Microstructure transfer device and microstructure transfer method

Abstract

Provided is a fine structure transfer device and a fine structure transfer method that are excellent in mass productivity and can reduce the installation area of ​​the device. [Solution] The microstructure transfer device 1 has an imprint mechanism 2 and an inkjet mechanism 4, and the imprint mechanism 2 imprints a pattern onto the photocurable resin applied to multiple locations on a substrate 21 by the inkjet mechanism 4 in a step and repeat manner in a vacuum state.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a fine structure transfer device and a fine structure transfer method for inversely transferring a fine structure onto a substrate using a mold having a fine concave-convex pattern on the surface, the concave-convex pattern being on the order of nanometers or the like. [Background technology]

[0002] Ultraviolet / electron beam lithography, a microfabrication technology used in exposure equipment and the like in semiconductor manufacturing, requires expensive equipment and a complex process, and there are problems with improving the time and cost required for manufacturing. However, with the advancement of nanoimprint lithography (hereinafter referred to as NIL) technology, which directly transfers a mold (also called a stamper or template) with a fine uneven pattern formed therein to a resin material, etc., fine patterns on the order of 10 nm to several hundreds of nm can be easily realized using simple equipment and processes, and this has given it an advantage in terms of equipment price and mass production costs. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a manufacturing method for a wide nanoimprint roll for a roll-type imprinting device, which involves enlarging the transfer area by repeating a transfer operation using a transfer medium having a pattern transfer layer of a small-area master on which a positive (or negative) pattern of sub-wavelength structures is formed, and describes the use of a narrow nanoimprint roll as the transfer medium, in which the positive (or negative) pattern surface of the master is directly pressed and transferred onto an ultraviolet-curable or electron-beam-curable polysiloxane layer, and then a cured polysiloxane layer having a negative (or positive) pattern of the sub-wavelength structures formed by irradiating the roll with ultraviolet light or an electron beam is formed on the roll surface.

[0003] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 discloses that a double-sided imprinting apparatus has a pattern transfer mechanism consisting of at least an upper surface side stamper device supported by a lifting mechanism, and a lower surface side stamper device and a transferred object peeling device fixed to a moving table placed on a guide rail, and that the moving table can reciprocate on the guide rail by a moving drive mechanism, thereby allowing the lower surface side stamper device and the transferred object peeling device to move alternately to positions facing the upper surface side stamper device, with the position of the upper surface side stamper device as the center. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2007-203576 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2011-150780 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, neither Patent Document 1 nor Patent Document 2 gives any consideration to reducing the installation area of ​​a fine structure transfer device equipped with an inkjet mechanism and an imprint mechanism.

[0006] Therefore, the present invention provides a fine structure transfer apparatus and a fine structure transfer method that are excellent in mass productivity and can reduce the installation area of ​​the apparatus. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a micropattern transfer device that includes an imprint mechanism and an inkjet mechanism, and the imprint mechanism imprints a pattern in a step-and-repeat manner in a vacuum state onto a photocurable resin that has been applied to a plurality of locations on a substrate by the inkjet mechanism. The micropattern transfer device further includes a stage that carries the substrate and a micropattern transfer device disposed above the stage. and fixed to the base.a gantry having a nozzle and a nozzle hole, the inkjet mechanism being movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry in a horizontal plane and movable in a Z direction; the imprint mechanism having an imprint head in a vacuum chamber and being movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry in a horizontal plane and movable in a Z direction; the inkjet mechanism is disposed on the opposite side of the stage, The stage is configured to be movable in a Y direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the gantry within a horizontal plane and to be movable in a rotational direction. The imprint head includes a curing light irradiator and an observation camera above the vacuum chamber, and the light irradiated from the curing light irradiator and the observation camera are arranged so as not to interfere with each other. In a vacuum state, the curing light irradiator irradiates the photocurable resin with ultraviolet light. It is characterized by:

