Exposure apparatus and exposure method

Abstract

To provide an exposure apparatus and exposure method capable of performing high-precision circuit drawing. [Solution] In an exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate with a drawing head (4X) and directly draws a circuit on the substrate, the apparatus comprises a substrate stage on which a substrate having a substrate position mark (10A) is placed, a drawing head having a drawing head coordinate system and moving relative to the substrate stage to draw a circuit on the substrate, a reference mark on a reference mark means (9A) provided integrally with the substrate stage, a substrate position detection means having a substrate position detection coordinate system and reading the substrate position mark on the substrate, and a drawing head position detection means that reads the light beam (4a) from the drawing head by overlapping it with the reference mark, the drawing head position detection means corrects the drawing head coordinate system by reading the reference mark on the reference mark means and the substrate position detection means corrects the substrate position detection coordinate system by reading the reference mark on the reference mark means, thereby making the coordinate systems coincide.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus and an exposure method capable of performing high-precision circuit drawing.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, in order to form a conductive pattern or the like on the exposure surface of a substrate having a photosensitive layer on its surface, the substrate and a photomask with a pattern drawn thereon are overlapped and arranged, and light is irradiated onto the substrate through the photomask, thereby transferring the pattern to the photosensitive layer on the substrate surface. An exposure method has been widely used. On the other hand, a maskless exposure (direct exposure) method has been proposed in which a predetermined pattern is directly formed on a substrate without using a photomask (for example, Patent Document 1 below). According to such a maskless exposure method, since a photomask is unnecessary, it is advantageous in terms of cost, and it is also said that high-precision exposure is possible.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] One conventional example of a maskless exposure apparatus is one that has a substrate stage on which a substrate is placed and moves back and forth. A substrate position detection camera reads the substrate position mark on the substrate to recognize the substrate position on the substrate stage, and based on this result, the substrate stage moves back and forth while a light beam from a drawing head is shone onto the substrate to draw the circuit. The CCD (image sensor) of the substrate position detection camera and the DMD (Digital Mirror Device = optical modulation element) of the drawing head can experience minute positional shifts due to heat, etc., so separate reference marks were used to correct the coordinates of the substrate position detection camera and the drawing head. In a maskless exposure apparatus, the position where the substrate position is detected and the position where it is drawn are different, so in order to draw accurately, it is necessary to correlate the substrate position detection coordinate system and the drawing head coordinate system. However, as mentioned above, conventional maskless exposure apparatuses only correct the coordinate systems using separately provided reference marks and cannot achieve correlation, making it difficult to obtain good circuit drawing accuracy. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A first embodiment of the present invention is an exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate (10) with a drawing head (4X) and directly draws a circuit on the substrate, A substrate stage (5) on which a substrate (10) having one or more substrate position marks (10a) is placed, A drawing head (4X) having a drawing head coordinate system moves relative to the substrate stage (5) in a predetermined direction to draw a circuit on the substrate (10), A reference marking means (9; 9A, 9B) is provided integrally with the substrate stage (5) and has one or more reference marks (9C), A substrate position detection means (6) has a substrate position detection coordinate system and moves relative to the substrate stage (5) at least in the predetermined direction to read the substrate position mark (10a) of the substrate (10), The substrate stage (5) is integrally provided with a drawing head position detection means (8) that reads by superimposing a light beam (4a) from the drawing head (4X) and a reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9; 9A, 9B), The exposure apparatus is characterized in that the drawing head position detection means (8) reads the reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) and the light beam (4a) in superimposition and corrects the drawing head coordinate system based on the result, and the substrate position detection means (6) reads the same reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) that was read by the drawing head position detection means (8) and corrects the substrate position detection coordinate system based on the result, thereby making the drawing head coordinate system and the substrate position detection coordinate system coincide.

[0006] A second embodiment of the present invention is an exposure apparatus characterized in that the drawing head (4X) is fixed in position at least in the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) and the substrate position detection means (6) are movable in the predetermined direction.

[0007] A third embodiment of the present invention is an exposure apparatus characterized in that the drawing head (4X) is movable at least in the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) is fixed in position at least in the predetermined direction.

[0008] A fourth embodiment of the present invention is an exposure apparatus characterized in that the correction operation is performed each time for each different substrate (10). A fifth embodiment of the present invention is an exposure apparatus further provided with height adjustment means (11) that can adjust the height of the substrate surface on the substrate (10) of the substrate stage (5) to be drawn and the reference mark (9C) surface on the reference mark means (9) to be the same.

