WO2008146894A1 - Substrat pour tête d'évacuation de liquide, son procédé de fabrication, et tête d'évacuation de liquide utilisant ce substrat - Google Patents

Substrat pour tête d'évacuation de liquide, son procédé de fabrication, et tête d'évacuation de liquide utilisant ce substrat Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2008146894A1
WO2008146894A1 PCT/JP2008/059954 JP2008059954W WO2008146894A1 WO 2008146894 A1 WO2008146894 A1 WO 2008146894A1 JP 2008059954 W JP2008059954 W JP 2008059954W WO 2008146894 A1 WO2008146894 A1 WO 2008146894A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
layer
substrate
protection layer
liquid discharge
insulating protection
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/JP2008/059954
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Ichiro Saito
Kazuaki Shibata
Takahiro Matsui
Sakai Yokoyama
Teruo Ozaki
Original Assignee
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from JP2008083726A external-priority patent/JP4963679B2/ja
Application filed by Canon Kabushiki Kaisha filed Critical Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Priority to US12/530,366 priority Critical patent/US20100079551A1/en
Publication of WO2008146894A1 publication Critical patent/WO2008146894A1/fr

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1621—Manufacturing processes
    • B41J2/1626—Manufacturing processes etching
    • B41J2/1629—Manufacturing processes etching wet etching
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/14—Structure thereof only for on-demand ink jet heads
    • B41J2/14016—Structure of bubble jet print heads
    • B41J2/14088—Structure of heating means
    • B41J2/14112—Resistive element
    • B41J2/14129—Layer structure
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1601—Production of bubble jet print heads
    • B41J2/1603—Production of bubble jet print heads of the front shooter type
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1621—Manufacturing processes
    • B41J2/1626—Manufacturing processes etching
    • B41J2/1628—Manufacturing processes etching dry etching
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1621—Manufacturing processes
    • B41J2/1631—Manufacturing processes photolithography
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1621—Manufacturing processes
    • B41J2/1637—Manufacturing processes molding
    • B41J2/1639—Manufacturing processes molding sacrificial molding
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1621—Manufacturing processes
    • B41J2/164—Manufacturing processes thin film formation
    • B41J2/1642—Manufacturing processes thin film formation thin film formation by CVD [chemical vapor deposition]
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1621—Manufacturing processes
    • B41J2/164—Manufacturing processes thin film formation
    • B41J2/1645—Manufacturing processes thin film formation thin film formation by spincoating
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/16—Production of nozzles
    • B41J2/1621—Manufacturing processes
    • B41J2/164—Manufacturing processes thin film formation
    • B41J2/1646—Manufacturing processes thin film formation thin film formation by sputtering

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a substrate for a liquid discharge head for discharging liquid, a method of manufacturing the substrate, and a liquid discharge head using such a substrate for a liquid discharge head.
  • the ink jet recording method is characterized in that a small quantity of ink is discharged as liquid droplets from a discharge port at high speed whereby a high definition image can be recorded at high speed. Technologies for discharging not only ink but also various kinds of liquid using this liquid discharge method have been developed.
  • Ink jet heads (which will be simply referred to as recording heads hereinafter) for implementing the ink jet recording method can be categorized into several types according to the discharge principles.
  • ink jet heads that discharge ink utilizing heat energy and have a structure in which a heat generating portion and a discharge port for discharging ink associated with the heat generating portion are formed on a silicon base plate are commonly used.
  • Commonly used substrates for ink jet heads have a structure in which a plurality of heating portions
  • FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing a general configuration of a heating portion formed on a base plate of- a substrate for an ink jet head that uses an ink as the liquid to be discharged and portions relevant thereto.
  • a heat generating resistor layer is a heat generating resistor layer
  • the wiring 1105 is formed in such a way as to cover the heat generating resistor layer 1004. A part of the wiring layer 1105 has been removed, where the heat generating resistor layer is exposed to constitutes a heat generating portion 1104' .
  • the wiring is connected with a drive circuit.
  • the drive circuit is formed on the base plate 1100, it is connected with an external power source via a connection terminal provided in the drive circuit.
  • the drive circuit and the wiring are connected via a connection terminal provided on the wiring.
  • the heat generating resistor layer 1104 is made of a material having a high electric resistance such as TaSiN.
  • thermal energy is generated with generation of heat in the heat generating portion 1104', whereby a bubble is generated in the ink.
  • FIG. 14 is a cross sectional view of the substrate for an ink jet head shown in FIG. 1 taken along line II-II.
  • an Si base plate is used as the base plate 120.
  • a heat storage layer 106 constituted by an SiO 2 layer, which has been formed, for example, by thermal oxidation.
  • heat storage layer 106 On the heat storage layer 106 are provided heat generating resistor layer 107 for giving thermal energy to ink and wiring 103, 104 for applying a voltage to the heat generating resistor layer 107.
  • the portion of the heat generating resistor layer 107 that is exposed between the wiring portions constitutes a heat generating portion 102.
  • an insulating protection layer 108 On the heat generating resistor layer 107 and the wiring 103, 104 is provided an insulating protection layer 108 to protect them.
  • insulating protection layer 108 On the heat insulating protection layer
  • Ta layer 110 is provided as a cavitation resistant layer.
  • An ink flow passage (not shown) that is in communication with a discharge port is provided at least on the heat generating portion 102.
  • the portion on the heat generating portion 102 will be in contact with liquid ink. If the wiring 103, 104 made of a metal and the heat generating portion 102 are in contact with ink, they will be damaged chemically by, for example, erosion. In addition, these portion are likely to be damaged physically by mechanical impact resulting from cavitation due to repetitive creation and disappearance of bubbles in the ink on the heat generating portion.
  • the insulating protection layer 108 for protecting and insulating these portions and the Ta layer 110 serving as an upper protection layer are provided.
  • the insulating protection layer 108 and the Ta layer 110 also serve to protect these portions in such a use environment. Therefore, the protection layer is required to be superior in heat resistance, liquid resistance, liquid filtration resistance, stability against oxidation, insulating performance, breakage resistance and thermal conductivity, and an inorganic compound layer such as a silicon oxide layer or silicon nitride layer is typically used as the protection layer. Providing only the insulating protection layer 108 such as a silicon oxide layer or a silicon nitride layer may sometimes be inadequate in protecting the heat generating resistor layer. Hence an upper protection layer made of a metal like the Ta layer 110 that has high cavitation resistance is provided on the insulating protection layer 108 in many cases, as shown in FIG. 14.
  • ink jet recording apparatuses are required to record images with higher resolutions and higher image qualities at higher speeds.
  • One solution for improvement of the resolution and image quality is to reduce the quantity of discharged ink per dot (or to reduce the diameter of ink droplets in the case where ink is discharge as droplets) .
  • the approach that has been conventionally taken to reduce the size of ink droplets is to reduce the area of the opening of the discharge port and reduce the area of the heat generating portion.
