WO2021107224A1

WO2021107224A1 - Deposition apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2021107224A1
Application number: PCT/KR2019/016746
Authority: WO
Inventors: 문병준; 최건훈; 신대성; 조영수
Original assignee: 엘지전자 주식회사
Priority date: 2019-11-29
Filing date: 2019-11-29
Publication date: 2021-06-03
Also published as: KR20220039773A; CN114585770A

Abstract

A deposition apparatus according to the present embodiment comprises: a crucible for evaporating deposition source material into a deposition substance; a heater unit, provided outside the crucible, for heating the crucible; and a cooling portion provided outside the heater unit and for shielding the heater unit. The crucible comprises one or more nozzles for releasing the deposition substance upward. The cooling unit comprises: a shielding plate which is positioned away above the heater unit and has one or more holes through which the upper part of the nozzles protrude; and a nozzle heater provided near the holes of the shielding plate.

Description

deposition apparatus

The present invention relates to a deposition apparatus capable of preventing deposition of a deposition material around a nozzle even if the heat shielding performance of an evaporation source is improved.

Deposition is a method of coating gaseous particles with a thin solid film on the surface of an object such as metal or glass.

Recently, as the use of organic light emitting diodes (OLED) displays increases in electronic devices such as TVs and mobile phones, research on devices for manufacturing OLED display panels is active. In particular, the OLED display panel manufacturing process includes a process of depositing an organic material on a glass substrate in a vacuum state.

Specifically, the deposition process includes a process of heating a crucible in which the organic material is accommodated to evaporate the organic material into a gaseous state, and a process in which the gaseous organic material passes through a nozzle and is deposited on the substrate.

Recently, in OLED displays used in mobile devices or TVs, fine process patterns are used to improve image quality, and the fine process patterns are greatly affected by heat during the deposition process.

In Korea Patent No. 1938219 (applied on Feb. 24, 2017), a crucible used for a linear evaporation source that performs deposition on the substrate by spraying deposition particles linearly along the width direction of the substrate, and an evaporation space with an opening at the top is formed a pair of crucible bodies, wherein the evaporation material is filled in the evaporation space, the evaporation material is evaporated according to heating, the evaporation particles are ejected, and the crucible body is spaced apart from each other in the width direction of the substrate; a pair of nozzle covers each having a nozzle opening through which the evaporation particles of the evaporation space are ejected, and respectively coupled to the pair of crucible bodies so as to cover the evaporation space; A crucible for a linear evaporation source is disclosed, which is coupled to the nozzle port and includes a nozzle unit for guiding the evaporation particles in a width direction of the substrate so that the evaporation particles are ejected in a linear fashion.

In addition, in order to cool the heat generated in the crucible, a cooling plate having a cooling line through which a refrigerant circulates is coupled to the upper surface of the nozzle cover is applied.

Korean Patent Registration No. 796589 (filed on Feb. 17, 2005) discloses a deposition material storage unit in which a deposition material is located and a portion is opened; a housing surrounding the deposition material storage unit; a heating unit interposed between the housing and the deposition material storage unit; a nozzle unit connected to the opening portion of the deposition material storage unit and having an opening for spraying the deposition material; a reflective plate surrounding at least a portion of the corner of the nozzle unit; and an evaporation source disposed on the reflecting plate and including a cover covering the reflecting plate, and a deposition apparatus including the same.

According to the above techniques, the heat of the crucible may be cooled by the cooling plate coupled to the nozzle cover, or the cover may block the radiant heat emitted from the nozzle unit and the reflector, thereby reducing the temperature rise of the substrate.

However, since the cooling plate or cover provided for shielding radiant heat has a relatively low temperature, a vapor deposition material may be deposited on the cooling plate or cover.

When the deposition process is performed again, since the organic material deposited on the portion adjacent to the nozzles of the cooling plate or the cover is vaporized, the organic material may be non-uniformly deposited on the substrate, thereby degrading the quality of the display.

The present invention has been devised to solve the problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a deposition apparatus capable of preventing deposition of a deposition material around a nozzle even if the heat shielding performance of an evaporation source is improved.

