KR102357572B1 - Planarization method, planarization system, and method of manufacturing article - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides an imprint method for performing a forming process comprising the steps of supplying an imprint material on a substrate and forming a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate using a mold, the method comprising: the substrate and the applying an adhesive on the substrate to adhere the imprint material to each other; performing a first annealing treatment for heating and cooling the substrate to which the adhesive is applied; conveying the substrate to which the first annealing treatment has been performed; performing a second annealing treatment for heating and cooling the substrate conveyed in the conveying step; and performing the forming process on the substrate on which the second annealing process has been performed.

Description

Planarization method, planarization system and article manufacturing method

The present invention relates to an imprint method, an imprint apparatus, an imprint system, and an article manufacturing method.

An imprint apparatus for forming an imprint material pattern on a substrate by using a mold is attracting attention as one type of mass-production lithographic apparatus for semiconductor devices and the like. The imprint apparatus supplies an imprint material on a substrate, and performs an imprint process in which the imprint material on the substrate and the mold are brought into contact with each other, and the mold is separated from the cured imprint material. As a result, an imprint material pattern can be formed on the substrate.

An adhesion layer for improving adhesion between the substrate and the imprint material is formed in advance on the substrate to be subjected to the imprint process (see Japanese Patent No. 5399374). The adhesion layer can be formed on the substrate by applying the adhesion material on the substrate by a spin coater or the like, heating (baking) the substrate, and then removing the solvent contained in the adhesion material.

In the adhesion layer formed on the substrate, since chemical contamination progresses with the lapse of time, contaminants in the adhesion layer increase with it, and diffusion of the imprint material on the adhesion layer may change. In this case, the filling of the imprint material into the three-dimensional pattern of the mold in the imprint process becomes insufficient, which may cause defects in the imprint material pattern formed on the substrate.

The present invention provides an advantageous technique for precisely forming an imprint material pattern on a substrate, for example.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an imprint method for performing a forming process comprising the steps of supplying an imprint material on a substrate and forming a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate using a mold, the method comprising: applying an adhesive on the substrate to adhere the substrate and the imprint material to each other; performing a first annealing treatment for heating and cooling the substrate to which the adhesive is applied; conveying the substrate to which the first annealing treatment has been performed; performing a second annealing treatment for heating and cooling the substrate conveyed in the conveying step; and subjecting the substrate to which the second annealing treatment has been performed, the forming treatment.

Additional features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an imprint system.
Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the imprint apparatus according to the first embodiment.
3 is a flowchart illustrating an imprint method according to the first embodiment.
Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing an imprint method according to the second embodiment.
Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an imprint apparatus according to the third embodiment.
Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a system configuration of an imprint system according to the fourth embodiment.
Fig. 7 is a diagram showing steps of a planarization treatment.
It is a figure which shows the manufacturing method of an article.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Like reference numerals denote like members throughout the drawings, and no repeated description is given thereto.

<First embodiment>

An imprint system 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1 . 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an imprint system 100 . The imprint system 100 according to the present embodiment is a system for forming an imprint material pattern on a substrate, and may include an application device 10 , an annealing device 20 , and an imprint device 30 . In addition, in the imprint system 100 , in addition to controlling each of the coating device 10 , the annealing device 20 , and the imprint device 30 , a control device 40 for controlling the transfer of the substrate W between the devices. is provided The control device 40 may be formed by, for example, a computer including a CPU, a storage unit (memory), and the like.

The coating device 10 applies an adhesive material onto the substrate by a spin coater or the like in order to make the imprint material and the substrate W adhere to each other (to improve adhesion between the imprint material and the substrate W). The annealing apparatus 20 heats and cools the substrate W in order to remove the solvent contained in the adhesion material with respect to the board|substrate W to which the adhesive material was apply|coated by the application|coating apparatus 10 (first annealing process) 1 baking treatment). As a result, an adhesion layer capable of improving adhesion between the imprint material and the substrate W can be formed on the substrate. The first annealing treatment includes a treatment of heating the substrate W to 60° C. or higher (preferably 90° C. or higher), and the heating conditions may be arbitrarily determined according to the type of adhesive applied on the substrate. The heating conditions may include, for example, heating time, heating temperature, and atmospheric gas (N ₂ , Ar, etc.). The substrate W subjected to the first annealing process is stored in a storage case F such as a FOUP (Front Opening Unify Pod). Subsequently, the storage case F is conveyed to the imprint apparatus 30 as a whole by a conveying mechanism such as OHT (Overhead Hoist Transfer).

