JP2002273360A - Substrate treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate treating device with such advantages as high in throughput the inhibition of increase in the consumption of an inert gas, and a satisfactory treatment finish condition are achieved. SOLUTION: A substrate W is horizontally retained by a chuck pin 14 set upright on a spin base 10, and an atmosphere shut-off plate 30 is mounted above the spin base 10. On the lower face side of the atmosphere shut-off plate 30, a columnar projecting part 31 with a surface region diametrally smaller than the substrate W is formed. The substrate W is made to undergo treatments such as cleaning and drying by supplying a treating solution or a nitrogen gas to the substrate W from its upper and lower face sides while it is rotated with the atmosphere shut-of plate 30 kept in a close proximity to the former. The projecting part 31 can be brought into a close proximity with the substrate W without coming into contact with the chuck pin 14, so that a space between the atmosphere shut-off plate 30 and the substrate W can be narrowed. Thus, the nitrogen gas can be efficiently supplied to inhibit the increase in the consumption of nitrogen gas and a drying time is shortened to prevent bounced-back contaminants from adhering to the substrate W.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a semiconductor substrate, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display, a glass substrate for a photomask, a substrate for an optical disk, and the like (hereinafter, simply referred to as "substrate") held on a rotating base. The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus that performs predetermined processing such as cleaning processing and drying processing while rotating in a horizontal plane, and particularly relates to a single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, front and back surface cleaning apparatuses and bevel etching apparatuses have been used as this type of single-wafer processing apparatus. The front and back surface cleaning apparatus is an apparatus for cleaning the front and back surfaces of a substrate by supplying a predetermined processing liquid from both sides of the front and back surfaces while rotating the substrate in a horizontal plane. On the other hand, the bevel etching apparatus supplies a predetermined processing liquid from the back side while rotating the substrate in a horizontal plane, and allows a part of the processing liquid to flow around the peripheral part of the substrate surface to perform the etching processing of the peripheral part. It is a device that performs.

FIG. 9 is a view showing a conventional single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus. This substrate processing apparatus uses a chemical solution and pure water from above and below a substrate W (hereinafter, a chemical solution and pure water are collectively referred to as a “processing solution”
) To clean the front and back surfaces.

The substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 9 comprises a spin base 100 for holding a substrate W in a horizontal position, a motor 102 for rotating the spin base 100 via a rotation shaft 110,
An atmosphere barrier plate 120 provided opposite to the spin base 100, a motor 129 for rotating the atmosphere barrier plate 120 via a rotation shaft 121, and a cup 130 surrounding the substrate W held by the spin base 100. Mainly provided.

A plurality of chuck pins 101 are provided upright on the upper surface of the spin base 100. Each of the plurality of chuck pins 101 holds the substrate W in a horizontal posture at a predetermined interval from the spin base 100 by gripping the peripheral edge of the substrate W. The substrate W is held with its front surface facing the upper surface and its rear surface facing the lower surface. At this time, the upper end of the chuck pin 101 slightly protrudes from the upper surface of the substrate W in order to securely grip the peripheral portion of the substrate W.

[0006] A rotating shaft 110 is suspended from the lower surface of the center of the spin base 100. The inside of the rotating shaft 110 is hollow, and a processing liquid nozzle 112 is inserted into the hollow portion. The rotating shaft 110 has a belt driving mechanism 1
The motor 102 is interlocked and connected via a line 03. When the motor 102 is driven, the driving force is applied to the belt driving mechanism 1.
03 to the rotating shaft 110, the rotating shaft 110,
The substrate W held by the chuck pins 101 together with the spin base 100 is rotated about a vertical axis in a horizontal plane.

The processing liquid nozzle 112 is connected to a chemical liquid supply source and a pure water supply source via a valve. By opening the valve, a chemical such as hydrofluoric acid or pure water can be discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 112 to the lower surface of the substrate W. On the other hand, a gap between the inner wall of the rotating shaft 110 and the processing liquid nozzle 112 is connected to an inert gas supply source via a valve. By opening the valve, nitrogen gas (N ₂ ) as an inert gas can be supplied from the rotating shaft 110 to the lower surface of the substrate W.

The atmosphere blocking plate 120 is a spin base 10
This is a disk-shaped member provided so as to face 0. A rotating shaft 121 is vertically provided on the upper surface side of the center of the atmosphere shielding plate 120. The inside of the rotating shaft 121 is hollow, and a processing liquid nozzle 122 is inserted into the hollow portion. The rotation shaft 121 is connected to a motor 129. Motor 1
When 29 is driven, the atmosphere shielding plate 120 is rotated about the axis along the vertical direction in the horizontal plane via the rotating shaft 121. That is, the atmosphere blocking plate 120 is rotated in parallel and coaxially with the substrate W, and at substantially the same rotation speed.

The processing liquid nozzle 122 is connected to a chemical liquid supply source and a pure water supply source via a valve. By opening the valve, a chemical such as hydrofluoric acid or pure water can be discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 122 onto the upper surface of the substrate W. On the other hand, a gap between the inner wall of the rotating shaft 121 and the processing liquid nozzle 122 is connected to an inert gas supply source via a valve. By opening the valve, nitrogen gas can be supplied from the rotating shaft 121 to the upper surface of the substrate W as an inert gas. Accordingly, the processing liquid and the nitrogen gas can be supplied to the substrate W held by the chuck pins 101 of the spin base 100 from both the upper and lower surfaces thereof.

The cup 130 is disposed so as to surround the spin base 100, the substrate W held thereon, and the atmosphere blocking plate 120, and collects the processing liquid scattered by the rotation thereof. The collected processing liquid is drained from a drain port provided at the bottom of the cup 130.