  • an increase in the thickness of the wiring layer leads to an increase in the height difference at a step portion at the boundary between the heat generating resistor layer that constitutes the heat generating portion and the wiring layer and at a step portion at the boundary between the wiring layer and the heat storage layer.
  • an increase in the drive frequency and an increase in the number of the discharge ports lead to an increase in the total amount of heat generated in the heat generating portion, and the heat generated in the heat generating portion is stored in the base plate, which causes the temperature of the recording head to rise.
  • the protection layer is too thin, the step portion of the wiring cannot be covered satisfactorily, and covering of the step portion may become deficient. As a result, penetration of ink may occur at that portion to cause erosion of the wiring or erosion of the heat generating resistor layer, which can result in lower reliability and shorter life, in some cases.
  • pin holes or the like existing in the protection layer allow penetration of ink, which can result in erosion of the wiring or heat generating resistor layer.
  • Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H08- 112902 discloses a configuration of a substrate shown in FIG. 13 that addresses this problem.
  • the base plate 120 used in this substrate 101 is a silicon base plate or a silicon base plate having a built-in IC device.
  • On the surface of the base plate 120 is provided an SiO 2 layer serving as a heat storage layer 106.
  • On the surface of the heat storage layer 106 are further provided a heat generating resistor layer 107 or a TaN layer for constituting a heat generating portion and an Al layer serving as wiring 103, 104.
  • the wiring patterns are formed by removing the heat generating resistor layer 107 and the Al layer in the regions other than the wiring patterns.
  • a portion of the Al layer is removed so as to expose the heat generating resistor layer 107, whereby the heat generation portion 102 is formed in that region.
  • This partial removal of the Al layer leads to the creation of two opposed edges of the Al layer, and the portions extending from the edges constitute Al wiring 103 and Al wiring 104 respectively.
  • a first insulating protection layer 108a that covers the heat generating portion 102 (i.e. the exposed portion of the TaN layer serving as the heat • generating resistor layer 107) and the Al wiring 103, 104 is formed. The portion of the insulating protection layer 108a in the region corresponding to the heat generating portion 102 ⁇ is removed.
  • a second insulating protection layer 108b and a Ta protection layer 110 are formed at least in the region for covering the heat generating portion 102.
  • the thickness of the protection layer composed of the first and second insulating protection layers 108a, 108b and the Ta protection layer 110 can be made smaller in the region 105 above the heat generating portion 102 of the heat generating resistor layer 107 than in the other regions.
  • energy efficiency can be improved and power consumption can be decreased.
  • reliability as the protection layer can be enhanced, and the useful life can be elongated.
  • the thickness of the Al layer is specified to be 600 nm
  • the thickness of the TaN layer is specified to be 100 nm.
  • the first insulating protection layer 108a use is made of a PSG layer (which may be replaced by an SiO layer or other layers) having a layer thickness of 700 nm and a high wet etching rate, which has been formed by plasma CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition) .
  • the second insulating protection layer 108b use is made of a silicon nitride layer having a layer thickness of 300 nm, which has been formed by plasma CVD.
  • the PSG layer and the silicon nitride layer are form at a deposition temperature equal to or higher than 300 0 C, and therefore the adhesiveness of the two layers- is high.
  • the Ta protection layer 110 serving as a cavitation resistant and ink resistant layer having a layer thickness of 250 nm is formed by sputtering.
  • an insulating protection layer having a thickness of 700 nm is formed, and then a silicon nitride layer having a thickness of 300 nm that is resistant to ink is further formed on the exposed surface of the heat generating resistor layer. Since the surface of the TaN layer serving as the heat generating resistor layer is smoother than the surface of the Al layer, it is not necessary to form the layer with a large thickness in order to cover surface undulations that may exist in the case of surfaces with lower smoothness. Therefore, the thickness of the silicon nitride layer formed on the TaN layer may be made small.
  • the adhesiveness of the silicon nitride layer and the PSG layer (or silicon oxide layer) is high, making the layer thickness of the silicon nitride layer small does not leads to the occurrence of separation of the PSG layer and the silicon nitride layer at their interface.
  • the layer quality of the insulating protection layer formed by plasma CVD can be enhanced by making the deposition temperature higher.
  • the insulating protection layer formed by plasma CVD is not sufficiently dense, and have suffered from the following problems in some cases:
  • the insulating protection layer have such a film (or layer) quality that can follow a change in the thermal and mechanical stress etc. It is considered to be preferable that use be made of a layer having a relatively soft layer quality.
  • layers having such a film quality do not necessarily have adequate resistance to ink, and there have been cases where a part of the layer was eluted by ink or ink penetrated into the interior from a portion (s) at which covering was deficient.
  • the insulating protection layer used in a liquid discharge head such as a recqding head is required to be dense and stable in both chemical and physical senses in the portion that is in contact with liquid such as ink, resistant to ink even if its thickness is made small, and superior in the coverage performance without suffering from development of cracks at the step portion.
  • An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate for a liquid discharge head in which heat energy generated in a heat generating resistor layer in a heat generating portion can be transferred to liquid with high efficiency and reduction of power consumption can be achieved, a method of manufacturing such a substrate, and a liquid discharge head that uses such a substrate .
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a substrate for a liquid discharge head that is superior in resistance to liquid, has satisfactory- coverage performance for step portions and enables the liquid discharge head to perform reliable discharge operation, a method of manufacturing such a substrate, and a liquid discharge head that uses such a substrate.
  • a further object of the present invention to provide a reliable liquid discharge head that allows film deposition at low temperatures in the manufacturing process thereof and can reduce formation of hillocks in an aluminum layer etc. that is used as wiring.
  • a still further object -of the present invention is to provide a liquid discharge head that allows film deposition at a relatively low temperature with small film stress in the manufacturing process thereof to suppress deformation of the chip and can be adapted for increases in the number of the nozzles and increases in the length.
  • a still further object of the present invention is to provide a substrate for a liquid discharge head in which a heat generating resistor layer, wiring that is electrically in contact with the heat generating resistor layer, an insulating protection layer that covers the heat generating resistor layer and the wiring, and a liquid passage are formed in order on an insulating layer formed on a base plate, wherein the insulating protection layer is a layer formed by radical shower CVD.
  • a still further object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a substrate for a liquid discharge head in which a heat generating resistor layer, wiring that is electrically in contact with the heat generating resistor layer, an insulating protection layer that covers the heat generating resistor layer and the wiring, and a liquid passage are formed in order on an insulating layer formed on a base plate, the method comprising forming the insulating layer on the base plate, forming the heat generating resistor layer on the insulating layer, forming a metal layer to be formed into the wiring on the heat generating resistor layer, removing a part of the metal layer to form the wiring and the heat generating resistor layer exposed through the wiring, and forming the insulating protection layer that covers the wiring and the heat generating resistor layer exposed through the wiring, wherein the insulating protection layer is formed by radical shower CVD in which a material gas and a gas for generating radicals are supplied.
  • FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of a heat generating portion of a substrate for an ink jet head according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. 1
  • FIG. 3 is a schematic cross sectional view of a heat generating portion of another substrate for an ink jet head according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 4 is a schematic cross sectional view of a portion including a heat generating portion of another substrate for an ink jet head according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of a portion including a heat generating portion in a substrate for an ink jet head according to an embodiment of the present invention.
  • FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C and 6D are schematic cross sectional views illustrating a process of manufacturing the ink jet head shown in FIG. 4.
  • FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a film deposition apparatus that can be used in a process of manufacturing a substrate for an ink jet head.
  • FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a film deposition apparatus used to form an insulating protection layer according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an ink jet cartridge constructed using the ink jet head shown in FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C and 6D.
  • FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view of an ink jet printing apparatus that performs printing using the ink jet cartridge shown in FIG. 9.
  • FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of another film deposition apparatus used to form an insulating protection layer according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 12 is a schematic cross sectional view of a heat generating portion of another substrate for an ink jet head according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 13 is a schematic cross sectional view of a heat generating portion of a conventional substrate for an ink jet.
  • FIG. 14 is a schematic cross sectional view of a heat generating portion of another conventional substrate for an ink jet.
  • the substrate for a liquid discharge head and the liquid discharge head according to the present invention can be used for discharging various liquids including inks.
  • the present invention will be described in connection with cases where an ink is used as the liquid to be discharged.
  • a liquid discharge head will be referred to as an ink jet head
  • a substrate for a liquid discharge head will be referred to as a substrate for an ink jet head.
  • an insulating protection layer with which a heat generating resistor layer and a electrode wiring layer provided thereon are covered may have any one of the following configurations:
  • an insulating protection layer composed of a single layer formed by RS (Radical Shower) -CVD;
  • an insulating protection layer composed of a plurality of layers including a layer formed by RS-CVD as a layer underlying at least a layer formed by Cat (catalyst) -CVD;
  • insulating protection layer composed of a plurality of layers including a layer formed by RS-CVD among layers formed by normal plasma CVD.
  • composition of the insulating protection layer having the above described configuration (1) may vary along the thickness . direction.
  • at least two layers among the multiple layers may have different compositions .
  • Radical shower CVD stands for "radical shower chemical vapor deposition", which is abbreviated as RS- CVD.
  • the RS-CVD unlike with the normal plasma CVD, causes neutral radicals extracted from a plasma gas for generating radicals to react with a material gas thereby depositing a thin film on a base plate. Therefore, a dense thin film with small defects can be formed at a low temperature in the range of approximately 50 to 400 °C, preferably in the range of 100 to 300 0 C. Thus, a denser thin film with smaller defects as compared to those produced by conventional sputtering using high energy particles or normal plasma CVD utilizing plasma can be formed at a low temperature,
  • the protection layer formed by RS-CVD has adequate protection performance even if it is a thin film, and therefore heat energy generated by the heat generating resistor layer can be utilized efficiently.
  • a thin film free from plasma damages can be formed by RS-CVD.
  • Catalytic CVD stands for "catalytic chemical vapor deposition, which is abbreviated as Cat-CVD.
  • Cat-CVD a source gas is brought into contact with a -hot catalyst member heated to high temperature, and thin film deposition on a base plate is performed utilizing catalytic cracking on the hot catalyst member. Therefore, a dense thin film with small defects can be formed at a low temperature in the range of approximately 50 to 400 0 C, preferably in the range of 100 to 300 0 C.
  • a denser thin film with smaller defects as compared to those produced by conventional sputtering using high energy particles or CVD utilizing plasma can be formed, and film stress can be reduced.
  • the protection performance of the protection layer formed by Cat-CVD is maintained even if it is made as a thin film, and therefore by using a protection film in the form of a thin film formed by Cat-CVD, heat energy generated by the heat generating resistor member can be utilized efficiently.
  • the layer can be formed as a dense insulating protection layer with small stress as described above. Consequently, by forming such a layer on the protection layer formed by RS-CVD, a substrate for an ink jet head having further improved coverage performance at step portions and superior resistance to ink can be provided. Furthermore, since the protection layer formed by Cat-CVD is denser than conventional insulating protection films and resistant to cavitation, an upper protection layer made of a • metal film such as Ta may be eliminated. In addition, the film thickness of the protection layer for the heat generating portion can be made thin, which improves thermal conductivity and reduces the quantity of heat dissipating to portions other than ink. Therefore, the problem of heat accumulation in the recording head or the problem of temperature rise can be mitigated.
  • chips for printer heads have longitudinal shapes in which one side is extremely longer than the other side. For this reason, it is required and effective to reduce stress in a protection layer that can be responsible for deformation and/or breakage of the chip.
  • inks of a number of colors are used to provide improved color reproducibility.
  • inks having various pHs ranging from mild alkaline ink, neutral ink to mild acidic ink are used. Since these inks are in direct contact with the protection film (layer) and the inks are heated to generate a bubble by using thermal energy upon discharge, various conditions are imposed on the protection film used in the ink jet head.
  • insulating protection layers used in ink jet heads are required not only to have resistance to ink but also to transfer heat from the heat generating portion to ink efficiently. For this reason, they are subject to more constraints than devices that are common in the field of semiconductor devices, and it is required in designing a film to take into consideration resistance to ink and energy.
  • the substrate for a liquid discharge head according to the present invention uses at least a protection layer formed by RS-CVD, and the above requirement is satisfied according to the present invention.
  • FIGS. 1 and 2 are schematic plan view of a region including a heat generating portion of a substrate for an ink jet head according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and a cross sectional view thereof taken along line II-II respectively.
  • portions having the same functions are denoted by the same reference signs.
  • a part of an electrode wiring layer 1105 of a wiring pattern 1105 formed in a substrate for an ink jet head 1100 has been removed, so that a heat generating resistor layer 1104 provided under the wiring pattern 1105 is exposed in that region
  • a heat storage layer 1102 having insulating properties and an interlaminar film 1103 in the mentioned order
  • the heat generating resistor layer 1104 and the electrode wiring layer 1105 in the mentioned order constitutes a heat generating portion 1108.
  • the heat generating resistor layer 1104 and the electrode wiring layer 1105 have the shape of the wiring pattern 1105 shown in FIG. 1.
  • an insulating protection layer 1106 is provided on the wiring pattern 1105.
  • a flow path or an ink flow passage is provided above the insulating protection layer 1106 (namely, on the side facing away from the heat generating resistor layer and the electrode wiring) .
  • the heat generating resistor layer, the wiring, the insulating protection layer and the ink flow passage are arranged on the insulating layer (or heat storage layer) in the mentioned order.
  • a method of manufacturing the above described substrate for an ink jet head will be described. First, a silicon base plate 1101 having a crystal plane orientation of ⁇ 100> was prepared. By using the silicon base plate 1101 having this crystal orientation of ⁇ 100>, for example, a hole that is convergent in the depth direction at an inclination angle of 54.7 degrees from the etching start surface can be formed by anisotropic etching.
