JPH06120133A - Developer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a developer capable of rapidly cooling a substrate by using gas for cooling. CONSTITUTION:In a developer 2 which supplies in order developing solution and rinsing liquid, and develops a sensitized film, a jetting means 70 of gas for drying is installed above a substrate retaining means 28. At the time of shaking off the rinsing liquid after rising operation, gas for drying is spouted from the jetting means 70, thereby accelerating the drying of the substrate surface.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a developing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in the process of manufacturing a semiconductor device,
A predetermined circuit pattern is transferred onto a substrate to be processed, for example, a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate for LCD by using a photolinography technique, and a developing device is used for developing a photosensitive film (photoresist film) in such a process. It is used. Such a developing device is a semiconductor wafer or an LC.
It is provided with a substrate holding means configured to hold a substrate to be processed such as a D glass substrate or the like so as to be rotatable, and a so-called cup or the like is provided so as to surround the periphery of the substrate holding means to form a developing space. There is. Further, above the substrate holding means, there are provided a developing solution supply nozzle and a rinsing solution supply nozzle for supplying the developing solution and the rinsing solution to the substrate to be processed on the substrate holding means, and at the bottom of the cup or the like. Is provided with a drain pipe for draining the developing solution and the rinse solution.

Then, the substrate to be processed is placed on the substrate holding means, the developer is supplied from the developer supply nozzle to the substrate to be processed, and the developer is piled up on the substrate to be processed by surface tension. As a result, the development is performed for a predetermined time, after which the substrate to be processed is rotated and the developing solution on the substrate to be processed is spun off by centrifugal force,
Thereafter, a rinse liquid such as pure water is supplied to the substrate to be processed from the rinse liquid supply nozzle to perform rinsing, and finally the substrate to be processed is rotated at a high speed to be dried. The used developing solution and rinse solution such as pure water are discharged to the outside through a drainage pipe provided at the bottom of the cup or the like.

[0004]

By the way, after the rinse operation is completed, the substrate is rotated at a high speed of 2000 rpm / min, for example, in order to shake off the rinse liquid and dry the substrate. Since the peripheral speed is fast, it dries relatively quickly, but the peripheral speed is slower than the peripheral part inside the peripheral part, especially in the center part of the rotation, and it takes time to dry. As described above, since it takes time to dry, there is a problem that the overall throughput is reduced. The present invention has been made to pay attention to the above problems and to solve them effectively. An object of the present invention is to provide a developing device capable of quickly drying a substrate by using a drying gas.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention sequentially supplies a developing solution and a rinsing solution to a substrate to be processed held by a rotatable substrate holding means. In a developing device for developing a photosensitive film formed on a substrate to be processed, a drying gas jet for jetting a drying gas for drying the substrate to be processed after the rinse operation by the rinse liquid above the substrate holding means. Means are provided.

[0006]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, when the photosensitive film is developed by the developing solution for a predetermined time, the substrate to be processed held by the substrate holding means is rotated to shake off the developing solution, , Rinse solution is supplied onto the substrate, and the developing solution is washed away. When this rinsing operation is completed, the substrate to be processed is rotated at a high speed to shake off the rinse liquid, and at the same time, a drying gas such as nitrogen gas is jetted from the drying gas jetting means, and this gas is rotated at a peripheral speed. It is applied to the surface of the slow substrate near the center of rotation to accelerate the drying of this portion. This makes it possible to speed up the entire processing process.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the developing device according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a view showing the configuration of a substrate processing system in which the developing apparatus of the present invention is arranged, and FIG.
2 is a plan view of the developing device shown in FIG. First, the substrate processing system 4 in which the developing device 2 according to the present invention is arranged will be described. Needless to say, the developing device 2 may be used alone without being incorporated in the system 4.

