JP2012023064A - Method for forming conductive portion, conductive portion, and light-emitting device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a breakage of a conductive portion.SOLUTION: When a conductive portion such as a gate line Lg and a contact portion 42 made of an Al containing film 2, after a conductive film including a lower layer protective conductive film/Al containing film/upper layer protective conductive film is formed, oxidation treatment is performed on the conductive film as a reforming treatment, and an oxidation protective region 4 is formed on the part of the Al containing film 2 that is not covered by an upper layer protective conductive film 3 and is exposed from a pin hole P, thereby preventing disappearance of the Al containing film 2 due to an exposure to a resist removal solution and preventing a breakage of the conductive portion.

Description

  The present invention relates to a conductive part forming method, a conductive part, and a light emitting device.

Conventionally, as a method of forming conductive portions such as wirings and electrodes in various electronic devices, photolithography and etching for forming a conductive portion having a desired pattern by removing unnecessary portions from a conductor film formed on a predetermined substrate. The technology is known.
The conductive part can be formed by using aluminum (Al) or an aluminum alloy that is inexpensive and low resistance, and can be easily formed by a vacuum deposition method. When aluminum or aluminum alloy is used for patterning a resist, Since the resistance to the alkaline developer used is poor, a technique using a barrier metal so as to temporarily protect aluminum or an aluminum alloy is known (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  For example, when chromium (Cr) is used as the barrier metal, for example, as shown in FIGS. 25A to 25E, the lower layer Cr film 1, the Al alloy film 2, and the upper layer Cr film 3 are sequentially formed on the substrate 50. A film is formed (a). Next, a resist 5 is patterned on the upper layer Cr film 3 (b), the upper layer Cr film 3 is removed by etching, and then the Al alloy film 2 is continuously etched (c). Next, the resist 5 is peeled off (d), and finally, the upper layer Cr film 3 and the exposed lower layer Cr film 1 are etched and removed at the same time to form a conductive portion 2 made of an Al alloy.

JP-A-9-138424

However, in the case of the above-described prior art, for example, as shown in FIG. When, for example, as shown in FIG. 27A, when the conductor film 6 serving as a conductive portion over the wiring 51 under the insulating film 32 is formed, if the insulating film 32 has steep irregularities, The edge cover property of the Al alloy film 2 by the upper layer Cr film 3 as a barrier metal may deteriorate, and pinholes P may be generated in the upper layer Cr film 3.
When the conductor film 6 is subjected to photolithography while the pin hole P is generated in the upper layer Cr film 3, the resist 5 on the upper layer Cr film 3 is removed as shown in FIGS. 26 (b) and 27 (b). At this time, the Al alloy film 2 may disappear due to the action of the resist stripping solution soaked from the pinhole P.
If the range in which the Al alloy film 2 disappears is large, there is a problem in that the conductive portion is lost and the disconnection may occur.

  Then, the subject of this invention is preventing the defect | deletion of an electroconductive part.

The present invention provides a conductive part forming method,
After forming an Al-containing film on the upper surface side of the substrate, an upper protective conductive film for protecting the Al-containing film is formed, and a conductive film is formed by laminating the upper protective conductive film on the Al-containing film Forming process;
A protective treatment step for forming an oxidation protection region by oxidizing a portion of the Al-containing film not covered with the upper protective conductive film;
A resist forming step of forming a resist covering a region to be a conductive portion in the conductor film;
A conductive part forming step of forming a conductive part by removing the resist after etching the conductive film;
It is characterized by providing.
Preferably, in the conductive portion forming step, the Al-containing film portion exposed when the conductor film is etched is oxidized to form an oxidation protection region.
Preferably, in the conductor film forming step, the conductor film is formed on the insulating film and on a contact hole provided in the insulating film.
Preferably, in the conductor film forming step, the conductor film is formed on an insulating film in which a step is generated on the upper surface by another conductive portion located on the lower surface.
Preferably, the conductor film is provided with a lower layer protective conductive film having the same material as the upper layer protective conductive film under the Al-containing film, and after the resist is removed in the conductive part forming step, the upper layer protective film is formed. The conductive film and the lower protective conductive film exposed from the Al-containing film are removed by etching.
The conductive part of the present invention is manufactured by the conductive part forming method described above.
The light-emitting device of the present invention includes the conductive portion and a light-emitting element that is connected to the conductive portion and emits light.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the conductive part from being lost.

