Sheathing plate and method of manufacturing the same

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a cladding sheet, which may include a cladding sheet blank and a coating covering the outer surface of the cladding sheet blank. The cladding sheet blank may include a central region and a tapered edge region, wherein the tapered edge region has an average tapering angle of no more than 20 degrees relative to the length direction of the cladding sheet blank. In one embodiment, the coating of the cladding sheet may be applied by spin coating and may have edge bead-like portions located below a plane of the coating surface within the central region. This disclosure also relates to a method of forming a cladding sheet and a method of manufacturing an article of articles.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to a cladding including a coating and a method of manufacturing said cladding. Background Technology

[0002] Inkjet adaptive planarization (IAP) requires the use of a cover plate with a high degree of flatness on its working surface. To reduce defects, increase throughput, and extend its lifespan, covers plates designed for IAP processes are typically coated with a thin polymer film. The coating is usually applied via spin coating. A frequently observed problem with spin coating is the increase in thickness at the outer edges of the coating, also known as edge beading. Edge beading can lead to production defects or a reduction in the total working area available for planarization. It is known to remove edge beading through subsequent processing operations; however, these operations require additional work input and may introduce other defects.

[0003] There is a need to improve the quality of the cladding, specifically by integrating characteristics such as defect-free high surface flatness, long lifespan at high production volumes, and a high percentage of actual working surface area. Further improvements in the efficiency of manufacturing such cladding are also desired. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In one embodiment, the cladding may include a cladding blank and a coating covering the outer surface of the cladding blank, wherein the cladding blank may include a central region and a tapered edge region; the tapered edge region may have a tapering angle of no more than 20 degrees relative to the radial direction of the cladding blank; and the coating may cover the entire central region and at least a portion of the tapered edge region of the cladding blank.

[0005] In one aspect, the coating of the cladding may include edge bead portions located within the tapered edge region, wherein the apex of the edge bead portions may be located below the plane of the outer surface of the coating in the central region of the cladding.

[0006] On the other hand, the surface area ratio Sc:St of the cladding blank can be at least 15, where Sc is the surface area of ​​the central region and St is the surface area of ​​the tapering edge region.

[0007] On the other hand, relative to the height direction of the cladding blank, the depth T of the tapering at the outer edge of the cladding blank, starting from the horizontal height of the outer surface of the central region of the cladding blank. d It can be at least 20 micrometers and no more than 400 micrometers.

[0008] On the other hand, the length (T) of the tapered edge region in the radial direction of the cover plate. l It can be at least 1.0 mm.

[0009] In another aspect, the average thickness of the cladding blank in the central region may be at least 100 micrometers and no more than 5,000 micrometers.

[0010] On the other hand, the average thickness of the coating on the cladding in the central region may be at least 0.1 micrometers and no more than 10 micrometers.

[0011] In yet another specific aspect, the tapering edge region may have a tapering angle of no more than 10 degrees.

[0012] In another embodiment, the method of forming a cladding sheet may include: preparing a cladding sheet blank comprising a central region and a tapered edge region, wherein the tapering angle of the tapered edge region relative to the radial direction of the cladding sheet blank may be no greater than 20 degrees; and applying a coating to the outer surface of the cladding sheet blank, wherein the coating covers at least a portion of the entire central region and the tapered edge region.

[0013] In one aspect of the method, applying the coating onto the cladding blank may include spin coating.

[0014] In another aspect of the method, spin coating may include forming edge beads located within the tapered edge region of the cladding blank.

[0015] In one aspect, the method may further include removing the edge beaded portion. In a particular aspect, removing the edge beaded portion may include washing with a solvent.

[0016] In one aspect of the method, the surface area ratio Sc:St of the cladding blank may be at least 15, where Sc is the surface area of ​​the central region and St is the surface area of ​​the tapering edge region.

[0017] In another aspect of the method, spin coating may not include forming edge bead portions on the cladding blank.

[0018] In another aspect of the method, the length (T) of the tapered edge region in the radial direction of the cover plate. l It can be at least 1.0 mm.

[0019] In another aspect of the method, the average thickness of the coating in the central region may be at least 0.1 micrometers and no more than 10 micrometers.

