JP7223604B2 - Vacuum deposition equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention provides a vacuum in which a plurality of vapor deposition sources are provided in a vacuum chamber in which a film formation substrate is installed, and a multilayer film can be formed on the surface of the film formation substrate by sublimating or vaporizing the vapor deposition material from each vapor deposition source. It is related with a vapor deposition apparatus.

This type of vacuum deposition apparatus forms an organic multilayer film of an organic EL element on a glass substrate (hereinafter referred to as a "substrate") as a film-forming substrate in a vacuum atmosphere, for example, in the manufacturing process of an organic EL element. commonly used to This device comprises a vacuum chamber in which a substrate is placed, a vapor deposition source having heating means and in which different types of vapor deposition substances are respectively set, and a shutter provided between the vapor deposition source and the substrate. By sequentially opening any one of the vapor deposition sources, a multilayer film can be formed on the substrate surface (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Since organic EL devices have advantages such as better visibility and power saving compared to liquid crystal display devices, improvements are being made every day, and along with this, new organic materials are being developed one after another. being developed. Such an organic material (vapor deposition substance) is formed by sequentially forming films on a substrate in a vacuum atmosphere using the vacuum vapor deposition apparatus of the above-described conventional example, setting a plurality of types of organic materials in the vapor deposition source, and forming a predetermined film structure. is evaluated by actually producing an organic multilayer film with Specifically, for example, assuming that there are organic materials A to D, 1) an organic multilayer film formed by sequentially laminating layers A, B, and C; 3) A plurality of layers having different film structures, such as an organic multilayer film formed by sequentially laminating layers A, C and D, are fabricated on the surface of a substrate and evaluated.

However, if the above conventional vacuum deposition apparatus is used, a plurality of substrates must be sequentially taken in and out of the vacuum chamber to deposit an organic multilayer film on each substrate. Occasionally, the operation of the deposition source is stopped. For this reason, for example, even though the organic material A common to each organic multilayer film is used, the vacuum atmosphere in the vacuum chamber and the scattering distribution of the organic material change when the substrate is taken in and out or when the deposition source is restarted. , it cannot be said that the layer A formed by vapor-depositing the organic material A was formed under the same conditions, and there is a possibility that the organic multilayer film cannot be evaluated correctly.

JP-A-2007-332433

In view of the above points, it is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum deposition apparatus capable of forming multilayer films having different film structures on a single substrate under certain conditions. .

In order to solve the above problems, a plurality of vapor deposition sources are provided in a vacuum chamber in which a film formation substrate is installed, and a multilayer film is formed on the film formation substrate surface by sublimating or vaporizing the vapor deposition material from each vapor deposition source. The vacuum vapor deposition apparatus of the present invention capable of forming a film is disposed between a vapor deposition source and a film formation substrate so that a sublimated or vaporized vapor deposition material adheres to the film formation substrate in one area within the film formation substrate surface. and a changing means for changing the adhesion region in the surface of the film-forming substrate by relatively moving the area mask and the film-forming substrate in the vacuum chamber. do.

According to the present invention, it is possible to change the adhesion region within the surface of the film formation substrate only by relatively moving the film formation substrate and the area mask in the vacuum chamber by the changing means. Therefore, it is possible to form a plurality of multilayer films having different film structures on the surface of a single film formation substrate without taking the film formation substrate into and out of the vacuum chamber. As a result, for example, a specific layer can be formed under the same conditions in any region within the surface of the film-forming substrate, so that multiple kinds of organic materials can be vapor-deposited on the film-forming substrate to produce an organic multilayer film. , is best suited for evaluation. Here, organic materials of this kind are generally expensive. Therefore, if a specific layer is formed in advance over the entire surface of the substrate in a separate vacuum chamber or the like, the cost required for evaluation can be reduced, which is advantageous.

In the present invention, the changing means includes a fixed frame that supports the area mask, and a movable frame that is installed above the area mask and supports the film formation substrate. It is preferable to provide a second driving section that drives the movable frame to rotate around a vertical axis passing through the center of the area mask. As a result, it is possible to change the deposition area within the surface of the film formation substrate only by rotating the film formation substrate relative to the area mask.

