Substrate information acquisition apparatus and substrate processing apparatus

Abstract

A light emission unit (63) of a substrate information acquisition apparatus (60) emits light toward the upper surface (91) of a substrate (9) and forms, on the upper surface (91), a plurality of beam spots (S1) linearly arranged in the Y direction. A hand movement mechanism scans the upper surface (91) of the substrate (9) with the plurality of beam spots (S1) in the X direction. A reflected light branching unit (64) branches reflected light (R0) on each of the beam spots (S1) into first reflected light (R1) and second reflected light (R2) which have optical path lengths that differ from each other. An imaging device (66) collectively captures images of the first reflected light (R1) and the second reflected light (R2) on each of the beam spots (S1). An information acquisition unit acquires information about the shape of the substrate (9) on the basis of a plurality of captured images acquired by the imaging device (66) in parallel with the scanning with the plurality of beam spots (S1) by a scanning mechanism. As a result, information about the shape of the substrate (9) can be accurately acquired while simplifying the apparatus structure of the substrate information acquisition apparatus (60).

Description

PCB information acquisition device and PCB processing device

[0001] This invention relates to a technique for acquiring information about the shape of a substrate. [Reference to related application] This application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application JP2024-207474, filed on 28 November 2024, and all disclosures of said application are incorporated herein.

[0002] Conventionally, in the manufacturing process of semiconductor substrates (hereinafter simply referred to as "substrates"), various treatments are applied to the substrates. For example, in the processing unit of a substrate processing apparatus, a cleaning treatment is performed on the substrate by supplying a cleaning solution to the upper surface of the substrate while rotating the substrate held by a chuck.

[0003] Incidentally, substrates processed in substrate processing equipment may undergo three-dimensional deformation, such as warping in the thickness direction, due to pre-treatment or other processes. Deformed substrates may not be properly held by the chuck. Furthermore, it may be preferable to adjust processing conditions, such as cleaning, to match the shape of the deformed substrate.

[0004] Therefore, substrate processing equipment is required to accurately measure the three-dimensional shape of a substrate. However, since the substrate surface is a glossy, mirror-like surface, methods for measuring the three-dimensional shape using lasers, such as triangulation, time of flight (TOF), and interferometry, which assume that the object to be measured is an opaque, non-glossy surface, are not suitable for measuring the three-dimensional shape of a substrate. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2011-117832 (Reference 1) proposes a method for measuring the three-dimensional shape of an object whose surface is a glossy, mirror-like surface.

[0005] Incidentally, the 3D shape measuring device described in Reference 1 requires a focusing lens to concentrate reflected light from the object, a half-mirror to split the reflected light that has passed through the focusing lens into two directions, and two image sensors to receive the two split reflected lights, respectively. As a result, the device structure becomes complex, and there is a risk that the manufacturing cost of the device will increase.

[0006] Furthermore, in this three-dimensional shape measuring device, in order to determine the reflection position on the surface of the object, it is necessary to determine the position of the reflected light on the focusing lens surface (i.e., the position of the point through which the reflected light passes). For this reason, due to variations caused by the focusing lens (for example, variations caused by the radius of curvature, refractive index, lens thickness, lens aberration, or lens arrangement of the focusing lens), it is not easy to accurately determine the above reflection position.

[0007] Furthermore, because this 3D shape measuring device uses a parallel spot beam of light (collimated light) for point measurement, it is necessary to move the object and the light source relative to each other in multiple axial directions, which requires a considerable amount of measurement time to measure the overall shape of the object. In addition, the device structure becomes more complex, which may increase the manufacturing cost of the device.

[0008] This invention is directed towards a substrate information acquisition device, and aims to acquire information about the shape of a substrate with high accuracy while simplifying the device structure.

[0009] One aspect of the present invention is a substrate information acquisition apparatus for acquiring information on the shape of a substrate, comprising: a substrate holding unit for holding a substrate; a light emitting unit for emitting light toward the main surface of the substrate and forming a plurality of beam spots aligned linearly in a first direction along the main surface on the main surface; a scanning mechanism for scanning the plurality of beam spots on the main surface of the substrate in a second direction that intersects the first direction and is along the main surface; a reflected light branching unit for branching the reflected light at each beam spot into a first reflected light and a second reflected light having different optical path lengths; an imaging device for capturing images of the first reflected light and the second reflected light from each beam spot together; and an information acquisition unit for acquiring information on the shape of the substrate based on a plurality of captured images acquired by the imaging device in parallel with the scanning of the plurality of beam spots by the scanning mechanism.

[0010] According to the present invention, information about the shape of the substrate can be acquired with high accuracy while simplifying the device structure.

[0011] Aspect 2 of the present invention is a substrate information acquisition apparatus according to aspect 1, wherein the light emission unit emits a plurality of beams corresponding to the plurality of beam spots in parallel.

[0012] A third aspect of the present invention is a substrate information acquisition apparatus according to aspect 2, wherein the light emission unit comprises a light source unit and a multi-beam device that divides a beam emitted from the light source unit into a plurality of beams and emits them. The multi-beam device comprises a light-reducing filter that transmits a portion of the incident light and reflects the remainder, and a mirror positioned opposite the light-reducing filter and reflecting the incident light toward the light-reducing filter. The transmittance of the light-reducing filter gradually increases as one side of the first direction moves toward the other side. The beam incident from the light source unit to the multi-beam device is repeatedly reflected between the light-reducing filter and the mirror as it moves from one side of the first direction toward the other side. The plurality of beams are beams that have been transmitted through the light-reducing filter from a plurality of incident positions of the beam in the light-reducing filter.

[0013] Aspect 4 of the present invention is a substrate information acquisition apparatus according to aspect 1 (which may be any one of aspects 1 to 3), wherein the imaging device captures images of each beam spot formed on a single screen by the first reflected light and the second reflected light, respectively.

[0014] Aspect 5 of the present invention is a substrate information acquisition apparatus according to aspect 4, wherein the light emitted from the light emission unit is short-wave infrared light. The screen is a fluorescent screen that emits fluorescence when irradiated with short-wave infrared light.

[0015] Aspect 6 of the present invention is a substrate information acquisition device according to aspect 1 (which may be any one of aspects 1 to 5), wherein the substrate holding portion contacts the lower surface of the substrate and supports the substrate. The main surface of the substrate to which the light emitted from the light emitting portion is irradiated is the upper surface of the substrate.

[0016] Embodiment 7 of the present invention is a substrate processing apparatus for processing substrates, comprising: a substrate information acquisition apparatus according to any one of embodiments 1 to 6; an indexer block on which a first transport robot is arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of a storage container capable of accommodating a plurality of substrates; a processing block on which a processing unit for processing substrates and a second transport robot are arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of the processing unit; and a mounting unit provided at the connection between the processing block and the indexer block for holding unprocessed substrates passed from the first transport robot to the second transport robot, and processed substrates passed from the second transport robot to the first transport robot. The substrate holding part of the substrate information acquisition apparatus is a transport hand for holding the substrates in the second transport robot. The scanning mechanism of the substrate information acquisition apparatus is a hand movement mechanism for moving the transport hand in the second direction in the second transport robot. When the substrates are unloaded from the mounting unit by the second transport robot, information on the shape of the substrates is acquired by the substrate information acquisition apparatus.

[0017] Embodiment 8 of the present invention is a substrate processing apparatus for processing substrates, comprising: a substrate information acquisition apparatus according to any one of embodiments 1 to 6; an indexer block on which a first transport robot is arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of a storage container capable of accommodating a plurality of substrates; and a processing block on which a processing unit for processing substrates and a second transport robot are arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of the processing unit. The substrate holding portion of the substrate information acquisition apparatus is a transport hand for holding the substrate in the first transport robot. The scanning mechanism of the substrate information acquisition apparatus is a hand movement mechanism for moving the transport hand in the second direction in the first transport robot. When the substrate is unloaded from the storage container by the first transport robot, information on the shape of the substrate is acquired by the substrate information acquisition apparatus.

[0018] The aforementioned objectives, as well as other objectives, features, embodiments, and advantages, will be revealed by the detailed description of the present invention below, with reference to the attached drawings.

