CN117535626A

CN117535626A - Film forming apparatus and method for manufacturing electronic device

Info

Publication number: CN117535626A
Application number: CN202210913515.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 岩崎达哉
Original assignee: Canon Tokki Corp
Current assignee: Canon Tokki Corp
Priority date: 2022-08-01
Filing date: 2022-08-01
Publication date: 2024-02-09

Abstract

The invention provides a film forming apparatus capable of improving detection accuracy of vapor deposition state and a method for manufacturing an electronic device. Characterized by comprising: an evaporation source (100) provided in the chamber (10) and configured to discharge the vapor deposition material; a film thickness sensor (30) for detecting at least one of the thickness of the film of the vapor deposition material formed on the substrate (S) by the vapor deposition process and the amount of the vapor deposition material discharged from the evaporation source (100) in the vapor deposition process; a particle sensor (200) for detecting particles within the chamber (10); and a control device (40) for controlling the evaporation source (100) based on the detection result of the film thickness sensor (30) and the detection result of the particle sensor (200).

Description

Film forming apparatus and method for manufacturing electronic device

Technical Field

The present technology relates to a film forming apparatus and a method for manufacturing an electronic device.

Background

The film forming apparatus for vacuum deposition includes an evaporation source having a crucible for accommodating a deposition material. In the evaporation source, the crucible is heated to evaporate or sublimate the vapor deposition material, and the material is vapor deposited on the substrate to form a thin film. Patent document 1 discloses a technique in which a particle sensor for detecting clusters of vapor deposition particles is provided directly above a vapor deposition source in such a film forming apparatus.

[ Prior Art literature ]

[ patent literature ]

Japanese patent application laid-open No. 2008-303430 (patent document 1)

Disclosure of Invention

[ problem ] to be solved by the invention

In the method of judging the state of the evaporation source or the state of the vapor deposition operation by the evaporation source by only a single detection mechanism as in the prior art, it is difficult to accurately judge the state of the evaporation source. For example, a change in state that does not greatly affect the vapor deposition process may be output as a detection result indicating an abnormality due to the inherent characteristics of the detection mechanism. Conversely, a state change that is difficult to detect by only one kind of detection mechanism may occur. In view of the above problems, an object of the present technology is to more accurately determine the state of an evaporation source or the state of a vapor deposition operation by the evaporation source.

[ solution ] to solve the problem

In one aspect of the present invention, a film forming apparatus includes:

an evaporation source disposed in the chamber, the evaporation source discharging an evaporation material;

a first detection means for detecting at least one of a thickness of a film of the vapor deposition material formed on a substrate by a vapor deposition process and a discharge amount of the vapor deposition material discharged from the evaporation source in the vapor deposition process;

A second detection mechanism for detecting particles within the chamber; and

And a control mechanism that controls the evaporation source based on a detection result of the first detection mechanism and a detection result of the second detection mechanism.

[ Effect of the invention ]

According to the embodiment, the state of the evaporation source or the state of the evaporation operation by the evaporation source can be more accurately determined.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to an embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the evaporation source and the particle sensor of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 1.

Fig. 4 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus of example 1.

Fig. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 2.

Fig. 6 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus of example 2.

FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 3.

Fig. 8 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus of example 3.

Fig. 9 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 4.

Fig. 10 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus of example 4.

Fig. 11 is an explanatory diagram of the organic EL display device of example 5.

[ reference numerals description ]

1 … film Forming apparatus 10 … Chamber 20 … vacuum Pump 30 … film sensor 40 … control apparatus 100A, 100B1, B2 … Evaporation Source Assembly 100, 100C … Evaporation Source 110 … crucible 111 … container 112 … cap 112a … through-hole 113 … heating apparatus 115 … Reflector 120 … rotating stage 130 … drive Source 140 … cover 141 … opening 150 … housing 151 … nozzle 200 … particle sensor 210 … detection portion 220 … Reflector

Detailed Description

The following is a detailed description of an embodiment for carrying out the present invention with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, and the like of the structural members described in the embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention only to those described herein unless specifically described.

(embodiment)

The film forming apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 1 and 2. The film forming apparatus according to the present embodiment is a vacuum vapor deposition apparatus for forming a thin film on a substrate using a vapor deposition material. Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to the present embodiment, and schematically illustrates various configurations. Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an evaporation source and a particle sensor included in the film forming apparatus of the present embodiment.

The film forming apparatus 1 includes a chamber (film forming chamber) 10 in which the interior is brought into a state close to vacuum (reduced pressure atmosphere) by a vacuum pump 20, and an evaporation source 100 disposed in the chamber 10. The evaporation source 100 heats a material (evaporation material) of a substance to be evaporated onto the substrate S, thereby evaporating or sublimating the material. The substance evaporated or sublimated by the evaporation source 100 adheres to a film formation surface (surface on the evaporation source 100 side) of the substrate S provided in the chamber 10, thereby forming a thin film on the substrate S. A mask M is disposed on the film formation surface side of the substrate S, an opening is formed in the mask M to conform to the shape of the thin film to be formed, and vapor deposition is performed in a state where the substrate S and the mask M are positioned.

An openable/closable shutter is arranged between the substrate S and the evaporation source 100, and the presence or absence of deposition material adhering to the substrate S can be controlled by the opening/closing thereof. More specifically, in addition to the main barrier 50, in the case where a plurality of evaporation sources 100 are provided, source barriers 60 provided for the respective evaporation sources 100 may be provided as needed. The main shutter 50 is configured by a plurality of shielding plates 51, a driving source 52 that drives the plurality of shielding plates 51, a mechanism for opening and closing the plurality of shielding plates 51, and the like. In general, the main shutter 50 is disposed at a plurality of positions, and controls the positions at the same time, thereby closing the entire surface of the substrate S or opening the entire surface so as to control the presence or absence of deposition material adhering to the substrate S. The source shutter 60 includes a drive source 61 such as a motor, a rotation shaft 62 that rotates in the forward and reverse directions by the drive source 61, and a shielding plate 63 that moves by the rotation shaft 62. If the source baffles 60 having such a structure are provided in each of the plurality of evaporation sources 100, the control can be performed so that the evaporation process is performed only by the desired evaporation source 100. By providing the above-described baffle plate, the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source 100 can be stopped by covering the discharge port of the evaporation source 100 with the baffle plate while the vapor deposition material is continuously discharged from the evaporation source 100.

Here, in order to achieve uniformity of the film thickness of the thin film formed on the substrate S, it is preferable to deposit a molecular-level vapor deposition material on the substrate S. For this reason, it is preferable to stably maintain the state of the evaporation source 100 or the state of the operation of the evaporation source 100 (hereinafter referred to as evaporation state). As a factor of hindering this, it is considered that the clustered vapor deposition material is scattered and the sputtering is generated. The splashing is a phenomenon in which the vapor deposition material flies out of the evaporation source 100 in a liquid or solid state, not by vaporization or sublimation, for example, due to bumping. The clustered vapor deposition material may be attached to the substrate S because it mainly flies upward. The vapor deposition material that flies out due to the splashing falls down mainly by gravity to trace a parabolic trajectory. When the frequency of occurrence of sputtering increases, that is, the vapor deposition state becomes unstable, uniform and stable film formation process management becomes difficult. As described above, the clustered vapor deposition material and the vapor deposition material that flies out due to sputtering are scattered in different manners. In particular, the latter is considered to be difficult to detect by the detection method of the conventional method. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which two kinds of detection mechanisms are provided. This will be explained below.

A film thickness sensor 30 as a first detecting means and a particle sensor 200 as a second detecting means for detecting the scattered vapor deposition material are provided in the chamber 10. The film thickness sensor 30 is used to detect at least one of the thickness of the film of the vapor deposition material formed on the substrate S by the vapor deposition process and the amount of the vapor deposition material discharged from the evaporation source 100 in the vapor deposition process. The film thickness sensor 30 can preferably use a film thickness meter using a crystal oscillator. In this case, by detecting the film thickness of the material adhering to the crystal oscillator, the film thickness and the film forming rate (time change rate of the film thickness) of the thin film formed on the substrate S can be recognized. Further, whether the vapor deposition state is appropriate can be determined based on whether the change in film thickness and film formation rate detected by the film thickness sensor 30 is normal. That is, when the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is included in the predetermined range, the state of the evaporation source 100 is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30, and when the detection result is not included in the predetermined range, the state of the evaporation source 100 is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30. For example, when the film formation rate is continuously detected and a deviation of 5% or more from a predetermined value is exhibited, a method of determining that the vapor deposition state is abnormal is given. Here, a value of 5% is an example, and is not limited to this value, and any value may be set. Further, the film formation rate may be determined to be abnormal when the number of deviations from the predetermined value is equal to or greater than a predetermined number, or may be determined to be abnormal when the film formation rate is continued for a predetermined time or longer and is deviated from the predetermined value.

