CN113646463A

CN113646463A - Deposition apparatus

Info

Publication number: CN113646463A
Application number: CN202080024314.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 文炳竣; 李相硅; 申大成; 洪熏护
Original assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Current assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Priority date: 2019-03-25
Filing date: 2020-01-21
Publication date: 2021-11-12
Anticipated expiration: 2040-01-21
Also published as: KR20200113533A; WO2020197067A1; KR102221960B1; CN113646463B

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a deposition apparatus for more accurately measuring the amount of a residual deposition source material present in a crucible, the deposition apparatus including: a crucible filled with the deposition raw material and having a nozzle for guiding the deposition material evaporated from the deposition raw material; a heater block including a heater unit for discharging heat for heating the crucible, and a heater frame on which the heater unit is mounted; a cooling part placed outside the heater part; a chamber having a deposition space formed therein and accommodating therein the crucible, the heater part, and the cooling part; and a weight measuring module for measuring a weight of the crucible, wherein a mounting part to mount the crucible may be formed on the heater frame.

Description

Deposition apparatus

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a deposition apparatus, and more particularly, to a deposition apparatus for depositing a deposition material on an object to be deposited.

Background

Recently, since the widespread use and demand of thin TVs for space utilization or design purposes has increased due to devices, such as mobile phones, laptop computers, or digital cameras, in which portability is important, the use of flat panel displays has increased and thus active research has been conducted on devices and processes for manufacturing flat panel devices.

In particular, recently, active research into Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) display panels has been conducted due to advantages such as a wide viewing angle and a fast response speed.

Meanwhile, a vacuum thermal deposition method is used as one of the methods of manufacturing the OLED display panel.

Here, the vacuum thermal deposition method is a thin film forming method of filling a crucible with an organic/inorganic material, forming a vacuum, heating the crucible, and depositing an evaporation material on a substrate. In this case, the organic/inorganic material used for the OLED display panel is very expensive and may be denatured by heating for a long time or at a high temperature. Thus, when process conditions such as temperature and pressure are not optimized, denaturation can easily occur, and the denatured material is generally discarded without being reused.

In this regard, the deposition material is used in an amount required for mass production. In order to know the remaining amount of the deposition material during production, the user may perform prediction through indirect measurement using a sensor for checking the deposition amount without using a direct weight measurement value.

Therefore, as a method of more accurately obtaining the remaining amount of the deposition material, a method of directly measuring the remaining amount of the deposition material may be considered.

For example, the weight of a crucible filled with the deposition material may be directly measured. In this case, a measurement error may occur due to the temperature of the crucible and the heater according to the influence of the position of the weight measurement sensor, thereby reducing the reliability of the measured value while reducing the durability of the sensor.

As another example, although the remaining amount of the deposition material may be calculated by measuring the weight of other members including the crucible, since the weight of other members is greater than the weight of the crucible, accuracy may be reduced in calculating the remaining amount of the deposition material.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

The present disclosure provides a deposition apparatus for more accurately measuring a remaining amount of a deposition raw material present in a crucible.

Technical scheme

The deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include: a crucible filled with a deposition raw material and having a nozzle for guiding a deposition material evaporated from the deposition raw material; a heater including a heater unit for emitting heat for heating the crucible and a heater frame for mounting the heater unit; a cooler disposed outside the heater; a chamber defining a deposition space in which the crucible, the heater, and the cooler are accommodated; and a weight measurement module configured to measure a weight of the crucible. A crucible seating part on which the crucible is seated may be formed on the heater frame.

The heater frame may include a body supported by at least one of the cooler and the chamber, and a crucible support protruding from the body in a support or in a horizontal direction, the weight measurement module is mounted in a lower region of the crucible, and may include a sensor configured to detect weight, a guide rail configured to guide lifting and lowering of the sensor, and an actuator configured to lift and lower the sensor. However, the support of the crucible is not limited to the support body, and the crucible may be supported by the upper surface or the lower surface of the heater frame. For convenience of description, in the present disclosure, a support body is described.

A connector selectively contacting the sensor may be further included, and the sensor may measure the weight of the connector and the crucible when raised.

The connector may support the crucible when raised.

The heater frame may include a body supported by at least one of the cooler and the chamber, a crucible support protruding from the body in a horizontal direction, and a connector support protruding from the body in a horizontal direction below the crucible support and supporting a connector.

When the height of the sensor is less than the first height, the crucible may be supported by the crucible support, and the connector may be supported by the connector support. When the height of the sensor is equal to or greater than the first height and less than the second height, the crucible may be supported by the crucible support body and the connector may be supported by the sensor. The crucible and the connector may be supported by the sensor when the height of the sensor is equal to or greater than the second height.

