An alignment module for positioning a mask on a substrate comprises a mask stocker, an alignment stage, and a transfer robot. The mask stocker houses a mask cassette that stores a plurality of masks. The alignment stage is configured to support a carrier and a substrate. The transfer robot is configured to transfer one of the one or more masks from the mask stocker to the alignment stage and position the mask over the substrate. The alignment module may be part of an integrated platform having one or more transfer chambers, a factory interface having a substrate carrier chamber and one or more processing chambers. A carrier may be coupled to a substrate within the substrate carrier chamber and moved between the processing chambers to generate a semiconductor device.

A substrate treatment apparatus includes a transport part to transport a transparent rectangular substrate, a substrate support part to support the substrate, light generators to irradiate two different lights onto the moving substrate, and sense the irradiated lights, and a controller to determine a posture of the substrate with reference to the sensed lights and control the transport part such that the substrate is seated on the substrate support part in a default posture that is preset. The controller determines the posture of the transparent rectangular substrate with respect to the default posture using a time difference between a time point at which a first light of the two different lights is not transmitted through an edge of the transparent rectangular substrate and a time point at which a second light of the two different lights is not transmitted through the edge of the transparent rectangular substrate.

A method of a handling semiconductor wafers in a space of a semiconductor wafer processing facility includes: loading a cassette containing at least one semiconductor wafer into a storage buffer of a load port; measuring, from within the storage buffer, a position of a selected at least one semiconductor wafer being retrieve from the cassette residing in the storage buffer; and determining, at least in part based on said measuring, a variation of the position of the selected semiconductor wafer from a nominal position.

A transport system includes a robot, sensors (an aligner sensor, a protrusion detecting sensor) and a controller. The robot having a hand which supports a wafer and transports the wafer to an aligner apparatus. The sensor detects the position of the wafer before the robot delivers the wafer to the aligner apparatus while supporting the wafer on the hand. The controller determines the positional deviation of the wafer based on a detection value of the sensor.

An information processing apparatus for controlling a conveying apparatus to convey a substrate to be processed by a substrate processing apparatus includes a processor that performs operations including controlling the conveying apparatus, according to teaching data, to perform a first movement operation including putting the substrate into a container configured to carry the substrate and a second movement operation including getting the substrate from the container, acquiring image data including an image of a placement position for the substrate in the container during the first movement operation and the second movement operation, performing image processing on the image data to quantify a relationship between a position of the container and a position of the substrate, determining the quantified relationship to yield a determination result, and outputting correction data for correcting the conveying apparatus with respect to the first movement operation and the second movement operation, based on the determination result.

The present invention provides a substrate treating apparatus including: a support unit for supporting and rotating a substrate on which a first pattern and a second pattern different from the first pattern are formed; a liquid supply unit for supplying a treatment liquid to the substrate supported on the support unit; and a heating unit for heating any one of the first pattern and the second pattern.

Embodiments disclosed herein include a method of calibrating a processing chamber. In an embodiment, the method comprises placing a sensor wafer onto a support surface in the processing chamber, wherein a process kit displaceable in the Z-direction is positioned around the support surface. In an embodiment, the method further comprises measuring a first gap distance between the sensor wafer and the process kit with a sensor on an edge surface of the sensor wafer. In an embodiment, the method further comprises displacing the process kit in the Z-direction. In an embodiment, the method further comprises measuring an additional gap distance between the sensor wafer and the process kit.

A processing apparatus includes a reinforcing portion removing mechanism. The reinforcing portion removing mechanism includes a laser beam irradiating unit configured to form a cutting groove by applying a laser beam to a base of a ring-shaped reinforcing portion formed on a periphery of a wafer, a first raising and lowering table configured to hold and raise a frame unit temporarily placed on a temporary placement table, and position the frame unit at the laser beam irradiating unit, and a separating unit configured to separate the ring-shaped reinforcing portion from the cutting groove. The separating unit includes an ultraviolet ray irradiating unit, a second raising and lowering table, a separator, and a discarding unit.

A method of processing a wafer includes preparing a ring-shaped frame having an opening for accommodating a wafer therein, preparing a wafer having a protrusive ring-shaped stiffener on a reverse side thereof in an outer circumferential excess region thereof, producing a frame unit by affixing a tape to the frame and the reverse side of the wafer, capturing an image of the ring-shaped stiffener and setting a center of an inner circumferential circle of the ring-shaped stiffener on the basis of the captured image, rotating the frame unit around the center of the inner circumferential circle of the ring-shaped stiffener to cut the wafer along the inner circumferential circle of the ring-shaped stiffener, and removing the ring-shaped stiffener severed from the frame unit.

An information processing apparatus of a substrate processing apparatus including a transport device includes an image data acquisition unit that acquires image data of a disposing position of a processing target substrate, a first image processing unit that digitizes a positional relationship among the transport source object, the transport device, and the substrate, a second image processing unit that digitizes a positional relationship among the transport destination object, the transport device, and the substrate, a first transfer teaching unit that outputs first correction data of the moving operation of the transport device of receiving the substrate from the transport source object, and a second transfer teaching unit that outputs second correction data of the moving operation of the transport device of disposing the substrate in the transport destination object.