion portions 731 supporting the substrate S move integrally with the lift pins 37 below the substrate support position P2, the substrate S is transferred to the plurality of substrate support pins 153 erected from the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15. The upper end positions of the plurality of substrate support pins 153 are all located at the substrate support position P2 in the vertical direction Z. As a result, the substrate S is positioned at the substrate support position P2, floating a predetermined height (=P2-P3) above the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15. Shortly after this, the plug structure 71 also descends integrally with the lift pins 37 as they descend, and the entire columnar member 72 fits snugly into the through-hole 152, and at height position P3 the umbrella member 73 is engaged around the through-hole 152, closing the through-hole 152 from above. As a result, the intermediate movable body 70 closes all three through-holes 152 and is integrated with the support tray 15.

[0021] Subsequently, the lift pins 37 move downward away from the through holes 152 and the plug structures 71 to positions where they do not interfere with the movement of the support tray 15 in the Y direction.

[0022] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in order to raise and lower the lift pins 37 as described above, the transfer unit 30 including the lift pins 37 further includes a main body 31, a lifting member 33, and a base member 35. The lifting member 33 is a columnar member extending in the Z direction and is supported by a support mechanism (not shown) so as to be movable in the Z direction. A base member 35 having a substantially horizontal upper surface is attached to the upper portion of the lifting member 33, and a plurality of lift pins 37 are erected upward from the upper surface of the base member 35. Each of the lift pins 37 supports the substrate S in a horizontal position from below by abutting its upper end with the lower surface of the substrate S via a plug structure 71. In order to stably support the substrate S, it is desirable to provide N or more (N≧3) lift pins 37 whose upper ends have the same height, and to provide N through holes 152 and N plug structures 71 corresponding to each lift pin.

[0023] The lifting member 33 can be moved up and down by a lifting mechanism 51 provided in the supply unit 50. Specifically, the lifting mechanism 51 has a linear motion mechanism such as a linear motor, a linear motion guide, a ball screw mechanism, a solenoid, or an air cylinder, and this linear motion mechanism moves the lifting member 33 in the Z direction. The lifting mechanism 51 operates in response to a control command from the control unit 90.

[0024] The base member 35 moves up and down due to the lifting member 33 moving up and down, and the plurality of lift pins 37 move up and down integrally with the base member 35. As a result, as described above, the transfer of the substrate S between the transfer unit 30 and the support tray 15 is realized via the intermediate moving body 70.

[0025] When the transfer of the substrate S is completed and the lift pins 37 are retracted downward from the support tray 15, the intermediate movable body 70 is integrated with the support tray 15, as shown in FIG. 3B. The support tray 15 is held by the lid member 13 in a cantilevered position, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The lid member 13 is supported by a support mechanism (not shown) so as to be horizontally movable in the Y direction. The lid member 13 can be moved forward and backward relative to the processing chamber 12 by an advancing and retreating mechanism 53 provided in the supply unit 50. Specifically, the advancing and retreating mechanism 53 has a linear motion mechanism such as a linear motor, a linear motion guide, a ball screw mechanism, a solenoid, or an air cylinder, and this linear motion mechanism moves the lid member 13 in the Y direction. Therefore, when the advancing and retreating mechanism 53 operates in response to a control command from the control unit 90, the support tray 15, the intermediate movable body 70, and the substrate S move in the Y direction together with the lid member 13.

[0026] 2, when the cover member 13 moves in the (-Y) direction, the support tray 15 is pulled out from the processing space SP through the opening 121, thereby enabling access to the support tray 15. That is, the substrate S can be placed on the support tray 15 and the substrate S placed on the support tray 15 can be removed. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3B, when the cover member 13 moves in the (+Y) direction, the support tray 15 is accommodated in the processing space SP. When the substrate S is placed on the support tray 15, the substrate S is carried into the processing space SP by the intermediate movable body 70 together with the support tray 15 with the through-hole 152 blocked.

[0027] The lid member 13 moves in the (+Y) direction to close the opening 121, thereby sealing the processing space SP. Although not shown, a seal member is provided between the (+Y) side surface of the lid member 13 and the (-Y) side surface of the processing chamber 12, thereby maintaining the processing space SP in an airtight state. In addition, the lid member 13 is fixed to the processing chamber 12 by a locking mechanism (not shown). In this way, with the processing space SP kept airtight, processing of the substrate S is performed in the processing space SP.