[0008] Another aspect of the microstructure transfer device according to the present invention is a microstructure transfer device comprising a first imprint mechanism, a second imprint mechanism, and an inkjet mechanism, and wherein the first imprint mechanism imprints one pattern at a predetermined position of the photocurable resin applied to the plurality of positions on a substrate by the inkjet mechanism in a step-and-repeat manner under a vacuum state, and the second imprint mechanism imprints the one pattern or a pattern different from the one pattern at a predetermined position of the photocurable resin applied to the plurality of positions in a step-and-repeat manner under a vacuum state, and wherein the microstructure transfer device includes a stage on which the substrate is mounted and a microstructure transfer device disposed above the stage. and fixed to the base. a gantry having a nozzle, the inkjet mechanism being movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry and in a Z direction within a horizontal plane; the inkjet mechanism is disposed on the opposite side of the stage, The first and second imprint mechanisms have imprint heads in vacuum chambers and are configured to be movable in an X direction along the longitudinal direction of the gantry and in a Z direction in a horizontal plane, and the stage is configured to be movable in a Y direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the gantry and to be movable in a rotational direction in the horizontal plane. The imprint head includes a curing light irradiator and an observation camera above the vacuum chamber, and the light irradiated from the curing light irradiator and the observation camera are arranged so as not to interfere with each other. In a vacuum state, the curing light irradiator irradiates the photocurable resin with ultraviolet light. It is characterized by:

[0010] Another aspect of the microstructure transfer device of the present invention is characterized in that the imprint head is provided with a curing light irradiator above the vacuum chamber, and in the vacuum state, the curing light irradiator irradiates ultraviolet light onto the photocurable resin.

[0012] In another aspect of the microstructure transfer device according to the present invention, the imprint head has a buffer member inside the vacuum chamber, and the replica held by the buffer member is pressed against a photocurable resin applied to a plurality of locations on the substrate by the inkjet mechanism, pieces The method is characterized by forming a pattern on one mold.

[0013] A method for transferring a fine structure according to the present invention includes an imprint mechanism, an inkjet mechanism, a stage for mounting a substrate, and a gantry arranged above the stage and fixed to a base, the inkjet mechanism being movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry in a horizontal plane and movable in a Z direction, the imprint mechanism having an imprint head within a vacuum chamber and being movable in an X direction along the longitudinal direction of the gantry in a horizontal plane and movable in a Z direction, the imprint mechanism being arranged on the opposite side of the stage to the inkjet mechanism, the stage being movable in a Y direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the gantry in the horizontal plane and movable in a rotational direction, the imprint head being provided above the vacuum chamber, the light irradiated from the curing light irradiator and the observation camera being arranged without interfering with each other, and the imprint head being provided with a curing light irradiator and an observation camera above the vacuum chamber, the light irradiated from the curing light irradiator and the observation camera being arranged without interfering with each other, and the curing light irradiator is rotated by the curing light irradiator in a vacuum state. Light A method for transferring a fine structure using a fine structure transfer device that irradiates a curable resin with ultraviolet light, characterized in that the inkjet mechanism applies the photocurable resin to multiple locations on a substrate, and the imprint mechanism imprints a pattern in the photocurable resin applied to the multiple locations on the substrate in a step-and-repeat manner in a vacuum state.

[0015] Another aspect of the microstructure transfer method according to the present invention is characterized in that a curing light irradiator provided in the imprint head above the vacuum chamber irradiates the photocurable resin with ultraviolet light in the vacuum state.

[0017] In another aspect of the microstructure transfer method according to the present invention, the imprint head has a buffer member inside the vacuum chamber, and the replica held on the buffer member is pressed against a photocurable resin applied to a plurality of locations on a substrate by the inkjet mechanism, pieces The method is characterized by forming a pattern on one mold. Effect of the Invention

[0018] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a fine structure transfer apparatus and a fine structure transfer method that are excellent in mass productivity and can reduce the installation area of ​​the apparatus. Problems, configurations and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the appearance of a fine pattern transfer device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view of the micropattern transfer device shown in FIG. 1, seen from the opposite direction. FIG. [Diagram 3] 2 is a top view showing a schematic configuration of the micropattern transfer device shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a main configuration including the imprint head shown in FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of an imprint head constituting the fine structure transfer device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] 6 is a configuration diagram of an imprint head constituting the fine structure transfer device according to the first embodiment, which is different from FIG. 5. [Figure 7] 5 is an explanatory diagram of the imprint operation of the imprint head shown in FIG. 4. [Figure 8]2 is a flowchart showing an operation flow of the micropattern transfer device shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a replica creation process flow. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a pattern creation process flow. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when creating an individual replica from an individual mold. [Figure 12] 13 is an explanatory diagram of an operation when a pattern is produced on a substrate using an individual replica. FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the appearance of a micropattern transfer device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when creating an individual replica from an individual mold. [Figure 15] 13 is an explanatory diagram of an operation when a pattern is produced on a substrate using an individual replica. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] In this specification, the term "substrate" includes, for example, a glass substrate or a semiconductor substrate such as a wafer. Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. EXAMPLES

