U.S. patent application number 11/652082 was filed with the patent office on 2007-05-24 for revolution member supporting apparatus and semiconductor substrate processing apparatus.
Invention is credited to Akihisa Hongo, Ichiro Katakabe, Shinya Morisawa.
Application Number | 20070113977 11/652082 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 18636975 |
Filed Date | 2007-05-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070113977 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hongo; Akihisa ; et
al. |
May 24, 2007 |
Revolution member supporting apparatus and semiconductor substrate
processing apparatus
Abstract
A revolution member supporting apparatus holds and rotates a
disc-shaped object (object to be rotated) such as a semiconductor
wafer. The revolution member supporting apparatus includes a
rotatable member which rotates about an axis of rotation, and a
plurality of holding members which are disposed along a circle
having a center corresponding to the axis of rotation of the
rotatable member, and which revolve around the axis of rotation
when the rotatable member rotates, wherein the holding members are
allowed to swing about their own central axes.
Inventors: |
Hongo; Akihisa; (Tokyo,
JP) ; Katakabe; Ichiro; (Tokyo, JP) ;
Morisawa; Shinya; (Tokyo, JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
WENDEROTH, LIND & PONACK, L.L.P.
2033 K STREET N. W.
SUITE 800
WASHINGTON
DC
20006-1021
US
|
Family ID: |
18636975 |
Appl. No.: |
11/652082 |
Filed: |
January 11, 2007 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10987574 |
Nov 15, 2004 |
|
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11652082 |
Jan 11, 2007 |
|
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09842650 |
Apr 27, 2001 |
6921466 |
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10987574 |
Nov 15, 2004 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
156/345.31 ;
118/52; 156/345.55 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C25D 7/123 20130101;
C25D 17/001 20130101; H01L 21/67766 20130101; H01L 21/68728
20130101; H01L 21/6719 20130101; H01L 21/67046 20130101; B24B
37/345 20130101; H01L 21/67742 20130101; H01L 21/67748 20130101;
H01L 21/67201 20130101; H01L 21/6715 20130101; H01L 21/67167
20130101; C25D 17/06 20130101; H01L 21/67184 20130101; H01L
21/68707 20130101; C25D 17/004 20130101; H01L 21/67253 20130101;
H01L 21/67051 20130101; H01L 21/67173 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
156/345.31 ;
118/052; 156/345.55 |
International
Class: |
B05C 13/02 20060101
B05C013/02; C23F 1/00 20060101 C23F001/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 27, 2000 |
JP |
2000-127365 |
Claims
1. A revolution member supporting apparatus, comprising: a
rotatable member which rotates about an axis of rotation; and a
plurality of holding members which are disposed along a circle
having a center corresponding to said axis of rotation of said
rotatable member, and which revolve around said axis of rotation
when said rotatable member rotates; wherein said holding members
are allowed to rotate about their own central axes.
2. The revolution member supporting apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein each of said holding members has a free end with an
arc-like recess for engaging a peripheral portion of an object to
be rotated.
3. The revolution member supporting apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein said holding members are allowed to rotate to a
predetermined degree of angle about their own central axes.
4. The revolution member supporting apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein each of said holding members has a center of gravity
deviated from said central axis of said holding member.
5. The revolution member supporting apparatus according to claim 4,
wherein a weight is attached to said holding member, said weight
having a center of gravity at a distance from said central axis of
said holding member.
6. The revolution member supporting apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein each of said holding members can move between an
engaging/holding position where said holding member engages a
peripheral portion of an object to be rotated, and a release
position where said holding member is detached from said object to
be rotated along a radial direction of said rotatable member.
7. The revolution member supporting apparatus according to claim 6,
further comprising an elastic body that causes said holding member
located in said engaging/holding position to engage elastically
with the peripheral portion of said object to be rotated.
8. The revolution member supporting apparatus according to claim 7,
wherein said elastic body comprises a spring.
9. A semiconductor substrate processing apparatus, comprising: a
carry-in and carry-out section for carrying in and carrying out a
semiconductor substrate having a surface on which a circuit is
formed, in a dry state; a plated metal film forming unit for
forming a plated metal film on said semiconductor substrate which
has been carried in; a cleaning unit for cleaning said
semiconductor substrate held by a revolution member supporting
apparatus; and a transfer mechanism for transferring said
semiconductor substrate between said units; wherein said revolution
member supporting apparatus comprises: a rotatable member which
rotates about an axis of rotation; and a plurality of holding
members which are disposed along a circle having a center
corresponding to said axis of rotation of said rotatable member,
and which revolve around said axis of rotation when said rotatable
member rotates; wherein said holding members are allowed to rotate
about their own central axes.
10. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising a polishing unit for polishing at least
part of said plated metal film on said semiconductor substrate.
11. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising a reinforcing seed layer forming unit
for forming a reinforcing seed layer on said semiconductor
substrate.
12. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising a seed layer forming unit for forming a
seed layer on said semiconductor substrate.
13. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising a barrier layer forming unit for
forming a barrier layer on said semiconductor substrate.
14. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising a cap plating unit for forming a plated
cap layer on said semiconductor substrate.
15. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising a bevel etching unit for etching and
removing at least one of said plated metal film, a seed layer and a
barrier layer formed at a peripheral edge portion of said
semiconductor substrate.
16. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising at least one of a film thickness
measuring instrument for measuring a thickness of a film formed on
said semiconductor substrate and a detection sensor for detecting a
surface state of a film formed on said semiconductor substrate.
17. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, wherein each of said units is interchangeable.
18. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, wherein in said plated metal film forming unit, plating
treatment and cleaning treatment are performed in such a state that
said semiconductor substrate is held by a substrate holding
portion.
19. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 9, further comprising an annealing unit for annealing said
semiconductor substrate.
20. Rotatable holding members for holding a disc-shaped object,
characterized in that said holding members are disposed along a
circle having a center corresponding to an axis of rotation, and
adapted to revolve around said axis of rotation and rotate about
their own central axes so that portions of the disc-shaped object,
which engages said holding members, are shifted when holding
members revolve.
21. A semiconductor substrate processing apparatus, comprising: a
carry-in and carry-out section for carrying in and carrying out a
semiconductor substrate having a surface on which a circuit formed,
in a dry state; a plated metal film forming unit for forming a
plated metal film on said semiconductor substrate which has been
carried in; a bevel etching unit for etching and removing at least
one of a plated metal film, a seed layer and a barrier layer formed
at a peripheral edge portion of said semiconductor substrate held
by a revolution member supporting apparatus; and a transfer
mechanism for transferring said semiconductor substrate between
said units; wherein said revolution member supporting apparatus
comprises: a rotatable member which rotates about an axis of
rotation; and a plurality of holding members which are disposed
along a circle having a center corresponding to said axis of
rotation of said rotatable member, and which revolve around said
axis of rotation when said rotatable member rotates; wherein said
holding members are allowed to rotate about their own central
axes.
22. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 21, further comprising an annealing unit for annealing said
semiconductor substrate.
23. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 21, further comprising an aligner unit for aligning an
orientation flat or a notch of the semiconductor substrate with a
predetermined direction.
24. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 21, further comprising a chemical liquid supply system for
supplying a plating liquid to said plated metal film forming
unit.
25. The semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to
claim 21, further comprising a cleaning unit for cleaning said
semiconductor substrate.
26. A revolution member supporting apparatus for holding a
disc-shaped object, comprising: a rotatable member which rotates
about a given axis of rotation; and a plurality of holding members
which are disposed at equal intervals along a circle having a
center corresponding to said axis of rotation, and which engage the
periphery of said object to hold said disc-shaped object such as a
semiconductor wafer; wherein each of said holding members has an
arc-like surface portion for making a friction engagement with the
periphery of said disc-shaped object, and is allowed to rotate
about a central axis of an arc of said arc-like surface.
Description
[0001] This application is a divisional application of Ser. No.
10/987,574, filed Nov. 15, 2004, which is a divisional application
of Ser. No. 09/842,650, filed Apr. 27, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No.
6,921,466.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a revolution member
supporting apparatus for holding and rotating a disc-shaped object
(object to be rotated) such as a semiconductor wafer. The present
invention also relates to a semiconductor substrate processing
apparatus for forming circuit interconnects by filling a circuit
pattern trench and/or hole formed in a semiconductor substrate with
a plated metal film, and removing the plated metal film while
leaving the metal film at the filled portion.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] For example, a semiconductor wafer, which has undergone a
copper-plating treatment or a CMP (chemical mechanical polishing)
treatment, is generally subjected to a cleaning treatment. The
cleaning treatment is usually performed by supplying a cleaning
liquid onto the upper surface of a semiconductor wafer around its
center, while the wafer is being held horizontally and rotated by a
revolution member supporting apparatus, and allowing the cleaning
liquid to diffuse radially over the upper surface of the wafer by
the action of centrifugal force.
[0006] It is usual with such a revolution member supporting
apparatus to hold a semiconductor wafer by engaging the periphery
of the wafer with a plurality of holding members.
[0007] In conventional revolution member supporting apparatuses,
such holding members always engage certain fixed portions in the
periphery of a semiconductor wafer when the wafer is held and
rotated. Accordingly, there has been the problem that a cleaning
liquid cannot reach adequately into the engaging portions, and
therefore a satisfactory cleaning treatment cannot be carried
out.
[0008] An attempt has been made to solve this problem by making a
change of holding members during a cleaning treatment. According to
this approach, for example, two pairs of holding members, each pair
consisting of three members, are provided, and a semiconductor
wafer is allowed to be held by each of the two pairs separately by
exchanging one pair for the other according to the rotating speed
of the apparatus. This approach, however, has the problem that
since the number of holding members in engagement with a
semiconductor wafer is relatively small, the wafer cannot be held
sufficiently firmly, whereby slipping of the wafer at the engaging
portions is likely to occur. This may wear the holding members and
produce particles that contaminate the semiconductor wafer.
[0009] Generally, aluminum or aluminum alloys have been used as a
material for forming interconnection circuits on a semiconductor
substrate. The higher integrated density of semiconductor devices
requires that a material having a higher electric conductivity
should be used for interconnection circuits. Thus, there has been
proposed a method which comprises plating a surface of a
semiconductor substrate having a circuit pattern trench and/or hole
formed therein to fill Cu (copper) or copper alloy into the circuit
pattern trench and/or hole, and removing the Cu or copper alloy
with the exception of the filled portion, thereby forming circuit
interconnects.
[0010] The above method of forming circuit interconnects will be
described with reference to FIGS. 1A through 1C. As shown in FIG.
1A, a conductive layer 101a is formed on a semiconductor substrate
101 on which semiconductor devices are formed, and an oxide film
102 of SiO.sub.2 is deposited on the conductive layer 101a. Then, a
via hole 103 and a trench 104 for an interconnect are formed in the
oxide film 2 by lithography and etching technology. Thereafter, a
barrier layer 105 of TiN or the like is formed thereon, and then a
seed layer 107 as an electric supply layer for electroplating is
formed on the barrier layer 105.
[0011] Then, as shown in FIG. 1B, the surface of the semiconductor
substrate W is coated with copper by electroplating to deposit a
plated copper film 106 on the oxide film 102, thus filling the via
hole 103 and the trench 104 with copper. Thereafter, the plated
copper film 106 and the barrier layer 105 on the oxide film 102 are
removed by chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), thus making the
plated copper film 106 in the via hole 103 and the trench 104 lie
flush with the oxide film 102. In this manner, an interconnect
composed of the plated copper film 106 is produced as shown in FIG.
1C.
[0012] In this case, the barrier layer 105 is formed so as to cover
a substantially entire surface of the oxide film 102, and the seed
layer 107 is also formed so as to cover a substantially entire
surface of the barrier layer 105. Thus, in some cases, as shown in
FIG. 2, a copper film which is the seed layer 107 resides in a
bevel (outer peripheral portion) of the semiconductor substrate W,
or copper is deposited on an edge (outer peripheral portion)
inwardly of the bevel of the semiconductor substrate W and remains
unpolished (not shown in the drawing).
[0013] Copper can easily be diffused into the oxide film 102 in a
semiconductor fabrication process such as annealing, for example,
thus deteriorating the electric insulation of the oxide film and
impairing the adhesiveness of the oxide film with a film to be
subsequently deposited to possibly cause separation of the
deposited film. It is therefore necessary to remove the remaining
unnecessary copper completely from the substrate before at least
film deposition. Furthermore, copper deposited on the outer
peripheral portion of the substrate other than the circuit
formation area is not only unnecessary, but may cause cross
contamination in subsequent processes of delivering, storing and
processing the semiconductor substrate. For these reasons, it is
necessary that the remaining deposited copper on the peripheral
portion of the substrate should be completely removed immediately
after the copper film deposition process or the CMP process. Here,
the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is defined as an area
including an edge and a bevel of the semiconductor substrate W, or
either the edge or the bevel. The edge of the substrate means areas
of the front and back surfaces of the semiconductor substrate W
within about 5 mm from the outer peripheral end of the substrate,
and the bevel of the substrate means an area of the outer
peripheral end surface and a curved portion in a cross section of
the semiconductor substrate W within 0.5 mm from the outer
peripheral end of the substrate.
[0014] Recently, a so-called dry-in dry-out configuration in which
a substrate is introduced in a dry state and removed in a dry state
is employed in a plating apparatus for performing Cu plating of
copper interconnection, and a polishing apparatus for performing
chemical mechanical polishing. The apparatuses have such structure
that after respective processing steps such as plating or polishing
are performed, particles are removed and dried by a cleaning unit
and a spin-drying unit, and the semiconductor substrate is taken
out in a dry state from the respective apparatuses. In this manner,
the plating apparatus and the polishing apparatus perform many
common processes, which are essentially successive processes. Thus,
there have been problems that the initial cost and the running cost
for the apparatuses are high, installation spaces for installation
of both apparatuses need to be wide, and a long processing time is
required.
[0015] Currently, the driving force for semiconductor devices is
changing from work stations and personal computers to digital
information household electric appliances (game machines, cellular
phones, digital still cameras, DVD, car navigation instruments,
digital video cameras, and the like). Under these circumstances,
LSI production also needs to respond to changes from general
purpose LSIs used in personal computers, and the like, to system
LSIs required for digital information household electric
appliances.
[0016] These system LSIs are characterized by a wide variety of
products, low volume production, great fluctuations in the number
of products made, and a short life of product, as compared with
general purpose LSIs. In order to reduce the instrument costs of
digital information household electrical appliances, it is
indispensable to reduce the manufacturing cost for LSIs. In
semiconductor production plants as well, it is demanded to shift
from the concept of large scale lines to the possession of many
types of small scale lines, and minimize the production time rather
than the amount of production. In order to cope with these demands,
it is demanded for future semiconductor device production to
respond quickly to the needs of instrument manufacturers and place
semiconductor devices on the production lines as promptly as
possible. Besides, since changes in demand are drastic, it is
necessary that functional changes can be made flexibly, or the
apparatus can be renewed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0017] The present invention has been made in view of the above
drawbacks. It is therefore a first object of the present invention
to provide a revolution member supporting apparatus which, when
used in a cleaning treatment of an object to be rotated such as a
semiconductor wafer, for example, can allow, such as, a cleaning
liquid, supplied during the cleaning treatment, to reach the entire
peripheral area of the object to be rotated and, in addition, can
securely hold the object to be rotated and prevent the generation
of particles.
[0018] A second object of the invention is to provide a
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus which can lower the
initial cost and the running cost of the apparatus, does not need a
wide installation space, can form circuit interconnects by copper
or copper alloy in a short processing time, and provide substrates
that are free from remaining copper film at an edge and bevel
portion which will cause cross contamination.
[0019] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus suitable for
production lines which produce products in many different
varieties, in a low volume, in greatly fluctuated numbers, and with
a short product life, such as system LSIs used in digital
information household electric appliances, are on a small scale,
and can flexibly make functional changes or can renew the
apparatus.
[0020] In order to achieve the first object, a first aspect of the
present invention comprises a rotatable member which rotates about
an axis of rotation; and a plurality of holding members which are
disposed along a circle having a center corresponding to the axis
of rotation of the rotatable member, and which revolve around the
axis of rotation when the rotatable member rotates; wherein the
holding members are allowed to swing about their own central
axes.
[0021] When an object to be rotated, such as a semiconductor wafer,
is held and rotated by the revolution member supporting apparatus
in carrying out an intended treatment such as cleaning, the
peripheral portions of the object in engagement with the holding
members can be shifted, during the treatment, by allowing the
holding members to swing to a desired degree of angle about their
central axes.
[0022] Preferably, each of the holding members has a free end with
an arc-like recess for engaging a peripheral portion of an object
to be rotated. Further, the holding members are allowed to swing to
a predetermined degree of angle about their own central axes.
[0023] It is preferred that each of the holding members has a
center of gravity deviated from the central axis of the holding
member, for example, by attaching thereto a weight which has its
center of gravity at a distance from the central axis of the
holding member. This enables the holding member to swing about its
central axis according to the rotating speed of the rotatable
member.
[0024] It is also preferred that each of the holding members can
move between an engaging/holding position where the holding member
engages a peripheral portion of an object to be rotated, and a
release position where the holding member is detached from the
object to be rotated along a radial direction of the rotatable
member. The loading and unloading of an object to be rotated into
and from the revolution member supporting apparatus may be made
when the holding member is in the release position.
[0025] The revolution member supporting apparatus is preferably
provided with an elastic body that causes the holding member
located in the engaging/holding position to engage elastically with
the peripheral portion of the object to be rotated. Such an elastic
body may be a spring.
[0026] In order to achieve the second object, a second aspect of
the present invention, comprises a carry-in and carry-out section
for carrying in and carrying out a semiconductor substrate having a
surface on which a circuit is formed, in a dry state; a plated
metal film forming unit for forming a plated metal film on the
semiconductor substrate which has been carried in; a polishing unit
for polishing at least part of the plated metal film on the
semiconductor substrate; a cleaning unit for cleaning the
semiconductor substrate held by a revolution member supporting
apparatus; and a transfer mechanism for transferring the
semiconductor substrate between the units; wherein the revolution
member supporting apparatus comprises: a rotatable member which
rotates about an axis of rotation; and a plurality of holding
members which are disposed along a circle having a center
corresponding to the axis of rotation of the rotatable member, and
which revolve around the axis of rotation when the rotatable member
rotates; wherein the holding members are allowed to swing about
their own central axes.
[0027] By constituting the semiconductor substrate processing
apparatus as described above, processing in which a power supply
seed layer and a plated metal film are applied onto a semiconductor
substrate having a trench and/or a hole for an interconnection
pattern formed on a surface thereof, and having a barrier layer
formed thereon, the power supply seed layer and the plated metal
film are polished and removed, and the substrate is cleaned and
dried to form interconnects, can be performed continuously by one
apparatus. Thus, compared with a case in which respective treatment
steps are performed by separate apparatuses, the entire apparatus
can be compact, a wide installation space is not needed, the
initial cost and running cost for the apparatus can be decreased,
and interconnects can be formed in a short processing time.
[0028] The present invention comprises a carry-in and carry-out
section for carrying in and carrying out a semiconductor substrate
having a surface on which a circuit is formed, in a dry state; an
annealing unit for annealing the semiconductor substrate; a
polishing unit for polishing at least part of the plated metal film
on the semiconductor substrate; a cleaning unit for cleaning the
semiconductor substrate held by a revolution member supporting
apparatus; and a transfer mechanism for transferring the
semiconductor substrate between the units; wherein the revolution
member supporting apparatus comprises: a rotatable member which
rotates about an axis of rotation; and a plurality of holding
members which are disposed along a circle having a center
corresponding to the axis of rotation of the rotatable member, and
which revolve around the axis of rotation when the rotatable member
rotates; wherein the holding members are allowed to swing about
their own central axes.
[0029] Since the annealing unit is provided, as described above,
the adhesive force of the plated metal film is stable, there is no
fear that the plated metal film may peel during polishing, and
electrical characteristics of the plated metal film are
improved.
[0030] According to the present invention, there is provided a
reinforcing seed layer forming unit for forming a reinforcing seed
layer on the semiconductor substrate.
[0031] According to the present invention, there is provided a seed
layer forming unit for forming a seed layer on the semiconductor
substrate.
[0032] According to the present invention, there is provided a
barrier layer forming unit for forming a barrier layer on the
semiconductor substrate.
[0033] According to the present invention, there is provided a cap
plating unit for forming a plated cap layer on the semiconductor
substrate.
[0034] By providing the cap plating unit as described above, a cap
plating for preventing oxidation or degradation of a plated metal
film can be applied onto the upper surface of the plated metal
film, so that oxidation and degradation of the upper surface of the
plated metal film can be prevented.
[0035] According to the present invention, there is provided a
bevel etching unit for etching and removing at least one of the
plated metal film, a seed layer and a barrier layer formed at a
peripheral edge portion of the semiconductor substrate.
[0036] According to the present invention, the steps of removing a
plated metal film edge portion and a bevel portion after formation
of the plated film, and polishing the plated film on the
semiconductor substrate can be performed continuously by one
apparatus.
[0037] According to the present invention, there is provided a film
thickness measuring instrument for measuring the film thickness of
the film formed on the semiconductor substrate.
[0038] By measuring the film thickness as described above, the
plating time for obtaining the desired plated film thickness, the
polishing time, and the annealing time can be adjusted. By
providing the detection sensor, the substrate surface state such as
the metal film thickness of the substrate can be detected without
stopping or interrupting the substrate treatment process, and the
substrate surface state can also be detected, while high throughput
is realized.
[0039] According to the present invention, each of the units is
interchangeable.
[0040] Since the respective units are adapted to be
interchangeable, as described above, renewal of the function of the
entire substrate processing apparatus can be achieved at a low cost
in a short time.
[0041] According to the present invention, in the plated metal film
forming unit, plating treatment and cleaning treatment are
performed in such a state that the semiconductor substrate is held
by a substrate holding portion.
[0042] By performing plating treatment and cleaning treatment in
such a state that the semiconductor substrate is held by a
substrate holding portion, as described above, plating treatment
and cleaning treatment can be performed without moving the
semiconductor substrate and no contaminants are brought into a next
process.
[0043] The present invention provides a semiconductor substrate
processing apparatus comprising: a carry-in and carry-out section
for carrying in and carrying out a semiconductor substrate having a
surface on which a circuit formed, in a dry state; a plated metal
film forming unit for forming a plated metal film on the
semiconductor substrate which has been carried in; an annealing
unit for annealing the semiconductor substrate; a bevel etching
unit for etching and removing at least one of a plated metal film,
a seed layer and a barrier layer formed at a peripheral edge
portion of the semiconductor substrate held by a revolution member
supporting apparatus; and a transfer mechanism for transferring the
semiconductor substrate between the units; wherein the revolution
member supporting apparatus comprises: a rotatable member which
rotates about an axis of rotation; and a plurality of holding
members which are disposed along a circle having a center
corresponding to the axis of rotation of the rotatable member, and
which revolve around the axis of rotation when the rotatable member
rotates; wherein the holding members are allowed to swing about
their own central axes.
[0044] The present invention further provides an interior of
facilities are divided into a loading and unloading area and a
treatment unit area, a first robot is provided in the loading and
unloading area for transferring a substrate between a loading and
unloading section that accommodates a cassette and a temporary
storage section disposed in the treatment unit area, and a second
robot is provided in the treatment unit area for transferring the
substrate between the temporary storage section and various
treatment units disposed in the treatment unit area.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0045] FIGS. 1A through 1C are schematic views for forming
interconnects on a semiconductor substrate;
[0046] FIG. 2 is a view showing a state in which a seed layer and a
barrier layer have remained in a bevel portion as a result of CMP
performed without bevel etching process of a semiconductor
substrate;
[0047] FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of a revolution member
supporting apparatus accordance to the present invention;
[0048] FIG. 4 is a plan view of FIG. 3;
[0049] FIG. 5 is a fragmentary side view showing the details of a
holding member of the revolution member supporting apparatus for
supporting a disc-shaped object;
[0050] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI
of FIG. 5;
[0051] FIG. 7 is a view showing a plan constitution example of a
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0052] FIG. 8 is a view showing a schematic constitution example of
a polishing table and a top ring in the semiconductor substrate
processing apparatus according to the present invention;
[0053] FIG. 9 is a view showing a schematic constitution example of
a cleaning unit in the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus
according to the present invention;
[0054] FIG. 10 is a view showing a schematic constitution example
of a cleaning machine of the polishing table in the semiconductor
substrate processing apparatus according to the present
invention;
[0055] FIGS. 11A through 11C are views showing a robot in the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention, and FIG. 11A is a view showing an appearance,
FIG. 11B is a plan view of a robot hand, and FIG. 11C is a
cross-sectional view of the robot hand;
[0056] FIG. 12 is a view showing a plan constitution of a plated Cu
film forming unit in the semiconductor substrate processing
apparatus according to the present invention;
[0057] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of
FIG. 12;
[0058] FIG. 14 is a view showing a sectional constitution of a
substrate holding portion and a cathode portion of the plated Cu
film forming unit in the semiconductor substrate processing
apparatus according to the present invention;
[0059] FIG. 15 is a view showing a sectional constitution of an
electrode arm portion of the plated Cu film forming unit in the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0060] FIG. 16 is a plan view of a state in which a housing has
been removed from an electrode portion of the electrode arm shown
in FIG. 15;
[0061] FIG. 17 is a schematic view showing an anode and a plating
liquid impregnated material according to another embodiment of the
present invention;
[0062] FIG. 18 is a schematic view showing an anode and a plating
liquid impregnated material according to another embodiment of the
present invention;
[0063] FIG. 19 is an electrical equivalent circuit of an
electrolytic treatment apparatus shown in FIGS. 17 and 18.
[0064] FIG. 20 is a plan view schematically showing a state in
which a plating liquid is spreading throughout the surface, to be
plated, of a substrate when plating is performed using the plated
Cu film forming unit illustrated in FIG. 15;
[0065] FIGS. 21A and 21B are views of different modifications of
FIG. 20, each schematically showing a state in which a plating
liquid is spreading throughout the surface, to be plated, of the
substrate;
[0066] FIG. 22 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroplating apparatus according to the present invention;
[0067] FIG. 23 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroplating apparatus according to the present invention;
[0068] FIG. 24 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroplating apparatus according to the present invention;
[0069] FIG. 25 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroplating apparatus applied to the present invention;
[0070] FIG. 26 is a schematic view of an essential part showing a
portion close to an outer peripheral portion of a plating liquid
impregnated material in the electroplating apparatus;
[0071] FIGS. 27A and 27B are views showing other embodiments of the
present invention;
[0072] FIG. 28 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0073] FIG. 29 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0074] FIG. 30 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0075] FIG. 31 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0076] FIG. 32 is a view showing a flow of the respective steps in
the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus illustrated in
FIG. 31;
[0077] FIG. 33 is a view showing a schematic plan constitution
example of an aligner and film thickness measuring instrument in
the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0078] FIG. 34 is a view showing a side constitution example of the
aligner and film thickness measuring instrument of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0079] FIG. 35 is a view showing movement of a semiconductor
substrate in the aligner and film thickness measuring instrument
illustrated in FIGS. 33 and 34;
[0080] FIG. 36 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroless plating apparatus using an embodiment of the present
invention;
[0081] FIG. 37 is a view showing a schematic constitution example
of a bevel and backside cleaning unit in the semiconductor
substrate processing apparatus according to the present
invention;
[0082] FIGS. 38A through 38D are views showing base plate
constitution examples for placing respective units in the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0083] FIGS. 39A and 39B are views showing schematic front
constitution examples of the respective units in the semiconductor
substrate processing apparatus according to the present
invention;
[0084] FIGS. 40A and 40B are views showing schematic front
constitution examples of the respective units in the semiconductor
substrate processing apparatus according to the present
invention;
[0085] FIG. 41 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0086] FIG. 42 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0087] FIG. 43 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0088] FIGS. 44A through 44C are schematic views showing an example
of a plating step;
[0089] FIG. 45 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroless plating apparatus using another embodiment of the
present invention;
[0090] FIGS. 46A and 46B are views showing the results of
measurement of the film thicknesses of semiconductor substrates
which are electroless-plated by the methods of the present
invention and a conventional example;
[0091] FIG. 47 is a plan view showing an example of a plating
apparatus to which the present invention is applied;
[0092] FIG. 48 is a plan view showing an example of a CMP apparatus
to which the present invention is applied;
[0093] FIG. 49 is a view showing an example of a plating and CMP
apparatus to which the present invention is applied;
[0094] FIG. 50 is a perspective view showing a transfer robot;
[0095] FIGS. 51A and 51B are views showing a robot hand attached to
the transfer robot, and FIG. 51A is a plan view and FIG. 51B is a
side sectional view;
[0096] FIGS. 52A and 52B are views showing a transfer robot to
which the present invention is applied, and FIG. 52A is a schematic
plan view and FIG. 52B is a schematic side view;
[0097] FIGS. 53A and 53B are views showing an example to which the
present invention is applied, and FIG. 53A is a schematic plan view
and FIG. 53B is a schematic side view;
[0098] FIG. 54 is a schematic front view of the neighborhood of a
reversing machine to which the present invention is applied;
[0099] FIG. 55 is a plan view of a reversing arm portion;
[0100] FIG. 56 is a sectional view of an essential part of a
plating module to which the present invention is applied;
[0101] FIG. 57 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0102] FIG. 58 is an explanatory view showing an air current in the
plating apparatus shown in FIG. 57;
[0103] FIG. 59 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main
part of a plating unit;
[0104] FIG. 60 is an enlarged view showing a part of the plating
unit shown in FIG. 59;
[0105] FIG. 61 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a
plating process unit in a plating apparatus;
[0106] FIG. 62 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a
plating process unit in a plating apparatus;
[0107] FIG. 63 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a
plating process unit in a plating apparatus;
[0108] FIG. 64 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a
plating process unit in a plating apparatus;
[0109] FIG. 65 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a
plating process unit in a plating apparatus;
[0110] FIG. 66 is a cross-sectional view showing a whole structure
of a plating process unit at the time of plating process in a
plating apparatus;
[0111] FIG. 67 is a schematic diagram showing a flow of a plating
liquid in a plating apparatus provided with a plurality of the
plating process units shown in FIG. 66;
[0112] FIG. 68 is a cross-sectional view showing a whole structure
of the plating process unit at the time of non-plating process (at
the time of transfer of a substrate);
[0113] FIG. 69 is a cross-sectional view showing a whole structure
of the plating unit at the time of maintenance;
[0114] FIG. 70 is a cross-sectional view explanatory of a
relationship among a housing, a pressing ring, and a substrate at
the time of transfer of a substrate;
[0115] FIG. 71 is an enlarged view showing a part of FIG. 66;
[0116] FIGS. 72A through 72D are schematic views explanatory of the
flow of a plating liquid at the time of plating process and at the
time of non-plating process;
[0117] FIG. 73 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a
centering mechanism;
[0118] FIG. 74 is a cross-sectional view showing a feeding contact
(probe);
[0119] FIG. 75 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0120] FIG. 76 is a view showing a plan constitution example of the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0121] FIG. 77 is a vertical sectional view of an annealing unit;
and
[0122] FIG. 78 is a transverse sectional view of the annealing
unit.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0123] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described
with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 3 through 6 show an
embodiment of a revolution member supporting apparatus in
accordance with the present invention. The revolution member
supporting apparatus 40 is for holding a substrate (object to be
rotated) W such as a semiconductor wafer, and has a disc-shaped
rotatable member 44 that is set horizontally and rotated by a
rotatable drive shaft 42, and a plurality of holding members 46 for
holding the substrate W above the rotatable member 44. The holding
members 46 are mounted on the peripheral portion of the rotatable
member 44 and arranged along a circle with the rotatable drive
shaft 42 as a center, with each two adjacent members being spaced
at a predetermined distance (60.degree. in the embodiment of FIG.