Further, if a pattern mask with a plurality of fine openings is provided on the bottom surface of the film formation substrate, the pattern mask can be formed on the film formation substrate when changing the adhesion region within the film formation substrate surface. Advantageously, it serves to protect the coated layer.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which a substrate, a pattern mask, and an area mask are separated from each other in a vacuum deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which a substrate, a pattern mask, and an area mask are combined in the vacuum deposition apparatus of the embodiment. (a) to (d) are diagrams for explaining film formation on a substrate by dividing an adhesion region into four. (a) to (d) are diagrams for explaining film formation on a substrate by dividing an adhesion region according to a modification into six.

Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, a glass substrate having a rectangular (square) outline (hereinafter referred to as "substrate Sw") is used as a film formation substrate, and the surface of the substrate Sw is divided into four uniform adhesion areas. An embodiment of the vacuum deposition apparatus of the present invention will be described by taking as an example an apparatus for depositing a multilayer film having a different film structure on the deposition area. In the following description, terms indicating directions such as up and down are based on FIG. 1, which is the installation posture of the vacuum deposition apparatus.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the vacuum deposition apparatus VM of the present embodiment includes a vacuum chamber 1 to which a vacuum pump is connected via an exhaust pipe (not shown and described). , a vacuum atmosphere can be formed by evacuating to a predetermined pressure. A plurality of vapor deposition sources 2 are provided at intervals on the inner surface of the lower wall 1a of the vacuum chamber 1 (inside the vacuum chamber 1).

Each evaporation source 2 has a crucible 22 containing a solid organic material 21 as an evaporation substance. The crucible 22 has a bottomed cylindrical profile with an open top in the vertical direction, and is made of a material with good thermal conductivity and a high melting point, such as molybdenum, titanium, stainless steel, or carbon. of organic material 21 can be filled. A known heating means 23 such as a sheath heater or a lamp heater is provided around the crucible 22 so that the organic material 21 contained in the crucible 22 can be heated to sublime or evaporate. A rotating shaft 24 is erected on the lower wall 1a around each crucible 22, and a shutter plate 25 capable of covering the top opening of each crucible 22 is connected to the tip of each rotating shaft 24. there is Then, each rotating shaft 24 is rotated by a driving means (not shown) to sequentially open the upper surface opening of any one of the plurality of crucibles 22, thereby selectively attaching any organic material 21 to the surface of the substrate Sw. It is made possible to form a film.

In the upper space of the vacuum chamber 1 facing the region where each crucible 22 is provided, a region where the sublimated or vaporized organic material 21 adheres to the substrate Sw is arranged between each crucible 22 and the substrate Sw. An area mask Am having an opening limited to a part of the surface of the substrate Sw, and a changing means 3 for relatively moving the area mask Am and the substrate Sw within the vacuum chamber 1 to change the attachment region within the surface of the substrate Sw. is provided. The changing means 3 includes a fixed frame 31 having a bottomed tubular contour suspended from the inner surface of the upper wall of the vacuum chamber 1 so as to be isolated from the vacuum atmosphere in the vacuum chamber 1 . A bottom plate portion 31a is provided on the lower surface of the fixed frame 31. A first opening 31b is formed through the bottom plate portion 31a in the plate thickness direction, and the area mask Am is supported on the upper surface of the outer peripheral edge of the first opening 31b. It has become so.

The area mask Am is composed of a plate-shaped member made of metal such as alumina or resin such as polyimide, and is formed in an area one size larger than the substrate Sw having a contour corresponding to the substrate Sw. As shown in FIG. 3, the area mask Am is made to correspond to any one of the four (rectangular) virtual regions having the same area around the center of the mask and partitioned so as to line up. A film formation opening Ao is formed through the plate in the thickness direction. As a result, as will be described later, the portion of the substrate Sw that matches the phase of the film formation opening Ao of the area mask Am becomes the attachment region. In addition, four semicircular concave portions Ar are formed on the outer peripheral edge portion of the area mask Am so as to be positioned on the center line thereof and recessed inward. On the bottom plate portion 31a of the fixed frame 31, two positioning pins 31c are erected with a phase difference of 180 degrees. Am is positioned on the fixed frame 31 .

