KR20210035706A - Film forming apparatus and film forming method, information acquiring device, alignment method, and method and apparatus for manufacturing electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a technique for handling relative posture changes of a substrate holding support mechanism and a mask holding support mechanism when tightly attaching a substrate and a mask after aligning the substrate and the mask. A film forming apparatus comprises: a substrate holding support means which supports a substrate; a mask holding support means which supports a mask almost in parallel with the substrate; an in-plane moving means which moves at least one between the substrate holding support means and the mask holding support means to change the relative position change relationship of the substrate and the mask in the plane; a distance change means which moves at least one between the substrate holding support means and the mask holding support means with respect to the other to change the distance between the substrate and the mask; a posture information acquiring means which acquires posture information for the substrate holding support means and the mask holding support means; and a posture control means which controls the relative posture of the substrate holding support means and the mask holding support means based on the posture information.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [FILM FORMING APPARATUS AND FILM FORMING METHOD, INFORMATION ACQUIRING DEVICE, ALIGNMENT METHOD, AND METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING ELECTRONIC DEVICE]

The present invention relates to a film forming apparatus and a film forming method, an information acquisition apparatus, an alignment method, and an electronic device manufacturing apparatus and manufacturing method.

In recent years, as a self-luminous type, electronic devices using organic EL elements having excellent viewing angles, contrasts, and response speeds have been actively applied to display units of various devices including wall-mounted televisions and mobile devices. The organic EL element is manufactured by forming a thin film such as an organic film on a substrate through a mask in a film forming apparatus such as a vapor deposition apparatus. In this manufacturing process, after carrying in the substrate into the depressurized chamber, the substrate and the mask are aligned (positioned) before the substrate and the mask are brought into close contact with each other.

At the time of alignment, for example, the alignment mark on the substrate side and the alignment mark on the mask side are recognized with a CCD camera or the like to detect the relative distance (positional displacement amount), and based on the detected positional displacement amount, the substrate is moved to the mask surface. By moving relatively in a parallel plane, the positions of the alignment marks on the substrate side and the mask side are aligned. Thereafter, the substrate is moved in a vertical direction, and the mask is adhered to the surface of the substrate by adsorbing the mask through the substrate with a magnet mechanism or the like.

At this time, when the substrate and the mask are brought into close contact with each other, a slight positional shift may occur between the substrate and the mask. Accordingly, in Patent Document 1, the amount of positional displacement of the alignment mark is obtained before and after the adhesion between the substrate and the mask, and based on this difference, the positional deviation that occurs when the substrate and the mask are brought into close contact with the substrate is brought into close contact with the substrate. Techniques for correcting beforehand are described.

That is, in Patent Document 1, the amount of positional shift between the substrate-side alignment mark and the mask-side alignment mark is calculated, respectively, before and after adhesion between the substrate and the mask, using image data recognized by the optical means. Then, based on these differences, a mechanical offset amount for correcting a positional shift caused by a mechanical error such as an error inherent to an alignment drive mechanism or a backlash is calculated. In the following alignment process, before the substrate and the mask are brought into close contact, the substrate is moved in advance by the calculated mechanical offset amount, thereby offsetting the amount of positional displacement before and after the contact, thereby improving the alignment accuracy. I'm doing it.

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2008-4358

However, in the technique of Patent Literature 1, even if the mechanical error inherent in the alignment drive mechanism can be corrected in advance, it is difficult to completely correct the positional displacement caused by the operation in which the substrate and the mask actually contact.

That is, according to the examination of the inventors of the present application, it was found that a slight inclination of the substrate or mask holding mechanism at the time of contact between the substrate and the mask is one cause of the positional displacement. Specifically, if there is a slight sagging or warping, etc., respectively, when the substrate and the mask are in contact, the both are not in close contact with each other on a uniform surface, and the friction of the first contacted portion increases. Then, as the substrate and the mask approach, a force acts in a direction in which the holding mechanism of the substrate or the mask is pulled to the first contact point. Due to this force, a slight inclination occurs in the holding mechanism of the substrate or the mask, which lowers the alignment accuracy. Further, friction between the substrate and the mask may cause deterioration in the quality of the organic EL element on the substrate.

The manner in which this position shift occurs depends on individual differences between the substrate or the mask, the holding posture with respect to the holding mechanism, and the moving direction during alignment. Also, the initial contact position when the substrate and the mask are approached is not determined equally. For this reason, as in the alignment method of Patent Literature 1, all this positional shift can be corrected only by preliminarily correcting the movement of the substrate and the mask in order to offset the error before and after the adhesion between the substrate and the mask until the last time. Can't.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and its object is to provide a technique for coping with changes in the relative posture of the substrate holding mechanism and the mask holding mechanism when the substrate and the mask are brought into close contact after the substrate and the mask are aligned. It is in doing.

The present invention adopts the following configuration. In other words,

A film forming apparatus for forming a film on a surface of a substrate through a mask,

A substrate holding means for supporting the substrate,

A mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate,

An in-plane movement means for changing a relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in a plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;

Distance changing means for changing a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means with respect to the other;

An attitude information acquisition means for acquiring attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means;

And a posture control means for controlling a relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the posture information.

The present invention further adopts the following configuration. In other words,

A film forming apparatus for forming a film on a surface of a substrate through a mask,

A substrate holding means for supporting the substrate,

A mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate,

An in-plane movement means for changing a relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in a plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;

Distance changing means for changing a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means with respect to the other;

Attitude information acquisition means for acquiring attitude information indicating a relative attitude between the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;

When the substrate holding means and the mask holding means are moving in a relatively approaching direction by the distance changing means, the relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the attitude information It is a film forming apparatus comprising: a posture control means for controlling.

The present invention further adopts the following configuration. In other words,

The substrate and the mask by moving at least one of a substrate holding means for holding a substrate, a mask holding means for holding a mask substantially parallel to the substrate, and at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means An information acquisition device mounted on a film forming apparatus that has a positioning means for aligning a film and forms a film on the surface of the substrate through the mask,

An information acquisition apparatus comprising: an attitude information acquisition means for acquiring attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means.

The present invention further adopts the following configuration. In other words,

As a film forming method using a film forming apparatus for forming a film on a surface of a substrate through a mask,

The film forming apparatus includes a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane movement means, a distance changing means, an attitude information acquisition means, and an attitude control means,

The in-plane moving means moves at least one of the substrate holding means supporting the substrate and the mask holding means supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate, thereby being substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask. Changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in one plane; and

A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;

A step of acquiring, by the attitude information acquisition means, attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means;

The posture control means includes a step of controlling a relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the posture information.

The present invention further adopts the following configuration. In other words,

As a film forming method employing a film forming apparatus for forming a film on the surface of a substrate through a mask,

The film forming apparatus includes a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane movement means, a distance changing means, an attitude information acquisition means, and an attitude control means,

A plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means for supporting the substrate and the mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate by the in-plane moving means Changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in

A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;

A step of acquiring, by the attitude information acquisition means, attitude information indicating a relative attitude between the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;

When the attitude control means is moving in a direction in which the substrate holding means and the mask holding means are relatively approached by the distance changing means, the substrate holding means and the mask are based on the attitude information. It is a film forming method characterized by including a step of controlling the relative posture of the holding means.

The present invention further adopts the following configuration. In other words,

An alignment method for aligning a mask and a substrate for film formation in a film forming apparatus, the film forming apparatus comprising: a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane moving means, a distance changing means, a posture information acquisition means, and a posture control. Have means,

The in-plane moving means moves at least one of the substrate holding means supporting the substrate and the mask holding means supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate, thereby being substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask. Changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in one plane; and

A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;

A step of acquiring, by the attitude information acquisition means, attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means;

The attitude control means includes a step of controlling a relative attitude of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the attitude information.

The present invention further adopts the following configuration. In other words,

An alignment method for aligning a mask and a substrate for film formation in a film forming apparatus, the film forming apparatus comprising: a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane moving means, a distance changing means, a posture information acquisition means, and a posture control. Have means,

A plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means for supporting the substrate and the mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate by the in-plane moving means Changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in

A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;

A step of acquiring, by the attitude information acquisition means, attitude information indicating a relative attitude between the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;

When the attitude control means is moving in a direction in which the substrate holding means and the mask holding means are relatively approached by the distance changing means, the substrate holding means and the mask are based on the attitude information. It is an alignment method comprising a step of controlling the relative posture of the holding means.