[0009] A sixth embodiment of the present invention is an exposure apparatus characterized in that the substrate stage (5) is arranged in a pair (5A, 5B) facing each other in the predetermined direction with the drawing head (4X) in between.

[0010] A seventh embodiment of the present invention is an exposure method in which a substrate (10) is exposed by a drawing head (4X) and a circuit is drawn directly on the substrate, The step of providing a substrate stage (5) on which a substrate (10) having one or more substrate position marks (10a) is placed and which is movable in a predetermined direction, The steps include providing a drawing head (4X) which has a drawing head coordinate system and moves relative to the substrate stage (5) in a predetermined direction to draw a circuit on the substrate (10), The step of providing a reference marking means (9; 9A, 9B) which is provided integrally with the substrate stage (5) and has one or more reference marks (9C), The step of providing a substrate position detection means (6) that has a substrate position detection coordinate system and moves relative to the substrate stage (5) at least in the predetermined direction to read the substrate position mark (10a) of the substrate (10) that reads the reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9), The step of providing a drawing head position detection means (8) which is integrally provided with the substrate stage (5) and reads by superimposing a light beam (4a) from the drawing head (4X) and a reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9; 9A, 9B), The exposure method is characterized in that the drawing head position detection means (8) reads the reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) and the light beam (4a) in conjunction and corrects the drawing head coordinate system based on the result, and the substrate position detection means (6) reads the same reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) that was read by the drawing head position detection means (8) and corrects the substrate position detection coordinate system based on the result, thereby making the drawing head coordinate system and the substrate position detection coordinate system coincide.

[0011] An eighth embodiment of the present invention is an exposure method characterized in that the drawing head (4X) is fixed in position at least in the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) and the substrate position detection means (6) are movable in the predetermined direction.

[0012] The ninth aspect of the present invention is an exposure method characterized in that the drawing head (4X) is at least movable with respect to the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) is at least fixed in position with respect to the predetermined direction.

[0013] The tenth aspect of the present invention is an exposure method characterized in that the correction operation is performed every time for each different substrate (10). The eleventh aspect of the present invention has a step in which a height level adjusting means (11) capable of adjusting so that the height levels of the substrate surface level on which the circuit on the substrate (10) of the substrate stage (5) is drawn and the reference mark (9C) level on the reference mark means (9) become the same is further provided. It is an exposure method characterized by the above.

[0014] The twelfth aspect of the present invention is an exposure method characterized in that the substrate stage (5) is arranged in a pair (5A, 5B) facing each other with the drawing head (4X) interposed therebetween in the predetermined direction.

[0015] In the present invention, by correcting the drawing head coordinate system and the substrate position detection coordinate system based on the common (same) reference standard 9, the correlation between the two coordinate systems can be obtained, so that the drawing accuracy of the circuit on the substrate 10 can be improved.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016] [Figure 1] It is a perspective view of a schematic configuration of an exposure apparatus as an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] It is a front view of a main part of the exposure apparatus shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 3] In FIG. 2, it is an enlarged front view of the left substrate stage portion. [Figure 4] It is a front view showing the first step of the main part of the exposure apparatus shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 5] Similarly, it is a front view showing the second step. [Figure 6] Similarly, it is a front view showing the third step. [Figure 7] The same as above, and it is a plan view showing all the steps. [Figure 8] FIGS. 8(A) and (B) are enlarged front views showing the components of the substrate position detection camera and the reference mark member, and the components of the drawing head and the reference mark member, respectively. [Figure 9] It is a perspective view showing the substrate position detection camera and the reference mark member. [Figure 10] It is a view showing the misalignment between the light beam from the drawing head and the reference mark of the reference master. [Figure 11] For the substrate stages 5A and 5B, it is a time chart in which the vertical axis indicates the operation steps and the horizontal axis indicates the time.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0017] FIGS. 1 to 3 are a perspective view of the schematic configuration of an exposure apparatus as an embodiment of the present invention, a front view of the main part of the exposure apparatus shown in FIG. 1, and an enlarged front view of the left substrate stage in FIG. 2. In FIG. 1, the exposure apparatus 1 is mounted on a bed 3 (extending in the directions of arrows A and B) on a gantry 2, and includes a drawing head unit 4 (having a plurality (five in this embodiment) of drawing heads 4X in a direction orthogonal to the directions of arrows A and B), a pair of substrate stages 5A and 5B on both sides of the drawing head unit 4 in the directions of arrows A and B (on which substrates 10A and 10B are respectively mounted), and a pair of substrate position detection camera units 6A and 6B on both sides (each having, for example, three substrate position detection cameras 6AX and 6BX in the above orthogonal direction).