The particle sensor 200 is generally used for detecting particles such as impurities by detecting particle diameters and particle numbers. The particle sensor 200 can detect scattered vapor deposition materials, particularly, clustered vapor deposition materials, or vapor deposition materials that fall in a liquid state or a solid state. This makes it possible to determine whether the vapor deposition state is appropriate. As the particle sensor 200, a laser scattering type particle sensor or a light shielding type particle sensor can be used. The particle sensor 200 can detect the number and size of particles having a size of about 200nm to about 100 μm.

Thus, as a result of detection by the particle sensor 200, the number of particles detected per unit time can be obtained. Thus, when the detection result of the particle sensor 200 does not exceed the predetermined threshold, the state of the evaporation source 100 is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the particle sensor 200, and when the detection result of the particle sensor 200 exceeds the predetermined threshold, the state of the evaporation source 100 is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the particle sensor 200. For example, a method of continuously detecting the number of particles having a size of 1 μm or more and determining that the vapor deposition state is abnormal when the number of particles having a size of 3 or more is detected within 1 minute is exemplified. The dimension value of 1 μm and the reference value of 3 or more in 1 minute are examples, and the present invention is not limited to this value and any value may be set. A reference comprehensively judged according to the size and the number may also be used.

The film forming apparatus 1 further includes a control device 40 as a control means for controlling the operation of the evaporation source 100. The control device 40 of the present embodiment uses the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 as parameters for determining the operation control of the evaporation source 100.

The control device 40 of the present embodiment controls not only the evaporation source 100 but also the operation of the entire film forming apparatus 1 such as the vacuum pump 20, the substrate transfer mechanism, and the shutter mechanism. The configuration of the control device itself for controlling various devices is known in the art, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted. In general, the control device includes a CPU for executing various commands by performing arithmetic processing or the like based on input data, a RAM for temporarily storing the input data, and a storage means such as a ROM for storing programs in advance. As shown by the broken line in fig. 1, the control device 40 and the various components may be connected by a wired connection to transmit and receive data, or may be connected by a wireless connection to transmit and receive data.

The evaporation source 100 includes: a crucible 110 for accommodating the vapor deposition material m; a heating device 113 for heating the crucible 110; and a reflector 115 for effectively heating the crucible 110 while suppressing heat dissipation from the crucible 110 to the surroundings. The crucible 110 includes a container 111 as a crucible main body and a cap 112 provided in an opening of the container 111 as a member for restricting a discharge direction (vapor deposition direction) of the material. The cap 112 may be provided with a plurality of through holes 112a for passing the evaporated or sublimated vapor deposition material from the evaporation source 100 toward the substrate S. In such a configuration, the cap 112 has a function as a shielding member, preventing the material from directly reaching the substrate S from the crucible. The cap 112 is preferably disposed between the vapor deposition material m stored in the crucible 110 (container 111) and the film-formed substrate S, and is preferably configured to block all imaginary straight lines connecting any point on the film-formed surface of the substrate S and any point on the surface of the vapor deposition material m stored in the crucible 110. By adopting such a configuration, even if a part of the vapor deposition material flies out from the surface of the stored vapor deposition material m in a liquid or solid state due to bumping, it is possible to suppress the vapor deposition material from adhering directly to the substrate S. As shown in fig. 2, the evaporated or sublimated vapor deposition material may be discharged from the center of the crucible 110 through a nozzle 112X provided at the center with an opening. Whether or not the nozzle 112X is provided is arbitrary.

In the present invention, the particle sensor 200 for detecting the vapor deposition material scattered by being discharged from the crucible 110 is provided beside the crucible 110. That is, the particle sensor 200 is disposed so as to include a region in which the vapor deposition material that has flown out of the crucible 110 due to splashing is scattered within the detection range. In other words, the particle sensor 200 is provided at a position to detect the vapor deposition material that flies out of the crucible due to splashing. Here, the region in which the vapor deposition material that has flown out due to the splashing is scattered varies in range depending on the size and shape of various members constituting the evaporation source 100, the heating temperature, the type of the vapor deposition material m, and the like. Therefore, according to the above-described various conditions, by performing experimental observation appropriately, the region (range) in which the vapor deposition material that has flown out due to splashing is scattered can be defined.

The particle sensor 200 is preferably disposed such that the detection portion 210 thereof faces upward in the vertical direction. The detection portion 210 is disposed at a position vertically lower than the discharge port of the vapor deposition material in the crucible 110. The horizontal distance d (d 1 in the case where the nozzle 112X is provided) between the discharge port of the vapor deposition material in the crucible 110 and the detection portion 210 is preferably set to be greater than 0cm and not greater than 70cm, and more preferably greater than 0cm and not greater than 50 cm.

This is because, in the vapor deposition experiment using various evaporation sources and metal materials, the vapor deposition material that flies out due to sputtering was confirmed within 70cm around the evaporation source, and was significantly confirmed within 50 cm.

By employing such a configuration of the particle sensor 200, the vapor deposition material that falls after being discharged from the crucible 110 can be effectively detected. Such a configuration is effective when the film formation process is controlled by a control method described later.

A reflector 220 that shields heat from the crucible 110 is disposed between the particle sensor 200 and the crucible 110. The reflector 220 of the present embodiment is formed of a tubular member so as to surround the particle sensor 200. In addition, depending on the heat resistance of the particle sensor 200, the reflector 220 may not be provided, and a flat plate-like reflector may be provided between the crucible 110 without surrounding the periphery.

< advantage of the film Forming apparatus of the embodiment >

According to the film forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the scattered vapor deposition material is detected by the particle sensor 200 provided beside the crucible 110. The clustered vapor deposition material and the vapor deposition material that flies out due to splashing often fall down immediately after exiting from the discharge port. Therefore, the detection accuracy of the vapor deposition state can be improved as compared with the case of detecting above the discharge port.

This embodiment is particularly effective when the crucible 110 is provided with the cap 112 having a shielding function. Even when scattering of the liquid or solid vapor deposition material toward the substrate S due to bumping is suppressed by the cap, the unstable vapor deposition state can be reliably detected by adopting the structure of the present embodiment. By the arrangement of the detection portion 210 constituting the particle sensor 200 and the positional relationship between the discharge port of the vapor deposition material in the crucible 110 and the detection portion 210, the clustered vapor deposition material that falls down and the vapor deposition material that falls down in a liquid or solid state can be detected more reliably.

In the present embodiment, the control device 40 is configured to control the operation of the film forming apparatus based on the detection results of the film thickness sensor 30 and the detection results of the particle sensor 200. Therefore, the detection accuracy of the vapor deposition state can be improved, and appropriate control corresponding to the vapor deposition state can be performed.

The vapor deposition material according to the present embodiment is not particularly limited. The film forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment particularly exhibits its effect when the vapor deposition material is a metal material. In particular, when the vapor deposition material is a metal material exhibiting sublimation properties at the time of vapor deposition, such as magnesium (Mg) or ytterbium (Yb), large-sized particles are easily generated by clustering or the like, and therefore the present invention effectively functions. It is considered that the heavy metal material such as Ag or Yb is relatively heavy due to the weight of the particles detected by the particle sensor, and thus the detection of the sensor arrangement structure effectively functions.

Hereinafter, a more specific configuration of the evaporation source, a specific example of the arrangement relation of the particle sensors 200 at this time, and a control procedure of the evaporation source will be described.

