KR102260368B1 - Vacuum processing system and method of operation of vacuum processing system - Google Patents

Abstract

A vacuum processing system for processing a substrate is described. The processing system includes a first processing chamber coupled to the first cluster chamber; a first processing station for processing a substrate in a first processing chamber; a second processing chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber; a first transfer chamber coupled to the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber having a first length extending between the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber being sized to receive a substrate set ―; a second transfer chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber and having a second length shorter than the first length; and a substrate transport arrangement provided to route the substrate through the first processing chamber, the second processing chamber, the first cluster chamber, the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber and the second transfer chamber in an orientation that is no more than 15° away from vertical. includes a sieve.

Description

Vacuum processing system and method of operation of vacuum processing system

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate particularly to vacuum processing systems and method of operating a vacuum processing system for depositing two, three or more different materials on a plurality of substrates. it's about Embodiments relate, in particular, to vacuum processing systems and methods of operating a vacuum processing system, wherein substrates held by substrate carriers follow a substrate transport path within the vacuum processing system, for example, various It is transported into and out of the various deposition modules. Embodiments also relate, inter alia, to vacuum processing systems and methods of operating vacuum processing systems, wherein substrates are supported by substrate carriers in an essentially vertical orientation.

[0002] Opto-electronic devices using organic materials are becoming increasingly popular for a number of reasons. Many of the materials used to make such devices are relatively inexpensive, so organic optoelectronic devices have the potential for cost advantages over inorganic devices. The intrinsic properties of organic materials, such as their flexibility, can be advantageous for applications such as deposition on flexible or inflexible substrates. Examples of organic optoelectronic devices are organic light emitting devices, organic displays, organic phototransistors, organic photovoltaic cells and organic photodetectors. ) is included.

[0003] Organic materials of OLED devices can have performance advantages over conventional materials. For example, the wavelength at which the organic emissive layer emits light can be readily tuned with suitable dopants. OLED devices use thin organic films that emit light when a voltage is applied across the device. OLED devices are becoming an increasingly interesting technology for use in applications such as flat panel displays, lighting and backlighting.

[0004] Materials, particularly organic materials, are typically deposited on a substrate in a vacuum processing system under sub-atmospheric pressure. During deposition, a mask device may be arranged in front of the substrate, the mask device having at least defining an opening pattern corresponding to a material pattern to be deposited on the substrate, for example by evaporation. It may have one opening or a plurality of openings. The substrate is typically arranged behind and aligned to the mask device during deposition.

[0005] Typically, five or more, or even ten or more layers of material may be deposited sequentially on a substrate, for example to produce a color display. It can be difficult to handle a vacuum processing system that includes a plurality of deposition modules for depositing different materials on a plurality of substrates. In particular, handling substrate traffic and mask traffic in large vacuum processing systems for depositing different materials can be challenging.

[0006] Accordingly, it would be beneficial to provide reliable vacuum processing systems for depositing materials on a plurality of substrates and methods of reliably operating the vacuum processing system. In particular, acceleration of the tact time, ie the period of time during which one layer can be deposited, is beneficial, for example, in increasing the throughput of a vacuum processing system.

[0007] In view of the above, a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate, a vacuum processing system for depositing a plurality of layers on a substrate, and a method of operating the vacuum processing system are provided.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate is provided. The processing system includes a first processing chamber coupled to a first cluster chamber; a first processing station for processing a substrate in a first processing chamber; a second processing chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber; a first transfer chamber coupled to the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber having a first length extending between the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber including the substrate sized to accommodate—; a second transfer chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber and having a second length shorter than the first length; and through the first processing chamber, the second processing chamber, the first cluster chamber, the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber and the second transfer chamber, provided for routing the substrate in an orientation that is no more than 15° away from vertical. and a substrate transportation arrangement.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a vacuum processing system for depositing a plurality of layers on a substrate is provided. The vacuum processing system includes a first transfer chamber having a first length and coupled to the vacuum chamber; and a second transfer chamber coupled to the vacuum chamber and having a second length less than the first length.

[0010] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method of operating a vacuum processing system is provided. The method includes depositing a layer of material on a first substrate for a first period of time; parking a second substrate in the first transfer chamber for a first period of time; and transferring the third substrate in the second transfer chamber during the first period of time.

Other aspects, advantages and features of the present disclosure are apparent from the description and accompanying drawings.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a vacuum processing system for depositing a plurality of layers on a substrate is provided. The vacuum processing system includes a substrate repositioning chamber configured to selectively position a substrate in a first orientation relative to a horizontal orientation and a second orientation relative to a horizontal orientation. The vacuum processing system further includes a cluster chamber and a buffer chamber between the vacuum chamber and the cluster chamber. The buffer chamber includes one substrate transport path and at least another substrate transport position. Additional aspects, advantages, features and embodiments of the present disclosure may be combined with such aspect.

[0013] In such a way that the above-listed features of the present disclosure may be understood in detail, a more specific description of the present disclosure briefly summarized above may be made with reference to embodiments. The accompanying drawings relate to embodiments of the present disclosure and are described below. Exemplary embodiments are shown in the drawings and are described in detail in the description that follows.
1 is a schematic diagram of a cluster-type substrate processing system;
2 is a schematic diagram of an in-line-type substrate processing system;
3A is a schematic diagram of a vacuum processing system in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, having two or more vacuum cluster chambers and a plurality of processing chambers coupled to one or more of the vacuum cluster chambers;
[0017] FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of the vacuum processing system of FIG. 3A and illustrates an exemplary substrate traffic or flow of substrates within the vacuum processing system in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;
4A is a schematic diagram of an additional vacuum processing system in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, having two or more vacuum cluster chambers and a plurality of processing chambers coupled to one or more of the vacuum cluster chambers; ;
[0019] FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of the vacuum processing system of FIG. 4A and illustrates an exemplary substrate traffic or flow of substrates within the vacuum processing system in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;
5A and 5B are schematic views of a first type of transfer chambers according to embodiments of the present disclosure, FIG. 5A is a side view, and FIG. 5B is a top view;
6 is a schematic side view of transfer chambers of a second type according to embodiments of the present disclosure;
7 shows a flow diagram illustrating embodiments of methods of operating a vacuum processing system.

Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments, examples of one or more of which are shown in the drawings. Each example is provided by way of illustration and not limitation. For example, features shown or described as part of one embodiment may be used in or in conjunction with any other embodiment to create a still further embodiment. This disclosure is intended to cover such modifications and variations.

[0024] Within the following description of the drawings, like reference numbers refer to the same or similar elements. In general, only differences for individual embodiments are described. Unless otherwise specified, a description of a part or aspect in one embodiment also applies to the corresponding part or aspect in another embodiment.

OLED devices, such as OLED flat panel displays, may include a plurality of layers. For example, a combination of 5 or more, or even 10 or more layers may be provided. Typically, organic and metallic layers are deposited on a backplane, which may include a TFT structure. In particular, organic layers may be sensitive to a gaseous environment (eg, atmosphere) prior to encapsulation. Accordingly, it is advantageous to create an entire layer stack within a vacuum processing system.

[0026] In addition, increasing demand for OLED displays, such as mobile devices, causes an increasing demand for high throughput and high yield of vacuum processing systems. Throughput is defined, inter alia, by tact time, ie, the time a layer is deposited on a substrate and/or a substrate is transported from one processing station to another. For improved throughput, quasi-continuous deposition may be provided in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. That is, a processing station within the processing chamber processes one substrate, while the processing substrate is moved out of the processing chamber and a new substrate is moved into the processing chamber. Accordingly, the processing station may operate quasi-continuously, ie at least 80% or at least 90% of the operating time of the vacuum processing system.

[0027] In the case of a vacuum processing system and methods of operating a vacuum processing system in which, for example, an entire layer stack having 10 or more layers is manufactured in one system, a plurality of substrates are processed simultaneously, ie vacuum provided within the processing system. Substrates are routed within the system and according to tact time. Substrate traffic, ie the timing at which substrates are moved and processed within the system, can be very challenging. This is particularly relevant for large-area substrates, for example substrates having a size of 1 m 2 or more. For large area substrates, the footprint of the vacuum processing system provides an additional limit to the available options for building the vacuum processing system. The combination of the limitations of the system's footprint and the desired tact time further increases the challenges.

1 shows a vacuum processing system 1010 . The vacuum processing system 1010 has a cluster arrangement in which substrates to be processed are loaded into a central transfer chamber 1013 via a load lock chamber 1012 . From the central transfer chamber, substrates to be processed may be moved into various processing chambers, such as processing chambers 1014A, 1014B, 1014C and 1014D. The substrates are moved in a horizontal orientation. Deposition sources, such as deposition sources 1016A, 1016B, 1016C, and 1016D, are provided below horizontally oriented substrates in respective processing chambers. It is also possible to have a buffer chamber 1018 for holding substrates that are not currently processed. 1 also shows the columns 1020 provided in the factory building. The cluster arrangement of the vacuum processing system includes a limitation on the number of processing chambers connected to the central transfer chamber 1013 . Thus, the footprint of the vacuum processing system 1010 with a cluster arrangement is limited and can be provided in the floor space of a factory building, for example between columns 1020 .

2 shows another vacuum processing system 1011 . The vacuum processing system 1011 has an in-line arrangement in which substrates are moved from first processing chambers at one end of the system to other subsequent processing chambers. The first processing chambers and other subsequent processing chambers are arranged in a row. Substrates are generally moved from one processing chamber to the next. A layer may be deposited in each of the processing chambers in turn, or a substrate processing step may be provided. For example, as shown in FIG. 2 , a first load lock chamber 1012 may be provided at one end of the vacuum processing system 1011 . A first load lock chamber may be provided to load a substrate into the vacuum processing system. A second load lock chamber 1012 ′ may be provided at the other end of the vacuum processing system 1011 . A second load lock chamber may be provided to unload substrates out of the vacuum processing system. According to another example, substrates are processed in subsequent chambers, such as processing chambers 1015A, 1015B, 1015C, and 1015D, and moved in a reverse direction through the processing chambers, eg, without processing, to first load lock chamber 1012 ) can be unloaded. It is also possible to have a buffer chamber 1018 for storing currently unprocessed substrates. Due to the in-line arrangement of the vacuum processing system 1011, floor space or footprint limitations are primarily provided in only one dimension, i.e., a vacuum processing system 1011 configured to deposit ten or more layers may be too long. .

3A shows a vacuum processing system 1100 in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. The vacuum processing system 1100 provides a combination of a cluster arrangement and an in-line arrangement. A plurality of processing chambers 1120 are provided. The processing chambers 1120 may be connected to the vacuum rotation chambers 1130 . The vacuum rotation chambers 1130 are provided in an in-line arrangement. The vacuum rotation chambers 1130 may rotate substrates to be moved into and out of the processing chambers 1120 . The combination of the cluster arrangement and the inline arrangement may be considered a hybrid arrangement. A vacuum processing system 1100 with a hybrid arrangement allows for a plurality of processing chambers 1120 . The length of the vacuum processing system still does not exceed certain limits.

