Heat treatment device, heat treatment method, and computer storage medium

Abstract

To suppress deposition of a foreign substance, which is generated at a bottom face side of a substrate by thermal expansion of the substrate, on a top face of the substrate.SOLUTION: A heating processing device for a substrate comprises: a processing container in which heating processing of the substrate is performed; a mounting section where the substrate is mounted inside of the processing container; a supporting section which is provided on a top face of the mounting section and supports the substrate; a heating section which heats the substrate supported by the supporting section; an elevation mechanism which elevates the substrate; a suction mechanism including a suction port in the mounting section; and a control section which controls the elevation mechanism and the suction mechanism. The control section is configured to execute control for performing suction with such a first suction force that the substrate is not adsorbed to the mounting section after end of the heating processing, moving the substrate to a first height while performing the suction with the first suction force, and raising the substrate to a second height which is higher than the first height while performing suction with a second suction force stronger than the first suction force.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a heat treatment apparatus, a heat treatment method, and a computer storage medium. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a heat treatment device that heats a substrate on which a coating film has been formed in a treatment vessel. This heat treatment device has a mounting section provided in the treatment vessel on which the substrate is mounted, a heating section for heating the substrate mounted on the mounting section, a suction pipe that communicates with a suction port formed in the mounting section and extends directly below the mounting section, and a collection vessel provided in a suction path between the suction pipe and a suction mechanism. The collection vessel is provided directly below the mounting section in a plan view and is connected to the suction pipe to collect sublimate in the treatment vessel. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-009923 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The technology according to the present disclosure prevents foreign matter generated on the lower surface of a substrate due to thermal expansion of the substrate from adhering to the upper surface of the substrate. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] One aspect of the present disclosure is a substrate heating processing apparatus comprising: a processing vessel in which the substrate is heated; a mounting section in the processing vessel on which the substrate is placed; a support section provided on the upper surface of the mounting section for supporting the substrate; a heating section for heating the substrate supported on the support section; a lifting mechanism for raising and lowering the substrate; a suction mechanism having a suction port in the mounting section; and a control section for controlling the lifting mechanism and the suction mechanism, wherein the control section is configured to perform control such that after the heating processing is completed, the control section performs suction with a first suction force at which the substrate is not adsorbed to the mounting section, raises the substrate to a first height while performing suction with the first suction force, and raises the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while performing suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to the present disclosure, foreign matter generated on the lower surface side of a substrate due to thermal expansion of the substrate can be prevented from adhering to the upper surface of the substrate. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic side view of a configuration of a heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1A to 1C are explanatory views for explaining steps of a heat treatment method according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 1A to 1C are explanatory diagrams for explaining suction forces in each step of a heat treatment method. [Figure 4] 10A to 10C are explanatory diagrams for explaining other examples of suction force in each step of the heat treatment method. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are explanatory views showing another example of operation of the heat treatment device in the step of performing suction with a first suction force. [Figure 6] 10A and 10B are explanatory views showing another example of operation of the heat treatment device in the step of performing suction with a first suction force. [Figure 7] 10A to 10C are explanatory diagrams for explaining other examples of suction force in each step of the heat treatment method. [Figure 8]10A to 10C are explanatory diagrams for explaining other examples of suction force in each step of the heat treatment method. [Figure 9] 10A to 10C are explanatory diagrams for explaining other examples of suction force in each step of the heat treatment method. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] In the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices, for example, various processing liquids, such as resist liquid for forming a pattern or SOC for forming a hard mask to enhance plasma resistance, may be applied to the surface of a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as "wafer") as a substrate. After application of these processing liquids, the wafer is subjected to a heat treatment in a heat treatment device. In such a heat treatment, the wafer must be uniformly heated to ensure uniformity of the coating film. The heat treatment is usually performed with the wafer placed on a flat mounting table or a hot plate.

[0009] In recent years, multi-layer stacked devices, such as 3D-NAND chips, have been manufactured in large numbers, but as the number of layers increases, warping can occur in the wafer during a series of processing steps. When a warped wafer is heated on a hot plate, it cannot be heated uniformly, which adversely affects the uniformity of the film thickness.

[0010] Therefore, when a wafer is placed on a hot plate or a mounting table for heating, the wafer is heated while the wafer is suction-adsorbed to correct any warpage of the wafer.

[0011] The hot plate or the mounting table is provided with gap pins as support pins for supporting the wafer, and the wafer placed on the hot plate or the mounting table is supported by the gap pins. Meanwhile, when the wafer is heated, the wafer itself thermally expands as the temperature of the wafer rises. Since the gap pins are under load due to the wafer's own weight and the suction force that attracts the wafer, if the wafer thermally expands in this state, friction between the underside of the wafer and the gap pins may cause the film on the underside of the wafer to peel off.

