JP2022014197A - Management device, imprint device, and management method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a management device advantageous for properly determining a mold's replacement time.SOLUTION: The management device manages the maintenance treatment of a mold for molding a composition. The management device has an acquisition unit that acquires a cleaning history for each predetermined area obtained by dividing the area of the mold into a plurality of areas and a determination unit that determines a maintenance treatment for the mold on the basis of the cleaning history.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to a management device, an imprint device, and a management method.

With the increasing demand for miniaturization of semiconductor devices, in addition to the conventional photolithography technology, microfabrication technology that molds uncured resin (imprint material) on the substrate with a mold and forms a resin pattern on the substrate is available. It is attracting attention. Such a technique is also called an imprint technique, and can form a fine structure on the order of nanometers on a substrate.

As one of the imprint techniques, for example, there is a photocuring method. In the imprint apparatus adopting the photocuring method, first, the resin is supplied (coated) to the shot region (imprint region) on the substrate. Next, the uncured resin on the substrate and the mold are irradiated with light in contact with the mold to cure the resin, and the mold is separated from the cured resin to form a pattern on the substrate.

In the imprinting device, the mold and the resin on the substrate are brought into contact with each other, so that a cured resin may remain in the mold. If the imprinting process is performed with the cured resin remaining in the mold, the remaining resin may be transferred as it is, and defects (defects, etc.) may occur in the pattern formed on the substrate. Therefore, the mold needs to be cleaned regularly.

Several conventional cleaning techniques of this type have been disclosed. Patent Document 1 discloses the content of cleaning by setting different cleaning conditions for each mold region. Patent Document 2 discloses the content of acquiring the time-dependent change information of the mold from the cleaning information.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2020-13953 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-27623

However, since the mold is gradually consumed when cleaning is repeated, it is necessary to replace the mold at an appropriate timing by controlling the degree of consumption of the mold. In Patent Document 1, there is no such problem recognition, and it is not possible to appropriately determine the mold replacement time. Patent Document 2 does not mention the acquisition of the time-dependent change information of the mold for each region, and there is no recognition of the problem that the degree of wear of the mold differs depending on the region of the mold, so that the mold cannot be exchanged at an appropriate timing. There is a risk.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an advantageous management device for appropriately determining the mold replacement time.

In order to achieve the above object, the management device as one aspect of the present invention is a management device that manages the maintenance process of the mold for molding the composition, and the region of the mold is divided into a plurality of predetermined regions. It is characterized by having an acquisition unit for acquiring a cleaning history and a determination unit for determining a mold maintenance process based on the cleaning history.

According to the present invention, for example, it is possible to provide an advantageous management device for appropriately determining a mold replacement time.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the imprint apparatus. It is a figure which shows the configuration of the CPU of the management apparatus. It is a flowchart which determines the exchange timing of a mold. It is the figure which divided the area of a type into rectangles at a certain interval. It is the figure which divided the area of a type into the area based on the information of a type. It is the figure which divided the area of a mold into the area based on the area of a cleaning process. It is a figure which shows the management of the degree of wear of a mold. It is a figure which shows the display screen of the degree of wear of a mold, and the threshold value. It is a figure for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an article.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, in each figure, the same reference number is given to the same member, and duplicate description is omitted.

(Configuration of imprint device)
FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing the configuration of an imprint device 100 as one aspect of the present invention. The imprint device 100 is a lithography device used for manufacturing a device such as a semiconductor device as an article, and performs an imprint process for forming a pattern of an imprint material (also referred to as a composition) on a substrate using a mold. ..

As the imprint material, a curable composition (sometimes referred to as an uncured resin) that cures when energy for curing is applied is used. Electromagnetic waves, heat, etc. are used as energy for curing. As the electromagnetic wave, for example, light such as infrared rays, visible rays, and ultraviolet rays whose wavelength is selected from the range of 10 nm or more and 1 mm or less is used.

The curable composition is a composition that is cured by irradiation with light or by heating. The photocurable composition that is cured by irradiation with light contains at least a polymerizable compound and a photopolymerization initiator, and may contain a non-polymerizable compound or a solvent, if necessary. The non-polymerizable compound is at least one selected from the group of sensitizers, hydrogen donors, internal release mold release agents, surfactants, antioxidants, polymer components and the like.