This type of substrate processing apparatus is usually installed in a clean room, and the downflow of the clean air flowing down in the clean room is caused by the cup 1.
30 flows through the upper opening. The clean air flowing into the cup 130 is exhausted from an exhaust port provided at the bottom of the cup 130. At this time, minute mist of the processing liquid floating in the cup 130 is also exhausted.

In addition to the above, the substrate processing apparatus is provided with, for example, a mechanism for raising and lowering the cup 130 and a mechanism for raising and lowering the atmosphere blocking plate 120.

The procedure for processing a substrate W in this substrate processing apparatus is as follows. First, an unprocessed substrate W is transferred to a spin base 100 by a transfer robot (not shown), and a peripheral portion is gripped by chuck pins 101. The substrate W is held in a horizontal posture. Next, the atmosphere blocking plate 120 covers the upper part of the substrate W in proximity to the spin base 100, and the cup 130
And surrounding the atmosphere shielding plate 120.

Thereafter, the spin base 100 and the atmosphere blocking plate 120 are rotated. When the spin base 100 is rotated, the substrate W held thereon is also naturally rotated. In this state, the chemical liquid is discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 112 to the lower surface of the substrate W,
The chemical liquid is also discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 122 to the upper surface of the substrate W. That is, the chemical solution is discharged from both the upper and lower sides of the substrate W, and the discharged chemical solution spreads over the entire front and back surfaces of the substrate W by the rotational centrifugal force, and the cleaning process (etching process) with the chemical solution proceeds.

After the cleaning process with the chemical for a predetermined time is completed, pure water is discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 112 and the processing liquid nozzle 122. The discharged pure water spreads over the entire front and back surfaces of the substrate W by the centrifugal force of the rotation of the substrate W, and a cleaning process (rinsing process) with the pure water is performed. During the etching process and the rinsing process, the processing liquid scattered from the spin base 100 or the like is received by the cup 130 and discharged.

After the cleaning process with pure water for a predetermined time is completed, the discharge of the processing liquid from the processing liquid nozzle 112 and the processing liquid nozzle 122 is stopped, while the substrate W is continuously rotated, and the water droplets adhering to the substrate W are removed. Shake off by centrifugal force (spin dry treatment). At this time, the rotating shaft 1
The nitrogen gas is blown from below to the lower surface of the substrate W, and the nitrogen gas is blown from the rotating shaft 121 to the upper surface of the substrate W. The substrate W is supplied by supplying the nitrogen gas.
Is surrounded by a low oxygen concentration atmosphere, and the spin dry treatment of the substrate W is performed in this atmosphere, thereby suppressing the generation of a watermark (defective drying caused by reaction between water, oxygen, and silicon of the substrate). -ing

In the single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus for performing the above-described front and back surface cleaning, the atmosphere blocking plate 120 is provided with:
A nitrogen gas atmosphere around the substrate W is efficiently used to shorten the drying time, suppress the generation of watermarks, and further prevent contaminants splashed from the cup 130 from adhering to the surface of the substrate W during spin drying. Is the purpose.

Although the above description has been given of a single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus for performing front and back surface cleaning, the same applies to a single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus for performing bevel etching. In the case of the bevel etching apparatus, the chemical liquid is discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 112 only to the lower surface of the substrate W during the etching processing, and the chemical liquid is not discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 122. The chemical solution discharged from the processing liquid nozzle 112 spreads over the entire back surface of the substrate W by centrifugal force, and a part thereof
It goes around to the periphery of the surface. The etching process is performed on the peripheral portion of the surface of the substrate W by the penetrated chemical solution.
The remaining points other than the etching process are almost the same as the above-described front and back surface cleaning. The reason why the bevel etching apparatus is provided with the atmosphere blocking plate 120 is to prevent the chemical solution splashed during the etching process from adhering to the surface of the substrate W in addition to the purpose of obtaining the same effect as described above.

[0019]

However, in the conventional single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus, in order to prevent the contact between the atmosphere blocking plate 120 and the chuck pins 101, the atmosphere blocking plate 120 is separated from the substrate W to some extent. Since the processing had to be performed, the following problems occurred. That is, in the case of a single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus that performs front and rear surface cleaning, if the distance between the atmosphere blocking plate 120 and the substrate W is large, the periphery of the substrate W must be supplied unless a large amount of nitrogen gas is supplied during spin drying or the like. Cannot be made into a nitrogen gas atmosphere, so that the consumption of nitrogen gas has increased.

If the distance between the atmosphere blocking plate 120 and the substrate W is large, the oxygen concentration around the substrate W is unlikely to decrease, so that a watermark is easily generated.
The drying time becomes longer and the throughput decreases.

Further, there is also a problem that the contaminants rebounding from the cup 130 during the spin drying enter from a gap between the atmosphere blocking plate 120 and the substrate W and adhere to the surface of the substrate W, which becomes particles.

On the other hand, in the case of a single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus that performs bevel etching, if the distance between the atmosphere barrier plate 120 and the substrate W is large, the consumption of nitrogen gas increases, and in addition, the etching processing and rinsing are performed. The processing liquid that has scattered and bounced off during processing jumps from the gap between the atmosphere blocking plate 120 and the substrate W and adheres to the surface of the substrate W, resulting in processing failure.

Also, similarly to the above, contaminants rebounding from the cup 130 during spin drying are removed from the atmosphere shielding plate 12.
There is also a particle problem that the particles enter from a gap between the substrate 0 and the substrate W and adhere to the surface of the substrate W.

