JP2005240081A - Plastic film deposition system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a plastic film deposition system for production of an adhesion evaluation sample with which the adhesion strength of a two-layered flexible substrate can be rapidly measured with good accuracy. <P>SOLUTION: The plastic film deposition system has a plurality of deposition chambers 3 for forming an underlying metallic layer on a plastic film by a dry plating method, then in succession, forming a metallic layer on the underlying metallic layer by a dry plating method in vacuum. The deposition system is equipped with the second deposition chamber 4 for forming the underlying metallic layer on the plastic film in the first deposition chamber 3 out of the above deposition chambers, then forming the pattern for measuring the adhesion strength of the plastic film formed with the underlying metallic layer and a conveyance section 2 for conveying the substrate to the ensuing process for generation of the flexible substrate. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a plastic film forming apparatus for producing a suitable adhesion evaluation sample between a metal thin film and a plastic film forming a two-layer flexible substrate.

  Conventionally, a two-layer flexible substrate is one in which a copper conductor layer is directly formed on a plastic film without an adhesive. The thickness of the substrate itself can be reduced, and the thickness of the copper conductor film to be deposited is also reduced. It has the advantage that it can be adjusted to any thickness.

  When manufacturing such a two-layer flexible substrate, an electrolytic copper plating method is usually employed as a means for forming a copper conductor layer having a uniform thickness at a low cost on a plastic film. In general, a base metal layer of a thin film is formed on a plastic film on which an electrolytic copper plating film is applied to impart conductivity to the entire surface, and an electrolytic copper plating process is performed thereon.

  The adhesion strength between the copper conductor layer and the plastic film of the two-layer flexible substrate thus produced is often determined by the formation conditions of the base metal layer, and in the research and development stage, the adhesion strength of the base metal layer is improved. It is important to perform an evaluation focusing on the stability of the adhesion strength of the produced two-layer flexible substrate.

  As a conventional technique for evaluating the adhesion strength of a thin film, a peeling test between a copper conductor layer and a plastic film using a tensile tester specified in JIS C6471 is generally used. The evaluation sample for performing this peeling test is to increase the thickness of the copper film by electrolytic copper plating or the like on the base metal layer formed on the plastic film, and then form a test pattern by etching the copper conductor layer. Produced.

  FIG. 9A shows a schematic view around the rotating drum of the peel strength measuring machine.

  In FIG. 9 (a), a pattern-formed evaluation sample 110 is peeled off by several centimeters from the copper conductor layer 111 and the plastic film 112 to be subjected to a tensile tester, and double-sided adhered to the surface of the plastic film 112 without the copper conductor layer. The copper conductor layer 111 attached with the tape and fixed on the rotary drum 113 provided in the tensile tester so as not to slide and non-uniformly rotate and peeled off from the plastic film 112 is strained. It is clamped and fixed to a grip 114 provided in a sensor (not shown). Next, the copper conductor layer 111 is continuously peeled off by 50 mm or more perpendicularly to the surface of the sample 110, and the load therebetween is measured. The peel strength (N / mm) of the sample 110 is obtained by the minimum value obtained by dividing the peel load (N) of each evaluation sample 110 by the peel conductor width (mm) of the sample 110.

  FIG. 9B shows a test pattern shape of an evaluation sample for a peeling test specified by JIS. In FIG. 9B, as a test pattern of the evaluation sample, a pattern in which the width A of the plastic film 50 is 10 mm, the width of the copper conductor layer 53 is 3 mm, and the length of the plastic film 50 and the copper conductor layer 53 is 230 mm. Used for peeling test.

  However, the adhesion strength between the copper conductor layer and the plastic film has a correlation with the thickness of the copper conductor layer, and the adhesion strength tends to increase as the copper film thickness increases. The film thickness varies within the surface of the plastic film and from plastic film to several micrometers (approximately ± 10% of the film thickness), so there is a possibility that sufficient measurement accuracy may not be obtained. There is a possibility that the stability of the adhesion strength of the layer flexible substrate cannot be sufficiently evaluated. Also, after the base metal layer is formed, the plastic film is taken out from the vacuum chamber, and it is necessary to increase the thickness of the copper conductor layer using a separately provided plating facility. In addition, there is a problem that the quick adhesion strength cannot be evaluated.

  Other conventional techniques include a peel test method and a scratch method. The evaluation method by the peel test is to adhere the adhesive tape to the base metal layer cross-cut in a grid pattern, or to laminate another film and peel the tape or film from the thin film. The adhesion strength of the thin film is measured and evaluated by the peel force generated. On the other hand, in the scratch method, the thin film is scratched with a fine needle, the thin film is peeled off, and the adhesion strength is obtained from the surface state.

