JP3246659B2 - Resist processing apparatus, liquid processing apparatus, and substrate processing apparatus - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The disclosed technology belongs to the technical field of a system for a substrate processing apparatus such as a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known to those skilled in the art, in the manufacture of semiconductor devices such as ICs, elements such as transistors are mounted on a substrate to be processed such as a semiconductor single crystal wafer such as silicon (hereinafter simply referred to as a wafer). A large number of microfabrication steps are included to form the PEP, in which a PEP for forming a predetermined resist pattern on the surface of a substrate to be processed such as the wafer is used.
The (photoengraving process) process occupies a very important position in the processing process.

The resist pattern formed in the PEP process is used as an etching mask or the like and forms the basis of the current fine processing technology.

[0004] The formation of a resist pattern in the PEP process is performed by applying a photoresist solution to the surface of a wafer in the form of a thin film as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 52-27367. A processing section for forming a photoresist film having a large thickness, a processing section for selectively exposing a predetermined area of the photoresist film, and a resist pattern for developing the exposed photoresist film to form a desired resist pattern. And a processing unit that forms

[0005] Of these, the exposure processing section is performed using an exposure apparatus such as a step-and-repeat aligner (usually referred to as a stepper). On the other hand, the exposure processing section forms a photoresist film on the surface of a wafer. The unit is performed using, for example, an apparatus described below, and these are performed in series in a series of processes including a front-end process and a rear-stage process.

That is, the flowchart of FIG. 9 shows an embodiment of a processing system in a photoresist film forming process generally called a track system of the series type. From the first stage to the second stage, there are a plurality of processing stations for performing series of processing in a series of preheating units 4, cooling units 5, coating units 6, and heating units 8 in series.

[0007] The wafer 1 to be processed, on which a photoresist film is formed on the surface, is stored in a cassette 2.
The sheets are taken out one by one, introduced into a photoresist film formation processing section, sequentially conveyed to each processing station by a belt holding and conveying mechanism 3, and subjected to predetermined processing.

In the preheating section 4, the wafer 1 as a substrate to be processed is heated to remove moisture, and the preheated wafer 1 is cooled in a cooling section 5 in the next stage, and then subjected to a coating process. The coating solution is sent to the coating unit 6, where the coating solution such as a spinner coater is used so that a predetermined photoresist solution is uniformly applied to the surface of the set thin film layer by a coating device such as a spinner coater. ing.

Next, the wafer 1 to which the photoresist liquid has been applied is sent to a heating section 8 via a walking beam type transfer mechanism 7 and subjected to heat treatment, whereby the wafer 1 is applied to the wafer 1. The photoresist solution is subjected to a stabilization treatment in a film form.

Then, the heating process in the heating step 8 is completed, and the wafer 9 having a predetermined photoresist film formed on the surface thereof is moved by the belt holding / transporting mechanism 3 for storing the processed substrate to be processed into a wafer. It is designed to be stored in a cassette 10.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION As described above,
In the conventional photoresist film forming system, the stations of each processing unit are arranged in series,
The wafer 1 of the substrate to be processed must pass through these stations in a predetermined order and in a one-way mode of a forward feed method, regardless of whether or not the original processing is required by the design. You have to be treated.

Therefore, there is a disadvantage that the processing order once set in advance cannot be arbitrarily changed, and it is impossible to selectively pass only a certain processing station.

The different processes required for forming the semiconductor elements on the wafer 1, including the order thereof, differ depending on the type of the function, purpose and the like of the IC formed on the wafer 1. is there.

Further, when the wafer 1 is transported from the cassette 2 to a predetermined processing step, the wafer 1 is transported to the processing section by a belt holding / transporting mechanism 3 such as a string belt conveyor of a forward feed type. There has been a problem that deviations and the like are generated, particles and the like are generated, and the accuracy of the product is seriously affected.

In this case, if the alignment of the wafer is adjusted by causing a difference in relative speed between the pair of belts, the particles are more likely to be generated.

Therefore, according to the type of wafer to be processed, a desired processing station is used in any order, including the case where only a single station is used, among the multiple processing stations provided in the photoresist film forming apparatus. There has been a strong demand for the appearance of a substrate processing apparatus such as a photoresist film forming apparatus having a throughput function capable of arbitrarily and independently changing the process.

Thus, the above-mentioned problems do not exist solely in a semiconductor wafer as a substrate to be processed.

Then, the substrate to be processed is taken out from the wafer storage cassette for the substrate to be processed to a station of a predetermined processing section and transferred to one side, for example, as shown in US Pat. No. 4,775,281. Although a system having tweezers that can be displaced in the front-rear direction and the up-down direction has been developed as a holding and transporting mechanism as described above, such a system technology has only two degrees of freedom of displacement. Centering to a predetermined processing station on the substrate, adjusting the alignment to optimize the posture,
There was a problem that it was not possible to carry in and out in the optimum state and at the shortest distance.

Further, a positioning and transport mechanism at each processing station is required, and further, each processing station is independently arranged on one side along the holding and transporting mechanism. As a result, production costs are increased. There was also a bottleneck that made it impossible to save floor space.

[0020]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the invention of this application is to solve the problem of loading and unloading a substrate to be processed, such as a wafer, into a plurality of different processing steps based on the above-mentioned prior art. A plurality of mutually different processing steps for the substrate to be processed of the wafer to be processed can be selectively changed as necessary, so that the throughput of each processing step can be increased, etc., and alignment and transport at each processing station A mechanism is not required, and each processing station is arranged on both sides along the movement path of the holding mechanism, and by vertically arranging the processing stations in a stacked state perpendicular to the floor surface, the production cost is reduced, and the floor area is reduced. It is an object of the present invention to provide an excellent substrate processing apparatus which can save space and which is advantageous in a processing technology application field in various machine device manufacturing industries.