As described above, in the conventional single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus, the gap between the atmosphere barrier plate 120 and the substrate W is large. There was a problem that the finished state was poor.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus which has a high throughput, can suppress an increase in consumption of an inert gas, and can obtain a good processing finish state. Aim.

[0026]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process while rotating a substrate held on a rotating base in a horizontal plane. A gripping means provided on the rotating base, for gripping a peripheral portion of the substrate and holding the substrate in a substantially horizontal posture, and a substrate held by the gripping means centered on an axis substantially along a vertical direction. A rotating means for rotating, an atmosphere blocking plate disposed above the gripping means and opposed to an upper surface of the substrate held by the gripping means, and the rotating base and the atmosphere provided on the substrate held by the gripping means. An inert gas supply unit for supplying an inert gas via a blocking plate, and a projection having a surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate held by the gripping means. It is formed on the surface side.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the convex portion covers at least an effective area of the substrate held by the holding means.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process while rotating a substrate held on a rotating base in a horizontal plane, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is provided on the rotating base, and Gripping means for gripping the peripheral portion and holding the substrate in a substantially horizontal posture, rotating means for rotating the substrate held by the gripping means about an axis along a substantially vertical direction, A flat plate-shaped atmosphere shielding plate disposed above and having a surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate held by the gripping means; and the rotating base and the atmosphere shielding plate on the substrate held by the gripping means. And an inert gas supply means for supplying an inert gas through the device.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, the atmosphere shielding plate covers at least an effective area of the substrate held by the holding means.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process while rotating a substrate held on a rotating base in a horizontal plane, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is provided on the rotating base, Gripping means for gripping the peripheral portion and holding the substrate in a substantially horizontal posture, rotating means for rotating the substrate held by the gripping means about an axis along a substantially vertical direction, An atmosphere blocking plate disposed above and facing an upper surface of the substrate held by the gripping means; and supplying an inert gas to the substrate held by the holding means via the rotating base and the atmosphere blocking plate. An inert gas supply unit, wherein a retracting unit is provided on the atmosphere shielding plate, where the gripping unit rotated by the rotating unit retracts when the atmosphere shielding plate is brought close to the rotating base. To have.

[0031]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

<1. First Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. This substrate processing apparatus is a single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus that performs front and back surface cleaning processing on a substrate W, and mainly includes a spin base 10 that holds the substrate W, and a plurality of chuck pins 14 provided on the spin base 10. An electric motor 20 for rotating the spin base 10, an atmosphere blocking plate 30 provided to face the spin base 10, a splash guard 50 surrounding the substrate W held on the spin base 10,
A mechanism for supplying a processing liquid or an inert gas to the substrate W held on the spin base 10 and a mechanism for raising and lowering the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the splash guard 50 are provided.

The substrate W is held on the spin base 10 in a substantially horizontal posture. The spin base 10 is a disk-shaped member having an opening at the center, and a plurality of chuck pins 14 for holding the peripheral portion of the circular substrate W are provided upright on the upper surface thereof. It is sufficient that three or more chuck pins 14 are provided in order to securely hold the circular substrate W. In the substrate processing apparatus for performing front and back surface cleaning of the first embodiment, the three chuck pins 14 are Are set up at equal intervals (120 ° intervals) along the periphery of. In FIG. 1, two chuck pins 14 are shown for convenience of illustration (the same applies to the following drawings).

Each of the three chuck pins 14 holds the substrate W by pressing a substrate supporting portion 14a for supporting the peripheral portion of the substrate W from below and an outer peripheral end surface of the substrate W supported by the substrate supporting portion 14a. And a substrate holder 14b.
Each of the chuck pins 14 is configured to be switchable between a pressing state in which the substrate holding unit 14b presses the outer peripheral end surface of the substrate W and an open state in which the substrate holding unit 14b separates from the outer peripheral end surface of the substrate W. Switching between the pressed state and the opened state of the three chuck pins 14 can be realized by various known mechanisms, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 3-96007.
A link mechanism or the like disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-206 may be used.

When transferring the substrate W to the spin base 10 and receiving the substrate W from the spin base 10, 3
The chuck pins 14 are set in an open state. On the other hand, the substrate W
When performing various processes described below, the three chuck pins 14 are in a pressed state. In the pressed state, the three chuck pins 14 hold the peripheral edge of the substrate W and hold the substrate W in a horizontal posture at a predetermined interval from the spin base 10. The substrate W is held with its front surface facing the upper surface and its rear surface facing the lower surface. When the substrate W is held with the three chuck pins 14 being pressed, the upper end of the substrate support 14a protrudes from the upper surface of the substrate W. This is to securely hold the substrate W so that the substrate W does not fall off the chuck pins 14 during processing.

On the lower surface of the center of the spin base 10, a rotating shaft 11 is vertically provided. The rotating shaft 11 is a hollow cylindrical member, and a lower processing liquid nozzle 15 is inserted into a hollow portion inside the rotating shaft 11. An electric motor 20 is interlockingly connected to a lower end of the rotating shaft 11 via a belt driving mechanism 21. That is, the belt 21c is wound around the driven pulley 21a fixedly provided on the outer periphery of the rotating shaft 11 and the driven pulley 21b connected to the rotating shaft of the electric motor 20. When the electric motor 20 is driven, the driving force is transmitted to the rotating shaft 11 via the belt driving mechanism 21, and the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14 together with the rotating shaft 11 and the spin base 10 is moved vertically in a horizontal plane. Axis J along
Is rotated around.

