KR100695335B1 - Pattern writing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The pattern drawing apparatus includes a stage 32 holding the substrate 9, a stage moving mechanism 2 for moving the stage 32, a light output portion 51 for emitting light toward the substrate 9, and a plurality of openings. To enlarge or reduce the light irradiation area on the mask portion 52 having the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 on which the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 are formed, and the substrate 9 to which the light passing through the mask portion 52 is irradiated. Has a unit 58. In the pattern drawing apparatus 1, by changing the overlapping portions of the openings of the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 and the magnification of the optical unit 58, the width and pitch of the pattern to be drawn can be easily made. It becomes changeable, and a stripe-shaped pattern can be drawn at high speed with the photosensitive material on the board | substrate 9 at high resolution.

Mask, optical unit, photosensitive material

Description

Pattern Writing Device {PATTERN WRITING APPARATUS}

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a pattern drawing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

2 is a diagram illustrating a first mask.

3 is a view showing a second mask.

4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a mask unit.

5 is a view showing a part of the light irradiation area.

6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a configuration of a controller and a flow of control information.

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the flow of the pattern writing operation.

8 and 9 are views showing the flow of the operation of adjusting the width and pitch of the light irradiation area.

Fig. 10 is a diagram showing a mask portion of the pattern drawing apparatus according to the second embodiment.

11 and 12 are diagrams showing examples of patterns to be drawn.

13 is a diagram illustrating another example of a mask.

14 is a diagram illustrating still another example of a mask.

TECHNICAL FIELD This invention relates to the technique of drawing a pattern by irradiating light to the photosensitive material on a board | substrate.

Conventionally, as a method of drawing a pattern by irradiating light to a photosensitive material formed on a semiconductor substrate, a printed substrate or a plasma display device, a liquid crystal display device, a glass substrate for a photomask or the like (hereinafter referred to as a "substrate"). A method of transferring a mask pattern to a photosensitive material, such as a proximity exposure method and a step exposure method, is known.

In the proximity exposure method, a mask having the same size as a substrate having an opening corresponding to the pattern to be drawn is brought close to the substrate to irradiate light, and the pattern is collectively transferred to the photosensitive material on the substrate. In the step exposure method, the pattern is drawn on the entire substrate by alternately performing the projection of the mask pattern and the movement of the mask pattern.

On the other hand, as a drawing method without using a mask, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-150175, a method of directly drawing a pattern by irradiating a light beam to be modulated while scanning on a photosensitive material (hereinafter referred to as " Direct method) is also proposed.

In recent years, in the market of manufacturing apparatuses, such as a panel of a flat panel display device, a color filter, etc., the response by the high definition of the pattern drawn to a board | substrate and the enlargement of a board | substrate is calculated | required strongly. In the procysitic exposure method of collectively transferring the mask pattern to the photosensitive material, the mask and the substrate are brought close to each other to irradiate light, so that the mask becomes expensive in order to cope with the high definition of the pattern and the enlargement of the substrate. In addition, in the prokimity exposure method and the step exposure method, there is a disadvantage that it is not possible to flexibly cope with a change in the pitch and the width of the pattern to be drawn.

In the straight drawing method, a raster method of expressing a pattern as a set of fine dots (pixels) and drawing a pattern in dot units is common, but in order to cope with high definition of the pattern, the resolution of the drawing device is increased (that is, The area of one dot is reduced), and the time required for drawing a pattern in the whole large board | substrate will increase.

As a method of shortening the writing time, a countermeasure for increasing the number of light beams to be scanned and at the same time increasing the number of dots to be drawn can be considered. However, as the light beams increase, the light irradiation mechanism becomes larger, and the cost of the manufacturing apparatus increases. . In particular, it is physically difficult to arrange the required number of head portions in accordance with the miniaturization and high precision of the pattern.

This invention relates to the pattern drawing apparatus which draws a pattern on the photosensitive material on a board | substrate, Comprising: It aims at drawing a pattern with high resolution at high speed.

The pattern writing apparatus according to the present invention includes a light source, a holding part for holding a substrate to which light is guided from the light source, and a plurality of first light passing areas disposed on an optical path of light from the light source and passing through the light. A first mask formed by arranging in a direction of a second mask, a second mask optically polymerized with respect to the first mask, and having a plurality of second light passing regions respectively corresponding to the plurality of first light passing regions; A mask moving mechanism for moving the first mask relative to the second mask in the direction of, and light passing through the plurality of first light passing regions and the plurality of second light passing regions in order; An irradiation area moving mechanism is provided which moves the plurality of light irradiation areas relatively to the photosensitive material in the scanning direction orthogonal to the arrangement direction of the plurality of light irradiation areas.

In the present invention, various regular patterns can be drawn on the photosensitive material at high speed by using the first and second masks and allowing the first mask to be moved relative to the second mask.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the widths of the predetermined directions of the plurality of light irradiation regions are the same, and the intervals of the plurality of light irradiation regions are constant, and the pattern drawing apparatus is used for each of the plurality of light irradiation regions. A detection unit for detecting a width in a predetermined direction, a driving unit for driving the mask moving mechanism, and a mask movement control unit for controlling the driving unit based on the detection result by the detection unit. The width of the pattern can be automatically changed by detecting the width of the pattern in the detection unit.