[0031] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a cluster chamber or vacuum cluster chamber is a chamber configured to connect two or more processing chambers, eg, a transfer chamber. Thus, vacuum rotation chambers 1130 are examples of cluster chambers. The cluster chambers may be provided in an in-line arrangement in a hybrid arrangement.

[0032] A vacuum rotation chamber or rotation module (also referred to herein as a “routing module” or “routing chamber”) changes the direction of transport of one or more carriers. It will be appreciated that the vacuum chamber configured to do so may be modified by rotating one or more carriers located on tracks within the rotation module. For example, the vacuum rotation chamber may include a rotation device configured to rotate tracks configured to support carriers about an axis of rotation, eg, a vertical axis of rotation. In some embodiments, the rotation module includes at least two tracks that can be rotated about an axis of rotation. The first track, in particular the first substrate carrier track, can be arranged on a first side of the axis of rotation, and the second track, in particular the second substrate carrier track, can be arranged on a second side of the axis of rotation.

In some embodiments, the rotation module comprises four tracks, in particular two mask carrier tracks and two substrate carrier tracks that can be rotated about an axis of rotation.

[0034] When the rotating module rotates by an angle of x°, eg 90°, the transport direction of one or more carriers arranged on the tracks may be changed by an angle of x°, eg 90° can Rotation of the rotating module by an angle of 180° may correspond to a track switch, ie the position of the first substrate carrier track of the rotating module and the position of the second substrate carrier track of the rotating module may be exchanged or exchanged. and/or the position of the first mask carrier track of the rotation module and the position of the second mask carrier track of the rotation module may be exchanged or exchanged. According to some embodiments, the rotation module may include a rotor capable of rotating the substrate.

[0035] Within this disclosure, reference is made to interconnected chambers. The connected chambers may be directly connected, for example a flange of one chamber is connected to a flange of an adjacent chamber. Alternatively, the chambers are, for example, provided by vacuum seals or other connecting elements, or by a connecting unit providing slit valves or other elements provided between two adjacent chambers. can be connected to each other. The connection unit is very short compared to the length of the large-area substrate, and can be distinguished from the vacuum chamber. For example, the connecting unit has a length of 20% or less of the length of the substrate. According to embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, a first chamber connected to a second chamber may be understood as adjoining the first chamber to the second chamber, for example without an intermediate chamber. . As mentioned above, the first chamber may be connected to the second chamber directly or via a connection unit.

3A shows a vacuum processing system 1100 and FIG. 3B shows substrate traffic within the vacuum processing system. The substrate enters the vacuum processing system 1100 , for example in a vacuum swing module 1110 . According to other variations, the load lock chamber may be coupled to the vacuum swing module for loading and unloading substrates into and out of the vacuum processing system. A vacuum swing module typically receives a substrate directly or through a loadlock chamber from an interface of a device manufacturing plant. Typically, the interface provides a substrate, eg, a large area substrate, in a horizontal orientation. The vacuum swing module moves the substrate from the orientation provided by the factory interface to an essentially vertical orientation. The essentially vertical orientation of the substrate is maintained during processing of the substrate in the vacuum processing system 1100 until the substrate is moved back to, for example, a horizontal orientation. Swinging, moving, or rotating the substrate by an angle is illustrated by arrow 1191 in FIG. 3B . Accordingly, in the present disclosure, the vacuum swing module may also be referred to as a vacuum chamber for moving the substrate by an angle, particularly between a non-vertical orientation and a non-horizontal orientation.

[0037] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the vacuum swing module may be a vacuum chamber for moving from a first substrate orientation to a second substrate orientation. For example, the first substrate orientation may be a non-vertical orientation, such as a horizontal orientation, and the second substrate orientation may be a non-horizontal orientation, such as a vertical orientation or an essentially vertical orientation. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the vacuum swing module is configured to selectively position the substrate therein in a first orientation relative to the horizontal orientation and a second orientation relative to the horizontal orientation. It may be a substrate repositioning chamber.

[0038] The substrate is moved through the buffer chamber 1112, as indicated, for example, by arrow 1192 (see FIG. 3A). The substrate is further moved into the processing chamber 1120 through a cluster chamber, such as a vacuum rotation chamber 1130 . In some embodiments described with respect to FIGS. 3A and 3B , the substrate is moved into the processing chamber 1120 - I. For example, a hole injection layer (HIL) may be deposited on the substrate in the processing chamber 1120 - I.

Reference is made in the present disclosure to the manufacture of an OLED flat panel display, in particular for mobile devices. However, similar considerations, examples, embodiments and aspects may also be provided for other substrate processing applications. In the example of an OLED mobile display, a common metal mask (CMM) is provided in the processing chamber 1120 - I. The CMM provides an edge exclusion mask for each mobile display. Each mobile display is masked with one opening, and the areas on the substrate corresponding to the areas between the displays are mainly covered by the CMM.

The substrate is then transferred from the processing chamber 1120 into an adjacent cluster chamber, eg, a vacuum rotation chamber 1130 , via a first transfer chamber 1182 , via another cluster chamber, and into a processing chamber 1120- Ⅱ) is moved in. This is indicated by arrow 1194 in FIG. 3B . In processing chamber 1120-II, a hole transfer layer (HTL) is deposited on the substrate. Similar to the hole injection layer, the hole transport layer is made of a common metal mask with one opening per mobile display. Further, the substrate is transferred from the processing chamber 1120-II into an adjacent cluster chamber, eg, the vacuum rotation chamber 1130 , via the second transfer chamber 1184 , via another cluster chamber, and into the processing chamber 1120-III ) is moved into This is indicated by another arrow 1194 in FIG. 3B .