The lower processing liquid nozzle 15 penetrates the rotating shaft 11, and its tip 15 a is located immediately below the center of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14. The base end of the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 is connected to a processing liquid pipe 16. The base end of the processing liquid pipe 16 is branched, and a chemical liquid supply source 17 is connected to one branch pipe 16a, and a pure water supply source 18 is connected to the other branch pipe 16b. The branch pipes 16a and 16b are provided with valves 12a and 12b, respectively. These valves 1
By switching between opening and closing of 2a and 12b, a chemical solution or pure water is selectively switched from the tip 15a of the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 to the vicinity of the center of the lower surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14 to discharge / supply. can do. That is, the chemical can be supplied from the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 by opening the valve 12a and closing the valve 12b, and can be supplied from the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 by opening the valve 12b and closing the valve 12a. Pure water can be supplied. In the substrate processing apparatus for performing front and back surface cleaning according to the first embodiment, hydrofluoric acid (H
F), buffered hydrofluoric acid (BHF), SC1 (mixture of ammonia water, hydrogen peroxide and water), SC2 (mixture of hydrochloric acid, hydrogen peroxide and water) and the like.

The gap between the inner wall of the hollow part of the rotating shaft 11 and the outer wall of the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 is
It is 9. The distal end 19a of the gas supply path 19 is directed toward the center of the lower surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14. The base end of the gas supply path 19 is connected to a gas pipe 22. The gas pipe 22 is connected to an inert gas supply source 23, and the valve 13 is provided in the gas pipe 22 in the middle of the path. By opening the valve 13, an inert gas can be supplied from the tip 19 a of the gas supply path 19 toward the center of the lower surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14. The first
In the substrate processing apparatus for performing front and back surface cleaning of the embodiment,
Using nitrogen gas (N ₂₎ as an inert gas.

The above-described rotating shaft 11, belt driving mechanism 21,
The electric motor 20 and the like are housed in a cylindrical casing 25 provided on the base member 24.

A receiving member 26 is fixedly mounted around the casing 25 on the base member 24. On the receiving member 26, cylindrical partition members 27a and 27b are erected. Outer wall of casing 25 and partition member 27
A space between the inner wall of the partition member 27a forms a first drainage tank 28, and a space between the outer wall of the partition member 27a and the inner wall of the partition member 27b forms a second drainage tank 29.

A waste drain 2 is provided at the bottom of the first drain tank 28.
An outlet 28a is provided which is connected to the outlet 8b.
From the outlet 28a of the first drain tank 28, used pure water and gas are discharged to the waste drain 28b. The pure water and the gas discharged to the waste drain 28b are gas-liquid separated and then respectively discarded according to a predetermined procedure.

The collection drain 2 is provided at the bottom of the second drain tank 29.
A drain port 29a is provided in communication with 9b.
The used chemical solution is discharged from the drain port 29a of the second drain tank 29 to the collection drain 29b. Collection drain 29
b is collected by a collection tank (not shown), and the collected chemical is supplied from the collection tank to the chemical supply source 1.
The supply of the chemical liquid 7 allows the chemical liquid to be circulated and reused.

A splash guard 50 is provided above the receiving member 26. Splash guard 50
A cylindrical member, which is disposed so as to surround the spin base 10 and the substrate W held by the spin base. The splash guard 50 has a first guide portion 51 having a U-shaped cross section and a second guide portion 52 having an arc-shaped cross section, and annular grooves 53a and 53b are engraved.

The splash guard 50 is connected to a guard elevating mechanism 55 via a link member 56, and can be moved up and down by the guard elevating mechanism 55. As the guard raising / lowering mechanism 55, various known mechanisms such as a feed screw mechanism using a ball screw and a mechanism using an air cylinder can be adopted. Guard lifting mechanism 55
Is lowering the splash guard 50,
The partition members 27a and 27b are respectively provided with grooves 53a and 53b.
And the first guide portion 51 is positioned around the spin base 10 and the substrate W held by the spin base 10 (the state of FIG. 1). This state is a state at the time of a rinsing process described later. As shown in FIG. 2, pure water scattered from the rotating substrate W or the like is received by the first guide portion 51, and the first drainage tank follows the inclination thereof. 28, and is discharged from a discharge port 28a to a waste drain 28b.

On the other hand, when the guard lifting mechanism 55 raises the splash guard 50, the partition member 27
a and 27b are separated from the grooves 53a and 53b, respectively, and the second guide portion 52 is positioned around the spin base 10 and the substrate W held thereon. This state is a state at the time of an etching process to be described later. As shown in FIG.
It is received by the guide portion 52, flows into the second drainage tank 29 along the curved surface, and is discharged from the drainage port 29a to the collection drain 29b.

Returning to FIG. 1, an atmosphere blocking plate 30 is provided above the spin base 10. Atmosphere shielding plate 30
Is a disc-shaped member having a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the substrate W and smaller than the diameter of the upper opening of the splash guard 50. The atmosphere blocking plate 30 has an opening at the center and is disposed above the chuck pins 14. FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view showing the vicinity of the atmosphere shielding plate 30.

The atmosphere blocking plate 30 is provided so as to face the upper surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14, and has a surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate W on the side facing the substrate W, ie, When the substrate W is substantially circular,
A columnar projection 31 having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the substrate W
Is formed. That is, although the atmosphere shielding plate 30 itself has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the substrate W,
On the lower surface side, a columnar convex portion 31 having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the substrate W is formed.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 as viewed from above. Since the diameter of the surface area of the projection 31 formed on the lower surface side of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is smaller than the diameter of the surface area of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14, the projection 31 may cover the entire surface of the substrate W. Can not. However, this also means that the diameter of the projection 31 is smaller than the diameter of the circle connecting the three chuck pins 14 that grip the peripheral portion of the substrate W, and the projection 31 has three chucks. Pin 1
4, without approaching the substrate W held thereon.

