JP2012526199A - Thin film deposition apparatus and thin film deposition system including the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention includes a transfer chamber in which a substrate is transferred, and first and second process chambers coupled to both sides of the transfer chamber, respectively, of the first and second process chambers. Each of the first and second substrate holders provided to be separated from each other, and the deposition raw material sequentially provided toward the first and second substrate holders provided between the first and second substrate holders. And a thin film deposition apparatus including the same, and a thin film deposition system including the same. As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of process chambers that perform the same process are connected to both sides of the transfer chamber, so that a thin film process can be performed on a large number of substrates in parallel to increase the process speed.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a thin film deposition apparatus, and more particularly to a thin film deposition apparatus for forming a thin film on a substrate and a thin film deposition system in which this type of thin film deposition apparatus is connected in an in-line manner.

Unlike a liquid crystal display device, an organic light emitting element (OLED: Organic Light Emitted Diode) does not require a backlight and has low power consumption. In addition, since the viewing angle is wide and the response speed is fast, a display device using the viewing angle can realize an excellent image without problems of viewing angle and afterimage.

This type of organic light emitting device is manufactured by stacking multiple thin films such as an organic film and a metal film on a glass substrate. For this reason, conventionally, a cluster system in which a large number of unit chambers in which a series of unit processes are performed around a circular transfer chamber has been mainly used, and glass substrates are horizontally arranged between the chambers. In this state, the substrate is transported and the element process is performed. Such a cluster method has an advantage that a series of steps can be performed quickly and continuously, and has an advantage that an evaporation mask which is indispensable for manufacturing an organic light emitting device can be easily replaced.

Recently, blue (B), green (G), and red (R) light emitting layers are formed in this order on a large-area substrate using a high-definition metal mask (FMM). So-called three primary color independent pixel type organic light emitting devices are attracting attention. Such three primary color independent pixel systems are known to have good color purity and light efficiency, and are advantageous in securing price competitiveness.

However, in the three primary color independent pixel method, since the blue (B), green (G), and red (R) light emitting layers must be formed in this order in independent process chambers, the process chambers for performing each unit process are arranged in a row. It is preferable to adopt an in-line method that is connected to the. For this reason, it is necessary to switch from the conventional cluster method to the inline method. However, the inline method has more redundant equipment than the cluster method, so the construction cost of the production line is high and the productivity is low because the process speed is slow. There was a problem that it was low.

Furthermore, the conventional cluster system performs the thin film process (organic film forming process) by horizontally arranging the substrates, but this causes a serious phenomenon of sagging of the substrate, and there is a considerable difficulty in manufacturing the device. In addition, since a large-area substrate deposition mask has a load of several hundred kg or more, the sagging phenomenon of the substrate is more serious, resulting in serious problems such as substrate breakage.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its object is to process a large number of substrates in parallel to minimize the waiting time for processes such as substrate loading / fixing operations and deposition mask arranging / alignment operations. Accordingly, a thin film deposition apparatus and a thin film deposition system including the same can be achieved.

In addition, the present invention provides a thin film deposition apparatus and a thin film deposition system including the same that can reduce the construction cost of a production line by maximizing the sharing of overlapping equipment.

Furthermore, the present invention provides a thin film deposition apparatus and a thin film deposition system including the same that can overcome the sagging phenomenon of the substrate by performing the thin film process by arranging the substrates in a vertical state.

A thin film deposition apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes a transfer chamber in which a substrate is transferred, and first and second process chambers coupled to both sides of the transfer chamber, respectively. Each of the process chambers is provided between the first and second substrate holders provided apart from each other and the first and second substrate holders, and sequentially toward the first and second substrate holders. And an injection unit for supplying a vapor deposition raw material to the apparatus.

Preferably, the first and second substrate holders hold the substrate in a vertical state.

Preferably, the transfer chamber is provided with a substrate rotating member that rotates the substrate to stand in a vertical state or lies in a horizontal state.

