Coating and developing apparatus, coating and developing method and non-transitory tangible medium

This application is based on and claims the benefit of priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2010-197069 filed on Sep. 2, 2010, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present invention relates to a coating and developing apparatus, a coating and developing method and a non-transitory tangible medium, for forming a resist onto a substrate and developing the resist after exposure.

In a photolithography process which is one of semiconductor manufacturing processes, a resist is coated onto a surface of a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as “wafer”), the resist is exposed in a predetermined pattern, and then the resist is developed to form a resist pattern. A coating and developing apparatus for forming such a resist pattern is equipped with a process block including process modules for subjecting the wafer to various kinds of processes.

As described in JP2007-115831A, for example, the process block is structured by stacking unit blocks that form various kinds of coating films such as a resist film, and a unit block that performs a developing process, on one another. Each of the unit blocks is provided with a wafer transfer mechanism. A wafer is sequentially transferred by the transfer mechanism to a process module disposed in each unit block, and is subjected to a process.

In order to cope with miniaturization of a pattern to be formed in a wafer, a variety of process modules are provided to the coating and developing apparatus. For example, in addition to a resist-film forming module that forms a resist film on a wafer by supplying a resist onto the wafer, and a developing module that develops the resist by supplying a developing liquid onto the wafer, the coating and developing apparatus sometimes includes a module that forms an antireflection film below the resist film, a module that forms a protective film for immersion exposure on the wafer, and so on. It has been under review how to decrease an installation area of the coating and developing apparatus including these various kinds of modules.

In addition, in the coating and developing apparatus of JP2007-115831A, the wafer is sequentially transferred among the modules in respective layers. Thus, when one module cannot process the wafer, the wafer cannot be transferred to the succeeding module, which may lower a process efficiency. Thus, there has been desired a coating and developing apparatus having a small installation area, which is capable of preventing lowering of process efficiency.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. The object of the present invention is to provide a technique which can restrain lowering of process efficiency of a coating and developing apparatus, and can reduce an installation area of the apparatus.

In one embodiment, there is provided a coating and developing apparatus including: a carrier block; a process block to which a substrate that has been loaded into the carrier block by a carrier is delivered, the process block being configured to form a coating film including a resist film on the substrate; an interface block arranged on an opposed side of the carrier block with respect to the process block; and an exposure apparatus configured to expose the substrate that has been transferred thereto from the process block via the interface block; the substrate that has been loaded into the carrier block by the carrier is delivered to the process block, a coating film including a resist film is formed on the substrate in the process block, the substrate is transferred to the exposure apparatus via the interface block, the exposed substrate, which has been returned to the process block via the interface block, is developed in the process block, and the developed substrate is delivered to the carrier block; in the process block, a heating-process related block on the side of the carrier block, a group of liquid-process related unit blocks, and a heating block on the side of the interface block, are arranged in this order from the side of the carrier block to the side of the interface block; the group of liquid-process related unit blocks are composed of: a group of unit blocks for coating films that is formed by stacking upward a unit block for an antireflection film configured to form an antireflection film on a substrate, a unit block for a resist film configured to form a resist film on the antireflection film, and a unit block for an upper layer film configured to form an upper layer film on the resist film, in this order; and unit blocks for developing that are stacked on one another in the up and down direction with respect to the group of unit blocks for coating films, each unit block for developing being configured to develop an exposed substrate; when a direction along which the interface block is seen from the carrier block is supposed to be seen from the front, each unit block of the group of unit blocks for coating films includes: a linear transfer path extending in the back and forth direction; liquid process modules arranged on the right and left sides of the linear transfer path, each liquid process module being configured to supply a substrate with a chemical liquid corresponding to each coating film; and a main transfer mechanism configured to be moved along the linear transfer path so as to transfer a substrate between these liquid process modules; the unit block for developing includes: a linear transfer path extending in the back and forth direction; developing modules arranged on the right and left sides of the linear transfer path, each developing module being configured to supply a substrate with a developing liquid; and a main transfer mechanism configured to be moved along the linear transfer path so as to transfer a substrate between these developing modules; in the heating-process related block on the side of the carrier block, there are provided: a number of heating modules that are stacked in the up and down direction, in which a heating module configured to heat a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for a resist film, and a heating module configured to heat a substrate on which a developing liquid has been supplied in the unit block for developing are allocated to these heating modules; and an up and down transfer mechanism capable of being moved in the up and down direction so as to transfer a substrate among the heating modules; in the heating block on the side of the interface block, there are provided: a number of heating modules that are stacked in the up and down direction, in which a heating module configured to heat a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for an antireflection film, a heating module configured to heat a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for an upper layer film, and a heating module configured to heat an exposed substrate to which a developing liquid is not yet supplied in the unit block for developing are allocated to these heating modules; and an up and down transfer mechanism capable of being moved in the up and down direction so as to transfer a substrate among the heating modules; and the coating and developing apparatus further includes: delivery stages respectively arranged on the side of the carrier block of each unit block of the group of unit blocks for coating films, and on the side of the interface block thereof; delivery stages respectively arranged on the side of the carrier block of the unit block for developing, and on the side of the interface block thereof; a delivery mechanism configured to deliver a substrate, which has been taken out from the carrier placed on the carrier block, to the delivery stage on the side of the carrier block of the unit block for an antireflection film, and configured to receive a substrate from the delivery stage on the side of the carrier block of the unit block for developing; and a control unit configured to output a control signal in such a manner that a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for an antireflection film is delivered to the heating module on the side of the interface block so as to heat the substrate, then the substrate is delivered to the unit block for a resist film so as to coat the substrate with a chemical liquid, then the substrate is delivered to the heating module on the side of the carrier block so as to heat the substrate, then the substrate is delivered to the unit block for an upper layer film so as to coat the substrate with a chemical liquid, and then the substrate is delivered to the heating module on the side of the interface block so as to heat the substrate.

In another embodiment, there is provided a coating and developing method, employing the aforementioned coating and developing apparatus, the method including: coating a substrate with a chemical liquid for forming an antireflection film, in the unit block for an antireflection film; delivering the substrate on which the chemical liquid has been coated, to the heating module on the side of the interface block and heating the substrate; delivering the heated substrate to the unit block for a resist film and coating the substrate with a resist liquid; delivering the substrate on which the resist liquid has been coated, to the heating module on the side of the carrier block and heating the substrate; delivering the heated substrate to the unit block for an upper layer film and coating the substrate with a chemical liquid for forming an upper layer film; and delivering the substrate on which the chemical liquid has been coated, to the heating module on the side of the interface block and heating the substrate.

The concrete aspects of the coating and developing apparatus are as follows.

