JP7222416B2 - Device manufacturing equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a device manufacturing apparatus.

In a large-screen display element (display panel) such as a liquid crystal display element, a transparent electrode layer such as ITO, a semiconductor material layer such as Si, an insulating film layer, or a metal film layer for wiring is formed on a flat glass substrate. A circuit pattern is transferred by applying a photoresist onto the deposited layer, and after the transfer, the photoresist is developed and etched to form a circuit pattern or the like. However, as the screen size of the display element increases, the size of the glass substrate also increases, which causes the problem of increasing the size of the substrate transfer apparatus and the processing apparatus, thus enlarging the production line (factory). Therefore, a roll-to-roll method (hereinafter simply referred to as "roll method ”) has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

When processing flexible film members using the roll method, the usage of various materials and utilities (electricity, air pressure, coolant, etc.) related to manufacturing can be reduced compared to conventional production methods. Therefore, an additive manufacturing method with less environmental impact is desired. The manufacturing method disclosed in Patent Document 1 also does not use the conventional lithography method using a photoresist, and applies the necessary materials only to the necessary parts during fine patterning of TFTs (thin film transistors) and wiring. The main manufacturing method is the inkjet method, etc.

Further, in Patent Document 2, when selectively coating a conductive ink material on a film material to form an electrode layer or a wiring layer by such an inkjet method, a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) After uniformly forming a layer), patterned ultraviolet rays corresponding to the shape of the electrodes and wiring are irradiated to modify the wettability (lyophilic and repellent) of the surface of the SAM layer, and then the ink material is applied. A method of coating is disclosed.

Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a method of applying and patterning a mist of a material solution to form a film onto a substrate through a shadow mask, as a method with which high productivity can be expected. This patent document 3 also discloses forming a pattern by superimposing a shadow mask on the substrate after previously imparting contrast by lyophilicity and lyophobicity to the surface of the substrate in the same manner as in the inkjet method. In the experimental example, an opening pattern of 0.5 mm×12 mm on the shadow mask was formed on the substrate with the same dimensions.

International Publication WO2008/129819 pamphlet International Publication WO2010/001537 Pamphlet Japanese Patent No. 4387775

However, in the inkjet method, functional materials such as nano-inked conductive materials are selectively applied to designated areas on the substrate in the form of small droplets from an ink ejection head, so the pattern size (line width, line width, etc.) When the dot size) is as small as 20 μm or less, for example, the landing accuracy of the ink droplets from the head is poor. There is a problem that it is difficult to achieve a clean patterning even if the ink is concentrated on the surface. Of course, it is conceivable to further reduce the number of ink droplets ejected at one time from the nozzles of the head by devising the ink ejection head and the ink material, but there is a problem that the productivity is significantly lowered.

On the other hand, in the method disclosed in Patent Document 3, since the shadow mask is spaced from the substrate, the pattern size formed on the substrate is generally said to be larger than the opening pattern on the shadow mask. I have a problem. In Patent Document 3, since a large pattern of 500 μm×1200 μm is transferred, even if the pattern edge is thickened by about 5 μm or 10 μm, there is little effect. However, in the case of a fine pattern of 20 μm or less, it is a big problem that the pattern edge is thickened by about 5 μm or 10 μm. There is also the problem of being overwhelmed.

Furthermore, even if the contrast of lyophilicity and lyophobicity is given to the substrate surface and a shadow mask is also used, a relative alignment error occurs between the shadow mask and the substrate treated with lyophilicity and repellency. The pattern is limited by the precision of the shadow mask. In addition, preparations such as forming a uniform liquid-repellent layer of a liquid-repellent material on the surface of a lyophilic substrate in advance and selectively removing the liquid-repellent layer and patterning it using photolithography are also necessary. there were. In addition to this, there is a problem that it is difficult to manufacture a line pattern or a contact hole (via hole) pattern with a fine line width of 20 μm or less as a shadow mask.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a device manufacturing apparatus capable of finely miniaturizing and forming a material for an electronic device on a substrate such as a film with high precision. With the goal.

In the first aspect of the present invention, mist contained in a carrier gas is adhered to the surface of a flexible elongated substrate, and particles of a material contained in the mist are deposited on the surface of the substrate to obtain the above-described A mist film forming apparatus for forming a thin film of a material, which has an outer circumferential surface around which a part of the substrate in the longitudinal direction is closely wound within a predetermined angle range, and rotates about an axis to A rotating drum that conveys a substrate in a longitudinal direction at a predetermined speed, and a space along the surface of the substrate is formed over a predetermined range in the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface of the rotating drum with which the substrate is in close contact, and the space is formed. a chamber having a partition wall for filling the carrier gas containing the mist ejected therein; a recovery port that recovers the carrier gas from the chamber so as to flow; and a drying unit that is provided in the transport path of the substrate after passing through the chamber and that dries the solution of the mist adhering to the surface of the substrate. is provided.

In the present invention, it is possible to form a fine pattern on a substrate with higher accuracy than printing methods and inkjet methods, and it is possible to easily form a thin film layer of a substance to be selectively patterned with a uniform thickness. can be formed into

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the chemical structure of a photosensitive silane coupling agent deposited on a substrate. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a pixel circuit of an active matrix display. 4A is a plan view showing the transistor structure of the pixel circuit of FIG. 3. FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4B-4B in FIG. 4A. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the configuration of some units of the substrate processing apparatus according to the third embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing various patterns formed on a sheet as a substrate to be processed. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the configuration of some units of the substrate processing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment.

