TW201820406A - Substrate processing method and substrate processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention is provided with a liquid film forming step of forming a liquid film of a cleaning liquid on a pattern forming surface on which a pattern is formed in a substrate, and a liquid accumulation portion forming step of supplying an organic solvent to the liquid film near the center of rotation of the substrate to form an organic film. Liquid accumulating portion of the solvent; the replacement step, which rotates the substrate at a higher number of revolutions than the liquid accumulating portion forming step, while supplying an organic solvent to the liquid accumulating portion to replace the cleaning liquid constituting the liquid film with the organic solvent; coating A step of applying a filler solution to a pattern-forming surface covered with an organic solvent; and a filling step of sinking a filler contained in the filler solution applied to the pattern-forming surface to fill a recess of the pattern .

Description

   Substrate processing method and substrate processing device   

The present invention relates to a substrate processing technique for processing a substrate having a pattern formed on its surface. The substrate includes a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a semiconductor substrate, a glass substrate for a PDP (plasma display panel), a glass substrate for a photomask, a substrate for a color filter, a substrate for a recording disk, Various substrates such as substrates for precision electronic devices such as substrates for solar cells, substrates for electronic paper, rectangular glass substrates, flexible substrates for thin film liquid crystals, and organic EL (Electroluminescence) substrates.

The manufacturing steps of electronic components such as a semiconductor device or a liquid crystal display device include a step of repeatedly forming a film and etching on the surface of the substrate to form a fine pattern. Here, in order to perform fine processing on the surface of the substrate, it is necessary to keep the surface of the substrate clean and clean the surface of the substrate according to the situation. In addition, after the cleaning process is completed, a cleaning solution such as deionized water (DIW: De Ionized Water (hereinafter referred to as "DIW")) adhered to the substrate surface must be removed to dry the substrate.

An important issue in this drying process is to dry the substrate without collapsing a pattern formed on the surface of the substrate. As a method to solve this problem, the sublimation drying technology has attracted attention. For example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-19161, a pattern is formed by dissolving a photoresist film coated on a substrate surface by supplying a photoresist film after exposure processing to a developing solution. Although a developing solution is supplied to the surface of the substrate to remove the developing solution, at the end of the cleaning process, a polymer soluble in the cleaning solution is supplied to the substrate with the cleaning solution covering the surface of the substrate, and thereafter The polymer solution was dried. As a result, the concave portions of the pattern (the gaps between the convex portions made of the photoresist film) are filled with the polymer. The polymer is then removed by selective plasma ashing.

However, in such a substrate processing technique, it is necessary to dry the polymer filled in the recessed portion of the pattern. In addition, it is necessary to perform polymer removal by plasma ashing. Therefore, if bubbles are mixed when the polymer is filled in the recesses, there may be cases where the bubbles remain in the recesses. In this case, in the execution of the aforementioned drying treatment or polymer removal treatment, bubbles may rupture, resulting in the remaining of the bubble marks, or making part of the polymer into particles. In this way, it is very important to prevent bubbles from being mixed into the recesses in order to improve the processing quality of the substrate.

The present invention has been made in view of the aforementioned problems, and an object thereof is to provide a substrate processing technology capable of well filling a filler into a recessed portion while preventing bubbles from being mixed into the recessed portion of the pattern formed on the surface of the substrate.

One aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing method, comprising: a liquid film forming step of forming a pattern forming surface of a pattern on a substrate to form a liquid film of a cleaning liquid; and a liquid accumulation portion forming step of forming a liquid accumulation portion on the substrate. The organic solvent is supplied to the liquid film near the rotation center to form a liquid accumulation portion of the organic solvent. In the replacement step, the substrate is rotated at a higher number of revolutions than the liquid accumulation portion formation step, and the organic solvent is supplied to the liquid accumulation portion to rotate the substrate. The cleaning liquid constituting the liquid film is replaced with an organic solvent; a coating step of applying a filler solution to the pattern forming surface covered with the organic solvent; and a filling step of applying the filler solution applied to the pattern forming surface The contained filler sinks and fills the concave portion of the pattern.

Moreover, another aspect of the present invention is a substrate processing apparatus including a holding portion that holds a substrate in a substantially horizontal posture with a pattern forming surface having a pattern formed on the substrate facing upward, and a rotating portion that causes The substrate held by the holding portion rotates in a substantially horizontal plane; a cleaning liquid supply portion that supplies the cleaning liquid toward the pattern forming surface; an organic solvent supply portion that supplies the organic solvent toward the pattern forming surface; a filler solution supply portion that faces the pattern The surface is supplied with a filler solution; and a control unit that controls the rotation of the substrate by the rotating unit, and supplies the cleaning liquid by the cleaning liquid supply unit, and the organic by the organic solvent supply unit. The supply of the solvent and the supply of the filler solution by the filler solution supply section are controlled; the control section forms a liquid film on the pattern forming surface by supplying the cleaning liquid, and supplies the organic film to the liquid film near the center of rotation of the substrate The solvent accumulates a liquid accumulation portion of the organic solvent, which increases the number of revolutions of the substrate and moves the organic solvent toward the liquid accumulation portion. The film constituting the cleaning liquid supply and replaced with an organic solvent, and the solution was applied to the filler covered with the pattern formed by the surface of the organic solvent solution containing the filler of the filler filled in the concave portion of the pattern.

In the invention constituted as described above, in order to fill the concave portion of the pattern with the filler, the liquid film of the cleaning liquid on the substrate is replaced with an organic solvent, and the pattern forming surface of the substrate covered by the liquid film of the organic solvent is used. A filler solution is applied. Therefore, if bubbles are contained in the liquid film of the organic solvent, when the filler contained in the filler solution is filled in the recessed portion of the pattern, bubbles are mixed in the recessed portion. In particular, if an organic solvent is supplied to the liquid film while the substrate is rotated, and the cleaning solution is replaced with an organic solvent, if the supply of the organic solvent cannot keep up with the removal of the cleaning solution, a so-called liquid cut-off may occur near the center of rotation of the substrate. The phase enters the interface between the cleaning solution and the organic solvent. On the other hand, in the present invention, before the replacement process is performed, an organic solvent is supplied to the liquid film of the cleaning liquid near the center of rotation of the substrate to form a liquid accumulation portion of the organic solvent. That is, at the time point when the replacement process is started, an organic solvent already exists near the rotation center of the substrate. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the occurrence of liquid cut-off. As a result, it is possible to fill the concave portion with the filler while preventing air bubbles from entering the concave portion of the pattern formed on the substrate.

