JP2004027272A - Thin film deposition apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the task of a thin film deposition apparatus such as price reduction of the apparatus, high productivity, space saving and maintenance. <P>SOLUTION: In sputter film deposition on a flexible substrate, two sputter film deposition chambers are provided in a single common vacuum chamber, and a magnet unit which performs vertical scans is disposed in the central part. That is, simultaneous sputtering to substrates is made possible by constituting two magnet units into a single body. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is, for example, for the production of a thin film photoelectric conversion element, a flexible substrate to be transported is stopped in a film forming chamber, or is continuously transported, and a film is formed on the substrate surface by a sputtering method. It relates to a manufacturing device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
3 and 4 are schematic cross-sectional views of a conventional roll-to-roll transfer type sputtering film forming apparatus for a flexible substrate. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the apparatus, and FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of FIG.
FIG. 3 shows a configuration in which a delivery chamber and a take-up chamber provided with a delivery roll and a take-up roll for transporting a substrate are provided at both ends, and a single sputtering film forming chamber is provided between the two roll chambers. .
[0003]
The sputter deposition chamber includes a magnet unit configured to include a magnet that drives up and down around the substrate, a drive shaft and a drive guide that drives the magnet up and down, a magnet, a drive shaft, and a base that holds the drive guide. It consists of a heater unit that forms a sputter deposition chamber and heats the substrate.
The heater unit consists of a heater, a holding frame, and a front / rear driving device. When the substrate is transported, the holding frame is opened, and during film formation, the substrate is pressed by the front / rear driving device to maintain vacuum tightness by a seal. Then, the pressure is adjusted to a film forming pressure by a separately provided evacuation pump and vacuum pressure adjusting device.
[0004]
FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view, in which the target is fixed in a sputtering film forming chamber, and a magnet is provided on the back side thereof so that the magnet can be driven up and down, and is driven by a drive motor.
The target is connected to a power supply and a wiring for performing plasma discharge. With this configuration, under a certain vacuum pressure, plasma is generated in the magnet unit by energizing a power supply for plasma generation, and sputtering is performed. The target material can be formed on the entire surface of the substrate by scanning the magnet vertically.
[0005]
In this conventional configuration, a sputter deposition chamber, which is another vacuum chamber, is formed inside a common vacuum chamber, and an apparatus for installing one sputter deposition chamber for one common vacuum chamber is provided. Has become. In such a conventional configuration, the doors on both sides constituting the common vacuum chamber are hinged opening / closing doors, and a target magnet unit and a heater unit are attached to these doors, respectively, to improve assemblability and maintainability. . In particular, since replacement due to exhaustion of the target is heavy, a structure that can be easily replaced is desired.
[0006]
On the other hand, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-53313 discloses that a flexible substrate is transported in two rows, a ground electrode is driven by an actuator, a CVD film forming chamber is formed, and a central exhaust block is evacuated. Is disclosed. However, in such a configuration, only the high-voltage electrode portion and the ground electrode portion of the CVD chamber have a common vacuum exhaust structure. However, if the sputtering chamber is to be configured in the structure shown in FIG. 1 of this publication, the target and the magnet, which are the components of the sputtering apparatus, and the driving mechanism of the magnet are disposed in the film forming chamber 5 (high-voltage electrode). 21). Furthermore, the structure in which the two film forming chambers 5 are evacuated by the T-shaped exhaust block 90 is not only complicated but also has a large number of parts and is a high-cost structure. Inferiority.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As described above, in the conventional sputter deposition apparatus, one sputter deposition chamber is installed in the common vacuum chamber. In a thin film manufacturing apparatus, a vacuum vessel and a vacuum control device that can withstand an atmospheric pressure difference are expensive. Therefore, in order to reduce the cost of a thin film product, it is required to reduce the price of the apparatus, improve productivity, and further maintainability. In addition, the installation area of the apparatus with respect to productivity needs to be as small as possible. In the configuration shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 that employs a sputtering chamber for depositing a single row of substrates with one target, two sputtering devices are required in order to improve the production amount of the deposited substrates. The cost of the whole equipment such as the vacuum chamber, the two vacuum pumps, and the installation space for these pumps increases. Further, if the sputter chamber is configured with the structure disclosed in the above publication, a component for sputtering is disposed in the film forming chamber 5 (high-voltage electrode 21). Connection with the driving source becomes complicated.
[0008]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a thin film manufacturing apparatus which improves the conventional apparatus and the conventional method, solves the problems of low cost, high productivity and space saving of the apparatus, and which secures maintainability.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, according to the thin film manufacturing apparatus of the present invention,
A delivery chamber equipped with two rows of delivery rolls for substrates,
A sputtering film forming chamber for performing at least a sputtering process in a vacuum,
A winding chamber provided with two rows of substrate winding rolls;
In a thin film manufacturing apparatus equipped with
Two sputter deposition chambers are provided in a common vacuum chamber,
A thin film manufacturing apparatus configured to form a film on each row of substrates in each sputtering film forming chamber,
A partition formed in a common vacuum chamber, a heater for heating the substrate, and a holding frame provided with a seal for holding the heater and forming a vacuum, comprising two heater units movable back and forth, And a heater unit to form two sputter deposition chambers.