  The method for evaluating the adhesion strength of a thin film by the peel test described above requires that the adhesive strength and film lamination conditions when the tape is bonded to the thin film be always constant, but this is practically difficult.

  Further, in the scratch method, the composite material composed of the base material and the thin film formed thereon is easily deformed depending on how the needle is pressed or scratched, and it is difficult to quantitatively evaluate the adhesion strength. In particular, a composite material in which a brittle thin film is formed has a problem that deformation is large and analysis is complicated.

  In order to solve these problems, an evaluation method capable of accurately evaluating the adhesion strength of a thin film has been considered. As an example, the adhesion strength evaluation method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-332560 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 10 is a plan view showing crack fracture and buckling fracture generated on the surface of the thin film by applying a tensile load.

  In the figure, when a tensile force is applied to a composite material 120 made of a base material and a thin film formed thereon, a crack fracture 121 occurs in a direction perpendicular to the tensile direction and a buckling fracture 122 parallel to the tensile direction occurs. . By measuring the number of fractures and the length of the buckling fracture 122 within a predetermined area, the thin film adhesion strength to the substrate is automatically obtained.

By this evaluation method, the adhesion strength of the thin film can be accurately obtained without using any instability factors such as tape and film laminate as in the prior art. Further, since the adhesion strength is evaluated based on the number of buckling fractures, quantitative evaluation can be performed.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-332560

  However, since metal thin films formed of copper or copper-based alloys are elasto-plastic, buckling failure does not occur with weak pulling forces like brittle thin films such as ceramics. Need. If the metal thin film is pulled with a force strong enough to cause buckling fracture, the metal thin film has almost no irregularities on the surface and has little frictional resistance. A stable evaluation cannot be performed. Also, depending on the method of forming the metal thin film, the film quality may be different, and even with the same adhesion strength, the number of buckling fractures may vary greatly, making quantitative comparison evaluation difficult, and high precision adhesion strength. It had the problem that it could not be measured.

  The present invention solves the above-described conventional problems, and after forming a base metal layer on a plastic film, the adhesion strength of a two-layer flexible substrate on which a metal layer is further formed is quickly measured by a peeling test method. It is another object of the present invention to provide a plastic film forming apparatus for producing an adhesion evaluation sample that can be measured with high accuracy.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the plastic film forming apparatus of the present invention forms a base metal layer on a plastic film by a dry plating method using copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component, and then continues to a predetermined one. In the plastic film deposition apparatus having a plurality of deposition chambers for forming a metal layer on the base metal layer by a dry plating method using copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component in a vacuum degree of the deposition chamber, After forming the base metal layer in the first film formation chamber, the plastic film on which the base metal layer is formed forms a pattern for adhesion strength measurement and the formation of the flexible substrate For this purpose, a transport unit for transporting to the next process is provided.

  In the plastic film forming apparatus of the present invention, a base metal layer is formed on a plastic film in a film forming chamber using copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component using a dry plating method. In the plastic film deposition apparatus for forming a metal layer on the base metal layer by a dry plating method using copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component, the metal is deposited on the plastic film in the deposition chamber. A transport tray for affixing the plastic film to form a layer, and a mask for forming a pattern for measuring adhesion strength on a plastic film affixed on the transport tray, The conveyance tray uses an insulating member as a portion corresponding to one end portion of the adhesion strength measurement pattern formed on the plastic film. It is obtained by the features and.

  According to the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention, a copper plating layer having a film thickness that can be peeled off is coated on the plastic film by a dry plating method in which the film thickness can be easily controlled. Measurement can be performed on the evaluated sample, and the film thickness variation of the copper conductor layer can be greatly reduced in the plastic film plane and between the plastic films, and the measurement accuracy of the adhesion strength is greatly improved. In addition, after the copper conductor layer is formed on the plastic film as the evaluation sample in the vacuum process, a coating process by electroplating or the like is not necessary, so that it is possible to perform a quick adhesion strength evaluation. Furthermore, by attaching a test pattern-shaped mask on a plastic film, which is an evaluation sample during film formation, the test pattern formation process by etching is no longer necessary, and the tip of the formed test pattern can be easily peeled off. As a result, it is possible to further speed up the evaluation of the adhesion strength, which can greatly contribute to the improvement of the development speed of the two-layer flexible substrate.