1‧‧‧ substrate processing system

2‧‧‧ loading port

3‧‧‧washing treatment unit

4‧‧‧Heat treatment unit

9‧‧‧ Controller (Control Department)

31‧‧‧ Spin chuck (holding part)

32‧‧‧Suction section

33‧‧‧rotation axis

34‧‧‧Rotary drive section (rotary section)

35‧‧‧ Cover

36‧‧‧Nozzle list

37‧‧‧Elevation drive unit

38‧‧‧ cup

39‧‧‧ Nozzle driving unit

310‧‧‧Cleaning liquid supply department

311‧‧‧washing liquid supply port

331, 332‧‧‧‧Cylinder

333‧‧‧ engagement protrusion

334‧‧‧Gas supply port

351‧‧‧center hole

352‧‧‧ engagement hole

353‧‧‧peripheral hole

361‧‧‧ base

362‧‧‧ protrusion

A‧‧‧center line

C‧‧‧ carrier

CR‧‧‧ Central Robot

G‧‧‧ inert gas

IR‧‧‧ Indexing Robot

L1‧‧‧ (Cleaning liquid)

L2‧‧‧Liquid accumulation department

L3‧‧‧ (IPA) liquid film

L4‧‧‧ (for filler solution) liquid film

L5‧‧‧ (for filler solution) liquid film

L6‧‧‧washing liquid

Na, Nb‧‧‧ bottom nozzle

Nc‧‧‧upper nozzle (cleaning liquid supply unit)

Nd‧‧‧upper nozzle (organic solvent supply unit)

Ne‧‧‧ Upper nozzle (filler solution supply unit)

Ng‧‧‧upper nozzle

Pc‧‧‧ approaching position

R1, R2, R3, R4, R4 ', R5‧‧‧rpm

S‧‧‧cleaning processing unit (substrate processing device)

S101 ~ S112‧‧‧step

Sc‧‧‧ Medicine liquid supply source

Sf‧‧‧ Filler solution supply source (filler solution supply unit)

Sg‧‧‧ inert gas supply source

Sr‧‧‧ cleaning liquid supply source (cleaning liquid supply unit)

Ss‧‧‧Solvent supply source (organic solvent supply department)

Sw‧‧‧ Cleaning liquid supply source

V1, V2, V3, V4, V5, V6, V7, V8, V9, V10‧‧‧ valves

W‧‧‧ substrate

Wb‧‧‧ back

Wc‧‧‧ Recess

Wf‧‧‧ surface (pattern forming surface)

Wp‧‧‧ pattern

Z‧‧‧ vertical direction

FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing a substrate processing system equipped with a cleaning processing unit as a first embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing an example of a cleaning processing unit provided in the substrate processing system of FIG. 1.

3 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing an example of a cleaning processing unit provided in the substrate processing system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a part of the electrical configuration of the substrate processing system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing an example of a lifting operation of a nozzle unit and a cover plate.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a substrate processing method performed by the substrate processing system of FIG. 1 using the cleaning processing unit of FIGS. 2 and 3.

FIG. 7 is a timing chart showing an example of operations performed in accordance with the substrate processing method of FIG. 6.

8 (a) to 8 (g) are side views schematically showing a case where a substrate is processed on a substrate by the substrate processing method of FIG.

FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing an example of a substrate processing operation performed by a cleaning processing unit as a second embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a configuration of a cleaning processing unit as a third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a timing chart showing an example of a substrate processing operation performed by the cleaning processing unit shown in FIG. 10.

12 (a) and 12 (b) are side views schematically showing the conditions of the spin removal 2 process, the gasification auxiliary process, and the ambient gas removal process performed by the cleaning processing unit shown in FIG. 10.

FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing a substrate processing system equipped with a cleaning processing unit as an embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. The substrate processing system 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a single-chip substrate processing system that performs various substrate processing such as cleaning processing and heat treatment on the substrate W one by one. Examples of the substrate W to be processed include a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a semiconductor substrate, a glass substrate for a PDP, a glass substrate for a photomask, a substrate for a color filter, a substrate for a recording disk, and a solar cell. Substrates, substrates for precision electronic devices such as substrates for electronic paper, rectangular glass substrates, flexible substrates for thin film liquid crystals, substrates for organic EL, and the like. In the example described below, the substrate W has a circular shape with a predetermined diameter of 100 mm to 400 mm, and has a concave-convex surface Wf (FIG. 2) on which a fine pattern Wp (FIG. 8) is formed, and a flat back surface. Wb (surface opposite to surface Wf). However, the configuration of the substrate including the shape and size is not limited to this example.

The substrate processing system 1 includes a plurality of loading ports 2 for receiving a substrate W, a plurality of cleaning processing units 3 for cleaning the substrate W, and a plurality of heat treatment units 4 for thermally processing the substrate W. In order to transfer the substrate W in the system, the substrate processing system 1 includes an indexing robot IR and a central robot CR. Among these, the indexing robot IR transports the substrate W on the path between the loading port 2 and the central robot CR, and the central robot CR transports the substrate W on the path between the indexing robot IR and each processing unit 3, 4 . In addition, the substrate processing system 1 includes a controller 9 composed of a computer, and the controller 9 controls each unit of the apparatus according to a predetermined program, and executes each substrate processing described below on the substrate W.

The loading port 2 holds a carrier C in which a plurality of substrates W are stacked and accommodated in the vertical direction. In this loading port 2, each substrate W is housed in a state where the surface Wf is directed upward (that is, the state where the back surface Wb is directed downward). In addition, if the indexing robot IR takes out the unprocessed substrate W from the carrier C of the loading port 2, the substrate W is transferred to the central robot CR, and the central robot CR moves the substrate W received from the indexing robot IR into the washing machine. NET Processing Unit 3.

The cleaning processing unit 3 cleans the substrate W carried in (cleaning processing), and then covers the surface Wf of the substrate W including the pattern Wp with a liquid film of a filler solution (coating processing). Here, the filler solution is a solution containing a filler as a solute. In this manner, the cleaning processing unit 3 is a substrate processing apparatus that performs not only cleaning processing but also other substrate processing such as coating processing. The structure and operation of the cleaning processing unit 3 will be described in detail later.

When the processing of each substrate in the cleaning processing unit 3 is completed, the central robot CR carries the substrate W out of the cleaning processing unit 3 and carries the substrate W into the heat treatment unit 4. The heat treatment unit 4 includes a heating plate (not shown), and heats the substrate W carried in by the central robot CR (heat treatment) using the heating plate. By this heat treatment, the solvent evaporates from the liquid film of the filler solution covering the surface Wf of the substrate W, and solidifies between the solute of the filler solution, that is, the pattern Wp adjacent to the filler, that is, the recessed portion Wc (FIG. 8) of the pattern. . The method for heating the substrate W is not limited to this. For example, the substrate W may be heated by irradiating the substrate W with infrared rays or applying hot air to the substrate W.

If the heat treatment in the heat treatment unit 4 is completed, the central robot CR transfers the substrate W carried out from the heat treatment unit 4 to the indexing robot IR, and the indexing robot IR stores the received substrate W in the carrier C of the loading port 2. In this way, the substrate W on which the substrate processing system 1 has performed each substrate processing is transferred to an external filler removing device. The filler removing device removes the filler from the surface Wf of the substrate W including the pattern Wp by dry etching. The method for removing the filler is not limited to this. For example, the filler can be sublimated by a method such as Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-258272 or a plasma treatment such as Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2011-124313. Wait to remove the filler.