It is a top view which shows the arrangement configuration of the pixel of an EL panel. It is a top view which shows schematic structure of EL panel. It is a circuit diagram showing a circuit corresponding to one pixel of an EL panel. It is the top view which showed 1 pixel of EL panel. It is arrow sectional drawing of the surface along the VV line of FIG. It is arrow sectional drawing of the surface along the VI-VI line of FIG. It is arrow sectional drawing of the surface along the VII-VII line of FIG. It is arrow sectional drawing of the surface along the VIII-VIII line of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process of an electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing (a) (b) (c) which shows the other form of an electroconductive part formation process. 6 is a plan view showing one pixel of an EL panel according to Embodiment 2. FIG. It is arrow sectional drawing of the surface along the IXX-IXX line | wire of FIG. It is arrow sectional drawing of the surface along the XX-XX line of FIG. It is arrow sectional drawing of the surface along the XXI-XXI line | wire of FIG. It is a front view which shows an example of the mobile telephone by which EL panel was applied to the display panel. They are the front side perspective view (a) which shows an example of the digital camera with which the EL panel was applied to the display panel, and a rear side perspective view (b). It is a perspective view which shows an example of the personal computer by which EL panel was applied to the display panel. It is explanatory drawing which shows the formation process (a)-(e) of the conventional electroconductive part. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state (a) which the pinhole produced in the barrier metal in the conventional conductive part formation process, and the state (b) which the conductive part lacked. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state (a) which the pinhole produced in the barrier metal in the conventional conductive part formation process, and the state (b) which the conductive part lacked.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, although various technically preferable limitations for implementing the present invention are given to the embodiments described below, the scope of the invention is not limited to the following embodiments and illustrated examples.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating an arrangement configuration of a plurality of pixels 30 in an EL panel 10 that is a light emitting device, and FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating a schematic configuration of the EL panel 10.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in the EL panel 10, a plurality of pixels 30 that respectively emit red (R), green (G), and blue (B) are arranged in a matrix with a predetermined pattern. .
In the EL panel 10, a plurality of gate lines Lg are arranged so as to be substantially parallel to each other along the row direction, and the plurality of data lines Ld are arranged along the column direction so as to be substantially orthogonal to the gate lines Lg in plan view. They are arranged so as to be substantially parallel to each other. Further, a current supply line (anode line) La is provided between the adjacent gate lines Lg along the gate line Lg. A range surrounded by the two adjacent gate lines Lg and the two adjacent data lines Ld corresponds to the pixel 30.
The EL panel 10 is provided with a lattice-like interlayer insulating film 33 and an insulating layer 35 so as to cover the gate line Lg, the data line Ld, and the current supply line La. A plurality of substantially rectangular openings 33a and 35a are formed in the interlayer insulating film 33 and the insulating layer 35 for each pixel 30, and a predetermined carrier transport layer (holes described later) is formed in the openings 33a and 35a. An injection layer 36, an interlayer 37, and a light emitting layer 38) are provided and become a light emitting region of the pixel 30. The carrier transport layer is a layer that transports holes or electrons when a forward bias voltage is applied. A stripe-shaped partition wall 39 is provided on the insulating layer 35 along the data line Ld.
The three pixels 30 of red (R), green (G), and blue (B) are not limited to the lattice pattern, and may be a stripe pattern in which the same color pixels are arranged in the column direction, or may be a delta arrangement. .

  FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a circuit corresponding to one pixel of the EL panel 10 operating in the active matrix driving method.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the EL panel 10 is provided with a gate line Lg, a data line Ld intersecting the gate line Lg, and a current supply line La along the gate line Lg. For each pixel 30, a first selection transistor Tr11, a second selection transistor Tr12, a light emission drive transistor Tr13, a capacitor Cs, and an EL element 21 are provided.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the EL panel 10 includes a plurality of current supply lines La, a plurality of data lines Ld, and a plurality of gate lines Lg. The gate lines Lg are connected to a plurality of pixel circuits arranged in corresponding predetermined rows. Each data line Ld is connected to a plurality of pixel circuits arranged in a corresponding predetermined column. Each current supply line La is connected to a plurality of pixel circuits arranged in a corresponding predetermined row.
The current supply line La is connected to a voltage power source or a voltage driver (not shown).
Further, as will be described later, the current supply line La is formed by using a source-drain conductive layer serving as a source electrode and a drain electrode of each of the transistors Tr11 to Tr13, together with the source electrode and the drain electrode. The data line Ld is formed together with these gate electrodes using a gate conductive layer that becomes a gate electrode of each of the transistors Tr11 to Tr13. The gate line Lg is formed using a third metal layer provided above the source-drain conductive layer.
The wirings formed in these different layers are connected to the electrodes of the transistors via contact portions 41 to 43 provided in the insulating film 32.

