KR20130009547A - Deposition apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A deposition apparatus is provided to offer ease of installation of a utility line by having a straight line shape space inside a guide arm, and to prevent twist of a utility line while pivoting operation of a guide arm by minimizing a movement of a utility line accepted in a guide arm. CONSTITUTION: A deposition apparatus includes a vacuum chamber(110), a deposition source(120), a deposition source operating unit, a guide arm(140) and a slide guiding unit. The deposition source is installed in the vacuum chamber. The deposition source operating unit linearly moves the deposition source respect to a substrate inside of the vacuum chamber. One side of the guide arm is drawn out to outside and the other side of the guide arm accepts a utility line(150) connected to the deposition source. The guide arm draws out the utility line to the outside of the vacuum chamber through one side while having the other side pivotally connected to the deposition source, and follows the linear movement of the deposition source, performs pivot operation and slides along the longitudinal direction. The slide guiding unit is installed with keeping the guide arm sealed, and guides the sliding movement of the guide arm.

Description

Deposition apparatus

The present invention relates to a deposition apparatus, and more particularly, to a deposition apparatus for depositing a deposition material on the substrate surface while linearly moving the deposition source with respect to the substrate in a vacuum chamber.

Flat panel displays include liquid crystal displays, plasma display panels, organic light emitting diodes, and the like. Among them, organic light emitting diodes have characteristics such as fast response speed, lower power consumption, higher brightness, and lighter weight than conventional liquid crystal display devices, and can be made ultra thin without the need for a separate back light device. It has been in the spotlight as a next generation display device.

On the other hand, as a general method of forming a thin film on the substrate of the flat panel display device, the vapor deposition (Evaporation), the physical deposition (PVD) such as ion-plation and sputtering (PVD) and the gas reaction Chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Among them, a vacuum deposition method may be used to form a thin film, such as an organic material layer, an inorganic material layer of the organic light emitting device.

The vacuum deposition method is a method of vaporizing or subliming an organic material or an inorganic material contained in a deposition source in a vacuum chamber and depositing it on a substrate surface. In such a vacuum deposition method, the deposition source may be supplied with electricity, control signals, cooling gas, etc. from the outside of the vacuum chamber for controlling the deposition process. To this end, the deposition source is connected to the supply means outside the vacuum chamber through utility lines such as wiring and piping. However, since the inside of the vacuum chamber maintains a vacuum atmosphere during the process, if the utility line is exposed to vacuum, the utility line may age or disconnect very quickly.

In addition, in recent years, the flat panel display device has become a large area. As a result, the substrate used in the manufacture of flat panel display devices has also become large. In depositing a deposition material on such a large area substrate, a method of depositing the deposition material on the substrate surface while linearly moving the deposition source with respect to the substrate in a vacuum chamber is also used. In this case, in order for the deposition source to move smoothly during the linear movement of the deposition source, the utility line must also be movable in the vacuum chamber.

Therefore, in order to prevent aging or disconnection of the utility line, it is necessary to perform wiring processing in the vacuum chamber so as to be movable while providing the same atmosphere as the atmospheric pressure outside the vacuum chamber to the utility line.

An object of the present invention can smoothly linearly move the deposition source, and also prevent aging or disconnection of the utility line, and to prevent twisting by minimizing the movement of the utility line within the guide arm during linear movement of the deposition source. To provide a deposition apparatus that can.

Deposition apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object, a vacuum chamber; A deposition source installed in the vacuum chamber; A deposition source driver for linearly moving the deposition source with respect to the substrate in the vacuum chamber; One end draws out of the vacuum chamber and the other end receives a utility line connected to the deposition source, through which one end draws the utility line out of the vacuum chamber and the other end is pivotally coupled to the deposition source. A guide arm which pivots and slides in the longitudinal direction depending on the linear movement of the deposition source; And a slide guide part installed in a sealed state in the vacuum chamber and the guide arm to guide the slide movement of the guide arm.

According to the present invention, since the utility line is not exposed to the vacuum atmosphere of the vacuum chamber and can be accommodated inside the arm part and placed in the same atmosphere as the outside of the vacuum chamber, the utility line may be prevented from aging or disconnection. The vapor deposition source can be smoothly linearly moved by the dark portion.

According to the present invention, the inside of the guide arm may have a straight space so that the installation of the utility line may be easy. In addition, the movement of the utility line accommodated in the guide arm can be minimized, so that the twisting of the utility line during pivoting of the guide arm can be prevented.

