CN111913363A

CN111913363A - Direct writing type exposure device

Info

Publication number: CN111913363A
Application number: CN202010380624.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 今井洋之; 大塚明
Original assignee: Adtec Engineering Co Ltd
Current assignee: Adtec Engineering Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-05-09
Filing date: 2020-05-08
Publication date: 2020-11-10
Anticipated expiration: 2040-05-08
Also published as: CN111913363B; JP7239388B2; KR20200130181A; TW202046019A; JP2020184045A

Abstract

Provided is a practical direct-writing exposure device which can fully vacuum adsorb substrates with various sizes on a workbench and perform exposure. A substrate (S) is placed on a table (2) on which a large number of vacuum suction holes (21) are formed and vacuum-sucked, and when the optical table (2) for exposing a pattern is moved by a conveyance system (3) and passes through an exposure area, the exposure unit (1) irradiates the pattern with light for exposure. A large number of vacuum suction holes (21) are formed corresponding to the largest-sized substrate (S), and the thin plate (71) blocks the vacuum suction holes (21) that are not blocked by the substrate (S). The thin plate (71) has suction holes (73) or openings (75, 76), and the vacuum suction of the substrate (S) is not hindered by positioning the thin plate mechanism (72). The sheet (71) and the sheet mechanism (72) are mounted on the table (2) and move integrally with the table (2).

Description

Direct writing type exposure device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a direct writing type exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate by irradiating the substrate with light having a predetermined pattern without passing through a mask. Hereinafter, the predetermined pattern of light during exposure is referred to as an exposure pattern.

Background

An exposure technique for exposing an object having a photosensitive layer formed on a surface thereof to light to make the photosensitive layer sensitive is widely used as a main technique of photolithography in the formation of various microcircuits and microstructures. Representative exposure techniques are the following: the object is irradiated with light of the exposure pattern by irradiating light to a mask having a pattern similar to the exposure pattern formed thereon and projecting an image of the mask on the surface of the object.

In addition to such an exposure technique using a mask, a technique of directly forming an image on the surface of an object using a spatial light modulator and performing exposure is known. Hereinafter, this technique is referred to as direct exposure in the present specification.

In direct-write exposure, a typical spatial light modulator is a DMD (Digital Mirror Device). The DMD has a structure in which minute square mirrors are arranged in a rectangular lattice shape. The angles of the mirrors with respect to the optical axis are independently controlled, and a posture in which light from the light source is reflected and reaches the object and a posture in which light from the light source does not reach the object can be obtained. The DMD includes a controller for controlling each mirror, and the controller controls each mirror according to an exposure pattern to irradiate light of the exposure pattern on the surface of an object.

In the case of direct exposure, since no mask is used, it is advantageous in mass production of various products. In the case of exposure using a mask, it is necessary to prepare a mask for each type, and a large cost is required including costs for storing the mask. Further, when the mask is exchanged for producing a different product, the operation of the apparatus needs to be stopped, and labor and time are required before restarting. Therefore, this becomes an important factor in reducing productivity. On the other hand, in the case of direct writing exposure, it is only necessary to prepare a control program for each mirror for each type, and it is possible to cope with this by merely changing the control program when manufacturing different types, and therefore, the advantages in terms of cost and productivity are significant. Further, the exposure pattern can be finely adjusted for each substrate as needed, and the process flexibility is also excellent.

In such a direct writing type exposure apparatus, a stage on which a substrate is placed is used in order to orient the substrate perpendicular to the optical axis of an exposure unit in which a spatial light modulator is built. The exposure unit irradiates a set region (hereinafter referred to as an exposure region) with light of an exposure pattern, and a stage on which a substrate is placed moves while passing through the exposure region by a transfer system, so that the substrate is exposed when passing through the exposure region.

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2008-191303

In the direct-writing type exposure apparatus, a configuration in which the substrate is vacuum-sucked onto the stage is adopted in order to improve the exposure accuracy. A large number of vacuum adsorption holes are formed on the workbench, and each vacuum adsorption hole is connected with a vacuum pump. By operating the vacuum pump, the substrate is vacuum-sucked to the stage.

Vacuum suction of the substrate has two purposes. One object is to prevent positional deviation of a substrate. In most cases, the substrate is placed on the stage in an aligned (aligned) state. When the substrate is shifted on the stage after alignment, an exposure pattern cannot be formed at a correct position, and exposure accuracy is degraded. Thus, the substrate is vacuum-sucked to the stage. Another purpose of vacuum suction is to correct deformation of the substrate. The substrate may be deformed such as warped. When exposure is performed in this state, the formed exposure pattern is also deformed, which may cause product defects. Therefore, the deformation is corrected by vacuum suction on the stage, and exposure is performed in this state.

Such a direct-writing exposure apparatus that performs vacuum suction has a particular problem in terms of its superiority in being suitable for mass production of various products. This point will be explained below.

The mass production means that substrates to be exposed have various sizes. It is technically difficult to satisfactorily vacuum-adsorb such substrates of various sizes.

When performing exposure processing while vacuum-adsorbing various sizes of substrates, a configuration is generally adopted in which a vacuum adsorption hole is provided in a stage in accordance with the smallest size of the substrate. When the vacuum suction holes are provided in conformity with a larger-sized substrate, the vacuum suction holes that are not blocked by the substrate may be formed in the case of processing a smaller-sized substrate. When the vacuum suction holes are not closed, a sufficient negative pressure cannot be obtained in the exhaust system, and a sufficient suction force cannot be obtained even in the vacuum suction holes closed by the substrate. Therefore, the vacuum suction holes are provided in conformity with the minimum-sized substrate.

However, when the vacuum suction holes are provided in conformity with the substrate of the minimum size, the peripheral portion of the substrate may not be vacuum-sucked in the case where the substrate of a size larger than that is processed. In this case, a problem may occur in that the peripheral portion of the substrate is warped. The substrate is separated from the stage at the peripheral portion due to the warpage, and as a result, the vacuum may leak from this portion. In this way, vacuum suction is also insufficient. Further, for the reason of improving the mounting density, when the substrate is used as a product up to the peripheral portion of the substrate, an exposure pattern is formed also in the peripheral portion, but if the warpage is not eliminated, a product defect is easily caused. In contrast, when the vacuum suction holes are provided in accordance with the minimum-sized substrate, in the case of processing a large-sized substrate, the area to be vacuum-sucked relatively to the size of the substrate becomes small, and the suction force as a whole also relatively decreases.

