JP2022055742A - Coating device and coating method - Google Patents

Abstract

To further improve film-thickness accuracy, in capillary coating which is performed using a pump.SOLUTION: A coating device 10 is a capillary coating-type coating device that comprises: a coater 11 having a discharge port 23 longer in one direction than a base material 7; a movement mechanism 12 for making the coater 11 and the base material 7 relatively move; and a supply part 13 that can be jointed to the coater 11 to perform supply operation of supplying liquid L to the coater 11. The base material 7 has a contour shape in which a dimension in a width direction orthogonal to a movement direction changes. The coating device coats, as a coating width E, the whole in the width direction of the base material 7 opposing to the discharge port 23, by discharging the liquid L from the discharge port 23 while making the relative movement while keeping the liquid L in the coater 11 at negative pressure. In width-reducing coating in which the liquid L is applied to a width-reducing region K2 where a dimension in the with direction gradually becomes smaller, in the base material 7, the supply part 13 supplies the coater 11 with liquid whose quantity is smaller than the required quantity corresponding to the coating width E.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a coating device and a coating method for coating a liquid on a substrate.

For example, in the semiconductor manufacturing process, a liquid functional material (hereinafter, simply referred to as “liquid”) is applied to the semiconductor wafer. Spin coating is known as a technique for applying a liquid to a semiconductor wafer. However, in the case of spin coating, the efficiency of liquid utilization is poor.
Therefore, in recent years, as a device for applying a liquid to a base material such as a semiconductor wafer, a coating device equipped with a coating device is used. The applicator has a long slit in one direction, and the opening of the slit serves as a liquid discharge port. While relatively moving the coater and the semiconductor wafer, the liquid is discharged from the discharge port to form a coating film on the semiconductor wafer. Patent Document 1 discloses a coating device including a coating device.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-148769

In the case of a coating device provided with a coating device as described above, the film thickness accuracy of the coated liquid tends to decrease at the start portion and the end portion of coating on the semiconductor wafer.
Here, as shown in FIG. 8, the coated region on the semiconductor wafer includes the effective region A1 in which high film thickness accuracy is required for forming the component C such as a chip, and the periphery thereof (peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer). ) Excludes region A2 exists.
In the case of the coating device, the film thickness accuracy tends to decrease at one end 7a at the start of coating and the other end 7b at the end of coating, but such one end 7a and the other end 7b are within the range of the exclusion region A2. It is desirable to apply the liquid so that it fits in. Then, in order to secure the effective region A1 as wide as possible, the exclusion region A2 is set narrow, and the defective portion having low film thickness accuracy can be accommodated within the range of such a narrow exclusion region A2. Research is underway.

In recent years, as a coating method using a coating device as described above, capillary coating as disclosed in Patent Document 1 has attracted attention. As shown in FIG. 9, in the capillary coating, the liquid in the coating device 90 is brought into a negative pressure state by the negative pressure generating means 95 including the tank 95a in which the liquid is stored, and the base material 7 is maintained in that state. This is a coating method in which the liquid is discharged from the discharge port 91 of the coating device 90 while the coating device 90 and the coating device 90 are relatively moved.

The discharge port 91 of the applicator 90 (see FIG. 8) is formed to be longer than the dimension (diameter) D in the width direction of the base material 7, and the entire width direction of the base material 7 facing the discharge port 91 is covered. Coating is performed as "coating width E". The base material 7 having a circular contour shape such as a semiconductor wafer gradually changes in the width direction along the advancing direction of coating, but even with such a base material 7, in the case of capillary coating, the base material 7 gradually changes. The liquid is not applied to the area outside the base material 7, and the liquid is applied only to the entire area on the base material 7.

In the coating apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, the pump 92 (see FIG. 9) supplies the liquid to the coating device 90 at the time of capillary coating. The supply amount Qp of the liquid by the pump 92 per unit time may be set to be equal to the required amount Qc per unit time according to the coating width E of the base material 7, and the required amount Qc (= Qp) is set. It is calculated by the following formula.
(Required amount Qc) = (coating width E) × (film thickness t) × (relative movement speed v)

In the case of the circular base material 7, since the coating width E gradually changes along the traveling direction of coating, the required amount Qc changes momentarily, and the supply amount Qp by the pump 92 also changes momentarily accordingly. .. Specifically, when coating is applied to the region A11 (see FIG. 8) in the first half of the base material 7 where the width dimension gradually increases, the coating width E gradually increases, so that the pump 92 The supply amount Qp is also gradually increased. On the contrary, when the coating is applied to the region A12 in the latter half where the width dimension gradually decreases, the coating width E gradually decreases, so that the supply amount Qp by the pump 92 also gradually decreases.
When the film thickness t and the moving speed v are constant, according to the above equation, the liquid supply amount Qp (= Qc) by the pump 92 changes according to the coating width E. Since the coating width E is known from the shape of the base material 7, the supply amount Qp can be obtained by calculation. Therefore, it is considered that a coating film having a desired film thickness can be obtained on the base material 7 by controlling the operation of the pump 92 by a computer program created based on the supply amount Qp obtained in advance. ..

However, in practice, for example, it has been found by the inventor that the film thickness may be thicker than specified in the region A12 in the latter half of the base material 7. The reason is that in capillary coating, the coating width E in the base material 7 changes as the coating progresses, and the base 7 is filled between the tip of the coater 90 at which the discharge port 91 opens and the base material 7. This is because the amount (bead amount) of the liquid (the liquid is referred to as "bead B") also changes. That is, in the capillary coating, the liquid is filled between the tip of the coating device 90 and the base material 7 (a state in which the bead B is formed), so that the amount of the liquid actually applied to the base material 7 is reached. This is because, in addition to the liquid supply amount Qp by the pump 92, the change in the liquid amount of the bead B is also included. In the latter half region A12, the coating width E gradually decreases, but the length (width dimension) of the bead B also gradually decreases accordingly. Such a change in the liquid amount of the bead B affects the film thickness, and in the latter half region A12, the film thickness may be thicker than the set value.

Therefore, it is an object of the present disclosure to further improve the film thickness accuracy in the capillary coating performed by using a pump.

