IMPRINT APPARATUS, IMPRINT METHOD, AND PRODUCTION METHOD OF ARTICLE

Abstract

To solve the problem in which: in measuring a mold in which grooves are present in a surface of a mesa part, a method using binary search may cause false recognition of an end position of the mesa part and false measurement of a mesa size may occur.SOLUTION: In performing imprint processing of forming a pattern of an imprint material by using a member having a pattern on a member other than the member, measurement means is controlled to perform measurement according to binary search by using mesa information on a member scheduled to be carried in. Thus, the state of a mesa part can be checked at high speed and with high accuracy.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an imprint apparatus that forms a pattern of an imprint material on a substrate using a mold. [Background technology]

[0002] As a method for manufacturing articles such as semiconductor devices, imprinting technology is known in which a pattern of an imprint material is formed on a substrate using a mold. In imprinting technology, an imprint material is supplied onto a substrate, and the supplied imprint material is brought into contact with the mold (imprinting). The imprint material is then cured while the imprint material is in contact with the mold, and the mold is then separated from the cured imprint material (mold release), thereby forming a pattern of the imprint material on the substrate.

[0003] A method is known in which an imprinting apparatus measures the surface of a mold on which a pattern is formed (for example, the distance from a measuring device to the pattern formed on the mold) and then uses the measurement results to control the imprinting process between the imprinting material and the mold. A convex portion called a mesa portion is formed on the mold used in the imprinting apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, and a pattern is formed on the mesa portion. Patent Document 1 describes that by measuring the distance from a measuring device to the surface of the mold, the position of the mesa portion on which the pattern is formed is identified, and the mold and substrate are aligned.

[0004] Incidentally, since the mold used in such an imprinting device is very expensive, a replica mold is also created from a master mold using an imprinting technique. In such a case, various combinations exist, such as a case where a mesa portion is formed or not formed on the mold side, and a case where a mesa portion is formed or not formed on the substrate side. In Patent Document 2, when an imprinting process is performed with a master mold without a mesa portion and a substrate (replica mold) without a mesa portion in such a replica device, there is a possibility that the master mold or the substrate may be damaged. For this reason, it is disclosed that the presence or absence of a mesa portion is detected and confirmed before imprinting. Furthermore, Patent Document 2 discloses that in addition to detecting the presence or absence of a mesa portion, the position, size, and shape of the area of ​​the mesa portion may be measured, and the size of the mesa may be confirmed to confirm whether it is intended for use. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-62286 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2018-74041 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Methods for detecting the end position of the mesa portion in Patent Document 2 can be a linear search method in which measurements are taken at a predetermined measurement interval, or a so-called binary search method in which measurements are taken at a position near the middle and the search range is successively narrowed according to the measurement results until the end position is found.

[0007] However, the method using the linear search may take a long time to complete the measurement. In particular, when detecting a mold (or a substrate) on which no mesa is provided, the search is exhaustive, and it takes a significantly long time. In addition, the method using the binary search can reduce the measurement time compared to the method using the linear search, but when a groove is present on the surface of the mesa, the end position of the mesa may be misidentified, resulting in an erroneous measurement of the mesa size.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide an imprinting apparatus that can quickly and accurately check the state of a mesa portion provided on a member having a pattern (mold) or a member on which a pattern is formed (substrate). [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an imprinting apparatus that performs an imprinting process using a member having a pattern to form a pattern of an imprint material on a member other than the member having the pattern, the imprinting apparatus having a measurement means that measures at least one surface of the member having the pattern and the other member, and a control means that controls the measurement means and acquires mesa information of a member to be carried into the imprinting apparatus, the control means controlling the measurement means to perform measurement by a binary search method using the acquired mesa information. The control means determines whether or not remeasurement by the measuring means is necessary based on a measurement result of the measuring means measuring the surface of the member at a position according to the binary search method and the acquired mesa information. do. Effect of the Invention