The deposition apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a crucible in which a deposition raw material is evaporated into a deposition material; a heater unit installed outside the crucible and heating the crucible; and a cooling unit installed outside the heater unit and shielding the heater unit, wherein the crucible includes at least one nozzle for discharging the deposition material upward, and the cooling unit is located above the heater unit. It may include a shielding plate spaced apart and provided with at least one hole through which upper portions of the nozzles protrude, and a nozzle heater installed around the hole of the shielding plate.

The nozzle heater may have a plate shape installed on one of an upper surface or a lower surface of the shielding plate.

The nozzle heater may include at least one hole through which upper portions of the nozzles protrude.

The nozzle heater may be composed of a high emissivity ceramic heater.

The crucible includes a crucible body having an open top surface and evaporating a deposition material as a deposition material, and a crucible cap coupled to the upper side of the crucible body and provided with the nozzles protruding upward, the shielding plate, the crucible cap It may be installed to be spaced apart from the upper side by a predetermined interval.

The heater unit includes a heater frame spaced apart from the side of the crucible, a heater mounted on an inner wall of the heater frame and spaced apart from the crucible, and an upper reflector mounted on the upper end of the heater frame and extending to the periphery of the crucible. The shielding plate may be installed to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance above the upper reflector.

The cooling unit may include a side cooling block spaced apart from a side surface of the heater unit, and the shielding plate may be installed at an upper end of the side cooling block.

The shielding plate may have a pocket containing a working fluid generating radiant heat by a phase change therein.

The shielding plate may be configured as one of a vapor chamber or a heat pipe.

Since the deposition apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a nozzle heater around the shielding plate, the deposition material deposited on the shielding plate can be effectively removed by operating the nozzle heater during distribution of the deposited object even if the thermal shielding performance is improved.

In addition, since a pocket containing a working fluid that generates radiant heat by phase change is provided inside the shielding plate, the shielding plate receives heat from a heat source and circulates to reduce the hot spot temperature of the shielding plate itself, and cooling performance can be further increased.

Therefore, it is possible to uniformly form a thin film thickness, and to prevent a temperature rise of a vapor-deposited object due to radiant heat, so that the quality of the display manufactured by this process can be improved.

1 is a side cross-sectional view showing a deposition apparatus according to the present embodiment.

2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a deposition apparatus according to the present embodiment;

3 to 4 are perspective views showing main parts of the present embodiment.

Figure 5 is a side cross-sectional view showing an enlarged portion A of Figure 1;

1 to 2 are a side cross-sectional view and an exploded perspective view illustrating a deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The deposition apparatus of the present invention may include a vacuum chamber 1 and a deposition source 100 installed in the vacuum chamber 1 to be transportable.

Transfer mechanisms

3a and 3b for fixing the vapor-deposited object 2 to the ceiling of the vacuum chamber 1 are provided, and the

transfer mechanisms

3a and 3b horizontally transfer the vapor-deposited object 2 to the upper side of the deposition source 100 . can be fixed. The vapor-deposited object 2 may be variously configured including a glass substrate.

Driving units

4a and 4b on which the deposition source 100 is seated are provided in the lower portion of the vacuum chamber 1 , and at least one

driving unit

4a and 4b is fixed to the vacuum chamber 1 by connecting the deposition target 2 to the vacuum chamber 1 . It can be moved horizontally or vertically. The driving unit 4 may move at least the deposition source 100 in a range wider than the width of the vapor-deposited object 2 . However, the deposition source 100 may be in a fixed position without being moved.

The deposition source 100 is a device for supplying a deposition material for forming the thin film M on the deposition target 2 , and includes a crucible 110 accommodating the deposition material, and a heater unit provided to surround the crucible 110 . 120 and a cooling unit 130 provided to surround the heater unit 120 may be included.

The crucible 110 is for evaporating a deposition material into a deposition material, and may include a crucible body 111 , a crucible cap 112 , and nozzles 113 .

The crucible body 111 is configured in a container shape with an open upper surface, can accommodate a deposition material, and can evaporate the deposition material into a deposition material at a high temperature. The crucible body 111 may be a rectangular container long in the longitudinal direction, and the length of the crucible body 111 may be longer than at least one of a horizontal length or a vertical length of the vapor-deposited object 2 .