[0018] The drawing head 4X is provided with a drawing head coordinate system for drawing a circuit on the substrate 10, and the substrate position detection cameras 6AX and 6BX are provided with a substrate position detection coordinate system for detecting the position on the substrate 10. Also, as will be described later, the drawing head 4X can reciprocate not only in the directions of arrows A and B (main scanning direction) but also in the orthogonal direction (sub-scanning direction).

[0019] The substrate stages 5A and 5B (mounted on carriages 7A and 7B, respectively) and the substrate position detection camera units 6A and 6B are reciprocally movable in the directions of arrows A and B, respectively. The substrate position detection cameras 6AX and 6BX may also be reciprocally movable not only in the directions of arrows A and B, but also in the directions orthogonal thereto, in order to detect their position on the substrate 10.

[0020] In Figure 2, 8A and 8B are a pair of drawing light beam detection cameras (sensors) integrally mounted on the left and right substrate stages 5A and 5B, respectively. There are five drawing light beam detection cameras 8A and 8B, corresponding to the five drawing heads 4X. (See Figure 9) Furthermore, 9A and 9B are reference standards integrally attached to the left and right carriages 7A and 7B, respectively, and have multiple reference marks 9C (see Figure 9).

[0021] In Figure 3, 11 is a height adjustment mechanism for adjusting the height of the left substrate stage 5A. A drive shaft 14, transmitted from an electric motor 12 via a reduction gear 13, passes through a vertically elongated hole (not shown) in the flange portion 5a of the substrate stage 5A and has an eccentric cam 15. When the eccentric cam 15 is rotationally driven, the substrate stage 5A is pressed, and its height is finely adjusted in the vertical direction. A similar height adjustment mechanism is provided for the right substrate stage 5B.

[0022] Next, the operation of the exposure apparatus 1 of the present invention will be explained mainly using Figures 4 to 7 and Figure 11 (time chart). In Figure 11, the vertical axis represents the operation steps (B1 to B7, A1 to A7) of the right substrate stage 5B and the left substrate stage 5A, and the horizontal axis represents the time required for each operation step.

[0023] In Figure 4, the right-side substrate stage 5B (on which the unexposed substrate 10B is placed) moves from the standby position at the limit of movement in the direction of arrow B (corresponding to position 10B1 in Figure 7) to the drawing preparation position shown in Figure 4 (corresponding to position 10B2 in Figure 7). (See step B1 in Figure 11) At this drawing preparation position, the light beam 4a from the drawing head 4X passes near the reference mark 9C of the right-side reference master 9B and is imaged by the drawing light beam detection camera 8B, and the reference mark 9C and the light beam 4a are read in superimposition (see Figure 10). Here, it is preferable that the reference mark 9C and the light beam 4a coincide, but the DMD of the drawing head causes a small positional shift δ1, i.e., a shift in the drawing head coordinate system of the drawing head 4X, due to heat, etc. Therefore, a software correction is performed by a control circuit (not shown) so that this shift in the drawing head coordinate system becomes zero. (See step B2 in Figure 11) This correction process is performed each time the drawing head 4X repeatedly aligns with the reference master 9 (9A, 9B), so the position of the drawing head 4X relative to the reference master 9 is calibrated (or corrected) each time.

[0024] During this time, the left substrate stage 5A moves from the previous drawing completion position (corresponding to position 10A2 in Figure 7) to the standby position at the limit of movement in the direction of arrow A shown in Figure 4 (corresponding to position 10A1 in Figure 7) (see step A4 in Figure 11). At this position, the substrate 10A, whose exposure and drawing have been completed, is removed by a substrate chuck (not shown), and a new, unexposed substrate 10A is placed on the substrate stage 5A. (See steps A5 and A6 in Figure 11) In this standby position, when the left-side substrate position detection camera 6AX in Figure 4 captures the reference mark 9C of the left-side reference master 9A, a positional shift δ2 occurs between the reference mark 9C and the imaging center, i.e., a shift in the substrate position detection coordinate system of the substrate position detection camera 6AX, due to thermal fluctuations of the imaging CCD of camera 6AX. Therefore, a software correction is performed by the control circuit (not shown) to make this shift in the substrate position detection coordinate system zero. (See step A7 in Figure 11) This correction work is performed each time the substrate position detection camera 6AX (or 6BX) repeatedly corresponds to the reference master 9 (9A, 9B), so the position calibration (or correction) of the substrate position detection camera 6AX and 6BX with respect to the reference master 9 is performed each time.