The imprint apparatus 30 is an apparatus for forming a cured product pattern onto which the three-dimensional pattern of the mold is transferred by bringing the imprint material supplied on the substrate and the mold into contact with each other and applying curing energy to the imprint material. For example, the imprint apparatus 30 supplies the imprint material on the substrate (on the adhesion layer), and hardens the imprint material in a state in which the mold M on which the three-dimensional pattern is formed is brought into contact with the imprint material on the substrate. . Subsequently, by increasing the space between the mold M and the substrate W to separate (release) the mold M from the cured imprint material, an imprint material pattern is formed on the substrate (on the adhesion layer). This process may be referred to as "formation process" or "imprint process" hereinafter.

As the imprint material, a curable composition (also referred to as uncured resin) that is cured by application of curing energy is used. An electromagnetic wave, heat, etc. are used as hardening energy. As the electromagnetic wave, for example, light such as infrared rays, visible rays, and ultraviolet rays whose wavelength is selected from the range of 10 nm (inclusive) to 1 mm (inclusive) is used.

A curable composition is a composition hardened|cured by light irradiation or application of a heat|fever. Among these compositions, the photocurable composition cured by light contains at least a polymerizable compound and a photopolymerization initiator, and may contain a nonpolymerizable compound or a solvent as needed. The non-polymerizable compound is at least one material selected from the group consisting of a sensitizer, a hydrogen donor, an internal mold release agent, a surfactant, an antioxidant, a polymer component, and the like.

The imprint material may be supplied in the form of a film on the substrate by a spin coater or a slit coater. Alternatively, the imprint material may be supplied on the substrate in the form of droplets by a liquid ejection head, or in the form of an island in which the droplets are connected together, or in the form of a film. The imprint material has a viscosity (viscosity at 25°C) of 1 mPa·s (inclusive) to 100 mPa·s (inclusive).

The substrate W is made of glass, ceramic, metal, semiconductor, or resin. A member formed of a material different from that of the substrate may be formed on the surface of the substrate as necessary. More specifically, the substrate W is a silicon wafer, a compound semiconductor wafer, or a quartz glass wafer.

Next, a configuration example of the imprint apparatus 30 will be described. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the imprint apparatus 30 according to the present embodiment, and is a view of the imprint apparatus 30 as viewed from above (Z-direction). The imprint apparatus 30 may include a pattern forming unit 31 that performs a forming process, a transfer unit 32 that transfers the substrate W, and a control unit 33 . The control unit 33 controls each unit of the imprint apparatus 30, and is formed by, for example, a computer including a CPU and a storage unit (memory). Although the control unit 33 according to the present embodiment is configured separately from the control device 40 , the control unit may be formed integrally with the control device 40 .

The pattern forming unit 31 includes an imprint head 31a that holds the mold M by vacuum suction, a stage 31b that can move while holding the substrate W by vacuum suction, and a stage 31b ) may include a supply unit 31c for supplying an imprint material on the substrate held by the . The transfer unit 32 transfers the substrate W from the storage case F mounted on the table (mounting table) 34 to the pattern forming unit 31 (on the stage 31b) by a transfer mechanism such as OHT. has the ability to return The transfer unit 32 may be formed by a transfer robot including a hand 32a holding the substrate W, and a drive mechanism 32b (arm) for driving the hand 32a.