4). The holding members 46 engage the periphery W' of the substrate
W, thereby holding the substrate W horizontally. In FIG. 3,
reference numeral 47 denotes a belt driving device for connecting
the rotatable drive shaft 42 to a motor M for driving, and H
denotes a housing for accommodating the revolution member
supporting apparatus 40, that is adapted to prevent a cleaning
liquid or the like supplied from a nozzle N to the substrate W from
scattering all around and collect the scattered liquid which is
then discharged through a discharge pipe D.
[0124] FIG. 5 shows the details of each holding member 46. The
holding member 46 is substantially columnar and has near its top an
engaging surface 48 in an annular groove form. The engaging surface
48 is adapted to make a friction engagement with the periphery W'
of the substrate W. The holding member 46 vertically penetrates a
slot 50, which is formed in the peripheral portion of the rotatable
member 44 and extends in the radial direction thereof, and is
rotatably supported at its bottom by a holding plate 52. The
holding plate 52 is located below the rotatable member 44 and is so
constructed that it is allowed to rotate together with the
rotatable member 44. The holding member 46 is held on the holding
plate 52 in such a manner that it is allowed to swing about its own
central axis. That is, the holding plate 52 has, mounted thereon, a
small-diameter shaft 54 extending vertically upward, whereas in the
inside of the holding member 46, a hole 56 is formed that extends
upward from the bottom of the holding member 46. The hole 56 is
adapted to make a clearance fit with the small-diameter shaft 54,
so that the holding member 46 can swing about the small-diameter
shaft 54 as a center.
[0125] Further, a weight 58, extending horizontally, is mounted on
lower end of the holding member 46. When the rotatable member 44
rotates about its axis of rotation, i.e., the rotatable drive shaft
42, and the holding member 46 revolves around the shaft 42, the
weight 58 is forced to move (swing) by the action of centrifugal
force whereby the holding member 46 swings (rotates) about its own
axis (i.e., the shaft 54). The position of the weight 58 shown by
the solid line in FIG. 6 represents a home position, where the
weight 58 is forced by pressure through an elastic means, not
shown. When a certain centrifugal force is applied, the weight 58
is forced to move in the direction of arrow A towards the position
shown by the chain line, whereby the substrate W is made to move in
the direction of arrow B.
[0126] The holding plate 52 is supported, in such a manner that it
can move horizontally in the direction of arrow C, i.e., the radial
direction of the rotatable member 44 by a link mechanism or the
like, not shown, so that the holding member 46 can move along the
slot 50 between an engaging/holding position (the position shown in
FIG. 5) where the holding member 46 engages the periphery W' of the
substrate W and a release position which is spaced radially
outwardly from the engaging/holding position and in which the
holding member 46 detaches from the periphery W' of the substrate
W. Further, the holding plate 52 is pressed inwardly in the radial
direction of the rotatable member 44 by a spring 60 so that the
engaging surface 48 of the holding member 46 in the
engaging/holding position elastically engages the periphery W' of
the substrate W through the spring 60.
[0127] The operation of the revolution member supporting apparatus
40 for holding and rotating the substrate will now be described.
First, each holding member 46 is moved, against the pressure by the
spring 60, outwardly in the radial direction of the rotatable
member 44 to the release position. Thereafter, the substrate W is
set horizontally above the rotatable member 44, and the holding
member 46 is returned to the engaging/holding position to bring the
engaging surface 48 into engagement with the periphery W' of the
substrate W, thereby allowing the holding member 48 to elastically
hold the substrate W.
[0128] When the rotatable member 44 is driven to rotate and the
holding member 46 revolves, a centrifugal force comes to act on the
weight 58. The centrifugal force acting on the weight 58 is weak
when the rotational speed of the rotatable member 44 is low, and so
the weight 58 is kept motionless due to the pressure by the spring
which forces the weight 58 in the home position. When the
rotational speed of the rotational member 44 is higher than a
particular value, the centrifugal force acting on the weight 58
exceeds the counter pressure by the spring and causes the weight 58
to swing, whereby the holding member 46 swings (rotates) about its
central axis. Since the holding member 46 is in friction engagement
with the periphery W' of the substrate W as described above, the
swinging of the holding member 46 makes the substrate W move in the
direction of arrow B shown in FIG. 6, thus shifting the engaging
portion in the periphery W' of the substrate W.
[0129] According to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the
weight 58, whose center of gravity is eccentric to the central axis
of the holding member 46, is mounted on the holding member 46. The
use of such an eccentric weight, as described above, enables the
holding member 46 to swing (rotate) about its central axis as the
rotatable member 44 rotates. However, the mechanism for the
swinging (rotation) of the holding member 46 is not limited
thereto. Thus, for example, a link mechanism may be connected to
the holding member 46, and the holding member 46 may be allowed to
swing (rotate) through the action of the link mechanism.
[0130] The revolution member supporting apparatus of the present
invention, which has the above structural features and technical
effects, can advantageously be utilized in a cleaning treatment of
a substrate (object to be rotated) such as a semiconductor wafer.
When cleaning is performed to the substrate while it is held and
rotated by the revolution member supporting apparatus, the
peripheral portions of the substrate in engagement with the holding
members can be shifted during the cleaning treatment, whereby a
cleaning liquid can reach to the entire peripheral area of the
substrate, thus enabling a satisfactory cleaning treatment.
[0131] Though the revolution member supporting apparatus can be
applied to any cleaning device, it is most suitably employed in a
bevel-etching device for performing bevel-etching (etching of edge
and bevel portions) to a semiconductor wafer. The use of the
revolution member supporting apparatus in the bevel-etching device,
while ensuring the holding of a semiconductor wafer, can shift the
edge portions (the periphery W') of the semiconductor wafer in
engagement with the holding members, whereby etching can be
effected to every edge or bevel portion of the semiconductor
wafer.
[0132] Further, since an object to be rotated such as a
semiconductor wafer is held by all of the holding members that are
provided in the revolution member supporting apparatus, the object
to be rotated can be held firmly and, therefore, the above
described problem of generation of particles can be prevented.
[0133] FIG. 7 is a view showing the plan constitution of a
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus according to the first
aspect of the present invention. The semiconductor substrate
processing apparatus of the present invention is of a constitution
in which there are provided a loading and unloading section 1, a
plated Cu film forming unit 2, a first robot 3, a third cleaning
unit 4, a reversing machine 5, a reversing machine 6, a second
cleaning unit 7, a second robot 8, a first cleaning unit 9, a first
polishing apparatus 10, and a second polishing apparatus 11. A
before-plating and after-plating film thickness measuring
instrument 12 for measuring the film thicknesses before and after
plating, and a dry state film thickness measuring instrument 13 for
measuring the film thickness of a semiconductor substrate W in a
dry state after polishing are placed near the first robot 3.
[0134] The before-plating and after-plating film thickness
measuring instrument 12, and the dry state film thickness measuring
instrument 13, especially the dry state film thickness measuring
instrument 13, may be provided on a hand of the first robot 3, as
will be described later on. The before-plating and after-plating
film thickness measuring instrument 12 may be provided at a
semiconductor substrate carry-in and carry-out opening of the
plated Cu film forming unit 2, although this is not shown, so as to
measure the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate W carried
in, and the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate W carried
out.
[0135] The first polishing apparatus (polishing unit) 10 has a
polishing table 10-1, a top ring 10-2, a top ring head 10-3, a film
thickness measuring instrument 10-4, and a pusher 10-5. The second
polishing apparatus (polishing unit) 11 has a polishing table 11-1,
a top ring 11-2, a top ring head 11-3, a film thickness measuring
instrument 11-4, and a pusher 11-5.
[0136] A cassette 1-1 accommodating the semiconductor substrates W,
in which a via hole 103 and a trench 104 for interconnect are
formed, and a seed layer 107 is formed thereon as shown in FIG. 1A,
is placed on a loading port of the loading and unloading section 1.
The first robot 3 takes out the semiconductor substrate W from the
cassette 1-1, and carries the semiconductor substrate W into the
plated Cu film forming unit 2 where a plated Cu film 106 is formed.
At this time, the film thickness of the seed layer 107 is measured
with the before-plating and after-plating film thickness measuring
instrument 12. The plated Cu film 106 is formed by carrying out
hydrophilic treatment of the face of the semiconductor substrate W,
and then Cu plating. After formation of the plated Cu film 106,
rinsing or cleaning of the semiconductor substrate W is carried out
in the plated Cu film forming unit 2. If there is time to spare,
drying of the semiconductor substrate W may be performed.
Constitution examples and operations of the plated Cu film forming
unit 2 will be described in detail later on.
[0137] When the semiconductor substrate W is taken out from the
plated Cu film forming unit 2 by the first robot 3, the film
thickness of the plated Cu film 106 is measured with the
before-plating and after-plating film thickness measuring
instrument 12. The method of measurement is the same as for the
seed layer 107. The results of its measurement are recorded into a
recording device (not shown) as record data on the semiconductor
substrate, and are used for judgment of an abnormality of the
plated Cu film forming unit 2. After measurement of the film
thickness, the first robot 3 transfers the semiconductor substrate
W to the reversing machine 5, and the reversing machine 5 reverses
the semiconductor substrate W (the surface on which the plated Cu
film 106 has been formed faces downward). The first polishing
apparatus 10 and the second polishing apparatus 11 perform
polishing in a serial mode and a parallel mode. Next, polishing in
the serial mode and the parallel mode will be described.
[Serial Mode Polishing]
[0138] In the serial mode polishing, a primary polishing is
performed by the polishing apparatus 10, and a secondary polishing
is performed by the polishing apparatus 11. The second robot 8
picks up the semiconductor substrate W on the reversing machine 5,
and places the semiconductor substrate W on the pusher 10-5 of the
polishing apparatus 10. The top ring 10-2 attracts the
semiconductor substrate W on the pusher 10-5 by suction, and brings
the surface of the plated Cu film 106 of the semiconductor
substrate W into contact with a polishing surface 10-1a of the
polishing table 10-1 under pressure to perform a primary polishing,
shown in FIG. 8. With the primary polishing, the plated Cu film 106
is basically polished. The polishing surface 10-1a of the polishing
table 10-1 is composed of foamed polyurethane such as IC1000, or a
material having abrasive grains fixed thereto or impregnated
therein. Upon relative movements of the polishing surface 10-1a and
the semiconductor substrate W, the plated Cu film 106 is
polished.
[0139] Silica, alumina, ceria, or the like is used as abrasive
grains for performing polishing of the plated Cu film 106, or as a
slurry ejected from a slurry nozzle 10-6. A mainly acidic material
for oxidizing Cu, such as hydrogen peroxide, is used as an
oxidizing agent. A temperature controlled fluid piping 28 for
passing a liquid whose temperature is adjusted to a predetermined
value is connected to the interior of the polishing table 10-1 in
order to maintain the temperature of the polishing table 10-1 at a
predetermined value. A temperature regulator 10-7 is provided on
the slurry nozzle 10-6 in order to maintain the temperature of the
slurry at a predetermined value. Water or the like used for
dressing is also controlled in temperature, although this is not
shown. In this manner, temperature of the polishing table 10-1, the
temperature of the slurry, and the temperature of water or the like
used for dressing are maintained at predetermined values, whereby
the chemical reaction rate is kept constant. Particularly for the
polishing table 10-1, ceramics with high thermal conductivity, such
as alumina or SiC, are used.
[0140] An eddy current film thickness measuring instrument 10-8 or
an optical film thickness measuring instrument 10-9 provided in the
polishing table 10-1 is used for detection of an end point of the
primary polishing. Film thickness measurement of the plated Cu film
106, or surface detection of the barrier layer 5 is performed, and
when the film thickness of the plated Cu film 106 reaches zero or
when the surface of the barrier layer 5 is detected, polishing is
judged to have reached its end point.
[0141] After completion of polishing of the plated Cu film 106, the
semiconductor substrate W is returned onto the pusher 10-5 by the
top ring 10-2. The second robot 8 picks up the semiconductor
substrate W, and introduces it into the first cleaning unit 9. At
this time, a chemical liquid may be ejected toward the face and
backside of the semiconductor substrate W on the pusher 10-5 to
remove particles therefrom or cause particles to be difficult to
adhere thereto.
[0142] FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing the first cleaning unit.
In the first cleaning unit 9, the face and the backside of the
semiconductor substrate Ware scrubbed with PVA sponge rolls 9-2,
9-2. As cleaning water ejected from nozzles 9-4, pure water is
mainly used, but there may be used a surface active agent, or a
chelating agent, or a mixture of both which has been adjusted in pH
and conformed to the zeta potential of copper oxide. The nozzle 9-4
may also be provided with an ultrasonic vibration element 9-3 for
applying ultrasonic vibrations to the cleaning water to be ejected.
The reference numeral 9-1 is a rotating roller for rotating the
semiconductor substrate W in a horizontal plane.
[0143] After completion of cleaning in the first cleaning unit 9,
the second robot 8 picks up the semiconductor substrate W, and
places the semiconductor substrate W on the pusher 11-5 of the
second polishing apparatus 11. The top ring 11-2 attracts the
semiconductor substrate W on the pusher 11-5 by suction, and brings
the surface of the semiconductor substrate W, which has the barrier
layer 105 formed thereon, into contact with a polishing surface of
the polishing table 11-1 under pressure to perform the secondary
polishing. The constitution of the polishing table 11-1 and the top
ring 11-2 are the same as the constitution shown in FIG. 8. With
this secondary polishing, the barrier layer 105 is polished.
However, there may be a case in which a Cu film and an oxide film
left after the primary polishing are also polished.
[0144] A polishing surface 11-1a of the polishing table 11-1 is
composed of foamed polyurethane such as IC1000, or a material
having abrasive grains fixed thereto or impregnated therein. Upon
relative movements of the polishing surface 11-1a and the
semiconductor substrate W, polishing is carried out. At this time,
silica, alumina, ceria, or the like is used as abrasive grains or a
slurry. A chemical liquid is adjusted depending on the type of the
film to be polished.
[0145] Detection of an end point of the secondary polishing is
performed by measuring the film thickness of the barrier layer 105
mainly with the use of the optical film thickness measuring
instrument 10-9 shown in FIG. 8, and detecting the film thickness
which has become zero, or detecting the surface of an insulating
film 102 comprising SiO.sub.2. Furthermore, a film thickness
measuring instrument with an image processing function is used as
the film thickness measuring instrument 11-4 provided near the
polishing table 11-1. By use of this measuring instrument,
measurement of the oxide film is made, the results are stored as
processing records of the semiconductor substrate W, and used for
judging whether the semiconductor substrate W in which secondary
polishing has been finished can be transferred to a subsequent step
or not. If the end point of the secondary polishing is not reached,
repolishing is performed. If over-polishing has been performed
beyond a prescribed value due to any abnormality, then the
semiconductor substrate processing apparatus is stopped to avoid
further polishing so that defective products will not increase.
[0146] After completion of the secondary polishing, the
semiconductor substrate W is moved to the pusher 11-5 by the top
ring 11-2. The second robot 8 picks up the semiconductor substrate
W on the pusher 11-5. At this time, a chemical liquid may be
ejected toward the face and backside of the semiconductor substrate
W on the pusher 11-5 to remove particles therefrom or cause
particles to be difficult to adhere thereto.
[0147] The second robot 8 carries the semiconductor substrate W
into the second cleaning unit 7 where cleaning of the semiconductor
substrate W is performed. The constitution of the second cleaning
machine 7 is also the same as the constitution of the first
cleaning machine 9 shown in FIG. 9. The face of the semiconductor
substrate W is scrubbed with the PVA sponge rolls 9-2 using a
cleaning liquid to which pure water, a surface active agent, a
chelating agent, or a pH regulating agent is added so as to remove
particles mainly. A strong chemical liquid such as DHF is ejected
from a nozzle 9-5 toward the backside of the semiconductor
substrate W to perform etching of the diffused Cu thereon. If there
is no problem of diffusion, scrubbing cleaning is performed with
the PVA sponge rolls 9-2 using the same chemical liquid as that
used for the face.
[0148] After completion of the above cleaning, the second robot 8
picks up the semiconductor substrate W and transfers it to the
reversing machine 6, and the reversing machine 6 reverses the
semiconductor substrate W. The semiconductor substrate W which has
been reversed is picked up by the first robot 3, and transferred to
the third cleaning unit 4. In the third cleaning unit 4, megasonic
water excited by ultrasonic vibrations is ejected toward the face
of the semiconductor substrate W to clean the semiconductor
substrate W. At this time, the face of the semiconductor substrate
W may be cleaned with a known pencil type sponge using a cleaning
liquid comprising pure water to which a surface active agent, a
chelating agent, or a pH regulating agent is added. Thereafter, the
semiconductor substrate W is dried by spin-drying. The third
cleaning unit 4 is provided with a rotatable holding apparatus
shown in FIGS. 3 through 6.
[0149] As described above, if the film thickness has been measured
with the film thickness measuring instrument 11-4 provided near the
polishing table 11-1, then the semiconductor substrate W is not
subjected to further process and is accommodated into the cassette
placed on the unloading port of the loading and unloading section
1.
[0150] When multilayer film measurement is to be made, measurement
in a dry state needs to be performed. Thus, the semiconductor
substrate W is once introduced into the film thickness measuring
instrument 13 for measurement of each film thickness. In the film
thickness measuring instrument 13, the results are stored as
processing records of the semiconductor substrate W, or a judgment
as to whether the semiconductor substrate W can be brought to a
next step or not is made. If the end point of polishing is not
reached, feedback is given for the semiconductor substrate W to be
processed subsequently. If over-polishing has been performed beyond
a prescribed value due to any abnormality, the apparatus is stopped
to avoid further polishing so that defective products will not
increase.
[Parallel Mode Polishing]
[0151] In the parallel mode polishing, the semiconductor substrates
W having the plated Cu film 106 formed by the plated Cu film
forming unit 2 are polished in parallel by the polishing
apparatuses 10, 11. The second robot 8 picks up the semiconductor
substrate W which has been reversed by the reversing machine 5 as
stated above, and places the semiconductor substrate W on the
pusher 10-5 or 11-5. The top ring 10-2 or 11-2 attracts the
semiconductor substrate W by suction, and brings the surface of the
plated Cu film 106 of the semiconductor substrate W into contact
with the polishing surface of the polishing table 10-1 or 11-1
under pressure to perform a primary polishing. The polishing
surface 10-1a or 11-1a of the polishing table 10-1 or 11-1 is
composed of foamed polyurethane such as IC1000, or a material
having abrasive grains fixed thereto or impregnated therein, as
stated above. Upon relative movements of the polishing surface and
the semiconductor substrate W, polishing is performed.
[0152] Silica, alumina, ceria, or the like is used as abrasive
grains or a slurry. A mainly acidic material for oxidizing Cu, such
as hydrogen peroxide, is used as an oxidizing agent. The polishing
tables 10-1 and 11-1, and the slurry or water or the like used for
dressing are controlled in temperature as stated above to keep the
chemical reaction rate constant. Particularly for the polishing
tables 10-1 and 11-1, ceramics with high thermal conductivity, such
as alumina or SiC, are used.
[0153] Polishing in the polishing table 10-1 or 11-1 is performed
by a plurality of steps. In the first step, the plated Cu film 106
is polished. A main purpose of this polishing is the removal of the
difference in level on the surface of the plated Cu film 106, and a
slurry having excellent level difference characteristics is used.
For example, a slurry capable of reducing an initial level
difference of 700 nm in a 100 .mu.m line to 20 nm or less is used.
At this time, as the second step, the pressing load for pressing
the semiconductor substrate W is made a half or less of that in the
first step, and the polishing conditions for improving the level
difference characteristics are added. For detection of the end
point in the second step, the eddy current type measuring machine
10-8 shown in FIG. 8 is used when 500 nm of the plated Cu film 106
is to be left. In the case where 500 nm or less is to be left or
polishing is to be performed up to the surface of the barrier layer
105, an optical film thickness measuring instrument 10-9 is
used.
[0154] After polishing of the Cu layers, i.e., the plated Cu film
106 and the seed layer 107, is completed, polishing of the barrier
layer 105 is performed. If the barrier layer 105 cannot be polished
usually with the initially used slurry, its composition needs to be
changed. Thus, when the second step is completed, the slurry, which
has remained on the polishing surface of the polishing table 10-1
or 11-1 and has been used in the first and second steps, is removed
by a water polish, a water jet, an atomizer having a mixture of
pure water and a gas, or a dresser. Then, the procedure goes to the
next step.
[0155] FIG. 10 is a view showing the constitution of a cleaning
mechanism for cleaning the polishing surface 10-1a of the polishing
table 10-1. As illustrated, a plurality of (four in the drawing)
mixing nozzles 10-11a to 10-11d for mixing pure water and a
nitrogen gas and ejecting the mixture are disposed above the
polishing table 10-1. Each of the mixing nozzles 10-11a to 10-11d
is supplied with a nitrogen gas whose pressure has been controlled
by a regulator 16 from a nitrogen gas supply source 14 through an
air operator valve 18, and is also supplied with pure water whose
pressure has been controlled by a regulator 17 from a pure water
supply source 15 through an air operator valve 19.
[0156] The mixed gas and liquid undergo changes in parameters, such
as the pressure and temperature of the liquid and/or gas and the
nozzle shape, by the nozzles. The liquid to be supplied is
transformed by nozzle jetting as follows: {circle around (1)}
formation of liquid fine particles, {circle around (2)} formation
of solid fine particles upon solidification of the liquid, {circle
around (3)} gasification of the liquid upon evaporation
(hereinafter, {circle around (1)}, {circle around (2)}, {circle
around (3)} are called atomization). A mixture of a liquid-based
component and a gas component is jetted, with predetermined
directional properties, toward the polishing surface of the
polishing table 10-1.
[0157] When the polishing surface 10-1a is to be regenerated
(dressed) upon relative movements of the polishing surface 10-1a
and the dresser 10-10, a mixed fluid of pure water and a nitrogen
gas is ejected from the mixing nozzles 10-11a to 11-11d toward the
polishing surface 10-1a to clean it. The pressure of the nitrogen
gas and the pressure of pure water can be set independently. In the
present embodiment, manually driven regulators are used along with
a pure water line and a nitrogen line, but regulators whose setting
pressures can be changed based on external signals may be used. As
a result of cleaning of the polishing surface 10-1a using the
above-described cleaning mechanism, the slurry remaining on the
polishing surface in the first polishing step and the second
polishing step could be removed by performing cleaning for 5 to 20
seconds. A cleaning mechanism of the same constitution as that
shown in FIG. 10 is provided for cleaning the polishing surface
11-1a of the polishing table 11-1, although this is not shown.
[0158] As the abrasive grains used in the slurry for polishing of
the barrier layer 105 in the third step, it is desirable to use the
same abrasive grains as those for polishing of the plated Cu film
106. Moreover, the pH value of the chemical liquid is either on the
acid side or on the alkali side, and the preferable conditions are
to prevent formation of a mixture on the polishing surface. In both
cases, the same particles of silica were used, and both of the
chemical liquid with alkalinity and the chemical liquid with
acidity, as the pH value of the chemical liquid, obtained good
results.
[0159] For detection of the endpoint in the third step, the optical
film thickness measuring instrument 10-9 shown in FIG. 8 is used to
detect mainly the film thickness of the SiO.sub.2 oxide film and
the remainder of the barrier layer 105 and send signals.
Furthermore, a film thickness measuring instrument with an image
processing function is used as the film thickness measuring
instrument 10-4 or 11-4 which is provided near the polishing tables
10-1 and 11-1. By using of this measuring instrument, measurement
of the oxide film is made, the results are stored as processing
records of the semiconductor substrates W, and used for judging
whether the semiconductor substrate W can be transferred to a
subsequent step or not. If the end point of polishing in the third
step is not reached, repolishing is performed. If over-polishing
has been performed beyond a prescribed value owing to any
abnormality, the semiconductor substrate processing apparatus is
stopped to avoid further polishing so that defective products will
not increase.
[0160] After completion of the third step, the semiconductor
substrate W is moved to the pusher 10-5 or 11-5 by the top ring
10-2 or 11-2, and placed on the pusher 10-5 or 11-5. The second
robot 8 picks up the semiconductor substrate W on the pusher 10-5
or 11-5. At this time, a chemical liquid may be ejected toward the
face and backside of the semiconductor substrate W on the pusher
10-5 or 11-5 to remove particles therefrom or cause particles to be
difficult to adhere thereto.
[0161] The second robot 8 carries the semiconductor substrate W
into the second cleaning unit 7 or the first cleaning unit 9 where
cleaning of the semiconductor substrate W is performed. The face of
the semiconductor substrate W is scrubbed with PVA sponge rolls
using a cleaning liquid to which pure water, a surface active
agent, a chelating agent, or a pH regulating agent is added so as
to remove particles mainly. A strong chemical liquid such as DHF is
ejected from a nozzle 3-5 toward the backside of the semiconductor
substrate W to perform etching of the diffused Cu thereon. If there
is no problem of diffusion, scrubbing cleaning is performed with
PVA sponge rolls using the same chemical liquid as that for the
face.
[0162] After completion of the above cleaning, the second robot 8
picks up the semiconductor substrate W and transfers it to the
reversing machine 6, and the reversing machine 6 reverses the
semiconductor substrate W. The semiconductor substrate W which has
been reversed is picked up by the first robot 3, and transferred to
the third cleaning unit 4. In the third cleaning unit 4, megasonic
water excited by ultrasonic vibrations is ejected toward the face
of the semiconductor substrate W to perform cleaning. At this time,
the face may be cleaned with a known pencil type sponge using a
cleaning liquid to which pure water, a surface active agent, a
chelating agent, or a pH regulating agent is added. After cleaning,
the semiconductor substrate W is dried by spin-drying, and then the
semiconductor substrate W is picked up by the first robot 3.
[0163] If the film thickness has been measured with the film
thickness measuring instrument 10-4 or 11-4 provided near the
polishing table 10-1 or 11-1 as described above, then the
semiconductor substrate W is not subjected to no further process
and is accommodated into the cassette 1-1 placed on the unloading
port of the loading and unloading section 1.
[0164] When multilayer film measurement is to be made, measurement
in a dry state needs to be performed. Thus, the semiconductor
substrate W is once introduced into the film thickness measuring
instrument 13 for measurement of each film thickness. In the film
thickness measuring instrument 13, the results are stored as
processing records of the semiconductor substrate W, or a judgment
as to whether the semiconductor substrate W can be transferred to a
next step or not is made. If the end point of polishing is not
reached, feedback is given for the semiconductor substrate W to be
processed subsequently. If over-polishing has been performed beyond
a prescribed value owing to any abnormality, the apparatus is
stopped to avoid further polishing so that defective products will
not increase.
[0165] FIGS. 11A through 11C are views showing a constitution
example of the first robot 3 and the dry state film thickness
measuring instrument 13 provided on the hand of the robot. FIG. 11A
is a view showing the appearance of the first robot, and FIGS. 11B
and 11C are a plan view and a sectional view of the robot hand,
respectively. As illustrated, the first robot 3 has two hands 3-1,
3-1 at upper and lower sides, and the hands 3-1, 3-1 are attached
to front ends of arms 3-2, 3-2, respectively, so as to be swingably
movable. The hands 3-1, 3-1 can scoop up the semiconductor
substrate W (drop the semiconductor substrate W into the recess)
and transfer it to a predetermined location.
[0166] A plurality of (four in the drawing) eddy current sensors
13a constituting the dry state film thickness measuring instrument
13 are provided in a recessed surface of the hand 3-1 for the
semiconductor substrate W, and can measure the film thickness of
the semiconductor substrate W placed thereon.
[0167] FIGS. 12 through 16 are views showing a constitution example
of the plated Cu film forming unit 2. FIG. 12 is a view showing a
plan constitution of the plated Cu film forming unit, FIG. 13 is a
sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 12, FIG. 14 is an
enlarged sectional view of a substrate holding portion and a
cathode portion, FIG. 15 is a sectional view of an electrode arm
portion, and FIG. 16 is a plan view of a state in which a housing
has been removed from the electrode arm portion shown in FIG. 15.
The plated Cu film forming unit 2, as shown in FIG. 12, is provided
with a substrate treatment section 2-1 for performing plating
treatment and its attendant treatment, and a plating liquid tray
2-2 for storing a plating liquid is disposed adjacent to the
substrate treatment section 2-1. There is also provided an
electrode arm portion 2-6 having an electrode portion 2-5 which is
held at the front end of an arm 2-4 swingable about a rotating
shaft 2-3 and which is swung between the substrate treatment
section 2-1 and the plating liquid tray 2-2.
[0168] Furthermore, a precoating and recovery arm 2-7, and fixed
nozzles 2-8 for ejecting pure water or a chemical liquid such as
ion water, and further a gas or the like toward a semiconductor
substrate are disposed laterally of the substrate treatment section
2-1. In this case, three of the fixed nozzles 2-8 are disposed, and
one of them is used for supplying pure water. The substrate
treatment section 2-1, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, has a substrate
holding portion 2-9 for holding a semiconductor substrate W with
its surface to be plated facing upward, and a cathode portion 2-10
located above the substrate holding portion 2-9 so as to surround a
peripheral portion of the substrate holding portion 2-9. Further, a
substantially cylindrical bottomed cup 2-11 surrounding the
periphery of the substrate holding portion 2-9 for preventing
scatter of various chemical liquids used during treatment is
provided so as to be vertically movable by an air cylinder
2-12.
[0169] The substrate holding portion 2-9 is adapted to be raised
and lowered by the air cylinder 2-12 between a lower substrate
transfer position A, an upper plating position B, and a
pretreatment and cleaning position C intermediate between these
positions. The substrate holding portion 2-9 is also adapted to
rotate at an arbitrary acceleration and an arbitrary velocity
integrally with the cathode portion 2-10 by a rotating motor 2-14
and a belt 2-15. A substrate carry-in and carry-out opening (not
shown) is provided in confrontation with the substrate transfer
position A in a frame side surface of the plated Cu film forming
unit 2 facing the first robot 3. When the substrate holding portion
2-9 is raised to the plating position B, a seal member 2-16 of the
cathode portion 2-10 and cathode electrodes 2-17 (to be described
below) are brought into contact with the peripheral edge portion of
the semiconductor substrate W held by the substrate holding portion
2-9. On the other hand, the cup 2-11 has an upper end located below
the substrate carry-in and carry-out opening, and when the cup 2-11
ascends, the upper end of the cup 2-11 reaches a position above the
cathode portion 2-10, as shown by imaginary lines in FIG. 14.
