JP3521514B2 - Scanning exposure apparatus and carriage device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a scanning type exposure apparatus,
For example, it can be applied to those used for manufacturing large-sized liquid crystal display devices.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a scanning type exposure apparatus for manufacturing a large-sized liquid crystal display device, a mask made of an original plate and a photosensitive substrate as an exposed body are substantially vertically opposed and integrally supported, and the mask and the photosensitive substrate are etc. There is one in which an equal-magnification and erect image of an original image pattern on a mask is projected and exposed on a photosensitive substrate by scanning with a projection optical system which is double and erect.

That is, as shown in FIG. 3, in the scanning type exposure apparatus 1, the mask 2 and the photosensitive substrate 3 are opened upward in the cross section as seen from the scanning direction via the mask stage 4 and the photosensitive substrate stage 5, respectively. It is attached to a U-shaped carriage 6 having a. The carriage 6 is designed to integrally transfer the mask 2 and the photosensitive substrate 3 to the projection optical system 7, and is extended in the scanning direction by an air bearing (not shown) formed on the bottom surface. It floats on the air bearing guide 8. Carriage 6
Are moved and driven by linear motors (not shown) formed on both side surfaces. The projection optical system 7, the air bearing guide 8 and the stator of the linear motor are fixed or formed on an apparatus surface plate (not shown) formed on the vibration isolator.

[0004]

However, in the scanning type exposure apparatus as described above, the projection optical system 7 exists between the mask 2 and the photosensitive substrate 3, and the projection optical system 7 and the mask 2 or the photosensitive substrate 3 are present. Since the distance from the photosensitive substrate 3 is very narrow, it is very difficult to clean the holder suction surface of the photosensitive substrate stage 4 which sucks and holds the photosensitive substrate 3, and the maintainability is poor. When a Dyson optical system or the like is used as the projection optical system 7, in order to form a long projection area extending in the vertical direction, the optical system must be arranged long in the scanning direction. For this reason, the optical system exists over the moving range of the supporting means, and it is difficult to secure the working space as described above.

On the other hand, in order to transfer the mask 2 and the photosensitive substrate 3, a space is necessary between the mask 2 and the photosensitive optical system 3,
In order to achieve a long working distance, not only is it difficult to design and manufacture the projection optical system 7, but also the mask 2
The degree of freedom of design on the side of the loader that carries the photosensitive substrate 3 is greatly restricted.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and when the original plate and the object to be exposed are opposed to each other and vertically supported, and scanning exposure is performed with respect to an upright and equal-magnification projection optical system. The present invention aims to propose a scanning type exposure apparatus which can improve maintainability and throughput with a simple structure.

[0007]

In order to solve such a problem, in the present invention, a support means (6) for integrally supporting the original plate (2) and the object to be exposed (3) so as to face each other in a substantially vertical direction, and a predetermined means. A plurality of projection optical systems (7) arranged along the direction and projecting an equal-magnification and erect image of the original plate (2) onto the object (3) to be exposed, and the plurality of projection optical systems (7). On the other hand, scanning means (11, 12, 13, 14, 15) for scanning the original plate (2) and the exposed object (3) in a direction orthogonal to the predetermined direction and the optical axis direction of the projection optical system (7). In a scanning type exposure apparatus (10) having a scanning means (11, 12, 1
3, 14, 15) are air bearings and guides (11, 1)
2), and the guides (11, 12) have a first movement area (A) required for exposure and a second movement area (B) continuous with the first movement area (A). Support means (6)
I will guide you.

Further, in the present invention, the guides (11, 1)
As the processing accuracy of 2), the processing accuracy of the first moving area (A) is higher than the processing accuracy of the second moving area (B).

Further, in the present invention, the scanning means (11,
12, 13, 14, 15) drive the supporting means (6) by the first linear motor (13, 14) in the first moving area (A) and the first linear motor (13, 14) in the second moving area (B). Second linear motor (13, 14) provided continuously
The supporting means (6) is driven by the linear motors (13, 15). Furthermore, in the present invention, the movement accuracy of the second linear motors (13, 15) is set lower than the movement accuracy of the first linear motors (13, 14). The present invention also provides a guide (1
A carriage having a carriage (6) moving over
In the ridge device , the guides (11, 12) include a first moving area (A) having a first accuracy and a second moving area (A) having a second accuracy lower than the first accuracy. B) and have. This carriage (6) has a linear motor (1
3, 14, 15). The first moving area (A) and the second moving area (B) are the carriage.
It is continuous along the moving direction of (6) . Also carry
The seat (6) by air bearing on the guides (11, 12)
It is movably supported. In addition, the linear motor (1
3, 14, 15) are provided along the first moving area ( A ).
Along the first stator (14) and the second moving area ( B )
Second stator provided differently from the first stator (14)
(15) and. Also, the carriage (6) is
Supports disk (2). Also, the carriage (6)
It supports the photosensitive substrate (3).