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4B. FIG. 1 shows a schematic overall configuration of a substrate processing apparatus. In this embodiment, a flexible substrate P supplied from a supply roll FR1 is typically sequentially fed to four processing units U1, U2, U3, and U4. After that, it is wound up by the recovery roll FR2, and while the substrate P is sent from the supply roll RF1 to the recovery roll RF2, a fine pattern of the functional material is precisely formed on the substrate P.

The processing unit (functional layer forming unit) U1 includes, for example, a transfer drum Gpa for printing, and a photosensitive hydrophilic and liquid-repellent coupling agent, for example, a silane coupling agent having a liquid-repellent fluorine group in nitrobenzyl. The agent is applied uniformly over at least the pattern formation area of the surface of the substrate P. As shown in FIG. Since no pattern is normally formed on the back surface of the substrate P, the back surface of the substrate P is coated with a water-repellent film by the transfer drum Gpb so as not to cause unnecessary deposition in mist deposition in the post-process. You can keep it.

The photosensitive silane coupling agent (photosensitive SAM) used in the present embodiment is composed of, for example, a chemical formula as shown in FIG. Paper 1 published at the "New Technology Briefing" held by the Japan Science and Technology Agency: "Cell patterning technology by near-ultraviolet light using a surface modifier", or JP 2003-321479, JP 2008-050321 is disclosed in the publication.

In FIG. 2, when the silane coupling agent having a fluorine group applied to the surface of the substrate P is dried after application, the surface becomes a liquid-repellent region HPB having a fluorine group. When the surface is irradiated with ultraviolet rays UV for patterning at a predetermined illuminance for a predetermined period of time, the bonds of the fluorine groups are released, and the lyophobicity of that portion is relatively lowered to form a lyophilic region HPR. In the experimental example shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-050321, the contact angle in the ultraviolet-unirradiated region of the substrate surface was 110° (water-repellent), and the substrate was treated with tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) after ultraviolet irradiation. It is disclosed that washing with an aqueous solution reduced the contact angle of the region irradiated with ultraviolet rays to about 20° (changed to lyophilic).

The substrate P coated with the coupling agent is sufficiently dried (heated at 200° C. or less) in the next processing unit U2, and then sent to the processing unit U3 (patterning section). A layer (functional layer) of the coupling agent on the surface of the substrate P is irradiated with a predetermined amount of light energy of the converted ultraviolet light. The processing unit U3 contains a drum mask DM on which a fine pattern mask is formed, an illumination system IU that includes a light source in the ultraviolet region (wavelength of 400 nm or less) and irradiates the drum mask DM with ultraviolet illumination light, and the drum mask DM. A projection optical system PL and the like are provided to form an image of the ultraviolet rays patterned by . The processing unit U3 is a stepper-type or scanning-type exposure apparatus, but may be a beam-scanning drawing machine, a maskless exposure machine using a DMD, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, immediately after the photosensitive silane coupling agent is applied to the surface of the substrate P and dried, fluorine groups having liquid repellency are bonded to the nitrobenzyl, and that portion is a liquid repellent region. Although HPB is formed, when ultraviolet rays UV are irradiated with a predetermined amount of energy, the nitrobenzyl groups in the irradiated portion react and the fluorine group bonds are released, and the liquid repellency of that portion is reduced and the lyophilic property is reduced. HPR. In other words, the light pattern generated by the drum mask DM is transferred onto the substrate P as a pattern having a contrast due to the difference in hydrophilicity and repellency.

In order to remove the unbonded fluorine groups from the surface of the substrate P, the substrate P exposed in the processing unit U3 is washed with TMAH as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-050321, and then dried. It is desirable to For this purpose, a cleaning tank using TMAH, a cleaning tank using pure water, a drying section, and the like are provided between the processing units U3 and U4.

The substrate P that has undergone exposure processing (or cleaning/drying processing) is then sent to the processing unit (mist depositing section) U4. In the processing unit U4, a film formation method called so-called mist deposition is applied. An experimental example of depositing a thin film of zinc oxide (ZnO) is described in Paper 2: Kyoto University Press, "Study on mist CVD method and its application to zinc oxide thin film growth" (published March 24, 2008) [ URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2433/57270], pages 35, 43-65.

In the processing unit U4, a liquid (functional solution) containing molecules and particles of the raw material to be deposited on the lyophilic region HPR of the substrate P is atomized by an ultrasonic vibrator. GS1, a gas supply unit GS2 that supplies a carrier gas such as nitrogen (N ₂ ), argon (Ar), or air (O ₂ ) at a predetermined flow rate, and mixes the carrier gas with mist of a functional solution at a predetermined concentration. A mixer ULW, a reaction chamber TC for bringing the mixed gas into contact with the surface of the substrate P at a predetermined flow rate, and a recovery port section De for recovering the gas in the chamber TC are provided.

As the raw material, a solution containing molecules or carbon nanotubes that will become oxide semiconductors or organic semiconductors, a solution for electrodes or wiring containing metal nanoparticles, or a solution having a molecular structure that will become an insulating film is selected. If zinc oxide (ZnO) is selected as the raw material, atomizer GS1 is supplied with a _ZnAc2 , 98% _H2O solution, as disclosed in the previous article 2, and the internal 2. A 4 MHz ultrasonic transducer mists the _ZnAc2 solution. The mist is sent into the reaction chamber TC together with a carrier gas, and the source material (mist) is selectively trapped in the lyophilic regions HPR on the surface of the substrate P traveling in the chamber TC at a constant speed.

