JP2021147705A - Method of manufacturing vapor deposition mask device and method of manufacturing organic el display device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a method of manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device and a method of manufacturing an organic EL display device that shorten the time required to position a vapor deposition mask relative to a frame.SOLUTION: A method of manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device comprises: a frame preparation process; a mask preparation process; an arrangement process of arranging a vapor deposition mask 20 on a frame 15 so that an overlap part 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 overlaps a first wall face edge 17e in plan view and a first wall face edge 17e extends linearly in a first direction D1 over a second mask edge 20d from a first mask edge 20c of the vapor deposition mask 20; a mask positioning process of drawing and positioning, after the arrangement process, the vapor deposition mask 20 in a second direction D2 and relative to the frame 15 while pressing it against the frame 15; and a joining process of drawing and joining, after the mask positioning process, the vapor deposition mask 20 in the second direction D2 with joining tensile force and to the frame 15 while pressing it against the frame 15.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

The present disclosure relates to a method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device and a method for manufacturing an organic EL display device.

Organic EL display devices are attracting attention in the field of display devices used in portable devices such as smartphones and tablet PCs. As a method and device for manufacturing an organic semiconductor device such as an organic EL display device, a method and a device for forming pixels in a desired pattern using a vapor deposition mask in which through holes arranged in a desired pattern are formed are known. ing. For example, first, a thin-film deposition mask fixed to a frame is combined with a thin-film deposition substrate for an organic EL display device. Subsequently, the thin-film vapor deposition material containing the organic material is vapor-deposited on the substrate to be vapor-deposited through the through holes of the thin-film deposition mask. By carrying out such a thin-film deposition step, it is possible to form a thin-film deposition layer (or a light-emitting layer of an organic EL display device) containing a vapor-film deposition material as pixels on the substrate to be vapor-deposited in a pattern corresponding to the through holes of the thin-film deposition mask. can.

When the vapor deposition mask is combined with the substrate to be deposited, the vapor deposition mask is stretched and fixed to the frame (see, for example, Patent Document 1). At this time, the vapor deposition mask is aligned with respect to the frame so that the through holes of the vapor deposition mask are located at desired positions with respect to the frame.

Japanese Patent No. 5382259

It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device and a method for manufacturing an organic EL display device, which can shorten the time required for aligning the vapor deposition mask with respect to the frame.

The method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a frame preparation step, a mask preparation step, an arrangement step, a mask alignment step, and a joining step. In the frame preparation process, the first frame surface, the second frame surface located on the opposite side of the first frame surface, the frame opening penetrating from the first frame surface to the second frame surface, and the flatter surface than the frame opening. A frame wall surface that is visually located on the outside and extends from the first frame surface toward the second frame surface, and is located on the side of the first wall surface and the side of the second frame surface. A frame having a frame wall surface including a second wall surface edge and a third frame surface extending outward from the second wall surface edge along the second frame surface in a plan view is prepared. In the mask preparation step, the first mask edge located on one side edge in the first direction, the second mask edge located on the other side edge in the first direction, and the second direction orthogonal to the first direction. A vapor deposition mask having a pair of overlapping portions located on both sides of the above and a through hole located between the pair of overlapping portions is prepared. In the arranging step, the overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask overlaps with the first wall surface edge in a plan view, and the first wall surface edge is linear in the first direction from the first mask edge to the second mask edge of the vapor deposition mask. Place the vapor deposition mask on the frame so that it extends. In the mask alignment step, after the placement step, the vapor deposition mask is aligned with the frame while being pulled in the second direction by the joining tension and pressed against the frame. In the joining step, after the mask alignment step, the vapor deposition mask is joined to the frame while being pulled in the second direction by the joining tension and pressed against the frame.

The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to the present disclosure includes an apparatus preparation step for preparing a vapor deposition mask device by the above-mentioned manufacturing method for a vapor deposition mask device, a close contact step, and a vapor deposition step. In the adhesion step, the vapor deposition mask of the vapor deposition mask device is adhered to the substrate to be vapor-deposited. In the thin-film deposition step, the vapor-deposited material is vapor-deposited on the substrate to be vapor-deposited through the through holes of the thin-film deposition mask to form a thin-film deposition layer.

The vapor deposition mask apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a frame and a vapor deposition mask provided on the frame. The frame is outside the first frame surface, the second frame surface located on the opposite side of the first frame surface, the frame opening penetrating from the first frame surface to the second frame surface, and the frame opening in a plan view. A frame wall surface extending from the first frame surface toward the second frame surface, the first wall surface edge located on the side of the first frame surface and the second wall surface located on the side of the second frame surface. It has a frame wall surface including an edge, and a third frame surface extending outward from the second wall surface edge in a plan view along the second frame surface. The vapor deposition mask includes a first mask edge located on one side edge in the first direction, a second mask edge located on the other side edge in the first direction, and both sides in the second direction orthogonal to the first direction. It has a pair of overlapping portions that are located on the first frame surface and overlap with each other, and a through hole that is located between the pair of overlapping portions. The vapor deposition mask has a pair of mask ends located on both sides in the second direction and inside the first wall surface edge. The first wall surface edge extends linearly in the second direction from the extension line of the first mask edge of the vapor deposition mask to the extension line of the second mask edge.

The intermediate of the vapor deposition mask apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a frame and a vapor deposition mask provided on the frame. The frame is outside the first frame surface, the second frame surface located on the opposite side of the first frame surface, the frame opening penetrating from the first frame surface to the second frame surface, and the frame opening in a plan view. A frame wall surface extending from the first frame surface toward the second frame surface, the first wall surface edge located on the side of the first frame surface and the second wall surface located on the side of the second frame surface. It has a frame wall surface including an edge, and a third frame surface extending outward from the second wall surface edge in a plan view along the second frame surface. The vapor deposition mask includes a first mask edge located on one side edge in the first direction, a second mask edge located on the other side edge in the first direction, and both sides in the second direction orthogonal to the first direction. It has a pair of overlapping portions that are located on the first frame surface and overlap with each other, and a through hole that is located between the pair of overlapping portions. The first wall surface edge overlaps the overlapping portion of the thin-film deposition mask in a plan view, and extends linearly in the second direction from the first mask edge of the thin-film deposition mask to the second mask edge.

According to the present disclosure, the time required for aligning the vapor deposition mask with respect to the frame can be shortened.

It is a figure which shows the vapor deposition apparatus provided with the vapor deposition mask apparatus according to the embodiment of this disclosure. It is a top view which shows the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows typically the cross section along the line AA of FIG. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. FIG. 4A is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 4A. It is a partially enlarged plan view which shows the vapor deposition mask apparatus of FIG. It is an enlarged plan view which shows the through hole group of the vapor deposition mask of FIG. It is a figure which shows the holding process in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the arrangement process in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the 1st through hole confirmation step of the mask alignment step in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the moving process of the mask alignment process in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the tension adjustment process of the mask alignment process in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a partially enlarged plan view which shows the vapor deposition mask apparatus in the mask alignment step of the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a partially enlarged plan view which shows the vapor deposition mask apparatus in the mask alignment process of the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus. It is a figure which shows typically the cross section along the line BB of FIG. It is a figure which shows typically the cross section along the line CC of FIG. It is a figure which shows the joining process in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the removal process in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a top view which shows the frame which one vapor deposition mask is bonded in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a top view which shows the intermediate of the vapor deposition mask apparatus obtained by the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the cutting process in the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a partially enlarged plan view which shows the vapor deposition mask apparatus in the cutting process of the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask apparatus by embodiment of this disclosure. It is sectional drawing which shows typically the organic EL display device obtained by the manufacturing method of the organic EL display device by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the close contact process in the manufacturing method of the organic EL display device by embodiment of this disclosure. It is a figure which shows the vapor deposition process in the manufacturing method of the organic EL display device by embodiment of this disclosure.

In the present specification and the present drawings, unless otherwise specified, the term "substrate", "base material", "board", "sheet", "film", etc. , Not distinguished from each other based solely on the difference in designation.

In the present specification and the present drawings, unless otherwise specified, the shapes, geometrical conditions, and their degrees are specified, for example, terms such as "parallel" and "orthogonal", and length and angle values. Is to be interpreted including the range in which similar functions can be expected without being bound by the strict meaning.

In the present specification and the present drawings, unless otherwise specified, a configuration such as a member or an area is "above" or "below" another configuration such as another member or an area. The terms "upper" and "lower", or "upward" and "downward" include cases where one configuration is in direct contact with another. Further, it also includes the case where another configuration is included between one configuration and another configuration, that is, the case where they are indirectly in contact with each other. Further, unless otherwise specified, the terms "upper", "upper", "upper", or "lower", "lower", and "lower" may be reversed in the vertical direction.

In the present specification and the present drawings, unless otherwise specified, the same parts or parts having similar functions are designated by the same reference numerals or similar reference numerals, and the repeated description thereof may be omitted. Further, the dimensional ratio of the drawing may differ from the actual ratio for convenience of explanation, or a part of the configuration may be omitted from the drawing.

In the present specification and the present drawings, unless otherwise specified, it may be combined with other embodiments and modifications as long as there is no contradiction. Further, other embodiments and modifications thereof can be combined within a range that does not cause a contradiction. Further, the modified examples can be combined as long as there is no contradiction.

Unless otherwise specified in the present specification and the present drawings, when a plurality of steps are disclosed with respect to a method such as a manufacturing method, other steps not disclosed are carried out between the disclosed steps. You may. In addition, the order of the disclosed steps is arbitrary as long as there is no contradiction.

Unless otherwise specified in the present specification and the drawings, the numerical range represented by the symbol "-" includes numerical values placed before and after the symbol "-". For example, the numerical range defined by the expression "34 to 38% by mass" is the same as the numerical range defined by the expression "34% by mass or more and 38% by mass or less".

Unless otherwise specified in the present specification and the present drawings, in one embodiment of the present specification, it is used to pattern an organic material on a substrate in a desired pattern when manufacturing an organic EL display device. An example of a vapor deposition mask and its manufacturing method will be described. However, the present embodiment can be applied to a vapor deposition mask used for various purposes without being limited to such an application.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The embodiments shown below are examples of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and the present disclosure is not construed as being limited to these embodiments.

The first aspect of the present disclosure is
The first frame surface, the second frame surface located on the side opposite to the first frame surface, the frame opening penetrating from the first frame surface to the second frame surface, and the frame opening in a plan view from the frame opening. A frame wall surface located on the outside and extending from the first frame surface toward the second frame surface, on the side of the first wall surface located on the side of the first frame surface and on the side of the second frame surface. A frame preparation step of preparing a frame having a frame wall surface including a second wall surface edge located, and a third frame surface extending outward from the second wall surface edge along the second frame surface in a plan view. ,
The first mask edge located on one side edge in the first direction, the second mask edge located on the other side edge in the first direction, and the second mask edge located on both sides in the second direction orthogonal to the first direction. A mask preparation step of preparing a vapor deposition mask having a pair of overlapping portions and a through hole located between the pair of overlapping portions.
The overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask overlaps the first wall surface edge in a plan view, and the first wall surface edge extends from the first mask edge of the vapor deposition mask to the second mask edge in the first direction. An arrangement step of arranging the vapor deposition mask on the frame so as to extend in a straight line,
After the placement step, a mask alignment step of aligning the vapor deposition mask with respect to the frame while pulling the vapor deposition mask in the second direction with a bonding tension and pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame.
A method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus, comprising a joining step of pulling the vapor deposition mask in the second direction with the bonding tension and joining the vapor deposition mask to the frame while pressing the mask alignment step against the frame.
Is.