In the cooler, a sensor passage through which the sensor passes may be formed.

A support may be further included, the cooler being seated on an upper surface of the support, and the support being supported by the chamber, the heater may be supported by the cooler, and the weight measuring module may be disposed inside the support.

A protrusion protruding in a horizontal direction may be formed on the crucible, and the protrusion may be supported by the crucible seating part.

Effects of the invention

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the crucible may be seated on the heater frame, and the weight measuring module may measure the weight of the crucible in a state in which the crucible is seated on the heater frame, or in a state in which the crucible is easily separated from the heater frame. In this case, since the weights of the heater and the cooler are not reflected in the calculation of the deposition raw material contained in the crucible, the remaining amount of the deposition raw material can be measured more accurately.

Further, a weight measuring module is disposed within the heater frame or below the crucible. In this case, since it is not necessary to separate or replace the weight measuring module when the crucible is replaced, maintenance is easy.

The weight of the crucible may be measured in a state where the crucible is separated from the heater frame by the connector. In this case, since the influence of the crucible or the heater on the heat of the sensor is minimized, the measurement accuracy of the remaining amount of the deposition raw material can be improved

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the evaporation module shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 3 to 4 are sectional views of a deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 2 is a perspective view of an evaporation module shown in fig. 1.

A deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a chamber 1, a substrate 2, and an evaporation module 100. Meanwhile, the deposition apparatus shown in fig. 1 is only an embodiment, and the deposition apparatus may include other components in addition to the components shown in fig. 1, or may omit some of the components shown in fig. 1.

In the chamber 1, a deposition space S1 in which a deposition process is performed may be formed. Within the chamber 1, at least one of a substrate 2 and a deposition module 100 may be disposed. That is, in the deposition space S1 of the chamber 1, the crucible 110, the heater 120, and the cooler 130 may be accommodated.

The substrate 2 may be mounted above the deposition module 100. For example, the substrate 2 may be directly connected to an upper plate of the chamber 1, or may be connected to a connection member mounted on the upper plate of the chamber 1. In addition, the deposition module 100 may be fixed in place, and the substrates 2 may be moved along a distribution line between the chambers 1.

The substrate 2 may be an object to be deposited on which a deposition material evaporated from the crucible 110 is deposited. For example, the substrate 2 may be a glass substrate, but this is merely an example for convenience of description, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

Referring to fig. 2, the deposition module 100 includes a crucible 110, a nozzle 120, a heater 130, and a heater 140.

Meanwhile, the deposition module 100 may include other components in addition to the components shown in fig. 2, or at least some of the components shown in fig. 2 may be omitted.

The crucible 110 may be filled with a deposition raw material. In the crucible 110, a space containing a deposition material (not shown) may be formed. The crucible 100 may be heated by heat supplied from the outside, and when the crucible 100 is heated, at least a portion of the deposition raw material may be evaporated as the deposition material.

Here, the deposition raw material may be a material contained in the crucible 110 to be deposited on at least one substrate 2, and means a material before being evaporated into a deposition material. The deposition raw material may be in a solid or liquid state, and the deposition material may be in a gaseous state. That is, the deposition material may be a material in a gaseous state evaporated from a deposition raw material, and means a material that may be deposited on the at least one substrate 2. These are merely for convenience of description to distinguish solid/liquid materials from gaseous materials, and thus the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

The crucible 110 may include a nozzle 120 for guiding the deposition material evaporated from the deposition raw material. In the nozzle 120, a hole through which the deposition material may pass may be formed. The deposition material evaporated in the crucible 110 may be deposited on the substrate 2 after moving to the deposition space S1 through the nozzle 120.

The nozzle 120 may be a passage through which the deposition material moves. The nozzles 120 may be disposed at an upper side of the crucible 110 to be horizontally spaced apart from each other. The nozzle 120 may have a long shape in the height direction, but this is merely an example, and thus the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

The heater 130 may emit heat for heating the crucible 110. The heater 130 may include a heater unit 132 and a heater frame 134. The heater unit 132 may be accommodated in the heater frame 134, and the crucible 110 may be accommodated in the heater unit 132.

The heater unit 132 may emit heat for heating the crucible 110. The heater unit 132 may be a heat source for radiating heat to the outside. The heat emitted from the heater unit 132 may heat the crucible 110.

The heater frame 134 may support at least one of the heater unit 132 and the crucible 110. The heater unit 132 may be mounted on the heater frame 134 by a connection member (not shown).