The substrate P that has undergone mist deposition processing in the processing unit U4 is sent to a drying (heating) unit (not shown) or the like, and the solvent component or the like is removed from the raw material deposited on the lyophilic region HPR on the surface of the substrate P. and subsequently sent to downstream processing steps, and wound up on a recovery roll FR2 after appropriate processing steps. Thus, on the substrate P that has passed through the processing unit U4, a thin film layer made of the raw material is deposited in a pattern having a shape following the lyophilic region HPR.

By the way, in general, in an active matrix type display panel (AMOLED) using an organic EL as a light emitting element, a pixel circuit using a thin film transistor (TFT) as shown in FIG. 3 is provided for each pixel (sub-pixel). . In FIG. 3, a light emitting diode OLED as an organic EL element is driven by two transistors, a pixel switching transistor TR1 and a current driving transistor TR2. A luminance signal Yc corresponding to the pixel is applied to the drain electrode D1 of the transistor TR1, and the transistor TR1 is turned on/off in response to the synchronous clock pulse Hcc applied to the gate electrode G1 of the transistor TR1.

When the transistor TR1 is turned on, the voltage level of the luminance signal Yc is held in the capacitor Cg and applied to the gate electrode G2 of the transistor TR2. The transistor TR2 performs voltage/current conversion such that a drive current corresponding to the voltage applied to the gate electrode G2 is passed from the drain electrode D2 to the source electrode S2. As a result, the light emitting diode OLED is supplied with a current corresponding to the luminance signal Yc from the power supply bus line Vdd, and the light emitting diode OLED emits light with a luminance corresponding to the magnitude of the current.

Such pixel circuits are configured, for example, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B. FIG. 4A shows a planar arrangement of only transistors TR1 and TR2 in one pixel circuit, and FIG. 4B is a cross section taken along the line 4B-4B in FIG. 4A. The transistors shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B are of the bottom-gate type. First, a conductive ink is printed or electrolessly plated in a concave portion formed on the upper surface of the substrate P by imprinting or the like. Gate electrodes G1 and G2 are formed by the above steps. A gate insulating film Is is laminated thereon as shown in FIG. 4B. An opening HA for connection is formed by a selective deposition method such as printing, ink-jetting, etc. so as to be formed between the transistors TR1 and TR2. Incidentally, the layer of the gate electrode may be formed by a mist deposition method.

On the insulating film Is, a semiconductor layer MS made of an organic system, an oxide system, or a carbon nanotube or the like provided as a solution is selectively formed by a printing method, an inkjet method, or the like, corresponding to each transistor formation region. deposited. After low-temperature annealing (200° C. or less) for crystallization (orientation) of the semiconductor layer MS is completed, a pattern corresponding to the drain electrodes D1 and D2 and the source electrodes S1 and S2 is applied using a conductive ink or the like. be. At this time, the gate electrode G2 of the transistor TR2 is exposed in the opening HA of the insulating film Is. Inside, the source electrode S1 and the gate electrode G2 are connected.

In the pixel circuit configured as described above, the process according to the present embodiment includes, for example, a step of forming the gate electrodes G1 and G2, a step of forming the semiconductor layer MS, or a step of forming the drain electrodes D1 and D2 and the source electrodes S1 and S2. can be applied in the step of forming However, in the thin film formation by the mist deposition method, the size of the mist when the solution containing the raw material is turned into mist, the concentration of the raw material contained in the mist, and the concentration of the mist in the carrier gas (hereinafter collectively referred to as the mist concentration ), the flow rate of the carrier gas, the temperature inside the reaction chamber TC, etc., should be optimized for the size of the pattern to be formed.

In this embodiment, in order to efficiently form a fine pattern similar to conventional photolithography by the mist deposition method, a material whose lyophilicity and lyophobicity change depending on photosensitivity (silane coupling) is applied on the substrate P. agent) is applied, and finely patterned light is irradiated onto the substrate P to form a high-definition pattern having a hydrophilic/hydrophobic contrast. Therefore, of the surface of the substrate P, the highly lyophilic region HPR has a higher surface energy than the highly lyophobic region HPB. Deposition becomes possible.

Here, Epb is the surface energy of the highly lyophobic region HPB, Epr is the surface energy of the highly lyophilic region HPR, Eem is the surface energy of the mist solvent, φm is the diameter of the mist, and the size of the pattern to be formed ( (minimum line width, etc.) is ΔDp, the relationship is set so as to satisfy one or both of the following relationships I and II.
Relation I: Surface energy Epb<Eem<Epr
Relationship II: Mist size (diameter) 0.2 ΔDp < φm < ΔDp

When the mist diameter φm is larger than the minimum line width ΔDp to be patterned, the mist protrudes and adheres to the highly lyophilic region HPR (line width ΔDp). Due to the surface energy, the mist grows into a large mist, which may overflow from the highly lyophilic region HPR and flow. Therefore, a mist diameter that is too large for the pattern dimension (ΔDp) to be formed is not preferable. On the other hand, if it is too small, the deposition time for pattern formation will be too long, resulting in a decrease in productivity.

As an example, in the pixel circuit shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the pattern line width of the drain and source electrodes constituting the transistors TR1 and TR2 is about 20 μm, the pattern line width of the gate electrode is about 6 μm, and the size of the semiconductor layer MS is about 6 μm. is about 40×30 μm, the mist size φm when forming the gate electrode by the mist deposition method is 1.2 μm<φm<6 μm, and when the semiconductor layer MS is formed by the mist deposition method, mist size φm is 6 μm<φm<30 μm. Since the electrode (wiring) layer, semiconductor layer, insulating film, etc. for forming the TFT have different optimum thicknesses in terms of electrical performance, the thickness of the pattern to be deposited depends on the thickness of the pattern to be deposited. It is necessary to make adjustments such as changing the mist concentration, changing the transport speed of the substrate P and the flow speed of the mist gas, and changing the temperature inside the reaction chamber TC.