[0028] In this embodiment, a fluid of a substance that can be used in supercritical processing, such as carbon dioxide, is supplied in a gaseous or liquid state to the processing unit 10 from a fluid supply unit 57 provided in the supply unit 50. Carbon dioxide is a chemical substance suitable for supercritical drying processing because it reaches a supercritical state at a relatively low temperature and pressure and has the property of dissolving organic solvents that are often used in substrate processing.

[0029] The fluid is filled in the processing space SP, and when the processing space SP reaches an appropriate temperature and pressure, the fluid becomes supercritical. In this manner, the substrate S is processed by the processing fluid in the processing chamber 12. The supply unit 50 is provided with a fluid recovery unit 55, and the processed fluid is recovered by the fluid recovery unit 55. The fluid supply unit 57 and the fluid recovery unit 55 are controlled by a control unit 90.

[0030] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process in which a substrate is processed by a processing fluid in a processing chamber in the first embodiment. This embodiment differs from the prior art in that the through-hole 152 is blocked by a plug structure 71 constituting the intermediate mover 70; otherwise, the configuration and operation are essentially the same. Specifically, the prior art does not include the plug structure 71, and the through-hole 152 connects the lower space SP1 and the upper space SP2 of the support tray 15. Therefore, a portion of the processing fluid F1 flowing through the lower space SP1 in the processing chamber 12 flows into the upper space SP2 through the through-hole 152, as indicated by the dotted arrow in FIG. 4, forming an upward flow F2. This upward flow F2 then flows around to the upper surface of the substrate S via the lower surface. Therefore, particles from the lower space SP1 or the upper space SP2 are carried by the upward flow F2 to the upper surface of the substrate S, and may re-adhere to the fine pattern formed on the upper surface of the substrate S. Furthermore, the upward flow F2 may disturb the flow of the processing fluid F3 flowing along the upper surface of the substrate S, increasing the risk of pattern collapse.

[0031] In contrast, according to the first embodiment, when processing is performed with the processing fluid in the processing chamber 12, the through-hole 152 is blocked by the plug structure 71. Therefore, the processing fluid F1 flowing through the lower space SP1 and flowing into the through-hole 152 is blocked by the plug structure 71, as indicated by the solid arrow in the figure. This reliably prevents the generation of an upward flow F2, thereby eliminating the upward flow. As a result, adverse effects of the processing fluid flowing toward the substrate S (such as particle re-adhesion and pattern collapse) can be reliably prevented, allowing high-quality substrate processing to be performed.

[0032] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the shape and positional relationship of each part involved in substrate transfer in a second embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. Figs. 6A and 6B are partial enlarged views of each part during a substrate transfer operation in the substrate processing apparatus shown in Fig. 5. The second embodiment differs significantly from the first embodiment in that the support tray 15 does not have substrate support pins 152 upright, but has a flat upper surface 151, and in the configuration of the intermediate mover 70. The remaining configuration is basically the same as that of the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will focus on the differences, and the same components will be designated by the same reference numerals and will not be described again.

[0033] In the second embodiment, the intermediate movable body 70 has a lower contact portion 74 finished in a shape that allows it to contact the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15, and an upper contact portion 75 that protrudes upward from the upper surface of the lower contact portion 74 and is finished in a shape that allows it to contact the lower surface of the substrate S. The lower contact portion 74 has a planar size SZ2 (see FIG. 6A) that is larger than the planar size SZ1 (see FIG. 6A) of a substrate support area 154 (see FIG. 5) that includes all of the through-holes 152. The lower contact portion 74 is disposed so as to cover the substrate support area 154 when viewed vertically from above. On the other hand, the upper contact portion 75 has a shape that corresponds to a hand H provided on an external transport device. That is, the hand H has arms AR spaced apart from each other in the X direction and has a tuning fork shape when viewed vertically from above. Therefore, to avoid interference with the hand H, the upper contact portion 75 has a generally oval shape consisting of two parallel lines of equal length and two arcs when viewed vertically from above, and the distance between the two parallel lines is narrower than the separation distance of the arms AR. Also, the protrusion height of the upper contact portion 75 from the lower contact portion 74 is greater than the thickness of the arms AR. Therefore, as will be described next, the intermediate movable body 70 can be positioned between the substrate S and the support tray 15 to perform the transfer operation with the hand H and the sealing of the through-hole 152.

