阅读说明：本技术 晶圆显影装置及其显影方法 (Wafer developing device and developing method thereof ) 是由 程潇 方超 袁文旭 袁元 高志虎 于 2019-10-23 设计创作，主要内容包括：公开了一种晶圆显影装置,包括：喷头,用于喷洒显影液；旋转组件,与所述喷头连接,用于控制所述喷头以第一方向旋转喷洒显影液；承载组件,用于承载晶圆；调节组件,用于调整喷头位置,使喷头的中心与所述晶圆的中心重合。本发明还提供一种晶圆显影方法,将喷头调整至其中心与晶圆中心重合,以第一方向旋转喷洒显影液,减少喷头拉力的影响,避免显影液的回流,提高显影工艺的稳定性。(Disclosed is a wafer developing apparatus including: the spray head is used for spraying the developing solution; the rotating assembly is connected with the spray head and used for controlling the spray head to rotationally spray the developing solution in a first direction; the bearing component is used for bearing the wafer; and the adjusting component is used for adjusting the position of the spray head so that the center of the spray head is superposed with the center of the wafer. The invention also provides a wafer developing method, the nozzle is adjusted to the position that the center of the nozzle coincides with the center of the wafer, the developing solution is sprayed in a rotating mode in the first direction, the influence of the pulling force of the nozzle is reduced, the backflow of the developing solution is avoided, and the stability of the developing process is improved.)

1. A wafer developing apparatus, comprising:

the spray head is used for spraying the developing solution;

the rotating assembly is connected with the spray head and used for controlling the spray head to rotationally spray the developing solution in a first direction;

the bearing component is used for bearing the wafer;

and the adjusting component is used for adjusting the position of the spray head so that the center of the spray head is superposed with the center of the wafer.

2. The wafer developing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotating assembly is further connected to the carrying assembly for controlling the wafer to rotate in the second direction;

wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction.

3. The wafer developing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the shower head has a shape of a long bar.

4. The wafer developing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the movement path formed by the rotation of the shower head is in accordance with the shape of the wafer.

5. A wafer developing method, comprising:

adjusting the position of the spray head to enable the center of the spray head to be superposed with the center of the wafer;

and controlling the spray head to rotationally spray the developing solution in a first direction.

6. The wafer developing method according to claim 5, further comprising:

and controlling the wafer to rotate in a second direction, wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction.

7. The wafer developing method according to claim 5, wherein the moving path formed by the rotation of the nozzle is in accordance with the shape of the wafer.

Technical Field

The invention relates to the field of semiconductor photoetching technology, in particular to a wafer developing device and a developing method thereof.

Background

The increase in memory density of memory devices is closely related to the progress of semiconductor manufacturing processes. As the aperture of a semiconductor manufacturing process becomes smaller, the memory density of a memory device becomes higher. In order to further increase the memory density, a memory device of a three-dimensional structure (i.e., a 3D memory device) has been developed. The 3D memory device includes a plurality of memory cells stacked in a vertical direction, can increase integration in multiples on a unit area of a wafer, and can reduce cost.

In a three-dimensional memory device, such as a 3DNAND flash memory, having a substrate and a stack structure on the substrate. The stacked structure is formed by alternately stacking the interlayer insulating layers and the grid electrodes, the central area of the stacked structure is a core storage area, the edge area of the stacked structure is a step structure, and the core storage area is used for forming a storage unit string. And each layer of grid electrode is used as a grid line of each layer of storage unit, and further, the grid electrode is led out through the contact on the step, so that the stacked 3D NAND memory device is realized.

With the gradual development of the 3DNAND process, the thickness of the photoresist needs to be increased in the step process so as to improve the step number which can be manufactured by a single etching process, thereby improving the process stability and reducing the process load and the process cost. As the photoresist thickness increases, the development requirements also increase. The developing process of the current step process is mainly performed by using an LD type developing nozzle in a forward scanning manner, as shown in fig. 1. The spray head scans from one side of the wafer to the other side at a constant speed and continuously sprays liquid. The liquid spraying mode of scanning can ensure that the developing solution is gradually paved on the surface of the wafer. However, since the nozzle moves forward, a tensile force is generated in the developing solution, and when the contact between the photoresist and the developing solution is not good, a certain problem occurs.

However, the existing scanning method generates a pulling force on the developing solution, and the developing solution at the rear end of the wafer may flow forward, so that the rear end is insufficiently developed, and photoresist residue is generated on the surface of the wafer; because the wafer is circular, when the spray head scans, a part of the developing solution is not sprayed on the surface of the wafer, which causes waste.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a wafer developing apparatus and a developing method thereof, wherein a nozzle is adjusted to have a center coinciding with a center of a wafer, and a developing solution is rotationally sprayed in a first direction, so as to reduce an influence of a pulling force of the nozzle and prevent a backflow of the developing solution.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wafer developing apparatus including:

the spray head is used for spraying the developing solution;

the rotating assembly is connected with the spray head and used for controlling the spray head to rotationally spray the developing solution in a first direction;

the bearing component is used for bearing the wafer;

and the adjusting component is used for adjusting the position of the spray head so that the center of the spray head is superposed with the center of the wafer.

Preferably, the rotating assembly is further connected to the carrying assembly for controlling the wafer to rotate in the second direction;

wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction.

Preferably, the spray head is in the shape of a long strip.

