TWI852164B - Substrate processing device and substrate processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

A substrate processing device for treating the upper surface of a substrate with a processing liquid comprises: a target amount calculation unit for calculating a target amount of a surfactant relative to the processing liquid based on substrate characteristics of the substrate and processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid; and a processing liquid nozzle for spraying the processing liquid containing the target amount of the surfactant calculated by the target amount calculation unit toward the upper surface of the substrate.

Description

Substrate processing device and substrate processing method

This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-192504 filed on November 26, 2021, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present invention relates to a substrate processing device for processing a substrate and a substrate processing method for processing a substrate.

The substrates to be processed include, for example, semiconductor wafers, liquid crystal display devices, organic EL (Electroluminescence) display devices, FPD (Flat Panel Display) substrates, optical disk substrates, magnetic disk substrates, optical magnetic disk substrates, photomask substrates, ceramic substrates, solar cell substrates, etc.

The following Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose that pattern collapse can be prevented by using a rinse solution containing a surfactant during substrate processing.

[Prior Art Literature]

[Patent Literature]

[Patent document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2019-169624.

[Patent document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2007-95888.

The surface tension of the cleaning liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate varies depending on the various states of the main surface of the substrate, such as the type of substance exposed from the main surface of the substrate and the structure of the surface layer of the main surface of the substrate. Therefore, the amount of surfactant required to properly treat the main surface of the substrate depends on the state of the main surface of the substrate. However, Patent Documents 1 and 2 do not consider changing the amount of surfactant according to the state of the main surface of the substrate to be treated.

One embodiment of the present invention provides a substrate processing device and a substrate processing method capable of supplying a processing liquid containing an appropriate amount of surfactant to a substrate.

One embodiment of the present invention provides a substrate processing device for processing the main surface of a substrate with a processing liquid. The substrate processing device comprises: a substrate holding unit for holding a substrate; a target amount calculation unit for calculating the target amount of a surfactant relative to the processing liquid based on the substrate characteristics of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid; and a processing liquid spraying component for spraying the processing liquid containing the aforementioned target amount of the surfactant calculated by the target amount calculation unit toward the main surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit.

According to the substrate processing device, the target amount of the surfactant is calculated based on the substrate characteristics of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid used in the processing of the main surface of the substrate. Therefore, the substrate can be processed using a processing liquid containing an appropriate amount of the surfactant corresponding to the combination of the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate processing device further comprises: a processing content table storage unit for storing a processing content table, wherein the processing content table displays a plurality of target quantities set for each combination of the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics. The target quantity calculation unit calculates the target quantity based on the processing content table.

According to the substrate processing device, the target amount is calculated based on the processing content table prepared in advance. Therefore, compared with the case where the substrate characteristics are obtained during the substrate processing, the target amount can be calculated quickly.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the aforementioned substrate characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate held by the aforementioned substrate holding unit; the aforementioned processing liquid characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid.

Therefore, even when the substance exposed from the main surface of the substrate or the concavo-convex state of the main surface of the substrate is different, as long as the surface tension of pure water relative to the main surface of the substrate is equal, the same value can be used as the target amount. Therefore, since it is not necessary to prepare the target amount for each substance exposed from the main surface of the substrate and the concavo-convex state of the main surface of the substrate, the processing content table can be simplified.

Similarly, even if the chemical species of the substance contained in the treatment liquid or the concentration of the treatment liquid is different, as long as the surface tension of the treatment liquid is equal, the same value can be used as the target amount. Therefore, there is no need to prepare a target amount for each chemical species of the substance contained in the treatment liquid or each concentration of the treatment liquid, so the treatment content table can be simplified.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate processing device further comprises: a characteristic acquisition liquid ejecting member ejecting the characteristic acquisition liquid toward the main surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit; and a film thickness measuring unit measuring the thickness of the liquid film of the characteristic acquisition liquid on the main surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit as the substrate characteristic.

According to the substrate processing device, before supplying the processing liquid to the main surface of the substrate, the thickness of the liquid film of the characteristic acquisition liquid on the main surface of the substrate is measured as the substrate characteristic, and the target amount can be calculated based on the thickness of the liquid film. Therefore, the substrate characteristics of the substrate to be processed can be obtained during the substrate processing without prior preparation. Moreover, the target amount suitable for the actual object, that is, the target amount suitable for the actual substrate being processed can be calculated. Therefore, the processing liquid containing a more appropriate amount of surfactant can be supplied to the main surface of the substrate.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate processing device further comprises: a determination unit for determining whether the thickness of the liquid film measured by the film thickness measuring unit is above the critical value. Furthermore, the processing liquid ejecting component ejects the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant when the determination unit determines that the thickness of the liquid film is above the critical value, and ejects the processing liquid without surfactant when the determination unit determines that the thickness of the liquid film is less than the critical value.

According to the substrate processing device, it is also possible to judge whether a surfactant is needed based on the relationship between the thickness of the liquid film and the critical value. Therefore, excessive use of surfactant can be suppressed. Furthermore, when a surfactant is needed, the substrate can be processed with a processing liquid containing an amount of surfactant required to quickly cover the entire main surface of the substrate.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate processing device further comprises: a necessary ejection flow rate storage unit for storing the flow rate required for covering the entire main surface of the substrate held in the substrate holding unit with the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant as the necessary ejection flow rate; and a flow rate adjustment unit for adjusting the flow rate of the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejection component to the necessary ejection flow rate.

According to the substrate processing device, the flow rate of the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejecting member is adjusted to the necessary ejection flow rate required to cover the main surface of the substrate. Therefore, the usage amount of the processing liquid supplied to the main surface of the substrate can be appropriately reduced.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate processing device further comprises: a processing liquid supply unit for supplying processing liquid to the processing liquid ejecting component; and an adding unit for adding a surfactant to the processing liquid in the processing liquid supply unit according to the target amount.

According to the substrate processing device, a surfactant can be added to the processing liquid in the processing liquid supply unit according to a target amount. Therefore, there is no need to prepare processing liquids with different contents of surfactants in advance.

Another embodiment of the present invention provides a substrate processing method for processing the main surface of a substrate with a processing liquid. The aforementioned substrate processing method includes: a target amount calculation process, which is to calculate the target amount of the surfactant relative to the processing liquid based on the substrate characteristics of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid; and a processing liquid spraying process, which is to spray the processing liquid containing the aforementioned target amount of the surfactant calculated in the aforementioned target amount calculation process from the processing liquid spraying component toward the main surface of the aforementioned substrate. According to the substrate processing method, the same effect as the aforementioned substrate processing device is achieved.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the target amount calculation process may also include the following process: calculating the target amount based on a processing content table, wherein the processing content table displays a plurality of target amounts set for each combination of the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the aforementioned substrate characteristics may also include the surface tension of the processing liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate held by the aforementioned substrate holding unit; the aforementioned processing liquid characteristics may also include the surface tension of the processing liquid.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the substrate processing device may further include: a characteristic acquisition liquid ejecting step of ejecting the characteristic acquisition liquid from the characteristic acquisition liquid ejecting component toward the main surface of the substrate; and a film thickness measuring step of measuring the thickness of the liquid film of the characteristic acquisition liquid on the main surface of the substrate as the substrate characteristic.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the substrate processing device further includes: a necessary ejection flow rate calculation process, which calculates the flow rate required to cover the entire main surface of the substrate with the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant based on the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics as the necessary ejection flow rate. Moreover, the processing liquid ejection process includes the following process: ejecting the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant from the processing liquid ejection component at the necessary ejection flow rate.

The above-mentioned purpose or other purposes, features and effects of the present invention will be made clear by referring to the following description of the implementation forms with reference to the attached drawings.

