KR20180048975A - Material supply apparatus and deposition apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A material supply apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes a material supply chamber, a melting furnace, at least one container, a supply unit, and a transfer unit. The material supply chamber is provided outside the evaporation chamber and can be maintained in a reduced-pressure atmosphere. The melting furnace is installed in the material supply chamber to dissolve the evaporation material. The vessel houses a molten metal of the evaporating material dissolved in the melting furnace. The supply unit is mounted to the melting furnace, and supplies the molten metal from the melting furnace to the vessel. The transport unit is configured to be able to transport the ingot of the evaporation material supplied from the supply unit and solidified in the container to the evaporation chamber together with the container.

Description

Material supply apparatus and deposition apparatus

The present invention relates to a material supply apparatus for supplying a vaporization material to an evaporation source and a deposition apparatus having the material supply apparatus.

A vapor deposition apparatus for depositing vapor of a vaporizing material (also referred to as vapor deposition material) on a substrate and forming a metal film, for example, on the substrate is known. Various types of evaporation sources such as resistance heating type, induction heating type and electron beam heating type are known as evaporation sources of vacuum evaporation apparatuses. Vaporization of evaporation material is generated by evaporating the evaporation material contained in the crucible by heating or electron beam irradiation .

In the vapor deposition apparatus, from the viewpoint of productivity, there is known a vapor deposition apparatus configured to be capable of intermittently or continuously supplying the vapor material to the crucible while the inside of the vapor deposition chamber is maintained in a predetermined reduced pressure atmosphere. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for supplying a pellet-shaped evaporation material to a crucible intermittently (at regular intervals), and Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for supplying evaporation material formed in wire form A technique for continuously supplying a material to a crucible is disclosed.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-128518 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-286266

However, in the method of supplying the evaporation material on the pellet in the crucible, since the evaporation material is basically intermittent supply, there is a problem that it is difficult to form a metal film having a uniform film thickness because the evaporation rate is easily fluctuated. Further, in the method of supplying the evaporation material on the wire to the crucible, the fluctuation of the evaporation rate can be suppressed because continuous feeding is possible, but there is a problem that it is expensive in the case of a material which is difficult to process into a wire form.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a material supply apparatus capable of supplying a vaporizing material to an evaporation chamber without requiring shape processing of the evaporation material, and without changing the evaporation rate, and a deposition apparatus having the same .

In order to achieve the above object, a material supply apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes a material supply chamber, a melting furnace, at least one container, a supply unit, and a transfer unit.

The material supply chamber is provided outside the evaporation chamber and can be maintained in a reduced-pressure atmosphere.

The melting furnace is installed in the material supply chamber to dissolve the evaporation material.

The container houses a molten metal of the evaporation material dissolved in the melting furnace.

The supply unit is mounted to the melting furnace, and supplies the molten metal from the melting furnace to the vessel.

The transport unit is configured to be able to transport the ingot of the evaporation material supplied from the supply unit and solidified in the container to the evaporation chamber together with the container.

Since the material supply device is configured to be capable of maintaining the material supply chamber in the reduced-pressure atmosphere, the evaporation material can be transported to the evaporation chamber without opening the evaporation chamber to the atmosphere.

The evaporation material conveyed to the evaporation chamber is an ingot solidified in the container by being supplied to the container from the melting furnace in the form of molten metal. The ingot is transported to the evaporation chamber together with the container, and reheated in the evaporation chamber in this state to evaporate. Therefore, the shape processing of the evaporation material is unnecessary, and it becomes possible to stably supply the evaporation material as a vaporization material even in a relatively soft metal material.

Further, since the evaporation material is conveyed in the vessel unit, it becomes possible to supply the evaporation material to the evaporation chamber without changing the evaporation rate.

Then, from the dissolution of the evaporation material, the supply into the vessel and the return to the deposition chamber are performed in a vacuum consistently. Therefore, oxidation of the evaporation material and deterioration due to adhesion of moisture are prevented, and it becomes possible to stably supply the evaporation material of high quality to the evaporation chamber.

The container may include a plurality of containers each capable of accommodating the evaporation material. In this case, the material supply apparatus further includes a support table including an index table capable of moving the plurality of containers in order to the supply position of the evaporation material by the supply unit.

