JP6032036B2 - Imprint method and imprint apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an imprint method, in particular, a structure having a thin film having a desired pattern (figure having a concavo-convex structure such as a line and a pattern) and / or a smooth thin film having no pattern by supplying a resin by an ink jet method. And an imprint apparatus used for the imprint method.

  In recent years, a pattern forming technique using an imprint method has attracted attention as a fine pattern forming technique that replaces the photolithography technique. The imprint method is a pattern forming technique in which a fine structure is transferred at an equal magnification by using a mold member (mold) having a fine concavo-convex structure and transferring the concavo-convex structure to a molding resin. For example, in an imprint method using a photocurable resin as a molding resin, droplets of the photocurable resin are supplied to the surface of the transfer substrate, and the mold having the desired concavo-convex structure and the transfer substrate are brought to a predetermined distance. The concavo-convex structure is filled with a photocurable resin, and in this state, light is irradiated from the mold side to cure the photocurable resin. A pattern structure having an inverted uneven structure (uneven pattern) is formed.

Such an imprint method has a problem that static electricity is generated when the mold is pulled away from the resin layer, the mold is charged, and foreign matters in the atmosphere are easily attached to the mold. When imprinting is performed in a state where foreign matter or the like is attached to the mold, there is a possibility that a defect of the pattern structure occurs, and further, the mold is damaged. In order to cope with this, for example, when removing the mold from the resin layer, the mold is discharged (Patent Documents 1 and 2), or when the mold potential exceeds a predetermined value. (Patent Document 3) has been proposed.
In addition, the foreign matter refers to imprints such as solid matter that has been dried as a mist of droplets supplied by an ink jet method, fine particles generated from members constituting an imprint device such as an ink jet head, and dust present in the imprint device. It is a substance that is not intended to participate in.

JP 2007-98779 A JP 2008-260273 A JP 2009-286085 A

However, when using a corona discharge type static eliminator as a means for discharging the mold, air blowing or air purge is required, which may cause dust generation, and the tip of the discharge needle for performing corona discharge There was also a problem of dust generation due to wear.
When using a soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator as a static elimination means for the mold, soft X-rays cannot be transmitted when the thickness of the mold or transfer substrate is about 1 mm, so from the mold side and / or the transfer substrate side. It is difficult to obtain a desired charge eliminating effect even when irradiated with soft X-rays. For this reason, when using a soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator, it is necessary to irradiate soft X-rays from the side of the mold or transfer substrate.
Here, in general, an imprint apparatus is provided with a stage for holding a mold, a stage for holding a transfer substrate, an ink jet device, etc. in the casing, and a stage for holding the mold and a transfer substrate in the casing. It is necessary to secure a working area for For this reason, the static eliminator as a static eliminating means for the mold is disposed outside the operating area of the stage or outside the casing. On the other hand, since the soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator radiates soft X-rays radially at a central angle of about 90 ° to 150 °, soft X-rays are also irradiated to portions that do not require irradiation. . When soft X-rays are irradiated to an inkjet head of an inkjet apparatus, the molding resin present at the droplet discharge port of the inkjet head and the molding resin supplied as droplets from the inkjet head are affected, for example, in the resin composition Effects such as C—F bond and C—C bond breakage occur. If such an effect occurs, the spreadability of the droplets in the gap between the adjacent mold and the transfer substrate, the filling property of the droplets in the uneven structure of the mold, and the remaining film thickness of the formed structure are affected. There is a risk of unevenness and pattern defects.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides an imprint method and an imprint apparatus that can prevent a mold from being damaged and can stably produce a high-precision pattern structure. The purpose is to do.

  In order to achieve such an object, the imprint apparatus of the present invention ejects a mold holding portion for holding a mold, a substrate holding portion for holding a transfer substrate, and droplets of a resin to be molded. At least a droplet supply unit having an inkjet head and a soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator, the static eliminator irradiates the mold held by the mold holder with soft X-rays from the side. A configuration is provided that includes a drive unit that drives the inkjet head so that at least the droplet discharge port is not irradiated with soft X-rays when soft X-rays are irradiated from the static eliminator. .

