Imprint Shaping with Oxygen Control for Edge Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing imprint techniques face challenges in accurately filling concave-convex patterns on substrates due to low viscosity of imprint materials, which are prone to alignment errors from vibrations and incomplete filling at substrate edges, leading to pattern defects.
Innovation Solution
A shaping apparatus and method that adjusts the concentration of a first gas, such as oxygen, around the mold to inhibit curing reactions, combined with controlled light irradiation to increase viscosity, allowing for precise alignment and curing of imprint materials on substrates, including edge regions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the viscosity of the imprint material is kept low to improve filling property, then the filling of concave-convex pattern is improved, but alignment accuracy deteriorates due to vibration disturbance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary exposure to increase the viscosity of the imprint material before alignment, allowing the material to maintain low viscosity during filling but achieve higher viscosity for stable alignment. This temporal separation of viscosity requirements resolves the contradiction between filling property and alignment accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the viscosity parameter of the imprint material dynamically through light irradiation. By controlling the irradiation amount, the viscosity can be adjusted from a low state (for filling) to a high state (for alignment), thus resolving the contradiction between these two opposing requirements.
2Manufacturing precision
If preliminary exposure is performed to increase viscosity for alignment, then alignment accuracy is improved, but the imprint material may cure prematurely and remain in the mold
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different oxygen concentrations in different regions: high oxygen concentration in the mold area to prevent curing and enable material release, while allowing controlled curing in the imprint regions. This spatial differentiation resolves the contradiction between alignment requirements and material release.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses an oxygen-rich atmosphere around the mold to inhibit the curing reaction of the imprint material. Oxygen acts as an inert environment that prevents polymerization, keeping the material in a releasable state while still allowing alignment to occur.
3Productivity
If oxygen concentration is increased to keep imprint material uncured for release, then material release is improved, but viscosity cannot be increased sufficiently for alignment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary exposure before alignment to increase viscosity, then adjusts oxygen concentration after alignment to enable release. This temporal sequencing allows both high viscosity for alignment and uncured state for release to be achieved at different stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically controls both oxygen concentration and light irradiation throughout the process. Oxygen concentration is adjusted in response to process stage (low during filling, high for release), and light irradiation is controlled to achieve desired viscosity at each stage, resolving the static contradiction between these parameters.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Improves alignment accuracy and reduces pattern defects by effectively filling concave-convex patterns, ensuring high-quality imprinting on substrates with enhanced yield and precision.
Implementation Method 1
the composition has a property of being inhibited from undergoing a curing reaction by a first gas... preliminary exposure that increases a viscosity of the composition by causing the light irradiator to irradiate the composition with light
Implementation Method 2
the composition has a property of being inhibited from undergoing a curing reaction by a first gas... As a method of keeping an imprint material adhering to a mold in an uncured state, there is available a method of increasing the concentration of oxygen that inhibits a curing reaction of the imprint material
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention provides a shaping apparatus that performs, for each of a plurality of regions on a substrate, processing of aligning a mold with the substrate while the mold is in contact with a composition on the substrate and then curing the composition to shape the composition, wherein the plurality of regions includes a first region where the processing is performed while a concentration of the first gas around the mold is adjusted to a first concentration and a second region where the concentration of the first gas around the mold is adjusted to a second concentration larger than the first concentration, preliminary exposure in the second region is controlled to make an integrated irradiation amount of light to the composition larger than in preliminary exposure in the first region.