Further, preferably, the ejection unit is rotatable between the first substrate holder and the second substrate holder.

Further preferably, the injection unit has an injection structure of any one of a dot shape, a line shape, and a planar shape.

Further, preferably, each of the first and second process chambers includes a mask chamber for providing a deposition mask to each of the first and second substrate holders, or for replacing the deposition mask. Connected.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a thin film deposition system including a plurality of transfer chambers connected in a row to transfer a substrate, and first and first coupled to both sides of at least one of the plurality of transfer chambers. Two process chambers, and each of the first and second process chambers is provided between first and second substrate holders provided apart from each other and the first and second substrate holders. And an injection unit that sequentially supplies vapor deposition materials toward the first and second substrate holders.

Preferably, the plurality of transfer chambers are connected to the first and second process chambers to distribute the substrate, and are connected between adjacent distribution chambers so that the substrate temporarily stands by. A number of buffer chambers.

Preferably, the thin film deposition system includes a loading chamber connected to a front end of the plurality of transfer chambers and a substrate loaded from outside, and a substrate connected to a rear end of the plurality of transfer chambers. And an unloading chamber for unloading to the outside.

Further preferably, the first and second substrate holders hold the substrate in a vertical state.

Further preferably, the transfer chamber is provided with a substrate rotating member that rotates the substrate to stand in a vertical state or lies in a horizontal state.

Further, preferably, the ejection unit is rotatable between the first substrate holder and the second substrate holder.

According to the present invention, by connecting a plurality of process chambers that perform the same process on both sides of the transfer chamber, it is possible to increase the process speed by performing thin film processes on a large number of substrates in parallel.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to achieve both cost saving and productivity improvement by sequentially performing a thin film process on a large number of substrates provided in a process chamber through a single injection unit.

Furthermore, according to the present invention, by providing a large number of process means on both sides inside the process chamber, it is possible to perform preparatory work for the remaining other processes while performing a certain process, or perform post-sorting work. Can be. Thereby, overall work waiting time can be shortened, and productivity can be significantly increased.

Furthermore, since the substrates are arranged in a horizontal state when the substrate is transferred in the present invention, the substrate is not broken during the transfer of the substrate, and the substrates are arranged in a vertical state during the thin film process, so that the substrate does not hang down so much. As a result, the device can be easily manufactured.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a thin film deposition system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing some chambers in the thin film deposition system shown in FIG. 3 to 8 are plan views for explaining a unit process of the thin film deposition system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

110: loading chamber,
120: Unloading chamber,
200A, 200B: process chamber,
311, 312, 321, 322: mask chamber,
410: distribution chamber,
420: buffer chamber,
511, 512, 611, 612: gate,
520, 530, 620, 630: substrate holder,
521: holding stand,
522: clamp,
G: substrate
M: Mask

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below, and can be implemented in various forms. These embodiments merely complete the disclosure of the present invention, and can be used by those having ordinary knowledge. It is provided to fully inform the scope of the invention. In the drawings, the same reference numerals indicate the same elements.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a thin film deposition system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view showing some chambers in the thin film deposition system of FIG.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the thin film deposition system includes a plurality of transfer chambers 410 and 420 (400) arranged in a row between a leading-in loading chamber 110 and a trailing-out loading chamber 120. The first and second process chambers 200 </ b> A and 200 </ b> B are connected to both sides of some of the transfer chambers 410 to adopt an in-line method in which the substrate transfer and unit processes are performed in a row as a whole. At this time, since the two substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4 can be loaded into the internal spaces of the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B, the unit process for one substrate G1 / G2 is performed. In the meantime, it is possible to perform a preliminary preparation for the unit process for the other substrate G3 / G4.

