JP7134034B2 - Molding apparatus and article manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a molding apparatus and an article manufacturing method.

As a new lithographic technique, a microfabrication technique that forms a pattern on a substrate by molding a curable composition on the substrate using a mold is attracting attention. Such a technique is also called an imprint technique, and can form a fine structure on the order of several nanometers on a substrate. Further, in recent years, a technique for flattening the surface of a substrate by applying an imprint technique has been proposed (see Patent Document 1). As a planarization technique, a technique of forming a coating film on the substrate using an existing coating apparatus (spin coater) to planarize the step of the substrate is generally used. is insufficient to planarize the steps of the nanoscale. On the other hand, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, an uncured resin (curable composition) is dropped based on the step of the substrate, and the uncured resin is in contact with the dropped uncured resin. is intended to improve the accuracy of flattening.

In such techniques, the curable composition is formed by air bubbles remaining in the curable composition when the curable composition is brought into contact with the mold to spread the composition on the substrate. Defects may occur in the membrane. Such defects are called unfilled defects. Therefore, an imprint apparatus has been proposed that suppresses the remaining air bubbles by filling the gap between the substrate and the mold with a special gas. US Pat. No. 5,300,000 discloses a soluble or diffusible resin between an uncured resin on a substrate and a mask using Couette flow, which occurs when a substrate stage is moved such that the substrate is positioned under a mask (mold). Disclosed is an imprinting apparatus for transporting a gas with a high .

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2011-529626 Japanese Patent No. 5828626

When the Couette flow is used to transport the gas, the transportation distance is about half the movement distance of the substrate stage. For example, when forming a film of a curable composition all over the substrate at once, it is necessary to cover the entire substrate with gas. It's getting long. In addition, in order to maintain such a long-distance Couette flow, it is necessary to increase the size of the substrate stage facing the mold, which is disadvantageous in terms of the footprint of the apparatus.

An object of the present invention is to provide an advantageous technique for suppressing unfilled defects while suppressing an increase in size of an apparatus.

A first aspect of the present invention relates to a molding apparatus for molding a curable composition on a substrate using a mold, the molding apparatus comprising: a substrate driving mechanism for driving the substrate; and a gas supply unit for supplying gas onto the substrate, wherein the substrate driving mechanism moves the substrate from a first position where at least part of the substrate does not face the mold. is driven to move the substrate to a second position where the entire area of the gas supply unit faces the mold, and the gas supply unit is configured to cover a portion of the substrate with the gas during a part of the period during which the drive is performed. supplies the gas onto the substrate, and the adjustment mechanism reduces the volume of the gap so that the gas covers the entire substrate after the substrate is moved to the second position. and after the gas covers the entire area of the substrate by the shrinking operation, the space between the substrate and the mold is narrowed to bring the curable composition on the substrate into contact with the mold. take action.
A second aspect of the present invention relates to a molding apparatus for molding a curable composition on a substrate using a mold, the molding apparatus comprising: a substrate driving mechanism for driving the substrate; an adjusting mechanism that adjusts the gap between the two, a gas supply unit that supplies gas onto the substrate, and a shape control unit that controls the shape of the mold by controlling the pressure in the space on the upper surface side of the mold; wherein the substrate driving mechanism performs driving to move the substrate from a first position where at least part of the substrate does not face the mold to a second position where the entire substrate faces the mold, and The gas supply unit supplies the gas onto the substrate so that the gas covers a part of the substrate during at least a part of the period in which the After moving to position 2, a reduction operation is performed to reduce the volume of the gap so that the gas covers the entire area of the substrate, and after the gas covers the entire area of the substrate, the gap between the substrate and the mold is performed. is narrowed to perform a contact operation for bringing the curable composition on the substrate into contact with the mold, and the shape control unit maintains the pressure at a negative pressure during the shrinking operation.
A third aspect of the present invention relates to a molding apparatus for molding a curable composition on a substrate using a mold, the molding apparatus comprising: a substrate driving mechanism for driving the substrate; an adjusting mechanism that adjusts the gap between the two, a gas supply unit that supplies gas onto the substrate, and the shape of the mold by controlling pressure in a space on the opposite side of the mold from among the spaces on both sides of the mold. wherein the substrate driving mechanism moves the substrate from a first position where at least part of the substrate does not face the mold to a second position where the entire substrate faces the mold. The gas supply unit supplies the gas onto the substrate during at least part of the period during which the substrate is moved, and the adjustment mechanism moves the substrate to the second position. Subsequently, a contraction operation is performed to reduce the volume of the gap, and then a contact operation is performed to bring the curable composition on the substrate and the mold into contact by narrowing the gap between the substrate and the mold. and the shape control unit maintains the pressure at a negative pressure during the contraction operation, and changes the pressure from a negative pressure to a positive pressure after the contraction operation and before starting the contact operation.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, an advantageous technique is provided in order to suppress the unfilled defect, suppressing the enlargement of an apparatus.

