Cleaning method and processing device

Abstract

To provide a technique that can reduce film residue when removing deposits in a process container.SOLUTION: A cleaning method is designed to remove deposits within a process container. The cleaning method has the steps for adjusting the inside of the process container to a first temperature, supplying the process container adjusted to the first temperature with first gas including hydrogen fluoride gas, adjusting the inside of the process container to a second temperature higher than the first temperature, and supplying the process container adjusted to the second temperature with second gas including hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to cleaning methods and processing apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known a technique for removing deposits that have adhered to the inside of a processing vessel due to a film formation process or the like (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In Patent Document 1, silicon fluoride that is generated when cleaning the inside of the processing vessel is oxidized with an oxidizing gas, and the oxidized silicon fluoride is removed with hydrogen fluoride. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-068045 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The present disclosure provides a technique that can reduce film residue when removing deposits from inside a processing vessel. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A cleaning method according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a cleaning method for removing deposits in a processing vessel, and includes the steps of adjusting the temperature inside the processing vessel to a first temperature, supplying a first gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas into the processing vessel adjusted to the first temperature, adjusting the temperature inside the processing vessel to a second temperature higher than the first temperature, and supplying a second gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas into the processing vessel adjusted to the second temperature. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to reduce film residue when removing deposits inside a processing vessel. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] Schematic diagram showing a processing apparatus according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a flowchart illustrating a cleaning method according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a timing chart showing a cleaning method according to an embodiment; [Figure 4] Timing chart showing one cycle of the second cleaning process DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Hereinafter, non-limiting exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In all the accompanying drawings, the same or corresponding reference numerals are used to designate the same or corresponding members or components, and redundant descriptions will be omitted.

[0009] [Processing device] A processing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 1, the processing apparatus 1 is a batch-type apparatus that processes a plurality of substrates W at once. The substrates W are, for example, semiconductor wafers. The processing may include a film formation process. The processing may also include an etching process.

[0010] The processing apparatus 1 includes a processing vessel 10, a gas supply unit 30, an exhaust unit 40, a heating unit 50, and a control unit 90.

[0011] The processing vessel 10 is capable of reducing the pressure inside. The processing vessel 10 accommodates a substrate W inside. The processing vessel 10 has an inner tube 11 and an outer tube 12. The inner tube 11 has a cylindrical shape with open upper and lower ends. The outer tube 12 has a cylindrical shape with a ceiling and an open lower end that covers the outside of the inner tube 11. The inner tube 11 and the outer tube 12 are arranged coaxially to form a double-tube structure. The inner tube 11 and the outer tube 12 are formed of a heat-resistant material such as quartz.

[0012] The lower end of the processing vessel 10 is airtightly supported by a manifold 13. The manifold 13 has a cylindrical shape. The manifold 13 is made of, for example, stainless steel. A flange 14 is formed at the upper end of the manifold 13, and the lower end of the outer tube 12 is placed on the flange 14 to support it. A sealant 15, such as an O-ring, is interposed between the flange 14 and the lower end of the outer tube 12 to keep the inside of the outer tube 12 airtight.

[0013] An annular support portion 16 is provided on the inner wall of the manifold 13, and the lower end of the inner pipe 11 is placed on the support portion 16 to support it.

[0014] A lid 17 is airtightly attached to the opening at the lower end of the manifold 13 via a sealing material 18 such as an O-ring, so as to airtightly close the opening at the lower end of the processing vessel 10, i.e., the opening of the manifold 13. The lid 17 is made of, for example, stainless steel.

[0015] A rotating shaft 20 that rotatably supports the boat 19 via a magnetic fluid seal (not shown) is provided through the center of the lid 17. The lower part of the rotating shaft 20 is rotatably supported by an arm 22 of an elevating mechanism 21 that is a boat elevator.

[0016] A rotating plate 23 is provided at the upper end of the rotating shaft 20, and the boat 19 is placed on the rotating plate 23 via a quartz heat retention table 24. Therefore, by raising and lowering the arm 22 of the lifting mechanism 21, the lid 17 and the boat 19 move up and down as a unit, allowing the boat 19 to be inserted into and removed from the processing vessel 10. The boat 19 can be accommodated within the processing vessel 10. The boat 19 holds a plurality of substrates W, for example, 50 to 150 substrates W, approximately horizontally with spacing between them in the vertical direction.

