Determination method, information processing apparatus, imprint device, and article manufacturing method

Abstract

To provide a technique advantageous for determining a drive profile for controlling the relative drive of a mold and a substrate in processing of bringing the mold and an imprint material on the substrate into contact with each other.SOLUTION: A determination method has: a first step of acquiring a first monitoring result of monitoring processing performed according to a reference drive profile in a first shot region and a second shot region different in facing area from each other; a second step of determining, on the basis of the first monitoring result, a correction value for a reference drive profile for making a relative position of a mold to a substrate at each time from the start of the processing, the same position between the first shot region and the second shot region; a third step of determining, on the basis of the correction value, a first correction function indicating a relation between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile for making the relative position at each time the same position between the plurality of shot regions; and a fourth step of determining a drive profile for each of the plurality of shot regions on the basis of the first correction function.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a determination method, an information processing apparatus, an imprint apparatus, and a method for manufacturing an article.

Background Art

[0002] As a lithography technique for manufacturing devices such as semiconductor elements, an imprint technique is known in which a pattern on the order of nanometers is formed by transferring a pattern of a mold to an imprint material on a substrate.

[0003] In an imprint apparatus using the imprint technique, there is a step difference between a chuck (substrate holding unit) that holds a substrate and a structure around the chuck. Therefore, in the contact process of bringing the imprint material on the substrate into contact with the mold, when the mold is lowered (brought closer to the substrate), the repulsive force (air resistance difference) received by the mold from the substrate side is different for each shot region on the substrate. Due to this, the state regarding the relative positional relationship between the mold and the substrate in the contact process, for example, the imprint state until the mold is pressed against the imprint material on the substrate varies depending on the shot region (position) on the substrate.

[0004] Therefore, a technique has been proposed to reduce the variation in the imprint state by changing (optimizing) the conditions regarding the contact process, that is, the conditions (imprint conditions) for bringing the mold into contact with and pressing the imprint material on the substrate for each shot region (see Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] However, in order to optimize the conditions regarding the contact treatment for each shot area on the substrate, it is necessary to directly observe and evaluate the results of the contact treatment (including imprint treatment) performed under each of a plurality of conditions using a defect inspection apparatus or the like. Therefore, in the prior art, it takes a long time to optimize the conditions regarding the contact treatment for each shot area on the substrate, that is, to determine the optimal conditions.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of such problems of the prior art, and an exemplary object thereof is to provide a technique advantageous for determining a drive profile for controlling the relative drive of a mold and a substrate in a process of bringing the mold into contact with an imprint material on the substrate.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, a determination method according to one aspect of the present invention is a determination method for determining a drive profile for controlling relative driving of the mold and the substrate in a process of bringing the mold into contact with an imprint material on a substrate, which is performed for each of a plurality of shot regions on the substrate by an imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate using the mold. The plurality of shot regions include a first shot region and a second shot region in which the facing areas where the entire surface of the substrate side of the mold and the surface of the substrate face each other are different from each other in a state where the mold and the substrate are faced to each other to start the process. The determination method includes a first step of obtaining a first monitoring result of monitoring the process performed according to a reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the first shot region and the second shot region; a second step of obtaining a correction value for the reference drive profile, which is required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after starting the process the same between the first shot region and the second shot region, based on the first monitoring result obtained in the first step; a third step of obtaining a first correction function showing the relationship between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile, which is required to make the relative position at each time after starting the process the same between the plurality of shot regions, based on the correction value obtained in the second step; and a fourth step of determining the drive profile for each of the plurality of shot regions based on the first correction function obtained in the third step.

[0009] A further object or another aspect of the present invention will be clarified by embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, for example, it is possible to provide an advantageous technique for determining a drive profile for controlling relative driving of a mold and a substrate in a process of bringing the mold into contact with an imprint material on the substrate.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims. Although a plurality of features are described in the embodiments, not all of these plurality of features are essential for the invention, and the plurality of features may be arbitrarily combined. Further, in the accompanying drawings, the same or similar configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations are omitted.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an imprint apparatus 100 as one aspect of the present invention. The imprint apparatus 100 is a lithography apparatus that is employed in a lithography process, which is a manufacturing process for devices such as semiconductor elements, liquid crystal display elements, and magnetic storage media as articles, and forms a pattern on a substrate. The imprint apparatus 100 brings an imprint material and a mold into contact with each other on the substrate, and by applying energy for curing to the imprint material, forms a cured pattern in which the pattern of the mold is transferred.

[0014] As the imprint material, a material (curable composition) that cures when energy for curing is applied is used. As the energy for curing, electromagnetic waves, heat, or the like is used. The electromagnetic waves include, for example, light selected from the range of wavelengths of 10 nm or more and 1 mm or less, specifically, infrared rays, visible light, ultraviolet rays, and the like.

[0015] The curable composition is a composition that cures by irradiation with light or by heating. The photocurable composition that cures by irradiation with light contains at least a polymerizable compound and a photoinitiator, and may further contain a non-polymerizable compound or a solvent as necessary. The non-polymerizable compound is at least one selected from the group consisting of a sensitizer, a hydrogen donor, an internal release agent, a surfactant, an antioxidant, a polymer component, and the like.

[0016] The imprint material may be applied in a film form on the substrate by a spin coater or a slit coater. Further, the imprint material may be applied on the substrate in the form of droplets or in an island or film form formed by connecting a plurality of droplets by a liquid injection head. The viscosity of the imprint material (viscosity at 25°C) is, for example, 1 mPa·s or more and 100 mPa·s or less.