[0170] When the substrate holding portion 2-9 has ascended to the
plating position B, the cathode electrodes 2-17 are pressed against
the peripheral edge portion of the semiconductor substrate W held
by the substrate holding portion 2-9 for thereby allowing electric
current to pass through the semiconductor substrate W. At the same
time, an inner peripheral end portion of the seal member 2-16 is
brought into contact with an upper surface of the peripheral edge
of the semiconductor substrate W under pressure to seal its contact
portion in a watertight manner. As a result, the plating liquid
supplied onto the upper surface of the semiconductor substrate W is
prevented from seeping from the end portion of the semiconductor
substrate W, and the plating liquid is prevented from contaminating
the cathode electrodes 2-17.
[0171] As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, an electrode portion 2-5 of the
electrode arm portion 2-6 has a housing 2-18 at a free end of a
swing arm 2-4, a hollow support frame 2-19 surrounding the housing
2-18, and an anode 2-20 fixed by holding the peripheral edge
portion of the anode 2-20 between the housing 2-18 and the support
frame 2-19. The anode 2-20 covers an opening portion of the housing
2-18, and a suction chamber 2-21 is formed inside the housing 2-18.
A plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28 and a plating liquid
discharge pipe (not shown) for introducing and discharging the
plating liquid are connected to the suction chamber 2-21. Further,
many passage holes 2-20b communicating with regions above and below
the anode 2-20 are provided over the entire surface of the anode
2-20.
[0172] In this embodiment, a plating liquid impregnated material
2-22 comprising a water retaining material and covering the entire
surface of the anode 2-20 is attached to the lower surface of the
anode 2-20. The plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 is
impregnated with the plating liquid to wet the surface of the anode
2-20, thereby preventing a black film from falling onto the plated
surface of the substrate, and simultaneously facilitating escape of
air to the outside when the plating liquid is poured between the
surface, to be plated, of the substrate and the anode 2-20. The
plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 comprises, for example, a
woven fabric, nonwoven fabric, or sponge-like structure comprising
at least one material of polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester,
polyvinyl chloride, Teflon, polyvinyl alcohol, polyurethane, and
derivatives of these materials, or comprises porous ceramics.
[0173] Attachment of the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22
to the anode 2-20 is performed in the following manner. That is,
many fixing pins 2-25 each having a head portion at the lower end
are arranged such that the head portion is provided in the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22 so as not to be releasable upward
and a shaft portion of the fixing pin pierces the interior of the
anode 2-20, and the fixing pins 2-25 are urged upward by U-shaped
plate springs 2-26, whereby the plating liquid impregnated material
2-22 is brought in close contact with the lower surface of the
anode 2-20 by the resilient force of the plate springs 2-26 and is
attached to the anode 2-20. With this arrangement, even when the
thickness of the anode 2-20 gradually decreases with the progress
of plating, the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 can be
reliably brought in close contact with the lower surface of the
anode 2-20. Thus, air can be prevented from entering between the
lower surface of the anode 2-20 and the plating liquid impregnated
material 2-22 to cause poor plating.
[0174] Incidentally, columnar pins made of PVC (polyvinyl chloride)
or PET (polyethylene terephthalate) and having a diameter of, for
example, about 2 mm may be arranged from the upper surface side of
the anode so as to pierce the anode, and an adhesive may be applied
to the front end surface of each of the pins projecting from the
lower surface of the anode to fix the anode to the plating liquid
impregnated material.
[0175] The anode 2-20 and the plating liquid impregnated material
2-22 may be used in contact with each other, but it is also
possible to provide a gap between the anode 2-20 and the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22, and perform plating treatment
while holding the plating liquid in the gap. This gap is selected
from a range of 20 mm or less, but is selected from a range of
preferably 0.1 to 10 mm, and more preferably 1 to 7 mm.
Particularly, when a soluble anode is used as the anode 2-20, the
anode 2-20 is dissolved from its lower portion. Thus, as time
passes, the gap between the anode 2-20 and the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 enlarges and forms a gap in the range of
0 to about 20 mm.
[0176] The electrode portion 2-5 descends to such a degree that
when the substrate holding portion 2-9 is located at the plating
position B (see FIG. 14), the gap between the substrate W held by
the substrate holding portion 2-9 and the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 reaches about 0.1 to 10 mm, preferably
0.3 to 3 mm, and more preferably about 0.5 to 1 mm. In this state,
the plating liquid is supplied from a plating liquid supply pipe to
be filled between the upper surface (surface to be plated) of the
substrate W and the anode 2-20 while the plating liquid impregnated
material 2-22 is impregnated with the plating liquid. Thus, the
surface of the substrate W is plated.
[0177] The semiconductor substrate W to be plated is carried into
the substrate holding portion 2-9 located at the substrate transfer
position A by the hand 3-1 of the first robot 3 (see FIG. 1A), and
placed on the substrate holding portion 2-9. Then, the cup 2-11 is
raised, and the substrate holding portion 2-9 is simultaneously
raised to the pretreatment and cleaning position C. In this state,
the precoating and recovery arm 2-7 located at a retreat position
is moved to a position opposite to the semiconductor substrate W,
and a precoating liquid comprising, for example, a surface active
agent is supplied intermittently toward the surface, to be plated,
of the semiconductor substrate W from a precoating nozzle provided
at the front end of the precoating and recovery arm 2-7. At this
time, the substrate holding portion 2-9 is rotating, and hence the
precoating liquid spreads over the entire surface of the
semiconductor substrate W. Then, the precoating and recovery arm
2-7 is returned to the retreat position, and the rotational speed
of the substrate holding portion 2-9 is increased to remove the
precoating liquid on the surface, to be plated, of the
semiconductor substrate W by the centrifugal force for thereby
drying the surface.
[0178] Then, the electrode arm portion 2-6 is swung in a horizontal
direction to bring the electrode portion 2-5 from a position above
the plating liquid tray 2-2 to a position above a plating position.
At this position, the electrode portion 2-5 is lowered toward the
cathode portion 2-10. When lowering of the electrode portion 2-5 is
completed, a plating voltage is applied to the anode 2-20 and the
cathode portion 2-10, and the plating liquid is supplied to the
interior of the electrode portion 2-5 to supply the plating liquid
to the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 through the plating
liquid supply ports piercing the anode 2-20. At this time, the
plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 does not contact the
surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor substrate W, but
approaches it at a distance of about 0.1 to 10 mm, preferably 0.3
to 3 mm, and more preferably about 0.5 to 1 mm.
[0179] When the supply of the plating liquid continues, the plating
liquid containing Cu ions, which has seeped out of the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22, is filled into the gap between
the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the surface, to be
plated, of the semiconductor substrate W to apply Cu plating to the
surface of the semiconductor substrate W. At this time, the
substrate holding portion 2-9 may be rotated at a low speed.
[0180] When the plating treatment is completed, the electrode arm
portion 2-6 is raised and then swung to return the electrode
portion 2-5 to the position above the plating liquid tray 2-2 and
to lower the electrode portion 2-5 to the ordinary position. Then,
the precoating and recovery arm 2-7 is moved from the retreat
position to the position opposite to the semiconductor substrate W,
and lowered to recover the remainder of the plating liquid on the
semiconductor substrate W by a plating liquid recovery nozzle (not
shown). After recovery of the remainder of the plating liquid is
completed, the precoating and recovery arm 2-7 is returned to the
retreat position, and pure water is supplied toward the central
portion of the semiconductor substrate W. At the same time, the
substrate holding portion 2-9 is rotated at an increased speed to
replace the plating liquid on the face of the semiconductor
substrate W with pure water.
[0181] After completion of the above rinsing, the substrate holding
portion 2-9 is lowered from the plating position B to the treatment
and cleaning position C. Then, while pure water is supplied from
the fixed nozzle 2-8, the substrate holding portion 2-9 and the
cathode portion 2-10 are rotated to perform washing with water. At
this time, the seal member 2-16 and the cathode electrodes 2-17 can
also be cleaned, simultaneously with the semiconductor substrate W,
by means of pure water directly supplied to the cathode 2-10, or
pure water scattered from the surface of the semiconductor
substrate W.
[0182] After washing with water is completed, supply of pure water
from the fixed nozzle 2-8 is stopped, and the rotational speed of
the substrate holding portion 2-9 and the cathode portion 2-10 is
further increased to remove pure water on the face of the
semiconductor substrate W by centrifugal force and to dry the face
of the semiconductor substrate W. The seal member 2-16 and the
cathode electrode 2-17 are also dried at the same time. Upon
completion of the drying, the rotation of the substrate holding
portion 2-9 and the cathode portion 2-10 is stopped, and the
substrate holding portion 2-9 is lowered to the substrate transfer
position A.
[0183] FIGS. 17 and 18 show another embodiment of an anode 2-20 and
a plating liquid impregnated material 2-22. That is, in this
example, the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 is composed
of porous ceramics such as alumina, SiC, mullite, zirconia, titania
or cordierite, or a hard porous material such as a sintered compact
of polypropylene or polyethylene, or a composite material
comprising these materials. In case of the alumina-based ceramics,
for example, the ceramics with a pore diameter of 30 to 200 .mu.m,
a porosity of 20 to 95%, and a thickness of about 5 to 20 mm,
preferably 8 to 15 mm, are used.
[0184] The plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 has a flange
portion 2-22a provided at the upper portion thereof, and is fixed
by holding this flange portion 2-22a between the housing 2-18 and
the support frame 2-19 (see FIG. 15). The anode 2-20 is placed and
held on the upper surface of the plating liquid impregnated
material 2-22. In this embodiment, the anode 2-20 of various
shapes, such as porous ones or mesh-like ones may be placed.
[0185] As described above, in the case where the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 is composed of a porous material, the
electrical resistance of the interior of the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 can be increased by the plating liquid
which has complicatedly entered the plating liquid impregnated
material 2-22. Thus, the thickness of the plated film can be
uniformized, and the generation of particles can be prevented. That
is, the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 is a kind of
high-resistance member comprising porous ceramics, and is thus
preferable for achieving uniformity of the plated film thickness.
Furthermore, the anode 2-20 is placed and held on the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22. Thus, even when the side of the
lower surface of the anode 2-20 which is in contact with the
plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 is dissolved with the
progress of plating, the distance between the lower surface of the
anode 2-20 and the substrate W can be kept constant by the own
weight of the anode 2-20 without the use of a jig for fixing the
anode 2-20, and air accumulation caused by air entering therein can
be prevented.
[0186] Incidentally, a gap may be provided between the anode 2-20
and the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22, and plating
treatment may be performed with the plating liquid being held in
this gap. This gap is selected from the range of 20 mm or less,
preferably 0.1 to 10 mm, and more preferably 1 to 7 mm.
[0187] FIG. 19 is an electrical equivalent circuit diagram of the
apparatus shown in FIGS. 17 and 18.
[0188] When a predetermined voltage is applied by a plating power
source 2-37 between the anode 2-20 (anodic electrode) submerged in
the plating liquid and the conductive layer 1a (cathodic electrode)
of the substrate W to form a plated film on the surface of the
conductive layer 1a, the following resistance components exist in
this circuit:
[0189] R1: Power source wire resistance between power source and
anode, and various contact resistances
[0190] R2: Polarization resistance at anode
[0191] R3: Plating liquid resistance
[0192] R4: Polarization resistance at cathode (plated surface)
[0193] Rp: Resistance value of high resistance structure
[0194] R5: Resistance of conductive layer
[0195] R6: Power source wire resistance between cathode potential
lead-in contact and power source, and various contact
resistances
[0196] The resistance value Rp of a high resistance structure,
which is the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22, is
0.01.OMEGA. or more, preferably 0.01 to 2.OMEGA., more preferably
0.03 to 1.OMEGA., and even more preferably 0.05 to 0.5.OMEGA., for
example, in the case of a 200 mm wafer. The resistance value of
this high resistance structure is measured by the following
procedure. First, in the plating apparatus, a direct current (I) of
a predetermined value is flowed between both electrodes comprising
the anode 2-20 and the substrate W spaced by a predetermined
distance to perform plating, and the voltage (V1) of the direct
current power source at this time is measured. Then, in the same
plating apparatus, the high resistance structure of a predetermined
thickness is placed between both electrodes, and a direct current
(I) of the same value is flowed to perform plating. At this time,
the voltage (V2) of the direct current power source is measured.
With this method, the resistance value Rp of the high resistance
structure can be calculated from Rp=(V2-V1)/I.
[0197] In this case, the purity of copper constituting the anode
2-20 is preferably 99.99% or more. The distance between the two
electrode plates comprising the anode 2-20 and the semiconductor
substrate W is preferably in the range of 5 to 25 mm in the case of
the substrate having a diameter of 200 mm, and is preferably in the
range of 15 to 75 mm in the case of the substrate having a diameter
of 300 mm. The resistance R5 of the conductive layer 1a on the
substrate W can be determined by measuring the resistance value
between the outer periphery and the center of the substrate with
the use of a tester, or calculated from the specific resistance of
the material of the conductive layer 1a and the thickness of the
conductive layer 1a.
[0198] In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, a plating liquid
introduction pipe 2-28 of a straight-line shape, which has a
plating liquid introduction passage 2-28a therein and extends in a
diametrical direction, is installed on the upper surface of the
anode 2-20. In the anode 2-20, plating liquid pouring holes 2-20a
are provided at positions aligned with plating liquid introduction
holes 2-28b provided in the plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28.
Many passage holes 2-20b are also provided in the anode 2-20.
[0199] At positions approximately corresponding to the plating
liquid pouring holes 2-20a of the anode 2-20, the plating liquid
reaches the upper surface (surface to be plated) of the substrate W
from the lower surface of the plating liquid impregnated material
2-22, thereby forming plating liquid columns 2-30 which bridge the
plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the surface, to be
plated, of the substrate W. By continuing the supply of the plating
liquid, the plating liquid columns 2-30 are gradually grown, or
connected to each other. Then, a flow of the plating liquid Q,
which advances in a direction perpendicular to the plating liquid
introduction pipe 2-28 and spreads over the entire surface of the
surface, to be plated, of the substrate W, occurs as shown in FIG.
20.
[0200] As a result, air bubbles B entrained by this flow of the
plating liquid Q are pushed outward, and a front line Q1 of the
flow of the plating liquid Q is nearly a straight line, so that the
plating liquid Q does not enclose air. Thus, the air bubbles are
prevented from remaining in the plating liquid filled between the
plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the surface, to be
plated, of the substrate W.
[0201] Here, as shown in FIG. 21A, the plating liquid introduction
pipe 2-28 which has blade portions extending cruciformly in
directions perpendicular to each other and which has plating liquid
introduction holes 2-28b at predetermined positions along the
longitudinal direction of each blade portion may be used, and the
anode (not shown) which has plating liquid pouring holes 2-20a at
positions corresponding to the plating liquid introduction holes
2-28b may be used. In this case, in the same manner as stated
above, plating liquid columns bridging the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 and the surface, to be plated, of the
substrate W are formed at positions approximately corresponding to
the plating liquid pouring holes 2-20a of the anode. As the supply
of the plating liquid continues, the plating liquid columns
gradually grow. Then, a flow of the plating liquid Q, which spreads
radially in quadrants defined by the plating liquid introduction
pipe 2-28, is generated and the plating liquid Q spreads over the
entire surface of the surface, to be plated, of the substrate
W.
[0202] As shown in FIG. 21B, a similar flow of the plating liquid Q
is generated, when the plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28 is
placed in a circumferential manner and plating liquid introduction
holes 2-28b are provided at predetermined positions. The plating
liquid introduction holes 2-28b of the plating liquid introduction
pipe 2-28 are often provided at equal pitch and with equal
diameter, but discharge of the liquid may be controlled by
adjusting the pitch of the holes and the diameter of the holes.
[0203] According to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 17 through 20, at
positions approximately corresponding to the plating liquid pouring
holes 2-20a of the anode 2-20, the plating liquid reaches the upper
surface (surface to be plated) of the substrate W from the lower
surface of the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22, thereby
forming the plating liquid columns 2-30 which bridge the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the surface, to be plated, of
the substrate W. At this time, when the plating liquid flows inside
the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22, the plating liquid is
slightly diffused along its flow direction, thereby alleviating
damage to the seed layer 107 (see FIG. 1A) upon arrival of the
plating liquid at the substrate W, namely, alleviating the
phenomenon of the seed layer 107 due to local application of a jet,
and thus contributing to the uniformity of the film thickness
during a subsequent plating step. By providing the distribution of
the passage holes 2-20b over the surface so as to be dense in the
central portion and sparse in the peripheral portion, the plating
liquid spreads uniformly.
[0204] As indicated by imaginary lines in FIG. 18, after the
plating liquid reaches the upper surface (surface to be plated) of
the substrate W from the lower surface of the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 to form the plating liquid columns 2-30,
the substrate W, for example, may be instantaneously raised to
bring the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the
substrate W close to each other instantaneously. Further, it is
possible to form the plating liquid columns 2-30 similarly while
bending the substrate in a concave form under slight pressure on
the edge of the substrate, and then to release the pressure,
thereby restoring the substrate to the original shape. With this
measure, the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the
substrate W may be instantaneously brought close to each other.
[0205] When the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 has a
large thickness and a high density (low porosity), for example,
resistance becomes large when the plating liquid flows inside the
plating liquid impregnated material 2-22. As a result, a
predetermined amount of the plating liquid does not flow out of the
plating liquid impregnated material 2-22, and binding of the
plating liquid columns 2-30 is disturbed. Even if air is dragged at
this time, a rapid outward flow of the plating liquid can be
generated to drive out air bubbles together with the plating
liquid, and the supply of the plating liquid between the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the substrate W can be
performed in a short time by bringing the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 and the substrate W instantaneously close
to each other.
[0206] Contact between the plating liquid and the seed layer 107
(see FIG. 1A) in a non-energized state induces a decrease in the
seed layer 107. Even in an energized state, the failure of the
plating liquid to spread on the surface of the substrate W in a
short time causes variations in the film thickness at the initial
stage of plating, and impairs the uniformity of subsequent plated
film thickness. However, these troubles can be prevented by
supplying the plating liquid between the plating liquid impregnated
material 2-22 and the substrate W in a short time.
[0207] Further, as shown in FIG. 17, the plating liquid may be
supplied from the plating liquid pouring holes 2-20a to the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22 during plating treatment to supply
the plating liquid between the plating liquid impregnated material
2-22 and the surface, to be plated, of the substrate W.
Simultaneously, the plating liquid in the same amount as the amount
of the poured plating liquid can be sucked and discharged via the
passage holes 2-20b through a plating liquid discharge pipe (not
shown) connected to the passage holes 2-20b.
[0208] The plating liquid is stirred in this manner during plating
treatment, whereby it becomes possible to remove air bubbles which
have not been withdrawn during liquid filling, and air bubbles
which have occurred during plating treatment after liquid
filling.
[0209] In the present plating apparatus, the spacing between the
surface, to be plated, of the substrate W and the anode 2-20 is
small, so that a small amount of the plating liquid to be used is
sufficient. However, since the additives and ions in the plating
liquid become in limited amounts, in order to perform efficient
plating in a short time, it is necessary to distribute the
additives and the like uniformly in the plating liquid. In this
respect, according to the present embodiment, because the plating
liquid is stirred during plating treatment, it is possible to
perform plating in such a state that the additives and ions are
distributed uniformly. In the present plating apparatus, plating is
applied onto the semiconductor substrate W by connecting the
semiconductor substrate W to the cathode and connecting the anode
to the positive electrode. By applying a reverse voltage, on the
other hand, etching of the plated film formed on the semiconductor
substrate W can be carried out. After plating for filling the hole
is substantially completed (40 to 400 seconds), a feed voltage is
applied for a short time (e.g., 1 to 60 seconds), and then a
forward voltage is applied again (50 seconds, 0.5.mu.). By applying
feed voltage, the action of the additives is suppressed, and
formation of a protuberance only on the hole is prevented, so that
uniformity of the plated film can be achieved.
[0210] FIG. 19 shows another embodiment, and in this embodiment, a
plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28 is provided with pipes 2-32
communicating with the plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28 per
se, the pipes 2-32 are inserted into plating liquid introduction
holes 2-28b of the anode 2-20, and the front ends of the pipes 2-32
are brought into contact with the surface of the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22. That is, in this embodiment, the plating
liquid can be supplied to the surface of the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 without causing the plating liquid to
contact the anode 2-20 at all. The plating liquid introduction pipe
2-28 and the pipes 2-32 are integrally formed by a synthetic resin
of a material which is not affected at all by the plating liquid.
The reference numeral 2-31 denotes a holding member for holding the
substrate W.
[0211] The plating liquid, which has been directly supplied to the
surface of the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 from the
plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28 through the pipes 2-32,
reaches the face of the substrate W while the plating liquid is
slightly diffusing in the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22,
and the plating liquid forms a plurality of circular plating liquid
columns 2-30 between the substrate W and the surface of the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22, and the plural plating liquid
columns 2-30 bind to each other on the substrate W, thus filling on
the face of the substrate W with the plating liquid.
[0212] Even when this plating step is repeated, the inner diameter
of the front end of the pipe 2-32 does not increase with the
passage of time, and hence the ideal plating liquid columns 2-30 do
not collapse with the passage of time. Consequently, engulfment of
air due to disturbance of binding of the plating liquid columns
2-30 does not take place. Air bubbles are not accumulated between
the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 and the substrate W,
and the plated film thickness does not become nonuniform.
[0213] FIG. 23 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroplating apparatus according to another embodiment of the
present invention. This electroplating apparatus differs from that
in the embodiment shown in FIG. 22 in that instead of forming pipes
2-32 integrally with a plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28,
separately prepared pipes 2-33 are inserted into plating liquid
introduction holes 2-28b of the anode 2-20. In this case also, the
pipes 2-33 are composed of a material which is not affected at all
by the plating liquid, and the front ends (lower ends) of the pipes
2-33 are brought into contact with the upper surface of the plating
liquid impregnated material 2-22.
[0214] Even with this constitution, the plating liquid does not
directly contact the anode 2-20 in the same manner as the
embodiment shown in FIG. 22. Even when the plating step is
performed repeatedly, the inner diameter of the front end of the
pipe 2-33 does not increase with the passage of time. Thus, the
plating liquid columns 2-30 supplied from the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 do not collapse with the passage of time,
but can be always kept in the ideal state, and engulfment of air
does not occur.
[0215] FIG. 24 is a view showing a schematic constitution of an
electroplating apparatus according to another embodiment of the
present invention. This electroplating apparatus differs from that
in the embodiment shown in FIG. 22 in that instead of forming pipes
2-32 integrally with a plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28,
separately prepared pipes 2-33 are inserted into plating liquid
introduction holes 2-28b of the anode 2-20 and electrolytic
solution passage portions 2-34 provided in the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22. In this case also, the pipes 2-33 are
composed of a material which is not affected at all by the plating
liquid.
[0216] With this constitution, even when the plating step is
performed repeatedly, the inner diameter of the front end of the
pipe 2-33 does not increase with the passage of time, and hence the
ideal plating liquid columns 2-30 do not collapse with the passage
of time. Consequently, engulfment of air due to disturbance of
binding of the plating liquid columns 2-30 does not take place, and
air bubbles are not accumulated between the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 and the substrate W, and the plated film
thickness does not become nonuniform. At the same time, the pipes
2-33 protrude into the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22,
and hence there is a decrease in the resistance when the plating
liquid passes through the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22.
Even if the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 having a large
thickness or a high density (low porosity) is used, an appropriate
amount of the plating liquid is supplied from predetermined
positions of the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22. As a
result, engulfment of air due to disturbance of binding of the
plating liquid columns 2-30 does not take place, and air bubbles
are not accumulated between the plating liquid impregnated material
2-22 and the substrate W, and thus the plated film thickness does
not become nonuniform.
[0217] FIG. 25 is a modified example of the embodiment shown in
FIG. 22.
[0218] In the plating apparatus shown in FIG. 22, the electric
field on the surface, to be processed, of the substrate can be
controlled by at least one of adjustment of the external form of
the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22, adjustment of the
internal structure of the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22,
and adjustment by mounting of a member with different electric
conductivity. In this manner, if the state of the electric field on
the surface, to be processed, of the substrate is positively
controlled to the desired state, a processed state by electrolytic
treatment of the substrate to be processed can be made a processed
state with desired distribution on the surface. In case
electrolytic treatment is plating treatment, the thickness of a
plated film formed on the substrate to be processed can be
uniformized, or an arbitrary distribution can be imparted to the
thickness of the plated film formed on the substrate to be
processed.
[0219] The adjustment of the external form shape can be made by
adjustment of the thickness of the plating liquid impregnated
material 2-22, adjustment of the shape of the plating liquid
impregnated material 2-22 on the plane, or the like.
[0220] The plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 is composed of
a porous substance. Adjustment of the internal structure of the
porous substance is performed by adjustment of the pore diameter
distribution of the porous substance, adjustment of porosity
distribution, adjustment of flexing rate distribution, or
adjustment of a combination of materials.
[0221] The adjustment by mounting of a member with different
electric conductivity is performed by adjusting the shielding area
of the plating liquid impregnated material 2-22 with the use of a
member with different electric conductivity.
[0222] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 25, a band-like insulating
member 2-35 is wound around an outer peripheral side surface of a
porous ceramic plate (porous substance) 2-22 so as to surround the
outer peripheral side surface. As the material of the insulating
member 2-35, an extensible material such as fluororubber is
used.
[0223] A plating liquid, which has been supplied under pressure
from a plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28 to the porous ceramic
plate (plating liquid impregnated material) 2-22 through plating
liquid introduction holes 2-28b of an anode 2-20, permeates the
interior of the porous ceramic plate 2-22 to fill the interior of
the porous ceramic plate 2-22 with the plating liquid. Then, the
plating liquid is discharged from the lower surface of the porous
ceramic plate 2-22 to fill a space between the substrate W and the
porous ceramic plate 2-22 with the plating liquid. Introduction of
the plating liquid may be performed from a gap between a lip seal
2-16 and an end surface of the porous ceramic plate 2-22. In this
case, neither the plating liquid introduction pipe 2-28 nor the
plating liquid introduction holes 2-28b of the anode 2-20 are
necessary.
[0224] When a predetermined voltage is applied between the anode
2-20 and the substrate W to flow a direct current, plating (e.g.,
copper plating) is applied on the entire surface of the conductive
layer of the substrate W. According to the present embodiment, the
porous ceramic plate 2-22 is interposed between the anode 2-20 and
the substrate W, and hence there is minimal influence due to the
difference among the resistance values of the respective portions
according to the difference in the distance from contacts 2-17 on
the surface of the substrate W as stated above. Consequently,
substantially uniform plating (e.g., copper plating) is applied on
the entire surface of the conductive layer of the substrate W.
[0225] However, portions in the vicinity of the outer peripheral
portion close to the contacts 2-17 are still high in current
density, and tend to be thicker in plated film thickness than other
portions.
[0226] In the present embodiment, therefore, an insulating member
2-35 is wound around the outer peripheral side surface of the
porous ceramic plate 2-22 to prevent an electric current from
concentrating at an area near the outer peripheral portion of the
substrate W, as shown by dotted lines in FIG. 25, thereby
decreasing the current density at such area and making it nearly
equal to the current density directed toward the other portions of
the substrate W.
[0227] Here, the following constitution may be adopted in an
electrolytic treatment apparatus in which an electrolytic solution
is filled between a substrate, to be treated, having contacts which
are brought in contact with one of an anode and a cathode, and the
other electrode opposite to the substrate to perform electrolytic
treatment of the substrate. A high resistance structure having
electric conductivity smaller than the electric conductivity of the
electrolytic solution is provided in at least part of the
electrolytic solution, the high resistance structure has an outer
periphery held by a holding member, and a seal member is provided
between the high resistance structure and the holding member for
preventing the electrolytic solution from leaking from this area
and preventing an electric current from flowing.
[Embodiment Using Seal Member]
[0228] FIG. 26 is a schematic view of an essential part showing
portions in the vicinity of the outer peripheral portion of a
porous ceramic plate 2-22 of an electroplating apparatus having the
same structure as that shown in FIG. 25. However, the insulating
member 2-35 shown in FIG. 25 is not shown in this electroplating
apparatus. In this electroplating apparatus, since a gap between a
holding member 2-18 and the porous ceramic plate 2-22 is not
sealed, a plating liquid flows out of the anode 2-20 through this
gap to thus form a passage for an electric current as shown by an
arrow. Since this current passage is such a passage that current
does not pass through the interior of the porous ceramic plate
2-22, its resistance value is small. Thus, the current density
becomes so high that control for decreasing the plated film
thickness in the vicinity of the outer peripheral portion of the
substrate W may be impossible.
[0229] In this embodiment, therefore, a seal member 2-36 is
provided between the porous ceramic plate 2-22 and the holding
member 2-18, as shown in FIGS. 27A and 27B. With this arrangement,
leakage of the plating liquid from this portion is prevented so
that the plated film thickness in the vicinity of the outer
peripheral portion of the substrate W can be controlled so as to be
small.
[0230] The seal member 2-36 in this embodiment has an inverted
L-shaped cross section, and is composed of an insulating material,
and thus the seal member 2-36 also serves as the insulating member
shown in FIG. 25. The seal member 2-36, as its cross section is
shown in FIG. 27B, may be constructed by attaching, as separate
parts, an annular seal member portion 2-36a for sealing the portion
at which the holding member 2-18 and the lower surface of the
porous ceramic plate 2-22 are in contact with each other, and an
insulating member portion 2-36b exhibiting the same function as the
band-like insulating member 2-35 shown in FIG. 25.
[0231] The seal member 2-36, needless to say, can be applied to the
respective embodiments other than the embodiment in FIG. 25.
Specifically, more effective electric field control can be
performed by jointly using the seal member 2-36 for preventing
leakage of the plating liquid from a portion between the outer
peripheral side surface of the high resistance structure 4 and the
holding member 2-18, and electric field control means according to
other various embodiments.
[0232] FIG. 28 is a view showing another plan layout constitution
of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present
invention. In FIG. 28, portions denoted by the same reference
numerals as those in FIG. 7 show the same or corresponding
portions. The same is true of FIGS. 29 and 30. In the present
substrate polishing apparatus, a pusher indexer 25 is disposed
close to a first polishing apparatus 10 and a second polishing
apparatus 11, substrate placing tables 21, 22 are disposed close to
a third cleaning unit 4 and a plated Cu film forming unit 2,
respectively, and a robot 23 (hereinafter referred to as second
robot 23) is disposed close to a first cleaning unit 9 and the
third cleaning unit 4. Further, a robot 24 (hereinafter referred to
as third robot 24) is disposed close to a second cleaning unit 7
and the plated Cu film forming unit 2, and a dry state film
thickness measuring instrument 13 is disposed close to a loading
and unloading section 1 and a first robot 3.
