JP5416075B2 - Processing apparatus, processing method, program, and computer storage medium - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a processing apparatus, a processing method, a program, and a computer storage medium for processing a substrate using a processing liquid having a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature.

  For example, in a semiconductor device manufacturing process, for example, a photolithography process is performed on a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as “wafer”) to form a predetermined resist pattern on the wafer. In this photolithography process, a wafer exposure process is performed using a mask substrate on which a predetermined pattern is formed.

  A photolithography process is also performed when a predetermined pattern is formed on the mask substrate. That is, first, a resist coating process for applying a resist solution on a substrate to form a resist film, an exposure process for exposing the resist film to a predetermined pattern, a developing process for developing the exposed resist film, and the like are sequentially performed. A predetermined resist pattern is formed thereon. Thereafter, the substrate is etched using the resist pattern as a mask, the resist film is removed, and a predetermined pattern is formed on the substrate.

  When a predetermined pattern is formed on a substrate, the pattern is required to be miniaturized in order to achieve higher integration of semiconductor devices. Therefore, it is required to perform the above-described development processing uniformly within the substrate surface. However, since the developing solution at room temperature is supplied onto the substrate in the conventional developing process, the developing speed is high, and the development of the resist film starts when the developing solution contacts the resist film on the substrate. For this reason, the resist film cannot be developed uniformly within the substrate surface.

  Therefore, in order to slow down the developing speed of the developing process, it has been proposed to supply a developing solution at a low temperature, for example, 5 ° C. from the nozzle onto the substrate. Further, when such a low temperature developer is used, the temperature of the developer is lower than the temperature of the surrounding atmosphere. Therefore, in order to prevent the nozzle supplying the developer from condensing, the nozzle is covered with a heat insulating material, and dry air or a gas whose humidity is lower than that of the surrounding air is applied to the tip of the nozzle not covered with the heat insulating material. Supply is also proposed (Patent Document 1).

JP-A-7-142322

  However, as described in Patent Document 1, when a gas supply unit that directly supplies a gas to the tip of the nozzle is directly provided, the nozzle itself increases in size. In addition, the nozzle can move between the upper part of the holding member that holds the substrate and the nozzle bath that waits for the nozzle. However, as the size of the nozzle increases, a moving mechanism that moves the nozzle becomes large. .

  Also, normally, the time in which the nozzle is waiting in the nozzle bath is longer than the time in which the nozzle moves between the upper part of the substrate holding member and the nozzle bath in order to supply the developer or the like. May occur. If dew condensation occurs during the standby of the nozzle, water droplets adhering to the nozzle fall on the substrate, resulting in uneven development, making it impossible to develop the resist film uniformly within the substrate surface. Therefore, it is necessary to effectively prevent dew condensation while the nozzle is on standby.

  The present invention has been made in view of such points, and in the processing using various low-temperature processing liquids including a developing solution, the occurrence of dew condensation in the processing liquid nozzle that supplies the processing liquid is prevented. It is an object of the present invention to uniformly perform the treatment with the treatment liquid within the substrate surface.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a processing apparatus for processing a substrate using a processing liquid having a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature, and a holding member that holds the substrate, and the processing liquid is supplied onto the substrate. A processing liquid nozzle, a nozzle bath that accommodates the tip of the processing liquid nozzle that is retracted from above the holding member, and the processing liquid nozzle that is on standby is provided between the processing liquid nozzle that is waiting on the nozzle bath. And a pair of purge gas nozzles extending longer than the horizontal length of the exposed portion exposed from the nozzle bath of the processing liquid nozzle and supplying a purge gas containing no moisture to the exposed portion. . In addition, normal temperature is 23 degreeC, for example.

  According to the present invention, while the processing liquid nozzle is waiting in the nozzle bath, the purge gas not containing moisture is supplied from the pair of purge gas nozzles to the exposed portion of the processing liquid nozzle. For this reason, even when a processing liquid having a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature is used, it is possible to prevent the processing liquid nozzle from condensing and prevent the condensed water droplets from being dropped on the substrate. Can do. Therefore, the processing can be performed uniformly within the substrate surface. In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent dew condensation of the processing liquid nozzle simply by providing a pair of purge gas nozzles, so that the processing apparatus can be simplified and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Note that the time for supplying the processing liquid from the processing liquid nozzle and processing the substrate is extremely short compared to the time for which the processing liquid nozzle waits in the nozzle bath. Will not condense.

  A treatment liquid supply pipe that supplies the treatment liquid and has a double pipe structure is connected to the treatment liquid nozzle. In the treatment liquid supply pipe, the treatment liquid flows in an inner pipe, and the inner side A purge gas that does not contain moisture may be circulated between this pipe and the outer pipe.

  A seal member that abuts the treatment liquid nozzle and seals the inside of the nozzle bath may be provided at an upper end of the nozzle bath.