[0020] In another aspect of the method, relative to the height direction of the cladding blank, the depth T of the tapering at the outer edge of the cladding blank, starting from the horizontal height of the outer surface of the central region of the cladding blank.d It can be at least 20 micrometers and no more than 400 micrometers.

[0021] On the other hand, the taper angle of the tapering edge region can be no greater than 10 degrees.

[0022] In one embodiment, a method of manufacturing an article may include: applying a layer of a formable composition to a substrate; contacting the formable composition with a cladding, wherein the cladding includes a cladding blank and a coating covering an outer surface of the cladding blank, and wherein the cladding blank includes a central region and a tapered edge region, the tapered edge region having a tapering angle of no more than 20 degrees relative to the length direction of the cladding blank, and the coating covering at least a portion of the tapered edge region and the central region of the cladding blank; photocuring or thermally curing the formable composition to form a cured layer; removing the cladding from the cured layer; and processing the substrate having the cured layer to manufacture the article. Attached Figure Description

[0023] The embodiments are shown by way of example and are not limited to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] Figure 1 This includes a scheme describing a method for forming a superstrate according to one embodiment.

[0025] Figure 2A A side view of a cladding blank according to one embodiment is shown.

[0026] Figure 2B An embodiment is shown. Figure 2A An enlarged side view of a portion of the cladding blank shown.

[0027] Figure 3A A side view of a portion of a cover plate according to one embodiment is shown.

[0028] Figure 3B A side view of a portion of the comparison panel is shown.

[0029] Figure 3C A side view comparing a portion of a coated wafer is shown.

[0030] Figure 4A A top view of a cover plate according to one embodiment is shown.

[0031] Figure 4B A top view of the comparison panel is shown.

[0032] Figure 5 An apparatus including a cover plate is shown according to one embodiment.

[0033] Figure 6 This includes a diagram showing the shape of the coating in the tapered edge region of the cladding in Example 1 according to one embodiment, and the corresponding shape of the cladding blank.

[0034] Those skilled in the art will understand that the components in the figures are shown for simplicity and clarity and are not necessarily drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some components in the figures may be enlarged relative to other components to aid in understanding embodiments of the invention. Detailed Implementation

[0035] The following description is provided to aid in understanding the teachings disclosed herein, with a focus on specific implementations and examples of the teachings. This focus is provided to aid in the description of the teachings and should not be construed as a limitation on the scope or applicability of the teachings.

[0036] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains. Materials, methods, and examples are illustrative only and are not intended to be limiting. Many details regarding specific materials and processing actions not described herein are conventional and can be found in textbooks and other sources within the field of imprinting and photolithography.

[0037] As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having,” or any other variation thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, article of manufacture, or apparatus that includes a list of features is not necessarily limited to those features, but may include other features not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article of manufacture, or apparatus.

[0038] As used herein, and unless explicitly stated otherwise, “or” refers to an inclusive “or” rather than an exclusive “or”. For example, any of the following satisfy conditions A or B: A is true (or exists) and B is false (or does not exist), A is false (or does not exist) and B is true (or exists), and both A and B are true (or exist).

[0039] Furthermore, the use of "a" or "an" is adopted to describe the elements and components described herein. This is done merely for convenience and to give a general meaning regarding the scope of the invention. This description should be interpreted as including one or at least one, and the singular also includes the plural, unless it is obvious that it implies something else.

[0040] This disclosure relates to a cladding sheet comprising a cladding sheet blank and a coating covering the outer surface of the cladding sheet blank. The cladding sheet blank is designed to include a central region and a tapered edge region. In one embodiment, the tapered edge region may be a location for edge beads to be formed during spin coating of the coating onto the cladding sheet blank, wherein the apex of the edge beads may be located below a plane of the outer surface of the coating in the central region of the cladding sheet. In another embodiment, the formation of edge beads during spin coating can be completely avoided.

[0041] like Figure 1 As shown, the method of forming the cladding of this disclosure may include the following steps: 11) forming a cladding blank including a central region and a tapered edge region, wherein the tapered edge region has a tapering angle of no more than 20 degrees relative to the length direction of the cladding blank; and 12) applying a coating to the outer surface of the cladding blank, wherein the coating covers the entire central region and at least a portion of the tapered edge region.