[0025] Next, the right-side substrate stage 5B (on which the right-side substrate 10B is placed) moves in the direction of arrow A from the drawing preparation position shown in Figure 4 (corresponding to position 10B2 in Figure 7) to the position shown in Figure 5 (corresponding to position 10B3 in Figure 7), while irradiating the right-side substrate 10B with a light beam 4a from the drawing head 4X to directly draw the circuit. After the drawing head 4X moves a predetermined amount in the sub-scanning direction, the right-side substrate stage 5B moves back in the direction of arrow B from position 10B3 in Figure 7 to the drawing preparation position shown in Figure 4 (corresponding to position 10B2 in Figure 7), while irradiating the right-side substrate 10B with a light beam 4a from the drawing head to directly draw the circuit. This series of back-and-forth drawing operations is repeated as needed until the entire width of the substrate can be drawn in the sub-scanning direction of the substrate. However, if not necessary, the process may end with only the movement in direction A and drawing described above. (See step B3 in Figure 11) This circuit drawing operation is performed based on the board position (alignment) information obtained from the right board position detection camera 6BX based on the board position mark 10a on the right board 10B (see step B7 in Figure 11).

[0026] Meanwhile, as shown in Figure 5, the left-side substrate position detection camera 6AX moves relative to the substrate 10A placed on the left-side substrate stage 5A, which remains stationary in the standby position, in the direction of arrow A. The camera captures (reads) the substrate position marks 10a (for example, there are a total of 9 marks 10a in Figure 7, but the number may be 9 or less or more) provided on the substrate 10A, and detects the position (alignment) information of the substrate 10A to be drawn. This is called the alignment process. (See step A7 in Figure 11) Next, as shown in Figure 6, the right-side substrate stage 5B returns to the standby position at the limit of movement in the direction of arrow B (corresponding to position 10B1 in Figure 7) (see step B4 in Figure 11). At this standby position, the substrate 10B, which has been exposed and drawn as described above, is removed by the substrate chuck, and a new, unexposed substrate 10B is placed on the substrate stage 5B (see steps B5 and B6 in Figure 11). Also at this standby position, the right-side substrate position detection camera 6BX captures the reference mark 9C of the right-side reference master 9B, and the substrate position detection coordinate system is corrected based on the positional displacement δ2 between the captured reference mark 9C and the center of the image, as described for the left-side substrate 10A in Figure 4 (see step B7 in Figure 11). During this time, in Figure 6, the left substrate stage 5A moves in the direction of arrow B to the drawing preparation position (corresponding to position 10A2 in Figure 7), and the drawing light beam detection camera 8A captures the light beam 4a from the drawing head 4X superimposed on the reference mark 9C of the left reference master 9A, and similarly the drawing head coordinate system is corrected based on the resulting positional shift δ1.

[0027] Next, with the right-side board stage 5B still stopped in the standby position, the same alignment procedure as that performed on board 10A in Figure 5 is performed on board 10B placed on the right-side board stage 5B (see step B7 in Figure 11), and thereafter, the same procedure is repeated.

[0028] According to the above configuration and operation, for example, focusing on the left substrate stage 5A, the drawing head coordinate system of the drawing head 4X itself is calibrated by zero-correcting the amount of deviation δ1 between the light beam 4a read by the drawing light beam detection camera 8A and the reference mark 9C of the reference master 9A. The substrate position detection coordinate system of the substrate position detection camera 6AX itself is calibrated by zero-correcting the amount of deviation δ2 between the camera imaging center and the reference mark 9C of the reference master 9A. Furthermore, when the substrate position detection camera 6AX reads the substrate position mark 10a, the actual position of the substrate can be accurately detected due to the zero-correction of the two coordinate systems, and the drawing head 4X can accurately draw circuits on the substrate. However, in this invention, since the same reference master 9A is used in common during the correction work of the two coordinate systems, the two corrected coordinate systems (drawing head coordinate system and substrate position detection coordinate system) can be made to coincide with each other compared to the case where separate reference masters are used for both coordinate systems as in the conventional method, thus enabling drawing on the substrate with even higher precision. This also applies to the right-side board stage 5B. Note that "mutually matching" does not necessarily mean a perfect match; a small misalignment is acceptable.