The process shown in FIG. 1 is for mist depositing a single layer, and for mist depositing several layers of a multi-layer device. , the groups of processing units U1 to U4 in FIG. 1 may be serially connected by the number of layers, and the substrates P may be sequentially transported.

(Second embodiment)
Next, a device manufacturing system embodying the substrate processing apparatus described above will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of part of a device manufacturing system (flexible display manufacturing line). A flexible substrate P (sheet, film, etc.) pulled out from the supply roll FR1 is sequentially passed through n processing units U1, U2, U3, U4, U5, . Examples up to are shown. The host controller 5 performs overall control over the processing units U1 to Un that make up the manufacturing line.

In FIG. 5, the orthogonal coordinate system XYZ is set so that the front surface (or back surface) of the substrate P is perpendicular to the XZ plane, and the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction (longitudinal direction) of the substrate P is set to the Y direction. shall be In addition, the substrate P is subjected to a predetermined pretreatment in advance to modify the surface for strengthening the adhesion of the photosensitive silane coupling agent, or a fine surface for precision patterning is applied to the surface. A partition structure (uneven structure) may be formed.

The substrate P wound around the supply roll FR1 is pulled out by the nipped drive roller DR1 and transported to the processing apparatus U1. Servo control is performed so that the position is within a range of ±tens of μm to several tens of μm.

The processing device U1 is a coating device that continuously or selectively coats the surface of the substrate P with a photosensitive functional liquid (photosensitive silane coupling agent) in the transport direction (longitudinal direction) of the substrate P by a printing method. . The processing unit U1 includes an impression roller DR2 around which the substrate P is wound, a coating roller for uniformly coating the surface of the substrate P with the photosensitive functional liquid on the impression roller DR2, or a photosensitive functional liquid. A coating mechanism Gp1 including a printing cylinder roller for patterning and coating the liquid, and a drying mechanism Gp2 for rapidly removing the solvent or water contained in the photosensitive functional liquid coated on the substrate P are provided. It is

The processing apparatus U2 is a heating apparatus for heating the substrate P transported from the processing apparatus U1 to a predetermined temperature (for example, several tens to 120° C.) to stabilize the photosensitive functional layer coated on the surface. is. In the processing apparatus U2, there are a plurality of rollers and an air turn bar for conveying the substrate P in turn, a heating chamber HA1 for heating the substrate P that has been carried in, and a post-process ( A cooling chamber HA2, a nipped drive roller DR3, etc. are provided for lowering the temperature to match the environmental temperature of the processing unit U3).

The processing unit U3 for patterning is an exposure unit that irradiates the photosensitive functional layer of the substrate P transported from the processing unit U2 with ultraviolet patterning light corresponding to the circuit pattern and wiring pattern for display. Inside the processing apparatus U3, there are provided an edge position controller EPC that controls the center of the substrate P in the Y direction (width direction) to a constant position, a nipped driving roller DR4, and a substrate P that partially winds the substrate P with a predetermined tension. A rotating drum DR5 (impression cylinder) that supports the pattern-exposed portion of P on a uniform cylindrical surface, and two sets of driving rollers DR6 and DR7 for giving a predetermined slack (play) DL to the substrate P. etc. are provided.

Further, in the processing unit U3, there are a transmissive cylindrical mask DM (mask unit) and an illumination mechanism IU (mask unit) provided in the cylindrical mask DM for illuminating a mask pattern formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical mask DM with ultraviolet rays. In order to relatively align the image of a portion of the mask pattern of the cylindrical mask DM and the substrate P with a portion of the substrate P supported on a cylindrical surface by the illumination unit 10) and the rotating drum DR5, Alignment microscopes AM1 and AM2 for detecting alignment marks and the like formed in advance on the substrate P are provided.

The processing unit U4 is a processing unit that performs mist deposition on the photosensitive functional layer of the substrate P conveyed from the processing unit U3, and includes the atomizer GS1 shown in FIG. In addition to the section GS2, the mixer ULW, the reaction chamber TC, the recovery port section De, the differential exhaust chambers DE1 and DE2 provided in the front and rear stages of the reaction chamber TC, and the raw material that is misted through the reaction chamber TC. A temperature control mechanism HP that adjusts the temperature of the gas of the substance and the temperature of the substrate P to be transported, and a dust collection mechanism RT that captures the molecules and particles of the raw material contained in the gas recovered through the recovery port De. , and a unit control unit CUC for overall control of the operation of the processing unit U4.

In mist deposition, solutions of various raw materials can be atomized, but among those substances, carbon nanotubes (hereafter referred to as CNTs) in particular can be harmful to the human body if dispersed into the atmosphere. There is also Therefore, the reaction chamber TC has a highly airtight structure, and the front and rear stages are sealed so that the misted gas containing the raw materials does not leak out of the apparatus while allowing the substrate P to be transported. Dynamic exhaust chambers DE1 and DE2 are provided. As for the configuration of the atomizer GS1, the carrier gas supply unit GS2, etc., the one disclosed in the above-mentioned article 2 can be used. The oscillation frequency and oscillation intensity are adjusted according to the required mist size.