(1) The up and down transfer mechanism of the heating block on the side of the interface block is divided into an up and down transfer mechanism configured to receive a substrate from the delivery stage corresponding to the unit block for an antireflection film and to deliver a heated substrate to the delivery stage corresponding to the unit block for a resist film, and an up and down transfer mechanism configured to receive a substrate from the delivery stage corresponding to the unit block for an upper layer film. (2) The main transfer mechanism is shared by the unit block for a resist film and the unit block for an upper layer film, instead of the configuration in which the main transfer mechanism is provided to each of the unit block for a resist film and the unit block for an upper layer film; and the control unit controls the apparatus in such a manner that, when an upper layer film is not formed on a substrate, a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for a resist film is delivered, via the delivery stage corresponding to the unit block for an upper layer film, to the heating block on the side of the interface block so as to heat the substrate.

In yet another embodiment, there is provided a coating and developing apparatus including: a carrier block; a process block to which a substrate that has been loaded into the carrier block by a carrier is delivered, the process block being configured to form a coating film including a resist film on the substrate; an interface block arranged on an opposed side of the carrier block with respect to the process block; and an exposure apparatus configured to expose the substrate that has been transferred thereto from the process block via the interface block; the substrate that has been loaded into the carrier block by the carrier is delivered to the process block, a coating film including a resist film is formed on the substrate in the process block, the substrate is transferred to the exposure apparatus via the interface block, the exposed substrate, which has been returned to the process block via the interface block, is developed in the process block, and the developed substrate is delivered to the carrier block; in the process block, a heating-process related block on the side of the carrier block, a group of liquid-process related unit blocks, and a heating block on the side of the interface block, are arranged in this order from the side of the carrier block to the side of the interface block; the group of liquid-process related unit blocks are composed of: a group of unit blocks for coating films that is formed by stacking upward a unit block for an antireflection film configured to form an antireflection film on a substrate, and a unit block for a resist film configured to form a resist film on the antireflection film, in this order; and unit blocks for developing that are stacked on one another in the up and down direction with respect to the group of unit blocks for coating films, each unit block for developing being configured to develop an exposed substrate; when a direction along which the interface block is seen from carrier block is supposed to be seen from the front, each unit block of the group of unit blocks for coating films includes: a linear transfer path extending in the back and fourth direction; liquid process modules arranged on the right and left sides of the linear transfer path, each liquid process module being configured to supply a substrate with a chemical liquid corresponding to each coating film; and a main transfer mechanism configured to be moved along the linear transfer path so as to transfer a substrate between these liquid process modules; the unit block for developing includes: a linear transfer path extending in the back and forth direction; developing modules arranged on the right and left sides of the linear transfer path, each developing module being configured to supply a substrate with a developing liquid; and a main transfer mechanism configured to be moved along the linear transfer path so as to transfer a substrate between these developing modules; the heating-process related block on the side of the carrier block includes: a number of heating modules stacked on one another in the up and down direction, each heating module being configured to heat a substrate to which a developing liquid has been supplied in the unit block for developing; and an up and down transfer mechanism capable of being moved in the up and down direction so as to transfer a substrate among these heating modules; in the heating block on the side of the interface block, there are provided: a number of heating modules that are stacked in the up and down direction, in which a heating module configured to heat a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for an antireflection film, a heating module configured to heat a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for a resist film; and a heating module configured to heat an exposed substrate to which a developing liquid is not yet supplied in the unit block for developing are allocated to these heating modules; and an up and down transfer mechanism capable of being moved in the up and down direction so as to transfer a substrate among the heating modules; and the coating and developing apparatus further includes: delivery stages respectively arranged on the side of the carrier block of the unit block for an antireflection film, and on the side of the interface block thereof; delivery stages respectively arranged on the side of the side of the carrier block of the unit block for a resist film, and on the side of the interface block thereof; delivery stages respectively arranged on the side of the carrier block of the unit block for developing, and on the side of the interface block thereof; a delivery mechanism configured to deliver a substrate, which has been taken out from the carrier placed on the carrier block, to the delivery stage on the side of the carrier block of the unit block for an antireflection film, and configured to receive a substrate from the delivery stage on the side of the carrier block of the unit block for developing; and a control unit configured to output a control signal in such a manner that a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for an antireflection film is delivered to the heating module on the side of the interface block so as to heat the substrate, then the substrate is delivered to the unit block for a resist film so as to coat the substrate with a chemical liquid, and then the substrate is delivered to the heating module on the side of the interface block so as to heat the substrate.

In yet another embodiment, there is provided a coating and developing method, employing the aforementioned coating and developing apparatus, the method including: delivering a substrate on which a chemical liquid has been coated in the unit block for an antireflection film, to the heating module on the side of the interface block and heating the substrate; and delivering the substrate to the unit block for a resist film and coating the substrate with a chemical liquid, and then delivering the substrate to the heating module on the side of the interface block and heating the substrate.

In yet another embodiment, there is provided a non-transitory tangible medium storing a computer program for use in a coating and developing apparatus, the computer program being a program for performing the aforementioned coating and developing method.

In a process block constituting a coating and developing apparatus of the present invention, a heating-process related block, and a group of liquid-process related unit blocks, and a heating block are arranged in this order from the side of a carrier block to the side of a interface block. The group of liquid-process related unit blocks is formed by stacking a group of unit blocks for coating films and a unit block for developing. The group of liquid-process related unit blocks is formed by stacking upward a unit block for an antireflection film, a unit block for a resist film, and a unit block for an upper layer film, in this order. Modules of these unit blocks are arranged on the right and left sides of a transfer path extending from the carrier block to the interface block. Due to the arrangement of the respective blocks and the respective unit blocks, an installation area of the apparatus can be reduced. In addition, when one of the modules of each liquid-process related unit block is unavailable, a process can be performed by the other module. Thus, lowering of process efficiency can be restrained.

FIG. 1 is schematic side view of a process block constituting a coating and developing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the coating and developing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the coating and developing apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a schematic side view of the coating and developing apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a main arm disposed on the coating and developing apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a liquid process module.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional front view of an interface block constituting the coating and developing apparatus.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a transfer route of a wafer.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of the transfer route of the wafer.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing another structure example of the process block.

FIG. 11 is a side view showing another structural example of the process block.

FIG. 12 is a side view showing further another structural example of the process block.

FIG. 13 is a side view schematically showing another structure of the process block.

FIG. 14 is a side view schematically showing another structure of the process block.

FIG. 15 is a side view schematically showing another structure of the process block.

FIG. 16 is a side view schematically showing another structure of the process block.

