JP7271740B2 - Film forming apparatus, electronic device manufacturing apparatus, film forming method, and electronic device manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a film forming apparatus, an electronic device manufacturing apparatus, a film forming method, and an electronic device manufacturing method.

Organic EL display devices (organic EL displays) are not only used in smartphones, televisions, and displays for automobiles, but their application fields are expanding to include VR HMDs (Virtual Reality Head Mount Displays). Therefore, it is required to form the pixel pattern with high accuracy in order to reduce the dizziness of the user.

In the manufacture of an organic EL display device, when forming an organic light emitting element (organic EL element; OLED) that constitutes the organic EL display device, the film forming material discharged from the film forming source of the film forming apparatus is used as a pixel pattern. An organic layer or a metal layer is formed by forming a film on a substrate through a mask on which is formed. At this time, an evaporation source is usually used as the film formation source, and the evaporation source heats the film formation material to a high temperature to evaporate it.

In such a film forming apparatus, the relative positions of the substrate and the mask are measured using alignment marks provided on each of the substrate and the mask before the film forming process. , the substrate and/or the mask are relatively moved to adjust the position (alignment).

The deposition accuracy of the organic layer, metal layer, etc. of the organic light-emitting device is affected by the alignment accuracy of the substrate and the mask. If the relative position of the substrate and the mask shifts before the film formation process or during the progress of the film formation process, the film formation accuracy will be degraded.

In the film forming apparatus, the mask placed on the side of the evaporation source is susceptible to radiant heat from the evaporation source, and the temperature of the mask may rise. In comparison, the substrate is relatively less affected by radiant heat because a mask is placed between it and the evaporation source, and the substrate is kept at a relatively low temperature because it contacts the electrostatic chuck that attracts the back surface. .

As a result, there is a difference in the degree of thermal expansion between the substrate and the mask, which affects alignment accuracy. That is, the thermal expansion of the mask, which has a relatively high temperature, may change the size of the opening of the mask that defines the film formation pattern, or shift the position of the opening. As a result, the film forming accuracy is lowered, and the yield of the film forming process is lowered.

Moreover, as the size of the substrate and the mask increases, the phenomenon of bending due to their own weight occurs, and the degree of bending also varies depending on the difference in material, thickness, and the like. Furthermore, there is also a concern that mask processing accuracy will decrease as the size of the mask increases. As a result, the position of the element forming region on the substrate and the opening of the mask are misaligned, which is a factor in lowering the film formation accuracy.

An object of the present invention is to provide a film forming apparatus, an electronic device manufacturing apparatus, a film forming method, and an electronic device manufacturing method with high film forming accuracy.

A film forming apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is a film forming apparatus for forming a film of a film forming material on a substrate having a plurality of unit film forming regions through a mask having openings corresponding to the unit film forming regions. a vacuum vessel; a substrate adsorption means provided in the vacuum vessel and having a substrate adsorption surface for adsorbing the substrate; a mask supporting unit provided in the vacuum vessel and supporting the mask; a position moving mechanism for moving at least one of the substrate attracting means and the mask supporting unit in a plane parallel to the substrate attracting surface; forming a film of the film-forming material so as to correspond to each of the film-forming regions;
and a control unit that sequentially performs a film forming operation for each of the unit film forming areas.

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve film formation accuracy.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of part of an electronic device manufacturing apparatus. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a film forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of a film forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of a film forming apparatus according to another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an electronic device manufactured by a film forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Preferred embodiments and examples of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the following embodiments and examples merely exemplify preferred configurations of the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to those configurations. In addition, unless otherwise specified, the hardware and software configurations of the apparatus, processing flow, manufacturing conditions, dimensions, materials, shapes, etc. in the following description are meant to limit the scope of the present invention only to them. not from

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be applied to an apparatus for forming a film by depositing various materials on the surface of a substrate, and can be preferably applied to an apparatus for forming a thin film (material layer) with a desired pattern by vacuum deposition. Any material such as glass, polymeric film, metal, or silicon can be selected as the substrate material. The substrate may be, for example, a glass substrate on which a film such as polyimide is laminated, or a silicon wafer. Any material such as an organic material or a metallic material (metal, metal oxide, etc.) may be selected as the vapor deposition material. In addition to the vacuum deposition device, a sputtering device and a CVD (Chemical Vapor
The present invention can also be applied to a film forming apparatus including a Deposition apparatus. The technology of the present invention is specifically applicable to manufacturing apparatuses for organic electronic devices (eg, organic EL elements, thin-film solar cells), optical members, and the like. Among them, an organic EL element manufacturing apparatus that forms an organic EL element by evaporating a deposition material and depositing it on a substrate through a mask is one of the preferred application examples of the present invention.

<Electronic Device Manufacturing Equipment>
FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing a configuration of part of an electronic device manufacturing apparatus.

The manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1 is used, for example, for manufacturing a display panel of an organic EL display device. VR
In the case of a display panel for HMD, after a film is formed on a silicon wafer of a predetermined size for forming an organic EL element, the silicon wafer is cut along the area (scribe area) between the element forming areas. , to produce multiple small size panels. In the case of display panels for smartphones, the 4.5 generation substrate (approximately 700 mm × approximately 900 mm), the 6th generation full size (approximately 1500 mm × approximately 1850 mm) or half cut size (approximately 1500 mm × approximately 925 mm) substrate, After forming a film for forming an organic EL element, the substrate is cut out to manufacture a plurality of small-sized panels.