1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an imprint apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. The figure which illustrates the structure of a shape control part. 4A and 4B are views exemplifying planarization processing; FIG. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing the operation procedure of the pattern forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the pattern forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention; 9 is a flow chart showing the operation procedure of the pattern forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention; The figure which illustrates an article manufacturing method.

The invention will now be described through its exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a molding apparatus 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention. Molding apparatus 100 molds curable composition 17 on substrate 1 using mold 11 . In one example, the molding apparatus 100 can be configured or used as a planarization apparatus that forms a planarization film made of a cured product of the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 . In another example, the molding apparatus 100 can be configured or used as an imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of a cured product of the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 using the patterned mold 11 .

A curable composition is a composition that cures upon application of curing energy. Electromagnetic waves, heat, and the like can be used as energy for curing. The electromagnetic wave can be light having a wavelength selected from the range of 10 nm or more and 1 mm or less, such as infrared rays, visible rays, and ultraviolet rays. The curable composition can be a composition that is cured by irradiation with light or by heating. Among these, the photocurable composition that is cured by irradiation with light contains at least a polymerizable compound and a photopolymerization initiator, and may further contain a non-polymerizable compound or a solvent if necessary. The non-polymerizable compound is at least one selected from the group consisting of sensitizers, hydrogen donors, internal release agents, surfactants, antioxidants, polymer components and the like. The curable composition can be placed on the substrate in the form of droplets, or in the form of islands or films formed by connecting a plurality of droplets. The viscosity (viscosity at 25° C.) of the curable composition can be, for example, 1 mPa·s or more and 100 mPa·s or less. Curable compositions can be monomers such as, for example, acrylates or methacrylates.

The substrate 1 may be a base material alone, or may have one or more layers on the base material. The base material of the substrate 1 can be, for example, a silicon wafer, but is not limited to this. The base material of the substrate 1 is, for example, any known semiconductor device substrate such as aluminum, titanium-tungsten alloy, aluminum-silicon alloy, aluminum-copper-silicon alloy, silicon oxide, and silicon nitride. can be selected to The substrate 1 may be a substrate on which an adhesion layer is formed by surface treatment such as silane coupling treatment, silazane treatment, film formation of an organic thin film, etc., to improve adhesion to the curable composition. The substrate 1 may have, for example, a circular shape with a diameter of 300 mm, but is not limited to this.

The mold 11 may be made of a light transmissive material when the curing energy is light energy. The mold 11 can be made of, for example, glass, quartz, PMMA (Polymethylmethacrylate), optically transparent resin such as polycarbonate resin, transparent metal deposited film, flexible film such as polydimethylsiloxane, photocured film, metal film, or the like. . In addition, the mold 11 may have, for example, a circular shape with a diameter larger than 300 mm and smaller than 500 mm, but is not limited to this. Also, the thickness of the mold 11 is preferably 0.25 mm or more and less than 2 mm, but is not limited to this.

In this specification and the accompanying drawings, directions are shown in an XYZ coordinate system in which the direction parallel to the horizontal plane is the XY plane and the vertical direction is the Z axis. Directions parallel to the X, Y, and Z axes in the XYZ coordinate system are defined as the X, Y, and Z directions, respectively, and rotation about the X axis, Y axis, and Z axis are θX and θY, respectively. , θZ. Controlling or driving with respect to the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis means controlling or driving with respect to directions parallel to the X-axis, directions parallel to the Y-axis, and directions parallel to the Z-axis, respectively. In addition, the control or driving of the θX-axis, θY-axis, and θZ-axis relates to rotation about an axis parallel to the X-axis, rotation about an axis parallel to the Y-axis, and rotation about an axis parallel to the Z-axis, respectively. means to control or drive. The position is information that can be specified based on the coordinates of the X, Y, and Z axes, and the orientation is information that can be specified by the values of the θX, θY, and θZ axes. Positioning means controlling position and/or attitude. Alignment may include controlling the position and/or orientation of at least one of the substrate and mold. Alignment may also include controls to correct or change the shape of at least one of the substrate and mold.

The molding apparatus 100 includes a substrate chuck 2, a substrate stage 3, a base surface plate 4, a column 5, a top plate 6, a guide bar plate 7, a guide bar 8, a mold driving section 9, a column 10, a mold chuck 12, a head 13, and an alignment. A shelf 14 and a gas supply 15 may be provided. The molding apparatus 100 also includes a dispenser 20, an off-axis alignment (OA) scope 21, a substrate transfer section 22, an alignment scope 23, a curing section 24, a substrate drive mechanism 31, a mold transfer section 32, a shape control section 33, and a control section 200. can be provided.