[0034] For example, as shown in FIG. 6B , when the intermediate moving body 70 is placed on the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15 and the lift pins 37 rise toward the through-holes 152, the upper ends of the lift pins 37 reach the upper openings of the through-holes 152 and abut against the lower abutment portions 74 of the intermediate moving body 70, supporting them from below. While maintaining this support state, the lift pins 37 further pass through the through-holes 152 and rise through the support tray 15. As shown in FIG. 6A , the intermediate moving body 70 moves together with the lift pins 37 in the vertical direction Z. When the lift pins 37 reach a predetermined lift end, the upper abutment portions 75 of the intermediate moving body 70 are positioned at the loading / unloading position P1. This allows the intermediate moving body 70, supported by the lift pins 37, to transfer the substrate S between the intermediate moving body 70, supported by the hand H, and the hand H, which is provided on the external transport device. That is, when the substrate S is transferred to and from the hand H, the entire upper surface of the upper abutment portions 75 abuts against and supports the lower surface of the substrate S.

[0035] Meanwhile, when the lift pins 37 descend below the support tray 15 through the through-holes 152, the intermediate mover 70 is placed on the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15 while supporting the substrate S from below. At this time, all of the through-holes 152 formed in the support tray 15 are blocked and sealed by the lower abutment portions 74 of the intermediate mover 70. Furthermore, when the lift pins 37 move downward from the support tray 15, the support tray 15 and the substrate S can move together in the Y direction while the through-holes 152 are blocked. Then, the cover member 13, which supports the support tray 15 in a cantilevered manner, moves in the (+Y) direction, and the support tray 15, the intermediate mover 70, and the substrate S are accommodated together in the processing space SP. Furthermore, the cover member 13 moves in the (+Y) direction and blocks the opening 121, thereby sealing the processing space SP. Subsequently, the processing space SP is filled with a processing fluid. When the processing space SP reaches an appropriate temperature and pressure, the processing fluid enters a supercritical state. The substrate S is then processed by the processing fluid in the processing chamber 12 .

[0036] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process in which a substrate is processed by a processing fluid in a processing chamber 12 in the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, when processing is performed by the processing fluid in the processing chamber 12, the through-hole 152 is blocked by the lower contact portion 74 of the intermediate mover 70. Therefore, as in the first embodiment, the processing fluid F1 flowing through the lower space SP1 that has flowed into the through-hole 152 is blocked by the lower contact portion 74, as indicated by the solid arrow in the figure. This reliably prevents the generation of an upward flow F2, thereby preventing the upward flow. As a result, adverse effects of the processing fluid flowing toward the substrate S (such as particle reattachment and pattern collapse) can be reliably prevented, enabling high-quality substrate processing.

[0037] In the second embodiment, as shown in the enlarged view (broken line portion) in FIG. 7, the processing fluid F3 is supplied to the upper surface of the substrate S supported by the upper contact portion 75. Here, by changing the configuration of the intermediate mover 70, for example, by changing the protruding height of the upper contact portion 75, it is possible to adjust the distance D between the ceiling surface constituting the processing space SP and the upper surface of the substrate S. Therefore, by adjusting the distance D in accordance with the type and size of the substrate S, it is possible to adapt the flow rate and flow rate of the processing fluid F3 to the type of substrate S. As a result, it is possible to accommodate a variety of substrates S, and it has high versatility.

[0038] Furthermore, in the second embodiment, the substrate S is supported solely by the upper contact portion 75 having a substantially oval shape when viewed from above, but the shape and number of the upper contact portions 75 are not limited to this, and for example, the upper contact portion 75 may be configured with a plurality of support pins as will be described below. Furthermore, a plurality of types of intermediate movers 70 having upper contact portions 75 with different heights may be prepared, and the intermediate mover 70 to be used may be selectively used depending on the type of substrate S (third embodiment).