1,1A: Substrate processing equipment

2: Processing unit

3: Liquid supply unit

4: Control device

4A: Input device

4a: Computer body

4B: Display device

4b: Processor

4C: Alarm device

4c: Memory

4d: Peripheral devices

4e: Auxiliary memory device

4f: Communication device

5: Fluid box

6: Storage box

7: Framework

8: Self-rotating clamp

8a: Rotating base

8b: Clamp pin

9: Processing the cup

10: Chamber

11: Opposite components

11a: Opposite side

12: Treatment fluid nozzle

12a: Spray outlet

13: Treatment fluid supply unit

14: Add unit

20: Treatment fluid piping

21: Common piping

22: Liquid piping

23: Storage tank

23A: Hydrogen peroxide storage tank

23B: Hydrochloric acid storage tank

23C: Ammonia storage tank

23D: Hydrofluoric acid storage tank

23E: Cleaning fluid tank

24: Treatment fluid valve

25: Processing fluid flow regulating valve

26: Liquid valve

26A: Hydrogen peroxide valve

26B: Hydrochloric acid valve

26C: Ammonia valve

26D: Hydrofluoric acid valve

26E: Cleaning fluid valve

27: Liquid flow regulating valve

27A: Hydrogen peroxide flow regulating valve

27B: Hydrochloric acid flow regulating valve

27C: Ammonia flow regulating valve

27D: Hydrofluoric acid flow regulating valve

27E: Cleaning fluid flow regulating valve

28: Pump

29: Heater

30: Circulation piping

31: Circulation valve

32: Treatment fluid piping

40: Surfactant-containing liquid piping

41: The surfactant contains a liquid storage tank

42: Surfactant contains liquid valve

43: Surfactant containing liquid flow regulating valve

44: Surfactant containing liquid pump

45: Surfactant containing liquid heater

46: Surfactant-containing liquid circulation piping

47: Surfactant containing liquid circulation valve

48: Cleaning fluid filling pipe

49: Cleaning fluid filling valve

50: Surfactant supplement unit

51: Storage Department

52: Surfactant piping

53: Surfactant valve

60: Film thickness measurement unit

61: Light-emitting unit

62: Light receiving unit

70: Characteristic acquisition unit

71: Target quantity calculation unit

72: Necessary spray flow calculation unit

73: Processing content change unit

74: Judgment unit

A1: Rotation axis

C:Carrier

CR: Transport robot

FT: Liquid film thickness

HC: Host computer

IR: Transport robot

LP: Loading port

R:Prescription

S1,S2,S3,S4,S5,S6,S7,S8,S9,S10,S11,S12,S13,S14: Steps

T: Processing content table

TH:Liquid film thickness critical value

TR: Transport path

TW: Treatment tower

W: Substrate

[FIG. 1A] is a schematic top view showing the layout of the substrate processing device of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[Figure 1B] is a schematic elevation view of the aforementioned substrate processing device.

[Figure 2] is a schematic diagram for explaining the structure of the processing unit and liquid supply unit provided in the aforementioned substrate processing device.

[Figure 3] is a block diagram used to illustrate the electrical structure of the aforementioned substrate processing device.

[Figure 4] shows an example of the content of the processing content table stored in the memory unit of the control device provided in the aforementioned substrate processing device.

[Figure 5] is a flow chart for explaining an example of substrate processing performed by the aforementioned substrate processing apparatus.

[Figure 6] is a block diagram for explaining the functional structure of the control device provided in the aforementioned substrate processing device.

[Figure 7] is a flow chart for explaining an example of content change processing performed by the aforementioned control device.

[Figure 8] is a schematic diagram for explaining the structure of the processing unit provided in the substrate processing device of the second embodiment of the present invention.

[Figure 9] is a block diagram for explaining the functional structure of the control device provided in the aforementioned substrate processing device of the second embodiment.

[Figure 10] is a flow chart for explaining an example of content change processing performed by the aforementioned control device in the second embodiment.

[Figure 11] shows an example of the contents of the processing content table stored in the memory unit of the control device of the second embodiment.

[Figure 12] is a diagram for explaining the correspondence between the liquid processing process that is the object of the aforementioned content change processing and the liquid processing process that performs the characteristic acquisition process.

[Figure 13] is a flowchart for explaining another example of substrate processing performed by the substrate processing apparatus described above in the second embodiment.

[Figure 14] is a diagram for explaining the correspondence between the liquid processing step that is the object of the aforementioned content change processing and the liquid processing step that performs the characteristic acquisition step when executing the substrate processing shown in Figure 13.

[Figure 15A] is a graph showing the results of a contact angle measurement experiment conducted to verify the effect of reducing the surface tension of the treatment solution by adding a surfactant.

[Figure 15B] is a graph showing the results of a surface tension measurement experiment conducted to verify the effect of reducing the surface tension of the treatment solution by adding a surfactant.

[Figure 16] is a curve graph showing the results of the coverage area observation experiment.

[Mechanical structure of substrate processing device 1 of the first embodiment]

FIG. 1A is a schematic top view showing the layout of the substrate processing device 1 of the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1B is a schematic elevation view of the substrate processing device 1.

The substrate processing device 1 is equipped with: a plurality of processing units 2 for processing substrates W with liquid; a plurality of liquid supply units 3 for supplying liquid to the processing units 2; a loading port LP for a carrier C for accommodating a plurality of substrates W processed by the processing units 2; a transfer robot IR and a transfer robot CR for transferring substrates W between the loading port LP and the processing unit 2; and a control device 4 for controlling the substrate processing device 1.

The transport robot IR transports the substrate W between the carrier C and the transport robot CR. The transport robot CR transports the substrate W between the transport robot IR and the processing unit 2. The transport robot IR and the transport robot CR are arranged on a transport path TR, and the transport path TR extends from a plurality of loading ports LP toward a plurality of processing units 2.

The plurality of processing units 2 have the same structure, for example. The processing liquid supplied to the substrate W in the processing unit 2 includes a chemical solution and a cleaning liquid, etc., and the details will be described below.

The plurality of processing units 2 form four processing towers TW, and the four processing towers TW are respectively arranged at four horizontally separated positions. Each processing tower TW includes a plurality of (for example, three) processing units 2 stacked in the vertical direction. The four processing towers TW are arranged two on each side of the transport path TR.

The substrate processing device 1 includes: a plurality of fluid boxes 5, which contain valves and piping, etc.; and a storage box 6, which contains a tank, and the tank stores chemical solution, cleaning solution or raw material solution of these liquids, etc. The processing unit 2 and the fluid box 5 are arranged inside a frame 7 which is roughly rectangular in plan view.

In the example of FIG. 1A , the storage tank 6 is arranged on the outer side of the frame 7. Unlike the example of FIG. 1A , the storage tank 6 may also be arranged on the inner side of the frame 7. For example, the storage tank 6 is provided in the same number as the plurality of fluid tanks 5 .

The liquid stored in each storage tank 6 is supplied to a plurality of (for example, three) processing units 2 constituting the processing tower TW corresponding to the fluid tank 5 via the fluid tank 5 corresponding to the storage tank 6.

Each liquid supply unit 3 supplies the treatment liquid to the treatment unit 2 constituting each treatment tower TW. Each liquid supply unit 3 is arranged in the corresponding fluid box 5 and the storage box 6, and the details will be described below. The fluid box 5 and the storage box 6 do not need to accommodate the entire liquid supply unit 3, but at least a part of the corresponding liquid supply unit 3. In FIG1A, the liquid supply unit 3 is conceptually shown, and the liquid supply unit 3 does not strictly need to have the shape shown in FIG1A when viewed from above.

Different from this embodiment, as shown by the two-point chain in FIG. 1A , it is also possible to supply liquid from one storage tank 6 to all fluid tanks 5 .

Each processing unit 2 is provided with a processing cup 9 and a chamber 10 for accommodating the processing cup 9. An entrance and exit (not shown) is formed in the chamber 10, and the entrance and exit (not shown) is used for the transport robot CR to transport the substrate W to the chamber 10 and to transport the substrate W out of the chamber 10. A baffle unit (not shown) is provided in the chamber 10, and the baffle unit (not shown) is used to open and close the entrance and exit.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining the structure of the processing unit 2 and the liquid supply unit 3.

The processing unit 2 further includes a spin chuck 8, which rotates the substrate W around a rotation axis A1 (a lead straight axis) while holding the substrate W horizontally. The processing cup 9 surrounds the spin chuck 8 and receives liquid scattered from the substrate W. The chamber 10 accommodates the spin chuck 8 and the processing cup 9. The rotation axis A1 is a lead straight line passing through the center of the substrate W. The spin chuck 8 includes: a spin base 8a, which holds the substrate W horizontally; a plurality of chuck pins 8b, which are arranged along the circumferential direction of the spin base 8a; and a rotation drive mechanism (not shown) that drives the spin base 8a to rotate around the rotation axis A1. The rotation drive mechanism includes, for example, an electric motor. The self-rotating clamp 8 is an example of a substrate holding unit for holding the substrate W.