As a configuration for solving the above problem, the following configuration can be considered: the system of the vacuum exhaust path in the workbench is divided into a plurality of systems, and the vacuum of each system is controlled to be opened and closed independently according to the size of the substrate. However, in this structure, the structure inside the table is complicated, and the structure for vacuum-exhausting is also complicated. Further, even if the substrate size is limited to 2 to 3 kinds, the above difference is complicated and complicated, and the apparatus cost is increased, and thus the apparatus cannot be said to be a practical apparatus.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems of the direct type exposure apparatus related to vacuum suction of the substrate, and an object of the present invention is to provide a practical direct type exposure apparatus capable of performing exposure while sufficiently vacuum-sucking substrates of various sizes onto a stage.

In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides a direct type exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate by irradiating the substrate with light of a predetermined pattern without a mask, the direct type exposure apparatus including: an exposure head for irradiating the exposure area with light of a predetermined pattern; a worktable which is provided with a plurality of vacuum adsorption holes for carrying out vacuum adsorption on the carried substrate; a transfer system for moving the stage on which the substrate is placed in the exposure region; an exhaust system for vacuum-sucking the adsorption holes to vacuum-adsorb the substrate on the worktable; and a suction hole sealing member for sealing the vacuum suction holes which are not blocked by the substrate among the plurality of suction holes. The adsorption hole sealing member includes: winding a long sheet in a roll shape; and a sheet mechanism for feeding and winding the sheet, wherein the sheet mechanism is a mechanism for bringing the sheet into a state not to inhibit vacuum suction of the substrate, and the sheet mechanism are mounted on the table so as to be moved integrally with the table by the conveyance system.

In order to solve the above problem, a suction hole overlapping with the vacuum suction hole clogged with the substrate or an opening corresponding to the size of the substrate is formed in the thin plate so as not to inhibit the vacuum suction of the substrate.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the direct writing exposure apparatus may be configured such that a plurality of hole groups each having a plurality of suction holes and different sizes of an entire arrangement region or a plurality of openings each having a different size corresponding to a different size of the substrate are formed in the thin plate, the plurality of hole groups or the plurality of openings are formed along a longitudinal direction of the thin plate, and a control unit is provided that controls the thin plate mechanism such that the selected hole group or the selected opening is located at a predetermined position with respect to the table when one of the plurality of hole groups or the plurality of openings is selected in accordance with the size of the substrate.

In order to solve the above-described problem, the direct writing exposure apparatus may be configured such that a plurality of hole groups each including a plurality of suction holes and having different overall arrangement region sizes are formed in the thin plate, the plurality of hole groups are formed along the longitudinal direction of the thin plate, and a control unit is provided that, when one of the plurality of hole groups is selected in accordance with the size of the substrate, controls the thin plate mechanism such that each suction hole of the selected hole group is positioned to overlap each vacuum suction hole of the stage.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the direct writing type exposure apparatus may be configured such that a plurality of openings having different sizes corresponding to different sizes of substrates are formed in a thin plate, the plurality of openings are formed along a longitudinal direction of the thin plate, each opening is an opening larger than a corresponding substrate size, a set loading position is set as a position on a stage where the substrate is loaded, and a control unit is provided that controls a thin plate mechanism such that the substrate loaded at the set loading position is located in the selected opening when one opening is selected in accordance with the substrate size.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the direct writing type exposure apparatus may be configured such that a plurality of openings having different sizes corresponding to different sizes of the substrate are formed in the thin plate, the plurality of openings are formed along the longitudinal direction of the thin plate, each opening is an opening smaller than the size of the corresponding substrate, a set placement position is set on the stage as a position where the substrate is placed, and a control unit is provided that controls the thin plate mechanism such that the peripheral edge of the selected opening is located at the peripheral edge of the substrate placed at the set placement position when one opening is selected in accordance with the size of the substrate.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the direct writing type exposure apparatus may be configured such that the thin plate is further provided with a mounting/demounting opening which is an opening larger than the maximum-sized substrate, in addition to an opening smaller than the size of the corresponding substrate, and the control unit is configured to position the mounting/demounting opening at a position facing a set mounting position of the stage when the substrate is mounted on and removed from the stage.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

As described below, according to the direct exposure apparatus of the present application, when a small substrate is processed, the suction hole sealing member blocks the vacuum suction holes that are not blocked by the substrate, and thus sufficient vacuum suction can be performed. Thus, a practical direct-writing exposure apparatus can be provided which can be used for a large number of types of production and can perform high-precision exposure processing. Further, since the thin plate mechanism is provided, the thin plates can be easily and quickly arranged, and the productivity is not lowered. Further, since the thin plate and the thin plate mechanism are attached to the table, the mechanism for moving the table does not become complicated and large in scale.

In addition, in the configuration in which the thin plate is provided with the opening smaller than the size of the corresponding substrate and the thin plate mechanism is controlled so that the peripheral edge of the selected opening is located at the peripheral edge of the substrate with respect to the substrate placed at the set placing position, in addition to the above-described effects, the thin plate presses the peripheral edge of the substrate, so that even if the substrate is bent, vacuum suction can be reliably performed, and the exposure accuracy can be prevented from being lowered.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic front view of a direct type exposure apparatus according to a first embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view of an exposure head mounted on the apparatus of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing an exposure area.

Fig. 4 is a schematic view showing the structure of the table.

Fig. 5 is a schematic plan view showing the layout of a large number of vacuum suction holes in the apparatus according to the embodiment.

Fig. 6 is a schematic plan view showing the structure of the sealing sheet according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing selection and positioning of a hole group of the sealing sheet according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 8 is a schematic side view showing the structure of the thin plate mechanism and the mounting structure of the sealing thin plate and the thin plate mechanism.

Fig. 9 is a schematic plan view showing the structure of a sealing sheet according to a second embodiment.

Fig. 10 is a schematic perspective view illustrating the operation of the suction hole sealing mechanism according to the second embodiment.

Fig. 11 is a schematic front sectional view showing the operation of the suction hole sealing mechanism according to the second embodiment.

Fig. 12 is a schematic plan view showing the structure of a sealing sheet according to a third embodiment.

Fig. 13 is a schematic front sectional view showing the operation of the suction hole sealing mechanism according to the third embodiment.

Description of the symbols

1 Exposure Unit

2 working table

21 vacuum adsorption hole

3 handling system

4 exhaust system

5 transfer unit

6 image pickup element

71 sheet for sealing

72 thin plate mechanism

721 roller

722 roller driving source

73 thin plate adsorption hole

73G hole group

74 lifting mechanism

75 opening

76 small opening

77 opening for loading and unloading

9 Main control part

91 main sequence program

92 Exposure Pattern procedure

93 sheet positioning procedure

94 hole group information file

95 opening information file

S substrate

Detailed Description

Next, an embodiment (embodiment) for carrying out the invention of the present application will be described.