[0041] A transfer chamber or transit module may be understood as a vacuum module or vacuum chamber which can be inserted between at least two other vacuum modules or vacuum chambers, for example between vacuum rotation chambers. . Carriers, eg mask carriers and/or substrate carriers, may be transported through the transport chamber in the longitudinal direction of the transport chamber. The longitudinal direction of the transport chamber may correspond to the main transport direction of the vacuum processing system, ie an in-line arrangement of cluster chambers.

In the processing chamber 1120-III, an electron blocking layer (EB) is deposited on the substrate. The electron blocking layer may be deposited with a fine metal mask (FFM). The fine metal mask has a plurality of openings sized, for example, in the micron range. The plurality of micro openings correspond to a pixel of the mobile display or a color of a pixel of the mobile display. Thus, the FFM and the substrate need to be aligned very precisely with respect to each other to have the alignment of the pixels on the display in the micron range.

[0043] The substrate is moved from the processing chamber 1120-III to the processing chamber 1120-IV, then to the processing chamber 1120-V, and then to the processing chamber 1120-VI. For each of the transport paths, eg, two substrate transport paths, the substrate is moved from a processing chamber, eg, into a vacuum rotation chamber, through a transport chamber, through a vacuum rotation chamber, and into a next processing chamber. . For example, an OLED layer for red pixels may be deposited in chamber 1120-IV, an OLED layer for green pixels may be deposited in chamber 1120-V, and an OLED layer for blue pixels may be deposited in chamber 1120-V. (1120-VI) may be deposited. Each of the layers for the color pixels is deposited with a fine metal mask. Each of the fine metal masks is different to allow pixel dots of different colors to be adjacent to each other on the substrate, giving the appearance of one pixel. As indicated by another arrow 1194 extending from the processing chamber 1120-VI to the processing chamber 1120-VII, the substrates are transferred from the processing chamber into the cluster chamber, through the transfer chamber, through the other cluster chamber, and subsequently may be moved into the processing chamber. In processing chambers 1120 - VII, an electron transfer layer (ETL) may be deposited with a common metal mask (CMM).

The substrate traffic described above for one substrate is similar for a plurality of substrates being processed simultaneously in the vacuum processing system 1100 . According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the tact time, ie, period of time, of the system may be less than or equal to 180 seconds, for example between 60 seconds and 180 seconds. Accordingly, the substrate is processed within this time period, ie, the first exemplary time period T. In the processing chambers described above and the subsequent processing chambers described below, one substrate is processed within a first time period T, another substrate that has just been processed is moved out of the processing chamber within the first time period T, and the processing Another substrate to be transferred is moved into the processing chamber within the first time period T. One substrate can be processed in each of the processing chambers, while two other substrates participate in substrate traffic to this processing chamber, i.e. one other substrate is unloaded from each processing chamber and one substrate is It is loaded into each processing chamber during a first time period T.

[0045] The above-described route of an exemplary substrate from processing chamber 1120-I to processing chamber 1120-VII is a row of processing chambers of vacuum processing system 1100, eg, FIG. 3A . and in the lower row of FIG. 3B. The row or lower portion of the vacuum processing system is indicated by arrow 1032 in FIG. 3B .

[0046] According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the substrates are transferred from one end of the in-line arrangement of cluster chambers of the vacuum processing system to the opposite end of the in-line arrangement of cluster chambers of the vacuum processing system. may be routed to one row or one portion of In an in-line arrangement, eg, at the opposite end of the vacuum rotation chamber 1130 on the right side of FIG. 3A , the substrate is transferred to another row or other portion of the vacuum processing system. This is indicated by arrow 1115 in FIG. 3B . In another row or other portion of the vacuum processing system, indicated by arrow 1034 in FIG. 3B , the substrate moves from the opposite end of the inline arrangement of cluster chambers to one end, ie, the start end, of the inline arrangement of cluster chambers while moving into subsequent processing chambers. is processed in

[0047] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the inline arrangement of cluster chambers is, for example, a first subset of processing chambers arranged on one side of the inline arrangement of cluster chambers, and an opposite of the inline arrangement of cluster chambers. It is possible to separate the vacuum processing system into a second subset of processing chambers arranged on the side. Routing of the substrate is provided by routing the substrate through a first subset of processing chambers and then routing the substrate through a second subset of processing chambers. Other aspects, features, embodiments or details of such an aspect may be combined with aspects, features, embodiments or details of other embodiments described herein.

[0048] In the example shown in FIG. 3A, the exemplary substrate is moved to a processing chamber 1120-VIII, and then to a processing chamber 1120-IX. For example, a metallization layer, which may illustratively form the cathode of an OLED device, may be deposited in the processing chamber 1120-VIII, for example, with a common metal mask as described above. For example, one or more of the following metals may be deposited in some of the deposition modules: Al, Au, Ag, Cu. The at least one material may be a transparent conductive oxide material, for example ITO. At least one material may be a transparent material. Thereafter, a capping layer (CPL) is deposited in the processing chamber 1120-IX, for example as a common metal mask.

According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, an additional processing chamber 1120 -X may be provided. For example, such a processing chamber may be a replacement processing chamber that replaces one of the other processing chambers while the other processing chamber is under maintenance.

After the final processing step, the substrate may be moved through the buffer chamber 1112 to the vacuum swing module 1110 , ie the substrate repositioning chamber. This is indicated by arrow 1193 in FIG. 3B . In a vacuum swing module, the substrate is moved from a processing orientation, ie, an essentially vertical orientation, to a substrate orientation corresponding to the interface with the factory, eg, a horizontal orientation.