The processing unit 2 includes: an opposing component 11 having an opposing surface 11a opposing the upper surface (upper main surface) of the substrate W; and a processing liquid nozzle 12 having a nozzle 12a for spraying the processing liquid. The nozzle 12a is exposed from the opposing surface 11a. The processing liquid nozzle 12 is an example of a processing liquid spraying component.

The treatment liquid sprayed from the treatment liquid nozzle 12 is, for example, a chemical liquid or a cleaning liquid. The chemical liquid is, for example, hydrofluoric acid (hydrogen fluoride water), APM liquid (ammonia-hydrogen peroxide mixture: ammonia hydrogen peroxide mixture), HPM liquid (hydrochloric acid-hydrogen peroxide mixture: hydrochloric acid hydrogen peroxide mixture), etc.

The cleaning liquid is, for example, a liquid containing at least one of DIW (Deionized Water), carbonated water, electrolytic ionized water, reducing water, ammonia water of a dilute concentration (e.g., 10 ppm to 100 ppm), and hydrochloric acid water of a dilute concentration (e.g., 10 ppm to 100 ppm).

The liquid supply unit 3 includes: a treatment liquid supply unit 13, which supplies the treatment liquid to the treatment liquid nozzle 12; and an adding unit 14, which adds a surfactant to the treatment liquid in the treatment liquid supply unit 13. Therefore, the treatment liquid nozzle 12 can also spray the treatment liquid containing the surfactant. The mass percentage concentration of the surfactant in the treatment liquid is, for example, greater than 0.01% and less than 1.0%.

By adding a surfactant to the processing liquid, the surface tension of the processing liquid can be reduced. By reducing the surface tension, the processing liquid is easy to spread on the upper surface of the substrate W. Therefore, by reducing the surface tension, the flow rate required to cover the entire upper surface of the substrate W with the processing liquid sprayed from the processing liquid nozzle 12 can be reduced, that is, the necessary spraying flow rate can be reduced.

Hereinafter, a treatment liquid that does not contain a surfactant is sometimes referred to as a non-containing treatment liquid. The surfactant is, for example, at least one of a nonionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, an anionic surfactant, or an amphoteric surfactant.

The processing liquid supply unit 13 includes: a processing liquid pipe 20 connected to the processing liquid nozzle 12; a common pipe 21 connected to the processing liquid pipe 20 for commonly supplying a plurality of processing liquids to the processing liquid pipe 20; a plurality of liquid pipes 22 connected to the common pipe 21 for separately supplying liquids (processing liquid or raw material liquid) to the common pipe 21; and a plurality of storage tanks 23 for separately supplying a plurality of liquids to the plurality of liquid pipes 22.

The upstream end of the treatment liquid piping 20 is connected to the common piping 21. The downstream end of the treatment liquid piping 20 is connected to the treatment liquid nozzle 12. The upstream end of each liquid piping 22 is connected to the corresponding storage tank 23. The downstream ends of the plurality of liquid pipings 22 are connected to the common piping 21.

The plurality of storage tanks 23 include, for example, a hydrogen peroxide storage tank 23A, a hydrochloric acid storage tank 23B, an ammonia storage tank 23C, a hydrofluoric acid storage tank 23D, and a cleaning liquid storage tank 23E. The hydrogen peroxide stored in the hydrogen peroxide storage tank 23A and the hydrochloric acid stored in the hydrochloric acid storage tank 23B are raw materials for the HPM liquid as the treatment liquid. The hydrogen peroxide stored in the hydrogen peroxide storage tank 23A and the ammonia stored in the ammonia storage tank 23C are raw materials for the APM liquid as the treatment liquid. The hydrofluoric acid stored in the hydrofluoric acid storage tank 23D is the treatment liquid. The cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid storage tank 23E is an example of the treatment liquid.

The treatment liquid supply unit 13 includes: a treatment liquid valve 24 for opening and closing the treatment liquid piping 20; a treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25 for adjusting the flow of the treatment liquid in the treatment liquid piping 20; a plurality of liquid valves 26 for opening and closing the plurality of liquid pipings 22; and a liquid flow regulating valve 27 for adjusting the flow of the liquid in the plurality of liquid pipings 22. The treatment liquid valve 24 and the treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25 are disposed in the treatment liquid piping 20. The treatment liquid valve 24 and the treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25 are disposed in the treatment liquid piping 20, which means that they are disposed between two tubular portions constituting the treatment liquid piping 20, that is, they are sandwiched in the treatment liquid piping 20. The same applies to the other valves described below. The liquid valve 26 and the liquid flow regulating valve 27 are installed in the liquid piping 22.

The plurality of liquid valves 26 include: a hydrogen peroxide valve 26A, corresponding to the hydrogen peroxide storage tank 23A; a hydrochloric acid valve 26B, corresponding to the hydrochloric acid storage tank 23B; an ammonia valve 26C, corresponding to the ammonia storage tank 23C; a hydrofluoric acid valve 26D, corresponding to the hydrofluoric acid storage tank 23D; and a cleaning liquid valve 26E, corresponding to the cleaning liquid storage tank 23E.

The plurality of liquid flow regulating valves 27 include: a hydrogen peroxide flow regulating valve 27A, corresponding to the hydrogen peroxide storage tank 23A; a hydrochloric acid flow regulating valve 27B, corresponding to the hydrochloric acid storage tank 23B; an ammonia flow regulating valve 27C, corresponding to the ammonia storage tank 23C; a hydrofluoric acid flow regulating valve 27D, corresponding to the hydrofluoric acid storage tank 23D; and a cleaning liquid flow regulating valve 27E, corresponding to the cleaning liquid storage tank 23E.

The treatment liquid supply unit 13 includes: a plurality of pumps 28, which are arranged in each liquid piping 22, for respectively sending the liquid in the corresponding liquid piping 22 to the common piping 21; and a plurality of heaters 29, which are arranged in each liquid piping 22, for heating the liquid in the corresponding liquid piping 22. In each liquid piping 22, the pump 28, the heater 29, the liquid flow regulating valve 27 and the liquid valve 26 are arranged in sequence from the upstream side.

The treatment liquid supply unit 13 includes: a plurality of circulation pipes 30 connected to each liquid pipe 22 for circulating the liquid in the corresponding storage tank 23; and a plurality of circulation valves 31 respectively arranged on the plurality of circulation pipes 30. The upstream end of the circulation pipe 30 is connected to the downstream side of the heater 29 and the upstream side of the liquid flow regulating valve 27 in the liquid pipe 22. The downstream end of the circulation pipe 30 is connected to the corresponding storage tank 23.

The common pipe 21 is connected to a treatment liquid pipe 32, which supplies treatment liquid to another treatment unit 2 of the same treatment tower TW as the treatment unit 2 shown in FIG. 2. As shown by the two-dot chain in FIG. 2, the treatment liquid pipe 32 may also be branched from the treatment liquid pipe 20. Different from the structure of FIG. 2, a common pipe 21 may also be provided for each treatment unit 2.

The common pipe 21, the treatment liquid valve 24, the treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25, the plurality of liquid valves 26 and the plurality of liquid flow regulating valves 27 are arranged, for example, in the fluid tank 5. The plurality of storage tanks 23, the plurality of pumps 28, the plurality of heaters 29 and the plurality of circulation pipes 30 are arranged, for example, in the storage tank 6.

The adding unit 14 includes: a surfactant-containing liquid pipe 40 connected to the common pipe 21 for supplying the surfactant-containing liquid to the common pipe 21; and a surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41 for storing the surfactant-containing liquid and supplying the surfactant-containing liquid to the surfactant-containing liquid pipe 40. The surfactant-containing liquid is, for example, a liquid that dissolves the surfactant in the cleaning liquid.

The adding unit 14 includes: a surfactant-containing liquid valve 42, which is provided on the surfactant-containing liquid piping 40, for opening and closing the surfactant-containing liquid piping 40; a surfactant-containing liquid flow regulating valve 43, which is provided on the surfactant-containing liquid piping 40, for adjusting the flow rate of the surfactant-containing liquid in the surfactant-containing liquid piping 40; a surfactant-containing liquid pump 44, which transports the surfactant to the common piping 21; and a surfactant-containing liquid heater 45, which heats the surfactant-containing liquid in the surfactant-containing liquid piping 40.

