JP2013165278A - Processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a photo-curing type nano-imprint processing device which is excellent in microfabrication and economical efficiency.SOLUTION: This invention relates to a processing device which applies a resist to a mold where an irregular pattern is formed, places a substrate in contact with the resist, and hardens the resist thereby transferring the resist, to which the pattern is transferred, to the substrate. The processing device has a first mold head and a second mold head and concurrently conducts a preparation step, including a process where the resist is applied to the mold held by the first mold head, and a transfer step where the resist applied to the mold held by the second mold head is transferred to the substrate.

Description

  The present invention generally relates to a processing apparatus, and more particularly to a processing apparatus that transfers a pattern of a mold serving as an original plate to a substrate such as a wafer. The present invention is particularly suitable for a processing apparatus using nanoimprint technology.

  Nanoimprinting is an alternative technique for forming a fine pattern on a semiconductor device using photolithography using ultraviolet rays, X-rays, or an electron beam. Nanoimprint is a method of transferring a pattern onto a resist by pressing (imprinting) a template (mold) on which a fine pattern is formed by electron beam exposure or the like against a substrate such as a wafer coated with resist. (For example, refer nonpatent literature 1). It has already been shown that transfer of a fine shape of about 10 nm is possible, and in particular, it has been attracting attention as a means for creating a fine periodic structure of a magnetic recording medium, and research and development has been actively conducted in various places. .

  In the nanoimprint, the environment may be evacuated so that air bubbles do not enter between the mold and the substrate. In order to facilitate the flow of the resist at the time of stamping, a method (thermal cycle method) has been proposed in which the transfer is performed by heating to a temperature higher than the polymer glass transition temperature used as the resist. Also proposed is a method (photocuring method) in which an ultraviolet curable resin is used as a resist, and the mold is peeled after being exposed to light and cured in a state of being imprinted with a transparent mold.

  In order to create a semiconductor integrated circuit, it is essential to superimpose on a circuit pattern already drawn on a substrate by aligning with high accuracy and transferring the next pattern. In the heat cycle method, since the resist is heated, the substrate and the mold are thermally expanded due to the temperature rise, and it is very difficult to maintain the overlay accuracy. Therefore, when nanoimprint is applied to semiconductor integrated circuit manufacturing, a photocuring method with relatively easy temperature control is suitable.

  The semiconductor integrated circuit pattern has a minimum line width of 100 nm or less, and it is necessary to use a low-viscosity resist material so that the resist can surely enter the fine structure of the mold. In addition, the nanoimprint apparatus normally transfers a pattern to a wafer surface sequentially by a step-and-repeat method. Here, the “step-and-repeat method” is a method in which the wafer is stepped for each batch transfer of a wafer shot and moved to the transfer area of the next shot. At this time, since the viscosity of the resist is low, it is difficult to apply the resist in advance on the substrate as in the exposure apparatus, and to transport and mount it. For this reason, a method of dropping an appropriate amount every time a mold is imprinted at the time of transfer to each shot has been proposed (Non-Patent Document 2).

S. Y. Chou, et. al. , Science, vol. 272, p. 85-87, 5 April 1996 M.M. Colburn, S.M. Johnson, M.M. Stewart, S.M. Damle, T .; Bailey, B.M. Choi, M .; Wedlake, T .; Michaelson, S.M. V. Srenivasan, J.A. G. Ekerdt and C.I. G. Willson. "Step and Flash Imprint Lithography: A new approach to high resolution patterning." Proc. SPIE 3676 (I): 379 (1999).

JP 2005-286061 A

  Conventional nanoimprinting by the “step and repeat method” requires time for a series of steps including movement to a transfer region, dropping of a resist, transfer to a resist by mold imprinting, resist curing, and mold peeling. For this reason, there is a limit to increasing the throughput representing the substrate processing capacity per hour.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a processing apparatus capable of obtaining higher throughput.

  The present invention is a processing apparatus for applying a resist to a mold having a concavo-convex pattern, bringing the substrate into contact with the resist, and curing the resist, thereby transferring the resist to which the pattern has been transferred to the substrate. A first mold head, a second mold head, a preparatory step including a process of applying a resist to a mold held by the first mold head, and a resist applied to the mold held by the second mold head on the substrate. Processing is performed in parallel with a transfer process of transferring.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a processing apparatus capable of obtaining higher throughput.

