Patent ID: 7540922

Claim:
A thin film forming apparatus comprising: a housing body having a housing space formed therein for housing a substrate; heating means for heating the substrate housed inside the housing space to a prescribed temperature; spraying means for spraying a prescribed solution containing a thin film forming material onto one surface portion of the substrate housed in the housing space and heated to the prescribed temperature by the heating means; thickness information generating means for generating prescribed information on thickness of a thin film being formed on the one surface portion of the substrate by the thin film forming material; control means for allowing the spraying means to spray the prescribed solution containing the thin film forming material so that the thin film being formed on the one surface portion of the substrate has a prescribed thickness, on the basis of the prescribed information from the thickness information generating means; holding means for holding the thickness information generating means in such a manner as to be movable into or out of the housing body as the substrate remains fixed inside the housing space; and removing means for removing from the housing space the solution which is sprayed by the spraying means and floats around the substrate inside the housing space, wherein the removing means includes at least a suction line operably connected to the housing space for removing by suction the solution floating around the substrate.