Example 1

The film forming apparatus of example 1 will be described with reference to fig. 3 and 4. Fig. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 1, in which (a) is a plan view showing an evaporation source and a particle sensor in the film forming apparatus, (b) is a schematic cross-sectional view of a main part of the film forming apparatus (corresponding to a V1-V1 section in (a)), and (c) is an operation explanatory diagram of a source shutter. Fig. 4 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus according to example 1.

< Structure of film Forming apparatus >

In the film forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the chamber 10, the vacuum pump 20, the film thickness sensor 30, the substrate S, and the mask M are as described in the above embodiment, and therefore, the description thereof is omitted.

The evaporation source module 100A of the present embodiment includes a plurality of evaporation sources 100, a rotary table 120 for rotating the plurality of evaporation sources 100, and a driving source 130 such as a motor for rotating the rotary table 120. The evaporation source assembly 100A configured as described above is sometimes also referred to as a point source rotator type. In the evaporation source assembly 100A, an evaporation process is performed by one evaporation source 100 among the plurality of evaporation sources 100. The vapor deposition process is a series of processes for forming a film of a vapor deposition material stored in the evaporation source 100 on the substrate X. That is, the crucible 110 mounted on the evaporation source 100 is heated to evaporate or sublimate the deposited material, and the evaporated material is discharged from the crucible 110, thereby forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate S. In fig. 3, for the sake of easy understanding of the structures of various members, the evaporation source 100 is schematically shown with respect to the crucible 110 as a main structure.

In this type of evaporation source module 100A, when the evaporation material stored in the evaporation source 110 is insufficient, the rotation table 120 is rotated by the drive source 130, and the evaporation process is continued by the next evaporation source 100. The arrow in fig. 3 indicates the rotation direction of the turntable 120, and in the drawing, vapor deposition is performed by the evaporation source 100 disposed at the position indicated by P1. In the figure, P2 represents a standby position of the evaporation source 100 for performing the evaporation process after the evaporation process by the evaporation source 100 disposed at the position P1 is completed. The evaporation source 100 disposed at the position P2 is preheated before the evaporation process of the evaporation source 100 disposed at the position P1 is completed, and thus, the evaporation process can be performed in advance after the rotation operation by the turntable 120.

The operation of switching the evaporation source 100 for performing the vapor deposition process as described above is referred to as cell conversion. An odd number of evaporation sources 100 are usually arranged on the turntable 120. Another evaporation source 100 is disposed between the evaporation source 100 to be subjected to the evaporation process and the evaporation source 100 to be subsequently placed in standby for the evaporation process. This is to suppress thermal interference between the evaporation source 100 performing the vapor deposition process and the evaporation source 100 to be subsequently placed on standby for the vapor deposition process. If the number of evaporation sources 100 mounted on the turntable 120 is N, the evaporation process can be performed by all evaporation sources 100 by n= [ N-1] times of unit conversion.

The timing of performing the cell conversion may be set based on the timing at which the cumulative film thickness detected by the film thickness sensor reaches a predetermined film thickness, the time at which the vapor deposition process is performed, and the like.

In this embodiment, the film thickness sensor is provided one for each evaporation source module. That is, two film thickness sensors (omitted in fig. 3) are provided in the chamber.

A cap 140 is provided above the plurality of evaporation sources 100 in the vertical direction, and an opening 141 is formed in the cap 140 at a position facing the crucible 110 in order to discharge the evaporation material evaporated or sublimated only by the crucible 110 of the evaporation source 100 performing the evaporation process (see fig. 3 (b)). In fig. 3 (a), the cover 140 and the like are omitted for convenience of description.

In this example, the active barrier 60 is provided in total of two places, corresponding to the two evaporation source modules 100A, respectively, in addition to the main barrier (omitted in fig. 3) shown in the above embodiment. By opening and closing these shutters, the arrival of the material to the substrate S can be controlled on and off. That is, the shutter is opened and closed, whereby the vapor deposition process can be switched between the execution and the non-execution. In the source shutter 60, the opening 141 of the cap 140 is closed or opened by the shielding plate 63 that moves by the forward and reverse rotation of the rotation shaft 62, whereby the execution and non-execution of the vapor deposition process by the desired vapor source module 100A can be switched. In fig. 3 (c), the left side shows a state where the opening 141 is closed, and the right side shows a state where the opening 141 is opened, as viewed from above in the vertical direction.

In this embodiment, ag is filled in the crucible in the evaporation source module 100A on the left side in fig. 3 (a) (b) as a material, and Mg is filled in the evaporation source module 100A on the right side. With this structure, a mixed film or a laminated film of Ag and Mg can be formed.

In the film forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, two evaporation source modules 100A configured as described above are arranged in parallel in the chamber 10. Further, one particle sensor 200 is disposed at a central position between the two evaporation source modules 100A. The arrangement of the detection portion 210 of the particle sensor 200 and the positional relationship between the discharge ports of the vapor deposition material and the detection portion 210 in the two crucibles 110 that perform the vapor deposition process are as described in the above embodiment.

In this embodiment, the horizontal distance between the tap hole of the crucible and the detecting portion 210 is 400mm, and the detecting portion 210 is located 150mm lower than the tap hole.

< control sequence of Evaporation Source >

In the film forming apparatus 1, the evaporation source 100 is heated, and after the film forming rate detected by the film thickness sensor 30 is stabilized to a predetermined value, a film forming process (STAS) is started. In accordance with a command from the control device 40, the substrate is fed, the substrate S and the mask M are positioned, and the substrate is rotated, and the vapor deposition process is performed by opening the shutter. At this time, in each evaporation source module 100A, the evaporation process (STA 1) based on the evaporation source 100 disposed at the position P1 is performed. After a film is formed on a substrate by a predetermined film thickness, the substrate is sent out and the next substrate is sent in, and the substrates are replaced one by one to perform film formation. During the execution of the vapor deposition process, the detection signal from the film thickness sensor 30 and the detection signal from the particle sensor 200 are continuously transmitted to the control device 40. In the control device 40, it is determined whether or not the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal (STA 2) and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is abnormal (STA 3). When it is determined that both are normal (not abnormal), the control device 40 determines whether or not the cumulative film thickness obtained by the film thickness sensor 30 reaches t (STA 4). The cumulative film thickness is a total amount of film thickness detected by the film thickness sensor 30 in a period from when heating of the evaporation source is started (when use is started) to when evaluation is performed, and is approximately proportional to the amount of material used. t is set based on the amount of the vapor deposition material m stored in the crucible 110 of the evaporation source 100. When the cumulative film thickness reaches t, it is determined that the remaining amount of the vapor deposition material m stored in the crucible 110 is insufficient. If the detection results of the sensors are normal and the accumulated film thickness is not t, vapor deposition processing is performed to continue producing the film-forming substrate. The value of the cumulative film thickness t is reset according to the amount of the vapor deposition material m stored in the corresponding crucible 110 every time the unit is changed.

In step STA4, when it is determined that the cumulative film thickness reaches t, the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of times of cell conversion reaches n (STA 5). In this embodiment, since there are 7 evaporation sources 100, n=7-1=6. When the number of cell conversions does not reach n, the cell conversion is performed (STA 6), the evaporation source 100 standing by at the position P2 is moved to the position P1, and the vapor deposition process is continued (STA 1). In step STA5, when it is determined that the number of cell conversions reaches n, the vapor deposition process is completed by all the evaporation sources 100, and the vapor deposition process is completed (stage). After the evaporation source is stopped from being heated and cooled, the interior of the chamber 10 is returned to the atmospheric pressure, and various maintenance such as cleaning and replenishment of the vapor deposition material m is performed on the crucibles 110 of all the evaporation sources 100.

In step STA2, when it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is normal (not abnormal) (STA 7), the control device 40 stops the vapor deposition process by closing the main barrier while continuing the detection operation by each sensor (STA 8). Then, the control device 40 determines whether or not the elapsed period from the stop of the vapor deposition process reaches a predetermined first period i1 (STA 9). The steps STA2, STA7, STA8, and STA9 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 continues in a normal state. When it is determined that the detection results from both sensors are normal (STA 2, STA 3) before the first period i1 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the vapor deposition process is restarted after step STA4 has elapsed (STA 1).