As a second aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to the first aspect described above,
The mask alignment step includes a first confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole with respect to the frame while applying the bonding tension to the vapor deposition mask and pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame.
You may do so.

As a third aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to the second aspect described above,
In the mask alignment step, based on the position confirmation result of the through hole in the first confirmation step, the bonding tension is applied to the vapor deposition mask and the vapor deposition mask is pressed against the frame in the first direction. And has a moving step of moving in any direction within the two-dimensional plane defined in the second direction.
You may do so.

As a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to each of the above-mentioned first aspect to the above-mentioned third aspect.
In the mask alignment step, after the moving step, a second confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole with respect to the frame while applying a bonding tension to the vapor deposition mask and pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame is performed. Have, have
You may do so.

As a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to the first aspect described above,
The mask alignment step is
A third confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole with respect to the frame while pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame.
A tension adjusting step of adjusting the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask based on the position confirmation result of the through hole in the third confirmation step, and a tension adjusting step.
After the tension adjusting step, the vapor deposition mask is subjected to the bonding tension, and the vapor deposition mask is pressed against the frame to confirm the position of the through hole with respect to the frame. ,
You may do so.

As a sixth aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to each of the above-mentioned first aspect to the above-mentioned fifth aspect.
After the joining step, a cutting step of cutting the overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask is further provided.
In the joining step, a joining portion extending from the overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask to the frame is formed.
In the cutting step, the vapor deposition mask is cut at a position outside the joint portion of the overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask in the second direction, and the portion outside the cutting position is removed.
You may do so.

As a seventh aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to the sixth aspect described above,
A frame groove extending in the first direction is provided on the first frame surface of the frame.
In the cutting step, the vapor deposition mask is cut along the frame groove.
You may do so.

As an eighth aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to each of the above-mentioned first aspect to the above-mentioned seventh aspect.
When two or more of the vapor deposition masks arranged in the first direction are joined to the frame, the first wall surface edge of the frame extends from one of the vapor deposition masks to the other vapor deposition masks in the first direction. Extends in a straight line,
You may do so.

As a ninth aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to the eighth aspect described above,
The first wall surface edge of the frame extends linearly in the first direction from the vapor deposition mask located on the most unilateral side in the first direction to the vapor deposition mask located on the opposite side to the vapor deposition mask. ing,
You may do so.

The ninth aspect described above from the first aspect described above may be a vapor deposition mask device manufactured by the manufacturing method of each vapor deposition mask device of the first to tenth aspects, respectively.

In addition, the tenth aspect of the present disclosure is
An apparatus preparation step for preparing the vapor deposition masking apparatus according to the manufacturing method of each of the vapor deposition masking apparatus according to the first to ninth aspects described above.
A close contact step in which the thin-film mask of the thin-film mask device is brought into close contact with the substrate to be vapor-deposited.
2.
Is.

As an eleventh aspect of the present disclosure, in the method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to the tenth aspect described above,
In the close contact step, the vapor-deposited substrate is held by an electrostatic chuck from above.
You may do so.

The eleventh aspect described above from the tenth aspect described above may be an organic EL display device manufactured by the manufacturing method of each organic EL display device of the tenth to eleventh aspects, respectively. ..

A twelfth aspect of the present disclosure is
A first frame surface, a second frame surface located on the opposite side of the first frame surface, a frame opening penetrating from the first frame surface to the second frame surface, and a plan view of the frame opening. A frame wall surface located on the outside and extending from the first frame surface toward the second frame surface, on the side of the first wall surface located on the side of the first frame surface and on the side of the second frame surface. A frame having a frame wall surface including a second wall surface edge located, and a third frame surface extending outward from the second wall surface edge in a plan view along the second frame surface.
A thin-film deposition mask provided on the frame, the first mask edge located on one side edge in the first direction, the second mask edge located on the other side edge in the first direction, and the first mask. A thin-film mask comprising a pair of overlapping portions located on both sides in a second direction orthogonal to one direction and overlapping the first frame surface and through holes located between the pair of overlapping portions.
The vapor deposition mask has a pair of mask ends located on both sides in the second direction and inside the first wall surface edge.
The thin-film deposition mask device, wherein the first wall surface edge extends linearly in the second direction from an extension line of the first mask edge of the vapor deposition mask to an extension line of the second mask edge.
Is.

As a thirteenth aspect of the present disclosure, in the vapor deposition masking apparatus according to the twelfth aspect described above,
With two or more of the vapor deposition masks aligned in the first direction,
The first wall surface edge extends linearly in the first direction from one of the vapor deposition masks to the other vapor deposition masks.
You may do so.

As the fourteenth aspect of the present disclosure, in the vapor deposition masking apparatus according to the thirteenth aspect described above,
The first wall surface edge extends linearly in the first direction from the vapor deposition mask located on the most unilateral side in the first direction to the vapor deposition mask located on the opposite side of the vapor deposition mask. It may be.

As a fifteenth aspect of the present disclosure, in the vapor deposition mask device according to each of the above-mentioned twelfth aspect to the above-mentioned fourteenth aspect.
A frame groove extending in the first direction is provided on the first frame surface of the frame.
You may do so.

In addition, the sixteenth aspect of the present disclosure is
A first frame surface, a second frame surface located on the opposite side of the first frame surface, a frame opening penetrating from the first frame surface to the second frame surface, and a plan view of the frame opening. A frame wall surface located on the outside and extending from the first frame surface toward the second frame surface, on the side of the first wall surface located on the side of the first frame surface and on the side of the second frame surface. A frame having a second wall surface edge located and a third frame surface extending outward from the second wall surface edge along the second frame surface in a plan view.
A thin-film deposition mask provided on the frame, the first mask edge located on one side edge in the first direction, the second mask edge located on the other side edge in the first direction, and the first mask. A thin-film mask comprising a pair of overlapping portions located on both sides in a second direction orthogonal to one direction and overlapping the first frame surface and a through hole located between the pair of overlapping portions.
The first wall surface edge overlaps the overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask in a plan view, and extends linearly in the second direction from the first mask edge of the vapor deposition mask to the second mask edge. Intermediate of masking device,
Is.

Hereinafter, a method for manufacturing a thin-film deposition mask device, a method for manufacturing an organic EL display device, a thin-film deposition mask device, and an intermediate of the thin-film deposition mask device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 22.

First, a thin-film deposition apparatus 80 that performs a thin-film deposition process for depositing a thin-film deposition material on an object will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the vapor deposition apparatus 80 may include a vapor deposition source (for example, a crucible 81), a heater 83, and a vapor deposition mask apparatus 10. Further, the vapor deposition apparatus 80 may further include an exhaust means (not shown) for creating a vacuum atmosphere inside the vapor deposition apparatus 80. The crucible 81 is provided inside the vapor deposition apparatus 80, and is configured to accommodate the vapor deposition material 82 such as an organic light emitting material. The heater 83 is configured to heat the crucible 81. By heating the crucible 81 in a vacuum atmosphere, the vaporized material 82 evaporates.

The thin-film deposition mask device 10 is arranged in the thin-film deposition device 80 so as to face the crucible 81. The vapor deposition mask device 10 may be arranged above the crucible 81. The substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 is arranged so as to face the thin-film deposition mask 20 of the thin-film deposition mask device 10. The thin-film deposition substrate 91 is an object to which the thin-film deposition material 82 is attached. The substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 may be arranged above the thin-film deposition mask 20. The substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited may be held by an electrostatic chuck 84 that utilizes electrostatic force. In this case, the electrostatic chuck 84 is arranged above the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited. The thin-film deposition material that has flown from the crucible 81 adheres to the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 through the through holes 25 described later in the thin-film deposition mask 20.

As shown in FIG. 1, the vapor deposition apparatus 80 may include a magnet 85 arranged above the electrostatic chuck 84. By providing the magnet 85, the thin-film deposition mask 20 can be attracted to the side of the magnet 85 by magnetic force, and the thin-film deposition mask 20 can be brought into close contact with the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited. As a result, it is possible to suppress the generation of shadows (described later) in the vapor deposition process, and the vapor deposition layer (or the light emitting layer 92 of the organic EL display device 90) formed by the vapor deposition material 82 adhering to the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91. 20) can be improved in shape accuracy and position accuracy. A cooling plate (not shown) that cools the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 at the time of vapor deposition may be interposed between the electrostatic chuck 84 and the magnet 85. The vapor deposition apparatus 80 may not be provided with such a magnet 85. In this case, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be brought into close contact with the vapor deposition substrate 91 by the electrostatic force of the electrostatic chuck 84 described above.

Next, the vapor deposition mask device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6.

As shown in FIG. 2, the vapor deposition mask device 10 according to the present embodiment may include a frame 15 and a vapor deposition mask 20 provided on the frame 15. Two or more vapor deposition masks 20 arranged in the first direction D1 may be provided on the frame 15. In the present embodiment, the vapor deposition mask 20 is formed in an elongated shape so that the second direction D2 orthogonal to the first direction D1 is the longitudinal direction, and a plurality of penetrations arranged in a row in the second direction D2. It has a pore group 26 (or a plurality of effective regions 27, all of which will be described later).

The frame 15 supports the vapor deposition mask 20 in a plane-pulled state in order to prevent the vapor deposition mask 20 from bending. That is, the vapor deposition mask 20 is stretched and fixed to the frame 15.

As shown in FIG. 3, the frame 15 has a first frame surface 15a located on the side of the vapor deposition mask 20 and a second frame surface 15b located on the side opposite to the first frame surface 15a. May be good. The second mask surface 20b (described later) of the vapor deposition mask 20 is joined to the first frame surface 15a. Note that FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the cross section taken along line AA of FIG. 2, and in order to clarify the drawing, the number of through-hole groups 26 and the number of through-holes 25, which will be described later, are reduced. There is.