[0233] In the substrate processing apparatus of the above
constitution, the first robot 3 takes out a semiconductor substrate
W from a cassette 1-1 placed on the load port of the loading and
unloading section 1. After the film thicknesses of a barrier layer
105 and a seed layer 107 are measured with the dry state film
thickness measuring instrument 13, the first robot 3 places the
semiconductor substrate W on the substrate placing table 21. In the
case where the dry state film thickness measuring instrument 13 is
provided on the hand 3-1 of the first robot 3 as shown in FIGS. 11B
and 11C, the film thicknesses are measured thereon, and the
substrate is placed on the substrate placing table 21. The second
robot 23 transfers the semiconductor substrate W on the substrate
placing table 21 to the plated Cu film forming unit 2 in which a
plated Cu film 106 is formed. After formation of the plated Cu film
106, the film thickness of the plated Cu film 106 is measured with
a before-plating and after-plating film thickness measuring
instrument 12. Then, the second robot 23 transfers the
semiconductor substrate W to the pusher indexer 25 and loads it
thereon.
[Serial Mode]
[0234] In the serial mode, a top ring head 10-2 holds the
semiconductor substrate W on the pusher indexer 25 by suction,
transfers it to a polishing table 10-1, and presses the
semiconductor substrate W against a polishing surface on the
polishing table 10-1 to perform polishing. Detection of the end
point of polishing is performed by the same method as described
above. The semiconductor substrate W after completion of polishing
is transferred to the pusher indexer 25 by the top ring head 10-2,
and loaded thereon. The second robot 23 takes out the semiconductor
substrate W, and carries it into the first cleaning unit 9 for
cleaning. Then, the semiconductor substrate W is transferred to the
pusher indexer 25, and loaded thereon.
[0235] A top ring head 11-2 holds the semiconductor substrate W on
the pusher indexer 25 by suction, transfers it to a polishing table
11-1, and presses the semiconductor substrate W against a polishing
surface on the polishing table 11-1 to perform polishing. Detection
of the end point of polishing is performed by the same method as
described above. The semiconductor substrate W after completion of
polishing is transferred to the pusher indexer 25 by the top ring
head 11-2, and loaded thereon. The third robot 24 picks up the
semiconductor substrate W, and its film thickness is measured with
a film thickness measuring instrument 26. Then, the semiconductor
substrate W is carried into the second cleaning unit 7 for
cleaning. Thereafter, the semiconductor substrate W is carried into
the third cleaning unit 4, where it is cleaned and then dried by
spin-drying. Then, the semiconductor substrate W is picked up by
the third robot 24, and placed on the substrate placing table
22.
[Parallel Mode]
[0236] In the parallel mode, the top ring head 10-2 or 11-2 holds
the semiconductor substrate W on the pusher indexer 25 by suction,
transfers it to the polishing table 10-1 or 11-1, and presses the
semiconductor substrate W against the polishing surface on the
polishing table 10-1 or 11-1 to perform polishing. After
measurement of the film thickness, the third robot 24 picks up the
semiconductor substrate W, and places it on the substrate placing
table 22.
[0237] The first robot 3 transfers the semiconductor substrate W on
the substrate placing table 22 to the dry state film thickness
measuring instrument 13. After the film thickness is measured, the
semiconductor substrate W is returned to the cassette 1-1 of the
loading and unloading section 1.
[0238] FIG. 29 is a view showing another plan layout constitution
of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present
invention. The present substrate processing apparatus is such a
substrate processing apparatus which forms a seed layer 107 and a
plated Cu film 106 on a semiconductor substrate W having no seed
layer 107 formed thereon, and polishes and removes these films to
form interconnects. The present substrate processing apparatus
differs from the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 7 in
that a seed layer forming unit 27 is provided instead of the third
cleaning unit 4 shown in FIG. 2.
[0239] A cassette 1-1 accommodating the semiconductor substrates W
before formation of the seed layer 107 is placed on a load port of
a loading and unloading section 1. The semiconductor substrate W
before formation of the seed layer 107 is taken out from the
cassette 1-1 by a first robot 3, and the seed layer (Cu seed layer)
107 is formed by the seed layer forming unit 27. The seed layer 107
is formed by electroless plating, and after its formation, heat is
applied to make the adhesion of the seed layer 107 higher. The film
thickness of the seed layer 107 is measured with a before-plating
and after-plating film thickness measuring instrument 12.
[0240] The semiconductor substrate is taken out by the first robot
3, and the plated Cu film 106 is formed by a plated Cu film forming
unit 2. Formation of the plated Cu film 106 is performed by
carrying out hydrophilic treatment of the face of the semiconductor
substrate W, and then Cu plating. Then, rinsing or cleaning is
carried out. If there is some time to spare, drying may be
performed. When the semiconductor substrate W is taken out by the
first robot 3, the film thickness of the plated Cu film 106 is
measured with the before-plating and after-plating film thickness
measuring instrument 12. The method of measurement is the same as
that of the film thickness measurement of the seed layer 107, and
the results of its measurement are recorded as record data on the
semiconductor substrate W and are also used for judgment of an
abnormality of the plated Cu film forming unit 2. After measurement
of the film thickness, the first robot 3 transfers the
semiconductor substrate W to a reversing machine 5 in which the
semiconductor substrate W is turned over.
[0241] Then, a second robot 8 picks up the semiconductor substrate
W from the reversing machine 5, and places it on a pusher 10-5 or
11-5. Then, the top ring 10-2 or 11-2 holds the semiconductor
substrate W by suction, transfers it onto a polishing table 10-1 or
11-1, and presses it against a polishing surface on the polishing
table 10-1 or 11-1 to perform polishing. This polishing is
substantially the same as the treatment in the steps 1 to 3 in the
parallel mode polishing by the substrate processing apparatus shown
in FIG. 2, and thus its explanation is omitted.
[0242] After completion of polishing, the top ring 10-2 or 11-2
returns the semiconductor substrate W to the pusher 10-5 or 11-5.
The second robot 8 picks up the semiconductor substrate W, and
carries it into a first cleaning unit 9. At this time, a chemical
liquid may be ejected toward the face and backside of the
semiconductor substrate W on the pusher 10-5 or 11-5 to remove
particles therefrom or cause particles to be difficult to adhere
thereto.
[0243] In the first cleaning unit 9, the face and the backside of
the semiconductor substrate W are scrubbed and cleaned. The face of
the semiconductor substrate W is scrubbed and cleaned mainly for
removal of particles with a PVA roll sponge using cleaning water
comprising pure water to which a surface active agent, a chelating
agent, or a pH regulator is added. A strong chemical liquid such as
DHF is ejected toward the backside of the semiconductor substrate W
to etch diffused Cu. If there is no problem of Cu diffusion, the
backside of the semiconductor substrate W is scrubbed and cleaned
with a PVA roll sponge using the same chemical liquid as that for
the face.
[0244] After cleaning, the second robot 8 picks up the
semiconductor substrate W, and transfers it to a reversing machine
6 where the semiconductor substrate W is reversed. The
semiconductor substrate W is picked up again by the second robot 8,
and carried into a second cleaning unit 7 by the second robot 8. In
the second cleaning unit 7, megasonic water to which ultrasonic
vibrations are applied is ejected toward the face of the
semiconductor substrate W to clean the face. At this time, the face
may be cleaned with a pencil type sponge using a cleaning liquid to
which pure water, a surface active agent, a chelating agent, or a
pH regulator is added. Thereafter, the semiconductor substrate W is
dried by spin-drying.
[0245] Then, the second robot 8 picks up the semiconductor
substrate W, and transfers it to the reversing machine 6 as it is.
The first robot 3 picks up the semiconductor substrate W on the
reversing machine 6. In the case where the film thickness has been
measured with a film thickness measuring instrument 10-4 or 11-4
provided near the polishing table 10-1 or 11-1, the semiconductor
substrate W is received by the cassette 1-1 placed in the unload
port of the loading and unloading section 1. In the case where the
film thicknesses of multilayer films are to be measured,
measurement in a dry state needs to be performed. Thus, the film
thickness is measured once with a dry state film thickness
measuring instrument 13. In this case, if the dry state film
thickness measuring instrument 13 is provided on the hand 3-1 of
the first robot 3 as shown in FIGS. 11B and 11C, the film thickness
can be measured on the robot hand. The results of the film
thickness measurement are retained as processing records of the
semiconductor substrate W, or a judgment as to whether the
semiconductor substrate W can be delivered to a next step or not is
made.
[0246] FIG. 30 is a view showing another plan layout constitution
of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present
invention. The present substrate processing apparatus, as is the
case with the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 29, is
such a substrate processing apparatus which forms a seed layer 107
and a plated Cu film 106 on a semiconductor substrate W having no
seed layer 107 formed thereon, and polishes these films to form
interconnects.
[0247] In the present substrate processing apparatus, a pusher
indexer 25 is disposed close to a first polishing apparatus 10 and
a second polishing apparatus 11, substrate placing tables 21, 22
are disposed close to a second cleaning unit 7 and a seed layer
forming unit 27, respectively, and a robot 23 (hereinafter referred
to as second robot 23) is disposed close to the seed layer forming
unit 27 and a plated Cu film forming unit 2. Further, a robot 24
(hereinafter referred to as third robot 24) is disposed close to a
first cleaning unit 9 and the second cleaning unit 7, and a dry
state film thickness measuring instrument 13 is disposed close to a
loading and unloading section 1 and a first robot 3.
[0248] The first robot 3 takes out a semiconductor substrate W
having a barrier layer 105 thereon from a cassette 1-1 placed on
the load port of the loading and unloading section 1, and places it
on the substrate placing table 21. Then, the second robot 23
transports the semiconductor substrate W to the seed layer forming
unit 27 where a seed layer 107 is formed. The seed layer 107 is
formed by electroless plating. The second robot 23 enables the
semiconductor substrate having the seed layer 107 formed thereon to
be measured in thickness of the seed layer 107 by the
before-plating and after-plating film thickness measuring
instrument 12. After measurement of the film thickness, the
semiconductor substrate is carried into the plated Cu film forming
unit 2 where a plated Cu film 106 is formed.
[0249] After formation of the plated Cu film 106, its film
thickness is measured, and the semiconductor substrate is
transferred to a pusher indexer 25. A top ring 10-2 or 11-2 holds
the semiconductor substrate W on the pusher indexer 25 by suction,
and transfers it to a polishing table 10-1 or 11-1 to perform
polishing. After polishing, the top ring 10-2 or 11-2 transfers the
semiconductor substrate W to a film thickness measuring instrument
10-4 or 11-4 to measure the film thickness. Then, the top ring 10-2
or 11-2 transfers the semiconductor substrate W to the pusher
indexer 25, and places it thereon.
[0250] Then, the third robot 24 picks up the semiconductor
substrate W from the pusher indexer 25, and carries it into the
first cleaning unit 9. The third robot 24 picks up the cleaned
semiconductor substrate W from the first cleaning unit 9, carries
it into the second cleaning unit 7, and places the cleaned and
dried semiconductor substrate on the substrate placing table 22.
Then, the first robot 3 picks up the semiconductor substrate W, and
transfers it to the dry state film thickness measuring instrument
13 in which the film thickness is measured, and the first robot 3
carries it into the cassette 1-1 placed on the unload port of the
loading and unloading section 1.
[0251] In the above embodiment, an example in which the seed layer
107 and the plated Cu film 106 have been formed by the substrate
processing apparatus having the constitution shown in FIG. 29 is
shown. According to the substrate processing apparatus having the
constitution shown in FIG. 29, a barrier layer 105, a seed layer
107 and a plated Cu film 106 can be formed on a semiconductor
substrate W having a contact hole 103 or a trench 104 of a circuit
pattern formed therein, and then polished to form
interconnects.
[0252] The cassette 1-1 accommodating the semiconductor substrates
W before formation of the barrier layer 105 is placed on the load
port of the loading and unloading section 1. The first robot 3
takes out the semiconductor substrate W from the cassette 1-1, and
carries it into the seed layer forming unit 27 to form a barrier
layer 105 and a seed layer 107. The barrier layer 105 and the seed
layer 107 are formed by an electroless plating method. After
plating, the substrate is heated to make the adhesion of the
barrier layer 105 and the seed layer 107 higher. Then, a plated Cu
film 106 is formed by the plated Cu film forming unit 2. At this
time, the film thicknesses of the barrier layer 105 and the seed
layer 107 are measured with the before-plating and after-plating
film thickness measuring instrument 12. Treatment after formation
of the plated Cu film 106 is the same as that described in the
treatment by the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 29,
and its explanation is omitted.
[0253] In the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 30 also,
interconnects are formed by forming a barrier layer 105, a seed
layer 107 and a plated Cu film 106 on a semiconductor substrate W
having a contact hole 103 or a trench 104 of a circuit pattern
formed therein, and polishing them.
[0254] The cassette 1-1 accommodating the semiconductor substrates
W before formation of the barrier layer 105 is placed on the load
port of the loading and unloading section 1. The first robot 3
takes out the semiconductor substrate W from the cassette 1-1
placed on the load port of the loading and unloading section 1, and
places it on the substrate placing table 21. Then, the second robot
23 transports the semiconductor substrate W to the seed layer
forming unit 27 where a barrier layer 105 and a seed layer 107 are
formed. The barrier layer 105 and the seed layer 107 are formed by
electroless plating. The second robot 23 brings the semiconductor
substrate W having the barrier layer and the seed layer 107 formed
thereon to the before-plating and after-plating film thickness
measuring instrument 12 which measures the film thicknesses of the
barrier layer 105 and the seed layer 107. After measurement of the
film thicknesses, the semiconductor substrate W is carried into the
plated Cu film forming unit 2 where a plated Cu film 106 is formed.
Treatment after formation of the plated Cu film 106 is the same as
that described in the treatment by the substrate processing
apparatus shown in FIG. 29, and its explanation is omitted.
[0255] In the above embodiment, although an example in which the
plated Cu film 106 is formed to form interconnects has been shown.
However, plating is not limited to Cu plating, and may be Cu alloy
or other metal plating.
[0256] FIG. 31 is a view showing plan layout constitution of
another embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according
to the present invention. In the present substrate processing
apparatus, there are provided a barrier layer forming unit 111, a
seed layer forming unit 112, a plating unit 113, an annealing unit
114, a first cleaning unit 115, a bevel and backside cleaning unit
116, a cap plating unit 117, a second cleaning unit 118, a first
aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 141, a second
aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 142, a first
substrate reversing machine 143, a second substrate reversing
machine 144, a substrate temporary placing table 145, a third film
thickness measuring instrument 146, a loading and unloading section
120, a first polishing apparatus 121, a second polishing apparatus
122, a first robot 131, a second robot 132, a third robot 133, and
a fourth robot 134. The film thickness measuring instruments 141,
142, and 146 are units, have the same size as the frontage
dimension of other units (plating, cleaning, annealing units, and
the like), and are thus interchangeable.
[0257] In this embodiment, an electroless Ru plating apparatus can
be used as the barrier layer forming unit 111, an electroless Cu
plating apparatus as the seed layer forming unit 112, and an
electroplating apparatus as the plating unit 113.
[0258] FIG. 32 is a flow chart showing the flow of the respective
steps in the present substrate processing apparatus. The respective
steps in the apparatus will be described according to this flow
chart. First, a semiconductor substrate taken out by the first
robot 131 from a cassette 120a placed on the load and unload unit
120 is placed in the first aligner and film thickness measuring
unit 141, in such a state that its surface, to be plated, faces
upward. In order to set a reference point for a position at which
film thickness measurement is made, notch alignment for film
thickness measurement is performed, and then film thickness data on
the semiconductor substrate before formation of a Cu film are
obtained.
[0259] Then, the semiconductor substrate is transported to the
barrier layer forming unit 111 by the first robot 131. The barrier
layer forming unit 111 is such an apparatus for forming a barrier
layer on the semiconductor substrate by electroless Ru plating, and
the forming unit 111 forms an Ru film as a film for preventing Cu
from diffusing into an interlayer insulator film (e.g., SiO.sub.2)
of a semiconductor device. The semiconductor substrate discharged
after cleaning and drying steps is transported by the first robot
131 to the first aligner and film thickness measuring unit 141,
where the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate, i.e., the
film thickness of the barrier layer is measured.
[0260] The semiconductor substrate after film thickness measurement
is carried into the seed layer forming unit 112 by the second robot
132, and a seed layer is formed on the barrier layer by electroless
Cu plating. The semiconductor substrate discharged after cleaning
and drying steps is transported by the second robot 132 to the
second aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 142 for
determination of a notch position, before the semiconductor
substrate is transported to the plating unit 113, which is an
impregnation plating unit, and then notch alignment for Cu plating
is performed by the film thickness measuring instrument 142. If
necessary, the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate before
formation of a Cu film may be measured again in the film thickness
measuring instrument 142.
[0261] The semiconductor substrate which has completed notch
alignment is transported by the third robot 133 to the plating unit
113 where Cu plating is applied to the semiconductor substrate. The
semiconductor substrate discharged after cleaning and drying steps
is transported by the third robot 133 to the bevel and backside
cleaning unit 116 where an unnecessary Cu film (seed layer) at a
peripheral portion of the semiconductor substrate is removed. In
the bevel and backside cleaning unit 116, the bevel is etched in a
preset time, and Cu adhering to the backside of the semiconductor
substrate is cleaned with a chemical liquid such as hydrofluoric
acid. At this time, before transporting the semiconductor substrate
to the bevel and backside cleaning unit 116, film thickness
measurement of the semiconductor substrate may be made by the
second aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 142 to
obtain the thickness value of the Cu film formed by plating, and
based on the obtained results, the bevel etching time may be
changed arbitrarily to carry out etching. The region etched by
bevel etching is a region which corresponds to a peripheral edge
portion of the substrate and has no circuit formed therein, or a
region which is not utilized finally as a chip although a circuit
is formed. A bevel portion is included in this region.
[0262] The semiconductor substrate discharged after cleaning and
drying steps in the bevel and backside cleaning unit 116 is
transported by the third robot 133 to the substrate reversing
machine 143. After the semiconductor substrate is turned over by
the substrate reversing machine 143 to cause the plated surface to
be directed downward, the semiconductor substrate is introduced
into the annealing unit 114 by the fourth robot 134 for thereby
stabilizing a wiring portion. Before and/or after annealing
treatment, the semiconductor substrate is carried into the second
aligner and film thickness measuring unit 142 where the film
thickness of a copper film formed on the semiconductor substrate is
measured. Then, the semiconductor substrate is carried by the
fourth robot 134 into the first polishing apparatus 121 in which
the Cu layer and the seed layer of the semiconductor substrate are
polished.
[0263] At this time, desired abrasive grains or the like are used,
but fixed abrasive may be used in order to prevent dishing and
enhance flatness of the face. After completion of primary
polishing, the semiconductor substrate is transported by the fourth
robot to the first cleaning unit 115 where it is cleaned. This
cleaning is scrub-cleaning in which rolls having substantially the
same length as the diameter of the semiconductor substrate are
placed on the face and the backside of the semiconductor substrate,
and the semiconductor substrate and the rolls are rotated, while
pure water or deionized water is flowed, thereby performing
cleaning of the semiconductor substrate.
[0264] After completion of the primary cleaning, the semiconductor
substrate is transported by the fourth robot 134 to the second
polishing apparatus 122 where the barrier layer on the
semiconductor substrate is polished. At this time, desired abrasive
grains or the like are used, but fixed abrasive may be used in
order to prevent dishing and enhance flatness of the face. After
completion of secondary polishing, the semiconductor substrate is
transported by the fourth robot 134 again to the first cleaning
unit 115 where scrub-cleaning is performed. After completion of
cleaning, the semiconductor substrate is transported by the fourth
robot 134 to the second substrate reversing machine 144 where the
semiconductor substrate is reversed to cause the plated surface to
be directed upward, and then the semiconductor substrate is placed
on the substrate temporary placing table 145 by the third robot
133.
[0265] The semiconductor substrate is transported by the second
robot 132 from the substrate temporary placing table 145 to the cap
plating unit 117 where nickel-boron plating is applied onto the Cu
surface with the aim of preventing oxidation of Cu due to the
atmosphere. The semiconductor substrate to which cap plating has
been applied is carried by the second robot 132 from the cap
plating unit 117 to the third film thickness measuring instrument
146 where the thickness of the copper film is measured. Thereafter,
the semiconductor substrate is carried by the first robot 131 into
the second cleaning unit 118 where it is cleaned with pure water or
deionized water. The semiconductor substrate after completion of
cleaning is returned into the cassette 120a placed on the loading
and unloading section 120.
[0266] The aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 141 and
the aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 142 perform
positioning of the notch portion of the substrate and measurement
of the film thickness. Schematic views of the aligner and film
thickness measuring instrument 142 are shown in FIGS. 33 and 34. A
flow chart showing the movement of the semiconductor substrate in
the aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 142 is shown in
FIG. 35.
[0267] In the aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 142,
a notch Wa is detected by a photomicrosensor 142-1, while a
semiconductor substrate W is rotated, and positioning of the notch
Wa is carried out at an arbitrary position. For example, the
position of the notch Wa is detected to set a reference position
for the film thickness measurement point, whereby the measurement
points before treatment and after treatment will not be displaced
from each other, and the direction of placement of the
semiconductor substrate when the semiconductor substrate is
introduced into the plating apparatus can be consistent.
[0268] The apparatus is configured to have a rotatable vacuum chuck
142-4, a lift 142-2, a photomicrosensor 142-1 for notch detection,
an eddy current sensor 142-3 for film thickness measurement, and
the like. In FIGS. 33 through 35, a semiconductor substrate W is
carried in by a hand 132-1 of the second robot hand 132 (Step S1).
The aligner and film thickness measuring instrument 142 raises the
lift 142-2 and transfers the semiconductor substrate onto the lift
142-2 (Step S2). The hand 132-1 of the second robot 132 is
retreated (Step S3), and the lift is lowered (Step S4). Thus, the
semiconductor substrate W is loaded onto the vacuum chuck 142-4
(Step S5).
[0269] Then, while the vacuum chuck 142-4 is rotating, the
photomicrosensor 142-1 detects the notch Wa, and the vacuum chuck
142-4 positions the notch Wa at an arbitrary position in accordance
with a subsequent treatment (Step S6). If necessary, the eddy
current sensor 142-3 measures the film thickness of the
semiconductor substrate W at an arbitrary point (Step S7). Then,
when the semiconductor substrate is introduced into the plating
apparatus, the semiconductor substrate W is positioned so that the
position of the notch Wa of the semiconductor substrate W in the
plating unit 113 is fixed (Step S8). Thereafter, the vacuum chuck
is brought into the OFF state (Step S9), and the lift 142-2 is
raised to transfer the semiconductor substrate W (Step S10). A hand
133-1 of the third robot 133 is inserted (Step S1), and the lift
142-2 is lowered (Step S12) to transfer the semiconductor substrate
W to the hand 133-1. Thus, the semiconductor substrate W is taken
out (Step S13).
[0270] In FIGS. 33 and 34, the reference numeral 142-6 denotes a
vacuum pump, and the vacuum pump 142-6 is connected to suction
holes of the vacuum chuck 142-4 via a rotary joint 142-5. The
reference numeral 142-7 denotes a motor for rotating the vacuum
chuck 142-4, the reference numeral 142-9 denotes a motor for
rotating an arm 142-8 having the eddy current sensor 142-3 attached
thereto, and the reference numeral 142-10 denotes an actuator for
moving the lifter 142-2 up and down. The reference numeral 142-11
denotes a temporary placing table for the semiconductor substrate
W. The constitution and operation of the aligner and film thickness
measuring instrument 141 are the same as those of the aligner and
film thickness measuring instrument 142, and their explanations are
omitted.
[0271] The semiconductor substrate W transferred to the barrier
layer forming unit 111 which is an electroless Ru plating apparatus
is first given Pd as a catalyst. Pd is applied to the semiconductor
substrate W in an amount of about 30 ml, and the treatment time is
about 1 minute. After the semiconductor substrate W is washed with
water, the semiconductor substrate W is treated with hydrochloric
acid for activation treatment. At this time, hydrochloric acid is
applied in such a state that hydrochloric acid is a 36% solution in
a concentration of about 100 ml/L and in an amount of about 30 ml,
with the treatment time being about 1 minute. After the
semiconductor substrate W is washed with water again, electroless
Ru plating is performed. RuCl.sub.3..times.H.sub.2O is used as a
ruthenium plating liquid. Treatment is performed for about 10
minutes at a substrate surface temperature of about 85.degree. C.
The film formation rate at that time is about 2 nm/min. A barrier
layer is formed in this manner, and the substrate is subjected to a
water washing step and a spin-drying step, thus completing
treatment. According to these steps, about 20 nm of Ru is obtained
on SiO.sub.2 by electroless plating.
[0272] Formation of the barrier layer 105 is not limited to
electroless plating, and this barrier layer may be formed by using
CVD, sputtering or electroplating. The barrier layer is not limited
to Ru, and any material may be used as long as it can achieve the
prevention of Cu diffusion into an interlayer insulator film such
as TiN.
[0273] Electroless Cu plating, which is the seed layer forming unit
112, can employ the same apparatus as the electroless Ru plating
unit. FIG. 36 is a view showing a constitution example of an
electroless Cu plating unit. The structure of the electroless
plating apparatus shown in FIG. 36 will be described in detail in
an explanation for the second aspect of the present invention.
[0274] In the seed layer forming unit 112, a semiconductor
substrate W per se is directly heated by a backside heater 315, and
kept at a temperature of 70.degree. C., for example. A plating
liquid heated, for example, to 50.degree. C. is ejected from a
shower head 341, and the plating liquid is poured over
substantially the entire surface of the semiconductor substrate W.
The amount of the supplied plating liquid is such that the
thickness of the plating liquid on the surface of the semiconductor
substrate W is about 1 mm. The semiconductor substrate W is
instantaneously rotated by a motor M to perform uniform liquid
wetting on the surface to be plated, and then a plated film is
formed on the surface of the substrate in such a state that the
semiconductor substrate W is in a stationary state.
[0275] After seed layer formation treatment is completed, the front
end of a plating recovery nozzle 365 is lowered to an area near the
inside of a dam member 331 located at a face peripheral edge
portion of the semiconductor substrate W to suck in the plating
liquid. At this time, the semiconductor substrate W is rotated, for
example, at a rotational speed of 100 rpm or less, and hence the
liquid remaining on the upper surface of the semiconductor
substrate W can be gathered in the portion of the dam member 331 by
centrifugal force. Thus, the plating liquid can be recovered with
good efficiency and at a high recovery rate.
[0276] Then, holding means 311 is lowered to separate the
semiconductor substrate W from the dam member 331, and the rotation
of the semiconductor substrate W is started and a cleaning liquid
(ultrapure water) is ejected toward the plated surface of the
semiconductor substrate W from a nozzle 353 of cleaning liquid
supply means 351 to cool the plated surface and perform dilution
and cleaning, thereby terminating the electroless plating reaction.
Next, the semiconductor substrate W is rotated at a high speed by
the motor M for thereby spin-drying, and then the semiconductor
substrate W is taken out from the holding means 311.
[0277] The above electroless plating liquid contains
CuSO.sub.4.5H.sub.2O, EDTA.4Na as a complexing agent, HCHO as a
reducing agent, and NaOH as an alkali for pH adjustment so that the
pH becomes 12.5, and further contains .alpha.,.alpha.'-dipyridyl.
The plating temperature is about 40 to 80.degree. C. Formation of
the seed layer is not limited to electroless plating, and this seed
layer can be formed by using CVD, sputtering or electroplating.
[0278] The bevel and backside cleaning unit 116 can perform an edge
(bevel) Cu etching and a backside cleaning at the same time, and
can suppress growth of a natural oxide film of copper at the
circuit formation portion on the surface of the substrate. FIG. 37
shows a schematic view of the bevel and backside cleaning unit 116.
As shown in FIG. 37, the bevel and backside cleaning unit 116 has a
substrate holding portion 222 positioned inside a bottomed
cylindrical waterproof cover 220 and adapted to rotate a substrate
W at a high speed, in such a state that the face of the substrate W
faces upwardly, while holding the substrate W horizontally by spin
chucks 221 at a plurality of locations along a circumferential
direction of a peripheral edge portion of the substrate; a center
nozzle 224 placed above a nearly central portion of the face of the
substrate W held by the substrate holding portion 222; and an edge
nozzle 226 placed above the peripheral edge portion of the
substrate W. The center nozzle 224 and the edge nozzle 226 are
directed downward. A back nozzle 228 is positioned below a nearly
central portion of the backside of the substrate W, and directed
upward. The edge nozzle 226 is adapted to be movable in a
diametrical direction and a height direction of the substrate
W.
[0279] The width of movement L of the edge nozzle 226 is set such
that the edge nozzle 226 can be arbitrarily positioned in a
direction toward the center from the outer peripheral end surface
of the substrate, and a set value for L is inputted according to
the size, usage, or the like of the substrate W. Normally, an edge
cut width C is set in the range of 2 mm to 5 mm. In the case where
a rotational speed of the substrate is a certain value or higher at
which the amount of liquid migration from the backside to the face
is not problematic, the copper film within the edge cut width C can
be removed.
[0280] Next, the method of cleaning with this cleaning apparatus
will be described. First, the semiconductor substrate W is
horizontally rotated integrally with the substrate holding portion
222, with the substrate being held horizontally by the spin chucks
221 of the substrate holding portion 222. In this state, an acid
solution is supplied from the center nozzle 224 to the central
portion of the face of the substrate W. The acid solution may be a
non-oxidizing acid such as hydrofluoric acid, hydrochloric acid,
sulfuric acid, citric acid, oxalic acid, or the like is used. On
the other hand, an oxidizing agent solution is supplied
continuously or intermittently from the edge nozzle 226 to the
peripheral edge portion of the substrate W. As the oxidizing agent
solution, one of an aqueous solution of ozone, an aqueous solution
of hydrogen peroxide, an aqueous solution of nitric acid, and an
aqueous solution of sodium hypochlorite is used, or a combination
of these is used.
[0281] In this manner, the copper film, or the like formed on the
upper surface and end surface in the region of the peripheral edge
portion C of the semiconductor substrate W is rapidly oxidized with
the oxidizing agent solution, and is simultaneously etched with the
acid solution supplied from the center nozzle 224 and spreaded on
the entire face of the substrate, whereby it is dissolved and
removed. By mixing the acid solution and the oxidizing agent
solution at the peripheral edge portion of the substrate, a steep
etching profile can be obtained, in comparison with a mixture of
them which is produced in advance being supplied. At this time, the
copper etching rate is determined by their concentrations. If a
natural oxide film of copper is formed in the circuit-formed
portion on the face of the substrate, this natural oxide is
immediately removed by the acid solution spreading on the entire
face of the substrate according to rotation of the substrate, and
does not grow any more. That is, the oxide film of copper, which
was formed on the surface of the substrate in the plating, can thus
be removed by flowing HF over the substrate surface. Further, an
oxide film of copper is not newly formed during the etching. It is
to be noted in this connection that when an oxide film of copper
remains on the surface of the substrate, only the oxide portion of
copper is preferentially polished away in a later CMP processing,
which adversely affects the flatness of the processed surface. This
can be avoided by the removal of the oxide film of copper in the
above manner.
[0282] After the supply of the acid solution from the center nozzle
224 is stopped, the supply of the oxidizing agent solution from the
edge nozzle 226 is stopped. As a result, silicon exposed on the
surface is oxidized, and deposition of copper can be suppressed.