[0021]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the above-mentioned objects, the construction of the invention of the present application, which has the features of the above-mentioned claims, is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems by coating a photoresist film on a substrate to be processed such as a wafer. When performing predetermined processes of different types, such as development, development, etc., a transport path from a loading / unloading mechanism unit for a substrate to be processed having a storage cassette for the substrate to be processed, such as the wafer, to a plurality of mutually different types of processing units. A substrate processing apparatus connected and extended, wherein the plurality of mutually different processing units are disposed along one side of the transfer path and a heat treatment system disposed adjacent to the other side. Adjacent non-heat treatment systems are provided in opposition to each other, and at least one of the processing units is provided with a plurality of substrate processing units arranged vertically in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface. Is installed and can be moved along the transport path. The transport mechanism has a carriage, and the carriage is of a superimposed type capable of being displaced in four directions along the transport path: a vertical direction (X), a horizontal direction (Y), a vertical direction (Z), and a turning direction (θ). A plurality of tweezers having a negative pressure fulcrum as a transfer hand for holding one substrate to be processed is provided, and a standby mechanism having a buffer function is provided. A plurality of heat treatment steps and a non-heat treatment section are provided as a substrate processing section opposed to each other with a gap sandwiching the transfer path, and a loading / unloading mechanism for the processing target substrate having a storage cassette for the processing target substrate. A substrate processing apparatus in which a plurality of transfer paths to different types of processing units are connected to each other and are extended, and a plurality of device configurations in a resist coating unit, a resist developing unit, a heating unit, or a cooling system. Part A plurality of such processing units are stacked in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface, and arranged in the direction along the transport path, and are arranged along the floor surface via the transport path and along the transport path. In front and rear, left and right, for holding and transporting substrates
The holding / transporting mechanism has a pair of tweezers having a negative pressure fulcrum for holding each substrate movable in each of the up and down directions. The present invention employs technical means such as a substrate processing apparatus that can be arbitrarily set by a processing procedure combined in a series.

[0022]

In the meantime, in the standby mechanism and the holding and transporting mechanism, the centering and alignment of the substrate to be processed are performed, and the wafer of the substrate to be processed is optimally used in the next processing step by the holding and transporting mechanism. The holding and transporting mechanism in the transporting path has a carriage movable along the transporting path, and the holding and transporting mechanism is moved to both sides of the transporting path by a predetermined moving mechanism. A plurality of processing units of different types, which are provided in a plane along the same plane and are thermally separated from each other, are vertically stacked or the like, and are arranged in the direction along the transport path perpendicular to the floor surface. Are carried into a predetermined station independently of each other, and in the station in the optimum posture, the same predetermined processing of the heat treatment system is performed. Depending on the design, different types of processing may be performed, including throughput. Nasa Then, according to a predetermined program from the holding and transport mechanism of the transport path, the transfer is transferred to a station of a next processing unit arranged in a horizontal direction along a plane, during which the transport path is parallelized in the holding and transport mechanism. The carriage has a movable carriage. The carriage has a negative pressure type fulcrum for holding a predetermined number of a plurality of substrates. The tweezers of the carriage have three fulcrums such as the negative pressure type and are supported by three points. No damage or distortion on the processing board,
Other similar components having the same displacement function as those described above in the loading / unloading mechanism so that the substrate to be processed from the cassette does not stick to the tweezers of the holding / transporting mechanism so as to prevent fine dust and the like from adhering. Tweezers are provided so that the baton touch is performed smoothly, and further, an extended transport path of the transport path is provided, and further, in a multi-stage processing unit system that is added, desired processing is performed. An interface mechanism having a buffer function or the like smoothly and serially or in parallel, or both are combined so as to achieve desired throughput in accordance with a desired program. Independently and mutually exclusive, the processing is selectively performed as designed.

[0023]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a processing system having a photoresist film coating and developing apparatus for a wafer as a substrate to be processed according to an embodiment of the present invention. 8 will be described below.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a photoresist film coating and developing apparatus 100. A main body base 101 is provided near one side of the center (upper part in the figure).
At the center of the main body base 101, a passage 102 of a transfer path of a wafer W as a substrate to be processed is provided horizontally in the direction of the arrow Y (lateral direction) along the floor surface. Side) involves a HMDS (hexamethyldisilazane) treatment for heating the unprocessed wafer W to remove moisture and the like, or a preheating station 1 for simply heating
03, and a cooling station 104 provided for cooling the preheated wafer W, and further, for example, the wafer W after applying a photoresist liquid is heated to form a dried photoresist film. First, having two heating devices (not shown) as device components in the vertical direction with respect to the vertical floor surface used for
Second heating stations 105 and 106 are provided adjacent to each other as processing units and horizontally along the floor and horizontally along the passage 102.

On the other side of the passage 102, for example, the surface of the wafer W which has been subjected to the preheating and cooling processes is
The first used to apply the photoresist liquid, and
Second coating stations 107 and 108 are provided horizontally as processing units adjacent to each other and along the passage 102 on the floor surface.

In FIG. 1, the processing units of the preheating station 103, the cooling station 104, the first and second heating stations 105 and 106, and the first and second coating stations 107 and 108 are shown. For convenience, it is described as being arranged in a vertical direction in a plane, but this is for convenience, and in practice, for example, the pre-heating station 10
The heating unit of No. 3 has a stacked structure in which two processing units are provided vertically in two stages.

In the passage 102, handling means for moving the inside of the passage 102 in the Y direction (lateral direction) along the floor surface by a drive mechanism (not shown) such as a ball screw, for example, a wafer W, is provided at a predetermined position. Wafer holding and transporting mechanism 110 as a holding and transporting mechanism for transferring to a station
The holding and transporting mechanism 110 has a carriage 111 as a transporting mechanism, and the carriage 111 sucks and holds, for example, wafers W one by one on a negative pressure suction type as a transporting hand. A plurality of, for example, two tweezers 112 and 113 are provided so as to be vertically overlapped.

The tweezers 112 and 113 can move independently of each other in the X direction (vertical direction) and the Y direction (horizontal direction), and at the same time, can selectively move in parallel in the Z direction (vertical direction). Further, it can be turned in a predetermined angle θ direction (plane direction).

