KR20220057711A - Roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using optical inspection module - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system and, more specifically, to a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module, wherein an optical inspection module is provided in a vacuum chamber of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition device in which a thin film deposition process is performed in a roll-to-roll method such that various measurements with respect to the thin film deposited on a substrate may be performed. Therefore, an analysis device arranged on the outside of the vacuum chamber may receive measurement information from the optical inspection module before analyzing such that the thin film deposition state may be monitored in real time. Consequently, a failure in the thin film can be quickly responded. Furthermore, time, efforts and costs for the thin film deposition and inspection with respect to the substrate can be minimized to improve productivity, and the possibility of contamination of the substrate can be reduced. To this end, the present invention relates to the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module, the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system comprising: a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition device which performs a thin film deposition process with respect to the substrate in a roll-to-roll method within a vacuum chamber, while providing an optical inspection module to perform an optical inspection with respect to the thin film of the substrate within the vacuum chamber; and a monitoring device arranged on the outside of the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition device to analyze the measurement information transmitted from the optical inspection module so as to monitor the thin film deposition state in real time.

Description

Roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using optical inspection module

The present invention relates to a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system, and in particular, by providing an optical inspection module in a vacuum chamber of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus in which a thin film deposition process is performed by a roll-to-roll method, various measurements of thin films deposited on a substrate This is performed, and the analysis device disposed outside the vacuum chamber receives the measurement information from the optical inspection module and analyzes it so that the thin film deposition state is monitored in real time, so that when a thin film defect occurs, it can be quickly dealt with, It relates to a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module that can improve productivity by minimizing time, effort, and cost for thin film deposition and inspection on a substrate, and can reduce the possibility of contamination of a substrate.

In general, a flexible polymer thin film film is used for the substrate covering the liquid crystal in the liquid crystal display, organic EL display, E-ink, etc. of the flexible display.

A transparent conductive film or a functional coating layer made of ITO, ZnO, SnO2, In2O3, Nb2O5, SiOx, etc. may be formed on such a polymer thin film by a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus.

In general, flexible displays provide flexibility to fold and unfold by replacing the glass substrate covering liquid crystal in liquid crystal displays, organic EL displays, and E-inks with flexible films. Since it can be manufactured in a shape, research on it has been actively conducted in recent years.

In this flexible technology field, it is true that there is a high demand for a vacuum deposition apparatus capable of a roll-to-roll process as equipment for forming a thin film.

Efforts have been made to manufacture such vacuum deposition equipment in a roll-to-roll manner. Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-1273771 (hereinafter referred to as "prior art document 1") proposes a roll-to-roll sputtering system capable of continuously forming a film-type deposition target.

After depositing a thin film on a film through such a roll-to-roll sputtering system, various measurements and tests must be performed on the thin film. In the prior art, an inspection process of performing tests and measurements on a thin film on a film was additionally performed separately from a thin film deposition process on a film. As a result, the thin film deposition process on the film and the inspection process for performing various measurements and tests on the thin film deposited on the film are performed in separate devices, which requires more time, effort, and cost than necessary. .

In addition, after depositing a thin film on the film, if various measurements and tests are performed on the thin film on the film through a separate inspection device, oxidation may occur in the thin film on the film and contamination may occur over time and movement. Problems that are likely to increase.

In addition, Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2013-0125900 (hereinafter referred to as "Prior Art Document 2") discloses that flexible printed circuit board units are continuously formed in a film or tape form to automatically inspect the appearance of an object using an optical method. We propose an automatic optical inspection system that inspects.

However, since the prior art document 2 is also conducted using a separate device separately from the thin film deposition process of depositing a thin film on a film, time, effort, and cost for thin film deposition and inspection process for the film are more than necessary. inevitably it will take In addition, since the optical inspection in Prior Art Document 2 is based on the vision inspection, it is possible to detect only a simple defect of the thin film on the film, it is difficult to measure the thin film thickness, and as a result, it is not possible to analyze the thin film thickness deviation, The optical density distribution also has a problem that cannot be analyzed.

In addition, prior art document 1 and prior art document 2 merely suggest the technical configuration of the deposition apparatus and the inspection device, but do not suggest at all about the technical configuration for monitoring the state of thin film deposition in real time.

