JP2016060930A - System and method for manufacturing metal film forming product - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system for manufacturing a metal film forming product for forming a metal film on a substrate using a laser sintering method, which can strictly control processing conditions of a series of steps and a moving time of the substrate between steps to manufacture the metal film forming product having high reproducibility.SOLUTION: A system 100a for manufacturing a metal film forming product, comprises: a substrate setting part 2; a substrate processing apparatus 5; a substrate transfer path 12; and a control device 7. The substrate setting part 2 has a substrate moving stage 9 for placing a substrate 11. The substrate processing apparatus 5 includes: a dispersion application device 3 for applying a dispersion including metal fine particles on the substrate 11 to obtain a coating film; and a laser sintering apparatus 4 for irradiating the coating film with a laser beam. The substrate moving stage 9 moves along the substrate transfer path 12 between the substrate setting part 2 and the substrate processing apparatus 5. The control device 7 controls processing conditions in the substrate processing apparatus 5 and a moving time of the substrate moving stage 9 from the dispersion application device 3 to the laser sintering apparatus 4.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a metal film forming product manufacturing system and a metal film forming product manufacturing method.

  Many studies have been made on the formation of conductive wiring by sintering fine metal particles instead of wet electroplating, and many studies on the sintering of fine metal particles (metal nanoparticles) by laser irradiation are also seen. For example, in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-247181), after a metal nanoparticle paste is printed on a substrate, the metal nanoparticle paste is irradiated with laser light, and a metal nanoparticle sintered body is formed on the substrate. In the method of forming a functional film, an inert gas is always supplied to the atmosphere surrounding the metal nanoparticle paste irradiated with the laser beam, and at the same time, the oxygen concentration of the atmosphere is measured, and the atmosphere is measured according to the measured oxygen concentration. Disclosed is a method for forming a functional film composed of a sintered metal nanoparticle, wherein the supply amount of the active gas to the atmosphere is controlled to adjust the oxygen concentration to a value that does not deteriorate the substrate obtained in advance. ing. For example, the oxygen concentration is adjusted to 0.1% by volume or less.

Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent No. 5108628) discloses a method for forming a highly adherent metal nanoparticle sintered body film on a substrate on a substrate coated with a liquid repellent coating layer with a predetermined planar shape. Then, a step of applying the metal nanoparticle dispersion liquid to produce a coating liquid layer (step 1), and a laser beam having a wavelength λ1 from the surface of the coating liquid layer in the vertical direction (incident with an average laser light intensity P ₁₎ irradiating the angular 0 °) (step 2), after step 2, the surface of the coating liquid layer, a laser beam having a wavelength lambda _2, the average laser light intensity P _2, the vertical direction (incident angle of 0 °) After the step 3 (step 3) and the step 3), the laser beam with the wavelength λ _{3 is} irradiated from the surface of the coating liquid layer with the average laser beam intensity P ₃ from the vertical direction (incident angle 0 °). A laser sintering process comprising four steps (step 4) is shown.

  Patent Document 3 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-183155) describes a drawing process for drawing a wiring pattern on a substrate surface using wiring ink, and a light emitted from a light source toward the entire drawn wiring pattern. Irradiation step of uniformly irradiating simultaneously to sinter the wiring pattern, and adjusting step of arranging adjusting means for varying the applied energy applied by irradiation for each region of the substrate according to the wiring pattern A pattern forming method is described. In addition, it is described that the wiring ink contains at least one of Au, Ag, Cu, Ti, W, Mo, In, Al, and Ni.

  Further, Patent Document 4 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-223837) discloses that a pattern or thin film printed or coated on a substrate is irradiated with laser light to dry, sinter, fire, solidify, or harden the pattern or thin film. A laser beam irradiation means for irradiating the pattern or thin film with laser light, a detection means for optically detecting the state of the pattern or thin film, and a pattern detected via the detection means or A laser device is described that includes a control means for controlling the output of laser light emitted from the laser light irradiation means toward the pattern or the thin film according to the state of the thin film. If the applied pattern is a conductive ink or paste, conductive fine particles such as silver, gold, copper, platinum, aluminum, palladium, rhodium, and carbon (carbon black, carbon nanotube, etc.) are used as the resin composition. It is shown that it is blended with (binder).

JP 2013-247181 A Japanese Patent No. 5108628 JP 2013-183155 A JP 2013-223837 A

  Patent Documents 1 to 4 all relate to the importance of setting conditions in laser sintering of metal fine particles. That is, Patent Document 1 describes the importance of oxygen concentration with respect to atmosphere control in laser irradiation. Patent Document 2 relates to the importance of selecting optimum conditions according to the purpose of the wavelength and intensity of a laser. Patent Document 3 describes the importance of controlling and adjusting the energy of light for each region of the substrate. Patent Document 4 controls the output of laser light in accordance with the state of a thin film (printed or applied pattern or thickness of each part of the thin film).

  In order to optimize processing conditions (ink coating processing, laser irradiation processing, etc.) in each process in the metal film forming process using the so-called laser sintering method, in which ink containing metal fine particles is sintered by laser irradiation. Therefore, it is indispensable to strictly and consistently manage the processing conditions in each process, and to observe the substrate and measure the characteristics after processing in each process. If the processing conditions in each process are not strictly and consistently managed, the characteristic variation between the substrates becomes large, high reproducibility cannot be realized, and the processing conditions cannot be optimized. The techniques of the above Patent Documents 1 to 4 mainly optimize the conditions in the laser sintering process, control the conditions in other processes and the waiting time between the processes, and the like in each process. No consideration has been given to strictly and consistently managing the processing conditions.

