JP2000294479A - Scanning alighner and device manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance throughput by a method wherein there is provided control means for stage move without stopping up to a receiving position when an exposure is ended in a final exposure region out of a plurality of exposure amount regions. SOLUTION: At a point of time when a scanning exposure in an exposure region one region before a final exposure amount region is completed, in a scan exposure of the final exposure amount region, a processing circuit 35 judges that a substrate exchange position is at one side in a Y direction, and a start position of the scan exposure is at a plus side in the Y direction. A mask stage 23 and a substrate stage 28 move to the plus side in the Y direction. Thereafter, the mask stage 23 and the substrate stage 28 make scanning exposure operations. The scanning exposure is made until the entire face of patterns on a mask 1 is exposed to a substrate 2. Thereafter, the processing circuit 35 accelerates and decelerates, while the substrate stage 28 is controlled to move to the substrate exchange position. Thus, it is possible to enhance the throughput of a scanning aligner and improve productivity.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a scanning exposure apparatus and a device manufacturing method using the apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a scanning type exposure apparatus, when exposure processing of the last exposure area on a substrate stage is completed, the substrate stage is temporarily stopped, and then the substrate stage is moved to a substrate exchange position. And it took a long time to move to the board replacement position.

[0003]

In recent years, as the production costs of liquid crystal panels and semiconductors have been reduced, the productivity of scanning exposure apparatuses has become increasingly important. Along with this, conventionally, in an exposure apparatus for exposing a liquid crystal panel or a semiconductor, a plurality of exposure regions are provided on a substrate, and a liquid crystal panel pixel pattern (subject) or a semiconductor chip on a mask serving as an original plate is transferred to the substrate in multiple steps. In the exposure method, when the substrate stage holding the substrate and moving stepwise exposes the final exposure area, the time required for the substrate stage to move from the substrate stage position where the scanning exposure is completed to the substrate exchange position is long, This was a factor that reduced productivity.

An object of the present invention is to provide a scanning exposure apparatus and a device manufacturing method capable of solving the above-mentioned problems and improving the throughput of the scanning exposure apparatus and improving the productivity of liquid crystal panels and semiconductors.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method of scanning and exposing a liquid crystal panel pixel pattern (subject) or a semiconductor chip pattern formed on a mask to an exposure area on a substrate. After that, the present invention relates to a method of an exposure method of a scanning exposure apparatus in which a substrate stage moves to a substrate exchange position in a short time.

That is, a scanning exposure apparatus of the present invention comprises a stage for holding a substrate and sequentially scanning and exposing a plurality of exposure regions on the substrate by a step-and-scan operation, and a stage for moving to a predetermined receiving position. And a transfer robot for receiving the substrate after exposure from a plurality of exposure areas, and a control means for moving the stage without stopping to the receiving position after the end of exposure in the final exposure area of the plurality of exposure areas. .

[0007] The control means in the present invention is preferably
The acceleration / deceleration operation pattern of the stage is automatically calculated from the positional relationship between the substrate receiving position and the final exposure area so that the movement time to the receiving position after the exposure of the final exposure area is minimized. It has a function of controlling the movement of the stage so as to move the substrate stage to the receiving position while performing acceleration / deceleration according to the deceleration operation pattern.

It is desirable to determine the acceleration / deceleration operation pattern of the stage by determining the receiving position of the substrate before exposing the final exposure area because the stage is moved without stopping to the receiving position after the end of the final exposure area. In this case, the scanning direction of the final exposure region is selected so that the scanning direction of the stage in the exposure includes a velocity component toward the receiving position so that the moving time is shortened.

Specifically, the scanning direction of the stage is selected so that the scanning direction of the stage approaches the receiving position during the scanning exposure of the final exposure area, and the acceleration / deceleration operation pattern of the stage is determined before exposing the final exposure area. I just need. If the transfer robot can receive the substrate after exposure at a plurality of receiving positions due to a configuration including a plurality of transfer robots, on the contrary, the receiving position (transfer position) in the direction toward the stage during scanning exposure of the final exposure area Robot).

A device manufacturing method of the present invention is realized by the above-described scanning exposure apparatus of the present invention, in which a substrate is mounted on a stage, and a plurality of exposure regions on the substrate are sequentially moved to an exposure position by stepping. An exposure method in which after scanning and exposing an image of a mask as an original on the exposure area via a projection optical system, the stage is moved to a predetermined receiving position, and the substrate is removed from the stage using a substrate transport robot. The stage is moved without stopping to the receiving position after the exposure of the final exposure area of the plurality of exposure areas is completed.