Advantageous Effects of Invention According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a technique for coping with the relative posture change of the substrate holding mechanism and the mask holding mechanism when the substrate and the mask are brought into close contact after the substrate and the mask are aligned.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a vapor deposition apparatus according to an embodiment.
2 is a top view of a vapor deposition apparatus.
3 is a perspective view showing an example of an alignment mechanism.
4 is a perspective view showing an example of a rotation translation mechanism.
5 is a perspective view showing an example of a substrate holding portion.
6 is a diagram showing a state in which the substrate is held by the substrate holding unit.
7 is a plan view showing a state in which a substrate and a mask are held.
8 is a flowchart showing each step of processing in the embodiment.
9 is a side view showing states of a substrate and a mask, corresponding to a flow chart.
Fig. 10 is another side view showing the states of the substrate and the mask, corresponding to the flow chart.
11 is another side view showing the states of the substrate and the mask, corresponding to the flow chart.
12 is another side view showing the states of the substrate and the mask, corresponding to the flow chart.
13 is a schematic configuration diagram of a system for manufacturing an organic EL panel according to an embodiment.
14 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an electronic device.
15 is a system block diagram for controlling each mechanism of the vapor deposition apparatus of the embodiment.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments and examples of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the following embodiments and examples are merely illustrative of the configurations preferred in the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to these configurations. In addition, in the following description, the hardware configuration and software configuration of the device, processing flow, manufacturing conditions, dimensions, materials, shapes, etc. are intended to limit the scope of the present invention to only these, unless otherwise specified. It is not. On the other hand, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same components as a principle, and the description is omitted.

The present invention is suitable for a vapor deposition apparatus for forming a film by evaporation through a mask on an object such as a substrate, and typically, a vapor deposition apparatus for depositing an organic material or the like on a substrate such as glass in order to manufacture an organic EL panel. Can be applied to. The present invention can also be applied to a film forming apparatus or a film forming method in which a film is formed on a substrate by a method other than vapor deposition such as sputtering. The present invention is also construed as an information acquisition device for acquiring information about the inclination of a substrate that can be attached to an alignment mechanism in a vapor deposition device. The present invention is further understood as an alignment device or alignment method for aligning a substrate and a mask. The present invention is further understood as an electronic device manufacturing apparatus and an electronic device manufacturing method. The present invention is also conceived as a control method for a vapor deposition apparatus or an information acquisition apparatus, a program for executing the control method on a computer, or a storage medium storing the program. The storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium readable by a computer.

In the vapor deposition apparatus, in the manufacture of various electronic devices such as organic thin-film solar cells, semiconductor devices, magnetic devices, electronic parts, optical parts, etc., in addition to organic EL elements used in organic EL panels, a substrate or a laminate is formed on the substrate. It is formed, but a thin film can be deposited on top. Typically, the vapor deposition apparatus is preferably used for manufacturing electronic devices such as light-emitting elements, photoelectric conversion elements, and touch panels. As the electronic device, a display device or a lighting device including an organic EL element may be used.

[Embodiment 1]

(Device configuration)

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view for showing the overall configuration of the vapor deposition apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, and the arrangement, configuration, and relationship of each portion of the vapor deposition apparatus 100 are described. When the deposition apparatus has a plurality of identical or corresponding members in the same drawing, subscripts such as a and b are given in the drawing, but if there is no need to distinguish them in the description, subscripts such as a and b are omitted. And describe it.

The vapor deposition apparatus 100 substantially includes a chamber 4 and an alignment apparatus 1 that holds the substrate 5 and the mask 6a to perform relative positioning. In the interior of the chamber 4, an evaporation source 7 (film formation source) containing a vapor deposition material 71 (film formation material) can be disposed, thereby forming a depressurized film formation space 2 inside the chamber. In the film formation space 2, the evaporation material flies from the evaporation source 7 toward the substrate 5, and a film is formed on the substrate.

In the illustrated example, a structure of deposition up in which the film formation surface of the substrate faces downward in the gravitational direction during film formation will be described. However, at the time of film formation, the film formation surface may be a depot-down structure in which the film is formed with the film-forming surface facing upward in the gravitational direction. Further, a configuration of a side depot may be employed in which the substrate is vertically erected and the film formation surface is substantially parallel to the direction of gravity.

The present invention can be preferably used when there is a possibility that the posture of the member may change due to sagging or sagging occurring in at least one member of the substrate and the mask when the substrate and the mask are relatively close. .

The chamber 4 has an upper partition wall 3a (top plate), a side wall 3b, and a bottom wall 3c, and at the side wall 3b, a gate valve for carrying in/out of the substrate 5 into the chamber 4 (15) is installed. The chamber 4 is shown in FIG. 1 by a lattice hatching. The inside of the chamber may be maintained in a vacuum atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere such as nitrogen gas other than the above-described depressurized atmosphere.

The evaporation source 7 is, for example, a container 72 such as a crucible for accommodating the evaporation material 71, and a heating means such as a sheath heater that evaporates and evaporates the temperature of the evaporation material 71 ( 73) may be provided. In addition, by providing a mechanism for moving the container 72 in a plane substantially parallel to the substrate 5 and the mask 6a, the ejection port for ejecting the evaporation material 71 is moved, and film formation on the substrate is performed. You may make it uniform. On the other hand, although the evaporation apparatus provided with the evaporation source 7 as a film formation source is demonstrated here, this invention is not limited to this, and it is applicable also to a sputtering apparatus provided with a sputtering cathode which has a target and a cathode as a film formation source.

The alignment apparatus 1 generally includes a portion mounted on the upper partition wall 3a of the chamber 4 for positioning, and a portion present inside the chamber to hold a substrate or the like. The alignment device 1 includes a substrate holding portion 8 (substrate holding means) for holding the substrate 5, a mask holding portion 9 (mask holding means) for holding the mask 6a, , A positioning mechanism 60 (positioning means). The substrate holding portion 8 is shown by hatching in the vertical direction in FIG. 1. The mask holding portion 9 is represented by a white portion connected to the upper partition wall 3a in FIG. 1.

The positioning mechanism 60 is installed outside the chamber 4 and changes the relative positional relationship between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a or stably holds so that desired precision can be achieved during evaporation. I support it or do it. The positioning mechanism 60 substantially includes a rotation translation mechanism 11 (in-plane movement means), a Z lifting base 13, and a Z lifting slider 10.

The Z lifting base 13 is moved in two-dimensional directions (X, Y directions and rotation directions θ ) in a horizontal plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by the rotation translation mechanism 11. The Z lift slider 10 moves in the X, Y, and θ directions together with the Z lift base 13, and moves in the Z direction (direction perpendicular to the substrate and mask) with respect to the Z lift base 13 It is supported as possible.

Details will be described later, but the positioning mechanism 60 further includes a linear scale 52 as a posture information acquisition means (posture detection means) and a voice coil motor 51 as a posture adjustment means (posture control means). . The linear scale 52 is a scale disposed on the side of the Z lifting slider 10 and provided with a scale in the Z direction, and together with a detector disposed on the Z lifting base 13 opposite the scale, the Z lifting base ( The relative positional relationship between 13) and the Z-lift slider 10 is acquired. On the other hand, as the linear scale 52, an optical type or the like can be used, and in Fig. 1, it is represented by a part painted in black.

The voice coil motor 51 is composed of a cylindrical coil member disposed on the side of the Z lifting slider 10 and an inner magnet member disposed on the side of the opposite Z lifting base 13, while maintaining the gap in a non-contact manner. Changes the positional relationship relative to each other. The voice coil motor 51 is shown by hatching in the horizontal direction in FIG. 1. The voice coil motor 51 adjusts the posture of the substrate 5 by adjusting the positional relationship between the Z lifting base 13 and the Z lifting slider 10 by the generating force of the voice coil. On the other hand, as the voice coil motor 51, arbitrary things, such as a moving coil type and a moving magnet type, can be used.

In this way, the attitude information acquisition means (position detection means) including the linear scale 52 and the attitude adjustment means (position control means) including the voice coil motor 51 include the inclination of the Z lift slider 10 ( That is, the inclination of the substrate 5) can be detected, the inclination can be controlled (adjusted or held, etc.), and the posture during the lowering of the substrate can be stabilized.

