Tokyo Electron Limited

Shinichi Hayashi

Nobuaki Matsuoka

Yasushi Hayashida

Suguru Enokida

Akira Miyata

Masami Akimoto

Issei Ueda

Tsunenaga Nakashima

Yoshio Kimura

Hikaru Ito

Hiroaki Inadomi

Naruaki Iida

Yoshitaka Hara

Tetsuo Fukuoka

Katsuhiro Tsuchiya

Masahiro Nakaharada

Yoji Sakata

Takahiro Hashimoto

Yuji Matsuyama

Yoichi Deguchi

Tetsuya Oda

Hiroshi Tomita

Kousuke Yoshihara

Hiroichi Inada

Yuichi Douki

Makoto Hayakawa

Hirofumi Ookuma

Yuuichi Yamamoto

Tatsuhei Yoshida

Akira Oozono

Kouichi Suefuji

Takahiro Kitano

Akihiro Fujimoto

Shinji Nagashima

Osamu Hirakawa

Hideki Kajiwara

Masashi Tsuchiyama

Shota Umezaki

Takahiro Ookubo

Kouji Kimoto

A substrate processing apparatus includes multiple first substrate processing devices, one or more second substrate processing devices and a transfer unit. Each of the multiple first substrate processing devices is configured to process a substrate one by one. The one or more second substrate processing devices are configured to simultaneously process multiple substrates, which are processed in the multiple first substrate processing devices. The transfer unit is configured to simultaneously carry the multiple substrates, which are processed in the multiple first substrate processing devices, into a same second substrate processing device.

Substrate processing apparatus and substrate processing method

An interface station of a coating and developing treatment system has: a cleaning unit cleaning at least a rear surface of a wafer before the wafer is transferred into an exposure apparatus; an inspection unit inspecting the rear surface of the cleaned wafer whether the wafer is exposable, before it is transferred into the exposure apparatus; wafer transfer mechanisms including arms transferring the wafer between the units and a wafer transfer control part controlling operations of the wafer transfer mechanisms. When it is determined that a state of the wafer becomes an exposable state by re-cleaning in the cleaning unit as a result of the inspection, the wafer transfer control part controls the wafer transfer mechanisms to transfer the wafer again to the cleaning unit.

Substrate treatment system, substrate transfer method and computer storage medium

In one embodiment, a coating and developing apparatus is provided with transfer units, provided between a stack of early-stage processing unit blocks and a stack of later-stage processing unit blocks to transfer a substrate between the transport mechanisms of laterally-adjacent unit blocks, and a vertically-movable auxiliary transfer mechanism for transporting a substrate between the transfer units. A stack of first developing unit blocks is stacked on the stack of early-stage processing unit blocks, and a stack of second developing unit blocks is stacked on the stack of later-stage processing unit blocks.

Coating and developing apparatus and method, and storage medium

In one embodiment, a coating and developing apparatus includes a processing block having two early-stage coating unit blocks, two later-stage coating unit blocks and two developing unit blocks, each unit blocks being vertically stacked on each other, The apparatus has at least two operation modes Mand Madapted for abnormality. In mode Mthe processing module that processed the abnormal substrate in the developing unit blocks is identified, and subsequent substrates are transported to the processing module or modules, of the same type as the identified processing module, other than the identified processing module. In mode Mthe developing unit block that processed the abnormal substrate is identified, and subsequent substrates are transported to the developing unit block other than the identified developing unit block.

Coating and developing apparatus and method

In a coating and developing treatment system including a treatment station and an interface station, the interface station has: a cleaning unit cleaning a rear surface of a wafer before the wafer is transferred into an exposure apparatus; an inspection unit inspecting whether the cleaned wafer is in an exposable state; and a wafer transfer mechanism including an arm transferring the wafer between the cleaning unit and the inspection unit. Each of the cleaning unit and the inspection unit is provided at multiple tiers in an up and down direction on the front side in the interface station, and the wafer transfer mechanism is provided in a region adjacent to the cleaning units and the inspection units.