The processing apparatus U5 warms the substrate P transported from the processing apparatus U4, dries the raw material deposited on the lyophilic region HPR of the substrate P by the mist deposition method, and reduces the water content to a predetermined value. Although it is a heat drying device that adjusts to the value, the details are omitted. Thereafter, after passing through several processing apparatuses, the substrate P that has passed through the final processing apparatus Un in the series of processes is wound up onto the collection roll FR2 via the nipped drive roller DR1. During winding, the edge position controller EPC2 controls the Y position of the drive roller DR1 and recovery roll FR2 so that the center of the substrate P in the Y direction (width direction) or the edge of the substrate in the Y direction does not fluctuate in the Y direction. The relative positions of the directions are sequentially corrected and controlled.

The host controller 5 generally controls the processing units U1 to Un shown in FIG. In response to signals from various sensors and the like to be monitored, feed-back control and feed-forward control on the process are also performed at important points. In the device manufacturing system described above, an exposure apparatus capable of precisely patterning a fine pattern is used as the processing apparatus U3. Since it is a system in which a mist-like raw material is deposited on the lyophilic region HPR, it is possible to form a fine pattern with high accuracy.

According to the manufacturing method using the above-described manufacturing system, patterning applies the same exposure method as the photolithography method to the photosensitive functional material. High-precision and fine patterning is possible compared to the method. In addition, there is no need to use expensive equipment such as vacuum deposition equipment or etching equipment used in conventional photolithography processes, and since the raw material can be deposited only on the desired part, unnecessary parts are removed by etching. There is no need to do so, and the advantage of having less environmental impact can be obtained.

(Third embodiment)
In the processing apparatus U4 for mist deposition shown in FIG. It is preferable to keep it as an adjustment parameter. This is to control the film thickness and denseness of the raw material deposited on the highly lyophilic region HPR on the substrate P. FIG. Furthermore, a function to measure the film thickness of the raw material deposited in the highly lyophilic region HPR is provided, and the mist deposition processing time and conditions (adjustment parameters) are dynamically changed according to the measured value. is also useful.

FIG. 6 shows an example in which the mist deposition processing apparatus U4 shown in FIG. 5 is provided with a function of measuring the thickness of the deposited pattern. The same reference numerals are attached. In FIG. 6, the substrate P is kept at a predetermined tension in the reaction chamber TC by a drive roller DR8 provided in the differential exhaust chamber DE1 and a drive roller DR9 provided in the differential exhaust chamber DE2. sent in the direction

In this embodiment, a first nozzle NZ1 for ejecting a mist of a solution containing raw materials onto the surface of the substrate P is connected from the mixer ULW1 to a position near the differential exhaust chamber DE1 in the reaction chamber TC. , and a second nozzle NZ2 for ejecting a misted gas of the solution containing the raw material substance is connected from the mixer ULW2 to the downstream thereof. The two mixers ULW1 and ULW2 are appropriately controlled by the unit controller CUC so that the mist concentrations contained in the gases ejected from the nozzles NZ1 and NZ2 are made the same or different. The mist concentration is obtained by changing the mixing ratio of the carrier gas supplied from the supply unit GS2 (see FIG. 5) to each of the mixers ULW1 and ULW2 and the mist gas supplied from the atomizer GS1 (see FIG. 5). can be realized by

A nozzle VT for sucking and recovering the gas ejected from the nozzles NZ1 and NZ2 is provided downstream in the reaction chamber TC and close to the differential exhaust chamber DE2. It is sent to the collection port De at a flow rate controlled by Exo. By adjusting the total flow rate of the gas ejected from the nozzles NZ1 and NZ2 and the flow rate of the gas sucked by the nozzle VT, a gas flow is created in the chamber TC along the transport direction (X direction) of the substrate P. be able to. The flow can be slowed, sped up, or the same as the substrate P transport speed.

In the configuration of FIG. 6, mist deposition is performed between the nozzles NZ1 or NZ2 in the chamber TC and the nozzle VT. Since it can be adjusted according to the transportation speed of P, it is possible to form a pattern (deposition) to obtain a desired film thickness.

Now, in this embodiment, in the reaction chamber TC, the layer thickness of the solution containing the raw material deposited as mist on the substrate P is measured at the most downstream position downstream of the gas recovery nozzle VT. A measuring sensor TMS is provided to measure, and the measured value is sent to the unit controller CUC. The unit controller CUC determines whether or not to adjust the processing conditions (mist concentration, gas flow velocity, temperature, etc.) in the chamber TC based on the measured values. When changing the transport speed of the substrate P as adjustment of processing conditions, the unit control unit CUC outputs a signal Ds1 to the drive motor for the drive roller DR9 (or DR8) to adjust the rotational speed.

As the measuring sensor TMS, an optical interference type film thickness measuring device, a spectroscopic ellipsometer, etc. are used. It may not be possible to accurately determine the thickness of densely formed patterns in the source material. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, a pair of nip drive rollers NR1, NR2 and a pair of nip drive rollers NR1 and NR2 are provided after the processing unit U4 for mist deposition (after the differential exhaust chamber DE2) and after the processing unit U5 for heating and drying the substrate P. It is preferable to provide a collecting portion of the substrate P constituted by the dancer roller DSR, and immediately after that, to provide the film thickness measuring sensor TMS.

In this way, the pattern to be measured on the substrate P can be positioned immediately below the measurement sensor TMS immediately after the stagnant portion of the substrate P, and the substrate P can be kept still for a certain period of time (for example, several seconds). TMS measurement time can be secured. The time during which the substrate P can stand still is determined by the velocity Vo of the substrate P unloaded from the processing apparatus U5 and the swing stroke Ld of the dancer roller DSR in the Z direction. For example, if the speed Vo of the substrate P is 5 cm/s and the stroke Ld is 50 cm, the substrate P can be kept stationary for up to 20 seconds at the position of the measurement sensor TMS immediately after the stagnant portion.