Here, in the adhesion layer formed on the substrate, since chemical contamination proceeds with the lapse of time, contaminants in the adhesion layer may increase accompanying it, and the manner in which the imprint material diffuses on the adhesion layer may change. In this case, in the forming process, the filling of the imprint material into the three-dimensional pattern of the mold M becomes insufficient, which may cause defects in the imprint material pattern formed on the substrate. The present inventors have found, as a result of extensive examination of these problems, that the adhesion layer contamination can be reduced by sublimating the adhesion layer contamination by subjecting the substrate W on which the adhesion layer is formed to annealing treatment again.

Therefore, in the imprint system 100 according to the present embodiment, the imprint apparatus 30 includes an annealing unit 35 that performs a second annealing process for heating and cooling the substrate W on which the adhesion layer is formed. For example, a heating oven or the like may be used as the annealing unit 35 . In the imprint apparatus 30 , after the annealing unit 35 performs a second annealing process on the substrate W on which the adhesion layer is formed by the first annealing process by the annealing apparatus 20 , the substrate W is formed It is conveyed to the pattern forming unit 31 for processing. As a result, the formation process can be performed in a state in which the contaminants of the adhesion layer are reduced, and the imprint material pattern can be precisely formed on the substrate.

An imprint method of the imprint system 100 according to the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. 3 . 3 is a flowchart illustrating an imprint method of the imprint system according to the present embodiment.

In step S10, the coating device 10 applies|coats an adhesive material on a board|substrate. In step S11, the annealing apparatus 20 performs 1st annealing process with respect to the board|substrate W to which the adhesive material was apply|coated by the application|coating apparatus 10. The 1st annealing process is a baking process which heats the board|substrate W to 60 degreeC or more (preferably 90 degreeC or more), and removes the solvent contained in the adhesion material on a board|substrate. An adhesion layer can be formed on the substrate by performing this first annealing treatment. In step S12, the substrate W subjected to the first annealing process is transferred to the imprint apparatus 30 by a transfer mechanism such as an OHT. More specifically, after the first annealing treatment is performed by the annealing apparatus 20, the substrate W is stored in the storage case F, and the entire storage case F is transferred to the imprint apparatus 30 by a conveying mechanism. It is transferred to the mounting table 34 of

The processes of steps S13 to S19 are processes performed by the imprint apparatus 30 , and may be controlled by, for example, the control unit 33 .

In step S13 , the control unit 33 anneals the substrate W (target substrate W), which is the target of the formation process, among the plurality of substrates W stored in the storage case F on the mounting table 34 . The conveying unit 32 is controlled to convey to 35 . In step S14 , the control unit 33 controls the annealing unit 35 to perform the second annealing process on the target substrate W . The second annealing treatment is a baking treatment in which the substrate W is heated to 60°C or higher (preferably 90°C or higher) to sublimate the contaminants in the adhesion layer formed on the substrate to reduce contaminants. The heating condition in the second annealing treatment may be arbitrarily determined according to the kind of the adhesive applied on the substrate. However, the heating condition may be determined by changing at least one of the heating conditions in the first annealing treatment among the heating time, heating temperature, and atmospheric gas. For example, since the second annealing treatment is performed to remove the adhesion layer contaminants, the heating time of the substrate W can be shorter than in the first annealing treatment performed to remove the solvent of the adhesion material.

At this time, in the adhesion layer on the substrate, since chemical contamination proceeds with the lapse of time even after the execution of the second annealing treatment, the adhesion increases with the increase of the elapsed time after the second annealing operation by the annealing unit 35 is finished. Layer contamination may increase. Therefore, in step S14, the control unit 33 controls the annealing unit, based on the time at which the forming process is started, so that the waiting time from the end of the second annealing process to the start of the forming process falls within the allowable time. It may be desirable to control the timing at which the second annealing process is started by (35). Hereinafter, the "waiting time from the end of the second annealing process until the start of the forming process" can be simply referred to as "waiting time". In addition, the allowable time is, for example, the upper limit of the waiting time during which the number of defects of the imprint material pattern formed on the substrate can fall within the allowable range, and the allowable time can be set in advance by conducting experiments or simulations.

