Substrate processing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10403517-B2
Application number	US-201615044452-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 16, 2016
Priority date	Feb 18, 2015
Publication date	Sep 3, 2019
Grant date	Sep 3, 2019

Abstract

A supply flow passage branches into a plurality of upstream flow passages. A plurality of discharge ports are respectively disposed at a plurality of positions differing in distance from a rotational axis of a substrate. Hydrogen peroxide water, that is one of components of a chemical liquid (SPM), is supplied to the upstream flow passage from a component liquid flow passage. A mixing ratio changing unit including a plurality of first flow control valves and a plurality of second flow control valves independently changes mixing ratios of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide water included in the chemical liquid to be discharged from the plurality of discharge ports for each of the upstream flow passages.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a substrate holder rotating a substrate around a vertical rotational axis passing through a central portion of the substrate while holding the substrate horizontally;
a chamber housing the substrate held by the substrate holder;
a fluid box disposed on a lateral side of the chamber; and
a processing liquid supplying system including a supply flow passage, a plurality of upstream flow passages, a plurality of component liquid flow passages, a plurality of discharge ports, and mixing ratio changing valves, and supplying the substrate held by the substrate holder with a processing liquid including a first liquid and a second liquid that generate heat upon mixing with each other; and
wherein the supply flow passage guides the first liquid toward the plurality of upstream flow passages,
the plurality of upstream flow passages branch from the supply flow passage inside the fluid box and guide the first liquid supplied from the supply flow passage toward the plurality of discharge ports,
the plurality of component liquid flow passages are respectively connected to the plurality of upstream flow passages inside the fluid box and supply each of the plurality of upstream flow passages with the second liquid to be mixed with the first liquid,
the plurality of discharge ports are respectively connected to the plurality of upstream flow passages at positions further downstream than the plurality of component liquid flow passages, and are respectively disposed at a plurality of positions differing in distance from the rotational axis, and respectively discharge the processing liquid including the first liquid and the second liquid mixed at the plurality of upstream flow passages toward a plurality of positions within an upper surface of the substrate including an upper surface central portion of the substrate,
the mixing ratio changing valves independently change mixing ratios of the first liquid and the second liquid included in the processing liquid to be discharged from the plurality of discharge ports for each of the upstream flow passages, and
the plurality of discharge ports include an innermost discharge port that overlaps with the central portion of the substrate in a plan view and an outermost discharge pore that overlaps with a peripheral edge portion of the substrate in a plan view.

2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
downstream ends of the plurality of upstream flow passages are respectively disposed at a plurality of positions differing in distance from the rotational axis and
the mixing ratio changing valves independently change the mixing ratios for each of the upstream flow passages such that mixing ratios of the first liquid and the second liquid approach a maximum mixing ratio at which a temperature of the processing liquid reaches its peak as a distance from the rotational axis to the upstream flow passage increases.

3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein
the mixing ratio changing valves independently change the mixing ratios for each of the upstream flow passages such that the temperature of the processing liquid at the plurality of upstream flow passages increases as the distance from the rotational axis to the upstream flow passage increases.

4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the mixing ratio changing valves include at least one of a plurality of first flow control valves and a plurality of second flow control valves,
the first flow control valves are respectively connected to the plurality of upstream flow passages at positions further upstream than the plurality of component liquid flow passages and independently change flow rates of the first liquid to be mixed with the second liquid for each of the upstream flow passages, and
the second flow control valves are respectively connected to the plurality of component liquid flow passages and independently change flow rates of the second liquid to be mixed with the first liquid for each of the component liquid flow passages.

5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the processing liquid supplying system further includes a plurality of downstream flow passages,
the plurality of discharge ports include a main discharge port discharging the processing liquid toward the upper surface central portion of the substrate and a plurality of auxiliary discharge ports discharging the processing liquid toward a plurality of positions within the upper surface of the substrate, the plurality of positions being away from the upper surface central portion and differing in distance from the rotational axis,
the plurality of upstream flow passages include a main upstream flow passage connected to the main discharge port and a plurality of auxiliary upstream flow passages connected to the plurality of auxiliary discharge ports via the plurality of downstream flow passages, and
each of the plurality of auxiliary upstream flow passages is a branching upstream flow passage that branches into a plurality of the downstream flow passages and each auxiliary discharge port is respectively provided according to each downstream flow passage.

6. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein
the branching upstream flow passages branch into the plurality of downstream flow passages inside the chamber.

7. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the processing liquid supplying system further includes an upstream heater and a plurality of downstream heaters
the upstream heater heats the first liquid to be supplied to the supply flow passage at an upstream temperature,
the plurality of discharge ports include a main discharge port discharging the processing liquid toward the upper surface central portion of the substrate, and a plurality of auxiliary discharge ports discharging the processing liquid toward a plurality of positions within the upper surface of the substrate, the plurality of positions being away from the upper surface central portion and differing in distance from the rotational axis,
the plurality of upstream flow passages include a main upstream flow passage connected to the main discharge port and a plurality of auxiliary upstream flow passages connected to the plurality of auxiliary discharge ports, and
the plurality of downstream heaters are respectively connected to the plurality of auxiliary upstream flow passages, and heat the processing liquid flowing through the plurality of auxiliary upstream flow passages at a downstream temperature higher than the upstream temperature.

8. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the processing liquid supplying system further includes a first nozzle and a second nozzle,
the plurality of discharge ports include a first discharge port, disposed in the first nozzle, and a second discharge port, disposed in the second nozzle, and are aligned in a radial direction orthogonal to the rotational axis in a plan view,
the first nozzle includes a first arm portion extending in a horizontal longitudinal direction and a first tip portion extending downward from a tip of the first arm portion,
the second nozzle includes a second arm portion extending in the longitudinal direction and a second tip portion extending downward from a tip of the second arm portion,
the first arm portion and the second arm portion are aligned in a horizontal alignment direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, and
the tip of the first arm portion and the tip of the second arm portion are separated in the longitudinal direction in a plan view such that the tip of the first arm portion is positioned at the rotat

Assignees

• Screen Holdings Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kobayashi Kenji
• Sawashima Jun
• Nishimura Yuta
• Nakashima Akihiro
• Shimai Motoyuki
• Hatano Akito

Classifications

• H10P72/0602

  Temperature monitoring · CPC title

• H10P72/0434

  mainly by convection · CPC title

• H10P72/0414

  using mainly spraying means, e.g. nozzles · CPC title

• H10P72/0406

  for cleaning followed by drying, rinsing, stripping, blasting or the like · CPC title

• H10P72/0402

  Apparatus for fluid treatment (H10P72/0441, H10P72/0448 take precedence) · CPC title