Moreover, as a preferable embodiment, the pattern drawing apparatus is further equipped with the optical system arrange | positioned between a 2nd mask and a holding part, and optically conjugating a 2nd mask and a photosensitive material.

More preferably, the optical system includes a magnification changing mechanism for enlarging or reducing the plurality of light irradiation areas, and the pattern drawing apparatus includes a detection unit for detecting the interval of the plurality of light irradiation areas, and a drive unit for driving the magnification changing mechanism. And a magnification control unit for controlling the driving unit based on the detection result by the detection unit. By detecting the pitch of the pattern in the detector, the pitch of the pattern can be detected automatically.

The pattern drawing apparatus may further include an exchange mechanism for exchanging at least one of the first mask and the second mask with the other mask. Thereby, the range of the width and pitch of the pattern which can be drawn can be expanded further. In addition, in order to perform various drawing, the light irradiation control part which controls ON / OFF of the light irradiation to the photosensitive material in synchronization with the movement of several light irradiation area | regions, and the axis perpendicular | vertical to the surface on the board | substrate hold | maintained by the holding part The pattern drawing apparatus may further be provided with a mechanism for rotating the holding portion and changing the scanning direction relative to the photosensitive material.

The above and other objects, features, forms, and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention made with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a pattern drawing apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The pattern drawing apparatus 1 irradiates light to the glass substrate 9 (hereinafter, simply referred to as the "substrate 9") for the liquid crystal display device, thereby causing the photosensitive material on the substrate 9 (this embodiment). Is a device for drawing a plurality of stripe patterns on a color resist). The patterned substrate 9 is subsequently subjected to a separate process to finally form a color filter which is an assembly part of the liquid crystal display device.

In the pattern drawing apparatus 1, the stage moving mechanism 2 is provided on the base 11, and the stage unit 3 holding the substrate 9 by the stage moving mechanism 2 includes the substrate 9. It can move along the main surface to the X direction in FIG. The frame 12 is fixed to the base 11 so as to cover the stage unit 3, and the head 12 and the mask changer 6 are provided on the frame 12.

The stage moving mechanism 2 has a structure in which a ball screw 22 is connected to the motor 21, and a nut 23 fixed to the stage unit 3 is provided on the ball screw 22. The guide rail 24 is fixed above the ball screw 22. When the motor 21 rotates, the stage unit 3 moves smoothly along the guide rail 4 along the guide rail 4 in the X direction when the motor 21 rotates. .

The stage unit 3 includes a stage 32 holding the substrate 9 directly, a stage rotating mechanism 33 and a stage 32 rotating the stage 32 about an axis perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate 9. A base plate (36) holding the stage elevating mechanism (35) for moving the support plate (34) in the Z direction in FIG. The nut 23 is directly fixed to the plate 36. Moreover, on the support plate 34, the camera 4 which receives the light irradiated from the head part 5 by the imaging device which is a group of light receiving elements which was two-dimensionally arranged is provided. In addition, the imaging surface of the camera 4 is previously adjusted to the same height as the surface of the photosensitive material on the board | substrate 9.

The head portion 5 has a head support portion 50 for supporting the head portion 5 and a head portion 5 in the Y direction (ie, relative movement direction of the head portion 5 with respect to the stage unit 3 of the head portion 5). The head moving mechanism 501 moving in the direction orthogonal to the light emitting portion, the light emitting portion 51 for emitting light toward the substrate 9, and two masks formed by arranging a plurality of openings (hereinafter referred to as a light emitting portion ( 51 is irradiated to the substrate 9 through the mask portion 52 and the mask portion 52 having the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 from the side closer to 51). And an optical unit driver 581 for driving a magnification changing mechanism 582 included in the optical unit 58 and the optical unit 58 for enlarging or reducing the size of the optical unit 58. The head moving mechanism 501 moves the head portion 5 along the guide rail 503 in the Y direction by the motor 502 driving the ball screw mechanism. By the optical unit 58, the second mask 54 (or the mask portion 52) and the photosensitive material are optically conjugated, and in this embodiment, the magnification of the optical unit 58 includes a predetermined magnification. The range is changed.

The light output part 51 is connected to the mercury lamp 513 via the optical fiber 511 and the shutter 512 which turns ON / OFF light irradiation to the photosensitive material. The light from the mercury lamp 513 is emitted from the light exit unit 51 and the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 (hereinafter, referred to as two sets of first masks and second masks) disposed on the optical path. In this case, the opening of the " mask set " is sequentially passed through the optical unit 58 to the substrate 9 through the opening.

The mask changer 6 includes a mask storage unit 61 for a mask storage unit 61 for storing a plurality of masks, a storage unit elevating mechanism 62 for moving the mask storage unit 61 in the Z direction, and a mask unit 52. It has two insertion mechanisms 63 which mount the mask stored in 61, or remove the mask mounted in the mask part 52. As shown in FIG.

The stage moving mechanism 2, the stage unit 3, the camera 4, the shutter 512, the head moving mechanism 501, the mask portion 52, the optical unit 58, and the mask changer 6 are controlled. It is connected to (7), these structures are controlled by the control part 7, and the pattern drawing is performed on the board | substrate 9 by the pattern drawing apparatus 1. FIG. Moreover, the input part 8 is connected to the control part 7, and the width | variety of the Y direction of each of the some light irradiation area | regions on the board | substrate 9 (that is, the width | variety of the direction in which the opening of the 1st mask 53 is arranged), It is simply referred to as "width") and the interval between the plurality of light irradiation areas (i.e., the distance from the center of the light irradiation area to the center of the adjacent light irradiation area, hereinafter referred to as "pitch"). It is input to the control part 7 via the input part 8.