The imprint material may be applied in the form of a film on the substrate by a spin coater or a slit coater. Further, the imprint material may be applied in the form of droplets on the substrate by the liquid injection head, or in the form of islands or films formed by connecting a plurality of droplets. The viscosity of the imprint material (viscosity at 25 ° C.) is, for example, 1 mPa · s or more and 100 mPa · s or less.

Glass, ceramics, metal, semiconductors, resins and the like are used for the substrate, and a member made of a material different from the substrate may be formed on the surface thereof, if necessary. Specifically, the substrate includes a silicon wafer, a compound semiconductor wafer, quartz glass and the like.

The imprint device 100 includes a detection unit 1, a mold holding unit 2 that holds and moves a mold 3 (which may also be called a mold, a template, or an original plate), a substrate stage 8 that holds and moves a substrate 7, and a substrate stage 8 that holds and moves the substrate 7. It has an internal cleaning unit 5 and a control unit 20.

The detection unit 1 observes the state of the mold 3 and detects the foreign matter 4 adhering to the mold 3. In the present embodiment, by obtaining the reference data (for example, height) of the mold 3 in advance, the foreign matter adhering to the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 is obtained from the difference between the data and the detection result at an arbitrary timing. 4 can be detected. Further, when the state of the pattern surface 3a becomes unobservable due to the reflection from the foreign matter 4, it can be detected that the foreign matter 4 has adhered to the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3. ..

The internal cleaning unit 5 cleans the mold 3 by dry cleaning that locally cleans the mold 3 in a state where the plasma 5a is generated and the mold 3 is held by the mold holding unit 2. That is, a part of the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 is cleaned. The internal cleaning unit 5 is configured to be movable with respect to the mold 3 held by the mold holding unit 2, and is arranged on the substrate stage 8 as shown in FIG. 1, for example. The plasma 5a irradiated from the internal cleaning unit 5 is, for example, atmospheric pressure plasma generated in atmospheric pressure using a high frequency power supply. Atmospheric pressure plasma is advantageous in that it can reduce the cost as compared with other dry cleaning methods.

The internal cleaning unit 5 includes an adjusting unit (not shown) that adjusts the irradiation width of the plasma 5a in a direction orthogonal to the direction of movement (for example, the X direction) relative to the mold 3 (for example, the Y direction). .. By providing such an adjusting unit, it is possible to irradiate an arbitrary region of the mold surface with plasma, and it is possible to flexibly respond to various cleaning conditions. That is, the internal cleaning unit 5 can execute cleaning suitable for each predetermined region in which the region of the mold 3 is divided into a plurality of regions.

The external cleaning unit 6 is mainly used when it is determined that the internal cleaning unit 5 cannot remove foreign matter. The external cleaning unit 6 is, for example, a device that appropriately combines wet cleaning that cleans a foreign substance 4 with a chemical solution, pure water, or the like and dry cleaning that cleans a foreign substance 4 using excimer UV, atmospheric pressure plasma, or the like. be. Further, the external cleaning unit 6 and the imprint device 100 can exchange information with each other, and the cleaning history performed by the external cleaning unit 6 can be grasped by the imprint device 100. For cleaning in the dry cleaning process, for example, in the case of a plasma module, the degree of vacuum, gas type, gas pressure, waveform of applied voltage, temperature control in the dry cleaning device, plasma irradiation intensity, plasma irradiation frequency, Examples include plasma irradiation time. Examples of the cleaning conditions in the wet cleaning step include the type of cleaning liquid, the concentration of the cleaning liquid, the discharge amount of the cleaning liquid (the discharge amount per unit time), the number of cleanings, the cleaning time, and the like.

The recovery unit 9 is arranged in the vicinity of the mold 3 held by the mold holding unit 2, and the gas generated by the internal cleaning unit 5 cleaning the mold 3, particularly the gas that hinders the imprint process, is collected. to recover. However, if the gas that hinders the imprint process is not generated, the recovery unit 9 is not necessarily a necessary component.