In the present disclosure, an applicator having a discharge port longer in one direction than a base material to be coated and the applicator and the base material are relatively moved with the direction intersecting the one direction as the moving direction. The substrate is provided with a moving mechanism of the above and a supply unit which is connected to the applicator and can perform a supply operation of supplying the liquid to the applicator, and the base material is orthogonal to at least a part thereof in the moving direction. It has a contour shape in which the dimensions in the width direction change, and by discharging the liquid from the discharge port while performing the relative movement while maintaining the liquid in the coater at a negative pressure, the liquid is discharged from the discharge port. It is a capillary coating type coating device that applies the entire width direction of the facing base material as the coating width, and is used for a narrowed region of the base material in which the dimension in the width direction gradually becomes smaller. At the time of reduced width coating to which the liquid is applied, the supply unit supplies the coating device with a liquid amount smaller than the required amount according to the coating width.

The amount of liquid actually applied to the base material includes not only the amount of liquid supplied by the supply unit but also the amount of change in the amount of liquid in the bead formed between the applicator and the base material. In the narrowed width region, the amount of change in the liquid amount of the bead becomes a surplus liquid, but according to the coating device, a liquid amount smaller than the required amount according to the coating width is supplied to the coating device by the supply unit. To. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the influence of the change in the liquid amount of the bead on the film thickness, and it is possible to further improve the film thickness accuracy.

Further, preferably, the supply unit can further perform a suction operation of sucking the liquid of the coating device, and the supply unit sucks the liquid of the coating device while performing the relative movement during the reduced width coating. The timing to perform the operation is included.
For example, when the contour shape of the base material is circular, the coating width changes significantly at the end of coating (reduced width coating), which causes a large change in the amount of liquid in the bead. Even in such a case, it is possible to prevent the film thickness from becoming thicker than the specified by the suction operation.

The supply unit has one pump, and the supply unit may be configured so that the supply operation and the suction operation are performed by the pump, but the supply unit is preferably the first to deliver the liquid. It has a pump and a second pump that sucks the liquid, and at the time of the narrowing coating, the first pump sends out the liquid and the second pump sucks the liquid.
According to this configuration, when the amount of liquid sent out by the first pump exceeds the amount of liquid sucked by the second pump, the supply unit is in the state of performing the above supply operation, and conversely, the second pump is used. When the suction amount of the liquid exceeds the delivery amount of the liquid by the first pump, the supply unit is in the state of performing the suction operation.
When the liquid delivery (supply operation) and suction (suction operation) are switched by one pump during application, the pump operates discontinuously at the timing of the switching, and as a result, the liquid is applied to the substrate. There is a possibility that streaks will occur on the coating film. However, according to the configuration in which the supply unit has two pumps, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of such streaks.

Further, preferably, at the time of the narrowing coating, from the first state in which the amount of liquid sent out by the first pump is larger than the amount of suction of liquid by the second pump, the liquid by the second pump is applied. The suction amount of the first pump is changed to the second state, which is larger than the amount of the liquid delivered by the first pump.
According to the above configuration, at the time of narrowing coating, the supply unit initially performs a supply operation, but a configuration is obtained in which a suction operation is performed in the middle of the supply operation. Moreover, since each of the first pump and the second pump does not operate discontinuously, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of streaks as described above.

Further, even in a configuration having a first pump and a second pump, if the flow of liquid is reversed in the pipe connecting the applicator and the supply unit, the film thickness may be affected. Therefore, preferably, the first pump is connected through a first pipe that is directly connected to the applicator, and the second pump is separate from the first pipe and is directly connected to the applicator. It is connected through the second pipe leading to.
According to the above configuration, inversion of the liquid flow does not occur in the pipe connecting the applicator and the supply unit. As a result, it is possible to more effectively suppress the generation of liquid streaks on the coating film.

Further, preferably, in the widening coating in which the liquid is applied to the widening region in which the dimension in the width direction gradually increases, the supply unit has a required amount corresponding to the coating width. A large amount of liquid is supplied to the applicator.
In the widening region, the amount of change in the liquid amount of the bead may be insufficient for the liquid, and the film thickness may be thinner than the specified value. A large amount of liquid is supplied to the applicator by the supply unit. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the influence of the change in the liquid amount of the bead on the film thickness, and it is possible to further improve the film thickness accuracy.

Further, the coating method of the present disclosure is a relative between a coater having a discharge port longer in one direction than the base material to be coated and the coater and the base material in a direction intersecting the one direction as a moving direction. A coating device including a moving mechanism for moving the coating device and a supply unit capable of performing a supply operation of connecting to the coating device and supplying the liquid to the coating device negatively impacts the liquid in the coating device. A capillary coating type coating method in which the entire width direction of the base material facing the discharge port is applied as the coating width by discharging the liquid from the discharge port while performing the relative movement while maintaining the pressure. Therefore, at least a part of the base material has a contour shape in which the dimension in the width direction orthogonal to the movement direction changes, and the dimension in the width direction of the base material is gradually reduced. At the time of the reduced width coating in which the liquid is applied to the reduced width region, the supply unit supplies the coating device with a liquid amount smaller than the required amount according to the coating width.

The amount of liquid actually applied to the base material includes not only the amount of liquid supplied by the supply unit but also the amount of change in the amount of liquid of the bead formed between the applicator and the base material. In the narrowed width region, the amount of change in the liquid amount of the bead becomes a surplus liquid, but according to the coating method, a liquid amount smaller than the required amount according to the coating width is supplied to the coater by the supply unit. To. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the influence of the change in the liquid amount of the bead on the film thickness, and it is possible to further improve the film thickness accuracy.

In capillary coating performed using a pump, it is possible to further improve the film thickness accuracy.

It is a schematic block diagram which shows an example of a coating apparatus. It is a perspective view of the coating apparatus shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating liquid application operation and capillary application. It is a figure for demonstrating the capillary application. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the same view as the upper view of FIG. 4 and a view of the applicator and the base material in the figure in the moving direction. It is a schematic diagram of the coating apparatus provided with the supply part different from the form shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram of the coating apparatus provided with the supply part different from each form shown in FIGS. 1 and 6. It is explanatory drawing which shows the coating area on the semiconductor wafer to be coated. It is a schematic block diagram of the conventional coating apparatus.