As another aspect of the present invention, the drive unit is configured such that the soft X-ray irradiated from the static eliminator is between the predetermined position outside the irradiation range and the position where the droplets of the resin to be molded are supplied. Is configured to be movable.
As another aspect of the present invention, the drive unit rotates the inkjet head to supply a position where the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator cannot reach directly and a droplet of resin to be molded. The configuration is such that the droplet discharge port can be moved between the positions where the droplets are discharged.

  In the imprint method of the present invention, a droplet supply step of discharging a droplet of a resin to be molded from an inkjet head and supplying the droplet to a transfer substrate, a mold having a concavo-convex structure, and the transfer substrate are brought close to the mold. A contact step in which the droplet is spread between the transfer substrate to form a molded resin layer; a curing step in which the molded resin layer is cured to transfer the concavo-convex structure; and A mold release step in which the transfer resin layer and the mold are separated to place the pattern structure, which is the transfer resin layer, on the transfer substrate, and the surface having the uneven structure of the mold When a soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator is disposed so as to irradiate the mold with soft X-rays from the side, and at least liquid is irradiated with soft X-rays from the static eliminator Drip Soft X-rays to drive the ink jet head so as not to be irradiated in the mouth, at least in the release process, and the like perform neutralization of the mold configured with the static eliminator.

The imprint apparatus of the present invention can eliminate static electricity by irradiating soft X-rays to the mold held by the mold holding unit while avoiding at least irradiation of soft X-rays to the droplet discharge ports of the inkjet head. Thus, it is possible to prevent imprinting of the mold and to perform imprint for stably producing a high-precision pattern structure.
In the imprint method of the present invention, the charging of the mold in the peeling step of separating the transfer resin layer and the mold is suppressed, and since the soft X-ray irradiation to the inkjet head is prevented, the damage of the mold is prevented, In addition, a highly accurate pattern structure can be stably produced.

It is a side view which shows one Embodiment of the imprint apparatus of this invention. It is a top view of the imprint apparatus shown by FIG. It is a fragmentary top view for demonstrating embodiment of the drive part which drives the inkjet head in the imprint apparatus of this invention. It is a fragmentary top view for demonstrating embodiment of the drive part which drives the inkjet head in the imprint apparatus of this invention. It is a fragmentary top view for demonstrating embodiment of the drive part which drives the inkjet head in the imprint apparatus of this invention. It is process drawing for demonstrating the imprint method of this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
Note that the drawings are schematic or conceptual, and the dimensions of each member, the ratio of sizes between the members, etc. are not necessarily the same as the actual ones, and represent the same members. However, in some cases, the dimensions and ratios may be different depending on the drawing.
[Imprint device]
FIG. 1 is a side view showing an embodiment of the imprint apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the imprint apparatus shown in FIG. 1 and 2, the imprint apparatus 1 of the present invention includes a mold holding unit 2 for holding a mold 31, a substrate holding unit 4 for holding a transfer substrate 41, and a molding on the transfer substrate 41. An inkjet head 7 that ejects resin droplets, and a droplet supply unit 6 that includes a drive unit 8 for preventing at least the droplet ejection port of the inkjet head 7 from being irradiated with soft X-rays; An X-ray irradiation type static eliminator 10 is provided.

(Mold holding part 2)
The mold holding unit 2 constituting the imprint apparatus 1 holds the mold 31 so that the surface having the concavo-convex structure region 32 of the mold 31 can be opposed to the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4. . The holding mechanism of the mold 31 in the mold holding unit 2 may be, for example, a holding mechanism by suction, a holding mechanism by machine clamping, or the like, and the holding mechanism is not particularly limited. Moreover, the mold holding part 2 can be moved up and down in the direction of arrow Z shown in FIG. Above the mold holding part 2, a light source 12 and an optical system 13 for resin curing when a photocurable resin is used as a resin to be molded are disposed.
In FIG. 2, only the mold holding unit 2 and the mold 31 are shown, and the lifting device 3, the light source 12, and the optical system 13 are not shown.