[0039] Fig. 8 is a plan view showing an example of a substrate processing system for processing substrates using a third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. Fig. 9 is a diagram showing the configuration of intermediate movable bodies used in the substrate processing system shown in Fig. 8 and a container for storing them. The substrate processing system 100 is a single-wafer processing apparatus installed, for example, in a clean room, for processing substrates S, each of which has a fine pattern formed on only one main surface. As shown in Fig. 8, the substrate processing system 100 includes a processing section 110 having a movable body cleaning device 3 for cleaning a substrate processing apparatus 1 corresponding to the third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention and an intermediate movable body 70 used in the substrate processing apparatus 1, and an indexer section 120 coupled to the processing section 110. The indexer unit 120 is equipped with a container holder 123 capable of holding substrate containers CS for storing substrates S (such as a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod), SMIF (Standard Mechanical Interface) pod, or OC (Open Cassette) that can store multiple substrates S in a sealed state) and a movable body container CM for storing intermediate movers 70, and an indexer robot 122 that accesses the substrate containers CS and CM held by the container holder 123 to remove unprocessed substrates S from the substrate container CS, store processed substrates S in the substrate container CS, remove an intermediate mover 70 from the movable body container CM before use, and store a cleaned intermediate mover 70 in the movable body container CM. The substrate container CS stores multiple substrates S in a substantially horizontal position. 9, the container CM for movable bodies accommodates intermediate movable bodies 70 having a plurality of support pins 751 erected on the upper surface of the lower abutment portion 74 as upper abutment portions 75 in a horizontal position with the support pins 751 facing upward. In this substrate processing system 100, in order to accommodate a wide variety of substrates S, the container CM for movable bodies accommodates a plurality of types of intermediate movable bodies 70 having support pins 751 with different protruding heights.

[0040] The indexer robot 122 comprises a base 122a fixed to the apparatus housing, an articulated arm 122b rotatable about a vertical axis relative to the base 122a, and a hand 122c attached to the tip of the articulated arm 122b. The hand 122c is structured so that a substrate S or an intermediate mover 70 can be placed on and held on its upper surface. Indexer robots having such articulated arms and hands for holding substrates are well known, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0041] The processing section 110 includes a transfer robot 111 disposed approximately in the center in a plan view, and substrate processing apparatuses 1 and a movable cleaning apparatus 3 disposed around the transfer robot 111. Specifically, three substrate processing apparatuses 1 and one movable cleaning apparatus 3 are disposed facing each other in the space in which the transfer robot 111 is disposed. The transfer robot 111 randomly accesses the substrate processing apparatuses 1 to transfer substrates S and transfers an intermediate movable body 70 to the movable cleaning apparatus 3. Meanwhile, the substrate processing apparatus 1 performs a predetermined process on the substrate S in the same manner as the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment, and the movable cleaning apparatus 3 performs a cleaning process on the intermediate movable body 70 used in the substrate processing apparatus 1. The substrate processing apparatus 1 is the same as the second embodiment of the present invention (FIG. 5) except that the upper contact portion 75 of the intermediate movable body 70 has a pin structure. The movable cleaning apparatus 3 can be a device for cleaning semiconductor wafers or the like in a single-wafer manner, and therefore detailed configurations of the substrate processing apparatus 1 and the movable cleaning apparatus 3 will be omitted here.

[0042] In the substrate processing system 100 configured as described above, a control device (not shown) controls each part of the system as follows according to a recipe that predefines the type of substrate S, processing details, etc. Below, an overview of the operation of processing the n-th substrate S will be described with reference to Figure 10 and Figures 11A to 11E.

[0043] Figure 10 is a diagram showing the operation of processing a substrate by the substrate processing system shown in Figure 8. Also, Figures 11A to 11E are diagrams showing the operation executed in a substrate processing apparatus equipped in the substrate processing system shown in Figure 8. More specifically, Figure 11A is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of a receiving operation of an intermediate mover, Figure 11B is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of a preparatory operation for transferring a substrate, Figure 11C is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of a receiving operation of a substrate, Figure 11D is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of a preparatory operation for accommodating the substrate and intermediate mover in a processing chamber, and Figure 11E is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of an accommodating operation of the substrate and intermediate mover in the processing chamber.