Prior Art Document 1: Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2011-0012182 (published date: February 09, 2011, title of invention: roll-to-roll sputtering apparatus and continuous sputtering method implementing continuous sputtering) Prior Art Document 2: Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2013-0125900 (published date: November 20, 2013, title of invention: roll-to-roll sputtering device)

The present invention was devised to solve the problems of the prior art as described above, and a thin film deposited on a substrate by having an optical inspection module in a vacuum chamber of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus in which a thin film deposition process is performed by a roll-to-roll method In order to perform various measurements on the thin film, the analysis device disposed outside the vacuum chamber receives the measurement information from the optical inspection module and analyzes it so that the thin film deposition status is monitored in real time, so that when a thin film defect occurs, it can be quickly dealt with. A roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module that can improve productivity by minimizing time, effort, and cost for thin film deposition and inspection on a substrate, and reduce the possibility of contamination of a substrate It is intended to provide

The constituent means constituting the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using the optical inspection module of the present invention proposed to solve the above technical problems is, in the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system, applied to the substrate by the roll-to-roll method in the vacuum chamber. a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus having an optical inspection module performing an optical inspection on a thin film of a substrate in a vacuum chamber; and a monitoring device disposed outside the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus to analyze the measurement information transmitted from the optical inspection module to monitor the thin film deposition state in real time.

Here, the monitoring device includes a control unit, an input unit for receiving the measurement information under the control of the control unit, an analysis unit for analyzing the measurement information under the control of the control unit to generate analysis result information including whether the thin film is defective, the It is characterized in that it comprises a visualization unit for visualizing and displaying the analysis result information under the control of the control unit, and an alarm unit for generating an alarm when a defect occurs in the thin film under the control of the control unit.

Here, the analyzer analyzes the measurement information to generate analysis result information including the presence or absence of a defect, a defect type, a cause of a defect, and a time or location of the defect.

In addition, in the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus, an unwinding roller for unwinding a substrate, and one surface of the substrate transferred from the unwinding roller in a state in which tension is maintained are moved so that one surface of the substrate is exposed, and a thin film deposition process on one surface of the substrate A deposition module for performing the above, an optical inspection module for performing optical inspection on a thin film of a substrate that is moved from the deposition module in a state in which tension is maintained, and a substrate transferred from the optical inspection module in a state in which tension is maintained. A winding roller, wherein the optical inspection module includes a light source sensor module for irradiating light to the moving substrate, and a light receiving sensor module for receiving light transmitted through the substrate and measuring at least one of an optical density and a thickness of the thin film It is characterized in that it includes.

According to the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using the optical inspection module of the present invention having the above problems and solutions, an optical inspection module is provided in the vacuum chamber of the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus in which the thin film deposition process is performed by the roll-to-roll method In order to perform various measurements on the thin film deposited on the substrate, and the analysis device disposed outside the vacuum chamber receives the measurement information from the optical inspection module and analyzes it, the thin film deposition state is monitored in real time. When a thin film defect occurs, it can be quickly dealt with, and by minimizing time, effort and cost for thin film deposition and inspection on the substrate, productivity can be improved, and the possibility of contamination of the substrate can be reduced. .

1 is a block diagram of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a block diagram of a monitoring device constituting a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration diagram of a first form of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus constituting a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration diagram of a second form of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus constituting a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to the present invention having the above problems, solutions and effects will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Since the present invention can apply various transformations and can have various embodiments, specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the detailed description. Effects and features of the present invention, and a method for achieving them will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described below in detail in conjunction with the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below and may be implemented in various forms.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and when described with reference to the drawings, the same or corresponding components are given the same reference numerals, and the overlapping description thereof will be omitted. .

In the following embodiments, terms such as include or have means that the features or components described in the specification are present, and the possibility that one or more other features or components will be added is not excluded in advance.

In the drawings, the size of the components may be exaggerated or reduced for convenience of description. For example, since the size and thickness of each component shown in the drawings are arbitrarily indicated for convenience of description, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the illustrated bar.

1 is a block diagram of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a configuration of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention It is a configuration block diagram of a monitoring device.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system 300 using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 having an optical inspection module 50 and the optical inspection module 50 . It is configured to include a monitoring device 200 that is connected to the inspection module 50 by wire or wirelessly, receives and analyzes measurement information, and monitors the thin film deposition state in real time therefrom.

The roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 performs a thin film deposition process on a substrate by a roll-to-roll method in a vacuum chamber 1 , and performs optical inspection on a thin film of a substrate in the vacuum chamber 1 . An inspection module (50) is provided.

The optical inspection module 50 applied to the present invention is not disposed outside the vacuum chamber 1 in which the thin film deposition process is performed, but a vacuum chamber 1 in which the thin film deposition process is performed on the substrate by a roll-to-roll method. It is disposed inside, and after continuously inspecting the thin film deposited on the substrate in real time to generate measurement information, it is transmitted to the monitoring device 200 .