FIG. 2 shows the first mask 53 and FIG. 3 shows the second mask 54, respectively. In the first mask 53, first openings 531, which are a plurality of light passing regions through which light passes, are arranged in the Y direction in FIG. 2. The second mask 54 is formed by arranging second openings 541 which are a plurality of light passing areas respectively corresponding to the plurality of first openings 531. The shape of the first opening 531 and the second opening 541 is rectangular, and the length of the opening (that is, the dimension in the direction orthogonal to the arrangement direction of the first opening 531 and the second opening 541) and the width ( That is, the width of the direction in which the first opening 531 and the second opening 541 are arranged is larger than that of the second opening 541. Moreover, the width | variety of the 1st opening 531 is the same, and pitch (namely, distance from the center of each 1st opening 531 to the center of the adjacent 1st opening 531) is also constant. Similarly, each second opening 541 has the same width and pitch, and the pitch of the second opening 541 is the same as the pitch of the first opening 531.

4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the mask portion 52. The mask portion 52 includes the first mask holding portion 55 holding the first mask 53, the second mask holding portion 56 holding the second mask 54, and the Y-direction in FIG. 4 (that is, the first mask holding portion 55). And a mask slide mechanism 57 for moving the first mask 53 in the direction in which the first opening 531 and the second opening 541 are arranged. 4, the 1st mask holding part 55 and the 1st opening 531 are shown with the bold line.

The first mask 53 and the second mask 54 are inserted and detached by the insertion / removing mechanism 63 (see FIG. 1), respectively, in FIG. 4 with respect to the first mask holding portion 55 and the second mask holding portion 56. It is mounted toward the (-X) direction on the (+ X) side shown.

The second mask 54 is in contact with the first mask 53 such that each second opening 541 overlaps with the corresponding first opening 531. Thereby, the area | region (shown by the parallel diagonal line in FIG. 4) 520 which overlaps with the 1st opening 531 and the 2nd opening 541 becomes the same width, and the 1st opening 531 and the 2nd opening are equal. 541 is arranged at the same constant pitch. Light from the light exit portion 51 (see FIG. 1) passes through the first opening 531 and the second opening 541 in order, and is led to the photosensitive material on the substrate 9, and to the region 520. A plurality of light irradiation areas having a corresponding shape and pitch are irradiated. In the following description, the area 520 which is the actual light passing area is referred to as a "mask set opening".

In addition, the second mask 54 does not necessarily need to be in physical contact with the first mask 53, but only optically polymerized. For example, the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 may be separated from each other (for example, about several micrometers) in consideration of the depth of focus, or may be individually disposed at an optically conjugate position.

The mask slide mechanism 57 has a slide frame 571 holding the first mask holding part 55, a slide motor 572, and a ball screw mechanism 573 connected to the slide motor 572. When the slide motor 572 drives the ball screw mechanism 573 under the control of (7), the first mask holder 55 moves in the Y direction along the slide frame 571. As a result, the first mask 53 held by the first mask holding part 55 also moves in the Y direction, and the overlapping state of the first opening 531 and the second opening 541 is changed so that the mask set opening ( The width of 520 changes, and the width of the light irradiation area on the substrate 9 also changes. At this time, since the pitch of the mask set opening 520 does not change, only the ratio of the width of the mask set opening 520 to the width (of the area where light does not pass) between the mask set openings 520 changes. do.

Although not shown, a coupling mechanism is provided between the first mask holding portion 55 and the second mask holding portion 56, and the first mask holding portion 55 moves while the first mask holding portion 55 moves. The 2nd mask holding part 56 falls slightly, and the 1st mask 53 and the 2nd mask 54 will space apart. This prevents damage and oscillation between the first mask 53 and the second mask 54.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a part of the plurality of light irradiation regions 90 formed on the photosensitive material of the substrate 9. Each of the plurality of light irradiation areas 90 corresponds to a mask set opening 520 (see Fig. 4), and the widths of the plurality of light irradiation areas 90 are the same, and the pitch is also constant.

As already mentioned, the width and pitch of the light irradiation area 90 are arrange | positioned between the 2nd mask 54 and the stage unit 3 shown in FIG. 1, and are provided with the magnification change mechanism 582. As shown in FIG. The unit 58 enables enlargement and reduction. For example, when the control unit 7 controls the optical unit driving unit 581 to increase the magnification of the optical unit 58, the light irradiation area 90 in a state shown by two-dot chain lines in the state shown by solid lines in FIG. This changes.

6 is a block diagram showing the flow of information on the configuration and control of the control unit 7. Various configurations in the control unit 7 represent functions, and are actually realized by a CPU, a memory, a dedicated calculation circuit, an interface, and the like that perform arithmetic processing in accordance with a program. The control part 7 is a main structure, and the injection agent which controls the scanning of the light irradiation area 90 with respect to the irradiation area control part 71 which controls the width | variety and the pitch of the light irradiation area 90, and the photosensitive material on the board | substrate 9 is carried out. It has a fisherman 72.