(First Embodiment)

A coating and developing apparatus 1 according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of the coating and developing apparatus 1 of the present invention. In the coating and developing apparatus 1 , a carrier block S 1 , a process block S 20 , a cleaning block S 5 , and an interface block S 6 are linearly connected to each other. An exposure apparatus S 7 for performing an immersion exposure process is connected to the interface block S 6 . The process block S 20 is composed of a front heating-process related block S 2 , a liquid process block S 3 and a rear heating block S 4 , which are arranged from a side of the carrier block S 1 to a side of the cleaning block S 5 .

The liquid process block S 3 is structured by stacking upward first to fifth liquid-process unit blocks B 1 to B 5 each for performing a liquid process to a wafer W, in this order. The respective liquid-process unit block B 1 to B 5 are separated from each other by partition walls. Each of the liquid-process unit block B 1 to B 5 includes a liquid process module that performs a liquid process to a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as “wafer”) W. Namely, the liquid-process unit block B 1 includes an antireflection-film forming module BCT, the liquid-process unit block B 2 includes a resist-film forming module COT, and the liquid-process unit block 83 includes a protective-film forming module TCT. The liquid-process unit blocks B 4 and 85 include developing modules, respectively.

The rear heating block S 4 is structured by stacking upward first to third heating-process unit blocks C 1 to C 3 , in this order. The respective heating-process unit blocks C 1 to C 3 are separated from each other by partition walls. The heating-process unit block C 1 is adjacent to the liquid-process unit block B 1 and B 2 . The heating-process unit block C 2 is adjacent to the liquid-process unit blocks B 3 , and the heating-process unit block C 3 is adjacent to the liquid-process unit block B 4 and B 5 . Each of the heating-process unit blocks C 1 to C 3 includes a heating module for heating the wafer W.

The arrows in FIG. 1 show a transfer route of the wafer W. The wafer W, which has been subjected to a hydrophobing process by a HMDS gas in the front heating-process related block S 2 , is transferred to the first liquid-process unit blocks B 1 , and an antireflection film is formed on the wafer W in the first liquid-process unit blocks B 1 . Then, the wafer W is subjected to a heating process in the first heating-process unit block C 1 , and a resist film is formed on the antireflection film in the second liquid-process unit block B 2 . The wafer W, on which the resist film has been formed, is transferred to the front heating-process related block S 2 , and is subjected to a heating process in the front heating-process related block S 2 . Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the third liquid-process unit blocks B 3 , and a protective film as an upper layer is formed on the resist film in the third liquid-process unit blocks B 3 . This protective film is water repellent, and thus has a function for preventing a liquid from permeating the resist film and the antireflection film, upon an immersion exposure process. The wafer W, on which the protective film has been formed, is subjected to a heating process in the second heating-process unit block C 2 . After that, the wafer W is transferred to the cleaning block S 5 and the interface block S 6 in this order, and is then loaded into the exposure apparatus S 7 .

The wafer W, which has been subjected to an exposure process in the exposure apparatus S 7 , is transferred to the interface block S 6 and the cleaning block S 5 in this order. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the third heating-process unit block C 3 , and is subjected to a heating process in the third heating-process unit block C 3 . After that, the wafer W is transferred to the fourth liquid-process unit block B 4 or the fifth liquid-process unit block B 5 , and is subjected to a developing process in the fourth or fifth liquid-process unit block B 4 or B 5 . Subsequently, the wafer W is subjected to a heating process in the front heating-process related block S 2 , and is then returned to the carrier block S 1 .

In the coating and developing apparatus 1 , the wafer W is transferred in one direction between the front heating-process related block S 2 and the rear heating process block S 4 through the layers at the same height. For each time when the wafer W is transferred to the front heating-process related block S 2 and the rear heating block S 4 , the wafer W is transferred to the upside layer by the front heating-process related block S 2 and the rear heating block S 4 . Due to this structure, the number of transfer times of the wafer W among the respective blocks can be reduced so as to improve a process efficiency, and the number of the below-described delivery modules can be reduced.

Next, the structure of the coating and developing apparatus 1 will be explained in detail, with reference to FIG. 2 showing a plan view of the coating and developing apparatus 1 and FIG. 3 showing a longitudinal side view thereof. The carrier block S 1 is a block through which wafers are loaded and unloaded to and from a carrier C hermetically accommodating a plurality of wafers W, e.g., twenty five wafers W as substrates. The carrier block S 1 includes a table 11 on which the carrier C is placed, an opening and closing part 12 formed in a wall surface in front of the table 11 , and a delivery arm 13 serving as a delivery mechanism that takes out the wafer W from the carrier C via the opening and closing part 12 .

The delivery arm 13 has five wafer holders 14 arranged in an up and down direction. The delivery arm 13 is configured to be movable forward and rearward, movable upward and downward, rotatable about a vertical axis, and movable in a direction along which the carriers C are arranged. The delivery arm 13 is adapted to deliver the five wafers W as a batch from the carrier C to the delivery module BU 11 of the process block S 20 . Herein, a place on which the wafer W can be placed is referred to as “module”. Among these modules, the module configured to perform a process, such as a heating process, a liquid process, a gas supplying process and so on, to the wafer W is referred to as “process module”. Among these process modules, the module configured to supply a chemical liquid or a cleaning liquid to the wafer W is referred to as “liquid process module”.

Next, the front heating-process related block S 2 will be explained. The front heating-process related block S 2 is provided with shelf units U 1 and U 2 in which a plurality of modules are stacked. The shelf units U 1 and U 2 are arranged along a direction perpendicular to the direction from the carrier block S 1 to the interface block S 6 . Delivery arms 15 , 16 and 17 , which are up and down transfer mechanisms, are disposed between the shelf units U 1 and U 2 . FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing the positions of the transfer mechanisms for wafer W in the respective blocks. As shown in FIG. 4 , the delivery arms 15 , 16 and 17 are disposed in the up and down direction.

The structure of the shelf unit U 1 is described below. Hydrophobing process modules ADH are arranged in multiple levels at the same height position as the position of the first liquid-process unit block B 1 . A number of heating modules are stacked at height positions corresponding to the positions of the second to fifth liquid-process unit blocks B 2 to B 5 . The heating modules disposed at the height positions corresponding to the positions of the second and third liquid-process unit blocks B 2 and B 3 are shown as PAB, and the heating modules disposed at the height positions corresponding to the positions of the fourth and fifth liquid-process unit blocks B 4 and B 5 are shown as POST, respectively. The delivery module BU 11 is disposed between the group of the heating modules PAB and the group of the hydrophobing process modules ADH. In addition, the delivery module BU 12 is disposed between the group of the heating modules PAB and the group of the heating modules POST. The delivery modules BU 11 and BU 12 are arranged at height positions to which the delivery arm 13 is accessible.

