JP2004091858A - Vacuum evaporation system and method for manufacturing evaporated film-applied product - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vacuum evaporation system and method for controlling a vapor deposition rate without using a quartz oscillator. <P>SOLUTION: Electric power is supplied from a controller 9 to an electric heater 6 and a material 4 for vapor deposition in a crucible 2 is heated by the electric heater 6. The pressure of the peripheral atmosphere of the material 4 is measured by a pressure sensor 8 and a controller 9 regulates the electric energy to be supplied to the electric heater 6 in such a manner that the measured value of the pressure inputted from the pressure sensor 8 attains a previously set value. As a result, the prescribed vapor deposition rate is maintained and the thickness of the evaporated film formed on the surface of a substrate 5 is controlled. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vacuum deposition apparatus and method, and more particularly, to controlling a deposition rate.
The present invention also relates to a method for manufacturing a deposited film application product using a vacuum deposition apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
FIG. 8 shows the configuration of a conventional vacuum deposition apparatus. A crucible 2 is arranged in a vacuum vessel 1 and a substrate holder 3 is arranged to face the crucible 2. A deposition material 4 is accommodated in the crucible 2, and a substrate 5 on which a deposition film is to be formed is held in the substrate holder 3. When the vapor deposition material 4 is heated and evaporated by the electric heater 6 wound around the outer periphery of the crucible 2, vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4 are released from the crucible 2 and adhere to the surface of the substrate 5 to form a vapor deposition film. The formation is made.
[0003]
Here, since the evaporation material 4 heated by the heater 6 evaporates and decreases every moment, even if a stable electric power is supplied to the electric heater 6, the evaporation speed of the evaporation material 4 alone can be kept constant. In addition, it is difficult to accurately control the thickness of the deposited film formed on the surface of the substrate 5. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, a vapor deposition rate meter 7 is provided in the vicinity of the substrate 5 in the vacuum vessel 1, and the vapor deposition rate is measured so that the vapor deposition rate measured by the vapor deposition rate meter 7 becomes constant. Feedback control of the power supplied to the heater 6 is performed.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As the deposition rate meter 7, a device using a quartz oscillator is widely used. When a vapor-deposited film is formed on the surface of the crystal unit, the transmission frequency of the crystal unit changes because the mass increases by the amount of the vapor-deposited film. Since the change in the transmission frequency corresponds to the increase in the mass and the increase in the mass corresponds to the thickness of the deposited film, the thickness of the deposited film can be calculated by measuring the change in the transmission frequency. it can.
However, if a deposited film having a thickness of, for example, 7000 to 8000 angstroms (700 to 800 nm) adheres to the surface of the crystal unit, it becomes difficult to use the crystal unit as a crystal unit, and it must be replaced with a new crystal unit. Must. For example, if the film forming process is performed at a film thickness rate of 2 angstroms (0.2 nm) per minute, the life of the crystal unit is completed in about 60 to 70 hours.
[0005]
Therefore, there is a problem that the quartz oscillator must be replaced frequently, and it has been pointed out that, for example, it takes time and effort to maintain the apparatus and the cost increases.
The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum deposition apparatus and method for controlling a deposition rate without using a quartz oscillator.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a deposited film applied product using a vacuum deposition apparatus that controls a deposition rate without using a quartz oscillator.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
A vacuum deposition apparatus according to the present invention is a vacuum deposition apparatus that forms a deposition film on a surface of a substrate by evaporating a deposition material in a vacuum vessel, wherein a pressure sensor that measures a pressure of an atmosphere around the deposition material, A controller for controlling the deposition rate based on the pressure value measured by the sensor.
There is a certain correlation between the pressure of the surrounding atmosphere of the vapor deposition material and the amount of vaporized vapor deposition material, and the amount of vaporized vapor deposition material and the amount of vapor deposition material deposited on the substrate per unit time, that is, the vapor deposition rate Has a certain correlation, the controller can control the vapor deposition rate based on the pressure value of the atmosphere around the vapor deposition material. Therefore, the deposition rate can be controlled without using a quartz oscillator.
Further, the film thickness formed on the substrate can be calculated from the vapor deposition rate by integrating the vapor deposition rate with time or using a correspondence table of the film thickness with respect to the vapor deposition rate and the vapor deposition time. Control is also possible.