As shown in FIG. 2, the frame 15 may be formed in the shape of a rectangular frame in a plan view. Further, the frame 15 may have a frame opening 16 extending from the first frame surface 15a to the second frame surface 15b and penetrating the frame 15. The frame opening 16 overlaps the through hole group 26 of the vapor deposition mask 20 in a plan view, and the through hole group 26 is exposed on the side of the second frame surface 15b. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the frame opening 16 is formed in a rectangular shape along the first direction D1 and the second direction D2 in a plan view. Here, "planar view" is a term meaning that the vapor deposition mask 20 is viewed in the thickness direction D3, and is, for example, a term meaning that the vapor deposition mask 20 is viewed in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. The thickness direction D3 is a direction orthogonal to the first direction D1 and orthogonal to the second direction D2.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the frame 15 has four frame wall surfaces 17a to 17d extending from the first frame surface 15a toward the second frame surface 15b, and a third frame surface 15c. May be good. The frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b are located on both sides of the frame opening 16 in the second direction D2 and are located outside in a plan view. In other words, in the second direction D2, the frame opening 16 is located between the frame wall surface 17a and the frame wall surface 17b. Further, the frame wall surfaces 17c and 17d are located on both sides of the frame opening 16 and outside in the first direction D1. In other words, in the first direction D1, the frame opening 16 is located between the frame wall surface 17c and the frame wall surface 17d. The four frame wall surfaces 17a to 17d are formed in a rectangular shape along the frame opening 16 in a plan view. The first frame surface 15a is formed in the shape of a rectangular frame in a plan view. Here, the "outside" means a side opposite to the center side (inside) of the frame opening 16 in a plan view. For example, the outside in the first direction D1 means the left side or the right side in FIG. 2, and the outside in the second direction D2 means the upper side or the lower side in FIG.

The frame wall surfaces 17a to 17d are connected to the first frame surface 15a, but are not connected to the second frame surface 15b. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4A, the frame wall surfaces 17a to 17d extend in a direction intersecting the first frame surface 15a when viewed in a cross section along the thickness direction D3. Typically, FIG. 3 shows a pair of frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b, and FIG. 4A shows a frame wall surface 17a. An example is shown in which the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b are formed perpendicular to the first frame surface 15a, but the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b gradually move outward while advancing toward the second frame surface 15b with respect to the first frame surface 15a. It may be tilted to be located. The same applies to the frame wall surfaces 17c and 17d.

The frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b include a first wall surface edge 17e located on the side edge of the first frame surface 15a. The first wall surface edge 17e overlaps with the corresponding overlapping portion 21 (described later) of the vapor deposition mask 20 in a plan view before the cutting step described later. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b are formed from the first extension line 20e to the second mask edge 20d of the first mask edge 20c (described later) of the vapor deposition mask 20 after the cutting step. Extends in a straight line in the first direction D1 over the second extension line 20f of the above. Here, the term that the first wall surface edge 17e extends in a straight line means that the first wall surface edge 17e forms one straight line in a plan view, but it is caught in a strict sense. There is no. The term is used, for example, in the mask alignment step described later, within a range in which the stress generated in the vapor deposition mask 20 due to the reaction force received by the vapor deposition mask 20 from the frame 15 can be suppressed from being concentrated, the first wall surface edge 17e Is used as a concept including the fact that is formed in a non-linear manner.

In the present embodiment, as described above, a plurality of thin-film deposition masks 20 are bonded to the frame 15. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the first wall edge 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b extends linearly from one vapor deposition mask 20 to the other vapor deposition mask 20 in the first direction D1. May be good. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b are located on the opposite side of the vapor deposition mask 20 from the vapor deposition mask 20 located on the most one side in the first direction D1. It may extend in a straight line in the first direction D1 over the vapor deposition mask 20.

As shown in FIG. 3, the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b include a second wall surface edge 17f located on the side edge of the second frame surface 15b. The third frame surface 15c extends outward from the second wall surface edge 17f and extends to the outer wall surface 15d described later. The third frame surface 15c extends along the second frame surface 15b. In FIGS. 3 and 4A, an example is shown in which the third frame surface 15c is formed parallel to the second frame surface 15b, but gradually approaches the second frame surface 15b while advancing outward. As described above, it may be inclined with respect to the second frame surface 15b.

In the present embodiment, the frame wall surfaces 17c and 17d may also include the first wall surface edge 17e and the second wall surface edge 17f, similarly to the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b. The third frame surface 15c may extend outward from the second wall surface edges 17f of the frame wall surfaces 17c and 17d. The third frame surface 15c may extend to the outer wall surface 15d described later. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the third frame surface 15c may be formed in the shape of a rectangular frame in a plan view.

As shown in FIG. 4B, in the cross section along the thickness direction D3, the frame wall surface 17a may include a curved portion 17h located on a portion on the side of the first frame surface 15a. The curved portion 17h may have a curved shape. The first wall surface edge 17e described above is located on the edge of the curved portion 17h on the side of the first frame surface 15a. In other words, the first wall surface edge 17e is located at a position where the curved portion 17h and the first frame surface 15a intersect. The curved portion 17h may be formed in a shape forming a part of an arc, for example. In this case, the curved portion 17h may have a radius of 0.3 mm or more in a cross section along the thickness direction D3 and perpendicular to the frame wall surface 17a. In this case, the upper limit of the radius of the curved portion 17h may be equal to or less than the dimension of the frame wall surface 17a in the thickness direction D3. The other frame wall surfaces 17b to 17d may also include the curved portion 17h. The frame wall surface 17a does not have to include the curved portion 17h. In this case, the first wall surface edge 17e is located at the position where the frame wall surface 17a and the first frame surface 15a intersect.

As shown in FIG. 4A, the frame groove 18 extending in the first direction D1 may be provided on the first frame surface 15a. The frame groove 18 may be located inside the second direction D2 with respect to the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b, and a cutting means (for example, a cutting blade 62) for cutting the vapor deposition mask 20 may be inserted. .. The frame groove 18 is located between the frame opening 16 and the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b in a plan view. The frame groove 18 may extend linearly in the first direction D1. The frame groove 18 is located on the most opposite side (for example, the rightmost side in FIG. 2) from the thin-film deposition mask 20 located on the most one side (for example, the leftmost side in FIG. 2) in the first direction. It may extend in a straight line in the first direction D1 over the vapor deposition mask 20.

The cross section of the frame groove 18 can have any shape as long as the above-mentioned cutting blade 62 can be inserted. In FIG. 4A, as an example, an example in which the cross section of the frame groove 18 is formed in a rectangular shape is shown.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4A, the frame opening 16 is defined by four inner wall surfaces 16a. The inner wall surface 16a extends from the first frame surface 15a to the second frame surface 15b, and may be formed perpendicular to the first frame surface 15a and the second frame surface 15b.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4A, the outer peripheral edge of the frame 15 in a plan view is defined by four outer wall surfaces 15d. The outer wall surface 15d extends from the third frame surface 15c to the second frame surface 15b, and may be formed perpendicular to the third frame surface 15c and the second frame surface 15b. In this way, the frame 15 may be formed in the shape of a rectangular frame in a plan view.

As shown in FIG. 2, a frame alignment mark 19 may be provided on the first frame surface 15a of the frame 15. The frame alignment mark 19 is used for alignment of the alignment mask 70, which will be described later. For example, four frame alignment marks 19 may be provided as shown in FIG. 2, or may be located near the corners of the frame opening 16. The frame alignment mark 19 may penetrate the frame 15 when it is irradiated with light to align with the mask alignment mark 71. However, the frame alignment mark 19 does not have to penetrate the frame 15 as long as it can be aligned with the mask alignment mark 71. The planar shape of the frame alignment mark 19 is arbitrary, but in FIG. 2, it is a circular shape as an example.

The frame 15 may be made of the same material as the material constituting the vapor deposition mask 20 described later. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the material may be made of a material different from that of the vapor deposition mask 20.

As shown in FIG. 3, the frame 15 has a thickness H1 extending from the first frame surface 15a to the second frame surface 15b. The thickness H1 may be, for example, 10 mm or more, 15 mm or more, 20 mm or more, or 25 mm or more. By setting the thickness H1 to 10 mm or more, it is possible to suppress deformation due to the tension received from the stretched vapor deposition mask 20. Further, the thickness H1 may be, for example, 25 mm or less, 40 mm or less, 45 mm or less, or 50 mm or less. By setting the thickness H1 to 50 mm or less, an increase in weight can be suppressed. The range of thickness H1 may be defined by a first group consisting of 10 mm, 15 mm, 20 mm and 25 mm and / or a second group consisting of 25 mm, 40 mm, 45 mm and 50 mm. The range of the thickness H1 may be determined by a combination of any one of the values included in the first group described above and any one of the values included in the second group described above. The range of the thickness H1 may be defined by any combination of any two of the values included in the first group described above. The range of the thickness H1 may be defined by any combination of two of the values included in the second group described above. For example, it may be 10 mm or more and 50 mm or less, 10 mm or more and 45 mm or less, 10 mm or more and 40 mm or less, 10 mm or more and 25 mm or less, or 10 mm or more and 25 mm or less. It may be 10 mm or more and 20 mm or less, 10 mm or more and 15 mm or less, 15 mm or more and 50 mm or less, 15 mm or more and 45 mm or less, or 15 mm or more and 40 mm or less. It may be 15 mm or more and 25 mm or less, 15 mm or more and 25 mm or less, 15 mm or more and 20 mm or less, 20 mm or more and 50 mm or less, or 20 mm or more and 45 mm or less. It may be 20 mm or more and 40 mm or less, 20 mm or more and 25 mm or less, 20 mm or more and 25 mm or less, 25 mm or more and 50 mm or less, or 25 mm or more and 45 mm or less. It may be 25 mm or more and 40 mm or less, 25 mm or more and 25 mm or less, 25 mm or more and 50 mm or less, 25 mm or more and 45 mm or less, or 25 mm or more and 40 mm or less. It may be 40 mm or more and 50 mm or less, 40 mm or more and 45 mm or less, or 45 mm or more and 50 mm or less.

Next, the vapor deposition mask 20 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, 5, and 6. The vapor deposition mask 20 can be manufactured by any manufacturing method. For example, it may be produced by etching a rolled material, or it may be produced by a plating process. When manufactured by plating, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be composed of two or more layers. In this case, the through hole 25 described later is formed so as to penetrate these layers.

As shown in FIG. 3, the vapor deposition mask 20 may have a first mask surface 20a and a second mask surface 20b located on the opposite side of the second mask surface 20b. The first mask surface 20a may be a surface to which the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited comes into close contact during vapor deposition. The second mask surface 20b may be the surface on the side of the frame 15 described above.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the vapor deposition mask 20 has a first mask edge 20c and a second mask edge 20d located on both sides in the first direction D1 (width direction of the vapor deposition mask 20) in a plan view. You may. The first mask edge 20c is located on one side edge (left side in FIG. 2) in the first direction D1 and extends from the first mask end 20g described later to the second mask end 20h. The second mask edge 20d is located on the other side edge (right side in FIG. 2) in the first direction D1 and extends from the first mask end 20g to the second mask end 20h. The mask edges 20c and 20d extend in the second direction D2. In FIG. 5, a first extension line 20e extending the first mask edge 20c is shown, and a second extension line 20f extending the second mask edge 20d is shown. The extension lines 20e and 20f are lines extending outward from the mask ends 20g and 20h described later in the second direction D2, and may be lines extending linearly from the corresponding mask edges 20c and 20d.