4 to 6, the gate electrode 11g of the first selection transistor Tr11 is formed integrally with the gate electrode 12g of the second selection transistor Tr12, and the gate electrode 11g is formed on the insulating film 32. It is connected to the gate line Lg via the contact portion 42 in the provided contact hole and the gate electrode 12g.
The drain electrode 11d of the first selection transistor Tr11 is formed integrally with the current supply line La and is connected to the current supply line La.
The source electrode 11s of the first selection transistor Tr11 is connected to the gate electrode 13g of the light emission drive transistor Tr13 through a contact portion 43 in a contact hole provided in the insulating film 32.

The gate electrode 12g of the second selection transistor Tr12 is connected to the gate line Lg via the contact portion 42.
The drain electrode 12d of the second selection transistor Tr12 is connected to the source electrode 13s of the light emission drive transistor Tr13.
The source electrode 12s of the second selection transistor Tr12 is connected to the data line Ld via a contact portion 41 in a contact hole provided in the insulating film 32.

The gate electrode 13g of the light emission drive transistor Tr13 is connected to the source electrode 11s of the first selection transistor Tr11 via the contact portion 43.
The drain electrode 13d of the light emission drive transistor Tr13 is formed integrally with the current supply line La and is connected to the current supply line La.
The source electrode 13s of the light emission drive transistor Tr13 is connected to the pixel electrode 34 by partially overlapping the pixel electrode 34. The source electrode 13s of the light emission drive transistor Tr13 is integrally connected to the drain electrode 12d of the second selection transistor Tr12.

  In particular, in the first embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 8, the conductive layer 48 is provided on the upper surface of the current supply line La and the upper surface of the drain electrode 13d of the light emission drive transistor Tr13. The conductive layer 48 is formed wider on the upper surface of the current supply line La than the current supply line La. The conductive layer 48 is made of a conductive material. By providing the conductive layer 48, the resistance of the current supply line La can be reduced, and a voltage drop can be suppressed. In the first embodiment, the conductive layer 48 is formed at the same time when the gate line Lg is formed using the third metal layer, thereby reducing the resistance of the current supply line La without increasing the number of manufacturing steps. Is possible.

On the substrate 31, gate electrodes 11g, 12g, and 13g of the first selection transistor Tr11, the second selection transistor Tr12, and the light emission drive transistor Tr13 formed by patterning the gate conductive layer are formed. Furthermore, a data line Ld extending in the column direction is formed on the substrate 31 by patterning the gate conductive layer.
Furthermore, an insulating film 32 that functions as a gate insulating film or a capacitor dielectric is formed so as to cover the gate electrodes 11g, 12g, 13g and the data line Ld.

  The insulating film 32 is made of an insulating material such as a silicon oxide film or a silicon nitride film, and is formed on the substrate 31 so as to cover the data line Ld and the gate electrodes 11g, 12g, and 13g. A contact hole is formed in the insulating film 32, and a contact portion formed in the contact hole includes an electrode formed using a gate conductive layer, an electrode formed using a source / drain layer, a wiring To make contact.

The first selection transistor Tr11, the second selection transistor Tr12, and the light emission drive transistor Tr13 are inverted staggered thin film transistors (TFTs). Each transistor is formed on a substrate 31 as shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 4, the second selection transistor Tr12 includes a semiconductor layer 121 including at least one of amorphous silicon and microcrystalline silicon, a protective insulating layer 122, a drain electrode 12d, a source electrode 12s, an n-type. Ohmic contact layers 124 and 125 made of amorphous silicon containing impurities or microcrystalline silicon containing n-type impurities, and a gate electrode 12g are provided.
The light emission drive transistor Tr13 includes a semiconductor layer 131 including at least one of amorphous silicon and microcrystalline silicon, a protective insulating layer 132, a drain electrode 13d, a source electrode 13s, and a-Si including n-type impurities. Alternatively, ohmic contact layers 134 and 135 made of microcrystalline silicon containing n-type impurities and a gate electrode 13g are provided.
Although not shown (cross-sectional view), the first selection transistor Tr11 has the same configuration as the second selection transistor Tr12.

