JP2017151405A - Polarized light irradiation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a polarized light irradiation device capable of irradiating a single object with light of a polarization component in a predetermined first direction and light of a polarization component in a second direction that is different from the first direction.SOLUTION: At least either of a first region of a target object placed on a stage to be irradiated with light of a polarization component in a first direction and a second region thereof to be irradiated with light of a polarization component in a second direction that is different from the first direction is irradiated with light that is emitted from light sources disposed along a direction substantially perpendicular to a scanning direction for the target object and polarized by polarizers.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a polarized light irradiation apparatus.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a polarized light irradiation apparatus for photo-alignment using a wire grid polarizer. Patent Document 1 discloses that when a large wire grid polarizer is required, a plurality of polarizers are combined and used as one wire grid polarizer.

  In Patent Document 2, a light-shielding film is provided on a substrate at a predetermined interval, and an ultraviolet ray having an incident angle of + θ is incident to perform alignment with respect to the A region of the substrate, and an ultraviolet ray having an incident angle of −θ is applied. A photo-alignment device is disclosed that performs alignment on the B region of the substrate by being incident (distributed alignment).

JP 2004-144484 A JP 2002-350858 A

  In the invention described in Patent Document 1, even if a plurality of polarizers are combined, the object is irradiated only with polarized light in one direction. In the invention described in Patent Document 2, in order to perform distributed orientation, there is a problem that rotation of the irradiation head, alignment of the substrate, and the like must be performed precisely. Furthermore, the distribution orientation in the invention described in Patent Document 2 is different in the incident angle of ultraviolet rays and not in the direction of polarized light.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the light of the polarization component in the first direction which is a predetermined direction is the same as the light of the polarization component in the second direction which is a direction different from the first direction. It aims at providing the polarized light irradiation apparatus which can irradiate with respect to the target object.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a polarized light irradiation apparatus according to the present invention includes, for example, a stage on which an object to be irradiated with polarized light is placed, and a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction of the object. A polarized light irradiating unit provided between the light source provided and the polarizer disposed between the light source and the stage and polarizing light emitted from the light source, wherein the polarized light irradiating unit is the target The first region of the object, the first region irradiated with the light of the polarization component in the first direction that is a predetermined direction of the light emitted from the light source, and the second region of the object The polarized light is applied to at least one of the second regions irradiated with the light of the polarization component in the second direction that is different from the first direction of the light emitted from the light source. To do.

  According to the polarized light irradiation apparatus according to the present invention, the light irradiated from the light source provided along the direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction of the target and polarized by the polarizer is the target placed on the stage. Of the first direction irradiated with light having the polarization component in the first direction and at least one of the second region irradiated with light having the polarization component in the second direction, which is different from the first direction. The Thus, the light of the polarization component in the first direction and the light of the polarization component in the second direction, which is a direction different from the first direction, can be irradiated to the same object.

Here, the light source includes a first light source and a second light source provided adjacent to the scanning direction,
The polarizer includes a first polarizer that transmits a polarization component in the first direction of light emitted from the first light source, and a second direction of light emitted from the second light source. A second polarizer that transmits the polarization component. Thereby, it is possible to simultaneously irradiate the object with polarized light in different directions.

  Here, the polarization irradiation unit is a first light shielding unit provided between the polarizer and the stage, and a first light shielding plate that shields a part of the light emitted from the first light source. A first light-shielding portion having a second light-shielding plate that shields a part of the light emitted from the second light source may be included. In this case, the region where the light shielding plate is not provided is irradiated with polarized light, and the region where the light shielding plate is provided is not irradiated with polarized light, and the exposure amount changes abruptly at these boundaries. Thereby, in a target object, the area | region which irradiates the light of a different polarization | polarized-light component can be provided adjacently.

  Here, an information acquisition unit that acquires information about the object, and a light shielding plate drive that moves the first light shielding plate along the first light source and moves the second light shielding plate along the second light source. And the positions of the first light-shielding plate and the second light-shielding plate based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit, and the first light-shielding plate and the second light-shielding plate at the determined positions. A light-shielding plate control unit that controls the light-shielding plate driving unit so as to be moved. As a result, it is possible to automatically shield light according to the object and automatically irradiate polarized light in a direction according to the object.

  Here, the stage includes a stage driving unit that moves the stage in the scanning direction and moves the stage by a shift amount in a shift direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction, and the light source has a longitudinal direction along the scanning direction. The first light source and the second light source are arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to the scanning direction, and the first light source and the second light source are arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to the scanning direction. The light shielding plate control unit moves the first light shielding plate and the second light shielding plate by the shift amount in the shift direction when the stage is moved by the shift amount in the shift direction. May be. Thereby, it is possible to stably irradiate polarized light to a region where the light shielding plate is not provided. Further, by using a lamp whose longitudinal direction is provided along the scanning direction, the light emission angle θ from the lamp is increased, and exposure at the boundary between the area where the light shielding plate is provided and the area where the light shielding plate is not provided. The change in quantity can be made steeper. As a result, a region for irradiating light of different polarization components is provided adjacent to the object, and the object can be utilized more efficiently.

  Here, the light source has a plurality of lamps whose longitudinal direction is provided along the scanning direction, and the first light source and the second light source have the plurality of lamps substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction. By arranging in a direction, an information acquisition unit that is provided along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction and acquires information about the object, and that the light source is turned on based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit A light source control unit that obtains a region and lights only a lamp located in the lighting region among the plurality of lamps. Thereby, only the lamp located in the lighting region can be lit to prevent excessive heat generation.

  Here, the stage is rotatably provided between a first position and a second position, the polarizer transmits a polarization component in the first direction, and the polarized light irradiation unit A third light-shielding plate provided between a child and the stage, the third light-shielding plate having a length along the scanning direction equal to or greater than a length along the scanning direction of the light source; and the scanning A second light-shielding portion having a fourth light-shielding plate having a length in a direction substantially orthogonal to the direction that is equal to or greater than a length in a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction of the light source, and the stage is the first When in the direction, the third light shielding plate is provided at a position that covers the light source in a strip shape along the scanning direction and that corresponds to a region other than the first region of the object, and the stage Is in the second orientation, the fourth light-shielding plate is It may be provided at a position covering the first region. Thus, with one type of polarizer (without using a first polarizer that transmits the polarization component in the first direction and a second polarizer that transmits the polarization component in the second direction), The same object W can be irradiated with light. In addition, since all the light sources are always lit, a plurality of types of substrates can be continuously exposed by simply changing the positions of the third light shielding plate and the fourth light shielding plate.

  Here, an information acquisition unit that acquires information about the object, the stage is rotated between the first position and the second position, and the stage is moved along the scanning direction. A stage driving unit; a light shielding plate driving unit that moves the third light shielding plate and the fourth light shielding plate; and a control unit that controls the stage driving unit and the light shielding plate driving unit. Based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit, the position of the third light shielding plate is determined, the third light shielding plate is moved to the determined position, and the information acquired by the information acquisition unit is The position of the fourth light shielding plate may be determined based on the position, and the fourth light shielding plate may be moved in the scanning direction together with the stage so as to keep the fourth light shielding plate at the determined position. Thereby, unnecessary light can be automatically shielded according to the object.

  Here, the control unit rotates the stage to the first direction, and based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit, the third light shielding plate moves the light source along the scanning direction. The third light shielding plate and the fourth light shielding plate are moved so that the fourth light shielding plate does not cover the light source, the stage is moved in the scanning direction in the first direction, The stage is rotated to the second orientation, and based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit, the third light shielding plate does not cover the light source, and the fourth light shielding plate covers the first region. The third light-shielding plate and the fourth light-shielding plate are moved so as to cover, and the stage is moved in the scanning direction in the second direction while maintaining the positional relationship between the stage and the fourth light-shielding plate. While the fourth light shielding plate is It may be moved to. In this way, unnecessary light is shielded by using a separate light shielding plate in each exposure process, so that the light of the polarization component in the first direction is applied to the same object W while all the light sources are turned on. The first region to be irradiated and the second region to be irradiated with the light of the polarization component in the second direction that is different from the first direction can be formed in order.