The changing unit 3 further includes a movable frame 32 that supports the substrate Sw and a support frame 33 that supports the pattern mask Pm below the substrate Sw, which are provided in the inner space of the fixed frame 31 . The movable frame 32 has a cylindrical outline, and a rotary shaft 34 extending into the vacuum chamber 1 through a through hole 11 formed in the upper wall of the vacuum chamber 1 is connected to the upper surface of the movable frame 32 . The portion of the rotating shaft 34 positioned outside the vacuum chamber 1 is connected to an actuator 35 that rotates the rotating shaft 34 about the axis Cl by a predetermined rotation angle and moves up and down with a predetermined stroke. In the present embodiment, a film formation position (position shown in FIG. 2) where film formation is performed on the substrate Sw and a rotation that allows rotation of the movable frame 32 above the film formation position without interference from the positioning pins 31c. position (the position shown in FIG. 1), and a second drive that rotates the movable frame 32 around the axis Cl passing through the center of the area mask Am at the rotation position. The actuator 35 also serves as the part. In this case, a vacuum bellows 12 is provided on the upper wall of the vacuum chamber 1 so as to surround the through hole 11 so that the rotating shaft 34 can be rotated and moved up and down while maintaining the vacuum atmosphere. A second opening 32b is formed in the bottom plate portion 32a of the movable frame 32, and a carrier Ca in which the substrate Sw is set as described later is supported on the upper surface of the outer peripheral portion of the second opening 32b.

Like the area mask Am, the carrier Ca is made of a plate-shaped member made of metal such as alumina or resin such as polyimide, and is formed to have the same outline (and area) as the area mask Am. The upper surface of the carrier Ca is formed with a substrate accommodation portion Ch corresponding to the outline of the substrate Sw, which is recessed in the plate thickness direction, so that the substrate Sw can be set by dropping the substrate Sw into the substrate accommodation portion Ch. . Similarly to the area mask Am, four semicircular concave portions Cr are also formed on the outer peripheral edge of the carrier Ca, and when the movable frame 32 is moved downward from the rotation position toward the area mask Am, positioning is performed. By engaging the pins 31c with the concave portions Cr of the carrier Ca facing each other, the carrier Ca is positioned (and phased) with respect to the area mask Am at the film forming position.

The support frame 33 is made of a plate-shaped member made of metal such as alumina or resin such as polyimide. It is supported. The lower end of a drive shaft 36 extending vertically through the peripheral wall portion 32c of the movable frame 32 is connected to the upper surface of the outer peripheral portion of the support frame 33. It is adapted to be moved up and down by a drive unit 37 such as. As a result, the film formation position (position shown in FIG. 2) where film formation is performed on the substrate Sw and the supporting frame 33 integrated with the movable frame 32 are prevented from being interfered by the positioning pins 31c above the film formation position. The support frame 33 can be moved up and down between the rotation position (the position shown in FIG. 1) that allows rotation.

Like the area mask Am, the pattern mask Pm is composed of a plate-shaped member made of metal such as alumina or resin such as polyimide, and is formed to have the same outline as the area mask Am, and penetrates in the plate thickness direction. A plurality of fine openings Po are provided. Similarly to the area mask Am, four semicircular concave portions Pr are also formed on the outer peripheral edge of the pattern mask Pm. By engaging the pins 31c with the recesses Pr facing each other in the pattern mask Pm, the pattern mask Pm is positioned (and phased) with respect to the area mask Am at the film formation position of the support frame 33. . Hereinafter, as shown in FIG. 3, areas A, B, C, and D are attached to the substrate Sw, and multilayer films are formed in each area A to D using the vacuum deposition apparatus VM. I will explain how.

In the state shown in FIG. 1, the movable frame 32 and the support frame 33 are in their rotating positions, and the carrier Ca on which the substrate Sw is set, the pattern mask Pm, and the area mask Am are moved to the fixed frame 31 and the movable frame 33 by a transport robot (not shown). They are installed at predetermined positions on the frame 32 and the support frame 33, respectively. Next, the vacuum pump is actuated to evacuate the inside of the vacuum chamber 1, and when a predetermined pressure is reached, the support frame 33 is moved upward by the drive unit 37 so that the upper surface of the pattern mask Pm touches the bottom plate portion 32a of the movable frame 32. The support frame 33 is moved to an intermediate position where it abuts. Then, the movable frame 32 and the support frame 33 are moved downward together with the support frame 33 by the actuator 35, and the movable frame 32 and the support frame 33 are moved to the film forming position where the bottom plate portion 32a of the movable frame 32 contacts the upper surface of the pattern mask Pm. . At this time, the positioning pins 31c are engaged with the facing recesses Cr and Pr of the carrier Ca and the pattern mask Pm, respectively, so that the carrier Ca and the pattern mask Pm are positioned with respect to the area mask Am. The carriers Ca are stacked one above the other (integrated state). In this state, the film formation opening Ao of the area mask Am faces the area A, and the area A becomes the adhesion area (see FIGS. 2 and 3A). Then, by sequentially opening any one of the plurality of crucibles 22 by the shutter plate 25 of each vapor deposition source 2, any one of the organic materials 21 is selectively adhered to the surface of the substrate Sw to form a film, A multilayer film is obtained.

