EXPOSURE APPARATUS EQUIPPED WITH SUBSTRATE CRACK TREATMENT SYSTEM

• Main Author: UCHIDA YOSHINORI
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; Japanese
• Published: 23.04.2015
• Subjects: APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR; BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; CINEMATOGRAPHY; CLEANING; CLEANING IN GENERAL; ELECTRIC SOLID STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; ELECTROGRAPHY; HOLOGRAPHY; MATERIALS THEREFOR; ORIGINALS THEREFOR; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHOTOGRAPHY; PHOTOMECHANICAL PRODUCTION OF TEXTURED OR PATTERNED SURFACES,e.g. FOR PRINTING, FOR PROCESSING OF SEMICONDUCTORDEVICES; PHYSICS; PREVENTION OF FOULING IN GENERAL; SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; TRANSPORTING

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce an apparatus stop time for treatment of cracked substrates on a substrate chuck 32.SOLUTION: In an exposure apparatus, an appropriate treatment of recovering cracked substrates is carried out by a substrate recovery treatment sequence according to the status of cracked substrates, and, in substrate treatment means 80, cutting of cracked substrates by a substrate cutting mechanism 81, transfer of the cut substrates from a substrate stage 33 by a substrate movement mechanism 82, recovery of cut and moved substrates by a substrate recovery port 83, cleaning of the surface of the substrate stage after the recovery by a cleaning mechanism 84 and a check of the recovery condition after the cleaning are executed, and the series of the operations so far carried out by an operator are automatized, allowing removal of cracked substrates 30 on the substrate stage 33 in a minimum-requirement apparatus stop time without operator's entering the apparatus. 【課題】基板チャック３２上での割れ基板の処理による装置停止時間を抑制させる。【解決手段】割れ基板の状態に応じて、基板回収処理シーケンスによって適切な割れ基板の回収処理が行われ、基板処理手段８０では基板裁断機構８１による割れ基板の裁断、基板移動機構８２による裁断した基板の基板ステージ３３上からの移動、基板回収口８３による移動された裁断済み基板の回収、及びクリーニング機構８４による回収後の基板ステージ上のクリーニング、及びクリーニング後の回収状態確認が行われることで、作業者が行っていた一連の作業が自動化され、作業者が装置内に入ることなく必要最小限の装置停止時間で、基板ステージ３３上の割れ基板３０を取り除くことを特徴とする露光装置。【選択図】 図５