Abnormality detection device of chemical solution, liquid processing device, substrate processing apparatus, abnormality detection method of chemical solution, liquid processing method, and substrate processing method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12032294-B2
Application number	US-201917048214-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 1, 2019
Priority date	Apr 18, 2018
Publication date	Jul 9, 2024
Grant date	Jul 9, 2024

Abstract

A device includes a chemical solution flow path in which a chemical solution containing polymers flows; a laser beam irradiator configured to irradiate a laser beam to the chemical solution flow path such that an optical path is intersected with a flow direction of the chemical solution in the chemical solution flow path; a light receiving element provided in the optical path passing through the chemical solution flow path; a detector configured to detect, based on a signal output from the light receiving element, an abnormality in a state of polymers corresponding to a majority of the polymers contained in the chemical solution or configured to detect a ratio between a chemical solution containing the polymers and another chemical solution in the chemical solution flow path.

First claim

We claim:

1. An abnormality detection device of a chemical solution, comprising:
a chemical solution flow path in which a chemical solution containing polymers flows;
a laser beam irradiator configured to irradiate a laser beam to the chemical solution flow path;
a light receiving element configured to receive light supplied from the chemical solution flow path;
a detector configured to detect, based on a signal output from the light receiving element, a ratio between a chemical solution containing the polymers and another chemical solution in the chemical solution flow path; and
an analysis processing unit configured to perform an analysis processing on the ratio based on time-series data of signal intensity acquired from the signal outputted from the light receiving element by calculating an average value for each predetermined section while acquiring the time-series data, and comparing the new average value with a reference value at each time a new average value is calculated,
wherein the detector is further configured to detect, based on the signal output from the light receiving element, an abnormality in a state of polymers corresponding to a majority of the polymers contained in the chemical solution,
wherein the detecting of the abnormality in the state of the polymers includes detecting an abnormality of a particle diameter of the polymers based on a background signal for detecting a foreign matter of the chemical solution, and
when a standard deviation of optical particle diameters of the polymers is σ, the majority of the polymers are polymers having optical particle diameters with deviations of ±3σ or less from an average value.

2. The abnormality detection device of the chemical solution of claim 1 ,
wherein the detector detects the abnormality in the state of the polymers based on data subjected to the analysis processing.

3. The abnormality detection device of the chemical solution of claim 2 ,
wherein the analysis processing unit includes an autoencoder to which the time-series data is input, a recurrent neural network or an LSTM.

4. The abnormality detection device of the chemical solution of claim 2 ,
wherein the analysis processing unit performs a Fourier transform on the time-series data of the signal intensity.

5. A liquid processing device, comprising:
an abnormality detection device of a chemical solution as claimed in claim 1 ;
a reservoir configured to supply the chemical solution to the chemical solution flow path and preserve the chemical solution therein;
a nozzle, connected to a downstream side of the chemical solution flow path, through which the chemical solution is supplied to a substrate as a target object; and
a placing section on which the substrate is placed.

6. The liquid processing device of claim 5 , further comprising:
a handling mechanism configured to handle the abnormality in the state of the polymers when the abnormality is detected by the detector.

7. The liquid processing device of claim 6 , further comprising:
a branch path branched from a downstream side of a light irradiation region to be irradiated with the laser beam in the chemical solution flow path and configured to supply the chemical solution to a flow path different from the nozzle,
wherein the handling mechanism includes a switching unit configured to switch a supply destination of the chemical solution passing through the light irradiation region from the nozzle to the branch path when the abnormality in the state of the polymers is detected.

8. The liquid processing device of claim 6 ,
wherein the chemical solution is configured to form a coating film on the substrate,
the abnormality in the state of the polymers includes an abnormality in a concentration of the polymers in the chemical solution, and
the handling mechanism includes a thickness adjustment mechanism configured to adjust a thickness of the coating film on the substrate when the abnormality in the concentration of the polymers is detected.

9. The liquid processing device of claim 8 ,
wherein the thickness adjustment mechanism includes a substrate rotation mechanism configured to adjust an amount of the chemical solution to be removed from the substrate by adjusting a rotation number of the substrate.

10. The liquid processing device of claim 8 ,
wherein the thickness adjustment mechanism includes a supply amount adjustment mechanism configured to adjust a supply amount of the chemical solution to the substrate.

11. A substrate processing apparatus, comprising:
a liquid processing device as claimed in claim 5 ;
a heating module configured to heat the substrate on which a coating film is formed; and
a transfer mechanism configured to transfer the substrate from the liquid processing device to the heating module,
wherein the heating module heats the substrate at a temperature or for a time period depending on presence or absence of the detected abnormality.

12. An abnormality detection method of a chemical solution, comprising:
supplying a chemical solution containing polymers configured to form a coating film on a target object into a chemical solution flow path;
irradiating a laser beam to the chemical solution flow path by a laser beam irradiator;
outputting a signal from a light receiving element configured to receive light supplied from the chemical solution flow path; and
detecting, based on the signal output from the light receiving element, an abnormality in a state of polymers corresponding to a majority of the polymers contained in the chemical solution,
wherein the detecting of the abnormality in the state of the polymers includes detecting an abnormality of a particle diameter of the polymers based on a background signal for detecting a foreign matter of the chemical solution, and
when a standard deviation of optical particle diameters of the polymers is σ, the majority of the polymers are polymers having optical particle diameters with deviations of ±3σ or less from an average value.

13. The abnormality detection method of claim 12 , further comprising:
detecting, based on the signal output from the light receiving element, a ratio between the chemical solution containing the polymers and another chemical solution in the chemical solution flow path; and
performing an analysis processing on the ratio based on time-series data of signal intensity acquired from the signal outputted from the light receiving element by calculating an average value for each predetermined section while acquiring the time-series data, and comparing the new average value with a reference value at each time a new average value is calculated.

14. A liquid processing method, comprising:
an abnormality detection method of a chemical solution as claimed in claim 13 ;
placing a substrate as the target object on a placing section;
supplying a chemical solution from a reservoir configured to preserve the chemical solution therein to the chemical solution flow path; and
supplying the chemical solution to the substrate from a nozzle connected to a downstream side of the chemical solution flow path.

15. The liquid processing method of claim 14 ,
wherein the chemical solution is configured to form the coating film on the substrate.

16. A substrate processing method, comprising:
a liquid processing method as claimed in claim 14 ;
transferring the substrate on which the coating film is formed to a heating module from the placing section; and
heating the substrate at a temperature or for a time period depending on presence or absence of the detected abnormality in the heating module,
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Assignees

• Tokyo Electron Ltd

Inventors

• Hayashi Masato
• Mori Takuya
• Shite Hideo
• Sakamoto Hirokazu

Classifications

• H10P76/204

  of organic photoresist masks · CPC title

• H10P74/23

  characterised by multiple measurements, corrections, marking or sorting processes · CPC title

• H10P72/0604

  Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring · CPC title

• H10P72/0448

  Apparatus for applying a liquid, a resin, an ink or the like · CPC title

• G03F7/168

  Finishing the coated layer, e.g. drying, baking, soaking · CPC title