[0011]

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a view best showing the present invention, in which a liquid crystal panel pixel pattern (subject) and a semiconductor chip formed on a mask are placed on a mask stage (23 in FIG. 2). In a scanning type exposure apparatus which performs scanning exposure by moving a substrate stage (28 in FIG. 2) at respective speeds, it relates to a substrate stage operation when exposing a final exposure region and a movement of a substrate stage to a substrate exchange position. 4 is a graph showing a timing chart showing an operation.

In the velocity pattern shown in FIG. 1, before exposing the final exposure area, the substrate exchanging position is determined in advance, and the scanning exposure starting position is automatically determined so that the scanning exposure direction is directed to the substrate exchanging position. A pattern is shown in which after the scanning exposure is completed, the substrate stage (28 in FIG. 2) is accelerated / decelerated and moved to the substrate exchange position so as to move to the substrate exchange position in the shortest time.

FIGS. 2 and 3 are side views showing a scanning exposure apparatus having a function of performing scanning exposure while holding a mask and a plate. FIG. 2 shows that each stage (mask stage 23 and substrate stage 28) is at the scanning exposure start position in the final exposure area shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 shows that each stage position is the substrate exchange shown in FIG. It indicates that it is in the position.

2 and 3, reference numeral 1 denotes a mask on which a plurality of liquid crystal panel pixel patterns are drawn on quartz glass;
Is a substrate made of a glass plate on which patterns such as transistors for manufacturing a liquid crystal display panel are formed by means of photolithography, 21 is an illumination optical system for illuminating the mask 1 at an exposure position with a specific wavelength, 22 is a substrate 2 is an observation optical system which is a mechanism for detecting an alignment mark on 2, 2 is a mask stage which holds the mask 1 and is movable in the XYθ directions and has a scanning exposure function in the Y direction, and 24 is a mask stage 23 and a substrate. A main body structure on which the stage 28 is mounted, 25 is a mirror projection optical system configured by combining a concave and convex mirror for projecting a pattern drawn on the mask 1 onto the substrate 2, and 28 is a XYθ direction holding the substrate 2 A movable substrate stage having a scanning exposure function in the Y direction; 29 is a mask Y axis control laser for controlling the position of the mask stage 23 in the Y axis direction; The interferometer, 30 is the substrate stage 28
A plate Y-axis control laser interferometer for controlling the position in the Y-axis direction, a mask Y-axis drive motor 31 for driving the mask stage 23 in the Y-axis direction, and a substrate stage 28
Is a plate Y-axis drive motor that drives the stage in the Y-axis direction, 34 is a control circuit that controls the motors of the stages 23 and 28 based on the measurement results of the laser interferometers 29 and 30, and 35 is a process that controls the scanning exposure apparatus to perform processing. Processing circuit to perform,
Reference numeral 36 denotes a substrate transport robot that takes out a substrate from the substrate stage and places the substrate on the substrate stage.

As shown in FIG. 2, when the scanning exposure of the exposure area immediately before the final exposure area is completed, the scanning exposure of the final exposure area is performed because the substrate exchange position is on the (-) side in the Y direction. The processing circuit 35 determines that the start position of the scanning exposure is on the Y direction (+) side, and the mask stage 23 and the substrate stage 2
8 moves in the Y direction (+) side. Thereafter, the mask stage 23 and the substrate stage 28 perform a scanning exposure operation. The scanning exposure is performed until the entire surface of the liquid crystal panel pixel pattern (subject) formed on the mask 1 is exposed on the substrate 2. Thereafter, the processing circuit 35 controls the substrate stage 28 to move to the substrate exchange position with acceleration / deceleration (FIG. 3).

(Other Embodiments) In the first embodiment, the substrate is moved to the substrate transfer position in the shortest time in the scanning direction (Y direction). Similarly, after the exposure of the final region is completed, it is possible to move to the substrate transfer position in the X direction with acceleration and deceleration simultaneously with the Y direction.

In the first embodiment, the case where only one substrate transfer robot is provided is described. However, the same control is performed when there are a plurality of substrate transfer robots. That is, when the substrate transfer robot is present on both the (+) side and the (-) side in the scanning direction in FIG. 2, by selecting the substrate transfer robot to be used in the processing circuit, the scanning exposure start position and the substrate It is possible to determine the exchange position.

Although the first embodiment has been described with respect to a mirror scanning type exposure apparatus, a lens scanning type exposure apparatus can be similarly applied.