Conventionally, only the thin film deposition process is performed in the vacuum chamber 1 , and the thin film inspection process is performed individually using a separate inspection device. In contrast, the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system according to the present invention performs an optical inspection of the thin film of the substrate in the vacuum chamber 1 as a thin film deposition process and a series of processes on the substrate. As a result, time, effort, and cost for performing a thin film deposition and inspection process on a substrate can be reduced.

Result information of the optical inspection performed by the optical inspection module 50 , that is, measurement information is transmitted to the monitoring device 200 . Then, the monitoring device 200 analyzes the measurement information to monitor the thin film deposition state in real time. That is, the monitoring device 200 is disposed outside the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 and analyzes the measurement information transmitted from the optical inspection module 50 to monitor the thin film deposition state in real time. .

As shown in FIG. 2 , the monitoring apparatus 200 according to the present invention for performing such an operation includes a control unit 210 , an input unit 230 for receiving the measurement information under the control of the control unit 210 , and the An analysis unit 250 that analyzes the measurement information under the control of the control unit 210 to generate analysis result information including whether the thin film is defective, and visualizes and displays the analysis result information under the control of the control unit 210 It is configured to include an alarm unit 290 that generates an alarm when a defect occurs in the thin film under the control of the visualization unit 270 and the control unit 210 .

The controller 210 controls the overall operation of the monitoring device 200 . That is, the control unit 210 controls the operations of the input unit 230 , the analysis unit 250 , the visualization unit 270 , and the alarm unit 290 .

The input unit 230 is wired or wirelessly connected to the optical inspection module 50 , specifically a light receiving sensor module 53 to be described later, to receive measurement information under the control of the controller 210 . The control unit 210 controls the input unit 230 to input the measurement information in real time at regular intervals.

Measurement information inputted periodically or in real time through the input unit 230 is transmitted to and analyzed by the analysis unit 250 under the control of the control unit 210 . That is, the analysis unit 250 receives and analyzes the measurement information under the control of the control unit 210 . The analysis unit 250 analyzes the measurement information to basically generate analysis result information on whether the thin film is defective, and generates additional results under the control of the control unit 210 . That is, the analysis unit 250 generates analysis result information including whether the thin film is defective.

Specifically, the analysis unit 250 analyzes the measurement information to generate analysis result information including the presence or absence of a defect, the type of the defect, the cause of the defect, and the time or location of the defect.

Here, the presence or absence of the defect included in the analysis result information is result information on whether a defect exists in the thin film, and corresponds to result information regarding whether a defect exists or does not exist. When it is analyzed that a defect exists as a result of the analysis, the analysis unit 250 analyzes the type of the defect and generates it as analysis result information. That is, when it is analyzed that a defect exists, the analysis unit 250 analyzes whether the defect corresponds to at least one of a pinhole, a scratch, and a stain, and further analyzes the size or shape of the pinhole, scratch, and stain. Generate result information.

When the analysis unit 250 determines the analysis result information on the defect type, that is, whether the defect corresponds to at least one of a pinhole, a scratch, and a stain, and generates analysis result information on the size or shape of the defect, the corresponding Analyze the cause of the defect. That is, the analysis unit 250 determines that the defect is caused by at least one of the cause of the defect type, for example, the deposition process conditions, for example, the substrate moving speed, the vacuum level, and the power. It is created with analysis result information.

Furthermore, the analysis unit 250 analyzes the occurrence time or location of the corresponding defect and generates the analysis result information. For example, the analysis unit 250 generates analysis result information by analyzing whether the corresponding defect occurred immediately after thin film deposition, occurred after a certain time after thin film deposition, or was caused by a specific roller.

As such, when various and specific analysis result information is generated by the analysis unit 250 , the control unit 210 controls the visualization unit 270 to visualize and display the analysis result information in various forms. do. That is, the visualization unit 270 visualizes and displays the various analysis result information through various information display forms under the control of the control unit 210 . For example, the visualization unit 270 may display the analysis result information in various forms such as a graph display form, a blinking display form, and a color display form. According to the operation of the visualization unit 270 as described above, the manager can visually check and recognize the thin film deposition state in real time, and can quickly respond to an abnormality in the thin film deposition.

