Patent ID: 6902762
Filing Date: 2005-06-07
Classification: H01L,Y10S

Abstract:
1. A substrate processing method which comprises transferring substrates one by one from a cassette section to a processing section by a transfer mechanism at a timing of each predetermined cycle time, the cassette section having a cassette which houses the plurality of substrates constituting lots, the processing section including a plurality of solution processing units and a plurality of substrate carrying mechanisms; carrying the substrates in sequence along a cyclic route of the processing section by the substrate carrying mechanisms; executing a plurality of processes for the substrates in sequence; carrying the processed substrates from the processing section to the cassette section; and executing dummy dispense by at least one of the solution processing units in a period between a process of a preceding lot substrate and a process of a succeeding lot substrate, the method comprising: stopping the transfer of a head substrate of the succeeding lot from the transfer mechanism to the substrate carrying mechanisms for a period which is an integral multiple of the cycle time, after a last substrate of the preceding lot is transferred from the cassette section to the processing section by the transfer mechanism, the substrate carrying mechanism moving along the cyclic route during the substrate transfer stop period without waiting until the completion of the dummy dispense of the solution processing unit; executing the dummy dispense of a predetermined dummy dispense time by the solution processing unit during the substrate transfer stop period; and transferring the head substrate of the succeeding lot to the processing section by the transfer mechanism after the dummy dispense.