[0007]
A vacuum chamber may be further provided with a front chamber provided so as to include the deposition material and having an opening facing the substrate, and the pressure sensor may measure the pressure in the front chamber. This makes it possible to more accurately grasp the amount of the vaporized vapor deposition material and control the vapor deposition rate with higher precision than when there is no front chamber.
Further, a shutter provided at the opening of the front chamber, and a second controller that opens and closes the shutter to control the formation of the deposited film can be provided. If a shutter for opening and closing the opening of the front chamber is provided, the vapor deposition material will only move into the vacuum container from the time the shutter is opened until the time it closes. For this reason, the pressure in the front chamber, the opening / closing time of the shutter, the area of the opening, and the like have a fixed relationship with the amount of vapor deposition on the substrate, and as a result, the amount of vapor deposition can be controlled. Note that the controller that controls the deposition rate based on the pressure value may also have the function of the second controller that controls the formation of the deposition film by opening and closing the shutter.
[0008]
A heating unit for heating the deposition material may be further provided, and the controller may control the deposition rate by adjusting the heating of the deposition material by the heating unit based on the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor. Since the amount of vaporized molecules released from the vapor deposition material changes by adjusting the heating by the heating means, the vapor deposition rate is controlled.
Further, the controller may control the vapor deposition rate by adjusting the open area of the opening of the front chamber by the shutter based on the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor. The adjustment of the open area of the opening changes the amount of vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material moving from the front chamber into the vacuum vessel, so that the vapor deposition rate is controlled.
[0009]
In a vacuum deposition method according to the present invention, in a vacuum deposition method of forming a deposition film on a surface of a substrate by evaporating a deposition material in a vacuum vessel, a pressure in an atmosphere around the deposition material is measured, and the measured pressure is measured. This is a method of controlling the deposition rate based on the value. Because there is a certain correlation between the pressure of the surrounding atmosphere of the deposition material and the amount of the vaporized deposition material, and there is also a certain correlation between the amount of the vaporized deposition material and the deposition rate, The deposition rate can be controlled based on the pressure value of the atmosphere around the deposition material. Therefore, the deposition rate can be controlled without using a quartz oscillator.
[0010]
The atmosphere around the deposition material may be partitioned by opening only in the direction facing the substrate, and the pressure in the partitioned atmosphere may be measured to control the deposition rate. In this way, the amount of vaporized vapor deposition material can be grasped more accurately than when the surrounding atmosphere of the vapor deposition material is not partitioned, and the vapor deposition rate can be controlled with higher precision.
It is also possible to configure so as to control the deposition rate by adjusting the heating of the deposition material based on the measured pressure value. Since the amount of vaporized molecules released from the vapor deposition material changes by adjusting the heating of the vapor deposition material, the vapor deposition rate is controlled.
[0011]
Further, a method of manufacturing a deposited film applied product according to the present invention is a method of forming a deposited film on a substrate using the above-described vacuum deposition apparatus. Therefore, a deposition film can be formed by controlling the deposition rate without using a quartz oscillator.
[0012]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a vacuum evaporation apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. A crucible 2 is arranged in a vacuum vessel 1 and a substrate holder 3 is arranged to face the crucible 2. An electric heater 6 is wound around the outer periphery of the crucible 2 as heating means for heating and evaporating the vapor deposition material 4 contained in the crucible 2.
Further, a pressure sensor 8 for measuring the pressure of the surrounding atmosphere of the vapor deposition material 4 is disposed in the vacuum vessel 1, a controller 9 is connected to the pressure sensor 8, and an electric heater 6 is connected to the controller 9. Have been.
In addition, a vacuum exhaust device (not shown) is connected to the vacuum vessel 1 to reduce the pressure inside the vacuum vessel 1.
[0013]
Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
First, after accommodating the vapor deposition material 4 in the crucible 2 and holding the substrate 5 on which the vapor deposition film is to be formed in the substrate holder 3, the inside of the vacuum vessel 1 is evacuated to a predetermined pressure by a vacuum exhaust device (not shown). Reduce pressure.
In this state, predetermined electric power is supplied from the controller 9 to the electric heater 6 in step S1, and the electric heater 6 heats the vapor deposition material 4 in the crucible 2. Then, when the vapor deposition material 4 starts to evaporate, vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4 are released from the crucible 2 and adhere to the surface of the substrate 5 held by the substrate holder 3.