An electronic device manufacturing apparatus generally includes a plurality of cluster apparatuses 1 and a relay apparatus that connects the cluster apparatuses.

The cluster device 1 includes a plurality of film forming devices 11 that perform processing (for example, film formation) on substrates W, a plurality of mask stock devices 12 that store masks M before and after use, and a transfer chamber 13 arranged in the center. and The transfer chamber 13 is connected to each of a plurality of film forming apparatuses 11 and mask stock apparatuses 12, as shown in FIG.

A transfer robot 14 for transferring the substrate W or the mask M is arranged in the transfer chamber 13 . The transport robot 14 transports the substrate W from the pass chamber 15 of the relay device arranged on the upstream side to the film forming device 11 . Further, the transport robot 14 transports the mask M between the film forming device 11 and the mask stock device 12 . The transport robot 14 is, for example, a robot having a structure in which a robot hand holding the substrate W or the mask M is attached to an articulated arm.

In the film forming apparatus 11 (also referred to as a vapor deposition apparatus), a vapor deposition material (film forming material) stored in an evaporation source (film forming source) is heated by a heater to evaporate, and is vapor deposited onto the substrate W through the mask M. be. A series of film formation processes including transfer of the substrate W/mask M to and from the transport robot 14, adjustment of the relative positions of the substrate W and mask M (alignment), fixing of the substrate W onto the mask M, and film formation (vapor deposition). , is performed by the film forming apparatus 11 .

In the mask stock device 12, new masks to be used in the film forming process in the film forming device 11 and used masks are stored separately in two cassettes. The transport robot 14 transports the used mask from the film forming apparatus 11 to a cassette of the mask stocking apparatus 12 and transports a new mask from another cassette of the mask stocking apparatus 12 to the film forming apparatus 11 .

The cluster device 1 includes a pass chamber 15 for transporting the substrates W from the upstream side in the flow direction of the substrates W to the cluster device 1, and a pass chamber 15 for transferring the substrates W having completed the film forming process in the cluster device 1 to the other downstream side. A buffer chamber 16 is connected for transport to the cluster device. The transport robot 14 in the transport chamber 13 receives the substrate W from the pass chamber 15 on the upstream side and transports it to one of the film forming apparatuses 11 in the cluster apparatus 1 . Further, the transport robot 14 receives from one of the plurality of film forming apparatuses 11 the substrate W on which the film forming process in the cluster apparatus 1 has been completed, and transports it to the buffer chamber 16 connected downstream.

Between the buffer chamber 16 and the pass chamber 15 on the downstream side thereof, a swirl chamber 17 for changing the orientation of the substrate may be installed. The swirling chamber 17 is provided with a transport robot 18 for receiving the substrate W from the buffer chamber 16 , rotating the substrate W by 180°, and transporting it to the pass chamber 15 . As a result, the orientation of the substrate W becomes the same between the cluster device on the upstream side and the cluster device on the downstream side, thereby facilitating substrate processing.

The pass chamber 15, the buffer chamber 16, and the swirl chamber 17 are so-called relay devices that connect the cluster devices. At least one of the swirl chambers is included.

The film forming device 11, the mask stock device 12, the transfer chamber 13, the buffer chamber 16, the swirling chamber 17, and the like are maintained in a high vacuum state during the manufacturing process of the organic light emitting device. The pass chamber 15 is normally maintained in a low vacuum state, but may be maintained in a high vacuum state if necessary. In the present invention, the substrate W and the mask M are bonded together in a separate device or chamber instead of the film forming device 11, and then placed on a carrier and conveyed through a plurality of film forming devices arranged in a line. It can also be applied to an in-line type manufacturing apparatus that performs a film forming process.

A specific configuration of the film forming apparatus 11 will be described below.

<Deposition equipment>
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the film forming apparatus 11. As shown in FIG. In the following description, two directions that perpendicularly intersect in a plane (XY plane) parallel to the film formation surface of the substrate W are defined as an X direction (second direction) and a Y direction (third direction). An XYZ orthogonal coordinate system is used in which the vertical direction perpendicular to the film formation surface is the Z direction (first direction). Also, the rotation angle (rotation direction) about the Z-axis is represented by θ.

The film forming apparatus 11 includes a vacuum vessel 21 maintained in a vacuum atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere such as nitrogen gas, a substrate support unit 22, a mask support unit 23, and an electrostatic chuck provided inside the vacuum vessel 21. 24 and an evaporation source 25 .

The substrate support unit 22 is means for receiving and holding the substrate W transported by the transport robot 14 provided in the transport chamber 13, and is also called a substrate holder.

The mask support unit 23 is means for receiving and holding the mask M transported by the transport robot 14, and is also called a mask holder.

The mask M has an opening pattern corresponding to the thin film pattern to be formed on the substrate W, and is supported by the mask support unit 23 . The mask M is made of, for example, a translucent material such as silicon or glass, or a metal mask called FMM (Fine Metal Mask).