In order to allow the tweezers 112 and 113 to perform such vertical and horizontal translations and swiveling, the carriage 111 includes a stepping motor and a suitable ball screw (not shown) connected thereto. A drive mechanism is provided.

The tweezers 112, 113
Is to hold one wafer W with one of the tweezers, center the wafer W in a predetermined processing station in an optimal posture, adjust the alignment, and carry and set the wafer. When the processed wafer W is in the processing station, the other The processed wafer W is picked up by the tweezers and back-set.

[0031] Then, the wafer cassette 122 on the drawing left of the main base 101 (base end side), for accommodating the wafer unloading and input mechanism section 120, pre-processing the wafer W _B, and the processing provided in a predetermined through setting interval of the wafer cassette 123 for accommodating the wafer W _F after, also equipped with other forceps 121 as a carrying hand for holding and conveying by suction back surface of the wafer W .

Tweezers 12 as the other transfer hand
1 is parallel movement in the X direction (vertical direction), the Y direction (horizontal direction), and the Z direction (vertical direction) movable along the floor surface direction by the same configuration as the tweezers 112 and 113;
are capable θ direction pivots is a selection in mutually exclusive of (turning direction), processing the previous wafer W _B is taken out from the wafer cassette 122, also baton manner according wafer W _F after processing each program Each wafer is stored in the processed wafer cassette 123 one by one.

The tweezers 12 of the loading / unloading mechanism 120 are
1 is to baton to transfer the wafer W _B of pretreatment tweezers 112 and 113 of the holding transport mechanism 110,
In addition, the wafers W _F after treatment tweezers 112,11
3, and an interface mechanism 30, which will be described later, as a standby mechanism that enables such baton-touch delivery.
And a carry-in / out mechanism 120.

The tweezers 112 and 113 of the holding / transporting mechanism 110 are connected to the processing stations 103 to 108.
Delivery of the wafer W between the series or
The wafer W can be freely performed in parallel, in combination, and further in terms of throughput, so that the wafers W can be predetermined in each of the processing stations 103 to 108 in accordance with the order of the setting program. It can be processed.

The operation of the holding / transporting mechanism 110 is all managed and controlled by a control system (not shown).

Therefore, by changing the program of the control system, the processing in the processing stations 103 to 108 of the respective processing units of the wafer W can be performed in series, in parallel, sequentially, or in combination. Alternatively, it can be set arbitrarily in terms of throughput and independently, that is, it is also possible to perform only some of the processing in each of the processing stations 103 to 108 independently. Can be changed.

FIGS. 2 to 5 show, for convenience of illustration, tweezers 112 and 11 that commonly hold one substrate at a time.
3 and 121 are shown in detail.
Reference numeral 21 denotes a tweezer body having a fork-shaped tip in plan view, and three fulcrums 22, 23, and 24 formed on one side surface in a triangular arrangement to project the wafer W.
2, 23, 24 are supported and transported at three points,
It is supported in a floating manner on the upper portion of the tweezers body 21 with a small interval of, for example, about 0.3 mm, so that adhesion of particles such as dust to the surface of the wafer W can be prevented.

Of the fulcrums 22, 23, and 24, in particular, the fulcrum 24 is provided with a vacuum suction port (not shown) for vacuum suction, which is opened on the minute top surface thereof, and is connected to a vacuum device (not shown). ing.

Of course, it is within the scope of design change to use the same mechanism for the other fulcrums 22 and 23.

An arc-shaped guide member 25 corresponding to the peripheral edge of the wafer W is provided on the front and rear portions of the tweezer body 21 for centering and / or alignment of the wafer W, and a side opposite to the guide member 25. Stopper member 26
The wafer W is first placed on the fulcrums 22, 23, and 24 in the state shown in FIG. 3, but in this state, the wafer W is not centered or aligned. It is not in vacuum suction.

[0041] In this posture, as shown in FIG. 4, the forceps body 21 are relatively moved horizontally toward the stopper member 26 is brought into contact with the orientation flat W _a of the wafer W to the stopper member 26.

After that, the wafer W is further horizontally moved in parallel along the floor surface of the tweezers body 21 so that the wafer W
Are three fulcrums 22, 23, 24 of the tweezer body 21
The upper part is slid lightly and finally brought into contact with the guide member 25 for centering and alignment adjustment, and is brought into a stopped and held state by negative pressure suction through the suction port of the upper minute top surface.

Therefore, even if the position of the wafer W is shifted from the center of the tweezers body 21 in the state of FIG. 3, the wafer W is guided by the guide member 25 as shown in FIG. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 5, the tweezers 21 can be centered and aligned at a predetermined position in the center of the tweezers main body 21 and can be statically held.

FIG. 6 shows an interface mechanism 30 as a standby mechanism provided at a boundary between the passage 102 and the wafer loading / unloading mechanism section 120. The interface mechanism 30 includes the tweezers 121 and the tweezers 11
The holding member 31 has a buffer function for temporarily waiting the wafer W transferred in a baton-touch manner between the wafers 2 and 113, and holds the wafer W by an appropriate vacuum suction mechanism.
And a drive unit 32 such as an air cylinder for raising and lowering the holding member 31.

When the tweezers 121 of the loading / unloading mechanism 120 transports the wafer W to the illustrated position, the holding member 31 is raised via the driving device 32, and the wafer W is lifted.
Is lifted and held via vacuum suction, and then the wafer holding and transporting mechanism 110 on the resist film coating and developing apparatus 100 side is lifted.
Is the interface mechanism 30 as the illustrated standby mechanism.
Move to the position.

Next, when the holding member 31 is lowered by the driving device 32, one wafer W held by the holding member 31 is placed on the tweezers 112 or 113 in a baton touch manner.

The transfer of the single wafer W from the tweezers 112 and 113 to the tweezers 121 in a baton touch manner is performed in the same manner as the above-described process.

In the above configuration, the process of forming a photoresist film on the surface of the wafer W by the photoresist film coating and developing apparatus 100 will be described step by step.

Each of the processing units is processed based on a program which is input to the control system and stored in advance.