[0042] The formation of the cladding blank (11) can be performed using a standard commercial wafer (e.g., a thin slice cut from a circular wafer ingot) and by controlled cutting and / or polishing of the wafer to remove wafer material to form a smooth descending taper at the edge region of the wafer. In a particular embodiment, the taper can be formed by controlled polishing. In another embodiment, the taper of the wafer can be fabricated by controlled etching.

[0043] Figure 2A The illustration includes a side view of a cladding blank 20 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, showing a central region (21) and a tapered edge region (22) of the cladding blank.

[0044] Figure 2B It shows Figure 2A The enlarged cross-section of the cover plate shown illustrates a portion of the entire tapered edge region (22) and the central region (21). A smooth transition from the central region (21) to the tapered edge region (22) is evident. The average tapering angle (23) of the tapered portion of the entire tapered edge region (22) may not exceed 20 degrees. In some respects, such as... Figure 2B As shown, the taper angle can be the same throughout the taper edge region. In another specific aspect (not shown), the taper angle can vary within the taper edge region; for example, the taper angle can increase towards the outer edge. In all aspects, the average taper angle of the entire taper edge region can be no greater than about 18 degrees, for example, no greater than 15 degrees, no greater than 10 degrees, no greater than 8 degrees, no greater than 7 degrees, no greater than 6 degrees, no greater than 5 degrees, or no greater than 3 degrees.

[0045] In some respects, the diameter of the cladding blank, including the central region (21) and the tapered edge region (22), may be at least 50 mm, for example, at least 100 mm, at least 150 mm, at least 200 mm, at least 250 mm, at least 280 mm, or at least 290 mm. In other respects, the diameter of the central region may not exceed 600 nm, for example, not exceed 500 mm, not exceed 450 mm, or not exceed 400 mm. The diameter of the cladding blank may be a value between any of the minimum and maximum values ​​mentioned above.

[0046] In one aspect, the surface area ratio of the cladding blank Sc:St can be at least 15, for example at least 20, at least 30, at least 40, at least 45 or at least 50, where Sc is the surface area of ​​the central region (21) and St is the surface area of ​​the tapered edge region (22).

[0047] On the other hand, in the central region (21), the cladding blank (S) d The thickness can be at least 100 micrometers, for example at least 150 micrometers, at least 200 micrometers, at least 300 micrometers, at least 500 micrometers, at least 1000 micrometers, or at least 2000 micrometers. On the other hand, the thickness can be no greater than 5000 micrometers, no greater than 4000 micrometers, or no greater than 3000 micrometers. The thickness of the cladding blank in the central region can be a value between any of the minimum and maximum values ​​mentioned above.

[0048] The tapered edge region (22) of the cladding blank disclosed herein may have a length of at least 1.0 mm in the radial direction (x-axis), for example at least 1.5 mm, at least 1.8 mm, at least 2.0 mm, at least 2.3 mm, at least 2.5 mm, or at least 3.0 mm (T). l On the other hand, the tapering edge region (T) l The diameter can be no greater than 5.0 mm, for example, no greater than 4.5 mm, no greater than 4.0 mm, or no greater than 3.5 mm. It will be understood that the T-shape of the tapered edge region... l It can be any of the minimum and maximum values ​​mentioned above.

[0049] On the other hand, the depth (T) of the tapering at the outer edge of the cladding blank, starting from the horizontal height of the outer surface of the central region of the cladding blank in the height direction (y-axis). d The depth (T) can be at least 20 micrometers, for example, at least 30 micrometers, or at least 50 micrometers, or at least 80 micrometers, or at least 100 micrometers. On the other hand, the depth of the taper (T) dThe depth of the taper can be no greater than 400 micrometers, for example, no greater than 350 micrometers, no greater than 300 micrometers, no greater than 250 micrometers, no greater than 200 micrometers, or no greater than 150 micrometers. The depth of the taper (T) d T can be any of the minimum and maximum values ​​mentioned above. In some cases, T... d The thickness can be the same as that of the cladding blank in the central region. For example, if the cladding blank has a thickness of 100 micrometers in the central region, then T d It can also be 100 micrometers.