The respective modules are described below. The hydrophobing process module ADH is a process module that heats the wafer W and supplies a process gas onto a surface of the wafer W including a bevel portion (peripheral portion). The hydrophobing process module ADH has a function for improving a hydrophobicity of the surface, and restraining peeling of respective films from the peripheral portion upon an immersion exposure process. The heating module PAB is adapted to heat the wafer W on which a resist film has been formed. The heating module POST is adapted to heat the developed wafer W. These heating modules PAB and POST and the below-described heating modules CHP and PEB have the same configuration, each having a heating plate 16 for heating the wafer W and a cooling plate 17 . The cooling plate 17 is adapted to transfer the wafer W between the heating plate 16 and the transfer arm or a main arm, and to cool the heated wafer W.

The delivery module BU 11 is a module to which the wafer W is delivered from the carrier C, and the delivery module BU 12 is a module from which the wafer W is returned to the carrier C. In order that the wafers W transferred from the aforementioned delivery arm 13 as a batch, the delivery module BU 11 has five stages on which the wafers W can be placed, the stages being arranged in the up and down direction. The wafers W transferred to the delivery module BU 11 are taken out one by one from the delivery module BU 11 , and subjected to a process. The delivery module has a stage on which the wafer W can be placed. The delivery module described as BU has stages on which the plurality of wafers W can be placed, and can hold the wafers W placed thereon.

The shelf unit U 2 is structured similarly to the shelf unit U 1 , but does not include the delivery modules BU 11 and BU 12 . An inspection module, not shown, is provided on the shelf unit U 2 at a height position corresponding to the position of the delivery module BU 12 . The inspection module is adapted to inspect, for example, whether a line width of a resist pattern is appropriate or not, and whether there is a foreign matter or not on the surface of the wafer W.

The delivery arms 15 to 17 are configured to be movable upward and downward, rotatable about the vertical axis, and movable forward and rearward. The delivery arm 15 is adapted to transfer the wafer W among the delivery module BU 11 , the hydrophobing process modules ADH and the below-described delivery module CPL 11 . The delivery arm 16 is adapted to transfer the wafer W among the heating modules PAB and the below-described delivery modules CPL 12 and CPL 13 . The delivery arm 17 is adapted to transfer the wafer W among the heating modules POST, the below-described delivery modules CPL 15 and CPL 14 , the delivery module BU 12 , and the inspection module.

Next, the liquid process block B 3 will be explained in more detail. The liquid-process unit blocks B 1 to B 5 constituting the liquid process block S 3 are structured to have the same layout in plan view. FIG. 3 shows the second liquid-process unit block B 2 that is a unit block for a resist film. Herebelow, the second liquid-process unit block B 2 is described as a representative of these liquid-process unit blocks. When it is supposed that the side of the carrier block S 1 is a front side and that the side of the interface block S 6 is a rear side, formed in the center of the second liquid-process unit block B 2 is a transfer area R 1 which is a linear transfer path extending in the back and forth direction. On the right and left sides of the transfer area R 1 , the resist-film forming modules COT 1 and COT 2 are disposed opposedly to each other.

The transfer area R 1 is provided with a main arm (main transfer mechanism) A 2 . FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of the main arm A 2 . The main arm A 2 includes: guide rails 21 extending in the transfer area R 1 in the back and forth direction; a horizontal moving table 22 adapted to move along the guide rails 21 ; a frame 23 disposed on the horizontal moving table 22 so as to be rotatable about the vertical axis; a base table 24 ; and wafer holders 25 and 26 . The base table 24 is supported on the frame 23 so as to be movable upward and downward. The wafer holders 25 and 26 are supported on the base table 24 so as to be movable forward and rearward from the base table 24 independently of each other. Due to such a structure, the main arm A 2 can transfer the wafer W among the respective modules of the second liquid-process unit block B 2 .

The resist-film forming module COT 1 will be explained with reference also to FIG. 6 as a longitudinal sectional view thereof. The resist-film forming module COT 1 includes a housing 31 . In the housing 31 , two spin chucks 32 are arranged along the transfer area R 1 . Each of the spin chucks 32 is adapted to absorb and hold a central portion of the rear surface of the wafer W, and is configured to be rotatable about the vertical axis. In FIG. 6 , the reference number 33 depicts a process cup having an upper opening. The process cup 33 surrounds the periphery of the spin chuck 32 so as to restrain scattering of a resist. When the wafer W is processed, the wafer W is accommodated in the process cup 33 , with the central portion of the rear surface of the wafer W being held by the spin chuck 32 .

In addition, the resist-film forming module COT 1 is provided with a nozzle 34 for common use in the respective process cups 33 . In the drawings, the reference number 35 depicts a drive mechanism. The drive mechanism 35 is adapted to move the nozzle 34 through an arm 36 in the arrangement direction of the process cups 33 , and to move the nozzle 34 upward and downward through the arm 36 . The nozzle 34 is moved by the drive mechanism 35 between the process cups 33 , and discharges a resist liquid onto the center of the wafer W which has been delivered to each spin chuck 32 . The discharged resist liquid is extended to the peripheral edge of the wafer W by a centrifugal force of the wafer W that is rotated about the vertical axis by the spin chuck 32 , so that a resist film is deposited on the wafer W. Although not shown, the resist-film forming module COT 1 has a nozzle for supplying a solvent onto the peripheral part of the wafer W so as to remove an unnecessary film on the peripheral part. The resist-film forming module COT 2 has the same configuration as that of the resist-film forming module COT 1 .

The respective liquid-process unit blocks B 1 and B 3 to B 5 are briefly described. As shown in FIG. 4 , the liquid-process unit blocks B 1 and B 3 to B 5 are respectively provided with main arms A 1 and A 3 to A 5 corresponding to the main arm A 2 . The respective main arms A 1 to A 5 are adapted to transfer the wafers W independently of each other.