[0017] For the substrate, glass, ceramics, metal, semiconductor, resin, or the like is used, and a member made of a material different from that of the substrate may be formed on its surface as necessary. Specifically, the substrate includes a silicon wafer, a compound semiconductor wafer, quartz glass, and the like.

[0018] In this specification and the accompanying drawings, directions are indicated in an XYZ coordinate system where the direction parallel to the surface on which the substrate is disposed is the XY plane. The directions parallel to the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis in the XYZ coordinate system are the X-direction, Y-direction, and Z-direction, respectively, and the rotations around the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis are θX, θY, and θZ, respectively.

[0019] In the present embodiment, the imprint apparatus 100 employs a photocuring method in which the imprint material is cured by irradiating light such as ultraviolet light as a method for curing the imprint material, but is not limited thereto. For example, the imprint apparatus 100 can also employ a thermosetting method in which the imprint material is cured by applying heat as a method for curing the imprint material.

[0020] The imprint apparatus 100 forms the imprint material 105 on the substrate using a mold 106 including a pattern region 109 in which a pattern to be transferred to the substrate 103 is formed. As shown in FIG. 1, the imprint apparatus 100 includes a substrate stage 101, a substrate holding unit 102, a dispenser 104, a mold holding unit 107, a mold driving unit 108, a spread camera 110, a first measurement unit 120, a second measurement unit 125, and a control unit 130.

[0021] The substrate holding unit 102 is disposed on the substrate stage 101 and holds (suctions) the substrate 103. Information regarding the misalignment of the substrate 103 is acquired by observing an alignment mark provided on the substrate 103 held by the substrate holding unit 102 with an alignment optical system (not shown). The dispenser 104 disposes (supplies) the imprint material 105 on the substrate 103 held by the substrate holding unit 102.

[0022] The mold 106 is held by the mold holding part 107. The mold driving part 108 drives the mold 106 (held by the mold holding part 107) in the Z direction. When the mold 106 is lowered by the mold driving part 108 and the imprint material 105 on the substrate is brought into contact with the mold 106, the imprint material 105 is filled into the pattern (concave part) formed in the pattern area 109 of the mold 106. At this time, by applying a positive pressure to the cavity CV between the mold 106 and the mold holding part 107, as shown in FIG. 1, the mold 106, specifically, the pattern area 109 of the mold 106 may be curved (deformed) toward the substrate 103 side. Thereby, the pattern area 109 of the mold 106 can be brought into contact with the imprint material 105 on the substrate from the center. The mold driving part 108 functions as a mechanism for moving the mold 106 up and down with respect to the substrate 103 in the present embodiment, but it is sufficient that the imprint apparatus 100 is provided with a mechanism for relatively changing the distance between the mold 106 and the substrate 103.

[0023] The spread camera 110 is an imaging unit provided above the mold 106 and images the mold 106, the substrate 103, and the imprint material 105 on the substrate. In the present embodiment, the spread camera 110 acquires an image showing the state in which the imprint material 105 spreads over the entire pattern area 109 of the mold 106 in the contact process of bringing the imprint material 105 on the substrate into contact with the mold 106. The image acquired by the spread camera 110 is also referred to as a spread image.

[0024] The first measurement unit 120 includes, for example, sensors that detect the position (position in the Z direction) of the mold 106 and the position (position in the Z direction) of the substrate 103, and measures the distance between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 and the relative position (relative position in the Z direction) of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103.

[0025] The second measurement unit 125 includes, for example, a sensor that detects the current supplied to the mold driving unit 108 (the motor thereof), and measures the pressing force and the mold release force. The pressing force and the mold release force mainly act in a direction (Z direction) perpendicular to the plane direction of the substrate 103 and the mold 106. The pressing force and the mold release force are correlated with the magnitude of the current supplied to the mold driving unit 108. Therefore, the second measurement unit 125 can obtain the pressing force and the mold release force by detecting the current (magnitude) supplied to the mold driving unit 108.

[0026] The control unit 130 is composed of an information processing device (computer) including a CPU, a memory, and the like. The control unit 130 comprehensively controls each part of the imprint device 100 according to the program stored in the storage unit to operate the imprint device 100. The control unit 130 controls the imprint process of forming a pattern made of the cured product of the imprint material 105 on the substrate using the mold 106.

[0027] The substrate 103 has a plurality of shot regions. The plurality of shot regions include shot regions where the overlapping area (hereinafter referred to as the facing area) when the mold 106 and the substrate 103 are viewed from the Z direction is different from each other in the contact process of bringing the mold 106 (the pattern region 109 thereof) into contact with the imprint material 105 on the substrate. Here, the facing area is the area where the surface 106A on the substrate side of the mold 106 and the surface 103A of the substrate 103 face each other in the state where the mold 106 and the substrate 103 are facing each other to start the contact process. Between such shot regions with different facing areas, due to the pressure (air pressure) in the space SP between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 and the substrate holding unit 102 existing below the mold 106, the pressure (repulsive force) received by the mold 106 from the substrate side during the contact process is different.

[0028] Figures 2(a), 2(b), and 2(c) are diagrams showing the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in the contact process. Figure 2(a) shows the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 from above. Here, the behavior of the contact process will be described using two shot regions 2A and 2B (the first shot region and the second shot region) with different facing areas as an example. The shot regions 2A and 2B are full shot regions where the entire pattern region 109 of the mold 106 comes into contact with the imprint material 105 on the substrate, and all the patterns of the mold 106 are transferred to the imprint material 105. Also, the shot region 2A is a shot region where the facing area is the same as the entire area of the surface 106A on the substrate side of the mold 106, and the shot region 2B is a shot region where the facing area is smaller than the entire area of the surface 106A on the substrate side of the mold 106.