The substrate processing system 4 has, on one side thereof, a carrier station 8 in which a plurality of cassettes 6 for accommodating glass substrates for LCDs, for example, as substrates to be processed can be placed, and a substrate is arranged in the center of the carrier station 8. An auxiliary arm 9 is provided for carrying, positioning, and holding and delivering the same to and from the main arm 10. Two substrate transfer main arms 10 are provided in the central portion of the substrate processing system 4 so as to be movable in the length direction, and various processing devices are arranged on both sides of the transfer path. Specifically, the carrier station 8 is used as this processing device.
A brush scrubber 12 for brush-cleaning the glass substrate for LCD, a high-pressure jet cleaner 14 for cleaning with high-pressure jet water, and the like are installed in parallel on the side, and the transfer path of the main arm is opposite. Two developing devices 2 according to the present invention are arranged side by side, and two heating devices 16 are stacked next to each other.

Further, on the side of this device, an adhesion device 20 is provided via a connecting unit 18 for hydrophobizing the photoresist before applying the photoresist to the LCD glass substrate, and below the device. A cooling device 22 for cooling is arranged. The heating devices 16 are arranged on the sides of the devices 20 and 22 so that two heating devices 16 are stacked in two rows. Further, two resist coating devices 24 for coating the photoresist liquid on the LCD substrate are arranged in parallel on the opposite side of the heating device 16 and the adhesion device 20 with the main arm transfer path interposed therebetween. Although not shown, an exposure device or the like for exposing a predetermined fine pattern on the resist film is provided on the side of the resist coating device 24.

The substrate processing system 4 thus configured
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the developing device 2 of the present invention, which is incorporated in the present invention, is provided with a spin chuck 28 as a substrate holding means rotatably and vertically movable by a drive motor 26 as shown in FIGS. The upper surface of the substrate to be processed is, for example, 370 × 45 at maximum by vacuum suction or the like.
It is configured so that a 0 mm rectangular glass substrate 30 for LCD can be adsorbed and held. Around the periphery of the spin chuck 28, a cup mechanism 32 made of resin or metal is provided so as to surround the spin chuck 28 and prevent the rinse liquid such as the developer and the cleaning water from scattering. The cup mechanism 32 has a bottomed cylindrical lower cup 34 whose bottom portion is inclined to one side and whose peripheral portion is erected upward, and is supported by the bottom portion of the lower cup 34 and held by the spin chuck 28. The first inner cup 36 having a donut shape is provided so as to be inclined downward from the lower peripheral edge of the glass substrate 30 to the outside, and the upper center opening is set to be slightly larger than the circumscribed circle of the glass substrate 3 and outward. A doughnut-shaped second inner cup 38 is provided which is inclined downward and can be moved up and down as it goes.

Further, on the outside of the second inner cup 38,
A ring-shaped first outer cup 40 and a second outer cup 42, which are vertically movable relative to each other and are vertically erected, are arranged in parallel. Engaging pieces 40A and 42A are provided on the lower end of the first outer cup 40 and the upper end of the second outer cup 42, respectively, and these engaging pieces 40A and 42A are provided when the first outer cup 40 is lifted upward. Are engaged with each other so that the second outer cup 42 can also be lifted upward. A lower engaging piece 42 is bent inward at the lower end of the second outer cup 42 and is engageable with the lower end of the second inner cup 38.
B is formed so that when the second outer cup 42 is lifted up, the second inner cup 38 can also be lifted up.

A lifting engagement piece 40B bent outward is formed on the upper end of a portion of the first outer cup 40, and this portion is held by the arm 44A of the lifting mechanism 44 and is raised and lowered. As a result, the first and second outer cups 40, 42 and the second inner cup 38 can be lifted. The upper end of the first outer cup 40 when it is down (lowered) is set to be located above the upper end of the spin chuck 28 by about 10 mm, and the first outer cup 40 is lifted up by about 250 mm. Has been made possible. A drain pipe 46 for discharging drainage is connected to the lower end of the inclined bottom of the lower cup 34, and an exhaust pipe 48 for exhausting the atmosphere in the cup mechanism 32 is connected to the bottom of the other end. ing.