[0019] This is a plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. This is a side view showing the interior of the substrate processing apparatus. This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a portion near the containment container. This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a portion near the containment container. This is a front view of a portion near the containment container. This is a side view of the mounting unit. This is a side view of the information acquisition head. This is a plan view of the information acquisition head. This is a diagram showing the first spot image and the second spot image on the screen. This is a diagram showing the configuration of the control unit. This is a side view of the information acquisition head. This is a conceptual diagram showing the direction vector. This is a diagram schematically showing substrate shape information. This is a plan view showing other light emission units. This is a plan view of a substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. This is a side view showing the interior of the substrate processing apparatus.

[0020] Figure 1 is a plan view of a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a view of the substrate processing apparatus 1 as seen from line II-II in Figure 1. In each of the figures referred to below, an XYZ Cartesian coordinate system is appropriately attached, in which the Z-axis direction is the vertical direction (i.e., up and down direction) and the XY plane is the horizontal plane. In Figure 1, the internal structure of the substrate processing apparatus 1 is also shown with solid lines. In Figure 2, a part of the (+X) side of the substrate processing apparatus 1 is omitted from the illustration.

[0021] The substrate processing apparatus 1 is a device that processes multiple substantially disc-shaped semiconductor substrates 9 (hereinafter simply referred to as "substrates 9") in succession. In the substrate processing apparatus 1, for example, a cleaning process is performed on the substrates 9.

[0022] The substrate processing apparatus 1 comprises an indexer block 10, a processing block 20, and a mounting unit 40. The indexer block 10 and the processing block 20 are also called indexer cells and processing cells, respectively. The indexer block 10 is also called an Equipment Front End Module (EDEM) unit, etc.

[0023] Multiple load ports 11 (for example, four) are arranged on the (-X) side of the indexer block 10. In the example shown in Figure 1, the multiple load ports 11, the indexer block 10, the mounting unit 40, and the processing block 20 are arranged adjacent to each other in this order, from the (-X) side to the (+X) side.

[0024] Multiple load ports 11 are arranged in the Y direction along the (-X) side wall 13 of the indexer block 10. Each of the multiple load ports 11 is a mounting platform on which a housing container 7 is placed. The housing container 7 houses multiple disc-shaped substrates 9 arranged in the vertical direction (i.e., the Z direction) in its internal space 70. The housing container 7 is, for example, a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod) that houses the substrates 9 in a sealed space. The housing container 7 is not limited to a FOUP and may be, for example, an SMIF (Standard Mechanical Interface) pod. The number of load ports 11 may be one or two or more.

[0025] Each load port 11 receives a storage container 7 containing multiple unprocessed substrates 9 (i.e., substrates 9 before processing by the substrate processing device 1), which is brought in from outside the substrate processing device 1 by an OHT (Overhead Hoist Transfer) or the like and placed on top of it. Processed substrates 9 that have finished processing in the processing block 20 are placed in the storage container 7 placed on the load port 11. The storage container 7 containing the processed substrates 9 is then transported out of the substrate processing device 1 by an OHT or the like. In other words, the load port 11 functions as a substrate accumulation unit that accumulates both unprocessed substrates 9 and processed substrates 9.

[0026] Figure 3 is a magnified longitudinal cross-sectional view of a portion near one of the containment containers 7. The side wall 13 on the (-X) side of the indexer block 10 is provided with a passage opening 131 at a position opposite the containment container 7 on each load port 11 in the X direction. The passage opening 131 is opened and closed by a sliding door 132 that can move vertically along the side wall 13. In Figure 3, the sliding door 132 is moved below the passage opening 131, showing the passage opening 131 in an open state. The shape of the passage opening 131 when viewed along the X direction is, for example, approximately rectangular.

[0027] On the (+X) side of the containment container 7 (i.e., the side facing the indexer block 10 in the X direction), there is a container opening 71 that faces the passage opening 131 in the X direction. The (+X) side of the containment container 7 is the side of the containment container 7 closer to the indexer block 10, and is the front side of the containment container 7 when viewed from the indexer block 10 side.

[0028] In the following explanation, the (+X) side will also be referred to as the "front side," and the (-X) side as the "rear side." The X direction will also be referred to as the "front-back direction," and the Y direction as the "left-right direction." With respect to the containment container 7, the (+X) side of the containment container 7 will also be referred to as the "front side," and the (-X) side of the containment container 7 (i.e., the side of the containment container 7 furthest from the indexer block 10) will also be referred to as the "back side."

[0029] The container opening 71 of the containment container 7 is opened and closed by a door (not shown). Figure 3 shows the state in which the door moves downward along with the sliding door 132, below the container opening 71 and the passage opening 131, and the container opening 71 is open. The shape of the container opening 71 when viewed along the X direction is, for example, approximately rectangular.

[0030] As shown in Figure 3, when the passage opening 131 and the container opening 71 are open, the internal space 70 of the storage container 7 and the internal space 100 of the indexer block 10 are in communication through the passage opening 131 and the container opening 71. Then, the indexer robot 12 (see Figures 1 and 2), which will be described later, loads the substrates 9 into and out of the storage container 7 through the passage opening 131 and the container opening 71. In the example shown in Figure 3, the number of substrates 9 stored in the internal space 70 of the storage container 7 is 25. The 25 substrates 9 are arranged vertically while being spaced apart from each other.

[0031] Figure 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a portion near one of the containment containers 7. Figure 5 is a front view of the portion near the containment container 7, viewed from the (+X) side of the side wall 13 described above. Figures 4 and 5 also show components other than the containment container 7. In the internal space 70 of the containment container 7, each substrate 9 is supported by an internal support portion 72 provided on the inner surface 73 of the containment container 7. The internal support portion 72 is a substantially flat, protruding portion that extends substantially horizontally from the inner surface 73 of the containment container 7, and supports the substrate 9 by contacting the peripheral edge of the lower surface of the substrate 9 from below. Note that in Figures 3 to 5, some of the substrates 9 among the multiple substrates 9 inside the containment container 7 are not shown.

[0032] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2, unprocessed substrates 9 are transferred from the storage container 7 to the processing block 20 via the indexer block 10 and the mounting unit 40. Processed substrates 9 processed in the processing block 20 are then transferred back to the storage container 7 via the mounting unit 40 and the indexer block 10. An indexer robot 12 is positioned in the internal space 100 of the indexer block 10 to load and unload the substrates 9 into and out of the storage container 7.

[0033] The indexer robot 12 comprises a substrate support section 120 and a moving mechanism 124. The substrate support section 120 is capable of supporting multiple substrates 9. The substrate support section 120 comprises multiple transport hands 121, a base 122, a base support section 123, and a hand moving mechanism 125. In the example shown in Figure 2, the substrate support section 120 comprises four transport hands 121 that are substantially U-shaped in plan view. The four transport hands 121 are mounted on the base 122 in an arrangement spaced apart in the vertical direction. Each transport hand 121 is a thin plate-shaped member substantially perpendicular to the Z direction and is a substrate holding section that supports and holds one substrate 9 from below.

[0034] The base 122 is attached to the base support 123. The base support 123 is provided with a rotation mechanism (not shown) that rotates the base 122 around a rotation axis that faces vertically. This rotation mechanism includes, for example, a motor. The base support 123 is connected to the moving mechanism 124. The moving mechanism 124 is a mechanism that moves the substrate support 120 in the Y direction (i.e., the direction in which the multiple housing containers 7 are arranged) and the Z direction (i.e., the vertical direction). The moving mechanism 124 includes, for example, a ball screw mechanism driven by a motor.

[0035] The hand movement mechanism 125 moves the transport hand 121 forward and backward on the base 122, thereby allowing the transport hand 121 to access each of the storage containers 7 and the mounting unit 40. The hand movement mechanism 125 is provided, for example, inside the base 122. The hand movement mechanism 125 includes, for example, a ball screw mechanism driven by a motor.

[0036] In the indexer robot 12, the multiple transport hands 121 may be able to move independently of each other, or some or all of the multiple transport hands 121 may move together without being able to move independently of each other. Also, the number of transport hands 121 may be one or two or more.

[0037] The indexer robot 12 is a first transport robot that loads and unloads substrates 9 into and out of a storage container 7, which is placed on a load port 11, by allowing the transport hand 121 to access the container 7. The indexer robot 12 also transfers substrates 9 between the storage container 7 and the mounting unit 40. The mechanism for moving each component in the indexer robot 12 is not limited to the example described above and can be modified in various ways.

