Wet Processing Systems and Methods with Replenishment

Abstract

Embodiments provided herein describe systems and methods for processing substrates. A substrate having a plurality of site-isolated regions defined thereon is provided. A plurality of wet processes is simultaneously performed. Each of the plurality of wet processes is performed on one of the plurality of site-isolated regions defined on the substrate. The simultaneously performing includes exposing each of the plurality of site-isolated regions to one of a plurality of wet processing formulations. Each of the plurality of wet processing formulations includes a component. The respective component is added to at least some of the plurality of wet processing formulations during the exposing. A processing condition is varied between at least two of the plurality of wet processes in a combinatorial manner.

What is claimed: 
     
         1 . A method for processing a substrate, the method comprising:
 providing a substrate having a plurality of site-isolated regions defined thereon; and   performing a wet process on each of the plurality of site-isolated regions defined on the substrate, and wherein the performing comprises:
 exposing each of the plurality of site-isolated regions to one of a plurality of formulations, wherein each of the plurality of formulations comprises a component; 
 adding the component to at least some of the plurality of formulations during the exposing; and 
   varying a processing condition between at least two of the formulations in a combinatorial manner.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the exposing comprises dispensing one of the plurality of formulations onto the respective site-isolated region, and the adding occurs after the cessation of the dispensing. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the varying of the processing condition comprises varying a chemical composition, varying a temperature, varying a duration of the exposure, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the varying of the processing condition comprises varying a processing condition associated with the component. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the varying of the processing condition associated with the component comprises varying a chemical composition, varying a temperature, varying a fluid volume, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of formulations comprises a plurality of components. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the exposing comprises positioning one of a plurality of reactors proximate to each of the plurality of site-isolated regions, wherein each reactor is configured to hold the respective formulation on the respective site-isolated region. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the exposing further comprises dispensing one of the plurality of formulations into the respective reactor. 
     
     
         9 . A method for processing a substrate, the method comprising:
 providing a substrate having a plurality of site-isolated regions defined thereon; and   performing a wet process on each of the site-isolated regions defined on the substrate, and wherein the performing comprises:
 exposing each of the plurality of site-isolated regions to a one of a plurality of formulations by dispensing one of the plurality of formulations onto the respective site-isolated region, wherein each of the plurality of the formulations comprises a component; 
 adding the component to at least some of the plurality of formulations during the exposing and after the cessation of the dispensing of the plurality of formulations; and 
 varying at least one processing condition between at least two of the plurality of formulations in a combinatorial manner. 
   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the varying of the at least one processing condition comprises varying a processing condition associated with the components. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the varying of the at least one processing condition further comprises varying a chemical composition, varying a temperature, and varying a duration of the exposure, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         12 . A wet processing tool comprising:
 a housing defining a processing chamber;   a substrate support coupled to the housing and configured to support a substrate within the processing chamber;   a plurality of reactors coupled to the housing, each of the plurality of reactors being positioned to define one of a plurality of site-isolated regions on the substrate and configured to hold a liquid on the respective one of the plurality of site-isolated regions;   a fluid supply system coupled to the plurality of reactors and configured to   (i) dispense one of a plurality of formulations into one of the plurality of reactors, wherein each of the formulations comprises a component, and   (ii) dispense the respective component into at least some of the plurality of reactors; and   a control system coupled to the fluid supply system, the control system being configured to:
 dispense one of the plurality formulations into the respective reactor to perform a wet process, wherein the wet process is performed on the site-isolated region defined on the substrate; 
 add the respective component to at least some of the plurality of formulations during the performing of the wet process; and 
 vary a processing condition between at least two of the plurality of formulations in a combinatorial manner. 
   
     
     
         13 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , wherein the adding of the respective component to the at least some of the plurality of wet processing formulations occurs after the cessation of the dispensing. 
     
     
         14 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , wherein the varying of the processing condition comprises varying a chemical composition between the at least two of the plurality of wet processing formulations. 
     
     
         15 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , further comprising a temperature control system configured to control the temperature of each of the plurality of wet processes, and wherein the varying of the processing condition comprises varying a temperature between the at least two of the plurality of wet processing formulations. 
     
     
         16 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , wherein the varying of the processing condition comprises varying a duration of the plurality of wet processes. 
     
     
         17 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , wherein the varying of the processing condition comprises varying a processing condition associated with the respective components added to the at least some of the plurality of wet processing formulations. 
     
     
         18 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , wherein each of the components has the same chemical composition as the respective wet processing formulation. 
     
     
         19 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , wherein each of the plurality of wet processing formulations comprises a plurality of components. 
     
     
         20 . The wet processing tool of  claim 12 , further comprising a plurality of fluid supply lines, each of the plurality of fluid supply lines being in fluid communication with a respective one of the plurality of reactors.