[0050] The cladding blank can be made of a variety of materials. Non-limiting examples of materials may include glass-based materials, silicon, spinel, fused glass, quartz, organic polymers, siloxane polymers, fluorocarbon polymers, metals, metal alloys, hardened sapphire, deposited oxides, anodic aluminum oxide, organosilanes, organosilicon materials, inorganic polymers, or any combination thereof. Glass-based materials may include soda-lime glass, borosilicate glass, alkali metal barium silicate glass, quartz glass, aluminosilicate glass, or synthetic fused silica.

[0051] In one embodiment of the method disclosed herein, the coating can be applied to the cladding blank (12) by spin coating. By using a tapered cladding blank having the above-described structure, a protective coating can be formed on the cladding blank, wherein the edge beaded portion of the coating can move downward to the inclined portion of the tapered portion.

[0052] In one aspect of this disclosure, the formation of edge bead-like portions can even be completely avoided. This cannot be achieved if spin coating is performed on a cladding blank that does not include the tapered edge region of the present invention.

[0053] Figure 3A An embodiment of a cladding is shown, wherein a coating (24) is applied to a cladding blank (20) via spin coating. Figure 3A Only a cross-section of a cladding plate having a complete tapered edge region (22) and a portion of a central region (21) is shown. It can be seen that the coating (24) can uniformly cover the central region (21) of the cladding plate blank, and edge bead portions (25) can be formed within the tapered edge region (22). In one aspect, the apex (26) of the edge bead portion (25) can be located below the plane (27) of the outer surface of the coating (24) within the central region (21).

[0054] In one embodiment, the coating (24) may be a polymer coating. Non-limiting examples of polymer coating materials may be poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), fluoropolymers or polyethylene terephthalate, or any polymer that is transparent to selected photochemical radiation (e.g., a certain ultraviolet light range) used to cure the formable material during the planarization process.

[0055] In another embodiment, the average thickness of the coating (24) in the central region may be at least 0.1 micrometers, for example at least 0.5 micrometers, at least 1.0 micrometers, at least 2.0 micrometers, at least 3 micrometers, or at least 5 micrometers. Alternatively, the coating thickness in the central region may be no greater than 10 micrometers, for example no greater than 8 micrometers or no greater than 6 micrometers. The coating thickness in the central region may be a value between any of the aforementioned minimum and maximum values.

[0056] In one embodiment, the coating (24) may be a single-layer coating. In another specific embodiment, the coating may be a multi-layer coating.

[0057] The coating (24) can have high flatness and smoothness throughout the central region. In one respect, the surface roughness of the coating in the central region can be no greater than 5 nm, for example no greater than 3 nm, or no greater than 2 nm, or no greater than 1.5 nm, or no greater than 1 nm.

[0058] Another advantage of the cladding disclosed herein is that the tapered edge region can be part of a separation region of the cladding. The separation region is located at the outer edge of the cladding, and this region may include recesses or gaps that function to break the vacuum between the cladding and the substrate after the planarization step, thereby facilitating the separation of the cladding from the substrate. The separation region typically has a radial length of about 2-3 mm and does not participate in the planarization of the substrate as a contact surface area. Figure 4A As shown, by modifying the separation region into a tapered edge region such that the tapered edge region (73) and the separation region (78) cover the same wafer area, the formed edge bead region can be transferred to the separation region and a large surface area (71) suitable for substrate planarization can be obtained. In contrast, a typical cladding with a spin-coated protective coating includes a separation region (88) and an edge bead region (83) adjacent to the separation region (88), such as Figure 4BAs shown. Furthermore, the region immediately adjacent to the edge bead region (83) (referred to herein as the “edge-adjacent region” (82)) should be considered, where the likelihood of defects due to the removal of the edge bead is foreseeable, and where the edge-adjacent region may also be subtracted from the suitable surface area (81) used for substrate planarization. Therefore, the cladding of the present invention has the advantage that a large surface area (71) can be used for substrate planarization, and that edge bead removal may not be necessary. Furthermore, this allows for the avoidance of additional processing steps and reduces the risk of damage to the cladding during edge bead removal.