  Here, the stage driving unit moves the stage in the scanning direction, and moves the stage by a shift amount in a shift direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction, and the light source has a longitudinal direction in the scanning direction. A plurality of lamps provided along, and the light source is provided along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction by arranging the plurality of lamps in a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction, The control unit may move the stage in the shift direction by the shift amount and move the third light shielding plate or the fourth light shielding plate in the shift direction by the shift amount. Thereby, it is possible to stably irradiate polarized light to a region where the light shielding plate is not provided.

  According to the present invention, the same object is irradiated with the light having the polarization component in the first direction that is the predetermined direction and the light having the polarization component in the second direction that is different from the first direction. Can do.

It is a front view which shows the outline of the polarized light irradiation apparatus 1 which concerns on 1st Embodiment. 2 is a plan view illustrating an outline of a polarized light irradiation unit 10. FIG. It is a principal part perspective view which shows the outline when the polarized light irradiation part 10 is seen from the side. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the polarized light irradiation apparatus 1. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the polarized light irradiation apparatus. It is a figure which shows a part of polarized light irradiation part 10 typically, and illustrates the lamp | ramp 11x located in the light source row | line | column 11a, the specific wavelength transmission filter 12, the polarizer 13A, and the light-shielding plate 14a. It is a figure which shows an example of exposure conditions. It is a figure which shows the irradiation amount of the polarized light in the target object W, when the target object W is irradiated with polarized light on the exposure conditions shown in FIG. It is a figure explaining the case where the target object W is irradiated only with the polarized light of one direction using the polarized light irradiation part. It is a figure explaining 10 A of polarized light irradiation parts of the polarized light irradiation apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure explaining the polarized light irradiation part 10B of the polarized light irradiation apparatus which concerns on 3rd Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the polarized light irradiation apparatus of 3rd Embodiment. It is a figure explaining 10 C of polarized light irradiation parts of the polarized light irradiation apparatus which concerns on 4th Embodiment. It is a front view which shows the outline of the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 which concerns on 5th Embodiment. It is a top view which shows the outline of polarized light irradiation part 10D. It is a principal part perspective view which shows the outline when the polarized light irradiation part 10D is seen from the side. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the polarized light irradiation device 2. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the polarized light irradiation apparatus. It is a figure explaining the flow when the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 exposes the target object W placed on the stage 20 located on the + y side, and is a schematic diagram of the first exposure process. It is a figure explaining the flow when the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 performs the exposure process on the target object W placed on the stage 20 located on the + y side, and is a schematic diagram of the second exposure process. It is a figure explaining the flow when the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 exposes the target object W placed on the stage 20 located on the + y side, and is a schematic diagram of the third exposure process. It is a figure explaining the flow when the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 exposes the target object W placed on the stage 20 located on the + y side, and is a schematic diagram of the fourth exposure process. It is a figure which shows typically the positional relationship of the light source 11B, the light shielding plate 14e, and the target object W (stage 20) when the positional relationship of the light-shielding plate 14e and the stage 20 becomes a positional relationship determined by step S34. It is a figure which shows the state which has moved the light-shielding plate 14e to the y direction (here -y direction) with the target object W (stage 20). It is a figure which shows the state which moved the light-shielding plate 14e and the target object W (stage 20) to the y direction (here -y direction) further, and the light-shielding plate 14e finished passing under the light source 11B.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a front view showing an outline of a polarized light irradiation apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment. For example, the polarized light irradiation device 1 obtains polarized light by passing light from a light source through a polarizing film, and irradiates this polarized light on an exposed surface of a glass substrate or the like (hereinafter referred to as an object W). The alignment film or the like is generated. In particular, in order to increase the utilization of the dummy area of the object W, an MMG (a plurality of cells having a plurality of sizes (for example, a big size cell and a small size cell) arranged in one object W ( This is useful when performing multi-model on glass (exposure) exposure.

  Hereinafter, the conveyance direction of the object W is defined as the y direction, the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction is defined as the x direction, and the vertical direction is defined as the z direction.

  The polarized light irradiation apparatus 1 mainly includes a polarized light irradiation unit 10, a stage 20, and a stage driving unit 30.

  The polarized light irradiation unit 10 irradiates the object W with polarized light. The polarized light irradiation unit 10 will be described in detail later.

  The stage 20 is provided so as to be movable in the x direction (direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction of the object W) and the y direction (scanning direction of the object W). An object W is placed on the upper surface of the stage 20.

  The stage drive unit 30 includes a stage guide rail 31 extending in the y direction, and a drive unit 32 having an actuator and the like. The drive part 32 moves the stage 20 along the stage guide rail 31 (namely, scanning direction) (refer the thick arrow of FIG. 1). Further, the drive unit 32 moves the stage 20 by a shift amount (detailed later) in a shift direction (x direction) substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction (y direction). Since the configuration in which the stage drive unit 30 moves the stage 20 is already known, the description thereof is omitted.

  Next, the polarized light irradiation unit 10 will be described in detail. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an outline of the polarized light irradiation unit 10. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part showing an outline when the polarized light irradiation unit 10 is viewed from the side.

  The polarized light irradiation unit 10 mainly includes a light source 11, a specific wavelength transmission filter 12, a polarizer 13, a light shielding unit 14, and a reflector 15. In FIG. 2, the specific wavelength transmission filter 12 and the reflector 15 are not shown.

  The light source 11 includes a plurality of lamps 11x. The lamp 11x is rod-shaped and emits unpolarized light (for example, ultraviolet light). As the lamp 11x, a long arc lamp that efficiently emits short-wavelength ultraviolet light (for example, light having a wavelength of 254 nm) necessary for the photo-alignment process can be used.

  The lamp 11x is provided such that the longitudinal direction is along the y direction. By providing a plurality of lamps 11x side by side in the x direction, light source rows 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11d extending along the x direction are arranged. The light source rows 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11d are provided adjacent to each other in the y direction. The number of lamps 11x included in each of the light source arrays 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11d is not limited to the form shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, the light source 11 includes four light source rows 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11d, but the number of light source rows included in the light source 11 is not limited to four.

  The light emitted from the lamp 11x is reflected by the reflector 15, passes through the specific wavelength transmission filter 12 and the polarizer 13, and is applied to the object W (see FIG. 3).

  A specific wavelength transmission filter 12, a polarizer 13, and a light shielding unit 14 are provided below the light source 11 (on the −z side), that is, between the light source 11 and the stage 20 (see FIG. 3). One specific wavelength transmission filter 12 and one polarizer 13 are provided for each lamp 11x, and a light shielding unit 14 is provided for each of the light source rows 11a and 11d.

  The specific wavelength transmission filter 12 is a filter that transmits only light in a specific wavelength range and absorbs light of other wavelengths. In the specific wavelength transmission filter 12, a filter layer of a bandpass filter that transmits only light in a specific wavelength range is formed on a transparent substrate made of plate-like glass (quartz glass or the like). However, the filter formed on the transparent substrate is not limited to the band pass filter, and may be a low cut filter or a reflection filter, for example.

  The polarizer 13 polarizes unpolarized light and is provided on the lower side (−z side) of the specific wavelength transmission filter 12. One polarizer 13 may be provided for each lamp 11x, or two or more polarizers 13 may be provided for each lamp 11x.