It is a schematic sectional drawing of the processing apparatus as a 1st reference example of this invention. It is an expanded sectional view of the mold part of the processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional view of the mold part applicable to the processing apparatus as the 2nd reference example of the present invention. It is an expanded sectional view of the mold part applicable to the processing apparatus as the 3rd reference example of the present invention. It is principal part sectional drawing of the processing apparatus provided with two or more mold heads as 1st Example of this invention. It is a waist part sectional view of another processing device provided with two or more mold heads as the 2nd example of the present invention. It is a figure showing the relationship between the area | region of the mold head of this invention, and a wafer. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the manufacturing method of devices (Semiconductor chip, such as IC IC LSI, LCD, CCD, etc.) using the above-mentioned processing apparatus. It is a detailed flowchart of step 4 shown in FIG.

  By having a plurality of mold heads, one of which performs a resist coating step during the transfer step, parallel processing becomes possible, thereby improving throughput.

  This will be described in detail below together with examples.

(Reference Example 1)
With reference to the attached drawings, a photo-curing nanoimprint apparatus as a processing apparatus will be described. In addition, in each figure, about the same member, the same reference number is attached | subjected and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  Conventionally, when a resist is applied to a substrate such as a wafer, and then a template (mold) on which a fine pattern is formed is pressed (imprinted) on the substrate, the corners of the fine pattern (unevenness) are pressed by the force pressing the mold against the substrate. There was a need to spread the resist all the way. Therefore, it takes time to transfer the pattern.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a resist is applied on a mold with a pattern facing upward, and then a workpiece surface is pressed against a substrate surface held downward to perform transfer. However, the resist hardly penetrates into the fine irregularities simply by applying it on the mold, and a force to press against the substrate is required for transferring the pattern as in the prior art.

  In this reference example, after applying a resist to a mold and before pressing the substrate, the resist is made to intrude into the unevenness of the pattern so as to shorten the time required for stamping.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a nanoimprint apparatus 10 of Reference Example 1.

  The nanoimprint apparatus 10 includes a photocuring unit, a mold 11, a mold driving unit, a wafer 21, a wafer driving unit, a resist supply unit, a resist collection unit, and other mechanisms.

  The photocuring unit is a unit that cures the resist by irradiating the resist 42 with ultraviolet rays through the mold 11, and includes the light source 15 and the illumination optical system 14. The light source 15 includes a halogen lamp (not shown) that generates UV light. The illumination optical system 14 includes a lens for adjusting illumination light for exposing and curing the resist and irradiating the resist surface, an aperture, a shutter for switching between irradiation and light shielding, and the like.

  The mold 11 has a fine structure to be transferred, and is made of a transparent member in order to transmit exposure light for curing the resist.

  The mold driving unit includes a mold head 12 for holding the mold 11 in the apparatus 10 and an imprint mechanism unit 13 as a driving unit for pressing the mold 11 upward. The imprint mechanism 13 not only moves up and down, but also has a posture dosing mechanism, posture control, and a rotation function alignment function so that the mold transfer surface and the wafer 21 are in close contact with each other.

  The wafer 21 is an object on which a pattern formed on the mold 11 is transferred and a semiconductor integrated circuit is formed through a subsequent process, and is the same as that used in a conventional semiconductor process.

  The wafer drive unit includes a wafer chuck 22 for holding the wafer 21 and a wafer stage 23 for adjusting the position and posture of the wafer chuck 22. The wafer stage 23 is movable in the x and y plane directions, and the entire wafer surface can be transferred. The wafer stage 23 can be positioned with high precision and achieves superposition of fine patterns. Further, the wafer stage 23 has not only positioning but also means for adjusting the posture of the surface of the wafer 21, and has a role of adjusting the posture of the surface of the wafer 21.

  The resist supply means includes a tank 31 for holding the resist 42 before ultraviolet irradiation, that is, before curing, a nozzle 32 for dropping the resist on the wafer surface, and a valve for switching whether the resist 42 is dropped from the nozzle 32 or stopped. (Not shown).

