Substrate processing apparatus, substrate processing system, and substrate processing method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10665487-B2
Application number	US-201515305088-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 17, 2015
Priority date	Apr 18, 2014
Publication date	May 26, 2020
Grant date	May 26, 2020

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to improve a substrate processing apparatus using the CARE method.
The present invention provides a substrate processing apparatus for polishing a processing target region of a substrate by bringing the substrate and a catalyst into contact with each other in the presence of processing liquid. The substrate processing apparatus includes a substrate holding unit configured to hold the substrate, a catalyst holding unit configured to hold the catalyst, and a driving unit configured to move the substrate holding unit and the catalyst holding unit relative to each other with the processing target region of the substrate and the catalyst kept in contact with each other. The catalyst is smaller than the substrate.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A substrate processing apparatus for processing a processing target region of a substrate by bringing the substrate and a catalyst into contact with each other in the presence of processing liquid, the substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a substrate holding unit configured to hold the substrate, the substrate holding unit comprising a stage having a vacuum port connected to a vacuum line;
a catalyst holding unit configured to hold the catalyst; a processing liquid supply passage defined in the catalyst holding unit, and the catalyst holding unit including a supply port for supplying the processing liquid passed through the processing liquid supply passage onto the processing target region of the substrate, the supply port defined in the catalyst and being in communication with the processing liquid supply passage; and
a driving unit configured to move the substrate holding unit and the catalyst holding unit relative to each other with the processing target region of the substrate and the catalyst kept in contact with each other, the driving unit comprising a first motor for rotating the stage of the substrate holding unit and a second motor for rotating the catalyst holding unit.

2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the catalyst holding unit includes:
a buffer portion configured to temporarily hold the processing liquid in the catalyst holding unit; and
a plurality of supply ports for supplying the processing liquid passed through the catalyst holding unit onto the processing target region of the substrate, the plurality of supply ports being in fluid communication with the buffer portion.

3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the catalyst holding unit includes an elastic member for holding the catalyst.

4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein:
the elastic member includes a structure having a pressure chamber formed by an elastic film;
a layer of the catalyst is formed on an outer surface of the elastic film; and
the pressure chamber is configured to control a contact pressure between the processing target region of the substrate and the catalyst by control of fluid supplied into the pressure chamber.

5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:
the catalyst holding unit includes an elastic member for holding the catalyst;
the elastic member includes a sponge having a cavity,
wherein the processing liquid supply passage is in fluid communication with the sponge,
wherein a layer that is a layer of the catalyst and has a pore is formed on an outer surface of the sponge.

6. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:
the catalyst holding unit includes an elastic member for holding the catalyst;
a plurality of grooves is formed on the elastic member, and the catalyst is embedded in each of the plurality of grooves.

7. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:
the catalyst holding unit includes an elastic member for holding the catalyst;
a plurality of grooves for transferring the processing liquid is formed on the elastic member.

8. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:
the catalyst holding unit includes an elastic member for holding the catalyst;
the elastic member comprises a plurality of elastic members; and
each of the plurality of elastic members individually holds the catalyst.

9. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the catalyst includes two or more kinds of individual catalysts, or is a mixture or a compound containing two kinds of catalysts.

10. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the catalyst holding unit comprises a plurality of catalyst holding units, and
wherein each of the plurality of catalyst holding units individually holds the catalyst.

11. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 10 , wherein at least two of catalyst holding units, among the plurality of catalyst holding units, hold different kinds of catalysts from each other.

12. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the catalyst holding unit is disposed above the substrate holding unit, and
wherein the substrate holding unit includes a wall extending vertically upwardly throughout an entire circumferential direction outside a region for holding the substrate.

13. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a processing liquid holding unit surrounding the catalyst holding unit around the catalyst holding unit and open on a substrate side that faces the substrate, the processing liquid holding unit being configured to hold the processing liquid in this processing liquid holding unit,
wherein the processing liquid is supplied into the processing liquid holding unit.

14. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 13 , further comprising a processing liquid suction unit in communication with the inside of the processing liquid holding unit, the processing liquid suction unit being configured to suck the processing liquid held in the processing liquid holding unit.

15. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the catalyst holding unit includes a spherical body or a cylindrical body with the layer of the catalyst formed on a spherical surface of the spherical body or a circumferential surface of the cylindrical body, the spherical body or the cylindrical body being configured in such a manner that, when the substrate holding unit and the catalyst holding unit are moved relative to each other, the spherical body or the cylindrical body is rotatable according to this relative movement.

16. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 15 , wherein the spherical body or the cylindrical body includes an elastic member therein.

17. A substrate processing system comprising:
the substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 ;
a substrate cleaning unit configured to clean the substrate; and
a substrate transfer unit configured to transfer the substrate.

18. The substrate processing system according to claim 17 , further comprising a Chemical Mechanical Polishing apparatus configured to polish the substrate before or after the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus.

19. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a control unit configured to control an operation of the substrate processing apparatus,
wherein the control unit performs control so as to move the catalyst holding unit in an in-plane direction of the processing target region of the substrate with the processing target region of the substrate and the catalyst kept in contact with each other, and performs control so as to change a speed at which the catalyst holding unit is moved according to a position of the catalyst holding unit on the processing target region of the substrate.

20. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the catalyst holding unit including a plurality of grooves configured to allow the processing liquid to flow between the catalyst holding unit and the substrate with the catalyst holding unit and the substrate kept in contact with each other.

21. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 20 , wherein the plurality of grooves each has such a trapezoidal shape in cross-section that a width of the groove is wider at an opening of th

Assignees

• Ebara Corp

Inventors

• Kobata Itsuki
• Yagi Keita
• Watanabe Katsuhide
• Shiokawa Yoichi
• Maruyama Toru
• Takahashi Nobuyuki

Classifications

• B24B37/20

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• H10P95/064 Primary

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• H10P95/04

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• H10P74/238

  comprising acting in response to an ongoing measurement without interruption of processing, e.g. endpoint detection or in-situ thickness measurement · CPC title