Tokyo Electron Limited

Tokyo Electron Kyushu Limited

Norio Semba

Masami Akimoto

Yoshio Kimura

Keizo Hasebe

Junichi Kitano

Takayuki Katano

Issei Ueda

Kazutoshi Yoshioka

Kazuo Sakamoto

Yukio Kiba

Naruaki Iida

Yuji Matsuyama

Nobuo Konishi

Shinji Nagashima

Satoshi Morita

Masatoshi Kaneda

Koji Harada

Yasuhiro Sakamoto

Kouzou Kanagawa

Yasunori Kawakami

Mitsuteru Yano

Keiko Kanzawa

Hiroyuki Iino

Kouji Harada

Junichi Nagata

Nobuyuki Jinnai

Kazuhiko Ohi

A gas supplied from a gas source is exposed to an atmosphere above a liquid surface in a tank saving the liquid and thereafter is supplied around a wafer in a treatment chamber through a gas supply passage and a supply port. The gas supplied around the wafer uniformly flows from around the wafer toward above the center of the wafer and thereafter is discharged from an exhaust port which is formed at the top of the treatment chamber. Meanwhile, with respect to the wafer, heat treatment is performed by a heating mechanism and a predetermined PEB is carried out. The humidified gas is supplied into the treatment chamber, thereby preventing drying in the treatment chamber. Therefore, water in resist is not taken out, resulting in that a required resist pattern can be formed on the wafer.

Treatment apparatus and treatment method

In an air feeder for supplying air with a predetermined temperature and humidity into a cup in a resist coating unit provided in a coating and developing system, a cooling section, a by-pass, a heating section, a humidifying section, and a blower are provided. 55% of introduced air is cooled in the cooling section, 45% of the introduced air passes through the by-pass, and mixed air of the cooled air and the air from the by-pass is heated in the heating section and humidified in the humidifying section, thereby enabling energy-saving and space-saving temperature and humidity control.

Air feeder provided with by-pass bypassing cooling section, substrate processing apparatus including the same, and air supply method

Outside air taken in from the outside is cooled to a predetermined temperature by a cooler, and the air cooled by the cooler flows through a low temperature side flow path in a heat exchanger, whereas outside air flows through a high temperature side flow path in the heat exchanger, which allows heat to be exchanged between the cooled air and the outside air. The air, flowing through the low temperature side flow path in the heat exchanger and warmed up by the outside air flowing through the high temperature side flow path, is warmed and humidified by a warmer and a humidifier, and the air with predetermined temperature and humidity is supplied to a coating processing unit. Moreover, the outside air, flowing through the high temperature side flow path in the heat exchanger and cooled by the air flowing through the low temperature side flow path, is warmed by a warmer, and the air with a predetermined temperature is supplied to a developing processing unit. Thus, an apparatus for regulating the temperature and humidity of air to be supplied to the coating processing unit and the developing processing unit can be downsized, and running costs for electric power consumption and the like can be reduced.

Substrate processing apparatus

A treatment apparatus for treating a substrate in an isolated treatment space in an air-conditioned clean room, comprising a removing unit including a plurality of removing sections for recovering at least some of air in the treatment space and removing impurities from the recovered air, the removing sections being arranged in series and each including a supply mechanism for supplying an impurity remover capable of removing the impurities by touching the recovered air, a temperature adjustment unit for adjusting the temperature of the air cleared of the impurities by the removing unit, and a return circuit for returning the air, adjusted in temperature by the temperature adjustment unit, to the treatment space.

Treatment apparatus, treatment method, and impurity removing apparatus

Disclosed herein is a method and an apparatus for applying a coating liquid to an object from a liquid-applying member at a first prescribed position, thereby forming a film on the object. Before the coating liquid at the first position, the coating liquid is applied at a second predetermined position. An impurity-detecting device detects the impurities contained in the coating liquid applied at the second position. A particle-counting device is provided, and a switching device is provided on a liquid-supplying pipe extending from a source of the coating liquid to the liquid-applying member. The switching device switches the supply of the coating liquid between the liquid-applying member and the impurity-detecting device. The impurities in the coating liquid can thereby monitored.

Coating a resist film, with pretesting for particle contamination

A resist processing system includes a sensor connected for detecting the surface level of the processing solution contained in an intermediate tank, and a controller connected for controlling the fluid pressure on the basis of the surface level detected by the sensor.

