Substrate processing method and substrate processing apparatus

A substrate processing apparatus, comprising:

• a substrate holding unit which holds the substrate horizontally;
• a processing liquid supply unit which supplies a processing liquid to an upper surface of the substrate held horizontally;
• a substrate heating unit which heats the entire substrate horizontally held to a temperature lower than a boiling point of the processing liquid;
• a radiation unit which faces the upper surface of the substrate held horizontally and radiates light toward a center portion of the upper surface of the substrate;
• a moving unit which moves the radiation unit in a horizontal direction;
• a substrate rotating unit which rotates the substrate around a rotation axis which passes through the center portion of the upper surface of the substrate held horizontally and extends in a vertical direction;
• and
• a controller which controls the processing liquid supply unit, the substrate heating unit, the radiation unit, the moving unit, and the substrate rotating unit,
• wherein the controller is programmed to perform a liquid film forming step of forming a liquid film of the processing liquid on the upper surface of the substrate by supplying the processing liquid from the processing liquid supply unit to the upper surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit, a liquid film heat retaining step of keeping the liquid film warm by heating the entire substrate with the substrate heating unit, a gas phase layer forming step of evaporating the processing liquid in contact with the center portion of the upper surface of the substrate and forming a gas phase layer which is in contact with the upper surface of the substrate and holds the processing liquid on a center portion of the liquid film by irradiating an irradiation region set on the upper surface of the substrate with light from the radiation unit while the liquid film heat retaining step is performed, an opening forming step of forming an opening in the center portion of the liquid film by excluding the processing liquid held by the gas phase layer, a substrate rotating step of rotating the substrate with the substrate rotating unit, and an opening expanding step of expanding the opening, while a state in which the gas phase layer is formed on an inner circumferential edge of the liquid film is maintained, by moving the radiation unit with the moving unit and thus moving the irradiation region toward a circumferential edge portion of the substrate while the liquid film heat retaining step and the substrate rotating step are performed.

A substrate processing method, comprising:

• a liquid film forming step of supplying a processing liquid to an upper surface of a substrate which is horizontally held and has a pattern formed on the upper surface and forming a liquid film of the processing liquid on the upper surface of the substrate;
• a vapor layer forming part forming step of forming a vapor layer between the processing liquid and the upper surface of the substrate at a center portion of the upper surface of the substrate and forming a vapor layer forming part, in which the liquid film is held, on the vapor layer by radiating light to the center portion of the upper surface of the substrate from above the liquid film and heating a heating region which is set on the center portion of the upper surface of the substrate and is not set at an outer circumferential portion of the upper surface of the substrate;
• a substrate rotating step of forming the vapor layer forming part in an annular shape having a hole formed in the liquid film inside by rotating the substrate, in which the vapor layer forming part is formed on the center portion of the upper surface, around a vertical rotation axis passing through the center portion of the substrate;
• and
• a vapor layer forming part moving step of moving the annular vapor layer forming part toward an outer circumference of the substrate by moving the heating region toward the outer circumference of the substrate to expand an outer circumference of the vapor layer forming part and to expand the hole in parallel with the substrate rotating step.

A substrate processing apparatus, comprising:

• a substrate holding unit which horizontally holds a substrate having a pattern formed on a surface thereof;
• a substrate rotating unit which rotates the substrate held by the substrate holding unit around a vertical rotation axis which passes through a center portion of the substrate;
• a processing liquid supply unit which has a processing liquid nozzle and supplies a processing liquid from the processing liquid nozzle to an upper surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit;
• a lamp heater which has a light emitting part, is provided to be smaller than the substrate held by the substrate holding unit when seen from above, and radiates light from the light emitting part toward the upper surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit;
• a heating region moving unit which moves a heating region heated by radiation of light by the lamp heater on the upper surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit within the upper surface of the substrate;
• a spraying unit which has a gas nozzle having a gas discharge port and sprays a gas from the gas nozzle onto the upper surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding unit;
• and
• a controller which controls the substrate rotating unit, the processing liquid supply unit, the lamp heater, the heating region moving unit, and the spraying unit,
• wherein the controller is programmed to perform a liquid film forming step of supplying the processing liquid to the upper surface of the substrate, which is the surface, with the processing liquid supply unit and forming a liquid film of the processing liquid on the upper surface of the substrate, a vapor layer forming part forming step of forming a vapor layer between the processing liquid and the upper surface of the substrate at a center portion of the upper surface of the substrate and forming a vapor layer forming part, in which the liquid film is held, on the vapor layer by radiating light to the center portion of the upper surface of the substrate from above the liquid film with the lamp heater and heating a heating region which is set on the center portion of the upper surface of the substrate and is not set at an outer circumferential portion of the upper surface of the substrate, a substrate rotating step of forming the vapor layer forming part in an annular shape having a hole formed in the liquid film inside by rotating the substrate, in which the vapor layer forming part is formed on the center portion of the upper surface, around the rotation axis with the substrate rotating unit, and a vapor layer forming part moving step of moving the annular vapor layer forming part toward an outer circumference of the substrate by moving the heating region toward the outer circumference of the substrate with the heating region moving unit to expand an outer circumference of the vapor layer forming part and to expand the hole with at least one of the spraying unit and the substrate rotating unit in parallel with the substrate rotating step.