Instead of the resist-film forming modules COT 1 and COT 2 , the first liquid-process unit block B 1 that is a unit block for an antireflection film is provided with antireflection-film forming modules BCT 1 and BCT 2 as the modules corresponding to the resist-film forming modules COT 1 and COT 2 . Instead of the resist-film forming modules COT 1 and COT 2 , the third liquid-process unit block B 3 that is a unit block for an upper layer film is provided with protective-film forming modules TCT 1 and TCT 2 . The fourth liquid-process unit block B 4 that is a unit block for developing is provided with developing modules DEV 1 and DEV 2 , and the fifth liquid-process unit block B 5 that is a unit block for developing is provided with developing modules DEV 3 and DEV 4 . Similarly to the modules COT 1 and COT 2 , these liquid process modules are opposedly disposed on the right and left sides of the transfer area R 1 . These liquid process modules BCT, TCT and DEV are formed similarly to the resist-film forming module COT, excluding that a chemical liquid supplied from each nozzle 34 is not a resist liquid. Namely, the antireflection-film forming module BCT is adapted to supply a chemical liquid for forming an antireflection film from the nozzle 34 to the wafer W, the protective-film forming module TCT is adapted to supply a chemical liquid for forming a protective film from the nozzle 34 to the wafer W, and the developing module is adapted to supply a developing liquid from the nozzle 34 to the wafer W.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , in the liquid process block S 3 , there is disposed a shelf unit U 3 bridging the liquid-process unit blocks B 1 to B 5 , on the side of the carrier block S 1 . The shelf unit U 3 is composed of a number of modules stacked on one another, i.e., delivery modules CPL 11 to CPL 15 disposed at height positions to which the main arms A 1 to A 5 are accessible. The wafer W is transferred between the liquid process block S 3 and the front heating-process related block S 2 via these delivery modules of the shelf unit U 3 . The delivery module described as CPL has a cooling stage for cooing the wafer W placed thereon. The below-described delivery module TRS has a stage on which the wafer W can be placed.

As shown in FIG. 2 , in the liquid process block S 3 , there is disposed a shelf unit U 4 bridging the first to fifth liquid-process unit blocks B 1 to B 5 , on the side of the interface block S 6 . The shelf unit U 4 is composed of a plurality of modules stacked on one another, i.e., the delivery modules TRS 11 to TRS 15 disposed at height positions corresponding to those of the first to fifth liquid-process unit blocks B 1 to B 5 . The wafer W is transferred between the liquid process block S 3 and the rear heating block S 4 via these delivery modules TRS of the shelf unit U 4 .

Next, the rear heating block S 4 will be explained. The first to third heating-process unit blocks C 1 to C 3 constituting the rear heating block S 4 respectively include heating modules, main arms D 1 to D 3 which are up and down transfer mechanisms serving as transfer means for the unit blocks, and transfer area R 2 for wafer W. The first to third heating-process unit blocks C 1 to C 3 have substantially the same configuration. Herein, the first heating-process unit block C 1 shown in FIG. 3 is described as a representative of these heating-process unit blocks. The transfer area R 2 extending in the back and forth direction is formed in the center of the first heating-process unit block C 1 . Shelf units U 11 to U 14 are arranged along the transfer area R 2 . The shelf units U 11 and U 13 are opposedly disposed on the right and left sides of the transfer area R 2 , and the shelf units U 12 and U 14 are opposedly disposed on the right and left sides of the transfer area R 2 .

Each of the respective shelf units U 11 to U 14 includes a plurality of heating modules, e.g., five heating modules stacked on one another. As described above, these heating modules are modules for heating the wafer W on which an antireflection film has been formed. These heating modules are shown as CHP in the drawings. In addition, the transfer area R 2 is provided with the main arm D 1 . The main arm D 1 has the same configuration as that of the main arm A of the liquid process block S 3 . Namely, the main arm D 1 is configured to be movable rightward and leftward, movable upward and downward, rotatable about the vertical axis, and movable forward and rearward.

The other heating-process unit blocks C are briefly described. The second heating-process unit block C 2 is structured similarly to the first heating-process unit block C 1 , excluding the number of the stacked heating modules. The heating modules CHP disposed in the heating-process unit block C 2 are modules for heating the wafer W on which a protective film has been formed. The third heating-process unit block C 3 is also structured similarly to the first heating-process unit block C 1 , excluding the number of the stacked heating modules. The heating modules PEB disposed in the heating-process unit block C 3 are modules for heating the wafer W which has been subjected to an exposure process but is not yet subjected to a developing process. As shown in FIG. 4 , the liquid-process unit block C 2 and C 3 are respectively provided with the main arms D 2 and D 3 corresponding to the main arm D 1 . The respective main arms D 1 to D 3 are adapted to transfer the wafers W independently of each other.

Next, the cleaning block S 5 will be explained. The cleaning block S 5 is structured by stacking upward first to fifth cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 5 , in this order. The respective cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 5 are separated from each other by partition walls. The first and second cleaning unit blocks E 1 and E 2 are adjacent to the heating-process unit block C 1 . The third cleaning unit block E 3 is adjacent to the second heating-process unit block C 2 , and the fourth and fifth cleaning unit blocks E 4 and E 5 are adjacent to the heating-process unit blocks C 3 and C 4 , respectively.

The first to fifth cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 5 have substantially the same configuration. The second cleaning unit block E 2 shown in FIG. 2 is described as a representative of these cleaning unit blocks. A transfer area R 3 for wafer W is formed in the center of the second cleaning unit block E 2 . The transfer area R 3 is provided with a main arm F 1 . On the right and left sides of the transfer area R 3 , rear-surface cleaning modules BST 3 and BST 4 are disposed opposedly to each other. Each of the rear-surface cleaning modules BST is structured similarly to the antireflection-film forming module BCT, but is different therefrom in that the rear-surface cleaning module BST has the one process cup 33 and the one spin chuck 32 . In addition, differently from the antireflection film forming module BCT, there is provided, instead of the nozzle 34 , a nozzle, not shown, for supplying a cleaning liquid onto the rear surface and the bevel portion of the wafer W so as to clean the same, for each process cup 33 .

The first cleaning unit block E 1 is provided with rear-surface cleaning modules BST 1 and BST 2 corresponding to the rear-surface cleaning modules BST 3 and BST 4 , respectively. The third cleaning unit block E 3 is provided with rear-surface cleaning modules BST 5 and BST 6 corresponding to the rear-surface cleaning modules BST 3 and BST 4 , respectively. The transfer areas R 3 of the first to third cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 3 are communicated with each other. The first to third cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 3 share the main arm F 1 . Namely, the main arm F 1 is configured to be movable upward and downward to the respective height positions of the first to third cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 3 . The main arm F 1 is structured similarly to the main arm A, excluding that the guide rails 21 are not disposed. Namely, the main arm F 1 is configured to be movable rightward and leftward, movable upward and downward, rotatable about the vertical axis, and movable forward and rearward. The aforementioned delivery arms 15 to 17 are structured similarly to the main arm F 1 .

The fourth cleaning unit block E 4 is provided with post-exposure cleaning modules PIR 1 and PIR 2 , instead of the rear-surface cleaning modules BST 3 and BST 4 . Each of the post-exposure cleaning modules PIR 1 and PIR 2 is a module for supplying the wafer W with a process liquid for removing a protective film or a cleaning liquid, and is structured similarly to the resist-film forming module COT. However, differently therefrom, each of the post-exposure cleaning modules PIR 1 and PIR 2 has one process cup 23 and one spin chuck 22 . One nozzle 24 is disposed for the process cup 23 and the spin chuck 22 .