1 is a block diagram of a deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating a linear movement state of a deposition source in FIG. 1. FIG.
3 is a view showing an example in which the variable length is provided in the guide arm in Figure 1;
4 is a view showing an example in which the joint is provided in the guide arm in Figure 1;
FIG. 5 is a view showing a state in which a deposition source is moved toward a substrate in FIG. 4. FIG.
6 is a view showing an example in which the rotating member is provided in the guide arm in FIG.
7 is a cross-sectional view of the structure shown in Figure 1, the guide arm detachably coupled in two parts.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram of a deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating a linear movement state of a deposition source in FIG. 1.

1 and 2, the deposition apparatus includes a vacuum chamber 110, a deposition source 120, a deposition source driver 130, a guide arm 140, and a slide guide 160. .

The internal space of the vacuum chamber 110 maintains a vacuum atmosphere during the thin film deposition process on the substrate 10. The deposition process for the substrate 10 may be various. For example, in a state in which the substrate 10 is standing vertically in the vacuum chamber 110, the deposition source 120 linearly moves horizontally or vertically to supply the deposition material to the surface of the substrate 10 to supply the substrate 10. A thin film can be deposited on the surface. In this case, when a thin film having a predetermined pattern is formed on the surface of the substrate 10, the pattern mask 20 may be disposed on a surface on which the substrate 10 is deposited. In addition, the pattern mask 20 and the substrate 10 may be aligned by the alignment device 30. For example, in a state where the substrate 10 is fixed, the pattern mask 20 may be translated / rotated by the alignment device 30 to align the pattern mask 20 to a predetermined position with respect to the substrate 10. .

The deposition source 120 supplies a deposition material to the substrate 10 and may correspond to an evaporation source or a sputter gun. The evaporation source receives the deposition material and is configured to evaporate or sublime the received deposition material onto the substrate 10 surface. The sputter gun receives a target that is a deposition material and is configured to vaporize the received target by sputtering to deposit it on the surface of the substrate 10.

The deposition source driver 130 linearly moves the deposition source 120 with respect to the substrate 10. For example, the deposition source driver 130 may include a linear actuator 131 providing a driving force for linearly moving the deposition source 120 and a linear guide 132 for guiding linear movement of the deposition source 120. have. The linear actuator 131 may include a ball screw and a motor.

The guide arm 140 pivots depending on the linear movement of the deposition source 120 and simultaneously slides in the longitudinal direction. One end of the guide arm 140 receives the slide movement by the slide guide 160, and the other end of the guide arm 140 is pivotally coupled to the deposition source 120. Accordingly, the guide arm 140 may guide linear movement of the deposition source 120 while pivoting and slidingly moving depending on the linear movement of the deposition source 120. Since the pivoting operation and the slide movement of the guide arm 140 are made by receiving the driving force of the deposition source driver 130, the guide arm 140 may not be provided with a separate driving source. Thus, the structure of the guide arm 140 can be simplified. As a result, maintenance of the guide arm 140 may be easy.

For example, the guide arm 140 may have the same atmosphere as that inside the vacuum chamber 110. When the atmosphere outside the vacuum chamber 110 is an atmospheric pressure atmosphere, the inside of the guide arm 140 may also have an atmospheric pressure atmosphere. Thus, the utility line 150 may be connected to the deposition source 120 via the guide arm 140 in an atmospheric pressure atmosphere. Guide arm 140 may be formed in a variety of forms, for example may be made of a tube having a hollow.

Although the deposition source 120 is linearly moved horizontally by the guide arm 140, the linear movement of the deposition source 120 is linear, the guide arm 140 is a sidewall of the vacuum chamber 110. It is installed through the slide guide 160 in the may be configured to guide the vertical linear movement of the deposition source 120, of course.

Guide arm 140 receives utility line 150. The utility line 150 may be a wire for supplying electricity, a control signal, or the like to the deposition source 120 from the outside of the vacuum chamber 110, and a pipe for supplying the deposition gas, the cooling gas, and the like. One end of the utility line 150 is drawn out of the vacuum chamber 110, and the other end thereof is connected to the deposition source 120. When the inside of the guide arm 140 is placed in the same atmosphere as the outside of the vacuum chamber 110, the utility line 150 is accommodated inside the guide arm 140 without being exposed to the vacuum atmosphere of the vacuum chamber 110. It may be placed in the same atmosphere as the atmosphere outside the vacuum chamber 110. Thus, aging or disconnection of the utility line 150 can be prevented.

The slide guide unit 160 is installed in a sealed state in the vacuum chamber 110 and the guide arm 140 to guide the slide movement of the guide arm 140.

The process of guiding the linear movement of the deposition source 120 by the above-described guide arm 140 will be described with reference to FIG. 2 as follows.

