JP2014082407A - Wet etching device and wet etching method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wet etching device and a wet etching method capable of suppressing unevenness of the finishing of etching by uniformly supplying an etchant to the surface of a substrate without appearance of the unevenness on the surface of the substrate to be transferred.SOLUTION: A wet etching device includes a substrate transfer line (2) capable of transferring a substrate (K) without forming an uneven surface continuous in the transfer direction while keeping the surface of the substrate (K) in a flat state. By the wet etching device (1) and a wet etching method, paddle etching processing is performed while transferring the substrate (K) using the substrate transfer line (2).

Description

  The present invention relates to a wet etching apparatus used in a process of manufacturing a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, and in particular, a wet etching apparatus and a wet etching that are suitably applied when an etching solution is supplied by transporting a substrate in a horizontal state. Regarding the method.

  Conventionally, as a process for manufacturing a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a wet etching process in which the substrate is transported horizontally and an etching solution is supplied to the substrate surface has been widely adopted. In this wet etching process, a chemical solution supplying means for supplying an etching solution is provided above the substrate transfer line to supply the etching solution to the entire substrate surface.

  Further, as an etchant supply means, a shower type that supplies an etchant by spraying it through a spray nozzle and a paddle type that supplies an etchant via a chemical knife are known. In order to uniformly etch the entire surface, a paddle etching method is employed in which an etching solution is uniformly deposited on the entire surface of the substrate and left for a predetermined time to perform etching.

  In such a paddle etching method, if the substrate surface is uneven, the etching rate varies due to variations in the liquid thickness, resulting in unevenness in the finished pattern. In particular, when the wiring density provided on the substrate becomes high and the wiring pattern becomes high definition, uneven etching due to unevenness on the surface of the small substrate may cause unevenness in liquid crystal display.

  Also, it is preferable to remove the processing solution after the etching process uniformly over the entire surface of the substrate. In order to suppress the unevenness of the finish as described above, the thickness of the substrate surface is uniform. It is desired that the etching solution is placed and etched for a predetermined time to quickly remove the processed solution.

  In general, in order to remove the processing liquid after the etching process, air is blown using an air knife, or the processing liquid is flowed down by tilting the substrate. However, if the substrate is simply tilted in one direction, the time of contact with the processing liquid differs between the lower side and the higher side of the substrate, and the uniformity of the etching process is impaired.

  For this purpose, there has already been proposed a substrate processing apparatus capable of processing the substrate surface more uniformly by switching the tilt direction of the substrate to different directions in order to make the contact time of the processing liquid in the substrate surface uniform. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

JP 2008-53616 A

  In general, a substrate processing apparatus uses a wheel conveyor 2A having a wheel-type transport roller 25 as shown in FIG. 5 as a substrate transport line in order to suppress the amount of static electricity generated due to contact between the substrate and the transport roller. ing. The substrate processing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 also employs such a wheel conveyor 2A. However, in such a configuration using the wheel conveyor 2A, wavy fine irregularities are generated on the substrate surface along the feeding direction of the substrate to be transported, and the cause of the occurrence of wavy density unevenness in the etching solution deposited thereon It becomes.

  In particular, when the wiring density provided on the substrate becomes high, the width of the wiring becomes narrow, and the wiring pattern becomes highly fine to the micron unit, the wiring pattern dimensions vary due to the wavy etching unevenness caused by the shape of the transport roller. It becomes a problem.

  Therefore, in the paddle etching method that is used to uniformly etch the entire surface of the substrate, unevenness due to the shape of the transport roller is not formed on the substrate surface, and the concentration unevenness of the etching solution to be placed on the substrate surface can be suppressed. It is desirable to have a wet etching apparatus and a wet etching method provided with a simple substrate transfer line.

  Therefore, in view of the above problems, the present invention provides a wet etching apparatus and a wet etching method that can suppress uneven etching finish by supplying an etching solution uniformly to the substrate surface without causing irregularities on the substrate surface to be conveyed. For the purpose.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a wet etching apparatus for performing an etching process by supplying an etching solution to a substrate surface while transporting the substrate in a substantially horizontal direction, and transporting the substrate while maintaining the surface of the substrate in a flat state. A substrate transport line that can be transported without forming an uneven surface continuous in a direction is provided, and the etching process is performed while transporting the substrate using the substrate transport line.