On the other hand, when various and detailed analysis result information is generated by the analysis unit 250 , the control unit 210 controls the alarm unit 290 to generate an alarm informing a manager of the occurrence of a defect. That is, the alarm unit 290 generates an alarm when a defect occurs according to the analysis result information of the analysis unit 250 under the control of the control unit 210 so that the manager can audibly confirm. According to the operation of the alarm unit 290 as described above, the manager can audibly check and recognize a defect in the thin film deposition state in real time, and can quickly respond to the occurrence of a defect in the thin film deposition.

According to the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using the optical inspection module of the present invention as described above, an optical inspection module is provided in the vacuum chamber 1 of the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus in which the thin film deposition process is performed by the roll-to-roll method on the substrate. Since various measurements are performed on the deposited thin film, and the analysis device disposed outside the vacuum chamber 1 receives the measurement information from the optical inspection module and analyzes it, the thin film deposition state is monitored in real time. When a defect occurs, it is possible to respond quickly, and by minimizing time, effort and cost for thin film deposition and inspection on the substrate, productivity can be improved, and the possibility of contamination of the substrate can be reduced.

Meanwhile, the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 constituting the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system 300 using the optical inspection module according to the present invention may be configured in various ways. However, the optical inspection module 50 is necessarily disposed in the vacuum chamber 1 in which the thin film deposition is performed.

3 is a schematic structural cross-sectional view of a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus constituting a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3, the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 applied to the present invention includes an unwinding roller 10, a deposition module 30, an optical inspection module 50, a winding roller 70, and a tension / It is configured to include a guide roller (90).

The unwinding roller 10 performs an operation of unwinding or rewinding a substrate s, specifically, a flexible substrate s such as a film by a mutual rotation motion between the winding roller 70 and the winding roller 70 . Specifically, the unwinding roller 10 performs an operation to unwind the flexible substrate (s), and the winding roller 70 is transferred from the optical inspection module 50 in a state in which the tension is maintained, as will be described later. The operation of rewinding the substrate (s) is performed.

The unwinding roller 10 and the winding roller 70 work together to wind or unwind the film-type vapor-deposited object, that is, the flexible substrate s, so that the substrate s is applied to the deposition area corresponding to the deposition module 30 and the substrate. It is transported along the optical inspection module 50 corresponding to the area of inspection, test, measurement, etc. for the thin film on the image. The substrate (s) wound on the unwinding roller 10 passes through the deposition module 30 and the optical inspection module 50 while the tension is maintained and guided through a plurality of tension/guide rollers 90 and the It is rewound on the winding roller (70).

A load cell (not shown) for detecting the tension of the transferred flexible substrate s may be installed on at least one of the unwinding roller 10 and the winding roller 70 . Since the flexible substrate (s) may be damaged when a tension of a certain size or more is applied to the flexible substrate (s), a load cell (not shown) prevents this by monitoring the tension of the flexible substrate (s). That is, in the load cell, when the tension applied to the flexible substrate s exceeds a certain level, the speed of the unwinding roller 10 and the winding roller 70 so that the flexible substrate s can be transported below the limit tension. It provides a signal that can be adjusted.

The rotation directions of the unwinding roller 10 and the winding roller 70 may be varied. That is, when it is necessary to perform a thin film deposition process again on the flexible substrate s on which a thin film is deposited while being unwound from the unwinding roller 10 and wound by the winding roller 70 , the unwinding roller 10 and the winding roller The direction of rotation of (70) is changed so that the flexible substrate (s) wound on the winding roller (70) is unwound and can be wound on the unwinding roller (10).

In this case, the optical inspection module 50 may be disposed between the unwinding roller 10 and the deposition module 30 . That is, the optical inspection module 50 applied to the present invention is illustrated as being disposed between the deposition module 30 and the winding module 70 in FIGS. 3 and 4, but in some cases, the unwinding roller 10 ) and the deposition module 30 and between the deposition module 30 and the winding roller 70, it is preferably disposed at at least one position.

The flexible substrate, which is unwound and moved by the unwinding roller 10 , is transferred to the deposition module 30 and undergoes a thin film deposition process. The flexible substrate (s) delivered from the unwinding roller 10 is transferred to the deposition module 30 while being guided in a state in which the tension is maintained, and one surface is exposed while passing through the deposition module 30. A thin film is deposited by performing a thin film deposition process such as a sputtering process on one surface of the exposed substrate.

That is, the deposition module 30 is moved so that one surface of the substrate s transferred from the unwinding roller 10 in a state in which the tension is maintained is exposed, and the one surface of the substrate s is subjected to a sputtering process, etc. An operation of performing a thin film deposition process is performed.