  As the polarizer 13, a wire grid polarizer with little incident angle dependency is used. The wire grid polarizer is obtained by forming a metal wire 13b (see FIG. 3) on the surface of a transparent substrate 13a (see FIG. 3). By setting the pitch of the metal line 13b to be equal to or less than the wavelength of the incident light, the polarization component substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the metal line 13b is reflected and the polarization component substantially orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the metal line 13b is allowed to pass. The metal wire 13b is made of, for example, aluminum. In FIG. 3, the longitudinal direction of the metal wire 13b is illustrated.

  The polarizer 13 has two types of polarizers 13A and 13B having different polarization directions. As shown in FIG. 3, in the polarizer 13A, the longitudinal direction of the metal wire 13b is along the y direction, and the polarized light component in the x direction passes therethrough. In the polarizer 13B, the longitudinal direction of the metal wire 13b is along the x direction, and the polarized component in the y direction is allowed to pass through. Thus, the direction of the polarization component to pass is different from the polarizers 13A and 13B.

  A polarizer 13A is provided under the lamp 11x located in the light source rows 11a, 11b, and 11c. A polarizer 13B is provided below the lamp 11x located in the light source row 11d. In the figure, the direction of polarized light is schematically indicated by white arrows.

  As shown in FIG. 2, regarding the light source rows 11a and 11d provided with different polarizers 13A and 13B, the positions in the x direction of the lamps 11x located in the light source rows 11a and 11d are the same. On the other hand, for the light source rows 11a, 11b, and 11c, which are light source rows provided with the same polarizer 13A, the lamp 11x located in the light source row 11a, the lamp 11x located in the light source row 11b, and the light source row 11c. Each of the lamps 11x to be shifted is shifted in the x direction by a predetermined amount (hereinafter referred to as a shift amount S). A shift amount is determined based on the predetermined amount (detailed later).

  The polarizer 13 is not limited to a wire grid polarizer, and various types of polarizers that transmit only light in an arbitrary direction can be used.

  The light shielding unit 14 shields the polarized light that has passed through the polarizer 13 so that the object W is not irradiated with the polarized light.

  The light shielding unit 14 includes a light shielding plate 14a. As shown in FIG. 3, the light shielding plate 14 a is provided below the polarizer 13, that is, between the polarizer 13 and the stage 20. In the present embodiment, there are two light shielding plates 14a, and one light shielding plate 14a is provided for each of the light source rows 11a and 11d. As shown in FIG. 2, the light shielding plate 14a provided in the light source row 11a shields part of the light emitted from the lamp 11x located in the light source row 11a, and the light shielding plate 14a provided in the light source row 11d A part of the light emitted from the lamp 11x located in the light source row 11d is shielded.

  In order to efficiently shield the polarized light, the light shielding plate 14a is provided at a position as close as possible to the object W. In the present embodiment, the distance between the lamp 11x and the object W is about 130 to 140 mm, and the distance between the light shielding plate 14a and the object W is about 2 mm (see FIG. 3).

  The light shielding unit 14 mainly includes an axis 14b (see FIG. 2) along the x direction and a light shielding plate driving unit 14c (see FIG. 4) such as an actuator that moves the light shielding plate 14a along the axis 14b. Have. Therefore, the light shielding plate 14a is movable along the light source rows 11a and 11d (in the x direction).

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the polarized light irradiation apparatus 1. The polarized light irradiation apparatus 1 mainly includes a control unit 101, a storage unit 102, an input unit 103, and an output unit 104.

  The control unit 101 is a program control device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that is an arithmetic device, and operates according to a program stored in the storage unit 102. In the present embodiment, the control unit 101 includes a light source control unit 101a that turns on only the lamp 11x located in the lighting region (detailed later), a light shielding plate control unit 101b that controls the light shielding plate drive unit 14c, and a drive unit. It functions as a stage control unit 101c that controls 32. Details of the operation of the control unit 101 will be described later.

  The storage unit 102 is a non-volatile memory, a volatile memory, or the like, holds a program executed by the control unit 101, and operates as a work memory of the control unit 101.

  The input unit 103 includes input devices such as a keyboard and a mouse. In the present embodiment, information regarding the object W is input from the input unit 103. The output unit 104 is a display or the like.

  The operation of the polarized light irradiation apparatus 1 configured as described above will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a processing flow of the polarized light irradiation apparatus 1. Prior to processing, the stage 20 is in the initial position shown in FIG.

  When information about the object W is input from the input unit 103, first, the light source control unit 101a determines a lighting area, and the light shielding plate control unit 101b determines the position of the light shielding plate 14a (step S10). Hereinafter, the process of step S10 will be described in detail.

  The information on the object W includes, for example, the object W having a region Wa and a region Wb, and the region Wa (see FIG. 2) is a region to which the polarized light along the y direction is irradiated, and the region Wb (see FIG. 2). 2) is information indicating that the region is irradiated with polarized light along the x direction.

  The lighting area is represented by a position in the x direction. The light source control unit 101a determines the position in the x direction of the area Wa when the object W is placed on the stage 20 before exposure for the light source array 11d (polarized component in the y direction is transmitted). Further, the light source control unit 101a determines the position in the x direction of the area Wb when the object W is placed on the stage 20 before the exposure for the light source array 11a (the polarized light component in the x direction is transmitted) as the lighting area. To do.

  The storage unit 102 stores information (information about the lamp 11x) in which the number and position of each lamp 11x are associated with each other. The light source control unit 101a can determine which lamp 11x is located in the lighting region based on information about the lamp 11x.

  Further, the light shielding plate control unit 101b determines, as the position of the light shielding plate 14a, a position where the end of the light shielding plate 14a substantially coincides with the boundary of the lighting region and the light shielding plate 14a does not overlap the lighting region.

  Next, the light source control unit 101a turns on the lamp 11x located in the lighting region determined in step S10 (step S12). In FIG. 2, the lamp 11x located in the lighting area is shaded. At the same time, the light shielding plate control unit 101b moves the light shielding plate 14a along the axis 14b via the light shielding plate driving unit 14c, and moves the light shielding plate 14a to the position determined in step S10 (step S12). In FIG. 2, the light shielding plate 14a is shaded.

  Returning to the description of FIG. The stage control unit 101c moves the stage 20 (that is, the target object W) in the y direction that is the scanning direction (one reciprocation) via the driving unit 32, and the light irradiated from the polarized light irradiation unit 10 is the target object W. An exposure process for generating an alignment film or the like by irradiating the surface to be exposed is performed (step S14).

  FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically illustrating a part of the polarized light irradiation unit 10, and illustrates the lamp 11 x, the specific wavelength transmission filter 12, the polarizer 13 </ b> A, and the light shielding plate 14 a located in the light source array 11 a. In FIG. 6, light emitted from the lamp 11x is indicated by a thin two-dot chain line.

  For the portion where the light shielding plate 14 a is not disposed, the light irradiated from the lamp 11 x passes through the specific wavelength transmission filter 12 and the polarizer 13 and is irradiated to the object W. On the other hand, in the portion where the light shielding plate 14a is disposed, the light irradiated from the lamp 11x passes through the specific wavelength transmission filter 12 and the polarizer 13, but is blocked by the light shielding plate 14a and irradiated to the object W. Not.

  Since the light shielding plate 14a is provided at a position where the end portion substantially coincides with the boundary of the lighting region and does not overlap the lighting region, the object W is not irradiated with polarized light in the region other than the lighting region.

  Thus, in step S14, only the light that has not been shielded by the light shielding plate 14a is irradiated onto the surface to be exposed of the object W. In the present embodiment, the region Wa is irradiated only with the polarized light in the y direction out of the light emitted from the light source row 11d, and at the same time, the region Wb is emitted from the light emitted from the light source row 11a. Only polarized light in the x direction is irradiated. Since the exposure process itself is a general process, detailed description thereof is omitted.