[0010] This makes it possible to quickly and accurately check the state of the mesa portion provided on the member having the pattern (mold) or the member on which the pattern is formed (substrate). [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of an imprint apparatus. [Diagram 2] 1 is a flowchart showing an imprint method. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a mold shape. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing how a mold is measured using a linear search method. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing how a mold is measured using a binary search method. [Figure 6] (A) A diagram showing the state of measuring the mold as shown in Fig. 3(B) using the binary search method, and (B) A diagram showing the state of measuring the mold as shown in Fig. 3(B) using the linear search method. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a process flow in the first embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process flow in the second embodiment. [Figure 9] 13 is an example of measurement in the second embodiment. [Figure 10] 13A and 13B are diagrams for explaining measurement positions using a binary search method in the third embodiment. [Figure 11] 13 is a flowchart illustrating a process flow in the third embodiment. [Figure 12] 1A to 1C are diagrams for explaining a method for manufacturing an article. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In each drawing, the same reference numerals are used to refer to the same components, and duplicated explanations will be omitted.

[0013] (First embodiment) (About the imprint device) 1 is a diagram showing an imprinting apparatus 1 in this embodiment. The imprinting apparatus is an apparatus that brings an imprinting material supplied onto a substrate (another member) into contact with a mold (member) and applies energy for curing to the imprinting material, thereby forming a pattern in a cured product to which the concave-convex pattern of the mold has been transferred.

[0014] The imprint apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. Here, the surface on which the substrate 5 is placed is defined as the XY plane, and the direction perpendicular to that (the height direction of the imprint apparatus 1) is defined as the Z direction, with each axis being determined as shown in FIG. 1. Hereinafter, the imprint apparatus 1 will be described using as an example a mold creation apparatus that replicates a replica mold used in the imprint apparatus from a master mold using an imprint process. However, this embodiment can also be applied to an imprint apparatus that performs an imprint process on a substrate such as a silicon wafer. The replica mold created by the mold creation apparatus is used as a mold in another imprint apparatus, and is used when performing an imprint process on another substrate.

[0015] The imprinting apparatus 1 is an apparatus that forms (transfers) a pattern onto a blank mold (a replica mold before a pattern is formed) serving as a substrate 5, using a master mold 3. Here, an imprinting apparatus 1 that employs a photocuring method, which is one of the imprinting techniques, in which an imprinting material is cured by irradiating it with light, will be described.

[0016] The imprint apparatus 1 includes an illumination unit 2, a mold holding unit 4 that holds a master mold 3, a substrate holding unit 6 that holds a substrate 5, a supply unit 7 that supplies an imprint material 14, and a mold transport device 11 that transports the master mold 3. The imprint apparatus 1 further includes a substrate transport device 12 that transports the substrate 5, and control means 10 that performs overall control of the operation of the imprint apparatus 1.

[0017] The illumination system unit 2 is an illumination means that irradiates the master mold 3 with light 17 (ultraviolet light) that hardens the imprint material 14 during the imprint process. The illumination system unit 2 is composed of a light source and an optical element that adjusts the light emitted from the light source to an appropriate light for irradiating the imprint material.

[0018] The master mold 3 is a mold in which a predetermined concave-convex pattern is formed on the surface facing the substrate 5 while being held by the mold holding part 4 .

[0019] The mold holding unit 4 (imprint head) has a drive mechanism that moves it in the Z direction while holding the master mold 3. The mold holding unit 4 may also have a drive mechanism for tilting the master mold 3 in accordance with the tilt of the master mold 3 or the substrate 5, and a drive mechanism for moving it within the XY plane.

[0020] A TTM (Through The Mask) scope 13 is provided above the master mold 3 inside the mold holding unit 4. The TTM scope 13 is an alignment scope that has an optical system and an imaging system for detecting alignment marks provided on the master mold 3 and alignment marks provided on the substrate 5. From the detection results of the alignment marks by the TTM scope 13, it is possible to measure shift misalignment in the X direction and Y direction and rotation misalignment between the master mold 3 and the substrate 5. The measurement results are used to align the mold and the substrate.

[0021] The substrate holder 6 (stage) is a holding means that holds the substrate 5 by vacuum or electrostatic adsorption and is movable within the XY plane. The substrate holder 6 desirably includes a drive mechanism for rotating the substrate 5 around the Z axis. The substrate holder 6 drives along the stage base 15 of the imprinting apparatus 1. In this case, the reference for the Z direction and inclination when the substrate holder 6 drives within the XY plane is the stage base 15. The stage base 15 is configured on a mount 16, and the imprinting apparatus 1 is structured to be less susceptible to vibrations from the floor. The substrate holder 6 may also include a drive mechanism for moving the substrate 5 in the Z direction and a rotation mechanism for rotating the substrate 5 around the XY axis.