Further, the linear scale 52 may be attached to the existing alignment device 1 later. That is, the present invention can be grasped as an information acquisition device including an attitude information acquisition means for detecting attitude information such as an inclination of a substrate, which is disposed in an alignment device of a vapor deposition apparatus. In this case, if the existing alignment device 1 is already equipped with a mechanism capable of adjusting the vertical and inclination of a voice coil motor or the like, posture control can be realized by adding a linear scale and control software.

In addition, the linear scale 52 and the voice coil motor 51 may be configured to be attached to the existing alignment device 1 as the information acquisition device. In this case, posture control can be realized by adding control software to the existing alignment device 1.

The rotational translation mechanism 11 is mounted on the upper partition wall 3a of the chamber 4 to drive the Z lifting base 13 in the XY θ direction, thereby aligning the vertical position in the plane direction of the substrate and the mask ( Alignment). Further, the Z lifting base 13 does not move in the Z direction, but becomes a base when the substrate 5 moves in the Z direction. In Fig. 1, it is indicated by diagonal hatching toward the lower right.

The Z lifting slider 10 is a member that is movable in the Z direction along the Z guide 18. The Z guide 18 is a fixed portion (symbols 18a1, 18c1) fixed to the side surface of the Z lifting base 13, and a Z lifting slider 10, which is movable in the Z direction along the fixed part, is connected. It includes a movable part (symbol 18a2, 18c2). The Z lifting slider 10 is shown by diagonal hatching toward the upper right side in FIG. 1.

The Z lifting slider 10 is connected to the substrate holding portion 8 via the substrate holding shaft 12, and by raising and lowering the substrate holding portion 8 with respect to the Z lifting base 13, the substrate holding portion 8 The distance between the substrate 5 held in) and the mask 6a is controlled.

In this configuration, in the case of XY θ driving in a plane substantially parallel to the substrate 5 and the mask 6a by the rotation translation mechanism 11, the Z lifting base 13, the Z lifting slider 10 and the substrate The holding shaft 12 moves integrally and transmits a driving force to the substrate holding portion 8. Then, the substrate 5 is moved in a plane substantially parallel to the substrate 5 and the mask 6a. In addition, when the Z lifting slider 10 is driven in the Z direction with respect to the Z lifting base 13 by the Z guide 18, the driving force is transmitted to the substrate holding portion 8 through the substrate holding shaft 12. do. Then, the distance of the substrate 5 to the mask 6a is changed (separated or approached). That is, the Z lifting base 13, the Z lifting slider 10, and the Z guide 18 function as distance changing means at the time of alignment by the positioning mechanism 60. As shown in FIG.

Further, as in the illustrated example, by disposing the positioning mechanism 60 including a large number of movable parts outside the film formation space, generation of particles in the film formation space can be suppressed.

Here, the connection between the Z lifting base 13 and the Z lifting slider 10 will be described. The Z guide 18 is configured by, for example, a combination of a linear guide and a carriage, and a linear guide that is connected to the Z lifting base 13 side and extending in the Z direction is connected to the Z lifting slider 10. As the carriage moves, both members of the Z lifting base 13 and the Z lifting slider 10 are connected so as to be movable.

Further, the Z guide 18 can regulate the movement at a desired position to fix the mutual positional relationship. However, when high-precision position control is required (for example, in μm units), the positional relationship fixed by the Z guide 18 may be shifted due to an external force acting. For example, when the substrate holding portion 8 descends and the substrate 5 and the mask 6a come into contact, and a reaction force from the mask 6a to the substrate 5 acts, the Z lifting base 13 is applied. In some cases, the Z lift slider 10 tilts with the nut of the ball screw 20 serving as the support point as the rotational center.

In other words, when the substrate and the mask come into contact, if there is a slight sag or warpage, etc., both are not in close contact with each other on a uniform surface, and the friction of the first contacted portion increases, and the substrate and the mask come close to each other and the opposing surfaces In accordance with the operation until they are in close contact with each other, a force acts in the direction in which the substrate holding portion 8 is pulled to the contact point.

As a result, since the mask holding portion 9 is fixed to the chamber 4, the substrate holding portion 8 is inclined with respect to the mask holding portion 9, and the substrate holding portion 8 through the substrate holding shaft 12 A fine inclination occurs in the Z lifting slider 10 supporting (8). The occurrence of such an inclination decreases the alignment accuracy, and may become a problem depending on the deposition accuracy.

This problem also varies depending on the individual difference between the substrate and the mask, the holding posture for the holding mechanism, and the direction of movement during alignment, and when the substrate and the mask are relatively close, the initial contact position is not stable. Therefore, it is difficult to predict.

On the other hand, in the alignment apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the mask holding portion 9 is fixed to the chamber 4, and the substrate holding portion 8 is positioned with respect to the mask holding portion 9 by a positioning mechanism 60. The configuration is configured to be rotational translational driving and close-to-space driving, but is not limited thereto. In other words, in the present invention, the substrate holding portion 8 is fixed to the chamber 4, and the mask holding portion 9 is rotated and translated with respect to the substrate holding portion 8 by the positioning mechanism 60, and closely spaced apart. It can also be applied to an alignment device in a driven configuration. Also in the alignment device having such a configuration, the mask holding portion 9 is inclined with respect to the substrate holding portion 8 by a similar mechanism.

The substrate holding shaft 12 is provided outside and inside the chamber 4 through a through hole 16 provided in the upper partition wall 3a of the chamber 4. In the film formation space, a substrate holding portion 8 is provided under the substrate holding shaft 12 so that the substrate 5 as a film-forming object can be held. On the other hand, a cooling plate or a magnet mechanism may be provided inside the chamber. The cooling plate is, for example, a plate-like member that contacts a surface of the substrate 5 on the opposite side of the surface in contact with the mask 6a during film formation, and suppresses an increase in the substrate temperature during film formation. As a result, deterioration or deterioration of the organic material is suppressed. Moreover, the magnet plate is a member which attracts the mask 6a by magnetic force and improves the adhesion between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a at the time of film formation.

And as described above, in the Z lifting slider 10, at the three corners of the Z lifting slider 10 having a rectangular shape with respect to the XY plane, the voice coil motor 51 (servo motor) and the linear scale 52, There are 3 sets.

Fig. 2 is a top view of the device and shows the arrangement of the voice coil motor 51 and the linear scale 52.

The attitude control in the rotation direction with the nut of the ball screw 20 as the rotation center is realized by a combination of the voice coil motors 51a, 5lb, and 51c.

The driving force of each of the voice coil motor 51a, the voice coil motor 5lb, and the voice coil motor 51c is set to Fa, Fb, and Fc, respectively. When the rotational force around the X-axis is Fωx and the rotational force around the X-axis is Fωy, the relationship between the driving force and the rotational force of each voice coil motor is expressed by the following equations (1) to (3).

Fa=1/Y1×Fωx+1/X1×Fωy… (One)

Fb=-1/Y1×Fωx… (2)

Fc=-1/X1×Fωy… (3)

Here, X1 denotes an interval between the voice coil motors 51a and 51c, and Y1 denotes an interval between the voice coil motors 51a and 5lb.

In addition, since the total thrust Fa+Fb+Fc in the Z direction becomes 0, it does not interfere with the Z-direction thrust of the ball screw 20 driven in the Z direction.

Next, a method of calculating the posture will be described.

Measured values of each of the linear scales 52a, 52b, and 52c are set to Za, Zb, and Zc, respectively. The rotation angle around the X axis of the Z lifting slider 10 at the center of rotation is set to ?x, and the rotation angle around the Y axis is set to ?y. At this time, the rotation angle can be calculated by the following equations (4) and (5).

ωx= (Zb-Za)/Y1 ... (4)

ωy= (Za-Zc)/X1… (5)

That is, ωx and ωy values are derived from each linear scale, and rotational forces Fωx and Fωy are generated by a combination of motor thrusts Fa, Fb, and Fc of each voice coil so that the posture is maintained at a set standard, and fed back. 10) is configured to be able to control the posture at any height in the Z direction.

In addition, in this embodiment, three voice coil motors and three linear scales are used. However, in order to stabilize the posture more, it is also possible to control the posture using four voice coil motors and four linear scales, one at each of the four corners of the Z lift slider 10.

On the other hand, the means for acquiring the attitude information of the Z lifting slider 10 is not limited to the linear scale, and the means for adjusting the attitude is not limited to the voice coil motor. For example, instead of measurement using a linear scale, position detection using a laser displacement meter or measurement of the inclination (position) of the Z lift slider using a digital level may be performed. Further, a motor other than the voice coil motor may be used. In addition, arbitrary mechanisms can be employed.

