Patent ID: 8828144

Claim:
A process for cleaning a wafer having an uneven pattern at its surface, comprising at least the steps of: cleaning the wafer with a cleaning liquid; substituting the cleaning liquid retained in recessed portions of the wafer with a water-repellent liquid chemical after cleaning; and drying the wafer, wherein the cleaning liquid comprises 80 mass % or greater of a solvent having a boiling point of 55 to 200° C., and wherein the water-repellent liquid chemical supplied in the substitution step has a temperature of not lower than 40° C. and lower than a boiling point of the water-repellent liquid chemical thereby imparting water repellency at least to surfaces of the recessed portions, wherein the wafer contains a silicon element at the surfaces of the recessed portions, wherein the water-repellent liquid chemical is one containing a silicon compound A of general formula [1] (R1) a Si(H) b X 1 4-a-b [1] wherein R 1 mutually independently represents a monovalent organic group having a C 1 -C 18 monovalent hydrocarbon group the hydrogen elements of which may partially or entirely be replaced with a fluorine element(s); X 1 mutually independently represents at least one group selected from the group consisting of monovalent functional group of which element to be bonded to a silicon element is nitrogen, a monovalent functional group of which element to be bonded to a silicon element is oxygen, a halogen group, nitrile group and —CO—NH—Si(CH 3 ) 3 group; a is an integer of from 1 to 3; b is an integer of from 0 to 2; the total of a and b is 1 to 3; or wherein the water-repellent liquid chemical is one containing a silicon compound A and an acid or a base; and wherein the boiling point of a component the amount of which is the largest in mass ratio among components of the water-repellent liquid chemical is not less than the boiling point of the cleaning liquid.