Meanwhile, the heater frame 134 may include a reflector for reflecting heat emitted from the heater unit 132. A reflector may be disposed along the outer circumference of the heater unit 132 to reflect heat emitted from the heater unit 132 in the direction of the crucible 110. In this case, the heater unit 132 may minimize power consumption for dissipating heat and affect formation of a temperature distribution of the crucible.

Cooler 140 may be disposed outside heater 130. In the cooler 140, the crucible 110, the nozzle 120, and the heater 130 may be accommodated.

A cooling water passage through which cooling water flows may be formed in the cooler 140. The cooler 140 may minimize the movement of heat emitted from the heater 130 to the outside of the deposition module 100.

The cooler 140 may minimize an influence on deposition performance when at least some of heat emitted from the heater 130 moves to the outside of the deposition module 100 to reach the substrate 2.

The cooler 140 may minimize the movement of heat emitted from the heater 130 to the outside of the evaporation module 100.

The deposition module 100 may further include a weight measuring module 400 for obtaining a remaining amount of the deposition raw material contained in the crucible 110.

The weight measuring module 400 may obtain the remaining amount of the deposition raw material by measuring the weight of the crucible 110. For example, the weight measurement module 400 includes a controller (not shown), and the controller (not shown) may obtain a value obtained by subtracting the weight of the crucible measured after the start of the deposition process from the weight of the crucible measured before the start of the deposition process as the remaining amount of the deposition raw material. In this case, the weight of other members than the weight of the crucible is not included in the calculation of the remaining amount of the deposition raw material, and the temperature rise of the sensor is minimized, thereby more accurately obtaining the remaining amount of the deposition raw material.

Specifically, fig. 3 illustrates a state in which the deposition apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is in a standby state, and fig. 4 illustrates a state in which the deposition apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is in a measurement state.

In this case, the standby state may mean a state other than the measurement state, and for example, the standby state may refer to a state in which the deposition process is being performed. The measurement state may refer to a state in which the weight measurement module 400 is measuring the weight of the crucible 110.

Hereinafter, a deposition apparatus according to an embodiment will be described. The deposition apparatus includes a chamber 1, a substrate 2, and a deposition module 100, the deposition module 100 includes a crucible 110, a heater 130, a cooler 140, and a weight measurement module 400, and the weight measurement module 400 may be installed below the crucible 110. In addition, the deposition module 100 may further include a support 190.

The chamber 1 and the substrate 2 are the same as those described with reference to fig. 1 to 3, and thus a description thereof will be omitted.

On the crucible 110, a protrusion 112 protruding in a horizontal direction may be formed. The protrusion 112 may protrude outward from the crucible 110. The protrusion 112 may protrude from the crucible 110 in the direction of the heater frame 134.

A protrusion 112 may be formed on an upper portion of the crucible 110.

The protrusion 112 may be seated on the heater frame 134, and thus the crucible 110 may be supported by the heater frame 134.

The protrusion 112 may be seated on the heater frame 134 when the deposition apparatus is in a standby state, and the protrusion 112 may be separated from the heater frame 134 when the deposition apparatus is in a measurement state.

The crucible 110 may be supported by the connector 300 when the deposition apparatus is in a measurement state, and the protrusion 112 may be spaced apart from the heater frame 134 when the crucible 110 is supported by the connector 300. When the crucible 110 is supported by the connector 300, the load of the crucible 110 may be transferred to the connector 300.

That is, the protrusion 112 may be seated on the heater frame 134 or spaced apart from the heater frame 134 according to the state of the deposition apparatus.

The heater frame 134 may support the protrusion 112. The heater frame 134 may include a body 135, a crucible supporter 136 protruding from the body 135 in a horizontal direction, and a connector supporter 138. The crucible supporting method may use the upper surface of the supporter 136 or the heater frame, and the supporting method is not limited.

The body 135 may sit on at least one of the cooler 140 or the chamber 1.

As shown in fig. 3-4, the body 135 may sit on the cooler 140. Alternatively, unlike fig. 3-4, the body 135 may sit on the chamber 1.

Crucible support 136 and connector support 138 may protrude from body 135. The crucible supporter 136 may be formed at a higher position than the connector supporter 138.

The crucible supporter 136 may support the crucible 110. In the crucible support 136, a seating portion 137 on which the protrusion 112 of the crucible 110 is seated may be formed. The seating portion 137 is the same as described with reference to fig. 3.