On one side of the cup mechanism 32, a developing solution applying means 50 for applying a developing solution onto the glass substrate 30 is provided. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the developing solution applying means 50 is a hollow pipe-shaped developing device made of vinyl chloride having an inner diameter of about 8 mm, which is formed slightly longer than the length of the short side of the rectangular glass substrate 30. Liquid header 52
It has a (developing solution discharge nozzle portion), and a large number of discharge holes 54 having a diameter of about 1 mm are formed at a lower end portion (lower surface side) along the longitudinal direction thereof at a pitch of 2 mm. The developer can be jetted in a line. At both ends of the header 52, developing solution supply ports 56, 56 for supplying a developing solution to the inside are formed, and these supply ports 56, 56 are connected to a developing solution source 57.

A bubble removing port 58 is formed on the upper side of the central portion of the header 52 in the longitudinal direction so that bubbles generated when the developing solution is supplied into the header 52 are discharged to the outside of the header. Is configured. The inner surface of this header 52 is L
When supplying the developing solution to the surface of the glass substrate for CD, unlike the case of supplying the developing solution to the surface of the semiconductor wafer, the pattern accuracy is not as high as that of the pattern of the semiconductor wafer. Therefore, it is necessary to finish the surface as smooth as when supplying it to the surface of the wafer. Without, header processing can be performed easily. And this header 5
2 is connected to a rod-shaped support arm 60 attached in parallel therewith. A transport rail 62 for reciprocally transporting the developer header 52 in the longitudinal direction of the glass substrate 30 is provided on a side portion of the cup mechanism 32.
The rail 62 is provided with an air cylinder, a ball screw driven by a stepping motor or the like along the rail 62, and a gripping arm 64 movable by a belt type moving mechanism (not shown). Is arranged so that the header 52 can be moved along the board 30. The gripping arm 6
A mechanical chuck mechanism 4 using an air cylinder or the like, a vacuum suction type chuck, an electromagnet type chuck or the like is used to grip, sandwich, and suck an object.

A rinsing liquid header 66 for supplying, for example, pure water as a rinsing liquid is provided on the opposite side of the developing solution applying means 50 with the spin chuck 28 interposed therebetween, and the header 66 is directed downward. Two rinsing nozzles 68, 68 are provided for rinsing liquid source 6 after development.
The rinse liquid supplied from the nozzle 9 is discharged from the nozzle 68 onto the glass substrate 30. The rinse header 66 can be gripped by a grip arm 64 provided on the transport rail 62, and the rinse header 66 can be reciprocally transported to the center of the glass substrate.

Above the spin chuck 28, for example, above 150 mm, a drying gas ejection means 70, which is a feature of the present invention, is provided. This ejection means 70 is
It has a gas ejection nozzle 72 provided directly above the spin chuck 28, and this nozzle 72 is connected to a drying gas source 76 via a gas supply pipe 74. Then, if necessary, for example, clean nitrogen gas as a drying gas can be ejected toward the center of the glass substrate 30 as a drying gas when the rinse liquid is shaken off. The drying gas is not limited to nitrogen gas, and clean air or other inert gas may be used. In addition, this nozzle 72
The number is not limited to one, and a plurality may be provided.