[0012] The peeled film remains as foreign matter between the underside of the wafer and the hot plate. Even if no film is formed on the underside of the wafer, foreign matter can be generated due to friction between the underside of the wafer and the gap pin caused by thermal expansion of the wafer.

[0013] After the heat treatment, the wafer is lifted to be removed from the treatment chamber, but when the wafer is lifted, the atmosphere around the wafer is agitated, which may stir up foreign particles remaining on the underside of the wafer. These foreign particles may then adhere to the upper surface of the wafer, adversely affecting subsequent treatment.

[0014] Therefore, the technology according to the present disclosure prevents foreign matter generated on the lower surface of a substrate due to thermal expansion of the substrate from adhering to the upper surface of the substrate.

[0015] The configuration of the heat treatment apparatus according to this embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this specification, elements having substantially the same functional configuration are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

[0016] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic side view of the configuration of a heat treatment apparatus according to this embodiment.

[0017] As shown in Fig. 1, the heat treatment apparatus 1 has a processing vessel 2. The processing vessel 2 has a bottom structure 3 that forms the bottom of the processing vessel 2, and a lid 4 that can be separated from the bottom structure 3. The lid 4 has a ceiling 5 that forms the ceiling surface of the processing vessel 2, and a ring shutter 6 that serves as a side wall that forms the side wall surface of the processing vessel 2. The processing vessel 2 is provided in a housing (not shown).

[0018] The bottom structure 3 is supported on a base 7 of the housing (not shown) via a support member 8. The bottom structure 3 includes a support table 12 made of a flat cylindrical body with a recess formed inside a peripheral edge 11. A heating plate 13 is provided in the recess of the support table 12 as a mounting portion for mounting a wafer W as a substrate. A plurality of gap pins 14 are provided on the upper surface of the heating plate 13 as supports for supporting the lower surface of the wafer W.

[0019] The plurality of gap pins 14 are arranged at intervals in both the radial and circumferential directions of the hot plate 13. The wafer W placed on the hot plate 13 is supported by the gap pins 14, and a minute gap of, for example, 0.1 mm or less is formed between the wafer W and the hot plate 13.

[0020] A heater 15 is provided in the heating plate 13 as a heating unit for heating the wafer W placed on the heating plate 13 .

[0021] Lifting pins 16 are provided below the bottom structure 3, penetrating the support table 12 and the hot plate 13, for transferring the wafer W to and from a transfer device (not shown) provided outside the processing chamber 2. At least three lifting pins 16 are provided, for example, at equal intervals around the circumference of the hot plate 13. The lifting pins 16 are raised and lowered by a lifting mechanism 17 provided on the base 7, and are configured to be able to protrude above the hot plate 13. That is, the wafer W is raised and lowered by the lifting mechanism 17 raising and lowering the lifting pins 16.

[0022] The ceiling portion 5 of the lid portion 4 is made up of a disk-shaped member with a diameter larger than that of the bottom structure 3, and is supported on the ceiling surface of the housing (not shown). In a plan view, the ceiling portion 5 is sized so that its outer edge is positioned outside the outer edge of the bottom structure 3. The ceiling portion 5 is hollow, and a flat, cylindrical exhaust chamber 5c is formed between an upper surface portion 5a and a lower surface portion 5b.

[0023] The exhaust chamber 5c has a size such that its outer edge is positioned substantially flush with the outer edge of the bottom structure 3. Below the exhaust chamber 5c, i.e., near the periphery of the underside 5b of the ceiling 5, a plurality of outer peripheral exhaust ports 5d communicating with the exhaust chamber 5c are formed at equal intervals along the circumferential direction. The outer peripheral exhaust ports 5d open outward from the outer edge of the wafer W placed on the hot plate 13.

[0024] An outer peripheral exhaust pipe 21 leading to the exhaust chamber 5c is connected to the upper part of the exhaust chamber 5c, i.e., to the upper surface 5a of the ceiling part 5. If the ceiling part 5 side is considered to be the upstream side during exhaust, then a valve V11 and a flow rate adjuster 22 are provided in this order from the upstream side to the downstream side of the outer peripheral exhaust pipe 21. This outer peripheral exhaust pipe 21 is connected to a factory exhaust system installed in the factory.

[0025] A central exhaust port 5e is formed in the center of the underside 5b of the ceiling 5. The center of the central exhaust port 5e is open so as to coincide with the center of the wafer W placed on the hot plate 13. One end of a central exhaust pipe 23 that penetrates the exhaust chamber 5c is connected to the central exhaust port 5e. If the ceiling 5 side is considered to be the upstream side during exhaust, a valve V12 and a flow rate adjuster 24 are provided in this order from the upstream side to the downstream side of the central exhaust pipe 23. The central exhaust pipe 23 is connected to a factory exhaust system.