[0010]

The guide (11) of the guide means (11, 12) for guiding the support means (6) for integrally supporting the original plate (2) and the exposed body (3) is provided with an area (first movement) required for the exposure. By extending the region (A)) and adding the guide (12) to the extended region (second moving region (B)), the original plate (2) is extended to the place where the projection optical system (7) is retracted. ) And the object to be exposed (3) can be moved, cleaning and inspection of the original plate (2), the holder surface of the object to be exposed (3), the projection optical system (7), etc. can be easily performed, and maintenance can be performed. Can improve the sex.

Further, supporting means (6) is provided from the outside of the exposure apparatus.
Since the transport means for transporting the original plate (2) and the object to be exposed (3) can be designed in a wide space, a structure having a plurality of transport arms that is advantageous for tact can be formed, and the degree of freedom in design is improved. You can Further, also in the assembling work of the carrying means, it is possible to avoid the possibility of damaging the projection optical system (7) and to secure a sufficient working space. In addition, the key of the present invention
The carriage device makes the accuracy of the second moving area (B) lower than the accuracy of the first moving area (A). Further, the carriage (6) is driven by the linear motors (13, 14, 15). Further, the first moving area (A) and the second moving area (B) are continuous along the moving direction of the carriage (6) . Moreover, the carriage (6) is
It is moving on the guides (11, 12). Also carry
Edge (6) is located along the first movement area ( A ).
While moving along one stator (14), second movement
Along the second stator (15) provided along the area ( B ).
Is moving. Also, the carriage (6) is a mask
(2) may be supported, or the photosensitive substrate (3) may be supported.
Good.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1 in which parts corresponding to those in FIG. 3 are designated by the same reference numerals, 10 indicates an embodiment of the main construction of the scanning type exposure apparatus according to the present invention as a whole, and the projection optical system 7 is an apparatus surface plate. Supported on (not shown). The mask 2 and the photosensitive substrate 3 are placed on a mask stage 4 and a photosensitive substrate stage 5, and the mask stage 4 and the photosensitive substrate stage 5 are integrally supported by a carriage 6. Further, the carriage 6 is a high precision guide 1 for scanning exposure by an air bearing (not shown) formed inside the carriage 6.
1 is movable in the scanning direction along a conveyance guide 12 for retracting from the projection optical system 7 when the mask 1, the mask 2, and the photosensitive substrate 3 are exchanged.

In the case of this embodiment, the projection optical system 7 is constructed by using, for example, a Dyson optical system. Projection optical system 7
Each has a plurality of equal-magnification erecting projection lenses,
The projection area 7a on the photosensitive substrate 3 obtained as a result is shown in FIG.
As shown in, the areas adjacent to each other (for example, PA1 and P1
A2, PA2 and PA3) are displaced in the X direction by a predetermined amount, and end portions of adjacent regions (portions indicated by broken lines in the drawing) overlap in the Y direction. Accordingly, the plurality of projection lenses are also optically displaced by a predetermined amount in the X direction according to the arrangement of the projection areas PA1 to PA5, and Y
It is arranged to overlap in the direction.

The high precision guide 11 and the conveying guide 12
Are geometrically formed to have the same cross-sectional shape.
In practice, the high precision guide 11 has a guide surface finished with high processing precision in order to ensure high running precision required for scanning exposure. Further, the transport guide 12 is formed to have an inexpensive guide surface with a processing accuracy lower than that.
The range in which the carriage 6 runs on the transport guide 12 is
It is set so as to be in a range (second moving area (B)) that is not related to exposure.

The step caused by a slight deviation or chamfering at the time of assembling of the high-precision guide 11 and the guide 12 for conveyance is caused by the carriage 6 and the respective guides 11, 1.
It is kept within a range that can be absorbed by the air film formed between the two. Also, guides 11 and 12 respectively
Even if the chamfer of the end face of the
After replenishing Nos. 1 and 12, the joint is smoothed with putty, etc., so that the carriage 6 can move the joint without any problem (so that displacement due to amplitude does not occur).

On the other hand, the linear motors 13, 14 and 15 that drive the carriage 6 also have a scanning exposure range (first moving area (A)) that requires high precision and a transport section (support for the mask 2 and the photosensitive substrate 3). It is formed by dividing the stators 14 and 15 in a range (second movement region (B)) that is retracted to the position where the stator is moved. The linear motor includes a mover 13 and stators 14 and 15
Since and can be made non-contact with each other, the joining portion of the stators 14 and 15 of the linear motor does not require component accuracy or assembly accuracy, and can be easily added. See also Guide 1
Similar to 1 and 12, linear motor 1 used in the transport section
As the motors 3 and 15, the specifications of the motor itself such as the thrust ripple are considerably loosened from those of the linear motors 13 and 14 used in the scanning exposure.

According to the above construction, since the projection optical system 7 and the carriage 6 can be moved to positions completely separated from each other, a sufficient maintenance space for the projection optical system 7 can be secured. The loading and unloading of the mask 2 and the photosensitive substrate 3 can be performed without being isolated by the projection optical system 7. Further, since a new photosensitive substrate 3 is constantly fed in, the surface of the holder for adsorbing and holding the photosensitive substrate 3 is getting dirty and needs regular cleaning, but it is at a position distant from the projection optical system 7 and in the work space. The cleaning work can be performed in a wide space, so that the workability during maintenance can be significantly improved.