  Therefore, in view of the above circumstances, in the manufacturing system of a metal film forming product in which a metal film is formed on a substrate using a laser sintering method, the present invention strictly determines the processing conditions of a series of processes and the movement time between each process of the substrate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a metal film forming product manufacturing system capable of optimizing the processing conditions in each process by manufacturing a metal film forming product with high reproducibility.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises a substrate setting unit, a substrate processing apparatus, a substrate transport path connecting the substrate setting unit and the substrate processing apparatus, and a control device, A substrate moving stage on which the substrate is placed, wherein the substrate processing apparatus applies a dispersion liquid containing metal fine particles onto the substrate to obtain a coating film, and a laser is applied to the coating film. A laser sintering device for irradiating light, and the substrate moving stage moves along the substrate transport path between the substrate setting unit and the substrate processing device, and the control device The present invention provides a metal film-formed product manufacturing system that controls processing conditions in the substrate processing apparatus and a moving time of the substrate moving stage from the dispersion coating apparatus to the laser sintering apparatus.

  According to the present invention, in a metal film forming product manufacturing system for forming a metal film on a substrate using a laser sintering method, the processing conditions of a series of processes and the movement time between each process of the substrate are strictly controlled, By manufacturing a highly reproducible metal film-formed product, it is possible to provide a metal film-formed product manufacturing system capable of optimizing the processing conditions in each step. Furthermore, by integrating (unifying) each processing device and the necessary evaluation device after each processing, each processing step and the evaluation step after each processing step can be efficiently executed, and the processing conditions and evaluation results for each substrate. It is possible to provide a metal film forming product manufacturing system that can be managed easily.

It is a flowchart which shows an example of the manufacturing process of the metal film formation goods using a laser sintering method. It is a schematic diagram which shows the 1st Example of the manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods which concern on this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the input / output screen displayed on the data input / output part. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the output screen displayed on the data input / output part. It is a flowchart which shows an example of a process of the manufacturing system of the metal film formation product which concerns on this invention. It is a front view which shows typically the 2nd Example of the manufacturing system of the metal film formation product which concerns on this invention. It is a front view which shows typically the 3rd Example of the manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods which concern on this invention. It is a front view which shows typically the 4th Example of the manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods which concern on this invention. It is a front view which shows typically the 5th Example of the manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods which concern on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows typically an example of the metal film formation goods manufactured by the manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods which concerns on this invention. It is a top view which shows typically an example of the metal film formation goods manufactured by the manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods which concern on this invention. It is a figure which shows typically another example of the metal film formation goods manufactured with the manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods which concern on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows an example of the surface of FIG. 11A typically.

[Basic idea of the present invention]
In the manufacturing system of a metal film forming product using a laser sintering method, the present inventors have prepared a substrate for manufacturing a metal film forming product with high reproducibility for optimizing each processing (experiment) condition. It was found that it is important to control the processing conditions in each step and the movement time between each step. In particular, by suppressing variations in time between the dispersion coating process and the laser sintering process, it is possible to unify the degree of sintering of the coating film between the substrates and obtain a highly reproducible metal film-formed product. I found out that I can do it. The present invention has been made based on this novel finding. As described above, the above-mentioned patent document optimizes the processing conditions of one process, and does not consider the movement time between each processing process. In the present invention, the “movement time” is the time from the end of a process in a certain substrate processing apparatus to the start of the process in the next substrate processing apparatus, and there is a time for the substrate to wait in the substrate processing apparatus and the substrate. It shall include the transport time for moving from the substrate processing apparatus to the next substrate processing apparatus. Furthermore, the case where an evaluation process is performed between a process in a certain substrate processing apparatus and a process in the next substrate processing apparatus is included.

  Hereinafter, the metal film-formed product manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and improvements and modifications can be added as appropriate without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[Manufacturing process of metal film forming products]
The manufacturing system of a metal film-formed product according to the present invention uses a laser sintering method (HLP (High speed Laser Plating, registered trademark)). Before describing the metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to the present invention, first, a metal film-formed product manufacturing process using a laser sintering method will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing an example of a manufacturing process of a metal film-formed product using a laser sintering method. As shown in FIG. 1, the metal film forming product manufacturing process using the laser sintering method includes a substrate surface observing process (S1) for observing the surface of the substrate on which the metal film is formed, and applying a liquid repellent to the substrate surface. A liquid repellent application step (S21), a substrate surface activation treatment step (S22) for irradiating the surface of the substrate with laser light and activating the substrate surface to be irradiated with laser light in a laser sintering step described later; The dispersion coating step (S3) for applying a dispersion containing metal fine particles to the substrate to obtain a coating film, the drying step (S4) for drying the coating film, and the coating film is irradiated with laser light to form the metal fine particles. Is sintered and brought into close contact with the substrate, thereby including a laser sintering step (S5) for obtaining a metal fine particle sintered film and a sample number marking step (S6) for assigning a sample number to the substrate. Among these, the liquid repellent application step (S21) and the substrate surface activation treatment step (S22) are referred to as a substrate pretreatment step (S2). In the present invention, the dispersion coating step (S3) to the laser sintering step (S5) are essential steps, and other steps are optional. The processes and management items (evaluation and measurement items) performed in each step (S1 to S5) will be described in detail below.