  Returning to the description of FIG. The stage control unit 101c determines whether or not the exposure process (step S14) has been performed for the specified number of exposures (step S16). The number of exposures is determined in advance based on the shift amount and the like, and is stored in the storage unit 102. The shift amount is determined in advance based on the shift amount S (see FIG. 2) and is stored in the storage unit 102. For example, the shift amount is a half value of the shift amount S, a 1/4 value of the shift amount S, or the like. For example, when the shift amount S is 144 mm and the shift amount is 24 mm, the number of exposures is 6 (= 144 mm / 24 mm).

  If the exposure process has not been performed for the number of times of exposure (NO in step S16), the stage control unit 101c moves the stage 20 by the shift amount in the shift direction via the drive unit 32 (step S18). At the same time, the light shielding plate control unit 101b moves the light shielding plate 14a by the shift amount in the shift direction via the light shielding plate driving unit 14c (step S18). Note that the shift direction is determined in advance and stored in the storage unit 102.

  Then, the stage control unit 101c performs an exposure process in a state where the stage 20 and the light shielding plate 14a are moved by the shift amount in the shift direction (step S14).

  When the exposure process is performed for the number of times of exposure (YES in step S16), the stage control unit 101c ends the process for one object W.

  Here, how the object W is exposed by the process shown in FIG. 5 when the light shielding plate 14a is provided and only the lamp 11x in the lighting area is turned on will be described. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of exposure conditions (lighting area, shift amount, shift direction, etc.), and FIG. 8 shows an object when the object W is irradiated with polarized light under the exposure conditions shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the irradiation amount of the polarized light in W.

  In FIG. 7, the lamp 11x is provided at positions of 48 mm, 192 mm, 336 mm and 480 mm in the x direction. In FIG. 7, the lighting region is x ≧ 192 mm, and the lamp 11x located in the x direction = 192 mm, 336 mm, and 480 mm is turned on. In FIG. 7, the lamps 11x located in the lighting area are shaded.

  Further, the light shielding plate 14a has a position in the x direction of the end portion of 192 mm at the time of the first exposure (when the object W is not moved in the shift direction) and does not overlap the lighting region (that is, The light shielding plate 14a is provided so that the position in the x direction is 192 mm or less). FIG. 7 shows that the exposure process was performed six times with the shift direction being the -x direction and the shift amount being 24 mm.

  The numbers on the horizontal axis in FIG. 8 indicate the position of the object W in the x direction during the first exposure. As shown in FIG. 8, in the region corresponding to the lighting region (x is 192 mm or more) in a state where the object W is not moved in the shift direction, the object W is stably irradiated with polarized light. In contrast, the object W is not irradiated with polarized light in the region where the light shielding plate 14a is provided. Further, since the light shielding plate 14a is provided, the exposure amount changes rapidly in the vicinity of the end of the lighting region in a state where the object W is not moved in the shift direction, and the region where the exposure amount is not stable is It is narrower.

  According to the present embodiment, the same object can be simultaneously irradiated with polarized light in different directions. For example, light irradiated from a certain light source array (for example, the light source array 11a) is transmitted through a polarizer (for example, the polarizer 13A) that transmits a polarization component in a first direction that is substantially orthogonal to or substantially parallel to the scanning direction. Thus, it is possible to irradiate a region (for example, the region Wa) where the object W is present. At the same time, a polarizer (for example, a polarizer 13B) that transmits light irradiated from another light source array (for example, the light source array 11d) through a polarization component in a second direction that is a direction different from the first direction. It is possible to transmit and irradiate a region (for example, the region Wb) different from the region Wa of the object W. Thereby, the light of the polarization component in the first direction which is a predetermined direction and the light of the polarization component in the second direction which is a direction different from the first direction are simultaneously irradiated onto the object W, and in the regions Wa and Wb, respectively. Alignment films having different directions can be generated simultaneously. For example, by forming a small size cell in the region Wa and forming a big size cell in the region Wb, it is possible to cope with MMG, and the utilization of the dummy region of the object W can be increased.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, by providing the light shielding plate 14a at a position adjacent to the lighting region, when simultaneously irradiating polarized light in different directions to one object W, different polarization components Areas to be irradiated with light (for example, areas Wa and Wb) can be provided adjacent to each other.

  Moreover, according to this Embodiment, since only the lamp | ramp 11x located in a lighting area | region is lighted, it can prevent that a heat | fever generate | occur | produces excessively. This is possible only when the lamp 11x whose longitudinal direction is provided along the scanning direction is used.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, by using a lamp whose longitudinal direction is provided along the scanning direction, the light emission angle θ (see FIG. 6) from the lamp is increased, and the light shielding plate is provided. It is possible to make the change in the exposure amount at the boundary between the existing area and the non-provided area more steep. As a result, for example, the distance between the small-sized cell formed in the region Wa and the big-sized cell formed in the region Wb can be reduced, and the object W can be used more efficiently.

  Moreover, according to this Embodiment, since the control part 101 determines the lighting area | region and the position of the light-shielding plate 14a automatically, it can expose automatically according to the target object W. FIG.

  In the present embodiment, the direction of the polarization component transmitted by the polarizer 13A and the direction of the polarization component transmitted by the polarizer 13B are substantially orthogonal, but the polarization component transmitted by each polarizer is the same. Not limited. For example, the polarizer provided on the lower side of the light source rows 11a, 11b, and 11c passes the polarization component in the direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction (or the direction substantially parallel) and is provided on the lower side of the light source row 11d. The polarizer may pass a polarization component in a direction inclined by about 5 degrees to 10 degrees from a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction (or a substantially parallel direction). In addition, the polarizer provided on the lower side of the light source rows 11a, 11b, and 11c may be in a direction substantially orthogonal to or substantially parallel to the scanning direction, or in a predetermined direction that is not related to the scanning direction. And this predetermined direction can be defined based on the specification of the panel (cell) formed in the target object W. FIG.

  In the present embodiment, the control unit 101 determines the positions of the lighting region and the light shielding plate 14a based on the information about the object W. However, the operator determines the positions of the lighting region and the light shielding plate 14a, and the storage unit. 102 may be stored. In the present embodiment, the control unit 101 automatically turns on the lamp 11x in the lighting area and automatically moves the light shielding plate 14a. However, the operator manually turns on the lamp 11x in the lighting area. Or, the operator may manually place the light shielding plate 14a.

<Variation 1 of the first embodiment>
As already described, the polarized light irradiation apparatus 1 simultaneously generates polarized films in different directions in the regions Wa and Wb by simultaneously irradiating the object W with polarized light in different directions. The object W can also be irradiated with only polarized light.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a case where the polarized light irradiating unit 10 is used to irradiate the object W only with polarized light in one direction.

  The light shielding plate 14a is moved to a position where it does not overlap the lamps 11x of the light source rows 11a, 11d, and the lamps 11x of the light source rows 11a, 11b, 11c are turned on (see the shaded display in FIG. 9). Thereby, only the polarized light in the x direction that has passed through the polarizer 13A can be irradiated onto the object W.

  Thus, the polarized light irradiation device 1 can simultaneously irradiate polarized light in different directions, or can irradiate only polarized light in one direction. In the case of irradiating only polarized light in one direction, the processing flow is the same as that shown in FIG.

<Second Embodiment>
In the first embodiment of the present invention, one light shielding plate 14a is used for each light source row 11a, 11d, but the number of light shielding plates 14a is not limited to this.