Substrate treatment system, substrate transfer method, and a non-transitory computer storage medium

In one embodiment, a coating and developing apparatus includes a processing block having two early-stage coating unit blocks, two later-stage coating unit blocks and two developing unit blocks, each unit blocks being vertically stacked on each other. The apparatus has at least two operation modes Mand Madapted for abnormality. In mode Mthe processing module that processed the abnormal substrate in the developing unit blocks is identified, and subsequent substrates are transported to the processing module or modules, of the same type as the identified processing module, other than the identified processing module. In mode M, the developing unit block that processed the abnormal substrate is identified, and subsequent substrates are transported to the developing unit block other than the identified developing unit block.

In one embodiment, a coating and developing apparatus includes a processing block including a vertical stack of early-stage processing unit blocks; a vertical stack of later-stage processing unit blocks disposed laterally adjacent to respective ones of the early-stage processing unit blocks; a vertical stack of developing unit blocks stacked on the early-stage processing unit blocks; a vertical stack of auxiliary processing unit blocks disposed laterally adjacent to respective ones of the developing unit blocks; first transfer units, each of which are disposed between the laterally adjacent early-stage processing unit and later-stage processing unit; second transfer units, each of which is disposed between the laterally adjacent developing unit block and auxiliary processing unit block; and a auxiliary transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate between the first transfer units and between the second transfer units.

An application and development apparatus has a plurality of vertically stacked blocks directed to coating film formation on a substrate. This plurality of blocks includes first processing units, a first substrate transportation region, and a first transportation unit for transporting substrates between the first processing units within the first transportation region. A development process block also is vertically stacked with the blocks directed to coating film formation to constitute a layered block as the process block. The development process block also includes second processing units and a second transportation unit for transporting substrates between the second processing units within the second transportation region. The application and development apparatus further has a shelf-type delivery stage group, a vertical transportation unit and a substrate inspection unit such that a substrate input into the inspection unit passes through the delivery stage group from the vertical transportation unit.

Apparatus and method of application and development

Disclosed is a substrate heating apparatus including a hot plate that heats a substrate, and a cooling plate that supports the substrate and moves between a first position (home position) and the second position above the hot plate to transfer wafers between the two positions. A heat-radiating fin structure is connected to the cooling plate to move together with the cooling plate. The fin structure is thermally connected to the cooling plate via heat pipes. A suction port is arranged so as to locate adjacent to the fin structure when the cooling plate is in the home position. The fin structure is cooled by a gas passing therethrough before flown into the suction port, whereby the cooling plate is cooled through heat transfer from the cooling plate to the fin structure through the heat pipes.

Substrate heating apparatus and method and coating and developing system

A coating and developing apparatus includes a processing block having at least one coating film-forming unit block stack and a vertically stacked developing unit block stack. Each unit block stack includes vertically stacked unit blocks, and each unit block includes processing modules containing liquid processing modules and heating modules. Each unit block includes a transport mechanism moveable along a transport passage from a carrier block side to an interface block side, to transport a substrate between the processing modules belonging to the unit block. Transfer units are provided on the carrier block sides of the coating film-forming unit blocks and the developing unit blocks respectively, for transferring a substrate to and from the transport mechanism of the associated coating film-forming or developing unit blocks. A first transfer mechanism transfers a substrate removed from a carrier to one of the transfer units associated with the coating film-forming unit blocks.

Coating and developing apparatus

A substrate holding device including: a transfer arm body having a suction path; a pad body including a suction part having a suction surface and a suction port for holding the substrate by vacuum suction, and a cylindrical attachment part in which a suction hole communicating with the suction port is formed; a pad holding member provided with an insertion hole into which the attachment part of the pad body is loosely insertable and a communication path communicating with the suction hole and the suction path, and fixed to the transfer arm body; and an elastically deformable annular airtightness maintaining member with a circular cross-section interposed between an outer peripheral groove in an arc shape formed in the attachment part of the pad body and an inner peripheral groove in an arc shape formed at the insertion hole of the pad holding member.

Substrate holding device

Growing community of inventors

Koshi, Japan

Shinichi Hayashi