[0026] In the heat treatment device 1, the above-mentioned peripheral exhaust port 5d, exhaust chamber 5c, peripheral exhaust pipe 21, valve V11, flow rate adjustment unit 22, central exhaust port 5e, central exhaust pipe 23, valve V12, and flow rate adjustment unit 24 constitute an exhaust mechanism that exhausts the atmosphere above the wafer W supported by the gap pins 14.

[0027] The ring shutter 6, which serves as a side wall of the lid 4, is a shutter member that surrounds the gap between the bottom structure 3 and the ceiling 5 around the bottom structure 3, thereby forming the processing space S. The upper end of the ring shutter 6 is fixed to the underside of the ceiling 5. The ring shutter 6 has an annular hollow portion as a whole, and includes an outer shutter portion 6a and an inner shutter portion 6b. An annular space 6c is formed between the outer shutter portion 6a and the inner shutter portion 6b.

[0028] A plurality of inlet ports 6d leading to the annular space 6c are formed at equal intervals around the entire circumference at the top of the outer shutter 6a. A plurality of supply ports 6e leading to the annular space 6c are formed at equal intervals around the entire circumference at the bottom of the inner shutter 6b. With this configuration, an inert gas, such as nitrogen gas, in the housing (not shown) that houses the processing vessel 2 is uniformly supplied into the processing vessel 2.

[0029] The lower surfaces of the outer shutter portion 6a and the inner shutter portion 6b are supported by an annular plate 6f. The lower surface of this annular plate 6f contacts the upper surface of the peripheral edge of the support table 12, and the annular plate 6f moves up and down by an elevating mechanism 25 provided on the base 7. That is, the lid portion 4 as a whole can be raised and lowered by raising or lowering the annular plate 6f. For example, when the lid portion 4 lowers and the lower surface of the annular plate 6f contacts the upper surface of the support table 12, a processing space S for heat processing of the wafer W is formed within the processing vessel 2. On the other hand, when the lid portion 4 rises, an entrance and exit space is formed for a transfer device (not shown) for loading and unloading the wafer W placed on the heating plate 13.

[0030] In addition, heaters (not shown) are embedded in the walls of the outer shutter portion 6a and the inner shutter portion 6b to prevent the precipitation of sublimates inside the exhaust chamber 5c and on the wall surfaces, and are heated to a desired temperature, for example, 300°C.

[0031] A plurality of suction ports 31 are formed near the periphery of the hot plate 13. For example, eight suction ports 31 are formed at equal intervals on the same circumference. The upper ends of cylindrical suction pipes 32 that penetrate the support base 12 and the hot plate 13 are connected to these suction ports 31. The lower ends of each suction pipe 32 penetrate the base 7 and are connected to a vacuum tank 40 located below the base 7. In addition, a heat insulating material 33 is provided around the outer periphery of the suction pipes 32 that penetrate the base 7.

[0032] The vacuum tank 40 is supported by a support base 51, which can be moved up and down by a lifting mechanism 52. In the state shown in FIG. 1 , the vacuum tank 40 is in a position raised by the lifting mechanism 52, i.e., the lower ends of the suction pipes 32 are in a connected position with the vacuum tank 40. On the other hand, when the support base 51 is lowered by the lifting mechanism 52, the connection between the lower ends of the suction pipes 32 and the vacuum tank 40 is released. A receiving portion 53 is disposed below the vacuum tank 40. Therefore, when the support base 51 is lowered by the lifting mechanism 52, only the vacuum tank 40 can be placed on the receiving portion 53.

[0033] An exhaust pipe 41 is connected to the vacuum tank 40. As described above, the suction pipe 32 is connected to the elevated vacuum tank 40, and is therefore connected to the exhaust pipe 41 via the vacuum tank 40. If the vacuum tank 40 is considered to be the upstream side during exhaust, a pressure gauge 42 and a valve V13 are provided in this order from the upstream side to the downstream side of the exhaust pipe 41. Furthermore, the downstream side of the valve V13 of the exhaust pipe 41 is connected to an aspirator 43 such as an ejector or a blower fan. In the heat treatment apparatus 1, the suction port 31, the suction pipe 32, the vacuum tank 40, the exhaust pipe 41, the valve V13, and the aspirator 43 described above constitute a suction mechanism 50.

[0034] The suction mechanism 50 can adjust the exhaust volume by adjusting the opening of the valve V13, thereby adjusting the suction force at the suction port 31. The suction force is an index indicating the magnitude of the suction force and corresponds to the suction pressure. By adjusting the suction force, it is possible to switch to a predetermined suction force, such as a suction force for adsorbing the wafer W to the hot plate 13 or a suction force for performing suction within a range that does not cause the wafer W to be adsorbed to the hot plate 13. When performing suction with a suction force that does not adsorb the wafer W to the hot plate 13, exhaust is performed through the gap between the underside of the wafer W and the hot plate 13 via the suction port 31.

