Patent ID: 7332056

Claim:
A thin film removing device for removing unnecessary parts of a thin film formed on a surface of a substrate having side edges forming a square shape from edge parts of the surface of the substrate by jetting a solvent against the edge parts of the surface of the substrate in a liquid resist application process ahead of an exposure process, said thin film removing device comprising: a support table on which the substrate is to be mounted; an approach stage configured to be disposed near edges of the substrate mounted on the support table, having flat approach parts having surfaces configured to be disposed adjacent to the substrate and to be extended substantially flush with a surface of the substrate; thin film removing means having a nozzle head of a substantially U-shaped cross section to receive an edge part of the substrate, the nozzle head having an upper jetting portion, a lower jetting portion and a sucking portion, the upper jetting portion configured to jet a solvent from one surface side of the substrate toward the edge parts of the substrate mounted on the support table, the lower jetting portion configured to jet a solvent from other surface side of the substrate toward the edge parts of the substrate, and the sucking portion configured to suck a solution produced by dissolving part of the thin film in the solvent; and a thin film removing means moving mechanism configured to move the nozzle head having the upper jetting portion, the lower jetting portion and the sucking portion along the side edges of the substrate and the flat approach parts of the approach stage adjacent to the side edges of the substrate so that the thin film removing means jet the solvent toward the edge parts of an entire surface of the substrate.