(Substrate holder 4)
The substrate holding unit 4 constituting the imprint apparatus 1 holds a transfer substrate 41 for imprinting, and the holding mechanism of the transfer substrate 41 is, for example, a holding mechanism by suction, a holding mechanism by mechanical clamping, or the like. The holding mechanism is not particularly limited. The substrate holding unit 4 can be moved on the XY stage 5 in a horizontal plane shown in the X direction and the Y direction in FIG. 2 by a drive mechanism unit (not shown). In the illustrated example, the substrate holding unit 4 is located at the transfer substrate supply position, and the mold holding unit 2 receives the droplets of resin from the inkjet head 7 of the droplet supply unit 6 on the XY stage 5. It is possible to move to a transfer position or the like where transfer is performed. The imprint apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the illustrated example, and any member of the mold holding unit 2, the substrate holding unit 4 and the inkjet head 7 can be moved, and their relative positions are changed. It may be a possible mode.

(Droplet supply unit 6)
The droplet supply unit 6 constituting the imprint apparatus 1 supplies a droplet of resin to be molded onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4, and drives the inkjet head 7 and the inkjet head. And an ink supply unit (not shown) for the ink jet head 7 and a control unit (not shown) for controlling the ink jet head 7, the drive unit 8, and the ink supply unit. I have. In FIG. 2, the drive unit 8 is indicated by a two-dot chain line. The drive unit 8 enables the movement of the inkjet head 7 in the X direction and / or the Y direction shown in FIG. 2, and in the illustrated example, as shown by a one-dot chain line arrow xy in FIG. The ink-jet head 7 reciprocates between a position (indicated by a solid line in FIG. 2) for supplying droplets of a molding resin onto a transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holder 4 and a position indicated by a chain line. Is possible. The position of the inkjet head 7 indicated by a chain line is set so as to be outside the irradiation range of the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminating device 10 described later. Further, the drive unit 8 enables a desired operation of the inkjet head 7 when supplying droplets of the molding resin onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4.
In the imprint apparatus according to the present invention, the drive unit 8 that allows the inkjet head 7 to reciprocate as indicated by the one-dot chain line arrow xy in FIG. 2 is placed on the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4. A supply driving unit that enables a desired operation of the inkjet head 7 when supplying the droplets of the resin to be molded may be included, and separately from the driving unit 8, The drive part may be provided. Further, when the imprint apparatus supplies droplets of the resin to be molded with the inkjet head 7 fixed, the imprint apparatus may not be provided with such a driving unit for supply.

(Static eliminator 10)
The static eliminator 10 constituting the imprint apparatus 1 is a conventionally known soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator, and can irradiate the mold 31 held by the mold holder 2 with soft X-rays from the side. It is arranged like this. In the illustrated example, the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator 10 are irradiated in a radial manner with a central angle θ (an arbitrary irradiation line is indicated by a chain line R for convenience), and the direction of the irradiation center Rc is The mold 31 held by the mold holding unit 2 and the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4 face each other, and the transfer position is set to the direction of transfer. The soft X-ray in the present invention refers to light in a range including a vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) region and a soft X-ray region. As a numerical value, a wavelength λ is light in a range of 0.1 nm ≦ λ ≦ 30 nm. Point to.
Note that the above-mentioned “side to the mold 31” means that the direction of the soft X-ray irradiation center Rc is perpendicular to the surface of the mold 31 having the concavo-convex structure region 32 (dashed line L shown in FIG. 1). On the other hand, it means a range of 90 ° ± 45 °. If the direction of the soft X-ray irradiation center Rc is out of the above range, the static elimination efficiency of the mold 31 is lowered, and the soft X-ray irradiation power is increased, which is not preferable.

