Tokyo Electron Limited

Takahiro Hashimoto

Shinichi Hayashi

Nobuaki Matsuoka

Yasushi Hayashida

Katsuhiro Tsuchiya

A coating and developing system includes processing blocks of the same construction each built by stacking up a plurality of unit blocks including a film forming unit block and a developing unit block in layers. The processing blocks are arranged longitudinally between a carrier block and an interface block. The number of processing blocks like the processing blocks arranged between the carrier block and the interface block is adjusted to adjust the throughput of the coating and developing system. Thus, a coating and developing system capable of achieving a desired throughput can be easily designed and manufactured.

Coating and developing system with a direct carrying device in a processing block, coating and developing method and storage medium

A coating and developing system has a first processing block, a second processing block, and a transfer block interposed between the first and the second processing block. A first direct carrying means carries substrates from a carrier block to the transfer block. The transfer block distributes the substrates to respective film forming unit blocks of the first and the second processing block. Substrates on which films have been formed by the first and the second processing block are collected temporarily in the transfer block. A second direct carrying means carries the substrate collected in the transfer block from the transfer block to an interface block. Use of the first and the second processing block can improve the throughput of the coating and developing system. Since a carrying route from the carrier block to the first processing block, and a carrying route from the carrier block to the second processing block are the same, a carrying program is easy to create.

Coating and developing system, coating and developing method and storage medium

A coating and developing system that includes two rotating members having parallel horizontal axes of rotation and disposed longitudinally opposite to each other, a carrying passage forming mechanism extended between the rotating members to form a carrying passage, and capable of moving along an orbital path to carry a wafer supported thereon, a sending-in transfer unit disposed at the upstream end of the carrying passage, a sending-out transfer unit disposed at the downstream end of the carrying passage, a developer pouring nozzle for pouring a developer onto the wafer, a cleaning nozzle for pouring a cleaning liquid onto the wafer, and a gas nozzle for blowing a gas against the wafer. The developer pouring nozzle, the cleaning nozzle, and the gas nozzle are arranged in a direction in which the wafer is carried along the carrying passage between the upstream and the downstream end of the carrying passage.

A coater/developer is disclosed that includes a heating module having a pair of rotary bodies configured to rotate about respective horizontal axles, the rotary bodies being spaced apart from each other in a direction along the conveyance path of a substrate so that the rotational axles thereof are parallel to each other; a conveyance path member engaged with and extended between the rotary bodies so as to move along an orbit, the conveyance path member forming a part of the conveyance path of the substrate placed on the conveyance path member; a first transfer part provided at the upstream end of the conveyance path; a second transfer part provided at the downstream end of the conveyance path; and a heating part provided between the upstream end and the downstream end of the conveyance path and configured to heat the substrate.

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Koshi, Japan

Takahiro Hashimoto