[0035] The heat treatment device 1 described above includes a control unit 100. The control unit 100 is, for example, a computer equipped with a CPU, memory, etc., and has a program storage unit (not shown). The program storage unit stores, for example, programs that control various operations of the heat treatment device 1, which will be described later. The programs may be recorded on a computer-readable storage medium H and installed from the storage medium H into the control unit 100. The storage medium H may be a temporary storage medium or a non-temporary storage medium. Some or all of the programs may be implemented by dedicated hardware (circuit board).

[0036] The heat treatment apparatus 1 according to this embodiment is configured as described above. Next, a heat treatment method for a wafer W performed in this heat treatment apparatus 1 will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 3. Note that the operation of the heat treatment apparatus 1 in each step of the heat treatment method described below is automatically performed under the control of the control unit 100 described above.

[0037] FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of the heat treatment apparatus according to this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the steps of the heat treatment method according to this embodiment. The size of the white arrows extending from the bottom of the vacuum tank 40 in FIG. 2 represents the magnitude of the suction force, and the size of the white arrows extending toward the inner surface of the ceiling 5 of the lid 4 represents the amount of exhaust from the peripheral exhaust port 5d and the central exhaust port 5e. For ease of explanation, the size of the gap pins 14 in the drawings is enlarged relative to the actual size of the gap pins 14 relative to the hot plate 13. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the suction force in each step of the heat treatment method, with the bold lines in FIG. 3 representing the magnitude of the suction force. Steps (a) to (e) in FIG. 3 correspond to steps (a) to (e) in FIG. 2.

[0038] Before the heat treatment, a coating solution containing a carbon film precursor is first applied to the wafer W, forming an SOC film as a coating film. Next, with the lid 4 raised, the wafer W is moved above the heating plate 13 by a transfer device (not shown) and transferred to the lifting pins 16. Thereafter, the lid 4 is lowered, forming a processing space S within the processing vessel 2. At this time, the output of the heater 15 is controlled so that the surface temperature of the heating plate 13 is, for example, 350°C. At this time, the vacuum tank 40 is connected to the lower end of the suction pipe 32.

[0039] 2(a), the lift pins 16 are lowered, and the wafer W is transferred to the gap pins 14 on the heating plate 13. As a result, the wafer W is placed on the heating plate 13.

[0040] 1 is opened, and as shown in FIG. 2(b), the wafer W is sucked and held on the heating plate 13 by suction from the suction port 31. This straightens out the warpage of the wafer W, flattens the wafer W, and enables uniform heating of the wafer W.

[0041] Next, the valves V11 and V12 shown in FIG. 1 are opened, and the wafer W is subjected to a heat treatment while exhaust is being performed from the central exhaust port 5e and the central exhaust pipe 23, and from the peripheral exhaust port 5d, the exhaust chamber 5c, and the peripheral exhaust pipe 21.

[0042] This heating process raises the temperature of the wafer W, causing thermal expansion of the wafer W. At this time, friction between the underside of the wafer W and the gap pins 14 causes the film on the underside of the wafer W to peel off, and the peeled film remains as foreign matter between the underside of the wafer W and the heating plate 13.

[0043] After the heat treatment is completed, the suction from the suction port 31 is stopped, as shown in FIGS. 2(c) and 3. This releases the wafer W from the suction state on the hot plate 13, causing the wafer W, which was previously flat, to return to its warped state. When the wafer W warps again in this way, foreign matter may be generated due to friction between the wafer W and the gap pins 14. The step of stopping the suction shown in FIG. 2(c) may be omitted, but it is preferable to include this step. The reason for this will be described later.

[0044] Next, as shown in FIGS. 2(d) and 3, suction from the suction ports 31 is resumed. In this step, suction is performed at a first suction force. The "first suction force" is a suction force that does not cause the wafer W to be adsorbed to the heating plate 13. The specific magnitude of the first suction force is set appropriately based on the number and arrangement of the suction ports 31, the magnitude of warpage that may occur in the wafer W to be heated, and the like, and the first suction force is set in advance before the heat treatment is performed.

[0045] While suction is being performed by the first suction force, the wafer W is not suctioned to the hot plate 13, and a gap is formed between the underside of the wafer W and the hot plate 13. Then, the above-mentioned foreign matter remaining on the underside of the wafer W is discharged through the gap from the suction port 31. In other words, before the wafer W is raised for unloading, discharge of foreign matter generated on the underside of the wafer W begins.

[0046] Next, while suction is being performed with the first suction force, the lift pins 16 are raised to raise the wafer W to a first height. The "first height" is a height that is higher than the heating plate 13 and lower than the unloading position of the wafer W (the position where the wafer W is transferred to and from an external transfer device), and is, for example, a height of 3 to 5 mm.