The gate electrode in each of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13 is formed by patterning a gate conductive layer selected from, for example, a Mo film or a MoNb alloy film.
The drain electrode and the source electrode in each of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13 are, for example, a laminated film in which a lower protective conductive film / Al alloy film / an upper protective conductive film are sequentially laminated, or a lower protective conductive film / Al film / upper protective conductive, respectively. The source-drain conductive layer having a laminated film in which films are sequentially laminated is formed by patterning. The gate line Lg and the conductive layer 48 are formed by patterning a third metal layer having, for example, a lower protective conductive film / Al alloy film / upper protective film or a lower protective conductive film / Al film / upper protective conductive film, respectively. Formed. The lower protective conductive film and the upper protective conductive film described above include at least one of Cr, W, and Mo.

As shown in FIG. 7, the gate line Lg intersects the data line Ld with the insulating film 32 made of an insulating material and the interlayer insulating film 33 interposed therebetween, and the gate line Lg and the data line Ld are electrically connected to each other. Is electrically insulated. The gate line Lg has a step corresponding to the thickness of the data line Ld in the vicinity of the intersection region with the data line Ld.
Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the current supply line La intersects the data line Ld with the insulating film 32 made of an insulating material interposed therebetween, and the current supply line La and the data line Ld are electrically insulated from each other. Has been. The current supply line La has a step corresponding to the thickness of the data line Ld in the vicinity of the intersection region with the data line Ld.

  The capacitor Cs includes a part of the gate electrode 13g of the light emission drive transistor Tr13 that functions as one capacitor electrode, the pixel electrode 34 that functions as the other capacitor electrode, the source electrode 13s of the light emission drive transistor Tr13, the gate electrode 13g, and the pixel. The insulating film 32 serving as a derivative is interposed between the overlapping portion between the electrode 34 and the overlapping portion between the gate electrode 13g and the source electrode 13s. The capacitor Cs has a capacitance between the gate electrode 13g and the source electrode 13s of the light emission drive transistor Tr13.

  The pixel electrode (anode electrode) 34 is made of a light-transmitting conductive material, for example, indium oxide (Indium Thin Oxide) to which tin oxide is added, indium oxide doped with zinc oxide (Indium Zinc Oxide), or the like. The Each pixel electrode 34 is formed for each pixel 30 and is separated from the pixel electrodes 34 of other adjacent pixels 30.

The interlayer insulating film 33 is made of an insulating material, for example, a silicon nitride film, has a substantially rectangular opening 33a that opens at the center of each pixel electrode 34, and is arranged so that the pixel electrode 34 is exposed from the opening 33a. ing. The interlayer insulating film 33 is formed so as to cover the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13, the current supply line La, and the like.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a gate line Lg and a conductive layer 48 are formed on the interlayer insulating film 33, and an insulating material such as silicon nitride is further covered so as to cover the gate line Lg and the conductive layer 48. An insulating layer 35 made of a film is formed. The insulating layer 35 is formed with an opening 35a whose shape substantially coincides with the opening 33a of the interlayer insulating film 33, and is interposed between the pixel electrode 34 and the counter electrode 40 by the opening 33a and the opening 35a. The light emitting layer 38, that is, the light emitting area of the pixel 30 is drawn.

  The partition 39 is formed by curing an insulating material, for example, a photosensitive resin such as polyimide, and is formed on the interlayer insulating film 33 and the insulating layer 35. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 4, the partition wall 39 is formed in a stripe shape in which the opening 39 b is continuously formed across a plurality of pixels 30 arranged along the column direction. It is provided at a position corresponding to the opening 33 a of the interlayer insulating film 33 and the opening 35 a of the insulating layer 35. The partition wall 39 is a liquid containing a material that becomes the light emitting layer 38 of the R (red) pixel 30 formed on the pixel electrode 34 during the manufacturing process, and a material that becomes the light emitting layer 38 of the G (green) pixel 30. And a liquid containing a material that will become the light emitting layer 38 of the B (blue) pixel 30, when applied to the pixel electrode 34, it flows out to the pixels 30 emitting different colors adjacent to each other in the row direction. The light-emitting layer 38 is prevented from mixing. The planar shape of the partition wall 39 is not limited to this, and may be a lattice shape in which an opening is provided for each pixel 30.

The EL element 21 includes a pixel electrode 34, a hole injection layer 36, an interlayer 37, a light emitting layer 38, and a counter electrode 40. The hole injection layer 36, the interlayer 37, and the light emitting layer 38 are carrier transport layers in which electrons and holes are transported as carriers. The carrier transport layer is disposed in the openings of the interlayer insulating film 33, the insulating layer 35, and the partition 39.
When the EL element 21 is a bottom emission type that emits display light from the substrate 31 side, the pixel electrode 34 is made of indium oxide added with tin oxide (Indium Thin Oxide; ITO) or indium oxide doped with zinc oxide (Indium Zinc). A transparent electrode containing a transparent metal oxide such as Oxide.
Further, in the case where the EL element 21 is a top emission type that emits display light from the counter electrode 40 side, the pixel electrode 34 is laminated on a visible light reflective lower electrode such as Al and the lower electrode, as described above. And an upper transparent electrode containing a transparent metal oxide.