[0017] The gas supply unit 30 is configured to be able to introduce various process gases into the process vessel 10. The gas supply unit 30 includes a hydrogen fluoride supply unit 31, an ammonia supply unit 32, a nitrogen supply unit 33, and a film formation gas supply unit (not shown).

[0018] The hydrogen fluoride supply unit 31 includes a hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a inside the processing vessel 10 and a hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b outside the processing vessel 10. A hydrogen fluoride source 31c, a mass flow controller 31d, and a hydrogen fluoride valve 31e are installed in the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b, in this order from upstream to downstream in the gas flow direction. Thus, the supply timing of hydrogen fluoride (HF) gas from the hydrogen fluoride source 31c is controlled by the hydrogen fluoride valve 31e, and the mass flow controller 31d adjusts the flow rate to a predetermined value. The hydrogen fluoride gas flows from the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b into the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and is discharged from the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a into the processing vessel 10.

[0019] The ammonia supply unit 32 includes an ammonia supply pipe 32a inside the processing vessel 10 and an ammonia supply path 32b outside the processing vessel 10. The ammonia supply path 32b is provided with an ammonia source 32c, a mass flow controller 32d, and an ammonia valve 32e, in this order from upstream to downstream in the gas flow direction. Thus, the supply timing of ammonia (NH) gas from the ammonia source 32c is controlled by the ammonia valve 32e, and the flow rate is adjusted to a predetermined value by the mass flow controller 32d. The ammonia gas flows from the ammonia supply path 32b into the ammonia supply pipe 32a and is discharged from the ammonia supply pipe 32a into the processing vessel 10.

[0020] The nitrogen supply unit 33 includes a nitrogen supply pipe 33a inside the processing vessel 10 and a nitrogen supply path 33b outside the processing vessel 10. The nitrogen supply path 33b is provided with a nitrogen source 33c, a mass flow controller 33d, and a nitrogen valve 33e, in this order from upstream to downstream in the gas flow direction. Thus, the supply timing of nitrogen (N2) gas from the nitrogen source 33c is controlled by the nitrogen valve 33e, and the flow rate is adjusted to a predetermined value by the mass flow controller 33d. The nitrogen gas flows from the nitrogen supply path 33b into the nitrogen supply pipe 33a and is discharged from the nitrogen supply pipe 33a into the processing vessel 10. Nitrogen gas is an example of an inert gas.

[0021] Each gas supply pipe (hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a, ammonia supply pipe 32a, nitrogen supply pipe 33a) is made of, for example, quartz. Each gas supply pipe is fixed to manifold 13. Each gas supply pipe extends vertically in a straight line near inner pipe 11, and then bends in an L-shape within manifold 13 and extends horizontally, thereby penetrating manifold 13. The gas supply pipes are arranged side by side along the circumferential direction of inner pipe 11 and are formed at the same height. Each gas supply pipe has an opening at its tip located in inner pipe 11, and discharges gas upward from the opening into processing vessel 10.

[0022] A heater 31f is attached to the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b. The heater 31f heats the hydrogen fluoride flowing through the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b, thereby suppressing corrosion of the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b due to the hydrogen fluoride gas. The heater 31f includes, for example, a piping heater, a cartridge heater, or a combination thereof. The heater 31f may be attached to only one of the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b.

[0023] The film formation gas supply unit may have the same configuration as the other supply units (hydrogen fluoride supply unit 31, ammonia supply unit 32, and nitrogen supply unit 33). Like the other supply units, the film formation gas supply unit includes a film formation gas supply pipe, a film formation gas supply path, a film formation gas source, a mass flow controller, and a film formation gas valve.

[0024] The gas supply unit 30 may mix multiple types of gases and discharge the mixed gas from one supply pipe. The gas supply pipes (hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a, ammonia supply pipe 32a, nitrogen supply pipe 33a, and film formation gas supply pipe) may have different shapes and arrangements. The gas supply unit 30 may be configured to supply other gases in addition to hydrogen fluoride gas, ammonia gas, nitrogen gas, and film formation gas.