In step S15 , the control unit 33 controls the conveying unit 32 in which the substrate W subjected to the second annealing treatment is conveyed to the pattern forming unit 31 (on the stage 31b ). In step S16 , the control unit 33 determines whether or not the waiting time of the substrate W conveyed to the pattern forming unit 31 falls within the allowable time. Here, in step S14, even when the start timing of the second annealing process is controlled so that the waiting time falls within the allowable time, the waiting time may exceed the allowable time due to, for example, an apparatus trouble or the like. Therefore, the control unit 33 reconfirms, in step S16, whether the waiting time of the substrate W falls within the allowable time. When the waiting time of the substrate W does not fall within the allowable range, the substrate W is transferred to the annealing unit 35, and the process returns to step S14 to perform the second annealing treatment on the substrate W again. On the other hand, if the waiting time of the substrate W falls within the allowable range, the process proceeds to step S17.

In step S17 , the control unit 33 controls the pattern forming unit 31 to perform a forming process on the substrate W . In step S18 , the control unit 33 controls the conveying unit 32 to return the substrate W on which the forming process has been performed to the storage case F . In step S19, the control unit 33 determines whether or not the substrate W (hereinafter, the next substrate W) to be subjected to the formation process next is in the storage case F. If the next substrate W exists, the process returns to step S13, and the processes of steps S13 to S19 are performed for the next substrate W. At this time, the second annealing treatment (steps S13 and S14) for the next substrate W may be performed while the formation processing for the previous substrate W (target substrate W) is being performed. On the other hand, when the next substrate W does not exist, the process is finished.

Here, in the case of performing the forming process on each of the plurality of substrates W, it is preferable from the viewpoint of reproducibility to make the number of defects of the imprint material pattern formed on the substrate by the forming process the same for the plurality of substrates W. . In order to realize this, the waiting time from the end of the second annealing process to the start of the formation process can be used equally for the plurality of substrates W. Accordingly, in the imprint system 100 (imprint apparatus 30 ) according to the present embodiment, the start timing of the second annealing process can be controlled so that the plurality of substrates W have the same waiting time in step S14 .

As described above, in the imprint system 100 according to the present embodiment, the annealing unit 35 that performs the second annealing process is disposed in the imprint apparatus 30 . In the imprint apparatus 30 , after the annealing unit 35 performs a second annealing treatment on the substrate W on which the adhesion layer is formed by execution of the first annealing treatment by the annealing apparatus 20 , the processed substrate W ) is transferred to the pattern forming unit 31 , and a forming process is performed on the substrate W . As a result, the forming process can be performed in a state in which the adhesion layer contamination is reduced, and the imprint material pattern can be precisely formed on the substrate.

<Second embodiment>

An imprint system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The imprint system according to this embodiment is basically a system that inherits the configuration and imprint method of the imprint system 100 according to the first embodiment, but some parts of the imprint method of this embodiment are different from those of the first embodiment. In the imprint system according to the present embodiment, whether or not the second annealing process by the annealing unit 35 of the imprint apparatus is to be performed is determined according to the elapsed time after the first annealing process is performed by the annealing apparatus 20 do.

An imprint method of the imprint system according to the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. 4 . Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing an imprint method of the imprint system according to the present embodiment.

Steps S20 to S22 are the same as steps S10 to S12 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 3 . In step S20, the application|coating apparatus 10 apply|coats an adhesive material on a board|substrate. In step S21, the annealing apparatus 20 performs a 1st annealing process with respect to the board|substrate W to which the adhesive material was apply|coated by the application|coating apparatus 10. In step S22, the substrate W subjected to the first annealing process is transferred to the imprint apparatus 30 by a transfer mechanism.

The processes of steps S23 to S30 are processes performed by the imprint apparatus 30 , and may be controlled by, for example, the control unit 33 .

In step S23 , the control unit 33 anneals the substrate W (target substrate W) that is the formation processing target among the plurality of substrates W stored in the storage case F on the mounting table 34 . It is determined whether or not the elapsed time after the end of the first annealing process by the apparatus 20 falls within the allowable time. The permissible time is the same as the permissible time of the waiting time described above, and is, for example, the upper limit of the elapsed time when the number of defects in the imprint material pattern formed on the substrate falls within the permissible range. The allowable time can be set in advance by conducting an experiment or simulation.