The connector supporter 138 may be formed at a lower position than the crucible supporter 136 and the crucible 110. The connector support 138 may support the connector 300.

In the connector support 138, a connector seating portion 139 may be formed in contact with the connector 300. The connector seating part 139 may protrude upward from the connector support body 138. Alternatively, the connector seating part 139 may be an upper surface of the connector support body 138.

The connector 300 may be supported by at least one of the connector support 138 and the weight measurement module 400. The connector 300 may be supported by the connector support body 138 in a standby state and may be supported by the weight measurement module 400 in a measurement state.

The connector 300 may be raised and lowered by the weight measurement module 400. The connector 300 may be raised in a state of being seated on the weight measuring module 400, and support the crucible 110 while being raised. That is, the connector 300 may support the crucible 110 when raised.

The connector 300 may be a medium that transfers the load of the crucible 110 to the sensor 401 so as to measure the weight of the crucible 110.

The connector 300 may be selectively contacted with the sensor 401. The sensor 401 may contact the connector 300 when raised, and the sensor 401 may measure the weight of the connector 300 and the crucible 110 when raised.

Further, this may be a member for transferring heat of crucible 110 and heater 130 to weight measurement module 400.

Connector 300 may prevent at least some of the heat of crucible 110 and heater 130 from being transferred to weight measurement module 400. In this case, by minimizing the influence of heat on the sensor 401, the measurement accuracy of the remaining amount of the deposition raw material can be improved.

Meanwhile, the crucible 110 may be elevated by the weight measuring module 400 in a state of being seated on the connector 300. The crucible 110 may be separated from the heater frame 134 when raised.

The weight measuring module 400 may include at least one of a sensor 401,

guide rails

403 and 405 for guiding and lowering the sensor 401, and an actuator 407 for lifting and lowering the sensor 401.

The sensor 401 may be a device for measuring weight. The sensor 401 may be a load cell. The sensor 401 may be raised and lowered, and when raised, receives the load of the connector 300 and the crucible 110 to measure the weight of the connector 300 and the crucible 110.

The sensor 401 can be elevated in a state of being mounted on the

guide rails

403 and 405. The guide rails 403 and 405 may include a guide member 403 to which the sensor 401 is mounted and a rail member 405 for guiding the guide member 403. The sensor 401 may be mounted on the guide member 403, and the guide member 403 may be moved in the vertical direction on the rail member 405. The guide member 403 may be elevated together with the sensor 401, and the rail member 405 may be fixed.

The actuator 407 may provide power for the lift sensor 401 and the guide member 403. The actuator 407 may be a motor.

The actuator 407 may transmit power to the guide member 403 in a state of being seated on the chamber 2.

By driving the actuator 407, the height of the sensor 401 can be changed.

When sensor 401 is located at a position less than the first height (H1), crucible 110 may be supported by crucible support 136 and connector 300 may be supported by connector support 138. That is, the sensor 401 may be spaced apart from the connector 300, and the connector 300 may be spaced apart from the crucible 110. In this case, the first height H1 may be a height of a lower end of the connector 300 in a state where the connector 300 is seated on the connector support 138.

When the sensor 401 is located at a position equal to or greater than the first height H1 and less than the second height H2, the crucible 110 may be supported by the crucible support 136, and the connector 300 may be supported by the sensor 401. That is, the sensor 401 may be in contact with the connector 300, and the connector 300 may be spaced apart from the crucible 110. Only the load of the connector 300 may be transferred to the sensor 401. In this case, second height H2 may be the height of the lower end of crucible 110 when crucible 110 is seated on crucible support 136.

When the sensor 401 is located at a position equal to or greater than the second height H2, the crucible 110 and the connector 300 may be supported by the sensor 401. That is, the sensor 401 may be in contact with the connector 300, and the connector 300 may be in contact with the crucible 110. The load of the connector 300 and crucible 110 may be transferred to the sensor 401.

When the sensor 401 is located at a position equal to or greater than the second height H2, the remaining amount of the deposition raw material remaining in the crucible 110 may be measured.

Meanwhile, a sensor passage S2 through which the sensor 401 passes may be formed in the cooler 140. In the sensor passage S2, at least some of the sensors 401, the

guide rails

403 and 405, and the actuators 407 may be disposed.

The cooler 140 may include an upper body 141, a middle body 143, and a lower body 145, and the middle body 143 may be disposed between the upper body 141 and the lower body 145.

In the upper body 141, a passage through which the nozzle 120 passes may be formed. In the lower body 145, a sensor passage S2 through which the sensor 401 passes may be formed.

