Holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference

Abstract

The present application relates to a kind of holographic lithography exposure equipment based on wavefront polarization interference, belong to the field of photolithography.The exposure equipment includes outer sleeve;Wavefront modulator, sliding tube 1, lens 1, lens 2, lens 3, lens 4, spectrum modulator, lens 5, lens 6, lens 7, lens 8, sliding tube 2 and exposure surface are sequentially arranged in the outer sleeve.The present application greatly reduces the influence of temperature, vibration disturbance on exposure light path by adopting common optical path design scheme, exposure equipment can realize the replication of any complex wavefront, more suitable, can be applicable to holographic grating, liquid crystal grating and microlens array and other micro-nano photonic device exposure, and exposure edge seam is narrow, it is beneficial to large-area splicing.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of photolithography technology and relates to a holographic photolithography exposure device based on wavefront polarization interference. Background Technology

[0002] Display technology is a core technology in the metaverse, currently encompassing a range of embossed gratings, holographic gratings, liquid crystal gratings, and complex microlens arrays. Optical waveguides, due to their thinness and high light transmittance, are crucial components in display technology. As demands for efficiency and full visible light imaging continue to increase, waveguide structures are evolving from arrayed waveguides and geometric waveguides towards higher-performance holographic and diffractive waveguides. High-quality waveguide exposure equipment is the key equipment limiting the fabrication of optical waveguides.

[0003] At present, dual-path interference exposure is mainly used to prepare holographic and diffractive waveguides. Although dual-path exposure has the advantage of adjustable exposure period, dual-path is susceptible to environmental temperature and vibration disturbances, resulting in poor exposure quality. At the same time, this method can only expose structures with uniform exposure period and cannot expose complex structures. Furthermore, edge diffraction during exposure can cause wide and uneven splicing seams, resulting in poor splicing quality over large areas. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a holographic lithography exposure device based on wavefront polarization interference.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution:

[0006] Holographic lithography exposure equipment based on wavefront polarization interference, including an outer sleeve;

[0007] The outer sleeve contains, in sequence, a wavefront modulator, a slide cylinder 1, a lens 1, a lens 2, a lens 3, a lens 4, a spectrum modulator, a lens 5, a lens 6, a lens 7, a lens 8, a slide cylinder 2, and an exposure surface.

[0008] Lenses 1 to 8 are fixed inside the outer sleeve;

[0009] The slide cylinder 1 is located at the focal position of the uppermost lens 1 of the 4F holographic exposure device, and can slide coaxially up and down and be selected on the same plane;

[0010] The slide cylinder 2 is located at the focal point of the lowest lens 8 of the 4F holographic exposure device, and can slide coaxially up and down and be selected on the same plane;

[0011] The spectrum modulator is used to cut, compile, filter, phase modulate and polarization state modulate the beam spectrum, including filtering out the 0th order light and changing the beam polarization state to left and right circularly polarized light respectively.

[0012] The wavefront modulator generates a beam with a specified phase and polarization state, which is then input into the exposure optical path.

[0013] Furthermore, the slide cylinder 2 can be removed, and the exposure plane is any displacement stage with left, right, up, and down adjustment, so as to facilitate large-area exposure.

[0014] Furthermore, the wavefront modulator includes a mask, microlenses, a microlens array, and a spatial light modulator.

[0015] Furthermore, the wavefront modulator is provided with a wavefront modulator placement plate that can slide coaxially up and down to adjust the position of the wavefront modulator at the focal point. The wavefront modulator placement plate can rotate in the same plane to adjust the center position and direction of the wavefront modulator.

[0016] Furthermore, the exposure surface is provided with an exposure surface placement plate, which can slide coaxially up and down to adjust the position of the exposure surface at the focal point, and the exposure surface placement plate can rotate with the same plane to adjust the angle of the exposure surface.

[0017] Furthermore, the exposure surface is set on a three-dimensional displacement stage to achieve large-area replication exposure.

[0018] Furthermore, lens 2 is located at the focal point of lens 1, lens 3 is located at the focal point of lens 2, lens 4 is located at the focal point of lens 3, lens 5 is located at the focal point of lens 4, lens 6 is located at the focal point of lens 5, lens 7 is located at the focal point of lens 6, and lens 8 is located at the focal point of lens 7.

[0019] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows: By adopting a common optical path design, this invention greatly reduces the impact of temperature and vibration disturbances on the exposure optical path. The exposure equipment can realize the replication of any complex wavefront, making it more applicable. It can be used for the exposure of micro-nano photonic devices such as holographic gratings, liquid crystal gratings, and microlens arrays. In addition, the narrow seam at the exposure edge is beneficial for large-area splicing.