[0044] When processing the n-th substrate S, the control device reads out a recipe corresponding to the n-th substrate S, and processes the substrate S with a processing fluid using one of the three substrate processing devices 1 (hereinafter referred to as "substrate processing device 1A"). More specifically, the control device controls each part of the system according to the read recipe, and executes the following series of operations.

[0045] An intermediate mover 70 corresponding to the recipe is transferred from the container CM for movers to the substrate processing apparatus 1A (step S1). More specifically, the intermediate mover 70 corresponding to the recipe, for example, an intermediate mover 70 having support pins 751 with a protrusion height H1, is selectively removed from the container CM for movers by the indexer robot 122, transported to the processing section 110, and temporarily placed in the buffer 112. The transfer robot 111 then accesses the buffer 112 and receives the intermediate mover 70 with the hand H. In this embodiment, the intermediate mover 70 is transferred between the indexer robot 122 and the transfer robot 111 via the buffer 112, but the intermediate mover 70 may also be transferred directly between them. This also applies to the transfer of the substrate S. Having received the intermediate mover 70 in this manner, the hand H of the transfer robot 111 accesses the substrate processing apparatus 1A and loads it into the substrate processing apparatus 1A, as shown in FIG. 11A. At this time, the upper ends of the lift pins 37 are positioned at a position lower than the load-in / out position P1, and in this positioned state, the intermediate moving body 70 is loaded into the load-in / out position P1. Subsequently, the lift pins 37 rise to lift the intermediate moving body 70 above the load-in / out position P1, and receive the intermediate moving body 70 from the hand H.

[0046] 11B, following the delivery of the intermediate movable body 70, the hand H of the transfer robot 111 retreats from the substrate processing apparatus 1A, and the lift pins 37, while still supporting the intermediate movable body 70, descend so that the upper ends of the support pins 751 of the intermediate movable body 70 are lowered below the carry-in / out position P1. In this way, preparation for delivery of the n-th substrate S is carried out (step S2).

[0047] In parallel with the above-described transfer preparation, the n-th substrate S is removed from the substrate container CS by the indexer robot 122, transported to the processing unit 110, and temporarily placed in the buffer 112. Then, when the transfer preparation for the substrate S is completed, the transfer robot 111 accesses the buffer 112 and receives the substrate S with the hand H. Then, the hand H of the transfer robot 111 accesses the substrate processing apparatus 1A and loads the substrate S into the substrate processing apparatus 1A, as shown in FIG. 11C. At this time, the upper ends of the support pins 751 are positioned at a position lower than the load / unload position P1, and the substrate S is loaded into the load / unload position P1 in this positioned state. Subsequently, as the lift pins 37 rise, the support pins 751 of the intermediate mover 70 lift the substrate S above the load / unload position P1 and receive the substrate S from the hand H (step S3). As a result, a stack of substrates S supported by the support pins 751 of the intermediate mover 70 is formed, and the lift pins 37 support the stack from below.

[0048] In order to place this stack (= intermediate mover 70 + substrate S) on the support tray 15 and accommodate it in the processing chamber 12, the lift pins 37 descend through the through holes 152 while supporting the stack (see FIG. 11D). Then, when the lift pins 37 move below the through holes 152, the intermediate mover 70 places the substrate S on the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15 while supporting it from below. At this time, all of the through holes 152 formed in the support tray 15 are blocked and sealed by the lower abutment portions 74 of the intermediate mover 70. Furthermore, as the lift pins 37 move downward from the support tray 15, the support tray 15 and the substrate S can move integrally in the Y direction while blocking the through holes 152 (Step S4: Preparation for accommodation of the substrate + intermediate mover completed). Note that, in parallel with this preparation for accommodation, the hand H of the transfer robot 111 retreats from the substrate processing apparatus 1A, as shown in FIG. 11D.

[0049] In the next step S5, the cover member 13, which supports the support tray 15 in a cantilevered state, moves in the (+Y) direction (see FIG. 11E). As a result, the support tray 15, the intermediate movable body 70, and the substrate S are accommodated together in the processing space SP. The cover member 13 also moves in the (+Y) direction to close the opening 121, thereby sealing the processing space SP. Subsequently, a processing fluid is filled into the processing space SP, and when the processing space SP reaches an appropriate temperature and pressure, the processing fluid enters a supercritical state. In this way, the substrate S is processed by the processing fluid in the processing chamber 12 (step S6).