  • the base plate 1101 used may be a silicon base plate in which a driving circuit has been built in advance.
  • a silicon oxide layer serving as the heat storage layer 1102 having a layer thickness of 1.8 ⁇ m was formed on the base plate 1101 by thermal oxidation, and a silicon oxide layer serving as the interlaminar film 1103 having a thickness of 1.2 ⁇ m and functioning also as a heat storage layer was further formed by plasma CVD.
  • a thermally oxidized layer formed upon forming a local oxidized layer for providing separation between semiconductor devices constituting the driving circuit may be used, and the silicon oxide layer may be formed by plasma CVD after formation of the semiconductor devices.
  • a TaSiN layer serving as the heat generating resistor layer 1104 and an Al layer serving as the electrode wiring layer 1105 were formed by sputtering.
  • the TaSiN layer serving as the heat generating resistor layer 1104 was first formed by reactive sputtering using Ta-Si as the alloy target.
  • the TaSiN layer was formed using a sputtering apparatus as shown in FIG. 7.
  • a flat plate magnet 4002 is disposed in a deposition chamber 4009, and a Ta-Si target 4001 prepared to have a predetermined composition is placed on the flat plate magnet 4002.
  • a base plate 4004 is placed on a base plate holder 4003 disposed in such a way as to be opposed to the Ta-Si target 4001.
  • an internal heater 4005 for raising the temperature of the base plate holder 4003 is provided in the base plate holder 4003.
  • a shutter 4011 is provided between the target 4001 and the base plate 4004.
  • a DC power source 4006 provides an electric potential difference between the target 4001 and the base plate 4004, the plus terminal of the DC power source 4006 being connected to the base plate holder 4003 and the minus terminal being connected to the target 4001.
  • An external heater 4008 used to control the temperature in the deposition chamber 4009 is provided outside the deposition chamber 4009.
  • the interior space of the deposition chamber 4009 is connected with an external vacuum apparatus (not shown) via an exhaust port 4007.
  • the deposition chamber 4009 is provided with a gas supply port 4010 for supplying a gas during film deposition.
  • the deposition chamber 4009 was evacuated first, and then Ar gas and N 2 gas were supplied at flow rates of 42 seem and 8 seem respectively to achieve an N 2 partial gas pressure ratio of 16%. Then, a TaSiN layer having a thickness of 40 nm was formed, wherein the power supplied to the Ta-Si target was 500 w, the ambient temperature was
  • dry etching was performed using a photolithographic process to pattern the heat generating resistor layer 1104 and the wiring layer 1105 simultaneously. Then, dry etching was performed by a photolithographic process to etch off or remove a part of the wiring layer 1105 to form a heat generating portion 1104' having a size of 20 ⁇ m x 20 ⁇ m that functions as a heater.
  • the dry etching of Al be performed in an isotropic etching condition.
  • the etching of Al may be performed by wet etching instead of dry etching.
  • a silicon nitride layer having a thickness of 250 run serving as the insulating protection layer 1106 was formed by RS-CVD.
  • the RS-CVD apparatus has a plasma chamber 302 and a deposition chamber 303 separated by a partition plate 301.
  • the source gases used include a gas(es) for generating radicals and a material gas(es).
  • the gas for generating radicals e.g. NH3 gas or oxygen gas
  • the gas for generating radicals is introduced into the plasma chamber 302 through a gas introduction pipe 304, and a plasma discharge is produced by an electrode 305 using a high frequency (RF or VHF) power source, whereby radicals are produced and introduced into the deposition chamber 303.
  • RF or VHF high frequency
  • the material gas is introduced into the partition plate 301 through a gas introduction pipe 306, and then introduced into the deposition chamber 303 through opening portions provided on the partition plate 301.
  • the radicals introduced into the deposition chamber 303 react with the material gas (e.g. SiH 4 to which Ar or He is added as a carrier gas, if need be) , so that a thin film is deposited on the base plate placed on a base plate holder 307.
  • the apparatus is provided with an evacuation pump 308 to lower the pressure in the deposition chamber 303.
  • the RS-CVD apparatus is characterized in that it has the plasma chamber and the deposition chamber separated from each other, and hence the base plate on which a film is deposited is not exposed to the plasma generation reaction. Therefore, film deposition (layer deposition) that can produce a dense film having small- defects is achieved.
  • ammonia (NH 3 ) gas may be used as the gas for generating radicals, and as the material gas, monosilane (SiH 4 ) or disilane (Si 2 H 6 ) etc. may be used together with a carrier gas such as Ar or He.
  • such a film can be formed by introducing oxygen gas and methane (CH 4 ) gas etc. as required.
  • a temperature control apparatus e.g. a heater in the case where the base plate temperature is to be maintained at a high temperature, or a cooling apparatus in the case where the base plate temperature is to be maintained at a low temperature
  • a temperature control apparatus e.g. a heater in the case where the base plate temperature is to be maintained at a high temperature, or a cooling apparatus in the case where the base plate temperature is to be maintained at a low temperature
  • film deposition using the apparatus shown in FIG. 8 was performed in the following manner.
  • the deposition chamber 303 was evacuated to a pressure of 1 x 10 ⁇ 5 to 1 * 10 ⁇ 6 Pa using the evacuation pump 308. Then, NH 3 gas was introduced into the plasma chamber 302 from the gas introduction port 304 through a mass flow controller (not shown) at a flow rate of 500 seem. Then, a power of 800 W was applied by the high frequency power source to produce a plasma, and nitrogen radicals were introduced into the deposition chamber 303 through the partition plate 301. After that, SiH 4 gas and Ar gas were introduced from the gas introduction port 306 at flow rates of 20 seem and 50 seem respectively, so that a silicon nitride layer was formed by reaction of nitrogen radicals and SiH 4 gas. In this process, the deposition pressure was 20 Pa, and the deposition temperature was
  • the layer thickness (or film thickness) of the deposited silicon nitride layer was 250 nm, the film stress was 200 Mpa (tensile stress) .
  • an insulating protection layer such as a silicon nitride layer having a composition that varies along the layer thickness direction can be formed.
  • an insulating protection layer in the form of a silicon nitride layer having a varying composition can be formed.
  • a silicon oxynitride layer can be formed.
  • an ink jet head that is constructed using the above described substrate for an ink jet head 1100 will be described with reference to a schematic perspective view presented as FIG. 5.
  • a substrate for an ink jet head 1100 provided with two parallel rows of heat generating portions 1008 arranged at a certain pitch is used.
  • the parallel rows may be provided by disposing two substrates for an inkjet head 1100 in such a way that their respective edges closest to the row of the heat generating portions 1008 are opposed to each other, or two parallel rows of heat generating portions 1108 may be prepared on one substrate for an ink jet head.