When the film formation on the area A is completed, the support frame 33 and the movable frame 32 are moved upward and returned to the rotating position by the reverse procedure, and the area mask Am, the pattern mask Pm and the carrier Ca are separated from each other. state (see FIGS. 1 and 3(b)). In this state, the actuator 35 rotates the movable frame 32 integrally with the support frame 33 about the axis (counterclockwise in FIG. 3) by 90 degrees. Then, the film formation opening Ao of the area mask Am becomes a phase facing the area B (see FIGS. 2 and 3(c)). , area B becomes the adhesion region. Then, by sequentially opening any one of the plurality of crucibles 22 by the shutter plate 25 of each vapor deposition source 2, any one of the organic materials 21 is selectively adhered to the surface of the substrate Sw to form a film, A multilayer film is obtained (see FIG. 3(d)). After that, the above operation is repeated to deposit a multilayer film on the area C and the area D. FIG.

According to the above-described embodiment, only by rotating the substrate Sw relative to the area mask Am within the vacuum chamber 1 by the changing means 3, the adhesion region within the substrate Sw surface can be changed. Therefore, it is possible to deposit a plurality of multilayer films having different film configurations on the surface of a single substrate Sw without taking the substrate Sw into and out of the vacuum chamber 1 . As a result, for example, since a specific layer can be formed under the same conditions in any region in the plane of the substrate Sw, it is possible to manufacture and evaluate an organic multilayer film by evaporating a plurality of types of organic materials on the substrate Sw. be optimal for Moreover, since the pattern mask Pm is provided, the pattern mask Pm plays a role of protecting the layer already formed on the substrate Sw when changing the adhesion region in the substrate Sw surface, which is advantageous.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. In the above embodiment, an example of forming a multilayer film in four areas A, B, C, and D has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and as shown in FIG. Six areas A, B, C, D, E, and F may be attached to the substrate Sw, and the substrate Sw and the pattern mask Pm may be rotated by 60 degrees (see FIG. 4(c)). Further, in the above-described embodiment, the changing means 3 for rotating the substrate Sw relative to the area mask Am has been described as an example. If possible, it is not limited to this. For example, the area mask Am may be moved relative to the substrate Sw. Also, although not shown and described, the area mask Am having the film formation opening Ao may be moved below the substrate Sw in a direction orthogonal to the vertical direction. It may be possible to freely move forward and backward toward the center of the substrate, and change the adhesion area within the surface of the substrate Sw by changing the position of the film formation opening Ao.

Further, in the above embodiment, the recesses Ar, Pr, and Cr provided in the area mask Am, the pattern mask Pm, and the carrier Ca, and the positioning pins 31c, allow the position and phase of the pattern mask Pm and the carrier Ca with respect to the area mask Am to be adjusted. Although an example that can be determined has been described, it is not limited to this, and for example, a known positioning mechanism or phase determining mechanism may be provided on the rotating shaft of the movable frame.

Am... Area mask, Ao... Film formation opening (aperture), Pm... Pattern mask, Po... Micro opening, Sw... Substrate (film formation target substrate), 1... Vacuum chamber, 2... Evaporation source, 21... Organic material (deposition substance), 3... changing means, 31... fixed frame, 32... movable frame, 35... actuator (first drive section, second drive section).

Claims (2)

A vacuum deposition apparatus in which a plurality of deposition sources are provided in a vacuum chamber in which a film formation substrate is installed, and a multilayer film can be formed on the surface of the film formation substrate by sublimating or vaporizing a vapor deposition material from each vapor deposition source,
an area mask disposed between the vapor deposition source and the film formation substrate and having an opening for limiting a region in which the sublimated or vaporized vapor deposition material adheres to the film formation substrate to a part of the surface of the film formation substrate; changing means for relatively moving the area mask and the film formation substrate in the vacuum chamber to change the adhesion region in the film formation substrate surface ,
The changing means includes a fixed frame that supports the area mask, and a movable frame that is installed above the area mask and supports the film formation substrate. and a second drive section for rotating the movable frame about an axis in the vertical direction passing through the center of the area mask . 2. The vacuum deposition apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a pattern mask having a plurality of fine openings is provided on the lower surface of said film-forming substrate.

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