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the opening of the mask M is smaller than the size of the element formation area of the substrate W and corresponds to the size of the unit deposition area. As used herein, the term “unit film formation region” refers to a portion of the element formation region where the film formation material is formed after the substrate W and the mask M are aligned. Therefore, the element formation region of the substrate W is divided into a plurality of unit film formation regions. For example, a configuration in which a plurality of unit deposition regions are arranged in parallel in the X direction and the Y direction is employed.

Above the substrate support unit 22, an electrostatic chuck 24 as a substrate attracting means for attracting and fixing the substrate W is provided.

The electrostatic chuck 24 is a Coulomb force type electrostatic chuck in which a dielectric having a relatively high resistance is interposed between the electrode and the attraction surface, and attraction is performed by the Coulomb force between the electrode and the object to be attracted. A dielectric having relatively low resistance is interposed between the electrode and the attraction surface, and attraction is performed by the Johnson-Rahbek force generated between the attraction surface of the dielectric and the object to be attracted. The electrostatic chuck may be a Johnson-Rahbek force type electrostatic chuck, which is known in the art, or may be a gradient force type electrostatic chuck that attracts an object to be attracted by a non-uniform electric field.

When the object to be adsorbed is a conductor or semiconductor (silicon wafer), it is preferable to use a Coulomb force type electrostatic chuck or a Johnson-Rahbek force type electrostatic chuck. When the object to be attracted is an insulator such as glass, it is preferable to use a gradient force type electrostatic chuck.

The electrostatic chuck 24 may be formed with one plate, or may be formed with a plurality of sub-plates that can independently control the attraction force. Moreover, even when formed with one plate, a plurality of electrode portions may be provided therein so that the attraction force of each electrode portion within one plate can be independently controlled.

As the substrate attracting means, an adhesive chuck using adhesive force may be used instead of an electrostatic chuck using electrostatic attraction.

In one embodiment of the film forming apparatus 11, the cooling plate 30 for suppressing the temperature rise of the substrate W is provided on the side opposite to the attracting surface of the electrostatic chuck 24, so that the deterioration of the organic material deposited on the substrate W and the A configuration for suppressing deterioration may be employed.

Evaporation source 25 as a film formation source includes a crucible (not shown) containing a deposition material to be deposited on a substrate, a heater (not shown) for heating the crucible, and preventing the deposition material from scattering on the substrate. It includes a shutter (not shown) and the like. The evaporation source 25 may have various configurations according to the application, such as a point evaporation source, a linear evaporation source, and a planar evaporation source.

The film forming apparatus 11 includes a film thickness monitor (not shown) and a film thickness calculation unit (not shown) for measuring the thickness of the film deposited on the substrate.

A substrate support unit actuator 26 , a mask support unit actuator 27 , an electrostatic chuck actuator 28 , a position adjustment mechanism 29 and the like are provided on the upper outer side (atmosphere side) of the vacuum vessel 21 . The substrate support unit actuator 26 is driving means for raising and lowering the substrate support unit 22 (moving in the Z direction). The mask support unit actuator 27 is driving means for raising and lowering (moving in the Z direction) the mask support unit 23 . The electrostatic chuck actuator 28 is driving means for raising and lowering (moving in the Z direction) the electrostatic chuck 24 . These actuators and position adjusting mechanisms are composed of, for example, motors and ball screws, or motors and linear guides.

The position adjustment mechanism 29 is an alignment stage mechanism that adjusts the relative position between the substrate W and the mask M. As shown in FIG. The position adjustment mechanism 29 moves the entire electrostatic chuck 24 or electrostatic chuck actuator 28 with respect to the substrate support unit 22 and the mask support unit 23 in the XYθ directions (at least one of the X direction, Y direction, and rotation direction). and/or rotate. In this embodiment, the relative positions of the substrate W and the mask M are adjusted by adjusting the position of the electrostatic chuck 24 in the XYθ directions while the substrate W is attracted. However, the position adjustment mechanism 29 may be configured to move the substrate support unit 22 or the substrate support unit actuator 26 and the mask support unit 23 or the mask support unit actuator 27 relative to the electrostatic chuck 24 in the XYθ directions. .

The film forming apparatus 11 further includes a position moving mechanism 34 (see FIG. 3 or 4). The position moving mechanism 34 moves the electrostatic chuck 24 or the electrostatic chuck actuator 28 and the mask support unit so that the openings of the mask M sequentially correspond to each of the plurality of unit film formation regions constituting the device formation region of the substrate W. 23 or the mask support unit actuator 27 in the X direction and/or the Y direction relative to each other by a predetermined distance.

An alignment camera 31 for photographing alignment marks formed on the substrate W and the mask M is installed on the outer upper surface of the vacuum vessel 21 through a transparent window provided on the upper surface of the vacuum vessel 21 . The alignment camera 31 is provided at a position corresponding to alignment marks formed on the substrate W and the mask M. As shown in FIG. For example, the alignment cameras 31 may be installed in at least two diagonal corners or all four corners of the four rectangular corners of the circular substrate W. FIG.