[0014]
At this time, the pressure of the atmosphere around the vapor deposition material 4 is increased by the vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4 released from the crucible 2, and this pressure is measured by the pressure sensor 8 in step S 2, and the pressure value is sent to the controller 9. Here, there is a certain correlation between the pressure of the surrounding atmosphere of the vapor deposition material 4 and the amount of the vaporized vapor deposition material 4, and the amount of the vaporized vapor deposition material 4 and vapor deposition on the substrate 5 per unit time. Since there is a certain correlation between the amount of the vapor deposition material 4, that is, the vapor deposition rate, the controller 9 can calculate the vapor deposition rate from the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor 8. Actually, the controller 9 adjusts the amount of power supplied to the electric heater 6 in step S3 so that the pressure value input from the pressure sensor 8 becomes a preset value. Thereby, a predetermined deposition rate is maintained, and the thickness of the deposition film formed on the surface of the substrate 5 can be controlled. Then, when a predetermined time elapses in step S4, it is determined that the formation of the vapor-deposited film having a desired thickness has been completed, and in step S5, the power supply to the electric heater 6 is stopped.
[0015]
The pressure sensor 8 has an extremely long life unlike a quartz oscillator that uses a change in mass caused by the adhesion of a deposited film, and therefore, according to the vacuum deposition apparatus of the first embodiment, There is no need to change the evaporation rate meter, and the evaporation can be easily performed while controlling the evaporation rate. That is, the deposition rate and the deposition amount can be controlled based on the pressure value of the atmosphere around the deposition material 4.
Although the controller 9 calculates the deposition rate from the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor 8, a correspondence table between the pressure value and the deposition rate is set in advance, and the deposition rate is calculated from the pressure value by referring to the correspondence table. Can also be determined.
[0016]
Embodiment 2 FIG.
FIG. 3 shows a configuration of a vacuum evaporation apparatus according to the second embodiment. This vacuum deposition apparatus is the same as the apparatus of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 except that a front chamber 10 containing a crucible 2 is disposed in a vacuum vessel 1. An opening 11 facing the substrate 5 held by the substrate holder 3 is formed in the front chamber 10. That is, only the direction facing the substrate 5 is opened by the opening 11, and the surrounding atmosphere of the vapor deposition material 4 is partitioned by the front chamber 10.
[0017]
When performing vapor deposition, first, the vapor deposition material 4 is accommodated in the crucible 2 and the substrate 5 is held by the substrate holder 3, and the inside of the vacuum vessel 1 is evacuated to a predetermined pressure by a vacuum exhaust device (not shown). . In this state, a predetermined power is supplied from the controller 9 to the electric heater 6 in the step S1 shown in FIG. 4, the vapor deposition material 4 in the crucible 2 is heated, and the pressure sensor 8 separates the front chamber 10 in the step S2. The pressure of the surrounding atmosphere of the deposited material 4 is measured.
[0018]
Although the pressure in the front chamber 10 gradually increases due to the vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4, the controller 9 determines in step S3 that the pressure value input from the pressure sensor 8 becomes equal to a preset value. The amount of power supplied to the heater 6 is adjusted. Thereby, the vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4 move into the vacuum chamber 1 through the opening 11 of the front chamber 10 and adhere to the surface of the substrate 5 held by the substrate holder 3 to form a vapor deposition film. Start. Then, when a predetermined time elapses in step S4, it is determined that the formation of the vapor-deposited film having a desired thickness has been completed, and in step S5, the power supply to the electric heater 6 is stopped.
[0019]
Since the pressure sensor 8 measures the pressure in the anterior chamber 10 provided in the vacuum vessel 1, the pressure in the atmosphere around the vapor deposition material 4 can be accurately measured, and the vacuum vapor deposition apparatus according to the first embodiment. It becomes possible to control the deposition rate and the deposition amount with higher accuracy than in the case of the above. As a result, the thickness of the deposited film formed on the surface of the substrate 5 can be controlled while maintaining a predetermined deposition rate.
In addition, by appropriately selecting the number and area of the openings 11, the amount of vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4 moving from the front chamber 10 into the vacuum vessel 1 can be controlled, so that the vapor deposition rate can be controlled. .
[0020]
Embodiment 3 FIG.