The glass substrate 3 is provided on the side of the spin chuck 28 and between the spin chuck 28 and the first inner cup 36.
Wash water jetting means 78 for jetting wash water to the back surface of 0
Is provided. The washing water jetting means 78 has, for example, four washing water jetting nozzles 80 arranged at equal intervals on the outer periphery of the spin chuck 28, and each jetting nozzle 80.
Is configured to be connected to a wash water source 84 via a wash water supply pipe 82 so that the wash water can be sprayed if necessary. In this case, the elevation angles of the ejection nozzles 80 with respect to the glass substrate 30 may be fixed and provided, or a nozzle angle adjusting mechanism (not shown) may be provided to make the elevation angles of the nozzles 80 variable. You may. Further, the injection nozzle 80 may be embedded and attached to the upper surface of the first inner cup 36, for example, on the center side.
The control of the entire apparatus including the drive motor 26, the developing solution source 57, the rinse solution source 69, the drying gas source 76, and the cleaning water source 84 is performed by a control unit 86 including, for example, a microcomputer.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as described above will be described. First, LC as a substrate to be processed
The glass substrate 30 for D is carried out from the cassette 6 of the carrier station 8 via the auxiliary arm 9 and transferred to the main arm 10 and transferred into the brush scrubber 12. The glass substrate 30 that has been brush-cleaned in the scrubber 12 is subsequently dried. The high-pressure jet cleaning machine 14 may be cleaned with high-pressure jet water according to the process. After that, the LCD glass substrate 30 is subjected to a hydrophobic treatment by the adhesion treatment device 20 and cooled by the cooling device 22,
A photoresist, that is, a photosensitive film is applied and formed by the resist applying device 24. Then, after the photoresist is heated by the heating device 16 to be baked, a predetermined pattern is exposed by an exposure device (not shown). Then, the exposed glass substrate 30 is housed in the developing device 2 according to the present invention, where it is developed with the developing solution, and then the developing solution is washed away with the rinse solution to complete the developing process. After that, the processed glass substrate 30 is stored in the cassette 6 of the carrier station 8 and then carried out and transferred to the next processing step.

Here, the developing operation in the developing device 2 will be described in detail. First, the spin chuck 28 is lifted and the glass substrate 30 is transferred from the main arm 10. The spin chuck 28 is sucked and held, and the spin chuck 28 is lowered. To do. In this state, the cup mechanism 32 is also in the down state. And
By operating the gripping arm 64, the supporting arm 60 of the developing solution applying means 50 is gripped so that the developing solution header 52 and the short side of the glass substrate 30 are parallel to each other, and the supporting arm 60 is moved in the longitudinal direction of the glass substrate 30. While scanning, the developing solution A is ejected from a large number of ejection holes 54 provided in the developing solution header 52 to fill the glass substrate. In this case, the developing solution supplied from the developing solution source 57 enters the header 52 through the supply ports 56, 56 at both ends of the developing solution header 52, once flows into the hollow portion, and then from the large number of small-diameter ejection holes 54. It is ejected uniformly. Further, the bubbles generated at this time or the bubbles contained in the developing solution are smoothly discharged from the bubble removing port 58 provided in the central portion thereof, so that the developing solution A applied on the substrate 30 contains bubbles. This can also be suppressed, and the occurrence of defective development can be prevented.

The scanning speed of the developer header 52 is limited to, for example, about 100 mm / sec, and the supply amount of the developer at that time is, for example, 370 × 450 mm for the glass substrate 30.
In the case of, the supply amount is set to about 200 CC so that the developing solution can be deposited on the substrate. Further, in order to prevent the developer from dropping from the discharge hole 54, the developer header 52 is once scanned to the opposite side of the home position without discharging the developer, and when the developer header 52 is returned to the home position, the development is performed. The liquid may be discharged. Alternatively, the one-way method may be used, and after the ejection is completed, the scanning end may be made to stand by. The scanning operation at the time of the above ejection is 1
It may be performed once or multiple times.

In this way, the developing operation is performed by leaving the liquid in a puddle state for a predetermined time, and when the developing operation is completed, the cup mechanism 32 is driven to drive the first and second outer cups 40, 42 and the second inner cup. The glass substrate 3 is moved by raising the cup 38 and driving the spin chuck 28.
0 is rotated at a speed of, for example, 200 rpm, and the developer A on the substrate is shaken off by centrifugal force. At the same time, the rinse header 66 is positioned at the rotation center of the substrate 30 and the rinse nozzle 68 rinses it with pure water. The solution is jetted onto the substrate to wash away the remaining developing solution.