The through hole 16 is designed large enough for the outer diameter of the substrate holding shaft 12 so that the substrate holding shaft 12 and the upper partition wall 3a do not interfere. In addition, the section of the board holding shaft 12 from the through hole 16 to the fixed portion to the Z lifting slider 10 is provided by the Z lifting slider 10 and the bellows 40 fixed to the upper partition wall 3a. Covered by As a result, since the substrate holding shaft 12 is covered by the closed space communicating with the chamber 4, the entire substrate holding shaft 12 is in the same state as the film formation space 2 (e.g., in a vacuum state). ) Can be maintained. As the bellows 40, what is necessary is just to use what has flexibility also in the Z direction and the XY direction. Thereby, the resistance force generated when the bellows 40 is displaced due to the movement of the alignment device 1 can be sufficiently reduced, and the load at the time of position adjustment can be reduced.

The mask holding portion 9 is provided on the surface of the upper partition wall 3a on the side of the film forming space 2 in the chamber 4, and is capable of holding the mask. For example, a mask that can be used in the manufacture of an organic EL panel is a structure in which a foil-shaped mask 6a having an opening according to a film formation pattern is fixed to a high rigidity mask frame 6b in a tensioned state. Has. With this configuration, the mask holding portion 9 can be held in a state in which sagging of the mask 6a is reduced.

On the other hand, in the configuration of Fig. 1, the mask holding portion 9 is fixed to the chamber 4, so that only the substrate holding portion 8 is movable. However, the alignment device in the vapor deposition apparatus of the present invention is not limited to this configuration. Of the substrate holding portion 8 and the mask holding portion 9, at least one of the substrate holding portions 8 and 9 may be movable relative to the other. Further, both the substrate holding portion 8 and the mask holding portion 9 may be driven.

Various operations by the evaporation apparatus 100 (alignment by the rotation translation mechanism 11, the raising and lowering of the Z lift slider 10 by the distance changing means, holding the substrate by the substrate holding part 8, the evaporation source 7) Evaporation, etc.) is controlled by the control unit 50. The control unit 50 can be configured by, for example, a computer having a processor, memory, storage, I/O, and the like. In this case, the function of the control unit 50 is realized by the processor executing a program stored in the memory or storage. As the computer, a general-purpose computer may be used, or an embedded computer or a programmable logic controller (PLC) may be used. Alternatively, some or all of the functions of the control unit 50 may be configured with a circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA. On the other hand, the control unit 50 may be provided for each evaporation apparatus, or one control unit 50 may control a plurality of evaporation apparatuses.

Next, details of the positioning mechanism 60 of the alignment device 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 3. 3 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of an alignment mechanism. The guide for guiding the Z lifting slider 10 in the vertical Z direction includes a plurality of (here, four) Z guides 18a to 18d, and is fixed to the side surface of the Z lifting base 13. A ball screw 20 for transmitting a driving force is installed in the center of the Z lifting slider, and the power transmitted from the motor 19 fixed to the Z lifting base 13 is transmitted through the ball screw 20 to the Z lifting slider 10 ).

The motor 19 incorporates a rotation encoder (not shown), so that the Z-direction position of the Z-lift slider 10 can be indirectly measured by the number of rotations of the encoder. By controlling the driving of the motor 19 by an external controller, it is possible to precisely determine the position of the Z lift slider 10 in the Z direction. On the other hand, the lifting mechanism of the Z lifting slider 10 is not limited to the ball screw 20 and the rotary encoder, and any mechanism such as a combination of a linear motor and a linear encoder may be employed.

4 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the rotational translation mechanism 11 of the positioning mechanism 60 of the alignment device 1. In the alignment device 1, the Z lifting slider 10 and the Z lifting base 13 are provided on the rotation translation mechanism 11, and the entire Z lifting base 13 and the Z lifting slider 10, By the rotation translation mechanism 11, it is possible to drive in the XY direction and the rotation direction θ z (where θ z is a rotational position with respect to the Z axis).

In the configuration of FIG. 4, the rotation translation mechanism 11 has a plurality of drive units 21a to 21d at the four corners of the base. Each drive unit is disposed in a direction in which drive units disposed at adjacent corners are rotated 90 degrees around the Z axis.

Each drive unit 21 is provided with a drive unit motor 41 that generates a drive force. Each drive unit 21 further includes a first guide 22 that slides in the first direction by transmitting the force of the drive unit motor 41 through the drive unit ball screw 42, and a first direction in the XY plane. It is provided with a second guide 23 that slides in a second direction orthogonal to. In addition, it is provided with a rotary bearing 24 that is rotatable around the Z-axis. For example, in the case of the drive unit 21c, it has a first guide 22 that slides in the X direction, a second guide 23 that slides in the Y direction orthogonal to the X direction, and a rotary bearing 24. , The force of the drive unit motor 41 is transmitted to the first guide 22 through the drive unit ball screw 42.

The drive unit motor 41 has a built-in rotary encoder (not shown) and can measure the amount of displacement of the first guide 22. In each drive unit 21, by controlling the drive of the drive unit motor 41 by the control unit 50, it becomes possible to precisely control the position of the Z lifting base 13 in the XY θ _{Z direction.} have.

For example, in the case of moving the Z lift base 13 in the +X direction, the drive unit motor 41 generates a force to slide in the +X direction in each of the drive units 2lb and 21c, The force can be transmitted to the Z lifting base 13. In addition, in the case of moving in the +Y direction, the driving unit motor 41 generates a force for sliding in the +Y direction in each of the driving units 21a and 21d, and that force is applied to the Z lifting base 13. You just need to pass it.

In the case of rotating the Z lifting base 13 + θ (clockwise θ z rotation), it is necessary to rotate + θ z around the Z axis using the drive units 21c and (2lb) arranged diagonally. It is sufficient to generate a force and transmit the force to the Z lifting base 13. Alternatively, the driving units 21a and 21d may be used to transmit a force required for rotation to the Z lifting base 13.

Next, a detailed configuration of the substrate holding portion 8 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. 5 is a perspective view of the entire substrate holding portion 8 viewed from the alignment device 1 side. Here, the substrate holding portion 8 is in a state in which the rectangular substrate 5 is held along two sides (long sides in this case) opposed to each other. 6(a) and 6(b) are side views in which a portion of the substrate holding portion 8 for holding the substrate is enlarged, and FIG. 6(a) is a state in which the substrate is mounted and held, Fig. 6(b) shows a state in which both sides of the substrate are pinched and held. On the other hand, in Figs. 6(a) and 6(b), it seems that there is no sagging due to its own weight in the substrate 5, but this is for convenience of illustration, and in reality, the substrate 5 supported at both ends has its own weight, etc. It is deformed by the influence of.

As shown in Fig. 5, the substrate holding portion 8 has a holding base 25a and a holding base 25b corresponding to two long sides of the substrate 5, respectively. The holding base 25a is fixed to the lower portion of the substrate holding shaft 12a and the substrate holding shaft 12b, and the holding base 25b is the substrate holding shaft 12c and the substrate holding shaft 12d. It is fixed on the lower part of. The holding base 25a is formed by the substrate holding shaft 12a and the substrate holding shaft 12b, and the holding base 25b is formed by the substrate holding shaft 12c and the substrate holding shaft 12d. , The position is controlled. The holding base 25a and the holding base 25b are plate-shaped members having a length equal to the long side of the substrate, and a plurality of receiving claws 26 are provided along the long side of the substrate. Further, the substrate holding portion 8 has a plurality of clamps 27 opposed to the receiving claws 26a and 26b and whose positions are controlled via the drive shafts 34a and 34b. The position of the substrate can be fixed by controlling the positions of the plurality of clamps 27a, 27b with respect to the plurality of receiving hooks 26a, 26b, and sandwiching the peripheries (ends) of the two opposite sides of the substrate 5 to each other. I can.

On the other hand, as shown in Fig. 5, a plurality of grooves for avoiding interference with the receiving hooks 26a and 26b are formed in the mask edge 6b when placing the substrate 5 on the mask 6a. If the clearance between the groove and the receiving hooks 26a, 26b is set about a few mm, even if the receiving hooks 26a, 26b are further lowered after mounting the substrate 5, the mask frame 6b and the receiving hooks 26a, 26b ) Can avoid colliding with each other.