[0021] FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a fine pattern transfer device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the fine pattern transfer device shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the opposite direction. As shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, the microstructure transfer device 1 according to this embodiment includes an imprint mechanism 2 having an imprint head 3, an inkjet mechanism 4 as a coating device having an inkjet head 5, a gantry 6, a stage 7 (Yθ axis), a heater 8, a spin coater 9, an aligner 10, a robot 11, and a substrate cassette 12. Here, the stage 7 (Yθ axis) is configured to be movable in the Y direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the gantry 6 in a horizontal plane, as shown by the arrow in Fig. 1, and to be displaceable in the rotation direction (θ). Also, the imprint mechanism 2 is configured to be movable in the X direction along the longitudinal direction of the gantry 6 in a horizontal plane, as shown by the arrow in Fig. 1, and to be movable in the Z direction. Similarly, the inkjet mechanism 4 (hereinafter may be referred to as a coating device) is configured to be movable in the X direction along the longitudinal direction of the gantry 6 in a horizontal plane, as shown by the arrow in Fig. 1. Move to The imprint mechanism 2 and the inkjet mechanism 4 are configured to be movable in both the XY direction and the Z direction. In other words, the imprint mechanism 2 and the inkjet mechanism 4 are capable of freely moving in the XY direction in cooperation with the stage 7. Note that, in this embodiment, an example is shown in which the inkjet mechanism 4 has three inkjet heads 5, but the number of inkjet heads 5 is not limited to this. For example, the number of inkjet heads 5 can be set to a desired value based on the material such as the replica agent 23 (FIG. 5) or the pattern agent 25 (FIG. 12).

[0022] FIG. 3 is a top view showing a schematic configuration of the microstructure transfer device shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the spin coater 9, the aligner 10, and the heater 8 located above the aligner 10 in the Z direction constitute the pretreatment section 13. Here, the pretreatment process will be described. When the substrate 21 (FIG. 4) is carried in from the substrate cassette 12, a primer or the like is applied to the surface of the substrate 21 by the spin coater 9 in order to improve adhesion between the substrate 21 and the replica agent 23 or the pattern agent 25. Thereafter, the primer is heated and dried by the heater 8. The pretreatment process is completed up to this point, and the pretreated substrate 21 is roughly adjusted in position by the aligner 10, the pretreated substrate 21 is positioned (aligned) by mark detection to be described later, and the inkjet head 5 constituting the inkjet mechanism 4 applies the replica agent 23 to a predetermined position on the surface of the pretreated substrate 21. The pretreated substrate 21 (a glass substrate may be referred to as a replica base hereinafter) to which the replica agent 23 has been applied is heated and dried by the heater 8. The pre-processed substrate 21 coated with the dried replica agent 23 is imprinted onto a piece-shaped mold substrate 24 (FIG. 11) by an imprint head 3 constituting the imprint mechanism 2, whereby a replica 22 obtained by inversely transferring the pattern of the mold in the piece-shaped mold substrate 24 is obtained by the imprint head 3. The details of the imprint operation will be described later.

[0023] In this embodiment, the configuration including the spin coater 9 and the heater 8 constituting the pretreatment section 13 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when a substrate 21 that has been subjected to a pretreatment in advance, that is, a substrate 21 that has been coated with the above-mentioned primer on its surface and dried by heating, is carried in, the spin coater 9 is not necessarily required. This is because the heating and drying of the substrate 21 after the primer is applied by the heater 8 is performed to remove or evaporate the solvent contained in the primer. In addition, as for the heater 8, if the adhesion of the photocurable resin used as the replica agent 23 or the pattern agent 25 to the substrate 21 is improved, the application of the primer becomes unnecessary, so the spin coater 9 and the heater 8 are not necessarily required. In addition, if the photocurable resin does not contain a solvent, the heating and drying by the heater 8 is not necessary, so naturally the heater 8 is not required. The heater 8 may be a degassing station. That is, a configuration may be adopted in which a vacuum chamber and a vacuum pump (not shown) are provided, and preliminary degassing (preliminary removal of air bubbles) is performed before the imprint operation in accordance with the characteristics of the photocurable resin applied onto the substrate 21 by the inkjet mechanism 4.

[0024] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a main configuration including the imprint head shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 4, the microstructure transfer device 1 according to this embodiment includes an imprint head X-axis linear guide 15 provided on a gantry 6, a linear motor 14, a Z-axis actuator 16, an imprint head linear guide 17, a vacuum chamber linear guide 18, and an imprint head 3. The imprint head 3 includes a vacuum chamber 31, a buffer member 32, an inner cylinder 33, a spring 34 having one end fixed to a part of the imprint head X-axis linear guide 15 and the other end fixed to the upper end of the vacuum chamber 31, a glass window 35, and a seal member 36 provided at the lower end of the vacuum chamber 31 and in contact with and sealing the substrate 21.