[0020] Other advantages, objectives, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following examination, or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention can be realized and obtained through the following description. Attached Figure Description

[0021] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the present invention clearer, the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0022] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of a holographic lithography exposure device based on wavefront polarization interference according to the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the holographic lithography exposure optical path of a holographic lithography exposure device based on wavefront polarization interference according to the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The following specific examples illustrate the implementation of the present invention. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification. The present invention can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and various details in this specification can be modified or changed based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of the present invention. It should be noted that the illustrations provided in the following embodiments are only schematic representations of the basic concept of the present invention. Unless otherwise specified, the following embodiments and features can be combined with each other.

[0025] The accompanying drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are schematic diagrams, not actual pictures. They should not be construed as limiting the invention. To better illustrate the embodiments of the invention, some parts in the drawings may be omitted, enlarged, or reduced, and do not represent the actual product dimensions. It is understandable to those skilled in the art that some well-known structures and their descriptions may be omitted in the drawings.

[0026] In the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention, the same or similar reference numerals correspond to the same or similar components. In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that if terms such as "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "front," and "rear" indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, they are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, the terms used to describe positional relationships in the drawings are only for illustrative purposes and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0027] Please see Figures 1-2 This invention discloses a holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference, comprising an outer sleeve and a series of lenses, a sliding cylinder 1, a sliding cylinder 2, a baffle 1, a quarter-wave plate 1, and a quarter-wave plate 2 fixed inside. Using a photomask as a wavefront modulator, parallel light is irradiated onto the photomask. It first passes through higher-order baffles, where only the ±1st and 0th order lights can pass; other orders are blocked. The ±1st and 0th order lights enter the 4F optical path and converge at the 0th order baffle. The 0th order light is blocked by the baffle, while the ±1st order lights continue to propagate downwards. The ±1st order lights pass through quarter-wave plates 1 and 2 respectively. The quarter-wave plates are adjusted so that the polarization states of the ±1st order lights are left-handed circularly polarized and right-handed circularly polarized, respectively. The two beams interfere with each other on the exposure surface. A liquid crystal alignment layer is placed on the exposure surface, and exposure is achieved under the action of the interference light.

[0028] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and are not intended to limit it. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications or equivalent substitutions can be made to the technical solutions of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, and all such modifications or substitutions should be covered within the scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference, characterized in that: Including the outer sleeve; The outer sleeve contains, in sequence along the beam propagation direction, a wavefront modulator, a slide cylinder 1, a lens 1, a lens 2, a lens 3, a lens 4, a spectrum modulator, a lens 5, a lens 6, a lens 7, a lens 8, a slide cylinder 2, and an exposure surface. Lenses 1 to 8 are fixed inside the outer sleeve. Lens 2 is located at the focal point of lens 1, lens 3 is located at the focal point of lens 2, lens 4 is located at the focal point of lens 3, lens 5 is located at the focal point of lens 4, lens 6 is located at the focal point of lens 5, lens 7 is located at the focal point of lens 6, and lens 8 is located at the focal point of lens 7, so as to form a 4F exposure optical path. The sliding cylinder 1 is located at the focal point of the lens 1 and can slide coaxially up and down and select a position in the same plane; the sliding cylinder 2 is located at the focal point of the lens 8 and can slide coaxially up and down and select a position in the same plane. The spectrum modulator is used to cut, compile, filter, phase modulate and polarization state modulate the beam spectrum. The spectrum modulator includes a 0th-order baffle, a quarter-wave plate 1 and a quarter-wave plate 2. The 0th-order baffle is positioned at the convergence point of the 0th-order light to block it; the 1 / 4 wave plate 1 and the 1 / 4 wave plate 2 are respectively positioned on the propagation paths of the +1st-order and -1st-order light to adjust the polarization states of the +1st-order and -1st-order light to left-hand circularly polarized light and right-hand circularly polarized light, respectively, so that the adjusted two beams of light overlap and interfere on the exposure surface. The wavefront modulator is used to generate a light beam with a specified phase and polarization state, and inputs the light beam into the 4F exposure optical path.

2. The holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference according to claim 1, characterized in that: The slide cylinder 2 can be removed, and the exposure plane is any displacement stage with left, right, up and down adjustment, so as to facilitate large-area exposure.

3. The holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference according to claim 1, characterized in that: The wavefront modulator includes a mask, microlenses, a microlens array, and a spatial light modulator.

4. The holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference according to claim 1, characterized in that: The wavefront modulator is equipped with a wavefront modulator placement plate that can slide coaxially up and down to adjust the position of the wavefront modulator at the focal point. The wavefront modulator placement plate can rotate in the same plane to adjust the center position and direction of the wavefront modulator.

5. The holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference according to claim 1, characterized in that: The exposure surface is provided with an exposure surface placement plate, which can slide coaxially up and down to adjust the position of the exposure surface at the focal point. The exposure surface placement plate can also rotate on the same plane to adjust the angle of the exposure surface.

6. The holographic lithography exposure apparatus based on wavefront polarization interference according to claim 5, characterized in that: The exposure surface is set on a three-dimensional displacement stage to achieve large-area replication exposure.

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