The deposition raw material is a solid/liquid material charged in the crucible body 111 , and the deposition material is a gaseous material evaporated in the crucible body 111 , and the deposition raw material and the deposition material are the same, and for convenience of explanation It is merely a distinction and does not need to be limited.

The crucible cap 112 has a cover shape for uniformly discharging the deposition material, and may be mounted on the upper side of the crucible body 111 to block the top surface of the crucible body 111 . The crucible cap 112 may be formed in a rectangular shape long in the longitudinal direction like the shape of the crucible body 111 .

The nozzles 113 protrude upward from the crucible cap 112 , and allow the deposition material evaporated from the crucible body 111 to pass through the crucible cap 112 . In order to uniformly supply the deposition material to the deposition target 2 , the nozzles 113 may be provided in various shapes and arrangements, but is not limited thereto.

The hole-type nozzles 113a are provided in a line along the longitudinal direction of the crucible cap 113 at predetermined intervals, and the slit-type nozzles 113b are provided in a line at both ends of the crucible cap 112 in the longitudinal direction. can be

The upper portions of the nozzles 113 are exposed to the upper side of the heater unit 120 and the cooling unit 130 , and the length of the nozzles 113 may affect the quality of the thin film M formed of the deposit M. And, according to the quality requirements, the length of the nozzles 113 can be configured to be long.

The heater unit 120 is for heating the crucible 110 , and may include a heater frame 121 , a heater 122 , a lower reflector 123 , and an upper reflector 124 .

The heater frame 121 is installed to surround the crucible body 111 in order to mount the heater 122 , and it may be formed in a rectangular cylinder shape with upper and lower surfaces larger than the crucible body 111 and open.

The heater frame 121 may be configured to accommodate the crucible body 111 and the crucible cap 112 . The height of the heater frame 121 may be configured to be larger than the height of the crucible body 111 , and the width of the heater frame 121 is configured to be larger than the width of the crucible body 111 , the installation space and radiation of the heater 122 . It may be configured to be larger in consideration of the heat transfer space.

The heater frame 121 may maintain a predetermined distance from the outer wall of the crucible body 111 and may face the outer wall of the crucible body 111 . The crucible body 111 is mounted in the center of the heater frame 121 , and may be mounted so as to maintain a uniform distance between both side outer walls of the crucible body 111 and both side inner walls of the heater frame 121 .

In order to minimize the conduction of heat from the heater frame 121 to the crucible body 111 , the crucible body 111 may be supported to have a minimum contact area inside the heater frame 121 , and various supporting structures are provided. can be applied.

The heater 122 is mounted on the inner wall of the heater frame 121 to heat the crucible body 111 , and the heater 122 may be provided to maintain a predetermined distance from both sides of the crucible body 111 .

The lower reflector 123 and the upper reflector 124 may be formed of a material and shape capable of reflecting radiant heat generated from the heater 122 toward the lower side and the upper side of the crucible 110 .

The lower reflector 123 and the upper reflector 124 reflect the heat generated by the heater 122 toward the crucible 110, so that the reflected heat can heat the crucible 110 more efficiently, such as temperature distribution and temperature rise. give. Accordingly, when the heater 122 is operated to heat the internal temperature of the crucible 110 to a set temperature, power consumption of the heater 122 can be reduced.

The lower reflector 123 may be mounted on the lower portion of the heater frame 121 , and may be located close to the lower portion of the crucible body 111 . The lower reflector 123 may face the lower portion of the crucible body 111 and may be installed to cross the lower portion of the heater frame 121 .

The upper reflector 124 may be mounted on the upper portion of the heater frame 121 , and may be positioned adjacent to the upper portion of the crucible cap 112 . The upper reflector 124 may be provided with a hole 124h through which the upper surface of the crucible cap 112 and the nozzles 113 may pass.

The cooling unit 130 is to prevent the heat of the heater unit 120 from escaping to the outside, and includes side/lower cooling blocks 131 and 132 , an upper shielding plate 133 , and a nozzle heater 134 . can

The side cooling block 131 is installed to surround the heater frame 121 in order to block the heat of the heater unit 120 from escaping to both sides, and is larger than the heater frame 121 and has an open upper/lower direction. It may be formed in a shape.