  The resist collection means includes a collection port 33 and a collection mechanism (not shown). The collection port 33 is installed on the surface of the mold head 12 and sucks and collects the resist 42 spilled from the mold. The recovery mechanism includes a vacuum pump, a filter, and the like (all not shown), and recovers the resist by placing the downstream of the recovery port in a negative pressure state.

  Other mechanisms include a surface plate 51, a vibration isolator 25, a frame 52, an alignment scope 27, and a reference mark base 28. The surface plate 51 supports the entire apparatus 10, and the vibration isolator 25 has a function of removing vibration from the floor and supports the surface plate 51. The frame 52 forms a reference plane for moving the wafer stage 23. The surface plate 51 supports up to the light source 15 of the component located below the mold 11. The alignment scope 27 measures the alignment mark position on the wafer 21 and positions the wafer stage 23 based on the result. The reference mark table 28 has a reference mark and is used for alignment between the coordinates of the alignment scope 27 and the coordinates of the wafer stage 23.

  In operation, the wafer 21 to be transferred is placed on the wafer chuck 22 by a wafer transfer system (not shown). The wafer chuck 22 holds the wafer 21 by vacuum suction means. The wafer stage 23 measures the alignment marks on the wafer surface with the alignment scope 27 in order, and measures the wafer position with high accuracy. Each transfer coordinate is calculated from the measurement result. Based on the result, sequential transfer (step-and-repeat) is performed. When all the transfer is completed, the wafer is unloaded and the next transfer wafer is loaded.

  FIG. 2 (a) is an enlarged view of the mold and nozzle portion of FIG.

  The nozzle 32 drops an appropriate amount of resist 42 onto the mold 11 while scanning the mold by the nozzle driving unit 36. The mold head 12 has a vibrator 54 and applies horizontal and / or vertical ultrasonic vibrations to the mold 11. Due to the vibration, the resist 42 enters the minute unevenness. Thereafter, the wafer stage 23 moves the wafer 21 to the transfer position and performs positioning. After the positioning is completed, the imprint mechanism 13 raises the mold 11 and presses the mold 11 against the wafer 21. The determination of the completion of pressing is made by a load sensor installed inside the imprint mechanism unit 13. Since the resist 42 penetrates into the micro unevenness by the vibration, the resist 42 is cured by irradiating with illumination light immediately after the entire surface comes into contact and reaches a predetermined thickness. After the resist curing is completed, the mold 11 is pulled down. Then, the wafer stage 23 is moved to the next transfer position (shot).

  In order to further accelerate the resist intrusion into the pattern recess of the mold 11, the uneven pattern on the surface of the mold 11 may be formed in a porous layer having a large number of minute cavities. As one form thereof, as shown in FIG. 2B, the mold 11 may be composed of two layers of a mold substrate 61 and a porous layer (porous layer) 60 on which a micro uneven pattern is formed. By forming the concavo-convex pattern portion with a porous material, even if air is trapped in the concave portion, air is absorbed into the porous layer, so that the resist easily enters the concave portion in a short time. As the porous layer, for example, a transparent material such as a porous silica material can be used. The porous silica layer is formed by coating a mixed liquid in which a silica material and a polymer material such as polystyrene particles are dispersed on a substrate with a thickness of several microns to several hundred microns, and applying heat to remove the polymer material. Methods are known and applicable. In this way, the porous layer 60 in which cavities of several nanometers to several tens of nanometers are regularly or irregularly arranged on the mold substrate 61 can be obtained. The size of the cavity of several nanometers to several tens of nanometers is a size to prevent the resist from entering the porous layer due to the surface tension of the resist interface.

  As another embodiment, the entire mold 11 may be formed of a porous material as shown in FIG. Then, the space 62 facing the mold back surface (the surface on which the concave / convex pattern is not formed) is depressurized by a pressure variable means (not shown) to depressurize the inside of the microcavity of the porous material, and the resist is subjected to a force to be drawn into the concave portion. It is done. The pressure difference between the space on the side where the resist is dropped and the space 62 on the back side of the mold may be set such that the penetration of the resist into the recess is promoted but does not enter the microcavity of the porous material.