  In the second embodiment, a plurality of light shielding plates 14a are used for the respective light source arrays 11a and 11d. The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described below. Since the difference between the polarized light irradiation device 1 of the first embodiment and the polarized light irradiation device of the second embodiment is only the number of light shielding plates 14a, the polarization of the second embodiment will be described below. Only the polarization irradiation section 10A in the light irradiation apparatus will be described. Further, the same parts as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the polarized light irradiation unit 10A. 10 A of polarized light irradiation parts mainly have the light source 11, the specific wavelength transmission filter 12 (illustration omitted), the polarizer 13, the light-shielding part 14A, and the reflector 15 (illustration omitted). The light shielding unit 14A includes three light shielding plates 14a provided in each of the light source rows 11a and 11d.

  The light source control unit 101a determines the position in the x direction of the area Wc when the object W is placed on the stage 20 before exposure for the light source array 11d as the lighting area. Further, the light source control unit 101a determines the position in the x direction of the area Wd when the object W is placed on the stage 20 before exposure for the light source array 11a as the lighting area. In FIG. 10, the lamps 11x located in the lighting area are shaded.

  In addition, the light shielding plate control unit 101b has the light shielding plate 14a provided in the light source row 11a and the end of the light shielding plate 14a provided in the light source row 11d substantially coincide with the boundary of the lighting region, and the light shielding plate 14a is defined as the lighting region. The position that does not overlap is determined as the position of the light shielding plate 14a. In FIG. 10, the light shielding plate 14a is shaded.

  Also in the present embodiment, the object W can be irradiated with polarized light in different directions at the same time. Note that the processing flow is the same as that shown in FIG.

  In addition, by increasing the number of the light shielding plates 14a, the light shielding plates 14a can be disposed so as to cover the entire region other than the lighting region in FIG. Therefore, when all the areas other than the lighting area are covered with the light shielding plate 14a, even if all the lamps 11x of the light source rows 11a and 11d are lit, the same effect as when only the lamp 11x located in the lighting area is lit. Can be obtained.

<Third Embodiment>
In the first embodiment of the present invention, light shielding is performed using the light shielding plate 14a, but the light shielding plate is not essential.

  In the third embodiment, the light shielding plate 14a is not used. Hereinafter, the polarized light irradiation apparatus according to the third embodiment will be described. Since the difference between the polarized light irradiation device 1 of the first embodiment and the polarized light irradiation device of the third embodiment is only the presence or absence of the light shielding unit 14, the polarization of the third embodiment will be described below. Only the polarization irradiation unit 10B in the light irradiation apparatus will be described. Further, the same parts as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the polarized light irradiation unit 10B. The polarized light irradiation unit 10B mainly includes a light source 11, a specific wavelength transmission filter 12 (not shown), a polarizer 13, and a reflector 15 (not shown) (the light shielding unit 14 is not provided).

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of processing of the polarized light irradiation apparatus according to the third embodiment.

  When information about the object W is input from the input unit 103, first, the light source control unit 101a determines a lighting area (step S11). For example, the light source control unit 101a determines the position in the x direction of the region We when the object W is placed on the stage 20 before exposure for the light source row 11d as the lighting region. In addition, the light source control unit 101a determines the position in the x direction of the region Wf when the object W is placed on the stage 20 before exposure for the light source row 11a as the lighting region.

  Next, the light source control unit 101a turns on the lamp 11x located in the lighting region determined in step S10 (step S13). In FIG. 12, the lamps 11x located in the lighting area are shaded.

  The stage controller 101c performs an exposure process (step S14), and determines whether or not the exposure process has been performed for the specified number of exposures (step S16). If the exposure process has not been performed for the number of times of exposure (NO in step S16), the stage control unit 101c moves the stage 20 in the shift direction by the shift amount via the drive unit 32 (step S19). Then, the stage control unit 101c performs an exposure process in a state where the stage 20 is moved by the shift amount in the shift direction (step S14).

  When the exposure process is performed for the number of times of exposure (YES in step S16), the stage control unit 101c ends the process for one object W.

  Also in the present embodiment, the object W can be irradiated with polarized light in different directions at the same time. However, in this embodiment, since the light shielding plate 14a is not provided, the regions We and Wf irradiated with polarized light in different directions cannot be adjacent to each other. Therefore, in order to efficiently generate an alignment film or the like, it is desirable to provide the light shielding plate 14a. Further, in order to make the regions We and Wf as close as possible, it is desirable to make the emission angle θ (see FIG. 6) from the lamp 11x as large as possible (for example, approximately 45 degrees or less). In order to increase the emission angle θ from the lamp 11x as much as possible, a plurality of rod-shaped lamps 11x provided so that the longitudinal direction is along the y direction are arranged in the x direction and extend along the x direction. , 11c, and 11d are preferably used.

<Fourth embodiment>
In the first embodiment of the present invention, the light source array is formed by arranging a plurality of lamps 11x provided so that the longitudinal direction is along the y direction in the x direction, but the form of the light source is not limited to this.

  In the fourth embodiment, a long lamp along the x direction is used. Hereinafter, a polarized light irradiation apparatus according to the fourth embodiment will be described. Since the difference between the polarized light irradiation apparatus 1 of the first embodiment and the polarized light irradiation apparatus of the fourth embodiment is only the form of the light source, hereinafter, the polarized light irradiation of the fourth embodiment will be described. Only the polarized light irradiation unit 10C in the apparatus will be described. Further, the same parts as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating the polarized light irradiation unit 10C. The polarized light irradiation unit 10C mainly includes a light source 11A, a specific wavelength transmission filter 12 (not shown), a polarizer 13, a light shielding unit 14B, and a reflector 15 (not shown).

  The light source 11A has two lamps 11y provided along the x direction. The two lamps 11y are provided adjacent to each other in the y direction. The number of lamps 11y is not limited to two.

  A plurality of polarizers 13A and 13B are provided adjacent to the lower side of the lamp 11y. The light shielding part 14B includes a plurality of light shielding plates 14a and shafts 14b provided for the two lamps 11y, respectively.

  In the polarized light irradiation apparatus according to the third embodiment, when information on the object W is input from the input unit 103, the light shielding plate control unit 101b determines the position of the light shielding plate 14a based on the information on the object W. The light shielding plate 14a is moved to the determined position. In FIG. 13, the shading plate 14a is shaded.

  Next, the light source control unit 101a turns on the lamp 11y, and the stage control unit 101c performs an exposure process.

  Also in the present embodiment, the object W can be irradiated with polarized light in different directions at the same time. In the present embodiment, the light source control unit 101a may not be provided. It is desirable to provide a large number of light shielding plates 14a in order to shield the light emitted from the lamp 11y.

  Also in the present embodiment, only the polarized light in one direction that has passed through the polarizer 13A or the polarizer 13B is obtained by moving the light shielding plate 14a to a position that does not overlap the lamp 11y and lighting only one of the lamps 11y. Can be irradiated to the object W.

<Fifth embodiment>
In the first embodiment of the present invention, the object W is simultaneously irradiated with light having a polarization component in a first direction that is a predetermined direction and light having a polarization component in a second direction that is different from the first direction. Thus, the regions Wa and Wb are simultaneously generated on the object W, but the first direction can be obtained without simultaneously irradiating the object W with the light having the polarization component in the first direction and the light having the polarization component in the second direction. The region where the light of the polarized light component is irradiated and the region where the light of the polarized light component in the second direction is irradiated can be generated on the object W.