The carry-in chamber 110 plays a role of receiving the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 that have finished a predetermined preceding process in an atmospheric pressure state, and carrying them into the vacuum-state transfer chamber 400. The substrate G1, G2, G3, and G4 that have completed the unit process are received from the transfer chamber 400, and the substrate G1, G2, G3, and G4 are carried out in an atmospheric pressure state for the subsequent process. For this reason, the carry-in chamber 110 and the carry-out chamber 120 are configured to be able to switch between an atmospheric pressure state and a vacuum state. Although not shown, the carry-in chamber 110 and the carry-out chamber 120 may be connected to a substrate carrying unit such as a robot arm and a substrate stacking unit such as a substrate cassette.

The transfer chamber 400 is connected to the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B and is connected between the distribution chamber 410 for distributing the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 and the adjacent distribution chambers, and is connected to the substrates G1, G2. , G3, G4 are provided with a buffer chamber 420 that temporarily stands by. At this time, the buffer chamber 420 provides a temporary space where the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 stay for a while in order to wait for the process. The distribution chamber 410 is provided with a substrate rotating member (not shown) for rotating the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 to stand in a vertical state or to lie in a horizontal state. By such a substrate rotating member, the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 transferred in a horizontal state from the preceding chamber are set in a vertical state and are put into the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B. The substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 carried out in the vertical state from the second process chambers 200A and 200B are laid in a horizontal state and transferred to the subsequent chambers. For this reason, during the thin film process, the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 can be arranged in a vertical state to suppress the drooping phenomenon of the substrate as much as possible. When the substrate is transported, the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 are arranged in a vertical state and flowed. It is possible to suppress the damage to the substrate as much as possible. Of course, the substrates G 1, G 2, G 3, and G 4 may be arranged in a vertical state when the substrates are transported. In this case, it is not necessary to provide the substrate rotating member in the distribution chamber 410.

On the other hand, the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B are connected to the respective distribution chambers 410 on both sides, and the deposition masks M1 / M3 and M2 are also connected to the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B, respectively. The first and second mask chambers 311/321 and 312/322 for supplying / M4 are connected. In the first and second mask chambers 311/321 and 312/322, vapor deposition masks that are used during the thin film process or exchanged are stored. Of course, since the first and second mask chambers 311/321 and 312/322 may be shared, each of the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B has only one shared mask chamber. It may be connected.

Further, the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B connected to the same distribution chamber 410 are configured to perform the same unit process, and the first and second process chambers connected to the distribution chambers arranged in a row. The process chambers 211/221/231/241/251/261, 212/222/232/242/252/262 are configured to perform a series of device processes on the substrate. For example, in this embodiment, a hole injection layer (HIL), a hole transport layer (HTL), and a light emitting layer (Emitting) are formed on a substrate G on which an anode (anode) is formed on the outside. A material layer (EML), an electron transport layer (ETL), an electron injection layer (EIL), and a cathode (cathode) are configured to form an organic light emitting device stacked in this order. . For this purpose, the first distribution chamber is connected to first and second process chambers 211 and 212 for forming a hole injection layer, and the second distribution chamber is formed with a hole transport layer. First and second process chambers 221 and 222 are connected to each other. The third distribution chamber is connected to first and second process chambers 231 and 232 for forming a light emitting layer, and the fourth distribution chamber is connected to a first distribution chamber for forming an electron transport layer. And the second process chambers 241 and 242 are connected. Further, the fifth distribution chamber is connected to first and second process chambers 251 and 252 for forming an electron injection layer, and the sixth transfer chamber is connected to first and second process chambers for forming a cathode. The second process chambers 261 and 262 are connected. At this time, the first and second chambers 231 and 232 for forming the light emitting layer form blue (B), green (G) and red (R) light emitting layers in order to realize a natural color. A plurality of chambers 231a / 231b, 231c, 232a / 232b / 232c, and the first and second chambers 261 and 262 for forming a cathode are a plurality of chambers for forming a cathode having a multilayer structure. 261a / 261b, 261c, 262a / 262b / 262c may be provided.