When it is not determined that the detection results from the sensors of both are normal until the first period i1 is reached after the vapor deposition process is stopped, the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of cell transitions reaches n (STA 5). Based on this determination, as described above, the cell conversion (STA 6) is performed to continue the vapor deposition process, or the vapor deposition process is ended (STA).

In step STA2, even when it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is normal (not abnormal) and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is abnormal (STA 3), the control device 40 stops the vapor deposition process while continuing the detection operation by each sensor (STA 8). The sequence thereafter is the same as described above. However, the difference from the above is that the steps STA2, STA3, STA8, and STA9 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is normal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is continued in an abnormal state.

In step STA2, when it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is also abnormal (STA 7), the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of cell transitions has reached n (STA 5). Based on this determination, as described above, the cell conversion (STA 6) is performed to continue the vapor deposition process, or the vapor deposition process is ended (STA).

The period i1 may be set in a range of several tens of seconds to several tens of minutes, although it depends on the device structure and the material.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the detection result of only one of the film thickness sensor 30 and the particle sensor 200 is determined to be abnormal, the vapor deposition process is stopped while the detection operation by each sensor is continued. When it is determined that the detection results of both are normal within the predetermined period (first period), the vapor deposition process is restarted. This is because, when it is determined that only the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is abnormal, the cause thereof is highly likely to be caused by, for example, a driving mechanism or the like, in addition to the evaporation source 100. Further, when it is determined that only the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal, the possibility of recovery is high because of some noise or slight bumping.

In contrast, when the detection results of both the film thickness sensor 30 and the particle sensor 200 are determined to be abnormal, control is performed to terminate the vapor deposition process by the vapor deposition source 100 (the crucible 110 disposed at the position P1) to which the vapor deposition process is performed. In this case, the possibility of occurrence of an abnormality in the crucible of the evaporation source 100 is high, and even if the evaporation process is assumed to be restarted, the possibility of occurrence of an abnormality again is high. In this case, the vapor deposition process is continued by performing the cell conversion, so that productivity as a film forming apparatus can be maintained.

Although STA2, STA3, and STA7 are described in the flow chart shown in fig. 4 in a time series, the determination may be performed using the detection result at the same time. In the abnormality determination of the vapor deposition state, it is preferable to use the determination at the same time in both sensors.

In the device structure of the present embodiment, by disposing the particle sensors at appropriate positions, the vapor deposition state can be detected with high accuracy even though the number of particle sensors is small (smaller than the number of evaporation sources). Further, since the film formation process is controlled by using both the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor, the film formation apparatus can be provided with a high yield and a high yield. Particularly, in the continuous production, the film forming apparatus can be made to have a short stop time.

Example 2

The film forming apparatus of example 2 will be described with reference to fig. 5 and 6. Fig. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 2, in which (a) is a plan view showing an evaporation source and a particle sensor in the film forming apparatus, and (b) is a schematic cross-sectional view of a main part of the film forming apparatus (corresponding to a V2-V2 section in (a) of the drawing). Fig. 6 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus according to example 2.

< Structure of film Forming apparatus >

The configuration of the evaporation source 100 according to the present embodiment is as described in the above embodiment. In the film forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, three evaporation sources 100 are provided in the chamber 10 at positions which become apexes of regular triangles when viewed from above. A particle sensor 200 is disposed at a position that is the center of the regular triangle. The film thickness sensor is provided for each evaporation source 100, and thus has three film thickness sensors (omitted in fig. 5). The arrangement of the detection portion 210 of the particle sensor 200 and the positional relationship between the discharge ports of the vapor deposition materials in the three crucibles 110 and the detection portion 210 are as described in the above embodiments. In this embodiment, the horizontal distance between the tap hole of the crucible and the detecting portion 210 is 500mm, and the detecting portion 210 is located 100mm lower than the tap hole.

In this embodiment, a main barrier (omitted in fig. 5) is disposed below the substrate S so as to face the film formation surface of the substrate S. By opening and closing the main shutter, the vapor deposition process on the substrate S from all the evaporation sources 100 can be switched between the execution (plating) and non-execution (non-plating).

In this example, liF (lithium fluoride) was filled in all the evaporation sources 100. By such a configuration that simultaneous vapor deposition from three evaporation sources 100 is possible, liF films can be formed at high speed.

< control sequence of Evaporation Source >

In the film forming apparatus 1, the evaporation source 100 is heated, and after the film forming rate detected by the film thickness sensor 30 is stabilized to a predetermined value, a film forming process (STBS) is started. In accordance with a command from the control device 40, the substrate is fed, the substrate S and the mask M are positioned, and the substrate is rotated, and the vapor deposition process is performed by opening the main shutter (STB 1). After a film is formed on a substrate by a predetermined film thickness, the substrate is sent out and the next substrate is sent in, and the substrates are replaced one by one to perform film formation.

During the execution of the vapor deposition process, the detection signal from the film thickness sensor 30 and the detection signal from the particle sensor 200 are continuously transmitted to the control device 40. In the control device 40, it is determined whether or not the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal (STB 2) and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is abnormal (STB 3). When it is determined that both are normal (not abnormal), the control device 40 determines whether or not the cumulative film thickness obtained by the film thickness sensor 30 reaches t (STB 4). The cumulative film thickness t is as described in example 1. The vapor deposition process is continued as long as the detection results of the respective sensors are normal and the cumulative film thickness does not reach t.

In step STB4, when it is determined that the cumulative film thickness reaches t, the vapor deposition process ends (STBE). After the evaporation source 100 is stopped from being heated and cooled, the interior of the chamber 10 is returned to the atmospheric pressure, and various maintenance such as cleaning and replenishment of the vapor deposition material m are performed on the crucibles 110 of all the evaporation sources 100.

In step STB2, when it is determined that the detection result of at least one film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is normal (not abnormal) (STB 5), the control device 40 closes the main barrier and stops the vapor deposition process while continuing the detection operation by each sensor (STB 6). Then, the control device 40 determines whether or not the elapsed period from the stop of the vapor deposition process reaches a predetermined first period i1 (STB 7). The steps STB2, STB5, STB6, and STB7 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 continues in a normal state. When it is determined that the detection results from the sensors are both normal (STB 2, STB 3) before the first period i1 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the vapor deposition process is restarted after step STB4 has elapsed (STB 1).

Before the first period i1 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, if it is not determined that the detection results from both sensors are normal, the vapor deposition process is ended (STBE).

In step STB2, even when it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is normal (not abnormal) and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is abnormal (STB 3), the control device 40 closes the main barrier and stops the vapor deposition process while continuing the detection operation by each sensor (STB 6). The sequence thereafter is the same as described above. However, the steps STB2, STB3, STB6, and STB7 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is normal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is continued in an abnormal state, which is different from the above.

In step STB2, when it is determined that the detection result of at least one film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is also abnormal (STB 5), the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of times of detecting abnormality for both exceeds a predetermined X (STB 8). The number of times of abnormality detection may be the total number of times of abnormality detection for both, or may be the number of times of abnormality detection for both within a certain period.

When the number of times of abnormality detection does not reach X, the control device 40 closes the main shutter and stops the vapor deposition process while continuing the detection operation by each sensor (STB 9). Then, the control device 40 determines whether or not the elapsed period from the stop of the vapor deposition process reaches a predetermined second period i2 (STB 10). The second period i2 is set to be longer than the first period i1 (i 2> i 1). As long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the abnormal state continues with respect to the detection result of the particle sensor 200, steps STB2, STB5, STB6, STB8, STB9, and B10 are repeated. When it is determined that the detection results from the sensors of both are normal (STB 2, STB 3) before the second period i2 is reached after the vapor deposition process is stopped, the vapor deposition process is restarted after step STB4 has elapsed (STB 1).

In step STB8, when it is determined that the number of times of abnormality detection has reached X, and when it is not determined that the detection results from the sensors of both are normal until the second period i2 has been reached after the vapor deposition process has stopped (STB 10), the vapor deposition process is completed (STBE).

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the detection result of only one of the film thickness sensor 30 and the particle sensor 200 is determined to be abnormal, the vapor deposition process is stopped between short periods (first period i 1) while the detection operation by each sensor is continued. When it is determined that the detection results of both are normal in the short period (first period i 1), the vapor deposition process is restarted. The reason for this is as described in example 1.