The alignment camera 31 installed in the film forming apparatus 11 is a fine alignment camera used to adjust the relative position of the substrate W and the mask M with high accuracy, and has a narrow viewing angle but high resolution. It is a camera with In addition to the fine alignment camera 31, the film forming apparatus 11 may have a rough alignment camera with a relatively wide viewing angle and low resolution. In a configuration in which the alignment camera 31 includes both a fine alignment camera and a rough alignment camera, two rough alignment cameras are installed at two diagonal corners of a rectangle, and fine alignment cameras are installed at the remaining corners of the rectangle. Installed in two corners.

In one embodiment of the present invention, an alignment camera 31 is provided so as to image the unit deposition area of the substrate W and the opening of the mask M. FIG. In this case, the substrate W and the mask M do not have to have alignment marks. According to the above configuration, a pixel at a specific position of the unit film formation region in the captured image (for example, two or four pixels on the diagonal line located at the corner of the rectangular unit film formation region), and the opening of the mask. are compared to align each unit film formation region with the mask M. FIG.

The film forming apparatus 11 further includes an illumination light source for illuminating the alignment mark so that the alignment camera 31 can photograph the alignment mark. Since the interior of the vacuum vessel 21 that is sealed in the film formation process is dark, a clearer image can be obtained by illuminating the alignment mark with a light source.

The film forming apparatus 11 includes a controller 33 . The control unit 33 has functions such as transportation and alignment of the substrate W/mask M, control of the evaporation source 25, control of film formation, and the like. In particular, the control unit 33 according to the present embodiment sequentially aligns each of the plurality of unit film formation areas of the substrate W with the openings of the mask M and performs the film formation operation, which will be described later.

The control unit 33 can be configured by, for example, a computer having a processor, memory, storage, I/O, and the like. In this case, the functions of the control unit 33 are implemented by the processor executing a program stored in the memory or storage. As the computer, a general-purpose personal computer may be used, or a built-in computer or PLC (programmable logic controller) may be used. Alternatively, part or all of the functions of the control unit 33 may be configured by a circuit such as ASIC or FPGA. Also, a control unit may be installed for each film forming apparatus, and one control unit 33 may be configured to control a plurality of film forming apparatuses.

Next, a film forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG.

In the film forming apparatuses 11a and 11b according to the embodiment of the present invention, each of the plurality of unit film forming regions of the substrate W is sequentially aligned with the opening of the mask M and the film forming operation is performed. Therefore, since the alignment and film forming operations are performed on a relatively small area compared to the overall size of the substrate W, misalignment between the substrate W and the mask M due to thermal expansion can be suppressed. In addition, a small mask that can easily maintain processing accuracy can be used, and film formation can be performed with higher accuracy.

Further, as will be described later, the film formation operation is performed with the substrate W and the mask M spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance. can. In addition, the step of moving the substrate W and the mask M up and down for contact and separation can be omitted, and the film formation time can be shortened. Also, the mechanisms for vertically moving the substrate W and the mask M can be omitted.

The element formation region of the substrate W is divided into a plurality of unit film formation regions. Such a division is a virtual division of a region where a film formation operation is performed at a specific point in time, and does not mean a physical division. 3 and 4, the opening of the mask M corresponds to the size of the unit film formation area, not the entire element formation area of the substrate W. As shown in FIGS.

For the alignment of the mask M with respect to the unit deposition area, the alignment marks of the substrate W are positioned within the element formation area. For example, the alignment marks are provided in the scribe area for each panel in the element formation area, or provided for each unit deposition area.

Alternatively, depending on the embodiment, alignment marks are not placed within the element formation region. In this case, a pixel at a predetermined position included in the unit deposition area and the corresponding opening of the mask function as an alignment mark. For example, among the pixels included in the unit film formation area, alignment is performed using two pixels or four pixels in the diagonal direction located at each corner of a square and openings corresponding to these pixels, respectively.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the film forming apparatus 11a according to one embodiment of the present invention. In the film forming apparatus 11a of FIG. 3, an electrostatic chuck 24 that attracts and holds the substrate W, a mask support unit 23 that supports the mask M, an electrostatic chuck actuator 28, a mask support unit actuator 27, a position adjustment The illustration of the mechanism 29 and the like is omitted.

A film forming apparatus 11a according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a vacuum vessel 21, an electrostatic chuck 24, a mask support unit 23, an electrostatic chuck actuator 28, a position adjusting mechanism 29, an evaporation source 25, a film forming It includes a control unit 33 that controls the operation of the device 11a.

The film forming apparatus 11a further includes a position moving mechanism 34 that is connected to the electrostatic chuck 24 or the electrostatic chuck actuator 28 and moves the electrostatic chuck 24 in at least one of the XY directions. The position moving mechanism 34 moves the electrostatic chuck 24 or the electrostatic chuck actuator 28 in at least one of the X direction and the Y direction by a predetermined distance (for example, the X direction and/or Y direction sides of a rectangular unit deposition area). (length) of the substrate so that each of the plurality of unit deposition regions of the substrate and the opening of the mask correspond to each other sequentially. The position moving mechanism 34 is composed of, for example, a motor and a ball screw, or a motor and a linear guide.