(1) Substrate surface observation step (S1)
The surface roughness and defects of the substrate before applying a dispersion containing metal fine particles (hereinafter also referred to as ink) are measured or observed and recorded.

(2) Liquid repellent (water repellent) coating process (S21)
In order to increase patterning accuracy, a liquid repellent is applied to the ink application portion of the substrate. The processing conditions include a coating amount (coating film thickness) and the like. At this time, since the wettability of the liquid repellent agent varies depending on the substrate temperature, temperature control (temperature adjustment) is performed while measuring the substrate temperature. In addition, image observation of the liquid-repellent-coated surface is performed to evaluate and record the surface state.

(3) Substrate surface activation process (S22)
In order to improve the adhesion between the substrate and the ink, the surface of the substrate is irradiated with laser light to perform activation treatment (surface roughening and functional group addition on the substrate surface). Examples of processing conditions include laser type, laser wavelength, laser irradiation time, and the like.

(4) Dispersion (ink) coating step (S3)
Ink is applied to the substrate surface by an inkjet device or a dispenser device. The processing conditions include a coating amount (coating film thickness) and the like. In addition, since the wetting and spreading of the ink changes depending on the surface temperature of the substrate, it is important to measure the temperature of the substrate surface in addition to the temperature control of the substrate mounting stage. The spread area of the ink applied to the substrate surface, the application shape (pattern), the application film thickness, the application film thickness distribution, the application defect part, the color tone, the contact angle of the ink application part, etc. are measured or observed and recorded.

(5) Drying step (S4)
The dispersion applied to the substrate is dried. Examples of processing conditions include time from formation of a coating film to drying, drying temperature, drying time, and the like. The time from coating film formation to drying is managed when only the surface is dried before drying the ink, the outermost surface of the coating is dried, and the reflection of infrared rays in the infrared drying influences the drying of the coating ink. This is because there is not. In order to manage the dry state, in addition to controlling the temperature of the stage, it is important to measure the actual substrate surface temperature. Since the ink application area changes in the drying process, measure or observe the ink application area and application shape (pattern), application film thickness, application film thickness distribution, application defect portion, color tone, substrate surface temperature, etc. in the drying process, Record.

(6) Laser sintering process (S5)
A metal fine particle sintered film is obtained by irradiating the coating film with laser light to sinter the metal fine particles and bring them into close contact with the substrate. Examples of processing conditions include laser type, laser wavelength, laser irradiation time, and the like. Further, the temperature of the substrate-mounted laser irradiation stage is normally controlled to a room temperature (25 ° C.) to 200 ° C. or lower. This is because the laser output can be reduced and the sintering time can be shortened under conditions where the temperature is raised from room temperature. However, the temperature fluctuation is caused by the film quality of the laser sintered film (voids in the unsintered part). It is important to measure the actual substrate temperature in order to prevent the occurrence of oxidation and the like in the case of a metal substrate and thermal decomposition in the case of a resin substrate. In addition, in order to suppress surface oxidation in a metal substrate such as copper, it is necessary to perform laser irradiation in an Ar (argon) gas atmosphere. However, inclusion of air increases the oxygen concentration and promotes oxidation of the metal substrate surface. . Therefore, it is important to measure the oxygen concentration in the actual laser irradiation atmosphere. The area of the sintered film after laser sintering, the shape (pattern) of the sintered film, the sintered film thickness, the film thickness distribution, the color tone, the sintered film defect, etc. are measured or observed and recorded.

  As described above, in the manufacturing process of the metal film forming product using the laser sintering method of the metal fine particle ink (metal fine particle dispersion), there are many processing conditions and evaluation items in each processing step. In order to strictly control the processing conditions of the series of steps, an experimental apparatus in which the dispersion coating step (S3) to the laser sintering step (S5), which are at least essential steps, are connected is necessary. In addition to managing the above conditions, it is required to have the above-described various measurement, observation and recording functions. The production system for a metal film-forming product according to the present invention that satisfies these requirements will be described in detail below.

[Production system for metal film forming products]
FIG. 2 is a front view schematically showing a first embodiment of a production system for a metal film-formed product according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the manufacturing system 100a for a metal film-formed product according to the present invention includes a substrate setting unit 2 fixed on a table 1, a processing device 5 (in this embodiment, a dispersion coating device 3 and A laser sintering apparatus 4), a substrate transport path 12 for connecting the substrate setting unit 2 and the processing apparatus 5, and a control device 7.

  The substrate setting unit 2 includes a substrate position adjustment stage 10 on which the substrate 11 is placed, a substrate moving stage 9 on which the substrate position adjustment stage 10 is placed, and an evaluation device 21 that evaluates the surface state of the substrate 11. In addition, it has a data input / output unit 8 (PC: Personal Computer) capable of inputting external experimental conditions and outputting experimental results (evaluation results). The control device 7 is connected to the substrate setting unit 2, the processing device 5, the substrate moving stage 9 and the data input / output unit 8 via the communication line 6, and the substrate setting unit 2, the processing device 5, the substrate moving stage 9 and The data input / output unit 8 can be controlled.