  According to this configuration, the etching process is performed using the substrate transfer line that can transfer the substrate while maintaining the flatness of the substrate without forming the uneven surface continuous in the transfer direction. Is less likely to occur. That is, it is possible to obtain a wet etching apparatus that can uniformly supply etching solution to the substrate surface and suppress etching unevenness.

  The etching process is preferably a paddle type wet etching process.

  Further, the substrate transfer line has a roller length longer than the width of the substrate, and uses a roller conveyor in which transfer rollers having a predetermined level are arranged at a predetermined pitch, while performing a paddle type wet etching process. It is preferable to carry out.

  Moreover, the structure which consists of a product made from PEEK resin provided with mechanical strength, heat resistance, and chemical resistance may be sufficient as the said conveyance roller.

  The present invention also relates to a wet etching method for performing an etching process by supplying an etching solution to a substrate surface while transporting the substrate in a substantially horizontal direction. The etching process is performed while the substrate is transported using a substrate transport line that can be transported without forming the substrate. According to this configuration, the etching process is performed while maintaining the flatness of the substrate. Therefore, even in the case of the paddle etching method in which the etching solution is deposited on the entire surface of the substrate and left for a predetermined time, the etching solution is deposited on the substrate surface. Density unevenness is less likely to occur. That is, it is possible to obtain a wet etching method that can uniformly supply an etching solution to the substrate surface and suppress uneven etching finish.

  According to the present invention, in the wet etching method having the above-described configuration, a roller conveyor having a roller length longer than the width of the substrate and having a plurality of single conveying rollers having a predetermined level is arranged at a predetermined pitch. Alternatively, the paddle etching process may be performed while transporting at a speed of 5 mm.

  According to the present invention, by using the substrate transfer line that can transfer the substrate while maintaining the substrate flatness without forming an uneven surface that is continuous in the transfer direction, the substrate is etched by transferring the substrate. It is possible to obtain a wet etching apparatus and a wet etching method that can uniformly supply etching liquid to the surface and suppress uneven etching finish.

It is a schematic explanatory drawing of the board | substrate process to which the wet etching apparatus which concerns on this invention is applied. It is a principal part enlarged view explaining the paddle etching process process using the conveyance roller of this invention. It is a principal part enlarged view explaining the paddle etching process process using the conventional conveyance roller. It is a principal part enlarged view explaining the paddle etching process process using the double roller for the conventional conveyance roller. It is a schematic perspective view explaining the wheel conveyor used for the conventional substrate processing process.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Moreover, the same code | symbol is used about the same structural member, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted suitably. First, a substrate processing process to which the wet etching apparatus according to this embodiment is applied will be described with reference to FIG.

  The wet etching apparatus 1 according to the present invention is used in a substrate processing process in which various processing liquids are supplied to a glass substrate for a flat panel display such as a liquid crystal display device or a plasma display. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the UV unit 11, the chemical units 12 and 13, the liquid draining unit 14, the water washing units 15 and 16, and the drying unit 17 are provided, and the substrate K is processed while being conveyed in this order. To do.

  The UV unit 11 is a step of removing organic stains by irradiating the surface of the substrate K with ultraviolet rays, and the chemical units 12 and 13 are wet etching steps of performing etching by supplying an etching solution to the substrate surface. Further, the chemical unit 12 is a paddle type etching process that supplies the etching solution to the surface of the substrate K using the chemical knife C1.

  The chemical unit 13 is a shower type etching process in which an etching liquid is sprayed and supplied through the spray nozzle S1 in addition to the chemical knife C2. After the etching step, the drying unit 17 passes from the liquid draining unit 14 that blows off the etching solution using the air knives A1, A2, and A3 to the water washing units 15 and 16 that wash the substrate K using pure water. Dry by blowing air for drying.

  In the present embodiment, in the chemical liquid unit 12 adopting the paddle etching method, as the substrate transport line for transporting the substrate K, the surface of the substrate K is maintained in a flat state and an uneven surface that is continuous in the transport direction is formed. The substrate transport line 2 that can be transported without being removed, and the substrate transport line 2 is used for etching.

  In the paddle etching method, an etching solution is uniformly deposited on the entire surface of the substrate K and left for a predetermined time to perform the etching process, so that the entire surface of the substrate can be uniformly etched. However, if irregularities appear on the surface of the substrate, the amount of the etching solution deposited on the substrate will vary, which will cause wavy density unevenness.