  In the fifth embodiment, a region irradiated with light having a polarization component in the first direction and a region irradiated with light having a polarization component in the second direction are generated on the object W by separate exposure operations. It is a form. Hereinafter, the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 of 5th Embodiment is demonstrated. The same reference numerals are given to the same parts in the polarized light irradiation device 1 of the first embodiment and the polarized light irradiation device 2 of the fifth embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 14 is a front view showing an outline of the polarized light irradiation device 2. The polarized light irradiation device 2 mainly includes a polarized light irradiation unit 10D, a stage 20, and a stage driving unit 30A. The polarized light irradiation device 2 is provided with two stages 20 on both sides of the polarized light irradiation unit 10D.

  The polarized light irradiation unit 10D irradiates the object W with polarized light. The polarization irradiation unit 10D will be described in detail later. The stage 20 is rotatably provided between the first position and the second position. The stage drive unit 30A includes a stage guide rail 31, a drive unit 32, and a rotation drive unit 33 that rotates the stage 20 along the xy plane. The rotation drive unit 33 includes a rotation shaft and an actuator (not shown), and rotates the stage 20 approximately 90 degrees between the first position and the second position. In addition, since the structure which rotates the stage 20 is already well-known, description is abbreviate | omitted. Further, the angle at which the stage 20 is rotated is not limited to approximately 90 degrees.

  Next, the polarization irradiation unit 10D will be described in detail. FIG. 15 is a plan view showing an outline of the polarized light irradiation unit 10D. FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a principal part showing an outline when the polarized light irradiation unit 10D is viewed from the side.

  The polarized light irradiation unit 10 mainly includes a light source 11B, a specific wavelength transmission filter 12, a polarizer 13A, a light shielding unit 14C, and a reflector 15. In FIG. 15, the specific wavelength transmission filter 12, the polarizer 13A, and the reflector 15 are not shown.

  The light source 11B includes a plurality of lamps 11x provided such that the longitudinal direction is along the y direction. By providing a plurality of lamps 11x arranged in the x direction, light source rows 11e, 11f, 11g, and 11h extending along the x direction are arranged. The light source rows 11e, 11f, 11g, and 11h are provided adjacent to each other in the y direction. In order to make the integrated irradiation amount uniform, the shift amount S between the four light source rows 11e, 11f, 11g, and 11h is a quarter of the distance L between the lamps 11x in each of the light source rows 11e, 11f, 11g, and 11h. 1. For example, when the distance L is 144 mm, the shift amount S is 36 mm (144 mm / 4 = 36 mm).

  In the present embodiment, the light source 11B has four light source rows 11e, 11f, 11g, and 11h. However, the light source 11B is not limited to this, and may have three light source rows. . In the case of having three light source rows, if the distance L is 144 mm, the shift amount S is 48 mm (144 mm / 3 = 48 mm).

  Below the lamp 11x located in the light source rows 11e, 11f, 11g, and 11h, a polarizer 13A that passes a polarization component in the x direction is provided. One polarizer 13A may be provided for each lamp 11x, or two or more polarizers 13A may be provided for one lamp 11x.

  The light shielding unit 14C is provided below the polarizer 13A, that is, between the polarizer 13A and the stage 20, and shields the polarized light that has passed through the polarizer 13A so that light irradiation of the object W is not required. Avoid irradiation with polarized light. The light shielding unit 14C includes a light shielding plate 14d that moves in the x direction and a light shielding plate 14e that moves in the y direction. The light shielding plates 14d and 14e are provided at a position as close as possible to the object W, similarly to the light shielding plate 14a.

  The light shielding plate 14d has a length along the y direction equal to or longer than the length of the light source 11B in the y direction. The light shielding plate 14d is provided on a shaft (not shown) extending along the x direction, and can be moved along the x direction by a light shielding plate driving unit 14f (see FIG. 17) such as an actuator.

  The length of the light shielding plate 14e in the x direction is equal to or longer than the length of the light source 11B in the x direction. The light shielding plate 14e is provided on a shaft (not shown) extending along the y direction, and is movable along the y direction by a light shielding plate driving unit 14g (see FIG. 17) such as an actuator. The light shielding plate 14e moves in the y direction together with the stage 20 while maintaining the positional relationship with the stage 20 (described in detail later).

  The light shielding plates 14d and 14e are cut obliquely at the periphery when viewed from the side surface (x direction or y direction). As shown in FIG. 16, the side of the cut portion is inclined by the emission angle θ (see FIG. 6) from the lamp 11x with respect to the vertical direction (z direction). In the present embodiment, θ = approximately 60 degrees.

  FIG. 17 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the polarized light irradiation device 2. The polarized light irradiation device 2 mainly includes a control unit 101A, a storage unit 102, an input unit 103, and an output unit 104.

  Similar to the control unit 101, the control unit 101 </ b> A is a program control device such as a CPU that is an arithmetic device, and operates according to a program stored in the storage unit 102. In the present embodiment, the control unit 101A functions as a light shielding plate control unit 101d that controls the light shielding plate driving units 14f and 14g, and a stage control unit 101e that controls the driving unit 32 and the rotation driving unit 33. Details of the operation of the control unit 101A will be described later.

  The operation of the polarized light irradiation device 2 configured as described above will be described. FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a process flow of the polarized light irradiation device 2. 19-22 is a figure explaining the flow when the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 exposes the target object W mounted on the stage 20 located on the + y side. 19 is a schematic diagram of the first exposure process, FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram of the second exposure process, FIG. 21 is a schematic diagram of the third exposure process, and FIG. It is a schematic diagram of the exposure process of the time. In FIGS. 19 to 22, the shaded display is performed on the area irradiated with polarized light.

  Prior to the processing, the control unit 101A first turns on all the lamps 11x. Further, the control unit 101A sets the stage 20 in the first direction (see FIG. 19) prior to processing (when the stage 20 is in the second direction, the stage 20 is rotated). Then, after the object W is placed on the stage 20, the control unit 101A starts the process shown in FIG.

  Furthermore, the control unit 101 </ b> A acquires information regarding the object W via the input unit 103 prior to processing. In the present embodiment, the information on the object W includes, for example, the object W includes a region Wc and a region Wd (see FIGS. 19 and 21, etc.), and the region Wc has the stage 20 in the first direction. The region is sometimes irradiated with polarized light along the x direction, and the region Wd is information indicating that the stage 20 is irradiated with polarized light along the x direction when the stage 20 is in the second direction. In the present embodiment, the regions Wc and Wd are band-like regions along the scanning direction or along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction, and are provided adjacent to each other. The areas Wc and Wd are band-shaped areas along the scanning direction when the stage 20 is in the first direction (see FIGS. 19 and 20), and when the stage 20 is in the second direction (FIG. 21, 22) is a band-like region along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction.

  Moreover, the target object W has a gray zone We (see FIGS. 23 to 25) between the regions Wc and Wd. The gray zone We is a region where the polarized component light irradiated on the region Wc and the polarized component light irradiated on the region Wd are irradiated. No cells are formed in the gray zone We.

  Based on the information related to the object W, the light shielding plate control unit 101d determines a position where the light shielding plate 14d is arranged during exposure (step S20). The position where the light shielding plate 14d is arranged at the time of exposure is a position that covers the light source 11B in a strip shape along the scanning direction, and corresponds to a region other than the region Wc when the object W is placed on the stage 20 before the exposure. Position. Since the length of the light shielding plate 14d along the y direction is equal to or longer than the length of the light source 11B in the y direction, the light shielding plate 14d covers the entire area along the scanning direction of the light source 11B.

  Then, the light shielding plate control unit 101d moves the light shielding plate 14d to the position determined in step S20 via the light shielding plate driving unit 14f (step S22). 19 and 20, the light shielding plate 14d is moved so as to cover positions corresponding to the region Wd and the gray zone We (that is, the region other than the region Wc) in the light source 11B. Thereby, unnecessary light can be automatically shielded according to the object. Actually, the light shielding plate 14d is below the light source 11B, but for the sake of explanation, the light shielding plate 14d is indicated by a solid line in FIGS. 19 and 20, the illustration of the gray zone We is omitted. The light shielding plate 14e is in a position that does not cover the light source 11B.

