WO2015034097A1

WO2015034097A1 - Film formation mask, film formation device, film formation method, and touch panel substrate

Info

Publication number: WO2015034097A1
Application number: PCT/JP2014/073761
Authority: WO
Inventors: 重人杉本
Original assignee: 株式会社ブイ・テクノロジー
Priority date: 2013-09-09
Filing date: 2014-09-09
Publication date: 2015-03-12
Also published as: TW201522677A; KR20160055126A; CN105531394B; JP6142393B2; CN105531394A; JP2015052162A

Abstract

The present invention comprises: a first mask (2) forming a plurality of first open patterns (4) having the same shape dimensions as a thin-film pattern formed upon a substrate; and a second mask (3) forming a second open pattern (10) being of a size that encompasses at least one of the plurality of first open patterns (4), and arranged overlapping the first mask (2) so as to not bind to the first mask (2).

Description

Film formation mask, film formation apparatus, film formation method, and touch panel substrate

The present invention relates to a film formation mask, and in particular, film formation capable of improving the positional accuracy of a thin film pattern by suppressing the influence of mask deformation caused by a difference in linear expansion coefficient between the mask material and the thin film material by an inexpensive method. The present invention relates to a mask, a film forming apparatus, a film forming method, and a touch panel substrate.

The conventional film-forming mask uses a film-forming mask that uses a flexible adhesive film made of a flexible film made of a flexible film that covers a portion that should be a non-deposition area and adheres closely to the substrate surface. A film forming process in which the adhesive film is adhered to the entire surface of the base material on the film forming side, and then the flexible adhesive film covering a region where a desired deposited layer is to be formed is selectively removed and then the deposited layer is formed. Finally, the flexible adhesive film left on the substrate surface was removed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2012-111985 A

However, in such a conventional film formation mask, since the mask material is a flexible resin film such as polyimide, a line between the film and a thin film material deposited on the film, for example, a transparent conductive film is used. There was a problem that deformation of the film such as wrinkles and warpage occurred due to the difference in the expansion coefficient, and the position accuracy of the thin film pattern to be formed deteriorated.

In this case, a thin plate made of a magnetic metal material such as Invar or Invar alloy provided with a through-hole having a size including an opening pattern formed in a resin film is closely integrated with the film, and the back surface of the substrate It is conceivable to form a film by attracting the magnetic thin plate with a magnet placed on the substrate and bringing the film into close contact with the film formation surface of the substrate. appear. Therefore, if the opening pattern is laser processed on the film after the film and the magnetic thin plate are fixed to the frame, the internal stress may be partially released and the opening pattern may be displaced. Therefore, it is difficult to improve the positional accuracy of the thin film pattern formed on the substrate.

Further, when the difference in linear expansion coefficient between the magnetic thin plate and the thin film deposited on the magnetic thin plate is large, the magnetic thin plate is deformed into a convex shape, so that a part of the film is lifted from the film-forming surface of the substrate. There is a problem in that the position of the opening pattern is shifted, and the thin film material is formed from the edge of the opening pattern to the gap between the film and the substrate, so that the edge of the thin film pattern is blurred. Therefore, in this case as well, it is difficult to improve the positional accuracy of the thin film pattern formed on the substrate.

At the same time, the magnetic force acting on the magnetic thin plate is reduced due to the deformation of the magnetic thin plate, so that the position of the film forming mask may be shifted. This also improves the positional accuracy of the thin film pattern formed on the substrate. Have difficulty.

In order to solve all of the above problems at the same time, it is necessary to select materials for the substrate, the film and the magnetic thin plate, and materials whose film expansion materials are close to each other. However, each material to be selected is limited, and there is a problem that the material cost becomes high.

Accordingly, the present invention addresses such problems and improves the positional accuracy of the thin film pattern by suppressing the influence of mask deformation caused by the difference in linear expansion coefficient between the mask material and the thin film material by an inexpensive method. An object of the present invention is to provide a film formation mask, a film formation apparatus, a film formation method, and a touch panel substrate.

In order to achieve the above object, a film formation mask according to the present invention includes a first mask in which a plurality of first opening patterns having the same shape and dimension as a thin film pattern formed on a substrate are formed, and the plurality of first masks. A second opening pattern having a size including at least one of the opening patterns is formed, and is placed on the first mask so as to be in an unconstrained state with respect to the first mask. And a second mask to be configured.