Simultaneously with the above-mentioned rinsing operation, the washing water jetting means 70 arranged on the outer circumference of the spin chuck 28 is driven to wash the washing water from the four washing water jet nozzles 80 toward the outer circumferential surface of the back surface of the glass substrate 30. C is sprayed (see FIG. 6) to wash away the developer or the like that causes particles adhering to the back surface of the wafer. In this case, the developer can be efficiently removed by changing the angle of the spray nozzle 80 to change the spray angle of the wash water.
Therefore, since the generation of particles can be suppressed, the yield can be improved. The waste liquid thus shaken off is received by the inner surface of the second inner cup 38 and the upper surface of the first inner cup 36, flows down to the lower cup 34, is discharged through the drainage pipe 46, and is discharged into the mist. The atmosphere in the cup including is sucked and exhausted through the exhaust pipe 48, and is discharged to the outside of the system through a mist trap (not shown) on the way.

When the rinsing operation and the cleaning operation are completed in this manner, the glass substrate 30 is then removed by, for example, 2000r.
The glass substrate 30 is dried at the same time as the rinse liquid and the washing water are shaken off by rotating at a high speed of about pm. In this case, since the peripheral speed in the vicinity of the rotation center of the substrate is relatively slow, the rinsing liquid is not sufficiently shaken off, and thus it tends to take a long time to dry, but in the present embodiment, at the same time as this shakeout, the drying gas ejection means 70 Is driven to jet a clean drying gas D such as nitrogen gas toward the central portion of the substrate from the gas jet nozzle 72, and the action of the gas D accelerates the drying of the rinse liquid. Therefore, it is possible to improve the throughput of the entire processing step.

In this case, the supply amount of the nitrogen gas D depends on the area of the glass substrate, but in the case of the above-mentioned size, for example, 20.
Supply at a flow rate of liter / min for about 10 to 20 seconds.
Further, in order to further shorten the time required for drying, the temperature of the nitrogen gas supplied may be raised to such an extent that the glass substrate is not inconvenient. Further, as the drying gas, it is needless to say that in addition to the above-mentioned nitrogen gas, clean air, other inert gas, etc. can be used. As described above, according to the present embodiment, the nitrogen gas is ejected toward the central portion of the substrate having a low peripheral speed when the substrate is dried, so that the glass substrate can be dried quickly.

In the above embodiment, the structure of the cup mechanism 32 has been described in which the opening is provided in the central upper portion, but a lid may be provided so as to cover the opening. . For example, as shown in FIG.
A lid 87 that fits into the upper opening of the second inner cup 38 is provided. The lid 87 is made of, for example, stainless steel, has a suspending portion 88 in the center thereof, and can be raised / lowered by the vertical movement of a suspending arm 90 having a bearing 89, and can be rotated. Further, in the suspending portion 88, a gas ejection port 91 (gas ejection nozzle) that communicates with the drying gas supply pipe 74 by a pipe or the like to eject the drying gas toward the glass substrate 30 is provided. .

The lid 87 may be constructed so that the upper portion of the glass substrate 30 can be hermetically sealed, and an air circulation port 92 may be provided as appropriate. The fitting of the lid 87 is performed, for example, after the rinse / cleaning operation is completed and when the glass substrate 30 is shaken off. That is, the lid 87 is lifted in advance by the hanging arm 90 in a hanging state, and is lowered during the shake-off and drying operations to be fitted by its own weight into the opening of the second inner cup 38 which is already raised.
Then, the drying gas is ejected from the gas ejection port 91 to perform the drying as described above. At this time, since the lid body 87 is above the glass substrate 30, the drying gas, together with the exhaust flow formed in the space surrounded by the lid body 87, the second inner cup 38, and the glass substrate 30, causes the glass substrate to dry. Smoothly flows from the central portion of 30 toward the outer peripheral direction to further enhance the drying effect.
Further, it is possible to prevent the droplets or mist of the washed-off cleaning water or the like from being shaken off and re-adhering to the inner wall of the second inner cup 38 or the like and reattaching to the glass substrate 30.