Each of the process chambers 200A and 200B is manufactured in a rectangular box shape, and a predetermined reaction space capable of processing the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 is provided therein. In the reaction space, first and second substrate holders 520/620, 530/630 for holding the substrates G1, G2, G3, G4 in a vertical state are provided apart from each other, and the first and second substrates are provided. Injection units 540 and 640 are provided between the holders 520/620 and 530/630. In each of the process chambers 200A and 200B, first and second gates 511/611 and 512/612, which are connected to the distribution chamber 410 and into which the substrate G is loaded or unloaded, are formed apart from each other. At this time, the first and second gates 511/611, 512/612 may be formed of slit valves.

Each of the first and second substrate holders 520/620, 530/630 holds the substrate G1, G2, G3, G4, a holding base 521, and is provided on the holding base 521 to fix the substrate G. And a temperature controller 523 for controlling the temperature of the substrate. The temperature controller 523 is provided in or below the holding table 521 so that the substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4 placed on the holding table 521 are maintained at a temperature suitable for performing the process. To control. Such temperature control means 521 may be composed of a combination of at least one of a cooling means for cooling the substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4 and a heating means for heating the substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4. Good. In this embodiment, a cooling channel is formed in the body of the holding table 521, and the temperature of the substrate is kept constant at the process temperature, so that the vapor deposition material deposited on the upper surfaces of the substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4. Increase reactivity with.

The clamp 522 holds the periphery of the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4, thereby preventing the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 placed on the holding table 521 from flowing during the process. In this embodiment, in order to regulate the thin film pattern formed on the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4, the deposition masks M1, M2, M3, and M4 are formed on the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4. Therefore, the clamp 522 is preferably configured to fix the substrates G1, G2, G3, and G4 and the vapor deposition masks M1, M2, M3, and M4 on the holding table 521.

The injection units 540 and 640 are provided between the first and second substrate holders 520/620 and 530/630 and are vaporized toward the first substrate holder or toward the second substrate holder. Spray the raw material. At this time, although not shown, each of the injection units 540 and 640 includes a crucible in which the raw material is stored, a heating unit that vaporizes the raw material, and an injection unit that sprays the vaporized raw material. The spray structure has any one of a dot shape, a line shape, and a planar shape. For example, in this embodiment, a linear vapor deposition source 540 in which a large number of point vapor deposition sources are arranged in a line is used, and such linear vapor deposition sources 540 and 640 are left and right by a reciprocating drive member (not shown). The source material is sprayed uniformly over the entire area of the substrates G1, G2, G3 and G4 while reciprocating.

In particular, the injection units 540 and 640 according to this embodiment rotate 180 ° with respect to the first substrate holders 520 and 620 and spray the raw material toward the second substrate holders 530 and 630, or vice versa. In addition, the material material is sprayed toward the first substrate holders 520 and 620 by rotating 180 °. Thereby, the thin film process with respect to many board | substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4 provided in the both sides inside the single chamber 200A or 200B can be sequentially performed using one injection unit.

The thin film deposition process using the thin film deposition system configured as described above will be briefly described below with reference to FIG.

First, the substrate G on which the anode is formed through the preceding process is carried into the carry-in chamber 110 in an atmospheric pressure state, and the inside of the carry-in chamber 110 is switched to a vacuum state. Next, the substrate G in a vacuum state is sequentially transferred to a plurality of transfer chambers 410 and 420 connected to the carry-in chamber 110 in a row, and each process chamber connected to some transfer chambers, that is, the distribution chamber 410. The unit process is carried out in the 211/221/231/241/251/261 and 212/222/232/242/252/262. That is, the substrate G is sequentially put into the hole injection layer forming chambers 211 and 212, the hole transport layer forming chambers 221 and 222, and the light emitting layer forming chambers 231 and 232 in a vacuum state. Thereby, a hole injection layer, a hole transport layer, and a light emitting layer are formed in this order on the anode of the substrate G. Thereafter, the substrate G is sequentially put into the electron transport layer forming chambers 241 and 242, the electron injection layer forming chambers 251 and 252, and the cathode forming chambers 261 and 262. As a result, an electron transport layer, an electron injection layer, and a multilayer cathode are formed on the light emitting layer of the substrate G to manufacture an organic light emitting device. Thereafter, the substrate G that has completed the element process is transferred to the carry-out chamber 120 and carried out to the outside in an atmospheric pressure state.