An example of the imprint operation in the imprint apparatus 1 of the present invention will be described. First, the substrate holding unit 4 holding the transfer substrate 41 moves to the droplet supply position on the XY stage 5, and drops of the resin to be molded from the inkjet head 7 of the droplet supply unit 6 onto the holding transfer substrate 41. Receive the supply. At this time, the ink jet head 7 of the droplet supply unit 6 is present at a position indicated by a solid line in FIG. Thereafter, the substrate holding unit 4 moves to the transfer position on the XY stage 5 so that the mold holding unit 2 and the substrate holding unit 4 come close to each other in the Z direction, whereby the resin to be molded is interposed between the mold 31 and the transfer substrate 41. The droplets are developed to form a molded resin layer. Next, light irradiation is performed from the light source 12 through the optical system 13, and the molded resin layer is cured to form a transfer resin layer to which the concavo-convex structure is transferred.
Next, the ink jet head 7 of the droplet supply unit 6 is moved by the drive unit 8 to the position indicated by the chain line in FIG. 2, and is in a state of being retracted out of the soft X-ray irradiation range from the static eliminator 10. Next, soft X-rays are irradiated from the side to the mold 31 held by the mold holding unit 2 by irradiating soft X-rays from the static eliminator 10. Then, the mold holding unit 2 and the substrate holding unit 4 are separated from each other in the Z direction, whereby the transfer resin layer and the mold 31 are separated, and the pattern structure as the transfer resin layer is positioned on the transfer substrate 41; Become.
In the imprint apparatus 1, the inkjet head 7 of the droplet supply unit 6 is moved to the position indicated by the chain line in FIG. 2 and is retracted outside the soft X-ray irradiation range from the static electricity removing apparatus 10. Further, it is possible to irradiate soft X-rays from the static electricity removing device 10 at any time within a range that does not adversely affect the resin droplets supplied onto the transfer substrate 41.

In such an imprint apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to eliminate static electricity by irradiating soft X-rays to the mold held in the mold holding unit while avoiding at least irradiation of soft X-rays to the droplet discharge ports of the inkjet head. With this, charging of the mold 31 due to static electricity generated when the transfer resin layer and the mold 31 are separated from each other is hindered, and foreign matter is prevented from adhering to the mold 31. Defects in the pattern structure, damage to the mold, etc. Is prevented, and a highly accurate pattern structure can be stably produced.
Here, an embodiment of the drive unit 8 that drives the inkjet head 7 will be described with reference to examples shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 show the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction so as to correspond to the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction shown in FIG. 1, respectively.
In the present invention, the drive unit 8 drives the inkjet head 7 so that at least the droplet discharge port is not irradiated with the soft X-ray when the soft X-ray is irradiated from the static eliminator 10.

3 is a diagram showing a plan view of the imprint apparatus, as in FIG. 2, and in the example shown in FIG. 3A, the drive unit 8 moves the inkjet head 7 in the X direction shown in FIG. Is possible. The drive unit 8 causes the ink jet head 7 to supply droplets of the molding resin onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4 as shown by a one-dot chain line arrow x (FIG. 3A). Between the position indicated by the solid line) and the position indicated by the chain line. The position of the inkjet head 7 indicated by the chain line is set so as to be outside the irradiation range of the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator 10.
In the example shown in FIG. 3B, the drive unit 8 enables the inkjet head 7 to move in the Y direction shown in FIG. The drive unit 8 causes the ink jet head 7 to supply droplets of the resin to be molded onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4 as shown by a one-dot chain line arrow y (FIG. 3B). Between the position indicated by the solid line) and the position indicated by the chain line. The position of the inkjet head 7 indicated by the chain line is set so as to be outside the irradiation range of the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator 10.
Further, the drive unit 8 may enable the inkjet head 7 to move in the directions of the one-dot chain line arrow x and the one-dot chain line arrow y shown in FIGS. 3 (A) and 3 (B). .

