SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE SAME

• US 20180315611A1
• Filed: 04/26/2018
• Published: 11/01/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ebara Corporation
• Original Assignee: Ebara Corporation
• Inventors: ISOKAWA, Hidetatsu
• Granted Patent: US 10,957,546 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B24B 37/04 designed for working plane surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B24B 55/06 Dust extraction equipment on grinding or polishing machines B24B31/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/82 Auxiliary processes, e.g. cleaning or inspecting
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/304 Mechanical treatment, e.g. grinding, polishing, cutting H01L21/30625 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/306 Chemical or electrical treatment, e.g. electrolytic etching to form insulating layers H01L21/31
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67028 for cleaning followed by drying, rinsing, stripping, blasting or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67173 in-line arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67219 comprising at least one polishing chamber polishing apparatuses B24B
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67253 Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring

Abstract

A substrate processing apparatus is disclosed. In an embodiment, a substrate processing apparatus includes a plurality of polishing units including discharge valves that can discharge water at a predetermined flow rate, a plurality of cleaning units including discharge valves that discharges water at a predetermined flow rate, and a controller that controls opening and closing of the discharge valve of each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, and the controller controls opening and closing of the discharge valves of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units based on predetermined priority orders allocated to the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, so that the total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is a predetermined flow rate or less.

Claims

1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:

a plurality of polishing units comprising discharge valves that discharges water at a predetermined flow rate;

a plurality of cleaning units comprising discharge valves that discharges water at a predetermined flow rate; and

a controller that controls opening and closing of the discharge valve of each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units,

wherein the controller controls opening and closing of the discharge valves of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units based on predetermined priority orders allocated to the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, so that a total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is a predetermined flow rate or less.

2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein discharge from the plurality of polishing units has a higher priority order than discharge from the plurality of cleaning units.

3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the total discharge flow rate obtained as a result of controlling opening and closing of the discharge valves provided in the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, based on the predetermined priority orders, so that the total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is the predetermined flow rate or less has room to reach the predetermined flow rate, the controller controls opening and closing of the discharge valve of a unit that has a discharge flow rate equal to or less than the room, over the priority orders, so that the total discharge flow rate is an approximate upper limit of the predetermined flow rate.

4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein a plurality of the discharge valves are provided for each of the plurality of polishing units, and a plurality of the discharge valves are provided for each of the plurality of cleaning units, and,

based on the predetermined priority orders, the controller controls opening and closing of the plurality of the discharge valves provided in each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, by opening or closing all the plurality of the discharge valves, so that the total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is the predetermined flow rate or less.

5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein, when the total discharge flow rate obtained as a result of performing control by opening or closing all the plurality of the discharge valves provided in each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, based on the predetermined priority orders, so that the total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is the predetermined flow rate or less has room to reach the predetermined flow rate, and the room is smaller than a discharge flow rate of any of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, the controller controls opening and closing of each of the plurality of the discharge valves provided in each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, so that the total discharge flow rate is an approximate upper limit of the predetermined flow rate.

6. A method of controlling a substrate processing apparatus comprising a plurality of polishing units comprising discharge valves that discharges water at a predetermined flow rate, a plurality of cleaning units discharge valves that discharges water at a predetermined flow rate, and a controller that control open/close of the discharge valve of each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units,

wherein the controller controls opening and closing of the discharge valves of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units based on predetermined priority orders allocated to the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, so that a total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is a predetermined flow rate or less.

7. The method of controlling a substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein discharge from the plurality of polishing units has a higher priority order than discharge from the plurality of cleaning units.

8. The method of controlling a substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein, when the total discharge flow rate obtained as a result of controlling opening and closing of the discharge valves provided in the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, based on the predetermined priority orders, so that the total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is the predetermined flow rate or less has room to reach the predetermined flow rate, the controller controls opening and closing of the discharge valve of a unit that has a discharge flow rate equal to or less than the room, over the priority orders, so that the total discharge flow rate is an approximate upper limit of the predetermined flow rate.

9. The method of controlling a substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein a plurality of the discharge valves are provided for each of the plurality of polishing units, and a plurality of the discharge valves are provided for each of the plurality of cleaning units, and, based on the predetermined priority orders, the controller controls opening and closing of the plurality of the discharge valves provided in each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, by opening or closing all the plurality of the discharge valves, so that the total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is the predetermined flow rate or less.

10. The method of controlling a substrate processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein, when the total discharge flow rate obtained as a result of performing control by opening or closing all the plurality of the discharge valves provided in each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, based on the predetermined priority orders, so that the total discharge flow rate from the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units is the predetermined flow rate or less has room to reach the predetermined flow rate, and the room is smaller than a discharge flow rate of any of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, the controller controls opening and closing of each of the plurality of the discharge valves provided in each of the plurality of polishing units and the plurality of cleaning units, so that the total discharge flow rate is an approximate upper limit of the predetermined flow rate.