The substrate holding shafts 12a to 12d for controlling the positions of the holding bases 25a and 25b may be controlled collectively. Alternatively, it may be divided into a group of substrate holding shafts 12a and 12b and a group of substrate holding shafts 12c and 12d and controlled separately. Here, a plurality of clamps 27a, 27b for each holding base 25a, 25b are set as one unit (clamp units 28a, 28b), and are driven by a drive mechanism for each unit. However, the clamps 27a and 27b may be driven vertically by a drive mechanism provided separately, respectively. The clamp units 28a, 28b are fixed to the clamp sliders 32a, 32b, and are provided between the holding bases 25a, 25b of the substrate holding portion 8 and the holding portion upper plates 35a, 35b ( 39a, 39b) guides the clamp sliders 32a, 32b in the Z direction. The clamp sliders 32a and 32b are fixed to the Z lift slider 10 via drive shafts 34a and 34b penetrating the upper partition wall 3a. The clamp sliders 32a and 32b can be driven in the Z direction by force generated from the electric cylinders 36a and 36b via the drive shafts 34a and 34b.

When the descending of the clamps 27a and 27b reaches the lower end, the clamps 27a and 27b abut the surface of the substrate 5 placed on the receiving hooks 26a and 26b, and The substrate 5 is fixed between the clamping surface and the clamping surface of the clamps 27a and 27b. This is the state of Fig. 6(b). In order to hold the substrate 5 by applying a constant load by the clamps 27a and 27b, springs 29a and 29b for generating a holding force (load) are installed on the upper portions of the clamps 27a and 27b. . Further, rods 31a and 3lb exist between the clamps 27a and 27b and the springs 29a and 29b, and the clamps 27a and 27b are guided in the Z direction. The total length of the springs 29a and 29b can be adjusted by changing the gap L with the load adjusting screw 30. Therefore, by the amount of pushing the springs 29a, 29b, the pushing force (pressing pressure on the substrate) generated in the clamps 27a, 27b through the rods 31a, 3lb can also be adjusted. .

Next, in order to detect the position of the substrate 5 and the mask 6a, an imaging device for simultaneously measuring the position of each alignment mark will be described. 1 and 3, on the outer surface of the upper partition wall 3a, the positions of the alignment marks (mask marks) on the mask 6a and the alignment marks (substrate marks) on the substrate 5 are obtained. The imaging device 14 which is a position acquisition means for following is provided. In the upper partition wall 3a, an imaging through hole (not shown) is provided on the optical axis of the camera so that the position of the alignment mark disposed inside the chamber 4 can be measured by the imaging device 14. A glass window or the like is provided in the through hole for imaging to maintain the degree of vacuum inside the chamber. Furthermore, by providing illumination not shown in or near the imaging device 14 and irradiating light near the alignment mark of the substrate and the mask, accurate mark image measurement is possible.

A method of measuring the positions of the substrate marks 37 and the mask marks 38 using the imaging device 14 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7A to 7C.

7A is a view of the substrate 5 in a state held by the substrate holding portion 8 as viewed from above. On the substrate 5, substrate marks 37a to 37d that can be measured by the imaging device 14 are formed at four corners of the substrate. The substrate marks 37a to 37d are simultaneously measured by the four imaging devices 14, and the translation amount and the rotation amount of the substrate 5 are calculated from the positional relationship of the four points that are the center positions of each substrate mark. By doing so, it is possible to acquire the positional information of the substrate.

Fig. 7(b) is a view of the mask 6a viewed from the top. Mask marks 38a to 38d that can be measured by an imaging device are formed at the four corners of the foil-shaped mask 6a. The mask marks 38a to 38d are simultaneously measured by the four imaging devices 14a to 14d, and from the positional relationship of the four points that are the center positions of each mask mark, the mask 6a is By calculating the translation amount, rotation amount, etc., the positional information of the mask can be obtained.

Fig. 7(c) is a diagram schematically showing the field of view 43 of a captured image when one set of four sets of the mask mark 38 and the substrate mark 37 is measured by the imaging device 14 to be. In this example, since the substrate mark 37 and the mask mark 38 are simultaneously measured within the field of view 43 of the imaging device 14, it is possible to measure the relative positions of the centers of the marks. The mark center coordinates can be obtained using an image processing device (not shown) based on an image obtained by measurement by the imaging device 14. Meanwhile, although the mask mark 38 and the substrate mark 37 have a square or circle shape, the shape of the mark is not limited thereto. For example, it is preferable to use a shape having a symmetrical property in which it is easy to calculate the center position, such as an X mark or a cross shape.

When high-precision alignment is required, a high-magnification CCD camera having a high resolution capable of detecting positional displacement in units of several μm is used as the imaging device 14. In such a high-magnification CCD camera, since the diameter of the field of view is narrow to several mm, if the positional deviation when the substrate 5 is mounted on the receiving hook 26 is large, the substrate mark 37 will be out of view and measurement is impossible. It is done. Accordingly, as the imaging device 14, it is preferable to provide a high-magnification CCD camera as well as a low-magnification CCD camera having a wide field of view. In that case, rough alignment (rough alignment) is performed using a low magnification CCD camera so that the mask mark 38 and the substrate mark 37 are simultaneously in the field of view of the high magnification CCD camera, and then the mask mark using a high magnification CCD camera. Position measurement of 38 and the substrate mark 37 is performed, and high-precision alignment (fine alignment) is performed.

By using a high-magnification CCD camera as the imaging device 14, the relative position of the mask 6a and the substrate 5 can be adjusted with an accuracy within a few μm of errors. However, the imaging device 14 is not limited to a CCD camera, and may be, for example, a digital camera equipped with a CMOS sensor as an imaging element. In addition, even if the high-magnification camera and the low-magnification camera are not separately installed, it is possible to perform high-magnification and low-magnification measurements with a single camera by using a camera that can interchange a high-magnification lens and a low-magnification lens or a zoom lens.

From the positional information of the mask 6a and the positional information of the substrate 5 acquired by the imaging device 14, the relative positional information of the mask 6a and the substrate 5 can be obtained. This relative position information is fed back to the control unit 50 of the alignment device, and the driving amount of each driving unit such as the Z lift slider 10, the rotation translation mechanism 11, and the substrate holding unit 8 is controlled.

(Control system)

All of the above-described mechanisms are controlled by the control unit 50. 15 is a diagram for explaining a system block 200 for controlling mechanisms to be controlled by the control unit 50.

In FIG. 15, the control unit 50 is configured by a processor, as described above, and through a control program stored in a hard disk (HDD) 207 or an input/output interface (I/O) 206 through a network ( By loading and executing the control program from 209), the operation of each mechanism part to be controlled is controlled. Further, the memory 206 can be used for various data processing related to operation control of each mechanism.

The control unit 50 controls the attitude control block 201, the Z lift slider control block 202, the alignment block 203, and the substrate holding control block 204.

The alignment block 203 controls the rotation translation mechanism 11 based on the positional shift information detected by the imaging device 14 to perform alignment between the substrate and the mask. The attitude control block 201 controls the inclination between the substrate and the mask by the attitude detection means and the attitude control means. The Z lift slider control block 202 controls the Z lift slider 10 to lift and lower the substrate holding portion 8 to control the lift of the substrate with a mask. The substrate holding control block 204 controls a substrate holding mechanism provided in the substrate holding portion 8.

(Substrate placement method)

Hereinafter, a series of operations of the evaporation apparatus until the substrate is set in the substrate holding portion, the substrate and the mask are aligned, and the substrate is placed on the mask will be described. This series of operations is performed by controlling each control object by executing a control program by the control unit 50 in the configuration shown in the system block diagram of FIG. 15.

8 is a flowchart showing an operation sequence executed by the control unit 50 in the vapor deposition apparatus according to the embodiment. 9 to 12 are schematic diagrams for showing states of the substrate and the mask in each step of the flowchart of FIG. 8. On the other hand, in the description of this flow, it is assumed that the vapor deposition apparatus 100 has a low-magnification camera for rough alignment and a high-magnification camera for fine alignment as an imaging device.

First, in step S101, the substrate 5 mounted on a robot hand (not shown) is carried into the chamber 4 through the gate valve 15, and as shown in Fig. 9(a), the substrate holding unit It is placed on the receiving hooks 26 on both sides of the. The receiving claw 26a supports the substrate along one side of the substrate, and the receiving claw 26b supports the substrate along the second side opposite to the first side.