[0047] As the wafer W rises, the atmosphere near the wafer W is agitated, and an airflow may be formed from the lower surface side of the wafer W toward the upper surface side, but an airflow toward the suction port 31 is also formed by the suction caused by the first suction force described above. That is, because foreign matter present on the lower surface side of the wafer W is sucked through the suction port 31, even when the wafer W starts to rise, the foreign matter is less likely to fly up toward the upper surface side of the wafer W. This prevents foreign matter from adhering to the upper surface of the wafer W.

[0048] If the step of stopping suction shown in FIG. 2(c) is omitted, the suction force at the suction port 31 is switched from the suction force in the step shown in FIG. 2(b) to the first suction force in the step shown in FIG. 2(d). More specifically, the suction force is reduced from the state in which the wafer W is attracted to the hot plate 13 to put the wafer W into a non-attracted state, and the suction force at which the wafer W is in the non-attracted state is maintained as the first suction force. However, a higher suction force can be set as the first suction force if the attracted wafer W is temporarily released from the attracted state and then the suction force is increased so that the wafer W is not attracted again. From this perspective, it is preferable to provide the step of stopping suction shown in FIG. 2(c).

[0049] 2(e) and 3, the suction force from the suction port 31 is switched to a second suction force greater than the first suction force, and the wafer W is raised to the second height while being sucked by the second suction force. At this time, the lid 4 is also raised to unload the wafer W from the processing vessel 2.

[0050] In this step, by raising the lid 4, a gap is created between the lower end of the lid 4 and the hot plate 13, and outside air flows in through the gap. As a result, the atmosphere around the wafer W is agitated, and there is a concern that foreign matter that has not been removed by the suction of the first suction force and remains between the wafer W and the hot plate 13 will fly up to the upper surface side of the wafer W.

[0051] Meanwhile, in this process, suction is performed with the second suction force greater than the first suction force, and the suction force at the suction port 31 is increased, which promotes the effect of discharging foreign matter from the suction port 31 and prevents foreign matter from flying up to the upper surface side of the wafer W. In addition, by performing suction with the second suction force and promoting the discharge of foreign matter, it becomes possible to start the heat treatment of the next wafer to be processed with a small amount of foreign matter in the processing vessel 2.

[0052] The "second suction force" is set in advance based on the number and arrangement of suction ports 31, the shape of processing vessel 2, etc., so as to suppress the flying up of foreign matter when lid portion 4 is raised as described above. The "second height" is the height of the transfer position of wafer W with respect to a transfer device (not shown) when wafer W is loaded or unloaded.

[0053] Furthermore, the timing of the start of suction by the second suction force, the start of lifting of the wafer W to the second height, and the start of lifting of the lid part 4 do not have to be the same. However, in order to enhance the effect of suppressing the flying up of foreign matter, it is preferable to start lifting of the wafer W or lifting of the lid part 4 simultaneously with or after the start of suction by the second suction force.

[0054] The above has described a heat treatment method using the heat treatment apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. According to the heat treatment apparatus 1 described above, when the wafer W after heat treatment is raised to a first height, suction is performed by a first suction force that does not adsorb the wafer W. This causes foreign matter in the gap between the lower surface of the wafer W and the heating plate 13 to be sucked, so that even if the atmosphere around the wafer W is agitated by the raising of the wafer W, it is possible to prevent foreign matter from adhering to the upper surface of the wafer W.

[0055] Furthermore, when the wafer W is raised to the second height, which is a transfer position for unloading the wafer W, suction of foreign matter is promoted by using a second suction force greater than the first suction force, which makes it possible to prevent foreign matter from flying up when the wafer W is raised to the second height, and thus to prevent foreign matter from adhering to the upper surface of the wafer W.

[0056] In the heat treatment method described above, the wafer W is suction-adsorbed to correct warpage of the wafer W during the heat treatment in step (b). On the other hand, if it is assumed in advance that the warpage of the wafer W is small, it is not necessary to suction-adsorb the wafer W in step (b), as shown in Fig. 4. Even in this case, suction by the first suction force and suction by the second suction force can prevent foreign matter from flying up when the wafer W is lifted.

[0057] On the other hand, the number of gap pins 14 in a heat treatment apparatus 1 having a suction structure for a wafer W is usually greater than the number of gap pins 14 in a heat treatment apparatus not having a suction structure for a wafer W. The greater the number of gap pins 14, the greater the number of contact points between the wafer W and the gap pins 14, and the greater the number of locations where foreign matter is generated due to friction between the wafer W and the gap pins 14. For this reason, a heat treatment apparatus that performs suction and adsorption of a wafer W is an apparatus that is relatively prone to generating foreign matter.