As a result, the evaporation material provided in the evaporation chamber can be efficiently prepared, so that it is possible to shorten the time required for replenishment of the evaporation material into the evaporation chamber.

The supply unit may have a hot water supply mechanism (hot water supply mechanism) and a guide member.

The tapping mechanism (hot water supply mechanism) has a shaft member that passes through the bottom of the melting furnace in a liquid-tight manner and has at least one recessed portion on the outer peripheral surface, and a driving source that reciprocates the shaft member along its axial direction. The hot water supply mechanism is configured to be capable of discharging a predetermined amount of molten metal to the outside of the melting furnace by reciprocating movement along the axial direction of the shaft member.

The guide member is installed at a bottom of the melting furnace and guides the predetermined amount of molten metal discharged to the outside of the melting furnace to the container.

This makes it possible to suppress the amount of evaporation material in each container.

The tapping mechanism may further include a storage section provided at the bottom of the melting furnace. The storage unit is configured to store the predetermined amount of molten metal, and the shaft member liquid-tightly penetrates the storage unit. The driving source may include a first position for supplying the molten metal from the melting furnace to the storing portion through the recess and a second position for supplying the molten metal from the storing portion to the guide member through the recessed portion, The shaft member is movable.

The material supply device may further comprise a transport chamber capable of receiving the transport unit and being maintained in a reduced-pressure atmosphere.

By enabling the material supply chamber and the transport chamber to be intermittently cut off, atmosphere contamination or contamination in the evaporation chamber can be prevented.

A vapor deposition apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes a vapor deposition section, a material supply chamber, a melting furnace, a first support section, a supply unit, and a transfer unit.

The vapor deposition section has an evaporation chamber.

The material supply chamber is provided outside the evaporation chamber and can be maintained in a reduced-pressure atmosphere.

The melting furnace is installed in the material supply chamber to dissolve the evaporation material.

The first support portion includes at least one container capable of receiving the molten metal of the evaporating material dissolved in the melting furnace.

The supply unit supplies the molten metal from the melting furnace to the container.

The transport unit is configured to be capable of transporting the ingot of the evaporation material supplied from the supply unit and solidified in the container together with the container to the evaporation chamber from the first support portion.

The vapor deposition unit may further include a support member installed in the evaporation chamber and supporting the container, and an electron gun configured to irradiate an electron beam to the ingot contained in the container to be supported.

The container may include a plurality of containers each capable of accommodating the evaporation material. In this case, the support table further includes an index table capable of sequentially moving the plurality of containers to an irradiation position of the electron beam from the electron gun.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY As described above, according to the present invention, the shape processing of the evaporation material is unnecessary, and the evaporation material can be supplied to the evaporation chamber without changing the evaporation rate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic side cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a deposition apparatus having a material supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
[Fig. 2] A and B are side cross-sectional views of a main portion schematically showing the structure of a melting furnace and a tapping mechanism in a vapor material supply device.
3 is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing the configuration of a molten metal supply unit of the evaporation material in the material supply mechanism according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

≪ First Embodiment >

1 is a schematic side cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a deposition apparatus having a material supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis are three-axis directions orthogonal to each other, and the X axis and the Y axis indicate the horizontal direction and the Z axis indicates the height direction, respectively.

[Overall configuration of deposition apparatus]

1, the deposition apparatus 100 includes a deposition section 10 and a material supply mechanism 20 (material supply apparatus) for supplying a vaporization material to the deposition section 10.

(Deposition portion)

The evaporation unit 10 includes an evaporation chamber 11, a substrate holding unit 12 for holding the substrate S, a support 13 for supporting the evaporation material M, And an electron gun 14 for irradiating an electron beam E onto the electron beam.

The evaporation chamber 11 is connected to the first vacuum evacuation system 51 and is constituted by a vacuum chamber in which the inside can be evacuated or held in a predetermined reduced pressure atmosphere.

The substrate holding section 12 is provided above the inside of the evaporation chamber 11 and is capable of supporting the substrate S with its deposition surface downward. In the present embodiment, the substrate holding section 12 is configured to be rotatable around the rotation axis A1 in the XY plane in a state in which the substrate S is held.

As the substrate S, a rectangular or circular plate-like substrate such as a glass substrate or a semiconductor substrate is typically used, but the substrate S is not limited to this, and a flexible substrate such as a plastic film may be used May be used.