In contrast, when the detection results of both the film thickness sensor 30 and the particle sensor 200 are determined to be abnormal, the vapor deposition process is stopped between the long periods (second period i 2). When it is determined that the detection results of both are normal during the long period (second period i 2), the vapor deposition process is restarted. When the frequency of the abnormality detection times increases, the vapor deposition process ends. This is because, in such a case, there is a high possibility that the cause of the abnormality exists in the crucible of the evaporation source 100, and even if the evaporation process is assumed to be restarted, there is a high possibility that the abnormal state occurs again.

As the first period i1, for example, a time of several tens of seconds to several tens of minutes can be set. As the second period i2, for example, a time of about several minutes to one hour can be set.

In the device structure of the present embodiment, by arranging the particle sensors at appropriate positions, the vapor deposition state can be detected with high accuracy even though the number of particle sensors is small (smaller than the number of evaporation sources). Further, since the film formation process is controlled by using both the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor, the film formation apparatus can be provided with a high yield and a high yield.

Example 3

The film forming apparatus of example 3 will be described with reference to fig. 7 and 8. Fig. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 3, in which (a) is a plan view showing an evaporation source and a particle sensor in the film forming apparatus, and (b) is a schematic cross-sectional view of a main part of the film forming apparatus (corresponding to a V3-V3 section in (a) of the drawing). Fig. 8 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus according to example 3.

< Structure of film Forming apparatus >

The evaporation source assemblies 100B1, B2 of the present embodiment are the point source rotator type evaporation source assemblies described in the above-described embodiment 1. The number of evaporation sources 100 (crucibles 110) mounted on the turntable 120 was 5 in the evaporation source module 100B1, and the number of evaporation sources 100 mounted on the turntable 120 was 7 in the evaporation source 100B2, as in example 1. The configuration and operation of the point source rotator type evaporation source are as described in example 1, and therefore, the description thereof will be omitted.

The film forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment sets 2 evaporation source modules 100B1 and 4 evaporation source modules B2 in the chamber 10. Further, in each of the evaporation source modules 100B1 and B2, the particle sensor 200 is disposed at the center of the turntable 120. I.e. 6 particle sensors in the chamber.

In each of the evaporation source modules 100B1 and B2, the arrangement of the detection portions 210 of the particle sensor 200 and the positional relationship between the respective discharge ports of the vapor deposition material in each of the crucibles 110 and the detection portions 210 are as described in the above embodiments. In this embodiment, the horizontal distance between the tap hole of the crucible and the detecting portion 210 is 250mm, and the detecting portion 210 is located 50mm lower than the tap hole.

In the film forming apparatus 1 configured as described above, when it is determined that the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is abnormal, it is possible to determine which evaporation source module 100B1, B2 is determined that the detection result is abnormal.

In this example, in addition to the main barrier (omitted in fig. 7) shown in the above embodiment, six active barriers 60 are provided in total at each place corresponding to the 6 evaporation source modules 100B1, B2, respectively. By opening and closing these shutters, the arrival and non-arrival of the control material to the substrate S can be switched. That is, by opening and closing the shutter, the execution and non-execution of the vapor deposition process on the substrate can be switched.

In this embodiment, the film thickness sensor is provided one for each evaporation source module. That is, there are 6 film thickness sensors (omitted in fig. 7) in the chamber.

In this embodiment, mg is filled as a material into a crucible of one evaporation source module 100B1 (right side in fig. 7), and Yb is filled into the other evaporation source module 100B1 (left side). Further, the 4 evaporation source modules 100B2 are filled with Ag. With such a device structure, a mixed film or a laminated film of Ag, mg, and Yb can be formed.

< control sequence of Evaporation Source >

In the film forming apparatus 1, the evaporation source 100 is heated, and after the film forming rate detected by each film thickness sensor 30 is stabilized to a predetermined value, the film forming process (STCS) is started. In accordance with a command from the control device 40, the substrate is fed, the substrate S and the mask M are positioned, and the substrate is rotated, and the vapor deposition process is performed by opening the shutter. At this time, in each of the evaporation source modules 100B1, B2, the evaporation process (STC 1) based on the evaporation source 100 disposed at the position P1 is performed. After a film is formed on a substrate by a predetermined film thickness, the substrate is sent out and the next substrate is sent in, and the substrates are replaced one by one to perform film formation.

During the execution of the vapor deposition process, the detection signals from all the film thickness sensors 30 and the detection signals from all the particle sensors 200 are continuously transmitted to the control device 40. In the control device 40, it is determined whether or not the detection results of all the film thickness sensors 30 are abnormal (STC 2) and whether or not the detection results of all the particle sensors 200 are abnormal (STC 3). When the control device 40 determines that the film thickness is normal (not abnormal), it determines whether or not the cumulative film thickness obtained by the film thickness sensor 30 reaches t (STC 4). The cumulative film thickness t is as described in example 1. The vapor deposition process is continued as long as the detection results of the respective sensors are normal and the cumulative film thickness does not reach t.

In step STC4, when it is determined that the cumulative film thickness reaches t, the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of cell transitions reaches n (STC 5). In the case of the evaporation source module 100B1, n=4, and in the case of the evaporation source 100B2, n=6. When the number of cell conversions does not reach n, the cell conversion (STC 6) is performed, the crucible 110 standing by at the position P2 is moved to the position P1, and the vapor deposition process (STC 1) is continued. In step STC5, when it is determined that the number of cell transitions reaches n, the vapor deposition process ends (STCE). After the evaporation source 100 is stopped from being heated and cooled, the interior of the chamber 10 is returned to the atmospheric pressure, and various maintenance such as cleaning and replenishment of the vapor deposition material m are performed on the crucibles 110 of all the evaporation sources 100.

In step STC2, when it is determined that the detection result of at least one film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is normal (not abnormal) (STC 7), the control device 40 closes the main shutter and stops the vapor deposition process while continuing the detection operation by each sensor (STC 8). Then, the control device 40 determines whether or not the elapsed period from the stop of the vapor deposition process reaches a predetermined third period i3 (STC 9). The steps STC2, STC7, STC8, and STC9 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 continues in a normal state. When it is determined that the detection results from the sensors both are normal (STC 2, STC 3) before the third period i3 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the main shutter is opened after the step STC4 has elapsed, and the vapor deposition process is restarted (STC 1).

When the detection results from the sensors of both are not determined to be normal until the third period i3 is reached after the vapor deposition process is stopped, the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of cell transitions reaches n (STC 5) in the evaporation source modules for which the film thickness sensor 30 is determined to be abnormal. Based on this determination, as described above, the unit conversion (STC 6) is performed to continue the vapor deposition process, or the vapor deposition process is ended (STCE).

In step STC2, even when it is determined that the detection results of all the film thickness sensors 30 are normal (not abnormal) and the detection results of one or more particle sensors 200 are abnormal (STC 3), the control device 40 closes the main shutter and stops the vapor deposition process while continuing the detection operation by each sensor (STC 8). The sequence thereafter is the same as described above. However, the difference from the above is that step STC2, step STC3, step STC8, and step STC9 are repeated as long as the detection results of all the film thickness sensors 30 are normal and the detection results of one or more particle sensors 200 continue in an abnormal state.

When the detection results from the sensors of both are not determined to be normal until the third period i3 is reached after the vapor deposition process is stopped, the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of cell transitions reaches n (STC 5) in the evaporation source modules in which the particle sensors are determined to be abnormal. Based on this determination, as described above, the unit conversion (STC 6) is performed to continue the vapor deposition process, or the vapor deposition process is ended (STCE).

In step STC2, if it is determined that the detection result of at least one film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is also abnormal (STC 7), the control device 40 determines whether the detection result of the single particle sensor 200 is abnormal or the detection results of the plurality of particle sensors 200 is abnormal (STC 10). In the case where it is determined that the detection result of the single particle sensor 200 is abnormal, the control device 40 determines whether or not the number of cell transitions reaches n (STC 5) for the evaporation source modules 100B1, B2 determined to be abnormal. Based on this determination, as described above, the unit conversion (STC 6) is performed to continue the vapor deposition process, or the vapor deposition process is ended (STCE).