  The processing apparatus may include a rinsing liquid nozzle that supplies a rinsing liquid having a temperature equal to or lower than the predetermined temperature on a substrate, and the processing liquid nozzle and the rinsing liquid nozzle may be supported by one support member. In this case, the rinsing liquid nozzle is connected to a rinsing liquid supply pipe that supplies the rinsing liquid and has a double-pipe structure. In the rinsing liquid supply pipe, the rinsing liquid circulates in the inner pipe. A purge gas not containing moisture may be circulated between the inner pipe and the outer pipe.

  The processing apparatus includes another processing liquid nozzle that lowers the surface tension of the rinsing liquid on the substrate and supplies another processing liquid at the predetermined temperature onto the substrate. The processing liquid nozzle and the rinsing liquid The nozzle and the other treatment liquid nozzle may be supported by one support member. In such a case, the other processing liquid nozzle is connected to another processing liquid supply pipe that supplies the other processing liquid and has a double-pipe structure. In the other processing liquid supply pipe, The other treatment liquid may circulate, and a purge gas that does not contain moisture may circulate between the inner pipe and the outer pipe. For example, isopropyl alcohol is used as the other processing liquid.

  The processing liquid nozzle may be provided with a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of the processing liquid.

  The predetermined temperature is preferably 1 ° C to 10 ° C.

  The processing solution described above may be a developing solution used when developing the exposed substrate.

  The present invention according to another aspect is a method of processing a substrate using a processing liquid having a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature, supplying the processing liquid from a processing liquid nozzle onto a substrate held by a holding member, A processing step of processing the substrate, and then a standby step of moving the processing liquid nozzle from above the holding member to the nozzle bath, accommodating the tip of the processing liquid nozzle in the nozzle bath, and waiting the processing liquid nozzle. A pair of purge gases that are provided in the standby step so as to sandwich the processing liquid nozzle waiting in the nozzle bath and extend longer than the horizontal length of the exposed portion of the processing liquid nozzle exposed from the nozzle bath. A purge gas not containing moisture is supplied from the nozzle to the exposed portion.

  A treatment liquid supply pipe that supplies the treatment liquid and has a double pipe structure is connected to the treatment liquid nozzle. In the treatment process and the standby process, the treatment liquid is disposed in a pipe inside the treatment liquid supply pipe. And a purge gas containing no moisture may be allowed to flow between the inner pipe and the outer pipe.

  The predetermined temperature is preferably 1 ° C to 10 ° C.

  Also in these methods, the processing solution described above may be a developing solution used when developing the exposed substrate.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program that operates on a computer of a control unit that controls the processing device in order to cause the processing method to be executed by the processing device.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, a readable computer storage medium storing the program is provided.

  According to the present invention, in the processing using a low temperature processing liquid, it is possible to prevent the processing liquid nozzle from being condensed and to perform the processing uniformly within the substrate surface.

It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the outline of a structure of the image development processing apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a top view which shows the outline of a structure of a holding member. It is a cross-sectional view showing the outline of the configuration of the development processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. It is a perspective view of a composite nozzle body. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a composite nozzle body. It is a perspective view of a composite nozzle body and a nozzle bath. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which the composite nozzle body is waiting on a nozzle bus | bath. It is the flowchart which showed each process of the development processing. It is a perspective view of the composite nozzle body concerning other embodiment. It is a cross-sectional view which shows the outline of a structure of the development processing apparatus concerning other embodiment.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an outline of a configuration of a development processing apparatus 1 as a processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. The temperature of the developer used in the development processing apparatus 1 is a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature (23 ° C.), for example, 1 ° C. to 10 ° C., and is 3 ° C. in the present embodiment. In this embodiment, a case where the above-described mask substrate G is developed as a substrate will be described. The substrate G has, for example, a rectangular shape in plan view, and is made of, for example, glass. Further, a resist film is formed on the substrate G in advance when it is carried into the development processing apparatus 1.

  Next, the configuration of the development processing apparatus 1 described above will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the development processing apparatus 1 has a processing container 10 in which a loading / unloading port (not shown) for the substrate G is formed on a side surface. The inside of the processing container 10 can be sealed, and in the present embodiment, the temperature of the atmosphere inside the processing container 10 is maintained at a temperature lower than normal temperature (23 ° C.), for example, 15 ° C.

  A holding member 20 that holds and rotates the substrate G is provided inside the processing container 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the holding member 20 has an accommodating portion 21 that accommodates the substrate G therein. A support frame 22 that supports the accommodating portion 21 is provided on the lower surface of the accommodating portion 21 that is opened. The support frame 22 is arranged in a cross shape around a shaft 24 described later, and can support the lower surface of the substrate G accommodated in the accommodating portion 21. The inner periphery of the accommodating portion 21 has a substantially rectangular planar shape that matches the outer shape of the substrate G. The outer periphery of the accommodating part 21 has a substantially circular planar shape. Here, the transfer arm A is used to carry the substrate G into and out of the processing container 10 of the development processing apparatus 1. The transfer arm A is provided with holding portions B that hold the corners of the substrate G, for example, at four locations. In order to avoid the holding part B of the transfer arm A from interfering with the storage part 21 when the substrate G is transferred from the transfer arm A to the storage part 21, there are four notches 23 on the outer periphery of the storage part 21. Is formed.