The support base 13 is provided in the vicinity of the bottom of the evaporation chamber 11 and is capable of supporting the evaporation material M to be deposited on the deposition surface of the substrate S together with the container H containing it Consists of. In this embodiment, the support table 13 includes a disk-shaped index table rotatable about the rotation axis A2 in the XY plane in a state in which a plurality of containers H are supported. The support base 13 houses a cooling mechanism capable of circulating a coolant such as cooling water and the plurality of containers H are arranged on the same plane on the upper surface of the support base 13 at a predetermined interval. The number of containers H that can be placed on the support table 13 is not particularly limited and may be one, but is typically plural.

The support 13 sequentially supplies any one container H (evaporation material M) from the standby position P1 to the evaporation position P2. The standby position P1 is a position in which the evaporation material M is held between the material supply mechanism 20 and the evaporation material M at one or two or more positions temporarily waiting for the container H used to contain the evaporation material used or before use And includes a position to exchange with the container (H). The evaporation position P2 is a position where the electron beam E from the electron gun 14 is irradiated onto the evaporation material M. In the present embodiment, In the Z-axis direction.

The electron gun 14 is provided in the vicinity of the supporter 13 and is configured to irradiate the electron beam E to the evaporation material M set at the evaporation position P2. The electron gun 14 is composed of an electron gun of a magnetic field deflection type (magnetic field deflection type) (transverse), but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, another type electron gun such as a pierced electron gun may be employed.

Although not shown, the deposition unit 10 includes a magnet for deflecting the electron beam E toward the evaporation material M on the evaporation position P2, a substrate for loading and unloading the substrate S with respect to the evaporation chamber 11, A transfer chamber, a gas introduction line for introducing a process gas into the deposition chamber 11, and the like. The number of the support rods 13 is not limited to one, but two or more rods may be provided. In this case, a plurality of the electron guns 14 may be provided corresponding to the number of the support rods 13.

The material supply mechanism 20 has a material supply portion 30 for supplying the evaporation material M and a transport portion 40 for transporting the evaporation material M from the material supply portion 30 to the deposition portion 10 .

(Material supply unit)

The material supply unit 30 includes a material supply chamber 31, a melting furnace 32 for dissolving the evaporation material, a support 33 for supporting the container H capable of accommodating the molten metal M1 of the evaporation material, And a supply unit 34 for supplying the molten metal M1 from the melting furnace 32 to the container H.

The material supply chamber 31 is provided outside the evaporation chamber 11 and is composed of a vacuum chamber independently of the evaporation chamber 11. [ That is, the material supply chamber 31 is connected to the second vacuum evacuation system 52 so that the inside of the material supply chamber 31 can be evacuated or maintained in a predetermined reduced pressure atmosphere.

The melting furnace 32 is provided inside the material supply chamber 31 and has an internal space for accommodating a bulk evaporation material and a heater for heating and melting the evaporation material at a predetermined temperature as described later . The inside of the melting furnace 32 can be exhausted to a predetermined reduced-pressure atmosphere together with the material supply chamber 31, whereby the melting furnace 32 functions as a vacuum melting furnace.

The material supply chamber 31 and the melting furnace 32 all have a top cover (not shown) that can be opened and closed and through which the evaporation material in bulk can be inputted into the inner space of the melting furnace 32 do.

The container H is capable of accommodating the molten metal M1 of the evaporation material dissolved in the melting furnace 32. In the present embodiment, the container H is made of a heat insulating material such as carbon or ceramic such as a haas or a was liner used for an electron beam evaporation source . A flange Fh is integrally formed on the periphery of the upper opening of the container H and the container H is gripped by the carrying unit 42 of the carry section 40 through the flange section Fh . The capacity of the container H is not particularly limited and is selected according to the specifications of the evaporation material M and the vapor deposition unit 10. In the present embodiment, for example, a container having a capacity of about 110 cc is used.

The type of the metal material used as the evaporation material is not particularly limited, and various metal materials capable of electron beam evaporation are used. In this embodiment, for example, a relatively soft metallic material in a bulk phase such as tin (Sn), tantalum (Ta), aluminum (Al), lithium (Li)

The supply unit 34 is mounted on the melting furnace 32 and is configured to supply the molten metal M1 from the melting furnace 32 to the vessel H. [ The supply unit 34 has a hot water supply mechanism (hot water supply mechanism) 35 and a guide member 36.

