Hinged Bearing Plate for Magnetron Sputtering Substrate Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
In conventional magnetron sputtering devices, substrates fail to maintain close contact with masks, resulting in pattern deviations and defects in film layers formed on OLED displays, affecting the display quality.
Innovation Solution
A substrate bearing assembly with a hinge member that allows the bearing plate to rotate and translate, enabling precise alignment and attachment of the substrate to the mask, utilizing a rotation driver and linear driver controlled by pressure sensors to ensure accurate positioning and minimize gaps between the substrate and mask.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the substrate is fixed on a stationary bearing plate, then the device structure is simple, but the substrate cannot maintain close contact with the mask, resulting in pattern deviations
Solution Approach 1:
The bearing plate is transformed from a stationary component to a dynamic one capable of rotation and translation through the hinge member mechanism. This allows the substrate to be dynamically adjusted and maintained in close contact with the mask during the sputtering process, thereby improving pattern accuracy while accepting increased structural complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The bearing assembly is segmented into multiple functional components: the stage, the bearing plate, and the hinge member. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each component's function, enabling the bearing plate to perform both rotation and translation movements while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure
2Reliability
If the bearing plate is made movable to improve substrate-mask contact, then film layer quality improves, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge member is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it enables both rotation and translation of the bearing plate, and provides structural support. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate mechanisms, thereby improving film layer quality while limiting the increase in device complexity
3Measurement precision
If pressure sensors and drivers are added to control substrate positioning, then positioning accuracy improves, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Pressure sensors are installed on the bearing plate to detect the contact state between the substrate and mask in real-time. This feedback information is used by the rotation driver and linear driver to automatically adjust the bearing plate's position, achieving high positioning accuracy. The feedback mechanism improves measurement precision while the automated control reduces the need for manual intervention
Data Source
AI summary
The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a substrate bearing assembly and a magnetron sputtering apparatus. The substrate bearing assembly includes: a stage; and a bearing plate provided on the stage for carrying a substrate on which a film is to be formed. A side of the bearing plate is hinged with the stage by a hinge member, and the bearing plate is able to be rotated by the hinge member to be perpendicular to a plane in which the stage is located. The hinge member is able to translate on the stage in a direction perpendicular to a side of the bearing plate connecting with the hinge member.