Thus, the activated surface of Si exposed on the surface of the
substrate, for example, can be oxidized and thereby inactivated by
later stopping the supply of H.sub.2O.sub.2. This prevents
adsorption of large particles onto the surface of the substrate
which can cause scratching in a later CMP processing.
[0283] The oxidation of copper by H.sub.2O.sub.2 and the removal of
the oxidized copper by HF, carried out repeatedly in the above
manner, can enhance the rate of copper removal as compared with the
case where the oxidation of copper and its removal are
simultaneously effected by using a mixture of H.sub.2O.sub.2 and
HF.
[0284] On the other hand, an oxidizing agent solution and a silicon
oxide film etching agent are supplied simultaneously or alternately
from the back nozzle 228 to the central portion of the backside of
the substrate. Therefore, copper or the like adhering in a metal
form to the backside of the semiconductor substrate W can be
oxidized with the oxidizing agent solution, together with silicon
of the substrate, and can be etched and removed with the silicon
oxide film etching agent. This oxidizing agent solution is
preferably the same as the oxidizing agent solution supplied to the
face, because the types of chemicals are decreased in number.
Hydrofluoric acid can be used as the silicon oxide film etching
agent, and if hydrofluoric acid is used as the acid solution on the
face of the substrate, the types of chemicals can be decreased in
number. Thus, if the supply of the oxidizing agent is stopped
first, a hydrophobic surface is obtained. If the etching agent
solution is stopped first, a water-saturated surface (a hydrophilic
surface) is obtained, and thus the backside surface can be adjusted
to a condition which will satisfy the requirements of a subsequent
process.
[0285] In this manner, the acid solution, i.e., etching solution,
is supplied to the substrate to remove metal ions remaining on the
surface of the substrate W. Then, pure water is supplied to replace
the etching solution with pure water and remove the etching
solution, and then the substrate is dried by spin-drying. In this
way, removal of the copper film in the edge cut width C at the
peripheral edge portion on the face of the semiconductor substrate,
and removal of copper contaminants on the backside are performed
simultaneously to thus allow this treatment to be completed, for
example, within 80 seconds. The etching cut width of the edge can
be set arbitrarily (to 2 mm to 5 mm), but the time required for
etching does not depend on the cut width.
[0286] The revolution member supporting apparatus shown in FIG. 5
is used for holding the semiconductor substrate in the bevel and
backside cleaning unit 116.
[0287] Annealing treatment performed before the CMP process and
after plating has a favorable effect on the subsequent CMP
treatment and on the electrical characteristics of wiring.
Observation of the surface of broad wiring (unit of several
micrometers) after the CMP treatment without annealing showed many
defects such as microvoids, which resulted in an increase in the
electrical resistance of the entire wiring. Execution of annealing
ameliorated the increase in the electrical resistance. In the
absence of annealing, thin wiring showed no voids. Thus, the degree
of grain growth is presumed to be involved in these phenomena. That
is, the following mechanism can be speculated. Grain growth is
difficult to occur in thin wiring. In broad wiring, on the other
hand, grain growth proceeds in accordance with annealing treatment.
During the process of grain growth, ultrafine pores in the plated
film, which are too small to be seen by the SEM (scanning electron
microscope), gather and move upward, thus forming microvoid-like
depressions in the upper part of the wiring. The annealing
conditions in the annealing unit 114 are such that hydrogen (2% or
less) is added in a gas atmosphere, the temperature is in the range
of 300.degree. C. to 400.degree. C., and the time is in the range
of 1 to 5 minutes. Under these conditions, the above effects were
obtained.
[0288] FIGS. 77 and 78 show the annealing unit 114. The annealing
unit 114 comprises a chamber 1002 having a gate 1000 for taking in
and taking out the semiconductor substrate W, a hot plate 1004
disposed at an upper position in the chamber 1002 for heating the
semiconductor substrate W to, e.g., 400.degree. C., and a cool
plate 1006 disposed at a lower position in the chamber 1002 for
cooling the semiconductor substrate W by, for example, flowing a
cooling water inside the plate. The annealing unit 1002 also has a
plurality of vertically movable elevating pins 1008 penetrating the
cool plate 1006 and extending upward and downward therethrough for
placing and holding the semiconductor substrate W on them. The
annealing unit further includes a gas introduction pipe 1010 for
introducing an antioxidant gas between the semiconductor substrate
W and the hot plate 1004 during annealing, and a gas discharge pipe
1012 for discharging the gas which has been introduced from the gas
introduction pipe 1010 and flowed between the semiconductor
substrate W and the hot plate 1004. The pipes 1010 and 1012 are
disposed on the opposite sides of the hot plate 1004.
[0289] The gas introduction pipe 1010 is connected to a mixed gas
introduction line 1022 which in turn is connected to a mixer 1020
where a N.sub.2 gas introduced through a N.sub.2 gas introduction
line 1016 containing a filter 1014a, and a H.sub.2 gas introduced
through a H.sub.2 gas introduction line 1018 containing a filter
1014b, are mixed to form a mixed gas which flows through the line
1022 into the gas introduction pipe 1010.
[0290] In operation, the semiconductor substrate W, which has been
carried in the chamber 1002 through the gate 1000, is held on the
elevating pins 1008 and the elevating pins 1008 are raised up to a
position at which the distance between the semiconductor substrate
W held on the lifting pins 1008 and the hot plate 1004 becomes,
e.g., 0.1-1.0 mm. In this state, the semiconductor substrate W is
then heated to, e.g., 400.degree. C. through the hot plate 1004
and, at the same time, the antioxidant gas is introduced from the
gas introduction pipe 1010 and the gas is allowed to flow between
the semiconductor substrate W and the hot plate 1004 while the gas
is discharged from the gas discharge pipe 1012, thereby annealing
the semiconductor substrate W while preventing its oxidation. The
annealing treatment may be completed in about several tens of
seconds to 60 seconds. The heating temperature of the substrate may
be selected in the range of 100-600.degree. C.
[0291] After the completion of the annealing, the elevating pins
1008 are lowered down to a position at which the distance between
the semiconductor substrate W held on the elevating pins 1008 and
the cool plate 1006 becomes, e.g., 0-0.5 mm. In this state, by
introducing a cooling water into the cool plate 1006, the
semiconductor substrate W is cooled by the cool plate to a
temperature of 100.degree. C. or lower in, e.g., 10-60 seconds. The
cooled semiconductor substrate is sent to the next step.
[0292] A mixed gas of N.sub.2 gas with several % of H.sub.2 gas is
used as the above antioxidant gas. However, N.sub.2 gas may be used
singly.
[0293] The features of the substrate processing apparatus having
the above-described constitution are enumerated as follows.
[0294] Pretreatment, cleaning and drying can be performed in each
film forming unit, and no contaminants are brought into a next
step.
[0295] In each unit incorporated in the present apparatus, various
chemical liquids are used. Even in the same unit, different
chemical liquids may be selected depending on differences in the
process. If different chemical liquids are mixed, the treating
effects of the chemical liquids may change, or crystals of
compounds may be deposited, thus not only affecting the substrate
being treated, but also affecting the process treatment of a next
semiconductor substrate which will be introduced subsequently. If
the transport means is a robot hand, the hand is contaminated.
Thus, each time the substrate is transported, various chemical
liquids adhere thereto.
[0296] Therefore, the present apparatus is characterized in that
before transfer to the next unit, i.e., the next step in the
semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, the semiconductor substrate
is subjected in the unit to treatment which allows no chemical
liquid for treatment to remain, and then the treated semiconductor
substrate is taken out therefrom. Thus, the chemical liquid is not
brought into a separate unit. For example, when the substrate is to
be transferred from the electroless plating unit for a barrier
layer formation step to the electroplating unit for a plating step
for formation of buried wiring, the substrate is subjected to
cleaning treatment and drying treatment in the electroless plating
unit. Thus, an alkaline electroless plating liquid is prevented
from being brought into the electroplating unit in which an acidic
plating liquid is used.
[0297] At the time of transfer of the substrate from the plating
step to the CMP step, cleaning treatment and drying treatment, as
well as plating treatment, are carried out in the electroplating
unit so that the acidic plating liquid is not brought into the CMP
step.
[0298] The plating unit 113 for performing a plating step for
embedded wiring is characterized in that treatment with a surface
active agent, precoating treatment, and the like are possible.
Because of this characteristic, pretreatment can be performed in
the plating unit 113 (in the single unit) immediately before
electroplating, and hence filling of liquid into fine recesses is
improved. Moreover, a cleaning mechanism and a spin-drying
mechanism are present in the plating unit 113 (in the single unit),
and hence the semiconductor substrate W for intercellular movement
can be put into a desired wet state such as liquid removal or
drying. The cleaning mechanism and the spin-drying mechanism, in
particular, can clean and dry not only the semiconductor substrate,
but also the seal material and the cathode contacts, and thus have
the effects of remarkably decreasing the replacement frequency of
these expendable members and increasing the continuous operating
time of the entire apparatus.
[0299] Flexible incorporation of the units and flexible
construction of the process can be performed in a short period of
time. FIGS. 38A through 38D, 39A, 39B, and 40A and 40B are views
showing constitution examples in which the respective units in the
substrate processing apparatus are interchangeable. FIGS. 38A and
38B are plan views of bed plates for supporting respective units
constituting the present substrate processing apparatus, FIG. 38C
is a front view of the base plate, and FIG. 39D is a sectional view
taken along line A-A of FIG. 38B. FIG. 39A is a front view of each
unit of the present substrate processing apparatus, and FIG. 39B is
a sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 39A. FIG. 40A is a
front view showing a state in which each unit of the present
substrate processing apparatus is placed on the base plate, and
FIG. 40B is a sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 40A.
[0300] As shown in the drawings, two rails (comprising, for
example, SUS material) 302, 302 are placed on an upper surface of a
bed plate 300 for placing thereon each unit 301 of the present
substrate processing apparatus, in parallel and with narrower
spacing than the frontage dimension D of each unit 301 so as to be
placed in the bed plate 300 (the upper surface of the bed plate 300
is substantially flush with the upper surfaces of the rails 302,
302). At an intermediate position between the rails, one guide bar
(comprising, for example, nylon resin material) 303 is placed so as
to protrude from the upper surface of the bed plate 300. The bottom
of each unit 301 is double-bottomed, and four rollers 304 are
attached to an upper bottom portion 305 by screws 308, while a
groove 307 to be engaged with the guide bar 303 is provided in a
lower bottom portion 306. The height of each roller 304 can be
adjusted by the screw 308.
[0301] The screw 308 is adjusted to adjust a bottom portion of each
roller 304 so as to protrude slightly (e.g., by about 1 mm) from
the lower bottom portion 306. In this state, when the unit 301 is
inserted such that the guide bar 303 is engaged with the groove 307
of the lower bottom portion 306 of the unit 301, the unit 301 is
guided by the guide bar and settles at a predetermined position. In
this state, a gap d corresponding to a protrusion of the roller 304
exists between the lower bottom portion 306 and the upper surface
of the bed plate 300, as shown in FIG. 40A. Each screw 308 is
loosened in such a state that each unit 301 is settled at the
predetermined position for thereby retracting each roller 304, and
thus the lower bottom portion 306 of the unit 301 contacts the
upper surface of the bed plate 300 (not shown). In this state, each
unit 301 is fixed to the bed plate 300 by fixing screws (not
shown).
[0302] Each unit is loaded such that its carry-in and carry-out
opening is directed in the direction of the transfer robots 131 to
134 (see FIG. 31). The width of each unit 300 facing the robot,
i.e., the frontage dimension D, is of the same size. During
loading, the unit is inserted along the rails 302, 302 onto the
unit loading surface of the bed plate 300 of the present apparatus
as described above, and thus the unit can be easily loaded. The
loaded unit 301 may be pulled in the reverse direction when it is
removed from the body of the apparatus.
[0303] In the field of semiconductor manufacturing, innovations in
techniques are making rapid progress. By imparting an easily
replaceable structure to each unit 301 constituting the apparatus
as described above, some of the units 301 can be easily replaced
with new units, without the need to replace the entire apparatus.
Thus, renewal of the functions of the entire apparatus can be
achieved at a low cost in a short period of time. Also, on the
precondition that the unit 301 will be replaced in the above
manner, the apparatus is designed such that the control system can
easily cope with the replacement. The present apparatus can freely
set whether a process treatment is performed or not in the loaded
unit 301 (skip function for the unit), and can freely set a
treatment route of the semiconductor substrate W (sequence of use
of the units). Thus, not only in case the unit has been replaced,
but also in case treatment should be performed by a different
process, the functions of the apparatus can be flexibly modified.
Particularly, in order to meet demands for manufacturing of a wide
variety of products, and low volume production in recent years, it
has become important to possess many kinds of small scale lines.
Thus, the above structure which enables necessary units to be
easily and freely combined is particularly useful.
[0304] FIG. 41 is a view showing plan layout constitution of
another embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according
to the present invention. The present substrate processing
apparatus is such a substrate processing apparatus applicable to
small-scale, low volume production of a wide variety of products,
like manufacturing of system LSIs required for digital information
household electrical appliances. In the substrate processing
apparatus, there are provided a first plating unit 401, a second
plating unit 402, a bevel and backside cleaning unit 403, an
annealing unit 404, an aligner and film thickness measuring unit
405, and a loading and unloading section 408 such that they
surround a first robot 406 and a second robot 407. Two indexers
409, 409 are placed on the loading and unloading section 408, and a
cassette 410 can be placed on each of the indexers. In FIG. 41, the
reference numeral 411 denotes a chemical liquid supply unit, the
reference numeral 412 an electrical component unit, the reference
numeral 413 a touch panel, and the reference numeral 414 a duct for
air intake or exhaust.
[0305] The indexer 409 is such a mechanism which can raise and
lower a cassette placed thereon to position the cassette in a
height direction in alignment with a substrate taken out by the
first robot 406. The first robot 406 accesses the same height
position. In the present substrate processing apparatus, the first
robot 406 takes out the substrate, which has a barrier layer and a
seed layer formed by another apparatus, from the cassette 410 on
the indexer 409, and transports it to the aligner and film
thickness measuring unit 405. After alignment of the notch and film
thickness measurement before film formation are performed by the
aligner and film thickness measuring unit 405, the second robot 407
takes out the substrate from the aligner and film thickness
measuring unit 405, and transports it to the first plating unit 401
or the second plating unit 402 where copper plating is applied.
[0306] The substrate to which copper plating has been applied, is
transported by the second robot 407 to the aligner and film
thickness measuring unit 405, and the film thickness of the
substrate after plating is measured with the aligner and film
thickness measuring unit 405. The first robot 406 takes out the
substrate from the aligner and film thickness measuring unit 405,
and transports it to the bevel and backside cleaning unit 403.
After the substrate is cleaned in the bevel and backside cleaning
unit 403, it is transported to the annealing unit 404. After the
substrate is annealed in the annealing unit 404, the first robot
406 returns the substrate which has been cleaning to the cassette
410 on the indexer 409.
[0307] The first plating unit 401 and the second plating unit 402
may be set for the same process, and plating treatment of a
plurality of substrates may be performed in parallel.
Alternatively, different processes may be used in the first plating
unit 401 and the second plating unit 402, and during one of the
processes, one of the units may be kept at rest, while only the
other unit may be used. Also, the annealing unit 404 and the bevel
and backside cleaning unit 403 can be replaced with plating units
for performing different processes.
[0308] In the present substrate processing apparatus, the width of
sides 401a, 402a of the first plating unit 401 and the second
plating unit 402 facing the second robot 407, namely the frontage
dimension D is of the same size as the frontage dimension of the
annealing unit 404, the bevel and backside cleaning unit 403, the
aligner and film thickness measuring unit 405, the cleaning units
115, 118 shown in FIG. 16, the seed layer forming unit 112, the
barrier layer forming unit 111, the cap plating unit 117, the
aligner and film thickness measuring units 141, 142, the film
thickness measuring unit 146, the substrate reversing machines 143,
144, and the temporary placing table 145 (although the frontage
dimension in some parts is not shown to be of the same size in the
drawing). Thus, when a new process is to be introduced, these units
can be easily replaced by other units, and hence renewal of the
apparatus can be performed at a low cost in a short time. The
aligner and film thickness measuring unit 405 is also of the same
size as the frontage dimension of other units, and they are
interchangeable.
[0309] FIG. 42 is a view showing plan layout constitution of
another embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according
to the present invention. The present substrate processing
apparatus differs from the substrate processing apparatus shown in
FIG. 41 is that an annealing unit 404 shown in FIG. 38 is not
provided. The other constitution of the substrate processing
apparatus is the same as that of the substrate processing apparatus
shown in FIG. 41, and its explanation is omitted.
[0310] With the above-described layout of the substrate processing
apparatus which is mainly adopted, a plurality of the substrate
processing apparatuses are installed in the plant, and the
constitutions of the units to be loaded thereon are changed,
whereby the apparatuses can be used in different wiring processes.
In case that high volume production is required temporarily, the
apparatuses can be rapidly modified into substrate processing
apparatuses composed of the same units to meet the requirement.
[0311] Though the two robots, the first robot 406 and the second
robot 407, are used in the semiconductor substrate processing
device shown in FIG. 41 or FIG. 42, use of one robot only may also
be possible.
[0312] Further, in consideration of the throughput of semiconductor
wafers, for example, a plurality of plating units and cleaning
units (spin-rinsing/drying units) may suitably be provided around
one robot. For example, three plating units and three cleaning
units may be provided around one robot. The cleaning unit
(spin-rinsing/drying unit) may be substituted by a bevel-etching
unit. The plating unit may either be of the so-called face-up type
as shown in FIGS. 12 through 16, or of the so-called face-down type
as shown in FIGS. 59 through 66.
[0313] FIG. 43 is a view showing plan layout constitution of
another embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according
to the present invention. In the substrate processing apparatus,
there are provided a loading and unloading section 604, two
annealing units 606 and cleaning units 608 such that they surround
a first robot 600 and a second robot 602. Further, a third robot 62
is disposed at the position surrounded by cleaning units 608 and
four plated film forming units 610. The substrate processing
apparatus is provided with a chemical liquid supplying system 614
for supplying the plating liquid to the plated film forming units
610. Each of the cleaning units 608 is provided with a revolution
member supporting apparatus shown in FIGS. 3 through 6.
[0314] In the foregoing explanations of the embodiments, an example
for forming the plated Cu film 106 by electroplating has been
described, but the plated Cu film 106 can be formed by electroless
plating.
[0315] According to the first aspect of the present invention as
described above, the following excellent effects can be
obtained.
[0316] (1) Processing in which metal plating is applied onto a
semiconductor substrate having a trench and/or a hole for an
interconnection pattern formed on a surface thereof, and having a
barrier layer and a power supply seed layer formed thereon, the
barrier layer, the power supply seed layer and a plated metal film
are polished and removed, and the substrate is cleaned and dried to
form interconnects, can be performed continuously by one apparatus.
Thus, compared with a case in which respective processing steps are
performed by separate apparatuses, the entire apparatus can be
compact, a wide installation space is not needed, the initial cost
and running cost for the apparatus can be decreased, and
interconnects can be formed in a short processing time.
[0317] (2) Processing in which a power supply seed layer and a
plated metal film are applied onto a semiconductor substrate having
a trench and/or a hole for an interconnection pattern formed on a
surface thereof, and having a barrier layer formed thereon, the
power supply seed layer and the plated metal film are polished and
removed, and the substrate is cleaned and dried to form
interconnects, can be performed continuously by one apparatus.
Thus, compared with a case in which respective processing steps are
performed by separate apparatuses, the entire apparatus can be
compact, a wide installation space is not needed, the initial cost
and running cost for the apparatus can be decreased, and
interconnects can be formed in a short processing time.
[0318] (3) Processing in which a barrier layer, a power supply seed
layer and a plated metal film are applied onto a semiconductor
substrate having a trench and/or a hole for an interconnection
pattern formed on a surface thereof, the barrier layer, the power
supply seed layer and the plated metal film are polished and
removed, and the substrate is cleaned and dried to form
interconnects, can be performed continuously by one apparatus.
Thus, compared with a case in which respective processing steps are
performed by separate apparatuses, the entire apparatus can be
compact, a wide installation space is not needed, the initial cost
and running cost for the apparatus can be decreased, and
interconnects can be formed in a short processing time.
[0319] (4) By recording the results of measurement of the film
thicknesses, the remaining film, and the initial film thicknesses
of the respective layers measured with the film thickness measuring
section and the remaining film measuring section, it is possible to
utilize the records as data for controlling the treatment time of a
subsequent step, and as data for judging the good or poor state of
each treatment step, or judging whether the semiconductor substrate
after completion of the interconnect formation treatment is good or
poor.
[0320] (5) It is possible to provide a substrate processing
apparatus which can easily cope with a change in the substrate
treatment process, and can achieve renewal of the function of the
entire substrate processing apparatus at a low cost in a short
time.
[0321] (6) While a substrate holding portion is holding a
semiconductor substrate faceup, a plating liquid is filled between
a surface to be plated and an anode of an electrode arm portion to
perform plating treatment. After plating treatment, the plating
liquid between the surface to be plated and the anode of the
electrode arm portion is discharged, and the electrode arm portion
is raised to release the plated surface. Thus, other treatments
associated with plating treatment, such as pretreatment and
cleaning and drying treatment, can be performed before and after
plating treatment, while the semiconductor substrate is being held
by the substrate holding portion.
(7) The precoating treatment, plating treatment and water washing
treatment can be performed by a plating unit, thus improving time
efficiency.
[0322] (8) Since the respective units are adapted to be
interchangeable, the apparatus can freely and easily deal with
changes in the substrate treatment process, and renewal of the
functions of the entire substrate processing apparatus can be
achieved at a low cost in a short time.
[0323] (9) Processing in which metal plating is applied onto a
semiconductor substrate having a trench and/or a hole for an
interconnection pattern formed on a surface thereof, and having a
barrier layer and a power supply seed layer formed thereon, the
barrier layer, the power supply seed layer, and a plated metal film
are polished and removed, and the substrate is cleaned and dried to
form interconnects, can be performed continuously by one apparatus.
Thus, compared with a case in which respective treatment steps are
performed by separate apparatuses, the entire apparatus can be
compact, a wide installation space is not needed, the initial cost
and running cost for the apparatus can be decreased, and
interconnects can be formed in a short processing time.
[0324] (10) Processing in which a power supply seed layer and a
plated metal film are applied onto a semiconductor substrate having
a trench and/or a hole for an interconnection pattern formed on a
surface thereof, and having a barrier layer formed thereon, the
power supply seed layer and the plated metal film are polished and
removed, and the substrate is cleaned and dried to form
interconnects, can be performed continuously. Thus, interconnects
can be formed in a short processing time.
[0325] (11) Processing in which a barrier layer, a power supply
seed layer and a plated metal film are applied onto a semiconductor
substrate having a trench and/or a hole for an interconnection
pattern formed on a surface thereof, the power supply seed layer
and the plated metal film are polished and removed, and the
substrate is cleaned and dried to form interconnects, can be
performed continuously. Thus, interconnects can be formed in a
short processing time.
[0326] Next, a second aspect of the present invention will be
described in detail with reference to FIGS. 36, 44A through 44C and
45. An electroless plating apparatus according to this embodiment
is used, for example, to form a seed layer or interconnect
comprising a copper layer by applying electroless copper plating
onto the surface of a semiconductor substrate W. An example of this
plating process will be described with reference to FIGS. 44A
through 44C.
[0327] In the semiconductor substrate W, as shown in FIG. 44A, an
insulating film 102 comprising SiO.sub.2 is deposited on a
conductive layer 101a of a substrate 101 on which semiconductor
devices are formed, a contact hole 103 and a trench 104 for an
interconnect are formed by lithography and etching technology, a
barrier layer 105 comprising TiN or the like is formed thereon, and
a seed layer 107 is further formed thereon by electroless copper
plating. The seed layer 107 may be formed beforehand by sputtering,
and a reinforcing seed layer for reinforcing the seed layer 107 may
be formed thereon by electroless copper plating. As shown in FIG.
44B, copper plating is applied onto the surface of the
semiconductor substrate W to fill copper into the contact hole 103
and the trench 104 of the semiconductor substrate W and deposit a
copper layer 106 on the insulating film 102. Thereafter, the copper
layer 106 on the insulating film 102 is removed by chemical
mechanical polishing (CMP) to make the surface of the copper layer
106, filled into the contact hole 103 and the trench 104 for an
interconnect, flush with the surface of the insulating film 102, as
shown in FIG. 44C. An interconnect protective film 108 is formed on
the exposed metal surface. The reinforcing seed layer can be formed
by electroless plating as described above, but can also be formed
by electroplating. When the reinforcing seed layer is to be formed
by electroplating, it can be formed by the plated metal film
forming unit of the present invention, but can also be formed by a
so-called cup-type electroplating unit which performs
electroplating while holding a surface, to be plated, of the
substrate so as to face downward.
[0328] FIG. 36 is a schematic constitution drawing of the
electroless plating apparatus of the present invention. As shown in
FIG. 36, this electroless plating apparatus comprises holding means
311 for holding a semiconductor substrate W to be plated on its
upper surface, a dam member (plating liquid holding mechanism) 331
for contacting a peripheral edge portion of a surface to be plated
(upper surface) of the semiconductor substrate W held by the
holding means 311 to seal the peripheral edge portion, and a shower
head (an electroless plating treatment liquid (scattering) supply
means) 341 for supplying a plating liquid (an electroless plating
treatment liquid) to the surface, to be plated, of the
semiconductor substrate W having the peripheral edge portion sealed
with the dam member 331. The electroless plating apparatus further
comprises cleaning liquid supply means 351 disposed near an upper
outer periphery of the holding means 311 for supplying a cleaning
liquid to the surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor substrate
W, a recovery vessel 361 for recovering a cleaning liquid or the
like (plating waste liquid) discharged, a plating liquid recovery
nozzle 365 for sucking in and recovering the plating liquid held on
the semiconductor substrate W, and a motor (rotational drive means)
M for rotationally driving the holding means 311. The respective
members will be described below.
[0329] The holding means 311 has a substrate placing portion 313 on
its upper surface for placing and holding the semiconductor
substrate W. The substrate placing portion 313 is adapted to place
and fix the semiconductor substrate W. Specifically, the substrate
placing portion 313 has a vacuum attracting mechanism (not shown)
for attracting the semiconductor substrate W to a backside thereof
by vacuum suction. A backside heater (heating means) 315, which is
planar and heats the surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor
substrate W from underside to keep it warm, is provided at the
backside of the substrate placing portion 313. The backside heater
315 is composed of, for example, a rubber heater. This holding
means 311 is adapted to be rotated by the motor M and is movable
vertically by raising and lowering means (not shown).
[0330] The dam member 331 is tubular, has a seal portion 333
provided in a lower portion thereof for sealing the outer
peripheral edge of the semiconductor substrate W, and is installed
so as not to move vertically from the illustrated position.
[0331] The shower head 341 is of a structure having many nozzles
provided at the front end for scattering the supplied plating
liquid in a shower form and supplying it substantially uniformly to
the surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor substrate W. The
cleaning liquid supply means 351 has a structure for ejecting a
cleaning liquid from a nozzle 353.
[0332] The plating liquid recovery nozzle 365 is adapted to be
movable upward and downward and swingable, and the front end of the
plating liquid recovery nozzle 365 is adapted to be lowered
inwardly of the dam member 331 located on the upper surface
peripheral edge portion of the semiconductor substrate W and to
suck in the plating liquid on the semiconductor substrate W.
[0333] Next, the operation of the electroless plating apparatus
will be described. First, the holding means 311 is lowered from the
illustrated state to provide a gap of a predetermined dimension
between the holding means 311 and the dam member 331, and the
semiconductor substrate W is placed on and fixed to the substrate
placing portion 313. An 8 inch wafer, for example, is used as the
semiconductor substrate W.
[0334] Then, the holding means 311 is raised to bring its upper
surface into contact with the lower surface of the dam member 331
as illustrated, and the outer periphery of the semiconductor
substrate W is sealed with the seal portion 333 of the dam member
331. At this time, the surface of the semiconductor substrate W is
in an open state.
[0335] Then, the semiconductor substrate W itself is directly
heated by the backside heater 315 to render the temperature of the
semiconductor substrate W, for example, 70.degree. C. (maintained
until termination of plating). Then, the plating liquid heated, for
example, to 50.degree. C. is ejected from the shower head 341 to
pour the plating liquid over substantially the entire surface of
the semiconductor substrate W. Since the surface of the
semiconductor substrate W is surrounded by the dame member 331, the
poured plating liquid is all held on the surface of the
semiconductor substrate W. The amount of the supplied plating
liquid may be a small amount which will become a 1 mm thickness
(about 30 ml) on the surface of the semiconductor substrate W. The
depth of the plating liquid held on the surface to be plated may be
10 mm or less, and may be even 1 mm as in this embodiment. If a
small amount of the supplied plating liquid is sufficient as in the
present embodiment, the heating apparatus for heating the plating
liquid may be of a small size. In this embodiment, the temperature
of the semiconductor substrate W is raised to 70.degree. C., and
the temperature of the plating liquid is raised to 50.degree. C. by
heating. Thus, the surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor
substrate W becomes, for example, 60.degree. C., and hence a
temperature optimal for a plating reaction in this embodiment can
be achieved. If the semiconductor substrate W itself is adapted to
be heated as described above, the temperature of the plating liquid
requiring a great electric power consumption for heating need not
be raised so high. This is preferred, because the electric power
consumption can be decreased, and a change in the property of the
plating liquid can be prevented. The electric power consumption for
heating of the semiconductor substrate W itself may be small, and
the amount of the plating liquid stored on the semiconductor
substrate W is also small. Thus, heat retention of the
semiconductor substrate W by the backside heater 315 can be
performed easily, and the capacity of the backside heater 315 may
be small, and the apparatus can be made compact. If means for
directly cooling the semiconductor substrate W itself is used,
switching between heating and cooling may be performed during
plating to change the plating conditions. Since the plating liquid
held on the semiconductor substrate is in a small amount,
temperature control can be performed with good sensitivity.
[0336] The semiconductor substrate W is instantaneously rotated by
the motor M to perform uniform liquid wetting of the surface to be
plated, and then plating of the surface to be plated is performed
in such a state that the semiconductor substrate W is in a
stationary state. Specifically, the semiconductor substrate W is
rotated at 100 rpm or less for only 1 second to uniformly wet the
surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor substrate W with the
plating liquid. Then, the semiconductor substrate W is kept
stationary, and electroless plating is performed for 1 minute. The
instantaneous rotating time is 10 seconds or less at the
longest.