[0029] Figure 2(b) is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in the contact process for the shot region 2A from the side (horizontal), and Figure 2(c) is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in the contact process for the shot region 2B from the side.

[0030] In the contact process for the shot region 2A, as shown in Figure 2(b), the entire surface 106A on the substrate side of the mold 106 faces the surface 103A of the substrate 103. On the other hand, in the contact process for the shot region 2B, as shown in Figure 2(c), a part of the surface 106A on the substrate side of the mold 106 is outside the substrate 103 and faces a structure outside the substrate 103, specifically, the substrate holding portion 102 arranged on the substrate stage 101. Generally, the structure outside the substrate 103 is arranged at a position lower than the surface 103A of the substrate 103 in order to avoid interfering with the mold 106 in the contact process. Therefore, in the contact process for the shot region 2B (Figure 2(c)), the space SP below the mold 106 becomes larger compared to the contact process for the shot region 2A (Figure 2(b)).

[0031] Here, consider the case where the imprint force profile indicating the command value of the imprint force applied to the mold driving unit 108 is the same between the shot area 2A and the shot area 2B. Note that the imprint force is the force for pressing the mold 106 to contact the imprint material 105 on the substrate, and the imprint force profile is an example of a driving profile for controlling the relative driving of the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in the contact process.

[0032] When the imprint force profiles are the same between the shot area 2A and the shot area 2B, in the contact process for the shot area 2B, the pressure received by the mold 106 from the substrate side is smaller than that in the contact process for the shot area 2A. This is because in the contact process for the shot area 2B, the pressure in the space SP when bringing the mold 106 and the substrate 103 closer is reduced by the amount that the space SP below the mold 106 is larger. Therefore, even when driving the mold driving unit 108 according to the same imprint force profile in the contact process for each of the shot areas 2A and 2B, the descending speed (descending rate) of the mold 106 is different between the shot area 2A and the shot area 2B. When the descending speed of the mold 106 is different, the speed at which the pattern area 109 of the mold 106 spreads the imprint material 105 on the substrate changes, so the bubbles remaining between the mold 106 and the substrate 103, specifically, the tendency of bubble remaining, will be different for each shot area.

[0033] Therefore, in the present embodiment, in the contact process, a technique is provided for applying an appropriate imprint force profile to the mold driving unit 108 so that the descending speed of the mold 106 is the same among a plurality of shot areas on the substrate. Specifically, in the contact process, a technique advantageous for appropriately determining the imprint force profile as a driving profile for controlling the relative driving of the mold 106 and the substrate 103 for each of a plurality of shot areas with different facing areas is provided.

[0034] <First Embodiment> In the first embodiment, a determination method for determining an imprint force profile such that the lowering speed of the mold 106 in the contact process is constant based on the relative position of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103 for the full shot area will be described.

[0035] FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining a determination method for determining an imprint force profile in the first embodiment. Such a determination method is a method for determining an appropriate imprint force profile so that the lowering speed of the mold 106 in the contact process is the same for each of a plurality of full shot areas with different contact surface areas.

[0036] In S301, a reference imprint force profile (reference drive profile) that serves as the basis for the imprint force profile is set. The reference imprint force profile is preferably, for example, an imprint force profile set so that no bubbles remain between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in a reference shot area.

[0037] In S302, contact processing is performed on a plurality of shot areas (first shot area and second shot area) sampled from a plurality of shot areas on the substrate according to the reference imprint force profile set in S301. In the present embodiment, as the plurality of shot areas, a reference full shot area is included, and two or more full shot areas with different contact surface areas are sampled (selected). Also, the larger the number of shot areas sampled, the higher the accuracy of the correction function described later.

[0038] In S303, for each of the sampled plurality of shot regions from the log data of the imprint apparatus 100, a monitoring result (first monitoring result) of monitoring the contact process performed in S302 is acquired (first step). In the present embodiment, as the monitoring result, time-series data of the relative position of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103 during the period in which the contact process is performed, and time-series data of the pressing force during the period in which the contact process is performed are acquired. When the sampling interval of the time-series data is coarse, it is preferable to interpolate the time-series data by linear interpolation, cubic spline interpolation, or the like. Further, the time-series data of the relative position of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103 is acquired from the log data in which the measurement results of the first measurement unit 120 are accumulated, and the time-series data of the pressing force is acquired from the log data in which the measurement results of the second measurement unit 125 are accumulated. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the first measurement unit 120 and the second measurement unit 125 function as a monitoring unit that monitors the contact process performed for each of the plurality of shot regions on the substrate.

[0039] In S304, based on the monitoring result (comparison) acquired in S303, a correction value with respect to the reference pressing force profile is obtained for each of the sampled plurality of shot regions (second step).

[0040] Here, with reference to FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), the process (S304) of obtaining a correction value with respect to the reference pressing force profile will be specifically described. FIG. 4(a) is a diagram showing the result (monitoring result) of performing a contact process on a reference shot region 2A and the result of performing a contact process on a shot region 2B whose facing area is smaller than that of the shot region 2A.