[0029] Furthermore, since calibration work is performed on the drawing head 4X and the substrate position detection cameras 6AX and 6BX each time they are placed against the reference master 9A, that is, each time a drawing operation is performed, the drawing accuracy can be improved accordingly.

[0030] Furthermore, if the correction work for the drawing head coordinate system and the correction work for the substrate position detection coordinate system are performed using a common (identical) reference master 9A, then in some cases, the reference marks 9C may not be common (identical) but different.

[0031] Furthermore, while the substrate 10 is being attached and detached and the substrate position detection camera 6 is capturing (reading) data on the substrate 10, the drawing head 4X is simultaneously drawing data onto the substrate 10 on the other substrate stage 5B (or 5A). This allows for sufficient time to perform alignment and coordinate system correction without compromising productivity.

[0032] Next, the height adjustment procedure for the upper surface of the substrate 10 (10A, 10B) will be described. For high-precision drawing, it is preferable that the focal position of the light beam 4a from the drawing head 4X and the focal position of the images taken by the substrate position detection cameras 6AX and 6BX coincide with both the detection reference mark surface of the reference master 9 (9A, 9B) and the upper surface of the substrate 10 (10A, 10B).

[0033] Therefore, as shown in Figure 3, a height adjustment mechanism 11 is provided to adjust the height of the substrate 10A. In the same figure, the height adjustment mechanism 11 has an electric motor 12, a drive shaft 14 provided on the carriage 7A via a reduction mechanism 13, and an eccentric cam 15 provided on the drive shaft 14, with the drive shaft 14 passing through a vertically elongated hole (not shown) in the flange portion 5a provided on the substrate stage 5A. Accordingly, when the electric motor 12 is driven, the eccentric cam 15 rotates to push up the substrate stage 5A, raising it or allowing it to descend due to gravity, adjusting the upper surface of the substrate 10 to be at the same height as the reference mark 9C of the reference master 9A. Note that the mechanism for moving the substrate stage 5A up and down is not limited to an eccentric cam; various mechanisms such as a screw mechanism or a tapered mechanism can be considered, and instead of moving the substrate 10 up and down, the reference master 9A may be moved up and down. The same applies to the right substrate 10B.

[0034] In the above embodiment, the drawing head unit 4 was fixed in the direction of arrows A and B (main scanning direction), and the substrate stages 5A and 5B (mounted on carriages 7A and 7B, respectively) and the substrate position detection camera units 6A and 6B were each capable of reciprocating in the same direction. However, the embodiment is not limited to this, and the substrate stages 5A and 5B may be fixed in the direction of arrows A and B, and the drawing head unit 4 may reciprocate relative to these fixed substrate stages 5A and 5B, or the drawing head unit 4 and the substrate position detection camera 6 may each be fixed in position, and the substrate stages 5A and 5B may be capable of reciprocating in the direction of arrows A and B.

[0035] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the multiple drawing heads 4X of the drawing head unit 4 were arranged in a single row in a direction perpendicular to the directions of arrows A and B. However, the invention is not limited to this, and two or more rows may be provided in the above-mentioned perpendicular direction, with the drawing heads 4X arranged in a staggered pattern among the rows. This would reduce the distance that the drawing heads 4X travel back and forth in the sub-scanning direction to one-for-one of the number of rows.

[0036] While embodiments of the present invention have been described above based on several examples, the embodiments described above are for the purpose of facilitating understanding of the present invention and do not limit it. The present invention can be modified and improved without departing from its spirit, and of course, equivalents thereof are included in the present invention. Furthermore, combinations or omissions of the components described in the claims and specification are possible to the extent that at least some of the above-mentioned problems can be solved or at least some of the effects can be achieved. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 1… Exposure device 2… Stand 3... Bed 4… Drawing head unit 4X… Drawing head 4a... Light beam 5 (5A, 5B) ... PCB stage 5a…Flange section 6 (6A, 6B) ... Circuit board position detection camera unit 6AX, 6BX… Circuit board position detection cameras 7 (7A, 7B)... Carriage 8 (8A, 8B)... Drawing light beam detection camera 9(9A, 9B)…Reference prototype 9C…Standard mark 10 (10A, 10B) ... Circuit board 10a... Circuit board position mark 11…Height adjustment mechanism 12… Electric motor 13...Reduction mechanism 14…Drive shaft 15... Eccentric cam