The height of the side cooling block 131 may be configured to be greater than the height of the heater frame 121, and to be configured to cover up to the height of the crucible flange 112 and the crucible cap 113 seated on the heater frame 121. can The width of the side cooling block 131 is configured to be larger than the width of the heater frame 121, and may be configured to be larger in consideration of a predetermined insulating space.

The side cooling block 131 may maintain a predetermined distance from the outer wall of the heater frame 121 and face the outer wall of the heater frame 121 . The heater frame 121 is mounted in the center of the side cooling block 131 , and may be mounted to maintain a uniform distance between both outer walls of the heater frame 121 and both inner walls of the side cooling block 131 .

The side cooling block 131 may be configured in a form in which a flow path for cooling is built-in, but may also be configured in a form in which a heat insulator is built-in, but is not limited thereto.

The lower surface cooling block 132 is installed under the side cooling block 131 in order to block the heat of the heater unit 120 from escaping to the lower side, and may be opposite to the lower side of the lower reflector 123 .

The lower surface cooling block 132 may be integrally configured with the side cooling block 131 , and the lower surface cooling block 132 may be configured in a form in which a flow path for cooling or a heat insulating material is embedded like the side cooling block 131 . and may be composed of only a kind of frame.

The lower cooling block 132 may be moved along the upper side of the driving

units

4a and 4b provided in the vacuum chamber 1 described above, but is not limited thereto.

The shielding plate 133 is installed on the upper side of the cooling block 131 in order to block the heat of the heater unit 120 from escaping to the upper side, and may be opposite to the upper side of the upper reflector 124 .

The shielding plate 133 is mounted on the top of the side cooling block 131 so as to cover the open upper surface of the side cooling block 131 , at least a portion of the crucible cap 113 is opposed, and the nozzles 113 top outside A plurality of

holes

133H and 133h that can be exposed to the

The shielding plate 133 is configured to shield the heat of the heater unit 120 to minimize the effect on the thin film M formed on the deposited material 2 or the deposited object 2 , which will be described in detail below.

The nozzle heater 134 is installed on the shielding plate 133 so as to be adjacent to the nozzles 113 , and may be selectively operated or may be operated at all times, and a detailed configuration will be described below.

Since the temperature of the shielding plate 133 is relatively low, a deposition material vaporized through the nozzles 113 may be deposited on the shielding plate 133 . As the nozzle heater 134 is operated, the material is increased by increasing the amount of the shielding plate. (133) can be prevented from being deposited.

3 to 4 are perspective views showing main parts of the present embodiment, and FIG. 5 is an enlarged side cross-sectional view of part A of FIG. 1 .

The nozzle heater 134 may be installed on an upper surface or a lower surface of the shielding plate 133 to be adjacent to the nozzles.

1, 3 to 4, the deposition material is sprayed through the nozzles 113, the deposition material passing through the nozzles 113 is diffused to reach the deposition target (2), In order to uniformly form the thickness of the thin film M formed on the deposition 2 , the injection amount of the deposition material may be more sprayed from both sides of the crucible body 111 than the longitudinal center of the crucible body 111 .

That is, the hole-type nozzles 113a are provided to be exposed to the first holes 133h of the shielding plate at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction of the crucible body 111, and the slit-type nozzles 113b are provided in the crucible. The main body 111 may be provided to be exposed to the second hole 133H of the shielding plate in a line on both sides in the longitudinal direction.

Since the slit-type nozzles 113b are located more densely than the hole-type nozzles 113a, the amount of deposition material injected from the slit-type nozzles 113b can be increased, but the slit-type nozzles 113b) A deposition material may be more easily deposited around the adjacent shielding plate 133 , that is, around the second hole 133H of the shielding plate.

Accordingly, the nozzle heater 134 is preferably installed in the second hole 133H of the shielding plate, but is not limited thereto.

The nozzle heater 134 may be installed on one of the upper surface or the lower surface of the shielding plate 133, and the nozzle heater 134 may be composed of a high emissivity ceramic heater that can be heated to a high temperature in a short time, and the deposited material ( 2) can be operated during logistics movement.