  As described above, the metal film forming product manufacturing system 100a according to the present invention arranges all the apparatuses for the metal film forming product manufacturing process using the laser sintering method on the transfer line, and automatically transfers the substrate. The controllable feature makes it possible to strictly control the processing conditions of a series of processes and the movement time between each process of the substrate. The manufacture of metal film-formed products using the laser sintering method is a relatively new technology at present, and at present, there is no device in which devices for each process are arranged on a transfer line. For this reason, conventionally, a substrate pretreatment device, an ink coating device, a drying device, a laser sintering device, and the like are separately prepared and processed. In this method, it is difficult to manage the movement time between the steps of the substrate. In particular, in the laser sintering process after the coating film drying process, it is necessary to irradiate laser light immediately after coating because the reflectivity and absorption rate of the laser light of the coating film change. It was difficult to manage the laser irradiation inside. The present invention solves this problem. Below, each structure of a system is explained in full detail.

(1) Substrate setting chamber, substrate position adjusting stage, substrate moving stage The substrate position adjusting stage 10 has a vacuum suction function (vacuum chuck) and holds the substrate 11. The substrate position adjustment stage 10 can control the position of the substrate 11 in multiple axes (X, Y, Z, θ axis, and δ axis). This multi-axis control can be performed, for example, by ball screw driving using a stepping motor. Further, the substrate position adjustment stage 10 may have a stage rotation angle adjustment function. Note that the position adjustment of the substrate can be automatically performed by the control device 7, but it may be performed manually.

  In the present invention, the substrate 11 can be made of a metal substrate, a resin substrate, a ceramic substrate, a quartz substrate, or a glass substrate. Further, the shape of the substrate may be a flat surface or a structure having a concavo-convex shape (three-dimensional structure). The substrate moving stage 9 stands by in the substrate setting unit 2 in the initial state, and moves to the processing apparatus 5 along the substrate transfer path 12 with the substrate setting unit 2 as a reference position (home position) (in FIG. 1, Arrow direction). Then, the substrate moving stage 9 returns to the substrate setting unit 2 again after the processing in the processing apparatus 5 is completed. That is, the substrate setting unit 2 returns to the substrate setting unit 2 every time each process is completed. The substrate transport path includes moving means such as a travel rail.

(2) Evaluation Device The substrate setting unit 2 is provided with an evaluation device 21 that can observe the surface state of the substrate 11. Specifically, as the evaluation device 21, an imaging unit that captures an image (moving image) of a substrate, a contact angle measurement unit that measures a contact angle of a coating film, and a film thickness measurement that measures the film thickness of the coating film and the metal fine particle sintered film And the like. The evaluation device 21 is not limited to these, and can be appropriately selected as necessary and provided in the substrate setting unit 2.

  For example, a fully automatic contact angle meter (model: DM-901) manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd. can be used to measure the contact angle of the coating film thickness and the sintered film thickness. This apparatus has a high-speed image capturing system as an extended function, and can also measure the coating area of the dispersion. Also, the shape is very small, and it can be attached to a dispersion coating apparatus, etc., which will be described later. However, it is necessary to provide the substrate set part and measure the coating film and the sintered film at one place on the substrate set part 2. From the viewpoint of The application area measurement can be evaluated using an imaging unit (moving image camera) provided in the substrate setting unit 2. By observing the substrate surface with a moving image camera during the dispersion application step and the drying step, wetting and spreading of the dispersion on the substrate, shrinkage of the dispersion during the drying step, and change in color tone can be observed.

  The processing device 5 is provided with an imaging unit (not shown) for positioning the substrate 11. After the substrate movement stage 9 has moved to the processing apparatus 5 and arrived, the substrate position adjustment stage 10 can be finely adjusted by an imaging unit provided in each processing apparatus. Conventionally, there is no centralized processing apparatus as in the present invention, and each processing apparatus has to be provided with a stage having a multi-axis position control function. In the present invention, the substrate 11 is moved to the processing apparatus 5. Therefore, the multi-axis position control function has only to be provided at one position of the substrate position adjustment stage 9, which is very advantageous in terms of cost.

  The substrate moving stage 9 or the substrate position adjusting stage 10 preferably has a temperature adjusting unit (heater) for heating and cooling the substrate 11 and a temperature measuring unit for measuring the temperature of the surface of the substrate 11. The heater is preferably capable of heating at room temperature to 150 ° C. As a device for measuring the temperature of the substrate surface, for example, a radiation thermometer or a high-resolution infrared camera can be used.

(3) Dispersion Coating Device The dispersion coating device 3 applies a dispersion (metal fine particle ink) containing metal fine particles (metal nanoparticles or metal microparticles) and a volatile organic solvent on the substrate 11. As the metal, for example, copper (Cu), gold (Au), silver (Ag), tin (Sn), or nickel (Ni) can be used. As the volatile organic solvent, for example, ethanol or methanol can be used. Moreover, the dispersion liquid may be added with a binder or a viscosity modifier as an additive as necessary. There is no limitation in particular as the dispersion liquid coating apparatus 3, For example, an inkjet or a dispenser etc. can be used. Specifically, Nordson EFD's PICO (registered trademark) jet dispenser can be used. Dispersing apparatus for measuring and evaluating the spread area of the ink applied to the surface of the substrate 11, the coating shape (pattern), the coating film thickness, the coating film thickness distribution, the coating defect part, the color tone, the contact angle of the ink coating part, etc. It is preferable to provide in the liquid coating device 3 or the substrate setting unit 2. As such an evaluation apparatus, for example, the above-mentioned fully automatic contact angle meter (model: DM-901) manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd. can be used.