If it is determined in step S23 that the elapsed time does not fall within the allowable range, the process proceeds to step S24. In step S24 , the control unit 33 controls the transfer unit 32 so that the target substrate W is transferred to the annealing unit 35 . In step S25 , the control unit 33 controls the annealing unit 35 to perform the second annealing process on the target substrate W . Steps S24 to S25 are the same as steps S13 to S14 in the flowchart shown in Fig. 3, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S23 that the elapsed time falls within the allowable range, the process proceeds to step S26. As described above, in the imprint system according to the present embodiment, the annealing unit 35 performs the second annealing process on the target substrate W only when the elapsed time after the first annealing process ends does not fall within the allowable range. do

In step S26 , the control unit 33 controls the conveying unit 32 to convey the target substrate W to the pattern forming unit 31 (on the stage 31b ). The steps of steps S27 to S29 are the same as those of steps S16 to S18 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 3 . In step S30 , the control unit 33 determines whether or not the substrate W (the next substrate W) to be subjected to the formation process next exists in the storage case F. If the next substrate W exists, the process returns to step S23, and the steps S23 to S29 are performed for the next substrate W. At this time, the second annealing treatment (steps S23 to S25) of the next substrate W may be performed while the formation processing is performed on the previous substrate W (target substrate W). On the other hand, when the next substrate W does not exist, the process is finished.

As described above, in the imprint system according to the present embodiment, only for the substrate for which the elapsed time after the end of the first annealing process by the annealing apparatus 20 does not enter within the allowable time, the annealing unit 35 performs the second Annealing is performed. As a result, the throughput can be improved as compared with the imprint system according to the first embodiment.

<Third embodiment>

An imprint system according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. The imprint apparatus 30 of the imprint system according to the present embodiment has a configuration different from that of the imprint system 100 according to the first embodiment (second embodiment).

An example of the configuration of the imprint apparatus 30 of the imprint system according to the present embodiment will be described. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the imprint apparatus 30 according to the present embodiment, and is a view of the imprint apparatus 30 as seen from above (Z-direction). In the imprint apparatus 30 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of pattern forming units 31 , a plurality of conveying units 32 , and a plurality of annealing units 35 are arranged. In the example shown in FIG. 5, four pattern forming units 31, two conveyance units 32, and two annealing units 35 are arrange|positioned. In addition, in the example shown in FIG. 5, when conveying the eight mounting tables 34 on which the storage case F is respectively mounted, and the board|substrate W to the corresponding one of the pattern forming units 31, each board|substrate W ) is disposed, and a second conveying unit 37 conveying the substrate W from the relaying unit 36 to a corresponding one of the pattern forming units 31 are arranged.

In the imprint apparatus 30 according to the present embodiment, each substrate W to be conveyed to the pattern forming unit 31 is temporarily placed in the relay unit 36 by the conveying unit 32 . The substrate W disposed on the relay unit 36 is conveyed by the second conveying unit 37 to a corresponding one of the pattern forming units 31 . A module arranged so as to transport each substrate W to the plurality of pattern forming units 31 in this way is also referred to as an EFEM (Equipment Front End Module). The imprint method described in the first or second embodiment can also be applied to the imprint system having the imprint apparatus 30 arranged in this way.

<Fourth embodiment>

An imprint system 100A according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The system configuration of the imprint system 100A according to the present embodiment is different from the configuration of the imprint system 100 of the first embodiment (the second embodiment), and the coating device 10, the annealing device 20, and The imprint apparatus 30 is connected in an inline manner.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the system configuration of the imprint system 100A according to the present embodiment, and is a view of the imprint system viewed from above (Z-direction). In the imprint system 100A according to the present embodiment, the mounting table 34 is disposed on the application device 10 . After the substrate W stored in the storage case F on each mounting table 34 is conveyed to the coating device 10 and the adhesive is applied, the substrate W is conveyed to the annealing device 20 to perform first annealing processing is performed. The substrate W subjected to the first annealing treatment is transferred to the relay unit 36 of the imprint apparatus 30 by the transfer robot 50 as a transfer mechanism. In the imprint apparatus 30 , a plurality of (four in the example of FIG. 6 ) pattern forming unit 31 , an annealing unit 35 , a conveying unit 32 , and a second conveying unit 37 are arranged. The transfer unit 32 transfers the substrate W between the relay unit 36 and the annealing unit 35 . The second transfer unit 37 transfers the substrate W between the relay unit 36 and each pattern forming unit 31 . The imprint method described in the first or second embodiment can also be applied to the imprint system 100A arranged in this way.