[0022] The substrate holding unit 6 is equipped with a mold measurement sensor 9 (mold detection means) capable of measuring the surface of the master mold 3. The mold measurement sensor 9 is a distance measuring device capable of measuring the distance (shape) in the Z-axis direction to the surface of the master mold 3. The height of the surface of the master mold 3 can be obtained based on the measurement results of the mold measurement sensor 9. The substrate holding unit 6 moves along the XY plane, so that the mold measurement sensor 9 can measure each position on the surface of the master mold 3. The mold measurement sensor 9 does not need to be mounted on the substrate holding unit 6, and may be provided in a mechanism different from the substrate holding unit 6. Even in this case, the mold measurement sensor 9 can measure the surface of the master mold 3 by moving along the XY plane.

[0023] The imprint apparatus 1 further includes a substrate measurement sensor 8 capable of measuring the surface of the substrate 5 (replica mold). The substrate measurement sensor 8 is a distance measuring device capable of measuring the distance (shape) in the Z-axis direction to the surface of the substrate 5. The height of the surface of the substrate 5 can be obtained based on the measurement results of the substrate measurement sensor 8. The substrate holding unit 6 moves along the XY plane, thereby enabling the substrate measurement sensor 8 to measure each position on the surface of the substrate 5. The substrate measurement sensor 8 may measure the surface of the substrate 5 by moving along the XY plane.

[0024] When obtaining the position of the mesa portion of the mold in this embodiment, the positions measured by the mold measurement sensor 9 and the substrate measurement sensor 8 are determined by a binary search method or a linear search method, which will be described later.

[0025] The supply unit 7 (dispenser) is a supply means for supplying the imprint material 14 onto the substrate 5. The imprint material is a curable composition (sometimes called an uncured resin) that is cured when curing energy is applied. The curing energy may be electromagnetic waves, heat, or the like. The electromagnetic waves may be, for example, infrared light, visible light, ultraviolet light, or other light having a wavelength selected from the range of 10 nm or more and 1 mm or less.

[0026] The curable composition is a composition that is cured by irradiation with light or by heating. Among them, the photocurable composition that is cured by light contains at least a polymerizable compound and a photopolymerization initiator, and may 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 mold release agent, a surfactant, an antioxidant, a polymer component, and the like.

[0027] The imprint material is applied in the form of a film on the substrate by a spin coater or a slit coater. Alternatively, the imprint material may be applied in the form of droplets, or in the form of islands or a film formed by connecting a plurality of droplets, by a liquid ejection 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.

[0028] The substrate may be made of glass, ceramics, metal, semiconductor, resin, or the like, and may have a member made of a material different from that of the substrate formed on its surface as necessary. Specifically, when the substrate is used as a blank mold in a mold creation device, it is preferable to use quartz glass. In addition, when the present embodiment is applied to an imprinting device for manufacturing semiconductors, a silicon wafer, a compound semiconductor wafer, quartz glass, or the like may be used.

[0029] The mold transport device 11 is a transport means for transporting the master mold 3 into the mold holding unit 4 and transporting it out of the imprint apparatus 1. In addition, the substrate transport device 12 is a transport means for transporting the substrate 5 (replica mold) into the substrate holding unit 6 and transporting it out of the imprint apparatus 1.

[0030] The control means 10 controls the operation of each component unit of the imprint apparatus 1 and acquires various sensor values, etc. The control means 10 is composed of a computer, sequencer, etc. (not shown) connected to each component unit of the imprint apparatus 1, and has a processing unit and a storage unit. The control means 10 may be provided within the imprint apparatus 1, or may be provided in a location separate from the imprint apparatus 1 and controlled remotely.

[0031] Next, a mold production method for producing a mold (replica) by transferring a pattern formed on the master mold 3 to a substrate (blank) will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 2. The process shown in the flowchart of Fig. 2 is executed by the control means 10 comprehensively controlling each part.