  When the mold 11 is peeled from the resist after the resist is cured, the space 62 facing the back surface of the mold (the surface where the uneven pattern is not formed) is set to a high pressure contrary to the previous case. Thereby, the cured resist is pushed out from the concave portion of the mold, so that it can be peeled cleanly in a short time. If stripping is performed in a short time, a part of the cured resist remains in the mold recess, which may cause a resist pattern defect. However, according to this method, the resist is naturally pushed out by the atmospheric pressure from the back side of the mold, so that even if peeling is performed in a short time, it is difficult to cause defects.

  As explained above, since the effect of the porous layer is to absorb bubbles into the mold, not only when the resist is directly dropped onto the mold as shown in FIG. 2, but also after the resist is applied to the substrate, the mold is imprinted. In this case, the stamping time can be shortened.

(Reference Example 2)
A second reference example will be described with reference to FIG.

  The nozzle 32 shown in FIG. 3 drops the resist 42 in the tank 31 onto the mold 11 as a fine droplet by an actuator (not shown) such as a piezo based on the same principle as that of inkjet. The nozzles 32 are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface, and scan the mold 11 while dropping the resist 42 in a linear shape. After the nozzle 32 scans over the mold 11 and drops the resist 42, the blade 55 scans the surface of the mold. The surface of the blade 55 is leveled and the resist is pushed into the recess. The scanning of the nozzle 32 and the blade 55 promotes the application of the resist 42 and the penetration into the concavo-convex portion, and at the same time smoothes the surface. Thereafter, after the movement and positioning of the wafer stage 23 to the transfer position are completed, the imprint mechanism 13 raises the mold 11 and presses the mold 11 against the wafer 21.

  Since the resist surface is smoothed, the resist 42 can be cured by irradiating illumination light from the light source 15 immediately after the entire surface comes into contact with a predetermined thickness in a short time.

(Reference Example 3)
A third reference example will be described with reference to FIG.

  Similar to FIGS. 2 and 3, in FIG. 4, the resist 42 is dropped on the mold 11 by the scanning of the nozzle 32. After dripping, gas is blown onto the surface of the resist 42 as shown by an arrow 57 through the blower pipe 56. The blower pipes 56 are arranged in parallel to the paper surface, and are blown over the entire width of the mold 11. This wind pressure causes the resist 42 to enter the inside of the minute unevenness. Thereafter, the blower pipe 56 is retracted from the upper part of the mold 11 and imprinted by the same operation as in the second reference example.

  The blower pipe 56 may have a linear blowout perpendicular to the paper surface. In that case, scanning is performed on the paper surface, and gas is blown over the entire surface of the mold 11.

  The gas may be air, but by using a gas that is soluble in the resist such as carbon dioxide or helium mixed gas, even if the gas enters the recess of the mold 11 before the resist 42, it does not remain as bubbles. effective.

  Further, by using the gas flow 57 before the dropping of the resist 42, it is possible to blow away and remove the residual resist and foreign matter adhering to the surface of the mold 11.

  In FIG. 4, a temperature controller 48 is disposed on the mold head 12, and temperature control is performed by the temperature controller 49, whereby the size of the mold is controlled by expansion or contraction.

  When it is desired to make the magnification larger than the standard mold size, the temperature controller 48 is heated by the temperature controller 49 so that the mold 11 is expanded, deformed to a predetermined magnification, and then transferred. The temperature can be stabilized by changing the temperature for adjusting the magnification to the next shot size during the cleaning and resist dripping time until the next transfer. One mold head requires time for temperature stabilization and the throughput decreases. However, by using a plurality of mold heads as shown in the following embodiment, the temperature stabilization time can be obtained without decreasing the throughput. Can be secured.

Example 1
The first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 shows a processing apparatus equipped with a plurality of mold heads described so far (in the figure, two cases are shown; the left side is a first mold head and the right side is a second mold head).

  FIG. 5 shows two wafers 21 with a mold 21 and a wafer 21 supported on the upper surface thereof, a wafer chuck 22 for holding the wafer by vacuum suction from the back surface, and a wafer stage 23 for positioning the wafer. . An alignment scope for positioning, a surface plate for holding the whole, and a vibration isolator are omitted because they are the same as those in FIG.