The mold 3 is used for an imprint process for forming a pattern of an imprint material on a substrate. On the surface of one side of the mold 3, a pattern portion 3a in which an uneven pattern for forming an imprint material supplied on the substrate is formed into a three-dimensional shape is provided. The pattern portion 3a is also called a mesa, and is formed in a convex portion of several tens of μm to several hundreds of μm so that only the pattern portion 3a of the mold 3 does not come into contact with the substrate. Therefore, the cured product of the imprint material tends to remain at the end of the pattern portion 3a called the mesa edge, and the cured product of the imprint material may be deposited when the imprint process is repeated. Further, the pattern portion 3a of the mold 3 has an alignment mark used for alignment with the pattern (shot region) on the substrate. The alignment mark is, for example, an uneven structure formed in a mold 1 made of quartz, and a chromium film may be provided on the surface of the concave portion or the convex portion formed as the alignment mark. The shape of the alignment mark is, for example, a plurality of line-shaped patterns.

The control unit 20 is composed of a computer including a CPU, a memory, and the like, and controls each unit of the imprint device 100 according to a program stored in the memory. The control unit 20 controls the imprint process of forming a pattern on the substrate by controlling the operation and adjustment of each part of the imprint device 100. Further, the control unit 20 may be configured integrally with other parts of the imprint device 100 (in a common housing), or may be separated from the other parts of the imprint device 100 (in a different housing). May be configured.

The control unit 20 according to the present embodiment also has an aspect as a management device for managing the maintenance process of the mold 3. The maintenance process of the mold 3 is a process related to the maintenance of the mold 3, including cleaning of the mold 3 and replacement of the mold 3. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of the CPU of the management device 21. The management device 21 includes an acquisition unit 22, a storage unit 23, a calculation unit 24, a determination unit 25, a display control unit 26, and a voice control unit 27. The management device 21 manages information on the degree of wear of the mold 3 due to cleaning in a plurality of regions constituting the pattern portion 3a of the mold 3. The management device 21 determines the replacement timing of the mold 3 based on the information regarding the degree of wear.

The acquisition unit 22 acquires information on the degree of wear of the mold 3 due to cleaning, that is, the cleaning history in which the cleaning of the mold 3 is executed. The storage unit 23 stores the cleaning history acquired by the acquisition unit 22. The calculation unit 24 calculates the degree of wear of the mold 3 based on the cleaning history. The determination unit 25 determines the replacement timing of the mold 3 based on the cleaning history stored in the storage unit 23 and the degree of wear of the mold 3 calculated by the calculation unit 24.

When the determination unit 25 determines that it is time to replace the mold 3, the display control unit 26 displays a screen prompting the display device 10 to replace the mold 3 in order to prompt the user to replace the mold 3. You may control it. Further, in order to prompt the user to replace the mold 3, the voice control unit 27 may control the voice output device 11 to output a voice (for example, a warning sound) prompting the replacement of the mold 3. Alternatively, the control unit 20 may control the mold exchange unit 12 to execute a process of exchanging the mold 3. Here, the display device 10 may have a function of displaying information related to the control of the entire imprint device 100. The display device 10 may be configured by, for example, a general-purpose display incorporating a liquid crystal display. The voice output device 11 may be provided with a voice output function for notifying the user of an abnormality or the like related to the control of the entire imprint device 100. The display device 10 and the audio output device 11 may be configured integrally with other parts of the imprint device 100 (in a common housing), or may be configured separately from the other parts of the imprint device 100 (separately). It may be configured (inside the housing of).

Since the pattern portion 3a of the mold 3 is worn by cleaning, repeated cleaning deteriorates the pattern formation accuracy of the substrate when the imprint process is performed. Further, the durability against the cleaning process also differs depending on the region of the mold 3. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the degree of wear of the mold 3 is managed for each predetermined region of the mold 3, and the replacement timing of the mold 3 is determined. As a result, the mold 3 can be replaced at an appropriate replacement timing, so that deterioration of pattern formation accuracy can be reduced.

(flowchart)
FIG. 3 is a flowchart for managing the degree of wear of the mold 3 due to cleaning by using the management device 21 according to the present embodiment and determining whether or not the mold 3 needs to be replaced. Each step of the flowchart is performed by the control unit 20 comprehensively controlling each unit including the imprint device 100.

