Method and apparatus for in-line processing and immediately sequential or simultaneous processing of flat and flexible substrates through viscous shear in thin cross section gaps for the manufacture of micro-electronic circuits or displays

Abstract

A method and apparatus for cleaning, drying, coating, baking etching and deposition of surfaces on glass substrate as it transitions thru and between small gaps between hydro-static porous media bearings. Due to the non-contact nature of the device extremely high pressures can be induced upon the work piece through various fluids without damage to the substrate, allowing the system to utilize the viscous nature of fluids to accomplish the desired cleaning, drying, coating, etching or baking. The process also allows for simultaneous and immediately sequential ordering of processes.

Description

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60 / 704,453, filed Aug. 2, 2005, whose disclosure is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety into the present disclosure.FIELD OF INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates to a cleaning, drying, coating, baking and etching apparatus for the “Flat Panel Display” (FPD) glass industry, architectural window elements, solar elements, as well as the precision panel substrate elements, film substrate industry, integrated circuit, and panel circuit boards of the semi-conductor industry, also as such other like devices and substrates arise, the usefulness of the present invention in those applications will be readily apparent. DISCUSSION OF THE RELATED ART [0003] In the FPD industry ever larger sheets of glass are being employed in the manufacture of Flat Panel Displays. The processing of these sheets is expensive in that their increasing size makes handl...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0020] An object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for cleaning, drying, coating, baking, and etching glass and semi-conductor substrates having a thin thickness and semi-uniform surface contained within an apparatus that allows for in-line processing and or controlled mini-environments for especially large panels.

[0043] Prior to this invention each step is performed separately, within the particular process's own arena on the manufacturing line, thereby requiring significant floor space and the attendant conveyance equipment required to safely transport the substrate between the manufacturing processes. A further aspect of the preferred embodiment entails the processing of substrates and especially large substrates in processes as described above but in an immediately sequential fashion. This includes individually sequential ordering but also is to include simultaneous processing, so that a substrate conceivably could have the 5 (or more) processes, isolated from each other, being performed at once. Such improvements are perceived by its inventor as a significant enhancement in a growing industry which can potentially realize large cost savings while improving overall processes parameters at the same time. The process times may have to be harmonized and more substrate area may be required for exclusion zones but the advantages are still compelling.

Problems solved by technology

The processing of these sheets is expensive in that their increasing size makes handling difficult regarding the brittle nature of the glass, due to its thin cross section—precluding anything but the gentlest method of transference.

This induces errors into the glass surface, though small, due to its contact nature; however this is occasionally desirable due to the polishing effect thereby created.

However, due to the atmosphere of the clean room having a very low level of humidity the process engenders streaking due to the cleaning solution drying on the glass surface prior to being rinsed, creating undesirable glass streaks and further issues with glass quality which degrade quality.

This process also experiences the same elemental problems as the cleaning process described above, in that the clean room environment has very low humidity, causing quick drying and the creation of streaks on the substrate surface.

Also, the water being flung off the surface of the wafers edge impinges the retaining wall of the wafer enclosure, atomizing the water droplets, and causing them to reattach to the wafer surface subsequently drying and causing water spots.

This process of utilizing water essentially poured over the surface is not entirely efficacious, allowing streaks, spots and other visual defects to remain.

This causes serious problems within the production framework, causing slowdowns and lost revenue due to production delays.

The handling of chemicals is difficult since the substrates involved require careful support as well as the fact that etchants are chemically reactive and so often caustic and dangerous to administer and contain.

There are inherent problems in this method in that the impurities within the etchant are allowed to remain on the surface of the substrate so that the surface of the substrate requires further remediation to correct what the etching process produces.

This process is time consuming and difficult to apply the bubbles evenly since there is no way to constrain the force of the bubbles uniformly, thereby the surface of the substrate is left with varying thicknesses which can cause further quality issues regarding the end product of the process.

Another problem inherent in the process of etching is the transference of the substrate into the tank with the etchant, the subsequent handling of the substrate and the etchant material, and the overall environment created with tanks, sprays and the necessary equipment required to process said steps effectively within the clean room environment.

Problems associated with un-even heating arise in that if the heat source is not applied evenly to the substrate surface, warping and or variations in the surface quality can occur, as well as areas where there is more rapid evaporation of the rinse water from the cleaning process, leaving behind streaks and or water spots.

Still further, baking presents problems to the cleanliness of the clean room environment, since the presence of high heat sources can create unwanted particulate and contamination in clean room environments through the opening and closing of the chamber used to heat the substrates.

This is unsatisfactory since the thickness of the coating and the processing parameters need to be controlled for precision applications, also since the size of the apparatus required for ever larger generations of glass is prohibitive, since such equipment must be operated in a clean room environment.

Substrates can be dipped and or sprayed as well—neither of which is suitable for FPD glass, or semi-conductor industry products due to handling issues.

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