  In particular, when the wiring pattern provided on the substrate K becomes high-definition to the micron unit, the etching finish unevenness occurs due to the wavy etching concentration unevenness caused by the substrate transport line (particularly the shape of the transport roller), and the wiring pattern size varies. This is not preferable.

  When a wheel conveyor 2A provided with a wheel-type transport roller 25 as shown in FIG. 5 is used as a substrate transport line, wavy fine irregularities are formed in the width direction of the substrate K on the substrate surface along the feed direction of the substrate K to be transported. This is a cause of the occurrence of wavy density unevenness in the etching solution deposited thereon. This state will be described with reference to FIG.

  The substrate K transported on the plurality of wheels 22 mounted on the roller shaft 20 is more easily bent as the substrate K is thinner, and wavy irregularities corresponding to the wheel pitch are more easily formed. Further, in the case of a substrate transport line in which the wheels 22 are mounted on the front and rear roller shafts with the same phase, wavy irregularities are easily developed on the substrate surface along the feeding direction of the substrate K.

  In this state, when an etching solution is deposited on the substrate K, as shown in FIG. 3, even if the liquid level of the deposited etching solution film E2 is substantially horizontal, the substrate K between the wheels is bent. The amount of the etching solution varies due to the wavy unevenness generated on the surface of the substrate. That is, in the width direction of the substrate K, a portion with a large amount of etching solution and a portion with a small amount of etching appear in a wave shape, the etching rate fluctuates, the finished pattern becomes uneven, and uniform etching cannot be performed. End up.

  Further, in the case where an upper roller (double roller) 23 is provided for improving the pinch force of the substrate K conveyed by the wheel conveyor, as shown in FIG. 4, an etching liquid film E3 in which a wave is generated on the liquid film surface. As a result, the unevenness of etching finish becomes larger.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the surface of the substrate K in the width direction is flattened, and the etching process is performed without forming an uneven surface continuous in the transport direction. For this purpose, the conveyance roller 21 having a roller length longer than the width of the substrate K is used to prevent unevenness in the width direction of the substrate K.

  Further, in the conveying direction, by using a roller conveyor in which conveying rollers 21 having a predetermined level are arranged at a predetermined pitch, a paddle type wet etching process is performed while conveying at a predetermined speed, thereby deforming the conveying direction. It is set as the structure which aims at equalization.

  In other words, the substrate transport line 2 of the present embodiment has a roller length longer than the width of the substrate K and is transported using a roller conveyor in which transport rollers 21 having a predetermined level are arranged at a predetermined pitch. The paddle type wet etching process is performed. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 2, the substrate K is horizontally transported using the transport roller 21 having a roller length longer than the width of the substrate K, so that the etching liquid film E1 on the substrate surface has a uniform thickness. .

  If it is this structure, even if it is a glass substrate which is easy to bend, it will become possible to perform an etching process, maintaining a levelness and conveying. Further, by performing the paddle type wet etching process while transporting, the deformation of the substrate surface can be made uniform in the transport direction. Further, it has been found that the possibility of static electricity generation (occurrence of static electricity generated by contact between the substrate K and the transport roller 21), which has been a concern in the past, is small because this process is a wet etching process.

  Accordingly, as shown in the drawing, in addition to the etching liquid film E1 having no unevenness in the width direction of the transport roller 21 and maintaining the level, the deformation of the substrate surface is made uniform in the transport direction of the substrate K as well. Thus, it is possible to suppress unevenness of the etching process.

  As described above, since it is conveyed via the roller conveyor having the conveying roller 21 longer than the width of the substrate K, it is a paddle etching method in which an etching solution is placed on the entire surface of the substrate K and left for a predetermined time for etching. However, it is a horizontal surface that does not form irregularities in the width direction of the roller, and in the transport direction, it is possible to make the deformation of the substrate surface uniform by performing paddle etching while transporting, and an etching solution to be deposited on the substrate surface Therefore, the variation in the etching rate can be suppressed.

  Since the conveyance roller 21 contacts the entire lower surface of the substrate K in the width direction, the conveyance force is large, and it is not necessary to provide the above-described addition roller (double roller) 23 in order to improve the pinch force. For this reason, a wave due to the addition roller (double roller) 23 is not generated, and the etching liquid film E1 having a uniform thickness can be maintained.

  The transport roller 21 used in such a paddle etching process is preferably a roller having a mechanical strength and further made of a material having heat resistance and chemical resistance. For example, PEEK (polyether ether ketone) resin Preferably it consists of a product.