  4 is a diagram illustrating a side surface of the imprint apparatus, as in FIG. 1. In the example illustrated in FIG. 4A, the drive unit 8 moves the inkjet head 7 in the Z direction illustrated in FIG. Is possible. The drive unit 8 causes the ink-jet head 7 to supply droplets of the resin to be molded onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4 as indicated by a dashed line arrow z (FIG. 4A). Between the position indicated by the solid line) and the position indicated by the chain line. The position of the inkjet head 7 indicated by the chain line is set so as to be outside the irradiation range of the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator 10. In FIG. 4, the elevation angle of the spread of soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator 10 toward the inkjet head 7 (the angle in the Z direction with respect to the horizontal plane indicated by the X and Y directions in FIG. 2) is shown as θ ′. ing. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inkjet head 7 at the position where the droplets of the resin to be molded are supplied is out of the irradiation center Rc of the soft X-rays irradiated radially at the central angle θ. Among the soft X-rays irradiated radially at the central angle θ, the maximum elevation angle θ ′ of the spread of the soft X-rays irradiated in the direction of the inkjet head 7 is more than half the above-mentioned central angle θ (θ / 2). A small angle.

In the example shown in FIG. 4B, the drive unit 8 enables the inkjet head 7 to move in the Z direction shown in FIG. 1 and the Y direction shown in FIG. The drive unit 8 causes the ink-jet head 7 to supply droplets of the resin to be molded onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4 as shown by a one-dot chain line arrow yz (FIG. 4B). Between the position indicated by the solid line) and the position indicated by the chain line. The position of the inkjet head 7 indicated by the chain line is set so as to be outside the irradiation range of the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator 10.
Further, although not shown, the drive unit 8 enables the inkjet head 7 to move in the Z direction shown in FIG. 1 and the X direction shown in FIG. 2, or the Z direction shown in FIG. The inkjet head 7 can be moved in the X and Y directions shown in FIG. In any case, the inkjet head 7 is located outside the soft X-ray irradiation range where the droplets of the resin to be molded are supplied onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4 and from the static electricity removing device 10. It is possible to move back and forth between the positions.
The mechanism of the drive unit 8 as exemplified in FIGS. 3 and 4 is not particularly limited, and includes, for example, a member that locks the inkjet head 7 and a power unit that moves the member on a predetermined track. It can be a mechanism or the like.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a side surface of the imprint apparatus, as in FIG. 1. In this example, the drive unit 8 can rotate the inkjet head 7 as indicated by a one-dot chain line arrow. It is. The drive unit 8 causes the inkjet head 7 to be indicated by a chain line and a position for supplying a droplet of resin to be molded onto the transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding unit 4 (a position indicated by a solid line in FIG. 5). It can be rotated between positions. In the inkjet head 7 rotated to the state indicated by the chain line, the inkjet head 7 itself becomes an obstacle to the soft X-rays irradiated from the static electricity removing device 10, and the soft X-rays are generated at the droplet discharge ports 7a. Directly unreachable. In this aspect, it is a premise that the material constituting the inkjet head 7 can shield soft X-rays, and the resin to be molded is not irradiated with soft X-rays. In addition, the rotation angle of the inkjet head 7 by the drive unit 8 is about 90 ° in the illustrated example, but the soft X-ray irradiated from the static electricity removing device 10 cannot reach the droplet discharge port 7a directly. The rotation angle can be appropriately set as long as it can be performed. In FIG. 5, as in FIG. 4, the elevation angle of the spread of soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator 10 toward the ink jet head 7 is shown as θ ′.
The mechanism of the drive unit 8 illustrated in FIG. 5 is not particularly limited. For example, a mechanism having a member that locks the inkjet head 7 and a power unit that rotates the member in a predetermined direction. can do.
Furthermore, the drive unit 8 may be configured to allow the inkjet head 7 to rotate and to move the inkjet head 7 as shown in any of FIGS. 3 and 4 described above.

