Patents by Inventor Yoshiteru Fukuda

Yoshiteru Fukuda has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7479190
    Abstract: In the present invention, a plurality of solvent supply nozzles for solvents having different solubility parameters are provided in a coating treatment apparatus. For a solvent supply nozzle for use at the time of edge rinse, a solvent supply nozzle is selected that discharges a removal solvent having a solubility parameter different by a set value or more from that of a coating solvent contained in a coating solution. During coating treatment, the coating solution is discharged from a coating solution supply nozzle onto the central portion of a rotated substrate to form a solution film having a predetermined film thickness. Immediately after the formation, edge rinse is started with the coating solution on the substrate not dry yet, in which the removal solvent is supplied to the peripheral portion of the substrate from the selected solvent supply nozzle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2009
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Yoshiteru Fukuda, Tomohiro Iseki, Takayuki Ishii
  • Publication number: 20080193654
    Abstract: A laser irradiation unit for applying a laser light is provided in a resist coating unit. At the time of resist coating treatment, the resist solution is discharged onto a central portion of the rotated wafer from a resist solution supply nozzle to form a resist film on the wafer. Thereafter, the laser irradiation unit moves to an outer peripheral portion of the wafer and applies the laser light onto the resist film on the outer peripheral portion to dry the resist film on the outer peripheral portion. After the resist film on the outer peripheral portion dries, the application of laser light is continued, and the solvent supply nozzle moves to a position above the edge portion of the wafer and supplies the solvent to the resist film on the edge portion of the wafer. The supply of the solvent dissolves and removes the resist film on the edge portion of the wafer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 13, 2005
    Publication date: August 14, 2008
    Applicant: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Yoshiteru Fukuda, Tomohiro Iseki, Takayuki Ishii
  • Publication number: 20070257085
    Abstract: In the present invention, a plurality of suction ports are provided in a heating plate of a heat processing apparatus. The suction ports are provided at a central portion, an intermediate portion, and a peripheral portion of a substrate mounting surface of the heating plate, respectively. The warped state of the substrate before heat-processed is measured, so that when the substrate warps protruding downward, the suction start timing via a suction port corresponding to the outer peripheral portion of the substrate is set to be relatively early as compared to the suction start timings via the other suction ports, and when the substrate warps protruding upward, the suction start timing via the suction port corresponding to the central portion of the substrate is set to be relatively early as compared to the suction start timings via the other suction ports.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2007
    Publication date: November 8, 2007
    Applicant: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Yoshiteru Fukuda, Kenichi Shigetomi, Shouken Moro
  • Publication number: 20070082134
    Abstract: A spin chuck rotatably holds a semiconductor wafer, while resist is dropped on a surface of the semiconductor wafer through a resist application nozzle and thus applied thereon, and before the resist applied on the wafer dries, a cleaning liquid is supplied through a bevel cleaning nozzle to a portion of the wafer located at a peripheral portion thereof in a vicinity of a beveled portion to remove the resist adhering to the beveled portion. Thereafter, a film of the resist that is formed on the surface of the wafer is dried.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 2, 2006
    Publication date: April 12, 2007
    Applicant: TOKYO ELECTON LIMITED
    Inventors: Yoshiteru Fukuda, Nobuhiro Ogata, Takayuki Ishii, Keiji Tanouchi
  • Publication number: 20060144330
    Abstract: A coating process method in which a coating liquid is discharged onto the surface of a target substrate to be processed while rotating the target substrate so as to expand the coating liquid radially outward on the target substrate and, thus, to form a coated film comprises the step of detecting that the actual discharging of a coating liquid from a coating liquid discharging nozzle is started, and the step of controlling based on a signal of the detection at least one of the driving timing of a pump for allowing the coating liquid to be discharged from the coating liquid discharging nozzle, the operation timing of a valve mounted to a pipe for supplying the coating liquid into the coating liquid discharging nozzle, and the rotation starting or stopping timing of the target substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2006
    Publication date: July 6, 2006
    Inventors: Takashi Takekuma, Yasuyuki Kometani, Yoshiteru Fukuda, Junya Minamida
  • Publication number: 20060068110
    Abstract: In the present invention, a plurality of solvent supply nozzles for solvents having different solubility parameters are provided in a coating treatment apparatus. For a solvent supply nozzle for use at the time of edge rinse, a solvent supply nozzle is selected that discharges a removal solvent having a solubility parameter different by a set value or more from that of a coating solvent contained in a coating solution. During coating treatment, the coating solution is discharged from a coating solution supply nozzle onto the central portion of a rotated substrate to form a solution film having a predetermined film thickness. Immediately after the formation, edge rinse is started with the coating solution on the substrate not dry yet, in which the removal solvent is supplied to the peripheral portion of the substrate from the selected solvent supply nozzle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2005
    Publication date: March 30, 2006
    Inventors: Yoshiteru Fukuda, Tomohiro Iseki, Takayuki Ishii
  • Publication number: 20030180444
    Abstract: A coating process method in which a coating liquid is discharged onto the surface of a target substrate to be processed while rotating the target substrate so as to expand the coating liquid radially outward on the target substrate and, thus, to form a coated film comprises the step of detecting that the actual discharging of a coating liquid from a coating liquid discharging nozzle is started, and the step of controlling based on a signal of the detection at least one of the driving timing of a pump for allowing the coating liquid to be discharged from the coating liquid discharging nozzle, the operation timing of a valve mounted to a pipe for supplying the coating liquid into the coating liquid discharging nozzle, and the rotation starting or stopping timing of the target substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 11, 2003
    Publication date: September 25, 2003
    Inventors: Takashi Takekuma, Yasuyuki Kometani, Yoshiteru Fukuda, Junya Minamida