JP5636315B2 - Exposure apparatus, exposure method, and manufacturing method of display panel substrate - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus that exposes a light beam to a substrate coated with a photoresist, scans the substrate with the light beam, and draws a pattern on the substrate in the manufacture of a display panel substrate such as a liquid crystal display device. The present invention relates to a method and a manufacturing method of a display panel substrate using them, and in particular, modulates a light beam radiated on a substrate using a spatial light modulator in which a plurality of mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions, thereby generating spatial light. The region where the light reflected by one mirror of the modulator is irradiated onto the substrate and the region where the light reflected by the other mirror is irradiated onto the substrate partially overlap as the substrate is scanned by the light beam. The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus that performs multiple exposure, an exposure method, and a method of manufacturing a display panel substrate using them.

  Manufacturing of TFT (Thin Film Transistor) substrates, color filter substrates, plasma display panel substrates, organic EL (Electroluminescence) display panel substrates, and the like of liquid crystal display devices used as display panels is performed using photolithography using an exposure apparatus. This is performed by forming a pattern on the substrate by a technique. Conventionally, as an exposure apparatus, a projection method in which a mask pattern is projected onto a substrate using a lens or a mirror, and a minute gap (proximity gap) is provided between the mask and the substrate to transfer the mask pattern to the substrate. There was a proximity method to transfer.

  In recent years, an exposure apparatus has been developed that irradiates a substrate coated with a photoresist with a light beam, scans the substrate with the light beam, and draws a pattern on the substrate. Since the substrate is scanned by the light beam and the pattern is directly drawn on the substrate, an expensive mask is not required. Further, by changing the drawing data and the scanning program, various types of display panel substrates can be supported.

  When a pattern is drawn on a substrate with a light beam, a DMD (Digital Micromirror Device) is used to modulate the light beam. The DMD is configured by arranging a plurality of minute mirrors that reflect a light beam in two orthogonal directions, and modulates the light beam applied to the substrate by changing the angle of each mirror. The DMD drive circuit outputs a drive signal for driving each mirror to the DMD based on the drawing data.

  Currently available DMDs are provided with hundreds of thousands to millions of mirrors per DMD. The size of each mirror is about 10 to 15 μm square, and there is a gap of about 1 μm between adjacent mirrors. When the DMD is arranged in parallel with the scanning direction of the substrate by the light beam, the arrangement direction of each mirror (two directions perpendicular to each other) is parallel and perpendicular to the scanning direction of the substrate. Therefore, the pattern cannot be drawn at a location corresponding to the gap. Therefore, as described in Patent Document 1, the DMD is used while being inclined with respect to the scanning direction of the substrate by the light beam. And, as described in Patent Document 2, the region where the light reflected by one mirror is irradiated on the substrate and the region where the light reflected by the other mirror is irradiated on the substrate are divided by the light beam on the substrate. By performing multiple exposure that partially overlaps with scanning, a pattern can be drawn with a resolution smaller than the size of the DMD mirror.

  The scanning of the substrate by the light beam is performed by relatively moving a chuck that supports the substrate and a light beam irradiation device having a head unit that irradiates the substrate with the light beam modulated by the DMD. In Patent Document 3, in order to prevent a reduction in drawing quality due to a positional deviation of the head portion of the light beam irradiation apparatus, the positional deviation of the head portion is detected, and the drawing data supplied to the DMD drive circuit is detected based on the detection result. A technique for correcting coordinates and supplying drawing data of the corrected coordinates to a driving circuit of the DMD is disclosed.

JP 2005-353927 A JP 2004-12899 A JP 2010-102084 A

  The drawing data is generated based on the coordinate data created from the CAD data of the pattern to be drawn and stored in the memory, and the light reflected by each mirror of the DMD by the relative movement between the chuck and the light beam irradiation device. As the region irradiated onto the substrate moves, it is read from the memory and supplied to the drive circuit of the DMD. When a pattern is drawn with high definition by multiple exposure as described in Patent Document 2, the resolution of the drawing data is smaller than the size of the DMD mirror, and the drawing data is several times to several tens of times the number of DMD mirrors. Amount.

  In order to perform pattern drawing with higher definition, it is necessary to further increase the resolution of the drawing data. However, if the resolution of the drawing data is increased, the amount of drawing data further increases, and the drawing data is transferred to the DMD drive circuit. There is a problem in that it is difficult to supply at high speed, and the scanning speed of the substrate by the light beam cannot be increased.

  An object of the present invention is to improve drawing quality without increasing the amount of drawing data when drawing a pattern on a substrate by performing multiple exposure using a spatial light modulator in which a plurality of mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions. The pattern is drawn at high speed and with high definition. Another object of the present invention is to manufacture a high-quality display panel substrate with high throughput.