[0058] Therefore, in a heat treatment apparatus having a suction structure for a wafer W, suction by the first suction force and suction by the second suction force described above is performed, which significantly suppresses adhesion of foreign matter to the upper surface of the wafer W. In other words, the heat treatment apparatus 1 is preferably an apparatus that performs suction by a third suction force greater than the first suction force during the heat treatment of the wafer W, and adsorbs the wafer W to the heating plate 13.

[0059] (Other examples of operation) Next, another example of the operation of the heat treatment device 1 will be described.

[0060] FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing another operation example of the heat treatment device in the step of performing suction with the first suction force.

[0061] In this example, while suction is being performed with the first suction force, the lid 4 is slightly elevated when the wafer W is raised to the first height. This allows outside air to flow in through the gap D between the bottom structure 3 and the lid 4. At this time, the lid 4 is elevated so that the lower end of the lid 4 is positioned lower than the peripheral edge of the wafer W supported by the lift pins 16. This makes it difficult for the outside air flowing into the processing vessel 2 to flow toward the upper surface of the wafer W, but makes it easier for it to flow toward the suction port 31. As a result, foreign matter remaining in the gap between the underside of the wafer W and the hot plate 13 is easily discharged through the suction port 31.

[0062] The gap D between the lower end of the lid 4 and the bottom structure 3 is set appropriately depending on the number and arrangement of the suction ports 31, the shape of the processing vessel 2, etc., and is set to, for example, 1 to 2 mm. In the example shown in Fig. 5, the timing at which the lid 4 starts rising may be while the wafer W is rising, or may be after the wafer W has risen to the first height.

[0063] Furthermore, when raising the lid part 4, it is preferable to stop raising the lid part 4 after raising the wafer W to the first height, when the lower end of the lid part 4 is at a position lower than the peripheral edge of the wafer W. By maintaining this state for a certain period of time, foreign matter that can be discharged by the inflow of outside air from the gap D and suction by the first suction force can be sufficiently discharged, and the flying up of foreign matter when the wafer W is subsequently raised to the second height can be further suppressed.

[0064] Furthermore, when the lid part 4 is raised while the wafer W is being raised, it is preferable to maintain a state in which the lower end of the lid part 4 is lower than the peripheral edge of the wafer W until the raising of the wafer W is stopped. This allows outside air flowing in from the gap between the lower end of the lid part 4 and the bottom structure 3 to easily flow toward the suction port 31 until the raising of the wafer W is stopped, thereby maintaining a state in which foreign matter is easily discharged. It is preferable that the state in which the lower end of the lid part 4 is lower than the peripheral edge of the wafer W be achieved in the step of raising the wafer W to the first height, the step of raising the wafer W to the second height, or both steps.

[0065] 6 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the operation of the heat treatment apparatus in the step of performing suction with the first suction force. In the example shown in Fig. 6, the exhaust amount (second exhaust amount) of the exhaust mechanism in the step of raising the wafer W to the first height is reduced from the exhaust amount (first exhaust amount) of the exhaust mechanism in the step of performing the heat treatment of the wafer W shown in Fig. 2(b).

[0066] By reducing the second exhaust amount to be less than the first exhaust amount in this way, an air current flowing from the lower surface side of the wafer W to the upper surface side thereof is less likely to be formed, and foreign matter can be prevented from flying up to the upper surface side of the wafer W.

[0067] 6, when a plurality of exhaust ports are provided on the upper surface side of the wafer W, such as the peripheral exhaust port 5d and the central exhaust port 5e, the exhaust volume of the exhaust mechanism is the total volume of exhaust at each of the exhaust ports. For example, when other exhaust ports are provided on the ceiling or sidewall of the lid 4 in addition to the peripheral exhaust port 5d and the central exhaust port 5e, the total volume of exhaust at each of the other exhaust ports, the peripheral exhaust port 5d, and the central exhaust port 5e is the exhaust volume of the exhaust mechanism.

[0068] 6, the example of operation in which the second exhaust amount is reduced to be less than the first exhaust amount may be applied to the case in which the lid 4 is not raised as described in Fig. 2(d). Even in this case, the airflow from the lower surface side to the upper surface side of the wafer W can be weakened, thereby suppressing adhesion of foreign matter to the upper surface of the wafer W.

[0069] Furthermore, when the wafer W is raised, it is preferable that the exhaust volume of the peripheral exhaust port 5d be larger than the exhaust volume of the central exhaust port 5e. In this case, an airflow is easily formed from the outer periphery of the wafer W toward the peripheral exhaust port 5d. As a result, even if foreign matter is blown up to pass through the outer periphery of the wafer W, the foreign matter is easily discharged from the peripheral exhaust port 5d, and adhesion of the foreign matter to the upper surface of the wafer W is suppressed. Furthermore, when the wafer W is raised, exhaust from either the peripheral exhaust port 5d or the central exhaust port 5e may be stopped.