2 and 3 are partial cross-sectional views schematically showing an example of a cleaning processing unit provided in the substrate processing system of FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a part of the electrical configuration of the substrate processing system of FIG. 1. . 2 and 3 are different in height of the cover plate 35 and the nozzle unit 36 described later. Moreover, in the drawings of FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 and the following, the vertical direction Z is appropriately shown.

The cleaning processing unit 3 includes a spin chuck 31 that holds the substrate W carried in by the central robot CR, and a suction unit 32 that supplies negative pressure to the spin chuck 31. The spin chuck 31 has a shape protruding downward from a cylindrical axis in a central portion of a lower surface of the disc, and is substantially rotationally symmetric with respect to a center line A parallel to the vertical direction Z. A plurality of suction holes are opened on the upper surface of the spin chuck 31, and the substrate W is horizontally placed on the upper surface of the spin chuck 31. In this way, the chuck 31 is in contact with the center portion of the back surface Wb of the substrate W from below with the surface Wf of the substrate W facing upward. In this state, if the controller 9 outputs a suction instruction to the suction section 32, the suction section 32 supplies negative pressure to the suction hole of the spin chuck 31, so that the substrate W is sucked and held by the spin chuck 31. .

The cleaning processing unit 3 includes a rotation shaft 33 that holds the spin chuck 31 and a rotation drive unit 34 that is configured by a motor to rotate the rotation shaft 33. The rotating shaft 33 has a shape in which a cylindrical portion 332 having a smaller diameter than the cylindrical portion 331 protrudes upward from a central portion of the upper surface of the cylindrical portion 331, and the cylindrical portions 331 and 332 are substantially rotated relative to the center line A symmetry. In addition, the rotation shaft 33 includes an engagement protrusion 333 that protrudes upward on the upper surface of the cylindrical portion 331 and the side direction of the cylindrical portion 332. In addition, if the controller 9 outputs a rotation instruction to the rotation driving portion 34, the rotation driving portion 34 provides a rotation driving force (torque) to the rotation shaft 33, so that the rotation shaft 33 and the rotation chuck 31 are integrally centered on the center line A Rotate. As a result, the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31 is also rotated around the centerline A.

The cleaning processing unit 3 includes a cover plate 35 located below the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31. In plan view, the cover plate 35 has a substantially circular outer shape centered on the center line A. A circular center hole 351 is opened at the center portion of the cover plate 35, and the side of the center hole 351 of the cover plate 35 is opened. An engagement hole 352 is provided, and a peripheral edge hole 353 is opened at a peripheral edge portion of the cover plate 35. The cylindrical portion 332 of the rotation shaft 33 is inserted inside the center hole 351 of the cover plate 35, and the cover plate 35 faces the rear surface Wb of the substrate W from below and more outward than the cylindrical portion 332 of the rotation shaft 33.

The cover plate 35 can be lifted and lowered freely along the vertical direction Z, and can be selectively located at a close position Pc (FIG. 2) and a closer position Pc that are close to the back surface Wb of the substrate W and leave from the back surface Wb of the substrate W downward. Any position in Pd (Figure 3). When the cover 35 is in the separated state at the separation position Pd, the engagement protrusion 333 of the rotation shaft 33 is engaged with the engagement hole 352 of the cover 35. The cover plate 35 can be rotated in accordance with the rotation of the rotation shaft 33 by being engaged with the rotation shaft 33 in this way. On the other hand, in a close state where the cover plate 35 is located at the close position Pc, the cover plate 35 approaches, for example, the back surface Wb of the substrate W with a gap of about 1 mm to 10 mm, and covers at least the peripheral edge of the back surface Wb of the substrate W from below. unit. Moreover, in this approaching state, the engaging hole 352 of the cover plate 35 is disengaged from the engaging protrusion 333 of the rotation shaft 33, and the cover plate 35 is not stopped by the rotation of the rotation shaft 33.

In addition, the cleaning processing unit 3 includes a nozzle unit 36 that can be detached from the peripheral hole 353 of the cover plate 35 from below, and a lift driving unit 37 that lifts and lowers the nozzle unit 36. Then, the elevation driving section 37 raises and lowers the cover plate 35 as the nozzle unit 36 is raised and lowered. FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing an example of a lifting operation of a nozzle unit and a cover plate. Each column of the "nozzle unit lowering position", "nozzle unit midway position", and "nozzle unit midway position" in FIG. 5 indicates the state where the nozzle unit 36 is located at the lowering position, midway position, and ascending position, respectively. Next, FIG. 2 to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are added to describe the cleaning processing unit 3.

As shown in FIG. 5, the nozzle unit 36 includes a base portion 361 and two lower nozzles Na and Nb mounted on the upper surface of the base portion 361. The base portion 361 has a protruding portion 362 protruding in a lateral direction at the bottom portion. The two lower nozzles Na, Nb are arranged along the radial direction of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31, and the lower peripheral nozzles on the radial periphery side. The treatment liquid is discharged toward the obliquely upward direction where Na is inclined outward as it is directed upward, and the treatment liquid is discharged parallel to the vertical direction Z with respect to the vertical center Z and the lower nozzle Nb.

The elevating driving unit 37 is composed of an actuator, for example, and raises and lowers the nozzle unit 36 between a lowered position (FIG. 3) and a raised position (FIG. 2) higher than the lowered position in accordance with a command from the controller 9. As shown in the columns of the "nozzle unit lowering position" in Figs. 3 and 5, in a state where the nozzle unit 36 is located at the lowered position, the nozzle unit 36 at the lowered position is positioned lower than the cover plate 35 positioned at the separation position Pd. As shown in the column of "Nozzle unit midway position" in Fig. 5, if the nozzle unit 36 rises from the lowered position and reaches the halfway position, the nozzle unit 36 is engaged with the peripheral hole 353 of the cover plate 35 at the separation position Pd, so that The protruding portion 362 of the nozzle unit 36 is in contact with the lower surface of the cover plate 35. When the nozzle unit 36 rises further, the cover plate 35 rises with the nozzle unit 36, and the engagement between the cover plate 35 and the rotation shaft 33 is released. As shown in the column of "nozzle unit ascending position" in Figs. 2 and 5, as the nozzle unit 36 reaches the ascending position, the cover plate 35 reaches the approach position Pc.

When the cover plate 35 is in the approaching position Pc, the upper surface of the base portion 361 is aligned flush with the upper surface of the cover plate 35, and the lower nozzles Na and Nb are held close to the substrate W of the spin chuck 31. Back Wb. In addition, the lower nozzle Na can discharge the processing liquid to the peripheral portion of the back surface Wb, and the lower nozzle Nb can discharge the processing liquid to the back surface Wb from the inner side than the lower nozzle Na.

When the nozzle unit 36 is lowered from the raised position to the lowered position, each operation is performed in the reverse order to that described above. That is, the cover plate 35 is lowered from the approach position Pc toward the separation position Pd as the nozzle unit 36 is lowered. When the cover plate 35 reaches the separation position Pd, the cover plate 35 engages with the rotation shaft 33 and stops descending. The nozzle unit 36 is further lowered from the peripheral edge hole 353 of the cover plate 35 and detached downward to reach the lowered position.