  Embodiments of a plastic film deposition apparatus and an adhesion evaluation sample preparation method according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1A schematically shows a configuration of a plastic film forming apparatus in the present invention.

  In FIG. 1A, the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention includes a transfer chamber 2 adjacent to a load lock chamber 1 via a gate valve 5, and a first first adjacent to the transfer chamber 2 via a gate valve 6. The film forming process chamber 3 is composed of a second film forming process chamber 4 which is adjacent to the transfer chamber 2 via the gate valve 7.

  The load lock chamber 1 is depressurized and pressurized through an exhaust valve (not shown).

  The transfer chamber 2 is provided with a transfer robot 10 for transferring a plastic film, and the transfer robot 10 can be used to transfer the plastic film into each vacuum chamber.

  In the first film formation chamber 3, as a film formation process, a metal thin film is formed on the surface of the plastic film by a physical vapor deposition method such as vacuum deposition or sputtering in addition to a thin film formation by an ion plating method. Can do.

  In the second film formation chamber 4, a metal thin film can be formed by vacuum vapor deposition as the film formation process.

  FIG.1 (b) shows the plastic film holding | maintenance method in the plastic film film-forming apparatus in this invention.

  In FIG. 1B, the plastic film 50 is held by a transfer tray 8 formed of a conductive material and transferred into the vacuum chamber in order to ensure electrical continuity with the electrodes. Here, as plastic films used in the present invention, Kapton (Toray DuPont Co., Ltd.), Upilex (Ube Industries, Ltd.), Apical (Kanebuchi Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.), etc. are marketed. An available polyimide film was used. In this example, the plastic film 50 was cut into a square shape having a size of 20 cm × 20 cm. As a method of holding the plastic film 50, after the plastic film 50 is placed on the transport tray 8, the periphery is stuck and held with an adhesive tape or the like.

  It is preferable to affix a mask 54 having a test pattern shape on the plastic film 50 so that a test pattern for performing a peeling test is formed on the plastic film 50 for an evaluation sample. By attaching the mask 54, a step of performing pattern formation by etching after the copper conductor layer is formed can be omitted. As the material of the mask 54, either an insulating material or a conductive material can be used. The thickness of the mask is preferably in the range of 50 μm to 200 μm.

  Cylindrical insulating members 9a to 9e are embedded in the transport tray 8 at positions near the tips of the test patterns. Since the insulating members 9a to 9e are on the back side near the front end of the pattern on which the test pattern of the plastic film 50 is formed, the vicinity of the front end collides with the vapor deposition particles that collide with the film surface when the underlayer is formed. Since energy can be reduced and the adhesion strength of the tip portion can be reduced, each test pattern can be easily peeled after the preparation of the adhesion evaluation sample.

  The insulating member is preferably a synthetic resin such as PEEK, fluorine resin, or polyimide.

  Next, the configuration in the first film formation chamber 3 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 2A is a side sectional view of the transfer chamber and the first film forming chamber of the plastic film forming apparatus according to the present invention.

  In FIG. 2A, the transfer chamber 2 is depressurized and pressurized through the exhaust valve 11.

  A drive source 12 provided outside the transfer chamber 2 is for moving the transfer robot 10. The transfer tray 8 to which the plastic film 50 is attached is held by the transfer robot 10 so that the film-forming surface faces downward, and is transferred to each vacuum chamber.

  The first film formation chamber 3 is depressurized and pressurized via the exhaust valve 13. The exhaust valve 13 is preferably a variable pressure valve capable of adjusting the pressure during film formation.

  The gas supply unit 25 is a valve for supplying an inert gas into the first film formation chamber 3 from a gas supply source (not shown) provided outside the first film formation chamber 3. is there. The inert gas is used for plasma processing of the plastic film 50 held on the transfer tray 8 transferred from the load lock chamber 1.

  The DC power source 14 has a positive electrode connected to the ground G and a negative electrode connected to the evaporant holding unit 15a provided in the first film forming chamber 3, and applies a bias voltage to the evaporant holding unit 15a. On the evaporant holding part 15a, an evaporant 15b, which is a metal material formed on the surface of the plastic film, is placed. The evaporant holding part 15a is provided with a heating device 15c. The heating device 15c is preferably a known one such as a resistance heating method or an electron beam heating method. The evaporated material 15b is melted by heating and deposited on the plastic film 50 as a metal thin film.

  The electrode 18 is fixed to a holder support portion 19 including a holder 23 for holding the transport tray 8. The holder 23 is pulled in a direction in which the transport tray 8 is attracted to the electrode 18 by springs 24 a and 24 b provided between the holder 23 and the holder support 19.