Further, the cup mechanism 32 includes the glass substrate 30.
The lid 87 may be configured to rotate at the same time. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the first inner cup 3 of FIG.
6 is divided into upper and lower parts, and the upper inner cup 36
A, the first inner cup lower portion 36B, and the contact portion 93 is configured to be capable of sealing and sliding. Also, above the first inner cup 3
The center side of 6A is attached to the spin chuck 28, and by rotating the spin chuck 28, the upper inner cup 3
6A also rotates at the same time. In addition, in order to pass the wash water from the wash water injection nozzle 80, an annular slit (not shown) is opened on the first inner cup 36A.

Next, the second inner cup 38 is attached to the first inner cup upper 36A outer peripheral lower end and the mounting member 94, for example, in the vicinity of the outer peripheral lower end, so that the second inner cup 38 can rotate together with the first inner cup upper 36A. It is configured. That is, by rotating the spin chuck 28, the first upper inner cup 36A, the second inner cup 38, and the lid 87 rotate integrally.
The mounting member 94 has a minimum necessary size so that air can smoothly flow, and is provided with a plurality of rod-shaped bodies, for example. At the time of shaking off and drying, as described above, the lid 87 is fitted to the second inner cup 38 by its own weight, and the spin chuck 28 is rotated to rotate the glass substrate 30, the first inner cup upper 36A, and the second inner cup 38. Rotate integrally.

At this time, since the air / drying gas around the glass substrate 30 rotates together with the glass substrate 30, the turbulence of the air flow near the upper part of the glass substrate 30 can be suppressed, so that the flow of the drying gas is smooth. Flows from the center toward the outer circumference, increasing the drying effect. Further, it is possible to prevent the droplets or mist of the washed-off cleaning water or the like from being shaken off and re-adhering to the inner wall of the second inner cup 38 or the like and reattaching to the glass substrate 30.
The size of the air circulation port 92 provided in the lid body 87 may be appropriately selected and determined in accordance with the actual processing situation, and may be substantially closed and substantially sealed.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention, the following excellent operational effects can be exhibited. Since the drying gas is ejected onto the surface of the substrate when the substrate to be processed is rotationally dried, the substrate can be dried in a short time. Therefore, the throughput of the entire processing step can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of a developing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a substrate processing system in which a developing device of the present invention is arranged.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the developing device shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a developing solution applying unit.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a developing solution is applied by a developing solution applying unit.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the substrate to be processed is dried by the drying gas jetting means.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the developing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing still another embodiment of the developing device according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 developing device 28 spin chuck (substrate holding means) 30 glass substrate for LCD (substrate to be processed) 32 cup mechanism 34 lower cup 36 first inner cup 38 second inner cup 40 first outer cup 42 second outer cup 50 developer Coating means 70 Drying gas jetting means 72 Gas jetting nozzle 74 Gas supply pipe 76 Drying gas source 78 Washing water jetting means A Developer C Cleaning water D Drying gas

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Sonzo Sato 2655 Tsukyu, Kikuyo-cho, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Prefecture, Tokyo Electron Kyushu Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Koichi Tagami 2655 Tsukyu, Kikuyo-cho, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Tokyo Within Electron Kyushu Co., Ltd. (72) Shinji Kitamura, 2655 Tsukyu, Kikuyo-cho, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Prefecture Tokyo Electron Kyushu Co., Ltd. (2), Tatsuya Iwasaki, 2655 Tsukyu, Kikuyo-cho, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Tokyo Electron Kyushu Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kengo Mizozaki 2655 Tsukyu, Kikuyo-cho, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Prefecture Tokyo Electron Kyushu Co., Ltd.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A developing device for developing a photosensitive film formed on a substrate to be processed by sequentially supplying a developing solution and a rinse liquid to the substrate to be processed held by a rotatable substrate holding means, A developing device, comprising: above the substrate holding means, a drying gas jetting means for jetting a drying gas for drying the substrate to be processed after the rinse operation with the rinse liquid. 2. The developing device according to claim 1, further comprising: below the substrate holding means, cleaning water spraying means for spraying cleaning water onto the back surface of the substrate to be processed at the time of a rinse operation with the rinse liquid. apparatus.