[0041] FIG. 4(a) shows the time-series data of the relative position of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103 (hereinafter referred to as the mold position). The vertical axis represents the mold position, and the horizontal axis represents the time (elapsed time) since the start of the contact process. The mold position (vertical axis) is defined with the surface 103A of the substrate 103 as the origin. As described above, in the shot region 2B, since the facing area is smaller than that in the shot region 2A, the pressure received by the mold 106 from the substrate side becomes smaller. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4(a), in the shot region 2B, the mold 106 reaches the substrate 103 (the surface 103A thereof) earlier than in the shot region 2A. For example, the time when the mold 106 reaches an arbitrary mold position Z0 is defined as tA in the shot region 2A and tB in the shot region 2B.

[0042] FIG. 4(b) shows the time-series data of the pressing force. The vertical axis represents the mold position, and the horizontal axis represents the time (elapsed time) since the start of the contact process. As shown in FIG. 4(b), the pressing force profiles in the shot region 2A and the shot region 2B are the same. The pressing force at time tA in the shot region 2A is defined as fA, and the pressing force at time tB in the shot region 2B is defined as fB. The pressing forces fA and fB indicate the pressing forces required to reach the mold position Z0 in each shot region.

[0043] In the shot region 2B, in order to perform the contact process with the behavior (mold position) of the mold 106 in the contact process with respect to the shot region 2A, the correction value (correction magnification) given to the reference pressing force profile is defined as Fratio. In this case, referring to FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), it can be seen that Fratio = fB / fA.

[0044] Thus, in S304, the correction value for the reference pressing force profile required to make the mold position at each time since the start of the contact process the same between the first shot region 2A and the second shot region 2B is obtained.

[0045] In S305, based on the correction value obtained in S304, a correction function (first correction function) is obtained (third step) that shows the relationship between the opposing area of each shot area and the correction value for the reference pressing force profile required to make the mold positions the same among the shot areas.

[0046] FIG. 5 shows an example of a correction function that shows the relationship between the opposing area of the shot area and the correction value for the reference pressing force profile. The correction value Fratio is used for the vertical axis, and the opposing area Swm is used for the horizontal axis. Assuming that the substrate 103 and the structures outside the substrate 103 are uniform surfaces, the correction function is obtained as a linear function that approximately represents the relationship between the opposing area of the shot area and the correction value for the reference pressing force profile, as shown in FIG. 5. Specifically, the correction function is obtained by linear approximation as Fratio = A × Swm + B (A, B: constants).

[0047] In S306, based on the correction function obtained in S305, the pressing force profile is determined for each of the plurality of shot areas on the substrate (fourth step). Specifically, the correction value for the reference pressing force profile corresponding to the opposing area of each shot area is obtained from the correction function. The reference pressing force profile is corrected by the correction value thus obtained, that is, by multiplying such a correction value by the reference pressing force profile, the pressing force profile in the contact process for each shot area is determined. Thereby, for all the shot areas, the behavior of the mold 106 in the contact process with respect to the reference shot area becomes the same, that is, a pressing force profile can be determined that makes the mold positions the same among all the shot areas.

[0048] According to this embodiment, by obtaining the monitoring results (time-series data of the mold position and the pressing force) of the contact process for the sampled shot regions, it is possible to determine an appropriate pressing force profile for each shot region on the substrate without directly performing a defect inspection. Further, since the pressing force profile can be uniquely determined for the opposing surface area of each shot region from the correction function, it is possible to determine the pressing force profile based on the monitoring results of the contact process for some of the shot regions. Therefore, it is possible to significantly reduce the time and cost required to determine the optimal pressing force profile for each shot region on the substrate.

[0049] Note that, in this embodiment, it is assumed that the determination method for determining the pressing force profile shown in FIG. 3 is performed by the control unit 130 included in the imprint apparatus 100, but it is not limited thereto. For example, although S301 and S302 need to be performed by the imprint apparatus 100, S303 to S306 may be performed by an external information processing apparatus.

[0050] <Second Embodiment> In the first embodiment, the correction value for the reference pressing force profile was obtained from the relative position (mold position) of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103, but it is not limited thereto. In the second embodiment, the correction value for the reference pressing force profile is obtained from the spread of the imprint material 105 on the substrate obtained from the spread image acquired by the spread camera 110.

[0051] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a spread image 600 acquired by the spread camera 110 during the period when the contact treatment is being performed. Referring to FIG. 6, the spread image 600 includes a contact area 601 between the mold 106 (pattern area 109) and the imprint material 105, and dark portions 602 and bright portions 603 generated by the interference between the light reflected by the mold 106 and the light reflected by the substrate 103. When the mold 106 is lowered by the mold driving unit 108, the pattern area 109 of the mold 106 spreads the imprint material 105 on the substrate, so that the contact area 601 spreads. As the mold 106 is lowered, the contact area 601 (radius) spreads, and such a spread can be used as the relative position of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103.

[0052] Specifically, in S303, as a monitoring result, instead of the time-series data of the mold position, time-series data of interference fringes generated by the interference between the light reflected by the mold 106 and the light reflected by the substrate 103 during the period when the contact treatment is performed is acquired. Here, the interference fringes include the contact area 601, and the dark portions 602 and bright portions 603 generated by the interference between the light reflected by the mold 106 and the light reflected by the substrate 103. The time-series data of the interference fringes is acquired from the log data in which the spread image 600 acquired by the spread camera 110 is accumulated, as described above. Therefore, in this embodiment, the spread camera 110 functions as a monitoring unit that monitors the contact treatment performed on each of a plurality of shot areas on the substrate. Then, in S304, based on the time-series data of the interference fringes acquired in S303, the spread of the interference fringes in the radial direction from the center of the mold 106 is converted into the relative position of the mold 106 with respect to the substrate 103, that is, the mold position.