Another embodiment that may include features of the embodiments described with respect to FIGS. 3A and 3B is described with respect to FIGS. 4A and 4B . The vacuum processing system 1100 shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B includes a second vacuum swing module 1210 , ie, a second substrate repositioning chamber. Also, a second buffer chamber 1212 may be provided between the cluster chamber and the vacuum swing module. Accordingly, an exemplary substrate may be routed from one end of the inline arrangement of cluster chambers to an opposite end of the inline arrangement of cluster chambers. For example, a substrate may be loaded into the vacuum swing module 1110 and routed within the system essentially from one end, ie, the left side of FIG. 4A , to the opposite end, ie, the right side of FIG. 4A . The substrate may be unloaded out of the vacuum processing system via a vacuum swing module 1210 , ie, a vacuum swing module at the opposite end. In accordance with some embodiments, substrate traffic is, for example, as indicated by arrow 1294 in FIG. 4B , as it is transported from one processing chamber to a subsequent processing chamber, one row of processing chambers (arrow in FIG. 4B ). 1032 ) and another row of processing chambers (see arrow 1034 in FIG. 4B ). Thereafter, the substrate may be moved back to the first row of vacuum processing system from subsequent processing chambers in another row of vacuum processing system as it is moved to another subsequent processing chamber, as indicated by arrow 1296 in FIG. 4B . have. Thus, in accordance with some embodiments, an exemplary substrate may switch back and forth rows of a vacuum processing system or a portion of a vacuum processing system (see arrows 1032 and 1034 in FIG. 4B ).

[0052] Embodiments of the vacuum processing system 1100 shown and described in connection with FIGS. 4A and 4B are the loading of substrates at one end of the hybrid system and the loading of substrates at the other end of the hybrid system, eg, at the opposite end. It provides for unloading of substrates. Thus, two interfaces to the factory are provided for loading and unloading. Moreover, according to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the carrier carrying the substrate from one end to the opposite end is returned within the vacuum processing system 1100 empty. A new substrate may be loaded at the loading end of the hybrid system.

As described above, a plurality of substrates are routed within a vacuum processing system according to embodiments described in connection with FIGS. 3A , 3B , 4A and 4B . For high throughput and thus lower cost of ownership of the vacuum processing system, the tact time should be as short as possible. The tact time may be limited by, inter alia, the processing time and/or the transfer time of a substrate from one processing chamber to a subsequent processing chamber. Also, when a maximum number of substrates are processed simultaneously in the vacuum processing system 1100, the best throughput is provided. Thus, each processing chamber is essentially loaded with a substrate for processing during steady state processing conditions.

[0054] This results in the fact that if the substrate transfer or substrate processing does not meet the tact time at any position in the vacuum processing system, the overall substrate traffic is compromised or stopped. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, in substrate transport, the substrates or the carrier supporting the substrates each during transport by the substrate transport arrangement at a velocity of at least 3 m/s accelerated Accordingly, reducing the distance between adjacent or subsequent processing chambers appears to be beneficial. However, it has been surprisingly found that the best throughput values are not obtained by simply reducing the distance between adjacent or subsequent processing chambers. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, two or more different distances (in one row) between adjacent or subsequent processing chambers, ie between adjacent cluster chambers, eg vacuum rotation chambers, are Two or more different distances are provided.

3A and 3B show transport chambers provided between cluster chambers, for example constituting rotation chambers. 3A and 3B show first transfer chambers 1182 and second transfer chambers 1184 . Reducing the footprint of the vacuum processing system, as well as reducing the distance between adjacent or subsequent processing chambers, appears to suggest a reduction in the lengths of the transfer chambers. Surprisingly, it has been found that a partial increase in the lengths of the transfer chambers improves the tact time of the vacuum processing system 1100 . In accordance with embodiments described herein, a vacuum processing system comprises at least a first type of transfer chamber of a first length, ie, a first transfer chamber 1182 , and a second type of transfer chamber having a second length different from the first length. and a transfer chamber, ie a second transfer chamber 1184 .

[0056] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a vacuum processing system for depositing a plurality of layers on a substrate may be provided. The vacuum processing system includes a first transfer chamber having a first length and coupled to the vacuum chamber; and a second transfer chamber coupled to the vacuum chamber, the second transfer chamber having a second length that is shorter than the first length.

[0057] According to other embodiments, which may be combined with other embodiments described herein, for example, a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate includes a first processing chamber coupled to a first cluster chamber; a first processing station for processing a substrate in a first processing chamber; a second processing chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber; a first transfer chamber coupled to the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber having a first length extending between the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber sized to receive a substrate set-; a second transfer chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber and having a second length shorter than the first length; and a substrate transport arrangement provided to route the substrate through the first processing chamber, the second processing chamber, the first cluster chamber, the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber and the second transfer chamber in an orientation that is no more than 15° away from vertical. includes a sieve.

[0058] A first transfer chamber having a first length allows for receiving a substrate. The substrate may be parked in the first transfer chamber. Parking of the substrate allows the substrate to be readily available. This can reduce the overall tact time. A second transfer chamber having a second length shorter than the first length reduces the distance between adjacent or subsequent processing chambers. A second transfer chamber having a second length that is shorter than the first length additionally or alternatively reduces the footprint of the vacuum processing system.

In addition to the above, having two types of transfer chambers with different lengths allows for adaptation of the footprint to the structure of a factory hall, which can typically be a predetermined environment. 3A and 3B show pillars 1020 . Posts 1020 have been previously described with respect to FIGS. 1 and 2 . The columns are a boundary condition provided by the manufacturing hall, eg defined by considerations of structural engineering calculations. Having the two types of transfer chambers with different lengths further allows for adaptation of the vacuum processing system to the manufacturing hole. Extending the length of the transfer chamber allows to have a post 1020 between two processing chambers adjacent to one row, and to provide a parked position.