One surface of the substrate (s) may be a front surface or a rear surface. When one surface of the substrate is the front surface, the other surface of the substrate corresponds to the rear surface, and when the one surface of the substrate is the rear surface, the other surface of the substrate corresponds to the front surface.

Since the substrate s passing through the deposition module 30 moves with one surface exposed, the other surface of the substrate is transported in contact with a drum 31 or a drum substitute roller 33 to be described later. , one surface of the substrate is transferred in an exposed state while facing at least one target 35 to be described later. Accordingly, one surface of the substrate (s) may be subjected to a thin film deposition process such as a sputtering process on one surface while passing through the deposition module 30 to form a thin film.

After being subjected to a thin film deposition process such as a sputtering process on one surface of the deposition module 30 , the flexible substrate s moved is continuously subjected to an optical inspection process while being transferred to the optical inspection module 50 . The flexible substrate (s) moved in the deposition module 30 is transferred to the optical inspection module 50 while being guided in a state in which the tension is maintained, and the optical inspection module 50 provides various Perform optical inspection for testing, measurement and inspection.

That is, the optical inspection module 50 performs various optical inspections for testing, measurement, and inspection on the thin film of the substrate s that is moved from the deposition module 30 in a state in which the tension is maintained. As a result, the flexible substrate s may be continuously subjected to a thin film deposition process and a thin film inspection process while passing through the deposition module 30 and the optical inspection module 50 . In particular, since the optical inspection of the thin film of the flexible substrate (s) is performed in the vacuum chamber 1 in a vacuum state, it is possible to prevent oxidation and contamination of the thin film of the substrate in advance.

The optical inspection module 50 is disposed in the inspection chamber 5 capable of maintaining a vacuum state, and performs various tests, measurements, and inspections on the moving substrate, specifically, the thin film of the substrate in a state where the airtightness is maintained. Perform an optical inspection to

The optical inspection module 50 applied to the present invention is configured to include a light source sensor module 51 and a light receiving sensor module 53 . Specifically, the optical inspection module 50 includes a light source sensor module 51 that irradiates light to the moving substrate s, and receives light transmitted through the substrate s among the optical density and thickness of the thin film. It is configured to include a light receiving sensor module 53 for measuring at least one.

The light source sensor module 51 scans the thin film of the moving substrate while irradiating laser light toward the thin film. Specifically, the light source sensor module 51 is disposed on the moving substrate (s) to irradiate the scan light to the thin film of the substrate (s).

The light receiving sensor module 53 is disposed under the substrate that is moved corresponding to the light source sensor module 51 . The light receiving sensor module 53 basically receives and senses the light that is irradiated from the light source sensor module 51 and has passed through the substrate on which the thin film is formed.

Various measurements, tests, and inspections related to the thin film may be performed using the light sensed by the light receiving sensor module 53 and the intensity of light irradiated from the light source sensor module 51 . Such an operation may be performed with a separate measurement module (not shown), or may be performed together with the light receiving sensor module 53 without a separate measurement module.

In order to simplify the configuration of the optical inspection module 50 applied to the present invention, it is preferable to configure the light receiving sensor module 53 to perform various measurements related to the thin film. Specifically, the light receiving sensor module 53 receives the light transmitted through the substrate (s) and performs an operation of measuring at least one of the optical density and the thickness of the thin film.

The light receiving sensor module 53 may detect the received intensity of transmitted light, receive intensity information of the irradiated light from the light source sensor module 51 , and measure and analyze the optical density of the thin film of the substrate. Since the light receiving sensor module 53 can sense and receive the intensity of the scan light, it is possible to measure and analyze the optical density through the contour method.

In addition, the light receiving sensor module 53 may measure and analyze the thickness of the thin film using the correlation with the optical density, thereby measuring and analyzing the thickness deviation of the thin film. The light receiving sensor module 53 can measure and analyze the thickness of the thin film using the correlation with the optical density, but separately from this, the detected intensity of transmitted light and the received light source sensor module 51 It is also possible to measure and analyze the thickness of the thin film using the intensity information of the light irradiated from the .

The light receiving sensor module 53 may analyze whether the thin film is defective, in particular whether a pinhole is generated, by using at least one measurement information among optical density and thickness information of the thin film. However, this specific analysis is analyzed by the above-described monitoring device 200 that receives measurement information corresponding to the optical density and thickness information of the thin film in order to ensure the simplification of the optical inspection module 50 and the accuracy of the analysis. It is preferable to be

Meanwhile, the optical density information of the thin film measured and analyzed by the light receiving sensor module 53 and measurement information corresponding to the thickness information of the thin film may be transmitted to the monitoring device 200 separately provided outside. Then, the monitoring device 200 may monitor the thin film deposition state in real time by performing and analyzing various measurements, tests, and inspections using the measurement information.