[Structure of coating device]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of a coating device. The coating device 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a device for applying the liquid L to the base material 7 to be coated. As will be described later, the coating device 10 includes a coating device 11 having a discharge port 23 long in one direction, and discharges the liquid L from the discharging port 23 while relatively moving the coating device 11 and the base material 7. .. As a result, the liquid L is applied to the surface to be coated, which is one surface of the base material 7, and a coating film is formed. In the present embodiment, the liquid L is applied to the base material 7 with a constant film thickness. In order to perform such coating, the coating device 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes a coating device 11, a moving mechanism 12, a supply unit 13, a control device 14, and a stage 16.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the coating device 10 shown in FIG. The applicator 11 is also called a slit die and is a member long in one direction. The one direction, that is, the longitudinal direction of the applicator 11, is defined as the "width direction". In each figure, one of the "width directions" is the direction indicated by the arrow X. The direction of relative movement between the applicator 11 and the base material 7 is a direction that intersects the width direction, and in the present embodiment, is a direction that is orthogonal to the width direction. The direction in which the coater 11 moves relative to the base material 7 is the direction in which the coating is made, and this direction of movement is referred to as the "movement direction of relative movement", and may be referred to as "relative movement direction" below. In each figure, the relative movement direction, which is the traveling direction of coating, is the direction indicated by the arrow Y. The direction orthogonal to both the width direction and the relative movement direction is the "vertical direction", and in each figure, the upward direction in the vertical direction is the direction indicated by the arrow Z. In the present embodiment, the width direction and the relative movement direction are the directions along the horizontal plane, and the vertical direction is the direction along the vertical line.

As shown in FIG. 2, the base material 7 in the present embodiment is a plate having a circular contour shape like a general semiconductor wafer. Therefore, the contour shape of the base material 7 gradually increases in the width direction (base material width) toward the arrow Y direction in the first half region of the relative movement direction (arrow Y direction) which is the advancing direction of coating. The shape is. Of the base material 7, a region in which the dimension in the width direction gradually increases in the Y direction of the arrow is referred to as a “widening region K1”. Applying the liquid L to the widening region K1 is referred to as "widening coating".

Further, the contour shape of the base material 7 is a shape in which the dimension in the width direction (base material width) becomes smaller toward the arrow Y direction in the remaining latter half region. Of the base material 7, a region in which the dimension in the width direction gradually decreases in the Y direction of the arrow is referred to as a “narrowed region K2”. Applying the liquid L to the narrowed width region K2 is referred to as "narrowed width coating".
The base material 7 may be non-circular, and at least a part thereof may have a contour shape in which the dimension in the width direction gradually changes (reduces) toward the arrow Y direction. ..

The applicator 11 is mounted on a support portion (not shown) included in the applicator 10. In FIG. 1, a liquid storage space 21 for storing liquid and a slit 22 are formed in the applicator 11. The liquid reservoir space 21 and the slit 22 are formed long and linearly along the width direction. One side (upper side in FIG. 1) of the slit 22 opens in the liquid storage space 21 and is connected to the liquid storage space 21. The other side (lower side in FIG. 1) of the slit 22 is opened by the tip surface 24 of the applicator 11. The opening of the slit 22 is a discharge port 23 for discharging the liquid L. As shown in FIG. 2, the dimension in the width direction (width dimension A) of the discharge port 23 is larger than the diameter D (maximum dimension D in the width direction) of the base material 7 (A> D). The liquid L supplied to the coater 11 and once stored in the liquid storage space 21 is discharged from the discharge port 23 to the external space through the slit 22. The tip surface 24 of the applicator 11 faces the base material 7 with a gap, and the liquid L discharged from the discharge port 23 is applied to the base material 7.

The moving mechanism 12 relatively moves the applicator 11 and the base material 7. In the present embodiment, the base material 7 moves with respect to the coater 11 in a stationary state. For this purpose, the stage 16 that holds the base material 7 is configured to move. In FIG. 1, the stage 16 holds the base material 7 by, for example, suctioning air. When the liquid L is applied to the base material 7, the applicator 11 is located above the base material 7.
The moving mechanism 12 of the present embodiment has a configuration in which the stage 16 is moved with respect to the applicator 11 in a stationary state. Specifically, the stage 16 is provided so as to be movable forward in the Y direction and movable backward in the direction opposite to the Y direction, and the moving mechanism 12 has an actuator 26 for moving the stage 16. The actuator 26 is, for example, a linear actuator. The moving mechanism 12 moves the base material 7 so that the surface to be coated of the base material 7 is in a horizontal state. Contrary to the configuration of the present embodiment, the stage 16 may be stationary and the applicator 11 (support portion on which the applicator 11 is mounted) may move. That is, the moving mechanism 12 may be configured to relatively move the base material 7 and the applicator 11 with the direction intersecting the longitudinal direction (orthogonal direction) of the applicator 11 as the relative moving direction. The start of relative movement, the stop of relative movement, and the speed adjustment of relative movement by the movement mechanism 12 are controlled by the control device 14.

The supply unit 13 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 has one pump 17. The pump 17 is connected through a pipe 31 that is directly connected to the applicator 11. The pipe 31 is included in the supply unit 13. The pump 17 is a metering pump, and can accurately deliver a constant amount of liquid L per unit time based on a command signal from the control device 14. The amount of liquid L delivered by the pump 17, that is, the amount of liquid L supplied to the applicator 11, is variable according to the operating speed of the pump 17, and the operating speed is controlled by the control device 14. The liquid L sent out from the pump 17 is supplied to the applicator 11 through the pipe 31. The pipe 31 is provided with an open / close valve 32. With the valve 32 closed, the liquid L cannot flow between the pump 17 and the applicator 11, and the liquid L is not supplied from the pump 17 to the applicator 11. With the valve 32 open, the liquid can flow between the pump 17 and the applicator 11, and the liquid L is supplied from the pump 17 to the applicator 11.

In this way, the pump 17 included in the supply unit 13 can be connected to the applicator 11 through the pipe 31 to perform a supply operation of supplying the liquid L to the applicator 11. The supply unit 13 also functions as a liquid application operation for adhering the liquid L to the base material 7 as a pretreatment before the start of coating. The pretreatment (liquid application operation) will be described later.
The pump 17 of this embodiment is a syringe pump. By the command signal from the control device 14, the piston 17a of the pump 17 can move in the direction opposite to the case where the liquid L is sent out. That is, the pump 17 can suck the liquid L on the side of the applicator 11 through the pipe 31. From the above, the supply unit 13 can perform a suction operation of sucking the liquid L of the applicator 11 in addition to the supply operation of sending out the liquid L.

The control device 14 is also called a control unit and includes a computer. By executing the program stored in the computer by the processing unit (CPU) of the computer, the operation of each part included in the coating device 10 and the operation timing thereof are controlled, and the liquid is applied to the base material 7. .. The control device 14 has a function of controlling the relative movement between the coater 11 and the base material 7 (stage 16) by controlling the operation of the movement mechanism 12, that is, the actuator 26. Further, the control device 14 has a function of controlling the operation of the supply unit 13 (pump 17).