  • a member (flow passage forming member) provided with discharge ports 5 is attached on the substrate for an ink jet head 1100 provided with heat generating portions 1108 in such a way that the discharge ports 5 are aligned with the positions of the heat generating portions 1108, whereby the ink jet head 1000 is constructed.
  • the member (flow passage forming member) 4 has ink discharge ports 5, a liquid chamber portion '(not shown) in which ink introduced from outside is to be stored, an ink supply port 9 associated with the discharge ports 5 for supplying ink from the liquid chamber, and a flow passage providing communication between the discharge ports 5 and the supply port 9.
  • the heat generating portions 1108 and the ink discharge ports 5 in the respective rows are arranged in line symmetry, the heat generating portions 1108 and the ink discharge ports 5 in the respective rows may be offset by half pitch, whereby the recording resolution can be further increased.
  • FIGS. 6A to 6D are schematic cross sectional view illustrating a process of manufacturing the ink jet head shown in FIG. 5.
  • a patterning mask 1008 resistant to alkaline used to form an ink supply port 1010 is formed on a silicon oxide layer 1007 formed on the backside surface of a substrate for an ink jet head 1001 provided with heat generating portions 1002.
  • a patterning mask for the silicon oxide layer can be formed in the following manner. First, a mask material is applied on the entire backside surface of the base plate 1001 by, for example, spin coating, and then thermally cured. Then, a positive resist (not shown) is applied on the mask material by, for example, spin coating. Then patterning of the positive resist is performed using a photolithography technique, and thereafter the exposed portion of the mask material that will become the patterning mask 1008 is removed by, for example, dry etching using the positive resist as a mask. Lastly, the positive resist is removed. Thus, the patterning mask 1008 having a desired pattern is obtained.
  • a mold material 1003 is formed on the surface on which the heat generating portions 1108 are provided.
  • the mold material 1003 will be dissolved away in a later process after being shaped into the shape of a flow passage, and the space occupied by the mold member will be left as an ink flow passage.
  • the mold material 1003 is shaped to have an appropriate height and planer pattern in order to form an ink flow passage having a desired height and planer pattern.
  • a positive photoresist is used as the mold material 1003, for example.
  • the positive photoresist is applied on the base plate 1001 with a predetermined thickness by dry-film lamination or spin coating etc.
  • the patterning of the mold material 1003 is performed using a photolithography technique which includes exposure to e.g. UV or deep UV light and development (FIG. 6A) .
  • a material of a flow passage forming member 1004 is applied by spin coating to cover the mold material 1003 and then patterned in a desired shape using a photolithography technique.
  • ink discharge ports 1005 are formed as openings at positions opposed to the heat generating portions 1008 using a photolithography technique.
  • a water repellant layer 1006 is formed by, for example, laminating a dry film on the surface of the flow passage forming member 1004 on which the ink discharge ports 1005 open (FIG. 6B) .
  • the materials that can be used as the material of the flow passage forming member 1004 include a photosensitive epoxy resins and photosensitive acrylate resins.
  • the flow passage forming member 1004 defines the ink flow passage, and accordingly it will be continuously in contact with ink when the ink jet head is in use.
  • a particularly suitable material thereof is a cationic polymer produced by photoreaction. Since durability and other properties of the material of the flow passage forming member 1004 vary to a large extent depending on the kind and characteristics of the ink used, suitable compounds other than the above mentioned materials may be used, if the ink used demands.
  • the ink supply port 1010 in the form of a through-opening passing through the base plate 1001 is formed.
  • the surface on which functional elements of the ink jet head have been formed and side surfaces of the base plate 1001 are covered by applying protection material 1011 made of a resin or the like by, for example, spin coating so that the aforementioned surfaces will not be in contact with etching solution.
  • protection material 1011 a material having adequate resistance to strong alkali solution used in aniso ⁇ ropic etching is used.
  • patterning of the silicon oxide layer 1007 is performed by, for example, wet etching while using a patterning mask 1008 that has been formed in advance, to form an etching start opening 1009 in which the backside surface of the base plate 1001 is exposed (FIG. 6C) .
  • an ink supply opening 1010 is formed by anisotropic etching while using the silicon oxide layer 1007 as a mask.
  • the etching solution used in the anisotropic etching may be, for example, a 22 weight percent solution of TMAH (Tetra Methyl Ammonium Hydroxide) . The etching is performed using this solution for a predetermined time (a dozen or so hours) while maintaining the temperature of the solution at 80 0 C to form a through-opening.
  • the patterning mask 1008 and the protection material 1011 are removed. Furthermore, the mold material 1003 is dissolved away through the ink discharge ports 1005 and the ink supply port 1010 so as to be removed, then the product is dried (FIG. 6D) .
  • the mold material 1003 can be dissolved away by performing development after exposure of the entire surface to deep UV light has been performed. During the development, ultrasonic immersion may be performed if need be, whereby the mold material 1003 can be removed.
  • the ink jet head manufactured in this way can be used in apparatuses such as printers, copying machines, fax machines equipped with a communication system and word processors equipped with a printer unit, and industrial recording apparatuses combined with various processing apparatuses in multiple ways. By using this ink jet head, recording on various recording media such as paper, thread, fiber, cloth, leather, metal, plastic, glass, wood and ceramic can be performed.
  • recording is intended to mean not only to provide a recording medium with a significant image such as a character or figure but also to provide a recording medium with an insignificant image such as a pattern.
  • FIG. 9 a cartridge type unit in which an ink jet head and an ink tank are integrated (FIG. 9) and an ink jet recording apparatus using that unit (FIG. 10) will be described.
  • FIG. 9 shows an example of an ink jet head unit 410 in the form of a cartridge that can be attached on a recording apparatus.
  • the ink jet head unit 410 is provided with an ink jet head 5.
  • the ink jet head 5 is disposed on a tape member 402 for TAB (Tape Automated Bonding) having terminals for power supply and coupled with an ink tank 404.
  • the wiring in the ink jet head 5 is connected with wiring (not shown) extending from the terminals 403 of the tape member 402 for TAB.
  • FIG. 10 schematically shows an exemplary structure of an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording using the ink jet head unit shown in FIG . 9 .
  • a carriage 500 fixedly mounted on an endless belt 501 is adapted to be movable along a guide shaft 502.
  • the endless belt 501 is set on a pulley 503 to which a drive shaft of a carriage drive motor 504 is connected.
  • the carriage 500 can be moved in reciprocating directions (indicated by arrow A in FIG. 10) along the guide shaft 502 in a scanning manner by rotational driving of the motor 504.
  • the ink jet head unit 410 On the carriage 500 is mounted the ink jet head unit 410 in the form of a cartridge.
  • the ink jet head unit 410 is mounted on the carriage 500 in such a way that the discharge ports 5 of the ink jet head are opposed to a paper sheet P as a recording medium and the direction of arrangement of the discharge ports 5 is oriented in a direction (e.g. sub scanning direction in which the paper sheet P is transported) different from the main scanning direction.