As shown in FIG. 5, the diameter of the projection 31 is smaller than the diameter of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14, but is larger than the diameter of the surface area of the effective area EA of the substrate W. The effective area EA of the substrate W is an important area in the plane of the substrate W where device formation is performed. Since the diameter of the protrusion 31 is larger than the diameter of the effective area EA of the substrate W, the protrusion 31 can cover at least the entire area of the effective area EA.

Returning to FIG. 1, a rotating shaft 35 is vertically provided on the upper surface side of the center of the atmosphere shielding plate 30. The rotation shaft 35 is a hollow cylindrical member, and an upper processing liquid nozzle 36 is inserted into a hollow portion inside the rotation shaft 35. The rotation shaft 35 is
It is rotatably supported by a support arm 40 via a bearing, and is operatively connected to an electric motor 42 via a belt drive mechanism 41. That is, the rotation shaft 35
Driven pulley 41a fixed to the outer periphery of the
A belt 41c is wound around a driving pulley 41b connected to the rotation shaft of the motor. When the electric motor 42 is driven, the driving force is transmitted to the rotating shaft 35 via the belt driving mechanism 41, and the rotating shaft 35 and the atmosphere shielding plate 30 are rotated about a vertical axis J in a horizontal plane. You. Therefore, the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is rotated substantially parallel and coaxially with the substrate W. Atmosphere cut-off plate 3
0 is rotated at substantially the same rotation speed as the substrate W. The belt drive mechanism 41, the electric motor 42, and the like are all housed in the support arm 40.

The upper processing liquid nozzle 36 penetrates the rotating shaft 35, and the tip 36 a is located immediately above the center of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14. The base end of the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 is connected to a processing liquid pipe 37. The base end of the processing liquid pipe 37 is branched, and the chemical liquid supply source 17 is connected to one branch pipe 37a, and the pure water supply source 18 is connected to the other branch pipe 37b. The branch pipes 37a and 37b are provided with valves 38a and 38b, respectively. These valves 3
By switching between opening and closing of 8a and 38b, a chemical solution or pure water is selectively switched from the distal end portion 36a of the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 to the vicinity of the center of the upper surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14 to be discharged and supplied. be able to. That is, the chemical can be supplied from the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 by opening the valve 38a and closing the valve 38b, and by opening the valve 38b and closing the valve 38a. Can be supplied.

The gap between the inner wall of the hollow portion of the rotating shaft 35 and the inner wall of the opening at the center of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 and the outer wall of the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 is a gas supply passage 45. The distal end 45 a of the gas supply passage 45 is directed toward the center of the upper surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14. The base end of the gas supply passage 45 is connected to a gas pipe 46. The gas pipe 46 is connected in communication with the inert gas supply source 23, and a valve 47 is provided in the middle of the gas pipe 46. By opening the valve 47, an inert gas (here, nitrogen gas) can be supplied from the front end portion 45a of the gas supply path 45 toward the center of the upper surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14.

The support arm 40 can be moved up and down by an arm elevating mechanism 49. Arm lifting mechanism 4
As 9, various known mechanisms such as a feed screw mechanism using a ball screw and a mechanism using an air cylinder can be adopted. The arm raising / lowering mechanism 49 raises and lowers the support arm 40, thereby rotating the rotating shaft 35 connected thereto.
Then, the atmosphere blocking plate 30 is moved up and down. More specifically, the arm elevating mechanism 49 raises and lowers the atmosphere blocking plate 30 between a position close to the upper surface of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14 and a position largely separated from the upper surface of the substrate W. Let it.

In the first embodiment, the spin base 10 serves as a rotating base, the chuck pins 14 serve as holding means, the electric motor 20 serves as rotating means, and the inert gas supply source 2 serves as a rotating base.
3 and the valves 13 and 47 correspond to the inert gas supply means, respectively.

Next, a processing procedure of the substrate W in the substrate processing apparatus of the first embodiment having the above configuration will be described. The basic processing procedure in the single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus that performs the front and back surface cleaning processing according to the first embodiment is such that, after performing an etching processing on a substrate W with a chemical liquid, a rinsing processing of washing the chemical liquid with pure water is performed. Further, thereafter, the substrate W is rotated at a high speed to perform a spin-drying process to shake off water droplets.

First, the spin guard 10 is protruded from the splash guard 50 by slightly lowering the splash guard 50, and the atmosphere blocking plate 3
0 is greatly increased to be largely separated from the spin base 10. In this state, the unprocessed substrate W is transferred to the spin base 10 by a transfer robot (not shown).
Then, the three chuck pins 14 hold the substrate W in a horizontal posture by gripping the peripheral portion of the transferred substrate W. As described above, when the chuck pins 14 grip the peripheral portion of the substrate W, the upper end of the substrate supporting portion 14a protrudes from the upper surface of the substrate W.