The irradiation area control unit 71 includes a width detector 711 for detecting respective widths of the plurality of light irradiation areas 90 and a pitch detector 712 for detecting the pitch based on the image signal from the camera 4 and the light. A width control unit 713 for controlling the width of the irradiation area 90, a pitch control unit 714 for controlling the pitch, and a storage unit 715 for storing information necessary for adjusting the width and pitch of the light irradiation area 90; Have

The storage unit 715 includes a mask table showing a correspondence relationship between a mask set mounted on the mask unit 52 and a width and pitch of the mask set and the light irradiation area 90 that can be realized by the optical unit 58 ( 716 is created in advance and stored. The storage unit 715 also includes a focus table 717 showing a correspondence relationship between the magnification of the optical unit 58 and the focusing position, and the width of the light irradiation area 90 input from the input unit 8. The set value (hereinafter referred to as "set width") 718 and the set value of pitch (hereinafter referred to as "set pitch") 719 are stored.

The irradiation area control unit 71 includes a stage moving mechanism 2, a stage lifting mechanism 35, a camera 4, a shutter 512, a mask slide mechanism 57, an optical unit driving unit 581, and a mask changer 6. ) And the input unit 8 are connected, and the irradiation area control unit 71 controls these configurations based on the information from the camera 4 and the input unit 8 so that the width and the pitch of the light irradiation area 90 Adjusted.

The stage moving mechanism 2, the stage rotating mechanism 33, the head moving mechanism 501, and the shutter 512 are connected to the scanning control unit 72, and the scanning control unit 72 controls these configurations. Then, light irradiation to the photosensitive material and scanning of the light irradiation area 90 are performed.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the flow of a pattern drawing operation on the photosensitive material by the pattern drawing apparatus 1. First, the setting width 718 and the setting pitch 719 are input by the operator at the input unit 8, received by the irradiation area control unit 71, and stored in the storage unit 715 (step S11). By the control of the control part 7, the width and pitch of the light irradiation area 90 are adjusted so that it may become the same as the setting width 718 and the setting pitch 719 (step S12).

8 and 9 are diagrams showing details of the flow of the operation of adjusting the width and the pitch of the light irradiation area 90 (step S12). When the set width 718 and the set pitch 719 are received, the mask set mounted on the mask portion 52 is first set by the irradiation area controller 71 based on the mask table 716. It is judged whether or not the set pitch 719 is compatible (step S120), and if it is impossible, at least one of the first mask 52 and the second mask 54 is controlled by the irradiation area control unit 71. It is exchanged with another mask (step S1201).

When the masks are replaced, first, the masks stored in the mask storage unit 61 of the first mask 53, the second mask 54, and the mask changer 6 attached to the mask unit 52 shown in FIG. Of these, the assembly of the mask corresponding to the set width 718 and the set pitch 719 is selected based on the mask table 716.

As a result of this selection, for example, when only the first mask 53 is replaced with another mask, the storage unit elevating mechanism 62 shown in FIG. 1 is driven by the control of the irradiation area control unit 71 so that the mask storage unit The mask storage part 61 is moved to Z direction so that the empty space of 61 may become the same height as the 1st mask holding part 55. Subsequently, the first mask 53 is removed from the first mask holding part 55 by the insertion / detachment mechanism 63 and stored in the empty space of the mask storage part 61. Next, the storage unit elevating mechanism 62 is controlled so that the selected mask is moved to a height opposite to the first mask holding portion 55 so that the mask is moved to the first mask holding portion 55 by the insertion and removal mechanism 63. Is mounted.

The replacement of only the second mask 54 is also performed in the same manner as in the case of the first mask 53 by the storage unit elevating mechanism 62 and the insertion / removing mechanism 63. When the exchange of both the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 is performed, the replacement of these masks is performed in order. In addition, the replacement of only the first mask 53 or the second mask 54 is performed when the adjustment range of the width of the mask set opening 520 is changed, and the replacement of the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 is performed. Is performed when the pitch of the mask set opening 520 is changed.

When the preparation of the mask set is completed, the stage moving mechanism 2 is controlled by the irradiation area control unit 71, and the camera 4 installed on the support plate 34 is positioned directly below the head portion 5. The stage unit 3 is moved until it is shown (the moving camera 4 and the stage 32 are indicated by a dashed-dotted line in Fig. 1) (step S121), and the shutter 512 is opened to irradiate the camera with light. Is started (step S122). As a result, light is irradiated to the light irradiation area (it is called "light irradiation area 90" similarly to FIG. 5) on the imaging surface of the camera 4 instead of the photosensitive material.

Next, when the camera 4 captures an image, an image indicating the state of the plurality of light irradiation areas 90 is obtained (step S123), and image data is transferred from the camera 4 to the irradiation area control unit 71. The pitches of the plurality of light irradiation areas 90 are detected by the arithmetic processing in the pitch detection unit 712 (step S124). In addition, in this embodiment, since the pitch is constant, it is not necessary for all the light irradiation areas 90 to be detected by the camera 4. The pitch (hereinafter referred to as "detection pitch") that is a detection result is compared with the setting pitch 719 stored in the storage unit 715 (step S125). When the setting pitch 719 and the detection pitch are not the same, The optical unit driver 581 is controlled by the pitch control unit 714 based on the set pitch 719 and the detected pitch, and the magnification of the optical unit 58 is changed to change the pitch of the light irradiation area 90 ( Step S1251).