  An exposure apparatus of the present invention drives a spatial light modulator based on drawing data, a chuck that supports a substrate coated with a photoresist, a spatial light modulator in which a plurality of mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions. A driving circuit, a light beam irradiation device having an irradiation optical system for irradiating the light beam modulated by the spatial light modulator, and a moving means for relatively moving the chuck and the light beam irradiation device; The chuck and the light beam irradiation device are moved relative to each other, the substrate is scanned with the light beam from the light beam irradiation device, and the light reflected by one mirror of the spatial light modulator of the light beam irradiation device is reflected. A pattern is drawn on the substrate by performing multiple exposure in which the region irradiated to the substrate and the region irradiated with light reflected by other mirrors partially overlap as the substrate is scanned by the light beam. And a sampling point for determining the necessity of drawing from the coordinate data stored in the memory for each exposure area having a resolution size. And a drawing data generating means for generating drawing data by periodically changing the drawing data, and having a drawing control means for supplying the drawing data generated by the drawing data generating means to the drive circuit of the light beam irradiation apparatus It is.

  In addition, the exposure method of the present invention supports a substrate coated with a photoresist with a chuck, a spatial light modulator in which the chuck and a plurality of mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions, and spatial light based on drawing data. A light beam from the light beam irradiation device is moved relatively with a light beam irradiation device having a driving circuit for driving the modulator and an irradiation optical system for irradiating the light beam modulated by the spatial light modulator. The area where the substrate is scanned with the light reflected by one mirror of the spatial light modulator of the light beam irradiation device and the area where the light reflected by the other mirror is irradiated onto the substrate is An exposure method that draws a pattern on a substrate by performing multiple exposures that partially overlap with the scanning of the substrate with a light beam, and determines whether drawing is necessary from the coordinate data of the figure of the pattern drawn on the substrate To do The pulling point periodically varied for each exposure area of the resolution of the size, and generates drawing data, the generated drawing data, and supplies to the drive circuit of a light beam irradiation device.

  Conventionally, when drawing data is generated from the coordinate data of a pattern figure to be drawn on a substrate, the necessity of drawing has been determined using the center point of the exposure area having a resolution as a sampling point. Therefore, for example, in the case where a portion composed of pattern lines (the edge of the pattern to be drawn) is a straight line extending in the X direction or the Y direction, whether or not drawing is performed in the exposure region through which the straight line passes. Everything was the same. In the present invention, from the coordinate data of the figure of the pattern to be drawn on the substrate, the sampling point for determining whether drawing is necessary is periodically changed for each exposure area of the resolution size to generate drawing data. Even if the portion composed of pattern lines (the edge of the pattern to be drawn) is a straight line extending in the X direction or the Y direction, the presence or absence of drawing is periodic in the exposure region through which the straight line passes. Changes.

  When using a spatial light modulator in which multiple mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions and drawing a pattern on a substrate by performing multiple exposure, the light beam modulated by the drawing data with periodically varying sampling points is The region where the light reflected by one mirror is irradiated onto the substrate and the region where the light reflected by the other mirror is irradiated onto the substrate partially overlap as the substrate is scanned by the light beam. The exposure amount is averaged, and a pattern can be drawn at an interval smaller than the resolution interval. Therefore, the drawing quality is improved without increasing the amount of drawing data, and the pattern is drawn at high speed and with high definition.

  Furthermore, in the exposure apparatus of the present invention, the drawing data generating means determines a plurality of sampling points in which one point in each section obtained by dividing an exposure area having a resolution size into a plurality of sections is determined as a sampling point in a different order. A plurality of sampling circuits that determine whether or not drawing is necessary at the sampling points determined by each sampling point determination circuit, and the coordinate data stored in the memory; A plurality of pattern generation circuits that generate patterns and a selection circuit that sequentially selects one of the drawing data patterns generated by the plurality of pattern generation circuits.

  In the exposure method of the present invention, a plurality of sampling point determination circuits determine one point in each section obtained by dividing an exposure area having a resolution size into a plurality of sections as sampling points in a different order from each other. The sampling circuit determines whether or not drawing is necessary at the sampling point determined by each sampling point determination circuit with respect to the coordinate data of the figure of the pattern to be drawn on the substrate, and the determination result of each sampling circuit is obtained by a plurality of pattern generation circuits. Accordingly, a drawing data pattern is generated, and one of the drawing data patterns generated by the plurality of pattern generation circuits is sequentially selected by the selection circuit to generate drawing data.

  Drawing data in which sampling points are periodically changed for each exposure area of the resolution size with a simple configuration using a plurality of sampling point determination circuits, a plurality of sampling circuits, a plurality of pattern generation circuits, and a selection circuit. It can be easily generated.

  The method for producing a display panel substrate according to the present invention involves exposing the substrate using any one of the above exposure apparatuses or exposure methods. By using the above exposure apparatus or exposure method, drawing quality is improved without increasing the amount of drawing data, and pattern drawing is performed at high speed and high definition, so a high-quality display panel substrate has a high throughput. Manufactured by.

  According to the exposure apparatus and the exposure method of the present invention, from the coordinate data of the figure of the pattern to be drawn on the substrate, the sampling point for determining the necessity of drawing is periodically changed for each exposure area of the resolution size, The drawing data is generated, and the generated drawing data is supplied to the drive circuit of the light beam irradiation apparatus, so that the substrate is subjected to multiple exposure using a spatial light modulator in which a plurality of mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions. When a pattern is drawn, the drawing quality can be improved without increasing the amount of drawing data, and the drawing can be performed at high speed and with high definition.