(4) Laser Sintering Apparatus The laser sintering apparatus 4 irradiates a coating film applied on the substrate 11 with the dispersion coating apparatus 3 by irradiating laser light to sinter the metal fine particles and bring them into close contact with the substrate 11. A metal fine particle sintered film is obtained. The laser sintering apparatus 4 is not particularly limited. For example, a laser oscillation device (model: JOLD-100-CPXF-2PA) manufactured by JENOPTIK can be used. The wavelength of the laser beam is preferably 1064 nm in order to obtain a sintered film having excellent adhesion to the copper substrate when, for example, a copper substrate is used as the substrate and silver is used as the metal fine particles. In order to measure the substrate temperature in the vicinity of the laser irradiation at the time of laser irradiation, the laser sintering apparatus 4 is preferably provided with a radiation thermometer and a high-resolution infrared camera. In addition, in the case of controlling the atmosphere with an inert gas in the laser sintering apparatus, a quartz chamber that transmits laser light can be disposed, and an inert gas supply nozzle for the chamber can be provided.

(5) Control Device and Data Input / Output Unit The control device 7 controls the movement of the substrate moving stage. The control device 7 has a data processing unit (not shown), and controls the processing device (starting and stopping of processing, commanding processing conditions, etc.). The data input / output unit 8 receives processing conditions for processing performed by the processing device 5 from the outside and transmits them to the data processing unit. The data processing unit that has received the processing condition transmits the processing condition to the processing device 5. Instructions such as recording of these processing conditions and necessary collection data in each process are made in advance by an operator inputting a PC into a medium such as a USB memory on the desk in advance, and then connecting the USB memory or the like to the media insertion terminal of the control device 7 The command can be transmitted to the processing device 5 to start processing.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an input / output screen displayed on the data input / output unit 8. In FIG. 3, the data input / output unit 8 includes an image display unit 30 that displays a moving image captured by an imaging unit provided in the evaluation device 2 or the processing device 5, and a display switching unit 31 that captures a still image from the moving image. A processing step selection unit 32 that selects a processing step, a function operation unit 33 that controls illumination, a vacuum chuck, and the like of the processing device 5, and a processing device control unit 34 that controls start and stop of processing of the processing device 5. The substrate position control unit 35 that displays and inputs the position (coordinates) of the substrate 11 in the processing apparatus 5, the processing state input / output unit 36 that outputs the processing conditions and outputs the actual processing state, the image, the processing conditions, and the processing A data storage unit 37 that stores the state and the like is included.

  Further, although not shown in FIG. 3, the coating amount in the liquid repellent coating process or the dispersion coating process, the coating film drying temperature, the coating film drying time, the type of laser in the surface activation process and the laser sintering process, laser irradiation Various processing conditions such as energy and laser irradiation time can be input and output.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an output screen displayed on the data input / output unit. As shown in FIG. 4, the data processing unit 8 can output processing conditions and evaluation results for each substrate 11.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of processing of the manufacturing system of the metal film-formed product according to the present invention. FIG. 5 shows a processing flow when performing S1 and S3 to S5 in FIG. First, the substrate 11 is placed on the substrate position adjustment stage 10 with the guide pins and marker portions provided on the substrate position adjustment stage 10 as marks (S51). Next, the position of the substrate 11 is controlled in multiple axes (X, Y, Z, θ axis, and δ axis) to adjust the substrate position (S52). For example, based on the drawing coordinate dimensions of the substrate 11 input by the program, the actual dimensions of the substrate are measured from the image obtained by the imaging unit 21, the difference between the substrate drawing coordinate dimensions and the measured dimensions is obtained, and the substrate position adjustment stage It is preferable that 10 has a function of automatically correcting the origin. As a result, the application position (print position) with respect to the origin (fixed position) of the print head in the dispersion applying apparatus 3 is determined and automatically recognized. The number of application positions is not particularly limited, and for example, 20 application positions can be program-inputted.

  Next, the substrate moving stage 9 moves to the dispersion liquid application device 3 (S53), and the dispersion liquid is applied to the application position by the dispersion liquid application device 3 (S54).

  Next, the substrate 11 on which the dispersion liquid coating process has been completed is again transported to the substrate setting unit 2 by the substrate moving stage 9 (S55), and the coating film is observed and evaluated by the evaluation apparatus 21 (S56). ). The substrate position adjusting stage 10 has a built-in heater for heating the substrate, and a drying process is performed based on temperature and time conditions set by program input. In addition, the dried state (wetting spread or shrinkage of the dispersion application, shrinkage, color tone change, etc.) of the application unit is observed and recorded by the evaluation device 21 in the moving image camera mode.

  Next, the substrate 11 that has finished the drying process is transferred to the laser sintering apparatus 4 by the movement of the substrate moving stage 9 (S57). Since the laser beam position of the laser sintering apparatus 4 is fixed in the same manner as the print head of the dispersion coating apparatus 3, the laser irradiation of the substrate with respect to the laser beam position origin is based on the position set by the program input. Adjustment is made and confirmed by the automatic correction function of the adjustment stage, and laser light is irradiated to the confirmed position (S58).