[0050] When the processing with the processing fluid is completed, the lid member 13 moves in the (-Y) direction. As a result, the support tray 15, the intermediate mover 70, and the substrates S are removed as a unit from the processing space SP (step S7). Subsequently, the lift pins 37 rise through the through holes 152 and lift the stack (= used intermediate mover 70 + processed substrates S) from the support tray 15 as a unit, positioning the substrates S above the load / unload position P1. Subsequently, the hand H of the transfer robot 111 accesses the substrate processing apparatus 1A and is positioned at the load / unload position P1, after which the lift pins 37 descend. As a result, the substrates S are transferred from the intermediate mover 70 to the hand H at the load / unload position P1. Then, the transfer robot 111 that has received the processed substrates S returns them to the substrate container CS in the reverse order of the procedure used to load the unprocessed substrates S (step S8).

[0051] After the processed substrate S is unloaded as described above, the used intermediate mover 70 remains on the lift pins 37. Therefore, in this embodiment, the intermediate mover 70 is transferred to the movable body cleaning apparatus 3 (step S9), cleaned by the movable body cleaning apparatus 3 (step S10), and then returned to the movable body container CM to prepare for the next use (step S11). The operation of removing the intermediate mover 70 from the substrate processing apparatus 1A is performed by the reverse operation of the transfer operation from the hand H to the lift pins 37. Furthermore, the transfer from the substrate processing apparatus 1A to the movable body cleaning apparatus 3 is performed only by the transfer robot 111, and the operation of returning the cleaned intermediate mover 70 from the movable body cleaning apparatus 3 to the movable body container CM is performed by the transfer robot 111, the buffer 112, and the indexer robot 122, similar to step S8.

[0052] In parallel with the transfer of the substrate S from the substrate processing apparatus 1A to the movable body cleaning apparatus 3 by the transfer robot 111, a sequence for processing the (n+1)th substrate S is started.

[0053] As described above, the substrate processing apparatus 1A according to the third embodiment can achieve the same effects as those of the second embodiment. Moreover, the intermediate mover 70 is cleaned after use and then reused. This improves the utilization efficiency of the intermediate mover 70 and reduces running costs.

[0054] In the third embodiment, the intermediate moving body 70 (FIG. 9) provided with the support pin 751 is used as the upper contact portion 75, but the intermediate moving body 70 (FIG. 5) used in the second embodiment may also be used.

[0055] In the above-described embodiment, the support tray 15 corresponds to an example of a "substrate support section" of the present invention. The transfer unit 30 corresponds to an example of a "transfer mechanism" of the present invention. The substrate container CS and the movable body container CM correspond to an example of a "substrate storage section" and a "movable body storage section" of the present invention, respectively. The transfer robot 111 and the indexer robot 122 correspond to an example of a "transfer device" of the present invention.

[0056] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications other than those described above are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the processing chamber 12 in the above-described embodiment performs supercritical drying processing in the internal processing space SP. However, the technical concept of the present invention is also applicable to other substrate processing. In particular, the present invention can be applied to substrate processing apparatuses in general in which a substrate to be processed is placed on a support tray and loaded into the processing chamber, and an upward flow may occur from below the support tray due to the presence of through holes for lift pins provided in the support tray during processing.

[0057] Furthermore, in the second and third embodiments described above, the intermediate moving body 70 is placed on the upper surface 151 of the support tray 15, and the through hole 152 provided in the support tray 15 is blocked by the lower surface of the lower abutment portion 74, but as in the first embodiment, a columnar member that can be inserted into the through hole 152 may be protruded downward from the lower surface of the lower abutment portion 74.

[0058] In the above embodiment, the support tray 15 is attached to the side of the lid member 13, and they move together, but this is not limiting. For example, the support tray may be configured to move independently of the lid member. In this case, the lid member may be a door-like member that can be attached to the opening of the processing chamber so as to be able to open and close freely.