  The first mold head on the left is in a state where the resist 42 is dropped by the first nozzle 32 at a position lowered from the wafer surface. Although not shown, it takes time if the resist 42 is allowed to enter the concavo-convex pattern of the mold 11 by using a vibrator such as FIG. 2, a blade shown in FIG. 3, or a gas flow as shown in FIG. Has the effect of shortening.

  The dropping of the resist 42 may be performed in the atmosphere, but may be performed under reduced pressure as described below. The container 58 is a container that covers the part of the mold head 12, and in a state where the mold is lowered, the lid 59 is slid on the upper part to seal the inside. And the inside of the container 58 can be depressurized by a vacuum pipe (not shown).

  The operation will be described below.

  When the imprint of one shot on the wafer 21 is completed and the first mold head is lowered into the container 58, the lid 59 is slid onto the upper part of the container 58 to seal the inside of the container 58. After depressurizing the inside of the container 58 by a vacuum pipe (not shown), the surface of the mold 11 is scanned while the resist 42 is dropped from the first nozzle 32. In FIG. 5, the nozzle driving unit 36 is illustrated outside the container 58, but the nozzle driving unit 36 may be placed in the container 58. The inside of the container 58 does not need to be evacuated, and an effect can be obtained by reducing the pressure to 80% or less compared to the atmospheric pressure outside the container. If the degree of vacuum is increased too much, the internal temperature changes and a time until stabilization is required, and the physical properties change due to volatilization of the resist.

  By setting the environment in which the resist is dropped to a reduced pressure state, it is possible to prevent air bubbles from remaining in the concave portion of the mold pattern, and the dropped resist can easily enter the concave portion.

  After the resist is dropped on a necessary part of the mold, the resist is further penetrated into the concavo-convex pattern by using a vibrator such as FIG. 2, a blade shown in FIG. 3, or a gas flow as shown in FIG. . If the gas outlet is provided integrally with the lid 59, the preparation for gas blowing can be completed simultaneously with the completion of sealing.

  Thereafter, when the upper lid 59 is removed, atmospheric pressure is applied to the resist surface, and even if air bubbles remain in the pattern recesses, there is an effect of being pushed out by atmospheric pressure. When the concave / convex pattern surface of the mold 11 is a porous layer as shown in FIG. 2, the atmospheric pressure is applied to the resist surface, so that bubbles confined in the pattern concave portion are absorbed by fine voids in the porous layer.

  Next, the mold 11 is raised by the imprint mechanism 13. Before that, the wafer stage 23 has been moved to the transfer position. After the positioning is completed, the mold 11 is further raised by the imprint mechanism 13 and the mold 11 is pressed against the wafer 21.

  Immediately after the entire surface of the resist comes into contact with the substrate and reaches a predetermined thickness, the resist 42 is cured by irradiation with illumination light. Since the entry of the resist into the recess has already been promoted, it is possible to cure the resist with a short contact.

  When the mold head 12 is lowered by the imprint mechanism 13 after the curing is completed, the cured resist remains on the wafer surface, and the mold head 12 is placed in the container 58 together with the remaining residual resist that is not cured without being irradiated with illumination light. Return to.

  Uncured resist and foreign matter remaining around the mold surface are cleaned using a gas flow or the like. Further, excess uncured resist remaining on the outer peripheral portion of the mold head is recovered from the recovery port through the recovery pipe by the recovery mechanism.

  Thereafter, the container 58 is decompressed again and dripping of the resist is started.

  While the first mold head on the left side in FIG. 5 is cleaning and resist is being dropped, the second mold head on the right side is raised to transfer the resist onto the wafer surface. When the second mold head is lowered and cleaning / resist dripping is performed, the first mold head is raised and resist transfer is performed.

  By alternately operating a plurality of mold heads in this way, while the other is transferring to the wafer, the other mold head can proceed with cleaning / dropping of the resist and entry of the resist into the pattern recess in parallel. it can. For this reason, it is possible to repeat the pattern transfer on the wafer surface in a short time, and the processing speed can be increased.