[0025] The exhaust unit 40 exhausts gas that is discharged from the inner tube 11 and discharged from the exhaust port 41 via the space between the inner tube 11 and the outer tube 12. The exhaust port 41 is formed on the side wall of the upper part of the manifold 13, above the support unit 16. An exhaust passage 42 is connected to the exhaust port 41. A pressure adjustment valve 43 and a vacuum pump 44 are provided in the exhaust passage 42, in this order from upstream to downstream in the gas flow direction. The exhaust unit 40 operates the pressure adjustment valve 43 and the vacuum pump 44 based on the operation of the control unit 90, and adjusts the pressure inside the processing vessel 10 using the pressure adjustment valve 43 while using the vacuum pump 44 to suck out gas inside the processing vessel 10.

[0026] The heating unit 50 has a cylindrical heater 51 that surrounds the outer tube 12 on the radially outer side of the outer tube 12. The heater 51 heats the entire periphery of the processing vessel 10, thereby heating each substrate W accommodated in the processing vessel 10.

[0027] The control unit 90 may be a computer having one or more processors 91, memory 92, an input / output interface (not shown), and electronic circuits. The processor 91 is one or a combination of a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA, a circuit made up of multiple discrete semiconductors, etc. The memory 92 includes volatile memory and non-volatile memory (e.g., a compact disc, a DVD, a hard disk, a flash memory, etc.) and stores a program for operating the processing device 1 and a recipe for the process conditions for substrate processing, etc. The processor 91 executes the program and recipe stored in the memory 92 to control each component of the processing device 1 and perform the cleaning method described below.

[0028] [Cleaning method] The cleaning method according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 2. As shown in Fig. 2, the cleaning method according to the embodiment includes a temperature lowering step S10, a first cleaning step S20, a first temperature increasing step S30, a second cleaning step S40, and a second temperature increasing step S50.

[0029] In the temperature lowering step S10, the temperature inside the processing vessel, which has been maintained at a film formation temperature for performing a film formation process, is lowered to a first temperature for performing a first cleaning step S20. The film formation process may be, for example, a process for forming a silicon oxide film. The film formation temperature is, for example, 350°C. The first temperature is, for example, room temperature. The room temperature is the temperature inside a clean room in which the processing vessel is installed, and is, for example, 25°C.

[0030] The first cleaning step S20 is performed after the temperature lowering step S10. In the first cleaning step S20, a first gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas but not ammonia gas is supplied into a processing vessel adjusted to a first temperature. This removes deposits containing silicon oxide adhering to the inside of the processing vessel. Cleaning using hydrogen fluoride gas has a high etching rate. Therefore, deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel can be removed in a short time. However, in cleaning using hydrogen fluoride gas, the etching rate decreases as the temperature of the hydrogen fluoride gas increases. Therefore, if there is a region in the processing vessel that is higher in temperature than other regions, some of the deposits in that region may remain unetched. Note that in the first cleaning step S20, the first gas may be supplied after being heated to a third temperature higher than the first temperature.

[0031] The first temperature-raising step S30 is performed after the first cleaning step S20. In the first temperature-raising step S30, the temperature inside the processing container, which has been maintained at the first temperature, is raised to a second temperature for performing the second cleaning step S40. The second temperature is higher than the first temperature, and is, for example, 65°C or higher and 100°C or lower.

[0032] The second cleaning process S40 is performed after the first heating process S30. In the second cleaning process S40, deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel are removed by chemical oxide removal (COR), which involves chemical etching. Specifically, a second gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas is supplied into the processing vessel adjusted to a second temperature. The hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas then react with silicon oxide to generate ammonium silicofluoride [(NH4)2SiF6], which is then sublimated by heating. This removes the deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel. Although COR has a slow etching rate, it can etch the entire inside of the processing vessel. This allows the deposits remaining in the first cleaning process S20 to be removed.

[0033] The second temperature increase step S50 is performed after the second cleaning step S40. In the second temperature increase step S50, the temperature inside the processing container, which has been maintained at the second temperature, is increased to a film formation temperature for performing the film formation process. This allows the film formation process to be resumed inside the processing container. This completes the cleaning method according to the embodiment.