[0025] The vacuum chamber 31 is formed in a cylindrical shape or a hollow prismatic shape. However, a cylindrical shape is preferable. A seal member 36 is provided at the lower end of the vacuum chamber 31 and contacts and seals the substrate 21 and is made of an elastic body or a cushioning material. For example, it may be an O-ring, an elastic body made of silicone rubber, or the like, and may be any material that contacts the substrate 21 and has a sealing function. For example, when the pattern formed on the individual mold is at the nano level, the parallelism and flatness of the buffer member 32 and stage 7 that come into contact with the pattern are important for the imprint head 3. For this reason, the buffer member 32 is made of, for example, an elastic body or air (gas phase), which enables it to conform to the pattern formed on the individual mold. Examples of materials for the buffer member 32 include elastic bodies such as silicone rubber or latex, or hollow bodies (air cushions) using these materials.

[0026] The buffer member 32 and the glass window 35 are made of a material that transmits light, and the irradiated light from the curing light irradiator 19 is, for example, ultraviolet light (UV), which passes through the glass window 35 and the buffer member 32 and is irradiated onto the photocurable resin, which is the replica agent 23 or the pattern agent 25.

[0027] The vacuum chamber 31 is evacuated by a vacuum pump (not shown) and is usually kept at atmospheric pressure or lower. Preferably, the pressure is kept at several thousand Pa or lower according to the material properties of the replica agent 23 or the pattern agent 25. In this case, when the imprint head 3 imprints (presses the imprint head 3 against) the photocurable resin, which is the replica agent 23 or the pattern agent 25, the degree of vacuum is kept such that air bubbles are prevented from being mixed into the photocurable resin. However, air bubbles may be included in the photocurable resin, so it is preferable to check for the presence or absence of air bubbles. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 4, an observation camera 20 is installed. Naturally, the curing light irradiator 19 and the observation camera 20 are arranged so that the irradiation light from the curing light irradiator 19 and the observation camera 20 do not interfere with each other. The degree of vacuum without the inclusion of air bubbles may be confirmed by a pressure sensor (not shown). One side of the vacuum chamber linear guide 18 is fixed to the imprint head linear guide 17, and the other side is fixed to the outer surface of the vacuum chamber 31 that constitutes the imprint head 3. This makes it possible to prevent the imprint head 3 from wobbling or tilting, even when the imprint head 3 is moved in the Z direction by the Z-axis actuator 16.

[0028] 4, the imprint head 3 can be moved in the depth direction, i.e., in the front-to-rear direction relative to the drawing (the above-mentioned X direction), by a linear motor 14 and an imprint head X-axis linear guide 15. The imprint head 3 can also be moved in the Z direction by a Z-axis actuator 16.

[0029] Fig. 5 is a configuration diagram of the imprint head 3 constituting the microstructure transfer device 1 according to this embodiment. In the example shown in Fig. 5, a state is shown in which the replica agent 23 is applied to the pattern portion of the piece-shaped mold substrate 24 by the inkjet head 5. As described above, the replica agent 23 is a photocurable resin, and when the piece-shaped mold substrate 24 is a glass substrate, the curing light irradiator 19 and the observation camera 20 are arranged below the piece-shaped mold substrate 24. In other words, the curing light irradiator 19 and the observation camera 20 may be arranged on the opposite side of the imprint head 3 with the piece-shaped mold substrate 24, which is a glass substrate, sandwiched therebetween.

[0030] Fig. 6 is a configuration diagram of the imprint head 3 constituting the microstructure transfer device 1 according to this embodiment, which is different from Fig. 5. The example shown in Fig. 6 shows a state in which the replica agent 23 is applied to the pattern portion of the piece-shaped mold substrate 24 by the inkjet head 5. The difference from Fig. 5 is that the piece-shaped mold substrate 24 is a semiconductor substrate such as a wafer, and is not made of a material that transmits light. Therefore, the curing light irradiator 19 and the observation camera 20 cannot be arranged below the piece-shaped mold substrate 24, and are therefore arranged in the inner cylinder 33 so as not to interfere with each other.