In this step, in order to sufficiently secure the operation space of the robot hand, the distance H1 between the upper surface of the receiving claw 26 and the mask 6a is set sufficiently large. The substrate 5 placed on the receiving claw 26 sags by its own weight, and the shortest distance D1 between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a in the Z direction becomes shorter than H1. However, since H1 is set sufficiently large, the substrate 5 does not come into contact with the mask 6a (if the state in which the substrate 5 is above the mask 6a is positive, D1> 0).

Next, in step S102, as shown in FIG. (9b), the clamp 27 arranged opposite to the receiving claw 26 is driven, and the board|substrate 5 is clamped (squeezed). Specifically, the force generated from the electric cylinder 36 is transmitted to the clamp slider 32 via the drive shaft 34, and the clamp slider 32 is driven in the Z direction. Then, the clamp unit 28 mounted on the clamp slider 32 descends to contact the substrate 5 and clamps the substrate 5 between the receiving claw 26. In this configuration, the clamp 27a presses the substrate 5 toward the receiving claw 26a, and the clamp 27b presses the substrate toward the receiving claw 26b.

Next, in step S103, as shown in Fig. 10(a), the substrate 5 is lowered and set to a height to be imaged with a low magnification CCD camera. That is, the receiving claw 26 is lowered, and the distance between the upper surface of the receiving claw 26 and the mask 6a is displaced to H2 smaller than H1. (H1>H2). However, at this time, it is set to a height at which the substrate 5 drooped by its own weight does not come into contact with the mask 6a. Therefore, the shortest distance D2 between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a in the Z direction in this step is made to satisfy D1>D2>0. On the other hand, in the lifting operation of the substrate holding portion 8 holding the substrate 5, the ball screw 20 is rotated by the motor 19, and the Z lifting slider ( It is carried out by controlling 10) ascending and descending.

Next, in step S104, the substrate mark 37 provided on the substrate 5 is imaged with a low magnification CCD camera. The control unit 50 acquires the positional information of the substrate 5 based on the captured image and stores it in the memory 206 or the memory in the control unit 50.

Step S105 may be executed following step S104, or may be executed following step S109 or step S113 when the determination in step S109 or step S113 is "NO". .

In step S105 executed following step S104, the substrate 5 is lowered to the position shown in Fig. 10(b), set to the alignment operation height, and based on the positional information acquired in step S104, the substrate 5 Adjust the position of (5).

First, referring to the height of the substrate 5, the distance between the upper surface of the receiving claw 26 and the mask 6a is changed to H3 (first height) smaller than that in the case of step S104 (H2). >H3). However, at this time, the position of the receiving claw 26 is set to a height at which the substrate 5 sagging due to its own weight does not contact the mask 6a. The distance relationship at this time is D1>D2>D3>0 when the shortest distance between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a in the Z direction in this step is D3.

On the other hand, depending on the case, step S105 and step S104 may be performed at the same height, and in that case, H2=H3 and D2=D3>0.

In the alignment operation in step S105 executed following step S104, the control unit 50 is provided with the alignment device 1 based on the positional information of the substrate 5 obtained in step S104. Drive the positioning mechanism. That is, the control unit 50 adjusts the position of the substrate 5 so that the substrate mark 37 of the substrate 5 falls within the field of view of the high magnification CCD camera. On the other hand, with respect to the mask 6a, the relative position of the mask 6a and the high magnification CCD camera has been adjusted in advance so that the mask mark 38 fits within the field of view (preferably the center of view) of the high magnification CCD camera. Accordingly, by the alignment operation in step S105 executed following step S104, both the substrate mark 37 and the mask mark 38 are adjusted to fit within the field of view of the high magnification CCD camera. However, at this point in time, there is a possibility that the substrate mark cannot be imaged with a high magnification CCD camera due to the relationship of the depth of field. Further, in the alignment operation, the substrate 5 is moved in the XY θ _Z direction, but as described above, the substrate 5 sagging by its own weight is moved to a height not in contact with the mask 6a. Even if the amount of relative movement between the mask 6a and the substrate 5 is large, the surface of the substrate 5 or the already formed film pattern does not rub against the mask 6a and are not damaged.

Next, in step S106, as shown in Fig. 11(a), the substrate 5 is lowered, and the substrate 5 is set at a height for imaging with a high-magnification CCD camera. That is, by lowering the receiving hooks 26a and 26b while pressing the substrate 5 with the clamps 27a and 27b, the distance between the upper surfaces of the receiving hooks 26a and 26b and the mask 6a is H3 It is changed to H4 (second height) which is smaller than. (H3>H4).

Here, in order to photograph a high-magnification CCD camera with a shallow depth of field by focusing on both the substrate marks 37 and the mask marks 38, at least a part of the substrate 5 (the sagging portion) contacts the mask 6a. The substrate 5 is brought close to the mask 6a up to the height at which the substrate mask contact portion 5c is formed.

In this way, when a part of the substrate 5 comes into contact with the mask 6a, the friction force at the contact portion is large, and thus, the contact between the substrate and the mask proceeds according to the operation of further lowering the substrate 5, As the sag of the substrate gradually decreases, a reaction force in the horizontal direction with respect to the substrate 5 is generated, and the reaction force is transmitted through the substrate holding portion 8 and the substrate holding shaft 12 through the Z lifting slider 10 According to this, there is a possibility that the positional relationship between the Z lifting slider 10 and the Z lifting base 13 changes (for example, the posture of the Z lifting slider 10 is tilted). If the substrate 5 and the mask 6a are kept close to each other in this state, the inclination also continues to change and there is a possibility that the alignment may become unstable. Since this inclination is not constant depending on the substrate, the substrate mask contact portion 5c, which is the contact point where the substrate and the mask first contact, it is unclear how the reaction force resulting from this will act. Furthermore, the larger the substrate and the mask, the more remarkable this problem becomes.

Accordingly, in the present invention, as described later, in the step after such abutment occurs, the inclination of the Z lifting slider 10 is measured, and the inclination (that is, the substrate holding portion 8 and the mask holding portion 9) The posture is being adjusted to keep the relative posture) constant. Such attitude control is performed within a range in which the substrate holding portion and the mask holding portion 9 are within a predetermined distance, which is the distance immediately before the substrate 5 and the mask 6a come into contact.

Further, in order to facilitate the calculation of the inclination of the substrate holding portion 8 in the subsequent step, in step S106, before the sagging portion of the substrate 5 abuts the mask 6a, the linear scale 52 It is preferable to measure the positional relationship of the Z lifting slider 10 with respect to the Z lifting base 13 and store it in a memory. This measurement by the linear scale 52 is started from, for example, step S104 or step S105, and the positional relationship between the Z lifting base 13 and the Z lifting slider 10 changes due to Z lifting. Accordingly, measurement may be performed at any time.

Next, it moves to step S107, and the posture control of the Z lift slider 10 is turned ON. This step S107 becomes a characteristic operation in the present invention. First, from the information of the linear scale obtained by detecting the movement of the Z lifting slider 10 with respect to the Z lifting base 13 by the respective linear scales 52a to 52c, by equations (4) and (5), The posture (inclination) of the Z lifting slider 10 is measured. The two-axis posture calculated here is stored, and the voice coil motor 51 shown in Fig. 2 is turned on to generate a driving force for correcting the inclination according to equations (1) to (3). That is, the posture feedback control that generates a return force according to the posture is turned on.

In addition, it is preferable to perform this step of measuring the posture of the Z lifting slider 10 by the linear scale 52 immediately before the step of the next step S108.

In addition, as described above, when the measurement by the linear scale 52 is performed in advance and the result is stored in the memory, the measured value immediately before the contact and the measured value after the contact are compared, so that the substrate 5 and the mask 6a The accuracy of the calculation of the change in inclination of the substrate holding portion 8 due to the contact of) can be improved.

Next, in step S108, the substrate mark 37 of the substrate 5 and the mask mark 38 of the mask 6a are simultaneously imaged by a high-magnification CCD camera. The control unit 50 acquires relative position information between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a based on the captured image. The relative positional information referred to herein is, specifically, information about the distance between the center positions of the substrate mark 37 and the mask mark 38 and the position shift direction. Step S108 is a measurement process (measurement processing) of acquiring the relative position information (amount of relative position shift) between the substrate and the mask and measuring the amount of position shift between the substrate and the mask.

As described above, it is effective to perform the step of step S107 immediately before the step S108. The reason is that storing the posture when the relative position information of the substrate and the mask is acquired with a high-magnification CCD camera is effective in achieving high precision alignment of the substrate and the mask.