Returning to FIGS. 2 to 4, the description is continued. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cleaning processing unit 3 includes a cup 38 that surrounds the substrate W held by the spin chuck 31 and the cover 35 from the side direction and below. Therefore, the processing liquid scattered or dropped from the substrate W and the cover plate 35 is recovered by the cup 38. The cup 38 is raised and lowered between a raised position in FIG. 3 and a lowered position lower than the raised position by a lifting mechanism (not shown). The substrate W is attached to and detached from the spin chuck 31 with the cup 38 in the lowered position, and various substrate processes are performed on the substrate W mounted on the spin chuck 31 with the cup 38 in the raised position. .

The cleaning processing unit 3 includes an inert gas supply source Sg that supplies an inert gas such as nitrogen. Further, the opened gas supply port 334 is connected to the inert gas supply source Sg through the valve V1 above the cylindrical portion 332 of the rotary shaft 33. Therefore, when the controller 9 opens the valve V1, the inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply source Sg toward the back surface Wb of the substrate W held on the spin chuck 31 and the upper surface of the cover plate 35. Thereby, between the back surface Wb of the substrate W and the cover plate 35, an inert gas flows from the center of the substrate W toward the peripheral edge. On the other hand, if the controller 9 closes the valve V1, the supply of the gas from the inert gas supply source Sg is stopped.

In addition, the cleaning processing unit 3 includes three upper nozzles Nc, Nd, and Ne that discharge the processing liquid toward the surface Wf of the substrate W held on the spin chuck 31. In addition, the cleaning processing unit 3 is provided with a nozzle driving unit 39 that positions the upper nozzle Nc at a position facing the center of the surface Wf of the substrate W held on the spin chuck 31 and the upper nozzle Nc from the substrate. The surface Wf of W moves between retreat positions in a horizontal retreat. Although the illustration is omitted, the cleaning processing unit 3 includes the same nozzle driving unit 39 for the upper nozzles Nd and Ne, respectively. In response to a command from the controller 9, each nozzle driving unit 39 moves the upper nozzles Nc, Nd, and Ne, respectively.

In this way, the cleaning processing unit 3 is provided with the nozzles Na, Nb on the lower side that discharge the processing liquid toward the back surface Wb of the substrate W, and the nozzles Nc, Nd, and Ne that supply the processing liquid on the surface Wf of the substrate W. The cleaning processing unit 3 is provided with various supply sources Sc, Sr, Ss, and Sf that supply the processing liquid to the nozzles Na to Ne.

The chemical solution supply source Sc supplies, for example, a cleaning solution containing dilute hydrofluoric acid (DHF) or ammonia water as a chemical solution. This chemical liquid supply source Sc is connected to the upper nozzle Nc via valves V2 and V3 connected in series. Therefore, if the controller 9 opens the valves V2 and V3, the medicine liquid supplied from the medicine liquid supply source Sc is discharged from the upper nozzle Nc. If the controller 9 closes either of the valves V2 and V3, The discharge of the medicinal solution from the upper nozzle Nc stops.

The cleaning liquid supply source Sr supplies pure water such as DIW (De-ionized Water), carbonated water, ozone water, or hydrogen water as the cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid supply source Sr is connected to the upper nozzle Nc via a valve V4 and a valve V3 connected in series. Therefore, if the controller 9 opens the valve V4 and the valve V3, the cleaning liquid supplied from the cleaning liquid supply source Sr is discharged from the upper nozzle Nc, and the controller 9 closes any one of the valves V4 and V3 from the upper side. The discharge of the cleaning liquid from the nozzle Nc is stopped. The cleaning liquid supply source Sr is connected to the lower nozzle Nb via a valve V5 (FIG. 5). Therefore, if the controller 9 opens the valve V5, the cleaning liquid supplied from the cleaning liquid supply source Sr is discharged from the lower nozzle Nb. If the controller 9 closes the valve V5, the cleaning liquid is discharged from the lower nozzle Nb. It stops.

The solvent supply source Ss supplies an organic solvent used in a replacement process for replacing the cleaning liquid on the substrate W. In this embodiment, isopropyl alcohol (IPA; Isopropyl Alcohol) is used as the organic solvent. This solvent supply source Ss is connected to the lower nozzle Na via a valve V6. Therefore, if the controller 9 opens the valve V6, the solvent supplied from the solvent supply source Ss is discharged from the lower nozzle Na. If the controller 9 closes the valve V6, the discharge of the solvent from the lower nozzle Na is stopped. The solvent supply source Ss is connected to the upper nozzle Nd via a valve V7. Therefore, if the controller 9 opens the valve V7, the solvent supplied from the solvent supply source Ss is discharged from the upper nozzle Nd. If the controller 9 closes the valve V7, the discharge of the solvent from the upper nozzle Nd is stopped.

The filler solution supply source Sf is supplied as a filler solution as a solution in which a filler such as an acrylic resin is dissolved in water. This filler solution supply source Sf is connected to the upper nozzle Ne via a valve V8. Therefore, if the controller 9 opens the valve V8, the filler solution supplied from the filler solution supply source Sf is discharged from the upper nozzle Ne. If the controller 9 closes the valve V8, the filler solution from the upper nozzle Ne is discharged. Spit it out.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a substrate processing method performed by the substrate processing system of FIG. 1 using the cleaning processing unit of FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. 7 is a timing chart showing an example of operations performed in accordance with the substrate processing method of FIG. 6. In addition, FIG. 8 is a side view schematically showing a case of substrate processing performed on a substrate by the substrate processing method of FIG. 6. The flowchart is executed by the control of the controller 9. Furthermore, during the execution of the flowchart covering FIG. 6, nitrogen is continuously supplied from the gas supply port 334 between the substrate W and the cover plate 35.

If the unprocessed substrate W is carried into the upper surface of the spin chuck 31 of the cleaning processing unit 3 by the central robot CR (step S101), the spin chuck 31 sucks and holds the substrate W. Further, the cover 35 located at the separation position Pd is raised to the approach position Pc. Next, the spin chuck 31 starts to rotate, and the number of revolutions of the substrate W is accelerated from zero to the number of revolutions R4. Next, in a state where the cover plate 35 is located at the close position Pc, the chemical liquid processing in step S102 is started.

In this chemical liquid treatment, the upper nozzle is positioned so as to face the central portion of the surface of the Nc substrate W, and DHF (chemical liquid) is started while the substrate W is rotating at a constant speed at a rotation number R4 (for example, 800 rpm). ) Supply from the upper nozzle Nc toward the substrate W (time t1). During the period from time t1 to time t2, the DHF continuously supplied to the central portion of the surface Wf of the substrate W is extended to the periphery of the surface Wf of the substrate W by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the substrate W, so that The surface Wf of the substrate W is treated with a chemical solution using DHF.