[0032] In S11, the control means 10 causes the mold transport device 11 to carry the master mold 3 into the imprint apparatus 1 and place it on the mold holding part 4. Similarly, in S12, the substrate transport device 12 causes the substrate 5 to be carried into the imprint apparatus 1 and place it on the substrate holding part 6. The order of S11 and S12 may be reversed, or they may be processed in parallel.

[0033] Thereafter, in S13, the control means 10 measures the inclination and height of the surface of the master mold 3 using the mold measurement sensor 9 to detect the state of the mold. Similarly, in S14, the control means 10 measures the inclination and height of the surface of the substrate 5 using the substrate measurement sensor 8 to detect the state of the substrate.

[0034] The measurement results obtained by the two sensors 8, 9 in S13 and S14 are used to correct the inclination of the mold holding part 4 so that the surfaces of the master mold 3 and substrate 5 are parallel, and to determine whether the combination of the loaded mold 3 and substrate 5 is correct.

[0035] In S15, the control means 10 judges whether imprinting is possible or whether error processing is necessary based on the measurement results of the two sensors and the status of tilt correction. If it is judged that imprinting is possible, the process proceeds to S16 and proceeds to the pattern formation process (imprint processing). On the other hand, if it is judged in S15 that imprinting is not possible, the process proceeds to S20 and stops the process as error processing. Such error processing includes a method of stopping the imprinting process or carrying out an inappropriate master mold 3 or substrate 5 from the imprinting apparatus 1. In addition, the imprinting apparatus 1 may display a detection result of detecting the presence or absence of a mesa portion or a mesa size measurement result, or may display an error that the imprinting process cannot be performed. The imprinting apparatus 1 may be equipped with a display device for this purpose. The operator can check the respective states of the master mold 3 and substrate 5 (blank mold / replica mold) carried into the imprinting apparatus 1 by the detection result, mesa size measurement result, and error display displayed on the display device. As a result, the imprint process can be resumed by removing (collecting) a mold or substrate that was mistakenly brought into the imprint apparatus 1 and returning it to the correct state (front or back), or by bringing another object into the imprint apparatus 1 in the correct state.

[0036] Then, in S17, the control means 10 causes the substrate that has been subjected to the imprint process to be carried out by the substrate transport device 12, and in S18, the mold is carried out from the imprint apparatus 1 by the mold transport device 11, thereby completing the process. The order of S17 and S18 may be reversed, or the processes may be performed in parallel. Also, if there is another substrate to be subjected to the imprint process, the process may be continued by returning from S17 to S12.

[0037] Next, an example of the imprint process performed in S16 will be described. In the imprint process, first, the supply unit 7 applies the imprint material to a desired position on the substrate 5 by discharging a predetermined amount of the imprint material from a discharge nozzle while moving the substrate holding unit 6 (application step).

[0038] Next, the substrate holding unit 6 moves so that the portion of the substrate 5 on which the imprint material is applied faces the concave-convex pattern of the mold 3. The mold holding unit 4 moves the mold 3 along the Z-axis direction toward the substrate 5, bringing the mold 3 and the substrate 5 into close proximity. In this state, the TTM scope 13 detects the alignment marks on the mold 3 and the alignment marks on the substrate 5, and the substrate holding unit 6 moves based on the detection result to adjust the overlapping position and adjust the relative positions of the two.

[0039] Next, the mold holding unit 4 moves so as to narrow the gap between the mold 3 and the substrate 5, and brings the imprint material on the substrate 5 into contact with the concave-convex pattern of the mold 3 (contact step).

[0040] Next, the illumination unit 2 irradiates light 17 to harden the imprint material (hardening step). Thereafter, after the imprint material has hardened, the mold holding unit 4 moves the mold 3 in a direction away from the substrate 5 to widen the gap between the mold 3 and the hardened imprint material (substrate 5), thereby separating it from the imprint material on the substrate 5 (mold releasing step). As a result, a hardened material layer having a pattern corresponding to the concave-convex pattern of the mold 3 is formed (transferred) on the imprint material on the substrate 5.

[0041] Next, a description will be given of problems that arise during mold measurement and substrate measurement performed in S13 or S14. In the following description, mold measurement in S13 will be taken as an example, but since the same applies to substrate measurement in S14, a description will be omitted.