According to the embodiment shown in fig. 3 to 4, the deposition module 100 may further include a support 190, and the cooler 140 may be seated on an upper surface of the support 190. The cooler 140 may be seated on an upper surface of the support 190, and may be supported by a lower plate of the chamber 1. In this case, the heater 130 may be supported by the cooler 140, and the weight measuring module 400 may be disposed inside the support 190.

The above description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present disclosure, and various modifications and changes can be made by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains without departing from the essential features of the present disclosure.

Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present disclosure are not intended to limit the technical spirit of the present disclosure, but are intended to explain the technical spirit of the present disclosure, and the scope of the technical spirit of the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments.

The scope of the present disclosure should be construed by the appended claims, and all technical ideas within the equivalent scope thereof should be construed as being included in the scope of the present disclosure.

Industrial applicability

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the crucible may be seated on the heater frame, and the weight measuring module may measure the weight of the crucible in a state in which the crucible is seated on the heater frame, or in a state in which the crucible is easily separated from the heater frame. In this case, since the weights of the heater and the cooler are not reflected in the calculation of the deposition raw material contained in the crucible, the remaining amount of the deposition raw material can be measured more accurately. Thus, commercial availability is significant.

Further, a weight measuring module is disposed within the heater frame or below the crucible. In this case, since there is no need to separate or replace the weight measurement module when the crucible is replaced, maintenance is easy and thus commercial availability is significant.

The weight of the crucible may be measured in a state where the crucible is separated from the heater frame by the connector. In this case, since the influence of the crucible or the heater on the heat of the sensor is minimized, the measurement accuracy of the remaining amount of the deposition raw material can be improved. Thus, commercial availability is significant.

Claims

1. A deposition apparatus, comprising:

a crucible filled with a deposition raw material and having a nozzle for guiding a deposition material evaporated from the deposition raw material;

a heater including a heater unit for emitting heat for heating the crucible and a heater frame for mounting the heater unit;

a cooler disposed outside the heater;

a chamber defining a deposition space in which the crucible, the heater, and the cooler are accommodated; and

a weight measurement module configured to measure a weight of the crucible,

wherein a crucible seating part on which the crucible is seated is formed on the heater frame.

2. The deposition apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the weight measurement module comprises:

a sensor configured to detect a weight;

a guide rail configured to guide the elevation of the sensor; and

an actuator configured to raise and lower the sensor, an

Wherein the weight measurement module is mounted below the crucible.

3. The deposition apparatus of claim 2, further comprising a connector that selectively contacts the sensor by elevation of the sensor,

wherein the sensor measures a weight of at least one of the connector and the crucible when the sensor is in contact with the connector.

4. The deposition apparatus of claim 3, wherein the connector supports the crucible when raised.

5. The deposition apparatus of claim 3, wherein the heater frame comprises:

a main body;

a crucible support having the crucible seating part formed to support the crucible and protruding in an inner direction of the body; and

a connector support spaced apart from the crucible support, having a connector seating part formed to support the connector, and protruding in an inner direction of the body.

6. The deposition apparatus of claim 5, wherein the connector support is formed at a lower side of the crucible support.

7. The deposition apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when the sensor is lifted to a height less than a first height,

the crucible is supported by a crucible support, the connector is supported by a connector support, and the crucible and the connector are spaced apart from each other.

8. The deposition apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when the sensor is lifted to a height equal to or greater than a first height and less than a second height,

the crucible is supported by a crucible support, the connector is supported by the sensor, and the crucible and the connector are spaced apart from each other.

9. The deposition apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when the sensor is lifted to a height equal to or greater than a second height,

the connector is supported by the sensor, and the crucible and the connector are in contact with each other so that the crucible is supported by the sensor.

10. The deposition apparatus according to any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the first height is a height of a lower end portion of the connector when the connector is supported by the connector support.

11. The deposition apparatus according to any one of claims 8 and 9, wherein the second height is a height of a lower end portion of the crucible when the crucible is supported by the crucible support.

12. The deposition apparatus of claim 8, wherein the sensor measures a weight of the connector.

13. The deposition apparatus of claim 9, wherein the sensor measures a weight of the connector and the crucible.

14. The deposition apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a sensor passage through which the sensor passes is formed in the cooler.

15. The deposition apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising a support on an upper surface of which the cooler is seated and which is supported by the chamber,

wherein the heater is supported by the cooler, and

wherein the weight measurement module is disposed inside the support.

16. The deposition apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein a protrusion protruding outward is formed on the crucible, and

wherein the protrusion is supported by the crucible seating portion.