Substrate processing apparatus and method
AssigneeDainippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd.
InventorsKoji Hasegawa, Masato Tanaka, Ayumi Higuchi, Kenichiro Arai
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Pure water dissolving nitrogen gas and containing microbubbles is supplied to a substrate. Since microbubbles are very minute in size and also have the electrostatic property, they can efficiently adsorb particles on the substrate surface or in the pure water. Further, since pure water dissolving nitrogen gas is unlikely to be charged, the pure water itself never carries new particles from each component of the apparatus. These functions allow efficient particle removal from the substrate surface or the liquid.
Claims20
A substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate using a liquid,
- said substrate processing apparatus comprising:
- a holder holding a substrate;
- a liquid supplier supplying a liquid to the substrate held by said holder;
- a gas dissolver dissolving a predetermined gas in the liquid supplied from said liquid supplier;
- and
- a microbubble generator generating microbubbles in the liquid supplied from said liquid supplier.
A particle removal method of removing particles from a substrate surface or a liquid,
- said method comprising the steps of:
- (a) dissolving a predetermined gas in a liquid;
- (b) generating microbubbles in the liquid;
- and
- (c) flowing the liquid obtained in said steps (a) and (b) along a substrate surface.
A substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate using a liquid,
- said substrate processing apparatus comprising:
- a processing bath retaining a liquid;
- a holder holding a substrate being immersed in the liquid in said processing bath;
- a liquid supplier supplying the liquid in said processing bath;
- an ultrasonic vibration applicator applying ultrasonic vibrations to the liquid retained in said processing bath;
- and
- a microbubble generator generating microbubbles in the liquid supplied from said liquid supplier to said processing bath.
A substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate using a liquid,
- said substrate processing apparatus comprising:
- a holder holding a substrate;
- a liquid supplier supplying a liquid to the substrate held by said holder;
- an ultrasonic vibration applicator applying ultrasonic vibrations to the liquid supplied from said liquid supplier to the substrate;
- and
- a microbubble generator generating microbubbles in the liquid supplied from said liquid supplier to the substrate.
A particle removal method for removing particles from a substrate surface,
- said particle removal method comprising the steps of:
- (a) immersing a substrate in a liquid retained in a processing bath;
- and
- (b) supplying a liquid containing microbubbles in said processing bath while applying ultrasonic vibrations to the liquid retained in said processing bath.
A particle removal method for removing particles from a substrate surface,
- said particle removal method comprising the steps of:
- (a) holding a substrate by a holder;
- and
- (b) supplying a liquid containing ultrasonic vibrations and microbubbles to a substrate surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.