The present invention improves the hydrophilicity of a substrate surface, and suppresses variation in the degree of hydrophilicity with each substrate. A plating apparatus is provided that performs a plating process on a substrate having a resist pattern. This plating apparatus includes a pretreatment bath that performs hydrophilic treatment by bringing a pretreatment liquid into contact with a surface to be plated of the substrate, and a plating bath that performs a plating process on a substrate that has undergone the hydrophilic treatment. The pretreatment bath includes a pretreatment liquid supplying device that supplies the pretreatment liquid into the pretreatment bath, and an ultraviolet light irradiation device that irradiates ultraviolet light onto the surface to be plated of the substrate.

A leak check method includes: performing a first inspection of measuring a pressure in an internal space formed by a seal of the substrate holder, while evacuating the internal space, and detecting that the pressure reaches a first pressure threshold value within a predetermined first inspection time; performing a second inspection of closing the internal space that has been evacuated, measuring the pressure in the closed internal space, and detecting that the pressure in the closed internal space does not exceed a second pressure threshold value within a predetermined second inspection time; and performing a third inspection of measuring a pressure difference between the pressure in the closed internal space and a vacuum pressure in a master container, and detecting that an amount of increase in the pressure difference within a predetermined third inspection time is kept equal to or below a pressure difference threshold value.

A method capable of removing a liquid from a seal of a substrate holder so as to prevent contact between the liquid and an electrical contact of the substrate holder is provided. The method includes: immersing the substrate in a plating solution, with a seal and an electrical contact of the substrate holder in contact with the substrate; applying a voltage between the substrate and an anode in the presence of the plating solution to plate the substrate; pulling up the plated substrate from the plating solution; separating the seal from the plated substrate; and forming a flow of gas passing through a gap between the plated substrate and the seal, the flow of gas being directed from an inside to an outside of the substrate holder.

A method includes disposing a wafer in a cup of a clamshell of an electroplating apparatus. The wafer is clamped using the cup and a cone of the clamshell. First pressure forces of contacts of the cup applied by the wafer is detected. The first pressure forces are respective compared with corresponding predetermined pressure ranges.

According to an embodiment, there is provided a substrate holder including: a first holding member; a second holding member; a clamper configured to clamp the first holding member and the second holding member; and a seal including a contact portion configured to contact at least one of the first holding member, the second holding member, and a substrate when the first holding member and the second holding member are clamped, in which the contact portion includes, in cross-section viewed in a plane passing a center of the substrate and perpendicular to a surface of the substrate, a first arc portion centered on a first point and a second arc portion centered on a second point different from the first point, and at least one of the first arc portion and the second arc portion has a curvature radius of 0.01 mm to 0.1 mm.

A method of the present disclosure includes: plating a plurality of substrates using a substrate holder; determining a total number of substrates that have been plated using the substrate holder until a failure occurs in the substrate holder; determining a first processable number and a second processable number; generating a first data set constituted by a combination of first condition data and the first processable number, the first condition data representing a state of a component of the substrate holder; generating a second data set constituted by a combination of second condition data and the second processable number, the second condition data representing a state of a component of the substrate holder; and optimizing a parameter of a prediction model constituted by a neural network using training data including the first data set and the second data set.

A resistance measuring module for measuring electric resistance of a substrate holder is provided. The substrate holder has an electric contact configured to feed a current to a held substrate and contactable with the substrate. The substrate holder is able to hold a testing substrate for measurement of electric resistance of the substrate holder, and is configured such that the electric contact comes into contact with the testing substrate in a state where the testing substrate is held. The resistance measuring module includes: a test probe contactable with the testing substrate held in the substrate holder; and a resistance measuring instrument for measurement of a resistance value between the electric contact and the probe via the testing substrate.

Method and apparatus are provided for electroplating a surface area of an internal wall defining a cooling cavity present in a gas turbine engine component.

A method for holding a substrate on the substrate holder is provided, and in this method, the substrate holder includes a front frame, a rear frame, a clamper for clamping the front frame and the rear frame; and seals configured to come into contact with the substrate and one of the front frame and the rear frame when the front frame and the rear frame are clamped. The method includes pressing at least one of the front frame and the rear frame toward another one to press the seals against the substrate, and compressing the seals; and clamping the front frame and the rear frame by the clamper in a state that the seals are compressed. During the seals being compressed, a place where a force is applied to at least one of the front frame and the rear frame is a position closer to the clamper than the seals.

A substrate holder capable of being used in both single-side plating and double-side plating is required. Disclosed is a substrate holder for holding a substrate to be plated. The substrate holder includes a first frame having a first opening for exposing one surface of the substrate and a second frame having a second opening for exposing the other surface of the substrate, and the substrate is sandwiched between the first frame and the second frame. The substrate holder further includes a dummy substrate which is detachably disposed between the first frame and the substrate and formed of a material that at least direct current does not substantially flow therein. At least a part of the dummy substrate is in contact with at least a part of the one surface of the substrate, and the dummy substrate protects the one surface of the substrate from a plating solution.