Further, the vapor deposition mask 20 may have a first mask end 20g and a second mask end 20h located on both sides in the second direction D2 orthogonal to the first direction D1. The first mask edge 20g is located at one end (upper side in FIG. 2) in the second direction D2 and extends from the above-mentioned first mask edge 20c to the second mask edge 20d. The second mask end 20h is located at the other end (lower side in FIG. 2) in the second direction D2, and extends from the first mask edge 20c described above to the second mask edge 20d. The mask ends 20g and 20h extend in the first direction D1. The mask ends 20g and 20h are located inside the first wall surface edge 17e of the corresponding frame wall surface 17a and 17b of the frame 15 in the second direction D2 in a plan view. More specifically, the first mask end 20g is located inside the second direction D2 (lower side in FIG. 2) with respect to the first wall surface edge 17e of the frame wall surface 17a, and the second mask end 20h is the frame wall surface. It is located inside the second direction D2 (upper side in FIG. 2) with respect to the first wall surface edge 17e of 17b. The mask ends 20g and 20h are formed by cutting the vapor deposition mask 20 with a cutting blade 62 described later, and are located at positions overlapping the corresponding frame grooves 18 in a plan view.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the vapor deposition mask 20 may have a pair of overlapping portions 21 located on both sides in the second direction D2 and overlapping the first frame surface 15a. The overlapping portion 21 is located between the first mask edge 20c and the second mask edge 20d, and is a portion located outside the through-hole group 26 described later in the second direction D2 in a plan view. .. A part of the overlapping portion 21 is cut and removed in a cutting step described later. More specifically, the overlapping portion 21 is located outside the mask welded portion 22 in which the welded portion 30 (described later) is formed by being welded to the frame 15 and the mask welded portion 22 in the second direction D2 in a plan view. The removed portion 23, which is cut and removed in the cutting step, is included. The removed portion 23 is composed of a pressed portion 23a that is pressed against the frame 15 together with the mask welded portion 22 in the mask alignment step described later, and a held portion 23b that is held by the mask clamp 60 described later. There is. In FIG. 5, the removed portion 23 is indicated by a chain double-dashed line.

As shown in FIG. 3, the vapor deposition mask 20 may have two or more through holes 25. The vapor deposition mask 20 may have a through-hole group 26 composed of two or more through-holes 25. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, each vapor deposition mask 20 has two or more through-hole groups 26 arranged in the second direction D2. The through-hole group 26 is located between the first mask edge 20c and the second mask edge 20d in the first direction D1 and between the pair of overlapping portions 21 in the second direction D2.

As shown in FIG. 3, the through hole 25 extends from the first mask surface 20a to the second mask surface 20b and penetrates the vapor deposition mask 20. In FIG. 3, for simplification of the drawing, the wall surface of the through hole 25 is inclined linearly with respect to the central axis CL so as to move away from the central axis CL from the first mask surface 20a toward the second mask surface 20b. An example of doing this is shown. As described above, the wall surface of the through hole 25 may be formed so that the opening dimension on the first mask surface 20a is smaller than the opening dimension on the second mask surface 20b. In this case, the vapor-deposited material 82 flying from the crucible 81 of the thin-film deposition apparatus 80 reaches the second mask surface 20b before reaching the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91, or reaches and adheres to the wall surface of the through hole 25. Can be suppressed. That is, it is possible to prevent the thickness of the light emitting layer 92 formed on the film-deposited substrate 91 from becoming thin in the vicinity of the wall surface of the through hole 25. As a result, it is possible to prevent the adhesion of the vapor-deposited material 82 to the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 from being hindered by the wall surface of the through hole 25 (also referred to as shadow). Therefore, the shape accuracy and the position accuracy of the light emitting layer 92 (see FIG. 21) formed by the thin-film deposition material 82 adhered to the thin-film deposition substrate 91 can be improved, and the fineness of the light emitting layer 92 can be improved. Although a more detailed description of the cross-sectional shape of the through hole 25 is omitted here, the shape of the wall surface may be curved depending on the manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask 20, and may be arbitrary. ..

As shown in FIG. 6, the through hole 25 may form the above-mentioned through hole group 26. The through-hole group 26 overlaps the frame opening 16 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) of the frame 15 described above, and is exposed from the frame opening 16. All through-hole groups 26 may overlap the frame opening 16. As shown in FIG. 6, the through-hole group 26 may be configured such that two or more through-holes 25 form a group. The through-hole group 26 is used as a term meaning an aggregate of a plurality of through-holes 25 that are regularly arranged. The outer edge through hole 25 that constitutes one through hole group 26 is the outermost through hole 25 among the plurality of through holes 25 that are similarly regularly arranged. On the outside of the through holes 25 on the outer edge, there may not be through holes 25 that are similarly regularly arranged and intended to allow the vapor deposition material 82 to pass through. However, through holes and recesses (neither shown) for other purposes may be formed on the outside of the through holes 25 on the outer edge. The through holes and recesses for these other uses may be formed without regularity in the arrangement of the through holes 25, and may be considered not to belong to the through hole group 26.

As shown in FIG. 2, the plurality of through-hole groups 26 may be arranged at predetermined intervals (at a predetermined pitch). The through-hole groups 26 may be arranged at predetermined intervals in the second direction D2. Although not shown, the through-hole group 26 may be arranged in the first direction D1 and the second direction D2, respectively, and may be arranged in parallel. That is, each through hole group 26 forming one row along the first direction D1 and each through hole group 26 forming another row adjacent to the row in the second direction D2 are in the second direction D2. May be aligned in.

As shown in FIG. 6, in one through hole group 26, the plurality of through holes 25 may be arranged at predetermined intervals (at a predetermined pitch). The through holes 25 are arranged with a predetermined interval (reference numeral C1 shown in FIG. 6) in the first direction D1 and at a predetermined interval (reference numeral C2 shown in FIG. 6) in the second direction D2. You may be. The arrangement pitches C1 and C2 of the through holes 25 may be different in the first direction D1 and the second direction D2, but may be the same. FIG. 6 shows an example in which the arrangement pitch C1 in the first direction D1 and the arrangement pitch C2 in the second direction D2 are equal. As shown in FIG. 6, the through holes 25 may be arranged in parallel. More specifically, each through hole 25 forming one row along the first direction D1 and each through hole 25 forming another row adjacent to the row in the second direction D2 are second. It may be aligned in direction D2. The arrangement pitches C1 and C2 of the through holes 25 may be defined as follows, for example, according to the pixel density of the display device or the projection device.
-When the pixel density is 600 ppi or more: Pitch is 42.3 μm or less-When the pixel density is 1200 ppi or more: Pitch is 21.2 μm or less-When the pixel density is 3000 ppi or more: Pitch is 8.5 μm or less-Pixel density is 5000 ppi In the above case: Pitch is 5.1 μm or less

A display device or projection device having a pixel density of 600 ppi may be used to display an image or video at a distance of about 15 cm from the eyeball, and may be used, for example, as an organic EL display device for a smartphone. A display device or projection device having a pixel density of 1200 ppi may be used to display an image or video at a distance of about 8 cm from the eyeball. For example, an image or video for expressing virtual reality (so-called VR) may be displayed. It may be used for display or projection. A display device or projection device having a pixel density of 3000 ppi may be used to display an image or video at a distance of about 3 cm from the eyeball. For example, an image or video for expressing augmented reality (so-called AR) may be displayed. It may be used for display or projection. A display device or projection device having a pixel density of 5000 ppi may be used to display an image or video at a distance of about 2 cm from the eyeball, and for example, display or project an image or video for expressing augmented reality. May be used for.

The through holes 25 in one through hole group 26 may be arranged in a staggered arrangement (not shown) instead of in a parallel arrangement. That is, each through hole 25 forming one row along the first direction D1 and each through hole 25 forming another row adjacent to the row in the second direction D2 are aligned in the second direction D2. It does not have to be. The through holes 25 forming one row and the through holes 25 forming another adjacent row may be arranged so as to be offset in the first direction D1. The amount of deviation may be half of the arrangement pitch C1 in the first direction D1, but the amount of deviation is arbitrary.

As shown in FIG. 6, the through hole 25 may have a substantially rectangular contour in a plan view. In this case, the four corners of the contour of the through hole 25 may be curved. The shape of the contour can be arbitrarily determined according to the shape of the pixel. For example, it may have other polygonal shapes such as hexagons and octagons, and may have a circular shape. Moreover, the shape of the contour may be a combination of a plurality of shapes. Further, the through holes 25 may have different contour shapes from each other. When the through hole 25 has a polygonal contour, the opening dimension of the through hole 25 may be the distance between a pair of opposite sides in the polygon, as shown in FIG.

In FIGS. 3 and 6, the opening size of the through hole 25 on the first mask surface 20a of the vapor deposition mask 20 is indicated by reference numeral S1. Further, the opening size of the through hole 25 on the second mask surface 20b of the vapor deposition mask 20 is indicated by reference numeral S2. Further, reference numeral S3 indicates the distance between the through holes 25 adjacent to each other on the first mask surface 20a. In FIG. 6, since the planar shape of the through hole 25 is square, the opening size of the through hole 25 in the first direction D1 and the opening size of the through hole 25 in the second direction D2 are equal to each other. Typically, the dimensions of the through hole 25 in the second direction D2 are indicated by reference numerals S1 and S2.

Dimension S1, Dimension S2, and Dimension S3 are defined as shown in Table 1 below, for example, according to the pixel density of the display device or the projection device.

By the way, the through-hole group 26 may be referred to as an effective region 27. The region located around the effective region 27 may be referred to as the peripheral region 28. In this embodiment, the peripheral region 28 surrounds one effective region 27.

When a display device such as an organic EL display device is manufactured using the vapor deposition mask 20, one effective region 27 corresponds to a display area of one organic EL display device. Therefore, according to the thin-film deposition mask 20 shown in FIG. 2, multi-sided vapor deposition of the organic EL display device is possible. In some cases, one effective area 27 corresponds to a plurality of display areas.

The effective region 27 may have a substantially rectangular contour in a plan view, for example, as shown in FIG. The contour of the effective region 27 may be defined by a line tangent from the outside to the outermost through hole 25 of the corresponding through hole group 26. More specifically, the contour of the effective region 27 may be defined by a line tangent to the opening of the through hole 25. In the example shown in FIG. 6, since the through holes 25 are arranged in parallel, the contour of the effective region 27 is a contour having a substantially rectangular shape. Although not shown, each effective region 27 can have contours having various shapes depending on the shape of the display region of the organic EL display device. For example, each effective region 27 may have a circular contour.