According to the coating device 10 having the above configuration, the liquid L is discharged from the discharge port 23 of the coating device 11 while the base material 7 moves with respect to the coating device 11, and the capillary coating described later is performed. In order to adjust the distance (gap) between the discharge port 23 of the applicator 11 and the base material 7, the applicator 11 is movable in the vertical direction and is mounted on the support portion. By discharging the liquid L from the applicator 11 to the base material 7, when the liquid L is applied to the base material 7, the supply unit 13 can supply the liquid L to the applicator 11. Further, since the base material 7 is circular, as will be described later, when the liquid L is applied to the base material 7, there is also a timing at which the operation of sucking the liquid L from the coater 11 by the supply unit 13 is executed. included. A specific example of the operation of the supply unit 13 (pump 17) will be described later.

[About capillary application]
The liquiding operation as the pretreatment is performed, and then the coating process (coating operation) in which the liquid L is actually continuously applied to the base material 7 is performed. In this coating process, capillary coating is performed.
The liquiding operation will be described. As shown in FIG. 3A, the end portion 7a of the base material 7 and the tip surface 24 of the applicator 11 are brought into close contact with each other. The liquid L is filled in the liquid reservoir space 21 (see FIG. 1), the space in the applicator 11 including the slit 22, and the pipe 31, and the pump 17 is in the stopped state. During the pretreatment and the coating treatment, the space and the pipe 31 are not open except for the discharge port 23 and are closed regions. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3A, the state in which the liquid L is filled in the coater 11 is maintained, and the liquid L is not discharged from the discharge port 23. This state is called the initial state.

From the initial state, the pump 17 (see FIG. 1) starts sending out the liquid L, and the liquid L is supplied to the coater 11. Then, the liquid L begins to be discharged in a band shape from the entire discharge port 23 which is long in the width direction. Since the base material 7 is circular, as shown in FIG. 3B, the end portion 7a of the base material 7 faces the end portion 7a of the liquid L that has begun to be discharged in a band shape. Only the liquid L of the part adheres. Of the liquid L that has begun to be discharged in a band shape, the portion that does not face the end portion 7a is naturally held by the discharge port 23 without adhering to the base material 7 (forming a meniscus). When the liquid L adheres to the end portion 7a, the pump 17 stops the delivery of the liquid L by a function such as a detection by a sensor (not shown) or a timer. Then, the liquid L is held between the tip surface 24 of the applicator 11 and the end portion 7a of the base material 7, and a bead B is formed by the liquid L. The liquiding operation for forming the bead B is executed in a stopped state in which the relative movement between the base material 7 and the applicator 11 is not performed.

When the bead B is formed, the relative movement between the base material 7 and the applicator 11 is started (see (C) in FIG. 3), and the actual coating operation is started. When the relative movement is started, the bead B (surface tension of the bead B) adhering to the base material 7 tries to draw out the liquid L in the coater 11 from the discharge port 23. At the start of the relative movement, the supply unit 13 having the pump 17 starts supplying the liquid L to the coater 11 in order to replenish the liquid L to the coater 11. After the start of the relative movement, the supply unit 13 having the pump 17 continues to operate while the coating operation is continued.

During the relative movement, the amount (supply amount) of the liquid L sent out by the supply unit 13 (pump 17) is such that the liquid L in the coater 11 is connected to the formed bead B and naturally comes out from the discharge port 23. The amount is set to be slightly smaller than the amount of liquid to be used. As a result, during the relative movement, the pressure of the liquid L in the applicator 11 becomes a slightly negative pressure with respect to the outside air, and the state of the negative pressure is maintained. In this way, while maintaining the pressure of the liquid L in the applicator 11 as a negative pressure with respect to the outside air, the liquid L is moved from the discharge port 23 of the applicator 11 while relatively moving the base material 7 and the applicator 11. Is discharged. The coating performed in this way is capillary coating. That is, in the case of capillary coating, the amount of liquid L supplied to the applicator 11 by the supply unit 13 having the pump 17 is smaller than the amount of liquid L that the liquid L in the applicator 11 naturally tries to discharge from the discharge port 23. By controlling the supply amount of the liquid L by the supply unit 13, the negative pressure of the liquid in the coater 11 is maintained.
In the case of capillary coating, the film thickness applied to the base material 7 can be adjusted by adjusting the relative moving speed.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the capillary coating of the present embodiment. The upper view of FIG. 4 is an image view of the base material 7 and the applicator 11 as viewed from above. The lower figure of FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the supply amount Qp of the liquid L to the coater 11 by the supply unit 13. The supply amount Qp is the amount of liquid L delivered per unit time by the pump 17. FIG. 5 shows the same view as the upper view of FIG. 4, and is a cross-sectional view of the coater 11 and the base material 7 in the figure as viewed in the moving direction (Y direction).

In FIGS. 4 and 5, the width dimension (total length) of the discharge port 23 of the applicator 11 is “A”. The discharge port 23 is formed longer in the width direction than the width dimension (diameter) D of the base material 7 (A> D), but in the case of capillary coating, the entire width of the discharge port 23 is not the coating width. , The entire width direction of a part of the base material 7 facing the discharge port 23 becomes the "coating width E", and the coating is performed. Therefore, the liquid L is not applied to the range outside the base material 7. Finally, the liquid L is applied only to the entire area on the substrate 7. Since the diameter D of the base material 7 is smaller than the width dimension A of the discharge port 23, the coating width E is the width of the discharge port 23 at any coating position (any timing) when applying the entire range. It is smaller than the dimension A (E <A).
The "coating position" is a position along the relative movement direction (arrow Y direction) on the base material 7, and is a position where the discharge port 23 faces. As shown in the lower figure of FIG. 4, the coating position “0” is the end position of the coating start of the base material 7, and the coating position “100” is the end position of the coating end of the base material 7. be.

As described above, in the capillary coating of the present embodiment, the discharge port 23 of the coating device 11 is performed while the liquid L in the coating device 11 is maintained at a negative pressure and the base material 7 and the coating device 11 are relatively moved. Liquid L is discharged from. By discharging in this way, coating is performed at each coating position with the entire width direction of the base material 7 facing the discharge port 23 as the coating width E.
The circular base material 7 such as the semiconductor wafer shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 has a contour shape in which the dimension in the width direction gradually changes toward the relative movement direction (arrow Y direction) which is the advancing direction of coating. Has. Even with the base material 7 having such a shape, in the case of capillary coating, the liquid is not applied (discharged) to the range outside the base material 7, and the liquid is applied only to the entire range on the base material 7.
Then, in the capillary coating of the present embodiment, the supply unit 13 having the pump 17 is used.

