Imprint Release Control for Substrate Tilt Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing imprint technologies suffer from mold releasing defects due to horizontal forces and substrate tilting during the mold release process, leading to pattern damage on both the substrate and mold.
Innovation Solution
An imprint apparatus with a control unit that feedback-controls the mold and substrate driving units to maintain the horizontal positional relationship between the mold and substrate during the mold release, using a compensator to adjust the gain and compensate for substrate tilting, thereby reducing defects.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the substrate driving unit is tilted during mold releasing to return to the fixed position, then the horizontal position measurement accuracy is improved, but a horizontal force is generated that causes mold releasing defects
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit predicts the horizontal position of the mold releasing region based on the tilt angle detected during mold releasing, before the substrate driving unit returns to its fixed position. This preliminary prediction prevents the generation of harmful horizontal forces that would occur if the unit waited until returning to position to correct the alignment
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback control by detecting the tilt angle of the substrate driving unit during mold releasing and using this information to predict and correct the horizontal position of the mold releasing region, thereby maintaining alignment accuracy without generating damaging forces
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the mold releasing speed and angle are controlled to reduce friction force, then mold releasing defects are reduced, but other forces such as horizontal forces during alignment still cause pattern damage
Solution Approach 1:
The system predicts the horizontal position of the mold releasing region in advance based on detected tilt angles, allowing the control unit to compensate for horizontal forces before they can cause pattern damage during the alignment process
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces direct mechanical measurement of horizontal position with a prediction mechanism that uses tilt angle detection and calculation, avoiding the need for physical contact or mechanical adjustment that would generate harmful forces
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
The solution effectively minimizes mold releasing defects by maintaining the horizontal positional relationship, reducing pattern damage on the substrate and mold, and ensuring precise alignment throughout the process.
Implementation Method 1
an imprint apparatus employs, as a method of curing an imprint material, a photo-curing method in which an imprint material is cured by irradiation with light (such as ultraviolet light)
Data Source
AI summary
An imprint apparatus that performs an imprint process of forming a pattern of an imprint material on a substrate using a mold, the apparatus including a control unit configured to control a mold driving unit and a substrate driving unit, and the imprint process including curing the imprint material, and releasing the mold from the cured imprint material, wherein the control unit includes a compensator configured to feedback-control driving of at least one of the mold driving unit and the substrate driving unit such that a positional relationship between the mold and the substrate in the releasing is maintained at a positional relationship between the mold and the substrate in the curing, and makes a gain of the compensator in the releasing smaller than a gain of the compensator in a step of the imprint process other than the releasing.