After processing unit U5, the metrology sensor TMS can accurately measure the thickness of the patterned layer of source material deposited by mist deposition because the liquid component has been removed. It is desirable that the measurement sensor TMS in the reaction chamber TC and the measurement sensor TMS after the processing unit U5 can measure the film thickness of a fine pattern (for example, a line width of 20 μm or less). For example, the ST2000-DLXn and ST4000-DLX optical interferometry film thickness gauges sold by K-MAC in South Korea are microscope types, so they are easy to install, and the diameter of the light spot for measurement is several μm. is small, and the measurement time is within a few seconds. In addition, Dainippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd.'s optical interference type film thickness measuring device product name Lambda Ace VM-1020/1030, product name RE-8000 equipped with a spectroscopic ellipsometer, etc. are used as measurement sensors TMS after the processing device U5. You can also use it.

When measuring the thickness of the pattern formed by the raw material deposited on the substrate P by the measurement sensor TMS as described above, a specific layer of the TFT portion and the wiring portion of the device (display panel) formed on the substrate P is measured. Direct measurement may be performed, but a test pattern (mark) formation area for thickness measurement is provided outside the device formation area on the substrate P, and the thickness of the raw material deposited there is measured. Also good. An example of providing such a test pattern will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the arrangement of a plurality of device (display panel) regions 100 formed on the substrate P and a plurality of marker regions MK1 to MK5 in which test patterns are formed. Here, it is assumed that a television display panel having an aspect ratio of 16:9 and a screen size of 32 inches is manufactured, and the longitudinal direction of the display panel region 100 is arranged in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P (X direction). Each panel region 100 is arranged with a predetermined margin in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P, and margins of a constant width are set on both sides of the substrate P in the width direction (Y direction). Three marker regions MK1, MK2, and MK3 are provided in the blank space between the panel regions 100, spaced apart in the Y direction. MK5 is provided.

Here, three measurement sensors TMS shown in FIG. 6 are provided spaced apart in the width direction of the substrate P corresponding to the arrangement of the marker areas MK1 to MK5. The marker areas MK1 to MK5 can be observed by any one of the measurement visual fields St1, St2, and St3 of each measurement sensor TMS. A similar test pattern is formed in each of the three marker regions MK1 to MK3 arranged in the Y direction among the marker regions MK1 to MK5.

An example of the test pattern, representing the marker area MK1, is shown in the dashed circle at the bottom of FIG. A large number of test patterns can be formed in the marker region MK1. Line and space test patterns MPa, MPd, MPe, MPg, and MPh with different line widths, circular test patterns MPb, and large rectangular test patterns can be formed. A pattern MPc, a two-dimensional dot-like test pattern MPf, and the like can be arranged. The line-and-space test patterns are a set of those whose pitch directions are in the X direction and those in the Y direction. Further, the test pattern MPe is formed by arranging a plurality of L-shaped lines in an oblique direction of 45°, and the test pattern MPh is formed as an oblique grid pattern of 45°.

The line width of the lines and spaces can be determined according to the size of the pattern formed by mist deposition. For example, when an electrode pattern and a wiring pattern with a line width of 20 μm are formed in the panel area 100 of the substrate P by mist deposition, the test pattern lines and spaces have line widths of, for example, 40 μm, 30 μm, 20 μm, and 15 μm. The other four sets are exposed together with the mask pattern for the panel area 100 in the exposure step of the processing unit U3. Other test patterns MPb, MPc, and MPf, which are required for measurement, are also exposed together in the exposure process of the processing unit U3.

In the marker regions MK4 and MK5 arranged on both sides of the panel region 100 in the Y direction, one linear test pattern having a width of several mm in the Y direction and a length of several tens of mm in the X direction is provided. You may make it form only. In this way, when the elongated test pattern is formed in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P, for example, the measurement sensor TMS in the reaction chamber TC shown in FIG. It becomes easy to measure the film thickness of the test pattern to be applied.

By the way, the marker area MK1 and the marker area MK4 can be observed by the measurement sensor TMS having the measurement field of view St1, the marker area MK2 can be observed by the measurement sensor TMS having the measurement field of view St2, and the marker area MK3 and the marker area can be observed. MK5 can be observed by the measurement sensor TMS having the measurement field of view St3, but the film thickness measurement of the test patterns in the marker areas MK1 to MK3 is performed by the measurement sensor TMS after the processing unit U5 in FIG. The film thickness measurement of the test patterns MK4 and MK5 may be shared so that the measurement sensor TMS in the reaction chamber TC is used. In addition, since a test pattern is formed in each of the marker regions MK1 to MK5 by one mist deposition, when mist deposition patterning is performed over a plurality of layers, a marker is formed for each layer. It is preferable to shift the positions of the regions MK1 to MK5.

Since there is no other base pattern layer in the marker regions MK1 to MK5 as described above, the thickness of various test patterns formed by the processing apparatus U4 (mist deposition) can be accurately measured. can be done. In addition, since the size (line width, etc.) of the test pattern used for measurement can be selected (changed) according to the size of the device pattern (the pattern in the display panel area 100), it is possible to precisely control the film thickness conditions. Become. Also, by comparing the film thicknesses of the same kind of test patterns in each of the three marker regions MK1 to MK3 between the panel regions 100, differences in film formation conditions in the width direction of the substrate P (unevenness in mist density, etc.) can be determined. It can be checked and corrected. Moreover, the measurement sensor TMS may be provided with a sensor for measuring not only the thickness of the formed pattern but also its line width.