In this embodiment, the position moving mechanism 34 moves the electrostatic chuck 24 and the substrate W attracted to the electrostatic chuck, but does not move the mask supporting unit 23 and the mask M supported by the mask supporting unit. According to this configuration, it is not necessary to move the alignment camera 31 for alignment with the opening of the mask M with respect to each unit deposition area of the substrate W, and the position of the evaporation source 25 is moved during the deposition process. No need.

When the position moving mechanism 34 moves the substrate W to move one of the plurality of unit deposition regions of the substrate W to a position corresponding to the opening of the mask M, the position adjusting mechanism 29 aligns the substrate W and the mask M. conduct. According to the present embodiment, the alignment by the position adjusting mechanism 29 includes overall alignment (first alignment) that is alignment with respect to the substrate W, and partial alignment (second alignment) with respect to each unit deposition region. Depending on the embodiment, each time partial alignment is performed for each of the plurality of unit deposition regions, overall alignment is also performed at the same time, or after overall alignment is performed for the substrate W, only partial alignment is performed thereafter.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the film forming apparatus 11a according to one embodiment of the present invention further includes a guide member 35 that guides the film forming material scattered from the evaporation source 25 to the opening of the mask M. As shown in FIG. As a result, only the film-forming material guided by the guide member 35 among the film-forming materials scattered from the evaporation source 25 passes through the opening of the mask M and is deposited on the substrate W. FIG.

For example, the guide member 35 is a cylindrical or rectangular parallelepiped guide tube that surrounds the evaporation source 25 and extends in the Z direction. In this case, the guide tube preferably extends from the evaporation source 25 to a position close to the mask M supported by the mask support unit 23 . As a result, of the film-forming material scattered in any direction from the evaporation source 25, the film-forming material that is directed toward the wall side of the guide tube obliquely from the Z direction adheres to the wall of the guide tube and substantially travels in the Z direction. Only deposition material (ie, deposition material traveling straight in the Z direction) passes through the openings in mask M and is deposited onto substrate W. FIG. Therefore, even if the film formation operation is performed while the substrate W and the mask M are separated from each other by a predetermined distance, the film formation can be performed with high accuracy.

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of a film forming apparatus 11b according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the film forming apparatus 11b of FIG. 4 as well, the electrostatic chuck 24 that attracts and holds the substrate W, the mask support unit 23 that supports the mask M, the electrostatic chuck actuator 28, the mask support unit actuator 27, and the position adjustment The illustration of the mechanism 29 and the like is omitted.

A film forming apparatus 11b according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a vacuum vessel 21, an electrostatic chuck 24, a mask support unit 23, an electrostatic chuck actuator 28, a position adjusting mechanism 29, an evaporation source 25, a film forming It includes a controller 33 that controls the operation of the device 11b.

The film forming apparatus 11b further includes a position moving mechanism 34 that is connected to the mask support unit 23 or the mask support unit actuator 27 and that moves the mask support unit 23 in at least one of the XY directions. The position moving mechanism 34 moves the mask support unit 23 or the mask support unit actuator 27 in at least one of the X direction and the Y direction by a predetermined distance (for example, the X direction and/or Y direction sides of a rectangular unit deposition area). (length) of the substrate so that each of the plurality of unit deposition regions of the substrate and the opening of the mask correspond to each other sequentially.

In this embodiment, the position moving mechanism 34 moves the mask support unit 23 and the mask M supported by the mask support unit, and does not move the electrostatic chuck 24 and the substrate W attracted to the electrostatic chuck. With this configuration, the substrate W does not move, so there is no need to move the alignment camera 31 for alignment. Also, the separate guide member 35 (see FIG. 3) may not be installed on the evaporation source 25 .

When the position moving mechanism 34 moves the mask M to move one of the plurality of unit deposition regions of the substrate W to a position corresponding to the opening of the mask M, the position adjusting mechanism 29 aligns the substrate W and the mask M. conduct. According to this embodiment, alignment by the position adjustment mechanism 29 includes overall alignment, which is alignment with respect to the substrate W, and partial alignment with respect to each unit deposition area. Depending on the embodiment, each time partial alignment is performed for each of the plurality of unit deposition regions, overall alignment is also performed at the same time, or after overall alignment is performed for the substrate W, only partial alignment is performed thereafter.

According to this embodiment, the evaporation source 25 is preferably located below the opening of the mask M (indicated by the dotted line) in the Z-axis direction. For this reason, a driving mechanism for moving the evaporation source 25 in at least one of the XY directions is provided so that the evaporation source 25 follows the mask M as the mask M is moved by the position moving mechanism 34 . include. As a result, of the film-forming material scattered from the evaporation source 25, only the film-forming material traveling in the Z-axis direction passes through the opening of the mask M and is deposited on the substrate W. FIG. Therefore, even if the film formation process is performed while the substrate W and the mask M are separated from each other by a predetermined distance, the film formation can be performed with high accuracy.

<Deposition method>
A film forming method in the film forming apparatuses 11a and 11b according to one embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 3 or 4 will be described below.

First, the substrate W is loaded into the vacuum vessel 21 of the film forming apparatus 11 by the transfer robot 14 of the transfer chamber 13 while the mask M is supported by the mask supporting unit 23 in the vacuum vessel 21 .