[About capillary application using pump 17]
With reference to FIG. 4, the supply amount Qp of the liquid L of the supply unit 13 will be described. The supply amount Qp is the volume at which the pump 17 delivers the liquid L to the coater 11 per unit time.
Here, in order to apply the liquid L to the base material 7 with a constant film thickness t, it is considered that the pump 17 may deliver a required amount of the liquid L according to the contour shape of the base material 7. That is, if the pump 17 discharges a required amount of liquid L corresponding to the coating width E of the base material 7 at each coating position, the liquid L can be applied to the base material 7 with a constant film thickness t. It is considered possible. The required amount corresponding to the coating width E is defined as "Qc". The required amount Qc is calculated by the following equation (1).
(Required amount Qc) = (coating width E) x (film thickness t) x (relative movement speed v) ... Equation (1)
The required amount Qc is the volume of the liquid L required per unit time in order to apply the liquid L to the base material 7 with a constant film thickness t, and the relative movement speed v is the movement per unit time. The distance.

The base material 7 of the present embodiment has a circular contour shape. Therefore, the required amount Qc of the liquid L for forming a coating film having a constant film thickness t on the base material 7 is shown by a broken line in the lower view of FIG. 4 in relation to the coating position. Shown by a line along the semicircle. Therefore, it is considered that the pump 17 may supply the liquid L with a supply amount that is the same as the required amount Qc along the semicircle shown by the broken line in the lower part of FIG. However, in the case of capillary coating, the bead B is formed as described above, and the width dimension of the bead B changes depending on the coating position, and the change affects the film thickness t. Therefore, in the present embodiment, in order to further improve the accuracy of the film thickness t, the supply amount Qp of the pump 17 is set to be different from the required amount Qc, as will be described next.

[Wide widening application]
The widening coating in which the liquid L is applied to the widening region K1 which is the first half of the coating of the base material 7 will be described.
In the present embodiment, the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the pump 17 at the time of widening coating is the amount shown by the solid line in the lower figure of FIG. 4, which is larger than the required amount Qc shown by the broken line. That is, at the time of widening coating, the supply unit 13 having the pump 17 supplies the liquid L in an amount larger than the required amount Qc corresponding to the coating width E to the coating device 11. In this way, supplying a liquid L in an amount larger than the required amount Qc according to the coating width E to the coating device 11 is referred to as "additional supply".

Among the circular base materials 7, the reason for performing the additional supply when applying to the widening region K1 is as follows.
When coating is applied to the widening region K1, the width dimension of the bead B gradually increases as the coating progresses, and the liquid amount of the bead B (the amount of liquid required to maintain the bead B) is in the relative moving direction. It gradually increases toward (arrow Y direction).
As a result, in the widening region K1, the amount of change in the liquid amount of the bead B becomes insufficient. That is, in the case of widening coating, the liquid (change in the amount of liquid) corresponding to the difference in the length of the bead B between the current coating position (timing) and the immediately preceding coating position (timing) is the current coating position (timing). ) Is insufficient.
In the lower figure of FIG. 4, the change in the liquid amount of the bead B is shown by a two-dot chain line. In the widening region K1, the change in the liquid amount of the bead B becomes an “increase” exceeding zero, although the rate of the change gradually decreases.

Therefore, according to the additional supply, the pump 17 (supply unit 13) has a larger amount of liquid L than the required amount Qc according to the coating width E so as to make up for the shortage of liquid L due to the change in the liquid amount of the bead B. Is supplied to the applicator 11. As a result, the liquid amount including the shortage amount of the liquid corresponding to the change in the liquid amount of the bead B and the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the actual pump 17 is the same as the required amount Qc according to the coating width E. It is possible to make it. This makes it possible to accurately apply the liquid L to the widening region K1 of the base material 7 with a constant film thickness t. As a result, it is possible to reduce the influence of the change in the liquid amount of the bead B on the film thickness t, and it is possible to improve the film thickness accuracy.

[Reduced width application]
Next, of the substrate 7, the reduced width coating in which the liquid L is applied to the reduced width region K2, which is the latter half of the coating, will be described.
In the present embodiment, the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the pump 17 at the time of narrowing coating is the amount shown by the solid line in the lower figure of FIG. 4, which is smaller than the required amount Qc shown by the broken line. That is, at the time of narrow width coating, the supply unit 13 having the pump 17 supplies the liquid L to the coater 11 in an amount smaller than the required amount Qc corresponding to the coating width E. In this way, supplying a liquid L in an amount smaller than the required amount Qc according to the coating width E to the coating device 11 is referred to as "limited supply".

Among the circular base materials 7, the reason for performing the above-mentioned limited supply when applying to the narrowed width region K2 is as follows.
When coating is applied to the narrowed width region K2, the width dimension of the bead B gradually decreases as the coating progresses, and the liquid amount of the bead B (the amount of liquid required to maintain the bead B) moves relative to each other. It gradually decreases in the direction (arrow Y direction).
As a result, the amount of liquid actually applied to the base material 7 includes not only the amount of liquid L supplied by the pump 17, but also the amount of liquid of bead B formed between the coater 11 and the base material 7. This is because the change is included. That is, in the case of reduced width coating, the liquid (change in the amount of liquid) corresponding to the difference in the length of the bead B between the current coating position (timing) and the immediately preceding coating position (timing) is the current coating position (the amount of change). This is because it becomes a surplus liquid at the timing).
In the lower figure of FIG. 4, the change in the liquid amount of the bead B is shown by a two-dot chain line. In the narrowed region K2, the change in the liquid amount of the bead B becomes a “decrease” that is less than zero, and the rate of the change gradually increases.

Therefore, according to the limited supply, the liquid L in an amount smaller than the required amount Qc corresponding to the coating width E is supplied to the coating device 11 by the supply unit 13. As a result, the sum of the surplus amount of the liquid corresponding to the change in the liquid amount of the bead B and the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the actual pump 17 is the same as the required amount Qc according to the coating width E. It is possible to make it. This makes it possible to accurately apply the liquid L to the narrowed region K2 of the base material 7 with a constant film thickness t. According to such a limited supply, it is possible to reduce the influence of the change in the liquid amount of the bead E on the film thickness, and it is possible to further improve the film thickness accuracy.