[0050] First, the tweezers 121 in standby mechanism for loading and unloading mechanism 120 takes out one sheet wafer W _B before treatment from the cassette 122, is conveyed to the position of the interface mechanism 30.

[0051] Then, the wafer W _B which has been conveyed along the floor surface, through the interface mechanism 30, one of the tweezer carriage 111 holding transport mechanism 110 that is waiting at the entrance of the passage 102, for example, It is transferred to the tweezers 112, aligned, centered, and statically held by vacuum suction.
And is subjected to a preheating treatment.

[0052] In the case where only the wafer W _B of the same type in one cassette 122 is housed, the cassette 1
An appropriate ID code may be displayed at 22, and the program of the manufacturing process may be selected by reading the ID code.

Hereinafter, the floor surface is processed so that the processing in the preheating station 103, the cooling station 104, the first coating station 107, and the first heating station 105, which are mutually different processing units, is performed in this order. The case where the image is selected in the vertical direction or the parallel direction will be described.

First, the first, that is, the first wafer W
Is moved toward the preheating station 103 as a processing section, the wafer W is centered in the preparatory station 103 at a predetermined position, and the wafer W is set and held in a stationary state in an aligned posture. It is placed on a heater plate (not shown) to perform a preliminary heating process.

During this time, the wafer W is placed in the standby mechanism 121,
As described above, the holding / transporting mechanism 110 selectively displaces the floor surface in the vertical direction (X), the horizontal direction (Y), the vertical direction (Z), and the turning direction (θ) in a predetermined and optimal state for the processing step. The position and orientation are adjusted to be held and set.

At this time, the wafer W is not brought into direct contact with the heater plate, but is floated by about 0.3 mm by transfer via the three-point support of the tweezers 121 by the three negative pressure fulcrums 22, 23, and 24. When set in the posture, particle countermeasures against dust adhesion are good.

During this time, the tweezers 121 are moved to
After taking out the first wafer W from the cassette 122 and holding it in the interface mechanism 30 as a standby mechanism, and after loading the first wafer W into the preheating station 103, the holding / transporting mechanism 110 starts to operate. The second wafer W from the thirtyth is received by the tweezers 112, held by suction on the tweezers 112 of the carriage 111 in a negative pressure manner, and waits until processing of the first wafer W in the preheating station 103 is completed. .

When the preliminary heating process for the first wafer W is completed, the holding / transporting mechanism 110 performs the following operation.

That is, first, by moving the tweezers 113 that does not hold the wafer W, the first wafer W for which the preheating process has been completed is taken out from the preheating station 103.

After emptying the preheating station 103 in this manner, the tweezers 112 holding the second wafer W is operated, and the second wafer W
Is set in the preheating station 103.

Next, the tweezers 112 and 113 are selectively moved with respect to the floor in the Y direction, the θ direction, and the Z direction independently of each other, and moved to the cooling station 104 where the wafers W are held. Operating in the X direction, the first wafer W is transferred to the cooling station 104.
Set to.

From the above operation, two tweezers 112,
The advantage of providing 113 is fully utilized.

When there is only one tweezer, the holding / transporting mechanism 110 first moves the first one wafer W
Must be taken out of the preheating station 103, set in the cooling station 104, and then receive the second single wafer W from the interface mechanism 30 and set it in the preheating station 103. Because.

While the above operation is being performed, the loading / unloading mechanism 120 keeps the third wafer W to be processed next by the tweezers 121 in the interface mechanism 30.

Next, the holding / transporting mechanism 110 holds the third wafer W from the interface mechanism 30 on the tweezers 112 and waits until the processing in the cooling station 104 is completed.

When the first wafer W cooling step is completed, the carriage 111 of the holding / transporting mechanism 110 takes out one wafer W in the cooling station 104 with the tweezers 113 that does not hold the wafer W, and
Next, a first coating station 1 on the opposite side of the passage 102 for a programmed photoresist film coating process.
At 07, it is loaded and set along the floor.

When the preheating process for the second single wafer W in the preheating station 103 is completed during the coating process, the holding / transporting mechanism 110 uses the tweezers 113 that does not hold the wafer W to perform the preheating process. Wafer W
From the preheating station 103.

Then, the third wafer W held by the tweezers 112 is
At the same time, the second single wafer W held by the tweezers 113 is placed in the cooling station 104.
And set.

This operation is the same as in the above-described embodiment.

If the preheating process for the second single wafer W is completed before the completion of the cooling process for the first single wafer W, the following processing operation is performed. It is also possible to program as follows.

That is, while the third unprocessed wafer W is held by a pair of tweezers 112, the second single wafer W is taken out of the preheating station 103 by the tweezers 113. After setting the third single wafer W held in the preheating station 103, the apparatus waits.

After the cooling process of the first wafer W is completed in the cooling station 104 in the stacked state perpendicular to the floor, the first wafer W is removed by the tweezers 112 or , 113 and carried into the first coating station 107 for setting.

The application of the photoresist liquid in the application station 107 is performed by, for example, a spin coating apparatus under a resist droplet well known to those skilled in the art.

When the application of the photoresist liquid to the first wafer W is completed in the application station 107 of the first processing section, the holding and transporting mechanism 1
10 takes out the wafer W from the first coating station 107 by using tweezers 113.

Subsequently, the wafer W is moved rightward in the figure along the Y direction along the floor surface, and is carried into the first heating station 105 where the first wafer W taken out is stacked and subjected to heat treatment. .

When the cooling process of the second single wafer W in the cooling station 104 of the processing unit of a different type is completed during the heating process, the holding and transporting mechanism 1
10 takes out the one wafer W with tweezers 113, and further carries it in to a first coating station 107 which is provided via the passage 102, and starts a photoresist liquid coating process.

When the processing of the first wafer W is completed in the first heating station 105 and a desired photoresist film is formed, the holding and transporting mechanism 110
Takes out the first wafer W with tweezers 113.

Subsequently, the holding / transporting mechanism 110 moves to the left in the Y direction along the floor surface in the figure, and transfers one wafer W held by the tweezers 113 to the interface mechanism (standby mechanism) 30 in a baton-touch manner.