[0053] According to this embodiment, by obtaining the monitoring results (interference fringe and time-series data of the pressing force) of the contact process for the sampled shot regions, an appropriate pressing force profile can be determined for each shot region on the substrate without directly performing a defect inspection. Further, in this embodiment, since the time-series data of the interference fringes is used, the progress of the contact process can be directly evaluated. Note that when the boundary of the interference fringe, particularly the contact region 601, is ambiguous, the spread of a specific dark part 602 or bright part 603 (radius) may be used as an evaluation value.

[0054] <Third Embodiment> In the third embodiment, in the case where partial shot regions are included in a plurality of shot regions on the substrate, a determination method for determining a pressing force profile for each shot region will be described. A partial shot region is a shot region in which only a part of the pattern region 109 of the mold 106 contacts the imprint material 105 on the substrate and a part of the pattern of the mold 106 is transferred to the imprint material 105, and is also referred to as a chipped shot region. The overall flow of the determination method for determining the pressing force profile is the same as that of the first embodiment (FIG. 3). In S301 to S304, for each sampled shot region, a correction value with respect to the reference pressing force profile is obtained. However, in this embodiment, the sampled shot regions need to include two or more partial shot regions (the third shot region and the fourth shot region) in which the contact area between the pattern region 109 of the mold 106 and the imprint material 105 on the substrate is different from each other.

[0055] As described above, the difference between the partial shot area and the full shot area is the contact area where the pattern area 109 of the mold 106 contacts the imprint material 105 on the substrate during the contact process. During the contact process, when spreading the imprint material 105 on the substrate, the mold 106 is constantly subjected to a reaction force due to the fluid resistance of the imprint material 105, etc. In the partial shot area, only a part of the pattern area 109 of the mold 106 contacts the imprint material 105, so the reaction force received by the mold 106 is reduced accordingly. Due to such a difference in reaction force, the lowering speed of the mold 106 in the contact process is different, so similar to the shot areas with different facing areas, a difference will occur in the tendency of bubbles to remain.

[0056] Figures 7(a), 7(b) and 7(c) are diagrams showing the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in the contact process. Figure 7(a) shows the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 from above. Here, taking two different shot areas 7A and 7B as examples, the behavior of the contact process will be described. The shot area 7A is the full shot area, and the shot area 7B is the partial shot area.

[0057] Figure 7(b) is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in the contact process for the shot area 7A from the side (horizontal), and Figure 7(c) is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the mold 106 and the substrate 103 in the contact process for the shot area 7B from the side. As shown in Figure 7(c), in the shot area 7B, in addition to the difference in pressure in the space SP below the mold 106, since the imprint material 105 does not exist (does not contact the mold 106) in the hatched part, the force required to spread the imprint material 105 is reduced accordingly. As a result, in the shot area 7B, the lowering speed of the mold 106 in the contact process becomes faster than that in the shot area 7A. Therefore, in the partial shot area, in addition to the correction of the pressing force according to the facing area (the first embodiment), it is necessary to add the correction of the pressing force according to the contact area.

[0058] FIG. 8(a) shows a graph in which, similar to FIG. 5, for each of a plurality of shot regions including a partial shot region, a correction value Fratio with respect to the imprinting force profile obtained in S304 is plotted against the opposing surface area of each sampled shot region. Also, in FIG. 8(a), the correction value for the partial shot region is distinguished as data group DA, and the correction value for the full shot region is distinguished as data group DB.

[0059] Referring to FIG. 8(a), for data group DB, similar to the first embodiment, the correction function showing the relationship between the opposing surface area of the shot region and the correction value with respect to the reference imprinting force profile can be approximated by a linear function (straight line). The straight line shown in FIG. 8(a) is a correction function obtained only from data group DB. On the other hand, in the partial shot region, as the contact area between the pattern region 109 of mold 106 and the imprinting material 105 on the substrate becomes smaller, the lowering speed of mold 106 becomes faster, so the correction values included in data group DA become smaller than the correction function shown by the straight line in FIG. 8(a).

[0060] Here, let the difference between the correction function obtained only from data group DB and each correction value included in data group DA be ΔFratio. FIG. 8(b) is a diagram showing a correction function (second correction function) showing the relationship between the difference ΔFratio of the correction values included in data group DA and the contact area of the partial shot region. In FIG. 8(b), the difference ΔFratio is adopted for the vertical axis, and the contact area Sres of the partial shot region is adopted for the horizontal axis. If the total area of the pattern region 109 of mold 106 is Spattern, then in the shot region where Sres = Spattern, that is, in the full shot region, ΔFratio becomes zero. Note that the relationship between the difference ΔFratio and the contact area Sres can be empirically approximated and expressed by a quadratic function or a cubic function. In this embodiment, the correction function showing the relationship between the difference ΔFratio and the contact area Sres is approximated by a quadratic function as ΔFratio = A(Sres - Spattern) 2 (A: constant).