FIG. 5 shows a configuration of a vacuum evaporation apparatus according to the third embodiment. This vacuum vapor deposition apparatus is different from the apparatus of Embodiment 2 shown in FIG. 2 in that a shutter 12 for opening and closing the opening 11 of the front chamber 10 is attached, and the opening and closing device 13 drives the shutter 12 to open and close. is there. The controller 9 is connected to the pressure sensor 8 and the electric heater 6 wound around the outer periphery of the crucible 2, and also connected to an opening / closing device 13.
[0021]
Next, the operation of the third embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, the vapor deposition material 4 is accommodated in the crucible 2 and the substrate 5 is held by the substrate holder 3, and the inside of the vacuum vessel 1 is evacuated to a predetermined pressure by a vacuum evacuation device (not shown). The shutter 12 is moved by 13, the opening 11 is closed, and the inside of the front chamber 10 is sealed. In this state, the vapor deposition material 4 in the crucible 2 to which predetermined electric power is supplied from the controller 9 to the electric heater 6 from the controller 9 is heated in step S12, and the pressure in the front chamber 10 is measured by the pressure sensor 8 in step S13. .
[0022]
The pressure in the front chamber 10 gradually increases due to the vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4, but the controller 9 confirms in step S14 that the pressure value input from the pressure sensor 8 has reached a preset value. Then, in step S15, the shutter 12 is driven by the opening / closing device 13, the opening 11 is opened, and the front chamber 10 is opened. Thereby, the vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4 move into the vacuum chamber 1 through the opening 11 of the front chamber 10 and adhere to the surface of the substrate 5 held by the substrate holder 3 to form a vapor deposition film. Start.
[0023]
Thereafter, the controller 9 adjusts the amount of power supplied to the electric heater 6 in step S17 so that the pressure value input from the pressure sensor 8 in step S16 maintains the set value. Then, when a predetermined time has elapsed in step S18, it is determined that the formation of the vapor-deposited film having a desired thickness has been completed, and the controller 9 moves the shutter 12 by the opening / closing device 13 in step S19 to close the opening 11, and After the inside of the front chamber 10 is sealed again, the power supply to the electric heater 6 is stopped in step S20, and the formation of the deposited film is completed.
[0024]
As described above, the vapor deposition material 4 is sealed in the front chamber 10, and the front chamber 10 is opened and closed while the measured value of the pressure in the front chamber 10 by the pressure sensor 8 is maintained at the set value, so that the substrate 5 is closed. Since the vapor deposition is performed on the surface, not only the control of the vapor deposition rate is facilitated, but also the rising and falling characteristics of the vapor deposition film formation are improved, and the thickness of the vapor deposition film can be controlled.
In the third embodiment, the controller 9 not only controls the deposition rate based on the pressure value obtained by the pressure sensor 8 but also controls the formation of the deposited film by opening and closing the shutter 12. A second controller for controlling the formation of the vapor deposition film by opening and closing 12 is provided separately from the controller 9, and the controller 9 performs vapor deposition based on the pressure value obtained by the pressure sensor 8 similarly to the first and second embodiments. It may have a function only to control the speed.
[0025]
Embodiment 4 FIG.
The vacuum deposition apparatus according to the third embodiment has the same configuration as the apparatus according to the third embodiment shown in FIG. 5, but controls the deposition rate by adjusting the amount of power supplied to the electric heater 6. Instead, the vapor deposition rate is controlled by adjusting the open area of the opening 11 of the front chamber 10.
[0026]
As shown in FIG. 7, after starting the formation of the vapor deposition film, the controller 9 controls the shutter by the opening / closing device 13 in step S21 so that the pressure value input from the pressure sensor 8 maintains the set value in step S16. 12 is moved to adjust the open area of the opening 11 of the front chamber 10. Then, when a predetermined time has elapsed in step S18, it is determined that the formation of the vapor-deposited film having a desired thickness has been completed, and the controller 9 closes the opening 11 in step S19 to seal the inside of the front chamber 10 again. In S20, the power supply to the electric heater 6 is stopped, and the formation of the deposited film is completed.
[0027]
By adjusting the open area of the opening 11 of the front chamber 10 in this manner, the amount of vaporized molecules of the vapor deposition material 4 moving from the front chamber 10 into the vacuum vessel 1 changes, so that the vapor deposition rate is controlled. Can be.
