Tokyo Electron Limited

Tokyo Electron Kyushu Limited

Norimitsu Morioka

Kosuke Yoshihara

Hideya Tanaka

Masami Akimoto

Kiyohisa Tateyama

Nobuo Konishi

Takashi Takekuma

Hideyuki Takamori

Masaaki Murakami

A developing apparatus for developing a photoresist-coated substrate comprises a spin chuck having a supporting surface smaller in size than the substrate and adapted to be spin-driven with the photoresist-coated substrate surface held upward, a cup surrounding the spin chuck, a developing solution nozzle for applying a developing solution on the photoresist-coated substrate held on the spin chuck, a first washing solution nozzle for applying a washing solution to the photoresist-coated surface of the substrate held on the spin chuck, a second washing solution nozzle for applying the washing solution to a rear surface of the substrate on the spin chuck, a liquid seal ring mounted substantially coaxial with the spin chuck and having a diameter greater than the supporting surface of the spin chuck and smaller than the substrate, and a liquid film forming section provided on an upper end of the liquid seal ring and located near and opposite a peripheral edge portion of a rear surface of the substrate on the spin chuck to provide a clearance relative to the peripheral edge portion of the rear surface of the substrate, in which the liquid film forming section includes a first wall portion situated substantially orthogonal to the rear surface of the substrate and in an outwardly facing relation, and a second wall portion gently inclined relative to the rear surface of the substrate and situated in an inwardly facing relation.

Apparatus and method for developing resist coated on substrate

Apparatus for developing a resist-coated substrate

A substrate solution-processing method comprising the steps of preparing a pair of spin chucks by which semiconductor wafers are supported, a housing by which the wafers supported by the spin chucks are enclosed, motor for rotating the spin chucks, a nozzle through which developing or resist solution is applied to each wafer, means for moving the nozzle between the wafers, and a waiting trench at which the nozzle is kept waiting, setting substantially same the times needed to finish the cycles of processing the wafers supported on at least two spin chucks and delaying one process cycle from the other, and keeping the nozzle waiting at the waiting trench unless developing or resist solution is applied to each wafer through the nozzle.

Method for applying process solution to substrates

Growing community of inventors

Kumamoto, Japan

Norimitsu Morioka