Then, the controller 33 applies a substrate attraction voltage to the electrostatic chuck 24 to attract the substrate W carried into the vacuum vessel 21 by the transfer robot 14 and supported by the substrate support unit 22 to the electrostatic chuck 24 . Depending on the embodiment, the substrate W loaded into the vacuum vessel 21 by the transport robot 14 may be attracted to the electrostatic chuck 24 . When the substrate W is attracted to the electrostatic chuck 24 , the entire surface of the substrate W may be attracted to the entire attraction surface of the electrostatic chuck 24 at the same time. The substrate W may be sucked sequentially toward the regions.

Next, in order to adjust the relative positions of the substrate W and the mask M, a first alignment (overall alignment) is performed. For this purpose, first, the controller 33 controls the distance between the substrate W attracted to the electrostatic chuck 24 and the mask M supported by the mask support unit 23 to reach a preset overall alignment measurement distance. , the electrostatic chuck 24 and the mask support unit 23 are relatively moved (for example, the mask support unit 23 is lowered).

When the distance between the substrate W and the mask M reaches a predetermined overall alignment measurement distance, the alignment camera 31 images the alignment marks of the substrate W and the mask M to determine the relative positions of the substrate W and the mask M in the XYθ directions. Based on this, the amount of relative positional deviation between the two is calculated.

Then, the controller 33 adjusts the relative position of the mask M with respect to the entire substrate W by relatively moving the electrostatic chuck 24 and the mask support unit 23 based on the calculated relative positional deviation amount.

After the overall alignment is completed, a second alignment (partial alignment) is performed to adjust the relative positions of the substrate W and the mask M in the unit deposition area of the substrate W. FIG. The partial alignment is first performed on the first unit film formation region among the plurality of unit film formation regions forming the element formation region of the substrate W. As shown in FIG.

Therefore, the controller 33 first raises the mask support unit 23 by the mask support unit actuator 27 so that the mask M with respect to the substrate W reaches the partial alignment measurement position. Depending on the embodiment, the partial alignment measurement position may be the same position as the overall alignment measurement position, in which case the mask support unit 23 is not raised. Then, when the mask M comes to the partial alignment measurement position with respect to the substrate W, the alignment camera 31 images the alignment marks of the substrate W and the mask M, and measures the amount of relative positional deviation between the substrate W and the mask M in the XYθ directions. do. At this time, the alignment marks of the substrate W are set in the scribe area for each panel in the element formation area, or are set in the element formation area for each unit film forming area.

If the relative positional deviation amount between the substrate W and the mask M at the partial alignment measurement position is greater than a predetermined threshold value, the controller 33 controls the position adjusting mechanism 29 based on the measured relative positional deviation amount. , the relative positions of the substrate W and/or the mask M are adjusted in the XYθ direction.

Such a process is repeated until the amount of relative positional deviation between the substrate W and the mask M becomes smaller than a predetermined threshold value.

Then, when the amount of relative positional deviation between the substrate W and the mask M becomes smaller than a predetermined threshold value, the film forming operation is performed on the unit film forming area. Therefore, the control unit 33 first raises or lowers at least one of the electrostatic chuck 24 and the mask support unit 23 so that the substrate W attracted to the electrostatic chuck 24 and the mask M are separated by a predetermined distance.

Then, in this embodiment, the film forming operation is started in a state where the substrate W and the mask M are separated by a predetermined distance. The control unit 33 opens the shutter of the evaporation source 25 and deposits the evaporated film-forming material on the substrate W through the mask M. As shown in FIG.

Through the above process, when the film forming operation for the first unit film forming region among the plurality of unit film forming regions is completed, the control unit 33 controls the position moving mechanism 34 to mask the second unit film forming region. The substrate W and the mask M are moved relative to each other so that the openings of M correspond to each other. The substrate W moves in the XY directions in the film forming apparatus 11a shown in FIG. 3, and the mask M moves in the XY directions in the film forming apparatus 11b shown in FIG. At this time, the controller 33 closes the shutter of the evaporation source 25 so that the evaporated film-forming material is not emitted in the mask M direction.

In this embodiment, since the film forming operation for the first unit film forming area is performed in a state in which the substrate W and the mask M are separated, relative movement of the substrate W and the mask M by the position moving mechanism 34 causes the substrate There is no need to raise or lower W or mask M in the Z direction again. However, the invention is not limited to this, and the substrate W or the mask M may be raised and lowered in the Z direction as needed.

Next, an alignment operation is performed for the second unit deposition area. Alignment with respect to the second unit film formation region may be performed by performing the above-described overall alignment (first alignment) again, and then performing partial alignment (second alignment) with respect to the second unit film formation region. Alternatively, only partial alignment may be performed without performing full alignment again.

Next, with the substrate W and the mask M separated by a predetermined distance, the film forming operation for the second unit film forming area is started. The controller 33 opens the shutter of the evaporation source 25 to form a film on the substrate W through the mask M with the evaporated film-forming material.