When the chemical liquid processing is completed at time t2, the upper nozzle Nc stops the supply of DHF and starts the cleaning processing (step S103). In this cleaning process, the number of revolutions of the substrate W is maintained at a constant number of revolutions R4 during the period from time t2 to time t3, and then the number of revolutions R4 is decelerated to the number of revolutions R1 between time t3 and time t4. Here, the number of revolutions R1 is set to a number of revolutions that is less than or equal to zero that can maintain a paddle-like cleaning solution formed as follows. In particular, in this embodiment, the number of revolutions R1 Set to zero. In addition, the upper nozzle Nc continues to supply the cleaning liquid to the surface Wf of the substrate W during the period from the time t2 to the time t4 while maintaining the state facing the central portion of the surface Wf of the substrate W.

Between time t2 and time t3, since the substrate W is rotated at a relatively fast rotation number R4, the cleaning liquid supplied to the central portion of the surface Wf of the substrate W will be rapidly extended to the surface Wf of the substrate W by centrifugal force Perimeter, and scattered from that perimeter. The DHF supplied to the surface Wf of the substrate W in the previous chemical solution treatment is replaced with a cleaning solution. On the other hand, during the period from time t3 to time t4, as the rotation speed of the substrate W is decelerated, the thickness of the liquid film of the cleaning liquid formed on the surface Wf of the substrate W increases.

By performing such a cleaning treatment (= chemical solution treatment + cleaning treatment), the surface Wf of the substrate W is covered with a liquid film of the cleaning solution after being washed with DHF. On the other hand, in the execution of the cleaning process, the back surface Wb of the substrate W is covered by the cover plate 35 located at the close position Pc, and the adhesion of DHF or cleaning liquid to the back surface Wb of the substrate W is suppressed. In particular, in parallel with the cleaning process, nitrogen is continuously supplied between the back surface Wb of the substrate W and the upper surface of the cover plate 35. Therefore, a nitrogen gas flow is generated from the rotation center of the substrate W toward the periphery of the substrate W. The lower surface side of the substrate W. In this way, it is possible to more reliably suppress the DHF or the cleaning liquid from being wound from the surface Wf to the back surface Wb of the substrate W by the flow of nitrogen gas.

When the washing process is completed at time t4, the liquid-covering process is started (step S104). That is, at time t4, when the number of revolutions of the substrate W becomes the number of revolutions R1, that is, becomes zero, the controller 9 controls the rotation position at which the spin chuck 31 stops based on the output of the encoder of the motor constituting the rotation driving section 34. Thereby, the rotation chuck 31 stops at the rotation position where the engagement protrusion 333 of the rotation chuck 31 opposes the engagement hole 352 of the cover plate 35 in the vertical direction Z. When the rotation of the substrate W is stopped in this way, the cover plate 35 is lowered from the approach position Pc to the separation position Pd and is engaged with the spin chuck 31.

Until the time t5, after the completion of the cleaning process, the upper nozzle Nc continues to supply the cleaning liquid to the surface Wf of the substrate W, and executes the liquid coating process. The supply rate of the cleaning liquid in this liquid coating process is the same as the supply rate of the cleaning liquid in the cleaning process. When it is time t5, the supply of the cleaning liquid is stopped by the upper nozzle Nc. That is, in the liquid-covering process, the cleaning liquid is continuously supplied to the surface Wf of the substrate W after the speed of the rotation number R4 is decelerated from time t4 to time t5. In this way, as shown in the column (a) of FIG. 8, the surface Wf of the substrate W is covered with the liquid-covered liquid film L1 formed of a large amount of the cleaning liquid, thereby suppressing exposure to the evaporation of the cleaning liquid. The resulting surface tension causes the pattern Wp to collapse. In particular, in this embodiment, since the liquid-covering process can be performed while the rotation of the substrate W is stopped, the surface Wf of the substrate W can be maintained in a fully wet state, and the pattern Wp can be more reliably suppressed. collapse.

If the liquid coating process is completed at time t5, after the supply of the cleaning liquid from the upper nozzle Nc is stopped, the upper nozzle Nc retracts from above the central portion of the surface of the substrate W. At the same time, the liquid accumulation process is executed (step S105). That is, while the number of revolutions of the substrate W is maintained at the number of revolutions R1, the upper nozzle Nd and the upper nozzle Nc are replaced at time t5 and moved to be positioned above the central portion of the surface of the substrate W. As shown in the column (b) of FIG. 8, as an example of the “organic solvent” of the present invention, IPA is supplied from the positioned upper nozzle Nd to the central portion of the surface Wf of the substrate W. Thereby, the liquid accumulation part L2 of IPA is formed in the center part of the liquid film L1 of the cleaning liquid. In this embodiment, the liquid accumulation process is continued until time t6, and the liquid accumulation portion L2 is grown to a predetermined size.

If the liquid accumulation process is completed at time t6, the spin chuck 31 starts to rotate, so that the replacement process in step S106 and the filler coating process in step S107 are sequentially executed. In addition, during the execution of the replacement process and the filler coating process, the cover plate 35 is engaged with the spin chuck 31, and therefore, the cover plate 35 also rotates as the substrate W rotates.

In the replacement process (step S106), while the supply of IPA from the upper nozzle Nd is continued, the number of revolutions of the substrate W is accelerated from zero (the number of revolutions R1) to the number of revolutions between time t6 and time t7. After counting R2, it is maintained at the number of revolutions R2 until time t8. The number of revolutions R2 is higher than the number of revolutions R1, and the number of revolutions in which liquid (cleaning liquid, IPA) existing on the surface Wf of the substrate W can be scattered from the periphery of the surface Wf of the substrate W. In particular, The number of revolutions R2 is set to the number of revolutions R4, for example, 300 rpm. In this way, the IPA that is continuously supplied to the center portion of the surface Wf of the substrate W is removed from the surface Wf of the substrate W while being extended to the periphery of the surface Wf of the substrate W by centrifugal force. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the supply amount of IPA per unit time during the execution of the liquid accumulation process (step S105) and the replacement process (step S106) is constant.

Here, if attention is paid to the amount of IPA liquid existing on the surface Wf of the substrate W, during the liquid accumulation processing from time t5 to time t6, the substrate rotation number is zero (the number of rotations R1). The supply speed supplies IPA toward the surface Wf. At this time, since no centrifugal force is generated, as shown in FIG. 7, the supplied IPA will be accumulated on the surface Wf at a relatively fast speed and the liquid accumulation portion of the IPA will gradually expand to the peripheral portion. From time t7 (a time point when the concentration of IPA becomes substantially the same across the entire surface Wf of the substrate), the substrate is rotated by the number of revolutions R2.

At time t7, since the scattering amount of the mixed liquid from the surface Wf temporarily increases, the amount of IPA on the surface Wf decreases. Thereafter, from time t7 to t8, the supply speed of IPA is balanced with the reduction speed of the mixed liquid scattered from the surface Wf, and is maintained in a state where the surface Wf accumulates a fixed amount of IPA.