In addition, a film forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a first mask in which a plurality of first opening patterns having the same shape and dimensions as a thin film pattern formed on a substrate are formed in a vacuum chamber, and the plurality of first masks. And a second mask formed with a second opening pattern of a size that includes at least one of the opening patterns, and the first mask of the film formation mask provided in an unconstrained state therebetween. A mask holder for holding the mask on the substrate side, and a mask loading mechanism for moving the mask holder and bringing the first mask into close contact with the film forming surface of the substrate held on the substrate holder. It is prepared.

Furthermore, the film forming method according to the present invention includes a first mask in which a plurality of first opening patterns having the same shape and dimensions as a thin film pattern formed on a substrate are formed, and the plurality of first opening patterns. A first mask side of a film-forming mask provided with a second mask formed with a second opening pattern of a size including at least one so as to be in an unconstrained state between them; A first step of closely contacting the film forming surface of the substrate; a second step of forming the thin film pattern on the film forming surface of the substrate through the first opening pattern of the first mask; After the first and second steps are performed on the substrate, a third step of peeling the second mask from the first mask is performed.

And the touch-panel board | substrate by this invention forms the electrode which consists of a transparent conductive film on the transparent glass substrate using the said film-forming method.

According to the present invention, the deposition mask has a structure in which the second mask is overlaid on the first mask so as to be in an unrestrained state with respect to the first mask, and the first mask side is formed on the substrate. Since it is used in close contact with the film surface, the thin film material deposited on the mask is mainly on the second mask. Therefore, it is mainly the second mask that is deformed due to the difference in linear expansion coefficient between the mask material and the thin film material deposited thereon, and the deformation of the first mask that is the main mask is suppressed. be able to. Therefore, the positional accuracy of the thin film pattern to be formed can be improved. Further, when the number of times the deposition mask is used increases and the amount of deformation of the second mask exceeds a predetermined allowable deformation limit, the second mask can be peeled off and replaced with another second mask. . In addition, since the formation accuracy of the second opening pattern of the second mask may be coarser than the formation accuracy of the first opening pattern of the first mask, the manufacturing cost of the second mask is low. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the influence on the positional deviation of the opening pattern due to the deformation of the mask by an inexpensive method, and to improve the positional accuracy of the thin film pattern to be formed.

1A and 1B are diagrams showing an embodiment of a film formation mask according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a plan view and FIG. It is a schematic block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the film-forming apparatus which uses the said film-forming mask. It is a follow chart explaining the film-forming method performed using the said film-forming apparatus. It is a top view which shows one structural example of the touchscreen board | substrate manufactured using the said film-forming method. It is explanatory drawing shown about the measurement of the deformation amount of the 2nd mask of the said film-forming mask, and shows the state before film-forming. It is sectional drawing shown about film-forming of the transparent electrode of the said touchscreen board | substrate. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which repeated the film-forming using the said film-forming mask and the deformation | transformation of the 2nd mask advanced.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing an embodiment of a film forming mask according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a plan view and FIG. The film formation mask 1 is used for forming a film on a substrate through an opening pattern, and includes a first mask 2 and a second mask 3.

The first mask 2 is formed on the substrate through the first opening pattern 4 to form a thin film pattern. The first mask 2 serves as a main mask, and is made of a resin film 5 and a metal. The thin film 6 and the metal frame 7 are provided. In addition, although the 1st mask 2 may be comprised only with the film 5, in this embodiment, the case where the metal frame 7 is attached is demonstrated.

Here, the film 5 is formed by forming a plurality of first opening patterns 4 penetrating in the same shape and dimensions as the thin film pattern corresponding to the plurality of thin film patterns formed on the substrate. Is a resin film that transmits visible light, such as polyimide or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) having a thickness of about 10 μm to 30 μm. In the following description, the case of polyimide having a linear expansion coefficient of approximately 3 × 10 ⁻⁶ to 5 × 10 ⁻⁶ / ° C., which approximates the linear expansion coefficient of glass as a film formation substrate will be described.

