Method and apparatus for processing wafer-shaped articles

摘要

The wet treatment of wafer-shaped articles is improved by utilizing a droplet generator designed to produce a spray of monodisperse droplets. The droplet generator is mounted above a spin chuck, and is moved across a major surface of the wafer-shaped article in a linear or arcuate path. The droplet generator includes a transducer acoustically coupled to its body such that sonic energy reaches a region of the body surrounding the discharge orifices. Each orifice has a width w of at least 1 μm and at most 200 μm and a height h such that a ratio of h to w is not greater than 1.

主权项

1. Apparatus for wet treatment of wafer-shaped articles, comprising:
a spin chuck adapted to hold a wafer-shaped article in a predetermined orientation; a droplet generator having a body, an inlet for liquid, at least one orifice for discharging liquid onto a surface of a wafer-shaped article when positioned on the spin chuck, and at least one transducer acoustically coupled to the body such that sonic energy reaches a region of the body surrounding the at least one orifice; wherein the at least one orifice has a width w of at least 1 μm and at most 200 μm and a height h such that a ratio of h to w is not greater than 1; wherein the droplet generator is configured to dispense liquid through the at least one orifice as a spray of monodisperse liquid droplets; a process liquid dispenser positioned relative to the spin chuck and the droplet generator so as to dispense a process liquid onto a same side of a wafer-shaped article as liquid discharged from the droplet generator; and a controller configured to control a spray of monodisperse liquid droplets from the droplet generator in relation to process liquid dispensed from the process liquid dispenser.