The substrate 1 is carried into the molding apparatus 100 from outside the molding apparatus 100 by a substrate transfer section 22 including a transfer hand and the like, transferred to the substrate chuck 2 and held by the substrate chuck 2 . The substrate stage 3 is supported by the base platen 4 and can be driven in the X and Y directions by the substrate drive mechanism 31 to position the substrate 1 held by the substrate chuck 2 . The substrate drive mechanism 31 can include, for example, a linear motor and/or a linear motion mechanism such as an air cylinder, and a rotation mechanism. The substrate driving mechanism 31 can be configured to drive the substrate stage 3 with respect to the X-axis, Y-axis, and θZ-axis, and may also be configured to drive the substrate stage 3 with respect to other axes.

The mold 11 is carried from the outside to the inside of the molding apparatus 100 by a mold transfer section 32 including a transfer hand and the like, passed to the mold chuck 12 and held by the mold chuck 12 . When the molding apparatus 100 is configured or used as a planarizing apparatus, the mold 11 has, for example, a circular or square outer shape and conforms to the surface shape of the substrate 1 in contact with the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 . It may include a conforming flat portion 11a. The flat portion 11a can have the same size as the substrate 1 or a size larger than the substrate 1, for example. Mold chuck 12 may be supported by head 13 . The head 13 can have a function of adjusting the tilt of the mold 11 with respect to, for example, the θX axis and the θY axis. Each of the mold chuck 12 and the head 13 can include an opening (not shown) through which curing energy (for example, light such as ultraviolet light) emitted from the curing section 24 passes. Also, the mold chuck 12 or head 13 may incorporate a load cell for measuring the pressing force of the mold 11 against the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 .

A column 5 for supporting a top plate 6 is arranged on the base surface plate 4 . The guide bar 8 penetrates the top plate 6. - 特許庁One end of the guide bar 8 is fixed to the guide bar plate 7 and the other end of the guide bar 8 is fixed to the head 13 . The mold driver 9 drives the mold 11 in the Z direction by driving the head 13 in the Z direction via the guide bar 8 . The mold driving unit 9, for example, brings the mold 11 held by the mold chuck 12 into contact with the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 and separates the mold 11 from the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1. do. Further, the mold driving section 9 can constitute an adjusting mechanism AM that adjusts the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 . Further, the head 13 that adjusts the tilt of the mold 11 with respect to the θX axis and the θY axis can also constitute the adjustment mechanism AM that adjusts the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 .

The mold driving section 9 may further be configured to drive the mold 11 about the X-axis, Y-axis and θZ-axis by driving the head 13 about the X-axis, Y-axis and θZ-axis. In this example, an adjustment mechanism AM that adjusts the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is composed of the mold driving section 9 and/or the head 13 . However, the adjustment mechanism AM may also be realized by incorporating a substrate driving section that drives the substrate 1 along the Z axis and further along the θX axis and/or the θY axis into the substrate stage 3 or the like. Alternatively, the adjustment mechanism AM may be implemented by the mold drive section 9 and the substrate drive section.

The alignment shelf 14 is bridged to the top plate 6 via the struts 10 . A guide bar 8 penetrates the alignment shelf 14 . Also, on the alignment shelf 14, for example, a height measurement system (not shown) for measuring the height (flatness) of the substrate 1 held by the substrate chuck 2 can be arranged. The height measurement system can be, for example, an oblique incidence image shift type measurement system. The alignment scope 23 can include an optical system and an imaging system for observing the reference marks provided on the substrate stage 3 and the alignment marks provided on the mold 11 . However, if no alignment mark is provided on the mold 11, the alignment scope 23 may be omitted. The alignment scope 23 can be used in alignment for measuring the relative positions of the reference marks provided on the substrate stage 3 and the alignment marks provided on the mold 11 and correcting the positional deviation.

The dispenser 20 has a discharge port for discharging the curable composition 17, and supplies the curable composition 17 onto the substrate 1 by discharging the curable composition 17 from the discharge port. The dispenser 20 can have, for example, a piezojet type or micro-solenoid type discharge mechanism. The dispenser 20 can be configured, for example, to supply a minute volume of the curable composition of about 1 pL (picoliter) onto the substrate 1 . The number of ejection openings in the dispenser 20 is not limited, and may be one (single nozzle) or plural (for example, 100 or more). Also, the array of ejection openings in the dispenser 20 may be a linear nozzle array, or may be composed of a combination of a plurality of linear nozzle arrays.