[0038] The placement unit 40 is provided at the connection part between the index block 10 and the processing block 20. An unprocessed substrate 9 that is transferred from the index robot 12 of the index block 10 to the center robot 22 (described later) of the processing block 20 is temporarily placed on the placement unit 40. Also, a processed substrate 9 that is transferred from the center robot 22 of the processing block 20 to the index robot 12 of the index block 10 is temporarily placed on the placement unit 40.

[0039] FIG. 6 is a side view of the placement unit 40 as viewed from the (+X) side. The placement unit 40 includes a housing 41 and an internal support portion 42. The housing 41 is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped box-shaped member. Inside the housing 41, a plurality (for example, four) of substrates 9 can be accommodated. Inside the placement unit 40, a plurality of substrates 9 arranged in the vertical direction (that is, the Z direction) are supported by the internal support portion 42. The internal support portion 42 is, for example, a substantially flat plate-shaped convex portion that protrudes substantially horizontally from the inner surface of the housing 41 and contacts the peripheral portion of the lower surface of the substrate 9 from below to support the substrate 9. Note that the number of substrates 9 accommodated in the placement unit 40 may be changed as appropriate.

[0040] On the side surface of the housing 41 on the (+X) side, a first opening 43 that connects the internal space 230 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) of the processing block 20 and the inside of the housing 41 is provided. The first opening 43 is, for example, a substantially rectangular opening in side view (that is, in a state of being viewed along the X direction). The first opening 43 is opened and closed by a first shutter 44. The first shutter 44 is, for example, a substantially rectangular plate-shaped member in side view. The first shutter 44 is moved in the vertical direction (that is, the Z direction) by a lifting mechanism (not shown).

[0041] Although not shown in FIG. 6, on the side surface of the housing 41 on the (-X) side, a second opening that connects the internal space 100 of the index block 10 and the inside of the housing 41 is provided and is opened and closed by a second shutter. The shape and structure of the second opening and the second shutter are, for example, substantially the same as those of the first opening 43 and the first shutter 44.

[0042] In the processing block 20 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a conveyance path 23 used for conveying the substrate 9 and a plurality of processing units 21 arranged around the conveyance path 23 are provided. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the conveyance path 23 extends in the X direction at the center in the Y direction of the processing block 20. In the internal space 230 of the conveyance path 23, a center robot 22, which is a second conveyance robot for loading and unloading the substrate 9 to and from each processing unit 21, is arranged. Around the conveyance path 23, for example, 12 processing units 21 are arranged. Each processing unit 21 is, for example, a single wafer type processing apparatus that performs a predetermined process such as a cleaning process on one substrate 9. Note that the process performed on the substrate 9 in the processing unit 21 may be variously changed.

[0043] The center robot 22 includes a substrate support portion 220 and a movement mechanism 224. The substrate support portion 220 can support a plurality of substrates 9. The substrate support portion 220 includes a plurality of conveyance hands 221, a base 222, a base support portion 223, and a hand movement mechanism 225. In the example shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the substrate support portion 220 includes two conveyance hands 221 that are substantially U-shaped in plan view. The two conveyance hands 221 are attached onto the base 222 while being arranged at a distance in the vertical direction. Each conveyance hand 221 is a thin plate-like member that is substantially perpendicular to the Z direction and is a substrate holding portion that holds one substrate 9. The conveyance hand 221 includes a substrate contact portion that directly contacts the lower surface (that is, the main surface on the (-Z) side) of the substrate 9 and supports the substrate 9 from below.

[0044] The base 222 is attached to the base support portion 223. The base support portion 223 may be provided with a rotation mechanism (not shown) that rotates the base 222 about a rotation axis facing in the vertical direction. The rotation mechanism includes, for example, a motor. The base support portion 223 is connected to the movement mechanism 224. The movement mechanism 224 is a mechanism that moves the substrate support portion 220 in the X direction (that is, the direction in which the conveyance path 23 extends) and the Z direction (that is, the vertical direction). The movement mechanism 224 includes, for example, a ball screw mechanism driven by a motor.

[0045] The hand movement mechanism 225 moves the transport hand 221 forward and backward substantially horizontally on the base 222, thereby allowing the transport hand 221 to access the mounting unit 40 and each processing unit 21. The hand movement mechanism 225 is provided, for example, inside the base 222. The hand movement mechanism 225 includes, for example, a ball screw mechanism driven by a motor.

[0046] In the central robot 22, the multiple transport hands 221 may be able to move independently of each other by the hand movement mechanism 225, or some or all of the multiple transport hands 221 may be moved together without being able to move independently of each other. Also, the number of transport hands 221 may be one or two or more.

[0047] The central robot 22 is a second transport robot that loads and unloads the substrate 9 to and from the mounting unit 40 by allowing the transport hand 221 to access the mounting unit 40. The central robot 22 also transfers the substrate 9 between the mounting unit 40 and each processing unit 21. The mechanism for moving each component in the central robot 22 is not limited to the example described above and can be modified in various ways.

[0048] The substrate processing apparatus 1 further comprises an information acquisition head 61 and a head movement mechanism 68. The information acquisition head 61 and the head movement mechanism 68 are used when irradiating light onto the substrate 9 being discharged from the mounting unit 40 by the center robot 22, and receiving the reflected light from the substrate 9 to acquire information indicating the shape of the substrate 9 (hereinafter also referred to as "substrate shape information").

[0049] In the examples shown in Figures 1 and 2, the information acquisition head 61 is positioned in the vicinity of the mounting unit 40 within the internal space 230 of the transport path 23 of the processing block 20. Specifically, the information acquisition head 61 is positioned adjacent to the (+X) side of the mounting unit 40 and is located between the mounting unit 40 and the center robot 22 in the X direction. In the state shown in Figure 2, the information acquisition head 61 is positioned slightly to the (+Z) side of the first opening 43 of the mounting unit 40.

[0050] The head movement mechanism 68 moves the information acquisition head 61 in the Z direction. The head movement mechanism 68 includes, for example, a ball screw mechanism driven by a motor. In the example shown in Figure 1, the head movement mechanism 68 is located on the (-Y) side of the information acquisition head 61. The structure and arrangement of the head movement mechanism 68 can be varied.

[0051] Figure 7 is a side view of the information acquisition head 61, and Figure 8 is a top view of the information acquisition head 61. In Figures 7 and 8, the head cover 67 of the information acquisition head 61 is shown with a dashed line, and the internal structure of the head cover 67 is shown with a solid line. In addition, Figures 7 and 8 also depict the substrate 9 that has been held by the transport hand 221 of the center robot 22 and unloaded from the mounting unit 40. The substrate 9 and the transport hand 221 are located at a distance from the information acquisition head 61 to the (-Z) side.

[0052] The information acquisition head 61 comprises a light emitting section 63, a reflected light branching section 64, a screen 65, an imaging device 66, and a head cover 67. The head cover 67 is, for example, a roughly rectangular box-shaped member that opens downwards. The light emitting section 63, the reflected light branching section 64, the screen 65, and the imaging device 66 are housed inside the head cover 67. In the examples shown in Figures 7 and 8, the light emitting section 63, the imaging device 66, the reflected light branching section 64, and the screen 65 are arranged in this order with respect to the X direction. Also, the widths in the Y direction of the light emitting section 63, the reflected light branching section 64, and the screen 65 are greater than the maximum width of the substrate 9 in the Y direction (i.e., the diameter of the substrate 9).

[0053] The light emitting unit 63 emits light diagonally downward toward the main surface (hereinafter also referred to as the "upper surface 91") on the (+Z) side of the substrate 9 held by the transport hand 221. In the example shown in Figure 7, the light emitting unit 63 emits light toward both the (+X) and (-Z) sides. As shown in Figure 8, the light emitting unit 63 emits multiple (for example, 30) beams B1 arranged in the Y direction in parallel (i.e., almost simultaneously). In Figure 8, some of the beams B1 are omitted from the illustration to facilitate understanding of the figure.

[0054] Each beam B1 is a collimated beam. The light intensities of the multiple beams B1 do not necessarily have to be the same, but it is preferable that they be approximately the same. The optical paths of the multiple beams B1 are approximately parallel to each other and are approximately parallel to the XZ plane. The multiple beams B1 may be visible light or invisible light such as short-wave infrared (SWIR). In this embodiment, the multiple beams B1 are visible light. The number of multiple beams B1 may be changed as appropriate.