  An adhesion means for bringing the plastic film 50 into close contact with the electrode 18 includes a holder 23, a holder support portion 19, pushers 21a and 21b, and springs 24a and 24b. The electrodes 23 and the transport tray 8 can be brought into close contact with each other by pulling up the pushers 21a and 21b from the holder 23 and pulling the transport tray 8 with the plastic film 50 attached thereto via the springs 24a and 24b. Appropriate pressure can be applied between the electrode 18 and the transport tray 8 by interposing the springs 24a and 24b. Although not shown in FIG. 2A, the springs are provided at the four corners of the holder support portion 19. Of course, a pusher and a spring may be further added to the portion of the holder support portion 19 that faces the holder 23.

  The pushers 21a and 21b provided in the first film formation processing chamber 3 enable the transport tray 8 to be transported by pressing the holder 23 to a predetermined position, and release the press to the holder 23 to thereby transport the transport tray. 8 can be held by the electrode 18. That is, the holder 23 and the holder support portion 19 are separated from each other, and the transport tray 8 is inserted into the gap.

  A support shaft 20 is provided on the upper surface of the holder support portion 19, and the electrode 18 can be rotated by a rotation mechanism portion 22 provided outside the first film formation processing chamber 3.

  By always rotating the electrode 18 when forming the thin film, a uniform thin film can be formed on the plastic film 50 held by the electrode 18.

  The electrode 18 is connected to a high frequency power source 17 through a matching box 16 having an impedance matching circuit including a capacitor or the like (not shown) provided outside the first film forming chamber 3.

  Next, the configuration in the second film formation chamber 4 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 2B is a side sectional view of the transfer chamber and the second film forming chamber of the plastic film forming apparatus according to the present invention.

  In FIG. 2B, the second film formation chamber 4 is depressurized and pressurized through the exhaust valve 30. The exhaust valve 30 is preferably a variable pressure valve capable of adjusting the pressure during film formation.

  The gas supply unit 40 is a valve for supplying an inert gas into the second film formation processing chamber 4 from a gas supply source (not shown) provided outside the second film formation processing chamber 4. is there. The inert gas is used to reduce moisture adsorption on the wall surface in the second film forming treatment chamber 4, and nitrogen gas is usually used.

  The DC power supply 31 has a positive electrode connected to the ground G and a negative electrode connected to the evaporant holding unit 32 a provided in the second film forming chamber 4, and applies a bias voltage to the evaporant holding unit 32 a. On the evaporant holding part 32a, an evaporant 32b, which is a metal material formed on the plastic film surface, is placed. The evaporant holding part 32a is provided with a heating device 32c. As the heating device 32c, a known one such as a resistance heating method or an electron beam heating method is desirable. The evaporated substance 32a is melted by heating and deposited on the plastic film 50 as a metal thin film.

  The electrode 33 is fixed to a holder support portion 34 having a holder 38 for holding the transport tray 8. The holder 38 is pulled in the direction in which the transport tray 8 is attracted to the electrode 33 by springs 39 a and 39 b provided between the holder 38 and the holder support portion 34.

  In this embodiment, since the processing to the plastic film 50 using plasma is not performed in the second film formation processing chamber 4, the electrode 33 is connected to a matching box having an impedance matching circuit or a high-frequency power source. However, if necessary, a matching box or a high frequency power source may be provided outside the film forming chamber and connected to the electrode 33.

  The electrode 33 has a role of preventing the temperature of the plastic film 50 from becoming too high due to vacuum deposition for a long time, and the material of the electrode 33 is preferably a copper or aluminum material having a good thermal conductivity. Further, a structure that allows water cooling through the inside of the support shaft 35 may be used.

  The means for tightly attaching the plastic film 50 to the electrode 33 includes a holder 38, a holder support 34, pushers 36a and 36b, and springs 39a and 39b. Then, by pulling up the pushers 36a and 36b from the holder 38 and pulling the transport tray 8 to which the plastic film 50 is attached to the cooling plate 33 via the springs 39a and 39b, the electrodes and the transport tray can be brought into close contact with each other. By interposing the springs 39a and 39b, an appropriate pressure can be applied between the electrode 33 and the transport tray 8. Although not shown in FIG. 2B, the springs are provided at the four corners of the holder support portion 34. Of course, a pusher and a spring may be further added to the holder support portion 34 facing the holder 38.