In step STC10, when it is determined that the detection results of the plurality of particle sensors 200 are abnormal, the control device 40 closes the source shutter and the main shutter while continuing the detection operation by each sensor, thereby stopping the vapor deposition process (STC 11). Then, the control device 40 determines whether or not the elapsed period from the stop of the vapor deposition process reaches a predetermined fourth period i4 (STC 12). The fourth period i4 is set to a period (i 4> i 3) longer than the third period i 3. The steps STC2, STC7, STC10, STC11, and STC12 are repeated as long as the detection result of at least one film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the abnormal state continues with respect to the detection result of the plurality of particle sensors 200. When an abnormality determination of the particle sensor is made in STC7 in this repeated cycle, only the source barrier corresponding to the evaporation source making the determination is opened, and the sensor information is detected to make the determination.

When it is determined that the detection results from all the sensors are normal (STC 2, STC 3) before the fourth period i4 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the source barrier and the main barrier are opened after the step STC4 has elapsed, and the vapor deposition process is restarted (STC 1).

When it is not determined that the detection results from all the sensors are normal (STC 12) before the fourth period i4 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the vapor deposition process ends (STCE).

As the third period i3, for example, a time of several tens of seconds to several tens of minutes can be set. As the fourth period i4, for example, a period of time from several minutes to about one hour can be set.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when it is determined that the detection results of all the film thickness sensors 30 are normal and the detection results of one or more particle sensors 200 are abnormal, and when the detection results of at least one film thickness sensor 30 are abnormal and the detection results of all the particle sensors 200 are normal, the vapor deposition process is stopped between a short period (third period i 3) while the detection operation by each sensor is continued. When all the detection results are judged to be normal in the short period (third period i 3), the vapor deposition process is restarted. The reason for this is as described in example 1.

When the detection results of the at least one film thickness sensor 30 and the plurality of particle sensors 200 are determined to be abnormal, the vapor deposition process is stopped between the long periods (fourth period). When all the detection results are judged to be normal during the long period (fourth period), the vapor deposition process is restarted. If this is not the case, the vapor deposition process is ended.

When the detection results of the at least one film thickness sensor 30 and the single particle sensor 200 are determined to be abnormal, control is performed to terminate the vapor deposition process by the crucible 110 (the crucible 110 disposed at the position P1) in which the vapor deposition process is performed in the evaporation source modules 100B1 and B2 determined to be abnormal. The reason for this is as described in example 1. In this case, the vapor deposition process is continued by performing the cell conversion, so that productivity as a film forming apparatus can be maintained.

In the device structure of the present embodiment in which a plurality of evaporation sources are mounted, the particle sensor is disposed at the center of the evaporation source module, thereby realizing the miniaturization of the device. Further, although a large number of evaporation sources are used, the vapor deposition state can be detected with high accuracy with a small number of particle sensors (smaller than the number of evaporation sources). Further, since the film formation process is controlled by using both the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor, the film formation apparatus can be provided with a high yield and a high yield. In particular, the film forming apparatus can be realized with a short stop time of the apparatus during continuous production.

Example 4

The film forming apparatus of example 4 will be described with reference to fig. 9 and 10. Fig. 9 is a schematic configuration diagram of a film forming apparatus according to example 4, in which (a) is a plan view showing an evaporation source and a particle sensor in the film forming apparatus, (b) is a front view (view along the V3 direction in (a) of the drawing) showing the evaporation source and the particle sensor in the film forming apparatus, and (c) is a side view (view along the V4 direction in (a) of the drawing) showing the evaporation source and the particle sensor in the film forming apparatus. Further, fig. 10 is a control flow chart of the film forming apparatus of example 4.

< Structure of film Forming apparatus >

The evaporation source 100C of the present embodiment is a linear evaporation source. The evaporation source 100C is provided with a crucible 110 inside a case 150. In the illustrated example, a single crucible 110 is provided, but a configuration in which a plurality of crucibles are provided in a single housing may be employed. A plurality of nozzles 151 for discharging the material evaporated or sublimated in the crucible 110 are provided at the upper portion of the housing 150. In the case of the present embodiment, the outlet of the vapor deposition material in the crucible corresponds to the tip of the nozzle 151. The housing 150 itself may be provided with a heating device and a reflector. In the case of the present embodiment, the case 150 itself can also function as the cap 112 described in the above embodiment.

In the present embodiment, the particle sensor 200 is disposed at two positions. However, the particle sensor 200 may be provided at three or more positions depending on the number of the nozzles 151 and the like. As to the configuration of the detection portion 210 of the particle sensor 200, as described in the above embodiment. The positional relationship between the tip of the nozzle 151 (the outlet of the vapor deposition material in the crucible 110) and the detection portion 210 disposed at the position closest to the nozzle 151 is as described in the above embodiment. In the present embodiment, the horizontal distance between the tapping orifice of the crucible and the detecting section 210 (the horizontal distance with respect to the tapping orifice of the nozzle 151 nearest to the detecting section 210 among the plurality of nozzles 151) is 300mm, and the detecting section 210 is located 200mm lower than the tapping orifice.

In the present embodiment, one film thickness sensor 30 is disposed above an end of the linear evaporation source. The evaporation source 100C, the particle sensor 200, and the film thickness sensor 30 are scanned and moved together in a direction parallel to the film formation surface of the substrate, whereby film formation is performed over the entire surface of the substrate. If necessary, the evaporation source may be reciprocally moved a plurality of times in the horizontal direction. When film formation onto the substrate is not performed, the film can be moved to a position (retracted position) where the vapor deposition material is not formed on the substrate.

More specifically, the evaporation source 100C, the particle sensor 200, and the film thickness sensor 30 are integrally reciprocated by the driving device 70. The driving device 70 includes a pair of rails 71, a base 72 reciprocally movable along the pair of rails 71, a driving source 73 such as a motor, and a ball screw 74 rotated by the driving source 73. The base 72 is provided with an insertion hole 72a through which the ball screw 74 is inserted, a nut is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the insertion hole 72a, and a plurality of balls configured to circulate endlessly are provided between the ball screw 74 and the nut. With the above configuration, the ball screw 74 is rotated in the forward and reverse directions by the drive source 73, and the base 72 is thereby reciprocated along the pair of rails 71. An evaporation source 100C, a particle sensor 200, and a film thickness sensor 30 are fixed to the base 72. In the present embodiment, the structure in which the evaporation source 100C and the like are reciprocated by the ball screw mechanism is shown, but various known techniques such as a rack and pinion system may be employed for the structure in which the evaporation source 100C and the like are reciprocated.

In the case of this example, since the evaporation source 100C can be moved to a position (retracted position) where the vapor deposition material discharged from the evaporation source 100C does not reach the substrate S, it is not necessary to provide various shutters as in the above embodiment.

< control sequence of Evaporation Source >

In the film forming apparatus 1, the evaporation source 100C is heated at the retracted position, and after the film forming rate detected by the film thickness sensor 30 stabilizes to a predetermined value, the film forming process (STAS) is started. After the substrate is fed and the substrate S and the mask M are positioned in accordance with a command from the control device 40, the linear evaporation source is moved to perform the vapor deposition process (STC 1) on the substrate. In moving, the film thickness sensor 30 and the particle sensor 200 move together with the linear evaporation source. During the execution of the vapor deposition process, the detection signal from the film thickness sensor 30 and the detection signal from all of the particle sensors 200 are continuously transmitted to the control device 40. In the control device 40, it is determined whether or not the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal (STD 2) and whether or not the detection result of all the particle sensors 200 is abnormal (STD 3). When the control device 40 determines that the film thickness is normal (not abnormal), it determines whether or not the cumulative film thickness obtained by the film thickness sensor 30 reaches t (STD 4). The cumulative film thickness t is as described in example 1. The vapor deposition process is continued as long as the detection results of the respective sensors are normal and the cumulative film thickness does not reach t.

In step STD4, when it is determined that the cumulative film thickness reaches t, the vapor deposition process is completed (STDE). After the evaporation source 100C is stopped from being heated and cooled, the interior of the chamber 10 is returned to the atmospheric pressure, and various maintenance such as replenishment of the vapor deposition material m is performed on the crucible 110.