The above-described relative movement between the substrate W and the mask M by the position moving mechanism 34 and the alignment operation and film formation operation for each unit film formation region complete the film formation of the film formation material for the entire element formation region. This is repeated until

In the above description, the film forming apparatuses 11a and 11b are configured for a so-called upward vapor deposition method (deposition up) in which film formation is performed with the film forming surface of the substrate W facing downward in the vertical direction. The present invention is not limited to this, and the substrate W is placed vertically on the side surface of the vacuum vessel 21, and film formation is performed with the film formation surface of the substrate W parallel to the direction of gravity. may be

<Method for manufacturing electronic device>
Next, an example of a method for manufacturing an electronic device using the film forming apparatus of this embodiment will be described. The configuration and manufacturing method of an organic EL display device will be exemplified below as an example of an electronic device.

First, the organic EL display device to be manufactured will be described. FIG. 5(a) shows an overall view of the organic EL display device 60, and FIG. 5(b) shows a cross-sectional structure of one pixel.

As shown in FIG. 5A, in a display region 61 of an organic EL display device 60, a plurality of pixels 62 each having a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a matrix. Although details will be described later, each of the light emitting elements has a structure including an organic layer sandwiched between a pair of electrodes. The term "pixel" as used herein refers to a minimum unit capable of displaying a desired color in the display area 61. FIG. In the case of the organic EL display device according to this embodiment, the pixel 62 is configured by a combination of the first light-emitting element 62R, the second light-emitting element 62G, and the third light-emitting element 62B that emit light different from each other. The pixel 62 is often composed of a combination of a red light emitting element, a green light emitting element and a blue light emitting element, but may be a combination of a yellow light emitting element, a cyan light emitting element and a white light emitting element. It is not limited.

In addition, the pixel 62 is configured by a plurality of light emitting elements that emit the same light, and a color filter in which a plurality of different color conversion elements are arranged in a pattern so as to correspond to each light emitting element is used to display one pixel. A desired color may be displayed in the region 61 . For example, a color filter may be used in which the pixel 62 is composed of at least three white light-emitting elements, and red, green, and blue color conversion elements are arranged so as to correspond to the respective light-emitting elements. Alternatively, a color filter may be used in which the pixels 62 are composed of at least three blue light-emitting elements, and red, green, and colorless color conversion elements are arranged so as to correspond to the respective light-emitting elements. In the latter case, by using a quantum dot color filter (QD-CF) using a quantum dot (QD) material as a material constituting the color filter, a normal organic EL that does not use a quantum dot color filter The display color gamut can be wider than that of the display device.

FIG. 5(b) is a schematic partial cross-sectional view taken along line AB in FIG. 5(a). The pixel 62 has an organic EL element provided on a substrate 63 with an anode 64, a hole transport layer 65, one of the light emitting layers 66R, 66G, 66B, an electron transport layer 67, and a cathode 68. there is Among these layers, the hole transport layer 65, the light emitting layers 66R, 66G and 66B, and the electron transport layer 67 correspond to organic layers. In this embodiment, the light emitting layer 66R is an organic EL layer that emits red, the light emitting layer 66G is an organic EL layer that emits green, and the light emitting layer 66B is an organic EL layer that emits blue. When color filters or quantum dot color filters are used as described above, the color filters or quantum dot color filters are arranged on the light emitting side of each light emitting layer, that is, on the upper or lower portion of FIG. 5(b). However, illustration is omitted.

The light-emitting layers 66R, 66G, and 66B are formed in patterns corresponding to light-emitting elements (also referred to as organic EL elements) that emit red, green, and blue, respectively. Also, the anode 64 is formed separately for each light emitting element. The hole transport layer 65, the electron transport layer 67, and the cathode 68 may be formed in common for the plurality of light emitting elements 62R, 62G, and 62B, or may be formed for each light emitting element. An insulating layer 69 is provided between the anodes 64 to prevent the anodes 64 and cathodes 68 from being short-circuited by foreign matter. Furthermore, since the organic EL layer is deteriorated by moisture and oxygen, a protective layer 70 is provided to protect the organic EL element from moisture and oxygen.

In FIG. 5B, the hole transport layer 65 and the electron transport layer 67 are shown as one layer, but depending on the structure of the organic EL display element, they may be formed of multiple layers including a hole blocking layer and an electron blocking layer. may be In addition, a hole injection layer having an energy band structure capable of smoothly injecting holes from the anode 64 to the hole transport layer 65 is provided between the anode 64 and the hole transport layer 65 . can also be formed. Similarly, an electron injection layer can also be formed between cathode 68 and electron transport layer 67 .

Next, an example of a method for manufacturing an organic EL display device will be specifically described.

First, a substrate 63 on which a circuit (not shown) for driving an organic EL display device and an anode 64 are formed is prepared.

An acrylic resin is formed by spin coating on the substrate 63 on which the anode 64 is formed, and the acrylic resin is patterned by lithography so that an opening is formed in the portion where the anode 64 is formed, thereby forming an insulating layer 69 . . This opening corresponds to a light emitting region where the light emitting element actually emits light.

The substrate 63 on which the insulating layer 69 is patterned is carried into the first organic material deposition apparatus, the substrate is held by an electrostatic chuck, and the hole transport layer 65 is formed as a common layer on the anode 64 in the display area. It forms a film as The hole transport layer 65 is deposited by vacuum deposition. Since the hole transport layer 65 is actually formed to have a size larger than that of the display area 61, a high-definition mask is not required.