Meanwhile, in the thin film deposition process, the substrate G is transported in a vertical state or a horizontal state, and the thin film process is performed in the vertical state. At this time, when the substrate is transferred in a horizontal state, a process of switching the horizontal substrate G to the vertical state in each transfer chamber 410 is necessary. Hereinafter, a process of performing the unit process by switching the substrate G in the horizontal state to the vertical state will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. Here, FIGS. 3 to 8 are plan views for explaining a unit process of the thin film deposition system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

First, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the first and second substrates G1 and G2 in the horizontal state are switched to the vertical state after being loaded into the distribution chamber 410, and the first and second steps. After being carried into the chambers 200A and 200B, they are fixed to the respective substrate holders 520 and 630. At this time, the transfer of the first and second substrates G1 and G2 may be performed simultaneously, or may be performed with a predetermined time difference. Next, deposition masks M1 and M2 are provided from mask chambers 311 and 322 connected to the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B, respectively. The provided deposition masks M1 and M2 are first and second deposition chambers. It is arranged in front of the deposition surfaces of the substrates G1 and G2. Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the injection units 540 and 640 are positioned so that the injection directions of the injection units 540 and 640 face the vapor deposition surfaces of the first and second substrates G <b> 1 and G <b> 2. The first thin film process is performed on the first and second substrates G1 and G2 by spraying the vaporized raw material on the deposition surfaces of the second substrates G1 and G2.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the third and fourth substrates G3 and G4 are carried into the distribution chamber 410 during the first thin film process. The third and fourth substrates G3 and G4 are switched to a vertical state in the distribution chamber 410, and are fixed to the respective substrate holders 520 and 630 after being loaded into the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B. Is done. Next, deposition masks M3 and M4 are provided from mask chambers 312 and 321 connected to the first and second process chambers 200A and 200B, respectively, and the provided deposition masks M3 and M4 are third and fourth. It is arranged in front of the deposition surface of the substrates G3 and G4. As described above, it is preferable that the operation of carrying in / fixing the third and fourth substrates G3 and G4 and the arrangement / alignment operation of the vapor deposition masks M3 and M4 for this purpose are performed during the first thin film process. For this reason, the waiting time for performing the next second thin film process can be shortened to increase productivity.

Next, as shown in FIG. 7, when the first thin film process is completed, the injection directions of the injection units 540 and 640 are rotated 180 ° in the opposite direction. Accordingly, when the vapor deposition surfaces of the third and fourth substrates G3 and G4 and the spraying direction of the spray units 540 and 640 face each other, the vapor deposition of the third and fourth substrates G3 and G4 via the spray units 540 and 640 is performed. A second thin film process is performed on the third and fourth substrates G3 and G4 by spraying a vaporized source material on the surface.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the vapor deposition masks M1 and M2 are removed from the first and second substrates G1 and G2 that have completed the first thin film process during the second thin film process, and vapor deposition is performed. The first and second substrates G1, G2 from which the masks M1, M2 have been removed are further carried into the distribution chamber 410. Next, after the first and second substrates G1 and G2 are switched to a horizontal state in the distribution chamber 410, the first and second substrates G1 and G2 are sequentially transferred to a subsequent process chamber that is transported horizontally and performs a series of element processes. Thus, it is preferable to carry out the operation of carrying out / separating the first and second substrates G1, G2 and the operation of removing the vapor deposition masks M1, M2 used at this time while performing the second thin film process. Thereby, the waiting time for performing the next first thin film process can be shortened and the productivity can be increased.