The interface mechanism (standby mechanism) 30
During the standby in step 1, the one wafer W is not directly contacted with the mounting portion, and is mounted in a posture of being floated by only about 3 mm via the negative pressure type fulcrums 22, 23 and 24 as described above. Is effective in preventing particles from adhering dust.

It is more advantageous that the standby interface mechanism (standby mechanism) 30 is constituted by a carrier cassette.

[0081] When the wafer W _F of already processed this way is wait interface mechanism (standby mechanism) 30,
The tweezers 121 of the loading / unloading mechanism 120 is used for the wafer W
_F is received, transported and stored in the processed cassette 123.

[0082] The above series of interrelated processing operation of the processing unit of the heterologous mentioned is continued until there is no wafer W _B unprocessed in the cassette 122.

In the above description of the processing operation, the first coating station 107 and the first heating station 105 are used. Instead, the second coating station 108 and the second heating station 105 are stacked. The processing may be performed using the station 106.

When the application part of the photoresist film and / or the heating part of the processing parts of mutually different types take a longer time than the other processing parts, in the direction perpendicular to the floor surface, that is, Two application stations 107, 108 stacked and / or
Alternatively, two different types of heating stations 105 and 106, which are different from each other, can be used at the same time, and it is also possible to transfer the processing from the standby mechanism 30 to a desired processing unit in a throughput manner for processing.

By the way, when performing the above-described photoresist film forming step, a test process is performed on one test wafer W in order to confirm whether or not the programmed process is appropriate. Is normal,
In this case, the test wafer W for which the trial process has been completed
_It is necessary to take out the _T from the cassette 123 for inspection. To facilitate this removal, as shown in FIG.
The provided a handle 41 once the said Rejiba 40 provided inside may be provided a wafer mounting table 42, a single test wafer W _T has completed the process at tried, tweezers 12
1 is inserted from the opening 43 and is placed on the wafer mounting table 42.

[0086] Thus, the test wafer W _T can be easily taken out by pulling out as illustrated receiver 40.

Incidentally, from the viewpoint of design change, the tweezers of the carriage 111 of the holding / transporting mechanism 110 need not always be two, but may be three or more.

As is apparent from the above description of the operation, according to the processing apparatus of the above embodiment, a plurality of different types of processing steps necessary for forming a photoresist film on the surface of the wafer W are performed. The best steps can be programmed in any combination, including the order.

Therefore, one wafer W to be processed
It is possible to select the most efficient combination of processing steps of different types depending on the type of the process, and to obtain the best throughput.

The holding / transporting mechanism 110 has tweezers 112 and 113 having a predetermined number of negative pressure type fulcrums such as two.
.. And perform independent operations, the degree of freedom of each process is high. For example, if a wafer W is present in the station of the next process, the wafer W cannot be replaced in that process. There is no.

Further, by arranging the preheating station 103 and the cooling station 104 of different types vertically and vertically to the floor surface, that is, by stacking them, the floor area required for installation can be reduced. And the holding and conveying mechanism 110 moves up and down.
No alignment and transport mechanism is required at each processing station, and each processing station can be held and transported.
0, by arranging it two-dimensionally on both sides of the floor along the movement path Y along the floor and stacking it vertically, thereby reducing manufacturing costs, saving floor space, and improving work efficiency. Becomes possible.

Thus, those skilled in the art can use the apparatus of the above-described embodiment as a device for developing a photoresist film exposed in a predetermined pattern and forming a resist pattern without any difficulty.

In this case, a device for applying a developing solution to the coating stations 107 and 108 as processing units can be provided.

The developing device may be configured to, for example, jet a developing solution onto the wafer W being rotated at a variable speed to develop the wafer.

Further, by using one of the two application stations 107 and 108 as processing units of different types for applying a photoresist solution and using the other for applying a developing solution, a photoresist film is formed. ,as well as,
It can be used as an apparatus that performs both development.

At this time, an interface mechanism 30 shown in FIG. 6 is also provided at the right end of the passage 102 in the drawing, so that the wafer W of the substrate to be processed can be transferred between the exposure apparatus and the photoresist film. From the processing to the development processing, it is possible to freely perform the processing in a series, as an integrated continuous process, or arbitrarily in parallel, and further in terms of throughput.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the I
Although the example in which the program is selected by the D code has been described, if the same type of semiconductor wafer W is transported by one cassette, the type code is displayed on the cassette, and the processing at a desired station is performed by the cassette ID. May be.

When a plurality of processing units are desired to be connected, a next passage is formed in the extension of the passage 102, and a standby mechanism for the wafer W, for example,
A carrier station may be provided.

Incidentally, as shown in FIG.
Unloads the wafer W in the cassette 2 or the cassette 1
The first processing system 150 having the carrying-in / out mechanism 120 having the arm 120a for carrying in the wafers 22 and 123 and the holding / transporting mechanism 110a moving in the direction along the floor where the wafer W is transferred by the interface mechanism 30. Each processing is performed by the operation as described above.

For example, processing sections such as an HMDS (hexamethyldisilazane) processing station 151, a first heating station 152, a first cooling station 153, etc., are provided in the first processing system 150 with the holding and transporting mechanism 110a therebetween. A first coating station 154 for spin-coating the first layer of photoresist liquid via a passage in a stacked state perpendicular to the floor, and a second coating station for spin-coating the second layer of photoresist liquid. The two coating stations 155 are provided as processing units of different types, and the processing is performed by selectively, independently, or exhaustively transporting the wafer W to each of these stations. Stations, for example, a second heating station 156, a second cooling station 157, on the photoresist film to prevent diffused reflection during the exposure process. And a third coating station 158 for coating and forming a surface coating layer such as a CEL film on the floor, and a holding / transporting mechanism 110b for transporting a wafer W to each of these stations. The second processing system 159 is provided.
9, a standby mechanism 160 is arranged between the first processing system 150, a mounting table 161 on which one wafer W can be mounted is provided in the standby mechanism 160, and the interface mechanism (standby mechanism) 30 Similarly to the transfer of the wafer W, the wafer W is transferred between the holding and transferring mechanism 110a of the first processing system 150 and the holding and transferring mechanism 110b of the second processing system 159 by using the mounting table 161. The configuration of the standby mechanism 160 may be such that a buffer cassette (not shown) is provided without the mounting table 161, and a plurality of wafers W can be standby by the buffer cassette.