  The control unit 101A performs the first exposure process (step S24). Specifically, in a state where all the lamps 11x of the light source 11B are turned on and the light source 11B is partially covered by the light shielding plate 14d, the stage control unit 101e passes the stage 20 (that is, the object W) via the driving unit 32. ) Is moved in the y direction, which is the scanning direction, and the exposure surface of the object W is irradiated with the light irradiated from the light source 11B to generate an alignment film or the like. In step S24, as shown in FIG. 19, the stage 20 is moved in the -y direction to perform the first exposure process.

  After completion of the first exposure process (step S24), the stage control unit 101e moves the stage 20 by the shift amount in the shift direction via the drive unit 32 as shown in FIG. 20 (step S26). At the same time, as shown in FIG. 20, the light shielding plate control unit 101d moves the light shielding plate 14d by the shift amount in the shift direction via the light shielding plate drive unit 14f (step S26). For example, the shift amount is a half value of the deviation amount S (see FIG. 15), a quarter value of the deviation amount S, and the like, and is stored in the storage unit 102.

  After moving the stage 20 and the light shielding plate 14d by the shift amount in the shift direction (step S26), the control unit 101A performs the second exposure process (step S28). Through the first and second exposure processes (steps S24 and S28), the light of the polarization component (the first direction in the present embodiment) in the direction substantially orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the object W is applied to the region Wc and the gray zone We. Irradiated. Since the second exposure process is performed by moving the stage 20 and the light shielding plate 14d by the shift amount in the shift direction, it is possible to stably irradiate the region Wc with polarized light. Since the second exposure process is the same as the first exposure (step S24) except that the stage 20 is moved in the + y direction (see FIG. 20), the description is omitted.

  After completion of the second exposure process (step S28), the light shielding plate control unit 101d moves the light shielding plate 14d to a position where the light source 11B is not covered via the light shielding plate driving unit 14f, as shown in FIG. (Step S30). Further, as shown in FIG. 21, the stage control unit 101e rotates the stage 20 (that is, the target object W) approximately 90 degrees via the rotation driving unit 33 (step S32).

  Based on the information about the object W, the light shielding plate control unit 101d determines a position where the light shielding plate 14e is arranged at the time of exposure (step S34). The position at which the light shielding plate 14e is arranged at the time of exposure is a position that covers the area Wc that is the area exposed immediately before (first and second surfaces) when the stage 20 is in the second direction. (That is, determined in relation to stage 20). Since the stage 20 is rotated by approximately 90 degrees (second direction), the region Wc is along the x direction. Since the length in the x direction is equal to or longer than the length in the x direction of the light source 11B, the light shielding plate 14e can cover the entire region Wc.

  The control unit 101A performs the third exposure process (step S36). First, the stage control unit 101e moves the stage 20 in the second direction in the y direction (−y direction in FIG. 21) via the drive unit 32 (step S361).

  The light shielding plate control unit 101d determines whether or not the positional relationship between the light shielding plate 14e and the stage 20 is the positional relationship determined in Step S34 (Step S363). If the positional relationship between the light shielding plate 14e and the stage 20 is not the positional relationship determined in step S34 (NO in step S363), the process returns to step S361.

  When the positional relationship between the light shielding plate 14e and the stage 20 is the positional relationship determined in step S34 (YES in step S363), the control unit 101A moves the light shielding plate 14e at the same speed as the stage 20 (light shielding). The plate 14e is moved in the y direction (-y direction in FIG. 21) in synchronization with the stage 20 (synchronous scanning) (step S365).

  The process of step S36 will be described with reference to FIGS. 23 to 25, the stage 20 is omitted. Further, in the figure, a thick arrow indicates a state of movement of the light shielding plate 14e and the object W, and a shaded portion indicates a region irradiated with light from the light source 11B.

  FIG. 23 is a diagram schematically illustrating the positional relationship between the light source 11B, the light shielding plate 14e, and the object W (stage 20) when the positional relationship between the light shielding plate 14e and the stage 20 is the positional relationship determined in step S34. It is. Thus, the state in which light is not applied to the region Wc by the light shielding plate 14e is the positional relationship determined in step S34 (YES in step S363).

  FIG. 24 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the light shielding plate 14e is moved in the y direction (here, the −y direction) together with the object W (stage 20). The stage control unit 101e moves the stage 20 (that is, the object W) in the −y direction via the driving unit 32, and the light shielding plate control unit 101d also moves the light shielding plate via the light shielding plate driving unit 14g. 14e is moved in the -y direction. Thereby, the light shielding plate 14e is moved in the scanning direction together with the stage 20 so as to keep the light shielding plate 14e at the position determined in step S34.

  In FIG. 25, the light shielding plate 14e and the object W (stage 20) are further moved in the y direction (here, the -y direction) from the state shown in FIG. 24, and the light shielding plate 14e has finished passing under the light source 11B. It is a figure which shows a state. The light from the light source 11B is applied to the region Wd and the gray zone We, and is not applied to the region Wc.

  In this manner, by moving the light shielding plate 14e in the y direction together with the object W (stage 20), unnecessary light can be automatically shielded so that the light from the light source 11B is not irradiated onto the region Wc.

  In addition, the upper end surface is cut at the periphery of the light shielding plate 14e, and the angle thereof is substantially the same as the emission angle θ (see FIG. 6) from the lamp 11x. Therefore, it is possible to reliably shield the light emitted from the light source 11B.

  Returning to the description of FIG. After the third exposure process (step S36), the stage control unit 101e moves the stage 20 by the shift amount in the shift direction via the drive unit 32 as shown in FIG. 22 (step S38). At the same time, as shown in FIG. 22, the light shielding plate control unit 101d moves the light shielding plate 14e by the shift amount in the shift direction via the light shielding plate driving unit 14g (step S38).

  Thereafter, the control unit 101A performs a fourth exposure process (step S40). Through the third and fourth exposure processes (steps S36 and S40), the region Wd and the gray zone We are irradiated with light having a polarization component (second direction in the present embodiment) in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the object W. Is done. 21 and 22, the illustration of the gray zone We is omitted. Since the fourth exposure process is the same as the third exposure process (step S36) except that the stage 20 is moved in the + y direction (see FIG. 22), the description thereof is omitted. Thereby, the exposure process with respect to one target object W is complete | finished.

  The processing flow of the polarized light irradiation apparatus 2 has been described above by taking the stage 20 positioned on the + y side of the polarized light irradiation unit 10D as an example, but the same processing is performed on the stage 20 positioned on the −y side of the polarized light irradiation unit 10D. I do. Since the polarized light irradiation device 2 has two stages 20, while the object W is being taken out or placed on one stage 20, the object W placed on the other stage 20 can be removed. Exposure processing can be performed.

  According to the present embodiment, the same object can be irradiated with polarized light in different directions. For example, a light shielding plate 14d that moves in the shift direction and a light shielding plate 14e that moves in the scanning direction are provided, and exposure processing is performed in a state where the object W is not rotated and a state where the object W is rotated. One type of polarizer 13A (without using multiple types of polarizers 13A and 13B) can irradiate the same object W with light of polarized components in different directions. Further, by shielding unnecessary light by using the light shielding plates 14d and 14e in each exposure process, the same object W is irradiated with the light of the polarized light component in the first direction, and the first direction. And a region Wd that is irradiated with light having a polarization component in the second direction, which is different from the first direction. Therefore, it is possible to cope with MMG that performs exposure in different polarization directions in the same object W.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, a normal exposure process (for example, lighting all the lamps 11x) is performed on a normal substrate only by preventing the light shielding plates 14d and 14e from covering the light source 11B or the object W. (One reciprocal exposure) can be performed. For example, when the lighting and extinguishing of the lamp 11x are repeated, it takes about 30 minutes for the lighting and extinguishing states of the lamp 11x to be stabilized, and therefore, a plurality of types of substrates (for example, MMG substrates and normal substrates). Cannot be continuously exposed. On the other hand, in this embodiment, since all the lamps 11x are always lit, a plurality of types of substrates can be continuously exposed by changing the positions of the light shielding plates 14d and 14e.