Next, in step S109, the control unit 50 determines whether or not the amount of displacement between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a measured in step S108 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value. The predetermined threshold value is a value set in advance so as to limit the amount of positional shift between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a within a range that does not interfere with film formation. The threshold value is set so as to achieve the required alignment accuracy of the substrate 5 and the mask 6a. The threshold value is, for example, in units within a few μm of errors.

In step S109, when it is determined that the amount of displacement between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a exceeds a predetermined threshold (step S109: NO), the linear scale 52 and the voice coil motor The posture control by (51) is turned off, the process returns to step S105 to execute the alignment operation, and further processing after step S106 is continued.

In step S105, which is executed when the determination in step S109 is NO, the substrate 5 is raised to the position shown in Fig. 10(b), and the alignment operation height (first height) is set, and the step ( The position of the substrate 5 is adjusted based on the relative position information acquired in S108).

Regarding the height of the substrate 5, the distance between the upper surface of the receiving claw 26 and the mask 6a is changed to H3 which is larger than the time of step S106 (H3>H4). At this time, the position of the receiving claw 26 is set to D3, which is a height at which the substrate 5 sagging by its own weight does not contact the mask 6a (D3>0).

In the alignment operation performed when the determination in step S109 is NO, the control unit 50 determines the alignment device 1 based on the relative position information between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a acquired in step S108. ) To drive the positioning mechanism provided. That is, the control unit 50 moves the substrate 5 in the XY θ _Z direction so that the substrate mark 37 of the substrate 5 and the mask mark 38 of the mask 6a are closer to each other. Adjust the position.

In the alignment operation, the substrate 5 is moved in the XY θ _Z direction, but as described above, since the substrate 5 sagging by its own weight is at a height not in contact with the mask 6a, the surface of the substrate 5, or , The already formed film pattern is not damaged by frictional sliding with the mask.

Step S105 is an alignment process (alignment process) in which the substrate is moved so that the amount of positional displacement between the substrate and the mask decreases. When the determination in step S109 is NO, fine alignment is performed.

If the determination in step S109 is NO, the attitude control is once turned OFF, but after the step S106, the attitude control is turned ON, and the attitude at this time is the attitude acquired in the initially stored step S107. Corrected by.

In step S109, when it is determined that the amount of positional displacement between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, (step S109: YES), the process moves to step S110, and FIG. 11( As shown in b), the Z lift slider 10 is lowered, and the substrate 5 is placed on the mask 6a. Here, in this embodiment, there is a characteristic that the Z-lift slider 10 descends while maintaining the posture (inclination) of the Z-lift slider 10 measured by the linear scale 52 while descending.

The attitude control of the Z lifting slider 10 during descending is performed by the control unit 50. That is, the control unit 50 determines the posture of the Z lifting slider 10 by equations (4) and (5) based on the positional information acquired by the three linear scales 52, the inclination around the X-axis. And the angles ωx and ωy representing the inclination around the Y-axis. Then, a command is given to the three voice coil motors 51, and correction is performed so that the inclination around the X-axis and the inclination around the Y-axis are kept constant during descent.

For example, measurement on the linear scale 52 is performed at predetermined intervals, and when it is determined that the inclination has changed, the inclination is returned to its original position. The predetermined interval may be, for example, several Hz to several hundred Hz.

On the other hand, since the angle of inclination is very fine, at the time when the descending is finally finished, the substrate 5 and the mask 6a come into close contact with each other without a problem, as shown in Fig. 11(b).

Next, in step S111, as shown in FIG. 12, the receiving claw 26 and the clamp 27 disposed opposite to it are driven, and the substrate 5 is brought into an unclamped state, and the substrate 5 ) Open. When the substrate 5 is in the unclamped state, the process proceeds to step S112, the substrate mark 37 and the mask mark 38 are imaged with a high magnification CCD camera, and the relative position of the substrate 5 and the mask 6a Acquire information.

Next, in step S113, on the basis of the relative positional information of the substrate 5 and the mask 6a obtained in step S112, the amount of positional shift between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a is It is determined whether or not it is less than or equal to a predetermined threshold. The predetermined threshold value is set in advance as a condition within a range that does not interfere with film formation if it is within the threshold value.

In step S113, when it is determined that the amount of displacement between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a exceeds a predetermined threshold value (step S113: NO), the receiving claw 26 is replaced with the substrate 5 And the substrate is held by the clamps 27 on both sides. On the other hand, such a NO determination may occur, for example, when a position shift occurs due to external vibration between steps S109 to S114.

Then, it returns to step S105 and performs an alignment operation. After that, the processing after step S106 is continued.

On the other hand, in step S113, when it is determined that the amount of the positional shift between the substrate 5 and the mask 6a is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, (step S113: YES), the process proceeds to step S114, and the posture The alignment sequence is ended by turning off the control (END).

At the end of the flow of FIG. 8, the substrate is set at a position suitable for forming a pattern by flying the evaporation material toward the substrate 5 from the evaporation source 7 containing the evaporation material. Accordingly, a film forming process is performed in which the evaporation material is floated on the substrate from the evaporation source 7 to form a film.

14 schematically shows a general layer structure of an organic EL element manufactured by a vapor deposition apparatus. The organic EL device includes an anode 2001, a hole injection layer 2002, a hole transport layer 2003, an organic light-emitting layer 2004, an electron transport layer 2005, an electron injection layer 2006, and a cathode 2007 on the substrate 5. ). The vapor deposition apparatus of this embodiment can be preferably used when it is necessary to align the substrate 5 and the mask 6a with high precision in the formation of each layer. The application scene of the device according to the present embodiment is not limited to the formation of an organic film, and may be a metal material, an oxide material, or the like.

According to the present embodiment, when aligning the relative position of the substrate 5 and the mask 6a, the use of the linear scale 52 holds the substrate 5 before contacting the mask 6a. The posture information (inclination) of the support part 8 can be acquired. Then, the voice coil motor 51 is controlled in accordance with the attitude information (inclination) acquired before contacting the substrate during the lowering of the Z lift slider 10 when the substrate 5 is mounted on the mask 6a. ) And the mask 6a, the posture of the substrate holding portion 8 can be kept constant. As a result, since the relative inclination of the substrate 5 and the mask 6a is changed during the lowering of the substrate 5 and the positional relationship after alignment is shifted, it is possible to prevent the high accuracy of the substrate 5 and the mask 6a. It becomes possible to align the position of.

[Embodiment 2]

Next, a manufacturing system in which the present invention is implemented will be described. 13 is a schematic configuration diagram of a manufacturing system in which the present invention is implemented, and illustrates a manufacturing system 300 for manufacturing an organic EL panel.

The manufacturing system 300 includes a plurality of vapor deposition apparatuses 100, a plurality of transfer chambers 1101 to 1103, a substrate supply chamber 1105, a mask stock chamber 1106, a pass chamber 1107, a glass supply chamber 1108, and A bonding chamber 1109, a take-out chamber 1110, and the like are provided. Each vapor deposition apparatus 100 may form a film of each layer having different functions of the organic EL element. In this case, the evaporation material, mask, etc. are different for each evaporation apparatus. Each vapor deposition apparatus 100 includes an alignment apparatus 1 that adjusts the relative position of a substrate and a mask, and stable alignment and vapor deposition can be performed by the substrate mounting method described in the first embodiment.

Each vapor deposition apparatus 100 may be a device in which one chamber is provided with one alignment device, or may be a device in which one chamber is provided with two or more alignment devices. For example, in the case of having two alignment devices, while the substrate is being deposited on one alignment device side, the other alignment device side removes the vapor-deposited substrate and carries the un-deposited substrate into the loaded substrate. Alignment operation can be performed.

A substrate is supplied to the substrate supply chamber 1105 from the outside. In each of the transfer chambers 1101 to 1103, a robot 1120 serving as a transfer mechanism is disposed. The robot 1120 transports the substrate between the chambers. Of the evaporation apparatuses 100 provided in plural units of the manufacturing system 300 of the present embodiment, at least one is provided with an evaporation source of an organic material. The plurality of vapor deposition apparatuses 100 included in the manufacturing system 300 may be apparatuses for forming a film of the same material from each other, or may be apparatuses for forming a film of different materials. For example, in each vapor deposition apparatus, organic materials of different luminous colors may be vapor-deposited. In the manufacturing system 300, an organic EL panel is manufactured by depositing an organic material on a substrate supplied from the substrate supply chamber 1105 or forming an inorganic material film such as a metallic material.