In step STD2, when it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is normal (not abnormal) (STD 5), the control device 40 moves the evaporation source to the standby position while continuing the detection operation by each sensor, and stops the vapor deposition process on the substrate (STD 7). Then, the control device 40 determines whether or not the elapsed period from the stop of the vapor deposition process reaches a predetermined third period i3 (STD 8). The steps STD2, STD5, STD7, and STD8 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 continues in a normal state. When it is determined that the detection results from both sensors are normal (STD 2, STD 3) before the third period i3 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the vapor deposition process is restarted after step STD4 has elapsed (STD 1).

Before the third period i3 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the vapor deposition process is ended (STDE) if it is not determined that the detection results from both sensors are normal.

In step STD2, even when it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is normal (not abnormal) and the detection result of one or more particle sensors 200 is determined to be abnormal (STD 3), the control device 40 moves the evaporation source to the standby position while continuing the detection operation by each sensor, and stops the vapor deposition process on the substrate (STD 7). The sequence thereafter is the same as described above. However, the steps STD2, STD3, STD7, and STD8 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is normal and the detection result of the one or more particle sensors 200 is continued in an abnormal state, which is different from the above.

In step STD2, if it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is also abnormal (STD 5), the control device 40 determines whether the detection result of the single particle sensor 200 is abnormal or the detection results of the plurality of particle sensors 200 is abnormal (STD 6).

When it is determined that the detection result of the individual particle sensor 200 is abnormal, the control device 40 moves the evaporation source to the standby position while continuing the detection operation by each sensor, and stops the vapor deposition process on the substrate (STD 7). The sequence thereafter is the same as described above. However, the steps STD2, STD5, STD6, STD7, and STD8 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the abnormal state continues with respect to the detection result of the single particle sensor 200, which is different from the above-described point.

In step STD6, when it is determined that the detection results of the plurality of particle sensors 200 are abnormal, the control device 40 moves the evaporation source to the standby position while continuing the detection operation by each sensor, and stops the vapor deposition process on the substrate (STD 9). Then, the control device 40 determines whether or not the elapsed period from the stop of the vapor deposition process reaches a predetermined fourth period i4 (STD 10). The fourth period i4 is set to a period (i 4> i 3) longer than the third period i 3. The steps STD2, STD5, STD6, STD9, and STD10 are repeated as long as the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the state continues in which the detection results of the plurality of particle sensors 200 are also abnormal. When it is determined that the detection results from all the sensors are normal (STD 2, STD 3) before the fourth period i4 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the vapor deposition process is restarted after step STD4 has elapsed (STD 1).

When the detection results from all the sensors are not judged to be normal (STD 10) before the fourth period i4 is reached from the stop of the vapor deposition process, the vapor deposition process is ended (STDE).

As the third period i3, for example, a time of several tens of seconds to several tens of minutes can be set. As the fourth period i4, for example, a period of about several minutes to one hour can be set.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when it is determined that the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is normal and the detection result of one or more particle sensors 200 is abnormal, and when the detection result of the film thickness sensor 30 is abnormal and the detection result of the particle sensor 200 is normal or the detection result of a single particle sensor 200 is abnormal, the vapor deposition process is stopped between short periods (third period i 3) while the detection operation of each sensor is continued. When all the detection results are judged to be normal in the short period (third period i 3), the vapor deposition process is restarted. The reason for this is as described in example 1.

In contrast, when the detection results of the film thickness sensor 30 and the plurality of particle sensors 200 are determined to be abnormal, the vapor deposition process is stopped between the long periods (fourth period). When all the detection results are judged to be normal during the long period (fourth period), the vapor deposition process is restarted. If this is not the case, the vapor deposition process is ended.

In the apparatus structure of the present embodiment, the particle sensor is disposed at an appropriate position, and the evaporation source and the film thickness sensor are scanned and moved together, so that the vapor deposition state can be detected with high accuracy. Further, since the film formation process is controlled by using both the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor, the film formation apparatus can be provided with a high yield and a high yield.

(example of other control)

In the above, a representative example is described with respect to the control of the evaporation source. As another example, the method of controlling the evaporation source may be changed as appropriate based on the detection results of the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor. For example, when any one of the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor detects an abnormality, the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source may be ended. Further, when one of the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor detects an abnormality and the other does not detect an abnormality, the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source may be continued. That is, when abnormality is detected in both the particle sensor and the film thickness sensor, the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source is stopped or ended. Regarding the restart after the stop, the control described in the above embodiment can be applied.

Example 5

< method for manufacturing electronic device >

Next, an example of a method for manufacturing an electronic device using the film forming apparatuses of examples 3 and 4 will be described. Hereinafter, a structure of the organic EL display device is shown as an example of an electronic device, and a method of manufacturing the organic EL display device is exemplified.

First, the organic EL display device manufactured will be described. Fig. 11 (a) is an overall view of the organic EL display device 800, and fig. 11 (b) shows a cross-sectional structure of one pixel.

As shown in fig. 11 (a), a plurality of pixels 802 each including a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a matrix in a display region 801 of an organic EL display device 800. The light emitting elements each have a structure including an organic layer sandwiched between a pair of electrodes, and details thereof will be described later. Here, the pixel means a minimum unit in which a desired color display can be performed in the display area 801. In the case of the organic EL display device of the present embodiment, the pixel 802 is configured by a combination of the first light-emitting element 802R, the second light-emitting element 802G, and the third light-emitting element 802B which exhibit mutually different light emission. The pixel 802 is often constituted by a combination of a red light emitting element, a green light emitting element, and a blue light emitting element, but may be a combination of a yellow light emitting element, a cyan light emitting element, and a white light emitting element, and is not particularly limited as long as it is at least one color.

Fig. 11 (b) is a partial cross-sectional view of the S-S line of fig. 11 (a). The pixel 802 includes a plurality of light-emitting elements, each of which includes a first electrode (anode) 804, a hole-transporting layer 805, any one of light-emitting layers 806R, 806G, and 806B, an electron-transporting layer 807, and a second electrode (cathode) 808 over a substrate 803. Among them, the hole transport layer 805, the light emitting layers 806R, 806G, 806B, and the electron transport layer 807 correspond to organic layers. In this embodiment, the light-emitting layer 806R is an organic EL layer that emits red, the light-emitting layer 806G is an organic EL layer that emits green, and the light-emitting layer 806B is an organic EL layer that emits blue. The light-emitting layers 806R, 806G, and 806B are formed in patterns corresponding to light-emitting elements (sometimes referred to as organic EL elements) that emit red, green, and blue, respectively.

The first electrode 804 is formed separately for each light-emitting element. The hole transporting layer 805, the electron transporting layer 807, and the second electrode 808 may be formed in common among the plurality of light emitting elements 802r,802g,802b, or may be formed for each light emitting element. An insulating layer 809 is provided between the first electrodes 804 to prevent the first electrodes 804 and the second electrodes 808 from being shorted by foreign matter. Further, since the organic EL layer is deteriorated by moisture or oxygen, a protective layer 810 for protecting the organic EL element from moisture or oxygen is provided.

In fig. 11 (a), the hole transport layer 805 and the electron transport layer 807 are shown as one layer, but may be formed of a plurality of layers including a hole blocking layer and an electron blocking layer according to the structure of the organic EL display element. A hole injection layer having a band structure that allows holes to be smoothly injected from the first electrode 804 into the hole transport layer 805 may be formed between the first electrode 804 and the hole transport layer 805. Also, an electron injection layer may be formed between the second electrode 808 and the electron transport layer 807.

Next, an example of a method for manufacturing the organic EL display device will be specifically described.

First, a substrate 803 on which a circuit (not shown) for driving the organic EL display device and a first electrode 804 are formed is prepared.

An acrylic resin is formed over the substrate 803 over which the first electrode 804 is formed by spin coating, and the insulating layer 809 is formed by patterning the acrylic resin by photolithography so that an opening is formed in a portion where the first electrode 804 is formed. The opening corresponds to a light emitting region where the light emitting element actually emits light.

The substrate 803 patterned with the insulating layer 809 is fed to a first organic material film forming apparatus, and the hole transport layer 805 is formed as a common layer over the first electrode 804 in the display region by holding the substrate with a substrate support table and an electrostatic chuck. The hole transport layer 805 is formed by vacuum evaporation. In practice, the hole transport layer 805 is formed to be larger in size than the display region 801, and thus a high-definition mask is not required.