  Furthermore, according to the exposure apparatus and the exposure method of the present invention, the sampling point is set to a resolution with a simple configuration using a plurality of sampling point determination circuits, a plurality of sampling circuits, a plurality of pattern generation circuits, and a selection circuit. It is possible to easily generate drawing data that is periodically changed for each exposure region.

  According to the method for manufacturing a display panel substrate of the present invention, it is possible to improve drawing quality without increasing the amount of drawing data and perform drawing at high speed and high definition. It can be manufactured with high throughput.

1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side view of an exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a front view of an exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of a light beam irradiation apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of the mirror part of DMD. It is a figure explaining operation | movement of a laser length measurement system. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the drawing control part by one embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram of an example of a drawing data generation circuit. It is a figure which shows an example of the drawing data when not using this invention. It is a figure explaining operation | movement of a sampling point determination circuit. It is a figure explaining operation | movement of a selection circuit. It is the figure which showed the sampling point corresponding to the case of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the drawing data at the time of using this invention. It is a figure explaining the scanning of the board | substrate by a light beam. It is a figure explaining the scanning of the board | substrate by a light beam. It is a figure explaining the scanning of the board | substrate by a light beam. It is a figure explaining the scanning of the board | substrate by a light beam. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the manufacturing process of the TFT substrate of a liquid crystal display device. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the manufacturing process of the color filter board | substrate of a liquid crystal display device.

  FIG. 1 is a view showing the schematic arrangement of an exposure apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a side view of the exposure apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a front view of the exposure apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. The exposure apparatus includes a base 3, an X guide 4, an X stage 5, a Y guide 6, a Y stage 7, a θ stage 8, a chuck 10, a gate 11, a light beam irradiation device 20, linear scales 31, 33, encoders 32, 34, A laser length measurement system, a laser length measurement system control device 40, a stage drive circuit 60, and a main control device 70 are included. 2 and 3, the laser light source 41 of the laser measurement system, the laser measurement system control device 40, the stage drive circuit 60, and the main control device 70 are omitted. In addition to these, the exposure apparatus includes a substrate transfer robot that loads the substrate 1 into the chuck 10 and unloads the substrate 1 from the chuck 10, a temperature control unit that performs temperature management in the apparatus, and the like.

  Note that the XY directions in the embodiments described below are examples, and the X direction and the Y direction may be interchanged.

  1 and 2, the chuck 10 is in a delivery position for delivering the substrate 1. At the delivery position, the substrate 1 is carried into the chuck 10 by a substrate carrying robot (not shown), and the substrate 1 is carried out of the chuck 10 by a substrate carrying robot (not shown). The chuck 10 supports the back surface of the substrate 1 by vacuum suction. A photoresist is applied to the surface of the substrate 1.

  A gate 11 is provided across the base 3 above the exposure position where the substrate 1 is exposed. A plurality of light beam irradiation devices 20 are mounted on the gate 11. Although the present embodiment shows an example of an exposure apparatus using eight light beam irradiation apparatuses 20, the number of light beam irradiation apparatuses is not limited to this, and the present invention is one or two or more. The present invention is applied to an exposure apparatus using a light beam irradiation apparatus.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the light beam irradiation apparatus. The light beam irradiation device 20 includes an optical fiber 22, a lens 23, a mirror 24, a DMD (Digital Micromirror Device) 25, a projection lens 26, and a DMD driving circuit 27. The optical fiber 22 introduces an ultraviolet light beam generated from the laser light source unit 21 into the light beam irradiation device 20. The light beam emitted from the optical fiber 22 is irradiated to the DMD 25 through the lens 23 and the mirror 24. The DMD 25 is a spatial light modulator configured by arranging a plurality of minute mirrors that reflect a light beam in two orthogonal directions, and modulates the light beam by changing the angle of each mirror. The light beam modulated by the DMD 25 is irradiated from the head unit 20a including the projection lens 26 of the irradiation optical system. The DMD drive circuit 27 changes the angle of each mirror of the DMD 25 based on the drawing data supplied from the main controller 70.

  2 and 3, the chuck 10 is mounted on the θ stage 8, and a Y stage 7 and an X stage 5 are provided below the θ stage 8. The X stage 5 is mounted on an X guide 4 provided on the base 3 and moves in the X direction along the X guide 4. The Y stage 7 is mounted on a Y guide 6 provided on the X stage 5 and moves in the Y direction along the Y guide 6. The θ stage 8 is mounted on the Y stage 7 and rotates in the θ direction. The X stage 5, Y stage 7, and θ stage 8 are provided with drive mechanisms (not shown) such as ball screws and motors, linear motors, etc., and each drive mechanism is driven by a stage drive circuit 60 of FIG. The

  By rotation of the θ stage 8 in the θ direction, the substrate 1 mounted on the chuck 10 is rotated so that two orthogonal sides are directed in the X direction and the Y direction. As the X stage 5 moves in the X direction, the chuck 10 is moved between the delivery position and the exposure position. When the X stage 5 moves in the X direction at the exposure position, the light beam irradiated from the head unit 20a of each light beam irradiation apparatus 20 scans the substrate 1 in the X direction. In addition, as the Y stage 7 moves in the Y direction, the scanning region of the substrate 1 by the light beam emitted from the head unit 20a of each light beam irradiation device 20 is moved in the Y direction. In FIG. 1, the main controller 70 controls the stage drive circuit 60 to rotate the θ stage 8 in the θ direction, move the X stage 5 in the X direction, and move the Y stage 7 in the Y direction. .