In step S301, imprint processing is performed on each shot area on the substrate. First, the resin is supplied to the target shot region on the substrate 7 to be imprinted. The substrate stage 8 is moved so that the target shot area on the substrate is located below the mold 3, and the mold 3 and the substrate 7 are aligned. Subsequently, the resin is cured in a state where the mold 3 and the resin on the substrate are in contact with each other, and the mold 3 is separated from the cured resin to form a pattern on the substrate.

In step S302, it is determined whether or not the control unit 20 cleans the mold 3. As a determination method, for example, when the detection unit 1 does not detect the foreign matter 4, it is determined that the cleaning of the mold 3 is unnecessary, and the process proceeds to step S307. When the detection unit 1 detects the foreign matter 4, it is determined that the mold 3 needs to be cleaned, and the process proceeds to S303. Such determination may be performed based on the presence or absence of the foreign matter 4 adhering to the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3, or may be performed based on the size of the foreign matter 4 adhering to the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3. Further, the determination may be made based on the degree of influence of the foreign matter 4 adhering to the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 on the pattern formed on the substrate and the mold 3 in the future. Further, instead of the method of determining by the foreign matter 4, it is determined whether the imprint process has reached a predetermined number of times (for example, 2000 times), and if the number of times exceeds the predetermined number of times, it is determined that the mold 3 needs to be cleaned. You may.

In step S303, the internal cleaning unit 5 (or the external cleaning unit 6) executes the cleaning process of the mold 3. The control unit 20 identifies the position of the foreign matter 4 adhering to the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 based on the detection result of the detection unit 1. The control unit 20 generates cleaning conditions based on the information of the identified foreign matter 4. The information on the foreign matter 4 includes data representing the position (coordinates) of the foreign matter 4 on the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3, data representing the size of the foreign matter 4, data representing the height of the foreign matter 4, and the like.

The cleaning conditions include, for example, the irradiation amount of the plasma 5a irradiated from the internal cleaning unit 5, the number of irradiations, and the irradiation time. In areas where there are many foreign substances 4 and areas where large foreign substances 4 remain, cleaning is performed so that the foreign substances 4 are removed under cleaning conditions with strong cleaning strength (large amount of plasma irradiation, large number of irradiations, long irradiation time). I do. In areas where there are few foreign substances 4 and areas where small foreign substances 4 remain, clean so that the foreign substances 4 are removed under cleaning conditions with weak cleaning intensity (small plasma irradiation amount, small number of irradiations, short irradiation time). .. By cleaning the mold 3, the foreign matter 4 can be removed, and pattern defects and damage to the mold 3 in the next imprint process can be suppressed.

In step S304, the cleaning history of the cleaning process performed in step S303 is managed. Specifically, the cleaning history is stored in the storage unit 23 for each predetermined area obtained by dividing the mold 3 into a plurality of areas. As an example of the information stored in the storage unit 23, assuming that the cleaning conditions are different each time, information on the cleaning strength may be accumulated, or may be stored as the degree of wear of the mold 3 based on the cleaning conditions. good. The degree of wear of the mold 3 is a numerical value calculated by the calculation unit 24 based on the plasma irradiation amount, the number of irradiations, the irradiation time, etc. of the cleaning process executed in step S303, and is, for example, the plasma irradiation amount and the number of irradiations (or the number of irradiations). It is the cumulative value of the product of irradiation time). If the degree of wear of the mold 3 is calculated with the same cleaning strength when the cleaning strength is different each time, accurate management of the mold 3 may not be possible.

In step S305, it is determined whether or not the degree of wear of the mold 3 calculated by the calculation unit 24 in step S304 exceeds a predetermined threshold value. The threshold value is an index of the timing for exchanging the mold 3. Since the durability of each region of the mold 3 differs depending on the information (for example, material and shape) of the pattern portion 3a of the mold 3, it is desirable that the threshold value is set based on the information of the mold 3. For example, since the chrome film is used in the region where the alignment mark of the mold 3 is located, the consumption due to the cleaning process is more severe than in the other regions. Therefore, if the entire pattern of the mold 3 is managed with the same threshold value, the timing for replacing the mold 3 cannot be accurately determined. Therefore, for example, in the region where the alignment mark of the mold 3 is located, it is desirable to manage the mold 3 by setting a lower threshold value as compared with the other regions. As described above, it is desirable that the threshold value for each predetermined area of the type 3 can be changed, and the management of the threshold value for each predetermined area of the type 3 may be appropriately changed by input by the user or the like.