Next, the substrate 803, on which the hole transport layer 805 is formed, is fed to a second organic material film forming apparatus, and held by a substrate support table and an electrostatic chuck. Alignment of the substrate and the mask is performed, and the substrate is placed on the mask, whereby a red light-emitting layer 806R is formed on a portion of the substrate 803 where the red light-emitting element is arranged.

As in the case of the formation of the light-emitting layer 806R, a light-emitting layer 806G emitting green is formed by a third organic material film forming device, and a light-emitting layer 806B emitting blue is formed by a fourth organic material film forming device. After the formation of the light-emitting layers 806R, 806G, and 806B is completed, an electron transport layer 807 is formed over the entire display region 801 by a fifth film formation device. The electron transport layer 807 is formed as a common layer among the three light emitting layers 806R, 806G, and 806B.

The film forming apparatus and the film forming method having the structures described in example 4 are applied to the first to fourth organic material film forming apparatuses.

The substrate on which the electron transport layer 807 is formed is moved to a metal vapor deposition material film forming apparatus to form the second electrode 808. The film forming apparatus and the film forming method described in example 3 were applied to a metal vapor deposition material film forming apparatus.

Then, the film is moved to the plasma CVD apparatus to form the protective layer 810, and the organic EL display device 800 is completed.

When the substrate 803 on which the insulating layer 809 is patterned is fed to a film forming apparatus until the formation of the protective layer 810 is completed, if the substrate is exposed to an atmosphere containing moisture or oxygen, the light-emitting layer made of an organic EL material may be degraded by the moisture or oxygen. Therefore, in this embodiment, the substrate between the film forming apparatuses is carried out in a vacuum atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere.

In the device structure of the present embodiment, the vapor deposition state can be detected with high accuracy by arranging the particle sensor at an appropriate position. Further, since the film formation process is controlled by using both the particle sensor and the crystal oscillator, the film formation apparatus can be provided with high yield and high yield. In particular, a manufacturing apparatus having a short stop time of the apparatus at the time of continuous production of the organic EL display device can be formed.

Claims

1. A film forming apparatus is characterized by comprising:

A second detection mechanism for detecting particles within the chamber; and

2. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

when it is determined that the state of the evaporation source performing the evaporation process is abnormal based on at least one of the detection result of the first detection means and the detection result of the second detection means, the control means stops the evaporation process based on the evaporation source while continuing the detection operation based on the first detection means and the second detection means,

the control means may restart the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source when the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the first detection means and the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the second detection means before the first period elapses from the stop of the vapor deposition process.

3. The film forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein,

The control means ends the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source when it is determined that the state of the evaporation source is abnormal based on the detection result of at least one of the first detection means and the second detection means during the period from the stop of the vapor deposition process to the passage of the first period.

4. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

the control means ends the vapor deposition process by the vapor deposition source when it is determined that the state of the vapor deposition source in which the vapor deposition process is performed is abnormal based on at least one of the detection result of the first detection means and the detection result of the second detection means.

5. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the control means ends the vapor deposition process by the vapor deposition source when the state of the vapor deposition source is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the first detection means and the state of the vapor deposition source is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the second detection means.

6. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

when it is determined that the state of the evaporation source performing the evaporation process is abnormal based on the detection result of the first detection means and the state of the evaporation source performing the evaporation process is abnormal based on the detection result of the second detection means, the control means stops the evaporation process based on the evaporation source while continuing the detection operation based on the first detection means and the second detection means,

the control means may restart the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source when the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the first detection means and the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the second detection means before the second period elapses from the stop of the vapor deposition process.

7. The film forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein,

the control means ends the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source when it is determined that the state of the evaporation source is abnormal based on the detection result of at least one of the first detection means and the second detection means during the period from the stop of the vapor deposition process to the passage of the second period.

8. The film forming apparatus according to claim 6 or 7, wherein,

during the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source, the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source is continued even when the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection result of one of the first detection means and the second detection means and the state of the evaporation source is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the other of the first detection means and the second detection means.

9. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

10. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

a plurality of the second detection mechanisms are disposed within the chamber.

11. The film forming apparatus according to claim 10, wherein,

when the state of the evaporation source performing the vapor deposition process is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the first detection means and the state of the evaporation source performing the vapor deposition process is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of at least one of the plurality of second detection means, and when the state of the evaporation source performing the vapor deposition process is determined to be normal based on the detection result of all of the second detection means and the state of the evaporation source performing the vapor deposition process is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the first detection means, the control means stops the vapor deposition process based on the evaporation source while continuing the detection operation based on the first detection means and all of the second detection means,

the control means may restart the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source when the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection result of the first detection means and the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection result of all the second detection means before the third period elapses from the stop of the vapor deposition process.

12. The film forming apparatus according to claim 10, wherein,

when it is determined that the state of the evaporation source performing the vapor deposition process is abnormal based on the detection result of the first detection means and that the state of the evaporation source performing the vapor deposition process is abnormal based on the detection result of two or more of the plurality of second detection means, the control means stops the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source while continuing the detection operation by the first detection means and all of the second detection means,

before a fourth period of time elapses from the stop of the vapor deposition process, if the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection results of the first detection means and the state of the evaporation source is determined to be normal based on the detection results of all the second detection means, the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source is restarted.

13. The film forming apparatus according to claim 12, wherein,

and ending the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source when it is determined that the state of the evaporation source is abnormal based on any one of the detection results of the first detection means and the detection results of all the second detection means during the period from the stop of the vapor deposition process to the passage of the fourth period.

14. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the film forming apparatus further includes a second evaporation source different from the evaporation source,

the control means starts the vapor deposition process by the second evaporation source when the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source is completed.

15. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the film forming apparatus further includes a shutter plate for shielding the vapor deposition material,

the control means stops the vapor deposition process by the evaporation source by covering the discharge port of the evaporation source with the shutter while continuing the discharge of the vapor deposition material from the evaporation source.

16. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

when the detection result of the first detection means is included in a predetermined range, it is determined that the state of the evaporation source is normal based on the detection result of the first detection means,

when the detection result of the first detection means is not included in the predetermined range, it is determined that the state of the evaporation source is abnormal based on the detection result of the first detection means,

The detection result of the second detection means indicates the number of particles detected per unit time,

when the detection result of the second detection means does not exceed a predetermined threshold value, it is determined that the state of the evaporation source is normal based on the detection result of the second detection means,

when the detection result of the second detection means exceeds the predetermined threshold value, the evaporation source is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the second detection means.

17. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the second detection means is disposed so that a detection range of the second detection means includes a region where the vapor deposition material discharged from the crucible provided in the evaporation source due to sputtering is scattered.

18. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the film forming apparatus includes:

a plurality of evaporation sources; and

And a rotary table that changes positions of the plurality of evaporation sources by rotation.

19. The film forming apparatus according to claim 18, wherein,

the second detection mechanism is arranged in the center of the rotary table.

20. The film forming apparatus according to claim 18, wherein,

the control means changes the positions of the evaporation sources by rotating the rotary table based on the detection result of the first detection means and the detection result of the second detection means.

21. The film forming apparatus according to claim 18, wherein,

when it is determined that the state of one of the evaporation sources performing the evaporation process is abnormal, the control means rotates the rotary table to switch the evaporation source performing the evaporation process.

22. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

at least a part of the detection portion in the second detection mechanism is disposed below the discharge port of the vapor deposition material in the evaporation source in the vertical direction.

23. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the horizontal distance between the discharge port of the vapor deposition material in the evaporation source and the detection portion in the second detection mechanism is greater than 0cm and 70cm or less.

24. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

The horizontal distance between the outlet of the vapor deposition material in the crucible provided in the evaporation source and the detection portion in the second detection mechanism is greater than 0cm and 50cm or less.

25. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

a reflector for shielding heat from the evaporation source is disposed between the second detection mechanism and the evaporation source.

26. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the evaporation material is metal.

27. A method for manufacturing an electronic device using the film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 26, comprising:

a step of forming a film on a substrate using the evaporation source; and

And controlling the operation of the evaporation source based on the detection result of the first detection means and the detection result of the second detection means.