[0060] Embodiments of the present disclosure surprisingly result in a combination of advantages including reduced footprint, reduced tact time, as well as adaptation to the structural conditions of the manufacturing hole.

According to further features, variants and embodiments of the present disclosure, providing a footprint of a vacuum processing system, in particular 5 or more, or even 10 or more layers in one system The footprint of a vacuum processing system can be reduced by having substrates, particularly large area substrates, in an essentially vertical orientation.

[0062] "Essentially perpendicular orientation" as used herein can be understood as a vertical orientation, ie an orientation having a deviation of no more than 15°, no more than 10°, in particular no more than 5° from the gravity vector. For example, the angle between the major surface of the substrate (or mask device) and the gravity vector may be between +10° and -10°, in particular between 0° and -5°. In some embodiments, the orientation of the substrate (or mask device) may not be exactly perpendicular during transport and/or during deposition, eg between 0° and -5°, particularly between -1° and -5° with respect to the vertical axis. It can be slightly inclined at an angle of inclination. A negative angle refers to the orientation of the substrate (or mask device) with the substrate (or mask device) tilted downward. Deviation of substrate orientation from the gravitational vector during deposition can be beneficial, resulting in a more stable deposition process, or downward orientation can be suitable to reduce particles on the substrate during deposition. However, a precise vertical orientation is also possible during transport and/or during deposition.

[0063] To increase substrate sizes of large area substrates, where substrate sizes can typically increase in generations (GEN), vertical orientation is advantageous over horizontal orientation due to the reduced footprint of the vacuum processing system. . The intrinsic vertical orientation of the deposition process on large area substrates with a fine metal mask (FFM) is also unexpected in that gravity acts along the surface of the fine metal mask in a vertical orientation. Pixel positioning and alignment in the micron range becomes more complex in the vertical direction than in the horizontal direction. Accordingly, concepts developed for horizontal vacuum deposition systems may not be transferred to vertical vacuum deposition systems for large area systems, particularly vacuum deposition systems using FFM.

[0064] Embodiments described herein can be used to inspect large area coated substrates, for example, for manufactured displays. The substrates or substrate receiving areas on which the devices and methods described herein are configured may be large area substrates, for example having a size of 1 m² or more. For example, the large area substrate or carrier may be GEN 4.5 corresponding to about 0.67 m 2 substrates (0.73 m×0.92 m), GEN 5 corresponding to about 1.4 m 2 substrates (1.1 m×1.3 m), about 4.29 GEN 7.5 corresponding to m 2 of substrates (1.95 m × 2.2 m), GEN 8.5 corresponding to approximately 5.7 m 2 substrates (2.2 m × 2.5 m), or even about 8.7 m 2 substrates (2.85 m × 3.05 m). ) corresponding to GEN 10. Larger generations such as GEN 11 and GEN 12 and corresponding substrate areas can be implemented similarly. For example, for OLED display fabrication, half sizes of the above mentioned substrate generations including GEN 6 can be coated by evaporation of the device for evaporating the material. Half sizes of a substrate generation may result from some processes performed on the entire substrate size and subsequent processes performed on half of a previously processed substrate.

[0065] The term "substrate" as used herein may particularly encompass substantially inflexible substrates, for example wafers, slices of transparent crystal such as sapphire, or a glass plate. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the term “substrate” may encompass flexible substrates such as webs or foils. The term "substantially inflexible" is understood to distinguish with respect to "flexible". Specifically, a substantially inflexible substrate may have a certain degree of flexibility, for example, a glass plate having a thickness of 0.5 mm or less, and the flexibility of the substantially inflexible substrate is small compared to flexible substrates.

[0066] The substrate may be made of any material suitable for material deposition. For example, the substrate may be glass (eg, soda-lime glass, borosilicate glass, etc.), metal, polymer, ceramic, compound materials, carbon fiber materials, metal or any other material, or coated by a deposition process. may be made of a material selected from the group consisting of combinations of materials capable of being

[0067] According to still further embodiments of variations that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, a vacuum processing system for large area substrates in a vertical or essentially vertical orientation as described herein is a vacuum system It may further include carriers for supporting the substrates during transport within. Especially for large area substrates, glass breakage in the vacuum processing system can be reduced by using carriers. Thus, the substrate can be held on the carrier for subsequent processing steps. For example, the substrate may be loaded onto a carrier immediately after or upon entry into the vacuum processing system, and may be unloaded from the same carrier just before or upon leaving the vacuum processing system.

[0068] A vacuum processing system according to embodiments described herein may further include a substrate transport arrangement configured to transport substrates on carriers. The substrate transport arrangement may include a carrier transport system. As shown in FIG. 3A , carriers may be transported along transport paths 1171 , 1172 , 1174 , 1173 , and may also be provided on transport positions, such as transport position 1175 . The carrier transport system includes a holding system for lifting and holding carriers, for example a magnetic levitation system, and a driving system for moving the carrier along tracks along the carrier transport path. may include. For example, the substrate transport arrangement may include two substrate rotation positions within a vacuum rotation chamber.

