Patent ID: 8419299
Filing Date: 2013-04-16
Classification: G03F,H01L

Abstract:
1. A coating and developing apparatus comprising a carrier block, a processing block and an interface block arrayed in that order, the interface block connectable to an exposure apparatus, said coating and developing apparatus being configured to transfer a substrate from a carrier, which has been loaded into the carrier block, to the processing block, form coating films containing a resist film, deliver the substrate to the exposure apparatus via the interface block, develop the substrate, which has been exposed by the exposure apparatus and returned to the processing block via the interface block, in the processing block, and return the substrate into the carrier block, wherein: (a) the processing block includes a liquid processing block disposed on a carrier block side and a heating processing block disposed on an interface block side, the liquid processing block comprising a stack of a liquid processing unit blocks; (b) the liquid processing unit blocks includes a first unit block, a second unit block and one or more of developing unit blocks, said one or more developing unit blocks overlying or underlying a stack of the first unit block and the second unit block, the second unit block overlying the first unit block; (c, d) said coating and developing apparatus has one of a combination of the features (c (c (d (c (d (e) each of said one or more developing unit blocks includes: a transport passage extending linearly from the carrier block side to the interface block side; developing modules disposed on both sides of the transport passage each for supplying developer to a substrate; and a main transfer mechanism that moves along the transport passage to transport the substrate to and from the developing modules; (f) the heating processing block includes: a stack of heating modules including first heating modules assigned to the first and second unit blocks to heat a substrate after being supplied with the chemical liquid, and second heating modules assigned to said one or more developing unit blocks to heat a substrate before being supplied with a developer; and a vertical transport mechanism for transporting a substrate to and from the heating modules; (g) a transfer stage is provided on the interface block side of the first unit block for transferring a substrate coated with the chemical liquid in the first unit block from the main transfer mechanism of the first unit block to the vertical transport mechanism; a transfer stage is provided on the interface block side of the second unit block for transferring a substrate coated with the chemical liquid in the second unit block from the main transfer mechanism of the second unit block to the vertical transport mechanism; and a transfer stage is provided on the interface block side of each of said one or more developing unit blocks for transferring an exposed substrate from the vertical transport mechanism to the main transfer mechanism of the developing unit block; (h) a transfer stage is provided on the carrier block side of each of said one or more developing unit blocks for receiving a developed substrate from the main transfer mechanism of the developing unit block; a transfer stage is provided on the carrier block side of the first unit block for transferring a substrate, removed from the carrier, to the main transfer mechanism of the first unit block; and (i) a transfer mechanism is provided to transfer a substrate, removed from a carrier placed in the carrier block, to the transfer stage on the carrier block side associated with the first unit block, and receive a substrate from the transfer stage on the carrier block side associated with each of said one or more developing unit blocks.