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DMD mirror unit. The DMD 25 of the light beam irradiation device 20 is disposed at a predetermined angle θ with respect to the scanning direction (X direction) of the substrate 1 by the light beam from the light beam irradiation device 20. When the DMD 25 is arranged to be inclined with respect to the scanning direction, any one of the plurality of mirrors 25a arranged in two orthogonal directions covers a portion corresponding to the gap between the adjacent mirrors 25a. It can be done without gaps.

  In the present embodiment, the substrate 10 is scanned by the light beam from the light beam irradiation device 20 by moving the chuck 10 in the X direction by the X stage 5, but the light beam irradiation device 20 is moved. By doing so, the substrate 1 may be scanned by the light beam from the light beam irradiation device 20. In the present embodiment, the scanning region of the substrate 1 by the light beam from the light beam irradiation device 20 is changed by moving the chuck 10 in the Y direction by the Y stage 7, but the light beam irradiation device 20. , The scanning region of the substrate 1 by the light beam from the light beam irradiation device 20 may be changed.

  1 and 2, the base 3 is provided with a linear scale 31 extending in the X direction. The linear scale 31 is provided with a scale for detecting the amount of movement of the X stage 5 in the X direction. The X stage 5 is provided with a linear scale 33 extending in the Y direction. The linear scale 33 is provided with a scale for detecting the amount of movement of the Y stage 7 in the Y direction.

  1 and 3, an encoder 32 is attached to one side surface of the X stage 5 so as to face the linear scale 31. The encoder 32 detects the scale of the linear scale 31 and outputs a pulse signal to the main controller 70. 1 and 2, an encoder 34 is attached to one side surface of the Y stage 7 so as to face the linear scale 33. The encoder 34 detects the scale of the linear scale 33 and outputs a pulse signal to the main controller 70. Main controller 70 counts the pulse signal of encoder 32, detects the amount of movement of X stage 5 in the X direction, counts the pulse signal of encoder 34, and moves the amount of Y stage 7 in the Y direction. Is detected.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the laser length measurement system. In FIG. 6, the gate 11 and the light beam irradiation device 20 shown in FIG. 1 are omitted. The laser length measurement system is a known laser interference type length measurement system, and includes a laser light source 41, laser interferometers 42 and 44, and bar mirrors 43 and 45. The bar mirror 43 is attached to one side surface of the chuck 10 that extends in the Y direction. The bar mirror 45 is attached to one side surface of the chuck 10 extending in the X direction.

  The laser interferometer 42 irradiates the laser beam from the laser light source 41 onto the bar mirror 43, receives the laser beam reflected by the bar mirror 43, and the laser beam reflected from the laser beam source 41 and the laser beam reflected by the bar mirror 43. Measure interference. This measurement is performed at two locations in the Y direction. The laser length measurement system control device 40 detects the position and rotation of the chuck 10 in the X direction from the measurement result of the laser interferometer 42 under the control of the main control device 70.

  On the other hand, the laser interferometer 44 irradiates the laser beam from the laser light source 41 to the bar mirror 45, receives the laser beam reflected by the bar mirror 45, and the laser beam reflected from the laser source 41 and the bar mirror 45. Measure interference with light. The laser length measurement system control device 40 detects the position of the chuck 10 in the Y direction from the measurement result of the laser interferometer 44 under the control of the main control device 70.

  In FIG. 4, the main controller 70 has a drawing controller that supplies drawing data to the DMD drive circuit 27 of the light beam irradiation device 20. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a drawing control unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. The drawing control unit 71 includes a memory 72, a bandwidth setting unit 73, a center point coordinate determination unit 74, a coordinate determination unit 75, a drawing figure coordinate memory 82, and a drawing data generation unit 84.

  The drawing figure coordinate memory 82 stores coordinate data created from CAD data of a pattern to be drawn. The drawing data generation unit 84 includes a coordinate correction circuit 85 and a drawing data generation circuit 86. The coordinate correction circuit 85 corrects the coordinate data stored in the drawing figure coordinate memory 82 in accordance with the inclination of the DMD 25 and outputs it to the drawing data generation circuit 86. The drawing data generation circuit 86 generates drawing data from the coordinate data corrected by the coordinate correction circuit 85, as will be described later. The memory 72 stores the drawing data generated by the drawing data generation circuit 86 using the XY coordinates as addresses.