By supplying the IPA with such a supply amount distribution, as shown in the column (c) of FIG. 8, while preventing the so-called liquid breakage, the cleaning liquid covering the surface Wf of the substrate W is replaced with the liquid film L3 of the IPA. . That is, since the liquid accumulation portion L2 has been formed at the time point when the substrate W starts to rotate, that is, at time t6, the gas phase does not enter the interface between the cleaning liquid and the IPA (organic solvent) during the replacement process, so-called Of cut off fluid. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent bubbles from being mixed into the plurality of patterns Wp formed on the surface Wf of the substrate W, that is, the recessed portions Wc. As a result, the recessed portions Wc can be filled with IPA without the bubbles.

When the replacement process is completed at time t8, the supply of the IPA from the upper nozzle Nd is stopped, and the upper nozzle Nd retracts from above the central portion of the substrate W. At the same time, a filler coating process (step S107) is performed. In this filler coating process, the upper nozzle Ne and the upper nozzle Nd are replaced and positioned above the central portion of the surface of the substrate W, and the rotation number R2 of the rotation speed of the substrate W is rapidly changed from time t8 to time t9. After accelerating to the number of revolutions R5, it is maintained at the number of revolutions R5 until time t10. Here, the number of revolutions R5 is faster than the number of revolutions R2. Especially in this embodiment, the number of revolutions R5 is set to be more than the number of revolutions R4 (for example, 1500 rpm to 2000 rpm). During the period from time t8 to time t10, the upper side nozzle Ne, which faces the central portion of the surface of the substrate W, supplies the filler solution toward the surface Wf of the substrate W. The supply of the filler solution is performed by ejecting the filler solution one shot at a time from the upper nozzle Ne. In this way, the filler solution supplied to the center of the surface Wf of the substrate W is subjected to centrifugal force and spreads over the liquid film L3 of the IPA. As a result, as shown in the column (d) of FIG. 8, on the surface Wf of the substrate W, the liquid film L4 of the filler solution is laminated on the liquid film L3 of the IPA.

Incidentally, in this embodiment, the cover plate 35 is rotated at high speed in parallel with the execution of the replacement process and the filler coating process. The high-speed rotation of the cover plate 35 is performed to remove the cleaning liquid dropped from the substrate W to the cover plate 35 during the liquid-covering process from the cover plate 35 by centrifugal force.

When the application of the filler is completed at time t10, the supply of the filler solution by the upper nozzle Ne is stopped, and the upper nozzle Ne retreats from above the central portion of the surface of the substrate W. At the same time, the spin off 1 process is started (step S108). In this rotation removal 1 process, the number of revolutions of the substrate W during the period from time t10 to time t11 is maintained at the number of revolutions R5, and from time t11 to time t12, the number of revolutions of the substrate W is decelerated to the number of revolutions R1 (at (Zero in this embodiment). Thereby, as shown in the column (e) in Fig. 8, the excess filler solution is removed from the surface Wf of the substrate W, and the thickness of the liquid film L4 of the filler solution is adjusted to a desired thickness. At this time, the controller 9 controls the rotation position at which the spin chuck 31 stops based on the output of the encoder of the motor constituting the rotation driving section 34. Thereby, the rotation chuck 31 stops at the position where the peripheral hole 353 of the cover plate 35 faces the nozzle unit 36 in the vertical direction Z. In this way, if the rotation of the substrate W and the cover plate 35 stops, the cover plate 35 starts to rise along with the nozzle unit 36, and rises from the separation position Pd to the approach position Pc.

When the rotation removal 1 process is completed at time t12, the filler sinking process is started (step S109). That is, the number of revolutions of the substrate W and the cover plate 35 becomes the number of revolutions R1. After the number of revolutions is zero in the present embodiment, it waits for a predetermined time to elapse. During the waiting period of the predetermined time, the filler solution laminated on the liquid film L3 of the IPA will sink, and on the other hand, the IPA will float. As a result, as shown in the column (f) in FIG. 8, the pattern Wp formed on the surface Wf of the substrate W is covered by the liquid film L4 of the filler solution, so that the adjacent patterns Wp, that is, The recessed portion Wc is filled with a filler solution.

If the filler sinking process is completed at time t13, the rotation of the substrate W is started, so that the rotation number of the substrate W is accelerated from zero to the rotation number R4. Then, at a predetermined time up to time t14, the substrate W is rotated at a constant speed at a number of revolutions R4, thereby performing a spin-removal 2 process of removing IPA and excess filler solution from the surface Wf of the substrate W (step S110). As a result, as shown in the column (g) of FIG. 8, between the adjacent patterns Wp, that is, the recessed portions Wc are filled with the liquid film L5 of the filler solution having a thickness equal to the height of the pattern Wp.

When the rotation and removal 2 process is completed at time t14, the edge cleaning process is performed (step S111). In this edge cleaning process, the rotation number of the substrate W is maintained at the rotation number R3 after the rotation number R4 is decelerated to the rotation number R3. Then, the lower nozzle Na and the lower nozzle Nb discharge the processing liquid to the back surface Wb of the substrate W which is rotated at a constant speed at the number of revolutions R3. Specifically, the lower nozzle Na emits IPA (organic solvent) toward the periphery of the back surface Wb of the substrate W. Thereby, when the filler solution is applied, the filler solution adhered to the periphery of the back surface Wb of the substrate W is removed. In addition, the lower nozzle Nb discharges the cleaning liquid toward the vicinity of the peripheral edge of the back surface Wb of the substrate W. The cleaning solution thus discharged is washed away from the back surface Wb of the substrate W by the centrifugal force while moving along the back surface Wb of the substrate W toward the periphery.

If the edge cleaning process is completed at time t15, the rotation of the substrate W is stopped, and the cover plate 35 is lowered. Here, the same control as that of the stop position of the spin chuck 31 described above is performed, and the lower cover 35 is engaged with the spin chuck 31. Then, the spin chuck 31 releases the suction of the substrate W, and the central robot CR unloads the substrate W from the cleaning processing unit 3 (step S112).

As described above, in this embodiment, immediately before the replacement process using IPA is performed, the liquid accumulation portion L2 of IPA is formed in the central portion of the liquid film L1 of the cleaning liquid. Therefore, since the liquid accumulation portion L2 is present at a point in time when the number of revolutions of the substrate W to start the replacement process is increased, the liquid can be reliably prevented from being cut off. That is, the recessed portion Wc can be filled with IPA without causing bubbles to enter between adjacent patterns Wp, that is, the recessed portion Wc. As a result, a series of processes (steps S107 to S110) performed in the cleaning processing unit 3 can be performed to fill the recess Wc of the pattern well with the filler. In addition, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of bubble residues such as bubble breakage during the drying process performed by the heat treatment unit 4 or the polymer removal process performed using the filler removing device (not shown), or the polymer Part of the situation becomes a particle defect.