  Further, as described in detail with reference to FIG. 4, it is more effective to control the size of the mold by disposing a temperature regulator on the mold head 12 and controlling the temperature. By using a plurality of mold heads, it is possible to ensure the temperature stabilization time without reducing the throughput.

(Example 2)
Although the apparatus for imprinting the mold head from the lower side of the wafer has been described above, an apparatus for arranging a plurality of mold heads on the upper side of the wafer and imprinting from the upper side will be described with reference to FIG.

  In FIG. 6, the wafer drive unit includes a wafer chuck 22 for holding the wafer 21 and a wafer stage 23 for adjusting the position and posture of the wafer chuck 22. The wafer stage 23 is movable in the x and y plane directions, and the entire wafer surface can be transferred. The wafer stage 23 can be positioned with high precision and achieves superposition of fine patterns. Further, the wafer stage 23 has not only positioning but also means for adjusting the posture of the surface of the wafer 21, and the role of adjusting the posture of the surface of the wafer 21 is the same as in FIG. 1.

  In this embodiment, a plurality of mold driving units and resist supply means are provided.

  The mold driving unit includes a mold head 12 for holding the mold 11 and an imprint mechanism unit 13 as a driving unit for pressing the mold 11 downward. The imprint mechanism 13 not only moves up and down, but also has a posture dosing mechanism, posture control, and a rotation function alignment function so that the mold transfer surface and the wafer 21 are in close contact with each other.

  The resist supply means includes a tank 31 for holding the resist, a nozzle 32 for dropping the resist on the wafer surface, and a valve (not shown) for switching whether the resist 42 is dropped or stopped from the nozzle 32. Although one tank 31 is drawn for each nozzle, it is easy for those skilled in the art to design the resist to be supplied to a plurality of nozzles from one common tank.

  The nozzles are independently movable, and while the other mold head is imprinted on the wafer, the nozzle moves to the area to be imprinted next so that the resist can be dropped. By having a plurality of mold heads in this way, it is possible to perform imprinting and resist dropping in parallel, which is effective in improving throughput.

  When N mold heads are provided, the area on the wafer is divided into N parts, and each mold head impresses the corresponding area, thereby reducing the moving distance of the wafer and improving the throughput.

  FIG. 7 shows two mold heads 121 and 122 and regions 211 and 212 on the wafer. FIG. 7a is a front view, and FIG. 7b is a plan view of the wafer. The first mold head 121 shown on the left side is a first region 211 (region on the left side of the alternate long and short dash line) on the wafer, and the second mold head 122 shown on the right side is a second region 212 (on the wafer). Imprint the area on the right side of the dashed line. A rectangle drawn inside the wafer represents a shot formed by one imprint. For each shot, the wafer is moved by the stage, and the next shot position to be imprinted is moved to the corresponding position on the mold head. In the figure, reference numerals 201, 202, to 207 exemplify the order of shots. The shot order is not limited to this example, and can be selected so that the total movement time is shortened. Further, it is not always necessary to perform the processing in order, and it is possible to select non-adjacent shot paths in consideration of the thermal expansion of the substrate due to light during imprinting.

  When the wafer diameter is W, the mold head interval L is preferably L <W. Further, it is more preferable that L is about half of W.

  FIG. 7 illustrates the case where there are two mold heads. However, in the case where there are three or four mold heads, it is only necessary to divide the wafer into three or four parts and to make each region correspond to each mold head. There is no.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, an embodiment of a device manufacturing method using the above-described nanoimprint apparatus will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining how to fabricate devices (ie, semiconductor chips such as IC and LSI, LCDs, CCDs, and the like). Here, the manufacture of a semiconductor chip will be described as an example. In step 1 (circuit design), a device circuit is designed. In step 2 (mold production), a mold having a pattern corresponding to the designed circuit pattern is produced. In step 3 (wafer manufacture), a wafer is manufactured using a material such as silicon. Step 4 (wafer process) is called a pre-process, and an actual circuit is formed on the wafer by a nanoimprint apparatus using the mold and the wafer. Step 5 (assembly) is called a post-process, and is a process for forming a semiconductor chip using the wafer created in step 4, and includes processes such as an assembly process (dicing and bonding) and a packaging process (chip encapsulation). Including. In step 6 (inspection), inspections such as an operation confirmation test and a durability test of the semiconductor device created in step 5 are performed. Through these steps, a semiconductor device is completed and shipped (step 7).