First, when the deposition source 120 moves horizontally from the center position to the right side or moves to the left side, the guide arm 140 pivots. At this time, the guide arm 140 is guided by the slide guide 160 slide movement. That is, the guide arm 140 guides the linear movement of the deposition source 120 as the slide moves along the slide guide 160 during the pivoting operation while maintaining the predetermined length. Therefore, since the inside of the guide arm 140 may have a straight space, the installation of the utility line 150 may be easy. In addition, the movement of the utility line 150 accommodated in the guide arm 140 may be minimized, so that the twisting of the utility line 150 may be prevented during the pivoting operation of the guide arm 140.

Meanwhile, as illustrated in detail in FIG. 3, the slide guide 160 may include an outer tube 161, a first sealing member 162, and an elastic member 163.

One end of the outer tube 161 is coupled to the vacuum chamber 110 and the other end of the outer tube 161 is located in the vacuum chamber 110. The outer tube 161 partially passes through the guide arm 140 to guide the slide movement of the guide arm 140. When the guide arm 140 is formed in the form of a circular tube, the outer tube 161 may be formed coaxially with the guide arm 140 in the form of a circular tube. Here, the inner wall of the outer tube 161 is spaced apart from the outer wall of the guide arm 140 so that friction does not occur with the outer wall of the guide arm 140 when the guide arm 140 slides in the longitudinal direction.

The first sealing member 162 seals the coupling portion between the outer tube 161 and the vacuum chamber 110. For example, the first sealing member 162 may be vacuum bellows. In this case, the vacuum bellows may be installed to seal between the outer tube 161 and the vacuum chamber 110 outside the vacuum chamber 110. The vacuum bellows is deformable according to the movement of the outer tube 161 when the outer tube 161 is moved by the pivoting operation of the guide arm 140, thereby sealing between the outer tube 161 and the vacuum chamber 110. To maintain.

The elastic member 163 seals between the outer tube 161 and the guide arm 140 in the vacuum chamber 110. The elastic member 163 is installed to surround the outer tube 161 and the guide arm 140, and one end is fixed to the outer tube 161 and the other end is fixed to the guide arm 140 so that the outer tube 161 and the guide arm 140 may be fixed to the outer tube 161 and the guide arm 140. Seal between the arms 140.

The elastic member 163 extends and contracts along the slide movement direction of the guide arm 140. Thus, when the guide arm 140 pivots, the guide arm 140 reciprocates longitudinally along the interior of the outer tube 161 while maintaining sealing with the outer tube 161 by the elastic member 163. Can be. The elastic member 163 can cope even if a stroke error occurs during the pivoting operation of the guide arm 140. The vacuum bellows may be used as the stretchable member 163.

When the guide arm 140 is drawn out from the slide guide 160, the guide mechanism 170 may be installed at the drawn end. The guide mechanism 170 guides the movement of the end of the guide arm 140 when the drawn end of the guide arm 140 moves according to the linear movement of the deposition source 120. Guide mechanism 170 may comprise a cable bare. One end of the cable bear is connected to the drawn end of the guide arm 140, as shown in FIG. The cable bear may operate to bend in accordance with the drawn end position of the guide arm 140, thereby guiding the movement of the drawn end of the guide arm 140.

As shown in FIG. 4, the guide arm 140 may be provided with at least one joint sealed by the second sealing member 144. Here, the guide arm 140 may be formed to be bent or extended in a direction spaced apart or close to the substrate 10 by the joint. For example, the guide arm 140 includes first, second, and third arms 141a, 141b, and 141c, and a first joint 142 is formed between the first and second arms 141a and 141b. The second joint 143 may be positioned between the second arm 141b and the third arm 141c. Here, each rotation center axis of the first and second joints 142 and 143 is disposed in the linear movement direction of the deposition source 120, so that the guide arm 140 is moved by the first and second joints 142 and 143. It may be operated to be bent or extended in a direction spaced apart or in proximity to the substrate 10.

The second sealing member 144 allows the inside of the guide arm 140 to be sealed from the vacuum of the vacuum chamber 110 at the first and second joints 142 and 143. A vacuum bellows may be used as the second sealing member 144.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the first and second joints 142 and 143 are guided by the guide arm 140 even if the deposition source 120 is guided by the guide means and moves toward the substrate 10. , 2 joints (142, 143) can be folded. Therefore, the distance of the deposition source 120 to the substrate 10 may vary. Since the tilting angle of the guide arm 140 with respect to the deposition source 120 may be varied, the connection of the guide arm 140 and the deposition source 120 may be easy, and thus, the guide arm 140 and the deposition source ( Breakage of the binding site between 120) can be prevented. In addition, when the guide arm 140 has the first and second joints 142 and 143, assembly and disassembly may be easy, and thus may be advantageous for maintenance. The number of joints is not limited to that shown.