  The hole injection layer 36 is formed on the pixel electrode 34 and has a function of supplying holes to the light emitting layer 38. The hole injection layer 36 includes an organic polymer material, a low molecular material, or an inorganic compound capable of injecting and transporting holes. As an organic compound-containing liquid containing an organic polymer hole injection / transport material, for example, polyethylenedioxythiophene (PEDOT) which is a conductive polymer and polystyrene sulfonic acid (PSS) which is a dopant are dispersed in an aqueous solvent. The hole injection layer 36 is formed by applying and drying the PEDOT / PSS aqueous solution that is the dispersion. As the inorganic compound, the hole injection layer 36 is formed by continuously forming a high-resistance molybdenum oxide on the pixel electrode 34 and the surface of the partition wall 39.

  The interlayer 37 is formed on the hole injection layer 36. The interlayer 37 has a function of suppressing the electron injection property of the light emitting layer 38 to facilitate recombination of electrons and holes in the light emitting layer 38, and is provided to increase the light emission efficiency of the light emitting layer 38. It is an organic compound layer.

  The light emitting layer 38 is formed on the interlayer 37. The light emitting layer 38 has a function of generating light by applying a voltage between the anode electrode (pixel electrode 34) and the cathode electrode (counter electrode 40). The light emitting layer 38 is a known polymer light emitting material capable of emitting fluorescence or phosphorescence, for example, red (R) or green (G) containing a conjugated double bond polymer such as polyparaphenylene vinylene or polyfluorene. And a blue (B) light emitting material. In addition, these luminescent materials are suitably used in a nozzle coating method in which a solution (dispersion) dissolved (or dispersed) in an aqueous solvent or an organic solvent such as tetralin, tetramethylbenzene, mesitylene, and xylene is discharged as a continuous liquid flow. It forms by apply | coating by the inkjet method etc. which are discharged as a separated several droplet, and volatilizing a solvent.

  The counter electrode (cathode electrode) 40 is provided on the light emitting layer 38. In the case of the bottom emission type, the counter electrode (cathode electrode) 40 is provided on the light emitting layer 38, and includes a layer having a conductive material, for example, a material having a low work function such as Li, Mg, Ca, Ba, and the like. A laminated structure having laminated light-reflective conductive layers such as Al is formed. Further, when the counter electrode (cathode electrode) 40 is a top emission type, it is provided on the light emitting layer 38 and has an extremely thin material with a low work function such as Li, Mg, Ca, Ba, etc. having a thickness of about 10 nm or less. A transparent laminated structure having a light transmissive low work function layer and a light transmissive conductive layer such as ITO having a film thickness of about 100 nm to 200 nm is formed. In the present embodiment, the counter electrode 40 is composed of a single electrode layer formed across a plurality of pixels 30 and is applied with a reference voltage Vss which is a ground potential, for example.

The EL panel 10 emits light by the following driving. The transistors Tr11 to Tr13 are set as n-channel transistors, and based on this, high and low of a signal described later are set. However, at least one of the transistors Tr11 to Tr13 may be a p-channel transistor. Accordingly, it is only necessary to set the signal high and low accordingly.
First, the potential of the gate line Lg becomes high level during the selection period, and the first selection transistor Tr11 and the second selection transistor Tr12 are turned on. In this selection period, a low level voltage equal to or lower than the reference potential Vss is applied to the current supply line La, and a current corresponding to the pixel gradation is caused to flow through the data line Ld based on a signal from a data driver (not shown). A current flows from the current supply line La to the light emission drive transistor Tr13, the second selection transistor Tr12, and the data line Ld. Then, a charge corresponding to the current corresponding to the pixel gradation is charged in the capacitor Cs.
Next, the potential of the gate line Lg becomes low level during the light emission period, and the first selection transistor Tr11 and the second selection transistor Tr12 are turned off. During this light emission period, a high level voltage higher than the reference potential Vss is applied to the current supply line La.
Here, since the first selection transistor Tr11 is off, the potential difference between the gate electrode 13g and the source electrode 13s of the light emission drive transistor Tr13 is maintained at the level of the charge charged in the capacitor Cs. Further, since the second selection transistor Tr12 is also off, a current having a current value corresponding to the potential difference between the gate electrode 13g and the source electrode 13s flows from the current supply line La to the EL element 21 through the light emission drive transistor Tr13.
In this way, each EL element 21 emits light at a predetermined gradation, whereby light emission display of the EL panel 10 is performed.