OA scope 21 can be supported by alignment shelf 14 . When the molding apparatus 100 is configured or used as an imprint apparatus, the OA scope 21 detects alignment marks provided in a plurality of shot areas on the substrate 1 and performs global alignment to determine the positions of the plurality of shot areas. can be used for processing. By determining the positional relationship between the mold 11 and the substrate stage 3 with the alignment scope 23 and determining the positional relationship between the substrate stage 3 and the substrate 1 with the OA scope 21, the mold 11 and the substrate 1 can be aligned.

The gas supply unit 15 includes, for example, a gas supply port 15a arranged near the side surface of the mold 11, and blows out the gas 16 from the gas supply port 15a toward the substrate chuck 2 or the base surface plate 4 side. Gas supply 15 may be configured or controlled, for example, to supply gas 16 onto substrate 1 held by substrate chuck 2 . The gas 16 supplied onto the substrate 1 from the gas supply unit 15 can be transported to the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 . The gas 16 promotes the filling of the curable composition 17 into the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 and acts to prevent air bubbles from remaining in the curable composition 17 . As the gas 16, from the viewpoint of filling the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 with the curable composition, the gas 16 has excellent solubility and/or diffusibility in the curable composition, such as helium and dioxide. Carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, xenon, or condensable gases, etc. may be employed.

The control unit 200 is, for example, a PLD (abbreviation for Programmable Logic Device) such as FPGA (abbreviation for Field Programmable Gate Array), or ASIC (abbreviation for Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or a general-purpose device in which a program is incorporated. or a dedicated computer, or a combination of all or part of these. The control unit 200 controls the above-described constituent elements of the molding apparatus 100 and characterizes the operation of the molding apparatus 100 .

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the shape control unit 33 controls the pressure in the space US on the upper surface side of the mold 11 (the space on the side opposite to the substrate 1 among the spaces on both sides of the mold 11). It can be configured to control the shape of the mold 11 in the Z direction (vertical direction). To define the space US, for example, the mold chuck 12 can have a window member 34 that is transparent to the curing energy. The shape control unit 33 can make the mold 11 convex downward (to the substrate 1) by making the pressure in the space US positive. The positive pressure means pressure higher than the pressure in the space (for example, atmospheric pressure environment) facing the lower surface (flat portion 11a) of the mold 11 . The shape control unit 33 can maintain the mold 11 flat by adjusting the pressure in the space US. Here, when the pressure in the space US is equal to the pressure in the space (for example, atmospheric pressure environment) facing the lower surface (flat portion 11a) of the mold 11, the mold 11 is slightly bent downward due to its own weight. sell. Therefore, the shape control unit 33 can maintain the planar shape of the mold 11 by adjusting the pressure in the space US to a slight negative pressure. Negative pressure means pressure lower than the pressure of the space (for example, atmospheric pressure environment) facing the lower surface (flat portion 11a) of the mold 11 .

An example in which the molding apparatus 100 is configured or used as a flattening apparatus will be described below. The planarization apparatus performs a planarization process of forming a planarization film made of a cured product of the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 . The planarization process will be exemplified with reference to FIG. First, as schematically shown in FIG. 3A, a curable composition 17 is placed on a substrate 1 having an uneven surface such as a pattern by a dispenser 20, and then the substrate 1 is placed under a mold 11. placed in

Next, as schematically shown in FIG. 3B, the substrate 1 and the mold 11 are aligned by the adjustment mechanism AM so that the flat portion 11a of the mold 11 is in contact with the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1. Gap is adjusted. The step of bringing the curable composition 17 and the mold 11 into contact can be called a contacting step. The flat portion 11a of the mold 11 follows the surface shape of the substrate 1 by the contacting step. Next, as schematically shown in FIG. 3(c), the curable composition 17 is irradiated with curing energy E from the curing unit 24. As shown in FIG. As a result, the curable composition 17 is cured, and the planarizing film PM made of the cured curable composition 17 is formed. The step of curing the curable composition 17 can be called a curing step. Next, as schematically shown in FIG. 3D, the adjustment mechanism AM separates the substrate 1 and the mold 11 so that the mold 11 is separated from the planarizing film PM made of the cured curable composition 17. Gap is adjusted. The step of separating the cured curable composition 17 and the mold 11 can be called a separation step.

Through the contacting step schematically shown in FIG. 3B and before the curing step shown in FIG. , the curable composition 17 must be filled. If the curable composition 17 is cured with air bubbles remaining, a planarized film PM having voids or unfilled defects will be formed. This can adversely affect the quality of articles, such as semiconductor devices, that may ultimately be produced by repeated processing of substrate 1 . Therefore, the contacting step should be performed with the gas 16 replacing the air in the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 .