As shown in FIG. 3, the vapor deposition mask 20 has a thickness H2 extending from the first mask surface 20a to the second mask surface 20b. The thickness H2 may be, for example, 2 μm or more, 5 μm or more, 10 μm or more, or 15 μm or more. By setting the thickness H2 to 2 μm or more, the mechanical strength of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be ensured. Further, the thickness H2 may be, for example, 20 μm or less, 30 μm or less, 40 μm or less, or 50 μm or less. By setting the thickness H2 to 50 μm or less, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of shadows. The range of thickness H2 may be defined by a first group consisting of 2 μm, 5 μm, 10 μm and 15 μm and / or a second group consisting of 20 μm, 30 μm, 40 μm and 50 μm. The range of the thickness H2 may be determined by a combination of any one of the values included in the first group described above and any one of the values included in the second group described above. The range of the thickness H2 may be defined by any combination of two of the values included in the first group described above. The range of the thickness H2 may be defined by any combination of two of the values included in the second group described above. For example, it may be 2 μm or more and 50 μm or less, 2 μm or more and 40 μm or less, 2 μm or more and 30 μm or less, 2 μm or more and 20 μm or less, or 2 μm or more and 15 μm or less. It may be 2 μm or more and 10 μm or less, 2 μm or more and 5 μm or less, 5 μm or more and 50 μm or less, 5 μm or more and 40 μm or less, or 5 μm or more and 30 μm or less. It may be 5 μm or more and 20 μm or less, 5 μm or more and 15 μm or less, 5 μm or more and 10 μm or less, 10 μm or more and 50 μm or less, or 10 μm or more and 40 μm or less. It may be 10 μm or more and 30 μm or less, 10 μm or more and 20 μm or less, 10 μm or more and 15 μm or less, 15 μm or more and 50 μm or less, or 15 μm or more and 40 μm or less. It may be 15 μm or more and 30 μm or less, 15 μm or more and 20 μm or less, 20 μm or more and 50 μm or less, 20 μm or more and 40 μm or less, or 20 μm or more and 30 μm or less. It may be 30 μm or more and 50 μm or less, 30 μm or more and 40 μm or less, or 40 μm or more and 50 μm or less.

The vapor deposition mask 20 may be made of, for example, an iron alloy containing nickel. The iron alloy may further contain cobalt in addition to nickel. For example, as a material for the vapor deposition mask 20, an iron alloy having a total content of nickel and cobalt of 30% by mass or more and 54% by mass or less and a cobalt content of 0% by mass or more and 6% by mass or less is used. Can be used. Specific examples of the nickel-containing iron alloy include an Invar material containing 34% by mass or more and 38% by mass or less of nickel, a low thermal expansion Fe-Ni based plating alloy containing 38% by mass or more and 54% by mass or less of nickel, and the like. Can be mentioned. Specific examples of the iron alloy containing nickel and cobalt include a superinvar material containing cobalt in addition to nickel of 30% by mass or more and 34% by mass or less. By using such an iron alloy, the coefficient of thermal expansion of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be lowered. For example, when a glass substrate is used as the substrate to be deposited 91, the coefficient of thermal expansion of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be set to a value as low as that of the glass substrate. As a result, during the vapor deposition process, the shape accuracy and position accuracy of the light emitting layer 92 formed on the vapor deposition substrate 91 are reduced due to the difference in the coefficient of thermal expansion between the vapor deposition mask 20 and the vapor deposition substrate 91. Can be suppressed.

As the material constituting the vapor deposition mask 20, if the coefficient of thermal expansion does not have to be as low as that of the glass substrate, it may be composed of, for example, a single nickel instead of the above-mentioned iron alloy. , Or may be composed of a nickel alloy containing cobalt. When composed of a nickel alloy containing cobalt, a nickel alloy having a cobalt content of 8% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less can be used as the material of the vapor deposition mask 20. By using such nickel or nickel alloy, when the vapor deposition mask 20 is manufactured by a plating process, the plating solution for precipitating the plating film forming the vapor deposition mask 20 can be stabilized, and the management is facilitated. Handleability can be improved. Further, the components of the plating film can be made uniform, and the quality of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be improved.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4A, each vapor deposition mask 20 is joined and fixed to the frame 15. For example, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be joined to the frame 15 by welding. For example, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be joined to the frame 15 by a welded portion 30 formed by spot welding. As shown in FIG. 5, the welded portion 30 may be formed at a position between the frame opening 16 and the frame groove 18. As shown in FIG. 2, one thin-film deposition mask 20 may be joined to the frame 15 by a plurality of spot-shaped welds 30. In this case, the plurality of welded portions 30 may be arranged in the first direction D1. Alternatively, although not shown, the welded portion 30 may be formed so as to extend continuously in the first direction D1.

As shown in FIG. 2, two alignment masks 70 may be provided on the frame 15. On the other hand, the alignment mask 70 is located on the side of the frame wall surface 17d with respect to the vapor deposition mask 20 located closest to the frame wall surface 17d. The other alignment mask 70 is located on the side of the frame wall surface 17c with respect to the vapor deposition mask 20 located closest to the frame wall surface 17c. In FIG. 2, one alignment mask 70 is located on the left side of the vapor deposition mask 20 located on the leftmost side, and the other alignment mask 70 is located on the right side of the vapor deposition mask 20 located on the rightmost side. The alignment mask 70 is joined to the first frame surface 15a of the frame 15. The alignment mask 70 may be stretched and fixed to the frame 15.

Each alignment mask 70 includes two mask alignment marks 71. Each mask alignment mark 71 is located at a position where it overlaps the corresponding frame alignment mark 19 in a plan view. The mask alignment mark 71 may penetrate the alignment mask 70 when it is irradiated with light to align with the frame alignment mark 19. However, the mask alignment mark 71 does not have to penetrate the alignment mask 70 as long as it can be aligned with the frame alignment mark 19. The planar shape of the mask alignment mark 71 is arbitrary, but in FIG. 2, it is a circular shape as an example. The diameter of the mask alignment mark 71 may be smaller than the diameter of the frame alignment mark 19.

Next, a method of manufacturing the vapor deposition mask device 10 according to the present embodiment having such a configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 18. The manufacturing method of the vapor deposition mask device 10 according to the present embodiment includes a frame preparation step, a mask preparation step, a holding step, an arrangement step, a mask alignment step, a joining step, a removing step, and a cutting step. You may have it.

First, as a frame preparation step, the above-mentioned frame 15 is prepared. The frame 15 can be manufactured by any manufacturing method. For example, the frame 15 shown in FIGS. 2 to 4B may be manufactured by machining a plate material, a forged material, or the like. The frame 15 may be attached to a stretching device (not shown). After that, the alignment mask 70 (see FIG. 2) may be stretched and joined to the frame 15. At this time, the mask alignment mark 71 of the alignment mask 70 is aligned with the frame alignment mark 19 of the frame 15.

Further, as a mask preparation step, the above-mentioned vapor deposition mask 20 is prepared. As described above, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be manufactured by any manufacturing method such as etching treatment or plating treatment of the rolled material.

Subsequently, as a holding step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is held by a mechanical mask clamp 60. In this case, as shown in FIG. 7, the held portions 23b of the removed portions 23 located at both ends of the vapor deposition mask 20 in the second direction D2 may be gripped by the mask clamp 60 (see FIG. 10). .. One held portion 23b may be held by two mask clamps 60 at different positions in the first direction D1. A drive unit 60D may be connected to each mask clamp 60. The drive unit 60D may be configured so that each mask clamp 60 can be individually pulled. The drive unit 60D may apply the first tension T1 in the second direction D2 to the vapor deposition mask 20 by pulling each mask clamp 60 in the second direction D2. The first tension T1 is the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the holding step. The first tension T1 may be a relatively small value capable of suppressing the vapor deposition mask 20 from bending significantly. Here, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 from the mask clamp 60, and each mask clamp 60 pulls the vapor deposition mask 20, resulting in the vapor deposition mask. It may be the tension applied to 20. The tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 may be confirmed by a display unit (not shown) of the drive unit 60D or the like. When the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15, the tension in the effective region 27 of the vapor deposition mask 20 becomes smaller than the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 from the mask clamp 60.

Next, as an arrangement step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is arranged on the frame 15 as shown in FIG. More specifically, first, the vapor deposition mask 20 is placed above the frame 15, and then the vapor deposition mask 20 is lowered to bring it into contact with the frame 15. In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, the overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 overlaps the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b and also overlaps with the first frame surface 15a in a plan view. Further, the first wall surface edge 17e is arranged so as to extend linearly in the first direction D1 from the first mask edge 20c of the vapor deposition mask 20 to the second mask edge 20d. The vapor deposition mask 20 is arranged so that the direction perpendicular to the first wall surface edge 17e and the frame groove 18 is the longitudinal direction. In the arranging step, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be in a state where the above-mentioned first tension T1 is applied continuously from the holding step.

Next, as a mask alignment step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is aligned with the frame 15 as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B. In the mask alignment step, the thin-film deposition mask 20 is pulled in the second direction D2 by the second tension T2, and the thin-film deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15. The second tension T2 is the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the mask alignment step. The second tension T2 may have a value larger than that of the first tension T1 described above.

Even if the mask alignment step includes a tension increasing step, a first through hole confirmation step, a moving step, a second through hole checking step, a tension adjusting step, and a third through hole checking step. good. The first through hole confirmation step is an example of the first confirmation step. The second through hole confirmation step is an example of the second confirmation step and also an example of the third confirmation step. The third through hole confirmation step is an example of the fourth confirmation step.

In the tension increasing step, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is increased. More specifically, the drive unit 60D (see FIG. 7) described above increases the tensile force of each mask clamp 60. As a result, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 increases from the first tension T1 to the second tension T2.

In the first through hole confirmation step, as shown in FIG. 9A, the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 is confirmed. More specifically, it may be confirmed whether or not the position of the through hole 25 is positioned within an allowable range with respect to a desired position. For example, the coordinates of the through hole 25 with respect to an arbitrarily set origin may be measured, and the measured coordinates may be compared with the target coordinates of the through hole 25. For example, the coordinates of the through hole 25 may be measured with the center of the four mask alignment marks 71 (see FIG. 2) as the origin. For example, the intersection of two straight lines passing through the centers of the two mask alignment marks 71 located on the diagonal line may be used as the origin. The center of the mask alignment mark 71 may be measured by taking an image from below the alignment mask 70 with the camera 61 and performing image analysis. The coordinates of the through hole 25 may be the center point of the through hole 25 in a plan view. The coordinates of the through hole 25 may be measured by taking an image from below the vapor deposition mask 20 with the camera 61 and performing image analysis. The coordinates may be measured in the plurality of through holes 25, and the positions of the plurality of through holes 25 may be confirmed. Based on the confirmation result of the position of these through holes 25, the amount of misalignment and the direction of misalignment may be obtained. In the first through hole confirmation step, the above-mentioned second tension T2 may be applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 and the vapor deposition mask 20 may be pressed against the frame 15.

As a result of confirming the position of the through hole 25 in the first through hole confirmation step, if the through hole 25 is positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the mask alignment step is terminated and the joining step is started. You may migrate. In this case, the moving step and the like described later can be eliminated. When the through hole 25 is positioned within the permissible range, the second tension T2 applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the first through hole confirmation step becomes equal to the joint tension T4 described later. On the other hand, when the position of the through hole 25 is not positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the moving step is performed.

In the moving step, as shown in FIG. 9B, the vapor deposition mask 20 is moved in any direction within the two-dimensional plane defined by the first direction D1 and the second direction D2. For example, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be moved in the first direction D1 in FIG. 10, or the vapor deposition mask 20 may be moved in the second direction D2. Alternatively, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be rotated in a plan view. Here, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be moved with respect to the frame 15 by moving each mask clamp 60. In the moving step, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be moved based on the position confirmation result of the through hole 25 in the first through hole confirmation step described above. The amount of movement of the vapor deposition mask 20 may be a value corresponding to the amount of misalignment obtained in the first through hole confirmation step. The moving direction of the vapor deposition mask 20 may be a direction corresponding to the misalignment direction obtained in the first through hole confirmation step. In the moving step, the vapor deposition mask 20 moves with respect to the frame 15 while being pressed against the frame 15 without being raised. As a result, it is not necessary to raise and lower the vapor deposition mask 20 in order to move it, and the time required for the mask alignment step can be shortened. In the moving step, the above-mentioned second tension T2 may be applied to the vapor deposition mask 20.