The fifth cleaning unit block E 5 is provided with post-exposure cleaning modules PIR 3 and PIR 4 corresponding to the post-exposure cleaning modules PIR 1 and PIR 2 , respectively. The fourth and fifth cleaning unit blocks E 4 and E 5 share a main arm F 2 corresponding to the main arm F 1 . The main arm F 2 is adapted to be moved upward and downward to the respective height positions of the fourth and fifth cleaning unit blocks E 4 and E 5 .

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , on the side of the carrier block S 1 of the transfer areas R 3 in the respective layers, there is disposed a shelf unit U 5 bridging the first to fifth cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 5 . In the shelf unit U 5 , there are provided a delivery module CPL 31 located on a position to which the main arm F 1 and the main arm D 2 are accessible, and a delivery module CPL 32 located on a position to which the main arm F 2 and the main arm D 3 are accessible. In addition, there is provided a delivery module CPL 33 located on a position to which the main arm F 2 and the main arm D 4 are accessible.

Next, the interface block S 6 will be explained with reference also to FIG. 7 as a longitudinal sectional view thereof. The interface block S 6 is provided with a shelf unit U 6 composed of a plurality of stacked modules. In the shelf unit U 6 , a delivery module TRS 21 is disposed on a height position to which the main arm F 2 is accessible, and a delivery module TRS 22 is disposed on a height position to which the main arm F 1 is accessible. In addition, the shelf unit U 6 is provided with delivery modules BU 41 , BU 42 , CPL 41 and CPL 42 .

In addition, the interface block S 6 includes interface arms 41 and 42 . The interface arms 41 and 42 are configured to be rotatable, movable upward and downward, and movable rightward and leftward. Further, the interface arm 41 is configured to be horizontally movable. The interface arm 41 is adapted to access the exposure apparatus S 7 and the delivery modules CPL 41 and CPL 42 , so as to transfer the wafer W thereamong. The interface arm 42 is adapted to access the respective modules constituting the shelf unit U 6 , so as to transfer the wafer W thereamong.

Next, a control unit 51 disposed on the coating and developing apparatus 1 will be explained. The control unit 51 includes a program, a memory and a CPU. The program incorporates commands (respective steps) by which control signals are transmitted from the control unit 51 to the respective modules and the transfer means of wafer W in the coating and developing apparatus 1 so as to achieve the below-described transfer operation of the wafer W and various processes thereof. The program (including a program relating to input operations of process parameters and display thereof) is stored in a non-transitory tangible medium, such as a flexible disc, a compact disc, a hard disc, an MO (magneto optic disc) or a memory card, and is installed in the control unit 51 . The memory stores a transfer schedule in which an ID of each wafer W in the carrier C and the module to which the wafer W is transferred are related to each other.

With reference to FIG. 2 , the transfer route of the wafer W through each unit in the coating and developing apparatus 1 is explained in detail. The wafer W, which has been delivered by the delivery arm 13 from the carrier C to the delivery module BU 11 of the shelf unit U 1 , is transferred to the delivery arm 15 and to the hydrophobing process modules ADH of one of the shelf units U 1 and U 2 , in this order. Then, the wafer W is subjected to the hydrophobing process. After the hydrophobing process, the wafer W is transferred to the delivery arm 15 , the delivery module CPL 11 of the shelf unit U 3 , the main arm A 1 of the first liquid-process unit block B 1 , and the antireflection-film forming module BCT 1 or BCT 2 , in this order. Then, an antireflection film is formed on the wafer W.

The wafer W on which the antireflection film has been formed is transferred to the main arm A 1 , the delivery module TRS 11 of the shelf unit U 4 , the main arm D 1 of the first heating-process unit block C 1 , the heating module CPH, the main arm D 1 , the delivery module TRS 12 of the shelf unit U 4 , the main arm A 2 of the second liquid-process unit block B 2 , and the resist-film forming module COT 1 or COT 2 , in this order. Then, a resist film is formed on the wafer W.

Following thereto, the wafer W is transferred to the main arm A 2 , the delivery module. CPL 12 of the shelf unit U 3 , the delivery arm 16 , the heating module PAB, the delivery arm 16 , the delivery module CPL 13 of the shelf unit U 3 , the main arm A 3 of the third liquid-process unit block B 3 , and the protective-film forming module TCT 1 or TCT 2 , in this order. Then, a protective film is formed as an upper layer on the resist film.

Then, the wafer W is transferred to the main arm A 3 , the delivery module TRS 13 of the shelf unit U 4 , the main arm D 2 of the second heating-process unit block C 2 , the heating module CHP, the main arm D 2 , the delivery module CPL 31 of the shelf unit U 5 , the main arm F 1 of the first to third cleaning unit blocks E 1 to E 3 , and one of the rear-surface cleaning modules BST 1 to BST 6 , in this order. Then, the wafer W is subjected to the rear-surface cleaning process. After the rear-surface cleaning process, the wafer W is transferred to the main arm F 1 , the transfer module TRS 22 of the shelf unit U 6 , the interface arm 42 , the delivery module BU 41 , the interface arm 42 , the delivery module CPL 41 , the interface arm 41 , and the exposure apparatus S 7 , in this order. Then, the wafer W is subjected to the immersion exposure process.

After the immersion exposure process, the wafer W is transferred to the interface arm 41 , the delivery module CPL 42 , the interface arm 42 , the delivery module BU 42 , the interface arm 42 , the delivery module TRS 21 , the main arm F 2 of the fourth and fifth cleaning unit blocks E 4 and E 5 , and one of the post-exposure cleaning modules PIR 1 to PIR 4 of the fourth or fifth cleaning unit block E 4 or E 5 . Then, the wafer W is subjected to the protective-film removal process and the cleaning process.

Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred to the main arm F 2 , the delivery module CPL 32 or CPL 33 of the shelf unit U 5 , the main arm D 3 of the third heating-process unit block C 3 , the heating module PEB, the main arm D 3 , and the delivery module TRS 14 or TRS 15 of the shelf unit U 4 . The wafer W, which has been transferred to the delivery module TRS 14 , is transferred to the main arm A 4 of the fourth liquid-process unit block B 4 , and the developing module DEV 1 or DEV 2 , in this order. After having been subjected to the developing process, the wafer W is transferred by the main arm A 4 to the delivery module CPL 14 of the shelf unit U 3 . On the other hand, the wafer W, which has been transferred to the delivery module TRS 15 , is transferred to the main arm A 5 of the fifth liquid-process unit block B 5 , and the developing module DEV 3 or DV 4 . After having been subjected to the developing process, the wafer W is transferred by the main arm A 5 to the delivery module CPL 15 of the shelf unit U 3 .