[0061] In this embodiment, similar to S303, monitoring results (second monitoring results) regarding contact processing performed according to a reference pressing force profile are obtained for two or more partial shot areas having different contact areas with each other (fifth step). Next, similar to S304, based on the monitoring results (second monitoring results), correction values for the reference pressing force profile are obtained for two or more partial shot areas having different contact areas with each other (sixth step). Here, the correction value for the reference pressing force profile is a correction value (data group DA shown in FIG. 8(a)) required to make the mold position at each time after starting the contact processing the same position among two or more partial shot areas having different contact areas with each other. Next, based on the correction value for the reference pressing force profile, a correction function obtained only from the data group DB, a difference ΔFratio between the correction value included in the data group DA, and a correction function (FIG. 8(b)) showing the relationship with the contact area of the partial shot area are obtained (seventh step). Then, based on the correction function obtained only from the data group DB and the correction function showing the relationship between the difference ΔFratio and the contact area, the pressing force profile is determined for the partial shot area. For example, from each of the above-described two correction functions, a correction value corresponding to the facing area of the partial shot area and a difference corresponding to the facing area of the partial shot area are obtained, and the reference pressing force profile is corrected thereby. Specifically, the pressing force profile is determined by multiplying the reference pressing force profile by a correction value (Fratio + ΔFratio) obtained by adding the correction by the facing area (correction value Fratio) and the correction by the contact area (difference ΔFratio).

[0062] According to this embodiment, also for the partial shot area, by obtaining the monitoring results of the contact processing, an appropriate pressing force profile can be determined without directly performing a defect inspection.

[0063] The pattern of the cured material formed using the imprint apparatus 100 in the present embodiment is permanently used for at least a part of various articles, or temporarily used when manufacturing various articles. The articles include electric circuit elements, optical elements, MEMS, recording elements, sensors, or molds. Examples of electric circuit elements include volatile or non-volatile semiconductor memories such as DRAM, SRAM, flash memory, and MRAM, and semiconductor elements such as LSI, CCD, image sensors, and FPGA. Examples of molds include molds for imprinting.

[0064] The pattern of the cured material is used as it is as a constituent member of at least a part of the above-described articles, or temporarily used as a resist mask. After etching or ion implantation is performed in the substrate processing step, the resist mask is removed.

[0065] Next, a specific manufacturing method of the article will be described. As shown in Fig. 9(a), a substrate such as a silicon wafer having a workpiece such as an insulator formed on its surface is prepared, and then an imprint material is applied to the surface of the workpiece by an inkjet method or the like. Here, a state where a plurality of droplet-shaped imprint materials are applied on the substrate is shown.

[0066] As shown in Fig. 9(b), an imprint mold is opposed with the side on which the concavo-convex pattern is formed facing the imprint material on the substrate. As shown in Fig. 9(c), the substrate with the imprint material applied and the mold are brought into contact with each other and pressure is applied. The imprint material is filled in the gap between the mold and the workpiece. When light is irradiated through the mold as energy for curing in this state, the imprint material cures.

[0067] As shown in Fig. 9(d), after curing the imprint material and then separating the mold and the substrate, a pattern of the cured material of the imprint material is formed on the substrate. The pattern of this cured material has a shape in which the concave portion of the mold corresponds to the convex portion of the cured material and the convex portion of the mold corresponds to the concave portion of the cured material, that is, the concavo-convex pattern of the mold is transferred to the imprint material.

[0068] As shown in FIG. 9(e), when etching is performed using the cured product pattern as an etching mask, among the surfaces of the workpiece, portions where there is no cured product or where the cured product remains thinly are removed to form grooves. As shown in FIG. 9(f), when the cured product pattern is removed, an article having grooves formed on the surface of the workpiece can be obtained. Here, the cured product pattern has been removed, but it may not be removed even after processing and may be used, for example, as a film for interlayer insulation included in a semiconductor element or the like, that is, as a constituent member of the article.

[0069] The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiment to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and causing one or more processors in a computer of the system or device to read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

[0070] The disclosure of this specification includes the following determination method, information processing apparatus, imprint apparatus, and article manufacturing method.

[0071] (Item 1) A determination method for determining a drive profile for controlling the relative drive of a mold and a substrate in a process of bringing the mold into contact with an imprint material on the substrate, which is performed for each of a plurality of shot regions on the substrate by an imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate using the mold, The plurality of shot regions include a first shot region and a second shot region in which the facing areas where the entire surface of the substrate side of the mold and the surface of the substrate face each other are different from each other in a state where the mold and the substrate are facing each other to start the process, The determination method includes a first step of obtaining a first monitoring result of monitoring the process performed according to a reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the first shot region and the second shot region; A second step of obtaining a correction value for the reference drive profile, which is required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after the start of the process the same between the first shot region and the second shot region, based on the first monitoring result obtained in the first step; A third step of obtaining a first correction function showing the relationship between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile, which is required to make the relative position at each time after the start of the process the same between the plurality of shot regions, based on the correction value obtained in the second step; A fourth step of determining the drive profile for each of the plurality of shot regions, based on the first correction function obtained in the third step; A determination method characterized by comprising:

[0072] (Item 2) The determination method according to Item 1, wherein the drive profile includes a force profile indicating a force for pressing the mold against the imprint material on the substrate.

[0073] (Item 3) In the first step, as the first monitoring result, time-series data of the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate during the period in which the process is performed, and time-series data of the force for pressing the mold against the imprint material on the substrate during the period in which the process is performed are obtained. The determination method according to Item 2, characterized by this.

[0074] (Item 4) In the first step, as the first monitoring result, time-series data of interference fringes generated by interference between light reflected by the mold and light reflected by the substrate during the period in which the process is performed, and time-series data of the force for pressing the mold against the imprint material on the substrate during the period in which the process is performed are obtained. The determination method according to Item 2, characterized by this.