  The support frame 22 of the holding member 20 is attached to the shaft 24 as shown in FIG. A rotation drive unit 25 is provided below the holding member 20 via the shaft 24. By this rotation drive unit 25, the holding member 20 can be rotated around the vertical at a predetermined speed and can be moved up and down.

  A guide ring 30 protruding upward is provided on the lower side of the holding member 20, and the outer peripheral edge of the guide ring 30 is bent and extends downward. A cup 31 is provided so as to surround the holding member 20, the substrate G held by the holding member 20, and the guide ring 30.

  The cup 31 is formed with an opening larger than the substrate G so that the holding member 20 can be moved up and down on the upper surface, and a gap 32 is formed between the side peripheral surface and the outer peripheral edge of the guide ring 30. Has been. The lower side of the cup 31 forms a curved path together with the outer peripheral edge portion of the guide ring 30 to constitute a gas-liquid separation part. An exhaust port 33 is formed in the inner region of the bottom of the cup 31, and an exhaust pipe 33 a is connected to the exhaust port 33. Further, a drain port 34 is formed in the outer region of the bottom of the cup 31, and a drain tube 34 a is connected to the drain port 34.

  Below the holding member 20 and on the guide ring 30, back rinse nozzles 35 and 35 that inject a rinse liquid toward the back surface of the substrate G are provided, for example, at two locations. For example, a supply pipe 36 for supplying a rinse liquid of 3 ° C. is connected to the back rinse nozzle 35. The supply pipe 36 has a double pipe structure. A rinse liquid of 3 ° C., for example, circulates in the inner pipe of the supply pipe 36, and a normal temperature purge gas such as air or nitrogen gas that does not contain moisture circulates between the inner pipe and the outer pipe. This purge gas prevents the supply pipe 36 from condensing. As shown in FIG. 1, the rinse liquid is supplied from the rinse liquid supply source 37 to the supply pipe 36, and the purge gas is supplied from the purge gas supply source 38 to the supply pipe 36.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a rail 40 extending along the Y direction (left and right direction in FIG. 3) is formed on the X direction negative direction (downward direction in FIG. 3) side of the cup 31. The rail 40 is formed, for example, from the outer side of the cup 31 on the Y direction negative direction (left direction in FIG. 3) to the outer side on the Y direction positive direction (right direction in FIG. 3). An arm 41 is attached to the rail 40.

  The arm 41 supports a composite nozzle body 42 that supplies various liquids onto the substrate G. The arm 41 is movable on the rail 40 by a nozzle driving unit 43. As a result, the composite nozzle body 42 can move from the nozzle bath 44 installed on the outer side of the cup 31 on the positive side in the Y direction to above the center of the substrate G in the cup 31. Further, the arm 41 can be moved up and down by a nozzle drive unit 43, and the height of the composite nozzle body 42 can be adjusted.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the composite nozzle body 42 includes, for example, a developer nozzle 50 that supplies a developer onto the substrate G, a rinse liquid nozzle 51 that supplies a rinse liquid onto the substrate G, and a substrate nozzle G. And a processing liquid nozzle 52 as another processing liquid nozzle for supplying a processing liquid as another processing liquid of the invention. The rinse liquid nozzle 51 and the processing liquid nozzle 52 are fixed to the developer nozzle 50 via a fixing member 53. In this embodiment, an organic developer is used as the developer. An organic developer is also used as the rinse liquid. Furthermore, isopropyl alcohol is used as a treatment liquid as another treatment liquid of the present invention.

  A slit-like supply port 60 is formed at the lower end surface of the developer nozzle 50. The developer nozzle 50 can discharge the developer in a strip shape obliquely downward toward the substrate G held by the holding member 20 from the supply port 60. A developer supply pipe 61 that supplies the developer to the developer nozzle 50 is connected to the developer nozzle 50. The developer supply pipe 61 has a double pipe structure. In the inner pipe 62 of the developer supply pipe 61, as shown in FIG. 5, a developer whose temperature is adjusted to 3 ° C., for example, flows. The inner pipe 62 communicates with the supply port 60. Further, a normal temperature purge gas containing no moisture, for example, air or nitrogen gas, flows between the inner pipe 62 and the outer pipe 63. This purge gas prevents the developer supply pipe 61 from condensing. The developer is supplied from the developer supply source 64 to the inner pipe 62 of the developer supply pipe 61. The purge gas is supplied between the inner pipe 62 and the outer pipe 63 from the purge gas supply source 65. The purge gas supply source 65 may not be provided, and the purge gas supply source 38 may supply the purge gas. For the developer nozzle 50, for example, Teflon (registered trademark) is used.