As a method of replacing the air in the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 with the gas 16, there is a method of utilizing the Couette flow caused by the movement of the substrate 1. FIG. In this method, when the substrate 1 that is not positioned under the mold 11 is moved under the mold 11, the gas 16 is supplied from the gas supply unit 15 onto the substrate 1, and the couette generated in the gas 16 by the movement of the substrate 1 is removed. The flow transports gas 16 to the gap between substrate 1 and mold 11 . For example, after the curable composition 17 is supplied over the entire area of the substrate 1 by the dispenser 20, the gas 16 is supplied onto the substrate 1 from the gas supply unit 15 when the substrate 1 is moved under the mold 11. , the gas 16 can be transported into the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 by Couette flow. However, the distance that the gas 16 is pulled from the gas supply unit 15 to the bottom of the mold 11 by the Couette flow is only about half the moving distance of the substrate 1 (substrate stage 3). Therefore, in order to replace the air in the gap between the entire area of the substrate 1 and the entire area of the flat portion 11a (lower surface) of the mold 11 with the gas 16 only by the Couette flow, the moving distance of the substrate 1 (substrate stage 3) must be set to the substrate It is necessary to make it about twice the diameter or size of 1. Also, in order to maintain such a long-distance Couette flow, it is necessary to increase the size of the substrate stage 3 that forms the gap facing the mold 11, which may increase the size of the molding apparatus 100. FIG.

Therefore, as will be described in detail below, in the present embodiment, the substrate 1 is moved under the mold 11 while drawing the gas 16 into the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 using Couette flow. The gap between 1 and mold 11 is made small. As a result, the gas 16 spreads in the gap between the entire area of the substrate 1 and the entire area of the flat portion 11 a (lower surface) of the mold 11 . That is, the entire substrate 1 is covered with the gas 16 .

The operation of the molding apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be exemplified with reference to FIGS. 4 to 8. FIG. 4 to 7 are schematic diagrams showing the operation of the molding apparatus 100 of the first embodiment. 4 to 7, illustration of the curable composition 17 is omitted. FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing the operation procedure of the molding apparatus 100 of the first embodiment. The operations shown in FIGS. 4-8 are controlled by the controller 200. FIG.

In step S<b>101 , the curable composition 17 is placed or supplied by the dispenser 20 to the film-forming region of the substrate 1 (the region where the film of the curable composition 17 is to be formed). In step S102, the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is adjusted to the first distance h1 by the adjustment mechanism AM. Here, step S102 may be performed before the start of step S103, and may be performed before step S101, for example. In step S103, as schematically shown in FIG. 4, the substrate drive mechanism 31 moves from a first position where at least a part of the substrate 1 does not face the mold 11 to a second position where the entire area of the substrate 1 faces the mold 11. A drive is disclosed to move the substrate 1 to two positions.

In step S<b>104 , the gas 16 is supplied from the gas supply unit 15 . The gas supply unit 15 supplies gas onto the substrate 1 so that the gas 16 partially covers the substrate 1 during at least part of the period in which the substrate drive mechanism 31 drives the substrate 1 (substrate stage 3 ). 16. The supply of the gas 16 from the gas supply unit 15 can be started, for example, with the substrate 1 or the substrate stage 3 facing the gas supply port 15a of the gas supply unit 15 . Alternatively, the supply of the gas 16 from the gas supply unit 15 may be started before the substrate 1 or the substrate stage 3 faces the gas supply port 15 a of the gas supply unit 15 . Alternatively, the supply of the gas 16 from the gas supply unit 15 may be started before step S103. A gas 16 from a gas supply unit 15 is supplied onto the substrate 1 . The gas 16 supplied onto the substrate 1 forms a couette flow due to the movement of the substrate 1 or the substrate stage 3 and is transported in the movement direction of the substrate 1 or the substrate stage 3 . The gas 16 is thereby transported to the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 . The supply (eg, supply time) of gas 16 from gas supply 15 can be controlled such that, for example, gas 16 is transported through the center of mold 11 by Couette flow.

When the substrate 1 reaches the second position, in step S105, the driving of the substrate 1 (substrate stage 3) by the substrate driving mechanism 31 is terminated, as schematically shown in FIG. After the substrate 1 is moved to the second position, in step S106, the adjustment mechanism AM performs a reduction operation for reducing the volume of the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 so that the gas 16 covers the entire substrate 1. . In the first embodiment, the reduction operation for reducing the volume of the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is performed by the adjustment mechanism AM, as schematically shown in FIG. This is done by adjusting from the distance h1 to a second distance h2. The second distance h2 is a distance smaller than the first distance h1. The first distance h1 and the second distance h2 are such that the gas 16 drawn into the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 at the first distance h1 covers the entire area of the substrate 1 when the gap is reduced to the second distance h2. can be set to spread as

When changing the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 to the second distance h2, it is preferable that the flatness of the mold 11 is maintained (in other words, it is preferable that the shape of the mold 11 is maintained planar). . Since the mold 11 for forming a film over the entire area of the substrate 1 is large, it easily bends due to its own weight. In particular, since the mold 11 used in the flattening process is formed to have a small thickness so as to conform to the surface shape of the substrate 1, the amount of deflection tends to be large. If the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is made small while the mold 11 is bent, when the gas 16 is expanded, the fluid resistance is large at the places where the gap is locally small, so that it is difficult to flow, and the gap is locally formed. Since the fluid resistance is small in places where there is a large amount of fluid, it becomes easy to flow. Therefore, it may be difficult to spread the gas 16 over the entire area of the substrate 1 .