  When metal nanoparticles are used as the metal fine particles, it is important to quickly perform the laser sintering step (S58) after the dispersion applying step (S54). Specifically, it is preferable to control the time from the dispersion coating step (S54) to the laser sintering step (S58) within a time period in which the decrease in the reflectance of the laser light of the coating film is about 10% or less. . More specifically, when Au (gold) is used as the metal fine particles, it is preferable to control within 120 seconds. When laser irradiation is not performed immediately after the drying treatment step (S56), for example, when laser irradiation is performed after several hours after drying, reflection of laser light occurs on the ink surface, making it difficult to sinter the metal fine particles. This is because in the metal nanoparticle ink, the metallization of the metal nanoparticles progresses with time, and the reflectivity increases. In addition, the time from the dispersion liquid coating step (S54) to the drying treatment step (S56) is also important. When time elapses, the surface of the coating film dries and the reflection of infrared rays in the infrared drying affects the coating. This is because the drying of the ink does not proceed.

  Next, the substrate 11 that has finished the laser sintering step is transported to the substrate setting unit 2 by the movement of the substrate moving stage 9 (S59). Surface evaluation and film thickness measurement of the sintered film are performed by the evaluation device 21 provided in the substrate setting unit 2. In the above aspect, S53 to S59 are automatically performed.

According to the metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to the present invention described above, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) Data having excellent reproducibility can be obtained by connecting the respective steps and managing the processing conditions of each step and the moving time of the substrate moving stage.
(2) By providing an observation and measurement process after each process, observation and measurement under each process condition can be performed quickly.
(3) By moving the substrate moving stage 9 to the processing apparatus 5, there is only one place where the multi-axis control function is provided, and an inexpensive experimental apparatus can be provided.
(4) Processing conditions and evaluation results of each device can be recorded and managed for each substrate (management function).

  FIG. 6 is a front view schematically showing a second embodiment of the metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to the present invention. In the present embodiment, in addition to the configuration of the first embodiment (FIG. 2), a liquid repellent application device 60 is provided as the processing apparatus 5, and in this embodiment, the liquid repellent application can also be performed automatically.

  Although there is no limitation in particular as a liquid repellent, For example, Novec (Novec, registered trademark) of 3M Japan Ltd. which is a fluorine-type liquid repellent can be used. The liquid repellent is a liquid and can be diluted with a special solvent to adjust the viscosity, and can be applied to a substrate using a jet dispenser. The liquid repellent coating device 60 may be provided separately from the dispersion coating device 3 as in this embodiment, or may be used in combination with the dispersion coating device 3. When using together, two jet dispensers are arranged, divided into two for dispersion and liquid repellent, and two nozzles are arranged on the same stage with two dispensers.

  The liquid repellent agent can be automatically applied by an input instruction under the same conditions as those of the dispersion liquid application apparatus. A coating area, a coating amount, and the like are input by an instruction on the condition input screen. Moreover, it is possible to observe the image after liquid repellent application | coating by installing an imaging part (observation camera) in a liquid repellent application apparatus. In order to measure the coating thickness of the liquid repellent, it is preferable to provide the reflectance measuring section in the liquid repellent coating apparatus 60 or the substrate setting section 2. Since the coating thickness of the liquid repellent is a monomolecular film or a few nanometers, it is impossible to measure the thickness with a normal film thickness measuring instrument, but it is analyzed with images based on changes in the reflectance of the surface of the liquid repellent coating layer. can do.

  As described with reference to FIG. 1, each device used in the substrate pretreatment process (such as a liquid repellent coating apparatus that performs a liquid repellent coating process and a laser beam irradiation apparatus that performs a substrate surface activation processing process) relates to the present invention. Whether or not it is incorporated in the manufacturing system of the metal film-formed product is optional, and the substrate pretreatment process may be performed by installing an apparatus outside the system.

  FIG. 7 is a front view schematically showing a third embodiment of the production system for a metal film-formed product according to the present invention. In this embodiment, in addition to the configuration of Embodiment 1 (FIG. 2), a marker device 70 (sample number assigning stage) for assigning a sample number is provided as the processing device 5, and in this embodiment, an individual experimental sample is provided. An identification ID number can be automatically stamped.

  For example, marking by a laser marker (model: Videojet 7510) manufactured by Videojet X-Rite Co., Ltd. or stamping by an KEYENCE ink jet printer (model: MK-U6000) can be used for assigning the sample number. In addition, it is also possible to give a marker to the board | substrate 11 using the laser irradiation sintering apparatus 4. FIG. By providing the marker device 70, it is not necessary to enter the sample number by handwriting after processing, and it is possible to prevent erroneous entry of the sample number and the substrate 11 being mixed up.

  FIG. 8 is a front view schematically showing a fourth embodiment of the production system for a metal film-formed product according to the present invention. In this embodiment, in addition to the configuration of the first embodiment (FIG. 2), a substrate carry-out unit (robot arm) 80 capable of automatically carrying out the substrate 11 and a substrate rack 81 for storing the carried-out substrate 11 are provided. The processing efficiency can be improved. As the substrate carry-out unit 80, for example, a SCARA small robot (model: AR-F450) manufactured by Hirata Kiko Co., Ltd. can be used. Although this small robot can be used for taking out a substrate, it has a function of sucking and picking up a substrate, and a substrate can be mounted at a designated position by moving an arm. By providing, the substrate can be automatically placed on the substrate setting unit 2.