Furthermore, the film 5 is provided with an opening 8 that penetrates separately from the first opening pattern 4. The opening 8 is for measuring a gap generated between the film 5 of the first mask 2 and a second mask 3 described later to estimate the deformation amount of the second mask 3. Specifically, the position of the surface 3a on the substrate side of the second mask 3 is measured through the opening 8 by the first sensor provided on the side opposite to the film forming surface of the transparent glass substrate, and the first sensor The position of the surface 5a on the substrate side of the film 5 of the first mask 2 is measured by a second sensor provided adjacent to the first sensor, and the film 5 of the first mask 2 is measured based on both measured values. A gap between the second mask 3 and the second mask 3 can be calculated.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of openings 8 may be formed in the film 5, and a plurality of sets of sensors each including a first sensor and a second sensor may be provided corresponding to each opening 8. Thereby, the gap between the film 5 of the first mask 2 and the second mask 3 is measured in a wide range, and the deformation amount of the second mask 3 is estimated more accurately by the maximum value or the average value. Can do.

In addition, on the surface 5 a of the film 5, a metal thin film 6 composed of a plurality of isolated patterns extends along the peripheral edge of the film 5 in the outer region of the effective region where the plurality of first opening patterns 4 are formed. Is provided. This metal thin film 6 is spot welded to one end surface 7a of a metal frame 7 described later, and is used for fixing the film 5 to the metal frame 7, and is formed by plating, for example. Alternatively, it may be formed by sputtering or vapor deposition using a metal mask. After a metal thin film is formed on the entire surface 5a of the film 5, a pattern of a plurality of isolated metal thin films 6 is formed by etching. Also good.

Furthermore, on the surface 5 a side of the film 5, there is an opening 9 having a size that encloses the plurality of first opening patterns 4 and openings 8 of the film 5, and the outer shape is substantially equal to the outer shape of the film 5. A frame-shaped metal frame 7 having a size is provided. The metal frame 7 supports the film 5 by spot welding the portion of the metal thin film 6 of the film 5 to the one end surface 7a in a state where the film 5 is stretched. For example, the thickness of the metal frame 7 is about 30 mm to 50 mm. Alternatively, it is made of a magnetic metal material such as an Invar alloy.

On the other surface 5 b of the film 5 of the first mask 2, the second mask 3 is installed so as to be peelable without being restrained in the horizontal direction with respect to the first mask 2. The second mask 3 is used for preventing the thin film material from being deposited on the film 5 of the first mask 2 and the deformation of the film 5 based on the difference in linear expansion coefficient between the film 5 and the thin film material. The same resin as the film 5 of the first mask 2, which is a sub-mask and has a second opening pattern 10 having a size including at least one of the plurality of first opening patterns 4. It is made of a film made of, for example, polyimide.

Next, a film forming apparatus using the film forming mask 1 configured as described above will be described. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the film forming apparatus.
This film forming apparatus is for forming a plurality of thin film patterns on a substrate 11 using the film forming mask 1. For example, sputtering is performed by generating plasma between a target 12 and a substrate 11. Device. In the following description, the case where the film forming apparatus is an RF sputtering apparatus will be described.

The RF sputtering apparatus includes a target holder 14, a substrate holder 15, a shutter 16, a mask holder 17, and a mask loading mechanism 18 in a vacuum chamber 13.

The target holder 14 holds a target 12 obtained by shaping a film forming material into a plate shape. The target holder 14 is electrically connected to a high-frequency power source 19 provided outside via a bypass capacitor 20 and has a high-frequency voltage of 13.56 MHz. Can be applied to form a cathode electrode.

A substrate holder 15 is provided below the target holder 14. The substrate holder 15 holds a glass substrate 11 as a film formation substrate so as to face the target 12, and is grounded and serves as an anode electrode. Further, the substrate sensor 15 incorporates a first sensor 21 corresponding to the opening 8 of the first mask 2 of the film formation mask 1 held by the mask holder 17 described later. A second sensor 22 is incorporated adjacent to (see FIG. 5).

The first sensor 21 is for measuring the relative position in the height direction of the surface 3 a of the second mask 3 on the substrate 11 side through the opening 8 of the first mask 2, and the second sensor 22. Is for measuring the relative position in the height direction of the surface 5a of the film 5 of the first mask 2 on the substrate 11 side, and includes both a light-emitting part and a light-receiving part, for example. It is a displacement sensor of a triangulation system that converts an imaging position into a distance.

A shutter 16 is provided between the target holder 14 and the substrate holder 15 so as to be able to advance and retreat. This shutter 16 is for moving in the directions of arrows A and B in FIG. 2 to open and close the passage of the sputtered particles, and during the sputtering performed by generating plasma between the substrate 11 and the target 12, the arrow A The film thickness of the thin film to be deposited can be controlled by controlling the time from moving in the direction to open the sputtered particle passage to moving in the arrow B direction to close the sputtered particle passage. ing.

