Imprint Apparatus Chucking Force Control for Mold Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing forming apparatuses, such as imprint apparatuses, face issues with mold separation, leading to decentering and stress on the mold, which can result in mold breakage and pattern defects due to improper control of chucking forces during the separation process.
Innovation Solution
A forming apparatus with a substrate holder having multiple chucking regions and a controller that independently controls the chucking forces to ensure the final mold separation point coincides with the center of the pattern surface, using a first and second chucking condition to manage substrate deformation and prevent pattern and mold breakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If multiple chucking regions are used to hold the substrate, then the substrate can be securely held during the forming process, but the final mold separation point may be shifted from the center of the pattern surface causing decentering and stress on the mold
Solution Approach 1:
The substrate holder is divided into multiple chucking regions (first chucking region and second chucking region) that can be independently controlled. This segmentation allows different chucking forces to be applied to different regions, enabling precise control over the substrate's movement during mold separation to ensure the separation point aligns with the pattern surface center.
Solution Approach 2:
Different chucking forces are applied to different chucking regions based on their specific positions and functions. The first chucking region applies a first chucking force while the second chucking region applies a second chucking force, with the forces being differentiated to compensate for the specific requirements of each region, thereby achieving precise overall alignment.
2Device complexity
If chucking forces are not independently controlled, then the apparatus structure remains simple, but pattern defects occur due to decentering and stress concentration on the mold
Solution Approach 1:
The chucking force control system is segmented into independent control mechanisms for the first chucking region and second chucking region. Each region has its own chucking force control, allowing independent adjustment to prevent decentering and stress concentration, thereby improving pattern quality and mold durability without requiring a completely complex unified control system.
Solution Approach 2:
The chucking forces are made dynamically adjustable rather than fixed. The controller can independently adjust the chucking force of each chucking region based on the specific requirements of the forming process, allowing the system to adapt to different conditions and prevent pattern defects while maintaining reasonable system complexity.
3Ease of operation
If the mold separation point is shifted from the center, then the separation process becomes easier, but large stress is generated in the mold leading to breakage and reduced service life
Solution Approach 1:
The chucking forces of the multiple regions are preliminarily coordinated and adjusted before the mold separation process begins. By pre-establishing the appropriate force distribution and alignment, the system ensures that the mold separation point naturally aligns with the pattern surface center, making the separation process straightforward while preventing stress concentration that would reduce mold service life.
Data Source
AI summary
A forming apparatus includes a substrate holder having a plurality of chucking regions that chuck a lower surface of the substrate and configured to hold the substrate by chucking the substrate with the plurality of chucking regions, and a controller configured to control execution of a forming process and independently control a chucking force of each of the plurality of chucking regions. The controller controls a chucking force of each of the plurality of chucking regions in a mold separation step so as to make a final mold separation point, at which the mold finally separates from the composition, coincide with a center of a pattern surface of the mold.