[0069] A vacuum processing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, which may be combined with other embodiments of the present disclosure, is a vacuum chamber for moving a substrate by an angle, ie a vacuum swing module, a cluster chamber, for example, For example, it may include a vacuum rotation chamber, and a buffer chamber between the vacuum chamber and the cluster chamber. The buffer chamber includes one substrate transport path and at least a further substrate transport position. The substrate may be parked or held in a transport position 1175 in the buffer chamber awaiting unloading, for example via a vacuum swing module. For the combination of a cluster chamber and a vacuum swing module, an intermediate buffer chamber with the ability to accommodate two or more substrates can further improve tact time.

[0070] The term "carrier" as used herein may specifically refer to a "substrate carrier" configured to hold a substrate during transport along a carrier transport path, eg, along a substrate carrier track. In some embodiments, the substrate may be held on the carrier in a non-horizontal orientation, particularly in an essentially vertical orientation. The term “carrier” as used herein may refer to a “substrate carrier” configured to hold a substrate during transport along a transport path, eg, along a substrate carrier track.

[0071] The carrier may comprise a carrier body having a holding surface configured to hold the substrate or mask device, particularly in a non-horizontal orientation, and more particularly in an essentially vertical orientation. In some embodiments, the carrier body may include a guide portion configured to be guided along the carrier transport path. For example, the carrier may be held by a holding device, eg by a magnetic levitation system, and the carrier may be moved by a driving device, eg along a mask carrier track or along a substrate carrier track. For example, the substrate may be held in the substrate carrier by a chucking device, for example by an electrostatic chuck and/or a magnetic chuck. Other types of chucking devices may be used. As used herein, "carrying", "moving", "routing", "replacing" or "rotating" a substrate or mask device refers to maintaining, particularly in a non-horizontal orientation, and more particularly in an essentially vertical orientation. It may refer to each movement of a carrier.

[0072] In some embodiments, the substrate carrier is transported by a transport system, which may include a magnetic levitation system. For example, the magnetic levitation system may be provided such that at least a portion of the weight of the substrate carrier may be supported by the magnetic levitation system. The substrate carrier may be guided essentially contactlessly along the substrate carrier tracks through the vacuum processing system. A drive may be provided for moving the carrier along the substrate carrier tracks. Non-contact flotation reduces particle generation in vacuum processing systems. This can be particularly advantageous for the manufacture of OLED devices.

[0073] The term “carrier” as used herein may refer to a “mask carrier” configured to hold a mask device during transport along a transport path, eg, along a mask carrier track. In some embodiments, the mask device may be held on the carrier in a non-horizontal orientation, in particular an essentially vertical orientation.

For example, the substrate may be held in the substrate carrier by a chucking device, for example by an electrostatic chuck and/or a magnetic chuck. For example, the mask device may be held in the mask carrier by a chucking device, eg, an electrostatic chuck and/or a magnetic chuck. Other types of chucking devices may be used.

[0075] According to yet other embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, layer deposition on essentially vertically oriented large area substrates is advantageously deposited with deposition sources, eg, evaporation sources. may be provided by evaporation sources 1180 (eg, see FIG. 3A ), and the evaporation source may be provided as a line source. The line source may be moved along the surface of the substrate to deposit material on, for example, a rectangular large area substrate. According to still other embodiments, two or more, for example, three line sources, may be provided to the deposition source. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the organic materials may be evaporated together, and two or more organic materials form a layer of material.

[0076] A deposition source, eg, a vapor source configured to direct the evaporated material towards one or more substrates, is typically arranged in the processing chamber or deposition module. For example, the deposition source may be movable along a source transport track that may be provided within the processing chamber. The deposition source may move linearly along the source transport track while directing the evaporated material towards one or more substrates.

[0077] In some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the processing chamber or deposition module has two deposition regions, a first deposition region for arranging a first substrate and a second substrate. It may include a second deposition region for arranging the . The first deposition region may be disposed to face the second deposition region in the deposition module. The deposition source may then be configured to direct the vaporized material towards a first substrate arranged in the first deposition region and toward a second substrate arranged in the second deposition region. For example, the evaporation direction of the deposition source may be reversed, for example, by rotating at least a portion of the deposition source by, for example, an angle of 180°.

[0078] According to embodiments described herein, a first transfer chamber having a first length may be coupled to the vacuum cluster chamber. Further, the second transfer chamber may be connected to the vacuum cluster chamber, the second transfer chamber having a second length that is shorter than the first length.

5A shows a portion of a vacuum processing system in a side view. A first transfer chamber 1182 having a first length is provided between two adjacent cluster chambers, for example vacuum rotation chambers 1130 . The first length corresponds to a size such that a substrate having a substrate generation for which a vacuum processing system is manufactured can be provided in the first transfer chamber. The substrate or substrate carrier need not necessarily extend into one of the cluster chambers when provided to the first transfer chamber. The mask or mask carrier need not necessarily extend into one of the cluster chambers when provided to the first transfer chamber.

[0080] FIG. 5A illustratively shows a mask carrier contour 1310 of a mask carrier in dashed lines. 5A illustratively depicts a substrate carrier contour 1312 of a substrate carrier in dashed lines. Both the mask carrier and the substrate carrier may be provided entirely within the first transfer chamber 1182 . Thus, a mask carrier as well as a substrate carrier may be provided in the first transfer chamber, and both adjacent vacuum rotation chambers may be rotated. This rotation is not blocked by a mask carrier or substrate carrier extending into the vacuum rotation chamber.