  The bandwidth setting unit 73 sets the Y-direction bandwidth of the light beam emitted from the head unit 20 a of the light beam irradiation device 20 by determining the range of the Y coordinate of the drawing data read from the memory 72.

  The laser length measurement system control device 40 detects the position of the chuck 10 in the X and Y directions before the exposure of the substrate 1 at the exposure position is started. The center point coordinate determination unit 74 determines the XY coordinates of the center point of the chuck 10 before starting the exposure of the substrate 1 from the position in the XY direction of the chuck 10 detected by the laser length measurement system control device 40. In FIG. 1, when scanning the substrate 1 with the light beam from the light beam irradiation device 20, the main control device 70 controls the stage drive circuit 60 to move the chuck 10 in the X direction by the X stage 5. When moving the scanning area of the substrate 1, the main controller 70 controls the stage drive circuit 60 to move the chuck 10 in the Y direction by the Y stage 7. In FIG. 7, the center point coordinate determination unit 74 counts the pulse signals from the encoders 32 and 34, detects the amount of movement of the X stage 5 in the X direction and the amount of movement of the Y stage 7 in the Y direction, The XY coordinates of the center point of the chuck 10 are determined.

  The coordinate determination unit 75 determines the XY coordinates of the drawing data supplied to the DMD drive circuit 27 of each light beam irradiation device 20 based on the XY coordinates of the center point of the chuck 10 determined by the center point coordinate determination unit 74. The memory 72 inputs the XY coordinates determined by the coordinate determination unit 75 as an address, and outputs the drawing data stored at the input XY coordinate address to the DMD drive circuit 27 of each light beam irradiation apparatus 20.

  Hereinafter, an exposure method according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an example of a drawing data generation circuit. The drawing data generation circuit 86 of this example includes an X coordinate counter 87, a Y coordinate counter 88, sampling point determination circuits 90a and 90b, sampling circuits 97a and 97b, pattern generation circuits 98a and 98b, and a selection circuit 99. ing.

  The sampling point determination circuits 90a and 90b determine sampling points for determining whether or not drawing is required for the coordinate data corrected by the coordinate correction circuit 85 in FIG. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of drawing data when the present invention is not used. This example shows a case in which the resolution of the drawing data is 0.5, and a plurality of small squares indicated by solid lines represent the exposure area 2a having the resolution size. In FIG. 9, the exposure area 2a irradiated with the light beam modulated by the drawing data with respect to the pattern figure 2 is shown in gray.

  Conventionally, when drawing data is generated from the coordinate data of the figure 2 of the pattern to be drawn on the substrate 1, the drawing is conventionally performed using the center point of the exposure area 2a having a resolution size (intersection of broken lines shown in FIG. 9) as a sampling point It was judged whether or not. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, in the case where the part (the edge of the pattern to be drawn (edge) part) constituted by the line of the graphic 2 of the pattern is a straight line extending in the X direction or the Y direction, the exposure region through which the straight line passes. In 2a, the presence or absence of drawing was all the same.

  In the present embodiment, the sampling point determination circuits 90a and 90b determine the center point of each section obtained by dividing the exposure area 2a having the resolution size into four sections as sampling points in a different order. In FIG. 8, the sampling point determining circuit 90a includes a sampling point moving circuit 91a, an X offset register 94a, a Y offset register 95a, and an arithmetic unit 96a. The sampling point determining circuit 90b includes a sampling point moving circuit 91b, an X offset register 94b, a Y offset register 95b, and an arithmetic unit 96b.

  Hereinafter, the case where the resolution of the drawing data is 0.5, the same as in FIG. 9, will be described. The X-coordinate counter 87 outputs a resolution value “0.5” for each exposure area 2a having a resolution size each time the exposure area 2a for determining the presence / absence of drawing is shifted in the X direction. Is output to the sampling point moving circuits 91a and 91b. The Y-coordinate counter 88 outputs a resolution value “0.5” for each exposure area 2a having a resolution size each time the exposure area 2a for determining the presence / absence of drawing is shifted in the Y direction, The migration information is output to the selection circuit 99.

  The sampling point moving circuit 91a includes a register 92a and a selection circuit 93a. The sampling point moving circuit 91b includes a register 92b and a selection circuit 93b. The registers 92a and 92b store data for determining sampling points in each exposure area 2a having a resolution. The registers 92a and 92b store data in different orders.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the sampling point determination circuit. In FIGS. 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D, the center point of each section obtained by dividing the exposure area 2a having the resolution size into four sections is shown as an intersection of a solid line or a dashed cross. Has been. Assuming that the XY coordinate of the upper left corner of each exposure area 2a is (0, 0), the coordinates of the center point shown as the intersection of solid lines in FIG. 10 (a) are (0.375, 0.375). ), The coordinates of the center point shown as the intersection of the solid line in FIG. 10B are (0.375, 0.125), and the coordinates of the center point shown as the intersection of the solid line in FIG. (0.125, 0.375), and the coordinates of the center point shown as the intersection of the solid line in FIG. 10 (d) are (0.125, 0.125).