[0042] 3 is a diagram for explaining an example of the shape of the mold 3 used in the imprint apparatus 1 and the pattern shape of the surface. Here, an example of a mold 3 provided with a mesa portion that is a convex shape protruding from the surrounding base portion is shown. The height of the mesa portion provided on the mold 3 is about several tens of μm from the base portion, the length and width of the mesa portion region (pattern region) are several mm to several tens of mm, and an uneven pattern is provided on the surface of the protruding mesa portion. The surface of the mesa portion may be provided with an uneven pattern 19 of several tens of nm to several hundreds of nm as shown in FIG. 3(A), or with uneven groove portions 20 of about several hundreds of μm as shown in FIG. 3(B).

[0043] Although FIG. 3 shows the mold 3 having a mesa portion and the substrate 5 having no mesa portion, the imprint apparatus 1 can also use a mold 3 having no mesa portion and a substrate 5 having a mesa portion.

[0044] Figures 4 to 6 are diagrams showing how the surface of the master mold is measured using the mold measurement sensor 9. Figure 4 is a diagram showing how measurement is performed at a position determined by the linear search method, and Figure 5 is a diagram showing how measurement is performed at a position determined by the binary search method. Figure 6(A) is a diagram showing how a mesa portion provided with a groove portion 20 as shown in Figure 3(B) is measured at a position determined by the binary search method, and Figure 6(B) is a diagram showing how a mesa portion provided with a groove portion 20 as shown in Figure 3(B) is measured at a position determined by the linear search method.

[0045] When the control means 10 also obtains the measurement result of the height of the master mold surface by the mold measurement sensor 9, it can compare the result with a predetermined threshold value to determine whether the position is a mesa area or a base area other than the mesa area. Note that it is preferable to set this predetermined threshold value to a value that will not be determined to be a non-mesa area even if an area on the concave-convex pattern 19 of tens to hundreds of nm of the mesa area is measured.

[0046] When obtaining the end position of the mesa portion of the mold 3 at a position determined using the linear search method, measurements are performed at a predetermined measurement interval from the front side of the position where the mesa portion is assumed to be present. If the mold 3 has a mesa portion, the end position of the mesa portion is detected by a large change in the measurement distance as shown in FIG. 4(A), and the measurement process is terminated. If the mold 3 does not have a mesa portion, the measurement process is continued up to a position where it is determined that the mesa portion does not exist for certain (for example, the center position of the mold 3), as shown in FIG. 4(B). In other words, if the linear search method is used and there is no mesa portion in the mold 3, the mesa portion will be comprehensively searched for, and the measurement process will take a long time.

[0047] There is also a method of acquiring the end position of the mesa part of the mold 3 at a position determined by a binary search method in which a measurement is made at a position near the middle, and the search range is successively reduced according to the measurement result until the end position is found. In this case, for example, a measurement is made at a position where the mesa part is definitely present (with the center of the mesa part as an end point), and then a measurement is made at a position where the mesa part is definitely present, and then the search range is successively reduced according to the measurement result. The numbers in FIG. 5 indicate the measurement order. When acquiring the end position of the mesa part by the binary search method, if the measured coordinate is the mesa part, the next measurement point is measured so as to be farther away from the center of the mesa part, and if the measured coordinate is an area other than the mesa part, the next measurement point is measured so as to be closer to the center of the mesa part. The measurement is continued until the distance between the coordinate where the mesa part is measured and the coordinate where the area other than the mesa part is measured becomes less than a predetermined threshold value (such as 1 mm), and thus the end position of the mesa part can be accurately detected. Then, if the end positions of the mesa part can be identified in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, respectively, the mesa size can be acquired. If it is known that the mesa portion is symmetrical, it is sufficient to measure only one side.

[0048] When mold 3 has a mesa portion, it is possible to obtain the end position of the mesa portion of mold 3 by measuring at multiple positions as shown in Fig. 5(A). Also, when mold 3 does not have a mesa portion, it is possible to confirm that a mesa portion has not been formed by measuring only two points as shown in Fig. 5(B), which makes it possible to greatly shorten the measurement time.

[0049] Incidentally, the mesa portion of the mold 3 may have a groove portion 20 with an unevenness of about several hundred μm as shown in Fig. 3(B) as described above. When such a groove portion is provided, if measurement is performed at a position determined by a linear search method as shown in Fig. 6(B), the end position of the mesa portion can be detected without any problem.