Therefore, it is preferable to maintain or improve the flatness of the mold 11 by the shape control section 33 while changing the gap to the second distance h2. For example, while changing the gap to the second distance h2, the shape control unit 33 maintains or improves the flatness of the mold 11 by adjusting the pressure in the space US to a slight negative pressure. Let Thereby, the gas 16 can be evenly spread over the entire area of the substrate 1 .

After the gas 16 covers the entire substrate 1 in step S106, a contacting step is performed in step S107. In the contact step, the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is adjusted by the adjustment mechanism AM so that the flat portion 11a of the mold 11 contacts the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 . In the contact step, only a part of the mold 11 is brought into contact with the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1, and then the contact area between the curable composition 17 and the mold 11 is gradually expanded. Alternatively, it is effective for suppressing residue. For example, it is advantageous to first bring only the central portion of the mold 11 into contact with the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1, and then gradually expand the contact area between the curable composition 17 and the mold 11. Therefore, the shape control unit 33 makes the mold 11 convex downward (toward the substrate 1) by making the pressure in the space US positive in the initial stage of the contact process. Thereafter, by narrowing the distance between the substrate 1 and the mold 11, a contact operation is performed to bring the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 and the mold 11 into contact with each other. At this time, it is preferable that the shape control unit 33 gradually reduce the pressure in the space US in order to expand the contact area.

To summarize the above operations, the adjustment mechanism AM performs a contraction operation to reduce the volume of the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 after the substrate 1 has been moved to the second position, and then the curable composition on the substrate 1 is reduced. A contact operation can be performed to bring the object 17 and the mold 11 into contact. The shape control unit 33 can maintain the pressure of the space US at a negative pressure during the contraction operation, and change the pressure of the space US from negative pressure to positive pressure after the contraction operation and before the start of the contact operation. In one example, the difference between the first distance h1 and the second distance h2 is greater than the amount by which the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is changed during the contact operation.

Then, in step S108, a curing step is performed. In the curing step, the curing unit 24 irradiates the curable composition 17 in the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 with curing energy to cure the curable composition 17 . As a result, a flattening film made of the cured curable composition 17 is formed. Then, in step 109, a separation step is performed. In the separation step, the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is increased by the adjustment mechanism AM so that the cured curable composition 17 and the mold 11 are separated. At this time, the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 may be the first distance h1.

The operation of the molding apparatus 100 of the second embodiment of the present invention will be exemplified with reference to FIGS. 9 to 13. FIG. 9 to 12 are schematic diagrams showing the operation of the molding apparatus 100 of the second embodiment. 9 to 12, illustration of the curable composition 17 is omitted. FIG. 13 is a flow chart showing the operation procedure of the molding apparatus 100 of the second embodiment. The operations shown in FIGS. 9-13 are controlled by the controller 200. FIG. Matters not mentioned in the second embodiment may follow the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, the length in the Y direction of the region where the gas supply port 15a of the gas supply unit 15 is arranged is, for example, 80% or more, 90% or more, or 100% of the diameter or size of the substrate 1. can have a length Further, in the second embodiment, the reduction operation of reducing the volume of the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 by the adjusting mechanism AM includes the operation of adjusting the relative posture between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 . Here, the driving of the substrate 1 from the first position to the second position is such that the one end SE of the substrate 1 passes under the one end ME1 of the mold 11, and the relative posture of the substrate 1 and the mold 11 in the shrinking operation. can be adjusted so that the one end ME1 of the mold 11 and the substrate S come closer to each other.