The buffer cassette makes it possible to reduce the waiting time of one of the holding and conveying mechanisms 110a and 110b even if there is a difference in the amount of work between the holding and conveying mechanisms 110a and 110b.

As described above, by using two transfer mechanisms via the standby mechanism 160, it is possible to easily cope with an increase in the number of processing stations in a multi-stage processing process and to perform high-throughput processing.

The transport mechanism is not limited to two systems, but may be two or more systems, and can be appropriately increased with the addition of the standby mechanism.

In the above-described embodiment, the embodiment in which the manufacturing apparatus is applied to the coating and developing processing of a photoresist film has been described. However, the invention of this application is not limited to this.
For example, a resist processing apparatus such as an etching processing, a CVD processing, and an ashing processing, a liquid processing apparatus, and a substrate processing apparatus can be similarly performed.

[0105]

As described above, according to the invention of the present application, a resist processing apparatus and a liquid processing apparatus which are basically different from each other in performing processing of a photoresist film coating portion and a developing portion of a substrate to be processed such as a wafer. In a substrate processing apparatus or the like, a vertical or horizontal process is performed on a predetermined plurality of floors from a loading / unloading mechanism for a substrate to be processed equipped with a storage cassette before and after processing the substrate to be processed. A carriage that is movable along a transport path of a holding / transporting mechanism for holding a substrate to be processed provided on the transport path on a transport path connected to the processing unit of the carriage for the unit; X), the horizontal (Y), vertical (Z), as well as the holding and transporting hand for the substrate to be processed, which has a degree of freedom to selectively and independently rotate in four directions in the turning direction (θ). age To have a forceps having a fulcrum of negative pressure directly to the substrate to be processed to the optimum processing unit depending on the conditions for processing the 該被 substrate by the, addition,
Because it can be applied in throughput, the processing in each processing step can be performed under optimum conditions as a result, resulting in significantly improved performance of the processed product and significantly improved product reliability. The effect is achieved.

A plurality of component parts of the substrate processing apparatus are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface and in a direction along the transfer path, and a plurality of components are arranged in a plane in a direction along the floor surface. Thereby, the floor occupied area can be reduced, and an excellent effect that can be made compact can be achieved.

Further, it is possible to perform a process with high cleanliness even in a processing chamber with relatively low cleanliness, and there is an effect of suppressing contamination on the substrate. Further, by arranging different types of processing units in the vertical direction and the direction along the transport path, there is also an effect that the whole apparatus is improved in compact workability and efficiency is improved.

In addition, in each of the processing steps, an excellent effect that the throughput and the like are improved and the processing efficiency is remarkably improved is exhibited.

Therefore, in various processing apparatuses, even if stations of a plurality of processing units based on a plurality of programs are provided on both sides of the transport path by being vertically stacked from the design stage, even if they are provided from the storage cassette. The processing substrate holding / transporting mechanism can take out the substrate to be processed from the storage cassette and selectively and indirectly connect it to the station of the desired processing unit, either independently or mutually exclusive. Thus, an excellent effect that optimal processing is performed on a target product is achieved.

In the loading / unloading mechanism for the substrate to be processed,
A standby mechanism is provided for the holding and transporting mechanism of the transporting path, and similarly to the holding and transporting mechanism, four directions of the vertical direction (X), the horizontal direction (Y), the vertical direction (Z), and the turning direction (θ) are selectively provided. By providing a standby mechanism that can be displaced independently of each other, it is possible to take out and store substrates to be processed from the storage cassette and into the cassette as designed under optimum conditions. An excellent effect that damage, distortion, dust adhesion, and the like are reliably prevented is achieved. Further, since tweezers having a negative pressure type fulcrum hold each substrate, there is an effect that the operation reliability can be improved accordingly.

Further, since a plurality of processing stations are arranged in a plane on both sides along the passage, the stations on both sides are thermally opposed to each other with a predetermined space therebetween. Therefore, heat management, heat control, and maintenance are easy, and therefore, the degree of freedom in changing the operation program of the holding / transporting mechanism 110 is extremely high, so that the processing program can be changed very easily.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of a photoresist film coating and developing apparatus for a wafer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the tweezers of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view before operation of the tweezers of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the same during operation.

FIG. 5 is a plan view after the operation.

FIG. 6 is a wall side view of the interface.

FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view of the structure of the cassette of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view of another embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a schematic plan view of an apparatus for applying a photoresist film to a wafer based on a conventional technique.

[Explanation of symbols]

 W (1) Substrates to be processed (wafers) 122, 123 (Storage) cassettes 107, 108 Resist coating unit (developing unit) 105, 106 Heating unit 120 Loading / unloading mechanism unit 103, 108 Processing step (station) 102 Transport path 100 Holding Mechanism 110 Holding and transporting mechanism 111 Carriage 112 First holding and transporting mechanism 113 Second holding and transporting mechanism 22 to 24 Support point 30 Standby mechanism 121, 112, 113 Transporting hand (tweezers)

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Osamu Hirakawa 2655 Tsukurei, Kikuyo-cho, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Prefecture Inside Tel Kyushu Co., Ltd. (72) Yoshio Kimura 2655 Tsukurei, Kikuyo-cho, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Prefecture (56) References JP-A-52-27367 (JP, A) JP-A-62-78828 (JP, A) JP-A-61-123150 (JP, A) JP-A-49-107678 (JP, A A) JP-A-61-295949 (JP, A) JP-A-62-46828 (JP, A) JP-A-57-194545 (JP, A) JP-A-62-70141 (JP, A) JP-A-62 -255335 (JP, A) JP-A-63-211645 (JP, A) JP-A-61-190137 (JP, U) JP-A-60-90829 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. . ^7, DB name) H01L 21/68