  In FIG. 8, in the register 92a of the sampling point moving circuit 91a, the coordinates of the center point shown as an intersection of solid lines in FIGS. 10 (a), (b), (c), and (d) are shown in FIG. They are stored in the order of a), (b), (c), (d). Further, in the register 92b of the sampling point moving circuit 91b, the coordinates of the center point shown as an intersection of solid lines in FIGS. 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D are shown in FIG. , (D), (a), (b).

  Each time the shift information is input from the X coordinate counter 87, the selection circuits 93a and 93b select and output one of the data stored in the registers 92a and 92b in order. The X offset registers 94a and 94b store the X coordinate component of the data output from the selection circuits 93a and 93b, and the Y offset registers 95a and 95b store the Y coordinate component of the data output from the selection circuits 93a and 93b.

  The computing unit 96a of the sampling point determination circuit 90a integrates the values input from the X coordinate counter 87, adds the X coordinate component stored in the X offset register 94a to the integrated value, and the value input from the Y coordinate counter 88. And the Y coordinate component stored in the Y offset register 95a is added to the integrated value to determine the XY coordinate of the sampling point. Similarly, the calculator 96b of the sampling point determination circuit 90b integrates the values input from the X coordinate counter 87, adds the X coordinate component stored in the X offset register 94b to the integrated value, and outputs the value from the Y coordinate counter 88. The input values are integrated, and the Y coordinate component stored in the Y offset register 95b is added to the integrated value to determine the XY coordinates of the sampling point.

  In FIGS. 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D, the center point to be determined as the sampling point is the center point of each section obtained by dividing the exposure area 2a having the resolution size into four sections. It is shown as the intersection of solid lines, and the other center point is shown as the intersection of broken lines. In the present embodiment, the sampling point determination circuit 90a determines the center point of each section as a sampling point in the order of FIGS. 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D, and the sampling point determination circuit 90b. Thus, the center point of each section is determined as a sampling point in the order of FIGS. 10 (c), (d), (a), and (b).

  In the present invention, the order of changing the sampling points is not limited to these, and the sampling points are changed in an arbitrary order by changing the order of the data stored in the registers 92a and 92b of the sampling point moving circuits 91a and 91b. be able to.

  In FIG. 8, a sampling circuit 97a determines whether or not drawing is necessary at the sampling points determined by the sampling point determination circuit 90a for the coordinate data corrected by the coordinate correction circuit 85 of FIG. 7, and the pattern generation circuit 98a performs sampling. A pattern of drawing data is generated according to the determination result of the circuit 97a. Similarly, the sampling circuit 97b determines whether or not drawing is required at the sampling points determined by the sampling point determination circuit 90b for the coordinate data corrected by the coordinate correction circuit 85 in FIG. A pattern of drawing data is generated according to the determination result of 97b.

  Each time the transition information is input from the Y coordinate counter 88, the selection circuit 99 alternately selects one of the drawing data patterns generated by the pattern generation circuits 98a and 98b, and supplies the drawing data to the memory 72 of FIG. Output. FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the selection circuit. In FIG. 11, the center point determined as the sampling point by the sampling point determination circuits 90 a and 90 b among the center points of the respective sections obtained by dividing the exposure area 2 a having the resolution size into four sections is an intersection of solid lines. It is shown. The selection circuit 99 selects the drawing data for which the necessity of drawing is determined at the sampling points determined by the sampling point determination circuit 90a in each of the exposure regions 2a in the columns Y0, Y2, Y4, and Y6 in FIG. In each of the exposure areas 2a in the columns Y1, Y3, Y5, and Y7, the drawing data for which the necessity of drawing is determined at the sampling point determined by the sampling point determination circuit 90b is selected.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing sampling points corresponding to the case of FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of drawing data when the present invention is used. In FIG. 13, similarly to FIG. 9, the exposure region 2 a irradiated with the light beam modulated by the drawing data is shown in gray on the pattern graphic 2. In the present embodiment, the sampling data for determining whether or not drawing is necessary is periodically changed for each exposure area 2 a having a resolution from the coordinate data of the pattern 2 of the pattern to be drawn on the substrate 1, and the drawing data is obtained. Therefore, for example, even if the portion (the edge portion of the pattern to be drawn) formed by the line of the graphic 2 of the pattern is a straight line extending in the X direction or the Y direction, the exposure region 2a through which the straight line passes. Then, the presence or absence of drawing changes periodically.

  When a DMD 25 in which a plurality of mirrors 25a are arranged in two orthogonal directions is used to draw a pattern on the substrate 1 by performing multiple exposure, a light beam modulated by drawing data in which sampling points are periodically changed is 1 A region where light reflected by one mirror 25a is irradiated on the substrate 1 and a region where light reflected by another mirror 25a is irradiated on the substrate 1 are partially obtained by scanning the substrate 1 with a light beam. By overlapping, the exposure amount is averaged, and a pattern can be drawn at an interval smaller than the resolution interval. Therefore, the drawing quality is improved without increasing the amount of drawing data, and the pattern is drawn at high speed and with high definition.