A mask holder 17 is provided between the substrate holder 15 and the shutter 16. The mask holder 17 holds the film formation mask 1 such that the first mask 2 side is on the substrate holder 15 side. The mask holder 17 holds the edge of the film formation mask 1 with the first mask 2. The second mask 3 is integrally held.

A mask loading mechanism 18 is provided so that the mask holder 17 can be driven. The mask loading mechanism 18 moves the mask holder 17 forward and backward between, for example, the substrate holder 15 and the shutter 16 and further moves it up and down. The mask loading mechanism 18 moves the film 5 of the first mask 2 to the substrate holder when the mask holder 17 is lowered. 15 can be brought into close contact with the film forming surface of the substrate 11 held by the substrate 15.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 23 is an exhaust port for exhausting the gas in the vacuum chamber 13, and reference numeral 24 is a gas introduction port for introducing an inert gas into the vacuum chamber 13. Reference numeral 25 denotes a shield member for preventing the anode ions from colliding with, for example, a portion of the target holder 14 other than the portion of the target 12 facing the substrate 11, and corresponds to the central region of the target 12. An opening 26 is provided.

Next, film formation using the film forming apparatus configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In the following description, the formation of the transparent electrode 28 of the touch panel substrate 27 as shown in FIG. 4 will be described as an example. Here, a case will be described in which the film forming apparatus is an in-line film forming apparatus provided with a front chamber that is partitioned by a gate valve and can be evacuated next to a vacuum chamber 13 as a film forming chamber.
First, a target 12 of indium tin oxide (hereinafter referred to as “ITO (Indium Tin Oxide)”) is attached to a target holder 14 in a vacuum chamber 13.

Further, after the first mask 2 and the second mask 3 are aligned, the film formation mask 1 which is superposed and integrated is held by the mask holder 17. At this time, the film formation mask 1 is held so that the first mask 2 is on the substrate holder 15 side (lower side in FIG. 2). Thereby, the film formation preparation is completed (step S1).

Subsequently, vacuuming is performed until the degree of vacuum in the vacuum chamber 13 reaches a predetermined value. In detail, the exhaust valve provided in the exhaust port 23 is opened, and the inside of the vacuum chamber 13 is exhausted. At this time, the gas introduction valve of the gas introduction port 24 is closed.

On the other hand, in the front chamber (not shown) that is evacuated to a vacuum level substantially equal to the vacuum level in the vacuum chamber 13, for example, a plurality of transparent glass substrates 11 as film formation substrates are accommodated in a cassette (not shown), for example. Have been waiting.

When the degree of vacuum in the vacuum chamber 13 reaches a predetermined value, a gate valve (not shown) that partitions the front chamber and the vacuum chamber 13 is opened, and a plurality of glass substrates 11 waiting in the front chamber are opened. One of them is transported by a substrate loading mechanism (not shown) and placed at the center of the substrate holder 15 in the vacuum chamber 13 (step S2). Thereafter, the gate valve is closed.

Next, after the mask loading mechanism 18 is activated to position the deposition mask 1 on the substrate 11, for example, an illustration provided in advance on the glass substrate 11 by an alignment camera (not shown) provided in the substrate holder 15. An omitted alignment mark and an alignment mark (not shown) provided in advance on the first mask 2 of the film formation mask 1 are photographed, and the film formation mask 1 side, for example, is placed so that both alignment marks have a predetermined positional relationship. Move and align. When the alignment is completed, the deposition mask 1 is lowered by the mask loading mechanism 18, and the film 5 of the first mask 2 is brought into close contact with the deposition surface of the glass substrate 11 (step S3).

At this time, a magnet may be provided on the substrate holder 15 on the side of the peripheral edge of the glass substrate 11, and the metal frame 7 of the deposition mask 1 may be attracted by the magnet to fix the deposition mask 1 to the substrate holder 15. In this case, the total height of the magnet and the metal frame 7 is the height of the glass substrate 11 so that the film 5 of the first mask 2 of the film formation mask 1 hangs down by its own weight and comes into close contact with the film formation surface of the glass substrate 11. It is desirable to set the height of the magnet and the metal frame 7 to be slightly higher than the dimensions.