Resist processing system having process solution deaeration mechanism

A processing system includes a coating/developing station for performing either a solution processing for processing a substrate using solution or a thermal processing for thermally processing the substrate, and a transfer unit for transferring the substrate into and from the coating/developing station. A casing encases the coating/developing station and the transfer unit. An interface section, provided in the casing, transfers the substrate into and from an external exposure machine for exposing the resist on the substrate. A pressure setting device sets a pressure in the casing to be lower than a pressure in the external exposure machine.

Processing system

A processing apparatus using solution comprises a rotary table which rotates while holding a substrate thereon, in the processing chamber provided in the casing, a supply mechanism for supplying a processing solution to a surface of the substrate held on the rotary table, and an impurity remover unit, provided outside the casing, wherein the impurity remover unit includes a cleaning unit for cleaning an object gas introduced from the inlet opening by brining it into contact with an impurity remover solution, and the gas-liquid separation mechanism for separating liquid from gas in an exhaust is provided in the exhaust system for exhausting the casing.

Processing apparatus and method using solution

The present invention has a resist processing apparatus for supplying a processing solution onto an object to be processed to perform a resist process, including a processing solution supply nozzle for supplying the processing solution onto the object to be processed, a processing solution feeding arrangement for feeding the processing solution to the processing solution supply nozzle, a processing solution flow path arranged to extend between the processing solution feeding arrangement and the processing solution supply nozzle, and a processing solution deaeration mechanism arranged at an intermediate portion of the processing solution flow path to deaerate the processing solution. The processing solution deaeration mechanism includes a closed vessel, an inlet port for introducing the processing solution into the closed vessel, a member arranged in the closed vessel and having a gas-liquid separation function, and an evacuating arrangement for evacuating the interior of the closed vessel to deaerate the processing solution through the member having the gas-liquid separation function. Gaseous components are separated from the processing solution, and an outlet port feeds the processing solution, from which gaseous components are separated by the member having the gas-liquid separation function, to the processing solution supply nozzle.

Resist processing apparatus

Disclosed herein is a device for supplying a liquid to a plurality of apparatuses which apply the liquid to substrates to process the substrates. The device comprises a tank containing the liquid, a supply passage for supplying the liquid from the tank to the apparatuses, branch passages connected to the supply passage, for supplying the liquid to liquid-applying members provided in the apparatuses, and valves provided on the branch passages, respectively. The valves are controlled each other, for opening and closing the branch passages such that the liquid-applying member of one apparatus applies the liquid to a substrate while the liquid-applying member of any other apparatus remains to apply the liquid to a substrate.

Liquid supplying device

A substrate treatment system comprises process sections provided with at least either of liquid treatment group units and heat treatment group units, an upper space formed above the process sections in order to supply air to the process sections, a purification section for removing alkaline components from the air to be supplied to the upper spaces to purify the air, temperature/humidity controller communicating with the urification section and the upper spaces to control the temperature and humidity of the air passing through the purification sections, and fans for supplying air to the top spaces from the temperature/humidity controller, lowering the air from the upper spaces into the process sections, and supplying at least some of the air lowering through the process sections to the temperature/humidity controller.

Substrate treatment system

Method and apparatus for coating a film on an object being processed

A resist processing method for introducing a pressurized gas into a vessel storing a solution, sending the solution from the vessel to a nozzle by way of a supply line by means of the pressurized gas, and supplying the solution from the nozzle to a substrate.

Resist processing method and resist processing system

The present invention provides a method for developing treatment, in which a developing solution is supplied to an object to be treated for performing a developing treatment, comprising the steps of supplying pure water onto a surface of said treating object for forming a pure water film on the surface of the treating object, and supplying a developing solution onto the surface of the treating object having the pure water film formed thereon in the preceding step. The particular method of the present invention permits markedly suppressing a defective development.

Method for developing treatment

This invention provides a substrate processing system including a cassette station on which at least one cassette containing a plurality of objects is placed, a process station including a plurality of process chambers for performing processing for the objects, and an object conveying unit for loading the objects into the process chambers and unloading the objects from the process chambers, a first object transfer unit for transferring the objects between the cassette station and the process station, and an interface section including an object waiting region where the objects wait, and a second object transfer unit for transferring the objects to the process station, wherein the process chambers in the process station are arranged around the object conveying unit, and the object conveying unit has a rotating shaft almost parallel to the vertical direction and can move up and down in the vertical direction along the rotating shaft and rotate about the rotating shaft.

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Kikuchi-gun, Japan

Norio Semba