Fig. 1 is a schematic front view of a direct type exposure apparatus according to a first embodiment. This apparatus exposes a substrate by irradiating the substrate with light for exposing a pattern without a mask. As shown in fig. 1, the direct type exposure apparatus includes: an exposure head 1 for irradiating the exposure region with light of an exposure pattern; a stage 2 on which a substrate S is placed; and a conveying system 3 for moving the table 2 on which the substrate S is placed by passing through the exposure region.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view of the exposure head 1 mounted on the apparatus of fig. 1. The exposure head 1 is cylindrical as a whole, is arranged in a vertically standing state, and emits light downward. Fig. 2 is a schematic view showing the internal structure of the exposure head 1. As shown in fig. 2, the exposure head 1 includes: a light source 11; a spatial light modulator 12 that spatially modulates light from the light source 11; and an optical system (hereinafter, referred to as a projection optical system) 13 that projects an image based on the light modulated by the spatial light modulator 12.

The light source 11 outputs light having an optimum wavelength according to the light-receiving wavelength of the photosensitive layer of the substrate S. The resist film often has a photosensitive wavelength in the visible short wavelength region to the ultraviolet region, and a light source that outputs light in the visible short wavelength region to the ultraviolet region such as 405nm or 365nm is used as the light source 11. In order to achieve the performance of the spatial light modulator 12, it is preferable to output coherent light, and therefore the laser light source 11 can be used favorably. For example, a gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor laser is used.

In the present embodiment, a DMD is used as the spatial light modulator 12. As described above, in the DMD, each pixel is a minute mirror. The mirror (hereinafter referred to as a pixel mirror) is, for example, a square mirror of about 13.68 μm square, and has a structure in which a large number of pixel mirrors are arranged in a rectangular grid pattern. The number of arrays is, for example, 1024 × 768.

The spatial light modulator 12 includes a modulator controller 121 that controls each pixel mirror. The exposure apparatus according to the embodiment includes a main control unit 9 that controls the entire apparatus. The modulator controller 121 controls each pixel mirror in accordance with a signal from the main control section 9. Further, each pixel mirror can take a first posture along the reference plane and a second posture inclined by, for example, about 11 to 13 ° with respect to the reference plane, with the plane on which the pixel mirrors are arranged as the reference plane. In this embodiment, the first posture is the closed state and the second posture is the open state.

The spatial light modulator 12 includes a drive mechanism that drives each pixel mirror, and the modulator controller 121 can independently control whether to take the first posture or the second posture for each pixel mirror. Such a spatial light modulator 12 is available from Texas Instruments Inc ("Texas Instruments Inc," also known as japanese "テキサス · インスツルメンツ").

As shown in fig. 2, the exposure head 1 includes an irradiation optical system 14 that irradiates the spatial light modulator 12 with light from the light source 11. In this embodiment, the illumination optical system 14 includes an optical fiber 141. In order to perform imaging with higher illuminance, one exposure head 1 includes a plurality of light sources 11, and an optical fiber 141 is provided for each light source 11. As the optical fiber 141, for example, a quartz multimode fiber is used.

In order to perform high-precision imaging using the spatial light modulator 12 as the DMD, it is preferable that parallel light is incident and each pixel mirror is reflected, and that light is incident obliquely to each pixel mirror. Therefore, as shown in fig. 2, the irradiation optical system 14 includes a collimator lens 142 that collimates the light emitted and diffused from each optical fiber 141.

The projection optical system 13 includes two

projection lens groups

131, 132, a micromirror array (hereinafter, abbreviated as MLA) 133 arranged between the

projection lens groups

131, 132, and the like. The MLA133 is disposed in an auxiliary manner for performing exposure with higher shape accuracy. The MLA133 is an optical component in which a large number of microlenses are arranged in a rectangular grid pattern. Each lens element corresponds to each pixel mirror 1 of the spatial light modulator 12 as a pair 1.

In the exposure head 1, light from the light source 11 is guided by the optical fiber 141 and then enters the spatial light modulator 12 through the illumination optical system 14. At this time, each pixel mirror of the spatial light modulator 12 is controlled by the modulator controller 121, and is selectively tilted in accordance with the exposure pattern. That is, according to the exposure pattern, the pixel mirror located at the position where light should reach the exposure region is turned on, and the other pixel mirrors are turned off. Light reflected to the pixel mirror in the off state does not reach the exposure region, and only light reflected to the pixel mirror in the on state reaches. Therefore, the exposure region is irradiated with the light of the exposure pattern.

A plurality of such exposure heads 1 are provided. As shown in fig. 2, 8 exposure heads 1 are provided in this embodiment. One exposure pattern is formed as a whole by 8 exposure heads 1. The exposure heads 1 have the same configuration.

The exposure region is described additionally with reference to fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing an exposure area. In fig. 3, a region (hereinafter, referred to as an individual region) E where light is irradiated by one exposure head 1 is indicated by a square frame. The collection of individual areas E is an exposure area.

The substrate S moves in the direction indicated by the arrow in fig. 3, and is irradiated with light at each individual area E. In this case, since the two rows of exposure heads 1 are arranged offset from each other, exposure can be performed without a gap even in the horizontal direction perpendicular to the moving direction.

In practice, each individual region E is a set of minute irradiation patterns (hereinafter, referred to as minute patterns). A micro pattern is based on a pattern of one pixel mirror. The substrate S placed on the stage 2 moves in the exposure region in accordance with the movement of the stage 2, and the opening and closing of the micro pattern are performed in a predetermined sequence in accordance with the timing of the movement. Thereby, a desired exposure pattern is formed on the substrate S.

As shown in fig. 1, the direct writing type exposure apparatus of this embodiment includes two tables 2. Fig. 4 is a schematic view showing the structure of the table 2. The table 2 is a table-like member on which the substrate S is placed on a flat upper surface. As shown in fig. 4, a vacuum suction hole 21 is formed in the upper surface of the table 2. Each vacuum suction hole 21 is connected to the exhaust system 4 via an exhaust passage 22 formed in the table 2. The exhaust system 4 includes a vacuum pump, and when the exhaust system 4 is operated, the vacuum suction holes 21 are sucked through the exhaust path 22, and the mounted substrate S is vacuum-sucked to the table 2.