<Fifth embodiment>

A fifth embodiment to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIG. 7 . Compared to the method of transferring a pattern previously drawn on a mold (template) to a wafer (substrate) as described in the above embodiment, a three-dimensional pattern is not drawn on the mold (planar template) in this embodiment. The lower pattern formed on the wafer has a three-dimensional profile by the pattern formed by the previous process. In particular, in recent years, process wafers having a step difference of around 100 nm have appeared as the multilayer structure of memory devices increases. The step caused by gentle warping of the entire wafer can be corrected by the focus tracking function of the scan exposure apparatus used in the photolithography process, but a three-dimensional pattern having a fine pitch that falls within the exposure slit area of the exposure apparatus is exposed as it is. Consumes the depth of focus (DOF) of the device. As a conventional method for smoothing the lower wafer pattern, a method of forming a planarization layer such as spin on carbon (SOC) and chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is used. However, in the prior art, 3 at the boundary between the isolated pattern area A and the repetitive dense (line and space dense) pattern area B, as indicated by reference numeral 71 in FIG. 7 (described below), 3 Since the dimensional pattern suppression rate is 40% to 70%, there is a problem that sufficient planarization performance cannot be obtained. Therefore, the three-dimensional difference of the underlying pattern caused by multilayering tends to increase further in the future.

As a solution to this problem, US Patent No. 9415418 proposes a method of forming a continuous film by applying a resist to become a planarization layer on a substrate by an inkjet dispenser, and pressing the applied resist with a planar template. Further, US Patent No. 8394282 proposes a method of reflecting the topography measurement result on the wafer side in density information of each location designated to be applied by an inkjet dispenser. In this embodiment, the present invention is particularly applied to a planarization apparatus that performs local planarization on a wafer surface by pressing a planar template against a pre-applied uncured resist.

Reference numeral 71 in Fig. 7 denotes the wafer before planarization. The area of the pattern convex portion of the isolated pattern region A is small, and the ratio of the area occupied by the pattern convex portion to the area occupied by the pattern concave portion in the dense region B is 1:1. The value of the average height of the isolated pattern area (A) and the dense area (B) varies according to the proportion occupied by the convex portions.

Reference numeral 72 in FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state in which a resist for forming a planarization layer is applied to the wafer. Although this figure shows a state in which the resist is applied by an inkjet dispenser based on the known example of US Patent No. 9415418, the present invention is applicable even when a spin coater is used for resist application. That is, the present invention is applicable as long as it includes a planarization process in which a planar template is pressed against a previously applied uncured resist.

In reference numeral 73 of Fig. 7, the flat template is formed of glass or quartz that transmits ultraviolet rays, and is hardened by irradiation of exposure light from an exposure light source. On the other hand, the flat template follows the profile of the wafer surface with respect to the gently concave-convex portion of the entire wafer.

At reference numeral 74 in Fig. 7, the planar template is separated after the resist is cured.

The present invention is applicable to the above-described fifth embodiment, and obtains the same effects as those of the first to fourth embodiments in terms of reduction of adhesion layer contaminants.

<Example of manufacturing method of article>

The method for manufacturing an article according to an embodiment of the present invention is suitable for manufacturing an article such as a microdevice such as a semiconductor device or an element having a microstructure, for example. The article manufacturing method according to this embodiment includes the steps of forming a pattern on an imprint material supplied (applied) to a substrate using the above-described imprint system (imprint apparatus and imprint method), and processing the substrate on which the pattern is formed in the previous step including the steps of This manufacturing method further includes other known steps (oxidation, film formation, deposition, doping, planarization, etching, resist removal, dicing, bonding, packaging, etc.). The article manufacturing method according to the present embodiment is advantageous in at least one of the performance, quality, productivity, and production cost of the article, compared to the conventional method.