  As shown in FIG. 4, substantially circular supply ports 70 and 71 are formed on the lower end surfaces of the rinse liquid nozzle 51 and the treatment liquid nozzle 52, respectively. The position on the substrate G to which the rinsing liquid and the processing liquid as another processing liquid are supplied from the rinsing liquid nozzle 51 and the processing liquid nozzle 52 is the position on the substrate G to which the developing liquid is supplied from the developing liquid nozzle 50. It almost matches. The rinsing liquid nozzle 51 and the processing liquid nozzle 52 include a rinsing liquid supply pipe 72 and a liquid supply pipe 72 as another processing liquid supply pipe for supplying the rinsing liquid and the processing liquid to the rinsing liquid nozzle 51 and the processing liquid nozzle 52. It is connected. The liquid supply pipe 72 has a double pipe structure including two inner pipes 73 and 74 therein. In the first inner pipe 73, as shown in FIG. 5, a rinse liquid whose temperature is adjusted to, for example, 3 ° C. flows. The first inner pipe 73 is connected to the rinse liquid nozzle 51. In the second inner pipe 74, for example, a treatment liquid whose temperature is adjusted to 3 ° C. flows. The second inner pipe 74 is connected to the processing liquid nozzle 52. Further, between the inner pipes 73 and 74 and the outer pipe 75, a normal temperature purge gas not containing moisture such as air or nitrogen gas flows. This purge gas prevents the liquid supply pipe 72 from condensing. The rinse liquid is supplied from the rinse liquid supply source 76 to the first inner pipe 73.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the upper end of the developer nozzle 50 is supported by a support member 80. Further, the rinsing liquid nozzle 51 and the processing liquid nozzle 52 are disposed through the support member 80. A joint 82 for providing a temperature sensor 81 for measuring the temperature of the developer as shown in FIG. 5 is connected to one side surface of the support member 80. The other side surface of the support member 80 is supported by the arm 41 shown in FIG.

  A ventilation member 83 is provided on the upper surface of the support member 80. The ventilation member 83 is formed with a first gas chamber 84 into which the purge gas in the developer supply pipe 61 flows, and a second gas chamber 85 through which the purge gas flows into the liquid supply pipe 72. Between the first gas chamber 84 and the second gas chamber 85, a flow port 86 through which purge gas flows is formed. Accordingly, the purge gas flowing through the developer supply pipe 61 flows into the liquid supply pipe 72 via the first gas chamber 84, the flow port 86, and the second gas chamber 85. That is, the ventilation member 83 is configured such that the purge gas circulates in the developer supply pipe 61 and the liquid supply pipe 72.

  The composite nozzle body 42 is on standby in the nozzle bus 44 as shown in FIG. The tip of the composite nozzle body 42 is accommodated in the nozzle bath 44. The support member 80, the joint 82, and the ventilation member 83 of the composite nozzle body 42 are exposed from the nozzle bath 44 and exposed to the atmosphere in the processing container 10. In the present embodiment, the support member 80, the joint 82 and the ventilation member 83 constitute an exposed portion in the present invention.

  The nozzle bath 44 has a bus body 90. On the upper surface of the bus main body 90, as described above, the accommodating portion 91 that accommodates the distal end portion of the composite nozzle body 42 is provided. As shown in FIG. 7, an annular seal member 92 is provided on the upper surface of the accommodating portion 91 so as to contact the composite nozzle body 42 and seal the inside of the nozzle bath 44. For the seal member 92, for example, a resin O-ring is used.

  Further, the nozzle bath 44 has a pair of purge gas nozzles 93, 93 as shown in FIG. The pair of purge gas nozzles 93, 93 is connected to a purge gas supply source 94 provided on the upper surface of the bus body 90. The pair of purge gas nozzles 93, 93 are provided with the composite nozzle body 42 waiting in the nozzle bath 44 interposed therebetween. The purge gas nozzle 93 extends in the horizontal direction so as to cover the support member 80, the joint 82, and the ventilation member 83 exposed from the nozzle bath 44 as described above. Then, as shown in FIG. 7, normal temperature purge gas that does not contain moisture, such as air, is supplied to the support member 80, the joint 82, and the ventilation member 83 from a plurality of supply ports (not shown) formed in the longitudinal direction of the purge gas nozzle 93. And nitrogen gas is supplied. This purge gas prevents the support member 80, the joint 82, and the ventilation member 83 from condensing. A normal temperature purge gas that does not contain moisture is also supplied into the nozzle bath 44, and condensation on the tip of the composite nozzle body 42 during standby is prevented.

  Note that the developer supply pipe 61, the liquid supply pipe 72, and the supply pipe 36 described above are each connected to a liquid supply apparatus (not shown). In the liquid supply apparatus, the developer supplied to the developer nozzle 50, the rinse liquid supplied to the rinse liquid nozzle 51 and the back rinse nozzle 35, and the treatment liquid supplied to the treatment liquid nozzle 36 are each heated to 3 ° C. Adjusted.