When the pitch adjustment is completed, based on the magnification of the optical unit 58 and the focus table 717, whether the focusing position of the optical unit 58 coincides with the imaging surface of the camera 4 (that is, the focusing position is the substrate (Step S126), if not, the stage elevating mechanism 35 is controlled by the control unit 7 so that the support plate 34 is in the Z direction. The distance between the stage 32 and the magnification changing mechanism 582 (or the optical unit 58) is changed (step S1261). As a result, the distance between the optical unit 58 and the photosensitive material is changed so that the focusing position of the optical unit 58 coincides with the surface of the photosensitive material. In addition, the telecentricity of the camera unit 4 side of the optical unit 58 is maintained even if the magnification is changed, and the pitch of the light irradiation area 90 does not change by the elevation of the stage 32. In addition, focus adjustment may be performed by repeating imaging and raising and lowering of the stage 32 without using the focus table 717.

After completion of the pitch adjustment and the focus adjustment, the width detection unit 711 detects the respective widths of the plurality of light irradiation areas 90 in the image of the light irradiation area 90 (step S127). When the width of each light irradiation area 90 is constant as in the present embodiment, the widths of all the light irradiation areas 90 can be obtained by detecting the width of one light irradiation area 90.

Subsequently, the set width 718 stored in the storage unit 715 is compared with the width (hereinafter referred to as "detection width") of each light irradiation area 90 which is a detection result by the width detection unit 711 ( Step S128). If the set width 718 and the detected width are not the same, the mask slide mechanism 57 is driven based on the set width 718 and the detected width by the control of the width control section 713 to thereby operate the first mask 53. ), The width of the mask set opening 520 is changed to adjust the width of the light irradiation area 90 (step S1281). If the set width 718 is equal to the detection width, the shutter 512 is closed to stop light irradiation (step S129).

When the adjustment of the width and the pitch of the light irradiation area 90 is finished, the stage moving mechanism 2 and the head moving mechanism 501 are controlled by the scanning control unit 72 so that the head portion 5 with respect to the stage 32 can be obtained. ) Moves to the predetermined drawing start position (FIG. 7: step S13). Specifically, the stage 32 moves to the (+ X) side, and the head portion 5 moves to the (-Y) side. Light is emitted from the head part 5 (step S14), and light is irradiated to the light irradiation region 90 on the photosensitive material of the substrate 9.

Thereafter, the movement of the stage 32 is started in the (-X) direction in FIG. 1 (step S15), and the light irradiation area 90 is relatively constant with respect to the photosensitive material in the (+ X) direction in FIG. By scanning, a plurality of stripe-shaped patterns having a set width and a set pitch are drawn on the photosensitive material on the substrate 9. When the scanning of the light irradiation area 90 reaches the predetermined end position, the movement of the stage 32 is stopped (step S16), and the light irradiation is stopped (step S17).

In addition, when the start of light irradiation (step S15) and the start of the movement of the stage 32 (step S16) are performed at the same time, when the exposure amount is insufficient at the site near the viewpoint of the pattern, the accuracy of the edge of the pattern is decreased. At an appropriate interval between S15 and S16, light irradiation is performed in a state where scanning is stopped. Similarly, in the vicinity of the end point of the pattern, by providing a suitable interval between the stop of the movement of the stage 32 (step S17) and the stop of the light irradiation (step S18), the accuracy of the edge near the end point can be improved. Can be.

Upon completion of the first scan of the photosensitive material, it is confirmed whether or not the drawing of the stripe pattern extending in the same direction with respect to the substrate 9 is repeated (i.e., the presence or absence of the next scan). In step S13, the stage 32 moves to the next drawing start position, and the light irradiation and the movement of the stage 32 (steps S13 to S17) are repeated as many times as necessary. The movement of the stage 32 during the scanning of the light irradiation area 90 is performed alternately in the (+ X) direction and the (-X) direction. In the second and subsequent steps S13, the head moving mechanism 501 The head portion 5 moves to the drawing start position only by moving the head portion 5 in the (+ Y) direction by a predetermined distance.

When the stripe-shaped pattern is drawn on the entire photosensitive material on the substrate 9, the drawing operation by the pattern drawing device 1 is completed. In addition, when the photosensitive material is a color resist, step S19 in Fig. 7 is not executed.

The substrate 9 on which the pattern is drawn is carried out from the pattern drawing apparatus 1, and the photosensitive material remaining on the substrate 9 by being developed separately becomes a subpixel of the color filter. In this case, as the photosensitive material, a negative color resist in which an exposed portion (that is, a portion to which light is irradiated) remains during development is generally used. Subsequently, application of the color resist, drawing and development by the pattern drawing apparatus 1 are repeated to form three subpixels of R (red), G (green), and B (blue) on the substrate 9. . Further, the substrate 9 becomes a color filter used in the liquid crystal display device through a process such as formation of a transparent electrode.

Step S19 in Fig. 7 is executed when drawing a lattice pattern on the substrate 9. As a specific example, it is performed when the pattern drawing apparatus 1 is used for drawing the black matrix of a color filter.