The above-described embodiment of the imprint apparatus is an exemplification, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiment. For example, the mold holding unit 2, the transfer substrate holding unit 4, and the droplet supply unit 6 may be arranged inside the casing, and soft X-rays may be emitted from the static electricity removing device 10 arranged outside the casing. it can. In this case, it is necessary to provide the casing with an opening having a shape and size that does not hinder soft X-ray irradiation from the static eliminator 10 disposed outside the casing. In addition, when the inkjet head 7 is moved by the drive unit 8, the movement position outside the irradiation range of the soft X-rays irradiated from the static electricity removing device 10 may be outside the housing. Furthermore, the structure which arrange | positions the static eliminating device 10 also in a housing | casing may be sufficient.
Further, when the pipe for supplying the resin to be molded to the inkjet head 7 from an ink supply unit (not shown) is made of a material that transmits soft X-rays such as a resin tube, the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminating device 10 However, when the inkjet head 7 is retracted outside the soft X-ray irradiation range irradiated from the static electricity removing device 10 in order to prevent the resin to be molded from being transmitted through the supply pipe, the supply pipe is also The drive unit 8 can be set to be positioned outside the soft X-ray irradiation range.

  Further, the imprint apparatus 1 is configured to cure the resin layer to be molded by light irradiation via the optical system 13 from the light source 12 disposed on the mold holding unit 2 side. It is assumed that the mold 31 is made of a light transmissive material such as quartz. When the mold 31 to be used is made of a light-shielding material and light irradiation from the substrate holder 4 through the transfer substrate 41 is possible, the light source 12 and the optical system 13 can be disposed on the substrate holder 4 side. . Even if the mold 31 to be used is made of a light transmissive material, the light source 12 and the optical system 13 are connected to the substrate holding unit 4 side when light irradiation from the substrate holding unit 4 through the transfer substrate 41 is possible. Further, the light source 12 and the optical system 13 may be arranged on both the mold holding unit 2 side and the substrate holding unit 4 side. When a thermosetting resin is used as the resin to be molded, the imprint apparatus of the present invention may have a configuration in which the light source 12 and the optical system 13 are not provided.

[Imprint method]
The imprint method of the present invention includes a droplet supply process, a contact process, a curing process, and a mold release process. Then, a soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator is arranged to irradiate the mold with soft X-rays from the side with respect to the surface having the uneven structure of the mold, and soft X-rays are irradiated from the static eliminator. The inkjet head is driven so that at least the droplet discharge port of the inkjet head is not irradiated with soft X-rays when it is being performed, and at least in the mold release process, the static electricity is removed from the mold by using a static eliminator. is there.
Such an imprinting method of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 6 by taking the case of using the above-described imprinting apparatus 1 of the present invention as an example. In FIG. 6, only the transfer substrate and the mold are shown, and each member constituting the imprint apparatus 1 is not shown. In the following description, the imprint apparatus 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 corresponds. The member number is described in parentheses.

<Droplet supply process>
In the present invention, the substrate holding portion (4) holding the transfer substrate 41 moves to the droplet supply position, and the imprinting transfer substrate 41 held by the substrate holding portion (4) in the droplet supply step. The droplet 51 of resin to be molded is discharged and supplied from the inkjet head (7) of the droplet supply section (6) to the desired region (FIG. 6A). The position of the inkjet head (7) at the time of supplying the droplet 51 of the resin to be molded is a position indicated by a solid line in FIG.
The transfer substrate 41 used in the imprinting method of the present invention can be appropriately selected. For example, glass such as quartz, soda lime glass, borosilicate glass, semiconductor such as silicon, gallium arsenide, gallium nitride, polycarbonate, polypropylene, It may be a resin substrate such as polyethylene, a metal substrate, or a composite material substrate made of any combination of these materials. Further, for example, a desired pattern structure such as a fine wiring used in a semiconductor or a display, a photonic crystal structure, an optical waveguide, or an optical structure such as holography may be formed.