Next, the splash guard 50 is raised to position the second guide portion 52 around the spin base 10 and the substrate W held thereon, and the atmosphere blocking plate 30 is lowered to approach the substrate W. However, the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is not in contact with the chuck pins 14 and the substrate W. Then, the substrate W held thereon is rotated together with the spin base 10. Further, the atmosphere blocking plate 30 is also rotated. In this state, the chemical liquid is discharged from the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 and the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 to both upper and lower surfaces of the substrate W. The discharged chemical spreads over the front and back surfaces of the substrate W by the rotational centrifugal force, and the cleaning process (etching process) with the chemical proceeds. During the etching process, a small amount of nitrogen gas may be discharged from the gas supply path 19 and the gas supply path 45 to prevent the chemical solution from flowing back to the gas supply paths 19 and 45. Further, in the single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus that performs the front and back surface cleaning processing as in the first embodiment, the etching processing is performed in a state where the atmosphere blocking plate 30 is largely separated from the substrate W according to the type of the chemical solution used. It may be performed.

During the etching process, the chemical liquid scattered from the rotating spin base 10 or substrate W is received by the second guide portion 52 of the splash guard 50 and flows into the second drain tank 29 along the curved surface (see FIG. 3). ). Second
The chemical liquid flowing into the drainage tank 29 is discharged from the drainage port 29a to the collection drain 29b and collected.

After completion of the etching process for a predetermined time,
The discharge of the chemical solution from the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 and the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 is stopped, and the splash guard 5
Then, the first guide 51 is positioned around the spin base 10 and the substrate W held by the base 10 by lowering 0. In addition,
The atmosphere shielding plate 30 maintains a state close to the substrate W. In this state, pure water is supplied from the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 and the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 to the substrate W while rotating the substrate W.
Discharge on both upper and lower surfaces of The discharged pure water spreads over the entire front and back surfaces of the substrate W by the centrifugal force of rotation, and a cleaning process (rinsing process) of washing away the chemical solution with the pure water proceeds. In addition,
Even during the rinsing process, a small amount of nitrogen gas is discharged from the gas supply path 19 and the gas supply path 45 to
The backflow of the pure water to 45 may be prevented.

During the rinsing process, the rotating spin base 1
0 or pure water scattered from the substrate W
And flows into the first drainage tank 28 along the inclination thereof (see FIG. 2). The pure water flowing into the first drainage tank 28 is discharged from the discharge port 28a to the waste drain 28b.

After the rinsing process for a predetermined time is completed, the discharge of pure water from the upper processing liquid nozzle 36 and the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 is stopped, and the splash guard 50 is slightly lowered to move the spin base 10 to the splash guard 50. Slightly out of the way. In addition, the atmosphere shielding plate 3
0 maintains a state close to the substrate W. In this state, while rotating the substrate W, nitrogen gas is discharged from the gas supply path 19 and the gas supply path 45 and sprayed on the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate W. The discharged nitrogen gas flows between the spin base 10 and the substrate W, and between the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the substrate W, and makes the periphery of the substrate W a low oxygen concentration atmosphere. In a low oxygen concentration atmosphere to which nitrogen gas is supplied, water droplets adhering to the substrate W are shaken off by a rotating centrifugal force, whereby a shake-off drying process (spin dry process) proceeds.

When the spin dry process for a predetermined time is completed, the rotation of the spin base 10 and the substrate W held thereon is stopped. At the same time, the rotation of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is stopped, and the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is raised to be separated from the spin base 10. In this state, the transfer robot (not shown) removes the processed substrate W from the spin base 10 and carries it out, thereby completing a series of front and back surface cleaning processing.

As described above, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment, the columnar convex portion 31 is formed on the lower surface of the atmosphere shielding plate 30, and the diameter of the surface region of the convex portion 31 is Although smaller than the diameter of the surface area of W, it is larger than the diameter of the surface area of the effective area EA of the substrate W. Therefore,
When the atmosphere blocking plate 30 comes close to the substrate W during each of the above processes (during the etching process, the rinsing process, and the spin dry process), the convex portions 31 contact the three chuck pins 14 without contacting them. In addition to being able to approach the held substrate W, it can cover at least the entire area of the effective area EA of the substrate W. As a result, on the effective area EA of the substrate W, the distance between the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the substrate W becomes smaller than before.

Thus, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment, a low oxygen concentration atmosphere can be provided around the substrate W only by supplying a small amount of nitrogen gas at the time of spin dry processing or the like. An increase in the amount can be suppressed.
In addition, if the distance between the projection 31 of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 and the substrate W is small, the periphery of the substrate W can be reliably and efficiently made to have a low oxygen concentration atmosphere during the spin dry process even if a small amount of nitrogen gas is supplied. Thus, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a watermark on at least the effective area EA of the substrate W covered by the convex portion 31, and to shorten the drying time and improve the throughput.

Further, if the distance between the projection 31 of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 and the substrate W is small during the spin dry process, contaminants rebounding from the splash guard 50 or the like enter through the gap between the atmosphere shielding plate 30 and the substrate W. It is possible to prevent such contaminants from adhering to at least the effective area EA of the substrate W.

That is, as in the first embodiment, by forming the columnar convex portion 31 on the lower surface of the atmosphere shielding plate 30, the throughput can be improved and the increase in the consumption of nitrogen gas can be suppressed. It is possible to obtain an excellent processing finish state.

<2. Second Embodiment> Next, the second embodiment of the present invention
An embodiment will be described. FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the configuration of the substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. The substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment is a single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus that performs bevel etching on a substrate W. The configuration of the substrate processing apparatus of the second embodiment differs from the apparatus of the first embodiment in the shape of the atmosphere shielding plate 30. Regarding the remaining points, the substrate processing apparatus of the second embodiment is almost the same as the first embodiment, and the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 7 shows an atmosphere shielding plate 30 according to the second embodiment.
3 is a partially enlarged view showing the vicinity of FIG. The atmosphere shielding plate 30 of the second embodiment is a circular flat disk-shaped member having a smaller diameter than the surface area of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14. As in the first embodiment, the atmosphere shielding plate 3
0 has an opening in the center and has a chuck pin 1
4 is arranged above.