[0050] When performing measurements at positions determined by a binary search method as in FIG. 6(A), there is a possibility that the measurement position will be a groove. If the depth of such a groove 20 exceeds a predetermined threshold, the position may be determined to be a non-mesa area even though it is a mesa area (measurement fraud). In such a case, there is a possibility that the corner 23 between positions 3 and 6 in FIG. 6(A) may be erroneously determined to be the end position of the mesa area. This may result in the size of the mesa area being determined to be incorrect.

[0051] Therefore, in this embodiment, the binary search method is used to determine whether the end position of the mesa portion has been correctly measured, and if it is determined that the measurement has not been correctly performed, a recovery process is performed to measure the end position of the mesa portion provided on the mold or substrate.

[0052] The recovery process when measuring the end position of the mesa portion in this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 7. The process of Fig. 7 is performed in S13 of Fig. 2. The process shown in the flowchart of Fig. 7 is executed by the control means 10 by controlling each part in an integrated manner.

[0053] In S70, the control means 10 acquires mesa information of the mold 3 to be carried into the imprint apparatus 1. Specifically, this corresponds to design information such as the presence or absence of a mesa portion in the mold 3 to be used, the position of the mesa portion, and the size of the mesa portion, and is acquired from outside or a storage unit.

[0054] In S71, the control means 10 measures the distance to the mold surface with the mold measurement sensor 9 at a position determined by the binary search method, and identifies the presence or absence of a mesa portion and, if a mesa portion is present, the end position of the mesa portion. When determining the measurement position by the binary search method, the end position of the mesa portion can be identified in a shorter time by determining the measurement start position using the mesa information acquired in S70.

[0055] In S72, the control means 10 compares the measurement result of the mesa portion specified in S71 with the mesa information acquired in S70, and judges whether the measurement result of the mesa portion matches the mesa information (whether remeasurement is necessary or not). If they match, the measurement is deemed successful (no error in the measurement) and the process ends. In other words, remeasurement is not necessary and the process ends. On the other hand, if it is judged that they do not match, the measurement has not been performed correctly and remeasurement is necessary, so the process proceeds to S73.

[0056] Typically, the difference between the length and width of the pattern area formed in the mesa portion is about several mm to several tens of mm. Therefore, the threshold value for the deviation between the design value and the measured value for determining an error can be set to about 0.1 mm or 1 mm. Note that these threshold values ​​must have a margin, taking into account the placement error of the master mold 3 and the holder of the substrate 5, the manufacturing error of the mesa portion, and the measurement accuracy of the measurement sensor.

[0057] In S73, the control means 10 causes the mold measurement sensor 9 to remeasure the distance to the mold surface at the position determined by the linear search method, and identifies the end position of the mesa portion. Specifically, a search is performed at a predetermined measurement interval toward the center of the mesa portion from an area where the mesa portion is definitely not present until the end of the mesa is found. Note that the position at which measurement using the linear search method in S73 begins can also be determined using the mesa information acquired in S70, and measurement time can be shortened by beginning measurement near the mesa end determined from the mesa information.

[0058] In S73, the control means 10 compares the measurement result of the mesa portion specified in S73 with the mesa information acquired in S70, judges whether the measurement result of the mesa portion matches the mesa information, and ends the process if they match. On the other hand, if they do not match again, the process proceeds to S75, and there is a possibility that a mold that was not scheduled to be carried in has been carried in, and therefore ends the process as an error state.

[0059] That is, in this embodiment, only when the end position at the position where the binary search method is used does not match the design position, re-measurement is performed at the position where the linear search method is used. This makes it possible to measure the end position of the mesa portion at high speed, and even if the mold has a groove, it is possible to prevent measurement errors due to measurement fraud, measure the mesa of the mold with high accuracy, and check the state of the mesa portion.

[0060] Second embodiment In this embodiment, the differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described, and a description of the same parts will be omitted.

[0061] In the first embodiment, an example was described in which, when it is determined in S72 that the end position at the position obtained using the binary search method does not match the design position, measurements are taken at a predetermined measurement interval toward the center of the mesa portion in S73 from an area where the mesa portion is definitely not present until the end of the mesa is found.