As another example, the guide arm 140 may be formed to be bent or extended in the linear movement direction of the deposition source 120 by the first and second joints 142 and 143. In this case, each rotation center axis of the first and second joints 142 and 143 is disposed in a direction facing the substrate 10, so that the guide arm 140 is driven by the first and second joints 142 and 143. It may be operated to be folded or unfolded in the linear movement direction of the deposition source 120.

As shown in FIG. 6, the rotating member 146 may be further provided on the guide arm 140. The rotating member 146 enables relative rotation of the guide arm 140 and the deposition source 120 about an axis along the longitudinal direction of the guide arm 140. For example, the rotating member 146 may be fixed to the third arm 141c. In addition, the rotating member 146 is rotatably supported by the connecting portion 121 connecting the third arm 141c and the deposition source 120. Here, the rotating member 146 is supported by the connecting portion 121 to rotate about the axis in the longitudinal direction of the guide arm 140.

When the rotating member 146 rotates with respect to the connector 121, the third arm 141c is rotatable, and thus the entire guide arm 140 is rotatable with respect to the deposition source 120. Therefore, even when an error of the movement path occurs when the deposition source 120 linearly moves, the guide arm 140 is rotatable with respect to the deposition source 120, thereby correcting the error. In this case, breakage of the guide arm 140 may also be prevented.

As shown in FIG. 7, the guide arm 140 may be configured to be detachably coupled to at least two parts. For example, the guide arm 140 may include first and second cases 140a and 140b bisected in the longitudinal direction. The first and second cases 140a and 140b are detachably coupled to each other, and are formed to provide a space in which the utility line 150 is accommodated while being coupled to each other.

The coupling portion between the first case 140a and the second case 140b may be sealed by a sealing member 140c such as an o-ring. Since the guide arm 140 is easily assembled or disassembled into the first case 140a and the second case 140b, it may be advantageous to maintain the utility line 150 accommodated therein. On the other hand, when the guide arm 140 is composed of first, second and third arms 141a, 141b and 141c, the first, second and third arms 141a, 141b and 141c are separated into at least two parts. It can be made of each structure possibly combined.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation and that those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and equivalent arrangements may be made therein. It will be possible. Accordingly, the true scope of protection of the present invention should be determined only by the appended claims.

110..Vacuum chamber 120..Deposition source
130. Deposition source drive 140. Guide arm
142,143..Joint 146..Rotating member
150. Utility line 160. Slide guide
161 .. Outer tube 162. First sealing member
163. Telescopic member 170. Guide mechanism

Claims (12)

A vacuum chamber;
A deposition source installed in the vacuum chamber;
A deposition source driver for linearly moving the deposition source with respect to the substrate in the vacuum chamber;
One end draws out of the vacuum chamber and the other end receives a utility line connected to the deposition source, through which one end draws the utility line out of the vacuum chamber and the other end pivotably couples to the deposition source. A guide arm which pivots and slides in the longitudinal direction depending on the linear movement of the deposition source; And
A slide guide part installed in a sealed state in the vacuum chamber and the guide arm to guide the slide movement of the guide arm;
Deposition apparatus comprising a. The method of claim 1,
The slide guide portion,
An outer tube coupled to the vacuum chamber at one end thereof and positioned at the other end in the vacuum chamber to guide the slide movement of the guide arm by partially passing through the guide arm;
A first sealing member for sealing an engagement portion between the outer tube and the vacuum chamber, and
And an elastic member sealing between the outer tube and the guide arm in the vacuum chamber and extending and contracting along the slide movement direction of the guide arm. The method of claim 2,
And the first sealing member and the elastic member are vacuum bellows, respectively. The method of claim 1,
And a guide mechanism for guiding the movement of one end of the guide arm when the one end of the guide arm moves in accordance with the linear movement of the deposition source. 5. The method of claim 4,
And the guide mechanism is a cable bare. The method of claim 1,
And the guide arm has at least one joint sealed by a second sealing member. The method according to claim 6,
And the second sealing member is a vacuum bellows. The method according to claim 6,
And the guide arm is formed to be bent or extended in a direction spaced apart or in proximity to the substrate by the joint. The method according to claim 6,
And the guide arm is bent or extended in the linear movement direction of the deposition source by the joint. The method of claim 1,
And a rotating member that allows relative rotation of the guide arm and the deposition source about an axis along the longitudinal direction of the guide arm. The method of claim 1,
And the guide arm has a structure that is detachably coupled to at least two parts. The method of claim 1,
And an inside of the guide arm has the same atmosphere as that outside of the vacuum chamber.

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