The pattern of the hardened|cured material shape|molded by the imprint apparatus is used permanently for at least a part of various articles|goods, or is temporarily used when manufacturing various articles|goods. Articles include electrical circuit devices, optical devices, MEMS, recording devices, sensors, dies, and the like. The electrical circuit element includes, for example, a volatile or nonvolatile semiconductor memory such as DRAM, SRAM, flash memory, or MRAM, or a semiconductor element such as an LSI, CCD, image sensor, or FPGA. The die includes an imprint mold and the like.

The pattern of the cured product is used as it is as a constituent member of at least a part of the above-mentioned article, or is temporarily used as a resist mask. After etching, ion implantation, etc. are performed in the processing step of the substrate, the resist mask is removed.

A specific manufacturing method of the article will now be described. As shown by reference numeral 81 in Fig. 8, a substrate 1z such as a silicon wafer on which a processing target material 2z such as an insulator is formed on the surface is prepared, and then the processing target material 2z is formed by an inkjet method or the like. An imprint material 3z is applied to the surface. Here, a state in which an imprint material 3z formed of a plurality of droplets is applied on a substrate is shown.

As shown by reference numeral 82 in FIG. 8 , the side of the imprint mold 4z on which the three-dimensional pattern is formed faces the imprint material 3z on the substrate. As shown by reference numeral 83 in Fig. 8, the substrate 1z to which the imprint material 3z has been applied and the mold 4z are brought into contact with each other, and pressure is applied. The imprint material 3z fills the gap between the mold 4z and the material to be processed 2z. In this state, the imprint material 3z is cured by irradiating light as curing energy through the mold 4z.

8, after curing the imprint material 3z, the mold 4z and the substrate 1z are separated from each other, so that the cured product of the imprint material 3z is placed on the substrate 1z. A pattern is formed. The pattern of the cured product has a shape in which the concave portions of the mold correspond to the convex portions of the cured product, and the convex portions of the mold correspond to the concave portions of the cured product. That is, the three-dimensional pattern of the mold 4z is transferred to the imprint material 3z.

As shown by reference numeral 85 in FIG. 8 , by etching using the pattern of the cured product as an etching resistance mask, a portion of the surface of the material 2z to be processed without the cured product or the portion where the cured product is kept thin This is removed to become the trench 5z. As shown by reference numeral 86 in FIG. 8 , by removing the pattern of the cured product, an article having a trench 5z formed in the surface of the material 2z to be processed can be obtained. Although the pattern of the cured product is removed here, the pattern of the cured product is not removed even after processing, and can be used, for example, as an interlayer insulating film included in a semiconductor device or the like, that is, as a constituent member of an article.

<Another embodiment>

The embodiment(s) of the present invention is a computer recorded on a storage medium (which may be more fully referred to as a 'non-transitory computer-readable storage medium') for executing the functions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s). one or more circuits (eg, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)) to read and execute executable instructions (eg, one or more programs) and/or to execute the functions of one or more of the embodiment(s) described above; and/or by reading and executing computer-executable instructions by a computer of a system or apparatus comprising the foregoing and/or by reading and executing computer-executable instructions from a storage medium, for example, to carry out the functions of one or more of the foregoing embodiment(s) and/or the foregoing embodiment(s). ), by controlling one or more circuits to execute one or more functions of the system or apparatus may be realized by a computer-implemented method. A computer may include one or more processors (eg, central processing units (CPUs), microprocessing units (MPUs)) and may include a separate computer or network of separate processors for reading and executing computer-executable instructions. can do. The computer-executable instructions may be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or storage medium. A storage medium may be, for example, a hard disk, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), storage of a distributed computing system, an optical disk (eg, compact disk (CD), digital versatile disk (DVD) or Blu-ray Disc (BD) ^TM ), a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

(Other Examples)

According to the present invention, a program for realizing one or more functions of the above embodiments is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in the computer of the system or device read and execute the program It is also feasible to process.