[0059] refer to Figure 5 The device (50) according to the embodiments described herein can be used to planarize a substrate (52) using a cover plate (58) of the present disclosure. The cover plate (58) can be positioned at a distance from the substrate (52).

[0060] The substrate (52) may be a semiconductor substrate material, such as silicon wafer, but may include an insulating substrate material, such as glass, sapphire, spinel, etc. The substrate (52) may be coupled to a substrate holder (54), for example, to a chuck. The chuck may be any type of chuck, including vacuum, pin, slot, electrostatic, electromagnetic, etc. The substrate (52) and the substrate holder (54) may be further supported by a stage (56). The stage (56) may provide translational or rotational motion along the X, Y, or Z directions.

[0061] A cover plate (58) can be used to planarize a formable material deposited on a substrate (52). The cover plate (58) can be coupled to a cover plate holder (59). The cover plate (58) can be held and shaped by the cover plate holder (59). The cover plate holder (59) can be configured to hold the cover plate (58) within a chuck area. The cover plate holder (59) can be configured as a vacuum, pin, slot, electrostatic, electromagnetic, or other similar holder type. In one embodiment, the cover plate holder (59) may include a transparent window within its body.

[0062] The apparatus (50) may also include a fluid distribution system (51) for depositing a formable material (53) on the surface of a substrate (52). The formable material (53) may be positioned on the substrate (52) in one or more layers using techniques such as droplet distribution, spin coating, dip coating, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), thin film deposition, thick film deposition, or combinations thereof. The formable material (53) may be distributed onto the substrate (52) before or after defining a desired volume between the cover plate (58) and the substrate (52). The formable material (53) may comprise one or more polymerizable monomers and / or oligomers and / or polymers that can be cured by photochemical radiation and / or thermosetting.

[0063] This disclosure further relates to methods of manufacturing articles of article. The methods may include applying a layer of formable material onto a substrate; contacting the layer of formable material with a cover plate of this disclosure; and photocuring or thermally curing the formable material to form a cured layer. The substrate and the cured layer may undergo additional processing to form a desired article of article, for example, by including an etching process to transfer an image into the substrate, the image corresponding to a pattern in one or both of the cured layer and / or a patterned layer beneath the cured layer. The substrate may further undergo known steps and processes for manufacturing devices (articles of article), including, for example, curing, oxidation, layer formation, deposition, doping, planarization, etching, formable material removal, dicing, bonding, and encapsulation. In some aspects, the substrate may be processed to produce multiple articles of article.

[0064] The cured layer can also be used as an interlayer insulating film for semiconductor devices such as LSI, system LSI, DRAM, SDRAM, RDRAM or D-RDRAM, or as a resist film used in semiconductor manufacturing processes.

[0065] As further illustrated in the examples, it has been found that if the cladding blank contains a certain tapered edge design, then undesirable edge beading formed during the spin coating of the protective coating onto the cladding blank is acceptable, wherein the tapered edge design allows the apex of the edge beading to be lower than the horizontal height of the coating in the central region.

[0066] Example

[0067] The following non-limiting examples illustrate the concepts described herein.

[0068] Example 1

[0069] The cladding blank is produced by controlled cutting of a circular fused silica wafer with a diameter of 300 mm and a thickness of 700 micrometers at the edge region to form a tapered section. The cutting is performed by polishing.

[0070] The obtained cladding blank has the following edge profile: the length of the tapered etched area (T) l The depth T of the tapered portion at the outer edge of the wafer is 1,8667 mm. d It is 226 micrometers; and the taper angle is 6.8°.

[0071] A poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) coating was formed on the upper outer surface of a cladding preform by applying 8 ml of liquid coating component 495 PMMA from MicroChem via spin coating and curing the liquid coating component 495 PMMA at a temperature of approximately 180°C. The liquid coating component had a viscosity of 204 cP at 23°C and was applied using a Tel Act 12 spin coater at a speed of 1000 rpm for 20 seconds and dried at 1750 rpm for 55 seconds. The PMMA coating thickness in the central region of the cladding preform was approximately 2 micrometers.