Claims (12)

(57) [Claims] 1. A resist processing apparatus, wherein a transfer path from a carry-in / out mechanism section in which a storage cassette for storing a plurality of substrates to be processed is disposed to a plurality of different processing sections is connected and extended. The resist processing section has a plurality of mutually different resist coating sections, resist developing sections, heating sections, or cooling sections.
A plurality of mutually different processing units arranged in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface and arranged in a direction along the floor surface and in a direction along the transport path. And a carrier that is movable along the transport path.
And attached to the carriage and perpendicular to the floor
Direction perpendicular to the transport path in a direction parallel to the floor
Moving in each direction, turning in a plane parallel to the floor
At least one pair of tweezers.
Each processing substrate is held one by one and a plurality of
A conveying Organization for loading and unloading the processing unit of the heterologous, sequence of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed into a plurality of mutually upper Symbol device configuration unit for processing <br/> management of heterogeneous by conveying mechanism A resist processing apparatus which can be arbitrarily set by a series of combined processing procedures. 2. A resist processing apparatus, wherein a transfer path from a carry-in / out mechanism unit in which a storage cassette for storing a plurality of substrates to be processed is disposed to a plurality of mutually different processing units is connected and extended. resist processing unit resist coating unit, the resist developing unit, a heating unit, or a different plurality of mutually out of the cooling unit
It has a seed processing unit, a plurality of processing units and those arranged side by side a plurality in the direction perpendicular to the floor surface in a direction along the floor surface
A plurality of device components arranged side by side in the direction along the transport path , and a holding / transporting mechanism that holds and transports the substrate to be processed one by one to a plurality of processing units of the device components,
A carriage that is movable along the path;
To the floor surface in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface and
In each direction of the direction perpendicular to the transport path
At least one pincer that pivots in a plane parallel to the floor
And the tweezers are used to hold substrates to be processed one by one.
To handle a plurality of mutually different processing units
And a transport mechanism for loading and unloading by, can be arbitrarily set by the processing procedure for combining the sequence of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed to the processing unit of the heterologous plurality of mutually upper Symbol device components a series by conveying mechanism A resist processing apparatus characterized in that: 3. A resist processing apparatus conveying path from loading and unloading mechanism for storage cassette a substrate to be processed to a plurality retract and are arranged to the processing unit of the plurality of mutually different is extended by connecting Having a plurality of mutually different processing units of a resist coating unit, a resist developing unit, a heating unit, or a cooling unit on both sides of the transport path, respectively ,
A method in which a plurality of different types of processing units are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface in a direction along the floor surface and along the transport path.
A plurality of device components arranged side by side in a direction , and a holding / transporting mechanism for holding and transporting the substrates to be processed one by one to a plurality of different processing units of the device components moves along the transport path.
With a free carriage, attached to the carriage
In a direction perpendicular to the floor surface and in a plane parallel to the floor surface.
Move in each direction perpendicular to the transport route and in a plane parallel to the floor
At least one tweezer that pivots with
The tweezers hold each substrate to be processed one by one, and
Carrying in and out of multiple mutually different processing units
A transport mechanism, wherein the transport mechanism can arbitrarily set the order of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed to and from a plurality of mutually different processing units of the apparatus constituting unit by a series of combined processing procedures. Resist processing equipment. 4. A resist processing apparatus, wherein a transfer path from a carry-in / out mechanism section in which a storage cassette for storing a plurality of substrates to be processed is arranged to a plurality of mutually different processing sections is connected and extended. resist coating unit, or the resist at least Izure or the other processing unit of the developing unit and those juxtaposed side by side a plurality in the direction perpendicular to the floor surface in a direction along the floor surface
And device group liquid processing systems that are arranged along a plurality in the direction along the conveying path, the heating unit, or that at least one of the processing system of the cooling unit and juxtaposed side by side a plurality in the direction perpendicular to the floor surface In the direction along the floor and on the transport path
Along the apparatus group of the heat treatment system arranged direction, and the device configuration section comprising the devices and the apparatus group of the liquid processing system of the heat treatment system, for a plurality of processing units of the apparatus components The holding and transport mechanism that holds and transports the substrate to be processed one by one
A carriage that is movable along the path;
Perpendicular及 beauty floor on the floor surface attached to the di and flat
In each direction of the direction perpendicular to the transport path
At least one pincer that pivots in a plane parallel to the floor
And the tweezers are used to hold substrates to be processed one by one.
To handle a plurality of mutually different processing units
And a transfer mechanism for carrying in and out, and the transfer mechanism allows the order of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed to and from a plurality of mutually different processing units of the apparatus constituent parts to be arbitrarily set by a series of combined processing procedures. A resist processing apparatus, characterized in that: 5. The resist processing apparatus conveying path from loading and unloading mechanism for revenue cassette containing plural sheets of the substrate to be processed is placed into the processing unit of the plurality of mutually different is extended by connecting, resist coating unit, or the resist at least Izure or the other processing unit of the developing unit and those arranged side by side a plurality in the direction perpendicular to the floor surface in a direction along the floor surface
Heating unit and the device group of the transfer liquid processing systems that are arranged along a plurality in the direction along the path, or at least Izure or the other processing unit of the cooling unit which is disposed side by side a plurality in the direction perpendicular to the floor surface In the direction along the floor and along the transport path
It is configured as an apparatus unit and a liquid processing system of the devices of device group and the <br/> heat treatment system of the heat treatment system disposed side by side a plurality in the direction Tsu before
The holding and transport mechanism that can move along the transport path
And attached to the carriage to hang on the floor.
Perpendicular to the transport path in a normal direction and in a plane parallel to the floor
Direction in each direction, and pivot in a plane parallel to the floor.
At least one tweezer, and
Each substrate to be processed is held one by one and the
Equipped with a transport mechanism for carrying in and out of processing units of different types,