  The development processing apparatus 1 is provided with a control unit 100 as shown in FIG. The control unit 100 is, for example, a computer and has a program storage unit (not shown). The program storage unit stores a program for executing development processing of the substrate G in the development processing apparatus 1. The program is recorded on a computer-readable storage medium such as a computer-readable hard disk (HD), flexible disk (FD), compact disk (CD), magnetic optical desk (MO), or memory card. Or installed in the control unit 100 from the storage medium.

  The development processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is configured as described above. Next, the development processing performed in the development processing apparatus 1 will be described. FIG. 8 shows the main processing flow of this development processing.

  First, the substrate G is held by the transfer arm A and transferred to the development processing apparatus 1. The substrate G carried into the development processing apparatus 1 is held by the holding member 20. At this time, the temperature of the atmosphere in the development processing apparatus 1 is adjusted to 15 ° C., for example. Subsequently, the composite nozzle body 42 is moved to above the center of the substrate G, and the substrate G is rotated. Then, a rinse liquid of 3 ° C., for example, is supplied from the rinse liquid nozzle 51 to the surface of the rotating substrate G, and a rinse liquid of 3 ° C., for example, is sprayed from the back rinse nozzle 35 to the back surface of the substrate G. Thus, the substrate G is cooled to about 3 ° C. (step S1 in FIG. 8).

  Thereafter, the supply of the rinsing liquid from the rinsing liquid nozzle 51 and the back rinsing nozzle 35 is stopped, and then, for example, a 3 ° C. developing liquid is supplied from the developing liquid nozzle 50 onto the rotating substrate G. The supplied developer is diffused on the substrate G by centrifugal force, and the resist film on the substrate G is developed (step S2 in FIG. 8). At this time, since the substrate G has been cooled to about 3 ° C. in advance, the development speed can be sufficiently slowed down. Therefore, development processing can be performed uniformly within the substrate surface, and a predetermined resist pattern can be formed on the substrate G.

  Thereafter, the supply of the developer from the developer nozzle 50 is stopped, and then, for example, a rinse liquid of 3 ° C. is supplied from the rinse liquid nozzle 51 onto the rotating substrate G. The surface of the substrate G is cleaned with this rinse liquid (step S3 in FIG. 8).

  Thereafter, the supply of the rinsing liquid from the rinsing liquid nozzle 51 is stopped, and then, for example, the processing liquid at 3 ° C. is supplied from the processing liquid nozzle 52 onto the rotating substrate G. Here, when the rinse liquid is supplied onto the substrate G in step S3, so-called pattern collapse easily occurs. The pattern collapse is a phenomenon in which the resist pattern is pulled down by the surface tension of the rinsing liquid and falls down, and particularly occurs when a fine resist pattern is formed. In the present embodiment, isopropyl alcohol, which is a processing solution, is supplied onto the substrate G to reduce the surface tension of the rinsing solution remaining on the resist pattern, thereby preventing pattern collapse. Thus, the surface treatment of the substrate G is performed with the treatment liquid (step S4 in FIG. 8).

  Thereafter, the supply of the processing liquid from the processing liquid nozzle 52 is stopped, and the substrate G is continuously rotated to shake off and dry the processing liquid. Thereafter, the rotation of the substrate G is stopped, and the composite nozzle body 42 is moved to the nozzle bath 44 from above the central portion of the substrate G.

  When the processing in the development processing 30 is completed in this way, the substrate G is transferred from the holding member 20 to the transport arm A and carried out of the development processing apparatus 1. Thus, a series of development processing in the development processing apparatus 1 is completed.

  On the other hand, the tip of the composite nozzle body 42 moved to the nozzle bath 44 is accommodated in the nozzle bath 44. Thus, while the composite nozzle body 42 is waiting in the nozzle bath 44, purge gas is supplied from the pair of purge gas nozzles 93, 93 to the exposed portions of the composite nozzle body 42, that is, the support member 80, the joint 82, and the ventilation member 83 ( Step S5 in FIG. A purge gas is also supplied into the nozzle bath 44. In this way, condensation of the composite nozzle body 42 during standby is prevented. Further, during the standby of the composite nozzle body 42, purge gas flows through the developer supply pipe 61 and the liquid supply pipe 72, respectively, and condensation of the developer supply pipe 61 and the liquid supply pipe 72 is prevented.

