# US 12,119,217 B2 · Substrate treatment method and substrate treatment apparatus > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,119,217 B2 - Document ID: US12119217B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/119,870 - Filed: 2023-03-10 - Published: 2024-05-16 - Granted: 2024-10-15 - Earliest claimed: 2022-11-10 - Assignees: Semes Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Semes Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Si Nae Song; Sung Bum Park; Ho Jin Jeong; Dong Ho Lim - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12119217B2 ## CPC - H10P 70/20: {Cleaning during device manufacture} - B08B 3/022: {Cleaning travelling work (B08B3/042 takes precedence)} - B08B 3/08: the liquid having chemical or dissolving effect - B08B 13/00: Accessories or details of general applicability for machines or apparatus for cleaning - H10P 50/00: Etching of wafers, substrates or parts of devices - H10P 52/00: Grinding, lapping or polishing of wafers, substrates or parts of devices - H10P 72/0414: {using mainly spraying means, e.g. nozzles} - H10P 72/7618: {characterised by a movable susceptor, stage or support, others than those only rotating on their own vertical axis, e.g. susceptors on a rotating carrousel} - H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10 - B08B: CLEANING IN GENERAL; PREVENTION OF FOULING IN GENERAL ## Abstract A substrate treatment method includes an auto-recovery operation of automatically recovering a substrate when a treatment process of treating the substrate is interrupted due to an occurrence of an abnormality and a chamber neutralization operation of neutralizing an inside of a process chamber including the substrate before the auto-recovery operation after the treatment process is stopped. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A substrate treatment method comprising: automatically recovering a substrate when treating the substrate is interrupted due to an occurrence of an abnormality; neutralizing an inside of a process chamber including the substrate before the recovering after the treating is stopped; and before the neutralizing, adjusting a height of a treatment vessel including a plurality of bowls so that a residual treatment liquid used in the treating is recovered by one selected from among the plurality of bowls arranged around the substrate according to a type of the residual treatment liquid. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The substrate treatment method of claim 1, wherein the neutralizing includes discharging a neutralization liquid to the substrate for neutralizing the residual treatment liquid inside the process chamber. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The substrate treatment method of claim 2, wherein in the neutralizing, when the residual treatment liquid is an acidic liquid, the neutralization liquid is a basic liquid, and when the residual treatment liquid is a basic liquid, the neutralization liquid is an acidic liquid, and wherein the basic liquid includes SC-1, and the acidic liquid includes at least one of SC-2, HF, SPM, sulfuric acid and DSP. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The substrate treatment method of claim 1, wherein the neutralizing further includes: discharging a pre-cleaning liquid to the substrate; discharging a neutralization liquid to the substrate; and discharging a post-cleaning liquid to the substrate. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The substrate treatment method of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of process operations of treating the substrate, and in the adjusting, when one of the plurality of process operations is interrupted, a current height of the treatment vessel is maintained, and when one of the plurality of process operations is stopped while switching to a following process operation, the treatment vessel stopped while moving to a next height corresponding to the following process operation is continuously moved to the next height. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The substrate treatment method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of bowls arranged around the substrate include a first bowl, a second bowl, and a third bowl sequentially arranged to be adjacent to the substrate, and the first bowl, the second bowl, and the third bowl are sequentially connected to a first recovery line, a second recovery line, and a third recovery line, and the third recovery line connected to the third bowl is connected to a waste line and a recycle line through a three-way valve, wherein the substrate treatment method further comprises, prior to the neutralizing, controlling the three-way valve so that the third recovery line communicates with one of the waste line and the recycle line according to a type of the residual treatment liquid. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The substrate treatment method of claim 6, wherein, in the controlling, when the residual treatment liquid is a chemical liquid requiring recycling, the three-way valve is controlled so that the third recovery line and the recycle line communicate with each other, and when the residual treatment liquid is not a chemical liquid requiring recycling, the three-way valve is controlled so that the third recovery line and the waste line communicate with each other. ### Claim 8 (depends on 2) The substrate treatment method of claim 2, wherein a rotation speed of the substrate is changed in the neutralizing. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The substrate treatment method of claim 8, wherein the rotation speed of the substrate is changed between 300 RPM and 1500 RPM. ### Claim 10 A substrate treatment method comprising: a plurality of processes constituting treating a substrate; automatically recovering a substrate when treating is stopped due to an occurrence of an abnormality; neutralizing an inside of a process chamber including the substrate by discharging a neutralization liquid for neutralizing a residual treatment liquid inside the process chamber used in the treating before the automatically recovering after a treatment process is stopped; prior to the neutralizing, adjusting a height of a treatment vessel including a plurality of bowls so that the residual treatment liquid is recovered by one selected from among the plurality of bowls arranged around the substrate according to a type of the residual treatment liquid; and prior to the neutralizing, controlling a three-way valve so that a recovery line connected to one of the plurality of bowls communicates with one selected from a waste line and a recycle line according to the type of the residual treatment liquid. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The substrate treatment method of claim 10, wherein in the neutralizing, when the residual treatment liquid is an acidic liquid, the neutralization liquid is a basic liquid, and when the residual treatment liquid is a basic liquid, the neutralization liquid is an acidic liquid, and wherein the basic liquid includes SC-1, and the acidic liquid includes at least one of SC-2, HF, SPM, sulfuric acid and DSP. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The substrate treatment method of claim 10, wherein the neutralizing includes: discharging a pre-cleaning liquid to the substrate; discharging a neutralization liquid to the substrate; and discharging a post-cleaning liquid to the substrate. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The substrate treatment method of claim 10, wherein in the adjusting, the treating is interrupted, a current height of the treatment vessel is maintained, and when the treating is stopped while switching to a following process operation, the treatment vessel stopped while moving to a next height corresponding to a following process operation is continuously moved to the next height. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The substrate treatment method of claim 10, wherein the plurality of bowls arranged around the substrate include a first bowl, a second bowl, and a third bowl sequentially arranged to be adjacent to the substrate, and the first bowl, the second bowl, and the third bowl are sequentially connected to a first recovery line, a second recovery line, and a third recovery line, and the third recovery line connected to the third bowl is connected to a waste line and a recycle line through a three-way valve, and in the controlling, when the residual treatment liquid is a chemical liquid requiring recycling, the three-way valve is controlled so that the third recovery line and the recycle line communicate with each other, and when the residual treatment liquid is not a chemical liquid requiring recycling, the three-way valve is controlled so that the third recovery line and the waste line communicate with each other. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The substrate treatment method of claim 10, wherein a rotation speed of the substrate is changed in the neutralizing, and the rotation speed of the substrate is changed between 300 RPM and 1500 RPM.