(Fourth embodiment)
In FIG. 8, the processing apparatus U4 for mist deposition shown in FIG. 5 is integrated with the processing apparatus U5 for heat drying, and the mist deposition is performed while the substrate P is wound around a rotating drum and transported. 1 shows an example of an apparatus for performing

In FIG. 8, a flexible substrate P to be carried in is wound around a rotary drum RD rotating around an axis AX1 over half or more of the circumference via a nip drive roller NDR and a tension roller DR10. It is folded back by the air turn bar ATB in the heating/drying unit 20 as the device U5, and carried out via the roller DR11, the tension roller DR12, and the nip drive roller NDR. Cylindrical partition walls constituting the reaction chamber TC are provided in the circumferential range around the rotating drum RD around which the substrate P is wound, and the mist gas in the chamber TC is formed at both ends of the partition wall in the circumferential direction. An air-sealed bearing Pd is provided that is impermeable to the environment. Of course, an air seal bearing is also provided at the end of the cylindrical partition wall forming the chamber TC in the direction of the axis AX1 (Y direction) to close the gap with the rotary drum RD.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 5, and 6, the mist from the atomizer GS1 and the gas from the carrier gas supply unit GS2 are mixed in the mixer ULW to form a mist-containing gas, which is then rolled into a cylinder. It is supplied to one end side of the reaction chamber TC (the portion where the substrate P is in contact with the rotary drum RD). The mist-containing gas advances along the surface of the substrate P wound around the rotating drum RD along the narrow cylindrical space, and reaches the other end side of the cylindrical reaction chamber TC (the part where the substrate P separates from the rotating drum RD). , the gas is exhausted from the recovery port portion De.

In this embodiment, since the rear surface of the substrate P is brought in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the rotary drum RD, unnecessary mist does not flow into the rear surface of the substrate P, so that the rear surface can be kept clean. Further, if a temperature control mechanism is provided along the outer periphery inside the rotating drum RD, the temperature of the substrate P can be controlled with high responsiveness.

As the rotary drum RD rotates, the substrate P, on which the mist is deposited on the lyophilic portion HPR on the surface, is linearly sent to the first space AT1 of the heating/drying unit 20, where it is heated by an electric heater, hot air heater, or the like. The temperature control mechanism HP dries the pattern of the solution deposited by mist deposition. After passing through the drying space AT1, the substrate P is turned back at approximately 180° by the air turn bar ATB arranged in the second space AT2, advances linearly in the third space AT3, and reaches the roller DR11. A partition is partitioned between the spaces AT1, AT2, and AT3, and a slit-like opening through which the substrate P is passed is provided in the partition. A recovery port De is connected to each of the spaces AT2 and AT3, and the remaining mist-containing gas is recovered. When the raw material deposited by mist deposition is a semiconductor material, the space AT1 functions as an annealing furnace for crystallizing and orienting the semiconductor material.

The air turn bar ATB has an outer peripheral surface of approximately half the circumference of a cylinder, and a large number of fine gas ejection holes and suction holes are provided on the outer peripheral surface. As a result, the substrate P is folded back without its surface (the surface on which the raw material is deposited) coming into contact with the surface of the air turn bar ATB. The gas ejected from the air turnbar ATB also has the effect of further drying the pattern of the raw material deposited on the surface of the substrate P.

The substrate P folded back by the air turn bar ATB is controlled to a predetermined temperature by the temperature control gas ejected from the nozzle ANZ in the space AT3, reaches the roller DR11, and reaches the roller DR12 in the space partitioned by the partition wall. It passes through the nip drive roller NDR and through the air seal bearing Pd arranged to sandwich the substrate P, and is sent to the next processing device or the film thickness and line width measurement sensor section.

As described above, when the substrate P is transported using the rotating drum RD as shown in FIG. The substantial length of the reaction chamber TC is about 100 cm (50×π×240/360), and the footprint of the device can be made smaller than when the reaction chamber TC is linear as shown in FIGS. Further, since the substrate P is transported in close contact with the outer periphery of the rotating drum RD, the substrate P does not vibrate up and down during transport, and stable mist deposition can be achieved.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to such examples. The various shapes, combinations, etc., of the constituent members shown in the above examples are merely examples, and various modifications can be made based on design requirements and the like without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the substrate P is not limited to a flexible thin film or sheet, and may be a glass substrate, a silicon wafer, a plastic substrate, or a resin substrate. Furthermore, the substrate P does not need to be processed by the roll-to-roll method as it is wound on a roll, and may be cut into a predetermined size (A4, B5, etc.) and processed individually.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the mist deposition method is used as a method for selectively forming a semiconductor layer, an electrode layer, or a wiring layer in a desired region on the substrate P. Alternatively, a film forming method such as a method, a dip coating method, or the like can be used. In the spray method, as in the mist deposition method, the substrate P is coated with an atomized material solution sprayed from a nozzle. It is immersed and pulled up.

In either case, for example, as described in the third embodiment (FIG. 7), optical patterning is performed so that the marker areas MK1 to MK5 are formed at appropriate positions on the substrate P, and the spray method is applied. , After depositing the material solution by the dip coating method, the deposition state (adhesion state) in various test patterns in the marker areas MK1 to MK5 is confirmed by the measurement sensor TMS as shown in FIG. and various conditions of the dip coating method can be feedback-corrected. The various conditions of the spray method are the fine hole diameter of the spray nozzle, the spray pressure, the distance between the substrate P and the nozzle, the relative movement speed between the nozzle and the substrate P, etc. The various conditions of the dip coating method are the material solution temperature, the immersion time of the substrate P, the pulling speed, and the like.