Steps S201 to S205 are the same as steps S101 to S105, and the states schematically shown in FIGS. 9, 10, and 11 are changed to the states schematically shown in FIGS. handle. In steps S<b>206 and S<b>207 , the adjustment mechanism AM performs a reduction operation for reducing the volume of the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 so that the gas 16 covers the entire area of the substrate 1 . Here, in step S206, the relative posture between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is adjusted so that the one end ME1 of the mold 11 and the substrate S come closer to each other. In step S207, the adjustment mechanism AM adjusts the minimum gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 (the gap between the substrate 1 and the one end ME1 of the mold) to the second distance h2. In FIG. 12, the relative posture between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 and the gap (distance) between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 are adjusted by the adjustment mechanism AM so that the gas 16 covers the entire area of the substrate 1 by the reduction operation. The states are shown schematically. At this time, the flatness of the mold 11 may be maintained or improved by adjusting the pressure in the space US to a slight negative pressure by the shape control section 33 . In the second embodiment, the relative posture between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 (the relative position of the mold 11 with respect to the substrate 1) is adjusted so that the gas 16 spreads from one end ME1 of the mold 11 toward the other end ME2 on the opposite side. tilt) is adjusted.

In the second embodiment, the gas 16 may be drawn into the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 by the Couette flow until the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 is reduced by adjusting the relative posture. This can contribute to shortening the distance that the substrate 1 (substrate stage 3) must be moved to draw the gas 16 into the gap between the substrate 1 and the mold 11 by Couette flow.

In step S208, a contacting step is performed. In the contacting step, the substrate 1 and the mold 11 may be brought closer to each other after returning the relative postures of the substrate 1 and the mold 11 to a parallel state. In this case, the shape control unit 33 makes the mold 11 convex downward (to the substrate 1) by making the pressure in the space US positive in the initial stage of the contacting process, and then expands the contact area. It is preferable to gradually reduce the pressure in the space US. In this case, the shape control unit 33 maintains the pressure in the space US at a negative pressure during the contraction operation, and changes the pressure in the space US from negative pressure to positive pressure after the contraction operation and before the start of the contact operation. sell. Alternatively, the contacting step may be performed such that the substrate 1 and the mold 11 are brought closer to each other while the mold 11 remains tilted relative to the substrate 1 . In this case, the contact of the mold 11 with the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 starts from the one end ME1 side of the mold 11 . Steps S209 and S210 are the same as steps S108 and S109.

As described above, the molding apparatus 100 can be used to mold the curable composition on the substrate 1 . An article manufacturing method according to one embodiment of the present invention includes the steps of molding a curable composition 17 on a substrate 1 using a molding apparatus 100, and processing the substrate 1 on which the curable composition 17 has been molded. to manufacture an article from the substrate 1.

Next, an article manufacturing method for manufacturing an article by transferring the pattern of the mold 11 to the curable composition 17 on the substrate 1 using the molding apparatus 100 as an imprint apparatus and then processing the substrate 1. An exemplifying explanation will be given. As shown in FIG. 14A, a substrate 1z such as a silicon wafer having a surface to be processed 2z such as an insulator is prepared. A printing material 3z is applied. Here, a state is shown in which a plurality of droplet-like imprint materials 3z are applied onto the substrate.

As shown in FIG. 14(b), the imprint mold 4z is opposed to the imprint material 3z on the substrate with the uneven pattern formed side thereof facing. As shown in FIG. 14(c), the substrate 1 provided with the imprint material 3z and the mold 4z are brought into contact with each other and pressure is applied. The imprint material 3z is filled in the gap between the mold 4z and the workpiece 2z. In this state, when light is irradiated through the mold 4z as energy for curing, the imprint material 3z is cured.

As shown in FIG. 14D, after the imprint material 3z is cured, the mold 4z and the substrate 1z are separated to form a pattern of the cured imprint material 3z on the substrate 1z. The pattern of this cured product has a shape in which the concave portions of the mold correspond to the convex portions of the cured product, and the convex portions of the mold correspond to the concave portions of the cured product. It will be done.

As shown in FIG. 14(e), when etching is performed using the pattern of the cured product as an anti-etching mask, the portion of the surface of the workpiece 2z where the cured product is absent or remains thinly is removed, forming the grooves 5z. Become. As shown in FIG. 14(f), by removing the pattern of the cured product, an article having grooves 5z formed on the surface of the workpiece 2z can be obtained. Although the pattern of the cured product is removed here, it may be used as an interlayer insulating film included in a semiconductor element or the like, that is, as a constituent member of an article, without being removed after processing.

A pattern of a cured product formed using an imprint apparatus is used permanently on at least a part of various articles, or temporarily used when manufacturing various articles. Articles are electric circuit elements, optical elements, MEMS, recording elements, sensors, molds, or the like. Examples of electric circuit elements include volatile or nonvolatile semiconductor memories such as DRAM, SRAM, flash memory, and MRAM, and semiconductor elements such as LSI, CCD, image sensors, and FPGA. Examples of optical elements include microlenses, light guides, waveguides, antireflection films, diffraction gratings, polarizing elements, color filters, light emitting elements, displays, and solar cells. Examples of MEMS include DMDs, microchannels, electromechanical transducers, and the like. Recording elements include optical disks such as CDs and DVDs, magnetic disks, magneto-optical disks, and magnetic heads. Examples of sensors include magnetic sensors, optical sensors, gyro sensors, and the like. Examples of the mold include imprint molds and the like.