[0072] The location and size of the edge bead formation in the coating were analyzed using Bruker Insight Atomic Force Profiling (AFP). For example... Figure 6 As shown, the edge beaded portion is formed in the tapered edge region, very close to the outer edge of the cladding blank. The radial distance from the apex (66) of the edge beaded portion to the center point of the cladding is approximately 148.15 mm, which corresponds to a distance of 1.785 mm from the outer edge of the cladding.

[0073] exist Figure 6 It can be seen more clearly that the apex (66) of the edge beaded portion is lower than the plane of the coating in the central region of the cladding blank. Figure 6 In the central region (67), the distance between the vertex and the outer surface of the cladding blank is –0.35 micrometers. With an additional coating thickness of approximately 2 micrometers in the central region, the vertex of the edge beaded portion has a negative height (He) of -2.35 micrometers. A summary of the data is also shown in Table 1 below.

[0074] Comparison Example 2

[0075] Spin coating of cladding blanks with wet-etched side areas.

[0076] Typically, wet etching is performed on the cladding blank in the edge area to create a spin-coated cladding with a separation zone.

[0077] The same wafer as in Example 1 (before the introduction of the tapered edges) is used as the starting material (before etching). Wet etching is performed on a region of approximately 3 mm radially from the outer edge of the wafer toward the center. The wafer is etched across the entire 3 mm outer circumference region in the thickness direction (y) (also denoted as depth T).d Remove 50 micrometers of wafer material from the wafer.

[0078] Spin coating experiments were conducted by applying liquid coating component 495PMMA from MicroChem, as also used in Example 1, to form a poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) coating with a thickness of a) about 2 micrometers and b) about 1 micrometer on the upper outer surface of the cladding blank.

[0079] The edge bead-like portion of the formed layer was analyzed using the Zygo NewView 3D optical surface profile analyzer.

[0080] Analysis of the edge bead formations during spin coating indicates that the edge bead formations are located just before the wafer height decreases due to wet etching.

[0081] Table 1 contains a summary of measurement data, such as the height (He) of the formed edge bead portion, which is expressed as the distance in the vertical direction from the plane of the outer surface of the coating in the central wafer region to the apex of the edge bead portion; and the width (We) of the edge bead portion, which is expressed as the width of the edge bead portion at the horizontal height of the outer surface of the coating.

[0082] exist Figure 3B A line graph of the cladding of Comparative Example 2 is shown. It can be seen that etching causes a sudden decrease in the height of the cladding blank (31), with an average taper angle (33) of 45 degrees or greater. An edge bead (35) is formed by a coating (32) applied via spin coating, the apex (36) of which is located immediately in front of the sudden surface drop of the etched portion of the wafer. The apex (36) of the edge bead (35) is located above the horizontal height (37) of the outer surface of the coating (32) within the central region.

[0083] Comparison Example 3

[0084] To simulate the edge bead-like portion formed on a cladding blank without a tapered edge region according to the present invention, a commercially available fused silica wafer of Example 1 was used without further modification to the edge region. The wafer contains standard rounded edges over a very short radial distance.

[0085] The wafer has the following edge profile: edge region T l The length is between 50 and 85 micrometers; the depth T at the outer edge of the wafer d Between 25 and 48 micrometers, and the angle along the rounded edge relative to the radial direction x of the wafer is about 45 degrees or greater.

[0086] The wafer is spin-coated in the central region with the same PMMA coating and coating thickness (approximately 1 micrometer and approximately 2 micrometers) as in Comparative Example 2.

[0087] Wafer analysis showed that spin coating formed edge bead-like portions about 2 mm from the outer edge of the wafer.

[0088] exist Figure 3C The diagram shows a line graph of the wafer (41) and the applied coating (42). It can be seen that edge bead portions (45) are formed in front of the rounded edge region, wherein the apex (46) of the edge bead portions (45) is much higher than the plane (47) of the outer surface of the coating in the central region.

[0089] Data comparison:

[0090] Table 1 contains a summary of the measurement data for Example 1 and comparative Examples 2 and 3, such as the height (He) and width (We) of the formed edge beaded portion. Both the height (He) and width (We) were measured using the horizontal height of the outer surface of the coating in the central region as the starting position.