[0062] In this embodiment, when measurements are performed using the linear search method in S73, measurements are performed at fine measurement intervals from the position where the mesa edge was erroneously detected due to measurement error in S72, i.e., where it is determined that the measurement was not performed correctly, toward the area that is not the mesa portion.

[0063] Fig. 8 is a flowchart according to this embodiment, which differs from Fig. 7 in that a step S80 is included before S73. In S80, the control means 10 identifies a position at a distance where it is determined that there is no mesa portion despite the fact that there is a mesa portion, based on the distance used in identifying the end position in S71 and the mesa information acquired in S70, and determines that position as the start position for remeasurement.

[0064] In S73, the control means 10 performs measurements at a predetermined measurement interval from the start position determined in S80 toward the end position of the mesa portion, and identifies the end position (FIG. 9). Specifically, a predetermined range is measured, and if multiple measurements indicate that the area is not a mesa portion, the end position of the mesa portion is identified from the results.

[0065] As a result, according to this embodiment, the end position of the mesa portion can be measured at high speed, and even if the mold has a groove, erroneous measurement due to measurement fraud can be prevented, and the mesa of the mold, that is, the state of the mesa portion can be measured with high accuracy. Furthermore, depending on the conditions of the measurement range and the coordinates of the erroneously detected point of the mesa edge, the time required for the recovery process can be shortened compared to the first embodiment. For example, when a wide area of ​​a non-mesa area is measured, the recovery process of the first embodiment takes a significantly long time. However, when a narrow area of ​​a non-mesa area is measured, the first embodiment is more likely to require a shorter recovery process, so the control of the first embodiment and the control of the second embodiment may be switched depending on the conditions of the measurement range obtained from the mesa information.

[0066] (Third embodiment) In the first and second embodiments, an example was described in which design information such as the presence or absence of a mesa portion, the position of the mesa portion, and the size of the mesa portion can be acquired as mesa information in S71. In the present embodiment, a case will be described in which position information of the groove portion 20 of the mold can be acquired in addition to the above information. The following description will focus on the differences from the first embodiment, and a description of the similarities will be omitted.

[0067] In S70 of FIG. 7, design information such as the presence or absence of a mesa portion, the position of the mesa portion, the size of the mesa portion, and the position information of the groove portion 20 is obtained as mesa information.

[0068] In S71, the control means 10 measures the distance to the mold surface with the mold measurement sensor 9 at a position determined by the binary search method, and identifies the presence or absence of a mesa portion and, if a mesa portion is present, the end position of the mesa portion. At this time, when determining the measurement position by the binary search method, the mesa information and groove portion 20 information acquired in S70 are used. Then, in the case of position 24 where groove portion 20 is assumed to be present at the measurement position, it is determined that the measurement will be performed at position 25 where there is no groove and is closest to the measurement position (FIG. 10). This can further reduce the possibility of measurement fraud occurring.

[0069] Furthermore, if the information about the grooves 20 can be effectively used as in this embodiment, it may be possible to perform highly accurate measurement without performing a retry process as shown in FIG.

[0070] (Regarding the manufacture of goods) The pattern of the cured material formed using the imprint apparatus 1 described above is used permanently on at least a part of various articles, or temporarily when manufacturing various articles.

[0071] The article is an electric circuit element, an optical element, a MEMS, a recording element, a sensor, a mold, etc. Examples of the electric circuit element include volatile or non-volatile semiconductor memories such as DRAM, SRAM, flash memory, and MRAM, and semiconductor elements such as LSI, CCD, image sensor, and FPGA. Examples of the mold include a mold for imprinting.

[0072] The pattern of the cured product is used as it is as at least a part of a component of the article, or is used temporarily as a resist mask, which is removed after etching or ion implantation in a substrate processing step.

[0073] Next, a method for manufacturing an article will be described with reference to Fig. 12, in which a pattern is formed on a substrate by an imprinting device, the substrate on which the pattern is formed is processed, and an article is manufactured from the processed substrate. First, as shown in Fig. 12(a), a substrate 1z such as a silicon wafer having a workpiece 2z such as an insulator formed on its surface is prepared, and then an imprinting material 3z is applied to the surface of the workpiece 2z by an inkjet method or the like. Here, a state in which the imprinting material 3z in the form of multiple droplets is applied onto the substrate is shown.