The tapping mechanism 35 is configured to be capable of discharging a predetermined amount of the molten metal M2 from the molten metal M1 of the evaporation material in the melting furnace 32 to the outside of the melting furnace 32. [ The guide member 36 is configured to be capable of guiding the predetermined amount of molten metal M2 discharged to the outside of the melting furnace 32 to the container H at the bottom of the melting furnace 32.

Figs. 2A and 2B are side cross-sectional views of a principal part schematically showing the structure of the melting furnace 32 and the tapping mechanism 35. Fig.

2A, the melting furnace 32 includes a furnace wall 322 containing a heater (heating wire) 321, a jacket portion 324 containing a refrigerant circulation passage 323, a lining material 325 ). The jacket portion 324 is provided on the outer surface of the furnace wall 322 to prevent the heat of the furnace wall 322 from being transmitted to the outside of the melting furnace 321. The lining material 325 is provided on the inner surface of the furnace wall 322 to lower the wetting property (or affinity) between the inner surface of the furnace wall 322 and the molten metal M1 of the evaporation material. The lining material 325 is made of, for example, a carbon-based material such as graphite.

The tapping mechanism 35 has a shaft portion 351 and a driving source 352.

The shaft portion 351 is formed inside the guide member 36 and is made of a columnar refractory metal material that passes through the bottom of the melting furnace 32 in a liquid-tight manner. The inner peripheral surface of the low hole 326 of the melting furnace 32 through which the shaft portion 351 passes is covered with a lining material 325 and the shaft portion 351 is axially As shown in Fig.

In the present embodiment, an annular concave portion 35g centered on the axial center is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft portion 351. The concave portion 35g has a volume that is large enough to accommodate a predetermined amount of the molten metal M2. As a result, when the shaft portion 351 is lowered, it is possible to discharge the predetermined amount of the molten metal (M2) to the outside of the melting furnace (32) as schematically shown in Fig. 2B. The predetermined amount is not particularly limited and is typically less than the capacity of the container H, and is about 10 cc in the present embodiment. When the concave portion 35g is provided in an annular shape as in the present embodiment, the molten metal spreads widely over the entire concave portion 35g when the molten metal is received from the melting furnace, and the molten metal is discharged from the concave portion 35g The molten metal is easily discharged from the entire concave portion 35g, so that it is possible to reliably receive and discharge the molten metal. It is preferable that the cross-sectional shape of the concave portion 35g is an arc shape (circular groove) as shown in the figure, and the dischargeability of the molten metal M2 from the concave portion 35g is also increased .

The concave portion 35g provided on the outer peripheral portion of the shaft portion 351 is not necessarily required to be annularly formed on the outer peripheral surface around the axis thereof and at least one recessed portion is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft portion 351 The shape or form of the molten metal is not particularly limited as long as the volume capable of accommodating a predetermined amount of molten metal can be determined. For example, the concave portion 35g may be constituted by a plurality of recesses provided intermittently along the circumferential direction (circumferential direction) of the shaft portion 351, and may be a single partial annular ring which is discontinuous in the circumferential direction Shaped groove) or the like.

The driving source 352 is for reciprocating the shaft portion 351 along its axial direction, and is composed of, for example, a cylinder mechanism, a ball screw mechanism, or the like. The drive source 352 is configured such that the concave portion 35g is located at the upward position where the concave portion 35g is positioned inside the melting furnace 32 and the concave portion 35g is located outside the melting furnace 32 as shown in FIG. The shaft portion 351 can be raised and lowered between the lowered position where the lower shaft 351 is located.

It is also preferable that the inner wall surface of the guide member 36 is covered with a lining material made of the same material as the lining material 325. [ This makes it possible to steadily lead the molten metal (M2) spouted from the spouting mechanism (35) to the container (H), so that the unbalance in the amount of molten metal reaching the container (H) can be suppressed. In order to prevent the evaporation material M from being cooled by the contact with the guide member 36, a heating source capable of holding the guide member 36 at a predetermined temperature or higher may be provided.