[0055] The light emission unit 63 includes, for example, a plurality of light sources such as LDs (Laser Diodes) corresponding to a plurality of beams B1. These plurality of light sources are arranged at equal intervals on a straight line parallel to the Y direction, for example. The light emission unit 63 further includes a collimating lens through which the light emitted from the plurality of light sources passes. The plurality of beams B1 are formed when the light emitted from the plurality of light sources passes through the collimating lens.

[0056] The structure of the light emission unit 63 can be modified in various ways. For example, instead of the multiple light sources described above, multiple optical fibers connected to a single light source may be provided. Alternatively, the multiple beams B1 described above may be formed by dividing a collimated beam emitted from a single light source into multiple beams using DOEs (Diffractive Optical Elements), and then making the divided collimated beams parallel to each other using lenses.

[0057] Multiple beams B1 emitted from the light emission unit 63 are incident on the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9, forming multiple point-shaped beam spots S1 on the upper surface 91 that are arranged in a substantially straight line in a first direction along the upper surface 91. In the example shown in Figure 8, the first direction, which is the direction in which the multiple beam spots S1 are arranged, is the Y direction. Note that this first direction may be inclined with respect to the Y direction. Multiple beam spots S1 correspond to multiple beams B1, and the number of multiple beam spots S1 is the same as the number of multiple beams B1.

[0058] On the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9, the multiple beam spots S1 are arranged at approximately equal intervals with respect to the first direction. The width in the Y direction of the region where the multiple beam spots S1 are arranged (i.e., the distance in the Y direction between the beam spot S1 located furthest to (+Y) and the beam spot S1 located furthest to (-Y)) is, for example, approximately the same as the maximum width of the substrate 9 in the Y direction (i.e., the diameter of the substrate 9).

[0059] The reflected light R0 of the beam B1 reflected at each beam spot S1 on the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 travels from each beam spot S1 toward the (+X) and (+Z) sides and enters the reflected light branching section 64. The reflected light branching section 64 comprises a half mirror 641 and a mirror 642. The half mirror 641 and the mirror 642 are each substantially flat plate-shaped members that extend substantially perpendicular to the X direction. The half mirror 641 and the mirror 642 are arranged facing each other in the X direction, substantially parallel to each other. The mirror 642 is positioned on the (-X) side of the half mirror 641. The half mirror 641 transmits a portion of the incident light and reflects the remaining light. The mirror 642 is a total reflection mirror that substantially reflects the incident light.

[0060] A portion of the reflected light R0 incident on the reflected light branching section 64 (hereinafter also referred to as "first reflected light R1") passes through the half mirror 641 and travels toward the (+X) and (+Z) sides, and is incident on a substantially flat screen 65 that extends substantially perpendicular to the X direction. As a result, a point-shaped first spot image 651, which is the first image of the beam spot S1, is formed on the screen 65.

[0061] Meanwhile, the reflected light R0 that entered the reflected light branching section 64 and did not pass through the half mirror 641 (hereinafter also referred to as "second reflected light R2") is reflected by the half mirror 641 and travels toward the (-X) and (+Z) sides, entering the mirror 642. The second reflected light R2 is reflected by the mirror 642 and travels toward the (+X) and (+Z) sides, entering the screen 65. As a result, a point-shaped second spot image 652, which is a second image of the beam spot S1, is formed on the screen 65.

[0062] On the screen 65, the second spot image 652 is located in approximately the same position as the first spot image 651 in the Y direction, and is located on the (+Z) side of the first spot image 651 in the Z direction. The optical path length of the second reflected light R2 from the beam spot S1 on the substrate 9 to the second spot image 652 is longer than the optical path length of the first reflected light R1 from the beam spot S1 to the first spot image 651.

[0063] As shown in Figure 9, on the screen 65, multiple first spot images 651 corresponding to the multiple beams B1 (see Figures 7 and 8) are arranged substantially parallel to the Y direction. In addition, multiple second spot images 652 corresponding to the multiple beams B1 are arranged substantially parallel to the Y direction. As described above, on the screen 65, the multiple second spot images 652 are located on the (+Z) side of the multiple first spot images 651.

[0064] The imaging device 66 shown in Figures 7 and 8 captures multiple first spot images 651, which are images of multiple beam spots S1 formed on the screen 65 by the first reflected light R1, and multiple second spot images 652, which are images of multiple beam spots S1 formed on the same screen 65 by the second reflected light R2. The imaging device 66 captures the multiple first spot images 651 and the multiple second spot images 652 in such a way that they are included in a single captured image. That is, the imaging device 66 captures all of the first reflected light R1 and second reflected light R2 of each of the multiple beam spots S1 together.

[0065] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 illustrated in Figures 7 and 8, only one imaging device 66 is provided for imaging the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2, and no other imaging devices are provided. Furthermore, the imaging device 66 is a single device, not a group of multiple identical devices. However, the substrate processing apparatus 1 may be provided with two or more imaging devices 66.

[0066] The captured image acquired by the imaging device 66 is sent to the information acquisition unit 801 of the control unit 8 (see Figures 1 and 2), which will be described later. Based on the captured image, the information acquisition unit 801 determines the three-dimensional position of each beam spot S1 formed on the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9. The method for calculating the three-dimensional position of the beam spot S1 will be described later.

[0067] In the examples shown in Figures 7 and 8, no optical elements other than the reflected light branching section 64 are provided in the optical path of the light emitted from the light emission section 63 to the screen 65. Furthermore, no optical elements such as lenses or mirrors are provided between the imaging device 66 and the screen 65. The imaging device 66 can have any configuration as long as it is capable of acquiring an image, and may include, for example, a CMOS sensor and a lens.

[0068] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the substrate processing apparatus 1 further includes a control unit 8 that controls the configurations of the indexer block 10, the mounting unit 40, and the processing block 20. Figure 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of the control unit 8. The control unit 8 has the configuration of a general computer system, including a CPU 81, a GPU 82, a ROM 83, a RAM 84, a fixed disk 85, a display 86, an input unit 87, a reader 88, a communication unit 89, and a bus 80.

[0069] The CPU 81 performs various arithmetic operations. The GPU 82 performs various arithmetic operations related to image processing. The ROM 83 stores the basic program. The RAM 84 stores various information. The fixed disk 85 stores information. The display 86 is a display unit that displays various information such as images. The input unit 87 includes a keyboard 87a and a mouse 87b that accept input from the operator. The reader 88 reads information from computer-readable recording media 881 such as optical disks, magnetic disks, magneto-optical disks, and memory cards. The display 86, keyboard 87a, mouse 87b, and reader 88 are connected to the bus 80 via an interface I / F. The communication unit 89 sends and receives signals to and from external devices of the control unit 8. The bus 80 is a signal circuit that connects the CPU 81, GPU 82, ROM 83, RAM 84, fixed disk 85, display 86, input unit 87, reader 88, and communication unit 89.

[0070] In the control unit 8, the program 882 is read in advance from the recording medium 881 via the reader 88 and stored in the fixed disk 85. The program 882 may also be stored in the fixed disk 85 via a network. The CPU 81 and GPU 82 perform arithmetic processing using the RAM 84 and fixed disk 85 according to the program 882. The CPU 81 and GPU 82 function as the arithmetic unit in the control unit 8. Other configurations besides the CPU 81 and GPU 82 that function as the arithmetic unit may also be employed.

[0071] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2, the control unit 8 performs calculation processing and the like according to the program 882, thereby realizing the information acquisition unit 801 (see Figures 1 and 2) as a functional configuration. All or part of this function may be realized by a dedicated electrical circuit. Alternatively, this function may be realized by multiple computers. The information acquisition unit 801 may be realized by a CPU 81, GPU 82, ROM 83, RAM 84, fixed disk 85 and their peripheral configurations. For example, the information acquisition unit 801 has a configuration that includes a calculation unit that performs calculation processing on the shape of the substrate 9 according to the program 882, and a storage unit that stores the information calculated by the calculation unit. Various storage elements (such as memory) can be used as the storage unit.