  In the present embodiment, a plurality of lamps 11x provided so that the longitudinal direction is along the y direction are arranged in the x direction to form the light source rows 11e, 11f, 11g, and 11h. However, the long lamp 11y along the x direction is formed. (See FIG. 13) can also be used.

  In this embodiment, two light shielding plates 14d and 14e are provided, but the number of light shielding plates 14d and 14e is not limited to this. For example, each of the light shielding plates 14d and 14e may be one, or may be three or more. Further, the size of the light shielding plates 14d and 14e is not limited to the size shown in FIG.

  In the present embodiment, first, the exposure processing of the region Wc is performed with the light shielding plate 14d covering a part of the light source 11B, and then the exposure processing of the region Wd is performed with the light shielding plate 14e covering the region Wc. Although the order in which the regions Wc and Wd are exposed is not limited to this, the region Wc may be exposed after the region Wd is exposed.

  The embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and design changes and the like within a scope not departing from the gist of the present invention are included. .

  Further, in the present invention, “substantially” is a concept including not only a case where they are exactly the same but also errors and deformations that do not lose the identity. For example, “substantially parallel” is not limited to being strictly parallel. Further, for example, when simply expressing as parallel, orthogonal, etc., not only strictly parallel, orthogonal, etc. but also cases of substantially parallel, substantially orthogonal, etc. are included. Further, in the present invention, the “neighborhood” is a concept indicating that when it is in the vicinity of A, for example, it is near A and may or may not include A.

1, 2: Polarized light irradiation devices 10, 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D: Polarized light irradiation units 11, 11A, 11B: Light sources 11a, 11b, 11c, 11d, 11e, 11f, 11g, 11h: Light source arrays 11x, 11y: Lamp 12: Specific wavelength transmission filters 13, 13A, 13B: Polarizer 13a: Transparent substrate 13b: Metal wires 14, 14A, 14B, 14C: Light shielding portions 14a, 14d, 14e: Light shielding plates 14b: Shafts 14c, 14f, 14g: Shading plate driving unit 15: reflector 20: stage 30, 30A: stage driving unit 31: stage guide rail 32: driving unit 33: rotation driving unit 101, 101A: control unit 101a: light source control unit 101b, 101d: light shielding plate control unit 101c, 101e: stage control unit 102: storage unit 103: input unit 104: output unit

Claims (10)

A stage on which an object to be irradiated with polarized light is placed;
Polarized light irradiation comprising: a light source provided along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction of the object; and a polarizer provided between the light source and the stage and polarizing light emitted from the light source. And
With
The polarized light irradiation unit is a first region of the object, and is irradiated with light of a polarized component in a first direction that is a predetermined direction of light emitted from the light source, and Polarization to at least one of the second regions of the object that is irradiated with light having a polarization component in a second direction that is different from the first direction of the light emitted from the light source. A polarized light irradiation apparatus characterized by irradiating light. The light source has a first light source and a second light source provided adjacent to each other in the scanning direction,
The polarizer includes a first polarizer that transmits a polarization component in the first direction of light emitted from the first light source, and a second direction of light emitted from the second light source. It has a 2nd polarizer which permeate | transmits a polarization component, The polarized light irradiation apparatus of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned.   The polarized light irradiation unit is a first light shielding unit provided between the polarizer and the stage, the first light shielding plate for shielding a part of the light emitted from the first light source, and the first light shielding plate. The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising: a first light-shielding portion having a second light-shielding plate that shields part of light emitted from the two light sources. An information acquisition unit for acquiring information on the object;
A light shielding plate driving unit that moves the first light shielding plate along the first light source and moves the second light shielding plate along the second light source;
The positions of the first light shielding plate and the second light shielding plate are determined based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit, and the first light shielding plate and the second light shielding plate are moved to the determined positions. A light shielding plate control unit for controlling the light shielding plate drive unit,
The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising: A stage driving unit that moves the stage in the scanning direction and moves the stage by a shift amount in a shift direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction;
The light source has a plurality of lamps whose longitudinal direction is provided along the scanning direction,
The first light source and the second light source are provided along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction by arranging the plurality of lamps in a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction,
The light-shielding plate controller moves the first light-shielding plate and the second light-shielding plate by the shift amount in the shift direction when the stage is moved by the shift amount in the shift direction. Item 5. The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to Item 4. The light source has a plurality of lamps whose longitudinal direction is provided along the scanning direction,
The first light source and the second light source are provided along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction by arranging the plurality of lamps in a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction,
An information acquisition unit for acquiring information on the object;
A light source control unit that obtains a lighting region of the light source based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit and lights only a lamp located in the lighting region of the plurality of lamps. The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to claim 2. The stage is rotatably provided between a first position and a second position;
The polarizer transmits the polarization component in the first direction,
The polarized light irradiating unit is a second light shielding unit provided between the polarizer and the stage, and a length along the scanning direction is equal to or longer than a length along the scanning direction of the light source. A second light-shielding portion having a third light-shielding plate and a fourth light-shielding plate whose length in a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction is equal to or longer than a length of the light source in a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction ,
When the stage is in the first direction, the third light shielding plate is a position that covers the light source in a strip shape along the scanning direction, and corresponds to a region other than the first region of the object. In place,
The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the stage is in the second direction, the fourth light shielding plate is provided at a position that covers the first region of the object. An information acquisition unit for acquiring information on the object;
A stage drive unit that rotates the stage between the first position and the second position, and moves the stage along the scanning direction;
A light shielding plate driving unit for moving the third light shielding plate and the fourth light shielding plate;
A control unit for controlling the stage driving unit and the light shielding plate driving unit;
With
The control unit determines the position of the third light shielding plate based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit, moves the third light shielding plate to the determined position, and the information acquisition unit Determining the position of the fourth light shielding plate based on the acquired information, and moving the fourth light shielding plate together with the stage in the scanning direction so as to keep the fourth light shielding plate at the determined position. The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to claim 7. The controller is
The stage is rotated to be in the first direction, and based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit, the third light shielding plate covers the light source in a strip shape along the scanning direction, and the fourth Moving the third light-shielding plate and the fourth light-shielding plate so that the light-shielding plate does not cover the light source, moving the stage in the scanning direction in the first direction,
Based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit by rotating the stage, the third light shielding plate does not cover the light source, and the fourth light shielding plate is in the first region. The third light-shielding plate and the fourth light-shielding plate are moved so as to cover the stage, and the stage is moved in the scanning direction in the second direction while maintaining the positional relationship between the stage and the fourth light-shielding plate. The polarized light irradiation apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the fourth light shielding plate is moved in the scanning direction while moving the fourth light shielding plate. The stage driving unit moves the stage in the scanning direction, and moves the stage by a shift amount in a shift direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction,
The light source has a plurality of lamps whose longitudinal direction is provided along the scanning direction,
The light source is provided along a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction by arranging the plurality of lamps in a direction substantially orthogonal to the scanning direction,
The control unit moves the stage in the shift direction by the shift amount, and moves the third light shielding plate or the fourth light shielding plate in the shift direction by the shift amount. Or the polarized light irradiation apparatus according to 9.

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