[0010]
In addition, two targets are provided in the two sputtering film forming chambers so as to serve as film forming sources and are provided so as to face the respective substrates. It is preferable to include a pair of magnets, a drive guide for fastening the pair of magnets so as to drive them simultaneously, and a drive shaft.
Further, the partition wall extends between the ceiling plate and the bottom plate forming a common vacuum chamber, the space between the ceiling plate and the bottom plate is formed as a sputter film forming chamber, and the ceiling plate has an opening / closing door and an opening for forming a vacuum. Preferably, the target can be inserted and removed through the opening and closing door and the opening.
[0011]
As described above, according to the present invention, a pair of magnet units that are simultaneously driven are installed in the center of the common vacuum chamber, the drive shaft and the drive guide / drive motor are shared, and the target is placed on the working surface of each magnet unit. And a heater unit for forming a film forming chamber so as to face the target. However, two delivery rolls and two take-up rolls are installed in the delivery chamber and the take-up chamber, respectively, so that the board can be transported in two rows, and the board is communicated between the magnet unit and the heater unit. By driving the unit back and forth, two sputter deposition chambers are formed in one common vacuum chamber, thereby realizing simultaneous deposition of two rows. In addition, since the target is arranged at the center of the common vacuum chamber, the target is lifted by a crane or the like so that it can be removed from the upper part of the common vacuum chamber, and an automatic opening / closing door is provided.
[0012]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows a plan sectional shape of the device, and FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal sectional shape of FIG.
In FIG. 1, a delivery chamber 2 in which two delivery rolls 12 each having a flexible substrate 11 wound in a roll shape can be set, a common vacuum chamber 1 connected to the delivery chamber 2, and an opposite of the common vacuum chamber 1 On the side, a take-up chamber 3 in which a take-up roll 13 for taking up a film-formed substrate 11 is set corresponding to two delivery rolls is provided.
[0013]
Inside the common vacuum chamber 1, partition walls 21 are formed on the delivery chamber 2 side and the winding chamber 3 side. Further, a heater unit 9 composed of a heater 9-1 and a holding frame 9-2 is installed on the left and right, and a seal 30 is provided at the tip of the holding frame 9-2.
The heater unit 9 has a structure that can be driven back and forth, and the pressing frame 9-2 is pressed to form the sputter film forming chamber 4 with the seal 30 provided on the partition 21 sandwiching the substrate 11 therebetween. The heater unit 9 has a moving distance of about 30 mm. As a mechanism for driving the heater unit 9 back and forth, the heater unit 9 is supported by a front and rear drive guide installed on a door, for example, a linear motor guide or a linear ball bush, and is supported by an air cylinder or an electric drive motor supported by the door. The ball screw is connected to rotate and is driven back and forth.
[0014]
The target 6 is fixed and held at the center of the partition 21 so as to face the substrate 11. On the back surface of the target 6, two magnets 20-2 for performing magnetron sputtering were provided. The magnet 20-2 is connected to a drive shaft 7 and a drive guide 8 which are held by the base 20-1 and are driven up and down.
As shown in FIG. 2, the drive guide 8 has a fixed plate provided on the ceiling plate 22 and the bottom plate 23, and is supported by the fixed plate. The drive shaft 7 penetrates the bottom plate 23 by vacuum sealing, and is connected to the drive motor 16. The other end of the drive shaft 7 is rotatably installed on the ceiling side.
[0015]
In the present invention, a vacuum exhaust port 24 connected to a vacuum pump is provided below the sputtering film forming chamber 4. The vacuum evacuation port 24 may have a structure in which a simple round hole is provided in the lower part of the sputter film forming chamber 4, and is connected to a vacuum pump by an I-type tube or a flexible tube with a vacuum seal joint. Referring to FIG. 2, a vacuum exhaust port 24 is formed in a bottom plate 23 below the sputtering film forming chamber 4, and is connected to a vacuum pump with a simple structure. A complicated T-type exhaust block as disclosed in the above-mentioned publication is not required in the sputtering film forming chamber 4.
[0016]
The magnet 20-2 can be repeatedly driven up and down at a predetermined speed by the drive motor 16 connected to the drive shaft 7. The moving speed of the magnet 20-2 can be variably controlled from about 10 mm / sec to 50 mm / min, and an optimum value is determined in this range. Further, the magnet 20-2 moves a distance exceeding the opening side of the film forming area. That is, the opening for forming a film on the substrate 11 is generally rectangular, but when the magnet 20-2 is scanned up and down, the opening is moved by a distance that overruns the upper and lower sides of the square.
[0017]
The target 6 is connected to a plasma generating power supply 17 from the outside, and is supplied with power for generating plasma. Since the target 6 has a square or rectangular film-forming shape, the target 6 has the same shape, and can be applied in a size of about 300 mm square to 1400 mm square. The distance between the target 6 and the substrate 11 is 50 mm to 150 mm.
[0018]
Although not shown in FIG. 2, the pressure in the sputter deposition chamber is maintained at a predetermined deposition pressure, that is, 0.133 Pa to 0.665 Pa, by a vacuum exhaust pump and a vacuum pressure regulator.