In the second through hole confirmation step, the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 is confirmed. The second through hole confirmation step may be performed in the same manner as the first through hole confirmation step.

As a result of confirming the position of the through hole 25 in the second through hole confirmation step, if the through hole 25 is positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the mask alignment step is terminated and the joining step is started. You may migrate. In this case, the tension adjusting step described later can be eliminated. When the through hole 25 is positioned within the permissible range, the second tension T2 applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the second through hole confirmation step becomes equal to the joint tension T4 described later. On the other hand, when the position of the through hole 25 is not positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the tension adjusting step is performed.

In the tension adjusting step, as shown in FIG. 9C, the second tension T2 applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is adjusted based on the position confirmation result of the through hole 25 in the second through hole confirmation step. More specifically, the force with which the drive unit 60D pulls each mask clamp 60 is adjusted so that each through hole 25 is positioned within an allowable range with respect to a desired position. As a result, the position of the through hole 25 can be adjusted so that the corresponding through hole 25 can be aligned with each first electrode 94 of the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited in the adhesion step described later. Further, the amount of deflection of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be adjusted to a desired amount of deflection. By individually adjusting the tensile force of each mask clamp 60, the positions of some of the through holes 25 among all the through holes 25 of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be adjusted, and each through hole 25 can be adjusted within an allowable range. It can be positioned inside. In the tension adjusting step, the position of the through hole 25 may be adjusted by changing the tension without moving each mask clamp 60. The tensile force of each mask clamp 60 is adjusted individually, and as a result, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is adjusted. The adjusted tension is defined as the third tension T3. Also in the tension adjusting step, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be pressed against the frame 15. The difference between the third tension T3 and the second tension T2 may be smaller than the difference between the first tension T1 and the second tension.

After that, the third through hole confirmation step is performed. In the third through hole confirmation step, the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 is confirmed in the same manner as in the first through hole confirmation step described above. In the third through hole confirmation step, the above-mentioned third tension T3 may be applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 and the vapor deposition mask 20 may be pressed against the frame 15.

As a result of confirming the position of the through hole 25 in the third through hole confirmation step, if the through hole 25 is positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the mask alignment step is terminated and the joining step is started. You may migrate. In this case, the third tension T3 applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the third through hole confirmation step becomes equal to the joint tension T4 described later. On the other hand, when the position of the through hole 25 is not positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the tension adjusting step and the third through hole confirmation step may be performed again. The tension adjusting step and the third through hole confirmation step may be repeated until the through hole 25 is positioned within an allowable range with respect to a desired position. The tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the final third through hole confirmation step may be the third tension T3. Depending on the position confirmation result by the second through hole confirmation step, the moving step may be performed again to move the vapor deposition mask 20 with respect to the frame 15. Depending on the position confirmation result by the third through hole confirmation step, the moving step may be performed again to move the vapor deposition mask 20 with respect to the frame 15.

Depending on the position confirmation result by the first through hole confirmation step, the tension adjusting step may be performed by omitting the moving step and the second through hole confirmation step. In other words, as the alignment step, the first through hole confirmation step and the second through hole confirmation step may be performed by omitting the first through hole confirmation step and the moving step.

As described above, in the mask alignment step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15. This pressing force may be such a force that the vapor deposition mask 20 can be prevented from floating from the frame 15. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, a case where each held portion 23b located on both sides in the first direction D1 of the vapor deposition mask 20 is held by two mask clamps 60 will be described. In the mask alignment step, the tension applied to one of the held portions 23b in the second direction D2 becomes the above-mentioned second tension. The same applies to the tension applied to the other held portion 23b. By relatively lowering the mask clamp 60 with this tension applied, the tension is converted into a pressing force, and the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15. For example, the second mask surface 20b in the held portion 23b held by the mask clamp 60 may be lowered from the first frame surface 15a by 0.25 mm to 1.00 mm. In this case, the thickness of the vapor deposition mask 20 may be 20 μm, the pixel density may be 600 ppi (corresponding to full high-definition), and the effective region 27 corresponding to the 5.5-inch display region may be used. The pressing force is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 by the downward displacement of the mask clamp 60. Therefore, the thin-film mask 20 receives a reaction force from the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b. However, as shown in FIG. 10, the vapor deposition mask 20 is framed 15 so that the first wall surface edge 17e extends linearly in the first direction D1 from the first mask edge 20c of the vapor deposition mask 20 to the second mask edge 20d. It is placed on top. As a result, the reaction force received from the first wall surface edge 17e can be made uniform over the width direction of the vapor deposition mask 20.

Here, in the case where the thin-film deposition substrate 91 constituting the organic EL display device 90 is held by the mechanical substrate clamp 63 (see FIG. 13) in the vapor deposition step described later, see FIGS. 11 to 13. I will explain. In this case, the substrate to be deposited 91 is brought into close contact with the vapor deposition mask 20 of the vapor deposition mask device 10 while being held by the substrate clamp 63. Since the vapor deposition mask 20 is joined to and fixed to the frame 15, a frame recess 40 for avoiding interference with the substrate clamp 63 is formed on the first frame surface 15a of the frame 15. As shown in FIG. 11, the frame recess 40 is formed in a rectangular shape so as to enter inward from the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b in a plan view. Similarly, the concave edge 41 on the side of the first frame surface 15a of the frame concave 40 is also formed in a rectangular shape so as to enter inward in a plan view. The overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 fixed to the frame 15 is arranged so as to partially overlap the frame recess 40. Since the frame 15 shown in FIG. 11 has the same shape as the frame 15 shown in FIGS. 2 to 4A except that it has a frame recess 40, the same reference numerals will be used for convenience. ..

When the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the first frame surface 15a provided with such a frame recess 40, the vapor deposition mask 20 receives a reaction force from the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b, and the frame recess 40 It also receives a reaction force from the recessed edge 41 of the. The position of the first wall surface edge 17e in the second direction D2 is located outside the position of the concave end edge 41 in the second direction D2. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, the position where the reaction force is received from the first wall surface edge 17e is located relatively outside (left side in FIG. 12) in the second direction D2. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 13, the position where the reaction force is received from the concave edge 41 is located relatively inside (right side in FIG. 13) in the second direction D2. As described above, the position where the reaction force is received from the first wall surface edge 17e and the position where the reaction force is received from the concave end edge 41 are different in the second direction D2. Therefore, the reaction force received by the vapor deposition mask 20 from the frame 15 tends to be biased in the width direction of the vapor deposition mask 20.

That is, the position where the reaction force is received from the first wall surface edge 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b (see FIG. 12) is more for the mask than the position where the reaction force is received from the concave end edge 41 of the frame recess 40 (see FIG. 13). It becomes close to the clamp 60. Therefore, the reaction force received from the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b can be larger than the reaction force received from the recessed edge 41 of the frame recess 40. In particular, the reaction force can be large near the intersection of the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b and the recessed edge 41 of the frame recess 40 (corner portion 15e of the first frame surface 15a in a plan view). Therefore, the stress generated in the vapor deposition mask 20 tends to be concentrated at the corner portion 15e. If the vapor deposition mask 20 is moved while being pressed against the frame 15 in this state, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be deformed or damaged at the corners 15e.

Therefore, when the vapor deposition mask 20 is moved to align the vapor deposition mask 20 with the frame 15 shown in FIG. 11, the vapor deposition mask 20 is raised instead of being moved while being pressed against the frame 15. The vapor deposition mask 20 is moved in a state of being separated from the first frame surface 15a. Then, when the moving step of the vapor deposition mask 20 is completed, the vapor deposition mask 20 is lowered and pressed against the frame 15 again to perform the confirmation step. As described above, since the raising step and the lowering step of the vapor deposition mask 20 are added in the mask alignment step, a lot of time is spent in the mask alignment step of the vapor deposition mask 20.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 is held by the electrostatic chuck 84 as shown in FIG. 21 described later, without using the mechanical substrate clamp 63. Since the electrostatic chuck 84 is located above the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited, there is no portion protruding below or to the side of the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited. This makes it unnecessary to form the frame recess 40 as shown in FIG. 11 in the frame 15. Therefore, the first wall surface edge 17e that overlaps the overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be formed so as to extend linearly in the first direction D1 from the first mask edge 20c of the vapor deposition mask 20 to the second mask edge 20d. can. Therefore, the reaction force received by the vapor deposition mask 20 from the frame 15 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 from the first wall surface edge 17e, and the reaction force received from the first wall surface edge 17e can be made uniform in the width direction. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the concentration of stress generated in the vapor deposition mask 20 due to the reaction force received by the vapor deposition mask 20 from the frame 15.

Even if the vapor deposition mask 20 is moved while being pressed against the frame 15 in this state, it is possible to prevent the vapor deposition mask 20 from being deformed or damaged. Therefore, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be moved while being pressed against the frame 15, and the raising step and the lowering step of the vapor deposition mask 20 as in the examples shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 are not required in the mask alignment step. Can be done. Therefore, the time required for the mask alignment step of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be shortened.

After the mask alignment step, as a joining step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is joined to the frame 15 as shown in FIG. In the joining step, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be pulled in the second direction D2 by the joining tension T4 and pressed against the frame 15. The joining tension T4 is the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the joining step. The joining tension T4 may be the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the mask alignment step. That is, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 may not change from the end of the mask alignment step to the joining step. In other words, in the mask alignment step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is aligned with the bonding tension T4 applied. Further, the pressing force of the vapor deposition mask 20 on the frame 15 may be unchanged from the end of the mask alignment step to the joining step.

For example, the joint tension T4 may be the second tension T2 applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the first through hole confirmation step described above. More specifically, as a result of confirming the position of the through hole 25 in the first through hole confirmation step described above, when the position of the through hole 25 is positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the mask position The matching process is completed. In this case, the bonding step may be performed while the state in which the second tension T2 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is maintained in the first through hole confirmation step. That is, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 does not change from the end of the first through hole confirmation step to the joining step. In other words, in the first through hole confirmation step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20, and the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 is confirmed. Further, the pressing force of the vapor deposition mask 20 against the frame 15 may be unchanged from the end of the first through hole confirmation step to the joining step.

Alternatively, for example, the joint tension T4 may be the second tension T2 applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the above-mentioned second through hole confirmation step. More specifically, as a result of confirming the position of the through hole 25 in the second through hole confirmation step described above, when the position of the through hole 25 is positioned within the allowable range with respect to the desired position, the mask position The matching process is completed. In this case, the bonding step may be performed while the state in which the second tension T2 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is maintained in the second through hole confirmation step. That is, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 does not change from the end of the second through hole confirmation step to the joining step. In other words, in the second through hole confirmation step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20, and the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 is confirmed. Further, the pressing force of the vapor deposition mask 20 against the frame 15 may be unchanged from the end of the second through hole confirmation step to the joining step.