In the surfactant-containing liquid piping 40, the surfactant-containing liquid pump 44, the surfactant-containing liquid heater 45, the surfactant-containing liquid flow regulating valve 43 and the surfactant-containing liquid valve 42 are arranged in order from the upstream side.

The adding unit 14 includes: a surfactant-containing liquid circulation pipe 46 connected to the surfactant-containing liquid pipe 40 for circulating the surfactant-containing liquid in the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41; and a surfactant-containing liquid circulation valve 47 disposed on the surfactant-containing liquid circulation pipe 46.

The upstream end of the surfactant-containing liquid circulation pipe 46 is connected to the downstream side of the surfactant-containing liquid heater 45 and the upstream side of the surfactant-containing liquid flow regulating valve 43 in the surfactant-containing liquid pipe 40. The downstream end of the surfactant-containing liquid circulation pipe 46 is connected to the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41.

The adding unit 14 includes: a cleaning liquid replenishing pipe 48 for replenishing cleaning liquid into the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41; a cleaning liquid replenishing valve 49, which is provided on the cleaning liquid replenishing pipe 48 and is used to open and close the cleaning liquid replenishing pipe 48; and a surfactant replenishing unit 50 for replenishing surfactant into the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41. The surfactant replenishing unit 50 supplies, for example, powdered surfactant to the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41.

The surfactant replenishing unit 50 includes: a storage portion 51 for storing a powdered surfactant; a surfactant pipe 52 for supplying the surfactant in the storage portion 51 to the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41; and a surfactant valve 53, which is disposed on the surfactant pipe 52 and is used to open and close the surfactant pipe 52. Preferably, the storage portion 51 is disposed directly above the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41; and the surfactant pipe 52 extends downward from the lower end of the storage portion 51 toward the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41.

The surfactant-containing liquid valve 42 and the surfactant-containing liquid flow regulating valve 43 are, for example, arranged in the fluid tank 5. The surfactant-containing liquid storage tank 41, the surfactant-containing liquid pump 44, the surfactant-containing liquid heater 45, the surfactant-containing liquid circulation pipe 46 and the surfactant replenishing unit 50 are, for example, arranged in the storage tank 6.

[Electrical structure of substrate processing device 1 in the first embodiment]

FIG3 is a block diagram for explaining the electrical structure of the substrate processing device 1. The control device 4 is a computer, including a computer body 4a and a peripheral device 4d connected to the computer body 4a. The computer body 4a includes: a processor (CPU (Central Processing Unit)) 4b, which executes various commands; and a memory 4c, which stores information.

The peripheral device 4d includes: an auxiliary memory device 4e, which stores information such as programs; and a communication device 4f, which communicates with other devices such as the host computer HC. The auxiliary memory device 4e is a non-volatile memory that maintains memory even when no power is supplied. The auxiliary memory device 4e is, for example, a magnetic memory device such as a hard disk drive. The auxiliary memory device 4e stores recipes R, processing content tables T, and other programs. In other words, the auxiliary memory device 4e functions as a recipe memory unit for storing recipes R and a processing content table memory unit for storing processing content tables T.

FIG4 shows an example of the content of the processing content table T. As shown in FIG4, the processing content table T shows substrate characteristics, processing liquid characteristics, target amount, and required ejection flow rate. Therefore, the auxiliary storage device 4e is an example of a target amount storage unit for storing the target amount, and is also an example of a required ejection flow rate storage unit for storing the required ejection flow rate.

The substrate characteristic is a characteristic of the substrate W processed by the substrate processing device 1. The substrate characteristic is, for example, the surface tension of pure water relative to the main surface of the substrate W to be processed. The surface tension of pure water relative to the main surface of the substrate W to be processed can be calculated based on, for example, at least one of the contact angle of the processing liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate W to be processed and the thickness of the pure water liquid film on the main surface of the substrate W.

The processing liquid characteristic is the characteristic of the processing liquid supplied to the substrate W. The processing liquid characteristic is, for example, the surface tension of the processing liquid. The surface tension of the processing liquid is measured, for example, by the hanging drop method. The hanging drop method is a method in which the processing liquid is dripped from the tip of a vertically arranged fine tube such as an injection needle, and the surface tension of the processing liquid is measured based on the shape of the largest hanging drop (liquid drop) that will not fall.

The contact angle is an indicator of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity. The contact angle is the digitized expansion of the droplet (the height of the liquid) formed when a liquid is dripped onto a solid. Specifically, the contact angle is the angle between the liquid surface and the solid surface (the main surface of the substrate W in this embodiment) when the liquid attached to the solid surface is observed from the side. The larger the contact angle, the lower the hydrophilicity (wettability) of the solid surface; the smaller the contact angle, the higher the hydrophilicity (wettability) of the solid surface.

The target amount is the amount of surfactant required to sufficiently reduce the surface tension of the processing liquid. The target amount is set for each combination of substrate characteristics and processing liquid characteristics. Therefore, multiple target amounts are stored in the processing content table T. The target amount can be expressed as a concentration, usually as a mass percentage concentration. Therefore. The target amount is also the target concentration.

The necessary ejection flow rate is the ejection flow rate from the processing liquid nozzle 12 required to cover the entire upper surface of the substrate W. The necessary ejection flow rate is set for each combination of substrate characteristics and processing liquid characteristics. Therefore, a plurality of necessary ejection flow rates are stored in the processing content table T.

Referring to FIG. 3 , the auxiliary memory device 4e stores a plurality of recipes R. The recipe R is data defining the substrate processing content, and includes substrate processing conditions and substrate processing sequence. The plurality of recipes R are different from each other in at least one of the substrate processing content, substrate processing conditions, and processing sequence of the substrate W.

The control device 4 is connected to the input device 4A, the display device 4B and the alarm device 4C. The input device 4A is operated when an operator such as a user or a maintenance person inputs information to the substrate processing device 1. The information is displayed on the screen of the display device 4B. The input device 4A can also be any one of a keyboard, a pointing device and a touch panel, or a device other than these devices. A touch panel display that also serves as the input device 4A and the display device 4B can also be set in the substrate processing device 1. The alarm device 4C uses one or more of light, sound, text and graphics to issue an alarm. When the input device 4A is a touch panel display, the input device 4A can also serve as the alarm device 4C.

As control objects of the control device 4, there can be listed the transport robots IR, CR, the rotating fixture 8, the plurality of heaters 29, the surfactant-containing liquid heater 45, the treatment liquid valve 24, the treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25, the plurality of liquid valves 26, the plurality of liquid flow regulating valves 27, the circulation valve 31, the surfactant-containing liquid valve 42, the surfactant-containing liquid flow regulating valve 43, the surfactant-containing liquid circulation valve 47, the cleaning liquid replenishing valve 49, the surfactant valve 53, etc.

FIG3 shows representative components, but it does not mean that the components not shown are not controlled by the control device 4. The control device 4 is capable of properly controlling the components of the substrate processing device 1. FIG3 also shows the components (film thickness measuring unit 60) described in the second embodiment described later, which are also controlled by the control device 4.

The control device 4 creates a processing schedule for processing the substrate W by the processing unit 2 according to the recipe R specified by the external device such as the host computer HC. Then, the control device 4 causes the control objects (resources) of the substrate processing device 1 such as the transport robots IR, CR and the processing unit 2 to execute the processing schedule.

The following processes are performed by the control device 4 controlling the substrate processing device 1 according to the processing schedule. In other words, the control device 4 is programmed to perform the following processes.

[An example of substrate processing performed by the substrate processing device 1 of the first embodiment]

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an example of substrate processing performed by the substrate processing apparatus 1.

In the substrate processing performed by the substrate processing device 1, for example, as shown in FIG5, a substrate carrying-in process (step S1), a first chemical solution processing process (step S2), a first cleaning process (step S3), a second chemical solution processing process (step S4), a second cleaning process (step S5), a spin drying process (step S6), and a substrate carrying-out process (step S7) are performed. Hereinafter, the contents of the substrate processing are mainly described with reference to FIG2 and FIG5.