On the other hand, the deposition masks M1, M2, M3, and M4 used in the first and second thin film processes remain in the chamber and are used in the next thin film process, and exchange factors such as contamination and damage occur. Are transferred to the mask chambers 311, 312, 313 and 314 associated with the vapor deposition masks M 1, M 2, M 3 and M 4 and taken out to the atmosphere. Thereafter, the vapor deposition mask is reused through operations such as cleaning and repair. Of course, extra vapor deposition masks used in exchange for the vapor deposition masks used in the mask chambers 311, 312, 313, and 314 are stored, and the process interruption time during the exchange operation can be minimized.

As described above, in the thin film deposition system according to the embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of process chambers 200A and 200B that perform the same process are connected to both sides of the transfer chamber 400, so that a plurality of substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4 are connected. The thin film process can be performed in parallel to increase the process speed. In addition, the process chamber 200A or 200B is provided with a single injection unit 540, 640 for sequentially spraying the raw material toward the multiple substrate holders 520/530, 620/630, thereby providing a single injection unit 540. , 640 to sequentially perform thin film processes on a large number of substrates G1 / G2 and G3 / G4, thereby reducing both cost and productivity. Further, the process chamber 200A or 200B is provided with a large number of process means 520/530, 620/630 on both sides of the process chamber, so that a preparatory work for the remaining other processes while a certain process is performed, for example, Substrate loading / fixing operations and deposition mask placement / alignment operations can be performed, and post-sorting operations such as substrate unloading / separation operations and deposition mask removal operations can be performed. As a result, overall work waiting time can be shortened and productivity can be greatly increased.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated based on embodiment mentioned above and attached drawing, this invention is not limited to this, It is limited by the claim which is mentioned later. Therefore, those who have ordinary knowledge in this technical field can variously modify and modify the present invention without departing from the technical idea of the claims to be described later.

Claims (12)

A transfer chamber in which a substrate is transferred;
First and second process chambers respectively coupled to both sides of the transfer chamber;
With
Each of the first and second process chambers includes first and second substrate holders provided to be spaced apart from each other;
An injection unit that is provided between the first and second substrate holders and sequentially supplies the deposition raw material toward the first and second substrate holders;
A thin film deposition apparatus comprising: The thin film deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first and second substrate holders hold the substrate in a vertical state. The thin film deposition apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the transfer chamber is provided with a substrate rotating member that rotates the substrate to stand in a vertical state or lies in a horizontal state. The thin film deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the spray unit is rotatable between a first substrate holder and a second substrate holder. The thin film deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the spray unit has a spray structure of any one of a dotted shape, a linear shape, and a planar shape. Each of the first and second process chambers includes:
2. The thin film deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the first and second substrate holders is provided with a deposition mask or connected to a mask chamber for exchanging the deposition mask. A number of transfer chambers connected in a row to transfer substrates;
First and second process chambers respectively coupled to both sides of at least one of the plurality of transfer chambers;
With
Each of the first and second process chambers includes:
First and second substrate holders provided apart from each other;
An injection unit that is provided between the first and second substrate holders and sequentially supplies the deposition raw material toward the first and second substrate holders;
A thin film deposition system comprising: The multiple transfer chambers are:
A plurality of distribution chambers connected to the first and second process chambers for distributing substrates;
A number of buffer chambers connected between adjacent distribution chambers and temporarily waiting for a substrate;
A thin film deposition system according to claim 7. Among the multiple transfer chambers, a loading chamber connected to the tip and loaded with a substrate from the outside,
Of the multiple transfer chambers, an unloading chamber connected to the rear end and unloading the substrate to the outside;
A thin film deposition system according to claim 7. The thin film deposition system according to claim 7, wherein the first and second substrate holders hold the substrate in a vertical state. The thin film deposition system according to claim 7, wherein the transfer chamber is provided with a substrate rotating member that rotates the substrate to stand in a vertical state or lies in a horizontal state. The thin film deposition system according to claim 7, wherein the spray unit is rotatable between a first substrate holder and a second substrate holder.