FIG. 8 shows an atmosphere shielding plate 30 according to the second embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a plan view when viewed from above. The diameter of the surface area of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is equal to the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14.
, The atmosphere blocking plate 30 cannot cover the entire surface of the substrate W. However, this also means that the diameter of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is smaller than the diameter of the circle connecting the four chuck pins 14 that grip the peripheral portion of the substrate W. Without contacting the chuck pins 14 of the substrate W. In the single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus that performs bevel etching according to the second embodiment, the number of the chuck pins 14 is four.

As shown in FIG. 8, the diameter of the atmosphere blocking plate 30 is smaller than the diameter of the substrate W held by the chuck pins 14, but is larger than the diameter of the effective area EA of the substrate W. As described above, the effective area EA of the substrate W is
This is an area in the surface of the substrate W where device formation is performed. Since the diameter of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is larger than the diameter of the effective area EA of the substrate W, the atmosphere shielding plate 30 can cover at least the entire area of the effective area EA.

Next, a procedure for processing a substrate W in the substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described. As in the first embodiment, the basic processing procedure in the substrate processing apparatus of the second embodiment is such that after performing an etching process on a substrate W with a chemical solution, a rinsing process of washing the chemical solution with pure water is performed, and further thereafter. This is to perform a spin-drying process in which the substrate W is rotated at a high speed to shake off water droplets.

However, unlike the first embodiment, in the single-wafer-type substrate processing apparatus for performing bevel etching according to the second embodiment, a chemical liquid is discharged from the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 only to the lower surface of the substrate W during the etching processing. . Upper processing liquid nozzle 36
Is not discharged from the apparatus. The chemical solution discharged from the lower processing liquid nozzle 15 spreads over the entire back surface of the substrate W due to centrifugal force, and a part of the chemical solution reaches the periphery of the surface of the substrate W.
The peripheral portion of the surface of the substrate W is subjected to an etching process (bevel etching) by the spilled chemical. Other points are the same as the processing procedure of the substrate W in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

As described above, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment, although the diameter of the surface area of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is smaller than the diameter of the surface area of the substrate W, the surface area of the effective area EA of the substrate W is reduced. It is larger than the diameter. Therefore, when the atmosphere blocking plate 30 approaches the substrate W during each processing (during the etching processing, the rinsing processing, and the spin drying processing), the substrate held by the four chuck pins 14 without contacting them. W, and can cover at least the entire area of the effective area EA of the substrate W. As a result, on the effective area EA of the substrate W, the distance between the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the substrate W becomes smaller than before.

As a result, in the substrate processing apparatus of the second embodiment, the periphery of the substrate W can be made to have a low oxygen concentration atmosphere only by supplying a small amount of nitrogen gas at the time of spin dry processing or the like. An increase in the amount can be suppressed.

If the distance between the atmosphere shielding plate 30 and the substrate W is small, the processing liquid scattered and rebounded during the etching process or the like becomes difficult to jump from the gap between the atmosphere shielding plate 30 and the substrate W. It can be prevented from adhering to the surface of the substrate W.

If the distance between the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the substrate W is small, the periphery of the substrate W can be reliably and efficiently made to have a low oxygen concentration atmosphere during spin dry processing even if a small amount of nitrogen gas is supplied. Thus, at least the generation of a watermark on the effective area EA of the substrate W can be suppressed, and the drying time can be shortened to improve the throughput.

Further, if the distance between the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the substrate W is small during the spin dry process, contaminants rebounding from the splash guard 50 and the like are less likely to enter through the gap between the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the substrate W. Such a contaminant can be prevented from adhering to at least the effective area EA of the substrate W.

That is, as in the second embodiment, by making the surface area of the atmosphere blocking plate 30 smaller than the surface area of the substrate W, the throughput can be improved and the increase in the consumption of nitrogen gas can be suppressed. The finished state of the processing can be obtained.

<3. Modifications> While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described examples. For example, a substrate processing apparatus in which a columnar convex portion 31 is formed on the lower surface of the atmosphere barrier plate 30 described in the first embodiment may be used as a bevel etching apparatus, and the atmosphere barrier plate described in the second embodiment may be used. 30
A substrate processing apparatus having a smaller diameter than the diameter of the substrate W may be used as the front and back surface cleaning processing apparatus. In any case, the interval between the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the substrate W can be made narrower than in the conventional case. As a result, the throughput can be improved, the increase in the consumption of nitrogen gas can be suppressed, and good processing can be achieved. The finished state can be obtained.

In each of the above embodiments, the nitrogen gas is used as the inert gas. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a gas having a low reactivity such as an argon gas may be used. Is also good.

In the first embodiment, the atmosphere shielding plate 30
In the second embodiment, the diameter of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 is made smaller than the diameter of the substrate W by forming a columnar convex portion 31 having a surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate W.
The atmosphere blocking plate 30 can approach the substrate W without contacting the chuck pins 14. From a different point of view, when the atmosphere shield plate 30 is brought close to the spin base 10, the retracting portion in which the chuck pin 14 rotated by the electric motor 20 retracts is changed to the atmosphere shield plate 30.
Can be considered as being provided in That is, in the first embodiment, the outer peripheral side of the convex portion 31 is the retracting portion of the chuck pin 14, and in the second embodiment, the outer peripheral side of the circular flat plate-shaped atmosphere shielding plate 30 itself is the chuck pin 14.
This is the evacuation unit. As described above, as long as the retracting portion in which the rotating chuck pin 14 retracts is provided in the atmosphere shielding plate 30, the shape is not limited to the shape of the atmosphere shielding plate 30 described in each of the above embodiments. For example, a hole in which each of the chuck pins 14 is loosely fitted may be formed in the atmosphere shielding plate 30.
However, when such a hole is formed in the atmosphere blocking plate 30, the rotation speed of the atmosphere blocking plate 30 and the rotation speed of the spin base 10 at the time of processing are completely matched to make contact between the hole and the chuck pin 14. Need to be prevented.