In addition, if both the adjustment of the amount of power supplied to the electric heater 6 and the adjustment of the open area of the opening 11 are performed at the same time, the deposition rate can be controlled with higher accuracy.
[0028]
With the vacuum vapor deposition apparatus according to Embodiments 1 to 4 described above, a vapor deposition film applied product in which a vapor deposition film having a desired thickness is formed on the surface of the substrate 5 can be manufactured. Examples of the deposited film applied products include semiconductor products such as ICs and LSIs, organic ELs having an organic compound layer formed thereon, liquid crystal panels having a transparent conductive film formed thereon, and various films and disks having a thin film formed thereon. can do.
In the above-described first to fourth embodiments, the electric heater 6 wound around the outer periphery of the crucible 2 is used as a heating unit for heating and evaporating the vapor deposition material 4, but is not limited thereto. Instead, for example, the vapor deposition material 4 may be irradiated with an electron beam and heated.
[0029]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, the pressure of the surrounding atmosphere of the deposition material is measured by the pressure sensor, and the deposition rate is controlled based on the measured value of the pressure. The deposition rate can be controlled without using a probe.
Further, the surrounding atmosphere of the vapor deposition material is partitioned by the front chamber provided in the vacuum vessel and having the opening formed therein, and the vapor deposition rate is controlled based on the measured value of the pressure in the front chamber obtained by the pressure sensor. This makes it possible to more accurately grasp the amount of the vaporized vapor deposition material and control the vapor deposition rate with higher precision than when the front chamber is not provided.
[0030]
Furthermore, if a shutter is provided at the opening of the front chamber and a second controller is provided to open and close the shutter to control the formation of the deposited film, the pressure in the front chamber, the opening and closing time of the shutter, the area of the opening, etc. Based on this, it is possible to control the amount of deposition.
The deposition rate can be controlled by adjusting the heating of the deposition material or by adjusting the opening area of the opening of the front chamber by the shutter.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a vacuum evaporation apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation of the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a vacuum evaporation apparatus according to a second embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the second embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a vacuum evaporation apparatus according to a third embodiment.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the third embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation of the fourth embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a conventional vacuum evaporation apparatus.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 vacuum vessel, 2 crucible, 3 substrate holder, 4 vapor deposition material, 5 substrate, 6 electric heater, 8 pressure sensor, 9 controller, 10 front chamber, 11 opening, 12 shutter, 13 opening and closing device.

Claims (9)

In a vacuum deposition apparatus that forms a deposition film on the surface of the substrate by evaporating the deposition material in a vacuum vessel,
A pressure sensor for measuring the pressure of the atmosphere around the deposition material,
A controller for controlling a deposition rate based on a pressure value measured by the pressure sensor. 2. The pressure sensor according to claim 1, further comprising a front chamber that is provided so as to include a vapor deposition material in the vacuum container and has an opening facing the substrate, wherein the pressure sensor measures a pressure in the front chamber. 3. Vacuum evaporation equipment. The vacuum evaporation apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a shutter provided at an opening of the front chamber, and a second controller that opens and closes the shutter to control formation of a deposition film. The method according to claim 1, further comprising heating means for heating the deposition material, wherein the controller controls a deposition rate by adjusting heating of the deposition material by the heating means based on a pressure value measured by the pressure sensor. The vacuum evaporation device according to any one of the preceding claims. 4. The vacuum deposition apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the controller controls a deposition rate by adjusting an open area of the opening of the front chamber by the shutter based on a pressure value measured by the pressure sensor. 5. In a vacuum deposition method of forming a deposition film on the surface of the substrate by evaporating the deposition material in a vacuum vessel,
Measure the pressure of the atmosphere around the deposition material,
A vacuum deposition method comprising controlling a deposition rate based on a measured pressure value. Open only in the direction facing the substrate to partition the atmosphere around the deposition material,
7. The vacuum deposition method according to claim 6, wherein the deposition rate is controlled by measuring a pressure in a partitioned atmosphere. The vacuum evaporation method according to claim 6, wherein the evaporation rate is controlled by adjusting heating of the evaporation material based on the measured pressure value. A method for producing a vapor deposition film applied product, comprising forming a vapor deposition film on a substrate using the vacuum vapor deposition apparatus according to claim 1.

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