The heater unit 9 is advanced by the front-rear drive unit 9-3 to form the sputter film forming chamber 4 with the substrate 11 interposed therebetween, and the two magnets 20-2 are simultaneously driven up and down by the drive motor 16, and the plasma generation power supply 17 The power is further supplied to generate a plasma in the magnet 20-2, and the material of the target 6 is sputtered by the plasma energy, whereby a film can be formed on the substrate 11. Here, the plasma generation power supply 17 may be a DC power supply or an AC power supply. In the case of DC, a high voltage of 200 V to 1200 V is applied. In the case of AC, a power supply having a frequency of about 13.56 MHz or about 27 MHz is used. The power is variable in the range of 1 kW to 20 kW.
[0019]
As described above, in the present invention, two magnets are driven by one driving unit, and two rows of sputtered films are formed in one vacuum chamber.
By the way, in order to carry out the present invention more effectively, it is preferable that the target 6 is easily replaced. Conventionally, a target is installed on a door, and by opening this door, an upper space is opened to perform maintenance work on the target using equipment such as a crane. However, in the present invention, since the target 6 is located at the center of the sputtering film forming chamber 4, it is difficult to remove the target 6 with the conventional configuration.
[0020]
Thus, in the present invention, the ceiling plate 22 and the bottom plate 23 of the common vacuum chamber 1 are partitioned, the ceiling plate 22 is provided with the upper opening 14, and the door 15 is provided. The upper opening 14 is sized so that the two targets 6 can be inserted into and removed from the upper portion by a crane or the like, and the opening / closing door 15 holds the vacuum and opens the target 6 when the target 6 is removed. For example, when the width of the target 6 is 1400 mm, the size of the upper opening 14 is 1500 mm with a margin of 50 mm on each side. As the mechanism for removing and inserting the target 6, in addition to the crane, an elevating device such as an air cylinder or a hydraulic cylinder, or a chain block can be used.
[0021]
Opening and closing of the opening / closing door 15 further improves workability by using a drive actuator such as a cylinder.
As described above, according to the present invention, maintenance is facilitated, which is efficient in performing two rows of simultaneous sputtering film formation in one vacuum vessel.
[0022]
【The invention's effect】
As a result of employing the above configuration, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.
First, two rows of sputter films can be formed at the same time, and the productivity at the same tact time can be doubled with one apparatus configuration, and the installation space including the maintenance space is about the same as that of the conventional apparatus. It can be reduced to 1/3.
[0023]
In addition, the common vacuum chamber, delivery chamber, and take-up chamber can be integrated into one chamber, and the drive shaft, drive guide, and drive motor can be shared, so that the number of parts, the cost of assembly, and the parts and wiring of the electric control system can be reduced. The work can be reduced, and the equipment cost can be reduced to about 1/3. Further, although the respective chambers of the common vacuum chamber, the delivery chamber, and the winding chamber are large, there is a high merit of commonality by reducing the number of parts and the number of assembly steps.
[0024]
In addition, in terms of maintainability, the mounting and dismounting of the target becomes much easier than the conventional configuration due to the opening and the opening / closing door provided above the common vacuum chamber.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan sectional view of a thin film manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a plan sectional view of a conventional thin film manufacturing apparatus. Figure [Explanation of symbols]
1: Common vacuum chamber 2: Delivery chamber 3: Winding chamber 4: Sputter film forming chamber 6: Target 7: Drive shaft 8: Drive guide 9: Heater unit 9-1: Heater 9-2: Holding frame 9-3: Front / rear drive 11: substrate 12: delivery roll 13: take-up roll 14: upper opening 15: door 16: drive motor 17: power supply 20 for plasma generation: magnet unit 20-1: base 20-2: magnet 21: partition 22: ceiling plate 23: bottom plate 30: seal

Claims (3)

A delivery chamber provided with two rows of substrate delivery rolls,
A sputter film forming chamber for performing at least a sputtering process in a vacuum,
A winding chamber provided with two rows of substrate winding rolls;
In a thin film manufacturing apparatus provided with
Two sputter deposition chambers are provided in a common vacuum chamber,
A thin film manufacturing apparatus configured to form a film on each row of substrates in each sputtering film forming chamber,
A partition formed in the common vacuum chamber, a heater for heating the substrate, and a holding frame provided with a seal for holding the heater and forming a vacuum, and two heater units movable back and forth are provided. And a heater unit for forming two sputter deposition chambers. In the two sputtering film forming chambers, two targets which are provided as film forming sources and are provided so as to be opposed to the respective substrates, and a pair of vertically driven driving units which are provided on the opposite sides of the two targets, respectively. 2. The thin film manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a magnet, a drive guide and a drive shaft for fastening the pair of magnets so as to be driven simultaneously. The partition extends between the ceiling plate and the bottom plate forming a common vacuum chamber, and the space between the ceiling plate and the bottom plate is formed as a sputter deposition chamber, and the ceiling plate has an opening / closing door and an opening for forming a vacuum. 3. The thin film manufacturing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a target can be inserted and removed through the opening and closing door and the opening.

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