1, the support base 33 is provided in the vicinity of the bottom of the material supply chamber 31, and is capable of supporting a plurality of containers H therein. In this embodiment, the support table 33 includes a disk-shaped index table rotatable about the rotation axis A3 in the XY plane in a state in which a plurality of containers H are supported. The support base 33 includes a cooling mechanism capable of circulating a coolant such as cooling water and a plurality of containers H are arranged on the same plane on the upper surface of the support base 33 at a predetermined interval. The number of containers H that can be placed on the support table 33 is not particularly limited and may be one, but is typically plural.

The support table 33 sequentially supplies any one container H from the standby position P3 to the supply position P4. The standby position P3 is a position in which the evaporation material M is placed between the evaporation material 10 and the evaporation material M at one or more positions before or after the pouring of the container H, (M) with the container (H). The supply position P4 is a position where a predetermined amount of molten metal M2 is supplied (poured) from the tapping mechanism 35. In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 1, the outlet of the guide member 36 and the Z- As shown in Fig.

The material supply section 30 also has a sensor 37 and a controller 38. [

The sensor 37 is disposed outside the window made of a transparent plate provided on the upper part of the material supply chamber 31 and is provided with a vaporizing material (not shown) in the used container H transported from the vapor deposition unit 10 to the standby position P3 M, and outputs the detection signal to the controller 38. The controller 38 detects the remaining amount of the ink. The controller 38 controls the amount of the molten metal M1 supplied to the container H to be detected in the supply position P4 based on the output of the sensor 37 Number of times). The type of the sensor 37 is not particularly limited, and for example, an image sensor such as a camera or a distance measuring sensor such as a laser displacement meter is used.

The controller 38 is typically constituted by a computer incorporating a CPU, a memory, and the like, and controls the operations of the material supply unit 30 and the carry unit 40. The controller 38 may be configured as a host controller for controlling the entire operation of the deposition apparatus 100 including the deposition unit 10. [

(Conveying section)

The transport section 40 has a transport chamber 41 and a transport unit 42.

The transfer chamber 41 is disposed between the evaporation chamber 11 and the material supply chamber 31 and is connected to the evaporation chamber 11 and the material supply chamber 31 through the gate valves V1 and V2 . The transport chamber 41 is connected to the third vacuum evacuation system 53 and is configured such that the interior thereof can be exhausted or held in a predetermined reduced pressure atmosphere.

The transfer unit (42) is provided at the bottom of the transfer chamber (41). The carrying unit 42 includes a hand portion 421 capable of raising the flange portion Fh of the container H and a hand portion 421 having a hand portion 421 extending in the three axial directions of the X axis, And a polygonal arm portion 422 that can be carried by the arm 422. The transport unit 42 is constituted by, for example, a transport robot such as a SCARA type or a prog rack type.

[Operation of Deposition Apparatus]

Next, a typical operation of the deposition apparatus 100 configured as described above will be described.

The deposition chamber 11, the material supply chamber 31 and the transport chamber 41 are depressurized and maintained at a predetermined pressure through the first to third vacuum exhaust systems 51 to 53. [ The gate valves V1 and V2 are closed, and each of the chambers is closed in atmosphere. Since the gate valves V1 and V2 are for realizing the load lock function of the transport chamber 41, both gate valves V1 and V2 are controlled not to open at the same time although not described in the following description.

(Material supply process)

In the material supply section 30, the melting furnace 32 is depressurized together with the material supply chamber 31 in a state in which the bulk evaporation material M is accommodated, and in the reduced pressure atmosphere, the evaporation material M Lt; / RTI > A plurality of empty containers H are set on the support table 33 at the standby position P3 and the supply position P4 on the support table 33, respectively. After melting the evaporation material M, the molten metal M1 of the evaporation material M is supplied from the melting furnace 32 through the supply unit 34 to the container H on the supply position P4.

More specifically, the shaft portion 351 of the tapping mechanism 35 is moved from the elevated position shown in Fig. 2A to the lowered position shown in Fig. 2B so that a predetermined amount (about 10 cc) of molten metal M2 are supplied to the container H through the guide member 36. [ The lifting operation of the shaft portion 351 is repeated until the evaporation material supplied to the vessel H reaches the maximum filling amount. For example, when the maximum filling amount of the evaporation material supplied to the container H is 100 cc, the lifting operation of the shaft portion 351 is repeated ten times.