[0072] Next, the method for calculating the three-dimensional position of the beam spot S1 by the information acquisition unit 801 will be explained with reference to Figures 11 and 12. Figure 11 is a diagram showing a part of the configuration in Figure 7. Figure 12 is a conceptual diagram showing the direction vector, which will be described later. First, the information acquisition unit 801 determines the coordinates P1 (x1, y1, z1) of the first spot image 651 in the XYZ coordinate system based on the captured image acquired by the imaging device 66. The information acquisition unit 801 also determines the coordinates P2 (x2, y2, z2) of the virtual second spot image 652a based on the captured image. The position of the origin in the XYZ coordinate system is not particularly limited. For example, the center of the substrate 9 or the starting point of the measurement can be set as the origin.

[0073] The virtual second spot image 652a is the virtual position of the second spot image 652, assuming that the second reflected light R2 passes through the half mirror 641 and travels the optical path length of the second reflected light R2 from the half mirror 641. In other words, the virtual second spot image 652a is the virtual position of the second spot image 652 when the second reflected light R2 and the screen 65 are unfolded on the reflective surface of the half mirror 641 and superimposed with the first reflected light R1. As described above, since the optical path length of the second reflected light R2 is longer than the optical path length of the first reflected light R1, the virtual second spot image 652a is located on the (+X) and (+Z) sides of the first spot image 651.

[0074] The direction vector dr of the reflected light R0 at the beam spot S1 on the substrate 9 is obtained as shown in Equation (1) using the coordinates P1 and P2.

[0075]

[0076] On the other hand, the direction vector di of the beam B1 emitted from the light emitting unit 63 toward the substrate 9 (i.e., the incident light at the beam spot S1) is fixed in the substrate processing apparatus 1 regardless of the shape of the substrate 9. The direction vector di is the coordinate P ｉ 1 (x ｉ 1, y ｉ 1, z ｉ 1) of the emission position 635 of the beam B1 in the light emitting unit 63 and the coordinate P ｉ 2 (x ｉ 2, y ｉ 2, z ｉ 2) of a predetermined position 636 on the beam B1, and is expressed as shown in Equation (2). Since the beam B1 is parallel to the XZ plane as described above, the y coordinate of the coordinate P ｉ 1 and the y coordinate of the coordinate P ｉ 2 are the same. Also, the coordinate P ｉ 1 and the coordinate P ｉ 2 are two different points on the beam B1.

[0077]

[0078] In FIG. 12, the straight line Li corresponding to the direction vector di is expressed as shown in Equation (3) using the parameter t. Also, the straight line Lr corresponding to the direction vector dr is expressed as shown in Equation (4) using the parameter u.

[0079]

[0080]

[0081] Since the straight line Li and the straight line Lr pass through the beam spot S1 on the substrate 9, the coordinates Pr (xr, yr, zr) of the beam spot S1 are obtained as shown in Equation (5).

[0082]

[0083] In the information acquisition unit 801, as shown in Figure 8, the coordinate Pr is determined for each of the multiple beam spots S1 that are arranged in a substantially straight line in the first direction (i.e., the Y direction) on the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9, as described above. In other words, the coordinate Pr of the beam spot S1 that is the intersection point of the line Li corresponding to the direction vector di and the line Lr corresponding to the direction vector dr is calculated. This allows the shape of the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 on a virtual line passing through the multiple beam spots S1 to be acquired. In the following description, the virtual line passing through the multiple beam spots S1 will also be called the "spot line," and the shape of the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 on the spot line will also be called the "shape of the spot line."

[0084] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2, the substrate 9, which is unloaded from the mounting unit 40 by the center robot 22, moves in the (+X) direction below the information acquisition head 61. Specifically, the substrate 9, held by the transport hand 221, moves in the (+X) direction by the hand movement mechanism 225 with multiple beam spots S1 formed on its upper surface 91 as shown in Figure 8. As a result, the multiple beam spots S1 are scanned in the (-X) direction on the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9. If we refer to the X direction, which is the scanning direction of the multiple beam spots S1 on the substrate 9, as the "second direction," then the hand movement mechanism 225 is a scanning mechanism that scans the multiple beam spots S1 on the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 in the second direction. The second direction is a direction along the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 and intersects with the first direction described above. The second direction may also be a direction inclined with respect to the X direction.

[0085] In the substrate processing apparatus 1, when the substrate 9 is unloaded from the mounting unit 40, multiple beam spots S1 are scanned from the (+X) side edge to the (-X) side edge of the substrate 9, and in parallel, multiple first spot images 651 and multiple second spot images 652 on the screen 65 are continuously captured by the imaging device 66, thereby acquiring multiple captured images. These multiple captured images are sent from the imaging device 66 to the information acquisition unit 801 (see Figures 1 and 2).

[0086] In the information acquisition unit 801, the shape of the spot line corresponding to each captured image is determined based on the multiple captured images, as described above. Then, the multiple spot lines corresponding to each of the multiple captured images are arranged in the X direction according to the position of the spot line on the substrate 9 when each captured image was taken, thereby acquiring substrate shape information that shows the approximate overall shape of the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9. Figure 13 schematically illustrates the substrate shape information acquired by the information acquisition unit 801. In the example shown in Figure 13, the substrate 9 is curved so as to be convex on the (+Z) side. In Figure 13, the degree of curvature of the substrate 9 is depicted as being larger than it actually is.

[0087] In the substrate processing apparatus 1, the light emission unit 63, the reflected light branching unit 64, the imaging device 66, the transport hand 221, the hand movement mechanism 225, and the information acquisition unit 801 constitute a substrate information acquisition apparatus 60 that acquires substrate shape information (i.e., information on the shape of the substrate 9).

[0088] In the substrate processing apparatus 1, as described above, when the substrate 9 is unloaded from the mounting unit 40 by the center robot 22, the substrate shape information is acquired by the substrate information acquisition device 60. Based on the substrate shape information, the control unit 8 (see Figures 1 and 2) determines whether the substrate 9 can be properly held in the processing unit 21 into which it is scheduled to be loaded. The control unit 8 also sets appropriate processing conditions for the processing to be performed on the substrate 9 in the processing unit 21, which are in accordance with the shape of the substrate 9 as indicated by the substrate shape information.

[0089] In addition, the substrate processing apparatus 1 does not necessarily need to acquire substrate shape information indicating the shape of the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9; substrate shape information indicating the shape of the lower surface (i.e., the main surface on the (-Z) side) of the substrate 9 may be acquired. In this case, the information acquisition head 61 is positioned on the (-Z) side of the substrate 9, and the beam B1 emitted from the light emission unit 63 is incident on the lower surface of the substrate 9, forming multiple beam spots S1 on the lower surface of the substrate 9. Furthermore, in the substrate processing apparatus 1, the information acquisition head 61 may be positioned on both the (+Z) side and the (-Z) side of the substrate support unit 120 of the center robot 22, and the substrate shape information of two substrates 9 held by two transport hands 221 may be acquired simultaneously. Moreover, by measuring the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate 9 using the information acquisition head 61 and the head movement mechanism 68, not only substrate shape information but also information on the thickness of the substrate 9 can be acquired.

[0090] As described above, the substrate information acquisition device 60 comprises a substrate holding unit (transport hand 221 in the above example), a light emitting unit 63, a scanning mechanism (hand moving mechanism 225 in the above example), a reflected light branching unit 64, an imaging device 66, and an information acquisition unit 801. The substrate holding unit holds the substrate 9. The light emitting unit 63 emits light toward the main surface of the substrate 9 (upper surface 91 in the above example) to form a plurality of beam spots S1 aligned linearly in a first direction (Y direction in the above example) along the main surface on the substrate 9. The scanning mechanism scans the plurality of beam spots S1 on the main surface of the substrate 9 in a second direction (X direction in the above example). The second direction intersects the first direction and is a direction along the main surface of the substrate 9.

[0091] The reflected light branching unit 64 branches the reflected light R0 at each beam spot S1 into a first reflected light R1 and a second reflected light R2, which have different optical path lengths. The imaging device 66 captures the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2 of each beam spot S1 together. The information acquisition unit 801 acquires information about the shape of the substrate 9 (i.e., substrate shape information) based on the multiple images acquired by the imaging device 66 in parallel with the scanning of the multiple beam spots S1 by the scanning mechanism.