Alternatively, for example, the joint tension T4 may be the third tension T3 described above. More specifically, when the above-mentioned tension adjusting step is performed, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 becomes the third tension T3 adjusted from the second tension T2. In the third through hole confirmation step, the bonding step may be performed while the state in which the third tension T3 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is maintained. That is, the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 does not change from the end of the third through hole confirmation step to the joining step. In other words, in the third through hole confirmation step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20, and the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 is confirmed. Further, the pressing force of the vapor deposition mask 20 against the frame 15 may be unchanged from the end of the third through hole confirmation step to the joining step.

In the joining step, a welded portion 30 (an example of a joining portion) extending from the overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 to the frame 15 is formed in a state where the above-mentioned bonding tension T4 is applied. For example, the vapor deposition mask 20 may be bonded to the frame 15 by spot welding with the laser beam L. In this case, as shown in FIG. 14, the first mask surface 20a of the vapor deposition mask 20 is irradiated with the laser beam L, and the first mask surface 20a to the second mask surface 20b in the region irradiated with the laser beam L are formed. A fused portion may be formed in a region extending beyond the frame 15. When the irradiation of the laser beam L is completed, the molten portion may be cooled and solidified to form the welded portion 30 as shown in FIG. In this way, the vapor deposition mask 20 is joined to and fixed to the frame 15.

After the joining step, as a removing step, the mask clamp 60 is removed from the vapor deposition mask 20 as shown in FIG. In this way, as shown in FIG. 16, one vapor deposition mask 20 is fixed to the frame 15.

The removed mask clamp 60 then picks up and holds the vapor deposition mask 20 bonded to the frame 15. Then, by performing each of the above-mentioned steps, the vapor deposition mask 20 is aligned with the frame 15 and stretched and joined (see the vapor deposition mask 20 shown by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 16). Then, by repeating each step in the same manner, as shown in FIG. 17, a desired number of thin-film deposition masks 20 are aligned with the frame 15 and stretched and joined.

In this way, as shown in FIG. 17, an intermediate 50 of the thin-film deposition mask device in which a plurality of thin-film deposition masks 20 are bonded to the frame 15 is obtained. The intermediate 50 of the vapor deposition mask device is composed of a vapor deposition mask 20 at a stage before the cutting step described later and a frame 15. Therefore, the thin-film mask 20 that constitutes the intermediate 50 of the thin-film mask device is in a state in which the removed portion 23 that is cut and removed in the cutting step remains. In this respect, the intermediate 50 of the vapor deposition masking apparatus and the vapor deposition masking apparatus 10 may be distinguished.

Then, as a cutting step, as shown in FIG. 18, the overlapping portion 21 of each vapor deposition mask 20 is cut (also referred to as trimming). In this case, the vapor deposition mask 20 is cut at a position outside the welded portion 30 in the overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 in the second direction D2, and the removed portion 23 which is a portion outside the cut position is removed. NS. The cutting blade 62 for cutting the vapor deposition mask 20 cuts the vapor deposition mask 20 while being partially inserted into the frame groove 18 provided on the first frame surface 15a of the frame 15. Then, as shown in FIG. 19, the vapor deposition mask 20 is sequentially cut while advancing in the first direction D1 along the frame groove 18. As a result, each vapor deposition mask 20 is cut along the frame groove 18. The two overlapping portions 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 may be cut separately by one cutting blade 62 (see FIG. 19), or may be cut simultaneously by two cutting blades 62.

In this way, the vapor deposition mask device 10 shown in FIG. 2 is obtained.

Next, a method of manufacturing the organic EL display device using the vapor deposition mask device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 20 to 22.

Here, the organic EL display device 90 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 20 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the organic EL display device 90. The organic EL display device 90 includes a light emitting layer 92 (an example of a thin-film deposition layer) formed on the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited by using the vapor-film mask device 10 according to the present embodiment described above. One organic EL display device 90 may correspond to one display area.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 20, a plurality of elements 93 are provided side by side on one surface of the film-deposited substrate 91. Although not shown, the elements 93 may be arranged in the depth direction of FIG. 20. The element 93 is configured as a pixel, and includes a first electrode 94 located on the film-deposited substrate 91, an energizing layer 95 located on the first electrode 94, and a second electrode 96 located on the energizing layer 95. , May have. The energizing layer 95 may include a light emitting layer 92. One organic EL display device 90 is composed of a plurality of elements 93. A plurality of elements 93 of the organic EL display device 90 may be formed on one film-deposited substrate 91 and mounted on multiple surfaces. In this case, the individual organic EL display device 90 can be obtained by cutting the film-deposited substrate 91 for each organic EL display device 90. In FIG. 20, as an example, an example in which two organic EL display devices 90 are formed on one film-deposited substrate 91 is shown.

The substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited may be a plate-shaped member having an insulating property. The film-deposited substrate 91 may have a light transmissive property for transmitting light. The film-deposited substrate 91 may be, for example, a glass substrate or a silicon substrate. Further, the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited may be made of, for example, quartz, a light-transmitting polyimide, or a light-transmitting liquid crystal polymer.

The first electrode 94 contains a material having conductivity. For example, the first electrode 94 may contain a metal, a conductive metal oxide, or other inorganic material. The first electrode 94 may contain a metal oxide having light transmittance and conductivity, such as indium tin oxide.

As described above, the energizing layer 95 may include a light emitting layer 92 that emits light when energized. In this case, the energizing layer 95 may further include a hole injection layer, a hole transport layer, an electron transport layer, an electron injection layer, and the like. For example, when the first electrode 94 is an anode and the second electrode 96 is a cathode, a hole injection layer, a hole transport layer, a light emitting layer 92, an electron transport layer, and an electron injection are performed on the first electrode 94. The layers and the second electrode 96 are laminated in this order. Energization means that a voltage is applied to the energizing layer 95 or a current flows through the energizing layer 95. In FIG. 20, the hole injection layer, the hole transport layer, the electron transport layer, and the electron injection layer are omitted for simplification of the drawings.

The second electrode 96 contains a conductive material such as metal. Examples of materials constituting the second electrode 96 include platinum, gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, chromium, aluminum, indium, lithium, sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, chromium, carbon and alloys thereof. Can be mentioned.

When displaying an image on the organic EL display device 90, a voltage is applied between the first electrode 94 and the second electrode 96 constituting the element 93. As a result, light is emitted from the light emitting layer 92 of the element 93, and the emitted light is taken out from the side of the first electrode 94 or the side of the first electrode 94. By controlling the emission of light from the light emitting layer 92 in each element 93, a desired image is displayed.

Such a method of manufacturing the organic EL display device 90 may include a step of adhering the thin-film deposition material 82 to the thin-film deposition substrate 91 to form the light-emitting layer 92 by using the thin-film deposition mask device 10. More specifically, even if the method for manufacturing the organic EL display device according to the present embodiment includes a substrate preparation step to be vapor-deposited, a device preparation step, a device alignment step, a close contact step, and a vapor deposition step. good.

First, as the process of preparing the substrate to be vapor-deposited, the above-mentioned substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited may be prepared.

Further, as the device preparation step, the above-mentioned vapor deposition mask device 10 may be prepared.

After the device preparation step, the vapor deposition mask device 10 is aligned with the vapor deposition substrate 91 as a device alignment step. In the device alignment step, the position of the thin-film deposition mask device 10 with respect to the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 is confirmed. For example, the position of the frame 15 with respect to the film-deposited substrate 91 may be adjusted so that the mask alignment mark 71 of the alignment mask 70 and the corresponding alignment mark (not shown) of the film-deposited substrate 91 are aligned. .. This makes it possible to adjust the position of the thin-film deposition mask 20 with respect to the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91.

After the device alignment step, as a close contact step, as shown in FIG. 21, the vapor deposition mask 20 of the vapor deposition mask device 10 may be brought into close contact with the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited. The first mask surface 20a of the thin-film deposition mask 20 may be brought into close contact with the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91. More specifically, first, the vapor deposition mask device 10 is arranged in the vapor deposition device 80 so that the first mask surface 20a of the vapor deposition mask 20 is arranged above. Further, the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited is held by the electrostatic chuck 84 from above. Subsequently, the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 is arranged above the thin-film deposition mask 20 while being held by the electrostatic chuck 84. Next, the lower surface (deposited surface) of the film-deposited substrate 91 and the first mask surface 20a of the vapor-deposited mask 20 are abutted against each other. At this time, the substrate 91 to be deposited and the vapor deposition mask 20 are aligned.

Next, the magnet 85 is arranged on the upper surface of the electrostatic chuck 84, and the vapor deposition mask 20 is attracted to the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited by the magnetic force of the magnet 85. As a result, the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 comes into close contact with the first mask surface 20a of the thin-film deposition mask 20 (see FIG. 22). When the first electrode 94 is an anode, the first electrode 94, the hole injection layer and the hole transport layer constituting the current-carrying layer 95 are provided on the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 before the vapor deposition mask 20 is brought into close contact with the substrate 91. May be formed.

The vapor deposition mask 20 and the substrate to be deposited 91 may be brought into close contact with each other by an electrostatic chuck 84 instead of the magnet 85. In this case, after aligning the film-deposited substrate 91 and the film-deposited mask 20, the electrostatic force of the electrostatic chuck 84 is strengthened, and the electrostatic force of the electrostatic chuck 84 attracts the film-deposited mask 20 to the film-deposited substrate 91. Be done. In this way, the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91 may be brought into close contact with the first mask surface 20a of the thin-film deposition mask 20.

After the close contact step, as a vapor deposition step, as shown in FIG. 22, the vapor deposition material 82 may be vapor-deposited on the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited through the through holes 25 of the vapor deposition mask 20 to form the light emitting layer 92. The light emitting layer 92 is formed on the hole transport layer of the corresponding current-carrying layer 95. More specifically, the internal space of the thin-film deposition apparatus 80 is created in a vacuum atmosphere, and the vapor-deposited material 82 is evaporated to fly to the substrate to be vapor-deposited 91. The flying vapor deposition material 82 reaches and adheres to the hole transport layer of the desired current-carrying layer 95 through the through holes 25 of the vapor deposition mask 20. As a result, the light emitting layer 92 is formed on the film-deposited substrate 91 in a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the through holes 25.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the through holes 25 are arranged in a predetermined pattern in each effective region 27. If it is desired to display colors in a plurality of colors, a thin-film deposition mask device 10 provided with a thin-film deposition mask 20 corresponding to each color is prepared, and the hole transport layer of the corresponding current-carrying layer 95 is prepared in each thin-film deposition mask device 10. The vapor deposition material 82 of each color is attached to the surface. Thereby, for example, the organic light emitting material for red, the organic light emitting material for green, and the organic light emitting material for blue can be vapor-deposited on one substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited.

After the light emitting layer 92 is formed, the electron transport layer and the electron injection layer constituting the current-carrying layer 95 are formed on the light-emitting layer 92, and the current-carrying layer 95 is obtained. After that, the second electrode 96 is formed on each current-carrying layer 95.