[0034] According to the cleaning method of the embodiment described above, the first cleaning step S20 and the second cleaning step S40 are performed in this order. In the first cleaning step S20, deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel are removed using hydrogen fluoride gas. Therefore, deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel can be removed in a short time. However, in the first cleaning step S20, some deposits may remain unetched in areas of the processing vessel that are hotter than other areas. In the second cleaning step S40, deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel are removed using COR. Therefore, the entire inside of the processing vessel can be etched, and deposits remaining unetched in the first cleaning step S20 can be removed. As a result, film residue can be reduced when removing deposits from the processing vessel.

[0035] 3 and 4, a description will be given of an operation when the cleaning method according to the embodiment is performed in the processing apparatus 1. The cleaning method according to the embodiment is performed, for example, after the film formation process is performed once or twice or more times in the processing apparatus 1.

[0036] First, the control unit 90 controls the lifting mechanism 21 to lift the lid 17 and bring it into contact with the manifold 13, thereby airtightly sealing the processing vessel 10.

[0037] Next, the control unit 90 starts the temperature lowering step S10 at time t1. The control unit 90 stops heating by the heater 51 at time t1. As a result, the temperature inside the processing vessel 10, which has been maintained at the film formation temperature for performing the film formation process, gradually drops and reaches the first temperature for performing the first cleaning step S20. The film formation temperature is, for example, 350°C. The first temperature is the temperature inside a clean room in which the processing apparatus 1 is installed, for example, room temperature. In the temperature lowering step S10, the control unit 90 may perform forced cooling to cool the inside of the processing vessel 10 using a refrigerant.

[0038] Next, at time t2 when the temperature inside the processing vessel 10 reaches the first temperature, the control unit 90 causes the vacuum pump 44 to evacuate the processing vessel 10, and gradually increases the opening of the pressure control valve 43 from 0%. As a result, the pressure inside the processing vessel 10 gradually decreases from atmospheric pressure (760 Torr) to, for example, 30 Torr (4 kPa) or less.

[0039] Next, the control unit 90 starts the first cleaning step S20 at time t3 when the pressure inside the processing vessel 10 reaches 30 Torr or less. At time t3, the control unit 90 opens the hydrogen fluoride valve 31e to supply hydrogen fluoride gas from the hydrogen fluoride source 31c into the processing vessel 10 via the hydrogen fluoride supply line 31b and the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a. In response to the supply of hydrogen fluoride gas, the control unit 90 also opens the nitrogen valve 33e to supply nitrogen gas from the nitrogen source 33c into the processing vessel 10 via the nitrogen supply line 33b and the nitrogen supply pipe 33a. Supplying nitrogen gas in addition to hydrogen fluoride gas facilitates control of the etching uniformity in the vertical direction of the processing vessel 10. The control unit 90 also controls the mass flow controllers 31d and 33d to adjust the flow rates of the hydrogen fluoride gas to, for example, 2 slm and the nitrogen gas to, for example, 6 slm. Furthermore, at time t3, the control unit 90 controls the aperture of the pressure adjustment valve 43 to adjust the pressure inside the processing vessel 10 to, for example, 30 Torr (4 kPa). When supplying fluorine gas from the hydrogen fluoride source 31c into the processing vessel 10, the control unit 90 may operate the heater 31f to heat the hydrogen fluoride gas flowing through the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b to a third temperature. The third temperature may be, for example, a temperature at which the hydrogen fluoride does not corrode the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b. This can prevent corrosion of the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a and the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b by the hydrogen fluoride gas.

[0040] Next, the control unit 90 continues supplying the hydrogen fluoride gas and the nitrogen gas into the processing vessel 10 until a first time period has elapsed from time t4 when the pressure inside the processing vessel 10 reaches 30 Torr. The first time period is determined, for example, depending on the amount of deposits adhering inside the processing vessel 10.

[0041] Next, the control unit 90 ends the first cleaning step S20 at time t5, which is a first time period after time t4. At time t5, the control unit 90 closes the hydrogen fluoride valve 31e and the nitrogen valve 33e to stop the supply of hydrogen fluoride gas and nitrogen gas into the processing chamber 10. This reduces the pressure inside the processing chamber 10.