Then, the next substrate G _N (note that the symbol “G _N ” does not appear in the figure but is used in the text to distinguish it from the substrate G that has been subjected to processing first) is used in the development processing apparatus 1. The developer remaining in the developer supply pipe 61 from the developer nozzle 50 of the composite nozzle body 42 on standby is discharged into the nozzle bus 44 and discarded before being carried in and subjected to predetermined development processing (FIG. 8). Step S6). This discharge of the developer is performed because the temperature of the developer in the developer supply pipe 61 rises to 3 ° C. or higher while the composite nozzle body 42 is on standby. Thereafter, a developer whose temperature is adjusted to 3 ° C. is supplied from a solution supply device (not shown) to the developer nozzle 50, and a dummy discharge of the developer is performed at the developer nozzle 50 (step S7 in FIG. 8). This dummy discharge is performed in order to stabilize the temperature of the developer supplied from the developer nozzle 50 at 3 ° C. Similarly, in the rinse liquid nozzle 51 and the treatment liquid nozzle 52, discharge of the rinse liquid and the treatment liquid in the liquid supply pipe 72 in step S6 and dummy discharge in step S7 are performed.

Thereafter, the supply of purge gas from the pair of purge gas nozzles 93, 93 is stopped (step S8 in FIG. 8). Subsequently, after moving the composite nozzle body 42 to the center above the substrate G, the substrate G _N, (step S1 in FIG. 8) cooling of the substrate G _N by rinsing liquid on the substrate G _N by developer resist film sequentially line (step S4 in FIG. 8) washed (step S3 in FIG. 8), the surface treatment of the substrate G _N with a processing solution in development (step S2 in FIG. 8), the surface of the substrate G _N by rinsing liquid of Is called. Thereafter, the substrate G is transferred from the holding member 20 to the transfer arm A and unloaded from the development processing apparatus 1. Thus, a series of development processing for the substrate G _N is completed.

  According to the above embodiment, the purge gas containing no moisture is supplied from the pair of purge gas nozzles 93 and 93 to the exposed portion of the composite nozzle body 42 while the composite nozzle body 42 is waiting in the nozzle bus 44 in step 5. doing. For this reason, even when the temperature of the developing solution, the rinsing solution, and the processing solution used in the developing processing apparatus 1 is 3 ° C., which is lower than the normal temperature, the composite nozzle body 42 can be prevented from condensing and dew condensation has occurred. It is possible to prevent water droplets from being dropped on the substrate G. Therefore, development processing can be performed uniformly within the substrate surface. Note that the time for developing the substrate G by supplying the developer, the rinsing liquid, and the processing liquid from the composite nozzle body 42 is extremely short compared to the time that the composite nozzle body 42 waits in the nozzle bus 44. The composite nozzle body 42 does not condense during the developing solution processing.

  Further, the developer supply pipe 61 has a double pipe structure, and a purge gas that does not contain moisture flows between the inner pipe 62 and the outer pipe 63. Similarly, the liquid supply pipe 72 also has a double pipe structure, and a purge gas that does not contain moisture flows between the inner pipes 73 and 74 and the outer pipe 75. Therefore, condensation of the developer supply pipe 61 and the liquid supply pipe 72 can be prevented.

  In addition, a seal member 92 is provided on the upper surface of the accommodating portion 91 of the nozzle bath 44 so as to contact the composite nozzle body 42 and seal the inside of the nozzle bath 44. For this reason, while the composite nozzle body 42 stands by in the nozzle bath 44, the nozzle bus 44 can be filled with the purge gas not containing moisture. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent condensation at the tip of the composite nozzle body 42. Further, when the developer, the rinsing liquid, and the processing liquid are discharged from the composite nozzle body 42 in step S6, or when the dummy discharge of the developer, the rinsing liquid, and the processing liquid is performed from the composite nozzle body 42 in step S7. It is possible to prevent the developing solution, the rinsing solution and the processing solution from flowing out from the nozzle bath 44 to the processing container 10.

  Further, since the developing solution nozzle 50, the rinsing solution nozzle 51, and the processing solution nozzle 52 are provided as an integrated composite nozzle body 42, it is not necessary to provide a plurality of rails 40, arms 41, and nozzle driving units 43. Therefore, the development processing apparatus 1 can be simplified and downsized, and the manufacturing cost of the development processing apparatus 1 can be reduced.

  Further, since the temperature sensor 81 is provided in the developer nozzle 50, the temperature of the developer immediately before being supplied from the developer nozzle 50 onto the substrate G can be measured. For this reason, the temperature of the developer on the substrate G can be reliably maintained at 3 ° C., and the development process can be performed appropriately.

  In the above embodiment, the temperature of the rinse liquid used for cooling the substrate G in step S1 is a predetermined temperature, for example, 3 ° C. However, even if the temperature of the rinse liquid is lower than 3 ° C. Good. In this case, since the temperature of the rinsing liquid used for cleaning the substrate G in step S3 is 3 ° C., another rinsing liquid nozzle 110 is separately provided in the composite nozzle body 42 as shown in FIG. That is, the temperature of the rinse liquid supplied from the rinse liquid nozzle 51 to the substrate G is lower than 3 ° C., and the temperature of the rinse liquid supplied from the other rinse liquid nozzle 110 to the substrate G is 3 ° C.