The conveyance system 3 includes: a linear guide 31 disposed to pass through the exposure region; and a linear driving source, not shown, for linearly moving each table 2 along the linear guide 31. As shown in fig. 1, each table 2 is mounted on a base 32. The base 32 is movable along the linear guide 31. Each base 32 is provided with a linear drive source, not shown. The linear drive source may be, for example, a linear motor, and the linear motor stage may be configured. When the linear drive source operates, the table 2 moves integrally with the base 32, and the substrate S on the table 2 is conveyed. In this example, the linear guide 31 is shared by the pair of tables 2, and the bases 32 move on the same track.

In addition, standby positions (a left standby position and a right standby position) are set on both sides away from the exposure area. The transfer unit 5 is disposed at each standby position. In this example, the substrate S to be exposed is conveyed by the conveyor 50, and the substrate S after exposure is stored in a rack, not shown. The transfer unit 5 is configured to perform loading of the substrate S from the conveyor 50 onto the stage 2 and unloading of the substrate S after exposure from the stage 2 and storing in the rack.

The transfer units 5 on both sides have the same configuration, and include: a transfer robot 52 having an adsorption pad 51; and a robot driving mechanism 53 for moving the transfer robot 52 up and down, back and forth, and left and right. The plurality of suction pads 51 are provided in a downward posture, and can suck and hold the substrate S by vacuum suction.

Further, the direct writing type exposure apparatus includes an alignment mechanism for forming an exposure pattern at a predetermined position on the substrate S. The alignment mechanism includes a prealignment mechanism for placing the substrate S at a predetermined position on each table 2, and an alignment sensor for detecting the placement position of the substrate S in a prealigned state.

The alignment sensor is an image pickup device 6 that picks up an image of an alignment mark on the substrate S. The pre-alignment mechanism is a mechanism for positioning the alignment mark in a region where the image pickup device 6 can pick up an image. The transfer unit 5 is used as a pre-alignment mechanism. For example, the pre-alignment is performed by pressing the substrate S against a contact plate provided at a predetermined position and causing the transfer robot 52 to re-hold the substrate S. By the pre-alignment, the substrate S is placed in a positioned state with respect to the table 2.

As shown in fig. 1, the direct type exposure apparatus includes a main control unit 9 that controls each unit. The main control unit 9 is provided with a main sequence program 91 for operating the respective units in a predetermined sequence.

The main control section 9 is equipped with an exposure pattern program 92 that transmits control signals to the modulator controllers 121 to realize a predetermined exposure pattern. The exposure pattern program 92 is prepared in advance based on design information on what circuits are formed on the substrate S, and stores the design information in the storage unit 90 of the main control unit 9.

An alignment program, not shown, constituting an alignment mechanism is installed in the main control unit 9. The image data of the alignment mark imaged by the imaging element 6 as an alignment sensor is sent to the main control section 9. The alignment program processes the imaging data to calculate the formation position of the exposure pattern, and rewrites the exposure pattern program 92 based on the calculation.

The main control unit 9 includes an input unit 901. The input unit 901 inputs various kinds of information such as information on the type of the substrate S to be exposed.

The direct-writing exposure apparatus according to the embodiment includes a suction hole sealing member in order to provide a practical vacuum suction configuration corresponding to mass production. The suction hole sealing member includes a long sheet 71 wound in a roll shape, and a sheet mechanism 72 configured to feed and wind the sheet 71. The suction hole sealing member will be described below.

First, the layout of a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 in the apparatus of the embodiment will be described. Fig. 5 is a schematic plan view showing the layout of a large number of vacuum suction holes in the apparatus according to the embodiment.

As described above, in the case of coping with the small-volume production of many kinds, the vacuum suction holes 21 are generally formed in conformity with the substrate of the smallest size. That is, when there are three substrates S1, S2, and S3 having different sizes, as shown in fig. 5(1), a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 are arranged in accordance with the substrate S3 having the smallest size. That is, a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 are provided at regular intervals in a square region slightly smaller than the size of the substrate S3.

In contrast, in the direct-writing exposure apparatus according to the embodiment, as shown in fig. 5(2), a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 are arranged so as to match the largest substrate S1. That is, a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 are provided at regular intervals in a square region slightly smaller than the size of the substrate S1.

As described above, in the direct writing type exposure apparatus according to the embodiment, the vacuum suction holes 21 are provided so as to match the largest-sized substrate, but in this configuration, as described above, when a smaller-sized substrate is processed, vacuum leakage occurs. In order to solve this problem, the direct writing exposure apparatus according to the embodiment includes a suction hole sealing member. As shown in fig. 1, the suction hole sealing member includes a long sheet 71 wound in a roll shape, and a sheet mechanism 72 that feeds and winds the sheet 71.

The thin plate 71 is used to block the vacuum suction holes 21 of the substrate S. That is, when a substrate S having a small size is processed, the thin plate 71 serves to block the vacuum suction holes 21 which are not blocked by the substrate S. Hereinafter, the sheet 71 is referred to as a sealing sheet. The sealing sheet 71 may be used without any particular limitation as long as it is a sheet of a soft and airtight material, but for example, a sheet made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) may be used. The thickness may be, for example, about 0.15mm to 0.3 mm.

Fig. 6 is a schematic plan view showing the structure of the sealing sheet according to the first embodiment. The seal sheet 71 is a long sheet wound around a roll, but is drawn in a state of being pulled out long in order to explain the structure in fig. 6.

In this embodiment, the sealing sheet 71 is required not to inhibit vacuum suction of the substrate S. Several configurations are conceivable as the configuration that is not obstructed, but in this embodiment, the same holes 73 are formed in the same positional relationship as the vacuum suction holes 21 of the table 2. Hereinafter, the holes 73 of the sealing sheet 71 are also holes for suction, and therefore, they are referred to as sheet suction holes 73.

As shown in fig. 6, a large number of sheet suction holes 73 are formed in the sealing sheet 71. The plurality of thin plate suction holes 73 are divided into a plurality of groups 73G. Hereinafter, the group 73G of the thin plate suction holes 73 is referred to as a hole group. In fig. 6, each hole group 73G is surrounded by a broken line, but this is for the sake of understanding, and such a line is not drawn on the sealing sheet 71.

As shown in fig. 6, the number of thin plate suction holes 73 in each hole group 73G is different. Each hole group 73G is formed by thin plate suction holes 73 formed at regular intervals in the square arrangement region. In each hole group 73G, the number of thin plate suction holes 73 is different because the separation intervals of the thin plate suction holes 73 are the same, but the size of the square arrangement region is different. Further, there are also hole groups 73G having square arrangement regions with different aspect ratios. The "placement region" means a placement region of the entire large number of thin plate suction holes 73 in each hole group 73G. It can also be understood that all the sheet adsorption holes 73 are located at the smallest one square area inside.

