Liquid processing apparatus and liquid processing method

摘要

Disclosed are a liquid processing apparatus and a liquid processing method that can advance a plurality of nozzle supporting arms into a processing chamber. The liquid processing apparatus includes a processing chamber, a nozzle configured to supply a fluid to a substrate held by a substrate holding unit, a nozzle supporting arm configured to support the nozzle, and an arm standby unit installed adjacent to the processing chamber and configured for the nozzle supporting arm retreating from the processing chamber to stand by. In the liquid processing apparatus, a plurality of nozzle supporting arms are installed and one nozzle supporting arm has a different height level from the other nozzle supporting arms.

主权项

1. A liquid processing apparatus, comprising:
a processing chamber having a substrate holding unit configured to hold a substrate and a cup disposed around the substrate holding unit; a plurality of nozzles each configured to supply a fluid to the substrate held by the substrate holding unit; a plurality of nozzle supporting arms provided in a horizontal direction each configured to support one of the plurality of nozzles and be movable horizontally between an advance position advancing into the processing chamber and a retreat position retreating from the processing chamber; a plurality of arm driving mechanisms provided in a horizontal direction each configured to rectilinearly move one of the plurality of nozzle supporting arms independently from each other for each of the plurality of nozzle supporting arms between the advance position and the retreat position such that each of the plurality nozzle supporting arms is configured to move independently between the advance position and the retreat position only by a rectilinear movement of the plurality of arm driving mechanisms; an arm standby unit installed adjacent to the processing chamber and configured for the plurality of nozzle supporting arms retreating from the processing chamber to stand by such that the plurality of nozzle supporting arms are completely isolated from the processing chamber after retreating from the processing chamber; and a wall installed between the processing chamber and the arm standby unit to extend vertically, wherein at least one nozzle supporting arm is configured to have a different height level from other nozzle supporting arms both in the retreat position in the arm standby unit and in the advance position in the processing chamber in order to avoid an interference between the at least one nozzle supporting arm and other nozzle supporting arms when each of the plurality of nozzle supporting arms moves simultaneously in the processing chamber only by the rectilinear movement of the sluralit of driving mechanisms to be placed in the processing chamber simultaneously above the substrate.