(Embodiment of Device Manufacturing Method) Next, an embodiment of a device manufacturing method using the above-described exposure apparatus will be described. FIG. 4 shows a flow of manufacturing micro devices (semiconductor chips such as ICs and LSIs, liquid crystal panels, CCDs, thin-film magnetic heads, micromachines, etc.). In step 1 (circuit design), a device pattern is designed. Step 2 is a process for making a mask on the basis of the designed pattern. On the other hand, in step 3 (wafer manufacture), a wafer is manufactured using a material such as silicon or glass. Step 4 (wafer process) is called a pre-process, and an actual circuit is formed on the wafer by lithography using the prepared mask and wafer. The next step 5 (assembly) is called a post-process, and step 4
Is a process of forming a semiconductor chip using the wafer produced by the above process, and includes processes such as an assembly process (dicing and bonding) and a packaging process (chip encapsulation). In step 6 (inspection), inspections such as an operation confirmation test and a durability test of the semiconductor device manufactured in step 5 are performed. Through these steps, a semiconductor device is completed and shipped (step 7).

FIG. 5 shows the wafer process (step 4).
The detailed flow of is shown. Step 11 (oxidation) oxidizes the wafer's surface. Step 12 (CVD) forms an insulating film on the wafer surface. Step 13 (electrode formation) forms electrodes on the wafer by vapor deposition. In step 14 (ion implantation), ions are implanted into the wafer. In step 15 (resist processing), a resist is applied to the wafer. Step 16 (exposure) uses the above-described exposure apparatus or exposure method to align and print the circuit pattern of the mask on a plurality of shot areas of the wafer.
Step 17 (development) develops the exposed wafer.
In step 18 (etching), portions other than the developed resist image are removed. In step 19 (resist stripping), unnecessary resist after etching is removed. By repeating these steps,
Multiple circuit patterns are formed on the wafer.

By using the production method of this embodiment, a highly integrated device, which was conventionally difficult to produce, can be produced at low cost.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention,
In the exposure by the scanning type exposure apparatus, by moving the substrate stage to the substrate exchange position in the shortest time after the end of the exposure of the final exposure area, the throughput of the scanning type exposure apparatus is improved and the productivity is improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a timing chart of a substrate stage operation when exposing a final exposure area.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the scanning exposure apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, showing that each stage is at a scanning exposure start position in a final exposure area.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the scanning exposure apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, showing that each stage is at a substrate exchange position.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a device manufacturing method that can use the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a detailed flowchart of a wafer process in FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

1: mask, 2: substrate, 21: illumination optical system, 22: observation optical system, 23: mask stage, 24: body structure, 2
5: mirror projection optical system, 28: substrate stage, 29: mask Y-axis control laser interferometer, 30: plate Y-axis control laser interferometer, 31: mask Y-axis drive motor, 32: plate Y-axis drive motor, 34: Control circuit, 35: processing circuit, 36: substrate transfer robot.

Claims (6)

[Claims] A stage for sequentially scanning and exposing a plurality of exposure regions on the substrate by a step-and-scan operation while holding the substrate; and a stage for receiving an exposed substrate from the stage moved to a predetermined receiving position. A scanning robot, comprising: a control unit configured to move the stage without stopping to the receiving position after the exposure in the final exposure area of the plurality of exposure areas is completed. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines an acceleration / deceleration operation pattern of the stage from a positional relationship between the reception position and the final exposure area, and controls movement of the stage according to the determined acceleration / deceleration operation pattern. A scanning exposure apparatus. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the control unit automatically calculates and calculates an acceleration / deceleration operation pattern of the stage so as to minimize a moving time to the receiving position after the exposure of the final exposure area. The scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 4. The control means selects the scanning direction such that the scanning direction of the stage approaches the receiving position during the scanning exposure of the final exposure area, and selects the scanning direction before exposing the final exposure area. 4. The scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an acceleration / deceleration operation pattern of the stage is obtained. 5. The transfer robot according to claim 1, wherein the transfer robot is configured to receive the substrate after the exposure at a plurality of the receiving positions, and the control unit is configured to control the receiving position in a direction to which the stage is directed during scanning exposure of the final exposure area. 4. The scanning type exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the step (c) is performed to determine an acceleration / deceleration operation pattern of the stage before exposing the final exposure area. 6. A substrate is mounted on a stage, a plurality of exposure regions on the substrate are sequentially moved to an exposure position, and an image of a mask serving as an original plate is projected on the exposure region at each exposure position via a projection optical system. After performing the scanning exposure, the exposure method moves the stage to a predetermined receiving position and removes the substrate from the stage using a substrate transfer robot. A method for manufacturing a device, wherein the stage is moved without stopping at a position.