  The other rinsing liquid nozzle 110 is fixed to the developing liquid nozzle 50 through the fixing member 53 together with the rinsing liquid nozzle 51 and the processing liquid nozzle 52. A substantially circular supply port 111 is formed on the lower end surface of the other rinse liquid nozzle 110. The other rinsing liquid nozzle 110 is connected to the liquid supply pipe 72 described above. In the liquid supply pipe 72, in addition to the two inner pipes 73 and 74, an inner pipe 112 through which a 3 ° C. rinse liquid flows is provided. This inner pipe 112 is connected to another rinse liquid nozzle 110. The other configuration of the composite nozzle body 42 is the same as that of the composite nozzle body 42 shown in FIG.

  In this case, in step S <b> 2 of FIG. 8, the rinse liquid having a temperature lower than 3 ° C. is supplied to the substrate G from the rinse liquid nozzle 51, and the substrate G is cooled. In step S4, a rinse solution of 3 ° C. is supplied from the other rinse solution nozzle 110 onto the substrate G, and the surface of the substrate G is cleaned. The other processing steps are the same as those shown in FIG.

  According to the present embodiment, since the rinse liquid having a temperature lower than 3 ° C. is supplied in step S2, the substrate G can be cooled to about 3 ° C. more rapidly. Therefore, the throughput of the development process for the substrate G can be improved.

  In the above embodiment, the rinsing liquid nozzle 51, the processing liquid nozzle 52, and the other rinsing liquid nozzle 110 are connected to one liquid supply pipe 72. It may be connected to. In this case, each of the rinsing liquid supply pipe and the processing liquid supply pipe has a double pipe structure, and has the same configuration as the developer supply pipe 61. That is, the rinsing liquid or the processing liquid flows in the inner pipe of the rinsing liquid supply pipe or the processing liquid supply pipe, respectively, and a normal-temperature purge gas that does not contain moisture flows between the inner pipe and the outer pipe. This purge gas can prevent dew condensation between the rinse liquid supply pipe and the treatment liquid supply pipe.

  Various types of nozzles can be used as the developer nozzle 50 in the above embodiment. For example, the developer nozzle 120 shown in FIG. 10 may be used. In such a case, the developer nozzle 120 may be a composite. It may be provided separately from the nozzle body 42. The developer nozzle 120 has an elongated shape along the X direction that is the same as or longer than one side dimension of the substrate G. A plurality of discharge ports (not shown) formed in a line along the longitudinal direction are formed on the lower surface of the developer nozzle 120, and the developer can be discharged uniformly from each discharge port.

  The developer nozzle 120 is supported by the arm 121. The arm 121 is movable on the rail 123 extending along the Y direction by the nozzle driving unit 122. As a result, the developer nozzle 120 can move from the nozzle bath 124 installed outside the cup 31 on the Y direction positive direction side to the Y direction negative direction side of the cup 31. Further, the arm 121 can be moved up and down by the nozzle driving unit 122, and the height of the developer nozzle 120 can be adjusted.

  The nozzle bath 124 has the same configuration as the nozzle bath 44 shown in FIG. That is, the tip of the developer nozzle 120 is accommodated in the nozzle bath 124, and the pair of purge gas nozzles 93, 93 of the nozzle bath 124 extends in the horizontal direction so as to cover the exposed portion of the developer nozzle 120 exposed from the nozzle bath 124. . Even in such a case, condensation of the exposed portion of the developer nozzle 120 can be prevented by the purge gas supplied from the pair of purge gas nozzles 93, 93.

  In the above embodiment, the development processing of the mask substrate G has been described. However, the present invention can also be applied to a case where the substrate is, for example, a semiconductor wafer or an FPD (flat panel display). In recent years, in order to form a fine pattern on a substrate, it has been proposed to use a so-called imprint method instead of performing a photolithography process on the substrate. In this method of imprinting, a template having a fine pattern on the surface is pressure-bonded to the resist surface formed on the substrate, and then peeled off, and the pattern is directly transferred to the resist surface. The present invention can also be applied to a case where development processing is performed on such a template. Further, the template may be held in a holder, for example, and the development processing of the present invention may be performed.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the substrate G is developed using an organic developer and an organic rinse solution has been described. However, the present invention uses an alkaline developer and a pure water rinse solution. It can also be applied to the case where the substrate is used for development processing.

In the above embodiments, the case where the substrate G is developed using a developing solution as the processing solution for processing the substrate has been described. However, the present invention treats the substrate using a processing solution other than the developing solution. It can also be applied to In that case, for example, SC1 (NH ₄ OH / H ₂ O ₂ / H ₂ O), SC2 (HCl / H ₂ O ₂ / H ₂ O), hydrofluoric acid, ozone water, carbonated water, IPA (isopropyl alcohol), etc. The processing solution can be used to process the substrate, and for example, the substrate can be applied to cleaning, etching, oxide film formation processing, and the like. In this case, for example, when supplying the processing liquid at a predetermined temperature lower than normal temperature from the nozzle for supplying the processing liquid, water droplets attached to the nozzle due to condensation fall on the substrate, and as a result, the dropped water droplets are formed on the substrate. It can be prevented from becoming a watermark above and causing particles. Furthermore, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the water droplets generated by condensation are mixed with the treatment liquid on the substrate, causing a change in concentration and the desired treatment cannot be obtained.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious for those skilled in the art that various modifications or modifications can be conceived within the scope of the idea described in the claims, and these naturally belong to the technical scope of the present invention. It is understood.