  The pushers 36a and 36b provided in the second film formation processing chamber 4 enable the transport tray 8 to be transported by pressing the holder 38 to a predetermined position, and release the press to the holder 38 to thereby transport the transport tray. 8 can be held by the electrode 33. That is, the holder 38 and the holder support portion 34 are separated from each other, and the transport tray 8 is inserted into the gap.

  A support shaft 35 is provided on the upper surface of the holder support portion 34, and the electrode 33 can be rotated by a rotation mechanism portion 37 provided outside the second film forming process chamber 4.

  By always rotating the electrode 33 when forming the thin film, a uniform thin film can be formed on the plastic film 50 held by the electrode 33.

  Next, using the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention described above and the flowchart shown in FIG.

  In the loading process 70, the product plastic film held on the transfer tray 8 and the evaluation plastic film with the mask 54 attached are loaded into the load lock chamber 1 so that the load lock chamber 1 has a pressure of 1 Pa or less. And evacuated by a vacuum pump (not shown).

  Next, in the transfer step 71, the product plastic film and the evaluation plastic film are transferred to the first film forming chamber 3 one by one by the transfer robot 10 through the transfer chamber 2 evacuated to 1 Pa or less. And supported by the electrode 18.

Next, in the evacuation step 72, the first film forming chamber 3 is evacuated by a vacuum pump (not shown) through the exhaust valve 13 so that the inside of the first film forming chamber 3 becomes 10 ⁻³ Pa or less.

Next, in the dehydration process 73, heating / dehydration is performed. That is, moisture adhering to the surface of the plastic film 50 and moisture adsorbed inside can be gasified by heating the surface of the plastic film 50 with a film heating means (not shown). The gasified moisture is exhausted by a vacuum pump (not shown) through the exhaust valve 13 so that the partial pressure of water is 10 ⁻⁴ Pa or less. The water pressure was measured using a quadrupole mass spectrometer. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the gasified moisture from diffusing and reattaching to the inside of the vacuum chamber.

Next, in the plasma surface treatment step 74, the surface of the plastic film 50 is subjected to plasma treatment. That is, nitrogen gas is introduced into the first film formation chamber 3 from the gas supply unit 25, and the degree of vacuum in the first film formation chamber 3 is maintained in the range of 10 ⁻³ Pa to 10 ⁻¹ Pa. . A frequency of 13.56 MHz and a power of 150 W to 1 kW are applied from the high frequency power supply 17 to the electrode 18 through the matching box 16. In the first film forming chamber 3, glow discharge occurs between the electrode 18 and the evaporation source 15 a, and a negative induced DC voltage of about 200 V to about 1000 V is generated in the vicinity of the plastic film 50 on the electrode 18.

  In the first film formation chamber 3, the nitrogen gas ionized under the glow discharge has an effect of bombarding the surface of the plastic film 50 and roughening the surface of the plastic film 50. Further, the nitrogen gas ionized under the glow discharge hits atoms constituting the plastic film 50 and, for example, breaks the bond between carbon and hydrogen or the bond between nitrogen and hydrogen. Functional groups that are chemically reactive are formed. That is, the functional group is chemically bonded to the vapor deposition particles of the vapor deposition material to form a vapor deposition film with good adhesion.

  Next, in a base metal layer film forming step 75, a base metal layer is formed on the plastic film 50. In the first film forming chamber 3, the evaporation source 15b is melted, and in this embodiment, the proportion of the metal made of copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component, preferably the total weight ratio of copper is 99.99. 99% or more alloy is used. Further, the evaporation source 15b is melted by using a resistance heating method or an electron beam method, and a thin film of 10 to 100 mm is formed on the plastic film 50.

Next, an inert gas such as argon, xenon, or krypton, preferably argon, is introduced from the gas supply unit 25, and the degree of vacuum in the first film formation chamber 3 is 10 ⁻³ Pa to 10 ⁻¹ Pa. Keep in the range. When a frequency of 13.56 MHz and a power of 150 W to 1 kW are applied from the high frequency power supply 17 to the electrode 18 via the matching box 16, a glow discharge occurs between the electrode 18 and the evaporation source 15 a, and about 200 V to about 200 V in the vicinity of the plastic film 50 A negative induced DC voltage of 1000V is generated. Then, the evaporation source 15b is melted under the glow discharge. As a result, the metal is ionized and ionized by the ionized plasma existing in the glow discharge, and a base metal layer is formed on the plastic film 50 in a high energy state.