  • Multiple sets of ink jet heads 410 and ink tanks 404 as many as the number of ink colors used may be provided. In the illustrated example, four sets are provided for four colors (e.g. black, yellow, magenta and cyan)
  • the recording sheet P as a recording medium is transported intermittently in a direction indicated by arrow B that is perpendicular to the scanning direction of the carriage 500.
  • the recording sheet P is transported while being supported by paired roller units 510 and 511 in the upstream with respect to the transportation direction and paired roller units 511 and 512 in the downstream.
  • Driving forces to the respective roller units are transmitted from a sheet drive motor that is not shown in the drawings.
  • a second protection layer 1106a' is provided on a first protection layer 1106a, both layers being formed by RS-CVD.
  • the portions other than the insulating protection layer 1106 in FIG. 2 and the first and second protection layers 1106a and 1106a' in FIG. 3 have the same configurations and are produced by the same processes.
  • a silicon oxynitride layer having a layer thickness of 200 ran was formed by performing deposition under the conditions of an NH 3 gas flow rate of 500 seem, an O 2 gas flow rate of 200 seem, an SiH 4 gas flow rate of 20 seem, an Ar gas flow rate of 50 seem, a deposition pressure of 20 Pa and a base plate temperature of 350 0 C.
  • a silicon nitride layer having a layer thickness of 100 ran was formed by performing deposition under the conditions of an NH 3 gas flow rate of 500 seem, an SiH 4 gas flow rate of 30 seem, an Ar gas flow rate of 50 seem, a deposition pressure of 15 Pa and a base plate temperature of 350 0 C.
  • a silicon oxynitride layer having relatively good coverage performance was formed as the first protection layer and a silicon nitride layer having relatively good resistance to ink was formed thereon as the second protection layer, where both layers were formed using RS-CVD.
  • an insulating protection layer 1106 composed of a silicon nitride layer was formed by RS-CVD while varying its composition along the layer thickness direction as shown in FIG. 4. Specifically, the silicon nitride layer was formed in such a way that the portion to be in contact with ink has a composition that contains more Si than the composition of the portion in contact with the heat generating resistor layer to thereby become a layer having superior resistance to ink.
  • the flow rate of SiH 4 gas was controlled to increase from the side that is in contact with the heat generating resistor layer toward the side to be in contact with ink.
  • film deposition was started under the conditions of an NH 3 gas flow rate of 500 seem, an SiH 4 gas flow rate of 20 seem, an Ar gas flow rate of 50 seem, a deposition pressure of 20 Pa and a base plate temperature of 350 0 C.
  • the SiH 4 gas flow rate was later changed to 25 seem and then to 30 seem, so that a silicon nitride layer having a thickness of 300 nra was formed.
  • the film stress in the silicon nitride layer in this case was -150 MPa (compressive stress) .
  • the portion to be in contact with ink may be designed to have a composition that contains less Si than the composition of the portion in contact with the heat generating resistor layer conversely to the above case, whereby a layer having good resistance to alkaline ink can be provided.
  • an upper protection layer 110 serving as a cavitation resistant layer is formed on an insulating protection layer 108 formed by RS-CVD as shown in FIG. 12.
  • the upper protection layer 110 was formed as a Ta film having a thickness of 200 nm by sputtering, and then patterning was performed. Thus, the substrate for an ink jet head shown in FIG. 12 was produced. In the fourth embodiment, the process of producing the substrate for an ink jet head is the same as that according to the first embodiment except for formation of the upper protection layer 110. (Fifth Embodiment)
  • the substrate according to the fifth embodiment has a configuration as shown in FIG. 2 as with the first embodiment, but a silicon nitride layer having a film thickness of 200 nm was formed under differentdeposition conditions in RS-CVD.
  • the source gases in RS-CVD NH 3 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 400sccm, SiH 4 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 30 seem, and Ar gas was introduced at a flow rate of 50 seem, and deposition was performed at a deposition pressure of 20 Pa and a base plate temperature of 380 0 C.
  • the film stress of the silicon nitride layer in this case was 100 MPa (tensile stress) .
  • a silicon nitride layer was formed under the same deposition condition in RS- CVD as the first embodiment, but the layer thickness of the silicon nitride layer was different. The layer thickness was 100 nm.
  • a silicon nitride layer was formed using RS-CVD under the same deposition condition as the first embodiment, but the layer thickness was different.
  • the layer thickness was 500 nm.
  • the substrate according to the eighth embodiment has a configuration as shown in FIG. 2 as with the first embodiment, and a silicon oxynitride layer having a layer thickness of 300 nm was formed.
  • NE 3 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 500 seem
  • O 2 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 200 seem
  • SiU 4 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 20 seem
  • Ar gas was introduced at a flow rate of 50 seem
  • deposition was performed at a deposition pressure of 20 Pa and a base plate temperature of 300 0 C.
  • the film stress of the silicon oxynitride layer in this case was 500 MPa (tensile stress) .
  • a silicon nitride layer was formed under the same deposition conditions in RS- CVD as the first embodiment except for that the base plate temperature during deposition was set to 50 0 C.
  • a substrate for an ink jet was produced in the same manner as the first embodiment except that the insulating protection layer was formed by plasma CVD.
  • the source gases used were SiH 4 gas and NH 3 gas, the base plate temperature was 400 0 C, the deposition pressure was 0.5 Pa, the layer thickness (film thickness) was 250 nm and the film stress was -900 MPa (compressive stress) .
  • the temperature of the base plate was set below 400 0 C and plasma was not present in the deposition chamber, which characterizes RS-CVD, no hillocks occurred on the surface of the Al layer.
  • the temperature of the base plate was set to 400 0 C to provide a layer having good quality, and the base plate is exposed to plasma. Consequently, hillocks were found on the surface of the Al layer.
  • the substrates for an ink jet head according to the first to third and fifth to ninth embodiments and comparative example 1 were immersed in an ink liquid and left in a temperature controlled bath kept at 70 0 C in three days, and then the change in the layer thickness of the insulating protection layer between before and after the above process was examined.
  • the silicon nitride layer in the substrate for an ink jet head according to comparative example 1 had decreased by approximately 80 nm
  • the silicon nitride layer in the substrates for an ink jet head according to the first to third and fifth to ninth embodiments had decreased only by approximately 20 nm. This result showed that the silicon nitride layer (film) in the embodiments had good resistance to ink.
  • layers (films) formed by RS-CVD according to the present invention have better resistance to ink than silicon nitride layers used as insulating protection films formed by conventional plasma CVD, protection performance can be ensured even if they are made thinner. Thus, a configuration having higher energy efficiency can be achieved by making the layer thickness of the insulating protection layer smaller.
  • the ink jet heads according to the first to ninth embodiments and comparative example 1 produced using the substrates for an ink jet head according to the first to ninth embodiments and comparative example 1 were attached to an ink jet recording apparatus, and the bubble generation start voltage Vth at which ink discharge began was measured.