The pattern of the cured product is used as it is or temporarily used as a resist mask as at least a part of the article. After etching, ion implantation, or the like in the substrate processing step, the resist mask is removed.

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

Reference Signs List 1: substrate, 11: mold, 15: gas supply unit, 16: gas, 17: curable composition, 100: imprint apparatus

Claims (11)

A molding apparatus for molding a curable composition on a substrate using a mold,
a substrate driving mechanism for driving the substrate;
an adjusting mechanism for adjusting the gap between the substrate and the mold;
a gas supply unit that supplies gas onto the substrate,
The substrate driving mechanism performs driving to move the substrate from a first position where at least part of the substrate does not face the mold to a second position where the entire substrate faces the mold,
the gas supply unit supplies the gas onto the substrate so that the gas covers part of the substrate during a part of the period during which the driving is performed;
After the substrate is moved to the second position, the adjustment mechanism performs a contraction operation to reduce the volume of the gap so that the gas covers the entire substrate, and the contraction operation reduces the gas to the substrate. After covering the entire area, by narrowing the distance between the substrate and the mold, a contact operation is performed to bring the curable composition on the substrate into contact with the mold;
A molding device characterized by: The gap is changed from a first distance to a second distance less than the first distance in the contracting action, and the difference between the first distance and the second distance is less than the amount by which the gap is changed in the contacting action. big,
The molding apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: A molding apparatus for molding a curable composition on a substrate using a mold,
a substrate driving mechanism for driving the substrate;
an adjusting mechanism for adjusting the gap between the substrate and the mold;
a gas supply unit that supplies gas onto the substrate;
a shape control unit that controls the shape of the mold by controlling the pressure in the space on the upper surface side of the mold;
The substrate driving mechanism performs driving to move the substrate from a first position where at least part of the substrate does not face the mold to a second position where the entire substrate faces the mold,
the gas supply unit supplies the gas onto the substrate so that the gas covers a part of the substrate during at least part of the period during which the driving is performed;
After the substrate is moved to the second position, the adjustment mechanism performs a contraction operation to reduce the volume of the gap so that the gas covers the entire substrate, and the gas covers the entire substrate. Thereafter, by narrowing the distance between the substrate and the mold, a contact operation is performed to bring the curable composition on the substrate and the mold into contact,
The shape control unit maintains the pressure at a negative pressure during the contraction operation.
A molding device characterized by: The shape control unit changes the pressure from a negative pressure to a positive pressure after the shrinking motion and before the contact motion starts.
The molding apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that: By changing the pressure to the positive pressure, the mold deforms into a convex shape toward the substrate,
In the contacting operation, a central portion of the mold first contacts the curable composition on the substrate.
The molding apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that: The adjustment mechanism adjusts the relative posture between the substrate and the mold so that the volume of the gap is reduced in the shrinking operation.
The molding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: said driving is such that one end of said substrate passes under one end of said mold;
The relative posture is adjusted so that the one end of the mold and the substrate are brought closer to each other.
The molding apparatus according to claim 6, characterized in that: A molding apparatus for molding a curable composition on a substrate using a mold,
a substrate driving mechanism for driving the substrate;
an adjusting mechanism for adjusting the gap between the substrate and the mold;
a gas supply unit that supplies gas onto the substrate;
a shape control unit that controls the shape of the mold by controlling the pressure of the space on the opposite side of the substrate from the spaces on both sides of the mold,
The substrate driving mechanism performs driving to move the substrate from a first position where at least part of the substrate does not face the mold to a second position where the entire substrate faces the mold,
the gas supply unit supplies the gas onto the substrate during at least part of the period during which the driving is performed;
After the substrate is moved to the second position, the adjustment mechanism performs a contraction operation to reduce the volume of the gap, and then narrows the gap between the substrate and the mold, thereby reducing the space above the substrate. performing a contact operation to bring the curable composition and the mold into contact;
The shape control unit maintains the pressure at a negative pressure during the contraction operation, and changes the pressure from a negative pressure to a positive pressure after the contraction operation and before the start of the contact operation.
A molding device characterized by: By changing the pressure to the positive pressure, the mold deforms into a convex shape toward the substrate,
In the contacting operation, a central portion of the mold first contacts the curable composition on the substrate.
The molding apparatus according to claim 8, characterized in that: configured to form a planarizing film on the substrate with the curable composition;
The molding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that: molding a curable composition on a substrate using a molding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10;
treating the substrate on which the curable composition has been molded;
and manufacturing an article from the substrate.

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