Furthermore, in the case of using the conventional photolithography process in which the photoresist layer is subjected to photopatterning (exposure treatment), development treatment, and etching of the resist layer according to the pattern, the surface of the substrate P (if there is an underlying layer) After making the surface of the substrate P highly lyophilic, a highly lyophobic photoresist material is applied to the surface of the substrate P in a uniform thickness. After that, by performing a development process, the part from which the resist layer has been removed (the surface of the substrate P or the surface of the underlying layer) is exposed as a highly lyophilic surface. , dip coating method), a precise pattern is formed by the material solution.

FR1: Supply roll FR2: Recovery roll P: Substrate U1, U2, U3, U4, U5, Un: Processing unit (processing device) Gpa: Rotary drum for applying photosensitive silane coupling agent, Gp1: Coating mechanism, IU...ultraviolet illumination system, DM...drum mask,
PL...projection optical system DE1, DE2...differential exhaust chamber TC...reaction chamber GS1...material atomizer GS2...carrier gas supply part ULW...mixer HPB...liquid repellent part HPR...parent Liquid part RD... Rotating drum MK1 to MK5... Marker area 20... Heat drying unit 100... Display panel area

Claims (12)

a functional layer forming unit that applies a first material to the substrate;
The material on the substrate is irradiated with light, and an irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is irradiated with the light and a non-irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is not irradiated with the light are formed. a photo-patterning unit forming an irradiation region;
a conveying unit for conveying the substrate processed by the optical patterning unit along the outer peripheral surface of the rotating drum at a predetermined speed;
a chamber portion that forms a space that covers the substrate over a predetermined range in the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface;
an introduction unit that introduces a carrier gas containing mist containing a second material into the chamber and adheres the mist to the irradiated region ;
a collection unit that collects from within the chamber the carrier gas supplied into the chamber;
a drying unit that dries the substrate to which the mist is attached;
a measurement sensor unit that measures the thickness of the second material deposited on the substrate;
device manufacturing equipment. a functional layer forming unit that applies a first material to the substrate;
The material on the substrate is irradiated with light, and an irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is irradiated with the light and a non-irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is not irradiated with the light are formed. an optical patterning unit that forms a pattern having an irradiation area;
a conveying unit for conveying the substrate processed by the optical patterning unit along the outer peripheral surface of a rotating drum at a predetermined speed;
a chamber portion that forms a space that covers the substrate over a predetermined range in the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface;
an introduction unit for introducing a carrier gas containing a mist containing a second material into the chamber and causing the mist to adhere to the pattern formed by the photo-patterning unit;
a collection unit that collects from within the chamber the carrier gas supplied into the chamber;
a drying unit that dries the substrate to which the mist is attached;
a measurement sensor unit that measures the thickness of the second material deposited on the substrate;
device manufacturing equipment. a functional layer forming unit that applies a first material to the substrate;
The material on the substrate is irradiated with light, and an irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is irradiated with the light and a non-irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is not irradiated with the light are formed. a photo-patterning unit forming an irradiation region;
a conveying unit for conveying the substrate processed by the optical patterning unit along the outer peripheral surface of the rotating drum at a predetermined speed;
a chamber portion that forms a space that covers the substrate over a predetermined range in the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface;
an introduction unit that introduces a carrier gas containing mist containing a second material into the chamber and adheres the mist to the irradiated region ;
a collection unit that collects from within the chamber the carrier gas supplied into the chamber;
with
wherein the second material is carbon nanotubes or metal particles;
Device manufacturing equipment. a functional layer forming unit that applies a first material to the substrate;
The material on the substrate is irradiated with light, and an irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is irradiated with the light and a non-irradiated region where the first material on the substrate is not irradiated with the light are formed. an optical patterning unit that forms a pattern having an irradiation area;
a conveying unit for conveying the substrate processed by the optical patterning unit along the outer peripheral surface of a rotating drum at a predetermined speed;
a chamber portion that forms a space that covers the substrate over a predetermined range in the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface;
an introduction unit for introducing a carrier gas containing a mist containing a second material into the chamber and causing the mist to adhere to the pattern formed by the photo-patterning unit;
a collection unit that collects from within the chamber the carrier gas supplied into the chamber;
with
wherein the second material is carbon nanotubes or metal particles;
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
wherein the second material is carbon nanotubes or metal particles;
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
The transport unit has a temperature control unit that performs temperature control of the substrate,
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6 ,
The chamber part has an air seal bearing that prevents the carrier gas containing the mist from leaking out of the space.
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7 ,
the carrier gas is nitrogen (N2), argon (Ar), or air (O2);
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8 ,
It further has a temperature control unit that adjusts the temperature of the mist,
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9,
Any one of the concentration of the second material contained in the mist, the concentration of the mist contained in the carrier gas, the flow rate of the carrier gas in the chamber, and the temperature in the chamber is adjusted.
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to claim 10 ,
The flow speed of the carrier gas containing the mist flowing in the chamber is set to be the same as or faster than the transport speed of the substrate due to the rotation of the rotating drum.
Device manufacturing equipment. The device manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11 ,
The irradiated area is more hydrophilic than the non-irradiated area,
Device manufacturing equipment.

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