JP3167765B2 - Automatic cleaning device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning apparatus, and more particularly to an automatic cleaning apparatus having a chemical solution treatment tank, a running water treatment tank, and a drying treatment tank. The present invention relates to a technology effective when applied to an automatic cleaning device capable of reducing the number of foreign substances adhered to a surface.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a semiconductor wafer cleaning process, a cleaning operation is frequently performed in order to prevent a decrease in yield due to, for example, contamination of a wafer process. Although an automatic cleaning apparatus is used for the cleaning, a method is employed in which the wafers are erected during cleaning and during the transfer of the wafer cassette due to ease of transfer.

[0003] For example, similar technologies include:
The Institute of Electronics, Communication Engineers, published on November 30, 1984,
Examples include documents described in documents such as "LSI Handbook" P238 to P239. Note that Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
No. 255 describes that the line connecting the upper ends of the wafers is tilted with respect to the liquid surface so that the wafers are pulled up from pure water. However, the wafers are transported and dried while being tilted. Is not described.

[0004]

However, in the prior art as described above, the object to be processed during the chemical solution treatment, the running water washing and the drying process comes into contact with the storage jig for storing the object to be processed, and the contact portion is formed. When the contact portion is a device forming surface, there is a problem that the number of foreign matters adhering to the device forming surface increases.

Further, even when the object to be processed is transported in a state of being stored in a storage jig, the dirt on the storage jig itself is transferred to the device formation surface due to the contact between the storage jig and the device formation surface. There is a problem that the number of adhered foreign substances on the device forming surface increases.

Therefore, in the conventional cleaning apparatus, there is a problem that the device yield decreases due to an increase in the number of foreign substances adhering to the device forming surface due to the contact between the storage jig and the device forming surface.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to limit the contact between an object to be processed and a storage jig during chemical treatment, running water washing, drying and transport to the opposite side of the device forming surface, and to prevent foreign matter adhering to the device forming surface. An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic cleaning device capable of reducing the number.

The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Among the inventions disclosed in the present application, the outline of a representative one will be briefly described.
It is as follows.

That is, the automatic cleaning apparatus of the present invention is an automatic cleaning apparatus for performing a process from cleaning to drying of an object to be processed,
When processing the object to be processed in the processing bath, the device forming surface of the object to be processed is tilted upward by a predetermined angle, and the device forming surface is cleaned and dried without contacting the storage jig. The processing object is transported between the processing tanks in a state where the device forming surface of the processing object is inclined upward by a predetermined angle.

In this case, the inclination angle of the device forming surface is set to 1 ° to 15 °.

Further, the object to be processed is a semiconductor wafer.

[0013]

According to the above-mentioned automatic cleaning apparatus, in cleaning, drying and transporting the object, the device forming surface of the object is set at a predetermined angle, for example, 1 ° to 15 ° by a tilting mechanism.
By inclining upward by only °, contact between the device forming surface and the storage jig can be prevented, and the device forming surface can be efficiently cleaned and dried.

That is, in the processing tank, stagnation of the upward laminar flow due to the contact between the device forming surface and the storage jig can be eliminated, so that the device forming surface can be efficiently cleaned. This makes it possible to efficiently remove the foreign matter and the chemical solution attached to the device forming surface, and thus to reduce the amount of foreign matter attached to the device forming surface after cleaning.

Also, when the object to be processed is transferred between the processing tanks, the storage jig is similarly inclined to prevent transfer of dirt on the storage jig itself due to contact between the device forming surface and the storage jig. In addition, it is possible to reduce the amount of foreign substances adhering to the device forming surface.

In particular, by using a semiconductor wafer as the object to be processed, the number of foreign particles adhering to the device forming surface can be reduced, so that the chip yield can be improved.

[0017]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view showing a main part of an automatic cleaning apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing conveyance of an object to be processed in the automatic cleaning apparatus according to this embodiment. .