First, the unprocessed substrate W is carried from the carrier C into the processing unit 2 by the transport robots IR and CR (see FIG. 1A) and delivered to the self-rotating clamp 8 (substrate carrying process: step S1). Thereby, the substrate W is held horizontally by the self-rotating clamp 8 (substrate holding process) and rotated around the rotation axis A1 (substrate rotating process). The substrate W is continuously held by the self-rotating clamp 8 until the spin drying process (step S6) is completed.

In the first chemical liquid treatment process (step S2), hydrofluoric acid, for example, is supplied as a chemical liquid to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. Specifically, the treatment liquid valve 24 and the hydrofluoric acid valve 26D are opened. Thus, the upper surface of the substrate W is treated with hydrofluoric acid.

In the first cleaning process (step S3), the cleaning liquid is supplied to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. Specifically, the processing liquid valve 24 is maintained in an open state, and the hydrofluoric acid valve 26D is closed, and the cleaning liquid valve 26E is opened instead. Thereby, the upper surface of the substrate W is rinsed with the cleaning liquid and the hydrofluoric acid is removed from the upper surface of the substrate W.

In the second liquid treatment process (step S4), APM liquid is supplied as liquid to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. Specifically, the treatment liquid valve 24 is kept open, and the cleaning liquid valve 26E is closed, and the ammonia valve 26C and the hydrogen peroxide valve 26A are opened instead. In this way, the upper surface of the substrate W is treated with the APM liquid.

In the second cleaning process (step S5), the cleaning liquid is supplied to the upper surface of the rotating substrate W. Specifically, the processing liquid valve 24 is maintained in an open state, and the ammonia valve 26C and the hydrogen peroxide valve 26A are closed, and the cleaning liquid valve 26E is opened instead. In this way, the upper surface of the substrate W is rinsed with the cleaning liquid and the APM liquid is removed from the upper surface of the substrate W.

Next, the spin-drying process (step S6) is performed. The spin-drying process (step S6) is to rotate the substrate W at high speed to dry the upper surface of the substrate W. Specifically, the cleaning liquid valve 26E and the processing liquid valve 24 are closed to stop supplying the cleaning liquid to the upper surface of the substrate W. Then, the rotating fixture 8 accelerates the rotation of the substrate W so that the substrate W rotates at high speed (for example, 1500rpm). Thereby, a larger centrifugal force acts on the cleaning liquid attached to the substrate W, and the cleaning liquid is thrown around the substrate W.

After the spin-drying process (step S6), the rotating clamp 8 stops the rotation of the substrate W. Then, the transport robot CR enters the processing unit 2, receives the processed substrate W from the rotating clamp 8 and carries it out of the processing unit 2 (substrate carrying process: step S7). The substrate W is delivered from the transport robot CR to the transport robot IR, and is stored in the carrier C by the transport robot IR.

[Functional structure of the control device 1 of the first embodiment]

FIG6 is a block diagram for explaining the functional structure of the control device 4. FIG7 is a flow chart for explaining an example of content change processing performed by the control device 4. The control device 4 operates as various functional processing units by executing the program expanded in the memory 4c (refer to FIG4).

Specifically, the control device 4 is configured and programmed to function as a characteristic acquisition unit 70, a target amount calculation unit 71, a necessary ejection flow calculation unit 72, and a processing content change unit 73.

The characteristic acquisition unit 70 acquires the substrate characteristics of the substrate W to be processed and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid supplied to the substrate W in each process of the substrate processing (characteristic acquisition process: step S8).

The characteristic acquisition unit 70 acquires the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics from the recipe R specified by the host computer HC. The characteristic acquisition unit 70 can also acquire the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics from information other than the recipe R. For example, the characteristic acquisition unit 70 can also acquire the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics from the information input by the operator using the input device 4A. The control device 4 functions as a substrate characteristic acquisition unit and a processing liquid characteristic acquisition unit.

The target quantity calculation unit 71 calculates the target quantity based on the processing content table T and the substrate characteristics and processing liquid characteristics obtained by the characteristic acquisition unit 70 (target quantity calculation process: step S9).

The necessary ejection flow rate calculation unit 72 calculates the necessary ejection flow rate based on the processing content table T and the substrate characteristics and processing liquid characteristics obtained by the characteristic acquisition unit 70 (necessary ejection flow rate calculation process: step S10).

The processing content changing unit 73 changes the processing content of the recipe R based on the calculated target amount and the required ejection flow rate before starting the liquid processing process (processing content changing process: step S11). Typically, the processing content changing process is executed before the substrate processing starts, and more specifically, before the processing schedule is created based on the recipe R.

The content change process is performed on each liquid treatment process (the process shown by the thick line in Figure 5, that is, the first liquid treatment process, step S2; the first cleaning process, step S3; and the second liquid treatment process, step S4) except the last liquid treatment process (the second cleaning process: step S5). In the case where a surfactant is added to the cleaning liquid in the second cleaning process, the content change process is not performed on the last liquid treatment process because the surfactant remains on the upper surface of the substrate W after the substrate treatment. However, in the case where the surfactant is allowed to remain on the upper surface of the substrate W after the last liquid treatment process, the content change process can also be performed on the second cleaning process.

In each liquid treatment process, the opening of the liquid flow regulating valve 27 and the surfactant-containing liquid flow regulating valve 43 is adjusted to form a treatment liquid (containing treatment liquid) containing a target amount of surfactant. In addition, in each liquid treatment process, the opening of the treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25 is adjusted to spray the treatment liquid containing the necessary spraying flow from the treatment liquid nozzle 12. The treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25 is an example of a flow regulating unit for adjusting the flow of the treatment liquid sprayed from the treatment liquid nozzle 12 to the necessary spraying flow.

According to the first embodiment, the target amount of surfactant is calculated based on the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics. Then, the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant is sprayed from the processing liquid nozzle 12 toward the upper surface of the substrate W (processing liquid spraying process). Therefore, the upper surface of the substrate W can be processed with the processing liquid containing an appropriate amount of surfactant corresponding to the combination of the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics, that is, the upper surface of the substrate W can be processed with the processing liquid containing the amount of surfactant required to quickly cover the entire upper surface of the substrate W.

Furthermore, according to the first embodiment, the flow rate of the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejection nozzle 12 is adjusted to the necessary ejection flow rate. Therefore, the amount of processing liquid supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W can be appropriately reduced.

Furthermore, according to the first embodiment, the target amount is calculated based on the pre-prepared processing content table T. Therefore, compared with the case where the substrate characteristics are obtained during substrate processing, the target amount can be calculated quickly.

Moreover, according to the first embodiment, the substrate characteristics include the surface tension of pure water relative to the upper surface of the substrate W; the processing liquid characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid. Therefore, even if the substance exposed from the upper surface of the substrate W or the concavo-convex state of the upper surface of the substrate W is different, as long as the surface tension of pure water relative to the upper surface of the substrate W is equal, the same value can be used as the target amount. Therefore, it is not necessary to prepare a target amount for each substance exposed from the upper surface of the substrate W and each concavo-convex state of the upper surface of the substrate W, so the processing content table T can be simplified.

Similarly, even if the chemical species of the substance contained in the treatment liquid or the concentration of the treatment liquid is different, as long as the surface tension of the treatment liquid is equal, the same value can be used as the target amount. Therefore, it is not necessary to prepare a target amount for each chemical species of the substance contained in the treatment liquid or each concentration of the treatment liquid, so the treatment content table T can be simplified.

Furthermore, according to the first embodiment, the surfactant is added to the treatment liquid in the treatment liquid supply unit 13 according to the target amount by the adding unit 14. Therefore, it is not necessary to prepare treatment liquids with different contents of surfactants in advance.

[Mechanical structure of substrate processing device 1A of the second embodiment]

The main difference between the substrate processing device 1A of the second embodiment and the substrate processing device 1 of the first embodiment is that the processing unit 2 includes a film thickness measuring unit 60, and the film thickness measuring unit 60 measures the thickness of the liquid film of the processing liquid on the upper surface of the substrate W. FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram for explaining the structure of the processing unit 2 provided in the substrate processing device 1A of the second embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 8, the same component symbols as those shown in FIG. 1A and the like are attached to the structures equal to those shown in the aforementioned FIG. 1A to FIG. 7, and the description thereof is omitted. The same is true for FIG. 9 to FIG. 14 described later.