After the molten metal M1 of the evaporation material is supplied to the container H on the supply position P4, the support table 33 rotates by a predetermined angle and the container H on the standby position P3 is moved to the supply position P4 And the tapping operation of the evaporation material M1 described above is respectively performed. The container H having been supplied with the molten metal M1 at the supply position P4 is moved to the standby position P3 and the molten metal M1 in the container H is cooled on the support 33 and solidified. Therefore, the ingot (the agglomerated state) of the evaporation material M is stored in the container H.

The hand portion 421 of the transfer unit 42 enters the material supply chamber 31 from the transfer chamber 41 and the vaporized material M waiting at the standby position P3 on the support table 33 (H) to the deposition chamber 11. Thereafter, the container H containing the evaporation material M is transported to the standby position P1 of the support base 13 of the evaporation chamber 11.

When the container H is transported to the standby position P1 of the support table 13, the container H1 moves to the evaporation position P2 by the rotation of the support table 13. [ On the other hand, the transfer unit 42 returns to the material supply chamber 31 and holds the second container H holding the evaporation material M (ingot) waiting at the standby position P3 on the support table 33 And then enters the vapor deposition chamber 11 again to place the container H in the standby position P1 on the support table 13. [ This operation is repeated until the number of containers H capable of supporting the support table 13 is reached.

(Deposition process)

In the evaporation chamber 11, the substrate S is held in the substrate holding section 12 with the film formation face downward. The electron beam E is irradiated from the electron gun 14 toward the evaporation material M in the container H after the container H containing the evaporation material M has moved to the evaporation position P2. The vaporized material M irradiated with the electron beam E is redissolved and vapor (evaporated particles) M3 of the evaporated material M is generated. The substrate holding section 12 rotates around the rotation axis A1 at a predetermined speed and the vapor M3 is deposited on the deposition surface of the substrate S rotating together with the substrate holding section 12. [ As a result, a vapor-deposited film of the evaporation material M is formed on the deposition surface of the substrate S.

By continuing the vapor deposition process, the evaporation material M in the container H on the evaporation position P2 is consumed. When the remaining amount of the evaporation material M becomes less than a predetermined value, fluctuation of the evaporation rate is invited and it becomes difficult to perform stable film formation processing. Thereby, when the remaining amount of the evaporation material M becomes a predetermined value or less, the used evaporation material M on the evaporation position P2 and the unused evaporation material (not shown) on the standby position P1 M) are exchanged. Thereafter, the film formation process of the substrate S is resumed using the evaporation material M newly moved to the evaporation position P2. The replacement of the evaporation material M is typically performed at the time of replacing the substrate S.

(Material re-supply process)

When the evaporation material M on the support table 13 is all used or when the number of unused evaporation materials M becomes a predetermined value or less, the respective containers H are supplied from the evaporation chamber 11 to the material supply chamber 31 And instead, a container for accommodating the unused new vaporizing material M is carried into the vapor deposition chamber 11 from the material supply chamber 31.

The conveying unit 42 conveys the used evaporation material M waiting at the waiting position P1 on the support table 13 to the material supply chamber 31 together with the container H containing it. The container H conveyed to the standby position of the support table 33 in the material supply chamber 31 by the conveying unit 42 is conveyed to the support table 33 after the remaining amount of the evaporation material M is measured by the sensor 37 To the supply position P4. The container H to which the evaporation material M has been supplied up to the maximum charged amount is moved to the standby position P3 and the container H is transported to the evaporation chamber 11 through the transport unit 42 .

The molten metal M of the evaporation material M is supplied to the container H moved to the supply position P4 by a predetermined amount by the tapping mechanism 35 until the molten metal M1 reaches the maximum filling amount of the container H. [ At this time, based on the remaining amount data of the evaporation material in the container H measured by the sensor 37, the operation of the tapping mechanism 35 (the number of times of ascending and descending of the shaft portion 351) is determined.

Thereafter, by repeating the above-described operation, the evaporation material M is newly filled in the container H containing the used evaporation material M. The container H in which the evaporation material M is fully packed is transported to the evaporation chamber 11 at a predetermined timing (at the time of replacing the substrate S in the evaporation portion 10) .

As described above, in the present embodiment, for example, the following operational effects can be obtained.

The evaporation material M can be transported to the evaporation chamber 11 without opening the evaporation chamber 11 to the atmosphere because the material supply chamber 31 can be maintained in the reduced pressure atmosphere.