The transport mechanism allows the order of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed into and out of a plurality of mutually different processing sections of the apparatus constituting section to be arbitrarily set by a series of combined processing procedures. Resist processing equipment. 6. A resist processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said tweezers have a fulcrum of a negative pressure type. 7. A liquid processing apparatus, wherein a transport path extending from a carry-in / out mechanism section in which a storage cassette for storing a plurality of substrates to be processed is disposed to a plurality of mutually different processing sections is connected. and the transport path a plurality of liquid processing unit that houses arranged more in the direction perpendicular to the floor surface in a direction along the floor surface
Heating unit the devices and a plurality side by side arranged hydraulic system in the direction along the, or the floor of at least Izure or the other processing unit that features arranged plurality in a direction perpendicular to the floor of the processing section of the cooling unit In the direction along and along the transport path
A device structure portion constituted by the devices and the liquid system of the devices of device group and the heat system of the thermal system disposed side by side plurality, the transport path for a plurality of processing units of the apparatus components Move along
The free holding and conveying mechanism has a carriage, and the carriage
Attached to the floor perpendicular to the floor and parallel to the floor
In each direction perpendicular to the transport path
At least one tweezer that pivots in a plane parallel to the
And hold the substrate to be processed one by one with the tweezers.
To a plurality of mutually different processing units
A transport mechanism for carrying in and out the substrate, and the transport mechanism allows the order of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed into and out of a plurality of mutually different processing sections of the apparatus component section to be arbitrarily set by a series of combined processing procedures. A liquid processing apparatus characterized in that: 8. A liquid processing apparatus, wherein a transport path extending from a carry-in / out mechanism section in which a storage cassette for storing a plurality of substrates to be processed is arranged to a plurality of mutually different processing sections is connected. liquid processing unit, a heating unit, or of the processing unit of the cooling unit
An apparatus component having a plurality of mutually different processing sections, and a plurality of processing sections arranged in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface and in a direction along the transport path; transportable holding and conveying one by one the target substrate to a plurality of processing units of the components
A carriage mechanism that can move along the transport path moves the carriage.
And mounted on the carriage and perpendicular to the floor surface.
Direction and in a plane parallel to the floor, perpendicular to the transport path
Moving in each direction of and turning in a plane parallel to the floor
And one tweezer.
Each substrate is held one by one, and a plurality of
A transport mechanism for carrying in and out of the different types of processing units, wherein the order of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed into and out of the plurality of mutually different types of processing units of the apparatus constituting unit is performed by a series of combined processing procedures. A liquid processing apparatus characterized in that it can be set arbitrarily. 9. A liquid processing apparatus in which a transport path extending from a carry-in / out mechanism section in which a storage cassette for storing a plurality of substrates to be processed is disposed to a plurality of mutually different processing sections is connected. liquid processing unit, a heating unit, or of the processing unit of the cooling unit
It has a plurality of mutually different processing units, and the several processing units are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface and along the transport path.
Holding and conveying each sheet substrate to be processed for a plurality of processing units of the plurality arranged by arranging the device components and the device components to
The carriage is a carriage mechanism that can move freely along the transport path.
And attached to the carriage and perpendicular to the floor surface.
Direction perpendicular to the transport path in a direction parallel to the floor
Moving in each direction, turning in a plane parallel to the floor
At least one pair of tweezers.
Each processing substrate is held one by one and a plurality of
And a transfer mechanism for carrying in and out of the different types of processing units. The order of loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed into and out of the plurality of processing units of the above-described apparatus constituent parts is arbitrarily set by a series of processing procedures. A liquid processing apparatus characterized in that it can be used. 10. A liquid processing apparatus, wherein said transport path extends from a carry-in / out mechanism section in which a revenue cassette accommodating a plurality of substrates to be processed is disposed to a plurality of mutually different processing sections. each liquid processing units on both sides of the conveying path, the heating unit, or a double plurality of mutually of the processing unit of the cooling unit
Includes a processing unit of the heterologous, said plurality of processing units and a system configuration unit, which is arranged plurality in a direction along the and the transport path in a direction perpendicular to the floor, different plurality of mutually of the device components
Movable holding transport mechanism along the transport path for transporting holding one by one substrate to be processed with respect to the species of the processing unit Kyari'
And attached to the carriage to hang on the floor.
Perpendicular to the transport path in a normal direction and in a plane parallel to the floor
Direction in each direction, and pivot in a plane parallel to the floor.
At least one tweezer, and
Each substrate to be processed is held one by one and the
Equipped with a transport mechanism for carrying in and out of processing units of different types,
And characterized in that to be able to arbitrarily set by the processing procedure to be combined <br/> a series the order of the loading and unloading of the substrate to be processed to the processing unit of the heterologous plurality of mutually the device components by the transfer mechanism Liquid processing equipment. 11. A liquid processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said tweezers has a negative pressure type fulcrum. 12. A storage cassette for a substrate to be processed, wherein a plurality of different cassettes are provided from a loading / unloading mechanism for the substrate to be processed.
In a substrate processing apparatus in which the transport path to the type of processing section is connected and extended, some of the processing sections of the resist processing apparatus, the resist developing section, the heating section, or the cooling section are mutually connected.
A plurality of processing units, and a plurality of the processing units arranged in a stacked manner in a direction perpendicular to the floor surface and in a direction along the transport path in a plane along the transport path. more side by side arranged, transported holding and transporting the substrate to be processed
A holding / transporting mechanism that can move along the path has a carriage.
And attached to the carriage and perpendicular to the floor.
Direction perpendicular to the transport path in a plane parallel to the
It moves in each direction and turns in a plane parallel to the floor.
And one tweezers, and the carriage is different from the above.
It has a transport mechanism for loading and unloading to and from the seed processing unit.
The carriage has at least two superimposed tweezers having a movable negative pressure fulcrum, and the tweezers are used for processing.
Each substrate is loaded and unloaded into and out of the part to be processed.
And a transfer mechanism for loading and unloading the substrate to and from the several processing units via the tweezers.
Substrate processing apparatus is characterized in that to be able to arbitrarily set by the processing procedure to be combined to.