Reflective Plate Exposure Apparatus for Photo-resist Patterning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional photo-lithography technologies struggle to achieve sufficient exposure of photo-resist patterns with small line spaces, leading to incomplete patterning and limited performance in electrical devices such as LCDs.
Innovation Solution
An exposure apparatus and method utilizing a mask with transparent openings and a reflective plate to direct light rays back through a transparent substrate, ensuring complete exposure of the photo-resist layer, with the reflective plate being parallel to the photo-resist layer and potentially featuring convex or concave structures for enhanced reflection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the line space of the photo-resist pattern is reduced to promote electrical device performance, then the transmittance of the photo-resist decreases, but the exposure completeness deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a reflective plate positioned below the transparent substrate to reflect light rays back through the photo-resist layer from the opposite direction. This transforms the single-direction exposure into a multi-directional exposure process, allowing light to traverse the photo-resist twice (once from above through the mask, and again from below after reflection), thereby achieving complete exposure even when line spaces are reduced
Solution Approach 2:
The reflective plate ensures that light rays that passed through the transparent substrate without contributing to exposure are redirected back through the photo-resist layer. This continues the useful action of light exposure rather than allowing the light to be wasted, maximizing the exposure effectiveness and ensuring complete patterning
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 ensures complete exposure of the photo-resist layer, reducing line spaces and improving the performance of electrical devices by preventing insufficient exposure due to small line spaces or high depth-to-width ratios.
Implementation Method 1
a reflective plate disposed at an opposite side of the photo-resist layer for reflecting the light rays passing through the photo-resist layer and the transparent substrate back to the photo-resist layer
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention provides an exposure apparatus and an exposure method. The method comprises: utilizing an exposure light source to provide light rays to the photo-resist layer; and utilizing a reflective plate to reflect the light rays passing through the photo-resist layer and the transparent substrate back to the photo-resist layer. The present invention can reduce a line space of a pattern of the photo-resist layer.