  In this embodiment, copper or a metal made of an alloy containing copper as a main component, preferably an alloy having a ratio of 99.99% or more to the total weight ratio of copper is used. Further, the evaporation source 15b is melted by using a resistance heating method or an electron beam method, and a base metal layer of 3000 to 5000 mm is formed on the plastic film 50.

  Next, in the transfer step 76, the plastic film for the product is transferred from the first film formation processing chamber 3 to the load lock chamber 1 through the transfer chamber 2, and in the take-out step 77, the inside of the load lock chamber 1 is enlarged. After the pressure is raised to atmospheric pressure, it is taken out and sent to the electroplating step 90. The evaluation plastic film is transferred from the first film formation processing chamber 3 to the second film formation processing chamber 4 through the transfer chamber 2 and supported by the electrode 33.

  Next, in a coating layer forming step 78, a coating layer is formed on the base metal layer of the evaluation plastic film. In the second film-forming chamber 4, the evaporation source 32 b is melted. In this embodiment, the ratio of the metal composed of copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component, preferably copper, to the total weight ratio is 99.99. 99% or more alloy is used. Further, the evaporation source 32b is melted by using a resistance heating method or an electron beam method, and a copper conductor layer having a sum of the base metal layer and the coating layer of 13 μm to 15 μm is formed on the plastic film 50.

  While the coating layer is being formed on the evaluation plastic film, the first film formation chamber 3 can be used, so the input process 80, the transfer process 81, and the vacuuming process, which are the same processes described above. Step 82, dehydration treatment step 83, plasma surface treatment step 84, and base metal layer film formation step 85 are performed.

  In the coating layer film forming step 78, the film formation is completed by the end of the base metal layer film forming step 85 at the latest, and in the extraction step 79, the evaluation plastic film is transferred from the second film forming processing chamber 4 to the transfer chamber 3. Then, it is conveyed to the load lock chamber 1, taken out after the pressure inside the load lock chamber 1 is increased to atmospheric pressure, and evaluated in the adhesion strength evaluation step 91.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the produced adhesion evaluation sample has five test patterns of pattern A61, pattern B62, pattern C63, pattern D64, and pattern E65 with the same width of the copper conductor layer on the plastic film 50. It is formed as. By forming five test patterns as shown in the figure, it is possible to evaluate the adhesion at each location within the plastic film surface, which is effective for evaluating the stability of the adhesion strength within the film surface. In this example, the number of test patterns is five. However, the number of test patterns can be increased, and by evaluating by increasing the number, it is possible to evaluate the adhesion in the film more accurately. It becomes.

  When the peeling test is performed, as shown in FIG. 4B, the plastic film 50 is cut for each test pattern to prepare an adhesion evaluation sample, and the peeling test is performed. In the figure, the test pattern of the evaluation sample for the peeling test has a width A of the plastic film 50 of 10 mm, a width B of the copper conductor layer 53 of 5 mm, and a length L of the plastic film 50 and the copper conductor layer 53 of 140 mm. The width B of the copper conductor layer 53 is preferably in the range of 3 mm to 5 mm, and if it is 3 mm or less, the load measurement data during the peeling test is not stable, and the measurement data is stabilized by widening the width of the copper conductor layer 53. However, if it exceeds 5 mm, the tensile load becomes too large, and the evaluation sample attached to the rotating drum with the double-sided tape may be peeled off.

  In this embodiment, in order to facilitate the peeling of the tip of the patterned copper conductor layer 53, the pattern is formed in a shape in which the tip of the copper conductor layer 53 is partially cut away as shown in the figure. Formed. By peeling off the copper conductor layer 53 from the X direction that is not cut away, the extra tensile force applied from other than the peeling direction is not applied to the copper conductor layer 53 and can be easily peeled off.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the copper conductor layer of each pattern has a cross section in which a copper base metal layer 51 is formed on a plastic film 50 by an ion plating method to 3000 to 5000 mm. The coating layer 52 is formed by vacuum deposition so that the sum of the coating layer 52 and the underlying metal layer 51 is 13 μm to 15 μm. If the thickness is less than the lower limit of 13 μm to 15 μm, the film thickness of the copper conductor layer is insufficient, and it is difficult to peel off the copper conductor layer from the plastic films of all the evaluation samples. FIG. 6 shows the results of examining the relationship between the film thickness of the evaluation sample produced by the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention and the number of evaluation samples that could be tested.