Such hole groups 73G can be provided in consideration of the difference in the size of the substrate S to be processed. That is, in each hole group 73G, the size of the arrangement region in which the thin plate suction holes 73 are formed corresponds to the size of the substrate S to be processed. That is, in fig. 6, the broken line showing each hole group 73G corresponds to the size (length in vertical and horizontal directions) of the substrate S.

The sealing sheet 71 is used with a certain hole group 73G selected and positioned. This is explained with reference to fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing selection and positioning of the hole group 73G in the sealing sheet 71 of the first embodiment. As shown in fig. 1, the table 2, the sealing sheet 71, and the substrate S are actually in contact with each other in this order from below, and are separated from each other in fig. 7 for easy understanding. In fig. 6 and 7, the vacuum suction holes 21 and the thin plate suction holes 73 are drawn to be large for the sake of understanding, and actually smaller than those shown in the drawings. In the case of the vacuum suction holes 21 and the thin plate suction holes 73, the diameter is about 0.5mm to 3.0 mm.

In fig. 7, a substrate S of a certain size is placed on the table 2 for processing. As described above, the substrate S is placed in a state of being pre-aligned with respect to the stage 2. That is, the table is placed in a predetermined positional relationship with respect to the reference position of the table 2. The mounting position of the substrate S in the pre-aligned state is indicated by a broken line S' in fig. 7.

Next, the sealing sheet 71 selects one hole group 73G in accordance with the size of the substrate S, and the selected hole group 73G is positioned with respect to the table 2. The positioning is a position where each thin plate suction hole 73 of the selected hole group 73G overlaps the vacuum suction hole 21 of the table 2, as shown in fig. 7.

In this embodiment, the positioning is performed by the thin plate mechanism 72. That is, the sheet mechanism 72 is a mechanism for positioning the sheet 71 in addition to the feeding and winding of the sheet 71.

As shown in fig. 1, the sheet mechanism 72 feeds and winds the sealing sheet 71 by roll-to-roll. In order to make the seal sheet 71 in a horizontal posture in a non-relaxed state, the sheet mechanism 72 includes a pair of guide rollers 723.

Fig. 8 is a schematic side view showing the structure of the thin plate mechanism 72, and the sealing thin plate 71 and the mounting structure of the thin plate mechanism 72. The sheet mechanism 72 has almost the same configuration in both rollers, and one configuration is illustrated in fig. 8. As can be seen from fig. 1 and 8, the thin plate mechanism 72 includes: a pair of roller bars 721 in the shape of a round bar formed by winding the sealing sheet 71; and a roller drive source 722 for driving each roller bar 721. The roller driving source 722 is, for example, a torque motor on one hand, and a servo motor or a stepping motor that rotates the roller 721 against the torque on the other hand.

Each roller driving source 722 is controlled by the main control section 9 to position the sealing sheet 71. Specifically, each roller driving source 722 is connected to the main control section 9, and the sheet positioning program 93 is installed in the main control section 9.

Each of the hole groups 73G described above is assigned an ID (hereinafter referred to as a hole group ID) for identifying the hole group. A predetermined reference position (hereinafter, referred to as a sheet reference position) is set in the sealing sheet 71 in the longitudinal direction. The hole group 73G is formed at a position of the sealing sheet 71 and is determined by a distance from a sheet reference position. The storage unit 90 of the main control unit 9 stores a hole group information file 94 in which the position of each hole group 73G is recorded. The hole group information file 94 is a file in which the formation position (distance from the sheet reference position) of each hole group 73G is recorded in association with the hole group ID.

The information of the position of the sheet reference position relative to the table 2 at present is transmitted to the sheet positioning program 93 as an independent variable. An origin position (hereinafter, referred to as a table origin) for the thin plate positioning program 93 is set on the table 2, and the thin plate reference position is determined based on a relationship with the table origin. For example, the hole group 73G selected when the previous thin plate positioning program 93 was executed is held in the storage unit 90, and the current position of the thin plate reference position with respect to the table origin can be obtained by reading the hole group. In the first operation of the apparatus, the sheet reference position is set to be the table origin.

Also, the hole group ID is also passed to the sheet positioning program 93 as an argument. The positioning program of the thin plate 71 calculates a value of how much distance the sealing thin plate 71 is moved in which direction, based on the current position of the thin plate reference position and the hole group ID. That is, the hole group 73G of the hole group ID is positioned with respect to the table 2 by referring to the hole group information file 94 and calculating how much distance it moves in which direction. Then, when the calculated value is transmitted to the sheet mechanism 72, the routine ends. As a result, the thin plate mechanism 72 is controlled, and the selected hole group 73G is positioned with respect to the table 2 as shown in fig. 7.

The sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72 are attached to the table 2. The sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72 are attached to the base 32 together with the lifting mechanism 74. As shown in fig. 8, the lifting mechanism 74 includes a pair of extendable and retractable columns 741 that hold the thin plate mechanism 72, and a vertical drive source 742 that extends and retracts each column.

The roller 721 is fixed to the support 741 via a bearing. The roller drive source 722 is also held by the support 741, and the entire sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72 are mounted on the base 32 via the elevating mechanism 74. The guide roller 723 is also held by the support 741 via a bearing. Therefore, when the conveyance system 3 operates and the base 32 moves, the sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72 also move integrally.

The operation of the direct writing exposure apparatus according to the first embodiment will be described below.

Before the operation of the apparatus, the operator inputs necessary information into the input unit 901. The information here includes information on the type of the substrate S to be processed, and the information on the type includes information on the size of the substrate S.

The main control section 9 transmits a control signal to the thin plate mechanism 72 before the exposure process. That is, the main sequence program 91 calls the sheet positioning program 93 and executes it. The main sequence program 91 specifies the hole group ID from the input type information, and transmits the hole group ID together with the information of the current position of the sheet reference position to the sheet positioning program 93. The sheet positioning program 93 calculates the amount of movement (direction and distance) required for the sealing sheet 71 based on the type information, and outputs the calculated amount to the sheet mechanism 72. As a result, the selected hole group 73G is positioned with respect to the table 2.

Further, when the sealing sheet 71 is fed out and wound up, the lifting mechanism 74 operates to slightly lift up the sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72. After the positioning as described above, the lifting mechanism 74 lowers the sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72, and the sealing sheet 71 is brought into contact with or brought into close contact with the table 2 in the positioned state.