The resin to be molded is not particularly limited as long as it has fluidity that can be ejected from an inkjet head, and examples thereof include a photocurable resin, a thermosetting resin, and a thermoplastic resin. For example, the photocurable resin is composed of a main agent, an initiator, and a crosslinking agent, and if necessary, improves the adhesion to a mold release agent for suppressing adhesion to the mold and the transfer substrate 41. It may contain the adhesive for making it do. And according to the use of the pattern structure manufactured by the imprint method, a required characteristic, a physical property, etc., the to-be-molded resin to be used can be selected suitably. For example, if the use of the pattern structure is a lithography application, it is required to have etching resistance, a low viscosity and a small residual film thickness, and if the use of the pattern structure is an optical member, a specific refractive index, Light transmittance is required, and a photocurable resin can be appropriately selected according to these requirements. However, in any application, it is required to have characteristics (viscosity, surface tension, etc.) satisfying the compatibility with the ink jet head to be used. Note that the viscosity, surface tension, and the like of a compatible liquid differ depending on the structure and material of the inkjet head. For this reason, it is preferable to appropriately adjust the viscosity, surface tension and the like of the molding resin to be used, or to appropriately select an ink jet head suitable for the molding resin to be used.
Further, the number of droplets 51 of the molding resin to be supplied onto the transfer substrate 41 from the inkjet head (7) of the droplet supply unit (6), the distance between adjacent droplets, the amount of droplets dropped and necessary It can be set as appropriate based on the total amount of the photocurable resin, the wettability of the photocurable resin with respect to the substrate, the gap between the mold 31 and the transfer substrate 41 in the subsequent contact step, and the like.

<Contact process>
Next, the substrate holding part (4) is moved from the droplet supply position to the transfer position, the mold holding part (2) and the substrate holding part (4) are brought close to each other, and the mold 31 and the transfer substrate 41 having the concavo-convex structure are moved. In close proximity, a resin droplet 51 is developed between the mold 31 and the transfer substrate 41 to form a photocurable resin layer 52 (FIG. 6B).
In the illustrated example, the mold 31 has a mesa structure having a convex structure portion, and the concavo-convex structure region 32 is located in the convex structure portion. Although the material of such a mold 31 can be selected as appropriate, it can be formed using a transparent substrate that can transmit irradiation light for curing the photocurable resin layer. For example, quartz glass, silicic acid series can be used. Glass, calcium fluoride, magnesium fluoride, acrylic glass, or any of these laminated materials can be used. The thickness of the mold 31 can be set in consideration of the shape of the concavo-convex structure, material strength, handling suitability, and the like, and can be set as appropriate within a range of about 300 μm to 10 mm, for example. The mold 31 may not have a mesa structure.

<Curing process>
Next, light irradiation is performed from the mold 31 side, and the photocurable resin layer 52 is cured to form a transfer resin layer 55 to which the uneven structure of the mold 31 is transferred (FIG. 6C). In this curing step, when the transfer substrate 41 is made of a light-transmitting material, light irradiation may be performed from the transfer substrate 41 side, or light irradiation may be performed from both sides of the transfer substrate 41 and the mold 31.
When the resin to be molded is a thermosetting resin or a thermoplastic resin, the resin can be cured by subjecting the resin layer 52 to a heat treatment or a cooling (cooling) treatment. it can.

<Release process>
Next, in the mold release step, the transfer resin layer 55 and the mold 31 are separated from each other, and the pattern structure 61 that is the transfer resin layer 55 is positioned on the transfer substrate 41 (FIG. 6D).
In this release step, the drive unit (8) causes the ink jet head (7) of the droplet supply unit (6) to be out of the soft X-ray irradiation range from the soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator (10). The mold 31 is moved to a position (a position indicated by a chain line in FIG. 2), and then soft X-rays are irradiated from the static eliminator (10) to perform static elimination of the mold 31.
The static eliminator (10) is arranged so as to irradiate the mold with soft X-rays from the side with respect to the surface of the mold 31 having the concavo-convex structure region 32. Here, “the side with respect to the surface of the mold 31 having the concavo-convex structure region 32” means that the irradiation center direction of the soft X-rays irradiated at a wide angle in a predetermined angle range is the concavo-convex structure region of the mold 31. This means that it is in the range of 90 ° ± 45 ° with respect to the perpendicular of the surface having 32 (the chain line L shown in FIG. 6C). A method of driving the inkjet head (7) so that at least the droplet discharge port of the inkjet head (7) is not irradiated with soft X-rays is, for example, the description of the above-described imprint apparatus of the present invention (FIGS. 3 to 3). Various methods such as those mentioned in 5) can be adopted.