When the grid pattern is drawn, when the writing of the stripe-shaped pattern in one direction is completed by steps S11 to S18, the presence or absence of drawing of the pattern in the direction orthogonal to the drawn pattern is confirmed (step S19). The stage rotating mechanism 33 is driven by the controller 7 so that the stage 32 is rotated 90 degrees about an axis perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate 9 held by the stage unit 3 (step S191). . As a result, the scanning direction of the light irradiation region 90 is changed by 90 degrees relative to the photosensitive material on the substrate 9.

After changing the scanning direction, the stage unit 3 is moved to the imaging position to adjust the width and pitch of the light irradiation area 90 (step S12), and the stage 32 is then moved to the drawing start position to form a stripe shape. The operation of drawing a pattern is repeated as many times as necessary (steps S13 to S18). As described above, in the pattern writing apparatus 1, it is also possible to draw a lattice pattern on the photosensitive material on the substrate 9 by rotating the stage 32.

As mentioned above, although the pattern drawing apparatus 1 which concerns on 1st Embodiment was demonstrated, in the pattern drawing apparatus 1, light is irradiated to the several light irradiation area | region 90 with a large area compared with the conventional raster system. Therefore, drawing can be performed at high speed. The width of the mask set opening 520 formed by the first mask 53 and the second mask 54 is changed, and the light irradiation area 90 is enlarged or reduced by the optical unit 58. The width and pitch of the pattern to be drawn can be easily changed. Thereby, a stripe-shaped (or lattice) pattern can be drawn at high speed (that is, in a short time) with high resolution.

For example, when a stripe-shaped pattern having a width of 20 to 30 µm and a pitch of 300 to 1500 µm is drawn on a square substrate having one side of 1 m with a resolution of 1 µm, one light beam is scanned in a raster manner. It takes a long time to write by limiting the modulation speed of the light beam alone, and sufficient space cannot be secured even when a plurality of heads are arranged. In the pattern drawing apparatus 1 which concerns on this embodiment, by arranging the some light irradiation area 90 in the range of 100 mm width, it becomes possible to draw the pattern of the said conditions for several tens of seconds.

In the pattern drawing apparatus 1, the data obtained by imaging the light irradiation area 90 and the width and pitch of the light irradiation area 90 based on the preset width 718 and the setting pitch 719 inputted in advance. That is, the width and pitch of the pattern to be drawn) can be adjusted automatically. In addition, by replacing the mask by the mask changer 6, it is also possible to enlarge the range of the width and pitch of the pattern that can be drawn to improve the degree of freedom of drawing.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a mask portion 52a of the pattern drawing apparatus according to the second embodiment, and the configuration other than the mask portion 52a of the pattern drawing apparatus is the same as that of FIG. 10, the 1st mask holding part 55a and the 1st opening 531a demonstrated below are shown with the bold line.

The mask portion 52a is a rectangular opening group (hereinafter referred to as "opening row") having the same width and length that are arranged at a constant pitch in the Y-direction (that is, the direction orthogonal to the scanning direction of the light irradiation area) in FIG. It has two masks arranged in multiple numbers in this X direction (namely, the scanning direction of a light irradiation area). In the following description, it is called "the 1st mask 53a" and the "first mask 54a" in order from the one closer to the light output part 51. FIG. In addition, the mask portion 52a includes the first mask holding portion 55a holding the first mask 53a, the second mask holding portion 56a holding the second mask 54a, and the first mask 53a. It has a mask slide mechanism 57a which moves relatively to the 2nd mask 54a in a Y direction, and the mask position change mechanism 59 which moves the 1st mask 53a and the 2nd mask 54a to an X direction. .

As shown in Fig. 10, the first mask 53a and the second mask 54a each have an opening row of three rows (or two or four rows), and the corresponding openings of two masks are compared with each other. 4, the length and width of the opening are larger in the first mask 53a, and the pitch of the opening is the same. In addition, when comparing the opening rows in one mask, the widths and pitches of the openings constituting the opening rows are different.

The second mask 54a is an opening (hereinafter referred to as a "second opening") 541a of the first mask 53a to which the opening 541a corresponds (hereinafter referred to as a "first opening") 531a. It contacts with the 1st mask 53a so that it may overlap. In the mask part 52a, the area | region which mutually overlaps with the 1st opening 531a and the 2nd opening 541a becomes a mask set opening 520a (shown with a parallel diagonal line in FIG. 10) which is an actual light passing area | region. In addition, similarly to the first embodiment, the second mask 54a does not necessarily have to be in physical contact with the first mask 53a, but may be optically overlapped.

The mask slide mechanism 57a is connected to a slide frame 571a holding the first mask holding portion 55a and the second mask holding portion 56a, a slide motor 572a as a driving source, and a slide motor 572a. Has a ball screw mechanism 573a, and when the slide motor 572a drives the ball screw mechanism 573a under the control of the controller 7, the first mask holder 55a opens the slide frame 571a. Along the Y direction. Thereby, the 1st mask 53a hold | maintained by the 1st mask holding part 55a also moves to a Y direction, and the overlapping state of the 1st opening 531a and the 2nd opening 541a changes, and each mask set is set. The width of the opening 520a changes. In addition, with the mechanism of illustration not shown, while the 1st mask holding part 55a is moving, the 1st mask 53a and the 2nd mask 54a will space apart.