  Next, a method of forming the drain electrode and the source electrode and the current supply line La in each of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13 from the source-drain conductive layer (conductor film), the gate line Lg, and the conductive layer 48 are the third A method of forming a metal layer (conductor film) will be described.

In the present embodiment, the drain electrode and the source electrode, the current supply line La, the gate line Lg, and the conductive layer 48 in each of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13 are Cr, W, Conductor film that is a laminate of a lower protective conductive film containing at least one of Mo, an aluminum-containing film containing Al or Al alloy thereon, and an upper protective conductive film containing at least one of Cr, W, and Mo The conductive portion is common in that the conductive film is formed by patterning by photolithography and etching. The upper protective conductive film 3 covering the Al-containing film 2 in the conductor film of lower protective conductive film / Al-containing film / upper protective conductive film is a barrier metal that temporarily protects the Al-containing film when forming a resist. It is.
In this embodiment, the drain electrode and the source electrode in each of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13 are formed of lower layer protective conductive film / Al-containing film / upper layer protective conductive film. Further, the current supply line La, the gate line Lg, and the conductive layer 48 are formed from a conductor film of another lower protective conductive film / other Al-containing film / other upper protective conductive film.

  Below, the conductive part formation method is demonstrated using a schematic diagram.

First, a gate conductive layer is formed on the substrate 31 and patterned by photolithography and etching to form the gate electrodes 11g, 12g, 13g and data lines Ld of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13, and then insulate the entire surface of the substrate 31. The film 32, the semiconductor film that becomes the semiconductor layer of each transistor Tr11, Tr12, Tr13, the ohmic contact film that becomes the ohmic contact layer of each transistor Tr11, Tr12, Tr13, and the insulating film that becomes the protective insulating layer of each transistor Tr11, Tr12, Tr13 Are sequentially deposited. Next, this insulating film is patterned by photolithography and etching to form protective insulating layers for the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13. Then, the ohmic contact film and the semiconductor film are patterned by photolithography and etching to form ohmic contact layers and semiconductor layers of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, and Tr13.
Thereafter, a source-drain conductive layer is formed. At this time, the source-drain conductive layer is a laminate of the lower protective conductive film 1, the Al-containing film 2, and the upper protective conductive film 3, and the data line Ld formed below as shown in FIG. Due to the difference in level. In the stepped portion, a pinhole P in which the Al-containing film 2 is exposed from the upper protective conductive film 3 is generated. Note that the pinhole P may occur even in a portion where no step is generated.
In this state, heat treatment is performed in an atmosphere containing oxygen (for example, air atmosphere), and an oxidation protection region 4 formed by oxidizing aluminum is formed in a portion where the Al-containing film 2 is exposed. Since the aluminum oxide film in the oxidation protection region 4 is dense, oxidation does not proceed any further, so that the oxidation protection region 4 can be suppressed to an extremely thin region.

Then, a resist 5 is formed that covers a region to be a conductive portion in the conductor film. At this time, since the Al-containing film 2 of the conductor film is covered with the upper protective conductive film 3 and the oxidation protection region 4, the Al-containing film 2 is damaged because it is not in contact with the developer of the resist 5. There is nothing.
Next, as shown in FIG. 17B, the conductor film coated with the resist 5 is subjected to an etching process, and the upper protective conductive film 3 and the Al-containing film 2 are etched and removed in order.
The oxidation protection region 4 is formed by subjecting the Al-containing film 2 exposed under the resist 5 to the oxidation treatment that is a modification treatment by the etching. The reforming process is the same as the various oxidation processes described above.

Next, the resist 5 is removed using a stripping solution (for example, Nagase Resist Strip N-303G manufactured by Nagase Chemical Co., Ltd.). At this time, since the Al-containing film 2 of the conductor film is covered with the upper protective conductive film 3 and the oxidation protective region 4, it does not come into contact with the resist stripping solution. For example, there is no possibility that the Al-containing film 2 is damaged due to, for example, an electrolytic corrosion reaction between Cr and the Al-containing film 2.
Next, as shown in FIG. 17C, the upper protective conductive film 3 and the lower protective conductive film 1 exposed on the surface are simultaneously removed by etching, and the remaining lower protective conductive film 1 and Al-containing film 2 are removed. Thus, a current supply line La in which a step is generated by the data line Ld and a source / drain electrode in which a step is generated by the gate electrodes of the transistors Tr11, Tr12, Tr13 are formed.
In addition to the heat treatment described above, the oxidation protection region 4 can be formed by any oxidation treatment such as ozone water cleaning, UV ozone treatment, and oxygen plasma treatment.