In addition, the light receiving sensor module 53 may only perform an operation of scanning and sensing the light passing through the substrate (s) and may not perform an operation of measuring the optical density and thickness of the thin film. In this case, the intensity information of the transmitted light detected by the light receiving sensor module 53 and the intensity information of the light irradiated by the light source sensor module 51 may be transmitted to the monitoring device 200 separately provided outside. Then, the monitoring device 200 may perform and analyze various measurements, tests, and inspections using the information.

The flexible substrate s that has undergone the optical inspection process while passing through the optical inspection module 50 is rewound on the winding roller 70 . Also, the flexible substrate (s) transferred from the optical inspection module 50 is rewound on the winding roller 70 in a state in which the tension is maintained. That is, the winding roller 70 performs an operation of rewinding the substrate transferred from the optical inspection module 50 in a state in which the tension is maintained.

The flexible substrate (s) moving from the unwinding roller 10 to the winding roller 70 needs to be transported in a state in which tension is maintained without wrinkling, and needs to be transported while being guided so as not to be separated laterally. there is To this end, between the unwinding roller 10 and the deposition module 30 , between the deposition module 30 and the optical inspection module 50 , and between the optical fiber module 50 and the winding module 70 , A plurality of tension/guide rollers 90 are respectively arranged so that the transferred substrate can be guided while maintaining the tension.

That is, the plurality of tension/guide rollers 90 are disposed between the unwinding roller 10 and the deposition module 30 , between the deposition module 30 and the optical inspection module 50 , and the optical inspection module (50) and the moving substrate (s) disposed between the winding roller 70 performs an operation to maintain the tension and to be guided.

Each of the tension/guide rollers 90 may be configured to perform both the tension maintenance operation and the guide operation, or may be configured to perform only the tension maintenance operation or only the guide operation.

According to the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 applied to the present invention described above, the optical inspection module 50 is provided in the vacuum chamber 1 in which the thin film deposition process is performed, and various measurements of the thin film deposited on the substrate are measured. is configured to be continuously performed in real time immediately after the thin film deposition process, so it is possible to improve productivity and reduce the possibility of contamination of the substrate by minimizing the time, effort, and cost for thin film deposition and inspection on the substrate. There are advantages to allowing That is, if the inspection of the thin film of the substrate is carried out in a process, time and space separate from the thin film deposition process, the possibility of exposure to particles or contamination is high and productivity is low, whereas the present invention provides a series of Since the thin film deposition process and the thin film inspection process can be performed on the substrate in a continuous process, the possibility of exposure to contamination can be minimized and productivity can be improved.

The deposition module 30 performs an operation of depositing a thin film on the moving flexible substrate s through various deposition methods. In the present invention, thin film deposition is exemplified by a sputtering method. In addition, the sputtering method may be performed through various configurations, in the present invention, the drum 31 or the drum substitute roller 33 and at least one target 35 are exemplified.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3 , the deposition module 30 applied to the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 applied to the present invention is in contact with the other surface of the substrate s in one direction ( FIG. 3 ). A drum 31 rotating in a counterclockwise direction) and at least one target 35 for performing sputtering on one surface of the substrate s moving along the drum 31. do.

The drum 31 is transferred while rotating the substrate in one direction while in contact with the other surface of the substrate s transferred from the unwinding roller 10 in a state in which the tension is maintained. Accordingly, one surface of the substrate may be exposed in a state facing the at least one target 35 , whereby the substrate s is transferred while thin film sputtering is performed on one surface by the at least one target 35 . process can be performed.

The at least one target 35 is arranged to be spaced apart from the drum 31 by a predetermined distance along the side and the lower portion of the drum 31, and is spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance to move along the drum 31 A sputtering thin film is deposited on one surface of the substrate (s). As a result, predetermined thin film layers may be deposited on one surface of the substrate s passing through the deposition module 30 .

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 3 , the deposition module 30 includes barrier ribs 37 disposed between adjacent targets 35 to spatially separate the at least one target 35 from each other. It may be configured to further include.

The partition wall 37 is adopted to prevent the target material sputtered by each of the at least one target 35 from flying to the other target 35 (especially an adjacent target). By adopting and applying the partition wall 37, it is possible to prevent the target material sputtered by each target 35 from flying to the adjacent target 35, thereby reducing the contamination of the adjacent target 35. By preventing it, the deposition quality can be maintained.