  In FIG. 6, 10 evaluation samples were prepared so that the copper conductor layer of the evaluation sample had a total of 7 types of film thicknesses of 9 μm, 10 μm, 11 μm, 12 μm, 13 μm, 14 μm, and 15 μm. The copper conductor layer was peeled off and the peel test was performed for each thickness evaluation sample, the number of evaluation samples that could not be peeled off, the number of evaluation samples in which the copper conductor layer broke during the test, and the test was possible As a result of examining the number and ratio of the evaluation samples, there were evaluation samples that could not be peeled when the film thickness was in the range of 9 μm to 11 μm, and the ratio that could be tested was as low as 50% or less. When the film thickness was 12 μm, all of the prepared evaluation samples could be peeled off, but there were evaluation samples that broke during the test, and all of the prepared evaluation samples could not be tested. As a result, it was possible to test all the prepared evaluation samples by setting the film thickness to 13 μm or more.

  If the upper limit of 15 μM in this range is exceeded, the film formation time will be too long, and the film formation will not be completed until the formation of the base metal layer of the plastic film that has been input next, resulting in poor production efficiency. .

  As described above, by using the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention, the thin film adhesion evaluation sample is from the formation of the base metal layer of the plastic film for products to the formation of the base metal layer of the plastic film to be input next. Therefore, an evaluation sample is efficiently and quickly manufactured, and quick adhesion evaluation is possible.

  Next, the stability of film thickness accuracy and adhesion strength of an evaluation sample produced by the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention will be described in comparison with an evaluation sample in which a coating layer is formed by a conventional electroplating method.

  FIG. 7 shows the result of comparing the film thickness and film thickness variation of the evaluation sample produced by the plastic film deposition apparatus in this example and the evaluation sample for forming the coating layer by electroplating.

  In the figure, an evaluation sample obtained by the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention and an evaluation sample for forming a coating layer by electroplating are prepared so that each copper conductor layer has a film thickness of 15 μm. ing. As a result of making four evaluation samples each having five test patterns formed by each method and comparing them, the film thickness of the evaluation sample produced by electroplating is 15 μm as a target. The maximum variation in the positive direction was 14.7%, the maximum variation in the negative direction was −9.0%, and the maximum difference in film thickness was 3.5 μm. On the other hand, the evaluation sample obtained with the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention has a maximum variation of 1.8% and a maximum variation of -3.0% with respect to the target of 15 μm. The maximum difference in film thickness was 0.7 μm. From this result, the evaluation sample obtained by the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention has a film thickness variation of 1/5 or less compared to the evaluation sample obtained by the electroplating method. An evaluation sample with little film thickness variation can be obtained by the film deposition apparatus. Moreover, accurate adhesion strength evaluation can be expected from the above results.

  Next, a peeling test was performed on these evaluation samples. The peel strength measurement results are shown in FIG.

  In the figure, the peel strength of the evaluation sample produced by electroplating is 0.87 N / mm as an average value, 1.04 N / mm as a maximum value, 0.71 N / mm as a minimum value, and a maximum difference as 0.07. Although a result of 33 N / mm was obtained, the fact that the value of the maximum difference is about 38% of the average value is by no means good measurement accuracy. On the other hand, the peel strength of the evaluation sample obtained by the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention is 0.85 N / mm at the average value, 0.89 N / mm at the maximum value, and 0.81 N / mm at the minimum value. As a result, the maximum difference is 0.08 N / mm, and the variation of the maximum difference is about 9% of the average value, and the variation is small. Therefore, the measurement accuracy of the peeling test is higher than that of the evaluation sample obtained by the electroplating method. It goes without saying that it has improved significantly.

  As described above, it is possible to perform the adhesion strength of the two-layer flexible substrate quickly and with high measurement accuracy by performing a peeling test using the evaluation sample obtained by the plastic film deposition apparatus of the present invention. .

  The plastic film deposition apparatus according to the present invention is effective in developing a two-layer flexible substrate requiring high adhesion, such as a mobile phone, a PDA (personal digital assistant), a notebook computer, a digital still camera, It is useful for a two-layer flexible substrate used in an electronic circuit such as a liquid crystal display.