First, the configuration of the automatic cleaning apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

The automatic cleaning apparatus according to the present embodiment is, for example, an automatic cleaning apparatus for a semiconductor wafer in a manufacturing process of a semiconductor integrated circuit device, and includes: a wafer cassette (storage jig) 2 for storing a wafer (object to be processed) 1; A chemical treatment tank 3 for performing chemical chemical treatment, a running water treatment tank 4 for performing running water washing after the chemical treatment shown in FIG. 2, and a drying treatment tank for raising hot water after washing with running water or drying IPA (isopropyl alcohol) vapor. 5 and the wafer 1 stored in the wafer cassette 2 are converted into a chemical processing tank 3, a running water processing tank 4, and a drying processing tank 5.
And a transfer arm 7 for transferring the wafer cassette 2 in which the wafers 1 are stored in a tilted state.

The wafer cassette 2 has a predetermined number of wafers 1 vertically suspended at predetermined intervals, and has a bottom and an upper surface opened for processing and cleaning in a housed state.

The chemical processing tank 3 stores a high-temperature chemical such as an organic solvent for performing a chemical cleaning process, and removes organic substances or metal contamination of the wafer 1 by immersion in the chemical.

The running water treatment tank 4 stores pure water for washing after washing with a chemical solution, and is for washing off foreign substances and the chemical solution by the washing with the chemical solution.

The drying tank 5 is filled with, for example, 70 to 90 ° C. hot pure water or IPA vapor for drying after washing with running water to remove water on the surface of the wafer 1.

The tilt mechanism 6 tilts the wafer cassette 2 in which the wafer 1 is stored, and tilts the device forming surface 8 of the wafer 1.
To prevent the wafer cassette 2 from coming into contact with the wafer cassette 2.

During processing, the device forming surface 8 is inclined upward by a predetermined angle θ, for example, an angle of 1 ° to 15 °.

The transfer arm 7 transfers the wafer cassette 2 containing the wafers 1 from the chemical processing tank 3 to the flowing water processing tank 4 and further to the drying processing tank 5. During the transfer, the wafer cassette 2 in which the wafers 1 are stored is tilted to prevent contact between the device forming surface 8 and the wafer cassette 2.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.

First, the wafer 1 stored in the wafer cassette 2 is immersed in the chemical processing tank 3. At that time, the tilting mechanism 6
Thus, the wafer cassette 2 is inclined to prevent the wafer cassette 2 from contacting the device forming surface 8 of the wafer 1. Then, inside the chemical treatment tank 3, the chemical is discharged as a rising laminar flow from below, so that the chemical is applied to the entire surface of the device forming surface 8 without stagnation, thereby removing organic substances or metal contamination of the wafer 1.

Further, the wafer 1 and the wafer cassette 2 processed in the chemical liquid processing tank 3 are transferred by the transfer arm 7 to the flowing water processing tank 4 for the next processing. At this time, the wafer cassette 2 in which the wafers 1 are stored is given the same inclination as that of the chemical processing tank 3 to prevent the device forming surface 8 from contacting the wafer cassette 2.

Subsequently, in the flowing water treatment tank 4, the wafer 1 stored in the wafer cassette 2 is inclined by the same inclination mechanism 6 as the chemical treatment tank 3 to the wafer cassette 2.
The contact between the wafer cassette 2 and the device forming surface 8 is prevented. Then, inside the flowing water treatment tank 4, the pure water is discharged as a rising laminar flow from below, and the foreign matter and the chemical solution by the chemical solution cleaning of the wafer 1 are washed off so that the pure water hits the entire surface of the device forming surface 8 without stagnation. .

Further, the wafer 1 and the wafer cassette 2 processed in the flowing water processing tank 4 are transferred by the transfer arm 7 to the drying processing tank 5 for the next processing. At this time, the wafer cassette 2 in which the wafers 1 are stored is given the same inclination as that of the chemical processing tank 3 to prevent the device forming surface 8 from contacting the wafer cassette 2.

Subsequently, in the drying processing tank 5, the wafer 1 stored in the wafer cassette 2 is tilted to the wafer cassette 2 by the tilt mechanism 6 similar to the chemical liquid processing tank 3,
The contact between the wafer cassette 2 and the device forming surface 8 is prevented. Then, in the drying processing tank 5, hot water pull-drying for slowly pulling up the wafer 1 from hot pure water, or IPA
The wafer 1 is dried by an IPA vapor drying method in which the wafer 1 is slowly pulled up from the steam.