Thus, in this embodiment, the surface Wf of the substrate W corresponds to the "pattern forming surface" of the present invention. Further, the cleaning process (step S103), the liquid-covering process (step S104), the liquid accumulation process (step S105), the replacement process (step S106), the filler coating process (step S107), and the filler sinking process (step S109) ), Which correspond to examples of the "rinsing step", "liquid film formation step", "liquid accumulation portion forming step", "replacement step", "coating step", and "filling step" of the present invention, respectively. The number of revolutions R4 and R1 correspond to examples of the "first number of revolutions" and the "second number of revolutions" in the present invention, respectively. The spin chuck 31, the rotation driving section 34, and the controller 9 correspond to examples of the "holding section", the "rotating section", and the "control section" of the present invention, respectively. The cleaning liquid supply source Sr and the upper nozzle Nc function as the "cleaning liquid supply unit" of the present invention, and the solvent supply source Ss and the upper nozzle Nd function as the "organic solvent supply unit" of the present invention. The agent solution supply source Sf and the upper nozzle Ne function as the "filler solution supply unit" of the present invention.

The present invention is not limited to the aforementioned embodiments, and various changes other than the aforementioned embodiments can be made without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the size of the liquid accumulation portion L2 formed in the liquid film L1 of the cleaning liquid can be adjusted by changing the time t6 of the liquid accumulation process (step S105) or the amount of IPA supply. In particular, from the viewpoint of more reliably preventing the occurrence of a liquid break, it is preferable to delay the time from the time t6 to the time t6 ′ from the time point t6 to increase the number of revolutions of the substrate W as shown in FIG. It is configured to increase the amount (second embodiment).

In the above embodiment, although the IPA and the excess filler solution are removed from the surface Wf of the substrate W by the spin removal 2 process, a so-called completion step is performed, but in this completion step, it can also be removed by rotation. In the two processes, a gasification auxiliary process (a gas supply step) and an ambient gas removal process (a cleaning liquid supply step) are performed together (third embodiment). Hereinafter, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 12.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a configuration of a cleaning processing unit as a third embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention. The cleaning processing unit 3 differs greatly from the cleaning processing unit 3 (FIG. 2 and FIG. 3) of the first embodiment in that a nozzle Ng for supplying an inert gas above the surface Wf of the substrate W is provided, and The cleaning liquid supply unit 310 is provided to the central portion of the back surface Wb of the substrate W (the main surface of the substrate W on the opposite side to the pattern forming surface), and other components are basically the same as those of the first embodiment. The net processing unit 3 is the same. Therefore, in the following, the differences are described in detail while the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and descriptions thereof are omitted.

In the third embodiment, in addition to the upper nozzles Nc, Nd, and Ne, an upper nozzle Ng is further provided, and a nozzle driving unit 39 is provided to the upper nozzle Ng (see FIG. 2). In addition, the upper nozzle Ng is moved between the gas supply position and the standby position by the nozzle driving unit 39 receiving a command from the controller 9. The gas supply position means a position away from the center portion of the surface Wf of the substrate W upward, and the standby position means a position away from the cup 38.

An inert gas supply source Sg is connected to the upper nozzle Ng via a valve V9 as shown in FIG. 10. Therefore, when the controller 9 opens the valve V9, the inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply source Sg toward the center portion of the surface Wf of the substrate W held on the spin chuck 31. Thereby, the inert gas flows along the surface Wf of the substrate W from the center of the substrate W toward the peripheral edge (refer to the dotted arrow in the column (b) in FIG. 12 described later). On the other hand, when the controller 9 closes the valve V9, the supply of the gas from the inert gas supply source Sg is stopped.

Further, in the cleaning liquid supply unit 310, a cleaning liquid supply port 311 opened above the cylindrical portion 332 of the rotary shaft 33 is connected to the cleaning liquid supply source Sw via a valve V10 as shown in FIG. . Therefore, if the controller 9 opens the valve V10, the cleaning liquid (for example, DIW, carbonated water, ozone water or hydrogen water, deionized water, organic solvents such as IPA, etc.) is rotated from the cleaning liquid supply port 311 to be held A central portion of the back surface Wb of the substrate W of the chuck 31 is supplied. The cleaning solution thus supplied flows along the back surface Wb of the substrate W from the center of the substrate W toward the periphery, and is collected in the cup 38. On the other hand, when the controller 9 closes the valve V10, the supply of the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid supply source Sw is stopped.

In the cleaning processing unit 3 configured as described above, the substrate processing method shown in FIG. 6 is also executed in the same manner as in the first embodiment. However, in the third embodiment, in parallel with the rotation removal 2 processing, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, a gasification assisting process and an ambient gas removal process are performed. The other processes are the same as those of the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a timing chart showing an example of a substrate processing operation performed by the cleaning processing unit shown in FIG. 10. FIG. 12 is a side view schematically showing a case where the spin removal 2 process, the gasification assisting process, and the ambient gas removal process are performed by the cleaning processing unit shown in FIG. 10. In this third embodiment, as in the first embodiment, a series of processes in steps S101 to S109 are performed. As shown in the column (a) of FIG. 12, the pattern Wp formed on the surface Wf of the substrate W is filled. The liquid film L4 of the agent solution is covered so that the filler solution is filled between the adjacent patterns Wp, that is, the recesses Wc.

Here, although only the spin-removal 2 treatment may be performed in the same manner as in the first embodiment, there are fillers depending on the characteristics of the filler solution (viscosity, volatility, surface tension, solubility of solvent and filler, etc.). The filling ratio of the solution to the concave portion Wc may become uneven in the surface of the substrate W. That is, the centrifugal force generated by the high-speed rotation of the substrate W will increase from the center portion of the substrate W to the peripheral portion, and in particular, if there is a filler solution entering the recessed portion Wc at the peripheral portion, it will self-recess from the recessed portion due to the centrifugal force Wc is discharged. Therefore, there may be a case where the filling rate in the peripheral portion decreases. If such a state that the non-uniformity of the filling rate is maintained, for example, a baking treatment is performed, the stress acting on the recessed portion Wc due to the shrinkage of the filler is more severe than the peripheral portion. When the ashing treatment is performed, stress is applied to the center side and the peripheral edge side of the recessed portion Wc. Here, since the filling rate of the recessed portion Wc in the central portion of the substrate W is uniform, the stress on the center side is substantially the same as the stress on the peripheral side. On the other hand, since the filling rate of the recessed portion Wc in the peripheral portion of the substrate W is low, the stress on the center side is larger than the stress on the peripheral side, and the pattern Wp may be inclined in the outer peripheral direction. In this way, in order to better prevent the pattern from collapsing, it is important to further uniformize the filling rate in the surface Wf of the substrate W.

Therefore, in the third embodiment, as described above, in addition to the spin removal 2 process, a gasification assist process and an ambient gas removal process are additionally performed. In the third embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the rotation number R4 ′ of the rotation removal 2 process is reduced to a rotation number lower than the rotation number R4 of the first embodiment. That is, it is set in such a way that the following inequality is satisfied: R1 <R4 '<R4.

Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent a situation in which the filling rate of the peripheral portion is drastically lower than that of the central portion.