  In the embodiment described above, the center point of each section obtained by dividing the exposure area 2a having the resolution size into four sections is used as the sampling point. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the sampling point moving circuit is not limited to this. By changing the offset value, the number of divisions can be easily changed, and one point in each section obtained by dividing the exposure region 2a into a plurality of sections may be used as a sampling point.

  14 to 17 are diagrams for explaining scanning of the substrate by the light beam. 14 to 17 show an example in which the entire substrate 1 is scanned by performing four scans in the X direction of the substrate 1 with the eight light beams from the eight light beam irradiation apparatuses 20. 14-17, the head part 20a of each light beam irradiation apparatus 20 is shown with the broken line. The light beam emitted from the head unit 20a of each light beam irradiation device 20 has a bandwidth W in the Y direction, and the substrate 1 is scanned in the direction indicated by the arrow by the movement of the X stage 5 in the X direction.

  FIG. 14 shows the first scan, and the pattern is drawn in the scan area shown in gray in FIG. 14 by the first scan in the X direction. When the first scanning is completed, the substrate 1 is moved in the Y direction by the same distance as the bandwidth W by the movement of the Y stage 7 in the Y direction. FIG. 15 shows the second scan, and the pattern is drawn in the scan area shown in gray in FIG. 15 by the second scan in the X direction. When the second scan is completed, the substrate 1 is moved in the Y direction by the same distance as the bandwidth W by the movement of the Y stage 7 in the Y direction. FIG. 16 shows the third scan, and the pattern is drawn in the scan area shown in gray in FIG. 16 by the third scan in the X direction. When the third scan is completed, the substrate 1 is moved in the Y direction by the same distance as the bandwidth W by the movement of the Y stage 7 in the Y direction. FIG. 17 shows the fourth scan. With the fourth scan in the X direction, a pattern is drawn in the scan area shown in gray in FIG. 17, and the scan of the entire substrate 1 is completed.

  By scanning the substrate 1 in parallel with a plurality of light beams from the plurality of light beam irradiation apparatuses 20, the time required for scanning the entire substrate 1 can be shortened, and the tact time can be shortened.

  14 to 17 show an example in which the substrate 1 is scanned four times by scanning the substrate 1 in the X direction. However, the number of scans is not limited to this, and the substrate 1 is scanned in the X direction. May be performed 3 times or less or 5 times or more to scan the entire substrate 1.

  According to the embodiment described above, sampling points for determining the necessity of drawing are periodically changed for each exposure area 2a having a resolution from the coordinate data of the pattern of the pattern to be drawn on the substrate 1, Drawing data is generated, and the generated drawing data is supplied to the DMD driving circuit 27 of the light beam irradiation device 20, whereby a DMD 25 in which a plurality of mirrors 25a are arranged in two orthogonal directions is used to perform multiple exposure to perform substrate exposure. When the pattern is drawn in 1, the drawing quality can be improved without increasing the amount of drawing data, and the drawing can be performed at high speed and with high definition.

  Further, with a simple configuration using a plurality of sampling point determination circuits 90a and 90b, a plurality of sampling circuits 97a and 97b, a plurality of pattern generation circuits 98a and 98b, and a selection circuit 99, the sampling points are exposed with a resolution size. It is possible to easily generate drawing data that is periodically changed for each region 2a.

  By exposing the substrate using the exposure apparatus or exposure method of the present invention, the drawing quality can be improved without increasing the amount of drawing data, and drawing can be performed at high speed and with high definition. A display panel substrate can be manufactured with high throughput.

  For example, FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing an example of the manufacturing process of the TFT substrate of the liquid crystal display device. In the thin film formation step (step 101), a thin film such as a conductor film or an insulator film, which becomes a transparent electrode for driving liquid crystal, is formed on the substrate by sputtering, plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD), or the like. In the resist coating process (step 102), a photoresist is applied by a roll coating method or the like to form a photoresist film on the thin film formed in the thin film forming process (step 101). In the exposure step (step 103), a pattern is formed on the photoresist film using an exposure apparatus. In the development step (step 104), a developer is supplied onto the photoresist film by a shower development method or the like to remove unnecessary portions of the photoresist film. In the etching process (step 105), a portion of the thin film formed in the thin film formation process (step 101) that is not masked by the photoresist film is removed by wet etching. In the stripping step (step 106), the photoresist film that has finished the role of the mask in the etching step (step 105) is stripped with a stripping solution. Before or after each of these steps, a substrate cleaning / drying step is performed as necessary. These steps are repeated several times to form a TFT array on the substrate.

  FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an example of the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate of the liquid crystal display device. In the black matrix forming step (step 201), a black matrix is formed on the substrate by processing such as resist coating, exposure, development, etching, and peeling. In the colored pattern forming step (step 202), a colored pattern is formed on the substrate by a dyeing method, a pigment dispersion method, or the like. This process is repeated for the R, G, and B coloring patterns. In the protective film forming step (step 203), a protective film is formed on the colored pattern, and in the transparent electrode film forming step (step 204), a transparent electrode film is formed on the protective film. Before, during or after each of these steps, a substrate cleaning / drying step is performed as necessary.