[0070] 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of suction force in each step of the heat treatment method. In the example shown in Fig. 7, when raising the wafer W to the first height, preliminary suction is performed at a suction force lower than the first suction force in step (d1), and then suction is performed at the first suction force in the subsequent step (d2) to raise the wafer W to the first height.

[0071] When a sudden pressure change occurs in the processing vessel 2, the airflow in the processing vessel 2 may change irregularly, but by performing preliminary suction as in step (d1) of Fig. 7, it is possible to suppress the sudden pressure change that occurs when switching from the suction stop state to the first suction force. This suppresses the irregular change in the airflow in the processing vessel 2 and suppresses agitation of the atmosphere near the wafer W. As a result, adhesion of foreign matter to the top surface of the wafer W is suppressed.

[0072] 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of the suction force in each step of the heat treatment method. In the example shown in Fig. 8, when the wafer W is raised to the second height, preliminary suction as described in Fig. 7 is performed.

[0073] In more detail, when the wafer W is raised to the second height, in step (e1), preliminary suction is performed with a suction force higher than the first suction force but lower than the second suction force, and then in step (e2), the wafer W is raised to the second height while being suctioned with the second suction force. By performing preliminary suction as in step (e1), a sudden pressure change inside the processing vessel 2 is suppressed when the wafer W is raised to the second height, and adhesion of foreign matter to the upper surface of the wafer W is suppressed.

[0074] 9, the steps (d1) and (d2) described in Fig. 7 may be combined with the steps (e1) and (e2) described in Fig. 8. That is, a first preliminary suction may be performed in the step (d1), the wafer W may be raised to a first height while being suctioned with a first suction force in the step (d2), the second preliminary suction may be performed in the step (e1), and the wafer W may be raised to a second height while being suctioned with a second suction force in the step (e2).

[0075] An embodiment of the heat treatment apparatus and heat treatment method according to the present disclosure has been described above.

[0076] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative in all respects and not restrictive. For example, in the above embodiments, multiple configuration examples of the heat treatment device are described, but the configuration examples may be combined with each other to the extent that the function of the heat treatment device is not impaired. Furthermore, the above embodiments may be omitted, substituted, or modified in various forms without departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims. In other words, the technology disclosed herein may achieve other effects that are apparent to those skilled in the art from the description of this specification, in addition to or instead of the above effects.

[0077] The following configurations also fall within the technical scope of the present disclosure. (1) A substrate heat treatment apparatus, a processing vessel in which the substrate is subjected to a heat treatment; a mounting portion on which the substrate is mounted within the processing vessel; a support portion provided on an upper surface of the mounting portion and supporting the substrate; a heating unit that heats the substrate supported by the support unit; a lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the substrate; a suction mechanism having a suction port on the mounting portion; a control unit that controls the lifting mechanism and the suction mechanism, The control unit After the heat treatment is completed, the substrate is sucked with a first suction force at which the substrate is not sucked onto the mounting portion; raising the substrate to a first height while applying suction with the first suction force; a heat treatment apparatus configured to perform control to raise the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while performing suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force; (2) The control unit The heat treatment apparatus according to (1), configured to execute control to perform suction by a third suction force to attract the substrate to the mounting section when the heat treatment is performed. (3) The control unit The heat treatment device according to (2), configured to execute control to stop suction with the third suction force before starting suction with the first suction force. (4) The processing vessel is A lid portion configured to be freely raised and lowered; a bottom structure in contact with the lid portion to form a processing space, The lid portion is a ceiling portion that forms a ceiling surface of the processing vessel; a sidewall portion that constitutes a sidewall surface of the processing vessel, The control unit The heat treatment device according to any one of (1) to (3), configured to execute control to raise the lid portion when raising the substrate to the second height while performing suction with the second suction force. (5) an exhaust mechanism for exhausting the atmosphere above the substrate supported by the support; The processing vessel comprises: A lid portion configured to be freely raised and lowered; a bottom structure in contact with the lid portion to form a processing space, The lid portion is a ceiling portion that forms a ceiling surface of the processing vessel; a sidewall portion that constitutes a sidewall surface of the processing vessel, The control unit When performing the heat treatment, exhaust is performed at a first exhaust rate, After the heat treatment is completed, the lid is raised when the substrate is raised to the first height; The heat treatment device according to any one of (1) to (4), configured to execute control to perform exhaust at a second exhaust rate smaller than the first exhaust rate when the lid portion is raised. (6) The control unit The heat treatment device according to (4) or (5), configured to execute control to stop the lifting of the lid portion when the lid portion is lifted and a gap is formed between the lid portion and the bottom structure. (7) The heat treatment apparatus according to (6), wherein the position at which the lifting of the lid portion stops is a position where the lower end of the lid portion is lower than the lower end of the peripheral portion of the substrate. (8) The control unit A heat treatment apparatus according to any one of (4) to (7), configured to control the lifting mechanism and the lifting operation of the lid unit so that, when the substrate is raised after the heat treatment is completed, the lower end of the lid unit is maintained at a position lower than the lower end of the peripheral portion of the substrate until the raising of the substrate stops. (9) A method for heat treating a substrate, comprising: After the heat treatment of the substrate is completed, suction is performed with a first suction force at which the substrate is not adsorbed to the mounting portion; raising the substrate to a first height while applying suction with the first suction force; a step of raising the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while applying suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force. (10) after completion of the heat treatment of the substrate, performing suction with a first suction force at which the substrate is not adsorbed to the mounting part; raising the substrate to a first height while applying suction with the first suction force; A readable computer storage medium storing a program that runs on a computer of a control unit that controls a heat treatment device to cause the heat treatment device to perform a heat treatment method including a step of raising the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while performing suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force. (11) after completion of the heat treatment of the substrate, performing suction with a first suction force at which the substrate is not adsorbed to the mounting part; raising the substrate to a first height while applying suction with the first suction force; a step of raising the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while performing suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force; [Explanation of symbols]

