Fluid Droplet Pitch Adjustment via Substrate Offset in Imprint Lithography
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional fluid dispense systems in imprint lithography lack the ability to adjust fluid droplet pitch without replacing the dispense head, limiting the flexibility and precision of droplet pattern formation, particularly in achieving optimal drop edge exclusion to prevent extrusion and non-fill defects.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a fluid dispense system with adjustable fluid dispense ports that offset relative to the substrate between passes, allowing for the formation of a substrate fluid droplet pattern with droplets aligned along specific lines of a drop edge exclusion, enabling precise control of droplet spacing and pitch adjustment through varying speeds and offsets.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional fluid dispense systems use fixed fluid dispense port pitch, then the dispense head structure is simple, but the ability to adjust droplet pitch is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment of droplet pitch by allowing the substrate to move at variable speeds during the dispensing process. The substrate speed can be changed between passes and during passes, enabling the same fixed dispense head to produce droplets at different pitches on the substrate. This dynamic speed control resolves the contradiction by providing adaptability without requiring a complex adjustable dispense head structure.
2Manufacturing precision
If single-pass fluid droplet pattern is used, then the dispensing process is simple, but the precision of droplet placement is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the droplet dispensing process into multiple passes, where each pass deposits a portion of the complete droplet pattern. By segmenting the pattern formation into multiple passes with different substrate speeds and offset positions, the system achieves precise droplet placement that cannot be obtained in a single pass. The segmentation allows independent optimization of each pass parameters to achieve overall pattern precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses preliminary action by offsetting the substrate position between passes and controlling substrate speed to ensure that droplets from subsequent passes are placed precisely relative to previously deposited droplets. The substrate is moved to predetermined offset positions before each pass, and speed is adjusted to achieve exact droplet spacing, ensuring precise placement before the actual droplet deposition occurs.
3Reliability
If droplets are dispensed close to the edges of the imprint field, then the material utilization is high, but extrusion and non-fill defects occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by using different substrate speeds in different regions of the dispensing process. Specifically, the substrate speed is adjusted based on the position within the imprint field to control droplet spacing locally. This allows dense droplet placement in the center regions for high material utilization while maintaining appropriate spacing near edges to prevent extrusion defects, and adjusting speed to ensure sufficient material for non-fill prevention where needed.
Data Source
AI summary
A method can be used to generate a fluid droplet pattern for an imprint lithography process using a fluid dispense system having fluid dispense ports. The method can include determining a fluid droplet pattern for dispensing a formable material onto a substrate; during a first pass, dispensing the formable material onto the substrate to form a first part of the fluid droplet pattern for an imprint field; offsetting the fluid dispense ports and substrate relative to each other in an offset direction; and during a second pass, dispensing the formable material onto the substrate to form a second part of the fluid droplet pattern for the imprint field. The method can be used to form a patterned layer over a semiconductor wafer in fabricating an electronic device. An apparatus can be configured to carry out the method.