Meanwhile, the deposition module 30 includes at least one target, through which a thin film having a desired thickness can be deposited on the substrate s, and further, different materials can be deposited in multiple layers.

A thin film deposition process such as a sputtering process by the deposition module 30 is performed in the vacuum chamber 1 maintaining a vacuum state. In addition, the optical inspection by the optical inspection module 50 is also performed in the same vacuum chamber 1 , and the unwinding roller 10 and the winding roller 70 are also arranged in the same vacuum chamber 1 . Consequently, the unwinding roller 10 , the deposition module 30 , the optical inspection module 50 , and the winding module 70 are preferably arranged in one vacuum chamber 1 . However, the arrangement structure of the unwinding roller 10 , the deposition module 30 , the optical inspection module 50 and the winding module 70 disposed in one and the same vacuum chamber 1 is limited to FIGS. 3 and 4 . Without it, it can be varied in various ways.

As such, in principle, the unwinding roller 10, the deposition module 30, the optical inspection module 50, and the winding module 70 are arranged in various arrangement structures within the same vacuum chamber 1, but , as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , may be individually arranged in a separate vacuum chamber 1 in some cases.

In this case, the thin film deposition process such as the sputtering process by the deposition module 30 is preferably performed in a chamber maintaining a vacuum state, specifically, the process chamber. Accordingly, it is preferable that the unwinding roller 10 and the optical inspection module 50 disposed adjacent to each other are also arranged and operated in the unwinding chamber and the inspection chamber that can maintain a vacuum state, respectively. In addition, it is preferable that the winding roller 70 is also arranged and operated in a winding chamber capable of maintaining a vacuum state. In particular, the optical inspection module 50 prevents oxidation of the thin film, prevents the thin film from being contaminated, and is disposed in an inspection chamber that can maintain airtightness and a vacuum state at the same time to ensure the precision of optical inspection. it is preferable

That is, the unwinding roller 10 is disposed and operated in the unwinding chamber, the deposition module 30 is disposed and operated in the process chamber, and the optical inspection module 50 is disposed and operated in the inspection chamber, The winding roller 70 is disposed in the winding chamber to operate. In addition, in the adjacent chambers, a slit through which the substrate (s) can pass is formed on an adjacent interface, but the respective chambers are operated so that a vacuum state can be maintained as a whole.

Meanwhile, the substrate s may be subjected to a pretreatment process before being subjected to a thin film deposition process such as a sputtering process. The pretreatment process includes an ion beam treatment or the like. The ion beam treatment cleans the surface of the substrate and improves the efficiency of thin film deposition in the sputtering process through surface treatment. Such an ion beam treatment is preferably performed before sputtering by the target 35 starts. Accordingly, it is preferable that the ion beam processing module for the ion beam processing is disposed ahead of the target 35 (arranged to the left of the target 35 disposed at the leftmost side).

On the other hand, in some cases, instead of the drum 31 adopted and applied to the deposition module 30, at least one roller that is structurally simple and easier to install and replace, specifically, at least one drum substitute roller 33 It can be applied instead of adopted.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4 , a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 of a second type constituting a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module according to an embodiment of the present invention is illustrated with reference to FIG. 3 . Most of the configuration is the same as that of the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 applied to the present invention described above, except that the drum substitute roller 33 is adopted instead of the drum 31 of the deposition module 30 . Therefore, in the following, only the parts different from those of FIG. 3 will be described in detail, and the remaining parts will be omitted. However, the omitted parts are applied in the same manner as those described with reference to FIG. 3 .

As shown in FIG. 4 , the deposition module 30 applied to the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus 100 of the second type applied to the present invention is in contact with the other surface of the substrate s in one direction (FIG. In 4, but rotating in a counterclockwise direction), at least one drum substitute roller 33 and at least one drum substitute roller 33 arranged to be spaced apart from each other, sputtering with respect to one surface of the substrate moving along the roller 33 at least one target 35 to be performed and a barrier rib 37 disposed and formed between adjacent targets 35 in order to spatially separate the at least one target 35 from each other, wherein the at least Each of the drum substitute rollers 33 is configured to be disposed and formed at a position corresponding to the partition wall 37 .

The at least one drum substitute roller 33 is transferred while rotating in one direction while in contact with the other surface of the substrate s transferred from the unwinding roller 10 in a state in which the tension is maintained. The at least one drum substitute roller 33 is arranged to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, and is arranged to have a semicircular or elliptical shape as a whole. Accordingly, one surface of the substrate may be exposed in a state facing the at least one target 35 , whereby the substrate s is transferred while thin film sputtering is performed on one surface by the at least one target 35 . process can be performed.