Further, in the present embodiment, since the base material 7 is circular, the coating width E changes significantly, especially at the end of the reduced width coating, which causes a large change in the liquid amount of the bead B. Therefore, during the final time zone during the reduced width coating, the supply unit 13 having the pump 17 performs the suction operation while performing the relative movement between the base material 7 and the coating device 11. In the lower figure of FIG. 4, the range indicated by the crosshatch is the range in which the supply amount Qp is less than zero (minus). That is, the range is the last time zone in which the suction operation is performed.
As described above, the base material 7 is circular, and in particular, at the end of the reduced width coating, the coating width E changes significantly, which causes a large change in the liquid amount of the bead B, but the supply unit 13 performs a suction operation. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the film thickness from becoming thicker than the specified by the suction operation.

[About narrowing and widening coating]
From the above, the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the supply unit 13 (pump 17) at each coating position is the required amount Qc (the amount shown by the broken line in the lower part of FIG. 4) according to the coating width E at each coating position. ) And the change in the liquid volume of the bead B (the amount indicated by the alternate long and short dash line in the lower figure of FIG. 4). In particular, at the end of coating (reduced width coating), the coating width E changes significantly and the liquid L constituting the bead B becomes a surplus liquid. Therefore, in order to eliminate the surplus liquid, while performing relative movement. , The pump 17 performs a suction operation. The supply amount Qp is the sum of the required amount Qc according to the coating width E and the change in the liquid amount of the bead B, but at the end of the coating (range of the crosshatch), the change in the liquid amount of the bead B Since the required amount Qc is smaller than that of the above, the supply amount Qp is a negative value, that is, "Qp" is the suction amount of the pump 17.

When the film thickness t and the moving speed v are constant, according to the above equation (1), the supply amount Qp of the pump 17 changes according to the coating width E. The coating width E is known from the shape of the base material 7, and the change in the liquid amount of the bead B is also known in relation to the shape of the base material 7. Therefore, the supply amount Qp is calculated based on the changes in the coating width E and the liquid amount of the bead B based on the shape of the base material 7. Therefore, the control device 14 controls the operation of the pump 17 by the computer program created based on the supply amount Qp obtained in advance, so that a coating film having a desired constant film thickness t can be obtained on the base material 7. ..

[About a modified example of the supply unit 13]
FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a coating device 10 provided with a supply unit 13 different from the form shown in FIG. In the first form shown in FIG. 1, the supply unit 13 has one pump 17, whereas in the second form shown in FIG. 6, the supply unit 13 has the first pump 171 and this. It has another second pump 172. The first pump 171 is connected through a first pipe 131 that is directly connected to the applicator 11. The second pump 172 is connected through a second pipe 132 that is directly connected to the applicator 11. The first pipe 131 and the second pipe 132 are separate pipes, are not connected to each other, and are independently connected to the applicator 11. For this purpose, the applicator 11 has a supply port 177 in a part thereof and a suction port 178 in the other part. The first pipe 131 is connected to the supply port 177, and the second pipe 132 is connected to the suction port 178.

The first pump 171 is a pump for supply (dedicated to supply) that sends out the liquid L to the applicator 11, and the second pump 172 is a pump for suction (dedicated to suction) that sucks (recovers) the liquid L of the applicator 11. be. The configurations other than the supply unit 13 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the same configurations are designated by the same reference numerals. Each of the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 is the same pump as the pump 17 of the first embodiment.

The lower diagram of FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the supply unit 13, similarly to the lower diagram of FIG. 4. The lower figure of FIG. 6 also shows the delivery amount q1 (supply amount) of the liquid L by the first pump 171 per unit time and the suction amount q2 of the liquid L by the second pump 172 per unit time. Has been done.
As shown in the lower figure of FIG. 6, the first pump 171 is used during the coating operation of coating the substrate 7, that is, between the coating positions “0” to “100” of the substrate 7. The liquid L is sent out to the applicator 11. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the first pump 171 continues the operation of delivering the liquid L during the coating operation.
Further, during the coating operation of coating the base material 7, that is, between the coating positions "0" to "100" of the base material 7, the second pump 172 sucks the liquid L from the coating device 11 side. conduct. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the second pump 172 continues the operation of sucking the liquid L during the coating operation.

The sum of the delivery amount q1 by the first pump 171 and the suction amount q2 by the second pump 172 at each coating position is the supply amount Qp of the liquid L to the coating device 11 by the supply unit 13 at each coating position. The delivery amount q1 is a positive value, and the suction amount q2 is a negative value. The supply amount Qp of the liquid L supplied by the supply unit 13 to the coater 11 is the same in the first form and the second form. The supply amount Qp at each coating position described in the first embodiment is the sum of the required amount Qc according to the coating width E at each coating position and the change in the liquid amount of the bead B.

In the second embodiment, the total supply amount Qp in which the supply unit 13 having the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 supplies the liquid L to the coater 11 is a change in the required amount Qc and the liquid amount of the bead B. The delivery amount q1 and the suction amount q2 are set so as to match the sum of the minutes. The control device 14 controls the operation of the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 so that the delivery amount q1 and the suction amount q2 are set in this way, respectively.

In the second embodiment, when the liquid L is applied to the widening region K1 which is the first half of the coating, the first pump 171 sends out the liquid L (continues the feeding), and the second pump 172 sends the liquid L. Suction L (continue suction). During the reduced width application in which the liquid L is applied to the reduced width region K2 in the latter half of the coating, the first pump 171 sends out the liquid L (continues the delivery), and the second pump 172 sucks the liquid L. (Continue suction). When the amount q1 of the liquid L sent out by the first pump 171 exceeds the amount q2 of the liquid L sucked by the second pump 172, the supply unit 13 is in the state of performing the supply operation. On the other hand, when the suction amount q2 of the liquid L by the second pump 172 exceeds the delivery amount q1 of the liquid L by the first pump 171, the supply unit 13 is in the state of performing the suction operation.

As described in the first embodiment, at the end of application (range of crosshatch), the required amount Qc is smaller than the change in the liquid amount of bead B. Therefore, at the end of application, the supply unit 13 Performs a suction operation. That is, in the form shown in FIG. 6, when the reduced width is applied in the latter half, the following first state is changed to the following second state in the middle of the application.
First state: A state in which the amount q1 of the liquid L sent out by the first pump 171 is larger than the amount q2 of the liquid L sucked by the second pump 172.
Second state: The state in which the suction amount q2 of the liquid L by the second pump 172 is larger than the delivery amount q1 of the liquid L by the first pump 171.
At the time of widening coating in the first half, it is in the first state from beginning to end.