Therefore, according to the automatic cleaning apparatus of the present embodiment, the tilt mechanism 6 is provided inside the chemical solution treatment tank 3, the flowing water treatment tank 4, and the drying treatment tank 5, and the device forming surface 8 of the wafer 1 is provided.
Is tilted upward by a predetermined angle, the contact between the device forming surface 8 and the wafer cassette 2 can be prevented, so that the adhesion of foreign substances to the device forming surface 8 can be reduced.

Also, during the transfer between tanks, the device forming surface 8 of the wafer 1 is inclined upward like the inside of the processing tank, so that the device forming surface 8 and the wafer cassette 2
Thus, the number of foreign substances adhered to the device forming surface 8 can be reduced by preventing the contact with the device forming surface 8, and the chip yield can be improved.

As mentioned above, the invention made by the inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and can be variously modified without departing from the gist thereof. Needless to say.

For example, in the automatic cleaning apparatus of the present embodiment, the case where the tilt mechanism 6 for tilting the wafer cassette 2 is used to prevent the contact between the device forming surface 8 and the wafer cassette 2 has been described. The present invention is not limited to the embodiment, and can be widely applied to, for example, a case where a mechanism for inclining only the wafer 1 is used to prevent contact.

In the above description, the invention made mainly by the present inventor is applied to the cleaning of the wafer 1 in an automatic cleaning apparatus having a chemical solution treatment tank 3, a flowing water treatment tank 4, and a drying treatment tank 5, which are fields of application. Although the case has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and is widely applicable to other cleaning apparatuses such as mutual processing between processing tanks, and cleaning of other objects to be processed such as a glass material for a liquid crystal substrate. It is.

[0038]

Advantageous effects obtained by typical ones of the inventions disclosed in the present application will be briefly described.
It is as follows.

(1) When processing an object to be processed in a processing tank,
The device forming surface of the object to be processed is inclined upward by a predetermined angle, and the device forming surface is cleaned and dried without being brought into contact with the storage jig. Since the laminar flow hits the formation surface without stagnation and the device formation surface can be efficiently cleaned and dried, the number of foreign substances adhering to the device to be processed on the device formation surface can be reduced.

(2) By transferring the device forming surface of the object to be processed between the processing tanks in a state where the device forming surface is inclined upward by a predetermined angle, the device forming surface and the storage jig can be moved in the same manner as in the above (1). Prevents the transfer of dirt from the storage jig, thereby reducing the number of adhered foreign substances on the device forming surface during transport.

(3) According to the above (1) and (2), the number of adhered foreign substances can be reduced, so that it is possible to obtain an automatic cleaning apparatus capable of improving the device yield of an object to be processed.

(4) According to the above (1) and (2), the inclination mechanism can be easily incorporated into the existing cleaning device.
It is possible to obtain an automatic cleaning device capable of improving the cleaning efficiency inexpensively and easily.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view showing a main part of an automatic cleaning apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing conveyance of an object to be processed in the automatic cleaning apparatus of the present embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 wafer (object to be processed) 2 wafer cassette (storage jig) 3 chemical treatment tank 4 running water treatment tank 5 drying treatment tank 6 tilting mechanism 7 transfer arm 8 device formation surface

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01L 21/304 642 H01L 21/304 648 H01L 21/304 651

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. An automatic cleaning apparatus for performing processing from cleaning to drying of an object to be processed, wherein when the object to be processed is processed in a processing tank, a device forming surface of the object to be processed is directed upward by a predetermined angle. automatic cleaning apparatus characterized by is inclined performs washing and drying, and the transports between processing tank in a state in which the device formation surface of the workpiece was only inclined upwardly a predetermined angle. 2. The device forming surface has an inclination angle of 1 ° to 1 °.
2. The automatic cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the angle is set to 15 [deg.]. 3. The automatic cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object to be processed is a semiconductor wafer.