Further, according to the above construction, the stroke can be extended in the scanning exposure direction to retract from the projection optical system 7. Therefore, after the exposure, only one operation is required before going to the unloading position, and the operation is stopped halfway. It is possible to realize high throughput without wasteful time. Further, since the guides 11 and 12 and the linear motors 13, 14 and 15 are each divided into two parts for the scanning exposure range and the range retracted to the transport section, a long-sized guide or linear motor is not required. In particular, it is difficult to manufacture a long-sized ceramic having a high degree of use for an air bearing, which causes a cost increase. However, in the above method, only one scanning exposure range is manufactured, and the other parts are manufactured. Cost can be reduced because it can be divided into a plurality of parts.

[0020]

As described above, according to the present invention, the guide for guiding the support means for integrally supporting the original plate and the exposed body is extended beyond the first moving region required for exposure, and the extended first moving region. By forming the guides for the two movement areas by adding them, the original plate and the exposed object can be moved to the place where the projection optical system is retracted, and the holder surface of the original plate and the exposed object, the cleaning and inspection of the projection optical system, etc. Can be performed easily and maintainability can be improved.

Further, since the transporting means for transporting the original plate and the object to be exposed can be designed for a wide space, a structure having a plurality of transporting arms which is advantageous for tact can be formed, and the degree of freedom in designing can be improved. Further, also in the assembling work of the conveying means, it is possible to avoid the risk of damaging the projection optical system and to secure a sufficient working space. In addition, the carrier of the present invention
The device can make the accuracy of the second moving area lower than the accuracy of the first moving area. Also, with a linear motor
The carriage can be driven. Further, the first movement area and the second movement area can be continuous along the movement direction of the carriage . Also, the carriage has air bearings.
You can move on the guide through. Also carry
Along the first stator provided along the first area
Along with the movement, the second solid provided along the second region
You can move along Sadako. Also the carriage
Can support the mask. Also the carriage
Can support the photosensitive substrate.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an embodiment of a scanning exposure apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a projection area on a photosensitive substrate.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a conventional scanning exposure apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

1, 10 ... Scanning exposure apparatus, 2 ... Mask, 3 ... Photosensitive substrate, 4 ... Mask stage, 5 ... Photosensitive substrate stage, 6 ... Carriage, 7 ... Projection optical system, 7a ... Projection Area, 8, 11 ... High precision guide, 12 ... Conveyance guide, 13 ... Linear motor (mover), 14 ... High performance linear motor (stator), 15 ... Linear motor (stator).

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── --- Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-61-251025 (JP, A) JP-A-60-109228 (JP, A) JP-A-8-167567 (JP, A) JP-A-7- 326557 (JP, A) JP-A-6-53113 (JP, A) JP-A-2-142112 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01L 21/027 G03B 27 / 50 G03F 7/20 521

Claims (11)

(57) [Claims] 1. A support means for integrally supporting an original plate and an object to be exposed to each other in a substantially vertical direction, and an equal-magnification and erect image of the original plate on the object to be exposed, which is arranged along a predetermined direction. A plurality of projection optical systems for projecting, and scanning means for scanning the original plate and the object to be exposed in the directions orthogonal to the predetermined direction and the optical axis direction of the projection optical system with respect to the plurality of projection optical systems. In the scanning exposure apparatus having, the scanning means includes an air bearing and a guide, and the guide has a first movement region required for the exposure and a second movement region continuous with the first movement region. A scanning type exposure apparatus having the guide means for holding the supporting means. 2. The scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing accuracy of the guide is such that the processing accuracy of the first moving area is higher than the processing accuracy of the second moving area. . 3. The scanning means drives the supporting means with a first linear motor in the first moving area, and is provided continuously with the first linear motor in the second moving area. The scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the supporting means is driven by a second linear motor. 4. The scanning exposure apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the movement accuracy of the second linear motor is set lower than the movement accuracy of the first linear motor. 5. Moving on a guide having a moving surface
In a carriage device having a carriage , the guide has a first movement area having a first accuracy and a second movement area having a second accuracy lower than the first accuracy. A carriage device characterized by the above. Wherein said carriage carriage <br/> device according to claim 5, characterized in that it is driven by a linear motor. Wherein said the first movement region and said second movement region, the carriage instrumentation <br/> location according to claim 5 or 6, wherein that are continuous along the moving direction of the carriage . 8. The carriage is provided with an air bearing for the guide.
A contract characterized by being movably supported on the id
The carriage device according to any one of claims 5 to 7. 9. The linear motor comprises the first moving region.
The first stator provided along the
A second stator provided along the first stator and different from the first stator;
It has any one of Claims 5-8 characterized by the above-mentioned.
The carriage device according to item 1. 10. The carriage supports a mask.
The key according to any one of claims 5 to 9, characterized by
Carriage device. 11. The carriage supports a photosensitive substrate.
11. The method according to claim 5, wherein
Carriage device.