When the deposition mask 1 is installed, the first and

second sensors

21 and 22 measure the size of the gap between the film 5 of the first mask 2 and the second mask 3. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, first by the sensor 21 while irradiating through the first opening 8 of the mask 2, for example a laser beam L _1, the second surface 3a of the substrate 11 side of the mask 3 in position to be imaged on the light receiving element of the reflected laser beam L _1, and measuring the displacement amount with respect to a predetermined reference position, the triangular distance method by the second mask 3 of the substrate 11-side surface 3a measuring the position t ₁ in the height direction.

At the same time, while the second sensor 22 irradiates, for example, laser light L ₂ , an image is formed on the light receiving element of the laser light L ₂ reflected by the surface 5 a on the substrate 11 side of the film 5 of the first mask 2. position that measures the displacement amount with respect to a predetermined reference position, to measure the triangular distance method by the position t ₂ in the height direction of the first substrate 11 side of the surface 5a of the film 5 mask 2. Then, {t ₁ -t ₂ -t ₀ (thickness of the film 5)} is calculated by a control personal computer (PC) (not shown), and the gap size between the first mask 2 and the second mask 3 is calculated. Δt is calculated. Further, the calculation result is stored in the memory of the control PC (step S4).

When measurement of the gap dimension Δt before the start of film formation is completed, a gas introduction valve (not shown) is opened, and an inert gas, for example, argon (Ar) gas at a constant flow rate is introduced from the gas introduction port 24. Further, an exhaust valve (not shown) of the exhaust port 23 is adjusted to adjust the exhaust flow rate, and the amount of Ar gas in the vacuum chamber 13 is set to a predetermined value.

Subsequently, the high frequency power supply 19 is activated, and a predetermined high frequency voltage is applied to the target holder 14 (cathode electrode). As a result, the Ar gas is ionized and plasma is generated between the target 12 and the substrate 11. At this time, the shutter 16 is closed.

After pre-sputtering is performed for a certain time with the shutter 16 closed, the shutter 16 is opened and main sputtering is started (step S5). Then, when a predetermined time elapses in this sputtering, the shutter 16 is closed and the film formation is completed. As a result, an ITO transparent conductive film 29 is formed on the glass substrate 11 through the first opening pattern 4 of the first mask 2 as shown in FIG. 6, and the transparent electrode 28 as shown in FIG. The touch panel substrate 27 on which is formed is manufactured.

During film formation in step S5, in the same manner as described above, the first sensor 21 causes the height position t ₁ ′ of the surface 3a of the second mask 3 and the second sensor 22 as shown in FIG. The height position t ₂ ′ of the surface 5 a of the film 5 of the first mask 2 is measured, and (t ₁ ′ −t ₂ ′ −t ₀ ) is calculated to calculate the distance between the first and

second masks

2 and 3. A gap dimension Δt ′ is calculated. Then, the gap size Δt between the first and

second masks

2 and 3 before the start of film formation read from the memory of the control PC and the same gap size Δt ′ after the film formation are subtracted to increase the gap. (Δt′−Δt) is calculated (step S6).

In the calculation of the increase amount of the gap (Δt′−Δt), the thickness t ₀ of the film 5 of the first mask 2 is canceled out, so that the gap dimension between the first and

second masks

2 and 3 is reduced. Is
Δt = t ₁ -t ₂
Δt ′ = t ₁ ′ −t ₂ ′
Even if it is determined and processed, there is no difference in calculation.

When film formation is being performed, the film formation mask 1 is heated by plasma, and the temperature of the film formation mask 1 rises. Therefore, when an ITO film is deposited on the second mask 3 by film formation, the linear expansion coefficient of ITO is about 7.2 × 10 ⁻⁶ / ° C., whereas the second mask 3 Since the linear expansion coefficient of polyimide is about 3 × 10 ⁻⁶ / ° C., the second mask 3 has a convex shape as shown in FIG. 7 due to the difference in linear expansion coefficient with the transparent conductive film 29 made of ITO. Deform. The amount of deformation increases as the film thickness of the transparent conductive film 29 increases. That is, the gap between the first and

second masks

2 and 3 is increased. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the deformation amount of the second mask 3 exceeds the allowable range based on the increase amount (Δt′−Δt) of the gap dimension between the first and second masks 2 and 3 (step). S7). The transparent conductive film 29 deposited on the edge of the first opening pattern 4 of the first mask 2 is separated from the transparent conductive film 29 deposited on the edge of the adjacent first opening pattern 4. The deformation of the film 5 based on the difference in linear expansion coefficient between the film 5 of the first mask 2 and the transparent conductive film 29 deposited thereon is so small as to be negligible. Therefore, attention should be paid to the deformation amount of the second mask 3 here.