In the mask stock chamber 1106, a mask used in each vapor deposition apparatus 100 and on which a film is deposited is conveyed by the robot 1120. By recovering the mask conveyed to the mask stock chamber 1106, the mask can be cleaned. In addition, it is also possible to store a cleaned mask in the mask stock chamber 1106 and set it in the vapor deposition apparatus 100 by the robot 1120.

Glass material for sealing is supplied to the glass supply chamber 1108 from the outside. In the bonding chamber 1109, an organic EL panel is manufactured by attaching a glass material for sealing to the formed substrate. The manufactured organic EL panel is taken out from the take-out chamber 1110.

In the vapor deposition apparatus included in the present manufacturing system, as described in the first embodiment, after aligning the relative positions of the substrate and the mask, when lowering the Z lifting slider, the substrate is lowered while maintaining the posture of the Z lifting slider. Wit on the mask.

For this reason, with the deposition apparatus included in the present manufacturing system, it is possible to stably reproduce the alignment operation while increasing the accuracy of the alignment operation, thereby providing a film formation system equipped with a deposition apparatus in which the number of alignment operations performed before film formation is reduced. can do.

In this manufacturing system, the alignment operation is extremely stable and high-speed, since it is possible to form a film on a large-area substrate with high precision and high speed, it is possible to manufacture a high-definition organic EL panel with high yield and further high throughput. .

Thus, although the present invention can be preferably implemented in a manufacturing system for manufacturing an organic EL element, it may be implemented in a manufacturing system for manufacturing other devices. When manufacturing an electronic device or the like, it is possible to reduce the time required for alignment, shorten the tact time, and improve productivity.

[Other embodiments]

On the other hand, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and many modifications are possible within the technical idea of the present invention.

For example, the arrangement or number of the substrate support portion for supporting the substrate, the mask holding portion for supporting the mask, or the alignment camera is not limited to the example of the above-described embodiment. It is possible to appropriately change depending on the size and weight of the substrate, the size and weight of the mask, the number of alignment marks, and the layout position.

100: evaporation apparatus
1: alignment device
8: substrate holding part
9: Mask holding part
60: positioning mechanism
11: rotating translation mechanism
10: Z lift slider
13: Z lifting base
18: Z guide
50: control unit
52: linear scale
5: substrate
6a: mask

Claims (20)

A film forming apparatus for forming a film on a surface of a substrate through a mask,
A substrate holding means for supporting the substrate,
A mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate,
An in-plane movement means for changing a relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in a plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;
Distance changing means for changing a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means with respect to the other;
An attitude information acquisition means for acquiring attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means;
And a posture control means for controlling a relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the posture information. The method of claim 1,
The attitude information acquisition means acquires, as the attitude information, information indicating an inclination of the substrate holding means holding the substrate with respect to the mask holding means. The method of claim 2,
While the distance changing means brings the substrate holding means and the mask holding means close to the mask holding means in order to make the substrate and the mask close, the attitude control means, wherein the substrate holding means is in contact with the mask holding means. A film forming apparatus, wherein the posture of the substrate holding means is adjusted so as to maintain an inclination. The method according to claim 2 or 3,
The film forming apparatus has a chamber in which the film is formed,
The mask holding means is disposed inside the chamber,
The in-plane moving means and the distance changing means are connected to the substrate holding means, and the substrate holding means is moved using the in-plane moving means and the distance changing means to adjust the position of the substrate to the mask. To do,
The distance changing means is to move the substrate holding means relative to the mask holding means by a linear guide and a carriage,
The attitude information acquisition means acquires a relative positional relationship between the linear guide and the carriage,
The posture control means controls the posture of the substrate holding means so as to maintain the relative positional relationship. The method of claim 4,
The attitude information acquisition means is a linear scale, and the attitude control means is a voice coil motor. A film forming apparatus for forming a film on a surface of a substrate through a mask,
A substrate holding means for supporting the substrate,
A mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate,
An in-plane movement means for changing a relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in a plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;
Distance changing means for changing a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means with respect to the other;
Attitude information acquisition means for acquiring attitude information indicating a relative attitude between the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;
When the substrate holding means and the mask holding means are moving in a relatively approaching direction by the distance changing means, the relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the attitude information A film forming apparatus comprising: a posture control means for controlling a film. The method of claim 6,
The attitude control means keeps the relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means constant when the substrate holding means and the mask holding means approach a predetermined distance by the distance changing means. A film forming apparatus characterized in that it is controlled so as to be performed. The method of claim 7,
The attitude control means is a relative posture between the substrate holding means and the mask holding means within a range in which the distance between the substrate holding means and the mask holding means is within a predetermined distance by the distance changing means. A film forming apparatus, characterized in that maintaining the constant. The method of claim 8,
The predetermined distance is a distance immediately before contact between the substrate and the mask. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 9,
The in-plane moving means changes the relative positional relationship immediately before the substrate and the mask come into contact, and the attitude control means includes the substrate holding means and the mask holding means after the change in the relative positional relationship. A film forming apparatus, characterized in that maintaining a relative posture. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 10,
The posture information is an inclination of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means. The substrate and the mask by moving at least one of a substrate holding means for holding a substrate, a mask holding means for holding a mask substantially parallel to the substrate, and at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means An information acquisition device mounted on a film forming apparatus for forming a film on the surface of the substrate through the mask, having a positioning means for aligning the position of,
And an attitude information acquisition means for acquiring attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means. The method of claim 12,
And an attitude adjusting means for adjusting an attitude of the substrate holding means. As a film forming method using a film forming apparatus for forming a film on a surface of a substrate through a mask,
The film forming apparatus includes a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane movement means, a distance changing means, an attitude information acquisition means, and an attitude control means,
The in-plane moving means moves at least one of the substrate holding means supporting the substrate and the mask holding means supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate, thereby being substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask. Changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in one plane; and
A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;
A step of obtaining, by the attitude information acquisition means, attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means;
And the posture control means has a step of controlling a relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the posture information. As a film forming method employing a film forming apparatus for forming a film on the surface of a substrate through a mask,
The film forming apparatus includes a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane movement means, a distance changing means, an attitude information acquisition means, and an attitude control means,
A plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means for supporting the substrate and the mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate by the in-plane moving means In the step of changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask,
A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;
A step of obtaining, by the attitude information obtaining means, posture information indicating a relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;
When the attitude control means is moving in a direction in which the substrate holding means and the mask holding means are relatively approached by the distance changing means, the substrate holding means and the mask are based on the attitude information. A film forming method comprising a step of controlling a relative posture of the holding means. An alignment method for aligning a mask and a substrate for film formation in a film forming apparatus, the film forming apparatus comprising: a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane moving means, a distance changing means, a posture information acquisition means, and a posture control. Have means,
The in-plane moving means moves at least one of the substrate holding means supporting the substrate and the mask holding means supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate, thereby being substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask. Changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask in one plane; and
A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;
A step of obtaining, by the attitude information acquisition means, attitude information indicating an attitude of the substrate holding means with respect to the mask holding means;
And the posture control means has a step of controlling a relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means based on the posture information. An alignment method for aligning a mask and a substrate for film formation in a film forming apparatus, the film forming apparatus comprising: a substrate holding means, a mask holding means, an in-plane moving means, a distance changing means, a posture information acquisition means, and a posture control. Have means,
A plane substantially parallel to the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means for supporting the substrate and the mask holding means for supporting the mask substantially parallel to the substrate by the in-plane moving means In the step of changing the relative positional relationship between the substrate and the mask,
A step of changing, by the distance changing means, a distance between the substrate and the mask by moving at least one of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means relative to the other;
A step of obtaining, by the attitude information obtaining means, posture information indicating a relative posture of the substrate holding means and the mask holding means;
When the attitude control means is moving in a direction in which the substrate holding means and the mask holding means are relatively approached by the distance changing means, the substrate holding means and the mask are based on the attitude information. Alignment method comprising the step of controlling the relative posture of the holding means. An electronic device manufacturing apparatus comprising the film forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, and manufacturing an electronic device by forming a film on the substrate by the film forming apparatus. The method of claim 18,
The electronic device manufacturing apparatus, wherein the electronic device is an electronic device including an organic EL element. A step of performing alignment by controlling the relative posture of the substrate and the mask by the film forming method according to claim 14 or 15;
And manufacturing an electronic device by forming a film on the substrate through the mask positioned with respect to the substrate.

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