Preferably, the moving path formed by the rotation of the spray head is consistent with the shape of the wafer.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wafer developing method including:

adjusting the position of the spray head to enable the center of the spray head to be superposed with the center of the wafer;

and controlling the spray head to rotationally spray the developing solution in a first direction.

Preferably, the wafer developing method further includes:

and controlling the wafer to rotate in a second direction, wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction.

Preferably, the moving path formed by the rotation of the spray head is consistent with the shape of the wafer.

According to the wafer developing device and the developing method thereof, the nozzle is adjusted to enable the center of the nozzle to coincide with the center of the wafer, the developing solution is sprayed in a rotating mode in the first direction, the influence of the pulling force of the nozzle is reduced, the backflow of the developing solution is avoided, and the stability of the developing process is improved.

Furthermore, the wafer is controlled to rotate in a second direction, the first direction is opposite to the second direction, and the bidirectional movement of the nozzle and the wafer can shorten the processing time and improve the efficiency.

Furthermore, the moving path formed by the rotation of the spray head is consistent with the shape of the wafer, so that the developing solution can be fully utilized, and the cost is saved.

Drawings

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a moving path of a nozzle of a wafer developing apparatus in the prior art;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a wafer developing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a moving path of a showerhead in a wafer developing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 shows a flow chart of a wafer development method according to an embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

Various embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Like elements in the various figures are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals. For purposes of clarity, the various features in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

The following detailed description of embodiments of the present invention is provided in connection with the accompanying drawings and examples.

The term "above" as used herein means above the plane of the substrate, and may refer to direct contact between materials or spaced apart.

In the present application, the term "semiconductor structure" refers to the general term for the entire semiconductor structure formed in the various steps of manufacturing a memory device, including all layers or regions that have been formed. In the following description, numerous specific details of the invention, such as structure, materials, dimensions, processing techniques and techniques of the devices are described in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the invention. However, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.

The present invention may be embodied in various forms, some examples of which are described below.

Fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a wafer developing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 2, the wafer developing apparatus includes a shower head 10, a rotating assembly 20, a carrier assembly 30, and a regulating assembly 40.

Wherein, the nozzle 10 is used for spraying the developing solution.

In this embodiment, the shape of the spray head 10 is a long strip.

The rotating assembly 20 is connected to the spray head 10 and is used for controlling the spray head 10 to rotationally spray the developing solution in the first direction S1.

The carrying assembly 30 is used for carrying the wafer 50;

the adjustment assembly 40 is used to adjust the position of the showerhead 10 such that the center of the showerhead 10 coincides with the center of the wafer 50.

In this embodiment, the rotating assembly 20 is further connected to the carrying assembly 30 for controlling the wafer 50 to rotate in a second direction S2; wherein the first direction S1 is opposite to the second direction S2, as shown in fig. 3. The bi-directional movement of the showerhead 10 and the wafer 50 can reduce the process time and increase the efficiency.

In this embodiment, the moving path formed by the rotation of the nozzle 10 is the same as the shape of the wafer 50, so that the developing solution can be fully utilized, and the cost can be saved.

According to the wafer developing device provided by the invention, the nozzle is adjusted to enable the center of the nozzle to coincide with the center of the wafer, and the developing solution is sprayed in a rotating mode in the first direction, so that the influence of the pulling force of the nozzle is reduced, the backflow of the developing solution is avoided, and the stability of the developing process is improved.

Furthermore, the wafer is controlled to rotate in a second direction, the first direction is opposite to the second direction, and the bidirectional movement of the nozzle and the wafer can shorten the processing time and improve the efficiency.

Furthermore, the moving path formed by the rotation of the spray head is consistent with the shape of the wafer, so that the developing solution can be fully utilized, and the cost is saved.

Fig. 4 shows a flow chart of a wafer development method according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 4, the wafer developing method includes the following steps.

In step S101, the position of the showerhead is adjusted so that the center of the showerhead coincides with the center of the wafer.

In step S102, the spray head is controlled to spray the developer solution in a first direction.

In this embodiment, the moving path formed by the rotation of the nozzle head is consistent with the shape of the wafer.

In a preferred embodiment, the wafer developing method further includes step S103.

In step S103, the wafer is controlled to rotate in a second direction, wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction.

According to the wafer developing method provided by the invention, the nozzle is adjusted to enable the center of the nozzle to coincide with the center of the wafer, and the developing solution is sprayed in a rotating mode in the first direction, so that the influence of the pulling force of the nozzle is reduced, the backflow of the developing solution is avoided, and the stability of the developing process is improved.

Furthermore, the wafer is controlled to rotate in a second direction, the first direction is opposite to the second direction, and the bidirectional movement of the nozzle and the wafer can shorten the processing time and improve the efficiency.

Furthermore, the moving path formed by the rotation of the spray head is consistent with the shape of the wafer, so that the developing solution can be fully utilized, and the cost is saved.

In the above description, the technical details of patterning, etching, and the like of each layer are not described in detail. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that layers, regions, etc. of the desired shape may be formed by various technical means. In addition, in order to form the same structure, those skilled in the art can also design a method which is not exactly the same as the method described above. In addition, although the embodiments are described separately above, this does not mean that the measures in the embodiments cannot be used in advantageous combination.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, these examples are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof. Various alternatives and modifications can be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention, and these alternatives and modifications are intended to fall within the scope of the invention.