[0059] Furthermore, the various chemical substances used in the treatment of the above-described embodiments are only examples, and various substances can be used instead as long as they are consistent with the technical concept of the present invention described above. [Industrial Applicability]

[0060] The present invention can be applied to the general substrate processing technology for processing substrates using processing fluids. [Explanation of symbols]

[0061] 1, 1A...Substrate processing equipment 3...Mobile cleaning device 12...Processing chamber 15...Support tray (substrate support part) 30...Transfer unit (transfer mechanism) 37...Lift pin 70...Intermediate moving body 71...Plug structure 72...Columnar member 73...Umbrella member 74...Lower contact part 75...Upper contact part 100...Substrate processing system 111...Transport robot (transport device) 122...Indexer robot (transport device) 151...(substrate support part) upper surface 152...Through hole 153...Board support pin 154...Substrate support area 731…Protrusion part 751...Support pin CM…Container for moving objects (moving object storage section) CS...Substrate container (substrate storage area) D...Spacing F1, F3...Processing fluid H...Hand P2...Board support position S...Substrate SZ1...(board) plane size SZ2...Flat surface size (of the lower contact part) Z: Vertical direction

Claims

1. A substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate using a processing fluid, a support tray that supports the substrate in a horizontal position from below at a substrate support position in the vertical direction; a processing chamber capable of accommodating the support tray and for processing the substrate supported on the support tray using the processing fluid; a transfer mechanism that is disposed outside the processing chamber, has lift pins that move up and down through through holes formed in the support tray, and transfers the substrate between the support tray and the processing chamber by extending and retracting the lift pins relative to the through holes; an intermediate movable body that is movable in a vertical direction between the substrate and the support tray, The intermediate moving body is supporting a lower surface of the substrate vertically above the substrate support position while being supported from below by upper ends of the lift pins protruding vertically upward from the through holes; When the lift pins are retracted into the through holes, the substrate is transferred to the support tray at the substrate support position and is engaged with the support tray to close the through holes. A substrate processing apparatus characterized by:

2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , The support tray has a plurality of the through holes, The transfer mechanism is a substrate processing apparatus in which one lift pin is provided for each of the through holes so as to be able to move up and down.

3. 3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, the intermediate mover has plug structures the same number as the number of the through holes, Each plug structure is a columnar member that is entirely insertable into and detachable from the through hole and has a lower end that can be engaged with an upper end of the lift pin; a cap member connected to an upper end of the columnar member so as to cover the through hole and the periphery of the through hole from above; A substrate processing apparatus having:

4. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3, In the substrate processing apparatus, a protruding portion is provided on an upper portion of the umbrella member, protruding vertically upward and supporting the underside of the substrate vertically above the substrate support position.

5. 5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3, The support tray has a plurality of substrate support pins that protrude vertically upward, The substrate support pin has an upper end position that is higher in the vertical direction than the upper end position of the plug structure when the through hole is blocked, and supports the substrate passed from the lift pin at the upper end position.

6. 3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2, The intermediate movable body has an upper abutment portion that can abut against the underside of the substrate and a lower abutment portion that can abut against the support tray, and the upper abutment portion and the lower abutment portion move vertically together in accordance with the raising and lowering of the lift pins.

7. 7. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, the plurality of through holes are provided in a dispersed manner in a substrate support region of the support tray that supports the substrate; The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the lower contact portion has a planar size larger than the substrate support area when viewed vertically from above and is disposed so as to cover the substrate support area.

8. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, The intermediate moving body is made of a metal material.

9. a substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6 or 7; a substrate storage unit for storing the substrate; a moving body storage unit for storing the intermediate moving body; a transport device that transports the substrate from the substrate storage unit to the substrate processing apparatus and transports the intermediate movable body from the movable body storage unit to the substrate processing apparatus, The substrate processing apparatus includes: the intermediate movable body carried out from the movable body storage unit by the transport device is transferred to the support tray; the substrate unloaded from the substrate storage unit by the transport device is delivered to the upper contact portion of the intermediate movable body supported by the support tray; The substrate supported on the support tray via the intermediate moving body is treated with the treatment fluid. A substrate processing system comprising:

10. 8. A substrate processing method for performing the processing by the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, comprising: transferring the intermediate movable body from a movable body storage unit to the support tray; transferring the substrate from a substrate storage unit to the upper contact portion of the intermediate movable body supported by the support tray; treating the substrate supported on the support tray via the intermediate mover with the treatment fluid; A substrate processing method comprising:

Images