Substrate processing apparatus, substrate processing method and recording medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018221925-A1
Application number	US-201615747921-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 28, 2016
Priority date	Jul 29, 2015
Publication date	Aug 9, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A substrate processing apparatus includes a stationary cup body 51 provided to surround a substrate holding unit 31 and configured to receive a processing liquid or mist of the processing liquid discharged onto a substrate, the stationary cup body not being moved relatively with respect to a processing vessel; a mist guard 80; and a guard elevating mechanism 84 configured to elevate the mist guard. Here, the mist guard is provided at an outside of the stationary cup body to surround the stationary cup body and configured to block a liquid scattered outwards beyond a space above the stationary cup body. Further, the mist guard includes a cylindrical portion 81 of a cylindrical shape and a protruding portion 82 protruded from an upper portion of the cylindrical portion toward an inside of the cylindrical portion.

First claim

1 . A substrate processing apparatus, comprising:
a substrate holding unit configured to hold a substrate; at least one processing liquid nozzle configured to discharge a processing liquid onto the substrate held by the substrate holding unit; a processing vessel configured to accommodate therein the substrate holding unit and the at least one processing liquid nozzle; a stationary cup body disposed around the substrate holding unit and configured to receive at least the processing liquid or mist of the processing liquid discharged onto the substrate, the stationary cup body not being moved relatively with respect to the processing vessel; a mist guard provided at an outside of the stationary cup body to surround the stationary cup body and configured to block a liquid scattered outwards beyond a space above the stationary cup body; and a guard elevating mechanism configured to elevate the mist guard to a first guard height and a second guard height lower than the first guard height, wherein the mist guard comprises a cylindrical portion of a cylindrical shape and a protruding portion protruded above the stationary cup body from an upper portion of the cylindrical portion toward an inside of the cylindrical portion.

2 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a control unit configured to control the guard elevating mechanism to locate the mist guard at the first guard height when supplying the processing liquid from the at least one processing liquid nozzle onto the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, and to locate the mist guard at the second guard height when drying the substrate.

3 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 2 ,
wherein an air flow is formed between the mist guard and the stationary cup body when the mist guard is located at the first guard height, and an air flow is formed above the mist guard when the mist guard is located at the second guard height.

4 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a bottom plate provided at an outside of the mist guard and configured to partition a bottom of a processing space within the processing vessel; and a gas exhaust opening which is provided at the outside of the mist guard and through which an atmosphere within the processing space is exhausted to an outside of the processing space.

5 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 4 ,
wherein the bottom plate is extended to a sidewall of the processing vessel, and a top surface of the bottom plate is inclined such that a height thereof decreases as approaching the sidewall.

6 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 ,
wherein the at least one processing liquid nozzle includes a first processing liquid nozzle and a second processing liquid nozzle, the substrate processing apparatus further comprises a first nozzle arm configured to move the first processing liquid nozzle while holding the first processing liquid nozzle; a second nozzle arm configured to move the second processing liquid nozzle while holding the second processing liquid nozzle; and a control unit configured to control an operation of the substrate processing apparatus, and the control unit controls the mist guard to be located at a third guard height between the first guard height and the second guard height when performing a nozzle switching operation of driving the second nozzle arm to advance the second processing liquid nozzle from a position outside the substrate held by the substrate holding unit to a position above the substrate and driving the first nozzle arm to retreat the first processing liquid nozzle from the position above the substrate to a position outside the substrate.

7 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising:
a first arm elevating mechanism configured to elevate the first nozzle arm to between a first arm height and a second arm height lower than the first arm height; and a second arm elevating mechanism configured to elevate the second nozzle arm to between a third arm height and a fourth arm height lower than the third arm height, wherein the control unit controls the first arm elevating mechanism to locate the first nozzle arm at the first arm height and controls the second arm elevating mechanism to locate the second nozzle arm at the third arm height when performing the nozzle switching operation.

8 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising:
a rotating mechanism configured to rotate the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, wherein the control unit controls the rotating mechanism to set a rotation number of the substrate at a time when the nozzle switching operation is performed to be smaller than a rotation number of the substrate at a time when the first processing liquid nozzle discharges the processing liquid onto the substrate before performing the nozzle switching operation.

9 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a stationary nozzle configured to discharge a processing liquid from an outside of the mist guard onto the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, wherein the mist guard is provided with a liquid passage opening through which the processing liquid discharged from the stationary nozzle is allowed to reach the substrate after passing through the mist guard when the mist guard is located at the first guard height.

10 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a mist guard accommodating portion configured to accommodate the cylindrical portion of the mist guard therein; and an outlet unit configured to drain a liquid or a gas flown into the mist guard accommodating portion.

11 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a cleaning mechanism configured to clean a surface of the mist guard facing the stationary cup body.

12 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1 ,
wherein the stationary cup body has an inclined top surface extended toward a central portion of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, the inclined top surface is disposed such that a height thereof increases as approaching the central portion of the substrate, the inclined top surface is in contact with a tip end portion of the protruding portion of the mist guard located at the second guard height, to thereby allow a space in contact with a surface of the mist guard facing the stationary cup body to be isolated from a space above the substrate held by the substrate holding unit.

13 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 11 ,
wherein the cleaning mechanism is configured to clean the mist guard by supplying a cleaning liquid when the mist guard is located at the second guard height.

14 . The substrate processing apparatus of claim 13 ,
wherein the stationary cup body comprises a cylindrical portion of a cylindrical shape and a protruding portion protruded from an upper portion of the cylindrical portion toward an inside of the cylindrical portion, a gap forming portion is provided at a bottom surface of the protruding portion of the mist guard, the gap forming portion forms a first gap between a bottom surface of the gap forming portion and a top surface of the protruding portion of the stationary cup body, a second gap is formed between the top surface of the protruding portion of the stationary cup body and a portion of the mist guard where the gap forming portion is not provided, and the cleaning mechanism comprises a cleaning liquid nozzle configured to supply the cleaning liquid into the second gap.

15 . The substrate processin

Assignees

• Tokyo Electron Ltd

Inventors

• Ito Norihiro
• Higashijima Jiro
• Ogata Nobuhiro
• Otsuka Takahisa
• Douki Yuichi
• Hashimoto Yusuke
• Aiura Kazuhiro
• Goto Daisuke

Classifications

• H10P72/7618

  characterised by a movable susceptor, stage or support, others than those only rotating on their own vertical axis, e.g. susceptors on a rotating carrousel · CPC title

• H10P70/15

  by wet cleaning only (H10P70/52 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H10P72/0414 Primary

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

• B08B3/022

  Cleaning travelling work (B08B3/042 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B08B2203/0264

  Splash guards · CPC title