The at least one target 35 is arranged to be spaced apart from the at least one drum substitute roller 33 by a predetermined distance along the side and the lower portion of the group of the at least one drum substitute roller 33, and spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance A sputtering thin film is deposited on one surface of the substrate (s) which is disposed and moves along the at least one drum substitute roller (33). As a result, predetermined thin film layers may be deposited on one surface of the substrate s passing through the deposition module 30 .

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 4 , the deposition module 30 includes barrier ribs 37 disposed between adjacent targets 35 to spatially separate the at least one target 35 from each other. consists of including

The barrier rib 37 is adopted to prevent the target material sputtered by each of the at least one target 35 from flying to the other target 35 (especially an adjacent target). By adopting and applying the partition wall 37, it is possible to prevent the target material sputtered by each target 35 from flying to the adjacent target 35, thereby reducing the contamination of the adjacent target 35. By preventing it, the deposition quality can be maintained.

On the other hand, it is preferable for the quality of deposition that the flexible substrate (s) transferred along the at least one drum substitute roller 33 faces the target 35 facing it on a flat surface rather than a curved surface. To this end, each of the at least one drum substitute roller 33 is disposed and formed at a position corresponding to the partition wall 37 .

Specifically, each of the drum substitute rollers 33 is disposed to correspond to each of the bulkheads 37 , and when the correspondingly disposed bulkhead 37 is extended, the upper surface (substrate) of the corresponding bulkhead 37 . (s) or the corresponding drum replacement roller 33 and the side corresponding to the opposite corner) and disposed in a position to coincide with, or to be located in contact with the upper surface or the lower surface of the corresponding partition wall 37 are placed As a result, the flexible substrate positioned between the adjacent partition walls 37 can be maintained in a taut state by the adjacent drum substitute roller 33, whereby the flexible substrate s facing each target 35 ) can maintain a flat state, so it is possible to improve the quality of thin film deposition on one surface of the substrate.

Although the embodiments according to the present invention have been described above, these are merely exemplary, and those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent ranges of embodiments are possible therefrom. Accordingly, the true technical protection scope of the present invention should be defined by the following claims.

1: vacuum chamber 10: unwinding roller
30: deposition module 31: drum
33: drum substitute roller 35: target
37: bulkhead 50: optical inspection module
51: light source sensor module 53: light receiving sensor module
70: winding roller 90: tension / guide roller
100: roll-to-roll vacuum deposition device
200: monitoring device 210: control unit
230: input unit 250: analysis unit
270: visualization unit 290: alarm unit
300: Roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module

Claims (4)

In the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system,
a roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus having an optical inspection module for performing a thin film deposition process on a substrate by a roll-to-roll method in a vacuum chamber, and performing an optical inspection on a thin film of a substrate in a vacuum chamber;
Roll-to-roll vacuum using an optical inspection module, characterized in that it comprises a monitoring device disposed outside the roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus to monitor the thin film deposition state in real time by analyzing the measurement information transmitted from the optical inspection module Deposition monitoring system.
The method according to claim 1,
The monitoring device
A control unit, an input unit that receives the measurement information under the control of the control unit, an analysis unit that analyzes the measurement information under the control of the control unit to generate analysis result information including whether the thin film is defective; Roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module, characterized in that it comprises a visualization unit that visualizes and displays the analysis result information, and an alarm unit that generates an alarm when a defect occurs in the thin film under the control of the control unit. 3. The method according to claim 2,
Roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using an optical inspection module, characterized in that the analysis unit analyzes the measurement information to generate analysis result information including the presence or absence of a defect, a defect type, a cause of a defect, and a time or location of the defect.
The method according to claim 1,
The roll-to-roll vacuum deposition apparatus,
An unwinding roller for unwinding the substrate, and a deposition module for performing a thin film deposition process on one surface of the substrate by moving one surface of the substrate transferred from the unwinding roller in a state in which the tension is maintained is exposed; and the deposition module An optical inspection module for performing an optical inspection on the thin film of the substrate that is moved in a state in which the tension is maintained from the optical inspection module, and a winding roller for rewinding the substrate transferred from the optical inspection module in a state in which the tension is maintained,
The optical inspection module comprises a light source sensor module for irradiating light to the moving substrate, and a light receiving sensor module for receiving the light transmitted through the substrate and measuring at least one of an optical density and a thickness of the thin film Roll-to-roll vacuum deposition monitoring system using optical inspection module.

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