  • printing durability test was performed. The test was performed by printing a general test pattern provided in the ink jet recording apparatus on A4 paper sheets. In this process, pulse signals with a drive frequency of 15KHz and a drive pulse width of 1 ⁇ s were supplied, and the bubble generation start voltage Vth was determined. The results are shown in Table 1.
  • the bubble generation start voltage Vth was 18.0 V (fourth embodiment) .
  • Vth also occurred in the cases of the second embodiment, which has a laminated insulating protection layer, the third embodiment, which has an insulating protection layer having a composition varied along the layer thickness direction, the fifth embodiment, which has an insulating protection layer that had been deposited under different deposition conditions, the sixth and seventh embodiments, which has an insulating protection layer having a different layer thickness, the eighth embodiment provided with a silicon oxynitride layer, and the ninth embodiment, which had been formed at a decreased base plate temperature during film deposition by RS-CVD, as will be seen from Table 1.
  • the bubble generation start voltage Vth in the case of the seventh embodiment is higher than that in the case of comparative example 1, this was due to the layer thickness as large as 500 nm. If compared at an equivalent layer thickness, the seventh embodiment provides decreased power consumption.
  • FIGS. 1 and 3 are schematic plan view of a region including a heat generating portion of a substrate for an ink jet head according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention, and a cross sectional view thereof taken along line II-II respectively. Details of the respective portions shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 have already been described in the description of the first and second embodiments. What is different in this tenth embodiment from these embodiment is that a first protection layer 1106a shown in FIG. 3 is formed using RS-CVD and a second protection layer 1106a' provided thereon is formed using Cat-CVD. In view of the above, portions having like functions are denoted by like reference signs.
  • a silicon nitride layer having a film thickness of 150nm serving as the first protection layer 1106a was formed using RS-CVD.
  • the source gases used were SiH 4 gas and NH 3 gas, and film deposition was performed under the conditions of a base plate temperature of 400 0 C and a deposition pressure of 0.5 Pa.
  • a silicon nitride layer having a thickness of 100 ran was formed as the second protection layer 1106a' using Cat-CVD, and then patterning was performed.
  • the substrate for an ink jet head 1100 shown in FIG. 3 was produced.
  • the silicon nitride layer serving as the first protection layer 1106a having a layer thickness of 150 nm and a film stress of 200 MPa (tensile stress) was formed using an RS-CVD apparatus by a manufacturing method similar to the method that has been described with reference to FIG. 8.
  • This Cat-CVD apparatus has a structure in which a base plate holder 802, a heater 804 and a gas introduction portion 803 are provided in a deposition chamber 801.
  • the Cat-CVD apparatus is further provided with an evacuation pump 805 to lower the pressure in the deposition chamber 801.
  • the heater 804 serves as a catalyst member that causes catalytic cracking of a gas(es) to occur above the base plate holder 802.
  • the source gases are introduced above the heater 804 through a gas introduction portion 803.
  • the apparatus is further provided with an evacuation pump 805 to lower the pressure in the deposition chamber 801.
  • the heater 804 serving as a catalyst member is heated to cause catalytic cracking of a source gas(es) to occur utilizing catalytic reaction thereby depositing a film on a base plate placed on the base plate holder 802.
  • film deposition can be performed at lowered base plate temperatures.
  • a silicon nitride layer When a silicon nitride layer is to be deposited, monosilane (SiH 4 ) or disilane (Si 2 H 6 ) etc. may be used as a source gas, ammonia (NH 3 ) may be used as a source gas of nitride, and tungsten (W) may be used as a catalyst. In addition, hydrogen (H) may be added to improve coverage performance of the deposited layer. To heat the base plate, a heater may be provided in the base plate holder 802.
  • film deposition using the apparatus shown in FIG. 13 was performed in the following manner.
  • the deposition chamber 801 was evacuated to a pressure of 1 * 10 ⁇ 5 to 1 * 10 ⁇ 6 Pa using the evacuation pump 805.
  • NH 3 gas was introduced into the deposition chamber 801 from the gas introduction port 803 through a mass flow controller (not shown) at a flow rate of 200 seem.
  • the heater (not shown) was controlled so as to maintain the temperature of the base plate at 300 0 C.
  • the heating catalyst member was heated to a temperature of 1700 0 C using an external power source.
  • SiH 4 gas was introduced at .a flow rate of 5 seem, whereby a silicon nitride layer was formed by catalytic cracking of NH 3 gas and SiH 4 gas.
  • the deposition pressure in this process was 5 Pa.
  • the layer thickness of the silicon nitride layer thus deposited was 100 nm and the film stress thereof was 200 MPa (tensile stress) .
  • the configuration of an ink jet head 1000 produced using the above described substrate for an ink jet head 1100 and the process of producing the ink jet head 1000 may be the same as those described before with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6A to 6D.
  • the configuration of a cartridge type unit in which this ink jet head and an ink tank are integrated and the structure of an ink jet recording apparatus equipped with this unit may be the same as those described before with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. (Eleventh Embodiment)
  • an upper protection layer 1107 such as a metal protection layer serving as a cavitation resistant layer is provided on first and second protection layers 1106a and 1106a' as shown in FIG. 14.
  • the second protection layer 1106a' having a layer thickness of 100 nm was formed as a silicon nitride layer by Cat-CVD on the first protection layer 1106a composed of a silicon nitride layer having a layer thickness of 150 nm formed by RS-CVD, in a similar manner as the tenth embodiment.
  • a Ta layer having a thickness of 100 nm was formed as the upper protection layer 1107 by sputtering, and then patterning was performed.
  • a substrate for an ink jet head shown in FIG. 14 was produced.
  • the upper protection layer 1107 composed of a Ta layer has a thermal conductivity higher than that of the first and second protection layers 1106a, 1106a', and therefore the upper protection layer 1107 does not decrease the thermal efficiency significantly. Furthermore, since the upper protection layer 1107 is formed directly on the dense insulating protection layer 1106a' , it transfers heat energy coming from the heat generating portion 1104' to the heat generating portion 1108 efficiently to thereby enable the heat energy to act effectively in generating a bubble or discharging ink. (Twelfth Embodiment)
  • a first protection layer 1106a and a second protection layer 1106a' similar to those in the tenth embodiment were formed.
  • the first protection layer 1106a a silicon oxynitride layer having a film thickness of 200 nm was formed by RS-CVD.
  • NH 3 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 500 seem
  • O 2 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 200 seem
  • SiH 4 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 20 seem
  • Ar gas was introduced at a flow rate of 50 seem.
  • the deposition pressure was set to 20 Pa
  • the temperature of the base plate was set to 300 0 C. In this case, the film stress was 500 MPa (tensile stress).
  • the second protection layer 1106a' composed of a silicon nitride layer was formed on the first protection layer 1106a using Cat-CVD.