In parallel with the rotation removal 2 process, the controller 9 issues a movement command to the nozzle driving unit 39 to place the upper nozzle Ng at the gas supply position, and opens the valve V9 in one step to supply an inert gas toward the center of the surface Wf of the substrate W. Thereby, as shown in the column (b) of FIG. 12, the inert gas G flows along the surface Wf of the substrate W from the center of the substrate W toward the peripheral edge. Therefore, the solvent contained in the filler solution is dissolved in an inert gas and discharged to the outer peripheral side of the substrate W. As a result, the dry state in the plane of the substrate W can be made uniform.

Here, although an inert gas containing a solvent exists in the ambient gas in the cup 38, if the solvent dissolved in the inert gas adheres to the substrate W, the solvent becomes fine particles. Although the inert gas containing the solvent exists in the ambient gas in the cup 38, if it can be efficiently recovered outside the cup 38, the ambient gas removal processing described below is not necessary. However, in order to reliably prevent the generation of particles, in the third embodiment, the ambient gas removal process is performed in parallel. That is, the controller 9 opens the valve V10 and supplies the cleaning liquid L6 toward the center of the back surface Wb of the substrate W. Thereby, the cleaning liquid L6 flows along the back surface Wb of the substrate W from the center of the substrate W toward the periphery, thereby preventing the solvent dissolved in the inert gas from adhering to the back surface Wb of the substrate W. In addition, the aforementioned cleaning liquid L6 is scattered toward the periphery of the substrate W, dissolves the solvent, and is discharged out of the cup 38. In this way, the solvent can be reliably removed from the ambient gas of the cup 38, and the adhesion of the solvent to the substrate W can be reliably prevented.

As described above, according to the third embodiment, not only can bubbles be prevented from being mixed into the recessed portion Wc as in the first embodiment, but also the uniformity of the filling ratio of the filler solution in the surface of the substrate W can be improved. As a result, the concave portion can be filled with the filler more satisfactorily.

In this third embodiment, although the spin removal 2 process is combined with a gasification assisted process and an ambient gas removal process, when the inert gas containing the solvent can be reliably removed from the ambient gas in the cup 38, Only combined with gasification auxiliary treatment. Further, in the third embodiment, the substrate processing method for performing a series of processes (steps S101 to S109) before performing the spin removal 2 process, although a gasification assisting process and an ambient gas removing process are additionally applied, but the gasification assisting process And the additional application of the ambient gas removal process is not limited to this. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, all substrate processing methods for performing the process of rotating the substrate W and removing the excess filler solution from the surface Wf of the substrate W after the filler sinking process is performed, as shown in FIG. Application of gasification auxiliary treatment, or application of gasification auxiliary treatment and ambient gas removal treatment.

The method of ejecting the cleaning solution toward the back surface Wb of the substrate W is not limited to the aforementioned method. For example, the central portion of the back surface Wb of the substrate W may be held by a vacuum chuck, and the nozzle may be scanned from the back surface to the back surface Wb. The area other than the central portion was discharged while the backside scanning nozzle was scanned while the cleaning solution was discharged.

In the foregoing embodiment, although the number of revolutions R1 of the substrate W is set to zero, the value of the number of revolutions R1 is not limited to this, as long as the number of revolutions is not enough to maintain the liquid-covered liquid film L1 of the cleaning solution. Can be any number. In addition, it is not necessary to make the number of revolutions in the liquid-covering process (step S104) coincide with the number of revolutions in the liquid accumulation process (step S105). For example, when the number of revolutions in the liquid-covering process is set to a value greater than zero. In such a case, the number of revolutions during the liquid accumulation process may be set to be lower than the number of revolutions, for example, set to zero.

In addition, as various supply sources Sc, Sr, Ss, Sf, Sg, and Sw, when there is a resource facility capable of supplying the target processing liquid or gas, this facility can also be used.

The process of removing the cured filler from the substrate W is performed by an external filler removing device different from the substrate processing system 1. However, the substrate processing system 1 may be provided with a filler removing function. For example, the filler may be removed by sublimation in the heat treatment unit 4.

The present invention can be applied to all substrate processing techniques for performing a replacement process in which a filler is used to fill a concave portion of an organic solvent before filling the concave portion of a pattern formed on a pattern forming surface of a substrate.

Claims (7)

    A substrate processing method, comprising: a liquid film forming step of forming a pattern forming surface of a pattern on a substrate to form a liquid film of a cleaning liquid; and a liquid accumulation portion forming step at a center of rotation of the substrate An organic solvent is supplied to the liquid film in the vicinity to form a liquid accumulation part of the organic solvent. In the replacement step, the organic matter is supplied to the liquid accumulation part while the substrate is rotated at a higher number of revolutions than the liquid accumulation part formation step. A solvent to replace the cleaning solution constituting the liquid film with the organic solvent; a coating step of applying a filler solution to the pattern forming surface covered by the organic solvent; and a filling step of applying The filler contained in the filler solution on the pattern forming surface sinks and fills the concave portion of the pattern.         The substrate processing method according to claim 1, further comprising a rinsing step, which rinses the pattern forming surface while supplying the cleaning solution to the pattern forming surface while rotating the substrate at a first number of revolutions, The liquid film forming step includes a step of decelerating the rotation number of the substrate to a second rotation number less than the first rotation number after the washing step, and the liquid accumulation portion forming step includes the rotation of the substrate The number of steps is set to the step below the second number of revolutions.         The substrate processing method according to claim 2, wherein the liquid accumulation portion forming step stops the rotation of the substrate and supplies the organic solvent.         The method for processing a substrate according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a completion step of rotating the substrate after the filling step, while leaving the filler in the pattern while remaining. The recessed portion discharges the organic solvent and the excess filler solution from the pattern forming surface.         The substrate processing method according to claim 4, wherein the completion step includes a gas supply step of supplying an inert gas to the central portion of the pattern forming surface in parallel with the rotation of the substrate.         The substrate processing method according to claim 5, wherein the completion step includes a cleaning liquid supply step of supplying a cleaning liquid to a central portion of a main surface of the substrate opposite to the pattern forming surface in parallel with the rotation of the substrate. .         A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a holding portion that holds the substrate in a substantially horizontal posture with a pattern forming surface on which a pattern is formed on the substrate facing upward; and a rotating portion that is held by the holding portion. The substrate rotates in a substantially horizontal plane; a cleaning liquid supply section that supplies a cleaning liquid toward the pattern forming surface; an organic solvent supply section that supplies an organic solvent toward the pattern forming surface; a filler solution supply section that forms a pattern A filler solution is supplied on the surface; and a control unit that controls the rotation of the substrate by the rotating unit, and supplies the cleaning solution by the cleaning liquid supply unit and the organic solvent supply unit The supply of the organic solvent and the supply of the filler solution performed by the filler solution supply unit are controlled; the control unit forms a liquid film on the pattern forming surface by the supply of the cleaning solution, and The organic solvent is supplied to the liquid film near the center of rotation of the substrate to form the The organic solvent liquid accumulation part increases the number of rotations of the substrate, and the supply of the organic solvent to the liquid accumulation part replaces the cleaning solution constituting the liquid film with the organic solvent, and the filler solution. It is coated on the pattern forming surface covered with the organic solvent so that a filler contained in the filler solution is filled in the recessed portion of the pattern.