Further, when the entire pattern of the mold 3 is set to the same threshold value, it is desirable that the calculation unit weights and calculates the degree of wear of the mold based on the information of the mold 3 in step S304. For example, in the region where the alignment mark of the mold 3 is located, it is desirable to weight the area so that the degree of wear of the mold 3 is higher than that of the other regions even if the same cleaning process is performed. If the degree of wear of the mold 3 exceeds a predetermined threshold value, the process proceeds to step S306, and if the degree of wear of the mold 3 does not exceed the predetermined threshold value, the process proceeds to step S307.

In step S306, a process for exchanging the mold 3 with another mold is performed. The processing for exchanging the mold 3 with another mold is that the display device 10 or the voice output device 11 prompts the user to exchange the mold 3, and the mold exchange unit 12 exchanges the mold 3 with another mold. The mold changer 12 may include at least one of unloading the mold 3 from the imprint device 100.

In step S307, it is determined whether or not to end the imprint process. When the imprint process is finished, it ends, and when the imprint process is continued in the next imprint area, the process returns to step S301 and repeats until the imprint process is finished. The above is the description of the flowchart for managing the degree of wear of the mold 3 due to cleaning by using the management device 21 according to the present embodiment and determining whether or not the mold 3 needs to be replaced.

(Management of type division area)
Next, the management of the division area of the type will be described. FIG. 4 is an example of dividing the mold area into rectangles at regular intervals and managing them. FIG. 4A is a setting screen for setting a mold area. FIG. 4B is a diagram showing a pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 reflecting the divided region set in FIG. 4A. The setting screen of FIG. 4A and the divided area display of FIG. 4B may be displayed on the display device 10. The white rectangle shown in FIG. 4A indicates a state in which the operation described on the right side thereof is not set, and the black rectangle indicates a state in which the management described on the right side thereof is set. It shows the state. The user can change the setting to another division method by selecting the rectangle.

When "divide the area into rectangles" shown in FIG. 4A is set, the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 is divided into rectangles having a predetermined set value. For example, when vertical = 3 and horizontal = 4, as shown in FIG. 4B, the area of the pattern surface 3a provided on the mold 3 is divided into 3 vertically and 4 horizontally. Represents. The advantage of this division method is that the user can divide it by an arbitrary setting and that it can be managed only by the position information of the type 3.

FIG. 5 is an example in which the type area is divided into areas based on the type 3 information and managed. FIG. 5A is a setting screen for setting a mold area. FIG. 5B is a diagram showing a pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 reflecting the divided region set in FIG. 5A. The setting screen of FIG. 5A and the divided area display of FIG. 5B may be displayed on the display device 10. Similar to FIG. 4 (a), the white rectangle shown in FIG. 5 (a) indicates a state in which the operation described on the right side thereof is not set, and the black rectangle is described on the right side thereof. Indicates a state in which management is set. The user can change the setting to another division method by selecting the rectangle.

When "divide into regions based on type information" shown in FIG. 5A is set, the pattern surface 3a of mold 3 is divided into regions based on the information of mold 3. The information of the mold 3 is the position information of the alignment mark 3b, the pattern 3c, and the other region 3d of the pattern surface 3a provided on the mold 3. Based on each position information, the mold 3 is divided into a plurality of regions as shown in FIG. 5 (b). Further, when "divided into areas based on type information" is set, the threshold value can be set in consideration of the durability of each area for the cleaning process. For example, since chromium or the like is used for the alignment mark 3b and the durability against the cleaning process is lower than that of other regions, the threshold value is set to 60% of the set total threshold value. In this way, the user can set the threshold value for each divided area. An advantage of this division method is that the threshold value can be set for each predetermined area in consideration of the durability against cleaning based on the information of the mold 3, so that the mold 3 can be managed more accurately.