It is also executable by a circuit (for example, an ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of the following claims is to be construed in the broadest sense to include all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.

Claims (14)

A planarization method for performing a forming process comprising the steps of supplying a curable composition on a substrate and then forming a planarization layer of the curable composition on the substrate by pressing a planar template on the curable composition,
applying an adhesive on the substrate to adhere the substrate and the curable composition to each other;
performing a first process of heating and cooling the substrate to which the adhesive has been applied;
performing, after the first processing, conveying the substrate to which the first processing has been performed;
performing, after the conveyance, a second process of heating and cooling the conveyed substrate; and
and, after the second treatment, performing the forming treatment on the substrate to which the second treatment has been performed. According to claim 1,
and the start timing of the second process is controlled such that a waiting time from the end of the second process to the start of the forming process falls within an allowable time, based on the time at which the forming process is to be started. 3. The method of claim 2,
The forming process is performed for each of a plurality of substrates,
and the start timing of the second processing for each of the plurality of substrates is controlled such that the waiting time is the same for the plurality of substrates. 4. The method of claim 3,
The second processing is performed again on a substrate for which the waiting time does not fall within the allowable time among the plurality of substrates. According to claim 1,
and the second treatment is different from the first treatment at least one of a heating time and a heating temperature. According to claim 1,
and a heating time of the substrate in the second process is shorter than a heating time of the substrate in the first process. According to claim 1,
and each of the first treatment and the second treatment includes a treatment of heating the substrate to 60° C. or higher. According to claim 1,
wherein the first processing is performed in a first device;
the second processing is performed in a second device;
wherein the conveying conveys the substrate from the first apparatus to the second apparatus. 9. The method of claim 8,
The forming process is performed by a planarization device,
wherein the second device is included within the planarization device. According to claim 1,
after the second processing, further comprising the step of performing a second transfer of the substrate to which the second processing has been performed;
and the forming process is performed on the substrate conveyed in the second conveyance. According to claim 1,
The adhesive is applied on the substrate such that an adhesive layer including the adhesive is formed on the substrate;
The first treatment is performed by heating the substrate so that the solvent contained in the adhesion layer is removed and then cooling the substrate,
wherein the second treatment is performed by heating the substrate and then cooling the substrate so that contaminants generated in the adhesion layer are reduced. A planarization method for performing a forming process comprising the steps of supplying a curable composition on a substrate and then forming a planarization layer of the curable composition on the substrate by pressing a planar template on the curable composition,
applying an adhesive on the substrate to adhere the substrate and the curable composition to each other;
performing a first process of heating and cooling the substrate to which the adhesive has been applied;
performing, after the first processing, conveying the substrate to which the first processing has been performed;
after the conveying, performing the forming process on the conveyed substrate;
If the elapsed time from the end of the first process does not come within the allowable time, the forming process is performed after performing the second process for heating and cooling the substrate, and when the elapsed time falls within the allowable time , wherein the forming process is performed without performing the second process. A method of manufacturing an article,
13. A method comprising: forming a planarization layer of a curable composition on a substrate using the planarization method according to any one of claims 1 to 12;
manufacturing the article by processing the substrate on which the planarization layer of the curable composition is formed. A planarization system for performing a forming process comprising the steps of supplying a curable composition onto a substrate and then forming a planarization layer of the curable composition on the substrate by pressing a planar template onto the curable composition,
an application device configured to apply an adhesive on the substrate to adhere the substrate and the curable composition to each other;
a heating device configured to perform a first process of heating and cooling the substrate to which the adhesive has been applied;
a planarization apparatus configured to perform the forming process on the substrate on which the first process has been performed;
a conveying device configured to convey the substrate, which has been subjected to the first processing, to the planarization device;
The flattening apparatus has a heating unit configured to perform a second process of heating and cooling the substrate, and the second process is performed by the heating unit on the substrate transferred to the flattening apparatus by the transfer apparatus and then performing the forming process.

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