  FIG. 9 is a front view schematically showing a fifth embodiment of the metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to the present invention. In the present embodiment, in addition to the configuration of the first embodiment (FIG. 2), an evaluation device 90 that performs measurement different from the evaluation device 2 is provided. Even when a plurality of evaluation devices are provided in this way, by arranging them side by side with other devices along the conveyance path 12, process control and standby time between processes can be controlled consistently and data management can be performed. Can be centralized.

  In the laser irradiation process, in order to prevent oxidative deterioration of the substrate and the metal nanoparticles, it may be necessary to introduce an inert gas such as argon gas and perform laser irradiation in an inert gas atmosphere. In such a case, it is necessary to measure the oxygen concentration in the laser irradiation atmosphere to determine whether the oxygen concentration has fallen below the required concentration. In such a case, the laser sintering apparatus 4 is provided with an atmosphere adjustment chamber made of, for example, quartz, which can transmit laser light, a flexible hose for introducing an inert gas into the chamber, an inert gas cylinder, and a hose. Provide a valve between the two. The oxygen concentration in the chamber is measured with an oximeter. For the oxygen concentration measurement, for example, an oxygen monitor OXYMAN manufactured by Taiho Engineering Co., Ltd. can be used. In the high-functional type OXYMAN Plus, an oxygen concentration measurement prober is provided in the chamber, so that an oxygen concentration of 0 to 100% (resolution 0.1%) can be continuously measured in real time.

  When it is necessary to precisely control the temperature of the substrate 11, it is required to directly measure the temperature of the substrate 11 separately from the set temperature of the substrate position adjustment stage 10. For example, in the application of the metal nanoparticle dispersion liquid, although depending on the physical properties of the dispersion liquid, it is necessary to control the temperature of the substrate 11 in a range of 50 ± 2 ° C. in order to suppress variation in the application range due to dispersion of the dispersion liquid. There is. In such a case, it is preferable to use a non-contact radiation thermometer in order to directly measure the temperature of the surface of the substrate 11. Ideally, the temperature distribution of the substrate should be observed. In such a case, infrared thermography (model: FSV-2000) manufactured by Apiste Co., Ltd. can be used. This infrared thermography is a small camera with a lens part of Φ41 mm, and the temperature display resolution is as high as 0.01 ° C., and the temperature distribution around the metal nanoparticle dispersion liquid application can be measured. Since the actual temperature of the coating surface cannot be measured, the ambient temperature is measured, and a portion of the measured temperature data is transferred to the temperature control unit of the heater built in the substrate position adjustment stage to precisely control the substrate temperature.

  In the laser sintering apparatus 4, it is effective to raise the substrate temperature to, for example, about 100 ° C. in order to assist laser sintering. This is because the laser power and irradiation time can be reduced due to the substrate temperature rise. In this case as well, non-contact temperature measurement is required. Similarly, by using the infrared thermography, a part of the measured temperature data is transferred to the temperature control unit of the heater built in the substrate position adjustment stage 10. Thus, the temperature of the substrate can be precisely controlled.

[Metal film-formed product]
10A and 10B are schematic views showing an example of a wiring board according to the present invention. According to the present invention, conductive wiring is formed directly on a housing of an electronic device part (resin molded product) having an uneven shape, for example, an IC (Integrated Circuit) card (SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card) of a mobile phone. can do. In the conventional plating method, it is impossible to plate a wiring film on a substrate having an uneven shape. On the other hand, according to the present invention, a wiring film can be formed without selecting a substrate shape without requiring special materials and equipment. The uneven | corrugated size which a board | substrate has is not specifically limited, The thing of several micrometers and a thing of several mm can also be made into object.

  11A and 11B are diagrams schematically illustrating another example of the metal film-formed product manufactured by the metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to the present invention. FIG. 11A is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of an optical component (an optical mirror or an optical prism) manufactured using the metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to the present invention, and FIG. 11B is a schematic example of the surface of FIG. 11A. FIG. As shown in FIG. 11A, the present invention can be applied to metallization of a resin surface. Further, as shown in FIG. 11B, if the laser sintering method is used, a metal fine particle sintered film 131 having a desired (different) film thickness or shape can be obtained at a desired location on the same substrate 130, and partially. An optical component that can transmit or reflect light can be obtained. In a method combining the formation of a metal film by vacuum deposition and the patterning by etching, a metal film-formed product having such a shape cannot be obtained.

  As described above, according to the present invention, in the metal film forming product manufacturing system in which a metal film is formed on a substrate using a laser sintering method, the processing conditions of a series of processes and the movement time between each process of the substrate are strictly controlled. And it was shown that the manufacturing system of the metal film formation product which can optimize the process conditions in each process can be provided by manufacturing a metal film formation product with high reproducibility. Further, by providing (unifying) each processing apparatus and an evaluation apparatus necessary after each processing, a manufacturing system of a metal film forming product capable of managing processing conditions, standby time and evaluation results for each substrate is provided. It was shown that it can.