[0092] In this way, the substrate information acquisition device 60 splits the reflected light R0 at each beam spot S1 into a first reflected light R1 and a second reflected light R2 with different optical path lengths, and substrate shape information is acquired based on the imaging results of the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2. Therefore, information about the shape of the substrate 9 can be acquired with high accuracy. Furthermore, the substrate information acquisition device 60 forms multiple beam spots S1 arranged linearly in the first direction on the substrate 9, rather than a linear beam irradiation area extending in the first direction on the substrate 9, and images the reflected light from them. Therefore, the correspondence between the first spot image 651 and the second spot image 652 on the captured image and the beam spots S1 on the substrate 9 can be easily grasped. Therefore, information about the shape of the substrate 9 can be acquired with even greater accuracy.

[0093] Furthermore, in the substrate information acquisition device 60, the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2 of each beam spot S1 are captured together by the imaging device 66. Therefore, the structure of the substrate information acquisition device 60 can be simplified compared to the case where the imaging device for capturing the first reflected light R1 and the imaging device for capturing the second reflected light R2 are provided separately (i.e., independently). In other words, the substrate information acquisition device 60 can acquire information about the shape of the substrate 9 with high accuracy while simplifying the device structure.

[0094] As described above, it is preferable that the light emission unit 63 emits multiple beams B1 corresponding to multiple beam spots S1 in parallel. This reduces the time required to acquire substrate shape information compared to the case where a single beam spot S1 is formed on the substrate 9 with a single beam B1 and the beam spot S1 is scanned in the first direction.

[0095] As described above, it is preferable that the imaging device 66 captures images of each beam spot S1 formed on a single screen 65 by the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2 (i.e., the first spot image 651 and the second spot image 652). This allows the imaging device 66 to be miniaturized and the degree of freedom in the placement of the imaging device 66 to be improved compared to the case where the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2 are directly incident on the imaging device 66. Furthermore, since the focusing lens required to cause the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2 to incident on the imaging device 66 can be omitted, the structure of the substrate information acquisition device 60 can be simplified. Moreover, by providing only one screen 65 in the substrate information acquisition device 60, the structure of the substrate information acquisition device 60 can be further simplified.

[0096] In the above example, the substrate holder supports the substrate 9 by contacting its lower surface. In this case, it is preferable that the main surface of the substrate 9 that is irradiated by the light emitted from the light emitting unit 63 is the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9. This prevents the light irradiated from the light emitting unit 63 onto the main surface of the substrate 9 from being blocked by the substrate holder. As a result, information about the shape of the substrate 9 can be acquired with even greater accuracy.

[0097] The substrate processing apparatus 1 for processing the substrate 9 comprises the substrate information acquisition device 60 described above, an indexer block 10, a processing block 20, and a mounting unit 40. The indexer block 10 is equipped with a first transport robot (i.e., an indexer robot 12) that loads and unloads substrates into and out of a storage container 7 capable of accommodating multiple substrates 9. The processing block 20 is equipped with a processing unit 21 for processing the substrates 9, and a second transport robot (i.e., a center robot 22) that loads and unloads substrates 9 into and out of the processing unit 21. The mounting unit 40 is provided at the connection point between the processing block 20 and the indexer block 10. The mounting unit 40 holds unprocessed substrates 9 that are passed from the indexer robot 12 to the center robot 22, and processed substrates 9 that are passed from the center robot 22 to the indexer robot 12. The substrate holding part of the substrate information acquisition device 60 is a transport hand 221 that holds the substrates 9 in the center robot 22. The scanning mechanism of the substrate information acquisition device 60 is a hand movement mechanism 225 that moves the transport hand 221 in a second direction (in the above example, the X direction) on the center robot 22. In the substrate processing device 1, when the substrate 9 is unloaded from the mounting unit 40 by the center robot 22, the substrate information acquisition device 60 acquires information about the shape of the substrate 9.

[0098] In this way, by acquiring substrate shape information indicating the shape of the substrate 9 in the transport path of the substrate 9 from the mounting unit 40 to the processing unit 21, it is possible to acquire substrate shape information accurately before processing the substrate 9, while suppressing or preventing an increase in the cycle time of substrate processing. Then, by processing the substrate 9 based on the acquired substrate shape information, the quality of processing the substrate 9 can be improved. Furthermore, as described above, the device structure of the substrate information acquisition device 60 can be simplified, so the substrate information acquisition device 60 can be placed while suppressing an increase in the size of the substrate processing device 1.

[0099] In the above example, the multiple beams B1 emitted from the light emission unit 63 are visible light, but this is not limited to visible light. For example, if a photosensitive material that is sensitive in the visible light wavelength range is coated on the substrate 9, the multiple beams B1 may be short-wave infrared light. This makes it possible to accurately acquire substrate shape information even for substrates 9 where irradiation with visible light is undesirable.

[0100] Furthermore, if the light emitted from the light emission unit 63 is short-wave infrared light, it is preferable that the screen 65 is a fluorescent screen that emits fluorescence when irradiated with short-wave infrared light. This makes it possible to capture the first spot image 651 and the second spot image 652 on the screen 65 without using an expensive imaging device capable of capturing short-wave infrared light, thereby suppressing an increase in the manufacturing cost of the substrate information acquisition device 60 and the substrate processing device 1.

[0101] In the substrate processing apparatus 1, the structure of the light emission unit 63 is not limited to the above example and can be modified in various ways. For example, the light emission unit 63a shown in Figure 14 may be provided on the information acquisition head 61 instead of the light emission unit 63. Figure 14 is an enlarged plan view showing the light emission unit 63a. The light emission unit 63a comprises a light source unit 631 and a multi-beam device 632. The light source unit 631 is, for example, located on the (-X) side of the multi-beam device 632 and emits a beam B0 in the (+X) direction toward the multi-beam device 632. The beam B0 is a collimated beam. The light source unit 631 comprises, for example, an LD (Laser Diode). The beam B0 incident from the light source unit 631 to the multi-beam device 632 is divided into a plurality of beams B1 in the multi-beam device 632 and emitted from the multi-beam device 632 toward the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 (see Figure 8).

[0102] The multi-beam device 632 comprises a light-reducing filter 633 and a mirror 634. The light-reducing filter 633 and the mirror 634 are each substantially flat plate-shaped members extending substantially parallel to the Z direction, and extending in directions inclined with respect to the X and Y directions in a plan view. The light-reducing filter 633 and the mirror 634 are arranged in close proximity to each other, facing each other substantially parallel to each other. The mirror 634 is positioned on the (-X) side of the light-reducing filter 633. The light source unit 631 is positioned near the (-Y) end of the light-reducing filter 633 and the mirror 634, on the (-X) side of the mirror 634.

[0103] The attenuation filter 633 is a filter that transmits a portion of the incident light and reflects the remaining light. The transmittance of the attenuation filter 633 for the beam B0 described above gradually increases from the (-Y) end to the (+Y) end (i.e., from one side to the other in the first direction described above). As the attenuation filter 633, for example, an ND (Neutral Density) filter whose transmittance changes continuously or stepwise in the Y direction can be used. The mirror 634 is a total reflection mirror that substantially reflects the incident light.

[0104] In the light emission section 63a, the beam B0 emitted from the light source section 631 is incident at a first incident position located at the (-Y) end of the attenuation filter 633. A portion of the beam B0 incident at the first incident position of the attenuation filter 633 passes through the attenuation filter 633 and is emitted toward the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 as beam B1, which is located furthest to the (-Y) side in Figure 14. The remainder of the beam B0 incident at the first incident position of the attenuation filter 633 (i.e., the light that did not pass through the attenuation filter 633) is reflected by the attenuation filter 633 toward the (+Y) and (-X) sides toward the mirror 634, and is reflected toward the attenuation filter 633 by the mirror 634 and incident at the second incident position of the attenuation filter 633. On the attenuation filter 633, the second incident position is located toward the (+Y) side than the first incident position.

[0105] A portion of the beam B0 incident at the second incident position of the light-reducing filter 633 passes through the light-reducing filter 633 and is emitted toward the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 as beam B1, which is the second beam from the (-Y) side in Figure 14. The light transmittance of the light-reducing filter 633 at the second incident position is greater than that of the light-reducing filter 633 at the first incident position. On the other hand, the light intensity of beam B0 incident at the second incident position is less than that of beam B0 incident at the first incident position. In the light emission section 63a, the light transmittance of the light-reducing filter 633 is set so that the light intensity of beam B1 that has passed through the light-reducing filter 633 at the first incident position and the light intensity of beam B1 that has passed through the light-reducing filter 633 at the second incident position are approximately the same.