  Thereafter, an interlayer insulating film 33 is deposited on the entire surface, and as shown in FIG. 9, contact holes h are formed in the insulating films 32 and 33 on the upper surface side of the substrate 31 by photolithography and etching, and the gate electrode 12g is formed. Expose. Such contact holes h include, for example, contact holes of contact portions 41 to 43 shown in FIG.

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, the lower protective conductive film 1, the Al-containing film 2, and the upper protective conductive film 3 to be the gate line Lg and the conductive layer 48 are sequentially formed, and the upper protective conductive film 3 is formed on the Al-containing film 2. A conductive film (third metal layer) is stacked.
Here, since the contact hole h in the insulating films 32 and 33 is a steep recess, a pinhole P is generated in the upper protective conductive film 3 and the Al-containing film 2 is exposed from the pinhole P. is there.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 11, the Al-containing film 2 is oxidized as a modification process, and the aluminum of the Al-containing film 2 exposed from the pinhole P without being covered with the upper protective conductive film 3 is oxidized. Then, the oxidation protection region 4 is formed. The reforming treatment may be any oxidation treatment such as heat treatment in an air atmosphere, ozone water cleaning, UV ozone treatment, oxygen plasma treatment, and the like.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 12, a resist 5 that covers a region to be a conductive portion in the conductor film is formed. At this time, since the Al-containing film 2 of the conductor film is covered with the upper protective conductive film 3 and the oxidation protection region 4, the Al-containing film 2 is damaged because it is not in contact with the resist developer. There is no.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 13, the conductor film covered with the resist 5 is subjected to an etching process, and the upper protective conductive film 3 and the Al-containing film 2 are sequentially removed.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 14, after etching the upper protective conductive film 3 and the Al-containing film 2 of the conductor film, the Al-containing film 2 exposed by the etching is subjected to an oxidation treatment, which is a modification process, to protect the oxidation. Region 4 is formed. The reforming process is the same as the various oxidation processes described above.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 15, the resist 5 is removed using a stripping solution (for example, Nagase Chemical Strip, Nagase Resist Strip N-303G). At this time, since the Al-containing film 2 of the conductor film is covered with the upper protective conductive film 3 and the oxidation protective region 4, it does not come into contact with the resist stripping solution. For example, there is no possibility that the Al-containing film 2 is damaged due to, for example, an electrolytic corrosion reaction between Cr and the Al-containing film 2.

Next, as shown in FIG. 16, the upper protective conductive film 3 and the lower protective conductive film 1 exposed on the surface are simultaneously removed by etching, and the gate line Lg, the contact, which is a conductive part made of the Al-containing film 2, contacts The parts 41 to 43 and the conductive layer 48 are formed.
Thus, the conductive portion made of the Al-containing film 2 can be formed without being lost.

  As described above, when forming conductive portions such as the gate line Lg and the contact portions 41 to 43 made of the Al-containing film 2, the conductive film of the lower protective film / Al-containing film / upper protective film was formed. After that, the conductor film is subjected to an oxidation process as a modification process, and the oxidation protection region 4 is formed in the Al-containing film 2 portion exposed from the pinhole P without being covered with the upper protective conductive film 3. According to this, since the Al-containing film 2 is not lost by being exposed to the resist stripping solution or the like, it is possible to prevent the conductive portion from being lost.

Here, the third metal layer, which is a conductor film of lower layer protective conductive film / Al-containing film / upper layer protective conductive film, is patterned to connect to a member formed by a gate conductive layer, specifically a gate. Although an example in which the line Lg and the contact portions 41 to 43 are formed has been shown, the third metal layer can be patterned at the same time to form a connection member with a member formed of the source-drain conductive layer. Specifically, after the interlayer insulating film 33 is deposited on the current supply line La formed by patterning the source-drain conductive layer, the interlayer insulating film 33 on the current supply line La is narrower than the current supply line La. A contact hole is formed. In the process shown in FIG. 10, since the third metal layer is also filled in the contact hole, the conductive layer 48 can be formed inside and outside the contact hole by patterning the third metal layer. At this time, a step is generated in the third metal layer inside and outside the contact hole. In addition to the steps shown in FIGS. 11 to 16, the Al-containing film 2 exposed from the upper protective conductive film 3 generated by the step is oxidized protection region 4. It can be.
In addition, conductive portions such as various electrodes and wirings formed by patterning the source-drain conductive layer, which is a conductor film of lower layer protective conductive film / Al-containing film / upper layer protective conductive film, are also formed by the same process. Can do.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same part as Embodiment 1, and only a different part is demonstrated.