[0337] After completion of the plating treatment, the front end of
the plating liquid recovery nozzle 365 is lowered to an area near
the inside of the dam member 331 on the peripheral edge portion of
the semiconductor substrate W to suck in the plating liquid. At
this time, if the semiconductor substrate W is rotated at a
rotational speed of, for example, 100 rpm or less, the plating
liquid remaining on the semiconductor substrate W can be gathered
in the portion of the dam member 331 on the peripheral edge portion
of the semiconductor substrate W under centrifugal force, so that
recovery of the plating liquid can be performed with a good
efficiency and a high recovery rate. The holding means 311 is
lowered to separate the semiconductor substrate W from the dam
member 331. The semiconductor substrate W is started to be rotated,
and the cleaning liquid (ultrapure water) is jetted at the plated
surface of the semiconductor substrate W from the nozzle 353 of the
cleaning liquid supply means 351 to cool the plated surface, and
simultaneously perform dilution and cleaning, thereby stopping the
electroless plating reaction. At this time, the cleaning liquid
jetted from the nozzle 353 may be supplied to the dam member 331 to
perform cleaning of the dam member 331 at the same time. The
plating waste liquid at this time is recovered into the recovery
vessel 361 and discarded.
[0338] The plating liquid once used is not reused, but thrown away.
As described above, the amount of the plating liquid used in this
apparatus can be made very small, compared with that in the prior
art. Thus, the amount of the plating liquid which is discarded is
small, even without reuse. In some cases, the plating liquid
recovery nozzle 365 may not be installed, and the plating liquid
which has been used may be recovered as a plating waste liquid into
the recovery vessel 361, together with the cleaning liquid.
[0339] Then, the semiconductor substrate W is rotated at a high
speed by the motor M for spin-drying, and then the semiconductor
substrate W is removed from the holding means 311.
[0340] FIG. 45 is a schematic constitution drawing of an
electroless plating apparatus constituted using another embodiment
of the present invention. The embodiment of FIG. 45 is different
from the aforementioned embodiment in that instead of providing the
backside heater 315 in the holding means 311, lamp heaters (heating
means) 317 are disposed above the holding means 311, and the lamp
heaters 317 and a shower head 341-2 are integrated. For example, a
plurality of ring-shaped lamp heaters 317 having different radii
are provided concentrically, and many nozzles 343-2 of the shower
head 341-2 are open in a ring form from the gaps between the lamp
heaters 317. The lamp heaters 317 may be composed of a single
spiral lamp heater, or may be composed of other lamp heaters of
various structures and arrangements.
[0341] Even with this constitution, the plating liquid can be
supplied from each nozzle 343-2 to the surface, to be plated, of
the semiconductor substrate W substantially uniformly in a shower
form. Further, heating and heat retention of the semiconductor
substrate W can be performed by the lamp heaters 317 directly
uniformly. The lamp heaters 317 heat not only the semiconductor
substrate W and the plating liquid, but also ambient air, thus
exhibiting a heat retention effect on the semiconductor substrate
W.
[0342] Direct heating of the semiconductor substrate W by the lamp
heaters 317 requires the lamp heaters 317 with a relatively large
electric power consumption. In place of such lamp heaters 317, lamp
heaters 317 with a relatively small electric power consumption and
the backside heater 315 shown in FIG. 36 may be used in combination
to heat the semiconductor substrate W mainly with the backside
heater 315 and to perform heat retention of the plating liquid and
ambient air mainly by the lamp heaters 317. In the same manner as
in the aforementioned embodiment, means for directly or indirectly
cooling the semiconductor substrate W may be provided to perform
temperature control.
[0343] Plating was actually performed using the electroless plating
apparatus shown in FIG. 36 and the conventional electroless plating
apparatus shown in FIG. 45, and the results were compared. The
conditions for and the results of the experiments are shown
below.
[Electroless Cu Plating Sample]
[0344] An 8 inch semiconductor substrate has a barrier layer of TaN
(30 nm) and a seed layer (film applied all over) of Cu (50 nm)
formed on silicon.
[Plating Specifications]
[0345] (1) Plating method according to the present invention
Process: A semiconductor substrate W is set on the holding means
311 heated by the backside heater 315 (70.degree. C.), and the dam
member 331 is set on the semiconductor substrate W. Then, the
plating liquid (50.degree. C.) is supplied for 5 seconds in an
amount of only 30 ml from the shower head 341 in such a state that
the semiconductor substrate W is in a stationary state. Thereafter,
the semiconductor substrate W is rotated at 100 rpm for only 1
second to wet the surface of the semiconductor substrate W
uniformly with the plating liquid, and the semiconductor substrate
W is held in a stationary state for 1 minute. Then, the plating
liquid is recovered by the plating liquid recovery nozzle 365, and
then the dam member 331 is separated from the surface of the
semiconductor substrate W. While the semiconductor substrate W is
being rotated (800 rpm), the cleaning liquid (ultrapure water) is
supplied onto the surface of the semiconductor substrate W for 30
seconds for water washing, thereby stopping a plating reaction.
Supply of the cleaning liquid is stopped, and the semiconductor
substrate W is spin-dried (1000 rpm, 30 sec) and then taken
out.
[0346] (2) Plating method according to a conventional example
Process: A semiconductor substrate W is set on the holding means
81, and a plating liquid of 70.degree. C. is dripped onto the
center of the semiconductor substrate W for 1 minute (600 ml/min)
in such a state that the semiconductor substrate W is rotated at 40
rpm. After dripping of the plating liquid is finished, a cleaning
liquid (ultrapure water) is supplied onto the surface of the
semiconductor substrate W for 30 seconds, while the semiconductor
substrate W is continued to be rotated, thus performing water
washing and stopping the plating reaction. Then, the semiconductor
substrate W is withdrawn from the holding means 81, and dried
separately with a dryer.
[0347] FIGS. 46A and 46B are views showing the results of
measurement of the film thicknesses, on the X axis, of
semiconductor substrates W subjected to the electroless plating
according to the above respective methods. FIG. 46A is a view
showing electroless Cu film thickness inplane distribution
according to the present plating method, and FIG. 46B is a view
showing electroless Cu film thickness inplane distribution
according to the conventional plating method. In FIGS. 46A and 46B,
the horizontal axis represents locations of the wafer (substrate),
while the vertical axis represents the thickness of the plated
film. As shown in FIGS. 46A and 46B, in the plating method
according to the present invention, the film thickness is uniform
throughout the semiconductor substrate W. Whereas in the plating
method according to the conventional example, the film thickness is
extremely smaller at the center of the semiconductor substrate W.
The plating method according to the present invention was verified
to improve the in plane uniformity of the plated film thickness
remarkably.
[0348] The embodiment of the present invention has been described
above, but the present invention is not limited to the above
embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope
of the claims and the scope of the technical ideas described in the
specification and drawings. For example, the electroless plating
apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the
formation of a seed layer and a copper layer for interconnects, but
can be used in the formation of a wiring protective film.
[0349] Further, the electroless plating apparatus according to the
present invention can also be used in the pretreatment step and the
catalyst treatment step for electroless plating. That is, in the
above embodiment, for example, electroless plating was performed by
supplying an electroless plating liquid from the shower head 341 to
the surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor substrate W.
However, other electroless plating treatment liquid for use in the
pretreatment step or the catalyst treatment step for electroless
plating may be supplied from the shower head 341 before the
electroless plating liquid supply step. Thus, these treatment steps
can also be performed by this electroless plating apparatus,
together with the electroless plating step.
[0350] In the above embodiment, plating was carried out in such a
state that the plating liquid is held on the surface to be plated,
and the substrate is kept stationary. However, the substrate may be
rotated slowly to such a degree that uneven plating does not
occur.
[0351] Furthermore, the shower head is not restrictive, if the
plating liquid can be supplied in a scattered manner to the surface
to be plated. For example, there may be provided a nozzle which
supplies the plating liquid while performing a swinging motion or a
translational motion.
[0352] In the above embodiment, cleaning was performed in the
cleaning step after plating by supplying the cleaning liquid while
the holding means 311 was kept separated from the dam member 331.
However, the cleaning may be performed by supplying the cleaning
liquid while the holding means 311 is not separated from the dam
member 331, and by causing the cleaning liquid to overflow from the
upper edge of the dam member 331. When the plating liquid remaining
inside is diluted by supplying the cleaning liquid, the liquid
temperature is simultaneously lowered, whereupon the electroless
plating reaction comes to an end. Incidentally, the holding means
311 and the dam member 331 may be separated by raising the dam
member 331, instead of lowering the holding means 311.
[0353] During heating of the semiconductor substrate W by the
backside heater 315 (especially during the period from start of
heating to contact of the plating liquid with the surface), it is
desirable to blow an inert gas such as an argon (Ar) gas onto the
surface, to be plated, of the semiconductor substrate W in order to
prevent oxidation. If a seed layer formed by sputtering or the like
is exposed at the surface of the semiconductor substrate W, heating
of the seed layer may result in the oxidation of the surface of the
seed layer. Thus, the use of such a gas is particularly effective
when it is attempted to prevent the oxidation and form a plated
layer of more uniform film thickness on the seed layer.
[0354] In the above embodiment, the backside heater 315 or the lamp
heater 317 was used as the heating means for the semiconductor
substrate W, but a heater may be further provided at other position
close to the substrate. Moreover, instead of using the heater, or
in addition to the use of the heater, the temperature of
surroundings for performing electroless plating may be made
substantially equal to the electroless plating treatment
temperature (the temperature preferred for plating of the surface,
to be plated which is the reaction surface), whereby heat
dissipation can be prevented to keep the treatment temperature
constant. In this case, a heated gas may be supplied in the
surroundings of the substrate, for example.
[0355] In the above embodiment, the step of instantaneously
rotating the substrate was used as the step of bringing the
electroless plating treatment liquid supplied onto the surface, to
be plated, of the substrate in contact with the surface to be
plated. Other steps may be used as the step of spreading the
electroless plating treatment liquid all over the surface to be
plated, by moving the substrate, or moving the supplied electroless
plating treatment liquid. That is, the step of moving the substrate
is, for example, to vibrate or swing (shakingly move) the substrate
to which the electroless plating treatment liquid is supplied. The
step of moving the supplied electroless plating treatment liquid
is, for example, to rake the supplied electroless plating treatment
liquid by using a raking member, or to blow air onto the liquid
surface.
[0356] As described in detail above, the second aspect of the
present invention offers the following excellent effects:
[0357] (1) The electroless plating treatment liquid is stored and
held on the surface to be plated for a predetermined time to treat
the surface to be plated. Thus, treatment of the surface can be
performed using a small amount of the electroless plating treatment
liquid, so that a cost reduction can be achieved. Further, a pump
of a small size can be used as a pump for supplying the electroless
plating treatment liquid, the electroless plating apparatus can be
made compact, and the cost for a clean room housing the apparatus
can be reduced. Since a small amount of the electroless plating
treatment liquid is used, heating and warmth retention of the
electroless plating treatment liquid can be easily and promptly
performed. Furthermore, there is no need to constantly heat a large
amount of the electroless plating treatment liquid, and hence
deterioration of the electroless plating treatment liquid is not
promoted.
[0358] (2) Since the amount of the electroless plating treatment
liquid used may be small, discarding this liquid does not lead to a
cost increase. A fresh electroless plating treatment liquid can be
always used, and the composition of the treatment liquid can be
made constant. By-products generated when the liquid is used in a
circulated manner are not deposited in the system, and stable
treatment such as plating can be carried out easily. A liquid
analyzer or a liquid adjustor for the plating liquid becomes
unnecessary, and a decrease in the equipment cost and a decrease in
the clean room cost can be achieved. Since a large amount of the
electroless plating treatment liquid is not used in a circulated
manner, particles are difficult to be generated from the
constituent members of the apparatus, thus obviating the need for a
filter.
[0359] (3) Because treatment is performed in such a state that the
electroless plating treatment liquid is held on the surface to be
plated, the treatment conditions for the respective parts of the
surface to be plated can be equalized, in comparison with a case in
which treatment is performed in such a state that the electroless
plating treatment liquid is dripped onto the surface to be plated.
Consequently, the inplane uniformity of the thickness of the
resulting plated film can be achieved. Particularly, when treatment
is performed in such a state that the substrate is in a stationary
state, heat dissipation due to the peripheral speed of the
substrate does not take place, the reaction temperature can be
uniformized without a fall in the temperature, and a stable process
can be obtained, in comparison with a case in which the treatment
is performed in such a state that the substrate is rotated.
[0360] (4) The electroless plating treatment liquid is brought into
contact with the surface, to be plated, of the substrate in such a
state that the substrate is heated to a temperature higher than the
temperature of the electroless plating treatment liquid. Thus, the
temperature of the plating liquid requiring a great electric power
consumption for heating need not be raised so much, and the
electric power consumption can be decreased, and change of the
composition of the plating liquid can be prevented.
[0361] (5) In the case where electroless plating treatment liquid
supply means is provided above the surface to be plated, and
adapted to supply the electroless plating treatment liquid in a
scattered state, the electroless plating treatment liquid can be
simultaneously supplied to the entire surface, to be plated, of the
substrate substantially uniformly, and temperature control of the
electroless plating treatment liquid can be performed stably.
[0362] (6) The electroless plating apparatus comprises holding
means for holding a substrate; a plating liquid holding mechanism
for sealing the periphery of the surface to be plated; and
electroless plating treatment liquid supply means for supplying an
electroless plating treatment liquid to, and storing the
electroless plating treatment liquid on, the surface, to be plated,
of the substrate sealed with the plating liquid holding mechanism.
Thus, a pretreatment liquid, a catalytic treatment liquid, an
electroless plating liquid or the like can be used as the
electroless plating treatment liquid while switching any of these
liquids, and hence a series of electroless plating steps can be
carried out in a single cell, and the apparatus can be made
compact.
[0363] Next, a third aspect of the present invention will be
described with reference to FIGS. 47 through 56. The third aspect
of the present invention relates to various substrate processing
apparatuses such as a substrate plating apparatus and a substrate
polishing apparatus, and more particularly to a substrate
processing apparatus preferred for detecting a substrate surface
state of a substrate to be treated, such as film thickness. The
present invention is applicable to all substrate processing
apparatuses that perform transportation and treatment of the
substrate. Here, an explanation will be made, particularly, for
cases in which the substrate processing apparatus is applied for
measurement of film thickness in a copper plating apparatus and a
CMP apparatus for use in the formation of interconnection of a
semiconductor substrate.
[0364] FIG. 47 is a plan view showing an example of a plating
apparatus to which the present invention is applied. This plating
apparatus comprises two wafer cassettes 510, 510 for accommodating
a plurality of substrates therein, a transfer robot 514 for
withdrawing the substrate from the wafer cassettes 510, 510 and
transporting the substrate, and two plating modules (substrate
processing modules) 512, 512, each of which performs a series of
plating treatment steps consisting of plating, cleaning and drying
of the substrate by one module. The reference numeral 518 denotes
liquid supply equipment with a plating liquid tank 516.
[0365] The constitution of the plating module 512 is the same as
the constitution shown in FIG. 14, and hence the module 512 will be
described with reference to FIG. 14. This plating module 512 can
perform a series of treatments consisting of plating, cleaning and
drying. That is, a substrate W is held with a surface thereof to be
treated facing upward at three positions A, B and C by a substrate
holding portion 2-9. After the substrate W is carried in and placed
at the position A, a plating liquid is supplied at the position B
onto the surface to be treated in such a state that a cathode
electrode 2-17 is connected to an area close to the outer periphery
of the substrate W. An anode electrode (not shown) is brought into
contact with the plating liquid from above, and a voltage is
applied to perform electroplating. After completion of plating, the
plating liquid on the substrate W is sucked in by a nozzle (not
shown). Instead, cleaning water is supplied at the position C, and
the substrate holding portion 2-9 is rotated to spread cleaning
water on the entire surface of the substrate W, thereby performing
cleaning. After cleaning, supply of the cleaning water is stopped,
and the rotational speed of the substrate W is increased to remove
the cleaning water and perform spin-drying. If necessary, a
precoating treatment for applying, for example, a surface active
agent may be performed before plating, or cleaning in multiple
stages may be performed using different kinds of cleaning liquids.
The present invention is not limited to the plating module 512 of
the above structure. That is, the plating tank may be of other type
such as a cup type or a closed type. In this case, a cleaning tank
and a dryer may be provided separately.
[0366] On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 47, the transfer robot
514 has arms 542 having forward ends on which respective robot
hands 540 are provided.
[0367] Next, the operation of the whole of this plating apparatus
will be described. First, the robot hand 540 withdraws the
substrate W before treatment from one of the wafer cassettes 510,
and places it on a substrate holding portion 521 of one of the
plating modules 512. Then, the plating module 512 performs a series
of plating treatments as described above, and dries the substrate
W. The dried substrate W is returned again to one of the wafer
cassettes 510 by the robot hand 540.
[0368] The substrate W before treatment and the substrate W after
treatment pass through around the transfer robot 514. In order to
measure the film thicknesses of both substrates W, in the following
embodiments, film thickness sensors S are provided at the transfer
robot 514 itself or in its surroundings, or at a position, such as
the interior of the plating module 512, where the substrate W
before treatment and the substrate W after treatment will pass
through. Examples of the location and state of installation of the
film thickness sensor S will be explained later in summary, and
detailed explanations are omitted here.
[0369] That is, if the film thickness sensor S is provided at these
positions, the film thicknesses of the substrate W (the film
thicknesses of all multi-layer metal films formed on the substrate
W) before treatment and after treatment can be measured, without
wasteful operations during a series of treatment actions.
Specifically, when the substrate W passes through the film
thickness sensor S for the first time, for example, the film
thickness of the substrate W with the seed layer on its surface
before plating is measured. When the substrate W passes through the
film thickness sensor S for the second time, the film thickness of
the substrate W with a metal film plated on the seed layer is
measured. If a difference between the two film thicknesses is
found, the plated metal film thickness can be measured. Generally,
the film thickness of the seed layer is in the range of about
several tens of nanometers to 100 and tens of nanometers, while the
thickness of the plated metal film is about several
micrometers.
[0370] Signals from the film thickness sensor S are sent to an
arithmetic unit where an arithmetic operation, such as calculation
of a difference or calculation of a moving average, is performed
for thereby measuring the film thickness. The arithmetic unit and
the arithmetic method may be arbitrarily selected ones which are
preferred for the location of the film thickness sensor S, its
detection method, and the like.
[0371] FIG. 48 is a plan view showing an example of a CMP apparatus
to which the present invention is applied. This CMP apparatus
comprises wafer cassettes 531, 531 for loading and unloading,
cleaning machines 533, 533, 535, and 535 for cleaning substrates,
two transfer robots 514a, 514b, reversing machines 539, 539, and
polishing units (substrate processing modules) 541, 541.
[0372] There re various flows of substrates W, and an example is as
follows. First, the transfer robot 514a withdraws the substrate W
before treatment from one of the wafer cassettes 531 for loading,
and transfers it to one of the reversing machines 539. The transfer
robot 514a only rotates without moving from the illustrated
position, and is disposed at a position where it can transport the
substrate W from the wafer cassette 531 to the reversing machine
539. The substrate W has its surface, to be treated, changed by the
reversing machine 539 from an upwardly facing state to a downwardly
facing state, and is then transferred to another transfer robot
514b. The transfer robot 514b transfers the substrate W to one of
the polishing units 541 where a predetermined polishing is
performed. The substrate W after polishing is transported by the
transfer robot 514b to one of the cleaning machines 535 where
primary cleaning is conducted. The substrate W after primary
cleaning is transported by the transfer robot 514b to one of the
reversing machines 539 where its treated surface is turned over to
face upward. Then, the substrate W is transported by the transfer
robot 514a to one of the secondary cleaning machines 533. After
secondary cleaning is finished, the substrate W is accommodated
again by the transfer robot 514a in the wafer cassette 531 for
unloading.
[0373] Therefore, in case of this CMP apparatus, the substrate W
before treatment and the substrate W after treatment pass through
near the transfer robots 514a, 514b and the reversing machines 539,
539. In order to measure the film thicknesses of both substrates W,
in the following embodiments, the film thickness sensor S is
disposed at a position where the substrate W before treatment and
the substrate W after treatment will pass, such as at the transfer
robots 514a, 514b per se or the surroundings thereof.
[0374] That is, if the film thickness sensors S are installed at
these positions, the film thicknesses of the substrate W before
treatment and after treatment can be measured, without wasteful
operations during a series of treatment operations. Specifically,
for example, the film thickness of the substrate W before polishing
is measured for the first time, and the film thickness of the
substrate W after polishing is measured for the second time. If a
difference between the two film thicknesses is found, the amount of
polishing can be measured. Further, if an optical sensor is used,
the film thickness of a metal film or an insulating film can be
directly measured, without calculating the difference.
[0375] In some CMP apparatuses, the transfer robots 514a, 514b are
movable in a direction of an arrow A shown in FIG. 48. The present
invention is applicable to the CMP apparatus having the transfer
robots unmovable or movable.
[0376] FIG. 49 is a view showing a plating and CMP apparatus to
which the present invention is applied. This plating and CMP
apparatus is different from the CMP apparatus shown in FIG. 48 in
that the plating module 512 shown in FIG. 14 is provided in place
of one of the cleaning machines 533, and a spin dryer 534 is
provided in place of another cleaning machine 533.
[0377] The flow of a substrate W is, for example, as follows.
First, the transfer robot 514a withdraws the substrate W before
treatment from one of the wafer cassettes 531 for loading. After
plating treatment is performed by the plating module 512, the
transfer robot 514a transfers the substrate W to one of the
reversing machines 539, which directs its treated surface downward.
Then, the substrate W is transferred to the other transfer robot
514b. The transfer robot 514b transfers the substrate W to one of
the polishing units 541 in which predetermined polishing is
performed. The substrate W after polishing is withdrawn by the
transfer robot 514b, and cleaned by one of the cleaning machines
535. Then, the substrate W is transferred to the other polishing
unit 541 where it is polished again, and the substrate W is
transported by the transfer robot 514b to the other cleaning
machine 535 where it is cleaned. The substrate W after cleaning is
transported by the transfer robot 514b to the other reversing
machine 539 where its treated surface is turned over to face
upward. Then, the substrate W is transported by the transfer robot
514a to the spin dryer 534 in which spin-drying is carried out, and
the substrate W is accommodated again by the transfer robot 514a in
the wafer cassette 531 for unloading.
[0378] With this plating and CMP apparatus, therefore, a film
thickness sensor S is installed at a position where the substrate W
before treatment and the substrate W after treatment will pass,
such as at the transfer robots 514a, 514 b per se or the
surroundings thereof, or the interior of the module 512.
[0379] Next, a concrete example of the sensor S for film thickness
measurement to be installed in the above-mentioned plating
apparatus or the CMP apparatus will be described.
[0380] FIG. 50 is a perspective view showing the transfer robot 514
illustrated in FIG. 47, and the transfer robots 514a, 514b
illustrated in FIGS. 48 and 49. FIGS. 51A and 51B are views showing
a robot hand 540 attached to the transfer robot 514 (514a, 514b),
and FIG. 51A is a plan view and FIG. 51B is a side sectional
view.
[0381] The transfer robot 514 (514a, 514b) is constituted by
attaching the robot hands 540, 540 to the respective front ends of
two arms 542, 542 attached to an upper portion of a robot body 543.
The two robot hands 540, 540 are arranged so as to be placed
vertically one above the other via a predetermined gap. The arms
542 extend and contract to enable a substrate W placed on the robot
hand 540 to be transported in a fore-and-aft direction. Also, the
robot body 543 rotates and/or moves to permit transportation of the
substrate W in an arbitrary direction.
[0382] As shown in FIGS. 51A and 51B, four film thickness sensors S
are directly attached, in a buried state, to the robot hand 540.
Any film thickness sensor S may be used, if it can measure the film
thickness. Preferably, an eddy current sensor is used. The eddy
current sensor generates eddy currents, and detects the frequencies
and losses of electric currents which have passed through the
substrate W and returned, thereby measuring the film thickness. The
eddy current sensor is used in an on-contact manner. An optical
sensor is also preferred as the film thickness sensor S. The
optical sensor irradiates a sample with light, and can directly
measure film thickness based on information on reflected light. The
optical sensor is capable of measuring film thickness of not only a
metal film, but also an insulating film such as an oxide film. The
positions of installation of the film thickness sensors S are not
limited to the illustrated positions, and the film thickness sensor
S is attached in an arbitrary number at a location where
measurement is to be made. The robot hand 540 is available as a dry
hand handling a dry substrate W, or as a wet hand handling a wet
substrate W. The film thickness sensor S can be attached to either
hand. When the transfer robot 514 is used in a plating apparatus as
shown in FIG. 47, however, there is need to measure the film
thickness of the substrate W in such a state that only the seed
layer is initially formed. Thus, it is necessary to measure the
film thickness of the substrate W, initially in a dry state, which
is placed in the wafer cassettes 510, 510. Hence, it is desirable
to attach the film thickness sensor S to the dry hand.
[0383] Signals detected by the film thickness sensors S are sent to
an arithmetic unit where an arithmetic operation, such as
calculation of a difference between the film thickness of the
substrate W before treatment and the film thickness of the
substrate W after treatment, is performed and the film thickness is
outputted onto a predetermined display or the like. Any arithmetic
method may be used, if it can measure the film thickness
appropriately.
[0384] According to the present embodiment, since the film
thickness can be measured while the robot hand 540 is transporting
the substrate W, there is no need to provide a film thickness
measuring step separately during the substrate treatment process,
and the throughput is not decreased. Since the film thickness
sensors S are attached to the robot hand 540, a space saving can be
actualized.
[0385] FIGS. 52A and 52B are views showing the transfer robots 514,
514a and 514b illustrated in FIGS. 47 and 48 to which the second
example of the present invention has been applied. FIG. 52A is a
schematic plan view, while FIG. 52B is a schematic side view. As
shown in FIGS. 52A and 52B, according to this embodiment, five film
thickness sensors S are disposed at a lower portion of the robot
hand 540 of the robot body 543. That is, a disk-shaped mounting
plate 545 of substantially the same size as the substrate W is
disposed at the lower portion of the robot hand 540, and the five
film thickness sensors S are attached onto the mounting plate 545.
The mounting plate 545 is fixed to the robot body 543, but may be
fixed to other members.
[0386] The film thickness sensors S are attached at positions where
the film thickness sensors S do not overlap with the robot hand 540
as illustrated, whereby the film thickness can be measured in a
wide area of the entire substrate W. The present embodiment can
also achieve a space saving, and can perform measurement in a very
short time. By stopping the substrate W above the mounting plate
545, measurement of the film thickness at fixed points of the
substrate W can be made. If the substrate W on the robot hand 540
is caused to pass over the mounting plate 545 without stopping,
measurement during scanning becomes possible. Since the film
thickness sensors S are integral with the robot body 543, stable
detection can be performed. If the mounting plate 545 is fixed to
other members, in place of the robot body 543, it becomes possible
to adjust the distance between the substrate W and the sensors by
arbitrarily varying the height of the robot hand.
[0387] The construction in which signals after detection are sent
to the arithmetic unit to measure the film thickness is the same as
in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 51A and 51B. However, in the case
of measurement simultaneous with scanning, the points of
measurement change with the passage of time, so that it is
preferred to perform computations by the method of moving averages
and calculate the film thickness.
[0388] FIGS. 53A and 53B are views showing a third example of the
present invention. FIG. 53A is a schematic plan view, and FIG. 53B
is a schematic side view. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 53A and
53B, three film thickness sensors S are provided on an upper
portion of an exit and entrance portion 550, for a substrate W, of
the plating module 512 shown in FIGS. 14 and 47. That is, a
rectangular mounting plate 551 is disposed above the exit and
entrance portion 550, and the three film thickness sensors S are
attached in series to a lower surface of the mounting plate 551.
The mounting plate 551 may be fixed to the plating module 512, or
may be fixed to the robot body 543 of the transfer robot 514 (not
shown), or may be fixed to other members.
[0389] According to such a constitution, the film thickness sensors
S scan the substrate W when the substrate W is placed into and
withdrawn from the plating module 512. This is suitable for scan
measurement. By providing some rows of the film thickness sensors S
as in this embodiment, moreover, arbitrary points on the substrate
W can be measured by scanning. By arbitrarily varying the height of
the robot hand, furthermore, it becomes possible to adjust the
distance between the substrate W and the sensors.
[0390] Signals detected by the film thickness sensors S are
computed by an arithmetic unit. In the case of scan measurement, it
is desirable to perform computation by the method of moving
averages as in the second example.
[0391] When this embodiment is applied to the CMP apparatus, the
film thickness sensors S may be disposed near the exit and
entrance, where the substrate W is introduced and withdrawn, of the
polishing unit (substrate treatment module) 541 shown in FIGS. 48
and 49. When the substrate W is carried into the polishing unit
541, the surface, to be treated, of the substrate W faces downward.
Thus, it is preferred to dispose the film thickness sensors S on a
lower side of the location of the polishing unit 541 where the
substrate W is carried in (of course, even when the film thickness
sensors S are installed on the upper side of such location,
measurement of the film thickness is possible, but installation on
the lower side results in a higher accuracy). After polishing is
completed, the treated surface of the substrate W is in a wet
state. The use of film thickness sensors capable of measurement
even in a wet condition makes it possible to measure the film
thickness by the same method as in the plating module 512.
[0392] FIG. 54 is a schematic front view of a reversing machine 539
and its surroundings to which a fourth example of the present
invention has been applied. FIG. 55 is a plan view of reversing arm
553, 553 portions. As shown in FIGS. 54 and 55, the reversing arms
553, 553 put a substrate W therebetween and hold its outer
periphery from right and left sides, and rotate the substrate W
through 1800, thereby turning the substrate over. A circular
mounting base 555 is disposed immediately below the reversing arms
553, 553 (reversing stage), and a plurality of film thickness
sensors S are provided on the mounting base 555. The mounting base
555 is adapted to be movable upward and downward by a drive
mechanism 557.
[0393] During reversing of the substrate W, the mounting base 555
waits at a position, indicated by solid lines, below the substrate
W. Before or after reversing, the mounting base 555 is raised to a
position indicated by dotted lines to bring the film thickness
sensors S close to the substrate W gripped by the reversing arms
553, 553, thereby measuring the film thickness.
[0394] According to the present embodiment, since there is no
restriction such as the arms 542 of the transfer robot 514, the
film thickness sensors S can be installed at arbitrary positions on
the mounting base 555. Further, the mounting base 555 is adapted to
be movable upward and downward, so that the distance between the
substrate W and the sensors can be adjusted at the time of
measurement. It is also possible to mount plural types of sensors
suitable for the purpose of detection, and change the distance
between the substrate W and the sensors each time measurements are
made by the respective sensors. However, the mounting base 555
moves upward and downward, thus requiring certain measuring
time.
[0395] FIG. 56 is a sectional view of an essential part of a
plating module 512 to which a fifth example of the present
invention has been applied. This plating module 512 is different
from the plating module 512 shown in FIG. 14 in only that a
mounting base 559 having film thickness sensors S mounted thereon
is disposed immediately below a location of a substrate holding
portion 2-9 where a substrate W is held (i.e., a plating stage).
The film thickness sensors S may be installed at arbitrary
locations on the mounting base 559.
[0396] In the present embodiment, the film thickness sensors S are
disposed immediately below the plating stage, so that the film
thickness measurement can be made on a real-time basis while
plating is being performed. Thus, if the results of the measurement
are fed back in real time and reflected in plating, it is possible
to perform plating with an extremely high accuracy.