The film thickness measuring unit 60 is, for example, a film thickness measuring device for measuring the film thickness FT by the spectral interferometry. The film thickness measuring unit 60 may also be a film thickness measuring device for measuring the film thickness FT by a method other than the spectral interferometry, for example, an ultrasonic or infrared film thickness measuring device.

The film thickness measuring unit 60 includes: a light emitting unit 61 having a light emitting element that emits light toward the upper surface of the substrate W held by the rotating fixture 8; and a light receiving unit 62 having a light receiving element that receives light emitted from the light emitting unit 61 and reflected on the upper surface of the substrate W.

The light from the light emitting unit 61 is reflected on the upper surface of the substrate W and incident on the light receiving unit 62. The black dot Pi in FIG7 shows the incident position of the light from the light emitting unit 61 on the upper surface of the substrate W. The thickness of the liquid film on the substrate W (liquid film thickness FT) is calculated based on the light incident on the light receiving unit 62. In this way, the liquid film thickness FT is measured by the film thickness measuring unit 60 (film thickness measuring process).

The liquid film thickness FT is measured while the substrate W is rotated by the rotating fixture 8. Therefore, the liquid film thickness FT can be measured over the entire circumference of the upper surface of the substrate W. The incident position can also be located at a fixed distance from the rotation axis A1 in the horizontal direction; or at least one of the light emitting unit 61 and the light receiving unit 62 can be moved to move the incident position in the radial direction of the substrate W (horizontal direction orthogonal to the rotation axis A1). In the latter case, the average of multiple measured values can also be processed as the liquid film thickness FT.

The substrate processing shown in FIG. 5 can be performed using the substrate processing device 1A of the second embodiment. When performing substrate processing, substrate characteristics are obtained in a liquid processing process performed before each liquid processing process. Therefore, based on a certain liquid processing process, the processing liquid supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W in a certain liquid processing process performed before the liquid processing process is called a characteristic acquisition liquid. Therefore, the processing liquid nozzle 12 is also an example of a characteristic acquisition liquid ejection component.

[Functional structure of the control device 4 of the second embodiment]

FIG. 9 is a block diagram for illustrating the functional structure of the control device 4 of the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a flow chart for illustrating an example of content change processing of the second embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 9 , the control device 4 of the second embodiment is configured and programmed to function as a determination unit 74 in addition to the characteristic acquisition unit 70, the target amount calculation unit 71, the necessary ejection flow calculation unit 72, and the processing content change unit 73.

The characteristic acquisition unit 70 acquires the thickness of the liquid film of the characteristic acquisition liquid (liquid film thickness FT) of the measurement result of the film thickness measurement unit 60 as the substrate characteristic of the substrate W to be processed (characteristic acquisition process: step S12 shown in FIG. 10 ). The larger the liquid film thickness FT, the higher the surface tension of the characteristic acquisition liquid phase relative to the upper surface of the substrate W; the smaller the liquid film thickness, the lower the surface tension of the characteristic acquisition liquid phase relative to the upper surface of the substrate W.

The characteristic acquisition unit 70 acquires the characteristics of the processing liquid from the specified recipe R, for example. The characteristic acquisition unit 70 may also acquire the characteristics of the processing liquid based on information such as the recipe R specified by the host computer HC, for example. The characteristic acquisition unit 70 may also acquire the characteristics of the processing liquid from information input by the operator using the input device 4A, for example. The control device 4 functions as a substrate characteristic acquisition unit and a processing liquid characteristic acquisition unit.

The judgment unit 74 judges whether the liquid film thickness FT obtained by the film thickness measuring unit 60 is greater than the liquid film thickness critical value TH (judgment process: step S13). The auxiliary memory device 4e of the control device 4 of the second embodiment stores the liquid film thickness critical value TH (refer to the two-point chain in Figure 3). The auxiliary memory device 4e is an example of a critical value memory unit for storing the liquid film thickness critical value TH.

When the determination unit 74 determines that the liquid film thickness FT is greater than the liquid film thickness threshold value TH (step S13: yes), the target quantity calculation unit 71 calculates the target quantity based on the processing content table T and the substrate characteristics obtained by the characteristic acquisition unit 70 (target quantity calculation process: step S9).

FIG11 shows an example of the content of the processing content table T of the second embodiment. As shown in FIG11, the processing content table T shows the liquid film thickness FT of the characteristic acquisition liquid as the substrate characteristic, the surface tension of the processing liquid as the processing liquid characteristic, the target amount set for each combination of the substrate characteristic and the processing liquid characteristic, and the required ejection flow rate set for each combination of the substrate characteristic and the processing liquid characteristic.

After step S9, the necessary ejection flow rate calculation unit 72 calculates the necessary ejection flow rate based on the processing content table T and the substrate characteristics obtained by the characteristics acquisition unit 70 (necessary ejection flow rate calculation process: step S10).

In the determination process (step S13), when the determination unit 74 determines that the film thickness FT is less than the film thickness critical value TH (step S13: No), the target amount is not calculated, and the necessary ejection flow rate is calculated by the necessary ejection flow rate calculation unit 72 (necessary ejection flow rate calculation process: step S10). In FIG. 10, although the target amount calculation unit 71 does not calculate the target amount when the determination unit 74 determines that the film thickness FT is less than the film thickness critical value TH (step S13: No), the target amount calculation unit 71 can also be configured to regard the target amount as zero as needed.

After the necessary ejection flow calculation process (step S10), the processing content changing unit 73 changes the processing content of the prescription R based on the calculated target amount and the necessary ejection flow before starting the liquid processing process (the first cleaning liquid process (step S3) and the second liquid processing process (step S4)) (processing content changing process: step S11).

Typically, the content change process is performed before the start of the liquid processing process that is the target during the substrate processing. FIG. 12 is a table for explaining the correspondence between the liquid processing process that is the target of the content change process and the liquid processing process that performs the characteristic acquisition process. As shown in FIG. 12, the liquid processing process is not performed before the first liquid processing process (step S2), that is, the characteristic acquisition process is not performed before the first liquid processing process (step S2), so the content change process is not performed on the first liquid processing process.

When the content change process is performed on the first cleaning process (step S3), the characteristic acquisition process can be performed during the execution of the first chemical solution treatment process (step S2). In this case, the chemical solution used in the first chemical solution treatment process functions as a characteristic acquisition liquid.

When the content change process is performed in the second chemical liquid treatment process (step S4), the characteristic acquisition process can be performed during the execution of the first chemical liquid treatment process (step S2) or the first cleaning process (step S3). In this case, the chemical liquid used in the first chemical liquid treatment process or the cleaning liquid used in the first cleaning process functions as the characteristic acquisition liquid.

In the liquid treatment process to be treated by the content change, the opening of the liquid flow regulating valve 27 and the surfactant-containing liquid flow regulating valve 43 is adjusted to form a treatment liquid containing a target amount of surfactant. In addition, in each liquid treatment process, the opening of the treatment liquid flow regulating valve 25 is adjusted to spray the treatment liquid at the necessary spraying flow rate from the treatment liquid nozzle 12.

In this way, in each liquid treatment process, the liquid treatment process executed before a certain liquid treatment process can be used as a characteristic acquisition process. Therefore, in each liquid treatment process, the previous liquid treatment process (the most recent liquid treatment process) of a certain liquid treatment process can also be used as a characteristic acquisition process. Specifically, the first chemical liquid treatment process can be used as a characteristic acquisition process corresponding to the first cleaning process, and the first cleaning process can be used as a characteristic acquisition process corresponding to the second chemical liquid treatment process.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining another example of substrate processing performed by the substrate processing apparatus 1A. In order to perform content change processing on the first chemical liquid processing step (step S2), as shown in FIG. 13, a pre-cleaning step (step S14) of supplying a cleaning liquid to the upper surface of the substrate W may also be performed before the first chemical liquid processing step.

FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the correspondence between the liquid processing step as the object of content change processing and the liquid processing step for performing the characteristic acquisition step when executing the substrate processing shown in FIG. 13 .

As shown in FIG14 , when the content change process is performed on the first chemical solution treatment process (step S2), the characteristic acquisition process can be performed during the pre-cleaning process (step S14). In this case, the cleaning liquid used in the pre-cleaning process functions as a characteristic acquisition liquid.