FIG. 6 is an example in which the mold area is divided and managed for each predetermined area where the cleaning process is performed. In FIG. 6, it is assumed that plasma is irradiated by the internal cleaning unit 5 as the cleaning process, but the cleaning process is not limited to this, and a cleaning process by another method may be used. FIG. 6A is a setting screen for setting a mold area. FIG. 6B is a diagram showing a pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 reflecting the divided region set in FIG. 6A. The setting screen of FIG. 6A and the divided area display of FIG. 6B may be displayed on the display device 10. Similar to FIGS. 4 (a) and 5 (a), the white rectangle shown in FIG. 6 (a) indicates a state in which the operation described on the right side thereof is not set, and the black rectangle indicates a state in which the operation described on the right side thereof is not set. , Indicates the state in which the management described on the right side is set. The user can change the setting to another division method by selecting the rectangle.

When "divide by plasma irradiation range" shown in FIG. 5 (a) is set, the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3 is divided by the plasma irradiation range as shown in FIG. 6 (b). The plasma irradiation range is the irradiation range 5b of the plasma 5a actually irradiated by the internal cleaning unit 5 on the pattern surface 3a of the mold 3. In the region where the plasma irradiation ranges overlap, more cleaning processing is performed than in the region where the plasma irradiation ranges do not overlap, so it is desirable to distinguish between the two regions. The advantage of this division method is that the type 3 can be managed in more detail than the setting of dividing into a rectangular area. For example, since the cleaning conditions differ depending on the size and amount of the foreign matter 4, the range of plasma irradiated at one time also changes for each cleaning. Therefore, if the plasma irradiation range is divided, the mold 3 can be managed more accurately.

(Setting the degree of wear of the mold)
Next, the setting of the degree of wear of the mold 3 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is an example of managing the degree of wear of the mold 3. FIG. 7A is a setting screen for setting a method for managing the degree of wear of the mold 3. The setting screen of FIG. 7A may be displayed on the display device 10. Similar to FIGS. 4 (a), 5 (a), and 6 (a), the white rectangle shown in FIG. 7 (a) is in a state in which the operation described on the right side thereof is not set. The black rectangle shown indicates the state in which the management described on the right side is set. By selecting a rectangle, the user can change the settings to other ways of managing wear. Note that the selection of the rectangle in FIG. 7 (a) is different from that in FIGS. 4 (a), 5 (a), and 6 (a), and a plurality of rectangles can be selected. When a plurality of rectangles are selected, the calculation unit 24 can calculate the degree of wear of the mold 3 in consideration of the selected conditions.

Each item shown in FIG. 7A will be described. In the following description, it is assumed that plasma is irradiated by the internal cleaning unit 5 as the cleaning process, but the cleaning process is not limited to this and may be performed by another method.

When the number of cleanings is set as a method of managing the degree of wear, the degree of wear of the mold 3 is managed based on the number of irradiations of the plasma 5a irradiated by the internal cleaning unit 5. The advantage of this management method is that the type 3 can be managed with a small amount of information because only the number of times needs to be accumulated for each divided area.

When the cleaning time is set as a method of managing the degree of wear, the degree of wear of the mold 3 is managed based on the irradiation time of the plasma 5a irradiated by the internal cleaning unit 5. As an advantage of this management method, since the irradiation time of the plasma 5a to be irradiated at one time differs depending on the size and amount of the foreign matter 4, it is possible to manage the mold 3 more accurately.

When the cleaning intensity is set as a method of managing the degree of wear, the degree of wear of the mold 3 is managed based on the irradiation amount of the plasma 5a irradiated by the internal cleaning unit 5. An advantage of this management method is that the type 3 can be managed more accurately because the irradiation amount of the plasma 5a to be irradiated at one time differs depending on the size and amount of the foreign matter 4.

By combining the above management methods, it is expected that type 3 can be managed more accurately. For example, when the number of cleanings and the cleaning intensity are set, the mold 3 can be managed based on both information, so that it can be expected that the mold 3 can be managed more accurately. Further, the user may set a threshold value for the entire mold 3, and the life of the mold 3 is set based on the set threshold value. For example, when the threshold value of the number of cleanings is set to 1000, the determination unit 25 determines that the mold 3 needs to be replaced when the number of cleanings of the mold 3 exceeds 1000. Further, when the threshold value ratio is set for each divided region as shown in FIG. 5, the ratio is also considered. For example, when the threshold value of the number of cleanings is set to 1000 and the threshold value of the area of the alignment mark 3b is set to 60% as shown in FIG. 5, the threshold value of the number of cleanings of the area of the alignment mark 3b is set. It is set to 600 times. Since the region of the alignment mark 3b is less durable to the cleaning process than the other regions, the mold 3 needs to be replaced when the cleaning frequency of the region where the alignment mark 3b of the mold 3 is located exceeds 600 times. Is determined by the determination unit 25.