[0397] The embodiments of the present invention have been described
above, but the present invention is not limited to these
embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the
scope of the claims and within the scope of the technical ideas
described in the specification and drawings. That is, the above
embodiments have been shown as embodiments in which sensors for
detection of film thickness (film thickness of a metal film or an
insulating film) are used as the sensors. However, the present
invention is not limited to these sensors. By selecting sensors and
computation means according to various purposes, it is permissible
to constitute and use other various sensors for substrate surface
state detection, such as a sensor for detection of presence or
absence of a metallic thin film, a sensor for detection of presence
or absence of particles on a substrate, and a sensor for
recognition of a pattern formed on a substrate. Furthermore, any
shapes or materials, which are not directly described in the
specification and drawings, fall within the scope of the technical
ideas of the present invention, if they exhibit the operations and
effects of the present invention.
[0398] As described in detail above, according to the third aspect
of the present invention, various substrate surface states such as
the metal film thickness of the substrate can be detected without
stopping or interrupting the substrate treatment process. Thus, the
surface state of the substrate can be detected, with high
throughput being realized, and the reliability and rapidity of
substrate treatment such as plating or polishing can be
increased.
[0399] Further, feedback of the measurement results for adjustment
of the substrate treatment conditions can be performed promptly,
and hence it becomes possible to perform substrate treatment, such
as plating or polishing, rapidly under optimal treatment
conditions.
[0400] Furthermore, if a lightweight, and small-sized detection
sensor is used, such sensor can be easily attached to a robot hand
or the like of a plating apparatus, and the above-mentioned effects
can be achieved with a space-saving.
[0401] The present invention relates to a semiconductor substrate
processing apparatus and method for use in applying various
treatments to a semiconductor substrate. The present invention can
be utilized in a Cu plating step for forming interconnects on a
semiconductor substrate, and in the step of polishing a plated Cu
film on a semiconductor substrate in the manufacture of
semiconductor devices.
[0402] FIG. 57 is a view showing plan layout constitution of
another embodiment of the semiconductor substrate processing
apparatus according to the present invention. The plating apparatus
is disposed in rectangular facilities 710, and is constituted so as
to plate a semiconductor substrate with copper continuously. The
facilities 710 have a partition wall 711 for dividing the
facilities 710 into a plating section 712 and a clean section 713.
Air can individually be supplied into and exhausted from each of
the plating section 712 and the clean section 713. The partition
wall 711 has a shutter (not shown) capable of opening and closing.
The pressure of the clean section 713 is lower than the atmospheric
pressure and higher than the pressure of the plating section 712.
This can prevent the air in the clean section 713 from flowing out
of the facilities 710 and can prevent the air in the plating
section 712 from flowing into the clean section 713.
[0403] In the clean section 713, there are provided two loading and
unloading sections 715 for placing a substrate cassette thereon,
and two cleaning units 716 for cleaning (rinsing) a plated
substrate with pure water and drying. Further, a rotatable
fixed-type first transfer robot 717 for transferring a substrate is
provided in the clean section 713. For example, the cleaning unit
716 has cleaning liquid supply nozzles for supplying ultrapure
water to both surfaces of a substrate, and spins the substrate at a
high speed to dewater and dry the substrate. The cleaning unit 716
is provided with a revolution member supporting apparatus shown in
FIG. 3 through 6.
[0404] On the other hand, in the plating section 712, there are
provided two pretreatment units 721 for pretreating a surface of a
substrate for plating, and inverting the pretreated substrate by a
inverter 720, four plated film forming units 722 for plating a
surface of a substrate with copper in such a state that the front
surface of the substrate faces downwardly, and two first substrate
stages 723a, 723b for holding a substrate placed thereon. Further,
a rotatable mobile-type second transfer robot 724 for transferring
a substrate is provided in the plating section 712.
[0405] In the present embodiment, in the clean section 713, there
are provided two chemical liquid cleaning units 725 for cleaning a
plated substrate with chemical liquid, and second substrate stages
726a, 726b disposed between the chemical liquid cleaning units 725
and the cleaning units 716. A rotatable fixed-type third transfer
robot 727 for transferring a substrate is provided between the two
chemical liquid cleaning units 725.
[0406] One of the first substrate stages and one of the second
substrate stages, i.e., the first substrate stage 723b and the
second substrate stage 726b, are constituted so as to clean the
substrate with water. Each of the first substrate stage 723b and
the second substrate stage 726b has an inverter 720 for inverting a
substrate.
[0407] Thus, the first transfer robot 717 transfers a substrate
between the substrate cassettes placed on the loading and unloading
sections 715, the cleaning units 716, and the second substrate
stages 726a, 726b. The second transfer robot 724 transfers a
substrate between the first substrate stages 723a, 723b, the
pretreatment units 721, and the plated film forming units 722. The
third transfer robot 727 transfers a substrate between the first
substrate stages 723a, 723b, the chemical liquid cleaning units
725, and the second substrate stages 726a, 726b.
[0408] A container 728 for accommodating substrates for trial
operation is disposed in the facilities 710, and located below the
first substrate stage 723a. The second transfer robot 724 takes out
a substrate for trial operation from the container 728, and returns
it to the container 728 after trial operation. Thus, the container
728 provided in the facilities 710 for accommodating the substrates
for trial operation can eliminate contamination or lowering of the
throughput caused by introduction of substrates for trial operation
from the outside when trial operation is conducted.
[0409] As long as the substrates for trial operation can be taken
out from the container 728 and returned to the container 728 by any
of the transfer robots, the container 728 may be placed anywhere in
the facilities 710. However, when the container 728 is disposed in
the vicinity of the first substrate stage 723a, the trial operation
can be conducted in such a manner that a substrate for trial
operation is pretreated, plated, cleaned and dried, and then
returned to the container 728.
[0410] The transfer robot 717 has two recess-type hands,
respectively for supporting a peripheral edge of a substrate by a
recess. The upper hand is used for handling a dry substrate and the
lower hand is used for handling a wet substrate. Each of the
transfer robots 724 and 727 has two recess-type hands, which are
used for handling a wet substrate. The hands of the transfer robots
are not limited to those types described above.
[0411] In the present embodiment, the plating apparatus comprises
the chemical liquid cleaning units 725 for cleaning a surface of a
substrate with chemical liquid such as dilute hydrofluoric acid or
hydrogen peroxide. If it is not necessary to clean a plated
substrate with chemical liquid, the chemical liquid cleaning units
725 are not required. In this case, the first transfer robot 717
transfers a substrate between the substrate cassettes placed on the
loading and unloading sections 715, the cleaning units 716, and the
first substrate stages 723a, 723b to thus dispense with the third
transfer robot 727 and the second substrate stages 726a, 726b.
[0412] Next, the processing flow of the substrate in the plating
apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described
below. The substrates are accommodated in the cassette in such a
state that the front surface of the substrate (surface on which
semiconductor devices are formed, i.e., surface to be processed)
faces upwardly, and the cassette is placed on the loading and
unloading section 715. The first transfer robot 717 takes out a
substrate from the cassette, moves to the second substrate stage
726a, and places the substrate on the second substrate stage 726a.
Then, the third transfer robot 727 transfers the substrate from the
second substrate stage 726a to the first substrate stage 723a.
Thereafter, the second transfer robot 724 receives the substrate
from the first substrate stage 723a and transfers the substrate to
the pretreatment unit 721. After the pretreatment of the substrate
is completed in the pretreatment unit 721, the substrate is
inverted by the inverter 720 so that the front surface of the
substrate faces downwardly, and then transferred to the second
transfer robot 724. The second transfer robot 724 transfers the
substrate to a head of the plated film forming unit 22.
[0413] After the substrate is plated and liquid on the substrate is
removed in the plated film forming unit 722, the substrate is
received by the second transfer robot 724, which transfers the
substrate to the first substrate stage 723b. The substrate is
inverted by the inverter 720 provided at the first substrate stage
723b so that the front surface faces upwardly, and then transferred
to the chemical liquid cleaning unit 725 by the third transfer
robot 727. In the chemical liquid cleaning unit 725, the substrate
is cleaned with chemical liquid and rinsed with pure water, and
then the liquid on the substrate is removed by spinning.
Thereafter, the substrate is transferred to the second substrate
stage 726b by the third transfer robot 727. Next, the first
transfer robot 717 receives the substrate from the second substrate
stage 726b, and transfers the substrate to the cleaning unit 716.
In the cleaning unit 716, the substrate is rinsed with pure water
(includes deionized water) and then spin-dried. The dried substrate
is returned to the substrate cassette placed on the loading and
unloading section 715 by the first transfer robot 717.
[0414] FIG. 58 shows an air current in the facilities 710. In the
clean section 713, a fresh external air is introduced through a
pipe 730 and pushed into the clean section 713 through a
high-performance filter 731 by a fan. Hence, a downflow clean air
is supplied from a ceiling 732a to positions around the cleaning
units 716 and the chemical liquid cleaning units 725. A large part
of the supplied clean air is returned from a floor 732b through a
circulation pipe 733 to the ceiling 732a, and pushed again into the
clean section 713 through the high-performance filter 731 by the
fan, to thus circulate in the clean section 713. A part of the air
is discharged from the cleaning units 716 and the chemical liquid
units 725 through a pipe 734 to the exterior, so that the pressure
of the clean section 713 is set to be lower than the atmospheric
pressure.
[0415] The plating section 712 having the pretreatment units 721
and the plated film forming units 722 therein is not a clean
section (but a contamination zone). However, it is not acceptable
to attach particles to the surface of the substrate. Therefore, in
the plating section 712, a fresh external air is introduced through
a pipe 735, and a downflow clean air is pushed into the plating
section 712 from a ceiling 737a side through a high-performance
filter 736 by a fan, for thereby preventing particles from being
attached to the surface of the substrate. However, if the whole
flow rate of the down flow clean air is supplied by only an
external air supply and exhaust, then enormous air supply and
exhaust are required. Therefore, the air is discharged through a
pipe 738 to the exterior, and a large part of the downflow is
supplied by a circulating air through a circulation pipe 739
extended from a floor 737b, in such a state that the pressure of
the plating section 712 is maintained to be lower than the pressure
of the clean section 713.
[0416] Thus, the air returned to the ceiling 737a through the
circulation pipe 739 is pushed again into the plating section 712
through the high-performance filter 736 by the fan. Hence, a clean
air is supplied into the plating section 712 to thus circulate in
the plating section 712. In this case, air containing chemical mist
or gas emitted from the pretreatment units 721, the plated film
forming units 722, the second transfer robot 724, and a plating
liquid regulating tank 740 is discharged through the pipe 738 to
the exterior. Thus, the pressure of the plating section 712 is
controlled so as to be lower than the pressure of the clean section
713.
[0417] FIG. 59 shows a main part of the plated film forming unit
722. The plated film forming unit 722 mainly comprises a plating
process container 746 in the substantially cylindrical form for
holding a plating liquid 745 therein, and a head 747 disposed above
the plating process container 746 for holding a substrate. In FIG.
59, the head 747 is located in a plating position in which a
substrate W held by the head 747 is lowered.
[0418] The plating process container 746 is provided with a plating
container 750 having a plating chamber 749, which is upwardly
opened, for holding a plating liquid therein. An anode 748 made of
residual-phosphorus copper, for example, is provided at the bottom
of the plating chamber 749. The anode 748 is held by an anode
support 752, which is detachably mounted on the plating container
750, i.e., which is drawably mounted via a knob 751 provided on the
anode support 752. The anode 748 is connected to an anode of a
power supply for plating provided in an external control unit. A
sealing member 900 for preventing the plating liquid from being
leaked is interposed between the front surface of the plating
container 750 and the backside surface of a flange 752a of the
anode support 752. Thus, the anode 748 is held by the anode support
752 detachably mounted on the plating container 750, causing the
anode 748 to be easily attached to and detached from the plating
container 750 via the anode support 752. Accordingly, this
construction facilitates maintenance and replacement of the anode
748, and the like.
[0419] The anode 748 is made of copper containing 0.03% to 0.05%
phosphorus (residual-phosphorus copper), and hence a black film is
formed on the upper surface of the anode 748 as plating proceeds.
Such a black film can reduce generation of anode slime.
[0420] Plating liquid supply nozzles 753 horizontally projecting
toward the center of the plating chamber 749 are provided on the
inner circumferential wall of the plating container 750 at equal
intervals along the circumferential direction. Each of the plating
liquid supply nozzles 753 is communicated with a plating liquid
supply passage 754 extended vertically through the interior of the
plating container 750. In the present embodiment, four
circumferentially divided plating liquid reservoirs in an
arc-shaped form are provided in the inner circumferential wall of
the plating container 750. Each of the plating liquid reservoirs is
communicated with the plating liquid supply passage 754 located at
the central portion along the circumferential direction of the
plating liquid reservoir. Each of the plating liquid reservoirs has
two plating liquid supply nozzles 753 provided on both ends of the
plating liquid reservoir. The plating liquid of the same flow rate
is respectively supplied to each of the plating liquid reservoirs
via control valves 756 described later. Therefore, the plating
liquid is homogeneously ejected from each of the plating liquid
supply nozzles 753 into the plating chamber 749.
[0421] Each of the plating liquid supply passages 754 is connected
to the plating liquid regulating tank 740 (see FIGS. 58 and 67) via
a plating liquid supply pipe 755. Control valves 756 for
controlling the back pressure so as to be constant are disposed on
each of the plating liquid supply pipes 755.
[0422] Further, the plating container 750 is provided with first
plating liquid discharge ports 757 for withdrawing the plating
liquid 745 in the plating chamber 749 from the peripheral portion
of the bottom of the plating chamber 749, and second plating liquid
discharge ports 759 for discharging the plating liquid 745
overflowing a weir member 758 provided at the upper end of the
plating container 750. Each of the first plating liquid discharge
ports 757 is connected to a reservoir 926 (see FIG. 67) via a
plating liquid discharge pipe 760a. A flow controller 761a is
provided on the plating liquid discharge pipe 760a. On the other
hand, each of the second plating liquid discharge ports 759 is
connected to the reservoir 926 via a plating liquid discharge pipe
760b. A flow controller 761b is provided on the plating liquid
discharge pipe 760b. The flow controller 761b may not be provided
(FIG. 67 shows an example that omits the flow controller). The
plating liquid fed into the reservoir 926 is supplied to the
plating liquid regulating tank 740 (see FIG. 58) from the reservoir
926 by a pump 928. In the plating liquid regulating tank 740, the
temperature of the plating liquid is adjusted, and the
concentration of various components in the plating liquid is
measured and adjusted. Thereafter, the plating liquid is
respectively supplied to the plated film forming unit 722 (see FIG.
67).
[0423] The first plating liquid discharge ports 757 (16 ports in
the drawing), which are in circular form having a diameter of 16 mm
to 20 mm, for example, are disposed at equal intervals along the
circumferential direction. The second plating liquid discharge
ports (3 ports in the drawing) 759 are in arc-shaped form having a
central angle of about 25.degree..
[0424] The plating liquid 745 ejected from the plating liquid
supply nozzles 753 is discharged to the reservoir 726 (see FIG. 59)
from one or both of the first plating liquid discharge ports 757
and the second liquid discharge ports 759, for thereby keeping the
liquid level of the plating liquid 745 in the plating chamber 749
at a constant value.
[0425] A vertical stream regulating ring 762 for damming off a flow
of the plating liquid 745 directed outwardly along the horizontal
direction is provided in the plating chamber 749. A horizontal
stream regulating ring 763 having an outer circumferential end
fixed to the plating container 750 is provided in the plating
chamber 749. The vertical stream regulating ring 762 is connected
to the inner circumferential end of the horizontal stream
regulating ring 763.
[0426] The plating liquid horizontally ejected from each of the
plating liquid supply nozzles 753 collides with each other at the
central portion of the plating chamber 749 to form an upward flow
and a downward flow. When no substrate is held by the head 747, the
upward flow pushes up the liquid surface of the plating liquid 745
at the central portion inside the vertical stream regulating ring
762. When the substrate is lowered, the substrate is firstly
brought into contact with the plating liquid 745 at the central
portion pushed up by the upward flow, and hence air bubbles on the
lower surface of the substrate are pushed outwardly. On the other
hand, the downward flow is changed to a horizontal flow flowing
from the central portion of the anode 748 to the peripheral portion
of the anode 748 to push away peeled fine pieces of a black film
formed on the surface of the anode 748. The peeled pieces of the
black film are passed from the peripheral portion of the anode 748
through the lower portion of the horizontal stream regulating ring
763 to the first plating liquid discharge ports 757, so that the
peeled pieces of the black film can be prevented from approaching
and being attached to the surface of the substrate to be
processed.
[0427] In the electroplating, the current density in the plating
liquid governs the thickness of the plated film. Therefore, in
order to uniform the thickness of the plated film, it is necessary
to uniform the distribution of the current density in the plating
liquid. In the present embodiment, as described below, since the
peripheral portion of the substrate has electrical contacts, the
current density of the plating liquid present on the peripheral
portion of the substrate tends to be increased. Therefore, the
vertical stream regulating ring 762 extended vertically is disposed
in the vicinity of the peripheral portion of the substrate, and the
horizontal stream regulating ring 763 extended horizontally
outwardly is disposed below the vertical stream regulating ring
762, for thereby regulating the electric current flowing in the
vicinity of the peripheral portion of the substrate. Thus, these
stream regulating rings can reduce local concentration of the
electric current and can uniform the current density of the plating
liquid to thus prevent the plated film from being thick at the
peripheral portion of the substrate.
[0428] In the present embodiment, the vertical stream regulating
ring and the horizontal stream regulating ring are used for
regulating the electric current around the peripheral portion of
the substrate. However, the present invention is of course not
limited to this example.
[0429] On the other hand, the head 747 is provided with a rotatable
housing 770 in a hollow cylindrical form and a disk-shaped
substrate table 771 for holding a substrate W on its lower surface
and is rotated together with the housing 770. A ring-shaped
substrate holding member 772 projecting radially inwardly is
provided at the lower end of the housing 770. For example, the
substrate holding member 772 is formed of a packing material and
has a tapered surface on a part of its inner circumferential
surface for guiding the substrate W. The peripheral portion of the
substrate W is held between the substrate holding member 772 and
the substrate table 771. The substrate table 771 is constituted as
a pressing member for pressing the substrate W against the
substrate holding member 772.
[0430] FIG. 60 is an enlarged view showing a part of the head 747.
As shown in FIG. 60, a ring-shaped lower sealing member 773 is
mounted on the substrate holding member 772. The lower sealing
member 773 projects inwardly, and the front end of its upper
surface projects upwardly in an annular tapered form. An upper
sealing member 774 is mounted on the peripheral portion of the
lower surface of the substrate table 771. The upper sealing member
774 has a spired portion projecting downwardly from the lower
surface of the substrate table 771. Thus, when the substrate W is
held by the substrate holding member 772, the lower surface of the
substrate W is brought into pressure contact with the lower sealing
member 773, and the upper surface of the substrate W is brought
into pressure contact with the upper sealing member 774, for
thereby sealing the peripheral portion of the substrate W
reliably.
[0431] In the present embodiment, eighty air vent holes 775 having
a diameter of 3 mm are formed in the substrate holding member 772
at equal intervals along the circumferential direction. Each of the
air vent holes 775 is extended horizontally outwardly and further
extended outwardly in an upwardly inclined state. The air vent
holes 775 are provided in such a state that, when the head 747 is
located in the plating position as shown in FIG. 59, about half of
the peripheral opening end of the air vent hole 775 is exposed to
the exterior from the liquid surface of the plating liquid 745 in
the plating chamber 749. As described above, the upward flow of the
plating liquid 745 in the plating chamber 749 is brought into
contact with the substrate W to sweep away air bubbles to the
exterior from the central portion of the substrate W. Accordingly,
the air bubbles swept by the upward flow are successively
discharged to the exterior through the air vent holes 775. Thus,
air bubbles can be prevented from remaining between the substrate W
and the surface of the plating liquid 745.
[0432] For example, the angle .quadrature. of inclination of the
air vent holes 775 is set to be 30.degree.. When the venting of air
is taken into consideration, the air vent holes 775 should
preferably have a diameter of 2 mm to 5 mm, and more preferably
about 3 mm. Further, the air vent holes 775 should preferably be
inclined upwardly in the outward direction at an angle of not less
than 20.degree., and more preferably about 30.degree..
[0433] Further, the peripheral opening end of the air vent holes
775 may be located fully above the liquid surface of the plating
liquid at the time of plating. The air vent holes 775 may be
branched into two holes, one of which is opened in the vicinity of
the liquid surface, and the other of which is opened at a position
fully above the liquid surface. It has been confirmed that, when a
gap S between the lower surface of the substrate W held on the
lower surface of the substrate table 771 and the upper end of the
air vent holes 775 is not more than about 1.5 mm, air can be vented
in a short time.
[0434] Each of the air vent holes 775 may be provided in any form,
e.g., in a linear form, or each of the air vent holes 775 may be
branched outwardly into two holes.
[0435] Further, plate-spring-like contacts 776 for a cathode
electrode are disposed on the substrate holding member 772 of the
housing 770. When the substrate W is held on the lower surface of
the substrate table 771, the contacts 776 for a cathode electrode
energize the substrate W. Feeding contacts (probes) 777 are
vertically downwardly provided at the outer circumferential side of
the substrate table 771. When the substrate table 771 is lowered,
each of the feeding contacts 777 feeds power to each of the
contacts 776 for a cathode electrode. Since the plating liquid 745
is sealed with a lower sealing member 773 disposed between the
substrate W and the substrate holding member 772, the contacts 776
for a cathode electrode and the feeding contacts 777 can be
prevented from being brought into contact with the plating liquid
745.
[0436] Openings 796 are provided on both sides of the cylindrical
surface of the housing 770 for allowing the substrate W and the
robot hand to pass therethrough (see FIG. 60).
[0437] Next, a series of plating processes using the plating
apparatus according to this embodiment will be described.
[0438] A cassette housing a plurality of substrates whose surfaces
(surface on which semiconductor devices are formed, i.e., surface
to be processed) face upward is placed on a loading and unloading
sections 715 within the facilities 710. The recess-type hand of the
first transfer robot 717 is inserted into the cassette and holds
the substrate, and then takes out the substrate from the cassette.
The first transfer robot 717 which holds the substrate by the hand
rotates about its own axis and places the substrate onto the second
substrate stage 726a. Next, the third transfer robot 727 holds the
substrate placed on the second substrate stage 726a by the
recess-type hand, rotates about its own axis, and then places the
substrate onto the first substrate stage 723a.
[0439] The second transfer robot 724 moves to a position close to
the first substrate stage 723a, and holds the substrate placed on
the first substrate stage 723a by the recess-type hand. Thereafter,
the second transfer robot 724 holding the substrate rotates toward
the pretreatment unit 721, and transfers the substrate to the
substrate chuck of the pretreatment unit 721 through a slit formed
in the splash preventive cover for allowing the substrate to pass
therethrough.
[0440] In the substrate chuck of the pretreatment unit 721, fingers
are opened, and the substrate is positioned between the fingers,
and then the fingers are closed to hold the substrate. Next, a
pretreatment liquid nozzle, which has been in the stand-by position
so as not to hinder the movement of the hands of the inverter 720,
is rotated to a position above and near the center of the
substrate. While the substrate chuck holding the substrate is
rotated at a medium speed of, for example, about 300 min.sup.-1,
the pretreatment liquid is supplied through the pretreatment liquid
nozzle onto the substrate. When the liquid has been speedily spread
over the entire surface of the substrate, the rotational speed of
the substrate is increased to remove excessive pretreatment liquid
on the substrate under a centrifugal force.
[0441] After the removal of the liquid from the substrate is
completed and the substrate chuck is stopped, the hands of the
inverter 720 are lowered. The hands hold the substrate, and the
fingers of the substrate chuck in the pretreatment unit 721 are
opened to transfer the substrate to the inverter 720. The inverter
720 is raised to a position where the hands of the inverter 720 do
not contact the substrate chuck while an inverting operation is
performed. Thereafter, the hands of the inverter 720 and the
substrate are rotated by an angle of 180 degrees about the
horizontal inverting axis, and the surface of the substrate faces
downwardly. The inverter 720 is lowered to a position where the
substrate is transferred to the second transfer robot 724, and then
stopped.
[0442] The hands of the inverter 720 are located at a position
below the inverting axis when the hands receive the substrate from
the third transfer robot 727 and receives the substrate from the
substrate chuck after the pretreatment. On the other hand, when the
hands are inverted about the inventing axis to transfer the
substrate to the second transfer robot 724, the hands are located
at a position above the inverting axis.
[0443] The second transfer robot 724 inserts the recess-type hand
into the splash preventive cover through the slit formed in the
cover. The substrate is held by the hands of the inverter 720. The
recess-type hand is positioned so as to allow the hand to contact
the lower peripheral edge portion of the substrate. The hands of
the inverter 720 release the substrate, and the recess-type hand of
the second transfer robot 724 holds the substrate with its surface
facing downwardly. The second transfer robot 724 takes out the
substrate from the pretreatment unit 721, and moves to one
predetermined plated film forming unit 722.
[0444] The housing 770 and the substrate table 771 in the plated
film forming unit 722 are raised to a position where the substrate
is attached or detached. The substrate table 771 is further lifted
to the upper end of the housing 770.
[0445] The second transfer robot 724 inserts the hand and the
substrate into the housing 770 through the opening 796 formed in
the housing 770, and lifts the hand to a position immediately below
the substrate table 771. In this state, the hooks are closed by the
urging forces of the compression coil springs (not shown) to thus
hold the substrate. After the substrate is held by the hooks, the
hand of the second transfer robot 724 is slightly lowered and
withdrawn through the opening 796 of the housing 770.
[0446] Next, the substrate table 771 is lowered, and the substrate
is centered by the tapered portion on the inner side of the
substrate holding member 772 of the housing 770, placed on the
lower sealing member 773 of the substrate holding member 772, and
further pressed against the upper sealing member 774 near the
peripheral portion of the substrate table 771 to form a seal for
preventing the plating liquid from entering the electrode contact
side. At the same time, the substrate table 771 is lowered to press
the feeding contacts 777 against the contacts 776 for a cathode
electrode, thereby achieving reliable contacts.
[0447] In this state, when the plating liquid is ejected through
the plating liquid supply nozzles 753 in the plating process
container 746, the liquid surface in its center portion rises. At
the same time, while the substrate W and the substrate table 71 are
rotated at a medium speed of, for example, 150 min.sup.-1, and then
lowered by a ball screw or the like. The rotational speed of the
substrate is preferably about 100 to 250 min.sup.-1 from the
viewpoint of the removal of air. In this case, after the central
portion of the substrate comes into contact with the surface of the
plating liquid 745, the area of contact between the substrate and
the raised liquid surface increases gradually, and then the plating
liquid 745 reaches the periphery of the substrate. In the periphery
of the lower surface of the substrate, the lower sealing member 773
projects from the substrate surface, and hence air is likely to be
left on the periphery of the lower surface of the substrate.
However, by allowing the plating liquid containing air bubbles to
flow to the exterior through air vent holes 775 by the rotation of
the housing 770, air bubbles present on the lower surface of the
substrate can be removed. Thus, air bubbles on the lower surface of
the substrate can be completely removed, and uniform plating can be
realized. The predetermined position where the substrate is plated
is such that the substrate is immersed in the plating liquid 745
within the plating chamber 749 and the plating liquid does not
enter the housing 770 through the openings 796 of the housing
770.
[0448] When the substrate is lowered to a predetermined position,
the housing 770 is rotated at a medium speed for several seconds to
remove air. The rotational speed of the housing 770 is then changed
to a low rotational speed of, for example, 100 min.sup.-1, and
plating current is flowed for electroplating by utilizing the above
anode and the treating face of the substrate as the cathode. In
this case, the rotational speed is in the range of, for example, 0
to 225 min.sup.-1. During the plating process, the plating liquid
is continuously fed at a predetermined flow rate through the
plating liquid supply nozzles 753, is discharged through the first
plating liquid discharge ports 757 and the second plating liquid
discharge ports 759, and is circulated through the plating liquid
regulating tank 740. In this case, since the plating thickness is
determined by the current density and the current feed time, the
current feed time (plating time) is set according to a desired
amount of deposition.
[0449] This plating time is, for example, 120 to 150 seconds. The
plating process is carried out, for example, at about 1 A for about
40 seconds, and then, for example, at about 7.4 A for remaining
time. Accordingly, a plated film with uniformity can be
obtained.
[0450] After the completion of the feed of current, the housing
770, the substrate W and the substrate table 771 is lifted to a
position above the surface of the plating liquid 745 within the
plating chamber 749 and below the upper end of the plating process
container cover. Then, the substrate is rotated at a high speed of,
for example, 500 to 800 min.sup.-1 to remove the plating liquid
from the substrate under a centrifugal force. After the completion
of the removal of the liquid from the substrate, the rotation of
the housing 770 is stopped so that the housing 770 faces a
predetermined direction. After the housing 770 is lifted to the
position where the substrate is attachable or detachable, the
substrate table 771 is further raised to a position where the
substrate is attachable or detachable.
[0451] When the surface of the plating liquid is raised, the feed
rate of the plating liquid is about 10 to 30 liters/min (preferably
20 liters/min), and the plating liquid is discharged through the
first plating liquid discharge ports 757 at a rate of about 3 to 6
liters/min (preferably 5 liters/min). During plating, the feed rate
of the plating liquid is about 8 to 20 liters/min (preferably 10
liters/min), and the plating liquid is discharged through the first
plating liquid discharge ports 757 at a rate of about 3 to 6
liters/min (preferably 5 liters/min), and through the second
plating liquid discharge ports 759 at a rate of about 3 to 6
liters/min (preferably 5 liters/min). When the liquid level is
lowered after plating, the feed rate of the plating liquid is about
15 to 30 liters/min (preferably 20 liters/min), and the plating
liquid is discharged through the first plating liquid discharge
ports 757 at a rate of about 20 to 30 liters/min (preferably 25
liters/min). During stopping of the plating process for a long
period of time, the plating liquid is fed at a rate of about 2 to 4
liters/min (preferably 3 liters/min), and is entirely flowed and
circulated through the second plating liquid discharge ports
759.
[0452] Next, the hand of the second transfer robot 724 is inserted
into the housing 770 through the opening 796 of the housing 770,
and is raised to a position where the hand receives the substrate.
Then the hooks are opened, whereby the substrate held by the hooks
is dropped on the recess-type hand. In this state, the hand is
slightly lowered, and the hand and the substrate held by the hand
are taken out through the opening 796 of the housing 770. The
substrate is held in such a manner that the surface of the
substrate faces downwardly and only the peripheral edge of the
substrate is brought into contact with the hand, as with mounting
the substrate with the hand.
[0453] The substrate held by the second transfer robot 724 is
transferred to the inverter 720 in the first substrate stage 723b
in such a state that the surface of the substrate faces downwardly.
The inverter 720 hold the periphery of the substrate by the two
hands, and ultrapure water is supplied to both surfaces of the
substrate to rinse the substrate. And then substrate is rotated by
180 degrees around the horizontal inverting axis so that the
surface of the substrate faces upwardly. Next, the third transfer
robot 727 holds the substrate placed on the inverter 720 in the
first substrate stage 723b by the hand, and transfers the substrate
to the chemical liquid cleaning unit 725.