Next, one of the transfer units 5 operates to place the substrate S on one of the tables 2. At this time, the substrate S is placed at a predetermined position on the table 2 by the pre-alignment. Then, the exhaust system 4 is operated, and the substrate S is vacuum-sucked on the table 2. At this time, as described above, the hole group 73G of the sealing sheet 71 is positioned so that the vacuum suction hole 21 of the table 2 and the sheet suction hole 73 overlap each other. This prevents the vacuum suction of the substrate S from being hindered.

Further, in the sealing sheet 71, since the hole group 73G selected according to the size of the substrate S is positioned with respect to the table 2, the vacuum suction of the mounted substrate S is not hindered, and the unused vacuum suction holes 21 around the substrate S are closed by the sealing sheet 71.

While maintaining this state, the conveyance system 3 moves the table 2. When the substrate S on the stage 2 reaches below the image pickup device 6, the alignment mark is photographed by the image pickup device 6, the photographing data is sent to the main control section 9, and the exposure pattern program 92 is rewritten.

When the stage 2 is further moved by the conveyance system 3 and passes through the exposure region below the exposure unit 1, the exposure unit 1 operates to expose the substrate S according to the exposure pattern. After passing through the exposure region, the conveyance system 3 reverses the table 2 and returns the table 2 to the initial standby position. Then, the transfer unit 5 operates at the standby position, and carries the substrate S after the exposure to the conveyor 50.

During this period, the other transfer unit 5 performs the loading operation of the substrate S after the pre-alignment with respect to the other table 2. When one of the tables 2 is returned to the standby position, the other table 2 is moved from the opposite side by the conveyance system 3, and the exposure unit 1 similarly performs exposure when the other table passes through the exposure area. At this time, similarly, a control signal is transmitted to the thin plate mechanism 72, and the sealing thin plate 71 covers the other table 2 in a state where the hole group 73G corresponding to the input species is positioned, and the substrate S is placed on the sealing thin plate to be vacuum-sucked, and exposure is performed in this state.

Such operations are alternately repeated to expose each substrate S. When the exposure process for the substrate S of 1 lot is completed and the next lot of substrates S is processed, the type information is input to the input unit 901 if the type is different. Before starting the processing of the next batch, the main sequence program 91 executes the thin plate positioning program 93 to position the corresponding hole group 73G based on the input type information. At this time, the lifting mechanism 74 is operated to slightly lift the sealing sheet 71 away from the table 2, and after positioning, the sealing sheet is lowered to contact or come into close contact with the table 2. After the hole group 73G is thus positioned, exposure processing is similarly performed on each substrate S.

According to the direct writing type exposure apparatus of the embodiment having the above configuration and operation, since a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 are provided in the stage 2 in a layout corresponding to the substrate S of the maximum size, and when a substrate S smaller than the large number is processed, the vacuum suction holes 21 not blocked by the substrate S are blocked by the suction hole sealing member, and thus sufficient vacuum suction can be performed. That is, a practical direct-writing exposure apparatus which can cope with a large number of products and can perform exposure processing with high accuracy can be provided.

In the above configuration, the thin plate mechanism 72 is a mechanism that brings the sealing thin plate 71 into a state of not hindering the vacuum suction of the substrate S, but this operation can be performed manually by an operator. However, since it is a complicated work that needs to be performed every time a variety is changed, productivity is significantly reduced. The thin plate mechanism 72 can quickly omit the change of the hole group 73G associated with the change of the type, and has a meaning of not lowering the productivity.

The seal sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72 are attached to the table 2 and move integrally with the table 2, which means that the mechanism relating to the movement of the table 2 is not complicated. The sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72 may be attached to a member separate from the table 2 and moved separately, but the sealing sheet 71 needs to be moved in synchronization with (in the same direction at the same speed) the table 2 while maintaining a state in which the unused vacuum suction holes 31 are closed. Although mechanically realizable, it becomes complex and large-scale.

In the above-described operation, the movement directions of the stages 2 when passing through the exposure area during exposure are opposite to each other in the two stages 2. When the moving direction of the stage 2 is different, the patterns of on/off of the pixel mirrors are different, and therefore, the exposure pattern program 92 is installed. However, if exposure is performed in the forward path on one of the tables 2 and exposure is performed in the backward path on the other table 2, the same exposure pattern program 92 can be executed to perform exposure because the moving direction during exposure is the same.

Next, a direct writing type exposure apparatus according to a second embodiment will be described.

In the direct writing type exposure apparatus according to the second embodiment, the vacuum suction holes 21 of each stage 2 are also provided in a large number in a layout corresponding to the substrate S having the largest size. Then, a suction hole sealing member for sealing the vacuum suction holes 21 not closed by the substrate S is provided, and the suction hole sealing member includes a sealing sheet 71 and a sheet mechanism 72. The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the sealing sheet 71, which does not inhibit vacuum suction of the substrate S, has an opening 75 instead of the sheet suction hole 73.

Fig. 9 is a schematic plan view showing the structure of a sealing sheet 71 according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, the seal sheet 71 is also in the form of a long strip, and is fed and wound by the sheet mechanism 72 in a state of being wound around a pair of rollers.

As shown in fig. 9, in the second embodiment, the opening 75 is square, and a large number of openings having different sizes are formed along the longitudinal direction of the sealing sheet 71. Each opening 75 is formed corresponding to the different size of each substrate S having different size. In this embodiment, each opening 75 is formed to have a size slightly larger than the corresponding substrate S.

As in the hole group 73G of the first embodiment, an ID (hereinafter, referred to as an opening ID) is assigned to each opening 75. Then, the storage unit 90 of the main control unit 9 stores an opening information file 95 in which the formation position (position relative to the sheet reference position) of each opening 75 is stored in association with the opening ID.

In this embodiment, the thin plate mechanism 72 also includes a pair of roller rods 721 and a pair of roller drive sources 722 that drive the roller rods 721 to feed out and wind up the sealing thin plate 71. Then, the sealing sheet 71 and the sheet mechanism 72 are attached to the base 32 on which the table 2 is mounted together with the elevating mechanism 74, and move integrally with the table 2.

Fig. 10 and 11 are schematic views showing the operation of the suction hole sealing mechanism according to the second embodiment, fig. 10 is a schematic perspective view, and fig. 11 is a schematic front sectional view. In fig. 10, the table 2, the sealing sheet 71, and the substrate S are drawn separately for the sake of understanding, but actually they are overlapped and in contact with each other, as in fig. 7.