More specifically, the calculated increase amount (Δt′−Δt) of the gap is compared with a determination reference value (threshold value) of an allowable value stored in the memory. And then. When the increase amount of the gap (Δt′−Δt) is smaller than the threshold value, it is determined that the deformation amount of the second mask 3 is within the allowable range (“NO” determination in step S7).

When the formation of the electrode 28 on the glass substrate 11 is completed, the high frequency power source 19 is turned off, the gas introduction valve is closed, and the introduction of Ar gas is stopped. Further, the exhaust valve is opened, and the gas in the vacuum chamber 13 is exhausted.

In step S7, when it is determined that the deformation amount of the second mask 3 is within the allowable range and the determination is “NO”, the mask loading mechanism 18 is activated and the film formation mask 1 is placed in the standby position. To move. Further, the gate valve is opened, the substrate loading mechanism is activated, and the touch panel substrate 27 is carried from the vacuum chamber 13 to the front chamber (step S8) and accommodated in the cassette. Then, another glass substrate 11 in the cassette is transferred into the vacuum chamber 13 by the substrate loading mechanism (step S9) and placed on the substrate holder 15 (step S2).

Then, in the same manner as described above, after the deposition mask 1 is brought into close contact with the glass substrate 11 (step S3), the gap dimension between the first and

second masks

2 and 3 is measured. Note that the measurement of the gap dimension at this stage may be omitted.

Next, Ar gas is introduced into the vacuum chamber 13 in the same manner as described above, and film formation is started (step S5). During film formation, the gap size between the first and

second masks

2 and 3 is measured in the same manner as described above. Further, this measured value is subtracted from the gap size value Δt initially stored in the memory of the control PC (step S6) and compared with a threshold value stored in the memory (step S7). Here, when the result of the subtraction process exceeds the threshold value ("YES" determination in step S7), it is determined that the deformation amount of the second mask 3 exceeds the allowable value.

As described above, when it is determined that the deformation amount of the second mask 3 exceeds the allowable value, when the film formation is completed, the inside of the vacuum chamber 13 is evacuated and the touch panel substrate 27 is carried out (step S10). . Then, with the gate valve separating the vacuum chamber 13 and the front chamber closed, the vacuum in the vacuum chamber 13 is broken to atmospheric pressure, and the chamber is opened. Further, after peeling off and removing the second mask 3 of the film formation mask 1 held by the mask holder 17, another second mask 3 is attached (step S11). Then, after evacuating the vacuum chamber 13 in the same manner as described above, the new substrate 11 is transported (step S9), placed on the substrate holder 15 (step S2), and then onto the new glass substrate 11. The film formation is started.

According to the present invention, since the second mask 3 as the submask is provided on the first mask 2 as the main mask, the film forming material is mainly deposited on the second mask 3. Therefore, it is mainly the second mask 3 that is deformed by the deposition of the film forming material, and deformation of the film 5 of the first mask 2 can be suppressed. That is, the processing accuracy and position accuracy of the opening pattern 10 of the second mask 3 may be coarser than that of the opening pattern 4 of the first mask 2, and the first and

second masks

2 and 3 are arranged in the horizontal direction. Therefore, even if the second mask 3 is slightly deformed, the influence on the positional accuracy of the opening pattern 4 of the first mask 2 is small. Therefore, the positional accuracy of the thin film pattern formed on the substrate 11 can be improved. Since the second mask 3 is detachably installed on the first mask 2, it can be replaced when the second mask 3 is deformed beyond a preset value. Therefore, the deposition mask 1 can be used for a long time while maintaining the positional accuracy of the first opening pattern 4 of the first mask 2 over a long period of time. Further, since the processing accuracy of the opening pattern 10 of the second mask 3 may be coarser than the processing accuracy of the opening pattern 4 of the first mask 2, the manufacturing cost of the second mask 3 is the same as that of the first mask 2. Lower than manufacturing cost. Therefore, the cost of the film formation mask 1 can be reduced.

In the above embodiment, the case where the replacement time of the second mask 3 is determined when the deformation amount of the second mask 3 exceeds a predetermined threshold has been described. Alternatively, the replacement time may be determined based on the film formation time. In this case, the relationship between the number of times the film formation mask 1 is used or the film formation time and the deformation amount of the second mask 3 may be examined in advance through experiments.

Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the case where both the 1st and

2nd masks

2 and 3 were resin-made films was demonstrated, especially the 2nd mask 3 is a magnetic or nonmagnetic metal film or metal sheet. It may be formed by. Further, similarly to the first mask 2, a frame-shaped metal frame having openings of a size that includes the plurality of second opening patterns 10 may be provided on the outer peripheral edge of the second mask 3. .

Furthermore, although the case where the thin film is the ITO transparent conductive film 29 has been described in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and any thin film of an organic or inorganic material may be used.

Furthermore, although the in-line type film forming apparatus has been described in the above embodiment, the present invention may be a batch type film forming apparatus.

And in the above description, although the case where the film-forming apparatus was a sputtering apparatus was described, this invention is not limited to this, The film-forming apparatus may be a vapor deposition apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Film formation mask 2 ... 1st mask 3 ... 2nd mask 4 ... 1st opening pattern 5 ... Film 8 ... Opening part 10 ... 2nd opening pattern 11 ... Substrate 13 ... Vacuum chamber 15 ... Substrate holder 17 ... Mask holder 18 ... Mask loading mechanism 21 ... First sensor 22 ... Second sensor 27 ... Touch panel substrate 28 ... Transparent electrode 29 ... Transparent conductive film

Claims

A first mask formed with a plurality of first opening patterns having the same shape and dimension as a thin film pattern formed on a substrate;
A second opening pattern having a size including at least one of the plurality of first opening patterns is formed, and the first mask is brought into an unrestrained state on the first mask. A second mask placed on top of
A film-formation mask comprising:
2. The film forming mask according to claim 1, wherein an opening that penetrates the first mask for measuring the deformation amount of the second mask is provided separately from the first opening pattern.
3. The film-forming mask according to claim 1, wherein at least the first mask is a resin film.
In the vacuum chamber,
A first mask formed with a plurality of first opening patterns having the same shape and dimensions as a thin film pattern formed on a substrate; and a first mask having a size including at least one of the plurality of first opening patterns. A mask holder for holding the first mask of the film-formation mask provided so as to be in an unconstrained state between the second mask and the second mask on which the two opening patterns are formed so as to be on the substrate side; ,
A mask loading mechanism for moving the mask holder to bring the first mask into close contact with the film forming surface of the substrate held by the substrate holder;
A film forming apparatus configured to include:
The substrate is a transparent substrate;
The first mask is provided with a penetrating opening for measuring the deformation amount of the second mask separately from the first opening pattern,
The substrate holder includes a first sensor for measuring the position of the substrate-side surface of the second mask through the opening of the first mask, and the substrate-side surface of the first mask. And a second sensor for measuring the position of
The film forming apparatus according to claim 4.
6. A film forming apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a front chamber that can be evacuated by being partitioned by the film forming chamber and a gate valve.
A first mask formed with a plurality of first opening patterns having the same shape and dimensions as a thin film pattern formed on a substrate; and a first mask having a size including at least one of the plurality of first opening patterns. The first mask side of the film forming mask provided with the second mask formed with the two opening patterns so as to be in an unconstrained state between them is adhered to the film forming surface of the substrate. Steps,
A second step of depositing the thin film pattern on the deposition surface of the substrate through the first opening pattern of the first mask;
A third step of peeling the second mask from the first mask after performing the first and second steps on a plurality of substrates;
A film forming method characterized in that:
In the third step, the first sensor provided on the side opposite to the film-forming surface of the transparent substrate passes through the opening formed in the first mask separately from the first opening pattern. The position of the substrate side surface of the second mask is measured, the position of the surface of the first mask on the substrate side is measured by a second sensor provided adjacent to the first sensor, and both measurements are performed. 8. The film forming method according to claim 7, wherein the second mask is peeled off from the first mask when the deformation amount of the second mask calculated based on the value exceeds a predetermined value. .
9. The film forming method according to claim 7, wherein at least the first mask is a resin film.
The film forming method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the thin film pattern is a transparent conductive film formed on a transparent glass substrate.
10. The film forming method according to claim 9, wherein the thin film pattern is a transparent conductive film formed on a transparent glass substrate.
A touch panel substrate in which an electrode made of a transparent conductive film is formed on a transparent glass substrate using the film forming method according to claim 7.