[0454] In the chemical liquid cleaning unit 725, the substrate is
held by six fingers, and the substrate is rotated so that the
surface of the substrate faces upwardly, and then the surface, edge
and backside of the substrate are cleaned with a chemical liquid.
After the completion of cleaning of the substrate with the chemical
liquid, the substrate is rinsed with ultrapure water, and then the
substrate held by the fingers is rotated at a high speed to remove
the liquid from the substrate.
[0455] After the completion of the removal of the liquid from the
substrate, the third transfer robot 727 takes out the substrate by
the hand in such a state that the surface of the substrate faces
upwardly. The substrate is then placed on the second substrate
stage 726b. In the second substrate stage 726b, the substrate is
further rinsed with ultrapure water.
[0456] Next, the first transfer robot 717 receives the substrate
from the second substrate stage 726b by the hand, and transfers the
substrate to the cleaning unit 716. In the cleaning unit 716, the
surface and backside of the substrate are cleaned with ultrapure
water (includes deionized water), and then the substrate is rotated
at a high speed to remove the liquid from the substrate and then to
be dried. The first transfer robot 717 holds the substrate by the
hand in such a manner that the surface of the substrate faces
upwardly, and transfers the substrate at a predetermined position
in the cassette on the loading and unloading section 715.
[0457] FIG. 61 shows another embodiment of a plated film forming
unit 722. This embodiment is different from the above-mentioned
embodiment in the following. A labyrinth seal 912 comprising a
large number of grooves 910 arranged in parallel is provided around
the inlet of the anode support 752 which is removably mounted in
the plating container 750 through a knob 751 and holds an anode
748. An inert gas introduction passage 914 for introducing inert
gas such as nitrogen gas is connected to one of the grooves 910,
one ends of plating liquid return passages 916 are connected to the
bottoms of all the grooves 910, and the other ends of the plating
liquid return passages 916 are connected to a plating liquid
reservoir 918 which stores an overflowed plating liquid and is open
to the air. The other construction is the same as that of the first
embodiment.
[0458] Thus, the provision of the labyrinth seal 912 comprising a
plurality of grooves 910 around the inlet of the anode support 752
in the plating container 750 can eliminate the need to tighten the
sealing member 900 by large force, and can ensure reliable sealing
of the gap between the plating container 750 and the anode support
752 to prevent the plating liquid from leaking out. The inert gas
introduction passage 914 is connected to one of the grooves 910,
the plating liquid return passages 916 are connected to the bottoms
of all the grooves 910, and inert gas, such as nitrogen gas, having
a pressure high enough to discharge the plating liquid remaining
within the grooves 910 is introduced to the groove 910 through the
inert gas introduction passage 914. Thus, the plating liquid
remaining within the grooves 910 can be discharged to the exterior,
and a deterioration in the effect of the labyrinth seal 912 by the
plating liquid remaining within the groove 910 can be
prevented.
[0459] In this embodiment, the labyrinth seal 912 comprising a
plurality of grooves 910 is provided on the plating container side.
Alternatively, the labyrinth seal may be provided on the anode
support side or on both the plating container side and the anode
support side.
[0460] FIG. 62 schematically shows another embodiment of a plated
film forming unit 722. In the plated film forming unit 722 shown in
FIGS. 59 and 60, the transfer of the substrate is performed by
moving the housing 770 up and down. In the a plated film forming
unit 722 of this embodiment, the liquid level of the plating liquid
within the plating process container is raised or lowered to
transfer the substrate without the vertical movement of the housing
770.
[0461] When this plated film forming unit 722 is provided, the
second transfer robot 24 shown in FIG. 57 which is mobile type and
rotatable may have a suction-type hand which holds the substrate by
suction and is rotatable to change the suction surface of the
suction-type hand to face upwardly or downwardly.
[0462] The plated film forming unit 722 according to this
embodiment will be described below. The parts or components
identical to or corresponding to the parts or components in the
plated film forming unit 722 shown in FIGS. 59 and 60 are denoted
by the same reference numerals, and a part of the explanation
thereof will be omitted.
[0463] The plated film forming unit 722 comprises a plating process
container 746 and a head 747. The plating container 750 of the
plating process container 746 has first plating liquid discharge
ports (not shown) which are located around the anode 748 and are
opened at the bottom of the plating container 750, and second
plating liquid discharge ports 759 for discharging the plating
liquid 745 which have overflowed a weir member 758 in the plating
container 750. Further, the plating container 750 has third plating
liquid discharge ports 820 which are open at a step portion 750a
provided at the halfway along the height direction of the
circumferential wall of the weir member 758. A shut-off valve 822
is provided in a plating liquid discharge pipe 821 extending from
the third plating liquid discharge ports 820 to the reservoir 926
(see FIG. 67).
[0464] With this construction, a plane defined by the upper end of
the weir member 758 in the plating container 750 constitutes a
liquid level A for plating, while a plane defined by the step
portion 750a constitutes a liquid level B for transferring the
substrate. Specifically, at the time of plating process, the
shut-off valve 822 is closed, and the plating liquid is ejected
through the plating liquid supply nozzles 753 to raise the liquid
level of the plating liquid 745 within the plating chamber 749, and
overflows the upper end of the weir member 758 in the plating
container 750, thereby maintaining the liquid level at the liquid
level A for plating. After the completion of the plating process,
the shut-off valve 822 is opened to discharge the plating liquid
745 within the plating chamber 749 through the third plating liquid
discharge ports 820, thereby bringing the liquid level to the
liquid level B for transferring the substrate.
[0465] Thus, by immersing the anode 748 in the plating liquid 745
in a period other than during the plating process, a black film
formed on the surface of the anode 748 can be prevented from being
dried and oxidized, and the plating process can be stably carried
out.
[0466] When the substrate W is held by the substrate holding member
772 provided at the lower end of the housing 770, the housing 770
of the head 747 is not vertically movable, but is rotatable about
its own axis, and the substrate W is located at a position between
the liquid level A for plating and the liquid level B for
transferring the substrate. The substrate table 771 is not provided
with any means for holding the substrate, and the substrate W is
placed on the substrate holding member 772 of the housing 770, and
then the substrate table 771 is lowered to sandwich the peripheral
portion of the substrate W between the substrate holding member 772
and the lower peripheral portion of the substrate table 771,
thereby holding the substrate W.
[0467] Next, a substrate processing performed by the substrate
processing apparatus provided with the substrate holding member 722
will be described below. This embodiment is substantially the same
as the above-mentioned embodiments, except for transfer of the
substrate through the second transfer robot 724 and the process in
the plated film forming unit 722. Therefore, only the different
construction and operation will be described.
[0468] First, the substrate placed on the first substrate stage
723a in such a manner that the surface of the substrate faces
upwardly, is transferred to the pretreatment unit 721 in the
following manner. The second transfer robot 724 holds the substrate
in such a manner that the suction-type hand with the suction
surface facing upward attracts the backside of the substrate by
suction, and rotates toward the pretreatment unit 721. The
substrate and the suction-type hand are inserted into the
pretreatment unit 721 through a slit formed in the splash
preventive cover in the pretreatment unit 721, and the substrate is
positioned between two opened hands of the inverter 720 in the
pretreatment unit 721.
[0469] Further, the second transfer robot 724 receives the
substrate from the pretreatment unit 721 in the following manner.
The suction-type hand of the second transfer robot 724 with the
suction surface facing downward is inserted into the pretreatment
unit 721 through the slit of the splash preventive cover in the
pretreatment unit 721. The suction-type hand is then positioned
immediately above the substrate held by the hands of the inverter
720 in the pretreatment unit 721. The suction-type hand attracts
the backside of the substrate by vacuum suction, and the hands of
the inverter 720 are opened. Thus, the substrate with the surface
facing downward is held completely by the suction-type hand of the
second transfer robot 724.
[0470] The substrate is transferred to the plated film forming unit
722 in the following manner. The suction-type hand of the second
transfer robot 724 and the substrate W held by the suction-type
hand in such a manner the surface of the substrate faces
downwardly, are inserted into the housing 770 through the opening
796 of the housing 770. The suction-type hand is then moved
downwardly, and the vacuum suction is released to place the
substrate W on the substrate holding member 772 of the housing 770.
Thereafter, the suction-type hand is raised and withdrawn from the
housing 770. Next, the substrate table 771 is lowered to sandwich
the peripheral portion of the substrate W between the substrate
holding member 772 and the lower peripheral portion of the
substrate table 771, thereby holding the substrate W.
[0471] Thereafter, the plating liquid discharge pipe 821 connected
to the third plating liquid discharge ports 820 is closed by the
shut-off valve 822, and the plating liquid is ejected through the
plating liquid supply nozzles 753. At the same time, the housing
770 and the substrate W held by the housing 770 are rotated at a
medium speed. After the plating liquid reaches a predetermined
level and several seconds have elapsed, the rotational speed of the
housing 770 is changed to a low rotational speed of, for example,
100 min.sup.-1, and a plating current is flowed, thereby performing
electroplating by utilizing the anode 48 as the anode and the
processing face of the substrate as the cathode.
[0472] After the completion of the supply of current, the shut-off
valve 822 is opened to discharge, through the third plating liquid
discharge ports 820, the plating liquid 745 present at a position
above the step portion 750a to the reservoir 926. Thus, the housing
770 and the substrate held by the housing 770 are located above the
liquid level of the plating liquid and exposed to the atmosphere.
In the state that the housing 770 and the substrate W held by the
housing 770 are located above the liquid level of the plating
liquid, the housing 770 and the substrate W are rotated at a high
speed of, for example, 500 to 800 min.sup.-1 to remove the plating
liquid from the substrate under a centrifugal force. After the
completion of the removal of the plating liquid from the substrate,
the rotation of the housing 770 is stopped at a position where the
housing 770 faces a predetermined direction.
[0473] After the rotation of the housing 770 is completely stopped,
the substrate table 771 is raised to a position where the substrate
is detached or attached. Next, the suction-type hand of the second
transfer robot 724 with the suction surface facing downwardly is
inserted into the housing 770 through the opening 796 of the
housing 770, and is lowered to a position where the suction-type
hand can hold the substrate by suction. The substrate is then held
by vacuum suction by the suction-type hand, and the suction-type
hand is then moved to a position above the opening 796 of the
housing 770. Thereafter, the suction-type hand and the substrate
held by the suction-type hand are withdrawn from the housing 770
through the opening 796 of the housing 770.
[0474] According to this embodiment, the mechanism of the head 747
can be simplified and compact. In addition, the plating process is
carried out when the surface of the plating liquid within the
plating process container 746 is on a liquid level A for plating,
while the substrate is dewatered and transferred when the surface
of the plating liquid is on a liquid level B for transferring the
substrate. Further, it is possible to prevent a black film formed
on the surface of the anode 748 from being dried and oxidized.
Further, since the position of the substrate which is plated is the
same as the position of the substrate from which an excessive
plating liquid is removed by rotation of the substrate, the
position for performing mist-splash prevention can be lowered.
[0475] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the following process may
be performed. When the surface of the plating liquid is on the
liquid level B for transferring the substrate, the substrate W is
inserted into the housing 770 and held by the housing 770, and then
the liquid level of the plating liquid is raised to the liquid
level A for plating. At the same time, the housing 770 is raised by
a certain distance. After the surface of the plating liquid is
raised to the liquid level A for plating, the housing 770 is
rotated at a medium speed of, for example, 150 min.sup.-1 and
lowered, whereby the substrate W is brought into contact with the
surface of the plating liquid which rises at its central portion.
Thus, air bubbles on the surface of the substrate can be positively
removed therefrom.
[0476] FIG. 63 shows another embodiment of a plated film forming
unit 722. The plated film forming unit 722 is different from the
plated film forming unit 722 shown in FIG. 62 in that a pressing
ring 830 is used, instead of the substrate table 771 constituting a
pressing member for pressing the substrate of the plated film
forming unit 722 shown in FIG. 62, and actuators 831 such as a
cylinder for vertically moving the pressing ring 830 are housed in
the housing 770.
[0477] According to this embodiment, when the actuators 831 are
actuated to lower the pressing ring 830, the peripheral portion of
the substrate is sandwiched between the substrate holding member
772 of the housing 770 and the lower surface of the pressing ring
830, and hence the substrate W is held. The substrate can be
released by raising the pressing ring 830.
[0478] FIG. 64 shows another embodiment of a plated film forming
unit 722. The plated film forming unit 722 is different from the
plated film forming unit 722 shown in FIG. 62 in that a clamp
mechanism 841 having swing links 842 is used, instead of the
substrate table 771 constituting a pressing member for pressing the
substrate of the plated film forming unit 722 shown in FIG. 62, and
the clamp mechanism 841 is housed within the housing 770 in its
lower part.
[0479] According to this embodiment, when the swing links 842 are
swung inward through the clamp mechanism 841 so as to be located in
the horizontal direction, the peripheral portion of the substrate
is sandwiched between the substrate holding member 772 of the
housing 770 and the swing links 842, and hence the substrate W is
held. When the swing links 842 are swung outward so as to be
located in the vertical direction, the substrate is released. At
the same time, it is possible to prevent the swing links 842 from
hindering the withdrawal of the substrate W.
[0480] FIG. 65 shows another embodiment of a plated film forming
unit 722. The plated film forming unit 722 is different from the
plated film forming unit 722 shown in FIG. 62 in that an elastic
member 850 which is elastically deformable, i.e., expandable or
contractable by pneumatic pressure, is used, instead of the
substrate table 771 constituting a pressing member for pressing the
substrate of the plated film forming unit 722 shown in FIG. 62, and
this elastic member 850 is housed within the housing 770 in its
lower part.
[0481] According to this embodiment, by expanding the elastic
member 850 by pneumatic pressure, the peripheral portion of the
substrate is sandwiched between the substrate holding member 772 of
the housing 770 and the elastic member 850, and hence the substrate
W is held. The substrate can be released by discharging air from
the elastic member 850. At the same time, it is possible to prevent
the elastic member 850 from hindering the withdrawal of the
substrate W.
[0482] FIG. 66 shows the whole construction of another embodiment
of a plated film forming unit 722. FIG. 67 shows a flow diagram of
a plating liquid in a plating apparatus having the plated film
forming unit 722. The parts or components identical to or
corresponding to the parts or components in the plated film forming
units according to the above embodiments are denoted by the same
reference numerals, and a part of the explanation thereof will be
omitted.
[0483] As shown in FIG. 66, the plated film forming unit is
composed mainly of a plating process container 746 which is
substantially cylindrical and contains a plating liquid 745
therein, and a head 747 disposed above the plating process
container 746 for holding the substrate W. In FIG. 66, the plated
film forming unit is in such a state that the substrate W is held
by the head 747 and the surface of the plating liquid 745 is on the
liquid level for plating.
[0484] The plating process container 746 has a plating chamber 749
which is open upward and has an anode 748 at the bottom thereof. A
plating container 750 containing the plating liquid 745 is provided
within the plating chamber 749. Plating liquid supply nozzles 753,
which project horizontally toward the center of the plating chamber
749, are disposed at circumferentially equal intervals on the inner
circumferential wall of the plating container 750. The plating
liquid supply nozzles 753 communicate with plating liquid supply
passages 754 (see FIG. 59) extending vertically within the plating
container 750.
[0485] As shown in FIG. 67, the plating liquid supply passages 754
are connected to the plating liquid regulating tank 740 (see FIG.
58) through the plating liquid supply pipes 755. Control valves 756
for controlling the back pressure so as to be constant are disposed
on each of the plating liquid supply pipes 755.
[0486] Further, according to this embodiment, a punch plate 920
having a large number of holes with a size of, for example, about 3
mm is disposed at a position above the anode 748 within the plating
chamber 749. The punch plate 920 prevents a black film formed on
the surface of the anode 748 from curling up by the plating liquid
745 and consequently being flowed out.
[0487] The plating container 750 has first plating liquid discharge
ports 757 for withdrawing the plating liquid 745 contained in the
plating chamber 749 from the peripheral portion of the bottom in
the plating chamber 749, and second plating liquid discharge ports
759 for discharging the plating liquid 745 which has overflowed a
weir member 758 provided at the upper end of the plating container
750. Further, the plating container 750 has third plating liquid
discharge ports 820 for discharging the plating liquid before
overflowing the weir member 758. The plating liquid which has
flowed through the second plating liquid discharge ports 759 and
the third plating liquid discharge ports 820 join at the lower end
of the plating container 750, and then is discharged from the
plating container 750. Instead of providing the third plating
liquid discharge ports 820, as shown in FIGS. 72A through 72D, the
weir member 758 may have, in its lower part, openings 922 having a
predetermined width at predetermined intervals so that the plating
liquid 745 passes through the openings 922 and is then discharged
to the second plating liquid discharge ports 759.
[0488] With this arrangement, when the amount of plating liquid
supplied is large during plating, the plating liquid is discharged
to the exterior through the third plating liquid discharge ports
820 or is passed through the openings 922 and discharged to the
exterior through the second plating liquid discharge ports 759 and,
in addition, as shown in FIG. 72A, the plating liquid overflowing
the weir member 758 is discharged to the exterior through the
second plating liquid discharge ports 759. On the other hand,
during plating, when the amount of plating liquid supplied is
small, the plating liquid is discharged to the exterior through the
third plating liquid discharge ports 820, or alternatively as shown
in FIG. 72B, the plating liquid is passed through the openings 922
and discharged to the exterior through the second plating liquid
discharge ports 759. In this manner, this construction can easily
cope with the case where the amount of plating liquid supplied is
large or small.
[0489] Further, as shown in FIG. 72D, through holes 924 for
controlling the liquid level, which are located above the plating
liquid supply nozzles 753 and communicate with the plating chamber
749 and the second plating liquid discharge ports 759, are provided
at circumferentially predetermined pitches. Thus, when plating is
not performed, the plating liquid is passed through the through
holes 924, and is discharged to the exterior through the second
plating liquid discharge ports 759, thereby controlling the liquid
level of the plating liquid. During plating, the through holes 924
serve as an orifice for restricting the amount of the plating
liquid flowing therethrough.
[0490] As shown in FIG. 67, the first plating liquid discharge
ports 757 are connected to the reservoir 926 through the plating
liquid discharge pipe 760a, and a flow controller 761a is provided
in the plating liquid discharge pipe 760a. The second plating
liquid discharge ports 759 and the third plating liquid discharge
ports 820 join with each other within the plating container 750,
and the joined passage is then connected directly to the reservoir
926 through the plating liquid discharge pipe 760b.
[0491] The reservoir 926 is constructed so that the plating liquid
from all the other plated film forming units flows into the
reservoir 926. The plating liquid which has flowed into the
reservoir 926 is introduced by a pump 928 into the plating liquid
regulating tank 740 (see FIG. 58). This plating liquid regulating
tank 740 is provided with a temperature controller 930, and a
plating liquid analyzing unit 932 for sampling the plating liquid
and analyzing the sample liquid. When a single pump 934 is
operated, the plating liquid is supplied from the plating liquid
regulating tank 740 through the filter 936 to the plating liquid
supply nozzles 753 in each of the plated film forming units. A
control valve 756 is provided in the plating liquid supply pipe 755
extending from the plating liquid regulating tank 740 to each of
the plated film forming units. This control valve 756 serves to
make the pressure on the secondary side constant, and, even when
one plated film forming unit is stopped, the control valve 756 can
make the supply pressure of the plating liquid in the other plated
film forming units constant.
[0492] Thus, a plating liquid prepared in a plating liquid
regulating tank 740 in a single plating process system is fed to a
plurality of plated film forming units through a single pump 934.
The plating liquid preparation tank 740 having a large capacity is
used in the plating process system to prepare a plating liquid.
With this arrangement, the plating liquid is fed to each of the
plated film forming units while controlling the flow rate in each
of the plated film forming units through control valves 756, and a
variation of the plating liquid in quality can be suppressed.
[0493] A vertical stream regulating ring 762 and a horizontal
stream regulating ring 763 are disposed within the plating chamber
749 at a position near the internal circumference of the plating
chamber 749, and the central portion of the liquid surface is
pushed up by an upward stream out of two divided upward and
downward streams of the plating liquid 745 within the plating
chamber 749, whereby the downward flow is smoothed and the
distribution of the current density is made further uniform. The
horizontal stream regulating ring 763 has a peripheral portion
which is fixed to the plating container 750, and the vertical
stream regulating ring 762 is connected to the horizontal stream
regulating ring 763.
[0494] On the other hand, the head 747 comprises a housing 770
which is a rotatable and cylindrical receptacle having a downwardly
open end and has openings 796 on the circumferential wall, and
vertically movable pressing rods 942 having, in their lower end, a
pressing ring 940. As shown in FIG. 71, an inwardly projecting
ring-shaped substrate holding member 772 is provided at the lower
end of the housing 770. A ring-shaped sealing member 944 is mounted
on the substrate holding member 772. The ring-shaped sealing member
944 projects inward, and the front end of the top surface in the
ring-shaped sealing member 944 projects upward in an annular
tapered form. Further, contacts 776 for a cathode electrode are
disposed above the sealing member 944. Air vent holes 775, which
extend outwardly in the horizontal direction and further extend
outwardly in an upwardly inclined state, are provided in the
substrate holding member 772 at circumferentially equal intervals.
The contacts 776 for a cathode electrode and the air vent holes 775
are the same as those shown in FIGS. 59 and 60.
[0495] With this arrangement, as shown in FIG. 68, the liquid level
of the plating liquid is lowered, and as shown in FIGS. 70 and 71,
the substrate W is held by a robot hand H or the like, and inserted
into the housing 770 where the substrate W is placed on the upper
surface of the sealing member 944 of the substrate holding member
772. Thereafter, the robot hand H is withdrawn from the housing
770, and the pressing ring 940 is then lowered to sandwich the
peripheral portion of the substrate W between the sealing member
944 and the lower surface of the pressing ring 940, thereby holding
the substrate W. In addition, upon holding of the substrate W, the
lower surface of the substrate W is brought into pressure contact
with the sealing member 944 to seal this contact portion
positively. At the same time, current flows between the substrate W
and the contacts 776 for a cathode electrode.
[0496] Returning to FIG. 66, the housing 770 is connected to an
output shaft 948 of a motor 946, and rotated by energization of the
motor 946. The pressing rods 942 are vertically provided at
predetermined positions along the circumferential direction of a
ring-shaped support frame 958 rotatably mounted through a bearing
956 on the lower end of a slider 954. The slider 954 is vertically
movable by actuation of a cylinder 952, with a guide, fixed to a
support 950 surrounding the motor 946. With this construction, the
pressing rods 942 are vertically movable by the actuation of the
cylinder 952, and, in addition, upon the holding of the substrate
W, the pressing rods 942 are rotated integrally with the housing
770.
[0497] The support 950 is mounted on a slide base 962 which is
engaged with a ball screw 961 and vertically movable by the ball
screw 961 rotated by energization of the motor 960. The support 950
is surrounded by an upper housing 964, and is vertically movable
together with the upper housing 964 by energization of the motor
960. Further, a lower housing 957 for surrounding the housing 770
during plating is mounted on the upper surface of the plating
container 750.
[0498] With this construction, as shown in FIG. 68, maintenance can
be performed in such a state that the support 950 and the upper
housing 964 are raised. A crystal of the plating liquid is likely
to deposit on the inner circumferential surface of the weir member
758. However, the support 950 and the upper housing 964 are raised,
a large amount of the plating liquid is flowed and overflows the
weir member 758, and hence the crystal of the plating liquid is
prevented from being deposited on the inner circumferential surface
of the weir member 758. A cover 750b for preventing the splash of
the plating liquid is integrally provided in the plating container
750 to cover a portion above the plating liquid which overflows
during plating process. By coating an ultra-water-repellent
material such as HIREC (manufactured by NTT Advance Technology) on
the lower surface of the cover 750b for preventing the splash of
the plating liquid, the crystal of the plating liquid can be
prevented from being deposited on the lower surface of the cover
750b.
[0499] Substrate centering mechanisms 970 located above the
substrate holding member 772 of the housing 770 for performing
centering of the substrate W, are provided at four places along the
circumferential direction in this embodiment.
[0500] FIG. 73 shows the substrate centering mechanism 970 in
detail. The substrate centering mechanism 970 comprises a gate-like
bracket 972 fixed to the housing 770, and a positioning block 974
disposed with in the bracket 972. This positioning block 974 is
swingably mounted through a support shaft 976 horizontally fixed to
the bracket 972. Further, a compression coil spring 978 is
interposed between the housing 770 and the positioning block 974.
Thus, the positioning block 974 is urged by the compression coil
spring 978 so that the positioning block 974 rotates about the
support shaft 976 and the lower portion of the positioning block
974 projects inwardly. The upper surface 974a of the positioning
block 974 serves as a stopper, and is brought into connect with the
lower surface 972a of the bracket 972 to restrict the movement of
the positioning block 974. Further, the positioning block 974 has a
tapered inner surface 974b which is widened outward in the upward
direction.
[0501] With this construction, a substrate is held by the hand of a
transfer robot or the like, is carried into the housing 770, and is
placed on the substrate holding member 772. In this case, when the
center of the substrate deviates from the center of the substrate
holding member 772, the positioning block 974 is rotated outwardly
against the urging force of the compression coil spring 978 and,
upon the release of holding of the substrate from the hand of the
transfer robot or the like, the positioning block 974 is returned
to the original position by the urging force of the compression
coil spring 978. Thus, the centering of the substrate can be
carried out.
[0502] FIG. 74 shows a feeding contact (a probe) 777 for feeding
power to a cathode electrode plate 908 of a contact 776 for a
cathode electrode. This feeding contact 777 is composed of a
plunger and is surrounded by a cylindrical protective member 980
extending to the cathode electrode plate 908, whereby the feeding
contact 777 is protected against the plating liquid.
[0503] In the substrate processing apparatus employing the plated
film forming unit, as described above, when the surface of the
plating liquid is on a low level for transferring the substrate as
shown in FIG. 68, the substrate is inserted into and held within
the housing 770. In this state, the liquid level of the plating
liquid is raised and the substrate is plated. Thereafter, the
liquid level of the plating liquid is lowered, and the plated
substrate is withdrawn from the housing 770. Further, maintenance
is carried out in such a state that the support 950 and the upper
housing 964 are raised. In this state, if necessary, a large amount
of the plating liquid is flowed and overflows the weir member 758,
thereby preventing a crystal of the plating liquid from being
deposited on the inner circumferential surface of the weir member
758.
[0504] Further, in this embodiment, the following process may be
performed. When the surface of the plating liquid is on the liquid
level B for transferring the substrate, the substrate W is inserted
into the housing 770 and held by the housing 770, and then the
liquid level of the plating liquid is raised to the liquid level A
for plating. At the same time, the housing 770 is raised by a
certain distance. After the liquid level of the polishing solution
reaches the liquid level A for plating, the housing 770 is rotated
at a medium speed of, for example, 150 min.sup.-1 and lowered,
whereby the substrate W is brought into contact with the surface of
the plating liquid which rises at its central portion. Thus, air
bubbles on the surface of the substrate can be positively removed
therefrom.
[0505] In the above embodiments, a pre-dipping process is employed
in the pretreatment unit, and a pretreatment liquid (a pre-dipping
liquid) which is one component of the plating liquid is uniformly
coated to improve adhesive property of plating on the surface, to
be plated, of the substrate on which a barrier layer and a seed
layer are successively provided. Alternatively, a pre-plating
method in which a pre-plating is applied to reinforce an incomplete
seed layer onto the surface, to be plated, of the substrate on
which a barrier layer and a seed layer are successively provided
may be used.
[0506] FIG. 75 shows another embodiment of a substrate processing
apparatus in accordance with the present invention which employs
the pre-plating method and is provided with a pre-plating unit 980.
The pre-plating unit 980 has a similar structure to the plated film
forming unit 722, and uses a weak alkaline high-polarization liquid
of copper pyrophosphate as a plating liquid, and pure copper
(oxygen-free copper) as an anode. According to this embodiment, one
of the plated film forming units 722 shown in FIG. 57 is replaced
with the pre-plating unit 980 for performing pre-plating of a
substrate to reinforce the incomplete seed layer. The pre-plated
substrate is then subjected to the plating treatment in the plated
film forming unit 722.
[0507] While the plating liquid for use in the pre-plating unit 980
is alkaline, the plating liquid for use in the plated film forming
unit 722 is acidic. It is therefore necessary to take a measure not
to bring the alkaline plating liquid, which has adhered to the
substrate in the pre-plating unit 980, to the plated film forming
unit 722. In this regard, according to this embodiment, a cleaning
unit 982 is provided in the plating section 712 (see FIG. 57) for
washing by water the substrate which has undergone the pre-plating
in the pre-plating unit 982. The cleaned substrate is then
transferred to the plated film forming unit 722 for plating of the
substrate.
[0508] Further in this embodiment, a bevel-backside cleaning unit
984 and an annealing unit 986 are provided. In the bevel-backside
cleaning unit 984, the unnecessary Cu film (seed layer) in the edge
portion of the semiconductor substrate is removed, and the
substrate is rinsed with water and then spin-dried by rotating the
substrate at a high speed. Thereafter, the dried substrate is
transferred to the annealing unit 986 for annealing the
substrate.
[0509] FIG. 76 shows yet another embodiment of a semiconductor
substrate processing apparatus in accordance with the present
invention. The apparatus is provided with three loading and
unloading sections 715. A movable first robot 717, for exclusive
use for the loading and unloading sections, is provided between the
loading and unloading sections 715 and a temporary storage 728 for
transferring a substrate therebetween. Three plated film forming
units 722 are disposed in series in a plating area 990 on one side
of a movable second robot 724. On the opposite side of the second
robot 724 are disposed, in series, two bevel-backside cleaning
units 984 and one annealing unit 986. The second robot 724
transfers the substrate between the plated film forming units 722,
the bevel-backside cleaning units 984, the annealing unit 986 and
the temporary storage 728.
[0510] According to this embodiment, loading and unloading of the
substrate between the loading and unloading sections 715 and the
temporary storage 728 are conducted by the first robot 717.
Separately, loading from the temporary storage 728, transportation
between the treatment units and unloading to the temporary storage
728 of the substrate are conducted by the second robot 724. The
provision of such two robots makes it possible to divide the
interior of facilities into a loading and unloading area L which
includes the first robot 717 and the loading and unloading sections
715, and a treatment unit area P which includes the second robot
724, the temporary storage 728 and the various treatment units
including the annealing unit 986.
[0511] Such division in the interior of facilities has the
following advantages. Since the amount of contaminants is small in
the loading and unloading area L compared to the treatment unit
area (treatment section) P, air-conditioning facilities for the
loading and unloading area L can be simplified. Further, the
loading and unloading area L can be made detachable. This enables
replacement of the treatment unit with another new treatment unit
for combination with the loading and unloading area L so as to meet
the rapid advance in the semiconductor industry. Alternatively, in
order to meet a new model cassette and facilitate transportation of
the substrate, the loading and unloading area L can be replaced
with another new one.
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