  The present invention is useful when processing a substrate using a processing solution having a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Development processing apparatus 10 Processing container 20 Holding member 35 Back rinse nozzle 42 Compound nozzle body 44 Nozzle bus 50 Developer liquid nozzle 51 Rinse liquid nozzle 52 Processing liquid nozzle 61 Developer liquid supply pipe 62 Inner pipe 63 Outer pipe 72 Liquid supply pipe 73 1st Inner piping 74 Second inner piping 75 Outer piping 80 Support member 81 Temperature sensor 83 Ventilation member 90 Bus body 91 Housing portion 92 Seal member 93 Purge gas nozzle 110 Other rinse liquid nozzle 120 Developer nozzle 100 Controller G substrate

Claims (16)

A processing apparatus for processing a substrate using a processing liquid having a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature,
A holding member for holding the substrate;
A treatment liquid nozzle for supplying the treatment liquid onto the substrate;
A nozzle bath for accommodating the tip of the processing liquid nozzle retracted from above the holding member and waiting for the processing liquid nozzle;
A purge gas that is provided across the processing liquid nozzle waiting in the nozzle bath, extends longer than the horizontal length of the exposed portion of the processing liquid nozzle exposed from the nozzle bath, and does not contain moisture to the exposed portion. A processing apparatus comprising: a pair of purge gas nozzles to be supplied. A treatment liquid supply pipe that supplies the treatment liquid and has a double pipe structure is connected to the treatment liquid nozzle,
In the processing liquid supply pipe, the processing liquid flows in an inner pipe, and a purge gas not containing moisture flows between the inner pipe and the outer pipe. Item 2. The processing apparatus according to Item 1. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a sealing member that abuts the processing liquid nozzle and seals the inside of the nozzle bath is provided at an upper end of the nozzle bath. A rinsing liquid nozzle for supplying a rinsing liquid at a predetermined temperature or lower on the substrate;
The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing liquid nozzle and the rinsing liquid nozzle are supported by a single support member. A rinse liquid supply pipe that supplies the rinse liquid and has a double pipe structure is connected to the rinse liquid nozzle,
The rinsing liquid supply pipe is characterized in that a rinsing liquid is circulated in an inner pipe, and a purge gas not containing moisture is circulated between the inner pipe and the outer pipe. 4. The processing apparatus according to 4. Another treatment liquid nozzle for reducing the surface tension of the rinse liquid on the substrate and supplying another treatment liquid at the predetermined temperature onto the substrate;
The processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the processing liquid nozzle, the rinsing liquid nozzle, and the other processing liquid nozzle are supported by a single support member. The other processing liquid nozzle is connected to another processing liquid supply pipe for supplying the other processing liquid and having a double pipe structure,
In the other processing liquid supply pipe, another processing liquid flows in the inner pipe, and a purge gas not containing moisture flows between the inner pipe and the outer pipe. The processing apparatus according to claim 6. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing liquid nozzle is provided with a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of the processing liquid. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined temperature is 1 ° C. to 10 ° C. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing liquid is a developer. A method of processing a substrate using a processing liquid having a predetermined temperature lower than room temperature,
A processing step of processing the substrate by supplying the processing liquid from the processing liquid nozzle onto the substrate held by the holding member;
Then, the process liquid nozzle is moved from above the holding member to the nozzle bath, and the standby step of waiting the process liquid nozzle by accommodating the tip of the process liquid nozzle in the nozzle bath,
In the waiting step,
From a pair of purge gas nozzles that are provided across the processing liquid nozzle waiting in the nozzle bath and extend longer than the horizontal length of the exposed portion exposed from the nozzle bath of the processing liquid nozzle, with respect to the exposed portion, A processing method comprising supplying a purge gas containing no moisture. A treatment liquid supply pipe that supplies the treatment liquid and has a double pipe structure is connected to the treatment liquid nozzle,
In the treatment step and the standby step, the treatment liquid is caused to flow in a pipe inside the treatment liquid supply pipe, and a purge gas containing no moisture is caused to flow between the inner pipe and the outer pipe, The processing method according to claim 11. The processing method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the predetermined temperature is 1 ° C to 10 ° C. The processing method according to claim 11, wherein the processing solution is a developer. A program that operates on a computer of a control unit that controls the processing device in order to cause the processing device to execute the processing method according to claim 11. A readable computer storage medium storing the program according to claim 15.

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