[0075] (Item 5) In the second step, based on the time series data of the interference fringes, the spread of the interference fringes in the radial direction from the center of the mold is converted into the relative position, and the determination method according to item 4 is characterized in that.

[0076] (Item 6) In the third step, as the first correction function, a linear function that approximately represents the relationship is obtained, and the determination method according to any one of items 1 to 5 is characterized in that.

[0077] (Item 7) In the fourth step, for each of the plurality of shot regions, a correction value corresponding to the facing area of the shot region is obtained from the first correction function, and the drive profile is determined by correcting the reference drive profile with the obtained correction value corresponding to the facing area, and the determination method according to any one of items 1 to 6 is characterized in that.

[0078] (Item 8) The plurality of shot regions are partial shot regions in which only a part of the pattern region of the mold contacts the imprint material on the substrate, and include a third shot region and a fourth shot region in which the contact areas between the pattern region and the imprint material on the substrate are different from each other. A fifth step of obtaining a second monitoring result of monitoring the process performed according to the reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the third shot region and the fourth shot region. Based on the second monitoring result obtained in the fifth step, a correction value for the reference drive profile required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after the start of the process the same between the third shot region and the fourth shot region is obtained in a sixth step. Based on the correction value obtained in the sixth step, a second correction function indicating the relationship between the first correction function obtained in the third step, the difference from the correction value for the reference drive profile required to make the relative position at each time since the start of the process the same position among the partial shot regions, and the contact area is obtained in a seventh step. further comprising In the fourth step, based on the first correction function obtained in the third step and the second correction function obtained in the seventh step, for the partial shot region among the plurality of shot regions, the drive profile is determined. The determination method according to any one of Items 1 to 7, characterized in that.

[0079] (Item 9) In the third step, as the second correction function, a quadratic function or a cubic function that approximately represents the relationship between the difference and the contact area is obtained. The determination method according to Item 8, characterized in that.

[0080] (Item 10) In the fourth step, for each of the partial shot regions, a correction value corresponding to the facing area of the partial shot region is obtained from the first correction function, and a difference corresponding to the contact area of the partial shot region is obtained from the second correction function. The drive profile is determined by correcting the reference drive profile with the obtained correction value corresponding to the facing area and the obtained difference corresponding to the contact area. The determination method according to Item 8 or 9, characterized in that.

[0081] (Item 11) An information processing device for determining a drive profile for controlling the relative drive between a mold and a substrate in a process of bringing the mold into contact with an imprint material on the substrate, which is performed for each of a plurality of shot regions on the substrate by an imprint device that forms a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate using the mold. The plurality of shot regions include a first shot region and a second shot region in which the facing areas where the entire surface of the mold on the substrate side and the surface of the substrate face each other are different from each other in a state where the mold and the substrate are facing each other to start the processing. The information processing apparatus acquires a first monitoring result of monitoring the processing performed according to the reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the first shot region and the second shot region. Based on the first monitoring result, a correction value for the reference drive profile required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after starting the processing the same between the first shot region and the second shot region is obtained. Based on the correction value, a first correction function indicating the relationship between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile required to make the relative position the same between the plurality of shot regions at each time after starting the processing is obtained. Based on the first correction function, a drive profile is determined for each of the plurality of shot regions. An information processing apparatus characterized by the above.

[0082] (Item 12) An imprint apparatus for forming a pattern of an imprint material on a substrate using a mold, having a control unit that determines a drive profile for controlling the relative drive of the mold and the substrate in the process of bringing the mold into contact with the imprint material on the substrate for each of a plurality of shot regions on the substrate. The plurality of shot regions include a first shot region and a second shot region in which the facing areas where the entire surface of the mold on the substrate side and the surface of the substrate face each other are different from each other in a state where the mold and the substrate are facing each other to start the processing. The control unit Obtain a first monitoring result that monitors the processing performed according to the reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the first shot region and the second shot region, Based on the first monitoring result, obtain a correction value for the reference drive profile that is required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after starting the processing the same between the first shot region and the second shot region, Based on the correction value, obtain a first correction function that shows the relationship between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile that is required to make the relative position at each time after starting the processing the same between the plurality of shot regions, Based on the first correction function, determine the drive profile for each of the plurality of shot regions, An imprint apparatus characterized by the above.

[0083] (Item 13) A step of forming a pattern on a substrate using the imprint apparatus according to Item 12, A step of processing the substrate on which the pattern is formed in the above step, A step of manufacturing an article from the processed substrate, A method for manufacturing an article, characterized by including the above.

[0084] The invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various changes and modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, claims are attached to disclose the scope of the invention.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0085] 100: Imprint apparatus 102: Substrate holding unit 103: Substrate 105: Imprint material 106: Mold 107: Mold holding unit 108: Mold drive unit 109: Pattern region 120: First measurement unit 125: Second measurement unit 130: Control unit

Claims

1. A determination method for determining a drive profile for controlling the relative drive of a mold and a substrate in a process of bringing the mold into contact with an imprint material on the substrate, which is performed for each of a plurality of shot regions on the substrate by an imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate using the mold, wherein the plurality of shot regions include a first shot region and a second shot region in which the facing areas where the entire surface of the substrate side of the mold and the surface of the substrate face each other are different from each other in a state where the mold and the substrate are facing each other to start the process, the determination method includes a first step of obtaining a first monitoring result of monitoring the process performed according to a reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the first shot region and the second shot region; a second step of obtaining a correction value for the reference drive profile, which is required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after starting the process the same between the first shot region and the second shot region, based on the first monitoring result obtained in the first step; a third step of obtaining a first correction function showing the relationship between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile, which is required to make the relative position at each time after starting the process the same between the plurality of shot regions, based on the correction value obtained in the second step; a fourth step of determining the drive profile for each of the plurality of shot regions based on the first correction function obtained in the third step; The determination method is characterized by comprising the above steps.