The wafer W, which has been transferred to one of the delivery modules CPL 14 and CPL 15 , is transferred to the delivery arm 17 , the heating module POST of the shelf unit U 1 or U 2 , the delivery arm 17 , and the inspection module of the shelf unit U 2 . Then, the wafer W is subjected to the inspection process. After the inspection process, the wafer W is transferred to the delivery arm 17 , the delivery module BU 12 of the shelf unit U 1 , and the delivery arm 13 , in this order. Then, the delivery arm 13 returns the wafer W to the carrier C.

In the course of transferring or processing the wafer W, when one of the liquid process modules in the respective layers of the liquid process block S 3 becomes unavailable, the transfer schedule is changed such that a succeeding wafer W is transferred to the other liquid process module opposed to the unavailable liquid process module. FIG. 8 schematically shows the transfer route of the wafer W in the aforementioned general transfer operation. FIG. 9 schematically shows a transfer route in which the resist-film forming module COT 2 and the developing module DEV 2 become unavailable, for example.

As shown by the flowchart of FIG. 9 , when the resist-film forming module COT 2 becomes unavailable, the transfer schedule is changed such that the wafer W, which has been programmed to be loaded into the resist-film forming module COT 2 , is transferred to the resist-film forming module COT 1 and is processed therein. In addition, the transfer schedule is changed such that the wafer W, which has been programmed to be loaded into the developing module DEV 2 , is transferred to the developing module DEV 1 and is processed therein. Similarly, when one of the modules TCT and/or one of the modules BCT become unavailable, the wafer W is transferred to the opposed liquid process module of the same kind. The case in which the liquid process module is unavailable is that the module is out of order or that the module is under maintenance. When the module is out of order, the control unit 51 automatically changes the transfer schedule in the above manner. When the module is under maintenance, a user sets the liquid process module that is maintained, and the control unit 51 changes the transfer schedule in the above manner.

The process block S 20 constituting the coating and developing apparatus 1 is formed by arranging the front heating-process related block S 2 , the liquid process block S 4 , and the rear heating block S 3 , in this order from the side of the carrier block S 1 to the side of the interface block S 6 . The liquid process block S 3 is formed by stacking the unit block B 1 for forming an antireflection film, the unit block B 2 for forming a resist film, the unit block B 3 for forming a protective film, and the unit blocks B 4 and 65 for developing. The liquid process modules of each of the unit blocks B 1 to 65 are located on the right and left sides of the transfer area R 1 of a wafer W extending from the carrier block S 1 toward the interface block S 6 . By locating the respective blocks and the respective unit blocks in this manner, the installation area of the coating and developing apparatus 1 can be reduced. In addition, when one of the two liquid process modules of the same kind disposed in the respective first to fifth liquid-process unit blocks B 1 to 65 is unavailable, the wafer W can be processed in the other module. Thus, the wafer W can be transferred to a downstream module succeeding the unavailable module. Thus, lowering of process efficiency can be restrained.

In addition, in the rear heating block S 4 , there are separately disposed the main arm D 1 , which is adapted to transfer the wafer W from the delivery module TRS 11 of the first liquid-process unit block B 1 to the delivery module TRS 12 of the second liquid-process unit block 62 , and the main arm D 2 , which is adapted to transfer the wafer W from the delivery module TRS 13 of the third liquid-process unit block B 3 to the cleaning block S 5 . Thus, the wafer W can be rapidly transferred between the liquid-process unit blocks B 1 and B 2 , and between the liquid-process unit block B 3 and the cleaning block S 5 , whereby a process efficiency can be improved. Note that, in this embodiment and another embodiment, a film to be formed on the resist film as an upper layer film by the third liquid-process unit block B 3 is not limited to a protective film, but may be an antireflection film to be formed on the resist as an upper layer film.

(Second Embodiment)

Next, a second embodiment of the coating and developing apparatus 1 will be explained with reference to FIG. 10 , focusing on differences of the second embodiment from the first embodiment. A transfer area R 1 of a second liquid-process unit block B 2 of the process block S 30 in FIG. 10 and a transfer area R 1 of a third liquid-process unit block B 3 thereof are not separated from each other, but are opened to each other. A main arm A 2 is shared by the second liquid-process unit block B 2 and the third liquid-process unit block B 3 , such that the main arm A 2 can be moved upward and downward between the second liquid-process unit block B 2 and the third liquid-process unit block B 3 . Excluding these configurations, the process block S 30 is structured similarly to the aforementioned process block S 20 .

Differently from the control unit 51 , a control unit 61 of the coating and developing apparatus 1 has a mode selecting part 62 . The mode selecting part 62 is composed of a mouse, a keyboard or a touch panel and the like, whereby a user can select one of a wafer transfer mode 1 and a wafer transfer mode 2 . When the transfer mode 1 is selected, a wafer W is transferred in the same manner as the first embodiment. Namely, an antireflection film, a resist film and a protective film are formed on the wafer W in this order, and thereafter the wafer W is subjected to the developing process. However, since the main arm A 3 is not provided in the coating and developing apparatus 1 in this embodiment, the transfer operation performed by the main arm A 3 in the first embodiment is performed by the main arm A 2 in place of the main arm A 3 .

On the other hand, when the transfer mode 2 is selected, the wafer W on which a resist film has been formed is transferred to a cleaning block S 5 , without a protective film being formed on the wafer W. The arrows in FIG. 10 show the flow of the wafer W when the transfer mode 2 is executed. To be more specific, the wafer W is transferred to the resist-film forming module COT 1 or COT 2 along the same route as that of the first embodiment. After a resist film has been formed in the resist-film forming module COT 1 or COT 2 , the wafer W is delivered to the main arm A 2 . The main arm A 2 transfers the wafer W to a delivery module TRS 13 located on a height position corresponding to the position of the third liquid-process unit block B 3 . The wafer W on the delivery module TRS 13 is transferred by the main arm D 2 of the second heating-process unit block C 2 , to a heating module CHP. After the wafer W has been heated in the heating module CHP, the wafer W is transferred to the cleaning block S 5 . Subsequently, the wafer W is transferred along the same transfer route as that of the first embodiment.

Also in this second embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, the installation area of the coating and developing apparatus can be reduced, and lowering of process efficiency can be restrained. In addition, when a protective film is not formed, the wafer W is loaded from the second liquid-process unit block B 2 to the rear heating process block S 4 , without being returned to the front heating-process related block S 2 . Thus, a throughput can be further improved.