[0031] Next, the imprinting operation will be described. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the imprinting operation of the imprinting head 3 shown in FIG. 4. In FIG. 7, the operation of taking a replica from a piece mold will be mainly described. As shown in the left diagram of FIG. 7, first, the imprinting head 3 is aligned with respect to the piece mold substrate 24 on which the replica agent 23, which is a photocurable resin, has been applied in advance to the pattern region of the piece mold substrate 24 by the inkjet head 5, and the vacuum chamber 31 constituting the inkjet head 5 is pressed against the piece mold substrate 24 via the seal member 36. Thereafter, the inside of the vacuum chamber 31 is evacuated by a vacuum pump (not shown), and the left diagram of FIG. 7 shows a state in which the degree of vacuum is set to a degree that does not cause air bubbles to be mixed into the replica agent 23, which is a photocurable resin.

[0032] In the central diagram of FIG. 7, the buffer member 32, the glass window 35, and the inner cylinder 33 constituting the imprint head 3 are pressed down integrally, and the surface of the buffer member 32 is pressed (stamped) against the replica agent 23 which is a photocurable resin. In this state, the curing light irradiator 19 irradiates the replica agent 23 which is a photocurable resin with ultraviolet light (UV) to cure the replica agent 23. Here, a control unit (not shown) controls the curing light irradiator 19 so that the integrated light amount of the ultraviolet light (UV) irradiated by the curing light irradiator 19 is an illuminance or irradiation time that can cure the replica agent 23 which is a photocurable resin. The control unit (not shown) is realized by, for example, a processor such as a CPU (not shown), a ROM for storing various programs, a RAM for temporarily storing data in the calculation process, and a storage device such as an external storage device, and the processor such as a CPU reads and executes various programs stored in the ROM, and stores the calculation results which are the execution results in the RAM or the external storage device.

[0033] The right diagram in Fig. 7 shows a state in which the vacuum chamber 31 constituting the imprint head 3 has been returned to atmospheric pressure, and the buffer member 32, glass window 35, and inner cylinder 33 constituting the imprint head 3 have been raised together. At this time, a replica (individual piece replica 22) to which the pattern of the individual piece mold has been inversely transferred is attached (held) on the surface of the buffer member 32. Note that due to the characteristics of the release agent, by controlling the load control timing, rising speed, and load for starting to rise the imprint head 3 together at the same time as the vacuum chamber 31 starts to be returned to atmospheric pressure, the release property is improved by the effect of the pressure rise to atmospheric pressure on the load of the spring 34 of the imprint head 3 and the downward load of the imprint head 3 (load reduction effect).

[0034] Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation flow of the fine structure transfer apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 8, in step S11, the inkjet head 5 constituting the fine structure transfer apparatus 1 applies the replica agent 23 to the individual mold. In step S12, the imprint head 3 that constitutes the microstructure transfer device 1 is pressed against the individual mold, and in this state, ultraviolet light (UV) is irradiated from the curing light irradiator 19 to the photocurable resin, which is the replica agent 23, to harden it, forming a replica (individual replica 22), also called a stamp mold, in which the pattern of the individual mold is inverted and transferred.

[0035] In step S13, a patterning agent 25, which is a photocurable resin, is applied to the entire surface or a part of the substrate 21. The application of the patterning agent 25 is performed by the inkjet head 5 constituting the fine pattern transfer device 1. In step S14, the replica (individual piece replica 22) formed on the imprint head 3 is repeatedly pressed against the position of the substrate 21 where the patterning agent 25 has been applied (step & repeat), and the patterning agent 25, which is a photocurable resin, is cured by ultraviolet light (UV) irradiation by the curing light irradiator 19. This operation is repeated until all patterns are arranged on the substrate 21. In step S15, the imprinted substrate is completed. That is, the substrate 21 on which the pattern of the piece mold is formed (the substrate 21 on which a plurality of piece mold patterns are formed) is completed.

[0036] Here, the replica creation process flow, which is steps S11 and S12 in Fig. 8, will be described with reference to Fig. 9. In Fig. 9, the upper diagram shows the process of applying a replica agent 23 (UV curable resin) to a mold that has undergone release treatment using an inkjet head 5. Here, "has undergone release treatment" means that a release agent has been applied in advance to the pattern formation portion (concave and recessed portion) of the mold, or a film of the release agent has been formed on the surface.

[0037] The middle diagram in FIG. 9 shows a process in which, in the state shown in the top diagram, a replica base (glass substrate) is pressed against a replica agent 23 (UV curable resin) and the replica agent 23 is cured by ultraviolet light (UV) irradiation from a curing light irradiator 19. The lower diagram in Figure 9 shows the process of obtaining a replica (individual replica) by hardening through exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light and then lifting the replica base (glass substrate) to separate it from the mold (individual mold).