2. The determination method according to claim 1, wherein the drive profile includes a force profile indicating a force for pressing the mold against the imprint material on the substrate.

3. In the first step, as the first monitoring result, time-series data of the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate during the period in which the process is performed, and time-series data of the force for pressing the mold against the imprint material on the substrate during the period in which the process is performed are obtained. The determination method according to claim 2, characterized by this.

4. In the first step, as the first monitoring result, time-series data of interference fringes generated by interference between the light reflected by the mold and the light reflected by the substrate during the period in which the processing is performed, and time-series data of the force applied to the imprint material on the substrate by the mold during the period in which the processing is performed are acquired. The determination method according to claim 2, wherein:

5. In the second step, based on the time-series data of the interference fringes, the spread of the interference fringes in the radial direction from the center of the mold is converted into the relative position. The determination method according to claim 4, wherein:

6. In the third step, as the first correction function, a linear function that approximately represents the relationship is obtained. The determination method according to claim 1, wherein:

7. In the fourth step, for each of the plurality of shot regions, a correction value corresponding to the facing area of the shot region is obtained from the first correction function, and the driving profile is determined by correcting the reference driving profile with the obtained correction value corresponding to the facing area. The determination method according to claim 1, wherein:

8. The plurality of shot regions are partial shot regions in which only a part of the pattern region of the mold contacts the imprint material on the substrate, and include a third shot region and a fourth shot region in which the contact areas between the pattern region and the imprint material on the substrate are different from each other. A fifth step of obtaining a second monitoring result of monitoring the processing performed according to the reference driving profile by the imprinting apparatus for each of the third shot region and the fourth shot region; A sixth step of obtaining a correction value for the reference driving profile, which is required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after the start of the processing the same between the third shot region and the fourth shot region, based on the second monitoring result obtained in the fifth step; A seventh step of obtaining a second correction function showing the relationship between the difference between the first correction function obtained in the third step and the correction value for the reference driving profile, which is required to make the relative position the same between the partial shot regions at each time after the start of the processing, and the contact area, based on the correction value obtained in the sixth step; further comprising: In the fourth step, based on the first correction function obtained in the third step and the second correction function obtained in the seventh step, for the partial shot regions among the plurality of shot regions, the drive profile is determined. The determination method according to claim 1, characterized in that.

9. In the third step, as the second correction function, a quadratic function or a cubic function that approximately represents the relationship between the difference and the contact area is obtained. The determination method according to claim 8, characterized in that.

10. In the fourth step, for each of the partial shot regions, a correction value corresponding to the facing area of the partial shot region is obtained from the first correction function, and a difference corresponding to the contact area of the partial shot region is obtained from the second correction function. The drive profile is determined by correcting the reference drive profile with the obtained correction value corresponding to the facing area and the obtained difference corresponding to the contact area. The determination method according to claim 8, characterized in that.

11. An information processing apparatus for determining a drive profile for controlling the relative drive between a mold and a substrate in a process of bringing the mold into contact with an imprint material on the substrate, which is performed for each of a plurality of shot regions on the substrate by an imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate using the mold. The plurality of shot regions include a first shot region and a second shot region in which the facing areas where the entire surface of the substrate side of the mold and the surface of the substrate face each other are different from each other in a state where the mold and the substrate are facing each other to start the process. The information processing apparatus includes acquiring a first monitoring result of monitoring the process performed according to the reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the first shot region and the second shot region; Based on the first monitoring result, a correction value for the reference drive profile that is required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time after starting the process the same between the first shot region and the second shot region is obtained. Based on the correction value, obtain a first correction function indicating the relationship between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile required to make the relative position at each time since the start of the process the same among the plurality of shot areas. Based on the first correction function, determine the drive profile for each of the plurality of shot areas. An information processing apparatus characterized by the above.

12. An imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of an imprint material on a substrate using a mold, having a control unit that determines a drive profile for controlling the relative drive between the mold and the substrate in the process of bringing the mold into contact with the imprint material on the substrate, which is performed for each of a plurality of shot areas on the substrate, the plurality of shot areas include a first shot area and a second shot area in which the facing areas where the entire surface of the substrate side of the mold and the surface of the substrate face each other are different from each other in a state where the mold and the substrate are facing each other to start the process, the control unit obtains a first monitoring result of monitoring the process performed according to the reference drive profile by the imprint apparatus for each of the first shot area and the second shot area, based on the first monitoring result, obtains a correction value for the reference drive profile required to make the relative position of the mold with respect to the substrate at each time since the start of the process the same between the first shot area and the second shot area, Based on the correction value, obtain a first correction function indicating the relationship between the facing area and the correction value for the reference drive profile required to make the relative position at each time since the start of the process the same among the plurality of shot areas. Based on the first correction function, determine the drive profile for each of the plurality of shot areas. An imprint apparatus characterized by the above.

13. A step of forming a pattern on a substrate using the imprint apparatus according to claim 12, a step of processing the substrate on which the pattern is formed in the above step, a step of manufacturing an article from the processed substrate, An article manufacturing method characterized by including the above steps.

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