  As shown in FIGS. 18 to 19, the EL panel 60 that is a light emitting device has a configuration in which the insulating layer 35 and the conductive layer 48 in the EL panel 10 of Embodiment 1 are not provided, and the second selection transistor Tr <b> 12. The gate electrode 12g and the gate line Lg are integrally formed.

Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the gate line Lg is formed of a gate conductive layer, and further bypasses through the contact portions 66 and 67 in the contact hole provided in the insulating film 32 and the contact portions 66 and 67. The wiring 65 is electrically connected, and the bypass wiring 65 intersects the data line Ld with the insulating film 32 interposed therebetween, so that the gate line Lg and the bypass wiring 65 and the data line Ld are electrically connected to each other. Insulated. The contact portions 66 and 67 and the bypass wiring 65 are formed from a source-drain conductive layer.
Further, as shown in FIG. 21, the current supply line La intersects the data line Ld with the insulating film 32 made of an insulating material interposed therebetween, and the current supply line La and the data line Ld are electrically insulated from each other. Has been.

  Then, various electrodes such as contact portions 66 and 67 and detour wiring 65 and current supply line La formed by patterning a source-drain conductive layer which is a conductor film of lower protective film / Al-containing film / upper protective film The conductive part such as the wiring can be formed by a conductive part forming method that undergoes the same steps as those of the first embodiment.

The EL panels 10 and 60 formed and manufactured as described above are used as display panels for various electronic devices.
For example, the display panel 10a of the mobile phone 200 shown in FIG. 22, the display panel 10b of the digital camera 300 shown in FIGS. 23A and 23B, the display panel 10c of the personal computer 400 shown in FIG. The EL panels 10 and 60 can be applied.

  The application of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be appropriately changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

10, 60 EL panel Tr11 First selection transistor 11s Source electrode 11d Drain electrode 11g Gate electrode Tr12 Second selection transistor 12s Source electrode 12d Drain electrode 12g Gate electrode Tr13 Light emitting drive transistor 13s Source electrode 13d Drain electrode 13g Gate electrode La Current supply line Ld Data line Lg Gate line 21 EL element 31 Substrate 32 Insulating film 33 Interlayer insulating film 34 Pixel electrode 35 Insulating layer 40 Counter electrode 48 Conductive layer 65 Detour wiring 66 Contact part 67 Contact part 1 Lower protective conductive film 2 Al-containing film 3 Upper layer Protective conductive film 4 Oxidation protection region 5 Resist 6 Conductor film h Contact hole P Pin hole

Claims (7)

After forming an Al-containing film on the upper surface side of the substrate, an upper protective conductive film for protecting the Al-containing film is formed, and a conductive film is formed by laminating the upper protective conductive film on the Al-containing film Forming process;
A protective treatment step for forming an oxidation protection region by oxidizing a portion of the Al-containing film not covered with the upper protective conductive film;
A resist forming step of forming a resist covering a region to be a conductive portion in the conductor film;
A conductive part forming step of forming a conductive part by removing the resist after etching the conductive film;
A method for forming a conductive part, comprising:   2. The conductive part forming method according to claim 1, wherein, in the conductive part forming step, the Al-containing film part exposed when the conductive film is etched is oxidized to form an oxidation protection region.   3. The conductive portion forming method according to claim 1, wherein, in the conductor film forming step, the conductor film is formed on an insulating film and a contact hole provided in the insulating film.   The said conductor film formation process WHEREIN: The said conductor film is formed on the insulating film in which the level | step difference has arisen in the upper surface by the other electroconductive part located in a lower surface. The conductive part formation method as described in any one of. The conductor film is provided with a lower protective conductive film having the same material as the upper protective conductive film under the Al-containing film,
The said conductive part formation process WHEREIN: After removing the said resist, the said upper layer protective electrically conductive film and the said lower layer protective electrically conductive film exposed from the said Al content film | membrane are etched and removed. The conductive part forming method according to any one of the above.   A conductive part manufactured by the conductive part forming method according to claim 1. The conductive part according to claim 6;
A light emitting element that emits light by being connected to the conductive portion;
A light emitting device comprising:

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