[0038] 8 will be described with reference to Fig. 10. The upper diagram in Fig. 10 shows a process of applying a patterning agent 25 (UV curable resin) by an inkjet head 5 to a substrate 21 that has been treated with a primer or the like to improve adhesion. The middle diagram in Figure 10 shows a process in which a replica base (glass substrate) on which a replica (individual replica 22) has been formed is pressed against a patterning agent 25 (UV-curable resin) so that the replica (individual replica 22) faces the patterning agent 25 (UV-curable resin), and the patterning agent 25 (UV-curable resin) is cured by irradiating it with ultraviolet light (UV) using a curing light irradiator 19. The lower diagram in Figure 10 shows the process in which the replica base (glass substrate) and replica (individual replica 22) are raised to separate them from the hardened pattern agent 25 (UV-curable resin), thereby obtaining an inverted transferred pattern of the replica (corresponding to the pattern of the individual mold). FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when creating a piece replica from a piece mold. A replica agent 23 (UV curable resin) is applied to a pattern area of ​​a piece mold substrate 24, which is a piece mold shown in the left diagram of FIG. 11, by an inkjet head 5. In this case, alignment can be performed using a cross-shaped recognition mark. Thereafter, the imprint head 3 is placed on the piece mold substrate 24 on which the replica agent 23 (UV curable resin) is applied, and the vacuum chamber 31 constituting the imprint head 3 is placed in a vacuum state via a seal member 36. Thereafter, a stamp (imprint) operation is performed by pressing a buffer member 32 constituting the imprint head 3, and a replica is created. Of course, with the buffer member 32 constituting the imprint head 3 being stamped, the replica agent 23 (UV curable resin) in the pattern area is cured by ultraviolet light (UV) irradiation by a curing light irradiator 19, to obtain a replica (piece replica 22).

[0039] Fig. 12 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when a pattern is produced on a substrate using an individual piece replica. As shown in the left diagram of Fig. 12, for example, an 8-inch wafer or the like is used as substrate 21 to produce a substrate having the same pattern. As shown in the center of Fig. 12, a patterning agent 25 (UV curable resin) is applied to a substrate 21 by an inkjet head 5 so that the patterning agent 25 is arranged at a predetermined interval from one another. Then, as shown in the right diagram of Fig. 12, the imprint head 3 is repeatedly moved to the patterning agent 25 (UV curable resin) portion as indicated by the dotted arrow, that is, the imprint head 3 performs a stamp (imprint) operation on the patterning agent 25 (UV curable resin) portion in a step & repeat manner, to produce all patterns.

[0040] As described above, in this embodiment, an individual replica 22 is created from an individual mold, the imprint head 3 is step & repeated, and the individual replica 22 is imprinted on the pattern agent 25 (UV curable resin) applied on the substrate 21, thereby showing an example of forming the same pattern as the individual mold on one substrate 21, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, steps S11 and S12 shown in FIG. 8 are repeatedly executed, and a plurality of replicas of the same pattern are formed on a replica base (glass substrate) to stop at the creation of a plurality of replicas, and the plurality of replicas formed on the replica base (glass substrate) are transported to another stamper device (equipped with a vacuum chamber of the substrate size) different from the fine structure transfer device 1 according to this embodiment, and may be configured to form a pattern by batch transfer (batch vacuum imprinting).

[0041] Also, the size of the substrate 21 on which the above-mentioned individual mold is formed and the size of the substrate 21 on which the pattern is formed by transfer are desirably the same in consideration of the handling of the device, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the sizes of the substrates 21 may be different from each other. For example, the substrate 21 on which the individual mold is formed may be smaller than the size of the substrate 21 on which the pattern is formed by transfer.

[0042] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a fine structure transfer device and a fine structure transfer method that are excellent in mass productivity and can save the installation area of the device.

Example

[0043] FIG. 13 is an external perspective view of a fine structure transfer device 1a according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In this embodiment, the difference from the above-mentioned Embodiment 1 is that it includes a first imprint mechanism 2a having a first imprint head 3a and a second imprint mechanism 2b having a second imprint head 3b. The same components as those in Embodiment 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions will be omitted below.

[0044] The micropattern transfer apparatus 1a according to this embodiment includes a first imprint mechanism 2a having a first imprint head 3a, and a second imprint mechanism 2b having a second imprint head 3b. Arrow As indicated by the marks, the gantry 6 is movable in the X direction along the longitudinal direction of the gantry 6 in a horizontal plane, and is also movable in the Z direction.