[0106] The remaining portion of the beam B0 that entered the light-reducing filter 633 at the second incident position (i.e., the light that did not pass through the light-reducing filter 633) is reflected by the light-reducing filter 633 toward the (+Y) and (-X) sides toward the mirror 634, and is reflected by the mirror 634 toward the light-reducing filter 633 and enters the light-reducing filter 633 at its third incident position. On the light-reducing filter 633, the third incident position is located toward the (+Y) side than the second incident position.

[0107] A portion of the beam B0 incident at the third incident position of the light-reducing filter 633 passes through the light-reducing filter 633 and is emitted toward the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 as beam B1, which is the third beam from the (-Y) side in Figure 14. The light transmittance of the light-reducing filter 633 at the third incident position is greater than that of the light-reducing filter 633 at the second incident position. On the other hand, the light intensity of beam B0 incident at the third incident position is less than that of beam B0 incident at the second incident position. In the light emission section 63a, the light transmittance of the light-reducing filter 633 is set so that the light intensity of beam B1 that has passed through the light-reducing filter 633 at the second incident position and the light intensity of beam B1 that has passed through the light-reducing filter 633 at the third incident position are approximately the same.

[0108] In the light emission section 63a, the beam B0 incident on the multi-beam device 632 from the light source section 631 is repeatedly reflected between the attenuation filter 633 and the mirror 634 as it travels from the (-Y) side to the (+Y) side. Then, at multiple incident positions (such as the first, second, and third incident positions mentioned above) that are arranged at approximately equal intervals in the Y direction on the attenuation filter 633, a portion of the beam B0 passes through the attenuation filter 633, causing multiple beams B1 to be emitted toward the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9. In the light emission section 63a, the transmittance of the attenuation filter 633 is set so that the light intensity of the beams B1 transmitted through the attenuation filter 633 is approximately the same at each of two adjacent incident positions in the Y direction. Therefore, the light intensity of the multiple beams B1 emitted from the multi-beam device 632 toward the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 is approximately uniform.

[0109] As described above, the light emission unit 63a comprises a light source unit 631 and a multi-beam device 632. The multi-beam device 632 divides the beam B0 emitted from the light source unit 631 into a plurality of beams B1 and emits them. The multi-beam device 632 comprises a light-reducing filter 633 and a mirror 634. The light-reducing filter 633 transmits a portion of the incident light and reflects the rest. The mirror 634 is positioned opposite the light-reducing filter 633 and reflects the incident light toward the light-reducing filter 633. The transmittance of the light-reducing filter 633 gradually increases as you move from one side to the other in the first direction (in the above example, as you move from the (-Y) side to the (+Y) side). The beam B0 that enters the multi-beam device 632 from the light source unit 631 is repeatedly reflected between the light-reducing filter 633 and the mirror 634 as it moves from one side to the other in the first direction. The multiple beams B1 are beams that have passed through the attenuation filter 633 from multiple incident positions of beam B0 in the attenuation filter 633. This simplifies the structure of the light emission unit 63a that emits the multiple beams B1.

[0110] Next, a substrate processing apparatus 1b according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Figure 15 is a plan view of the substrate processing apparatus 1b. Figure 16 is a view of the substrate processing apparatus 1b as seen from the line XVI-XVI in Figure 15. The substrate processing apparatus 1b has substantially the same structure as the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2, except that the information acquisition head 61 described above is arranged in the indexer block 10. In the following description, the same reference numerals are used for each component of the substrate processing apparatus 1 and the corresponding components of the substrate processing apparatus 1b.

[0111] The information acquisition head 61 is positioned in the internal space 100 of the indexer block 10, near the multiple containment containers 7. Specifically, the information acquisition head 61 is positioned adjacent to the (+X) side of the (-X) side wall 13 of the indexer block 10. With respect to the X direction, the information acquisition head 61 is located between the side wall 13 of the indexer block 10 and the movement mechanism 124 of the indexer robot 12. In the state shown in Figure 16, the information acquisition head 61 is positioned slightly (+Z) side of the container opening 71 of the containment container 7.

[0112] The information acquisition head 61 is fixed to the substrate support section 120 of the indexer robot 12 and moves in the Y and Z directions together with the substrate support section 120 by the movement mechanism 124. In the example shown in Figures 15 and 16, the information acquisition head 61 is attached to the base 122 of the substrate support section 120 and is located on the (+Z) side of the multiple transport hands 121. Note that the information acquisition head 61 does not necessarily have to be fixed to the substrate support section 120, and may be able to move independently of the substrate support section 120 by a movement mechanism other than the movement mechanism 124.

[0113] In the substrate processing apparatus 1b, when the substrate 9 is unloaded from the storage container 7, substrate shape information is acquired in substantially the same manner as in the first embodiment. Specifically, first, the substrate support part 120 and the information acquisition head 61 are moved by the movement mechanism 124 of the indexer robot 12 and positioned on the (+X) side of one of the storage containers 7. Subsequently, the transport hand 121 is inserted into the storage container 7 by the hand movement mechanism 125 to hold the substrate 9, and then moved in the (+X) direction to unload the substrate 9 from the storage container 7.

[0114] When the substrate 9 is removed from the storage container 7, the multiple beam spots S1 (see Figure 8) described above are scanned from the (+X) end to the (-X) end of the substrate 9, and in parallel, multiple first spot images 651 and multiple second spot images 652 (see Figure 9) on the screen 65 are continuously captured by the imaging device 66 (see Figures 7 and 8) to acquire multiple captured images. These multiple captured images are sent from the imaging device 66 to the information acquisition unit 801 of the control unit 8. Based on these multiple captured images, the information acquisition unit 801 acquires substrate shape information showing substantially the overall shape of the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9, in substantially the same manner as in the first embodiment.

[0115] In the substrate processing apparatus 1b, a substrate information acquisition device 60b is configured to acquire substrate shape information (i.e., information about the shape of the substrate 9) by comprising a light emission unit 63, a reflected light branching unit 64, and an imaging device 66 (see Figures 7 and 8), an information acquisition unit 801, and a transport hand 121 and hand movement mechanism 125 of the indexer robot 12. In the substrate information acquisition device 60b, similar to the substrate information acquisition device 60, it is possible to acquire information about the shape of the substrate 9 with high accuracy while simplifying the device structure.

[0116] As described above, the substrate processing apparatus 1b for processing the substrate 9 comprises the substrate information acquisition device 60b described above, an indexer block 10, and a processing block 20. The indexer block 10 is equipped with a first transport robot (i.e., an indexer robot 12) for loading and unloading substrates into and out of a storage container 7 capable of accommodating multiple substrates 9. The processing block 20 is equipped with a processing unit 21 for processing the substrate 9, and a second transport robot (i.e., a center robot 22) for loading and unloading substrates 9 into and out of the processing unit 21.

[0117] The substrate holding part of the substrate information acquisition device 60b is a transport hand 121 that holds the substrate 9 in the indexer robot 12. The scanning mechanism of the substrate information acquisition device 60b is a hand movement mechanism 125 that moves the transport hand 121 in a second direction (in the above example, the X direction) in the indexer robot 12. In the substrate processing device 1b, when the substrate 9 is discharged from the storage container 7 by the indexer robot 12, the substrate information acquisition device 60b acquires information about the shape of the substrate 9.

[0118] As a result, similar to the first embodiment, it is possible to accurately acquire substrate shape information before processing the substrate 9, while suppressing or preventing an increase in the cycle time of substrate processing. Then, by processing the substrate 9 based on the acquired substrate shape information, the quality of processing the substrate 9 can be improved. Furthermore, as described above, since the device structure of the substrate information acquisition device 60b can be simplified, the substrate information acquisition device 60b can be arranged while suppressing an increase in the size of the substrate processing device 1b.

[0119] Various modifications are possible to the above-mentioned substrate information acquisition devices 60, 60b and substrate processing devices 1, 1b.

[0120] For example, in the substrate information acquisition device 60, the half mirror 641 and mirror 642 of the reflected light branching section 64 do not necessarily have to be perpendicular to the X direction, but may be arranged to be inclined with respect to the X direction. The same applies to the substrate information acquisition device 60b.