[0042] In the first cleaning step S20, hydrogen fluoride gas is supplied into the processing vessel 10 to remove deposits containing silicon oxide adhering to the inside of the processing vessel 10. Cleaning using hydrogen fluoride gas has a high etching rate, allowing deposits to be removed in a short time. However, when using hydrogen fluoride gas, the etching rate decreases as the temperature of the hydrogen fluoride gas increases. Therefore, if there is a region in the processing vessel 10 that is hotter than other regions, some of the deposits in that region may remain without being etched. For example, in the space between the inner tube 11 and the outer tube 12, the region corresponding to the height position where the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a is installed is easily heated by the heat of the hydrogen fluoride gas heated by the heater 31f and flowing through the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a, and therefore deposits are likely to remain.

[0043] Next, the control unit 90 starts the first heating step S30 at time t6 when the pressure inside the processing vessel 10 has decreased. At time t6, the control unit 90 opens the nitrogen valve 33e to supply nitrogen gas from the nitrogen source 33c into the processing vessel 10 via the nitrogen supply path 33b and the nitrogen supply pipe 33a. The control unit 90 also controls the mass flow controller 33d to adjust the flow rate of the nitrogen gas to, for example, 20 slm. This replaces the hydrogen fluoride gas remaining in the processing vessel 10 with nitrogen gas.

[0044] Next, at time t7, a predetermined time after time t6, the control unit 90 activates the heater 51 to heat the inside of the processing vessel 10. The temperature inside the processing vessel 10 gradually increases due to the heating by the heater 51, and reaches a second temperature for performing the second cleaning step S40. The second temperature is, for example, 100°C.

[0045] Next, the control unit 90 starts the second cleaning process S40 at time t8, a predetermined time after time t7. At time t8, while continuing to supply nitrogen gas into the processing vessel 10, the control unit 90 opens the hydrogen fluoride valve 31e to supply hydrogen fluoride gas from the hydrogen fluoride source 31c through the hydrogen fluoride supply path 31b and the hydrogen fluoride supply pipe 31a into the processing vessel 10. In response to the supply of hydrogen fluoride gas, the control unit 90 also opens the ammonia valve 32e to supply ammonia gas from the ammonia source 32c through the ammonia supply path 32b and the ammonia supply pipe 32a into the processing vessel 10. The control unit 90 also controls the mass flow controller 31d to adjust the flow rate of the hydrogen fluoride gas to, for example, 0.9 slm. The control unit 90 also controls the mass flow controller 32d to adjust the flow rate of the ammonia gas to, for example, 3 slm. Furthermore, the control unit 90 controls the mass flow controller 33d to adjust the flow rate of the nitrogen gas to, for example, 4 slm.

[0046] Next, at time t9, when a predetermined time (e.g., 1 minute) has elapsed since time t8, the control unit 90 closes the hydrogen fluoride valve 31e and the ammonia valve 32e to stop the supply of hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas into the processing vessel 10. In addition, the control unit 90 controls the mass flow controller 33d to adjust the flow rate of the nitrogen gas to, for example, 0.6 slm.

[0047] Next, at time t10, a predetermined time after time t9, the control unit 90 controls the mass flow controller 33d to adjust the flow rate of the nitrogen gas to, for example, 6 slm, thereby replacing the hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas remaining in the processing chamber 10 with nitrogen gas.

[0048] Next, at time t11, when a predetermined time has elapsed since time t10, the control unit 90 closes the nitrogen valve 33e to stop the supply of nitrogen gas into the processing chamber .

[0049] Next, at time t12, a predetermined time after time t11, the control unit 90 opens the nitrogen valve 33e to supply nitrogen gas from the nitrogen source 33c through the nitrogen supply line 33b and the nitrogen supply pipe 33a into the processing chamber 10. The control unit 90 also controls the mass flow controller 33d to adjust the flow rate of the nitrogen gas to, for example, 6 slm. As a result, the hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas remaining in the processing chamber 10 are replaced with nitrogen gas.

[0050] Next, at time t13, a predetermined time after time t12, the control unit 90 closes the nitrogen valve 33e to stop the supply of nitrogen gas into the processing vessel 10, and continues to stop the supply of nitrogen gas into the processing vessel 10 until time t14.