[0045] FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when creating a piece replica from a piece mold. As shown in the left diagram of FIG. 14, the piece mold according to this embodiment has two pattern areas (pattern parts) with different pattern shapes. As shown in the center diagram of FIG. 14, a replica agent 23 is applied by an inkjet head 5 to two pattern areas (pattern parts) formed on a piece mold substrate 24. In the right diagram of FIG. 14, a replica (two piece replicas 22) having two different patterns can be obtained by imprinting in a vacuum state using a first imprint head 3a and a second imprint head 3b, and releasing the mold by returning the pressure to atmospheric pressure. Depending on the characteristics of the mold release agent, it is expected that the mold release can be improved by starting the mold release at the same time as the pressure is returned to atmospheric pressure, rather than by controlling the mold release after the vacuum state is completely returned to atmospheric pressure.

[0046] FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when a pattern is produced on a substrate using an individual piece replica. As shown in the left diagram of FIG. 15, a case where two different patterns are formed in pairs on an 8-inch wafer or the like is shown. In the center diagram of FIG. 15, a patterning agent 25 (UV curing resin) is applied to a substrate 21 by an inkjet head 5 so as to be arranged at a predetermined interval from each other. Thereafter, as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 15, the first imprint head 3a and the second imprint head 3b are repeatedly applied to the patterning agent 25 (UV curing resin) portion as shown by the dotted arrows, that is, the first imprint head 3a and the second imprint head 3b perform a stamp (imprint) operation on the patterning agent 25 (UV curing resin) portion in a step-and-repeat manner to produce all patterns. As a result, the first imprint head 3a and the second imprint head 3b are paired to form patterns in a step-and-repeat manner, thereby improving throughput.

[0047] Incidentally, because the mold pattern to be transferred is becoming increasingly finer or denser, when the first imprint head 3a and the second imprint head 3b are paired, it is expected that the total number of two different patterns formed on the substrate 21 will be restricted by the structure of the vacuum chamber 31 constituting the first imprint head 3a and the second imprint head 3b, i.e., if the vacuum chamber 31 is cylindrical, its diameter. In other words, it is expected that the total number of two different patterns obtained from one substrate 21 will decrease, and although the throughput will improve, the effect of mass production cannot be expected. Even in this case, it goes without saying that the installation area of ​​the fine pattern transfer apparatus 1a according to this embodiment can be reduced.

[0048] Therefore, as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 15, instead of the first imprint head 3a and the second imprint head 3b forming a pattern by step-and-repeat in pairs, during the period when the first imprint head 3a is forming a pattern by step-and-repeat, the second imprint head 3b moves in the X direction from the region where the stage 7 shown in FIG. 1 exists toward the inkjet mechanism 4 and waits. After the first imprint head 3a forms a pattern at a position where it should be arranged, the second imprint head 3b may be configured to form a pattern different from the above-mentioned pattern 1 by step-and-repeat. During the period when the second imprint head 3b is forming a pattern by step-and-repeat, the first imprint head 3a moves in the X direction from the region where the stage 7 shown in FIG. 1 exists toward the inkjet mechanism 4 and waits. Although this reduces the throughput somewhat, the effect of mass production can be achieved, and it goes without saying that even in this case, the installation area of ​​the micropattern transfer apparatus 1a according to this embodiment can be saved.

[0049] In other words, simultaneous stamping of two different patterns reduces the total number of two different patterns obtained from one substrate 21, and although throughput improves, it is not expected that the effects of mass production can be expected. However, by performing operations such as stamping two different patterns separately, it can contribute to higher resolution or higher density.

[0050] In addition, the microstructure transfer apparatus 1a of this embodiment is expected to be applicable to the manufacture of glasses when, for example, the pattern formed on the right eye side of the AR glasses is different from the pattern formed on the left eye side of the glasses.

[0051] It is also possible to use the same pattern as that of the first imprint mechanism 2a in the second imprint mechanism 2b for production, which can contribute to shortening the time required for production (improving throughput) or extending the time during which continuous production is possible without replacing damaged replicas (improving production efficiency).

[0052] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to improve the throughput in addition to the effect of the embodiment 1. Also, it is possible to form two mutually different patterns in multiple places.