The mask position changing mechanism 59 is a ball screw 593 connected to a slide frame holding part 591 holding the slide frame 571a, a mask position changing motor 592, and a mask position changing motor 592. And a nut 594 and a guide rail 595 fixed to the slide frame 571a. When the mask position changing motor 592 is driven by the control unit 7 and the ball screw 593 rotates, the nut ( Together with 594, the slide frame 571a moves in the X direction along the guide rail 595.

In the pattern drawing apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment, only one opening column is used when drawing a pattern. The opening rows to be used are arranged in the vertical direction below the light output part 51 by moving the first mask 53a and the second mask 54 in the X direction by the mask position changing mechanism 59. If the set width and the set pitch are not realized using any of the aperture rows, the first mask 53a and the second mask 54a are exchanged similarly to the first embodiment.

The operation of the pattern drawing apparatus according to the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment except that the determination and the positioning of the aperture row used are added. That is, by the optical unit 58, the stage elevating mechanism 35 (see Fig. 1), and the mask slide mechanism 57a, the width and pitch of the light irradiation area by the mask set opening 520a of the aperture row used are adjusted. Then, a plurality of stripe-shaped patterns are repeated as many times as necessary.

In the pattern drawing apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment, since the several opening rows which have different width | variety and a pitch are prepared by the 1st mask 53a and the 2nd mask 54a, the selection of the opening row used is performed, The number of times that the first mask 53a and the second mask 54a are replaced with other masks can be reduced. As a result, it can respond quickly to drawing of various kinds of patterns.

Next, the pattern drawing apparatus which concerns on 3rd Embodiment is demonstrated. In the pattern drawing apparatus according to the third embodiment, a pulse laser is used in place of the mercury lamp 513 and the shutter 512 in the pattern drawing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1, and the stage rotating mechanism 33 is omitted. It is. The basic configuration other than that is the same as that of FIG. In the third embodiment, the stage unit 3 is provided with a high-precision stage position measuring mechanism such as laser length measurement, and the control unit 7 receives a signal from the stage position measuring mechanism to control the pulse laser. The movement of the stage 32 and the ON / OFF of light irradiation are synchronized.

By using a pulse laser as a light source, in a pattern drawing apparatus, it becomes possible to irradiate light to a photosensitive material for a short time (1 nanosecond to several tens of nanoseconds). When the light irradiation area passes through the position where the pattern on the substrate 9 should be drawn, a signal is transmitted from the control unit 7 to the driving circuit of the pulse laser, whereby the shape of the light irradiation area is illustrated in FIG. Drawing of the plurality of rectangular patterns 91 in conformity with this is realized. In the same manner as in the first embodiment, when writing a stripe-shaped pattern, the output of pulsed light from the pulse laser is continuously and repeatedly performed while moving the stage 32.

Instead of the first mask 53 and the second mask 54, a long slit-shaped mask is prepared in a direction perpendicular to the scanning direction, and the pulse laser is turned ON momentarily in synchronization with the movement of the stage 32. This makes it possible to draw a stripe pattern extending in the direction perpendicular to the scanning direction on the photosensitive material on the substrate 9. As a result, drawing of a plurality of stripe-shaped patterns extending in the scanning direction (X direction), rectangular pattern drawing, and drawing of a plurality of stripe-shaped patterns extending in the direction perpendicular to the scanning direction (Y direction) are performed. By repeating the movement in the X direction (and the movement in the Y direction of the head portion 5) of 32), it becomes possible to draw various patterns on the photosensitive material. For example, the black matrix 92 of a complicated shape shown in FIG. 12 can also be drawn.

As mentioned above, in the pattern drawing apparatus which concerns on 3rd Embodiment, since the light source which turns ON / OFF light irradiation at high speed is provided, and the light source is controlled in synchronization with the movement of the stage 32, various regular patterns are carried out at high speed. You can draw with. In addition, as in the first embodiment, the widths and pitches of the plurality of light irradiation regions can be changed easily and with high accuracy by using two masks, so that even when the widths and pitches of the pattern to be drawn are changed, they can be easily coped. .

Although the pattern drawing performed at the time of manufacturing a color filter was illustrated in the 1st thru | or 3rd embodiment, since the pattern drawing apparatus which concerns on this invention can draw a stripe | shape or regular various patterns at high speed, such a pattern It is also suitable for various processes other than the manufacture of various flat panel display devices for which drawing is desired.

As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various change is possible.

For example, the width and length of the first opening and the second opening of the first mask and the second mask are not limited to those illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 10, and the second opening may be larger, and the first opening may be larger. It may be the same in the opening and the second opening. In addition, the opening shape of each mask need not be limited to a rectangle, and if the edges along the scanning direction of the light irradiation area are openings parallel to each other, a stripe pattern can be appropriately drawn. In addition, the width and pitch of the mask set openings do not have to be constant in accordance with the pattern to be drawn.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a preferred example other than the mask used for the pattern drawing apparatus 1. The 1st mask 53b and the 2nd mask 54b are comb-shaped, superimposing the light passing area | region corresponded to the clearance gap of the comb formed in the Y direction (direction perpendicular | vertical to a scanning direction) shown in FIG. The mask set opening 520b shown in parallel diagonal lines may be formed.