[0121] The structure of the reflected light branching section 64 is not limited to the above example and can be modified in various ways. For example, the reflected light branching section 64 may consist of a first screen that transmits a portion of the reflected light R0 reflected by the substrate 9 and generates a first spot image 651 by fluorescence at the position where the remainder of the reflected light R0 (i.e., the first reflected light R1) is irradiated, and a second screen that forms a second spot image 652 by the reflected light that has passed through the first screen (i.e., the second reflected light R2).

[0122] In the substrate information acquisition device 60, the light emission unit 63 may be controlled to repeatedly turn each beam spot S1 on and off. In this case, the light emission unit 63 may be controlled so that the timing of turning on each beam spot S1 is different from the timing of turning on the adjacent beam spots S1 on both sides in the first direction described above. This makes it easier to grasp the correspondence between the first spot image 651 and the second spot image 652 on the captured image and the beam spot S1 on the substrate 9. As a result, information about the shape of the substrate 9 can be acquired with high accuracy. The same applies to the substrate information acquisition device 60b.

[0123] In the substrate information acquisition device 60, the light emission unit 63 may form a single beam spot S1 on the substrate 9 with a single beam B1, and by scanning the beam spot S1 in the first direction, a plurality of beam spots S1 aligned in a straight line in the first direction may be formed on the main surface of the substrate 9. The same applies to the substrate information acquisition device 60b.

[0124] In the substrate information acquisition devices 60 and 60b, the imaging device 66 does not necessarily need to image the first spot image 651 and the second spot image 652 projected onto the screen 65. For example, the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2 reflected from the substrate 9 may be guided to the imaging device 66 via an optical element or the like and incident on the imaging device 66, so that the first reflected light R1 and the second reflected light R2 are imaged together by the imaging device 66. In this case, the screen 65 may be omitted.

[0125] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 and 1b, the transport hands 121 and 221 do not necessarily need to contact the lower surface of the substrate 9 to support it. For example, the transport hands 121 and 221 may hold the upper surface 91 of the substrate 9 by suction.

[0126] In the substrate processing apparatus 1, 1b, multiple beam spots S1 are scanned on the main surface of the substrate 9 by moving the substrate 9 in a second direction (in the above example, the X direction), but this is not limited to this. For example, an information acquisition head 61, which is provided with a light emission unit 63, a reflected light branching unit 64, and an imaging device 66, may be moved in the second direction by a moving mechanism while the substrate 9 is stationary, thereby scanning multiple beam spots S1 on the main surface of the substrate 9. In this case, the moving mechanism is a scanning mechanism that scans multiple beam spots S1.

[0127] The substrate processing apparatus 1, 1b described above may be used to process glass substrates used in flat panel displays such as liquid crystal displays or organic electroluminescence (EL) displays, or glass substrates used in other displays, in addition to semiconductor substrates. Furthermore, the substrate processing apparatus 1, 1b described above may be used to process substrates for optical discs, magnetic discs, magneto-optical discs, photomasks, ceramic substrates, and solar cell substrates.

[0128] The substrate information acquisition devices 60 and 60b may be arranged in various positions different from those in the above example within the substrate processing apparatus 1 and 1b to acquire substrate shape information. Furthermore, the substrate information acquisition devices 60 and 60b do not necessarily need to be provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1 and 1b, and may be independent devices. In addition, although the above embodiment describes a case where only one imaging device 66 is provided, for example, multiple imaging devices 66 may be provided arranged in the width direction (Y direction) of the substrate 9. This can improve the observation resolution in the Y direction. Alternatively, multiple optical systems, each comprising a light emission unit 63, a reflected light branching unit 64, and an imaging device 66, may be arranged in the width direction (Y direction) of the substrate 9.

[0129] The configurations in the above embodiments and each modified example may be combined as appropriate, as long as they do not contradict each other.

[0130] Although the invention has been described in detail, the above description is illustrative and not limiting. Therefore, it can be said that numerous modifications and embodiments are possible as long as they do not deviate from the scope of the present invention.

[0131] 1, 1b Substrate processing device 7 Container container 9 Substrate 10 Indexer block 12 Indexer robot 20 Processing block 21 Processing unit 22 Center robot 60, 60b Substrate information acquisition device 63, 63a Light emission unit 64 Reflected light branching unit 65 Screen 66 Imaging device 91 Top surface (of the substrate) 121 Transport hand 125 Hand movement mechanism 221 Transport hand 225 Hand movement mechanism 631 Light source unit 632 Multi-beam device 633 Light attenuation filter 634 Mirror 651 First spot image 652 Second spot image 801 Information acquisition unit B0, B1 Beam R0 Reflected light R1 First reflected light R2 Second reflected light S1 Beam spot

Claims

1. A substrate information acquisition device for acquiring information about the shape of a substrate, comprising: a substrate holding unit for holding a substrate; a light emitting unit for emitting light toward the main surface of the substrate and forming a plurality of beam spots aligned linearly in a first direction along the main surface on the main surface; a scanning mechanism for scanning the plurality of beam spots on the main surface of the substrate in a second direction that intersects the first direction and is along the main surface; a reflected light branching unit for branching the reflected light at each beam spot into a first reflected light and a second reflected light having different optical path lengths; an imaging device for capturing images of the first reflected light and the second reflected light from each beam spot together; and an information acquisition unit for acquiring information about the shape of the substrate based on a plurality of captured images acquired by the imaging device in parallel with the scanning of the plurality of beam spots by the scanning mechanism.

2. A substrate information acquisition device according to claim 1, wherein the light emission unit emits a plurality of beams corresponding to the plurality of beam spots in parallel.

3. A substrate information acquisition apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the light emission unit comprises: a light source unit; a multi-beam device that divides a beam emitted from the light source unit into a plurality of beams and emits them, the multi-beam device comprises: a light-reducing filter that transmits a portion of the incident light and reflects the remainder; a mirror positioned opposite the light-reducing filter and reflects the incident light toward the light-reducing filter, the transmittance of the light-reducing filter gradually increases as it moves from one side to the other in the first direction, the beam incident from the light source unit to the multi-beam device is repeatedly reflected between the light-reducing filter and the mirror as it moves from one side to the other in the first direction, and the plurality of beams are beams that have been transmitted through the light-reducing filter from a plurality of incident positions of the beam in the light-reducing filter.

4. A substrate information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the imaging device captures images of each beam spot formed on a screen by the first reflected light and the second reflected light.

5. A substrate information acquisition apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the light emitted from the light emission unit is short-wave infrared light, and the screen is a fluorescent screen that emits fluorescence when irradiated with short-wave infrared light.

6. A substrate information acquisition device according to claim 1, wherein the substrate holding portion contacts the lower surface of the substrate and supports the substrate, and the main surface of the substrate to which light emitted from the light emitting portion is irradiated is the upper surface of the substrate.

7. A substrate processing apparatus for processing substrates, comprising: a substrate information acquisition device according to any one of claims 1 to 6; an indexer block on which a first transport robot is arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of a storage container capable of accommodating a plurality of substrates; a processing block on which a processing unit for processing substrates and a second transport robot are arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of the processing unit; and a mounting unit provided at the connection between the processing block and the indexer block for holding unprocessed substrates passed from the first transport robot to the second transport robot and processed substrates passed from the second transport robot to the first transport robot, wherein the substrate holding unit of the substrate information acquisition device is a transport hand for holding the substrates in the second transport robot; the scanning mechanism of the substrate information acquisition device is a hand movement mechanism for moving the transport hand in the second direction in the second transport robot; and when the substrates are unloaded from the mounting unit by the second transport robot, information on the shape of the substrates is acquired by the substrate information acquisition device.

8. A substrate processing apparatus for processing substrates, comprising: a substrate information acquisition device according to any one of claims 1 to 6; an indexer block on which a first transport robot is arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of a storage container capable of accommodating a plurality of substrates; and a processing block on which a processing unit for processing substrates and a second transport robot are arranged for loading and unloading substrates into and out of the processing unit, wherein the substrate holding portion of the substrate information acquisition device is a transport hand for holding the substrate in the first transport robot; the scanning mechanism of the substrate information acquisition device is a hand movement mechanism for moving the transport hand in the second direction in the first transport robot; and when the substrate is unloaded from the storage container by the first transport robot, information on the shape of the substrate is acquired by the substrate information acquisition device.

Images