In the second embodiment, a thin plate positioning program 93 is also installed in the main control section 9. Sheet positioning program 93 calculates the amount of movement (direction and distance) of sheet 71 for positioning corresponding opening 75 based on the type information input through input unit 901, and sends the amount of movement to sheet mechanism 72 for positioning. At this time, the lifting mechanism 74 operates in the same manner to temporarily slightly lift the sealing sheet 71, and after positioning, the sealing sheet is lowered to contact the table 2.

Fig. 11 shows a state in which the substrate S is placed in pre-alignment after the sealing thin plate 71 is positioned to contact the table 2 as described above. As shown in fig. 11, the substrate S placed in the pre-alignment state is positioned in the opening 75 of the positioned sealing sheet 71. Then, the opening 75 is selected according to the size of the substrate S to be processed, and as shown in fig. 11, the opening 75 has a slightly larger size than the substrate S. The difference in size between the opening 75 and the substrate S is referred to as an opening difference, and is denoted by m in fig. 11.

It is important for the opening difference m to be sufficiently small compared with the pitch p of the vacuum suction holes 21 of the table 2 (the distance between adjacent vacuum suction holes 21). This is because, when the opening difference pm is larger than the pitch p of the vacuum suction holes 21, the vacuum suction holes 21 not blocked by the substrate S are not blocked by the sealing sheet 71, and the vacuum leaks. On the other hand, when the opening difference m is too small, the substrate S is likely not positioned in the opening 75 depending on the precision of the pre-alignment. When the substrate S is not located in the opening 75, the substrate S may cover the edge of the opening 75, which still causes a vacuum suction error. Thus, the opening difference m is preferably 1/2 or less and 2.0mm or more of the pitch p of the vacuum suction holes 21, for example.

The direct writing type exposure apparatus according to the second embodiment is the same as the apparatus according to the first embodiment except that only the configuration of the suction hole closing mechanism is different as described above.

In the second embodiment, a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 are provided in the table 2 in a layout corresponding to the largest-sized substrate S, and when a substrate S smaller than the large number is processed, the vacuum suction holes 21 not blocked by the substrate S are blocked by the suction hole sealing member, and thus a device capable of performing sufficient vacuum suction is provided. Therefore, a practical direct-writing exposure apparatus can be provided which can cope with a large number of products and can perform exposure processing with high accuracy.

Next, a direct writing type exposure apparatus according to a third embodiment will be described.

In the third embodiment, a large number of vacuum suction holes 21 are provided on the table 2 in a layout corresponding to the maximum-sized substrate S, and a suction hole sealing member is provided which blocks the vacuum suction holes 21 not blocked by the substrate S when a substrate S smaller than that is processed. In the third embodiment, the suction hole sealing member has a function of pressing the peripheral portion of the substrate S in addition to a function of blocking the vacuum suction holes 21 not blocked by the substrate S.

Fig. 12 is a schematic plan view showing the structure of a sealing sheet 71 according to the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, the sheet 71 is also in the form of a long strip, and is fed and wound by the sheet mechanism 72 in a state of being wound around a pair of rollers. Then, as in the second embodiment, a plurality of openings 76 having different sizes are formed along the longitudinal direction.

Each opening 76 is formed corresponding to the size of the substrate S to be processed. This point is the same as the second embodiment. The third embodiment is different from the second embodiment in that the opening 76 has a smaller size than the size of the corresponding substrate S. Hereinafter, this opening 76 is referred to as a small opening.

As shown in fig. 12, the sealing sheet 71 of this embodiment has a single large opening 77 in addition to the small openings 76 corresponding to the respective sizes of the substrate S. The opening 77 is used when the substrate S is placed on the stage 2 and the substrate S is collected from the stage 2 (hereinafter, referred to as substrate mounting/dismounting). Hereinafter, the opening 77 is referred to as a mounting/dismounting opening. The loading/unloading opening 77 is a square opening having a size slightly larger than the maximum size of the substrate S.

In this embodiment, the small openings 76 and the attachment/detachment opening 77 are also given opening IDs. Then, information on the formation positions of the small openings 76 and the removable opening 77 is acquired as distances from the sheet reference position and recorded in the opening information file 95.

Fig. 13 is a schematic front sectional view showing the operation of the suction hole sealing mechanism according to the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, the sequence in which the transfer unit 5, the thin plate mechanism 72, and the lifting mechanism 74 cooperate with each other when the substrate S is loaded and unloaded is different from the sequence in the first and second embodiments.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 13(1), first, the main sequence program 91 transmits a control signal to the thin plate mechanism 72 so that the attachment/detachment opening 77 is positioned. In the table 2, a position where the substrate S to be aligned in advance is placed is set to a predetermined position (hereinafter, referred to as a set placing position). The position of the loading/unloading opening 77 is a position in which the area occupied by the substrate S loaded at the set loading position is located inside the loading/unloading opening 77 in a plan view. The thin plate mechanism 72 is controlled so as to be at this position.

When the loading/unloading aperture 77 is positioned, the main sequence program 91 transmits a control signal to the transfer unit 5, and places the substrate S to be aligned on the table 2 as shown in fig. 13 (2). At this time, the sealing sheet 71 may be in contact with the table 2 or may be slightly floated.

Next, if the placement of the substrate S is completed, the main sequence program 91 sends a control signal to the thin plate mechanism 72, and positions the small opening 76 corresponding to the size of the substrate S as shown in fig. 13 (3). At this time, the lifting mechanism 74 positions the sealing sheet 71 slightly above the substrate S.

Next, the main sequence program 91 sends a control signal to the lifting mechanism 74 to lower the sealing sheet 71 to be in close contact with the table 2. In this state, as shown in fig. 13(4), the edge of the small opening 76 covers the peripheral portion of the substrate S.

In this state, the main sequence program 91 sends a control signal to the exhaust system 4 to start vacuum suction. The substrate S is vacuum-sucked to the table 2 by the vacuum suction through the vacuum suction holes 21, and the sealing sheet 71 is also vacuum-sucked to the table 2. At this time, as can be seen from fig. 13(4), the edge of the small opening 76 is pressed against the peripheral portion of the substrate S. Thus, even if the substrate S is warped, the sealing sheet 71 presses the substrate S into close contact with the table 2. Therefore, the substrate S is in a flat posture without vacuum leakage, and exposure is performed in this state.

The operation when removing the substrate S from the stage 2 after the exposure is completed is reversed. That is, after the operation of the exhaust system 4 is stopped and the vacuum suction is released, the lifting mechanism 74 slightly lifts the sealing sheet 71. Then, the thin plate mechanism 72 operates to position the removable opening 77. Then, the suction pad 51 of the transfer unit 5 sucks the substrate S, and the transfer robot 52 lifts up the substrate S and carries it out to the conveyor 50.