When the content change process is performed on the first cleaning process (step S3), the characteristic acquisition process can be performed during the pre-cleaning process (step S14) or the first chemical solution treatment process (step S2). In this case, the cleaning liquid used in the pre-cleaning process or the chemical solution used in the first chemical solution treatment process functions as the characteristic acquisition liquid.

When the content change process is performed on the second chemical liquid treatment process (step S4), the characteristic acquisition process can be performed during the pre-cleaning process (step S14), the first chemical liquid treatment process (step S2) or the first cleaning process (step S3). In this case, the cleaning liquid used in the pre-cleaning process, the chemical liquid used in the first chemical liquid treatment process or the cleaning liquid used in the first cleaning process functions as the characteristic acquisition liquid.

In the substrate processing shown in FIG. 13 , the liquid processing process before a certain liquid processing process can also be used as a characteristic acquisition process in each liquid processing process. Specifically, the pre-cleaning process can be used as a characteristic acquisition process corresponding to the first liquid processing process, the first liquid processing process can be used as a characteristic acquisition process corresponding to the first cleaning process, and the first cleaning process can be used as a characteristic acquisition process corresponding to the second liquid processing process.

According to the second implementation form, the same effect as the first implementation form is achieved. According to the second implementation form, the following effects are further achieved.

According to the second embodiment, a processing liquid as a characteristic acquisition liquid is ejected from the processing liquid ejection nozzle 12 toward the upper surface of the substrate W (characteristic acquisition liquid ejection process). Then, before the next processing liquid is supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W, the film thickness measuring unit 60 measures the liquid film thickness FT of the characteristic acquisition liquid on the upper surface of the substrate W as the substrate characteristic (film thickness measuring process). Thus, the target amount can be calculated based on the liquid film thickness FT. Specifically, the target amount is calculated based on the surface tension calculated based on the liquid film thickness FT and the surface tension of the processing liquid. Therefore, the substrate characteristics of the substrate W to be processed can be acquired during the substrate processing without prior preparation. Moreover, the target amount suitable for the actual object can be calculated, that is, the target amount suitable for the actual substrate W being processed can be calculated. Therefore, a processing liquid containing a more appropriate amount of surfactant can be supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W, that is, a processing liquid containing an amount of surfactant required to quickly cover the entire upper surface of the substrate W can be supplied to the upper surface of the substrate W.

According to the second embodiment, when the determination unit 74 determines that the film thickness FT is greater than the film thickness critical value TH, the treatment liquid containing the treatment liquid is ejected from the treatment liquid nozzle 12; when the determination unit 74 determines that the film thickness FT is less than the film thickness critical value, the treatment liquid not containing the treatment liquid is ejected from the treatment liquid nozzle 12. That is, it is possible to determine whether a surfactant is needed based on the relationship between the film thickness FT and the film thickness critical value TH. Therefore, it is possible to suppress excessive use of the surfactant. Furthermore, when a surfactant is needed, the upper surface of the substrate W can be treated with the treatment liquid containing the necessary ejection flow rate.

[Contact angle measurement experiment and surface tension measurement experiment]

In order to verify the effect of reducing the surface tension of the treatment solution by adding a surfactant, a contact angle measurement experiment and a surface tension measurement experiment were conducted. FIG15A is a curve diagram showing the results of the contact angle measurement experiment. FIG15B is a curve diagram showing the results of the surface tension measurement experiment.

The order of the contact angle measurement experiment is as follows. (1) Drops of DIW (non-containing treatment liquid) and DIW for adding surfactant (containing treatment liquid) are respectively added to the main surface of the SiCN substrate. (2) Images near the water droplets are obtained using a microscope. (3) Based on the images obtained in (2), the contact angles of DIW and DIW for adding surfactant relative to the main surface of the SiCN substrate are measured. The surface tension measurement experiment is performed using the above-mentioned hanging drop method.

The SiCN substrate is a substrate in which SiCN is exposed from the main surface. As the DIW for adding a surfactant, a DIW for adding a surfactant in which a non-ionic surfactant is added to DIW in such a manner that the mass percentage concentration of the non-ionic surfactant becomes 1% and a DIW for adding a surfactant in which an amphoteric surfactant is added to DIW in such a manner that the mass percentage concentration of the amphoteric surfactant becomes 1% are used.

Referring to FIG. 15A , the contact angle of DIW with respect to the SiCN substrate is about 60°; in contrast, the contact angle of DIW with surfactant added with respect to the SiCN substrate is about 35°. Moreover, referring to FIG. 15B , the surface tension of DIW is about 70mN/m; in contrast, the surface tension of DIW with surfactant added is about 20mN/m.

Thus, the results of the contact angle measurement experiment and the surface tension measurement experiment can be inferred that the surface tension of DIW as the processing liquid can be sufficiently reduced by adding a surfactant.

[Observation experiment covering the area]

Below, in order to verify the effect of reducing the required spray flow rate by adding a surfactant to the treatment liquid, a covered area observation experiment was conducted. Figure 16 is a curve graph showing the results of the covered area observation experiment.

The sequence of the covered area observation experiment is as follows. (1) Start spraying DIW from the nozzle facing the center of the main surface of the SiCN substrate rotating at 500 rpm. (2) Gradually increase the DIW spray flow rate from 200 mL/min. (3) Observe the main surface of the SiCN substrate with a high-speed camera and measure the size of the area covered by the DIW liquid film (covered area) on the main surface of the SiCN substrate. (4) Perform the same experiment on DIW for surfactant addition.

As DIW for adding surfactant, similar to the above-mentioned contact angle measurement experiment and surface tension measurement experiment, DIW for adding surfactant obtained by adding non-ionic surfactant to DIW in such a manner that the mass percentage concentration of non-ionic surfactant becomes 1% and DIW for adding surfactant obtained by adding amphoteric surfactant to DIW in such a manner that the mass percentage concentration of amphoteric surfactant becomes 1% were used.

Referring to Figure 16, the horizontal axis shows the spray flow rate of DIW or DIW for surfactant addition, and the vertical axis shows the size of the coverage area. The size of the coverage area shows the distance from the center of the main surface of the SiCN substrate to the periphery of the coverage area. Since the radius of the SiCN substrate is 150mm, if the size of the coverage area reaches 150mm, it means that the entire main surface of the SiCN substrate is covered by liquid.

As shown in Figure 16, the following results were obtained: the necessary spraying flow rate of DIW was 1400 mL/min; in contrast, the necessary spraying flow rate of DIW with the addition of non-ionic surfactant was 650 mL/min, and the necessary spraying flow rate of DIW with the addition of amphoteric surfactant was 450 mL/min.

Thus, the result of the covered area observation experiment can be inferred that the necessary spray flow rate of DIW as the treatment liquid can be sufficiently reduced by adding a surfactant.

[Other implementation forms]

The present invention is not limited to the implementation forms described above, and can also be further implemented in other forms.

(1) For example, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the substrate processing is performed on the upper surface of the substrate W. However, the substrate processing may also be performed on the lower surface of the substrate W.

(2) In each of the above embodiments, the self-rotating clamp 8 is a holding type self-rotating clamp that holds the periphery of the substrate W with a plurality of clamp pins 8b, but the self-rotating clamp 8 is not limited to a holding type self-rotating clamp. For example, the self-rotating clamp 8 may also be a vacuum adsorption type self-rotating clamp that adsorbs the substrate W onto the self-rotating base 8a.

(3) The self-rotating fixture 8 does not necessarily have to hold the substrate W horizontally. That is, unlike FIG. 2 , the self-rotating fixture 8 can also hold the substrate W vertically, or the self-rotating fixture 8 can also hold the substrate W with the upper surface of the substrate W tilted relative to the horizontal plane.

(4) In each of the above embodiments, the processing content in the recipe R is changed based on the result of the content change process. However, it is not necessary to change the processing content in the recipe R. The control device 4 can also send a signal to the surfactant-containing liquid flow adjustment valve 43 based on the result of the content change process to add a target amount of surfactant to the processing liquid. In addition, the control device 4 can also send a signal to the processing liquid flow adjustment valve 25 based on the result of the content change process to adjust the spray flow of the processing liquid to the necessary spray flow. The control device 4 does not need to directly control each component, and the signal output from the control device 4 can also be received by a slave controller that controls each component of the substrate processing device 1.