  The soft X-ray irradiation from the static eliminator (10) in the mold release process is performed so that the mold 31 can be neutralized, and the irradiation timing is such that the inkjet head (7) is at least placed on the droplet discharge port. If the soft X-ray is not irradiated, the setting can be made as appropriate. For example, it can be performed when the transfer resin layer 55 and the mold 31 are separated, or after the separation of the transfer resin layer 55 and the mold 31 is completed. Further, after the curing process is completed, soft X-ray irradiation from the static eliminator (10) is started until the separation of the transfer resin layer 55 and the mold 31 is completed, and the substrate holder (4) starts moving. Soft X-ray irradiation may be continued.

In the imprint method of the present invention described above, charging of the mold in the peeling step for separating the transfer resin layer and the mold is suppressed, and soft X-ray irradiation to the droplet discharge port of the inkjet head is prevented. Damage, deterioration of the resin to be molded, and the like can be prevented, whereby a highly accurate pattern structure can be stably produced. Such an imprint method of the present invention can be used for manufacturing semiconductor devices, replica molds using a master mold, and the like.
The above-described embodiment of the imprint method is an exemplification, and the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in the imprint method of the present invention, the resin to be molded supplied onto the transfer substrate 41 on the assumption that the inkjet head (7) is driven so that at least the droplet discharge port is not irradiated with soft X-rays. As long as no adverse effect is exerted on the liquid droplet 51, soft X-rays may be irradiated from the static electricity removing device (10) at any time in the contact process and the curing process.

  The present invention can be applied to the manufacture of various pattern structures using an imprint method and the fine processing of workpieces such as substrates.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Imprint apparatus 2 ... Mold holding part 4 ... Substrate holding part 6 ... Droplet supply part 7 ... Inkjet head 8 ... Inkjet head drive part 10 ... Static electricity removal apparatus 31 ... Mold 41 ... Transfer substrate 51 ... Droplet 52 ... Covered Molded resin layer 55 ... Transfer resin layer

Claims (4)

Mold holding unit for holding a mold, substrate holding unit for holding a transfer substrate, droplet supply unit having an ink jet head for discharging a droplet of resin to be molded, and soft X-ray irradiation type static electricity removal And at least a device,
The static eliminator is at a position where soft X-rays can be irradiated from the side with respect to the mold held by the mold holding unit,
An imprint apparatus comprising: a drive unit that drives the inkjet head so that at least soft droplets are not irradiated with soft X-rays when soft X-rays are irradiated from the static eliminator.   The driving unit is configured to allow the inkjet head to move between a predetermined position outside the irradiation range and a position where a droplet of resin to be molded is supplied by soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator. The imprint apparatus according to claim 1.   The drive unit rotates the ink jet head, thereby causing a droplet between a position where the soft X-rays irradiated from the static eliminator cannot reach directly and a position where a droplet of the resin to be molded is supplied. The imprint apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the discharge port is movable. A droplet supply step of discharging droplets of a molding resin from an inkjet head and supplying the droplets to a transfer substrate;
A contact step in which a mold having a concavo-convex structure and the transfer substrate are brought close to each other, and the droplets are developed between the mold and the transfer substrate to form a resin layer to be molded;
A curing step of curing the molding resin layer and transferring the concavo-convex structure to the transfer resin layer;
A mold release step of separating the transfer resin layer and the mold to place the pattern structure, which is the transfer resin layer, on the transfer substrate;
A soft X-ray irradiation type static eliminator is arranged to irradiate the mold with soft X-rays from the side with respect to the surface having the concavo-convex structure of the mold, and soft X-rays are emitted from the static eliminator. Driving the inkjet head so that at least the droplet discharge port is not irradiated with soft X-rays when being irradiated,
At least in the mold release step, the imprinting method is characterized by performing static elimination of the mold using the static eliminator.

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