5B shows a top view of a portion of a vacuum processing system. A first transfer chamber is provided between adjacent cluster chambers, for example vacuum rotation chambers 1130 . A portion of the substrate transport arrangement is shown as a substrate transport unit 1320 . The substrate transport unit 1320 is configured to transport a substrate carrier through the transport chamber. The substrate transport arrangement may include two substrate transport paths. Two substrate transport units 1320 are provided to create two substrate carrier paths. A portion of the mask transport arrangement is shown as a mask transport unit 1322 . The mask transport unit 1322 is configured to transport the mask carrier through the transport chamber. Two mask transport units 1322 are provided to create two mask carrier paths. The substrate transport unit and/or the mask transport unit may be provided with a levitation element and a drive element. The floating element may support the carrier in a non-contact manner. The drive element can drive the carrier in a contactless manner along the path.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, which may be combined with other embodiments, one or more substrate parking positions 1330 may be provided in the first transfer chamber. In terms of the length of the first transfer chamber, the substrate carrier may be parked within the first transfer chamber. The substrate carrier can be parked without compromising the rotation function of the vacuum rotation module adjacent the first transfer chamber. The first transfer chamber is sized to receive a substrate carrier.

FIG. 6 shows a second transfer chamber 1184 having a second length that is shorter than the length of the first transfer chamber 1182 shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B . The second length of the second transfer chamber is such that the mask carrier contour 1310 of the mask carrier shown in dashed lines and the substrate carrier contour 1312 shown in dashed lines extend beyond opposite sides of the second transport chamber. Accordingly, the footprint of the vacuum processing system can be reduced to have shorter second transfer chambers. According to some embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments described herein, the second length of the second transfer chamber is shorter than the horizontal dimension of the substrate.

7 shows a flowchart of a method of operating a vacuum processing system in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure; As noted above, the vacuum processing system can be operated with a tact time. For example, a tact time may have a duration of a period of time, which may be defined as the length of a deposition process that deposits a layer of material. According to some embodiments, the substrate may be received, eg parked, eg within the first transfer chamber. For example, the first transfer chamber may be a transfer chamber 1182 as shown in FIG. 5A . The first transfer chamber may have a length long enough to receive a substrate or substrate carrier, respectively. As indicated by box 702 , the substrate may be parked in the first transfer chamber for a first period of time corresponding to the tact time. Also, as indicated by box 704 , another substrate may be transferred through the second transfer chamber during a first period of time, ie, during the same period of time. In particular, the second transfer chamber may have a second length that is shorter than the first length of the first transfer chamber. For example, the second transfer chambers may each have a length less than a corresponding dimension of the substrate carrier or the mask carrier.

[0085] According to still other embodiments that may be combined with other embodiments of the present disclosure, another substrate may be moved past the parking substrate in the first transfer chamber during the same first period of time (box ( 706)). For example, a parking substrate may be provided at substrate parking positions 1330 as shown in FIG. 5A . Moreover, as indicated by box 708 , another substrate may be processed in the same first period of time.

[0086] While the above relates to embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments of the disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope of the disclosure, the scope of which is set forth in the following claims. is determined by

Claims (16)

A vacuum processing system for processing a substrate, comprising:
a first processing chamber coupled to a first cluster chamber;
a first processing station for processing the substrate in the first processing chamber;
a second processing chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber;
a first transfer chamber coupled to the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber having a first length extending between the first cluster chamber and the second cluster chamber; a first transfer chamber sized to receive the substrate;
a second transfer chamber coupled to the second cluster chamber and having a second length less than the first length, a second length of the second transfer chamber being less than a horizontal dimension of the substrate; and
moving the substrate through the first processing chamber, the second processing chamber, the first cluster chamber, the second cluster chamber, the first transfer chamber and the second transfer chamber at an orientation deviated from vertical by no more than 15° a substrate transportation arrangement provided for routing;
vacuum processing system. The method of claim 1,
wherein the first transfer chamber is configured to park the substrate;
vacuum processing system. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
wherein the substrate transport arrangement comprises two substrate transport paths within the first processing chamber.
vacuum processing system. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
wherein the first cluster chamber is a first vacuum rotation chamber and the substrate transport arrangement comprises two substrate rotation positions within the first vacuum rotation chamber;
vacuum processing system. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
wherein the substrate transport arrangement comprises two substrate transport paths within the first transport chamber.
vacuum processing system. The method of claim 5,
wherein the substrate transport arrangement comprises a substrate park position adjacent the two substrate transport paths;
vacuum processing system. The method of claim 5,
and a mask transportation arrangement configured to route a mask in at least one of the first processing chamber and the second processing chamber.
vacuum processing system. A vacuum processing system for depositing a plurality of layers on a substrate, comprising:
a first transfer chamber having a first length and coupled to the vacuum chamber; and
a second transfer chamber connected to the vacuum chamber and having a second length shorter than the first length;
a second length of the second transfer chamber is shorter than a horizontal dimension of the substrate;
vacuum processing system. The method of claim 8,
wherein the vacuum chamber is a vacuum rotation chamber having a rotor configured to move the substrate by an angle about a vertical axis;
vacuum processing system. 10. The method according to claim 8 or 9,
wherein the first transfer chamber is configured to park the substrate;
vacuum processing system. A method of operating a vacuum processing system for processing a substrate comprising:
depositing a layer of material on the first substrate for a first period of time;
parking a second substrate in a first transfer chamber during the first period of time; and
transferring a third substrate in a second transfer chamber during the first period of time;
the second transfer chamber has a second length that is shorter than a first length of the first transfer chamber;
wherein the second length is shorter than a horizontal dimension of the substrate;
How to operate a vacuum processing system. The method of claim 11,
wherein the first time period begins with the beginning of deposition of the material layer and the first time period ends with the end of the deposition of the material layer;
How to operate a vacuum processing system. 13. The method of claim 11 or 12,
moving a fourth substrate past the second substrate in the first transfer chamber during the first period of time;
How to operate a vacuum processing system. delete delete delete

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