(5) In the first embodiment, the thickness of the pure water film on the upper surface of the substrate W can also be used as the substrate characteristic, and the processing content table shown in FIG. 11 can also be used as the processing content table T.

(6) A plurality of surfactant-containing liquid storage tanks having different surfactant concentrations may be provided. For example, surfactant-containing liquids having mass percentage concentrations of 0.01%, 0.1%, and 1% of the surfactant are stored in a plurality of surfactant-containing liquid storage tanks, respectively. In this case, the surfactant-containing liquid and the treatment liquid are mixed from the surfactant-containing liquid storage tank that is suitable for the calculated target amount of surfactant.

(7) Different from the above-mentioned embodiments, the type of substrate is displayed in the processing content table as the substrate characteristic, and the type and concentration of the processing liquid can also be displayed in the processing content table as the processing liquid characteristic.

(8) In each of the above embodiments, a plurality of processing liquids are ejected from a single processing liquid nozzle 12. However, the ejection form of the processing liquid is not limited to the above embodiments. For example, each processing liquid may be ejected from a different nozzle, or the processing liquid nozzle 12 may be configured to be movable in the horizontal direction.

Furthermore, in each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the nozzle is exemplified as a component for ejecting the processing liquid, but the component for ejecting each processing liquid is not limited to the nozzle. That is, the component for ejecting each processing liquid can be any component as long as it functions as a component for ejecting the processing liquid when ejecting the processing liquid.

(9) In the above embodiments, not all components contained in the liquid supply unit 3 are shown, and at least a part of the piping, pump, valve, actuator, etc. are omitted. However, it does not mean that these components do not exist, and in fact, these components are set in appropriate positions.

The implementation forms of the present invention have been described in detail, but these are only used to clarify the specific examples of the technical content of the present invention. The present invention should not be limited to these specific examples for interpretation. The scope of the present invention is only limited by the scope of the attached patent application.

1: Substrate processing equipment

4: Control device

70: Characteristic acquisition unit

71: Target quantity calculation unit

72: Necessary spray flow calculation unit

73: Processing content change unit

R:Prescription

T: Processing content table

Claims (12)

A substrate processing device is used to process the main surface of a substrate with a processing liquid, and comprises: a substrate holding unit for holding a substrate; a target amount calculation unit for calculating a target amount of a surfactant relative to the processing liquid based on the substrate characteristics of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid; a processing liquid ejecting component for ejecting the processing liquid containing the target amount of the surfactant calculated by the target amount calculation unit toward the main surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit; a characteristic acquisition liquid ejecting component for ejecting the characteristic acquisition liquid toward the main surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit; and a film thickness measuring unit for measuring the thickness of a liquid film of the characteristic acquisition liquid on the main surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit as the substrate characteristics. The substrate processing device as described in claim 1 further comprises: a processing content table storage unit for storing a processing content table, wherein the processing content table displays a plurality of target quantities set for each combination of the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics; and the target quantity calculation unit calculates the target quantity based on the processing content table. The substrate processing device as described in claim 2, wherein the aforementioned substrate characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate held by the aforementioned substrate holding unit; the aforementioned processing liquid characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid. The substrate processing device as described in claim 1 further comprises: a determination unit for determining whether the thickness of the aforementioned liquid film measured by the aforementioned film thickness measurement unit is above the critical value; the aforementioned processing liquid ejecting component ejects the processing liquid containing the aforementioned target amount of surfactant when the aforementioned determination unit determines that the thickness of the aforementioned liquid film is above the aforementioned critical value, and ejects the processing liquid without surfactant when the aforementioned determination unit determines that the thickness of the aforementioned liquid film is less than the aforementioned critical value. A substrate processing device as recited in any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising: a necessary ejection flow rate storage unit that stores the flow rate required to cover the entire main surface of the substrate held in the substrate holding unit with the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant as the necessary ejection flow rate; and a flow rate adjustment unit that adjusts the flow rate of the processing liquid ejected from the processing liquid ejection component to the necessary ejection flow rate. A substrate processing device as described in any one of claim items 1 to 3, further comprising: a processing liquid supply unit for supplying processing liquid to the aforementioned processing liquid ejection component; and an adding unit for adding a surfactant to the processing liquid in the aforementioned processing liquid supply unit according to the aforementioned target amount. A substrate processing method is used to process the main surface of a substrate with a processing liquid, and includes: a target amount calculation step, which is to calculate the target amount of a surfactant relative to the processing liquid based on the substrate characteristics of the substrate held by a substrate holding unit and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid; a processing liquid spraying step, which is to spray the processing liquid containing the aforementioned target amount of the surfactant calculated in the aforementioned target amount calculation step from a processing liquid spraying component toward the main surface of the aforementioned substrate; a characteristic acquisition liquid spraying step, which is to spray the characteristic acquisition liquid from the characteristic acquisition liquid spraying component toward the main surface of the aforementioned substrate; and a film thickness measurement step, which is to measure the thickness of the liquid film of the characteristic acquisition liquid on the main surface of the aforementioned substrate as the aforementioned substrate characteristics. The substrate processing method as described in claim 7, wherein the target amount calculation step includes the following step: calculating the target amount based on a processing content table, wherein the processing content table displays a plurality of target amounts set for each combination of the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics. The substrate processing method as described in claim 8, wherein the aforementioned substrate characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate held in the aforementioned substrate holding unit; the aforementioned processing liquid characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid. The substrate processing method as recited in any one of claims 7 to 9 further comprises: a necessary ejection flow rate calculation step, which is to calculate the flow rate required to cover the entire main surface of the substrate with the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant based on the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics as the necessary ejection flow rate; the processing liquid ejection step comprises the following step: ejecting the processing liquid containing the target amount of surfactant from the processing liquid ejection component at the necessary ejection flow rate. A substrate processing device is used to process the main surface of a substrate with a processing liquid, and comprises: a substrate holding unit for holding a substrate; a target amount calculation unit for calculating a target amount of a surfactant relative to the processing liquid based on the substrate characteristics of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid; a processing liquid spraying component for spraying the processing liquid containing the target amount of the surfactant calculated by the target amount calculation unit toward the main surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit; a processing content table storage unit for storing a processing content table, wherein the processing content table displays each target amount of the processing liquid characteristics for the substrate characteristics and the processing liquid characteristics. a plurality of target amounts set by combining the above-mentioned target amounts; a necessary ejection flow rate storage unit that stores the flow rate required for covering the entire main surface of the substrate held in the above-mentioned substrate holding unit with the processing liquid containing the above-mentioned target amount of surfactant as the necessary ejection flow rate; and a flow rate adjustment unit that adjusts the flow rate of the processing liquid ejected from the above-mentioned processing liquid ejection component to the above-mentioned necessary ejection flow rate; the above-mentioned target amount calculation unit calculates the above-mentioned target amount based on the above-mentioned processing content table; the above-mentioned substrate characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate held in the above-mentioned substrate holding unit; the above-mentioned processing liquid characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid. A substrate processing method is used to process the main surface of a substrate with a processing liquid, and includes: a target amount calculation step, which is to calculate the target amount of a surfactant relative to the processing liquid based on the substrate characteristics of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit and the processing liquid characteristics of the processing liquid; a processing liquid spraying step, which is to spray the processing liquid containing the aforementioned target amount of the surfactant calculated in the aforementioned target amount calculation step from the processing liquid spraying component toward the main surface of the aforementioned substrate; and a necessary spraying flow calculation step, which is to calculate the amount of the processing liquid containing the aforementioned target amount of the surfactant to cover the entire surface of the aforementioned substrate based on the aforementioned substrate characteristics and the aforementioned processing liquid characteristics. The flow rate required for the main surface is taken as the necessary ejection flow rate; The aforementioned target amount calculation process includes the following process: calculating the aforementioned target amount based on the processing content table, the aforementioned processing content table is a plurality of target amounts set for each combination of the aforementioned substrate characteristics and the aforementioned processing liquid characteristics; the aforementioned substrate characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid relative to the main surface of the substrate held by the aforementioned substrate holding unit; the aforementioned processing liquid characteristics include the surface tension of the processing liquid; the aforementioned processing liquid ejection process includes the following process: ejecting the processing liquid containing the aforementioned target amount of surfactant from the aforementioned processing liquid ejection component at the aforementioned necessary ejection flow rate.

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