[0053] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but includes various modified examples. For example, the above-described embodiment has been described in detail to easily explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to the embodiment having all of the described configurations. [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] 1, 1a...Microstructure transfer device 2. Imprint mechanism 2a…First imprint mechanism 2b…Second imprint mechanism 3…Imprint head 3a…First imprint head 3b…Second imprint head 4. Inkjet mechanism 5…Inkjet head 6. Gantry 7...Stage (Yθ axis) 8…Heater 9…Spin coater 10. Alaina 11. Robot 12...Substrate cassette 13...Pretreatment section 14...Linear motor 15...Linear guide for imprint head X-axis 16...Z-axis actuator 17...Linear guide for imprint head 18...Linear guide for vacuum chamber 19…Curing light irradiator 20...Observation camera 21...Substrate 22...Individual replica 23...Replica agent 24…Individual molded substrate 25...Pattern agent 31…Vacuum chamber 32...Cushioning material 33…Inner cylinder 34…Spring 35…Glass window 36…Sealing material

Claims

1. A microstructure transfer device comprising an imprint mechanism and an inkjet mechanism, the imprint mechanism imprinting a pattern in a step-and-repeat manner in a vacuum state onto a photocurable resin that has been applied to a plurality of locations on a substrate by the inkjet mechanism, a stage on which the substrate is mounted, and a gantry disposed above the stage and fixed to a base; the inkjet mechanism is configured to be movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry and to be movable in a Z direction within a horizontal plane; the imprint mechanism has an imprint head within a vacuum chamber, is movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry within a horizontal plane, and is movable in a Z direction, and is disposed on an opposite side of the inkjet mechanism with the stage therebetween; the stage is configured to be movable in a Y direction perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the gantry within a horizontal plane and to be movable in a rotational direction; the imprint head includes a curing light irradiator and an observation camera above the vacuum chamber, and the irradiation light from the curing light irradiator and the observation camera are arranged without interfering with each other; A fine pattern transfer device, characterized in that, in a vacuum state, the photocurable resin is irradiated with ultraviolet light from the curing light irradiator.

2. A microstructure transfer device comprising a first imprint mechanism, a second imprint mechanism, and an inkjet mechanism, wherein a photocurable resin is applied to a plurality of locations on a substrate by the inkjet mechanism, the first imprint mechanism imprints one pattern at a predetermined location of the photocurable resin applied to the plurality of locations in a step & repeat manner in a vacuum state, and the second imprint mechanism imprints the one pattern or a pattern different from the one pattern at a predetermined location of the photocurable resin applied to the plurality of locations in a step & repeat manner in a vacuum state, a stage on which the substrate is mounted, and a gantry disposed above the stage and fixed to a base; the inkjet mechanism is configured to be movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry and to be movable in a Z direction within a horizontal plane, and is disposed on an opposite side of the inkjet mechanism with the stage therebetween; the first and second imprint mechanisms have imprint heads in vacuum chambers and are movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry and in a Z direction within a horizontal plane; the stage is configured to be movable in a Y direction perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the gantry within a horizontal plane and to be movable in a rotational direction; the imprint head includes a curing light irradiator and an observation camera above the vacuum chamber, and the irradiation light from the curing light irradiator and the observation camera are arranged without interfering with each other; A fine pattern transfer device, characterized in that, in a vacuum state, the photocurable resin is irradiated with ultraviolet light from the curing light irradiator.

3. 3. The micropattern transfer device according to claim 1, further comprising: The imprint head has a buffer member inside the vacuum chamber, and presses a replica held on the buffer member against photocurable resin applied to multiple locations on a substrate by the inkjet mechanism to form a pattern of an individual mold.

4. a microstructure transfer method using a microstructure transfer device comprising: an imprint mechanism; an inkjet mechanism; a stage for mounting a substrate; and a gantry disposed above the stage and fixed to a base, the inkjet mechanism being movable in an X direction along a longitudinal direction of the gantry within a horizontal plane and movable in a Z direction; the imprint mechanism having an imprint head within a vacuum chamber and being movable in an X direction along the longitudinal direction of the gantry within a horizontal plane and movable in a Z direction, the imprint mechanism being disposed on the opposite side of the inkjet mechanism with the stage in between, the stage being movable in a Y direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the gantry within a horizontal plane and movable in a rotational direction; the imprint head comprising a curing light irradiator and an observation camera disposed above the vacuum chamber, the irradiation light from the curing light irradiator and the observation camera being disposed without mutual interference, the method comprising: irradiating ultraviolet light from the curing light irradiator to a photocurable resin in a vacuum state, The inkjet mechanism applies a photocurable resin to a plurality of locations on a substrate; A fine structure transfer method, characterized in that the imprint mechanism imprints a pattern onto a photocurable resin applied to a plurality of locations on the substrate in a step and repeat manner in a vacuum state.

5. A method for transferring a microstructure according to claim 4, comprising: A microstructure transfer method characterized in that the imprint head has a buffer member inside the vacuum chamber, and the replica held on the buffer member is pressed against a photocurable resin applied to multiple locations on a substrate by the inkjet mechanism, thereby forming a pattern of an individual mold.

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