[0051] The control unit 90 defines a cycle from time t8 to time t14 as one cycle, and repeats this cycle multiple times to complete the second cleaning process S40. In this manner, in the second cleaning process S40, the temperature inside the processing vessel 10 is adjusted to the second temperature, and a step of simultaneously supplying hydrogen fluoride, ammonia gas, and nitrogen gas into the processing vessel 10 and a step of supplying only nitrogen gas into the processing vessel 10 are repeated multiple times.

[0052] In the second cleaning step S40, COR removes deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel 10. That is, hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas are reacted with silicon oxide to generate ammonium silicofluoride [(NH4)2SiF6], and the ammonium silicofluoride is sublimated by heating, thereby removing the deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel 10. Although COR has a slow etching rate, it can etch the entire inside of the processing vessel 10. Therefore, it can remove deposits that were not etched in the first cleaning step S20 and remain.

[0053] Next, the control unit 90 starts the second temperature increasing step S50 at time t14. At time t14, the control unit 90 controls the mass flow controller 33d to adjust the flow rate of the nitrogen gas to, for example, 20 slm.

[0054] Next, at time t15, when a predetermined time has elapsed since time t14, the control unit 90 operates the heater 51 to heat the inside of the processing vessel 10. The temperature inside the processing vessel 10 gradually increases due to the heating by the heater 51, and reaches a film formation temperature for performing a film formation process.

[0055] Next, at time t16 when the temperature inside the processing vessel 10 reaches the film formation temperature, the control unit 90 stops suction inside the processing vessel 10 by the vacuum pump 44. As a result, the pressure inside the processing vessel 10 gradually increases and reaches atmospheric pressure (760 Torr).

[0056] Next, the control unit 90 controls the lifting mechanism 21 to lower the lid 17 and separate it from the manifold 13, thereby opening the interior of the processing vessel 10.

[0057] As described above, in the processing apparatus 1, the deposits containing silicon oxide adhering to the inside of the processing vessel 10 can be removed by the cleaning method according to the embodiment.

[0058] In the cleaning method according to the above embodiment, the first cleaning step S20 and the second cleaning step S40 are performed without the boat 19 housed in the processing vessel 10. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the first cleaning step S20 and the second cleaning step S40 may be performed with the boat 19 housed in the processing vessel 10. In this case, when removing deposits adhering to the inside of the processing vessel 10, deposits adhering to the boat 19 can also be removed.

[0059] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative in all respects and not restrictive, and the above-described embodiments may be omitted, substituted, or modified in various ways without departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0060] S10 Temperature cooling process S20 First cleaning process S30 First heating step S40 Second cleaning process

Claims

1. A cleaning method for removing deposits in a processing vessel, comprising: adjusting the interior of the processing vessel to a first temperature; supplying a first gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas into the processing chamber adjusted to the first temperature; adjusting the interior of the processing vessel to a second temperature higher than the first temperature; supplying a second gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas into the processing chamber adjusted to the second temperature; A cleaning method comprising:

2. the step of supplying the first gas includes heating the first gas to a third temperature higher than the first temperature and supplying the first gas; The cleaning method according to claim 1 .

3. the first temperature is room temperature; The second temperature is 65°C or higher and 100°C or lower. The cleaning method according to claim 1 .

4. The step of supplying the second gas includes: simultaneously supplying hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas into the processing vessel; supplying an inert gas into the processing vessel without supplying hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas; repeating a cycle including The cleaning method according to claim 1 .

5. the deposit comprises silicon oxide; The cleaning method according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. A processing vessel; a gas supply unit that supplies a processing gas into the processing vessel; a heating unit that heats the processing vessel; A control unit; Equipped with The control unit adjusting the interior of the processing vessel to a first temperature; supplying a first gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas into the processing chamber adjusted to the first temperature; raising the temperature inside the processing vessel to a second temperature higher than the first temperature; supplying a second gas containing hydrogen fluoride gas and ammonia gas into the processing chamber adjusted to the second temperature; The gas supply unit and the heating unit are configured to control the gas supply unit and the heating unit to perform the above. Processing equipment.

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