(A) Schematic diagram schematically showing a plastic film deposition apparatus in Embodiment 1 of the present invention (b) Diagram showing a plastic film holding method in the plastic film deposition apparatus in Embodiment 1 of the present invention (A) Side sectional view of transfer chamber and first film forming chamber in Example 1 of the present invention (b) Side sectional view of transfer chamber and second film forming chamber in Example 1 of the present invention Process chart showing a method for preparing an adhesion evaluation sample in Example 1 of the present invention (A) The figure which shows the test pattern shape of the copper conductor layer formed on the plastic film in Example 1 of this invention (b) The figure which shows the shape of the adhesive evaluation sample in Example 1 of this invention The expanded sectional view of the evaluation sample made with the plastic film film-forming apparatus in Example 1 of this invention The figure which shows the relationship between the film thickness of the evaluation sample made with the plastic film film-forming apparatus in Example 1 of this invention, and the number of evaluation samples which were able to be tested. The figure which compared the film thickness and film thickness dispersion | variation of the evaluation sample made with the plastic film film-forming apparatus in Example 1 of this invention, and the evaluation sample coated with the electroplating method The figure which compared the peeling strength of the evaluation sample made with the plastic film film-forming apparatus in Example 1 of this invention, and the evaluation sample coated with the electroplating method (A) Schematic diagram around the rotating drum of the peel strength measuring machine (b) Diagram showing a test pattern shape of an evaluation sample for a peel test defined by JIS The top view which shows the crack destruction and buckling destruction which arose on the surface of the thin film by applying the tensile load of a prior art example

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Load lock chamber 2 Transfer chamber 3 1st film-forming processing chamber 4 2nd film-forming processing chamber 5, 6, 7 Gate valve 8 Transfer tray 9A-9E Insulating member 10 Transfer robot 11 Exhaust valve 12 Drive source 13 Exhaust valve 14 Voltage variable direct current power supply 15a Evaporation source holding part 15b Evaporation source 15c Heating device 16 Matching box 17 High frequency power supply 18 Electrode 19 Holder support part 20 Support shaft 21a, 21b Pusher 22 Rotation mechanism part 23 Holder 24a, 24b Spring 25 Gas supply part 30 Exhaust valve 31 Voltage variable DC power supply 32a Evaporation source holding part 32b Evaporation source 32c Heating device 33 Cooling plate 34 Holder support part 35 Support shaft 36a, 36b Pusher 37 Rotation mechanism part 38 Holder 39a, 39b Spring 40 Gas supply part 50 Plastic film 51 Groundwork Metal layer 52 Coating layer 53 Copper conductor layer 54 Mask 61 Pattern A
62 Pattern B
63 Pattern C
64 Pattern D
65 Pattern E
70 Input Process 71 Transport Process 72 Vacuuming Process 73 Dehydration Process 74 Plasma Surface Treatment Process 75 Underlying Metal Layer Film Formation Process 76 Transport Process 77 Extraction Process 78 Film Layer Film Formation Process 79 Extraction Process 80 Input Process 81 Transport Process 82 Vacuuming Process 83 Dehydration process 84 Plasma surface treatment process 85 Base metal layer film forming process 90 Electroplating process 91 Adhesion strength evaluation process

Claims (6)

A base metal layer is formed on a plastic film by a dry plating method using copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component, and subsequently, the metal layer is mainly composed of copper or copper on the base metal layer in a predetermined degree of vacuum. In a plastic film deposition apparatus having a plurality of deposition chambers formed by dry plating using an alloy as a component,
After forming the base metal layer in the first film formation chamber in the film formation chamber, the second film formation chamber for forming a pattern for measuring the adhesion strength of the plastic film on which the base metal layer is formed is flexible. A plastic film deposition apparatus comprising a transport unit for transporting to a next process for generating a substrate. 2. The plastic film deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the base metal layer has a thickness of 3000 to 5000 mm, and a film thickness formed in the second deposition chamber is 13 to 15 μ. The plastic film deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein film formation in the first deposition chamber and the second deposition chamber can be performed simultaneously. The plastic film deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pattern for measuring the adhesion strength of the plastic film is in a band shape, and the adhesion strength at one end of the band shape is weaker than that of the other part. A base metal layer is formed on a plastic film in a deposition chamber using copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component using a dry plating method, and then a metal layer is formed on the base metal layer in a predetermined degree of vacuum. In a plastic film deposition apparatus formed by dry plating using copper or an alloy containing copper as a main component,
In the film formation chamber, adhesion strength measurement is performed on a transport tray for attaching the plastic film to form the metal layer on the plastic film, and on a plastic film attached on the transport tray. A mask for forming a pattern for use, and the transport tray has an insulating member as a portion corresponding to one end portion of the pattern for adhesion strength measurement formed on the plastic film. Plastic film deposition equipment. 6. The plastic film forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the pattern for measuring the adhesion strength of the plastic film is in a band shape, and the insulating member is made of synthetic resin.

Images