The evaporation material M conveyed to the evaporation chamber 11 is an ingot solidified in the container H supplied from the melting furnace 32 in the molten state to the container H and is fed to the container H, And is transported together to the evaporation chamber 11, where it is reheated in the evaporation chamber 11 and evaporated. Therefore, shape processing of the evaporation material M becomes unnecessary, and it becomes possible to stably supply the evaporation material M as the evaporation material M even in a relatively soft metal material.

Further, since the evaporation material M is transported in units of the container H, it becomes possible to supply the evaporation material M to the evaporation chamber 11 without changing the evaporation rate.

Since the supply of the evaporation material M into the container H and the conveyance thereof to the evaporation chamber 11 are carried out in a vacuum consistently from the dissolution of the evaporation material M, the oxidation of the evaporation material M, And it becomes possible to stably supply the evaporation material M of high quality to the evaporation chamber 11. [

In this embodiment, the support table 33 in the material supply chamber 31 includes an index table capable of moving a plurality of containers H in order at the supply position P4. This makes it possible to efficiently prepare the evaporation material M provided in the evaporation chamber 11 and thus to shorten the time required for the evaporation material M to be supplied to the evaporation chamber 11 have.

Since the support table 13 in the evaporation chamber 11 includes an index table capable of sequentially moving a plurality of containers H to the irradiation position of the electron beam E from the electron gun 14, It is possible to secure the evaporation material M necessary for the vapor deposition process, and it is possible to improve the productivity.

In the present embodiment, the tapping mechanism 35 is configured to supply the molten metal of the evaporation material to the container H in a predetermined amount, so that the dispensing amount of the evaporation material M for each container H is suppressed . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the irregularity of the evaporation rate for each container due to the unbalance in the amount of the evaporation material M.

In the above embodiment, the transport unit 42 is provided inside the transport chamber 41 capable of maintaining a vacuum atmosphere independently of the evaporation chamber 11 and the material supply chamber 31. Therefore, the material supply chamber 31 and the transfer chamber 41 can be intermittently blocked, and atmosphere contamination or termination in the evaporation chamber 11 can be prevented.

≪ Second Embodiment >

3 is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing the configuration of a molten metal supply unit of a vaporizing material in a material supply mechanism according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, the configuration other than the first embodiment will be mainly described, and the same reference numerals are given to the same components as those of the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted or simplified.

The supply unit 64 of the present embodiment has a tapping mechanism 65 and a guide member 66 having an outflow port 662. [ The tapping mechanism 65 has a shaft portion 651, a storage portion 652, and a driving source 653.

The storage section 652 is provided at the bottom of the melting furnace 32 so that only a predetermined amount of the molten metal M1 of the evaporation material M can be stored. The storage portion 652 has through holes 652a and 652b through which the shaft portion 651 passes at an upper end portion and a lower end portion, respectively

The shaft portion 651 passes through the bottom of the melting furnace 32, the guide member 66 and the storage portion 652 in a liquid-tight manner, and is configured to be movable in the axial direction with respect to these. Like the first embodiment, the shaft portion 651 has an annular concave portion 65g around its axis on its outer peripheral surface. The passage width z1 along the Z axis direction of the recessed portion 65g is set to be smaller than the height dimension z2 along the Z axis direction of the storage portion 652. [ The through hole 652b is shielded from the outer peripheral surface of the shaft portion 651 while the melting furnace 32 and the storage portion 652 communicate with each other through the recessed portion 65g and the through hole 652a, )do. The through hole 652a is shielded by the outer peripheral surface of the shaft portion 651 while the storage portion 652 and the guide member 66 communicate with each other through the recessed portion 65g and the through hole 652b.

The drive source 653 is constructed in the same manner as in the first embodiment and is configured to be movable up and down with respect to the bottom of the melting furnace 32, the guide member 66 and the storage portion 652. The driving source 653 is connected to the first position for supplying the molten metal M1 from the melting furnace 32 to the storage portion 652 through the concave portion 65g as shown by a solid line in the figure, And a second position in which the molten metal M 1 is supplied from the storage portion 652 to the inside of the guide member 66 through the concave portion 65g as shown by chain lines in FIG. Lt; / RTI >