Next, the substrate 63 on which the holes up to the hole transport layer 65 are formed is carried into the second organic material film forming apparatus and held by an electrostatic chuck. After alignment of the substrate and the mask is performed and the mask is attracted to the electrostatic chuck 24 through the substrate, a light-emitting layer 66R emitting red is formed on a portion of the substrate 63 where the elements emitting red are to be arranged.

Similarly to the deposition of the light-emitting layer 66R, a light-emitting layer 66G emitting green light is deposited by the third organic material deposition apparatus, and a light-emitting layer 66B emitting blue light is deposited by the fourth organic material deposition apparatus. . After the formation of the light-emitting layers 66R, 66G, and 66B is completed, the electron transport layer 67 is formed over the entire display area 61 by the fifth film forming apparatus. The electron transport layer 67 is formed as a layer common to the three color light-emitting layers 66R, 66G, and 66B.

The substrate on which the electron transport layer 67 has been formed is moved to a metallic vapor deposition material film forming apparatus, and the cathode 68 is formed.

According to the present invention, by performing the alignment operation and the film formation operation for each small area while the substrate and the mask are separated from each other, it is possible to improve the film formation accuracy and the yield of the film formation operation.

After that, the substrate is moved to a plasma CVD apparatus to form a protective layer 70, and the organic EL display device 60 is completed.

If the substrate 63 on which the insulating layer 69 is patterned is carried into the film forming apparatus and is exposed to an atmosphere containing moisture and oxygen until the film formation of the protective layer 70 is completed, the light emitting layer made of the organic EL material will be damaged. It may deteriorate due to moisture and oxygen. Therefore, in this example, substrates are carried in and out between film forming apparatuses under a vacuum atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere.

The above-described embodiment merely shows an example of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and may be appropriately modified within the scope of the technical idea thereof.

11: film forming apparatus, 21: vacuum vessel, 22: substrate support unit, 23: mask support unit, 24: electrostatic chuck, 25: evaporation source, 26: substrate support unit actuator, 27:
Mask support unit actuator, 28: electrostatic chuck actuator, 29: position adjustment mechanism, 31: alignment camera, 33: controller, 34: position movement mechanism, 35: guide member

Claims (8)

A film forming apparatus for forming a film of a film forming material on a substrate having a plurality of unit film forming regions through a mask having openings corresponding to the unit film forming regions,
a vacuum vessel;
a substrate adsorption means provided in the vacuum vessel and having a substrate adsorption surface for adsorbing the substrate;
a mask support unit provided in the vacuum vessel and supporting the mask;
a position moving mechanism for moving at least one of the substrate adsorption means and the mask support unit in a plane parallel to the substrate adsorption surface;
a control unit that sequentially performs a film forming operation for forming a film of the film forming material for each of the unit film forming regions by the position moving mechanism such that the opening corresponds to each of the plurality of unit film forming regions; A film forming apparatus comprising: The control unit moves the substrate adsorption means with respect to the fixed mask support unit by the position moving mechanism so that the openings correspond to the plurality of unit deposition areas. 2. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1. an alignment camera for acquiring an image including alignment marks respectively formed on the substrate and the mask; an alignment stage mechanism for moving,
Before the film formation operation for each of the plurality of unit film formation regions, the control unit controls the substrate and the mask by the alignment stage mechanism based on the relative positions of the alignment marks acquired by the alignment camera. 3. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed so as to perform an alignment operation for adjusting the relative positions of the two. For moving at least one of the opening and the unit deposition area, an alignment camera for acquiring an image including the unit deposition area, the substrate adsorption means, and the mask support unit in a plane parallel to the substrate adsorption surface. and an alignment stage mechanism of
Before the film formation operation for each of the plurality of unit film formation regions, the control unit performs the alignment based on the relative positions of the openings and the pixels of the unit film formation regions acquired by the alignment camera. 3. The film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a stage mechanism controls so as to perform an alignment operation for adjusting the relative positions of said unit film forming area and said opening. The alignment operation includes a first alignment operation for adjusting the relative position of the mask with respect to the entire substrate and a second alignment operation for adjusting the relative position of the opening with respect to each of the unit deposition regions. The film forming apparatus according to claim 3 or 4. a film formation source that is provided in the vacuum vessel on the opposite side of the mask support unit from the side on which the substrate adsorption means is provided and that stores a film formation material;
6. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a guide member provided in said vacuum vessel for guiding film-forming materials scattered from said film-forming source to openings of said mask. deposition equipment. 7. The film forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the guide member includes a guide tube extending from the peripheral portion of the film forming source in the first direction perpendicular to the substrate attracting surface. A film forming device is provided on the opposite side of the mask support unit from the side on which the substrate attracting means is installed and is movable within the vacuum vessel in a plane parallel to the substrate attracting surface, and contains a film forming material. more sources,
The control unit moves the mask support unit with respect to the fixed substrate adsorption means by the position moving mechanism so that the openings correspond to the plurality of unit film formation areas, respectively; 6. The film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said film forming source is controlled to move following said opening .

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