FIG. 7B is an example in which the storage unit 23 stores the number of irradiations of the plasma 5a. In the example shown in FIG. 7B, the mold 3 is divided into a rectangular region with respect to the irradiation range 5b of the plasma 5a shown as a part of the gray circle. It is determined that the plasma 5a has been irradiated in the rectangular region including a part of the irradiation range 5b. In the example shown in FIG. 7B, it is displayed as 1 because it is assumed that the plasma 5a is irradiated once. It is displayed as 0 because it is assumed that plasma irradiation is not performed in other regions. Further, when the plasma 5a is repeatedly irradiated, it is accumulated and stored in the storage unit 23. In the example shown in FIG. 7B, the number of cleanings is taken as an example, but the cleaning time is not limited to this. It is sufficient to accumulate the irradiation amount of the irradiation.

FIG. 8 is a confirmation screen for confirming the degree of wear and the threshold value of the mold 3. This confirmation screen may be displayed on the display device 10 when confirming the degree of wear and the threshold value of the mold 3. In FIG. 8, since the current degree of wear and the threshold value can be confirmed in each of the divided regions, it is possible to predict the timing of the mold exchange timing. Therefore, since the processing required for the replacement can be performed before it is determined that the mold 3 needs to be replaced, the effect of reducing the decrease in productivity due to the replacement of the mold can be expected.

As described above, in the present embodiment, even when the cleaning process is executed under different cleaning conditions for each predetermined area, the replacement timing of the mold 3 can be appropriately determined. As a result, it is possible to suppress the execution of the imprint process in a state where the mold 3 has a defect, so that deterioration of the pattern formation accuracy of the substrate can be suppressed.

<Embodiment of manufacturing method of goods>
Next, a method of manufacturing an article (electric circuit element, optical element, MEMS, recording element, sensor, mold, etc.) using the above-mentioned imprint device 100 will be described. The pattern of the cured product formed by the imprint device 100 is permanently used for at least a part of various articles or temporarily used in manufacturing various articles. Examples of the electric circuit element include volatile or non-volatile semiconductor memories such as DRAM, SRAM, flash memory, and MRAM, and semiconductor elements such as LSI, CCD, image sensor, and FPGA. Examples of the mold include a mold for imprinting.

The pattern of the cured product is used as it is as a constituent member of at least a part of the above-mentioned article, or is temporarily used as a resist mask. After etching or ion implantation in the substrate processing step, the resist mask is removed. Further, well-known steps for processing a substrate include oxidation, film formation, vapor deposition, doping, flattening, etching, resist peeling, dicing, bonding, packaging and the like.

Next, a specific manufacturing method of the article will be described. As shown in FIG. 9A, a substrate 1z such as a silicon wafer on which a work material 2z such as an insulator is formed on the surface is prepared, and subsequently, the substrate 1z such as a silicon wafer is inserted into the surface of the work material 2z by an inkjet method or the like. The printing material 3z is applied. Here, a state in which a plurality of droplet-shaped imprint materials 3z are applied onto the substrate is shown.

As shown in FIG. 9B, the imprint mold 4z is opposed to the imprint material 3z on the substrate with the side on which the uneven pattern is formed facing. As shown in FIG. 9C, the substrate 1z to which the imprint material 3z is applied is brought into contact with the mold 4z, and pressure is applied. The imprint material 3z is filled in the gap between the mold 4z and the work material 2z. When light is irradiated through the mold 4z as energy for curing in this state, the imprint material 3z is cured.

As shown in FIG. 9D, when the imprint material 3z is cured and then the mold 4z and the substrate 1z are separated from each other, a pattern of the cured product of the imprint material 3z is formed on the substrate 1z. The pattern of the cured product has a shape in which the concave portion of the mold corresponds to the convex portion of the cured product and the convex portion of the mold corresponds to the concave portion of the cured product, that is, the uneven pattern of the mold 4z is transferred to the imprint material 3z. It will be done.