[0091] Table 1

[0092]

[0093]

[0094] The test data summarized in Table 1 shows that the cladding of Example 1 only includes edge beaded portions with apexes lower than the horizontal height of the coating in the central region, and the cladding has a smooth, sloping taper in an area of ​​about 2 mm at the edge of the wafer.

[0095] The wafer subjected to etching and spin coating in a 3mm outer ring region includes edge beading portions with vertices whose height lies above the plane of the coating in the central region. However, the vertex height of the wet-etched wafer is much lower than that of the edge beading portion of a standard spin-coated wafer. For the wafers of Comparative Examples C2 and C3 to be used as cladding plates, the edge beading portions must be removed, for example, by dissolution or polishing, while the edge beading portions included in the cladding plate of Example 1 are acceptable. However, in some cases, the edge beading portions of the cladding plates of this disclosure can also be removed, for example, by washing with a solvent.

Claims

1. A cover plate, the cover plate being used to form a planar layer of cured moldable material on a substrate by curing the moldable material while in contact with the moldable material, the cover plate comprising: A clad sheet blank and a coating covering the outer surface of the clad sheet blank, wherein The cladding blank includes a central region and a tapering edge region; The tapered edge region has an average tapering angle of no more than 8 degrees relative to the radial direction of the cladding blank; and The coating covers the entire central region and at least a portion of the tapered edge region of the cladding blank.

2. The cover plate according to claim 1, wherein, The coating includes edge bead-like portions located within the tapered edge region, and the apexes of the edge bead-like portions are located below the plane of the outer surface of the coating in the central region of the cladding.

3. The cover plate according to claim 1, wherein, The surface area ratio Sc:St is at least 15, where Sc is the surface area of ​​the central region and St is the surface area of ​​the tapering edge region.

4. The cover plate according to claim 1, wherein, The depth (T) of the tapering portion at the outer edge of the cladding blank relative to the height direction of the cladding blank, starting from the horizontal height of the outer surface of the central region of the cladding blank. d It is at least 20 micrometers and no more than 400 micrometers.

5. The cover plate according to claim 1, wherein, The tapering edge region (T) l The length in the radial direction is at least 1.0 mm.

6. The cover plate according to claim 1, wherein, The average thickness of the cladding blank in the central region is at least 100 micrometers and not more than 5000 micrometers.

7. The cover plate according to claim 1, wherein, The coating has an average thickness of at least 0.1 micrometers and no more than 10 micrometers in the central region.

8. The cover plate according to claim 1, wherein, The coating covers at least a portion of the central region and the tapering edge region such that the coating contacts the formable material during curing.

9. A method for forming a cover plate, wherein, The cover plate is used to form a planarized layer of cured moldable material on a semiconductor substrate by curing the moldable material while in contact with it, the method comprising: Prepare a cladding blank comprising a central region and a tapered edge region, wherein the tapering angle of the tapered edge region relative to the radial direction of the cladding blank is no greater than 8 degrees; and A coating is applied to the outer surface of the cladding blank, wherein the coating covers at least a portion of the entire central region and the tapered edge region.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein, Applying the coating includes spin coating.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein, Spin coating includes forming edge beads located within the tapered edge region.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein, The apex of the edge bead is located below the plane of the outer surface of the coating in the central region of the cladding.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising removing the edge beaded portion.

14. A method of manufacturing an article of articles, the method comprising: Applying a layer of curable composition onto a substrate; The curable composition is brought into contact with a cover plate, the cover plate being used to form a planar layer of cured moldable material on a semiconductor substrate by curing the moldable material while in contact with it, wherein the cover plate comprises a cover plate blank and a coating covering the outer surface of the cover plate blank, and wherein... The cladding blank includes a central region and a tapering edge region; The tapering edge region has a tapering angle of no more than 8 degrees relative to the length direction of the cladding blank; and The coating covers the entire central region and at least a portion of the tapered edge region of the cladding blank; The curable composition is cured by light or heat to form a cured layer; Remove the cover plate from the cured layer; as well as The substrate having the cured layer is processed to manufacture the article.

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