In this way, the organic EL display device 90 in which the light emitting layers 92 of each color are formed on the substrate 91 to be vapor-deposited can be obtained.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15 in the mask alignment step of aligning the vapor deposition mask 20 with respect to the frame 15. During this time, the overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 overlaps with the first wall surface edge 17e on the side of the frame wall surface 17a and 17b of the frame 15 and the first frame surface 15a of the frame 15 in a plan view, and the first wall surface edge 17e is the vapor deposition mask. It is arranged so as to extend linearly in the first direction D1 from the first mask edge 20c of 20 to the second mask edge 20d. As a result, the reaction force received by the vapor deposition mask 20 from the frame 15 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 from the first wall surface edge 17e, and the reaction force received from the first wall surface edge 17e is made even in the width direction of the vapor deposition mask 20. Can be done. In this case, it is possible to prevent the stress generated in the vapor deposition mask 20 from being locally concentrated due to the reaction force received by the vapor deposition mask 20 from the frame 15. Therefore, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be moved while being pressed against the frame 15, and the time required for the mask alignment step of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be shortened.

Further, according to the present embodiment, in the joining step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is joined to the frame 15 while being pulled in the second direction D2 by the joining tension T4 and pressed against the frame 15. In the mask alignment step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20. This makes it possible to align the vapor deposition mask 20 with a tension equal to the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the joining step. Therefore, the position accuracy of the through hole 25 can be improved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the mask alignment step includes a first through hole confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 while pressing the vapor deposition mask 20 against the frame 15. As a result, the position of the through hole 25 can be confirmed in a state where the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15, and the alignment of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be efficiently performed. Therefore, the time required for the mask alignment step of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be further shortened. Further, in the first through hole confirmation step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20. As a result, the position of the through hole 25 can be confirmed with a tension equal to the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the joining step. Therefore, the position accuracy of the through hole 25 can be improved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, in the mask alignment step, the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15 and moved in any direction in the two-dimensional plane defined by the first direction D1 and the second direction D2. It has a moving process. As a result, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be moved two-dimensionally while being pressed against the frame 15, and the vapor deposition mask 20 can be efficiently aligned. Therefore, the time required for the mask alignment step of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be further shortened. Further, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be moved based on the position confirmation result of the through hole 25 in the first through hole confirmation step. As a result, the misalignment of the through hole 25 can be effectively eliminated. Also in this respect, the alignment of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be efficiently performed. Further, in the moving step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20. As a result, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be moved with a tension equal to the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the joining step. Therefore, the position accuracy of the through hole 25 can be improved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the mask alignment step includes a second through hole confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole 25 with respect to the frame 15 while pressing the vapor deposition mask 20 against the frame 15 after the moving step. ing. As a result, the position of the through hole 25 can be confirmed in a state where the vapor deposition mask 20 is pressed against the frame 15, and the alignment of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be efficiently performed. Therefore, the time required for the mask alignment step of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be further shortened. Further, in the second through hole confirmation step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20. As a result, the position of the through hole 25 can be confirmed with a tension equal to the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the joining step. Therefore, the position accuracy of the through hole 25 can be improved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, if the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is adjusted after confirming the position of the through hole 25 in the second through hole confirmation step, then the third through hole confirmation step is performed. The position of the through hole 25 is confirmed as. Then, in the third through hole confirmation step, the bonding tension T4 is applied to the vapor deposition mask 20. As a result, when the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 is adjusted, the position of the through hole 25 can be confirmed thereafter with a tension equal to the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the joining step. .. Therefore, the position accuracy of the through hole 25 can be improved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, after the welded portion 30 for joining the vapor deposition mask 20 to the frame 15 is formed, the overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 is located outside the welded portion 30 in the second direction D2. The vapor deposition mask 20 is cut. As a result, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be bonded to the frame 15 with the vapor deposition mask 20 aligned with respect to the frame 15, and the aligned state is maintained even after the vapor deposition mask 20 is cut. can do. Therefore, the position accuracy of the through hole 25 can be improved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, a frame groove 18 extending in the first direction D1 is provided on the first frame surface 15a of the frame 15, and the vapor deposition mask 20 is cut along the frame groove 18. As a result, even after the vapor deposition mask 20 is bonded to the frame 15, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be cut by using a cutting means such as a cutting blade 62. Therefore, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be cut efficiently. Further, since the frame groove 18 is provided on the first frame surface 15a, the vapor deposition mask 20 can be cut inside the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b in the second direction D2. As a result, the length of the vapor deposition mask 20 remaining outside the second direction D2 with respect to the welded portion 30 can be shortened. Therefore, the portion of the vapor deposition mask 20 that is released from tension after being joined to the frame 15 can be shortened. In this case, it is possible to prevent the cleaning liquid from remaining when the vapor deposition mask device 10 is washed, and it is possible to prevent problems from occurring due to the remaining cleaning liquid.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b of the frame 15 extend linearly from one vapor deposition mask 20 to the other vapor deposition mask 20 in the first direction D1. As a result, the influence of the reaction force received from the first wall surface edge 17e can be made common to each thin-film deposition mask 20. Therefore, the alignment of each vapor deposition mask 20 can be easily performed, and the positioning accuracy of the through hole 25 of each vapor deposition mask 20 can be improved. In particular, according to the present embodiment, the first wall surface edge 17e extends from the vapor deposition mask 20 located on the most one side in the first direction D1 to the vapor deposition mask 20 located on the side opposite to the vapor deposition mask 20 in the first direction. It extends in a straight line to D1. Therefore, the alignment of all the vapor deposition masks 20 can be facilitated, and the positioning accuracy of the through holes 25 of each vapor deposition mask 20 can be further improved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, when the thin-film deposition mask 20 of the thin-film deposition mask device 10 is brought into close contact with the thin-film deposition substrate 91, the thin-film deposition substrate 91 is held by the electrostatic chuck 84 from above. As a result, it is possible to avoid forming an obstacle that protrudes downward or sideways from the film-deposited substrate 91 and interferes with the frame 15. Therefore, the first wall surface edge 17e that overlaps the overlapping portion 21 of the vapor deposition mask 20 can be formed so as to extend in a straight line in the first direction D1.

In the above-described embodiment, the first wall surface edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b are located on the most opposite side of the vapor deposition mask 20 from the vapor deposition mask 20 located on the most one side in the first direction D1. An example in which the vapor deposition mask 20 extends in a straight line in the first direction D1 has been described. However, it is not limited to this. For at least one of the plurality of thin-film masks 20 bonded to the frame 15, the first wall edges 17e of the frame wall surfaces 17a and 17b are the first mask edges 20c of the thin-film mask 20 after the cutting step. It suffices to extend linearly in the first direction D1 from the first extension line 20e of the above to the second extension line 20f of the second mask edge 20d. Further, the first wall surface edge 17e may extend linearly for each thin-film deposition mask 20, and may not extend linearly from one vapor deposition mask 20 to another adjacent vapor deposition mask 20.

Claims (11)

The first frame surface, the second frame surface located on the side opposite to the first frame surface, the frame opening penetrating from the first frame surface to the second frame surface, and the frame opening in a plan view from the frame opening. A frame wall surface located on the outside and extending from the first frame surface toward the second frame surface, on the side of the first wall surface located on the side of the first frame surface and on the side of the second frame surface. A frame preparation step of preparing a frame having a frame wall surface including a second wall surface edge located, and a third frame surface extending outward from the second wall surface edge along the second frame surface in a plan view. ,
The first mask edge located on one side edge in the first direction, the second mask edge located on the other side edge in the first direction, and the second mask edge located on both sides in the second direction orthogonal to the first direction. A mask preparation step of preparing a vapor deposition mask having a pair of overlapping portions and a through hole located between the pair of overlapping portions.
The overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask overlaps the first wall surface edge in a plan view, and the first wall surface edge extends from the first mask edge of the vapor deposition mask to the second mask edge in the first direction. An arrangement step of arranging the vapor deposition mask on the frame so as to extend in a straight line,
After the placement step, a mask alignment step of aligning the vapor deposition mask with respect to the frame while pulling the vapor deposition mask in the second direction with a bonding tension and pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame.
A method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus, comprising: after the mask alignment step, a bonding step of pulling the vapor deposition mask in the second direction with the bonding tension and joining the vapor deposition mask to the frame while pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame. The mask alignment step includes a first confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole with respect to the frame while applying the bonding tension to the vapor deposition mask and pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame. The method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to claim 1. In the mask alignment step, based on the position confirmation result of the through hole in the first confirmation step, the bonding tension is applied to the vapor deposition mask and the vapor deposition mask is pressed against the frame in the first direction. The method for manufacturing a thin-film deposition mask device according to claim 2, further comprising a moving step of moving the mask device in any direction within the two-dimensional plane defined in the second direction. In the mask alignment step, after the moving step, a second confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole with respect to the frame while applying a bonding tension to the vapor deposition mask and pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame is performed. The method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus according to claim 3, which is possessed. The mask alignment step is
A third confirmation step of confirming the position of the through hole with respect to the frame while pressing the vapor deposition mask against the frame.
A tension adjusting step of adjusting the tension applied to the vapor deposition mask based on the position confirmation result of the through hole in the third confirmation step, and a tension adjusting step.
After the tension adjusting step, the vapor deposition mask is subjected to the bonding tension, and the vapor deposition mask is pressed against the frame to confirm the position of the through hole with respect to the frame. , The method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus according to claim 1. After the joining step, a cutting step of cutting the overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask is further provided.
In the joining step, a joining portion extending from the overlapping portion of the vapor deposition mask to the frame is formed.
Claim 1 in the cutting step, the vapor deposition mask is cut at a position outside the joint portion of the overlapped portion of the vapor deposition mask in the second direction, and a portion outside the cutting position is removed. The method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus according to any one of 5 to 5. A frame groove extending in the first direction is provided on the first frame surface of the frame.
The method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask device according to claim 6, wherein in the cutting step, the vapor deposition mask is cut along the frame groove. When two or more of the vapor deposition masks arranged in the first direction are joined to the frame, the first wall surface edge of the frame extends from one of the vapor deposition masks to the other vapor deposition masks in the first direction. The method for manufacturing a thin-film deposition mask device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, which extends in a straight line. The first wall surface edge of the frame extends linearly in the first direction from the vapor deposition mask located on the most unilateral side in the first direction to the vapor deposition mask located on the opposite side of the vapor deposition mask. The method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus according to claim 8. An apparatus preparation step for preparing the vapor deposition mask apparatus by the method for manufacturing a vapor deposition mask apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9.
A close contact step in which the thin-film mask of the thin-film mask device is brought into close contact with the substrate to be vapor-deposited.
A method for manufacturing an organic EL display device, comprising a vapor deposition step of forming a vapor deposition layer by vapor deposition of a vapor deposition material on the substrate to be deposited through the through holes of the vapor deposition mask. The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to claim 10, wherein in the close contact step, the vapor-deposited substrate is held by an electrostatic chuck from above.

Images