As shown in FIG. 9E, when etching is performed using the pattern of the cured product as an etching resistant mask, the portion of the surface of the work material 2z where the cured product is absent or remains thin is removed, and the groove 5z is formed. Become. As shown in FIG. 7 (f), by removing the pattern of the cured product, it is possible to obtain an article in which the groove 5z is formed on the surface of the workpiece 2z. Here, the pattern of the cured product is removed, but it may not be removed even after processing, and may be used, for example, as a film for interlayer insulation contained in a semiconductor element or the like, that is, as a constituent member of an article. The article manufacturing method of the present embodiment is advantageous in at least one of the performance, quality, productivity, and production cost of the article as compared with the conventional method.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes the above-mentioned functions to a system or a device via a network or a storage medium, and reading and executing the program by one or more processors in the computer of the system or the device. be. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and modifications can be made within the scope of the gist thereof.

Type 3 5 Internal cleaning unit 6 External cleaning unit 7 Board 20 Control unit 21 Management device 22 Acquisition unit 23 Storage unit 25 Decision unit

Claims (20)

A management device that manages the maintenance process of the mold that molds the composition.
An acquisition unit that acquires a cleaning history for each predetermined area obtained by dividing the area of the type into a plurality of areas.
A management device comprising: a determination unit for determining a mold maintenance process based on the cleaning history. The management device according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines a mold replacement timing based on the cleaning history. The claim is characterized in that, in at least one of the predetermined regions, the determination unit determines to replace the mold when the degree of wear of the mold based on the cleaning history is larger than a predetermined threshold value. Item 2. The management device according to item 1 or 2. The management device according to claim 3, wherein the threshold value can be changed for each predetermined area based on the information of the type. The management device according to claim 3, wherein the threshold value can be changed for each predetermined area based on the input of the user. The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a display control unit that controls display of the type of information on the display device based on the cleaning history. Further, it has a display control unit that controls the display of the information of the type on the display device based on the cleaning history.
The management according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the display control unit controls to display a screen prompting the replacement of the mold on the display device when the degree of wear is larger than the threshold value. Device. The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a voice control unit that controls the output of the type of information to the voice output device based on the cleaning history. Further, it has a voice control unit that controls a voice output device that emits voice based on the cleaning history.
One of claims 3 to 5, wherein the voice control unit controls that the voice output device emits a voice prompting the exchange of the mold when the degree of wear is larger than the threshold value. The management device described in the section. The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the mold exchange device is controlled so as to exchange the mold based on the cleaning history. The management device according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the mold exchange device is controlled so as to exchange the mold when the degree of wear is larger than the threshold value. The cleaning history is a history of wet cleaning using a cleaning liquid, and includes at least one history of the type, concentration, discharge amount, number of cleanings, and cleaning time of the cleaning liquid, according to claims 1 to 11. The management device according to any one item. The cleaning history is a history of dry cleaning using plasma, and any one of claims 1 to 11 is characterized by including at least one history of the number of irradiations of the plasma, the irradiation amount, and the irradiation time. The management device described in. The management device according to claim 13, wherein the plasma is an atmospheric pressure plasma generated in atmospheric pressure. The management device according to claim 13, wherein the predetermined region is a region divided by a region irradiated with the plasma. The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the predetermined region is a region divided based on the position of a mark for use in alignment with a substrate. An imprinting device that forms a pattern of a composition on a substrate using a mold.
An imprint device comprising the management device according to any one of claims 1 to 16. It is a management method that manages the maintenance process of the mold that molds the composition.
An acquisition process for acquiring a cleaning history for each predetermined area obtained by dividing the area of the mold into a plurality of areas,
A management method comprising: a determination step of determining a maintenance process of the mold based on the cleaning history. On the computer
An acquisition process for acquiring a cleaning history for each predetermined area obtained by dividing the area of the mold into a plurality of areas,
A program for executing a determination step of determining a maintenance process of the mold based on the cleaning conditions. A forming step of forming a pattern of a composition on a substrate by using the imprinting apparatus according to claim 17.
A processing step in which at least one of oxidation, film formation, thin film deposition, doping, flattening, etching, resist peeling, dicing, bonding, and packaging is performed on the substrate on which the pattern is formed in the forming step. , A method for producing an article, which comprises producing an article from a substrate processed in the processing step.

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