  FIG. 9 is a detailed flowchart of the wafer process in Step 4. In step 11 (oxidation), the surface of the wafer is oxidized. In step 12 (CVD), an insulating film is formed on the surface of the wafer. In step 13 (electrode formation), an electrode is formed on the wafer by vapor deposition or the like. In step 14 (ion implantation), ions are implanted into the wafer. In step 15 (transfer process), the mold is pressed against the wafer while applying a photosensitive agent to the wafer, and the circuit pattern is transferred to the wafer by irradiating ultraviolet rays. In step 16 (etching), patterning is completed by reactive ion etching (RIE). In step 17 (resist stripping), the resist that has become unnecessary after the etching is removed. Devices (semiconductor elements, LCD elements, imaging elements (CCD, etc.), thin film magnetic heads, etc.) are manufactured. By repeatedly performing these steps, multiple circuit patterns are formed on the wafer.

  According to the device manufacturing method of the present invention, since the photocuring method is used, the overlay accuracy can be increased. Furthermore, since a low-viscosity resist is used, the resist can easily enter a fine mold pattern, and fine processing can be realized. Further, since it is possible to transfer the mold pattern to the peripheral shot, it is possible to provide an apparatus that is excellent in economic efficiency. Furthermore, since the resist is collected, it becomes possible to prevent contamination of the apparatus and wafer by the resist, and it becomes possible to manufacture a high-quality device. Thus, the device manufacturing method using the nanoimprint apparatus of the present invention and the resulting device also constitute one aspect of the present invention. The present invention also covers the device itself that is an intermediate and final product of the device manufacturing method. Such devices include, for example, semiconductor chips such as LSI and VLSI, CCDs, LCDs, magnetic sensors, thin film magnetic heads, and the like.

  As described above, the present invention is suitable for a processing apparatus for transferring a pattern of a fine mold to a substrate such as a wafer, particularly a nanoimprint apparatus, and to provide a nanoimprint apparatus excellent in fine processing and economy. it can.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and change are possible within the range of the summary.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Nanoimprint apparatus 11 Mold 12 Mold head 13 Imprint mechanism part 14 Illumination optical system 15 Light source 21 Wafer 22 Wafer chuck 23 Wafer stage 25 Vibration isolator 27 Alignment scope 28 Reference mark stand 31 Tank 32 Nozzle 33 Recovery port 36 Nozzle drive part 42 Resist for transfer 48 Temperature controller 49 Temperature controller 51 Surface plate 52 Stage support frame 54 Exciter 55 Blade 56 Air blow pipe 57 Gas flow 58 Container 59 Lid 60 Porous layer 61 Mold substrate 62 Mold back side space 121 First side Mold head 122 Second mold head 201-207 Shot 211 First region of wafer 212 Second region of wafer

Claims (8)

A processing apparatus that applies a resist to a mold having a concavo-convex pattern, contacts a substrate with the resist, and cures the resist to transfer the transferred resist to the substrate.
A first mold head and a second mold head;
A preparatory step including a process of applying a resist to a mold held by the first mold head and a transfer step of transferring the resist applied to the mold held by the second mold head to a substrate are performed in parallel. A processing device characterized.   The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein after the transfer of the mold held by the second mold head is completed, the resist applied to the mold held by the first mold is transferred to the substrate.   The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the preparation step includes a cleaning step of removing foreign matters on the mold before applying a resist to the mold.   The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in the preparing step, the resist coating step is performed under reduced pressure. The mold head has a recovery port for receiving extra resist on the outer periphery of the mold,
The processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a recovery mechanism that recovers uncured resist from the recovery port in a preparation step subsequent to the transfer step.   2. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the mold head has a temperature controller for adjusting the temperature of the mold, and expands or contracts the mold in accordance with a magnification to be transferred.   The said processing apparatus further has a means to irradiate the light for hardening the said resist, The processing apparatus of any one of Claims 1-6 characterized by the above-mentioned. Transferring the uneven pattern to a substrate using the processing apparatus according to claim 1;
And a step of etching the substrate.

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