The shape of the substrate W is not limited to a substantially circular shape. Even if the shape is rectangular such as a glass substrate, the rotation trajectory of the chuck pin is circular, and the surface area of the surface region smaller than the diameter of the circular trajectory is determined. The same can be applied if a convex portion or an atmosphere shielding plate is formed with a diameter.

When the spin base and the atmosphere blocking plate are configured to rotate synchronously, the atmosphere blocking plate may be provided with a rectangular projection like the glass substrate, or may have a surface smaller than the surface area of the glass substrate. The region may be a rectangular atmosphere shielding plate.

[0084]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the projection having the surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate held by the gripping means is formed on the lower surface side of the atmosphere shielding plate. As a result, the atmosphere shielding plate can approach the substrate held by the holding means without contacting the gripping means.As a result, the distance between the atmosphere shielding plate and the substrate is reduced, and the throughput is improved by improving the throughput. It is possible to suppress an increase in consumption and obtain a good processing finish state.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the convex portion covers at least the effective area of the substrate held by the holding means, it is possible to improve the finished state of at least the effective area.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flat-plate-shaped atmosphere shielding plate having a surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate held by the gripping means.
The atmosphere shielding plate can approach the substrate held by the holding means without contacting the gripping means.As a result, the distance between the atmosphere shielding plate and the substrate is reduced, thereby improving the throughput and increasing the consumption of the inert gas. In addition to being able to suppress, it is possible to obtain a good processing finish state.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the atmosphere blocking plate covers at least the effective area of the substrate held by the holding means, it is possible to improve the finished state of at least the effective area.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when the atmosphere shielding plate is brought close to the rotating base, the retracting portion is provided on the atmosphere shielding plate for retracting the gripping means rotated by the rotating means. In addition, the atmosphere shielding plate can approach the substrate held by the holding means without contacting the gripping means. As a result, the distance between the atmosphere shielding plate and the substrate is reduced, thereby improving the throughput and increasing the consumption of the inert gas. Can be suppressed, and a good finish state can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a flow of pure water during a rinsing process.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a flow of a chemical solution during an etching process.

FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view showing the vicinity of an atmosphere shielding plate of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the atmosphere blocking plate of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. 1 as viewed from above.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating a configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged view showing the vicinity of an atmosphere shielding plate according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of an atmosphere shielding plate according to a second embodiment as viewed from above.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a conventional single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Spin base 13, 47 Valve 14 Chuck pin 15 Lower processing liquid nozzle 19, 45 Gas supply path 20 Electric motor 23 Inert gas supply source 30 Atmosphere blocking plate 31 Convex part 36 Upper processing liquid nozzle 50 Splash guard W Substrate

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H01L 21/306 H01L 21/306 J F term (Reference) 3B116 AA02 AA03 AB08 AB33 BB24 CC01 CC03 CD22 3B201 AA02 AA03 AB08 AB33 BB24 BB92 BB93 BB99 CC01 CC13 CD22 5F043 BB27 EE03 EE07 EE08 EE09 EE24 EE33 GG10 5F046 MA10 MA18

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process while rotating a substrate held on a rotating base in a horizontal plane, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is provided on the rotating base and grips a peripheral edge of the substrate. Gripping means for holding the substrate in a substantially horizontal posture, rotating means for rotating the substrate held by the gripping means about an axis along a substantially vertical direction, and disposed above the gripping means, An atmosphere shielding plate facing the upper surface of the substrate held by the gripping means; and an inert gas supply means for supplying an inert gas to the substrate held by the gripping means via the rotating base and the atmosphere shielding plate. And a projection having a surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate held by the gripping means is formed on the lower surface side of the atmosphere shielding plate. 2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the projection covers at least an effective area of the substrate held by the holding means. 3. A substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process while rotating a substrate held on a rotating base in a horizontal plane, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is provided on the rotating base and grips a peripheral edge of the substrate. Gripping means for holding the substrate in a substantially horizontal posture, rotating means for rotating the substrate held by the gripping means about an axis along a substantially vertical direction, disposed above the gripping means, A flat plate-shaped atmosphere shielding plate having a surface area smaller than the surface area of the substrate held by the gripping means, and inactive on the substrate held by the gripping means via the rotating base and the atmosphere shielding plate. A substrate processing apparatus comprising: an inert gas supply unit configured to supply a gas. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the atmosphere shielding plate covers at least an effective area of the substrate held by the holding means. 5. A substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process while rotating a substrate held on a rotary base in a horizontal plane, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is provided on the rotary base and grips a peripheral edge of the substrate. Gripping means for holding the substrate in a substantially horizontal posture, rotating means for rotating the substrate held by the gripping means about an axis along a substantially vertical direction, disposed above the gripping means, An atmosphere shielding plate facing the upper surface of the substrate held by the gripping means; and an inert gas supply means for supplying an inert gas to the substrate held by the gripping means via the rotating base and the atmosphere shielding plate. When the atmosphere barrier plate is brought close to the rotating base,
The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a retreating part for retreating the gripping means rotated by the rotating means.