Patent ID: 11967509
Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
Field: Semiconductors (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC H  B | IPC B  H

Claim 0:
1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a substrate holder including a plate having a holding portion provided thereon, the holding portion holds a peripheral portion of a substrate;
a rotator including a rotation shaft that rotates the substrate by rotating the plate;
a processing liquid supply that is disposed at a center of the rotator and supplies a processing liquid and an inert gas to a lower surface of the substrate held by the substrate holder; and
a controller that performs an overall control of the substrate processing apparatus,
wherein the controller is programmed to:
first supply the processing liquid to the lower surface of the substrate while rotating the substrate thereby performing a liquid processing on the lower surface of the substrate,
stop the supply of the processing liquid to the lower surface of the substrate in the first supply,
second supply the inert gas at a first supply flow rate in an initial state where a liquid film covers the lower surface of the substrate including a central portion of the lower surface of the substrate while rotating the substrate, a combination of the supply of the inert gas at the first supply flow rate and rotation of the substrate together forming a dry core on the lower surface of the substrate, the dry core being surrounded by the liquid film and positioned at the central portion of the lower surface of the substrate, and
third supply the inert gas at a second supply flow rate lower than the first supply flow rate at a predetermined time after the second supply is started while rotating the substrate,

wherein a rotation speed of the substrate is constant throughout the second supply when the dry core is formed and at least a portion of the third supply as a boundary of the dry core approaches a periphery of the substrate.