As shown in Fig. 14, the first mask 53c (shown by a bold line) and the second mask 54c are provided with a gap to form a light passing area, and a plurality of rectangular plates arranged in the Y direction are arranged. It may be a thing. Further, when the mask set opening 520c (indicated by parallel diagonal lines in Fig. 14) where the gap between the gap between the first mask 53c and the gap between the second mask 54c overlap each other is too long in the X direction, the light exit portion ( The light emitted from 51 becomes a line-shaped light having a beam cross section long in the Y direction.

The movement of the first mask with respect to the second mask may be relative, and instead of the first mask, the second mask may move or both masks may move. In addition, relative movement between the first mask and the second mask may be performed manually by an operator in view of the image acquired by the camera 4 on the monitor.

The camera 4 does not necessarily need to be provided on the support plate 34, and may be fixed to the outside of the stage unit 3 so that the head part 5 may move to the upper side of the camera 4. In addition, imaging of a light irradiation area may be performed by indirectly imaging a predetermined irradiation range, instead of irradiating light directly to an imaging device such as a CCD. In addition, the detection of the width and pitch of the light irradiation area may be performed by a one-dimensional light receiving element array arranged in a direction perpendicular to the scanning direction.

The setting value inputted to the input part 8 may just express the width | variety and pitch of a light irradiation area | region, for example, width or pitch, and ratio of the width | variety with respect to pitch may be input. Alternatively, the width and pitch may be specified by the controller 7 by inputting the format of the substrate 9.

In the first embodiment, a grid-like pattern can be drawn by rotating the stage 32 by 90 °. However, two sets of the head portions 5 are provided to draw a stripe-shaped pattern in a direction orthogonal to each other. May be performed. In this case, the stage rotating mechanism 33 is not necessary.

In the above embodiment, the negative photosensitive material is mentioned, but a positive photosensitive material in which the exposed portion is removed at the time of development may be used. Moreover, the photosensitive material may be another kind of thing which does not follow the developing process.

As already described above, the pattern drawing apparatus according to the present invention is particularly suitable for the production of various panels related to flat panel display devices (liquid crystal display devices, plasma display devices, organic EL display devices, etc.), but semiconductor substrates and printed wirings. It is also suitable for drawing regular fine patterns such as substrates or glass substrates for photomasks.

Although the present invention has been described and described in detail, the foregoing description is illustrative and not restrictive. Accordingly, it is understood that many modifications and forms are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In the present invention, a regular pattern can be drawn on the photosensitive material at high speed.

In the invention of claims 3 and 4, the width of the pattern can be easily changed, and in the invention of claims 5 to 8, the pitch of the pattern can be easily changed.

In the inventions of claims 9 and 10, the range of the width and pitch of the pattern that can be drawn can be further expanded.

In the invention of claim 11, various regular patterns can be drawn. In the invention of claim 12, a grid-like pattern can be drawn.

Claims (13)

In the pattern drawing apparatus which draws a pattern in the photosensitive material on the board | substrate for flat panel display device manufacture, Light source, A holding part for holding a substrate to which light from the light source is guided; A first mask disposed on an optical path of light from the light source and formed by arranging a plurality of first light passing areas through which the light passes, in a light passing area arrangement direction; A second mask optically overlapping the first mask, the second mask having a plurality of second light passing regions respectively corresponding to the plurality of first light passing regions; A mask moving mechanism for moving the first mask relative to the second mask in the light passing area arrangement direction; The plurality of light irradiation regions on the photosensitive material to which light passing through the plurality of first light passage regions and the plurality of second light passage regions in order are orthogonal to the light irradiation region arrangement direction of the plurality of light irradiation regions. And a radiation area moving mechanism that moves relatively to the photosensitive material in the scanning direction, wherein the widths of the plurality of light irradiation areas are the same in the direction of the light irradiation area arrangement, and the intervals of the plurality of light irradiation areas Constant pattern writing device. delete The method of claim 1, And a detection unit for detecting a width of each of the plurality of light irradiation areas in the light irradiation area arrangement direction. The method of claim 3, wherein A driving unit for driving the mask moving mechanism; And a mask movement control unit for controlling the drive unit based on the detection result by the detection unit. The method of claim 1, And an optical system disposed between the second mask and the holding portion and optically conjugating the second mask and the photosensitive material. The method of claim 5, And a magnification changing mechanism for the optical system to enlarge or reduce the plurality of light irradiation areas. The method of claim 6, And a detection unit for detecting intervals of the plurality of light irradiation areas. The method of claim 7, wherein A driving unit for driving the magnification changing mechanism; And a magnification control unit for controlling the drive unit based on the detection result by the detection unit. The method of claim 6, And a mechanism for changing a distance between the holding portion and the magnification changing mechanism. The method of claim 1, And an exchange mechanism for exchanging the first mask or the second mask with another mask. The method of claim 1, And an exchange mechanism for exchanging the first mask and the second mask with another first mask and another second mask. The method of claim 1, And a light irradiation control unit for controlling ON / OFF of light irradiation on the photosensitive material in synchronization with movement of the plurality of light irradiation regions. The method of claim 1, And a mechanism for rotating the holding portion about an axis perpendicular to a surface on the substrate held by the holding portion, and changing the scanning direction relative to the photosensitive material.

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