  Note that the above-described embodiments have been specifically described in order to help understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to having all the configurations described. For example, a part of the configuration of one embodiment can be replaced with the configuration of another embodiment, and the configuration of another embodiment can be added to the configuration of one embodiment. Further, a part of the configuration of each embodiment can be deleted, replaced with another configuration, or added with another configuration.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Table, 2 ... Substrate setting part, 3 ... Dispersion liquid coating apparatus, 4 ... Laser sintering apparatus, 5 ... Substrate processing apparatus, 6 ... Wiring, 7 ... Control part, 8 ... Data input / output part, 9 ... Substrate movement Stage: 10 ... Substrate position adjustment stage, 11 ... Substrate, 12 ... Substrate transport path, 21 ... Evaluation section, 60 ... Liquid repellent application device, 61 ... Dispenser for applying liquid repellent agent, 70 ... Marker device, 71 ... Laser for marker application Irradiation device, 80 ... substrate unloading part, 81 ... substrate storage part, 90 ... evaluation part, 100a, 100b, 100c, 100d, 100e ... manufacturing system of metal film forming product, 110 ... wiring board, 111 ... metal wiring, 112 ... resin molded substrate (SIM card), 113 ... flash memory, 114 ... insertion terminal, 115 ... via hole, 130 ... substrate, 131 ... sintered metal fine film, 120 ... optical part (Optical mirror or optical prism).

Claims (18)

A substrate setting unit, a substrate processing apparatus, a substrate transport path connecting the substrate setting unit and the substrate processing apparatus, and a control device,
The substrate setting unit has a substrate moving stage on which a substrate is placed,
The substrate processing apparatus has a dispersion coating apparatus that obtains a coating film by applying a dispersion containing metal fine particles on the substrate, and a laser sintering apparatus that irradiates the coating film with laser light,
The substrate moving stage moves along the substrate transfer path between the substrate setting unit and the substrate processing apparatus,
The said control apparatus controls the processing conditions in the said substrate processing apparatus, and the movement time of the said substrate movement stage from the said dispersion liquid coating device to the said laser sintering apparatus, The manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods characterized by the above-mentioned.   The control device controls the moving time of the substrate moving stage from the dispersion coating device to the laser sintering device within a time when the decrease in the reflectance of the laser light of the coating film is 10% or less. The manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods of Claim 1 characterized by these. Further, a substrate position adjusting stage is provided between the substrate and the substrate moving stage,
3. The metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to claim 1, wherein the control device controls an X axis, a Y axis, a Z axis, a θ axis, and a δ axis of the substrate position adjustment stage.   4. The metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to claim 1, wherein the substrate moving stage or the substrate position adjusting stage includes a temperature adjusting unit that heats and cools the substrate. 5. .   The said board | substrate set part further has an evaluation apparatus which evaluates the surface state of the said board | substrate, The manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods of any one of Claim 1 thru | or 4 characterized by the above-mentioned.   The evaluation apparatus includes an imaging unit that captures an image of the substrate, a contact angle measurement unit that measures a contact angle of the coating film, and a film thickness measurement unit that measures the thickness of the coating film and the metal fine particle sintered film. The system for producing a metal film-formed product according to claim 5, comprising at least one of the following.   The metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the substrate processing apparatus further includes a marker device that gives a sample number to the substrate. The substrate processing apparatus further includes a substrate pretreatment apparatus,
2. The substrate pretreatment apparatus includes at least one of a liquid repellent application apparatus that applies a liquid repellent to the substrate and a laser light irradiation apparatus that irradiates the substrate with laser light. The manufacturing system of the metal film formation product of any one of 7.   The laser sintering apparatus includes at least one of a temperature measurement unit that measures a temperature of the substrate near the laser irradiation unit and an oxygen concentration measurement unit that measures an oxygen concentration of the substrate near the laser irradiation unit. The manufacturing system of the metal film formation product of any one of Claims 1 thru | or 8 characterized by these. The control device further includes a data input / output unit and a data processing unit,
The data input / output unit receives processing conditions for processing performed by the substrate processing apparatus from the outside, and transmits the processing conditions to the data processing unit.
The said data processing part transmits the said process conditions to the said substrate processing apparatus, and memorize | stores and manages the evaluation result obtained by the said evaluation apparatus for every said board | substrate. The manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods of description.   The said board | substrate consists of a metal substrate, a resin substrate, a ceramic substrate, a quartz substrate, or a glass substrate, The manufacturing system of the metal film formation goods of any one of Claim 1 thru | or 10 characterized by the above-mentioned.   12. The system for producing a metal film-forming product according to claim 1, wherein the metal fine particles include metal nanoparticles or metal microparticles.   The metal film-formed product manufacturing system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein a wavelength of the laser light of the laser sintered portion is 500 to 1064 nm. As a substrate processing step, a coating film forming step of forming a coating film by applying a dispersion containing metal fine particles on a substrate by a dispersion coating apparatus;
A drying step of heat-treating the coating film;
A laser sintering step of forming a metal fine particle sintered film by irradiating a laser beam onto the coating film after the drying step by using a laser sintering apparatus to sinter the metal fine particles and closely adhere to the substrate. Have
A method for producing a metal film-formed product, comprising controlling processing conditions in the substrate processing step and a time between the coating film forming step and the laser sintering step.   15. The time between the coating film forming step and the laser sintering step is controlled within a time period in which a decrease in the reflectance of the laser light of the coating film is 10% or less. A method for producing a metal film-formed product.   16. The method for producing a metal film-formed product according to claim 14, wherein the metal film-formed product is obtained by forming a metal wiring on a component of an electronic device having an uneven shape.   The method of manufacturing a metal film-formed product according to claim 16, wherein the component is a housing of an IC card of a mobile phone. The metal film-formed product is an optical component,
16. The method for producing a metal film-formed product according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the optical component is formed by forming the metal fine particle sintered film having a different film thickness or cross-sectional shape on the substrate.

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