[0074] As shown in Fig. 12(b), the imprinting mold 4z is placed so that the side on which the concave-convex pattern is formed faces the imprinting material 3z on the substrate. As shown in Fig. 12(c), the substrate 1z to which the imprinting material 3z has been applied is brought into contact with the mold 4z, and pressure is applied. The imprinting material 3z fills the gap between the mold 4z and the workpiece 2z. When light is irradiated through the mold 4z in this state as energy for hardening, the imprinting material 3z hardens.

[0075] 12(d), after the imprint material 3z is cured, the mold 4z and the substrate 1z are separated, and a pattern of the cured product of the imprint material 3z is formed on the substrate 1z. In this cured product pattern, the recesses of the mold correspond to the protrusions of the cured product, and the protrusions of the mold correspond to the recesses of the cured product, i.e., the recessed and protruding pattern of the mold 4z is transferred to the imprint material 3z.

[0076] As shown in Fig. 12(e), when etching is performed using the pattern of the cured material as an etching-resistant mask, the portion of the surface of the workpiece 2z where there is no cured material or where only a thin layer remains is removed, forming a groove 5z. As shown in Fig. 12(f), when the pattern of the cured material is removed, an article having grooves 5z formed on the surface of the workpiece 2z can be obtained. Here, the pattern of the cured material is removed, but it may be used as an interlayer insulating film included in a semiconductor element or the like, that is, a component of an article, without being removed after processing.

[0077] The method for manufacturing an article also includes a step of forming a pattern on an imprint material supplied (applied) to a substrate using the above-mentioned imprint apparatus (imprint method), and a step of processing the substrate on which the pattern has been formed in the above step. Furthermore, the manufacturing method includes other well-known steps (oxidation, film formation, deposition, doping, planarization, etching, resist stripping, dicing, bonding, packaging, etc.). It can be said that the method for manufacturing an article of this embodiment is more advantageous than conventional methods in at least one of the performance, quality, productivity, and production cost of the article.

[0078] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0079] 1 Imprinting device 3. Mold 5 Substrate 8 Substrate measurement sensor 9 Mold measurement sensor

Claims

1. An imprinting apparatus for performing an imprinting process using a member having a pattern to form a pattern of an imprint material on a member other than the member, a measuring means for measuring at least one surface of the member having the pattern and the other member; a control unit that controls the measurement unit and acquires mesa information of a member to be carried into the imprint apparatus, The control means controls the measurement means to perform measurement by a binary search method using the acquired mesa information; and the control means determines whether or not remeasurement by the measurement means is necessary based on a measurement result of the measurement means measuring the surface of the component at a position according to the binary search method and the acquired mesa information.

1. An imprint apparatus comprising:

2. when it is determined that the measurement of the surface of the member has not been performed correctly using the binary search method, the control means controls the measurement means to re-measure the surface of the member sequentially at a predetermined measurement interval. The imprint apparatus according to claim 1 .

3. 2. The imprint apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines a position at which the re-measurement is to start depending on a position at which the measurement by the binary search method was not performed correctly.

4. 4. The imprint apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines a measurement start position of the measurement unit using the binary search method based on the acquired mesa information.

5. An imprint apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the mesa information includes at least one of the presence or absence of a mesa portion in a member that is convex relative to its surroundings, the position of the mesa portion, the position of a groove provided in the mesa portion, and the size of the mesa portion.

6. 6. The imprint apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the measuring device is a distance measuring device that measures a distance to a surface of the member.

7. The imprinting apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that when the control means determines that the measurement using the binary search method is successful, the control means controls the imprinting process to be performed in which a pattern of imprinting material is formed on the other member.

8. forming a pattern on the other member by the imprint apparatus according to claim 1 ; a step of processing the other member on which the pattern is formed; A method for producing an article, comprising the steps of:

9. preparing the other member on which a pattern is formed by the imprint apparatus according to claim 1 ; performing an imprint process for forming a pattern on a substrate using the other member; processing the substrate on which the pattern is formed; A method for producing an article, comprising the steps of:

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