[0078] 1 Heat treatment device 2. Processing vessel 13 Hot plate 14 Gap pin 15 Heater 17 Lifting mechanism 31 Suction port 50 Suction mechanism 100 control section H storage medium W wafer

Claims

1. A substrate heat treatment apparatus, a processing vessel in which the substrate is subjected to a heat treatment; a mounting portion on which the substrate is mounted within the processing vessel; a support portion provided on an upper surface of the mounting portion and supporting the substrate; a heating unit that heats the substrate supported by the support unit; a lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the substrate; a suction mechanism having a suction port on the mounting portion; a control unit that controls the lifting mechanism and the suction mechanism, The control unit After the heat treatment is completed, the substrate is sucked with a first suction force at which the substrate is not sucked onto the mounting portion; raising the substrate to a first height while applying suction with the first suction force; a heat treatment apparatus configured to execute control to raise the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while performing suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force;

2. The control unit 2. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heat treatment is performed by controlling suction with a third suction force that attracts the substrate to the mounting section.

3. The control unit The heat treatment device according to claim 2 , wherein the heat treatment device is configured to execute control to stop suction with the third suction force before starting suction with the first suction force.

4. The processing vessel comprises: A lid portion configured to be freely raised and lowered; a bottom structure in contact with the lid portion to form a processing space, The lid portion is a ceiling portion that forms a ceiling surface of the processing vessel; a sidewall portion that constitutes a sidewall surface of the processing vessel, The control unit The heat treatment device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, configured to execute control to raise the lid portion when raising the substrate to the second height while performing suction with the second suction force.

5. an exhaust mechanism that exhausts an atmosphere above the substrate supported by the support; The processing vessel comprises: A lid portion configured to be freely raised and lowered; a bottom structure in contact with the lid portion to form a processing space, The lid portion is a ceiling portion that forms a ceiling surface of the processing vessel; a sidewall portion that constitutes a sidewall surface of the processing vessel, The control unit When performing the heat treatment, exhaust is performed at a first exhaust rate, After the heat treatment is completed, the lid is raised when the substrate is raised to the first height; 4. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the lid portion is raised, control is executed to perform exhaust at a second exhaust rate that is smaller than the first exhaust rate.

6. The control unit The heat treatment device according to claim 5 , configured to execute control to stop the lifting of the lid portion when a gap is formed between the lid portion and the bottom structure by lifting the lid portion.

7. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the position at which the lifting of the lid portion stops is a position where the lower end of the lid portion is lower than the lower end of the peripheral edge of the substrate.

8. The control unit 5. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the lifting mechanism and the lifting operation of the lid portion are controlled so that, when the substrate is raised after the heat treatment is completed, the lower end of the lid portion is maintained at a position lower than the lower end of the peripheral portion of the substrate until the raising of the substrate stops.

9. A method for heat treating a substrate, comprising: After completion of the heat treatment of the substrate, suction is performed with a first suction force at which the substrate is not adsorbed to the mounting portion; raising the substrate to a first height while applying suction with the first suction force; and raising the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while applying suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force.

10. a step of suctioning the substrate with a first suction force at which the substrate is not adsorbed to the mounting portion after the heat treatment of the substrate is completed; raising the substrate to a first height while applying suction with the first suction force; A readable computer storage medium storing a program that runs on a computer of a control unit that controls a heat treatment device to cause the heat treatment device to perform a heat treatment method including the step of raising the substrate to a second height higher than the first height while performing suction with a second suction force greater than the first suction force.

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