  In the TFT substrate manufacturing process shown in FIG. 18, in the exposure process (step 103), in the color filter substrate manufacturing process shown in FIG. 19, in the black matrix forming process (step 201) and the colored pattern forming process (step 202). In this exposure process, the exposure apparatus or the exposure method of the present invention can be applied.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate 2 Pattern figure 3 Base 4 X guide 5 X stage 6 Y guide 7 Y stage 8 θ stage 10 Chuck 11 Gate 20 Light beam irradiation device 20a Head part 21 Laser light source unit 22 Optical fiber 23 Lens 24 Mirror 25 DMD (Digital Micromirror) Device)
26 Projection Lens 27 DMD Drive Circuit 31, 33 Linear Scale 32, 34 Encoder 40 Laser Measuring System Controller 41 Laser Light Source 42, 44 Laser Interferometer 43, 45 Bar Mirror 60 Stage Drive Circuit 70 Main Controller 71 Drawing Controller 72 Memory 73 Bandwidth setting unit 74 Center point coordinate determining unit 75 Coordinate determining unit 82 Drawing figure coordinate memory 84 Drawing data generating unit 85 Coordinate correcting circuit 86 Drawing data generating circuit 87 X coordinate counter 88 Y coordinate counter 90a, 90b Sampling point determining circuit 91a , 91b Sampling point moving circuit 92a, 92b Register 93a, 93b, 99 Selection circuit 94a, 94b X offset register 95a, 95b Y offset register 96a, 96b Calculator 97a, 97b Sampling circuit 98a, 98b pattern generation circuit

Claims (4)

A chuck for supporting a substrate coated with a photoresist;
Spatial light modulator in which a plurality of mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions, a drive circuit for driving the spatial light modulator based on drawing data, and irradiation optics for irradiating a light beam modulated by the spatial light modulator A light beam irradiation apparatus having a system;
A moving means for relatively moving the chuck and the light beam irradiation device;
One of the spatial light modulators of the light beam irradiating device, wherein the moving means relatively moves the chuck and the light beam irradiating device to scan the substrate with the light beam from the light beam irradiating device. The area where the light reflected by the mirror is irradiated onto the substrate and the area where the light reflected by the other mirror is irradiated onto the substrate are subjected to multiple exposure that partially overlaps as the substrate is scanned by the light beam. An exposure apparatus for drawing a pattern on a substrate,
A memory for storing coordinate data of a figure of a pattern to be drawn on a substrate, and a sampling point for determining the necessity of drawing from the coordinate data stored in the memory are periodically changed for each exposure area having a resolution size. Drawing data generating means for generating drawing data, comprising drawing control means for supplying the drawing data generated by the drawing data generating means to the drive circuit of the light beam irradiation device ,
The drawing data generation means includes
A plurality of sampling point determination circuits for determining one point in each section obtained by dividing the exposure area of the resolution size into a plurality of sections as a sampling point in a different order;
For the coordinate data stored in the memory, a plurality of sampling circuits for determining the necessity of drawing at the sampling points determined by each sampling point determination circuit;
A plurality of pattern generation circuits that generate a pattern of drawing data according to the determination result of each sampling circuit,
An exposure apparatus comprising: a selection circuit that sequentially selects one of the drawing data patterns generated by the plurality of pattern generation circuits . Support the substrate coated with photoresist with a chuck,
A spatial light modulator in which a chuck and a plurality of mirrors are arranged in two orthogonal directions, a drive circuit for driving the spatial light modulator based on drawing data, and a light beam modulated by the spatial light modulator are irradiated. A light beam irradiation apparatus having an irradiation optical system to move relatively, scan the substrate with the light beam from the light beam irradiation apparatus,
The region where the light reflected by one mirror of the spatial light modulator of the light beam irradiation device is irradiated on the substrate and the region where the light reflected by the other mirror is irradiated on the substrate are divided by the light beam. An exposure method for drawing a pattern on a substrate by performing multiple exposure that partially overlaps with scanning,
By using a plurality of sampling point determination circuits, one point in each section obtained by dividing the exposure area of the resolution size into a plurality of sections is determined as a sampling point in a different order,
With respect to the coordinate data of the pattern graphic to be drawn on the substrate by a plurality of sampling circuits, it is determined whether or not drawing is necessary at the sampling points determined by each sampling point determination circuit,
In accordance with the determination result of each sampling circuit, a pattern of drawing data is generated by a plurality of pattern generation circuits,
By selecting one of the drawing data patterns generated by the plurality of pattern generation circuits in order by the selection circuit and generating the drawing data,
From the coordinate data of the figure of the pattern to be drawn on the substrate, the sampling point for determining whether drawing is necessary is periodically changed for each exposure area of the resolution size, and the drawing data is generated. An exposure method comprising supplying to a drive circuit of a light beam irradiation apparatus. A method for producing a display panel substrate, wherein the substrate is exposed using the exposure apparatus according to claim 1 . A method for producing a display panel substrate, wherein the substrate is exposed using the exposure method according to claim 2 .

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