Of course, through a view port (not shown) provided on the chamber 1 side, the deposition material is detected on the shielding plate 133 around the nozzles 113 , and the deposition material accumulated on the shielding plate 133 is removed. can be selectively activated to

When the deposition material is accumulated on the shielding plate 133 , the nozzle heater 134 is operated while the vapor-deposited material 2 enters and exits the chamber 1 , and the deposition material deposited on the shielding plate 133 is quickly volatilized. can do it

However, while the deposition process is in progress, the nozzle heater 134 is stopped, and some deposition materials may be accumulated on the shielding plate 133, but as described above, by volatilizing the deposition materials during distribution of the deposition target 2, , it is possible to prevent the deposition material accumulated on the shielding plate 133 from affecting the quality of the thin film during the deposition process.

The shielding plate 133 may be formed in a type of plate shape made of an insulating material or a material having a high reflectance, but may be configured in a pocket shape containing a working fluid that generates radiant heat by a phase change as shown in FIG. 5 .

The shielding plate 133 may be configured in the form of a vapor chamber or a heat pipe.

The periphery of the

holes

133H and 133h of the shielding plate absorbs heat from the nozzle cap 112 and the nozzle heater 134, and the fluid inside the periphery of the

holes

133H and 133h of the shielding plate evaporates, and then the shielding plate 133 ) may be moved from the periphery of the

holes

133H and 133h of the shielding plate to the outer part of the shielding plate 133 along the inner inner flow path.

And, the outer part of the shield plate 133 radiates heat to the side cooling member 133 and its upper side, and the fluid inside the outer part of the shield plate 133 is condensed, and then the outer flow path inside the shield plate 133 is closed. Accordingly, it may move from the outer portion of the shielding plate 133 to the peripheral portions of the

holes

133H and 133h of the shielding plate.

Accordingly, heat around the

holes

133H and 133h of the shielding plate may be moved to the outside of the shielding plate 133 , and the temperature of the hot spot of the shielding plate 133 may be reduced.

Of course, since the cooling performance of the shielding plate 133 is increased, the deposition material may be deposited on the shielding plate 133 side during the deposition process. As a result, the deposition material deposited on the shielding plate 133 can be quickly removed.

The above description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention, and various modifications and variations will be possible without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains.

Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are not intended to limit the technical spirit of the present invention, but to explain, and the scope of the technical spirit of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments.

The protection scope of the present invention should be construed by the following claims, and all technical ideas within the equivalent range should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention.

This embodiment may provide a deposition apparatus for depositing an organic material in a thin film shape on a glass substrate when manufacturing an OLED display panel.

Claims

a crucible in which deposition raw materials are evaporated into deposition materials;

a heater unit installed outside the crucible and heating the crucible; and

a cooling unit installed outside the heater unit and shielding the heater unit;

The crucible is

at least one nozzle for discharging the deposition material upward;

The cooling unit,

a shielding plate spaced apart from the upper side of the heater unit and provided with at least one hole through which upper portions of the nozzles protrude;

and a nozzle heater installed around a hole of the shielding plate.
According to claim 1,

The nozzle heater,

A deposition apparatus configured in a plate shape installed on one of the upper and lower surfaces of the shielding plate.
According to claim 1,

The nozzle heater,

A deposition apparatus having at least one hole through which upper portions of the nozzles protrude.
According to claim 1,

The nozzle heater is

A deposition apparatus consisting of a high emissivity ceramic heater.
According to claim 1,

The crucible is

A crucible body with an open top surface and evaporation of the deposition material as a deposition material;

and a crucible cap coupled to the upper side of the crucible body and provided with the nozzles protruding upward,

The shielding plate is

A deposition apparatus installed to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance above the crucible cap.
According to claim 1,

The heater unit,

A heater frame spaced apart from the side of the crucible,

a heater mounted on the inner wall of the heater frame and spaced apart from the crucible;

and an upper reflector mounted on the top of the heater frame and extending to the periphery of the crucible,

The shielding plate is

A deposition apparatus installed to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance above the upper reflector.
According to claim 1,

The cooling unit,

It includes a side cooling block spaced apart from the side of the heater,

The shielding plate is

A deposition device installed on the top of the side cooling block.
8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,

The shielding plate is

A deposition apparatus having a pocket containing a working fluid that generates radiant heat by phase change therein.
9. The method of claim 8,

The shielding plate is

A deposition apparatus comprising a vapor chamber.
9. The method of claim 8,

The shielding plate is

A deposition apparatus composed of a heat pipe.