  With the transport roller 21 made of PEEK resin, even when the heated substrate K is transported, it is possible to maintain stable transport without being deteriorated and damaged even in an etching process using various liquid agents. Become.

  In addition, it is preferable that the conveyance speed at which paddle etching is performed while being conveyed is a predetermined speed at which unevenness in the conveyance direction is averaged during the etching process, and in this embodiment, a relatively low speed of about 50 mm / sec. It is about. In this way, the chemical treatment is performed while transporting the substrate K at a predetermined speed via the substrate transport line 2 provided with a plurality of transport rollers 21, so that the substrate surface is not uneven and the leveling is maintained. It is possible to perform the paddle etching process uniformly while maintaining the liquid film E1.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the etching process is performed while maintaining the flatness of the substrate without forming an uneven surface that is continuous in the transport direction, so that the concentration unevenness of the etching solution to be placed on the substrate surface is less likely to occur. Thus, it is possible to obtain the wet etching apparatus 1 capable of uniformly supplying an etching solution to the substrate surface and suppressing uneven etching finish.

  Next, a wet etching method using this wet etching apparatus 1 will be further described.

  In the wet etching method according to the present embodiment, the substrate K is placed in a substantially horizontal direction so that there is no unevenness on the substrate surface both in the transport direction of the substrate K and in the width direction of the substrate K perpendicular to the transport direction. The paddle etching process is performed by supplying an etching solution to the substrate surface while being conveyed.

  In such a configuration, the etching process is performed while maintaining the flatness of the substrate. Therefore, even if the paddle etching method is used in which the etching solution is placed on the entire surface of the substrate K and left for a predetermined time, the substrate surface is processed. The concentration unevenness of the etching solution to be placed on the surface becomes difficult to occur. That is, it is possible to obtain a wet etching method that can uniformly supply an etching solution to the substrate surface and suppress uneven etching finish.

  Further, in this wet etching method, in order to carry the substrate K so that the surface of the substrate K is kept flat and does not form an uneven surface continuous in the carrying direction, this embodiment is not a wheel conveyor conventionally used. The paddle etching process is performed while conveying a single conveying roller 21 at a predetermined speed using a roller conveyor (substrate conveying line 2) provided with a plurality of predetermined pitches.

  For example, the substrate K is transported at a speed of about 50 mm / sec using a roller conveyor (substrate transport line 2) having a roller diameter of 80 mm and a PEEK resin transport roller having a roller pitch of 100 mm. Then perform paddle etching.

  According to the wet etching method described above, it has been clarified that unevenness in etching finish can be suppressed to sub-micron units and can easily cope with wiring pattern dimensions in micron units.

  As described above, the means for solving the problem corresponding to claim 1 of the present invention is the wet etching apparatus 1 that performs the etching process by supplying the etching solution to the substrate surface while transporting the substrate K in the substantially horizontal direction. A substrate transport line 2 that can be transported without forming an uneven surface that is continuous in the transport direction while maintaining the surface of the substrate K in a flat state is provided, and an etching process is performed while transporting the substrate K using the substrate transport line 2. Is to do. The effect corresponding to the first aspect is that etching is performed while transporting the substrate K using the substrate transport line 2 that can transport the substrate K while maintaining the flatness of the substrate without forming an uneven surface continuous in the transport direction. Since the treatment is performed, the concentration unevenness of the etching solution to be placed on the substrate surface is less likely to occur. That is, it is possible to obtain the wet etching apparatus 1 capable of uniformly supplying an etching solution to the substrate surface and suppressing etching unevenness.

  A means for solving the problem corresponding to claim 2 is that the etching process is a paddle type wet etching process. The effect corresponding to the second aspect is that the paddle type wet etching process is performed while the substrate is transported through the substrate transport line 2 that does not form a continuous uneven surface in the transport direction on the substrate surface. Etching solution can be left for a predetermined time and etched, and it becomes difficult to cause uneven concentration of the etching solution to be deposited on the substrate surface, thus reducing uneven concentration of the etching solution and etching the entire surface of the substrate uniformly. It becomes possible.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a roller conveyor in which the substrate transport line 2 has a roller length longer than the width of the substrate K, and transport rollers 21 having a predetermined level are arranged at a predetermined pitch. And performing a paddle type wet etching process while transporting. The effect corresponding to the third aspect of the invention is that the substrate is conveyed via a roller conveyor having a conveying roller 21 longer than the width of the substrate K. Therefore, an etching solution is placed on the entire surface of the substrate K and left for a predetermined time to perform the etching process. Even in the paddle etching method, it is a horizontal surface that does not form irregularities in the width direction of the roller, and in the transport direction, the deformation of the substrate surface can be made uniform by performing paddle etching while transporting. Etching concentration unevenness on the surface is less likely to occur, and etching finish unevenness can be suppressed.