  • the source gases NH 3 gas was introduced at a flow rate of -50 seem, SiH 4 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 5 seem and H 2 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 100 seem.
  • the deposition pressure was set to 4 Pa, the temperature of the heating catalyst was set to 1700 0 C and the temperature of the base plate was set to 350 0 C. In this case, the layer thickness was 100 nm, and the film stress was 500 MPa (tensile stress) . (Thirteenth Embodiment)
  • a silicon nitride layer having a layer thickness of 100 nm was formed as a first protection layer 1106a using RS-CVD.
  • the source gases used were SiH 4 gas and NH 3 gas, and film deposition was performed under the conditions of a base plate temperature of 400 0 C and a deposition pressure of 0.5 Pa.
  • a silicon nitride layer having a layer thickness of 50 nm was formed using Cat-CVD.
  • the source gases NH 3 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 50 seem, SiH 4 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 5 seem and H 2 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 100 seem.
  • the deposition pressure was set to 4 Pa, the temperature of the heating catalyst member was set to 1700 0 C, and the temperature of the base plate was set to 100 0 C.
  • the film stress in this case was 400 MPa (tensile stress) .
  • a substrate for an ink jet was produced in the same manner as the tenth embodiment except that the insulating protection layer was formed by plasma CVD.
  • the source gases used were SiH 4 gas and NH 3 gas, the base plate temperature was 400 0 C, the deposition pressure was 0.5 Pa, and the film stress was 900 MPa (compressive stress) .
  • the layer thickness of the insulating protection layer thus formed was 250 nm.
  • the substrates for an ink jet head according to the tenth, twelfth and thirteenth embodiments and comparative example 2 were immersed in an ink liquid and left in a temperature controlled bath kept at 70 0 C in three days, and then the change in the layer thickness of the insulating protection layer between before and after the above process was examined.
  • the thickness of the silicon nitride layer in the substrate for an ink jet head according to comparative example 2 had decreased by approximately 80 nm
  • the silicon nitride layer in the substrates for an ink jet head according to the embodiments had decreased only by approximately 10 nm.
  • This result showed that the silicon nitride layer in the embodiments had good resistance to ink.
  • forming the layer that is in direct contact with ink by Cat-CVD yields better result than forming it by RS-CVD.
  • the insulating protection layer in the substrate for an ink jet head according each of these embodiments is composed of multiple layers including at least the uppermost layer formed by Cat-CVD and an underlying layer formed by RS (radical shower) -CVD in contrast to a silicon nitride layer formed by plasma CVD in the substrate according to comparative example 2.
  • RS radio shower
  • the ink jet heads produced using the substrates for an ink jet head according to the tenth to thirteenth embodiments and comparative example 2 were attached to an ink jet recording apparatus, and the bubble generation start voltage Vth at ' which ink discharge began was measured.
  • printing durability test was performed. The test was performed by printing a general test pattern provided in the ink jet recording apparatus on A4 paper sheets. In this process, pulse signals with a drive frequency of 15KHz and a drive pulse width of 1 ⁇ s .were supplied, and the bubble .generation start voltage Vth was determined. The results are shown in Table 2.
  • the bubble generation start voltage Vth was 14.2 V (tenth embodiment) .
  • the layer that is in direct contact with ink is formed using RS- CVD or Cat-CVD, and at least the layer that covers the step portions between the electrode wiring and the heat generating resistor layer is formed by RS-CVD that can form a layer having superior coverage performance.
  • the layer that is in direct contact with ink may be formed by plasma CVD, insofar as the extent of elution of the protection layer by ink is not so large as to affect discharge characteristics of the head taking into consideration properties of the ink and the usable life of the head.
  • the protection layer has a multi-layer configuration in which a protection layer having superior coverage performance formed by RS-CVD is provided under (i.e. on the side facing the heat generating resistor layer and the electrode wiring layer) a protection layer formed by plasma CVD, the layer to be in direct contact with ink may be formed by plasma CVD.
  • the insulating protection layer according to the present invention by a plurality of layers, and provide at least a protection layer having superior step coverage performance formed by RS-CVD under (i.e. on the side facing the heat generating resistor layer and the electrode wiring layer) a protection layer having superior resistance to ink formed by Cat-CVD.
  • a protection layer having superior resistance to ink formed by Cat-CVD as the uppermost layer of the insulating protection layer and provide a protection layer having superior step coverage performance formedby RS-CVD as the lowermost layer.

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Abstract

Cette invention concerne un substrat pour une tête d'évacuation de liquide ayant une couche de résistance thermogène, du câblage en contact électrique avec la couche de résistance thermogène, une couche de protection isolante qui couvre la couche de résistance thermogène et le câblage, et un passage de liquide, formés dans l'ordre sur une couche isolante formée sur une plaque de base. La couche de protection isolante est une couche formée par dépôt chimique en phase vapeur à flux de radicaux.
PCT/JP2008/059954 2007-05-29 2008-05-23 Substrat pour tête d'évacuation de liquide, son procédé de fabrication, et tête d'évacuation de liquide utilisant ce substrat WO2008146894A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US12/530,366 US20100079551A1 (en) 2007-05-29 2008-05-23 Substrate for liquid discharge head, method of manufacturing the same, and liquid discharge head using such substrate

Applications Claiming Priority (6)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP2007141773 2007-05-29
JP2007-141773 2007-05-29
JP2007-200935 2007-08-01
JP2007200935 2007-08-01
JP2008083726A JP4963679B2 (ja) 2007-05-29 2008-03-27 液体吐出ヘッド用基体及びその製造方法、並びに該基体を用いる液体吐出ヘッド
JP2008-083726 2008-03-27

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2008146894A1 true WO2008146894A1 (fr) 2008-12-04

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WO (1) WO2008146894A1 (fr)

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2000345349A (ja) * 1999-06-04 2000-12-12 Anelva Corp Ｃｖｄ装置
JP2006051772A (ja) * 2004-08-16 2006-02-23 Canon Inc インクジェットヘッド用基板、該基板の製造方法および前記基板を用いるインクジェットヘッド
JP2006315191A (ja) * 2005-05-10 2006-11-24 Canon Inc 液体噴射ヘッドおよびその製造方法
JP2007083711A (ja) * 2005-08-23 2007-04-05 Canon Inc インクジェット記録ヘッドの製造方法

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2000345349A (ja) * 1999-06-04 2000-12-12 Anelva Corp Ｃｖｄ装置
JP2006051772A (ja) * 2004-08-16 2006-02-23 Canon Inc インクジェットヘッド用基板、該基板の製造方法および前記基板を用いるインクジェットヘッド
JP2006315191A (ja) * 2005-05-10 2006-11-24 Canon Inc 液体噴射ヘッドおよびその製造方法
JP2007083711A (ja) * 2005-08-23 2007-04-05 Canon Inc インクジェット記録ヘッドの製造方法

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