[About other modifications of the supply unit 13]
FIG. 7 is a schematic view of a coating device 10 provided with a supply unit 13 different from each form shown in FIGS. 1 and 6. In the third embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the supply unit 13 has a first pump 171 and a second pump 172. In this respect, the third form is the same as the second form, but in the third form, the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 are each connected to one pipe 173 that is directly connected to the applicator 11. It is connected. That is, the pipe 173 is a common pipe for the first pump 171 and the second pump 172.

The operation of the first pump 171 dedicated to supply and the second pump 172 dedicated to suction is the same in the third form and the second form.
The lower diagram of FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the supply unit 13, similarly to the lower diagram of FIG. The lower figure of FIG. 7 also shows the delivery amount q1 (supply amount) of the liquid L by the first pump 171 per unit time and the suction amount q2 of the liquid L by the second pump 172 per unit time. Has been done. During the coating operation of coating on the base material 7, the first pump 171 sends out (continues) the liquid L, and the second pump 172 sucks (continues) the liquid L. During the latter half of the reduced width coating, the first state in which the feed amount q1 is larger than the suction amount q2 is changed to the second state in which the suction amount q2 is larger than the feed amount q1. At the time of widening application in the first half, it is in the first state from beginning to end.

Also in the third embodiment, as in the second embodiment, the total supply amount Qp in which the supply unit 13 having the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 supplies the liquid L to the coater 11 is the required amount Qc. The delivery amount q1 and the suction amount q2 are set so as to match the sum of the changes in the liquid amount of the bead B. The control device 14 controls the operation of the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 so that the delivery amount q1 and the suction amount q2 are set in this way, respectively.

[About the coating device 10 of each form]
Similar to the first form (see FIG. 4), in each of the second form (see FIG. 6) and the third form (see FIG. 7), the supply amount Qp of the liquid L by the supply unit 13 can be obtained by calculation. .. Therefore, in each of the second mode and the third mode, the control device 14 controls the operation of the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 by a computer program created based on the supply amount Qp obtained in advance. Therefore, a coating film having a desired constant film thickness t can be obtained on the base material 7. By controlling the operation as described above during the reduced width coating, which is the latter half of the coating operation, the supply unit 13 as a whole initially performs the supply operation as a whole, but in the middle of the operation. A suction operation can be performed.

In the second form and the third form, respectively, since the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 are dedicated to supply and suction, they do not become discontinuous during the coating operation. Therefore, after the coating operation is completed, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of streaks as described below in the coating film on the molded base material 7.
That is, in the case of the first embodiment, the delivery and suction of the liquid L are switched in the middle by one pump 17. In this case, the pump 17 operates discontinuously at the timing of the switching, and as a result, streaks may occur in the coating film coated on the base material 7 depending on the relative moving speed.
On the other hand, in the second form and the third form, the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 do not reverse the operation (mechanical operation) during the coating operation. Therefore, regardless of the relative moving speed, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of streaks in the coating film after the coating operation is completed.

Further, even if the supply unit 13 has the first pump 171 and the second pump 172, in the third embodiment (see FIG. 7), the applicator 11 and the supply unit 13 are in the middle (last) of the reduced width coating. In the common pipe 173 connecting to and, the flow of the liquid L is reversed. In this case, the inversion may affect the accuracy of the film thickness formed on the base material 7.
On the other hand, in the second mode (see FIG. 6), the flow of the liquid L does not reverse in each of the two pipes 131 and 132 connecting the applicator 11 and the supply unit 13. That is, the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 are switched from the discharge operation to the suction operation as a whole of the supply unit 13 without being accompanied by a mechanical reversal operation. As a result, it is possible to more effectively suppress the generation of liquid streaks on the coating film.
From the above, the second form (see FIG. 6) is preferable to the third form (see FIG. 7) in order to further improve the film thickness accuracy.

In each of the second form (see FIG. 6) and the third form (see FIG. 7), the suction amount q2 is constant even if the coating position is changed, but the suction amount q2 may change depending on the coating position. good. In this case, the delivery amount q1 may be changed accordingly so that the sum of the delivery amount q1 and the suction amount q2 is the same as the supply amount Qp described in the first embodiment. Further, the second pump 172 starts suction from the coating position "0", but may be other than that, and starts suction from an intermediate position between the coating positions "0" and "100". You may.

The coating device 10 of the first embodiment (see FIGS. 1 and 2) has a tank 18 for replenishing the pump 17 with the liquid L. Liquid L is stored in the tank 18. The tank 18 is connected to the pump 17 through a replenishment pipe 19. The replenishment pipe 19 is provided with a second opening / closing valve 33, which is closed during the coating operation. During the coating operation, the first valve 32 of the pipe 31 is in an open state. After the coating operation is completed, the first valve 32 is in the closed state and the second valve 33 is in the open state. When the pump 17 performs a suction operation, the liquid L is replenished from the tank 18 to the pump 17. As a result, it is possible to return to the state before the coating operation and move to the next coating operation.

The coating device 10 of the second embodiment (see FIG. 6) has a first tank 181 for replenishing the liquid L to the first pump 171 and a second tank 182 for receiving the liquid L from the second pump 172. Have. Liquid L is stored in the tanks 181, 182. The first tank 181 is connected to the first pump 171 through a replenishment pipe 191. The second tank 182 is connected to the second pump 172 through a return pipe 192.
The replenishment pipe 191 is provided with a third valve 133 that can be opened and closed, and the valve 133 is in a closed state during the coating operation. During the coating operation, the first valve 32-1 of the pipe 131 is in an open state. After the coating operation is completed, the first valve 32-1 is closed and the third valve 133 is open. The liquid L is replenished from the tank 181 to the pump 171 by performing the operation (suction operation) opposite to the case where the pump 171 performs the coating operation.
The return pipe 192 is provided with a fourth valve 134 that can be opened and closed, and the valve 134 is in a closed state during the coating operation. During the coating operation, the second valve 32-2 of the pipe 132 is in an open state. After the coating operation is completed, the second valve 32-2 is closed and the fourth valve 134 is open. The liquid L sucked by the second pump 172 is sent to the tank 182 by performing the operation (delivery operation) opposite to that in the case of the coating operation of the pump 171.
As a result, it is possible to return to the state before the coating operation and move to the next coating operation.