  A means for solving the problem corresponding to claim 4 is that the conveying roller 21 is made of PEEK resin having mechanical strength, heat resistance and chemical resistance. The effect corresponding to the fourth aspect is that even when the heated substrate K is transferred or an etching process using various liquid agents, stable transfer can be maintained without being deteriorated and damaged. .

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wet etching method in which an etching solution is supplied to the substrate surface while the substrate K is transported in a substantially horizontal direction, and the surface of the substrate K is maintained in a flat state. Then, the etching process is performed while the substrate K is being transported using the substrate transport line 2 that can be transported without forming an uneven surface continuous in the transport direction. The effect corresponding to claim 5 is that the etching process is performed while maintaining the flatness of the substrate. Therefore, even in the paddle etching method in which the etching solution is placed on the entire surface of the substrate K and left for a predetermined time, the etching process is performed. Concentration unevenness of the etching solution to be deposited on the substrate surface is less likely to occur. That is, it is possible to obtain a wet etching method that can uniformly supply an etching solution to the substrate surface and suppress uneven etching finish.

  The means for solving the problem corresponding to claim 6 uses a roller conveyor having a roller length longer than the width of the substrate K and a plurality of single conveying rollers 21 having a predetermined level of horizontality arranged at a predetermined pitch. Thus, a wet etching method in which paddle etching is performed while being conveyed at a predetermined speed is adopted. The effect corresponding to the sixth aspect is that even when the surface of a flexible glass substrate is subjected to paddle etching, unevenness in etching finish can be suppressed to the submicron level, and the wiring pattern size in the micron level can be easily handled. be able to.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the etching process is performed while transporting the substrate using the substrate transport line that can transport the substrate while maintaining the flatness of the substrate without forming an uneven surface continuous in the transport direction. By performing this, it is possible to obtain a wet etching apparatus and a wet etching method that can uniformly supply an etching solution to the substrate surface and suppress uneven etching finish.

  In addition, since the substrate transport line 2 used in the present invention does not show irregularities on the surface of the substrate to be transported, when used as the substrate transport line of a liquid draining unit or a drying unit, the uniformity of the finish by the liquid draining air knife, the drying air knife, etc. Improvements can also be made.

  The wet etching apparatus and wet etching method according to the present invention is a substrate processing apparatus for etching a substrate in which the wiring density provided on the substrate is high, the width of the wiring is narrowed, and the wiring pattern is high-definition down to micron units. It can be suitably used.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wet etching apparatus 2 Substrate conveyance line 20 Roller axis 21 Conveyance roller 22 Wheel 23 Overlay roller (double roller)
A1 to A3 Air knife C1, C2 Chemical knife E1 Etching liquid film E2 Etching liquid film E3 Etching liquid film K Substrate

Claims (6)

In a wet etching apparatus that performs an etching process by supplying an etchant to the substrate surface while transporting the substrate in a substantially horizontal direction,
A substrate transport line that can be transported without forming a concavo-convex surface continuous in the transport direction while maintaining the surface of the substrate in a flat state, and performing the etching process while transporting the substrate using the substrate transport line. A wet etching apparatus characterized by that. The wet etching apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the etching process is a paddle type wet etching process. The substrate conveyance line has a roller length longer than the width of the substrate, and performs a paddle type wet etching process while conveying using a roller conveyor in which conveyance rollers having a predetermined level are arranged at a predetermined pitch. The wet etching apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The wet etching apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the transport roller is made of PEEK resin having mechanical strength, heat resistance, and chemical resistance. In a wet etching method in which an etching process is performed by supplying an etchant to the substrate surface while transporting the substrate in a substantially horizontal direction,
Wet etching characterized in that the etching process is carried out while transporting the substrate using a substrate transport line that can be transported without forming an uneven surface continuous in the transport direction while keeping the surface of the substrate flat. Method. A paddle etching process is carried out while transporting at a predetermined speed using a roller conveyor having a plurality of single transport rollers having a predetermined length and a roller length longer than the width of the substrate. The wet etching method according to claim 5.

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