(Third Embodiment)

As shown in FIG. 11 , a process block S 40 provided in a third embodiment of the coating and developing apparatus 1 does not include the liquid-process unit block B 3 and the heating-process unit block C 2 . Excluding this difference, the process block S 40 is structured similarly to the process block S 20 in the first embodiment. Similarly to the route of the first embodiment, a wafer W is transferred to an antireflection-film forming module, a delivery module TRS 11 , a heating module CHP, and a delivery module TRS 12 , in this order, and thereafter a resist film is formed on the wafer W in a resist-film forming module COT 1 or COT 2 . Then, the wafer W is transferred to the delivery module TRS 12 by a main arm A 2 , and is further delivered to a main arm D 1 of a first heating-process unit block C 1 . After that, the wafer W is transferred to a heating module CHP, and is heated therein. Then, the wafer W is transferred to a cleaning block S 5 . Subsequently, the wafer W is transferred along the same transfer route as that of the first embodiment. Even when the process block has such a configuration, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

A process block S 50 shown in FIG. 12 is a modification of the third embodiment. Similarly to the first embodiment, the process block S 50 includes first to third heating-process unit blocks C 1 to C 3 . However, differently from the first embodiment, the first heating-process unit block C 1 is adjacent to a first liquid-process unit block B 1 and a second liquid-process unit block B 2 on a lower side thereof, and the second heating-process unit block C 2 is adjacent to the second liquid-process unit block B 2 on an upper side thereof. A delivery module TRS 12 of a shelf unit U 4 of a liquid process block S 4 is located on a height position corresponding to the position of the first heating-process unit block C 1 , and a delivery module TRS 13 thereof is located on a height position corresponding to the position of the second heating-process unit block C 2 .

In the process block S 50 , after an antireflection forming process, a wafer W is loaded into the delivery module TRS 11 , similarly to the other embodiments. Thereafter, the wafer W is loaded by a main arm D 1 into a heating module CHP of the first heating-process unit block C 1 , and is subjected to a heating process therein. Then, the wafer W is transferred to the delivery module TRS 12 . After that, the wafer W, on which a resist film has been formed in the second liquid-process unit block B 2 , is transferred to the delivery module TRS 13 . Then, the wafer W is transferred by the main arm D 2 of the second heating-process unit block C 2 , to a heating module CHP of the second heating-process unit block C 2 , and is subjected to a heating process therein. Thereafter, the wafer W is transferred by the main arm D 2 to a cleaning block S 5 . Subsequently, the wafer W is transferred along the same transfer route as that of the first embodiment. Also in this embodiment, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained. In the respective embodiments, the main arm may be shared by the liquid-process unit blocks 34 and B 5 . Namely, the main arm A 5 may be omitted, and the main arm A 4 may be moved upward and downward between the liquid-process unit blocks B 4 and 35 so as to transfer the wafer W to the respective modules located on height positions corresponding to the positions of the liquid-process unit blocks B 4 and B 5 .

In the respective embodiment, although the unit block for developing is two-layered (the number of the unit blocks for developing is two), the unit block for developing may be three-layered or more. Alternatively, the unit block for developing may be single-layered. In addition, the unit blocks B 4 and B 5 for developing may share one main arm A, and this main arm may access the respective modules in the unit blocks B 4 and B 5 . Even when the main arm A is shared, as long as the unit block B has a height twice that of another unit block B, such a unit block B can be regarded as two-layered.

Next, modifications of the present invention will be described below.

(1) The group of liquid-process related unit blocks are formed by stacking the unit block for an antireflection film, the unit block for a resist film, and the unit block for an upper layer film, in this order from below. However, not limited thereto, these unit blocks may be stacked in this order from above. (2) In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 , the heating-process related blocks are divided to the block on the side of the carrier block S 1 of the group of liquid-process related unit blocks, and the block on the side of the interface block S 6 thereof. However, as shown in FIG. 13 , the heating-process related block may be disposed only on the side of the carrier block S 1 of the group of liquid-process related unit blocks. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 14 , the heating-process related block may be disposed only on the side of the interface block S 6 of the group of liquid-process related unit blocks. In FIGS. 13 and 14 , a chain line 71 depicts a flow of a wafer W.

The heating-process related block is formed by stacking the plurality of heating modules PAB and CHP for heating a coating film formed by each of the group of unit blocks for forming a coating film. However, when the heating-process related blocks are divided to the block on the side (front side) of the carrier block of the group of liquid-process related unit blocks and the block on the side (rear side) of the interface block S 6 thereof, the heating modules PAB and CHP for heating the coating film are disposed on one of the front heating block S 2 and the rear heating block S 4 .

The heating modules that perform a heating process to be performed before and after a developing process are stacked on one another, so as to constitute the heating-process related block. In this case, the heating module PEB for heating an exposed wafer W before being developed, and the heating module POST for heating a developed wafer W may be disposed all together on the side of the interface block S 6 of the unit block for developing, or may be disposed all together on the side of the carrier block S 1 of the unit block for developing. Therefore, the features of the present invention including the modifications are as follows.

a) In the process block, the heating-process related block is disposed on at least one of the side of the carrier block of the group of liquid-process related unit blocks, and the side of the interface block thereof. b) The heating-process related block includes the plurality of heating modules stacked on one another in the up and down direction, and the up and down transfer mechanism capable of being moved upward and downward so as to transfer a substrate between these heating modules. c) There are provided delivery stages disposed on each of the unit block for an antireflection film, the unit block for a resist film, and the unit block for an upper layer film, so as to transfer a substrate between the main transfer mechanism of each unit block and the up and down transfer mechanism. d) The transfer operation of a substrate between the unit block for an antireflection film, the unit block for a resist film, and the unit block for an upper layer film is performed by the up and down transfer mechanism via the delivery stages described in the above item c). e) Each of the heating modules is a module for heating a coating film coated on a substrate in each unit block of the group of unit blocks for forming a coating film.

When an upper layer film is not formed on a resist film of a wafer, the heating-process related block may be disposed on the rear side of a group (in this example, two unit blocks are referred to as “group”) of unit blocks for coating films, including the unit block for an antireflection film and the unit block for a resist film, which is shown in FIG. 15 , or may be disposed on the front side of the group of unit blocks for coating films, which is shown in FIG. 16 . In this manner, by separating the group of unit blocks for coating films and the unit block for developing from the heating modules, by stacking the heating modules as the heating-process related block, and by arranging the heating-process related block on the side of the carrier block of the group of liquid-process related unit blocks or on the side of the interface block thereof, an apparatus compact in size can be manufactured. In particular, when seen from the side of the carrier block, the size of the apparatus in the back and forth direction can be decreased. In addition, since the transfer operation of a wafer between the unit blocks for coating films can be performed by using the up and down transfer mechanism of the heating-process related block, the transfer efficiency can be raised. Further, in terms of hardwares, the transfer members can be efficiently designed as a whole.