The coating device 10 of the third embodiment (see FIG. 7) has a tank 183 connected to the first pump 171 and the second pump 172 through the preparation pipe 193. Liquid L is stored in the tank 183. The preparation pipe 193 is provided with a second valve 135 that can be opened and closed, and the valve 135 is in a closed state during the coating operation. During the coating operation, the first valve 32 of the pipe 173 is in an open state. After the coating operation is completed, the first valve 32 is in the closed state and the second valve 135 is in the open state. The liquid L is replenished from the tank 183 to the pump 171 by performing the operation (suction operation) opposite to that in the case of the coating operation of the first pump 171. Further, the liquid L sucked by the second pump 172 is sent to the tank 183 by performing the operation (delivery operation) opposite to that in the case of the coating operation of the second pump 172.
As a result, it is possible to return to the state before the coating operation and move to the next coating operation.

[Applying device 10 of each form and a coating method by the coating device 10]
The coating device 10 of each form is a capillary coating type device. The coating method performed by the coating device 10 is to discharge the liquid L from the discharge port 23 while maintaining the liquid L in the coating device 11 at a negative pressure and performing relative movement between the coating device 11 and the base material 7. This is a method of applying the entire width direction of the base material F facing the discharge port 23 as the coating width E.
At the time of widening coating in which the liquid L is applied to the widening region K1 in which the dimension in the width direction gradually increases in the relative moving direction of the base material 7, the supply unit 13 needs to correspond to the coating width E. A liquid L larger than the amount Qc is supplied to the coater 11. According to this method, it is possible to further improve the film thickness accuracy in the widening region K1.
In the narrowing region K2 in which the dimension in the width direction gradually decreases toward the relative movement direction of the base material 7, when the liquid L is applied to the reduced width region K2, the supply unit 13 responds to the coating width E. A liquid L smaller than the required amount Qc is supplied to the coater 11. According to this method, it is possible to further improve the film thickness accuracy in the narrowed width region K2.

Conventionally, a technique called a sackback method, in which the liquid is sucked to the coater side at the end of coating, is known. In the suckback method, it is possible to improve the film thickness accuracy at the end, but it is impossible to improve the film thickness accuracy in a wide range including the end. In the suckback method, when the discharge port of the applicator reaches directly above the end of the base material, suction is performed with the relative movement stopped, and the bead is destroyed by the suction. In the suckback method, suction is uniformly performed regardless of the change in the width dimension (coating width) of the base material, that is, the change in the length of the bead.
On the other hand, in the coating method performed by the coating apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the supply unit 13 is used in relation to the change in the width dimension E (coating width) of the base material 7, that is, the change in the length of the bead B. The supply amount and suction amount of the liquid L are controlled. In the case of the present embodiment, even if the discharge port 23 reaches directly above the end of the base material 7 due to the relative movement, the bead B remains, and the discharge port 23 becomes the base material 7 due to the further relative movement. Bead B is destroyed by passing through the end and leaving.

[About others]
In the above embodiment, the supply unit 13 (pump 17, first pump 171 and second pump 172) is used for capillary coating, that is, for creating a negative pressure in the coating device 11. The means for creating a negative pressure in the applicator 11 may be other means. For example, although not shown, the negative pressure may be generated by the negative pressure generating means 95 including the tank 95a (see FIG. 9) as in Patent Document 1. Further, the liquiding operation may also be performed by the negative pressure generating means 95.

The embodiments disclosed this time are exemplary in all respects and are not restrictive. The scope of rights of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but includes all modifications within the scope equivalent to the configuration described in the scope of claims.

7: Base material 10: Coating device 11: Coating device 12: Moving mechanism 13: Supply unit 23: Discharge port 131: First piping 132: Second piping 171: First pump 172: Second pump E: Coating width K1: Widening area K2: Narrowing area L: Liquid

Claims (7)

A coater with a discharge port that is longer in one direction than the base material to be coated,
A moving mechanism for allowing the coater and the base material to move relative to each other with the direction intersecting in one direction as the moving direction.
A supply unit that is connected to the applicator and can perform a supply operation to supply the liquid to the applicator.
Equipped with
The base material has, at least a part thereof, a contour shape whose dimensions in the width direction orthogonal to the moving direction change.
By discharging the liquid from the discharge port while maintaining the liquid in the coater at a negative pressure and performing the relative movement, the entire width direction of the base material facing the discharge port is applied as the coating width. , Capillary coating type coating device,
In the reduced width coating in which the liquid is applied to the reduced width region in which the dimension in the width direction gradually decreases, the supply portion is an amount smaller than the required amount according to the coating width. To supply the liquid of
Coating device. The supply unit can further perform a suction operation of sucking the liquid of the applicator.
The coating device according to claim 1, wherein the supply unit includes a timing in which the suction operation is performed while performing the relative movement during the reduced width coating. The supply unit has a first pump that sends out the liquid and a second pump that sucks the liquid.
The coating device according to claim 2, wherein the first pump sends out a liquid and the second pump sucks the liquid at the time of the reduced width coating. At the time of the reduced width application, in the middle of the application
From the first state where the amount of liquid sent out by the first pump is larger than the amount of liquid sucked by the second pump.
To the second state where the suction amount of the liquid by the second pump is larger than the delivery amount of the liquid by the first pump.
The coating apparatus according to claim 3, which is modified. The first pump is connected through a first pipe that is directly connected to the applicator.
The coating device according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the second pump is connected to the coating device through a second piping which is separate from the first piping and is directly connected to the coating device. In the widening coating in which the liquid is applied to the widening region in which the dimension in the width direction gradually increases, the supply unit is provided with a liquid amount larger than the required amount according to the coating width. The coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the coating apparatus is supplied to the coating device. A coater with a discharge port that is longer in one direction than the base material to be coated,
A moving mechanism for allowing the coater and the base material to move relative to each other with the direction intersecting in one direction as the moving direction.
A coating device including a supply unit that is connected to the coating device and is capable of performing a supply operation of supplying a liquid to the coating device.
By discharging the liquid from the discharge port while maintaining the liquid in the coater at a negative pressure and performing the relative movement, the entire width direction of the base material facing the discharge port is applied as the coating width. , Capillary coating method,
The base material has, at least a part thereof, a contour shape whose dimensions in the width direction orthogonal to the moving direction change.
In the reduced width coating in which the liquid is applied to the reduced width region in which the dimension in the width direction gradually decreases, the supply portion is an amount smaller than the required amount according to the coating width. To supply the liquid of
Application method.

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