Claims

1. In an exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate (10) with a drawing head (4X) and directly draws a circuit on the substrate, A substrate stage (5) on which a substrate (10) having one or more substrate position marks (10a) is placed, The drawing head (4X) has a drawing head coordinate system and moves relative to the substrate stage (5) in a predetermined direction to draw a circuit on the substrate (10), A reference marking means (9; 9A, 9B) is provided integrally with the substrate stage (5) and has one or more reference marks (9C), A substrate position detection means (6) has a substrate position detection coordinate system and moves relative to the substrate stage (5) at least in the predetermined direction to read the substrate position mark (10a) of the substrate (10), A drawing head position detection means (8) is provided integrally with the substrate stage (5) and reads by superimposing the light beam (4a) from the drawing head (4X) and the reference marks (9C) on the reference mark means (9; 9A, 9B), Equipped with, The drawing head position detection means (8) reads the reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) and the light beam (4a) in superimposition and corrects the drawing head coordinate system based on the result, and the substrate position detection means (6) reads the same reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) that the drawing head position detection means (8) read and corrects the substrate position detection coordinate system based on the result, thereby making the drawing head coordinate system and the substrate position detection coordinate system coincide. Exposure apparatus.

2. In the exposure apparatus according to claim 1, The drawing head (4X) is fixed in position at least in the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) and the substrate position detection means (6) are movable in the predetermined direction. Exposure apparatus.

3. In the exposure apparatus according to claim 1, The drawing head (4X) is movable at least in the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) is fixed in position at least in the predetermined direction. Exposure apparatus.

4. In the exposure apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, The correction process described above is performed each time for each different substrate (10). Exposure apparatus.

5. In the exposure apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, A height adjustment means (11) is further provided that can adjust the height so that the height of the circuit board surface on the substrate (10) of the substrate stage (5) and the reference mark (9C) surface on the reference mark means (9) are the same. Exposure apparatus.

6. In the exposure apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, The substrate stage (5) is arranged in a pair (5A, 5B) facing each other in the predetermined direction, with the drawing head (4X) in between. Exposure apparatus.

7. In an exposure method in which a substrate (10) is exposed by a drawing head (4X) and a circuit is drawn directly on the substrate, A substrate stage (5) is provided on which the substrate (10) having one or more substrate position marks (10a) is placed and which is movable in a predetermined direction. The drawing head (4X) is provided, which has a drawing head coordinate system and moves relative to the substrate stage (5) in a predetermined direction to draw a circuit on the substrate (10). A reference marking means (9; 9A, 9B) is provided integrally with the substrate stage (5) and has one or more reference marks (9C), A substrate position detection means (6) is provided that has a substrate position detection coordinate system and moves relative to the substrate stage (5) at least in the predetermined direction to read the substrate position mark (10a) of the substrate (10) that reads the reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9), A drawing head position detection means (8) is provided integrally with the substrate stage (5) and reads the light beam (4a) from the drawing head (4X) and the reference marks (9C) on the reference mark means (9; 9A, 9B) by superimposing them. Equipped with, The drawing head position detection means (8) reads the reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) and the light beam (4a) in superimposition and corrects the drawing head coordinate system based on the result, and the substrate position detection means (6) reads the same reference mark (9C) on the reference mark means (9) that the drawing head position detection means (8) read and corrects the substrate position detection coordinate system based on the result, thereby making the drawing head coordinate system and the substrate position detection coordinate system coincide. Exposure method.

8. In the exposure method described in claim 7, An exposure method characterized in that the drawing head (4X) is fixed in position at least in the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) and substrate position detection means (6) are movable in the predetermined direction.

9. In the exposure method described in claim 7, The drawing head (4X) is movable at least in the predetermined direction, and the substrate stage (5) is fixed in position at least in the predetermined direction. Exposure method.

10. In the exposure method according to any one of claims 7 to 9, The exposure method is characterized in that the correction process is performed each time for each different substrate (10).

11. In the exposure method according to any one of claims 7 to 10, An exposure method characterized by further comprising the step of providing a height adjustment means (11) that can adjust the height so that the height of the substrate surface on the substrate (10) of the substrate stage (5) on which the circuit is drawn and the height of the reference mark (9C) surface on the reference mark means (9) are the same.

12. In the exposure method according to any one of claims 7 to 11, The substrate stage (5) is arranged in a pair (5A, 5B) facing each other in the predetermined direction, with the drawing head (4X) in between. Exposure method.

Images