According to the direct writing exposure apparatus of the third embodiment, the vacuum suction holes 21 not blocked by the substrate S are blocked by the suction hole sealing member, and therefore, high-precision exposure processing can be performed in accordance with mass production of various products. In addition, since the sealing sheet 71 presses the peripheral portion of the substrate S, vacuum suction can be reliably performed even if the substrate S is warped, and a decrease in exposure accuracy can be prevented.

In the third embodiment, the sealing sheet 71 preferably has appropriate elasticity. When the rigidity of the sealing sheet 71 is high, the sealing sheet 71 floats from the table 2 by the thickness of the substrate S, and cannot be sufficiently vacuum-sucked. Conversely, if the sealing sheet 71 is too flexible, a force for pressing the peripheral portion of the substrate S to eliminate the warpage cannot be generated. In view of these circumstances, the sealing sheet 71 having moderate elasticity is used. For example, when the sealing sheet 71 is made of PET, the above-mentioned problem does not occur when the thickness is about 0.3mm to 0.5 mm.

The difference in the size of the small opening 76 with respect to the size of the substrate S (indicated by m' in fig. 13 (4)) is preferably about 3.0 to 5.0 mm. When the thickness is less than 3.0mm, the warpage may not be sufficiently removed. Even if the thickness exceeds 5.0mm, the effect of eliminating warpage is not changed, but the formation of an exposure pattern on the substrate S may be inhibited.

In each embodiment, the case where the vacuum suction holes 21 provided in the table 2 are arranged at regular intervals has been described, but the vacuum suction holes may not be arranged at regular intervals. For example, since it is preferable to increase the vacuum suction force in the peripheral portion of the substrate S, the vacuum suction holes 21 located in the peripheral portion in accordance with the size of each substrate S may be arranged densely with a narrow interval.

In the first embodiment, the thin plate mechanism 72 is positioned so that each thin plate suction hole 73 overlaps the vacuum suction hole 21 of the table 2, but the "overlapping" in this case is not limited to the case of completely overlapping, and may be an area of at least 1/2 or more. That is, it is sufficient that 1/2 or more of the area of the vacuum suction holes 21 is not blocked (communicated with the thin plate suction holes 73). Each thin plate suction hole 73 may have the same size as the vacuum suction hole 21 of the table 2, but is preferably slightly larger than the same. This is because, when it is made slightly larger, strict positioning accuracy is not required for the thin plate mechanism 72. For example, the thin plate suction holes 73 are preferably about 1.2 to 1.5 times the vacuum suction holes 21 in terms of area ratio.

In addition, although the above embodiments have a configuration of a double table on which two tables 2 are mounted, a configuration of a single table using only one table may be adopted when carrying out the invention of the present application.

The direct type exposure apparatus of the present application can also be used in a process of exposing both surfaces of a substrate. In the case of double-sided exposure, for example, the following configuration can be adopted: a device composed of two single working tables is arranged in the longitudinal direction, and a reversing mechanism for reversing the substrate up and down is arranged between the two working tables.

In the direct-writing type exposure apparatus, the term "substrate" means a plate-like object to be exposed, and does not necessarily mean a member serving as a base of a product. Even components that are not assembled in the final article may be "baseplates".

Claims

1. A direct-writing exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate by irradiating the substrate with light having a predetermined pattern without a mask, the apparatus comprising:

an exposure head for irradiating the exposure area with light of a predetermined pattern;

a table having a large number of vacuum suction holes for vacuum-sucking the loaded substrate;

a transport system for moving the stage on which the substrate is placed so as to pass through the exposure region;

an exhaust system for vacuum-sucking the vacuum suction holes to vacuum-suck the substrate on the worktable; and

a suction hole sealing member for sealing the vacuum suction holes which are not sealed by the substrate among the plurality of suction holes,

the adsorption hole sealing member includes: winding a long sheet in a roll shape; and a sheet mechanism for feeding and winding the sheet, wherein the sheet mechanism is a mechanism for bringing the sheet into a state not to inhibit vacuum adsorption of the substrate,

the thin plate and the thin plate mechanism are mounted on the table so as to be moved integrally with the table by the conveyance system.

2. The direct type exposure apparatus according to claim 1,

the thin plate is formed with suction holes overlapping with the vacuum suction holes blocked by the substrate or openings corresponding to the size of the substrate so as not to inhibit the vacuum suction of the substrate.

3. The direct type exposure apparatus according to claim 2,

a plurality of hole groups each having a plurality of suction holes and different sizes of an entire arrangement region or a plurality of openings having different sizes corresponding to different sizes of the substrate are formed in the thin plate,

a plurality of hole groups or a plurality of openings are formed along the length direction of the thin plate,

a control unit is provided for controlling the thin plate mechanism so that the selected hole group or the selected opening is positioned at a predetermined position with respect to the table when one of the one or more openings in the plurality of hole groups is selected in accordance with the size of the substrate.

4. The direct type exposure apparatus according to claim 2,

a plurality of hole groups each including a plurality of suction holes and having different overall arrangement region sizes are formed in the thin plate,

a plurality of hole groups are formed along the length of the sheet,

a control unit is provided for controlling the thin plate mechanism so that each suction hole of the selected hole group is positioned to overlap each vacuum suction hole of the table when one of the plurality of hole groups is selected in accordance with the size of the substrate.

5. The direct type exposure apparatus according to claim 2,

a plurality of openings of different sizes corresponding to the different sizes of the substrate are formed on the thin plate,

a plurality of openings are formed along the length direction of the thin plate,

each opening is an opening larger than the size of the corresponding substrate,

a set placing position is set on the worktable as a position for placing the substrate,

a control unit is provided for controlling the sheet mechanism so that the substrate placed at the set placement position is positioned in the selected opening when one opening is selected in accordance with the size of the substrate.

6. The direct type exposure apparatus according to claim 2,

each opening is an opening smaller than the size of the corresponding substrate,

a set loading position is set on the worktable as a position for loading the substrate,

when one opening is selected according to the size of the substrate, the control unit controls the thin plate mechanism so that the peripheral edge of the selected opening is located at the peripheral edge of the substrate placed at the set placement position.

7. The direct type exposure apparatus according to claim 6,

in addition to the opening smaller than the size of the corresponding substrate, the thin plate is provided with an opening for loading and unloading,

the opening for loading and unloading is an opening larger than the substrate with the largest size,

the control unit is configured to position the mounting/dismounting opening at a position facing a set mounting position of the stage when the substrate is mounted on and removed from the stage.