Surface treating apparatus and method using vapor
AssigneeDainippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd.
InventorMasato Tanaka
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A surface treating apparatus using vapor includes a container for holding two liquids, e.g., hydrogen fluoride and water, which exhibits an azeotropic phenomenon under predetermined conditions, and an azeotropic condition establishing device for conditioning the container to satisfy the predetermined azeotropic conditions. Under the azeotropic conditions, a vapor mixture having the composition of the liquid mixture is produced, and surface treatment of substrates or the like is performend using the vapor mixture. Since the vapor of the liquid mixture in the azeotropic state is used for surface treatment of substrate, surface treatment is effected under fixed conditions all the time.
Claims27
A surface treatment method of etching or cleaning a wafer, said method comprising the steps of:
- preparing a liquid mixture of at least two liquids which exhibits an azeotropic phenomenon under predetermined conditions, said liquid mixture being selected from the group consisting of:
- (a) hydrofluoric acid and water;
- (b) hydrochloric acid and water;
- (c) hydrofluoric acid, water, and ethanol;
- (d) hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid, and water;
- (e) hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, and water;
- (f) ammonium hydroxide and water;
- and (g) nitric acid and water;
- and
- controlling said liquid mixture to satisfy said predetermined azeotropic conditions, said controlling step including the step of setting the pressure to atmospheric pressure or more;
- an azeotropic vapor mixture of said liquid mixture being produced under said azeotropic conditions;
- etching or cleaning the surface of a wafer to be treated by using said azeotropic vapor mixture.
A surface treating method of etching or cleaning a wafer, said method comprising:
- preparing a liquid mixture of at least two liquids which exhibits an azeotropic phenomenon under predetermined conditions, said preparing step including preparing holding means for holding said liquid mixture and feeding said liquid mixture to said holding means, whereby a space is defined in the region of said holding means where said liquid mixture is not held;
- controlling said liquid mixture to satisfy said predetermined azeotropic conditions;
- an azeotropic vapor mixture of said liquid mixture of said at least two liquids being produced in said space under said azeotropic conditions;
- generating a quasi-azeotropic vapor mixture by feeding a diluting gas to said space so that the pressure in said space is equal to or greater than atmospheric pressure;
- and
- etching or cleaning the surface of a wafer to be treated by using said quasi-azeotropic vapor mixture.
A wafer surface treating apparatus for etching or cleaning a wafer comprising:
- liquid holding means for holding a mixture of at least two liquids which exhibit azeotropy under predetermined conditions, said liquid holding means having space for generating vapor mixture of azeotropy in the upper portion thereof;
- azeotropic condition setting means for conditioning said liquid holding means to establish said predetermined azeotropic conditions, said azeotropic condition setting means setting temperature and pressure to the predetermined azeotropic conditions;
- diluting gas feeding means for feeding a diluting gas to said space thereby to generate a quasi-azeotropic vapor mixture;
- and
- surface treating means for etching or cleaning the surface of a wafer to be treated by using said vapor mixture of quasi-azeotropy, said surface treating means including a wafer holding chamber for effecting surface treatment of etching or cleaning of said wafer, and quasi-azeotropic vapor mixture supplying means for supplying said quasi-azeotropic vapor mixture to said wafer holding chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.