The inner wall surfaces of the storage portion 652 and the guide member 66 are covered with a lining material for lowering the affinity with the molten metal M1 as in the case of the melting furnace 32. [ This makes it possible to steadily lead the hot water supply mechanism 65 and the molten metal M2 spouted out to the container H so that the unbalanced amount of the molten metal reaching the container H can be suppressed. A heating source 661 capable of maintaining the guide member 66 at a predetermined temperature or more is provided to prevent the evaporation material M from being cooled by the contact with the guide member 66. [

In the supply unit 64 of the present embodiment constructed as described above, as in the first embodiment described above, by moving the shaft portion 651 once from the inside of the melting furnace 32 to the container H It is possible to stably supply a predetermined amount of molten metal with high accuracy. The predetermined amount can be arbitrarily designed in accordance with the internal volume of the storage section 652, so that it is possible to sufficiently cope with a demand to supply the relatively large amount of molten metal to the container H at one time.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but may be modified in various ways.

For example, in the above embodiment, a case where the evaporation source in the evaporation unit 10 is constituted by an electron beam evaporation source is described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be constituted by a resistance heating type or induction heating type evaporation source. In this case, the present invention is applicable as a device for supplying a vaporizing material supplied to such an evaporation source.

10 ... The deposition unit
11 ... Deposition chamber
13 ... support fixture
20 ... Material supply mechanism
30 ... Material supply section
31 ... Material supply room
32 ... Melting furnace
33 ... support fixture
34 ... Supply unit
35,65 ... Tumbler
36,66 ... The guide member
40 ... [0050]
41 ... Conveying room
42 ... [0035]
100 ... Deposition apparatus
H ... Vessel
M ... Evaporation material
M1, M2 ... Melt
M3 ... steam

Claims (8)

A material supply chamber provided outside the evaporation chamber and capable of being maintained in a reduced-pressure atmosphere,
A melting furnace installed in the material supply chamber to dissolve the evaporation material,
At least one vessel capable of receiving the molten metal of the evaporating material dissolved in the melting furnace,
A supply unit mounted to the melting furnace and supplying the molten metal from the melting furnace to the vessel;
A transfer unit which is capable of transferring the ingot of the evaporation material supplied from the supply unit and solidified in the container to the evaporation chamber together with the container,
And a supply device for supplying the material.
The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the container comprises a plurality of containers each capable of containing the evaporation material,
The material supply device further includes a support table including an index table capable of moving the plurality of containers in order to the supply position of the evaporation material by the supply unit
Material supply device.
3. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
The supply unit includes:
And a driving source for reciprocating the shaft member along its axial direction, wherein the reciprocating motion of the shaft member in the axial direction causes a predetermined amount The molten metal being capable of being discharged to the outside of the melting furnace,
A guide member installed at a bottom of the melting furnace and guiding the predetermined amount of molten metal discharged to the outside of the melting furnace to the container,
Having
Material supply device.
The method of claim 3,
The tapping mechanism includes:
Further comprising a storage portion provided at a bottom of the melting furnace and capable of storing the predetermined amount of the molten metal,
The shaft member liquid-tightly penetrates the storage portion,
Wherein the drive source has a first position for supplying the molten metal from the melting furnace to the storage section through the recess and a second position for supplying the molten metal from the storage section to the guide member through the recess, Wherein the shaft member is configured to be movable
Material supply device.
5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
Further comprising a transfer chamber capable of receiving the transfer unit and being held in a reduced-pressure atmosphere
Material supply device.
A deposition unit having a deposition chamber,
A material supply chamber provided outside the evaporation chamber and capable of being maintained in a reduced-pressure atmosphere,
A melting furnace installed in the material supply chamber to dissolve the evaporation material,
At least one vessel capable of receiving the molten metal of the evaporating material dissolved in the melting furnace,
A supply unit for supplying the molten metal from the melting furnace to the vessel;
A transfer unit which is capable of transferring the ingot of the evaporation material supplied from the supply unit and solidified in the container together with the container from the first support unit to the deposition chamber,
.
The method according to claim 6,
The deposition unit may include:
A support table installed in the evaporation chamber for supporting the container,
An electron gun capable of irradiating an electron beam to the ingot accommodated in the container of the object to be supported;
≪ / RTI &
Deposition apparatus.
8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein the container comprises a plurality of containers each capable of containing the evaporation material,
The support table includes an index table capable of sequentially moving the plurality of containers to an irradiation position of the electron beam from the electron gun
Deposition apparatus.

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